‘Raise Voice For Release Of Er Rashid,’ AIP Appeals To MPsFrance celebrated the re-opening of Notre Dame cathedral on Saturday at a special church service that featured a standing ovation for the firefighters who saved the 12th-century landmark from destruction during a 2019 blaze. A two-hour service attended by incoming US president Donald Trump among other world leaders began with the archbishop of Paris knocking on the doors of the cathedral three times. "Notre Dame, model of faith, open your doors to bring together the far-flung children of God in joy," archbishop Laurent Ulrich commanded, banging with a wooden staff crafted from a roof beam that survived the inferno five years ago. Trump could be seen sitting on the front row as guest of honour next to French President Emmanuel Macron, with invitees marvelling at the freshly cleaned walls, new furniture and state-of-the-art lighting installed as part of the overhaul. In a short speech, Macron expressed the "gratitude of the French nation" for the restoration work, achieved at frenzied speed over the last five years. France had "rediscovered what great nations can do -- achieve the impossible", he said. One of the most moving moments came when firefighters in their protective gear walked through the congregation to thunderous applause as the word "Merci" ("Thank you") was beamed on the intricate facade and famous belltowers of the Gothic masterpiece. Small crowds of Parisians and tourists braved wet weather and high winds outside to witness the renaissance of a monument, which came close to collapsing due to the intensity of the inferno that toppled its roof and spire. "I find it really beautiful, even more so now that the spire has been restored," Marie Jean, a 27-year-old dentist from southwest France, told AFP outside. The reconstruction effort cost around 700 million euros ($750 million), financed from donations, with the re-opening achieved within a five-year deadline despite predictions it could take decades. Workers had to overcome problems with lead pollution, the Covid-19 epidemic, and the army general overseeing the project falling to his death while hiking in the Pyrenees last year. Saturday's service featured classical music, the cathedral's choir as well as the "re-awakening" of the 8,000-pipe organ which is considered the voice and soul of the cathedral. A televised public concert planned outside featuring Chinese piano virtuoso Lang Lang and possibly US singer and fashion designer Pharrell Williams had to be pre-recorded on Friday night because of the stormy weather. Held up as an example of French creativity and resilience by Macron, Notre Dame's renaissance so soon after the fire comes at a difficult time for the country. The sense of national accomplishment in restoring a symbol of Paris has been undercut by political turmoil that has left France without a proper government since last week when prime minister Michel Barnier lost a confidence vote. Macron is hoping the re-opening might provide a fleeting sense of national pride and unity -- as the Paris Olympics did in July and August. He scored a major coup by attracting Trump along with around 40 heads of state and government, including Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, who was given a round of applause as he entered Notre Dame. Macron hosted three-way talks with Zelensky and Trump at the presidential palace shortly before the ceremony, with future US military support for Ukraine's war effort against Russia's invasion expected to have been discussed. Trump has vowed to end the nearly three-year Ukraine war when he takes office on January 20, sparking fears in Kyiv that he will force Ukraine to make territorial concessions to Russia. "It seems like the world is going a little crazy right now and we will be talking about that," Trump told reporters as he prepared to sit down for talks with Macron. One surprising absentee on Saturday was Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church. He sent a message addressed to the French people and weighed into a row about whether the place of worship and tourist attraction should remain free to enter. The "immense" numbers set to visit Notre Dame should be welcomed "generously and free of charge", he said, clearly opposing a proposition from the French culture ministry to charge for entry. The exact cause of the 2019 blaze has never been identified despite a forensic investigation by prosecutors, who believe an accident such as an electrical fault was the most likely reason. On Sunday, the first mass with 170 bishops and more than 100 Paris priests will take place at 10:30 am (0930 GMT), followed by a second service in the evening at 6:30 pm which will be open to the public. adp-sjw/jj
A s I write, there’s a window on my laptop screen that is providing a live view of a stampede. It’s logging the numbers of people joining the social network Bluesky . At the moment, the number of registered users is 20.5 million. By the time you read this there will be more than 30 million of them, judging by the rate that people are currently joining. The proximate cause of it is the role that Elon Musk, owner of X (née Twitter), played in the election of Donald Trump, when a significant proportion of the platform’s 200 million-plus users realised that they’d been had – that they had, in effect, been useful idiots for Musk on his path to the centre of political power. There had been an “Xodus” once before – in October 2022, when Musk took over Twitter – as people fled to a new, open-source network called Mastodon , but it was on a much smaller scale. At its peak in November 2022 it had 2.5 million users, but that number has dropped to just under 1 million now. The stampede to Bluesky is on an altogether bigger scale. The puzzle, in a way, is why it took so long for the penny to drop; after all, many X users have been hostile to Musk for quite a while. The answer, in a nutshell, was network effects. They may not have liked the platform, but that’s where everyone was. “Twitter was the place people in my business had to be,” wrote the Nobel laureate and economist Paul Krugman. “What I used Twitter for was to learn from and interact with people possessing real expertise, sometimes in areas I know pretty well, sometimes in areas I don’t, like international relations and climate policy.” But now Krugman is on Bluesky because, he says, it has suddenly “reached critical mass, in the sense that most of the people I want to hear from are now posting there. The raw number of users is still far smaller than X’s, but as far as I can tell, Bluesky is now the place to find smart, useful analysis.” I stopped using Twitter when Musk bought it, tried Mastodon (and was unimpressed) and only recently joined Bluesky. At the moment, it feels eerily like Twitter in its very early days, when the platform enabled one to plug straight into the thought-streams of people one admired. “For now,” as web veteran Ian Bogost put it last week, “Bluesky invokes the feeling of carefree earnestness that once – really and truly – blanketed the internet as a whole.” It does. What’s distinctive about it? Four things. Unlike Mastodon, it’s as easy as Twitter to use. There’s no overall algorithmic curation – you can “roll your own feed”, as someone put it – decide who you want to hear from. Every user is entitled to “free speech” but nobody gets “free reach” via a profit-driven algorithm. And finally, it runs on an open technical protocol that’s accessible to anyone; the underlying philosophy is that social networking is too important for any one company to control it. So anyone with the requisite technical smarts could set up their own network using the protocol. This doesn’t mean that network effects lose their power, but it could be that the momentum of the stampede away from X, plus the power of an open protocol, means that we are seeing the beginning of the “splintering of social media ”. If this has the effect of eroding the monopolistic grip on people’s attention currently enjoyed by Meta, X, LinkedIn and TikTok, then it’ll be a welcome development. At least people will then be freer to choose their favourite hypnotist. But it won’t solve the bigger problem – which is what social media is doing to us and to our societies. The technology is at worst toxic and at best disabling for a democracy’s public sphere. Humans are a social species, but – as Robin Dunbar pointed out aeons ago – there’s a cognitive limit (about 150) to the number of people with whom one can maintain stable social relationships, and it mostly boils down to around 15 souls with whom one has meaningful exchanges. As a species, we didn’t evolve to be constantly talking to everyone. Addiction to social media, though – as Ian Bogost points out – means that we have to pay attention to the multitudes that turn up in our algorithmically curated feeds. Bluesky may make those feeds more congenial, but it won’t change the fact that we are still reduced to communicating in channels with a bandwidth not much wider than that of smoke signals. Here’s where we went wrong Voters to Elites: Do You See Me Now? Interesting New York Times column by David Brooks. It’s a conservative’s apologia pro vita sua . What Decca did next Jessica Mitford’s Escape from Fascism. A nice essay by Noah McCormack in the New Republic on Mitford’s book Hons and Rebels . Things to come What the future looks like from here. Dave Karpf’s perceptive and realistic list of the consequences of Trump’s victory.Salman Khan (born on December 27, 1965) celebrates his 59th birthday today. Known as the Bhaijaan of Bollywood, Salman began his acting career with a supporting role in Biwi Ho To Aisi (1988). The following year, he landed his first leading role in the romantic blockbuster Maine Pyar Kiya (1989), which catapulted him to stardom and earned him the title of Bollywood's heartthrob. On his special day, if you're a true fan of this iconic actor, here’s a collection of the best HD birthday wishes and greetings to celebrate his legacy. Salman Khan Birthday: From ‘Mere Rang Mein Rangne Wali’ to ‘Jaanam Samjha Karo’, Hit Songs of Bollywood’s Heartthrob That Continue to Rule Fans’ Playlists! Download Salman Khan HD Birthday Messages From heartfelt messages to simple birthday greetings, we've got you covered. You can easily download these beautifully written wishes and share them on social media. Trust us, these Salman Khan birthday messages are the best and will definitely help you stand out. Check out the HD birthday wishes and texts for Salman Khan we've curated just for you! Happy 59th Birthday to Bollywood’s Bhaijaan! Happy Birthday Salman Khan Images and HD Wallpapers for Free Download, Photos and Pictures to Share on WhatsApp . Meanwhile, on the professional front, Salman Khan was recently seen making a cameo appearance in Varun Dhawan’s Baby John . Fans can look forward to seeing him in a lead role soon in Sikandar . (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 27, 2024 12:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com ).AP Sports SummaryBrief at 3:45 p.m. EST
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HEICO Corporation ( NYSE: HEI ) Q4 2024 Earnings Call Transcript December 18, 2024 9:00 AM ET Company Participants Laurans Mendelson - Chairman and CEO Eric Mendelson - Co-President & President of Flight Support Group Victor Mendelson - Co-President & President of Electronic Technologies Group Carlos Macau - EVP and CFO Conference Call Participants Larry Solow - CJS Securities Scott Mikus - Melius Research Ken Herbert - RBC Capital Markets Gautam Khanna - TD Cowen Sheila Kahyaoglu - Jefferies Scott Deuschle - Deutsche Bank Noah Poponak - Goldman Sachs Michael Ciarmoli - Truist Securities Pete Skibitski - Alembic Global David Strauss - Barclays Ron Epstein - Bank of America Louis Raffetto - Wolfe Research Operator Welcome to the HEICO Corporation Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial Results Call. My name is Samara, and I will be your operator for today's call. Certain statements in this conference call will constitute forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties, and contingencies. HEICO's actual results may differ materially from those expressed in or implied by those forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause such differences include the severity, magnitude and duration of public health threats, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; HEICO's liquidity and the amount and timing of cash generation; lower commercial air travel, airline fleet changes or airline purchasing decisions, which could cause lower demand for our goods and services; product specification costs and requirements, which could cause an increase to our costs to complete contracts; governmental and regulatory demands, export policies and restrictions, reductions in defense, space or homeland security spending by US and/or foreign customers or competition from existing and new competitors, which could reduce our sales; our ability to introduce new products and services at profitable pricing levels, which could reduce our sales or sales growth; product development or manufacturing difficulties, which could increase our product development and manufacturing costs and delay sales; cybersecurity events or other disruptions of our information technology systemsThe Birmingham Bowl will see Haynes King and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets heading into a showdown with the Vanderbilt Commodores on Friday, December 27, 2024. Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Find out how to watch this matchup on ESPN in the article below. Watch college football live without cable. Stream ACC, SEC, ESPN and more with Fubo. What is Fubo? Fubo is a streaming service that gives you access to your favorite live sports and shows on demand. Sign up today and start watching college football games right now. Stop missing games and start streaming college football right now on Fubo. Stop missing games and start streaming college football right now on ESPN+. Get tickets for any college football game this season at Ticketmaster. Rep your favorite players with officially licensed gear. Head to Fanatics to find jerseys, shirts, hats, and much more.
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In a world context marked by the war in Ukraine, the genocide in Palestine, the return of Donald Trump to the White House and the emergence of a new Right, the debates on war and imperialism, notions that seemed to have been filed in the drawer of memories by a large part of critical theories, are coming back to the forefront. But what do we mean when we speak of imperialism, and what is the relationship between imperialism and capitalism? What is the centrality of the anti-imperialist struggle for socialist strategy in the 21st century? On all these issues, there are important divisions on the Left. In what follows, we will focus in particular on some recent debates. On the one hand, there are those who argue that the Marxist theory of imperialism is obsolete, either because of the transformations of capitalism at the global level, or because it has always been wrong. For Vivek Chibber, editor of Catalyst Magazine and other authors of Jacobin Magazine, it isn’t necessary to build an “anti-imperialist Left,” but the key is to develop “class struggle at home” around “bread and butter” demands, namely, the elementary economic demands of the working class. From another angle, there are those who emphasize the inequalities between the “Global South” and the “Global North” while considering China and Russia as new axes of support for the struggle against imperialism. While the former seeks to recreate a kind of “welfare chauvinism,” the latter “Global South” positions denounce Western imperialism, but align themselves with other powers with strong imperialist traits. In the following, we will address some of these debates, in a counterpoint with Vivek Chibber and John Bellamy Foster. The first position is the one defended by the editors of Jacobin magazine in the United States, a magazine linked to the DSA (Democratic Socialist of America). In several articles, such as here and here , Matías Maiello polemicizes with the recovery of Karl Kautsky’s work by these authors and points out that there is no struggle for socialism without anti-imperialism. The debate is not secondary. In an interview published in the Jacobin Review , Vivek Chibber argued that the theory of imperialism developed by Lenin in his classic pamphlet “Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism” was wrong. For Chibber, as far as this question is concerned, the “Leninist legacy produced much damage” in the Marxist left. His arguments can be synthesized as follows: 1) imperialism must be distinguished from capitalism, to confuse them would be a serious mistake; 2) the idea that capitalism entered a “new stage” characterized by monopolies is wrong; 3) the thesis that the confrontation between “rich countries” would be a constant in the following decades was “spectacularly wrong”; 4) Kautsky was right with his theory of ultra-imperialism when he “predicted that what there would be would be cooperation between capitalist countries, not competition”; 5) Lenin’s errors led to a mistaken position on “bourgeois revolutions” in countries like China and others, which gave rise to support for “anti-feudal” or “anti-imperialist” bourgeois nationalist sectors; and 6) there never existed a “labor aristocracy” in the central countries. Chibber artificially separates imperialism from capitalism , as if the former referred only to the “aggressions” of some nations over others, and the latter to economic or class relations. On that basis, he concludes that anti-imperialism means nothing more than “collective action in your country against militarism and aggression by your government against other countries, and convincing your working class that its material interests are tied to the de-escalation of conflict and the demilitarization of its own state.” We will return to these conclusions, but first let us address their foundations. The Marxist theory of imperialism, developed by Lenin, Luxemburg, and Trotsky, among others, is precisely counter to the idea that imperialism was a “militaristic excess” of some states, which could be contained by diplomatic means, as if wars between powers or colonial plunder were not inscribed in the tendencies of capitalism itself. In this sense, taking up the studies of Hilferding and other Marxist authors on financial capital, Lenin defined that the transformation of “free competition” capitalism into monopoly capitalism had given rise to a new stage of development of the capitalist system, its imperialist stage. And that this opened the way to an epoch marked by the tendency to wars, crises, and also revolutions. Chibber, like other authors, centered his criticisms of Lenin’s theory of imperialism on the definitions of his classic pamphlet “Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism,” focused above all on the economic dynamics of monopoly capitalism and on the inter-imperialist contradictions. While authors like Bellamy Foster rightly point out that to “understand the complex theoretical and historical issues involved” in this theory, one must put this work “in relation to his entire body of writings on imperialism from 1916-1920,” where the political elements and the question of national oppression have much more weight. In the Second International, the debate on imperialism divided the waters between Marxists and revisionists. At the beginning of the 20th century, the sector headed by Bernstein came to propose that there was a progressive, civilizing colonialism, and that there could even be a “socialist colonialism.” These positions were not in the majority and were rejected by different socialist congresses, which approved internationalist resolutions in the face of the possibility of the outbreak of a world war. At that time, Kautsky was still in the left-wing of the International. However, the chauvinist positions were becoming increasingly more pervasive in the leadership of the social democratic parties, gaining a foothold among the trade union bureaucracies and the labor aristocracy. From 1910 onwards, Kautsky moved towards centrist positions that diluted the struggle against imperialism and conciliated with the reformist and social chauvinist wing. Kautsky–as Chibber now proposes–in his analysis of imperialism, separated militarist tendencies from economic tendencies. He argued that capitalist expansion into new regions could be carried out by violent as well as peaceful means. He asserted that “imperialist methods,” which involved clash and confrontation between powers, were more a hindrance than a foothold for capitalist development, so that the capitalists themselves would seek ways to “coordinate” on an international scale. On this basis, Kautsky formulated the theory of “ultra-imperialism.” Just as capitalism had given rise to monopolies, these could give rise to the “cartelization” of the foreign policy of the states. That is to say, a phase that would not be marked by geopolitical and military confrontation between powers, but by their unification in a “Holy Alliance.” Remarkably, the article in which Kautsky formulated these ideas was published in September 1914, a few weeks after the outbreak of the First World War. We need hardly recall that what followed was not anything like greater concord among the states, but several years of imperialist carnage. The brutal tendencies towards military clashes between powers would explode again on a new scale in the Second World War. Yet, even after the whole 20th century passed with two world wars and was plagued by regional wars, Chibber affirms that Lenin was wrong, since from the 1950s onwards, the world had become “more Kautskyan.” However, in the postwar years, what there was was not an “ultra-imperialist” tendency toward harmony among the powers, but a “ Pax Americana” imposed after the defeat of the Axis powers (with the end of the war being a huge demonstration of imperial power with the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki). The post-war “boom,” which followed the previous enormous destruction of productive forces, was not the beginning of a new “ultra-imperialist” epoch as Kautsky announced. The pact with the Stalinist bureaucracy at Yalta and Potsdam allowed imperialism to avoid the danger of revolution in the capitalist center for an entire period (not so in the periphery) and to postpone the confrontations between powers. But that would not last forever. That post-war order was questioned on all its flanks at the end of the 1960s, with a profound workers’ and popular upsurge in the central countries, the capitalist periphery, and the countries behind the “iron curtain” (which was combined with the economic crisis from 1973 onwards). The defeats and deviations of these processes gave way to the neoliberal period, the leap in the internationalization of value chains, and the formation of an Atlanticist global order from which all major powers benefited for several decades. Now, was this the proof that Kautsky was right, that as a result of the internationalization of capital a harmonization of the interests of the powers had been achieved in an “ultra-imperialism”? The disputes between the imperialist states were partially suspended during the period of “globalization,” even with the formation of supranational structures such as the WTO, the European Union, or free trade agreements between regional blocs. But that does not mean that contradictions were eliminated. Chibber confuses here American hegemony (undisputed for a long period) with the historical overcoming of the imperialist epoch. And although the tendencies to clash between powers were largely contained since the second post-war period (there was no new world war), the current crisis of the neoliberal order poses its actualization in a violent way. Chibber’s timing for the defense of the thesis of “ultra-imperialism” does not seem much better than that of Kautsky. At present, it is not difficult to recognize the leap towards greater conflagrations between rival powers, with the return of war to European territory. Mainstream analysts write in the latest Foreign Affairs Magazine about a dynamic towards what they call a “total war,” with Donald Trump’s upcoming presidency adding uncertainty to the global outlook. Imperialism’s warmongering tendencies are also on display in the Middle East, with the brutal genocide in Palestine, Israel’s invasion of Lebanon, and Israel’s escalation with Iran. In Gaza, Netanyahu has deployed old-school colonial violence with state-of-the-art weapons provided by the U.S., Germany, and others. Now, Israel’s massacres and the complicity of Western powers have generated a wave of outrage and solidarity with the Palestinian cause not seen for decades. In the streets and on university campuses in the U.S., UK, France, and Spain, a massive youth movement emerged in support of the Palestinian people and against Zionist crimes. Hundreds of thousands of young people point the finger at their own imperialist governments as accomplices of genocide. In the United States, this led many to break politically with the Democratic Party and “ Genocide Joe,” and refuse to support Kamala Harris as the “lesser evil,” as Bernie Sanders or Alexandra Ocasio Cortez called for. Those who believe that the socialist Left in the U.S. can recreate itself with one foot in and one foot out of the Democratic Party, like Jacobin ‘s editors and DSA leaders suggest, are opposed to fighting for an anti-imperialist Left. The theory of ultra-imperialism served Kautsky to reconcile positions with the chauvinist wing of social democracy, which closed ranks with its own bourgeoisie in the war. It enables Chibber to continue to harbor illusions that the Democrats can be a progressive alternative, should they decide to take up the “bread and butter” agenda to seduce the working class. Let us now return to Chibber’s conclusions about what “anti-imperialism” means. In the interview with Jacobin , he states that it would be to push for “collective action in your country against your government’s militarism and aggression against other countries, and convincing your working class that their material interests are bound up with the de-escalation of conflict and the demilitarization of their own state.” In other words, it would be a matter of demanding, on a national level, that less money be allocated to military budgets, to be reinvested in schools and hospitals. This policy, while partially correct, when considered in isolation from a consistent anti-imperialist program, has enormous contradictions. In the first place, it seeks to obtain partial improvements for a sector of the working class in the central countries, without questioning the imperialist oppression of the semicolonial and dependent peoples. In the United States, paradoxically, it has been Donald Trump who has questioned the billionaire funds destined to the war in Ukraine, demagoguing that these funds should be dedicated to “making America great again.” Second, he generates illusions that militaristic tendencies and greater clashes between powers can be moderated with a little union pressure. And, finally, he believes that all of this would be possible with a Democratic government, if it were to adopt some old-fashioned social-democratic policies. In a recent article, John Bellamy Foster puts forward in a very suggestive way that: It is a sign of the depth of the structural crisis of capital in our time that not since the onset of the First World War and the dissolution of the Second International — during which nearly all of the European social democratic parties joined the inter-imperialist war on the side of their respective nation-states — has the split on imperialism on the left taken on such serious dimensions. He finds that “the gap between the views of imperialism held by the Western left and those of revolutionary movements in the Global South is wider than at any time in the last century.” He goes on to list some of the (contradictory) ideas that characterize what he defines as a Eurocentric Left. These include the denial of national oppression by imperialism and the idea that imperialism “is simply a political policy of aggression of one state against another” as we have already seen in the case of Chibber. This is also often accompanied by the justification of a “humanitarian imperialism aimed at protecting human rights.” He also notes the idea that “imperialist rivalry and exploitation between nations has been displaced by global class struggles within a fully globalized transnational capitalism,” or, in other occasions, the idea that “economic imperialism has been ‘reversed’ with the Global East/South now exploiting the Global West/North.” In the article, Bellamy Foster traces various debates on the Marxist Left about imperialism in the 20th century, from the Second and Third Internationals, to the elaborations of dependency theory, world-system theory, the cultural turn of the post-colonial left, and the more contemporary debates on global value chains and uneven development. He rightly points out that at the heart of all Eurocentric positions is the negation of Engels’ and Lenin’s theses on the labor aristocracy. In response, he responds that “existence of a labor aristocracy at some level is difficult to deny on any realistic basis.” As an example, he points out that the AFL-CIO leadership has historically been linked to the military-industrial complex in the United States and “has worked with the CIA throughout the post-Second World War era to repress progressive unions throughout the Global South, backing the most exploitative regimes.” As part of the “abandonment of the theory of imperialism on the left,” Bellamy Foster mentions among others, Empire by Toni Negri and Michael Hardt; David Harvey’s elaborations on the so-called accumulation by dispossession or the positions of Vivek Chibber, to which we refer. In particular, he argues that Chibber’s attack on the concept of monopoly capital shows “his ignorance of the enormous growth in recent decades in the concentration and centralization of capital associated with successive merger waves, leading to the continuing augmentation of monopoly power, along with the centralization of finance.” Now, while Chibber and other sectors of the Left deny the existence of imperialism from an abstract definition of class, Bellamy Foster tends to make the national question absolute in the periphery, diluting the struggle for class independence in what he calls “the Global South.” Vivek Chibber considers that the “Leninist legacy” has been detrimental to the Left, because in the case of revolutions in the periphery it meant support for the national bourgeoisies, with the idea of “anti-feudal” or “anti-imperialist revolutions.” One of the examples he gives is the support of the Chinese Communist Party to Chiang Kai-shek and his nationalist party, the Kuomintang, during the Revolution of 1925-28. However, what he omits is that there was no continuity between the Marxist theses on imperialism and the policy of Stalinism: the latter took up Menshevik stagism, subordinating the workers vanguard to the leadership of the reactionary Chinese bourgeoisie, which led to the defeat of the revolution. The important lessons on the Chinese Revolution and the opposition to that stagist orientation were the basis for the generalization of the Theory of the Permanent Revolution by Leon Trotsky. For his part, Bellamy Foster correctly questions Chibber for denying the national oppression imposed by imperialism on the “third world” or “Global South.” However, he does so by aligning himself politically with the national bourgeoisies (as in his defense of Chavism) and with China, which is another bloc with a strong dynamic of imperialist development. On this particular issue, he deploys several arguments. On the one hand, he argues that it is wrong to present “the People’s Republic of China as an imperialist (and straightforwardly capitalist) power in the same sense as the United States, disregarding the role of “socialism with Chinese characteristics” and the whole Chinese road to development, as well as processes of unequal exchange.” He goes on to state that China’s foreign policy is geared towards “promoting the self-determination of nations, while opposing bloc geopolitics and military interventions. Beijing’s threefold Global Security Initiative, Global Development Initiative, and Global Civilization Initiative together constitute the leading proposals for world peace in our era.” For Bellamy Foster it would be necessary to stand politically with the “underdeveloped nations” (he includes China among them) against imperialism. He points out that this would not mean “abandoning the class struggle in the core capitalist nations themselves, quite the contrary.” But what about class struggle in the nations of the “global south”? What he proposes is a new stagism of the 21st century, as if imperialism could be confronted without fighting the national bourgeoisies in Latin America, Asia and Africa. It is as if there were a progressive way out of imperialist warmongering, on the basis of the proposals “for world peace” of the authoritarian Chinese government. A Left that leaves aside the struggle against imperialism, as Chibber proposes, is evidently contrary to the increasingly warlike tendencies of the world situation and also of the international movement in solidarity with Palestine. But the struggle against imperialism and capitalism are intertwined, so it is not possible to recreate a socialist and anti-imperialist perspective without class independence. To deepen these debates seems more and more necessary. Originally published in Spanish in La Izquierda Diario . Translated by Sou Mi. Capitalism China Imperialism Karl KautskyThe Christian's Approach To Morality And The 2024 Election - Drew Alan Hall
Every morning, the staff at the Rotorua Blue Lake TOP 10 Holiday Park collect a bag of rubbish from the lakefront carpark. Rotorua Lakes Council removed the public bins from Blue Lake (Tikitapu) in March 2023 and said at the time it was to deter wasps and was on a trial basis. Now, the holiday park's operations manager, Kelsi Hira, said the council should take responsibility for the rubbish her team collects daily every morning and reinstate the bins. She believes the problem will get worse over summer. "We're taking it out of the water too." While the council said it removed the bins for a wasp problem and encouraged people to take home their rubbish, Hira believed it was because it did not want the expense of emptying the bins at the lake. She believed if it was really about waste minimisation and encouraging people to take their rubbish away then other places, such as the Rotorua lakefront, would not have bins either. Hira said the Blue Lake was arguably just as popular with visitors as the lakefront was but, in her view, the council did not take the same pride with Tikitapu. In her opinion: "It's 100 percent cost driven." She said the cost of cleaning up was falling on the holiday park because its bins were filled instead. "We let them ... better to go in a bin than the alternative. "Just annoying we pay for that." Waste that staff collected included takeout rubbish. Used nappies were another common find. It was embarrassing having people come to the area and see that, she said. "We are very aware of the privilege we have being in an area like this and what will happen to a lake like ours if it becomes polluted. "We want to respect the place we have got." She did not feel that the council was listening to her concerns when she made contact through social media. The council later told Local Democracy Reporting, that under its social media policy, people who have a problem to report need to contact its customer service team by phone or email so a request for service can be logged and "the matter can be resolved appropriately". Hira did not believe people would report seeing the uncollected rubbish to the council and so it would not have complaints. She wanted the bins to be reinstated, have more of them than before and for them to be serviced the same as at the town's lakefront. She did not think wasps would be an issue since the council had traps put up, as she had at the park. Council waste and climate change manager Craig Goodwin said there were 11 rubbish-related callouts in the past year. Five were from the public and the rest from staff and contractors in the area. Goodwin said the park had not contacted the council about its concerns but he would "be happy to discuss this with them if they wish". The council's expectation was for the public to take responsibility for their rubbish and where there were no bins to take it home with them or to transfer stations. "While it is not our expectation that people pick up others' rubbish in public spaces, we are very appreciative of those in the community who do help to keep our spaces and our local environment clean and tidy on a voluntary basis. "We work with people and groups that do this regularly and can provide the likes of bags and gloves." He said council staff and contractors in reserves, including Tikitapu, cleaned up when working. "These patrols increase during the summer months." Misuse of public litter bins has increased over the years, he said, including at the Blue Lake, with illegal dumping of household and business waste. "The removal of bins in popular reserves is becoming more common around New Zealand. "In Auckland, all regional parks operate on a 'take your rubbish with you' policy and it is our understanding this has worked well and is strongly supported by the public." Other areas in the district did not have bins and "rubbish is not an issue". These included Te Pūtake o Tawa, the Mountain Bike Hub near Tikitapu, "which is a destination hotspot with hundreds passing through each week". "We know that our community - and visitors to our district - place a high value on our lakes, forest and green spaces and in general care about the environment and keeping it looking great for generations to come." Questions unanswered included whether the impact on businesses was considered when the bins were removed and whether the impact on visitor perception was considered. The council also did not answer how often the bins were serviced before prior to removal or the cost. - LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On AirBy Funto Omojola, NerdWallet Mobile wallets that allow you to pay using your phone have been around for well more than a decade, and over those years they’ve grown in popularity, becoming a key part of consumers’ credit card usage. According to a “state of credit card report” for 2025 from credit bureau Experian, 53% of Americans in a survey say they use digital wallets more frequently than traditional payment methods. To further incentivize mobile wallet usage, some credit card issuers offer bonus rewards when you elect to pay that way. But those incentives can go beyond just higher reward rates. In fact, mobile wallets in some ways are becoming an essential part of activating and holding a credit card. For example, they can offer immediate access to your credit line, and they can be easier and safer than paying with a physical card. OK, but let’s start with bonus rewards From a rewards perspective, it can make a lot of sense to reach for your phone now instead of your physical card. The Apple Card offers its highest reward rates when you use it through the Apple Pay mobile wallet. Same goes for the PayPal Cashback Mastercard® when you use it to make purchases via the PayPal digital wallet. The Kroger grocery store giant has a co-branded credit card that earns the most when you pay using an eligible digital wallet, and some major credit cards with quarterly rotating bonus categories have a history of incentivizing digital wallet use. But again, these days it’s not just about the rewards. Instant credit access Mobile wallets like Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and PayPal can offer immediate access to your credit line while you wait for your physical card to arrive after approval. Indeed, most major issuers including Bank of America®, Capital One and Chase now offer instant virtual credit card numbers for eligible cards that can be used upon approval by adding them to a digital wallet. Additionally, many co-branded credit cards — those offered in partnership with another brand — commonly offer instant card access and can be used immediately on in-brand purchases. Credit cards typically take seven to 10 days to arrive after approval, so instant access to your credit line can be particularly useful if you need to make an urgent or unexpected purchase. Plus, they allow you to start spending toward a card’s sign-up bonus right away. Convenience and safety As issuers push toward mobile payments, a growing number of merchants and businesses are similarly adopting the payment method. The percentage of U.S. businesses that used digital wallets increased to 62% in 2023, compared to 47% the previous year, according to a 2023 survey commissioned by the Federal Reserve Financial Services. Related Articles Business | Event promoters, hotels and lodging sites soon will have to disclose extra fees up front Business | Should you donate your points and miles to charity? Business | Skip the holiday debt by planning before you spend Business | 5 ways to tell if you’re on track for retirement — and 5 things to do if you need to catch up, according to experts Business | The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees Wider acceptance is potentially good news for the average American, who according to Experian has about four credit cards. While that won’t necessarily weigh down your wallet, it can be hard to manage multiple cards and rewards categories at once. Mobile wallets offer a more efficient way to store and organize all of your workhorse cards, while not having to carry around ones that you don’t use often. They can also help you more easily monitor your spending and rewards, and some even track your orders’ status and arrival time. Plus, paying with a digital wallet offers added security. That’s because it uses technology called tokenization when you pay, which masks your real credit card number and instead sends an encrypted “token” that’s unique to each payment. This is unlike swiping or dipping a physical card, during which your credit card number is more directly accessible. And again, because a mobile wallet doesn’t require you to have your physical cards present, there’s less chance of one falling out of your pocket or purse. Funto Omojola writes for NerdWallet. Email: fomojola@nerdwallet.com. The article Activating Your Credit Card? Don’t Skip the Mobile Wallet Step originally appeared on NerdWallet .Pat Riley Says Jimmy Butler Won't Be Traded by Heat, Issues Statement on NBA Rumors
Playing video games is a popular, ever-expanding, and expensive pastime. Not only do you have to buy a pricey console or a gaming PC – or build your own DIY computer – but you also have to spend money on games. Recently, the average price tag increased from $60 to $70. Sure, you can ask someone to buy you one for the holidays, but then you're just hoisting the price onto them. Even when someone wants to support your gaming hobbies, they might want to help you in a more frugal manner. The stocking stuffer is a common gift tradition, especially for those who celebrate Christmas, that focuses on stuffing numerous smaller and cheaper gifts into, well, a stocking. The cheaper and smaller the item, the better. While you can't necessarily stuff a stocking full of video games, there are plenty of video game-related items out there you can purchase for the recipient. These include toys depicting popular video game characters, traditional apparel gifts, and even some of the smallest controllers available on the market. If you need some ideas on what stocking stuffers you can buy for a gamer, continue reading. When it comes to toy guns, it's Nerf or nothin'. The company produces a solid library of foam-based weapons that cater to different audiences, including fans of video games. While plenty of video game-themed Nerf guns are large and expensive, some are basically designed for stockings. Nerf manufactures several lines of small dart guns that sell for $5. While these make decent additions to stockings (but are outperformed by most other Nerf guns) none are themed after video games. If you're shopping for a gamer, you will need to go one size up and purchase a MicroShot. These toys are simple pint-sized pistols that fire one foam dart at a time and are charged by a plunger at the base of the handle. While you can find some MicroShots from Nerf's proprietary brands, most are available in "Minecraft," "Fortnite," and "Roblox" flavors –- perfect for anyone who ever wanted to use an Ender Dragon as a weapon. Depending on how much you are willing to spend on a Nerf gun, you can buy a more specialized video game-themed weapon, such as a "Fortnite" flare gun or a "Minecraft" axe that doubles as a dart launcher. Plus, some Nerf guns come in video game-adjacent themes sure to please gamers, including zombies and dinosaurs. Nerf MicroShots are generally priced around $11.99, but the exact cost and availability depends on the retailer. For instance, Target sells them between $6.39 and $8.99, depending on the model, whereas Amazon prices range from $6.39 to $14.99. Owning stuffed animals is a proud childhood tradition. While many are generic animals such as bears and rabbits, some are designed to look like popular video game characters. Unlike most stuffed animals, these gifts are intended for all ages. Trying to wade through all the companies that produce video game plushies can be time consuming, especially if you're looking for tiny and inexpensive ones perfect for stockings. Usually, a "Pokémon" plush is a safe bet, especially if you buy from the Pokémon Center. The store has plenty of options, and they're all high quality regardless of price. The cheapest items include stuffed backpack clips and small Sitting Cuties that are weighed down by beads to sit solidly on desks. However, finding your giftee's favorite Pokémon might take some effort. If you're buying for someone who isn't into "Pokémon," plenty of stores cater to other fandoms. Fangamer sells plushies of characters from video games both AAA and indie, the cheapest of which are also felt backpack decorations. TeeTurtle's plushies are another solid idea. These tiny stuffed orbs are cute and cover some video game and video game-adjacent properties, and some are even reversible for two characters in one. Plushie prices vary wildly depending on what you're buying and where it comes from. Pokémon Plush keychains at the Pokémon Center start at $9.99, whereas Sitting Cuties begin at $10.99. Meanwhile, Fangamer plushes go for as low as $15. Finally, thanks to an ongoing sale at TeeTurtle , all plushies on the site are discounted and start at $3. No toy encapsulates the idea of fun for all ages quite like Lego. Many let users create epic playsets and vehicles , and some smaller sets are suited for stockings. Lego has been killing it with their video game and pop culture-themed sets. However, many of these are as expensive as an actual video game if not a video game console. Thankfully, Lego also sells plenty of smaller, budget-friendly sets. These include tiny "Minecraft" set pieces, as well as "Super Mario Bros." Sets can be standalone or serve as expansions for the base Lego Mario set. However, if you are buying for someone into "Pokémon," you will need to purchase a Mega Bloks set instead. Lego also produces plenty of video game-adjacent kits, many of which come in stocking stuffer size. The Brick Headz line is a popular choice and includes famous faces throughout pop culture, and Star Wars Microfighters sets recreate iconic sci-fi vehicles in pocket size. Lego also sells minifigures in inexpensive blind boxes. These products come in a variety of gamer-friendly themes, including outer space and "Dungeons & Dragons." While you can find Lego sets at almost any physical or online retailer, prices vary. For instance, blind box minifigures sell for $4.99 per box on the official Lego site or $25.16 for a pack of six through Amazon . Meanwhile, the official Lego Store sells "Super Mario Bros." and "Minecraft" sets starting at $9.99 and $10.99, respectively, while these kits retail at Target for as low as $14.99 and $4.99 . We live in a digital age -– almost anything we want as entertainment can be accessed online through subscriptions such as Audible , Kindle Unlimited, Netflix, and Disney+ — but we shouldn't forget about digital video games. Gift cards are an excellent quick virtual present idea , but which one you buy depends on the recipient's platforms. Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo sell gift cards that can be spent on games for their respective consoles. However, PC gamers have to make do with Steam gift cards -– GOG and the Epic Games Store don't sell store vouchers. If you're shopping for someone deep into online and live service games, you can still surprise them with a gift card of another variety. The companies behind titles like "Roblox" and "Fortnite" sell gift cards that provide some digital currency for their respective games -– ideal for anyone eying particularly expensive character skins. You can also purchase prepaid time cards good for two months of "World of Warcraft" or "Final Fantasy XIV" playtime, but these can be expensive. The beauty of gift cards is that the customer often determines the price. For instance, PlayStation gift cards start at $10 whether they are purchased online or at retailers like Best Buy . Xbox gift cards, meanwhile, start at $1 on the Microsoft Store but only go as low as $10 at stores such as GameStop . Nintendo cards begin at $5 but are only sold through retailers like Amazon and Best Buy . Finally, Steam gift cards can be bought digitally starting at $5 or physically at GameStop for as low as $20. Unlike first-party controllers, third-party controllers come in a variety of price points. Some sacrifice features for affordability, and several manufacturers even produce controllers that make better stocking stuffers than standalone gifts. 8bitdo is one of the best third-party controller manufacturers around. We loved their 8bitdo Pro 2, but it's too big and expensive for a stocking. However, the company also makes one of the smallest controllers available — the 8bitdo Zero 2. This downright microscopic controller can provide up to eight hours of play and works with the Nintendo Switch, PC, and Android devices. While the 8bitdo Zero 2 is small, it is far from fragile, but if you want to go even smaller, another company, CRKD, has you covered with the Atom. This controller fills the same niche as the Zero 2 since it is also a pint-sized peripheral designed for portability, but the Atom comes in more colors and even adds some extra buttons. It's small enough to fit in a stocking, although it can't quite measure up to a larger and more expensive controller for competitive play. Unlike other third-party controllers, your shopping options are limited for the 8bitdo Zero 2 and CRKD Atom. Currently, the Zero 2 is only available through Amazon , is priced at $19.99, and comes in three colors. Meanwhile, the Atom sells for $19.99 through Amazon and for $14.99 through the CRKD website , and it has eight color options. Since modern games usually cost $70, these kinds of gifts can get pricey. However, if you find a good game for dirt cheap, it can help fill out a stocking. Plenty of stores are currently selling games at discounted prices. While the hottest deals are new titles that are $10 off, the best deals involve older, underappreciated, and indie games. Like gift cards, where and how you buy a game for someone depends on their platform of choice and how you can put it in a stocking. Sort of. Usually, you can find a physical copy of a game, but many indie titles (especially on the Switch), are digital only. If you buy one of these, you should slip its receipt -– complete with download code -– or a gift card with a prepaid code into the stocking. However, these aren't your only options. If you expand your definition of a video game to include virtual pets, you can purchase a Tamagotchi. No two retailers sell the same games, let alone at the same price. If you're looking for physical copies, chains such as Target and Best Buy generally only carry modern titles that can sell for $10 on clearance. Meanwhile, GameStop and Amazon offer the biggest variety. If you go the digital route, though, every major gaming platform, including Nintendo and Steam , has you covered with titles that can go as low as $1.50 or even $0.99. Just make sure to read the storefront instructions on how to properly gift a game first. Plenty of video games have been converted into board games, and many other titles such as "Call of Duty" are currently in the process . Most tabletop adaptations cost more than the average collector's edition, but you can find exceptions. Many inexpensive board games that cater to gamers are palette swaps of pre-established properties. For instance, Mattel has made versions of Uno that sport iconography from titles such as "Minecraft," "Super Mario Bros.," and "The Legend of Zelda." Meanwhile, Hasbro has produced special editions of Monopoly themed around games such as "Super Mario Bros." and "Fall Guys." Even if you can't find a proper stocking stuffer game based on an existing IP, you can always buy a bite-sized game that channels video game themes and tropes. One of the better video game-adjacent titles at a stocking stuffer price is Boss Monster, which challenges players to create their own sidescroller dungeons and defeat pixelated heroes. Fluxx is another noteworthy idea since it's easy to pick up, inexpensive, and it comes in a variety of themes that change the gameplay loop. While you can only reliably purchase video game-skinned Uno boxes through Amazon, they are dirt cheap. The "Super Mario Bros." version runs for $9.30, whereas the "Legend of Zelda" set is even cheaper at $6.90. If you would rather buy Boss Monster, though, you have more shopping options. The game is available for $24.99 through Barnes and Noble , and several expansions sell for as low as $9.95 through the Brotherwise Games site . Buying good clothes for gamers isn't easy. Way too many are generic or of mediocre quality, but at least that makes the good ones stand out. However, even if you can find a manufacturer of quality video game apparel, not all of their products are cut out to be stocking stuffers. The smaller the article of clothing, the more it is suited to a stocking. That means beanies, gloves or mittens, and -– as cliché as it might sound -– socks. Nintendo products are general crowd pleasers, so anything you purchase from the Pokémon Center or the Nintendo Store is a safe bet since they're all high quality and official. Plus, if you're buying for someone who owns crocs, a few Croc Jibbitz might also fulfill their "Pokémon" needs. These aren't your only options, and you can easily find a suitable stocking stuffer if you know where to look. Hallmark, for instance, sells socks with retro "Sonic the Hedgehog" and "Super Mario Bros." sprites, while Spencer's offers a variety of video game-themed apparel featuring characters from "Pokémon," "Five Nights at Freddy's," and the Kirby franchise. Ultimately, what you buy is determined by what's available and your giftee's preferences. Stocking stuffer apparel prices vary wildly depending on what you buy. Currently, The Pokémon Center sells gloves starting at $14.99 and beanies at $16.99, whereas the Nintendo Store 's most inexpensive clothes begin at $6.99 for socks. Meanwhile, Hallmark's gamer socks start at $12.99, and the cheapest items at Spencer's begin at $9.99. Toys are a great gift idea, especially for children. While plenty of action figures are based on video game characters, many generally land on the large or expensive side of things — but not all of them. JAKKS Pacific is one of the largest purveyors of inexpensive video game toys. The company has its fingers in popular properties such as "Super Mario Bros" and "Sonic the Hedgehog" thanks to their theatrical adaptations. Another big name toy supplier is Jazwares, which focuses more on IPs like "Fortnite." If you come from a family that thinks stockings should be for everyone regardless of age, you might be interested in McFarlane Toys' video game products, especially when they go on sale. If these stocking stuffers don't move you and you are at a loss for other ideas, the internet is full of potential muses. One of the more reliable ones is Big Bad Toy Store. As its name suggests, this digital storefront specializes in everything toys, but it also sells plenty of toy and action figure-adjacent products such as props, model kits, and plushes. And, it has a dedicated section devoted to video game toys, as well as video game-adjacent fandoms such as "Transformers," "Star Wars," "Godzilla," and "Mobile Suit Gundam." Prices of potential stocking stuffer figures vary wildly depending on what you buy and where it comes from. For instance, "Super Mario Bros." JAKKS Pacific toys start at $9.99 on the official store page and $8.95 on Amazon . Meanwhile, Jazwares "Fortnite" figures start at $9.99 on the Jazwares shop and $7.95 on Amazon . Gifts are generally meant to be surprises, even when someone buys an item from an Amazon wishlist you shared . However, certain stocking stuffer ideas can provide a second layer of surprise. Blind box figures are, as the name suggests, figures you can obtain semi-randomly from boxes that obscure their contents, and plenty of lines utilize video game licenses. Companies such as Kidrobot have produced figures based on properties such as "God of War," while Funko is behind several runs of "Five Nights at Freddy's" minis. Capcom even sells some impressively detailed figures depicting monsters from its long-running "Monster Hunter" series. Even if a blind box line is unrelated to video games, doesn't mean it can't please gamers. Funko and Kidrobot tackle tons of popular properties that gamers love, including Marvel, Star Wars, and Dungeons and Dragons. Meanwhile, Super7 and Hasbro have the rights to handle universes like Godzilla and Ghostbusters. That's not even covering the myriad of novel properties that only exist in blind box form. Since blind boxes are designed to be inexpensive items that you pick up as an impulse buy, plenty of stores carry them. You can purchase some from the Funko and Kidrobot websites for as little as $3 and $5.99, but prices usually fall between $10 and $15. If you're lucky, you can find blind boxes at a local comic store or Target , but often your best bet is retailers such as Amazon , My Plastic Heart , or Blind Box Empire if you live in the U.K. or Europe. For this article, we focused on inexpensive gifts for family members. Anything that our authors had purchased was a shoo-in for this article, but that only got us so far. After all, some family members might love Pokémon Sitting Cuties plushies, but not all of them are old enough to know what a "Pokémon" is. This firsthand stocking stuffing experience helped us find the tiny Lego kits, apparel, and more. To help fill out this list, we conducted some old-fashioned internet sleuthing and looked at what other gamers purchased and recommended for stocking stuffers. We later expanded our search to include video game-adjacent ideas, such as board games with video game themes. After the list was completed, every entry was double-checked for quality. Prices also played a huge factor since stockings are generally stuffed with inexpensive items. Anything that was too expensive or was poorly reviewed by critics or users was replaced.
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