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Ignorance and Bliss: On Wanting Not to Know by Mark Lilla review – the enduring power of stupidityAs the conversation around fairness and integrity in table tennis continues to evolve, it is clear that players like Wang Chuqin play a crucial role in shaping the future of the sport. By listening to the voices of fellow players and engaging in constructive dialogue, Wang Chuqin is setting a positive example for the next generation of table tennis players, inspiring them to uphold the values of respect, sportsmanship, and fair play.
De Ketelaere: ‘It was never a foul’ on Theo Hernandez
The Dallas Cowboys snapped their five-game losing streak with a thrilling 34-26 win over the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium. The game featured unprecedented drama, becoming the first in the Super Bowl era to include two missed extra points, two kickoff return touchdowns, and a blocked punt. The Cowboys opened up the game with a blocked field goal, followed up with a missed field goal, a fumble, punt and a blocked punt, but closed the game strong with two kick returns. Geoff Burke-Imagn Images And when it was all said and done, and the idea of skidding and the idea of tanking were all done for at least one more week? “We can breathe” said tight end Luke Schoonmaker from inside an emotionally relieved locker-room bunch. Dallas broke a 3-3 tie in the third quarter with Cooper Rush’s three-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Tolbert, giving the Cowboys a 10-9 lead, marking the Cowboys' first third-quarter touchdown on the season. Tolbert’s grab came after a defensive pass interference call extended the drive, setting the tone for Dallas’ offense to capitalize. Late in the fourth quarter, Rush connected with tight end Luke Schoonmaker for a 22-yard touchdown pass, pushing the Cowboys’ lead to 20-9. Schoonmaker’s catch capped a critical drive that showcased the Cowboys’ ability to execute under pressure. The game's most interesting moments came as the clock wound down. After the Commanders narrowed the score to 20-17, KaVontae Turpin delivered a spark with a spectacular 99-yard kickoff return touchdown, extending Dallas’ lead to 27-17. Following a Commanders 86-yard touchdown to Terry McLaurin, Cowboys' Juanyeh Thomas later sealed the game in the final moments with a remarkable onside kick return touchdown, giving Dallas a decisive 34-26 advantage. Quarterback Cooper Rush finished 24 of 32 for 247 yards and two touchdowns, while the defense stepped up with two interceptions and four sacks, holding the Commanders to 4-of-12 on third downs. Related: Belichick and Witten a Cowboys Package Deal? With this victory, Dallas improved to 4-7, delivering one of the most memorable performances in franchise history. The Cowboys' defense limited Washington’s explosive offense in critical moments. The win not only snapped their losing streak but showcased Dallas’ ability to overcome adversity in all three phases of the game—offense, defense, and special teams. As the Cowboys prepare for Week 13, this historic triumph could provide the momentum needed to turn their season around. Or, at the very least? At least they can "breathe.'' Related: What's Driving Dak to Tears?The inflation rate, as measured by the CPI, is an important indicator of economic health and stability. A moderate increase in the CPI suggests a healthy level of consumer demand and economic activity, while a decrease in housing prices may indicate a more balanced and sustainable housing market. These trends can have significant implications for monetary policy, fiscal decisions, and overall economic outlook.
Amazon and Starbucks workers are on strike. Trump might have something to do with it Amazon delivery drivers and Starbucks baristas are on strike in a handful of U.S. cities as they seek to exert pressure on the two major companies to recognize them as unionized employees or to meet demands for an inaugural labor contract. Strikes during busy periods like the holidays can help unions exercise leverage during negotiations or garner support from sympathetic consumers. One expert says he thinks workers at both companies are “desperate” to make progress before President-elect Donald Trump can appoint a Republican majority to the National Labor Relations Board. Workers at Starbucks, Amazon and some other prominent consumer brands are fighting for their first contracts after several locations voted to unionize. Bluesky finds with growth comes growing pains — and bots Bluesky has seen its user base soar since the U.S. presidential election, boosted by people seeking refuge from Elon Musk’s X, or wanting an alternative to Meta’s Threads and its algorithms. The platform grew out of the company then known as Twitter and was eventually intended to replace it. While this is still very much a pie in the sky, Bluesky’s growth trajectory could make it a serious competitor to other social platforms. With growth, though, comes growing pains. It’s not just human users who’ve been flocking to Bluesky but also bots, including those designed to create partisan division or direct users to junk websites. Farmers are still reeling months after Hurricane Helene ravaged crops across the South LYONS, Ga. (AP) — Farmers in Georgia are still reeling more than two months after Hurricane Helene blew away cotton, destroyed ripened squash and cucumbers and uprooted pecan trees and timber. Agribusinesses in other Southern states saw costly damage as well. The University of Georgia estimates the September storm inflicted $5.5 billion in direct losses and indirect costs in Georgia alone. In rural Toombs County, Chris Hopkins just finished harvesting his ravaged cotton crop and figures he lost half of it, costing him about $430,000. Poultry grower Jeffrey Pridgen in Georgia's Coffee County had four of his 12 chicken houses destroyed and others badly damaged. Farmers say more government disaster assistance is needed. Ex-OpenAI engineer who raised legal concerns about the technology he helped build has died Suchir Balaji, a former OpenAI engineer and whistleblower who helped train the artificial intelligence systems behind ChatGPT and later said he believed those practices violated copyright law, has died, according to his parents and San Francisco officials. He was 26. He was well-regarded by colleagues at the San Francisco company, where a co-founder this week called him one of OpenAI’s strongest contributors who was essential to developing some of its products. But he grew disillusioned with the company and told The Associated Press this fall he would “try to testify” in copyright infringement cases against it. Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge shows price pressures eased last month WASHINGTON (AP) — An inflation gauge that is closely watched by the Federal Reserve barely rose last month in a sign that price pressures cooled after two months of sharp gains. Prices rose just 0.1% from October to November. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, prices also ticked up just 0.1%, after two months of outsize 0.3% gains. The milder inflation figures arrived two days after Federal Reserve officials, led by Chair Jerome Powell, rocked financial markets by revealing that they now expect to cut their key interest rate just two times in 2025, down from four in their previous estimate. Albania to close TikTok for a year blaming it for promoting violence among children TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albania’s prime minister says the government will shut down video service TikTok for one year, blaming it for inciting violence and bullying, especially among children. Albanian authorities held 1,300 meetings with teachers and parents following the stabbing death of a teenager in mid-November by another teenager following a quarrel that started on TikTok. Prime Minister Edi Rama, speaking at a meeting with teachers and parents, said TikTok “would be fully closed for all. ... There will be no TikTok in the Republic of Albania.” Rama says the ban will begin sometime next year. Albanian children comprise the largest group of TikTok users in the country, according to domestic researchers. Stock market today: Wall Street rises to turn a dismal week into just a bad one NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose to turn what would have been one of the market’s worst weeks of the year into just a pretty bad one. The S&P 500 rallied 1.1% Friday to shave its loss for the week down to 2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped nearly 500 points, and the Nasdaq composite gained 1%. A report said a measure of inflation the Federal Reserve likes to use was slightly lower last month than expected. It’s an encouraging signal after the Fed shocked markets Wednesday by saying worries about inflation could keep it from cutting interest rates in 2025 as much as earlier thought. Starbucks workers begin strikes that could spread to hundreds of US stores by Christmas Eve Workers at U.S. Starbucks stores have begun a five-day strike to protest a lack of progress in contract negotiations with the company. The strikes began in Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle and could spread to hundreds of stores across the country by Christmas Eve. Workers at 535 of the 10,000 company-owned Starbucks stores in the U.S. have voted to unionize. The Starbucks Workers United union accuses the Seattle-based coffeehouse chain of failing to honor a commitment made in February to reach a labor agreement this year. Starbucks says the union prematurely left the bargaining table this week. It said Friday there's been no significant impact to store operations. It's beginning to look like another record for holiday travel Drivers and airline passengers without reindeer and sleighs better make a dash for it: it’s beginning to look like another record for holiday travel in the U.S. The auto club AAA predicts that more than 119 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home between Saturday and New Year’s Day. The two weekends on either side of Christmas are tempting a lot of people to head out earlier. U.S. airlines expect to have their busiest days to be Friday and Sunday this week and next Thursday, Friday and Sunday. A government shutdown that could start as soon as Saturday was not expected to immediately affect flights and airport operations. Amazon workers are striking at multiple facilities. Here's what you should know Amazon workers affiliated with the Teamsters union are on strike for a second day at seven of the company’s delivery hubs just days before Christmas. At midnight on Saturday, the Teamsters say workers at a prominent unionized warehouse in New York will also join. The union has not indicated how many employees were participating in the walkout or when it will end. The Teamsters say the workers were continuing their strike on Friday after Amazon ignored a Sunday deadline the union had set for contract negotiations. The company says it doesn’t expect the strikes taking place in Southern California, San Francisco, New York City, Atlanta, and Skokie, Illinois, to impact holiday shipments.
‘The Price Is Right’ Player has Epic Win 32 Years After Bob Barker Letdown
In a surprising turn of events, famous actor Lin Jing En was recently spotted begging for food at a stranger's doorstep. The once charming and talented star of the popular drama "Grandpa-Lover" now appeared disheveled and desperate, with a strange gleam in his eyes as he was turned away empty-handed.The player in question, whose name has been kept under wraps by sources close to the negotiations, has been earning rave reviews for his commanding performances at the back for his current club. Known for his impeccable positioning, aerial prowess, and ability to read the game, he has quickly established himself as one of the most sought-after defenders in Europe.The recent election by plurality, not majority, of Donald Trump to a second term is indeed a reality, albeit a sad one. It boggles the mind that people such a recent letter writer could feel that the Biden-Harris administration “has plunged our nation into chaos” [“ Wants more of Trump's America ,” Recorder, Dec. 11]. If the writer would get off the internet and Fox News and instead use reliable sources of factual information, he would know that serious crimes are down by double digits everywhere, over the last four years Biden-Harris has created over 16 million new jobs, has tamed raging inflation caused by Trump‘s failure to deal with the pandemic that killed 1.2 million Americans, has brought inflation down to just over the feds target of 2%, has restored manufacturing jobs to states all over the country, has good relations with our allies, and has not relied on a clown car full of appointees to important positions. While the economy may not be robust for 100% of working Americans, it is the envy of the world, with unemployment hovering around 4%, the lowest in many many years, and an amazingly strong job creation record as recently as last week. We now can look forward to true chaos while Trump‘s deluded supporters do their dance. Stay tuned for cuts to veterans benefits, cuts to Medicare Medicaid and Social Security, increased prices because of Trump‘s bizarre assumption that tariffs cost the importing country rather than the American consumer. If Trump‘s voters believed his lies about being for the working person perhaps they can help me understand why his nominees to important positions are all billionaires. Maybe someday these folks will join us on earth rather than stay in whatever bizarre reality they are currently living in. William M . Coli Charlemont Cross|Word Flipart Typeshift SpellTower Really Bad Chess