Washington Capitals (13-6-1, in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Florida Panthers (12-8-1, in the Atlantic Division) Sunrise, Florida; Monday, 7 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: The Florida Panthers take on the Washington Capitals as losers of three straight games. Florida is 12-8-1 overall and 6-4-1 at home. The Panthers are fourth in league play serving 10.2 penalty minutes per game. Washington has a 13-6-1 record overall and a 6-2-0 record on the road. The Capitals have a +26 scoring differential, with 81 total goals scored and 55 allowed. Monday's game is the first meeting between these teams this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Aleksander Barkov Jr. has four goals and 15 assists for the Panthers. Uvis Balinskis has over the last 10 games. Connor McMichael has 13 goals and seven assists for the Capitals. Ivan Miroshnichenko has over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Panthers: 5-5-0, averaging 3.5 goals, 6.7 assists, 4.7 penalties and 12.2 penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game. Capitals: 5-4-1, averaging 3.7 goals, 6.1 assists, 3.4 penalties and 7.4 penalty minutes while giving up 2.4 goals per game. INJURIES: Panthers: None listed. Capitals: None listed. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by and data from . The Associated Press
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Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Hold onto your bookmarks. The list of our 10 most-loved books published since 2000 spans the literary, experimental and translated as well as true crime, science fiction and memoir genres. Some will make you cry, others will make you laugh – the best will have you doing both. Choosing only 10 books from 25 years means there are notable absences, but the list offers a sketch of the books that have shaped us and our world since the start of the millennium. Our writers, critics and editors were asked to consider their personal favourites – the books that will always have a place on their shelves – as well as quality, influence and legacy. How many have you read? Austerlitz, W G Sebald (2001) W G Sebald was the German master who invented contemporary “faction”, and Austerlitz is the last of his longer works and the one which most resembles a novel. The main character shares a name with the famous Napoleonic battle and he speaks in moody and melancholic arias of desolation over a period that stretches from the 1960s to the 1990s. Austerlitz hates the aggressive brutality of the architecture of Antwerp and exhibits a depth of melancholy that is the basic idiom of his self-delineation and Sebald’s characterisation. This is a mutation of fiction which has the self-validating intensity of great poetry. Austerlitz is a labyrinth of a book in which dream worlds and real worlds shatter and collide. It’s manifestly a masterpiece, perhaps the very greatest of those works which insinuate and actualise the way in which the mind transfigured the world it depicts. Peter Craven Blankets , Craig Thompson (2003) There was once a time when comic books were considered child’s play – throwaway fluff for the emotionally and socially stunted. At the turn of the millennium, the great graphic novels boom happened and suddenly everyone realised they’d unfairly dismissed the literary potential of books with pictures. Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis , Chris Ware’s Jimmy Corrigan and Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home were among the era’s most acclaimed titles, alongside my moody favourite Craig Thompson’s Blankets – a romantic and melancholic coming-of-age story charting the author’s world-opening first love and spirited questioning of his religious upbringing. It all plays like a Softies song – deeply evocative and earnest and reflective, Thompson’s snow-dotted panels are filled with the sort of quiet space that stops you in your tracks repeatedly, something run-on sentences could never do. As my copy’s coffee-stained jacket, quoting Pulitzer winning cartoonist Jules Feiffer, somewhat defensively suggests: “I’d call that literature.” Robert Moran Joe Cinque’s Consolation: A True Story of Death, Grief and the Law, Helen Garner (2004) These days, we’re inundated with true crime content — podcasts, documentaries, books and TV shows — but none come close to the moral inquiry, literary craftsmanship and utter elegance of Helen Garner’s Joe Cinque’s Consolation . The non-fiction work follows the murder trial of Anu Singh, a law student at ANU in Canberra, and her best friend, who were accused of murdering Singh’s boyfriend, engineering student Joe Cinque, in 1997 with a lethal dose of heroin and Rohypnol. Singh had allegedly organised two dinner parties before the murder, hinting to her friends about her plans, but none intervened. Garner’s work avoids easy conclusions and oversimplification, combining sharp analysis with deep empathy to transform a personal tragedy into a universal exploration of justice, grief and human frailty. If only this self-reflective, philosophical book was the standard for all works about true criminal cases. Melanie Kembrey Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro (2005) Kathy, Ruth and Tommy are special children growing up in a curiously old-fashioned boarding school with kind teachers. Already the place and time is lit with a nostalgic glow. Kathy, now an adult, looks back without rancour on those formative years and the close ties with her two friends. Gradually, the world surrounding the school is revealed. You may see the twist coming, but it doesn’t matter, because Never Let Me Go is unexpected in different ways. Kazuo Ishiguro ’s delicate handling transcends his science fiction premise and in simple understated language graced with dignified euphemisms tells us a complex and profoundly moving love story. The reader may be shocked and angry, but the characters never are, and we respect that. Kathy’s memories add up to a meditation on human connection, what we can keep and what we have to lose. The last scene, in which Kathy contemplates rubbish flapping on a barbed wire fence, has never left me. Jane Sullivan Ten must-read books published since 2000. A Visit from The Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan (2010) “Time’s a goon, you gonna let that goon push you around?” says Scotty Hausman. He’s a failed guitarist who leaves a dead fish in the office of a friend whose success he resents in A Visit from the Goon Squad , Jennifer Egan’s ode to Proust by way of The Sopranos that I devoured when it came out. Egan’s kaleidoscopic 2010 novel follows unforgettable characters including a kleptomaniac called Sasha Blake and Bennie Salazar, a punk rocker-turned-ageing record executive who sprinkles gold flakes in his morning coffee in a bid to feel again. It’s often praised for its formal daring: its interlocked narratives shuttle back and forth and one of its best chapters is written as a PowerPoint presentation. But to me, the novel’s ability to evoke time’s quieter tragedies — the ghosts of youth, the slow sapping of desire, the choices that distance us from those we most love – that make it profound. Neha Kale My Brilliant Friend, Elena Ferrante (2011) The Italian novelist Elena Ferrante is an elusive figure. The name is a pen-name; Ferrante’s true identity is officially unknown. What we know is that she has published a quartet of evidently autobiographical novels, collectively called the Neapolitan Novels, which prove that fiction in the 21st century can still scale the exhilarating heights that Proust scaled in the 20th. My Brilliant Friend , the disturbing and beautiful first book of Ferrante’s sequence, centres on the narrator’s childhood friendship with the unforgettable Lila. Both girls are ambitious and courageous; both struggle to transcend the limits of the oppressively male world around them. Like Proust, Ferrante has an uncanny memory. She recalls the passions and traumas of her girlhood as if they happened yesterday. The story she tells is in one sense local and particular. But she tells it with a piercing urgency that transforms it into something universal, which has resonated with millions of readers worldwide. David Free Conversations with Friends, Sally Rooney (2017) Before every book marketed to Millennial women became stamped with a cursory “for fans of Sally Rooney”, there was Conversations With Friends , the book that kicked off the Irish author’s career and, arguably, an entire literary genre. Despite having released three novels since – each a success in their own right – Conversations is still Rooney at her best. Ultimately, this is a book about relationships: the friendship between college students, poets and former lovers Frances and Bobbi; the marriage between alluring older couple Melissa and Nick; the addictive and, honestly very hot, love affair of Frances and Nick; and the bloodied relationship between Frances and her body. Being a Rooney fan may have become somewhat of a cliche (though one much less painful than that of her literary haters, in my opinion), but there’s no denying this book changed what we considered possible in fiction for, and about, young women. Gyan Yankovich Hit So Hard, Patty Schemel (2017) I’m sorry, but Patty Schemel’s memoir of drugs, sex(uality) and existential annihilation is rock and roll. The prose is clean, rigorous and every bit as pacy as Schemel’s drums thrashing and churning during Live Through This . You don’t necessarily need to care about Seattle grunge, riot grrrl, textured portraits of Kurt Cobain (whose pathos Schemel perfectly evokes here) or exactly what it’s like to throw a puppy-shaped backpack full of Anne Rice paraphernalia at Courtney Love, to appreciate this memoir. Just savour the unexpected, ambient turns of phrase (an addict’s excuses and escape plans, their little bouts of salvation bargaining: the “geographic cure”; Courtney Love playing Melbourne’s Big Day Out with Hole: a “radiant nightmare”.) There is, too, the affecting gallows humour, as in the unexpected punchline to a story of someone casually injecting heroin in their neck during casual conversation; or the eerie moment Schemel, watching the news, sees her own picture displayed during reports of the death of a fellow Hole member. Dumpster-diving, so to speak, through LA dreams and Madonna’s garbage, all while maintaining the kind of stoicism Marcus Aurelius would kill for, Schemel’s voice – graceful, resonant, beguiling – convinced me that, sometimes, the only way out is through. Declan Fry My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Ottessa Moshfegh (2018) My Year of Rest and Relaxation is an exercise in hypnotised reading. Such is the skill of Ottessa Moshfegh, taking us through the story of an appallingly beautiful 26-year old woman who embarks on an ambitious self-imposed quarantine to sleep for a year. The unnamed narrator is a rich, skinny orphaned elite. She approaches her voluntary isolation with the focus of a cyclist about to tackle the Tour de France. It’s mid-June 2000 when her drug-induced hibernation begins. “I didn’t do much in my waking hours besides watch movies,” she announces in the opening pages. Her dogged attempts to detach herself from reality are thwarted (or aided) by a pair of hilarious sidekicks – her psychiatrist, Dr Tuttle, a turtle-neck wearing quack who encourages 14 hours of sleep; and Reva, the painfully jealous loyal friend who suffers from a degree of self-loathing that makes her both utterly detestable and endearing. Saying no to the world that was not made for women, this text therefore feels resolutely feminist. Our heroine’s utter denial of stimuli feels both outrageous and inspiring. No other book captures the sweet malaise that was the late ’90s, pre-9/11 New York era. Jessie Tu Praiseworthy , Alexis Wright (2023) Praiseworthy is a canon-crushing Australian novel for the ages – a grand, whirling hymn of everywhen. Wright’s real-life frustrations at the indignities of the Anthropocene stalk the pages of this bitterly funny book. When a methane-like haze settles over the once-tidy town of Praiseworthy , a dreamer – Cause Man Steel – sees an opportunity to capitalise on this new, ferocious era of heat. There’s a fortune to be made, deliverance to be found. Is he a schemer or a visionary? Prophet or fool? His journey will be as absurd as it is epic – a Don Quixote of the dust. “I believe literature must meet the scale of what is happening in the world,” Wright explains. “We have to, even foolishly, believe that anything can be done in life or in literature with deep thought”. Praiseworthy is not just the product of deep thought, but an invitation – a mighty and generous invitation – to do the thinking for ourselves. Beejay Silcox Honourable mentions Things I Didn’t Know: A Memoir , Robert Hughes (2005) Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel (2009) Outline , Rachel Cusk (2014) Lincoln in the Bardo , George Saunders (2017) The Overstory , Richard Powers (2018) What books do you think deserve a place on the list? Tell us in the comments.
Panthers head coach Dave Canales gave an update on tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders’s condition after the end of Sunday’s 30-27 loss to the Chiefs. Sanders had to leave the game after being flipped and landing on his head during the first half. Sanders was placed on a backboard and taken to a local hospital for further evaluation. Canales said at halftime that Sanders has a concussion and has movement in all his extremities. He told reporters after the game that Sanders also has a neck injury and that the tight end has been released from the hospital. Further updates will come during the week, but it’s a positive first update after a scary scene on Sunday.Staring at the castle gateSeveral years ago, during Donald Trump's first administration, Fox News weekend host Pete Hegseth was vetted for undersecretary positions, and a Senate staffer for a Republican official worked on the background check. What he found was enough to persuade him against the nomination. Justin Higgins, the former policy advisor to Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-KS), told MSNBC that many of the more recent allegations happened after his office vetted Hegseth. He also said that they did a political vetting, not a criminal one, and not one that would examine national security concerns. At the time, Higgins said that Hegseth was being vetted for a few undersecretary roles at the Department of Defense and a few undersecretary positions at the Department of Veterans Affairs. ALSO READ: 'It's offensive': Multiple senators object to Trump's plan to usher in Pete Hegseth "It was taking public information and searching through all of the public records, public statements he's made, financial records, legal statements, and it appears to me based on my vetting experience that a lot of these new allegations came from amazing investigative reporting that resulted in tips," said Higgins, who has since switched parties. He said that as a result they never saw the information that is coming out now. However, even in 2016, Huelskamp's office could see "how uniquely unqualified he was based on his resume alone." "They would give us a list of a person to vet and potential positions they were being looked at," he recalled. For Hegseth, "the reason was pretty clear: he has no experience working with Congress on creating and passing a large budget. He has no experience running or working in a large bureaucracy where he's in a senior position in that bureaucracy. And lastly, military policy experience, i.e., how do we modernize the military in the 21st century with the rise of AI, and also foreign policy experience. This gentleman has none of that." The interview came after reporters told MSNBC there are new accusations about possible drunken behavior while working for nonprofits. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin frequently answers calls in the middle of the night with military emergencies. "There have got to be Republican senators, senators asking themselves, 'Do I want somebody who maybe might have a drinking problem? Maybe might not be altogether with it at all hours, making those decisions?'" speculated host Katy Tur. Hegseth has denied all of the allegations against him. See the comments below or at the link here . - YouTube youtu.be
A designated disability minister will be appointed to each Government department to “champion disability inclusion and accessibility”, the Government has announced. Work and pensions minister Sir Stephen Timms said the move aims to drive “real improvements” for disabled people, whom the ministers will be encouraged to engage with on a regular basis. He told the Commons: “I am very pleased to be able to announce today the appointment of new lead ministers for disability in each Government department, they will represent the interests of disabled people, champion disability inclusion and accessibility within their departments. “I’m going to chair regular meetings with them and will encourage them to engage directly with disabled people and their representative organisations, as they take forward their departmental priorities. “And I look forward to this new group of lead ministers for disability together driving real improvements across Government for disabled people.” This came during an adjournment debate on International Day of Persons with Disabilities, where Liberal Democrat MP Steve Darling raised concerns about “floating bus stops”, which have a cycle lane between the stop and the pavement. Intervening, the MP for Torbay, who is registered blind, said: “The Government needs to ban floating bus stops.” Sir Stephen said: “I do think this issue about floating bus stops is an important issue which we need to work across Government to reflect on.” Labour MP Debbie Abrahams, who led the debate, had earlier criticised the lack of accessibility for disabled people on trains. The Oldham East and Saddleworth MP said: “Our train network does not have level access, and we heard Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson from the other place make this plea back in the summer, absolutely outrageous what she was put through. “But I was absolutely shocked to find, when I had a presentation of the TransPennine route upgrade, that the rolling stock yet to be commissioned is not going to provide that level access. “It’s absolute nonsense, it’s not even in the design of that procurement, so we must do better than this.”By JOSH BOAK WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump loved to use tariffs on foreign goods during his first presidency. But their impact was barely noticeable in the overall economy, even if their aftershocks were clear in specific industries. The data show they never fully delivered on his promised factory jobs. Nor did they provoke the avalanche of inflation that critics feared. This time, though, his tariff threats might be different . The president-elect is talking about going much bigger — on a potential scale that creates more uncertainty about whether he’ll do what he says and what the consequences could be. “There’s going to be a lot more tariffs, I mean, he’s pretty clear,” said Michael Stumo, the CEO of Coalition for a Prosperous America, a group that has supported import taxes to help domestic manufacturing. The president-elect posted on social media Monday that on his first day in office he would impose 25% tariffs on all goods imported from Mexico and Canada until those countries satisfactorily stop illegal immigration and the flow of illegal drugs such as fentanyl into the United States. Those tariffs could essentially blow up the North American trade pact that Trump’s team negotiated during his initial term. Chinese imports would face additional tariffs of 10% until Beijing cracks down on the production of materials used in making fentanyl, Trump posted. Business groups were quick to warn about rapidly escalating inflation , while Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she would counter the move with tariffs on U.S. products. House Democrats put together legislation to strip a president’s ability to unilaterally apply tariffs this drastic, warning that they would likely lead to higher prices for autos, shoes, housing and groceries. Sheinbaum said Wednesday that her administration is already working up a list of possible retaliatory tariffs “if the situation comes to that.” “The economy department is preparing it,” Sheinbaum said. “If there are tariffs, Mexico would increase tariffs, it is a technical task about what would also benefit Mexico,” she said, suggesting her country would impose targeted import duties on U.S. goods in sensitive areas. House Democrats on Tuesday introduced a bill that would require congressional approval for a president to impose tariffs due to claims of a national emergency, a largely symbolic action given Republicans’ coming control of both the House and Senate. “This legislation would enable Congress to limit this sweeping emergency authority and put in place the necessary Congressional oversight before any president – Democrat or Republican – could indiscriminately raise costs on the American people through tariffs,” said Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash. But for Trump, tariffs are now a tested tool that seems less politically controversial even if the mandate he received in November’s election largely involved restraining inflation. The tariffs he imposed on China in his first term were continued by President Joe Biden, a Democrat who even expanded tariffs and restrictions on the world’s second largest economy. Biden administration officials looked at removing Trump’s tariffs in order to bring down inflationary pressures, only to find they were unlikely to help significantly. Tariffs were “so new and unique that it freaked everybody out in 2017,” said Stumo, but they were ultimately somewhat modest. Trump imposed tariffs on solar panels and washing machines at the start of 2018, moves that might have pushed up prices in those sectors even though they also overlapped with plans to open washing machine plants in Tennessee and South Carolina. His administration also levied tariffs on steel and aluminum, including against allies. He then increased tariffs on China, leading to a trade conflict and a limited 2020 agreement that failed to produce the promised Chinese purchases of U.S. goods. Still, the dispute changed relations with China as more U.S. companies looked for alternative suppliers in other countries. Economic research also found the United States may have sacrificed some of its “soft power” as the Chinese population began to watch fewer American movies. The Federal Reserve kept inflation roughly on target, but factory construction spending never jumped in a way that suggested a lasting gain in manufacturing jobs. Separate economic research found the tariff war with China did nothing economically for the communities hurt by offshoring, but it did help Trump and Republicans in those communities politically. When Trump first became president in 2017, the federal government collected $34.6 billion in customs, duties and fees. That sum more than doubled under Trump to $70.8 billion in 2019, according to Office of Management and Budget records. While that sum might seem meaningful, it was relatively small compared to the overall economy. America’s gross domestic product is now $29.3 trillion, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The total tariffs collected in the United States would equal less than 0.3% of GDP. The new tariffs being floated by Trump now are dramatically larger and there could be far more significant impacts. If Mexico, Canada, and China faced the additional tariffs proposed by Trump on all goods imported to the United States, that could be roughly equal to $266 billion in tax collections, a number that does not assume any disruptions in trade or retaliatory moves by other countries. The cost of those taxes would likely be borne by U.S. families, importers and domestic and foreign companies in the form of higher prices or lower profits. Former Biden administration officials said they worried that companies could piggyback on Trump’s tariffs — if they’re imposed — as a rationale to raise their prices, just as many companies after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 boosted food and energy costs and gave several major companies the space to raise prices, according to their own earnings calls with investors. But what Trump didn’t really spell out is what might cause him to back down on tariffs and declare a victory. What he is creating instead with his tariff threats is a sense of uncertainty as companies and countries await the details to figure out what all of this could mean. “We know the key economic policy priorities of the incoming Trump administration, but we don’t know how or when they will be addressed,” said Greg Daco, chief U.S. economist at EY-Parthenon. AP writer Mark Stevenson contributed to this report from Mexico City.
Teen actor Hudson Meek, who appeared in ‘Baby Driver,’ dies after falling from moving vehicleStocks closed higher on Wall Street as the market posted its fifth straight gain and the Dow Jones Industrial Average notched another record high. The S&P 500 rose 20.63 points, or 0.3%, to 5,969.34. The benchmark index’s 1.7% gain for the week erased most of its loss from last week and is within about 0.5% of its all-time high set last week. The Dow rose 426.16 points, or 1%, to 44,296.51 as it nudged past its most recent high set last week. The Nasdaq composite rose 42.65 points, or 0.2%, closing at 2,406.67. Markets were volatile the past few weeks, losing ground in the runup to elections in November, then surging following Donald Trump’s presidential victory, before falling again. Several retailers jumped after giving Wall Street encouraging financial updates. Gap soared 12.8% after handily beating analysts’ third-quarter earnings and revenue expectations, while raising its own revenue forecast for the year. Discount retailer Ross Stores rose 2.2% after raising its earnings forecast for the year. EchoStar fell 2.8% after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company’s Dish Network unit. Smaller company stocks had some of the biggest gains. The Russell 2000 index rose 1.8%. A majority of stocks in the S&P 500 gained ground, but those gains were kept in check by slumps for several big technology companies. Nvidia fell 3.2%. Its pricey valuation makes it among the heaviest influences on whether the broader market gains or loses ground. The company grew to a nearly $3.6 trillion behemoth because of demand for its chips used in artificial-intelligence technology. Intuit, which makes TurboTax and other accounting software, fell 5.7%. Its quarterly earnings forecast fell short of analysts’ expectations. Facebook owner Meta Platforms fell 0.7% after the Supreme Court allowed a multibillion-dollar class-action investors’ lawsuit to proceed against the company. It stems from the privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Crude oil prices rose. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.41% from 4.42% late Thursday. In the crypto market, bitcoin hovered around $99,000, according to CoinDesk. It more than doubled this year and first surpassed the $99,000 level Thursday. Retailers remained a big focus for investors this week amid close scrutiny on consumer spending habits headed into the holiday shopping season. Walmart, the largest U.S. retailer, reported a quarter of strong sales and gave an encouraging financial forecast. Target, though, reported weaker earnings than analysts’ expected. Get local news delivered to your inbox!Teel: UVA’s decision to stick with Anthony Colandrea at QB in blowout loss to SMU raises questions
Retiring Naeher is proud of her achievements and looking forward to USWNT's next generationAries : Today, you are fully in charge of your work; you can easily check tasks off your list and meet deadlines. This will make you feel empowered to work, and you will be able to focus. But it’s important to be cautious of your words – don’t complicate things, just say what you need to say. To manage your conflict with others, especially colleagues or clients, be clear and avoid assuming things about them. Taurus : Come out and socialise. It is a great time to make new professional contacts. Your charm and confidence will impress people around you. However, be prepared for some stiff competition on the way. Rather than be threatened by their presence, let them challenge you. It is a good day to work with the employers and exchange ideas because your associates may help you find solutions. Don’t underestimate the wisdom of people around you. Gemini : The next few days will be filled with increased energy in your interactions with coworkers and colleagues. Other people are likely to have a strong negative reaction to your ideas. It’s a good chance to work on the vision and solidify your arguments. In workplace relations, do not lose your temper when you disagree. Remaining open-minded and taking time to listen to the other side and then respond politely. Cancer : Today, you may be experiencing stress as your work schedule looks like a mountain that you have to climb. And when you think you are done for the day, more work might come your way. As this may seem daunting, the stars encourage you to consider the list and go step by step. The important thing is to try to stay as organised as possible and work consistently. Take short breaks in between to avoid getting drained out. Leo : This day requires a realistic approach to dealing with issues. Emotional outbursts will act against your best interest in handling work-related matters. Instead, get perspective and then start thinking of a plan that can be both methodical and adaptive. If one works in a team, then he or she will need to collaborate and listen to other people’s opinions. Do not let your feelings take control over you; stay calm to handle the subtle politics. Virgo : Do not worry—your rational attitude is your strongest asset today. No matter what kind of difficulties are put up before you, believe in your capacity to reason and solve them. Each challenge is a lesson and an invitation to be better. Your analytical abilities will be particularly noticed when solving assignments and conflicts at work. For job seekers, use your heads to develop the best applications or answer those tricky questions during an interview. Libra : Your leadership skills will shine brighter today. This will come out in how you naturally lead the projects and the people you’re in charge of. Your organisational skills and your ability to focus will determine your outcome, making you popular and well-appreciated by your colleagues and seniors. Go with this momentum, because everything you are doing is preparing the way for things to go right. Scorpio : The stars indicate that you could provoke unnecessary tension in your relations with the people you work with if you keep having rough or cold contact with them. This will enable leaders to be more assertive while being kind to their subordinates so that they can work together. Having their messages or interview responses written in warmer tones will be preferred for job seekers. This is a good chance to improve your interpersonal skills. Sagittarius : Today, you may experience higher competition in your work sphere. These feelings are not bad because they can be the driving force to go that extra mile. Rather than leaning on these comparisons to bring you down, use this energy to improve yourself and hone your strengths. When directly competing, it is important to know sometimes it is more beneficial to work together than against each other. Capricorn : The right plan will assist you in avoiding feeling overwhelmed and making work more manageable today. It is better to remain specific and focus on those critical tasks. However, there can be some unexpected outcomes. In the case when something does not go the way it was expected, then think rationally. Step back, reflect on your strategies, and find ways to solve problems rationally. Aquarius : Today, you may have a tendency to take risks or immerse yourself in new initiatives at the deep end. However, the stars are warning us against this enthusiasm. It is important to assess the situation and to take a somewhat cautious approach before making the final choices. This may prove disastrous, especially when one is strategising in a hurry. Let your thinking mind reign on your free-spirited heart. Be moderate in your approach. Pisces : You’re good to go, and all your efforts are starting to reap rewards. If you continue to do the right things in the right way, your progress in your career will remain constant. This is a day to keep to your normal schedule, work efficiently, and go with your gut. Your consistent method is gaining trust and opening the door for the next step. Patience and commitment to the chosen approach will take you further. ---------------------- Neeraj Dhankher (Vedic Astrologer, Founder - Astro Zindagi) Email: info@astrozindagi.in , neeraj@astrozindagi.in Url: www.astrozindagi.in Contact: Noida: +919910094779
UAE airlines keep link to Israel
Is Enron back? If it's a joke, some former employees aren't laughing HOUSTON (AP) — Enron, the Houston-based energy company that exemplified the worst in corporate fraud and greed in America after it went bankrupt in 2001, is coming back. But the infamous company's return seems to be an elaborate joke. If its return is comedic, some former Enron employees who lost everything in the company’s collapse aren’t laughing. They're angry at a publicity stunt they say minimizes what they went through. Enron was once the nation’s seventh-largest company, but it went bankrupt amid massive accounting fraud. On Monday, a company representing itself as Enron announced it was relaunching as a “company dedicated to solving the global energy crisis.” But a paper trail of legal documents points to the comeback being parody and performance art. Authorities fear a Pennsylvania woman was swallowed by a sinkhole while looking for her cat Authorities fear a grandmother who disappeared while looking for her cat may have been swallowed up by a sinkhole that recently opened up in a western Pennsylvania village. Crews lowered a pole camera with a sensitive listening device into the hole in Marguerite on Tuesday morning but detected nothing. A second camera lowered into the hole showed what could be a shoe. Police say the family of 64-year-old Elizabeth Pollard called police at about 1 a.m. to say she hadn't been seen since going out Monday evening to search for Pepper, her cat. They found her 5-year-old granddaughter in her parked car near the manhole-sized opening. It’s not clear what happened to Pepper. Texans' Azeez Al-Shaair suspended 3 games without pay after violent hit on Trevor Lawrence HOUSTON (AP) — Houston’s Azeez Al-Shaair was suspended by the NFL without pay for three games for repeated violations of player safety rules following his hit to the head of Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence, which led to a concussion. Al-Shaair’s punishment was announced by NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan. In his letter to Al-Shaair, he noted that he has had multiple offenses for personal fouls and sportsmanship-related rules violations in recent seasons. Runyan says “video shows you striking the head/neck area of Jaguars’ quarterback Trevor Lawrence after he clearly goes down in a feet-first slide.” Last 2 defendants in Atlanta's Young Thug trial are acquitted of murder and gang charges ATLANTA (AP) — The long-running gang and racketeering trial in Atlanta that led rapper Young Thug to plead guilty in October has ended with a jury finding the last two defendants not guilty of racketeering, murder and gang-related charges. Deamonte Kendrick, who raps as Yak Gotti, was acquitted of all charges and Shannon Stillwell was found guilty only of a gun possession charge. Jury selection in the trial began nearly two years ago after prosecutors indicted 28 defendants. They said YSL was a criminal gang co-founded by Grammy-winning Young Thug. The Atlanta-born rapper’s given name is Jeffery Williams. He was released on probation after pleading guilty to gang, drug and gun charges. Great Lakes region braces for more snow while cleaning up after lake-effect storms Cleanup work is continuing around parts of the Great Lakes region socked by lake-effect snowstorms that dropped several feet of snow over the weekend. Forecasters are warning that another storm system could add a few more inches and maybe even more later this week. Many school districts in western Pennsylvania remained closed Tuesday as the storms were finally slowing after several days of lake-effect snow that also fell on parts of western New York, Ohio and Michigan. Snow totals since Thanksgiving in some places are nearing six feet. New women's baseball league names 97-year-old AAGPBL alum honorary chair on advisory board Former baseball pitcher Maybelle Blair will be an honorary chair on the advisory board of the Women’s Professional Baseball League, which last month announced plans to launch in 2026 as a six-team circuit for female players. The 97-year-old Blair helped inspire the baseball film “A League of Their Own” with her play in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. She will chair a board of women who have worked in sports and business. The list includes a leader from the upstart Professional Women’s Hockey League, a longtime ESPN executive, and baseball pitcher and six-time World Cup winner Ayami Sato. Search suspended for man believed to have gone overboard from cruise ship off California's coast SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard says it has suspended the search for a man believed to have gone overboard from a cruise ship as it was returning to San Francisco after a voyage to Ensenada, Mexico. The Ruby Princess arrived in San Francisco at 6:50 a.m. Monday following the five-day trip. Officials searched the ship several times for the missing passenger. They also scoured CCTV videos, but there was no sign of the man. Princess Cruises says the 72-year-old American citizen was traveling alone. The Coast Guard began aerial searches that were suspended around 5:30 p.m. Chicago house party shooting kills 3 men and wounds five other people, police say CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago police say eight people were shot at a house party, three of them fatally. Others fled as gunfire erupted. Police Chief of Patrol Jon Hein says officers responded Monday afternoon to the “social gathering” at a home in the city's southwest Chicago Lawn neighborhood. He says four men and four women between the ages of 20 and 35 were shot. Police say a 26-year-old man and two other men were pronounced dead. A 27-year-old woman was in critical condition, a 24-year-old woman was in serious condition and three other shooting victims were in good condition. Philadelphia ready to go the distance with RockyFest week dedicated to 'Rocky' movies PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Rocky Balboa fans are ready to go the distance to honor Philly’s favorite fictional fighter almost 50 years after the first movie launched the enduring series of an underdog boxer persevering despite the odds. The city Rocky called home at last has a week dedicated to the box office heavyweight champion of the world a year after the inaugural Rocky Day was held at the Philadelphia Museum of Art steps. RockyFest officially opened Tuesday and a series of events dedicated to the movies series are set to be held around the city. Kendrick Lamar tops Apple Music's 2024 song chart and women make history NEW YORK (AP) — Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” topped Apple Music’s global song chart in 2024 as the giant music streamer released year-end lists Tuesday and provided listeners with data on their own most listened-to tunes. “Not Like Us” is Lamar’s first-ever No. 1 on the year-end global songs chart. He’s followed by Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” in second, Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” in third, Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” in fourth and Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” in fifth. Of the 100 songs included on the list, 39 are from female-identifying artists, a record first in the global chart’s 7-year history. In November, Apple Music named Billie Eilish its artist of the year.
Judge denies Musk $56 billion Tesla compensation packageMutual of America Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Western Digital Co. ( NASDAQ:WDC – Free Report ) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,204 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 972 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $2,746,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Western Digital in the third quarter worth $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Western Digital in the second quarter worth $34,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital during the second quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Analysts Set New Price Targets Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on Western Digital from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Western Digital from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Western Digital from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.71. Insider Activity In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 2,169 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total transaction of $134,391.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 32,601 shares in the company, valued at $2,019,957.96. This trade represents a 6.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink . Also, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.58, for a total transaction of $5,443,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 821,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,633,905.40. This trade represents a 8.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Insiders have sold a total of 188,520 shares of company stock valued at $13,306,224 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock. Western Digital Stock Up 0.8 % Shares of WDC stock opened at $66.43 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.10. The stock has a market cap of $22.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.08 and a beta of 1.40. Western Digital Co. has a 12 month low of $46.05 and a 12 month high of $81.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Western Digital ( NASDAQ:WDC – Get Free Report ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.23. Western Digital had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 4.81%. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($1.97) EPS. Western Digital’s revenue for the quarter was up 48.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post 6.56 earnings per share for the current year. Western Digital Profile ( Free Report ) Western Digital Corporation develops, manufactures, and sells data storage devices and solutions in the United States, China, Hong Kong, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, rest of Asia, and internationally. It offers client devices, including hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid state drives (SSDs) for desktop and notebook personal computers (PCs), gaming consoles, and set top boxes; and flash-based embedded storage products for mobile phones, tablets, notebook PCs, and other portable and wearable devices, as well as automotive, Internet of Things, industrial, and connected home applications. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WDC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Western Digital Co. ( NASDAQ:WDC – Free Report ). Receive News & Ratings for Western Digital Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Western Digital and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Tens of thousands of Spaniards marched in downtown Barcelona on Saturday to protest the skyrocketing cost of renting an apartment in the popular tourist destination. Protesters cut off traffic on main avenues in the city center, holding up homemade signs in Spanish reading “Fewer apartments for investing and more homes for living” and “The people without homes uphold their rights.” The lack of has become one of the leading concerns for the southern European Union country, mirroring the housing crunch across many parts of the world, . Organizers said that over 100,000 had turned out, while Barcelona’s police said they estimated some 22,000 marched. Either way, the throngs of people clogging the streets recalled the massive separatist rallies at the height of the previous decade’s Catalan independence movement. Now, social concerns led by housing have displaced political crusades. That is because the average rent for Spain has doubled in last 10 years. The price per square meter has risen from 7.2 euros ($7.5) in 2014 to 13 euros this year, according to the popular online real estate website Idealista. The growth is even more acute in cities like Barcelona and Madrid. Incomes meanwhile have failed to keep up, especially for younger people in a country with chronically high unemployment. Protestor Samuel Saintot said he is “frustrated and scared” after being told by the owners of the apartment he has rented for the past 15 years in Barcelona’s city center that he must vacate the premises. He suspects that the owners want him out so they can renovate it and boost the price. “Even looking in a 20- or 30-kilometer radius outside town, I can’t even find anything within the price range I can afford,” he told The Associated Press. “And I consider myself a very fortunate person, because I earn a decent salary. And even in my case, I may be forced to leave town.” A report by the Bank of Spain indicates that nearly 40% of Spaniards who rent dedicate an average of 40% of their income to paying rents and utilities, compared to the European Union average of 27% of renters who do so. “We are talking about a housing emergency. It means people having many difficulties both in accessing and staying in their homes,” said Ignasi Martí, professor for Esade business school and head of its Dignified Housing Observatory. The rise in rents is causing significant pain in Spain, where traditionally people seek to own their homes. Rental prices have also been driven up by short-term renters including tourists. Many migrants to Spain are also disproportionately hit by the high rents because they often do not have enough savings. Spain is near the bottom end of OECD countries with under 2% of all housing available being public housing for rent. The OECD average is 7%. Spain is far behind France, with 14%, Britain with 16%, and the Netherlands with 34%. Carme Arcarazo, spokesperson for Barcelona’s Tenants Union which helped organize the protest, said that renters should consider a “rent strike” and cease paying their monthly rents in a mass protest movement. “I think we the tenants have understood that this depends on us. That we can’t keep asking and making demands to the authorities and waiting for an answer. We must take the reins of the situation,” Arcarazo told the AP. “So, if they (the owners) won’t lower the rent, then we will force them to do it.” The Barcelona protest came a month after tens of thousands rallied against high rents in Madrid. The rising discontent over housing is putting pressure on Spain’s governing Socialist party, which leads a coalition on the national level and is in charge of Catalonia’s regional government and Barcelona’s city hall. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez presided over what the government termed a “housing summit” including government officials and real estate developers last month. But the Barcelona’s Tenants Union boycotted the event, saying it was like calling a summit for curing cancer and inviting tobacco companies to participate. The leading government measure has been a rent cap mechanism that the central government has offered to regional authorities based on a price index established by the housing ministry. Rent controls can be applied to areas deemed to be “highly stressed” by high rental prices. Catalonia was the first region to apply those caps, which are in place in downtown Barcelona. Many locals blame the million of tourists who visit Barcelona, and the rest of Spain, each year for the high prices. Barcelona’s town hall has pledged to completely or dwellings with permits for short-term rents, by 2028. Joseph Wilson And Hernán Muñoz, The Associated Press
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