Jimmy Carter had the longest post-presidency of anyone to hold the office, and one of the most active. Here is a look back at his life. 1924 — Jimmy Carter was born on Oct. 1 to Earl and Lillian Carter in the small town of Plains, Georgia. 1928 — Earl Carter bought a 350-acre farm 3 miles from Plains in the tiny community of Archery. The Carter family lived in a house on the farm without running water or electricity. 1941 — He graduated from Plains High School and enrolled at Georgia Southwestern College in Americus. 1942 — He transferred to Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. 1943 — Carter’s boyhood dream of being in the Navy becomes a reality as he is appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. 1946 — He received his naval commission and on July 7 married Rosalynn Smith of Plains. They moved to Norfolk, Virginia. 1946-1952 — Carter’s three sons are born, Jack in 1947, Chip in 1950 and Jeff in 1952. 1962-66 — Carter is elected to the Georgia State Senate and serves two terms. 1953 — Carter’s father died and he cut his naval career short to save the family farm. Due to a limited income, Jimmy, Rosalynn and their three sons moved into Public Housing Apartment 9A in Plains. 1966 — He ran for governor, but lost. 1967 — Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter’s fourth child, Amy, is born. 1971 — He ran for governor again and won the election, becoming Georgia’s 76th governor on Jan. 12. 1974 — Carter announced his candidacy for president. 1976 — Carter was elected 39th president on Nov. 2, narrowly defeating incumbent Gerald Ford. Democratic presidential candidate Jimmy Carter embraces his wife Rosalynn after receiving the final news of his victory in the national general election, November 2, 1976. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) New-elected President Jimmy Carter gives a press conference after being elected 39th President of the United States, on November 05, 1976 in Plains, Georgia. (Photo by GENE FORTE / CONSOLIDATED NEWS PICTURES / AFP) (Photo by GENE FORTE/CONSOLIDATED NEWS PICTURES/AFP via Getty Images) Supporters of Democratic presidential candidate Jimmy Carter hold up signs during a rally on may 15, 1976 in New York. – Carter was elected on December 21, 1976 39th President of the United States, 51% voice against 48% for incumbent Republican president Gerald Ford. (Photo by CONSOLIDATED NEWS / AFP) (Photo by -/CONSOLIDATED NEWS/AFP via Getty Images) Chief Justice Warren Burger administers the oath of office to Jimmy Carter (R), flanked by his wife Rosalynn, as the 39th President of the United Sates on January 20, 1977. (Photo by CONSOLIDATED NEWS / AFP) (Photo by -/CONSOLIDATED NEWS/AFP via Getty Images) Democratic presidential candidate Jimmy Carter embraces his wife Rosalynn after receiving the final news of his victory in the national general election, November 2, 1976. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) 1978 — U.S. and the Peoples’ Republic of China establish full diplomatic relations. President Carter negotiates and mediates an accord between Egypt and Israel at Camp David. 1979 — The Department of Education is formed. Iranian radicals overrun the U.S. Embassy and seize American hostages. The Strategic Arms Limitations Treaty is signed. 1980 — On March 21, Carter announces that the U.S. will boycott the Olympic Games scheduled in Moscow. A rescue attempt to get American hostages out of Iran is unsuccessful. Carter was defeated in his bid for a second term as president by Ronald Reagan in November. 1981 — President Carter continues to negotiate the release of the American hostages in Iran. Minutes before his term as president is over, the hostages are released. 1982 — Carter became a distinguished professor at Emory University in Atlanta, and founded The Carter Center. The nonpartisan and nonprofit center addresses national and international issues of public policy. 1984 — Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter volunteer one week a year for Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit organization that helps needy people in the United States and in other countries renovate and build homes, until 2020. He also taught Sunday school in the Maranatha Baptist Church of Plains from the mid-’80s until 2020. 2002 — Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. 2015 — Carter announced in August he had been diagnosed with melanoma that spread to his brain. 2016 — He said in March that he no longer needed cancer treatment. 2024 — Carter dies at 100 years old. Sources: Cartercenter.org, Plains Historical Preservation Trust, The Associated Press; The Brookings Institution; U.S. Navy; WhiteHouse.gov, GallupA team of students and faculty at the International Institute of Information Technology – Bangalore (IIITB) has developed a remote compost monitoring solution that would not only aid sustainable agriculture but also help reduce the city’s garbage woes and bring down the manual labour involved in composting. The team led by Jyotsna Bapat has built a prototype for an intelligent IoT system that remotely monitors and manages compost, which can be used as fertilizer. Also Read: Daily battles of Bengaluru’s waste collectors “The garbage piles we see everywhere in Bengaluru have a lot of food waste in them. This can cause a lot of diseases. If composed correctly, the volume can come down by a factor of 10,” says Prof. Bapat. A stinking problem Using compost made from organic waste as fertilizer can help improve soil health, reduce reliance on chemical fertilizers, and contribute to environmental conservation. However, many urban dwellers refrain from using their kitchen waste for this process due to reasons such as a lack of space and the complexities involved. “The reason a lot of people don’t do it is that if certain parameters such as the temperature, the humidity or the water level inside go wrong, the composting doesn’t complete, and then it starts smelling. This attracts bugs,” explains Prof. Bapat, who herself composts wet waste on her balcony. Reducing manual labour On a larger scale, companies that compost resort to manual labour, which involves a person checking and stirring the compost from time to time to ensure that the process happens successfully. “We felt that somebody going in and checking a compost is not really the nicest job. We wondered if a machine could do this,” notes Bapat. The team’s solution includes a sensor hub associated with each bin to monitor the compost’s pH, temperature, humidity, and CO2 levels. The hub allows remote monitoring of these values and the generation of alerts using a mobile phone. While anybody can use the solution, Prof. Bapat notes that currently the team is looking for those who are doing composting at a large scale. About 14-15 bins have been installed within the campus, and data is currently being collected. “We already have a client. They are talking to different panchayats in the neighbourhood of Bengaluru. Before they deploy it there, we need to do a thorough testing at IIIT-B,” Bapat notes. Published - December 30, 2024 03:04 am IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit bengaluru / waste / waste management / urban solid waste
SportsbookWire.com's Alex White already cashed her best college football bet for Saturday with Boston College (+2.5) winning outright 41-21 at home against North Carolina . She's looking to make it a 2-0 weekend with her best bet for NFL Week 12, which involves the total when the New England Patriots (3-8) visit the Miami Dolphins (4-6) Sunday in an AFC East matchup. Kickoff from Hard Rock Stadium is set for 1 p.m. ET and will be televised on CBS. The Patriots have alternated wins and losses over their last 4 games, recently falling at home to the LA Rams in Week 11. The Dolphins enter on a 2-game win streak, beating the Las Vegas Raiders 34-19 last Sunday and winning at the Rams 23-15 in Week 10. The division foes met in Week 5 at New England with Miami winning 15-10. The Dolphins covered as 1-point road favorites and the Under (37) cashed. For Sunday's matchup in South Florida, BetMGM Sportsbook has the O/U line at 46.5 (Over: -110 | Under: -110), up from 46, which it was Friday -- last updated Saturday at 5:51 p.m. ET. Listen below to why Alex likes this total as her best NFL bet for Sunday . Make sure to catch Alex on Sports By the Book Saturday 11 a.m.-noon ET, and Sunday through Wednesday noon-1 p.m. ET, and on Punch Lines every Monday and Wednesday 3 p.m.-4 p.m. ET -- live from the South Point Sportsbook in Las Vegas. Follow @alexwhitee on Twitter/X . For more sports betting picks and tips , check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW . Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter/X and like us on Facebook . Access more NFL coverage: BetFTW | TheHuddle Fantasy Football | BearsWire | BengalsWire | BillsWire | BroncosWire | BrownsWire | BucsWire | CardsWire | ChargersWire | ChiefsWire | ColtsWire | CommandersWire | CowboysWire | DolphinsWire | EaglesWire | FalconsWire | GiantsWire | JaguarsWire | JetsWire | LionsWire | NinersWire | PackersWire | PanthersWire | PatriotsWire | RaidersWire | RamsWire | RavensWire | SaintsWire | SeahawksWire | SteelersWire | TexansWire | TitansWire | VikingsWire | DraftWire | TouchdownWire | ListWire More NFL Picks and Predictions! Detroit Lions at Indianapolis Colts odds, picks and predictions Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New York Giants odds, picks and predictions New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins odds, picks and predictions
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Copy link Copied Copy link Copied Subscribe to gift this article Gift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe. Already a subscriber? Login The chief executive of Dovetail, one of Australia’s biggest software start-ups, is being sued by a senior company lawyer over a personal relationship between the two that ended years ago. The company, which sealed its status as a unicorn when it hit a $1 billion valuation in late 2021, is backed by several large venture capital firms including Palo Alto-headquartered Accel and local giant Blackbird. Copy link Copied Copy link Copied Subscribe to gift this article Gift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe. Already a subscriber? Login Introducing your Newsfeed Follow the topics, people and companies that matter to you. Latest In Technology Fetching latest articles Most Viewed In TechnologyHappy Days may not have been the first TV experiment in nostalgia. But co-creators Michael Eisner and Tom Miller definitely knew they were taking a risk when they pitched the show to Paramount. Not surprisingly, the concept didn’t fare well with execs, and the studio passed. The market research department said a coming-of-age sitcom about the idealism and innocence of 1950s youth would never work in the trippy 1970s. But over time, with a little push from George Lucas, Happy Days made history as one of the most significant nostalgia-based shows of all time. And ever since Fonz and Richie Cunningham showed us how to laugh at our childhood, TV audiences have had a love affair with nostalgic TV shows. Many new TV shows also followed the Happy Days formula, whether it was The Wonder Years, set in the late 1960s while airing in the late 1980s, or That 70s Show, which showed us the glee of the 1970s while airing in the 1990s. Even in the 2020s, we’ve never really stopped loving nostalgia and using “period pieces” as a storytelling technique. Today, with Gen X and Millennials at the wheel of modern culture, we’re tapping back into the 1980s and 1990s and remembering how boomers and slackers saw the world. We were disconnected and barely scratching the surface of modern technology. But the memories were powerful enough to stick with us and symbolize the lives of whole generations. Here are eight TV shows that recreate or recapture yesterday’s nostalgia without being too cringe in that Revenge of the Nerds kind of way. Matlock Kathy Bates is back on television, and although Matlock takes place in the modern era, it’s easy to see how this rebooted and gender-swapped version of Matlock is a tribute to the 1980s. Kathy Bates plays, and seemingly channels, the Andy Griffith character of 1986, Ben Matlock. But she’s not just a country bumpkin. She’s also a bit sneaky, a bit disarming, and above all, genteel and charming, as expected. Bates played a similar role in The Office as Jo Bennett. However, it’s easy to see how this modern retelling of Matlock has more secrets than it’s letting on, especially regarding why Matlock is going undercover at a law firm and solving a much bigger mystery. While taking down giants with a smile, her “I’m just a harmless old lady” shtick just gets better with age. Watch Matlock Online Bel-Air Ironically, most people remember the 1990s hit sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air for its dramatic moments involving family conflict, rather than its many lighthearted moments. Years after the show came to an end, fan Morgan Cooper made a short film and reimagined The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air as a dramatic TV series he called Bel-Air. It was such a natural evolution that it caught the attention of Will Smith, who wanted to revisit nostalgic characters like Vivian, Uncle Phil, House Manager Geoffrey, Carlton, and Hilary. Bel-Air is a bit dark, but who can deny the 1990s took on dark themes with a jaded grin? Watch Bel-Air Online Cobra Kai Cobra Kai was less of a reboot and more of a “repair” of the hatchet job that was The Karate Kid reboot of 2010. Will Smith’s kid learning Kung-Fu? Come on! Cobra Kai actually revisited the original characters of Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence (played by original cast members Ralph Macchio and William Zabka) and picked up where the movies left off. And before it’s all over, we also get more cameos from original cast members from the first three Karate Kid films. No, Hilary Swank never returned to revisit “Julie”, but hey — we still get feels hearing Daniel talk about his mentor. Watch Cobra Kai Online Walker True, Walker was unceremoniously canceled despite its good ratings. (Another TV first!) But it’s hard to deny that producer and actor Jared Padalecki made a genuine and valiant attempt to recreate 1990s nostalgia with a 2020-era lens. Family conflict was low, while gang-police conflict was high. And while Cordell Walker did not exactly tribute Chuck Norris (he didn’t even kick anyone’s butt with savage kicks), he did give fans a taste of 1990s nostalgia. Walker’s troubled but good-natured family steals the show, while Jared balances between cowboy stoicism and a moralistic community leader. Walker, Texas Ranger wasn’t just about beating up bad guys. Ultimately, it was about remembering the forgotten Western genre in the spirit of films like Lone Wolf McQuade. Watch Walker Online That ’90s Show That ’90s Show reminds us how great the 1990s actually were while we slacked and remembered how cool the 1970s sounded. Set in 1996, the show revisits iconic 1970s parents Red and Kitty, but through the lens of Leia Forman, the teenage daughter of Eric Forman and Donna Pinciotti. The show is double nostalgic in the sense that it remembers the 1990s while also remembering distinctive 1970s characters. Most of those characters come back, too, such as Donna Pinciotti (Laura Prepon), Fez (Wilmer Valderrama), and even Bob Pinciotti (Don Stark). Even legends like Eric Forman (Topher Grace), Jackie Burkhart (Mila Kunis), and Michael Kelso (Ashton Kutcher) show up, reminding us that you usually CAN go home again — as long as you’re not in jail. Sorry about that, Hyde. Watch That '90s Show Online Night Court The original Night Court captured the madness and uninhibited comedy that defined the 1980s. It was one part burlesque show, one part dad jokes, and one part sad commentary on fatherless boys — a recurring motif throughout its nine seasons. It seems impossible to revisit such a “you had to be there” moment in time. Not only because of the madcap and politically incorrect comedy, but just the simple fact that most of the original cast was resting in peace. Except John Larroquette. The same John Larroquette who always comes back to TV in some capacity, usually playing sidekicks or irritable B-sitcom protagonists. But this time, he gets it right. On Night Court, the reboot, he revisits his greatest role as Dan Fielding, who bonds with Judge Abby Stone, the daughter of his late friend, Harry Stone. While Harry Anderson’s presence is sorely missed, it’s impossible not to follow Dan Fielding, all grown up and bitter — until he meets a gang of old friends, including former bailiff Roz, played again by Marsha Warfield. Night Court might well set a record for a sitcom actor inhabiting the same character for decades if it wasn’t for one other guy. Watch Night Court Online Frasier Kelsey Grammar has always teased his desire to revisit Frasier Crane after retiring the character in 2004. And if Grammar has learned anything in his four-decade sitcom career, it’s that you can’t take your ensemble cast with you. In the 1990s, he didn’t get the luxury of inviting back Ted Danson or Bebe Neuwirth until Frasier was a hit. Likewise, in the 2020s, he couldn’t get David Hyde Pierce to return as Niles Crane. Some ”ships” have sailed. But to his credit, Grammar is eager to return to a world that has surpassed him in technology, culture, and, of course, new family members. This time, Frasier moved back to the Boston, Massachusetts, area, taking a job as a Harvard University professor, hoping to reconnect with his son Frederick Crane. The original Frasier always felt nostalgic, especially in scenes involving Kelsey Grammar and the late John Mahoney, who played Frasier’s irritable but earnest father, Martin Crane. They talked about the past. They shared introspective monologues. They thought about the 1980s and how a drink at the end of the day was everything. Grammar spent so much of the 1990s finding neuroses and avoiding happiness that it is refreshing to see him as a fully realized character. This new Frasier loves more, gives more, and supports his friends and family in a way Frasier of old could never comprehend. Watch Frasier Online Stranger Things Stranger Things is the most successful nostalgic show and is the one exception on this list, in that it feels dynamic and “in the moment” and is never just a trip down memory lane. Stranger Things gives us Gen X’s aesthetics while creating its own universe of terror, intrigue, and happy endings. (Or shall we say, Happy For Now endings, at least until the final season) While the show references many 1980s culture riffs and movie tributes, its premise and execution are also distinctly 1980s. The series plays with classic tropes and themes from 1980s movies, such as children going on adventures, dungeons and dragons, government conspiracies, and paranormal discoveries. The cinematography is influenced by 1980s directors like Steven Spielberg and John Carpenter. Even the 1980s synth-heavy soundtrack evokes the feeling of 1980s mischief. The Duffer Brothers recreated the 1980s very well, right down to including the nostalgic and iconic objects we all still talk about, like arcade games, walkie-talkies, basement hangouts, and terrible sofas. Watch Stranger Things Online Why We Love Nostalgia TV While trendy and quite effective in getting attention, nostalgia is also very therapeutic. It helps members of Gen Z and A visualize a forgotten pre-internet existence while also softly triggering Gen Xers and Boomers to remember the highs and lows of their glory days. I personally hope this nostalgia obsession never ends. Because in the back of our minds, we always want to know what happened to our favorite characters — and we want that portal to an alternative universe to stay open and not just feel like a lost memory. Those happy days never have to end if we keep remembering the past so fondly. Over to you, TV Fanatics! What TV shows do you think are doing nostalgia right? Hit the comments and let us know!
Artificial intelligence (AI) is estimated to generate up to $680 billion for the telecommunications industry over the next 15 to 20 years, said John Hoffman, CEO of the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) Limited this week. Hoffman was citing a McKinsey report when making the remarks in a speech that he delivered at the opening ceremony of the 2024 World Internet Conference Wuzhen Summit, which is being held in east China’s Zhejiang Province. He said AI is emerging as a powerful force with the potential to transform business and society on an unprecedented scale. About 81 percent of telecom operators around the world are testing generative AI solutions and “Chinese operators are one of the leaders in the space, with big investments, strong government support and a booming tech landscape,” Hoffman said. “China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom have already made huge strides in AI research and applications, with solutions that are transforming public services, supply chains and healthcare,” he said. For instance, an intelligent computing service platform has been launched in northwest China to assist local flood control efforts, while an AI database in the country’s southwest is committed to the protection and development of cultural diversity. Across the world, Hoffman said, over 150 million people could have their lives improved by mobile big data and AI solutions in the next five years. Noting that AI brings responsibilities alongside opportunities, Hoffman called for greater attention to the ethical and sustainable development of AI technology. The summit, themed “Embracing a People-centered and AI-for-good Digital Future: Building a Community with a Shared Future in Cyberspace,” will last until Friday.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 affordable housing has become one of the leading concerns for the southern European Union country, mirroring the housing crunch across many parts of the world, including the United States . 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 eliminate the city’s 10,000 so called “tourist apartments,” or dwellings with permits for short-term rents, by 2028.
Luke Humphries defeats Luke Littler to retain Players Championship Finals titlePLAINS, Ga. (AP) — Newly married and sworn as a Naval officer, Jimmy Carter left his tiny hometown in 1946 hoping to climb the ranks and see the world. Less than a decade later, the death of his father and namesake, a merchant farmer and local politician who went by “Mr. Earl,” prompted the submariner and his wife, Rosalynn, to return to the rural life of Plains, Georgia, they thought they’d escaped. The lieutenant never would be an admiral. Instead, he became commander in chief. Years after his presidency ended in humbling defeat, he would add a Nobel Peace Prize, awarded not for his White House accomplishments but “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” The life of James Earl Carter Jr., the 39th and longest-lived U.S. president, ended Sunday at the age of 100 where it began: Plains, the town of 600 that fueled his political rise, welcomed him after his fall and sustained him during 40 years of service that redefined what it means to be a former president. With the stubborn confidence of an engineer and an optimism rooted in his Baptist faith, Carter described his motivations in politics and beyond in the same way: an almost missionary zeal to solve problems and improve lives. Carter was raised amid racism, abject poverty and hard rural living — realities that shaped both his deliberate politics and emphasis on human rights. “He always felt a responsibility to help people,” said Jill Stuckey, a longtime friend of Carter's in Plains. “And when he couldn’t make change wherever he was, he decided he had to go higher.” Defying expectations Carter's path, a mix of happenstance and calculation , pitted moral imperatives against political pragmatism; and it defied typical labels of American politics, especially caricatures of one-term presidents as failures. “We shouldn’t judge presidents by how popular they are in their day. That's a very narrow way of assessing them," Carter biographer Jonathan Alter told the Associated Press. “We should judge them by how they changed the country and the world for the better. On that score, Jimmy Carter is not in the first rank of American presidents, but he stands up quite well.” Later in life, Carter conceded that many Americans, even those too young to remember his tenure, judged him ineffective for failing to contain inflation or interest rates, end the energy crisis or quickly bring home American hostages in Iran. He gained admirers instead for his work at The Carter Center — advocating globally for public health, human rights and democracy since 1982 — and the decades he and Rosalynn wore hardhats and swung hammers with Habitat for Humanity. Yet the common view that he was better after the Oval Office than in it annoyed Carter, and his allies relished him living long enough to see historians reassess his presidency. “He doesn’t quite fit in today’s terms” of a left-right, red-blue scoreboard, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who visited the former president multiple times during his own White House bid. At various points in his political career, Carter labeled himself “progressive” or “conservative” — sometimes both at once. His most ambitious health care bill failed — perhaps one of his biggest legislative disappointments — because it didn’t go far enough to suit liberals. Republicans, especially after his 1980 defeat, cast him as a left-wing cartoon. It would be easiest to classify Carter as a centrist, Buttigieg said, “but there’s also something radical about the depth of his commitment to looking after those who are left out of society and out of the economy.” ‘Country come to town’ Indeed, Carter’s legacy is stitched with complexities, contradictions and evolutions — personal and political. The self-styled peacemaker was a war-trained Naval Academy graduate who promised Democratic challenger Ted Kennedy that he’d “kick his ass.” But he campaigned with a call to treat everyone with “respect and compassion and with love.” Carter vowed to restore America’s virtue after the shame of Vietnam and Watergate, and his technocratic, good-government approach didn't suit Republicans who tagged government itself as the problem. It also sometimes put Carter at odds with fellow Democrats. The result still was a notable legislative record, with wins on the environment, education, and mental health care. He dramatically expanded federally protected lands, began deregulating air travel, railroads and trucking, and he put human rights at the center of U.S. foreign policy. As a fiscal hawk, Carter added a relative pittance to the national debt, unlike successors from both parties. Carter nonetheless struggled to make his achievements resonate with the electorate he charmed in 1976. Quoting Bob Dylan and grinning enthusiastically, he had promised voters he would “never tell a lie.” Once in Washington, though, he led like a joyless engineer, insisting his ideas would become reality and he'd be rewarded politically if only he could convince enough people with facts and logic. This served him well at Camp David, where he brokered peace between Israel’s Menachem Begin and Epypt’s Anwar Sadat, an experience that later sparked the idea of The Carter Center in Atlanta. Carter's tenacity helped the center grow to a global force that monitored elections across five continents, enabled his freelance diplomacy and sent public health experts across the developing world. The center’s wins were personal for Carter, who hoped to outlive the last Guinea worm parasite, and nearly did. As president, though, the approach fell short when he urged consumers beleaguered by energy costs to turn down their thermostats. Or when he tried to be the nation’s cheerleader, beseeching Americans to overcome a collective “crisis of confidence.” Republican Ronald Reagan exploited Carter's lecturing tone with a belittling quip in their lone 1980 debate. “There you go again,” the former Hollywood actor said in response to a wonky answer from the sitting president. “The Great Communicator” outpaced Carter in all but six states. Carter later suggested he “tried to do too much, too soon” and mused that he was incompatible with Washington culture: media figures, lobbyists and Georgetown social elites who looked down on the Georgians and their inner circle as “country come to town.” A ‘leader of conscience’ on race and class Carter carefully navigated divides on race and class on his way to the Oval Office. Born Oct. 1, 1924 , Carter was raised in the mostly Black community of Archery, just outside Plains, by a progressive mother and white supremacist father. Their home had no running water or electricity but the future president still grew up with the relative advantages of a locally prominent, land-owning family in a system of Jim Crow segregation. He wrote of President Franklin Roosevelt’s towering presence and his family’s Democratic Party roots, but his father soured on FDR, and Jimmy Carter never campaigned or governed as a New Deal liberal. He offered himself as a small-town peanut farmer with an understated style, carrying his own luggage, bunking with supporters during his first presidential campaign and always using his nickname. And he began his political career in a whites-only Democratic Party. As private citizens, he and Rosalynn supported integration as early as the 1950s and believed it inevitable. Carter refused to join the White Citizens Council in Plains and spoke out in his Baptist church against denying Black people access to worship services. “This is not my house; this is not your house,” he said in a churchwide meeting, reminding fellow parishioners their sanctuary belonged to God. Yet as the appointed chairman of Sumter County schools he never pushed to desegregate, thinking it impractical after the Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown v. Board decision. And while presidential candidate Carter would hail the 1965 Voting Rights Act, signed by fellow Democrat Lyndon Johnson when Carter was a state senator, there is no record of Carter publicly supporting it at the time. Carter overcame a ballot-stuffing opponent to win his legislative seat, then lost the 1966 governor's race to an arch-segregationist. He won four years later by avoiding explicit mentions of race and campaigning to the right of his rival, who he mocked as “Cufflinks Carl” — the insult of an ascendant politician who never saw himself as part the establishment. Carter’s rural and small-town coalition in 1970 would match any victorious Republican electoral map in 2024. Once elected, though, Carter shocked his white conservative supporters — and landed on the cover of Time magazine — by declaring that “the time for racial discrimination is over.” Before making the jump to Washington, Carter befriended the family of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., whom he’d never sought out as he eyed the governor’s office. Carter lamented his foot-dragging on school integration as a “mistake.” But he also met, conspicuously, with Alabama's segregationist Gov. George Wallace to accept his primary rival's endorsement ahead of the 1976 Democratic convention. “He very shrewdly took advantage of his own Southerness,” said Amber Roessner, a University of Tennessee professor and expert on Carter’s campaigns. A coalition of Black voters and white moderate Democrats ultimately made Carter the last Democratic presidential nominee to sweep the Deep South. Then, just as he did in Georgia, he used his power in office to appoint more non-whites than all his predecessors had, combined. He once acknowledged “the secret shame” of white Americans who didn’t fight segregation. But he also told Alter that doing more would have sacrificed his political viability – and thus everything he accomplished in office and after. King's daughter, Bernice King, described Carter as wisely “strategic” in winning higher offices to enact change. “He was a leader of conscience,” she said in an interview. Rosalynn was Carter's closest advisor Rosalynn Carter, who died on Nov. 19 at the age of 96, was identified by both husband and wife as the “more political” of the pair; she sat in on Cabinet meetings and urged him to postpone certain priorities, like pressing the Senate to relinquish control of the Panama Canal. “Let that go until the second term,” she would sometimes say. The president, recalled her former aide Kathy Cade, retorted that he was “going to do what’s right” even if “it might cut short the time I have.” Rosalynn held firm, Cade said: “She’d remind him you have to win to govern.” Carter also was the first president to appoint multiple women as Cabinet officers. Yet by his own telling, his career sprouted from chauvinism in the Carters' early marriage: He did not consult Rosalynn when deciding to move back to Plains in 1953 or before launching his state Senate bid a decade later. Many years later, he called it “inconceivable” that he didn’t confer with the woman he described as his “full partner,” at home, in government and at The Carter Center. “We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, and it continued when Jimmy got involved in politics,” Rosalynn Carter told AP in 2021. So deep was their trust that when Carter remained tethered to the White House in 1980 as 52 Americans were held hostage in Tehran, it was Rosalynn who campaigned on her husband’s behalf. “I just loved it,” she said, despite the bitterness of defeat. Reevaluating his legacy Fair or not, the label of a disastrous presidency had leading Democrats keep their distance, at least publicly, for many years, but Carter managed to remain relevant, writing books and weighing in on societal challenges. He lamented widening wealth gaps and the influence of money in politics. He voted for democratic socialist Bernie Sanders over Hillary Clinton in 2016, and later declared that America had devolved from fully functioning democracy to “oligarchy.” Yet looking ahead to 2020, with Sanders running again, Carter warned Democrats not to “move to a very liberal program,” lest they help re-elect President Donald Trump. Carter scolded the Republican for his serial lies and threats to democracy, and chided the U.S. establishment for misunderstanding Trump’s populist appeal. He delighted in yearly convocations with Emory University freshmen, often asking them to guess how much he’d raised in his two general election campaigns. “Zero,” he’d gesture with a smile, explaining the public financing system candidates now avoid so they can raise billions. Carter still remained quite practical in partnering with wealthy corporations and foundations to advance Carter Center programs. Carter recognized that economic woes and the Iran crisis doomed his presidency, but offered no apologies for appointing Paul Volcker as the Federal Reserve chairman whose interest rate hikes would not curb inflation until Reagan's presidency. He was proud of getting all the hostages home without starting a shooting war, even though Tehran would not free them until Reagan's Inauguration Day. “Carter didn’t look at it” as a failure, Alter emphasized. “He said, ‘They came home safely.’ And that’s what he wanted.” Well into their 90s, the Carters greeted visitors at Plains’ Maranatha Baptist Church, where he taught Sunday School and where he will have his last funeral before being buried on family property alongside Rosalynn . Carter, who made the congregation’s collection plates in his woodworking shop, still garnered headlines there, calling for women’s rights within religious institutions, many of which, he said, “subjugate” women in church and society. Carter was not one to dwell on regrets. “I am at peace with the accomplishments, regret the unrealized goals and utilize my former political position to enhance everything we do,” he wrote around his 90th birthday. Pilgrimages to Plains The politician who had supposedly hated Washington politics also enjoyed hosting Democratic presidential contenders as public pilgrimages to Plains became advantageous again. Carter sat with Buttigieg for the final time March 1, 2020, hours before the Indiana mayor ended his campaign and endorsed eventual winner Joe Biden. “He asked me how I thought the campaign was going,” Buttigieg said, recalling that Carter flashed his signature grin and nodded along as the young candidate, born a year after Carter left office, “put the best face” on the walloping he endured the day before in South Carolina. Never breaking his smile, the 95-year-old host fired back, “I think you ought to drop out.” “So matter of fact,” Buttigieg said with a laugh. “It was somehow encouraging.” Carter had lived enough, won plenty and lost enough to take the long view. “He talked a lot about coming from nowhere,” Buttigieg said, not just to attain the presidency but to leverage “all of the instruments you have in life” and “make the world more peaceful.” In his farewell address as president, Carter said as much to the country that had embraced and rejected him. “The struggle for human rights overrides all differences of color, nation or language,” he declared. “Those who hunger for freedom, who thirst for human dignity and who suffer for the sake of justice — they are the patriots of this cause.” Carter pledged to remain engaged with and for them as he returned “home to the South where I was born and raised,” home to Plains, where that young lieutenant had indeed become “a fellow citizen of the world.” —- Bill Barrow, based in Atlanta, has covered national politics including multiple presidential campaigns for the AP since 2012.
Rich countries' promise of $300 billion a year in climate finance brought fury at talks in Baku from poor nations that found it too paltry, but it also shows a shift in global political realities. The two-week marathon COP29 climate conference opened days after the decisive victory in the US presidential election of Donald Trump, a sceptic both of climate change and foreign aid. In the new year, Germany, Canada and Australia all hold elections in which conservatives less supportive of green policies stand chances of victory. Britain is an exception, with the new Labour government putting climate high back on the agenda, but in much of the West, concerns about inflation and budgetary shocks from Russia's invasion of Ukraine have dented enthusiasm for aggressive climate measures. At COP29, Germany and the European Union maintained their roles championing climate but also advocated a noticeably practical approach on how much money historical polluters should give poorer countries. "We live in a time of truly challenging geopolitics, and we should simply not have the illusion" otherwise, European climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra told bleary-eyed delegates at COP29's pre-dawn closing session Sunday, as activists in the back loudly coughed to drown him out. But he vowed leadership by Europe, hailing COP29 as "the start of a new era for climate finance". German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, a Green party member and longtime climate advocate, called for flexibility on ways to provide funding. Europe should "live up to its responsibilities, but in a way that it doesn't make promises it can't keep", she said. Avinash Persaud, special advisor on climate change to the president of the Inter-American Development Bank, called the final deal "the boundary between what is politically achievable today in developed countries and what would make a difference in developing countries". Activists say that climate funding is a duty, not choice, for wealthy nations whose decades of greenhouse gas emissions most contributed to the crisis that most hits the poorest. This year is again set to be the hottest on record on the planet. Just since COP29, deadly storms have battered the Philippines and Honduras, and Ecuador declared a national emergency due to drought and forest fires. Wealthy historic emitters' promise of $300 billion a year by 2035 is a step up from an expiring commitment of $100 billion annually, but all sides acknowledge it is not enough. The COP29 agreement cites the need for $1.3 trillion per year, meaning a whopping $1 trillion a year needs to come from elsewhere. Even within the $300 billion commitment, some activists see too much wiggle room. "It is, to some extent, almost an empty promise," said Mariana Paoli, the global advocacy lead at London-based development group Christian Aid. She described the target as "creative accounting", saying there was not enough clarity on how much money would come from public funds and in grants rather than loans. She acknowledged the politics of the moment but said that wealthy nations had options such as taxation on fossil fuel companies. "There is a backlash because there is no political will," she said. In one closely scrutinised part of the Baku deal, countries will be able to count climate finance through international financial institutions toward the $300 billion goal. The text states that it is "voluntary" -- potentially opening the way to include China, which is the world's largest emitter but refuses to have requirements like long-developed countries. In a joint statement at COP29, multilateral development banks led by the Washington-based World Bank Group but also including the Beijing-based Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank -- which has long faced US criticism -- expected that they together can provide $120 billion annually in climate financing and mobilise another $65 billion from the private sector by 2030. Melanie Robinson, director of the global climate program at the World Resources Institute, said there were good reasons to rely on multinational development banks, including how much capital they can leverage and their tools to advance green policies. "They are the most effective way to turn each dollar of finance into impact on the ground," she said. She agreed that the $300 billion was insufficient but added, "It's a down payment on what we need." Beyond the debate on dollar figures, she pointed to an initiative within the G20 by Brazil, which holds COP30 next year, to reform financial institutions so as to incorporate debtor nations as well as climate concerns. "There is really a much bigger opportunity for us -- which is shifting the whole financial system," she said. sct/giv
The Latest: Former President Jimmy Carter is dead at age 100