Toys Market in Europe to Grow by USD 9.27 Billion (2024-2028), Driven by Premiumization and AI-Influenced Market Trends - Technavio
LOWELL — It had boot drives by area firefighters, Red Kettle ringers, hundreds of auction items and even a donated ugly Christmas sweater as part of the festivities. In other words, just another successful WCAP Radiothon and online auction that raises money for the Salvation Army of Greater Lowell. Both the community participation and the money raised continues to grow, said Saturday Morning Live host Warren Shaw. “Every year we have more people who want to be part of it,” he said by phone Tuesday afternoon. “It overwhelms me that we have these people who totally just give of themselves and make this happen.” The fundraiser is broadcast live by Shaw and co-host Gerry Nutter each December. Members of the community drop into the Market Street studio to make a donation, catch some air time with the hosts or simply absorb the holiday spirit that infuses the daylong event. “I never know from year to year what’s going to happen,” Shaw said. “But this year, there was more energy than I’ve ever seen before.” The fundraiser attracts local supporters, as well as state and federal ones. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and former Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito called into the Radiothon. Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan stopped in as did U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, boxing great Micky Ward, City Manager Tom Golden, former state Rep. Steve Panagiotakos, state Rep. Rodney Elliott and numerous other local officials and business leaders. Along with the familiar faces were the new ones of Majors Alan and Amanda Krueger, representing the charitable organization . The couple took over for Majors Nicole and Timothy Ross, who led the Salvation Army in the Greater Lowell area for six years before moving to Portland, Maine, where they were appointed to the leadership team at the organization’s divisional headquarters. One couple, who Shaw said “raise the bar every year,” was Mike and Cindy Kuenzler. They dropped off another record donation of almost $111,000 from the annual comedy night held at their Four Oaks Country Club in Dracut. The auction is the main focus of the Radiothon, though, with close to 200 donated items , from vacation packages to sports memorabilia, custom cookies, clothes, electronics, gift cards and certificates to local businesses. Bidders could even try for a chance to be mayor of Lowell for the day. For the third year, Councilor Erik Gitschier won the mayoral auction item, which he gifts to a Greater Lowell Technical High School student. “Each year, it is a blessing I am able to choose a student that represents all the amazing qualities of the Office of the Mayor!” Gitschier said by text Tuesday. Previous “mayors” have been students Damarje Williams and Julie Oum . More than 20 years ago, the Radiothon started with “two guys turning on the microphones asking people for money,” Shaw said in a 2022 Sun interview. That first year, he and Arthur Sutcliffe, who co-hosted the event, raised $5,000. Now, the Radiothon regularly brings in more than $200,000. But he said a lot of different pieces and people make the Radiothon happen, such as the money raised by the boot drives held by firefighters in Dracut, Tyngsboro and Lowell that brought in more than $25,000. Dracut resident Kevin Durkin raised $10,000 in memory of his friend Ralph Richardson, who was nicknamed the “heat patrol” for refusing to turn on the heat until Nov. 1. Shaw said that money will be dedicated to the Salvation Army’s heat assistance program. Councilor Rita Mercier could be found ringing the bell in front of the Owl Diner for Red Kettle donations. People even bid not to have to take home an ugly Christmas sweater donated by Nutter. “You put in all the other pieces and you end up with a big number,” Shaw said, referring to the contributions — both time and money — of all the people who participate in the local fundraiser. The Radiothon auction and donations help support a wide variety of Salvation Army local programing and services. The Lowell Corps serves the Greater Lowell area, providing social and emergency services to residents from Lowell, Tyngsboro, Dracut, Tewksbury, Billerica, Chelmsford and Dunstable. The Christian-based organization provides food for the hungry, rent and utility to those who are struggling and a safe place for youth and families. Almost 1,600 children received toys and winter supplies during last year’s Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, and 1,300 food baskets were delivered to families. The Lowell location is based at 150 Appleton St., right in the heart of the city’s most impacted Back Central neighborhood. A final tally will be available on Dec. 14, and 100% of the money raised through the Radiothon will go toward helping local folks in need. “We are so grateful to all of the volunteers who give their heart and soul to making this event a success,” the Salvation Army said in a statement. “Together, we are helping our neighbors in need at the holidays and throughout the entire year!”CursorFitnessTreadmill.com Launches Online Store, Bringing Fitness Solutions to Every Home
By Ja'han Jones Donald Trump ’s pick of far-right lawyer Harmeet Dhillon for a top post at the Justice Department leaves little doubt about his intent to use the department to undermine democracy during his second term. On Monday, Trump announced that he had selected the MAGA-aligned lawyer to be the assistant attorney general for civil rights. If Dillon is confirmed by the Senate, the DOJ division responsible for defending Americans’ most precious rights — including, importantly, the right to vote — would be led by someone who has supported trampling on those very rights. Over the past couple of years here on The ReidOut Blog, I’ve been reporting on Dhillon as a key player in MAGA world’s vision for “ lawfare ” — that is, weaponization of the law against one’s political enemies. In 2020, Dhillon co-chaired the group Lawyers for Trump, and she and her law firm have arguably been as rabid as anyone in attacking Americans’ voting rights and pushing bogus claims that Trump was cheated out of a victory four years ago. Dhillon is a peddler of the conservative movement’s “anti-woke” propaganda that seeks to marginalize racial and ethnic minorities and demonize LGBTQ people. Dhillon also launched a failed insurgent bid to oust Ronna McDaniel as chair of the Republican National Committee back in 2022. This bid was supported by far-right activists like Charlie Kirk, who has openly railed against the Civil Rights Act , which prohibits discrimination against marginalized groups. Dhillon’s main argument was that Republicans needed to invest in a larger army of lawyers to help conservatives carry out their lawfare dreams and restrict Americans’ access to the ballot. Dhillon is a peddler of the conservative movement’s “anti-woke” propaganda that seeks to marginalize racial and ethnic minorities and demonize LGBTQ people . Put plainly: She is just about the worst person imaginable to have in a position tasked with defending democracy and stemming real oppression. But Trump has already made clear he wants to upend the concept of civil rights. He has said he expects his administration to attack diversity efforts and prioritize rooting out anti-white discrimination (which hasn’t actually been shown to exist in any systemic way). Dhillon’s résumé and rhetoric suggest she’s up to the task. Ja'han Jones is The ReidOut Blog writer. He's a futurist and multimedia producer focused on culture and politics. His previous projects include "Black Hair Defined" and the "Black Obituary Project."Digitized Discrimination: A Study of Hiring Assessments
Some elite US universities favor wealthy students in admissions decisions, lawsuit allegesFalcon Gold (CVE:FG) Shares Down 20% – Here’s What HappenedALPINE, Texas (AP) — Three U.S. Army soldiers at Fort Cavazos, Texas, have been arrested on human smuggling charges, U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas said Thursday. Soldiers Emilio Mendoza Lopez, Angel Palma, 20, and Enrique Jauregui, 25, were arrested after a vehicle allegedly driven by Palma and carrying Mendoza Lopez, a Mexican national and two Guatemalan nationals was stopped Nov. 27 by law enforcement in Presidio along the border with Mexico, about 500 miles (805 kilometers) southwest of Dallas. Mike Lahrman, a spokesman for Esparza, said he did not know the soldier’s ranks or whether action had been taken against them by the military. A spokesman for Fort Cavazos did not immediately respond to a request for comment. “Mendoza Lopez and Palma allegedly traveled from Fort Cavazos to Presidio for the purpose of picking up and transporting undocumented noncitizens,” Esparza said in a statement. “Jauregui is alleged to be the recruiter and facilitator of the human smuggling conspiracy,” according to Esparza. “Data extracted from Palma’s phone through a search warrant revealed messages between the three soldiers indicating collaboration in the smuggling operation.” Related Articles National News | White House says at least 8 US telecom firms, dozens of nations impacted by China hacking campaign National News | Powell: Fed’s independence from politics is vital to its interest rate decisions National News | US senators grill airline officials about fees for seats and checked bags National News | California ranks No. 9 for economic ‘balance’ between bosses and workers National News | Shooter kills UnitedHealthcare CEO in New York ambush, pedals into Central Park Mendoza Lopez was arrested at the scene of the Nov. 27 traffic stop while Palma, who prosecutors said fled the scene of the traffic stop, and Jauregui were arrested Tuesday at Fort Cavazos, about 125 miles (201 kilometers) south of Dallas, Lahrman said. Mendoza Lopez’s attorney, Shane Chriesman, said he is awaiting more information, known as discovery, from prosecutors on the charge. “Once I get discovery and have a chance to assess the case we’ll develop a plan of attack” and will try to get a bond set for Mendoza Lopez, who is currently jailed without bail, Chriesman said. No attorneys are listed in jail records who could speak for for Palma and Jauregui, who are awaiting their first court appearance on Friday, according to Esparza.BETHESDA, Md. , Dec. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- AGNC Investment Corp. (Nasdaq: AGNC) ("AGNC" or the "Company") announced today that its Board of Directors has declared cash dividends on the outstanding depositary shares 1 of the following series of preferred stock for the fourth quarter 2024: Series of Preferred Stock Ticker Per Annum Dividend Rate Dividend Per Depositary Share 1 7.00% Series C Fixed-to-Floating Rate AGNCN 10.01991% 2 $0.64016 6.875% Series D Fixed-to-Floating Rate AGNCM 9.24091% 3 $0.59039 6.50% Series E Fixed-to-Floating Rate AGNCO 9.90191% 4 $0.63262 6.125% Series F Fixed-to-Floating Rate AGNCP 6.125 % $0.3828125 7.750% Series G Fixed-Rate Reset AGNCL 7.750 % $0.48438 1. Each depositary share represents a 1/1,000th interest in a share of preferred stock. 2. The Series C Depositary Shares accrue dividends at a floating rate equal to Three-Month CME Term SOFR plus 0.26161% plus 5.111%. The dividend rate for the dividend period ending January 14, 2025 is 10.01991% per annum. 3. The Series D Depositary Shares accrue dividends at a floating rate equal to Three-Month CME Term SOFR plus 0.26161% plus 4.332%. The dividend rate for the dividend period ending January 14, 2025 is 9.24091% per annum. 4. The Series E Depositary Shares accrue dividends at a floating rate equal to Three-Month CME Term SOFR plus 0.26161% plus 4.993%. The dividend rate for the dividend period ending January 14, 2025 is 9.90191% per annum. The dividend for each series of outstanding preferred stock is payable on January 15, 2025 to holders of record as of January 1, 2025 . For further information or questions, please contact Investor Relations at (301) 968-9300 or IR@AGNC.com . ABOUT AGNC INVESTMENT CORP. Founded in 2008, AGNC Investment Corp. (Nasdaq: AGNC) is a leading investor in Agency residential mortgage-backed securities (Agency MBS), which benefit from a guarantee against credit losses by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or Ginnie Mae . We invest on a leveraged basis, financing our Agency MBS assets primarily through repurchase agreements, and utilize dynamic risk management strategies intended to protect the value of our portfolio from interest rate and other market risks. AGNC has a track record of providing favorable long-term returns for our stockholders through substantial monthly dividend income, with over $13 billion of common stock dividends paid since inception. Our business is a significant source of private capital for the U.S. residential housing market, and our team has extensive experience managing mortgage assets across market cycles. To learn more about The Premier Agency Residential Mortgage REIT , please visit www.AGNC.com , follow us on LinkedIn and X , and sign up for Investor Alerts . CONTACT: Investor Relations - (301) 968-9300 View original content: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/agnc-investment-corp-declares-fourth-quarter-dividends-on-preferred-stock-302329441.html SOURCE AGNC Investment Corp.
To all the players, coaches and administrators, the following opinions are mine and mine alone. It’s ALWAYS business – and NEVER personal. So, if I name you, shame you, offend you or slap you on the back and put your name up in lights, just accept it for what it is and move on. Watch every game of every round this NBL Season LIVE on ESPN, via Kayo. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited time offer. CAIRNS (defeated by Melbourne) HOOYAH – With his best statistical game of the season, Tanner Groves scored nearly a third of Cairns’ total. 20 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks is what your team needs from you night after night. HARDEN UP – Being outrebounded by 27 is one way to keep this losing streak going. Your desperation ain’t desperate enough. MELBOURNE (defeated Cairns) HOOYAH – You were efficient in a game that lacked a lot of efficiency, Jack White, with 14 points at 62% and 8 rebounds. HARDEN UP – 75 total shots, and over half were 3’s. I wouldn’t have an issue if you were making them, but 7/38 from 3-point land is not up to standard. BRISBANE (defeated by Illawarra & Tasmania) HOOYAH – Copy & Paste. Casey Prather is still at it. Against Illawarra you dropped 28 points at 61%, going 4/5 from 3-point land. HARDEN UP – You picked the wrong time to turn in a 7-point performance, Keandre Cook. Down an import in James Batemon, 1/6 FG vs Illawarra cannot be on the menu moving forward. ILLAWARRA (defeated Brisbane) HOOYAH – I can’t go past your double-double, Sam Froling. 15 points and 12 rebounds is grown man’s business. HARDEN UP – It’s your fouling ways, Darius Days. That’s what’s preventing you from staying on the floor long enough to showcase your talents. Respectfully, stop hacking! You’re way better than 5 points and 2 rebounds. ADELAIDE (defeated by Perth) HOOYAH – In your first game back from a hamstring injury, you showed some spirit, DJ Vasiljevic. 23 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 25 ‘restricted’ minutes. HARDEN UP – All of you can cop this one – AGAIN! Another embarrassing home loss. The wheels have fallen off and your car is now unroadworthy - I’m scared to look under the bonnet. You owe it to yourselves and your loyal supporters. Please, don’t go out like this. PERTH (defeated Adelaide) HOOYAH – Dylan Windler, you were sensational all over the floor. A former 1st round NBA draft pick, you showed all your class with 24 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 4 blocks. HARDEN UP – In a good road win, where your defence vastly improved, you gave up 48 PIP (Points in the Paint). Tighten that up to get a lock on a playoff position. TASMANIA – (defeated Brisbane) HOOYAH – Anthony Drmic, you came into the game averaging just under 7 points and finished with a season-high 19 at 61%, and some of your trademark hard-nosed D. HARDEN UP – You sent Brisbane to the foul line 31 times, that’s way too high. And blaming the refs is frowned upon, keep an eye on that. March on. NBL HOOYAH – To the referees (they’re people too) who put out multiple spot fires across the round - even putting themselves in harm’s way to de-escalate volatile situations. You don’t get enough credit for the tough job you do. HARDEN UP – I’m gonna keep banging on about this jersey mess. First we had teams playing on Xmas Day without Xmas themed jerseys, now we have the Hawks wearing Xmas jerseys after Xmas Day! I know the Hawks like to wear jerseys that bring them luck and it’s a superstition thing, but it can get confusing.
Like most presidencies, Jimmy Carter 's will face history's judgment in determining whether its fiascos—rampant inflation, gas shortages, the failed U.S. military efforts to rescue Americans held in Iran by Islamic radicals—resulted from sheer misfortune or Carter's miscalculations. One fact about the 39th presidency, however, falls unquestionably into the unlucky category. Carter will go down in history as one of only four presidents (including William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Andrew Johnson) who did not have an opportunity to appoint a member of the U.S. Supreme Court . Yet, indirectly, he is responsible for one of the high tribunal's most consequential members: Ruth Bader Ginsburg . In addition, his approach to populating the lower federal courts with diverse judges reshaped the country's bench. Carter's upbringing in rural southern Georgia impressed upon him life-long lessons about race and gender. His mother's independence as a nurse who ignored many of the Jim Crow South's racial segregation customs, and his exposure to Black playmates, clerics and, neighboring sharecroppers, formed his eventual embrace of equal opportunity for all Americans. Carter's career in the nuclear Navy coincided with President Harry Truman's abolition of racial segregation in the American military. By the early 1970s, he had fully embraced the modern civil rights agenda. Standing for office in the Peach State, rife with traditional white segregationist politicians, Carter ultimately represented the more progressive New South. As his political career expanded, Carter's wife, Rosalynn, embraced an equal role with him in running their peanut farming business. Once in the governor's office, the future president quickly changed the complexion of the state workforce, placing Blacks in 40 percent of influential positions, including boosting their number on Georgia boards from three to 53 and appointing the first Black state patrolman. African Americans rewarded him by casting their votes for Carter in 1976, catapulting him from "Jimmy Who?" to the Democratic presidential nomination and then on to the White House, with 83 percent of their ballots in the general election. Carter's commitment to egalitarianism on matters of race and gender manifested itself in his approach to federal court nominations. He developed an affirmative action plan for the trial courts and courts of appeals. Long a bastion of white males, the 94 district courts and 13 courts of appeals form the core of the federal judicial structure. Distributed among 12 geographic clusters of states and the District of Columbia, plus one national circuit, the courts of appeals hear the vast majority of cases from the federal trial courts. All litigants have the right to appeal a loss from the district courts, and, because the Supreme Court's docket is discretionary and contains fewer than 100 cases a term, the courts of appeals are the last stop for all but a few cases. Thus, Carter's 262 nominations to the federal benches, a record number at the time, guided by an effort to balance the representative characteristics of appointees, especially in terms of race, ethnicity, and gender, gave him an influential role in shaping the national judiciary. His first year in office (1977), Carter established his Circuit Court Nominating Commissions and met with them in the White House to gather names of qualified women and minorities for the federal benches. This unprecedented process resulted in his naming 57 minority judges and 41 female jurists, numbers that exceeded the total of all previous presidents' minority and women nominees. He appointed nine Black people to the circuit courts (including Amalya Kearse, the first female African-American federal appellate court judge) and 28 Black jurists to the district courts. The 1978 Omnibus Judgeship Act , which created 152 new federal judgeships, aided Carter's record performance in Black appointments. His most lasting impact resulted from his 1980 nomination of Ginsburg to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, a proving ground for Supreme Court justices. Ginsburg had served as the director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Women's Rights Project, during which she argued a half-dozen gender-equity cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and won all but one. Her scholarship as a tenured Columbia Law School professor and her successful advocacy for equality between the sexes caught Carter's attention. Likewise, her compelling life story captured President Bill Clinton 's imagination in 1993 when Justice Byron White retired from the nation's highest tribunal. In announcing her nomination, Clinton declared that Ginsburg was "to the women's movement what Thurgood Marshall was to the movement for the rights of African Americans." If Carter had secured a second term in the 1980 election, it is likely that he would have had the distinction of placing the first woman on the high court. But that landmark belongs to President Ronald Reagan. Joining Sandra Day O'Connor as only the second woman to become a member of the court, Ginsburg played a historic role, especially in continuing her crusade for gender equity. She penned the court's opinion in the decision requiring Virginia Military Institute to admit women. Her dissent in the Lilly Ledbetter case successfully encouraged Congress to amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act's limits on when the victims of wage discrimination could challenge their employers in federal court. Until her 2020 death, Ginsburg continued to fulfill the egalitarian agenda of Carter's post-Watergate presidency. She provided votes and authored opinions upholding access to abortion, allowing universities to maintain affirmative action policies in college and law school admissions, advocating marriage equality, and bolstering sexual privacy. And RBG might never have made history on the nation's highest court without the 39th president's nomination of her to the second most powerful tribunal in the nation. Barbara A. Perry ( @BarbaraPerryUVA ) is the J. Wilson Newman Professor of Governance and co-chair of the Presidential Oral History Program at the University of Virginia's Miller Center . She was a 1994-95 Supreme Court Fellow. The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Sans J.T. Miller, Canucks begin 6-game road trip at Senators
DEAR DEIDRE: I AM a man of 32 and I’ve only ever had one relationship, which was with a woman. It lasted five years but, now that it is over, I would like to try dating a guy. I worry that people will think I’m too old and having a crisis. My ex was a family friend and everyone expected me to propose and settle down with her. But I started to find her really dull so we went our separate ways. Now I feel that I am more drawn to men – or maybe I’m not, I really don’t know. I guess I’m saying that I’m bi-curious. However, if I were to take the plunge and go with a man, I don’t think it would be well received by my family. Should I keep it to myself? READ MORE FROM DEAR DEIDRE JOB FEAR I got caught stealing at work and can't face going to disciplinary meeting DEIDRE'S STORIES Poppy's friend goes on a night out and doesn't come home DEIDRE SAYS: You have the right to explore your own sexuality without having to share your experiences. Many people question their sexuality later on in life – you are not alone. Perhaps you will enjoy being with a man. You don’t know until you try. My support pack called LGBT+ Support explains more. Dear Deidre: Understanding open relationships Get out with your friends but worry less about finding somebody who is partner material and just enjoy the social side. If you do opt for a same-sex relationship, you’ll find support through fflag.org.uk (0300 688 0368). They will help you think about how to tell your friends and family that you are gay – if and when you decide that is the right thing to do. Get in touch with Deidre Every problem gets a personal reply, usually within 24 hours weekdays. Send an email to deardeidre@the-sun.co.uk You can also send a private message on the DearDeidreOfficial Facebook page.