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We used to be a nation of owners. Not anymore. In 1820, roughly 80 percent of Americans worked for themselves. Farmers, shopkeepers, and craftsmen— people owned what they built . Today, most of us work for someone else. We may think that's normal, but it's not. Ownership is disappearing. Slowly, quietly, it's being taken while we aren't paying attention. And as it goes, so does our freedom, wealth, and control over our communities. If you walk down any street in America, you'll see this in real time. That corner store? Likely owned by a big corporation. The neighborhood coffee shop? Replaced by a chain. The family auto repair shop? Bought out or shut down. In 2000, private equity firms owned just 4 percent of U.S. companies. Today, they own 20 percent . One in five businesses are run by Wall Street suits who've never worked a day on Main Street. Even local businesses aren't local anymore. One-third are controlled by giant corporations. BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street—the "Big Three" of Wall Street asset management—now are the largest shareholders for 88 percent of the S&P 500 . These companies own the buildings you live in, the companies you work for, even the stocks in your 401(k). They're not just buying businesses. They're buying power and control. When local businesses close, they take more than jobs with them—they take the heart of a community. We've all seen it happen. A beloved local diner or shop, where families gathered for years, gets bought by a chain. Prices go up, familiar faces disappear, and that warm, personal touch is replaced with something cold and corporate. What once felt like home is now just another corporate front. This is happening everywhere. When it does, we don't just lose businesses; we lose connection, pride, and control over our towns. Prices rise. Service gets worse. Jobs go away. Money leaves your town and flows to Wall Street. The tax code doesn't help. It rewards ownership, not work. Owners get breaks on cars, meals, and even health insurance. Workers, meanwhile, are taxed higher than billionaires. If you're not an owner, you're falling behind. This didn't happen overnight. After World War II, America started to change. Big companies grew bigger. Chain stores like Walmart and McDonald's replaced local shops. Wall Street created new ways to buy Main Street. By the 1970s, only 1 in 3 Americans worked for themselves. Today, it's less than 10 percent. Take my uncle Ed's plumbing business. For 30 years, he served his community and made a good living. But when he retired, no one could afford to buy it. His kids had corporate jobs. Local plumbers couldn't get loans. So the business closed. This same thing happens to thousands of businesses every month. They don't fail—they're bought out or simply vanish. Other countries are doing better at this. We're losing at the game of capitalism to many of our own allies. Most small businesses now make less than $50,000 a year. They can't compete with the giants. They're barely surviving. This turning point isn't happening in isolation—it's being driven by three major forces that are changing the way we live, work, and own: First is the Great Retirement: Every day, 10,000 Baby Boomers retire . About 800 of them own businesses. Most don't have anyone to take over. Their kids have corporate jobs. Local buyers can't get bank loans. So what happens? Some sell to Wall Street, but most of them simply shut down. By 2030, the nearly 2.3 million small businesses owned by Baby Boomers will close or change hands . That's $10 trillion worth of value. And 25 million jobs are at risk. Second is the Great Resignation: Workers want flexibility but haven't realized owning a business could provide it. Finally, the Great Corporatization: Companies like Amazon now control one-third of local businesses, turning communities into corporate clones. If these trends continue, the American Dream will become a distant memory. But it doesn't have to be this way. Wealth can be built in a number of different ways in this country—and it doesn't always have to be a startup. Buying a "boring business"—think laundromats, HVAC companies, or car washes—is an alternative path to wealth through ownership, and you don't need millions to do it. These are recession-proof, cash-flowing businesses and many sellers will finance the sale, letting you pay over time. These businesses are already running—unlike a startup. Simple updates like online booking or social media can double revenue for an already successful business. Take Brittany. During the coronavirus pandemic, she bought two struggling gyms for pennies on the dollar. She kept the existing members, added online classes, and cut unnecessary costs. In just one year, both gyms were thriving and generating steady profits. Then there's Chris. He started with a single plumbing business. After modernizing its operations, he reinvested the profits to buy a locksmith service. From there, he expanded into a construction company. Now, he runs a small empire of essential businesses, all built on the same formula: buy, improve, and grow. These aren't one-offs. They're proof of what's possible when you take ownership into your own hands. Anyone can start. Look for a business that fits your skills and lifestyle. If you love talking to people, try a service business. If you like working quietly, go for something like a laundromat or storage facility. Check websites like BizBuySell and BizScout, or ask local business owners who may be retiring soon. Do your homework: Look at the business's numbers. Check if it makes steady money. Make sure it has loyal customers. Avoid businesses that depend too much on the owner or one big client. Make a smart deal: You don't need to pay all cash. Many owners will let you pay over time using the business's profits. You can also use loans like SBA financing. Add value, starting with small fixes. Use technology to save time. Add new services or subscriptions to make more money. Focus on what customers love. Finally, build your freedom: Hire a great operator. Teach them to handle the day-to-day work. This gives you time to focus on growing the business—or enjoying the life you've built. The American Dream was never about working 40 years for someone else. It was about owning something real. Local businesses don't just create jobs. They keep money in the community. They provide better service. They build real wealth—not just for the owner, but for everyone. Every day, more local businesses close. More communities lose their character. More money flows to Wall Street. We're at a crossroads. Will we let corporations own everything? Or will we take back control? It's really up to us. Codie Sanchez is the founder of Contrarian Thinking and the author of " Main Street Millionaire ." She owns dozens of small businesses and helps everyday Americans achieve financial freedom through ownership. The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.No. 10 Marquette remains undefeated with convincing win over Western Carolina
WASHINGTON — A top White House official said Wednesday at least eight U.S. telecom firms and dozens of nations were impacted by a Chinese hacking campaign. Deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger offered new details about the breadth of the that gave officials in Beijing access to private texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans. Neuberger divulged the scope of the hack a day after the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency intended to help root out the hackers and prevent similar cyberespionage in the future. White House officials cautioned that the number of telecommunication firms and countries impacted could grow. The U.S. believes the hackers were able to gain access to communications of senior U.S. government officials and prominent political figures through the hack, Neuberger said. “We don’t believe any classified communications has been compromised,” Neuberger added during a call with reporters. She added that Biden was briefed on the findings and the White House “made it a priority for the federal government to do everything it can to get to the bottom this.” The Chinese embassy in Washington rejected the accusations that it was responsible for the hack Tuesday after the U.S. federal authorities issued new guidance. “The U.S. needs to stop its own cyberattacks against other countries and refrain from using cyber security to smear and slander China,” embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said. The embassy did not immediately respond to messages Wednesday. White House officials believe the hacking was regionally targeted and the focus was on very senior government officials. Federal authorities confirmed in October that hackers linked to China of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, along with people associated with Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. The number of countries impacted by the hack is currently believed to be in the “low, couple dozen,” according to a senior administration official. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity under rules set by the White House, said they believed the hacks started at least a year or two ago. The released Tuesday are largely technical in nature, urging encryption, centralization and consistent monitoring to deter cyber intrusions. If implemented, the security precautions could help disrupt the operation, dubbed Salt Typhoon, and make it harder for China or any other nation to mount a similar attack in the future, experts say. Neuberger pointed to efforts made to beef up cybersecurity in the rail, aviation, energy and other sectors following . “So, to prevent ongoing Salt Typhoon type intrusions by China, we believe we need to apply a similar minimum cybersecurity practice,” Neuberger said. The cyberattack by a gang of criminal hackers on the critical U.S. pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel used along the Eastern Seaboard, sent ripple effects across the economy, highlighting cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the nation’s aging energy infrastructure. Colonial confirmed it paid $4.4 million to the gang of hackers who broke into its computer systems as it scrambled to get the nation's fuel pipeline back online.
Starmer warned as Labour MP calls for a ‘blasphemy law’ to tackle Islamophobia
Authored by Riley Donovan via The Epoch Times, Both Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump want to revive the long-dead cross-border Keystone XL pipeline project, but is that feasible? A major challenge in resuscitating the project will be ginning up enough political will and corporate determination to wade through the legal and regulatory requirements to begin construction, not to mention tackling the growing anti-fossil fuel advocay across the continent. Former owner TC Energy terminated the project in June 2021. The pipeline system is now part of the spinoff company South Bow , and that adds to the challenges of resurrecting the Keystone XL expansion. On Nov. 12, California water solutions company Cadiz announced the purchase of 180 miles of 36-inch steel pipe from the terminated Keystone XL project. The pipe will be transported from where it is stored in North Dakota and repurposed to pump groundwater from deep under the Mojave Desert into major water networks in the Southwestern United States. The timing of the purchase announcement, just a week after the U.S. election, indicates that the pipe was going to be sold off regardless of whether or not pro-energy Republicans came to power with a mandate to reduce regulatory burden on fossil fuel projects. Trump has promised to reinstate the project on his first day in the White House. The last time he attempted to revive Keystone XL was in 2017 , when he issued a permit reversing the Obama administration’s rejection of the project in 2015. The project was first proposed in 2008 by TC Energy, then called TransCanada . The Trump administration saw Keystone XL as an opportunity to boost economic growth. The pipeline would have run 1,947 kilometres from Hardisty, Alta., to Steele City, Neb., and have the capacity to carry 830,000 barrels of crude oil per day from Western Canada’s oilfields to American Gulf Coast refineries. The goal was to get the pipeline built quickly. What followed was years of wading through legal quagmire, finally cut short by the Biden administration’s decision to axe the project in 2021. In November 2018, Montana judge Brian Morris issued an order blocking construction of the Keystone XL permit pending further study of environmental impacts. In February 2019, the same judge denied a request to green-light the construction of worker camps for the project. In response, the Trump administration revoked its first permit and issued a second one in March 2019. Things were looking up for proponents of the project until Morris revoked a key water-crossing permit, suspending construction efforts. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld that decision in July 2020, and the final nail was driven into the coffin when the newly elected Biden administration killed the project in January 2021. Issuing a pipeline permit is easy—navigating the labyrinthian legal process that follows is the hard part. If the Trump administration issues yet another Keystone XL permit next year, the legal battle could be initiated once more with another round of lawsuits from environmental groups. With lengthy delays comes the additional possibility that the project may be cancelled before construction begins, if Trump’s last term is followed by a Democratic administration that is less supportive of large fossil fuel projects. Since Keystone XL is a project on both Canadian and American soil, reviving it would require political will on both sides of the border. The federal government in Canada had been supportive of the project, but the main proponent was Alberta. Premier Smith’s government would probably not have to contend with the same legal hurdles as the Trump administration. It would, however, have to make the potentially difficult decision of whether to back the project with taxpayer funds as former Alberta Premier Jason Kenney’s government did. In a March 2020 announcement that was largely overshadowed by the pandemic, the Kenney government declared that it would provide a $1.5 billion equity investment in the Keystone XL project, explaining that the pipeline was “expected to be completed and in service in 2023”. Kenney described the move as “a wise and prudent investment” that would eventually yield a net return of over $30 billion. After the pipeline was cancelled the following year, the Alberta government reported that the investment had resulted in a loss of $1.3 billion. A similar situation has been playing out with the federal government’s decision to buy the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project from Kinder Morgan Canada for $4.5 billion in 2018. The purchase has come under fire for overruns, with the estimated cost of building the pipeline rising significantly from $12.6 billion in 2020 to $30.9 billion in 2023. The controversy continues now that the project is up and running . According to a Nov. 8 report by the Parliamentary Budget Officer, the pipeline might be worth between $29.6 billion and $33.4 billion, while the cost of building it came in at $34.2 billion. Selling the project, which the government has long promised to do, may therefore mean a financial loss. The precedent set by the Kenney government’s investment in Keystone XL and subsequent loss, as well as the cost overruns and delays after Ottawa’s purchase of the Trans Mountain pipeline, puts Smith in a difficult situation in regard to embarking on a similarly high-risk investment. Smith said on Nov. 25 that her government is looking to get more Alberta oil and gas to the United States in ways that would carry less risk than investing directly in a cross-border project. “Maybe de-risking the project involves having an American partner, an American pipeline company, partner with our companies here,” she told reporters during an event at the Leduc No. 1 oil discovery site south of Edmonton. “We just don’t think the best way of doing it is putting government dollars into it, but we think there are other things we can do to change the risk profile.” Two major factors would need to come together to get the Keystone XL project started up again: renewed corporate enthusiasm and sufficient political will on the part of the United States and Alberta governments to tolerate the risk of another failed attempt. Even if these factors come together, the project would need to successfully run the legal gauntlet of environmental challenges and then complete construction before a potential future fossil fuel-skeptical Democratic administration comes to power. Despite the many challenges, the reinvigorated enthusiasm around Keystone XL could signal a period of renewed cooperation between Alberta and the United States stemming from a shared worldview on the energy industry.Kam Jones scored 20 points and dished with 10 assists to lead the No. 10 Marquette Golden Eagles to a 94-62 victory over the visiting Western Carolina on Saturday afternoon in Milwaukee. Jones added six rebounds for Marquette (8-0), which is off to its best start since winning 10 straight to begin the 2011-12 campaign that ended with a Sweet 16 appearance. Ben Gold added 12 points, while Stevie Mitchell scored 10 and had three steals. David Joplin, Caedin Hamilton and Royce Parham each netted nine points for the Golden Eagles. The Catamounts (2-4) were led by Bernard Pelote's 13 points and eight boards. Jamar Livingston chipped in 10 points and CJ Hyland bundled five points with five rebounds and six assists. Marquette controlled most of the game, thanks largely to 51.4 percent shooting and 21 takeaways. The Golden Eagles built a 16-point lead in the first half before Western Carolina clawed within 37-28 with 3:55 left. Marquette responded with a 12-2 run to take a 49-30 advantage into the break, its largest lead of the game to that point. The game quickly got out of hand from there, with the Golden Eagles eventually scoring 11 straight points to push its lead to 81-45 with 7:15 remaining. Marquette finished with 26 points off of Catamount turnovers and hit 14 of 40 shots (35.0 percent) from 3-point range. The win wasn't all smooth sailing for the Golden Eagles, who lost backup guard Zaide Lowery to an apparent left knee injury. Lowery was helped off the court and into the locker room by his teammates with 1:36 left in the game. Saturday's game was a final tune-up for Marquette, which has three challenging games coming up against No. 5 Iowa State, No. 15 Wisconsin and Dayton before Big East conference play begins Dec. 18. --Field Level Media
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ABC projects that Democrat Adam Gray will win the race for California's 13th Congressional District , unseating incumbent Republican John Duarte and flipping the final unresolved seat in the 2024 election. With all 435 House races projected, ABC News estimates Republicans will hold 220 seats and Democrats 215 in the 119th Congress. But it's not clear how vacancies -- or, illness or other absences -- will impact the day-to-day division of power when the House convenes on Jan. 3. President-elect Donald Trump initially tapped three House Republicans for positions in his upcoming administration: Florida Reps. Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz, and New York Rep. Elise Stefanik. Gaetz has already resigned from Congress and withdrew last month from consideration to serve as President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general. And though he won reelection to his seat last month, he said he won't serve another term. MORE | Democrat Adam Gray projected to win California's 13th Congressional District Republicans could have a 217-215 majority while their seats are vacant -- the narrowest GOP majority in history -- and special elections to fill those seats can take months to complete. In this case, any single Republican can hold Johnson hostage: Losing just one Republican on a vote would result in a 216-216 tie. The speaker acknowledged the thin majority, which could pose a challenge in passing Trump's agenda. "Well, just like we do every day here, we've developed an expertise in that. We know how to work with a small majority. That's our custom now," Johnson said. "So, yes -- do the math. We can, we have nothing to spare. But all of our members know that we talked about that today, as we do constantly, that this is a team effort that we've got to all row in the same direction." But several elderly Democrats have missed votes recently, which could give Republicans a little more breathing room next year. In California's 13th District, Duarte conceded to Gray on Tuesday, according to the Turlock Journal. "I'm a citizen legislator, and I didn't plan on being in Congress forever," Duarte told the newspaper. "But whenever I think I can make a difference, I'll consider public service in different forms, including running for Congress again." Gray released a victory statement on X Tuesday evening, extending his gratitude and saying the "final results confirm this district is ready for independent and accountable leadership that always puts the Valley's people ahead of partisan politics." ABC News' Marilyn Heck and Benjamin Siegel contributed to this report.
Layered in safety pins and studs like a punk encrusted beetle, Frank and Ruby duel in a fight to the death over the spirit of our protagonist within the political, social and economic eye of the storm in Cruel Britannia . Set in Margaret Thatcher’s Britain, this trans reimagining of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein puts an all-new twist on the classic story of rebirth – it isn’t Frankenstein’s creation that is reborn, but rather Ruby, shedding the monster of shame and remaking herself anew. It’s Alive! Writer and performer Kristen Smyth dominates the stage for an electrifying 80 minutes to the relentless beat of Di Drew’s soundscape, blending electronics and atmosphere. Smyth transforms between a dizzying array of characters and locations as money-motivated hooligan Frank struggles against the monster within – not Ruby, but the violence that is Frank’s only distraction from the truth that is bubbling just below the surface. Smyth’s charisma and clarity of expression is undeniable as is the tenderness she extends to every one of her characters. Every characterisation is a full-body experience – a testament to Smyth’s powerful and expressive voice and nimble physicality, and to the vision shared between the writer/performer and director, Cohan. Bringing Punk To Frankenstein The costume doesn’t feature rusty bolts and lightening rods, just the coarse stitches that are a signature of Dr Frankenstein’s monster – but this time they’re looping their way around Jessamine Moffett’s cheeky punk costume design, evoking the jagged seam between Ruby and Frank. The set design – a ramp-come-catwalk in the middle of a sea of evocatively alien black sand and reflective rocks by designer Rachel ‘Stoz’ Stone doesn’t recreate 80’s London, but instead gives Smyth all the room she needs to transform the space into a nightclub, a poky flat and a train station filled with brawling hooligans. The ramp almost acts as a funnel for the story – Smyth doesn’t need an expansive stage to tell her tale, but, given it, she fills the space with her voice, her vulnerability and the power of her storytelling. Queer Theatre Pulls No Punches Sitting in an audience that skews significantly more gender-diverse than your mainstream theatre crowd, there is a palpable feeling of free expression for audience and performer – this is a show made by a predominantly trans and non-binary creative team, and it shows. This isn’t a queer story that’s been sanitised and stripped of grit to make it palatable – Smyth and her team don’t pull punches, and it is a joy to sit back and revel in the world of Cruel Britannia . Cruel Britannia runs from 20 – 30 November in The Show Room of the Arts Centre, Melbourne. For more information click here. All That Glitters New Years Eve Party at Hairy Mary’s Melbourne Queer Film Festival Closing Night Screening Cruel Britannia: After Frankenstein Sydney Wearable Art Gala Presents A Vibrant World of Vaudeville And Sustainability Transgender Day of Remembrance/Resistance Vigil & Memorial Workshop Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * Comment * Name * Email * Website related articles Khalid Comes Out After Being Outed Online Nath Valvo Talks Life And Love After Grindr And Finding TikTok Fame The Latest Drag Race Down Under Queen Talks About The Tough Competition This Season Is Season 3 The End of Heartstopper? Kit Connor Says He’s Unsure If Hit Series Will Continue Drag Race Has Officially Launched Another International All Stars Series 2024 ARIAs: Missy Higgins and Queer Aussies Own The NightAre UK penny stocks set to skyrocket in 2025?