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Is the NORAD Santa tracker safe from a government shutdown?Intech Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of MSA Safety Incorporated ( NYSE:MSA – Free Report ) by 39.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,508 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,977 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in MSA Safety were worth $799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of MSA Safety by 198.8% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 486.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in MSA Safety by 985.1% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 803 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $143,000 after purchasing an additional 729 shares during the last quarter. Kowal Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MSA Safety during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $204,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of MSA Safety during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $206,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. MSA Safety Trading Down 0.3 % NYSE MSA opened at $173.80 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.12 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $172.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $179.03. MSA Safety Incorporated has a 12 month low of $160.02 and a 12 month high of $200.60. MSA Safety Announces Dividend The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. MSA Safety’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.48%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Separately, B. Riley started coverage on MSA Safety in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Read Our Latest Report on MSA Safety MSA Safety Company Profile ( Free Report ) MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide. Further Reading Five stocks we like better than MSA Safety The Significance of Brokerage Rankings in Stock Selection The Latest 13F Filings Are In: See Where Big Money Is Flowing Best ESG Stocks: 11 Best Stocks for ESG Investing 3 Penny Stocks Ready to Break Out in 2025 The Significance of a Trillion-Dollar Market Cap Goes Beyond a Number FMC, Mosaic, Nutrien: Top Agricultural Stocks With Big Potential Receive News & Ratings for MSA Safety Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for MSA Safety and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
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The military's tradition of tracking Santa Claus on his gravity-defying sweep across the globe will carry on this Christmas Eve, even if the U.S. government shuts down , officials said Friday. Each year, at least 100,000 kids call into the North American Aerospace Defense Command to inquire about Santa’s location. Millions more follow online — in nine languages — as St. Nick swoops along the earth's meridians. “We fully expect for Santa to take flight on Dec. 24 and NORAD will track him," the U.S.-Canadian agency said in a statement. On any other night, NORAD is scanning the heavens for potential threats , such as last year's Chinese spy balloon . But on Christmas Eve, volunteers in Colorado Springs, Colorado, are fielding questions like, “When is Santa coming to my house?” and, “Am I on the naughty or nice list?” The endeavor is supported by local and corporate sponsors, who also help shield the tradition from Washington dysfunction. Bob Sommers, 63, a civilian contractor and NORAD volunteer, told The Associated Press that there are "screams and giggles and laughter” when families call in, usually on speakerphone. Sommers often says on the call that everyone must be asleep before Santa arrives, prompting parents to say, "Do you hear what he said? We got to go to bed early." NORAD's annual tracking of Santa has endured since the Cold War , predating ugly sweater parties and Mariah Carey classics . Here's how it began and why the phones keep ringing. It started with a child's accidental phone call in 1955. The Colorado Springs newspaper printed a Sears advertisement that encouraged children to call Santa, listing a phone number. A boy called. But he reached the Continental Air Defense Command, now NORAD, a joint U.S. and Canadian effort to spot potential enemy attacks. Tensions were growing with the Soviet Union, along with anxieties about nuclear war. Air Force Col. Harry W. Shoup picked up an emergency-only “red phone” and was greeted by a tiny voice that began to recite a Christmas wish list. “He went on a little bit, and he takes a breath, then says, ‘Hey, you’re not Santa,’” Shoup told The Associated Press in 1999. Realizing an explanation would be lost on the youngster, Shoup summoned a deep, jolly voice and replied, “Ho, ho, ho! Yes, I am Santa Claus. Have you been a good boy?” Shoup said he learned from the boy's mother that Sears mistakenly printed the top-secret number. He hung up, but the phone soon rang again with a young girl reciting her Christmas list. Fifty calls a day followed, he said. In the pre-digital age, the agency used a 60-by-80-foot (18-by-24-meter) plexiglass map of North America to track unidentified objects. A staff member jokingly drew Santa and his sleigh over the North Pole. The tradition was born. “Note to the kiddies,” began an AP story from Colorado Springs on Dec. 23, 1955. “Santa Claus Friday was assured safe passage into the United States by the Continental Air Defense Command.” In a likely reference to the Soviets, the article noted that Santa was guarded against possible attack from "those who do not believe in Christmas.” Some grinchy journalists have nitpicked Shoup's story, questioning whether a misprint or a misdial prompted the boy's call. In 2014, tech news site Gizmodo cited an International News Service story from Dec. 1, 1955, about a child's call to Shoup. Published in the Pasadena Independent, the article said the child reversed two digits in the Sears number. "When a childish voice asked COC commander Col. Harry Shoup, if there was a Santa Claus at the North Pole, he answered much more roughly than he should — considering the season: ‘There may be a guy called Santa Claus at the North Pole, but he’s not the one I worry about coming from that direction,'" Shoup said in the brief piece. In 2015, The Atlantic magazine doubted the flood of calls to the secret line, while noting that Shoup had a flair for public relations. Phone calls aside, Shoup was indeed media savvy. In 1986, he told the Scripps Howard News Service that he recognized an opportunity when a staff member drew Santa on the glass map in 1955. A lieutenant colonel promised to have it erased. But Shoup said, “You leave it right there,” and summoned public affairs. Shoup wanted to boost morale for the troops and public alike. “Why, it made the military look good — like we’re not all a bunch of snobs who don’t care about Santa Claus,” he said. Shoup died in 2009. His children told the StoryCorps podcast in 2014 that it was a misprinted Sears ad that prompted the phone calls. “And later in life he got letters from all over the world,” said Terri Van Keuren, a daughter. "People saying ‘Thank you, Colonel, for having, you know, this sense of humor.’” NORAD's tradition is one of the few modern additions to the centuries-old Santa story that have endured, according to Gerry Bowler, a Canadian historian who spoke to the AP in 2010. Ad campaigns or movies try to “kidnap” Santa for commercial purposes, said Bowler, who wrote “Santa Claus: A Biography.” NORAD, by contrast, takes an essential element of Santa's story and views it through a technological lens. In a recent interview with the AP, Air Force Lt. Gen. Case Cunningham explained that NORAD radars in Alaska and Canada — known as the northern warning system — are the first to detect Santa. He leaves the North Pole and typically heads for the international dateline in the Pacific Ocean. From there he moves west, following the night. “That's when the satellite systems we use to track and identify targets of interest every single day start to kick in,” Cunningham said. “A probably little-known fact is that Rudolph’s nose that glows red emanates a lot of heat. And so those satellites track (Santa) through that heat source.” NORAD has an app and website, www.noradsanta.org , that will track Santa on Christmas Eve from 4 a.m. to midnight, mountain standard time. People can call 1-877-HI-NORAD to ask live operators about Santa’s location from 6 a.m. to midnight, mountain time.
Osseointegration Implants Market to See Rapid Expansion Over the Next Decade 2024-2032 12-20-2024 06:37 PM CET | Health & Medicine Press release from: Cognate Insights Osseointegration Implants Market Latest Market Overview The global osseointegration implants market is expected to reach USD 9.5 billion by 2024, growing at a CAGR of 7.5% from 2024 to 2032. Osseointegration implants are medical devices that integrate directly with bone tissue, commonly used in dental and orthopedic applications. These implants are particularly advantageous for patients requiring prosthetics such as dental implants or limb replacements, as they offer superior stability, durability, and functional benefits. The growth of the market is primarily attributed to the increasing number of dental and orthopedic surgeries, the rise in traumatic injuries, the growing elderly population, and advances in implant technologies. 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The Metropolitan Museum of Art has the most talented staff in the world. And, since 1939, they’ve shared their work with one another through employee art shows. The exhibitions are typically held every other year but are private affairs. This year, for just the second time ever, the show is open to the public. “ Art Work: Artists Working at the Met ” opened earlier this week at the famed museum and runs through Dec. 1. It features work by 640 staffers, from guards and technicians to conservators, librarians, and ticket-takers. Here, seven of them tell us about their work. Armia Malak Khalil , Senior Security Officer (Security) “Ushabti (A Substitute for the Afterlife),” 2024 Khalil grew up in Egypt surrounded by sculpture. “It’s everywhere,” the 45-year-old said. “I studied classical painting, but I taught myself sculpture copying the Ancient Egyptians.” He first came to the US in 2006. He had no family, no friends, no connections, but eventually found a community of Coptic Christians from Egypt living in Jersey City. “I started doing some wood carving for the church there,” he said. “The priest let me use a corner of the basement for my art.” He began working as a security guard at the Met in 2009 and continued making sculptures inspired by his Egyptian heritage. He based the plasticine figurine in this show on the Ushabti — statuettes that were buried next to the deceased to help them in the afterlife. “There were about 401 of them in each tomb, and I loved the idea of making my own with different materials,” said Khalil, who also has a gorgeous wooden bust, “Hope,” in another Met show, “Flight Into Egypt,” on view through Feb. 17, 2025. “It’s the first time one of us guards is in a major exhibit,” he said. “They’re all so proud of me. It’s been really so surreal, so divine.” Christopher Fahey , Storeroom One Specialist (Registrar’s Office) “And of course, the lemon disenfrancese folds in: A. ... B. ... C. ...” As a storeroom specialist, Fahey gets to handle some of the most precious objects of art in the world. “You will really be surprised at the art people send through FedEx,” the 44-year-old said. “Like really, really old art!” Fahey, who lives in Ridgewood, Queens, is a poet and mixed-media artist who uses found materials in his sculptures. He started this one with a piece of redwood that he saved from the trash at an old job. He’s spent the past two years adding scraps of paper or weaving different threads or objects onto it. “I’ve been making art like this for the past 10 years,” he said. Helping install the employee art show is the highlight of his job. “It’s a beautiful thing,” he said. “We’re all getting a lot out of working here, but [the Met is] also getting a lot from artists working here.” Amanda Kraemer, Operations Assistant, Groups & Advance Sales (Visitor Experience) “Allegory of Flowers – J Pierpont Goldfinch,” 2024 Kraemer was going through her late grandfather’s belongings when she came across a plaque he had hanging in his studio, saying “Don’t let the bastards grind you down.” “I was like, I have to somehow incorporate this into my next piece,” the 42-year-old said. She surrounded it with collaged paper flowers and birds that she painted symbolizing hope and persistence. Kraemer, who grew up and still lives in City Island, was close to her grandfather, a commercial artist who taught her calligraphy and watercolors. During a dark period in her life, her grandfather’s mantra “became a mediation for me to rise above the negativity,” she said. “This is a tribute to him.” She is excited to have it on display at the Met. The exhibit “is an opportunity for those who work here to transcend the transactional nature [people can have with] museum workers,” she said. “It gives us a chance to show visitors who really works here.” Love Ablan , Collections Photographer (Imaging) “Anima,” 2024 Ablan’s aunt and godmother, Concepcion (or Lola Go-Go to her family members), nearly wept when she saw her niece’s mixed-media photo portrait at the Met. There was a photo of her as a young girl — dressed in white at a piano recital — alongside one of her mother, Victoria, in a debutante gown in their native Philippines. “The name of the piece is ‘Anima, and it’s Latin for feminine aspects, but also soul,” Ablan explained “My godmother is the heart and her mom is the soul of my family.” Ablan grew up in Jamaica, Queens, and her “fondest childhood memories” took place at Lola’s house — eating, playing with her seven cousins and listening to her godmother play the piano. Early in her career, Ablan traveled the world studying art and working as an editorial photographer. But, two years ago, the Met came calling. Now, she lives in Harlem. “In this post-pandemic world, the only thing I really wanted was to be near my family again,” she said. Amanda Rothschild , Business Analyst (Technology) “Sink,” 2020 For the past 12 years, the 32-year-old Harlem resident has been painting pictures of sinks and drains. “I really enjoy all the different textures and shapes,” said Rothschild, who started working at the Met in 2014, initially selling tickets. “It’s an everyday object that people overlook.” When scouting for subjects, she looks for retro color palettes and interesting textures like rust or water damage. She based this particular work on a light blue sink she saw in the bathroom of a Greenpoint coffee shop. “Probably half of the pictures on my phone are just of sinks and drains in various places,” said Rothschild, who has been a part of three previous employee art shows. “My job is very technical — no one that I’m working with is talking about or working with art directly, and so this is a cool opportunity,” she said. “It’s really great to see what people do.” Aleya Lehmann , Assistant Administrator (Photograph Conservation) “Day of Night” 2013/2024 Her photographs look like Whistler paintings — moody and enigmatic. The 66-year-old artist puts as much care into them as well. She sews the garments her models wear, arranges the props and settings, and spends a weekend with her subject experimenting. Long-exposure times lead to ghostly, evocative images. Lehman has been painting and photographing for decades, but coming to the Met five years ago has influenced her art. “There was [a Richard] Avedon show here a few years ago, of his murals, and that fed into my wish to print [my photos] really large,” she said. For the show she took a work from 2013 and blew it up, printing it on a long sheet of Japanese mulberry paper. “It’s a very special place,” she said of The Met. “You feel like you’re contributing to something, whatever it is that you do in your job, whether it’s something very elaborate, extravagant, or something very day to day, you’re contributing to living history, which is definitely a unique feeling.” Solomon Azaraev, Maintainer, Masonry (Buildings) “Solverado,” 2024 Azaraev is the sole member of the Met’s mason shop. “I don’t really consider myself an artist,” the tattooed 44-year-old said sheepishly, posing with the battery-operated trunk he made, based on the Chevy Silverado. “But after 20 years being around masterpieces and creative things, I guess it rubs off a little bit,” he said with a laugh. It all started five years ago. At the time, Azaraev was in the carpentry shop and decided his crew needed something more efficient than a flat dolly to transport their tools. He constructed a mini Jeep with compartments and drawers. “My colleagues fell in love with it, and forced me into putting it in the show,” the Howell, NJ, resident said. This is his third creation. “People get a kick out of it, so I don’t mind seeing the smiles.”
DAMASCUS, Syria — Syria’s prime minister said Monday that most cabinet ministers were back at work after rebels overthrew President Bashar Assad , but some state workers failed to return to their jobs, and a United Nations official said the country’s public sector had come “to a complete and abrupt halt.” Meanwhile, streams of refugees crossed back into Syria from neighboring countries, hoping for a more peaceful future and looking for relatives who disappeared during Assad’s brutal rule. There were already signs of the difficulties ahead for the rebel alliance now in control of much of the country. The alliance is led by a former senior al-Qaida militant who severed ties with the extremist group years ago and has promised representative government and religious tolerance. The rebel command said Monday they would not tell women how to dress. “It is strictly forbidden to interfere with women’s dress or impose any request related to their clothing or appearance, including requests for modesty,” the command said in a statement on social media. Nearly two days after rebels entered the capital, some key government services had shut down after state workers ignored calls to go back to their jobs, the U.N. official said, causing issues at airports and borders and slowing the flow of humanitarian aid. Rebel leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, who was long known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, also met for the first time with Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi Jalali, who stayed in Syria when Assad fled. “You will see there are skills” among the rebels, al-Sharaa said in a video shared on a rebel messaging channel. Israel said it carried out airstrikes on suspected chemical weapons sites and long-range rockets to keep them from falling into the hands of extremists. Israel also seized a buffer zone inside Syria after Syrian troops withdrew. In northern Syria, Turkey said allied opposition forces seized the town of Manbij from Kurdish-led forces backed by the United States, a reminder that even after Assad’s departure, the country remains split among armed groups that have fought in the past. The Kremlin said Russia has granted political asylum to Assad , a decision made by President Vladimir Putin . Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Assad’s specific whereabouts and said Putin did not plan to meet with him. Damascus was quiet Monday, with life slowly returning to normal, though most shops and public institutions were closed. In public squares, some people were still celebrating. Civilian traffic resumed, but there was no public transport. Long lines formed in front of bakeries and other food stores. There was little sign of any security presence though in some areas, small groups of armed men were stationed in the streets. Across swathes of Syria, families are now waiting outside prisons , security offices and courts, hoping for news of loved ones who were imprisoned or who disappeared. Just north of Damascus in the feared Saydnaya military prison, women detainees, some with their children, screamed as rebels broke locks off their cell doors. Amnesty International and other groups say dozens of people were secretly executed every week in Saydnaya, and they estimate that up to 13,000 Syrians were killed between 2011 and 2016. “Don’t be afraid,” one rebel said as he ushered women from packed cells. “Bashar Assad has fallen!” In southern Turkey , Mustafa Sultan was among hundreds of Syrian refugees waiting at border crossings to head home. He was searching for his older brother, who was imprisoned under Assad. “I haven’t seen him for 13 years,” he said. “I am going to go see whether he’s alive.” Jalali, the prime minister, has sought to project normalcy since Assad fled. “We are working so that the transitional period is quick and smooth,” he told Sky News Arabia TV on Monday, saying the security situation had already improved from the day before. At the court of Justice in Damascus, which was stormed by the rebels to free detainees, Judge Khitam Haddad, an aide to the justice minister in the outgoing government, said Sunday that judges were ready to resume work quickly. “We want to give everyone their rights,” Haddad said outside the courthouse. “We want to build a new Syria and to keep the work, but with new methods.” But a U.N. official said some government services had been paralyzed as worried state employees stayed home. The public sector “has just come to a complete and abrupt halt,” said U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Adam Abdelmoula, noting, for example, that an aid flight carrying urgently needed medical supplies had been put on hold after aviation employees abandoned their jobs. “This is a country that has had one government for 53 years and then suddenly all of those who have been demonized by the public media are now in charge in the nation’s capital,” Abdelmoula told The Associated Press. “I think it will take a couple of days and a lot of assurance on the part of the armed groups for these people to return to work again.” Britain and the U.S. are both considering whether to remove the main anti-Assad rebel group from their lists of designated terrorist organizations. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham began as an offshoot of al-Qaida but cut ties with the group years ago and has worked to present a more moderate image. The group’s leader, al-Sharaa, “is saying some of the right things about the protection of minorities, about respecting people’s rights,” British Cabinet minister Pat McFadden said, adding that a change would be considered “quite quickly.” But British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, speaking later during a visit to Saudi Arabia, said it was “far too early” to make that decision. In Washington, a Biden administration official noted that HTS will be an “important component” in Syria’s future and that the U.S. needs to “engage with them appropriately.” Another administration official said the U.S. remains in a “wait and see” mode on whether to remove the designation. Both officials requested anonymity to discuss the ongoing internal deliberations. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that such designations are constantly under review. Even while it is in place, the designation does not bar U.S. officials from speaking with members or leaders of the group, he said. The U.S. also announced it was sending its special envoy for hostage affairs to Beirut to seek information about the whereabouts of Austin Tice, a journalist who vanished in Syria 12 years ago and who President Joe Biden has said is believed to be alive. Israelis welcomed the fall of Assad, who was a key ally of Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group, while expressing concern over what comes next. Israel says its forces temporarily seized a buffer zone inside Syria dating back to a 1974 agreement after Syrian troops withdrew in the chaos. “The only interest we have is the security of Israel and its citizens,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told reporters Monday. Saar did not provide details about the targets, but the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said they included weapons warehouses, research centers, air defense systems and aircraft squadrons. Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes in Syria in recent years, targeting what it says are military sites related to Iran and Hezbollah . Israeli officials rarely comment on individual strikes. Syria agreed to give up its chemical weapons stockpile in 2013, after the government was accused of launching an attack near Damascus that killed hundreds of people . But it is widely believed to have kept some of the weapons and was accused of using them again in subsequent years. Officials in Turkey, which is the main supporter of the Syrian opposition to Assad, say its allies have taken full control of the northern Syrian city of Manbij from a U.S.-supported and Kurdish-led force known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF. The SDF said a Turkish drone struck in the village of al-Mistriha in eastern Syria, killing 12 civilians, including six children. Turkey views the SDF, which is primarily composed of a Syrian Kurdish militia, as an extension of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has waged a decades-long insurgency in Turkey. The SDF has also been a key ally of the United States in the war against the Islamic State group. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Monday warned against allowing Islamic State or Kurdish fighters to take advantage of the situation, saying Turkey will prevent Syria from turning into a “haven for terrorism.”Lindsey is a Seattle area writer interested in all things society, including internet culture, politics, and mental health. Outside of the Daily Dot, her work can be found in publications such as The Mary Sue, Truthout, and YES! Magazine.Irish premier Simon Harris has said Fine Gael will gain seats in the General Election despite a further fragmentation of Irish politics. Fine Gael won 35 seats in the 2020 election, but 18 of those TDs did not seek re-election in Friday’s poll. An exit poll puts the party’s support at 21%, a fraction of a percentage behind the main opposition party Sinn Fein. Mr Harris, the outgoing Taoiseach, was elected with 16,869 first preference votes, well above the quota. He celebrated with his wife Caoimhe, his parents Bart and Mary, his sister Gemma and his political team at the count centre in Greystones, Co Wicklow. Ahead of his re-election, Mr Harris told reporters he was “cautiously optimistic” about the election result and said it was “clear that my party will gain seats”. “It’s also clear that Fine Gael will top the poll in at least 10 constituencies, many more than we did the last time, that we will gain seats in constituencies where we haven’t had seats in many years, like Tipperary South and Waterford, and that we will add second seats in other constituencies as well,” he said. “I think the people of Ireland have now spoken. We now have to work out exactly what they have said, and that is going to take a little bit of time.” In one of the five consecutive broadcast media rounds he did from the Greystones count centre, he said there were a lot of areas where there were “straight shoot-outs” between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael for final seats. He described the Sinn Fein vote as “pretty significantly down”, the Fianna Fail vote as “marginally down” and the Fine Gael vote as “static” compared with its 2020 vote. He said it was “a very close, a very competitive election” and that “we haven’t seen a Sinn Fein surge or anything like it”. He said: “It was predicted by many that I would become the Taoiseach for a brief period of time, take over from Leo Varadkar, and then have to rebuild my party from the opposition benches as Sinn Fein led a government. “We don’t know what’s going to happen on government formation yet, but that is now looking less likely than it was.” He acknowledged that it was “a very difficult day” for the Green Party and paid tribute to their work in the coalition government, alongside his party and Fianna Fail. “Definitely, politics in Ireland has gotten much more fragmented,” he said. Fine Gael minister Helen McEntee said that her party’s campaign had been “positive”. “The feeling on the doors was very much that people were relatively happy with the government,” she said on RTE Radio. “It will come down to the last seats and it will come down to transfers,” she said of the final result, adding that Fianna Fail and Fine Gael were performing better than the exit poll estimated.