L.A. Times Planning to Add AI-Powered ‘Bias Meter’ to Every Story
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GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — After losing to San Francisco in the playoffs three of the last five seasons, the Green Bay Packers wouldn’t mind seeing the 49ers get left out of the postseason entirely. The Packers (7-3) could damage San Francisco’s playoff hopes Sunday by beating the 49ers at Lambeau Field. San Francisco (5-5) dropped to .500 after losing at home to the Seattle Seahawks, though the 49ers remain just a game behind the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC West. “I think we’re motivated to keep winning more than anything,” Packers center Josh Myers said. “Obviously, they have knocked us out quite a bit. There’s that extra motivation behind it, but at this point, we’re just trying to churn out wins.” The 49ers will be playing this game without starting quarterback Brock Purdy, who injured his right shoulder in the Seahawks game. Although an MRI showed no structural damage, Purdy's shoulder didn't improve as the week wore on. Brandon Allen will start in Purdy's place. Green Bay is third in the NFC North and two games behind the Detroit Lions, but the Packers appear on track to at least earn a wild-card playoff berth. History suggests their path to a potential Super Bowl would get much clearer if the 49ers aren’t standing in their way. The 49ers trailed 21-14 in the fourth quarter before rallying to beat the Packers 24-21 in the divisional playoffs last year on Christian McCaffrey’s 6-yard touchdown run with 1:07 left. Now, it’s the 49ers who are struggling to protect late leads, as they’ve blown fourth-quarter advantages in three games against divisional opponents. “You could look at, ‘Hey, we’re three possessions away from being 8-2,’ but you can’t really live like that,” 49ers tight end George Kittle said. “Those are the mistakes that we’ve made to be 5-5. It’s not exactly where we want to be. It is frustrating. The nice thing is we have seven games left to go out there and play Niners football and take advantage of those opportunities.” Green Bay’s recent history of playoff frustration against the 49ers also includes a 13-10 loss at Lambeau Field in the 2021 divisional playoffs and a 37-20 road defeat in the 2019 NFC championship game. Even the Packers players who weren’t around for last season’s playoff loss realize what this game means. “I think one of the first meetings that I was in here, we had a conversation about the Niners beating us,” said Green Bay safety Xavier McKinney, who joined the Packers this season. “So I understand how important it is, and we all do.” Both teams must figure out how to convert red-zone opportunities into touchdowns. The 49ers are scoring touchdowns on just 48.8% of their drives inside an opponent’s 20-yard line to rank 27th in the NFL. The Packers are slightly worse in that regard, scoring touchdowns on 48.7% of their red-zone possessions to rank 28th. In their 20-19 victory at Chicago on Sunday, Green Bay drove to the Bears 5 without scoring on two separate series. Purdy isn't the only notable player who won't be participating in Sunday's game. San Francisco won't have four-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Nick Bosa available after he hurt his left hip and oblique against the Seahawks. Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander (knee) and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (hamstring) also have been ruled out. Kittle expects to play for the 49ers on Sunday after missing the Seahawks game with a hamstring injury. 49ers left tackle Trent Williams (ankle) is questionable. Green Bay’s defense feasted on turnovers the first part of the season, but hasn’t been as effective in getting those takeaways lately. The Packers have 19 takeaways – already exceeding their 2023 total – but haven’t forced any turnovers in their last two games. 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan hasn’t eased McCaffrey back into the lineup in his return after missing the first eight games with Achilles tendinitis. McCaffrey has played 91% of the 49ers’ offensive snaps the past two weeks. Jordan Mason, who rushed for 685 yards during McCaffrey’s absence, has just five snaps on offense the last two games. Shanahan said he’d like to get Mason more opportunities, but it’s hard to take McCaffrey off the field. Green Bay nearly lost to the Bears because of its third-down struggles on both sides of the ball. The Packers were 1 of 5 on third-down opportunities, while the Bears went 9 of 16. The Packers’ defense could have a tough time correcting that problem against San Francisco, which has converted 45.4% of its third-down situations to rank fourth in the league. AP Pro Football Writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFLLil Wayne, GloRilla, Camila Cabello to perform at College Football National Championship
Digital Storytelling with Namo Author: A Comprehensive eBook Creation Tool 12-26-2024 09:58 PM CET | Associations & Organizations Press release from: ABNewswire Namo Author, developed by Arasoft, is a user-friendly WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) eBook authoring tool designed to simplify the creation of interactive, multimedia-rich eBooks without the need for coding expertise. It enables users to produce content in various formats, including EPUB3, EPUB2, and MOBI, ensuring compatibility across multiple devices and platforms. Key Features of Namo Author: * Intuitive Design Interface: Namo Author offers a drag-and-drop functionality, allowing users to effortlessly incorporate text, images, videos, and other multimedia elements into their eBooks. This feature facilitates the creation of visually engaging content without requiring programming skills. * Responsive Design Capabilities: The tool ensures that eBooks maintain their aesthetic appeal and functionality across various devices, such as Android tablets, Apple iPads, iOS devices, Amazon Kindles, and more. This adaptability guarantees a consistent reading experience for all users. * Customizable Templates and Themes: Users can start their projects from scratch or choose from a selection of templates and themes to expedite the creation process. This flexibility caters to both novice users and experienced designers seeking to produce professional-quality eBooks. * Interactive Multimedia Integration: Namo Author supports the inclusion of interactive elements such as videos, audio files, and animations, enhancing reader engagement and providing an immersive storytelling experience. * Seamless Publishing and Distribution: The platform allows users to publish their content in the EPUB3 format, compatible with various eBook readers and applications, including Google Play Books, Apple iBooks, and Amazon Kindle. Additionally, users can distribute their eBooks as standalone links or embed them on websites, blogs, and social media platforms to reach a broader audience. Namo Author has received Level 1 Good Software (GS) Certification from the Korea Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA), affirming its excellence in technology, usability, and reliability. In summary, Namo Author empowers individuals and organizations to create, publish, and distribute interactive and visually appealing eBooks with ease. Its user-friendly interface, robust features, and compatibility with multiple platforms make it a valuable tool for authors, educators, and content creators aiming to produce high-quality digital publications. For a visual guide on how to publish an eBook using Namo Author, you can watch the following tutorial: https://youtu.be/fRUnsHh0V1c?si=cfRmneyH0vJnkzLn Media Contact Company Name: AraSoft Contact Person: Jeong-hyeon Kang Email:Send Email [ https://www.abnewswire.com/email_contact_us.php?pr=digital-storytelling-with-namo-author-a-comprehensive-ebook-creation-tool ] Phone: +82-70-4105-0333 Country: South Korea Website: http://www.namoauthor.com This release was published on openPR.
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ANN/THE STRAITS TIMES – Singapore’s manufacturing sector continued its upward trajectory in November, recording a fifth straight month of growth, driven by a surge in the electronics industry. Analysts attribute the expansion to robust global demand and possible front-loading activities ahead of potential United States (US) tariff hikes. Data from the Economic Development Board released yesterday showed total factory output rising 8.5 per cent year-on-year. However, this fell short of the 9.7 per cent growth forecast by economists polled by Bloomberg. Excluding the more volatile biomedical sector, manufacturing output saw a stronger increase of 13 per cent. “Export demand for electronics remains robust, with the global semiconductor industry still in an upcycle,” noted senior country risk analyst at BMI Yen Nee Lee. She highlighted that Chinese exporters are likely accelerating shipments to the US ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, boosting demand for intermediate goods from Singapore. Despite the positive figures, analysts caution against over-optimism for 2025. Concerns about the Trump administration’s protectionist policies and rising geopolitical tensions could pose challenges for the manufacturing sector moving forward. Associate economist at UOB Jester Koh also noted the ongoing upturn in the electronics cycle, with tailwinds from “some front-loading of exports and attendant ramp up in production ahead of Trump’s proposed tariffs on US imports”. This could help support growth momentum in trade-related sectors, including manufacturing, into early 2025, he said. The electronics industry, which accounts for nearly half of Singapore’s manufacturing output, saw an increase of 26.2 per cent year-on-year, higher than the 4.3 per cent rise in October. Within the cluster, semiconductor output surged 28.8 per cent, while computer peripherals and data storage expanded 23.6 per cent, and infocomms and consumer electronics added 8.7 per cent. Other electronic modules and components fell 6.5 per cent. Precision engineering output inched 0.6 per cent higher year-on-year. Within the cluster, the machinery and systems segment expanded 4.3 per cent, driven by increased production in front-end semiconductor equipment. However, the precision modules and components segment fell 5.2 per cent, mostly led by lower output of optical instruments and metal precision components. Koh said the manufacturing outlook remains cloudy beyond early 2025. “Downside risks could emanate from further protectionist measures under Trump’s ‘America First’ policy, elevated geopolitical tensions, possible peak in the electronics cycle and uncertainty over the pace of monetary easing by major central banks,” he said. Barclays economist Brian Tan also sees a possible slowdown ahead in chip manufacturing. “We are seeing around Asia – not just in Singapore – signs of fatigue in the semiconductor cycle. If this falters, gross domestic product growth in 2025 could easily disappoint,” Tan said. He added, “We expect the uncertainty over US trade policy to start weighing on economic activity regardless of when tariffs are announced. Should US tariffs materialise, their impact on ultra-open Singapore is likely to be significant.” Beyond electronics and the related precision engineering cluster, Singapore’s other manufacturing industries fared worse in November. Biomedical manufacturing output fell 21.2 per cent from a year ago. Within the cluster, the pharmaceuticals segment declined 37.1 per cent on account of a different mix of active pharmaceutical ingredients being produced, compared with a year ago. The medical technology segment grew 5.8 per cent thanks to continued export demand for medical devices. General manufacturing output dropped 2.6 per cent, with all segments reporting declines.The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2023 general election, Prince Adewole Adebayo, in this interview with select journalists, made his views known about the economy, the 2025 national budget proposal presently with the National Assembly and other sundry issues What do you make of the finance minister statement about the country’s borrowings? I always wish there will be a good day for Nigeria but it is not a good day when the finance minister believes the day he goes borrowing in London is a good day. A good day for Nigeria is when Nigeria goes overseas to give investments in the capital market from the excess production that we have. No minister that we had in the past will say the day we went borrowing will be a good day. America borrows too, what’s your view on that? America borrows from within. You borrow from your own currency. I am not quarrelling with them borrowing the currency they issued. When you are borrowing Euro bond, borrowing currency of other people in other capitals of the world, it’s a sign of crisis. Yes, you can do it but you don’t say it’s a good day for you. If you are anaemic and your neighbour comes to donate blood to you, you should be grateful but you don’t say that’s the best day of your life because you are not supposed to be anaemic in the first place. They need to run the economy in such a way that we can generate capital for ourselves. Fundamentally, I think they are uncoordinated even though he is supposed to be the coordinator of the economy. He is not coordinated. The thinking isn’t coordinated but if they coordinate well and work with us as a population, we should be able generate wealth for the country . You once said the Tinubu government is suffering from economic illiteracy. What do you make of the parameters of the 2025 budget given the $75 per barrel oil benchmark? The parameters they have are a bit basic and elementary. Even in those basic elementary parameters, they are not sincere about them. They don’t want to meet them because they are not realistic. The exchange rate they fixed is unrealistic. Given the other measures they have taken, I think it’s lack of coordination that concerns me. I wish for the Tinubu 2025 budget to work. I want them to succeed. I want investors to come to Nigeria. I plead with anyone to have confidence in the economy of Nigeria. That is my desire even though I am in the opposition. However, they are self contradictory as these contradictions would at the end of the day prove themselves. For example, you are working towards, in their mind, if they are able to succeed, they are working towards 15% inflation, any basic microeconomist knows that you must never have double digit inflation. It is one thing to have a high BP, amd the doctor says to you he will only give you medium BP, the doctor wants to kill you because his job is to return your BP to normal. The objective they set, even if they succeed is a failure on its own. What about the saying that a thousand miles start with a step? This idea of a thousand miles is not Usain Bolt winning the gold medal all the time. That’s not the philosophy of people who wants to win. I saw the minister and I heard him and I understood the philosophy. I am not against him in person. I like him as a finance person who can manage your asset like merchant banker. There are two things you need to do with the type of our size of our development. First, the fiscal and budgetary housekeeping. That’s the first. The government budgets for itself in the first part of the budget. Then, the second part of the budget signals to the rest of the economy and creates a stimulus for areas they want to emphasize and then use other incentives to encourage others to do investments. They are sending wrong signals. First, in their own housekeeping, they are wrong in the way they are going about it. You cannot say to anybody especially who understands basic microeconomics that your inflation rates cannot be of your unemployment rate. You cannot do it. You have already got it upside down. If you have a 15% inflation rate, definitely, your unemployment cannot go below 15% because of the way you run the economy. If you listen to the gentleman again, he painstakingly celebrated the idea that they have 25 million households that they are trying to give little money to. Why don’t you have 25 million households from whom you are going to give employment? So you have social register to people you want to give money but you don’t have register of unemployment that you can give jobs. What sense does it make? The idea that you are going to imagine manufacturing by thinking that if you give N50,000 to any enterprise, whether small or medium micro invisible, N50,000? If the person comes to your office to collect the money, he will spend about that on transportation. If you say you want to grow the economy by bringing investors, don’t you understand that borrowing money in the bank is just one of the factors of production. Loan capital, for example, won’t you realize that there are other papers expenditure like labour cost, infrastructure cost and other costs. If you are driving those costs above sustainability, there is no way you can generate employment or capital in the economy. The Ghanaian electoral chairman says he learnt some lessons from Nigeria in the just concluded general election. What do you make of his statement? Yes, they took a lot of lesson not to be like Nigeria. That is what it can mean logically because the INEC chairman is a professor because he must be speaking in some sound way because what Ghana has done is exactly the opposite of what we did. They tried to make their own credible. We tried to make ours not credible even though we invested more in terms of technology, quality of manpower. You don’t go to other countries and find professor emeritus, dean of faculties, vice-chancellors coming to be returning officers. You talked about credibility. It’s one thing to talk about problems, it’s another to talk of solution. What can Nigeria do to have credible elections in terms of voter participation? Everybody involved knows what to do. The question is if they have the attitude to do it. Three things you must have for a good elections. You must go to an election with attitude of winning or losing honestly. You shouldn’t be desperate. Secondly, those who participate in it must know that it is constitutional duty that goes beyond putting government in place. It is a duty they owe the society as a whole, so they do it with integrity. Thirdly, they should not expect personal gain from it. Those who come to vote should not expect to sell their votes. Those who administer election should not collect bribe to administer election. Journalists who carry the news should be truthful to the country and the judiciary when asked to come and look at the some of the errors. They should try their best Now about what you said about the judiciary, will it ever get to that stage where we would not need the judiciary to decide out elections? Left to me, we can get there today. What we need and I have advocated it all the time, is that you take mainstream judiciary away from election for the sake of the country and the judiciary itself. Then, you must have a constitutional court that you set up, not from the regularly judiciary, may be retired justices, people who are no longer in a promotion or anything like that. You bring them together. When you bring them together, they do three things — the election is not finalised until that constitutional court has looked into it. Two, the person who files a complaint against the election doesn’t have to prove anything. All he has to say is that I don’t agree with the election. It is the burden of proof that the election was in order, should be on INEC because INEC knew where the bodies were buried. You cannot tell somebody who didn’t conduct the election,’ I give you 21 days tell me everything that is wrong with the election. Thirdly, people should not assume that because you lost an election, it is automatically rigged. That should not be the attitude. There should be fewer petitions based on merit. When you say there is a low approval rating of INEC from Nigerians, what do you mean by politicians putting more challenges on INEC by trying to circumvent the rules? No doubt, the problems of Nigeria are traceable to the political class. When I addressed the forum of House of Representative recently that Nigeria needs to rehabilitate the political class because when you have a decent political class, people full of integrity, many of the problems associated with politics or politicians will be removed. INEC itself has a bit of challenge whether for the sustainability of their appointment or people have discovered that they can get rich by taking advantage of the desperation of politicians. Most of the problems of election didn’t arise from INEC. They arise from the political parties. More political parties commit crimes in their primaries than they accuse INEC of. So, whatever error INEC commits, they even commit more. People bribes delegate for elections. Party chairmen and secretaries switch names like the game of domino. So, political class is guilty. I agree with that. But INEC is supposed to be a professional class. In that case, they should not collaborate with the politicians. The Ghanaian electoral boss says in Ghana, rarely do you see people cross carpet. But here in Nigeria, you can say PDP is APC and you won’t be wrong. Take it further, there appears to be no opposition in Nigeria, it’s like dead, including your party, is that correct? The issue is this, let’s start with INEC. The problem in Nigeria is that everybody is an expert in other people’s business. It is not the duty of the INEC chairman to teach politicians how to politik. His job is to administer election. Leave them to cross-carpet, that is outside your power. What you should do is to conduct credible elections and monitor your staff to see that you don’t switch elections, you don’t switch off the servers, you don’t do nonsense that is associated with electioneering. Once you have clean your own Augean table, you can have the moral standing to now pontificate for others. With respect to the opposition you talked about, opposition in our system of government is opposition of ideas, not opposition on the streets. The problem people have with opposition is that Labour Party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Progressives Congress (APC) are all of the same philosophy. What about your party, the SDP? We have a different philosophy. How is yours different from them? We are left of the centre and our policies are different. If you listen to us during the campaign, you juxtapose our policies with that of former Governor Peter Obi, President Bola Tinubu and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar. You will think they were written from the same script. They are in different parties but they believe in the same thing, economic theory. If Peter Obi was in power, he will find another person, not Wale Edun, one who sounds like him. On cross carpeting, it is not a major problem. It is bad. But the important thing is that you must have definition of ideas. If somebody crosses from PDP to APC, he hasn’t really crossed. It’s like one moving from one room to another within the same bungalow. It is when somebody crosses from an ideological divide. So, they are parties of the same ilk. What Nigerians need now is to invest the attention, belief and time in alternative thinking. And to say there is no opposition, the job I am doing now is constructive opposition. What do you make of rotational presidency? Rotation is at two levels. You must rotate according to geopolitical zone for peace among the elite. But you must rotate from the elite to the people for growth and justice to happen in Nigeria. If you are rotating from north to south and all of that and rotating about the same wasteful elite who have no idea, you will be rotating poverty, insecurity and others. But if you rotate from them, in terms of inter generational from the old people to the young ones and from ideological rotation from those who follow IMF-World Bank to those who have indigenous ideas and authentic pro-Nigeria ideas, you would have some progress for the country.
Meet Malvika Raj Joshi, Indian genius who studied at MIT but was denied admission to IIT due to...
BANDAI NAMCO Holdings Inc. ( OTCMKTS:NCBDF – Get Free Report ) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,208,900 shares, an increase of 29.0% from the November 30th total of 937,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 12,089.0 days. BANDAI NAMCO Stock Performance Shares of NCBDF opened at $21.20 on Friday. BANDAI NAMCO has a 52 week low of $17.77 and a 52 week high of $23.77. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $21.28 and a 200-day moving average of $20.91. About BANDAI NAMCO ( Get Free Report ) Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for BANDAI NAMCO Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BANDAI NAMCO and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .MANCHESTER UNITED'S flops were booed off following the 2-0 defeat at Wolves. And the result leaves the Red Devils just eight points above the relegation zone. After a drab goalless first half at Molineux, Bruno Fernandes' moment of madness when already on a yellow card changed the game. His careless lunge on Nelson Semedo 90 seconds into the second period saw ref Tony Harrington send him for a third early bath of the season . And that gave Wolves the boost they needed to go on and snatch all three points. Matheus Cunha scored directly from a corner before Hwang Hee-chan grabbed a second in the 99th minute . READ MORE ON MAN UTD There was only just time for the restart as Harrington blew the full-time whistle as Ruben Amorim's men fell to a third defeat in a week - following the Carabao Cup exit at Spurs then the 3-0 humiliation at home to Bournemouth. And the latest result saw patience run out for plenty of the travelling supporters who made the Boxing Day trip to the West Midlands. A chorus of jeers, whistles and boos sounded from the away end as United slumped to 14th in the Premier League table. Their tally of 22 points from 18 games features six wins, four draws and eight defeats with a goal difference of -3. Most read in Football FOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS That leaves them 17 points off leaders Liverpool but more worryingly just eight ahead of 18th-placed Leicester before kick-off between the two teams at Anfield in the late game on Boxing Day. And the complaints were not limited to inside the stadium. On social media, fans were quick to voice their growing concerns about the state of their team yet again. One said: "Another disappointing and frustrating game to watch. Team is clearly a bang average one and bereft of any ideas and creativity. Amorim has a huge job on his hands." Another wrote: "You owe Erik ten Hag an apology. This is genuinely embarrassing." A third added: "Woeful performance." A fourth replied: "Worst I’ve seen my club in 30 years." And a final user asked: "How long before Amorim is booted?" Things don't get much easier for the Red Devils with Newcastle, Liverpool and Arsenal in their next three fixtures. By Ken Lawrence WOLVES landed a shock Boxing Day knockout as Manchester United's struggles continued. The 2-0 defeat means Ruben Amorim has won just two of the seven Premier League games he has taken charge of. United find themselves 14th in the table and today were not helped by Bruno Fernandes' red card and Andre Onana letting one in direct from a corner. Here is how SunSport rated the performances... ANDRE ONANA: 4 He needed to make an agile save from Jorgen Strand Larsen in the first half, but badly misjudged the flight of Cunha’s corner for the opening goal - his claim that he was obstructed by Matt Doherty was rejected. LENY YORO: 5 Recalled but booked after only four minutes for a foul on Cunha, so he was walking on eggshells and was tested by Wolves throughout. Subbed just after the hour mark. HARRY MAGUIRE: 6 The England defender did his best to keep United in the game when they were under pressure for long periods - at least he helped to stem the tide until the dying seconds and had a header on target in stoppage time. LISANDRO MARTINEZ: 6 Teamed up well with Maguire to stop Wolves from winning this more easily, he stood his ground and produced some important challenges in the latter stages before Wolves caught him on the break with the last action of the game. NOUSSAIR MAZRAOUI: 5 Tenacious and determined, but was one of several players given a torrid time by the best player on the pitch - Cunha. MANUEL UGARTE: 5 Dispossesed too easily at times, struggled against a lively Wolves attack and was eventually taken off as one of Amorim’s subs following Fernandes’ red card. KOBBIE MAINOO: 5 Looked a threat early on, created some good openings, but he was booked after the break as United looked short on ideas. Faded and was subbed. DIOGO DALOT: 6 Brought a tremendous save from Jose Sa in the first half in what was a rare bright spot for United - but he had no major influence on a poor team display. AMAD DIALLO: 5 Lacked awareness of his team-mates sometimes and looked a shadow of the player who turned the Manchester derby around less than two weeks ago. BRUNO FERNANDES: 3 Sent off early in the second half for a second yellow after a challenge on Nelson Semedo, but the captain had cut a frustrated figure before that. RASMUS HOJLUND: 5 Became visibly annoyed at times at a lack of service from his team-mates, he had no joy up front and was subbed with 10 minutes left. SUBS Casemiro (for Mainoo, 63 mins): 6 Christian Eriksen (for Ugate, 63 mins): 6 Antony (for Yoro, 63 mins): 6 Alejandro Garnacho (for Amad, 79 mins): 5 Joshua Zirkzee (for Hojlund, 79 mins): 5 Amorim, though, was desperate to try and keep spirits up despite the nightmare triple header off the back of three painful defeats. He said: "Of course, when you lose, when we don't win, it's a step back. It was really hard with the sending off. "The goal was similar against Tottenham. Then, we tried. READ MORE SUN STORIES "Even with one less guy we tried to and I think we were near something but then Wolves scored the second one. "Then, in the end, we tried everything and the transition was 2-0. For us, let's continue."Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, renowned globally for his humanitarian efforts following his presidency, has passed away at the age of 100. Naija News reports that The Carter Center confirmed his death on Sunday, stating, “ Our founder, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, passed away this afternoon in Plains, Georgia.” Carter’s death comes just months after the passing of his wife of 77 years, Rosalynn, who died in November 2023 at the modest home they built in 1961. The couple had spent their later years in the same house where Carter began managing his father’s peanut business before venturing into politics. In February 2023, Carter announced his decision to enter hospice care, choosing to forego further medical intervention. At the time, his grandson, Jason Carter, shared, “They are at peace and – as always – their home is full of love ,” in a heartfelt social media post. Despite his declining health, Carter remained politically engaged, expressing his desire to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. Carter, who served as the 39th president from 1977 to 1981, made history as the longest-living former U.S. president, surpassing George H.W. Bush in 2019. Following his single term in office, he dedicated decades to charitable causes, including monitoring elections in developing countries, building homes through Habitat for Humanity, and teaching Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia. During his presidency, Carter achieved significant milestones, such as brokering the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt, transferring control of the Panama Canal to Panama, expanding public lands in Alaska, and formalizing diplomatic ties with China. However, his administration faced challenges, including high inflation, energy crises, and the Iran hostage crisis, which contributed to his defeat in the 1980 election against Ronald Reagan. In his later years, Carter battled various health issues, including brain cancer in 2015 and complications from falls in 2019. Nonetheless, his commitment to humanitarian work never wavered. His efforts were recognized in 2002 when he received the Nobel Peace Prize, cementing his legacy as a tireless advocate for peace and human rights.
By CHRIS MEGERIAN and COLLEEN LONG WASHINGTON (AP) — In the two weeks since Donald Trump won the presidency, he’s tried to demonstrate his dominance by naming loyalists for top administration positions, even though many lack expertise and some face sexual misconduct accusations. It often seems like he’s daring Congress to oppose his decisions. But on Thursday, Trump’s attempt to act with impunity showed a crack as Matt Gaetz , his choice for attorney general, withdrew from consideration. Trump had named Gaetz, a Florida congressman, to be the country’s top law enforcement official even though he was widely disliked by his colleagues, has little legal experience and was accused of having sex with an underage girl, an allegation he denied. After being plagued by investigations during his first presidency, Trump wanted a devoted ally in charge of the Justice Department during his second. However, it was never obvious that Gaetz could win enough support from lawmakers to get confirmed as attorney general. Trump chose for a replacement Pam Bondi, a former Florida attorney general who defended him during his first impeachment trial and supported his false claims of voter fraud. Now the question is whether Gaetz was uniquely unpalatable, or if Trump’s other picks might exceed his party’s willingness to overlook concerns that would have sunk nominees in a prior political era. The next test will likely be Pete Hegseth, who Trump wants to lead the Pentagon despite an allegation of sexual assault that he’s denied. So far, Republicans are rallying around Hegseth , an Army veteran and former Fox News host. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said the controversy over Gaetz would have little bearing on Trump’s other choices. He said they would be considered “one at a time.” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, suggested otherwise, claiming “the dominoes are falling.” “The drip drip of evidence and truth is going to eventually doom some others,” he said. Trump’s election victory was a sign that there may not be many red lines left in American politics. He won the presidential race despite authoritarian, racist and misogynist rhetoric, not to mention years of lies about election fraud and his role in sparking the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. He was also criminally convicted of falsifying business records to pay hush money, and he was found liable for sexual abuse in a civil case. Empowered by voters who looked past his misconduct and saw him as a powerful agent of change, Trump has shown no deference to Washington norms while working to fill his second administration . The transition team hasn’t pursued federal background checks for Trump’s personnel choices. While some of his selections have extensive experience in the areas they’ve been chosen to lead, others are personal friends and Fox News personalities who have impressed and flattered Trump over the years. Several have faced allegations involving sexual misconduct . Related Articles Hegseth is facing the most scrutiny after Gaetz. Once Trump announced Hegseth as his nominee for Pentagon chief, allegations emerged that he sexually assaulted a woman in California in 2017. The woman said he took her phone, blocked the door to the hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a police report made public this week. Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing, the report said. However, he paid the woman a confidential settlement in 2023. Hegseth’s lawyer said the payment was made to head off the threat of a baseless lawsuit. Trump’s choice for secretary of health and human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has faced allegations of misconduct too. A woman who babysat for him and his second wife told Vanity Fair magazine that Kennedy groped her in the late 1990s, when she was 23. Kennedy did not deny the allegation and texted an apology to the woman after the article was published. That isn’t the only hurdle for Kennedy; he’s spent years spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories about vaccines, raising fears about making him a top health official in the new administration. Linda McMahon, chosen by Trump to be education secretary, is fighting a lawsuit connected to her former company, World Wrestling Entertainment. She’s accused of knowingly enabling sexual exploitation of children by an employee as early as the 1980s, and she denies the allegations. Tulsi Gabbard is another person who could face a difficult confirmation battle, but for very different reasons. The former Democratic representative from Hawaii has been a vocal Trump ally, and he chose her to be national intelligence director. But there’s grave concern by lawmakers and national security officials over Gabbard’s history of echoing Russian propaganda. Critics said she would endanger relationships with U.S. allies. Gaetz was investigated by federal law enforcement for sex trafficking, but the case was closed without charges and Republicans have blocked the release of a related report from the House Ethics Committee. However, some allegations leaked out, including that Gaetz paid women for sex. One of the women testified to the committee that she saw Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old girl, according to a lawyer for the woman. As Gaetz met with senators this week, it became clear that he would face stubborn resistance from lawmakers who were concerned about his behavior and believed he was unqualified to run the Justice Department. “While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction,” Gaetz wrote on social media when announcing his withdrawal. Sen. Mike Braun, an Indiana Republican, said he believed there were four to six members of the caucus who would have voted against Gaetz, likely dooming his nomination, and “the math got too hard.” He said some of the issues and allegations around Gaetz were “maybe beyond the pale.” “I think there were just too many things, it was like a leaky dike, and you know, it broke,” Braun said. Trump thanked Gaetz in a post on Truth Social, his social media website, without addressing the substance of the allegations against him. “He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect,” Trump wrote. Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Stephen Groves and Lisa Macaro contributed from Washington. Jill Colvin in New York and Adriana Gomez Licon in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, also contributed.Novak Djokovic breaks his silence on tennis doping scandals - and reveals what he really thinks of Nick Kyrgios's tough stance
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. ( NYSE:KMB – Free Report ) by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,444 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,426 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $4,759,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the second quarter worth about $26,000. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its position in Kimberly-Clark by 808.0% during the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 227 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several research firms have recently commented on KMB. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $153.00 to $151.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays lifted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $135.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $149.93. Insider Buying and Selling In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.01, for a total transaction of $417,030.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $702,417.53. This trade represents a 37.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink . 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders. Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 1.0 % KMB opened at $138.42 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $138.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.77, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.83. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $117.67 and a fifty-two week high of $149.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.95, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.40. Kimberly-Clark ( NYSE:KMB – Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.14. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 198.59% and a net margin of 12.97%. The company had revenue of $4.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.74 EPS. Kimberly-Clark’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year. Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.53%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.29%. Kimberly-Clark Profile ( Free Report ) Kimberly-Clark Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets personal care and consumer tissue products in the United States. It operates through three segments: Personal Care, Consumer Tissue, and K-C Professional. The company’s Personal Care segment offers disposable diapers, training and youth pants, swimpants, baby wipes, feminine and incontinence care products, reusable underwear, and other related products under the Huggies, Pull-Ups, Little Swimmers, GoodNites, DryNites, Sweety, Kotex, U by Kotex, Intimus, Thinx, Poise, Depend, Plenitud, Softex, and other brand names. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding KMB? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Kimberly-Clark Co. ( NYSE:KMB – Free Report ). Receive News & Ratings for Kimberly-Clark Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Kimberly-Clark and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .LANDOVER, Md. (AP) — Jimmy Carter was honored with a moment of silence before the Atlanta Falcons’ game at the Washington Commanders on Sunday night, hours after the 39th president of the United States died at the age of 100 in Plains, Georgia. Beyond being a Georgia native who led the country from the White House less than 8 miles (12 kilometers) away during his time in office from 1977-81, Carter was the first president to host the NFL's Super Bowl champions there when he welcomed the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1980. Falcons owner Arthur Blank in a statement released by the team before kickoff said he was deeply saddened by the loss of his dear friend and mentor, calling Carter “a great American, a proud Georgian and an inspirational global humanitarian.” “He lived his life with great civic responsibility and took it upon himself to be the change he wished to see amongst other,” Blank said, recalling meeting Carter at The Home Depot. “President Carter’s kind and uniting spirit touched so many lives. He was a man of deep faith, and did everything with principal and grace, doing things the right way for the right reasons." AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
HONOLULU, Dec. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- First Hawaiian, Inc. (NASDAQ: FHB), (“First Hawaiian” or the “Company”) announced today that Christopher L. Dods, Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of First Hawaiian, Inc and First Hawaiian Bank, has submitted his resignation effective March 31, 2025. He will continue to work with the management team through the first quarter of 2025 to ensure a smooth transition of his responsibilities. Chris Dods joined First Hawaiian Bank in 2007 in the Card Services Division where he oversaw credit and debit card product development, operations, and compliance. Over time, his responsibilities grew to include marketing, corporate communications, digital banking, and all consumer products. In 2021 he was promoted to Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer and given oversight of Enterprise Technology Management, Enterprise Operations Services, Data and Analytics, and Strategy and Transformation. “Chris has been a key member of our management team and has made significant contributions to FHB during his time at the bank,” said Bob Harrison, Chairman, President, and CEO. “Under his leadership, we have made great strides in modernizing the bank and creating a user-friendly, highly functional digital experience for both our consumer and business customers. We would like to thank Chris for his contributions and wish him well in his future endeavors.” “My career here will always be a source of pride, and my love for the people and the organization can never be overstated,” said First Hawaiian, Inc. COO Chris Dods. “It has been a privilege to work at such a fine and storied institution as First Hawaiian Bank.” First Hawaiian, Inc. First Hawaiian, Inc. (NASDAQ: FHB) is a bank holding company headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii. Its principal subsidiary, First Hawaiian Bank, founded in 1858 under the name Bishop & Company, is Hawaii’s largest financial institution with branch locations throughout Hawaii, Guam, and Saipan. The company offers a comprehensive suite of banking services to consumer and commercial customers including deposit products, loans, wealth management, insurance, trust, retirement planning, credit card and merchant processing services. Customers may also access their accounts through ATMs, online and mobile banking channels. For more information about First Hawaiian, Inc., visit the Company’s website, www.fhb.com . A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/88c8436c-80fd-418c-8910-f90e506f6d5fUS defense secretary scraps South Korea trip after martial law attempt
Christmas cheese recalled from supermarkets due to potentially deadly bacteriaHouse Ethics Committee members on Thursday once again delayed deciding on whether to release their report on former congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), opting to keep their investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct and drug use under wraps for now despite growing pressure from Democrats. After meeting for two hours behind closed doors, the notoriously leakproof House Ethics Committee released a statement that confirmed the lawmakers discussed releasing the report, but that no decision was met.