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Michael Bourn is no stranger to speed. A two-time All-Star, Bourn stole 341 bases throughout the course of his 11-year Major League Baseball career. However, it wasn’t his speed that was the focus on Thursday. Bourn participated in a Zoom call to help promote the Speedway Classic ‘25 coming up on Aug. 2, 2025, as the Atlanta Braves will battle the Cincinnati Reds at Bristol Motor Speedway. On the call, Bourn voiced his excitement to see modern speed threats like Atlanta’s Ronald Acuña Jr. and Cincinnati’s Elly De La Cruz take center stage at a venue known for high-speeds. “I think those are two superstar-talented players,” he said. “Especially Elly De La Cruz, man, he’s just scratching the surface. Last year, he was able to come around and have 67 stolen bases and also had 105 runs scored. But I think he’s just scratching the surface. He just made his first All-Star Game last year. “I actually haven’t seen him play in person, so I will be attending that game. Being able to get there and see him play will be amazing.” While De La Cruz had a breakout year in 2024, Acuña missed much of the season with a torn ACL. But, in his last full season, the Braves right fielder broke out himself, winning his first National League MVP after hitting 41 homers and swiping 73 bags. One of the biggest reasons MLB is seeing the re-emergence of stolen bases is the set of rule changes implemented ahead of 2023. The league increased the size of the bases from 15 inches square to 18 inches square, limited the amount of pickoff attempts allowed by pitchers, and introduced the pitch timer. Bourn said that if that ruleset was in play during his career, which spanned from 2006-16, he would’ve been very aggressive in his steal attempts. “(I would’ve stolen) a maximum of 120 (in a season),” Bourn said. “I would’ve set the bar high. I think it just presents more offensive ways to get involved in the game. To me, the base-stealer actually has the advantage.” A two-time Gold Glove winner, Bourn played for the Braves from 2011-12 and again in 2015. During his first stint in Atlanta, he played for then-third base coach Brian Snitker. After spending time managing AAA-Gwinnett, Snitker then became the Braves’ skipper, where he will be entering his 10th season in the role. “It was fun being around him,” Bourn said. “As a third base coach, he did his role as a third base coach. Always got us prepared for things that we needed to get prepared for for the game. Was a little bit more laid-back – in the manager role you have to be a little more outspoken.” The ex-centerfielder added that much of the success the Braves have had in Snitker’s tenure has been due to the manager’s ability to build a good coaching staff. “At one point they had Ron Washington, Eric Young Sr., Walt Weiss, and Sal Fasano on one staff,” Bourn said. “They had very good baseball people and they had very good baseball knowledge around him. And that’s one thing good managers do: they hire good baseball people around them to help them along the way of a long season.” Bourn’s 2012 season with Atlanta was one of the best of his career, hitting for a .274 average and accruing 42 stolen bases. He finished 18th in MVP voting, the highest finish of his career as the Braves made the postseason. It was a run that ended short, though, as Atlanta lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2012 NL Wild Card Game, 6-3. The contest has gone down in infamy due to a controversial infield fly call from the eighth inning. Still, the campaign was one that Bourn remembers fondly. “I remember Chipper Jones’ last game, it was sold-out, no parking nowhere,” he said. “That was one moment where I was like, ‘Man, he’s a Braves legend.’ Also, clinching to go to the playoffs in 2012 even though we didn’t win a playoff game. Freddie Freeman hit a home run to clinch. To me, that was an amazing moment. We had a great team that year.” Stay Informed: Subscribe to Our Newsletter TodaySEOUL, South Korea (AP) — In an era of rising authoritarianism, at the heels of a six-hour martial law decree that unfolded while many South Koreans slept, something noteworthy happened: Democracy held. The past week in Seoul, officials and academics warn, is what a threat to democracy looks like in 2024. It's a democratically-elected president declaring martial law over the nation he leads, asserting sweeping powers to prevent opposition demonstrations, ban political parties and control the media. It's members of the military attempting to block lawmakers from exercising their power to vote on cancelling the power grab. And here's what it took to defeat President Yoon Suk Yeol 's lurch toward government by force: Unified popular support for democracy. Legislators storming the National Assembly past midnight, live-streaming themselves climbing over fences. A politician grabbing at a soldier's rifle and yelling “Aren't you ashamed?” until he retreated. And finally, decisively, Parliament assembling a quorum and voting unanimously to cancel martial law. It was a victory for a hard-won democracy — and for the idea that checks and balances among branches of government must work to counteract each other's ambitions, as the American founders wrote in the Federalist Papers in 1788. But as the drama played out in Seoul, the scaffolding of democracy rattled around the world. In other countries, the grab for power might have worked. Other would-be authoritarians might have been better prepared than Yoon. In deeply polarized societies — the United States, for example, where Republicans are staunchly loyal to president-elect Donald Trump — there might not have been decisive support from the public or the opposition. The military might have used force. And the members of the legislature might not have voted as one to snuff out the attempted takeover. “President Yoon's attempt to declare martial law reveals the fragility of the rule of law in divided societies, especially those with governments in which the chief executive cannot be easily dismissed by the legislature," said Tom Pepinsky, a government professor at Cornell University who studies backsliding among democracies in Southeast Asia. Notably, he said in an email, “No members of President Yoon’s own party were willing to defend his actions in public." Nevertheless, Yoon’s surprise attempt to impose martial law revealed both the fragility and resilience of the country’s democratic system. Within three hours of his stunning announcement to impose military rule — claiming the opposition was “paralyzing” state affairs — 190 lawmakers voted to cancel his actions. In so doing, they demonstrated the strength of the country’s democratic checks and balances. Yoon’s authoritarian push, carried out by hundreds of heavily armed troops with Blackhawk helicopters and armored vehicles sent to the National Assembly, harked back to an era of dictatorial presidents. The country’s democratic transition in the late 1980s came after years of massive protests by millions that eventually overcame violent suppressions by military rulers. Civilian presence was again crucial in shaping the events following Yoon’s late night television announcement on Tuesday. Thousands of people flocked to the National Assembly, shouting slogans for martial law to be lifted and Yoon to step down from power. There were no reports of violent clashes as troops and police officers. “We restored democracy without having a single casualty this time,” said Seol Dong-hoon, a sociology professor at South Korea’s Jeonbuk National University. It’s virtually impossible for any leader of a democracy to pull off a transition toward martial law without a public willing to support it, or at least tolerate it. Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election, attracted millions of views as he began live-streaming his journey to the National Assembly, pleading for people to converge to the parliament to help lawmakers get inside. The shaky footage later shows him exiting his car climbing over a fence to get onto the grounds. The vote at the National Assembly was also broadcast live on the YouTube channel of Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik, who also had to scale a fence to get in. Yoon’s sense of crisis clearly wasn’t shared by the public, whose opinions, Seol said, were shaped predominantly by the shocking videos broadcast to their devices. “Ultimately, democracy is all about moving public opinion,” he said. “What was most crucial in this case was that everything was broadcast live on smartphones, YouTube and countless other media.” Opposition lawmakers are now pushing to remove Yoon from office, saying he failed to meet the constitutional requirement that martial law should only be considered in wartime or a comparable severe crisis — and that he unlawfully deployed troops to the National Assembly. On Saturday, an opposition-led impeachment motion failed after most lawmakers from Yoon’s party boycotted the vote. Yet the president’s troubles persist: The vote’s defeat is expected to intensify nationwide protests and deepen South Korea’s political turmoil, with opposition parties preparing to introduce another impeachment motion when parliament reconvenes next Wednesday. Han Sang-hie, a law professor at Seoul’s Konkuk University, said the martial law debacle highlights what he sees as the most crucial flaw of South Korea’s democracy: that it places too much power in the hands of the president, which is easily abused and often goes unchecked. Political scientists call what happened in South Korea an “autogolpe” — a “self-coup” — defined as one led by incumbent leaders themselves, in which an executive takes or sponsors illegal actions against others in the government. Yoon qualifies because he used troops to try to shut down South Korea's legislature. Self-coups are increasing, with a third of the 46 since 1945 occurring in the past decade, according to a study by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and Penn State University. About 80% of self-coups succeed, they reported. In 2021, a power grab by Tunisian President Kais Saied raised similar concerns around the world after the country designed a democracy from scratch and won a Nobel Peace Prize after a largely bloodless revolution. In the United States, some have expresed worry about similar situations arising during the second administration of Donald Trump. He has vowed, after all, to shake some of democracy's pillars . He's mused that he would be justified if he decided to pursue “the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution.” That’s in contrast to the oath of office he took in 2017, and will again next year, to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution” as best he can. Nearly half of voters in the Nov. 5 election, which Trump won, said they were “very concerned” that another Trump presidency would bring the U.S. closer to authoritarianism, according to AP Votecast survey data. Asked before a live audience on Fox News Channel in 2023 to assure Americans that he would not abuse power or use the presidency to seek retribution against anyone, Trump replied, “except for day one," when he'll close the border and “drill, drill, drill.” After that, Trump said, "I'm not a dictator.” Kellman reported from London.fortune gems 2 jili 。

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A deal which could see the Elgin Marbles returned to Greece is “still some distance” away, George Osborne has signalled. The former Tory chancellor, now chairman of the British Museum, suggested Sir Keir Starmer had contributed to a warmer spirit of the negotiations over the famous ancient artworks. Greece has long called for the return of the Marbles, also known as the Parthenon sculptures, and maintains they were illegally removed from Athens’ acropolis during a period of foreign occupation. The British Museum – where they are currently on display – is forbidden by law from giving away any of its artefacts, and the Government has no plans to change the law to permit a permanent move. But under Mr Osborne’s leadership, the museum is negotiating the possibility of a long-term loan of the sculptures, in exchange for rolling exhibitions of famous artworks. No 10 has indicated the Prime Minister is unlikely to stand in the way of such a deal. Speaking on Political Currency, the podcast he hosts alongside former Labour politician Ed Balls, Mr Osborne said the museum was “looking to see if we can come to some arrangement where at some point some of the sculptures are in Athens, where, of course, they were originally sited”. He added: “And in return, Greece lends us some of its treasures, and we made a lot of progress on that, but we’re still some distance from any kind of agreement.” The Greek government has suggested negotiations with the museum have taken a warmer tone since Labour came to power in the summer. Mr Osborne appeared to concur with this view and praised Sir Keir’s hands-off approach, adding: “It is not the same as Rishi Sunak, who refused to see the Greek prime minister, if you remember, he sort of stood him up. “So it seems to me a more sensible and diplomatic way to proceed.” Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Greek premier, discussed the Elgin Marbles with Sir Keir when they met on Tuesday morning at Downing Street, he said after returning to Athens. Mr Mitsotakis has signalled his government is awaiting developments on the negotiations. A diplomatic spat between the Greek leader and Mr Sunak emerged last year when the then-prime minister refused to meet his counterpart. Mr Mitsotakis had compared splitting the Elgin Marbles from those still in Athens to cutting the Mona Lisa in half. The marble statues came from friezes on the 2,500-year-old Parthenon temple and have been displayed at the British Museum for more than 200 years. They were removed by Lord Elgin in the early 19th century when he was British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. Some of the remaining temple statues are on display in the purpose-built Acropolis Museum in Athens, and Greece has called for the collections to be reunited.

What did you Google in 2024? From the elections to Copa América, here's what search trends show

ADDISON, Texas, Dec. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CECO Environmental Corp. (Nasdaq: CECO) (together with its consolidated subsidiaries and affiliates, “CECO”), a leading environmentally focused, diversified industrial company whose solutions protect people, the environment and industrial equipment, announced today that the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (“HSR”), applicable to CECO’s tender offer for Profire Energy, Inc. (Nasdaq: PFIE) (“PFIE”) expired at 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on November 15, 2024. The expiration of the HSR waiting period satisfies one of the conditions to consummate the tender offer. Other conditions remain to be satisfied, including, among others, a minimum tender of shares of common stock of PFIE representing a majority of the total number of outstanding shares of common stock of PFIE. Unless the tender offer is extended, the offer and withdrawal rights will expire at one minute after 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on December 31, 2024. ABOUT CECO ENVIRONMENTAL CECO Environmental is a leading environmentally focused, diversified industrial company, serving a broad landscape of industrial air, industrial water, and energy transition markets across the globe through its key business segments: Engineered Systems and Industrial Process Solutions. Providing innovative technology and application expertise, CECO helps companies grow their business with safe, clean, and more efficient solutions that help protect people, the environment and industrial equipment. In regions around the world, CECO works to improve air quality, optimize the energy value chain, and provide custom solutions for applications including power generation, petrochemical processing, general industrial, refining, midstream oil and gas, electric vehicle production, polysilicon fabrication, battery recycling, beverage can, and water/wastewater treatment along with a wide range of other applications. CECO is listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “CECO.” Incorporated in 1966, CECO’s global headquarters is in Addison, Texas. For more information, please visit www.cecoenviro.com . SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT Certain statements in this communication are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, both as amended, which are intended to be covered by the safe harbor for “forward-looking statements” provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements contained in this communication, other than statements of historical fact, including statements about management’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements and should be evaluated as such. These statements are made on the basis of management’s views and assumptions regarding future events and business performance. We use words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intends,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “project,” “will,” “plan,” “should” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Potential risks and uncertainties, among others, that could cause actual results to differ materially are discussed under “Item 1A. Risk Factors” of CECO’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and in CECO’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, and include, but are not limited to: the parties’ ability to complete the proposed transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement in the anticipated timeframe or at all; the effect of the announcement or pendency of the proposed transaction on business relationships, operating results, and business generally; risks that the proposed transactions disrupt current plans and operations and potential difficulties in employee retention as a result of the proposed transactions; risks related to diverting management’s attention from ongoing business operations; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted related to the proposed transactions; the amount of the costs, fees, expenses and other charges related to the proposed transactions; the risk that competing offers or acquisition proposals will be made; the sensitivity of CECO’s business to economic and financial market conditions generally and economic conditions in CECO’s service areas; dependence on fixed price contracts and the risks associated therewith, including actual costs exceeding estimates and method of accounting for revenue; the effect of growth on CECO’s infrastructure, resources and existing sales; the ability to expand operations in both new and existing markets; the potential for contract delay or cancellation as a result of on-going or worsening supply chain challenges; liabilities arising from faulty services or products that could result in significant professional or product liability, warranty or other claims; changes in or developments with respect to any litigation or investigation; failure to meet timely completion or performance standards that could result in higher cost and reduced profits or, in some cases, losses on projects; the potential for fluctuations in prices for manufactured components and raw materials, including as a result of tariffs and surcharges, and rising energy costs; inflationary pressures relating to rising raw material costs and the cost of labor; the substantial amount of debt incurred in connection with CECO’s strategic transactions and its ability to repay or refinance it or incur additional debt in the future; the impact of federal, state or local government regulations; CECO’s ability to repurchase shares of its common stock and the amounts and timing of repurchases; CECO’s ability to successfully realize the expected benefits of its restructuring program; economic and political conditions generally; CECO’s ability to optimize its business portfolio by identifying acquisition targets, executing upon any strategic acquisitions or divestitures, integrating acquired businesses and realizing the synergies from strategic transactions; and unpredictability and severity of catastrophic events, including cybersecurity threats, acts of terrorism or outbreak of war or hostilities or public health crises, as well as management’s response to any of the aforementioned factors. Many of these risks are beyond management’s ability to control or predict. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any related assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material aspects from those currently anticipated. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements as they speak only to CECO’s views as of the date the statement is made. Furthermore, the forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Except as required under the federal securities laws or the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), CECO undertakes no obligation to update or review any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Important Additional Information Will be Filed with the SEC This press release is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell common stock of PFIE or any other securities. This communication is for informational purposes only. The tender offer transaction commenced by a subsidiary of CECO is being made pursuant to a tender offer statement on Schedule TO (including the Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and other offer materials) filed by such affiliates of CECO with the SEC. In addition, PFIE will file a solicitation/recommendation statement on Schedule 14D-9 with the SEC related to the tender offer. The offer to purchase shares of PFIE’ common stock is only being made pursuant to the Offer to Purchase, the Letter of Transmittal and related offer materials filed as a part of the tender offer statement on Schedule TO, in each case as amended from time to time. THE TENDER OFFER MATERIALS (INCLUDING THE OFFER TO PURCHASE, THE RELATED LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL AND OTHER MATERIALS) AND THE SOLICITATION/RECOMMENDATION STATEMENT ON SCHEDULE 14D-9 CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. PRIOR TO MAKING ANY DECISION REGARDING THE TENDER OFFER, PFIE STOCKHOLDERS ARE STRONGLY ADVISED TO CAREFULLY READ THESE DOCUMENTS, AS FILED AND AS THEY MAY BE AMENDED FROM TIME TO TIME, WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE. PFIE stockholders will be able to obtain the tender offer statement on Schedule TO (including the Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and other offer materials) and the related solicitation/recommendation statement on Schedule 14D-9 at no charge on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov . In addition, the tender offer statement on Schedule TO (including the Offer to Purchase, a related Letter of Transmittal and other offer materials) and the related solicitation/recommendation statement on Schedule 14D-9 may be obtained free of charge from D.F. King & Co., Inc. 48 Wall Street, 22nd Floor New York, New York 10005, Telephone Number (866) 342-4881. Company Contact: Peter Johansson Chief Financial and Strategy Officer 888-990-6670 Investor Relations Contact: Steven Hooser and Jean Marie Young Three Part Advisors 214-872-2710 Investor.Relations@OneCECO.com

Alberta minister wants to see $100B in data centre infrastructure in next five years

ACCORD receives $750K to help improve Allegany Co. apartmentsCowboys star G Zack Martin doubtful to play vs. CommandersThe worldwide PMI survey – produced S&P Global in association with ISM and IFPSM for J.P.Morgan – indicated robust global economic growth in November. Conditions vary by region, however; the PMI data put the US on course for solid Q4 GDP growth but the eurozone is at risk of a GDP decline, with Japan and the UK also struggling to expand. Mainland China is seeing some uplift, while India continues to outperform. The global expansion was again driven by the service sector, and notably financial services but with increased support from consumers, reflecting looser financial conditions. Business confidence improved notably in the US and emerging markets, including mainland China, but elsewhere (geopolitical) uncertainty dominated. This is likely to be a theme we see throughout the coming months, with much depending on the new US administration’s approach to tariffs. With business confidence consequently running below its long-term trend globally in November, companies also took a cautious approach to hiring, causing worldwide employment to stagnate. Lower payrolls numbers were reported in the US, Eurozone and UK. S&P Global Market Intelligence’s PMI surveys indicated that global business activity expanded for a thirteenth straight month in November, the rate of expansion edging slightly higher again to add to signs of a robust fourth quarter. The headline J.P. Morgan Global Composite PMI® Output Index, covering manufacturing and services in over 40 economies, rose from 52.3 in October to 52.4, its highest since August. At its current level, historical comparisons indicate that the PMI is broadly consistent with the global economy growing at an annualized rate of 2.7%. That follows the most recent GDP data having registered a 2.9% expansion in the second quarter, and compares with an average GDP growth rate of 3.1% in the decade prior to the pandemic. The current signal from the PMI is therefore one of robust, albeit modestly below-trend, global economic growth. The service sector remained the main engine of growth in the global economy in November, with manufacturing mustering only a marginal rise in output. Delving deeper, any signs of impressive growth remain even more narrowly focused. By broad industry, November’s expansion was led in particular by financial services, where growth was the second-highest in nearly three years, followed by the relatively small telecoms sector. Three of the top-five sub-sectors were all financial services based, led by insurance. Real estate surged up the rankings by recording the strongest increase in activity for almost three years. Growth meanwhile slowed for industrials, healthcare and technology, with basic materials remaining in contraction. While manufacturing is showing some signs of reviving globally, this is in part linked to the front-running of threatened tariffs, which hints at any improvement being temporary. However, both consumer goods and consumer services were notable in reporting faster – albeit still somewhat subdued – rates of expansion, linked in part to moderating cost of living pressures and lower interest rates. Among the major developed economies, the US recorded the strongest expansion for a seventh straight month, the rate of growth reaching the fastest since April 2022 as a surge in services activity – and notably financial services output – helped offset a further fall in manufacturing output. Growth also revived in Canada, hitting the highest since May 2022, amid improved manufacturing and services performances, often linked to lower interest rates. In contrast, the UK, which had seen a strong performance up to September, reported a further loss of growth momentum in November to result in the slowest expansion for 13 months. A near-stalled service sector was accompanied by a drop in factory output. Output growth was meanwhile also largely stagnant in both Japan and Australia, as manufacturing downturns sat alongside only very modest service sector gains. That left the eurozone reporting the worst performance, with output falling at the sharpest rate for ten months as a deepening factory downturn spread to services. India once again led growth among the four BRIC ’emerging’ economies by a wide margin, as has been the case since July 2022, albeit with slower growth reported in both manufacturing and services. Growth also waned in Brazil, down to a three-month low, but remained robust thanks to sustained expansions across both goods and services. Growth meanwhile continued to perk up in mainland China from the near-stalled picture seen in September. The Caixin PMI produced by S&P Global signalled the sharpest expansion for five months. However, stronger manufacturing output growth was partly offset by a slowdown in services, the latter subdued by sluggish domestic demand. Modest but accelerating growth was reported in Russia, reaching an eight-month high, as renewed growth in manufacturing was accompanied by faster growth of service sector activity. Measured across all emerging markets, output growth across goods and services was the highest since June. Looking to the year ahead, business output expectations remained more buoyant worldwide than the near-two-year low seen in September, but continued to run below the long-run average amid ongoing political uncertainty and gloomier economic prospects in many economies. In the developed world, sentiment fell to a three-month low. The lowest confidence relative to long-run averages was recorded in the eurozone followed by the UK, the latter seeing businesses react adversely to the announcement of new tax-raising measures. Confidence also fell in Canada amid concerns over US protectionism. US confidence meanwhile held steady on October’s nine-month high, though a surge in optimism in the manufacturing sector was offset by a slight dampening of expectations in the larger services economy. That left Japan as the only major developed economy to report improved prospects. Confidence about the year ahead across the emerging markets meanwhile hit a six-month high, buoyed in both manufacturing and services by across-the-board improvements in the four BRIC economies. Sentiment consequently rose above long-run averages in all four cases with the notable exception of mainland China, where – despite rising on the back of recent stimulus announcements – confidence remained subdued by historical standards. Global private sector employment was indicated to have stagnated in November after having fallen marginally in October. Companies often again blamed a reluctance to hire on uncertain economic and political operating environments. No employment growth has been recorded by the global PMI since July. Only a minor rise in service sector jobs was again recorded globally, while factory jobs continued to be culled at one of the sharpest rates for over four years, albeit the rate of decline moderating in November. Source:

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