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Published: Jul. 31, 2023 at 4:05 PM EDT|Updated: 24 minutes ago
Broadband revenue up 20% and Video SaaS revenue up 58% year over year
SAN JOSE, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced its unaudited results for the second quarter of 2023.
"While we achieved double digit year over year Broadband and Video SaaS revenue growth and strong gross margins for the second quarter, we experienced hardware sales delays across our business segments resulting in total revenue that was below our expectations," said Patrick Harshman, president and chief executive officer of Harmonic. "Despite these short-term headwinds, we have the largest backlog in our Company's history and our operating model continued to deliver solid profitability. The strength of our market position was reinforced by several new customer wins which further supports our multi-year growth plan."
Q2 Financial and Business Highlights
Financial
Revenue: $156.0 million, down 1% year over year
Gross margin: GAAP 54.5% and non-GAAP 54.7%, compared to GAAP 52.3% and non-GAAP 52.8% in the year ago period
Operating income: GAAP income $10.0 million and non-GAAP income $18.2 million, compared to GAAP income $15.1 million and non-GAAP income $21.4 million in the year ago period
Net income: GAAP net income $1.6 million and non-GAAP net income of $14.0 million, compared to GAAP net income $14.8 million and non-GAAP net income $17.6 million in the year ago period
Adjusted EBITDA: $21.1 million income compared to $24.3 million income in the year ago period
EPS: GAAP net income per share of $0.01 and non-GAAP net income per share of $0.12, compared to GAAP net income per share of $0.14 and non-GAAP net income per share of $0.16 in the year ago period
Cash: $71.0 million, down $50.8 million year over year
Business
CableOS® solution commercially deployed with 98 customers, serving 21.0 million cable modems, and initial orders received from two new Tier 1 customers
Recognized for the first time as the "cable broadband equipment" market share leader, by the most recent Dell'Oro Group1 report
Signed a follow-on multi-year software contract with an existing Tier 1 customer
Live sports streaming SaaS expansions and new wins drove 58.3% Video SaaS revenue growth year over year
Select Financial Information
Explanations regarding our use of non-GAAP financial measures and related definitions, and reconciliations of our GAAP and non-GAAP measures, are provided in the sections below entitled "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures" and "GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliations".
Financial Guidance
Conference Call Information
Harmonic will host a conference call to discuss its financial results at 2:00 p.m. PT (5:00 p.m. ET) on Monday, July 31, 2023. The live webcast will be available on the Harmonic Investor Relations website at http://investor.harmonicinc.com. To participate via telephone, please register in advance using this link, https://register.vevent.com/register/BI455acac6063542fb837fd89bddfb1d84. A replay will be available after 5:00 p.m. PT on the same web site.
About Harmonic Inc.
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT), the worldwide leader in virtualized broadband and video delivery solutions, enables media companies and service providers to deliver ultra-high-quality video streaming and broadcast services to consumers globally. The company revolutionized broadband networking via the industry's first virtualized broadband solution, enabling cable operators to more flexibly deploy gigabit internet service to consumers' homes and mobile devices. Whether simplifying OTT video delivery via innovative cloud and software platforms, or powering the delivery of gigabit internet cable services, Harmonic is changing the way media companies and service providers monetize live and on-demand content on every screen. More information is available at www.harmonicinc.com.
Legal Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains 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, including statements related to our expectations regarding: net revenue, gross margins, operating expenses, operating income (loss), Adjusted EBITDA, tax expense and tax rate, EPS and cash. Our expectations regarding these matters may not materialize, and actual results in future periods are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. These risks include, in no particular order, the following: the market and technology trends underlying our Video and Broadband businesses will not continue to develop in their current direction or pace; the possibility that our products will not generate sales that are commensurate with our expectations or that our cost of revenue or operating expenses may exceed our expectations; the impact of general economic conditions on our sales and operations; the mix of products and services sold in various geographies and the effect it has on gross margins; delays or decreases in capital spending in the cable, satellite, telco, broadcast and media industries; customer concentration and consolidation; our ability to develop new and enhanced products in a timely manner and market acceptance of our new or existing products; losses of one or more key customers; risks associated with our international operations; exchange rate fluctuations of the currencies in which we conduct business; risks associated with our CableOS and VOS product solutions; dependence on various video and broadband industry trends; inventory management; the lack of timely availability or the impact of increases in the prices of parts or raw materials necessary to produce our products; the effect of competition, on both revenue and gross margins; difficulties associated with rapid technological changes in our markets; risks associated with unpredictable sales cycles; our dependence on contract manufacturers and sole or limited source suppliers; and the effect on our business of natural disasters. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are also subject to other risks and uncertainties, including those more fully described in Harmonic's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and our Current Reports on Form 8-K. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof, and Harmonic disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
The Company reports its financial results in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP" or referred to herein as "reported"). However, management believes that certain non-GAAP financial measures provide management and other users with additional meaningful financial information that should be considered when assessing our ongoing performance. Our management regularly uses our supplemental non-GAAP financial measures internally to understand, manage and evaluate our business, establish operating budgets, set internal measurement targets and make operating decisions.
These non-GAAP measures are not in accordance with, or an alternative for, measures prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and may be different from non-GAAP measures used by other companies. In addition, these non-GAAP measures are not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles. The Company believes that non-GAAP measures have limitations in that they do not reflect all of the amounts associated with Harmonic's results of operations as determined in accordance with GAAP and that these measures should only be used to evaluate Harmonic's results of operations in conjunction with the corresponding GAAP measures.
The Company believes that the presentation of non-GAAP measures, when shown in conjunction with the corresponding GAAP measures, provides useful information to investors and management regarding financial and business trends relating to its financial condition and its historical and projected results of operations. Non-GAAP financial measures should be viewed in addition to, and not as an alternative to, the Company's reported results prepared in accordance with GAAP.
The non-GAAP measures presented here are: Gross profit, operating expenses, income (loss) from operations, non-operating expenses and net income (loss) (including those amounts as a percentage of revenue), Adjusted EBITDA and net income (loss) per diluted share. The presentation of non-GAAP information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for results prepared in accordance with GAAP, and is not necessarily comparable to non-GAAP results published by other companies. A reconciliation of the historical non-GAAP financial measures discussed in this press release to the most directly comparable historical GAAP financial measures is included with the financial statements provided with this press release. The non-GAAP adjustments described below have historically been excluded from our GAAP financial measures.
Our non-GAAP financial measures reflect adjustments based on the following items, as well as the related income tax effects:
Stock-based compensation - Although stock-based compensation is a key incentive offered to our employees, we continue to evaluate our business performance excluding stock-based compensation expenses. We believe that management is limited in its ability to project the impact stock-based compensation would have on our operating results. In addition, for comparability purposes, we believe it is useful to provide a non-GAAP financial measure that excludes stock-based compensation in order to better understand the long-term performance of our core business and to facilitate the comparison of our results to the results of our peer companies.
Restructuring and related charges - Harmonic from time to time incurs restructuring charges which primarily consist of employee severance, one-time termination benefits related to the reduction of its workforce, lease exit costs, and other costs. These charges are associated with material business shifts. We exclude these items because we do not believe they are reflective of our ongoing long-term business and operating results.
Non-cash interest expense and other expenses related to convertible notes and other debt - We record the amortization of issuance costs as non-cash interest expense. We believe that excluding these costs provides meaningful supplemental information regarding operational performance and liquidity, along with enhancing investors' ability to view the Company's results from management's perspective. In addition, we believe excluding these costs from the non-GAAP measures facilitates comparisons to our historical operating results and comparisons to peer company operating results.
Gain and losses on equity investments - We exclude the gain and losses from the sale of our equity investments in calculating our non-GAAP financial measures. We exclude these items because we do not believe they are reflective of our ongoing long-term business and operating results.
Discrete tax items and tax effect of non-GAAP adjustments - The income tax effect of non-GAAP adjustments relates to the tax effect of the adjustments that we incorporate into non-GAAP financial measures in order to provide a more meaningful measure of non-GAAP net income.
Depreciation - Depreciation expense, along with interest, tax and stock-based compensation expense, and restructuring charges, is excluded from Adjusted EBITDA because we do not believe depreciation and the other items relate to the ordinary course of our business or are reflective of our underlying business performance.
Non-recurring advisory fees - There were non-recurring costs that we excluded from non-GAAP results relating to professional accounting, tax and legal fees associated with strategic corporate initiatives, including assessing corporate structure and organization, as we seek to optimize value for our business.
The above press release was provided courtesy of PRNewswire. The views, opinions and statements in the press release are not endorsed by Gray Media Group nor do they necessarily state or reflect those of Gray Media Group, Inc.
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Trader Joe’s falafel recalled because it may contain rocks
(Gray News) – Trader Joe’s is recalling a cooked falafel product because it “may contain rocks.”
The grocery chain announced Friday that the supplier of its Fully Cooked Falafel (SKU# 93935) warned it about the product possibly containing rocks.
Trader Joe’s said the recalled falafel is sold in its stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C.
“All potentially affected product has been removed from sale and destroyed,” Trader Joe’s said in its announcement.
Customers are urged to discard the falafel and return it to any Trader Joe’s location for a full refund.
Trader Joe’s also announced Friday that it was recalling some of its cookies because they also may contain rocks, and the chain recently recalled its broccoli cheddar soup because it may contain insects.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Russia shot down military drones that struck buildings in Moscow Monday. While Ukraine didn’t claim the strikes, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday night that “the war is returning to the territory of Russia.”
We get the latest from the Washington Post’s John Hudson.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI should stop using a U.S. spy database of foreigners’ emails and other communications for investigating crimes that aren’t related to national security, a group of White House intelligence advisers recommended in a report released Monday.
The President’s Intelligence Advisory Board’s findings come as the White House pushes Congress to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act before its expiration at the end of this year. U.S. intelligence officials say Section 702 enables investigations of Chinese and Russian espionage, potential terrorist plots, and other threats.
But spy agencies also end up capturing the communications of U.S. citizens and businesses, and a series of intelligence mistakes at the FBI has fanned bipartisan criticism of the bureau that has shaped the debate over renewing the law. Some lawmakers in both parties and civil liberties groups have called for stronger curbs on how the FBI uses foreign surveillance to search for Americans’ data.
While the White House did not commit to accepting the recommended changes, administration officials on Monday praised the board’s work and again called on Congress to reauthorize the surveillance program. The board argues in its report that Section 702 is critical to U.S. national security and suggests that allowing the program to lapse would be an “intelligence failure” and a step backward from changes made after the Sept. 11 attacks.
The board says the FBI made “inappropriate use” at times of Section 702 information. Those include queries for a U.S. senator and state senator’s names without properly limiting the search, looking for someone believed to have been at the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and doing large queries of names of protesters following the 2020 death of George Floyd.
“Unfortunately, complacency, a lack of proper procedures, and the sheer volume of Section 702 activity led to FBI’s inappropriate use of Section 702 authorities, specifically U.S. person queries,” the board said in its report. “U.S. person queries” generally mean searches for U.S. citizens and businesses.
The board recommends the FBI no longer search the data when it is seeking evidence of a crime not related to national security. Currently, the FBI conducts fewer than two dozen such searches a year, a senior administration official told reporters Monday. The official spoke on condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House.
The White House has not decided whether it will accept the recommendation but is studying the board’s work and report, the official said.
The board’s report largely lines up with the White House’s positions on other changes being debated in Congress. The board opposed requiring the FBI to obtain a warrant before it searches Section 702 data, saying that change would be impractical. It also says the FBI needs to maintain access to foreign spy collection because unlike other intelligence agencies, it has law enforcement authorities inside the U.S. and can warn Americans that they are being targeted by foreign spies or criminals.
Already, both Republicans and Democrats have called for broader changes affecting the FBI, including a handful of lawmakers in both parties who want to require warrants for any search.
Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., sharply questioned Assistant Attorney General Matt Olsen in June about how it searches Section 702 data and signaled he would push for new protections.
“I don’t think you’ve effectively made the case that there shouldn’t be a warrant requirement, whether or not it is constitutionally required, for a U.S. person search that is crime only,” he said.
Many in the GOP, meanwhile, are furious about the FBI’s investigations of former President Donald Trump and mistakes found by the Justice Department inspector general and other reviewers.
In a statement, the FBI said the report highlighted “how crucial” foreign intelligence was to the bureau’s mission.
“We agree that Section 702 should be reauthorized in a manner that does not diminish its effectiveness, as well as reassures the public of its importance and our ability to adhere rigorously to all relevant rules,” the bureau’s statement said.
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https://www.cbs42.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-the-fbi-should-face-new-limits-on-its-use-of-us-foreign-spy-data-a-key-intelligence-board-says/
| 2023-07-31T20:31:13
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13% Sequential Revenue Growth Including 10% Organic
Maintains Strong Balance Sheet Post-Acquisitions of Atreus and businessfourzero
CHICAGO, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc. (Nasdaq: HSII) ("Heidrick & Struggles", "Heidrick" or the "Company") announced financial results for its second quarter ended June 30, 2023.
Second Quarter Highlights:
- Net revenue of $271.2 million increased 13% sequentially, 10% organically
- Operating income of $13.6 million decreased $4.2 million sequentially and operating margin was 5.0%
- Adjusted operating income of $20.8 million increased 17% sequentially and adjusted operating margin was 7.7%
- Adjusted EBITDA of $36.4 million increased 33% sequentially and adjusted EBITDA margin was 13.4%
- Net income was $9.0 million and diluted earnings per share was $0.44; adjusted net income was $15.0 million and adjusted diluted earnings per share was $0.73
"We are very pleased with the second quarter results which included the first full quarter of results from our recent acquisition of Atreus Group ("Atreus") in our On-Demand Talent segment, as well as the results from businessfourzero ("B4Z") in our Heidrick Consulting segment. Even before the positive effects of these acquisitions, each of our lines of business demonstrated organic sequential growth, despite ongoing macro uncertainty and an anticipated return to more normalized levels of business performance. This validates our focus on the steadfast execution of our strategy while maintaining strong profitability," stated Heidrick & Struggles' President and Chief Executive Officer, Krishnan Rajagopalan. "Importantly, the integrations of both our recent acquisitions are progressing smoothly. We are advancing our diversification strategy while continuing to make appropriate investments in our digital capabilities and technologies throughout the company. These initiatives are aimed at providing our clients with the next generation of talent and leadership advisory services, enabling them to achieve higher performance through their leaders and teams in an ever-evolving business landscape."
2023 Second Quarter Results
Consolidated net revenue of $271.2 million compared to record consolidated net revenue of $298.7 million in the 2022 second quarter. Consolidated financial results include the first full quarter of contribution from the Company's recent acquisitions of Atreus and B4Z.
On a sequential basis, 2023 second quarter net revenue increased 13.3% from the 2023 first quarter, 10% of that growth was organic, as the Company experienced growth in Executive Search driven by the Americas and Europe markets, partially offset by a decline in the Asia Pacific market, along with sequential revenue growth in Heidrick Consulting and On-Demand Talent. 2023 second quarter adjusted operating income increased 17.2% and adjusted operating margin increased 30 basis points to 7.7% compared to 7.4% in the 2023 first quarter. Adjusted EBITDA of $36.4 million in the 2023 second quarter increased 33% sequentially and adjusted EBITDA margin increased 190 basis points to 13.4% compared to 11.5% in the 2023 first quarter. 2023 second quarter adjusted net income was $15.0 million compared to $15.6 million in the 2023 first quarter. This generated adjusted diluted earnings per share in the 2023 second quarter of $0.73 compared to $0.76 in the 2023 first quarter.
Executive Search net revenue of $206.8 million compared to net revenue of $253.9 million in the 2022 second quarter reflecting an anticipated market slowdown combined with a return to more normalized operating levels. Excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations, which negatively impacted results by 0.3%, or $0.8 million, net revenue decreased 18.2%, or $46.3 million, from the 2022 second quarter. Net revenue decreased 21.3% in the Americas (down 21.2% on a constant currency basis), decreased 5.3% in Europe (down 6.1% on a constant currency basis), and decreased 23.9% in Asia Pacific (down 20.5% on a constant currency basis) when compared to the prior year second quarter. The Social Impact and Industrial practice groups exhibited growth over the prior year.
The Company had 423 Executive Search consultants at June 30, 2023, compared to 388 at June 30, 2022. Productivity, as measured by annualized Executive Search net revenue per consultant, was $1.9 million compared to $2.6 million in the 2022 second quarter, reflecting a higher number of consultants combined with lower revenue. Average revenue per executive search was approximately $143,000 compared to $153,000 in the prior year period. The number of search confirmations decreased 12.7% compared to the year-ago period.
On-Demand Talent net revenue of $39.2 million, an increase of 75.5% compared to net revenue of $22.4 million in the 2022 second quarter, primarily due to the acquisition of Atreus, partially offset by a decrease in the volume of legacy on-demand projects.
Heidrick Consulting net revenue of $25.2 million compared to net revenue of $22.4 million in the 2022 second quarter. The Company had 89 Heidrick Consulting consultants at June 30, 2023, compared to 66 at June 30, 2022.
Consolidated salaries and benefits decreased $28.8 million, or 13.9%, to $178.9 million compared to $207.7 million in the 2022 second quarter. Year-over-year, fixed compensation expense increased $18.8 million due to base salaries and payroll taxes, the deferred compensation plan, reorganization, and retirement and benefits, as well as the acquisitions of Atreus and B4Z, partially offset by a decrease in stock compensation. Variable compensation decreased $47.6 million due to lower bonus accruals related to decreased consultant productivity. Salaries and benefits expense was 66.0% of net revenue for the quarter compared to 69.5% in the 2022 second quarter.
General and administrative expenses increased $5.3 million, or 15.1%, to $40.5 million compared to $35.2 million in the 2022 second quarter. The increase was due to intangible amortization and accretion, office occupancy, IT, and taxes and licenses, partially offset by a decrease in business development travel. As a percentage of net revenue, general and administrative expenses were 14.9% for the 2023 second quarter compared to 11.8% in the 2022 second quarter.
The Company's cost of services was $25.3 million, or 9.3% of net revenue for the quarter, compared to $17.4 million, or 5.8% of net revenue in the 2022 second quarter. This related to an increase in the volume of On-Demand Talent projects driven by the acquisition of Atreus.
The Company's research and development expenses were $5.7 million, or 2.1%, of net revenue for the quarter compared to $4.5 million, or 1.5%, of net revenue for the second quarter 2022.
In the 2023 second quarter, the Company recorded a non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $7.2 million associated with the Company's Heidrick Consulting segment. In the 2022 fourth quarter, the Company conducted its most recent annual goodwill impairment evaluation, which indicated that the carrying value of the Heidrick Consulting reporting unit was less than its fair value. During the 2023 second quarter, the Company acquired B4Z and recorded approximately $7.1 million of goodwill in the Heidrick Consulting reporting unit. Due to the inclusion of goodwill in a reporting unit with a pre-existing fair value shortfall, the Company identified a triggering event and performed an interim goodwill impairment evaluation during the 2023 second quarter, which resulted in the impairment of the recently acquired B4Z goodwill.
Including the previously mentioned non-cash impairment charge, operating income was $13.6 million for the quarter compared to $33.9 million in the 2022 second quarter. Operating income margin was 5.0% versus 11.3% in the 2022 second quarter. Excluding the non-cash impairment charge, adjusted operating income in the 2023 second quarter was $20.8 million and adjusted operating margin was 7.7%.
Adjusted EBITDA was $36.4 million compared to $36.8 million in the 2022 second quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 13.4%, compared to 12.3% in the 2022 second quarter. In Executive Search, adjusted EBITDA was $53.9 million compared to $52.3 million in the prior year period. In On-Demand Talent, adjusted EBITDA was $2.6 million versus $0.6 million in the prior year period. In Heidrick Consulting, adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $1.6 million compared to a loss of $0.1 million in the prior year period.
Net income was $9.0 million and diluted earnings per share was $0.44, with an effective tax rate of 46.8%. This compares to net income of $24.1 million and diluted earnings per share of $1.19, with an effective tax rate of 30.9% in the 2022 second quarter. Excluding the non-cash impairment charge recorded in the 2023 second quarter, adjusted net income was $15.0 million and adjusted diluted earnings per share was $0.73, with an adjusted effective tax rate of 37.7%.
Net cash provided by operating activities was $46.9 million, compared to $82.7 million in the 2022 second quarter. Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at June 30, 2023 was $239.0 million compared to $336.6 million at June 30, 2022 and $621.6 million at December 31, 2022. The Company's cash position typically builds throughout the year as employee bonuses are accrued, mostly to be paid out in the first half of the year.
2023 Six Months Results
For the six months ended June 30, 2023, consolidated net revenue was $510.5 million compared to $582.6 million in the first six months of 2022. Excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations, which negatively impacted results by 1.0%, or $6.1 million, consolidated net revenue decreased 11.3%, or $65.9 million, compared to the prior year period.
Executive Search net revenue in the first six months of 2023 decreased 20.0%, or $99.2 million, to $397.3 million from $496.5 million in the first six months of 2022. Excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations, which negatively impacted results by 1.0%, or $5.1 million, net revenue decreased 19.0%, or $94.1 million. Net revenue decreased 21.5% in the Americas (decreased 21.3% on a constant currency basis), decreased 13.7% in Europe (decreased 11.3% on a constant currency basis), and decreased 21.9% in Asia Pacific (decreased 18.0% on a constant currency basis). Only the Social Impact and Industrial practice groups exhibited growth over the prior year. Productivity was $1.9 million for the first six months of 2023 compared to $2.6 million in the first six months of 2022. The average revenue per executive search was $133,000 in the first six months of 2023 compared to $137,000 the same period in 2022, while search confirmations decreased 17.6%.
On-Demand Talent net revenue in the first six months of 2023 was $70.4 million compared to $45.7 million in the same period of 2022. The increase in net revenue was primarily driven by the acquisition of Atreus, as well as an increase in the volume of legacy on-demand projects.
Heidrick Consulting net revenue in the first six months of 2023 increased 6.3%, or $2.5 million, to $42.9 million from $40.4 million in the first six months of 2022. Excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations, which negatively impacted results by 2.0%, or $0.8 million, Heidrick Consulting revenue increased 8.3%, or $3.3 million, compared to the prior year period.
Operating income for the first six months of 2023 was $31.4 million compared to operating income of $64.1 million in the same period of 2022. The operating income margin was 6.1% compared to 11.0% in the first six months of 2022. Excluding the non-cash impairment charge recorded in the 2023 year-to-date period, adjusted operating income was $38.6 million and adjusted operating income margin was 7.6%.
Adjusted EBITDA for the first six months of 2023 was $63.8 million and adjusted EBITDA margin was 12.5%, compared to adjusted EBITDA of $72.5 million and adjusted EBITDA margin of 12.4% for the same period in 2022. In Executive Search, adjusted EBITDA was $102.3 million compared to $104.2 million in the prior year period. In On-Demand Talent, adjusted EBITDA was $1.2 million versus $0.9 million in the prior year period. In Heidrick Consulting, adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $4.3 million compared to a loss of $1.9 million in the prior year period.
Net income for the first six months of 2023 was $24.6 million and diluted earnings per share was $1.19, with an effective tax rate of 38.1%. This compares to net income of $42.6 million and diluted earnings per share of $2.08, with an effective tax rate of 32.2%, in the first six months of 2022. Excluding the restructuring charge recorded in the 2023 year-to-date period, adjusted net income was $30.6 million and adjusted diluted earnings per share was $1.48 with an adjusted effective tax rate of 34.8%.
Dividend
The Board of Directors declared a 2023 second quarter cash dividend of $0.15 per share payable on August 25, 2023, to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 11, 2023.
2023 Third Quarter Outlook
The Company expects 2023 third quarter consolidated net revenue of between $245 million and $265 million, which reflects typical summer seasonality, while acknowledging that continued fluidity in external factors, such as the foreign exchange and interest rate environments, foreign conflicts, inflation and macroeconomic constraints on pricing actions, may impact quarterly results. In addition, this outlook is based on the average currency rates in June 2023 and reflects, among other factors, management's assumptions for the anticipated volume of new Executive Search confirmations, On-Demand Talent projects, and Heidrick Consulting assignments, consultant productivity, consultant retention, and the seasonality of the business along with the current backlog.
Quarterly Webcast and Conference Call
Heidrick & Struggles will host a conference call to review its second quarter results today, July 31, 2023 at 5:00 pm Eastern Time. Participants may access the Company's call and supporting slides through its website at www.heidrick.com or by dialing (888) 440-4091 or (646) 960-0846, conference ID# 6106012. For those unable to participate on the live call, a webcast and copy of the slides will be archived at www.heidrick.com and available for up to 30 days following the investor call.
About Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc.
Heidrick & Struggles (Nasdaq: HSII) is a premier provider of global leadership advisory and on-demand talent solutions, serving the senior-level talent and consulting needs of the world's top organizations. In our role as trusted leadership advisors, we partner with our clients to develop future-ready leaders and organizations, bringing together our services and offerings in executive search, diversity and inclusion, leadership assessment and development, organization and team acceleration, culture shaping and on-demand, independent talent solutions. Heidrick & Struggles pioneered the profession of executive search more than 65 years ago. Today, the firm provides integrated talent and human capital solutions to help our clients change the world, one leadership team at a time. ® www.heidrick.com
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement the financial results presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States ("GAAP"), Heidrick & Struggles presents certain non-GAAP financial measures. A "non-GAAP financial measure" is defined as a numerical measure of a company's financial performance that excludes or includes amounts different than the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP in the statements of comprehensive income, balance sheets or statements of cash flow of the Company.
Non-GAAP financial measures used within this earnings release are adjusted operating income, adjusted operating income margin, adjusted net income, adjusted diluted earnings per share, adjusted effective tax rate, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margin, and consolidated net revenue excluding the impact of exchange rate fluctuations. These measures are presented because management uses this information to monitor and evaluate financial results and trends. Management believes this information is also useful for investors to evaluate the comparability of financial information presented. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP are provided as schedules attached to this release.
Adjusted operating income reflects the exclusion of goodwill impairment.
Adjusted operating income margin refers to adjusted operating income as a percentage of net revenue in the same period.
Adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share reflect the exclusion of goodwill impairment, net of tax.
Adjusted effective tax rate reflects the exclusion of goodwill impairment, net of tax.
Adjusted EBITDA refers to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, intangible amortization, equity-settled stock compensation expense, earnout accretion, earnout obligation adjustments, contingent compensation related to acquisitions, deferred compensation plan income and expense, reorganization costs, impairment charges, restructuring charges, and other non-operating income (expense).
Adjusted EBITDA margin refers to adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of net revenue in the same period.
The Company evaluates its results of operations on both an as reported and a constant currency basis. The constant currency presentation is a non-GAAP financial measure, which excludes the impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. The Company believes providing constant currency information provides valuable supplemental information regarding its results of operations, consistent with how it evaluates its performance. The Company calculates constant currency percentages by converting its financial results in a local currency for a period using the average exchange rate for the prior period to which it is comparing. This calculation may differ from similarly titled measures used by other companies.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including statements regarding guidance for the third quarter of 2023. The forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts, and projections about the industry in which we operate and management's beliefs and assumptions. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "outlook," "projects," "forecasts," "aim" and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, rely on a number of assumptions, and involve certain known and unknown risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict, many of which are beyond our control. Factors that may cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from what is expressed, forecasted, or implied in the forward-looking statements include, among other things, our ability to attract, integrate, develop, manage and retain qualified consultants and senior leaders; our ability to prevent our consultants from taking our clients with them to another firm; our ability to maintain our professional reputation and brand name; our clients' ability to restrict us from recruiting their employees; our heavy reliance on information management systems; risks arising from our implementation of new technology and intellectual property to deliver new products and services to our clients; our dependence on third parties for the execution of certain critical functions; the fact that we face the risk of liability in the services we perform; the fact that data security, data privacy and data protection laws and other evolving regulations and cross-border data transfer restrictions may limit the use of our services and adversely affect our business; any challenges to the classification of our on-demand talent as independent contractors; the increased cybersecurity requirements, vulnerabilities, threats and more sophisticated and targeted cyber-related attacks that could pose a risk to our systems, networks, solutions, services and data; the impacts, direct and indirect, of the COVID-19 pandemic (including the emergence of variant strains) or other highly infectious or contagious disease on our business, our consultants and employees, and the overall economy; the aggressive competition we face; the fact that our net revenue may be affected by adverse economic conditions including inflation, the impact of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations; our ability to access additional credit; social, political, regulatory, legal and economic risks in markets where we operate, including the impact of the ongoing war in Ukraine and the risks of an expansion or escalation of that conflict; unfavorable tax law changes and tax authority rulings; the timing of the establishment or reversal of valuation allowance on deferred tax assets; the fact that we may not be able to align our cost structure with net revenue; any impairment of our goodwill, other intangible assets and other long-lived assets; our ability to execute and integrate future acquisitions; and the fact that we have anti-takeover provisions that could make an acquisition of us difficult and expensive. We caution the reader that the list of factors may not be exhaustive. For more information on these risks, uncertainties and other factors, refer to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, under the heading "Risk Factors" in Item 1A, as updated in Part II of our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Contacts:
Investors & Analysts:
Suzanne Rosenberg, Vice President, Investor Relations
srosenberg@heidrick.com
Media:
Nina Chang, Vice President, Corporate Communications
nchang@heidrick.com
View original content:
SOURCE Heidrick & Struggles International, Inc.
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Aleksandar Kovacevic 2023 Mifel Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open in his most recent tournament (losing to Jordan Thompson), Aleksandar Kovacevic will open the Mifel Open versus Omni Kumar (in the round of 32). Kovacevic currently is +3300 to win it all at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Kovacevic at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Kovacevic's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 11:40 PM ET), Kovacevic will play Kumar.
Kovacevic currently has odds of -350 to win his next matchup versus Kumar. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
Want to bet on Kovacevic? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Kovacevic Stats
- In his last match, Kovacevic came up short 0-6, 1-6 against Thompson in the Round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open.
- Kovacevic is 9-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament victories.
- Kovacevic is 7-9 on hard courts over the past 12 months.
- Kovacevic, over the past 12 months, has played 23 matches across all court types, and 25.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Kovacevic has played 16 matches over the past year, and 25.6 games per match.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Kovacevic has won 76.7% of his games on serve, and 17.0% on return.
- On hard courts over the past year, Kovacevic has been victorious in 17.6% of his return games and 78.6% of his service games.
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This article was written by a human.
That's worth mentioning because it's no longer something you can just assume. Artificial intelligence that can mimic conversation, whether written or spoken, has been in the news a lot this year, delighting some members of the public while worrying educators, politicians, the World Health Organization, and even some of the people developing AI technology.
Misuse of AI is part of what actors and writers are striking about in Hollywood, and the threat of AI is something Hollywood was imagining long before it was real.
In 1968, for instance, the year before humans first set foot on the moon — and a time when astronauts still used pencils and slide rules to calculate re-entry trajectories because their space capsules had less computing power than a digital watch has today — Stanley Kubrick introduced movie audiences to a sentient HAL-9000 computer in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
HAL (for Heuristically Programmed Algorithmic Computer) introduced itself early in the film by saying, "No 9000 computer has ever made a mistake or distorted information. We are all, by any practical definition of the words, foolproof and incapable of error."
'Open the pod bay door, HAL'
So why was HAL acting so strangely? He (it?) was responsible for maintaining all aspects of a months-long space flight, ferrying astronauts to the moons of Jupiter. Programmed to run the mission flawlessly, the computer's behavior had become alarming, and two of the astronauts had decided to shut down some of its functions. Their plan was short-circuited when HAL, lip-reading a conversation they'd managed to keep him from hearing, cast one of them adrift while he was outside the ship repairing an antenna and refused to let the other back on board.
"Open the pod bay door, HAL" became one of the most quoted film lines of the decade when the computer responded, "I'm sorry, Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that. This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardize it."
It's hard to articulate what a genuine shock this was for 1960s movie audiences. There'd been films with, say, robots causing havoc, but they were generally robots doing someone else's bidding. Movie robots, at that point, were about brawn, not brain.
And anyway, malevolent robot stories were precisely the sort of B-movie silliness Kubrick was trying to avoid. So his intelligent machine simply observed (with an unblinking red eye) and, when addressed directly, spoke with a calm, modulated voice, not unlike the one that would be adopted four decades later by Siri and Alexa.
Darwin Among the Machines
Earlier literary notions of "artificial" intelligence — and there were not a lot of them at that point — hadn't really caught the public's imagination. Samuel Butler's 1863 article Darwin Among the Machines, is generally thought to be the origin of this species of writing, and it mostly just notes that while humankind invented machines to assist us — and remember, a really sophisticated machine in 1863 was the steam locomotive — we were increasingly assisting them: tending, fueling, repairing.
Over tens of thousands of years, Butler wondered, might humans not evolve in much the same way Darwin's study of natural selection had just established the rest of the plant and animal kingdoms do, to the point that we would become dependent on our devices?
But even when he incorporated that idea a decade later into a satirical novel called Erewhon, expounding for several chapters on self-replicating machines, Butler barely touched on the notion that those machines would develop consciousness. And neither did the influential 19th-century science fiction writers who followed him. H.G. Wells and Jules Verne invented plenty of unorthodox devices as they sent characters to the center of the Earth, and into space and the recesses of time, without ever considering that those devices might want to do things on their own.
The term "artificial intelligence" wasn't even coined (by American computer scientist John McCarthy) until about a dozen years before Kubrick made his Space Odyssey. But HAL made an impression on the public where scientists had not. Within just a couple of years, movie computers didn't just want spaceship domination; in Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970), they wanted to take over the world.
Malignant machines gone viral
And then this notion of technology-run-wild, ran wild. A high school student played by Matthew Broderick nearly started World War III in WarGames (1983) when he thought he was hacking a computer company's website but accidentally challenged the Pentagon's defense network to a quick game of "global thermonuclear war." The problem, it soon became clear, was that no one told the defense network they were just "playing."
Elsewhere, mechanical men stopped being all-brawn and got a new dispensation to think for themselves, something fiction had granted them before Hollywood got around to it.
In the 1940s, sci-fi novelist Isaac Asimov came up with "Three Laws of Robotics" that would theoretically keep "independent" machines in line. When Asimov's story I, Robot, was turned into a film a half-century or so later, those laws should have reassured Will Smith as he stared down thousands of bots. But he had good reason to be skeptical; he was fighting a robot rebellion.
The Terminator movies effectively put all these themes on steroids — cyborgs in the service of a computerized, sentient, civil-defense network called Skynet, designed to function without any human input. A "Nuclear Fire" and three billion human deaths later, what was left of humanity was engaged in a war against the machines that has so far consumed six films, a TV series, a pair of web series, and innumerable games.
And nuclear blasts weren't necessary to make machine intelligence alarming, a fact cyberpunk-noir established definitively in Blade Runner with its "replicants," and in a Matrix series that reduced all of humanity to a mere power source for machines.
Hollywood's still fighting that vision. Who knows what "The Entity" wants in Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning (presumably we'll find out next year in Part Two), but whatever it is, it won't bode well for humanity.
Hollywood concentrates on exploiting our fears — in the late 20th century, we worried about ceding control to technology. In the 21st century, we worry about losing control of technology.
It seems not to have occurred to Tinseltown that AI might do the things it's actually doing — make social media dangerous, or make undergrad writing courses unteachable, or screw up relationships by auto-completing incorrectly. None of those are terribly cinematic, so Hollywood concentrates on exploiting our fears — in the late 20th century, we worried about ceding control to technology. In the 21st century, we worry about losing control of technology.
Bring on the droids
Have there also been friendlier film visions of AI? Sure. George Lucas came up with lovable droids R2-D2 and C-3PO for Star Wars, and Pixar gave us Wall-E, a bot who was pluckily determined to clean up an entire planet we'd despoiled.
Spike Jonze's drama Her imagined a sentient, Siri-like personal assistant as a digital girlfriend. Star Trek's Data was not just a Next Generation android version of Mr. Spock, but also a sort of emotion-challenged Pinocchio.
And another Pinocchio — this one fashioned to stand the test of time — would have been Stanley Kubrick's own answer to the question he'd posed with HAL in 1968.
Kubrick labored for decades to hone the script for A.I. Artificial Intelligence, then just two years before he died, handed the project off to Steven Spielberg — the story of David, a robot child who has been programmed to love, and who ends up going beyond that programming.
"Until you were born," William Hurt's Professor Hobby told the bionic child he'd modeled on his own son, "robots didn't dream, robots didn't desire unless we told them what to want." The miracle, he went on, was that though David was engineered rather than born, he shared with humans "the ability to chase down our dreams...something no machine has ever done, until you."
That may not have been enough to make David a real boy, but it put a gentle face on what is perhaps our greatest fear about AI – that we are mortal, and it is not.
In the film, David outlives all of humanity, never growing up, never changing. And perhaps because he was played by Haley Joel Osment, or perhaps because Spielberg was calling the shots, or perhaps because the music swelled ... just so — it didn't feel the least bit threatening.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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Published: Jul. 31, 2023 at 4:15 PM EDT|Updated: 16 minutes ago
Second Quarter Highlights
Second quarter 2023 net income attributable to Huntsman of $19 million compared to $228 million in the prior year period; second quarter 2023 diluted earnings per share of $0.11 compared to $1.10 in the prior year period.
Second quarter 2023 adjusted net income attributable to Huntsman of $39 million compared to $250 million in the prior year period; second quarter 2023 adjusted diluted earnings per share of $0.22 compared to $1.21 in the prior year period.
Second quarter 2023 adjusted EBITDA of $156 million compared to $410 million in the prior year period.
Second quarter 2023 net cash provided by operating activities from continuing operations was $40 million. Free cash flow from continuing operations was a use of cash of $11 million for the second quarter 2023 compared to a source of cash of $178 million in the prior year period.
Repurchased approximately 3.8 million shares for approximately $98 million in the second quarter 2023.
THE WOODLANDS, Texas, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Huntsman Corporation (NYSE: HUN) today reported second quarter 2023 results with revenues of $1,596 million, net income attributable to Huntsman of $19 million, adjusted net income attributable to Huntsman of $39 million and adjusted EBITDA of $156 million.
Peter R. Huntsman, Chairman, President, and CEO, commented:
"During the quarter, business activity in each of our core regions remained under pressure, although we did see demand fundamentals in many of our core markets stabilize, albeit at a lower level than the prior year. We continued to drive efficiencies in our cost structure which will ensure we are well positioned to improve profitability once demand returns to a more normalized level. We remain positive on the long-term trends and value we will capture in energy efficiency and lightweighting in the construction, transportation, and industrial markets. Over the past several years we have made a significant effort to reduce leverage and drive capital discipline. The output of this effort is now allowing us to return significant amounts of capital to shareholders during a year which for the chemical industry may end up being just as, if not more, challenging than the pandemic year 2020. Our financial strength is also allowing us to evaluate both organic and in-organic investment opportunities to strengthen our Company for the long-term, however, we will continue to be disciplined with our available capital and protect our investment grade rating."
Segment Analysis for 2Q23 Compared to 2Q22
Polyurethanes
The decrease in revenues in our Polyurethanes segment for the three months ended June 30, 2023 compared to the same period of 2022 was primarily due to lower sales volumes, lower MDI average selling prices and the negative impact of foreign currency exchange rate movements against the U.S dollar. Sales volumes decreased primarily due to lower demand, primarily in the Americas. MDI average selling prices decreased primarily due to less favorable supply and demand dynamics. The decrease in segment adjusted EBITDA was primarily due to lower sales volumes, lower MDI margins, the negative impact of foreign currency exchange rate movements against the U.S. dollar and a gain from an insurance settlement received in the second quarter of 2022, partially offset by higher equity earnings from our minority-owned joint venture in China and cost savings achieved from our cost optimization programs.
Performance Products
The decrease in revenues in our Performance Products segment for the three months ended June 30, 2023 compared to the same period of 2022 was primarily due to lower sales volumes and reduced average selling prices, partially offset by improved sales mix. Sales volumes decreased in all regions primarily due to slowing construction activity, and reduced demand in coatings and adhesives, lubes and other industrial markets. The decrease in segment adjusted EBITDA was primarily due to decreased sales volumes and lower average selling prices.
Advanced Materials
The decrease in revenues in our Advanced Materials segment for the three months ended June 30, 2023 compared to the same period of 2022 was primarily due to lower sales volumes, partially offset by higher average selling prices. Sales volumes decreased primarily due to reduced customer demand in our infrastructure markets and the deselection of lower margin business. Average selling prices increased largely due to improved sales mix. The decrease in segment adjusted EBITDA was primarily due to lower sales volumes.
Corporate, LIFO and other
For the three months ended June 30, 2023, adjusted EBITDA from Corporate and other was a loss of $38 million, which remained the same as a loss of $38 million for the same period of 2022.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
During the three months ended June 30, 2023, our free cash flow from continuing operations was a use of cash of $11 million as compared to a source of cash of $178 million in the same period of 2022. As of June 30, 2023, we had approximately $1.9 billion of combined cash and unused borrowing capacity.
During the three months ended June 30, 2023, we spent $51 million on capital expenditures from continuing operations as compared to $65 million in the same period of 2022. During 2023, we expect to spend between $230 million to $250 million on capital expenditures.
Income Taxes
In the second quarter of 2023, our effective tax rate was 46% and our adjusted effective tax rate was 39%. We expect our 2023 adjusted effective tax rate to be approximately 26% to 29%. We expect our long-term adjusted effective tax rate to be approximately 22% to 24%. Our second quarter 2023 tax expense was negatively impacted by an $8 million non-cash valuation allowance increase.
Earnings Conference Call Information
We will hold a conference call to discuss our second quarter 2023 financial results on Tuesday, August 1, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. ET.
The conference call will be accompanied by presentation slides that will be accessible via the webcast link and Huntsman's investor relations website, www.huntsman.com/investors. Upon conclusion of the call, the webcast replay will be accessible via Huntsman's website.
Upcoming Conferences During the third quarter 2023, a member of management is expected to present at: UBS Chemical Conference on September 6, 2023 Jefferies Industrials Conference on September 7, 2023
A webcast of the presentation, if applicable, along with accompanying materials will be available at www.huntsman.com/investors.
About Huntsman: Huntsman Corporation is a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated and specialty chemicals with 2022 revenues of approximately $8 billion from our continuing operations. Our chemical products number in the thousands and are sold worldwide to manufacturers serving a broad and diverse range of consumer and industrial end markets. We operate more than 60 manufacturing, R&D and operations facilities in approximately 30 countries and employ approximately 7,000 associates within our continuing operations. For more information about Huntsman, please visit the company's website at www.huntsman.com.
Forward-Looking Statements: This press release includes "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. These forward-looking statements include statements concerning our plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events, future revenue or performance, capital expenditures, financing needs, plans or intentions relating to acquisitions, divestitures or strategic transactions, business trends and any other information that is not historical information. When used in this press release, the words "estimates," "expects," "anticipates," "likely," "projects," "outlook," "plans," "intends," "believes," "forecasts," or future or conditional verbs, such as "will," "should," "could" or "may," and variations of such words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, management's examination of historical operating trends and data, are based upon our current expectations and various assumptions and beliefs. In particular, such forward-looking statements are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances and involve risks and uncertainties that may affect the Company's operations, markets, products, prices and other factors as discussed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). Significant risks and uncertainties may relate to, but are not limited to, increased energy costs in Europe, inflation and resulting monetary tightening in the US, geopolitical instability, volatile global economic conditions, cyclical and volatile product markets, disruptions in production at manufacturing facilities, reorganization or restructuring of the Company's operations, including any delay of, or other negative developments affecting the ability to implement cost reductions and manufacturing optimization improvements in the Company's businesses and to realize anticipated cost savings, and other financial, operational, economic, competitive, environmental, political, legal, regulatory and technological factors. Any forward-looking statement should be considered in light of the risks set forth under the caption "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, which may be supplemented by other risks and uncertainties disclosed in any subsequent reports filed or furnished by the Company from time to time. All forward-looking statements apply only as of the date made. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that arise after the date made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
The above press release was provided courtesy of PRNewswire. The views, opinions and statements in the press release are not endorsed by Gray Media Group nor do they necessarily state or reflect those of Gray Media Group, Inc.
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ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia prosecutor is expected to seek a grand jury indictment in the coming weeks in her investigation into efforts by Donald Trump and his Republican allies to overturn the then-president’s 2020 election loss.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis began investigating more than two years ago, shortly after a recording was released of a January 2021 phone call Trump made to Georgia’s secretary of state.
Willis has strongly hinted that any indictment would come between Monday and Aug. 18. One of two grand juries seated July 11 is expected to hear the case.
If Trump is indicted by a Georgia grand jury, it would add to a growing list of legal troubles as he campaigns for president. Trump is set to go to trial in New York in March to face state charges related to hush money payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign. And he has another trial scheduled for May on federal charges related to his handling of classified documents. He has pleaded not guilty in those cases.
The Justice Department is also investigating Trump’s role in trying to halt the certification of 2020 election results in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol. Trump said he’s been told he’s a target of that investigation, which likely has some overlap with the one in Georgia.
An attempt by Trump to derail the Georgia case suffered a setback on Monday when a judge rejected his request to bar Willis from prosecuting him and to toss out the final report of an investigative special grand jury that had been seated to aid the investigation. A similar motion to be heard by a different judge is set for a hearing next week.
Details of the Georgia investigation that have become public have fed speculation that Willis, a Democrat, is building a case under the Georgia Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which would allow her to charge numerous people in a potentially wide-ranging scheme.
Here are six investigative threads Willis and her team have explored:
The Georgia investigation was prompted by the Jan. 2, 2021, phone call Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a fellow Republican. Trump suggested the state’s top elections official could help “find” the votes needed to put him ahead of Democrat Joe Biden in the state.
“All I want to do is this: I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have,” Trump is heard saying on a recording of the call, which was leaked to news outlets. “Because we won the state.”
Trump has insisted he did nothing wrong and has repeatedly said the call was “perfect.”
Trump also called other top state officials in his quest to overturn his 2020 election loss, including Gov. Brian Kemp, then-House Speaker David Ralston, Attorney General Chris Carr and the top investigator in the secretary of state’s office.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, also called Raffensperger shortly after the November election. Raffensperger said at the time that Graham asked whether he had the power to reject certain absentee ballots, which Raffensperger has said he interpreted as a suggestion to toss out legally cast votes.
Graham has denied wrongdoing, saying he just wanted to learn about the signature verification process.
Biden won Georgia by a margin of fewer than 12,000 votes. Just over a month after the election, on Dec. 14, 2020, a group 16 Georgia Democratic electors met in the Senate chamber at the state Capitol to cast the state’s Electoral College votes for him. They each marked paper ballots that were counted and confirmed by a voice roll call.
That day, in a committee meeting room at the Capitol, 16 prominent Georgia Republicans — a lawmaker, activists and party officials — met to sign a certificate falsely stating that Trump had won and declaring themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors. They sent that certificate to the National Archives and the U.S. Senate.
Georgia was one of seven battleground states that Trump lost where Republican fake electors signed and submitted similar certificates. Trump allies in the U.S. House and Senate used those certificates to argue for delaying or blocking the certification of the election during a joint session of Congress.
Prosecutors in Fulton County have said in court filings that they believe Trump associates worked with state Republicans to coordinate and execute the plan.
The multi-state effort was ultimately unsuccessful. Despite public pressure from Trump and his supporters, then-Vice President Mike Pence refused on Jan. 6, 2021, to introduce the unofficial pro-Trump electors. After the attack on the U.S. Capitol put a violent halt to the certification process, lawmakers certified Biden’s win in the early hours of Jan. 7, 2021.
At least eight of the fake electors have since reached immunity deals with Willis’ team. And a judge last summer barred Willis from prosecuting another one, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, because of a conflict of interest.
Republican state lawmakers held several hearings at the Georgia Capitol in December 2020 to examine alleged problems with the November election. During those meetings, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and other Trump allies made unproven claims of widespread election fraud.
They alleged that election workers tallying absentee ballots at State Farm Arena in Atlanta had told outside observers to leave and then pulled out “suitcases” of unlawful ballots and began scanning them. The Trump allies played clips of surveillance video from the arena to support their allegations. State and federal officials investigated and said there was no evidence of election fraud at the site.
Some Trump allies also said thousands of people who were ineligible — including people convicted of felonies, people under the age of 18, people who had voted in another state — had cast votes in Georgia. The secretary of state’s office has debunked those claims.
Two of the election workers seen in the State Farm Arena surveillance video, Ruby Freeman and her daughter Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, said they faced relentless harassment online and in person as a result of the allegations made by Trump and his allies.
Giuliani last week conceded that statements he made about the two election workers were false.
In a bizarre episode detailed by prosecutors in court filings, a woman traveled from Chicago to Georgia and met with Freeman on Jan. 4, 2021. The woman initially said she wanted to help Freeman but then warned that Freeman could go to prison and tried to pressure her into falsely confessing to committing election fraud, prosecutors wrote in court filings last year.
Trump-allied lawyer Sidney Powell and others hired a computer forensics team to copy data and software on election equipment in Coffee County, some 200 miles (322 kilometers) southeast of Atlanta, according to invoices, emails, security video and deposition testimony produced in response to subpoenas in a long-running lawsuit.
The county Republican Party chair at the time — who also served as a fake elector — greeted them when they arrived at the local elections office on Jan. 7, 2021, and some county elections officials were also on hand during the daylong visit. The secretary of state’s office has said this amounted to “alleged unauthorized access” of election equipment and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into it at the secretary of state’s request.
Two other men who have been active in efforts to question the 2020 election results also visited Coffee County later that month and spent hours inside.
U.S. Attorney BJay Pak, the top federal prosecutor in Atlanta, abruptly resigned two days after Trump called Raffensperger and a day after a recording of that call was made public. During that conversation, Trump called Pak a “never-Trumper,” implying that he didn’t support the president.
In December 2020, then-U.S. Attorney General William Barr asked Pak to investigate allegations by Giuliani and other Trump allies of widespread election fraud. Pak, who had been appointed by Trump in 2017, reported back that he had found no evidence of such fraud.
In August 2021, Pak told the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, which was investigating Trump’s post-election actions, that he resigned on Jan. 4, 2021, after learning from Department of Justice officials that Trump did not believe enough was being done to investigate allegations of election fraud and wanted him gone as U.S. attorney.
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Updated July 31, 2023 at 4:09 PM ET
Pee-wee Herman, the comic creation of actor/writer Paul Reubens, would often toss taunts of the schoolyard into his casual conversation. It was one of the character's go-to bits.
"Why don't you take a picture? It'll last longer!"
"That's my name! Don't wear it out!"
And, most iconically,
"I know you are, but what am I?"
Of course, when it came to Pee-wee himself, with his tight gray suit, red bow tie, crew cut, rouged cheekbones and ruby-red lips, "What am I?" was the real question – it was the one he posed merely by existing.
Reubens died Sunday of cancer at the age of 70. He was an actor – but for a long time, he tried to convince the public that Pee-wee was a real person, not a character.
Folks didn't know what to make of Reubens' petulant man-child at first. Created in 1977, while Reubens was a member of the Los Angeles sketch troupe The Groundlings, Pee-wee was part prop comic, part brat and part trickster spirit. There was something fearless in Pee-wee, something unapologetic and brash that took you a second to process. The character was very obviously and intentionally what folks used to call a sissy – but how could a sissy own the stage like he did? Bask in the spotlight like he did? How could a sissy so confidently and explicitly dictate the terms for his audience on how to experience him?
The Pee-wee Herman Show at The Groundlings Theatre soon had LA hipsters lining up around the block for a midnight show that mixed puppets and parody with archival educational films – the precise fuel mixture that powered Reubens' later CBS Saturday morning show, Pee-wee's Playhouse.
It was never Peter Pan, what he was doing. Yes, Pee-wee was a boy who never grew up, but he was more than that — he was one singular adult's remembrance of what it was like being a kid. Specifically, of those parts of childhood we pretend not to see in our own children — the narcissism, the selfishness, the utter lack of basic human empathy. The monstrous bits.
In Pee-wee's Big Adventure, it manifested in his hilariously obsessive drive to recover his stolen bike — a quest which would cause him to trample on the feelings of friends like Amazing Larry (Lou Cutell) and Dottie (E.G. Daily). On Pee-wee's Playhouse, it took the form of gleeful admonitions to his viewers to "scream real loud" whenever anyone said the week's secret word. (Spare a thought for the long-suffering parents who'd hoped that sitting their kids in front of the TV would allow them a moment's peace to finish their coffee.) On 1988's magnificent holiday staple Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special, Reubens zeroed in kids' ravenous greed for presents, turning Pee-wee into a monster who only reluctantly sees the light once guilted into it. (Like Scrooge, he's a lot more fun to hang around with before his last-minute epiphany.)
To watch Pee-wee was to re-experience childhood the way we'd forgotten it actually was – pure, concentrated, distilled to its essence, when riding your bike and playing with your toys and screaming real loud was all it took to fill a day. Pee-wee was a creature of impulse, anarchy and id – which is probably why Reubens' frequent appearances on Late Night with David Letterman helped launch him to stardom.
Reubens' silliness worked on a different frequency than Letterman's – Pee-wee was wilder and far less inhibited than Letterman could ever hope to be, and Letterman knew to play up his own tetchy, aggrieved discomfort at Pee-wee's hijinks for comedic effect. The two men vibrated at opposite ends of the comedic spectrum, but they worked together brilliantly. In those interview segments, which quickly devolved into Pee-wee's signature giggles, you laughed at Reubens' ability to take complete control of the experience, and at Letterman's entirely uncharacteristic willingness to give over the reins.
In the coming days, our social media feeds will fill up with a lot of Pee-wee's greatest hits – Large Marge; "Tequila!"; Jambi the Genie; Chairy; Reubens' extended and entirely improvised death scene in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie; "I'm a loner, Dot. A rebel."; and, of course, "Come on, Simone. Let's talk about your big 'but.'"
Me, though, I'll be putting on the aforementioned Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special, because it will remind me of one of Reubens' most overlooked talents – his ability to sneak an artisanal blend of fey subversiveness into the mainstream. That special injected a defiantly, yet matter-of-fact, queer sensibility into the CBS primetime airwaves of Reagan's America: The Del Rubio Triplets! Zsa Zsa Gabor! Little Richard! Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon! KD Lang! Charo! The LA Men's Chorus dressed up as a Marine choir! And, most indelibly, Grace Jones as green Gumby, drag singing a club mix of "The Little Drummer Boy."
Keep your "I meant to do that." Keep your dancing on the biker bar to "Tequila." The image of Reubens that I'll be holding closest to my heart over the next few days is of him rocking out in the background as Jones sings in the glare of the spotlight.
Because I swear you can see, in just the way he holds his body, the mischievous delight he's taking in what he's unleashing on an unsuspecting public: Grace Jones, ladies and gentlemen, delivered unto your living rooms, pulling up to the bumper of your cozy family holiday special, an entirely singular brand of weirdness served up to you hot and fresh, with a high, unselfconscious giggle.
Jennifer Vanasco contributed to earlier versions of this story.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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Ben Shelton 2023 Citi Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open in his last tournament (losing to Juncheng Shang), Ben Shelton will start the Citi Open versus Shang (in the round of 32). Shelton has +2800 odds to win this tournament at William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Citi Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Shelton at the 2023 Citi Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 7
- Venue: William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center
- Location: Washington, District of Columbia
- Court Surface: Hard
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Shelton's Next Match
Shelton will play Shang in the round of 32 of the Citi Open on Tuesday, August 1 at 7:00 PM ET.
Want to bet on Shelton? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Shelton Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Shelton was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 156-ranked Shang, 4-6, 4-6.
- Through 20 tournaments over the past 12 months, Shelton has gone 12-20 and has yet to win a title.
- In 10 tournaments on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has gone 8-10.
- Over the past year (across all court surfaces), Shelton has played 32 matches and 29.8 games per match.
- Shelton, in 18 matches over the past year on hard courts, has played 30.1 games per match and won 49.3% of them.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Shelton has won 82.1% of his games on serve, and 15.4% on return.
- As far as serve/return winning percentages on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has won 85.2% of his games on serve and 14.8% on return.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump ‘s mounting legal woes are growing more expensive, leading his campaign to request a refund from a supportive super PAC and launch a new legal defense fund to help cover costs.
His political action committee, Save America, is expected to disclose Monday that it spent more than $40 million on legal fees during the first half of the year for costs related to defending the former president, his aides and other allies, according to a person familiar with the filing who spoke on the condition of anonymity before the deadline. The number was first reported by The Washington Post.
At the same time, Trump’s allies are creating a new legal defense fund that will help pay the soaring legal fees as Trump faces dozens of criminal charges stemming from indictments in New York and Florida, with more expected as soon as this week. The Patriot Legal Defense Fund, as it is called, is intended to raise money to defray costs for those “defending against legal actions arising from an individual or group’s participation in the political process,” according to a filing made last month with the IRS. The group will be run by Trump campaign senior advisers Susie Wiles and Michael Glassner.
“The weaponized Department of Justice and the deranged Jack Smith have targeted innocent Americans associated with President Trump,” said Trump spokesman Steven Cheung. “In order to combat these heinous actions by Joe Biden’s cronies and to protect these innocent people from financial ruin and prevent their lives from being completely destroyed, a new legal defense fund will help pay for their legal fees.” The fund was first reported by The New York Times.
Smith is the special counsel leading the federal investigations of Trump. His team has expressed interest in the payment of legal fees for Trump-aligned witnesses in the investigations and has sought information about it, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss ongoing criminal probes.
Trump’s PAC has also requested that his super PAC, MAGA Inc., return some of the money that it transferred to seed the group to help cover costs. It is unclear whether money was actually transferred or how much.
A spokesman for the super PAC did not respond to a request for comment.
Trump launched his PAC, Save America, in the days after the 2020 election, which he lost to President Joe Biden. For weeks, the group bombarded supporters with a nonstop stream of text messages and emails that purported to raise money for an “election defense fund” that would be used to contest the election’s outcome.
But the $170 million that the effort raised in less than a month was not used to contest the election, records show. Instead, it was used to pay down campaign debt and replenish the coffers of the Republican National Committee, with Trump also stockpiling another large chunk for his future political endeavors. Last year, the Justice Department issued a round of grand jury subpoenas that sought information about the political action committee’s fundraising practices.
Since then, Save America has served as a different sort of “defense fund,” covering the legal expenses for Trump operatives, allies and employees who have been ensnared in the Justice Department’s ongoing investigation.
Some of Save America’s money has been used to boost other candidates, though it’s a pittance compared to how much Trump has spent on ballooning legal costs.
As the 2022 midterm elections approached, Trump pledged to back congressional candidates loyal to him. But of the roughly $65 million earmarked by Save America for political spending, less than a third — about $20 million — was used to back midterm candidates through campaign contributions or paid advertising.
“Forty million dollars — I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Paul S. Ryan, a longtime campaign finance attorney in Washington, referring to the sum the group spent on legal fees this year. “There’s no legal issue. It’s really just a question for his donors: Do they want to be funding lawyers?”
___
Colvin reported from New York.
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ARMONK, N.Y., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The IBM (NYSE: IBM) board of directors has elected Michael Miebach to the board, effective October 30, 2023.
Michael Miebach, 55, is the chief executive officer of Mastercard Incorporated and a member of its board of directors. An innovator and technologist, Mr. Miebach has led Mastercard, a global technology company in the payments industry, since January 2021. Previously Mastercard's chief product officer, Mr. Miebach has deep experience in digital transformation, cybersecurity and delivering data-driven insights.
Arvind Krishna, IBM chairman and chief executive officer, said: "We are delighted that Michael Miebach will join the IBM board of directors. Michael is an accomplished technologist and international business leader. His insights and experience will strongly benefit IBM and its shareholders."
Mr. Miebach is a member of the Business Roundtable, the Business Council and the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum. He is a trustee of the United States Council for International Business and also serves on the United States Treasury Advisory Committee on Racial Equity.
Mr. Miebach holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Passau in Germany.
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TONYA MOSLEY, HOST:
This is FRESH AIR. The new podcast "Dreamtown: The Story Of Adelanto" is about a small California desert town that turns to legal cannabis sales to try to revive its small economy. Critic Nick Quah sees it as a worthy addition to a handful of podcasts he calls civic noir, examining small city life, corruption and renewal.
NICK QUAH, BYLINE: It's an image straight out of an old Western or the Bible. A small desert community finds itself on the brink of disaster when a stranger appears with a bold vision for the future. The dream was realized, and for a while, things were good until they weren't. In this case, the desert community is a tiny city called Adelanto, located just north of the greater Los Angeles area. Like so many other places in the United States, Adelanto was hard hit by the 2008 recession, and the city's finances were so dire it almost went bankrupt in 2014. That's when the stranger comes through. His name is John Woodard, but he goes by Bug. And the vision he brings is the dream of a modern gold rush - a legal marijuana economy.
(SOUNDBITE OF PODCAST, "DREAMTOWN: THE STORY OF ADELANTO")
DAVID WEINBERG: Bug's plan was to make Adelanto the first city in California to legalize commercial cannabis cultivation, which, it turns out, is a very difficult and complicated thing to pull off.
BETSY ZYKO: It's hard to overstate how much riskier and more dangerous the cannabis industry is because of the inconsistency between federal and state law.
WEINBERG: But still, Bug persisted. And his idea started to catch on with the rest of the city.
JOHN BUG WOODARD: The wheels are in motion. Ain't nobody getting in the way. I don't care if you're the sheriff. I don't care if you're the governor. I don't care who you are.
QUAH: Such is the setup for a limited audio documentary series called "Dreamtown: The Story Of Adelanto," the fascinating tale of crisis and capital told through the lens of a city's local politics. And just to paint a picture of how local the story is, in his quest to turn Adelanto into a legal weed hub, Bug runs for a seat on the city council and wins, spending only $700 on the effort. Adelanto's bet on weed pays off to some extent. And the city's finances begin to improve. But what starts out as a quirky tale of economic redevelopment quickly transforms into something else - a dense saga of shady real estate deals, zoning disputes and political corruption. Within a few years, federal investigators become a common sight in the city.
"Dreamtown" fits neatly into a growing podcast subgenre that digs into the drama and oddities of city lore. The vibe is a kind of civic noir, exemplified in recent years by podcasts like "California City," which recounts the tale of another false fortune in a desert, "Crooked City," which continues the documentarian Marc Smerling's interest in organized crime making the leap into local government, and "Boomtown," about a small West Texas city's transformation by the oil industry. These shows collectively capture an anxious, melancholic feeling around the fragility of local democracies, constantly vulnerable to forces beyond their control. That melancholia pervades "Dreamtown" as well.
The series is reported and hosted by David Weinberg, a veteran radio journalist. His best work, the nonfiction anthology series "Welcome To LA," is filled with stories about odd characters building colorful lives in and around Southern California. In many ways, "Dreamtown" is a continuation of that project, with its keen interest in the people that make up Adelanto and the way their lives are transformed by the larger shifts around them. Weinberg has a distinct style - quiet, observant, wry. He has a wonderful eye for vivid imagery, which he translates into evocative scenes written for the ear.
(SOUNDBITE OF PODCAST, "DREAMTOWN: THE STORY OF ADELANTO")
WEINBERG: Tim is in his 60s, collared dress shirt and a vape pen in hand as he navigated the poorly paved streets of Adelanto. In the distance are the peaks of the Angeles National Forest. All around us, Joshua trees were sticking up out of the ground. And along the side of the road were bulldozers flattening the land for the foundations of the massive warehouses that would soon be filled with weed.
QUAH: That understated approach serves the material well, given how ornate and bizarre things can get in "Dreamtown." One episode, for example, traces the story of another Adelanto city councilmember, Jermaine Wright, whose time in government ended with a federal prison sentence for taking a bribe to help open a cannabis business while also trying to commit insurance fraud by hiring someone to burn down his own restaurant.
(SOUNDBITE OF PODCAST, "DREAMTOWN: THE STORY OF ADELANTO")
WEINBERG: So Jermaine gave this fake electrician a tour of his restaurant. They set a date for the fire, and Jermaine paid him the money for the job. And it was actually kind of a steal. Apparently, it only costs 1,500 bucks to burn down someone's restaurant, at least, you know, if you're paying an FBI agent to do it. But before the scheduled torching, the FBI showed up to the restaurant with a search warrant. And they interviewed Jermaine, and he confessed.
QUAH: There is often a fable-like quality to "Dreamtown," which speaks to the somewhat archetypal nature of Adelanto's predicament. Across the United States, there are countless other rural cities grappling with some form of the same economic quandaries and ethical temptation. "Dreamtown" might seem like a Coen Brothers-esque caper, but it's fundamentally a story about what a city represents, the kinds of people who feel drawn to fight for its preservation and what can happen when you make a deal with forces you're not quite prepared to grapple with. Whether a fable or cautionary tale, one thing's for sure. It's a deeply American story.
MOSLEY: Nick Quah is a podcast critic for New York Magazine and Vulture. He reviewed "Dreamtown: The Story Of Adelanto," from Crooked Media. Tomorrow on FRESH AIR, award-winning actor Richard E. Grant joins us to talk about his new memoir, "A Pocketful Of Happiness," which chronicles his 35-year marriage to the late acclaimed dialect coach to the stars Joan Washington. I hope you can join us. To keep up with what's going on with the show and to get highlights of our interviews, follow us on Instagram at @NPRFreshAir.
(SOUNDBITE OF TEDDY WILSON'S "MOONGLOW")
MOSLEY: FRESH AIR's executive producer is Danny Miller. Our technical director and engineer is Audrey Bentham. A special thank you to Conor Anderson for engineering this show from WDET in Detroit. Our interviews and reviews are produced and edited by Amy Salit, Phyllis Myers, Sam Briger, Lauren Krenzel, Heidi Saman, Ann Marie Baldonado, Therese Madden, Thea Chaloner, Seth Kelley and Susan Nyakundi. Our digital media producer is Molly Seavy-Nesper. Roberta Shorrock directs the show. For Terry Gross, I'm Tonya Mosley.
(SOUNDBITE OF TEDDY WILSON'S "MOONGLOW") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
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Ernesto Escobedo 2023 Mifel Open Odds
Ernesto Escobedo will begin the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Jason Jung in the round of 32. He was knocked off by Brandon Holt in the qualification round 1 of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC (his previous tournament). Escobedo has +8000 odds to be crowned champion at Cabo Sports Complex.
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Escobedo at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Escobedo's Next Match
In his opener at the Mifel Open, on Tuesday, August 1 (at 9:00 PM ET) in the round of 32, Escobedo will play Jung.
Escobedo currently has odds of -120 to win his next contest against Jung. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
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Escobedo Stats
- Escobedo came up short in his last match, 4-6, 7-6, 2-6 versus Holt in the qualifying round of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on February 25, 2023.
- In five tournaments over the past 12 months, Escobedo is 4-5 and has yet to win a title.
- Escobedo is 4-5 on hard courts over the past year.
- Through nine matches over the past 12 months (across all court surfaces), Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match. He won 49.1% of them.
- In his nine matches on hard courts over the past year, Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match.
- Escobedo has won 19.7% of his return games and 80.6% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- Escobedo has claimed 80.6% of his service games on hard courts and 19.7% of his return games over the past 12 months.
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(WKBN) — August begins with a full moon – and what’s more, it’s a supermoon.
The next full moon will occur at 2:32 p.m. ET Tuesday, Aug. 1. The moon will be below the horizon at that time, so you will have to wait until later in the day to catch the full moon.
Tuesday’s moon is the second of this year’s four “supermoons,” which appear bigger and brighter in the sky due to the distance of the moon from the Earth.
It is also the second of three full moons that will occur during the summer season.
What is the August full moon called?
According to NASA, the August full moon is called the “sturgeon moon,” a name that was published in the 1930s in the Maine Farmer’s Almanac.
According to the publication, the Native American tribe Algonquin gave the August full moon that name because it was easier for them to catch the prehistoric-looking sturgeon fish in larger bodies of water during this time of year.
NASA says another name for the August full moon is the “green corn” moon.
When can you see the Sturgeon supermoon?
The sturgeon moon will be nearly full when it rises Monday evening, July 31, but it will reach full illumination Tuesday afternoon, hitting its peak at 2:32 p.m. ET. However, it will be below the horizon at the time that 100% illumination is achieved.
You can catch a glimpse of the moon rising on Tuesday evening by looking toward the southeast after sunset.
The moon phase Monday evening through Tuesday morning is called the Waxing Gibbous, when the illuminated part of the moon goes from 50.1% to 99.9%.
The moon will still appear nearly full when rising Wednesday, Aug. 2.
What is a supermoon?
NASA defines a supermoon as any full moon occurring around the same time as the moon’s perigee, or closest point of orbit with the Earth. In contrast, an apogee is the point where the moon is farthest from the Earth.
The moon takes about 27 days to orbit the Earth, with its perigee occurring during each 27-day cycle.
NASA says there are roughly three to four supermoons each year, and they usually occur back to back. When the full moon occurs during its perigee, it will appear about 17% bigger and about 30% brighter than when it is at its apogee. To be considered a supermoon, the full moon has to occur when the moon is within at least 90% of its perigee.
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, the moon’s perigree can vary slightly from “month to month and year to year,” meaning the distance from Earth may not be the same each time.
Incidentally, the Farmer’s Almanac stated, this year’s new moon (the opposite of a full moon) on Jan. 21 was at its closest distance to Earth “in nearly 1,000 years (992 to be exact).”
A blue supermoon, one of 2023’s rare celestial occurrences, is coming later this month on Aug. 30. A blue moon occurs when there are two full moons in one month.
The last time two full supermoons graced the sky in the same month was in 2018. It is not expected to happen again until 2037.
This year’s first supermoon was in July. The fourth and last will be in September. The two in August will be closer than either of those.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence (TPAMI) achieves highest impact factor among Computer Society journals
LOS ALAMITOS, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The IEEE Computer Society (CS), the leading global computer science and engineering member community, announced today that its journal IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence (TPAMI) earned the highest 2022 Journal Impact Factor™ (JIF™) of all IEEE CS publications, securing the top spot among artificial intelligence journals.
"Computer science and engineering represent some of the most prominent, promising areas of research today," said Nita Patel, president, IEEE CS. "As the number of papers in our field continues to climb, paper acceptance gets increasingly competitive, and our editors work tirelessly to ensure that only the top papers make their way into our journals. We're thrilled to, once again, hold top impact factor rankings, and we thank all of our volunteers for their commitment to excellence."
Impact factor measures the frequency with which the average article in a publication has been cited in a particular year. The calculation is based on a two-year period and involves dividing the number of times articles were cited by the number of articles that are citable. It offers a key metric to assess the overall strength and industry influence of a particular publication.
Overall, 11 IEEE CS journals now hold the coveted top impact factor ranking in their specialty field. The following four publications join TPAMI to round out the top five highest-ranked IEEE CS journals:
- IEEE Transactions on Affective Computing (TAC)
- IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering (TKDE), a new entrant to IEEE CS' top five journals
- IEEE Transactions on Services Computing (TSC)
- IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing (TMC), a new entrant to IEEE CS' top five journals
In addition, IEEE CS' fully open access publication, IEEE Open Journal of the Computer Society, received its first impact factor in Clarivate's Emerging Sources Citation Index™ (ESCI), which features newly launched, niche, and open access journals publishing high-quality research on a range of topics. This is the first year Clarivate included the multidisciplinary ESCI in its JIF review.
"We're thrilled that IEEE Open Journal of the Computer Society had the opportunity to be recognized this year," said Greg Byrd, IEEE CS VP of Publications. "With the innovative research it brings to the field, it is certain to have a long-standing impact on the computer science and engineering community."
Impact factor applies not only to scientific and engineering journals but to technical magazines as well. Those IEEE CS publications with the highest impact factor rankings include:
"One of the most important things about impact factor rankings is that they point to the most highly researched topics in the field," said Patel. "This year, there's a heavy focus on artificial intelligence, data science, and mobile computing. It will be interesting to watch the evolution of these topics and the advances that arise from papers presented in Computer Society publications."
JIF rankings are released annually in Clarivate's Journal Citation Reports™ (JCR™). These reports evaluate more than 21,500 high-quality academic journals from across more than 250 scientific and research disciplines.
To learn more about IEEE Computer Society journals and the research they offer, visit https://www.computer.org/publications.
About the IEEE Computer Society
Engaging computer engineers, scientists, academia, and industry professionals from all areas of computing, the IEEE Computer Society (CS) sets the standard for the education and engagement that fuels continued global technological advancement. Through conferences, publications, and programs, and by bringing together computer science and engineering leaders at every phase of their career for dialogue, debate, and collaboration, IEEE CS empowers, shapes, and guides the future of not only its members, but the greater industry, enabling new opportunities to better serve our world. Visit computer.org for more information.
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Updated July 31, 2023 at 4:14 PM ET
Judge Steven Boyce sentenced Lori Vallow Daybell to multiple fixed life terms in prison with no possibility of parole on Monday, handing down punishment for murdering two of her children and conspiring to murder a romantic rival.
The judge ordered Vallow Daybell to serve the prison terms consecutively rather than concurrently, saying it is important for her to be punished for each death.
Vallow Daybell, 50, was found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy charges in May, as a jury agreed with prosecutors who said she wanted to eliminate her youngest children as part of a plan to embark on a new life with Chad Daybell, as well as conspiring to murder Daybell's previous wife, Tammy Daybell.
"You chose the most evil and destructive path possible," despite having a wealth of better, less harmful, options, Boyce told Vallow Daybell. He juxtaposed her enjoyment of a honeymoon in Hawaii with her children lying in shallow graves in Idaho.
Her children — Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow — had been "burned, mutilated and dismembered, and buried like animals," Boyce said.
The judge noted the "disgust" he saw on jurors' faces during the trial. The scene was horrific, Boyce said, adding that while law enforcement, jurors and he himself will be haunted by images of the children's bodies, he saw no sign that Vallow Daybell feels any remorse.
The lengthy trial was full of strange and shocking moments. Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell was motivated by arcane religious beliefs about "dark energy" and the "end times," and by her desire to pursue a life with her new husband, Chad Daybell — including conspiring to kill his late wife.
Vallow Daybell says her children and Daybell visit her
For the first time in the trial, Vallow Daybell gave an accounting of her own actions, speaking in court for roughly 8 1/2 minutes. But she insisted she is not guilty of murder and said her victims have visited her in spiritual form and are happy in the afterlife.
"Jesus knows me, and Jesus understands me," Vallow Daybell said, adding that she mourns those who died. But, she added, "Jesus Christ knows that no one was murdered in this case."
Vallow Daybell said she underwent a personal transformation in 2002, when she says she had a near-death experience while giving birth to Tylee.
"I had access to Heaven, and the spirit world," she said, adding that while she was tempted to remain in the afterlife, she returned to her body. "Since then, I have had many communications from people now living in Heaven, including my children" and other relatives, she said.
"I know for a fact that my children are happy and busy in the spirit world," Vallow Daybell told the court, reading from a statement. She added that her "friend" Tammy Daybell is "also very happy and extremely busy."
Vallow Daybell said, "Tylee has visited me. She is happy ... and free now," adding that her son also visited her as "an adult spirit" who was very tall and is thriving in the afterlife.
When she finished her remarks, the judge asked Vallow Daybell if she was "fully satisfied" with the representation her attorneys had given her during the trial. She said she was.
Defense asked for concurrent sentences
Judge Boyce handed down his sentence after hearing five victim impact statements from relatives of Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow, Vallow Daybell's children, whose bodies were found in 2020; from relatives of Tammy Daybell, the previous wife of Chad Daybell — who also faces charges in all three deaths.
Later, Thomas urged Boyce to impose on his client a 20-year fixed term with an "indeterminate" life sentence, with her prison time set to run concurrently.
Prosecutor Rob Wood asked for the maximum sentence — several fixed life terms without the possibility of parole — saying Vallow Daybell had betrayed her children's trust in a horrific manner.
The children's bodies were found in 2020
A jury found Vallow Daybell guilty of killing her two youngest children, Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow. Tylee was nearly 17 when she and JJ, 7, were last seen alive in September 2019. The children's bodies were found in June 2020, buried on property in Rexburg, Idaho, owned by Chad Daybell.
Even before the remains were found, Vallow Daybell was charged with felony desertion of a child and obstruction. Prosecutors said she didn't report her children missing so she could keep collecting benefit payments.
Vallow Daybell was also found guilty of conspiring to murder Tammy Daybell, Chad's then-wife, who was found dead in her home in October 2019 — less than one month before he and Vallow got married in Hawaii. He is Vallow Daybell's fifth husband.
'Zombie' beliefs arose during trial
In court documents, Vallow Daybell's close friend Melanie Gibb described hearing her say that Tylee had become a zombie — a concept Vallow Daybell had picked up from Daybell.
Gibb said she heard Vallow Daybell call Tylee a zombie after Tylee had refused to babysit JJ — to which Tylee replied, "Not me, mom," according to a police affidavit. Gibb said Vallow Daybell later concluded that JJ had also become a zombie.
Prosecutors also said Daybell and Lori Vallow Daybell portrayed themselves as religious figures called "James and Elaina." And they purported to be able to "rate" people, detecting whether they might be under the thrall of an evil spirit's dark energy.
Tammy Daybell's family speaks out
In a victim impact statement, Samantha Gwilliam, Tammy Daybell's sister, said her family has been "ripped apart," thrust into grief, suspicion and sadness by Tammy's unexpected death at 49. It deepened, she said, when the family learned Chad Daybell was remarrying just weeks later, in a Hawaii ceremony with Lori Vallow.
The more she learned about Vallow, Gwilliam said, she found only "lies" — from Vallow Daybell's claim that her most recent husband had died of a heart attack to her saying she and Chad would be "empty nesters," with no young children.
It was only when Tammy Daybell was disinterred and an autopsy was performed, Gwilliam said, that the family began to "get some answers and some truth, after so many lies." That truth, she added, was that Tammy Daybell was both an obstacle for Vallow Daybell and a way to profit from her death, through an insurance policy.
Weeping in court, Gwilliam described how her family's relationships with Chad and Tammy Daybell's children has become strained. She also read a statement from Tammy's father, recounting the toll Vallow Daybell's actions took on his wife, who died earlier this year.
At one point, Gwilliam compared her sister, a librarian and educator, to Vallow Daybell.
"Because of the choices you made, my family lost a beloved mother, sister, aunt and daughter. She is irreplaceable," she said. "She was 1,000 times the woman you will ever dream of being."
Defense team says Vallow Daybell is 'misunderstood'
"I think Lori Daybell is probably the most hated person in America right now," said Bonneville County Public Defender John Thomas, who is one of Vallow Daybell's attorneys.
But, he said, she is a "very misunderstood person" who is truly "about love" and has been defined by complicated circumstances.
He asked the judge to use his sentence to impart a sense of "hope" that would both punish Vallow Daybell and encourage her to become a model inmate and grow as a person and become "a better version of Lori Daybell."
Thomas urged Boyce to impose on his client a 20-year fixed term with an "indeterminate" life sentence and have terms running concurrently, making her eligible for parole when she is in her 70s.
The case depicted a love affair that turned deadly
Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell's relationship was entwined in a deadly criminal conspiracy they sought to justify with fantastical beliefs. Rather than simply starting a new life together after they met in October 2018, the prosecution said, the couple plotted to kill their closest relatives and benefit from their deaths through insurance payouts and Social Security benefits.
Vallow Daybell's defense attorney, James Archibald, has said his client was in the thrall of a man she sees as a messiah and her eternal soulmate. He has also argued that the prosecution has produced little direct evidence to tie Vallow Daybell to her children's deaths.
Other criminal cases are still pending
Chad Daybell is expected to undergo his own murder trial for the same three deaths in the spring of 2024.
Other criminal cases are also pending for Vallow Daybell in Arizona, where she previously lived.
She's under indictment there on conspiracy murder charges for allegedly arranging for one of her brothers to shoot and kill her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, in July 2019. That brother, Alex Cox, died in December 2019, of what was determined to be natural causes. She's also accused of conspiring with Alex to murder her niece's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux, who was shot at in 2019 but who survived.
Those speaking at Wednesday's proceedings in Idaho included Kay Woodcock — the sister of Charles Vallow and grandmother of JJ — who recounted JJ's short life and described precious moments she shared with him and his sister, Tylee.
"This all began with greed," Woodcock said of their deaths, adding that if Lori had simply called her to ask, she would have willingly given her $1 million — the amount of a life insurance policy covering Charles Vallow — if it could have avoided the tragedies that unfolded.
Woodcock asked the judge to ensure that Vallow Daybell never breathes free air again, saying she is "a danger to society" who is beyond rehabilitation.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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John Isner 2023 Mifel Open Odds
John Isner, off a loss in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open (to Dominik Koepfer) in his previous tournament, will open the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Rinky Hijikata in the round of 32. Isner's odds are +1400 to win this event at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Isner at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Isner's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 10:20 PM ET), Isner will meet Hijikata.
Isner is currently listed at -160 to win his next contest against Hijikata. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
John Isner Grand Slam Odds
- US Open odds to win: +12500
- Mifel Open odds to win: +1400
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Isner Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Isner was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 88-ranked Koepfer, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7.
- Isner is 12-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament titles.
- Isner is 9-10 on hard courts over the past year.
- Isner, over the past year, has played 26 matches across all court surfaces, and 29.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Isner has played 19 matches over the past year, and 28.3 games per match.
- Isner has won 11.0% of his return games and 88.1% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- On hard courts over the past year, Isner has been victorious in 10.3% of his return games and 89.8% of his service games.
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Let’s get building
Building sandcastles is the quintessential beach activity for kids of all ages and a cherished pastime for many adults. Kids run back and forth from the water to the beach, gathering their beach toys and dumping buckets of sand. It’s fun to watch the little ones attempt their masterpiece, but nothing’s better than them asking for help building the ultimate sandcastle.
Most adults have years of experience building sandcastles with a realistic tower and maybe even a moat. These skills honed from your own childhood and the right supplies are sure to impress the kids in your household today.
Shop this article: Hape Beach Essential Sand Toy Set, Matty’s Toy Stop 16.5″ Wooden Mini Sand Shovels and Top Race Collapsible Bucket.
Design your masterpiece
If you have a bit of a drive to get to the beach, start designing your sandcastle. Ask everyone about their favorite part of a castle and try to incorporate each element. Figure out if it will be a single structure or multiple buildings. Does everyone have their own job, or is everyone helping with all the components? Once you iron out the details, you can get started as soon as you arrive.
Find the perfect location
There’s nothing worse than a wave knocking down your nearly-finished sandcastle, so be sure to pick the perfect location. Find somewhere far enough away from the waves but close enough that you’re not transporting water too far. Also, keep the weather in mind. If it’s too hot and sunny, set up a beach tent or beach umbrella to avoid sunburns.
Create the foundation
The foundation, or base, of your sandcastle is the most crucial component since it supports the entire structure. To build a solid foundation, build up a mound of sand as tall as you want your castle. The key is to ensure your sand is saturated with water and that it’s tightly packed. So, add sand, dump water, pack it down and repeat until you reach your desired height.
Start from the top
Now it’s time to start carving out your basic structure with a plastic knife or putty knife. The key to this step is to start from the top since the sand will fall on everything below. A paintbrush makes a great tool if sand falls on a tight area. Also, carve away the sand in thin layers. You can always take away more sand, but it’s hard to add.
Add details
Once you have the main structure, start adding details such as stairs, a tower roof, windows or a brick pattern. During this final step, opt for smaller tools such as a tiny paintbrush or the thinnest putty knife.
Products you need to build next-level sandcastles
Hape Beach Essential Sand Toy Set
This set includes a smoother tool, a shaper tool and a digging paw. All pieces use high-quality plastic free of bisphenol A, polyvinyl chloride and phthalates. With an included mesh carrying bag, it’s a breeze to carry to the beach and clean up after a day of building.
Sold by Amazon
Matty’s Toy Stop 16.5″ Wooden Mini Sand Shovels
Sand is the most important part of a sandcastle, and these shovels help you gather more sand faster. It has four shovels in unique colors, so there’s no fighting over sharing. The 16.5-inch length is perfect for the beach, and the wooden handle is durable enough to handle big building jobs.
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Kids can’t haul huge buckets of water back and forth. These half-gallon pails are perfect for letting the little one enjoy the sandcastle building. They are collapsible and foldable into three unique sizes or to about 1 inch thick for storage. They’re also dishwasher-safe.
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Building sandcastles is about having fun and getting dirty, and this hand digger is the perfect way for kids to enjoy themselves. The deep scoop is great for digging deep holes or transporting water and is usable by kids as young as 1 year old. It’s made of child-safe materials and a nontoxic finish.
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If you’ve ever seen a professional sandcastle competition, you’ve probably noticed an array of supplies. This includes a paintbrush, which is a versatile and ideal tool for brushing off extra sand or adding a smooth finish to your castle. This set comes in five sizes to tackle any job.
Sold by Amazon
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PHILADELPHIA, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Livent Corporation (NYSE: LTHM) today published its 2022 Sustainability Report, with the theme Reimagining Possibilities. The report provides updates on the company's progress against its 2030 and 2040 sustainability goals, includes new disclosures and reaffirms Livent's commitment to responsible production and expansion.
Paul Graves, president and chief executive officer of Livent, commented: "We believe the lithium industry will play an increasingly important role in the clean energy transition towards a more sustainable, low-carbon future. Our 2022 Sustainability Report demonstrates how Livent is reimagining what's possible for producing more of the lithium the world needs while continuing to lead our industry forward in corporate social responsibility, environmental stewardship and transparency."
Report Highlights:
- Initial global Scope 3 screening of Livent's Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and first disclosures on global air pollutants
- Completion of ISO-compliant Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) for all of Livent's major lithium chemical products, ahead of the original 2025 target
- Achievement of Livent's 2030 Waste Disposed intensity reduction target, ahead of schedule
- Summary of recent water and biodiversity studies conducted at the Salar del Hombre Muerto in Argentina
- Updates on other key collaborations and initiatives to support a low-carbon future, minimize environmental impacts, expand local community engagement and development efforts, protect human rights, and build a more engaged, diverse and inclusive workforce
To view Livent's 2022 Sustainability Report, visit livent.com/sustainability. The report will be made available in multiple languages.
Key ESG metrics in the report were reviewed and assured by ERM Certification and Verification Services (ERM CVS).
About Livent
For nearly eight decades, Livent has partnered with its customers to safely and sustainably use lithium to power the world. Livent is one of only a small number of companies with the capability, reputation, and know-how to produce high-quality finished lithium compounds that are helping meet the growing demand for lithium. The Company has one of the broadest product portfolios in the industry, powering demand for green energy, modern mobility, the mobile economy, and specialized innovations, including light alloys and lubricants. Livent has a combined workforce of approximately 1,350 full-time, part-time, temporary, and contract employees and operates manufacturing sites in the United States, England, China and Argentina. For more information, visit Livent.com.
Livent Forward-Looking Statements
Statement under the Safe Harbor Provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements, which are based on management's current views and assumptions regarding future events, future business conditions and the outlook for the company based on currently available information. In some cases, you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as "may," "might," "will," "will continue to," "will likely result," "is on track," "should," "expect," "expects," "intends," "plans," "anticipates," "believe," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "potential," "continue," "could," "forecast," "future," "is confident that," or "projects," the negative of these terms and other comparable terminology. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from any results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by any forward-looking statement. These factors include, among other things, the risk factors and other cautionary statements included within Livent's 2022 Form 10-K filed with the SEC as well as other SEC filings and public communications. Livent cautions readers not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by the above cautionary statement. Livent undertakes no obligation, and specifically disclaims any duty, to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances arising after the date on which they were made, except as otherwise required by law.
The Company's investor relations website, located at https://ir.livent.com, should be considered as a recognized channel of distribution, and the Company may periodically post important information to the website for investors, including information that the Company may wish to disclose publicly for purposes of complying with federal securities laws.
Media contact: Juan Carlos Cruz +1.215.299.6725
juan.carlos.cruz@livent.com
Investor contact: Daniel Rosen +1.215.299.6208
daniel.rosen@livent.com
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Astros vs. Guardians Predictions & Picks: Odds, Moneyline, Spread - July 31
Monday's game features the Houston Astros (59-47) and the Cleveland Guardians (53-53) squaring off at Minute Maid Park in what should be a close matchup, with a projected 5-3 victory for the Astros according to our computer prediction. First pitch is at 8:10 PM ET on July 31.
The Astros will give the nod to J.P. France (6-3, 2.87 ERA), who is eyeing win No. 7 on the season, and the Guardians will counter with Noah Syndergaard (1-4, 7.16 ERA).
Astros vs. Guardians Game Info & Odds
- When: Monday, July 31, 2023 at 8:10 PM ET
- Where: Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas
- How to Watch on TV: SportsNet SW
- Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo!
Bet on this matchup with BetMGM Sportsbook and use bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
Astros vs. Guardians Score Prediction
Our pick for this contest is Astros 5, Guardians 4.
Total Prediction for Astros vs. Guardians
- Total Prediction: Under 9 runs
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Read More About This Game
Astros Performance Insights
- The Astros have played as the favorite in eight of their past 10 games and have gone 5-3 in those contests.
- In its last 10 games with a total, Houston and its opponents are 5-5-0 when it comes to hitting the over.
- In their last game with a spread, the Astros failed to cover.
- This season, the Astros have been favored 69 times and won 40, or 58%, of those games.
- Houston has entered 30 games this season favored by -175 or more and is 20-10 in those contests.
- Bookmakers have implied with the moneyline set for this matchup that the Astros have a 63.6% chance to win.
- Houston has scored the 11th-most runs in the majors this season with 506 (4.8 per game).
- The Astros have the fourth-ranked team ERA across all league pitching staffs (3.82).
Put your picks to the test and bet on with BetMGM Sportsbook. Use bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
Astros Schedule
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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Hiking sunglasses
If you’re gearing up for some hiking this season, one thing you may not have considered is your sunglasses. As a vital and delicate part of your body, your eyes should be protected when out in the elements. Eyewear can make all the difference, and finding the right pair of sunglasses depends on the type of hiking you do and where you plan to do it.
Rough terrain, harsh climates, and glare from intense sun rays can significantly impact your vision. Plus, sunglasses should fit like a glove to avoid sliding down your nose — that’s never fun! Above all, comfort and reliability are essential.
Shop this article: Oakley Men’s FLAK 2.0 XL Sunglasses, Maui Jim Women’s Starfish Cat-Eye Sunglasses and Julbo Explorer 2.0 Mountaineering Glacier Sunglasses
Hiking sunglasses considerations
To find your hiking sunglasses match, ask yourself about the kind of hiking you’ll most likely be doing and what you value most. Are you a long-distance day hiker? A trail runner? Will you be dealing with snow? Are style and budget priorities?
With this in mind, consider the following factors that go into finding your next best pair of sunglasses for hiking. In no particular order, here’s a checklist of things to consider before making a purchase.
Hiking sunglasses weight
If you’re going on full-day hikes, you might notice a heavy pair of glasses on your face after a while. Choosing something lightweight but durable is key.
Hiking sunglasses comfort
For the same reason as the weight factor, you’ll want frames that are comfortable and fit your face right when you’re wearing them all day long. Behind your ears and on the bridge of your nose are vital spots to pay attention to.
Frame quality and construction
You need a robust and durable frame that can withstand wear and tear when you’re out in the wilderness. Look for metal frames or those made of newer materials like strong plastics and nylon alloys.
Lens quality and material
As with frames, your sunglasses’ lens quality is super important. Make sure your lenses are anti-scratch. Lenses come in all sorts of materials that offer different degrees of resistance to scratches and other impacts.
Polarized lenses
To avoid protection from direct sun rays and the glare from their reflection on snow or water, you’ll want to look for lenses that are polarized.
Hiking sunglasses UV protection
It’s pretty common knowledge that the sun’s UV rays are harmful and make it difficult to see what’s in front of you. If you’re hiking for more than a couple of hours, you’ll need UV protection on your eyes.
Hiking sunglasses price
Everyone has a budget. But, a cheap pair of fashion glasses won’t get you far on the trails, and you might be missing certain features before too long. You’re better off investing in a high-quality pair that will last for the long haul.
Hiking sunglasses brands
If you buy from a reputable, well-established and reliable brand of sunglasses, you’re sure to get a higher quality product. Ask around, read reviews and think about your own experience with a brand before pulling the trigger.
Hiking sunglasses styles
Some of us let style dictate our apparel purchases, and nothing says we must sacrifice function for it. Hiking sunglasses come in plenty of styles to choose from, so you won’t need to worry about compromising your taste.
Value adds
Some hiking sunglasses come with extra components that redirect sweat away from your eyes or guard your eyes against small bits of dirt and dust that you often find on trails.
Now that you know what features are important to you in hiking sunglasses, it’s time to shop! Here are our top picks for the best pairs, wherever your outdoor adventures take you.
Best sunglasses for hiking
Oakley Men’s FLAK 2.0 XL Sunglasses
You’ll see more clearly and sharply with these Oakley shades, featuring High Definition Optics that eliminates distortion. Comfortable, lightweight and durable, the lenses are optically aligned for the best fit and experience.
Sold by Amazon
Maui Jim Peahi Wrap Sunglasses
This scratch-resistant polarized Maui Jim sunglasses come with a UV protection coating. The neutral grey lenses enhance colors and are glare-free and light-reducing – perfect in direct and bright sunlight.
Sold by Amazon
Julbo Explorer 2.0 Mountaineering Glacier Sunglasses
These wide-coverage sunglasses from Julbo are perfect for the outdoors. Ergonomic, comfortable, ventilated, slim and stylish, they come with removable shields for sunlight protection, 360-degree adjustable temples and high-protection lenses — all designed for extreme conditions on or off the mountain.
Sold by Amazon
Oakley Gascan OO9014 Sunglasses For Men
These non-polarized, mirror-coated lenses are best for easier trails at lower elevations in mild conditions. They bring colors to life, so you can fully enjoy the world around you. The included accessory leash and cleaning kits are nice touches.
Sold by Amazon
Maui Jim Women’s Starfish Cat-Eye Sunglasses
Maui Jim’s Starfish polarized sunglasses stylishly and comfortably protect you from glare and UV rays while enhancing the colors and vibrancy of the great outdoors. Lightweight yet durable, these sunglasses come with skinny, neutral grey and scratch-resistant glass lenses that reduce light.
Sold by Amazon
Ray-Ban Outdoorsman Craft Aviator Sunglasses
If you’re a fan of the old-school aviator sunglass style, you’ll love this hiking version from Ray-Ban. Made with a metal frame and polarized crystal lenses that are prescription-ready, these shades offer UV protection and come with a case.
Sold by Amazon
Costa Del Mar Men’s Blackfin Sunglasses
If you’re looking for quality, durable sunglasses for hiking, this comfortable and lightweight pair from Costa has you covered. Their blue-mirrored polarized, scratch-resistant polycarbonate lenses are ideal for bright sunlight and reflection off the water. They’re UV-protected, too.
Sold by Amazon
Maui Jim Haleakala Wrap Sunglasses
Bring your hiking experience up a notch with the stylish Haleakala polarized sunglasses from Maui Jim. The glare-free lenses come with a UV protection coating and enhance the colors around you. Durable, lightweight and resistant to shatters and scratches, these comfortable shades are perfect for the trail.
Sold by Amazon
Oakley Men’s Twoface Sunglasses
Offering total UV protection, these light and comfy Oakley shades are made with a stress-resistant frame that lasts and resists deforming or shifting over time. The three-point lens fit means lenses are aligned in place. It comes with a handy micro bag for cleaning and storing.
Sold by Amazon
Native Eyewear Catamount Sunglasses
Native’s Catamount shades are perfect for the trails, with their polarized polycarbonate brown lenses that impeccably contrast detail. Your eyes will stay protected from harsh UV rays and glare from the sun. These glasses are super lightweight and shatter and scratch-resistant, too.
Sold by Amazon
Oakley Women’s Lowkey Round Sunglasses
These cute, round frames for women offer complete UV protection. Their lightweight, polarized plutonite lenses give maximum contrast, comfort and impact protection. You can choose from numerous frame and lens colors to stand out on the trails!
Sold by Amazon
Costa Del Mar Men’s Rincon Rectangular Sunglasses
If you’re a hiker with a simple and elegant style, this pair’s for you. The Rincon glasses feature comfort, clear optics and durability in their thin six-layer, scratch-resistant polarized lenses.
Sold by Amazon
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https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/camping-outdoors-br/gear-br/best-hiking-sunglasses/
| 2023-07-31T20:31:46
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Jackpocket Crowns its First $100K Winner in Massachusetts, Partnership With Circle K Offers a New, Convenient Way to Play the Lottery
BOSTON, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Jackpocket, America's #1 lottery app*, launched in Massachusetts in partnership with Circle K, one of the largest convenience store brands in the United States.
Yesterday, a Jackpocket customer ordered a $100,000 winning lottery ticket for the daily "Mass Cash" drawing using the app.
"We are excited that our partnership with Circle K landed our first $100K winner in the Bay State, cementing Jackpocket's presence in Massachusetts," said Peter Sullivan, CEO of Jackpocket. "Jackpocket's mission is to make the lottery more accessible and convenient to play. As Tuesday's Mega Millions crosses the $1 billion mark, it's easier than ever to play your favorite games from anywhere in Massachusetts."
To celebrate the new partnership, Jackpocket is offering lottery fans across the state their first lottery ticket for free on the app. New players will receive a $2 lottery ticket by entering the code HEYMASS at checkout. Lottery fans can play Powerball and Mega Millions—currently over $1.05B—as well as local favorites MassCash (the game responsible for the $100K winning ticket), Megabucks Doubler, Lucky for Life, and The Numbers Game.
"We're proud to partner with Jackpocket in Massachusetts and make this fun and convenient experience available to every lottery player across the state," said Melissa Lessard, the head of North American marketing at Circle K. "At Circle K, we are always looking for ways to make life a little easier for our customers and providing the opportunity for customers to order official state lottery tickets with just the tap of a button through the Jackpocket app is yet another example of that commitment."
Massachusetts is now the 17th state available for lottery play on the Jackpocket app. Jackpocket is iCAP certified for best practices in player protection, backed by the expertise of the National Council on Problem Gambling. To ensure player safety, Jackpocket offers consumer protections such as daily deposit and spend limits, self-exclusion, and in-app access to responsible gambling resources.
*According to data from AppFollow
*Must be 18 or older to play. Jackpocket is not affiliated with and is not an agent of the Massachusetts State Lottery. Please visit jackpocket.com/tos for full terms of service. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-327-5050.
Are You Our Next BIG Winner? Visit play.jackpocket.com or download Jackpocket for iOS and Android and get in the game. New players can receive a $2 lottery ticket by entering the code HEYMASS at checkout.
About Jackpocket
Jackpocket is on a mission to create a more convenient, fun, and responsible way to take part in the lottery. The first licensed third-party lottery courier app in the United States, Jackpocket provides an easy, secure way to order official state lottery tickets. Jackpocket is currently available in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington D.C., and West Virginia, and is expanding to many new markets. Download the app on iOS and Android or participate via desktop. Follow along on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About Circle K and Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.
Couche-Tard is a global leader in convenience and mobility, operating in 25 countries and territories, with more than 14,400 stores, of which approximately 11,000 offer road transportation fuel. With its well-known Couche-Tard and Circle K banners, it is one of the largest independent convenience store operators in the United States and it is a leader in the convenience store industry and road transportation fuel retail in Canada, Scandinavia, the Baltics, as well as in Ireland. It also has an important presence in Poland and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. Approximately 128,000 people are employed throughout its network.
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SOURCE Jackpocket
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/massachusetts-lottery-fans-can-now-play-record-105b-mega-millions-their-phone/
| 2023-07-31T20:31:47
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Tech Veteran Brings Nearly Three Decades of Experience to Help Drive Growth for Leading Fast-Casual Mexican Restaurant
SAN DIEGO, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Modern Restaurant Concepts ("MRC"), a leading fast-casual restaurant platform comprised of the QDOBA and Modern Market Eatery brands, announced that Prashant Budhale has joined the company as Chief Technology Officer. Budhale brings more than 28 years of experience in technology leadership to MRC, and as CTO, will lead all technology across MRC brands.
"We are excited for Prashant to join the MRC team," said John Cywinski, CEO of Modern Restaurant Concepts. "I view technology as a foundational enabler of all that we do in the restaurant business, from a guest, team member, and corporate enterprise perspective. Prashant will lead our strategy to drive technology as a powerful brand differentiator, and he will be a terrific collaborator with our existing leadership team as well as our franchise partners moving forward."
"I'm excited about QDOBA's history of strong same store sales growth, potential for net unit growth, and the ability for technology to make a positive impact to both guest and team member experiences," Budhale said. "I'm also very encouraged by John's vision and Butterfly Equity's commitment to the growth of brands within MRC portfolio."
Prior to joining Modern Restaurant Concepts, Budhale served as Head of Technology for SONIC Drive-In, part of the Inspire Brands portfolio. At SONIC, he was responsible for the vision, development, and implementation of all technology initiatives across the 3,550 unit, $6B brand. Prior to SONIC, Prashant was Senior Director for Pizza Hut, part of YUM! Brands, where he led retail technology. Earlier in his career, Prashant worked as a software development consultant with IBM, Allstate, Oracle, Capgemini, and Fujitsu America.
QDOBA is a fast casual Mexican restaurant with over 750 locations in the U.S. and Canada. Committed to delivering flavor to people's lives, QDOBA uses ingredients prepared in-house, by hand, and fresh throughout the day, to create delicious menu options. Guests can experience QDOBA's delicious flavors by enjoying one of its signature menu options that are chef-crafted for convenience and ease or by customizing their burritos, tacos, burrito bowls, salads, quesadillas, and nachos to fit their personal tastes. For five years running, QDOBA has been voted the "Best Fast Casual Restaurant" as part of the USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice Awards. Discover more at www.QDOBA.com or on the QDOBA app.
For more information on the company, please visit www.QDOBA.com or follow the brand on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok.
About Modern Restaurant Concepts
Modern Restaurant Concepts is one of the largest fast casual restaurant platforms in North America with nearly 800 units across two brands, QDOBA and Modern Market Eatery. The system operates corporate-owned and franchised units across nearly every U.S. state as well as Canada and Puerto Rico. Modern Restaurant Concepts is owned by Butterfly Equity, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm specializing in the food sector, with more than $10 billion of equity capital in companies ranging from growth-stage to Fortune 500 enterprises.
QDOBA is a fast casual Mexican restaurant with over 750 locations in the U.S. and Canada. Committed to delivering flavor to people's lives, QDOBA uses ingredients prepared in-house, by hand, and fresh throughout the day, to create delicious menu options. Guests can experience QDOBA's delicious flavors by enjoying one of its signature menu options that are chef-crafted for convenience and ease or by customizing their burritos, tacos, burrito bowls, salads, quesadillas, and nachos to fit their personal tastes. For five years running, QDOBA has been voted the "Best Fast Casual Restaurant" as part of the USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice Awards. Discover more at www.QDOBA.com or on the QDOBA app.
Modern Market Eatery is a food forward, sustainable fast casual restaurant concept that operates in Colorado, Texas, Arizona, and Indiana. Delivering the freshness and flavors of the market in a modern dining format and environment, Modern Market Eatery's menu of protein-centric bowls, garden fresh salads, toasted sandwiches and brick-oven pizzas redefine what it means to eat well at a reasonable price. For additional information about Modern Market Eatery, please visit www.modernmarket.com.
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SOURCE QDOBA
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/modern-restaurant-concepts-announces-appointment-prashant-budhale-chief-technology-officer/
| 2023-07-31T20:31:53
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A new school year is stressful but shopping for it shouldn’t be
The long summer break is a great time for kids to get their minds off the coming school year. But whether they stayed home or went to summer camp, there comes a time when you must start to plan ahead.
While they might be more concerned about a new wardrobe, parents know that they won’t pass the new year with just a bright smile. They’re going to need supplies, and it might seem like a daunting task if you don’t know where to start. Take the unnecessary stress out of back-to-school shopping by getting a supply kit packed with everything they’ll need.
Shop this article: Moda West 52-Piece Back to School Supply Kit for K-12, School Supply Boxes 32-Piece Back To School Supply Box Grades K-5 and School Supply Bundle Pack for High School, Middle School or College
Essential ingredients for a successful start
Being thoroughly prepared is an excellent way to start a new grade. Of course, different grades need different items in their kits, but some universal objects are great from kindergarten to senior high.
For basic note-taking and studying, it’s essential to have a few pens, a pencil, an eraser and a ruler. Some paperclips, file dividers or a pencil sharpener will also come in handy. All these items need to be stored somewhere, and a sturdy pencil case is the best for that.
To nail art projects or presentations, a couple of Sharpies, colored highlighters, scissors and a glue stick will do wonders. But naturally, you can’t expect your child to walk around school carrying their art supplies and pencil case by hand. Put everything into a sturdy backpack or shoulder bag, ensuring that it is big enough for their textbooks, too.
Age-appropriate supply kits
Generally, back-to-school supply kits are made up of items used by kindergarten, elementary or middle school students. But if you want to put your own kit together, you must ensure that the items are age-appropriate.
For example, for younger students, you should avoid sharp scissors in favor of blunt, safety scissors. High school students probably won’t use a glue stick but might prefer a contact adhesive for paper or cardboard. You’ll also get strange looks if you throw in a box of crayons, so rather include some durable highlighters or markers.
Don’t forget to review your kid’s recommended items for the upcoming year. You might be covering the essentials with a supply kit, but there could be other objects that they need, such as a protractor, a sturdy lunch box, different colored pens or a stapler.
Best back-to-school supply kits
Moda West 52-Piece Back to School Supply Kit for K-12
This massive selection of 52 pieces comes pre-packaged and has everything a child needs. It includes notebooks, folders, pens and pencils, highlighters, an eraser and a clear pencil case. For art projects, it includes a 5-inch scissor, two glue sticks and an 8-inch ruler.
Sold by Amazon
Trail Maker 20-Piece School Supplies for K-12
Suitable for all grades, this supply kit includes a spiral notebook, a pocket folder, a ruler, three ballpoint pens and two pencils. You can store everything in the canvas pencil case. While it doesn’t include scissors, there is a glue stick and crayons for projects.
Sold by Amazon
Trail Maker 45-Piece School Essentials
This 45-piece bulk pack of school supplies is perfect for students up to elementary school. In addition to the two spiral notebooks and four pocket folders, the supply kit includes several pens, pencils, highlighters and two glue sticks. There is also a box of crayons, a ruler and scissors.
Sold by Amazon
School Supply Boxes 32-Piece Back To School Supply Box Grades K-5
Perfect for elementary school students, this supply box comes with a clear plastic pencil case, 12 colored pencils and a 10-pack of regular pencils. For creative projects, there is a 10-pack of Crayola markers, a 24-pack of Crayola crayons, glue sticks and scissors.
Sold by Amazon
Moda West 17-Inch Backpacks with 52-Piece School Supply Kit
If there are a lot of kids in the neighborhood or the family, this bundle is an excellent choice. The kit includes eight 17-inch backpacks, each with its own 52-piece school supplies. This comprises two notebooks, several pens and pencils, highlighters and pocket folders.
Sold by Amazon
Bundles Galore Mega Back to School Supply Kit Bundle
This bundle is perfect for all grades and includes everything a student might need. The more than 90 pieces include 10 pocket folders, five notebooks, four glue sticks, several pens and pencils and five Sharpie chisel tip highlighters. And since returning to school is tough, it includes a 2-inch stress ball.
Sold by Amazon
Sharpie Expo Paper Mate Back 2 School Essentials 37-Piece Kit
Back to school is made easy with this bundle from Sharpie. The 37-piece kit includes a host of items for late-night studying, such as six mechanical pencils, six regular lead pencils, two fine-point Sharpie markers, and five highlighters. There are also two erasers, two glue sticks and a ruler.
Sold by Amazon
School Supply Bundle Pack for High School, Middle School or College
This bundle includes a ring binder, two spiral notebooks, a pack of dividers, five mechanical pencils and index cards. Perfect for middle school students through college.
Sold by Amazon
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Charlie Fripp writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing, and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers.
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https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/education-br/homeschooling-br/8-school-supply-kits-that-make-back-to-school-shopping-easy/
| 2023-07-31T20:31:53
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2025 Cruises and Cruisetours from Alaska's Leading Cruise Line
on Sale August 3
Family Favorite Caribbean Princess to Sail Alaska for First Time
SANTA CLARITA, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Princess Cruises has unveiled its 2025 Alaska cruise and cruisetours season, featuring three captivating roundtrip itineraries and an exclusive new National Parks Cruisetour. These remarkable offerings are available for booking starting August 3.
New Adventures and Extended Journeys Await, including a Departure from LA:
New for 2025 from the cruise line that brings the most guests to Alaska every year is a 22-day roundtrip voyage sailing from San Francisco on Ruby Princess that coincides with the Summer Solstice, and a 17-day roundtrip cruise from Seattle on Grand Princess featuring three days of scenic glacier viewing. For guests seeking to sail from Southern California, a new 16-day roundtrip Inside Passage voyage from Los Angeles on Grand Princess offers a convenient and affordable option.
National Parks Cruisetour
Following its debut in 2024, the National Parks Cruisetour returns in 2025 with a 15-night adventure to five of Alaska's most breathtaking parks. Guests will have the opportunity to explore Glacier Bay, Denali, Wrangell-St. Elias, Kenai Fjords National Parks, and Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park in Skagway. Unique to Princess, this experience combines a seven-day Voyage of the Glaciers cruise, scenic rail travel, and multiple days on land, including stays at four Princess-owned wilderness lodges.
"As the market leader in Alaska, we're excited to offer guests even more exciting ways to see the natural beauty of Alaska with itineraries in 2025 that serve up new adventures and extended journeys that first-time guests and repeat visitors are going to find intriguing," said John Padgett, Princess Cruises president. "We're also making it easier for guests to access an Alaska cruise by bringing back a roundtrip option out of Los Angeles, which also make it more affordable for millions within that drive market."
Caribbean Princess to Debut in Alaska in 2025
In 2025, seven Princess ships will sail to Alaska, including Caribbean Princess for the first time. In addition, the number of Princess homeports offering Alaska voyages expands to five with the addition of Los Angeles, with the season featuring 21 cruise destinations and four glacier-viewing experiences, highlighted by 88 visits to Glacier Bay National Park, taking more guests to this spectacular national park than any other cruise line.
With 155 total departures on 18 unique itineraries ranging in length from 4 to 22 days, cruise and cruisetour choices include:
Cruises – Seven Ships, Five Homeports
- NEW! Ultimate Alaska Solstice with Glacier Bay National Park: 22-day roundtrip from San Francisco on Ruby Princess – departs June 6, 2025
- NEW! Ultimate Alaska with Glacier Bay National Park: 17-day roundtrip from Seattle on Grand Princess – departs May 6, 2025
- Inside Passage with Glacier Bay National Park: 16-day roundtrip from Los Angeles on Grand Princess visiting Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay National Park, Sitka, Icy Strait Point, Ketchikan and Victoria, B.C. – departs August 30, 2025
- Voyage of the Glaciers: This top-rated seven-day itinerary features Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, and two glacier-viewing experiences at Glacier Bay National Park and Hubbard Glacier or College Fjord. Caribbean Princess, Coral Princess, and Sapphire Princess offer weekly northbound and southbound cruises from Vancouver, B.C. to Anchorage (Whittier) and vice versa. Guests can combine select seven-day voyages for an amazing 14-day Voyage of the Glaciers Grand Adventure – operates May 10 to September 13, 2025.
- Inside Passage: Princess' signature seven-day roundtrip sailings from Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., as well as 11-day roundtrip departures from San Francisco and Vancouver that include four ports of call and a day of glacier viewing. Many Inside Passage cruises include Glacier Bay National Park. Discovery Princess and Royal Princess sail from Seattle weekly, May 4 – September 21, 2025. Grand Princess offers weekly cruises from Vancouver, B.C., May 27 – August 19, 2025. Ruby Princess sails 11-day cruises roundtrip from San Francisco May 4 – September 13, 2025.
- Alaska Samplers: Three itineraries of four to five days offer shorter voyages for guests looking for a quick getaway. Discovery Princess, Royal Princess and Grand Princess operate four-day, roundtrip voyages between Vancouver, B.C. to Seattle with a stop in Ketchikan – departing April 30, May 13 and May 23, 2025. Caribbean Princess sails a four-day, roundtrip cruise from Vancouver, B.C., with a visit to Ketchikan departing September 13, 2025, and a five-day roundtrip cruise from Vancouver, B.C., with stops in Sitka and Ketchikan sailing May 5, 2025.
Cruisetours
- More than 26 cruisetour options give guests variety of choice with four styles of travel including Denali Explorer tours, On Your Own options, Connoisseur Deluxe Escorted and Off the Beaten Path.
- The exclusive Direct-to-the-Wilderness rail service ensures a seamless transition between the ship in Whittier and the Denali area on the same day.
Award-Winning North to Alaska Program
Princess' award-winning North to Alaska program enriches the onboard and onshore experience with local lumberjacks, Iditarod champions, and storytellers sharing their Alaska experiences and insights. Other offerings include Wild for Alaska seafood menus, a variety of shore excursions, Puppies in the Piazza to meet sled-dog puppies, Junior Ranger program for youth, and authentic commentary by Glacier Bay Park Rangers and Naturalists.
Visit www.princess.com/alaska for more details on the 2025 Alaska cruises and cruisetours season from Princess Cruises.
Additional information about Princess Cruises is available through a professional travel advisor, by calling 1-800-Princess (1-800-774-6237) or by visiting www.princess.com.
About Princess Cruises
Princess Cruises is The Love Boat, the world's most iconic cruise brand that delivers dream vacations to millions of guests every year in the most sought-after destinations on the largest ships that offer elite service personalization and simplicity customary of small, yacht-class ships. Well-appointed staterooms, world class dining, grand performances, award-winning casinos and entertainment, luxurious spas, imaginative experiences and boundless activities blend with exclusive Princess MedallionClass service to create meaningful connections and unforgettable moments in the most incredible settings in the world - the Caribbean, Alaska, Panama Canal, Mexican Riviera, Europe, South America, Australia/New Zealand, the South Pacific, Hawaii, Asia, Canada/New England, Antarctica, and World Cruises. The company is part of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE:CCL; NYSE:CUK).
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/national-parks-cruisetour-longer-adventures-new-itineraries-highlight-princess-cruises-2025-alaska-season/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:00
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Smart back-to-school shopping strategies
With inflation still rising, it is vital to have a shopping strategy mapped out to purchase back-to-school supplies this year. Especially for your high schooler, because they need more items. And those items tend to carry a higher price tag.
Buying school supplies, however, is a little different than shopping for other items. In most cases, you will have several lists created by each of your student’s teachers. Some items may be very specific, such as the exact model of a TI calculator, while others may be generic, such as a three-ring binder.
Getting the correct supplies at the best price requires time and planning. This guide will help you make smart purchasing decisions. It covers basic back-to-school shopping strategies and lists 12 products that will help prepare your kid for high school.
Shop this article: Hydro Flask Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottle, JanSport Cool Student Backpack and Texas Instruments TI-84 Plus CE
What school supplies does a high school student need?
While it is essential that you first consider the lists that your student’s teachers provide, there are a few general categories for you to consider.
Essentials
These are the items that your student will use every day. You will find most of these on your student’s supply lists that they get from their teachers. They will include pens, pencils, erasers, markers, notebook paper, binders, composition books and more.
Organizational supplies
Organizational supplies are anything your student uses to organize, hold or transport the items they use every day. These products may include a pencil case, a backpack, an assignment book, a calendar or binder dividers.
Tech and tools
This category includes anything your student requires to complete their assignments or to solve a problem they might run into during the day, such as a torn notebook sheet. It can be a specific calculator, a tablet, a compass, a ruler, a protractor, hole reinforcements, tape or even white out.
Study supplies
If your child wants to spend a little extra time learning, you’ll need items to help them study. These could be post-it notes, page markers, index cards and highlighters.
Clothing
High school students are still growing. What fit last year might not fit this year. You may need comfortable shoes, casual clothing, clothing that displays school spirit, athletic wear for PE, sneakers, jackets, coats, specific gear for co-curricular activities and more.
Accessories
One category that students and parents may forget is the accessories that are essential to getting through each day. These will vary from student to student but may include a water bottle, a lunch bag, a case for glasses, contacts, combination locks for lockers, charging devices, towels, shower supplies for after PE, medications, an EpiPen and more.
Tips for back-to-school shopping
Strategy is the key when it comes time for back-to-school shopping. These tips can help you get everything you need for that first day.
Shop early
Even if the country wasn’t being plagued with supply chain issues, back-to-school products typically become unavailable by the end of summer. Do your shopping early so that your student has everything they need to start the school year off right.
Use school lists
Teachers make classroom lists for a reason: these are the items your student will need to succeed in the subject. The teacher’s supplies list is your starting point. Get those essentials first.
Don’t forget items that aren’t on the list
Classroom lists don’t always include products that will make your student’s life easier. After you check off all the items from their teachers’ lists, ensure you get the personal items they need daily.
Consider what you already have
If you have more than one student, the older child may already have what your younger child needs. Before buying a new item, check the items you already have at home.
Spend less on clothing
Clothing is important, but so is that expensive calculator. If it comes down to getting a $200 pair of sneaks or a $100 calculator, remember that the calculator will last longer.
Purchase quality items
School supplies need to be rugged. Notebooks are used daily, tossed in a backpack, thrown in a locker and mistreated. If you have a choice between getting a cheap budget item from a dollar store and paying a little more for a quality name-brand item, it is usually worth spending a little more on an item that will last the entire school year or longer.
Pay attention to sales
Back-to-school sales are a great way to get people to spend money on a specific retailer. Many stores will have deep discounts on a couple of key items that get you to their site. Take advantage of these sales, but consider if the other items that the retailer has on sale are worth it. If not, wait till the next sale or purchase from a different retailer to get the best deal.
It is also a good idea to download and install retailer apps, so you can track specific items and know when the best time to buy is.
Consider environmentally kind products
While this might not help you save money, it will help you save the earth. Always consider products that have been or can be recycled and purchased from companies with environmentally friendly manufacturing and business practices.
Budget-friendly products for your high schooler
Hydro Flask Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottle
Hydration is essential to learning. It helps your student focus and feel revitalized. Sending your high schooler off for the day with 32 ounces of water in this vacuum-insulated option will help them stay hydrated throughout the day. Hydro Flask water bottles have a leakproof lid and a lifetime guarantee.
Sold by Amazon
JanSport Cool Student Backpack
Your high schooler needs to bring many items to and from school each day. A well-constructed backpack is the ideal tool to carry all of these. JanSport’s Cool Student Backpack is durable, washable and has many color options. It is designed with ergonomic shoulder straps and zippered compartments for organization and comes with a lifetime guarantee.
Sold by Amazon
Five Star Reinforced College Ruled Filler Paper
Reinforced notebook paper is a game-changer in the life of a student. This pack of 100 sheets of notebook paper is reinforced around the holes to resist tearing. It will prevent lost schoolwork and help keep all of your student’s pages organized.
Sold by Amazon
Gildan Heavy Blend Unisex Hooded Sweatshirt
A hoodie is essential school wear. This affordable offering from Gildan is made of 50% cotton and 50% polyester. It features a zipper closure and anti-pilling air jet yarn. The ribbed cuffs and waistband have spandex to help provide a more secure fit.
Sold by Amazon
Adidas Squad Insulated Lunch Bag
Teenagers need to refuel throughout the long day. Bringing lunch from home lets your student choose what they want to eat while saving you money. This durable lunch bag can keep their food at the perfect temperature and prevent it from getting broken or squished in transit.
Sold by Amazon
Texas Instruments TI-84 Plus CE
Graphing calculators are required by high school science and math teachers. Texas Instruments make a quality product that can accompany your teenager throughout their entire high school career, and possibly into college. This popular model has a 10-digit LCD display and 12 software applications. The graphic functions can handle polar, sequence, cobweb plot, zoom, parametric plot, histogram, scatter plot, and more.
Sold by Amazon
Belkin Boost Charge Wireless Charging Pad
Between classes, activities and part-time jobs, your high schooler may have a longer workday than you. To get through that day, they need a fully charged phone. Belkin is a trusted name in charging technology. This portable wireless charging pad is compatible with newer Android smartphones and iPhones.
Sold by Amazon
Oxford Color Coded Ruled Index Cards
Flash cards are a classic tool used for studying and improving memory. These cards are lined to allow for neatness, while the color-coded bar at the top lets the student organize the cards by subject or category.
Sold by Amazon
Prismacolor Premier Col-Erase Colored Pencils
A student can still use colored pencils at the high school level. Not only are they great for art class and doodling, but a student can use them for marking maps in history class, creating diagrams in science class and more.
Sold by Amazon
This set contains 10 essential tools often needed for geometry and drawing classes. Besides the typical items, such as a ruler and a protractor, you get a lettering guide, a pencil sharpener and more. The compass and divider have a short point for safety, and the set comes with a sturdy tin for organization.
Sold by Amazon
Avery Flexi-View 1-Inch 3-Ring View Binder
Avery’s flex binder has a clear window in the front, which is a handy place to store a class syllabus. It can hold 175 sheets of paper and has a flexible spine. The durable polypropylene cover means that you can use this binder over multiple school years.
Sold by Amazon
C-Line Top-Load Sheet Protector
Sheet protectors keep your student’s reference material unwrinkled and stain-free. The 50 standard-thickness polypropylene protectors are sealed on three sides. They are designed so students can add and remove materials while the protector remains secured in the binder.
Sold by Amazon
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Allen Foster writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/education-br/homeschooling-br/back-to-school-on-a-budget-these-12-products-will-have-your-kid-ready-for-high-school/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:00
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https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/education-br/homeschooling-br/back-to-school-on-a-budget-these-12-products-will-have-your-kid-ready-for-high-school/
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Animal Shelters, Rescue Groups, and Happy Adopters, Nationally and Internationally, Encouraged to Celebrate the Role Adopted Dogs Play in Our Lives
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Tuesday, August 1st is DOGust 1ST ®– the official birthday for all rescue dogs – and North Shore Animal League America is encouraging animal lovers around the country and globe to join them in celebrating the incredible meaning our adopted animals add to our lives.
Since the actual dates of birth for most rescued dogs are unknown, Animal League America created DOGust 1st to celebrate rescue dogs (those adopted and those awaiting loving homes.) Since 2008, these "Mutt-i-grees" have had this day designated to honor the incredible impact they make on our lives.
"This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate rescue dogs and the invaluable role they play in our lives, while raising awareness about the importance of rescue and adoption," said Joanne Yohannan, Senior Vice President, Operations, North Shore Animal League America.
In honor of DOGust 1st, North Shore Animal League America, and many of their shelter partners across the country, will be participating in DOGust 1st festivities throughout the week (August 1 – 7.) By encouraging adoption specials, birthday themed activities, and local media opportunities, even more rescue dogs are expected to find loving, responsible homes.
To find an adoptable pet at a shelter or rescue group in your area go to www.animalleague.org.
To find a participating DOGust 1st group near you visit www.animalleague.org/dogust1st.
For video highlights of DOGust 1st, visit: DOGUST 1ST ASSETS
Photo & Video Credit: North Shore Animal League America
MEDIA CONTACT:
KATHLEEN LYNN
Senior Director of Communications
Cell: (516) 528-7878
Email: KathleenL@animalleague.org
#DOGust1st #GetYourRescueOn
About NORTH SHORE ANIMAL LEAGUE AMERICA
Animal League America has saved more than 1.1 million lives. As the world's largest no-kill rescue and adoption organization, we understand that a rescue isn't complete until each animal is placed into a loving home. Our innovative programs provide education to reduce animal cruelty and advance standards in animal welfare. We reach across the country to rescue animals from overcrowded shelters, unwanted litters, commercial breeding facilities, natural disasters and other emergencies and find them permanent, loving homes. www.animalleague.org
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE North Shore Animal League America
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/north-shore-animal-league-america-leads-worldwide-celebration-dogust-1st-official-birthday-all-rescue-dogs/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:07
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/north-shore-animal-league-america-leads-worldwide-celebration-dogust-1st-official-birthday-all-rescue-dogs/
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Comparing the iRobot Roomba j7+ and s9+ models
Roomba is probably the first name that comes to mind when you think about robot vacuums — and for good reason. iRobot’s line of vacuums, around for more than 20 years, has certainly paved the way with innovative, intelligent designs. The Roomba j7+ and Roomba s9+ are the brand’s two most premium models, offering plenty of advanced features to make cleaning a snap, so choosing between the two robots isn’t easy.
In the BestReviews Testing Lab, we found that, while they are roughly the same size, have similar mapping abilities and both feature a convenient self-emptying base, the j7+ and s9+ differ in a few key areas. The j7+ offers superior obstacle avoidance, while the s9+ features significantly stronger suction power and more thorough corner and edge cleaning.
Ultimately, the j7+ is the best choice for pet owners who want a vacuum with above-average suction power that can avoid obstacles around the house, including pet waste. But if you want the most powerful robot vacuum to take care of nearly all the vacuuming in your home, look no further than the s9+.
Roomba j7+ vs. Roomba s9+ specs
The specs for the j7+ and s9+ are similar. However, some key difference between the two can affect their performance on hardwood and carpeting and in corners.
Roomba j7+ specs
Testing team checks the effectiveness of the Roomba j7+ as it navigates around furniture.
Product specifications
Battery life: 97 minutes | Dimensions: 13.3” L x 13.3” W x 3.4” H | Dustbin capacity: 0.4 L | Weight: 7.49 lb | Mapping: Yes | Self-emptying: Yes | Voice commands: Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri | Scheduling: Yes
The j7+ is a full inch wider than the s9+ and other Roomba models, but its profile is a tiny bit lower, which may allow it to fit beneath more furniture. With a battery that lasted nearly 100 minutes in our testing, it falls right in the middle of the pack with other robot vacuums. And while its dustbin is 100 milliliters smaller than the s9+’s, it is self-emptying, which means you don’t have to worry about it stopping in the middle of cleaning. If its bin is full, the j7+ automatically returns to its base to empty itself.
Like the s9+ and other advanced robot vacuums, the j7+ uses smart mapping and camera-based navigation to learn your home. It can identify specific rooms and zones, so you can send the robot to clean a certain area. It can even learn objects in your home and clean around furniture. It also supports Keep-Out Zones if there are areas in your home where you don’t want the robot to clean.
Released two years after the s9+, which came out in 2019, the j7+ is compatible with home assistants like Alexa and Siri, so you can use voice commands to control its cleaning. That makes it easy to clean messes as they happen because you can ask the j7+ to clean under your kitchen table when the kids get crumbs on the floor or vacuum the living room where your pets have been playing. Additionally, you can schedule regular vacuuming with the iRobot Home app. You can choose the day and time the j7+ vacuums and customize its cleaning preferences to ensure your floors are as pristine as possible.
Roomba s9+ specs
The testing team determines the battery life of the Roomba s9+.
Product specifications
Battery life: 107 minutes | Dimensions: 12.25” L x 12.25” W x 3.5” H | Dustbin capacity: 0.5 L | Weight: 8.15 lb | Mapping: Yes | Self-emptying: Yes | Voice commands: Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri | Scheduling: Yes
What stands out immediately about the s9+ is its unique D-shape design, which allows it to reach into corners far better than the average circular robot vacuum. Among the heavier options at 8.15 pounds, it has a medium-sized dustbin, but it’s self-emptying like the j7+, so it won’t stop in the middle of cleaning when it’s full. It also has a fairly long battery life, running for over 100 minutes on a single charge during our testing. If you want to empty the bin manually, it releases from the robot’s top and comes out easily. The bin itself opens from the bottom, too, so all of the debris inside falls out without any shaking.
Like the j7+, the s9+ creates smart maps of your home to learn rooms, zones and objects. That allows you to vacuum specific rooms or around certain furniture. For example, you can send the robot out to clean in front of the kitchen counter. It also allows you to create Keep-Out Zones to prevent the s9+ from cleaning in a certain area, such as where you keep your pet’s bowls.
You can use voice commands to control the s9+ via a home assistant, such as Alexa or Google Assistant. For more regular cleaning, you can use the iRobot Home app to create a cleaning schedule. Each scheduled cleaning session lets you select a day and time, as well as cleaning preferences, like the number of passes and suction power.
Suction comparison
The Roomba j7+ and s9+ are both advanced models, offering strong suction. However, the s9+ stands out for its superior power. While the j7+ has 10 times the suction power as the Roomba 600 series, the s9+ provides 40 times the suction for truly impressive performance on all types of flooring.
This top-notch suction power comes at a price, though — the s9+ is noticeably noisier than other robot vacuums, including the j7+. The j7+ tops out at about 64 decibels, while the s9+ can hit more than 74 decibels at maximum power.
Carpet comparison
Both the Roomba j7+ and s9+ performed well on carpeting. In fact, they were two of the top-performing models among those we tested. However, the s9+ did have the edge, offering suction power that came as close to a standard vacuum cleaner as any of the Roombas we tested.
On medium-pile carpet, the s9+ removed coarse kosher salt, cereal and kitty litter without leaving noticeable debris behind. When it missed a few particles of salt and kitty litter, it captured the remaining debris on its second pass. It pulled pet hair from the carpet without a single strand left behind, too. On low-pile area rugs and runners, we also found that it picked up all the debris in its path on these surfaces without any particles left behind.
During testing, the j7+ successfully handled most debris on medium-pile carpeting, but it wasn’t as impressive as the s9+. It missed several particles of kosher salt and crushed a piece of cereal into the carpet. However, it removed nearly all the remaining cereal crumbs when it did a second pass. It captured nearly all the kitty litter we placed in its path except a single piece and cleaned 100% of the pet hair in a single pass. Like the s9+, the j7+ handled debris on low-pile area rugs and runners with even greater success, so we didn’t observe any debris when it was done cleaning.
Hardwood comparison
The Roomba j7+ and s9+ offered even better suction on hardwood during testing. However, they both occasionally encountered the same problem that many robot vacuums do on hard flooring: Because the surface is usually smooth and slick, it’s easy for the robot to blow some particles of larger debris out of its path. Both the j7+ and s9+ did this in some cases, but the s9+ did it less frequently because of its superior suction power.
Both models cleaned pet hair from hardwood without any issues. The s9+ removed all the coarse kosher salt we placed in its path except for a granule or two, while the j7+ left behind just a few particles. Both successfully captured cereal on hardwood, though they did blow a couple of pieces out of their path. The s9+ picked up these pieces from the edge of the room, while the j7+ didn’t. We also found that both had success removing kitty litter from hardwood, but it took more than one pass to capture all of the particles.
Navigation comparison
The j7+ and s9+ both use a camera to aid their navigation. However, the j7+ has a front-facing camera, while the s9+ has a top-mounted camera. The j7+’s navigation sensor is also located at the front of the robot. Why does this matter? The placement of the cameras and sensors plays a significant role in how well they can navigate a space.
In particular, the front-facing camera and sensor mean the j7+ has obstacle avoidance, allowing it to move around objects without running over or bumping into them. In fact, iRobot is so confident in the j7’s ability to avoid obstacles that it’s backed by P.O.O.P., or the Pet Owner Official Promise, which affirms that you can count on the j7+ to avoid pet accidents and waste, or iRobot will replace your robot for free.
During our testing, the j7+ did an excellent job avoiding items in its path. We placed a handbag, a shoe and a stuffed pet toy in its way, and in all three cases, the robot seemed to sense the object and swerve around it.
On the other hand, the s9+ wasn’t as adept at avoiding items. It ran right over a book we placed in its path and bumped into a stuffed pet toy before moving around it. When we set a shoe in its path, it first tried to travel over it but then stopped and backed up to move around it.
When we stood in front of each robot, their reactions were also different. The j7+ pivoted away before touching us, while the s9+ lightly tapped our foot before moving away.
The advanced obstacle avoidance not only makes the j7+ an ideal model for a home with pets but also an excellent fit for a cluttered home. If you have children who leave toys scattered around, it can clean around the items without getting stuck. You might have less luck with the s9+.
Features comparison
Both the j7+ and s9+ have rubber brush rolls designed to loosen dirt and deal with hair more successfully than traditional bristle brushes. These rubber brushes are flexible, making them less likely to get tangled with hair. However, the s9+ features slightly wider brushes, which allow it to clean more efficiently than the j7+. During our testing, we were impressed by how quickly it worked — it cleaned 240 square feet in just 37 minutes. On the other hand, the j7+ needed 55 minutes to clean 260 square feet.
While the j7+ features the classic round shape that most robot vacuums have, the s9+ has a D-shaped frame — and this makes a big difference. Our testing found that the s9+’s flat edge allowed it to clean more thoroughly along walls. We placed kosher salt in corners with carpeting and hardwood, and it removed nearly all of the particles in a single pass on both surfaces. On the other hand, when we tested the j7+ in a carpeted corner, it only removed about three-quarters of the salt, leaving a noticeable line behind. It removed most of the salt on hardwood but blew several pieces away from the corner without picking them up.
Both the j7+ and s9+ come with a Clean Base that allows for self-emptying. However, the bases aren’t the same size. While they are roughly the same width, the s9+’s base is 19 inches tall, just over 3 inches taller than the j7+’s 15.8-inch tall base. We didn’t have trouble finding a spot for the s9+ in our testing area, but the j7+ can likely squeeze into more locations. Both bases can hold up to 60 days’ worth of dirt, and the j7+ even has a space in the top to hold an extra dirt-disposal bag.
If you don’t necessarily need a self-emptying robot, you can opt for non-emptying models of j7+ and s9+ that cost considerably less. The j7 and s9 are the same vacuums as the Plus models but don’t come with a Clean Base.
Cleaning and maintenance
The j7+ and s9+ require similar cleaning and maintenance to keep them running at peak performance. Even though the models are self-emptying, it’s a good idea to manually empty the dustbin once every week or so to remove any debris that the Clean Base didn’t remove. You can also rinse the bin with warm water, but let it dry thoroughly before returning it to the robot.
You also need to empty the Clean Base when you get a notification from the iRobot app that its bag is full. The bags are disposable, so you can toss a full one in the trash and replace it.
The area that requires the most care for these models is the brush roll since hair and other debris can accumulate around them. You can easily pop out the brushes by pressing the tab on the robot’s underside. When we cleaned these vacuums during testing, we found we could remove hair and other debris with just our fingers. You can also wipe the brush rollers down with a clean, dry cloth if you notice visible dirt.
The high-efficiency filter, edge-sweeping brush and brush rollers for the j7+ and s9+ also require periodic replacement. It’s simple to check their status in the iRobot app under the Product Health tab. There, you can see how many hours until the components require replacement.
Price
The Roomba j7+ regularly costs $799.99. It’s available on Amazon. The Roomba s9+ typically retails for $999.99. You can also find it on Amazon.
How we tested
To see just how well the Roomba j7+ and s9+ perform in real-world conditions, we not only sent them out to do regular cleaning but also put them through specific tests.
First, we measured stats like battery life, charging time, how long they could clean until their dustbins were full and how long they took to clean a given area. Next, we placed different types of debris, including kosher salt, kitty litter, cereal and pet hair, on both carpeting and hardwood and evaluated how well they handled the mess. We also tested how well each model cleaned in corners and around furniture.
Finally, we examined how well the iRobot app works with each model for scheduling, mapping and Keep-Out Zones and used voice commands to see how responsive both were.
Bottom line
It’s hard to go wrong with either the Roomba j7+ or the s9+ because they’re both advanced models that work well on carpeting and hard floors and offer many convenient features. But if you want the most powerful model that can eliminate the need for a standard vacuum, the s9+ gets the edge. It can handle all types of debris, including pet hair, on both carpeting and hard flooring, and its unique D-shape allows it to get into corners without leaving a mess behind.
However, if you have pets, you’ll prefer the j7+. It handles pet hair well, even on carpeting, and also avoids obstacles, so it won’t run into your pet’s waste and track it all over the house. The obstacle avoidance feature also makes it a good fit for cluttered homes.
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Jennifer Blair writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/home-br/vacuums-br/roomba-j7-vs-s9-which-is-best-for-you/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:08
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https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/home-br/vacuums-br/roomba-j7-vs-s9-which-is-best-for-you/
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DENVER, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Palantir Technologies Inc. (NYSE: PLTR) today announced that it was selected by the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) to support coordination between federal and commercial licensees of the 3450 - 3550 MHz spectrum band. Palantir will provide its software platform to enable end-to-end automation that will enhance coordination between the Department of Defense and commercial spectrum licensees for shared use of the 3450-3550 MHz band within cooperative planning area (CPA) and periodic use area (PUA) coordination zone boundaries.
As part of an ongoing interagency effort to facilitate the shared usage of critically important mid-band spectrum, Palantir's software will enable DISA's Defense Spectrum Organization (DSO) to support formal and informal coordination processes between the Department of Defense and commercial licensees. Existing and future government activities in the spectrum band are vital to protect national security and ensure military readiness.
Palantir software will be used to integrate multiple existing functions and capabilities into a single infrastructure that will result in more efficient workflows, reducing the timelines for licensee coordination with DoD to establish sharing agreements and enable deployment of 5G wireless services within CPA/PUA boundaries. Palantir software will also be used to demonstrate the ability to support more advanced spectrum sharing use cases.
"We are proud to partner with DISA DSO to support the complex task of sharing limited spectrum resources between federal and commercial users," said Akash Jain, President, Palantir USG. "We are excited to rapidly deploy software that will accelerate and automate coordination workflows and enable the increasingly dynamic and efficient use of spectrum."
"As military and commercial use of radio-frequency spectrum continues to grow, spectrum coordination will be increasingly necessary to preserve the effectiveness of critical national security capabilities while enabling U.S. commercial leadership in 5G and other critical technology areas. Palantir looks forward to working alongside the Department of Defense to deploy innovative software solutions that support advanced spectrum sharing workflows and processes," said Miriam Marwick, SVP, Emerging Technologies, Palantir USG.
About Palantir Technologies Inc.
Foundational software of tomorrow. Delivered today. Additional information is available at https://www.palantir.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements may relate to, but are not limited to, Palantir's expectations regarding the amount and the terms of the contract and the expected benefits of our software platforms. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted or quantified. Forward-looking statements are based on information available at the time those statements are made and were based on current expectations as well as the beliefs and assumptions of management as of that time with respect to future events. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which involve factors or circumstances that are beyond our control. These risks and uncertainties include our ability to meet the unique needs of our customer; the failure of our platforms to satisfy our customer or perform as desired; the frequency or severity of any software and implementation errors; our platforms' reliability; and our customer's ability to modify or terminate the contract. Additional information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties is included in the filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. Except as required by law, we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments, or otherwise.
Media Contact
Lisa Gordon
media@palantir.com
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SOURCE PALANTIR TECHNOLOGIES INC.
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/palantir-selected-by-department-defense-automate-spectrum-coordination-workflows/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:13
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/palantir-selected-by-department-defense-automate-spectrum-coordination-workflows/
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A new lawsuit filed is challenging if the proposed amendment ensuring access to abortion that was certified last week meets state requirements to go before Ohio voters in November.
The proposed amendment fails to comply with all requirements of the law, opponents to amendment say, specifically referencing a requirement that initiative petitions like this one make reference to existing laws that would need to be amended or repealed if the constitutional amendment is adopted.
“The lawsuit simply calls out the petitioners for their failure to comply with all legal standards relating to their initiative petition,” said attorney Curt Hartman, who filed the complaint on behalf of former state Rep. Thomas E. Brinkman, Jr. and ex-legislative candidate Jennifer Giroux, both Republicans from Cincinnati.
The complaint makes reference to laws they believe will be impacted by this proposed amendment, including the Heartbeat Law, but also the parental consent requirement for minors to obtain abortions and the law prohibiting abortions on the basis of Down Syndrome.
“While the law requires any petition proposing a constitutional amendment also identify all existing laws that will be repealed as a result, the petitioners failed to include that information,” Hartman said. “Thus, they have conveniently hid from the general public the widespread and radical impact their proposed amendment will have on existing laws, including those dealing with parental rights.”
The lawsuit is a “desperate attempt” to prevent Ohioans from voting on this proposed amendment, says Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights, the umbrella organization leading the effort behind the amendment.
“Anti-choice extremists know they can’t win at the ballot box, so they have filed a lawsuit in a desperate attempt to silence the clear majority of Ohioans who support reproductive freedom,” said Lauren Blauvelt, spokeswoman for Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights.
Last week, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose certified the petitioners met the requirements to have the citizen-led initiative placed on the Nov. 7 election ballot. Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights collected more than 700,000 signatures, and of those, LaRose certified the petitioners submitted 495,938 total valid signatures on behalf of the proposed statewide initiative.
Signatures from 55 counties also met or exceeded the 5% needed, according to LaRose’s office. Petitioners needed valid signatures from 5% of voters who participated in the last governor’s race in at least 44 counties.
“We have met every requirement to be on the ballot as the Secretary of State has already certified. Once the Court reviews all the relevant facts, we expect this challenge to be rejected,” Blauvelt said.
The requirement referenced in this latest lawsuit falls under the same part of the Ohio revised code as the previous challenge to this proposed amendment before the Ohio Supreme Court earlier this year. The language of the proposed amendment, which had been approved by the Ohio Ballot Board, contained multiple proposals of law and not just one, the complaint in that case said.
Hartman was also the the attorney in that case, filing that previous lawsuit on behalf of anti-abortion activists from Cincinnati Right to Life, Margaret DeBlase and John Giroux. The Ohio Supreme Court in June ruled 7-0 in that case to uphold the Ohio Ballot Board’s unanimous decision that the proposed amendment can move forward as a single initiative.
The latest challenge will have expedited filing deadlines in order to allow for the court to issue its decision 85 days before the November election, per state requirements.
About the Author
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https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/local/lawsuit-seeks-to-remove-proposed-abortion-amendment-from-november-ballot/PBWHHLBFDBEOZGD622A5NFDDWY/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:17
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https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/local/lawsuit-seeks-to-remove-proposed-abortion-amendment-from-november-ballot/PBWHHLBFDBEOZGD622A5NFDDWY/
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Written by Kevin Luna
The Testing Lab’s favorites from July
Our favorite tested products from July
As a consumer, before purchasing any product, it’s a good idea to research as much as you can about it. However, because brand and product claims can exaggerate performance and quality, the most reliable source for determining if a product is worth your time is to look up expert testing reviews.
The BestReviews Testing Lab consistently tests popular consumer products in an attempt to distinguish which ones are the best. For July, we tried many products, including robot vacuums, lawnmowers, golf clubs, hairstyling tools and smart speakers.
Shop this article: Roomba j7+ Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum, Cleveland Huntington Beach Soft 11 Putter and Apple HomePod.
What is the BestReviews Testing Lab?
The BestReviews Testing Lab aims to wade through all the marketing hype and see how well products perform in real-world situations. It consists of regular consumers searching for products that can enhance their lives. We consider items the same way shoppers do, focusing on factors like how easy they are to use, how effective they are and other features that distinguish them from similar products.
The testing lab is also committed to employing green testing practices and giving back to the community. As a result, we donate lightly used products from the testing process to organizations like Lighthouse Community Public Schools, an organization local to our main testing operation that educates students in grades K-12. We’ve recently contributed products like the Keurig K155 Office Pro Commerical Coffee Maker, a Kindle Paperwhite and the “National Geographic Pocket Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of North America” to support students and educators.
In July, the testing lab evaluated a broad range of products, but two categories, in particular, were a big hit: robot vacuums and putters. We tested many of them to see which ones are best for beginners and experts, and we curated a list of the ones we recommend.
Best Testing Lab products from July
Roomba j7+ Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
This robot vacuum was a big hit in our testing lab because of its powerful suction that works great on carpet and hard floors, as well as its intuitive smart mapping function that lets you choose which rooms to clean and when. It responds to Alexa voice commands and operates quietly.
Sold by iRobot
Roomba i3+ Evo Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
We love this robot vacuum for its long-lasting battery life, quick setup and efficiency at picking up small debris, pet hair and dirt particles. It travels in a uniform row pattern while cleaning, works with voice assistants and mapping takes only a few minutes to set up.
Sold by iRobot
This is one of the cheaper iRobot units, but our testing team liked it well enough to recommend it for those who want a solid bargain pick. The three-stage cleaning process is excellent, and Dirt Detect technology allows it to locate the dirtiest spots in your home and prioritize them.
Sold by Walmart
Roomba Combo j7+ Robot Vacuum and Mop
This robot vacuum cleaner offers a mopping function in addition to vacuuming, making it suitable for those with mostly hard floors throughout their homes. The app automatically recognized the unit, making it quick to set up. It’s adept at picking up dirt, pet hair, crumbs and even cat litter.
Sold by iRobot
Our testing team was pleased with this robot vacuum’s suction power and performance on hard floors and carpets. It’s simple to pair with voice assistants such as Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri, and although it doesn’t come with a self-emptying bin, doing it manually is quick and easy.
Sold by iRobot
This was one of the more popular robot vacuums in the testing lab because of its high-powered cleaning cycle and easy-to-use app. It’s highly responsive to basic voice commands such as “Stop Cleaning” through Alexa or Google Assistant, and the automatic dirt disposal works efficiently to empty the reservoir.
Sold by Best Buy
Roomba s9+ Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
As one of the most powerful robot vacuums, our expert testers recommend it for medium to large homes. It can clean 140 square feet in 37 minutes, and mapping is straightforward to set up. You can give it specific cleaning commands, and it does well at avoiding objects.
Sold by iRobot
The testing lab appreciates this robot vacuum’s breezy setup and the fact that it works at lifting pet hair and dirt particles nearly as effectively as some of the more expensive units. It doesn’t struggle with floor-to-carpet transitions and is a convenient alternative for anyone who struggles with manual vacuuming.
Sold by iRobot
According to our testing team, this robot vacuum runs for 70 minutes on a full charge, and getting it up to full power only takes 1 hour and 45 minutes. Cleaning an apartment of roughly 800 square feet takes approximately 70 minutes, and the iHome app is visually clean and logical to navigate.
Sold by Amazon
The testing lab found it seamless to customize a floor plan for this robot vacuum to follow, and one of the best features is that it shows which areas it was able to clean once it’s finished. You can schedule specific cleaning times and zones, and it can handle corners and hard-to-reach areas.
Sold by Amazon
Cleveland Huntington Beach Soft 11 Putter
The right putter can make a difference on your score sheet at the end of the day, and our testing team can’t recommend this one enough. The grip allows for improved control over the putter head, and the soft face has a prominent sweet spot for more forgiveness on long putts.
Sold by Scheels
Scotty Cameron 2023 Super Select Newport 2.5 Plus Putter
This putter has an outstanding grip with increased tackiness for more control over the club head, and the face is advanced engineered to line up perfectly with the ball for precise putting. The weight is distributed correctly for an improved feel, and it has a large sweet spot.
Sold by Scheels
Scotty Cameron 2022 Phantom X 5.5 Putter
According to our testing team, the best thing about this putter is its large sweet spot that makes even the most off-center hits easier to pull off. The weight and putter face are expertly crafted to let the club do most of the work, making it suitable for low-handicap and mid-handicap players.
Sold by Scheels
TaylorMade TP Hydro Blast Bandon 3 Putter
Although this putter isn’t as forgiving as some of the other fan favorites from July, it’s still a solid choice for novice and intermediate golfers thanks to its mid-size grip and straightforward design. Distance control is manageable thanks to the balanced weighting, and the ball rolls nicely off the face.
Sold by Scheels
The testing lab found this smart speaker among the best when considering sound quality, and as with all Apple products, if you already own others, this speaker integrates seamlessly with them. Spatial audio and room sensing provide a surround sound effect in any room, and you can stream music via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi.
The Fire Max 11 has everything you would expect from a high-quality tablet, including a crisp screen with a 2,000 by 1,200-pixel resolution, a powerful octa-core processor, Wi-Fi 6 support and a durable aluminum build. We love its versatility — it can handle gaming, web surfing and streaming.
Sold by Amazon
This hairstyling tool was a big hit in our testing lab because of its three rotating attachments designed to give you a specific look. The barrel has a button for spinning it on its own, making it more user-friendly than traditional curling irons, and the attachments are simple to pop and switch out.
Sold by Beachwaver
Kindle Scribe Essentials Bundle
The Kindle Scribe is a fantastic tool for avid readers who want something lightweight for reading on the go. The screen and brightness are optimized to make it possible to read under any lighting conditions, and setting up with an existing Amazon account takes less than a minute.
Sold by Amazon
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Kevin Luna writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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Buttigieg touts progress in goal for half of new car sales to be electric vehicles
WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - Following an announcement of private investment plan for 30,000 new electric vehicle chargers across the United States, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said government investment has paved the way private companies to produce more electric cars.
“Federal investment to try and make up the difference where markets are still getting ready, and then the private sector, private industry, needs to do the rest,” Buttigieg said.
Leading global electric vehicle manufacturers, including Ford, General Motors and BMW have joined together to build 30,000 electric vehicle chargers across the country.
“When you fill up your gas car with gas you’re counting on private companies to set up for that,” Buttigieg said. “We really need private industry to play more of a roll in investing in and running these electric vehicle charging stations.”
The government has set aside $7.5 billion for states to create their own networks of EV chargers, but the Biden administration wants to guarantee things like price transparency, and guaranteeing a charger from one company works for another company’s vehicles.
“They are going to meet standards that we have set, and they’ll have to in order to qualify for federal support.”
Buttigieg said if the U.S. does not take the lead on electric vehicles, someone else will.
“There is a race, whether people realize it or not,” Buttigieg said. “Where in the middle of a heated race to win the future of electric vehicles.”
The federal money for EV charging networks comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021.
Copyright 2023 Gray DC. All rights reserved.
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https://www.newschannel6now.com/2023/07/31/buttigieg-touts-progress-goal-half-new-car-sales-be-electric-vehicles/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:21
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The Fitness Superstore to Exclusively Carry the REP Line
DENVER, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Home and commercial gyms in the United Kingdom and Ireland are about to level up.
One of the USA's top gym equipment brands has joined forces with the UK's largest speciality fitness retailer. Starting this summer, Bodypower Sports Ltd. (trading as Fitness Superstore) will carry a large range of REP Fitness equipment. This expansion was in response to a growing demand overseas, after REP took the US by storm. It kicks off the launch of REP products throughout all of Europe, so more people can have access to REP's versatile, quality, innovative equipment.
REP, founded a decade ago in Colorado by two gym-loving brothers, has risen to become America's most popular brand in the home gym market. It offers a full line of gym gear, all designed by in-house, weightlifting engineers for both commercial and home gyms.
REP's award-winning power racks, benches, functional training gyms, and more will soon be available for UK customers to try out and order in Fitness Superstore showrooms across the UK (11 stores). Fitness Superstore, founded in 1994, is the largest supplier of specialist fitness equipment in the UK and is proud to feature the largest fitness equipment showrooms in the UK.
Fitness Superstore will also carry REP on its website, to be delivered throughout the UK and Ireland.
"Fitness Superstore is proud to exclusively represent this fantastic and innovative brand in the UK," says Paul Walker, Fitness Superstore managing director and owner.
Ryan McGrotty, co-founder or REP, echoes that. He says Fitness Superstore and REP make a great partnership because both are staffed by real-life fitness enthusiasts and professionals; they both offer a full range of equipment, and they both value creating community and making fitness accessible to all.
"We're excited to be working with such a strong partner in the UK with Fitness Superstore. We know they will offer a great shopping experience for all our fans in the UK who have been eagerly awaiting the availability of our products," says McGrotty. "Their broad store footprint will make it convenient for everyone to easily see and test our products before taking them home.
ABOUT REP
REP Fitness designs and sells world-class, innovative strength equipment that is sold around the world. REP was founded in Colorado in 2012 by two brothers with a shared passion for fitness and has grown into more than 300,000 square feet of office and distribution space and a team of more than 150 dedicated fitness enthusiasts. That shared passion for fitness is what drives REP's innovative spirit, where creating class-leading fitness equipment, with an emphasis on incredible home gyms, is paramount.
REP has been listed twice on the Inc. 5,000 fastest-growing companies — in 2018 and in 2021. REP products are frequently listed as top choices in many fitness publications, such as Men's Health.
For more information, visit repfitness.com. Connect with REP on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
ABOUT FITNESS SUPERSTORE
Fitness Superstore, founded in 1994, is the largest supplier of specialist fitness equipment in the UK and is proud to feature the largest fitness equipment showrooms in the UK.
Learn more at fitness-superstore.co.uk. You can also connect with Fitness Superstore on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.
View original content:
SOURCE Rep Fitness
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Whether you’re a fan of Food Network or someone who loves to spend time in the kitchen, you know Le Creuset. The French-made cookware brand is known for many things, coming in a wide range of colors. It’s got thick, heavy, enamel-coated cast iron and a lifetime warranty that has turned Le Creuset pieces into heirlooms.
There’s only one thing that’s stopping most of us from having a whole kitchen full of this stuff: the price tag. But now for the good news. We’re in the final week of Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale, so you still have a few more days to snag up to 45% off select Le Creuset pieces. And yes, that includes some of the iconic Dutch ovens.
Super-high quality … and prices to match (usually)
While the lifetime warranty means that a Le Creuset piece may very well be the last piece in its size and shape you ever need to buy, the prices also reflect that. A single Dutch oven will typically run you several hundred dollars.
However, people love them so much that the quality is worth the price. Celebrity chefs even belove Le Creuset pieces. Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa herself, once advised a fan who asked for a Le Creuset recommendation, “I use the Le Creuset #26 Dutch oven more often than everything else. It’s great for soups, stews and braising.” As further proof that you can’t beat the classics, Julia Child was also known to love her Le Creuset cookware.
5 Le Creuset deals you won’t want to miss at Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale
Le Creuset 4.5-Quart Oval Dutch Oven
Let’s start with a classic. This medium-sized Dutch oven is perfect for a family and can handle most main dishes and sides easily. It’s designed to go from the stovetop to the oven, and its oval shape makes it adaptable for larger cuts of meat, like leg of lamb. You can find it at Nordstrom in seven classic colors.
Sold by Nordstrom
Le Creuset Signature 2.75-Quart Enamel Dutch Oven
This smaller Dutch oven is great for singles, couples or those who need a second vessel for their sides and casseroles. It’s also great for baking and comes in eight colors to suit your kitchen’s aesthetic.
Sold by Nordstrom
Le Creuset 9-Inch Enamel Cast Iron Skillet
This versatile skillet can sear, saute and fry — and it can go from the stove to an oven up to 500 degrees. It comes pre-seasoned and is dishwasher-safe, making it a perfect choice for busy families who need a versatile staple to add to their kitchen.
Sold by Nordstrom
Le Creuset Signature 1.75-Quart Enameled Cast Iron Saucepan
This smaller pot is perfect for poaching eggs and fruit, making sauces and more. Its rounded base and curved interior make it easy to stir whatever’s inside and ensure nothing sticks — making cleanup a breeze.
Sold by Nordstrom
Le Creuset Heritage Rectangle Baking Dishes, Set of Three
For the baker in your family, this set of rectangle dishes — in 7.5, 10 and 12.5 inches — can accommodate any casserole, quiche or baked good. They can be used safely under the broiler or in the microwave, and you can even put them in the freezer.
Sold by Nordstrom
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Christina Marfice writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:23
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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command headquarters in Colorado, overturning a last-ditch decision by the Trump administration to move it to Alabama and ending months of politically fueled debate, according to senior U.S. officials.
The officials said Biden was convinced by the head of Space Command, Gen. James Dickinson, who argued that moving his headquarters now would jeopardize military readiness. Dickinson's view, however, was in contrast to Air Force leadership, who studied the issue at length and determined that relocating to Huntsville, Alabama, was the right move.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the decision ahead of the announcement.
The president, they said, believes that keeping the command in Colorado Springs would avoid a disruption in readiness that the move would cause, particularly as the U.S. races to compete with China in space. And they said Biden firmly believes that maintaining stability will help the military be better able to respond in space over the next decade. Those factors, they said, outweighed what the president believed would be any minor benefits of moving to Alabama.
Biden's decision is sure to enrage Alabama lawmakers and fuel accusations that abortion politics played a role in the choice. The location debate has become entangled in the ongoing battle between Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville and the Defense Department over the move to provide travel for troops seeking reproductive health care. Tuberville opposed the policy is blocking hundreds of military promotions in protest.
The U.S. officials said the abortion issue had no effect at all on Biden's decision. And they said the president fully expected there would be different views on the matter within the Defense Department.
Formally created in August 2019, the command was temporarily based in Colorado, and Air Force and Space Force leaders initially recommended it stay there. In the final days of his presidency Donald Trump decided it should be based in Huntsville.
The change triggered a number of reviews.
Proponents of keeping the command in Colorado have argued that moving it to Huntsville and creating a new headquarters would set back its progress at a time it needs to move quickly to be positioned to match China’s military space rise. And Colorado Springs is also home to the Air Force Academy, which now graduates Space Force guardians, and more than 24 military space missions, including three Space Force bases.
Officials also argued that any new headquarters in Alabama would not be completed until sometime after 2030, forcing a lengthy transition.
Huntsville, however, scored higher than Colorado Springs in a Government Accountability Office assessment of potential locations and has long been a home to some of earliest missiles used in the nation’s space programs, including the Saturn V rocket. It is home to the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command.
According to officials, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, who ordered his own review of the matter, leaned toward Huntsville, while Dickinson was staunchly in favor of staying put. The officials said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin presented both options to Biden.
The decision was good news for Colorado lawmakers.
“For two and a half years we’ve known any objective analysis of this basing decision would reach the same conclusion we did, that Peterson Space Force Base is the best home for Space Command," Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., said in a statement. “Most importantly, this decision firmly rejects the idea that politics — instead of national security — should determine basing decisions central to our national security.”
Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., said the decision “restores integrity to the Pentagon’s basing process and sends a strong message that national security and the readiness of our Armed Forces drive our military decisions.”
Credit: AP
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‘I’ll be able to walk again’: 6-year-old shot in road rage incident confident about her future
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE/Gray News) – A 6-year-old’s life may be changed forever after she was shot in the back during a road rage incident on July 10, but that’s not crushing the young girl’s spirit.
Onyx, 6, was in the car with her family when a road rage incident with a group of motorcyclists in Kentucky led to a shooting.
A bullet went through the girl’s back and she had to have emergency surgery.
Onyx has been recovering since and may never walk again. Being in a wheelchair is her new reality.
“I really liked going through the hallways to test it out,” Onyx said, talking about her wheelchair. “I wanted to do it again and then I did.”
The 6-year-old who just wants to dance and play is finding comfort in doing donuts in her wheelchair.
Onyx said she remembers leaving the park on July 10, getting in the car and the moment when she was shot.
“I remember getting carried into the hospital,” she recalled.
Those chain of events left Onyx’s mother, Chyna Sands, with the task of telling her daughter her new reality.
Sands said she told Onyx the bullet severed her back and she can’t use her legs like she used to – a conversation that is still setting in for the young girl.
She’s had to explain to Onyx that she must be in a wheelchair because she can’t walk.
But Onyx didn’t let this get her down too much. She said she is tired of people saying what she can’t do. To her, she has no doubt about what the future holds.
“I’ll be able to walk again, I know I will,” Onyx said with confidence. “I believe that I will be able to walk again.”
That mindset is what Sands says keeps her going.
As of right now, no one has been charged for the shooting which keeps Sands on edge.
“They want me to be patient, but I am out of patience,” Sands said. “I would like to see justice for an innocent 6-year-old who was minding her own business.”
While those responsible are out free, small things like getting into a car are now triggers of trauma.
“Because I got shot in the back, and I’m a little bit scared to get in the car because it brings back the memories,” Onyx said.
Hearing Onyx say that is a hard pill to swallow for a mother that loves to travel everywhere with her daughter.
“As her mom, I’m used to being her superhero,” Sands said. “I fix all of her problems and that’s something that I can’t fix.”
Copyright 2023 WAVE via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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MENLO PARK, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Robert Half Inc. (NYSE: RHI) announced today that its board of directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.48 per share. The cash dividend will be paid on Sept. 15, 2023, to all shareholders of record as of Aug. 25, 2023.
Robert Half is the world's first and largest specialized talent solutions and business consulting firm that connects people with meaningful work and provides companies with the talent and subject matter expertise they need to confidently compete and grow. Robert Half is the parent company of Protiviti®, a global consulting firm that provides internal audit, risk, business and technology consulting solutions. Robert Half, including Protiviti, has been named to the Fortune® Most Admired Companies™ and Most Innovative Companies lists and is a Forbes Best Employer for Diversity. Robert Half has talent solutions and consulting operations in more than 400 locations worldwide.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Robert Half
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:28
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Which kids bento boxes are best?
Bento boxes are of Japanese origin and have been used for centuries by adults and kids alike. They are becoming a popular choice for kids lunch boxes across the country due to their simplicity, aesthetic and convenience. You can definitely pack your kid a smile-inducing lunch consisting of all their favorite foods if you swap them over to one. We tested our top pick, the Bentgo Kids Lunch Box, and have all the insights you need below.
Shop this article: Bentgo Kids Lunch Box, Munchkin Bento Box and Kinsho Bento Box for Kids.
Kids bento boxes vs. bento boxes for adults
Like traditional lunch boxes, bento boxes for kids come in a variety of fun styles and colors. They are great for inspiring a sense of wonder or style in your child. Plus, kids’ bento boxes are extra convenient for parents because the compartments are smaller to help gauge food portions. Kids bento boxes are also often easier to clean and dishwasher-safe.
Number of compartments
When picking any bento box, look out for how many compartments it contains. Depending on how much food your child normally eats, you can pick a bento box with fewer or more compartments. Be on the lookout for bento boxes with versatile compartments too, such as a compartment for soup. A more versatile bento box can lead to a happier kid, as you can accommodate their favorite foods.
What to look for in a quality kids bento box
- Durability: As with buying anything for a child, make sure the bento box is durable. Most boxes for kids are drop-proof and come with rubber padding around the exterior.
- Leakproof: Most pack their kid’s bento box in a school bag. To do this without worrying, find a leakproof bento box. No matter what type of food you pack for your child’s lunch, a leakproof lid and a tight seal give you peace of mind.
- Separate compartments: Many kids are picky eaters that don’t appreciate their foods mingling together. Bento boxes, by nature, contain several compartments meant to keep food fresh and separate. However, some boxes have a bit of space between the walls of the compartments and the lid. This can allow food to slosh around a bit.
- Easy to clean: Kids are notoriously messy eaters, so you want a bento box that’s easy to clean. Most are dishwasher-safe, but some plastic bento boxes can stain and retain residual odors over time, or warp in the dishwasher.
- Cost: Kids bento boxes can range from $20-$35.
Kids bento box FAQ
Do kids bento boxes keep food warm?
A. Most bento boxes for kids don’t retain heat. If you want to ensure that your child has a warm lunch, consider buying a stainless steel bento box from a trusted bento brand such as Zojirushi.
Are kids bento boxes dishwasher-safe?
A. Most are, but check the manufacturer’s instructions before putting one in the dishwasher. Some are only top-rack safe. Others have attached parts that aren’t machine washable.
Best kids bento box
What you need to know: We tested this product and found it the top choice for parents of younger kids.
What you’ll love: Our tester found the seal to be strong enough to stay closed but not so strong that a toddler can’t get it opened. It has five compartments of varying sizes and our tester’s child loved the designs. It’s dishwasher-safe.
What you should consider: Our tester found some slight leakage when only water was inside. But, it’s leakproof against thicker liquids such as sauces.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Best kids bento box for the money
What you need to know: This plastic bento from Munchkin is great for kids aged 6-8.
What you’ll love: This bento box is durable and comes in a few different color options.
What you should consider: Some parents have said that this box is too heavy for younger toddlers to use.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: This bento box from Kinsho is a solid option for kids of all ages thanks to its handy, leakproof lid.
What you’ll love: This set includes two stackable bento boxes with three compartments each, so a grand total of six compartments for food. They are durable and the leakproof lid works well.
What you should consider: These are marketed as dishwasher safe, but should be hand washed. The lid’s seal is strong and may be difficult for younger kids to open on their own.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Addison Hoggard writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:29
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NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — A Cyprus court sentenced a British man to two years in prison for killing his wife in their retirement home to spare her the pain from her illness, but prison authorities freed him Monday because of time he already had spent behind bars.
Defense lawyer Nicoletta Charalambidou told The Associated Press that Cyprus Prisons Department authorities tabulated the time 76-year-old David Hunter had spent in custody since the December, 2021, killing and decided to release him immediately.
The court had earlier this month convicted Hunter of manslaughter after accepting testimony that his decision to suffocate his wife Janice was a made on the spur of the moment because he could no longer stand seeing her weeping in pain from a type of blood cancer she feared would develop into full-blown leukemia.
State prosecutor Andreas Hadjikyrou told the AP that the court took into account that Hunter, 76, acted “out of love” to save his wife. She was suffering from a blood ailment when he closed her mouth and nose with his hands as she sat in a recliner in their Paphos home.
It also took into consideration Hunter’s advanced age and that he had no previous criminal record.
Justice Abroad, a group that defends Britons facing legal troubles in foreign countries, welcomed word of Hunter's early release.
“This has been a tragic case and difficult for all of those involved with it, but today’s decision was the right one and allows David and his family to grieve together,” said Michael Polak from Justice Abroad.
Hunter had faced a charge of premeditated murder, but the court found in its July 21 ruling that the prosecution didn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt that there was premeditation in his actions.
The court had accepted witness testimony that Janice feared her blood ailment would develop into full-blown leukemia and had repeatedly pleaded with her husband to take her life because she didn’t want to share the fate of her sister, who died of the disease.
Hunter attempted to take his own life by consuming a large amount of pills after suffocating his wife, but medical staff saved his life.
The court cited expert testimony that Janice Hunter suffered from myelodysplastic syndrome, a type of blood cancer which “to a large degree” — as much as 45% — could turn into leukemia, although there was no proof that she had indeed developed the disease because no definitive tests were conducted.
But the court said both husband and wife believed that Janice would develop it because of her sister’s fate.
David Hunter’s earlier assurances to Janice that he would help her fulfill her wish to end her life and not suffer anymore didn’t indicate any premeditation, the court said.
Hadjikyrou said defense lawyers had rejected a plea deal in December 2022 for the defendant to plead guilty to manslaughter because they insisted the facts of the case include an agreement Hunter and his wife allegedly made for him to take her life. He said the court didn’t accept that such an agreement had indeed been made.
Charalambidou said it was the Cypriot attorney-general who scrapped the plea deal because he wouldn't accept as fact that Janice had repeatedly asked her husband to take her life.
Hadjikyrou said the Cyprus attorney-general has 10 days to decide whether to appeal the sentence.
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:30
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Jury poised to deliberate death penalty or life sentence for gunman in Pittsburgh synagogue massacre
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A jury is set to deliberate whether to impose the death penalty or a sentence of life in prison without parole on a man who spewed antisemitic hate before fatally shooting 11 worshippers at a synagogue in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community.
The same jurors who convicted 50-year-old Robert Bowers in June on 63 criminal counts listened to closing arguments Monday in the penalty phase of his federal trial, held nearly five years after the truck driver from suburban Baldwin perpetrated the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history.
Bowers defiled a place of worship when he entered the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle, shooting everyone he could find in a mass murder clearly motivated by religious hatred, said U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.
Bowers raved incessantly on social media about his hatred of Jewish people — using a slur for Jewish people some 400 times on a social media platform favored by the far right — and remains proud that he killed Jews, the prosecutor reminded jurors,
“Do not be numb to it. Remember what it means. This defendant targeted people solely because of the faith that they chose,” Olshan said.
He added: “This is a case that calls for the most severe punishment under the law: the death penalty.”
Bowers’ lead defense attorney, Judy Clarke, acknowledged the horror of his crimes but urged jurors to opt for a life sentence.
“What has happened cannot be undone. We can’t rewind the clock and make it that this senseless crime never happened. All we can do is make the right decision going forward. We are asking you to make the right decision, and that is life,” Clarke said in her closing argument.
A life sentence would mean that “prison is where Mr. Bowers will die in obscurity, not as a hero and not as a martyr,” she said.
Bowers’ attorneys have argued that he has schizophrenia, a serious brain disorder whose symptoms include delusions and hallucinations, and that Bowers attacked the synagogue out of a delusional belief that Jews were helping to bring about a genocide of white people by coming to the aid of refugees and immigrants. Clarke recounted Bowers’ history of psychiatric hospitalizations, including an extended stay in a residential juvenile mental health program.
The defense also presented evidence of Bowers’ difficult childhood.
Olshan disputed the defense experts’ diagnosis of schizophrenia, asserting that Bowers was not suffering psychosis but had chosen to believe white supremacist rhetoric. And while acknowledging that Bowers was a depressed, neglected child, Olshan downplayed the significance of it, noting that Bowers had held jobs, paid bills, and was an otherwise functioning adult.
“He was not a child, he was a grown man. He was responsible for his actions, not his family and things that happened decades earlier. He was, he is responsible for his actions,” Olshan said.
In order to impose death, jurors must find that aggravating circumstances, which make the crime especially heinous, outweigh mitigating factors that could be seen as diminishing his culpability. Those aggravating circumstances could include the vulnerability of Bowers’ elderly and disabled victims and his targeting of Jewish people.
Olshan played a composite of 911 calls made from inside the synagogue, including audio of people being shot and a survivor’s horrified screams.
He said Bowers had taken “11 people, 11 full lives, 11 people who loved their families, 11 people who loved their friends, 11 people who were loved. ... How do you measure the impact of all of that loss?”
The prosecutor spoke about 75-year-old Joyce Fienberg’s care for her family and 65-year-old Richard Gottfried’s devotion to his faith. He said Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, had the ethos of a country doctor: “He loved delivering babies but he never delivered judgment.” David Rosenthal, 54, and Cecil Rosenthal, 59, intellectually disabled brothers, “loved life,” Olshan said. “But maybe more than anything, they loved Tree of Life.”
The other deceased victims were Rose Mallinger, 97; Bernice Simon, 84, and her husband, Sylvan Simon, 86; Dan Stein, 71; Melvin Wax, 87; and Irving Younger, 69.
The attack also wounded seven people, including five responding police officers. Bowers was shot three times before surrendering when he ran out of ammunition.
___
Rubinkam reported from northeastern Pennsylvania.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:34
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SAN JOSE, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Sanmina Corporation ("Sanmina" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: SANM), a leading integrated manufacturing solutions company, today reported financial results for the fiscal third quarter ended July 1, 2023 and outlook for its fiscal fourth quarter ending September 30, 2023.
"Our third quarter results were in line with our outlook. We continue to execute well and deliver consistent operating margins and solid cash generation," stated Jure Sola, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our strong performance in the first nine months and achievement of our outlook for the fourth quarter would result in fiscal 2023 revenue growth of approximately 14 percent and non-GAAP EPS growth of approximately 35 percent. The team remains focused on excellence in quality, delivery and consistently meeting the needs of our customers. We have a strong foundation and promising future," Sola concluded.
Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2023 Outlook
The following outlook is for the fiscal fourth quarter ending September 30, 2023. These statements are forward-looking and actual results may differ materially.
- Revenue between $2.1 billion to $2.2 billion
- GAAP diluted earnings per share between $1.24 to $1.34
- Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share between $1.47 to $1.57
Safe Harbor Statement
The statements above concerning our financial outlook for the fourth quarter fiscal 2023 and our expectations for growth in revenue and non-GAAP earnings per share in fiscal 2023 should such outlook be achieved, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in these statements as a result of a number of factors, most notably ongoing supply chain constraints and geopolitical uncertainty, including from the conflict in Ukraine. Other factors that could cause our results to differ from our forward-looking statements include adverse changes to the key markets we target; significant uncertainties that can cause our future sales and net income to be variable; reliance on a small number of customers for a substantial portion of our sales; risks arising from our international operations; and the other risk factors set forth in the Company's annual and quarterly reports filed with the Securities Exchange Commission.
The Company is under no obligation to (and expressly disclaims any such obligation to) update or alter any of the forward-looking statements made in this earnings release, the conference call or the Investor Relations section of our website whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless otherwise required by law.
Company Conference Call Information
Sanmina will hold a conference call to review its financial results for the third quarter and outlook for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023 on Monday, July 31, 2023 at 5:30 p.m. ET (2:30 p.m. PT). The access numbers are: domestic 833-816-1390 and international 412-317-0483. The conference will also be webcast live over the Internet. You can log on to the live webcast at Q3 Webcast Link. Additional information in the form of a slide presentation is available on Sanmina's website at www.sanmina.com. A replay of the conference call will be available for 48-hours. The access numbers are: domestic 877-344-7529 and international 412-317-0088, access code is 1520057.
About Sanmina
Sanmina Corporation, a Fortune 500 company, is a leading integrated manufacturing solutions provider serving the fastest growing segments of the global Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) market. Recognized as a technology leader, Sanmina provides end-to-end manufacturing solutions, delivering superior quality and support to Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) primarily in the industrial, medical, defense and aerospace, automotive, communications networks and cloud infrastructure markets. Sanmina has facilities strategically located in key regions throughout the world. More information about the Company is available at www.sanmina.com.
Sanmina Contact
Paige Melching
SVP, Investor Communications
408-964-3610
Schedule 1
The statements above and financial information provided in this earnings release include non-GAAP measures of operating income, operating margin, net income, diluted earnings per share and pre-tax return on invested capital (ROIC). Management excludes from these measures stock-based compensation, restructuring, acquisition and integration expenses, impairment charges, amortization charges and other unusual or infrequent items, as adjusted for taxes, as more fully described below.
Management excludes these items principally because such charges or benefits are not directly related to the Company's ongoing core business operations. We use such non-GAAP measures in order to (1) make more meaningful period-to-period comparisons of the Company's operations, both internally and externally, (2) guide management in assessing the performance of the business, internally allocating resources and making decisions in furtherance of Company's strategic plan, (3) provide investors with a better understanding of how management plans and measures the business and (4) provide investors with a better understanding of our ongoing, core business. The material limitations to management's approach include the fact that the charges, benefits and expenses excluded are nonetheless charges, benefits and expenses required to be recognized under GAAP and, in some cases, consume cash which reduces the Company's liquidity. Management compensates for these limitations primarily by reviewing GAAP results to obtain a complete picture of the Company's performance and by including a reconciliation of non-GAAP results to GAAP results in its earnings releases.
Additional information regarding the economic substance of each exclusion, management's use of the resultant non-GAAP measures, the material limitations of management's approach and management's methods for compensating for such limitations is provided below.
Stock-based Compensation Expense, which consists of non-cash charges for the estimated fair value of equity awards granted to employees and directors, is excluded in order to permit more meaningful period-to-period comparisons of the Company's results since the Company grants different amounts and value of equity awards each quarter. In addition, given the fact that competitors grant different amounts and types of equity awards and may use different valuation assumptions, excluding stock-based compensation permits more accurate comparisons of the Company's core results with those of its competitors.
Restructuring, Acquisition and Integration Expenses, which consist of severance, lease termination costs, exit costs, environmental investigation, remediation and related costs and other charges primarily related to closing and consolidating manufacturing facilities and those associated with the acquisition and integration of acquired businesses, are excluded because such charges (1) can be driven by the timing of acquisitions and exit activities which are difficult to predict, (2) are not directly related to ongoing business results and (3) generally do not reflect expected future operating expenses. In addition, given the fact that the Company's competitors complete acquisitions and adopt restructuring plans at different times and in different amounts than the Company, excluding these charges or benefits permits more accurate comparisons of the Company's core results with those of its competitors. Items excluded by the Company may be different from those excluded by the Company's competitors and restructuring and integration expenses include both cash and non-cash expenses. Cash expenses reduce the Company's liquidity. Therefore, management also reviews GAAP results including these amounts.
Impairment Charges, which consist of non-cash charges, are excluded because such charges are non-recurring and do not reduce the Company's liquidity. In addition, given the fact that the Company's competitors may record impairment charges at different times, excluding these charges permits more accurate comparisons of the Company's core results with those of its competitors.
Amortization Charges, which consist of non-cash charges impacted by the timing and magnitude of acquisitions of businesses or assets, are also excluded because such charges do not reduce the Company's liquidity. In addition, such charges can be driven by the timing of acquisitions, which is difficult to predict. Excluding these charges permits more accurate comparisons of the Company's core results with those of its competitors because the Company's competitors complete acquisitions at different times and for different amounts than the Company.
Other Unusual or Infrequent Items, such as charges or benefits associated with distressed customers, expenses, charges and recoveries relating to certain legal matters, gains and losses on sales of assets, deferred tax adjustments and discrete tax items, are excluded because such items are typically non-recurring, difficult to predict or not directly related to the Company's ongoing or core operations and are therefore not considered by management in assessing the current operating performance of the Company and forecasting earnings trends. However, items excluded by the Company may be different from those excluded by the Company's competitors. In addition, these items include both cash and non-cash expenses. Cash expenses reduce the Company's liquidity. Management compensates for these limitations by reviewing GAAP results including these amounts.
Adjustments for Taxes, which consist of the tax effects of the various adjustments that we exclude from our non-GAAP measures, and adjustments related to deferred tax and discrete tax items. Including these adjustments permits more accurate comparisons of the Company's core results with those of its competitors. We determine the tax adjustments based upon the various applicable effective tax rates. In those jurisdictions in which we do not expect to realize a tax cost or benefit (due to a history of operating losses or other factors), a reduced tax rate is applied.
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KHAR, Pakistan (AP) — An Afghan branch of Islamic State on Monday claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Pakistan that killed at least 54 people at a pro-Taliban party's election rally, in one of the region's worst attacks in recent years.
Islamic State in Khorasan Province made the claim in a statement posted on its Amaq website. It said the attacker detonated an explosive vest, and that the bombing in the northwestern town of Bajur was part of the group's continuing war against forms of democracy it deems to be against Islam.
Hours earlier, hundreds of mourners in Bajur carried caskets draped in colorful cloths to burial sites following the previous day’s attack at the election rally for the Jamiat Ulema Islam party. Officials said Sunday’s bombing killed 54 people, including at least five children, and wounded nearly 200.
The attack appeared to reflect divisions between Islamist groups, which have a strong presence in the district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan. The Jamiat Ulema Islam party has ties to the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban.
At least 1,000 people were crowded into a tent near a market for the rally ahead of fall elections, according to police.
“People were chanting God is Great as the leaders arrived,” said Khan Mohammad, a local resident who said he was standing outside the tent, “and that was when I heard the deafening sound of the bomb.”
Mohammad said he heard people crying for help, and minutes later ambulances arrived and began taking the wounded away.
Police had suggested in their initial investigation that Islamic State in Khorasan Province was a suspect. The group is based in neighboring Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province and is a rival of the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaida.
Pakistan security analyst Mahmood Shah also previously had said that breakaway factions of the Pakistani Taliban could be possible suspects, though the group distanced itself from the attack.
The Pakistani military spent years fighting the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, in Bajur before declaring the district clear of militants in 2016. But the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, headed by hard-line cleric and politician Fazlur Rehman, has remained a potent political force.
On Monday, police recorded statements from some of the wounded at a hospital in Khar, the district’s principal town.
Female relatives and children wailed and beat their chests at family homes Monday as the dead were taken for funerals, following local customs. Hundreds of men followed the caskets to mosques and open areas for special funeral prayers and then into the hills for burial.
As condolences continued to pour in from across the country, dozens of people who had lesser injuries were discharged from hospital, while the critically wounded were taken to the provincial capital of Peshawar by army helicopters. The death toll continued to rise as some critically wounded people died in hospital, physician Gul Naseeb said.
Gul Akbar, the father of an 11-year-old boy who was wounded in the attack, told The Associated Press that his entire family was in a state of shock after hearing about the bombing Sunday. He said he first went to the scene of the attack, and later found his son Taslim Khan being treated in a hospital in Khar.
“What would I have done if he had also been martyred? Five children died in this barbaric attack, and we want to know what our children did wrong,” he said.
Rehman’s party is preparing to contest elections, which are expected in October or November. Abdul Rasheed, one of the party’s senior leaders, said the bombing was aimed at weakening the party but that “such attacks cannot deter our resolve.”
Rehman’s party is part of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition government, which came to power in April 2022 by ousting former Prime Minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence vote in the legislature.
Sharif called Rehman to express his condolences and assure the cleric that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished. Khan condemned the bombing Sunday, as did the U.S. and Russian embassies in Islamabad.
The Pakistani Taliban also distanced themselves from the bombing, saying that it was intended to set Islamists against each other. Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, wrote in a tweet that “such crimes cannot be justified in any way.”
The bombing came hours before Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng arrived in Islamabad, where he signed new agreements to boost trade and economic ties to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a sprawling package under which China has invested $10 billion in Pakistan over 10 years, according to Sharif.
“We will not tolerate any obstacles in the way of friendship with China,” Sharif said, as he stood next to He.
But the government canceled a cultural event that had been arranged in honor of He, according to Sharif, while the nation mourns.
Some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Rehman, who has long supported Afghanistan’s Taliban government, survived at least two known bomb attacks in 2011 and 2014, when bombings damaged his car at rallies.
Sunday's bombing was one of the worst in northwestern Pakistan in the last decade. In 2014, 147 people, mostly schoolchildren, were killed in a Taliban attack on an army-run school in Peshawar.
In January, 74 people were killed in a bombing at a mosque in Peshawar. And in February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
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Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed contributed to this story from Islamabad.
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ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Angels reacquired slugger C.J. Cron and outfielder Randal Grichuk in a trade with the Colorado Rockies on Sunday, bolstering their injury-plagued roster with more veteran depth as they fight for a playoff spot.
Los Angeles sent minor league pitchers Mason Albright and Jake Madden to the Rockies in the deal that brought two former Angels first-round draft picks back to the team. Colorado also is sending $3,701,613 along with Cron and Grichuk, who are in the final years of their contracts before free agency. Cron is owed $2,540,323 in remaining salary and Grichuk $3,161,290, leaving the Angels in effect responsible for $2 million.
The Angels (55-51) are desperate to end their MLB-worst streaks of seven consecutive losing seasons and eight consecutive non-playoff seasons, but their efforts have been endangered by injuries that have seriously compromised their big league depth.
Los Angeles has a major league-leading 17 players on its injured lists after outfielder Taylor Ward joined the group Sunday before an extra-inning victory in Toronto. Ward was moved to the 60-day injured list later in the day, effectively ending his regular season, with facial fractures after Toronto’s Alek Manoah hit him in the face with a fastball on Saturday.
The 33-year-old Cron spent his first four major league seasons with Los Angeles, hitting 59 of his 186 career homers before getting traded to Tampa Bay in early 2018 for prospect Luis Rengifo, who is still a valuable contributor to the Angels. Cron is batting .260 with 11 homers and 32 RBIs this season for the Rockies as their power-hitting first baseman.
Grichuk was selected by the Angels one pick before Mike Trout in the 2009 draft. Los Angeles traded him to St. Louis before he reached the majors and began a 10-year career with the Cardinals, Toronto and Colorado.
Grichuk is batting .308 with an .861 OPS in 64 games this season for the Rockies. His positional flexibility in the outfield will be valuable for the Angels in the injury absences of Trout, Ward and Jo Adell, leaving Mickey Moniak and Hunter Renfroe as the only healthy outfielders on Los Angeles’ 40-man roster.
Grichuk is making just over $10.3 million this season, while Cron is earning $7.25 million. The moves continue the Rockies’ teardown for the final two months of what’s almost certain to be their fifth consecutive losing season.
The 20-year-old Albright is 11-8 with a 5.36 ERA in three seasons in the low minors. The 21-year-old Madden, a fourth-round pick in 2022, is 2-6 with a 5.46 ERA in 14 starts for Low-A Inland Empire this season.
The Angels have traded a significant amount of minor league talent in recent weeks in their determined effort to make the playoffs during the final season of Shohei Ohtani’s contract.
Los Angeles has acquired six veteran major leaguers — slugger Mike Moustakas, right-handed starter Lucas Giolito, reliever Reynaldo López and infielder Eduardo Escobar along with Cron and Grichuk — in four separate trades since late June.
Trout has been out since July 3 with a broken hand, and third baseman Anthony Rendon was sidelined one day later with a bone bruise after fouling a ball off his shin. Trout and Rendon are making roughly $75 million combined this season.
Ward and veteran infielder Gio Urshela are likely out for the season, while infielder Brandon Drury, rookie catcher Logan O’Hoppe and rookie shortstop Zach Neto have all missed significant time.
Los Angeles is in third place in the AL West, five games behind Texas. The Angels are four games behind Toronto for the final AL wild card, but the Red Sox and Yankees are also between them.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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MSU Women’s Football Clinic
Published: Jul. 31, 2023 at 3:18 PM CDT|Updated: 13 minutes ago
WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - The annual Midwestern State University Women’s Football Clinic is returning on August 2.
Our very own Sports Director, Robyn Hearn, will be a guest speaker at the event.
The event will start at 6:00 p.m. at the Sikes Lake Center and intends to teach all about the X’s and O’s of the game
MSU Head Coach Bill Maskill will also be a speaker at the event.
Seats are limited, tickets can be brought here.
Copyright 2023 KAUZ. All rights reserved.
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SEATTLE, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Seabourn, the leader in ultra-luxury voyages and expedition travel, took delivery of its second expedition ship, Seabourn Pursuit, today during an official handover maritime ceremony at the T. Mariotti shipyard in Genoa, Italy. Seabourn Pursuit is the company's second purpose-built, ultra-luxury expedition ship and the newest expedition ship in the industry.
"I am honored to share this incredible moment with the entire Seabourn family as we welcome Seabourn Pursuit, our highly anticipated second ultra-luxury expedition ship, into our fleet," expressed Natalya Leahy, Seabourn President. "With remarkable craftsmanship by the Mariotti team, an abundance of space, and the breathtaking style of Tihany Design, Seabourn Pursuit raises the bar for ultra-luxury expedition travel. We are grateful to Mariotti and Tihany Design for their expertise in shaping and making our dream come true for our guests."
Leahy added that the state-of-the-art Seabourn Pursuit will provide the perfect combination of luxury and expedition. "Seabourn Pursuit offers the best of both worlds: our well-known signature luxury and elegance with the world of exploration and adventure. The ship is masterfully designed for our guests, who are extraordinary people looking for out of the ordinary experiences. Our guests will indulge in Seabourn's ultra-luxury style and enjoy our intuitive, personalized service, while the ship takes them to awe-inspiring destinations around the world that only few will ever visit in a lifetime."
"Today, one year after the delivery of Seabourn Venture, we are very happy to have completed and delivered her sister ship, Seabourn Pursuit," said Marco Ghiglione, Managing Director of T. Mariotti. "We are truly proud to have built the most outstanding ultra-luxury expedition ship for Seabourn, one of the leading cruise lines in the luxury market. This is another important masterpiece for Italian shipbuilding coming out of T. Mariotti shipyard, demonstrating again that our leadership in this sector is well consolidated. Thanks to Seabourn, all people involved in this journey, Lloyd's Register and the pencil of Adam Tihany, here is the new expedition jewel."
Seabourn Pursuit offers the same luxurious "yacht like" small ship experience that travelers have come to expect from Seabourn, enhanced by world-class equipment that allows the line to offer its widest range of expedition activities led by an expert 24-person expedition team of scientists, scholars, naturalists, and more. Seabourn Pursuit is designed and built for remote, diverse environments to PC6 Polar Class standards and will include a plethora of modern hardware and technology that will extend the ship's global deployment and capabilities. Seabourn Pursuit has close to 30,000 square feet of deck space and special touches at every turn. Those include indoor and outdoor guest areas with nearly 270-degree views, and a 4K GSS Cineflex Camera mounted on the mast of the Constellation Lounge capable of broadcasting imagery from miles ahead on monitors located throughout the ship and in guest suites.
In addition, Seabourn Pursuit, like the rest of the ships in the Seabourn fleet, offers an abundance of space and elegance, eight dining facilities serving gourmet cuisine, and luxurious all-suite accommodations, including a pair of two-level Wintergarden suites.
Seabourn Pursuit is scheduled to enter service August 12, 2023, and will sail five voyages in the Mediterranean before embarking on two voyages across the Atlantic and through the Caribbean. On October 10, 2023, the ship will arrive in Barbados to begin its expedition journeys, taking guests to remote corners of the globe. Seabourn Pursuit will head south for expeditions exploring coastal South America, the Amazon, and Antarctica into late March 2024.
Following its inaugural Antarctic season, the ship will head across the islands of the South Pacific and eventually to Australia, which will be the start of the line's first exploration of the Kimberley region in the Northern Territory and Western Australia between June and August 2024. The iconic Kimberley, with its red sandstone gorges, rivers, waterfalls, wildlife, and Aboriginal life and history, is the ideal setting for a truly, world-class expedition experience. In addition to the Kimberley, Seabourn Pursuit will visit Papua New Guinea, West Papua, Indonesia, and sail across the South Pacific between Chile and Melanesia between March and October 2024.
For more details about Seabourn, or to explore the worldwide selection of Seabourn cruising options, contact a professional travel advisor, call Seabourn at 1-800-929-9391 or visit www.seabourn.com.
About Seabourn:
Seabourn represents the pinnacle of ultra-luxury ocean and expedition travel and operates a suite of six modern ships with one under construction. The all-inclusive, boutique ships offer all-suite accommodations with oceanfront views; award-winning dining; complimentary premium spirits and fine wines available at all times; renowned service provided by an industry-leading crew; a relaxed, sociable atmosphere that makes guests feel at home; a pedigree in expedition travel through the Ventures by Seabourn program and two new ultra-luxury purpose-built expedition ships, including Seabourn Venture that launched in 2022 and Seabourn Pursuit scheduled to enter service in 2023. Seabourn takes travelers to every continent on the globe, visiting more than 400 ports including marquee cities and lesser-known ports and hideaways. Guests of Seabourn experience extraordinary offerings and programs, including partnerships with leading entertainers, dining, personal health and wellbeing, and engaging speakers.
For more details about Seabourn, or to explore the worldwide selection of Seabourn cruising options, contact a professional travel advisor, call Seabourn at 1-800-929-9391 or visit www.seabourn.com.
Seabourn is a brand of Carnival Corporation and plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL and NYSE: CUK).
Find Seabourn on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest.
Notes to Editors:
Seabourn is consistently ranked among the world's top travel choices by professional critics and the discerning readers of prestigious travel publications such as Departures, Travel + Leisure and Condé Nast Traveler. Its stylish, distinctive cruising vacations are renowned for:
- Purpose-built expedition ships, PC6 ice-strengthened hull, with advanced maneuvering technology for superior stability, safety, and comfort
- World-class Expedition Team, delivering immersive experiences
- All veranda, all ocean-front suites luxuriously appointed
- Handcrafted itineraries developed for the expedition traveler to the most coveted and familiar remote destinations in the world
- Intimate ships with a private club atmosphere
- Intuitive, personalized service provided by staff passionate about exceeding guests' expectations
- Inclusive expedition experiences with Zodiacs, scuba diving and snorkeling
- Optional expedition experiences with kayaks and custom-built, 6-guest submarines giving the option to extend your expedition further for greater ocean exploration**
- Welcome toast and complimentary in-suite bar stocked with your preferences
- Hosted bridge policy* with Expedition team members providing firsthand access to the ship's command center and officers navigating your journey
- World-class dining venues are all complimentary, dine where, when and with whom you wish
- Tipping is neither required, nor expected
- Complimentary premium spirits and fine wines available on board at all times
- Meticulous and purposeful adventurers' resort at sea designed for the luxury traveler with unique attributes and spaces to enhance your experience
- Spa & Wellness with Dr. Andrew Weil, featuring an exclusive mindful living program**
- Committed to environmental stewardship and sustainability
*At the Captain's discretion
** Optional programs, for additional charge
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ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Broncos wide receiver Tim Patrick was carted off the field Monday with a left leg injury almost a year after he tore his right ACL at training camp.
There was no immediate word on the nature or extent of Patrick’s injury, but it appeared to be a serious setback for the 29-year-old who was embarking on a comeback after missing all of last season.
Patrick was participating in a 7-on-7 drill with the Broncos in full pads for the first time and his left leg buckled as he pushed off to run a route. He yelled out in pain and threw his helmet as coach Sean Payton, quarterback Russell Wilson and receiver Courtland Sutton were among the first to rush over to him.
He was helped onto a cart and taken inside the team’s headquarters as the crowd of some 3,000 fans fell silent.
Patrick was the team’s No. 1 receiver going into last season when he tore his right ACL in a noncontact drill on Aug. 2.
He was a projected starter again this summer even in a crowded wide receiver room that also features Jerry Jeudy, Sutton, rookie Marvin Mims Jr., Brandon Johnson, Marquez Callaway and Lil’Jordan Humphrey, among others.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:44
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CHICAGO (AP) — , A leading anti-abortion organization criticized Republican Ron DeSantis on Monday for not supporting a national ban on the procedure, calling the Florida governor's position "unacceptable" as he seeks the GOP nomination for president.
The president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, an influential player in conservative politics, took issue with DeSantis' statements in a recent interview in which he declined to back a national abortion ban. SBA President Marjorie Dannenfelser said the anti-abortion movement and Americans across the U.S. deserve a president who will "boldly advocate" for a ban on abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy.
“A pro-life president has a duty to protect the lives of all Americans. He should be the National Defender of Life," she said. “Gov. DeSantis’s dismissal of this task is unacceptable to prolife voters. A consensus is already formed. Intensity for it is palpable and measurable. There are many pressing legislative issues for which Congress does not have the votes at the moment, but that is not a reason for a strong leader to back away from the fight. This is where presidential leadership matters most."
DeSantis' campaign called the statement unjustified.
“Governor DeSantis delivers results and acts, especially when it comes to protecting life. He did so in Florida by signing the heartbeat bill and will be a pro-life president," Press Secretary Bryan Griffin said. "He does not kowtow to DC interest groups. This unjustified attack on him is another example of the DC political games that have seen conservatives falter in Washington while Governor DeSantis has produced unmatched conservative victories in Florida."
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America was responding to a recent interview in which Megyn Kelly asked DeSantis if he would support a national abortion ban. The U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned Roe v. Wade, the roughly 50-year-old ruling that established a federal right to abortion. Susan B. Anthony has said it would not support any White House candidate in 2024 who did not at a minimum support a 15-week federal ban.
In the interview, DeSantis noted he signed legislation in Florida to ban abortion at six weeks of pregnancy but suggested that individual states should decide the issue. He said he is “pro-life” but added that he is “running on doing things that I know I can accomplish.”
Democrats say the Supreme Court's decision and Republicans' focus on restricting abortion rights have helped motivate voters to favor more liberal candidates, and the party believes it will be a major factor again in 2024. Abortion rights were on the ballot in six states in 2022, and in every contest voters opted to protect them. In the battleground state of Wisconsin, a liberal candidate who made abortion rights a centerpiece of her campaign won an April election for a seat on the state's highest court.
A recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that the majority of U.S. adults want abortion to be legal at least through the initial stages of pregnancy. About two-thirds of Americans said abortion should generally be legal, but only about a quarter said it should always be legal and only about 1 in 10 said it should always be illegal.
About half of Americans say abortions should be permitted at the 15-week mark, though 55% of those living in states with the most restrictive laws say abortion should be banned by that point, the poll found.
The criticism from a powerful organization comes at a tenuous time for DeSantis, who is seen as the top rival to former President Donald Trump for the GOP presidential nomination, but who has been running a distant second to Trump in public polling. DeSantis' campaign has been working in recent weeks to improve his trajectory and reboot his campaign, including cutting staff.
He is not alone in drawing criticism from Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, however. The group also was critical of Trump for not supporting the 15-week federal ban.
Trump has defended that position, noting he appointed the Supreme Court justices who made it possible for Roe v. Wade to be overturned. Trump also has said that Republicans' focus on restricting abortion
Some other Republicans seeking the nomination support the national ban. Former Vice President Mike Pence said he would go further, endorsing a ban at six weeks of pregnancy, or before some women know they are pregnant.
He told The Associated Press that abortion should be banned when a pregnancy isn't viable — a standard that would force women to carry pregnancies to term even when doctors have determined there is no chance a baby will survive outside the womb.
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Associated Press reporter Michelle L. Price contributed from New York.
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:43
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WFPD arrests man for breaking windows on Jacksboro Highway
WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - 32-year-old Rico Martinez was arrested on Monday morning following several windows being shattered at businesses on Jacksboro Highway.
WFPD officers were first sent to burglary alarms at a local vape shop, where a front window had been broken. Security footage showed a man believed to be Martinez throwing rocks at the window.
An Advance Auto Parts and Pizza Hut had received similar damages; Martinez had thrown rocks and broken the front door of the Pizza Hut and a window in the Advance Auto Parts.
The total combined damages were determined to be around $9,000.
Martinez was later found and arrested by officers in the parking lot of United Supermarkets on Jacksboro Highway.
He is being held at the Wichita County Jail.
Copyright 2023 KAUZ. All rights reserved.
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Companies combine expertise to deliver innovative technology solutions for arenas, stadiums, convention and exhibition centers, and performing arts venues
TUCSON, Ariz., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Simpleview and ASM Global are pleased to announce a partnership created to provide a unified network of websites and technology solutions for the ASM Global portfolio of venues. The partnership was strategically designed to develop cohesive branding powered by a best-in-class technology stack and ticketing integrations that promote visitors and drive web conversions for arenas, stadiums, convention and exhibition centers, and performing arts venues.
Simpleview, a leading provider of CRM, CMS, and marketing solutions for destinations worldwide, and ASM Global, the world's leading venue management and services company, will serve the meetings and events ecosystem; by leveraging Simpleview's advanced technology and ASM Global's extensive global network, this partnership will enable clients to create captivating digital experiences that drive engagement and ticket sales and enhance venue marketing efforts.
Highlights of the partnership include:
- Enhanced Website Capabilities: a new generation of website solutions with state-of-the-art features and functionalities equipped with user-friendly content management systems, robust event and ticketing integrations, interactive mapping tools, and seamless integration with social media platforms
- Personalized Experiences: clients can deliver tailored content and offers to individual users, ensuring a highly personalized and engaging journey for every visitor
- Mobile-Optimized Design: prioritization of mobile optimization, ensuring that websites are fully accessible across all screen sizes and platforms
- Data-Driven Insights: comprehensive analytics and reporting gain insights into visitor behavior, marketing performance, and conversion rates so venues can make informed decisions and optimize marketing strategies effectively
"ASM Global is thrilled to work in partnership with Simpleview to create a cohesive, best-in-class website solution for our diverse global portfolio of stadiums, arenas, theaters, and convention centers," said Alex Merchán, chief marketing officer at ASM Global. "From the start of this relationship, Simpleview has impressed us with its tech stack, service offering, data-driven approach, and talented team. We look forward to building and scaling this partnership in the years ahead."
About Simpleview
Simpleview is a worldwide leading provider of CRM, CMS, website design, digital marketing services, and data insights for convention bureaus, venues, tourism boards, destination marketing organizations (DMOs), and attractions. The company employs staff across the globe, serving clients of all sizes, including small towns, world capitals, top meeting destinations, and countries across multiple continents.
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DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — The community is rallying around dozens of dogs rescued in Butler County.
Nearly three dozen dogs were found dead in freezers, and another 90 dogs were removed from two properties in Madison Township last week. Investigators said the dogs were found in “the most horrible conditions.”
The surviving animals are being cared for at Animal Friends Humane Society in Hamilton. This location has seen its busiest three-day stretch in 71 years, shelter officials said, with many people dropping off donations.
Authorities say an arrest warrant has been issued for Rhonda Murphy, who ran a rescue operation known as Helping Hands for Furry Paws.
She is facing dozens of charges of neglect and cruelty to companion animals.
None of the 90 rescued dogs are available to adopt yet. If you are interested, you can put your name on a waitlist.
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Updated July 31, 2023 at 4:09 PM ET
Pee-wee Herman, the comic creation of actor/writer Paul Reubens, would often toss taunts of the schoolyard into his casual conversation. It was one of the character's go-to bits.
"Why don't you take a picture? It'll last longer!"
"That's my name! Don't wear it out!"
And, most iconically,
"I know you are, but what am I?"
Of course, when it came to Pee-wee himself, with his tight gray suit, red bow tie, crew cut, rouged cheekbones and ruby-red lips, "What am I?" was the real question – it was the one he posed merely by existing.
Reubens died Sunday of cancer at the age of 70. He was an actor – but for a long time, he tried to convince the public that Pee-wee was a real person, not a character.
Folks didn't know what to make of Reubens' petulant man-child at first. Created in 1977, while Reubens was a member of the Los Angeles sketch troupe The Groundlings, Pee-wee was part prop comic, part brat and part trickster spirit. There was something fearless in Pee-wee, something unapologetic and brash that took you a second to process. The character was very obviously and intentionally what folks used to call a sissy – but how could a sissy own the stage like he did? Bask in the spotlight like he did? How could a sissy so confidently and explicitly dictate the terms for his audience on how to experience him?
The Pee-wee Herman Show at The Groundlings Theatre soon had LA hipsters lining up around the block for a midnight show that mixed puppets and parody with archival educational films – the precise fuel mixture that powered Reubens' later CBS Saturday morning show, Pee-wee's Playhouse.
It was never Peter Pan, what he was doing. Yes, Pee-wee was a boy who never grew up, but he was more than that — he was one singular adult's remembrance of what it was like being a kid. Specifically, of those parts of childhood we pretend not to see in our own children — the narcissism, the selfishness, the utter lack of basic human empathy. The monstrous bits.
In Pee-wee's Big Adventure, it manifested in his hilariously obsessive drive to recover his stolen bike — a quest which would cause him to trample on the feelings of friends like Amazing Larry (Lou Cutell) and Dottie (E.G. Daily). On Pee-wee's Playhouse, it took the form of gleeful admonitions to his viewers to "scream real loud" whenever anyone said the week's secret word. (Spare a thought for the long-suffering parents who'd hoped that sitting their kids in front of the TV would allow them a moment's peace to finish their coffee.) On 1988's magnificent holiday staple Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special, Reubens zeroed in kids' ravenous greed for presents, turning Pee-wee into a monster who only reluctantly sees the light once guilted into it. (Like Scrooge, he's a lot more fun to hang around with before his last-minute epiphany.)
To watch Pee-wee was to re-experience childhood the way we'd forgotten it actually was – pure, concentrated, distilled to its essence, when riding your bike and playing with your toys and screaming real loud was all it took to fill a day. Pee-wee was a creature of impulse, anarchy and id – which is probably why Reubens' frequent appearances on Late Night with David Letterman helped launch him to stardom.
Reubens' silliness worked on a different frequency than Letterman's – Pee-wee was wilder and far less inhibited than Letterman could ever hope to be, and Letterman knew to play up his own tetchy, aggrieved discomfort at Pee-wee's hijinks for comedic effect. The two men vibrated at opposite ends of the comedic spectrum, but they worked together brilliantly. In those interview segments, which quickly devolved into Pee-wee's signature giggles, you laughed at Reubens' ability to take complete control of the experience, and at Letterman's entirely uncharacteristic willingness to give over the reins.
In the coming days, our social media feeds will fill up with a lot of Pee-wee's greatest hits – Large Marge; "Tequila!"; Jambi the Genie; Chairy; Reubens' extended and entirely improvised death scene in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie; "I'm a loner, Dot. A rebel."; and, of course, "Come on, Simone. Let's talk about your big 'but.'"
Me, though, I'll be putting on the aforementioned Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special, because it will remind me of one of Reubens' most overlooked talents – his ability to sneak an artisanal blend of fey subversiveness into the mainstream. That special injected a defiantly, yet matter-of-fact, queer sensibility into the CBS primetime airwaves of Reagan's America: The Del Rubio Triplets! Zsa Zsa Gabor! Little Richard! Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon! KD Lang! Charo! The LA Men's Chorus dressed up as a Marine choir! And, most indelibly, Grace Jones as green Gumby, drag singing a club mix of "The Little Drummer Boy."
Keep your "I meant to do that." Keep your dancing on the biker bar to "Tequila." The image of Reubens that I'll be holding closest to my heart over the next few days is of him rocking out in the background as Jones sings in the glare of the spotlight.
Because I swear you can see, in just the way he holds his body, the mischievous delight he's taking in what he's unleashing on an unsuspecting public: Grace Jones, ladies and gentlemen, delivered unto your living rooms, pulling up to the bumper of your cozy family holiday special, an entirely singular brand of weirdness served up to you hot and fresh, with a high, unselfconscious giggle.
Jennifer Vanasco contributed to earlier versions of this story.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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BALTIMORE, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. (NASDAQ-GS: TROW) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.22 per share payable September 28, 2023, to stockholders of record as of the close of business on September 15, 2023.
ABOUT T. ROWE PRICE
Founded in 1937, T. Rowe Price (NASDAQ: TROW) helps people around the world achieve their long-term investment goals. As a large global asset management company known for investment excellence, retirement leadership, and independent proprietary research, the firm is built on a culture of integrity that puts client interests first. Investors rely on the award-winning firm for its retirement expertise and active management approach of equity, fixed income, alternatives, and multi-asset investment capabilities. T. Rowe Price manages $1.40 trillion in assets under management as of June 30, 2023, and serves millions of clients globally. News and other updates can be found on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and troweprice.com/newsroom.
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ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs need look no further than last season’s playoffs, and the sight of Patrick Mahomes hobbling to the sideline against the Jacksonville Jaguars with a high ankle sprain, to understand the importance in protecting their quarterback.
Yet oddly enough, they were OK watching both of their starting offensive tackles leave in free agency.
The big blow was the departure of left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., for whom the Chiefs paid the Ravens handsomely in a trade, when the two sides failed to reach an agreement on a long-term deal.
But nearly as painful was the loss of right tackle Andrew Wylie, who had gone from an afterthought fighting for a job to one of the more reliable players along the offensive line.
Rarely do the Chiefs make such moves without a plan, though. General manager Brett Veach acted quickly to sign ex-Tampa Bay tackle Donovan Smith to handle the left side and former Jacksonville tackle Jawaan Taylor to handle the right, then Veach used a third-round pick on Oklahoma’s Wanya Morris to create instant competition at both positions.
So far, Chiefs coach Andy Reid — an old offensive line coach — has liked what he’s seen.
“You’re never sure exactly what you’re going to get there,” Reid said, “but they’re competing and that’s important. That’s an important part of this, that you’re able to push through these practices, run and pass. I like the way they work their game.”
The decision to put Mahomes’ health in the hands of Smith and Taylor is a gamble, though. Neither of them graded out particularly well last season, depending on the metric you use, though both of them have shown flashes of high-level play in the past.
Smith, for example, ranked No. 66 among 81 offensive tackles by Pro Football Focus. Taylor was just one spot better.
But the Chiefs have established a track record of unlocking the potential in relatively unheralded players, particularly along the offensive line, where assistant coach Andy Heck is among the best in the business.
Wylie is a prime example: He was undrafted out of Eastern Michigan and wound up earning two Super Bowl rings in Kansas City before signing with Washington.
“All of us have played a lot of football and a lot of big games, tough games,” Taylor said. “We’re all smart mentally, physically. It’s just more so we’re tying in each and every individual aspect of who we are and how we play and tying it together and figuring out what works, what meshes. You know, just the many things we bring to the table per guy I would say is our strength.”
Another strength is having one of the best interior offensive lines in the NFL. Left guard Joe Thuney is considered one of the top five in the league at his position, right guard Trey Smith is likewise considered a top-tier guard, and center Creed Humphrey was picked for the Pro Bowl in just his second season in the league.
It also helps having Mahomes calling out the signals.
“Just a great leader man. He brings that energy every day, you know? He holds everybody accountable,” Donovan Smith said. “You mess up, we are going to redo it. Even in the walk-throughs and the learning periods, we always slow it down and we get to learn the offense. That’s been helping me a lot with the walk-throughs and learning the things they like doing here.”
The Chiefs were fortunate to overcome Mahomes’ ankle injury in the playoffs. He returned in the second half to lead them past Jacksonville in the divisional round, and he hobbled through an AFC title game-thriller against Cincinnati, before hurting the ankle again in the Super Bowl — and then leading the Chiefs past Philadelphia for the Lombardi Trophy.
The pressure is on the Chiefs’ new offensive tackles to prevent the same such stress this season.
NOTES: RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire returned to practice Monday after missing the previous two with an illness. … TE Jody Fortson (shoulder), WR Kadarius Toney (knee) and DE Mike Danna (calf) were among those that remained out. P Tommy Townsend also spent time in the medical tent, though no reason was given by the Chiefs. … DT Chris Jones continued his holdout. He has been fined $50,000 for each day missed, which brings the total to $550,000. … The Chiefs had a short practice Monday after three consecutive workouts in pads. They are off Tuesday before resuming camp Wednesday.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA is listening for any peep from Voyager 2 after losing contact with the spacecraft billions of miles away.
Hurtling ever deeper into interstellar space, Voyager 2 has been out of touch ever since flight controllers accidentally sent a wrong command more than a week ago that tilted its antenna away from Earth. The spacecraft's antenna shifted a mere 2%, but it was enough to cut communications.
Although it’s considered a long shot, NASA said Monday that its huge dish antenna in Canberra, Australia, is on the lookout for any stray signals from Voyager 2, currently more than 12 billion miles (19 billion kilometers) distant. It takes more than 18 hours for a signal to reach Earth from so far away.
In the coming week, the Canberra antenna — part of NASA's Deep Space Network — also will bombard Voyager 2’s vicinity with the correct command, in hopes it hits its mark, according to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the Voyager missions.
Otherwise, NASA will have to wait until October for an automatic spacecraft reset that should restore communication, according to officials.
Voyager 2 was launched in 1977 to explore the outer planets, just a couple weeks ahead of its identical twin, Voyager 1.
Still in touch with Earth, Voyager 1 is now nearly 15 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) away, making it humanity's most distant spacecraft.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations chief on Monday welcomed Kenya’s offer to “positively consider” leading a multinational police force to help combat Haiti’s gangs and improve security in the violence-wracked Caribbean nation.
Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry sent an urgent appeal last October for “the immediate deployment of a specialized armed force, in sufficient quantity” to stop the gangs. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has been appealing unsuccessfully since then for a lead nation to help restore order to Latin America’s most impoverished country.
Kenya’s Foreign Ministry said Saturday said its offer includes a commitment to send 1,000 police to help train and assist the Haitian National Police “restore normalcy in the country and protect strategic installations.” The ministry said it was responding to a request from the Friends of Haiti group of nations.
“Kenya stands with persons of African descent across the world, including those in the Caribbean, and aligns with the African Union’s diaspora policy and our own commitment to Pan Africanism, and in this case to `reclaiming of the Atlantic crossing,’” the ministry said.
Haiti’s gangs have grown in power since the July 7, 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse and are now estimated to control up to 80% of the capital. The surge in killings, rapes and kidnappings has led to a violent uprising by civilian vigilante groups.
U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said Guterres “welcomes Kenya’s positive response to his call” and expresses gratitude to Kenya for its “solidarity.”
The secretary-general calls on the U.N. Security Council to support a non-U.N. multinational operation in Haiti “and encourages member states, particularly from the region, to join forces from Kenya” in supporting the country’s police, Haq said.
Kenya’s Foreign Ministry said its proposed deployment will crystalize once the Security Council adopts a resolution giving a mandate for the force, and other Kenyan constitutional processes are undertaken.
A Kenyan task force plans to undertake an assessment mission to Haiti within the next few weeks which “will inform and guide the mandate and operational requirements of the mission,” it said.
Guterres, who visited Haiti in early July, called afterward for a robust international force to help the Haitian National Police “defeat and dismantle the gangs.”
He said the estimate by the U.N. independent expert for Haiti, William O’Neill, that up to 2,000 additional anti-gang police officers are needed is no exaggeration. O’Neill, who concluded a 10-day trip to Haiti in July, is an American lawyer who has been working on Haiti for over 30 years and helped establish the Haitian National Police in 1995.
The Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on July 14 asking Guterres to come up with “a full range of options” within 30 days to help combat Haiti’s armed gangs, including a non-U.N. multinational force, a possible U.N. peacekeeping force, additional training for the Haitian National Police and providing support to combat illegal arms trafficking to the country.
Compounding the gang warfare, which has spread outside the capital, is the country’s political crisis: Haiti was stripped of all democratically elected institutions when the terms of the country’s remaining 10 senators expired in early January.
The Security Council resolution, co-sponsored by the United States and Ecuador, “strongly urges” all countries to prohibit the supply, sale or transfer of weapons to anyone supporting gang violence and criminal activities.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Kenyan President William Ruto on Monday including about Kenya’s positive consideration to leading a multinational force in Haiti, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.
The United States takes over the rotating presidency of the U.N. Security Council for August on Tuesday, and Miller said the U.S. and Ecuador, as a first step, are going to introduce a resolution to authorize a non-U.N. multinational mission.
The second step is an assessment mission by Kenya, “which they plan to do in the coming days,” and then there will be talks with other countries about what additional assistance is needed, he said.
“We are committed to finding the resources to support this multinational force,” Miller said. “We’ve been a large humanitarian donor to relief efforts in Haiti for some time, and we have worked behind the scenes to find the lead nation to run this multinational force and are pleased that that has been successful.”
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Ellen Knickmeyer contributed to this report from Washington and Evelyne Musambi from Nairobi
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SoftwareReviews' latest Data Quadrant report highlights the top-rated CRM software solutions in the current market that are successfully harnessing the technological trends.
TORONTO, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - SoftwareReviews, a leading source for insights on the software provider landscape, has revealed its new 2023 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Data Quadrant Report, which highlights the top ten CRM solutions in the enterprise, midmarket, and small business spaces for the year.
In an era defined by digital transformation, organizations are strategically adapting to fortify their customer relationships, as corroborated by the recent 2023 Data Quadrant report from SoftwareReviews. The report and its list of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software points to the substantial expansion of the CRM industry as organizations strive to consolidate their customer experiences across various sectors, such as sales, marketing, and customer service.
"As digital technology and transformation further embed themselves into our personal and professional lives, our expectations for quality customer experience increase," says Robert Fayle, research advisory lead at Info-Tech Research Group. "With the advent of generative AI and other AI and machine learning technologies, customers now demand a personalized experience. To meet these demands, organizations need to procure CRM platforms that enable personal interactions and that are also heavily investing in the adoption of these new technologies."
Although CRM adoption has its challenges, including the need for organizational cultural shifts, extensive employee training, and stringent data privacy measures, the potential benefits are substantial. From improved customer service to streamlined marketing efforts and increased sales, well-executed CRM systems can be transformative.
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) is introducing a new dimension to CRM systems, automating routine tasks, predicting customer behaviors, and identifying potential sales leads. As the CRM industry continues to evolve rapidly, driven by technological advancements and the rising relevance of mobile and social CRM platforms, it underscores the importance of overcoming implementation challenges to fully harness the power of CRM in the digital economy.
The 2023 Enterprise Customer Relationship Management Software Gold Medalists are as follows:
- Zoho CRM, 8.6 CS, ranked high for ease of customization.
- Oracle PeopleSoft CRM, 8.4 CS, ranked high for business value creation.
The 2023 Midmarket Customer Relationship Management Software Gold Medalists are as follows:
- NetSuite CRM, 8.9 CS, ranked high for lead management.
- ActiveCampaign, 8.8 CS, ranked high for quality of features.
- Salesforce Sales Cloud Professional, 8.6 CS, ranked high for its breadth of features.
- Agile CRM, 8.6 CS, ranked high for ease of implementation.
- Sage CRM, 8.6 CS, ranked high for sales management.
The 2023 Small Business Customer Relationship Management Software Gold Medalists are as follows:
- ConvergeHub, 9.0 CS, ranked high for lead management.
- Less Annoying CRM, 8.9 CS, ranked high for usability and intuitiveness.
- Pipeliner CRM, 8.8, ranked high for ease of data integration.
Cloud-based CRM systems now offer the flexibility of remote access and management, while advanced analytics tools empower organizations to derive actionable insights from the overwhelming influx of customer data. Concurrently, mobile and social CRM platforms are gaining prominence as essential tools for successful customer engagement. As the digital landscape evolves, these innovative platforms will continue to redefine customer interaction and shape the future of customer relationship management.
The full report is now accessible on the firm's website, which is updated in real time to reflect new reviews and ratings.
User assessments of software categories on SoftwareReviews provide an accurate and detailed view of the constantly changing market. SoftwareReviews' reports are informed by data from users and IT professionals who have intimate experience with the software throughout the procurement, implementation, and maintenance processes.
For more information about SoftwareReviews, the Emotional Footprint, or the Data Quadrant, or to access resources to support the software selection process, visit softwarereviews.com
SoftwareReviews empowers organizations with the best data, insights, and advice to improve the software buying and selling experience.
For buyers, SoftwareReviews' proven software selection methodologies, customer insights, and technology advisors help maximize success with technology decisions. For providers, the firm helps build more effective marketing, product, and sales processes with expert analysts, how-to research, customer-centric marketing content, and comprehensive analysis of the buyer landscape.
SoftwareReviews is a division of Info-Tech Research Group, a world-class information technology research and advisory firm.
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PITTSFORD, N.Y. (AP) — Of the thousands of emotions — trepidation among them — running through Damar Hamlin’s head Monday while he pulled on his pads for practice for the first time at training camp, the one that ultimately won out was joy.
For everything the Buffalo Bills safety has overcome in seven months since going into cardiac arrest during a game and needing to be resuscitated on the field, Hamlin leaned on his faith in God and himself, along with the support from his family and teammates, to take another step toward resume his playing career.
“A super big hurdle as you can imagine. Like, I pretty much lost my life playing this sport,” Hamlin said at a news conference after practice.
“I made the choice to play. But I’m processing a thousand emotions. I’m not afraid to say that it crosses my mind of being a little scared here and there,” he added. “My faith is stronger than any fear. That’s what I want to preach up here. And that’s the message I want to spread on to the world that as long as your faith is stronger than your fear, you can get through anything.”
Though Hamlin was cleared to resume practicing in mid-April, he did so wearing a helmet and shorts with the rest of his teammates through their spring sessions and first four days of training camp, as mandated by NFL rules. The magnitude of the Bills’ first day in pads wasn’t lost on Hamlin, given it marked the first time he was in full uniform since collapsing on the field in Cincinnati on Jan. 2 after making what appeared to be a routine tackle of Bengals receiver Tee Higgins.
“Ah man, it feels amazing. It’s a roller coaster of emotions. I was kind of all over the place just being back for the first time,” Hamlin said. “Just trying to keep everything as normal as possible.”
The normality of football struck him about an hour into practice when Hamlin took the field for the first time during a team red-zone running drill in which tackling was still not allowed.
On his second play, Hamlin showed no hesitation when bursting toward Damien Harris and wrapping him up with both arms. A play later, running back James Cook broke a tackle before Hamlin joined a teammate in wrapping him up just before the goal line.
Hamlin’s biggest contact came on the final play of practice, when he avoided a block to work his way into the backfield and help a teammate stop tight end Quintin Morris for what would have been a loss.
“That first little moment of contact, that was just letting me know. I felt alive, man. I felt like I’m here,” Hamlin said with a wide grin. “So it felt good. It was just that moment of: ‘All right, let’s settle in and let’s just take one play at a time. Let’s just keep going.’”
Hamlin’s only lament was not having any balls thrown in his direction during team drills, though he laughed when saying that might not be a bad thing.
“When the ball’s not coming my way, that makes you think you’re doing your job right,” Hamlin said. “But, you know, I would love some more opportunities to make a big play and turn practice up a bit.”
The 25-year-old from the Pittsburgh area is entering his third NFL season. Selected by Buffalo in the sixth round of the 2021 draft out of Pitt, he opened last season as a backup before starting 13 games after Micah Hyde sustained a season-ending neck injury.
This year, Hamlin is competing with offseason free agent addition Taylor Rapp for a backup role behind Hyde and Jordan Poyer. As for Hamlin’s next hurdle, it’ll come Aug. 12, when the Bills open their preseason schedule at home against Indianapolis.
Rapp, who spent his first four NFL seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, might be new to Buffalo but is impressed with how Hamlin has handled himself.
“How far he’s come and what he’s able to come back from late last season and just seeing how he goes about himself and attacks the rehab at the facility is nothing short of inspiring,” Rapp said.
A day earlier, coach Sean McDermott said he was walking a fine line in treating Hamlin much like any other player, while keeping in mind what he’s gone through.
“I think awareness is important, right? You’ve got X amount of guys out here and then you have Damar in there as well and trying to make it as a normal as possible,” McDermott said. “We’re going to support him through this, and to this point he’s done a phenomenal job.”
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL
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https://www.cbs42.com/sports/ap-damar-hamlin-puts-aside-fear-and-practices-in-pads-for-the-first-time-since-cardiac-arrest/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:56
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This article was written by a human.
That's worth mentioning because it's no longer something you can just assume. Artificial intelligence that can mimic conversation, whether written or spoken, has been in the news a lot this year, delighting some members of the public while worrying educators, politicians, the World Health Organization, and even some of the people developing AI technology.
Misuse of AI is part of what actors and writers are striking about in Hollywood, and the threat of AI is something Hollywood was imagining long before it was real.
In 1968, for instance, the year before humans first set foot on the moon — and a time when astronauts still used pencils and slide rules to calculate re-entry trajectories because their space capsules had less computing power than a digital watch has today — Stanley Kubrick introduced movie audiences to a sentient HAL-9000 computer in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
HAL (for Heuristically Programmed Algorithmic Computer) introduced itself early in the film by saying, "No 9000 computer has ever made a mistake or distorted information. We are all, by any practical definition of the words, foolproof and incapable of error."
'Open the pod bay door, HAL'
So why was HAL acting so strangely? He (it?) was responsible for maintaining all aspects of a months-long space flight, ferrying astronauts to the moons of Jupiter. Programmed to run the mission flawlessly, the computer's behavior had become alarming, and two of the astronauts had decided to shut down some of its functions. Their plan was short-circuited when HAL, lip-reading a conversation they'd managed to keep him from hearing, cast one of them adrift while he was outside the ship repairing an antenna and refused to let the other back on board.
"Open the pod bay door, HAL" became one of the most quoted film lines of the decade when the computer responded, "I'm sorry, Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that. This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardize it."
It's hard to articulate what a genuine shock this was for 1960s movie audiences. There'd been films with, say, robots causing havoc, but they were generally robots doing someone else's bidding. Movie robots, at that point, were about brawn, not brain.
And anyway, malevolent robot stories were precisely the sort of B-movie silliness Kubrick was trying to avoid. So his intelligent machine simply observed (with an unblinking red eye) and, when addressed directly, spoke with a calm, modulated voice, not unlike the one that would be adopted four decades later by Siri and Alexa.
Darwin Among the Machines
Earlier literary notions of "artificial" intelligence — and there were not a lot of them at that point — hadn't really caught the public's imagination. Samuel Butler's 1863 article Darwin Among the Machines, is generally thought to be the origin of this species of writing, and it mostly just notes that while humankind invented machines to assist us — and remember, a really sophisticated machine in 1863 was the steam locomotive — we were increasingly assisting them: tending, fueling, repairing.
Over tens of thousands of years, Butler wondered, might humans not evolve in much the same way Darwin's study of natural selection had just established the rest of the plant and animal kingdoms do, to the point that we would become dependent on our devices?
But even when he incorporated that idea a decade later into a satirical novel called Erewhon, expounding for several chapters on self-replicating machines, Butler barely touched on the notion that those machines would develop consciousness. And neither did the influential 19th-century science fiction writers who followed him. H.G. Wells and Jules Verne invented plenty of unorthodox devices as they sent characters to the center of the Earth, and into space and the recesses of time, without ever considering that those devices might want to do things on their own.
The term "artificial intelligence" wasn't even coined (by American computer scientist John McCarthy) until about a dozen years before Kubrick made his Space Odyssey. But HAL made an impression on the public where scientists had not. Within just a couple of years, movie computers didn't just want spaceship domination; in Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970), they wanted to take over the world.
Malignant machines gone viral
And then this notion of technology-run-wild, ran wild. A high school student played by Matthew Broderick nearly started World War III in WarGames (1983) when he thought he was hacking a computer company's website but accidentally challenged the Pentagon's defense network to a quick game of "global thermonuclear war." The problem, it soon became clear, was that no one told the defense network they were just "playing."
Elsewhere, mechanical men stopped being all-brawn and got a new dispensation to think for themselves, something fiction had granted them before Hollywood got around to it.
In the 1940s, sci-fi novelist Isaac Asimov came up with "Three Laws of Robotics" that would theoretically keep "independent" machines in line. When Asimov's story I, Robot, was turned into a film a half-century or so later, those laws should have reassured Will Smith as he stared down thousands of bots. But he had good reason to be skeptical; he was fighting a robot rebellion.
The Terminator movies effectively put all these themes on steroids — cyborgs in the service of a computerized, sentient, civil-defense network called Skynet, designed to function without any human input. A "Nuclear Fire" and three billion human deaths later, what was left of humanity was engaged in a war against the machines that has so far consumed six films, a TV series, a pair of web series, and innumerable games.
And nuclear blasts weren't necessary to make machine intelligence alarming, a fact cyberpunk-noir established definitively in Blade Runner with its "replicants," and in a Matrix series that reduced all of humanity to a mere power source for machines.
Hollywood's still fighting that vision. Who knows what "The Entity" wants in Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning (presumably we'll find out next year in Part Two), but whatever it is, it won't bode well for humanity.
Hollywood concentrates on exploiting our fears — in the late 20th century, we worried about ceding control to technology. In the 21st century, we worry about losing control of technology.
It seems not to have occurred to Tinseltown that AI might do the things it's actually doing — make social media dangerous, or make undergrad writing courses unteachable, or screw up relationships by auto-completing incorrectly. None of those are terribly cinematic, so Hollywood concentrates on exploiting our fears — in the late 20th century, we worried about ceding control to technology. In the 21st century, we worry about losing control of technology.
Bring on the droids
Have there also been friendlier film visions of AI? Sure. George Lucas came up with lovable droids R2-D2 and C-3PO for Star Wars, and Pixar gave us Wall-E, a bot who was pluckily determined to clean up an entire planet we'd despoiled.
Spike Jonze's drama Her imagined a sentient, Siri-like personal assistant as a digital girlfriend. Star Trek's Data was not just a Next Generation android version of Mr. Spock, but also a sort of emotion-challenged Pinocchio.
And another Pinocchio — this one fashioned to stand the test of time — would have been Stanley Kubrick's own answer to the question he'd posed with HAL in 1968.
Kubrick labored for decades to hone the script for A.I. Artificial Intelligence, then just two years before he died, handed the project off to Steven Spielberg — the story of David, a robot child who has been programmed to love, and who ends up going beyond that programming.
"Until you were born," William Hurt's Professor Hobby told the bionic child he'd modeled on his own son, "robots didn't dream, robots didn't desire unless we told them what to want." The miracle, he went on, was that though David was engineered rather than born, he shared with humans "the ability to chase down our dreams...something no machine has ever done, until you."
That may not have been enough to make David a real boy, but it put a gentle face on what is perhaps our greatest fear about AI – that we are mortal, and it is not.
In the film, David outlives all of humanity, never growing up, never changing. And perhaps because he was played by Haley Joel Osment, or perhaps because Spielberg was calling the shots, or perhaps because the music swelled ... just so — it didn't feel the least bit threatening.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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| 2023-07-31T20:32:57
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NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — The world is levying economic sanctions over a coup against one of the West's last democratic partners against Islamic extremists in West Africa. Families in one of the world's poorest nations could pay the price.
In the capital of Niger, many people live in makeshift shelters tied together with slats of wood, sheets and plastic tarps because they can’t pay rent, and they scramble daily to make enough money to feed their children.
Salou Hassan and his family live in a two-room hut on the side of the road, along with some 140 people. The family sleeps on wooden slats close to the floor, with no electricity or running water, and they bathe in public showers.
“The most difficult part is finding food for my children,“ said Hassan, 30, whose sons are 5 and 6 years old.
Hassan sells water door to door, earning about $6 a day when things go well. His wheelbarrow’s been broken and he doesn’t have nearly $70 he needs to fix it. His wife sweeps stalls at the central market making less than half what Hassan does.
Hassan has hardly been aware that the country's president was overthrown.
“I’m looking for money for food for my family," he said.
Meanwhile, Niger's neighbors are threatening armed intervention against the junta run by the head of the presidential guard, although analysts say there is only a slim chance of the regional body successfully sending troops.
Both the United States and France have sent forces and hundreds of millions of military and humanitarian aid in recent years to Niger, which was a French colony until 1960. The French and the US train Nigerien forces, and the French military carries out joint operations in the north.
Since the coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum, people have been toting Russian flags and praising that country in pro-junta demonstrations.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Niger in March to strengthen ties and announce $150 million in direct assistance, calling the country "a model of democracy." France pulled out of Mali last year and has some 1,500 troops in Niger.
The West African regional body known as ECOWAS announced travel and economic sanctions against Niger on Sunday over the coup, and said they would use force if the coup leaders don't reinstate him within one week.
Since the 1990s, the 15-nation bloc has unsuccessfully tried to protect democracies against the threat of coups, with mixed success.
Niger relies heavily on foreign aid and sanctions could further impoverish its more than 25 million people. ECOWAS suspended all commercial and financial transactions between its member states and Niger, as well as freezing Nigerien assets held in regional central banks.
The sanctions could be disastrous and Niger needs to find a solution to avoid them, the country's Prime Minister Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou told French media outlet Radio France Internationale on Sunday.
“When people say there’s an embargo, land borders are closed, air borders are closed, it’s extremely difficult for people ... Niger is a country that relies heavily on the international community,” he said.
Four nations are run by military governments in West and Central Africa, where there have been nine successful or attempted coups since 2020.
In the 1990s, ECOWAS intervened in Liberia during its civil war, one of the bloodiest conflicts in Africa and one that left many wary of intervening in internal conflicts. In 2017, ECOWAS intervened in The Gambia to prevent the new president’s predecessor, Yahya Jammeh, from disrupting the handover of power. Around 7,000 troops from Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal entered the country, according to the Global Observatory, which provides analysis on peace and security issues. The intervention was largely seen as accomplishing its mission.
If the regional bloc uses force, it could trigger violence not only between Niger and ECOWAS forces but also between civilians supporting the coup and those against it, Niger analysts say.
While unlikely, "the consequences on civilians of such an approach if putschists chose confrontation would be catastrophic," said Rida Lyammouri, senior fellow at the Policy Center for the New South, a Morocco-based think tank.
Lyammouri does not see a “military intervention happening because of the violence that could trigger,” he said.
Blinken on Sunday commended the resolve of the ECOWAS leadership to “defend constitutional order in Niger” after the sanctions announcement, and joined the bloc in calling for the immediate release of Bazoum and his family.
The military junta, which seized power on Wednesday when members of the presidential guard surrounded Bazoum's house and detained him, is already cracking down on the government and civil liberties.
On Sunday evening it arrested four government officials, including the minister of petroleum and son of a former president; the minister of education; the minister of mines; and the president of the ruling party. The arrests were recounted to The Associated Press by a person close to the president, who was not authorized to speak about the situation, and a Nigerien analyst who did not want to be named for fear of reprisal.
Also Sunday, junta spokesman Col. Maj. Amadou Abdramane banned the use of social media to put out messages he describe as harmful to state security. He also claimed that Bazoum’s government had authorized the French to carry out strikes to free Bazoum, allegations that were not confirmed.
Observers believe Bazoum is being held at his house in the capital, Niamey. The first photos of him since the coup appeared Sunday evening, sitting on a couch smiling beside Chad's President Mahamat Deby, who had flown in to mediate between the government and the junta.
In anticipation of the ECOWAS decision Sunday, thousands of pro-junta supporters took to the streets in Niamey, denouncing France, waving Russian flags ong with signs reading "Down with France" and supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin and telling the international community to stay away. Protesters also burned down a door and smashed windows of the French Embassy, before the Nigerien army dispersed them.
France said Monday that President Emmanuel Macron is closely monitoring the situation in Niger and has discussed the crisis with regional leaders and European and international partners.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
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https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/nation-world/niger-will-face-sanctions-as-democracy-falls-apart-adding-to-woes-for-more-than-25-million-people/LMQQ2AUJ3BA7VAJ2NAGA3U2UG4/
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(KTLA) – The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the discovery of a body inside a 55-gallon drum in Malibu Lagoon on Monday.
A park worker first saw the drum floating by the Pacific Coast Highway bridge Sunday night but didn’t think much of it at the time, a spokesperson for the L.A. County Fire Department told Nexstar’s KTLA.
When lifeguards arrived at work Monday morning, they saw the drum in the lagoon and tried to pull it out at which point they discovered the body inside, officials said.
No information about the victim was immediately known.
KTLA helicopter footage showed the black plastic drum standing upright in shallow water and the beach appeared to be closed for the investigation.
Late last spring, a body was found in a barrel in Nevada’s Lake Mead. Authorities said the body may have been there for four decades but have not yet identified the victim, despite identifying other bodies that appeared due to receding water levels.
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https://www.wdtn.com/news/u-s-world/body-found-inside-55-gallon-drum-in-malibu/
| 2023-07-31T20:32:58
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MESA, Ariz., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Verra Mobility Corporation (NASDAQ: VRRM), a leading provider of smart mobility technology solutions, announced today that it will report financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023, after market close on August 9, 2023.
Verra Mobility's Chief Executive Officer, David Roberts, and Chief Financial Officer, Craig Conti, will host a conference call and live webcast to discuss financial results for investors and analysts at 5:00 p.m. ET on August 9, 2023.
To access the conference call, dial 1-888-886-7786 (U.S. toll-free) or 1-416-764-8658 (International) with conference ID 11014275 or click on the following link and request a return call: callme.viavid.com. A live webcast will be available on the Company's Investor Relations website at ir.verramobility.com.
An audio replay of the call will also be available until 11:59 p.m. ET on August 23, 2023, by dialing 1-844-512-2921 (U.S. toll-free), or 1-412-317-6671 (International) and entering passcode 11014275.
In addition, an archived webcast will be available in the "News & Events" section of Verra Mobility's Investor Relations website at ir.verramobility.com.
About Verra Mobility
Verra Mobility Corporation (NASDAQ: VRRM) is a leading provider of smart mobility technology solutions that make transportation safer, smarter and more connected. The company sits at the center of the mobility ecosystem, bringing together vehicles, hardware, software, data and people to enable safe, efficient solutions for customers globally. Verra Mobility's transportation safety systems and parking management solutions protect lives, improve urban and motorway mobility and support healthier communities. The company also solves complex payment, utilization and compliance challenges for fleet owners and rental car companies. Headquartered in Arizona, Verra Mobility operates in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. For more information, please visit www.verramobility.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements about Verra Mobility's plans, objectives, expectations, beliefs and intentions and other statements including words such as "hope," "anticipate," "may," "believe," "expect," "intend," "will," "should," "plan," "estimate," "predict," "continue" and "potential" or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. The forward-looking statements herein represent the judgment of the Verra Mobility, as of the date of this release, and Verra Mobility disclaims any intent or obligation to update forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated. This press release should be read in conjunction with the information included in Verra Mobility's other press releases, reports and other filings with the SEC and on the SEC website, www.sec.gov. Understanding the information contained in these filings is important in order to fully understand Verra Mobility's reported financial results and our business outlook for future periods. Actual results may differ materially from the results anticipated in the forward-looking statements and the assumptions and estimates used as a basis for the forward-looking statements.
Additional Information
We periodically provide information for investors on our corporate website, www.verramobility.com, and our investor relations website, ir.verramobility.com. We intend to use our website as a means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, investors should monitor our website, in addition to following the Company's press releases, SEC filings and public conference calls and webcasts.
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Jury poised to deliberate death penalty or life sentence for gunman in Pittsburgh synagogue massacre
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A jury is set to deliberate whether to impose the death penalty or a sentence of life in prison without parole on a man who spewed antisemitic hate before fatally shooting 11 worshippers at a synagogue in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community.
The same jurors who convicted 50-year-old Robert Bowers in June on 63 criminal counts listened to closing arguments Monday in the penalty phase of his federal trial, held nearly five years after the truck driver from suburban Baldwin perpetrated the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history.
Bowers defiled a place of worship when he entered the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle, shooting everyone he could find in a mass murder clearly motivated by religious hatred, said U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.
Bowers raved incessantly on social media about his hatred of Jewish people — using a slur for Jewish people some 400 times on a social media platform favored by the far right — and remains proud that he killed Jews, the prosecutor reminded jurors,
“Do not be numb to it. Remember what it means. This defendant targeted people solely because of the faith that they chose,” Olshan said.
He added: “This is a case that calls for the most severe punishment under the law: the death penalty.”
Bowers’ lead defense attorney, Judy Clarke, acknowledged the horror of his crimes but urged jurors to opt for a life sentence.
“What has happened cannot be undone. We can’t rewind the clock and make it that this senseless crime never happened. All we can do is make the right decision going forward. We are asking you to make the right decision, and that is life,” Clarke said in her closing argument.
A life sentence would mean that “prison is where Mr. Bowers will die in obscurity, not as a hero and not as a martyr,” she said.
Bowers’ attorneys have argued that he has schizophrenia, a serious brain disorder whose symptoms include delusions and hallucinations, and that Bowers attacked the synagogue out of a delusional belief that Jews were helping to bring about a genocide of white people by coming to the aid of refugees and immigrants. Clarke recounted Bowers’ history of psychiatric hospitalizations, including an extended stay in a residential juvenile mental health program.
The defense also presented evidence of Bowers’ difficult childhood.
Olshan disputed the defense experts’ diagnosis of schizophrenia, asserting that Bowers was not suffering psychosis but had chosen to believe white supremacist rhetoric. And while acknowledging that Bowers was a depressed, neglected child, Olshan downplayed the significance of it, noting that Bowers had held jobs, paid bills, and was an otherwise functioning adult.
“He was not a child, he was a grown man. He was responsible for his actions, not his family and things that happened decades earlier. He was, he is responsible for his actions,” Olshan said.
In order to impose death, jurors must find that aggravating circumstances, which make the crime especially heinous, outweigh mitigating factors that could be seen as diminishing his culpability. Those aggravating circumstances could include the vulnerability of Bowers’ elderly and disabled victims and his targeting of Jewish people.
Olshan played a composite of 911 calls made from inside the synagogue, including audio of people being shot and a survivor’s horrified screams.
He said Bowers had taken “11 people, 11 full lives, 11 people who loved their families, 11 people who loved their friends, 11 people who were loved. ... How do you measure the impact of all of that loss?”
The prosecutor spoke about 75-year-old Joyce Fienberg’s care for her family and 65-year-old Richard Gottfried’s devotion to his faith. He said Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, had the ethos of a country doctor: “He loved delivering babies but he never delivered judgment.” David Rosenthal, 54, and Cecil Rosenthal, 59, intellectually disabled brothers, “loved life,” Olshan said. “But maybe more than anything, they loved Tree of Life.”
The other deceased victims were Rose Mallinger, 97; Bernice Simon, 84, and her husband, Sylvan Simon, 86; Dan Stein, 71; Melvin Wax, 87; and Irving Younger, 69.
The attack also wounded seven people, including five responding police officers. Bowers was shot three times before surrendering when he ran out of ammunition.
___
Rubinkam reported from northeastern Pennsylvania.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:01
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida coach Billy Napier opened fall practice talking to his team about expectations — internal ones, anyway.
The once-mighty Gators are mostly an afterthought in the Southeastern Conference these days. Coming off consecutive 6-7 seasons — one in former coach Dan Mullen’s final season and the other in Napier’s inaugural campaign — Florida was picked to finish fifth in the Eastern Division in the league’s annual preseason media poll.
That’s one spot above last.
It was the lowest preseason prognostication for the Gators since also coming in fifth in 2015, former coach Jim McElwain’s first season. Florida responding by winning the East that year. Could it happen again? It would be an unbelievable long shot considering Napier pretty much has an overhauled roster after losing quarterback Anthony Richardson and 14 other starters.
“I really feel like we’re going to shock a lot of people this year as far as the standard is so low right now,” cornerback Jaydon Hill said. “It blows my mind a little bit. But then again, we’ve just got to win games. It just comes down to winning.”
Florida hasn’t won nearly enough for a fanbase that grew accustomed to it under legends Steve Spurrier and Urban Meyer. Although the Gators have enjoyed pockets of success since, they have yet to put it all together in terms of recruiting talent, developing players and building a consistent contender.
Napier had a detailed plan when he took over in November 2021, but it didn’t account for having to navigate a burgeoning transfer portal or a constantly changing name, image and likeness landscape.
So Napier sounds more like a coach entering their first year rather than one expecting the kind of second-year jumps that helped vault Spurrier and Meyer to stardom. He’s implemented several team-building exercises, including moving players into on-campus dorms for the opening week of training camp and rooming them with guys from other position groups.
They’ll eat every meal in an old-school dining hall — no phones allowed — and work on developing leadership as much as perfecting concepts, formations and plays.
“I think it’s important that we connect and try to create crossover relationships in all parts of what we do,” Napier said. “It’s absolutely important to what we do.”
Adding another layer to his unification efforts, Napier has a get-to-know-your-teammate initiative that requires players to be able to provide names and hometowns on the spot for 10 colleagues pictured.
“It’s one thing to know the guy’s first name, but it’s another thing to know his first and last name, where he’s from, part of his story, and I think with time we’ll get to that place,” Napier said. “But it’s about agreeing that there’s an expectation, and then, ‘Hey, if you can do better, you can do better.’ I think that’s the key to the drill. That’s where we’re at as a team.”
It’s a far cry from having to tamp down expectations of making the College Football Playoff or winning championships. No one’s ruled those out in Gainesville, but most would agree they seem more plausible down the road.
Florida returns seven starters from last year’s team and has a number of transfers to work into the mix. Quite possibly the main reason for Florida’s humble preseason forecast is because the team appears locked into starting former Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz, who completed 60% of his passes for 5,405 yards, with 38 touchdowns and 26 interceptions, in four years with the Badgers.
Florida lost four-star QB recruit Jaden Rashada in a failed NIL deal in January, leaving Mertz and former Ohio State backup Jack Miller to compete for the starting job. All signs point to Mertz taking the first snap when the Gators open the season at Utah on Aug. 31.
Although Napier appears to have Florida on the path back to national relevancy; the team’s 2024 recruiting class is ranked third behind Georgia and Ohio State, according to 247sports.com. In the meantime, the only expectations he’s focused on are the internal ones.
“The expectation we’re going to establish for each other … should be much higher than any outside narrative or outside opinion,” Napier said. “If I’m walking around the building each day, if I’m living life and I’m most concerned with not letting the people down that are going to be in this team meeting in a couple hours, that’s the most important piece.”
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/ap_top25. Sign up for the AP Top 25 newsletter here: https://link.apnews.com/join/6nr/morning-wire-newsletter-footer-internal-ads
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https://www.cbs42.com/sports/ap-florida-enters-year-2-under-billy-napier-amid-lowest-expectations-in-nearly-a-decade/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:02
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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Paul Reubens, the actor and comedian whose Pee-wee Herman character — an overgrown child with a tight gray suit and an unforgettable laugh — became a 1980s pop cultural phenomenon, has died at 70.
Reubens, who’s character delighted fans in the film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” and on the TV series “Pee-wee’s Playhouse,” died Sunday night after a six-year struggle with cancer that he kept private, his publicist said in a statement.
“Please accept my apology for not going public with what I’ve been facing the last six years,” Reubens said in a statement released Monday with the announcement of his death. “I have always felt a huge amount of love and respect from my friends, fans and supporters. I have loved you all so much and enjoyed making art for you.”
Created for the stage, Pee-wee with his white chunky loafers and red bow tie would become a cultural constant in both adult and children's entertainment for much of the 1980s, though an indecent exposure arrest in 1991 would send the character into entertainment exile for years.
The laugh that punctuated every sentence, catch phrases like “I know you are but what am I” and a tabletop dance to the Champs' song “Tequila” in a biker bar in “Pee-wee's Big Adventure” were often imitated by fans, to the joy of some and the annoyance of others.
Reubens created Pee-wee when he was part of the Los Angeles improv group The Groundlings in the late 1970s. The live “Pee-wee Herman Show” debuted at a Los Angeles theater in 1981 and was a success with both kids during matinees and adults at a midnight show.
The show closely resembled the format the Saturday morning TV “Pee-wee's Playhouse” would follow years later, with Herman living in a wild and wacky home with a series of stock-character visitors, including one, Captain Karl, played by the late “Saturday Night Live” star Phil Hartman.
HBO would air the show as a special.
Reubens took Pee-wee to the big screen with 1985’s “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure,” which takes the character outside for a nationwide escapade. The film, in which Pee-wee’s cherished bike is stolen, was said to be loosely based on Vittorio De Sica’s Italian neo-realist classic, “The Bicycle Thief.” Directed by Tim Burton and co-written by Hartman, the movie was a success, grossing $40 million, and continued to spawn a cult following for its oddball whimsy.
A sequel followed three years later in the less well-received “Big Top Pee-wee,” in which Pee-wee seeks to join a circus. Reubens’ character wouldn’t get another movie starring role until 2016’s Pee-wee’s Big Holiday,” for Netflix. Judd Apatow produced Pee-wee’s big-screen revival.
His television series, “Pee-wee’s Playhouse,” ran for five seasons, earned 22 Emmys and attracted not only children but adults to Saturday-morning TV.
Jimmy Kimmel posted on Instagram that “Paul Reubens was like no one else — a brilliant and original comedian who made kids and their parents laugh at the same time. He never forgot a birthday and shared his genuine delight for silliness with everyone he met.”
Both silly and subversive and championing nonconformity, the Pee-wee universe was a trippy place, populated by things like a talking armchair and a friendly pterodactyl. The host, who is fond of secret words and loves fruit salad so much he once married it, is prone to lines like, “Why don’t you take a picture; it’ll last longer?” The act was a hit because it worked on multiple levels, even though Reubens insists that wasn’t the plan.
“It’s for kids,” Reubens told The Associated Press in 2010. “People have tried to get me for years to go, ‘It wasn’t really for kids, right?’ Even the original show was for kids. I always censored myself to have it be kid-friendly.
“The whole thing has been just a gut feeling from the beginning," Reubens told the AP. "That’s all it ever is and I think always ever be. Much as people want me to dissect it and explain it, I can’t. One, I don’t know, and two, I don’t want to know, and three, I feel like I’ll hex myself if I know.”
Reubens' career was derailed when he was arrested for indecent exposure in an adult movie theater in Sarasota, Florida, the city where he grew up. He was handed a small fine but the damage was incalculable.
He became the frequent butt of late-night talk show jokes and the perception of Reubens immediately changed.
“The moment that I realized my name was going to be said in the same sentence as children and sex, that’s really intense," Reubens told NBC in 2004. "That’s something I knew from that very moment, whatever happens past that point, something’s out there in the air that is really bad.”
Reubens said he got plenty of offers to work, but told the AP that most of them wanted to take "advantage of the luridness of my situation"," and he didn't want to do them.
“It just changed,” he said. "Everything changed.”
He did take advantage of one chance to poke fun at his tarnished image. Just weeks after his arrest, he would open the MTV Video Music Awards, walking on to the stage alone and saying, “Heard any good jokes lately?” (Herman appearances on MTV had fueled Pee-wee’s popularity in the early 1980s.)
In 2001, Reubens was arrested and charged with misdemeanor possession of child pornography after police seized images from his computer and photography collection, but the allegation was reduced to an obscenity charge and he was given three years probation.
Born Paul Rubenfeld in Peekskill, New York, in 1952, the eldest of three kids, he grew up in Sarasota where his parents ran a lamp store and he put on comedy shows for neighbor kids.
After high school he sought to study acting. He spent a year at Boston University, and was then turned down by the Juilliard School and Carnegie-Mellon University. So he enrolled at the California Institute of the Arts. That would lead to appearances at local comedy clubs and theaters and joining the Groundlings.
After the 1991 arrest, he would spend the decade playing primarily non-Pee-wee characters, including roles in Burton’s 1992 movie “Batman Returns,” the “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” film and a guest-star run on the TV series “Murphy Brown.”
He also appeared in the 1999 comedy film “Mystery Men" and Johnny Depp's 2001 drug-dealer drama “Blow.”
Reubens — who never lost his boyish appearance even in his 60s, would slowly re-introduce Pee-wee, eventually doing a Broadway adaptation of “The Pee-wee Herman Show” in 2010, and the 2016 Netflix movie.
Reubens was beloved by his fellow comedians, and fans of Pee-wee spanned the culture.
Director Guillermo del Toro tweeted Monday that he was “one of the patron saints of all misfitted, weird, maladjusted, wonderful, miraculous oddities.”
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Associated Press Writer Alicia Rancilio and Film Writer Jake Coyle contributed to this report.
Credit: Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP
Credit: Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP
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https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/nation-world/pee-wee-herman-actor-and-creator-paul-reubens-dies-from-cancer-at-70/GPBTGM7Y2NB6PMFVY46AN4PS5I/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:03
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PORT ANGELES, Washington (WJW) – An 8-year-old child was attacked by a cougar at Olympic National Park’s Lake Angeles on Saturday evening.
The child was with their family at Lake Angeles, south of Port Angeles, when the attack happened Saturday night, the National Park Service said Monday.
“The cougar casually abandoned its attack after being yelled and screamed at by the child’s mother,” NPS wrote in a news release. The child suffered only minor injuries and was taken to a local hospital for evaluation.
Park officials then evacuated the remaining campers in the Lake Angeles area, closing the space and Heather Park to the public. Olympic National Park wildlife biologist Tom Kay said in a statement that the decision to close the Lake Angeles Trail, Heather Park Trail, Switchback Trail, and the entire Klahhane Ridge Trail was made “out of an abundance of caution.”
Early Sunday morning, park law enforcement and wildlife personnel who specialize in cougar tracking were dispatched to the last known location of the cougar at Lake Angeles, the park service reported. If located, the cougar will be euthanized and removed from the park for a necropsy.
“This may provide clues as to why the animal attacked since cougars are rarely seen and attacks on humans are extraordinarily rare,” park officials said. “Olympic National Park has extensive protocols in place for wildlife observations, interactions, and attacks and the lethal removal of this cougar is in line with these protocols.”
Because Olympic National Park is considered “cougar territory,” NPS recommends visitors be prepared for the encounter. They should not hike or jog alone, and children should remain near adults. Pets should also be left at home.
Should you encounter a cougar, you should remain calm and avoid running, according to wildlife experts. Do your best to appear as large as possible, continue watching the animal, and be loud. NPS also recommends throwing items like rocks or sticks at the cougar.
There have been no recent deaths caused by cougars in Olympic National Park, according to NPS data.
It’s not the first wildlife attack in the national parks this year, though.
Last week, a woman was found dead after an “apparent bear encounter” near Yellowstone National Park. Earlier this month, a woman in the park suffered “significant injuries” after being gored by a bison.
The park warns that between mid-July and mid-August, bison are in mating season and “can become agitated more quickly.”
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https://www.wdtn.com/news/u-s-world/child-8-attacked-by-cougar-in-olympic-national-park-saved-by-mother/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:04
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Funding by California Transportation Commission and Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
LONG BEACH, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On the heels of opening the nation's largest public charging depot for electric commercial trucks at the Port of Long Beach, WattEV announced today it has secured $40.5 million in grants to further expand its growing network of electric truck stops into Northern California and Oregon.
WattEV, the industry leader in heavy-duty freight electrification, has been awarded two separate grants: one for a solar-powered truck charging depot across Interstate 5 from the airfreight hub adjacent to Sacramento International Airport, and another for a grid-connected charging depot along Interstate 5 in Salem, Ore.
WattEV has secured a $34 million federal grant through the California Transportation Commission to build and operate what will become the nation's largest electric charging depot on more than 100 acres of land immediately south of Sacramento International Airport (SMF) on Interstate 5.
The SMF project is expected to open in mid- to late-2025 with 15.6 MW of solar power supplemented by 7.2 MW of grid power supplied by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District.
The SMF depot will have 30 DC fast chargers for passenger vehicles, 90 high-power CCS-1 cords for medium- and heavy-duty commercial electric vehicles, and 18 megawatt cords for pass-through charging of HD trucks using the upcoming Megawatt Charging Standard (MCS).
"We're proud to partner with WattEV as they continue to advance transition of U.S. trucking transport to zero emissions," said Cindy Nichol, Director of Sacramento County Department of Airports. "Sacramento International Airport's proximity to one of largest goods distribution centers in the state makes this an ideal location to serve California's 'electric highway.'"
WattEV was also awarded $6.5 million from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality to build a 6-acre EV charging depot. The Salem, Ore., site will be grid-connected in cooperation with Portland General Electric.
Planning for the Salem electric truck stop includes 30 CCS 240 KW chargers and six MCS 1200 KW chargers. It's expected to open in 2025 as well.
"These grant awards will allow us to meet our plans to expand our network of electric-truck charging depots from the Mexican border to Portland, Oregon, via Interstate 5, on what government planners and industry stakeholders are calling the 'electric highway,'" explained WattEV co-founder and CEO Salim Youssefzadeh.
The grant for the SMF project comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation's "Trade Corridor Enhancement Program," which distributes funding through state transportation agencies.
"We're building out the West Coast corridor while also reaching eastward along the I-10 toward Arizona and Texas and, eventually, to the East Coast," Youssefzadeh said. "To expand the WattEV network, we'll match our grants with private capital to fund this massive infrastructure buildout."
WattEV selects the locations of its charging depots based on analysis of freight routes, range of electric trucks and energy supply.
"We picked our site in Sacramento because of its strategic location next to the Metro Air Park Logistics Center, where more than 10-million square-feet of warehouse space is planned," said Youssefzadeh, "and its close proximity to downtown Sacramento – just 10 minutes away."
Sacramento County and surrounding areas contain one of the largest concentrations of California's goods distribution centers, serving many of the largest shippers in the country.
The Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District (Sac Metro Air District) has committed to working closely with WattEV on the project as it will have significant air quality benefits for Sacramento.
"Emissions from fossil-fuel powered cars and trucks are the largest source of air pollution in the Sacramento region," said Sac Metro Air District Transportation and Climate Change Program Manager Raef Porter. "Over the past 25 years, the Air District has invested $300 million in clean air projects. We're proud to continue that commitment by partnering with WattEV on this transformative solar-powered, electric charging depot. Building new electric vehicle infrastructure is imperative to the successful transition to clean transportation and ensuring a clean air and low carbon future for all."
The SMF depot will initially serve as a charging hub for local and regional distribution centers, and later as a depot serving the north-south freight corridor stretching from WattEV's newly opened charging depot in the Port of Long Beach, connecting to Oregon and Washington state.
"We not only have the demand for regional distribution in Sacramento County," Youssefzadeh explained, "but we also have existing shippers asking us to transport freight from their logistic centers in the Los Angeles area to distribution centers of retailers in Sacramento."
About WattEV
WattEV's mission is to accelerate the transition of U.S. trucking transport to zero emissions. It relies on a combination of business and technology innovations to create charging infrastructure and data-driven workflow that provide truckers and fleet operators the lowest total cost of ownership. WattEV's goal is to get 12,000 heavy-duty electric trucks on California roads by the end of 2030, exceeding existing forecasts. More information is available online at www.WattEV.com.
About the Sac Metro Air District
The Sac Metro Air District is the leading Sacramento region agency responsible for monitoring air quality, reducing air pollution, enforcing air quality regulations, and promoting decarbonization efforts through innovative incentive programs and projects. The Air District also works to ensure clean air and meet National Ambient Air Quality standards. For more information about the Air District, please visit www.AirQuality.org.
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https://www.wagmtv.com/prnewswire/2023/07/31/wattev-awarded-405-million-build-truck-charging-depots-northern-california-oregon-along-electric-highway/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:06
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The nights before games were always the toughest times for Darrelle Revis.
One of the NFL’s most dominant cornerbacks would lie in bed thinking about what he needed to accomplish the next day on the field. Revis would go over the game plan, the notes from his film studies, the receivers’ routes and their tendencies.
Over and over until he’d fall asleep.
He’d wake up mentally prepared — and that brief anxiety would be replaced by supreme confidence.
“Restless nights, I’d say to start with,” Revis said. “Covering some of the greatest wide receivers in the game and future Hall of Famers at that time, I was probably the most nervous out of anybody on the field if I had that assignment.
“For me, it’s kind of looking at yourself in the mirror and saying to yourself, ‘It’s either me or him. I just have to stand up to the challenge.’ For me, I just took on the responsibility to take that assignment and try to shut him down.”
Revis did exactly that for most of his brilliant 11-year NFL career, including eight seasons over two stints with the New York Jets.
So much so, he earned the popular “Revis Island” nickname, a fitting tribute to how he’d single-handedly make many receivers disappear — lost on an island — from opponents’ game plans.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime type corner,” former Jets coach Rex Ryan once said. “And that’s a fact.”
Tough to argue, and voters for the Pro Football Hall of Fame made Revis a first-ballot inductee following a career during which he routinely locked down one side of the field with his air-tight coverage.
He also gave plenty of opposing offensive coordinators plenty of restless nights of their own.
“I just felt I had the ability and skill set and the coaching staff who believed in me that I had the ability to shut them down,” Revis said.
That was perhaps most evident during the 2009 season, when Revis had arguably the greatest year at his position.
Ever.
Randy Moss, Chad Johnson, Andre Johnson, Steve Smith, Terrell Owens, Reggie Wayne and Roddy White were all non-factors against the Jets that season — because they couldn’t shake Revis.
“I shouldn’t have even suited up,” Wayne said after having just a 1-yard catch in Indianapolis’ playoff loss to New York that season.
Green Bay cornerback Charles Woodson won the AP Defensive Player of the Year award that year, but Ryan insisted Revis should’ve been the choice after having “the best year a corner has ever had.”
Revis had six interceptions and set an NFL record that still stands with 31 passes defensed that season. He never really came close to matching those marks in any season the rest of his career — because teams simply stopped throwing his way.
That was the ultimate sign of respect.
“It was a very comforting thing as a player that we’d have a guy that can take away the greatest weapon of the other team’s offensive players,” former Jets center and long-time teammate Nick Mangold said. “So it was very much like a security blanket, like, we’ve got him, so we’re good.”
Revis was drafted by the Jets out of the University of Pittsburgh with the 14th overall pick in 2007 when they traded up 11 spots to add a player they believed could change their defense. And he certainly delivered, making an instant impact under coach Eric Mangini before thriving as the heart of Ryan’s defense.
“One of the highlights for me is just being drafted,” Revis said. “Just fulfilling that dream. Just the hills I had to run at an incline, the abs, the pushups, the overtime, just put into everything to try to even dare myself to be one of the best or one of the greatest or amount to be somewhat of the next Deion Sanders, in a way.”
The comparisons quickly became a regular thing for Revis, whose abilities were often measured up against the likes of Sanders, Woodson, Rod Woodson, Ty Law, Champ Bailey and Mel Blount.
Until the debates began about whether Revis was actually the best cornerback ever.
That’s subjective, of course, with some pointing out Revis’ relatively short period of greatness. A knee injury wiped out his 2012 season and a contract dispute — he had a few of those, helping set the market for cornerbacks — ended with him being traded to Tampa Bay the following offseason.
Revis won a Super Bowl the next year with New England, irking Jets fans, but he returned to New York in 2015 and played two more seasons for his original team. After a short stint with Kansas City in 2017, Revis retired. He was inducted into the Jets’ ring of honor last year.
His playing legacy came with his performance in games, but he built a reputation for striving to be great with his intense approach during practice. Revis would get on teammates who weren’t giving their all, and his goal was to not give up a catch to anyone.
And if he did, Revis would be ticked off. About catches that didn’t even count — to everyone other than Revis.
“Every practice, to him, was a game,” Mangold said. “So he was going out there and no one was going to catch a ball on him. It was the result of his competitive nature. He was always working to win.”
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL
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https://www.cbs42.com/sports/ap-revis-shut-down-his-nerves-and-then-the-nfls-best-wide-receivers-on-his-way-to-the-hall-of-fame/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:08
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BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Two pipeline operators have agreed to pay a $12.5 million civil penalty related to crude oil spills in Montana and North Dakota.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday announced the settlement in a 2022 federal court lawsuit. Belle Fourche Pipeline Company and Bridger Pipeline LLC will pay the $12.5 million to resolve the claims made under the Clean Water Act and Pipeline Safety Laws, EPA said. The affiliated companies own and operate oil pipelines in Montana, North Dakota and Wyoming.
In 2015, Bridger's Poplar Pipeline broke and spilled more than 50,000 gallons (about 190,000 liters) of crude into the Yellowstone River near Glendive, Montana. Bridger has completed cleanup of the site, and in 2021 settled a lawsuit with federal and Montana authorities for $2 million.
In 2016, Belle Fourche's Bicentennial Pipeline in Billings County, North Dakota, broke due to a landslide and spilled over 600,000 gallons (about 2.3 million liters) of oil, impacting an unnamed tributary, Ash Coulee Creek and the Little Missouri River. Belle Fourche's cleanup is ongoing with oversight from North Dakota's Department of Environmental Quality, according to EPA.
Belle Fourche also will pay the state's past response costs, totaling over $98,000, according to court documents filed Monday.
“Oil pipeline spills can cause enormous and long-lasting damage to the environment,” Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance said in a statement. “This settlement holds Belle Fourche and Bridger Pipeline accountable for their significant oil spills and requires them to take meaningful measures to prevent future spills from their oil pipelines.”
The operators also are required to implement specified compliance measures, in addition to the civil penalty.
Belle Fourche and Bridger are owned by Wyoming-based True Companies, whose spokesman, when reached by email, did not have an immediate comment on the agreement.
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https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/nation-world/pipeline-operators-to-pay-125m-after-spills-in-montana-north-dakota/CUMYMCABJVFQFGLMTWFDUFUOMQ/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:10
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BOISE, Idaho (KTVX) – Lori Vallow Daybell, convicted of murdering her children, among other crimes, was sentenced to five life sentences in prison Monday with no possibility of parole. This sentencing brings closure to nearly four years of investigation and a trial.
Daybell, 49, was found guilty of murder, and conspiracy to commit murder of her children Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 16. She was also convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in the death of Tammy Daybell, the former wife of her husband, Chad Daybell. Additionally, Lori was found guilty of grand theft.
Lori was sentenced to five life sentences without the possibility of parole, three of which will run consecutively, for her involvement in their murders and the conspiracy to commit murder. While many called for the death penalty, it was ruled out by a judge in March 2023 prior to her murder trial.
The case began in 2018 when Lori and Chad met at a religious conference in St. George. They became close friends, and even lovers, though both were married to other people. In July 2019, Lori’s husband Charles Vallow was killed by her brother, and it was declared self-defense, but later identified as a homicide.
Then in late-2019, Lori’s two children went missing — a case that captivated the United States. And while investigators were frantically searching for the kids, Lori and Chad were in Hawaii getting married.
Chad’s wife Tammy died a few weeks before Lori and Chad ran to Hawaii, but after the children went missing. Her death was originally ruled natural causes but later declared asphyxiation at the hands of another after her body was exhumed.
In February 2020, Lori was arrested on charges of desertion and nonsupport of dependent children. In April, Lori and Chad were both under investigation for conspiracy, attempted murder, and murder. They both pleaded not guilty.
During the final stages of the investigation leading up to their scheduled trials in January 2023, Tylee and JJ’s remains were found buried on Chad’s property.
Because of the large amount of evidence discovered, and the fact that Chad waived his right to a speedy trial, he will face his charges in April 2024. However, Lori did not waive her right to a speedy trial and appeared in court on April 2023, where she was found guilty on all charges.
Now, in July 2023, nearly four years after Lori’s children were murdered, she was sentenced to life in prison on all counts.
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https://www.wdtn.com/news/u-s-world/lori-vallow-daybell-given-5-life-sentences-in-prison-for-murders-of-her-two-children/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:10
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ENGLEWOOD, Colo., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- WOW! Internet, TV & Phone (NYSE: WOW), a leading broadband provider in the United States, announced today it will host a webcast and conference call on Tuesday, August 8, 2023, at 8:00 a.m. ET to discuss financial and operating results for the second quarter 2023. WOW! will issue a news release reporting its results earlier that morning.
The conference call will be broadcast live on the company's investor relations website at ir.wowway.com. Those parties interested in participating via telephone should dial (888) 330-3556 with the conference ID number 4844814. International callers should dial (646) 960-0826 and use the same conference ID number.
A replay of the call will be available August 8, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. ET, on the investor relations website or by telephone. To access the telephone replay, which will be available until August 22, 2023, at 11:59 p.m. ET, please dial (800) 770-2030 or (647) 362-9199 and use conference ID 4844814.
About WOW! Internet, TV & Phone
WOW! is one of the nation's leading broadband providers, with an efficient and high-performing network that passes nearly 2 million residential, business and wholesale consumers. WOW! provides services in 15 markets, primarily in the Midwest and Southeast, including Michigan, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, including the new all-fiber network in Central Florida. With an expansive portfolio of advanced services, including high-speed Internet services, cable TV, home phone, mobile phone, business data, voice, and cloud services, the company is dedicated to providing outstanding service at affordable prices. WOW! also serves as a leader in exceptional human resources practices, having been recognized 10 times by the National Association for Business Resources as a Best & Brightest Company to Work For in the Nation, winning the award for the last six consecutive years and making the 2022 Top 101 National Winners list. Visit wowway.com for more information.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:12
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Updated July 31, 2023 at 4:14 PM ET
Judge Steven Boyce sentenced Lori Vallow Daybell to multiple fixed life terms in prison with no possibility of parole on Monday, handing down punishment for murdering two of her children and conspiring to murder a romantic rival.
The judge ordered Vallow Daybell to serve the prison terms consecutively rather than concurrently, saying it is important for her to be punished for each death.
Vallow Daybell, 50, was found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy charges in May, as a jury agreed with prosecutors who said she wanted to eliminate her youngest children as part of a plan to embark on a new life with Chad Daybell, as well as conspiring to murder Daybell's previous wife, Tammy Daybell.
"You chose the most evil and destructive path possible," despite having a wealth of better, less harmful, options, Boyce told Vallow Daybell. He juxtaposed her enjoyment of a honeymoon in Hawaii with her children lying in shallow graves in Idaho.
Her children — Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow — had been "burned, mutilated and dismembered, and buried like animals," Boyce said.
The judge noted the "disgust" he saw on jurors' faces during the trial. The scene was horrific, Boyce said, adding that while law enforcement, jurors and he himself will be haunted by images of the children's bodies, he saw no sign that Vallow Daybell feels any remorse.
The lengthy trial was full of strange and shocking moments. Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell was motivated by arcane religious beliefs about "dark energy" and the "end times," and by her desire to pursue a life with her new husband, Chad Daybell — including conspiring to kill his late wife.
Vallow Daybell says her children and Daybell visit her
For the first time in the trial, Vallow Daybell gave an accounting of her own actions, speaking in court for roughly 8 1/2 minutes. But she insisted she is not guilty of murder and said her victims have visited her in spiritual form and are happy in the afterlife.
"Jesus knows me, and Jesus understands me," Vallow Daybell said, adding that she mourns those who died. But, she added, "Jesus Christ knows that no one was murdered in this case."
Vallow Daybell said she underwent a personal transformation in 2002, when she says she had a near-death experience while giving birth to Tylee.
"I had access to Heaven, and the spirit world," she said, adding that while she was tempted to remain in the afterlife, she returned to her body. "Since then, I have had many communications from people now living in Heaven, including my children" and other relatives, she said.
"I know for a fact that my children are happy and busy in the spirit world," Vallow Daybell told the court, reading from a statement. She added that her "friend" Tammy Daybell is "also very happy and extremely busy."
Vallow Daybell said, "Tylee has visited me. She is happy ... and free now," adding that her son also visited her as "an adult spirit" who was very tall and is thriving in the afterlife.
When she finished her remarks, the judge asked Vallow Daybell if she was "fully satisfied" with the representation her attorneys had given her during the trial. She said she was.
Defense asked for concurrent sentences
Judge Boyce handed down his sentence after hearing five victim impact statements from relatives of Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow, Vallow Daybell's children, whose bodies were found in 2020; from relatives of Tammy Daybell, the previous wife of Chad Daybell — who also faces charges in all three deaths.
Later, Thomas urged Boyce to impose on his client a 20-year fixed term with an "indeterminate" life sentence, with her prison time set to run concurrently.
Prosecutor Rob Wood asked for the maximum sentence — several fixed life terms without the possibility of parole — saying Vallow Daybell had betrayed her children's trust in a horrific manner.
The children's bodies were found in 2020
A jury found Vallow Daybell guilty of killing her two youngest children, Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow. Tylee was nearly 17 when she and JJ, 7, were last seen alive in September 2019. The children's bodies were found in June 2020, buried on property in Rexburg, Idaho, owned by Chad Daybell.
Even before the remains were found, Vallow Daybell was charged with felony desertion of a child and obstruction. Prosecutors said she didn't report her children missing so she could keep collecting benefit payments.
Vallow Daybell was also found guilty of conspiring to murder Tammy Daybell, Chad's then-wife, who was found dead in her home in October 2019 — less than one month before he and Vallow got married in Hawaii. He is Vallow Daybell's fifth husband.
'Zombie' beliefs arose during trial
In court documents, Vallow Daybell's close friend Melanie Gibb described hearing her say that Tylee had become a zombie — a concept Vallow Daybell had picked up from Daybell.
Gibb said she heard Vallow Daybell call Tylee a zombie after Tylee had refused to babysit JJ — to which Tylee replied, "Not me, mom," according to a police affidavit. Gibb said Vallow Daybell later concluded that JJ had also become a zombie.
Prosecutors also said Daybell and Lori Vallow Daybell portrayed themselves as religious figures called "James and Elaina." And they purported to be able to "rate" people, detecting whether they might be under the thrall of an evil spirit's dark energy.
Tammy Daybell's family speaks out
In a victim impact statement, Samantha Gwilliam, Tammy Daybell's sister, said her family has been "ripped apart," thrust into grief, suspicion and sadness by Tammy's unexpected death at 49. It deepened, she said, when the family learned Chad Daybell was remarrying just weeks later, in a Hawaii ceremony with Lori Vallow.
The more she learned about Vallow, Gwilliam said, she found only "lies" — from Vallow Daybell's claim that her most recent husband had died of a heart attack to her saying she and Chad would be "empty nesters," with no young children.
It was only when Tammy Daybell was disinterred and an autopsy was performed, Gwilliam said, that the family began to "get some answers and some truth, after so many lies." That truth, she added, was that Tammy Daybell was both an obstacle for Vallow Daybell and a way to profit from her death, through an insurance policy.
Weeping in court, Gwilliam described how her family's relationships with Chad and Tammy Daybell's children has become strained. She also read a statement from Tammy's father, recounting the toll Vallow Daybell's actions took on his wife, who died earlier this year.
At one point, Gwilliam compared her sister, a librarian and educator, to Vallow Daybell.
"Because of the choices you made, my family lost a beloved mother, sister, aunt and daughter. She is irreplaceable," she said. "She was 1,000 times the woman you will ever dream of being."
Defense team says Vallow Daybell is 'misunderstood'
"I think Lori Daybell is probably the most hated person in America right now," said Bonneville County Public Defender John Thomas, who is one of Vallow Daybell's attorneys.
But, he said, she is a "very misunderstood person" who is truly "about love" and has been defined by complicated circumstances.
He asked the judge to use his sentence to impart a sense of "hope" that would both punish Vallow Daybell and encourage her to become a model inmate and grow as a person and become "a better version of Lori Daybell."
Thomas urged Boyce to impose on his client a 20-year fixed term with an "indeterminate" life sentence and have terms running concurrently, making her eligible for parole when she is in her 70s.
The case depicted a love affair that turned deadly
Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell's relationship was entwined in a deadly criminal conspiracy they sought to justify with fantastical beliefs. Rather than simply starting a new life together after they met in October 2018, the prosecution said, the couple plotted to kill their closest relatives and benefit from their deaths through insurance payouts and Social Security benefits.
Vallow Daybell's defense attorney, James Archibald, has said his client was in the thrall of a man she sees as a messiah and her eternal soulmate. He has also argued that the prosecution has produced little direct evidence to tie Vallow Daybell to her children's deaths.
Other criminal cases are still pending
Chad Daybell is expected to undergo his own murder trial for the same three deaths in the spring of 2024.
Other criminal cases are also pending for Vallow Daybell in Arizona, where she previously lived.
She's under indictment there on conspiracy murder charges for allegedly arranging for one of her brothers to shoot and kill her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, in July 2019. That brother, Alex Cox, died in December 2019, of what was determined to be natural causes. She's also accused of conspiring with Alex to murder her niece's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux, who was shot at in 2019 but who survived.
Those speaking at Wednesday's proceedings in Idaho included Kay Woodcock — the sister of Charles Vallow and grandmother of JJ — who recounted JJ's short life and described precious moments she shared with him and his sister, Tylee.
"This all began with greed," Woodcock said of their deaths, adding that if Lori had simply called her to ask, she would have willingly given her $1 million — the amount of a life insurance policy covering Charles Vallow — if it could have avoided the tragedies that unfolded.
Woodcock asked the judge to ensure that Vallow Daybell never breathes free air again, saying she is "a danger to society" who is beyond rehabilitation.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is running as a Democrat against President Joe Biden, tells many stories on the campaign trail about himself, his life's work and what he stands for that are the opposite of what his record actually shows.
The Associated Press found that Kennedy's insistence that he is not anti-vaccine doesn't square with his long record of opposition to vaccines. His claims that he is a true Democrat inheriting the mantle of his famous family are contradicted by his alignment with far right figures and support from Republicans. And despite listing the environment as a campaign priority, he has pushed bitcoin — a cryptocurrency that requires massive amounts of electricity from supercomputers to generate new coins, prompting most environmental advocates to loudly oppose it.
Kennedy's campaign is widely considered a long shot, but it's gained media attention due to his famous name and the possibility that his run could weaken Biden ahead of what is expected to be a close general election in 2024.
The campaign didn't return emails seeking comment about the contradictions in his candidacy.
Here are the key takeaways from the AP’s reporting:
KENNEDY'S ANTI-VACCINE RECORD
Kennedy told a congressional committee this month: “I have never been anti-vaxx. I have never told the public to avoid vaccination.” But Kennedy has a long record of anti-vaccine comments and rose to public prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic through the work of his anti-vaccine group, Children's Health Defense.
Just this month, Kennedy said in a podcast interview that "There's no vaccine that is safe and effective" and told FOX News that he still believes in the long-ago debunked idea that vaccines can cause autism. In a 2021 podcast, he recalled telling people on hiking trails not to get their children vaccinated.
That same year, Kennedy appeared in a video promoting an anti-vaccine sticker campaign by his nonprofit. A sticker shown beside him declared “IF YOU’RE NOT AN ANTI-VAXXER YOU AREN’T PAYING ATTENTION.”
The AP found that anti-vaccine activists are at the heart of Kennedy's campaign. FEC records show several people paid to work on the campaign previously worked for Children's Health Defense.
Kennedy has also received substantial support from the anti-vaccine community.
Children’s Health Defense currently has a lawsuit pending against a number of news organizations, among them The Associated Press, accusing them of violating antitrust laws by taking action to identify misinformation, including about COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines.
ASSOCIATION WITH FAR RIGHT HAS RAISED KENNEDY'S PROFILE
Kennedy is running as a Democrat, yet he has aligned himself with far right figures who have worked to subvert American democracy.
He has appeared on Infowars, the channel run by Sandy Hook conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. He has granted interviews to former President Donald Trump ally Steve Bannon and Tucker Carlson. After he headlined a stop on the ReAwaken America Tour, the Christian nationalist road show put together by former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, he was photographed backstage with Flynn and Trump ally Roger Stone.
Those appearances have led to goodwill on the right. Trump supporters have floated a Trump-Kennedy unity ticket.
Kennedy's run is also getting financial support from the right. A super PAC supporting Kennedy's presidential run, called Heal the Divide PAC, has deep ties to Republicans, Federal Election Commission records show.
Kennedy denied knowing the PAC when it came up at a recent congressional hearing, but video available online shows he was a guest speaker at a Heal the Divide event just two days earlier.
SUPPORT FOR BITCOIN RUNS COUNTER TO ENVIRONMENTAL STANCE
Kennedy lists the environment as one of six top priorities on his campaign website and has spent many years speaking against pollution and climate change as an environmental lawyer. Yet he has made supporting the energy-intensive cryptocurrency bitcoin a key part of his platform.
Bitcoin mining, the process of generating new coins, uses massive amounts of electricity — more than some entire countries, experts say.
Kennedy has acknowledged the environmental downsides, but says he wouldn't let them hinder its use. He promotes the argument that demand for the cryptocurrency will boost investment in renewable energy projects.
Kennedy has invested between $100,001 and $250,000 in bitcoin, his financial disclosure documents show.
KENNEDY INVOKES HIS FAMOUS FAMILY, WHILE RELATIVES DENOUNCE HIM
Though Kennedy peppers his speeches, podcast appearances and campaign materials with invocations of the Democratic Party legacies of his uncle President John F. Kennedy and his father Robert F. Kennedy, his relatives have distanced themselves from him and even denounced him.
"He's trading in on Camelot, celebrity, conspiracy theories and conflict for personal gain and fame," Jack Schlossberg, President Kennedy's grandson, said of his cousin in an Instagram video earlier this month. "I've listened to him. I know him. I have no idea why anyone thinks he should be president. What I do know is, his candidacy is an embarrassment."
Kennedy's recent comments that COVID-19 could have been "ethnically targeted" to spare Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people — which he denies were antisemitic but concedes he should have worded more carefully — also drew a condemnation from his sister, Kerry Kennedy.
___ The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP's democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:16
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The New York Mets are paying Texas $35.51 million over the next 14 months as part of the Max Scherzer trade, leaving the Rangers in effect responsible for $22.5 million owed to the three-time Cy Young Award winner, according to details of the deal obtained by The Associated Press.
New York, just 50-55 despite a record-high payroll, has cut costs by nearly $26 million in pay and luxury tax this year by getting rid of Scherzer and reliever David Robertson ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline. The Mets have offloaded just over $13.5 million in salary, resulting in an additional tax saving of about $12.15 million.
Texas acquired Scherzer on Sunday for minor league infielder Luisangel Acuña, a brother of Atlanta All-Star outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. Scherzer’s cost to the Rangers is $10 million this year and $12.5 million in 2024.
The Rangers assumed responsibility for the 39-year-old right-hander’s salary on Monday, when he was owed $58.01 million for the remainder of a $130 million, three-year contract he agreed to before the 2022 season.
Of the $14.67 million left of Scherzer’s $43.33 million salary for this season’s final 64 days, the Mets will pay Texas $4.67 million in four installments of $1.16 million on Aug. 15 and 31 and Sept. 15 and 30.
Scherzer gets a $43.33 million salary next season in the final year of the deal. The Mets will pay the Rangers $30.83 million in 12 installments of $2.56 million on the 15th and final day of each month from April 2024 through September 2024.
New York’s payroll rose to a projected $365 million after it acquired reliever Trevor Gott from Seattle on July 3, and the Mets’ luxury tax payroll increased to about $385 million. That was on track for a tax of about $95 million.
When the Mets traded Robertson to Miami last week, the Marlins assumed $3.54 million remaining of Robertson’s $10 million salary.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:15
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AUSTIN (KXAN) — A KXAN viewer said she saw baby foxes, also known as kits, playing on a trampoline in her garden Sunday in the north Austin, Texas, area.
That was only a couple of weeks after another viewer said she saw a family of foxes playing on the St. Edward’s University campus in Austin.
According to the Humane Society of the United States, it’s not unusual to see foxes in cities and towns, where food sources are easily found, including in your garbage.
While foxes live around the world in many different types of habitats, according to the Texas Wildlife Association, including the Arctic, the desert and even in trees, some foxes have also adapted to life in such urban environments as neighborhoods.
“Next time you are outside in a park, remember to look up, because if you are lucky, you might see a fox up in the trees,” TWA said.
TWA said three types of foxes live in Texas, including the swift fox, the red fox and the gray fox.
The swift, or kit fox, lives in the northwestern part of the state, the red fox inhabits the eastern and central parts, and the gray fox, the most common variety, can be found statewide, the TWA said.
The Humane Society said foxes are scared of people and are not typically dangerous except when they are rabid, which the society says is rare.
“Even then, a fox’s natural tendency is to flee rather than fight,” the Human Society stated.
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NEW YORK (AP) — Troubled trucking company Yellow Corp. is shutting down and headed for a bankruptcy, the Teamsters said Monday.
An official bankruptcy filing is expected any day for Yellow, after years of financial struggles and growing debt. Its expected liquidation would mark a significant shift for the U.S. transportation industry and shippers nationwide.
“Today’s news is unfortunate but not surprising. Yellow has historically proven that it could not manage itself despite billions of dollars in worker concessions and hundreds of millions in bailout funding from the federal government," said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien. “This is a sad day for workers and the American freight industry.”
Yellow did not have a comment when reached by The Associated Press Monday. As of Monday afternoon, no bankruptcy filings from the company could be found on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website, but the union confirmed that it had been served legal notice.
The company's collapse arrives just three years after Yellow, formerly known as YRC Worldwide Inc., received $700 million in pandemic-era loans from the federal government. But the company was in financial trouble long before that — with industry analysts pointing to poor management and strategic decisions dating back decades.
Former Yellow customers and shippers will face higher prices as they take their business to competitors, including FedEx or ABF Freight, experts say — noting that Yellow historically offered the cheapest price points in the industry.
Yellow is one of the nation’s largest less-than-truckload carriers. The closure of the 99-year-old Nashville, Tennessee-based company risks a loss of 30,000 jobs.
Safety vests that appeared to belong to former Yellow workers were zip-tied to the fence of a closed YRC Freight terminal in St. Louis, Missouri on Monday. Names and years worked at the company were written on them.
“Ron Fisher 2017-2023 was here,” one vest read.
Reports of Yellow preparing for bankruptcy emerged last week — as the Nashville, Tennessee-based trucker saw customers leave in large numbers, per The Wall Street Journal and FreightWaves. And the company reportedly stopped freight pickups earlier in the week.
Yellow shut down operations on Sunday, according to The Journal, following the layoffs of hundreds of nonunion employees on Friday.
The bankruptcy preparation reports arrived just days after Yellow averted a strike from the Teamsters, which represents Yellow’s 22,000 unionized workers, amid heated contract negotiations. On July 23, a pension fund agreed to extend health benefits for workers at two Yellow Corp. operating companies, avoiding a planned walkout. The fund gave Yellow “30 days to pay its bills,” notably $50 million that Yellow failed to pay the Central States Health and Welfare Fund earlier in the month.
Yellow has racked up hefty bills over the years. As of late March, Yellow had an outstanding debt of about $1.5 billion. Of that, $729.2 million was owed to the federal government.
In 2020, under the Trump administration, the Treasury Department granted the company a $700 million pandemic-era loan on national security grounds. Last month, a congressional probe concluded that the Treasury and Defense departments “made missteps” in this decision — and noted that Yellow’s “precarious financial position at the time of the loan, and continued struggles, expose taxpayers to a significant risk of loss.”
The government loan is due in September 2024. As of March, Yellow had made $54.8 million in interest payments and repaid just $230 million of the principal owed, according to government documents.
The current financial chaos at Yellow “is probably two decades in the making,” said Stifel research director Bruce Chan, pointing to poor management and strategic decisions dating back to the early 2000s. “At this point, after each party has bailed them out so many times, there is a limited appetite to do that anymore.”
A Wednesday investors note from financial service firm Stephens estimated that Yellow was burning daily amounts of $9 million to $10 million in recent days.
Yellow handled an average of 49,000 shipments per day in 2022 according to Satish Jindel, president of transportation and logistics firm SJ Consulting. On Friday, he estimated that number was down to between 10,000 and 15,000 daily shipments.
Yellow’s prices have historically been the cheapest compared to other carriers, Jindel said. “That’s why they obviously were not making money,” he added. “And while there is capacity with the other LTL carriers to handle the diversions from Yellow, it will come at a high price for (current shippers and customers) of Yellow.”
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AP Business Writer Matt Ott contributed to this report.
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Aleksandar Kovacevic 2023 Mifel Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open in his most recent tournament (losing to Jordan Thompson), Aleksandar Kovacevic will open the Mifel Open versus Omni Kumar (in the round of 32). Kovacevic currently is +3300 to win it all at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Kovacevic at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Kovacevic's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 11:40 PM ET), Kovacevic will play Kumar.
Kovacevic currently has odds of -350 to win his next matchup versus Kumar. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
Want to bet on Kovacevic? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Kovacevic Stats
- In his last match, Kovacevic came up short 0-6, 1-6 against Thompson in the Round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open.
- Kovacevic is 9-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament victories.
- Kovacevic is 7-9 on hard courts over the past 12 months.
- Kovacevic, over the past 12 months, has played 23 matches across all court types, and 25.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Kovacevic has played 16 matches over the past year, and 25.6 games per match.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Kovacevic has won 76.7% of his games on serve, and 17.0% on return.
- On hard courts over the past year, Kovacevic has been victorious in 17.6% of his return games and 78.6% of his service games.
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SYDNEY (AP) — The Women’s World Cup is taking shape with shocks and highlights as it nears the end of the group stage.
Some players have established themselves as ones to watch, like Colombia star Linda Caicedo, who has made her team one of the tournament surprises. Colombia picked up an upset win over Germany, and Nigeria upset co-host Australia — just two of the games that showed the gap has closed at top level women’s soccer.
But co-host New Zealand was eliminated, and other big teams are in danger of not advancing headed into the final few days of group play.
The Associated Press takes a look at some of the highlights and lowlights so far:
GOAL OF THE TOURNAMENT
There have been a number of contenders and Bia Zaneratto’s strike against Panama after a sweeping move from Brazil stands out as the most complete goal so far.
Ireland’s Katie McCabe scored directly from a corner kick against Canada, and England’s Lauren James curled in a long range effort against Denmark.
Even so, Caicedo’s solo goal in Colombia’s dramatic 2-1 win against Germany is the pick of the bunch. With a flash of skill, she beat two German players in the box before lashing a shot into the top corner as the Sydney crowd dominated by Colombia fans went wild.
MOMENT OF THE TOURNAMENT
It has to be Manuela Vanegas’ late winner for Colombia against Germany. Alexandra Popp seemed to position two-time champion Germany for a draw with an 89th-minute penalty.
But Vanegas’ header in the 97th minute gave Colombia a World Cup upset.
COMEBACK
Norway looked down and out after an opening game loss to co-host New Zealand and a goalless draw against Switzerland. With star player Ada Hegerberg injured, the odds were beginning to stack up against the Norwegians going into their final Group A match against the Philippines.
But three goals within 31 minutes set up a 6-0 rout that saw Norway advance to the knockout rounds in second place. The Norway win knocked New Zealand out of the tournament, making the Football Ferns the first host to be eliminated in group play in tournament history.
EMERGING STARS
Caicedo’s standout performances aren’t a surprise to those who have followed her career. The Real Madrid forward has long-been tipped to be one of the biggest stars in women’s soccer.
She hasn’t disappointed in her first World Cup and has inspired Colombia to back-to-back wins with goals in each game.
England coach Sarina Wiegman unleashed Chelsea forward James from the start in the Lionesses’ second game against Denmark, and she made a quick impression. Collecting the ball outside the area after six minutes, she swept a curling effort past Lene Christensen.
Haiti’s Melchie Dumornay has shown flashes of the talent that earned her a move to French powerhouse Lyon, while 19-year-old Aoba Fujino has become the youngest player to score at a World Cup for Japan’s men’s or women’s teams.
Casey Phair, a 16 year old, became the youngest-ever player to appear in a senior soccer World Cup when she was a second-half substitute for South Korea against Colombia.
DISAPPOINTMENTS
While youngsters have capitalized on their chance to shine, some of the established names have yet to make their mark.
There have been differing reasons for that.
Sam Kerr’s calf injury robbed Australia of its star striker for its opening two games, while Hegerberg’s groin injury has cut her playing time for Norway.
Alex Morgan, who was the co-leading scorer at the last World Cup, is still finding her footing in the United States’ new look attack.
Record international scorer Christine Sinclair was benched for Canada’s second game and is still waiting for her first goal of the tournament, while Brazil great Marta has also been used sparingly.
SURPRISES
New Zealand kicked the tournament off with a 1-0 win against Norway, but couldn’t keep up its momentum and went on to lose by the same score to the Philippines to set up the co-host’s early exit.
Jamaica’s 0-0 draw with fifth-ranked France was described by its coach Lorne Donaldson as the country’s greatest soccer result, for men or women. But the biggest surprise could be yet to come if Jamaica can avoid defeat against Brazil to advance to the round of 16.
Colombia’s dramatic late winner against Germany, meanwhile, was one of the great upsets.
ENTERTAINERS
The goals have been flowing for Spain and Japan, teams that both advanced from the group stage with a game to spare. Both teams secured 5-0 wins against Zambia and both have produced technically excellent displays.
Germany was on a high after its 6-0 rout of Morocco, but was humbled by Colombia.
Sweden routed Italy 5-0, while Norway found its scoring touch just in time against the Philippines.
ONES TO WATCH
Some of the favorites have made underwhelming starts. The two-time defending champion United States, England, Germany and France have not been totally convincing in group play and the tournament still looks wide open.
Colombia looks legitimate, and with Kerr back in action, Australia could become a contender.
The Netherlands look like serious contenders, while Spain and Japan have impressed. Brazil has shown flashes, but faces a fight to advance from the group stage.
Nigeria has shown it is dangerous, and Sweden has picked up back-to-back wins.
___
James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
___
More AP Women’s World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:22
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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations chief on Monday welcomed Kenya’s offer to “positively consider” leading a multinational police force to help combat Haiti’s gangs and improve security in the violence-wracked Caribbean nation.
Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry sent an urgent appeal last October for “the immediate deployment of a specialized armed force, in sufficient quantity” to stop the gangs. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has been appealing unsuccessfully since then for a lead nation to help restore order to Latin America’s most impoverished country.
Kenya’s Foreign Ministry said Saturday said its offer includes a commitment to send 1,000 police to help train and assist the Haitian National Police “restore normalcy in the country and protect strategic installations.” The ministry said it was responding to a request from the Friends of Haiti group of nations.
“Kenya stands with persons of African descent across the world, including those in the Caribbean, and aligns with the African Union’s diaspora policy and our own commitment to Pan Africanism, and in this case to `reclaiming of the Atlantic crossing,’” the ministry said.
Haiti's gangs have grown in power since the July 7, 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse and are now estimated to control up to 80% of the capital. The surge in killings, rapes and kidnappings has led to a violent uprising by civilian vigilante groups.
U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said Guterres “welcomes Kenya’s positive response to his call” and expresses gratitude to Kenya for its “solidarity."
The secretary-general calls on the U.N. Security Council to support a non-U.N. multinational operation in Haiti “and encourages member states, particularly from the region, to join forces from Kenya” in supporting the country's police, Haq said.
Kenya’s Foreign Ministry said its proposed deployment will crystalize once the Security Council adopts a resolution giving a mandate for the force, and other Kenyan constitutional processes are undertaken.
A Kenyan task force plans to undertake an assessment mission to Haiti within the next few weeks which “will inform and guide the mandate and operational requirements of the mission,” it said.
Guterres, who visited Haiti in early July, called afterward for a robust international force to help the Haitian National Police “defeat and dismantle the gangs.”
He said the estimate by the U.N. independent expert for Haiti, William O'Neill, that up to 2,000 additional anti-gang police officers are needed is no exaggeration. O'Neill, who concluded a 10-day trip to Haiti in July, is an American lawyer who has been working on Haiti for over 30 years and helped establish the Haitian National Police in 1995.
The Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on July 14 asking Guterres to come up with "a full range of options" within 30 days to help combat Haiti's armed gangs, including a non-U.N. multinational force, a possible U.N. peacekeeping force, additional training for the Haitian National Police and providing support to combat illegal arms trafficking to the country.
Compounding the gang warfare, which has spread outside the capital, is the country’s political crisis: Haiti was stripped of all democratically elected institutions when the terms of the country’s remaining 10 senators expired in early January.
The Security Council resolution, co-sponsored by the United States and Ecuador, “strongly urges” all countries to prohibit the supply, sale or transfer of weapons to anyone supporting gang violence and criminal activities.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Kenyan President William Ruto on Monday including about Kenya’s positive consideration to leading a multinational force in Haiti, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.
The United States takes over the rotating presidency of the U.N. Security Council for August on Tuesday, and Miller said the U.S. and Ecuador, as a first step, are going to introduce a resolution to authorize a non-U.N. multinational mission.
The second step is an assessment mission by Kenya, “which they plan to do in the coming days,” and then there will be talks with other countries about what additional assistance is needed, he said.
"We are committed to finding the resources to support this multinational force," Miller said. "We've been a large humanitarian donor to relief efforts in Haiti for some time, and we have worked behind the scenes to find the lead nation to run this multinational force and are pleased that that has been successful."
___
Ellen Knickmeyer contributed to this report from Washington and Evelyne Musambi from Nairobi
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:23
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Ben Shelton 2023 Citi Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open in his last tournament (losing to Juncheng Shang), Ben Shelton will start the Citi Open versus Shang (in the round of 32). Shelton has +2800 odds to win this tournament at William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center.
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Shelton at the 2023 Citi Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 7
- Venue: William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center
- Location: Washington, District of Columbia
- Court Surface: Hard
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Shelton's Next Match
Shelton will play Shang in the round of 32 of the Citi Open on Tuesday, August 1 at 7:00 PM ET.
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Shelton Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Shelton was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 156-ranked Shang, 4-6, 4-6.
- Through 20 tournaments over the past 12 months, Shelton has gone 12-20 and has yet to win a title.
- In 10 tournaments on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has gone 8-10.
- Over the past year (across all court surfaces), Shelton has played 32 matches and 29.8 games per match.
- Shelton, in 18 matches over the past year on hard courts, has played 30.1 games per match and won 49.3% of them.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Shelton has won 82.1% of his games on serve, and 15.4% on return.
- As far as serve/return winning percentages on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has won 85.2% of his games on serve and 14.8% on return.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:25
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AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — The United States arrived at the Women’s World Cup as the favorites to win an unprecedented third consecutive title. But after an underwhelming draw against the Netherlands, there’s a real chance the Americans can be eliminated in group play for the first time in tournament history.
The U.S. plays Portugal in the third and final match of Group E play, and if Portugal pulls off an upset Tuesday at Eden Park in Auckland, the Americans could be in big trouble.
The United States needs to either win or draw against Portugal, one of eight teams playing in its first World Cup, to ensure the Americans continue to play in this tournament.
“I think we feel like we have to win everything all the time,” said American star Megan Rapinoe. “That’s the expectation for ourselves. That’s the expectation playing for U.S. national team. It’s just kind of like, ‘Why would you come into the World Cup if you don’t think that you should win it, and if you don’t think that you can win it?’”
The United States sits atop the group after a 3-0 victory over Vietnam in the tournament opener, and a 1-1 draw with the Netherlands last Thursday in Wellington. The Dutch are tied with the U.S. on points, but the Americans have the tie-breaker on goals scored.
Portugal lost to the Dutch in its opener but then beat Vietnam 2-0. So if the Portuguese beat the United States, they’ll move on, and the Americans would then need Vietnam to beat the Dutch in Dunedin — while keeping their advantage on goal differential — to advance.
“One thing is for sure, that we have a job to do and that’s first and foremost to take care of our game, so our main focus right now it our performance, our team, and Portugal,” said U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski. “What happens on the other side is something we can’t control. We have to stay focused on the things we can control.”
Portugal could use a swarming defense to try to prevent the United States from scoring the way Vietnam — unsuccessfully — played the Americans in the opener.
Portugal defender Ana Borges said her team will be prepared.
“This is the stage where we want to be. It’s against these teams that we want to play because we’re going to learn and grow from them,” Borges said. “Not saying anything about the other team, but if we weren’t prepared for this challenge, we wouldn’t be playing football.”
CHINA-ENGLAND
England is in very good shape headed into its Group D finale against China, needing only a draw Tuesday night in Adelaide, Australia to win the group and advance to the round of 16.
Even a loss would be OK and push England through as group winners so long as Denmark doesn’t beat Haiti. If Denmark won and England lost, the group winner would be decided by FIFA tiebreakers.
England edged out a 1-0 victory over Haiti to open the tournament, then beat Denmark by the same score.
China lost 1-0 to Denmark in the opener but rebounded with a 1-0 win over Haiti and is now trying to keep its streak intact of advancing out of group play in all eight of its World Cup appearances.
It will be a tough task: China can advance to the round of 16 if the Chinese beat England. But if Denmark beats Haiti, coupled with a China win, then FIFA tiebreakers would come into a play. A loss would mean China’s only chance at advancing would be if Haiti beat Denmark.
England and China meet for just the fifth time, but first since a 2-1 China victory in 2015.
England has scored in each of its last 15 matches at the Women’s World Cup for a tally of 25 goals since 2015. A goal against China would make England the first team to score in 16 consecutive matches in the tournament.
China is looking to win consecutive World Cup games for the first time since 1999.
VIETNAM-NETHERLANDS
The Netherlands want to win every match in the Women’s World Cup but none more so than Tuesday’s game against Vietnam.
At stake: avoiding Sweden in the knockout round.
The Dutch, the tournament runner-up in 2019, need only a win or a draw in the Group E match played in Dunedin, New Zealand. And even a loss would be OK so long as the United States beats Portugal in a game being played simultaneously.
But the Netherlands has mapped out the tournament and wants no part of Sweden anytime soon.
“The first aim is always to win and get to the last 16 and then after that if we can score goals we will, of course,” said Dutch coach Andries Jonker. “But looking at our colleagues from the U.S. and Portugal, we’ve noticed it’s not all that easy. We’ve never shown any kind of arrogance, but if we get chances to score goals we will. We would prefer to play against the number two in this group and not Sweden.”
The Netherlands are tied with the United States for the top spot in the group after playing to a 1-1 draw against the Americans and a 1-0 win over Portugal.
Vietnam has already been eliminated from its first Women’s World Cup following losses to the United States and Portugal. Vietnam has lost its last five internationals by a combined score of 18-1.
“The Netherlands tries to have as many goals as possible, and I have to say we are at a low level,” said Vietnam coach Mai Duc Chung. “If we compare with Asia, we’re still at a low level. So if we compare with the world, we are still quite behind. It is a success for us already. In the past two matches we have tried our best. Great effort already.”
HAITI-DENMARK
First-time Women’s World Cup participant Haiti would like to stick around a bit longer but needs a miracle against in the Group D finale against Denmark to have any shot to advance.
Haiti needs to beat Denmark in the Tuesday match played in Perth, Australia, and hope England beats China. If both those things happen, Haiti’s only chance would still come down to FIFA’s tiebreaker system.
It’s very long odds for Haiti, which has played better in this tournament than its 0-2 record shows. Haiti held both England and China to one goal each in the first two matches.
Haiti is on a six-game losing streak headed into what is probably its final game of this tournament.
Denmark, meanwhile, is trying to advance to the group stage for the first time since 1995. Denmark was a 1-0 winner over China to start the tournament, then lost 1-0 to England and heads into the game tied for second in the group with China with three points each.
A win over Haiti pushes Denmark through to the next round so long as England doesn’t lose to China. That scenario would put tiebreakers into play.
The Danes, in the tournament for the first time since 2007, can also get through with a draw, but again, only if England beats China.
Denmark has won five of its last seven international matches.
___
AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:30
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WASHINGTON (AP) — A poster hanging at the DC Open site shows Frances Tiafoe — a competitor in the field from nearby Maryland — flanked by other men such as Andy Murray and Taylor Fritz and women such as Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula.
It is a simple visualization of a complicated change to a tournament that began Monday and has been around for men since 1969, added women via a simultaneous but lower-tier and less-promoted event in 2009 and now is taking a further step by touting itself as the first combined ATP-WTA 500 event. That is two levels below Grand Slams and one level below Masters 1000s and was accomplished by elevating the women's portion through the lease of what had been a hard-court tourney in San Jose, California, played during the same week.
While ostensibly that puts the men and women on equal footing in Washington — where players both will be trying to win a trophy and to prepare for the U.S. Open, the year's last Grand Slam tournament — it still is not equal all the way around.
Most notably: The men’s champion receives a check for $353,445; the women’s champion earns $120,150. That is not an anomaly. There are other stops on the professional tennis tours that include female and male players but do not pay them evenly.
“Our main goal is to work toward equal prize money. That is what we want on the WTA side and what we think is fair. Especially at the combined events, we don’t want to see a discrepancy there. We want to see that we’re earning the same at the same event,” said Pegula, an American who is No. 3 in the rankings and seeded No. 1 in Washington and a member of the women's tour's player council. “The fans are coming to watch both of us, and we should be making the same.”
All four Grand Slam tournaments offer equal prize money across the board, something the U.S. Open started doing 50 years ago and others as recently as 2007. That won't happen at the DC Open until 2027 as part of a wider plan the WTA recently announced to get equal paychecks at certain events by that year and at others by 2033.
“That will give everyone a chance to hopefully get revenues to grow to be able to afford it,” said Mark Ein, who has been the tournament chairman since 2019 and is part of the group that recently bought the NFL’s Washington Commanders from Dan Snyder.
“When we took over the tournament, one of my top goals was to secure a women’s event at an equal level as our men’s,” Ein said. “One of the things I love about tennis is it’s really the only sport where athletes of both genders compete on the same playing surface at the same time.”
There are other discrepancies between the men’s and women’s brackets in Washington.
The men’s field is 48 players; the women’s is 28. The rankings points available are nearly the same, but the men’s champion gets 500, the women’s 470.
Like Pegula, three-time major champion Murray, who is seeded 15th in Washington, said that all players “at the same event, on the same courts,” should be vying for the same payouts.
“But I think for it ever to become like truly equal, the WTA and the ATP are actually going to have to come together and work as one before that’s the case, because I don’t think it’s that straightforward just now that both tours have different sponsors, different TV deals and all of that stuff, too,” Murray said. “There is a few things that still need to change, but I feel like things are going in the right direction, like with the move to this event becoming a 500 for both. Can obviously still get better.”
___
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:30
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Ernesto Escobedo 2023 Mifel Open Odds
Ernesto Escobedo will begin the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Jason Jung in the round of 32. He was knocked off by Brandon Holt in the qualification round 1 of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC (his previous tournament). Escobedo has +8000 odds to be crowned champion at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Escobedo at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Escobedo's Next Match
In his opener at the Mifel Open, on Tuesday, August 1 (at 9:00 PM ET) in the round of 32, Escobedo will play Jung.
Escobedo currently has odds of -120 to win his next contest against Jung. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
Want to bet on Escobedo? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Escobedo Stats
- Escobedo came up short in his last match, 4-6, 7-6, 2-6 versus Holt in the qualifying round of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on February 25, 2023.
- In five tournaments over the past 12 months, Escobedo is 4-5 and has yet to win a title.
- Escobedo is 4-5 on hard courts over the past year.
- Through nine matches over the past 12 months (across all court surfaces), Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match. He won 49.1% of them.
- In his nine matches on hard courts over the past year, Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match.
- Escobedo has won 19.7% of his return games and 80.6% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- Escobedo has claimed 80.6% of his service games on hard courts and 19.7% of his return games over the past 12 months.
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© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:32
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WASHINGTON (AP) — A poster hanging at the DC Open site shows Frances Tiafoe — a competitor in the field from nearby Maryland — flanked by other men such as Andy Murray and Taylor Fritz and women such as Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula.
It is a simple visualization of a complicated change to a tournament that began Monday and has been around for men since 1969, added women via a simultaneous but lower-tier and less-promoted event in 2009 and now is taking a further step by touting itself as the first combined ATP-WTA 500 event. That is two levels below Grand Slams and one level below Masters 1000s and was accomplished by elevating the women’s portion through the lease of what had been a hard-court tourney in San Jose, California, played during the same week.
While ostensibly that puts the men and women on equal footing in Washington — where players both will be trying to win a trophy and to prepare for the U.S. Open, the year’s last Grand Slam tournament — it still is not equal all the way around.
Most notably: The men’s champion receives a check for $353,445; the women’s champion earns $120,150. That is not an anomaly. There are other stops on the professional tennis tours that include female and male players but do not pay them evenly.
“Our main goal is to work toward equal prize money. That is what we want on the WTA side and what we think is fair. Especially at the combined events, we don’t want to see a discrepancy there. We want to see that we’re earning the same at the same event,” said Pegula, an American who is No. 3 in the rankings and seeded No. 1 in Washington and a member of the women’s tour’s player council. “The fans are coming to watch both of us, and we should be making the same.”
All four Grand Slam tournaments offer equal prize money across the board, something the U.S. Open started doing 50 years ago and others as recently as 2007. That won’t happen at the DC Open until 2027 as part of a wider plan the WTA recently announced to get equal paychecks at certain events by that year and at others by 2033.
“That will give everyone a chance to hopefully get revenues to grow to be able to afford it,” said Mark Ein, who has been the tournament chairman since 2019 and is part of the group that recently bought the NFL’s Washington Commanders from Dan Snyder.
“When we took over the tournament, one of my top goals was to secure a women’s event at an equal level as our men’s,” Ein said. “One of the things I love about tennis is it’s really the only sport where athletes of both genders compete on the same playing surface at the same time.”
There are other discrepancies between the men’s and women’s brackets in Washington.
The men’s field is 48 players; the women’s is 28. The rankings points available are nearly the same, but the men’s champion gets 500, the women’s 470.
Like Pegula, three-time major champion Murray, who is seeded 15th in Washington, said that all players “at the same event, on the same courts,” should be vying for the same payouts.
“But I think for it ever to become like truly equal, the WTA and the ATP are actually going to have to come together and work as one before that’s the case, because I don’t think it’s that straightforward just now that both tours have different sponsors, different TV deals and all of that stuff, too,” Murray said. “There is a few things that still need to change, but I feel like things are going in the right direction, like with the move to this event becoming a 500 for both. Can obviously still get better.”
___
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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https://www.cbs42.com/sports/ap-washington-tennis-tournament-offers-equal-status-for-women-and-men-but-unequal-prize-money/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:36
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John Isner 2023 Mifel Open Odds
John Isner, off a loss in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open (to Dominik Koepfer) in his previous tournament, will open the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Rinky Hijikata in the round of 32. Isner's odds are +1400 to win this event at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Isner at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Isner's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 10:20 PM ET), Isner will meet Hijikata.
Isner is currently listed at -160 to win his next contest against Hijikata. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
John Isner Grand Slam Odds
- US Open odds to win: +12500
- Mifel Open odds to win: +1400
Want to bet on Isner? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Isner Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Isner was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 88-ranked Koepfer, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7.
- Isner is 12-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament titles.
- Isner is 9-10 on hard courts over the past year.
- Isner, over the past year, has played 26 matches across all court surfaces, and 29.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Isner has played 19 matches over the past year, and 28.3 games per match.
- Isner has won 11.0% of his return games and 88.1% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- On hard courts over the past year, Isner has been victorious in 10.3% of his return games and 89.8% of his service games.
Not all offers available in all states, please visit BetMGM for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please wager responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:38
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Buffalo’s Planning Board is considering whether to approve a massive project that would transform the long vacant and abandoned Perry homes.
The Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority is looking to get this massive project approved and went before the Planning Board Monday. It’s their second time going before the board on this project.
The BMHA is proposing to demolish 24 abandoned buildings, which make up the Commodore Perry homes. They’ve been a haven for vandalism. They’ve been boarded up for years and have been a huge eyesore.
BMHA officials along with their development team, want to put up 27 buildings of affordable housing, which would bring more than 400 units, retail and commercial space. Officials say the land there has already been remediated.
According to the BMHA, the unit mix would consist of 108 one-bedrooms, 110 two-bedrooms, 136-three bedrooms, 37 four-bedrooms and 14 five-bedrooms.
“We have not found any large scale or substantial contamination in the land, the demolition is obviously going to be contained, it’s going to be done with the utmost of care, but the land itself is not contaminated,” said Gillian Brown, the executive director of the BMHA.
The new housing units would be made available to people who range in income. They would range in size from one bedroom to five bedroom apartments. There’s been a lot of talk over the years of a new Bills stadium being located on the land where the Perry projects are located, but of course, that’s not happening.
“This is a mammoth and really transformational project this is a multi-year, multi-phase revitalization of an entire community i assume there will be hiccups along the way, i assume there will be surprises, but we got great developer partners,” Brown said.
The BMHA hopes to get approval this week and then start demolition this winter. Construction would take three years. This project is an estimated $200 million — it would be paid for with state, federal and BMHA money.
Jeff Preval is an award-winning anchor and reporter who joined the News 4 team in December 2021. See more of his work here.
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https://www.wivb.com/news/local-news/buffalo/bmha-seeks-city-approval-of-200-million-perry-homes-redevelopment-project/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:39
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‘I’ll be able to walk again’: 6-year-old shot in road rage incident confident about her future
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE/Gray News) – A 6-year-old’s life may be changed forever after she was shot in the back during a road rage incident on July 10, but that’s not crushing the young girl’s spirit.
Onyx, 6, was in the car with her family when a road rage incident with a group of motorcyclists in Kentucky led to a shooting.
A bullet went through the girl’s back and she had to have emergency surgery.
Onyx has been recovering since and may never walk again. Being in a wheelchair is her new reality.
“I really liked going through the hallways to test it out,” Onyx said, talking about her wheelchair. “I wanted to do it again and then I did.”
The 6-year-old who just wants to dance and play is finding comfort in doing donuts in her wheelchair.
Onyx said she remembers leaving the park on July 10, getting in the car and the moment when she was shot.
“I remember getting carried into the hospital,” she recalled.
Those chain of events left Onyx’s mother, Chyna Sands, with the task of telling her daughter her new reality.
Sands said she told Onyx the bullet severed her back and she can’t use her legs like she used to – a conversation that is still setting in for the young girl.
She’s had to explain to Onyx that she must be in a wheelchair because she can’t walk.
But Onyx didn’t let this get her down too much. She said she is tired of people saying what she can’t do. To her, she has no doubt about what the future holds.
“I’ll be able to walk again, I know I will,” Onyx said with confidence. “I believe that I will be able to walk again.”
That mindset is what Sands says keeps her going.
As of right now, no one has been charged for the shooting which keeps Sands on edge.
“They want me to be patient, but I am out of patience,” Sands said. “I would like to see justice for an innocent 6-year-old who was minding her own business.”
While those responsible are out free, small things like getting into a car are now triggers of trauma.
“Because I got shot in the back, and I’m a little bit scared to get in the car because it brings back the memories,” Onyx said.
Hearing Onyx say that is a hard pill to swallow for a mother that loves to travel everywhere with her daughter.
“As her mom, I’m used to being her superhero,” Sands said. “I fix all of her problems and that’s something that I can’t fix.”
Copyright 2023 WAVE via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.1011now.com/2023/07/31/ill-be-able-walk-again-6-year-old-shot-road-rage-incident-confident-about-her-future/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:39
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The eastbound lane of Dawkins Road between Indiana 101 and Brobst Road will be restricted from 9 a.m. Tuesday to 3 p.m. Wednesday during road repair, the Allen County Highway Department said today.
A flagger will be on site to direct traffic, the highway department said in its notice.
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https://www.journalgazette.net/local/dawkins-road-section-restricted-tuesday-wednesday/article_6fc74786-2fcc-11ee-808d-b7074f976248.html
| 2023-07-31T20:33:39
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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — DNA from a bloody knife and video footage are crucial pieces of evidence against a tech consultant charged with murder in the stabbing death of Cash App founder Bob Lee, who was found bleeding on a deserted San Francisco street in April, prosecutors argued Monday.
The San Francisco prosecutor’s office began laying out its case against Nima Momeni, 38, at a preliminary hearing in which a judge will decide if there’s enough evidence to go to trial.
Prosecutors say Momeni planned the attack, drove Lee to a secluded spot and stabbed him three times after a dispute related to Momeni’s younger sister.
They have not spelled out a motive, but previously offered a timeline in a case that has drawn outsized media attention, partly due to Lee’s status in the tech world. Lee created Cash App, a mobile payment service, and was the chief product officer of the cryptocurrency MobileCoin.
Momeni, who has been in jail since his arrest April 13, has pleaded not guilty. He faces 26 years to life if convicted.
The arrest came more than a week after Lee, 43, was found in a deserted part of downtown San Francisco early April 4. He later died at a hospital.
On Monday morning, Assistant District Attorney Omid Talai introduced evidence, including photos of a knife that prosecutors say Momeni used to stab Lee, a trail of blood left by Lee as he staggered for help, and video footage showing the two men leave Momeni’s sister’s condo building before the stabbing.
Talai said at a May hearing that the weapon was part of a unique kitchen set belonging to his sister and that analysis showed Momeni’s DNA on the weapon’s handle and Lee’s DNA on the bloody blade. Police recovered a knife with a 4-inch (10-centimeter) blade at the scene.
Saam Zangeneh, one of Momeni’s lawyers, suggested to reporters Monday during a break that the investigation conducted by the San Francisco police was far from thorough.
He questioned why the rubber handle of the knife was tested for only DNA and not fingerprints. SFPD crime scene investigator Rosalyn Check said that it is difficult to get prints off rubber.
“When you want to see if someone’s touching something, you do fingerprint analysis, right?” he said. “And they weren’t done on the handle, which is the most important, relevant portion of who, if any, was handling that item.”
Zangeneh has yet to elaborate on the defendant’s version of events.
Momeni brought in Zangeneh and Bradford Cohen, both based in Florida. His first attorney, Paula Canny, withdrew in late May, citing a conflict of interest that she declined to disclose.
At prosecutors’ urging, Momeni has been held without bail. In arguing for release pending trial, Canny said that Momeni was not a flight risk and would not leave the two people he loves most, his sister and mother. She said Momeni needs to fight the charges or face deportation to Iran, a country that his mother fled when the children were younger to escape a violent husband.
An unnamed friend of Lee told homicide investigators they had been hanging out and drinking with Momeni’s sister the day before the stabbing, prosecutors said in their motion to deny bail.
The friend said Momeni later questioned Lee about whether his sister was doing drugs or otherwise engaging in inappropriate behavior and Lee said she had not.
Surveillance video showed Lee later entering the posh Millennium Tower downtown, where Momeni’s sister Khazar lives with her husband, prominent San Francisco plastic surgeon Dino Elyassnia. Video footage then showed Lee and Momeni leaving the building together shortly after 2 a.m. and driving off in Momeni’s car.
Lee was found shortly after 2:30 a.m. in the Rincon Hill neighborhood, which has tech offices and condominiums but little activity in the early morning hours.
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https://www.cbs42.com/tech-news/ap-technology/ap-san-francisco-prosecutors-to-lay-out-murder-case-against-consultant-in-death-of-cash-apps-bob-lee/
| 2023-07-31T20:33:42
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Red Sox vs. Mariners Predictions & Picks: Odds, Moneyline, Spread - July 31
Monday's contest at T-Mobile Park has the Seattle Mariners (54-51) squaring off against the Boston Red Sox (56-49) at 9:40 PM ET (on July 31). Our computer prediction projects a narrow 5-3 victory for the Mariners, so expect a tight matchup.
The Mariners will give the nod to George Kirby (9-8, 3.49 ERA), who is eyeing win No. 10 on the season, and the Red Sox will turn to Nick Pivetta (7-5, 4.11 ERA).
Red Sox vs. Mariners Game Info & Odds
- When: Monday, July 31, 2023 at 9:40 PM ET
- Where: T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington
- How to Watch on TV: ROOT Sports NW
- Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo!
Bet on this matchup with BetMGM Sportsbook and use bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
Red Sox vs. Mariners Score Prediction
Our pick for this matchup is Mariners 5, Red Sox 4.
Total Prediction for Red Sox vs. Mariners
- Total Prediction: Over 7.5 runs
New to BetMGM Sportsbook? We've got the best offer for new users when they use promo code "GNPLAY"! Sign up with BetMGM Sportsbook using our link and enter the bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers. to get this great bonus for first-time depositors.
Discover More About This Game
Red Sox Performance Insights
- In three games as the underdog over the last 10 contests, the Red Sox have a perfect record of 3-0.
- When it comes to the total, Boston and its opponents are 2-8-0 in its last 10 games.
- The Red Sox's previous 10 contests have not had a runline set by oddsmakers.
- The Red Sox have been underdogs in 54 games this season and have come away with the win 29 times (53.7%) in those contests.
- This year, Boston has won 21 of 33 games when listed as at least +110 or worse on the moneyline.
- The Red Sox have an implied victory probability of 47.6% according to the moneyline set for this matchup.
- Boston is the sixth-highest scoring team in baseball, averaging five runs per game (524 total).
- The Red Sox have the 16th-ranked ERA (4.22) in the majors this season.
Put your picks to the test and bet on with BetMGM Sportsbook. Use bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
Red Sox Schedule
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:45
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Jeffrey E. Gundlach Building at the AKG will open on Thursday, the museum announced Monday.
The Gundlach building, which was closed for construction while the museum marked its grand reopening in June, features an extensive chronological installation of the most significant artwork in the museum’s collection. That artwork will be available for viewing in the Robert and Elisabeth Wilmers Building as well as the second floor of the Gundlach Building.
The museum is open five days a week, Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday, Sunday and Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The AKG had officially reopened more than 50,000 of its square feet last month after a renovation that began in 2019.
Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:45
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A new face has entered the race for Indiana's 3rd Congressional District – the 10th Republican to do so.
Tim Smith, CEO at Lifeline Youth & Family Services, announced his campaign Monday morning. Smith, a self-proclaimed conservative outsider, said his goal is to "end wokeness and expand freedom" in a media release.
"We've seen the power of an outsider in office – someone who will fight for the people," Smith said.
Incumbent U.S. Rep. Jim Banks plans to seek the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, he said in January. Banks made the announcement after Sen. Mike Braun said he would run for governor.
Other candidates in the Republican primary include Grant Bucher, a project manager for Weigand Construction; former Allen Circuit Court Judge Wendy Davis; Mike Felker, Warsaw maintenance technician and veteran; Fort Wayne resident and veteran Jon Kenworthy; Auburn lawyer Chandler Likes; former Congressman Marlin Stutzman; Eric Whalen, Decatur resident; Scott Wise, commercial manager for Warner Electric; and state Sen. Andy Zay, R-Huntington.
Jo Anderson, teacher at East Allen County Schools, and Phil Goss, a businessman and former State Department employee, are both running on the Democratic side.
Smith challenged Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry for the position in the 2019 election. Smith received 39% of the vote.
His campaign focuses on preserving "America's freedoms and principles from the radical left's woke ideologies," the media release said. Smith outlines abortion and immigration as two issues he will focus on, and he wants to "uphold law and order," and "expose government waste, fraud and abuse."
Smith was born in Fort Wayne and raised in New Haven, graduating from New Haven High School. He also graduated from Indiana University Purdue University Fort Wayne and the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law at IUPUI.
He has a campaign website at timsmithforindiana.com.
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https://www.journalgazette.net/local/former-fort-wayne-mayoral-candidate-enters-gop-race-for-congress/article_4bb0ea38-2fda-11ee-828c-2f1532196cc1.html
| 2023-07-31T20:33:45
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Jury poised to deliberate death penalty or life sentence for gunman in Pittsburgh synagogue massacre
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A jury is set to deliberate whether to impose the death penalty or a sentence of life in prison without parole on a man who spewed antisemitic hate before fatally shooting 11 worshippers at a synagogue in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community.
The same jurors who convicted 50-year-old Robert Bowers in June on 63 criminal counts listened to closing arguments Monday in the penalty phase of his federal trial, held nearly five years after the truck driver from suburban Baldwin perpetrated the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history.
Bowers defiled a place of worship when he entered the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle, shooting everyone he could find in a mass murder clearly motivated by religious hatred, said U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.
Bowers raved incessantly on social media about his hatred of Jewish people — using a slur for Jewish people some 400 times on a social media platform favored by the far right — and remains proud that he killed Jews, the prosecutor reminded jurors,
“Do not be numb to it. Remember what it means. This defendant targeted people solely because of the faith that they chose,” Olshan said.
He added: “This is a case that calls for the most severe punishment under the law: the death penalty.”
Bowers’ lead defense attorney, Judy Clarke, acknowledged the horror of his crimes but urged jurors to opt for a life sentence.
“What has happened cannot be undone. We can’t rewind the clock and make it that this senseless crime never happened. All we can do is make the right decision going forward. We are asking you to make the right decision, and that is life,” Clarke said in her closing argument.
A life sentence would mean that “prison is where Mr. Bowers will die in obscurity, not as a hero and not as a martyr,” she said.
Bowers’ attorneys have argued that he has schizophrenia, a serious brain disorder whose symptoms include delusions and hallucinations, and that Bowers attacked the synagogue out of a delusional belief that Jews were helping to bring about a genocide of white people by coming to the aid of refugees and immigrants. Clarke recounted Bowers’ history of psychiatric hospitalizations, including an extended stay in a residential juvenile mental health program.
The defense also presented evidence of Bowers’ difficult childhood.
Olshan disputed the defense experts’ diagnosis of schizophrenia, asserting that Bowers was not suffering psychosis but had chosen to believe white supremacist rhetoric. And while acknowledging that Bowers was a depressed, neglected child, Olshan downplayed the significance of it, noting that Bowers had held jobs, paid bills, and was an otherwise functioning adult.
“He was not a child, he was a grown man. He was responsible for his actions, not his family and things that happened decades earlier. He was, he is responsible for his actions,” Olshan said.
In order to impose death, jurors must find that aggravating circumstances, which make the crime especially heinous, outweigh mitigating factors that could be seen as diminishing his culpability. Those aggravating circumstances could include the vulnerability of Bowers’ elderly and disabled victims and his targeting of Jewish people.
Olshan played a composite of 911 calls made from inside the synagogue, including audio of people being shot and a survivor’s horrified screams.
He said Bowers had taken “11 people, 11 full lives, 11 people who loved their families, 11 people who loved their friends, 11 people who were loved. ... How do you measure the impact of all of that loss?”
The prosecutor spoke about 75-year-old Joyce Fienberg’s care for her family and 65-year-old Richard Gottfried’s devotion to his faith. He said Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, had the ethos of a country doctor: “He loved delivering babies but he never delivered judgment.” David Rosenthal, 54, and Cecil Rosenthal, 59, intellectually disabled brothers, “loved life,” Olshan said. “But maybe more than anything, they loved Tree of Life.”
The other deceased victims were Rose Mallinger, 97; Bernice Simon, 84, and her husband, Sylvan Simon, 86; Dan Stein, 71; Melvin Wax, 87; and Irving Younger, 69.
The attack also wounded seven people, including five responding police officers. Bowers was shot three times before surrendering when he ran out of ammunition.
___
Rubinkam reported from northeastern Pennsylvania.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:45
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The southbound lane of Harrison Street will be closed to through traffic between Main and Berry streets from Wednesday to Friday during pavement repair, the city of Fort Wayne said today.
For questions or to report problems, contact the city's right of way department at 427-6155.
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https://www.journalgazette.net/local/harrison-street-portion-limited-during-pavement-repair/article_a606d3c4-2fd7-11ee-beba-57bcbaaebbc5.html
| 2023-07-31T20:33:51
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THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) today announced that it will report its second quarter financial results on Thursday, August 3, 2023, after the close of the U.S. financial markets. The announcement will be followed by a conference call with the investment community at 1:30 p.m. PT. Participating in the call from Amgen will be Robert A. Bradway, chairman and chief executive officer, and other members of Amgen's senior management team.
Live audio of the conference call will be simultaneously broadcast over the internet and will be available to members of the news media, investors and the general public.
The webcast, as with other selected presentations regarding developments in Amgen's business given by management at certain investor and medical conferences, can be found on Amgen's website, www.amgen.com, under Investors. Information regarding presentation times, webcast availability and webcast links are noted on Amgen's Investor Relations Events Calendar. The webcast will be archived and available for replay for at least 90 days after the event.
About Amgen
Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology.
Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve people's lives. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world's leading independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential.
Amgen is one of the 30 companies that comprise the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is also part of the Nasdaq-100 index. In 2022, Amgen was named one of the "World's Best Employers" by Forbes and one of "America's 100 Most Sustainable Companies" by Barron's.
For more information, visit Amgen.com and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
CONTACT: Amgen, Thousand Oaks
Jessica Akopyan, 805-440-5721 (media)
Elissa Snook, 609-251-1407 (media)
Arvind Sood, 805-447-1060 (investors)
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Amgen
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:52
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Phone records tie the third and fourth suspects charged with a 40-year-old man's murder near Lower Huntington Road, newly released court documents show.
Samuel Evans IV, 23, and Jesse Shears, 29, were arrested Thursday in connection to the murder of 40-year-old Dennis Starr, who was gunned down at the interstation of Lower Huntington and Kruge Drive early July 25. The two men were arrested after 50-year-old Samuel Evans III and Lexus Evans, 25, were charged with Starr's murder.
Phone records from Shears and Samuel Evans IV the day of the shooting showed the men traveling to Fort Wayne about 2:30 a.m. and arriving back at their original location about 8 a.m., according to a probable cause affidavit written by Fort Wayne Police Detective Ben McDonald.
Phone records also placed Samuel Evans III in areas police have connected to the shooting, records show. Lexus Evans allegedly told police she, her son and a person unnamed in court documents were with her father at the time of the shooting.
Using surveillance footage from the area, police also spotted a 2018 Jeep Renegade in the same area as Starr's vehicle in the minutes leading up to the victim being shot, records show. Later, they connected the Jeep back to Samuel Evans III.
After police interviewed a witness and Lexus Evans, they had details of a fight that led to her kicking Starr out of their shared living space, court documents show. A witness told police Starr came to his apartment after Lexus Evans kicked him out.
When Starr got to the man's apartment, he had a black eye, records show. The witness said Starr told him Lexus Evans "blindsided him."
Lexus Evans told police she was with Starr at a cookout in Decatur when she got jumped by his friends in front of her 4-year-old son, records show. Starr had left before she was jumped, Lexus Evans said, and when he returned, he told the people assaulting Lexus Evans that it was enough and they stopped.
When they went home, Lexus Evans said she would not allow Starr in the apartment, records show. The defendant said she was not sure where he went and that she had not talked to him since.
When police arrested Samuel Evans IV and Shears, they found 5.7 mm shell casings in the backyard of the home, court documents show. The "rare ammunition" were the only shells used in the murder.
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https://www.journalgazette.net/local/phone-records-lead-to-arrest-of-third-and-fourth-suspects-in-shooting-on-citys-southwest/article_7f34ce90-2fc8-11ee-8982-afb94cf0fae7.html
| 2023-07-31T20:33:58
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RYE BROOK, N.Y., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Belle Haven Investments is proud to be Certified™ by Great Place To Work® for the second year in a row. The prestigious award is based entirely on what current employees say about their experience working at Belle Haven Investments. This year, 93% of employees said it's a great place To Work – 36 points higher than the average U.S. company.
Great Place To Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention and increased innovation.
"Great Place To Work Certification is a highly coveted achievement that requires consistent and intentional dedication to the overall employee experience," says Sarah Lewis-Kulin, the Vice President of Global Recognition at Great Place To Work. She emphasizes that Certification is the sole official recognition earned by the real-time feedback of employees regarding their company culture. "By successfully earning this recognition, it is evident that Belle Haven Investments stands out as one of the top companies to work for, providing a great workplace environment for its employees."
Matt Dalton, CEO & CIO, expressed his excitement emphasizing "We owe the Firm's continued success to our dedicated and awesome employees. We celebrate and thank them for all they do to earn this incredible recognition."
About Belle Haven Investments
Belle Haven Investments is an independent, employee-owned asset manager that focuses exclusively on fixed income. They prioritize service, reliability, and customization, nurturing long-term partnerships with their clients. Their core values - trust and communication - permeate both external client relationships and internal team dynamics. The autonomy given to employees fosters trust, driving them to deliver their best work daily. To learn more, visit: https://www.bellehaven.com/
About Great Place to Work Certification™
Great Place To Work® Certification™ is the most definitive "employer-of-choice" recognition that companies aspire to achieve. It is the only recognition based entirely on what employees report about their workplace experience – specifically, how consistently they experience a high-trust workplace. Great Place to Work Certification is recognized worldwide by employees and employers alike and is the global benchmark for identifying and recognizing outstanding employee experience. Every year, more than 10,000 companies across 60 countries apply to get Great Place To Work-Certified.
Contact:
Nicole Robbins
robbinsn@bellehaven.com
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Belle Haven Investments
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| 2023-07-31T20:33:59
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Jury poised to deliberate death penalty or life sentence for gunman in Pittsburgh synagogue massacre
PITTSBURGH (AP) — A jury is set to deliberate whether to impose the death penalty or a sentence of life in prison without parole on a man who spewed antisemitic hate before fatally shooting 11 worshippers at a synagogue in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community.
The same jurors who convicted 50-year-old Robert Bowers in June on 63 criminal counts listened to closing arguments Monday in the penalty phase of his federal trial, held nearly five years after the truck driver from suburban Baldwin perpetrated the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history.
Bowers defiled a place of worship when he entered the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle, shooting everyone he could find in a mass murder clearly motivated by religious hatred, said U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.
Bowers raved incessantly on social media about his hatred of Jewish people — using a slur for Jewish people some 400 times on a social media platform favored by the far right — and remains proud that he killed Jews, the prosecutor reminded jurors,
“Do not be numb to it. Remember what it means. This defendant targeted people solely because of the faith that they chose,” Olshan said.
He added: “This is a case that calls for the most severe punishment under the law: the death penalty.”
Bowers’ lead defense attorney, Judy Clarke, acknowledged the horror of his crimes but urged jurors to opt for a life sentence.
“What has happened cannot be undone. We can’t rewind the clock and make it that this senseless crime never happened. All we can do is make the right decision going forward. We are asking you to make the right decision, and that is life,” Clarke said in her closing argument.
A life sentence would mean that “prison is where Mr. Bowers will die in obscurity, not as a hero and not as a martyr,” she said.
Bowers’ attorneys have argued that he has schizophrenia, a serious brain disorder whose symptoms include delusions and hallucinations, and that Bowers attacked the synagogue out of a delusional belief that Jews were helping to bring about a genocide of white people by coming to the aid of refugees and immigrants. Clarke recounted Bowers’ history of psychiatric hospitalizations, including an extended stay in a residential juvenile mental health program.
The defense also presented evidence of Bowers’ difficult childhood.
Olshan disputed the defense experts’ diagnosis of schizophrenia, asserting that Bowers was not suffering psychosis but had chosen to believe white supremacist rhetoric. And while acknowledging that Bowers was a depressed, neglected child, Olshan downplayed the significance of it, noting that Bowers had held jobs, paid bills, and was an otherwise functioning adult.
“He was not a child, he was a grown man. He was responsible for his actions, not his family and things that happened decades earlier. He was, he is responsible for his actions,” Olshan said.
In order to impose death, jurors must find that aggravating circumstances, which make the crime especially heinous, outweigh mitigating factors that could be seen as diminishing his culpability. Those aggravating circumstances could include the vulnerability of Bowers’ elderly and disabled victims and his targeting of Jewish people.
Olshan played a composite of 911 calls made from inside the synagogue, including audio of people being shot and a survivor’s horrified screams.
He said Bowers had taken “11 people, 11 full lives, 11 people who loved their families, 11 people who loved their friends, 11 people who were loved. ... How do you measure the impact of all of that loss?”
The prosecutor spoke about 75-year-old Joyce Fienberg’s care for her family and 65-year-old Richard Gottfried’s devotion to his faith. He said Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, had the ethos of a country doctor: “He loved delivering babies but he never delivered judgment.” David Rosenthal, 54, and Cecil Rosenthal, 59, intellectually disabled brothers, “loved life,” Olshan said. “But maybe more than anything, they loved Tree of Life.”
The other deceased victims were Rose Mallinger, 97; Bernice Simon, 84, and her husband, Sylvan Simon, 86; Dan Stein, 71; Melvin Wax, 87; and Irving Younger, 69.
The attack also wounded seven people, including five responding police officers. Bowers was shot three times before surrendering when he ran out of ammunition.
___
Rubinkam reported from northeastern Pennsylvania.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.kfyrtv.com/2023/07/31/jury-poised-deliberate-death-penalty-or-life-sentence-gunman-pittsburgh-synagogue-massacre/
| 2023-07-31T20:34:04
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- VOXZOGO® Growth Continued in the Second Quarter Driven by Global Demand Resulting in Increased Full Year 2023 Guidance
- Pivotal Program with VOXZOGO in New, Potential Second Indication, Hypochondroplasia, to Begin in the Fourth Quarter of 2023
- U.S. Approval of ROCTAVIAN™ Received in the Second Quarter and Commercial Launch Underway; Commercial Launch in Europe Making Progress
SAN RAFAEL, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: BMRN) today announced financial results for the six months and second quarter ended June 30, 2023.
"Outstanding execution across our business led to record revenues in the first half of 2023. We reached more children with VOXZOGO around the world, as physicians and families sought treatment with the only approved medicine targeting the genetic cause of achondroplasia," said Jean-Jacques Bienaimé, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of BioMarin. "We were also very pleased to have received the highly anticipated U.S. approval of ROCTAVIAN, the only gene therapy treatment for severe hemophilia A. U.S. commercial launch activities are well underway following the June 29 approval, in parallel with launch progress across a number of European countries."
Mr. Bienaimé added, "for the remainder of 2023, we plan to build on the foundation of growth and profitability achieved in the first half of the year, expand VOXZOGO globally and treat the first ROCTAVIAN patients in the U.S. and Europe."
Financial Highlights:
- Total Revenues for the second quarter of 2023 were $595.3 million, an increase of 12% compared to the same period in 2022. The increase in Total Revenues was primarily attributed to the following:
- GAAP and Non-GAAP Net Income increased by $28.3 million and $28.4 million, respectively, for the second quarter of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. The increased net income was primarily due to higher gross profit and interest income, partially offset by higher spend in research and development programs to support both early-stage research and clinical activities, as well as higher selling, general and administrative expenses due to higher foreign currency losses and to support the commercial launches of VOXZOGO and ROCTAVIAN.
Recent Product Approvals and Launches (ROCTAVIAN and VOXZOGO)
- On June 29, 2023 the FDA approved ROCTAVIAN gene therapy for the treatment of adults with severe hemophilia A (congenital factor VIII (FVIII) deficiency with FVIII activity < 1 IU/dL) without antibodies to adeno-associated virus serotype 5 (AAV5) detected by an FDA-approved test. The FDA approval is based on data from the global Phase 3 GENEr8-1 study, the largest Phase 3 trial of any gene therapy in hemophilia. The one-time, single-dose infusion is the first approved gene therapy for severe hemophilia A in the U.S. ROCTAVIAN was first conditionally approved by the European Commission in August 2022.
Following FDA approval, the Company activated its U.S.-based salesforce and communicated that ROCTAVIAN is expected to be available for commercial use in August. BioMarin estimates that there are approximately 2,500 people living with severe hemophilia A in the United States who are eligible for treatment and receiving care at approximately 140 hemophilia treatment centers. - In Europe, BioMarin continues to make progress on the pricing and reimbursement process for ROCTAVIAN in Germany, France and Italy to facilitate access. BioMarin is working directly with the German National Association of Statuary Health Insurance Funds (GKV) to finalize access to ROCTAVIAN. At present, people in Germany with severe hemophilia A, who are eligible for treatment with ROCTAVIAN, can access treatment through either Named Patient authorizations or previously secured Outcomes Based Agreements. In France and Italy, BioMarin is working directly with the single public insurance funds in each country to secure reimbursement and access to ROCTAVIAN, expected later in 2023.
- As of the end of June 2023, more than 2,000 children with achondroplasia were being treated with VOXZOGO across 36 active markets. In the second quarter, patient growth remained strong worldwide. Based on these trends, today BioMarin updated full-year 2023 VOXZOGO guidance to between $400 million and $440 million. VOXZOGO is currently approved for the treatment of children 2 years old and older in Europe, for children 5 years old and older in the U.S., and approved for all ages from birth in Japan.
VOXZOGO and ROCTAVIAN Market Expansion Opportunities
- Today, BioMarin announced its plan to begin enrollment in the pivotal program with VOXZOGO for the treatment of children with hypochondroplasia, a condition characterized by impaired bone growth. Hypochondroplasia is a genetic statural condition caused by a mutation (gene change) in the fibroblast growth factor receptor-3 (FGFR3) gene.
Leveraging years of safety data from the VOXZOGO development program in achondroplasia, emerging data from an investigator-led Phase 2 study and following receipt of feedback from FDA, BioMarin plans to begin the 6-month observation arm of the study later this year, followed by the 52-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase of the 80-participant clinical trial. If successful, BioMarin believes this study will be able to support regulatory approval in this large indication. - In the coming months in the U.S. and Europe, the Company expects to learn the outcome of its request to expand VOXZOGO access to younger age groups, based on favorable results from a Phase 2 study in infants and young children and the importance of starting treatment as early as feasible. Age expansions would provide access to treatment with VOXZOGO to more than 1,000 additional children in the U.S. and Europe.
- Additional product expansion opportunities with ROCTAVIAN continue, including a clinical study investigating ROCTAVIAN treatment in those with active or prior inhibitors and continued exploration of methods of administering ROCTAVIAN in people with pre-existing antibodies against AAV5.
Earlier-stage Development Portfolio (BMN 255, BMN 331, BMN 351, BMN 349, BMN 293)
- BioMarin plans to showcase its Research and Development capabilities and earlier-stage product candidate updates at its R&D Day on September 12, 2023. Details on accessing the live event will be available on BioMarin's website in early September.
- BMN 255 for hyperoxaluria in chronic liver disease: The Company has concluded the multi-ascending dose study with BMN 255 in healthy human volunteers. Based on early data demonstrating a rapid and potent increase in plasma glycolate following treatment with BMN 255, BioMarin plans to open enrollment in an expanded study in patients with chronic liver disease and hyperoxaluria in the second half of 2023. The Company believes the availability of a potent, orally bioavailable, small molecule like BMN 255 may be able to significantly reduce disease and treatment burden in a patient population with significant unmet need.
- BMN 331 gene therapy product candidate for Hereditary Angioedema (HAE): Dosing continues in the Phase 1/2 HAERMONY study to evaluate BMN 331, an investigational AAV5-mediated gene therapy for people living with HAE. In January 2023, BioMarin shared that the first participant treated with the 6e13vg/kg dose demonstrated C1-Inhibitor levels that were approaching the therapeutically relevant range. In March 2023, the second sentinel participant was safely dosed at 6e13vg/kg and this individual has had a similar initial response. BioMarin will continue to monitor the trajectory of expression in these two individuals before deciding on next steps in this program.
- BMN 351 for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD): Investigational New Drug application (IND)-enabling activities continue with BMN 351, an antisense oligonucleotide therapy for individuals with exon 51-skip-amenable DMD. BMN 351 was developed using familiar chemistry and superior biology, by targeting a novel, splice enhancer site demonstrating improved binding affinity and tolerability in preclinical models. Preclinical data suggest that restored expression of near-full-length dystrophin protein at levels of up to 40% will convert phenotypes from rapid loss to durable preservation of strength and ambulation.
- BMN 349 for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency: Preclinical studies have demonstrated that BMN 349 is an orally bioavailable, small molecule that preferentially sequesters mutant protein, preventing polymerization in liver cells that drive the progressive liver disease form of the illness. In preclinical studies BMN 349 is titratable to effect, with rapid onset and high potency. Preclinical results have strong implications for potential improvement of current management, particularly for severe liver disease requiring rapid action. IND enabling studies are concluding and BioMarin plans to submit the IND in the second half of 2023.
- BMN 293 for MYBPC3 hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM): Mutations in the MYBPC3 gene are the most common cause of inherited HCM. Early investigations suggest that gene therapy-mediated gene transfer can lead to widespread expression of the gene product, cardiac myosin-binding protein C (MyBP-C), in cardiac tissue, which can normalize cardiac hypertrophy, improve relaxation kinetics and potentially alleviate functional deficits in individuals suffering from cardiomyopathy. IND enabling studies are underway and have incorporated pre-IND feedback from the FDA. BioMarin's goal is to submit an IND for BMN 293 in the second half of 2023.
2023 Full-Year Financial Guidance (in millions, except % and EPS amounts) (Updated)
BioMarin will host a conference call and webcast to discuss second quarter 2023 financial results today, Monday, July 31, 2023, at 4:30 p.m. ET. This event can be accessed through this link or on the investor section of the BioMarin website at www.biomarin.com.
About BioMarin
Founded in 1997, BioMarin is a global biotechnology company dedicated to transforming lives through genetic discovery. The Company develops and commercializes targeted therapies that address the root cause of genetic conditions. BioMarin's robust research and development capabilities have resulted in multiple innovative commercial therapies for patients with rare genetic disorders. The Company's distinctive approach to drug discovery has produced a diverse pipeline of commercial, clinical, and pre-clinical candidates that address a significant unmet medical need, have well-understood biology, and provide an opportunity to be first-to-market or offer a substantial benefit over existing treatment options. For additional information, please visit www.biomarin.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release and the associated conference call and webcast contain forward-looking statements about the business prospects of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BioMarin), including, without limitation, statements about: the expectations of Total Revenues, Net Product Revenues, Enzyme Product Revenues, Gross Profit, Research and Development Expense (R&D), Selling, General and Administrative Expense (SG&A), GAAP Net Income, Non-GAAP Income, GAAP Diluted EPS and Non-GAAP Diluted EPS for the full-year 2023; cash flows from operating activities; the timing of orders for commercial products; the timing of BioMarin's clinical development and commercial prospects, including announcements of data from clinical studies and trials; the clinical development and commercialization of BioMarin's product candidates and commercial products, including (i) the potential to leverage VOXZOGO in conditions beyond achondroplasia, such as hypochondroplasia, (ii) the results from clinical studies regarding product expansion opportunities for ROCTAVIAN, (iii) BioMarin's plans to initiate and enroll an expanded study of BMN 255 in the second half of 2023, (iv) BioMarin's plan to submit an IND for BMN 349 in the second half of 2023, and (v) BioMarin's goal to submit an IND for BMN 293 in the second half of 2023; the potential approval and commercialization of BioMarin's product candidates, including commercialization of ROCTAVIAN for the treatment of severe hemophilia A in the U.S. following FDA approval in June 2023, and the timing of such approval decisions and product launches, including (i) the anticipated start and growth of commercial sales of VOXZOGO in additional countries, and (ii) BioMarin's expectation that U.S. and EU health authorities take action on its supplemental marketing applications for VOXZOGO in the coming months and the number of additional children that will be eligible for VOXZOGO if such age expansions are accepted; the expected benefits and availability of BioMarin's product candidates; and potential growth opportunities and trends, including that BioMarin expects accelerated growth of VOXZOGO revenues as the product launch continues in future quarters and that BioMarin expects growth of ROCTAVIAN revenues as the product's access is expanded in Europe and following commercial launch in the U.S.
These forward-looking statements are predictions and involve risks and uncertainties such that actual results may differ materially from these statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others: BioMarin's success in the commercialization of its commercial products, impacts of macroeconomic and other external factors on BioMarin's operations; results and timing of current and planned preclinical studies and clinical trials and the release of data from those trials; BioMarin's ability to successfully manufacture its commercial products and product candidates; the content and timing of decisions by the FDA, the European Commission and other regulatory authorities concerning each of the described products and product candidates; the market for each of these products; actual sales of BioMarin's commercial products; the introduction of generic versions of BioMarin's commercial products, in particular generic versions of KUVAN; and those factors detailed in BioMarin's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including, without limitation, the factors contained under the caption "Risk Factors" in BioMarin's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2023 as such factors may be updated by any subsequent reports. Stockholders are urged not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. BioMarin is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
BioMarin®, BRINEURA®, KUVAN®, NAGLAZYME®, PALYNZIQ®, VIMIZIM® and VOXZOGO® are registered trademarks of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., or its affiliates. ROCTAVIANTM is a trademark of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. ALDURAZYME® is a registered trademark of BioMarin/Genzyme LLC. All other brand names and service marks, trademarks and other trade names appearing in this release are the property of their respective owners.
Non-GAAP Information
The results presented in this press release include both GAAP information and Non-GAAP information. Non-GAAP Income is defined by the Company as GAAP Net Income excluding amortization expense, stock-based compensation expense, contingent consideration expense, and, in certain periods, certain other specified items, as detailed below when applicable. The Company also includes a Non-GAAP adjustment for the estimated tax impact of the reconciling items. Non-GAAP Diluted EPS is defined by the Company as Non-GAAP Income divided by Non-GAAP diluted shares outstanding
BioMarin regularly uses both GAAP and Non-GAAP results and expectations internally to assess its financial operating performance and evaluate key business decisions related to its principal business activities: the discovery, development, manufacture, marketing and sale of innovative biologic therapies. Because Non-GAAP Income, Non-GAAP Diluted EPS and Non-GAAP Diluted Shares are important internal measurements for BioMarin, the Company believes that providing this information in conjunction with BioMarin's GAAP information enhances investors' and analysts' ability to meaningfully compare the Company's results from period to period and to its forward-looking guidance, and to identify operating trends in the Company's principal business. BioMarin also uses Non-GAAP Income internally to understand, manage and evaluate its business and to make operating decisions, and compensation of executives is based in part on this measure.
Non-GAAP Income and its components are not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for, or superior to comparable GAAP measures and should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Investors should note that the Non-GAAP information is not prepared under any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles and does not reflect all of the amounts associated with the Company's results of operations as determined in accordance with GAAP. Investors should also note that these Non-GAAP financial measures have no standardized meaning prescribed by GAAP and, therefore, have limits in their usefulness to investors. In addition, from time to time in the future there may be other items that the Company may exclude for purposes of its Non-GAAP financial measures; likewise, the Company may in the future cease to exclude items that it has historically excluded for purposes of its Non-GAAP financial measures. Because of the non-standardized definitions, the Non-GAAP financial measure as used by BioMarin in this press release and the accompanying tables may be calculated differently from, and therefore may not be directly comparable to, similarly titled measures used by other companies.
The following tables present the reconciliation of GAAP reported to Non-GAAP adjusted financial information:
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