PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Honey, they shrunk the catalogs. While retailers hope to go big this holiday season , customers may notice that the printed gift guides arriving in their mailboxes are smaller. Many of the millions of catalogs getting sent to U.S. homes were indeed scaled down to save on postage and paper, resulting in pint-sized editions. Lands’ End, Duluth Trading Company and Hammacher Schlemmer are among gift purveyors using smaller editions. Some retailers are saving even more money with postcards. Lisa Ayoob, a tech-savvy, online shopper in Portland, Maine, was surprised by the size of a recent catalog she received from outdoor apparel company Carbon2Cobalt. “It almost felt like it was a pamphlet compared to a catalog,” she said. Catalogs have undergone a steady recalibration over the years in response to technological changes and consumer behavior. The thick, heavy Sears and J.C. Penney catalogs that brought store displays to American living rooms slimmed down and gave way to targeted mailings once websites could do the same thing. Recent postal rate increases accelerated the latest shift to compact formats. The number of catalogs mailed each year dropped about 40% between 2006 to 2018, when an estimated 11.5 billion were mailed to homes, according to the trade group formerly known as the American Catalog Mailers Association. In a sign of the times, the group based in Washington rebranded itself in May as the American Commerce Marketing Association, reflecting a broadened focus. But don't expect catalogs to go the way of dinosaurs yet. Defying predictions of doom, they have managed to remain relevant in the e-commerce era. Retail companies found that could treat catalogs with fewer pages as a marketing tool and include QR and promo codes to entice customers to browse online and complete a purchase. Despite no longer carrying an extended inventory of goods, catalogs are costly to produce and ship. But they hold their own in value because of growing digital advertising costs, helping retailers cut through the noise for consumers barraged by multi-format advertisements, industry officials say. In an unlikely twist, notable e-commerce companies like Amazon and home goods supplier Wayfair started distributing catalogs in recent years. Amazon began mailing a toy catalog in 2018. That was the same year Sears, which produced an annual Christmas Wish Book Wish starting in 1933, filed for bankruptc y. Fans of printed information may rejoice to hear that apparel retailer J.Crew relaunched its glossy catalog this year. Research shows that the hands-on experience of thumbing through a catalog leaves a greater impression on consumers, said Jonathan Zhang, a professor of marketing at Colorado State University. “The reason why these paper formats are so effective is that our human brains haven’t evolved as fast as technology and computers over the past 10 to 20 years. We retain more information when we read something on paper. That's why paper books remain relevant," Zhang said. “The psychology shows that three-dimensional, tactile experiences are more memorable.” Pint-sized presentations still can work, though, because the purpose of catalogs these days is simply to get customers’ attention, Zhang said. Conserving paper also works better with younger consumers who are worried about the holiday shopping season's impact on the planet, he said. Postal increases are hastening changes. The latest round of postage hikes in July included the category with the 8.5-by-11-inch size that used to be ubiquitous for the catalog industry. Many retailers responded by reducing the size of catalogs, putting them in a lower-cost letter category, said Paul Miller, executive vice president and managing director of the American Commerce Marketing Association. One size, called a “slim jim,” measures 10.5 by 5.5 inches. But there other sizes. Some retailers have further reduced costs by mailing large postcards to consumers. Lands' End, for one, is testing new compact formats to supplement its traditional catalogs. This year, that included folded glossy brochures and postcards, along with other formats, Chief Transformation Officer Angie Rieger said. Maine resident Ayoob said she understands why retailers still use catalogs even though she no longer is a fan of the format. These days, she prefers to browse for products on the internet, not by flipping through paper pages. “Everybody wants eyeballs. There’s so much out there -- so many websites, so many brands,” said Ayoob, who spent 35 years working in department stores and in the wholesale industry. Targeting customers at home is not a new concept. L.L. Bean was a pioneer of the mail-order catalog after its founder promoted his famous “Maine Hunting Shoe” to hunting license holders from out-of-state in 1912. The outdoor clothing and equipment company based in Freeport, Maine, is sticking to mailing out regular-sized catalogs for now. “By showcasing our icons, the catalog became an icon itself,” L.L. Bean spokesperson Amanda Hannah said. "Even as we invest more in our digital and brand marketing channels, the catalog retains a strong association with our brand, and is therefore an important part of our omni-channel strategy, especially for our loyal customers.” David Sharp, The Associated Press
A “Coalition to Save Culpeper” is mobilizing to scrutinize and hopefully curtail data center growth in the town and county. The new nonprofit formed to “protect the rural, historic character of Culpeper for the citizens of today and generations to come,” according to saveculpeper.com . Spokeswoman Charlotte Cole, a town resident and 50-year PR expert, said the group’s focus is the data center greenlighted for location next to Culpeper National Cemetery on East Chandler Street. She said in a recent phone call “my heart bleeds” at the prospect. “My husband is in section 11 at the national cemetery and that bank of obnoxious polluting behemoths will be overlooking him and me, eventually, and I am not at all happy about that,” Cole said. “I don’t want to be there—there will be no peace when people come to visit.” People are also reading... It’s not just them either, she added. “Everyone else who is there will have to listen to that obnoxious noise and there are eight more (data centers) next door,” Cole said of various projects approved by local officials in the past few years in the Culpeper Technology Zone, or CTZ, in the McDevitt Drive area. Various rezonings have been approved in the area and millions of dollars in real estate transactions have occurred. “It’s an abomination for the town and all of it seemingly done under the cloak of darkness,” Cole said. A member of the Culpeper Economic Development Advisory Commission from 2017-19, Cole said there was never any talk during those years of a data center in that area. The approved project, Copper Ridge, sits on a site formerly rezoned by town council in the early 2000s for a so-named 55-and-older housing development, on a hill which once sat historic Eastern View. The Coalition to Save Culpeper wants to know how the use was changed to industrial, Cole said. At a planning commission meeting in August 2023, Stephen Plescow, president of St. Mawes real estate developers in Culpeper, sought the rezoning. He said the Copper Ridge data center project would have a substation located as close as 450-feet away from the cemetery boundary. Plescow said at the time it was their top priority to buffer and appropriately screen their hallowed neighbor. The planning commission split on their approval of the project , recommending to town council to not rezone the land for the data center, finding it was out of character with the neighborhood and out of compliance with the comprehensive plan. Town council ultimately approved the project and a substation on the property this past summer. Residents living near the cemetery objected to the rezoning due to the amount of noise purported to be emitted by data centers. Councilwoman Jamie Clancey in July questioned this concern due to the fact that the area had previously been zoned for residential development. Cole said the data centers also threaten the town’s water supply. “My dad was president of Hayes, Seay, Mattern and Mattern. His area of responsibility was northern Virginia to Charlottesville, we lived in Roanoke, and we grew up with it—conserve water, take care of water,” she said. “These concerned citizens decided we needed to somehow coalesce, been doing that for the last several months now, it’s time for more folks in our sweet town and county to understand what’s at stake here.” Cole lives on Blue Ridge Avenue west of Main Street. She believes she will hear the noise from the data centers next to the cemetery on the east side of Main. She said their group has been working with partner Sarah Parmelee from Piedmont Environmental Council to champion the effort. Cole said she has worked with public officials for 50 years, and that Culpeper town officials have shocked her with their lack of interest in public engagement on the issue. Coalition to Save Culpeper has no elected hierarchy, Cole said, and its membership is comprised of everyone from young families to folks that have been in historic homes for quite a long time. “We believe there is still the remote possibility we can change, through public opinion, the decision to build six data centers overlooking the National Cemetery,” she said. “It’s citizens concerned—no one knows this is going on except a few and we need to help illuminate these decisions, at least allow the public to come in and have their say.” From a PR perspective, it’s going to take a whole lot of pitchforks and torches and shaming of the developers to bring it to a halt, Cole added. “That’s what we’re trying to get to the bottom of—how these deals were done to make this black magic happen so quickly,” she said. “We want people to understand this is of concern from an environmental perspective, future of Culpeper and quality of life perspective. You can’t have 14 data centers humming over your town and casting that shrill noise for as far as three to five miles and sucking up your water without an impact on your commercial core. I don’t care how much money somebody wants to give me, that quality of life will suck.” According to PEC, Copper Ridge will be located within 1,000 feet of Mountain Brook Estates neighborhood and several homes on East Chandler Street. “Depending on the type of cooling equipment used, homes near data centers can be subject to a constant buzz or humming noise from rooftop cooling equipment and substations,” PEC states. “Data Center Alley is coming to Culpeper,” says saveculpeper.com . “Lured by the siren song of tax revenue, Culpeper’s elected officials have approved over 12 million square feet of new data center campuses, an area roughly the equivalent of 64 Walmart Supercenters. These massive facilities will be built next to our homes, our historic district, and even our National Cemetery, the final resting place of over 7,500 American Service Members, permanently industrializing our rural community.” Group publicity stated while they cannot undo many projects already approved, they can work for greater government transparency as well as a moratorium on any more data centers. Coalition to Save Culpeper wants use-specific zoning for data centers, noise protections and a say in how the local power grid is used. For information, contact saveculpeper@gmail.com and on Facebook. Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox!
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — J.K. Dobbins will miss at least the next four games after the Los Angeles Chargers placed the running back on injured reserve Saturday. The team also placed safety Alohi Gilman on injured reserve and signed safety Tony Jefferson to the active roster. Dobbins sprained the MCL in his left knee late in the first half of the Chargers’ 30-23 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Monday. Dobbins is fourth in the AFC in rushing with 766 yards and averages 4.8 yards per carry, third highest among AFC running backs with at least 100 carries. He has been considered among the candidates for AP Comeback Player of the Year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon in last season’s opener. Gus Edwards will be counted on to be the lead back in Dobbins' absence. Edwards missed four games during the middle of the season because of an ankle injury and has 25 carries for 93 yards in three games since returning to the lineup. The Chargers are 7-4 and hold the sixth seed in the AFC going into Sunday's game at NFC South leader Atlanta (6-5). Los Angeles is at Kansas City (10-1) in a prime-time game on Dec. 8, hosts Tampa Bay (5-6) on Dec. 15 and Denver (7-5) on Dec. 19. Gilman suffered a hamstring injury in the loss to the Ravens. He has 47 tackles, which is fifth on the team, along with one sack. Los Angeles also elevated cornerback Dicaprio Bootle and linebacker Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste from the practice squad for Sunday’s game. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl The Associated PressImran Khan's wife emerges as Pakistan protest figure
A film set location, a big budget production, an audience bussed in - the prime minister's Plan for Change speech had all the hallmarks of big campaign moments past when Sir Keir Starmer used the event to launch his "first steps' set of promises - from cutting NHS waiting lists and setting up a new border command to tackle small boats - and his election-winning manifesto. Five months into government, on Thursday, he gathered his cabinet and crowd in Pinewood Studios to launch this six milestones for government . But if it was meant to be a box office moment, it all felt a bit flat. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player What's in a Labour government? Over the past 18 months, we've had three foundations, five missions, six first steps and now, on Thursday, six milestones, with a 42-page plan. Speak to the prime minister at the edges of these events, and he can make a compelling case for his missions and the clarity he has for government. But somehow it is getting lost in translation as the missions become the first steps, become milestones with three foundations to boot. More on Labour Missions, first steps and milestones: How Sir Keir Starmer's priorities have changed since last year Sir Keir Starmer's milestones: What are they, what's missing and how easy are they to achieve? Labour blind spot for scandal on show as Tories exploit murky Haigh affair Related Topics: Labour Sir Keir Starmer It can be hard to find a narrative in what this government is trying to do. Read more: PM vows to take on 'alliance of naysayers' Driving test bosses 'bullying examiners to be lenient' Thursday was an attempt to change that with six measurable milestones now set up so you, Whitehall and the cabinet, are all crystal clear about where they are heading. Some of them are a departure from manifesto pledges, others are not. Some of them are genuinely ambitious, others less so. The manifesto promise to have the fastest growing economy in the G7 is now an "aim" while the new milestone is to "raise living standards in every part of the United Kingdom, so working people have more money in their pockets" is a new target. The idea is to make the pledge more "human" but the PM wouldn't say how much he wanted to raise living standards - and household disposable income is already set to rise by the end of this parliament. Then on opportunity for all, in the run-up to the election the government promised to recruit 6,500 more teachers to improve teaching in state secondaries. Now the milestone they are asking to be measured on is a promise that 75% of five-year-olds are ready to learn in England when they start school against 67% today. There is a new milestone to fast-track planning decisions on at least 150 major economic infrastructure projects. There is a milestone to put a named bobby back on the beat in every neighbourhood, while the pledge to halve violence against women and girls has not been marked up as a milestone. 'Hold the government's feet to the fire' Why are they doing it now and to what end? At its heart this is an attempt to give voters clear targets on which they can, to quote Starmer himself, "hold the government's feet to the fire". But it felt a bit like a rag bag of measures in which some past promises were pushed aside and others pumped up. The 1.5 million housing target, the pledge to return to the NHS standard of 92% of patients being seen for elective treatment in 18 weeks, the commitment to green power by 2030 are all ambitious. But things that are perhaps too risky or hard to meet have been dropped. The migration question One of the biggest omissions in the milestones was migration. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player This surprised me, not least because the prime minister had said clearly that the economy and borders were his two main priorities in government and a clear concern for voters. But instead of making it one of his milestone measures, for which the public can hold him accountable, the PM said securing borders was one of the "foundations" of his government. There is no metric on which to measure him beyond net migration coming down from record levels of 800,000 plus in the past couple of years. Perhaps he could have been more ambitious in setting a target to hit in terms of cutting legal migration or small boat crossings. Perhaps he could have committed to a deportation figure - something that Harriet Harman suggested he might have done on our episode of Electoral Dysfunction this week. But I suspect, in the end, Number 10 decided it was too risky to try to set targets. 'The tepid bath of managed decline' But with a disaffected electorate, high levels of scepticism, and a Reform party playing into that anti-politics sentiment, Starmer knows he must galvanise his government to try to deliver tangibles before the next election, and this speech will perhaps be looked back on as one aimed as much at Whitehall as it was you, the voter. He explicitly challenged the British state to deliver in this speech saying his Plan for Change was "the most ambitious plan for government in a generation" and would require a "change to the nature of governing itself" as he called on the state to become more dynamic, decisive, innovate, embracing of technology and artificial intelligence. "Make no mistake, this plan will land on desks across Whitehall with the heavy thud of a gauntlet being thrown down, a demand given the urgency of our times," he told his audience as he fired a warning shot to Whitehall. "I do think there are too many people in Whitehall who are comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline. Had forgotten, to paraphrase JFK, that you choose change not because it's easy, but because it's hard." 👉 Click here to listen to Electoral Dysfunction on your podcast app 👈 Starmer and his team know that without galvanising Whitehall and setting clear navigation through this mission and now measurable milestones, delivery will be hard. The plan is for stock takes on the missions and milestones in order to hold mandarins accountable. On the back of Starmer's milestones speech will come another from cabinet minister Pat McFadden on civil service reform. At the election, Starmer ran on a platform of promising change. Follow our channel and never miss an update Five months later, eyeing a sharp fall in opinion poll ratings, he is offering a concrete plan for change. For now voters seemed tuned out, with the pledges and targets being thrown at them failing to stick. I don't think Starmer or his team expect those polls to turn around any time soon. But they are adamant that if they can fulfil promises to build more homes and better infrastructure, cut NHS waiting lists, lift living standards, and give people a sense of greater security on their streets, they can turn the tide on the tsunami of cynicism they face. Be the first to get Breaking News Install the Sky News app for free Starmer might not be the best storyteller, but in the end he'll likely be judged not on the flourish or rhetoric, but on whether he can actually deliver.KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) — Zahir Abdus-Salaam ran for a touchdown and caught another as Western Michigan defeated Eastern Michigan 26-18 on Saturday to become bowl eligible, snapping a three-game losing streak. Abdus-Salaam scored on a 22-yard run for a 23-8 lead in the third quarter and he celebrated by jumping into a snowbank bordering the end zone. The Broncos (6-6, 5-3 Mid-American Conference) blocked a punt for safety that started a run of 16 points in under four minutes. Abdus-Salaam scored on a 31-yard screen pass then Joey Pope recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff to set up Jalen Buckley's 15-yard TD run with 19 seconds before the half ended. Eastern Michigan's Delmert Mimms II scored two third-quarter touchdowns. The teams exchanged field goals for the only fourth-quarter scoring. The Eagles got the ball back with 2:18 remaining but on their first play Bilhal Kone intercepted a tipped pass. Eastern Michigan (5-7, 2-6) lost its last five games. Abdus-Salaam rushed for 135 yards and Buckley 103 on 19 carries apiece. Hayden Wolff threw for 126 yards and a score. Abdus-Salaam had 40 yards receiving. Mimms rushed for 127 yards on 18 carries. Cole Snyder was only 7 of 22 for 91 yards passing. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football . Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25Why your favorite catalogs are smaller this holiday season PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Honey, they shrunk the catalogs. While retailers hope to go big this holiday season , customers may notice that the printed gift guides arriving in their mailboxes are smaller. David Sharp, The Associated Press Nov 30, 2024 4:15 AM Nov 30, 2024 4:35 AM Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message A collection of 2024 holiday catalogs are displayed Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Freeport, Maine. Catalog retailers, reeling from U.S. postal rate increases, have responded with pint-sized catalogs this holiday season. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Honey, they shrunk the catalogs. While retailers hope to go big this holiday season , customers may notice that the printed gift guides arriving in their mailboxes are smaller. Many of the millions of catalogs getting sent to U.S. homes were indeed scaled down to save on postage and paper, resulting in pint-sized editions. Lands’ End, Duluth Trading Company and Hammacher Schlemmer are among gift purveyors using smaller editions. Some retailers are saving even more money with postcards. Lisa Ayoob, a tech-savvy, online shopper in Portland, Maine, was surprised by the size of a recent catalog she received from outdoor apparel company Carbon2Cobalt. “It almost felt like it was a pamphlet compared to a catalog,” she said. Catalogs have undergone a steady recalibration over the years in response to technological changes and consumer behavior. The thick, heavy Sears and J.C. Penney catalogs that brought store displays to American living rooms slimmed down and gave way to targeted mailings once websites could do the same thing. Recent postal rate increases accelerated the latest shift to compact formats. The number of catalogs mailed each year dropped about 40% between 2006 to 2018, when an estimated 11.5 billion were mailed to homes, according to the trade group formerly known as the American Catalog Mailers Association. In a sign of the times, the group based in Washington rebranded itself in May as the American Commerce Marketing Association, reflecting a broadened focus. But don't expect catalogs to go the way of dinosaurs yet. Defying predictions of doom, they have managed to remain relevant in the e-commerce era. Retail companies found that could treat catalogs with fewer pages as a marketing tool and include QR and promo codes to entice customers to browse online and complete a purchase. Despite no longer carrying an extended inventory of goods, catalogs are costly to produce and ship. But they hold their own in value because of growing digital advertising costs, helping retailers cut through the noise for consumers barraged by multi-format advertisements, industry officials say. In an unlikely twist, notable e-commerce companies like Amazon and home goods supplier Wayfair started distributing catalogs in recent years. Amazon began mailing a toy catalog in 2018. That was the same year Sears, which produced an annual Christmas Wish Book Wish starting in 1933, filed for bankruptc y. Fans of printed information may rejoice to hear that apparel retailer J.Crew relaunched its glossy catalog this year. Research shows that the hands-on experience of thumbing through a catalog leaves a greater impression on consumers, said Jonathan Zhang, a professor of marketing at Colorado State University. “The reason why these paper formats are so effective is that our human brains haven’t evolved as fast as technology and computers over the past 10 to 20 years. We retain more information when we read something on paper. That's why paper books remain relevant," Zhang said. “The psychology shows that three-dimensional, tactile experiences are more memorable.” Pint-sized presentations still can work, though, because the purpose of catalogs these days is simply to get customers’ attention, Zhang said. Conserving paper also works better with younger consumers who are worried about the holiday shopping season's impact on the planet, he said. Postal increases are hastening changes. The latest round of postage hikes in July included the category with the 8.5-by-11-inch size that used to be ubiquitous for the catalog industry. Many retailers responded by reducing the size of catalogs, putting them in a lower-cost letter category, said Paul Miller, executive vice president and managing director of the American Commerce Marketing Association. One size, called a “slim jim,” measures 10.5 by 5.5 inches. But there other sizes. Some retailers have further reduced costs by mailing large postcards to consumers. Lands' End, for one, is testing new compact formats to supplement its traditional catalogs. This year, that included folded glossy brochures and postcards, along with other formats, Chief Transformation Officer Angie Rieger said. Maine resident Ayoob said she understands why retailers still use catalogs even though she no longer is a fan of the format. These days, she prefers to browse for products on the internet, not by flipping through paper pages. “Everybody wants eyeballs. There’s so much out there -- so many websites, so many brands,” said Ayoob, who spent 35 years working in department stores and in the wholesale industry. Targeting customers at home is not a new concept. L.L. Bean was a pioneer of the mail-order catalog after its founder promoted his famous “Maine Hunting Shoe” to hunting license holders from out-of-state in 1912. The outdoor clothing and equipment company based in Freeport, Maine, is sticking to mailing out regular-sized catalogs for now. “By showcasing our icons, the catalog became an icon itself,” L.L. Bean spokesperson Amanda Hannah said. "Even as we invest more in our digital and brand marketing channels, the catalog retains a strong association with our brand, and is therefore an important part of our omni-channel strategy, especially for our loyal customers.” David Sharp, The Associated Press See a typo/mistake? Have a story/tip? This has been shared 0 times 0 Shares Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message More The Mix New York state and Michigan brace for lake-effect snow that could snarl travel and disrupt football Nov 30, 2024 4:07 AM Magic can't save 'Harry Potter' star Rupert Grint from a $2.3 million tax bill Nov 30, 2024 4:00 AM Montreal family fights to save home from expropriation for subway ventilation station Nov 30, 2024 3:00 AM Featured Flyer
Marvel Rivals - Official Season 0: Dooms' Rise Trailer Check out the latest Marvel Rivals trailer as Season 0: Dooms' Rise is coming to the superhero team-based PVP shooter game. Marvel Rivals will be available on PC (Steam and Epic Games Store), PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on December 6, 2024. Marvel Rivals' Season 0: Dooms' Rise kicks off on December 6, 2024 at UTC 00:00. Inspired by Doctor Doom and his never-ending quest to unravel the mysteries of time, Season 0 isn't just the beginning, it's the explosive start to innumerable conflicts beyond imagination. Between Doctor Doom and his counterpart from 2099, no one knows who will be the final victor, but everyone knows that the time has come to ignite the battle.
The billing of London-born former Chelsea boss Hayes against England’s Dutch manager Sarina Wiegman – arguably the best two bosses in the women’s game – had generated more buzz in the build-up than the players on the pitch, despite it being a rare encounter between the two top-ranked sides in the world. Hayes enjoyed her return to familiar shores but felt the US lacked the “killer piece” after they looked the likelier side to make the breakthrough. Elite meeting of the minds 🌟 pic.twitter.com/R4d8EArqTp — U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) November 30, 2024 Asked what was going through her mind during the national anthem, Hayes said: “I was definitely mouthing (it), and Naomi (Girma) and Lynn (Williams) could see that I was struggling with where to be and all that. “I got to the end of the anthems and I thought, ‘that’s so ridiculous. I’m proud to be English and I’m proud of our national anthem, and I’m also really proud to coach America’. “Two things are possible all at once. I don’t want to fuel a nationalist debate around it. The realities are both countries are really dear to me for lots of reasons, and I’m really proud to represent both of them.” The Lionesses did not register a shot on target in the first half but grew into the game in the second. US captain Lindsey Horan had the ball in the net after the break but the flag was up, while Hayes’ side had a penalty award for a handball reversed after a VAR check determined substitute Yazmeen Ryan’s shot hit Alex Greenwood’s chest. Hayes, who left Chelsea after 12 trophy-packed years this summer, said: “I’ve been privileged to coach a lot of top-level games, including here, so there’s a familiarity to being here for me. “It’s not new to me, and because of that there was a whole sense of I’m coming back to a place I know. I have a really healthy perspective, and I want to have a really healthy perspective on my profession. “I give everything I possibly can for a team that I really, really enjoy coaching, and I thrive, not just under pressure, but I like these opportunities, I like being in these situations. They bring out the best in me. “You’ve got two top teams now, Sarina is an amazing coach, I thought it was a good tactical match-up, and I just enjoy coaching a high-level football match, to be honest with you. I don’t think too much about it.” Hayes had travelled to London without her entire Olympic gold medal-winning ‘Triple Espresso’ forward line of Trinity Rodman, Mallory Swanson and Sophia Smith, all nursing niggling injuries. Before the match, the 48-year-old was spotted chatting with Wiegman and her US men’s counterpart, fellow ex-Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino, who was also in attendance. England were also missing a number of key attackers for the friendly including Lauren Hemp, Lauren James and Ella Toone, all ruled out with injury. "This shows where we are at and we need to keep improving. It is November now. This is good but we want to be better again. We have to be better again." 👊 Reaction from the boss ⬇️ — Lionesses (@Lionesses) November 30, 2024 Wiegman brushed aside suggestions from some pundits that her side were content to settle for a draw. She said: “I think we were really defending as a team, very strong. We got momentum in the second half, we did better, and of course both teams went for the win. “So many things happened in this game, also in front of the goal, so I don’t think it was boring. “We wanted to go for the win, but it was such a high-intensity game, you have to deal with a very good opponent, so you can’t just say, ‘Now we’re going to go and score that goal’. “We tried, of course, to do that. We didn’t slow down to keep it 0-0. I think that was just how the game went.”Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau flies to Florida to meet with Trump after tariffs threat WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has flown to Florida to have dinner with President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club after Trump threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products. Joining Trump and Trudeau at dinner were Trump's picks for commerce secretary, interior secretary and national security adviser, and the three men's wives. From the Canadian side, the dinner guests included Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, whose responsibilities include border security. Trump’s transition did not respond to questions about what they had discussed or whether the conversation alleviated Trump’s concerns about the border. A smiling Trudeau declined comment upon returning to his West Palm Beach hotel late Friday. Emboldened 'manosphere' accelerates threats and demeaning language toward women after US election CHICAGO (AP) — An emboldened fringe of right-wing “manosphere” influencers has seized on Donald Trump’s presidential win to justify and amplify misogynistic derision and threats online. Many have appropriated a 1960s abortion rights rallying cry, declaring “Your body, my choice,” and have been using it publicly on college campuses and even in public schools. While none of the current online rhetoric is being amplified by Trump, experts say many young men see the former president’s return to the White House as vindication of their views on women. For many women, the words are a worrying sign of what might lie ahead as some men perceive the election results as a rebuke of reproductive rights and women’s rights. Syrian insurgents are inside Aleppo in a major setback for Assad as government forces regroup BEIRUT (AP) — Thousands of Syrian insurgents have fanned out inside Syria's largest city Aleppo a day after storming it with little resistance from government troops. Syria's army said troops have redeployed to prepare for a counteroffensive. Witnesses said insurgents were seen Saturday at landmarks in Aleppo for the first time since 2016, when they were expelled by government forces backed by Russia and Iran. The surprise offensive is a major embarrassment for Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has regained total control of the city eight years ago. An Israeli strike in Gaza kills workers with World Central Kitchen charity DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — An Israeli airstrike on a car in the Gaza Strip on Saturday killed five people including employees of World Central Kitchen. The charity says it is “urgently seeking more details” after Israel’s military said it targeted a WCK worker who had been part of the Hamas attack that sparked the war. The charity in an email says it is “heartbroken” by the airstrike and that it had no knowledge anyone in the car had alleged ties to the Oct. 7, 2023 attack, saying it is “working with incomplete information.” It says it is pausing operations in Gaza. Lebanese fisherman hope ceasefire with Israel means normal life returning TYRE, Lebanon (AP) — The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah is bringing hope for normality back to many in southern Lebanon. That includes fishermen who’ve long launched their single-engine wooden boats into the Mediterranean at dawn. For months, Israel imposed a siege that kept hundreds of fishermen at this ancient Phoenician port ashore. That upended their lives and dealt the industry a major blow. The port siege also cut people off from key ingredients for traditional Lebanese dishes. As war devastated their country, the loss of fish damaged a deep association with home. Now, the possibility of renewed fishing is helping fuel hope. How Brazilian police say Bolsonaro plotted a coup to stay in office SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s Federal Police have formally accused former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro and 36 others of plotting a coup to keep him in office. The plot was allegedly comprised of several components and substantiated by evidence and testimony in the agency's 884-page report. The pieces of the puzzle include laying the groundwork by systematically sowing distrust of the electoral system among the populace. It also includes drafting a decree to give the plot a veneer of legal basis and pressuring top military brass to go along with the plan. Bolsonaro and his main allies have denied any wrongdoing or involvement and accuse authorities of political persecution. More than 100 arrested as Georgian police clash with protesters over suspension of EU talks TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — More than 100 demonstrators were arrested overnight in Georgia as protesters clashed with police following the government’s decision to suspend negotiations to join the European Union, the country’s Interior Ministry said. Friday marked the second straight night of protests after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze of the country’s ruling Georgian Dream party announced the suspension the previous day. The Associated Press saw protesters in Tbilisi being chased and beaten by police as demonstrators rallied in front of the country's parliament building. The violence follows Georgian Dream’s disputed victory in the Oct. 26 election, which was widely seen as a referendum on the country’s aspirations to join the European Union. Romania's parliamentary vote risks being overshadowed by presidential race chaos BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanians are preparing to go to the polls in a parliamentary vote that will determine a new government and prime minister to lead the European Union and NATO member country. However, Sunday's vote is sandwiched between a two-round presidential race and is overshadowed by controversies and chaos following the outcome of the first vote. While the president has significant decision-making powers in areas such as national security and foreign policy, the prime minister is the head of the nation’s government. Sunday’s vote will determine the formation of the country’s 466-seat legislature. North Korea's Kim vows steadfast support for Russia’s war in Ukraine SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country will “invariably support” Russia’s war in Ukraine as he met Russia's visiting defense chief. A Russia military delegation led by Defense Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday as international concerns about the two countries’ expanding cooperation deepened after North Korea sent thousands of troops to Russia. During a Friday meeting, Kim and Belousov reached “a satisfactory consensus” on issues on how to further boost strategic partnership and defend each country’s sovereignty and security interests, state media said. Great Lakes, Plains and Midwest forecast to be hit with snow and dangerous cold into next week BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The first big snowfall of the season is threatening to bury towns in New York along lakes Erie and Ontario as the hectic holiday travel and shopping weekend winds down. Numbing cold and heavy snow could persist into next week and cause hazards in the Great Lakes, Plains and Midwest regions. A state of emergency was declared for parts of New York, making it problematic for scores of Thanksgiving travelers trying to return home. This week’s blast of frigid Arctic air also brought bitterly cold temperatures of 10 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit below average to the Northern Plains. Cold air was expected to move over the eastern third of the U.S. by Monday, the weather service said, with temperatures about 10 degrees below average.None
Olympic fencing champion Olha Kharlan has reacted to the election of Russian citizen Alisher Usmanov as president of the International Fencing Federation (FIE). Source: Kharlan on Instagram Quote: "FIE Congress Presidential Election decision ... No, I'm not surprised. Unfortunately. Yes, I am disappointed in the fencing world. Disappointed in those who decided to play ‘this game’. 120 federations... that's a lot. So yeah. A lot of disappointment. No words anymore," Kharlan wrote. The election took place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Usmanov received 120 votes, while his sole opponent, Otto Drakenberg, president of the Swedish Fencing Federation, received only 26. It should be noted that following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Usmanov resigned as president of the organisation in 2022 after being sanctioned by the EU and the UK. He had led the federation since 2008. Support UP or become our patron !Ohio State 5-star Receiver's Wordless Tweet Spells Trouble for Buckeyes
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NoneNoneLarson Financial Group LLC Invests $82,000 in ProShares Ultra Consumer Staples (NYSEARCA:UGE)
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Honey, they shrunk the catalogs. While retailers hope to go big this holiday season , customers may notice that the printed gift guides arriving in their mailboxes are smaller. Many of the millions of catalogs getting sent to U.S. homes were indeed scaled down to save on postage and paper, resulting in pint-sized editions. Lands’ End, Duluth Trading Company and Hammacher Schlemmer are among gift purveyors using smaller editions. Some retailers are saving even more money with postcards. Lisa Ayoob, a tech-savvy, online shopper in Portland, Maine, was surprised by the size of a recent catalog she received from outdoor apparel company Carbon2Cobalt. “It almost felt like it was a pamphlet compared to a catalog,” she said. Catalogs have undergone a steady recalibration over the years in response to technological changes and consumer behavior. The thick, heavy Sears and J.C. Penney catalogs that brought store displays to American living rooms slimmed down and gave way to targeted mailings once websites could do the same thing. Recent postal rate increases accelerated the latest shift to compact formats. The number of catalogs mailed each year dropped about 40% between 2006 to 2018, when an estimated 11.5 billion were mailed to homes, according to the trade group formerly known as the American Catalog Mailers Association. In a sign of the times, the group based in Washington rebranded itself in May as the American Commerce Marketing Association, reflecting a broadened focus. But don’t expect catalogs to go the way of dinosaurs yet. Defying predictions of doom, they have managed to remain relevant in the e-commerce era. Retail companies found that could treat catalogs with fewer pages as a marketing tool and include QR and promo codes to entice customers to browse online and complete a purchase. Despite no longer carrying an extended inventory of goods, catalogs are costly to produce and ship. But they hold their own in value because of growing digital advertising costs, helping retailers cut through the noise for consumers barraged by multi-format advertisements, industry officials say. In an unlikely twist, notable e-commerce companies like Amazon and home goods supplier Wayfair started distributing catalogs in recent years. Amazon began mailing a toy catalog in 2018. That was the same year Sears, which produced an annual Christmas Wish Book Wish starting in 1933, filed for bankruptc y. Fans of printed information may rejoice to hear that apparel retailer J.Crew relaunched its glossy catalog this year. Research shows that the hands-on experience of thumbing through a catalog leaves a greater impression on consumers, said Jonathan Zhang, a professor of marketing at Colorado State University. “The reason why these paper formats are so effective is that our human brains haven’t evolved as fast as technology and computers over the past 10 to 20 years. We retain more information when we read something on paper. That’s why paper books remain relevant,” Zhang said. “The psychology shows that three-dimensional, tactile experiences are more memorable.” Pint-sized presentations still can work, though, because the purpose of catalogs these days is simply to get customers’ attention, Zhang said. Conserving paper also works better with younger consumers who are worried about the holiday shopping season’s impact on the planet, he said. Postal increases are hastening changes. The latest round of postage hikes in July included the category with the 8.5-by-11-inch size that used to be ubiquitous for the catalog industry. Many retailers responded by reducing the size of catalogs, putting them in a lower-cost letter category, said Paul Miller, executive vice president and managing director of the American Commerce Marketing Association. One size, called a “slim jim,” measures 10.5 by 5.5 inches. But there other sizes. Some retailers have further reduced costs by mailing large postcards to consumers. Lands’ End, for one, is testing new compact formats to supplement its traditional catalogs. This year, that included folded glossy brochures and postcards, along with other formats, Chief Transformation Officer Angie Rieger said. Maine resident Ayoob said she understands why retailers still use catalogs even though she no longer is a fan of the format. These days, she prefers to browse for products on the internet, not by flipping through paper pages. “Everybody wants eyeballs. There’s so much out there -- so many websites, so many brands,” said Ayoob, who spent 35 years working in department stores and in the wholesale industry. Targeting customers at home is not a new concept. L.L. Bean was a pioneer of the mail-order catalog after its founder promoted his famous “Maine Hunting Shoe” to hunting license holders from out-of-state in 1912. The outdoor clothing and equipment company based in Freeport, Maine, is sticking to mailing out regular-sized catalogs for now. “By showcasing our icons, the catalog became an icon itself,” L.L. Bean spokesperson Amanda Hannah said. “Even as we invest more in our digital and brand marketing channels, the catalog retains a strong association with our brand, and is therefore an important part of our omni-channel strategy, especially for our loyal customers.”Pocket Change Picks: Cryptos Cheaper Than Coffee Ready to Explode!Participation in hockey in British Columbia was struggling in 2021 — the pandemic had dealt a heavy blow to player registrations, and numbers had already been flagging before COVID-19 arrived. “I think there were a lot of families that were impacted at that time,” said Pacific Coast Amateur Hockey Association president Melanie Earland, whose group governs minor hockey in B.C.’s Lower Mainland, including Metro Vancouver. “The world changed,” she said. Player participation had peaked in 2016-2017 with more than 62,000 registrations, Hockey Canada statistics for B.C. show, falling under 58,000 just before the pandemic began in 2020, then plummeting to 39,056 that season. Rising costs and growing competition from other sports had also been chipping away at youth hockey participation. But that is now changing, with registration for this season in B.C. surging past the 63,000 mark, a rebound that follows a concerted effort to make the game more accessible, especially to groups not traditionally linked to the sport such as new Canadians and Indigenous communities. Tom Oberti, president of the West Vancouver Minor Hockey Association, said his organization had seen record registrations this year, more than 8 per cent higher than last season. “We’re bursting at the seams,” Oberti said, noting the association has had to look outside West Vancouver to find ice time to fit all the players. “The reason why we’ve grown is because we’ve put a lot of effort into reaching out to new, non-traditional hockey demographics,” he said. “For example, we run ball hockey programs in elementary schools to introduce the sport, and we’ve done a lot to reach out to the Mandarin-speaking community, because it’s a growing segment of our community on the North Shore.” Oberti said the association has leveraged Mandarin- and Persian-speaking families already with kids in youth hockey, establishing links to new players through parent groups on social media platforms targeting specific communities such as WeChat and WhatsApp as well as word of mouth from schoolchildren who already play the game. Families new to Canada want to do things they consider Canadian, Oberti said, and they are embracing hockey. “Hockey has an advantage there,” he said. “There are a lot of families that do want to participate in the sport — or who are interested in the sport — because of the way it’s intertwined in the fabric of social life in Canada.” At the Richmond Jets Minor Hockey Association, vice-president Trent Gustafson said while his group has seen about a 15-to-20 per cent drop-off in participation from a peak in 2018-2019, registration is growing again, and players from non-traditional communities make up a big part of that rebound. “We’re up to around 915 to 920 kids playing hockey at Jets this year,” Gustafson said. “We don’t collect (data) in terms of the ethnicity of our members specifically, but I can safely say more than half are non-Caucasian members.” Just as important as getting children in these communities playing hockey, Gustafson said, is the fact that parents new to the game are also eager to volunteer. He said that is a vital contribution to the minor hockey system largely run by volunteers and parents in their spare time. “Those parents are, frankly, just as crazy hockey parents as you’re getting in some of the other cities and towns in not only British Columbia but across the country,” he said. “It’s interesting, the people it seems these days that are almost more willing to volunteer are some of the newer people to hockey. They’ve just fallen in love with the game.” Earland said other efforts to attract players include a try-hockey-for-free program in Cloverdale, B.C., for Indigenous youth, and they are trying to make the game more affordable through equipment programs and other initiatives. “Nobody in minor hockey wants to hear a family say, ‘We want to play but our kids can’t afford it or we can’t afford it,’” she said. She said she wants every child to have an opportunity to play hockey. “It’s a fabulous sport. It offers friendships and teamwork and camaraderie for all of our youth.” Chilliwack Minor Hockey Association president Lee McCaw said his group does not target any specific community for new players, but the province’s rapid population growth and its diversity means more kids being registered from every background. “I think our inclusion for everybody to be able to participate is huge,” McCaw said. “We have a huge First Nations population in our city, and there’s a lot of learn-to-skate programs that are specifically designed for every ethnicity group and everybody inclusively, together and within Chilliwack.” Nathan Bosa, the president of the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association, said even if there are no specific programs aimed at the diverse newcomer groups, sport could be an opportunity to support them. “We’re talking about this as a board a while ago, about having a program for new people coming into Canada and into Kamloops (to) give them a little bit of an instruction on how things work,” Bosa said. “It’s something that we’re going to be looking at in the new year. I think we’ve started to see that the influx is very noticeable, and it’s good. Getting children into sport, whether it’s hockey or something else, allows children and their parents to make friends and it brings them into the community, Bosa said. Bosa and McCaw also noted the impact of hockey exposure in the South Asian community as another factor in attracting new players, including Hockey Night in Canada’s Punjabi broadcast, and homegrown talent such as Arshdeep Bains from Surrey playing for the Vancouver Canucks in February. The Winnipeg Jets, meanwhile, signed forward Kevin He to a three-year entry-level deal this month, making him the first player born in China to ink an NHL deal. Scott Furman, Hockey Canada’s vice-president of growth and retention, said progress has also been made on other fronts, with the visibility of women’s hockey skyrocketing as the Professional Women’s Hockey League drives female player registration to a new high beyond 100,000 countrywide this season. Furman said the upheaval and change in management at Hockey Canada in recent years meant a new approach, bringing inclusion and more programs to help with the costs of the game. He said the rebound in B.C. is symbolic of this change. “Last season, for the first time, we hit 50,000 players that identified as black, Indigenous or people of colour, and that was an 8-per-cent increase on the previous season,” Furman said. “In B.C., I think about 19 per cent of players identify as black, Indigenous or people of colour, which is well above the national average. And the South Asian community represents 4.5 per cent of all players — a 46 per cent increase since the 2021 season. “It certainly is a positive trend, but nothing’s taken for granted. And we’ve got to continue to do the work to make sure that it continues in that fashion.”
Man who set off makeshift bomb outside Alabama attorney general's office sentenced to nine years
