slot game casino online In an age where visual images flood our daily existence and cameras are embedded into nearly every mobile device, the notion of intentionality is of renewed importance. The instantaneous availability of photographic tools, combined with the unrelenting flow of images shared on social media, can lull photographers into a state of passive capture. Intentionality in photography can be understood as the purposeful shaping of one’s image-making process, guided by a defined conceptual framework or aesthetic goal. It involves not only the conscious selection of subjects, compositions, color palettes, and lighting conditions, but also a deeper reflective process: the consideration of what one wishes to communicate and why. This marks a stark contrast with photography undertaken purely at whim—snaps seized without forethought, captured only because the camera happened to be at hand. To appreciate the significance of intentionality, one must situate it in a broader framework of artistic creation and philosophical thought. Since at least the early twentieth century, thinkers and artists have probed the nature of intention: what does it mean to act with purpose, and how does that purpose shape the object created? In the visual arts, and photography especially, intention can distinguish the expressive photographer (to borrow a term from the fantastic Alister Benn) from the mere recorder of facts. By slowing down and centering their practice on a deliberate vision, photographers transform their medium from a mechanical means of reproduction into a tool for personal expression, emotional resonance, and meaningful cultural commentary. In philosophical terms, “intentionality” often refers to the directedness of the mind toward something—an idea, an object, a goal. In aesthetics and visual art, intentionality can be understood as the clarity of purpose with which an artist approaches creation. For photographers, intentionality involves making conscious choices at every stage of the photographic process: conceptualizing a project, selecting equipment, choosing a subject, determining when and where to shoot, shaping the composition, adjusting exposure settings, and eventually processing and presenting the final images. In other words, it is not merely the physical act of photographing that matters, but the ideas and motivations that precede and inform it. In a philosophical sense, figures like Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger have explored intentionality as a fundamental quality of consciousness—consciousness is always about something, always directed. In photography, this philosophical idea translates into ensuring that each photograph is “about” something specific, even if that something is subtle, ambiguous, or emotionally charged rather than narratively explicit. Instead of passive reception, the photographer imposes structure on the visual world, selecting and emphasizing certain elements while omitting others. This transformation of raw perception into a meaningful image lies at the heart of photographic intentionality. To distinguish an intentional photographer from one who merely reacts to external stimuli, consider the difference between a painter and a casual tourist with a camera. The painter faces a blank canvas, compelled to envision the subject before rendering it. The tourist, by contrast, is confronted with a fully formed scene and simply clicks the shutter. Photography’s unique nature as a medium—instantaneous, mechanical, and indexical—often obscures the importance of intention, making it appear that the photographer is a passive observer. Yet truly impactful photographs often arise from deep conceptual foundations. The intentional photographer does not just capture what is there; they shape what we see, and in doing so, direct our interpretation and emotional response. While any photograph is evidence of a moment in front of the camera, not all photographs emerge from the same mindset. Consider two different photographers walking down the same bustling street. The first raises their camera whenever something visually interesting crosses their path—a splash of color here, a curious gesture there—reacting instinctively to external stimuli. Their images may be spontaneous and, at times, serendipitously beautiful, but these images are often disconnected from a larger conceptual framework. They risk becoming a haphazard collection of interesting “moments” rather than part of a coherent body of work. The second photographer might approach the same scene having already defined a theme or intention: to document the quiet persistence of human labor or to reflect on the interplay of old architecture with new technologies. Equipped with this conceptual lens, they do not just react; they actively seek out subjects that align with their vision. Where the reactive photographer might randomly capture a passerby or a storefront, the intentional photographer watches for specific gestures of work, patterns of urban decay, or subtle juxtapositions that convey their chosen theme. Each exposure is shaped by prior thought and directed at expressing something more profound than the sum of its visual parts. This difference can also manifest technically. The reactive photographer might leave their camera on automatic settings, snapping quickly with minimal adjustments. The intentional photographer, by contrast, is likely to take control of aperture, shutter speed, or focal length to ensure each image fulfills a previously considered idea. The result is not necessarily better photography in a purely formal sense—reactive photographers can capture magnificent images too—but the intentional approach more consistently yields photographs that cohere into a meaningful, personal statement. Over time, this approach leads to the development of a distinct photographic identity and an artistic voice that resonates across multiple projects. From the earliest days of the camera, intention has influenced photographic practice. In the 19th century, pioneering practitioners recognized that composition and purpose mattered despite photography’s mechanical nature. Julia Margaret Cameron, for instance, approached portraiture with a Romantic sensibility, carefully posing her subjects to embody allegorical figures or evoke literary themes. Her soft-focus technique, often criticized at the time, was not a technical failing but a deliberate choice: a manifestation of intentionality meant to transform the photographic portrait from a static record into a poetic statement. The Kiss of Peace, by Julia Margaret Cameron (public domain) Philosophers and theorists of photography—such as Susan Sontag in and Roland Barthes in —have highlighted that photography is never just a neutral record. Even seemingly objective documentary images reflect the photographer’s choices: what to include, what to exclude, when to press the shutter. Barthes described the photograph as a “message without a code,” yet it is still filtered through intention. In the documentary tradition, W. Eugene Smith’s curated photo essays for magazine, for instance, were not mere reportage. Through careful sequencing, composition, and thematic emphasis, Smith shaped viewers’ understanding, revealing his moral and aesthetic intentions. Such work underscores that conscious intention is integral not just to fine art photography, but to all photographic genres. Developing an artistic voice in photography requires more than technical skill; it demands introspection, conceptual clarity, and deliberate choice-making. Intentionality is the mechanism through which an artist’s internal vision finds consistent external expression. Without intention, the photographic portfolio can devolve into a series of unrelated experiments—images may be aesthetically pleasing but lack the coherence that transforms a collection of pictures into a body of work with a discernible voice. When a photographer invests time in cultivating their intentions, they inevitably begin to recognize patterns in their work: recurring themes, preferred subjects, favored lighting conditions, or signature compositional styles. By identifying these patterns, photographers can push themselves to refine or challenge them, moving closer to the core of what they wish to say. This ongoing process creates a feedback loop: the more the photographer acts with intention, the clearer their artistic voice becomes, and the clearer their voice becomes, the more natural it feels to shoot with even greater intention. Throughout the history of photography, numerous practitioners have exemplified the power of intention. Ansel Adams’s pre-visualization concept is a prime example. Adams insisted that a photographer should be able to see the final print in their mind’s eye before making an exposure. In doing so, Adams transformed the landscape photograph from a casual depiction of scenery into a meticulously crafted statement of tonal beauty and environmental reverence. His photographs of Yosemite are not merely documents of a place; they are expressions of a personal spiritual bond with nature. Adams’s approach to exposure and darkroom technique—checking brightness values, using filters to adjust the sky, fine-tuning development times—demonstrates a relentless pursuit of aesthetic intention. Henri Cartier-Bresson, though often associated with the spontaneous “decisive moment,” also engaged deeply with intention, albeit in a different way. While Cartier-Bresson’s street photography appears reactive, he did not merely wander aimlessly. He studied geometry, composition, and form, setting mental parameters for what constituted a meaningful image. His intentional approach lay in understanding human gesture, predicting the convergence of elements, and anticipating emotional resonance. Though he worked quickly and seemingly by instinct, Cartier-Bresson’s preparedness and conceptual framework allowed him to seize “decisive moments” that conveyed layered significance rather than random occurrences. The Tetons and the Snake River, by Ansel Adams Contemporary conceptual photographers, such as Jeff Wall or Gregory Crewdson, carry this theatrical intentionality even further, often investing enormous effort in constructing elaborate scenes that function like cinematic stills. Their tableaux are planned, lit, and staged with a level of intentionality that rivals film directors. In these works, intention manifests not only in composition and technique but also in the conceptual layers they invite the viewer to peel back. Nothing is left to chance; everything in the frame matters. Cultivating intention is a process that demands sustained effort. Photographers can begin by studying the work of masters, analyzing how others have imbued their images with purpose. Close examination of fine art photography monographs, museum collections, and critical essays can reveal the subtle decisions that shape a photographer’s style. Observing how a photographer approaches landscapes, or navigates intimacy and community, can inspire you to think more critically about your own goals. Deliberate practice is another key factor. Setting challenges and assignments for oneself—such as focusing on a single subject over an extended period, or working exclusively with a particular focal length—forces the photographer to approach image-making with greater care. By embracing constraints, photographers learn to operate within conceptual frameworks that sharpen their intentions. Over time, this disciplined approach can crystallize personal vision and encourage the photographer to become more selective and discerning. Reflection is equally critical. After shooting, photographers should review their images and ask: What was I trying to convey? Did I succeed? If not, why not? Journaling about one’s photographic experiences, noting the emotions and ideas behind certain images, can help clarify intentions and guide future projects. By engaging in this iterative process, photographers gradually refine their visual language. They may come to understand that certain techniques—dramatic contrasts, shallow depth of field, wide angle distortion—align well with their conceptual goals, while others do not. Thus, personal vision emerges as the cumulative result of study, experimentation, careful critique, and the conscious shaping of one’s artistic path. The digital revolution, social media proliferation, and the democratization of image-making have complicated the notion of intentionality. On the one hand, the accessibility of high-quality cameras and editing software allows photographers unprecedented control over their images. This technical empowerment can support greater intentionality, as photographers can now fine-tune their photographs with precision. They can pre-visualize images using digital sketches, manipulate color and contrast in post-production, and distribute their work widely to audiences aligned with their creative vision. On the other hand, the sheer volume of images online creates a formidable challenge. Constant exposure to others’ work can dilute one’s intentions or push photographers into trends that have no personal meaning. The seduction of “likes” and “follows” may encourage photographers to produce images that please algorithms rather than reflect their inner vision. In such an environment, maintaining intention requires discipline: photographers must protect their conceptual focus amid a barrage of external stimuli. They need to resist the urge to mimic others thoughtlessly and remember what drives their own creative impulses. Power House Mechanic Working on Steam Pump, by Lewis Hine (public domain) For photographers seeking to deepen their intentionality, a range of strategies can be put into practice: Instead of shooting aimlessly, define a clear theme or subject to explore over time. This could be as simple as documenting the interplay of light and shadow in a single neighborhood or as complex as examining the cultural significance of a particular ritual. By narrowing focus, photographers learn to approach image-making with conceptual clarity. Limiting oneself to a single lens, a single color palette, or a defined timeframe encourages resourcefulness and careful thought. Constraints force photographers to be intentional with composition and to find creative solutions within limitations. Before heading out with the camera, spend time writing about the goals for that session. What emotions do you want to evoke? What narrative do you hope to convey? By externalizing thoughts on paper, you cement them in your mind, making it easier to translate intention into visual terms. After shooting, critically assess the images. Ask what worked, what fell flat, and why. Over time, patterns emerge that guide future efforts. This iterative loop between intention, execution, and reflection drives consistent improvement. Treat your portfolio as a living document of your intentions. Curate images that share thematic or stylistic connections, and remove those that dilute your message. This process teaches you to see your work as a cohesive whole, reinforcing the importance of intentional creation and selection. Dialogue with peers, mentors, or curators can clarify your intentions. Outside perspectives can highlight strengths and weaknesses you might overlook. Such exchanges often spark new ideas, guiding you to refine your visual language and deepen your conceptual frameworks. Acting with intention also carries ethical and philosophical weight. When photographers shape a narrative through selective framing, they implicitly influence how viewers understand and interpret reality. Documentarians, for example, must recognize that their intentions affect how events are portrayed and perceived. A photographer covering social injustice who intentionally focuses on intimate moments of human resilience can inspire empathy, while one who prioritizes violent spectacle might reinforce stereotypes or desensitize viewers. Moreover, photographers must consider the power dynamics at play. Staging a scene or directing a subject raises questions about authenticity. Is it ethical to guide subjects into poses that reflect the photographer’s conceptual intentions rather than their natural behavior? These dilemmas are not new—Lewis Hine, for instance, arranged compositions of child laborers to maximize emotional impact—but the ubiquity of images today amplifies the stakes. Artistic intention also shapes emotional responses. The way an image is composed, toned, or sequenced can elicit empathy, outrage, nostalgia, or contemplation. Through intention, photographers set emotional cues for viewers. The resulting emotional experience can enlighten, comfort, challenge, or manipulate. This power underscores the responsibility inherent in intentional image-making. The photographer must weigh their desires for expression against the potential psychological impact on audiences and subjects alike. It's valuable to reflect on the role intentionality plays in elevating photography. Without intention, photography risks becoming mere documentation—an endless stream of images that record phenomena without interpreting them. While documentation has its place, the images that resonate most deeply are those charged with personal vision. These photographs move beyond simple likeness to explore meaning, identity, place, emotion, and truth. Abraham Lincoln, by Mathew Benjamin Brady (public domain) Intention also ensures that the act of photography remains an act of authorship. Just as a writer uses words to convey ideas, a photographer employs aesthetic elements to engage viewers’ minds and hearts. By controlling the message rather than allowing the environment or technology to dictate the outcome, the photographer claims authorship over their creation. This authorship confers artistic integrity and situates photography as a legitimate form of cultural production, on par with painting, sculpture, film, and literature. In a world saturated with images, the importance of intentionality in photography cannot be overstated. While anyone can click a shutter, not everyone can create a photograph that resonates with viewers on a deep, conceptual level. Intentionality sets apart those who engage with photography as an art form from those who use it merely as a recording device. It challenges photographers to consider what they wish to communicate, why, and how. By doing so, it transforms photography into a medium of expression and cultural commentary. Throughout history, the photographers who left indelible marks on the medium—Ansel Adams, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Cindy Sherman, and countless others—share a common trait: they approached their work with purposeful direction. They envisioned outcomes before pressing the shutter, refined their techniques to match their visions, and curated their images to form coherent statements. Their success was not accidental but the product of deliberate practice, reflection, and conceptual rigor. Today’s photographers, navigating an era of unprecedented visual abundance, face new challenges in maintaining intention. Yet the core principles remain the same. By setting conceptual frameworks, working within chosen constraints, journaling goals, critically evaluating one’s images, and thoughtfully curating a portfolio, a photographer can foster an artistic voice that is both personal and resonant. In doing so, they gain the power to shape how audiences perceive subjects, grapple with ideas, and experience emotion through images. Ultimately, cultivating personal intention in photography elevates it from documentation to a form of meaningful cultural contribution. Through intentionality, photography can reflect the complexities of the human condition, interrogate social realities, conjure emotional nuance, and offer new ways of seeing. By embracing intentionality, photographers honor the medium’s rich history, harness its unique expressive potential, and invite viewers into a shared space of understanding, reflection, and creative dialogue. Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.2024 was a year of stand-out music with fans’ lives soundtracked by redefining pop tunes, beefy diss tracks and viral songs taking off across social media platforms. With so much content to consider, narrowing down the world’s best five tunes of the past year proved challenging. However, some stood out above the others, not just on the charts but in the impact they could deliver. So, in no particular order, here’s our take on the best songs of 2024. Not Like Us by Kendrick Lamar It debuted at No.1 on the Hot 100 and became the longest-running No.1 in the history of Billboard’s rap chart. It is none other than Lamar’s response to Drake’s seven-and-a-half-minute diss track that dragged his long-simmering beef with the fellow rapper even more into the public eye. The controversy centres around extremely serious allegations of paedophilia and exploitation aimed at Drake and his associates which remain unproven and are denied. Lamar’s vocals are sharp and relentless, matching the song’s intensity, synth and ratchet vibes. Pitchfork’s Paul A. Thompson described how Kendrick “tap dances across the beat, as nimble as he’s sounded since he signed to Interscope”. The feud between Lamar and Drake is among the biggest in hip-hop in recent years but many people are clearly enjoying singing along to it. Good Luck, Babe! by Chappell Roan The 26-year-old has been a name in the music industry for almost a decade but this year she has really kicked off thanks to this song which was her first top 10 hit to make it onto the Billboard chart. The catchy heartbreak track consists of good wishes to a former lover in denial about their queerness. Billboard wrote: “The verses are every bit as strong as the glistening chorus, all playful, pillowy synths and easygoing ‘80s beats.” It’s just as glittery as her onstage costumes and awards outfits. Before she was Chappell Roan, she was Kayleigh Rose Amstutz, a closeted sad-girl singer-songwriter who got dropped by her label Atlantic Records in 2020. In 2023, she released her debut album via a new label and cued instant success which doesn’t seem to be waning. Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter Some music lovers have declared the former Disney Channel actress’ song as the hit of the summer. The catchphrase “That’s that me espresso” was the “foam on top of what was already one of the most unmistakable, invigorating and naturally addictive singles of 2024”, Billboard wrote. The play-on-words and lyricist queen demands to be heard with lines such as “walked in and dream-came-trued it for ya”, and “I can’t relate to desperation / My give-a-f---s are on vacation”. If it wasn’t the song itself garnering chatter online, it was the accompanying music video that featured a flirty Carpenter getting herself into all sorts of trouble. While the caffeine-injected hit didn’t earn her spot on the Billboard Hot 100, her breezy Please Please Please follow-up sure did making it a breakout year for the star. This year was also a big one for Carpenter having toured with Taylor Swift on her The Eras Tour. It’s Ok, I’m Ok by Tate McRae This generation’s so-called Britney Spears has said goodbye to her child-star days and is preparing to enter a fiery adulthood with this relatable and personal viral track. The 21-year-old is happy to tell the next girl in her ex’s life that she can have him with the line: “It’s okay, you can have him anyway.” McRae alludes that she’s detoxed herself from a past relationship and is letting both her ex and the other woman know she’s over it and onto bigger and better things. With humour and sarcasm shining through, the track was first teased to fans via TikTok with a snippet of the chorus doing the rounds on the video-sharing platform prior to its anticipated release. The pop star has well and truly risen up the ranks this year having completed her first world tour. And she even kicked off the Aussie leg right here in Perth last month. McRae has extended the tour with more dates in Europe, the UK and the US in celebration of a new album coming out on February 21. Girl, so confusing featuring Lorde by Charli XCX Rumours of a feud between UK pop star Charli XCX and New Zealand’s Lorde were finally addressed and put to bed when Charli released a remix of her song Girl, so confusing. She turned her original song about her fears of a frenemy’s intentions into an emotional moment of resolution between the two singers who not only have the same hair but also a lot of self-doubt and mutual admiration in common. Billboard wrote: “A song born out of real life that’s committed to remaining grounded in that messy and complicated reality. Equal parts reactionary and revelatory, ‘Girl, so confusing’ is a towering peek inside the psyches of two of pop’s most important women.”AP Trending SummaryBrief at 5:34 p.m. EST

(The Center Square) – Paula Scanlan is hopeful the narrative around gender ideology is shifting, especially as Republicans prepare for majorities in both chambers of the 119th Congress and a seat in the White House. “I am hopeful that with the majorities now that we will be able to get across the finish line,” Scanlan told The Center Square on Thursday, speaking of more legislation on the way to protect women's spaces. “Obviously, this goes beyond sports ... So ideally, I think that the biggest thing would be to federally pass something that says this is what a woman is.” Scanlan a day earlier was part of a panel where U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., announced that Republicans plan to soon introduce legislation to “protect children from transgender medical procedures.” A report from the advocacy group Do No Harm released four weeks before Election Day included documented evidence of such activity being performed on a 7-year-old . “We’ll be introducing the STOP Act soon,” said Marshall . “We are going to use the Commerce Act to punish people who perform any type of surgery, or who use any type of medications on minors.” STOP is an acronym for Safeguarding the Overall Protection of Minors. The panel said that the legislation is an important and necessary step to protect children. Scanlan and Marshall, a host with the American Principles Project, were on the panel alongside U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala.; U.S. Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill.; Terry Schilling, president of the American Principles Project; and Sarah Parshall Perry, senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation. “We all know by now that so-called gender affirming care is anything but caring,” Tuberville said. “It is pure insanity and has caused irreversible damage to countless children. This isn’t about politics, this is about good and evil.” Scanlan is an ambassador for Independent Women's Voice and a former collegiate swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania. Swimming for the Quakers, she and teammates endured being not only on the same team but in the same locker room as a swimmer who for the first three years swam on the men's team. “I was a swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania and the administration, the university and the NCAA said , ‘Here's a man who wants to swim on your team, please accept him,’” she explained during the panel. “This entire situation really made all female athletes feel isolated and alone, and like they know where to go.” Scanlan said that it wasn’t just competing that isolated the female athletes. “Eighteen times per week, my teammates and I were forced to undress next to a 6-foot-4, fully-intact male,” Scanlan said. “As a female athlete, this was just something I couldn't even imagine. It was something I never imagined would happen to me when I went off to college.” The STOP Act is one of a few beginnings. U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., has proposed legislation seeking to protect women’s spaces on all federal property nationwide. This would include bathrooms, locker rooms and prisons. Scanlan said this shows that public opinion is on the side of her and the panel. “This is really the first time we're seeing more of these people in power stepping up and actually doing the right thing and saying enough is enough” she said. “Now, we are looking at entire teams that are feeling empowered to be able to boycott ... or object to competing against males. It's widespread.” A notable case of that is San Jose State, where Blaire Fleming's participation has led to seven opponents forfeiting rather than playing a women's team that includes a man saying he is a woman. Tuberville and Marshall emphasized they believe the majority of Americans would agree with the proposed legislation. "The American people are sick of this nonsense," Tuberville said . "It’s time we restore some sanity and get common sense back in this country." Scanlan said that while she supports the national legislation Republicans are considering, it is important for states to also continue to pass legislation. “I always remind people who are really excited about having a presidency that we don't know what might happen in four years," she said. "So, of course, it's also important to codify this in states. We are going to continue our efforts. There's still a lot of work to be done, and I don't really see it as a win until we've finished this on the state level.”Sound is around us all the time. Whether you’re jamming out with your earbuds , singing along during a concert , struggling to fall asleep beside your snoring partner, or diving into the deepest part of the pool for a workout. Not to mention, the lineup of New Year’s Eve parties and head-banging music festivals is just days away. While many people decide to navigate the noises of life without much care, many experts agree that it’s important to pay attention to the amount of noise we are exposed to. Earplugs are a convenient and effective tool for protecting our ears from any damage that may be sustained through loud noises. If you’re considering using earplugs, you probably have a few questions. You may be wondering when to use them and how long they can stay in your ears. Or, perhaps, you would like to learn a bit more about the different types of options for various occasions (sleep, swimming, shooting, etc.). To make your shopping experience that much more seamless, The New York Post consulted an expert to answer some frequently asked questions and share recommendations for finding a pair of earplugs that suits your needs. Hop down to our FAQ with him or keep scrolling to see our top picks. 3M is one of Resnick’s top picks. These all-around plugs have 4.6 stars on Amazon and have been used in a variety of contexts. One customer gave these to her special-needs daughter who is afraid of lightning, others say they have used them at work bartending, and for doing lawn work. “Generic-fit earplugs for basic protection range from simple foam earplugs to moldable silicone plugs,” he explained. These affordable polymer foam plugs are comfortable, well-priced, and cover most ear protection needs. Best Noise Cancelling: Loop Quiet Earplugs for Noise Reduction Another top-rated brand, the Loop Quiet Earplugs, offers a noise reduction rating of 26 decibels and comes in six stylish colors. Most foam earplugs come in a tubular shape, but these ringed plugs mimic the ear shape and look of headphones. If you’re looking for a more attractive plug, these are a fashionable, no-nonsense accessory that will still protect your ears from loud noises. They even come with a convenient carry case, so it’s easy to keep them safe and secure. Best for Sleep: Flents Quiet Please Comfort Foam Earplugs Many reviewers swear by these earplugs for a good night’s sleep. When looking for the right earplugs for sleep, it is key to find a pair that is comfortable enough to stay in your ears for hours at a time. Flents foam plugs are also extra-lightweight, so you’ll hardly remember they’re in your ears. “I’ve been wearing earplugs for years due to my husband’s snoring. I will never use another brand as these are soft and cushiony and a little plumper than other types. They do the trick although I am still able to hear my dogs bark if something is amiss,” one reviewer noted. Others pointed out that Flents earplugs are better for tossers and turners since they stay in place for longer periods than some other brands. Best Silicone: Vegpoet Reusable Moldable Silicone Earplugs An alternative to foam earplugs, these silicone plugs are the best pick for someone looking for something that is moldable, without being made custom-fit. You can bend them to perfectly fill the gap of your ear and split them as big or small pieces as needed — no need for any part of the plug to stick out of your ear. More bonus points: these plugs are BPA-free, washable, reusable, waterproof, and hypoallergenic. Simply clean with warm soapy water and reuse it many times. “It’s important to use earplugs in loud environments such as concerts because the structures of the inner ear are highly sensitive to damage from loud noise,” explained Resnick, who has given this brand his stamp of approval for use at loud venues. The Serenity Choice earplugs are on the pricer side but they’re designed to make your concert experience safer, while still allowing you to enjoy the music. The acoustic filters are fitted with advanced mesh technology to ensure that the ear always remains well-ventilated. Reviewers have given them loads of praise: “Phonak Serenity Choice Music earplugs provide clear music perception and nice mild attenuation,” one customer wrote. Best Fitting: Westone True-Fit Foam and Star Silicone Replacement Eartips “For generic-fit filtered earplugs, good for music quality, Westone makes a good line called TRU,” said Resnick. Can’t decide between silicone or foam tips? Why not try out both? The Westone package comes with all five sizes of both the Star Silicone Eartips and True-Fit Foam Eartips, so you can find the ones that fit your ear perfectly and give the rest to the other members of your concert group. Best Waterproof: Mack’s Pillow Soft Silicone Earplugs Scared of Swimmer’s Ear? So are we. Swimmer’s ear is a bacterial infection typically caused by water that stays in the outer ear canal for a long period of time, providing a moist environment for bacteria to grow, according to the CDC . Mack’s plugs are both snore-proof and waterproof and are said to reduce noise by 22 decibels. Trusted by experts far and wide (Resnick included), these plugs could help prevent swimmer’s ear and make your lap pool experience a bit more pleasant. Best for Kids: WaterDam Swimming Earplugs The WaterDam brand is uniquely designed with two-layer waterproof flanges to keep any water from leaking in, yet swimmers can still hear warning sounds from the environment or coach. Specific sizes are available for infants, toddlers, children, teens, women, and men, including small medium, and large ear users. Reviewers have given them an average of 4.3 stars on Amazon. “These earplugs have really made our pool time fun and worry-free. I strongly advise any young swimmer to use this,” one impressed mother recommended. Best for Hunters : WildEar EarzON Silicone Shooter Filter Earplugs When it comes to shooting, Resnick has recommended considering custom-fit hearing protection. “To shoot firearms without robust hearing protection is to invite certain hearing damage,” warned Resnick. Shoppers should expect to pay a bit more for custom-fit plugs, but there are still plenty of others that offer ample protection. These EarzON Silicone Shooter Filter earplugs include specially designed acoustic filters that reduce high-intensity impulse sounds such as gunfire. These can be used at the indoor or outdoor range, as well as for hunting. Best Rechargeable: Walker’s Silencer Rechargeable Earbuds If you would like a high-tech, smart earplug, these are for you. Walker’s Rechargeable Silencer Earbuds come with a convenient USB charging dock with an integrated lithium battery for easy charging on the go or in the field. These 24NRR buds feature a free app, so you can change the settings from your smartphone, and also have voice prompt functionality, sound-activated compression, dynamic wind noise reduction, and variable gunshot suppression. The set includes three sizes of Sure-Lock sizing fins and three sizes of foam tips for a customized, sealed fit. Best Earmuff Style: BANZ Kids Earmuffs Both kids and adults need ear protection, but children’s ears are a bit more difficult to fit, explained Dr. Resnick. “For very young children it’s hard to get earplugs to fit well, so earmuff-style hearing protection that goes over the head is probably best,” he suggested. BANZ is one of Resnick’s top brands for kid’s earmuffs. These are designed just for them — with an adjustable headband and soft earcups and help protect against damaging sounds from crowds and loud events. These are bigger than most earplugs, but they are still compact enough to slip into a diaper bag. FAQ Why should you wear earplugs? Dr. Andrew Resnick has been a practicing audiologist for 26 years in his practice located in New York City. Resnick explains that it’s very important to use earplugs in loud environments, such as concerts. “The structures of the inner ear are highly sensitive to damage from loud noise, especially with repeated exposure over time, and damage to the ears from loud noise, resulting in hearing loss and/or tinnitus, tends to be permanent,” he warns. What are some other uses for earplugs? Some people may consider using earplugs to improve their quality of sleep — especially if their partner snores, their neighbors stay up late, or there is nearby street traffic. “Earplugs for sleep are more a matter of personal preference. If you have a partner who snores, or if the neighbors keep different hours than you do, you might want to consider it.” Resnick noted that earplugs are also commonly used by swimmers who want to keep water out of their ears, or anyone who hunts or shoots firearms, to prevent hearing damage. Who should wear earplugs? According to Resnick, age doesn’t matter when it comes to protecting your ears. “Anyone who attends concerts or other loud events (including sporting events) with any regularity should be using hearing protection,” explained Resnick. “No one is too young or too old to sustain damage to their ears from loud noise.” What should you look for in a pair of earplugs? Resnick notes that the most important aspect of an earplug is the fit; earplugs should be comfortable enough to be worn for long periods and should make a good seal in the ear canal. There are both generic-fit and custom-fit earplugs. “Generic-fit earplugs have the advantage of being less expensive, but in order for them to protect your hearing you have to make sure that you know how to insert them properly,” Resnick explained. “Custom-fit earplugs, whether they’re simple solid plugs as would be used for sleeping or swimming, or filtered earplugs used for music fidelity, are made from silicone ‘impressions’ of your ears.” The expert adds that concert-goers can also preserve the sound fidelity of music while still protecting their ears with types of filtered earplugs that allow for an even reduction of sound across the whole frequency spectrum. Why Trust Post Wanted by the New York Post For over 200 years, the New York Post has been America’s go-to source for bold news, engaging stories, in-depth reporting, and now, insightful shopping guidance . We’re not just thorough reporters – we sift through mountains of information, test and compare products , and consult experts on any topics we aren’t already schooled specialists in to deliver useful, realistic product recommendations based on our extensive and hands-on analysis. Here at The Post, we’re known for being brutally honest – we clearly label partnership content, and whether we receive anything from affiliate links, so you always know where we stand. We routinely update content to reflect current research and expert advice, provide context (and wit) and ensure our links work. Please note that deals can expire, and all prices are subject to change.

Former Democrat Congressman Calls For 'Rebranding' of 'Toxic' PartyBy Abby Badach Doyle, NerdWallet It won’t be impossible to buy a house in 2025 — just be prepared to play on hard mode. According to a November 2024 report from ICE Mortgage Technology, the monthly principal and interest payment on an average-priced home is $2,385. While that’s not the highest it’s ever been, it’s still a sharp increase — nearly 80% — from just three years ago. In November 2021, when mortgage rates averaged 3%, the monthly principal and interest on an average-priced home was $1,327 per month. So here’s the key to buying in 2025: Look ahead, not back. Regret won’t help you budget for today’s new normal. And with this year’s election also in the rearview mirror, so is some uncertainty among buyers and sellers that historically slows the market during every presidential election cycle. “People have just been kind of sitting waiting to see what’s going to happen,” says Courtney Johnson Rose, president of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers, an industry group for Black real estate agents. “I’m hopeful that the new year will bring more attention to real estate, more excitement to real estate, and more opportunities for first-time home owners to get in the game.” Preparing to buy a house is a lot like dressing for the weather. It’s easier when the outlook is sunny — but with some planning, you can gear up to face any condition. Here’s what housing market experts are forecasting for the upcoming year. First, home prices: We’ll likely see more modest growth in 2025, a change from skyrocketing prices in recent years. After 16 consecutive months of year-over-year price increases, the median existing-home sales price hit $407,200 in October, according to the National Association of Realtors. In 2025, with more supply trickling in to temper price increases, NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun forecasts a median existing-home sales price of $410,700, up just 2% over this year. Next, housing inventory: Demand still outpaces supply. While we don’t expect a return to a buyer’s market, competition should be less cutthroat. Realtor.com forecasts a balanced market in 2025 with an average 4.1-month supply of homes for sale, up from an average 3.7-month supply so far in 2024. That would make 2025 the friendliest market for buyers since 2016, which had an average 4.4-month supply. Finally, mortgage rates: After topping 8% in October 2023, the 30-year mortgage rate has slowly eased into the 6.5%-7% range this year. Rate cuts from the Federal Reserve have helped nudge that downward. Despite earlier optimism, forecasters’ latest consensus is for rates to effectively plateau above 6% throughout 2025. That said, every year has its wild cards. In 2025, it’s still uncertain how President-elect Donald Trump and a Republican-led Congress might shake up regulations and tax policies that affect the U.S. housing market. National forecasts don’t analyze what matters most: Your personal cash flow. To get ready to buy, first meet with a financial advisor or use an online calculator to determine how much house you can afford . You can also get free or low-cost advice from a housing counselor sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Next, look into down payment and closing cost assistance from state housing finance agencies, local governments, nonprofits and mortgage lenders. Your employer or labor union might offer assistance, too. First-time buyers with income below their area median have the most options, but repeat or higher-income borrowers can qualify for some programs as well. “I think that there’s a lot of free money being left out there,” Rose says. Your not-so-secret weapon for buying in 2025 just might be an experienced buyer’s agent. “Anybody can write a contract,” says Sharon Parker, associate broker with Tate & Foss Sotheby’s International Realty in Rye, New Hampshire. “But you need somebody who’s seen the market, the ups and downs, who knows how to get creative because every transaction is different.” Following a settlement with the NAR , buyers can now negotiate their agent’s compensation up front. (Previously, home sellers took on that task.) While new norms are still shaking out, Rose says she hasn’t seen too much drama since the change took effect in August. “So as long as buyers remember that we have to talk about this in the beginning of our relationship, everything typically works out fine,” she says. Finally, it’s time to shop for a mortgage. To get the best interest rate, get a quote with at least three different lenders. You could also delegate the shopping to a mortgage broker, who can compare quotes and even negotiate a lower rate on your behalf. Though brokers charge a fee, their access to more mortgage options and lower rates can often mean net savings overall. With a mortgage preapproval in hand, it’s go time. And you don’t have to wait until spring: If you’re ready to buy now, buyers have less competition and more negotiating power from December through February, so you could snag a deal. “The people who are selling and the people who are buying in the off season are very serious,” Parker says. “They’re not just lookie-loos.” However, lower inventory means fewer choices for buyers. So start your search prepared to compromise — a “good enough” house will still help you build equity. If a down payment or monthly mortgage payment is financially out of reach, there’s no shame in postponing your search to pad your savings. And owning a home isn’t the right lifestyle choice for everyone, with the ongoing commitment of money and time. But once you’re ready to buy — whether for the first time, or to upgrade or downsize — avoid the trap of waiting for a dip in mortgage rates. “Nobody can predict what the market, or the world, is going to do,” Parker says. “There is no better time than right now.” Mortgage rates will always fluctuate, and if they drop significantly, you can refinance. For first-time buyers, homeownership is a major financial glow-up — and the sooner you jump in, the longer you’ll have to build home equity. “Time value of money is really, really critical when it comes to real estate,” Rose says. “So I would always encourage somebody to buy as soon as you can and get the clock ticking.” More From NerdWallet Abby Badach Doyle writes for NerdWallet. Email: abadachdoyle@nerdwallet.com. The article Buying a House in 2025: Your How-To Guide originally appeared on NerdWallet .The man who ended Nadal's career helps the Netherlands beat Germany to reach the Davis Cup final

By Abby Badach Doyle, NerdWallet It won’t be impossible to buy a house in 2025 — just be prepared to play on hard mode. According to a November 2024 report from ICE Mortgage Technology, the monthly principal and interest payment on an average-priced home is $2,385. While that’s not the highest it’s ever been, it’s still a sharp increase — nearly 80% — from just three years ago. In November 2021, when mortgage rates averaged 3%, the monthly principal and interest on an average-priced home was $1,327 per month. So here’s the key to buying in 2025: Look ahead, not back. Regret won’t help you budget for today’s new normal. And with this year’s election also in the rearview mirror, so is some uncertainty among buyers and sellers that historically slows the market during every presidential election cycle. “People have just been kind of sitting waiting to see what’s going to happen,” says Courtney Johnson Rose, president of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers, an industry group for Black real estate agents. “I’m hopeful that the new year will bring more attention to real estate, more excitement to real estate, and more opportunities for first-time home owners to get in the game.” Preparing to buy a house is a lot like dressing for the weather. It’s easier when the outlook is sunny — but with some planning, you can gear up to face any condition. Here’s what housing market experts are forecasting for the upcoming year. First, home prices: We’ll likely see more modest growth in 2025, a change from skyrocketing prices in recent years. After 16 consecutive months of year-over-year price increases, the median existing-home sales price hit $407,200 in October, according to the National Association of Realtors. In 2025, with more supply trickling in to temper price increases, NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun forecasts a median existing-home sales price of $410,700, up just 2% over this year. Next, housing inventory: Demand still outpaces supply. While we don’t expect a return to a buyer’s market, competition should be less cutthroat. Realtor.com forecasts a balanced market in 2025 with an average 4.1-month supply of homes for sale, up from an average 3.7-month supply so far in 2024. That would make 2025 the friendliest market for buyers since 2016, which had an average 4.4-month supply. Finally, mortgage rates: After topping 8% in October 2023, the 30-year mortgage rate has slowly eased into the 6.5%-7% range this year. Rate cuts from the Federal Reserve have helped nudge that downward. Despite earlier optimism, forecasters’ latest consensus is for rates to effectively plateau above 6% throughout 2025. That said, every year has its wild cards. In 2025, it’s still uncertain how President-elect Donald Trump and a Republican-led Congress might shake up regulations and tax policies that affect the U.S. housing market. National forecasts don’t analyze what matters most: Your personal cash flow. To get ready to buy, first meet with a financial advisor or use an online calculator to determine how much house you can afford . You can also get free or low-cost advice from a housing counselor sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Next, look into down payment and closing cost assistance from state housing finance agencies, local governments, nonprofits and mortgage lenders. Your employer or labor union might offer assistance, too. First-time buyers with income below their area median have the most options, but repeat or higher-income borrowers can qualify for some programs as well. “I think that there’s a lot of free money being left out there,” Rose says. Your not-so-secret weapon for buying in 2025 just might be an experienced buyer’s agent. “Anybody can write a contract,” says Sharon Parker, associate broker with Tate & Foss Sotheby’s International Realty in Rye, New Hampshire. “But you need somebody who’s seen the market, the ups and downs, who knows how to get creative because every transaction is different.” Following a settlement with the NAR , buyers can now negotiate their agent’s compensation up front. (Previously, home sellers took on that task.) While new norms are still shaking out, Rose says she hasn’t seen too much drama since the change took effect in August. “So as long as buyers remember that we have to talk about this in the beginning of our relationship, everything typically works out fine,” she says. Finally, it’s time to shop for a mortgage. To get the best interest rate, get a quote with at least three different lenders. You could also delegate the shopping to a mortgage broker, who can compare quotes and even negotiate a lower rate on your behalf. Though brokers charge a fee, their access to more mortgage options and lower rates can often mean net savings overall. With a mortgage preapproval in hand, it’s go time. And you don’t have to wait until spring: If you’re ready to buy now, buyers have less competition and more negotiating power from December through February, so you could snag a deal. “The people who are selling and the people who are buying in the off season are very serious,” Parker says. “They’re not just lookie-loos.” However, lower inventory means fewer choices for buyers. So start your search prepared to compromise — a “good enough” house will still help you build equity. If a down payment or monthly mortgage payment is financially out of reach, there’s no shame in postponing your search to pad your savings. And owning a home isn’t the right lifestyle choice for everyone, with the ongoing commitment of money and time. But once you’re ready to buy — whether for the first time, or to upgrade or downsize — avoid the trap of waiting for a dip in mortgage rates. “Nobody can predict what the market, or the world, is going to do,” Parker says. “There is no better time than right now.” Mortgage rates will always fluctuate, and if they drop significantly, you can refinance. For first-time buyers, homeownership is a major financial glow-up — and the sooner you jump in, the longer you’ll have to build home equity. “Time value of money is really, really critical when it comes to real estate,” Rose says. “So I would always encourage somebody to buy as soon as you can and get the clock ticking.” More From NerdWallet Abby Badach Doyle writes for NerdWallet. Email: abadachdoyle@nerdwallet.com. The article Buying a House in 2025: Your How-To Guide originally appeared on NerdWallet .Craigs Announces Strategic Partnership with TA AssociatesThe cannabis industry has experienced dramatic changes over the past few years, with a stronger focus on social equity and justice than ever before. As more states legalize cannabis, the conversation has shifted from just legalizing the substance to addressing the deep-rooted damage caused by the War on Drugs, particularly within marginalized communities. For many, cannabis legalization is about more than just making it legal—it’s a chance to repair past wrongs and provide opportunities for economic empowerment to those who have suffered the most from criminalization. A major step in this direction is the rise of social equity programs . These initiatives are designed to help people—especially Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) —who have been disproportionately affected by cannabis prohibition. These programs not only offer financial assistance for expungement services (which help clear old cannabis-related convictions) but also provide mentorship for those looking to enter the cannabis industry. Companies like Green Thumb Industries and Curio Wellness are leading the charge by providing resources to aspiring entrepreneurs from underserved communities, helping them navigate the complex world of cannabis licensing and business development. Despite the promising steps these programs have made, significant barriers still remain. One of the biggest challenges is the high cost of entering the cannabis industry. The fees for obtaining cannabis licenses and the complex regulatory environment can be overwhelming, particularly for those who have been historically excluded from economic opportunities. While social equity programs aim to level the playing field, financial challenges can still limit access for the most vulnerable communities. In addition to these equity efforts, there’s a growing trend among consumers to support local cannabis producers —especially craft cannabis farmers . These smaller businesses tend to emphasize quality, sustainability, and community values over the mass production methods of large corporate growers. By choosing to support local cannabis farms, consumers contribute to the local economy, promote ethical practices, and push back against the overwhelming influence of big corporations. This movement is part of a broader trend of ethical consumption , where every purchase can help shape a more socially responsible industry. Supporting smaller producers has benefits beyond just the financial. These businesses are often more in tune with their communities and provide a chance to foster greater diversity within the cannabis market. In states like Massachusetts , where cannabis licenses are distributed with a focus on social equity , local producers from historically impacted communities now have the chance to play a role in shaping the future of the cannabis industry. These opportunities not only create jobs but also allow individuals who have been affected by cannabis prohibition to take part in the economic boom that legalization has brought. While progress has been made, there’s still a lot of work to be done. For the full potential of the cannabis industry to be realized, we need to continue addressing systemic barriers , such as the high costs of entry and institutional discrimination, which still prevent many from taking full advantage of cannabis opportunities. By supporting local farmers and small businesses , alongside expanding social equity programs , we can work towards a cannabis market that is not just profitable, but also just , inclusive , and deeply connected to the communities it serves.

ATLANTA (AP) — Jimmy Carter, the peanut farmer who tried to restore virtue to the White House after the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, then rebounded from a landslide defeat to become a global advocate of human rights and democracy, has died. He was 100 years old . The Carter Center said the 39th president died Sunday afternoon, more than a year after entering hospice care , at his home in Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, Rosalynn, who died in November 2023, lived most of their lives. The center said he died peacefully, surrounded by his family. As reaction poured in from around the world, President Joe Biden mourned Carter’s death, saying the world lost an “extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian” and he lost a dear friend. Biden cited Carter’s compassion and moral clarity, his work to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless and advocacy for the disadvantaged as an example for others. “To all of the young people in this nation and for anyone in search of what it means to live a life of purpose and meaning – the good life – study Jimmy Carter, a man of principle, faith, and humility,” Biden said in a statement. “He showed that we are a great nation because we are a good people – decent and honorable, courageous and compassionate, humble and strong.” Biden said he is ordering a state funeral for Carter in Washington. A moderate Democrat, Carter ran for president in 1976 as a little-known Georgia governor with a broad grin, effusive Baptist faith and technocratic plans for efficient government. His promise to never deceive the American people resonated after Richard Nixon’s disgrace and U.S. defeat in southeast Asia. “If I ever lie to you, if I ever make a misleading statement, don’t vote for me. I would not deserve to be your president,” Carter said. Carter’s victory over Republican Gerald Ford, whose fortunes fell after pardoning Nixon, came amid Cold War pressures, turbulent oil markets and social upheaval over race, women’s rights and America’s role in the world. His achievements included brokering Mideast peace by keeping Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at Camp David for 13 days in 1978. But his coalition splintered under double-digit inflation and the 444-day hostage crisis in Iran. His negotiations ultimately brought all the hostages home alive, but in a final insult, Iran didn’t release them until the inauguration of Ronald Reagan, who had trounced him in the 1980 election. Humbled and back home in Georgia, Carter said his faith demanded that he keep doing whatever he could, for as long as he could, to try to make a difference. He and Rosalynn co-founded The Carter Center in 1982 and spent the next 40 years traveling the world as peacemakers, human rights advocates and champions of democracy and public health. Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, Carter helped ease nuclear tensions in North and South Korea, avert a U.S. invasion of Haiti and negotiate cease-fires in Bosnia and Sudan. By 2022, the center had monitored at least 113 elections around the world. Carter was determined to eradicate guinea worm infections as one of many health initiatives. Swinging hammers into their 90s, the Carters built homes with Habitat for Humanity. The common observation that he was better as an ex-president rankled Carter. His allies were pleased that he lived long enough to see biographers and historians revisit his presidency and declare it more impactful than many understood at the time. Propelled in 1976 by voters in Iowa and then across the South, Carter ran a no-frills campaign. Americans were captivated by the earnest engineer, and while an election-year Playboy interview drew snickers when he said he “had looked on many women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times,” voters tired of political cynicism found it endearing. The first family set an informal tone in the White House, carrying their own luggage, trying to silence the Marine Band’s traditional “Hail to the Chief" and enrolling daughter, Amy, in public schools. Carter was lampooned for wearing a cardigan and urging Americans to turn down their thermostats. But Carter set the stage for an economic revival and sharply reduced America's dependence on foreign oil by deregulating the energy industry along with airlines, trains and trucking. He established the departments of Energy and Education, appointed record numbers of women and nonwhites to federal posts, preserved millions of acres of Alaskan wilderness and pardoned most Vietnam draft evaders. Emphasizing human rights , he ended most support for military dictators and took on bribery by multinational corporations by signing the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. He persuaded the Senate to ratify the Panama Canal treaties and normalized relations with China, an outgrowth of Nixon’s outreach to Beijing. But crippling turns in foreign affairs took their toll. When OPEC hiked crude prices, making drivers line up for gasoline as inflation spiked to 11%, Carter tried to encourage Americans to overcome “a crisis of confidence.” Many voters lost confidence in Carter instead after the infamous address that media dubbed his “malaise" speech, even though he never used that word. After Carter reluctantly agreed to admit the exiled Shah of Iran to the U.S. for medical treatment, the American Embassy in Tehran was overrun in 1979. Negotiations to quickly free the hostages broke down, and then eight Americans died when a top-secret military rescue attempt failed. Carter also had to reverse course on the SALT II nuclear arms treaty after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979. Though historians would later credit Carter's diplomatic efforts for hastening the end of the Cold war, Republicans labeled his soft power weak. Reagan’s “make America great again” appeals resonated, and he beat Carter in all but six states. Born Oct. 1, 1924, James Earl Carter Jr. married fellow Plains native Rosalynn Smith in 1946, the year he graduated from the Naval Academy. He brought his young family back to Plains after his father died, abandoning his Navy career, and they soon turned their ambitions to politics . Carter reached the state Senate in 1962. After rural white and Black voters elected him governor in 1970, he drew national attention by declaring that “the time for racial discrimination is over.” Carter published more than 30 books and remained influential as his center turned its democracy advocacy onto U.S. politics, monitoring an audit of Georgia’s 2020 presidential election results. After a 2015 cancer diagnosis, Carter said he felt “perfectly at ease with whatever comes.” “I’ve had a wonderful life,” he said. “I’ve had thousands of friends, I’ve had an exciting, adventurous and gratifying existence.” Sanz is a former Associated Press reporter.ATLANTA (AP) — Jimmy Carter, the peanut farmer who won the presidency in the wake of the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, endured humbling defeat after one tumultuous term and then redefined life after the White House as a global humanitarian, has died. He was 100 years old. The longest-lived American president died on Sunday, more than a year after entering hospice care , at his home in the small town of Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, Rosalynn, who died at 96 in November 2023 , spent most of their lives, The Carter Center said. “Our founder, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, passed away this afternoon in Plains, Georgia,” the center said in posting about his death on the social media platform X. It added in a statement that he died peacefully, surrounded by his family. As reaction poured in from around the world, President Joe Biden mourned Carter’s death, saying the world lost an “extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian” and he lost a dear friend. Biden cited Carter’s compassion and moral clarity, his work to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless and advocacy for the disadvantaged as an example for others. “To all of the young people in this nation and for anyone in search of what it means to live a life of purpose and meaning – the good life – study Jimmy Carter, a man of principle, faith, and humility,” Biden said in a statement. “He showed that we are a great nation because we are a good people – decent and honorable, courageous and compassionate, humble and strong.” Biden said he is ordering a state funeral for Carter in Washington. Businessman, Navy officer, evangelist, politician, negotiator, author, woodworker, citizen of the world — Carter forged a path that still challenges political assumptions and stands out among the 45 men who reached the nation’s highest office. The 39th president leveraged his ambition with a keen intellect, deep religious faith and prodigious work ethic, conducting diplomatic missions into his 80s and building houses for the poor well into his 90s. “My faith demands — this is not optional — my faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can, with whatever I have to try to make a difference,” Carter once said. A moderate Democrat, Carter entered the 1976 presidential race as a little-known Georgia governor with a broad smile, outspoken Baptist mores and technocratic plans reflecting his education as an engineer. His no-frills campaign depended on public financing, and his promise not to deceive the American people resonated after Richard Nixon’s disgrace and U.S. defeat in southeast Asia. “If I ever lie to you, if I ever make a misleading statement, don’t vote for me. I would not deserve to be your president,” Carter repeated before narrowly beating Republican incumbent Gerald Ford, who had lost popularity pardoning Nixon. Carter governed amid Cold War pressures, turbulent oil markets and social upheaval over racism, women’s rights and America’s global role. His most acclaimed achievement in office was a Mideast peace deal that he brokered by keeping Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at the bargaining table for 13 days in 1978. That Camp David experience inspired the post-presidential center where Carter would establish so much of his legacy. Yet Carter’s electoral coalition splintered under double-digit inflation, gasoline lines and the 444-day hostage crisis in Iran. His bleakest hour came when eight Americans died in a failed hostage rescue in April 1980, helping to ensure his landslide defeat to Republican Ronald Reagan. Carter acknowledged in his 2020 “White House Diary” that he could be “micromanaging” and “excessively autocratic,” complicating dealings with Congress and the federal bureaucracy. He also turned a cold shoulder to Washington’s news media and lobbyists, not fully appreciating their influence on his political fortunes. “It didn’t take us long to realize that the underestimation existed, but by that time we were not able to repair the mistake,” Carter told historians in 1982, suggesting that he had “an inherent incompatibility” with Washington insiders. Carter insisted his overall approach was sound and that he achieved his primary objectives — to “protect our nation’s security and interests peacefully” and “enhance human rights here and abroad” — even if he fell spectacularly short of a second term. Ignominious defeat, though, allowed for renewal. The Carters founded The Carter Center in 1982 as a first-of-its-kind base of operations, asserting themselves as international peacemakers and champions of democracy, public health and human rights. “I was not interested in just building a museum or storing my White House records and memorabilia,” Carter wrote in a memoir published after his 90th birthday. “I wanted a place where we could work.” That work included easing nuclear tensions in North and South Korea, helping to avert a U.S. invasion of Haiti and negotiating cease-fires in Bosnia and Sudan. By 2022, The Carter Center had declared at least 113 elections in Latin America, Asia and Africa to be free or fraudulent. Recently, the center began monitoring U.S. elections as well. Carter’s stubborn self-assuredness and even self-righteousness proved effective once he was unencumbered by the Washington order, sometimes to the point of frustrating his successors . He went “where others are not treading,” he said, to places like Ethiopia, Liberia and North Korea, where he secured the release of an American who had wandered across the border in 2010. “I can say what I like. I can meet whom I want. I can take on projects that please me and reject the ones that don’t,” Carter said. He announced an arms-reduction-for-aid deal with North Korea without clearing the details with Bill Clinton’s White House. He openly criticized President George W. Bush for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He also criticized America’s approach to Israel with his 2006 book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid.” And he repeatedly countered U.S. administrations by insisting North Korea should be included in international affairs, a position that most aligned Carter with Republican President Donald Trump. Among the center’s many public health initiatives, Carter vowed to eradicate the guinea worm parasite during his lifetime, and nearly achieved it: Cases dropped from millions in the 1980s to nearly a handful. With hardhats and hammers, the Carters also built homes with Habitat for Humanity. The Nobel committee’s 2002 Peace Prize cites his “untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” Carter should have won it alongside Sadat and Begin in 1978, the chairman added. Carter accepted the recognition saying there was more work to be done. “The world is now, in many ways, a more dangerous place,” he said. “The greater ease of travel and communication has not been matched by equal understanding and mutual respect.” Carter’s globetrotting took him to remote villages where he met little “Jimmy Carters,” so named by admiring parents. But he spent most of his days in the same one-story Plains house — expanded and guarded by Secret Service agents — where they lived before he became governor. He regularly taught Sunday School lessons at Maranatha Baptist Church until his mobility declined and the coronavirus pandemic raged. Those sessions drew visitors from around the world to the small sanctuary where Carter will receive his final send-off after a state funeral at Washington’s National Cathedral. The common assessment that he was a better ex-president than president rankled Carter and his allies. His prolific post-presidency gave him a brand above politics, particularly for Americans too young to witness him in office. But Carter also lived long enough to see biographers and historians reassess his White House years more generously. His record includes the deregulation of key industries, reduction of U.S. dependence on foreign oil, cautious management of the national debt and notable legislation on the environment, education and mental health. He focused on human rights in foreign policy, pressuring dictators to release thousands of political prisoners . He acknowledged America’s historical imperialism, pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders and relinquished control of the Panama Canal. He normalized relations with China. “I am not nominating Jimmy Carter for a place on Mount Rushmore,” Stuart Eizenstat, Carter’s domestic policy director, wrote in a 2018 book. “He was not a great president” but also not the “hapless and weak” caricature voters rejected in 1980, Eizenstat said. Rather, Carter was “good and productive” and “delivered results, many of which were realized only after he left office.” Madeleine Albright, a national security staffer for Carter and Clinton’s secretary of state, wrote in Eizenstat’s forward that Carter was “consequential and successful” and expressed hope that “perceptions will continue to evolve” about his presidency. “Our country was lucky to have him as our leader,” said Albright, who died in 2022. Jonathan Alter, who penned a comprehensive Carter biography published in 2020, said in an interview that Carter should be remembered for “an epic American life” spanning from a humble start in a home with no electricity or indoor plumbing through decades on the world stage across two centuries. “He will likely go down as one of the most misunderstood and underestimated figures in American history,” Alter told The Associated Press. James Earl Carter Jr. was born Oct. 1, 1924, in Plains and spent his early years in nearby Archery. His family was a minority in the mostly Black community, decades before the civil rights movement played out at the dawn of Carter’s political career. Carter, who campaigned as a moderate on race relations but governed more progressively, talked often of the influence of his Black caregivers and playmates but also noted his advantages: His land-owning father sat atop Archery’s tenant-farming system and owned a main street grocery. His mother, Lillian , would become a staple of his political campaigns. Seeking to broaden his world beyond Plains and its population of fewer than 1,000 — then and now — Carter won an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1946. That same year he married Rosalynn Smith, another Plains native, a decision he considered more important than any he made as head of state. She shared his desire to see the world, sacrificing college to support his Navy career. Carter climbed in rank to lieutenant, but then his father was diagnosed with cancer, so the submarine officer set aside his ambitions of admiralty and moved the family back to Plains. His decision angered Rosalynn, even as she dived into the peanut business alongside her husband. Carter again failed to talk with his wife before his first run for office — he later called it “inconceivable” not to have consulted her on such major life decisions — but this time, she was on board. “My wife is much more political,” Carter told the AP in 2021. He won a state Senate seat in 1962 but wasn’t long for the General Assembly and its back-slapping, deal-cutting ways. He ran for governor in 1966 — losing to arch-segregationist Lester Maddox — and then immediately focused on the next campaign. Carter had spoken out against church segregation as a Baptist deacon and opposed racist “Dixiecrats” as a state senator. Yet as a local school board leader in the 1950s he had not pushed to end school segregation even after the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision, despite his private support for integration. And in 1970, Carter ran for governor again as the more conservative Democrat against Carl Sanders, a wealthy businessman Carter mocked as “Cufflinks Carl.” Sanders never forgave him for anonymous, race-baiting flyers, which Carter disavowed. Ultimately, Carter won his races by attracting both Black voters and culturally conservative whites. Once in office, he was more direct. “I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over,” he declared in his 1971 inaugural address, setting a new standard for Southern governors that landed him on the cover of Time magazine. His statehouse initiatives included environmental protection, boosting rural education and overhauling antiquated executive branch structures. He proclaimed Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the slain civil rights leader’s home state. And he decided, as he received presidential candidates in 1972, that they were no more talented than he was. In 1974, he ran Democrats’ national campaign arm. Then he declared his own candidacy for 1976. An Atlanta newspaper responded with the headline: “Jimmy Who?” The Carters and a “Peanut Brigade” of family members and Georgia supporters camped out in Iowa and New Hampshire, establishing both states as presidential proving grounds. His first Senate endorsement: a young first-termer from Delaware named Joe Biden. Yet it was Carter’s ability to navigate America’s complex racial and rural politics that cemented the nomination. He swept the Deep South that November, the last Democrat to do so, as many white Southerners shifted to Republicans in response to civil rights initiatives. A self-declared “born-again Christian,” Carter drew snickers by referring to Scripture in a Playboy magazine interview, saying he “had looked on many women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times.” The remarks gave Ford a new foothold and television comedians pounced — including NBC’s new “Saturday Night Live” show. But voters weary of cynicism in politics found it endearing. Carter chose Minnesota Sen. Walter “Fritz” Mondale as his running mate on a “Grits and Fritz” ticket. In office, he elevated the vice presidency and the first lady’s office. Mondale’s governing partnership was a model for influential successors Al Gore, Dick Cheney and Biden. Rosalynn Carter was one of the most involved presidential spouses in history, welcomed into Cabinet meetings and huddles with lawmakers and top aides. The Carters presided with uncommon informality: He used his nickname “Jimmy” even when taking the oath of office, carried his own luggage and tried to silence the Marine Band’s “Hail to the Chief.” They bought their clothes off the rack. Carter wore a cardigan for a White House address, urging Americans to conserve energy by turning down their thermostats. Amy, the youngest of four children, attended District of Columbia public school. Washington’s social and media elite scorned their style. But the larger concern was that “he hated politics,” according to Eizenstat, leaving him nowhere to turn politically once economic turmoil and foreign policy challenges took their toll. Carter partially deregulated the airline, railroad and trucking industries and established the departments of Education and Energy, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He designated millions of acres of Alaska as national parks or wildlife refuges. He appointed a then-record number of women and nonwhite people to federal posts. He never had a Supreme Court nomination, but he elevated civil rights attorney Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the nation’s second highest court, positioning her for a promotion in 1993. He appointed Paul Volker, the Federal Reserve chairman whose policies would help the economy boom in the 1980s — after Carter left office. He built on Nixon’s opening with China, and though he tolerated autocrats in Asia, pushed Latin America from dictatorships to democracy. But he couldn’t immediately tame inflation or the related energy crisis. And then came Iran. After he admitted the exiled Shah of Iran to the U.S. for medical treatment, the American Embassy in Tehran was overrun in 1979 by followers of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Negotiations to free the hostages broke down repeatedly ahead of the failed rescue attempt. The same year, Carter signed SALT II, the new strategic arms treaty with Leonid Brezhnev of the Soviet Union, only to pull it back, impose trade sanctions and order a U.S. boycott of the Moscow Olympics after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. Hoping to instill optimism, he delivered what the media dubbed his “malaise” speech, although he didn’t use that word. He declared the nation was suffering “a crisis of confidence.” By then, many Americans had lost confidence in the president, not themselves. Carter campaigned sparingly for reelection because of the hostage crisis, instead sending Rosalynn as Sen. Edward M. Kennedy challenged him for the Democratic nomination. Carter famously said he’d “kick his ass,” but was hobbled by Kennedy as Reagan rallied a broad coalition with “make America great again” appeals and asking voters whether they were “better off than you were four years ago.” Reagan further capitalized on Carter’s lecturing tone, eviscerating him in their lone fall debate with the quip: “There you go again.” Carter lost all but six states and Republicans rolled to a new Senate majority. Carter successfully negotiated the hostages’ freedom after the election, but in one final, bitter turn of events, Tehran waited until hours after Carter left office to let them walk free. At 56, Carter returned to Georgia with “no idea what I would do with the rest of my life.” Four decades after launching The Carter Center, he still talked of unfinished business. “I thought when we got into politics we would have resolved everything,” Carter told the AP in 2021. “But it’s turned out to be much more long-lasting and insidious than I had thought it was. I think in general, the world itself is much more divided than in previous years.” Still, he affirmed what he said when he underwent treatment for a cancer diagnosis in his 10th decade of life. “I’m perfectly at ease with whatever comes,” he said in 2015 . “I’ve had a wonderful life. I’ve had thousands of friends, I’ve had an exciting, adventurous and gratifying existence.” Sanz is a former Associated Press reporter.Standard Motor Products Releases 2,367 New Numbers in 2024

TAIPEI , Dec. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- With the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI), businesses are racing to meet the demands of terminal AI applications to propel growth. The AI on Chip Industrial Cooperation Strategic Alliance aims to promote the industry by supporting member companies such as Etron Technology, Generalplus Technology and iCatch Technology to develop innovative products engineered for a range of industrial applications. Etron Technology has seamlessly integrated its RPC memory interface controller into voice control and driver monitoring systems in cars. The company has also unveiled the MemorAiLink platform, offering low-power, high-performance AI terminal solutions for the heterogeneous integration of various computing cores. Generalplus Technology excels in driver monitoring systems (DMS), which comply with EU and Chinese regulations. By collecting extensive data and conducting rigorous field tests, the systems ensure optimal performance in any scenario. iCatch Technology has recently launched the V2C multi-channel AI Internet of Vehicles (IoV) image analysis recorder, which has been available in the Japanese fleet market. The company's sensor fusion technology gives vehicles full perception capabilities, creating exciting new opportunities for applications in drones, robots and more. Etron Technology, Generalplus Technology and iCatch Technology are all committed to innovation, striving to meet customer expectations and exploring new technology applications. Together, they are creating more opportunities within Taiwan's AI industry and on the global stage. For more information on excellent Taiwanese manufacturers, please contact us at [email protected] Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2587982/image_5018046_24472191.jpg

Ireland Vote Points to Status Quo But PM Faces Support DropGlobal Blockchain Technologies (CVE:BLOC) Stock Price Up ∞ – Should You Buy?

Germany's CDU, currently favorites to lead the next German government, wants to cut unemployment benefits for Ukrainian war refugees, on the grounds that it discourages them from finding work. Germany's center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU) — currently leading in polls ahead of the election on February 23 next year — want to cut welfare benefits and get more of the country's 5.5 million long-term unemployed into the labor market. They are also openly questioning whether Ukrainians should receive the standard unemployment benefit, called Bürgergeld ("citizens' income") rather than the lower asylum-seeker benefits. Following Russia's full-fledged invasion of Ukraine , refugees arriving in Germany and were subject to an EU Council Directive for temporary protection in the event of a mass influx of displaced persons for whom the regular asylum procedures do not apply. They were granted temporary residency status and entitled to full social welfare benefits. The CSU's Stephan Stracke, social policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU's parliamentary group, told DW that while anyone fleeing "war and violence" had a right to protection, "This does not mean, however, that there must be an automatic entitlement to the citizen's income in Germany." Instead, Stracke said, newly arrived Ukrainian war refugees should receive asylum-seeker benefits "at first." Political row breaks out in Germany over Ukrainian refugees To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Integration into the job market Germany is currently home to around 1.2 million Ukrainian refugees, around 530,000 of whom are classified by the Federal Employment Agency as eligible to work and entitled to citizens' income (as of May 2024). That means they receive an unemployment benefit of up to €563 ($596) per month plus their rent and heating costs paid by the state. There is an extra allowance for children, staggered by age, and around 360,000 of the Ukrainian refugees in Germany are children. Stracke's proposal — for Ukrainians to receive the standard asylum seekers' benefit instead — would mean that Ukrainians would receive only €460 per month. The CDU's move is part of a general planned overhaul of the Bürgergeld system if they get into power, which will include tougher sanctions for refusing work and more mandatory visits to the authorities. The tougher comments on Ukrainian refugees are not new among German conservatives: Two years ago, CDU leader Friedrich Merz, who is predicted to head Germany's next government questioned the Ukranians' need for protection: "We are now experiencing a form of social tourism among these refugees: to Germany, back to Ukraine, to Germany, back to Ukraine," Merz told the Bild TV outlet in 2022 , triggering widespread outrage. Ukrainians across Europe In a newly updated study, the German Institute for Employment Research (IAB) found that Germany was struggling to integrate Ukrainians into the job market, at least compared with other countries — but also that the situation was improving: Only 27% of Ukrainians in Germany had found work as of March this year, compared to 57% in Lithuania and 53% in Denmark (though that was still ahead of Ukrainians in Norway, Spain, and Finland, where only around 20% had found work). — and finding childcare and schooling has become increasingly difficult. According to Germany's right-wing parties, like the CDU and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) , the high number of refugees living off social welfare is partly down to the amount of money they receive. "Germany has obviously not been particularly successful in getting Ukrainian refugees into work so far," said Stracke. "Other European countries are doing much better. That is why we in Germany have to give more weight to the principle of supporting and challenging people to find work." Getting qualifications recognized But the IAB study also shows that the proportion of Ukrainians in work is steadily rising in all the European countries — and that there is little evidence to show that there is a correlation with the amount of state help they receive. More significant factors than benefits, the IAB said, were language barriers and demand for labor in the low-wage sector, where it is easier to find work. Iryna Shulikina, executive director at the Berlin-based NGO Vitsche, which supports Ukrainian refugees in Germany, said Ukrainians encounter several obstacles to finding work in Germany, most notably getting through the bureaucratic process. According to the IAB, some 72% of Ukrainian refugees have either a university degree or a vocational qualification — more than other refugees or the German working population in general. "When they come here, they face the difficulties of getting their diplomas approved here," Shulikina said. To name one example: Though Germany faces a shortage of medical workers, Shulikina said she had spoken to Ukrainian medical workers who needed two and a half years to get to the stage where they could work: Applying for work, getting their documents and qualifications approved, doing the necessary tests, learning the language. "It's a real challenge," she said. Talk about sending Ukrainians back plays into Putin’s hands: Fabian Funke, German MP To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Election puts pressure on refugees Whether a likely CDU-led government will succeed in changing conditions for Ukrainian refugees will depend also on its coalition partners: The center-left Social Democrats (SPD) are less inclined to crack down on social welfare recipients, while leading members of the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP) , have already expressed their support for recategorizing Ukrainian war refugees — even though the party's parliamentary group declined to state an official position to DW for this article. Shulikina put the current political debate on the issue of Bürgergeld down to election campaigning and did not accept the argument that the citizens' income was keeping Ukrainian refugees at home. "All the people I know who are refugees and have anything to do with the Job Center are doing everything possible to end this relationship," she said. "It's very humiliating and annoying. You are very dependent, and you are not perceived as an equal part of society — you're asked about every cent you spend and how and when. I don't believe there are a lot of people who enjoy getting Bürgergeld." Lyudmyla Mlosch, chairperson of the Central Council of Ukrainians in Germany (ZVUD), said many Ukrainians she knows in Germany don't want to be here at all. "I know a lot of people here who are dreaming of going home, but they have no home — they've lost everything," said Mlosch. "Of course they need support." But Mlosch did admit that some Ukrainians are more desperate than others: Those from the regions in the east that are under almost continual bombardment from Russia are more in need of state help, for example, as are older or sick people, or people who have no savings. "They don't need to all be put in the same bracket. But younger people who can work, they could have their money reduced, I could admit that," she said. Edited by Rina Goldenberg While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.“THE CULT OF THE FOUNDER.” “THE CULT OF THE TECH GENIUS.” “Beware: Silicon Valley’s cultists want to turn you into a disruptive deviant.” “Tech’s cult of the founder bounces back.” “Silicon Valley’s Strange, Apocalyptic Cults.” “How the cult of personality and tech-bro culture is killing technology.” “Company or cult?” “Is your corporate culture cultish?” “The Cult of Company Culture Is Back. But Do Tech Workers Even Want Perks Anymore?” “10 tech gadgets with a cult following on Amazon—and why they’re worth it.” “13 steps to developing a cult-like company culture.” The headlines seem to write themselves (if that cliché is allowed anymore in the age of ChatGPT and generative AI). Tech is culty. But that is a metaphor, right? When I first saw Michael Saylor’s Twitter account, I wasn’t sure. Saylor is an entrepreneur, tech executive, and former billionaire. Once reportedly the richest man in the Washington, DC, area, he lost most of his $7 billion net worth in 2000 when, in his mid-30s, he reached a settlement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission after it brought charges against him and two of his colleagues at a company called MicroStrategy for inaccurate reporting of their financial results. But I had no idea who he was back then. In 2021 Saylor started showing up in my Twitter feed. His profile picture showed a man with chiseled features, silver hair, and stubble sitting in a power pose and looking directly into the camera, a black dress shirt unbuttoned to display a generous amount of his neck. It was a typical tech entrepreneur’s publicity shot except for the lightning bolts blasting from his eyes, and the golden halo crown. Then there were his tweets: #Bitcoin is Truth. #Bitcoin is For All Mankind. #Bitcoin is Different. Trust the Timechain. Fiat [government-backed currency] is immoral. #Bitcoin is immortal. #Bitcoin is a shining city in cyberspace, waiting for you. #Bitcoin is the heartbeat of Planet Earth. As MIT’s humanist chaplain, I follow a lot of ministers, rabbis, imams, and monks online. Very few religious leaders would dare to be this religious on social media. They know that few of their readers want to see such hubris. Why, then, does there seem to be an audience for this seemingly cultish behavior from a cryptocurrency salesman? Are tech leaders like Saylor leading actual cults? According to Bretton Putter, an expert on startups and CEO of the consulting firm CultureGene, this needn’t be a major concern: “It’s pretty much impossible,” Putter writes, “for a business to become a full-blown cult.” And if a tech company or other business happens to resemble a cult, that might just be a good thing, he argues: “If you succeed in building a cultlike culture similar to the way that Apple, Tesla, Zappos, Southwest Airlines, Nordstrom, and Harley-Davidson have, you will experience loyalty, dedication, and commitment from your employees (and customers) that is way beyond the norm.” Are the cultlike aspects of tech companies really that benign? Or should we be worried? To find the answer, I interviewed Steve Hassan, a top expert on exit counseling, or helping people escape destructive cults. At age 19, while he was studying poetry at Queens College in New York City in the early 1970s, Hassan was recruited into the Unification Church—the famously manipulative cult also known as the Moonies. Over his next 27 months as a member of the church, Hassan helped with its fundraising, recruiting, and political efforts, which involved personally meeting with the cult leader Sun Myung Moon multiple times. He lived in communal housing, slept only a few hours a night, and sold carnations on street corners seven days a week for no pay. He was told to drop out of college and turn his bank account over to the church. In 1976, he fell asleep at the wheel while driving a Moonie fundraising van and drove into the back of a tractor-trailer at high speed. He called his sister from the hospital, and his parents hired former members to help “deprogram” him and extract him from the cult. After the Jonestown mass suicide and murders of 1978 brought attention to the lethal dangers of cult mind control, Hassan founded a nonprofit organization, Ex-Moon Inc. Since then, he’s earned a handful of graduate degrees (including a doctorate in the study of cults), started numerous related projects, and written a popular book on how practices with which he is all too familiar have crept into the mainstream of US politics in recent years. (That 2019 book, , seemed even more relevant in early 2024, when a video called “God Made Trump” went viral across the campaign trail.) Hassan even found himself advising Maryland congressman Jamie Raskin, leader of the second impeachment trial against Donald Trump, in 2021, on how to think and communicate about the cultish aspects of the violent mob of Trump followers who stormed the Capitol on January 6 of that year. I wanted to ask Hassan what he makes of the discourse around tech cults, but first it’s important to understand how he thinks about cults in the first place. Hassan’s dissertation was titled “The BITE Model of Authoritarian Control: Undue Influence, Thought Reform, Brainwashing, Mind Control, Trafficking, and the Law.” The idea was to create a model that could measure cult exploitation and manipulation, or what Hassan and other experts in related fields call “undue influence.” His BITE model looks to evaluate the ways social groups and institutions attempt to control followers’ behavior, information access, thoughts, and emotions. Because there is no one quintessential, Platonic definition of a cult, what matters is where a given instance of potential cultishness falls on an “influence continuum.” In this continuum model, Hassan evaluates the ways in which institutional cultures attempt to influence people. To what extent are individuals allowed to be their authentic selves or required to adopt a false cult identity? Are leaders accountable to others, or do they claim absolute authority? Do organizations encourage growth in the people who participate in them, or do they seek to preserve their own power over all else? While any kind of person or group can struggle with some of the dimensions on Hassan’s continuum chart (which lists constructive behaviors at one end and destructive behaviors at the other), healthier organizations will tend toward constructive responses more of the time, whereas unhealthier institutions—those more truly worthy of the cult label in the most negative sense—will tend toward destructive responses such as grandiosity, hate, demands for obedience, elitism, authoritarianism, deceptiveness, or hunger for power. It turns out that there are some real, meaningful similarities between cults and tech, according to Hassan. “This is the perfect mind-control device,” he told me, holding up his iPhone. He explained that when he joined the Moonies in 1974, cult recruiters had to get information from the victim. Now, he said, users of everyday technologies are sitting ducks: “There are 5,000 data points on every voting American in the dark web, and there are companies that will collect and sell that data.” The first time Hassan was told about cryptocurrency, he added, it smacked of multilevel marketing to him. The proposition that you can make a fortune in a very short amount of time, with almost no labor, was something he had seen many times in his work. As was the idea that if you become an early investor in such a scheme, you’ll make more money if you recruit more people to join you. “The people who started it are always going to make 99% of the money,” Hassan said. And as in the cults that recruited him and continue to recruit the kinds of people who ultimately become his clients, “everyone else is going to get burned.” All of this would certainly seem to explain why I so frequently hear from people, eager for me to know they are fellow atheists, who tell me to buy some bitcoin because it will rewire my neurons and cure me of the woke mind virus. Of course, it should be noted that some scholars have complained about Hassan’s work, arguing that brainwashing and mind control are concepts for which there is not sufficient evidence. But I’m not claiming that tech uses literal brainwashing, nor is it like when a character in a episode hears “You are getting very sleepy” and then their eyes become squiggles. Hassan probably wouldn’t say so either. Companies don’t need to go to such extremes to exert undue influence on us, though. And as is clear from the headlines I cited above, a lot of companies have been accused of, or associated with, a bit of cultishness. I won’t attempt to evaluate anyone’s cultish tendencies on a scale of 1 to 10. But I see crypto sales techniques as a particularly good example of cultlike behavior, because if there’s one thing cults need to be good at to sustain their existence, it’s separating people from their wallets. Cryptocurrency has specialized in that to extraordinary effect. It’s all a continuum, and it would be hard to find a person whose life is completely devoid of anything cultish, technological or otherwise. But as a culture, we are careening dangerously toward the wrong end of Hassan’s chart. Or to quote a Michael Saylor tweet, “We all stumble in the dark until we see the cyber light. #Bitcoin.” : How Technology Became the World’s Most Powerful Religion, and Why It Desperately Needs a Reformation.

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tampa Bay's surest path to the NFL playoffs is a division championship. The Buccaneers will need help to repeat in the NFC South , but only if they first and foremost give themselves a chance. That means winning their remaining games at home against Carolina and New Orleans, while the Atlanta Falcons lose at least once in the final two weeks of the regular season. The Bucs (8-7) and Falcons share the best record in the division, however Atlanta holds the tiebreaker after sweeping the season series between the teams. Tampa Bay, which has won three consecutive division titles, is the only NFC team that has made the playoffs each of the past four seasons. “We’ve got to take care of business or else we’ve got no shot,” quarterback Baker Mayfield said after a 26-24 loss at Dallas cost the Bucs control of the NFC South race. “This one, we've got to take it on the chin,” Mayfield added. “It's a short week. It's Christmas week. We've got to focus on Carolina and figure out a way to win.” If Atlanta is able to maintain its lead, Tampa Bay could make the postseason as a wild card if the Bucs win out and the Commanders lose twice. Coach Todd Bowles sounds confident that his players understand the challenge ahead and will clean up mistakes that contributed to the end of their four-game win streak. “We’ve got to win a ballgame (this week). If we don’t win a ballgame, we don’t give ourselves a chance,” Bowles said Monday. “We have to focus on us like we’ve been doing,” the coach added. “We have to correct the mistakes, and we have to go out and win Sunday, and we’ve got to win the next week, and then we’ll see what happens after that.” What's working The offense, which ranks third in the NFL at 389.8 yards per game, isn't a fluke. Despite losing to the Cowboys, Tampa Bay finished with 410 yards total offense. It was the team's fifth straight game — as well as an NFL-high ninth overall — with 400-plus yards. The Bucs are seventh in rushing (143.7 yards per game) after ranking 32nd each of the past two seasons. What needs helps The defense yielded 292 yards passing against the Cowboys, 226 of it in the first half when Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb had six catches for 100 yards and a touchdown. Bowles said shoddy tackling was the biggest issue — not poor coverage. Lamb had one reception for 5 yards after halftime. Stock up Mayfield's chemistry with rookie WR Jalen McMillan, who has 27 receptions for 336 yards and five TDs, continues to grow. McMillan had five catches for 57 yards and a touchdown — his fourth in the past three games — against Dallas. He was also the intended receiver on Mayfield's deep throw that CB Jourdan Lewis intercepted in the end zone to help the Cowboys hold off the Bucs in the closing minutes. Stock down Turnovers were costly against Dallas. The end-zone interception stopped the Bucs from cutting into a 26-17 deficit with 6:22 remaining in the fourth quarter. Rachaad White's fumble with 1:31 left ended any hope for a last-minute victory. On both plays, defenders ripped the ball out of the grasp of the offensive player. “We knew they were going to rake at the ball going into the ballgame," Bowles said. "We just have to have two hands on the ball, and we have to fight for it. We have to take better care of the football. That’s priority No. 1.” Injuries Bowles said it's too early to project the status of several starters for coming games, including S Antoine Winfield Jr. (knee), who has missed the past two games. TE Cade Otton (knee) and LB K.J. Britt (ankle) were inactive against the Cowboys, while reserve WR Sterling Shepard left during the game with a hamstring injury. Key number 80. Bucky Irving leads all NFL rookie RBs with 920 yards rushing. He needs 80 over the next two games to reach 1,000. He scored his seventh rushing touchdown against Dallas. That tied Errict Rhett and Lars Tate for the second-most rushing TDs by a rookie running back in franchise history. Doug Martin set the record of 11 in 2012. Next up Host Carolina on Sunday. ___ NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl Fred Goodall, The Associated Press

Murray State beats Loyola Chicago 71-68 for 7th place at the Diamond Head ClassicAP Trending SummaryBrief at 5:34 p.m. EST

NEW YORK (AP) — No ex-president had a more prolific and diverse publishing career than Jimmy Carter . His more than two dozen books included nonfiction, poetry, fiction, religious meditations and a children’s story. His memoir “An Hour Before Daylight” was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2002, while his 2006 best-seller “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” stirred a fierce debate by likening Israel’s policies in the West Bank to the brutal South African system of racial segregation. And just before his 100th birthday, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation honored him with a lifetime achievement award for how he wielded “the power of the written word to foster peace, social justice, and global understanding.” In one recent work, “A Full Life,” Carter observed that he “enjoyed writing” and that his books “provided a much-needed source of income.” But some projects were easier than others. “Everything to Gain,” a 1987 collaboration with his wife, Rosalynn, turned into the “worst threat we ever experienced in our marriage,” an intractable standoff for the facilitator of the Camp David accords and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. According to Carter, Rosalynn was a meticulous author who considered “the resulting sentences as though they have come down from Mount Sinai, carved into stone.” Their memories differed on various events and they fell into “constant arguments.” They were ready to abandon the book and return the advance, until their editor persuaded them to simply divide any disputed passages between them. “In the book, each of these paragraphs is identified by a ‘J’ or an ‘R,’ and our marriage survived,” he wrote. Here is a partial list of books by Carter: “Keeping Faith: Memoirs of a President” “The Blood of Abraham: Insights into the Middle East” (With Rosalynn Carter) “Everything to Gain: Making the Most of the Rest of Your Life” “An Outdoor Journal: Adventures and Reflections” “Turning Point: A Candidate, a State, and a Nation Come of Age” “Always a Reckoning, and Other Poems” (With daughter Amy Carter) “The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer” “Living Faith” “The Virtues of Aging” “An Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural Boyhood” “Christmas in Plains: Memories” “The Hornet’s Nest: A Novel of the Revolutionary War” “Our Endangered Values: America’s Moral Crisis” “Faith & Freedom: The Christian Challenge for the World” “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” “A Remarkable Mother” “Beyond the White House” “We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land: A Plan That Will Work” “White House Diary” “NIV Lessons from Life Bible: Personal Reflections with Jimmy Carter” “A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power” “A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety”