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Sowei 2025-01-12
Significant milestones in life and career of Jimmy Carter39 jili

DUP minister rejected suggestion licensing laws could be relaxed for jubilee

Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton 's love story is one for the history books. Stefani reflected on her unexpected and beautiful love story with Shelton to People in an article published on Monday, November 25. Stefani, 55, and Shelton, 48, began their relationship in 2015 while they were coaching on The Voice . Both had just gone through difficult divorces — Stefani from Gavin Rossdale and Shelton from Miranda Lambert. Stefani admitted to the outlet that she was initially unsure about starting a relationship with the "God's Country" singer, despite their strong connection. "We had just met, and it was chaos. Both of our lives were in complete turmoil, all over the ground. Nothing could save us at that point," Stefani shared. At one point, she even decided to cut ties with the country star. "I can't even talk to you. This is insane. I already have enough problems. This is not happening anymore," she recalled telling him. However, Shelton wasn't ready to give up on the No Doubt front woman. He turned to music to win her back, knowing how much Stefani valued songwriting. "I think he really wanted to impress me, because he doesn't really write songs as much as he used to. And I love writing songs," she shared. Shelton, who wasn't writing as much at the time, sent Stefani a half-finished song, "Go Ahead and Break My Heart," asking for her help to complete it. The result was the first song they ever wrote together, although they were never in the same room during the process. The couple has been married since 2021 and co-parent the "Rich Girl" songstress's three sons , who she shares with Rossdale –– Kingston, 18, Zuma, 16, and Apollo, 10. Stefani also revealed to the publication that her childhood dream of having a loving family and marriage was almost shattered before meeting Shelton. "God putting Blake in my life was just that miracle," she stated. The couple has since worked on several more songs together, including "Purple Irises," from Stefani's new album Bouquet . In addition to music, Stefani and Shelton also share a love for gardening and their Oklahoma ranch . The pair love to share snippets of their farm life on social media, and over the summer, Stefani shared their process for planting various flowers around the property.Australia’s House of Representatives have passed a bill that would ban children younger than 16 years old from social media, leaving it to the Senate to finalise the world-first law. The major parties backed the bill that would make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars (£26 million) for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts. The legislation was passed with 102 votes in favour to 13 against. If the bill becomes law this week, the platforms would have one year to work out how to implement the age restrictions before the penalties are enforced. Opposition lawmaker Dan Tehan told Parliament the government had agreed to accept amendments in the Senate that would bolster privacy protections. Platforms would not be allowed to compel users to provide government-issued identity documents including passports or driver’s licences. The platforms also could not demand digital identification through a government system. “Will it be perfect? No. But is any law perfect? No, it’s not. But if it helps, even if it helps in just the smallest of ways, it will make a huge difference to people’s lives,” Mr Tehan told Parliament. Communications minister Michelle Rowland said the Senate would debate the bill later on Wednesday. The major parties’ support all but guarantees the legislation will be passed by the Senate, where no party holds a majority of seats. Lawmakers who were not aligned with either the government or the opposition were most critical of the legislation during debate on Tuesday and Wednesday. Criticisms include that the legislation had been rushed through Parliament without adequate scrutiny, would not work, would create privacy risks for users of all ages and would take away parents’ authority to decide what is best for their children. Critics also argue the ban would isolate children, deprive them of positive aspects of social media, drive children to the dark web, make children too young for social media reluctant to report harms they encountered and take away incentives for platforms to make online spaces safer. Independent lawmaker Zoe Daniel said the legislation would “make zero difference to the harms that are inherent to social media”. “The true object of this legislation is not to make social media safe by design, but to make parents and voters feel like the government is doing something about it,” Ms Daniel told Parliament. “There is a reason why the government parades this legislation as world-leading, that’s because no other country wants to do it,” she added. The platforms had asked for the vote on legislation to be delayed until at least June next year when a government-commissioned evaluation of age assurance technologies made its report on how the ban could been enforced.AP Sports SummaryBrief at 5:38 p.m. EST

NoneNo. 14 Kentucky women roll past Arizona State with scoring and rebounding balance 77-61The UK Government was warned that a “save David campaign” for UUP leader Lord Trimble would ruin progress made under the Good Friday Agreement. Extensive confidential documents in the lead-up to the collapse of Northern Ireland’s institutions in 2002 have been made available to the public as part of annual releases from the Irish National Archives. They reveal that the Irish Government wanted to appeal to the UK side against “manipulating” every scenario for favourable election results in Northern Ireland, in an effort to protect the peace process. In the years after the landmark 1998 Good Friday Agreement, a number of outstanding issues left the political environment fraught with tension and disagreement. Mr Trimble, who won a Nobel Peace Prize with SDLP leader John Hume for their work on the Agreement, was keen to gain wins for the UUP on policing, ceasefire audits and paramilitary disarmament – but also to present his party as firmer on these matters amid swipes from its Unionist rival, the DUP. These issues were at the front of his mind as he tried to steer his party into Assembly elections planned for May 2003 and continue in his role as the Executive’s first minister despite increasing political pressure. The documents reveal the extent to which the British and Irish Governments were trying to delicately resolve the contentious negotiations, conscious that moves seen as concessions to one group could provoke anger on the other side. In June 2002, representatives of the SDLP reported to Irish officials on a recent meeting between Mr Hume’s successor Mark Durkan and Prime Minister Tony Blair on policing and security. Mr Blair is said to have suggested that the SDLP and UUP were among those who both supported and took responsibility for the Good Friday Agreement. The confidential report of the meeting says that Mr Durkan, the deputy First Minister, was not sure that Mr Trimble had been correctly categorised. The Prime Minister asked if the SDLP could work more closely with the UUP ahead of the elections. Mr Durkan argued that Mr Trimble was not only not saleable to nationalists, but also not saleable to half of the UUP – to which Mr Blair and Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid are said to have laughed in agreement. The SDLP leader further warned that pursuing a “save David” campaign would ruin all they had worked for. Damien McAteer, an adviser for the SDLP, was recorded as briefing Irish officials on September 10 that it was his view that Mr Trimble was intent on collapsing the institutions in 2003 over expected fallout for Sinn Fein in the wake of the Colombia Three trial, where men linked to the party were charged with training Farc rebels – but predicted the UUP leader would be “in the toilet” by January, when an Ulster Unionist Council (UUC) meeting was due to take place. A week later in mid September, Mr Trimble assured Irish premier Bertie Ahern that the next UUC meeting to take place in two days’ time would be “okay but not great” and insisted he was not planning to play any “big game”. It was at that meeting that he made the bombshell announcement that the UUP would pull out of the Executive if the IRA had not disbanded by January 18. The move came as a surprise to the Irish officials who, along with their UK counterparts, did not see the deadline as realistic. Sinn Fein described the resolution as a “wreckers’ charter”. Doubts were raised that there would be any progress on substantive issues as parties would not be engaged in “pre-election skirmishing”. As that could lead to a UUP walkout and the resulting suspension of the institutions, the prospect of delaying the elections was raised while bringing forward the vote was ruled out. Therefore, the two Governments stressed the need to cooperate as a stabilising force to protect the Agreement – despite not being sure how that process would survive through the January 18 deadline. The Irish officials became worried that the British side did not share their view that Mr Trimble was not “salvageable” and that the fundamental dynamic in the UUP was now Agreement scepticism, the confidential documents state. In a meeting days after the UUC announcements, Mr Reid is recorded in the documents as saying that as infuriating as it was, Mr Trimble was at that moment the “most enlightened Unionist we have”. The Secretary said he would explore what the UUP leader needed to “survive” the period between January 18 and the election, believing a significant prize could avoid him being “massacred”. Such planning went out the window just weeks later, when hundreds of PSNI officers were involved in raids of several buildings – including Sinn Fein’s offices in Stormont. The resulting “Stormontgate” spy-ring scandal accelerated the collapse of powersharing, with the UUP pulling out of the institutions – and the Secretary of State suspending the Assembly and Executive on October 14. For his part, Irish officials were briefed that Mr Reid was said to be “gung ho” about the prospect of exercising direct rule – reportedly making no mention of the Irish Government in a meeting with Mr Trimble and Mr Durkan on that day. The Northern Ireland Secretary was given a new role and Paul Murphy was appointed as his successor. A note on speaking points for a meeting with Mr Murphy in April showed that the Irish side believed the May elections should go ahead: “At a certain stage the political process has to stand on its own feet. “The Governments cannot be manipulating and finessing every scenario to engineer the right result. “We have to start treating the parties and the people as mature and trusting that they have the discernment to make the right choices.” However, the elections planned for May did not materialise, instead delayed until November. Mr Trimble would go on to lose his Westminster seat – and stewardship of the UUP – in 2005. The November election saw the DUP emerge as the largest parties – but direct rule continued as Ian Paisley’s refused to share power with Sinn Fein, which Martin McGuinness’ colleagues. The parties eventually agreed to work together following further elections in 2007. – This article is based on documents in 2024/130/5, 2024/130/6, 2024/130/15

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DENVER (AP) — Travis Hunter made a pair of proclamations Thursday: He’s for sure entering the NFL draft after this season, but not until he sees Colorado all the way through the College Football Playoff — if the Buffaloes make it there. The first was already a given for the draft-eligible junior who plays both receiver and cornerback. The second is a risk-reward play for a projected high first-round pick who averages around 120 snaps a game. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get any of our free email newsletters — news headlines, obituaries, sports, and more.None

WINDHOEK, Namibia (AP) — Namibia elected its first female leader as Vice President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah was declared the winner Tuesday of a presidential election last week that was tarnished by technical glitches that caused a three-day extension to allow votes to be cast, and rejected as illegal by opposition parties. The 72-year-old Nandi-Ndaitwah won with 57% of the vote, defying predictions that she might be forced into a runoff. Her ruling SWAPO party also retained its parliamentary majority, although by a very thin margin, and extended its 34-year hold on power since the southern African country gained independence from apartheid South Africa in 1990. Namibia, a sparsely populated country of around 3 million on the southwestern coast of Africa, has a reputation for being one of the continent's more stable democracies and the problems around the election have caused consternation. Last Wednesday's vote was marred by shortages of ballot papers and other problems that led election officials to extend voting until Saturday. Opposition parties have said the extension is unconstitutional, and some have pledged to join together in a legal appeal to have the election invalidated. The Electoral Commission of Namibia, which ran the election, rejected opposition calls for a redo of the vote. It has undermined Nandi-Ndaitwah's place in history. She is set to become her country's fifth president since independence and a rare female leader in Africa. She was a member of Namibia's underground independence movement in the 1970s and received part of her higher education in the then-Soviet Union. She was promoted to vice president in February after President Hage Geingob died while in office . Nangolo Mbumba, who became president after Geingob's death, didn't run in the election. The ruling SWAPO party won 51 seats in the parliamentary vote, only just passing the 49 it needed to keep its majority and narrowly avoiding becoming another long-ruling party to be rejected in southern Africa this year. It was SWAPO's worst parliamentary election result. A mood of change has swept across the region, with parties that led their countries out of white minority or colonial rule in neighboring South Africa and Botswana both losing their long-held political dominance. South Africa's African National Congress, which freed the country from the racist system of apartheid, lost its 30-year majority in an election in May and had to form a coalition. Botswana's ruling party was stunningly removed in a landslide in October after governing for 58 years since independence from Britain. Mozambique's long-ruling Frelimo has been accused of rigging an October election and has faced weeks of violent protests against its rule. SWAPO faced similar challenges as those countries, with frustration at high unemployment and economic hardship, especially among young people, driving a desire for era-ending change. In a brief speech after the results were announced late Tuesday night, Nandi-Ndaitwah said Namibians had voted for peace, stability and youth empowerment. “We are going to do what we promised you during the campaigns. Thank you for your confidence and trust in us," she said. Nandi-Ndaitwah was also due to address the nation on Wednesday morning. “SWAPO Wins. Netumbo Wins. Namibia Wins. Now Hard Work,” the ruling party posted on its official account on social media site X. Some opposition parties boycotted the announcement by the Electoral Commission of Namibia at its results center in the capital, Windhoek. The commission has been roundly criticized for its running of the vote, with many angry Namibians complaining they had to wait hours and sometimes over multiple days for the chance to vote. Just over 1 million votes were cast out of 1.4 million registered voters, according to the electoral commission. Panduleni Itula, the leading opposition candidate from the Independent Patriots for Change party, was second in the presidential election with 25% of the vote. His party won the second-largest number of seats in Parliament behind SWAPO. Itula and his party have led the criticism of the vote and said they will lodge their appeal against the election this week. Other opposition parties said they will join that legal challenge. Itula has said that thousands of voters may have been prevented from voting as only some polling stations allowed an extension. "This election has violated the very tenets of our Electoral Act. Namibians deserve the right to choose their leaders freely and fairly, not through a rigged process,” he said. Namibia is a former German colony that came under South African control after World War I and its Black majority was later subjected to some of South Africa’s apartheid policies. SWAPO was at the forefront of the battle for independence from South Africa. While the country has swaths of desert running through it, it has diamond and uranium resources and untapped oil and gas off its coast that is being explored by international companies and could make it a major producer of both. ___ AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa The Associated PressFinX, a corporate training platform specialising in the banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) sector, has raised $6 million in seed funding from impact investor Elevar Equity. This marks the company’s first institutional funding round after operating as a bootstrapped, profitable venture over the last few years. According to the India Skills Report, over 50% of Indian graduates are deemed unemployable due to a lack of practical skills and industry-specific knowledge. With this funding, FinX aims to address this issue by equipping students with job-ready skills tailored to the BFSI sector. “With this fundraise, our presence will grow in tier-one cities, but we want to begin focusing on state capitals and tier-two locations. Eventually, we aim to reach cities like Kolhapur and Aurangabad,” Himanshu Vyapak, Founder of FinX said in an interview to CNBC-TV18. FinX has a clear roadmap for the future. “In the next five years, we aim to impact 100,000 students annually through our skilling and employability programs. This year alone, we plan to train 15,000 students across 12 states, with 60-65% securing placements through our programs,” Vyapak added. FinX offers a range of industry-relevant courses and certifications, catering to the dynamic needs of the BFSI domain. “Our courses, designed and delivered by industry experts, range from short vocational training embedded within college curriculums to joint management programs. We also provide certifications in specialised areas such as stock markets, wealth management, and investment banking,” Vyapak explained. In a separate development, The United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently organised the inaugural Founders' Retreat in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, fostering collaboration between Indian and Emirati businesses. The event saw participation from founders of 13 Indian unicorn startups and five publicly listed companies. Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Abdulnasser Alshaali, the UAE Ambassador to India, highlighted the growing emphasis on artificial intelligence (AI) as a critical sector for future collaboration. “AI is one of the key sectors that we have been focusing on over the past couple of years. And this will continue to be the case because it's not just about AI, but how can you use AI in terms of all kinds of applications, whether it's in business, whether it's in education, whether it's in healthcare,” Alshaali said. He emphasised that India’s vast market and talent pool present immense opportunities to scale, test, and refine AI-driven technologies. "All of this is quite important because when you deal with AI, it's not just about what you can do with it, but also about the feedback that goes into it to further improve the system," he added. Alshaali also noted the UAE’s focus on utilising AI across various services and industries, stating that the synergy between India’s market size and talent pool and the UAE’s expertise could lead to transformative advancements in AI applications. Since 2000, UAE investors have contributed close to $20 billion to the Indian economy, underscoring the strong financial linkages between the two nations. Additionally, Saurabh Chatterjee, the Founder of Vashishtha Research, shared his perspectives on various aspects of the startup and the promising opportunities ahead for the company. Vashishtha Research, a robotics-focused startup, is placing significant emphasis on India's aerospace and defence sector, with expectations of nearly doubling its revenue in the coming year. Watch accompanying video for more.Jacksonville St. 86, East Carolina 78

Implements INDATA SaaS on a Front-to-Back Office Basis delivered via iPM Private Cloud GREENWICH, Conn. , Dec. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- INDATA , a leading industry provider of cloud-native, SaaS-based solutions for buyside firms, today announced that Paradigm Capital Management (PCM) is live with INDATA's Software-as-a-Service for Front, Middle and Back Office . With a three-decade history of small-cap investing, Paradigm Capital Management, based in Albany, NY employs a disciplined, bottom-up approach with an emphasis on fundamental analysis and extensive management contact. Paradigm manages $1.8 billion in AUM and offers a range of products including institutional separately managed accounts, proprietary mutual funds, and private wealth via hedge funds and LP's. Paradigm is using the INDATA system for a range of functions including trade order management (OMS), Portfolio Accounting , Performance and Reporting, including managed services for streamlined reconciliation. "We are very pleased to have Paradigm Capital Management as a client. We look forward to partnering with Paradigm on their ongoing needs," commented David Csiki , President of INDATA. About INDATA ® INDATA is a leading specialized provider of SaaS (Software-as-a-Service), technology and managed outsourcing services for buyside firms, including trade order management (OMS), portfolio management, compliance, portfolio accounting and front-to-back office. INDATA iPM Portfolio Architect AITM is the industry's first portfolio construction, modeling, rebalancing and reporting tool based on AI, and Machine Learning. INDATA's iPM – Intelligent Portfolio Management® technology platform allows end users to efficiently collaborate in real-time across the enterprise and contains the best of class functionality demanded by sophisticated institutional investors, wealth managers, and hedge funds. The company's mission is to provide clients with cutting edge technology products and services to increase trading and operational efficiency while reducing risk and administrative overhead. INDATA provides software and services to a variety of buyside clients including asset managers, registered investment advisors, banks and wealth management firms, pension funds and hedge funds. Assets under management range from under $1 billion to more than $100 billion across a variety of asset classes globally. For more information, visit www.indataipm.com Media Contact: David Csiki , dave@indataipm.com View original content: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/paradigm-capital-management-live-with-indata-302330839.html SOURCE INDATA

11. SMU Mustangs 11-2 (8-0 Atlantic Coast Conference regular season) What's next: at No. 6 Penn State, State College, Pa., Dec. 21, Noon ET Head coach: Rhett Lashlee (three seasons, 29-11 overall) About Lashlee: The 41-year-old is enjoying success in his first college head coaching gig and has guided the Mustangs to back-to-back 11-win seasons. He was offensive coordinator at SMU from 2018-19 before heading to Miami for two years and returning to take the head job. He was named Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year this season. Resume SMU notched ranked wins over then-No. 22 Louisville and then-No. 18 Pitt but really served notice while racking up 66 points in a win over TCU. The Mustangs lost two games by a total of six points: 34-31 to Clemson in the ACC title game and 18-15 to BYU. Postseason history This is SMU's first trip to the playoffs during the CFP era. The Mustangs have lost their past four bowl games, including two under Lashlee. The program had a memorable run in the early 1980s behind stars like Eric Dickerson and Craig James but numerous NCAA violations sank the Mustangs and they eventually served a two-year death penalty. The road to Atlanta SMU hits the road for the first-round matchup at No. 6 Penn State. The winner advances to play No. 3 Boise State (12-1) in the quarterfinals in the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31. Names to Know QB Kevin Jennings He threw for 304 yards and three TDs in the ACC title game, his fourth game over 300 yards passing this season. Jennings had a strong regular season with 2,746 yards and 19 TDs in the air and four scores on the ground. He can hurt teams with his feet, proven by a 113-yard outing against Louisville. "What is new now is the amount of criticism I receive from everyone. I get a lot of comments and messages from people on social media always criticizing everything after each game," Jennings said. RB Brashard Smith Stellar runner averaging 5.9 yards per carry to go with 1,270 yards and 14 TDs on the ground. LB Kobe Wilson Stands out against both the run and the pass, leading the team in tackles (110) and adding three sacks and two interceptions. S Isaiah Nwokobia He has enjoyed an outstanding season with 91 regular-season tackles and three interceptions while patrolling the back end. He has nine career interceptions. DT Jared Harrison-Hunte A force with 6.0 sacks, one interception and 38 tackles. He's in his first season with SMU after four at Miami. He has 15 career sacks. --Field Level MediaMiddle East latest: Israeli strikes in Gaza kill more than 50 people, including kidsUK: ‘Your Individual Savings Account is tax-free’ — HMRC explains savings tax rules

NFL mock draft roundup: Where experts say Shedeur Sanders, Cam Ward will be draftedViewers of The 1% Club were puzzled by a question in the latest episode, sparking claims of an error. Lee Mack returned to host another session of the hit quiz show The 1% Club, which has gripped audiences all week. However, this time, a particular question threw viewers into confusion, inciting some to believe the given answer was incorrect. The baffling question posed by Lee Mack concerned the identification of six symbols that maintain their order whether read from left to right or vice versa. Out of five potential answers, 'C' was declared correct. The audience's confusion over the response turned to social media, with comments expressing bewilderment and skepticism regarding 'C' being the right answer, with many firmly asserting it should be 'A'. One wrote: "Baffled! I didn't understand this one at all," with another adding: "Can someone please explain how it's C?" as another said: "I said A and I still think A. I don't understand how it's not." Discussions spurred on by the contentious choice included one viewer stating, "This is a trick question, A or C could be correct depending on the definition of right to left used," while another simply sought clarification: "I thought it was A. C isn't in the same order. Explain, please, someone?" One helpful fan attempted to demystify the conundrum by explaining: "Because it's how you read it. I thought it was A, too, but it starts as a Closed bracket, whereas C starts the same as the end. I hope that explains it." One viewer added: "It's not about being mirrored; it's about what symbol is what. So A would be (from L-R): left bracket, right bracket, left bracket etc, but R-L it would be; right bracket, left bracket etc. which is difference. Whereas C is left arrow-right arrow-right arrow etc from both ends!" Meanwhile, another explained: "It is.. first one is pointing left, then 4 in the middle are pointing right, then last one is pointing left. Same applies if you start from the other side and go backwards." During tonight's thrilling instalment of the quiz show, a fortunate group of contestants walked away with a share of £97,000 as they nailed the final question. The host, Lee, couldnt hide his excitement for the four winners, while tragically two competitors missed out on the jackpot by tripping up over the tricky 1 percent question. *The 1% Club airs on ITV1 and ITVX.

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 president from Plains 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. And then, the world 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.” ‘An epic American life’ 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. A small-town start 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. 'Jimmy Who?' 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. Accomplishments, and ‘malaise’ 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. 'A wonderful life' 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.

Much has been written in recent decades about the growing influence of money on politics and elections in the United States, including titles such as ‘The Best Congress Money Can Buy and The Best Democracy Money Can Buy’. But has Donald Trump’s victory over Vice-President Kamala Harris, whose campaign had a huge funding advantage, undermined that narrative? In 1835, Alexis de Tocqueville warned of the threat that big money poses to the US system of governance in his book Democracy in America. Wary of the influence of oligarchs and plutocrats, Tocqueville wrote: “The surface of American society is [...] covered with a layer of democracy, from beneath which the old aristocratic colours sometimes peep.” Today, it is the billionaire class leveraging its financial resources to influence elections and policymaking, consolidating more power at the expense of the vast majority of ordinary citizens, further widening America’s wealth inequality, and weakening Americans’ trust in national institutions. The floodgates were opened by Citizens United v Federal Election Commission (2010), in which the Supreme Court reversed campaign-finance restrictions, enabling corporations and other outside groups to “spend unlimited amounts” on elections. The money being channelled into campaigns has since soared, with super PACs (political action committees) raising nearly $4.3bn this year, up from $89mn in 2010. But the vast amount of money that poured into the 2024 race did not have a decisive effect on the outcome. Trump was re-elected despite being outspent by Harris, and GOP interest groups and donors gained a remarkable return on their investment. In addition to winning the presidency, Republicans also retained their majority in the House of Representatives and won back the Senate, giving the party full control of the legislative and executive branches. Many factors contributed to Trump’s resounding victory, with the GOP nominee sweeping all seven highly-contested battleground states. For starters, as he shuttled between courtrooms and campaign stops, his base of conservative support was seemingly unshakable. Trump set new records for the Republican Party, making inroads into unions, which have historically leaned Democratic and kept him competitive in key swing states, and attracting more Black and Latino voters than any other GOP presidential nominee in recent history. Despite her fundraising prowess, Harris faced strong political headwinds, not least the unpopularity of President Joe Biden. Many voters saw the election as a referendum on “Bidenomics”, which they associated with high inflation, the attendant cost-of-living crisis, and erosion of household purchasing power. Even though the US Federal Reserve brought down inflation without triggering a recession – annual real GDP grew by 2.8% in the third quarter of 2024, above the long-run growth rate, and the unemployment rate remained historically low – the Democrats paid the political price for what Trump called a “Kamala Harris inflation tax”. Voters were nostalgic for the economy under the first Trump administration. Real average hourly earnings rose by 6.4% during Trump’s presidency, compared to only 1.4% during Biden’s. Data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta show that the share of household income needed for housing costs fell under Trump and increased by nearly 50% under Biden. Of course, many forgot that Trump inherited from Barack Obama a strong economy with the longest employment expansion on record. Trump also entered the race leading on several issues that American voters say they care about most – inflation, immigration, and crime. After months of campaigning, Trump was still ahead on all three in the weeks before the election. According to a YouGov poll conducted at the end of October, 49% of Americans thought that Trump would do a better job on immigration, whereas 35% thought Harris would. In a Gallup poll conducted in September, the former president had a nine-point lead over the vice president on the question of who would be a better steward of the economy. Voters also had more confidence in Trump’s ability to handle the Russia-Ukraine war and the Gaza war, with 70% believing that he has experience in foreign affairs. But that is not to discount the power of ultra-rich donors. Trump returns to the White House at a time when the US is deeply divided and highly unequal – more so than at any time since the post-Civil War era. The increasing influence of wealthy individuals and groups over the electoral process and policymaking has undoubtedly contributed to this widening gap between rich and poor. The wealth of the top 1% of US households grew from 36 times to 71 times that of those at the 50th percentile over the past 60 years, and now exceeds the wealth of the middle 60% of households. Economic and political inequalities are closely related. The surging power of the extremely wealthy minority has left most Americans poor and voiceless, fuelling class-based discontent. Bridging this divide may require breaking the chains that have kept policymakers beholden to the donor class for decades and undertaking a democratic shift toward broad-based accountability and more inclusive policies that strengthen individual agency, expand economic opportunities, and improve the income distribution. More than increasing the rate of upward mobility, these policies will rekindle the American dream and foster social cohesion. The future of our democracy and shared prosperity depends on steps that upcoming administrations must take to rebuild trust in our institutions and create a fairer distribution of political and economic power. As former US Supreme Court justice Louis Brandeis put it: “We must make our choice. We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have both.” — Project Syndicate •Hippolyte Fofack, a former chief economist and director of research at the African Export-Import Bank, is a fellow with the Sustainable Development Solutions Network at Columbia University, a research associate at Harvard University’s Center for African Studies, and a fellow of the African Academy of Sciences. Related Story Qatar establishes WEF's Centre for Fourth Industrial Revolution 61 countries to compete in 8th Katara Award for Reciting Holy Qur’anWashington begins to make way for Trumpworld

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 12, 2024-- Ambient.ai, the AI-powered computer vision intelligence (CVI) company transforming the physical security industry, has introduced a major evolution in its platform: Ambient Intelligence. By integrating cutting-edge natural language processing (NLP) and computer vision models, Ambient.ai delivers human-level understanding, capable of comprehending scenes captured by security cameras even better than humans at scale. The platform’s powerful contextual understanding enables security teams to minimize nuisance alerts and focus on the critical threats that matter. This breakthrough marks a pivotal step toward autonomous security operations, pushing the boundaries of threat detection and response. With Ambient.ai, incidents are not only detected but prevented. Contextual intelligence for incident prevention “From the beginning, our vision at Ambient.ai has been to create a contextually intelligent system, capable of preventing incidents from happening,” said Shikhar Shrestha, CEO and co-founder of Ambient.ai. “With Ambient Intelligence, we’re now realizing that vision — empowering security teams to instantly pinpoint the two or three incidents that truly matter across hundreds of cameras.” Ambient Intelligence enables security teams to shift from reactive monitoring to proactive threat assessment. By understanding the context of each event, the system categorizes incidents by severity — from low-risk activities like writing on a whiteboard to high-severity threats like break-ins or vandalism. “With recent advancements in our vision models, the signal-to-noise ratio has dramatically shifted in favor of the signal,” said Vikesh Khanna, CTO and co-founder of Ambient.ai. “This is not an incremental improvement — it’s a transformative change in our ability to use context and detect highly specific behaviors. Security teams have long sought a proactive solution to ensure the safety of their people, places, and assets — and I believe we have just taken a giant leap in that direction with Ambient Intelligence.” Pioneering autonomous physical security operations Ambient.ai’s latest innovations signal a new era for the physical security industry. The company's advanced NLP and computer vision models now automate security operations with a level of contextual understanding that was previously unattainable. By enabling AI to take on a more proactive role, security teams can focus on tasks requiring human intuition while relying on Ambient Intelligence to identify and assess the most significant security events. This evolution offers unmatched precision in detecting and responding to threats, creating a future where autonomous security operations become the standard. Learn more about the impact Ambient.ai can have on your physical security operations. About Ambient.ai Founded in 2017 by CEO Shikhar Shrestha and CTO Vikesh Khanna, Ambient.ai is a unified, AI-powered physical security platform that helps enterprise organizations reduce risk, improve security operational efficiency, and gain critical insights. Trailblazing enterprises and multiple Fortune 500 organizations across a variety of industries leverage Ambient.ai to unify their security infrastructure and significantly enhance their security posture. For more information, please visit ambient.ai. View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241212444624/en/ CONTACT: Name: Atul Ashok Email:atul.ashok@ambient.ai KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: SECURITY IOT (INTERNET OF THINGS) TECHNOLOGY AUDIO/VIDEO SOFTWARE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE HARDWARE SOURCE: Ambient.ai Copyright Business Wire 2024. PUB: 12/12/2024 05:36 PM/DISC: 12/12/2024 05:35 PM http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241212444624/en


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