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NEW YORK (AP) — was on the verge of backing a 16-week federal earlier this year when aides staged an intervention. According to on his selection as its Trump's aides first raised concerns in mid-March that the abortion cutoff being pushed by some allies would be stricter than existing law in numerous states. It was seen as a potential political liability amid ongoing fallout over the overturning of Roe v. Wade by a conservative majority on the Supreme Court that includes three justices nominated by Trump in his first term. Trump political director James Blair went to work assembling a slide deck — eventually titled “How a national abortion ban will cost Trump the election" — that argued a 16-week ban would hurt the Republican candidate in the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, the magazine reported. “After flipping through Blair’s presentation" on a flight to a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in April, Trump dropped the idea, according to the report. "So we leave it to the states, right?" Trump was quoted as saying. He soon released a video articulating that position. At the time, Trump’s campaign the 16-week ban, calling it “fake news” and saying Trump planned to “negotiate a deal” on abortion if elected to the White House. Here are other highlights from the story and the president-elect's 65-minute interview with the magazine: Trump reaffirmed his plans to pardon most of those convicted for their actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. “It’s going to start in the first hour,” he said of the pardons. “Maybe the first nine minutes.” Trump said he would look at individuals on a “case-by-case" basis, but that “a vast majority of them should not be in jail.” More than 1,500 people have been charged with federal crimes stemming from the riot that left more than 100 police officers injured and sent lawmakers running into hiding as they . More than 1,000 defendants have pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial of charges, including misdemeanor trespassing offenses, assaulting police officers and seditious conspiracy. Trump insisted he has the authority to use the military to assist with his promised , even though, as his interviewers noted, the prohibits the use of the military in domestic law enforcement. “It doesn’t stop the military if it’s an invasion of our country, and I consider it an invasion of our country," he said. “I’ll only do what the law allows, but I will go up to the maximum level of what the law allows. And I think in many cases, the sheriffs and law enforcement is going to need help." Trump did not deny that camps would be needed to hold detained migrants as they are processed for deportation. “Whatever it takes to get them out. I don’t care," he said. “I hope we’re not going to need too many because I want to get them out and I don’t want them sitting in camp for the next 20 years.” Trump told Time he does not plan to restore to deter border crossings, but he did not rule it out. The practice led to thousands of children being separated from their parents and was condemned around the globe as inhumane. “I don’t believe we’ll have to because we will send the whole family back,” he said. “I would much rather deport them together, yes, than separate.” Trump dismissed the idea that Elon Musk will face conflicts of interest as he takes the helm of the , an advisory group that Trump has selected him to lead. The panel is supposed to find waste and cut regulations, including many that could affect Musk's , which include electric cars, rockets and telecommunications. “I don’t think so," Trump said. “I think that Elon puts the country long before his company. ... He considers this to be his most important project." Trump lowered expectations about his ability to drive down “I’d like to bring them down. It’s hard to bring things down once they’re up. You know, it’s very hard. But I think that they will,” he said. said he is planning “a virtual closure" of the "Department of Education in Washington.” “You’re going to need some people just to make sure they’re teaching English in the schools," he said. “But we want to move education back to the states.” Yet Trump has proposed exerting enormous influence over schools. He has threatened to cut funding for schools with vaccine mandates while forcing them to “teach students to love their country" and promote “the nuclear family,” including “the roles of mothers and fathers” and the “things that make men and women different and unique.” Asked to clarify whether he was committed to preventing the Food and Drug Administration from stripping access to , Trump replied, “It’s always been my commitment.” But Trump has offered numerous conflicting stances on the issue, including to Time. Earlier in the interview, he was asked whether he would promise that his FDA would not do anything to limit access to medication abortion or abortion pills. "We’re going to take a look at all of that,” he said, before calling the prospect “very unlikely.” “Look, I’ve stated it very clearly and I just stated it again very clearly. I think it would be highly unlikely. I can’t imagine, but with, you know, we’re looking at everything, but highly unlikely. I guess I could say probably as close to ruling it out as possible, but I don’t want to. I don’t want to do anything now.” Pressed on whether he would abandon in its efforts , Trump said he would use U.S. support for Kyiv as leverage against Moscow in negotiating an end to the war. “I want to reach an agreement,” he said, “and the only way you’re going to reach an agreement is not to abandon.” would not commit to supporting a two-state solution, with a Palestinian state alongside Israel, as he had previously. “I support whatever solution we can do to get peace," he said. "There are other ideas other than two state, but I support whatever, whatever is necessary to get not just peace, a lasting peace. It can’t go on where every five years you end up in tragedy. There are other alternatives.” Asked whether he trusted , he told Time: “I don’t trust anybody.” Trump would not rule out the possibility of war with Iran during his second term. “Anything can happen. It’s a very volatile situation," he said. Asked if he has spoken to since the Nov. 5 election, Trump continued to play coy: "I can’t tell you. It’s just inappropriate.” Trump insisted that his bid to install ”wasn’t blocked. I had the votes (in the Senate) if I needed them, but I had to work very hard.” When the scope of resistance to the former Republican congressman from Florida became clear, Trump said, “I talked to him, and I said, ‘You know, Matt, I don’t think this is worth the fight.'" Gaetz pulled out amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations, and Trump tapped former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi for the Cabinet post. Trump, who has named anti-vaccine activist to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, did not rule out the possibility of eliminating some childhood vaccinations even though they have been proved safe in extensive studies and real world use in hundreds of millions of people over decades and are considered among the most effective public health measures in modern history. Pressed on whether “getting rid of some vaccinations” — neither Trump nor the interviewers specified which ones — might be part of the plan to improve the health of the country, Trump responded: “It could if I think it’s dangerous, if I think they are not beneficial, but I don’t think it’s going to be very controversial in the end.” “I think there could be, yeah," Trump said of the prospect of others in his family continuing in his footsteps. He pointed to , who served as co-chair of the Republican National Committee and is now being talked about as a potential replacement for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, whom Trump has chosen for secretary of state. Trump said the former and soon-to-be first lady Melania Trump will be joining him at the White House during second term and will "be active, when she needs to be.” “Oh yes,” he said. “She’s very beloved by the people, Melania. And they like the fact that she’s not out there in your face all the time for many reasons.”BOULDER, Colo. — Travis Hunter is a throwback-type player — an elite receiver one moment, a lockdown cornerback the next — who rarely leaves the field and has a knack for making big plays all over it. The Colorado Buffaloes' two-way standout (see: unicorn) even celebrates at an elite level, unveiling imaginative dance moves following touchdowns and interceptions, some of which include the Heisman Trophy pose. It's one of the many awards he's in line to win. Hunter is the The Associated Press college football player of the year, receiving 26 of 43 votes Thursday from a panel of AP Top 25 voters. Boise State tailback Ashton Jeanty finished second with 16 votes and Arizona State running back Cameron Skattebo received one vote. "Couldn't do what I do without my team," Hunter said in an email on a trip to Las Vegas for an awards ceremony. "So I view being up for these awards as team awards." People are also reading... A player with his particular set of skills doesn't come around that often. He's a flashback to the days of Charles Woodson at Michigan or Champ Bailey at Georgia. Or even his coach, Deion Sanders, a two-way star in the NFL. The prospect of significant playing time on both sides of the ball is what led Hunter to join Sanders at Jackson State and why he followed Sanders to Boulder. "Coach Prime was the only coach who would consider allowing me to do what I'm doing," said Hunter, who's expected to be a top-five pick next spring in the NFL draft, possibly even the No. 1 overall selection. "He did it and knows what it takes — how much you have to be ready on both sides of the ball." Want to fuel Hunter? Simply tell him he can't. "I'm motivated when people tell me I can't do something," Hunter said. "That I can't dominate on both sides of the ball. I want to be an example for others that anything is possible. Keep pursuing your dreams." Hunter helped the 20th-ranked Buffaloes to a 9-3 record this season and a berth in the Alamo Bowl against No. 17 BYU (10-2) on Dec. 28. He played 688 defensive snaps and 672 more on offense — the lone Power Four conference player with 30-plus snaps on both sides of the ball, according to Colorado research. Hunter has already won a second straight Paul Hornung award as the game's most versatile player. He's up for the Walter Camp (player of the year), Maxwell (most outstanding player), the Biletnikoff (best receiver) and Bednarik (top defensive player) awards. And, of course, the Heisman, where he's the odds-on favorite to win over Jeanty this weekend. Hunter can join the late Rashaan Salaam as the only Colorado players to capture the Heisman. Salaam won it in 1994 after rushing for 2,055 yards. Hunter wasn't a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, which goes to the nation's top defensive back. That drew the wrath of Sanders, who earned the award with Florida State in 1988 and vowed to give his trophy to Hunter. Hunter's high school coach, Lenny Gregory, knew he had a special player the summer of Hunter's freshman year. Gregory, then the coach at Collins Hill in Georgia, had a conditioning test for his players — run six 200-yard dashes with a minute rest in between. Defensive backs had to complete each in under 32 seconds. Hunter never even got winded. He played safety/cornerback and receiver as a freshman and helped Collins Hill to a state title his senior season. "I remember just talking to colleges the spring of his ninth-grade year and telling coaches that this kid's going to be the No. 1 player in the country," recounted Gregory, who's now the coach at Gordon Central High in Calhoun, Georgia. "They'd look at him and laugh at me, 'What are you talking about? This scrawny kid? He's not big enough.' I was like, 'Just watch. Just watch.'" Hunter finished the regular season with 92 catches for 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns as a receiver. On defense, he had four interceptions, broke up 11 passes and forced one crucial fumble, which secured an OT win over Baylor. Overall, Hunter had 92 receptions and allowed 22. He hauled in 14 receiving TDs and allowed just one. He was responsible for 53 first downs and gave up just six. He was targeted 119 times by Shedeur Sanders & Co. but only 39 times by opposing QBs. Hunter's likely final game in Boulder, a rout of Oklahoma State, was a three-touchdown, one-interception performance. "I'm used to seeing him do all this spectacular stuff," Shedeur Sanders said. "I'm used to all this stuff — you all are just now seeing it on national stage." Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox!Global Electric Power System Analysis Software Market Size, Share and Forecast By Key Players-ETAP/Operation Technology, Eaton Corporation, ABB, Siemens, DIgSILENT
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I recently made friends with a new colleague who joined the university where I teach. The campus is at the back of beyond, and everything a normal, non-young adult might require is reachable only by car. So, if you're a visiting teacher, you end up being dependent on the kindness of colleagues, friends, and strangers. ET Year-end Special Reads Take That: The gamechanger weapon's India acquired in 2024 10 big-bang policy moves Modi government made in 2024 How governments tried to rein in the social media beast When M and his wife joined as permanent faculty, I was happy to discover we shared some tastes and interests. It was also helpful that my new friends have a car for our local adventures. Rapidly, they became part of the faculty fleet, which ranged out in various vehicles carrying owners and some of us grateful non-owners to different destinations around the area. Now, everybody drives differently. So, we have the Bio guy with the spanking new 4-wheel-drive SUV zipping down the narrow road between the paddy fields as though he's competing in the Paris-Dakar rally. We have the Lit lady who drives fine inside cities, but can't handle the highway too well. We have the Ceramic lady who has no such problems, deftly swatting aside trucks as she gets you to the nearest big metro in record time. And you have the newly married young couple, driving with whom you feel like you're a stowaway on a honeymoon trip. Among these, my new friend M is different. The first time we go out in his pristine-looking 1-year-old sedan, I wonder if there is something wrong with the car. Then I realise he's just driving slowly, much more slowly than normal. There's a group of us in the car, so I don't say anything. The next time his wife makes a good-natured joke about his slow driving . But we all agree that the rural road is inimical to the low suspension of the city car. 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As a driver myself, if I'm sitting next to a reckless driver, I often find my foot pressing down on a non-existent brake. Here, it's the absent accelerator for which my foot twitches. Even in town and market traffic, M lets the vehicle in front get far away, so far that two cars could get in between us and them-something that indeed happens regularly. Even in a crowded pedestrian-heavy gali, M doesn't honk; he waits for the people to part. When there's a 50-50 on a gap, to use a football term for two players going for the ball, M waits and always lets the other guy take the space. As a normally aggressive desi driver, my whole body starts to twitch after a while. We do our shopping and get back, having taken not too much longer than if somebody 'normal' had been driving. Outside the car, M is not a shy or self-effacing person. In an intellectual or political argument, he gives no undue ground. He is good and firm in his dealings with people, saying no whenever required. And yet, his driving.... After the latest trip, it occurs to me that perhaps it is millions of us 'normal' drivers who are crazy, and M who is sensible. A car is a vehicle for getting from A to B, not an instrument for emotional release. Slow is always safer in a country where most people are on foot, where most of the ones driving have been taught very badly. Over the last half a century, generations of Indian drivers have been conditioned to elbow and brawl for shrinking road space. In a slow-moving country, every pause in speedy road progress feels like you're going backwards, sending tempers soaring. Just as in life, so in traffic, we hate to yield because we are afraid of the damage this will cause us. And yet, if everyone yielded a bit more, perhaps things would move more smoothly. If everyone, especially the men, managed to drain down their aggression, perhaps India would be a happier place. Here's wishing everyone a slow, uneventful, and happy 2025.ADDISON, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 25, 2024-- Concentra Group Holdings Parent, Inc. (“Concentra,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) (NYSE: CON) today announced that Select Medical Holdings Corporation (“Select Medical”) (NYSE: SEM) has completed its previously announced distribution (the “Distribution”) of 104,093,503 shares of Concentra’s common stock owned by Select Medical Corporation (“SMC”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Select Medical, representing approximately 81.7% of the outstanding shares of Concentra’s common stock. After the completion of the Distribution, Select Medical no longer owns any shares of Concentra’s common stock. The Distribution was made today to Select Medical’s stockholders as of the close of business on November 18, 2024 (the “Record Date”). The Distribution took place in the form of a pro rata common stock distribution to each of Select Medical’s stockholders on the Record Date. Based on the shares of Select Medical’s common stock outstanding on the Record Date, Select Medical’s stockholders received 0.806971 shares of Concentra’s common stock for every share of Select Medical’s common stock held as of the Record Date. No fractional shares of Concentra’s common stock were distributed. Instead, Select Medical’s stockholders will receive cash in lieu of any fraction of a share of Concentra’s common stock that they otherwise would have received. On November 19, 2024, Select Medical made available an information statement to its stockholders on the Record Date, which included details on the Distribution. The information statement is posted under the Investor Relations tab on Select Medical’s website at www.selectmedical.com/investor-relations/ . About Concentra Concentra is the largest provider of occupational health services in the United States by number of locations, with the mission of improving the health of America’s workforce, one patient at a time. Concentra’s 11,000 colleagues and affiliated physicians and clinicians support the delivery of an extensive suite of services, including occupational and consumer health services and other direct-to-employer care, to more than 50,000 patients each day on average across 45 states at our 549 occupational health centers, 156 onsite health clinics at employer worksites, and Concentra Telemed as of September 30, 2024. This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on current management expectations. Numerous factors, including those related to market conditions and those detailed from time-to-time in Concentra’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, may cause results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. Many of the factors that will determine Concentra’s future results are beyond the ability of Concentra to control or predict. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and, therefore, actual results may differ materially. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect management’s views only as of the date hereof. Concentra undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241125422840/en/ CONTACT: Investor inquiries: Bill Chapman Vice President, Strategy & Investor Relations 972-725-6488 ir@concentra.com KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA TEXAS INDUSTRY KEYWORD: HEALTH TELEMEDICINE/VIRTUAL MEDICINE HEALTH TECHNOLOGY HEALTH INSURANCE MANAGED CARE GENERAL HEALTH SOURCE: Concentra Group Holdings Parent, Inc. Copyright Business Wire 2024. PUB: 11/25/2024 05:30 PM/DISC: 11/25/2024 05:28 PM http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241125422840/en
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Rocket Cos. Inc. stock outperforms competitors on strong trading dayPresident-elect Donald Trump (Image: AP/Brandon Bell) Too bad if you’re a US company, like an automobile manufacturer, reliant on imports from Mexico. Donald Trump just promised to impose a 25% tax on your supply chain, along with everything else imported from Mexico. And Canada. The fact Trump himself negotiated and signed a free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement in 2020, is apparently irrelevant. And he’s announced a 10% “just for starters” tariff on Chinese imports. In response — even though Trump won’t be inaugurated for another two months — sharemarkets fell, but the US dollar rose (sending the Australian dollar falling further). The greenback had already risen against major currencies after Trump’s victory on November 5, and will likely appreciate every time the president-elect announces new tariffs — until markets price in the full effect of the tariff wall Trump has promised to erect around America. Each appreciation of the dollar will further erode the competitiveness of US exports and improve the competitiveness of imports against American products — undermining the very point of Trump’s taxes. Given how little grasp he appears to have about who bears the costs of tariffs, Trump will possibly react by simply increasing tariffs further. Along with his promise to deport every undocumented worker in the country, inflicting serious labour shortages on industries like construction and agriculture that depend on illegal immigrants for much of their workforce, and his threats to curtail the independence of the Federal Reserve, the tariffs will make for extremely uncertain times for US business — and investors in the US. Da pacem, Domine: Why Trump is what democracy needs Read More Prominent among such investors is Australia’s Future Fund. Page 61 of the Fund’s 2023-24 annual report reveals that 43% of its $229.7 billion in assets are located in America via a heavy US weighting of listed and private equity, property, infrastructure and credit. That compares to just 27% of its assets invested in Australia, and is up from 39% in 2022-23. That’s a substantial change from before the pandemic: in 2019-20, Australia held the biggest share of the Future Fund’s assets — 39% against 31% for the US. The shift has also been lucrative for the Fund, which has benefitted from a stronger performance of Wall Street. US stocks have had a huge run since the start of 2023 with a 54% gain for the S&P 500, much of that coming from stocks like Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Meta, Tesla, Alphabet and Amazon. That index is up 26% this year to date against a 9.8% rise for the Australian ASX 200. But what about from here? It is hard to see how Trump’s tariffs, deportations and intervention in monetary policy will do anything else than damage US investor and consumer confidence, help slow the fall in inflationary pressures both in America and globally, reduce US exports and eventually undermine stock markets. Trump’s first presidency doesn’t appear to be a reliable guide: Wall Street rose by more than 40% during his first stint in the White House, but much of that was due to a huge pandemic surge from March 2020 that had little to do with Trump. What measures and hedging is the Fund putting in place to curb the risk posed by the next Trump presidency? An update on how it views the risks of its heavy investment in the US economy would be worthwhile — especially given the government is pressuring the fund to invest more in its favoured sectors here in Australia. It would be good to know if any shifts in weightings are because of risk management, rather than being responsive to Jim Chalmers’ interference. Have something to say about this article? Write to us at letters@crikey.com.au . Please include your full name to be considered for publication in Crikey’s Your Say . We reserve the right to edit for length and clarity.
An Israeli airstrike flattened a multistory building in central Gaza, killing at least 25 people and wounding dozens more, according to Palestinian medical officials, after strikes Thursday across the Gaza Strip killed at least 28 others. The latest deadly strike hit the urban Nuseirat refugee camp just hours after U.S. President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters in Jerusalem that the recent ceasefire in Lebanon has helped clear the way for a potential deal to end the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the deadly strike in Nuseirat. Israel says it is trying to eliminate Hamas, which led the attack on southern Israel in October 2023 that sparked the war in Gaza . The Israeli military says Hamas militants hide among Gaza’s civilian population. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine in some of the hardest-hit parts of the territory. Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and around 250 others were taken hostage. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Here's the latest: DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — An Israeli airstrike hit the central Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing at least 25 Palestinians and wounding dozens more, Palestinian medics said, just hours after President Joe Biden’s national security adviser raised hopes about a ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza. Photos from the scene of the blast that circulated on social media showed a completely collapsed building with people walking through its mangled and charred remains, smoke rising from piles of belongings strewn over the rubble. Officials at two hospitals in the Gaza Strip, al-Awda Hospital in the north and al-Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza, reported they received a combined total of 25 bodies from an Israeli strike on a multistory residential building in the urban Nuseirat refugee camp. Palestinian medics also reported that over 40 people, most of them children, were receiving treatment at the two hospitals. The al-Aqsa Hospital said that the Israeli attack also damaged several nearby houses in Nuseirat. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the deadly strike. Israel is trying to eliminate Hamas, which led the attack on southern Israel in October 2023 that sparked the war in Gaza . The Israeli military says Hamas militants hide among Gaza’s civilian population. Israel’s war against Hamas has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine. Israel says it allows enough aid to enter and blames U.N. agencies for not distributing it. The U.N. says Israeli restrictions, and the breakdown of law and order after Israel repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, make it extremely difficult to operate in the territory. UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. food agency is trying to deal with massive needs in Syria not only from escalating war-related food insecurity and an upsurge in displaced people fleeing Lebanon but also the dramatically new environment following the ouster of Bashar Assad, a senior U.N. official says. “It’s a triple crisis and the needs are going to be massive,” said Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the World Food Program, in an interview with The Associated Press late Wednesday. The WFP estimated that 3 million people in Syria were “acutely food insecure” and very hungry. However, that estimate was made before the Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon pushed many Syrian refugees back to their home country, plus the instability caused by the overthrow of Assad. Due to funding cuts, the WFP had been targeting only 2 million of those people, he said. Because WFP has been working in Syria during the 13-year civil war, he said, it has pre-positioned food in the country. It has 500 staff in seven offices nationwide and has operated across conflict lines, across borders, and with all different parties, he said. Skau said Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the main rebel group now in control of Syria, has promised to provide security for WFP warehouses. Humanitarian aid supplies had been looted at U.N. warehouses in the disorder after Assad fell. “We’re not really up and running in Damascus because of the continued kind of uncertainty there,” he said. WFP initially thought of relocating non-essential staff but the situation in Aleppo, Syria’s largest city, has been “quite calm and orderly," he said. In the short term, Skau said, “what we’re seeing is that markets are disrupted, the value of the currency dropped dramatically, food prices are going up, transport lines don’t work,” and it’s unclear who will stamp required papers for imports and exports. This means that a bigger humanitarian response is needed initially, he said, but in the next phase, the U,N. will be looking at contributing to Syria’s recovery, and ultimately the country will need reconstruction. Skau said he expects a new funding appeal for Syria and urged donors to be generous. JERUSALEM — President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters in Jerusalem on Thursday that Israel’s ceasefire in Lebanon has helped clear the way for another deal to end the war in Gaza. He plans to travel next to Qatar and Egypt — key mediators in the ceasefire talks — as the Biden administration makes a final push on negotiations before Donald Trump is inaugurated. Sullivan said “Hamas’ posture at the negotiating table did adapt” after Israel decimated the leadership of its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon and reached a ceasefire there. “We believe it puts us in a position to close this negotiation,” he said. Sullivan dismissed speculation that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was waiting for Trump to take office to finalize a deal. He the U.S. believes there are three American hostages still alive in Gaza, but it’s hard to know for sure. He also said “the balance of power in the Middle East has changed significantly” since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, especially with the overthrow of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, a key ally of Hezbollah and Iran. “We are now faced with a dramatically reshaped Middle East in which Israel is stronger, Iran is weaker, its proxies decimated, and a ceasefire that is new and will be lasting in Lebanon that ensures Israel’s security over the long term,” he said. KHIAM, Lebanon — An Israeli strike killed at least one person Thursday in the Lebanese border town of Khiam, the Health Ministry said, less than a day after Israeli troops handed the hilltop village back to the Lebanese army in coordination with U.N. peacekeepers, Khiam is the first Lebanese town Israel has pull out of since a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah militants began two weeks ago, and marks an important test of the fragile truce . Lebanon's Health Ministry and state news agency did not provide details on who was killed, and did not report airstrikes elsewhere on Thursday. The Israeli military said an airstrike targeted Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon, without saying if the strike was in Khiam. Lebanese troops deployed in the northern section of the town on Thursday morning and were coordinating with U.N. peacekeepers to finalize Israel’s withdrawal before fully entering into other neighborhoods. An Associated Press reporter who visited Khiam on Thursday observed widespread destruction, with most houses reduced to rubble. Entire neighborhoods were flattened, with collapsed walls and debris scattered across the streets. Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, sharply criticized Israel for striking the town less than 24 hours after the Lebanese army returned, saying it was “a violation of the pledges made by the parties that sponsored the ceasefire agreement, who must act to curb Israeli aggression.” The truce was brokered by the U.S. and France. Israel has previously said the ceasefire deal allows it to use military force against perceived violations. Near-daily attacks by Israel during the ceasefire, mostly in southern Lebanon, have killed at least 29 people and wounded 27 others. Khiam, which sits on a ridge less than 3 miles (5 kilometers) from the border with Israel, saw some of the most intense fighting during the war. The Lebanese army was clearing debris and reopening roads in the northern section of the town. Civilian access to other areas remained challenging as the army clears roads and works alongside the U.N. peacekeepers to ensure the area is free of unexploded ordnance. AQABA, Jordan -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is urging the many players in Syria to avoid taking any steps that could lead to further violence. Blinken spoke to reporters in Jordan on Thursday shortly after meeting King Abdullah II as he opened a trip in the region to discuss Syria's future after former President Bashar Assad's ouster. Blinken will next visit Turkey, a NATO ally and a main backer of Syrian rebel groups. Blinken called this “a time of both real promise but also peril for Syria and for its neighbors.” He said he was focused on coordinating efforts in the region “to support the Syrian people as they transition away from Assad’s brutal dictatorship” and establish a government that isn’t dominated by one religion or ethnic group or outside power. Blinken was asked about Israel’s incursion into a buffer zone that had been demilitarized for the past half century. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the move is temporary and defensive, but also indicated Israel will remain in the area for a long time. Blinken declined to say whether the U.S. supports the move, but said the U.S. would be speaking to Israel and other partners in the region. “I think, across the board, when it comes to any actors who have real interests in Syria, it’s also really important at this time that, we all try to make sure that we’re not sparking any additional conflicts,” he said. ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s intelligence chief, Ibrahim Kalin, arrived in Damascus on Thursday, according to Turkish media reports. Kalin was seen arriving at the Umayyad Mosque to pray, surrounded by a large crowd, according to video shown on Turkish television. The visit is highly symbolic. Turkish officials, who supported the opposition against Syria’s government, had predicted at the start of the civil war in 2011 that President Bashar Assad’s government would fall, allowing them to pray at the Umayyad Mosque. JERUSALEM — Paraguay reopened its embassy in Jerusalem Thursday, becoming one of a small handful of nations to recognize the city as Israel’s capital and marking a diplomatic victory for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel’s international isolation has increased as the war in Gaza drags on, and Paraguay was the first country to move its embassy to Jerusalem since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack that kickstarted the war. The United States, Honduras, Guatemala, Kosovo, and Papua New Guinea are among the few countries with Jerusalem embassies. Israel annexed east Jerusalem in 1967 but it wasn’t recognized by the international community, and most countries run their embassies out of Tel Aviv. Spirits were high at the ceremony marking the embassy’s inauguration Thursday, with Netanyahu and Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar lavishing praise on Paraguayan President Santiago Pena. “My good friend Santiago,” said Netanyahu, addressing Pena. “We’re a small nation. You’re a small nation. We suffered horrible things but we overcame the odds of history...we can win and we are winning.” Paraguay had an embassy in Jerusalem in 2018, under Former President Horacio Cartes. That embassy was moved back to Tel Aviv by Cartes’ successor, Mario Abdo Benitez, prompting Israel to close its embassy in Asuncion. Saar said Israel and Paraguay shared a “friendship based not only on interests but also values and principles.” He and the Paraguayan foreign minister, Rubén Ramírez Lezcano, signed a series of bilateral agreements and Saar said he would soon visit Asunción with a delegation from the Israeli private sector. “Israel is going to win and the countries we are standing next to Israel, we are going to win," Pena said. AQABA, Jordan — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is renewing calls for Syria’s new leadership to respect women and minority rights, prevent extremists from gaining new footholds in the country and keeping suspected chemical weapons stocks secure as he makes his first visit to the Mideast since the weekend ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad . Making his 12th trip to the Middle East since the Israel-Hamas war erupted lasted year but amid fresh concerns about security following the upheaval in Syria, Blinken emphasized Thursday to Jordan’s King Abdullah II U.S. “support for an inclusive transition that can lead to an accountable and representative Syrian government chosen by the Syrian people,” the State Department said. Blinken also repeated the importance the outgoing Biden administration puts on respect for human rights and international law, the protection of civilians and stopping terrorist groups from reconstituting. Blinken met with the monarch and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi in Aqaba before traveling to Turkey for talks with Turkish officials on the situation in Syria and the urgency of securing a long-elusive deal to release hostages and end the fighting in Gaza that has devastated the Palestinian territory since October 2023. Abdullah told Blinken that “the first step to reach comprehensive regional calm is to end the Israeli war on Gaza." GENEVA — The U.N. envoy for Syria is calling on authorities to save evidence from detention centers that were a hub of “unimaginable barbarity” that Syrians have faced for many years and cooperate with international investigators looking into such crimes. Geir Pederson referred to new images from the notorious Saydnaya military prison north of the capital, Damascus, after President Bashar Assad fled Syria as armed groups stormed in to overthrow his government over the weekend. “The images from Saydnaya and other detention facilities starkly underscore the unimaginable barbarity Syrians have endured and reported for years,” Pedersen said in a statement. Documentation and testimonies “only scratch the surface of the carceral system’s horrors,” he added. Pedersen urged authorities to cooperate with U.N. bodies like an independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria, which was created in 2011, and an independent group known as the IIIM that was set up five years later to also compile evidence of crimes. ROME — Leaders of the Group of 7 industrialized nations offered their full support for an inclusive political transition in Syria and invited all parties to preserve the country’s territorial integrity. In a message released by Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni’s office, the leaders said they were ready to support a transition that “leads to a credible government, inclusive and not sectarian, that guarantees respect for the state of law, universal human rights, including rights for women, (and) the protection of all Syrians, including religious and ethnic minorities.” The leaders also underlined the importance that ousted President Bashar Assad’s government is held responsible for crimes, citing “decades of atrocities.” They said they would also cooperate with groups working to prohibit chemical weapons “to secure, declare and destroy” remaining chemical arms in Syria. Italy currently holds the rotating presidency of the G-7, which also includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the United States. JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says it struck Hamas militants in two locations in the southern Gaza Strip who planned to hijack aid convoys. Palestinian Health officials had earlier said that the two strikes killed 15 men who were part of local committees established to secure aid deliveries. The committees have been organized in cooperation with the Hamas-run Interior Ministry in Gaza. It was not possible to independently confirm either account of the strikes, which occurred overnight into Thursday. Israel has long accused Hamas of hijacking humanitarian aid deliveries, while U.N. officials have said there is no systemic diversion of aid . U.N. agencies and aid groups say deliveries are held up by Israeli restrictions on the entry of aid and movement within Gaza, as well as the breakdown of law and order more than 14 months into the war between Israel and Hamas. Israel has repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, which maintained internal security before the war. The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, the main aid provider in Gaza, said a U.N. convoy of 70 trucks carrying humanitarian aid in southern Gaza “was involved in a serious incident,” resulting in just one of the trucks reaching its destination. It did not provide further details on the incident but said the same route had been used successfully two days earlier. Israel’s offensive, launched after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, has caused vast destruction and displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, leaving the territory heavily reliant on international food aid. DAMASCUS, Syria — An American who turned up in Syria on Thursday says he was detained after crossing into the country by foot on a Christian pilgrimage seven months ago. Travis Timmerman appears to have been among thousands of people released from the country’s notorious prisons after rebels reached Damascus over the weekend, overthrowing President Bashar Assad and ending his family’s 54-year rule. As video emerged online of Timmerman on Thursday, he was initially mistaken by some for Austin Tice, an American journalist who went missing in Syria 12 years ago. In the video, Timmerman could be seen lying on a mattress under a blanket in what appeared to be a private house. A group of men in the video said he was being treated well and would be safely returned home. The Biden administration is working to bring Timmerman home, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters in Aqaba, Jordan, without offering details, citing privacy. Timmerman later gave an interview with the Al-Arabiya TV network, saying he had illegally crossed into Syria on foot from the eastern Lebanese town of Zahle seven months ago, before being detained. He said he was treated well in detention but could hear other men being tortured. AQABA, Jordan — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Jordan on his 12th visit to the Mideast since the Israel-Hamas war erupted last year and his first since the weekend ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad that has sparked new fears of instability in a region wracked by three conflicts despite a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon. Blinken was meeting in Aqaba with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Thursday before traveling to Turkey for talks with Turkish officials on Friday. The meetings will focus largely on Syria but also touch on long-elusive hopes for a deal to end the fighting in Gaza that has devastated the Palestinian territory since October 2023. Blinken is the latest senior U.S. official to visit the Middle East in the five days since Assad was deposed as the Biden administration navigates more volatility in the region in its last few weeks in office and as President-elect Donald Trump has said the U.S. should stay out of the Syrian conflict. Other include national security adviser Jake Sullivan and a top military commander who traveled there as the U.S. and Israel have launched airstrikes to prevent the Islamic State militant group from reconstituting and prevent materiel and suspected chemical weapons stocks from falling into militant hands. Blinken “will discuss the need for the transition process and new government in Syria to respect the rights of minorities, facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance, prevent Syria from being used as a base of terrorism or posing a threat to its neighbors, and ensure that chemical weapons stockpiles are secured and safely destroyed,” the State Department said. The U.S. would be willing to recognize and fully support a new Syrian government that met those criteria. U.S. officials say they are not actively reviewing the foreign terrorist organization designation of the main Syrian rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, known as HTS, which was once an al-Qaida affiliate, but stressed they are not barred from speaking to its members. JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israeli forces will remain in a Syrian buffer zone until a new force on the other side of the border can guarantee security. After the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Assad, Israeli forces pushed into a buffer zone that had been established after the 1973 Mideast war. The military says it has seized additional strategic points nearby. Israeli officials have said the move is temporary, but Netanyahu’s conditions could take months or even years to fulfill as Syria charts its post-Assad future, raising the prospect of an open-ended Israeli presence in the country. Netanyahu’s office said in a statement Thursday that Assad’s overthrow by jihadi rebels created a vacuum on the border. “Israel will not permit jihadi groups to fill that vacuum and threaten Israeli communities on the Golan Heights with October 7th style attacks,” it said, referring to Hamas’ 2023 attack out of Gaza, which ignited the war there. “That is why Israeli forces entered the buffer zone and took control of strategic sites near Israel’s border.” The statement added that “this deployment is temporary until a force that is committed to the 1974 agreement can be established and security on our border can be guaranteed.” The buffer zone is adjacent to the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war and later annexed. The international community, except for the United States, views the Golan as occupied Syrian territory. JERUSALEM — Israel’s military said Thursday that the attacker who fatally shot a 12-year-old Israeli boy in the occupied West Bank overnight turned himself in to authorities. The attacker opened fire on a bus near the Israeli settlement of Beitar Illit, critically wounding the boy, who hospital authorities pronounced dead in the early morning. Three others were wounded in the attack, paramedics said. The shooting took place just outside Jerusalem in an area near major Israeli settlements. JAKARTA, Indonesia — The Indonesian government has evacuated 37 citizens from Syria following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad government, officials said Thursday. The evacuees were taken by land from Damascus to Beirut, where they boarded three commercial flights to Jakarta, said Judha Nugraha, director of citizen protection at the Foreign Affairs Ministry. The Indonesian Embassy in Damascus said all 1,162 Indonesian citizens in Syria were safe. Indonesian Ambassador to Syria Wajid Fauzi said the situation in Syria has gradually returned to normal. “I can say that 98% of people’s lives are back to normal, shops are open, public transportation has started running,” Fauzi said, adding that most Indonesian nationals living in Syria had chosen to stay. DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian medical officials say Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 28 people in the Gaza Strip, including seven children and a woman. One of the strikes overnight and into Thursday flattened a house in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby city of Deir al-Balah, where the casualties were taken. An Associated Press reporter saw the bodies at the hospital’s morgue. Two other strikes killed 15 men who were part of local committees established to secure aid convoys . The committees were set up by displaced Palestinians in coordination with the Hamas-run Interior Ministry. The Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis received the bodies and an AP reporter counted them. The hospital said eight were killed in a strike near the southern border town of Rafah and seven others in a strike 30 minutes later near Khan Younis. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250 people. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine. Israel says it allows enough aid to enter and blames U.N. agencies for not distributing it. The U.N. says Israeli restrictions, and the breakdown of law and order after Israel repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, make it extremely difficult to operate in the territory. UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved resolutions Wednesday demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and backing the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees that Israel has moved to ban . The votes in the 193-nation world body were 158-9 with 13 abstentions to demand a ceasefire now and 159-9 with 11 abstentions to support the agency known as UNRWA. The votes culminated two days of speeches overwhelmingly calling for an end to the 14-month war between Israel and the militant Hamas group . General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, though they reflect world opinion. There are no vetoes in the assembly. Israel and its close ally, the United States, were in a tiny minority speaking and voting against the resolutions.
Major US stock indices are closing near the lows for the day. Recall from yesterday, the NASDAQ index closed at a new record high. The S&P index traded above its all-time close but ended the day below that level. Today both indices moved away from those record levels Dow industrial average fell -234.44 points or -0.53% at 43914.12 S&P index fell -32.94 points or -0.54% at 6051.25 NASDAQ index fell -132.05 points or -0.66% at 19902.84. Yesterday the index closed above 20,000 for the first time on record. Russell 2000 fell -33.07 points or -1.38% and 2361.08 After the close, Costco and Broadcom have reported earnings. For Costco EPS $4.04 versus $3.78 estimate Revenues $62.2B versus $62.52 billion estimate Shares closed at $992 and are trading at $1002.00 up 1.38% For Broadcom: EPS $1.42 versus $1.39 estimate Revenue $14.05B versus $14.07 billion Shares closed at $181.20 and are trading at $190 up 5.35%
Up 40% in 2024, why I'd still buy the Global X Fang+ ETF (FANG)Malique Ewin finished with team highs of 17 points and seven rebounds to lead the Florida State Seminoles to a 92-59 victory over the Massachusetts Minutemen in each team's final game of the Naismith Hall of Fame Tip-Off on Sunday afternoon in Uncasville, Conn. The Seminoles (6-1) won their third consecutive game and went 2-0 in the event as they pulled away in the second half, leading by as many as 36 points. It's Florida State's best start since the 2019-20 season when it went 7-1. UMass (1-5) dropped its fifth in a row following a season-opening win over New Hampshire despite a strong game on Sunday from Jaylen Curry, who scored 17 points. Curry, with six free throws, helped propel the Minutemen on a 10-0 run over a four-plus minute span in the first half to take a 24-23 lead with 4:22 left. FSU closed the half on a 13-3 run to lead 37-27 at halftime. A 15-4 surge to open the second half helped the Seminoles break the game open. Florida State's defense frustrated UMass shooters throughout the contest, especially on the perimeter, limiting the Minutemen to 3-for-24 shooting (12.5 percent) from 3-point range and 18-for-58 (31 percent) overall. The Seminoles finished with 22 points off 17 UMass turnovers. On the flipside, Florida State had one of its best shooting games of the season. The Seminoles moved the ball well throughout the game and finished with 25 assists while only turning the ball over 10 times. The Seminoles shot 33 for 58 (57 percent) from the field and made 9 of 18 three-pointers to put together a season-high scoring output. Once again, Florida State shined thanks to its depth as 10 players scored and four scored in double figures. The Seminoles were able to have 16 players participate in the game as well. Jamir Watkins finished with 14 points while Jerry Deng and Justin Thomas each had 10 points. For UMass, Daniel Rivera finished with 12 points and six rebounds while Nate Guerengomba had 10 points. Daniel Hankins-Sanford collected a game-high 13 rebounds. --Field Level Media
Three protestors in Boston protesting a proposed pipeline project. This is the third article in a series delving into the contentious topic of carbon capture and storage at point-source emitters like power plants and industrial facilities. My first article discussed the three technologies used in CCS, and my second examined their strengths and weaknesses. This article is about a dirty little secret habitually glossed over by CCS supporters: there simply aren’t many places to store captured carbon dioxide. A small coal-fired power plant with a 100 MW capacity running at 80% utilization would generate nearly 700,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide in a year. Triple that figure for a medium-sized coal-fired plant and multiply by ten for a large plant. You might be considering 700,000 metric tons in a theoretical sense, so I’ll state it in visceral terms. That weight in steel stacked in a city block would stand fifteen stories high. That weight in corn would completely fill a professional sports stadium. Finding sufficient space in which to store that much of anything is not easy and requires non-trivial engineering. iOS 18.1.1—Update Now Warning Issued To All iPhone Users Leak Reveals Trump Crypto Bombshell As Bitcoin Suddenly Surges Toward $100,000 Price Matt Gaetz Controversy Explained: Sexual Misconduct Allegations Sink Trump’s Attorney General Nominee Capturing carbon is only one-third of the CCS battle Geologists would suggest that there are plenty of geological formations that could store an enormous amount of carbon dioxide. Indeed, carbon storage capacity is a good news-bad news story. The good news is that the U.S. is the world leader in carbon dioxide storage capacity. The bad news comes in two parts. First, there is hardly any operational storage capacity outside the U.S., as indicated by the dark green sections in the graph below. Storage facilities are in early stages of planning and construction, but at nowhere near the required scale. Capture (orange) and storage capacity (blue / green columns) globally. The second bit of bad news is that even in the U.S., where storage capacity is often related to enhanced oil recovery—extracting oil from tight reservoirs by injecting pressurized CO 2 —facilities emitting carbon dioxide aren’t situated near suitable underground storage sites. Since many emission sources are far from viable storage sites, transporting captured carbon dioxide represents a daunting engineering and political obstacle. Post-CCS transportation of CO2 represents a huge political and engineering challenge Interstate pipelines must be approved by several federal regulatory agencies and are subject to further regulation if traversing or bordering on environmentally protected areas. State regulators must also approve such plans, and the pipeline company must jump through various municipal hoops pertaining to taxes, zoning, and land use. The pipeline company must finally secure contiguous property for the entire pipeline route through easements or the arduous legal process of eminent domain. Once the property has been purchased, the pipeline constructed, and the regulatory hurdles cleared, operating a carbon dioxide pipeline can be fraught with peril, as the residents of Sartartia, Mississippi—a town situated near a CO2 pipeline that burst in 2020—know too well. Considering the difficulties in planning, permitting, and operating a CO 2 pipeline, it would be reasonable to ask how long it would take to build out the infrastructure necessary to transport carbon dioxide, and how much of it already exists. There are only just over 5,000 miles of pipelines permitted to transport carbon dioxide, only 1.25% of the 400,000 miles of natural gas pipelines in the U.S. The natural gas pipeline system has taken ~100 years to build, suggesting a long road lies ahead for the buildout of CO2 pipelines. (Make sure to check out my recent article about two U.S. start-ups that are generating electricity from natural gas pipelines without burning any gas!) You might expect that natural gas pipelines could be repurposed to transport carbon dioxide, but these pipelines must undergo significant renovations—including replacement with pipes constructed of thicker, specialized steel—to be certified to carry CO 2 . Building out new pipelines is expensive. The 2,000-mile Midwest Carbon Express pipeline was estimated to cost $3.5 billion, or $1.75 million per mile. Spending this much money might make sense for a coal-fired power plant generating 700,000 metric tons of CO 2 which can be sold to an oil major that needs the pressurized gas for EOR. However, will the owner of a small manufacturing facility generating a fraction as much CO 2 pony up $1.75 million per mile to transport their emissions? CCS infrastructure is being built out The situation is not as bleak as I have painted it. Several large oil and gas companies are building billions of tons of CO 2 capacity in the Texas/Louisiana Gulf Coast industrial corridor region, an area responsible for about half the refining capacity in the U.S. and a major center for chemical production as well. For example, the Occidental Petroleum subsidiary 1PointFive is developing the Bluebonnet Hub ; Chevron, Total, and Equinor are building the nearby Bayou Bend CCS facility, and ExxonMobil is building a facility to store CO 2 from Linde’s blue hydrogen production center. These storage facilities will store many billions of tons of CO 2 underground. This incremental progress is great, but facilities less accessible to storage hubs will find it difficult to transport carbon dioxide if they invest in equipment to capture it. Smaller emitters are out of luck due to the expense of pipeline construction unless they are situated very close to accessible pipelines. I have been speaking with a few interesting companies with viable solutions to the CCS quandary described in this series. One start-up, Neustark , a young Swiss firm has developed a great solution for storing captured carbon dioxide without burying it underground. Neustark’s solution works especially well for smaller emitters that have no way to use lower-emission technologies in their processes. Follow my work here to learn more about Neustark’s solution to the biggest deal killer for CCS. Intelligent investors take note.
HPH Announces Change to the Board of DirectorsOppo Reno 13 Series 5G confirmed to launch in India: Expected price, features, and specsOnce the final presents are unwrapped and the last holiday cookie crumbs vacuumed up, our attention shifts toward the new year and the infinite possibilities it represents. Maybe 2025 will be the year you finally take that dream vacation (seems unlikely) or get that raise you’ve been gunning for at work (not a chance). But before our eyes widen with ambition at the prospect of the new year’s fresh start, this quiet period before the calendar flips offers a time for deep personal reflection; a taking stock of life’s seasons and how we engage with the world and the people we love. Since that sounds kind of scary, I’ve instead devoted what limited mental bandwidth I have left to reflect on the past year in local music. Some cool stuff happened. We lost some really good people. And there are reasons to believe that the future is looking bright. By virtue (at least in part) of a few pop stars slipping into some Wranglers, 2024 was deemed a banner year for country music and Washington wasn’t left out in the rain, starting this spring when the Seattle area went from having just one country radio station to three literally overnight . When most people think of music from America’s upper left, country is not atop their minds. Yet, several country wave-makers emerged out of Washington this year, including Sunnyside’s Zach Top and the Kalama kid Tucker Wetmore . Now based in Nashville, the two breakout stars hail from different ends of the country spectrum. A reformed bluegrasser, Top’s '90s flavor strikes a throwback chord (which there’s clearly an appetite for), while Wetmore’s more of a pop-smart shape-shifter working with a contemporary palette. While each made their mark nationally, back in the 360, Snohomish rapper-turned-country-singer Antwane Tyler scored a legitimate regional hit — a woefully rare feat these days outside of KEXP’s rotation — with “Homesick,” an infectious modern country bop with electronic drums. At the start of 2024, who’d have predicted that the Washington song of the year would be a newfangled country ditty? Seattle clubs may not have experienced a country takeover to the degree that the Billboard charts did in 2024. But it was arguably the year of the underplay, with a number of big-time music stars taking the stage in comparably small Seattle venues given their stature. There was LCD Soundsystem’s four-night run at the Paramount Theatre, where an intimately folky Shawn Mendes held court on an acoustic tour of areas where he recorded his latest album. (The Canadian pop star cut some of the new stuff at Bear Creek in Woodinville.) In October, some zealous music writer , high off the smoke emanating from Jack White’s guitar, proclaimed the White Stripes co-founder’s incendiary Showbox date the show of the year, only for the Soundgarden guys to reunite on that hallowed stage for a charity gig two months later. Joined by vocal dynamo Shaina Shepherd — who delivered the performance of her career — and (for a couple songs) Duff McKagan, the Seattle rock heroes threw down in old-school, ultraheavy fashion to help support local families dealing with unfathomable medical expenses for their kids. While we’re on the hometown tip, let’s not forget when Robin Pecknold packed the pews at “dream venue” Town Hall, playing the coziest solo set with a bunch of Fleet Foxes rarities and charmed folk covers. Of course, the granddaddy of Seattle homecomings came when Pearl Jam’s Dark Matter Tour touched down in the band’s backyard this May. Armed with a sterling new album that netted the band its first Grammy nominations in 14 years , Eddie and the boys made their long-awaited Climate Pledge Arena debut , outfitted with some new-look visuals by Washington artist Rob Sheridan. During the two inspiring shows, the palatial arena had literally never sounded better. It’s always an event when the PJ machine is reactivated and “Dark Matter” — its in-the-moment recording sessions shepherded by young, hotshot producer Andrew Watt — is one of the best-received albums of the band’s later years. In many respects, running a music venue focused on presenting local artists has arguably never been more financially challenging. Between post-pandemic habits, reduced alcohol consumption and the rising costs of everything, the economic formula could use some adjustment. All that considered, it’s a welcome sign that Seattle saw more venue openings than closings this year. We’ll pour one out for all-ages favorite Cafe Racer, which packed up its Capitol Hill space for good in June, while having an NYE toast to Pioneer Square newcomers Baba Yaga and nonprofit jazz spot Seattle Jazz Fellowship . Meanwhile, Hillman City’s highly anticipated Black & Tan Hall — a cooperatively owned community performance space and restaurant — has steadily ramped up activity throughout the year, recently adding regular bar and restaurant hours. Across town, employees of singer-songwriter haven Conor Byrne staved off a closing threat , reopening the cozy pub as a co-op. The resiliency and push for alternative models offers proof that Seattle’s artistic spirit won’t be stamped out by the unforgiving forces of capitalism. Amid a remarkably crowded field of newcomer pop stars, Washington’s Benson Boone made one of the biggest songs of the year with “Beautiful Things,” a rafter-reaching pop rocker that was truly inescapable. With equally impressive vocal range and abdominal strength, the former Monroe High School diving team standout has made quite the splash since dropping out of “American Idol” to chase a music career outside of reality TV, eventually signing with Imagine Dragons singer Dan Reynolds’ imprint. It has clearly paid off for the 22-year-old singer-songwriter, who’s up for best new artist at next year’s Grammys, making Boone the first local nominated for the prestigious award since Macklemore & Ryan Lewis in 2014. Still, the fact that it was Boone’s only nomination was kind of a snub for one of pop’s biggest breakouts this year. Nary a year passes without us losing essential figures who have made great contributions to the community. 2024 was no different with the passing of Quincy Jones — a true giant among giants in the entertainment industry — and renowned journalists Charles R. Cross and former Seattle Times critic Patrick MacDonald . While the individual losses are profound, collectively it’s a testament to the depth and richness of the Seattle music heritage, and a reminder that ultimately, it’s about the people who cherish it, drive it and continue its legacy. Though I’d long admired his work, I didn’t know Cross well. We exchanged occasional emails and had an overdue hangout when he accompanied me to one of Eddie Vedder’s Benaroya Hall concerts last year. But since his death, whenever I’ve found myself in the middle of a crowded venue for an event that’s coursing with that Seattle spirit, I can’t help but think to myself, “Charley would have loved this.” I look forward to having more of those moments in 2025.
Buchanan scores 28 off the bench, Boise State downs South Dakota State 83-82
