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The Hidden History of Bermuda Is Reshaping the Way We Think About Colonial America The Hidden History of Bermuda Is Reshaping the Way We Think About Colonial America By Andrew Lawler Photographs by Nicola Muirhead A sudden roar broke the muggy stillness, making me jump. A young woman squatting in a shallow trench reassured me. “No worries,” she said, gesturing with a trowel into a nearby thicket. “Our tools here are chainsaws and leaf blowers.” Whisk brooms, dental picks and spoons are also part of the arsenal. A few dozen yards away, in a ****** T-shirt, faded camo shorts and ****** work boots, Michael Jarvis hacked away at thick brush with a gas-powered saw. In this clearing on Smith’s Island, in Bermuda, Jarvis—“Chainsaw Mike” to his students—is unearthing one of the first New World towns built by English colonizers. The settlement was established in 1612, a mere five years after the founding of the Jamestown colony in Virginia and eight years before the Pilgrims stepped ashore at Plymouth, Massachusetts. It was abandoned soon afterward for another location on a nearby island. Its very existence was forgotten for four centuries; even its name ******** unknown. With its pink sands and azure waters, Bermuda has long been a favorite among honeymooners—and overlooked by scholars. Yet the string of about 180 islands in the Sargasso Sea were, for a time, home to more settlers than either Virginia or Massachusetts, and far more prosperous. It was here that the English first grew tobacco in the New World and purchased enslaved Africans to work the fields, a practice that soon spread to ********* shores. “Bermuda barreled ahead, becoming profitable, and that model encouraged investors who realized they could make money in the New World,” explained Carla Pestana, a historian at the University of California, Los Angeles. “It was the first financially successful plantation.” The booming archipelago also provided essential food supplies for struggling Jamestown, predated Plymouth as a religiously focused Puritan colony and served as the sole flourishing beacon for early English venture capitalists seeking to make their fortune in the New World. But covering a mere 22 square miles—barely a third the area of Washington, D.C.—the colony’s population was quickly dwarfed by English emigration to North America and the Caribbean. Soon ecological disasters forced planters to become merchants or privateers. As the British Empire expanded around the globe, and the ******* States was born, the significance of this remote speck of land receded, barely earning a footnote in many chronicles of ********* colonization. “When historians have thought about Bermuda, it’s as a curiosity or a ********,” Jarvis said. Archaeologist Michael Jarvis on Bermuda’s Paget Island last summer. “I best understand people in the past by understanding what they did,” he says. Nicola Muirhead For the past 14 years, Jarvis, a historian and archaeologist at the University of Rochester in New York, has led excavations in Bermuda seeking to uncover the secrets of its neglected colonial history. Nobody has done more to shed light on the islands’ important role in fostering the growth of Britain’s overseas realm and its ********* spinoff. Now he is confident he has located its first substantial settlement. His findings are exciting those who research Europe’s colonization of the New World, given how rare it is to uncover remnants of such an early English community in the Americas. Mark Horton, a British archaeologist digging for remnants of the ******* 1587 Roanoke colony on the North Carolina coast, hails it as “a truly significant discovery” that will “greatly help in understanding early 17th-century settlement—not only in Bermuda, but at Jamestown, in New England and across the Caribbean.” Bermuda, shaped like a fishhook, ***** 650 miles east of North Carolina’s Cape Hatteras and 800 miles north of the West Indies, astride the warm Gulf Stream current that courses past the Bahamas and into the North Atlantic. A cooling climate more than a million years ago locked up ice in the polar regions, lowering sea levels and exposing the top of a massive volcano in the mid-Atlantic Ocean that rises 14,000 feet above the sea bottom. In time, warming temperatures raised the water, smoothing and flattening the rough peak, a cycle that repeated itself many times over and gradually formed today’s archipelago with its shallow bays. Meanwhile, the Gulf Stream carried plants and animals, including turtles, insects and the seeds of palms, cedars and mangroves. Among them was the tiny invertebrate that secretes calcium carbonate—the key component of limestone—which slowly built up a network of coral reefs surrounding the islands. With no mammal predators, an array of birds multiplied, including vast flocks of a seabird called the cahow, a name that mimics its noisy and otherworldly cry. There is no record of people setting foot here until the early 1500s, though some believe Bermuda to be the “isle of birds” visited by St. Brendan, the sixth-century Irish monk and adventurer. Spanish navigator Juan de Bermúdez spotted the chain around 1503, giving it its name. It’s believed that he offloaded pigs so they might feed future Spanish settlers or castaways. Sent from England to resupply Jamestown, the Sea Venture shipwrecked more than 600 nautical miles away from the colony. Guilbert Gates Jagged rocks and treacherous reefs near Bermuda’s coast once earned it a reputation as the “Isle of Devils,” where some 300 ships were lost to the sea. Nicola Muirhead Sixteenth-century seafarers, however, did their best to give the island chain a wide berth. Jagged reefs reaching far into the ocean easily punctured wooden hulls, a threat made more menacing by the unpredictable weather. Sir Walter Raleigh warned that Bermuda was surrounded by “a hellish sea for thunder, lightning and storms.” English captain Francis Wyatt wrote that “all seafaring men”—whether English, French or Portuguese—agreed “that ***** is no ***** in comparison to” Bermuda’s fierce weather. They avoided the islands “as they would shun the ****** himself,” another Englishman, Silvester Jourdain, wrote. Not all succeeded. One of many ships that sank offshore was a Portuguese vessel; a casualty of the wreck survived long enough to carve “1543” into an island rock. This fearsome reputation extended to the land itself. The eerie calls of the cahow were ascribed to demons. One ********* wrote that Bermuda was “an enchanted den of furies and devils, the most dangerous, unfortunate and forlorn place in the world.” While Europeans scrambled to grab New World territory, the archipelago was considered out of bounds. This infamous ***** became a miraculous heaven on the morning of July 25, 1609. A large English fleet sent to resupply the struggling settlement of Jamestown took a shortcut across the Atlantic, only to encounter a powerful hurricane that scattered the vessels. Amid the relentless pounding of the waves, the hull of the 250-ton flagship, the Sea Venture, filled with seawater. For three terrifying days, expedition leader Sir Thomas Gates exhorted the passengers to work the pumps while Admiral George Somers clung to the helm to guide the foundering ship through titanic swells. By the third day, ****** seemed certain; some prayed, while others got ******. Then, in the morning light, Somers spotted land and steered the sinking ship close to shore, where it wedged tight between two V-shaped rocks. With the storm abating, all 150 people—as well as the ship’s dog—made it safely to a beach on what became known as St. George’s Island. Instead of an “isle of devils,” they found a lush landscape, thick flocks of easily captured birds, herds of **** feral pigs and bountiful marine life. Dazzled by the food and mild climate, many of the shipwreck victims preferred to stay, but Somers and Gates were determined to reach their destination. They built temporary camps, and through the fall and winter, they constructed two sturdy vessels from the local cedar. By spring 1610 they set sail for the Virginia coast, leaving behind two sailors who deserted the mission and were able to thrive on the island. The British were not the first Europeans to set foot on Bermuda. In 1543, survivors of a Portuguese ship that wrecked near the shore left their mark. Nicola Muirhead The fateful 1609 wreck of the Sea Venture, the British ship that transported Bermuda’s first settlers, depicted in a modern-day oil painting by artist Christopher Grimes. Wreck of the Sea Venture July 28th 1609(2012) by Christopher M. Grimes In the 1980s, a diver with the National Museum of Bermuda works on exposed timber from the underwater remnants of the Sea Venture. National Museum of Bermuda Two salt-glazed *****, dating from 1580 and 1600 and found in the Sea Venture wreckage, feature a face associated with Robert Bellarmine, an Italian cardinal. Nicola Muirhead The settlers who departed soon regretted their decision. Arriving at Jamestown, they found the colonists *****, hungry and at odds with the local Algonquian-speaking peoples. The visitors’ stores of food were welcome, but Somers returned to Bermuda to gather additional provisions. He also overindulged, dying in November 1610 of a “surfeit of eating of a pig,” according to historical records. Instead of returning to Virginia, his crew ******* the admiral’s heart in Bermudan soil and stowed his body in a cask of ******** before sailing for England. One of the original deserters and two additional men remained on the island—willing castaways whom ********* poet Washington Irving later styled “the three kings of Bermuda.” By then, all but 60 of Jamestown’s 500 inhabitants were *****, victims of infighting, incompetence and bullying tactics toward the Indigenous tribes that led to *********. News of the Sea Venture’s dramatic shipwreck reached London by the fall of 1610, along with tales of an enchanted place that was “abundantly fruitful,” as the Jamestown historian James ***** wrote in 2005. When Shakespeare heard the stories, he wrote a play about a magical spirit-filled island, referred to at one point as the “Bermoothes.” The King’s Men thespians first performed The Tempest for James I and the royal court on November 1, 1611. By then, the desperate situation in Virginia was well known in England, spooking investors who feared that no New World settlement would thrive. “Remember that three out of four English settlements had *******,” Jarvis said, citing two attempts to settle North Carolina’s Roanoke Island and another to colonize Maine. “And Jamestown was only barely surviving.” Bermuda suddenly beckoned as a more promising prospect. A little more than six months after the play’s debut, a small vessel called the Plough was on its way to settle the island chain. While Jamestown was an all-male effort, women and children joined the new venture, though their names are lost to history. Among the 60 passengers were several who were hostile to the ******* of England and eager to find a place to practice their more austere form of Christianity. This was also in contrast to Jamestown, which primarily drew those looking for easy wealth rather than a religious haven. And instead of placing an inept aristocrat in charge of the venture, the sponsoring Virginia Company wisely chose an experienced carpenter named Richard Moore. After an uneventful nine-week voyage, the ship’s captain threaded his way through one of the island’s only deepwater channels, likely using a map drawn by Somers. On July 11, 1612, the vessel dropped anchor in a spacious harbor dotted with wooded isles. While the settlers said a prayer of thanksgiving, the crew caught enough fish to feed everyone. The next day, Bermuda’s “three kings” made their presence known. Over the course of their two-year stay, the trio had built a small homestead on Smith’s Island, an oblong-shaped piece of land twice the size of Ellis Island in New York Harbor. A cleared acre had yielded corn, pumpkins and beans, which they stored away along with copious amounts of salted pork and tortoise meat. The supplies would have heartened colonists who no doubt had heard grim tales of cannibalism at Jamestown. Archaeologists believe the “three kings,” who first arrived on the Sea Venture and later decided to stay in Bermuda, used this hearth carved out from the back wall of a home. Nicola Muirhead Whale bones found at the dig site. The first colonists noted the bounty of whales offshore: “We heard them oftentimes in the night at bed,” one wrote. Nicola Muirhead Governor Moore “presently landed his goods and 60 persons … upon the south side of Smith’s Isle,” one contemporary wrote. The colonists found a variety of fruits and vegetables already growing, including thriving cucumbers and melons. The settlement would have included a meeting house or *******, storage buildings, a scatter of residences and a grander home for the governor. Military barracks or a palisade would have been superfluous. “Unlike Jamestown and Plymouth, there were no Indigenous people, and this made Bermuda a blank canvas,” said Pestana, who recently made the trek to Smith’s Island, volunteering to dig, sift and wash artifacts. The Spanish were the only threat, but Moore had a rudimentary fort constructed on a nearby island armed with a cannon salvaged from the Sea Venture to protect the settlers from England’s great rival. The town proved short-lived. Within months the governor “removed his seat from Smith’s Island to St. George’s after he had fitted up some small cabins of palmetto leaves for his wife and family,” wrote Plough passenger John Smith. Jarvis suspects the shift to this larger island took place in mid-fall 1612, perhaps due to the lack of arable land and adequate fresh water. The colonists would have likely dismantled what they could to build their new center of St. George’s, which remained Bermuda’s capital for the next two centuries. (Today the capital is Hamilton, on Main Island, to the southwest.) Smith’s Island’s brief moment as the home of Bermuda’s first town was quickly forgotten. The area eventually served as a quarantine camp for those who arrived with communicable *********; the body of water off the island’s southeastern end was dubbed Smallpox Bay. While much of the island chain became thickly settled, Smith’s Island remained a quiet backwater. When a hydroponics business on the eastern third of the island ******* in the 1970s, the land was turned into a national park and quickly reverted to jungle. Beneath that tangled mass lay one of the oldest English towns in the New World. The sun was just rising, but already disco music blared from a loudspeaker mounted to the stately 18th-century St. George’s Town Hall. A scruffy Boston whaler with Jarvis at the helm puttered up to the wharf, and a half-dozen passengers climbed out. These students and researchers, who spent their nights on a nearby island, would toil during the day in the basement of the town museum, cataloging artifacts found at the dig. After they disembarked, I joined a group of local volunteers for the ten-minute voyage across the harbor to Smith’s Island, where they would assist in that day’s excavation. Built in 1699, the Globe Hotel in St. George’s hosted Confederate agents during the U.S. Civil War. It’s now a history museum and archaeology lab. Nicola Muirhead Once we arrived, Jarvis secured the boat to the dock and led us single file on a path through thick foliage. “Everything originally was covered with palmetto and cedar,” he said over his shoulder. The palmetto berries fed the hogs introduced by the Spanish, and the cedar, strong as oak but much lighter, proved ideal for building ships. Bermuda’s settlers instituted strict rules to protect this latter commodity, but a blight that began in the 1940s ******* off these park-like forests and opened the way for invasive plants. By the time Jarvis arrived in 2010, the vegetation was dense. The first task was to clear the brush. Soft-spoken despite a football player’s build, Jarvis learned to handle a handsaw while growing up in rural Pennsylvania, where he spent long hours outdoors. He conquered his ***** of chainsaws just a few years ago. His grandfather and uncle were blacksmiths, and at a summer job at a New Jersey maritime village he worked the forge, making harpoons and hooks to sell to tourists. “I gravitated to colonial history because I was always interested in getting at the origins of our nation’s history,” he said. In college, Jarvis focused on experimental archaeology, which attempts to replicate the way individuals made things and performed various tasks. “It’s a way to understand the past by knowing what people then actually did,” Jarvis said. He also taught a semester at sea on a schooner, cruising the Caribbean. “Hauling lines and going aloft, you gain insights that only come by doing what they did back then,” he said. While working toward his doctorate in history at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, he dug in trenches within the historic area of what was Virginia’s second capital. In 1995, Jarvis joined the team led by the archaeologist William Kelso that uncovered the original fort at the first capital of Jamestown, a site long thought to have succumbed to river erosion. That dig exposed what is widely considered the most significant find from colonial America. Some surprises were cahow bones, tropical fish skeletons, sea turtle shells and large pig bones. Archaeologists agreed that these were Bermuda imports that helped sustain the hungry Virginia colonists. They even found tobacco pipes and building blocks from the islands’ limestone quarries, underscoring the close relations between the two early settlements. Virginia Company records show that vessels coming from England regularly stopped at the archipelago on their way to Virginia. Those discoveries whetted the young academic’s curiosity. Years earlier, as a student, Jarvis had done a stint on one of the few excavations on the island chain. Now, he turned his attention to its early colonizing efforts, poring through the historical record for clues before launching his on-the-ground search for Bermuda’s version of Jamestown. More than a decade later, he believes he has found where the passengers of the Plough built their first settlement. Now 56, the archaeologist, leading us down the narrow trail toward the island’s east end, detoured into a small opening in the brush that sloped downhill. A few dozen yards down the narrow trail stood a natural stone wall punctured by a round ***** the size of a barrel. Though the evidence ******** sketchy, Jarvis is confident this marks the home of the “three kings” who greeted the Plough settlers in 1612. “This style of bake oven, a ***** hearth, processes meat and bread,” he said, pointing out indentations in the stone where timber posts would have rested, perhaps to hold up a small lean-to with a thatched roof. “It was a good location, hidden from the Spanish and protected from the prevailing winds during storms.” A team of archaeology students and volunteers uncovered mature boar tusks here, suggesting they were used before the 1620s, when the last large feral pigs vanished into colonists’ cooking pots. Farther down the slope was a cove called Cotton ***** Bight. “We know they built shallops”—a small boat popular in that era—“and this is a good place to launch vessels.” Back on the main trail, we hiked another hundred yards until the narrow path opened into a broad clearing. Under two large tarps, a couple of dozen excavators were brushing and scraping away at the soil and rock. “We have a map of Jamestown, but there is nothing for the initial settlement here,” Jarvis said. “Archaeology is absolutely necessary to figure out the location—history won’t help us.” Last summer’s excavation at Smith’s Island. The work was funded by an archaeology fieldwork grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Nicola Muirhead Sherds of 17th-century pottery and fragments of a clay pipe found at the dig site on Smith’s Island suggest the location of Bermuda’s first English settlement. Nicola Muirhead At the center of the clearing stood the ruin of a small building of Bermuda limestone. Faded letters on an inside wall still read “GR,” which stands for King George. In 1780, the British Army garrisoned the islands, and the structure likely was built in 1790 to cope with the yellow fever epidemic. A dozen yards north of the ruin, beneath a blue tarp, members of Jarvis’ team were slowly gathering evidence of Moore’s first town. Before putting a spade in the ground, team members use a device that looks like a bulky lawn mower to probe what ***** beneath. That requires clearing the land of invasive brush, which is why Jarvis’ chainsaw is essential. This ground- penetrating radar showed depressions in the limestone bedrock beneath the shallow topsoil, though ******* debris can create false signals. Such results can guide excavators to the most promising areas to dig with their hand trowels. The best markers for an early 17th-century English building are not foundations but round holes. Carpenters would dig and sink vertical posts into the ground at regular intervals to hold a timber frame, often separated by three feet. They would then add studs between the posts and fill the remaining area with flexible branches—known as wattles—that then would be coated with thick clay, a material called daub. This wattle-and-daub method was used by Jamestown and Plymouth settlers as well, but pinpointing the ******** of such ephemeral structures is often difficult; the telltale postholes often are hard to discern, ******* under four centuries of soil. Fortunately for Jarvis, Bermuda’s early settlers used ***** and other tools to bore deep into the soft limestone, leaving behind clear traces beneath the thin layer of earth. “A clutch of roots can be a sign of a posthole,” explained Olivia Adderley, a native Bermudian who recently spent time in Britain studying archaeology. “Then we use a whisk broom and trowel to expose each feature.” She thrust a nail with a red plastic flag into one likely posthole, setting it aside for more careful excavation later. Though the posts themselves appear to have been removed after the capital moved to St. George’s, she added, “we have tool marks and shims” that show these are human-made rather than natural features. Walking over to a cavity recently dug out, she reached her arm into it, and it vanished almost to her shoulder. Such deep postholes are evidence of a building with sturdy walls that may have risen to two stories. Material swept into the holes provides additional clues. Undisturbed for four centuries, these pockets reveal convincing evidence that the people who lived at this site were the settlers from the Plough. “Sealed sites from that time ******* are few and far between,” said Bly Straube, an archaeologist who worked at the Jamestown excavations and now is senior curator at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation. The researchers have recovered fragments of a remarkably durable daub that Jarvis said bears an uncanny resemblance to cement used in ancient Rome. And the many broken bits of pottery can be used as reliable dating tools, since styles changed across the eras. “The ceramics are consistent with the material found on the Sea Venture and at early Jamestown,” Jarvis asserted. Straube says additional analysis is underway to confirm the claim. If Jarvis proves correct, the site is from the 1610s, precisely in the window when the Plough arrived. Assorted fragments of bone, pottery, metal and glass from the Smith’s Island site are categorized by material, cataloged and dated. Nicola Muirhead Bones in the postholes also offer insight into what colonists ate—and when. An abundance of fish skeletons was hardly remarkable, but there was a puzzling lack of cahow. The bird was plentiful in the early years of settlement and such a major source of nutrition for colonists that they nearly went extinct within a decade or so. The lack of cahow ******** therefore suggested the settlement was from a later date. “Then we realized that the flocks migrate to Bermuda in the late fall—after the colonists had likely already moved to St. George’s,” said Jarvis. “So the absence of their bones is actually evidence that this is the first town.” So far, the researchers have identified two distinct structures, including what appears to be a modest building measuring 12 by 16 feet. This was likely a home for one of the families who traveled on the Plough. The second is 16 feet wide and at least 30 feet long. “We had no idea we would find something this large—and we haven’t found the end of it yet,” Jarvis explained. “But we have found what is likely a door.” If this was placed in the center of the wall, then the building is 32 feet long. “In that case, it would have resembled the ******* at Jamestown, and possibly been two stories.” Records show that an Anglican minister held divine services, and any ******* would have been in the town center. Once fully mapped, the large structure could help Jarvis piece together the rest of the settlement’s layout. As many as ten private dwellings would have made up the bulk of the town. So far, a scatter of other postholes suggests the ******** of at least three or four. In future digging seasons, Jarvis hopes to create a map of streets, lanes and structures to flesh out the size and orientation of the settlement. Just to the west of the possible meeting house, excavators found a small piece of lead that once held panes of glass in place, at a time when such windows were reserved for the wealthy. “This suggests a high-status individual”—perhaps Governor Moore—“and gives us a tantalizing hint of class differences among the houses,” the archaeologist added. “As we study each building, we expect to see a hierarchy of class emerge.” All the soil exposed during the dig is screened nearby to recover small artifacts, and each day’s finds are then sent across the harbor to the St. George’s lab for cataloging. Analysis of these helps researchers discern how early English colonists organized their new society. “We want to know how Bermuda’s first town both resembled and was different from the other English colonial prototypes,” Jarvis said. So far, Moore’s settlement appears to have been a unique hybrid of Jamestown and Plymouth. Like the former, it may have had a traditional Anglican-style *******, yet, like the latter, it was constructed less like a military camp and more as a village with separate dwellings for families. In the decade after the Plough’s arrival, English settlers flocked to Bermuda, including more ascetic Protestants hoping to create a perfect society on their island Garden of Eden. Their example encouraged those with similar beliefs to view America as a haven for Puritan-minded people. By then, Bermuda was booming, with an English population outstripping that of either Virginia or New England. Tobacco had already been noted on the islands by Sea Venture castaway John Rolfe, famed for later marrying the Powhatan princess Pocahontas at Jamestown. It was planted by an earlier Spanish castaway, and Rolfe used the Bermuda tobacco seeds in Virginia around 1612 or 1614, creating an export that saved Jamestown from financial disaster. Bermudians had a head start. The “three kings” already had “made a great deal of tobacco,” and one early settler predicted cultivating the crop would be “very commodious both to the merchant and to the maker of it.” A frequent visitor to Bermuda, writer Mark Twain mused about the steep, “unmarred” limestone quarries in 1877: “Everywhere you go you see square recesses cut into the hillsides.” Nicola Muirhead White colonists first brought a single enslaved ****** laborer from the West Indies to Bermuda in 1616—three years before ****** people in ******** landed in Virginia. More followed. Those who had labored on West Indian tobacco plantations, and were familiar with the crop, were particularly prized. It was only in 1624 that Virginia’s tobacco exports to England exceeded that of Bermuda. Eventually, tobacco’s deleterious effects on the soil, as well as the limited land, ended the islands’ brief *****. Meanwhile, ********* ships brought rats that devoured food supplies and wreaked havoc on the ecosystem. Settlers wantonly ******* flocks of cahow and other birds, while deforestation added to the swift economic decline. Colonists rapidly pivoted from farming to shipbuilding, trading and privateering, and many of the enslaved laborers became sailors and stevedores. Fast and sturdy Bermudian ships soon crisscrossed the ocean, stimulating business in a vast arc from the West Indies to Newfoundland, while seizing ****** vessels as ********* powers fought to dominate the New World. Memory of the islands’ origins as a kind of paradise and then a tobacco powerhouse that briefly outshone their sister settlement in Virginia waned. A century later, when that colony joined the rebellion against Britain, Bermuda stayed within the empire, and today it is a self-governing British territory. Shakespeare concluded The Tempest by predicting that everything “shall dissolve and, like this insubstantial pageant faded, leave not a rack behind.” Yet Jarvis and his team are recovering Bermuda’s vanished story. In 2023, William Kelso visited Smith’s Island to check on his protégé’s work. “Archaeology is like a play,” said the retired Jamestown excavator. “The set is the landscape, and the script—the history—is usually all torn up and falling apart. Mike is pulling it all together and casting Bermuda in three dimensions.” Get the latest History stories in your inbox? Filed Under: Archaeology, Bermuda, British History, Caribbean, Colonialism, History, Slavery, Trade Source link #Hidden #History #Bermuda #Reshaping #Colonial #America Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Overwatch Classic’s Major Feature Showcases Why Basic Heroes Are Boring to Play Overwatch Classic’s Major Feature Showcases Why Basic Heroes Are Boring to Play The Overwatch community has had a mixed reaction to the release of Overwatch Classic. This temporary game mode has been brought back in Overwatch 2 (OW2) Season 13 and players are getting reminded of the quirks, frustrations, and simplicity of the early days. There’s a lot of nostalgia going around for both sides of the field. Overwatch fans can relive the glory days right now. | Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment While the slower pace and basic heroes might feel nostalgic for some, many players have found these qualities to highlight the game’s evolution. The lack of mobility, clunky mechanics, and rigid playstyles in Overwatch Classic show how OW2 has delivered a smoother and more fast-paced game. Overwatch Classic is Making Players Appreciate OW2 More The game has come a long way since then. | Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment One glaring difference in Overwatch Classic is the slower pace and harsher movement penalties. Heroes like D.Va and Bastion feel sluggish, and abilities like Lucio’s speed boost stand out dramatically compared to the rest of the roster. The limit does not exist Due to overwhelming demand, we are extending no limits in Overwatch: Classic through the weekend! The new end date for no limits is now Nov 18. [Hidden Content] — Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) November 15, 2024 This mobility nerf forces players to consider their positioning and timing. And while this slow pace encourages tactical gameplay, it also makes certain heroes feel outdated and tedious. Bastion’s immobile turret form and D.Va’s movement penalty when ******* remind players of how static older heroes feel in comparison to their modern counterparts. With OW2, there was a change in mobility and mechanics that caused a divide in player preferences. Abilities like Genji’s dash and Cassidy’s roll are far smoother and more versatile in the OW2 but in Overwatch Classic they feel clunky and restrictive. overwatch classic made me realize it feels like ***** to play genji because when you dash your camera is locked for 45 minutes for some reason — Apply (@Apply) November 12, 2024 Players quickly realized how restrictive these older mechanics felt, particularly when comparing Lucio’s current fluid speed boost to its clunkier 2016 version. Modern Overwatch’s faster, more dynamic gameplay has raised the skill ceiling but at the cost of some of the slower, strategic elements. Overwatch 2 Isn’t Perfect Either But It’s Still Better The difference just shows how far OW2 has come. | Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment Healing and sustain are other areas where Overwatch Classic feels out of date. Overwatch 2 has leaned heavily into healing and sustain mechanics whereas Classic mode forces players to consider their health more carefully. Heroes **** faster so healing is less effective, and the absence of safety nets like burst healing or escape abilities is noticeable. For long-time players, revisiting Overwatch Classic is both a nostalgic delight and a sobering realization of the game’s past limitations. Heroes like Mercy, with her mass-resurrection ultimate, and Hanzo, with his Scatter Arrow, feel almost absurd by modern standards. The lack of role ****** and single-hero limits in Overwatch Classic also show how chaotic it used to be. The introduction of a role ****** in Overwatch 2 provided a fairer, more balanced environment. This change has made the game more accessible, even if some players miss the unpredictable fun. Overwatch Classic is both a nostalgic journey and a stark reminder of how far the game has evolved. While it’s fun to revisit the past, it’s clear that the franchise’s future ***** in its current faster more balanced state. The game is far from perfect today but let’s see where it goes from here. What do you think of the current state of Overwatch? Source link #Overwatch #Classics #Major #Feature #Showcases #Basic #Heroes #Boring #Play Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

ZTE Blade V70 With 108-Megapixel Main Camera, 6.7-Inch LCD Screen Listed Online ZTE Blade V70 With 108-Megapixel Main Camera, 6.7-Inch LCD Screen Listed Online ZTE Blade V70 has been listed online on the company’s global website. The smartphone sports a 6.7-inch display with a centred *****-punch slot to hold the front camera sensor. Succeeding the ZTE Blade V60, it carries a 108-megapixel main camera and a 5,000mAh battery with support for 22.5W wired fast charging. The pricing and availability details of the handset have yet to be announced. However, the online listing has revealed the colour options of the newly unveiled smartphone. ZTE Blade V70 Colour Options The ZTE Blade V70 is listed online in three colour options: Glacier Green, Stardust Grey and Sunshine Gold. Even though the pricing and availability details of the handset have not yet been confirmed, it is expected to be a mid-range offering. ZTE Blade V70 Specifications The ZTE Blade V70 features a 6.7-inch immersive display with a 120Hz refresh rate, a 700 x 1,600 pixels resolution, a 91 percent screen-to-body ratio and Starlight AG Etched Glass protection. It is powered by a 2GHz octa-core chipset. The phone supports up to 8GB of RAM and up to 256GB of onboard storage. It comes with support for an additional 12GB of virtual RAM and up to 1TB of external storage via microSD card. The handset ships with Android 14-based MyOS 14. In the camera department, the ZTE Blade V70 carries a 108-megapixel main rear camera unit alongside a 16-megapixel selfie shooter. The phone supports AI-backed imaging and photo editing functions. It carries the collapsible Live Island 2.0 feature which is similar to Apple’s Dynamic Island and shows users notifications and alerts comprehensively. The ZTE Blade V70 packs a 5,000mAh battery with 22.5W wired fast charging support. For security, it is equipped with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor placed on the red-********* power button, placed below the volume rocker on the right edge. The handset measures 8.2mm in thickness. For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube. Redmi Note 14 Series India Launch Teased Ahead of Redmi A4 5G Debut Tomorrow: Expected Specifications Realme GT Neo 7 Spotted on China’s 3C Certification Site, May Feature 80W Fast Charging Source link #ZTE #Blade #V70 #108Megapixel #Main #Camera #6.7Inch #LCD #Screen #Listed #Online Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Zelenskyy to MEPs: “We must end this war fairly and justly” | News Zelenskyy to MEPs: “We must end this war fairly and justly” | News Opening the sitting, EP President Roberta Metsola said that Parliament would continue standing with Ukraine until it has “freedom and real peace, for as long as it takes.” She also said Russia had launched a “brutal, unprovoked and ******** ******** on Ukraine but also on the rules-based order”. The Ukrainian people’s sacrifice over the last 1000 days is not just for themselves but for every *********’s freedom and way of life, President Metsola added. “Any real peace must be built on the principle of ‘nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine’,” President Metsola also stressed when concluding. Zelenskyy: “We can surely push Russia towards a just peace.” In his address, President Zelenskyy thanked the EU for its continuing support and said that Ukraine, all of Europe and our partners in America and around the world have succeeded not only in “preventing ****** from taking Ukraine” but also in defending the freedom of all ********* nations. “****** ******** smaller than the ******* strength of Europe. I urge you not to forget this, and not to forget how much Europe is capable of achieving. We can surely push Russia towards a just peace. Peace is what we ******* the most,” he added. While thanking its partners for their support for Ukraine’s Peace Formula, a Ukraine-led initiative to achieve a just conclusion to the war, President Zelenskyy stressed that Russia’s war must be met with firm sanctions, especially against it’s so-called “shadow tankers” transporting crude oil and petroleum products. “****** can ***** as long as these tankers operate,” he said, before continuing: “You know very well that ****** does not value people or rules, only money and power. These are the things we must take away from him to restore peace.” President Zelenskyy concluded by saying: “No one can enjoy calm water amid the storm. We must do everything we can to end this war fairly and justly. 1000 days of war is a tremendous challenge. We must make the next year the year of peace.” Intervention by political group speakers The majority of political group leaders reaffirmed their firm support for Ukraine, calling on the EU’s leadership to deliver the necessary arms for Ukraine to win the war, including air defence systems, long-range missiles, tanks and drones. In light of the recent US elections, MEPs said Europe must stay ******* and take up more responsibility, while continuing to provide financial and humanitarian aid. Several group leaders reaffirmed their support for Ukraine’s EU and NATO membership aspirations, as well as for the creation of a true ********* defence pillar. They stressed that Europe will continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes, with everything that it takes. Closing the session, President Metsola announced that the Ukrainian flag will fly alongside the EU one at Parliament’s buildings in Brussels, Strasbourg and Luxembourg. Source link #Zelenskyy #MEPs #war #justly #News Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Man jailed for role in Max Dixon and Mason Rist murders Man jailed for role in Max Dixon and Mason Rist murders A man who drove four teenagers on a revenge mission that led to two best friends being murdered has been handed two life sentences. Mason Rist, 15, and Max Dixon, 16, ***** after being stabbed by four teenagers in a frenzied ******* outside Mason’s home on Ilminster Avenue in Knowle West, Bristol, on 27 January. Antony Snook, 45, tried to claim he was oblivious to the plan, but a jury rejected this defence and found him guilty of the murders. Riley Tolliver, 18, and three boys, 17, 16 and 15, were also found guilty of ******* and will be sentenced on 16 December. Snook will serve a minimum of 38 years in jail. Tolliver and the three youngest defendants, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been driven to and from Knowle West by Snook. Max and Mason were wrongly identified as being responsible for bricks being thrown at a house in the Hartcliffe area earlier that evening. CCTV cameras outside Mason’s home captured Snook’s Audi Q2 pulling onto Ilminster Avenue, where the four youngest defendants then jumped out, wielding large machetes. The friends were ambushed in an ******* that lasted just 33 seconds, while Snook sat waiting in his parked car with the lights off. The teenagers then got back into Snook’s car, which performed a U-turn in the street and sped away, leaving the boys collapsed in the street. The friends ***** in hospital within 15 minutes of each other in the early hours of Sunday morning. Source link #Man #jailed #role #Max #Dixon #Mason #Rist #murders Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

New World: Aeternum Review | TheSixthAxis New World: Aeternum Review | TheSixthAxis TSA writes: Amazon’s flagship MMO finally lands on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S but is it worth playing? Source link #World #Aeternum #Review #TheSixthAxis Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Nvidia must show Blackwell chip can drive growth in earnings report Nvidia must show Blackwell chip can drive growth in earnings report Despite rising competition, Nvidia holds 80% of the fast-growing market for artificial intelligence chips as the tech industry’s graphics processing unit, or GPU, of choice for making and deploying generative AI software. What investors will want to see when Nvidia reports its third-quarter earnings on Wednesday is whether it can continue to grow at a fierce rate, even as the ***** in AI enters its third year. Nvidia is entering “uncharted territory” as it attempts to continue growing on a $3.5 trillion market cap, wrote HSBC analyst Frank Lee in a report this week. “We have pondered this amazing growth trajectory and not only do we see no signs of a slowdown, we expect further upside in 2026 data center momentum,” Lee said in his note. He has a buy rating on the stock. Future growth will have to come from Blackwell, its next-generation chip that has just started shipping to end-users such as Microsoft, Google and OpenAI. More important than Nvidia’s third-quarter results will be what the company says about demand for the Blackwell chip. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will likely update investors about how that is shaping up on Wednesday, and he will potentially address reports that some of the systems based on Blackwell chips are experiencing overheating issues. In August, Nvidia said it expected about “several billion” in Blackwell sales during the January quarter. “Our base case is for NVDA to ship ~100K Blackwell GPUs in 4Q, which we believe is near the low-end of investor expectations,” Raymond James analyst Srini Pajjuri wrote in a note last week. He has a strong buy rating on the stock. Since Nvidia’s last earnings report, the stock is up nearly 19%, capping off a stunning run that has seen the share price rise eightfold since ChatGPT was released in late 2022. Alongside the stock’s rise has been a fierce increase in sales and margin, and its forward price to earnings ratio has expanded to just under 50, according to FactSet. Growth is slowing, but that is partially because Nvidia’s top line is so much larger than before. Nvidia reported 122% growth in sales in the most-recent quarter. That was lower than the 262% year-over-year growth it reported in the April quarter and the 265% growth in the January quarter. Analysts polled by LSEG are expecting around $33.12 billion in revenue, which would be nearly 83% growth compared to a year ago. The company is also expected to post 75 cents in earnings per share, according to LSEG consensus estimates. Nvidia’s data center business accounted for nearly 88% of sales in the most-recent quarter, taking the focus off the company’s legacy computer games business. The company makes the chip for the Nintendo Switch, for example, which the ********* video game company says is seeing major sales declines as the game console ages. Nvidia’s gaming business is expected to grow about 6% to $3.03 billion, according to a FactSet estimate. Its automotive business, making chips for electric cars, is still small, even though analysts expect it to grow 38% to about $360 million in sales. But none of that will matter as long as Nvidia’s data center business continues to grow at a rate that is nearly doubling on an annual basis and Huang signals to investors that the party won’t end. Source link #Nvidia #show #Blackwell #chip #drive #growth #earnings #report Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Green’s triple treat earns her second Greg Norman medal Green’s triple treat earns her second Greg Norman medal Hannah Green’s rare three-win season has earned the *********** a second Greg Norman Medal as the country’s golfer of the year. Cameron Davis claimed his second PGA Tour win in Detroit in July while world No.20 Adam Scott, two-time Medal winners Jason Day (world No.31) and Cameron Smith and three-time winner Minjee Lee all had solid but title-free seasons. The West ***********’s triple LPGA treat meant she was an obvious choice to collect the top honour at the PGA Awards in Brisbane on Tuesday night. “It has undoubtedly been one of the best years of my career and to cap it with a second Greg Norman Medal makes it all the more special,” Green said from Florida ahead of the season-ending LPGA event this week. “Any year in which you have a win is a good year so to have three in the one season is very satisfying – and I’d love to finish off with another one at the *********** Open next week. “I would like to thank everyone in my team, my husband Jarryd, my family and friends for their support this year. “I feel like I have taken a major step forward in 2024 and hope that I can finish off the year well and take that into 2025 and beyond.” Green, who won her first medal in 2019, rose to a career-high world No.5 and was the first *********** since Karrie Webb in 2006 to notch three wins in a single LPGA season. Coach Ritchie Smith was in Brisbane to accept the award on her behalf, Smith also claiming the PGA national coach-of-the-year gong. * GREG NORMAN MEDAL WINNERS 2023: Minjee Lee 2022: Cameron Smith 2021: Minjee Lee 2020: Cameron Smith 2019: Hannah Green 2018: Minjee Lee 2017: Marc Leishman 2016: Jason Day 2015: Jason Day Source link #Greens #triple #treat #earns #Greg #Norman #medal Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Instagram will let you ‘reset’ your recommendations Instagram will let you ‘reset’ your recommendations If your Instagram recommendations have been feeling a little stale, you’ll soon have a way to make the app’s algorithm forget everything it thinks it knows about you. Meta is testing a new feature that will allow users to reset the algorithmic suggestions that power the app’s feed, Reels and Explore section. The company described the feature as a “test,” but said the update “will soon roll out globally.” With the change, users will be able to “reset suggested content” from the content preferences section in Instagram’s settings. This will, according to Meta, allow you to “start fresh” and provide an opportunity to re-tune the app’s suggestions. But while this may help you get an Instagram feed that better reflects your current interests, Meta notes that doing this kind of “reset” doesn’t delete any of your data from the app or change how the company serves you ads. (Instagram has a to personalize ad preferences.) Meta is framing the change as part of its push to bring new safety features to teens, even though the feature will be available to all users. “We want to give teens new ways to shape their Instagram experience, so it can continue to reflect their passions and interests as they evolve,” the company wrote in a blog post. The service has previously faced over its recommendations, which EU regulators have suggested could encourage “addictive behavior.” The company notes that it has other teen-specific features meant to prevent its younger users from seeing inappropriate content. It recently introduced “,” which have stricter privacy settings, and attempts certain types of harmful content from appearing in their feeds. Source link #Instagram #reset #recommendations Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Nvidia fans, it’s time to get excited – the RTX 5000 series could be set to steamroll the GPU market, according to one Taiwanese supplier Nvidia fans, it’s time to get excited – the RTX 5000 series could be set to steamroll the GPU market, according to one Taiwanese supplier Auras Technology expects Nvidia’s RTX 5000 series to dominate the GPU market Focus among suppliers anticipated to shift towards next-gen GPUs A reveal or teaser could be weeks away Considering the rumors and supposed leaks of RTX 5000 series GPUs, it’s no surprise that Nvidia’s next-gen GPUs are the current hot topic among PC gamers. Now, a Taiwanese cooling supplier has given us more reasons to get excited about Team Green’s upcoming launch. Auras Technology manufactures cooling components for discrete GPUs as well as notebooks, motherboards, and servers, and its CEO Yu-Shen Lin has just claimed that Nvidia’s Blackwell GPUs could “seize the markets starting in December” (as revealed by DigiTimes). Lin expects the RTX 5000 series to launch with high levels of interest and demand, similar to what we saw previously with the RTX 4000 series launch. The official reveal of Team Green’s next-gen GPUs could be closer than ever, with CEO Jensen Huang’s appearance at CES 2025 already confirmed – this will take place in January 2025 with Nvidia’s fierce rivals, AMD, also making an appearance. Team Red isn’t anticipated to compete within the high-end GPU market with a narrowed focus on mid-range, adding further credence to Lin’s expectation of Nvidia dominance. This latest news corroborates earlier reports suggesting that Nvidia’s production of RTX 5000 series GPUs has stepped up – along with other suppliers, Auras Technology is anticipated to shift priorities toward the new GPU range. Will this help with the inevitable high demand for the RTX 5000 series? There is no doubt that the RTX 5000 series GPUs will be highly sought-after once it launches, especially if DLSS 3’s successor delivers major enhancements (though I personally will be upset if Nvidia’s ‘DLSS 4’ is exclusive to owners of a 5000-series card). It’s no secret that the next-gen GPUs will be driven by AI, and this could easily draw more attention from PC gamers looking for greater GPU performance. Scalping has been an issue surrounding PC hardware, particularly for Nvidia fans – while suppliers’ current preparation for the new GPUs could help with the expected high demand, there’s only so much that can be done to prevent third-party sellers from taking advantage of the situation. If the purported price of the RTX 5090 (a hefty $2,500, around £2000 / AU$3900) holds any truth, we could see the worst examples of scalping within the PC hardware market yet. Fingers crossed it isn’t too rough… Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable ****** Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content. You might also like… Source link #Nvidia #fans #time #excited #RTX #series #set #steamroll #GPU #market #Taiwanese #supplier Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

This Long Island man lost his life savings after suspected debit card scam — and got no reimbursement. Here’s why This Long Island man lost his life savings after suspected debit card scam — and got no reimbursement. Here’s why This Long Island man lost his life savings after suspected debit card scam — and got no reimbursement. Here’s why While running errands in New York last year, Grant Holihan of Long Island received a call from Chase Bank asking him to confirm a recent purchase in Las Vegas. But Holihan, 27, claimed to have never been to Las Vegas. He suspected his debit account and PIN were skimmed at an ATM near his construction job site. According to Holihan, Chase agreed to close the account — but then more charges followed. In just under an hour, more than $7,000 was drained from his bank account in separate transactions on the other side of the country. Ultimately, his entire life savings was stolen in less than a day. Now, Holihan says Chase is still refusing to refund his money. “I’ve never given my PIN out,” Holihan told CBS New York. “They still deny my claim, and it’s been over a year later, and I still haven’t seen my money.” With no resolution in sight, it’s important to understand how this was able to happen and what can be done to avoid a similar financial loss. In debit card skimming, fraudsters secretly install devices on ATMs or payment terminals to steal card details and PIN information. The skimmers capture data while a hidden camera or keypad overlay records the user’s PIN. In most cases, these devices are difficult for people to see because they look like legitimate card readers. Holihan suspects that is exactly what happened to him. “This customer’s claim was denied because the charges were authorized with their PIN and verified via phone call,” JPMorganChase told CBS News New York. Unlike credit card skimming, where thieves steal credit card numbers, debit card ****** doesn’t fall under the Truth in Lending Act, which offers more consumer protections. While speaking with CBS reporter Elle McLogan, National Consumer Law Center senior attorney Carla Sanchez-Adams shared how that impacts consumers. “The law that applies to credit cards, the Truth in Lending Act, is more protective than the Electronic Funds Transfer Act,” she told CBS New York. “I always caution and advise consumers who have the ability to have credit cards to use those to make payments because they are much safer than any other type of payment.” Read more: 5 ways to boost your net worth now — easily up your money game without altering your day-to-day life Story Continues You can protect yourself from skimming by using a credit card over a debit card whenever possible, as they offer more recourse if ****** occurs. However, not everyone has access to a credit card. If you need to use a debit card, you may want to tap rather than insert your card. The FBI notes that tap-to-pay transactions are “more secure and less likely to be compromised.” Be vigilant at ATMs and payment terminals. If the terminal has clearly been damaged, or if anything is loose or misaligned, it’s best to steer clear. You can also grasp the keypad and pull before entering your PIN to check for a keypad overlay. If it gives or comes off, it may be a skimmer. But if you’re at all unsure about the terminal, don’t use it. You may want to stick to ATMs that are inside banks or in well-lit, highly trafficked areas. The location may make it ******* for fraudsters to install a skimmer. Finally, monitor your accounts regularly so you can quickly report unauthorized transactions. If your bank offers real-time alerts for purchases or withdrawals, you can enable that feature. If you suspect your card has been skimmed, report it immediately. Staying alert and taking these precautions can help reduce your risk of falling victim to skimming. This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. Source link #Long #Island #man #lost #life #savings #suspected #debit #card #scam #reimbursement #Heres Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Pokemon TCG Pocket has reportedly passed $120 million in earnings Pokemon TCG Pocket has reportedly passed $120 million in earnings Pokemon TCG Pocket has reportedly passed $120 million dollars in earnings since its full release just over two weeks ago. The mobile game, which was developed by The Pokemon Company and DENA, allows players to virtually collect over 250 Pokemon cards, as well as battle them against other players. According to data provided by App Magic (via PocketGamer), the game has averaged over $6 million per day in player spending. Players can purchase PokeGold, which can be spent on packs of cards, or other in-game items. Players are given at least two packs for free every day, with a third daily pack coming from the monthly pass, which costs around $10. According to the data, Pokemon’s homeland of Japan is the region with the highest per-player spending, contributing over $50 million of the player spend so far. Last week, The Pokemon Company released the first roadmap for the mobile game and detailed some of the updates that will be coming soon. “To begin with, we plan to add new booster packs by the end of the year,” it wrote on social media. “In addition, we are aiming to add a feature that allows certain cards to be traded starting in January, 2025. We are planning to gradually expand the selection of cards that are able to be traded.” It added: “Also, we have other new features in development outside of the trade feature introduced here. We plan to announce more details about the update as the dates for the addition of these features are finalized, so please look forward to it.” TCG Pocket is also likely to add more events in the coming weeks, which should help players fill out their meta decks with new promotional cards and emblems. Source link #Pokemon #TCG #Pocket #reportedly #passed #million #earnings Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Redmi Note 14 Series India Launch Teased Ahead of Redmi A4 5G Debut Tomorrow: Expected Specifications Redmi Note 14 Series India Launch Teased Ahead of Redmi A4 5G Debut Tomorrow: Expected Specifications Redmi Note 14 series was launched in China in September comprising three models: a base, a Pro, and a Pro+ variant. It is now expected to make its debut in India soon as the successor to the Redmi Note 13 series. Xiaomi India has now teased the forthcoming arrival of the purported smartphone lineup on its social media handles. This development comes amidst the imminent launch of the Redmi A4 5G as an entry-level 5G handset with a Snapdragon chipset in India. Redmi Note 14 Series Launch Teased In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Xiaomi India teased the upcoming launch of a smartphone. An image accompanying the teaser carries the text, “Ready for a Noteworthy Rival?”. While it does not explicitly reveal the smartphone’s name, it is speculated to be a reference to the upcoming Redmi Note 14 series that was previously confirmed to make its India debut in December. Redmi Note 14 series has already been launched in China, but it ******** to be seen if the Indian variant will have similar specifications as the ******** models. Redmi Note 14, Note 14 Pro and Note 14 Pro+ are expected to make their debut in India, replacing the Redmi Note 13 series. Redmi Note 14 Series Specifications All handsets in the Redmi Note 14 series are equipped with a 6.67-inch OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ and Note 14 Pro are powered by Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 and Dimensity 7300 Ultra chipsets, respectively, while the base model has MediaTek Dimensity 7025 Ultra SoC under the hood. Both the Redmi Note 14 Pro models have a 50-megapixel primary camera and an 8-megapixel ultrawide camera. The Note 14 Pro+ has a 50-megapixel portrait telephoto camera, while the Pro model has a 2-megapixel macro camera. The former packs a 6,200mAh battery with 90W fast charging support, while the latter is backed by a 5,500mAh battery with 44W fast charging capability. Source link #Redmi #Note #Series #India #Launch #Teased #Ahead #Redmi #Debut #Tomorrow #Expected #Specifications Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Lowe’s (LOW) Q3 2024 earnings Lowe’s (LOW) Q3 2024 earnings LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – AUGUST 20: The exterior sign of a Lowe’s home improvement store is seen on August 20, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. The company beat fiscal second-quarter earnings expectations, but missed on sales and cut its full-year outlook blaming inflation. (Photo by Eric Thayer/Getty Images) Eric Thayer | Getty Images News | Getty Images Lowe’s beat Wall Street’s quarterly earnings expectations on Tuesday, as outdoor do-it-yourself projects, the home professional business and stronger online shopping fueled sales. Yet even with the better-than-expected results, the home improvement retailer is projecting a year-over-year sales decline. The company updated its full-year guidance on Tuesday, and now expects total sales of between $83 billion to $83.5 billion, higher than its previous forecast for $82.7 billion to $83.2 billion. It said it expects comparable sales to decline 3% to 3.5%, slightly better than the 3.5% to 4% drop that it had previously anticipated. Lowe’s is lapping a year-ago ******* when the company lowered its outlook and sales tumbled nearly 13% year over year. It also cut its full-year forecast in August, as it predicted weak home improvement demand in the back half of the year because of high interest rates. Here’s what the company reported for the three-month ******* that ended Nov. 1 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG: Earnings per share: $2.89 adjusted vs. $2.82 expectedRevenue: $20.17 billion vs. $19.95 billion expected In the fiscal third quarter, Lowe’s net income fell to $1.7 billion, or $2.99 per share, compared with $1.77 billion, or $3.06 per share, in the year-ago *******. Revenue dropped from $20.47 billion in the year-ago quarter. Lowe’s competitor, Home Depot, reported last week that customers are still deferring ******* projects and pricier purchases, even after two interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. Home Depot beat Wall Street’s sales and earning expectations, yet posted its eighth quarter in a row of declining comparable sales. It did see some improving sales trends, however, due to hurricane-related demand, warm-weather home projects and the acquisition of SRS Distribution, a company that sells supplies to landscaping, pool and roofing professionals. As of Monday’s close, shares of Lowe’s have risen about 22% this year. That’s less than the approximately 24% gains of the S&P 500 during the same *******. The company’s stock closed on Monday at $271.77, bringing the market value of Lowe’s to $154.17 billion. This is breaking news. Please check back for updates. Source link #Lowes #earnings Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Who needs an ultrawide? The Samsung Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen gaming monitor is here to change your gaming experience for good this ****** Friday Who needs an ultrawide? The Samsung Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen gaming monitor is here to change your gaming experience for good this ****** Friday Ultrawide monitors are undoubtedly capable of enhancing the immersive aspect of your gaming experience, with vision-spanning images that can make you feel like you’re in the middle of the action. But I’m actually not recommending an ultrawide monitor today – I’ve just found the Samsung Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen on ***** for $1,799.99 (was $2,999.99) from Samsung in the US, and £1,699 (was £2,599) from Samsung in the *** ahead of ****** Friday 2024. Samsung’s user interface for both monitors and TVs may be unpopular (it’s quite slow, I’ll admit), but in my opinion, the Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen offers the ultimate gaming experience thanks to its powerful specs and nifty feature set. It’s a native 16:9 4K gaming monitor, but thanks to its ‘Flex Move Screen’ feature, you can take advantage of 21:9 and 32:9 aspect ratios, simulating an ultrawide experience – this is possible due to the 55-inch display size, which also utilizes ‘Four Input Multi-View’. Switching to 32:9 ultrawide mode even allows you to display a second video output or activity window in 32:9 above or below your main ‘screen’. Not in the US or ***? Scroll down to see the best Samsung Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen deals in your region! Today’s best Samsung Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen deal in the US Today’s best Samsung Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen deal in the *** Even setting aside the aspect ratio shenanigans, this is just a generally stellar monitor from Samsung’s consistently great Odyssey range. If you want excellent contrast, a high refresh rate, 4K resolution, and multiple aspect ratios, the Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen is definitely worth checking out, especially at this significantly discounted price. It doesn’t get any better than this, as this display quite literally delivers on all aspects of your PC experience. If you’re serious about multitasking and having as much freedom with your display as possible, the Samsung Odyssey Ark 2nd Gen should absolutely be on your radar this ****** Friday. More of today’s ****** Friday sales in the US Amazon: TVs, smart home & air fryers from $12.99 Apple: AirPods, iPads, MacBooks from $89.99 Best Buy: $1,000 off 4K TVs, laptops & headphones Cheap TVs: smart TVs at Best Buy from $69.99 Christmas trees: top-rated trees from $54.99 Dell: best-selling Inspiron & XPS laptops from $279.99 Dreamcloud: mattress deals from $349 + free shipping Holiday: decor, lights, Christmas trees & PJs from $10.99 Home Depot: 40% off tools, appliances & furniture Lowe’s: holiday decor, appliances & tools from $17.31 Nectar: up to 50% off all mattresses Nordstrom: 46% off boots, coats, jeans & jewelry Samsung: $1,500+ off TVs, phones, watches & appliances Target: save on furniture, tech & clothing Walmart: cheap TVs, ****** vacs, furniture & appliances More of today’s ****** Friday sales in the *** Amazon: up to 68% off toothbrushes and TVs AO: savings on games consoles and appliances Argos: up to 50% off toys, Lego, TVs and gifts Boots: up to 50% off Dyson, *****-B and Philips Currys: early deals on TVs, appliances, laptops Dell: laptops, desktops, monitors from £299 Dyson: up to £150 off Ebay: up to 50% off refurbished tech EE: up to £600 off Samsung and Apple John Lewis: up to £300 off appliances and TVs LG: £1,000 or more off TVs and appliances Samsung: up to £600 off TVs, phones and tablets Very: up to 30% off phones, appliances & clothing Source link #ultrawide #Samsung #Odyssey #Ark #2nd #Gen #gaming #monitor #change #gaming #experience #good #****** #Friday Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

****** approves changes to Russia’s nuclear doctrine ****** approves changes to Russia’s nuclear doctrine Vladimir ****** has approved changes to Russia’s nuclear doctrine, setting out new conditions under which the country would consider using its arsenal. The doctrine now says an ******* from a non-nuclear state, if backed by a nuclear power, will be treated as a ****** ******** on Russia. The update was proposed in September and rubber stamped on Tuesday, the 1,000th day of the war with Ukraine. It also follows Washington’s decision on Monday to allow Ukraine to ***** long-range US missiles into Russia. Under the changes, a large ******* on Russia with conventional missiles, drones or aircraft could meet the criteria for a nuclear response, as could an ******* on Belarus or any critical threat to Russia’s sovereignty. Any aggression against Russia by a state which is a member of a coalition would be seen by Moscow as aggression from the whole group. The updates expand the number of countries and coalitions, and the kinds of military threats, subject to a possible nuclear response, according to state-run news agency Tass. ****** has threatened the use of nuclear weapons before, and Ukraine has criticised it as “nuclear sabre-rattling” to deter its allies from providing further support. Announcing the change, the Kremlin urged other countries to study the changes. “This is a very important text,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, according to Tass, adding “it should become a subject to a very deep analysis”. On Monday, Russia warned of “an appropriate and tangible” response to US President Joe Biden’s move to let Ukraine use ATACMS missiles to strike the country. Such an ******* inside Russian territory “would represent the direct involvement of the ******* States and its satellites in hostilities against Russia”, a foreign ministry statement said. Mr Peskov said on Tuesday that the new doctrine was published “in a timely manner” and that ****** had requested it be updated earlier this year so that it was “in line with the current situation”, AP reported. Source link #****** #approves #Russias #nuclear #doctrine Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Realme GT Neo 7 Spotted on China’s 3C Certification Site, May Feature 80W Fast Charging Realme GT Neo 7 Spotted on China’s 3C Certification Site, May Feature 80W Fast Charging Realme GT Neo 7 is in the works and may launch soon, if recent leaks are any indication. In a fresh update, the unannounced Realme smartphone allegedly appeared on the China Compulsory Certification (3C) website, indicating that its launch is imminent. The newest entry for a Realme handset on 3C suggests fast charging details of the phone. The Realme GT Neo 7 is expected to come with upgrades over Realme GT Neo 6. It is tipped to run an overclocked version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset. Realme GT Neo 7 Launch Could Be Imminent A smartphone with model number RMX5060 has been listed on China’s 3C website (via MySmartPrice) and this could be the upcoming Realme GT Neo 7. Gadgets 360 was able to verify the entry on the certification site, which also reveals some other details of the handset and its accessories. The latest listing for a Realme phone on the 3C website Photo Credit: Screenshot/ 3C According to the 3C entry, the bundled charger of the purported Realme phone bears the model number VCB8OACH with 5VDC 2A fast charging support. This model number and charging speed appears to correspond to 80W SuperVOOC wired fast charging technology. Notably, the Realme GT Neo 7 is tipped to arrive with support for 100W fast charging. The predecessor offers 120W wired fast charging. Last month a ******** tipster suggested the launch timeline and key specifications of Realme GT Neo 7. It is said to be launched at the end of this year. Realme is said to pack a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip on the phone with overclocked CPU cores. It is expected to feature an AMOLED display with a 1.5K resolution. The Realme GT Neo 6 was launched in China in May with a price tag of CNY 2,099 (roughly Rs. 22,000) for the 12GB RAM + 256GB version. It has a 6.78-inch 1.5K (1,264×2,780 pixels) 8T LTPO AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and runs on a Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chip. The Realme GT Neo 6 sports a dual rear camera setup led by a 50-megapixel Sony IMX882 sensor. It packs a 5,500mAh battery with support for 120W wired fast charging. Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details. For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube. Redmi Note 14 Series India Launch Teased Ahead of Redmi A4 5G Debut Tomorrow: Expected Specifications Source link #Realme #Neo #Spotted #Chinas #Certification #Site #Feature #80W #Fast #Charging Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

‘Bromley Council wants my mum to move care home ‘Bromley Council wants my mum to move care home BBC “All of this battling to get a little bit of help is the last layer of *****,” says Deborah Crisp A woman from south-east London says she fears her 98-year-old mother might **** if she is forced to move care homes at the request of her council. Deborah Crisp from Bromley said her mother Betty, who has dementia, had spent almost £200,000 on care, but since her money began to run out, Bromley Council had refused to pay for her to stay at the nursing home she was familiar with. “It would ***** my mum,” she said of the potential move. “It would be the ****** of her.” Bromley Council has been contacted for a response. Mrs Crisp, 66, told BBC London that Betty, who also has hypertension, heart ******** and kidney ********, had lived at her current care home in Sidcup for three years. When her mother went into care, she had to sign over her own home to the council, Mrs Crisp said, and the authority “loaned her the amount of money that they deemed her property to be worth”, which was £180,000. “We honestly thought that there would be enough there for the years that we would need,” she continued. Handout The difference in Betty’s care costs would amount to roughly £80 extra each week, but Mrs Crisp says she cannot afford the increase However, Mrs Crisp said when this money started to run out, the council told her the cost of her mother’s care home exceeded the amount it would agree to fund. It advised her she would have to make up the difference in the cost herself or accept moving Betty to a new care home, Mrs Crisp added. According to correspondence from the council, which BBC London has seen, the difference would amount to roughly £80 extra each week, but Mrs Crisp said she could not afford the increase. ‘Last layer of *****’ “I’m on a pension, and my husband has Alzheimer’s, and he will be self-funding before very long,” she explained, adding they were already spending £2,000 a month on daycare for him. “I can’t commit to taking that extra on because, quite frankly, we’re going to need it here,” she said. “It is already stressful… all of this battling to get a little bit of help is the last layer of *****.” Handout Betty gets distressed when away from her care home, says her daughter Mrs Crisp said she had been “bombarded” with calls from Bromley Council about the potential move but added neither of the care home options the authority had suggested were suitable. She argued one was not secure enough to prevent her mother from wandering off, while the other was rated “inadequate” by the Care Quality Commission. Mrs Crisp also claimed her mother would experience considerable distress if she had to be moved from her current home. She said on one occasion, when Betty had needed to attend her doctor’s surgery, she was so upset she had to be given medication. “It’s not the amount of money that we don’t have; it just matters that she is happy and safe where she is,” she added. Source link #Bromley #Council #mum #move #care #home Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Redmi Note 14 Series India Launch Teased Ahead of Redmi A4 5G Debut Tomorrow: Expected Specifications Redmi Note 14 Series India Launch Teased Ahead of Redmi A4 5G Debut Tomorrow: Expected Specifications Redmi Note 14 series was launched in China in September comprising three models: a base, a Pro, and a Pro+ variant. It is now expected to make its debut in India soon as the successor to the Redmi Note 13 series. Xiaomi India has now teased the forthcoming arrival of the purported smartphone lineup on its social media handles. This development comes amidst the imminent launch of the Redmi A4 5G as an entry-level 5G handset with a Snapdragon chipset in India. Redmi Note 14 Series Launch Teased In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Xiaomi India teased the upcoming launch of a smartphone. An image accompanying the teaser carries the text, “Ready for a Noteworthy Rival?”. While it does not explicitly reveal the smartphone’s name, it is speculated to be a reference to the upcoming Redmi Note 14 series that was previously confirmed to make its India debut in December. Redmi Note 14 series has already been launched in China, but it ******** to be seen if the Indian variant will have similar specifications as the ******** models. Redmi Note 14, Note 14 Pro and Note 14 Pro+ are expected to make their debut in India, replacing the Redmi Note 13 series. Redmi Note 14 Series Specifications All handsets in the Redmi Note 14 series are equipped with a 6.67-inch OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. The Redmi Note 14 Pro+ and Note 14 Pro are powered by Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 and Dimensity 7300 Ultra chipsets, respectively, while the base model has MediaTek Dimensity 7025 Ultra SoC under the hood. Both the Redmi Note 14 Pro models have a 50-megapixel primary camera and an 8-megapixel ultrawide camera. The Note 14 Pro+ has a 50-megapixel portrait telephoto camera, while the Pro model has a 2-megapixel macro camera. The former packs a 6,200mAh battery with 90W fast charging support, while the latter is backed by a 5,500mAh battery with 44W fast charging capability. Source link #Redmi #Note #Series #India #Launch #Teased #Ahead #Redmi #Debut #Tomorrow #Expected #Specifications Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Woman blasts cowardice of men accused of her mass ***** Woman blasts cowardice of men accused of her mass ***** Gisele Pelicot has lambasted the cowardice of the dozens of men accused of abusing her during 10 years of mass ***** organised by her husband and told the court hearing the trial France’s patriarchal society must change. Dominique Pelicot, her husband, has admitted in court to drugging his wife, 71, and inviting strangers to their house to ***** her while she was unconscious. Most of the 50 other men on trial have denied *****. She only learnt of her ordeal when police stumbled upon videos and pictures her husband recorded of the ****** he is accused of orchestrating. “For me this is the trial of cowardice, there is no other way to describe it,” Gisele Pelicot said on Tuesday, with many of the accused in the courtroom. It is the third time she has addressed the court in Avignon, southern France, as the trial heads towards delivering its verdicts and sentences in December. Testimony that dozens of seemingly ordinary men, aged 26 to 74 and from all walks of life, could have ****** an unconscious woman has attracted worldwide attention and turned the trial into an examination of the pervasiveness of ******* *********. Video recorded by her husband and shown in court have repeatedly featured Gisele Pelicot motionless, sometimes snoring, while some of the accused abused her. Many of the accused have told the court they did not realise they were ******* her, did not intend to ***** her or put all the blame on her husband, whom they said had manipulated them. “It is time for society to look at this macho, patriarchal society and change the way it looks at *****,” Gisele Pelicot told the court. Under French law, she could have asked for the trial to be kept behind closed doors. Instead she asked for it be held in public, saying she hoped it would help other women speak up and show that victims have nothing to be ashamed of. “***** is *****,” she said. “When you walk into a bedroom and see a motionless body, at what point (do you decide) not to react,” she said, in an address to the accused. “Why did you not leave immediately to report it to the police?” She said she would never forgive her husband. On Monday, the Pelicots’ two sons asked the court to punish him severely and also said they would never forgive him and that he was ***** to them. Their sister said she believed Dominique Pelicot had also drugged and abused her. Dominique Pelicot is due to address the court later on Tuesday. His lawyer Beatrice Navarro told reporters he was “very dejected”. “He did what he did. No doubt about that. But we must still note that right now, he is very alone. He will always be very alone,” she said. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National ******* ****** and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 Source link #Woman #blasts #cowardice #men #accused #mass #***** Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

123 Bodies Found in England’s Ancient Leicester Cathedral: What You Need to Know 123 Bodies Found in England’s Ancient Leicester Cathedral: What You Need to Know An excavation near Leicester Cathedral has led to the discovery of a burial pit containing the ******** of 123 individuals. The find, described as one of the largest mass graves from the *******, dates back over 800 years to the early 12th century. Despite the scale of the burial, no evidence of ********* was found, leaving researchers questioning whether famine or ******** was responsible for the deaths. The team, led by Mathew Morris, Project Officer at the University of Leicester Archaeological Services, concluded that the pit was filled rapidly in three successive deposits. Morris, in an interview published by The Guardian, stated that the bodies appear to have been brought in cartloads and dropped into the shaft within a short *******. He estimated the ******* individuals represented about 5 percent of Leicester’s medieval population. Clues in Historical Records and Radiocarbon Dating As per the report by the publication, tnitial speculation linked the burial to the ****** ******. However, radiocarbon testing placed the deaths in the 12th century, predating the plague by over a century. Morris told the publication that that this raises significant questions as there is no clear record of what caused the widespread fatalities. Historical accounts mention severe famines and pestilences in England between the 10th and 12th centuries, offering potential explanations. The discovery aligns with descriptions of repeated outbreaks of ******** and hunger. Ongoing Investigations and Genetic Analysis Samples have been sent to the Francis Crick Institute in London to identify pathogens that might explain the mass deaths. The absence of clothing remnants suggests deliberate preparation of the bodies, with burial practices hinting at civic organisation even during times of crisis. The burial pit was discovered during work for a heritage learning centre, which followed the unearthing of Richard III’s ******** in 2012. This excavation has revealed nearly 1,200 burials spanning over eight centuries, offering a unique glimpse into Leicester’s past. For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube. ***** Said to Seal Deal with Pegatron for iPhone Plant in Tamil Nadu Realme GT 7 Pro Pre-Booking Begins Ahead of India Launch on November 26: Check Benefits Source link #Bodies #Englands #Ancient #Leicester #Cathedral Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Pressure is on to get Biden to fulfill a campaign promise before he leaves office Pressure is on to get Biden to fulfill a campaign promise before he leaves office It’s been almost 10 years since a white supremacist was welcomed into a South Carolina ******* and opened *****, ******** nine people in a ****** study, including the Rev. Sharon Risher’s mother, two cousins and childhood friend. When the shooter, Dylann Roof, was sentenced to ****** in 2017, Risher believed he deserved to ****. Over time, she reconnected with her ****** and found a way to forgive him. As she learned about the broader issues with the ****** penalty, like the ******* disparities and the lack of evidence that it deters violent ******, Risher helped launch a campaign to save not only Roof’s life but the lives of all the men on federal ****** row, including high profile inmates like Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who was convicted in the Boston marathon ******** and Robert Bowers, the man sentenced to ****** for the 2018 mass ********* at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. Risher, who serves on the board of ****** Penalty Action, hand-delivered a letter to the White House in June urging, President Joe Biden to commute their sentences – but received no response. The nonprofit she represents sent another letter signed by 350 organizations after former President Donald Trump won the election in November. They have not received a response. Her group plans to send a fourth letter next month as the window runs out for Biden to grant clemency. Opponents like Risher hope to secure life sentences for these prisoners since the former reality TV star helped expedite 13 executions during the last six months of his first term. No federal executions have happened during Biden’s presidency, which ends Jan. 20, 2025. “We’re afraid that if Biden doesn’t step in, that this will happen again,” Risher said. ****** Penalty Action is among hundreds of advocacy groups pressuring Biden to fulfill a promise he made on the campaign trail to end the federal ****** penalty and prevent Trump from initiating another series of executions. They’ve pleaded with Biden through letters, petitions and protests to commute the sentences of all 40 men on federal ****** row. (The last woman on federal ****** row was ********* eight days before Trump left office.) There’s precedent at the state and federal level for mass 11th-hour commutations, but given Biden’s record on clemency, it’s unclear if he’ll take action. “He absolutely can commute all of those sentences,” said Rachel Barkow, a professor of law at New York University who has written about presidential clemency. “I just don’t know if he will.” Executions on the rise Deadliest year in a decade for executions worldwide; U.S. among top 5 countries Trump administration’s unprecedented run of executions Trump took a hardline stance on the ****** penalty last time he was in office. Attorney General William Barr said after the first executions were scheduled in 2019, “The Justice Department upholds the rule of law – and we owe it to the victims and their families to carry forward the sentence imposed by our justice system.” Attorney General William Barr on Sept. 23, 2020 in Washington, D.C. The Trump administration was the first to carry out the federal ****** penalty in 17 years, overseeing 13 executions, in an unprecedented run that continued despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. The inmates included Daniel Lewis Lee, the first prisoner ********* by the federal government since 2003, and Lisa Montgomery, the only woman on ****** row and the first woman ********* in nearly 70 years. On the campaign trail, Trump called for expanded use of the ****** penalty to punish ***** dealers, human traffickers, child rapists and migrants who ***** ********* citizens or law enforcement officers. The Trump transition team did not respond to a request for comment about its policy for the upcoming term. In 2008, the Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana statute that authorized the ****** penalty for child ******* ******, citing a national consensus that capital punishment should be reserved for the worst offenses. The vast majority of offenses that qualify for a federal ****** sentence involve *******. The exceptions are ******* such as espionage and treason, according to Robin Maher, executive director of the ****** Penalty Information Center. To broaden the list of ******* that qualify, Trump would need the approval of Congress. “Some of his proposals are legally dubious at best, and I think there will be some challenges to any efforts to expand the ****** penalty beyond its current limits,” Maher said. Biden consistently ‘inconsistent’ on capital punishment Biden pledged on his campaign website he’d push for legislation to abolish the federal ****** penalty and would encourage states to do the same. He then became the first president to oppose the ****** penalty. But Biden did little to advocate for the bill introduced by Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-MA, and Sen. ***** Durbin, D-IL, to end the federal ****** penalty, said Austin Sarat, a professor of jurisprudence and political science at Amherst College. “The record is mixed,” Sarat said, noting, “The rhetoric was very good, but the record has so far not matched the rhetoric.” Attorney General Merrick Garland imposed a moratorium on federal executions in 2021, removing the ****** penalty from the table in more than two dozen ****** penalty cases in which the Trump administration had authorized it. U.S. President Joe Biden meets with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S., November 13, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque The federal system has many of the systemic problems found at the state level, according to a report from the ****** Penalty Information Center. Since 1989, nearly 75% of defendants authorized for federal ****** penalty prosecutions were people of ****** and federal capital trials are more likely to have all white or nearly all white juries. But federal prosecutors have continued to ****** the appeals of people on ****** row and pursue new ****** sentences in a handful of cases including for Bowers and the man who ******* 10 ****** people in a ******* massacre at a Buffalo, New York supermarket in 2022. A woman chalks a message on May 15, 2022, at a makeshift memorial outside the Tops Friendly Markets store where a gunman ******* 10 people in Buffalo, New York. Attorney Terry Connors, who represents many Buffalo victims in a lawsuit, told local media not all of his clients felt the same about the shooter possibly facing **********. “There was a split,” Connors told Spectrum News. “Several of them felt that life in prison was the appropriate sentence. Let him stay there and experience that. And there were others that thought the maximum punishment was appropriate in this case. And if not in this case, in what case?” Sarat, from Amherst, noted that continuing to pursue the ****** penalty in select cases was Garland’s decision, and Biden may not have wanted to interfere with the independence of the Justice Department. Still, Sarat said, “The only thing consistent about Biden’s record on the ****** penalty is how inconsistent it was.” Last-minute reprieves are not unusual Issuing a flurry of commutations, including for people on ****** row, before an executive leaves office is “super common,” according to Barkow, from NYU. Several governors have cleared their state’s ****** row including Oregon Gov. Kate Brown in 2022, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis in 2020, Illinois Gov. George Ryan in 2003 and New Mexico Gov. Toney Anaya in 1986. At the federal level, ****** row pardons date to the country’s inception, when President George Washington pardoned two people sentenced to ****** for their roles in the ******** Rebellion. In the modern era, President Barack Obama granted clemency to a federal ****** row inmate with an intellectual disability and commuted the ****** sentence of someone on military ****** row, according to Maher, at the ****** Penalty Information Center. “It would not be unprecedented for him to do something like this,” Maher said of Biden. The US has ********* 21 men this year A look at the state of the ****** penalty So, what will Biden do? The White House has not offered a response to USA TODAY’s request for comment on Biden’s plans regarding federal ****** sentences. Although Biden hasn’t responded to her group’s petition, Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, executive director of ********* Mobilizing Network, said she’s hopeful that as a fellow *********, Biden will take action. “I just hope and pray that he sees this opportunity to use his constitutional authority and also align with something really significant in the light of his ****** tradition,” Murphy said. Sarat, from Amherst, said there’s a multitude of issues Biden pledged to address before leaving office. The president is aware that support for the ****** penalty has fallen to the lowest level in decades, Sarat said and knows, “We are in a moment of national reconsideration of capital punishment.” “There’s more political space for Biden to do a mass commutation than one might think,” he said. Biden has issued federal pardons for ********** users and military veterans convicted under a law that banned gay ****, but his overall clemency rate is low, according to Barkow, at NYU. “It’s been poor. I probably personally would give him about a D,” she said. At the end of a 50-year political career, Biden is likely thinking about how he wants to be remembered, Barkow said. Using the power only he holds to offer a blanket commutation would demonstrate his moral opposition to the ****** penalty as a whole, rather than making a statement about a specific case, she said. “Commuting the entire ****** row to life without parole sentences as a statement against the ****** penalty would be a really bold legacy move,” said Barkow. Contributing: Reuters This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump may expedite executions. Here’s how Biden could stop him. Source link #Pressure #Biden #fulfill #campaign #promise #leaves #office Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

The Crew Motorfest Chase Squad review: Enjoyable police pursuits, but missed potential | Traxion.GG The Crew Motorfest Chase Squad review: Enjoyable police pursuits, but missed potential | Traxion.GG Included in the Year 2 Pass, the Chase Squad brings a new playlist and open-world police pursuits to The Crew Motorfest. Source link #Crew #Motorfest #Chase #Squad #review #Enjoyable #police #pursuits #missed #potential #Traxion.GG Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Subpostmasters hit by Post Office scandal plan to meet over nuclear option Subpostmasters hit by Post Office scandal plan to meet over nuclear option Frustration with slow financial redress could trigger the nuclear option for former subpostmasters who have campaigned for justice since 2009. During a meeting in Kineton, Warwickshire on Sunday 17 November, 150 members of the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance (JFSA) aired their frustration at the slow progress in receiving financial redress. JFSA chair Sir Alan Bates said that the vast majority of those who attended have not received their financial redress. “People are frustrated,” he said. This came after the government refused Bates’ request to the Prime Minister for a deadline to be set for full, fair and final redress for all. He told Computer Weekly: “There are concerns about that and everybody is worried about the time it is taking – it could go on for years and we can’t get a deadline from them. “We discussed other options if we didn’t get a deadline for financial redress, and we are going to look at that more seriously and perhaps call a special meeting to agree a way forward.” It was made clear in an earlier circular to JFSA members that legal action was an option, with the group’s ability to raise the necessary funds not in doubt. “We need that guarantee, not excuses, otherwise, as I have often alluded to, we will have to go back to the courts, and I will be meeting with new law firms to discuss ways we can move the issue back to the courts,” said Bates. “But the difference now is that we have the support of the nation behind us, and have no doubt at all that, when the time comes, we will be able to crowdfund whatever funding we will need.” The JFSA was formed in September 2009, after Computer Weekly’s investigation into the Horizon system brought seven subpostmasters together. It has been a fierce campaign group ever since, exposing one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in history, which included: defeating the Post Office in a mutimillion-pound High Court trial, forcing a statutory public inquiry, overturning of hundreds of wrongful convictions, and moving a nation through ITV’s dramatisation of its work. The Metropolitan Police addended a later section of the JFSA meeting to discuss its ongoing investigation into possible ******* committed during the Post Office scandal. A Met police spokesperson said: “…we met with Alan Bates and some of the affected subpostmasters to provide a brief on our progress and next steps. Our investigation team, comprising around 100 officers from forces across the ***, is now in place and we will be sharing further details in due course. Initially, four suspects have been identified and we anticipate this number to grow as the investigation progresses.” Bates told Computer Weekly: “It could be years because there is so much to sift through – just look at how long the public inquiry took. But the main thing is that the police are taking this very seriously and they will go where the evidence takes them, regardless of how high up the chain it goes.” Computer Weekly first exposed the scandal in 2009, revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they suffered due to Horizon accounting software, which led to the most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history (see below timeline of Computer Weekly articles about the scandal since 2009). • Also read: What you need to know about the Horizon scandal • Source link #Subpostmasters #hit #Post #Office #scandal #plan #meet #nuclear #option Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

‘Holiday lets are pricing us out of homes’ ‘Holiday lets are pricing us out of homes’ BBC Dee Goddard says she is at the point of “giving up” finding a family home in the Derbyshire Dales The Derbyshire Dales takes up much of the Peak District National Park, and sits near four major *** cities – Manchester, Sheffield, Derby and Nottingham. Due to its prime location and natural beauty, it has become a popular spot for families, visitors and tourists alike – particularly since the coronavirus pandemic with less people travelling abroad. But like residents in Cornwall and Yorkshire, families in this similarly idyllic part of England are struggling to get a foot on the housing ladder, with a rising number of properties being used as second homes and holiday lets. One family told the BBC that the housing shortage – affecting availability and affordability – has pushed them to the point of “giving up”. The irony is not lost on Dee Goddard, who grew up “down south”, when she says that she originally moved to the area because “we thought it would be a cheaper option”. The 31-year-old has lived in the Derbyshire Dales, in the village of Curbar, with her son and husband Baris for a couple of years. Dee and her husband, who both work at the University of Sheffield, currently spend more than 50% of their income on rent and council tax, excluding bills, so saving for the future – as well as finding a suitable home to buy – has proven “very difficult”. “We have a one-year-old son, we’d love for him to grow up here, all our friends are here, we’re very embedded in the local community, we attend ******* here, but it’s really difficult to find anything that’s affordable,” she says. Dee says before the coronavirus pandemic, it was much easier to find somewhere to raise a family. “I have notifications on my phone of the properties that become available, and there are just so few,” she says. “At the moment it’s just impossible – we’re being priced out.” ‘It’s really quiet’ The average house price in the Dales last year was £350,548, according to the *** House Price Index, compared to £270,733 in the neighbouring High Peak, which is also a tourist hotspot. And recent figures from Derbyshire Dales District Council show there were 35,595 residential properties in the area in May 2024. In October, 1,053 of these were second homes, while 1,302 were holiday lets. However, in some villages in the Dales, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) says second homes and holiday lets make up a quarter of all residential units. The LDRS also recently quoted a report in The Times and Inside Airbnb, which found the district had one of the strongest concentrations of Airbnbs in the Midlands. Dee says: “Tourism benefits everyone – there’s local jobs promoted by tourism – but at what cost? “A couple of the houses near us are all holiday homes, so it’s really quiet. There aren’t people at the play group for me to hang out with, because there aren’t people here. “We have to think about the balance between tourism and people actually living in the villages that give them their soul and heart, because people otherwise are going to be visiting and there will be no village community for them to enjoy.” She added: “I think we’re at the point of giving up already. It’s really sad to think of, because all our friends are here, and you imagine your child going to the school near where you live.” Head teacher Oona Gilbertson says a lack of available housing for families is a factor in reducing pupil numbers in the village of Eyam in recent years Three miles away, the head teacher of Eyam CE Primary School – Oona Gilbertson – is concerned about falling pupil numbers in recent years. The school currently has 70 children. She says: “We get quite a few people who look round the school, who think they are going to move into the local area. “Then, they cannot find anywhere to rent and certainly cannot find anywhere to buy, and they have to go elsewhere. That makes it difficult to predict how many children we are going to have in the school the following year and that affects the budget.” While there is clearly an appetite from families to buy, plenty of others want to holiday in the Dales and are looking for places to stay. Eyam CE Primary School currently has 70 pupils Among those are self-catered holiday homes, and Justin Heslop – the director of Peak Venues – has about 75 of them across the Peak District. He says: “The self-catering holiday cottage market is essential to the local economy and area. “There are thousands of people who come every week, as we know when you’re at home, you’re not going out to the cafes, pubs, restaurants three or four times a week, but the people that come to holiday cottages do – and I think without those, the businesses would be really struggling.” Visit Peak District and Derbyshire claims tourism is worth £2.89bn to the Peak District and Derbyshire, supporting 28,000 direct jobs. Speaking about his properties, Justin says his firm’s unique selling point is catering for large celebrations. He says: “We realised that there were some big properties that no-one really wants because of energy costs etc., and if you’ve got a party for 30 or 40 people, you can’t do that in your own home, so I don’t think we’re necessarily taking houses off the market for the people that need them.” Justin Heslop, from Peak Venues, started operating holiday homes in 2006 A number of measures and restrictions have been suggested, including Derbyshire Dales District Council voting to increase council tax for people with second homes – but not holiday cottages. Other restrictions – backed by the previous ************* government – would make it mandatory for homeowners to apply for planning permission to turn their property into a holiday let. The district council has urged the new Labour administration to bring this legislation to the House of Commons. Meanwhile, Airbnb has also backed proposed rule changes, but claimed travel via the US online rental platform had generated £26m and supported more than 425 jobs in the Dales last year. Justin believes that measures would balance things out. “A lot of people came into this market in Covid, when there was a lot of demand because people were not going abroad,” he says. “With the registration… it needs to be really thought [out] and not us v them, it wants to be people from my industry and people from the authorities looking at what can be done best.” A holiday home in the Derbyshire hamlet of Hurdlow One district councillor told a recent meeting he was aware of a property owner who spends just two days a year in the area, living the rest of the time in Chicago. Fellow district councillor Peter O’Brien, who represents the Hathersage ward, said the authority had urged the new Labour government and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner – who has the housing brief as part of her portfolio – to bring the previously-proposed legislation into operation. He says: “At the moment there is no restriction on anyone turning their house into a holiday home or a second home. In places like Eyam, we have got somewhere between 15% and 20% of the dwellings not in permanent habituation.” He says if people had to apply for planning permission to turn a property into a holiday home, it would “give control” to communities to get the right balance between providing accommodation, housing for local people and encouraging tourism. “Tourism is a vital part of our local economy, but if we let it go too far in that direction, we end up with our communities being hollowed out,” he says. Councillor Peter O’Brien is backing more regulation of the holiday home sector In a statement to the BBC, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: “We know large numbers of holiday lets can have significant impacts on areas like Derbyshire. That is why we are introducing a registration scheme for short-term lets and removing tax incentives for landlords to protect communities. “However, we recognise that more needs to be done, which is why we are considering additional powers for councils to enable them to respond to pressures created by short-term lets.” In response, Peter O’Brien pledged to continue to press the government to use planning laws to regulate the holiday home industry. For Dee Goddard, she hopes people in the future will not be in her position. “The holiday homes themselves aren’t that bad, it’s just the number of them,” she says. “The question really is – what do the holiday homes lead to? And if they lead to more empty villages, our schools closing down, then it’s not worth it.” Additional reporting by Eddie Bisknell, Local Democracy Reporter The town of Bakewell is one of many holiday locations in the Derbyshire Dales Source link #Holiday #lets #pricing #homes Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]