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****** Hands Over First Two Hostages, With Four More Set For Release ****** Hands Over First Two Hostages, With Four More Set For Release ****** handed over two hostages, the first of six scheduled for release, on Saturday, February 22. Footage by Quds News Network shows Avera Mengistu and Tal Shoham on a stage in Rafah in Gaza. The Israeli military confirmed the two men had crossed into Israel. Credit: Quds News Network via Storyful Source link #****** #Hands #Hostages #Set #Release Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

South Carolina death row inmate chooses firing squad as execution method – Fox News South Carolina death row inmate chooses firing squad as execution method – Fox News South Carolina death row inmate chooses firing squad as execution method Fox NewsU.S. Firing Squad Executions Are Rare, but Their History Is Long The New York TimesSC death row inmate chooses firing squad as method of execution Live 5 News WCSC Source link #South #Carolina #death #row #inmate #chooses #firing #squad #execution #method #Fox #News Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

China, US push quantum race forward with major chip advances in one day China, US push quantum race forward with major chip advances in one day China has taken a significant step forward in the global race for quantum computing supremacy. Researchers at Peking University have successfully demonstrated large-scale quantum entanglement on an optical chip, marking a crucial milestone in quantum technology. Their study used light to generate and control a network of interconnected quantum states on a tiny chip. This achievement opens the door to a future quantum-based internet where information can be shared securely and efficiently. One reviewer of the study called the breakthrough “an important milestone for scalable quantum information.” Similar experiments have been attempted in the U.S., Europe, and Japan, but the ******** team is the first to achieve large-scale entanglement on an optical chip, South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported. Unlike traditional quantum computing approaches that rely on superconducting materials requiring extremely low temperatures, the ******** chip operates at room temperature using photonic technology. This feature could give it an edge in practical applications, making quantum computing more accessible and energy-efficient. Microsoft’s topological qubits: A different approach While China advances photonic quantum computing, Microsoft has focused on a different approach. As Interesting Engineering reported earlier, the company announced that its Majorana 1 chip could store up to a million qubits using topological qubits, which are designed to be more stable and resistant to errors. Microsoft described its work as “a breakthrough in quantum computing” and claimed the technology could help solve complex problems in medicine and materials science. “Harnessing millions of potential qubits working together to solve the unsolvable – from new medicines to revolutionary materials – all on a single chip,” the company wrote in a social media post. Despite the excitement, some scientists are skeptical. A few experts believe Microsoft might have published its findings too soon. One reviewer criticized the paper for “misleading and ambiguous wording,” saying that it combined theoretical predictions, device designs, and experimental results in a way that wasn’t entirely clear, as reported by SCMP. Still, other scientists see the work as a step forward. One expert responded, “I do not agree with the referee that this is not solid progress. I still find it amazing that this was actually possible.” Quantum race heats up The competition in quantum computing is intensifying worldwide. In December, Google announced a breakthrough with its Willow quantum chip. The 105-qubit processor completed a complex computation in less than five minutes—a task that would take the fastest supercomputers an estimated 10 septillion years. China’s achievement in large-scale entanglement and Microsoft’s push for topological qubits highlight the diverse approaches in quantum research. While Microsoft relies on superconducting materials requiring ultra-cold temperatures, China’s photonic chip operates at room temperature, offering a practical alternative. Both projects reflect the ongoing global effort to make quantum computing a reality. With different paths being explored, the race for quantum supremacy remains unpredictable, and the next big breakthrough could come from anywhere. Both studies were published in the journal Nature on the same day. Source link #China #push #quantum #race #major #chip #advances #day Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Bracketology Bubble Watch: Five SEC teams hovering around the NCAA Tournament cut line in action Saturday – CBS Sports Bracketology Bubble Watch: Five SEC teams hovering around the NCAA Tournament cut line in action Saturday – CBS Sports Bracketology Bubble Watch: Five SEC teams hovering around the NCAA Tournament cut line in action Saturday CBS SportsMen’s college basketball bubble watch: TCU arrives, SEC hopefuls take hits in stretch run The Athletic2025 March Madness: Men’s NCAA tournament schedule, dates NCAA.comBracket Bubble Watch A Sea Of Blue2025 Bubble watch: North Carolina, Indiana face uphill battle to reach NCAA Tournament FOX Sports Source link #Bracketology #Bubble #Watch #SEC #teams #hovering #NCAA #Tournament #cut #line #action #Saturday #CBS #Sports Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Federal government launches investigation into Maine hours after Democratic governor stood up to Trump’s ‘bullying’ Federal government launches investigation into Maine hours after Democratic governor stood up to Trump’s ‘bullying’ Within hours of Maine Gov. Janet Mills publicly confronting President Donald Trump at the White House after he tried to bully her into complying with his administration’s ban on transgender athletes in women’s sports, the U.S. Department of Education launched a federal investigation into the state’s compliance with Title IX. On Friday afternoon, the department’s Office for Civil Rights notified Maine Education Commissioner Pender Makin that it had opened an investigation into the Maine Department of Education and Maine School Administrative District #51. The probe focuses on the state’s policies allowing transgender students to compete in school sports, which OCR claims may violate Title IX protections for women’s sports, according to a department press release. The move came after Mills stood up to Trump at the National Governors Association meeting Friday morning. Trump, singling out Mills during a televised press event, demanded that Maine comply with his executive order barring transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports or risk losing federal funding. “I’m complying with state and federal laws,” Mills responded. Trump then said, “Well—I’m—we are the federal law. You better do it because otherwise, you’re not going to get any federal funding at all if you don’t.” Mills, unfazed, replied: “We’ll see you in court.” Hours later, the governor’s office issued a press release in response to the newly announced investigation. Mills denounced the probe as political retaliation, warning that Trump is using federal power to punish states that refuse to comply with his agenda. “No President—Republican or Democrat—can withhold federal funding authorized and appropriated by Congress and paid for by Maine taxpayers in an attempt to coerce someone into compliance with his will,” Mills said. “It is a violation of our Constitution and of our laws, which I took an oath to uphold.” She warned that Maine is only the first target. “Who and what will he target next? Will it be you? Will it be because of your race or your religion? Will it be because you look different or think differently? Where does it end?” Mills asked. She added, “In America, the President is neither a King nor a dictator, as much as this one tries to act like it – and it is the rule of law that prevents him from being so.” LGBTQ+ advocates condemned the administration’s actions. “Gov. Mills is standing up for all Maine students. HRC stands with Gov. Mills,” a Human Rights Campaign spokesperson told The Advocate. Earlier in the day, Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey vowed to fight the investigation in court, calling it an “******** and politically motivated attempt” to force the state into discrimination. “Fortunately, the rule of law still applies in this country, and I will do everything in my power to defend Maine’s laws and block efforts by the President to bully and threaten us,” Frey said. The White House and the Department of Education did not immediately respond to The Advocate’s request for comment. Source link #Federal #government #launches #investigation #Maine #hours #Democratic #governor #stood #Trumps #bullying Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

‘We are in danger’: Migrants deported from US were locked in hotel and held at remote camp in Panama, lawyers say – CNN ‘We are in danger’: Migrants deported from US were locked in hotel and held at remote camp in Panama, lawyers say – CNN ‘We are in danger’: Migrants deported from US were locked in hotel and held at remote camp in Panama, lawyers say CNNTrump deports hundreds to third countries, leaving them in legal limbo The Washington PostAs Trump ‘Exports’ Deportees, Hundreds Are Trapped in Panama Hotel The New York TimesPanama says it has recaptured ******** woman who escaped from a hotel holding deportees ABC News’Help us’: Hundreds deported from US held in Panama hotel BBC.com Source link #danger #Migrants #deported #locked #hotel #held #remote #camp #Panama #lawyers #CNN Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Bedfordshire police officer removed tag for ******* relationship Bedfordshire police officer removed tag for ******* relationship Danny Fullbrook BBC News, Bedfordshire Getty Images The officer removed the monitoring tag so she could meet the offender undetected A police officer who removed a burglar’s tag so she could have a ******* relationship with him has been jailed. Natasha Conneely, of Kempston in Bedfordshire, admitted to a charge of corruption or other improper exercise of police powers and privileges and was sentenced to 18 months in prison at St Albans Crown Court on Friday. The 31-year-old had been working for Bedfordshire Police’s offender management unit in May 2023 when it was discovered she had started a relationship with a known burglar. An investigation by the force’s professional standards department found she had removed his monitored offender’s tag so he could visit her home undetected. Afterwards she checked the system to see if their whereabouts had been captured. It was later discovered they had spent a night together in a hotel in Leeds in June 2023. Conneely’s team was responsible for managing offenders in the community with tagging and other methods designed to deter reoffending. Chief Constable Trevor Rodenhurst said: “Becoming involved in a ******* relationship with such an offender was totally inappropriate “Her actions to allow them to spend time together undetected were entirely selfish and had real potential to leave the offender free to further offend with no safeguards in place. “The evidence of their communication, in my view, demonstrates she entered this relationship and course of conduct of her own free will and her conduct falls far below the standard the public rightly expect. “ Conneely resigned from the force after she was charged. A police hearing in November 2023 found her behaviour amounted to “gross misconduct for discreditable conduct and honesty and integrity” and ruled she would have been dismissed had she not resigned. She was placed on the College of Policing’s barred list, meaning she cannot return to policing. Source link #Bedfordshire #police #officer #removed #tag #******* #relationship Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Is the Stock Market on a Collision Course With History? More Than a Century of Data Tells the Tale. Is the Stock Market on a Collision Course With History? More Than a Century of Data Tells the Tale. For more than two years, optimists have been running the show on Wall Street. Since 2022 came to a close, the mature-stock-powered Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI), broad-based S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC), and growth-propelled Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) have respectively risen by 35%, 60%, and 92% as of the closing bell on Feb. 19. Wall Street’s bull market has been fueled by a confluence of factors including: The artificial intelligence revolution A resilient U.S. economy Stock-split euphoria A significant uptick in share buyback activity from S&P 500 companies Donald Trump’s return to the White House But while catalysts have been abundant, the stock market appears to be on a collision course with history. Image source: Getty Images. Though there are always going to be predictive indicators or data points that portend trouble for the U.S. economy or stock market — e.g., the first notable decline in U.S. M2 money supply since the Great Depression occurred in 2023 — perhaps nothing is sounding a warning quite like one of Wall Street’s valuation tools. When most investors think about valuation, the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio probably comes to mind. The P/E ratio, a company’s share price divided by its trailing-12-month earnings per share, offers a quick way for investors to assess the priciness of a stock relative to its peers and the broader market. Unfortunately, the P/E ratio can be easily tripped up by growth stocks and shock events/economic downturns. A far more accurate measure of the stock market’s relative priciness is the S&P 500’s Shiller P/E ratio, also known as the cyclically adjusted P/E ratio (CAPE ratio). The Shiller P/E is based on average inflation-adjusted earnings from the prior 10 years, which means shock events and recessions won’t skew the results as they can with the traditional P/E ratio. Although the Shiller P/E didn’t gain acclaim until the late 1990s, it’s a valuation tool that’s been back-tested 154 years. S&P 500 Shiller CAPE Ratio data by YCharts. As of the closing bell on Feb. 19, the S&P 500’s Shiller P/E clocked in at 38.75, which is just shy of its highest reading (38.89) during the current bull market rally and more than double the average reading of 17.21 since January 1871. The current bull market marks only the third time in history the S&P 500’s Shiller P/E has surpassed 38, the other two being December 1999 (44.19) and the first week of January 2022 (just above 40). The all-time high reading preceded the bursting of the dot-com bubble, which wiped out 49% of the S&P 500’s value and 78% of the Nasdaq Composite on a peak-to-trough basis. The January 2022 top marked the start of the most recent bear market. Story Continues Since 1871, there have been only six instances, including the present, when the Shiller P/E has surpassed 30 for at least two consecutive months. Following each of the previous five occurrences, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and/or Nasdaq Composite all shed between 20% and 89% of their value. To be clear, the S&P 500’s Shiller P/E Ratio isn’t the only valuation tool that’s sounding a warning on Wall Street. A valuation measure that Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett referred to in a 2001 interview with Fortune magazine as “probably the best single measure of where valuations stand at any given moment” is also making dubious history. This measure, which has become known as the “Buffett Indicator,” is the total market cap of all U.S. stocks divided by U.S. gross domestic product (GDP). When back-tested to 1970, the Buffett Indicator has averaged a reading of 85% — i.e., the total value of all stocks equals roughly 85% of U.S. GDP. This past week, the Buffett Indicator hit an all-time high of 207.24%, which represents a roughly 144% premium to this valuation measure’s 55-year average. Adjusting for fourth-quarter GDP data, it’s even higher than when Barchart pointed out the Buffet Indicator’s prior all-time high in December. Previous jumps in the Buffett Indicator that were (at the time) well above its historic average eventually boded poorly for the stock market. For example, it peaked above 195% just before the 2022 bear market took shape, and hit more than 166% before the COVID-19 ****** began. Although neither the Shiller P/E Ratio nor the Buffett Indicator is in any way a timing tool, they do have a flawless track record of portending downside to come for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite. Image source: Getty Images. On one hand, the prospect of significant downside in the stock market might sound scary — especially for newer investors who haven’t weathered a true pullback in equities before. On the other hand, investor perspective can change everything. For instance, every year, Crestmont Research updates an extensive data set that calculates the rolling 20-year total returns (including dividends) of the benchmark S&P 500 dating back to the start of the 20th century. The S&P dates from 1923, but researchers were able to track the performance of its components in other major indexes back to 1900. This yielded 106 rolling 20-year periods with ending years ranging from 1919 through 2024. What Crestmont Research’s data set showed is that all 106 rolling 20-year periods produced a positive total return. An investor who purchased an index fund that mirrored the performance of the S&P 500 at any point since 1900 and simply held on to that position for 20 years would have made money 100% of the time. A separate analysis from Bespoke Investment Group also demonstrates the power of perspective on Wall Street. In June 2023, shortly after the S&P 500 was confirmed to be in a new bull market, Bespoke published a data set on X that compared the length of every bull and bear market for the broad-based index dating back to the start of the Great Depression. This roughly 94-year span featured 27 separate bull and bear markets. Based on Bespoke’s calculations, the average bear market endured for only 286 calendar days, which works out to around 9.5 months. What’s more, the lengthiest bear market drawdown lasted 630 calendar days in the mid-1970s. The typical S&P 500 bull market stuck around for 1,011 calendar days (roughly two years and nine months). If the current bull market were extrapolated from the publishing of Bespoke’s data set, just over half (14 out of 27) of all bull markets have lasted longer than the lengthiest bear market. Regardless of what any forecasting or valuation tool suggests will happen to stocks in the short run, time and perspective have a flawless track record of predicting long-term upside in the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite. Before you buy stock in S&P 500 Index, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and S&P 500 Index wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $858,668!* Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 942% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 178% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of February 21, 2025 Sean Williams has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Is the Stock Market on a Collision Course With History? More Than a Century of Data Tells the Tale. was originally published by The Motley Fool Source link #Stock #Market #Collision #History #Century #Data #Tells #Tale Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Trump spars with Democratic Maine governor at White House event over transgender athlete executive order – ABC News Trump spars with Democratic Maine governor at White House event over transgender athlete executive order – ABC News Trump spars with Democratic Maine governor at White House event over transgender athlete executive order ABC NewsTrump, Maine’s governor clash at White House over executive order compliance: ‘We’ll see you in court’ Fox NewsTrump spars with Maine’s governor at the White House over transgender athletes The Associated PressThe Governor Who Stood Up to Trump The AtlanticTrump threatens to withhold federal funds from Maine over transgender athletes The Hill Source link #Trump #spars #Democratic #Maine #governor #White #House #event #transgender #athlete #executive #order #ABC #News Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

WA man, 29, charged over alleged social media threats to federal MP WA man, 29, charged over alleged social media threats to federal MP A man has been arrested and charged after allegedly threatening a federal parliamentarian over social media. Source link #man #charged #alleged #social #media #threats #federal Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Arista Network Shares Slump Despite Upbeat Outlook Fueled by AI. Should Investors Buy the Stock on the Dip? Arista Network Shares Slump Despite Upbeat Outlook Fueled by AI. Should Investors Buy the Stock on the Dip? Shares of Arista Networks (NYSE: ANET) slipped despite the cloud computer networking switch maker reporting solid fourth quarter results and increasing its full-year 2025 guidance. The stock is now down more than 5% year to date, as of this writing. Let’s take a close look at Arista’s results and guidance to see if this is a good opportunity to buy the stock. While Arista turned in strong results, investors were anxious that white-box competitors could be taking share of its major customers. White-box equipment refers to generic, off-the-shelf switches. The company has long seen white-box competition, and it has always looked to differentiate itself through its software. On its earnings call, it said with artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure that it differentiates itself through AI visibility, real-time analytics, personal queuing, congestion control, and, most importantly, a smart system upgrade that can give an alternate connection if a graphic processing unit (GPU) is in trouble. The company is very dependent on hyperscalers, or companies with massive data center operations, which it calls Cloud Titans. Microsoft is its largest customer, accounting for around 20% of revenue, while Meta Platforms accounts for just under 15%. Oracle, meanwhile, is a recent customer to this list. Investors appeared mostly concerned with Meta, as 2024 revenue from the company fell about 17%. This could be backed out as 21% of Arista’s $5.9 billion in revenue from 2023 came from Meta ($1.2 billion), while 14.6% of its $7 billion in 2024 revenue ($1 billion) came from the company. However, this decline came after the end of a pretty large 400G (gigabit) switching upgrade at Meta that ended in 2023. The 400G refers to ethernet speed. Arista now has more than 1,000 400G customers and expects to begin seeing 800G customers this year with back-end GPU clusters. Overall, Arista saw its Q4 revenue jump 25% to $1.93 billion, while adjusted EPS also climbed 25% to $0.63. That topped analyst expectations for revenue of $1.9 billion and adjusted EPS of $0.57. Notably, deferred revenue rose by $280 million sequentially to $2.79 billion, including a $150 million increase for products. Changes in deferred revenue can be an indication of future revenue growth. The company said that AI and data center products made up 65% of its total revenue and that its market share in high-performance switching was more than 40%. Network adjacencies, such as routing and cognitive AI-driven campus solutions, brought in about 18% of revenue, while subscription-based network services earned about 17% of revenue. Story Continues Arista ended the quarter with $8.3 billion in cash and marketable securities after buying back $423.6 million worth of stock at an average price of $77.13 per share during the year. It generated $3.7 billion of free cash flow in the year. Looking ahead, Arista forecast revenue to grow by 17% to around $8.2 billion. That was above its initial forecast for 15% to 17% growth. The company continues to expect AI revenue to be around $1.5 billion, with $750 million in AI back-end clusters. It noted that three large customers will roll out 100,000 GPU clusters this year. For Q1, the company projected revenue to range from $1.93 billion to $1.97 billion, representing growth of 23% to 25%. Image source: Getty Images. Arista tends to be conservative with guidance, so it’s not a surprise that the company didn’t raise its forecast by more, which it seems investors wanted. The 2024 decline in Meta revenue, meanwhile, comes on the back of some very strong prior growth related to switching upgrades. There isn’t a big indication that the company is losing any market share with its big customers. Meanwhile, its strong deferred revenue increase should be a good sign that the guidance is conservative and that the company will continue to raise its expectations throughout the year. It is projecting a strong Q1, so this is not a backloaded forecast. Meanwhile, with capital expenditures (capex) for AI infrastructure increasing this year, including big spending from Microsoft and Meta, Arista should be in good shape to capitalize on this growth. Trading at a forward-price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 41 times 2025 analysts’ estimates, Arista’s stock is still not cheap, even after the pullback. ANET PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts The stock’s valuation looks elevated, given its projected growth. As such, I would not be a buyer on the dip, as I’d like to see a more pronounced pullback or higher revenue growth before jumping into the stock. Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you’ll want to hear this. On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a “Double Down” stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you’re worried you’ve already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves: Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you’d have $363,307!* Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you’d have $46,607!* Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you’d have $552,526!* Right now, we’re issuing “Double Down” alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon. Continue » *Stock Advisor returns as of February 21, 2025 Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Geoffrey Seiler has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Arista Networks, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Oracle. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Arista Network Shares Slump Despite Upbeat Outlook Fueled by AI. Should Investors Buy the Stock on the Dip? was originally published by The Motley Fool Source link #Arista #Network #Shares #Slump #Upbeat #Outlook #Fueled #Investors #Buy #Stock #Dip Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

How Federal Employees Are Fighting Back Against Elon Musk How Federal Employees Are Fighting Back Against Elon Musk On Feb. 7, as rumors spread through the ranks of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that Elon Musk’s team had entered their building, federal workers took out their phones. On high alert, they filmed unidentified young men from the team known as the Department of Government Efficiency being escorted by security through the glass doors of their downtown Washington headquarters. They shouted greetings from afar and tried to snap photos of their faces. Once the men were inside, one agency worker even confronted them in a conference room, demanding to see their credentials, in an incident described to The New York Times. One of the Musk aides used his laptop to block his ID badge from view. As Mr. Musk and his associates have swept rapidly through government agencies, dismantling programs and seizing access to sensitive databases, some federal employees are pushing back — using whatever levers they have to resist the orders of the world’s richest man, both in public and behind closed doors. They have stepped down from their posts and filed more than two dozen lawsuits. They have staged protests outside the federal buildings that Mr. Musk’s aides have penetrated and joined federal worker unions in droves. They have sent emails to hundreds of colleagues, blasting the new administration at the risk of their own livelihoods and careers. They have set up encrypted Signal chats, Zoom calls and Instagram accounts to share information and plan future actions. During one video meeting with a representative of Mr. Musk’s team, civil servants at the technology arm of the General Services Administration even bombarded an online chat with spoon emojis to express their displeasure at the deferred resignation offer known as the “fork in the road.” (Their bosses responded by removing spoons from the list of searchable emojis permitted in their videoconferencing platform.) “People are angry, they are frustrated, they are upset,” said Everett Kelley, the president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal employee union. “These are very patriotic people that actually care.” So far, President Trump and his administration have largely steamrolled the opposition. Newly appointed Trump officials have moved to fire most of the 200,000 federal government employees on probation, with plans for what the president has hailed as “large scale” cuts to come. The administration has seized on creative loopholes to continue to bottle up government spending, despite court orders pausing those efforts. And Mr. Musk has spread misinformation about the work of the federal bureaucracy. “Anyone who thinks protests, lawsuits and lawfare will deter President Trump must have been sleeping under a rock for the past several years,” the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said in a statement. Democrats have struggled to identify a strategy to fight back, still reeling from a decisive loss in November that handed the White House and both houses of Congress to Republicans. By banding together, federal workers say they hope to catalyze a wider movement. On balance, more Americans so far disapprove than approve of Mr. Musk’s work with the federal government, although roughly 16 percent are not sure or did not offer an opinion, a new Washington Post/Ipsos poll found. “I want my colleagues who still have jobs to hang in there,” said Hanna Hickman, a former lawyer at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau who was laid off this month and now hopes that union lawsuits will prevent a full shutdown of the agency. “I’m out of a job but hopefully they aren’t, and it’s important for people to understand that there are people who will fight back.” The pushback has come with peril, as some federal officials who have refused to carry out orders have felt compelled to leave their jobs, including most recently a wave of prosecutors at the Justice Department and the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan and the acting chief of the Social Security Administration. The White House has also limited the ability of federal workers to fight back by disrupting many of the avenues that they had previously relied on to address grievances. Mr. Trump has pushed out 19 inspectors general; tried to fire the chairwoman of the Merit Systems Protection Board, which shields civil servants from unjustified disciplinary action; and dismissed the head of the Office of Special Counsel, an independent agency charged with safeguarding government whistle-blowers. “It’s a deterrent to lawful whistle-blowing,” said Mark Zaid, a lawyer who represents individuals who speak out about wrongdoing in the government. “The pathetic irony is that it’s encouraging people to break the law and leak classified information because the system is no longer in place.” One of the agencies Mr. Trump has targeted is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which protects federal workers from discrimination and enforces federal anti-discrimination laws in the private sector. Last month, a supervisor in the agency’s New York District Office sent an email to several administrative law judges ordering them to compile a list of all cases involving L.G.B.T.Q. discrimination in response to the president’s executive order declaring that the United States will recognize only two sexes. The supervisor said no orders could be issued in those cases without first being reviewed by headquarters, according to a copy of the message viewed by The Times. Karen Ortiz, one of those judges, responded by emailing the entire office, roughly 185 people, under the subject line “THIS IS NOT NORMAL.” “Please RESIST. DO NOT COMPLY WITH THEIR ******** MANDATES,” she wrote, referring to Mr. Trump’s executive order. “It’s time for us to embody the civil rights work we were hired to do and honor the oath to the Constitution that we all took.” To her surprise, her message generated no response. Soon, she realized that the email had been deleted from her mailbox — and from those of her colleagues. Ms. Ortiz followed up with an agencywide message calling on the E.E.O.C.’s acting chair to resign. At that point, she said, her ability to send emails was shut off. She is still working, but has hired a team of lawyers. Ms. Ortiz said she had no regrets. “The unknown was not as scary as being complicit and not speaking up,” Ms. Ortiz said in an interview with The Times. “I can exist on cornflakes and community at the end of the day if it means that my soul is intact.” The E.E.O.C. said in a statement that it had a “longstanding policy prohibiting unauthorized all-employee emails.” The acting chair, Andrea Lucas, said the commission “robustly will comply with the president’s executive orders, including the ‘Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government’ executive order.” Some civil servants have also turned Slack, the workplace chatting app, into a weapon of resistance. The Slack channel of the Technology Transformation Services — the tech-focused arm of the General Services Administration — has emerged as a forum for protest in recent weeks as employees have pushed back against moves by the Trump administration. This week, one T.T.S. employee used the channel to announce to his colleagues that he was resigning. The reason: He said he had been asked to grant Thomas Shedd, the newly appointed head of the group, access to the Notify.gov database, which is used by federal and state agencies to text the public about services. The worker wrote that he saw it as a violation of his duties, adding that he believed granting Mr. Shedd such access could expose the personal information of Americans, including phone numbers, according to a message seen by The Times and reported earlier by the technology news website 404 Media. His resignation spurred an outcry on the internal T.T.S. Slack channel, according to messages seen by The Times. Mr. Shedd responded by saying he had requested access to Notify.gov to “ensure I have a detailed understanding of how the systems work.” He said that he did not have administrative access “at this time” to the text database and that he was dismayed by the leaking of communications. Will Powell, a General Services Administration spokesman, said that “Mr. Shedd is working with all appropriate G.S.A. officials to ensure all established G.S.A. protocols and policies are followed before he is granted access to a T.T.S. system.” Others across the government have found ways to voice their dissent internally. Last week, employees inside a White House technology office that has been rebranded as Mr. Musk’s cost-efficiency operation realized that a sign reading “HATE HAS NO HOME HERE” that they had hung in a window facing Lafayette Park had been removed, according to two people familiar with the situation. In response, they printed out more signs and hung them up — some of which later disappeared again. At the beleaguered U.S. Agency for International Development, a senior official last month countermanded an order that had placed dozens of staff members on administrative leave, returning them to active service. “I wish you all the best,” Nick Gottlieb, the agency’s director of employee and labor relations, wrote in an email to them. “You do not deserve this.” Soon after, Mr. Gottlieb was himself put on leave. He did not respond to requests for comment. At the F.B.I., the top agent in its New York field office told his staff in an email that it was in “the middle of a battle” as Mr. Trump targeted officials involved in the investigations into the Jan. 6 attack. Rank-and-file civil servants have responded to Mr. Musk’s incursion by seeking the protections of unions. The American Federation of Government Employees said it had gained more than 20,000 members since Jan. 1, a significant increase compared with previous years. (In all of 2024, the union said it had added roughly 7,400 members.) This month, hundreds of federal workers held a rally outside the Capitol, venting their anger at Mr. Musk with signs that said “Fork Off, Elon” and “Launch Musk Into Orbit.” Others have gathered outside the headquarters of U.S.A.I.D. and the Office of Personnel Management. On Monday, thousands of people nationwide held Presidents’ Day marches in state capitals, including Austin, Texas; Atlanta; Lansing, Mich.; and Sacramento, Calif. “We are used to being the punching bags of Congress,” said Chris Dols, a dredging expert at the Army Corps of Engineers who has been participating in protests, speaking in his capacity as the president of a local chapter of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers. “But we are done being props.” Kate Conger, Edward Wong and Ruth Igielnik contributed reporting. Kirsten Noyes and Kitty Bennett contributed research. Source link #Federal #Employees #Fighting #Elon #Musk Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

In Syria, Joy at al-Assad’s Demise Turns to Fear of Israeli Raids In Syria, Joy at al-Assad’s Demise Turns to Fear of Israeli Raids Ruwayda al-Aqaar was sleeping next to her husband and 3-year-old daughter in late December when they were awakened by the sound of approaching tanks and bulldozers. They rushed outside their small house and saw dozens of Israeli soldiers marching into their small farming village, she said. “I was terrified,” Ms. al-Aqaar said recently in her home in the village of Suwaisah, in southeastern Syria, as her daughter watched “Tom and Jerry” cartoons. “We were afraid of being displaced and forced to leave our homes.” For weeks, the family and their neighbors feared that Israeli forces would target their village after carrying out similar incursions into towns nearby. Just days after a coalition of Syrian rebels ousted President Bashar al-Assad in early December, Israel invaded border villages in Syria in what it described as temporary measures to protect its own security. But the Israeli raids continued throughout January and into February, raising fears among Syrians that the incursions could become a prolonged military occupation. The Israeli troops have been targeting villages, particularly ones with military outposts. In Suwaisah, the Israeli soldiers tore down a small military outpost that had been abandoned by Syrian troops who took their weapons with them after the Assad regime fell. And the Israelis demanded that residents hand over any weapons they may have had. This account of what happened is based on interviews with more than a dozen residents of Suwaisah and Al-Dawayah Al-Kabirah, a nearby village that was also raided, as well as photographs they shared from cellphones. Suwaisah is a village of mostly one-story homes, its residents mostly farmers and herders. It was a little past 7 a.m. on Dec. 25 when the Israelis entered the village and were met by dozens of adults and children, residents said. Some of the Syrians tore off olive branches from nearby orchards as a symbol of peace, they said, adding that none of the residents who went out to meet the Israelis carried weapons. “Syria is free, free,” the villagers chanted at the soldiers, who were armed with semiautomatic machine guns, “and Israel out!” The Israeli military raids have terrified the villagers, who, like other Syrians, had celebrated the ouster of Mr. al-Assad and gathered in the streets, playing revolutionary songs and waving flags. But in this corner of Syria, the celebrations quickly dissipated into fear of an encroaching foreign army. “They ruined our joy,” Ms. al-Aqaar said. This part of southeastern Syria abuts the Golan Heights, territory that Israel captured from Syria during the Arab-Israeli War of 1967 and then annexed. The move is not recognized by most of the world, including the United Nations, which considers the land occupied. Ms. al-Aqaar, like many Syrians in the region, feared that her village might meet the same fate. Israel has in recent months seized a demilitarized buffer zone in the Golan Heights and territory in southwestern Syria — including Mount Hermon, the country’s highest point. It has also has carried out hundreds of airstrikes, destroying Syrian military assets, including tanks, weapons production facilities and air-defense systems, according to Syrian monitoring groups. The Israeli military says it is acting “in order to protect the Israeli border.” Israel has long seen the Golan Heights as important to its security because it sits on the edge of Syria, Jordan and Lebanon, offering an important military vantage point. There is now concern in Israel that the fall of the Assad regime may have left a security vacuum in the area. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has signaled that the military would occupy the lands it has taken for the foreseeable future, “until another arrangement is found that guarantees Israel’s security.” Israeli forces continue to conduct cross-border incursions into Syria with bulldozers and armored vehicles, according to Etana, a Syrian reporting and analysis organization. On Jan. 16, an Israeli airstrike struck a Syrian government convoy, killing at least two people, including a mayor, according to Etana and another Syrian monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. They have raided former Syrian Army bases in the southern provinces of Quneitra and Daraa to demolish property, occupy land and demand residents hand over any weapons, Etana reported. “This available evidence indicates that Israel may be expanding and entrenching its occupation over areas of Quneitra Province,” the group said in a report in January. Israel’s recent incursions and taking of the buffer zone in the Golan Heights violates the 1974 agreement between the two countries that followed the end of the 1973 war, according to the United Nations. After that conflict, both sides had agreed that U.N. peacekeepers would monitor a 155-square-mile demilitarized zone between their forces. The Israeli incursions have been condemned internationally. The United Nations said in January that “Syria’s sovereignty, territorial unity, and integrity must be fully restored.” And in December, Geir Pedersen, the United Nations special envoy for Syria, called on Israel to halt its “very troubling” military attacks. Ahmed al-Shara, the leader of Syria’s new government, has criticized Israel for its incursion, saying it was a violation of the 1974 armistice agreement. Shadi al-Mleihan, a journalist who lives in Suwaisah, said he was among those who confronted the Israeli forces when they entered his village in December. “We have been in a war for nearly 14 years,” he said. “We don’t want another war.” In addition to destroying the outposts, the soldiers demanded that residents hand over any weapons in the village, Mr. al-Mleihan and other villagers said. “They said you need to announce from the mosque speakers that we want all the weapons and if you won’t we have a megaphone,” Badir al-Krayat, Ms. al-Aqaar’s husband, said the soldiers told them. “We said, ‘We don’t have weapons; we are farmers.’” As villagers confronted some soldiers, other troops were leveling the outpost, some olive trees and a small municipal building, several residents said. Two hours later, the soldiers withdrew toward Al-Dawayah Al-Kabirah, setting their sights on another abandoned Syrian military outpost there, residents said. There, villagers gathered around the former outpost and sat on top of other structures in an effort to prevent the Israeli forces from destroying them. Then, according to multiple residents and a human rights group, Israeli troops fired on unarmed civilians. At least five civilians, including a child, were wounded, according to residents and the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Israel military said it “does not target its operations against civilians or civilian infrastructures.” In response to questions, the military said it “operated near the village in order to neutralize military infrastructures which posed a threat” to its forces. “Several groups were observed approaching I.D.F. personnel in the area,” the military said. “After calling on the crowd to stand back and maintain a safe distance, individuals continued to advance towards the forces that responded with warning shots solely aimed at the air.” Khalid al-Aaqal, 17, a high school senior, said he was among those shot in Al-Dawayah Al-Kabirah in late December. He said he and other villagers went to confront the Israeli troops, “and they started shooting” at the villagers’ feet with semiautomatic machine guns. “We didn’t think they would shoot at us because we didn’t have any weapons,” Mr. al-Aaqal said. His cousin was shot in the foot, Mr. al-Aaqal and his mother said, and when Mr. al-Aaqal went to rescue him, Mr. al-Aaqal was hit in both legs. “They drowned our celebrations with their incursion,” said Alaa al-Aawad, 24, who was shot in the ankle and spoke as he lay on a pile of thin mattresses, his left leg propped up on a pillow. Villagers in Suwaisah and Al-Dawayah Al-Kabirah said they were anxious about what comes next. The Israeli forces have left, but residents said they could still see them moving on two nearby mountain tops that the soldiers have seized. “We don’t know what their goal is,” Hassan Muhammad, 32, who was one of the protesters who confronted the soldiers in Al-Dawayah Al-Kabirah, said of Israel. “But we as a people, our goal is to protect our lands. We just got rid of one tyrant and we don’t want another to come here and occupy it.” Source link #Syria #Joy #alAssads #Demise #Turns #Fear #Israeli #Raids Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Social media bans for teens: Australia has passed one, should other countries follow suit? | Social media Social media bans for teens: Australia has passed one, should other countries follow suit? | Social media Social media has transformed our relationships with our friends and family, brought unfiltered news from around the world to our handsets and introduced us to an unending supply of cat memes. Some of this has been positive, some negative and, for much of it, the jury is still out. But as the first generation of social media natives start to have children of their own, there is increasing unease about tech’s impact on children. These concerns prompted Australia to pass legislation last November banning access to social media for under-16s. “So many things are happening at once,” says Sonia Livingstone, professor of social psychology at the London School of Economics and a specialist in children and social media. “We clearly have a silent problem of parents at home struggling with social media and feeling unsupported. We have a small number of parents whose children have come to serious harm, or died, who have become mobilised. We have politicians worried about complaints in their constituencies and also looking for a good news story in gloomy times. And we have big tech outrunning regulation in all directions.” It is a perfect storm, she says, into which discussion of an outright ban on social media for under-16s has come as a supposed saviour. The *** government has twisted itself into a torturous position: Peter Kyle, the technology secretary, said last November that a ban was “on the table”, before then telling the Guardian it was “not on the cards” for now. In January, he said: “I don’t have any plans to ban social media for under-16s.” While the *** government seems to be deciding that a ban is not for them, some big names have signalled their support. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates recently said of Australia’s ban, “There’s a good chance that that’s a smart thing”. The ***’s head of counter-terrorism policing said a ban “warrants serious attention”. Chris Philp, the shadow home secretary, has said he is “broadly in favour” of a ban, but the age limit could be lower than 16. “There’s a huge amount of conflict and uncertainty in the world,” says Livingstone. “And social media seems the fixable problem.” But is banning access the answer? How might social media bans work? The new *********** law says that social media networks have to take “reasonable steps” to prevent those under 16 from having an account when the law comes into force in December this year. What this means in practice is not fully fleshed out, but an explanatory memorandum suggested that a minimum level should put in place “age assurance” tech, which might include facial recognition and age estimation. Such technology is often offered as the solution to identifying someone’s age, but it remains an estimate – and can be wrong. The average gap between what one of these systems believes someone’s age to be and their actual age can vary between one and three years. That may be a small margin of error for a 45-year-old, but if you are an 18-year-old student and the computer says you are 15 so can’t join social media with your university friends, that is frustrating. Would a ban actually work? A recent More In Common poll found that three-quarters of the public would support a ban on social media for under-16s, up from the current minimum age of 13 when children can legally access platforms. Many will be parents at their wit’s end as they struggle to keep their children safe online. “Social media has no place for children under 16,” says Vicky Borman, a mother of three children, one of whom is under the age of 16. “It exposes them to a myriad of unacceptable content, including ************, nudity, bullying and harassment, that they simply aren’t equipped to handle.” Typical of many parents, Borman is in favour of a ban. “It’s time for us to reclaim childhood for our kids, ensuring they have the opportunity to create lasting memories away from screens,” she says. Yet even those pushing most publicly for something to be done do not believe an outright ban on children accessing social media is the answer. Andy Burrows is the CEO of the Molly Rose Foundation, set up by the family of Molly Russell, the 14-year-old who took her own life after being bombarded with negativity on social media. “The reality is that if we pull up the drawbridge on social media platforms, those bad actors won’t disappear,” he says. “They will simply migrate to gaming and messaging services, and the risk would be that the volume of harm on those platforms then becomes unmanageable.” Sonia Livingstone also has doubts. “A ban makes a great headline and seems straightforward, but it isn’t,” she says. “A ban is meant to be a ban on technology companies making problematic products available to children, and it very quickly becomes a ban on children accessing technology.” There are protections for children and teenagers in place on social media – often managed by the companies that run the platforms. Photograph: Deborah Lee Rossiter/Alamy What protections exist at the moment, and how effective are they judged to be? There are currently protections for child users of social media – many put in place and managed by the social media platforms – for example, that users should be over 13. “But they’re not very transparent or stable,” says Livingstone. Most companies tag accounts they suspect are run by children younger than 13 and put child-safety features on them, such as limits on who can message them or the type of content they can encounter. But it is not clear they work, says Livingstone, who regularly talks to children as part of her research. They say they still receive message requests from adult users. “There are some protections, but absolutely not enough,” says Livingstone. “And until the [***’s] Online Safety Act and the [EU’s] Digital Services Act kick in, we’re a long way from getting those algorithmic protections people really want.” (While the laws have been passed, enforcement by regulators, such as Ofcom in the ***, is still months away.) Burrows agrees on the *** front. “The prime minister should be urgently prioritising, strengthening and fixing the Online Safety Act, so it works much more effectively for children,” he says. What is the evidence that under-16 social media use is harmful? If you read US social scientist Jonathan Haidt’s book The Anxious Generation – which has been on the New York Times bestseller list for 46 weeks – there is a lot of evidence that it is harmful. The book is a compelling manifesto warning about the polluting impact of social media and tech on our teenagers’ minds. We know blanket bans tend not to work, tend to be circumvented by teens – but feel like they’re the right thing to do Prof Pete Etchells, Bath Spa University Yet, one statistician argues that a good number of the studies Haidt relies on are misrepresented, and some even contradict his reasoning. The author admits two minor errors on his website. While a psychology professor has accused Haidt of “making up stories by simply looking at trend lines”, adding that his conclusions were “not supported by science”. Haidt says that his critics have misinterpreted his claims, including using the wrong standard of proof. Among the criticisms of the book was that Haidt confuses correlation with causation. But his central argument seems to fit with the concerns and experiences for many parents. Few people doubt there is a teenage mental health crisis. And adults can feel the addictive nature of their own smartphones. Debates about causation and correlation can feel abstract when parents face daily dilemmas about how to manage their children’s access to smartphones and social media. What constitutes social media? This is the big question that vexes those who are studying this issue. “We don’t really have any clear definitions of what legislators mean by social media at the moment,” says Pete Etchells, professor of psychology at Bath Spa University and the author of Unlocked. Do two friends chatting to one another on WhatsApp become social media? What happens when you add a third? And does using the status update function on WhatsApp make it social? A definition has not been settled on, even by Australia. When it passed its legislation in November, it failed to detail which companies would be affected, although the country’s communications minister Michelle Rowland said Snapchat, TikTok, X, Instagram, Reddit and Facebook would probably come under the rules. What is the evidence so far from Australia and other places that have passed bans? Australia is the highest-profile country to take action, but its ban has not yet come into force. In the absence of evidence from a total ban, we have to rely on data from partial or scenario-specific bans, such as limiting access to tech or phones in schools or at certain hours of the day. A recent study published in the Lancet of more than 1,200 secondary school pupils found little difference in the mental wellbeing of those attending schools that had restrictive bans and schools that did not. The authors’ explanation was that school bans did not affect total phone use. However, according to the study: “We observed that increased time spent on phones/social media is significantly associated with worsened outcomes for mental health and wellbeing, physical activity and sleep, and attainment and disruptive behaviour.” “Anecdotally, we know that overly restrictive, blanket bans tend not to work, tend to be circumvented by teens, but feel like they’re the right thing to do,” says Etchells. “The South Korea shutdown law is a good example of this.” In 2011, the country enacted a ban on children under the age of 16 from playing video games between midnight and 6am to try to head off concerns about video game addiction. The law was repealed a decade later after the country realised it did not have the intended effect, with identity theft rising as kids found ways to circumvent it. Are some of the manifestations of big tech cosying up to Donald Trump in the US – from downsizing moderation teams to cancelling factchecking initiatives – focusing the calls for bans? During Joe Biden’s presidency, says Livingstone, “there was a sense that trust and safety teams were building up. The regulation was coming, being consulted on and under way”. But recent attacks by the Trump campaign against NCMEC, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, a US nonprofit that is government funded, worry experts. NCMEC stops the spread of images of child abuse, and has had its funding threatened over its gender ideology. Overall, some fear it adds up to a bleak picture that might trigger more calls for blunt tools such as bans, rather than more nuanced measures that can make a real difference. “The child online safety experts are really worried about whether regulators are positioned to stand up to big tech,” says Livingstone. “Right now, it’s hard to reassure children, parents and the public that social media will get safer in the coming year.” Source link #Social #media #bans #teens #Australia #passed #countries #follow #suit #Social #media Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

5 Podcasts About Beauty, Skin Care and Self-Care 5 Podcasts About Beauty, Skin Care and Self-Care The beauty industry has seen exponential growth over the past few years, driven in part by a growing interest in preventative skin care among Gen Z and increased demand for clean and personalized formulations. As a consumer, it can be overwhelming to navigate all of the various acids, oils and vitamins claiming to be the key to eternal youth. And the cost of making the wrong choice isn’t just financial — evidence suggests that overdoing it on products can be harmful, breaking down the skin’s natural protective barriers. Some of these podcasts cut through the marketing noise and TikTok trends to deliver unbiased, straightforward tips on everything from serums to supplements, while others shine a spotlight on impossible beauty standards in Hollywood and beyond. For every skin care product that genuinely works, there are plenty doing nothing (or even doing more harm than good), and savvy marketing can make it hard to tell which is which. “The Beauty Brains” helps to distinguish the beauty science from the pseudoscience, and it is presented by Perry Romanowski and Valerie George, two cosmetic chemists with a combined 40 years of experience in the business. Despite their shared expertise as formulators, the show doesn’t feel like inside baseball; it’s more like an advice show with smart friends, with the hosts sharing evidence-based answers to questions about products, supplements and anti-aging regimens. With a back catalog that dates to 2018, there’s a wealth of information for skin care novices and pros alike. Starter episode: “Is Exfoliation Just as Important as Using SPF?” Hosted by Jessica Matlin and Jennifer Sullivan, two beauty journalists who are also friends, this nine-year-old series is a staple for anyone looking to keep up with skin care and makeup trends. Hourlong episodes are released twice a week — one is typically a guest interview, while the other features Matlin and Sullivan chatting through beauty news and giving their unfiltered opinions on what products and trends are legit. Their interviews are wide-ranging — recent guests have included a venture capital executive discussing what investors in beauty look for, and the actress Brooke Shields, who spoke about wrestling with the beauty standards that come with a career on camera. Starter episode: “Skincare Supplements & How Diet Affects Beauty with Dr. Rajani Katta” Hosted by Tiffany Bartok, a filmmaker, this engaging series offers a detailed exploration of what it takes to put beauty onscreen. “Look Behind the Look” features conversations with makeup artists, costume designers and hair stylists about their work, focusing primarily on the film industry. Episodes are released throughout the year, but the show really hits its stride during each awards season — so far this year Bartok has interviewed those pros who’ve worked on Oscar nominated films, including the beleaguered musical “Emilia Pérez” and the Angelina Jolie-starring biopic “Maria.” Starter episode: “Inside Whitney Houston’s Makeup, Costumes and Music in ‘The Bodyguard’” This long-running series started in 2018, right as the concept of “self-care” was crossing over into the mainstream. Originally hosted by the writers Kate Spencer and Doree Shafrir (who billed themselves as “not experts, just two friends who like to talk a lot about serums”) the show is a cozy blend of friendly banter, personal product recommendations and reflections on the everyday habits that can make a difference to mental and physical well being. Regular episodes feature Spencer and Shafrir alongside various guests, which include fellow podcasters and writers as well as beauty experts. Spencer retired from the show last spring, and has since been replaced by Elise Hu, the author of “Flawless,” about the rise of Korean skin care. Despite this shake-up, “Forever 35” has retained both its format and its warmth and charm, and Hu brings a welcome new perspective to the mix. Starter episode: “How to Stay Politically Engaged Without Going Crazy With Leah Litman” The film historian Karina Longworth has been producing her meticulously crafted and deeply researched podcast “You Must Remember This” for over a decade, exploring unknown and underreported corners of movie industry history. This spinoff series aired in 2020, and chronicles eight stories about the intersection between Hollywood and the beauty industry. The stories are introduced by Longworth, but written and performed by different reporters, which lends a distinct tone and type of expertise to each one. One fascinating episode from Halley Bondy, a journalist, explores the story of Merle Oberon, who became the first Asian actress to be nominated for a best actress Oscar, but concealed her heritage by lightening her skin with bleach creams. With other episodes exploring ageism, fatphobia and misogynoir (a form of misogyny faced by ****** women), “Make Me Over” is a compelling glimpse into what has, and hasn’t, changed in onscreen beauty standards over the past century. Starter episode: “Hollywood’s First Weight Loss Surgery: Molly O’Day” Source link #Podcasts #Beauty #Skin #Care #SelfCare Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Frustrated Democrats Urge Leaders to Show More Fight Against Trump Frustrated Democrats Urge Leaders to Show More Fight Against Trump One month after President Trump was sworn in for a second term, Democratic despair and denial are giving way to an angry message from party activists and voters to their leaders. Do something. Across the country, anti-Trump protests and fiery town halls are flickering back to life. In polling, Democratic voters are venting disapproval at congressional Democrats. And in interviews this week with voters, activists and elected officials, many said Democrats were failing to curb Mr. Trump or offer a meaningful countermessage. In an interview, Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, a Democrat, said that neither party was “effectively serving as a check on the executive branch,” and offered a striking rebuke of his side of the aisle. “They are failing to address the real concerns that people have,” he said when asked on Thursday about congressional Democrats’ response to the early weeks of the new Trump administration. Mr. Shapiro, who has filed a lawsuit over the Trump administration’s freeze of federal funding for Pennsylvania projects, added, “They’re failing to do what is their fundamental responsibility constitutionally — to be a check.” The dawning reality of Republican control of the Capitol, punctuated by Mr. Trump’s eagerness to smash longstanding boundaries and enact retribution on his perceived enemies, has heightened Democrats’ sense of shock and outrage — and, increasingly, their frustration with their own leaders. None of Mr. Trump’s nominees have been rejected by the Republican-controlled Senate, which early Friday also approved a G.O.P. budget plan that would increase spending on border security and the military. A poll this week from Quinnipiac University found that more Democratic voters disapproved of the job that congressional Democrats were doing than approved of it. And in a new CNN poll, 73 percent of Democrats surveyed said congressional Democrats were doing too little to oppose Mr. Trump. “We need really strong voices of moral outrage, and I would like to see that. I am not seeing that,” said Theresa Reid, who leads the Democratic Party in liberal Washtenaw County, Mich. “Any top elected, any top Democrat. They don’t have to be elected, necessarily. You know, anybody. Any national leader would be really great.” Ms. Reid added: “It’s risky. But my God. Don’t obey in advance. Don’t give up in advance.” Ezra Levin, a leader of the liberal group Indivisible, which has organized anti-Trump protests, said he constantly heard the question, “‘Why aren’t Democrats fighting back with everything they’ve got?’” For Jessica Ruiz, 36, a Philadelphia Democrat, her disappointment in the party runs so deep that it even clouded her joy over the Eagles’ Super Bowl victory. “We’re able to get together and go out on the streets and celebrate a football team,” she said. “But we’re not able to come together and raise our voices to our city officials, state officials and government in the same manner.” Some Democrats urge patience, betting that the country’s mood toward Mr. Trump will sour. For now, they face the obvious hurdle of life in the congressional *********, alongside the possibility of retaliation against those who criticize Mr. Trump or his powerful ally Elon Musk. “I really don’t know what they can do,” said Karen Taylor, 56, a Democrat from Mesa, Ariz. “My only hope is that people will see and get out and vote the next time.” Democratic lawmakers are also divided, with some eager to battle Mr. Trump and Republicans on every front and others urging a far more selective approach. Representative Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, a Democrat who represents a district that Mr. Trump won, warned against overreacting to “whatever is coming down the Twitter feed.” “Our job is to build a national consensus about how we are going to address the very real problems we’re facing,” she said, “and not alienate the voters who are going to determine the balance of power, the real legislative authority moving forward.” A major test of the Democratic posture toward Republicans is unfolding over a spending confrontation. In the meantime, as Democrats strain to keep up with Mr. Trump’s rapid moves, they have held news conferences; taken to social media; tried to force Republicans to take damaging votes; and, in some cases, organized protests as they seek to cast Mr. Trump as advancing billionaires’ interests at the expense of the working class. Representative Greg Casar, a Texas Democrat who leads the Congressional Progressive Caucus, sees a chance to expand the party’s appeal with a broad spectrum of voters who are uneasy with giving the ultrawealthy — like Mr. Musk — more power. “It’s not just progressive voters that are upset,” he said. But, he added, “for us to encourage people to step up and fight, and put in their hours after and before work to stand up to Trump, they also need to see their elected officials coming together, treating this as the emergency that it is.” In an interview, Ken Martin, the new chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said he shared the base’s combative attitude. He even embraced the word “resist,” which has fallen out of favor with exhausted Democrats. “We have to stand up and resist with every fiber of our being,” he said. “If we’re not doing that, and doing that strenuously, how in the hell are people going to believe that if they put us back in power, we would fight for them?” Beyond Washington, governors — the chief executives of their states — tend to have more leeway, and some are pushing back more assertively. “We don’t have kings in America, and I don’t intend to bend the knee,” Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois, a Democrat, said in a speech this week. “When the five-alarm fire starts to burn, every good person better be ready to man a post with a bucket of water if you want to stop it from raging out of control.” But for Democratic governors, too, countering Mr. Trump is not a simple proposition. Some recall their dealings with him during his first term, when certain governors believed that federal aid was conditioned on flattery. “Governors are worried their states are going to get crushed, and trying to figure out the right balance between condemning Trump and staying on his good side,” said former Representative Tom Malinowski of New Jersey, a Democrat who has encouraged more forceful pushback to Mr. Trump. “Inevitably, they are going to offend him, and inevitably, he is going to try to crush them.” Gov. Ned Lamont of Connecticut suggested that he was trying to head off that possibility for his state by taking as many meetings as he could with Trump administration officials and Republican governors at the National Governors Association gathering this week in Washington. “I’m trying to keep my head down, so it’s not like Whac-a-Mole and I’m the mole,” he said. Gov. Janet Mills of Maine briefly played the role of the mole on Friday during a White House meeting where Mr. Trump attacked her stance defending the rights of transgender people. “Enjoy your life after governor,” he said. “I don’t think you’ll be in elected politics.” In a statement, a group of Democratic governors denounced Mr. Trump’s conduct, saying he had engaged in “ugly personal attacks and threats” and pushed “unfounded conspiracy theories.” Still, several Democratic governors plan to attend a White House dinner hosted by Mr. Trump on Saturday night. In the past, the event has led to governors’ confronting presidents of both parties. In Kansas City, Mo., Mayor Quinton Lucas, a Democrat, said that many voters had grown inured to Mr. Trump’s outlandish statements. Breaking through, he said, requires showing Americans how decisions in Washington are affecting their neighbors, rather than simply pledging to “fight.” He referred to the cutting of a grant for a beloved urban farming initiative in Kansas City. “I can spend all day saying, ‘Oh, these norms are broken, and the department of this or that or the other is different,’” he said. “When we talked about that garden, that garden run by a ****** woman at the core of our city who was helping make sure that mothers have food, people are like, ‘That’s screwed up.’” J. David Goodman contributed reporting from Houston. Source link #Frustrated #Democrats #Urge #Leaders #Show #Fight #Trump Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Leigh Bowery Arrives at Tate Modern, Without Labels Leigh Bowery Arrives at Tate Modern, Without Labels “If you label me, you negate me,” the performance artist and fashion designer Leigh Bowery said in 1993, one year before his death at age 33. Maybe it is this resistance to easy categorization that has meant Bowery never quite became a household name. His cultural influence, though, is beyond question: His provocative performances led him to work with artists including Lucian Freud and Marina Abramovic. His extreme fashions are still referenced on runways, by designers including Rick Owens and John Galliano. And his status as a ****** culture icon is cemented by regular invocations at L.G.B.T.Q. club nights and on “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” But during his short, colorful and often shocking life, nobody knew what box to put Bowery in. Three decades after his death, they still don’t. A new exhibition called “Leigh Bowery!” at Tate Modern in London will bring his work to a much broader audience. The show, which opens Feb. 27 and runs through Aug. 31, charts Bowery’s journey from suburban Australia to the heart of London’s alternative gay club scene in the ’80s, and his transformation into a figure that Boy George once described as “modern art on legs.” George later went on to play Bowery in the 2003 Broadway run of the biographical musical “Taboo,” for which George also wrote the lyrics. The musical is named after an infamous club night that Bowery hosted, which opened in 1985 on a dingy corner of London’s Leicester Square. Every Thursday, the party attracted artists, models, designers and celebrities including George Michael, Sade and Bryan Ferry — but also drag queens and heroin users. Each week, Bowery arrived with a wild new outfit that challenged conventional notions of taste, gender and decorum. He described his role at the club as “a local cabaret act,” explaining: “If people see me behaving in such an outrageous manner, they won’t feel inhibited themselves.” Fashion was the chief concern at Taboo, which operated by the mantra: “Dress as if your life depends on it, or don’t bother.” The doorman would flash a mirror in the face of aspiring entrants and ask, “Would you let yourself in?” The exclusivity was not just to generate mystique: It also created a space where people on society’s margins felt like they belonged. “I remember Leigh in this insane Bart Simpson mask on roller skates, just bumping into everyone and screaming,” Boy George said in an email. “He brought such anarchy and energy to every club or party.” Taboo closed after just one year when a tabloid newspaper ran an article about drug use in the club — but just like Bowery himself, the short run only served to cement the legend. Epic Looks Bowery grew up in Sunshine, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, where he felt stifled by the conventions of his surroundings and would gaze longingly at magazine photos of Britain’s New Wave and punk scenes. When he turned 18, he moved to London, adopted a British accent and set about infiltrating the city’s gay party circuit. Though he started out making clothes for others, Bowery soon realized that he preferred to design for himself alone. “Directing his own performance and being the star was a better fit for what he wanted to do,” his sister, Bronwyn Bowery, said recently by phone. While he didn’t consider himself a drag queen, he was inspired by drag, combining high camp with high fashion. His huge figure — heavy set and a towering 6-foot-3 — only accentuated the impact of his outlandish looks. One of his design collaborators was the sequin expert Nicola Rainbird, who was Bowery’s close friend and eventual wife. Though he was gay and, according to one biography, a lifelong devotee of anonymous public sex, Bowery married Rainbird a year before his death, in a ceremony he called “a little private art performance.” For Bowery, makeup and clothing were not just cosmetic decoration, but tools for reinvention — and he reinvented himself often. He made outfits from whatever he could lay his hands on, including bobby pins, tennis ******, tuna tins and even meringues. Some of his best-remembered looks include colored glue dribbled down his bald head like a splattered egg, and giant polka dots covering not only his clothes, but also his face. Others on display in the Tate Modern show include a pink leather harness that secures flashing lightbulbs over the ears, and a sculptural white jacket that also obscures the wearer’s face with a puffball of orange tulle. Fashion designers continue to reference Bowery today. In a 2015 show, Rick Owens sent models down the runway carrying other models in harnesses, which Owens admitted was “totally ripped off” from a Bowery concept. A 2009 Alexander McQueen show painted models with Bowery’s signature oversized lips. Gareth Pugh, Charles Jeffrey and Maison Margiela have all nodded to him in collections. Bowery’s outré style has also influenced the high-concept looks of pop stars like Lady Gaga and a vast swath of contemporary drag queens — though George said something had been lost in the transition to the mainstream. “When you see drag queens referencing Leigh on ‘Drag Race,’ it’s gorgeous, but too polished,” George said. “Leigh was very rough around the edges and he had the build of a rugby player — and was not dainty or fey.” That legacy also still plays out in many L.G.B.T.Q. clubs, which present the dance floor as not just a space for hedonism, but also for presenting elaborate looks, experimenting with gender and blurring the lines between performance and partying. It was nightlife impresario Susanne Bartsch who introduced Bowery to New York, inviting him to contribute clothes to a fashion show displaying the latest London fashions in 1983. (She also took him to Tokyo, where she said that he startled the prime minister of Japan by baring his bottom on the runway.) “When he came in his look, everything stopped,” Bartsch said. “You just wanted to see it again and again. His charisma, even when you couldn’t see his face, oozed through all the pieces that he made.” Polaroid portrait of Leigh Bowery in 1986.Credit…Peter Paul Hartnett/Camera Press Bowery would later return to New York as a performer, hosting Bartsch’s 1991 Love Ball, which raised money for AIDS research, and influencing New York club kids like Michael Alig, Amanda Lepore and James St James. “Leigh had a very special relationship with New York,” said the choreographer Michael Clark, “he was particularly celebrated there. There was a whole gang of people ready for him there and he was embraced with open arms.” Clark first met Bowery in 1984, when he was bewitched by one of Bowery’s outfits and followed him into a club bathroom to invite him to collaborate. Before long, Bowery was making provocative costumes, playing piano and dancing for Clark’s contemporary dance company, until he and Clark fell out in 1992. By this time, Bowery was increasingly turning toward performance. In 1988, he presented himself as a living art installation at Anthony d’Offay Gallery in London for five days, posing behind a two-way mirror on a chaise longue in a series of his best-known looks. He also worked with the performance artist Marina Abramovic on a piece using 400 live rats titled “Delusional,” which she has called “the most insane work I have made to this day.” The Tate will show a video of Bowery’s notorious “Birthing” act, which he performed many times, including at the 1993 Wigstock drag festival in New York. There, he wore a bulging costume from which Rainbird, his wife, burst out like a newborn, covered in red gunk and with links of sausages as an umbilical cord. Bowery loved to provoke outrage, commenting after one particularly extreme show involving an onstage ******: “If I have to ask, ‘Is this idea too sick?’ I know I am on the right track.” Bowery’s sister said that his desire to shock was partly a response to his conservative upbringing in Australia. “My parents encouraged us immensely to conform,” she said, “but at the same time, we were told to stand out, so we were pretty confused. When someone wants you to conform because they don’t accept who you are, you have a choice: You conform and you lose yourself, or you react.” ‘Disco Monster Terrorist’ “Flesh is the most fabulous fabric,” Bowery once said, and the body’s expressive potential is a through line in his work. Even for an artist strongly associated with clothing, some of Bowery’s most enduring images show him completely nude. He began sitting for a series of portraits with the painter Lucian Freud in 1990, often posing for seven hours a day. When a show of Freud’s work prominently featuring these paintings opened at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1993, it represented the beginnings of a legitimacy in the fine art world that Bowery had long been seeking. Though Bowery was diagnosed with H.I.V. in 1988, he only told Rainbird and his friend Sue Tilley, instructing them to explain his absence once he was gone with a characteristic quip: “Tell them I’ve gone to Papua New Guinea.” He died on Dec. 31, 1994, of AIDS-related meningitis and pneumonia. “Leigh Bowery” by Lucian Freud (1991)Credit…The Lucian Freud Archive. All Rights Reserved 2024 In a biography of Bowery that Tilley published in 1998, she describes his final moments lying in hospital under an oxygen mask, hooked up to a tangle of tubes. “It really was a fantastic look,” she writes, “and if he had seen someone else with it, we were sure that he would have soon been wearing it to nightclubs.” Freud paid for Bowery’s body to be sent back to Australia, where he was buried next to his mother. At the ********, the grave had to be widened to fit his plus-size coffin. As in life, there was no conventional space big enough to accommodate Bowery. In a song about Bowery released the year after his death, Boy George lauded him as a “disco monster terrorist, hanging in the Tate with Turner and van Gogh.” Three decades later, the Tate Modern show is placing Bowery in the artistic canon. In an interview, Rainbird reflected on how Bowery would feel about this moment: “He’d be absolutely over the moon,” she said. “He wanted to be famous and he knew he was a genius. He’d be very pleased that people were finally taking note.” Leigh Bowery!Feb. 27 and through Aug. 31 at Tate Modern, in London; tate.org.***. Source link #Leigh #Bowery #Arrives #Tate #Modern #Labels Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump DEI executive orders – The Hill Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump DEI executive orders – The Hill Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump DEI executive orders The HillJudge blocks Trump’s order targeting DEI programs CNNCourts rule on Trump administration initiatives including DOGE, DEI The Washington PostMajor Lawsuits Against Trump And Musk: Judge Halts Trump’s DEI Contract Ban—For Now Forbes Source link #Federal #judge #temporarily #blocks #Trump #DEI #executive #orders #Hill Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Book Review: ‘The Prosecutor,’ by Jack Fairweather Book Review: ‘The Prosecutor,’ by Jack Fairweather THE PROSECUTOR: One Man’s Battle to Bring Nazis to Justice, by Jack Fairweather On a gray wintry day in December 1970, ****** Brandt, the first postwar Social Democratic chancellor of West Germany, fell to his knees at a Warsaw monument to the Jews who had fought there against the Nazis. His gesture has come to exemplify what the Germans resonantly call Vergangenheitsbewältigung, the striving to cope with the past. For all the shortcomings in this nationwide effort, most Germans today set an example of remorse that shames Turkish nationalist leaders equivocating about the Armenian genocide, or rightist Japanese politicians visiting the Yasukuni war shrine in Tokyo that honors Class A war criminals. Yet in the years after World War II, many Germans were in varying degrees unrepentant, nationalistic or self-justifying. Four years after the Allied military tribunal at Nuremberg for top Nazi leaders, only 38 percent of West Germans in the American-occupied zone approved of further trials for war criminals. How did so many Germans become contrite about the Nazi past? In his gripping and well-researched biography, “The Prosecutor,” Jack Fairweather argues that the answer lies in part in the work of an irascible, honorable ******* Jewish lawyer named ****** Bauer, who pressed the people of his country “to face their complicity in the industrialized mass ******* of Europe’s Jews.” A bookish judge in Stuttgart under the Weimar Republic, Bauer was triply anathematized in Nazi Germany: He was Jewish, a Social Democratic foe of Nazism and a secretly gay man. He and his fellow Social Democrats were shaken by the readiness of establishment conservatives who “went along with Hitler’s desire to upend the democratic order.” Bauer was lucky to survive six terrifying months in the concentration camps, where he was repeatedly beaten. He emerged to find a police state where Jewish doctors could not practice and Jewish stores were boycotted, while Stuttgart’s non-Jewish residents unconcernedly got on with their lives. As Christmas drew near, Fairweather writes, “girls from the newly renamed Adolf Hitler School sang carols.” Bauer fled to Denmark in 1936 and then to Sweden in 1943, after a Danish ****** warned that the occupying Germans were about to round up all the Jews in the country. Fairweather’s book makes for an uncomfortable reminder of how many Germans supported the Third Reich. The legal ideal of individual criminal justice crumbled before the more than 250,000 Germans who had served in the SS, murdering at Auschwitz and the other death camps in *******-controlled Poland, or as part of the mobile killing squads called the Einsatzgruppen; the indoctrinated soldiers of the ******* military who had backed up the Einsatzgruppen’s massacres, shot Jews themselves or used Jews as slave labor, as well as killing vast numbers of Soviet prisoners of war and civilians; the bureaucrats and lawyers who had arranged the logistics of genocide; and the nearly 14 million Germans who had voted for the Nazis in July 1932, although Hitler’s vicious hatred of Jews had been flaunted in “Mein Kampf” and his fulminating speeches. Returning to Allied-occupied Germany in 1948, Bauer demanded at least a symbolic ******* reckoning with that widespread complicity. While some skeptics dismiss war crimes trials as a veiled tool of Western domination, Fairweather shows a quite different dynamic. In the early Cold War, the Western powers increasingly preferred to shelve war crimes prosecutions in order to fortify West Germany as an anti-Soviet bulwark. Far from justice being a foreign imposition, here ******* prosecutors pursued ******* trials for ******* crimes. In 1956, Bauer became the attorney general of West Germany’s largest state and issued an arrest warrant for Adolf Eichmann, the fervid SS chieftain who had engineered the deportation of Jews from across Europe to the death camps. With good reason, Bauer worried that Nazis working in West Germany’s government might alert Eichmann or scupper the investigation. The first head of West Germany’s new foreign intelligence agency was Reinhard Gehlen, previously the Third Reich’s chief of military intelligence for the eastern front in World War II. He knew where Eichmann had gone to ground in Argentina, but did not inform Bauer, instead putting the ******* prosecutor under surveillance. When Bauer unexpectedly got a tip from a Dachau survivor with Eichmann’s address in Argentina, he did not dare ask the West ******* police to run it down. Instead he passed his information to the Israelis and kept exhorting them to grab Eichmann — leading eventually to his abduction from Buenos Aires and his dramatic 1961 trial in an Israeli court in Jerusalem. As the ******* journalist Ronen Steinke argues in his own first-rate biography, Bauer’s greatest achievement was a sprawling trial of some 20 ******* officers and functionaries at Auschwitz, held in a Frankfurt courtroom in the mid-60s. Bauer made a point of prosecuting not just senior camp leaders but also lower-ranked Germans, since every person operating the death camp contributed to mass *******. The most devastating testimony came from Auschwitz survivors, one of whom described the mortal terror of people in the gas chambers, some taking 10 or more minutes to die, struggling frantically, their corpses covered in blood from their noses and ears. An Austrian Jewish survivor recalled the words of a little boy who was to be gassed the next day: “No, I’m not afraid. It’s all so terrible here, it can only be better up there.” Fairweather writes that Bauer’s story shows “how the Holocaust came to define our collective sense of humanity.” Yet his book arrives as major political parties are working to stamp the memory of the Holocaust out of public consciousness. Last year, the immigrant-hating extremist party Alternative for Germany became the first far-right group to win a plurality in a state election since the fall of Nazi Germany. The party was led to victory by Björn Höcke, who has scorned the prominent Holocaust memorial in Berlin and said that Germany needs a “180-degree” turn in remembering its history. In 2023, the billionaire mogul Elon Musk endorsed as “the actual truth” an antisemitic online post that blamed Jewish communities for pushing “dialectical hatred against whites” and flooding Western countries with “hordes of minorities”; earlier this year, he took time out from his new role as a powerful adviser to President Trump to tell an AfD rally by video that Germany has “too much of a focus on past guilt.” Trump won his second term as president despite having dinner at his Florida estate with Kanye West, an outspoken antisemite, and Nick Fuentes, a white supremacist and Holocaust denier. Fairweather’s book would be haunting to read at any time; it is especially bitter today. THE PROSECUTOR: One Man’s Battle to Bring Nazis to Justice | By Jack Fairweather | Crown | 478 pp. | $35 Source link #Book #Review #Prosecutor #Jack #Fairweather Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Celebrating Jonathan Larson, Creator of ‘Rent,’ in a New Show Off Broadway Celebrating Jonathan Larson, Creator of ‘Rent,’ in a New Show Off Broadway In his Tony-winning musical, “Rent,” Jonathan Larson asked: “How do you measure a year in the life?” The question took on an even heavier weight, with striking resonance, after Larson died unexpectedly at the age of 35 in 1996, hours before the show’s first preview. In the years after, dozens of his unheard songs were discovered, revealing the inner workings of a prolific artist looking for his big break. Now, a new musical, “The Jonathan Larson Project,” celebrates those songs and raises a new question: How do you thread together snippets of Jonathan Larson’s creative output into a musical? “It was like an expedition,” the show’s creator, Jennifer Ashley Tepper, said of what it was like to pore over the archive of Larson’s work at the Library of Congress. “Like a musical theater historian expedition, because you would go and you would find one lyric that sort of matched up with one demo that sort of matched up with an idea of another notebook.” The show is a collage of Larson’s life as told through his unproduced music, some of it written when he was as young as 22, including compositions for downtown revues and cabarets, music from Larson’s futuristic dystopian musical “Superbia” and songs cut from “Rent” and “Tick, Tick … *****!” The new show, which is in previews and opens March 10 at the Orpheum Theater in the East Village, has been years in the making. It evolved from a 2018 song cycle that Tepper staged at 54 Below, a basement cabaret club where she is the creative and programming director. Partly a tribute to Larson, the musical is also its own universal story of the artist’s struggle: surviving in an unforgiving city, plumbing the depths of lived experience to create something authentic, weathering rejection after rejection. On a recent afternoon at one of Larson’s old haunts, the Ear Inn on Spring Street, another question hung in the air: Who is Laurie? A former lover? A fictitious archetype? She’s just one of the many mysteries in the hundreds of cassette tapes, scripts and music demos the writer left behind. Over turkey burgers and beer, Tepper, the director John Simpkins, the music supervisor Charlie Rosen and the actors Adam Chanler-Berat and Taylor Iman Jones discussed what it took to produce a cohesive musical out of disparate songs and material, and what it means to keep Larson’s legacy alive. There’s something of a mystique to Larson. (“Kind of a weird juju about it,” as Jones put it. “That’s positive. Things just keep falling in place.”) So it was fitting that we met at the Ear Inn and, later, visited Larson’s old apartment (thanks to a generous current tenant), where he lived for 12 years, and died. Larson, who brought humanity to myriad social issues like addiction and homophobia, never shied away from politics. In songs like “White Male World,” written in 1991, and “The Truth Is a Lie,” written in 1990, Larson’s lyrics feel eerily familiar in today’s culture. “What emerged immediately was this connection between the time in which he was writing and right now,” Simpkins said. “And so to us, we became immediately interested in the dialogue that we could have between Jonathan, the time in which Jonathan was writing, and the time in which we find ourselves right now.” In one tongue-in-cheek political campaign scene, Larson lists “Trump Industries” as a corporate Republican sponsor. “We haven’t changed a word,” Tepper said. “The idea is not to fix something he wrote or to make it relevant, it’s to do what he wrote and to honor it.” In “Likability/La Di Da,” a song about political candidates bending to the whims of voters and so-called experts, Larson uses the phrase “Make America great.” He wrote it in 1989, perhaps as a nod to Ronald Reagan’s 1980 campaign slogan. Are we past our prime? Or is this the time To climb from the ****** Make America great Are we so hollow That we blindly follow And ******** Whatever they put on our plate? If the Larson mystique wasn’t already present, there were coincidences that, despite Tepper’s avoidance of what she called “woo woo” tendencies, did seem auspicious. Shortly after rehearsals started, one of the actors, Lauren Marcus, returned home to find that of the dozens of posters on her wall, one was missing. Her “Rent” poster had slipped to the ground. Not long after, Tepper’s “Jonathan Larson Project” poster, which she’d had on her wall since 2018, fell to the ground in an impossible-to-reach spot behind a bookshelf (where it remains). Later, they realized that the show’s load-in day at the Orpheum took place on what would have been Larson’s 65th birthday. “The Jonathan Larson Project” — called a “project” for its range of genres and story lines — supplements its minimalist set with video footage of SoHo to ground the show in today’s Manhattan. But it’s also awash in nostalgia. “You can lean into the homage, right?” Jones said. “Like, I don’t necessarily need to play Mimi in a song,” she said, referring to a “Rent” character she has played before in community productions, “but I don’t need to shy away from Mimi-isms or ‘Rent’-isms. It’s hard to describe, but I definitely feel there’s like a ‘Rent’ method of acting. It’s really fun to lean into that.” After years of delays — because of the pandemic shutdown and the time it took to book the right theater — getting the musical to the Orpheum stage happened at lighting speed. The venue was confirmed in late November, then rehearsals began in January, and previews started this month. It was fueled by fandom and discovery from the start. Back in 2014, Tepper chose five songs, largely unheard by the public, for a concert in the New York City Center lobby ahead of an Encores! performance of “Tick, Tick … *****!” The response was so enthusiastic, from “Rentheads” and new fans alike, that she began dreaming of expanding the concert into an evening-length work. She checked in with Larson’s family, who gave her the green light. “They said, like, go for it, kid,” Tepper said. She deepened her research and in 2016 started taking the train to Washington to dig through Larson’s collection at the Library of Congress, where she would spend the entire day completely immersed in his journals and music demos. When she found the song “Greene Street,” she was so overcome that she left the library, sat outside and cried, in awe that it had gone virtually unheard. “It was like the wildest, wildest dream of being a fan,” she said. In 2018, a show was born. Tepper staged a 12-performance run of “The Jonathan Larson Project,” a longer song cycle version of the City Center event, at 54 Below. The show featured five actors and a band — as does “The Jonathan Larson Project” today — who recorded the songs as an album the following year. “It’s a little bit of, like, a seance when the composer is no longer with you,” said Rosen, the musical supervisor. “You don’t want it to be a pastiche,” he added. Tasked with orchestrating and co-arranging, Rosen looked to Larson’s musical influences, the time ******* and the many genres in his work to piece things together — and make it relevant. Thankfully, the quality of Larson’s demos helped. “The fact that he even had the ability to record a piano and then go back and record his voice over the already recorded piano,” Rosen said, “most people didn’t have access to that then.” Larson, Tepper said, felt his work was incomplete without instrumentation beyond piano. Arranging his songs with a full band is a way of finishing what he started, a production quality Larson simply couldn’t afford. “When I listen to this music, I hear it as a survival guide for getting through hard times,” said Chanler-Berat, who plays a version of Larson’s characters and himself. “And I mean that as an artist, but I also mean that as a citizen.” The artist’s life that Larson lived in the ’80s and ’90s looks a little different today. There’s a Sweetgreen around the corner from his apartment on Greenwich Street. The view he once had of the Hudson River has been replaced with a towering glass building. There is no trace of the phone booth that once sat across the street, where, in the absence of a functional buzzer, Larson’s visitors would call to have him throw down a key to the building. But at its core, as his music transmits, the trials artists face is the same: finding the time to create; mustering the resolve to flout traditional expectations of success; staying financially afloat and cutting through the dull rhythm of manual labor or the fog of corporate malaise to excavate what alights the soul. “Oh piano,” Larson croons in an unfinished song, “you saved my soul again. Oh piano, you saved my soul, amen.” Source link #Celebrating #Jonathan #Larson #Creator #Rent #Show #Broadway Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

WAFL zones must change: Perth Demons chair Adrian Barich says competition held back by zoning inequalities WAFL zones must change: Perth Demons chair Adrian Barich says competition held back by zoning inequalities Perth Football Club president Adrian Barich says inequalities in metropolitan and country zoning are holding the WAFL back. Source link #WAFL #zones #change #Perth #Demons #chair #Adrian #Barich #competition #held #zoning #inequalities Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Horoscope for Saturday, February 22, 2025 – Chicago Sun-Times Horoscope for Saturday, February 22, 2025 – Chicago Sun-Times Horoscope for Saturday, February 22, 2025 Chicago Sun-TimesHoroscopes Today, February 22, 2025 USA TODAYYour Daily FinanceScope for February 22, 2025 Yahoo LifeLove and Relationship Horoscope for February 22, 2025 Hindustan Times Source link #Horoscope #Saturday #February #Chicago #SunTimes Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Stars wow at G’Day USA Arts Gala with three Aussies inducted into honouree list Stars wow at G’Day USA Arts Gala with three Aussies inducted into honouree list Celebrities came out in force to support the Los Angeles fire recovery for the annual G’Day USA Arts Gala on Friday, wowing on the blue carpet. There was no shortage of star-power at the Los Angeles event including singer-songwriter Samantha *****, Olympic cyclist Anna Meares, actor Charmaine Bingwa, former Savage Garden frontman Darren Hayes and TV presenter Tony Armstrong. Former Prime Minister and Ambassador of Australia to the United States Kevin Rudd also attended the event speaking to the crowd. Camera IconSamantha *****. Credit: Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images This year’s Gala is the 22nd annual event put on by the American *********** Association to strengthen ties between the two countries despite being separated by around 11,000km of the Pacific ocean. This year a focus was put on helping with the recovery from the devastating Los Angeles wildfires which ripped through 55,000 acres of land in January. More than 16,000 structures were destroyed and 28 lives were lost. Three *********** stars were inducted into the organisation’s list of honourees. Camera IconTim Minchin and David Duchovny. Credit: Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images This included Adelaide-born actor Teresa Palmer who won the Excellence in Film and Television Award. Ms Palmer is known for her role in a number of horror films. Also winning an Excellence in Film and Television Award was Alice Springs-born cinematographer and director Warwick Thornton who is best known for his movies Samson and Delilah and Sweet Country. Western Australia’s Tim Minchin took home the Excellence in the Arts Award or his work as a lyricist and composer of musicals as well as his screenwriting and acting. The three stars join the ranks of an illustrious list of honourees including Cate Blanchett, Kylie Minogue and Hugh Jackman. Source link #Stars #wow #GDay #USA #Arts #Gala #Aussies #inducted #honouree #list Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

“Not Credible Evidence”: L.A. DA Rejects Menendez Brothers’ Efforts To Get New Trials As Resentencing Hearing Approaches – Deadline “Not Credible Evidence”: L.A. DA Rejects Menendez Brothers’ Efforts To Get New Trials As Resentencing Hearing Approaches – Deadline “Not Credible Evidence”: L.A. DA Rejects Menendez Brothers’ Efforts To Get New Trials As Resentencing Hearing Approaches DeadlineMenendez brothers resentencing case: LA County DA Nathan Hochman asks court to deny their petition for new trial ABC7 Los AngelesNew Los Angeles DA Nathan Hochman does not support overturning Menendez brothers’ ******* convictions Fox NewsNew DA Deals Severe Blow to Menendez Brothers’ Hopes. Here’s How Erik and Lyle Could Still Go Free PEOPLE Source link #Credible #Evidence #L.A #Rejects #Menendez #Brothers #Efforts #Trials #Resentencing #Hearing #Approaches #Deadline Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Deel Her In charges late to announce herself as serious contender after Challenge Staks win at Ascot Deel Her In charges late to announce herself as serious contender after Challenge Staks win at Ascot Untapped three-year-old Deel Her In announced herself as a serious big race contender over the next two months, displaying scintillating acceleration to win the Listed $125,000 Morley Growers Market Challenge Stakes (1500m) at Ascot. From gate seven, jockey Shaun O’Donnell was unable to find a spot one or two off the fence and was forced to restrain all the way back to last of the 10 as $61 TABtouch outsider Caporetto made the pace. With 600m to go, O’Donnell latched the inexperienced filly onto the back of All Grunt ($4.60), who was pushed five-wide around Flower Of Gold ($3.60) as they bent. But Deel Her In had made rapid progress and once pulled to the extreme outside on straightening, the Dundeel youngster exploded into action, covering the leaders with 150m to travel. Despite the best efforts of Flower Of Gold, Trevor Andrews’ filly’s dynamite turn of foot carried her to a length win, with All Grunt a further three-quarters away. At just her fourth race start, the bay might still be learning on the job but Andrews says the best may still be yet to come. “It was a slowly run race and we had to go back. The plan was to go up to 1800m next start, so she needed to find a **** and relax,” he said. “She was a little bit soft on the line, actually, but it was a very impressive win. Very good filly. “Her pedigree (says she’ll get 1800m), she just needs to relax a bit more. But once she got behind them today, she was pretty good.” O’Donnell registered his first win on the filly at his third attempt and oozed praise over her latent potential. “She’s got such a big tank. At trackwork, it just keeps going. She’s an amazing filly and what is inside her is a little bit scary,” he said. “I’m looking forward to riding her over 1800m. You’ve just got to get cover with her, it doesn’t matter if you’re back last… you’ve just got to switch her off.” Later, versatile filly Antique Miss scored another deserved 1800m feature race win in the Listed $125,000 Reliable Asset Maintenance Detonator Stakes. Camera IconDeel Her In wins the 2025 Challenge Stakes for jockey Shaun O’Donnell Credit: Simon Merritt After capitalising on Bonjoy’s scratching in the La Trice Classic over the same journey on New Year’s Day, the opportunity again presented when the $2 favourite was removed on race morning. From gate 10, rider Chris Parnham sooled the new $3 co-favourite across and soon found the perfect spot, one-out and one-back as Own The Queen ($6.50) led the pack. Not wanting to risk a pocket as the three-wide train improved, Parnham angled the Domesday five-year-old out at the 900m and pounced upon the leaders rounding the turn. But Own The Queen and fellow frontrunner Red Sun Sensation ($34) proved worthy adversaries, fighting grandly up the stretch. Only in the final 25m did Antique Miss gain the ascendancy, forging a long head clear of Red Sun Sensation who head-bobbed for second. Camera IconAntique Miss wins the 2025 Detonator Stakes for jockey Chris Parnham Credit: Simon Merritt/Simon Merritt / Western Racepix Owner Bob Peters credited the ride for the victory and flagged the Bunbury Cup as a potential next target for the resilient mare, which Parnham agreed would be suitable. “She’s got plenty of talent and never lies down. It was a slow tempo, and the leaders kicked well on the corner, but she was too good on the line,” Parnham said. “I was able to move when we needed to, and she did the rest for me. “1800m today and she was doing her best work through the line, so I can’t see why she wouldn’t get a bit further.” Source link #Deel #charges #late #announce #contender #Challenge #Staks #win #Ascot Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]