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Pokémon TCG Pocket butters up players with free trade tokens as they work on improving feature Pokémon TCG Pocket butters up players with free trade tokens as they work on improving feature Pokémon TCG Pocket is set to give away 1000 Trade Tokens to all players It’s available via the in-game Gifts menu and comes as they attempt to rework Trading The hotly-requested feature has nevertheless proven to be extremely contentious I think it’s safe to say that, despite being a hotly-requested feature, the launch of Pokémon TCG Pocket’s trading function has been somewhat lacklustre. Or at least that seems to be the opinion of players, prompting the folks behind TCG Pocket to begin looking at ways to rework trading. Fortunately, in the meantime, they’re set to give away 1000 Trade Tokens via the Gifts menu in the Pokémon TCG Pocket app to tide people over in the meantime. Trade Tokens were one of the currencies required by players to swap their cards. You’ll remember that they already announced plans to make some alterations to trading and to make it easier to acquire the necessary trading currency. Many fans singled out the restrictions on trading, such as only being able to trade cards of a certain rarity and the need for a currency to do so, as key points of contention. Trading places I think I stand by my earlier assessment that, if the folks behind TCG Pocket wanted to avoid all this they only had two directions to go; either make trading as open as possible or not have it at all. Sadly they are right in suggesting that bots and other exploitations could be used, but at the same time for the kind of people who work to get around restrictions like that, I doubt that trading currency and the limitations on cards would’ve proven anything more than a minor inconvenience. Still, here’s hoping that the rework of trading does go on to address many of these concerns because I think seeing trading done well in a digital TCG could really go a long way to making it a credible alternative to the physical TCG. Speaking of which, if you’re looking to hop into Pokémon TCG Pocket but don’t know where to start why not take a look at our list of the best decks? Source link #Pokémon #TCG #Pocket #butters #players #free #trade #tokens #work #improving #feature Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design Global Launch Date Set for February 18 Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design Global Launch Date Set for February 18 Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design was unveiled in China in September 2024 as the world’s first commercially available foldable smartphone with three screens. The company has now announced that it will be introduced in select markets outside of China and revealed a global launch date. Meanwhile, competing brands like Samsung, Honor and Oppo are reportedly working on their versions of a triple folding handset. Notably, another brand called Tecno recently showcased its Phantom Ultimate 2 concept smartphone at the IFA 2024 in Berlin but it is yet to hit the market. Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design Global Launch Huawei will host an Innovative Product Launch event later this month on February 18 in Kuala Lumpur, according to an X post by the company. The pattern seen on the poster suggests that the company will introduce its Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design handset at the event. Another post by the brand confirms that the event will see the global launch of the triple-folding handset. The global version of the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design is expected to share similar features as its ******** counterparts. When completely unfolded, it has a 10.2-inch flexible LTPO OLED panel which changes to a 7.9-inch display when folded once, and a 6.4-inch screen when folded a second time. The handset is said to be powered by a Kirin 9010 chipset. The phone ships with HarmonyOS 4.2 and supports 16GB of RAM. It is offered in storage options of 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB. In the camera department, the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design carries a 50-megapixel primary rear sensor with OIS support alongside a 12-megapixel ultrawide shooter and a 12-megapixel periscope telephoto camera with 5.5x optical zoom and OIS. The front camera uses an 8-megapixel sensor for selfies and video calls. The Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design packs a 5,600mAh battery with 66W wired and 50W wireless charging support. Connectivity options include 5G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, GPS, NFC, and a USB 3.1 Type-C port. It has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor for security. When fully unfolded, it measures 156.7x219x3.6mm in size and weighs 298g. The price of the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design starts in China at CNY 19,999 (roughly Rs. 2,35,900) for the 16GB + 256GB option, while the 512GB and 1TB storage variants were listed at CNY 21,999 (roughly Rs. 2,59,500) and CNY 23,999 (roughly Rs. 2,83,100), respectively. Source link #Huawei #Mate #Ultimate #Design #Global #Launch #Date #Set #February Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Wall Street analysts cuts price targets on AMD after data center revenue miss Wall Street analysts cuts price targets on AMD after data center revenue miss Many analysts trimmed their outlooks on chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices after the company disappointed on data center sales. AMD reported $3.86 billion in data center chip sales in the fourth quarter. While this was higher 69% on a yearly basis, it fell short of the $4.14 billion forecast from analysts polled by FactSet. Although the company managed to beat estimates on both top and bottom lines, AMD’s data center segment is its most significant segment — leading analysts to lower their estimates in response to the weakness. The stock tumbled 9% during premarket trading on Wednesday. Here’s what analysts had to say. Bernstein lowers price target to $125 from $150 Analyst Stacy Rasgon’s new target indicates just 4.6% upside potential from Tuesday’s close. He kept his market perform rating on the stock. AMD “had one job…” Rasgon wrote in a note on Wednesday. “While forward expectations have been coming down for AMD into the print, the dynamics around the numbers do not appear all that favorable, and a datacenter GPU miss already in Q4 was not really in the cards,.” JPMorgan reiterates neutral rating, slashes price target to $130 from $180 The bank’s new price target implies upside of just 8.8%.Analyst Harling Sur noted that AMD may face limited operating leverage if it increases its research and development investments — which he believes are needed for it to keep up with the market leaders. “AMD is improving its competitiveness across CPU and GPU products with Ryzen, EPYC, and Radeon Vega platforms and is on track to improve its market share and drive meaningful revenue growth in the near term. Long term, we believe share gains are less certain,” Sur said. Bank of America cuts price target to $135 from $155, keeps neutral rating “AMD has not (yet) managed to articulate how it can carve an important niche versus NVDA’s dominance and custom ASIC chip’s growing importance in AI silicon,” analyst Vivek Arya wrote in a note. “Any upside surprise [is] largely dependent on share gains against INTC in more mature markets.” Morgan Stanley lowers price target to $137 from $147 Analyst Joseph Moore’s new price target is around 25% higher from Tuesday’s close price. Moore reiterated his equal weight rating, citing low enthusiasm stemming from a lack of upside to numbers. “Remain optimistic about the growth potential of the embedded and server segments, which have been underearning …. but lack of AI visibility & client outperformance in 2024 make RR still fairly balanced near term.” UBS keeps buy rating, but trims price target to $175 from $190 UBS’s new forecast calls for 46% upside for the stock. “We would characterize results and guidance as mixed – at best, though consistent w/ our preview that Street revenue and EPS needed to come down quite a bit as we saw 2025 as a ‘transition’ year for the data center GPU business. Data center results were a little light (and importantly, mostly due to GPU) as was guidance for the data center segment and this is really what matters for the stock. On the plus side though, AMD did give enough breadcrumbs on its AI roadmap to promote some optimism for 2H:25 with what looks like a ~1-quarter pull-in of its MI350 family of GPUs – which should compete well with NVDA’s B200 especially for inference.” Source link #Wall #Street #analysts #cuts #price #targets #AMD #data #center #revenue Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

US-Mexico-Canada Agree to Delay Tariffs as Trump Forces Allies and Adversaries to Negotiate US-Mexico-Canada Agree to Delay Tariffs as Trump Forces Allies and Adversaries to Negotiate The Trump administration has been taking significant foreign policy steps aimed at convincing allies and adversaries alike to come to the bargaining table. And the results have been almost immediate with Panama, Mexico, and now Canada all agreeing to take important steps. Trump and ******** President Reach an Initial Deal President Trump had signed an order over the weekend to impose stiff tariffs on imports from China, Canada, and Mexico. But on Monday morning, Mexico’s president announced that she had a successful conversation with Trump and the U.S. tariffs against her country would be paused for one month. The White House confirmed the agreement. ******** President Claudia Sheinbaum said both sides have agreed to better border enforcement. She posted on X, “Mexico will reinforce the northern border with 10,000 members of the National Guard immediately, to stop drug trafficking from Mexico to the United States, in particular fentanyl.” And the U.S. reportedly committed to stopping high-powered weapons from reaching Mexico. Trump and ********* Prime Minister Reach a Deal Too By Monday afternoon, the U.S. and Canada had agreed to pause any tariffs, as well. ********* Prime Minister Justin Trudeau posted on X that the pause would occur while they “work together,” saying that his government would name a fentanyl czar, list ******** cartels as terrorist groups, and launch a “Canada-U.S. joint strike force to combat organized crime, fentanyl, and money laundering.” Trudeau backtracked after initially retaliating. He had said, “Canada will be responding to the U.S. trade action with 25% tariffs against $155 billion worth of American goods. This will include immediate tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods as of Tuesday. Followed by further tariffs on $125 million worth American products in 21 days time to allow ********* companies and supply chains to seek to find alternatives.” Trump’s Carrot and Stick Approach to China, Canada, and Mexico In announcing his tariffs, Trump declared an economic emergency and placed a 10 percent tariff on all imports from China and 25 percent on most imports from Mexico and Canada, except a 10 percent rate on ********* oil. The Heritage Foundation’s Richard Stern told CBN’s Faith Nation the tariff threats are working and that stopping the flow of deadly drugs into the U.S. is key. “I would say the most important part is this isn’t really about the economics, this is a negotiating tool, to be able to stop the flood of fentanyl, to be able to deal with these other geopolitical issues,” Stern explained. Meanwhile, China has now launched some tariffs against the U.S. as well, but Trump says he’ll be talking to ******** leaders soon. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the regime would “firmly deplore and oppose this move” by taking countermeasures to defend the country’s interests. Trump has accused all three countries of not doing enough to prevent deadly drugs from being sent into the U.S., especially fentanyl. The tariffs are partly designed to encourage them to do more about the opioid crisis which causes some 70,000 overdose deaths in the U.S. annually. Trump’s actions are leading to concerns of a potential trade war and higher prices for some specific goods including steel and computer chips, along with some cars, gas, and alcohol. Trump says he doesn’t expect anything very dramatic if he does go ahead with the tariffs. Panama Starts to Back Away from China On a separate front, after a visit from new U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the president of Panama is promising to end a major development deal with China. President Jose Raul Mulino says China’s “Belt and Road” initiative in his country will not be renewed and may be ended earlier than planned. President Trump has been concerned about China’s growing influence in Panama, and the Belt and Road initiative has allowed China to get its hooks into Panama through investments, including $1.3 billion along the canal itself. As CBN News has reported, the problem of China’s influence spreads well beyond Panama. In recent years, at least 20 Latin American nations have joined China’s Belt and Road initiative in which China invests in a nation’s infrastructure, like the Panama Canal projects and a container port for Peru at the Port of Chancay. Those projects give China more influence over the countries they’ve invested in. MORE: While the U.S. Wasn’t Looking, China Became the Dominant Power in Latin America, Right on Our Doorstep Meanwhile, President Mulino says Panama will keep operating the canal even as President Trump complains China is controlling it and saying he wants the U.S. to be more influential over the critical trade route rather than a ********** adversary. Secretary Rubio tweeted on X, “The United States cannot, and will not, allow the ******** ********** party to continue with its effective and growing control over the Panama Canal area.” Source link #USMexicoCanada #Agree #Delay #Tariffs #Trump #Forces #Allies #Adversaries #Negotiate Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Mind-Controlling ******* That Turns Spiders into Zombies Found in Ireland Mind-Controlling ******* That Turns Spiders into Zombies Found in Ireland A newly identified ******* that infects and manipulates spiders has been discovered in Northern Ireland. Found in a former Victorian gunpowder store on the grounds of a ruined Irish castle, this ******* takes control of cave spiders, leading them out of their usual hiding spots before killing them and using their bodies to release spores. The *******, which resembles the species known to infect ants, was first observed during the filming of a nature documentary in 2021. Scientists later confirmed it as an entirely new species. Named in Honour of Sir David Attenborough According to a study published in Fungal Systematics and Evolution, the ******* has been named Gibellula attenboroughiiin recognition of British naturalist Sir David Attenborough. It was initially found on a dead orb-weaving cave spider, a species that typically resides in caves and dark man-made structures like cellars and old storerooms. Following this initial discovery, more infected spiders were located in caves across Ireland. The infected spiders were observed in open spaces rather than concealed within their usual lairs, suggesting that the ******* influences their behaviour before killing them. How the ******* Infects and Controls Spiders Study lead author Harry Evans, an emeritus fellow at the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI), explained to Live Science that the ******* penetrates the spider’s body, infecting its hemocoel—the cavity containing its blood-like fluid. Once inside, it secretes toxins to kill the host before producing antibiotics that preserve the corpse. When conditions such as humidity levels are suitable, the ******* grows structures on the spider’s body to release spores into the air. Potential for Medicinal Applications Beyond its ability to manipulate spiders, the ******* is being studied for potential medicinal properties. Evans noted that its antibiotic-producing capabilities could lead to new medical discoveries. Scientists have extracted its DNA to confirm that it is a previously unidentified species. While it has only been found in Ireland so far, researchers suspect that similar fungi may exist in other regions, including Wales. Hidden Diversity of Parasitic Fungi The study highlighted the likelihood of many more undiscovered fungal species, particularly parasitic ones. Researchers estimate that the fungal kingdom could contain up to 20 million species, with only a small fraction currently identified. Initially, the new species was to be named Gibellula bangbangus, referencing the gunpowder store where it was first found, but the decision was later made to name it after Attenborough instead. For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube. Bitcoin Falls to $94,000 as Market Sees Over 9 Percent Drop Following Trump’s New Tariff Decisions Tecno Pova 7 Series Design Teaser Shows Triple Rear Camera Setup; Could Launch Soon Source link #MindControlling #******* #Turns #Spiders #Zombies #Ireland Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Uber (UBER) Q4 earnings 2024 Uber (UBER) Q4 earnings 2024 Uber shares fell around 7% in premarket trading Wednesday after the ride-sharing company reported fourth-quarter results that beat analysts’ expectations for revenue but offered soft guidance. Here’s how the company did: Earnings per share: $3.21. That does not compare with the 50 cents expected by LSEG. Revenue: $11.96 billion vs. $11.77 billion expected by LSEG. Uber’s revenue grew 20% in its fourth quarter from $9.9 billion a year prior. The company reported a net income of $6.9 billion, or $3.21 per share, up from $1.4 billion billion, or 66 cents per share, in the same ******* last year. Uber said its net income includes a $6.4 billion benefit from a tax valuation release, as well as a $556 million pre-tax benefit thanks to gains from revaluations of its equity investments. The company reported $44.2 billion in gross bookings for the *******, which was above the $43.49 billion expected by analysts, according to StreetAccount. Uber said adjusted EBITDA for its fourth quarter was $1.84 billion, up 44% year over year and in line with the $1.84 billion expected by analysts polled by StreetAccount. For its first quarter, Uber said it expects gross bookings between $42 billion to $43.5 billion, compared with StreetAccount estimates of $43.51 billion. Uber anticipates adjusted EBITDA of $1.79 billion to $1.89 billion, compared with the $1.85 billion expected by analysts. “Our performance has been powered by rapid innovation and execution across multiple priorities, including the massive opportunity presented by autonomous vehicles,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in a release. “We enter 2025 with clear momentum and will continue to be relentless against our long-term strategy.” Uber on Wednesday announced it is gearing up for the public launch of robotaxi rides in Austin, Texas through its partnership with Alphabet’s Waymo. Starting Wednesday, customers in the city can open the Uber app and join the “interest list” to increase their chances of being paired with a Waymo at launch, the company said. Uber and Waymo first announced their plans to bring the robotaxis to Austin in September. There were 3.1 billion trips completed on the platform during Uber’s fourth quarter, up 18% year over year. The number of Uber’s monthly active platform consumers reached 171 million in its fourth quarter, up 14% year over year from 150 million. Here’s how Uber’s largest business segments performed: Mobility (gross bookings): $22.8 billion, up 18% year over year Delivery (gross bookings): $20.1 billion, up 18% year over year Uber’s mobility segment reported $6.91 billion in revenue, up 25% from a year earlier. StreetAccount analysts were expecting $6.77 billion. The company’s delivery segment reported $3.77 billion in revenue, up 21% from the year prior. Analysts were expecting $3.66 billion, according to StreetAccount. The company’s freight business reported $1.28 billion in revenue for the quarter, in line with the $1.28 billion it reported during the same ******* last year. StreetAccount analysts were expecting $1.31 billion. Khosrowshahi has repeatedly pointed to freight as a challenging segment for Uber since consumers are spending more on services than on shipping goods following the pandemic. Uber will hold its quarterly call with investors at 8 a.m. ET. Source link #Uber #UBER #earnings Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

New Barlinnie prison costs double to almost £1bn New Barlinnie prison costs double to almost £1bn PA Media HMP Glasgow will replace Barlinnie, which has been labelled not fit for purpose The replacement for Barlinnie prison will cost nearly £1bn, almost double the previous estimate. Justice Secretary Angela Constance confirmed a cost of £998.4m for HMP Glasgow in a letter to the criminal justice committee. She also stated it will open in 2028, three years later than originally planned, The 1344 capacity prison in the Germiston area will add 357 places to the overall prison estate, in an attempt to solve problems with overcrowding plaguing Scotland’s jails. Constance said the “significant increase” in costs – from a previous estimate in 2022 of £400m – was due to wider increases across the construction sector. The new cost is nearly 10 times the original estimate of £100m, which was proposed in 2014. Constance blamed the rise on outside factors such as the covid pandemic, Brexit and the war in Ukraine. The justice secretary said: “HMP Glasgow is a bold vision for the future of Scottish prisons that will help reduce reoffending, contribute to less crime, while delivering a considerable economic boost for the city and beyond. “The new modern establishment will replace a Victorian-age prison that is no longer fit for purpose. It will increase prison capacity and transform how prisoners are rehabilitated, as well as considerably improving staff working conditions.” She added the project would provide the “best value” for Scottish taxpayers, and that although it was not “immune to inflation”, costs were “comparable” to similar projects across the ***. The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) has now signed a Stage 2 construction contract with Kier Construction, costing £683.8m and letting work move from advance works to main construction of the project. PA Media In 2023 Barlinnie governor Michael Stoney warned catastrophic failure was possible at the prison A planning application for the new facility was submitted to the city council several years ago, due to concern over Barlinnie no longer being fit for purpose, with land at the old Provan gas works site in the East End then being purchased in 2020. The £400m cost was estimated in 2019 and then repeated in an infrastructure investment plan published in 2022, before Constance told the criminal justice committee the following year that costs were expected to rise. Teresa Medhurst, the chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service, said the new prison would have a “transformative impact” in supporting and rehabilitating people. She added: “It is an investment in our staff, in those in our care, and in Glasgow and Scotland as a whole, as we work with our partners to improve people’s futures and together build safer communities.” Construction was originally due to begin in 2023. ‘Scandalous’ cost increase Liam Kerr, the Scottish Conservatives justice spokesman, said the new prison was “squandering taxpayers’ money on a scandalous scale”. He added: “It is scarcely believable that the costs to replace Barlinnie are now set to hit nearly a billion pounds and that the new prison won’t be open for another three years. “That is a total dereliction of duty at a time when the SNP are about to release hundreds of dangerous prisoners due to their failure to invest in Scotland’s prison estate over 18 years in power.” In 2023 Barlinnie governor Michael Stoney warned that Barlinnie had become so overcrowded that a “catastrophic failure” was possible. He estimated that a new prison could cut reoffending by around 20%. According to the letter sent to the criminal justice committee, HMP Glasgow will provide a “full regime” for prisoners to help rehabilitate them. It added a range of “activities and opportunities” will maximise prisoners’ time, while there will be the ability to accommodate more wheelchair users in a bid to keep up with an ageing prison population. Developer Kier Construction said construction of the prison would provide local benefits including apprenticeships, training, and work placements for ex-offenders, with the Scottish government estimating the project could create up to £450m of spending in the local economy. The SPS carried out two cost consultancies, which it says found the £998m cost was “typical for the industry.” Source link #Barlinnie #prison #costs #double #1bn Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Editorial: Take Donald Trump’s Gaza threats seriously, not literally Editorial: Take Donald Trump’s Gaza threats seriously, not literally During his brief time as White House communications director during Donald Trump’s first term, Anthony Scaramucci had a go-to line at the ready to neutralise press freak-outs about the President’s latest wild proclamation. “Take him seriously, but don’t take him literally.” It’s wise to apply that lens to Mr Trump’s startling plan for the US to seize control of Gaza, raze what’s left of it, remove its ************ inhabitants, and “develop” it into the “Riviera of the Middle East”. Even Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, standing beside Mr Trump, seemed a little taken aback by the audaciousness of the President’s radical policy swerve. Taken literally, it’s a mad plan, for which no legal authority exists. The proposal to “resettle” Palestinians elsewhere, presumably against their will, is not a scenario the world will or should accept. Mr Trump himself has said he doesn’t want to put American lives and money on the line in foreign wars. So why would he now be willing to do just that? The generous interpretation is that he isn’t. Under that interpretation, the intended audience for Mr Trump’s posturing are Gaza’s neighbouring Arab states. For all their rhetoric about the plight of the ************ people, they’ve been reluctant to step forward to aid in what will be a eye-wateringly expensive and difficult reconstruction. Mr Trump’s threat says: if you don’t, we will. The hope is that those states will see taking responsibility for that reconstruction as the lesser of two evils when compared to a prospect of a returned US presence in the Middle East. As a negotiating tactic, it’s unconventional. But so far, conventional approaches haven’t made a lot of headway in sorting out what has been a headache for the world for decades. One who wasn’t open to any original thinking is our own Prime Minister. When asked what he thought of Mr Trump’s proposal, Anthony Albanese refused to deviate from the line prepared by his army of spinners that he wasn’t willing to engage in a “daily commentary” on Mr Trump’s statements. We get it, you don’t like the bloke. You’d rather Mr Trump stuck to the golf greens of Florida instead of returning to the international stage. That doesn’t change the fact that he’s now the leader of the free world, and responding when he makes world-changing proclamations falls within your brief as Prime Minister. Pleading to return to questions about Medicare instead of engaging thoughtfully and seriously with an issue which would have repercussions for the entire world — Australia included — made Mr Albanese look pathetically provincial. Like it or not, we’re now living in a Trumpian world where the accepted rules no longer apply. That’s a fact Mr Albanese needs to start taking both seriously and literally. Source link #Editorial #Donald #Trumps #Gaza #threats #literally Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Workers forced to return to the office may soon become ‘accidental landlords’ Workers forced to return to the office may soon become ‘accidental landlords’ Clay Spence never really wanted to be a landlord. Lately, though, it’s begun to feel like the only sensible option. Spence, a 27-year-old financial analyst, lives east of Orlando in Florida’s Brevard County. In September 2021, he paid $225,000 for a three-bedroom townhome in a subdivision lined with palm trees and tidy lawns. It seemed like an idyllic outpost for a remote worker like Spence. Even more attractive was the mortgage rate — at just over 3%, it’s less than half the typical rate for a loan today. “We probably won’t see those rates again,” Spence tells me. That plum deal made it tough when, early this year, Spence and his fiancée set their sights on a newly built home in Winter Haven, Florida, about halfway between Tampa and Orlando. It’s closer to friends, family, and, importantly, Spence’s office, where he’s recently been attending more meetings. The builder lavished on them sweeteners like a price cut and a mortgage rate buydown. But what to do with the old place? Sure, they could sell — likely for a tidy if not spectacular gain — but the allure of holding on to the townhome has been impossible to ignore. Spence says he expects his old spot to keep appreciating in value, and he’s in no rush to say goodbye to that mortgage rate. So he decided to list the home for rent. He figured that finding good tenants and handling the odd maintenance request would be worth the headache. Spence quickly secured tenants willing to pay $1,800 a month, enough for him to clear about $300 a month after paying expenses like the mortgage, taxes, and insurance. Spence is what you might call an “accidental landlord”: the kind of person who gets into the rental business through circumstance, not because they consider themself a budding real estate mogul. This breed of landlord is born out of trade-offs and clear-eyed calculations, a far cry from the caffeinated bootstrappers on HGTV or the investing gurus pitching their real estate hacks on TikTok. While there have always been accidental landlords, this Housing Ice Age — an era of middling home sales brought on by a steep rise in borrowing rates — is minting a new wave of reluctant rental owners. Their ranks could grow with the uptick in return-to-office mandates. As employers like Amazon, AT&T, and the federal government herd workers back to their desks, some employees may have to ditch the far-flung homes they purchased during peak remote work. Property managers in places like Dallas and Atlanta, some of the prime destinations for pandemic-era movers, tell me they’ve recently seen a rise in inquiries from homeowners looking to get into the rental market. For those inclined to do it themselves, the internet is awash in recently published how-to guides for inadvertent investors. Selling a house is tough right now, as is finding a job that lets you work full time from the comfort of your couch. For those who can’t — or won’t — sell their old place, the landlord business may be a welcome alternative. Spence tells me renting out his old home has been a cumbersome, multistep process. “But the pros outweighed the cons in this situation,” he says, “especially right now.” Homeowners have two options when it comes time to move: sell the house or rent it out. During the high-flying days of 2021, the answer seemed like a no-brainer: Take the money! A flood of footloose buyers, buoyed by record-low mortgage rates, gave sellers the chance to fetch top dollar for their houses. That dynamic changed in the spring of 2022, when the Federal Reserve started jacking up interest rates to combat inflation. Mortgage rates followed, putting the brakes on the runaway market. These days, the average rate for a 30-year loan is roughly 7%, up from a low of about 2.6% in early 2021. Recent homebuyers are likely paying hundreds of dollars more each month toward interest than they would have a few years ago. So the sell-versus-rent calculus has shifted: Giving up the cheap loan terms of yesteryear could be a mistake, especially when you can find tenants to help cover the mortgage. Prospective sellers, particularly in the southern half of the US, also face weaker demand for homes and more competition from others looking to offload their properties. According to the housing analytics firm Altos Research, there are roughly 630,000 single-family homes on the market, compared with just 270,000 at the same point in 2022. No wonder would-be sellers are turning to the rental market instead. While all signs point to a rise in the number of accidental landlords, there’s no definitive count of their ranks. There are, however, some ways to get an approximation. A 2024 survey by the National Association of Realtors found that 20% of repeat buyers kept their prior residence as an investment, rental, or vacation property. Parcl Labs, a real estate analytics firm, has also devised a useful proxy. The company identified some of the most popular markets for single-family rental homes — Tampa, Florida; Dallas; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Phoenix, among a few others — and then looked at how many owners had listed a home for *****, yanked it from the market, and then relisted it as a rental within 60 days. Parcl found that, depending on the metro, anywhere from 3% to 8% of people who listed their homes for ***** in September had become accidental landlords by November. The percentages were even higher for sellers who listed from May through August. In Atlanta, for instance, an average of roughly one in 10 stymied sellers swapped in a “for rent” sign over the past year. In Houston, the share of accidental landlords peaked in July at nearly 9% of all sellers. In June, Phoenix surpassed 15%. The metros in Parcl’s analysis have something in common: They’re all once hot Sun Belt markets that welcomed a wave of new residents as remote work took hold. As fewer people move into these areas and new home construction catches up to demand, sellers may not get their desired windfall. “It’s such a thin market on the sales side right now,” Jason Lewris, a cofounder of Parcl Labs, tells me. “Folks want to move, and this is another outlet for them to try to do that.” Some accidental landlords may not even bother trying to sell their original home. In April 2022, Ryan, who works in healthcare, bought a house in southeast Austin for $615,000. His timing couldn’t have been worse. (Ryan asked that I use only his first name to protect both his privacy and his pride; “I feel very foolish, and I don’t like that,” he said.) This was right around the peak of Austin home prices, which have since dropped precipitously — by almost 16%, according to Freddie Mac — thanks to a decline in new arrivals and a wave of construction. Ryan estimates the value of his house has fallen to about $450,000, based on other deals in the area. Homebuilders nearby have been offering generous incentives to buyers, which he says would only make it tougher to sell his property. He’s also soured on Austin — too much traffic, too expensive, too hot. He recently got an in-person job in his hometown of Phoenix, where he’ll be moving soon. And he says he’s not ready to stomach a loss from a ***** of his Austin home just yet. “I’m going to rent it,” Ryan tells me. “I’m going to see what happens over the next year and just kind of go from there.” Christopher Story, a co-owner of Story Real Estate, a property-management firm in the Dallas area, says that about half of the inquiries he gets from homeowners these days come from accidental landlords. “They’ve ended up in a situation where they can’t sell,” Story tells me. Todd Ortscheid, who runs Revolution Rental Management in the Atlanta area, similarly says his region is “just flooded with accidental landlords.” Of the roughly 15 properties his company signs up to manage each month, Ortscheid tells me, about 12 or 13 belong to people who didn’t intend to become a rental owner. As emboldened executives order employees to return to their desks, accidental landlords may grow even more common. Remote work isn’t going away, but it’s gotten harder to find hybrid or fully remote jobs, which could still mean more movers down the line. Workers who bought homes in the boonies might have to backtrack if the bosses decide Zoom calls aren’t cutting it. It’s practically inevitable that some of these people will decide to hang on to their homes rather than sell. “We think it’s going to continue, and it’s simply a matter of interest rates,” Ortscheid tells me. “Until the interest rates drop down to under 5.5%, maybe 5%, you’re not going to have many people selling their homes.” But the metros with some of the weakest for-***** markets — in other words, the places where someone might be tempted to rent out their old place instead — have shown signs of softening rental markets, too. Take Austin: According to John Burns Research and Consulting, asking rents for single-family homes were down by more than 2% year over year in November, while the number of resale listings, not including newly built houses, was up by more than 60% from 2019 levels, the last “normal” year before the pandemic. Dallas, Houston, Orlando, and Phoenix are some of the other metros with muted rent growth and a surprising glut of homes for *****. Being a landlord isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, either. Property managers caution that homeowners may not be prepared for the unexpected costs and headaches of converting their homes to rentals. A vacant month or two can sink a year’s worth of cash-flow projections, while surprise maintenance can eat up time and money. Enlisting a property manager doesn’t come cheap; a typical firm will charge a month’s worth of rent to find a tenant and a percentage of the rent each month after. On the other hand, small-time rental owners have never had more tools at their fingertips. If they want to see what comparable homes are renting for, they can scroll through Zillow or visit the websites of big-money investment firms that rent out tens of thousands of properties. National firms like Buildium and Roofstock, mostly known for working with Wall Street investors, also offer management services and pricing advice to smaller landlords. Other startups allow rental owners to outsource annoying tasks like rent collection and bookkeeping. “Not everyone in the world is cut out to be a landlord,” Story tells me. However, he adds, “being an accidental landlord can be one of the biggest blessings.” The rental route has been a mixed bag for Casey Conner, a homeowner in Nashville who I talked to for a story a few years ago. In January 2022, he bought a single-story home in the suburbs and locked down a 3.2% interest rate. When I talked to him that fall, he had just gotten a job offer in Kentucky and was torn about whether to sell or rent out his property. Other homes listed for ***** on his street were sitting on the market longer than expected, but he also figured he wouldn’t make much by renting it out and hiring a property manager. Despite his hesitations, he eventually opted to be a landlord. The $2,300 he charged for rent was enough to cover the $2,100 mortgage and the $200 he paid the manager each month, but it left no room for the other maintenance costs that popped up, which ended up costing him well over $3,000. Then Conner got laid off, and he and his wife decided to move back into the home in Nashville, where he figured he’d have an easier time finding another job. When I called him to catch up, he was settling into the old home and had just accepted an offer as a sales coordinator at a construction company. The cash-flow losses from his brief stint as a landlord were “painful,” he tells me, but it was a financial win in other ways: At least he never had to give up that mortgage rate. And he’s been grateful to have a home to return to in Nashville. “Not that I am rich,” Conner emails me later, “but I do understand when they say: ‘The rich don’t earn. They own.'” James Rodriguez is a senior reporter on Business Insider’s Discourse team. Read the original article on Business Insider Source link #Workers #forced #return #office #accidental #landlords Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

USAID employees around the world will be placed on leave Friday and ordered to return to US – CNN USAID employees around the world will be placed on leave Friday and ordered to return to US – CNN USAID employees around the world will be placed on leave Friday and ordered to return to US CNNForeign Strongmen Cheer as Musk Dismantles U.S. Aid Agency The New York TimesTrump’s administration is pulling almost all USAID workers off the job worldwide The Associated PressDaily Briefing: Trump, DOGE and what’s happening at USAID USA TODAY Source link #USAID #employees #world #leave #Friday #ordered #return #CNN Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Lotto: One *********** scoops $1 million division one prize in Wednesday’s Millionaire Medley Lotto: One *********** scoops $1 million division one prize in Wednesday’s Millionaire Medley A lucky Aussie has scooped a huge win after matching six winning numbers in Wednesday’s Lotto draw. The fortunate ticketholder will pocket a cool $1 million from the division one win. Division two produced 21 winners — including three West Aussies — who will each take home more than $2,500. The winning numbers for draw #4504 are 2, 31, 6, 9, 8 and 20. The supplementary numbers are 44 and 11. It comes just one day after a Sydney woman made Oz Lotto history with a division one win worth a whopping $100 million. Lottery officials said the woman was in disbelief when she received the call about her new fortune. “Who is this? Why are you calling this late?” she asked when being told the news. She said the money will allow her to buy a home, take more holidays and cut back on how many days she works. The woman is the largest individual winner in the draw’s history. Source link #Lotto #*********** #scoops #million #division #prize #Wednesdays #Millionaire #Medley Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Does Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Have Difficulty Settings? Does Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Have Difficulty Settings? It becomes apparent early on Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 and difficulty go hand in hand. I wouldn’t say it’s “Souls” levels of difficulty, but it’s easy to be caught out in KC2. If you’re reading this, you know what I mean, and I’m here to see if you can stop seeing the game over screen as regularly. 2018’s Kingdom Come Deliverance became a fan-favorite for its setting, characters, and immersive gameplay. Its mechanics included a lot of realism-based actions: Needing to hydrate, the necessity of eating and sleeping, and the punishing nature of its combat. KC wasn’t easy, and despite selling 8 million copies, the brutal nature of its combat wasn’t for everyone. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 has improved in almost every way. But one noticeable area that feels the same is the rugged and tough gameplay battle encounters. This is why players are already questioning if difficulty settings exist in KC2. Can You Change The Difficulty Settings in Kingdom Come Deliverance 2? Don’t you laugh at me, good sir. Image by Insider Gaming I can confirm you can’t change the difficulty settings in Kingdom Come Deliverance 2. It uses a default difficulty setting designed to accommodate all players—meaning you might struggle in moments. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 hasn’t budged in the difficulty settings department (kind of, but more later) and you need to adapt. You learn early on you need to take the RPG seriously. If you don’t stock up on Bandages, you bleed to death. If you carry an assortment of rancid meat for days on end, you have no food, and you starve to death. Additionally, you will die repeatedly if you don’t adhere to the nuances of KC2’s combat mechanics. Even I find it easy to become overwhelmed by a fight, and I end up mashing the main attack button. You know what happens? You already know it. Can You Make Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Harder? Hardcore Mode Explained Oh good. Credit to “Kingdom Come: Deliverance II – Roadmap Trailer | PS5 Games” Trailer on YouTube Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is getting a Hardcore Mode as post-launch content. The forthcoming gameplay addition was announced during the Roadmap Trailer announcement. Along with a bunch of new content coming after KC2’s debut—including a Barber feature, Horse Racing, and new Quests—the roadmap includes Hardcore Mode. Warhorse Studios hasn’t confirmed what Hardcore Mode entails, but history tells us KC2 is about to become a lot tougher. If I use Bethesda’s Fallout series as a classic example, the franchise’s Hardcore Mode typically makes healing and all status conditions recover a lot slower, items weigh more, and fast travel affects player status too. There are so many avenues the developer can go with KC2’s Hardcore Mode. The one thing I’m confident about is if you playthrough Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 on Hardcore Mode, you’re going to have a heck of a challenge on your hands. We don’t know when it’s coming yet, but stay tuned for updates on the Hardcore Mode content patch. Before you consider Hardcore Mode, check out how to claim your KC2 pre-order and Gold Edition goodies, how to find the game’s best Crossbow, and how to Lockpick efficiently. Is a Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Hardcore Mode right up your alley? Or do you think the developer needs to add difficulty settings to make the title more accessible? Let us know. SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to receive the latest news and exclusive leaks every week! No Spam. Source link #Kingdom #Deliverance #Difficulty #Settings Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

EE shines as 5G mobile availability improves for all *** operators EE shines as 5G mobile availability improves for all *** operators The benefits of increasing competition among the four *** mobile operators saw continued 5G improvement for users in terms of availability and other key benchmarks at the end of 2024, even though there was no clear leader for 5G speed experience, according to RootMetrics’ *** state of the mobile union report for H2 2024. The benchmark testing was carried out using the latest Samsung 5G-enabled handsets sold by retailers to test both 4G LTE and 5G performance on the networks of EE, Three, Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone. In all, more than 627,000 tests were conducted across the *** during the day and night, both indoors and outdoors, covering 23,000 miles and 787 indoor locations. Among the topline findings for the Mobile union report for H2 2024 was that BT-owned EE maintained its position as the ***’s overall leading network, winning or sharing every ***-wide RootScoreAward. Notably, EE has won the *** Overall RootScore Award outright in every test ******* dating back to H2 2013, giving EE the prestige of being rated as the ***’s best network for 11.5 years running. Although no operator was awarded the Fastest 5G Experience in the ***, EE, Three and Vodafone each delivered 5G median download speeds exceeding 200 Mbps in ***-wide testing, while Virgin Media O2 trailed at 82.8 Mbps. All four *** operators continued to show improved 5G availability in RootMetrics’ testing, with EE, Three and Virgin Media O2 all demonstrating 61% 5G availability during ***-wide testing. While Vodafone trailed at 48.3%, all operators showed improvement in comparison to a year ago during H2 2023 testing, where no operator offered 5G availability above 60%. EE also posted the fastest ***-wide median download speed at 89.9 Mbps, nearly double that of closest competitor Vodafone which offered 49.9 Mbps. It also secured Best 5G Experience honours for the second consecutive test ******* through its “combination of widespread 5G availability and strong performance”. Looking at the individual operators, the study singled out Three for sharing the *** Text RootScore Award with notably strong performance in metropolitan markets, recording median download speeds above 50 Mbps in 13 out of 16 markets tested – the second highest mark of any operator. Although Three trailed EE and Vodafone for both awards and speeds, its 33 RootScore Awards nearly doubled Virgin Media O2’s total of 17. Improving its rankings in several ***-wide categories while increasing its award tallies in both nation and metro testing, Vodafone performed well overall. Its 5G network delivered strong results, with the operator recording median 5G download speeds above 100 Mbps across all 16 markets tested. The operator increased its RootScore Award tally in major cities from 35 in the previous report to 45 in H2 2024. However, its median download speed interval results only showed modest improvement, with median download speeds above 100 Mbps in one more city than in the first half of 2024. Virgin Media O2 was the only operator that didn’t record any median download speeds over 100 Mbps in major cities, and the operator recorded the only sub-20 Mbps median download speed during testing with 14.8 Mbps in Southampton. Yet despite trailing in awards, RootMetrics found VMO2 had showed improved 5G availability in 15 out of 16 cities tested, while posting faster median 5G download speeds in a majority of the cities tested. Source link #shines #mobile #availability #improves #operators Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

******** consumer confidence ‘really bad’ during Lunar New Year *******, strategist says ******** consumer confidence ‘really bad’ during Lunar New Year *******, strategist says Shaun Rein, founder and managing director of China Market Research Group, discusses the ******** economy. Source link #******** #consumer #confidence #bad #Lunar #Year #******* #strategist Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Rachel Maddow Breaks Down 2 Major Ways The Trump Admin’s ‘Stupidity’ Is Backfiring Rachel Maddow Breaks Down 2 Major Ways The Trump Admin’s ‘Stupidity’ Is Backfiring MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow on Tuesday mocked the Trump administration’s move to delete references to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives from federal websites — but which have inadvertently led to some completely unrelated pages being nixed, just because they include those words in different contexts. In one instance, noted Maddow, a tax manual was reportedly removed that referenced “the inclusion of a taxpayer identification number on a particular form.” Maddow suggested the “particularly ostentatiously stupid ways” in which some Trump staffers are behaving have two outcomes. “It undercuts the air of intimidation and omnipotence that they’ve tried to use to get their way,” she explained. “I mean, it doesn’t mean that they don’t have the worst and most malicious intentions. They clearly do. But it gives lie to the fact that they’re just not that good at any of the things they’re trying to do.” Their “level of stupidity has the benefit of making us less intimidated by them because they’re being dumb,” she said. Second, it “also has the benefit of emboldening people to push back,” Maddow argued. Watch Maddow’s full analysis here: Related… Source link #Rachel #Maddow #Breaks #Major #Ways #Trump #Admins #Stupidity #Backfiring Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Homebuyer mortgage demand drops further, a troubling sign for the spring market Homebuyer mortgage demand drops further, a troubling sign for the spring market Single-family homes in a residential neighborhood in San Marcos, Texas. Jordan Vonderhaar | Bloomberg | Getty Images Homebuyers are seeing very little reason to get a jump on the all-important spring housing market, even with more listings coming up for *****. Mortgage rates haven’t moved much in the last few weeks, and home prices continue to rise. Mortgage applications to purchase a home last week dropped 4%, compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index. Demand was flat compared with the same week a year ago. “The average loan size for a purchase loan has increased since the start of the year and continued that trend last week with weaker government purchase activity, which reached $447,300, the highest level since October 2024,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) decreased to 6.97% from 7.02%, with points increasing to 0.64 from 0.63 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment. That rate was 17 basis points lower than the same week a year ago. “Mortgage rates moved lower last week, consistent with lower Treasury yields following the FOMC meeting and a volatile week for stock market. The 30-year fixed rate declined to its lowest level in six weeks,” Kan added. Applications to refinance a home loan responded to that small drop, rising 12% from the previous week and 17% from the same week a year ago. The percentage increases are large, but much of that is due to volumes being so low. Most borrowers today have rates well below what is being offered today. Mortgage applications to buy a home are now 39% lower than they were in February 2019, pre-pandemic. Home sales are running at a near-30-year low, and home prices nationally continue to hit record highs. More sellers are offering price cuts, 15.6% in January compared with 14.7% in January of last year, according to Realtor.com. But most sellers are still seeing enough competition to hold fast to their list prices. Meanwhile, the supply of homes for ***** rose 25%, compared with a year ago. Much of the supply gain is because homes are sitting on the market longer. The average time to sell a home in January was 54 days, the longest since March 2020, according to Redfin. The supply of homes for ***** is still 25% below where it was in January 2019. Source link #Homebuyer #mortgage #demand #drops #troubling #sign #spring #market Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Samsung Galaxy A36 5G Spotted on Company Support Page, Reportedly Listed on GCF Certification Website Samsung Galaxy A36 5G Spotted on Company Support Page, Reportedly Listed on GCF Certification Website Samsung Galaxy A36 5G is expected to be in the works as a potential successor to last year’s Galaxy A35 5G. Ahead of a formal reveal, the smartphone allegedly appeared on Samsung’s support page on its UAE website. Additionally, the Galaxy A36 5G has been reportedly spotted on the Global Certification Forum (GCF) website suggesting an imminent launch. The listing indicates the model numbers of the phone. The Galaxy A36 5G is expected to ship with a Snapdragon chipset and could offer 45W fast charging. A Samsung handset with model number SM-A366B/DS, believed to be the Galaxy A36 5G, has surfaced on the company’s UAE website’s support page. Apart from the model number, the listing doesn’t reveal much information about the device. The model number indicates dual SIM support for the device. Additionally, as reported by MySmartPrice, the Galaxy A36 5G with model numbers SM-A366B/DS and SM-A366B have been spotted on the GCF website. The suffix B in the model number indicates that the model could be a global variant of the phone. The Galaxy A36 5G is expected to come with upgrades over the Galaxy A35 5G. It had earlier appeared on Geekbench with an octa-core chipset, Android 15, 6GB RAM, and Adreno 610 GPU. The handset could ship with either a Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 SoC or the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 chipset. It is said to come with support for 45W fast charging. Galaxy A36 5G Specifications (Expected) Other specifications of Galaxy A35 5G are likely to be upgrades over Galaxy A35 5G. The latter has a 6.6-inch full-HD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 5nm Exynos 1380 processor under the hood. It packs 8GB of RAM and a triple rear camera setup comprising a 50-megapixel primary camera. On the front, it has a 13-megapixel front camera for selfies. The phone is backed by a 5,000mAh battery with support for 25W fast charging. Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details. Source link #Samsung #Galaxy #A36 #Spotted #Company #Support #Page #Reportedly #Listed #GCF #Certification #Website Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Honda and Nissan Merger Talks in Peril Honda and Nissan Merger Talks in Peril Nissan Motor and Honda Motor have hit a standstill negotiating the terms of a merger, announced less than two months ago, that would have created one of the world’s largest auto groups. Before their disclosure in late December that they were exploring combining operations, Nissan and Honda had discussed operating as partners under a holding company. More recently, Honda pushed for a structure that would give it a ******* say in the holding company and proposed that Nissan become its subsidiary — a plan that Nissan rejected, said two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because the negotiations were private. From the beginning of the merger talks, a number of executives at Honda were sour on the idea of merging with Nissan, concerned about its financial state, one of the people said. Nissan has been reckoning with a drop in sales that has pushed it to make deep cuts to its global operations. Honda viewed Nissan making progress with its restructuring plans as a condition for a potential merger to move forward. As it performed its own analysis, examining factors including projections of the profitability of Nissan models, the company decided it needed to lay down “strict” conditions for a merger, the person said. It remains uncertain where Nissan and Honda will stand if the merger talks are formally suspended. The deal was viewed as a lifeline for Nissan in particular. Honda retains a profitable two-wheeler business, but both automakers are struggling under the weight of the difficult and expensive transition toward electric and software-laden vehicles. Honda and Nissan had pitched their combination as a way to share the financial burden by developing and investing in next-generation vehicles together. Nissan sells more than three million vehicles a year, while Honda sells nearly four million. A merger would position them as the world’s third-largest automaker group, behind Toyota and Volkswagen. Talks are continuing, the two people familiar with the negotiations said. Nothing formal is likely to be announced by the companies until at least next week, when Honda and Nissan report their earnings for the recent October-December quarter. Nissan’s shares fell nearly 5 percent in trading on Wednesday. Honda’s shares gained more than 8 percent. Source link #Honda #Nissan #Merger #Talks #Peril Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

U.S. drafts plan to withdraw all its troops from Syria, NBC News reports – Reuters U.S. drafts plan to withdraw all its troops from Syria, NBC News reports – Reuters U.S. drafts plan to withdraw all its troops from Syria, NBC News reports ReutersTrump’s Advisor to Kurdistan 24: US Forces Will Remain in Syria to Protect Interests and Prevent ISIS Resurgence Kurdistan24Trump: ‘We’re not involved in Syria, they got their own mess’ Responsible StatecraftUS drafts plan to withdraw all its troops from Syria: report New York Post Source link #U.S #drafts #plan #withdraw #troops #Syria #NBC #News #reports #Reuters Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Scammers spread fake nude pictures of me on social media Scammers spread fake nude pictures of me on social media Naga Munchetty BBC presenter Alamy “Naga Munchetti: This is the most humiliating day of my life. Yesterday’s news shocked the whole of the ***.” The headline was enough to make me want to read more – but the fact they had spelled my name wrong made me immediately question the credibility of the journalism involved – if there was any. I’m used to seeing misleading articles about myself online, but the screenshots I’ve been sent by friends and followers on social media in recent weeks are a lot more insidious than most. Paid-for advertisements are popping up across X and Facebook, some including crudely mocked-up images of me naked – my face badly photoshopped onto someone else’s body. I was both mortified and bemused, curious about who would pay good money to spread such obvious nonsense. And what was their motive? Is it something malicious? Someone with an axe to grind? I discussed it with my 5 Live production team, and we began to dig into it more. It soon became apparent that my name and image were being used by scammers to try to hoodwink people out of money. Clicking on the adverts took you through to a fake news article, complete with BBC logo and imagery. This fake image, which never appeared on the BBC News website, falsely claimed Munchetty had given a “scandalous interview” The fake article about me suggested I had been detained by the government following a “controversial” interview on ITV’s This Morning, where I allegedly gave details about a “lucrative loophole” to make money. It was made to look like a BBC News article, complete with logo and branding, and it contained links to a scam cyber trading website, which has now been taken down after my production team reported it to the BBC legal team. I’m not the first high-profile face to be used by scammers to trick people out of their hard-earned money. My fellow 5 Live presenter and Money Saving Expert, Martin Lewis, has previously spoken out about his face being used to front cryptocurrency scams. Wildlife TV presenter Chris Packham told me he first saw fake articles about himself appearing on social media two years ago. “Recently I opened an account with Bluesky and within hours there were fake accounts re-posting these scams from other platforms,” he said. “The ones on Bluesky were a bit more sophisticated in that scammers set up a ‘conservation fund’ with my identity and did some research and directly sent it to lawyers who I work with on environmental projects asking for ‘donations’ “On a personal level this affects my credibility as an environmentalist and campaigner. As a communicator you need trust and for people to believe what you’re saying and know I’m telling the truth and this impacts that. “I hate the idea of my image being used to scam, it’s abjectly terrible.” Lisa Barber, tech editor at Which?, said one of their reporters had signed up to a website linked to from a false advert, similar to the ones written about me and Chris, and was “bombarded” by calls from somebody encouraging them to invest their money. “The registered addresses all seem to lead to Reyjkavik in Iceland, and even a car park there,” she said. “Our reporter could sometimes hear other people making calls in the background, which makes us think it was a call centre. There was so much pressure on [our reporter] from the caller – quite an aggressive sell.” “People have lost hundreds and some thousands through this. It’s really convincing and relatively new, but social media platforms need to do more.” The fake photos and articles being spread around online are mildly upsetting, but my main motivation for speaking out about them is to try to stop anyone handing over any money or personal information to these scammers. I was lucky that the BBC legal department were able to use copyright law to have the website taken down, but I’ve been told another website is likely to pop up soon enough, and getting ads taken down from X has become more difficult since it changed ownership. This fake post on X falsely claims the government ordered Munchetty to be detained Meta, who own Facebook and Instagram, said: “We don’t allow fraudulent activity and work closely with law enforcement to support investigations and keep scammers off our platforms. We continue to work closely with Stop Scams *** to help victims and remove scams at the source. “As part of our ongoing work on this issue, we announced a new partnership earlier this year with *** banks to combat scams called FIRE programme. This is a first-of-its-kind information sharing partnership with banks, allowing banks to share intelligence directly with us to combat scams on our platform. “People can report ads they believe violate our policies by clicking the three dots in the upper right hand corner of the ad. These reports are an important signal to our ad review systems, and may prompt a re-review of the ad. This feedback also helps to improve our policies and enforcement.” The BBC has also contacted X and Bluesky for comment. I hope that raising awareness of this scam may at least make it less worthwhile for the criminals involved, and it serves as a useful reminder to not believe everything that you read about me – and be careful what you click on. Listen to Naga Munchetty on 5 Live and BBC Sounds, Monday – Wednesday from 11:00 GMT. Source link #Scammers #spread #fake #nude #pictures #social #media Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

The Warehouse Grocery Store That’s Even Cheaper Than Costco And Sam’s Club The Warehouse Grocery Store That’s Even Cheaper Than Costco And Sam’s Club The long, exhausting fight against inflation continues. As consumers scramble to find the cheapest sources for food, many have chosen to stock up on bulk items at Costco and Sam’s Club. However, there is one other warehouse store where your buck may stretch even further: WinCo Foods. If you live in one of the 10 states where the business operates, primarily in the American West, WinCo may already be a household name. For those who have never set foot in the supermarket chain, it’s not unlike perusing the aisles of Costco or Sam’s Club. There are nearly ceiling-high shelves stocked with canned and boxed goods, butchers working the meat case, and fresh bread coming out of the bakery. However, what makes WinCo different from those big-box clubs is that the savings start as soon as you walk through the door. At WinCo, membership isn’t required, and that alone is a draw. Annual membership fees cost $65 or $130 a year at Costco (the company increased its rates in 2024) and $50 or $110 annually at Sam’s Club (the warehouse raised its prices in late 2022). WinCo can offer many of its items at a lower rate because it cuts out the middleman — distributors — and buys directly from manufacturers and farms. Other cost-cutting measures include no advertising or marketing, having customers bag their own groceries, and prohibiting credit card payments to avoid hefty transaction fees. Ultimately, those savings are then passed on to shoppers. Finally, the stores are known for their sprawling bulk bin sections — most containing more than 800 products — resulting in lower prices per unit. Read more: 13 Ways To Help Save Money At The Grocery Store Employee-Ownership Means Retirement Riches A sign thanking customers above a WinCo exit – Summer_Wind/Shutterstock While everyone loves a bargain, which WinCo delivers in spades, it is also gratifying to know that your hard-earned dollars support an employer that rewards its workers with financial security rather than undercutting wages — an all-too-common practice at some competitors like Walmart, which cut its starting pay for some new hires in 2023. WinCo employees are also owners and have been since 1985, when the Boise, Idaho-founded company launched an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, which effectively functions as a retirement program for workers. According to WinCo’s website, every employee becomes a part of the program after turning 19 years old, putting in 500 hours in their first six months, and accumulating 1,000 hours each fiscal year. The company states its ESOP share values (not valued on the open stock market) have risen at an annual compounded rate of about 18% since the year after the plan started. What does that look like to an employee? “$5,000 worth of stock in 1986 now has stock worth almost $863,000,” the employee-owned warehouse notes. So, you may not be able to order Costco’s famous $1.50 hot dog and soda combo at WinCo, but shopping there does support this employee-owner model. Even better, most WinCos are open 24/7, so you can score bargains around the clock. Read the original article on Tasting Table. Source link #Warehouse #Grocery #Store #Cheaper #Costco #Sams #Club Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Quordle hints and answers for Thursday, February 6 (game #1109) Quordle hints and answers for Thursday, February 6 (game #1109) Looking for a different day? A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing ‘today’s game’ while others are playing ‘yesterday’s’. If you’re looking for Wednesday’s puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Wednesday, February 5 (game #1108). Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,100 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers. Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc’s Wordle today column covers the original viral word game. SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers. Quordle today (game #1109) – hint #1 – Vowels How many different vowels are in Quordle today? • The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 2*. * Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too). Quordle today (game #1109) – hint #2 – repeated letters Do any of today’s Quordle answers contain repeated letters? • The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 2. Quordle today (game #1109) – hint #3 – uncommon letters Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today? • No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today’s Quordle answers. Quordle today (game #1109) – hint #4 – starting letters (1) Do any of today’s Quordle puzzles start with the same letter? • The number of today’s Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0. If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you’re not ready yet then here’s one more clue to make things a lot easier: Quordle today (game #1109) – hint #5 – starting letters (2) What letters do today’s Quordle answers start with? • M • S • F • T Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM. Quordle today (game #1109) – the answers (Image credit: Merriam-Webster) The answers to today’s Quordle, game #1109, are… Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. With every word containing an “A” I switched my second start word to STARE, which helped narrow things down a little. Having a limited number of vowels also helped bring down the number of possibilities – although I must admit it took me a bit of head scratching before I finally got FAUNA. All in all I was pleased to finish with a line to spare. How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below. Daily Sequence today (game #1109) – the answers (Image credit: Merriam-Webster) The answers to today’s Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1109, are… Quordle answers: The past 20 Quordle #1108, Wednesday 5 February: SIXTH, VERVE, BLURB, CACTI Quordle #1107, Tuesday 4 February: BIRTH, DRAWN, MILKY, JOIST Quordle #1106, Monday 3 February: SLEET, TENSE, SEIZE, SCAMP Quordle #1105, Sunday 2 February: LOUSY, PENNE, CHUMP, SALVE Quordle #1104, Saturday 1 February: FACET, BLISS, FLUFF, FRANK Quordle #1103, Friday 31 January: PARER, SYNOD, BRAWN, BANJO Quordle #1102, Thursday 30 January: WEEDY, CHIRP, STALE, SUGAR Quordle #1101, Wednesday 29 January: CROWN, SCENE, AGILE, CRANK Quordle #1100, Tuesday 28 January: TOKEN, DAISY, INANE, PLIED Quordle #1099, Monday 27 January: ANGEL, GLOBE, MAYOR, BRAVE Quordle #1098, Sunday 26 January: WATER, ORBIT, BRIDE, TOUCH Quordle #1097, Saturday 25 January: GIVER, GROOM, GUSTO, MAKER Quordle #1096, Friday 24 January: GRIND, STOCK, SERVE, TOUCH Quordle #1095, Thursday 23 January: RUGBY, SASSY, WORRY, BANAL Quordle #1094, Wednesday 22 January: ******, TRUNK, WOOZY, EATEN Quordle #1093, Tuesday 21 January: CHART, VIGOR, PRINT, SPAWN Quordle #1092, Monday 20 January: SIXTY, THONG, TATTY, ROBIN Quordle #1091, Sunday 19 January: WREST, RINSE, SCOUR, CANNY Quordle #1090, Saturday 18 January: BLARE, ITCHY, BICEP, PIPER Quordle #1089, Friday 17 January: CATCH, WEARY, SWOON, LATHE Source link #Quordle #hints #answers #Thursday #February #game Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

LA Pokémon Go Fest is going ahead following wildfires, but players will be offered refunds LA Pokémon Go Fest is going ahead following wildfires, but players will be offered refunds Niantic has said that Pokémon Go Fest Los Angeles will go ahead as planned, but that it will offer all players who’d bought tickets for the event a no-questions-asked refund in the wake of last month’s fires. Last month, devastating wildfires ravaged large parts of Los Angeles, California. Now, Niantic has said that it will offer refunds to all players who may no longer be able to attend its LA event. Players can receive the $30 refund if they apply before February 23. The real-life event, which sees players getting access to special Pokemon and quests in a specific area, will take place primarily at the Rose Bowl Stadium and Brookside Golf Course in Pasadena. Players will also have access to city-wide quests in the larger Los Angeles area. “Our team has been watching the situation in Los Angeles, and prioritizing the safety and well-being of Pasadena, the greater Los Angeles area, and our Pokémon Go community,” Niantic said in a statement. “In partnership with the Rose Bowl Operating Company and local authorities, we have made the decision to continue holding the in Pokémon Go Tour: Unova Los Angeles experience.” Trainers, In partnership with the Rose Bowl Operating Company and local authorities, we have made the decision to continue holding the in-person Pokémon GO Tour: Unova – Los Angeles experience at Rose Bowl Stadium. More information, including how we are supporting the local… pic.twitter.com/qSNCD9a6QX — Pokémon GO (@PokemonGoApp) February 4, 2025 “Our thoughts are with those impacted by these wildfires. More information, including what we are doing to support the local community, will be shared at a later date.” The event will give players a look at the next season of content, and will include the debut of two legendary Pokemon, ****** Kyrum and White Kyrum. Pokemon Go’s current season, Dual Destiny, will end on March 4 ahead of the launch of the next season of the Unova Tour. Source link #Pokémon #Fest #ahead #wildfires #players #offered #refunds Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Alphabet reported a revenue miss that sent the stock tumbling. What analysts are saying Alphabet reported a revenue miss that sent the stock tumbling. What analysts are saying Despite Alphabet’s disappointing fourth-quarter results , many Wall Street analysts remain optimistic that the company’s artificial intelligence investments will pay off. Alphabet’s revenue of $96.47 billion in the prior quarter fell short of the $96.56 billion forecast by analysts, according to LSEG. Revenue growth slowed to around 12% year over year, compared to a 13% rise in the same quarter last year. The company also announced it plans to invest around $75 billion in AI this year , coming ahead of the $59.73 billion consensus estimate, per Visible Alpha. Shares of the Google parent company were last down nearly 7% during premarket trading. GOOGL 1D mountain Alphabet shares on Wednesday “Why does Google get hit on another year of heavy infrastructure investment while Meta’s 60%+ capex increase in 2025 is embraced by the Street?” JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth asked in a client note on Wednesday. Pushback on the company’s quarterly report is stemming around the “three C’s: Capex, cloud revenue trajectory and costs,” Anmuth added. While acknowledging that the stock may stay pressured in the near term due to the higher-than-expected spending outlook, the analyst remains bullish on Alphabet’s AI innovations and advertising growth are encouraging. Anmuth reiterated his overweight rating on shares, though he trimmed his price target to $220 from $232. The new price target indicates 6.6% upside from Tuesday’s close. Bank of America and Goldman Sachs are some of the other firms confident in Alphabet’s status as a generative AI leader. Both firms reiterated their buy ratings on the stock following the company’s earnings release. “We continue to advocate that the combination of AI distribution at scale (collection 1b+ user applications) and scale of compute to both invest and drive efficiencies remain as a dual under-appreciated narrative in terms of AI over the long-term, particularly as we move from the ‘infrastructure’ to ‘platform’ and ‘application’ layers of AI monetization,” Goldman analyst Eric Sheridan said in a Wednesday note. BofA’s Justin Post also wrote that that the “Street could be underestimating AI Overview benefits for Search monetization in 2025.” Sheridan raised his price target to $220 from $215, while Post maintained his $225 forecast. Overhangs remain To be sure, some firms are staying on the sidelines on Alphabet. UBS maintained its neutral rating on the stock, highlighting lack of clarity as to whether Google will be able to greater monetize its AI Overviews. “For the time being we alongside investors will need to wait for sharper product development/release signals to materialize,” analyst Stephen Ju said in a note on Wednesday. He lowered his price target to $209 from $211, implying upside of just 1.3% from Tuesday’s close. Ju believes shares will stay pressured from the time being due to Google’s regulatory overhangs, which could lead to potential market share loss. Bernstein’s Mark Shmulik also kept his market perform rating and lowered his price target to $200 from $210. That signals downside of 3% going forward. “Google stock moves now seem a lot more tied to Google Cloud’s fortunes — this is the 3rd quarter where the stock reaction tightly correlates to Cloud’s performance vs. expectations. The theory goes something like this: If Google wants to be viewed and treated like an AI winner, we need some quantified [key performance indicators],” he said. “Cloud growth is such a KPI, and while 30% Y/Y growth is nothing to sneeze at, it’s a steeper deceleration Q/Q than investors were expecting and slows the share capture story against the Big 2 of AWS and Azure.” Source link #Alphabet #reported #revenue #stock #tumbling #analysts Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 Review – Dualshockers Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 Review – Dualshockers Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Map (Interactive): A full map for the main regions of KCD 2, Trosky and Kuttenberg. Find and track all Quests, Chests, NPCs, Vendors, and various Points of Interests. You can also find locations of Fast Travel points, different services, Dice Tables, and many more. Discover all that you need in the complete map for KCD 2. Source link #Kingdom #Deliverance #Review #Dualshockers Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]