Dublin belongs to Fontaines DC on hometown victory lap in 3ArenaGREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Matthew Downing threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to lead Elon to a 31-21 season-ending win over North Carolina A&T on Saturday. The game was tied at 7 in the second quarter when the Phoenix turned a fumble recovery into a field goal. That started a string of four-straight scoring possessions. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content.
Three-game skid over, NC State faces winless Coppin State
Mid Penn Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:MPB) Shares Acquired by Empowered Funds LLC
LEONARD QUART: A memoryA s I write, there’s a window on my laptop screen that is providing a live view of a stampede. It’s logging the numbers of people joining the social network Bluesky . At the moment, the number of registered users is 20.5 million. By the time you read this there will be more than 30 million of them, judging by the rate that people are currently joining. The proximate cause of it is the role that Elon Musk, owner of X (née Twitter), played in the election of Donald Trump, when a significant proportion of the platform’s 200 million-plus users realised that they’d been had – that they had, in effect, been useful idiots for Musk on his path to the centre of political power. There had been an “Xodus” once before – in October 2022, when Musk took over Twitter – as people fled to a new, open-source network called Mastodon , but it was on a much smaller scale. At its peak in November 2022 it had 2.5 million users, but that number has dropped to just under 1 million now. The stampede to Bluesky is on an altogether bigger scale. The puzzle, in a way, is why it took so long for the penny to drop; after all, many X users have been hostile to Musk for quite a while. The answer, in a nutshell, was network effects. They may not have liked the platform, but that’s where everyone was. “Twitter was the place people in my business had to be,” wrote the Nobel laureate and economist Paul Krugman. “What I used Twitter for was to learn from and interact with people possessing real expertise, sometimes in areas I know pretty well, sometimes in areas I don’t, like international relations and climate policy.” But now Krugman is on Bluesky because, he says, it has suddenly “reached critical mass, in the sense that most of the people I want to hear from are now posting there. The raw number of users is still far smaller than X’s, but as far as I can tell, Bluesky is now the place to find smart, useful analysis.” I stopped using Twitter when Musk bought it, tried Mastodon (and was unimpressed) and only recently joined Bluesky. At the moment, it feels eerily like Twitter in its very early days, when the platform enabled one to plug straight into the thought-streams of people one admired. “For now,” as web veteran Ian Bogost put it last week, “Bluesky invokes the feeling of carefree earnestness that once – really and truly – blanketed the internet as a whole.” It does. What’s distinctive about it? Four things. Unlike Mastodon, it’s as easy as Twitter to use. There’s no overall algorithmic curation – you can “roll your own feed”, as someone put it – decide who you want to hear from. Every user is entitled to “free speech” but nobody gets “free reach” via a profit-driven algorithm. And finally, it runs on an open technical protocol that’s accessible to anyone; the underlying philosophy is that social networking is too important for any one company to control it. So anyone with the requisite technical smarts could set up their own network using the protocol. This doesn’t mean that network effects lose their power, but it could be that the momentum of the stampede away from X, plus the power of an open protocol, means that we are seeing the beginning of the “splintering of social media ”. If this has the effect of eroding the monopolistic grip on people’s attention currently enjoyed by Meta, X, LinkedIn and TikTok, then it’ll be a welcome development. At least people will then be freer to choose their favourite hypnotist. But it won’t solve the bigger problem – which is what social media is doing to us and to our societies. The technology is at worst toxic and at best disabling for a democracy’s public sphere. Humans are a social species, but – as Robin Dunbar pointed out aeons ago – there’s a cognitive limit (about 150) to the number of people with whom one can maintain stable social relationships, and it mostly boils down to around 15 souls with whom one has meaningful exchanges. As a species, we didn’t evolve to be constantly talking to everyone. Addiction to social media, though – as Ian Bogost points out – means that we have to pay attention to the multitudes that turn up in our algorithmically curated feeds. Bluesky may make those feeds more congenial, but it won’t change the fact that we are still reduced to communicating in channels with a bandwidth not much wider than that of smoke signals. Here’s where we went wrong Voters to Elites: Do You See Me Now? Interesting New York Times column by David Brooks. It’s a conservative’s apologia pro vita sua . What Decca did next Jessica Mitford’s Escape from Fascism. A nice essay by Noah McCormack in the New Republic on Mitford’s book Hons and Rebels . Things to come What the future looks like from here. Dave Karpf’s perceptive and realistic list of the consequences of Trump’s victory.Strictly Come Dancing star Anton Du Beke recently opened up about the incredible highs and emotional challenges of fatherhood during an appearance on Giovanna Fletcher's Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast. The beloved ballroom dancer, who shares twins George and Henrietta with his wife Hannah, reflected on the couple's battle with infertility and their ultimate joy at becoming parents, describing the experience as nothing short of "stupendous." In his characteristic candid and heartfelt style, Anton revealed the emotional rollercoaster the couple endured on their journey to parenthood, offering a rare glimpse into his personal life and his deep admiration for his wife, Hannah. A heartbreaking battle with infertility For Anton and Hannah, the path to parenthood was far from straightforward. Speaking openly about Hannah's battle with endometriosis, Anton described his frustration and heartbreak at the challenges they faced. "She's so kind and so caring, I just couldn't understand the universe," he shared. "Whoever's upstairs looking down and saying, 'You are the most perfect person to have children, but I'm not going to let you have children,' because you're going to have endometriosis... I thought that was peculiar and cruel." The dancer admitted he was shocked at how little awareness there is surrounding endometriosis and women's health. "I'm staggered about it. Before I met Hannah, I'd never heard the word 'endometriosis.' Since then, I'm still staggered by how little it's talked about." Anton passionately advocated for more awareness, saying, "I'm all about women's health and making sure it gets fixed. Some people can't even get out of bed in the morning because of it. That's not OK." Turning to IVF Faced with the heartbreaking reality that natural conception wasn't an option, Anton and Hannah turned to IVF – a journey Anton described as emotionally and physically gruelling. "The only answer for us was IVF," he explained. "This isn't available to a lot of people. How is that possible? You girls are extraordinary. I'm a man! It seems men are so important and big, but they're useless and do nothing." Anton then recalled witnessing Hannah endure the intense and demanding treatment. He stated, "The injections, the stress, the anxiety... injections in the bum, thigh, stomach. What can you do? All you can do is hold their hand. It's horrendous as a man to watch it. You feel so inadequate, you want to do so much more." Despite the challenges, the couple remained hopeful, and their perseverance paid off in the most magical way, with the arrival of beautiful and healthy twins. The joy of discovering twins Anton vividly recalled the moment they discovered Hannah was not only pregnant but carrying twins . In his trademark humorous style, he shared his stunned reaction. "The doctor's fiddling around and he goes, 'Ooh, there's another heartbeat.' I was stunned! I went – pardon my language – '[Expletive] me, mate!'" He continued, "I couldn't speak. Then we found out it was a boy and a girl. It's the most incredible thing. I can't tell you how wonderful, how magical it is." The dancer's voice brimmed with pride and love as he described his children. "We ended up with this perfect boy and girl. They are just magical. They are wonderful, wonderful children. It makes me emotional every time I think about it." A "stupendous" experience Now firmly settled into fatherhood, Anton couldn't be happier. He gushed about every aspect of being a dad, describing it as the greatest joy of his life. "If I could, I'd have 100 children. I'd do it repeatedly. I love it so much. Every single bit about being a father, I love it. It's stupendous. I would do it over, and over, and over again if I had enough money!" Anton's gratitude for his family shone through as he reflected on their journey. "Hannah had this thing that said she couldn't have children. We tried to defeat it, really. And we did." A new chapter Anton and Hannah's life with their twins continues to be filled with love, laughter, and joy. Fans were recently delighted when Anton shared a video on Instagram revealing two adorable additions to the family – a pair of puppies. The clip, which melted hearts across social media, showed George and Henrietta playing with the puppies, underscoring the family's happy, bustling household. As Anton continues to shine on Strictly Come Dancing, it's clear that his most cherished role is that of a doting father. His journey to parenthood, though challenging, is a testament to resilience, hope, and the power of love. For the Strictly star, life with his twins is, in his own words, "just perfect."
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Most ruling party lawmakers were boycotting a parliamentary vote Saturday to deny a two-thirds majority sought by the opposition to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his short-lived imposition of martial law , as protests grew nationwide calling for his removal. The likely defeat of the motion is expected to intensify public protests calling for Yoon’s ouster and deepen political chaos in South Korea, with a survey suggesting a majority of South Koreans support the president’s impeachment. Yoon’s martial law declaration drew criticism from his own ruling conservative party, but it is also determined to oppose Yoon's impeachment apparently because it fears losing presidency to liberals. Impeaching Yoon would require support from two-thirds of the National Assembly, or 200 of its 300 members. The opposition parties who brought the impeachment motion have 192 seats, meaning they need at least eight additional votes from Yoon’s People Power Party. The opposition-controlled parliament began a vote earlier Saturday, but only three lawmakers from PPP took part with opposition members. If the number of lawmakers who cast ballots doesn't reach 200, the motion will be scrapped at midnight, according to National Assembly. Opposition parties could submit a new impeachment motion after a new parliamentary session opens next Wednesday. National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik urged ruling party members to return to the chamber to participate in the vote, stressing that it was closely watched by the nation and also the world. “Don’t make a shameful judgment and please vote based on your convictions,” Woo said. “I plead to you, for the future of the Republic of Korea.” Earlier Saturday, Yoon issued a public apology over the martial law decree, saying he won’t shirk legal or political responsibility for the declaration and promising not to make another attempt to impose martial law. He said would leave it to his party to chart a course through the country's political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office." “The declaration of this martial law was made out of my desperation. But in the course of its implementation, it caused anxiety and inconveniences to the public. I feel very sorry over that and truly apologize to the people who must have been shocked a lot,” Yoon said. Since taking office in 2022, Yoon has struggled to push his agenda through an opposition-controlled parliament and grappled with low approval ratings amid scandals involving himself and his wife. In his martial law announcement on Tuesday night, Yoon called parliament a “den of criminals” bogging down state affairs and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korea followers and anti-state forces.” The turmoil resulting from Yoon’s bizarre and poorly-thought-out stunt has paralyzed South Korean politics and sparked alarm among key diplomatic partners, including neighboring Japan and Seoul’s top ally the United States, as one of the strongest democracies in Asia faces a political crisis that could unseat its leader. Tuesday night saw special forces troops encircling the parliament building and army helicopters hovering over it, but the military withdrew after the National Assembly unanimously voted to overturn the decree, forcing Yoon to lift it before daybreak Wednesday. The declaration of martial law was the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea. Eighteen lawmakers from the ruling party voted to reject Yoon's martial law decree along with opposition lawmakers. The passage of Yoon’s impeachment motion appeared more likely Friday when the chair of Yoon’s party called for his removal on Friday, but the party remained formally opposed to impeachment. On Saturday, tens of thousands of people packed streets near the National Assembly, waving banners, shouting slogans and dancing and singing along to K-pop songs with lyrics changed to call for Yoon’s ouster. A smaller crowd of Yoon’s supporters, which still seemed to be in the thousands, rallied in separate streets in Seoul, decrying the impeachment attempt they saw as unconstitutional. Lawmakers on Saturday first voted on a bill appointing a special prosecutor to investigate stock price manipulation allegations surrounding Yoon’s wife. Some lawmakers from Yoon’s party were seen leaving the hall after that vote, triggering angry shouts from opposition lawmakers. If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. If he is removed, an election to replace him must take place within 60 days. Opposition lawmakers say that Yoon’s attempt at martial law amounted to a self-coup, and drafted the impeachment motion around rebellion charges. Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, told reporters that Yoon’s speech was “greatly disappointing” and that the only way forward is his immediate resignation or impeachment. On Friday, PPP chair Han Dong-hun, who criticized Yoon's martial law declaration, said he had received intelligence that during the brief period of martial law Yoon ordered the country’s defense counterintelligence commander to arrest and detain unspecified key politicians based on accusations of “anti-state activities." Hong Jang-won, first deputy director of South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, told lawmakers in a closed-door briefing Friday that Yoon called after imposing martial law and ordered him to help the defense counterintelligence unit to detain key politicians. The targeted politicians included Han, Lee and Woo, according to Kim Byung-kee, one of the lawmakers who attended the meeting. The Defense Ministry said it had suspended the defense counterintelligence commander, Yeo In-hyung, who Han alleged had received orders from Yoon to detain the politicians. The ministry also suspended the commanders of the capital defense command and the special warfare command over their involvement in enforcing martial law. Former Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun, who has been accused of recommending Yoon enforce martial law, has been placed under a travel ban and faces an investigation by prosecutors over rebellion charges. Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon Ho has testified to parliament that it was Kim Yong Hyun who ordered troops to be deployed to the National Assembly after Yoon imposed martial law.
Ricardo Salinas Pliego is no stranger to controversy and crisis. Over decades, the entrepreneur has feuded with business partners, investors and regulators as he built an empire that’s made him Mexico’s third-richest person. But even for Salinas, the current financial predicament is dire — and also a little odd. Ricardo Salinas Pliego is in a financial predicament. Credit: Bloomberg That’s because the bulk of his $US10.5 billion ($16.3 billion) wealth is tied up in a company, Grupo Elektra, that is poised to plunge in value as soon as it begins trading again on the Mexican stock exchange. This is where things get weird. Officials have been trying for days to lift the halt on the stock that was imposed in July, only to give up once buy orders hit trading screens in the pre-market auction. The problem: the bids are so shockingly low, coming in at less than 50 per cent of the stock’s value in July, that the market circuit breaker designed to limit volatility is immediately tripped, and the stock is halted again without a single transaction taking place. So for official bookkeeping reasons, Elektra’s shares are still worth the same 944.95 pesos they were quoted at on July 26, and Salinas’ wealth remains, precariously for now, intact. The cause of the initial ban was, like many things involving Salinas, a bit mysterious. Salinas himself had triggered the trading halt in July when he alleged a creditor had used the company shares to fund a $US110 million loan. Loading Lawyers for the billionaire said most of the shares appeared to have been sold, pushing the stock price down — with the rest allegedly pocketed by the creditor. The creditor has denied any wrongdoing. Index suspension What followed the allegations of fraud was easier to understand — after a month of no trading, Elektra got booted from the country’s main stock gauge, leaving it without the crucial support of index-tracking funds needed to support the share price. Which is why traders have been lobbing in such lowball bids when the exchange tried to restart trading. In another unusual twist, lawyers for Salinas are fighting in court to prevent the stock from trading. On Friday morning, Elektra said that resuming trading would cause “irreparable damage to the company” adding that the exchange and regulators would be responsible for any “adverse effects.” It is, analysts said, a not-so-veiled play to keep the stock price from collapsing. Salinas is the third-richest person in Mexico. Credit: Bloomberg “It’s a golden cage — looks real pretty but it’s still a cage,” said Carlos Legaspy, chief executive officer of broker-dealer Insight Securities. A spokesperson for the billionaire didn’t respond to requests for comment on Elektra or his wealth. Salinas has won legal rulings against the Mexican exchange before. Back in 2012, his lawyers filed lawsuits against exchange officials and successfully beat back an attempt to kick it off the same index. Officials had alleged the company was manipulating the amount of floating shares to help maintain its inclusion in the benchmark. Uncle Rich Salinas controls nearly 80 per cent of Elektra’s outstanding shares, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, and has relied on that holding to borrow money and support the extravagant lifestyle he depicts with his online “Tio Richie,” or Uncle Rich, persona. His stake in the company, which offers everything from appliances to telephones and motorcycles, and also includes branches of Banco Azteca, represents three-quarters of his net worth, the data show. “If you use your budding empire as a personal piggybank, things may eventually turn iffy,” said Diego Ferro, founder of M2M Capital, a New York-based investment firm focusing on emerging markets. Meanwhile, Salinas is facing another potential blow to his wealth. Since last year, the billionaire has been locked in an increasingly heated confrontation with the government over billions of dollars in tax claims. Loading The government alleges that four of his companies owe some 63 billion pesos ($4.7 billion) in taxes in 17 different cases going back as far as 2008. Salinas has argued that the government is trying to “charge us twice” by not recognising deductions from losses. After years of court battles, several claims against Elektra are in their final appeals before the Supreme Court, which could rule in the coming months. Even with the share freeze, Salinas’ net worth has fallen 28 per cent this year from $US15.6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. As painful as the financial hit may ultimately be, Legaspy, the CEO at Insight Securities, said there’s one thing he’s certain of when it comes to someone as resilient and deep-pocketed as Salinas: “He’ll survive.” Bloomberg The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning . Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Billionaires Mexico World markets Most Viewed in Business LoadingAwaiting invite for talks, farmers pause Delhi march for 1 more dayClimate-threatened nations stage protest at COP29 over contentious deal
ATLANTA (AP) — President Joe Biden's administration announced Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Energy will make a $6.6 billion loan to Rivian Automotive to build a factory in Georgia that had stalled as the startup electric vehicle maker struggled to become profitable. It's unclear whether the administration can complete the loan before Donald Trump becomes president again in less than two months, or whether the Trump administration might try to claw the money back. Trump previously vowed to end federal electric vehicle tax credits , which are worth up to $7,500 for new zero-emission vehicles and $4,000 for used ones. Rivian made a splash when it went public and began producing large electric R1 SUVs, pickup trucks and delivery vans at a former Mitsubishi factory in Normal, Illinois, in 2021. Months later, the California-based company announced it would build a second, larger, $5 billion plant about 40 miles (64 kilometers) east of Atlanta, near the town of Social Circle. The R1 vehicles cost $70,000 or more. The company plans to produce R2 vehicles, a smaller SUV, in Georgia with lower price tags aimed at a mass market. The first phase of Rivian’s Georgia factory is projected to make 200,000 vehicles a year, with a second phase capable of another 200,000 a year. Eventually, the plant is projected to employ 7,500 workers. But Rivian was unable to meet production and sales targets and rapidly burned through cash. In March, the company said it would pause construction of the Georgia plant. The company said it would begin assembling its R2 SUV in Illinois instead. CEO RJ Scaringe said the move would allow Rivian to start selling the R2 sooner and save $2.25 billion in capital spending. Since then, German automaker Volkswagen AG said in June it would invest $5 billion in Rivian in a joint venture in which Rivian would share software and electrical technology with Volkswagen. The money eased Rivian's cash crunch. Tuesday's announcement throws a lifeline to Rivian's grander plans. The company said its plans to make the R2 and the smaller R3 in Georgia are back on and that production will begin in 2028. “This loan would enable Rivian to more aggressively scale our U.S. manufacturing footprint for our competitively priced R2 and R3 vehicles that emphasize both capability and affordability,” Scaringe said in a statement. The Energy Department said the loan would substantially boost electric vehicles made in the United States and support Biden’s goal of having zero-emission vehicles make up half of all new U.S. sales by 2030. “As one of a few American EV startups with light duty vehicles already on the road, Rivian’s Georgia facility will allow the company to reach production volumes that make its products more cost competitive and accelerate access to international markets,” the department said in a statement. The loan includes $6 billion, plus $600 million in interest that will be rolled into the principal. The money would come from the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program, which provides low-interest loans to make fuel-efficient vehicles and components. The program has focused mostly on loans to new battery factories for electric vehicles under Biden, but earlier helped finance initial production of the Tesla Model S and Nissan Leaf, two pioneering electric vehicles. The loan program, created in 2007, requires a "reasonable prospect of repayment" of the loan. Under Biden, the program has announced deals totaling $33.3 billion, including $9.2 billion for massive battery plants in Tennessee and Kentucky for Ford’s electric vehicles. Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff , who has been a vocal supporter of electric vehicle and solar manufacturing in Georgia, hailed Tuesday's announcement as “yet another historic federal investment in Georgia electric vehicle manufacturing.” Ossoff had asked Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm to support the loan in July. “Our federal manufacturing incentives are driving economic development across the state of Georgia,” Ossoff said in a statement. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp says his goal is to make Georgia a center of the electric vehicle industry. But the Republican has had a strained relationship with the Biden administration over its industrial policy, even as some studies have found Georgia has netted more electric vehicle investment than any other state. Kemp has long claimed that manufacturers were picking Georgia before Biden's signature climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act, was passed. Efforts to bring Rivian to Georgia predated the Biden administration and "our shared vision to bring opportunity to Georgia will remain no matter who resides in the White House or what party controls Congress,” Kemp spokesperson Garrison Douglas said Tuesday. The loan to Rivian could rescue one of the Kemp administration's signature economic development projects even as Biden leaves office. That could put Rivian and Kemp in the position of defending the loan if Trump tries to quash it. State and local governments offered Rivian an incentive package worth an estimated $1.5 billion in 2022. Neighbors opposed to development of the Georgia site mounted legal challenges. State and local governments spent around $125 million to buy and prepare the nearly 2,000-acre (810-hectare) site. The state also has completed most of $50 million in roadwork that it pledged. The pause at Rivian contrasts with rapid construction at Hyundai Motor Group’s $7.6 billion electric vehicle and battery complex near Savannah. The Korean automaker said in October that it had begun production in Ellabell, where it plans to eventually employ 8,500. Associated Press writer Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this story.VCDSS under corrective action plan
