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Edmonton zoo elephant Lucy gets medical OK as she approaches 50th birthdayATLANTA , Dec. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cousins Properties Incorporated (the "Company" or "Cousins") (NYSE: CUZ ) announced today that its operating partnership, Cousins Properties LP (the "Operating Partnership"), has priced an offering of $400 million aggregate principal amount of 5.375% senior unsecured notes due 2032 at 99.463% of the principal amount. The offering is expected to close on December 17, 2024 , subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. Cousins intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund a portion of the purchase price of 601 West 2nd Street, also known as Sail Tower, an 804,000 square foot trophy lifestyle office property in Austin (the "Sail Tower Acquisition"), and the remainder to repay borrowings under its credit facility and for general corporate purposes. In the event the Sail Tower Acquisition is not completed, Cousins will use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, including the acquisition and development of office properties, other opportunistic investments and the repayment of debt. The notes will be fully and unconditionally guaranteed on a senior unsecured basis by the Company. J.P. Morgan, Truist Securities, US Bancorp, BofA Securities, Morgan Stanley, PNC Capital Markets LLC, TD Securities and Wells Fargo Securities are acting as joint book-running managers. A shelf registration statement relating to these securities is effective with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The offering may be made only by means of a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus. Copies of these documents may be obtained by contacting J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, 383 Madison Avenue, New York, New York , 10179, Attention: Investment Grade Syndicate Desk, 3rd Floor, telephone collect at 1-212-834-4533; Truist Securities, Inc., Attention: Prospectus Department, 303 Peachtree Street, Atlanta, GA 30308, telephone: 800-685-4786, or e-mail: [email protected] ; or U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc., Attention: High Grade Syndicate, 214 North Tryon Street, 26th Floor, Charlotte, NC 28202, or by telephone at: (877) 558-2607. Electronic copies of these documents are also available from the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov . This press release is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell the notes, nor shall it constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale is unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction. About Cousins Properties Cousins Properties is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust ("REIT"). The Company, based in Atlanta, GA and acting through the Operating Partnership, primarily invests in Class A office buildings located in high growth Sun Belt markets. Founded in 1958, Cousins creates shareholder value through its extensive expertise in the development, acquisition, leasing, and management of high-quality real estate assets. The Company has a comprehensive strategy in place based on a simple platform, trophy assets, and opportunistic investments. Forward-Looking Statements Certain matters contained in this press release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws and are subject to uncertainties and risks, as itemized in Item 1A included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and in the Company's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended June 30, 2024 and September 30, 2024 . These forward-looking statements include information about the Company's possible or assumed future results of the business and the Company's financial condition, liquidity, results of operations, plans, and objectives. They also include, among other things, statements regarding subjects that are forward-looking by their nature, such as: guidance and underlying assumptions; business and financial strategy; future debt financings; future acquisitions and dispositions of operating assets or joint venture interests; future acquisitions and dispositions of land, including ground leases; future acquisitions of investments in real estate debt; future development and redevelopment opportunities; future issuances and repurchases of common stock, limited partnership units, or preferred stock; future distributions; projected capital expenditures; market and industry trends; future occupancy or volume and velocity of leasing activity; entry into new markets, changes in existing market concentrations, or exits from existing markets; future changes in interest rates and liquidity of capital markets; and all statements that address operating performance, events, investments, or developments that we expect or anticipate will occur in the future — including statements relating to creating value for stockholders. Any forward-looking statements are based upon management's beliefs, assumptions, and expectations of our future performance, taking into account information that is currently available. These beliefs, assumptions, and expectations may change as a result of possible events or factors, not all of which are known. If a change occurs, our business, financial condition, liquidity, and results of operations may vary materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements. Actual results may vary from forward-looking statements due to, but not limited to, the following: the availability and terms of capital and our ability to obtain and maintain financing arrangements on terms favorable to us or at all; the ability to refinance or repay indebtedness as it matures; any changes to our credit rating; the failure of purchase, sale, or other contracts to ultimately close; the failure to achieve anticipated benefits from acquisitions, developments, investments, or dispositions; the effect of common stock or operating partnership unit issuances, including those undertaken on a forward basis, which may negatively affect the market price of our common stock; the availability of buyers and pricing with respect to the disposition of assets; changes in national and local economic conditions, the real estate industry, and the commercial real estate markets in which we operate (including supply and demand changes), particularly in Atlanta , Austin , Tampa , Charlotte , Phoenix , Dallas , and Nashville , including the impact of high unemployment, volatility in the public equity and debt markets, and international economic and other conditions; threatened terrorist attacks or sociopolitical unrest such as political instability, civil unrest, armed hostilities, or political activism, which may result in a disruption of day-to-day building operations; changes to our strategy in regard to our real estate assets may require impairment to be recognized; leasing risks, including the ability to obtain new tenants or renew expiring tenants, the ability to lease newly-developed and/or recently acquired space, the failure of a tenant to commence or complete tenant improvements on schedule or to occupy leased space, and the risk of declining leasing rates; changes in the preferences of our tenants brought about by the desire for co-working arrangements, trends toward utilizing less office space per employee, and the effect of employees working remotely; any adverse change in the financial condition or liquidity of one or more of our tenants or borrowers under our real estate debt investments; volatility in interest rates (including the impact upon the effectiveness of forward interest rate contract arrangements) and insurance rates; inflation; competition from other developers or investors; the risks associated with real estate developments (such as zoning approval, receipt of required permits, construction delays, cost overruns, and leasing risk); supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and increased construction costs; risks associated with security breaches through cyberattacks, cyber intrusions or otherwise, as well as other significant disruptions of our information technology networks and related systems, which support our operations and our buildings; changes in senior management, changes in the Company's board of directors, and the loss of key personnel; the potential liability for uninsured losses, condemnation, or environmental issues; the potential liability for a failure to meet regulatory requirements, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and similar laws or the impact of any investigation regarding the same; the financial condition and liquidity of, or disputes with, joint venture partners; any failure to comply with debt covenants under debt instruments and credit agreements; any failure to continue to qualify for taxation as a real estate investment trust or meet regulatory requirements; potential changes to state, local, or federal regulations applicable to our business; material changes in dividend rates on common shares or other securities or the ability to pay those dividends; potential changes to the tax laws impacting real estate investment trusts and real estate in general; risks associated with climate change and severe weather events, as well as the regulatory efforts intended to reduce the effects of climate changes and investor and public perception of our efforts to respond to the same; the impact of newly adopted accounting principles on our accounting policies and on period-to-period comparisons of financial results; risks associated with possible federal, state, local, or property tax audits; and those additional risks and environmental or other factors discussed in reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by the Company. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company cannot guarantee the accuracy of any such forward-looking statements contained in this press release, and the Company does not intend to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Contacts Roni Imbeaux Vice President, Finance and Investor Relations 404-407-1104 [email protected] SOURCE Cousins PropertiesCLEVELAND (AP) — Shortly after doing a face-down snow angel, firing a few celebratory snowballs and singing “Jingle Bells” on his way to the media room, Jameis Winston ended his postgame news conference with a simple question. “Am I a Brown yet?” he asked. He is now. And who knows? Maybe for a lot longer than expected. Winston entered Cleveland football folklore on Thursday night by leading the Browns to a 24-19 win over the division rival Pittsburgh Steelers, who had their five-game winning streak stopped. Winston's performance at Huntington Bank Field, which transformed into the world's largest snow globe, not only made him an instantaneous hero in the eyes of Browns fans but added another wrinkle to the team's ever-changing, never-ending quarterback conundrum. In his fourth start since Deshaun Watson's season-ending Achilles tendon injury, Winston made enough big plays to help the Browns (3-8) get a victory that should quiet conjecture about coach Kevin Stefanski's job. Some wins mean more than others. In Cleveland, beating the Steelers is as big as it gets. But beyond any instant gratification, Winston has given the Browns more to consider as they move forward. Watson's future with Cleveland is highly uncertain since it will still be months before the team has a grip on whether he's even an option in 2025, his fourth year since signing a $230 million, fully guaranteed contract that has proven calamitous. It's also possible the Browns will cut ties with Watson. They signed Winston to a one-year contract to be Watson's backup. But the unexpected events of 2024 have changed plans and led to the possibility that the 30-year-old Winston could become Cleveland's full-time QB or a bridge to their next young one. So much is unclear. What's not is that Winston, who leaped into the end zone on fourth-and-2 for a TD to put the Browns ahead 18-6 in the fourth quarter, is a difference maker. With his larger-than-life personality and the joy he shows whether practicing or throwing three touchdown passes, he has lifted the Browns. A man of faith, he's made his teammates believe. Winston has done what Watson couldn't: made the Browns better. “A very, very authentic person,” Stefanski said Friday on a Zoom call. “He’s the same guy every single day. He's the same guy at 5 a.m. as he at 5 p.m. He brings great energy to everything he does, and I think his teammates appreciate that about him.” Winston, who is 2-2 as a starter with wins over the Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, has a knack for inspiring through fiery, preacher-like pregame speeches. But what has impressed the Browns is his ability to stay calm in the storm. “He doesn’t get rattled,” said Myles Garrett, who had three sacks against the Steelers . “He’s just tuned in and focused as anyone I’ve seen at that position. Turn the page. There was a turnover, came back to the sideline, ‘Love you. I’m sorry. We’re going to get it back.’ He was already on to the next one, ‘How can we complete the mission?’ “I have a lot of respect for him. First was from afar and now seeing it on the field in front of me, it’s a blessing to have someone who plays a game with such a passion and want-to. You can’t ask for a better teammate when they take those things to heart and they want to play for you like we’re actually brothers and that’s what we have to attain. That brotherhood.” Winston has done something else Watson couldn't: move the offense. The Browns scored more than 20 points for just the second time this season, and like Joe Flacco a year ago, Winston has shown that Stefanski's system works with a quarterback patient enough to let plays develop and unafraid to take shots downfield. The conditions certainly were a factor, but the Browns were a miserable 1 of 10 on third down, a season-long trend. However, Cleveland converted all four fourth-down tries, including a fourth-and-3 pass from Winston to Jerry Jeudy with 2:36 left that helped set up Nick Chubb's go-ahead TD run. RT Jack Conklin. Garrett outplayed Steelers star T.J. Watt in their rivalry within the rivalry partly because Conklin did a nice job containing Pittsburgh's edge rusher, who was held without a sack and had one tackle for loss. Conklin has made a remarkable comeback since undergoing reconstructive knee surgery last year. Owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam. Their desire to build a dome is well intended, but an indoor game could never come close to matching the surreal setting of Thursday night, when snow swirled throughout the stadium and covered nearly all the yard lines and hash marks. “It was beautiful,” Winston said. WR Cedric Tillman is in the concussion protocol. He had two catches before taking a big hit on the final play of the third quarter. 9 — Consecutive home wins for the Browns in Thursday night games. Three of those have come against Pittsburgh. An extended break before visiting the Denver Broncos on Dec. 2. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Ariana Grande’s Boyfriend Calls Cynthia Erivo Her Soul Mate

WASHINGTON D.C., DC — Unlike scores of people who scrambled for the blockbuster drugs Ozempic and Wegovy to lose weight in recent years, Danielle Griffin had no trouble getting them. The 38-year-old information technology worker from New Mexico had a prescription. Her pharmacy had the drugs in stock. And her health insurance covered all but $25 to $50 of the monthly cost. For Griffin, the hardest part of using the new drugs wasn’t access . It was finding out that the much-hyped medications didn’t really work for her. “I have been on Wegovy for a year and a half and have only lost 13 pounds,” said Griffin, who watches her diet, drinks plenty of water and exercises regularly. “I’ve done everything right with no success. It’s discouraging.” In clinical trials, most participants taking Wegovy or Mounjaro to treat obesity lost an average of 15% to 22% of their body weight — up to 50 pounds or more in many cases. But roughly 10% to 15% of patients in those trials were “nonresponders” who lost less than 5% of their body weight. Now that millions of people have used the drugs, several obesity experts told The Associated Press that perhaps 20% of patients — as many as 1 in 5 — may not respond well to the medications. It's a little-known consequence of the obesity drug boom, according to doctors who caution eager patients not to expect one-size-fits-all results. “It's all about explaining that different people have different responses,” said Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, an obesity expert at Massachusetts General Hospital The drugs are known as GLP-1 receptor agonists because they mimic a hormone in the body known as glucagon-like peptide 1. Genetics, hormones and variability in how the brain regulates energy can all influence weight — and a person's response to the drugs, Stanford said. Medical conditions such as sleep apnea can prevent weight loss, as can certain common medications, such as antidepressants, steroids and contraceptives. “This is a disease that stems from the brain,” said Stanford. “The dysfunction may not be the same” from patient to patient. Despite such cautions, patients are often upset when they start getting the weekly injections but the numbers on the scale barely budge. “It can be devastating,” said Dr. Katherine Saunders, an obesity expert at Weill Cornell Medicine and co-founder of the obesity treatment company FlyteHealth. “With such high expectations, there’s so much room for disappointment.” That was the case for Griffin, who has battled obesity since childhood and hoped to shed 70 pounds using Wegovy. The drug helped reduce her appetite and lowered her risk of diabetes, but she saw little change in weight. “It’s an emotional roller coaster,” she said. “You want it to work like it does for everybody else.” The medications are typically prescribed along with eating behavior and lifestyle changes. It’s usually clear within weeks whether someone will respond to the drugs, said Dr. Jody Dushay, an endocrine specialist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Weight loss typically begins right away and continues as the dosage increases. For some patients, that just doesn't happen. For others, side effects such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea force them to halt the medications, Dushay said. In such situations, patients who were counting on the new drugs to pare pounds may think they’re out of options. “I tell them: It's not game over,” Dushay said. Trying a different version of the new class of drugs may help. Griffin, who didn't respond well to Wegovy, has started using Zepbound, which targets an additional hormone pathway in the body. After three months of using the drug, she has lost 7 pounds. “I'm hoping it's slow and steady,” she said. Other people respond well to older drugs, the experts said. Changing diet, exercise, sleep and stress habits can also have profound effects. Figuring out what works typically requires a doctor trained to treat obesity, Saunders noted. “Obesity is such a complex disease that really needs to be treated very comprehensively,” she said. “If what we’re prescribing doesn’t work, we always have a backup plan.” ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.How Automatic Blackout Blinds Can Transform Your Home

Authorities found Haddon, 76, dead in a second-floor bedroom on Friday morning after emergency dispatchers were notified about a person unconscious at the house in Solebury Township, Pennsylvania. A 76-year-old man police later identified as Walter J Blucas, of Erie, was hospitalised in critical condition. Responders detected a high level of carbon monoxide in the property and township police said on Saturday that investigators determined that “a faulty flue and exhaust pipe on a gas heating system caused the carbon monoxide leak”. Two medics were taken to a hospital for carbon monoxide exposure and a police officer was treated at the scene. As a model, Haddon appeared on the covers of Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Elle and Esquire in the 1970s and 1980s, as well as the 1973 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. She also appeared in about two dozen films from the 1970s to 1990s, according to IMDb, including 1994’s Bullets Over Broadway, starring John Cusack. Haddon left modelling after giving birth to her daughter, Ryan, in the mid-1970s, but then had to re-enter the workforce after her husband’s 1991 death. This time, she found the modelling industry far less friendly: “They said to me, ‘At 38, you’re not viable,'” Haddon told The New York Times in 2003. Working a menial job at an advertising agency, Haddon began reaching out to cosmetic companies, telling them there was a growing market to sell beauty products to aging baby boomers. She eventually landed a contract with Clairol, followed by Estee Lauder and then L’Oreal, for which she promoted the company’s anti-aging products for more than a decade. She also hosted beauty segments for CBS’s The Early Show. “I kept modelling, but in a different way,” she told The Times, “I became a spokesperson for my age.” In 2008, Haddon founded WomenOne, an organisation aimed at advancing educational opportunities for girls and women in marginalised communities, including Rwanda, Haiti and Jordan. Haddon was born in Toronto and began modelling as a teenager to pay for ballet classes – she began her career with the Canadian ballet company, Les Grands Ballet Canadiens, according to her website. Haddon’s daughter, Ryan, said in a social media post that her mother was “everyone’s greatest champion. An inspiration to many”. “A pure heart. A rich inner life. Touching so many lives. A life well lived. Rest in Light, Mom,” she said.Trump's withdrawn attorney general pick will not return to CongressDisgraceful and cynical are some of the words Premier Chris Minns has used to describe a reported vote to refer him to the state's corruption watchdog. Login or signup to continue reading An inquiry into the pitch to sell the Australian Turf Club's Rosehill Racecourse in Sydney's west and turn it into tens of thousands of homes will deliver its report on Friday. But late on Wednesday the NSW premier responded to media reports the committee conducting the inquiry will call for him to be referred to the Independent Commission Against Corruption, describing them as allegations based on no fact or evidence. "It's disgraceful to politicise the ICAC with unsubstantiated rumours," Mr Minns said. "This is an old fashioned smear from a group of politicians opposed to changes at Rosehill," he added. The unsubstantiated allegations were a cynical attempt at political point scoring, Mr Minns said. Independent MP Mark Latham, a member of the committee, and of the turf club, claimed via social media on Thursday there is evidence to justify the ICAC referral, based on a meeting the premier had in October 2023. Mr Minns described the turf club's head of membership and corporate affairs Steve McMahon as a friend of more than 20 years in August, after Mr McMahon appeared at the committee inquiry earlier that month. The committee was told Mr McMahon pitched the idea to the turf club's chairman Peter McGauran on October 26, 2023. The premier had a "meet and greet" with the turf club four days later according to ministerial diaries. Mr McMahon told the inquiry the meeting was to discuss the idea and the process for pitching it to the government, before investing member resources in a proposal. "You want to make sure that (the government) are not going to be automatically opposed to such a thing," he said. Mr Minns told budget estimates in August the proposal was announced before turf club members voted on the sale in the interest of transparency. Australian Associated Press DAILY Today's top stories curated by our news team. Also includes evening update. WEEKDAYS Grab a quick bite of today's latest news from around the region and the nation. WEEKLY The latest news, results & expert analysis. WEEKDAYS Catch up on the news of the day and unwind with great reading for your evening. WEEKLY Get the editor's insights: what's happening & why it matters. WEEKLY Love footy? We've got all the action covered. WEEKLY Every Saturday and Tuesday, explore destinations deals, tips & travel writing to transport you around the globe. WEEKLY Get the latest property and development news here. WEEKLY Going out or staying in? Find out what's on. WEEKDAYS Sharp. Close to the ground. Digging deep. Your weekday morning newsletter on national affairs, politics and more. WEEKLY Follow the Newcastle Knights in the NRL? Don't miss your weekly Knights update. TWICE WEEKLY Your essential national news digest: all the big issues on Wednesday and great reading every Saturday. WEEKLY Get news, reviews and expert insights every Thursday from CarExpert, ACM's exclusive motoring partner. TWICE WEEKLY Get real, Australia! Let the ACM network's editors and journalists bring you news and views from all over. AS IT HAPPENS Be the first to know when news breaks. DAILY Your digital replica of Today's Paper. Ready to read from 5am! DAILY Test your skills with interactive crosswords, sudoku & trivia. Fresh daily!Putin apologises to Azerbaijan leader, says Russian air defence active at time of plane landing

Ravens' running game was crucial in a big win over the Chargers, especially on 4th down

Lyon will seek to ignore off-field concerns and continue their excellent form on the pitch when they make the long trip to Azerbaijan to face Qarabag FK in the Europa League on Thursday. The French giants were handed a provisional relegation to Ligue 2 just over a week ago, and must pay off their debts by the end of the season to avoid being demoted. In the first game since Lyon were handed their punishment, Pierre Sage 's side continued their fine form, drawing 1-1 with a strong Reims side to extend their unbeaten domestic run to seven matches, keeping them within touching distance of the top four . Results on the continent have also been impressive, barring a 1-0 home defeat to Besiktas on matchday three - their only defeat in 11 across all competitions. Especially on the road in the Europa League, Lyon have been superb, now having gone nine games unbeaten in the competition - winning seven. OL should have made it three wins from their opening four games though, after only drawing 2-2 with Hoffenheim last time out, considering they took the lead on 92 minutes 52 seconds - the latest a team has gone ahead but failed to win in the competition's history. Dropping five points in their last two matches in the Europa League has seen them drop out of the top eight for the time being, but a positive result here will see them rise up from ninth. This will be Lyon's first ever meeting against Azerbaijani opponents in any European competition, but the visitors will hope they can extend Qarabag's dismal run against French clubs in Europe. The Azeri champions have won just one of their 10 all-time meetings with clubs from France, but that was in their most recent - versus Nantes in 2022. Qurban Qurbanov 's men had made a dismal start after three games, with no points and just one goal, also losing 3-0 to 10-man Tottenham Hotspur on matchday one. They put things right last time out though, with a surprise win away to Bodo/Glimt, becoming just the fifth team to claim victory there in 32 matches against the Norwegian champions. It is at home where Qarabag have had most of their difficulties, with defeats already against Ajax and Malmo worsening a run of form that has seen them win just five of their 28 home games in the Europa League. Qarabag are still up against it despite their matchday four win, only one point off the qualifying places down in 29th, but they will likely need to pick up at least seven points in games versus Lyon, Elfsborg, FCSB and Olympiacos, which is possible, but looks unlikely at this stage. Qarabag can now call upon former first-choice goalkeeper Shahruddin Mahammadaliyev after a long absence, joining Fabijan Buntic and Mateusz Kochalski as the potential options to start between the sticks. Amin Ramazanov remains out, but the hosts can welcome back both Julio Romao and Elvin Cafarquliyev from suspension, after they sat out the win over Bodo/Glimt following red cards against Ajax. Juninho will be the man to watch up front for the hosts, with seven goals in Europe so far this season, and he found the net again at the weekend in the 3-0 win over Sabail. Duje Caleta-Car and Nicolas Tagliafico should both return for Lyon after Sage allowed them the weekend off against Reims so they could rest following international duty. Malick Fofana was also a surprise absentee, being left on the bench with Said Benrahma and Ernest Nuamah getting the nod ahead of him, but the in-form Belgian should retake his place in the team here. Gift Orban remains out of the picture at Lyon, and now looks likely to be one of the players who will be moved on in January to ensure the club can cover the debts and avoid demotion to Ligue 2. Qarabag FK possible starting lineup: Kochalski; Bayramov, B Huseynov, Medina, Cafarquliyev; Patrick Andrade, Romao; Kashchuk, Zoubir, Benzia; Juninho Lyon possible starting lineup: Descamps; Kumbedi, Clinton Mata, Caleta-Car, Abner; Tessmann, Omari, Caqueret; Mikautadze, Lacazette, Fofana It is not easy making such a long trip away in Europe, but even with conditions and the weather set to be challenging, Lyon should be able to continue their fine form here and return to winning ways in this competition. Qarabag are surprisingly poor at home in the Europa League, with just five wins in Baku in their history, and despite a surprise win on matchday four, this will be a tougher test. For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here .

By HILLEL ITALIE NEW YORK (AP) — Even through a year of nonstop news about elections, climate change, protests and the price of eggs, there was still time to read books. U.S. sales held steady according to Circana, which tracks around 85% of the print market, with many choosing the relief of romance, fantasy and romantasy. Some picked up Taylor Swift’s tie-in book to her blockbuster tour, while others sought out literary fiction, celebrity memoirs, political exposes and a close and painful look at a generation hooked on smartphones. Here are 10 notable books published in 2024, in no particular order. Asking about the year’s hottest reads would basically yield a list of the biggest hits in romantasy, the blend of fantasy and romance that has proved so irresistible fans were snapping up expensive “special editions” with decorative covers and sprayed edges. Of the 25 top sellers of 2024, as compiled by Circana, six were by romantasy favorite Sarah J. Maas, including “House of Flame and Shadow,” the third of her “Crescent City” series. Millions read her latest installment about Bryce Quinlan and Hunter Athalar and traced the ever-growing ties of “Maasverse,” the overlapping worlds of “Crescent City” and her other series, “Throne of Glass” and “A Court of Thorns and Roses.” If romantasy is for escape, other books demand we confront. In the bestselling “The Anxious Generation,” social psychologist Jonathan Haidt looks into studies finding that the mental health of young people began to deteriorate in the 2010s, after decades of progress. According to Haidt, the main culprit is right before us: digital screens that have drawn kids away from “play-based” to “phone-based” childhoods. Although some critics challenged his findings, “The Anxious Generation” became a talking point and a catchphrase. Admirers ranged from Oprah Winfrey to Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee, who in a letter to state legislators advocated such “commonsense recommendations” from the book as banning phones in schools and keeping kids off social media until age 16. Bob Woodward books have been an election tradition for decades. “War,” the latest of his highly sourced Washington insider accounts, made news with its allegations that Donald Trump had been in frequent contact with Russian leader Vladimir Putin even while out of office and, while president, had sent Putin sophisticated COVID-19 test machines. Among Woodward’s other scoops: Putin seriously considered using nuclear weapons against Ukraine, and President Joe Biden blamed former President Barack Obama, under whom he served as vice president, for some of the problems with Russia. “Barack never took Putin seriously,” Woodward quoted Biden as saying. Former (and future) first lady Melania Trump, who gives few interviews and rarely discusses her private life, unexpectedly announced she was publishing a memoir: “Melania.” The publisher was unlikely for a former first lady — not one of the major New York houses, but Skyhorse, where authors include such controversial public figures as Woody Allen and Trump cabinet nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. And its success was at least a minor surprise. Melania Trump did little publicity for the book, and offered few revelations beyond posting a video expressing support for abortion rights — a break from one of the cornerstones of GOP policy. But “Melania” still sold hundreds of thousands of copies, many in the days following her husband’s election. Taylor Swift was more than a music story in 2024. Like “Melania,” the news about Taylor Swift’s self-published tie-in to her global tour isn’t so much the book itself, but that it exists. And how well it sold. As she did with the “Eras” concert film, Swift bypassed the established industry and worked directly with a distributor: Target offered “The Eras Tour Book” exclusively. According to Circana, the “Eras” book sold more than 800,000 copies just in its opening week, an astonishing number for a publication unavailable through Amazon.com and other traditional retailers. No new book in 2024 had a better debut. Midnight book parties are supposed to be for “Harry Potter” and other fantasy series, but this fall, more than 100 stores stayed open late to welcome one of the year’s literary events: Sally Rooney’s “Intermezzo.” The Irish author’s fourth novel centers on two brothers, their grief over the death of their father, their very different career paths and their very unsettled love lives. “Intermezzo” was also a book about chess: “You have to read a lot of opening theory — that’s the beginning of a game, the first moves,” one of the brothers explains. “And you’re learning all this for what? Just to get an okay position in the middle game and try to play some decent chess. Which most of the time I can’t do anyway.” Lisa Marie Presley had been working on a memoir at the time of her death , in 2023, and daughter Riley Keough had agreed to help her complete it. “From Here to the Great Unknown” is Lisa Marie’s account of her father, Elvis Presley, and the sagas of of her adult life, notably her marriage to Michael Jackson and the death of son Benjamin Keough. To the end, she was haunted by the loss of Elvis, just 42 when he collapsed and died at his Graceland home while young Lisa Marie was asleep. “She would listen to his music alone, if she was drunk, and cry,” Keough, during an interview with Winfrey, said of her mother. Meanwhile, Cher released the first of two planned memoirs titled “Cher” — no further introduction required. Covering her life from birth to the end of the 1970s, she focuses on her ill-fated marriage to Sonny Bono, remembering him as a gifted entertainer and businessman who helped her believe in herself while turning out to be unfaithful, erratic, controlling and so greedy that he kept all the couple’s earnings for himself. Unsure of whether to leave or stay, she consulted a very famous divorcee, Lucille Ball, who reportedly encouraged her: “F— him, you’re the one with the talent.” A trend in recent years is to take famous novels from the past, and remove words or passages that might offend modern readers; an edition of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” cuts the racist language from Mark Twain’s original text. In the most celebrated literary work of 2024, Percival Everett found a different way to take on Twain’s classic — write it from the perspective of the enslaved Jim. “James,” winner of the National Book Award, is a recasting in many ways. Everett suggests to us that the real Jim was nothing like the deferential figure known to millions of readers, but a savvy and learned man who concealed his intelligence from the whites around him, and even from Twain himself. Salman Rushdie’s first National Book Award nomination was for a memoir he wished he had no reason to write. In “Knife,” he recounts in full detail the horrifying attempt on his life in 2022, when an attendee rushed the stage during a literary event in western New York and stabbed him repeatedly, leaving with him a blinded eye and lasting nerve damage, but with a spirit surprisingly intact. “If you had told me that this was going to happen and how would I deal with it, I would not have been very optimistic about my chances,” he told The Associated Press last spring. “I’m still myself, you know, and I don’t feel other than myself. But there’s a little iron in the soul, I think.”SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy will miss Sunday's game against the Green Bay Packers with a sore throwing shoulder. Purdy injured his right shoulder in last Sunday's loss to the Seattle Seahawks . Purdy underwent an MRI that showed no structural damage but the shoulder didn't improve during the week and Purdy was ruled out for the game. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.Godfather of AI makes ‘scary’ prediction on 'potentially very dangerous' technology, future of humans

It can happen when you’re crossing the road and you underestimate the height of the curb when stepping off. Or you could be pivoting or jumping during sports when your ankle contacts the ground awkwardly and twists to the side. No matter the scenario, you’ll be left limping and wincing in pain. Ankle sprains are one of the most common musculoskeletal injuries that doctors see. At National University Hospital (NUH), for instance, ankle sprains account for up to 70 per cent of all sports injuries related to the foot, according to Adjunct Assistant Professor Andrew Hong Choon Chiet, the head and consultant with NUH’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Division of Foot and Ankle Surgery. Over at Mount Elizabeth Hospital, orthopaedic surgeon Dr Nicholas Yeo sees three or four cases per week. “These account for 10 per cent of Accident & Emergency visits and up to 30 per cent of all sports-related injuries,” he said. But what’s the big deal, you say, as you sit there icing your foot. Everyone has had a sprained ankle before, whether you’re a weekend warrior or just love wearing high heels. And anyway, the swelling and pain will subside with time, right? For one, a previous sprain may predispose you to future ones if you don’t help it heal properly. Second, if you keep spraining the same ankle, it could lead to something serious such as end-stage arthritis. So, what can you do if your ankle keeps getting injured? What recourse is there for ankle arthritis? We find out from the experts. WHAT USUALLY HAPPENS TO THE ANKLE WHEN IT’S SPRAINED? The most common type of ankle sprain is the lateral ankle sprain when the joint rolls laterally inwards, said Adj Asst Prof Hong. According to Harvard Health Publishing , this inward-rolling action can damage the ligaments in the outer ankle that form part of the ankle ligament complex. Ligaments are bands of fibrous tissue that connect bone to bone. Depending on the severity of the damage (from Grade 1 to 3), the injured ligaments could end up over-stretched or torn. And like a worn-out rubber band, they can’t snap back into shape to provide stability to the ankle. But it’s not all doom and gloom the minute you have a sprain. The vast majority of individuals, who sprain their ankles for the first time, “recover well enough to return to their pre-injury activities”, said Dr Yeo. The issue comes when you have more than one sprain. “The ankle may become too lax and unstable. Strengthening the surrounding muscles can no longer compensate for the insufficiency of the ankle ligament complex and this predisposes one to future sprains,” said Dr Yeo. “A lateral ankle sprain can also cause injury to the proprioceptive receptors, resulting in altered neuromuscular activities such as delayed muscle response time, poor balancing and proprioceptive reflex,” said Adj Asst Prof Hong. WHY ARE SOME PEOPLE MORE PRONE TO ANKLE SPRAINS THAN OTHERS? High-arched feet can make you more prone to sprains, said Dr Yeo. “This type of foot shape causes the ankle and foot to curve inwards slightly, and makes it more likely to invert or ‘roll’ the ankles inwards,” he said. Having lax ligaments could be another cause, said Adj Asst Prof Hong. This means your joints are naturally very flexible and have a wider range of motion than most people – good for yoga perhaps, but not so good for minimising ankle sprains. Biomechanics aside, certain sports, too, can increase your risk, Dr Yeo added, including basketball, soccer, volleyball and racket sports. “Basically, any sports where you have to jump, land and pivot quickly would predispose you to ankle injuries.” And once you have an ankle sprain, you have a 12 per cent to 47 per cent risk of re-spraining that same ankle again and again, said Adj Asst Prof Hong, which could, in turn, give rise to a condition known as chronic lateral ankle instability. You’ll feel an instability in your ankle, like it’ll give way or collapse when you’re walking or standing. In fact, almost 74 per cent of 231 patients treated at NUH over a five-year period for recurrent sprains had chronic lateral ankle instability, said Adj Asst Prof Hong. HOW DO ANKLE SPRAINS LEAD TO ANKLE ARTHRITIS? “Ankle sprains contribute to up to 22 per cent of all cases of ankle arthritis,” said Dr Yeo. Adj Asst Prof Hong also acknowledged the link. At Ng Teng Fong General Hospital and NUH, up to 25 per cent of end-stage ankle arthritis patients seen over a 10-year period had histories of multiple ankle sprains, he said. Dr Yeo explained that “recurrent ankle sprains lead to ankle instability and this results in uneven weight distribution over the ankle joint”. “Over time, this can progress to ankle arthritis. In a proportion of ankle sprains, there is an associated injury to the cartilage. This, too, can progress with time to more generalised wearing of the joint surface and eventual arthritis.” Adj Asst Prof Hong added that “this is why we often advise patients with unstable ankles who still want to continue their active lifestyles to consider surgical stabilisation”. “We also often recommend patients who are averse to surgery to wear protective braces regularly during sporting or heavy-impact activities to prevent recurrent sprains,” he said. HOW DO WE HELP A SPRAINED ANKLE TO HEAL PROPERLY? You’ve heard of RICE, which stands for rest, ice, compress and elevate, when it comes to treating an ankle sprain. And you should carry out those steps immediately following a sprain, said Adj Asst Prof Hong. If adequate treatment is not instituted early, especially in more severe cases, trauma to the ankle’s surrounding structures such as cartilage, bone, tendons and other ligaments can result. And in the long run, you may end up with sustained pain, swelling, cartilage damage, loose bodies and impingement from bone spurs, said Adj Asst Prof Hong. Hence, “it’s crucial to apply ice to the injured area within 24 hours of the injury,” said Dr Yeo. “A firm compressive dressing should be applied to help reduce swelling. The foot should be elevated above the heart to reduce swelling and a course of anti-inflammatory medication will aid in this, too.” “After approximately two weeks, when the swelling has subsided, the key is to restore the ankle’s range of motion, strength and flexibility,” said Dr Yeo. “Working with a physiotherapist to guide you through this phase of recovery is helpful. After about eight to 10 weeks, a gradual return to exercise and sports is possible.” Oftentimes, according to Dr Yeo, that is enough for the injured ankle to heal on its own through scarring. But “in a proportion of patients, scar tissue can cause pain over the outside of the ankle joint. This is known as impingement. In certain cases, keyhole surgery is required to remove the scar tissue and alleviate the pain.” If you continue to experience ankle pain and instability three months after a sprain, surgery may be required to reconstruct the ankle ligaments, said Dr Yeo. WHAT TREATMENT IS AVAILABLE FOR ARTHRITIC ANKLES? Motion isn’t good news when a joint’s protective cartilage has been worn down over the years and is now the source of joint pain and inflammation, or what is known as arthritis. The same applies to the ankle, especially one that is unstable from recurrent sprains to begin with and has created uneven wearing of the cartilage. In such an instance, the gold standard surgery is ankle fusion or arthrodesis, where the ankle joint is fused to eliminate motion, said Adj Asst Prof Hong. “This is a time-proven and effective surgery to relieve pain and improve function.” The ankle is surgically fixed in a neutral position. While you won’t be able to flex your ankle to point your foot up and down, you’ll still be able to move your heel from side to side, and the middle and front parts of your foot up and down. Also, “patients will have limitations in certain activities such as squatting, driving, climbing stairs and certain sports. But we have observed that they adapt to these limitations and do well,” said Adj Asst Prof Hong. The alternative is total ankle replacement surgery or arthroplasty, said Dr Yeo, who claims to be the earliest surgeon in Asia to perform it. Similar to a knee replacement surgery, it involves replacing the worn parts of the ankle with metal implants. The procedure “allows the patient to preserve the range of motion of the ankle joint. This allows for a more natural gait and movement”, he said. It is more acceptable to patients who don’t wish to lose their range of motion, said Dr Yeo. “Also, an ankle replacement procedure protects the adjacent joints around the ankle as opposed to a fusion procedure, which puts more stress on the surrounding joints.”Workday Earnings Beat. Updated Fiscal 2025 Revenue Outlook Light.

The 38-year-old recalled meeting the US president-elect with her former England captain husband Wayne when their family was living in the US during Sunday’s episode. Discussing her encounter, she told her fellow campmates: “When we lived in America, we got invited to the White House for Christmas and we went in to meet Donald Trump. There’s nowhere for Dean and Coleen to run as they face Absolute Carnage... 🐀 Find out how they get on when #ImACeleb continues, tonight at 9pm! pic.twitter.com/yNevokq030 — I'm A Celebrity... (@imacelebrity) November 24, 2024 “And so we walked in and we had to get the official photograph taken in front of the Christmas tree. “So Donald Trump said to his son ‘See? Told you, all the soccer players get the good-looking girls’. “And I told my mum, I was like ‘dirty bastard’.” She also revealed that Mr Trump wanted Wayne to “go over to teach his son to play football”. Afterwards, McFly star Danny Jones asked her: “Is he that orange?”, to which she confirmed: “He was very orange.” Sunday’s episode also saw Rooney compete in a Bushtucker Trial a day after her her husband Wayne encouraged viewers to vote for her to do a challenge in a social media post. The former England footballer said he was “proud” of how she was doing in the Australian jungle but said he and their boys would “love” to see her do a trial. The couple, who first met at school and began dating aged 16, share four sons, Kai Wayne, Klay Anthony, Kit Joseph and Cass Mac. Ahead of competing in the Absolute Carnage trial, she said: “I’m a bit scared of the unknown but I’m excited for my boys back home just to see me do something. “Hopefully I’m going to do well, I’m going to try my best.” The trial saw her trapped in a box in the back of a car which was filled with cockroaches, crickets, giant mealworms and rats. Her fellow campmate, BBC Radio 1 presenter Dean McCullough, had to rummage through a garage area which was filled with creepy crawlies to find tools which he would pass to Rooney so she could unlock the stars in the box. The pair worked together to win nine stars for camp, with hosts Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly branding Rooney as “very calm, very quiet, you just got on with it”. Liverpool-born Rooney replied: “That is my way of coping, silence, the silent treatment.” Maura reveals why she went on Love Island... Let’s hope all toothbrushes are safe in the Jungle 🪥 #ImACeleb pic.twitter.com/oH8qizoKTK — I'm A Celebrity... (@imacelebrity) November 24, 2024 Elsewhere, Love Island star Maura Higgins recalled to Jones and Loose Women panellist Jane Moore that she went into the ITV dating show “like a bull in a china shop” after being so angry with her ex-boyfriend before entering the villa. She explained that she had been in a relationship when she got the offer for the show and decided to check her partner’s phone and was unimpressed with what she found. “When he went to the gym the next day I got his toothbrush and I filmed myself scrubbing in the verges, he had a dentist appointment that day,” she said. Jones said you “don’t want to mess with Maura” while Moore described her as “fierce”. It was revealed at the end of the episode that McCullough will take on another challenge during Monday’s episode. I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! continues at 9pm on ITV1, STV and ITVX.

Opposition-led protests costing Pakistan Rs 190bln daily, claims FinMin10 notable books of 2024, from Sarah J. Maas to Melania TrumpNEW YORK (AP) — Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa scored 27 points as Columbia beat Fairfield 85-72 on Saturday night. De La Rosa shot 8 of 15 from the field, including 5 for 11 from 3-point range, and went 6 for 6 from the line for the Lions (11-1). Avery Brown shot 5 of 8 from the field and 5 of 5 from the free-throw line to add 16 points. Kenny Noland went 5 of 12 from the field (3 for 7 from 3-point range) to finish with 15 points. The Stags (5-8, 1-1 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) were led by Louis Bleechmore, who recorded 12 points. Fairfield also got 12 points and seven assists from Jamie Bergens. Deon Perry had 12 points and five assists. Columbia's next game is Monday against Rutgers on the road, and Fairfield visits Merrimack on Friday. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

Bandu’s Blockbusters for Dec 29, 2024Sacks Parente golf executive chairman buys $5,010 in stockEx-USMNT goalkeeper Tim Howard criticises Christian Pulisic over 'stupid' Donald Trump dance

Final Toronto Maple Leafs Selections for Team Canada and Team USA for 4 Nations Face-OffsTom Brady offered his unique perspective on the illegal hit that concussed Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence , saying he had “mixed emotions” about the controversial incident. “The quarterbacks need to take better care of themselves,” Brady, 47, argued Tuesday, December 3 on The Herd with Colin Cowherd . The former Patriots legend continued, “When you run you put yourself in a lot of danger. When you do that, I don’t think the onus of protecting an offensive quarterback who’s running should be on a defensive player. I don’t think that’s really fair to the defense.” Lawrence, 25, was sliding to the ground when he was hit by Houston Texans’ linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair on Sunday, December 1. Al-Shaair, 27, was suspended for three games for the hit on Tuesday, December 3. Lawrence was carted off the field and later diagnosed with a concussion. “Nobody wants to see anybody get hurt, but it is also the reality of a very physical sport that we play,” Brady contended. “Defensive players have to be aggressive. That’s their nature. I always try to be aggressive on offense. We tried to block aggressively. At the same time, the defense tries to tackle aggressively.” Brady, who officially retired in February 2023 after a 23-season NFL career, noted how the mobility of quarterbacks has changed in recent years. “I see [Buffalo Bills quarterback] Josh Allen run a lot, I see [Baltimore Ravens quarterback] Lamar Jackson run a lot,” Brady said. “It’s a great skill set to have. A lot of times I wish I had that skill set.” Brady harkened back to a memory from his early playing days that was eerily similar to the one involving Lawrence. “I remember in 2001, I think we played at Buffalo,” Brady recalled. “I slid late and Nate Clements was the [cornerback] for the Bills and he came up out of the secondary and absolutely crushed me. My helmet went flying off.” Brady continued, “I had a lot of teammates that came up to me the next day and said, ‘Dude, these guys are coming. You gotta get rid of that football. And if you slide, you better get down. These guys are coming to get you.’” Ultimately, Brady called the hit “a great learning experience for me because I realized when I’m out of that pocket, things were moving a lot faster for me.” You have successfully subscribed. By signing up, I agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy and to receive emails from Us Weekly Check our latest news in Google News Check our latest news in Apple News After Lawrence left the game, he offered fans an optimistic update about his health on social media. “Thank you to everyone who has reached out / been praying for me,” he wrote via X on Sunday evening. “I’m home and feeling better. Means a lot, thank you all🙌🏻.” Lawrence was placed on injured reserve Wednesday, December 4, likely ending his season.

Abortions are up in the US. It's a complicated picture as women turn to pills, travelCSX Corp. stock rises Tuesday, still underperforms marketAbortion has become slightly more common despite bans or deep restrictions in most Republican-controlled states, and the legal and political fights over its future are not over yet. It's now been two and a half years since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and opened the door for states to implement bans. The policies and their impact have been in flux ever since the ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. Here's a look at data on where things stand: Overturning Roe and enforcing abortion bans has changed how woman obtain abortions in the U.S. But one thing it hasn't done is put a dent in the number of abortions being obtained. There have been slightly more monthly abortions across the country recently than there were in the months leading up to the June 2022 ruling, even as the number in states with bans dropped to near zero. “Abortion bans don’t actually prevent abortions from happening,” said Ushma Upadhyay, a public health social scientist at the University of California San Francisco. But, she said, they do change care. For women in some states, there are major obstacles to getting abortions — and advocates say that low-income, minority and immigrant women are least likely to be able to get them when they want. For those living in states with bans, the ways to access abortion are through travel or abortion pills. As the bans swept in, abortion pills became a bigger part of the equation. They were involved in about half the abortions before Dobbs. More recently, it’s been closer to two-thirds of them, according to research by the Guttmacher Institute. The uptick of that kind of abortion, usually involving a combination of two drugs, was underway before the ruling. But now, it's become more common for pill prescriptions to be made by telehealth. By the summer of 2024, about 1 in 10 abortions was via pills prescribed via telehealth to patients in states where abortion is banned. As a result, the pills are now at the center of battles over abortion access. This month, Texas sued a New York doctor for prescribing pills to a Texas woman via telemedicine. There's also an effort by Idaho, Kansas and Missouri to roll back their federal approvals and treat them as “controlled dangerous substances,” and a push for the federal government to start enforcing a 19th-century federal law to ban mailing them. Clinics have closed or halted abortions in states with bans. But a network of efforts to get women seeking abortions to places where they're legal has strengthened and travel for abortion is now common. The Guttmacher Institute found that more than twice as many Texas residents obtained abortion in 2023 in New Mexico as New Mexico residents did. And as many Texans received them in Kansas as Kansans. Abortion funds, which benefitted from “rage giving” in 2022, have helped pay the costs for many abortion-seekers. But some funds have had to cap how much they can give . Since the downfall of Roe, the actions of lawmakers and courts have kept shifting where abortion is legal and under what conditions. Here's where it stands now: Florida, the nation’s third most-populous state, began enforcing a ban on abortions after the first six weeks of pregnancy on May 1. That immediately changed the state from one that was a refuge for other Southerners seeking abortion to an exporter of people looking for them. There were about 30% fewer abortions there in May compared with the average for the first three months of the year. And in June, there were 35% fewer. While the ban is not unique, the impact is especially large. The average driving time from Florida to a facility in North Carolina where abortion is available for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is more than nine hours, according to data maintained by Caitlin Myers, a Middlebury College economics professor. The bans have meant clinics closed or stopped offering abortions in some states. But some states where abortion remains legal until viability – generally considered to be sometime past 21 weeks of pregnancy , though there’s no fixed time for it – have seen clinics open and expand . Illinois, Kansas and New Mexico are among the states with new clinics. There were 799 publicly identifiable abortion providers in the U.S. in May 2022, the month before the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade. And by this November, it was 792, according to a tally by Myers, who is collecting data on abortion providers. But Myers says some hospitals that always provided some abortions have begun advertising it. So they’re now in the count of clinics – even though they might provide few of them. How hospitals handle pregnancy complications , especially those that threaten the lives of the women, has emerged as a major issue since Roe was overturned. President Joe Biden's administration says hospitals must offer abortions when they're needed to prevent organ loss, hemorrhage or deadly infections, even in states with bans. Texas is challenging the administration’s policy and the U.S. Supreme Court this year declined to take it up after the Biden administration sued Idaho. More than 100 pregnant women seeking help in emergency rooms and were turned away or left unstable since 2022, The Associated Press found in an analysis of federal hospital investigative records. Among the complaints were a woman who miscarried in the lobby restroom of Texas emergency room after staff refused to see her and a woman who gave birth in a car after a North Carolina hospital couldn't offer an ultrasound. The baby later died. “It is increasingly less safe to be pregnant and seeking emergency care in an emergency department,” Dara Kass, an emergency medicine doctor and former U.S. Health and Human Services official told the AP earlier this year. Since Roe was overturned, there have been 18 reproductive rights-related statewide ballot questions. Abortion rights advocates have prevailed on 14 of them and lost on four. In the 2024 election , they amended the constitutions in five states to add the right to abortion. Such measures failed in three states: In Florida, where it required 60% support; in Nebraska, which had competing abortion ballot measures; and in South Dakota, where most national abortion rights groups did support the measure. AP VoteCast data found that more than three-fifths of voters in 2024 supported abortion being legal in all or most cases – a slight uptick from 2020. The support came even as voters supported Republicans to control the White House and both houses of Congress. Associated Press writers Linley Sanders, Amanda Seitz and Laura Ungar contributed to this article.Fantasy: Week 13 Rankings - Kickers (Updated) - theScore

To gain an edge, this is what you need to know today. Chart of Palantir Technologies Inc PLTR . Note the following: This article is about the big picture, not an individual stock. The chart of PLTR is being used to illustrate the point. The chart shows that PLTR stock has gone vertical. The chart shows that the Arora core position was bought at $20.15. The chart shows when the Arora trade around position signal was given. A trade around position is a technique used by billionaires and hedge funds that can dramatically increase returns and reduce risks. As full disclosure, The Arora Report system is close to giving another signal for a new trade around position on PLTR. Palantir is a defense contractor providing mostly AI-based software. Being a defense contractor is a complex business. Historically, it has taken defense contractors a very long period, many acquisitions, and storied histories to become large. With Palantir, it is the first time that a company has become the largest defense contractor by market cap in the blink of an eye. More remarkable is that Palantir has achieved this feat not through a long storied history and not through acquisitions. Palantir has reached this status through a momo crowd and meme crowd stampede. The chart shows that money is to be made by taking advantage of momo crowd and meme crowd stampedes. Over the years, we have helped our members make money from these stampedes on a number of stocks. Of course, prudent investors should have risk controls in place and be patient. As full disclosure, PLTR was recently added to the ZYX Buy Core Model Portfolio. As full disclosure, Rtx Corp RTX is also in the ZYX Buy Core Model Portfolio. RTX is the second largest defense contractor now by market cap. Here is a comparison of a few key metrics between PLTR and RTX. PLTR trailing PE is 354. RTX trailing PE is 34. PLTR forward PE is 151. RTX forward PE is 19. PLTR price/sales is 65. RTX price/sales is 2. Based on the ZYX Change Method quantitative screen , the highest reasonable valuation of PLTR is under $40. PLTR is trading at $71.74 as of this writing in the premarket. The very long term Arora target for PLTR is $123 – $136. The foregoing also illustrates the extreme positive sentiment in the stock market. This morning, the stock market is front running Fed Chair Powell. Powell will be speaking later today. The hopium is that Powell will be dovish and indicate a rate cut is coming in spite of a large set of data showing that it is imprudent to cut rates at this time. Buying in the early trade is largely focused on large cap tech stocks as well as speculative junk stocks. Also adding to the buying are comments on Salesforce Inc CRM and Marvell Technology Inc MRVL conference calls regarding AI. In the early trade, money flows are positive in Apple Inc AAPL , Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN , Alphabet Inc Class C GOOG , Microsoft Corp MSFT , NVIDIA Corp NVDA , and Tesla Inc TSLA . In the early trade, money flows are negative in Meta Platforms Inc META . In the early trade, money flows are positive in SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY and Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 QQQ . Investors can gain an edge by knowing money flows in SPY and QQQ. Investors can get a bigger edge by knowing when smart money is buying stocks, gold, and oil. The most popular ETF for gold is SPDR Gold Trust GLD . The most popular ETF for silver is iShares Silver Trust SLV . The most popular ETF for oil is United States Oil ETF USO . Bitcoin BTC/USD is range bound. It is important for investors to look ahead and not in the rearview mirror. The proprietary protection band from The Arora Report is very popular. The protection band puts all of the data, all of the indicators, all of the news, all of the crosscurrents, all of the models, and all of the analysis in an analytical framework that is easily actionable by investors. Consider continuing to hold good, very long term, existing positions. Based on individual risk preference, consider a protection band consisting of cash or Treasury bills or short-term tactical trades as well as short to medium term hedges and short term hedges. This is a good way to protect yourself and participate in the upside at the same time. You can determine your protection bands by adding cash to hedges. The high band of the protection is appropriate for those who are older or conservative. The low band of the protection is appropriate for those who are younger or aggressive. If you do not hedge, the total cash level should be more than stated above but significantly less than cash plus hedges. A protection band of 0% would be very bullish and would indicate full investment with 0% in cash. A protection band of 100% would be very bearish and would indicate a need for aggressive protection with cash and hedges or aggressive short selling. It is worth reminding that you cannot take advantage of new upcoming opportunities if you are not holding enough cash. When adjusting hedge levels, consider adjusting partial stop quantities for stock positions (non ETF); consider using wider stops on remaining quantities and also allowing more room for high beta stocks. High beta stocks are the ones that move more than the market. Probability based risk reward adjusted for inflation does not favor long duration strategic bond allocation at this time. Those who want to stick to traditional 60% allocation to stocks and 40% to bonds may consider focusing on only high quality bonds and bonds of five year duration or less. Those willing to bring sophistication to their investing may consider using bond ETFs as tactical positions and not strategic positions at this time. The Arora Report is known for its accurate calls. The Arora Report correctly called the big artificial intelligence rally before anyone else, the new bull market of 2023, the bear market of 2022, new stock market highs right after the virus low in 2020, the virus drop in 2020, the DJIA rally to 30,000 when it was trading at 16,000, the start of a mega bull market in 2009, and the financial crash of 2008. Please click here to sign up for a free forever Generate Wealth Newsletter . © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.The combined profits of listed housing developers are expected to decline by more than 10% this year compared with 2023, driven by intense market competition and aggressive discount campaigns to capture dwindling demand. Sumitra Wongpakdee, managing director of property research and consultancy Terra Media and Consulting, said a sluggish market prompted developers to make significant adjustments this year. "Many developers resorted to price cuts and promotional campaigns to lift sales, willingly sacrificing profit margins to maintain their yearly revenue targets," she said. During the first nine months of 2024, 35 listed housing developers reported a combined net profit of 20.8 billion baht on revenue totalling 223 billion baht, compared with 38.5 billion baht in net profit and 331 billion baht in revenue for the full 2023. The net profit margin to revenue ratio dropped to 9.3%, down from 11.6% at the end of 2023 and 13.1% in 2022, according to Terra. The combined revenue of the 35 listed housing developers is projected to decrease by 5-8%, tallying around 300 billion baht by the end of 2024, noted the consultancy. Only a few developers are expected to meet their annual targets, having achieved more than 63% of their goals in the first nine months, while others fell short, with some reaching only 36-38% of their annual targets. According to Kasikorn Securities, 12 listed developers under its analysis reported a combined net profit of 7.5 billion baht in the third quarter, a decline of 8% year-on-year and 2% quarter-on-quarter. While the results aligned with market and internal estimates, they were underwhelming, as quarter-on-quarter growth was absent despite significant condo backlog transfers during the previous three months, according to the brokerage. The combined net profit for the first nine months of 2024 fell 20% year-on-year to 21.3 billion baht and is expected to plunge 11% by year-end, noted Kasikorn Securities. In the third quarter, the 12 listed developers, particularly those with joint ventures, saw a significant rise in transfer value both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter, driven by the transfer of condo backlogs. This was reflected in a significant rise in profit contributions from investments. However, intense market competition, especially in low-rise houses, led to a drop in gross profit margin for residential properties. The 12 developers reported a decrease of 1.0 percentage point year-on-year and 0.5 percentage points quarter-on-quarter, reaching a four-year low of 30.6%. Given ongoing challenges, cash flow management strategies are crucial, said the brokerage. Project development has slowed, leading to reduced housing stock, which helps manage interest-bearing liabilities and improves cash flow. Kasikorn Securities reported the housing market in the third quarter remained under pressure because of weakening demand. Fierce competition further compressed gross profit margins, emphasising the critical need for effective cash flow management across the sector. While condo backlog transfers and the seasonal uptick in fourth-quarter transfers are expected to bolster profits, challenges persist, noted the brokerage. Several developers downgraded their 2024 project launches, leading to an anticipated 16% year-on-year decrease in the value of new project launches, totalling 314 billion baht. Fourth-quarter profits are likely to stand out, fuelled by high transfer volumes, the seasonality effect and the condo backlog, said Kasikorn Securities. The expiration of tax incentives for homes priced less than 7 million baht is expected to provide an added boost before year-end, yet there are no short-term catalysts in sight, noted the brokerage. A positive shift in macroeconomic conditions, coupled with lower interest rates and declining loan rejection rates, will be crucial for lifting sales and profits in 2025, potentially rekindling investor interest, according to Kasikorn Securities.