fortune ox 2

Kemi Badenoch says 'naive' vicars letting migrants convert to Christianity to gain access to UK

South Korea's leader prompts dismay by briefly declaring martial law. Here's what to know49ers land premium prospect from Kyle Shanahan's alma mater in latest 2025 NFL Mock DraftWALGREENS is shuttering another store, forcing local customers to transfer prescriptions and head elsewhere for necessities. The location is now added to a list of over 1,200 planned closures throughout the next year. Shoppers who frequent the Walgreens at 4014 Plaza Goldorado Circle in Cameron Park, California , about 32 miles east of Sacramento, will be affected. It permanently closes its doors on January 27, 2025, per the Sacramento Business Journal . Two other Walgreens locations on 1401 Broadway and 7155 24th Street nearby will also close in the New Year , making it a total of three in the area axed for customers. The Broadway location shuts down on January 23, and the 24th Street spot on January 29. Read More on Walgreens Walgreens said there were "increased regulatory and reimbursement pressures" as far as the reasoning behind the closures in an email to the Sacramento Business Journal. It deemed the locations as underperforming and considered costs like rent , supplies, and staff salaries in its decision. Employees will have opportunities to transfer to other Walgreens stores. Customers at the Cameron Park store will also have their prescriptions transferred to a CVS pharmacy nearby, according to Walgreens. Most read in Money CLOSING TIME Walgreens locations have been slowly closing this year, and confirmation that there would be at least 1,200 axed from the chain's retail footprint was confirmed by Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Tim Wentworth in October. Wentworth noted that the closures would take place over three years as part of a $1 billion cost-cutting program, which also sees the firing of several mid-level executives. At least 500 closures are planned for 2025 alone. The CEO seeks to bring back Walgreens' market value, as it was once worth $100 billion in 2015. As of 2024, the company is valued at $7.5 billion, a significant decrease. Market shares were also down about 70% this year, per data from The Wall Street Journal . We recognize where we are is a turnaround. "This turnaround will take time, but we are confident it will yield significant financial and consumer benefits over the long term," Wentworth noted in a press release earlier this year. POTENTIAL BUYER That turnaround could be sooner than expected if Walgreens Boots Alliance is bought out by private equity firm Sycamore Partners. If it goes through, Walgreens customers could see changes to the pharmacy chain's operations, as it would be taken off the public market. The deal hasn't been finalized but could be confirmed early next year. Sycamore recently bought other giants like Staples for $6.9 billion in 2017. Walgreens has also been catching attention for other reasons recently. Read More on The US Sun A $10 bathroom item went viral recently at Walgreens for performing better and being three times cheaper than a name-brand option. Walgreens also rolled out about 150 new items this summer despite shopper backlash.

As 2024 draws to a close, CDT editors are compiling a series of the most notable content ( Chinese ) from across the Chinese internet over the past year. Topics include this year’s most outstanding quotes, reports, podcasts and videos, sensitive words, censored articles and essays, “People of the Year,” and CDT’s “2024 Editors’ Picks.” CDT Chinese publishes a column called CDT Reports , which collects external reports from think tanks, academic journals, NGOs, the media, and other sources on topics related to various human rights issues in China. This year, CDT Chinese published 150 of these report columns, covering freedom of speech, freedom of the press, public opinion polls, transnational repression, Uyghur human rights, Tibetan human rights, religious freedom, digital authoritarianism, labor rights, China’s economy, the rights of women and LGBTQ+ groups, and U.S.-China relations. The list below is a sample of the most notable reports of 2024, as chosen by CDT Chinese editors. 1. V-Dem, “ Democracy Report 2024: Democracy Winning and Losing at the Ballot ” This flagship report by the V-Dem Institute at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden measured the receding ground of democracies around the world. It noted that autocratization is ongoing in 42 countries, home to 35 percent of the world’s population, and that “[a]lmost all components of democracy are getting worse in more countries than they are getting better, compared to ten years ago.” China is ranked 171 out of 179 countries on the report’s Liberal Democracy Index, and it falls similarly close to the bottom in the four related categories. The report also labels the BRICS+, which is largely led by China, a “Club of Autocracies.” ( CDT Reports column ) 2. Human Rights Watch, “ ‘Educate the Masses to Change Their Minds’: China’s Forced Relocation of Rural Tibetans ” This report shows that Chinese media coverage in many cases contradicts official claims that rural Tibetans gave their consent to relocate to urban areas. Drawing on over one thousand official Chinese media articles as well as government publications and academic field studies, the report indicates that participation in “whole-village relocation” programs in Tibet is compulsory and enforced by coercion. Between 2000 and 2025, the Chinese authorities will have relocated over 930,000 rural Tibetans, according to official statistics. ( CDT Reports column ; CDT English coverage .) 3. Amnesty International, “ ‘On my campus, I am afraid’: China’s targeting of overseas students stifles rights ” Using in-depth interviews with 32 Chinese students, including 12 from Hong Kong, studying at universities in Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the U.K., and the U.S., the report highlights the climate of fear on university campuses, along with responses from university administrations. Among the various findings, the report details how the Chinese government’s transnational repression has frightened some Chinese students to such an extent that it causes isolation and severe health problems. ( CDT Reports column ; CDT English coverage ) 4. Exovera’s Center for Intelligence Research and Analysis for the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, “ Censorship Practices of the People’s Republic of China ” This report outlines the nature and reach of China’s censorship apparatus, the methods and technologies that underpin it, the international activities it conducts, and the implications for the U.S. It states that under Xi Jinping, the Chinese Party-state has streamlined control over online content, improved censors’ technical skills, and made legal reforms to broaden state supervision over media. The outcome is what the Commission calls “the world’s most elaborate and pervasive censorship apparatus.” ( CDT Reports column ; CDT English coverage ) 5. Amnesty International and Chinese Human Rights Defenders, “ ‘I yearn to see you’ – Valentine’s letters to activists detained in mainland China and Hong Kong ” Ahead of Valentine’s Day, the partners of three detained Chinese human rights activists wrote letters to express their love and highlight the severe treatment of their partners. The group included Geng He and her husband Gao Zhisheng, a human rights lawyer who was forcibly disappeared; activist Ye Du under police surveillance in Guangzhou and her partner Chow Hang-tung, a lawyer detained for organizing a vigil for the Tiananmen crackdown; and Luo Shengchun, the wife of human rights lawyer Ding Jiaxi, who was sentenced to 12 years in prison for subversion of state power. ( CDT Reports column ) 6. Google Threat Intelligence Group, “ Seeing Through a GLASSBRIDGE: Understanding the Digital Marketing Ecosystem Spreading Pro-PRC Influence Operations ” Google researchers documented an umbrella group of four different private companies operating hundreds of fake websites that posed as news sites and newswire services from dozens of countries. These sites demonstrated an ability to tailor their content to specific regional audiences and to appear as legitimate news. The examples in this report suggest that the companies took instructions from a shared customer that was organizing a coordinated influence campaign aligned with PRC political agendas. ( CDT Reports column ) 7. The China Quarterly, “ Do Chinese Citizens Conceal Opposition to the CCP in Surveys? Evidence from Two Experiments ” Erin Baggott Carter, Brett L. Carter, and Stephen Schick at the University of Southern California published findings from two public opinion surveys that challenged common understandings of how Chinese people feel about the CCP. In addition to asking directly for Chinese citizens’ views of the CCP, which elicits extremely high degrees of support, the researchers also asked in the form of list experiments that provide a greater sense of anonymity. The result of this second method was the CCP receiving support among only 50 to 70 percent of respondents. The Chinese leadership may therefore not be as popular as previously thought. ( CDT Reports column ) Categories : CDT Highlights , China & the World , Hong Kong , Human Rights , Law , Level 2 Article , Politics , Sci-Tech , Society Tags : Amnesty International , BRICS , CCP , censorship , democracy , Ding Jiaxi , external propaganda , Gao Zhisheng , Internet censorship , online censorship , overseas Chinese students , overseas students , public opinion , relocation , Tibet Related Posts CDT 2024 Year-End Roundup: Sensitive Words CDT 2024 Year-End Roundup: Quotes of the Year (Part 2) Quote of the Day, as Blogger’s Prison Sentence is Confirmed: “Before You Can Plant Crops, You Must Improve the Soil” Dam Construction in Tibet Threatens Local Communities and Environment Interview: Gerald Roche on the Erasure of Tibet’s Minority Languages Words of the Week: “Aim the Rifle an Inch Higher” (枪口抬高一厘米, qiāngkǒu táigāo yī límǐ) Two Years After Zero-COVID, A Rare White Paper Remembrance Censors Remove Reflections on Democracy Inspired by Korean Crisis Frank Speeches by Economists Gao Shanwen, Fu Peng Result in Mass Online Censorship, WeChat Bans Chinese Government Leverages Inbound Tourism to Boost External Propaganda Global Public Opinion Polls Show Polarized Views of China Reflections on Family Relationships and Generational Change Under the CCP Can “Journey to the West” Help Explain A Spate of Killings in China?“I would just encourage everybody to be as politically incorrect as their heart desires" Sean Penn has taken aim at the “extraordinary cowardice” of Hollywood, claiming it is “limiting the imagination”. The actor took exception with Oscar voters in particular, despite the fact that he has picked up two gongs himself, for his performances in Mystic River and Milk . Speaking at the Marrakech Film Festival, where he received the lifetime achievement award, he said (via Variety ): “The Academy have exercised really extraordinary cowardice when it comes to being part of the bigger world of expression, and in fact, have largely been part of limiting the imagination and very limiting of different cultural expressions.” “So I don’t get very excited about what we’ll call the Academy Awards [except for] when a film like The Florida Project , or I’m Still Here [are nominated], or, you know, Emilia Perez , of the things that are likely to happen this year.” Sean Penn with his Best Actor Oscar for ‘Milk’ at the 2009 Academy Awards. Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic. Penn added that the industry is “afraid” of addressing controversial political topics, referencing the recent Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice , which is expected to miss out in the coming awards season. “It’s jaw-dropping how afraid this business of mavericks is of a great film like that, one with great, great acting,” Penn said. “[It’s amazing] that they too can be as afraid as a piddly little Republican congressman.” “Around the world [there is] this demand for diversity – but not diversity of behavior and not diversity of opinion or language,” he continued. “I would just encourage everybody to be as politically incorrect as their heart desires and to engage diversity and to keep telling those stories.” Among the films expected to be in the running at the Oscars early next year are Sean Baker’s independent drama Anora , Netflix’s experimental musical Emilia Perez and A24’s historical epic The Brutalist , as well as more mainstream fare such as Wicked , Gladiator II and Dune: Part Two . Penn, meanwhile, spoke earlier this year about the rumours that he hit Madonna with a baseball bat during their marriage in the 1980s. He said: “I didn’t know what the hell she was talking about. Now, I think it’s fair to say that I’m not the biggest guy in the world. But if I hit Mike Tyson in the head with a baseball bat, he’s going to the hospital.” Related Topics Oscars Sean PennHundreds sit down to giant community lunches, as need soars

An online debate over foreign workers in tech shows tensions in Trump's political coalition

NEW YORK — Cam Johnson has been a powerful offensive force for the Nets in December. The 28-year-old forward has averaged 23.4 points per game in his first nine appearances this month while shooting 50% from the field, 44.3% from 3-point range and 87.7% from the free-throw line. That includes four games with at least 20 points and one 33-point eruption in a 101-94 defeat of the Toronto Raptors last week. Johnson has been the difference for Brooklyn in close games, for better or worse, depending on how you measure team success. Few wings on the open market have matched his recent production. And as he continues to surge, so does the price tag for any contending team looking to acquire him. “He’s our movement guy. He creates a lot of attention,” Nets coach Jordi Fernandez said. “He’s running miles and miles and miles and a lot of the time he’s not the one taking the shot. But he’s definitely brought that composure to the group that has helped us in big-time moments where we were able to take the lead and close the game.” One of those moments came in Thursday’s 111-105 defeat of the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum. An 82-76 game entering the fourth quarter, the Nets stormed back behind Johnson and Shake Milton to take a 99-97 lead with 3:40 left. The Nets were up three with 1:06 left when the Bucks suffered their worst mental lapse of the night. For whatever reason, they doubled Ben Simmons on a ball screen at the 3-point line and left Johnson wide open. The forward knocked down the trey despite getting fouled by Milwaukee’s Ryan Rollins on the attempt. He completed the four-point play at the free-throw line moments later, which gave Brooklyn a seven-point edge with 47.9 seconds left. Johnson scored 10 of his game-high 29 points in the final frame. Trade speculation has followed Johnson since the offseason, but he continues to stay in the moment and fight for his current team. Some fans may not appreciate it, given the Nets’ rebuilding situation. But Johnson and company pay no attention to the noise. “When we believe we can win the game, which we did the entire game, we give ourselves a chance,” Johnson said. “So, it kind of starts with that belief. ... And then that kind of empowers guys to go out there and make plays, like Shake did, like Keon [Johnson] did, Noah [Clowney] hitting threes. So, it’s just that belief that we have to have across our roster that showed up in the second half for us today.” ©2024 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.