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Macy’s Thanksgiving parade returns, with a K-POP group ‘Aespa’ from Korea

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11/26/2021

Macy’s Thanksgiving parade returns, with a K-POP group ‘Aespa’ from Korea

Giant balloons once again wafted through miles of Manhattan, wrangled by costumed handlers. High school and college marching bands from around the country were back, and so were the crowds at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Specially this year, a K-POP group ‘Aespa’ from Korea attended this parade.

After being crimped by the coronavirus pandemic last year, the holiday tradition returned in full Thursday, though with precautions.

“It really made Thanksgiving feel very festive and full of life,” Sierra Guardiola, a 23-year-old interior design firm assistant, said after watching the spectacle in a turkey-shaped hat.

Thousands of marchers, hundreds of clowns, dozens of balloons and floats — and, of course, Santa Claus — marked the latest U.S. holiday event to make a comeback as vaccines, familiarity and sheer frustration made officials and some of the public more comfortable with big gatherings amid the ongoing pandemic.

To President Joe Biden, the parade’s full-fledged return was a sign of renewal, and he called NBC broadcaster Al Roker on-air to say so.

“After two years, we’re back. America is back. There’s nothing we’re unable to overcome,” Biden said over the phone from Nantucket, Massachusetts, where he was watching the broadcast with his family.

Aespa ride on a float during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Thursday, Nov. 25, 2021, in New York. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade returned in full, after being crimped by the coronavirus pandemic last year. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)

Still, safety measures continued. Parade staffers and volunteers had to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and wear masks, though some singers and performers were allowed to shed them. There was no inoculation requirement for spectators, but Macy’s and the city encouraged them to cover their faces.

Last Thanksgiving, with no vaccines available and the virus beginning a winter surge in the nation’s biggest city, the parade was confined to one block and sometimes pre-taped. Most performers were locally based, to cut down on travel, and the giant balloons were tethered to vehicles instead of being handled by volunteers. No spectators were allowed.

The event came days after an SUV driver plowed through a Christmas parade in suburban Milwaukee, killing six people and injuring over 60. Authorities said the driver, who has been charged with intentional homicide, was speeding away from police after a domestic dispute.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday there was no credible, specific threat to the Thanksgiving parade, but security was extensive, as usual. It involved thousands of police officers, as well as sand-filled garbage trucks and concrete barriers blocking cars from the parade route, bomb-detecting dogs, heavy-weapons teams, radiation and chemical sensors and over 300 extra cameras.

Inside the barricades, new balloon giants joined the lineup, including the title character from the Netflix series “Ada Twist, Scientist”; the Pokémon characters Pikachu and Eevee on a sled (Pikachu has appeared before, in different form), and Grogu, aka “Baby Yoda,” from the television show “The Mandalorian.”

New floats came from entities ranging from condiment maker Heinz to NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service to the Louisiana Office of Tourism.

Entertainers and celebrities included Carrie Underwood, Jon Batiste, Nelly, Kelly Rowland, Miss America Camille Schrier, the band Foreigner, and many others. Several Broadway musical casts and the Radio City Rockettes also performed.

-ANT NEWS 24, AP-

2 Auburn students win $1 million bass fishing tournament

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11/26/2021

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2 Auburn students win $1 million bass fishing tournament

Two Auburn University students have won the $1 million first-place prize in the Bass Pro Shops U.S. Open National Bass Fishing Amateur Team Championships.

Logan Parks, a senior, and Tucker Smith, a sophomore, topped 350 teams in the three-day event at Table Rock Lake in Ridgedale, Missouri, pulling in five fish last Sunday for a total of 16.41 pounds, news outlets reported.

The tournament, which celebrated Bass Pro Shops 50th anniversary and also raised money and awareness for conservation, will be aired on NBC at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 5.

Parks and Smith split the prize and also went home with 2022 Toyota Tundra CrewMax trucks and Nitro Z21 bass boats for their efforts.

“It hasn’t really sunk in yet,” said Parks, 23, who will graduate with degrees in supply chain management and information systems management in December. “We woke up this morning thinking it was a dream, but then we looked at our phones and realized it wasn’t. We’re just blown away.”

“We’re speechless. To win a tournament of this caliber is amazing,” said

Smith, a 20-year-old marketing major who won three Bassmaster national titles in high school, said they were “speechless.”

“To win a tournament of this caliber is amazing,” he said.

Auburn’s team was 10th out of 350 teams after the first day of competition, finished eighth among the top 200 teams on day two and then hit the jackpot on the final day. They topped the team of Joseph Nicholson and Gary Sterkel, both of Cleveland, by just .23 of a pound in the final tally to take home the win.

The key to the championship, Parks said, was spotting a group of birds diving in the water in an area of the 45,000-acre (18,210-hectare) lake they had not yet explored.

Sterkel and Nicholson won the second-place prize of $200,000. Chris Martin, of Nixa, Missouri, and Kevin Burnett, of Cape Fair, Missouri, took the third-place prize of $50,000.

Both Parks and Smith want to fish professionally one day.

“It’s been the goal since day one, and I was already planning on doing it, but was really struggling to figure out how I was going to do it monetarily. This tournament really, really helps boost my confidence that, yes I can fish professionally, do well and win, but also it helps knowing I’m pretty much set for the next few years,” Parks said.

-AP

Thanksgiving travelers expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels

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11/24/2021

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Thanksgiving travelers expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels

Determined to reclaim Thanksgiving traditions that were put on pause last year by the pandemic, millions of Americans will be loading up their cars or piling onto planes to gather again with friends and family.

According to AP, the number of air travelers this week is expected to approach or even exceed pre-pandemic levels, and auto club AAA predicts that 48.3 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home over the holiday period, an increase of nearly 4 million over last year despite sharply higher gasoline prices.

Many feel emboldened by the fact that nearly 200 million Americans are now fully vaccinated. But it also means brushing aside concerns about a resurgent virus at a time when the U.S. is now averaging nearly 100,000 new infections a day and hospitals in Michigan, Minnesota, Colorado and Arizona are seeing alarming increases in patients.

The seven-day daily average of new reported cases up nearly 30% in the last two weeks through Tuesday, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says unvaccinated people should not travel, although it is unclear whether that recommendation is having any effect.

More than 2.2 million travelers streamed through airport checkpoints last Friday, the busiest day since the pandemic devastated travel early last year. From Friday through Monday, the number of people flying in the U.S. was more than double the same days last year and only 8% lower than the same days in 2019.

For their part, airlines are hoping to avoid a repeat of the massive flight cancellations — more than 2,300 apiece — that dogged Southwest and American Airlines at different times last month.

The breakdowns started with bad weather in one part of the country and spun out of control. In the past, airlines had enough pilots, flight attendants and other workers to recover from many disruptions within a day or two. They are finding it harder to bounce back now, however, because they are stretched thin after pushing thousands of employees to quit when travel collapsed last year.

American, Southwest, Delta and United have all been hiring lately, which gives the airlines and industry observers hope that flights will stay on track this week.

The airlines have little margin for error right now. American expected to fill more than 90% of its seats with paying customers on Tuesday. That’s a throwback to holiday travel before the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the Transportation Security Administration is dismissing concern that it might have staffing shortages at airport checkpoints this week because of a requirement that federal employees be vaccinated against COVID-19. White House officials said 93% of TSA employees are in compliance with the mandate, and they don’t expect any disruptions.

For holiday travelers going by car, the biggest pain is likely to be higher prices at the pump. The nationwide average for gasoline on Tuesday was $3.40 a gallon, according to AAA, up more than 60% from last Thanksgiving.

Not Just Peng: #MeToo movements in China

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11/24/2021

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Not Just Peng: #MeToo movements in China

Huang Xueqin, who publicly supported a woman when she accused a professor of sexual assault, was arrested in September. Wang Jianbing, who helped women report sexual harassment, was detained along with her. Neither has been heard from since. Meanwhile, several other women’s rights activists have faced smear campaigns on social media and some have seen their accounts shuttered.

When tennis star Peng Shuai disappeared from public view this month after accusing a senior Chinese politician of sexual assault, it caused an international uproar. But back in China, Peng is just one of several people — activists and accusers alike — who have been hustled out of view, charged with crimes or trolled and silenced online for speaking out about the harassment, violence and discrimination women face every day.

According to AP, When Huang helped spark a grassroots #MeToo movement in China in 2018, it gained fairly wide visibility and achieved some measure of success, including getting the civil code to define sexual harassment for the first time. But it was also met with stiff resistance from Chinese authorities, who are quick to counter any social movement they fear could challenge their hold on power. That crackdown has intensified this year, part of wider efforts to limit what’s acceptable in the public discourse.

“They’re publicly excluding us from the legitimacy, from the legitimate public space,” said Lu Pin, an activist who now lives in the U.S. but is still active on women’s rights issues in China. “This society’s middle ground is disappearing.”

In a sign of how threatening the #MeToo movement and activism on women’s rights is to Chinese authorities, many activists have been dismissed as tools of foreign interference — a label used to discredit their concerns as fabrications by China’s enemies meant to destabilize it.

The ongoing crackdown has mostly targeted activists with little fame or clout and who often worked with marginalized groups.

Huang and Wang both had a history of advocating for disadvantaged groups, and have been charged with subversion of state power, according to a friend of both activists who saw a notice sent to Wang’s family. He spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of police retaliation. Police in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou where the two were arrested did not respond to a faxed request for comment.

The charge is vague and often used against political dissidents. Huang’s and Wang’s families have not heard from them since they were detained and are not able to contact them — another tactic often deployed in political cases.

The #MeToo movement burst into view in China, when Huang helped a woman named Luo Xixi to publicly accused her professor at Beihang University of trying to force her to have sex with him. The university conducted an investigation and fired the scholar, who it said had violated professional ethics.

Luo’s account inspired dozens of other women to come forward — all online. Thousands of students signed petitions and put pressure on their universities to address sexual violence. Women in other industries spoke up, leading to public discussions about the power imbalances between the sexes in many workplaces, the lack of justice for survivors of sexual violence, and the way gender can determine how one is treated in Chinese society.

While that national conversation was unsettling for authorities from the beginning, efforts to counter activism on women’s issues have increased this year, including by nationalist, pro-government influencers, some of who seem to have the blessing of authorities and have been praised by state media.

In a span of a few weeks in the spring, influencers with millions of followers launched a wave of attacks against women’s rights activists on Weibo, one of China’s leading social media platforms. They accused them of being anti-China and of being backed by foreign forces, without evidence. Such allegations have often been leveled at protest movements, including the pro-democracy one in Hong Kong that Beijing has relentlessly tried to stamp out.

Atlanta faces the highest Thanksgiving gas prices

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11/24/2021

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Atlanta faces the highest Thanksgiving gas prices

According to AJC, Metro Atlanta drivers face the highest Thanksgiving gasoline prices ever as many hit the road for this week’s holiday.

More than 53 million Americans are expected to travel this Thanksgiving holiday, according to the AAA Auto Group.

Nearly 1.6 million Georgians will travel for the holiday, just 3% fewer than before the pandemic, said Debbie Haas, vice president at AAA. “It’s beginning to look more like a normal holiday travel season, compared to what we saw last year.”

The increase in demand for gas that accelerated aftervaccines became available is still outstripping the energy industry’s ramp-up in production. That’s been pushing up prices. Last Thanksgiving, gas was $1.94 a gallon; Tuesday, the price averaged $3.26 a gallon in the Atlanta area.

This week’s price is a couple pennies lower than it was earlier this month, but it’s a few cents higher than the previous record for Thanksgiving, which was set in 2013, according to Gas Buddy.

While nowhere near the highest price on record, gas prices have been taking a bite from the budgets of consumers.The price hike also is rattling an economy already coping with supply chain delays and higher costs for various commodities.

The White House has asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate why a drop in gas wholesale prices has not yet been passed along to consumers.

Aiming to ease the spike, the Biden administration Tuesday announced plans to release 50 million barrels of oil from the nation’s strategic reserve.

That will trim prices by 5 to 15 cents a gallon, said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for Gas Buddy, which tracks prices and availability nationally.

But gas prices depend on oil prices, and oil is a global market. So whether Biden’s move provides relief for long will depend largely on decisions made in next month’s meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

While no longer as powerful as in decades past, OPEC still controls 30% of the world’s production. If its members decide to pump less, prices will likely rise.

In the meantime, Georgia drivers average 18,334 miles per vehicle each year, the fifth-highest among the states and District of Columbia, according to data collected by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Dollar Tree raises prices above $1 for the first time in 35 years.

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11/24/2021

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Dollar Tree raises prices above $1 for the first time in 35 years.

For 35 years, the discount chain Dollar Tree committed to selling almost everything for $1. Time has come to pass the buck: Prices for most items will increase to $1.25.

The company has been testing higher-priced products for months, adding Dollar Tree Plus stores with products at $3 and $5. In September, the company said shoppers had a “positive customer reaction” and announced plans to try $1.25 and $1.50 at some traditional Dollar Tree locations. On Tuesday, it said that test, too, produced “overwhelmingly positive” results from undeterred shoppers.

To abide by the $1 restriction, the discount chain had to stop selling some sizes and products — which it hopes to return to its shelves.

Each year, the value of a dollar is eroded by inflation, making a dollar price commitment more difficult to maintain. Last month, inflation reached the highest rate since 1990.

Dollar Tree’s rivals have been veering away from strict $1 prices — or even $5, in the case of Five Below. Now, the final stickler is conceding. Dollar Tree plans to roll out higher prices to all stores by early 2022.

Samsung plans to build $17B chip factory in Texas

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11/24/2021

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Samsung plans to build $17B chip factory in Texas

Samsung said it plans to build a $17 billion semiconductor factory outside of Austin, Texas, amid a global shortage of chips used in phones, cars and other electronic devices.

“This is the largest foreign direct investment in the state of Texas, ever,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in announcing the project Tuesday.

Samsung said it will start building the Texas plant next year and hopes to begin operations in the second half of 2024. The South Korean electronics giant chose the site based on a number of factors, including government incentives and the “readiness and stability” of local infrastructure, said Samsung Vice Chairman Kinam Kim, speaking alongside the Republican governor.

The chip shortage has emerged as both a business obstacle and a serious U.S. national-security concern. Short supplies of semiconductors kicked off by COVID-era shutdowns have hampered production of new vehicles and electronic devices for more than a year. New questions of economic and national security are also at stake since many U.S. companies are dependent on chips produced overseas, particularly in Taiwan, which China has long claimed as its own territory.

“It’s a concentration risk, a geopolitical risk” to be so reliant on Taiwan for much of the world’s chip production, said Nina Turner, a research analyst at IDC. She said the current shortages will likely subside but there will be a long-term demand for chips as more and more everyday products rely on them.

Many chipmakers are spreading out their manufacturing operations in response to the shortages, which have taken a toll on sectors from automakers to the video game industry.

Samsung said it expects to spend $17 billion on the Texas project, which will make it the company’s largest investment in the U.S. It said the new facility will boost production of high-tech chips used for 5G mobile communications, advanced computing and artificial intelligence, and also improve supply chain resilience.

The U.S. share of the worldwide chip manufacturing market has declined from 37% in 1990 to 12% today, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, a trade group. The Biden administration has been pushing for Congress to pass the $52 billion CHIPS Act to increase computer chip manufacturing and research. Separate legislation also under consideration would create a new tax credit for investment in semiconductor manufacturing facilities.

Samsung’s Kim was effusive about Republican-led Texas in his comments Tuesday but also credited partnerships with the Biden administration and congressional leaders from both parties. Abbott said the project will benefit from “multi-tiered” incentives at the federal, state and local levels.

“Increasing domestic production of semiconductor chips is critical for our national and economic security,” said U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in a written statement praising Samsung’s announcement.

Several chipmakers have signaled an interest in expanding their American operations if the U.S. government is able to make it easier to build chip plants. Micron Technology, based in Boise, Idaho, said it will invest $150 billion globally over the next decade in developing its line of memory chips, with a potential U.S. manufacturing expansion if tax credits can help make up for the higher costs of American manufacturing. Pat Gelsinger, the CEO of California-based chipmaker Intel, has urged the U.S. to focus its semiconductor subsidies on American companies.

Intel earlier this year announced plans to invest $20 billion in two new factories in Arizona. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., or TSMC, has been building its own plant in Arizona.

Samsung is the dominant player in the market for the memory chips that are key to smartphones and other gadgetry, but Zino said it’s also expanding its role on the “foundry side,” meaning the manufacture-for-hire of chips designed by other firms.

“My expectation is it’s going to be foundry-based in nature,” he said of the Texas plant. “It’s in line with their intent to triple their foundry capacity.”

Other countries have made similar pushes to get chips made closer to where they are used. The European Commission earlier in November said it could approve aid to fund production of semiconductors in the 27-nation bloc.

A list of nominees in top categories at the 64th Grammy Awards

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11/24/2021

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A list of nominees in top categories at the 64th Grammy Awards

According to AP, A list of nominees in the top categories at the 64th annual Grammy Awards, announced Tuesday by The Recording Academy.

— Album of the year: “We Are,” Jon Batiste; “Love For Sale,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga; “Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe),” Justin Bieber; “Planet Her (Deluxe Edition),” Doja Cat; “Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish; “Back of My Mind,” H.E.R.; “MONTERO,” Lil Nas X; “Sour,” Olivia Rodrigo; “Evermore,” Taylor Swift; “Donda,” Kanye West.

— Record of the year: “I Still Have Faith in You,” ABBA; “I Get a Kick Out of You,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga; “Peaches,” Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon; “Right on Time,” Brandi Carlile; “Kiss Me More,” Doja Cat featuring SZA; “Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish; “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name),” Lil Nas X; “Drivers License,” Olivia Rodrigo; “Leave the Door Open,” Silk Sonic.

— Song of the year (songwriter’s award): “Bad Habits,” Johnny McDaid and Ed Sheeran; “A Beautiful Noise,” Ruby Amanfu, Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, Alicia Keys, Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, Linda Perry and Hailey Whitters; “Drivers License,” Daniel Nigro and Olivia Rodrigo; “Fight For You,” Dernst Emile II, H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas; “Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish O’Connell and Finneas O’Connell; “Kiss Me More,” Rogét Chahayed, Amala Zandile Dlamini, Lukasz Gottwald, Carter Lang, Gerard A. Powell II, Solána Rowe and David Sprecher; “Leave The Door Open,” Brandon Anderson, Christopher Brody Brown, Dernst Emile II and Bruno Mars; “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name),” Denzel Baptiste, David Biral, Omer Fedi, Montero Hill and Roy Lenzo; “Peaches,” Louis Bell, Justin Bieber, Giveon Dezmann Evans, Bernard Harvey, Felisha “Fury” King, Matthew Sean Leon, Luis Manuel Martinez Jr., Aaron Simmonds, Ashton Simmonds, Andrew Wotman and Keavan Yazdani; “Right On Time,” Brandi Carlile, Dave Cobb, Phil Hanseroth and Tim Hanseroth.

— Best new artist: Arooj Aftab; Jimmie Allen; Baby Keem; Finneas; Glass Animals; Japanese Breakfast; The Kid Laroi; Arlo Parks; Olivia Rodrigo; Saweetie.

— Best pop solo performance: “Anyone,” Justin Bieber; “Right on Time,” Brandi Carlile; “Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish; “Positions,” Ariana Grande; “Drivers License,” Olivia Rodrigo.

— Best pop duo/group performance: “I Get a Kick Out of You,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga; “Lonely,” Justin Bieber and benny blanco; “Butter,” BTS; “Higher Power,” Coldplay; “Kiss Me More,” Doja Cat featuring SZA.

— Best pop vocal album: “Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe),” Justin Bieber; “Planet Her (Deluxe), Doja Cat; “Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish; “Positions,” Ariana Grande; “Sour,” Olivia Rodrigo.

— Best traditional pop vocal album: “Love for Sale,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga; “’Til We Meet Again (Live),” Norah Jones; “A Tori Kelly Christmas,” Tori Kelly; “Ledisi Sings Nina,” Ledisi; “That’s Life,” Willie Nelson; “A Holly Dolly Christmas,” Dolly Parton.

— Best dance/electronic album: “Subconsciously,” Black Coffee; “Fallen Embers,” Illenium; “Music is the Weapon (Reloaded), Major Lazer; “Shockwave,” Marshmello; “Free Love,” Sylvan Esso; “Judgement,” Ten City.

— Best rock album: “Power Up,” AC/DC; “Capitol Cuts – Live from Studio A,” Black Pumas; “No One Sings Like You Anymore Vol. 1,” Chris Cornell; “Medicine at Midnight,” Foo Fighters; “McCartney III,” Paul McCartney.

— Best alternative music album: “Shore,” Fleet Foxes; “If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power,” Halsey; “Jubilee,” Japanese Breakfast; “Collapsed In Sunbeams,” Arlo Parks; “Daddy’s Home,” St. Vincent.

— Best progressive R&B album: “New Light,” Eric Bellinger; “Something to Say,” Cory Henry; “Mood Valiant,” Hiatus Kaiyote; “Table for Two,” Lucky Daye; “Dinner Party: Dessert,” Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder and Kamasi Washington; “Studying Abroad: Extended Stay,” Masego.

— Best R&B album: “Temporary Highs in Violet Skies,” Snoh Aalegra; “We Are,” Jon Batiste; “Gold-Diggers Sound,” Leon Bridges; “Back of My Mind,” H.E.R.; “Heaux Tales,” Jazmine Sullivan.

— Best rap album: “The Off-Season,” J. Cole; “Certified Lover Boy,” Drake; “King’s Disease II,” Nas; “Call Me If You Get Lost,” Tyler, the Creator; “Donda,” Kanye West.

— Best country album: “Skeleton,” Brothers Osborne; “Remember Her Name,” Mickey Guyton; “The Marfa Tapes,” Miranda Lambert, Jon Randall and Jack Ingram; “The Ballad of Dood and Juanita,” Sturgill Simpson; “Starting Over,” Chris Stapleton.

— Best jazz vocal album: “Generations,” The Baylor Project; “Superblue,” Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter; “Time Traveler,” Nnenna Freelon; “Flor,” Gretchen Parlato; “Songwrights Apothecary Lab,” Esperanza Spalding.

— Best jazz instrumental album: “Jazz Selections: Music From and Inspired by Soul,” Jon Batiste; “Absence,” Terence Blanchard featuring The E Collective and the Turtle Island Quartet; “Skyline,” Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette and Gonzalo Rubalcaba; “Akoustic Band Live,” Chick Corea, John Patitucci and Dave Weckl; “Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV),” Pat Metheny.

— Best gospel album: “Changing Your Story,” Jekalyn Carr; “Royalty: Live at the Ryman,” Tasha Cobbs Leonard; “Jubilee: Juneteenth Edition,” Maverick City Music; “Jonny x Mali: Live in LA,” Jonathan McReynolds and Mali Music; “Believe for It,” CeCe Winans.

— Best contemporary Christian music album: “No Stranger,” Natalie Grant; “Feels Like Home Vol. 2,” Israel and New Breed; “The Blessing (Live),” Kari Jobe; “Citizen of Heaven (Live),” Tauren Wells; “Old Church Basement,” Elevation Worship and Maverick City Music.

— Best Latin pop album: “Vértigo,” Pablo Alborán; “Mis Amores,” Paula Arenas; “Hecho a La Antigua,” Ricardo Arjona; “Mis Manos,” Camilo; “Mendó,” Alex Cuba; “Revelación,” Selena Gomez.

— Best Latin urban album: “Afrodisíaco,” Rauw Alejandro; “El Último Tour del Mundo,” Bad Bunny; “Jose,” J Balvin; “KG0516,” Karol G; “Sin Miedo (Del Amor y Otros Demonios),” Kali Uchis.

— Best Latin rock or alternative album: “Deja,” Bomba Estéreo; “Mira Lo Que Me Hiciste Hacer (Deluxe Edition), Diamante Eléctrico; “Origen,” Juanes; “Calambre,” Nathy Peluso; “El Madrileño, C. Tangana; “Sonidos de Karmática Resonancia,” Zoé.

— Best reggae album: “Pamoja,” Etana; “Positive Vibration,” Gramps Morgan, “Live N Livin,” Sean Paul; “Royal,” Jesse Royal; “Beauty in the Silence,” Soja; “10,” Spice.

— Best spoken word album: “Aftermath,” LeVar Burton, “Carry On: Reflections for a New Generation from John Lewis,” Don Cheadle; “Catching Dreams: Live at Fort Knox Chicago,” “8:46,” Dave Chappelle and Amir Sulaiman; “A Promised Land,” Barack Obama.

— Best comedy album: “The Comedy Vaccine,” Lavell Crawford; “Evolution,” Chelsea Handler; “Sincerely Louis CK,” Louis C.K.; “Thanks for Risking Your Life,” Lewis Black; “The Greatest Average American,” Nate Bargatze; “Zero F—s Given,” Kevin Hart.

— Best compilation soundtrack for visual media: “Cruella”; “Dear Evan Hansen”’ “In the Heights,” “One Night in Miami…”; “Respect”; “Schmigadoon! Episode 1”; “The United States vs. Billie Holliday.”

— Best score soundtrack for visual media: “Bridgerton,” Kris Bowers; “Dune,” Hans Zimmer; “The Mandalorian: Season 2 – Vol. 2,” Ludwig Göransson; “The Queen’s Gambit,” Carlos Rafael Rivera; “Soul,” Jon Batiste, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

— Producer of the year, non-classical: Jack Antonoff; Rogét Chahayed; Mike Elizondo; Hit-Boy; Ricky Reed.

— Best music video: “Shot in the Dark,” AC/DC; “Freedom,” Jon Batiste; “I Get a Kick Out of You,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga; “Peaches,” Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon; “Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish; “MONTERO (Call Me by Your Name),” Lil Nas X; “Good 4 U,” Olivia Rodrigo.

— Best music film: “Inside”; “David Byrne’s American Utopia”; “Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles”; “Music, Money, Madness…Jimi Hendrix in Maui”; “Summer of Soul.”

Biden ordered a record 50 million barrels of oil

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11/24/2021

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Biden ordered a record 50 million barrels of oil

According t AP, President Joe Biden on Tuesday ordered a record 50 million barrels of oil released from America’s strategic reserve, aiming to bring down gasoline and other costs, in coordination with other major energy consuming nations including India, the United Kingdom and China.

The U.S. action is focused on helping Americans coping with higher fuel and other prices ahead of Thanksgiving and winter holiday travel. Gasoline prices are at about $3.40 a gallon, more than 50% higher than a year ago, according to the American Automobile Association.

The government will begin to move barrels into the market in mid- to late-December. Gasoline usually responds at a lag to changes in oil prices, and administration officials suggested this is one of several steps toward ultimately bringing down costs.

Oil prices had dropped in the days ahead of the announced withdrawals, a sign that investors were anticipating the moves that could bring a combined 70 million to 80 million barrels of oil onto global markets. But in trading after the announcement, prices shot up roughly 2% instead of falling.

The market was expecting the news, and traders may have been underwhelmed when they saw the details, said Claudio Galimberti, senior vice president for oil markets at Rystad Energy.

Shortly after the U.S. announcement, India said it would release 5 million barrels from its strategic reserves. The British government confirmed it will release up to 1.5 million barrels from its stockpile. Japan and South Korea are also participating, and U.S. officials said it’s the biggest coordinated release from global strategic reserves.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman, Max Blain, said it was “a sensible and measured step to support global markets” during the pandemic recovery. Blain added that the country’s companies will be authorized but not compelled to participate in the release.

Despite all the optimistic statements, the actions by the U.S. and others risk counter moves by Gulf nations, especially Saudi Arabia, and by Russia. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have made clear they intend to control supply to keep prices high for the time being.

As word spread in recent days of a coming joint release from U.S. and other countries’ reserves, there were warnings from OPEC interests that those countries may respond in turn, reneging on promises to increase supplies in coming months.

Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso was among Republicans who criticized Biden’s announcement. The No. 3 Senate Republican said the underlying issue is restrictions on domestic production by the administration.

“Begging OPEC and Russia to increase production and now using the Strategic Petroleum Reserve are desperate attempts to address a Biden-caused disaster,” Barrasso said. “They’re not substitutes for American energy production.”

Biden has scrambled to reshape much of his economic agenda around the issue of inflation, saying that his recently passed $1 trillion infrastructure package will reduce price pressures by making it more efficient and cheaper to transport goods.

Republican lawmakers have hammered the administration for inflation hitting a 31-year high in October. The consumer price index has soared 6.2% from a year ago — the biggest 12-month jump since 1990.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is an emergency stockpile to preserve access to oil in case of natural disasters, national security issues and other events. Maintained by the Energy Department, the reserves are stored in caverns created in salt domes along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coasts. There are roughly 605 million barrels of petroleum in the reserve.

The Biden administration argues that it is the right tool to help ease the supply problem. Americans used an average of 20.7 million barrels a day during September, according to the Energy Information Administration. That means that the release equals about two-and-a-half days of additional supply.

“Right now, I will do what needs to be done to reduce the price you pay at the pump,” Biden said at the White House.

He said the administration also is looking into potential price gouging by gas companies squeezing customers while making money off the lowered oil costs. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, too, said U.S. companies are part of the problem, keeping production below prepandemic levels in order to increase profits.

The coronavirus pandemic roiled energy markets everywhere. As it bore down and economic activity sank in April of last year, energy demand collapsed and oil futures prices turned negative. Energy traders did not want to get stuck with crude that they could not store. But as the economy recovered, production lagged and prices jumped to a seven-year high in October.

U.S. production has not recovered. Energy Information Administration figures indicate that domestic production is averaging roughly 11 million barrels daily, down from 12.8 million before the pandemic.

Americans are feeling the squeeze. For Matt Hebard of Agoura Hills, Calif., it’s taking $80 to gas up his SUV. “Gas prices are definitely on everyone’s minds right now,” he said as he filled up at a station in his suburb northwest of Los Angeles.

He hoped the president’s move has a good long-term effect.

The Department of Energy will make the oil available from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in two ways; 32 million barrels will be released in the next few months and will return to the reserve in the years ahead, the White House said. An additional 18 million barrels will be part of a sale of oil that Congress authorized.

In Bulgaria, bus crush kills at least 45 people

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antnews24

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11/23/2021

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In Bulgaria, bus crush kills at least 45 people

A bus carrying North Macedonians home from a tourist trip to Istanbul crashed and caught fire in western Bulgaria early Tuesday, killing at least 45 people, authorities and local media said.

The accident happened around 2 a.m. and there were children among the victims, authorities said. Seven people were taken to hospitals for treatment.

The cause of the crash was not immediately confirmed, but it appeared that the bus hit a highway guard rail, crashed and caught fire.

The bus was one of four traveling together. Officials said an investigation will be launched.

Photos taken shortly after the crash showed the bus engulfed in flames with plumes of thick, black smoke rising from the scene.

Bulgarian news agency Novinite said representatives from North Macedonia’s embassy visited a hospital where some of the victims were taken.

North Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev told Bulgarian television channel bTV that he had spoken to one of the bus survivors.

“One of the passengers told me that he was asleep and woke up from an explosion,” Zaev told bTV, adding that the authorities will gather information that is “important for the families of the dead and the survivors.”