WASHINGTON - New clashes were reported Sunday between Kurdish forces and militias affiliated with the Syrian government in a major city in northeastern Syria.
The weekend fighting broke out in the city of Hasaka following a pro-Syrian government protest against Kurdish authorities, according to a local source.
“As the Asayish (Kurdish security forces) opened fire to disperse the protest, four protesters were wounded, one of whom died shortly after in the hospital,” Jindar Berekat, a reporter based in Hasaka, told VOA.
In response, militiamen affiliated with the Syrian government attacked a nearby checkpoint manned by Kurdish fighters, prompting a shootout between the two sides, local news media reported.
Hasaka is largely under the control of U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a military alliance composed of Kurdish fighters and other groups that has been a major actor in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) terror group.
Pockets of the city, however, are controlled by the Syrian government forces and its affiliated militias. One such government-held area in Hasaka is the so-called “security square,” a small zone that hosts government headquarters.
Multiple sieges
The Syrian government has accused the SDF of imposing a heavy siege on the security square in Hasaka and the nearby city of Qamishli.
Local Kurdish authorities say their siege only targets government forces in the two cities, claiming that the move is a response to a government embargo on Kurdish civilians in the Shahba region, an SDF-controlled enclave in the northern province of Aleppo.
“For a while now, the Baath regime has restricted the movement of people and essential goods in the Shahba region,” Samar Hussein, co-chair of the Interior Department at the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration in Northeast Syria, told local radio station Arta FM on Sunday.
She said that Kurdish authorities “tried a lot to convince the regime to lift its embargo but failed to do so, that’s why we decided to impose our own embargoes on their forces in Qamishli and Hasaka.”
In Hasaka, local reporter Berekat told VOA that while civilians are free to move in and out of the targeted area, Syrian government forces are blocked from getting out of the zone.
A VOA reporter in Qamishli said a similar blockade has been imposed on the city’s region where security headquarters are stationed.
Growing tensions
Tensions between the two sides have increased in recent weeks. Last week, violent clashes took place in Qamishli when members of a regime-affiliated militia assaulted a Kurdish security outpost in the city. Two pro-government militiamen were severely wounded in the clashes.
Tensions Remain After Kurdish, Government Forces Clash in Syria's Qamishli
High-profile arrests in the northeastern city likely triggered the fighting over the weekend
Some observers attribute the rising tensions to broader political and military developments elsewhere in northern Syria.
“The SDF feels that Russia and the Syrian government could strike a deal with Turkey to remove SDF fighters from the town of Ain Issa,” said Shoresh Darwish, a Kurdish affairs analyst.
The northern town of Ain Issa, which is largely controlled by the SDF, has seen occasional attacks by Turkish-backed Syrian armed groups in recent weeks.
Russia, a staunch supporter of the Syrian government, also has a significant military presence around Ain Issa.
Turkey views the SDF as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a Turkey-based Kurdish armed group that is designated as a terrorist organization by Ankara and Washington.
In recent years, Turkey has carried out several major military operations against SDF fighters, taking control of strategic territories in northern Syria.
Analyst Darwish said Russia and the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad “have been trying to use the Turkish presence as a card to weaken the SDF and pressure its U.S. ally.”
“The notion among the Kurds in Syria now is that Russia and the Assad regime want to create chaos in order to fully reclaim control of the region,” he told VOA.
The United States currently has some 700 troops in northeast Syria as part of a U.S.-led international coalition against IS militants.
CANBERRA, Feb 1 (Reuters) - U.S. corn futures rose more than 1% on Monday as strong Chinese demand pushed prices to a fresh six-year high.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The most active corn futures on the Chicago Board Of Trade were up 1.4% to $5.54-1/2 a bushel by 0224 GMT, near the session high of $5.54-3/4 a bushel, the highest since June 2013. Corn gained 2.3% in the previous session.
* The most active soybean futures were up 0.6% to $13.78 a bushel, having firmed 1.2% on Friday.
* The most active wheat futures were up 0.7% at $6.72-3/4 a bushel, having closed up 2.5% on Friday.
* The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed private sales of 2.108 million tonnes of U.S. corn to China.
* It was the second-biggest daily corn sales announcement on record, eclipsed only by a deal for 3.72 million tonnes to the Soviet Union in 1991.
* The latest sale followed deals earlier this week that netted China a combined 3.74 million tonnes of U.S. corn.
* Agriculture consultancy Sovecon raised its forecast for Russia's 2020/21 wheat exports by 1.6 million tonnes, to 37.9 million tonnes, citing current high export levels.
MARKET NEWS
* The safe-haven dollar found support at the start of a new week with traders remaining wary amid the battle on Wall Street between hedge funds and retail investors.
* U.S. oil prices settled slightly lower after trading in a tight range on Friday, as investors worried about the lingering global pandemic and slow vaccine rollouts.
* Asian shares wavered on Monday amid worries that problems with vaccine rollouts combined with new strains of COVID-19 will delay a global economic recovery that has already been baked into the market's rich valuations. (Reporting by Colin Packham; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
For rookies like Bailey Vitello, the change allowed them to concentrate.
“I’ll tell you, the fans do make it a lot of fun. They do ask a lot of great questions. We really like teaching and telling them all about it. And the dogs seem to get a little more pumped up with it,” Vitello said. “But it was nice just to be able to focus on and prioritize the dogs.”
New or old hat, the first run from Duluth to Two Harbors was a test of trail conditions.
“The fresh snow … slowed everything down. And we haven’t had very much fresh snow, so it felt different than a lot of our training runs,” Altemus said.
“I still saw some bare spots; it was rough conditions,” Vitello said. “It was a lot of slowing down, taking it easy, making sure dogs’ booties were fresh and making sure they kept a good, steady pace coming out. It got sticky pretty quick.”
Vitello is from New Hampshire, but he had a similar experience to many of the local mushers this race season: a lack of snow and a lack of competition.
He and his dad, Gregg Vitello, are doing the Beargrease together. This race is an Iditarod qualified, which they hope to run in 2023.
“We didn’t have any races on the East Coast this year, so it’s been a real rough season for racing,” he said. “But this was a good start. It was a good way to get back into it.”
All of the marathon teams were into the Finland checkpoint by 10 p.m. Sunday night. John Fisher of Cook, Minn., was first, followed by Sarah Keefer of Burnsville, Minn., and Ryan Redington of Wasilla, Alaska.
ALPENA — The Sanctuary of the Great Lakes is getting more exposure while local videographers get more experience.
The fifth annual Fresh Takes 2021 video contest, hosted by the Alpena Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, recently concluded, with Paul Gerow winning first place, and Nicky Searcy taking second place and the people’s choice award.
Both winners submitted in the category of “Environment, natural outdoor landscapes.”
The Fresh Takes winnning videos are available to view on the CVB Facebook page, “Alpena: Sanctuary of the Great Lakes.”
Searcy has participated in this competition four out of the contest’s five years, he said. He got third place the first year, first place the next two years, and second place this year. Each year, he tries to film different areas in and around Alpena.
“This year, I focused more on the birds,” he said. “And just, like, weird spots. I would just go and drive around and just find random spots and just put my drone up and just see what I could see. All my clips are with a drone.”
He said he got clips of six or seven types of birds. Filming from the drone offers a unique perspective.
Searcy has always enjoyed taking photos and video.
“I’ve always had a camera, and then my grandpa ended up buying a drone probably five years ago,” he said, noting that they shared it until Searcy crashed it into the lake. Then he bought his own.
“Me and my friends are kind of into photography and video editing and stuff like that, so it was cool to see a contest around here,” he said.
Searcy went on a road trip out West this fall, which made him realize how fortunate he is to live in Northern Michigan.
“You don’t really realize much when you live here all your life,” he said. “Out there, there’s no water anywhere, or birds and wildlife, and once you hit, like, three hours from Michigan coming back, you kind of realize how different it is.”
He said all the fall colors were beautiful when he came back, and it felt good to be home.
“It is pretty unique up here,” he said.
He hopes people who watch his video are inspired to come visit.
Attempts to reach Gerow via phone and email were not successful.
An in-person premier event did not happen this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is the fifth annual Fresh Takes event,” said Kyla Schatz, visitor experience specialist at the Alpena Area CVB. “This is the first one that we actually haven’t had a premier for. Usually, we have it at Bob’s Bullpen … and we showcase the videos on the big screen there, but, this year, unfortunately, due to COVID, we weren’t able to do that.”
In late 2020, local residents and visitors were encouraged to submit a 30-second to two-minute video to the Bureau’s annual video contest.
The goal of the contest is to offer amateur videographers and filmmakers a platform to share their passion while showcasing the natural beauty, resources and recreational opportunities our area has to offer.
“The purpose of the contest is, one, for anyone who’s an aspiring videographer to go out, shoot some video and really be creative and have fun with it,” Schatz said. “The second is to really help the area be showcased. Many of our followers on Facebook don’t live around here, and we do have a lot of tourists looking at the page, and this will help them get an idea of what the Alpena area is like. And we always like to say that you can come up north, get away from the stress and the city life, and take advantage of the state parks and the nature and the lakes that we have here that a lot of people don’t have near where they live. So, watching these videos will definitely, I think, inspire them to travel up here.”
She added that the videos are also for locals to enjoy.
“I think, a lot of times, we take for granted where we live,” Schatz said. “We are surrounded by so much natural beauty and natural resources. We have the lakes, we have the trees, and just wonderful things to do here.”
Two contestants submitted their videos on the deadline of Dec. 30, 2020. A team of judges with film and production experience critiqued the short videos based on a given criteria, a press release explained.
“We designed this contest to offer creators of Alpena videos a stage upon which to tell their visually compelling story from start to finish about Alpena, our Sanctuary of the Great Lakes,” said Alpena Area Convention and Visitors Bureau President and CEO Mary Beth Stutzman. “Video is an important communication tool in that it allows creators to visually reach out to the viewer and inspire them. Just as each one of us is unique and different, each video creation offers a unique take on the creator’s personal interpretation of Alpena as the Sanctuary of the Great Lakes — whether it be exciting, intriguing, educational, or emotional.”
Videos can inform, inspire, entertain, or anything in between, according to the press release. Each entry was required to focus on presenting Alpena as the Sanctuary of the Great Lakes — meaning Alpena is a place where history and heritage collide with relaxed outdoor adventure. It is a place to escape the stress of everyday life, where one can leave their cares behind to relax, restore, and rejuvenate while exploring.
Videos were submitted in one of these three categories:
¯ Arts, culture, or heritage specific to Alpena
¯ Outdoor recreation and outdoor lifestyles, including silent sport activities
¯ Environment, including relaxing natural landscapes, local natural features, etc.
This is what they didn’t show. They kind of cut this out, not on purpose but for time or whatever. We watched the interview, it was amazing, and then Janet walks around from the screen and we’re all just like, ‘[Gasp], what now?’ And then Daphne got up and said to Janet, ‘Come say hi to your family.’ Janet walks in, Daphne was about to give Janet her chair, and Will said, ‘No, no, no, you keep your seat. Take mine.’
February 01, 2021 at 01:24AM
https://www.cinemablend.com/television/2562172/fresh-prince-of-bel-air-star-reveals-touching-moment-between-both-aunt-viv-actresses-that-wasnt-shown-in-the-reunion?pv=related_list
Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air Star Reveals Touching Moment Between Both Aunt Viv Actresses That Wasn’t Shown In The Reunion - Cinema Blend
There was a massive amount of activity Sunday afternoon at 2519 W. Meighan Blvd., with an “all-nighter” all but certain, as store management and staff prepared Gadsden’s newest grocery store for customers.
Fresh-Value opens its doors to customers at 7 a.m. Monday, less than three months after the Birmingham-based company announced plans to locate in the Alabama City community.
“We’ll be working all night long, but you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do,” Perry Barnett, store manager, said amid the shelf stocking and testing of checkout counters. “We’ll be ready.”
The store will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week. Signage has yet to be installed on the storefront but is in place at the entrance to the shopping center on Meighan Boulevard.
Alabama City has been without a grocery store for more than four years, since another Birmingham-based vendor, Mi Pueblo, closed its doors in September 2016 after less than a year in business. The site previously housed a Food World that closed in 2013.
D’Alessandro Enterprises, LLC; Fourth Avenue Super Market, Inc.; and property owner Park Grimmer had pledged to spend $2.5 million renovating the store, which has 42,000 square feet of interior space. Most expenditures will go toward interior improvements such as replacing coolers.
The company had said it would employ at least 65 workers with an annual payroll of $1,352 million. The city in an economic incentive agreement will rebate 40% of its sales tax proceeds over five years or $780,000, whichever comes first.
“We’re excited to come to Alabama City and we anticipate great things here,” said Brian Rhoten, operations manager for Fresh-Value, which also has stores in Bessemer, Pell City and Trussville. “It seems like everywhere we turn, people are receptive. They’ve been trying to come in and shop thinking we’re already open.”
The store officials described Fresh-Value as an old-school chain that focus on “providing the best deals and bargains.” They offered “five truths” about the chain: meat cut fresh daily in the store to provide the highest quality at the lowest prices; the lowest overall prices in town; fresh produce deliveries six days a week; the largest selection selection of cold beer at low prices; and the best team members working in stores.
“We’re not going to try to be somebody else,” Barnett said. “We want to be the best at what we do.”
Still, there are plans to open a sushi bar with an in-house sushi chef in the next few weeks, plus the store will have a smoker that will provide ribs, pork butts, chicken and smoked sausage.
Fresh-Value operates on a “cost plus 10%” format. “If you compare us to the competition, we’ll be cheaper than they are on most items,” Rhoten said. “We may not beat them on every item, but overall we’ll be cheaper.” He said the chain also tries to cater its stores to the neighborhoods where they’re located.
Rhoten said the store will have a weekly ad but will also offer other items at sale prices. Customers can follow it on Facebook at https://bit.ly/2YxMloI.
“We should learn from the history of leprosy. To better fight against an epidemic or a pandemic, we must eliminate discrimination and double standards for those who have been systematically left behind”. This is the message from Alice Cruz, an independent UN rights expert, and Special Rapporteur on the elimination of discrimination against persons affected by leprosy and their family members, on World Leprosy Day.
Setbacks likely, inaction blamed
Ms. Cruz notes that the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic – which range from deprivation of the right to education, housing and employment, to domestic and sexual violence – mirror those experienced by sufferers of leprosy (also known as Hansen’s disease) over thousands of years.
In May 2020, the independent UN expert raised the alarm of the disproportionate effect that the pandemic is having on leprosy sufferers, in an open letter addressed to governments in which she called for detailed actions plans.
In her message for World Leprosy Day, Ms Cruz warned that an inadequate response from countries where the disease is prevalent, is likely to lead to a setback in leprosy control, transmission and prevention of disabilities, as well as in the worsening of an already extremely precarious standard of living.
Changing mindsets
Leprosy is curable, if treatment swiftly follows a timely diagnosis, but if patients are not treated, they can be left with irreversible physical impairments and disabilities. However, in his message for the Day, Yohei Sasakawa, the World Health Organization (WHO) Goodwill Ambassador for Leprosy Elimination, points out that early diagnosis of leprosy and prompt treatment are not enough to overcome the disease.
“It also requires changing mindsets”, he says, “so that leprosy is no longer a source of shame or prejudice. We must remove all barriers in the way of those seeking medical care. We must eliminate the obstacles that prevent affected individuals and their families from living in dignity and enjoying all their basic human rights as full members of society”.
Mr. Sasakawa expressed confidence that the WHO’s Global Leprosy Strategy for 2021-2030 will generate new momentum in the fight against the disease, and looked forward to “an inclusive society in which everyone has access to quality treatment and services, and a diagnosis of leprosy no longer comes with a possibility of devastating physical, social, economic or psychological consequences”.
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE (CBS13) – Saturday was a packed snow day in the Sierra, with many people heading up from near and far to play in the fresh powder.
Hector Chavez, from Sacramento, was one of the many looking to unwind on the mountain.
“I think people are hungry to get out of the house and enjoy an activity like this,” Chavez said.
The mindset of his family and many others, with a fresh blanket of snow from recent storms as a big draw.
“When we have fresh powder, it’s the best time – especially when it’s sunny,” Chavez said.
The perfect ski conditions are the reason why the Sierra at Tahoe Ski Resort had to start turning people away at 8:40 a.m., only ten minutes after opening for the day.
“It’s the earliest I’ve ever seen it hit capacity in my ten years here,” said Katie Hunter, Director of Sales and Marketing with the Sierra at Tahoe Ski Resort.
The resort must limit how many people hit the slopes due to the pandemic. It’s part of the reason why staff say they hit their limit so fast. Though more snow, means more space, and other areas are able to open up.
“We’re hoping for even more terrain to open up so others can come and recreate with us,” Hunter said.
More from CBS Sacramento:
Skiing and snowboarding weren’t the only popular activities Saturday. Francisco Ibarra and his family made an impromptu trip from Tracy to Tahoe to sled and throw snowballs.
“We just hopped in the truck and left,” Ibarra said. “It’s just a good place to be.”
But some, like Mario Figueroa aren’t done yet. He’s staying overnight in Placerville after making the drive from Berkley, and he’s making another run before heading home.
“We’ll be coming back tomorrow,” Figueroa said.
The Tahoe area will likely be busy again Sunday, and possibly through next week – with even more snow in store. Some ski resorts recommend heading out early if you want to snag a spot on the slopes. Others are already sold out ahead of Sunday.
Supporters of jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny are preparing for a fresh round of anti-government protests on Sunday, despite a police crackdown on the Russian opposition and strong warnings against participating in the demonstrations.
Navalny aides called for the new nationwide rallies to demand the opposition leader’s release from jail where he is awaiting trial, set to start on February 2.
The 44-year-old was arrested on January 17 after flying back to Russia from Germany, where he had spent five months recovering from nerve-agent poisoning. His detention sparked nationwide protests in about 100 cities last week. Nearly 4,000 people were reported arrested.
Sunday’s Moscow rally is due to take place outside the headquarters of the Federal Security Service, Russia’s main security agency, which Navalny said carried out the near-fatal poisoning attack on the orders of President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin denies the allegation.
In an unprecedented move, police in the capital announced the closure of seven metro stations and said movement of pedestrians would be limited in the city centre.
Moscow authorities also said that some centrally located restaurants and shops will close and overground transport will be diverted.
Irina Volk, spokeswoman for the Russian interior ministry, cited the coronavirus pandemic in a Saturday warning against protests. She said participants found in violation of epidemiological regulations could face criminal charges.
“The Russian interior ministry units and other law enforcement will use all necessary measures to ensure public order at sites of mass events. Moreover, we warn that any violent actions against officers or refusal to obey their lawful orders will be prevented,” she said.
“Individuals who commit such illegal actions will be detained and held accountable according to the law.”
Navalny brother, lawyer arrested
The protests in support of Navalny last week were the largest and most widespread seen in Russia in many years, and authorities have sought to prevent a repeat. Police conducted a series of raids this week at apartments and offices of Navalny’s family, associates and anti-corruption organisation.
His brother Oleg, top aide Lyubov Sobol and three other people were put under two-month house arrest on Friday, as part of a criminal probe into alleged violations of coronavirus regulations during last weekend’s protests.
Sergei Smirnov, editor of the Mediazona news site that was founded by members of the Pussy Riot punk collective, was detained by police upon leaving his home on Saturday.
The independent online media outlet said Smirnov was held on suspicion of taking part in a protest in Moscow last weekend, while the RIA news agency said he faces a court hearing on February 3. He could face up to 30 days in jail or a fine of up to 300,000 roubles or compulsory labour.
Authorities are also targeting online platforms, demanding that they delete posts with calls for rallies or face fines. The country’s media watchdog said on Friday that it summoned representatives of several social networks, including Facebook and TikTok, for failing to comply.
In a message from jail on Thursday, Navalny urged Russians to stage new rallies.
“The majority is on our side. Let’s wake them up,” he wrote from Moscow’s Matrosskaya Tishina, a high-security detention centre.
Navalny was remanded in custody on the grounds that his months recovering in Germany violated terms of a suspended sentence he received in a 2014 conviction for fraud and money laundering, a case that he has said was political revenge.
Russian authorities have also launched probes against Navalny’s associates both in Russia and abroad.
The Investigative Committee said on Friday that Leonid Volkov, head of Navalny’s regional network and who is based in Lithuania, was wanted on charges of calling minors to join unauthorised rallies.
On Saturday, investigators launched a fraud probe into Ukraine-based businessman Alexander Khomenko who they say funded Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation that publishes investigations into the wealth of Russia’s political elites.
Black Sea palace
Its most recent video report alleging Putin was gifted a $1.35bn property on the Black Sea coast garnered more than 100 million views on YouTube becoming Navalny’s most-watched investigation.
The Kremlin has denied that the Russian president owns the opulent complex, which according to Navalny features an underground ice hockey arena, a private casino and vineyards.
State television on Friday sought to rebut opposition claims the Black Sea property was a luxurious palace by airing footage of it under construction.
Billionaire Arkady Rotenberg – Putin’s former judo partner – said on Saturday that he was the owner of the property and that he was building a hotel there.
“Now, it will no longer be a secret, I am the beneficiary,” Rotenberg said in a video published by the Mash Telegram channel. “There was a rather complicated facility, there were a lot of creditors, and I managed to become the beneficiary.”
He gave no further financial details of the purchase or how it had been funded.
Rotenberg was among the Russian officials and business executives blacklisted by the United States and other Western powers in the aftermath of Russia’s annexation of Crimea in March 2014.
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- For two straight offseasons, the New York Jets enjoyed the unusual luxury (for them) of not having to worry about the quarterback position. Sam Darnold was their guy, and there was every reason to believe he would be the guy for a long time.
Then the 2020 NFL season happened. Darnold played poorly. He got hurt. The team stunk. The coach got fired. Now, with multiple avenues with which to improve the position, Jets officials are refusing to commit to Darnold as their starter for 2021. We still love you, Sam, but ...
"To give you that answer right now would not be fair," Jets coach Robert Saleh said at his introductory news conference. "There's a lot of discussions that need to be had with Joe [Douglas] and his staff."
Douglas, the general manager, has three months to resolve the most vexing issue facing the organization. In a vacuum, the Darnold decision would be tough enough, but it's complicated by what could be the wildest offseason for quarterback movement in recent memory.
Several stars, most notably Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, could be changing addresses. There are varying degrees of uncertainty surrounding the Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers and the Los Angeles Rams' Jared Goff. The upside for the Jets is it could be a buyer's market for trades. The downside is they could be sellers, too; they might not get as much for Darnold if they decide to move on.
The Jets would be committing organizational malpractice if they didn't seriously consider alternatives to Darnold, who threw nine touchdown passes (12 games) in a season that saw the most in league history (871). New York can't simply blame it on former coach Adam Gase and run it back with Darnold without exploring the landscape.
A breakdown of the most viable quarterback options for the Jets, ranking them based on our preference:
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Mike Greenberg sees signs that Deshaun Watson might want to be traded to the Jets, and Dan Graziano breaks down the possibility he'll be traded there.
1. Deshaun Watson, Texans
Current status: Requested trade
Pros: It's a rare opportunity to get a legitimate franchise quarterback in his prime; he's 25 and already has been selected to three Pro Bowls. He would be ideal in the Jets' new offense, a West Coast system that emphasizes the ability to throw on the run. His mere presence would instill hope in the organization, and it's hard to put a price on that. Make this trade and the Jets would have their most promising coach-quarterback tandem in a long time.
Cons: The compensation will be massive. Conventional wisdom suggests it would take three first-round picks and then some. In their 2009 trade for Jay Cutler, the Chicago Bears gave up two first-round picks, a third-rounder and quarterback Kyle Orton -- and Cutler wasn't close to Watson. One thing to remember: The Jets' top pick (No. 2 overall) is worth two-and-a-half times as much as, say, the 16th pick, according to the commonly used trade-value chart. By giving up the fort for Watson, the Jets would be at a disadvantage in trying to build around him.
Cap impact: Watson is signed through 2025, with salary-cap charges that range from $10.5 million (2021) to $37 million (2023). Considering the market, it's not an outrageous contract. I'm told the Jets aren't his No. 1 choice, as a recent report out of South Florida said, but it's still possible he could include them on a list of preferred teams. Watson's no-trade clause allows him to control where he ends up -- if the Texans decide to move him.
Eye-popping stat: Watson finished third in completion percentage (70.2) despite averaging 9.0 air yards per attempt (tied for fourth), per NFL Next Gen Stats.
Current status: Draft-eligible
Pros: Coming off an outstanding junior season, Wilson has risen so much that he is now considered by many talent evaluators to be the best quarterback prospect not named Trevor Lawrence. Wilson is a highly skilled passer with tremendous zip and long-ball accuracy. He moves very well, displaying the ability to make off-schedule plays outside the pocket. He, too, would be an ideal scheme fit for the Jets. From a big-picture standpoint, Saleh and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur could start fresh with their own quarterback. Capwise, they could reset with a rookie contract, giving them cost certainty through 2024.
Cons: The concerns are his injury history and level of competition. After his freshman season, Wilson underwent surgery on his throwing shoulder to repair a labrum. As a sophomore (2019), he missed time after surgery on his throwing hand. Some wonder if his less-than-imposing body (6-foot-3, 210 pounds) can withstand the weekly punishment of the NFL. He racked up impressive stats at BYU, but his numbers against ranked teams were pedestrian -- a 2-4 record, with 1,569 yards, eight touchdowns and five interceptions.
Cap impact: The NFL has a slotted system for rookies, so his contract would be similar to that of last year's No. 2 overall pick, Chase Young of the Washington Football Team -- four years, $34.6 million. That is affordable and would provide the flexibility to build other areas of the roster.
Eye-popping stat: Wilson threw three interceptions in 336 attempts in 2020, and one of the picks came on a Hail Mary.
3. Sam Darnold, Jets
Current status: Incumbent
Pros: He's still young (turns 24 in June) and still hasn't had the benefit of playing with a strong supporting cast. In three seasons, Darnold has had virtually no running game. Saleh has spoken highly of Darnold, and he's not blowing smoke. He believes there's untapped potential that can be extracted with better coaching and a scheme change. Darnold would be a good fit in LaFleur's quarterback-friendly system, which uses play-action, misdirection and moving pockets.
Cons: Darnold still isn't adept at reading defenses; he gets into trouble because he sometimes doesn't see beyond his No. 1 read and the primary defender. No doubt, he has room to grow, but recent history tells us it's rare for quarterbacks to make a quantum leap after three or four years in the league. Darnold was the lowest-rated passer in 2020 (72.7). Let's say he improves to the 15-20 range. Can the Jets live with that? Is that worth the long-term contract extension he would seek after the '21 season? There's also a durability question; he has missed 10 games in three years because of injury and illness.
Cap impact: He has one year remaining on his rookie contract ($9.8 million cap charge). The Jets have until early May to make a decision on his fifth-year option for 2022 (about $25 million, fully guaranteed). It makes little sense to make that kind of commitment based on his body of work, so we're probably talking about a one-year audition in 2021. If he sputters, he probably walks as a free agent, and the Jets will have to package their two first-round picks in 2022 to find a replacement. If Darnold excels, it means a lucrative new deal.
Eye-popping stat: Darnold recorded the fifth-highest completion percentage (92.3) when under no pressure and throwing to wide-open receivers (at least 3 yards separation), per NFL Next Gen Stats. That's what you call optimal conditions.
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Mel Kiper Jr. outlines who could be the second quarterback selected in the 2021 NFL draft and how it would affect Falcons QB Matt Ryan.
Current status: Draft-eligible
Pros: There's no doubt about his arm talent; it was on full display in his six-touchdown performance against Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinal. Fields also is a fast and elusive runner, adding another dimension to the offense. Bottom line: He's a playmaker. In two seasons at Ohio State, he produced 84 touchdowns -- 69 passing, 15 rushing. He'd be a dynamic option at the quarterback position, which the Jets haven't had in ... maybe ever.
Cons: Fields doesn't seem natural when he's in the pocket going through his progressions. If his No. 1 read is covered, he tends to hold the ball instead of moving quickly to No. 2. He got away with it in college because his primary wide receivers usually were open, but that won't be the case in the NFL. For this reason, it might take him longer than Wilson to develop. He struggled against Indiana, Northwestern and Alabama, so what will happen against a Bill Belichick-coached defense?
Cap impact: See Wilson's entry, as it is the same.
Eye-popping stat: Fields ranked third in completion percentage (61.3) among Power 5 quarterbacks on throws of at least 20 air yards, per ESPN Stats & Information. Wilson was second (62.3%), behind Stanford's Davis Mills (64.7%).
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Jeremy Fowler predicts a few teams that could be interested in quarterback Matthew Stafford, including the Colts high up on the list and Washington as a sleeper.
Current status: Expected to not return
Pros: He's not as good as Watson and he's seven-plus years older than the Houston star, but Stafford is good enough to take a team to the playoffs. Playing on bad Detroit teams, he has averaged 25 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions in his past three full seasons. He would be a significant upgrade over Darnold.
Cons: He turns 33 on Feb. 7, so the Jets aren't a great fit. They need to think long term, not win-now -- and Stafford is a win-now quarterback. The Lions will seek at least a first-round pick. The Jets have the No. 23 overall selection, but it doesn't make sense to part with that kind of compensation for a quarterback who is closer to the end of his career than the beginning.
Cap impact: Stafford has two years remaining on his contract for $43 million, none of it guaranteed. (A $10 million roster bonus is due March 21.) He probably will get a new deal from the team that trades for him.
Eye-popping stat: He had the seventh-highest passer rating (100.2) on pass attempts in which the completion probability (pass difficulty) was 25% to 50%, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
January 30, 2021 at 06:02PM
https://www.espn.com/blog/new-york-jets/post/_/id/85749/run-it-back-with-sam-darnold-or-start-fresh-jets-have-multiple-options
Run it back with Sam Darnold or start fresh? Jets have multiple options - New York Jets Blog- ESPN - ESPN
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Clinical trial data on two COVID-19 vaccines show that a coronavirus variant first identified in South Africa is lessening their ability to protect against the illness, underscoring the need to vaccinate vast numbers of people as quickly as possible, scientists said.
FILE PHOTO: A woman holds a small bottle labeled with a "Coronavirus COVID-19 Vaccine" sticker and a medical syringe in front of displayed Novavax logo in this illustration taken, October 30, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/File Photo
The vaccines from Novavax Inc and Johnson & Johnson were welcomed as important future weapons in curbing deaths and hospitalizations in a pandemic that has infected more than 101 million people and claimed over 2 million lives worldwide.
But they were significantly less effective at preventing COVID-19 in trial participants in South Africa, where the potent new variant is widespread, compared with countries in which this mutation is still rare, according to preliminary data released by the companies.
“Clearly, the mutants have a diminishing effect on the efficacy of the vaccines,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, said in a briefing. “We can see that we are going to be challenged.”
Novavax reported midstage trial results on Thursday that showed its vaccine was 50% effective overall at preventing COVID-19 among people in South Africa.
That compared with late-stage results from the United Kingdom, in which the vaccine was up to 89.3% effective at preventing COVID-19.
On Friday, J&J said a single shot of its coronavirus vaccine was 66% effective overall in a massive trial across three continents.
But there were wide differences by region. In the United States, where the South African variant was first reported this week, efficacy reached 72%, compared with just 57% in South Africa, where the new variant, known as B 1.351, made up 95% of the COVID-19 cases reported in the trial.
Another highly transmissible variant first discovered in the UK and now in more than half of U.S. states has been less able to evade vaccine efficacy than its South African counterpart.
Slideshow ( 2 images )
The new findings, however, raise questions about how highly-effective vaccines from Pfizer Inc with partner BioNTech, and Moderna Inc will fare against new variants. The two vaccines showed an efficacy of around 95% in trials conducted primarily in the United States before the new virus versions were identified in other countries.
“It’s a different pandemic now,” said Dr. Dan Barouch, a researcher at Harvard University Medical School’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston who helped develop the J&J vaccine.
Barouch said there are now a wide variety of new variants circulating, including in Brazil, South Africa and even the United States, that are substantially resistant to vaccine-induced antibodies.
Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla said there was “a high possibility” that emerging variants may eventually render the company’s vaccine ineffective.
“This is not the case yet ... but I think it’s a very high likelihood that one day that will happen,” Bourla said at the World Economic Forum. The drugmaker is considering whether its vaccine needs to be altered to defend against the South African variant.
‘STOP HOSPITALS FROM GOING INTO CRISIS’
Experts said that all four vaccines still have great value in their ability to reduce severe COVID-19.
“The end game is to stop death, to stop hospitals from going into crisis - and all of these vaccines, even including against the South African variant, seem to do that substantially,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, in infectious disease expert at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security
For example, J&J’s vaccine was 89% effective at preventing severe disease in South Africa.
J&J Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Paul Stoffels said he suspects a type of immune system reaction called a T-cell response is playing a protective role and may be helping to prevent severe disease.
“We knew that to a certain extent, but it’s also better and very confirming that we can see that now in the clinic,” Stoffels said in an interview.
Nevertheless, Fauci said the decreased efficacy rates underscore the need to follow variants closely, and to accelerate vaccination efforts before new, and even more dangerous, mutations arise.
“The best way to prevent further evolution of a virus is to prevent it from replicating,” Fauci said, “and you do that by vaccinating people as quickly as you possibly can.”
Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; Additional reporting by Rebecca Spalding in New York and Michael Erman in Maplewood, New Jersey; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Bill Berkrot
January 30, 2021 at 08:15PM
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vaccines-variant/fresh-data-show-toll-south-african-virus-variant-takes-on-vaccine-efficacy-idUSKBN29Z0I7
Fresh data show toll South African virus variant takes on vaccine efficacy - Reuters
Since the early 1920s, the Long Valley plains east of Yosemite have inspired comparison to a rustic Western paradise — an idyllic frontier where sparkling creeks meander through lush pastures, waters teem with feisty trout and sage grouse make ostentatious displays of romance.
Much of this great, green expansiveness, however, owes to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, which aggressively purchased land and water rights here more than a century ago. The department’s routine annual deliveries of free surplus water to its tenants have helped sustain ranching operations and habitat here for many decades.
But that relationship is now at risk of ending, and could carry dire consequences for one of California’s most striking and violently formed landscapes.
It’s deepest, darkest Iowa winter — in the middle of a pandemic, to boot. What could be more cheering than fresh flowers? (Well, maybe getting the vaccine, but that’s another story.)
There’s lots of reasons you might have fresh flowers right now. In my case, I recently received a colorful bouquet from a friend, as a thank you for helping her during a medical crisis. Also, Valentine’s Day is around the corner, and if you’re lucky, you might receive some lovely flowers from your beloved. Or heck, you might simply pick up some supermarket flowers for yourself on a whim.
Regardless of how you get them, once you have fresh cut flowers, there are a number of ways to keep them fresher longer. They really work: That bouquet from my friend? It’s now on Day 13 and looking good.
Here’s what you can do to preserve the life of your fresh cut flowers.
• Keep the container full. This is easily the most important thing you can do to extend the life of your flowers. As soon as you get the flowers, fill the vase as far as it will go. (Florists often fill vases only partly to prevent water from sloshing out during transport.) Then top it off daily with more fresh water at least every other day. The more of the stem that is immersed in water, the more moisture it can absorb. Letting the water level get down to even half is a sure recipe for dead flowers days sooner than necessary.
• The second most important tip: Change the water completely about every other day. Bacteria grows in stagnant water and interferes with flowers’ ability to uptake moisture.
• Cut flowers last longest in cool, moist conditions. There’s a reason florists keep flowers in big glass coolers. Your flowers will last longest in a place where they don’t get too warm (over 70 degrees) and are not in direct sunlight.
In winter, it’s also helpful if you keep fresh flowers away from cold blasts from opening doors or away from air blown out of a heat vent. (When you buy flowers or any plant in very cold weather, be sure they are covered completely with a plastic or paper bag to prevent damage from freezing air. Take directly home — don’t leave in an unheated car.)
• That powder that you can mix into the water to keep flowers fresher longer really does work. Ask for an extra packet or two when you buy flowers since you’ll need to use it every time you completely change out the water. Florists will often give it to you for free. Or make your own slightly less effective version with 1 teaspoon sugar and 2 teaspoons lemon juice (fresh, bottled or frozen) to one quart water.
• Periodically trim off the tips of the stems. Fresh cuts allow the newly revealed tissue of the plant to better take up water. Over the period of a day or two, the cuts at the tips of flower stems tend to close up, resulting in a brown or beige hard crust, like a scab. You can remedy this. With scissors or a small sharp knife, trim off even just the bottom quarter inch to reveal fresh tissue. It will greatly improve the stem’s ability to hydrate all the way up to the flower.
• Remove plant material as it ages and become unattractive. Various flowers in mixed bouquets tend to have different life spans. As flowers or foliage start to look bad, take it out and pitch it so that you can enjoy the remaining healthy blooms more fully.
In my own recent bouquet, after just a couple days, the white sweetheart roses were the first to look bad. They began to brown, so I pulled them out. Then a few days later, pink sweetheart roses started to look icky. I took them out. Next the beautiful yellow goldenrod got little brown spots all over it. Into the trash it went.
There is no reason, though, to remove the whole stem if only part of it is looking bad. The gorgeous pink lilies arrived in the bouquet with three flowers open and several buds unopened. As the buds opened, the already-opened lilies started to fade a little and drop petals. So I trimmed off the spent lily flowers so I could enjoy the emerging flowers better.
Some of the fern foliage was also looking tired and developed brown and rust-colored spots. Several were shot and were browning all the way to the tip of the fern. But some had browning leaves only on the lower part of the stem, so I trimmed those off and kept the part of the fern frond at the tip that was still fresh.
By that point, I was about nine or 10 days in with my bouquet. The flowers that remained didn’t fill the original vase very well. So I took them all out and put them into a smaller vase. As I mentioned, I’m now on day 13, and I’m hoping to get four or five more days out of them.
Fresh flowers are meant to be enjoyed. So keep them looking their best for as long as possible. They’re a wonderful reminder that spring, truly, is not too far away.
Veronica Lorson Fowler is co-publisher of The Iowa Gardener website attheiowagardener.com.
For the month of January, I’ve been focusing my column on fresh-start career topics with the hope that a new perspective might provide the bridge from a tough year to one with more promise.
Amy Lindgren
So far, this short series has covered fresh starts in terms of relocations, return from long-term unemployment, education upgrades and career changes. Today we wrap up with a look at business startup as another way to create a new beginning in your work life.
This is a topic near to my heart, having started several businesses of my own, while also counseling others as they consider this option. Over the years, I’ve noticed some interesting shifts in the perception and process of business startup.
For example, we used to think of a newly opened business as someone’s lifelong career path, while now it’s common to hear about serial entrepreneurs, ready to sell and start the next company as quickly as possible.
One of the most dramatic shifts has been the ease with which one can start a business these days. Registration processes that took weeks in the past can be accomplished in minutes; marketing and outreach can be conducted without leaving the house, and customers can be served across the globe as easily as next door.
Whether this ease of opening is a good thing depends on your perspective. As a career counselor, I celebrate my clients’ opportunity to try something without having to completely commit. But I’m also wary of the half-in, half-out mentality that comes from not giving something your all. It’s a yin and yang thing that I’ve learned to take on a case by case basis.
If you’ve been considering a business startup, you might be surprised to discover that this is an excellent time to make the leap. In truth, it may be the best option available to you, if your industry is struggling or you have difficult prospects for working right now.
Even in these challenging circumstances, there are rays of opportunity. For example, you might find that stimulus checks or government assistance will provide enough financial cushion to make a modest startup possible. Or perhaps you’re feeling less pressure for a quick return to work during the pandemic. You might also feel more freedom to experiment, knowing that future employers may judge this interim period less critically than in pre-COVID times.
Whatever your needs and opportunities, if business startup has caught your attention, these steps will help:
1. Choose a business. In the old days, this would have been a months- or years-long process. But with less infrastructure needed than in years past, you can experiment more freely. For example, have you been wanting to design clothing? You can start with a few pieces on Etsy rather than investing in seamstresses and a storefront. Go ahead and select a business idea that interests you for any reason, and let the process help you determine if it will work.
2. Define your investment. How much are you willing to spend (and potentially lose), over what period of time? How many hours a week are you willing to invest in operating your business? If your limits are too confining — if you can’t invest much money, for example — what are you willing to do to close the gap? Will you ask for loans (which will have to be re-paid)? Trade a slice of your company for cash, if you can find a taker?
3. Plan your first steps. A calendar will come in handy here, as things tend to get done when they’re scheduled. The actual list of steps will vary, but could include: researching your idea, finding an adviser, registering your company, opening a business checking account, making a web site, identifying your products or services, creating inventory, etc.
4. Go after your first sale. Surprised? No time like the present. If you can’t sell something to somebody, you won’t stay in business for long. Trying out your sales pitch is a good way to discover what works and doesn’t work with your business idea. And if you don’t feel comfortable selling? Well, that’s a hurdle you’ll have to manage somehow. If you’re not going to make sales, you’ll have to find a partner or employee who will.
5. Have fun. If you’re not having fun doing your business, fix the problem or stop. You’re almost certainly going to be working for peanuts, so why be your own worst boss besides? Let it go and you can start again with your newly-acquired knowledge when the time is right. In this way, you can have multiple fresh starts, with each one launching from a better place than the last.
Tap water is generally OK to use, but soft water, which has higher amounts of sodium, is not good for the flowers. Distilled water also works. Add a packet of commercial flower preservative and a small amount of bleach — no more than ¼ teaspoon per quart — to help keep the water clean and bacteria from building up. The flowers can be damaged if too much bleach is added.
January 30, 2021 at 06:00PM
https://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/home-and-garden/ct-home-garden-qa-0128-20210130-3t224n73tbdchj7rdlcxkhapwe-story.html
How to keep fresh-cut flowers alive longer - Chicago Tribune
Times Insiderexplains who we are and what we do and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together.
Architecture is a defining interest in Jeremy Lechtzin’s life. He lives in New York, where towering wonders invite the skyward stare. But he spends as much time looking down and squinting. A brick that’s not like the others. Dates etched in stone. The particulars of a sewer cap. These are the details that interest him.
“I do spend a lot of time walking around looking for these little oddities, trying to figure out, is that an uninteresting oddity or an oddity with a story behind it?” he said.
Mr. Lechtzin reports on an oddity in The Times this week, but it isn’t little. In 1870, nearly every street address in Brooklyn was changed. He tells the story of a fledgling bureaucracy stumbling to keep up with a growing city, and flawed reforms that are still felt by Brooklyn residents today. It’s told with reams of Mr. Lechtzin’s research and months of archival digging.
Mr. Lechtzin, who lives in Brooklyn Heights with his family, is a lawyer who represents start-up companies, but he’s also a historian of the borough’s architecture. A vice president of the Brooklyn Heights Association, an influential neighborhood group in New York, he is on the association’s Landmark Preservation Committee and is writing a book on the urban history of the area.
He landed in the neighborhood in the 1997, as a New York University law student looking for a place quieter than downtown Manhattan. But he didn’t know he had planted his interests in such rich soil: Brooklyn Heights was the first designated historic district in the city.
Several years ago, Mr. Lechtzin encountered Aliza Aufrichtig, a self-described “Brooklyn history nerd,” at a meeting for archive enthusiasts, and they stayed in touch through their mutual interest. Ms. Aufrichtig joined The Times as a digital designer and graphics editor in 2019, and last June, when Mr. Lechtzin pitched a story on the great Brooklyn numbers switch, Ms. Aufrichtig shared it with the Metro desk.
The tall piles of research material Mr. Lechtzin has at home are grist for a good book; a newspaper article with limited space is another thing. But the story of a misguided new street plan, with personality and humor, has relevance in today’s city. Brooklyn still has fractional addresses assigned in 1870, and duplicate street names — Washington Street, but also Washington Avenue — still vex the unfamiliar visitor.
Ms. Aufrichtig designed the online article to look like a 19th-century newspaper, “almost an homage to the current research process Jeremy has undertaken,” she said. Lettering is intentionally askew in places, and to mimic aging newsprint, the background of the article takes on a deeper yellow hue the longer readers view it. Instead of one plunging scroll downward, online readers navigate columns, bottom to top, as in the newspaper.
“Normally that’s something we would never do, something that goes against our cues of design — for most stories it wouldn’t work,” said Meghan Louttit, a deputy editor on the Metro desk. “But every once in a while you have to challenge readers.”
The columns of digital type offered “natural breaks that allowed us to group the images that allowed readers to take in the whole story,” Ms. Louttit said. Jeffrey Furticella, Metro’s photo editor, said he had gone down a “rabbit hole” of historical photography.
“My first question was, what photography even exists from this period?” he said. “Where does that photography exist, if it exists at all?”
With the help of nine historical institutions, including the Center for Brooklyn History, the New York Public Library and the National Archives, Mr. Furticella was able to present to Times readers a transformative era of photography, with work by George Bradford Brainerd and Mathew Brady, pioneers in the field. Present-day photography from Karsten Moran, a frequent contributor to The Times, helps the project “make sense to someone walking down the street,” Mr. Furticella said. Woven in among old maps and clippings are new pictures of weird addresses and relics that mark the missteps of a few incompetent urbanists a century and a half ago.
“People would say, ‘Everyone knows the numbers changed around 1871 or ’72,’” Mr. Lechtzin said. “I said: ‘This is ridiculous. I find that unsatisfying. What do you mean they changed?’ It turns out the story is a lot more complicated than that.”
A Houston native and graduate of St. Edward's University in Austin, Wendy Sturges has worked as a community journalist covering local government, health care, business and development since 2011. She has worked with Community Impact since 2015 as a reporter and editor and moved to Tennessee in 2019.
January 30, 2021 at 05:22AM
https://communityimpact.com/nashville/franklin-brentwood/impacts/2021/01/29/farm-fresh-vintage-on-columbia-avenue-now-the-blue-cardinal/
Farm Fresh Vintage on Columbia Avenue now The Blue Cardinal - Community Impact Newspaper
Due to possible undeclared allergens (fish and egg)
Company Name:
Dole Fresh Vegetables, Inc.
Brand Name:
Brand Name(s)
Product Description:
Product Description
Dole™ Endless Summer Salad Kit
Company Announcement
Dole Fresh Vegetables, Inc. is voluntarily recalling a single lot code of Dole™ Endless Summer Salad Kit.
Description
UPC
Best If Used by
Date
Lot Code
Dole™ Endless Summer Salad Kit
0-71430-01073-0
01-26-21
B00912A
B00912B
This recall is due to possible undeclared allergens (fish and egg) in Dole™ Endless Summer Salad Kit. The dressing and topping kit (masterpack) designed for a different Dole product was unintentionally used during a portion of the production of the salad. Dole Fresh Vegetables, Inc. is coordinating closely with regulatory officials. No illnesses nor allergic reactions have been reported to date in association with the recall. However, people who have an allergy to fish or eggs may have a serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume this product.
The product lot code and Best if Used by Date is located on the upper right corner of each bag and the UPC code is located on the bottom right corner of the back of each bag. The impacted products were distributed in AZ, CA, CO, IA, ID, IL, KS, MN, MS, ND, OK, OR, PA, TX, UT, WA, and WI. Consumers are advised to check product they have in their homes and discard any product matching the production description, UPC codes, product lot code and Best if Used by Date listed above.
No other Dole products are included in the recall. Only Dole™ Endless Summer Salad Kit with the exact UPC code, lot code and Best if Used by Date identified above, are included in the recall. Consumers who have any remaining product should not consume it, but rather discard it. Retailers and consumers with questions may call the Dole Consumer Center at 1-800-356-3111, which is open 24 hours a day.
January 28, 2021 at 12:00PM
https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/dole-fresh-vegetables-announces-limited-voluntary-recall-doletm-endless-summer-salad-kit-due
Dole Fresh Vegetables Announces Limited Voluntary Recall of Dole™ Endless Summer Salad Kit Due to Undeclared Allergens - FDA.gov
(Reuters) - Online broker Robinhood has raised more than $1 billion of fresh capital from existing investors, having been strained by high volumes of trading this week and raising the ire of customers, celebrities and politicians for curbing the purchase of some hot stocks.
Robinhood’s existing investors include venture capital firms Sequoia Capital and Ribbit Capital, who came together on Thursday night to offer the emergency funding, according to a New York Times report.
Reuters could not immediately verify if Sequoia and Ribbit helped with the emergency infusion.
“We’re pleased to share that we’ve raised over $1 billion from existing investors to continue to invest in record growth. This is a strong sign of confidence from investors that will help us continue to further serve our customers,” a Robinhood spokeswoman said in an email.
The firm has also tapped a credit line so that it has funds to ensure trading continuity when it lifts the rules.
The latest funding comes at a crucial time for Robinhood, which is also preparing for a high-profile initial public offering this year. Recent developments raise questions on whether the company will push forward with those plans.
Reuters was first to report in December here that Robinhood had picked Goldman Sachs Group Inc to lead preparations for the IPO, which could come this year and value it at more than $20 billion.
In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, Robinhood founder Vlad Tenev declined to comment on the IPO plans and said ... “will only say Robinhood is well capitalized and have a great growth opportunity ahead of us.”
Robinhood’s fee-free and simple-to-use app has made it popular with a new generation of small-time traders and its restrictions on Thursday drew a heavy backlash from high-profile politicians and celebrities.
Reporting by Anirban Sen, Munsif Vengattil and Juby Babu in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr
January 29, 2021 at 05:18AM
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-retail-trading-robinhood/robinhood-raises-1-billion-of-fresh-funding-from-existing-investors-idUKKBN29X2ZN?edition-redirect=uk
Robinhood raises $1 billion of fresh funding from existing investors - Reuters
Produced by Shonda Rhimes (the genius behind “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal”), it’s set in London’s debutante season circa 1813. A mysterious unseen narrator, voiced by Julie Andrews, relays high society gossip, much of it focused on the romance between the dashing, soulful, troubled Duke of Hastings, who is Black, and the fair-skinned maiden Daphne Bridgerton, whose beauty comes with a sharp brain and tongue. The multiracial cast puts new light on an otherwise conventional story.
January 30, 2021 at 08:10AM
https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/mary-schmich/ct-met-schmich-9-thinks-i-like-winter-20210130-bjbky2wrq5crfj75so5rh5tjru-story.html
Column: Fresh snow, ‘Bridgerton’ and taking down the Christmas tree: 9 things I’ve liked lately - Chicago Tribune
(Reuters) - Online broker Robinhood has raised more than $1 billion of fresh capital from existing investors, having been strained by high volumes of trading this week and raising the ire of customers, celebrities and politicians for curbing the purchase of some hot stocks.
Robinhood’s existing investors include venture capital firms Sequoia Capital and Ribbit Capital, who came together on Thursday night to offer the emergency funding, according to a New York Times report.
Reuters could not immediately verify if Sequoia and Ribbit helped with the emergency infusion.
“We’re pleased to share that we’ve raised over $1 billion from existing investors to continue to invest in record growth. This is a strong sign of confidence from investors that will help us continue to further serve our customers,” a Robinhood spokeswoman said in an email.
The firm has also tapped a credit line so that it has funds to ensure trading continuity when it lifts the rules.
The latest funding comes at a crucial time for Robinhood, which is also preparing for a high-profile initial public offering this year. Recent developments raise questions on whether the company will push forward with those plans.
Reuters was first to report in December here that Robinhood had picked Goldman Sachs Group Inc to lead preparations for the IPO, which could come this year and value it at more than $20 billion.
In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, Robinhood founder Vlad Tenev declined to comment on the IPO plans and said ... “will only say Robinhood is well capitalized and have a great growth opportunity ahead of us.”
Robinhood’s fee-free and simple-to-use app has made it popular with a new generation of small-time traders and its restrictions on Thursday drew a heavy backlash from high-profile politicians and celebrities.
Reporting by Anirban Sen, Munsif Vengattil and Juby Babu in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr
January 29, 2021 at 05:18AM
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-retail-trading-robinhood/robinhood-raises-1-billion-of-fresh-funding-from-existing-investors-idUSKBN29X2ZN
Robinhood raises $1 billion of fresh funding from existing investors - Reuters
Current status: Requested trade
Current status: Draft-eligible
Current status: Incumbent
Current status: Draft-eligible
Current status: Expected to not return
