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☆ The Strength of Israel’s Divided Democracy Protests - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Gershom Gorenberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In central Jerusalem, thousands of people marched the short distance from the president’s residence to the prime minister’s house. The size of the protests has been possible because the main banner is defending Israel’s internal democracy, but also because people who oppose the occupation are intensely involved. That choice has allowed Israelis from the center right and right to join and even take leading roles. But for many other protesters, it makes no sense to talk about democracy while ignoring Israel’s occupation of the West Bank. And in principle, they’re right: There is an essential contradiction between liberal democracy and the denial of rights to Palestinians.

Persons: it’s, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, “, ”, I’d Organizations: —, West Bank Locations: Israel, Jerusalem, West Bank

☆ Is the New 988 Suicide Hotline Working?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Christina Caron | More About Christina Caron | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The three-digit dialing code for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline became available in July of last year after receiving bipartisan support. Almost one million of those contacts were answered by Veterans Crisis Line, which is linked to 988. In fact, 988 does not currently use geolocation, so those who call the hotline remain anonymous unless they choose to disclose identifying information. But you don’t need to be in crisis or suicidal to call 988 and speak with a counselor. “It’s our hope that people will come to us before they are in a mental health crisis,” said Tia Dole, chief officer of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at Vibrant Emotional Health, the New York-based nonprofit that manages the Lifeline for SAMHSA.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, “, ”, Tia Dole Organizations: Lifeline, Crisis, Mental Health Services Administration, SAMHSA Locations: New York

☆ ‘Earth Mama’ Review: A Mother Dreams Inside a Brutal System
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Manohla Dargis | More About Manohla Dargis | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Leaf eases you into the movie, which centers on Gia (a lovely Tia Nomore), a pregnant single mother in recovery with two kids in foster care. In tight, precise scenes, Leaf sketches in Gia’s life, its uncertain horizons and crushing limitations. Mostly, Gia struggles to get her kids back, a time-consuming process that involves a reunification program in which she’s constantly monitored. The program’s demands mean that she can’t work more hours, but because she can’t work more, she’s behind in child-support payments, which in turn earns her a scolding from her case worker. If the system seems rigged for Gia to fail, it’s because, Leaf suggests, it is.

Persons: ”, I’ve, Tia Nomore, Gia, she’s, Jody Lee Lipes, Miss Carmen, Erika Alexander, Bokeem Woodbine, Kamaya Jones, Sharon Duncan, Brewster, Keta Price Locations: Gia, Bay

☆ Analysis: Peru copper miners say red tape snarling red metal production ramp-up
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Marco Aquino | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] Trucks from the Las Bambas mine circulate along the mining corridor between Sayhua and Ccapacmarca, near Ccapacmarca, Peru, January 19, 2022. REUTERS/Sebastian Castaneda/File PhotoLIMA, July 7 (Reuters) - Copper miners in Peru, already battling political uncertainty and regular protests, say they have another hurdle to revving up stalled production of the red metal: too much red tape. 2 copper producer, has seen output plateau in the last five years as political instability, revolving governments and flagging investment has let rival producer Congo almost overtake it. 1 producer Chile has also seen production slide, dented by political uncertainty around taxes and regulation. Until that happens, mining executives said Peru's $53 billion mining investment pipeline, largely copper, would only move forward slowly, despite government hopes that some $7 billion of that being unlocked in 2023 and 2024.

Persons: Sebastian Castaneda, LIMA, Raul Jacob, Jorge Soto, it's, Víctor Gobitz, Tia Maria, Marco Aquino, Adam Jourdan, Sandra Maler Organizations: REUTERS, Congo, Reuters, World Bank, BHP, Newmont Corp, Thomson Locations: Sayhua, Ccapacmarca, Peru, Lima, Chile, Canada, Mexico

☆ MSG: The world's most misunderstood ingredient
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Maggie Hiufu Wong | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Case in point – he has the letters “MSG” tattooed on his arm, and his restaurant’s menu includes a signature drink called the MSG Martini. “Things just taste better with MSG, whether it’s Western food or Cantonese food,” the chef tells CNN. You’ve probably been playing with glutamate, inosinate and guanylate in your own cooking without even realizing it. We season our food with MSG a little bit – it’s different from heating water and adding MSG and serving it with noodles,” he says. “Our mission from the very beginning was to show people what Cantonese food is and what Cantonese food can be – it’s always going to be playful, fun and approachable,” says Eng.

☆ Lyles wins 150m at Atlanta City Games
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Lyles, bronze medallist at the Tokyo Games, scorched to victory in 14.56 seconds to become the third-fastest athlete of all time over the distance behind Jamaican Usain Bolt and compatriot Tyson Gay. Teenager Knighton, who took bronze at last year's World Championships, finished second in 14.85 in the inaugural edition of the tournament in Atlanta, Georgia. Third-placed Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya clocked a time of 14.89 seconds to better Namibian Frankie Fredericks's mark of 14.99 and set a new African record, adding to his African men's 100m record. Earlier on Saturday, United States' Olympic silver medallist Kendra Harrison finished second in the women's 100m hurdles behind Tia Jones. This year's world championships are scheduled to take place in Budapest, Hungary from Aug. 19-27.

☆ Cognitive decline, dementia common after stroke
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

About 40% of the survivors of stroke have mild cognitive impairment that does not meet the diagnostic criteria for dementia. Cognitive impairment is most common within the first two weeks after a stroke, the statement said. The American Stroke Association’s statement did offer some good news: About 20% of people who experience mild cognitive impairment after a stroke fully recover their cognitive function, typically within the first six months. Stroke risk factors, such as hypertension, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes, should be treated, as should atrial fibrillation. “Perhaps the most pressing need, however, is the development of effective and culturally relevant treatments for post-stroke cognitive impairment,” she said.

☆ Restaurant Review: Mam Serves the Most Exciting Vietnamese Food in New York
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Pete Wells | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sometimes they will also set up on the far side of Forsyth Street, in the roadway, next to the brick wall of a playground. My bun dau mam tom method is to start with a piece of tofu or noodles or something else dipped in mam tom. The herbs taste so bright that after eating a few, and maybe a slice of cucumber, I am ready for more mam tom. This becomes a rhythm, cycling from funky shrimp sauce to green herbs and back again. It is a little bit like alternating repeatedly between a hot sauna and a cold pool, and it has a similar effect on the psyche.

☆ Netanyahu fires defense minister for urging halt to overhaul
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seen during the the 2016 Genesis Prize award-ceremony in Jerusalem, June 23, 2016. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu abruptly fired his defense minister on Sunday, a day after he called on the Israeli leader to halt a planned judicial overhaul that has fiercely divided the country and prompted growing discontent within the ranks of the military. "The prime minister of Israel is a threat to the security of the state of Israel," Lapid wrote on Twitter. "The prime minister will be forced to bow his head before the law and comply with the provisions of the law." The prime minister responded saying the appeal should be dismissed and said that the Supreme Court didn't have grounds to intervene.

☆ Melinda Gates' venture fund just bet on hot women's health startup Tia. Here's the presentation it used to raise $100 million in 2021 to rebuild after COVID shutdowns.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Megan Hernbroth | Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The women's healthcare startup Tia just landed funding from Melinda Gates' Pivotal Ventures. See the 30-slide presentation Tia used to raise $100 million in just three weeks in 2021. As gaps in reproductive healthcare worsen in the US post-Roe v. Wade, women's healthcare startup Tia wants to elevate the standards for women's physical, mental, and reproductive care. Before the pandemic, Tia was building in-person healthcare clinics for women without the virtual component. Here is the 30-slide presentation Witte used to raise Tia's $100 million Series B funding in just three weeks in 2021.

☆ Shopify is 'flattening' its org structure to incentivize more employees to become individual contributors
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Shopify is making changes to its managerial structure that will likely result in fewer middle managers, "flattening" its organizational structure. Starting in mid-March, employees will choose to become either a full-time manager or a "crafter," as Shopify calls individual contributors. Silas added that Shopify expects to have fewer managers overall, referring to the change as a "flattening" of the organization. Shopify also removed all employee meetings that were scheduled for Wednesdays and limited large team events to specific hours on Thursdays. If you're a Shopify employee with a story to share, contact this reporter at mstone@insider.com or on the encrypted messaging app Signal at (646) 889-2143 using a nonwork phone.

The Library of Congress named Medina the national ambassador for young people’s literature for 2023-24. Meg Medina. Medina is taking on the job in a political uproar over literature aimed at young people and in school libraries, largely with LGBTQ themes and characters. But to Medina's daughter, whose first language is English, the word means “story me,” said Medina, who now lives in Richmond, Virginia. She knew little about American literature, but she bought Medina the World Book Encyclopedia, on installment, and took her to the library.

☆ Some restaurant workers could see big wage growth in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Amelia Lucas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The restaurant industry was already struggling with a labor crunch before the pandemic turned the problem into a full-blown crisis . More than half of U.S. states will hike their minimum wage this year , but some restaurant workers could see even bigger gains in 2023. If California's government has its way, average hourly pay for restaurant workers could soar in 2023. And it's unlikely that restaurant workers will see any wage gains on the federal level this year. President Joe Biden has expressed support for a $15-an-hour minimum wage and the elimination of the tipped wage, which allows employers to pay workers as little as $2.13 an hour.

☆ Shopify had a bumpy 2022, with a stock split, layoffs, and more. These are the biggest stories about the e-commerce company.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

After seeing explosive sales and revenue growth during the earlier days of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Canadian e-commerce company saw its business come back down to earth this year. Shopify employees are granted restricted stock units, or RSUs, in addition to their base salaries. MayOn May 2, Shopify announced plans to acquire e-commerce fulfillment startup Deliverr for more than $2 billion. The acquisition was intended to help Shopify merchants offer one and two-day shipping to their customers. On December 15, Shopify announced that it was doubling down on its sustainability efforts by investing $11 million in carbon removal projects.

This year brought a fascinating and eclectic number of books by Latino authors to store shelves and online selections, spanning different genres and earning high praise from readers and reviewers alike. Below is our list of 10 very distinctive works by U.S. Latino authors. The compelling novel has been recognized as one of the top 10 books of 2022 by The New York Times and The Washington Post and as one of the best books of 2022 by Time, NPR, Vogue, Oprah Daily and others. Although Villanueva's life took a different turn, many of his followers and their children, known as "Inca Jews," are still in Israel. She writes about how an abortion saved her life and candidly details her experiences dealing with suicidal thoughts and depression.

And Black women are often in their late 30s or early 40s when they start, older on average than white women. Black women are also twice as likely as white women to have fertility challenges, according to a 2008 study in Fertility and Sterility. He suggested that insurance coverage, awareness of the “biological clock” and partners’ attitudes toward fertility treatment may all play a role. Regina Townsend via Broken Brown Egg‘The myth assigned to us’National data identifying racial disparities in fertility care only recently became available when Seifer published his 2007 study. Doctors’ lack of knowledge about racial disparities in fertility treatment doesn’t surprise Townsend.

☆ With $10.5 million in supergiant seed funding, Caraway launches to bring personalized telehealth to Gen Z women in college
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Samantha Stokes | Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Caraway is a healthtech startup for college women that offers mental, physical, and reproductive care. This woman's experience is one example of how Caraway says it is working to provide personalized mental, physical, and reproductive health services via telehealth to Gen Z women in college. Care specialists provide direct education for students on mental health too, such as techniques to de-escalate stress and anxiety flare-ups. Other startups like Mantra Health, which raised a $22 million Series A last year, also focus on mental health for college students. So far, the startup has 13 "Caraway Campus Ambassadors," or interns, on college campuses in the states it's currently operating in.

☆ Shopify is outsourcing many of its customer-support roles to the Philippines after layoffs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Shopify has previously used outsourced customer-support agents in India as well, the employees who spoke with Insider said. The TaskUs contractors appear to be taking on roles throughout Shopify's support organization, including on "high-tiered" teams and on teams that work with Shopify Plus merchants. Shopify is ramping up its outsourcing after laying off about 1,000 employees — many of whom worked in support — in July. The breach affected dozens of Shopify merchants, including Ledger, which makes cryptocurrency wallets. If you're a Shopify employee or have a story to share, contact this reporter at mstone@insider.com or on the secure-messaging app Signal at (646) 889-2143 using a nonwork phone.

☆ Agricultural shipments continue from Ukraine as grain deal resumes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Ted Kemp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Video credit: Burak Kara | Getty ImagesThe bulk carrier Asl Tia is shown transiting Turkey's Bosphorus Strait, carrying 39,000 metric tons of sunflower meal from Ukraine on Wednesday. Russia on Tuesday rejoined a deal that gives safe passage to grain shipments from Ukraine, which Russia invaded in February. Russia has severely disrupted Ukraine's agricultural output and prior to the deal was blockading outbound vessels. The Kremlin said it was leaving the deal over the weekend after Ukraine attacked warships from its Black Sea Fleet. Ukraine is one of the world's largest grain exporters, with nations in Asia, Africa and beyond dependent on its food shipments.

☆ Shopify's new C-suite: After a year of high turnover, the new leaders at Shopify include a CFO poached from Morgan Stanley and a new HR lead who is working to overhaul the e-commerce company's perform
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Here are the people leading the e-commerce company through its next phase. Leinwand was previously senior vice president of engineering at Slack, and before that he was CTO at ServiceNow. Tia Silas, chief human resources officerTia Silas, Shopify's chief talent officer. John Asante, chief information-security officerJohn Asante, Shopify's chief information-security officer. Bobby Morrison, chief revenue officerMorrison joined Shopify as chief revenue officer — a new role for Shopify, reporting to the COO — in August.

☆ Leaked email: Shopify's new head of HR announces plans to overhaul performance reviews after layoffs and compensation turmoil
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Shopify said in a leaked email that it would be revamping its approach to performance evaluation. Shopify told employees in a company-wide email on Friday that it would be changing its approach to evaluating their work. "We are committed to delivering a product that better reflects your true contributions to Shopify," Silas wrote (emphasis hers) in the email, which was viewed by Insider. And according to several former employees, Shopify attributed laying off several dozen workers earlier this year to performance issues. If you're a Shopify employee with a story to share, contact this reporter at mstone@insider.com or on the encrypted messaging app Signal at (646) 889-2143 using a nonwork phone.

[1/5] An oil pump jack is seen in an oil field near Lake Maracaibo, in Cabimas, Venezuela October 14, 2022. "Among those remaining in the partnerships, few hope to ever recoup pending dividends or commercial debts from PDVSA." Since TotalEnergies and Equinor in 2021 exited one of Venezuela's flagship oil upgrading projects, Petrocedeno, smaller firms have followed. With companies and workers leaving almost en masse, the abandonment of oilfields is visible near Maracaibo Lake, among Venezuela's oldest producing region. Between 2019 and 2021, PDVSA delivered oil cargoes to partners to reduce outstanding debt.

☆ Read Shopify's leaked email to staff detailing a new talent review to root out a fresh 'baseline' for performance
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Shopify announced plans to revamp its performance management tools in a company-wide email. Silas said in a company-wide email on Friday that the new performance evaluation product is a continuation of that work. At one point, Silas' email refers to Shopify as a "high-performing sports team," which could be a nod to CEO Tobi Lütke's past notes about company culture. News of the revamped performance system comes as Shopify's workforce reels from the company's July layoffs of roughly 1,000 people. Other upcoming releases leading in to 2023Launching our New Performance Management approachConsistent internal taxonomy around job titles, groups and our structure.

☆ Babies born to Black mothers who use fertility treatments die at far higher rates than those born to white mothers
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Aria Bendix | Aria Bendix Is The Breaking Health Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Babies born to Black mothers are twice as likely to die in the first month than infants born to white women. That death rate was 1.6% among babies born to Black mothers, compared with just 0.3% for babies born to white mothers. Death rates were twice as high among newborns of Asian, Pacific Islander and Hispanic mothers who used fertility technologies compared with babies born to white mothers. Black women are also twice as likely to have stillbirths or preterm births than white women, according to Lisonkova's study. Indeed, Black women in the study who conceived using fertility treatments were slighter older on average than white women who did so.

☆ Shopify's new guard: Meet the 11 people leading the company after rampant turnover wiped out most of its C-suite
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Here are the people leading the e-commerce company through its next phase. Leinwand was previously senior vice president of engineering at Slack, and before that he was CTO at ServiceNow. Tia Silas, chief talent officerTia Silas, Shopify's chief talent officer. John Asante, chief information-security officerJohn Asante, Shopify's chief information-security officer. Bobby Morrison, chief revenue officerMorrison joined Shopify as chief revenue officer — a new role for Shopify, reporting to the COO — in August.

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