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☆ A publisher removed references to Rosa Parks' race in a draft of its textbook to comply with Florida's laws, NYT reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A publisher removed references to Rosa Parks' race in a draft of a Florida textbook. Studies Weekly changed the language to comply with the Stop Woke Act, The New York Times reported. The publisher told the Times that it withdrew from the state's review. DeSantis signed into law the Stop Woke Act and the Don't Say Gay Act in 2022. The FDOE has also amended the Stop Woke Act to ban critical race theory from being taught in schools.

☆ Wyoming, the first territory in the United States to grant women the right to vote, just became the first state to ban medication abortion
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Wyoming became the first state to ban abortion pills after a bill became law on Friday. The "Life is a Human Right Act" makes prescribing or selling abortion pills a felony. Wyoming was the first territory in the United States to grant women the right to vote, according to the National Parks Service, after passing a law offering women suffrage in 1869 — before the region even achieved statehood. It now becomes the first state to ban abortion-inducing medications as legal battles play out in Texas and beyond over similar proposed bans elsewhere. Representatives for Gordon, Gray, and Representative Rachel Rodriguez-Williams, who sponsored the "Life is a Human Right Act," did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

☆ Do You Need a Fixer for Your Disney Vacation?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Jacob Passy | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.— How much would you pay for a perfect day at Disney ? Walt Disney World is ever harder to navigate, thanks to heavy crowds, higher prices and a system of rides and reservations that can require families to plan visits with near-military precision. Enter Disney fixers, tour guides with no affiliation to the company, offering to plan your visit and use their understanding of the parks to maximize the magic.

☆ Disney executives are being directed to identify thousands of layoff candidates by April as CEO Bob Iger targets $5.5 billion in spending cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Bob Iger is on a push for profitability at Disney and announced plans to cut 7,000 positions. Layoffs will impact about 4,000 employees, with the rest of the cuts coming from open roles. Disney bean counters have been looking carefully across the company in an attempt to find redundancies and eliminate executives where they can. Disney Chief Financial Officer Christine McCarthy told investors on the earnings call that the company has targeted cost savings of $5.5 billion. In February Iger announced a restructure of Disney into three divisions: Entertainment, ESPN, and Parks, Experiences and Products.

☆ Rome hopes to reverse decline and relive La Dolce Vita
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Giselda Vagnoni | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/5] General view of the Colosseum next to a subway's construction sites in Rome, Italy, February 16, 2023. However, flailing public services can make La Dolce Vita seem a remote dream, for both visitors and residents alike. "It is the biggest investment plan Rome has ever had," Gualtieri told Reuters. "Milan was turned around by the EXPO and has become a city capable of attracting capital from all over the world. Rome is an incredible place and second to none," Luca Luciani, head of BAI Communications Italia, told Reuters.

SINGAPORE/HANOI, March 17 (Reuters) - Asian real estate giant CapitaLand Group is in talks to acquire assets worth roughly $1.5 billion from Vietnam's biggest listed property firm Vinhomes JSC (VHM.HM), two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. A deal of that size would mark one of the largest real estate transactions in Southeast Asia in the last few years. The talks come as Vietnam's property sector is struggling with a cash crunch following an anti-graft campaign launched by the government last year. Vinhomes, Vietnam's biggest real estate developer by market capitalization, is part of Vingroup (VIC.HM), the country's largest conglomerate. Shares of Vinhomes have lost 10% so far this year, after tumbling 40% in 2022 as the property crisis deepened.

☆ Top 10 things the Club is watching in the stock market Friday: First Republic, semis, energy
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Jeff Marks | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

JPMorgan keeps FRC as a top pick but lowers price target to $62 per share from $150. No price target at Atlantic Equities. Even after a big run, Morgan Stanley thinks it is not too late to get long Club holding Nvidia (NVDA). Disney (DIS) is a Club holding. Club holding Alphabet 's (GOOGL) Google raises pricing on YouTube TV to $73 per month from $65.

☆ Take a look inside Symphony's engineering hub in the south of France where employees can split time between the Alps and the French Riviera
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Paige Hagy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Fintech Symphony opened an office in Sophia Antipolis in the south of FranceA deck overlooking the surrounding forest. SymphonySymphony, a messaging and workflow startup, has set up shop in Sophia Antipolis, one of the largest European technology parks. Sophia Antipolis is located in the southeast corner of France between Cannes and Nice. Established in 1969, the technology park is home to over 2,500 companies, including IBM, that employ more than 41,000 people. People there jokingly call it the "European Silicon Valley," aware that the name is an exaggeration.

☆ They Went to the Top of Manhattan to Find Two Bedrooms and a View. Which Option Did They Choose?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Joyce Cohen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Mr. Brent was renting the ground floor of an attached brick house across from Inwood Hill Park, at the top of Manhattan. [Also in Real Estate: E-Bikes Are Exploding Every Week in New York City, Causing Fires and Killing People. “I really need access to blue and green stuff — rivers and trees,” Mr. Brent said. Still, parts of the neighborhood were noisy, with revving motorcycles and loud music, which concerned Mr. Brent. “New York City creates unique challenges to recording environments.”Among their options:

☆ I took a cruise around the Mediterranean. Here are 5 things that surprised me — from the coffee to the navigation.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Christian Mayer | Nathan Rennolds | Business Insider Deutschland | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Insider's Christian Mayer took a trip around the Mediterranean on the AIDAblu cruise ship. I recently booked a spontaneous weeklong cruise with the German cruise line Aida Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation and PLC, one of the largest cruise companies in the world. The cruise sailed around Italy and Malta, starting off in Civitavecchia, a town on the west coast of Italy near Rome. A tiny ship approached the outer wall of our huge cruise ship, and, in whipping winds, the pilot climbed an outer ladder onto our ship. The ship served Starbucks coffeeThe price of the cruise included filter coffee with breakfast.

☆ Restaurants and hotels are driving US job economy. Here are thousands of open roles as the hospitality sector offsets steep staffing cuts in big tech.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Danni Santana | Nancy Luna | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The leisure and hospitality sector continues to drive US job gains, the Labor Department said. Still, the US Travel Association estimates about 2 million open roles in leisure and hospitality. The leisure and hospitality sector encompasses restaurants, hotels, arts, entertainment such as theme parks, and other tourism-oriented businesses. Overall, the US Travel Association estimates about 2 million open roles remain unfilled in leisure and hospitality. Here's a look at who is hiring in restaurants and hospitality at large chains.

☆ DeSantis administration revokes Hyatt Regency Miami alcohol license after it hosted "A Drag Queen Christmas"
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The DeSantis administration had previously said it was looking into "A Drag Queen Christmas." "A Drag Queen Christmas" is a holiday-themed drag show that tours in 36 different cities and features stars from the reality show "RuPaul's Drag Race." In July 2022, the DeSantis administration filed a complaint against a Miami bar that hosted a drag show where minors were present. This year, Tennessee became the first to ban adult performances, including drag, from public spaces such as parks and schools. Public libraries across the US began facing backlash from some parents in recent years for hosting Drag Queen Story Hours.

☆ Guerrilla Gardeners Meet Billionaire Doomsayer. Hurly-Burly Ensues.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Dwight Garner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Catton resembles one of those teachers who can take a student’s simple-minded question and, without condescending, shape it into an ingenious one. The bullets really fly in “Birnam Wood.” The big explosion will probably go off. The Birnam Wood collective makes sure its apolitical Facebook page is sunny and welcoming. Birnam Wood has this cockeyed, D.I.Y. She’s aching to leave the collective, and she may not be as sensible as we think she is.

☆ Pickleball is America’s fastest-growing sport. These people hate it
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The sound and disruption from pickleball, America’s fastest-growing sport, is driving some neighbors, tennis players, parents of young children, and others crazy. Pickleball is America's fastest-growing sport. Some tennis players are also frustrated because pickleball is taking over tennis courts. There were 11,000 places to play Pickleball at the end of 2022, an increase of around 130 new locations a month, according to USA Pickleball, the sport’s national governing body. People play pickleball on what were once tennis courts at Allendale Park in Pasadena, CA, in 2022.

☆ Disney CEO Iger admits the company was 'too aggressive in its zeal to grow profits' after theme park price hikes left fans furious
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Disney CEO Bob Iger admitted Thursday the company was "too aggressive" in its theme park price hikes. Price hikes at Disney World and Disneyland even outpaced inflation over the last decade , per WSJ. The price hikes angered fans. While Disney theme park prices have been rising over the years, some fans say it's becoming increasingly unaffordable. The price hikes were on top of tighter policies for ticket holders, which angered fans.

☆ 'Kim Kardashian of the cat world': Gacek draws tourists to Polish city
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SZCZECIN, Poland, March 10 (Reuters) - Cat lovers are heading to the Polish city of Szczecin to catch a glimpse of Gacek, a chubby black-and-white feline who has become an internet sensation. Having received scores of five-star reviews, the "Kot Gacek" (Gacek the cat) pin on the map, near a shop selling bags emblazoned with the cat's face, has beaten sights including a Renaissance castle to the top spot. "Gacek is the Kim Kardashian of the cat world," Karolina Nowak, manager of the official TikTok account for the Western Pomerania region where Szczecin is located, @pomorzezachodnie, said. Gacek is not the first animal to draw tourists to a Polish city. In 2021, a golden retriever became Gdańsk’s most highly rated tourist attraction on Google.

☆ Exclusive: Colombia's Amazon reserves suffer staffing delays, risking environmental damage
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Oliver Griffin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"We (permanent staff) are few," an official at one Amazon park, who asked not to be named, told Reuters. As of Friday morning, 22 contracts for personnel for working on the national parks agency's Amazon reserves had been published via Colombia's national contracting agency. Last year, at least 107 contractors had deals for work on Amazon reserves by January, data from the agency seen by Reuters showed. The government of leftist President Gustavo Petro, who took office seven months ago and has pledged to lower deforestation, plans to initially replace annual contracts for national parks workers with four-year. Five would-be park workers told Reuters the delays meant they had been forced to find other jobs.

☆ Here’s our fourth-quarter earnings report card for all the stocks in our portfolio
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +20 min

Fourth-quarter earnings season is in the rearview mirror and most Club stocks reported results ahead of, or in line with, analysts' forecasts. Moreover, excluding foreign exchange fluctuations, this marked the ninth quarter in a row of 20% or better annual earnings growth. Nvidia (NVDA) reported a very strong quarter and better-than-expected guidance for the current quarter . Eli Lilly 's (LLY) fourth-quarter results came up a bit short on revenue but delivered a strong bottom line. Despite missing on top-line expectations, Wells Fargo 's (WFC) earnings came in better-than-expected, as the bank realized the benefits of higher interest rates .

We're buying 40 shares of Disney (DIS) at roughly $94.50 each. A cash position of nearly 9% provides us with the ability to find something to buy, and that's what we're doing Friday afternoon. DIS YTD mountain Disney (DIS) YTD performance Iger's strategy was crafted around three main features. Michael M. Santiago | Getty ImagesWe're buying 40 shares of Disney (DIS) at roughly $94.50 each. Stock Chart Icon Stock chart icon Disney (DIS) YTD performance

☆ DeSantis' hand-picked Walt Disney World oversight board meets for the first time
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Dawn Chmielewski | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Octavio JonesMarch 8 (Reuters) - A new board controlling Walt Disney World's special taxing district in Florida will meet for the first time on Wednesday, as Governor Ron DeSantis' hand-picked group gets ready to end the entertainment giant's "corporate kingdom." Nothing in the language of the legislation creating the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District gives the board of supervisors authority to direct Walt Disney Co's (DIS.N) content. "The District board members are now in place and will be examining all of the needed actions to get back on track," Bryan Griffin, a spokesman for the governor, said on Tuesday. Legislators in Florida passed a bill in February giving DeSantis effective control over a board that oversees municipal services and development in a special district that encompasses Walt Disney World resort. “Shameful to see Disney continue to use children as pawns to advance their WOKE political agenda,” Ziegler tweeted.

☆ If You’re a Foodie, You’ll Want This Cash Back Card
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

By Martha C. WhiteIf you, like many Americans, do the bulk of your credit card spending at the supermarket, Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards may be the perfect card for you. While this card’s base 1% cash back rate is unremarkable, its unlimited 3% cash back at grocery stores is the highest uncapped rate we found in the cash back category. It’s why Buy Side from WSJ named this card Best Cash Back Card for Groceries. Card details you might missWhile Buy Side from WSJ judges cash back credit cards primarily based on their cash back offers, it’s important to understand all the terms and conditions. For instance, a family with $3,000 a month in credit card spending who spent half of that amount—$1,500—on food would earn $720 a year in cash back with this card, the same as they would with Buy Side from WSJ’s Best Overall Cash Back Credit Card pick, the Wells Fargo Active Cash, which offers 2% cash back on purchases across all categories.

☆ Disney's famous Dole Whip is no longer limited to theme parks as the pineapple treat heads to grocery stores
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Nancy Luna | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The Dole Whip soft-serve cup is an iconic treat made famous by Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Dole Packaged Foods said it is making its Dole Whip treat available nationwide in grocery stores. Dole Packaged Foods, the maker of the iconic Dole Whip, announced plans on March 3 to make the frozen treat available in supermarkets nationwide. Disneyland makes various versions of the Dole Whip treat. The food stand sells the original treats – Dole Whip and the Dole Whip Float – and several new concoctions, such as the Strawberry Dole Whip Sundae and a Chile-Mango Whip.

☆ Netflix's expected password-sharing crackdown puts college students on edge
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Noah Sheidlower | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Sam Figiel, a sophomore at Mercer University in Georgia, said access to Netflix is required for many of his peers' classes. Yet the gradual password-sharing changes have created uncertainty for college students who might not have, or want to spend, disposable income for their own subscriptions. People in the 18-to-34 age group, which accounts for 30% of all Netflix users, are more likely to exchange passwords than older viewers. "There are a lot, lot, lot of U.S. users that are not paying for it, and so I think they're very sensitive to the backlash that they're going to get when they institute this," Nollen said. Staying or leavingEven if the cost of a subscription could rise for borrowers, some college students think Netflix is too important to give up.

☆ Russian state TV host claims Ukraine's allies are reduced to eating squirrels because they are spending all their money on military aid
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Russian TV host claimed that the UK is eating squirrels over Ukraine war-related food shortages. The claim appears to stem from unrelated reports advocating eating grey squirrels. Grey squirrels are an invasive species in the UK, and groups want to preserve native red squirrels. The group campaigns to preserve the country's native red squirrels, which are endangered due to competition by grey squirrels, considered a non-native invasive species. The group's remarks were reported in numerous news outlets — all in relation to efforts to cull grey squirrels without waste.

☆ UN warns of aid cuts over Taliban crackdown on women's rights
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Michelle Nichols | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The United States was the largest donor to the 2022 U.N. aid plan in Afghanistan, giving more than $1 billion. The Taliban administration, which seized power in August 2021 as U.S.-led forces withdrew from Afghanistan after 20 years of war, says it respects women's rights in accordance with its strict interpretation of Islamic law. "They systematically deprive women and girls of their fundamental human rights," United Arab Emirates U.N. "They say their elimination from public life is no better than fearing violent death," Otunbayeva told the Security Council meeting on Afghanistan, which coincided with International Women's Day. "Afghanistan under the Taliban remains the most repressive country in the world regarding women's rights," she said.

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