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☆ MTG defends her call to split up the US by saying the country is moving towards another civil war: 'We have to do something about it'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

She said the US was moving closer to a civil war and "we have to do something about it." Greene responded by saying that she doesn't want a civil war, but that the country was moving towards one and action needs to be taken. "The last thing I ever want to see in America is a civil war. "We need to separate by red states and blue states and shrink the federal government," she said. She described it not as a civil war but "a legal agreement to separate our ideological and political disagreements by states while maintaining our legal union."

☆ A 'Mean Girls' star described the career setback that made him feel like "someone had died," and the au pair job he took after playing Kevin G
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rajiv Surendra played hilariously memorable character Kevin G in "Mean Girls." He said that after 'Mean Girls,' he had a career rejection that altered the course of his life. "I worked really really hard to try to get this part. The "Mean Girls" star recognized how strange the choice seemed from the outside, looking in. "Even when we were filming 'Mean Girls,'" he said, "they called me Martha Stewart because they knew I did pottery and knitted and everything."

☆ Jena Malone said her experience as a child actor in Hollywood was uniquely positive: 'My voice was heard, validated, respected'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Jena Malone was a successful child actor who still has a noteworthy Hollywood career at 38 years old. Unlike many young actors, she always felt respected and like she had an equal voice on sets. She's a recovering perfectionist whose experiences in Hollywood led to the "pretty decent" work ethic she has now. Malone said she went through "awkward times of transformation" like most kids, but Hollywood actually didn't make things worse. It taught me so much," she said, "My voice was heard, validated, respected — I was brought to the table.

☆ To Prevent Huge Wildfires, Australia Leans More on Indigenous Experience
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Mike Cherney | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

As fire seasons lengthen, relentless wildfires such as this one northeast of Perth, Australia, in 2021, could become more common. SYDNEY—When Tremane Patterson sets fire to the countryside, the 34-year-old walks alongside the flames, using leaves and branches to put out embers and make sure the fire stays along his desired path. Mr. Patterson, from the Banbai nation, is one of many indigenous Australians seeking to reintroduce cultural burning, a practice that was widespread for thousands of years but was disrupted after Europeans colonized the continent.

☆ To Prevent Huge Wildfires, Australia Leans More on Indigenous Wisdom
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Mike Cherney | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ A proptech startup used this pitch deck to raise $5.1 million to build a LinkedIn for construction workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Contractors are challenged in hiring skilled workers. Skillit, founded in 2021, offers a platform specifically for recruiting skilled labor. The company's CEO walked Insider through a pitch deck used to raise $5.1 million in seed funding. What's more, many skilled workers are getting ready to retire. The company's first product focuses on recruiting craft workers, or construction workers who hone their skills in trade schools and apprenticeships.

☆ Oil falls on demand concerns as impact of Russian output cut fades
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Florence Tan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Oil prices eased on Monday after rising 2% in the previous session as investors shrugged off the impact of Russian output cuts, instead focusing on short-term demand concerns stemming from refinery maintenance in Asia and the United States. Brent crude futures fell 69 cents, or 0.8%, to $85.70 a barrel by 0153 GMT after a 2.2% gain on Friday. Both contracts rose more than 8% last week, buoyed by optimism over demand recovery in China, the world's top crude importer and No. China's oil demand recovery is curbing its gasoline exports in February although its refiners are maintaining diesel shipments at above 2 million tonnes. Oil prices may resume their rally back to $100 a barrel later this year on China's demand recovery and limited supply growth due to a lack of investment, OPEC country officials told Reuters.

☆ Six Raleigh, N.C., Police Officers Put on Leave After In-Custody Death
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( Arian Campo-Flores | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Raleigh, N.C., police department placed six officers on administrative leave in connection with the January arrest of a Black man who died in police custody after officers used a Taser on him, according to a memo and body-camera footage released by the department. Darryl Tyree Williams, 32 years old, was approached by police while in a parked car with a passenger late at night, according to a memo with a preliminary report of the incident written by Raleigh Police Chief Estella D. Patterson to Raleigh City Manager Marchell Adams-David that was reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. Body-camera footage shows that while detained and scuffling with police, he told them he had heart problems. After officers used a Taser on him at least three times, he became unresponsive and was pronounced dead at a hospital later that night, according to the memo.

☆ 'Suite Life of Zack and Cody' star Brenda Song opened up about trying to make it in acting as a kid: 'We had no money'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Brenda Song famously played London Tipton on "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody." Song opened up about what life was like as a child actor back then, and how her family helped. While Song had a supportive immediate family as a child actor, she opened up in an interview with Glamour about some of the struggles she faced in pursuing her childhood dream. "I have a very different experience as a child actor," Song said, "My mom had me at 17 and my dad was a teacher and still in school. That year my mom got diagnosed with breast cancer, and I booked "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" and got accepted to Harvard University, all within a few weeks."

☆ 'High School Musical' star Ashley Tisdale's favorite childhood memory was working: 'I thought that was normal for an 8-year-old'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ashley Tisdale sang and acted her way into being a household name with several iconic Disney roles. Tisdale said her favorite childhood memory was working, at 8 years old — and she knows it's weird. In a recent interview with Elle, Tisdale reflected on her Disney days and her early life as a child-actor. When asked about her favorite childhood memory, she said her happiest time was working as a kid. She's since realized that going on tour to work at such an early age, though she "absolutely loved" it, probably isn't the most normal favorite childhood memory.

☆ December consumer prices didn’t actually fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Minneapolis CNN —December consumer prices rose from the month before and did not fall as previously thought, according to revised data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Friday. The newly calibrated Consumer Price Index shows that prices rose 0.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis in December from November versus a previously estimated decline of 0.1%. The latest annual adjustments show slight shifts in the month-on-month inflation trend for 2022 — with November and October revised up by 0.1 percentage points. “This means that this 2023 CPI report will be based on consumer spending patterns that took place in 2021, as opposed to 2022’s CPI data, which was based on spending data over 2019-2020,” William Blair analyst Richard de Chazal wrote in a note Friday. Here’s how the adjusted data looks for 2022:Month: Original data vs. RevisedJanuary: 0.6% vs. 0.6%February: 0.8% vs. 0.7%March: 1.2% vs. 1%April: 0.3% vs. 0.4%May: 1% vs. 0.9%June: 1.3% vs. 1.2%July: 0.1% vs. 0%August: 0.1% vs. 0.2%September: 0.4% vs. 0.4%October: 0.4% vs. 0.5%November: 0.1% vs. 0.2%December: -0.1% vs. 0.1%

☆ Analysts bail on Lyft after latest earnings, say Uber is cementing its place as leader
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Lyft shares fell more than 30% during Friday premarket trading as traders weighed a weaker-than-expected forecast from the ridesharing company in its most recent earnings report. LYFT 1D mountain Lyft shares tumble For market observers on Wall Street, that was hardly a good enough explanation. As of Thursday's close, Lyft shares jumped more than 47%, following a 74% drop in 2022. While the analyst did not have a price target available, his previous target in January was $24 for the stock. Lastly, Loop Capital's Rob Sanderson downgraded Lyft to hold from buy, and dropped the price target to $10 from $17.

With a majority of S & P 500 companies having posted their quarterly results, investors' focus will turn toward inflation and the consumer price index reading in the upcoming week. The three major indexes are on pace to end the week down, with the S & P 500 poised to post its worst performance since December. Sharp declines for Alphabet , which is off by more than 9% this week, dragged the tech-heavy index. January's consumer price index With the latest Powell speech in the books, investors are now looking ahead to the consumer price index for insight into the pace of inflation. "Retail sales and CPI is really driven by the consumer, and a lot of eyes are on how the consumer doing," Bruno said.

☆ I landed my dream job at Disney after growing up in a refugee camp. This is how I made it to Hollywood after a childhood interrupted by war
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

She says the road to get where she is was not typical — she grew up in refugee camps in Mozambique. I'm a production coordinator on "Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur." I was hired full-time when my placement was over, and had the opportunity to interview and move over to "Moon Girl." We lived in the refugee camps. Food and water were always a source of stress when living in the refugee camps.

☆ 'Even Stevens' star on the pitfalls of childhood fame and money: 'I don't know if I'll ever not be able to think of life in a transactional way.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Romano's content rings true to that sentiment, most notably when she described how she "blew" her Disney money and shared her "salty" feelings about her former costar Shia Labeouf's success. Romano said her lack of understanding about money management was generational, saying of her parents, "I acquired their ignorance." "Something about being a child actor really made me very transactional. I don't know if I'll ever not be able to think of life in a transactional way." Romano is determined to use her experiences to benefit others and also build on her income as a social media influencer.

☆ Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan martial ruler in 9/11 wars, dies
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has died in Dubai aged 79 after a long illness, the army said on February 5, 2023. By Sept. 12, then-U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told Musharraf that Pakistan would either be "with us or against us." They regrouped and the offshoot Pakistani Taliban emerged, beginning a yearslong insurgency in the mountainous border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Though Pakistan under Musharraf launched these operations, the militants still thrived as billions of American dollars flowed into the nation. Born Aug. 11, 1943, in New Delhi, India, Musharraf was the middle son of a diplomat.

☆ 'Phil of the Future' star Raviv Ullman said he wishes he'd been more strategic in his Disney Channel days: 'I was 17. I don't think I knew how to be.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Raviv (previously known as Ricky) Ullman starred in "Phil of the Future" from 2004 to 2006. Since then he's acted in other series and films, but took some time to reflect on his Disney days. I don't think I knew how to be strategic or what that actually meant in terms of a career." Even though Ullman spent time in the "Disney Circle of Stars" in the early 2000s, he said he was rarely star-struck. "I don't think I was looking at it like, 'now I am a Disney star and will do Disney movies forever,'" but "I never consciously was trying to break out."

☆ Factbox: Bumper profits fuel surge in dividends, buybacks at oil firms
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Feb 3 (Reuters) - Energy firms are using a chunk of their bumper quarterly profits from surging natural gas and fuel prices to reward shareholders with higher dividends and share buybacks. The top 25 North American oil and gas companies by market capital posted a combined profit of $70.04 billion for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 186.3% higher than a year earlier, according to Refinitiv data. However, the record profits have renewed calls for a windfall tax, especially as sky-rocketing prices have fueled inflation around the globe. Below are some of the companies that have announced higher dividends and repurchases in recent weeks:Valero Energy Corp (VLO.N)Dividend: Increased quarterly dividend by 4.1% to $1.02 per shareNet Income in latest quarter: More than tripled to $3.11 billionExxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N)Dividend: Q4 per-share dividend of 91 cents, up 3 centsNet Income in latest quarter: Jumped 43.7% to $12.75 billionChevron Corp (CVX.N)Dividend: Raised quarterly dividend by 9 cents to $1.51 per shareShare buyback: Approves a $75 billion buyback programNet Income in latest quarter: Jumped 25.6% to $6.35 billionConocoPhillips (COP.N)Dividend: Declares variable dividend of 60 cents per shareShare buyback: Raised existing share repurchase authorization by $20 billionNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 23% to $3.2 billionCHESAPEAKE ENERGY CORP (CHK.O)Dividend: Increased total quarterly dividend to $3.16/shr from $2.32/shrNet Income in latest quarter: Stood at $883 mln, compared with $345 mln year-ago lossBAKER HUGHES CO (BKR.O)Dividend: Increased quarterly dividend by 5.5% to 19 cents per shareShare buyback: Authorized an additional $2 blnNet Income in latest quarter: Fell 38.1% to $182 millionSLB (formerly Schlumberger) (SLB.N)Dividend: Increased quarterly cash dividend 43% to $0.25 per shareShare buyback: Resumed share repurchase programNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 77.2% to $1.07 billionMarathon Petroleum Corp (MPC.N)Share buyback: Approved an additional $5 billion in stock repurchasesNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 329.1% to $3.32 billionPhillips 66 (PSX.N)Share buyback: Plans to return up to $12 bln more to shareholders by end-2024 through dividends and buybacksNet Income in latest quarter: Jumped 1241% to $5.4 billionMarathon Oil Corp (MRO.N)Dividend: Expects to raise base dividend by an additional 11% after closing the purchase of EnsignNet Income in latest quarter: Climbed 344% to $817 millionEOG Resources Inc (EOG.N)Dividend: Raised regular dividend by 10%, $1.50/shr special dividendNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 160.6% to $2.85 billionAPA Corp (APA.O)Dividend: Doubled quarterly dividend to an annualized rate of $1.00/shrNet Income in latest quarter: Stood at $422 million, compared with a loss of $113 millionCOTERRA ENERGY INC (CTRA.N)Dividend: Increased dividend by 3 cents to 68 cents/shrNet Income in latest quarter: Surged 1768.75% to $1.2 billionPATTERSON-UTI (PTEN.O)Dividend: Doubled quarterly cash dividend to 8 cents/shrShare buyback: Increased share repurchase authorization to $300 millionNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 181% to $61.5 millionTEXAS PACIFIC LAND CORP (TPL.N)Share buyback: Approved purchase of up to $250 mln worth of sharesNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 55% to $129.8 mlnCANADIAN NATURAL RESOURCES LTD (CNQ.TO)Dividend: Raised quarterly dividend by 13% to 85 Canadian cents/shrNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 27.7% to C$2.81 blnCenovus Energy Inc (CVE.TO)Dividend: Announced a variable dividend of C$0.114Share buyback: Plans to renew repurchase programNet Income in latest quarter: Climbed 192% to C$1.61 blnIMPERIAL OIL (IMO.TO)Dividend: Raised quarterly dividend by 29% to 44 Canadian cents/shrShare buyback: Announced a C$1.5 bln substantial issuer bid to buy back sharesNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 123.6% to C$2.03 blnTOURMALINE OIL CORP (TOU.TO)Dividend: Announced a special dividend of C$2.25/shr; raised quarterly dividend by 11% to 25 Canadian cents/shrNet Income in latest quarter: Rose 481% to C$2.09 blnReporting by Sourasis Bose, Ankit Kumar and Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Q&A with 'That '90s Show' star Kurtwood Smith: 'I was a little insecure on the first episode of "That '70s Show'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Kurtwood Smith played Red Forman on "That '70s Show" and reprised the role for "That '90s Show." Fans who recognize him will often come up and ask him to call them "a dumbass" just like Red would. The idea of Jackie and Fez together is pretty funny. I was a little insecure on the first episode of "That '70s Show," but I got some pretty good laughs out of it, and then it just continued on. I didn't necessarily think, "Oh, I'm pretty funny" — we had great writers on that show, and we have great writers on "That '90s Show."

chartHeadline and core PCE annual inflation rates in December were 5.0% and 4.4%, respectively. Under Chair Ben Bernanke in January 2012, the Fed formalized its annual inflation target: 2% PCE annual rate. The Fed's inflation target for 25-30 years, therefore, has been core or headline PCE of 2%, informally or formally, unwritten or written, unofficially or officially. But many rate-cutting episodes since 1990 came with PCE inflation above 2%, in some cases substantially higher. - In September 2007 the Fed started easing policy to mitigate the U.S. housing crash and global credit crunch, with rates at 4.75%.

☆ 3 arrested following fatal shooting of 11-year-old girl killed in drive-by walking home from store
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Minyvonne Burke | Minyvonne Burke Is A Senior Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Three people were arrested in the death of an 11-year-old girl who was killed in a drive-by shooting as she walked home from a nearby corner store, Syracuse, New York, police said. Brexialee Torres-Ortiz had left her home on Jan. 16 to buy a carton of milk for her family. She was returning home when the suspects allegedly opened fire from a car, targeting a 19-year-old boy. The third suspect, an unidentified 16-year-old boy, was arrested in Lincolndale, New York, with the assistance of state police, authorities in Syracuse tweeted Friday morning. Fitzpatrick said the 16-year-old was a "resident of a juvenile facility" and was on furlough from the facility on the day Brexialee was killed.

☆ 'That' 90s Show' star Debra Jo Rupp says the worst moment in her career was her audition for producer Aaron Spelling
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Debra Jo Rupp has appeared in many fan-favorite shows, like 'Friends,' and 'Grey's Anatomy.' Rupp says the worst moment of her career was in 90s LA, where she auditioned for a major producer. But in a recent interview with Chicago Tribune, Rupp opened up about the worst moment of her career — auditioning for "Beverly Hills, 90210" and "Charmed" producer Aaron Spelling. The show apparently never made it to air, but Rupp remembers the audition experience to this day. When she came back for the second audition, this time with Aaron Spelling in the room, Rupp says she had an experience that she now recalls as the worst moment in her career.

☆ Shift to Mined vs. Man-Made Graphite Raises Shortage Risk for EVs
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Scott Patterson | Amrith Ramkumar | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Rising demand for batteries is expected to fuel a shortage of graphite in the coming years. Mining companies are ramping up supplies of critical minerals for rechargeable batteries such as lithium, cobalt and nickel. Graphite, a key battery component, has largely been overlooked. Some of the world’s biggest auto and battery makers and the U.S. government are racing to secure graphite supplies amid looming signs of shortages of the mineral suitable for batteries. So far graphite prices haven’t reflected the tight supply.

☆ KeyBanc upgrades Lyft, says stock can rally more than 50% as demand stabilizes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Lyft shares could see big gains as the ride-share company cuts costs and sees demand stabilize, KeyBanc said. Analyst Justin Patterson upgraded the stock to overweight from sector weight. He also set a price target of $24, implying an upside of 55.7% over Monday's close. He also Lyft's cost-cutting actions including a 13% reduction in workforce in early November helped drive EBITDA upside. He said there's upside to current estimates due to money-saving initiatives and a recovery in the U.S. west coast market.

☆ 4 Tennessee church members were killed and their pastor was injured in a Texas plane crash
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

YOAKUM, Texas — A small plane crashed Tuesday while approaching a Texas airport, killing four members of a Tennessee church and leaving the lead pastor injured, authorities and the church said. The single-engine Piper PA-46 crashed in an open field south of an airport in Yoakum, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Harvest Church, located in the Memphis suburb of Germantown, said lead pastor Kennon Vaughan was stable at a Texas hospital. The church identified the four people killed as Bill Garner, the church’s executive vice president; Steve Tucker, a church elder; and Tyler Patterson and Tyler Springer. “All were beloved members of Harvest Church and their loss currently leaves us without the proper words to articulate our grief,” the church said on its website.

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