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☆ Norfolk Southern CEO says he supports parts of new rail safety bills
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Noah Sheidlower | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw on Wednesday told senators that his railroad company supports parts of two bipartisan rail safety bills that came in the wake of a derailment last month of a train carrying toxic materials in Ohio. Shaw did not fully endorse the Railway Safety Act, which includes provisions calling for two-person crews on all railroad locomotives. "We're not aware of any data that links crew size with safety," Shaw said Wednesday. "There are significant opportunities for advanced technology to enhance rail safety, and we encourage Congress to consider additional research into on-board rail car defect detection technology." Ohio sued Norfolk Southern last week, seeking damages, civil penalties and a "declaratory judgement that Norfolk Southern is responsible," Attorney General Dave Yost said.

☆ Norfolk Southern CEO told that railroads' planned voluntary safety improvements aren't enough
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw returns to Capitol Hill Wednesday facing pressure to support rail safety legislation proposed in the wake of his railroad’s massive toxic spill from a February 3 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. “We support legislative efforts to enhance the safety of the freight rail industry,” was the only discussion of the legislation in his prepared remarks. Shaw said the railroad would support increasing fines and penalties for people found tampering with railroad facilities and safety equipment, without endorsing proposals for potential fines on railroads found guilty of safety violations. They said residents who live near freight rail tracks can’t depend on the railroad’s voluntary measures to improve safety. Vance said it is important to raise the maximum fine for rail safety violations from the current limit of $225,455.

☆ Watch: Norfolk Southern Train Derails in Clark County, Ohio
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Alex Murdaugh Receives Life Sentence: What Happens Now? Alex Murdaugh was sentenced to life in prison after a jury convicted him of murdering his wife and son in 2021. The former South Carolina lawyer maintained his innocence during sentencing. WSJ’s Valerie Bauerlein explains some of the main takeaways. Photo: Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post and Courier/Pool

☆ How the Supreme Court may approach Biden's student-loan forgiveness plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on Tuesday on Biden's student-loan relief plan. Supporters say the relief is lawful, while opponents say Biden's policy is unconstitutional. The states claim that MOHELA will lose revenue from servicing loans because of Biden's relief. Concerning the constitutionality of Biden's plan, advocates on both sides say they feel confident their respective views will prevail at the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is expected to hand down its decisions by June.

☆ Blackstone's Ike leaves to start new investment firm
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Chibuike Oguh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Melvin Ike, a managing director in Blackstone Inc's (BX.N) tactical opportunities group, has resigned to start his own investment firm, the private equity firm told Reuters. Ike's resignation was announced during a meeting of Blackstone's tactical opportunities fund investors held last week in New York, the firm said in a statement on Tuesday. Ike's transactions for Blackstone's tactical opportunities unit include the sale of a majority stake in Wisconsin-based home improvement lender Aqua Finance for $1 billion to Apollo Global Management (APO.N) in 2021. He also led Blackstone's acquisition of a majority stake in collectibles authentication firm Certified Collectibles Group as well as the minority investments in digital marketing firm Recurrent Ventures and Cybersecurity firm Geocomply. Blackstone's tactical opportunities unit, which is run by David Blitzer, invests in assets that typically fall outside the scope of the firm's other funds, from timber and mines to oil tankers and satellites.

☆ Laid-off Googlers say they're frustrated about being treated as external candidates for internal roles even though they're still being paid
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Google told laid-off workers that they could apply for other roles at the company. Most staff are being paid until March 31 but their access to internal systems has been cut off. But laid-off workers told Insider that they are having to apply for roles as external candidates. Laid-off staff are not eligible for roles only posted for internal candidates, "so we have a much more limited pool of potential roles," she said. "We're basically being treated like outsiders who never worked at Google," Paul Baker, a laid-off video production manager, told Insider via email.

[1/3] Drone footage shows the freight train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, U.S., February 6, 2023 in this screengrab obtained from a handout video released by the NTSB. NTSBGov/Handout via REUTERSFeb 14 (Reuters) - Cleanup is moving quickly after a train carrying toxic materials derailed in Ohio 11 days ago, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said on Tuesday, while residents and observers questioned the health impacts of pollution that spilled into the Ohio River. Officials said the volume of the river diluted the plume and the plume did not pose a serious threat. UNION WARNINGSRailroad union officials said they have been warning that such an accident could happen because railroad cost-cutting harmed safety measures. "No one wants to listen until we have a town blown off the face of the earth, then people listen," said Whitaker, whose union is the largest U.S. railroad union representing conductors, engineers and other workers.

☆ Tuesday Morning says it wants to close 265 stores as part of its bankruptcy filing. See if your local store is on the list.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +30 min

Camarillo: Camarillo Village Square, 2450 Las Posas Road, Ste HCamarillo Village Square, 2450 Las Posas Road, Ste H Roseville: Fairway Commons Shopping Center, 5771A Five Star Blvd. San Diego: Pacific Plaza Shopping Center, 1772‐D Garnet AvenuePacific Plaza Shopping Center, 1772‐D Garnet Avenue Woodland Hills: Pride Shopping Center, 22950 Victory Blvd. Winston-Salem: Whitaker Square Shopping Center, 1947 North Pease Haven Road, Space #1947Whitaker Square Shopping Center, 1947 North Pease Haven Road, Space #1947 Matthews: Windsor Square Shopping Center, 9945 E. Independence Blvd. ; Westhill Village Shopping Center, 7525 WestheimerWeslayan Plaza West Shopping Center, 5442‐A Weslayan Street; Westheimer Commons, 12568 Westheimer Rd. ; Westhill Village Shopping Center, 7525 Westheimer El Paso: West Towne Marketplace, 6450 N. Desert Blvd., Ste.

☆ Laid-off Google workers say the impersonal way the company let them go shows it's 'just as cutthroat corporate as anybody else'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Laid-off Google workers were shocked that the tech giant let them go by email. "Google felt like my home," a member of Google's analytics team who'd been there for around a decade told Insider. Other laid-off workers told Insider the email layoffs "came off as lazy," showed "cowardice," and "really stunk." Two of the laid-off workers Insider spoke to said their managers had also been let go. A technical writer at Google who wasn't laid-off told Insider remaining staff feel "expendable" and were having trouble focusing.

☆ Memphis Police Department fires 6th officer involved in Tyre Nichols beating death
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-04 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Memphis Police Department fired a sixth officer involved in Tyre Nichols' death. Five Memphis officers have already been fired and charged with second-degree murder in Nichols' death. Hemphill was the third officer at a traffic stop that preceded the violent arrest but was not where Nichols was beaten. Also Friday, a Tennessee board suspended the emergency medical technician licenses of two former Memphis Fire Department employees for failing to render critical care. The department has said she remained in the engine with the driver during the response to Nichols' beating Jan. 7.

☆ 2 EMTs had their licenses suspended for failing to give critical care to Tyre Nichols after he was beaten by police
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | Michelle Mark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Tennessee medical board suspended two EMTs for failing to provide life-saving medical care to Tyre Nichols. The Memphis Fire Department had already fired the EMTs, as well as a lieutenant, earlier this week. Tyre Nichols died in the hospital three days after being beaten by five Memphis police officers now charged with murder. The Tennessean reported that the medical board watched a 19-minute video showing the EMTs pacing and standing around while Nichols collapsed and writhed on the ground. Attorneys for Nichols' family have said an independent autopsy indicated that Nichols died from "extensive bleeding" after the beating.

☆ This Y Combinator-backed startup wants to help scale the nascent insect protein sector. Check out the 15-slide pitch deck Entocycle used to raise $5 million.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Insect protein could displace 20% of the UK's annual soy imports for animal feed by 2050. We got an exclusive look at the 15-slide deck Entocycle used to raise the Series A round. A Y Combinator-backed startup that has developed insect farming technology to help scale the nascent sector has just nabbed $5 million from European climate tech fund Climentum Capital. Insect protein has long been tipped as a way to alleviate pressure on the food system amid a growing population that is also grappling with climate change. Global insect protein startups raised just $146 million in venture capital in 2022, compared with $200 million the year prior, according to PitchBook.

☆ The EMTs dispatched to help Tyre Nichols after he was beat and pepper-sprayed have been fired, according to the Memphis Fire Department
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Two Memphis Fire Department personnel who responded to the incident that led to the death of Tyre Nichols on January 7 have been fired, the department announced Monday. EMTs Robert Long and JaMicheal Sandridge, and Lieutenant Michelle Whitaker "failed to conduct an adequate patient assessment" on Nichols and violated "numerous MFD" policies and protocols, according to a press release from the MFD. —Memphis Fire Department (@MEM_Fire) January 30, 2023This story is developing. Please check back for updates.

☆ Memphis fires two EMTs who responded to police beating of Tyre Nichols
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 30 (Reuters) - The Memphis Fire Department on Monday said it had fired two emergency medical technicians and an emergency vehicle driver who responded to the brutal police beating of Tyre Nichols, saying an investigation had found they failed to provide adequate medical care. Nichols, 29, arrived at a hospital in critical condition after several officers punched and kicked him and hit him with a baton, and died three days later from his injuries. EMTs Robert Long and JaMichael Sandridge "failed to conduct an adequate patient assessment" upon seeing the injured Nichols a few minutes after police had stopped beating him, Fire Chief Gina Sweat said in a statement. Michelle Whitaker, a lieutenant in the fire department, drove them to the scene and remained in the vehicle after arriving. Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Editing by Mark Porter and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A Google engineer says survivors of the mass layoffs cried in meetings the day around 12,000 of their colleagues were culled
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Google engineer said survivors of the recent mass layoffs cried in meetings the day of the cull. Laid-off Google staff in the US woke up on January 20 to an email saying they'd been cut, though some found out through messages from concerned colleagues. Several laid-off staff told Insider they'd been overwhelmed by offers of help from current and former staff, such as offers to share résumés. Xoogler, a community of former Google staff, has organized mental-health and immigration-advice sessions. "I miss my colleagues," Jarrod Ahalt, a laid-off security engineer, told Insider.

☆ Dr Pepper forced to give $100K prize to BOTH contestants after boos erupt following odd tie-breaker at SEC championship halftime contest
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Bethany Biron | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Dr Pepper drew scorn for its handling of a college tuition giveaway during halftime of the SEC championship game. "Well, you all saw the unprecedented double tie of the Dr Pepper halftime tuition giveaway," Dell said. "We 've just been told by Dr Pepper that they're going to award both finalists $100,000. Congratulations, ladies, and great job by Dr Pepper there." Keurig Dr Pepper, the brand's parent company, has held the contest since 2008 and given away a total of $13 million in college tuition.

☆ COP27 climate talks seen as key to success at next month's U.N. nature summit
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Gloria Dickie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"Climate change is one of the big drivers of biodiversity loss," said David Cooper, the deputy chief of U.N.'s Convention on Biological Diversity. "If we don't have successful outcomes in the climate process, then we cannot halt biodiversity loss," Cooper said. "You cannot have a dream of coping with climate change only through the emissions," Virginijus Sinkevičiu, European Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, told Reuters. "If ecosystems are not able to cope, you don't have a success story" in fighting climate change. President Xi Jinping has not attended the climate talks in Sharm el-Sheikh and is also not expected to attend COP15.

☆ Ranking America's Companies, One Data Point at a Time
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailRanking America's Companies, One Data Point at a TimeJUST Capital is an independent non-profit that measures American corporate stakeholder performance across a range of issues and ranks companies accordingly. In this conversation, we'll talk with JUST Capital CEO Martin Whitaker about the firm's latest research and what it tells us about where work is headed.

☆ Los Angeles’ Nury Martinez’s shocking anti-Black remarks hurt at the deepest level
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Amir Whitaker | Amir Whitaker Is Senior Policy Counsel With The Aclu Of Southern California. Before Joining The Aclu | Whitaker Represented Students | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Many of us in Los Angeles are still in shock from the recently leaked audio recording of politicians spewing racist and hateful language. It laid bare the true colors of four of the most influential Latinx leaders in the country, whose collective power affects nearly 4 million Angelenos. But this is Los Angeles, one of the most diverse cities in the world. Hearing a public servant in one of the most powerful seats in our city government fantasize about committing violence against a Black child was extremely troubling. I get anxious just thinking about having to explain to my Black child what they need to know to survive in America.

☆ Apartment demand unexpectedly fell during its busiest season, according to a new report
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-06 | by ( Diana Olick | In Dianaolick | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The third quarter of every year is historically the busiest for apartment rentals, but demand fell this year, according to RealPage. Demand fell by more than 82,000 units nationally, according to the report. "If jobs and wages continue to hold up as they have and inflation cools to some degree, we should see pent-up rental demand unlocked ahead of the spring 2023 leasing season," Parsons said. There's still one red flag for investors in apartment stocks, though: Apartment construction is now at a 40-year high. And with apartment supply set to start increasing, it's unlikely we'll see rents reaccelerate even as demand returns."

☆ An advisor to the January 6 committee said Mark Meadows' texts provide 'irrefutable' proof of a comprehensive plot to overturn the 2020 election
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Denver Riggleman said texts from Mark Meadows showed a "roadmap" to overturning the election. Meadows was receiving texts about the alternate electors plot just days after the election. He said Meadows' texts showed a "roadmap" for how allies of former President Donald Trump were trying to overturn the election. Host Bill Whitaker asked Riggleman to confirm his belief that Meadows' texts "provide irrefutable, time-stamped proof of a comprehensive plot at all levels of government to overturn the election." Insider previously compiled a list of all the texts Meadows had received while the January 6 insurrection was unfolding.

"Andor," the latest series in the "Star Wars" franchise, hits Disney Plus on September 21. The sci-fi adventure is a prequel to "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story." How to watch 'Andor'You can watch "Andor" exclusively on Disney Plus. Based on the runtimes of similar "Star Wars" series on Disney Plus, each episode will likely be about 35-45 minutes long. Season one of "Star Wars Rebels" is set within the same year as "Andor," so the two shows have parallel timelines.

☆ Meet 16 top reverse-logistics leaders tackling retail's $761 billion e-commerce returns problem
▼ + stars: | 2022-07-15 | by ( Emma Cosgrove | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

Becca Meinz, the vice president of end-to-end supply chain at Best BuyBecca Meinz is the vice president of the end-to-end supply chain for Best Buy. Steve Lewis, the senior vice president of commercial strategy at GXOSteve Lewis is the senior vice president for commercial strategy at GXO. Kraig Foreman, the president of e-commerce at DHL Supply Chain North AmericaKraig Foreman is the president of e-commerce at DHL Supply Chain North America. Eduardo Vilar, the senior vice president of merchant solutions at AffirmEduardo Vilar is the senior vice president of merchant solutions at Affirm. Glen Sutton, the executive vice president at Ceva LogisticsGlen Sutton is an the executive vice president at Ceva Logistics.

☆ Mercadolibre, Brazilian airline Gol announce logistics partnership
▼ + stars: | 2022-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterAn aircraft of Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA prepares to depart from Congonhas airport in Sao Paulo, Brazil September 11, 2017. REUTERS/Paulo Whitaker/File PhotoSAO PAULO, April 19 (Reuters) - Mercadolibre Inc (MELI.O) and Brazilian airline Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA (GOLL4.SA) on Tuesday announced a 10-year logistics partnership for cargo transportation in the South American country. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterWith the deal, Gol said it expects its logistics unit GOLLOG to add 100 million reais ($21.43 million) in revenue in 2022 and 1 billion reais over a five-year period. The airline also said it will save about 25 million reais in 2022 and 75 million reais in 2023 thanks to the partnership, as it updates its aircraft fleet. ($1 = 4.6654 reais)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Aluisio Alves; writing by Gabriel Araujo; editing by Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ CBS News is mulling a shakeup to its anchor lineup
▼ + stars: | 2021-09-25 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The talks are leading to speculation about potential changes for CBS star anchors Gayle King and Norah O'Donnell. CBS News is mulling changes to its talent lineup. One plugged-in TV executive hears that CBS is looking to create a broader or cross-company deal for King, though. CBS News is also circling NBC talent including MSNBC host Brian Williams and "Today" co-anchor Craig Melvin. A CBS executive shot down speculation, saying: "No one on that list is moving forward into an anchor job here, and Bill Whitaker already has one of the best anchor jobs in the business."

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