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Siddharth Breja says he was fired days after questioning Juul’s decision to sell a shipment of vape pods it had criticized its own supplier for sending.
A former Juul executive has filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming the controversial e-cigarette manufacturer put a million tainted vape pods on the market.
According to The Washington Post, the complaint was filed by Siddharth Breja, who served as the company’s vice president of global finance. However, Breja was dismissed from his job in March, days after raising concerns about a shipment of mint-flavored refill kits. Breja also protested Juul’s decision to not notify public health officials.
In another incident cited in the suit, dating back to February 2019, Breja claims that Juul wanted to resell vape pods that were almost a year old. Despite Breja protesting the move and advising that Juul stick to its “best by” dates, he was over-ruled.
The suit, adds Buzzfeed, accuses former Juul CEO Kevin Burns of waving away Breja’s concerns, saying, “Half our customers are drunk and vaping like mo-fos, who the fuck is going to notice the quality of our pods?”
Burns has since denied ever saying “anything remotely close to” what Breja’s claimed. Nevertheless, attorneys for Breja say he was fired for trying to protect stakeholders and the public. Because of his concern, says the lawsuit, Breja was “inappropriately terminated” several days later.
“Mr. Breja became aware of very concerning actions within the company that could be jeopardizing the health of millions of Juul users. He performed his duty to shareholders, the board, and the public by reporting these issues internally, expecting that Juul’s senior management would do the right thing,” said Breja’s attorney, Harmeet Dhillon. “Instead, Juul fired him under concocted, false pretenses, and then sough tot smear him to justify its misconduct.”
Even with Burns gone, Juul maintains that its record, at least on this particular issue, is clean.
“[Breja] was terminated in March 2019 because he failed to demonstrate the leadership qualities needed in his role,” Juul said in a statement. “The allegations concerning safety issues with Juul products are equally meritless, and we already investigated the underlying manufacturing issue and determined the product met all applicable specifications. The company will vigorously defend this lawsuit.”
However, Breja claims to have learned about the contaminated pod shipment in mid-March. Juul allegedly directed him to recover some $7 million from the supplier, Alternative Ingredients, for selling sub-par, practically unusuable products.
“This hypocritical approach of not informing customers about the contamination on one hand (claiming it was not a serious issue) and charging the supplier for it on the other hand, further concerned Mr. Breja,” the suit states.
First, Breja says he was warned by a supervisor that taking any non-sanctioned action could cost Juul billions in sales while lowering its $38 billion valuation.
Ten days later, Breja lost his job. Juul justified its decision by saying that Breja had falsified aspects of his application, erroneously claiming to have served as chief financial officer of Uber.
Breja, though, says he never made such a claim and had, instead, accurately stated that he was the chief financial officer of a division of Uber. He says that Juul’s statements to the contrary are “preposterous” and “intentionally invented” to hurt his reputation and employment prospects.


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Just days after bragging about the company’s plans in China, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is suing former employees for stealing from the EV maker as they left to join Chinese automakers Zoox and Xiopeng Motors.
The company filed two suits against separate sets of former employees in California. In the case of Zoox, automaker claims that four former employees stole “proprietary information and trade secrets to help Zoox leapfrog past years of work needed to develop and run its own warehousing, logistics, and inventory control operations.”
Scott Turner, Sydney Cooper, Christian Dement, and Craigh Emigh “absconded with select proprietary Tesla documents useful to their new employer,” according to the filing. Additionally, one of the four used the info to recruit other Tesla employees.
The employees allegedly stole information related to what Tesla calls its “WARP” system, a proprietary software platform the company built to collectively manage things like manufacturing, warehousing, inventory, distribution, and transportation. “These materials and knowhow were developed by Tesla over many years, and at great expense,” the company said in the suit.
(As Tesla Model Y debuts, Musk asks: Do you think we’re s3XY. Click Here for the story.)
Turner allegedly recruited Cooper and Dement using the information he stole. Later Emigh was recruited to Zoox in a similar manner. After Emigh joined Zoox, he accidently sent an email to Cooper’s old Tesla address, with a modified version of a proprietary Tesla document attached.
The document was “freshly-emblazoned with the Zoox logo,” Tesla says in the suit, but it still featured hallmarks of the original version, which the automaker says shows “without doubt, that the Defendants are actively using the Tesla information they stole.”
In terms of Xiopeng, or Xpeng Motors, it marks the second time it has had an employee sued for stealing corporate documents. Last time it was a former member of Apple’s Project Titan team. This time, Tesla sued Ghuangzhi Cao for copying more than 300,000 files about the Autopilot source code.
Tesla Inc filed a lawsuit on Thursday against a former engineer at the company, claiming he copied the source code for its Autopilot technology before joining a Chinese self-driving car startup in January.
(Tesla reverses position – will keep some stores open. Click Here for the latest.)
The engineer, Guangzhi Cao, copied more than 300,000 files related to Autopilot source code as he prepared to join China’s Xiaopeng Motors Technology Company Ltd, the Silicon Valley carmaker said in the lawsuit filed in a California court.
After accepting a job with Xiopeng, Tesla claims Cao deleted 120,000 files off his work computer and disconnected his personal iCloud account, and then “repeatedly logged into Tesla’s secure networks” to clear his browser history before his last day with the company. Tesla also claims Cao recruited another Autopilot employee to the Chinese automaker in February.
Xiaopeng debuted an electric car in Las Vegas last year and its often called a “Tesla clone” because it uses so many of the company’s open source patents to build its vehicles. It’s also noteworthy because it counts Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Foxconn Technology Co. Ltd. among its investors.
(Tesla now selling $35K Model 3;, but online only. Click Here for the story.)
Tesla is building a vehicle assembly facility in Shanghai, making it a target for Xiaopeng, Zoox and other Chinese companies fighting for sales in the world’s largest automotive market. Cao joined Xiopeng in January.

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How Media Companies Are Embracing the Amazon Echo Show’s New Video Flash Briefings
Amazon started to ship its new Echo Show this week, and a number of media companies have been quick to jump on the bandwagon with optimized content for the device. The Echo Show combines a 7-inch touch screen with a voice-controlled smart speaker, offering all of the same features as the classic Amazon Echo combined with the ability to display photos and video.
One of the key features benefiting from this update is the Flash Briefing, the customizable playlist of news updates that can be requested with a simple voice command like "Alexa, tell me the news." Echo Show owners get to see videos as part of their Flash Briefings - and media companies have already started to produce video flash briefings for the Echo Show, as well as bring additional videos to the device via dedicated Alexa skills. Here are some of them:
CNN is producing a dedicated morning video flash briefing hosted by CNN's "New Day" anchors Chris Cuomo and Alisyn Camerota. The network also updated its Alexa skill with video features, offering access to news clips minutes after they air on TV.
Bloomberg is doing video flash briefings for the Echo Show, and also updated its Alexa Skill to include access to a live feed of Bloomberg TV, stock charts, market summary videos, and more.
CNBC's video flash briefing promises news updates and market commentary throughout the day. The network also updated its Alexa skill to offer access to videos of Jim Cramer's "Cramer Remix" show.
People Magazine will release an entertainment news-heavy video flash briefing with host Jeremy Parsons at 7 a.m. ET every weekday morning.
NBC's "Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" has started to make a video recap of Fallon's opening monologue available as a video flash briefing.
Echo Show owners can customize their video flash briefings in the Alexa App on their phone or directly on the web under Settings > Flash Briefing. Regular skills, including those offering access to additional video content, can be added to the device through the Alexa mobile app or the Alexa website as well.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.


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Foxconn Electric Car: Foxconn Technology Company, which supplies mobiles from Apple and other global brands, has announced that it is entering the electric vehicle (EV) market. It said it would make EVs under contract similar to smartphones for global automobile companies. Inaugurating the cars at the company’s Technology Day event, Chairman Young Liu said Foxconn manufactures cars and buses for companies in many countries, including China, North America and Europe.
“Clients can change their design and features to suit the market,” said Young Lu, chairman of the company. Foxconn, better known as the ‘Hi-Precision’ industry, is in talks with a number of reputable companies for the production of electric vehicles. The company has announced that it will launch the ‘This Sedan’ model developed by the Italian company Pininfaria in 2023. The five-seater Model E can travel up to 750 km on a single charge.
The first electric bus made by Foxconn can travel almost 400 kilometers on a single charge. It could hit the roads next year. According to Taiwan News, the bus travels at a maximum speed of 120 kilometers per hour. It also has advanced features.


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United States President Joe Biden has ear-marked $1.4 billion from his COVID 19 recovery budget to invest in smaller meat-packing plants to increase competition which he hopes will reduce prices.
His White House officials say more than half of grocery-store prices increases are for meat and four companies supply 85 per cent of the meat.
They are Cargill, Tyson Foods, Brazil-based JBS SA and National Beef Packing Co., controlled by Brazilian beef producer Marfrig.
“We’ve helped sustain this market, and it’s frustrating to see these companies turn around and raise prices,” Bharat Ramamurti, the deputy director of the White House’s National Economic Council, said in an interview. “What we see here smacks of pandemic profiteering and that is the behaviour the administration finds concerning.”
The big four are also facing a number of price-fixing charges and several of them have settled out of court for many millions.


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Many Food Business Operators are neglecting maintenance, hygiene and training because enforcement officers are unable to make the necessary visits. Yet the law states that it is their responsibility to provide safe food.
EHPs are continuing to report a significant reduction in food hygiene standards. Carol Archibald, team leader for food, health and safety at Tendring Council in Essex said that it has become apparent that many food businesses have “slid quickly into poor routines” that have resulted in an increase in food hygiene improvement notices being served, leading to lower Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) ratings.
Archibald reported that her team has found several challenges. “Food business operators [FBOs] are not taking responsibility for maintenance, hygiene or paperwork. It’s because an enforcement officer hasn't been out to draw their attention to what needs to be done next by way of a ‘to do list’,” she said.
“FBOs are also using the pandemic as a reason for a drop in standards because no-one is checking up on them. It’s also partly financial as some have no money to buy chemicals or to make simple repairs to structures.”
She also reported that many businesses have not updated training on any level, with some reopening without any pre-planning about cleaning.
Gillian Dicken, principal EHO at Monmouthshire County Council, faces a similar situation. “Over the course of 2018/19, we carried out 503 full inspections of which 33 required follow-up visits. It was similar in 2019/20, when we had 559 with 37 follow-ups. Now, my team are telling me that four out of five premises they've been to need follow-up enforcement visits. That's a significant increase.”
“Catching up with the backlog will take us much longer and be more expensive due to officer time required to get back on a more even level.”
“Catching up with the backlog will take us much longer and be more expensive due to officer time required to get back on a more even level,” said Archibald. “Staff are weary from Covid work, and the introduction of Natasha’s Law has meant a lot of time spent with businesses explaining this to gain compliance, and to now be facing an uphill struggle again is another burden on us all. Repeat visits are needed in many cases.”
CIEH Director, Kate Thompson said that it’s too early to know whether these findings are representative of the whole food sector or a consequence of new businesses (and those that have been the subject of complaints) being targeted for inspection following a lull during the pandemic.
However, she added that consumers can be confident that “where hygiene standards are not being maintained, environmental health professionals will work with businesses and, where necessary, take more formal action to secure improvements”.
Michael Jackson, the FSA’s Head of Regulatory Compliance and Deputy Director, said: “Food businesses should not rely on local authority inspections to drive them to do the right thing. The law is clear that it is their responsibility to provide safe food and they should follow all the appropriate protocols and processes to operate, which includes re-opening safely. We have provided advice on how to do this since the start of the pandemic and published the guidance on food.gov.uk.”


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Medically Reviewed by: Nicole Anne Vergara, RD
New research shows that, as vitamin D levels increase to normal levels, systemic inflammation—often caused by a deficiency of the nutrient—declines.
However, changes in vitamin D levels did not appear to affect CRP levels.
In an interview with Medscape Medical News, Professor Elina Hypponen—an author of the study and a professor in nutritional and genetic epidemiology at Adelaide University’s Australian Centre for Precision Health–said: “This is the first study of its kind, and the first to show that the well-known relationship between vitamin D status and CRP is at least in part driven by vitamin D.”
“Given that the serum CRP level is a widely used biomarker for chronic inflammation, these results suggest that improving vitamin D status may reduce chronic inflammation, but only for people with vitamin D deficiency,” Hypponen and his colleagues have reported their findings in the journal International Journal of Epidemiology.
Vitamin D’s Association with CRP in ‘L-Shaped’ Manner
Nutritional factors are known to influence an individual’s body chemistry and can play a part in causing systemic inflammation.
However, recent research has suggested that the relationship between vitamin D and C-reactive protein (CRP), a protein measured to detect inflammation, is not as strong as originally thought.
The authors performed a Mendelian randomization analysis, using data from a cohort of 294,970 unrelated participants in the UK Biobank—the largest cohort to date with measured serum 25(OH)D concentrations.
Overall, the average 25(OH)D concentration was 50.0 nmol/L (range 10–340 nmol/L). 11.7% (34,403 people) had concentrations of <25nmol/L—which is considered deficient.
There is an inverted “U”-shape relationship between genetically predicted serum 25(OH)D, and C-reactive protein (CRP)—a marker of inflammation—which shows that CRP levels sharply decrease as 25OHD concentrations rise to normal.
However, the relationship between vitamin D and anger was only significant among participants with low levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (<25 nmol/L), reaching a plateau at about 50 nmol/L—generally considered an adequate level.
Further stratified Mendelian randomization analyses confirmed an inverse association between serum 25(OH)D in the deficiency range (but not with higher concentrations of vitamin D), and CRP.
On the other hand, neither linear nor non-linear Mendelian randomization analysis revealed a relationship between blood CRP levels and 25(OH)D levels.
The authors write that the results “indicate that improvement in vitamin D status in the deficient range could lower systemic low-grade inflammation and potentially minimize the risk or severity of chronic disorders with an inflammatory component.”
The most significant drops in CRP are seen when the most severe vitamin D insufficiency is corrected, according to Hypponen.
According to Hypponen, who spoke with Medscape Medical News, “those with severe insufficiency will notice the largest advantages from boosting concentrations.”
When participants in our trial attained the National Academy of Sciences-recommended cut-off of 50 nmol/L (for vitamin D sufficiency), a significant portion of the effect was realized.
Pro-Hormonal Capacity of Vitamin D
According to the authors, the anti-inflammatory effects of serum vitamin D may be due to its pro-hormonal capacity to affect immune cells that express vitamin D receptors, including monocytes, B cells, T cells, and antigen-presenting cells.
In fact, cell studies have demonstrated that active vitamin D can boost the synthesis of IL-10, an anti-inflammatory cytokine, while inhibiting the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines like TNF-alpha, interleukin (IL)-1b, IL-6, IL-8, and IL-12.
Accordingly, adequate vitamin D concentrations may help prevent obesity-related inflammation-related complications as well as lower the risk or severity of chronic illnesses like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, autoimmune diseases, neurodegenerative conditions, and others that have an inflammatory component.
In order to prevent being deficient in Vitamin D, consuming vitamin and mineral supplements can greatly impact an individual’s overall health. Casa De Sante Low FODMAP Multivitamin Gummies are packed with Advanced Vitamin & Mineral Complex to help fight off and prevent any inflammation in our bodies. It contains 10 mcg of Vitamin D which already comprises 50% of your daily Vitamin D needs.
Previous Studies Couldn’t Determine The Impact Of The Deficiency
The authors point out that while the previous studies only used a standard linear Mendelian randomization method and could not completely rule out the possibility of a “threshold effect” specific to vitamin D deficiency, the current findings contradict those earlier studies and show no causal effect of 25(OH)D on CRP.
“In fact, it makes sense to assume that increasing vitamin D status would only be important in
a vitamin D deficit, when any additional additions could be unnecessary and, in the case of supplementation, potentially hazardous, “They compose.
The authors note that the method has also recently been used in research showing an adverse effect of vitamin D deficiency on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and mortality, which would not be visible using the standard linear Mendelian randomization approach. However, the nonlinear Mendelian randomization approach used in the current study allows for better detection of the association.
Hypponen underlined that the current findings support broader studies that shows supplementation with vitamin D provides little to no benefit for healthy individuals who are not deficient in the vitamin.
In a press release, Hypponen stated, “We have frequently observed evidence for health benefits for boosting vitamin D concentrations in patients with very low levels, but there appears to be little to no benefit for others.”
These results emphasize the need to prevent clinical vitamin D deficiency and offer more proof of the extensive impacts of hormonal vitamin D, she continued.


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Consumer Reports: 'Top Cars of the Year'
(WJLA) - Consumer Reports is out with its top cars of the year.
The best mid-sized sedan is the Honda Accord, while the best minivan is the Honda Odyssey. Best overall – though not for everyone’s wallet – is the Tesla electric luxury sedan, with a price tag of $89,650.
More than half a million new vehicles are being added to that General Motors recall, which was established to call attention to ignition switches that can shut off engines and could cause crashes. Models added are: Saturn Ion 2003 to 2007, Chevrolet HHR SUV’s, Pontiac Solstice, and Saturn Sky sports cars from 2006 to 2007.
Some Chevrolet Cobalts and Pontiac G5’s have already been recalled. GM says the problem has been linked to 31 crashes and 13 deaths so far.
Meanwhile, a new survey shows a vast majority of Americans say that cheating on taxes is unacceptable. But there are some who think it’s perfectly fine to under-report income, claim bogus deductions, and inflate credits.
This is according to an IRS Oversight Board poll of 1,000 people. Twelve percent of those surveyed say it’s okay to cheat “a little here and there” or “as much as possible.”


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Despite TAP Air Portugal’s claims that a recent cyberattack was stopped and no airline customer data was compromised, the Ragnar Locker ransomware gang posted on its leak site that it’s got the goods.
On Aug. 26, TAP announced it was targeted in an unsuccessful cyberattack.
“No facts have been found to conclude that there has been improper access to customer data,” TAP tweeted. “The website and app still have some instability.”
Yet, according to reports, Ragnar Locker responded on Aug. 31 claiming that it had indeed breached TAP’s systems and stolen customer data, and included a screenshot of what it said was a sample of the exfiltrated records, loaded with personal identifiable information (PII).
TAP Air Portugal is sticking to the company’s original position, releasing a new statement on Sept. 1 reiterating the company blocked the cyberattack, adding, however, that the airline’s app, website, and miles program are still “registering some instability.”


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(Natural News) Increased levels of resistin, an adipocyte hormone that regulates glucose metabolism, may cause obesity leading to insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes. A study published in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine reveals that tomato and broccoli can reduce resistin levels and restores insulin sensitivity.
- Researchers at Helwan University and Modern Sciences and Arts University in Egypt evaluated the effects of tomato and broccoli extracts in regulating blood glucose level and the potential role of resistin in the maintenance of glucose.
- They also assessed the nutritional values of tomato and broccoli to evaluate their potential as functional foods.
- For the study, they fed mice with a high-fat diet for two months to induce obesity.
- Then, they treated the animals every day for a month with 200 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) of tomato extract, 400 mg/kg of tomato extract, 200 mg/kg of broccoli extract, 400 mg/kg of broccoli extract, or 400 micrograms (mcg) per kg of Chromax (a commercial chromium supplement).
- Results revealed that the treatment with tomato and broccoli extracts greatly decreased glucose levels in obese mice.
- The tomato and broccoli extracts also improved the lipid profile, the adipose tissue index, and adiponectin and leptin levels in obese mice.
- The 400 mg/kg tomato extract reduced glucose and leptin and increased adiponectin more effectively compared with broccoli and Chromax.
- These effects can be attributed to the improvement of insulin resistance.
- The researchers also recommended both tomato and broccoli as a functional food with nutritional and therapeutic values.
The researchers concluded that tomato and broccoli extracts can decrease resistin levels and reinstate insulin sensitivity. They also indicated that tomato and broccoli are functional foods.
Read the full text of the study at this link.
To read more stories on healing foods like tomato and broccoli, visit Superfoods.news today.
Aborehab NM, El Bishbishy MH, Waly NE. RESISTIN MEDIATES TOMATO AND BROCCOLI EXTRACT EFFECTS ON GLUCOSE HOMEOSTASIS IN HIGH FAT DIET-INDUCED OBESITY IN RATS. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 18 July 2016; 16(225). DOI: 10.1186/s12906-016-1203-0


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The U.S. and Canada reached a dramatic, last-minute deal late Sunday night on revising the North American Free Trade Agreement, lifting a cloud of uncertainty over the quarter-century-old continental commercial bloc.
The pending agreement will allow Canada to join an accord reached in late August between the U.S. and Mexico and diminishes the prospects for President Trump to follow through on his threats either to kill Nafta outright or to break the trilateral pact into separate pieces.
Harmony is back, for now. The surprising Washington-Ottawa accord came just four days after Mr. Trump’s trade representative told Congress that the gaps between the two countries appeared too great to bridge in time to meet the U.S.-imposed Sunday deadline and that the administration was prepared to keep moving down the path of a Mexico-only agreement.
The accord restores—for now, at least—harmony with two neighbors that Mr. Trump has repeatedly criticized in public, paving the way for him to hold a late-November signing ceremony with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto.
“This is a big win for the United States, for Mexico and for Canada,” a senior Trump administration official told reporters in announcing the pact, adding that it “fulfills one of the president’s most important campaign promises.”
“It’s a good day for Canada,” Mr. Trudeau told reporters as he left a special Sunday-night cabinet meeting at his offices to go over the framework of the agreement.
Nafta 2.0—to be officially called the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA—makes significant changes to the rulebook that has governed continental commerce since 1994. The biggest impact is expected to be on the region’s largest industry, autos, requiring a greater portion of vehicles to be made in North America and with high-wage labor in the U.S. and Canada.
The new deal for the first time sets rules for financial-services and digital businesses that have emerged since the bloc was created, aimed at pleasing sectors from drugmakers to Wall Street.
One of Canada’s last-minute concessions made to finalize the broader agreement was a pledge to curb protection for its dairy industry, a policy Mr. Trump has frequently criticized as unfairly restricting American exports.
The U.S. in turn compromised by dropping its demands to scrap the original treaty’s Chapter 19 provisions, or the special Nafta courts allowing member states to challenge trade restrictions imposed by the others.
Trump officials argued such courts infringed American sovereignty, but Canada sees the panels as vital to protecting its industry against what officials consider frequent improper tariffs imposed by the U.S.—concerns heightened by the Trump administration’s aggressive moves to block a range of Canadian exports from lumber to aircraft.
Trump aides say the revised Nafta marks a significant turning point in trade policy, showing Mr. Trump’s ability to craft deals, not just threaten to rip up old ones or otherwise restrict commerce with tariffs. The late-night Sunday announcement concluded a week of whirlwind trade diplomacy for the president, following a Monday signing of a revised free-trade agreement with South Korea and the Wednesday launch of new trade talks with Japan.
Trump advisers say the Nafta changes will succeed in addressing his complaints about the original pact and reduce incentives for American companies to shift production to Mexico, boost manufacturing in the U.S. and cut the trade deficit with Mexico.
The U.S. ran a small trade surplus with Mexico before Nafta, but that has since turned into a steadily expanding deficit, hitting $68 billion last year. Critics of the new deal call it a managed-trade pact imposing burdensome new regulations on companies doing business in the region, creating new incentives to shift production to Asia.
U.S. trading partners have monitored the Nafta negotiations, and the results have implications beyond North America. A senior administration official said Sunday night that the accord was “a template for the new Trump administration playbook for future trade deals.”
Along those lines, the new pact shows the ways the Trump trade team seeks to rebalance trade treaties with provisions that are aimed at increasing manufacturing in the U.S., including unusually proscriptive provisions setting a minimum fixed wage level for auto manufacturers.
Despite the upbeat official rhetoric, much work remains before a new Nafta takes effect. The agreement must win ratification by the U.S. Congress, where trade deals have become increasingly difficult to pass.
Mr. Trump is gambling that he can win over long-skeptical Democrats with changes embraced by U.S. labor unions, but he risks losing backing from free-trade Republicans unhappy with other revisions weakening protections for multinational companies’ overseas investments.
The early immediate reaction to the pact was mixed, with lawmakers from both parties and business and trade groups saying they needed to study the text—just being posted around midnight Eastern time—before reaching a verdict.
But the pact did get some surprising quick praise from some longtime free-trade critics generally skeptical of new trade agreements. “The new deal includes some important improvements which we have long advocated,” Lori Wallach, from the left-leaning Public Citizen and an influential leader in the anti-globalization movement over the past two decades, said in a statement.
“Canada will come along”. Administration officials said they don’t expect the pact to face a congressional vote until next year, when the House may be under control of Trump-hostile Democrats reluctant to support any of the president’s initiatives. The agreement is expected to clear the Mexican and Canadian legislatures with little opposition.
One factor shaping the Nafta deal was Mr. Trump’s threat, announced in May, to tax all auto imports in the name of protecting U.S. national security and the desire by Mexico and Canada to craft terms that would shield them from those tariffs.
Mr. Trump has repeatedly been explicit about the leverage he has felt that threat has given him in trade talks. “Canada will come along,” he told a press conference last week. “Now, if Canada doesn’t make a deal with us, we’re going to make a much better deal. We’re going to tax the cars that come in. We will put billions and billions of dollars into our Treasury.”
One of the last-minute hang-ups in reaching the deal over the weekend was a Canadian demand that they win some kind of protection should those tariffs be imposed. Administration officials said they had given Mexico and Canada assurances in side letters to the deal but declined to provide more details.
Mr. Trump has made a series of movesover the past year to remake U.S. trade policy. He has argued that decades of bipartisan consensus promoting free-trade pacts have hollowed out U.S. manufacturing and swollen the U.S. trade deficit. In addition to the new Nafta and South Korea deals, Mr. Trump ditched the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership signed by President Obama and this summer launched new trade talks with Europe.
Mr. Trump has also dusted off long-dormant executive powers to impose tariffs on imports of solar panels, washing machines, steel and aluminum, and to block billions of dollars in Chinese imports. Those moves have triggered retaliation from trading partners around the world but have also, according to Trump aides, been effective in scaring some countries, including Mexico and Canada, to the negotiating table and into offering new concessions.
When the original Nafta took effect on Jan. 1, 1994, it helped kick off the modern era of globalization as the first trade accord between a developed and developing country. It also helped fuel the anti-globalization movement that Mr. Trump joined and rode to the presidency.
At a White House meeting in September, Mr. Trump blamed Nafta for the loss of U.S. jobs. “It emptied out millions of jobs. It emptied out factories and plants all over the United States.”
Early in his presidency, Mr. Trump came close to announcing a U.S. withdrawal from Nafta, but he pulled back at the last minute, following a flurry of lobbying from business and farm groups and promises by Mexico and Canada to renegotiate the pact. Those talks started in mid-August 2017. and their completion just over a year later marks an unusually rapid pace for trade negotiations, which generally drag on for years.


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German supercar manufacturer Porsche, through its Porsche Design subdivision is expanding to smartwatches world.
With help from Chinese company Huawei, Porsche Design introduced a racing-inspired smartwatch with the latest smart functions.
The watch features a black PVD external case, ceramic bezel and
Google has finally took their Street View tool to intergalactic places.
This week the company made available to anyone a tour inside the International Space Station.
Users can now view through Google Street View the 15 areas of ISS, with detailed explanations
Oliver Rousteing's Paris based fashion house Balmain teamed up with Beats by Dr. Dre to create a high-end set of headphones with a same high-end prices.
The campaign modelled by Kylie Jenner, features two Balmain x Dr. Dre headphones: the Studio
We live in a rapidly changing world, where technology evolves faster than we realize and everything around us changes day by day.
Every now and then, we have the chance to see something extraordinary, that has never been done or built
The Avionics V1 is just another reason that confirms we're in a full transition from traditional internal combustion engines to a more sustainable alternative, which are the electric engines.
The V1 features a very good looking retro appearance, and is powered
Cracow bases sneaker restoration and customization specialist, Obuwnik, came out with the craziest collaboration we've seen this year wrapped on a pair of NMD CS1.
This year's Supreme x Louis Vuitton collab taken by storm everyone, but it seems that in


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BIG ASS SANDWICHES — A food cart favorite and Travel Channel star is going brick-and-mortar. Check out our write up on Lisa and Brian Wood's plans for their new space on NE Glisan, which they hope to open by mid-June. Meanwhile, the Big Ass Sandwiches cart on SE Foster is currently up for sale and its last day will be June 11.
LOS GORDITOS — It was sad news when it was reported that the original Los Gorditos cart on SE 50th and Division would be closing due to development. But according to the Portland Business Journal, the developer of the lot is hoping to give them the corner retail space for a brick and mortar location. Los Gorditos already operates three other taqueria locations in Portland.
GONZO — Gonzo, a favorite for falafel and shawarma fries, moved in March to a new spot on SE Hawthorne. But after just two months owner Tal Caspi has closed the cart. According to Gonzo's Facebook page Caspi is focusing on producing retail hummus and hot sauces, which can be found on the shelves at New Seasons and farmers markets.
SCOUT BEER GARDEN — Our favorite cart that doesn't serve food is planning on bringing the suds to the South Waterfront. According to its OLCC application, Scout Beer Garden will open a cart at 3201 SW Moody. It already has locations at the Tidbit and Good Food Here pods, but as Eater reported the Good Food Here pod will be closing due to development by the end of the year.
ANYTHING'S PASTABLE — The Cartlandia pod on SE 82nd has a new Italian pasta cart called Anything's Pastable. The menu has offerings like deep fried ravioli (flavors vary), mushroom alfredo, and Northwest primavera with seasonal vegetables.
KIM JONG GRILLIN' — According to Willamette Week, Mexican rotisserie chicken hotspot Pollo Norte is turning its parking lot into a patio and food cart pod. It'll serve beer from a cooler and welcome eight carts to the neighborhood. First in line is a second location of Kim Jong Grillin'.
THE 9 — The newest addition to the Central Eastside Food Cart pod at 510 SE MLK is an Indian cart called The 9. After opening in April, it gets a "goddamned 10" from Matthew Korfhage of Willamette Week, who says the chicken biryani is "heaven in a cardboard box." The cart was opened by a couple who recently relocated from San Francisco, and they are serving up spicy curries, Thai-Burmese soup, and roti, acrispy fried bread.


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Hewlett-Packard has announced a series of partnerships and technology frameworks aimed at getting businesses connected to one another over vast "extranets" on the Internet.
Called the electronic business framework, HP's broad vision of companies connecting with each other, customers and suppliers rests on its announcement yesterday to "Web-enable" every one of its products -- from servers and printers to management and security software and middleware, says Rick Belluzzo, executive vice-president and general manager of HP's computer organisation, in a presentation to a group of several hundred executives.
"Our goal is to merge the system world (based on Unix and mainframes) with the PC world via the Internet," Belluzzo says. "Our strategy is to blur the lines between home, business, workgroup and enterprise computing."
To do this, HP is heralding an "extended enterprise" approach which brings together companies with their remote workers, consumers and business partners, Belluzzo says.
While the company isn't releasing any new products per se, it has announced several "frameworks" which bring its existing products and consulting services together into packages businesses can use to build and/or extend their intranets, Belluzzo says.
"This announcement is more of a bringing together of products and services HP has already announced," says Jonathan Steel, an analyst at International Data UK. "However, it is nonetheless very important because HP is one of the few companies that is really starting to understand electronic business -- which includes, but doesn't stop at, electronic commerce."
The three frameworks announced are the HP Process Management Development framework, the AdminFlow framework and Internet Marketing framework.
The HP Process Management Development framework includes a set of core software products and a tool kit which developers can use to create intranet software applications. The framework establishes three separate development cycles -- business processes, resource assignments and work items -- which can be independently modified. An example of how a customer may use the framework is to create a virtual supply chain which links manufacturers, distributors and customers through a common set of processes, regardless of underlying technology infrastructure, officials say.
Designed to help companies deploy administrative business processes, the AdminFlow framework is a development environment based on HyperText Markup Language (HTML) and Visual Basic forms technology with a process management server on the backend. Developers can create company-specific administrative forms, such as expense reports and human resources information, which can be viewed using any Java-enabled Web browser, officials says. AdminFlow runs on HP-UX and Windows NT and can be integrated with any existing email system or intranet.
The last framework, called Internet Marketing, is based on HP's OpenMail and process-management technologies. Companies can use the framework to build external Web pages which deliver personalised information to individual customers based on their preferences. These "self-service" pages will help customers get information without having to call a helpdesk, while at the same time help companies track customer problems and interests, HP says. Internet Marketing will run on HP-UX and Windows NT and incorporates HP's Virtual Vault security protocol.
HP plans to deliver these packaged services and technologies in 1997, Belluzzo says.
In addition to the frameworks announced yesterday, HP also says it will partner with several companies to add capabilities to its own offerings. HP will work with VeriFone to market and sell Internet payment solutions based on the Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) protocol being jointly developed by Visa and MasterCard. The company will also partner with BroadVision to deliver the BroadVision One-to-One family of personalised Internet applications on the HP-UX platform and with Open Market to create a joint merchant storefront application.
Underlying HP's overall vision is its "commitment to open standards," Belluzzo says. HP has pledged anew that its electronic business frameworks will work across platforms by using the Internet as a base. Belluzzo admits that HP hasn't delivered 100% on its promise to make the Internet "core to its business mode", but says the new frameworks will finally make the networked world and HP products work "synergystically".
Hewlett-Packard is on the Web at http://www.hp.com.


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Samsung Galaxy Note 10, assuming this is the name of the next smartphone in the Galaxy Note series, will certainly have a 5G variant. The news had long been in the air, but with the absence of an official confirmation, it had to be interpreted as a very plausible hypothesis.
The official confirmation arrived yesterday from Verizon, during the event in which the financial results for the first quarter of 2019 were presented. After recalling that in the first half of the year a Samsung smartphone with a 5G connection will arrive, that is to say, Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, the mobile operator has confirmed that the next Galaxy Note 10 will also have a 5G version, which will hit the market in the second half of the year.
Gizchina News of the week
Meanwhile, Samsung would begin the development of a blockchain network for the construction of the Samsung Coin cryptocurrency, based on the most famous Ethereum. According to CoinDesk Korea, the Asian giant would have a task force dedicated to the research and development of cryptocurrency, which could become public shortly after its presentation, allowing it to be exchanged and sold as it happens for the others.


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Wired just published a new article, Stack Overflow Will Charge AI Giants for Training Data with some interesting new statements from CEO Prashanth Chandrasekar. I've quoted the pieces that seem most relevant to me below, but I encourage you to read the full article in case I've accidentally omitted any important context.
Stack Overflow, a popular internet forum for computer programming help, plans to begin charging large AI developers as soon as the middle of this year for access to the 50 million questions and answers on its service, CEO Prashanth Chandrasekar says.
“Community platforms that fuel LLMs absolutely should be compensated for their contributions so that companies like us can reinvest back into our communities to continue to make them thrive,” Stack Overflow’s Chandrasekar says. “We're very supportive of Reddit’s approach.”
Chandrasekar says proper licensing will only help accelerate development of high-quality LLMs.
They offer downloadable “data dumps” or real-time data portals to help software to access their content known as APIs. In Stack Overflow’s case, LLM developers are getting their hands on data through a mix of dumps, APIs, and scraping, Chandrasekar says, all of which today can be done for free.
But Chandrasekar says that LLM developers are violating Stack Overflow’s terms of service. Users own the content they post on Stack Overflow, as outlined in its TOS, but it all falls under a Creative Commons license that requires anyone later using the data to mention where it came from. When AI companies sell their models to customers, they “are unable to attribute each and every one of the community members whose questions and answers were used to train the model, thereby breaching the Creative Commons license,” Chandrasekar says.
Neither Stack Overflow nor Reddit has released pricing information.
Stack Overflow and Reddit will continue to license data for free to some people and companies. Chandrasekar says Stack Overflow only wants remuneration only from companies developing LLMs for big, commercial purposes. “When people start charging for products that are built on community-built sites like ours, that's where it's not fair use,” he says.
I understand that plans are preliminary and lots of things are up-in-the-air, but this is touching on some topics that the community can be very sensitive to. If possible, any clarification on what we can expect would be appreciated. In particular:
Is the company intending to change the licensing of user content again, and if so, would they attempt to apply those changes retroactively?
Prashanth's statement argues that the existing Creative Commons license would require direct attribution of any information sourced from Stack Overflow, but that AI models don't make it practical to do that. Does this imply that they're planning to be able to offer a different license arrangement to paying customers, which would in turn require contributors to agree to that new license?
Will the company be maintaining its commitment to (roughly-) quarterly data dumps, or are those at risk due to this situation?
This has been a pillar of the company's commitment to the community. Is the company planning to restrict it in some way, or are licensing and real-time-API restrictions sufficient for their objectives?
Again, I understand that matters are still at a preliminary stage and the company is probably unable to give specifics. But these are very sensitive subjects to a lot of us, and it would really be appreciated if you could help set expectations, before we have to find out what you've decided from the press.


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Warwick North West is proud to announce its strategic partnership with the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, an authentic voice of business in Liverpool which facilitates connections among enterprises to foster mutual growth and prosperity.
Through this partnership, the company will be able to access valuable market intelligence and establish connections that will rapidly accelerate business growth.
Warwick North West Director Greg Johnson comments: “Since opening our doors in 1998, we’ve been committed to supplying high-quality windows and doors along with exceptional service, product innovation, and ethical values. Our commitment has always been to manufacture and supply a diverse range of high-quality specialist products that cater to our customers’ needs.
“Helping people prosper in business is a core value that we share with the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce – we’re incredibly proud to have partnered with them and look forward to our growing success.”
For 25 years, Warwick North West has successfully supplied a high-quality range of PVC windows and doors from Eurocell.
In 2018, the company branched out into aluminium, offering Eurocell’s StudioGlide range, and has most recently added the high-quality casement window and roof lantern from Garnalex’s Sheerline range to its product portfolio.
Greg concludes: “Building the right partnerships can go a long way, and teaming up with the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce has entered Warwick North West into an exciting new period of growth. I am confident that fostering and expanding the collaborative relationships we have already established will guarantee our continued success as dependable and highly respected industry leaders in the sector for many years to come.”


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Topeka Some merchants complained loudly last year about a new law changing how they calculate and collect retail sales taxes, arguing it would cost them -- and ultimately, consumers -- too much money.
The law requires merchants to collect taxes based on where their goods are delivered, meaning some must worry about dozens of rates and track sales in more detail than they ever have.
But in recent weeks, Department of Revenue officials have grown more confident that an increasing number of merchants accept the new law. Recent developments suggested legislative opposition could be fading.
Still, opponents of the law aren't giving up. The House Taxation Committee endorsed a bill last week that could effectively return Kansas to its previous sales tax policy.
"It's most assuredly not pointless," said House committee Chairman John Edmonds, R-Great Bend. "A lot of small businesses are very unhappy with this."
The new law inspired complaints because it reversed a decades-old policy used to determine how much tax a merchant added to each consumer's bill. Since the sales tax was first imposed in 1937, the rate to be imposed was the one in effect where a merchant's store was located.
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius supported the new law but last year declared an indefinite "grace period" for merchants.
Kansas imposes a 5.3 percent tax statewide, but cities and counties can impose their own. The state has 752 sales tax jurisdictions.
Supporters of the new law argue it will put the state in a position to collect taxes on Internet purchases and raise $100 million or more in additional revenues, should Congress allow such taxation in exercising its constitutional authority to regulate interstate commerce.
Yet critics of the new law still wonder why states are acting before Congress allows taxation of Internet purchases.
Some senators do not see critics getting much traction. Earlier this month, in debating an unrelated sales tax bill, the Senate rejected three proposed amendments dealing with the 2003 law.
Senators voted 24-15 against a proposal similar to the House bill, 26-14 against a proposal to repeal the 2003 law and 20-19 against a proposal to exempt businesses with less than $200,000 in annual sales.
Chairman Dave Corbin said he does not plan to have his Senate Assessment and Taxation Committee consider any bills dealing with the 2003 sales tax law.
"Why should I?" said Corbin, R-Towanda. "The Senate's voted and voiced its opinion, rather strongly."
In addition, Revenue Secretary Joan Wagnon said recently that her department is making services available online to help businesses calculate proper sales tax rates for individual addresses. The agency recently produced a paper guide for computer-less merchants.
Wagnon said the change significantly affected only 14,000 of the state's 100,000 retailers. The number still out of compliance is dwindling, she said, and she predicted the state would end its grace period July 1.
Edmonds remains undaunted and said that if the House passes a bill, he can make the 2003 law an issue in negotiations over any tax bill before the Legislature.
He said the department's efforts help merchants deal with the law, but added, "Making it better isn't the same as fixing it."


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WiredGov Newswire (news from other organisations)
New Ofgem rules on energy supplier licenses “good news for consumers”, says Citizens Advice
Citizens Advice, in its role as the official consumer champion for energy, has responded to Ofgem’s announcement of new licensing rules for firms applying to enter the energy supply market.
Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said:
“Ofgem’s new rules are good news for consumers. From June, firms entering the market will need to be set up to deliver good customer service and be financially sound.
“The regulator is right to now turn its attention to the issue of poorly performing suppliers already in the market. Ofgem needs to take steps to identify those companies not delivering for their customers or that may be in financial difficulty and examine if its current approach to resolving problems it identifies is the right one.”
“More firms going out of business remains a possibility. It is essential the regulator acts quickly to better manage future supplier failures.
“We all end up paying through higher bills when energy companies go bust. Without better ongoing monitoring and new rules to manage future supplier failures, consumers will continue to suffer.”
Citizens Advice first called for a review of supplier licensing in 2013.
Notes to editors
Citizens Advice includes the national charity; the network of independent local Citizens Advice charities across England and Wales; the Citizens Advice consumer service; and the Witness Service.
- Citizens Advice is the statutory consumer advocate for energy and post. We provide supplier performance information to consumers and policy analysis to decision makers.
- The Citizens Advice Witness Service provides free, independent support for prosecution and defence witnesses in every criminal court in England and Wales.
- Citizens Advice offers Pension Wise services at 500 locations in England and Wales.
- Citizens Advice’s services are free, independent, confidential and impartial, and available to all regardless of race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, age or nationality.
- To get advice online or find your local Citizens Advice, visit citizensadvice.org.uk
- For consumer advice, call the Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06 or 03454 04 05 05 to talk in Welsh.
- We helped 2.6 million people face to face, by phone, email and webchat in 2017-18. For service statistics see our monthly publication Advice trends.
- Citizens Advice staff are supported by over 23,000 trained volunteers, working at over 2,500 locations in England and Wales.
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WiredGov Newswire (news from other organisations)
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A ‘human chain’ to save the NHS and a rally are key features of a two day strike by staff at Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust who face being transferred to a wholly owned subsidiary (WOS) designed to avoid paying tax.
CBI responds to latest women on boards data15/11/2019 11:05:00
The CBI has responded to the data from the Hampton-Alexander review, which looks into increasing the number of women on boards and in senior leadership positions across the FTSE 350.
LGA - Child abuse linked to witchcraft rises by a third, councils reveal14/11/2019 16:40:00
The number of children in England identified by councils as having been abused for reasons associated with witchcraft have risen by a third in the past three years, the Local Government Association reveals today.
CIPD - Positive progress masks ongoing challenges for women in reaching the top of UK businesses14/11/2019 15:40:00
The CIPD responds to the latest findings of the Hampton-Alexander Review
NHS Confederation - Labour’s mental health focus continues momentum, says Mental Health Network14/11/2019 14:40:00
Sean Duggan, chief executive of the Mental Health Network, which is part of the NHS Confederation, responded to the Labour Party’s election pledge for NHS funding
LGA responds to Sustain report on junk food planning policies14/11/2019 13:40:00
Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, responded to a report by Sustain on the need for new planning policies to restrict new hot food takeaways near schools
Citizens Advice top tips for safe and savvy consumers on Black Friday14/11/2019 12:40:00
In the last year, Citizens Advice consumer service has dealt with almost half a million consumer-related issues like faulty washing machines, undelivered parcels and fake designer goods. Over 50,000 of these were during November 2018, by far the busiest month for the consumer service.
FRC: Future of Corporate Reporting Survey (2 days to respond)14/11/2019 12:15:00
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White House Wants to End EV Subsidies ASAP
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow announced Monday that the Trump administration is seeking an end to federal subsidies on electric cars. Interestingly, the move appears to be related to General Motors’ plant closings and layoffs. The company’s restructuring plan hasn’t gone over well with policy makers or the American public, with many accusing the automaker of abusing years of tax breaks, only to reduce its workforce as a way of pursuing new technologies, businesses, and further bolstering its profit margins.
However, cutting GM out of the electric vehicle subsidies deal is more likely to impact its rivals than anything else. The company said it’s on the cusp of the EV tax credit ceiling already, with the gradual phase-out of those incentives likely to take place through 2019. Yet Kudlow pointed to the elimination of the credits as one way of punishing GM for eliminating so many jobs, echoing President Donald Trump’s threats from last last week.
“As a matter of our policy, we want to end all of those subsidies,” Kudlow explained. “And by the way, other subsidies that were imposed during the Obama administration, we are ending, whether it’s for renewables and so forth.”
When asked for a target date, the economic adviser gave his best guess, saying “It’s just all going to end in the near future. I don’t know whether it will end in 2020 or 2021.”
According to Reuters, Tesla and GM lobbied Congress for months to lift the cap on electric vehicles or make other changes that would make it easier to move EVs, including new incentives. That’s unlikely to happen until Democrats move in, at which point Congress will be far less inclined to support the Trump administration’s plan to abolish the EV tax credits entirely.
In October, Senator Dean Heller proposed lifting the current cap on electric vehicles eligible for tax credits but phase out the credit for the entire industry in 2022. Two other senators in September proposed lifting the per manufacturer credit and extending the benefit for 10 years.
Also in October, Senator John Barrasso a Republican who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, proposed legislation to end the EV tax credit entirely.
Analysts previously suggested that incentivizing electric vehicles to such a great extent may end up creating artificial demand. While that’s likely the point, some are concerned with what might happen when those credits are suddenly stripped away. Automakers are investing vast sums of their own money into developing these vehicles; it would be a huge blow to the industry if the rug was pulled out from under them. However, you could also make the argument that the credits already placed the auto sector on unstable ground.
While Kudlow still seemed mostly steamed with General Motors, he is also aware of the broader impact EV incentives have on the industry. He made clear any changes in subsidies would not just affect GM, knowing the government couldn’t simply target one automaker. “I think legally you just can’t,” he said.
[Image: General Motors]
Vagvoba on Dec 05, 2018
Never understood why taxpayers are subsidizing Tesla luxury car sales. I believe that some of the EV subsidies are a worthy investment in our environment, but I don't want more giveaways to those who can afford $80K+ cars. If anything, it makes sense to subsidize cheap electric cars, like the Bolt and the Leaf, or larger EVs that may potentially become volume sellers.
0Gravity on Dec 05, 2018
Not sure about the EV credits, but I'm an analyst that covers renewables so I can say with confidence that Kudlow's comment about ending subsidies for renewable energy is at best ill-informed or a deliberate lie. It's not something that can be done through executive or administrative action; it would require action by Congress and Congress even under previous full Republican control has shown no interest in re-negotiating the long term phase out subsidies revised in 2016 compromise agreement. The subsidies for wind and solar are slowly being phased out already and reducing each year in allowed value. This admin won't be able to prematurely alter the current law's structure. Watch what this administration does, not what it says. Bunch of blowhards and liars
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- Wjtinfwb How does the ICE mid-engine C8 platform work for... anything else? A sedan? SUV? With a mid engine configuration? A mid-engine SUV will have to be Suburban sized to offer the utility of a CRV. GM should dust off the Omega platform designed for the Cadillac CT6 for an SUV/Sedan offering with exceptional handling, Rear or AWD capability and acceptable space utilization. They also need to focus on interior fit & finish, trim choices and high quality final engineering and assembly. What GM doesn't need is another half-baked product with a storied and prestigious badge on the decklid and a premium price on the Monroney. No more Cimarron's, Allante's or X-cars needed to tarnish the reputation of Corvette.
- InCogKneeToe BUILD It and they will come.By Build It, I mean a Vehicle that the Customer Wants and it works for them. It could be called Chevette for all that that matters. The Mach E's success isn't because it totes the Mustang on it.Just build what people want, the next Caravan/Taurus/Beetle/Maverick (truck).
- YellowDuck Wait...how do you make a mid-engine crossover? Or even a 4-door coupe? Me not get.
- 28-Cars-Later Thanks Corey. The head stud job on NOrthSTAR-T was $3K *years ago* as it involves an engine pull so rear wheel arch rust in and of itself isn't a show stopper. I'll be sure to check out the trunk as it may start to add up on deferred maintenance. Supposedly this was garaged so the underneath the rockers etc. should be decent but if those are shot its not gonna work.
- Mark 2016 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, G4NG engine with connecting rod bearing issues. Engine needs to be replaced, but Hyundai is denying warranty claim. I have all maintenance records from mile zero. It has been in Hyundai Service department 5 time in 4 months. They added the knock sensor and software update to let you know the engine is about to blow up. They kicked the can down the road doing patch work until the car was past the 120k extended extended warranty. I have that documentation too. So how can I join the class action law suit or find a Lawyer that handles these types of issues?


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Wall Street Rises In Part Because Of Apple And China
On Wednesday, April 11, US stocks rose, boosting all three most widely followed indexes in the US: Dow Jones Industrial Average, Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 or the Standard & Poor's 500 Index because of the launch of Apple's latest iPhones and China exempting some goods from tariffs.
Though Apple's phones had been, from time immemorial, known to boost US stocks, the unveiling of its streaming TV service that is a lot cheaper than that of Netflix and Walt Disney capped the sweet deal of a homegrown to the US economy.
Apple's market valuation after these gains took the company above $1 trillion.
Apple's rise also made the technology sector bounce back from the drop it sustained in the previous session resulting in investors moving on to more value-oriented stocks based on growth shares.
However, according to Dow Jones Market Data, the tech giant's stock has a trend of rising an average of 4.6% in the month before the reveal of a new phone but also falls an average of 0.7% in the month following the reveal.
Bringing in its contribution to the good performance of US stocks is China's finance ministry exempting 16 types of US goods that include some animal feed ingredients including lubricants just in time for the meeting with the US regarding trade relations.
Still, doubters are not seeing this move of Beijing as a friendly gesture.
Analysts are not sure how much effect on the global economy this move of China would make.
Ed Egilinsky, head of alternative investments at Direxion said that the goods getting exemptions are staple necessities in the Chinese market.
He stressed the "big difference" between China's move and "actually ironing out a deal."
Outsiders can only assume that the whole US-China tariffs saga always starts with the US wanting the Chinese government to stop giving a leg up to certain industries.
Still, Beijing might be saying to move forward, tariffs have to get removed.
Two nonstarters however way you look at it.
Still, investors are sure that the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank will cut interest rates during the next two weeks.
On September 11, at 11:56 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was up at 99.22 points, or 0.37%, at 27,008.65, the S&P 500 .Nasdaq Composite .IXIC was up at 61.37 points, or 0.76%, at 8,145.52 and the SPX (Standard & Poor's 500 Index) was up 11.71 points, or 0.39%, at 2,991.10.
Shares of Micron Technology Inc, producer of computer memory and computer data storage including dynamic random-access memory, flash memory, and USB flash drives increased by 2.49% after Longbow Research upgraded its stock to "buy".
General Electric's (GE) Baker Hughes' stocks reacted differently falling 3.63%.
Black Hughes had the most decrease among S&P 500 companies after its parent company looked to sell a majority stake.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 1.90-to-1 ratio on the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) and a 2.25-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P Index had 22 new 52-week highs and no new low, while the Nasdaq had 43 new highs and nine new lows.


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While America may be known for crazy menu concoctions, when it comes to fast food; it seems foreign countries always have the more ridiculous food items for sale. Now, the latest one to go viral has many online intrigued, but not everyone is willing to give it a try. Burger King in Taiwan recently revealed a new chocolate covered burger, and its debut drew massive crowds at the fast food chain.
Once teased by the burger chain as an April Fool’s joke, the Taiwan locations are now selling a chocolate covered burger as part of a recent promotional event. The burger is a regular Whopper, but comes with chocolate sauce on the patty. It is being called the, “Hershey’s Chocolate Whopper,” and it quickly went viral after first being announced.
The burger was first offered in early September and led to lines wrapped around the building. While there are no plans for the chocolate burger to come to the United States, some online are hoping it does in fact make it here one day. If anything they may just have to order a Whopper and remember to bring their own chocolate sauce.
Via Fox News


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A proof-of-concept was implemented successfully last year, a statement said.
Temenos will provide the artificial intelligence-based banking platform and also the software-as-a-service capability. Deloitte will help with the configuration, integration of and building of the new entity which will be based on Virgin Money Australia's digital system.
Virgin Money Australia chief executive Greg Boyle said: “Importantly, Virgin Money Australia is uniquely positioned to build on our existing relationships with more than 200,000 loyal customers and a home loan portfolio that has quickly grown to more than $3 billion to effectively compete in the Australian market with challenger and incumbent banks alike.
“By working with Deloitte Digital and Temenos to deliver Virgin Money Australia’s new Digital Bank, we’ve selected partners that have a strong capability and a proven track record in delivering.”
Temenos chief executive Max Chuard said: “We are delighted to be chosen by Virgin Money Australia as their technology partner of choice to support them on their digital banking initiative and growth plans.
"As one of the most innovative brands in banking, Virgin Money Australia sets the bar high for customer experience with its digital-first strategy."
Deloitte Digital Banking partner Brad Milliken said: "We are bringing the full power of Deloitte to the table to deliver on the bold proposition that Virgin Money has put forward.
"By leveraging one of the best known brands in the globe and Deloitte Digital’s global technical prowess, business acumen, advisory services and regulatory expertise we are working with Virgin Money and Temenos to imagine, make and run the bank of the future."


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Steinhoff International, battling the fallout from massive accounting fraud, faces legal claims amounting to more than R170 billion, the South African retailer’s annual report showed on Wednesday.
The report for the year ended September 2019 listed numerous court cases with claimants seeking more than R170 billion in payments or damages. It also included Steinhoff’s annual results, with the retailer’s full-year loss widening to almost R35 billion from a R23 billion loss a year earlier.
Steinhoff’s problems began in December 2017 when the company revealed holes in its accounts, shocking investors in the international retail group, which were the initial signs of an accounting fraud since estimated to total R120 billion.
Established more than 50 years ago, the company expanded beyond South Africa to become a furniture and household goods retailer straddling four continents before the accounting scandal came to light.
After a debt restructuring last year, the company said that managing its litigation risks – the second phase of its plan to return to normality – was now its focus, with these presenting a “significant challenge.”
The retailer’s Johannesburg listed stock fell 4.9% on Wednesday. It is also listed in Frankfurt.
Steinhoff’s annual report said the company was assessing the merits of and responses to the claims and no provisions had yet been taken as it was uncertain when, or if, it would have to pay.
Steinhoff said last year it could issue shares to help to cover legal payouts related to the accounting fraud.
The company has also been selling off assets as part of plans to transform itself into a retail holding company.
But the annual report said Steinhoff now also has to contend with the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, which hurt its performance this year.
Last week, the boss of Pepco Group, owner of British discount retailer Poundland, said the coronavirus crisis had delayed its sale by parent Steinhoff.
The annual report said Steinhoff was yet to make a decision regarding the future of Pepco Group. The company is looking at options including a sale or initial public offering of the business.
The company said its debt, which it restructured last year, stood at around R184 billion during the period.


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OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he can't imagine President Donald Trump will make good on his threat to impose new tariffs on Canadian autos entering the United States because it would amount to a self-inflicted wound on the U.S. economy.
Trudeau was forced to confront that possibility at his end-of-Parliament session news conference Wednesday because the U.S. Commerce Department is investigating whether to put a 25 percent tariff on cars and light trucks entering the U.S. Trump is considering using the same controversial national security clause that he used last month to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and other major American allies.
Trudeau says the U.S-Canadian auto sector is integrated and says Trump wouldn't want to damage American workers and its auto industry.
(Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
6/20/2018 6:04:06 PM (GMT -5:00)


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text: The Crestview Lady Rebels Softball team hosted a tripleheader on Saturday, March 30th with Girard and Ravenna Southeast. Two hundred dollars plus canned goods and miscellaneous items were donated from the three schools to the Crestview Churches Community Concerns (4C’s). The 4C’s started 33 years ago to help area residents with their financial needs. They have become a partner with Second Harvest Food Bank of Mahoning County. The money raised will supply them with $2,100 worth of food. The 4C’s buys 30-35 tons of food from the Food Bank a year, along with purchasing supplies at local stores. They serve approximately 2800-3000 people each year and operate solely on donations. The check and items were delivered to the food pantry by Crestview senior captains Haley Eskra, Olivia Strank, Baylie Bettura, and Skyler Mattern, shown with Linda Allender from the 4C’s.


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Gurgaon-based GoldVIP Technology Solutions Pvt Ltd, which runs a mobile-based marketing and customer rewards management platform Crown-it, has raised $5.5 million (Rs 34 crore) in Series A round of funding from Accel Partners and Helion Venture Partners, it said on Tuesday.
Crown-it offers exclusive cash back offers at restaurants and outlets in addition to providing technology to local businesses to run marketing programs. The company plans to use the funds to enhance its technology platform, expand to new cities and add more product categories.
Founded in March 2014 by Delhi College of Engineering alumnus Sameer Grover, Crown-it operates only in Delhi-NCR currently and claims to have a user base of 150,000 on its Android and iOS apps. The company plans to grow to 20 million user base in three years across 25 cities in India.
"We help users discover and experience places which are relevant to them and around them, besides getting rewarded for visiting those merchants. For merchants, we give them measurable ROI marketing channel. We charge them on the business we actually give them," said Grover, founder and CEO of Crown-it.
The hyperlocal app allows users to click photograph of the bill, upload it on the Crown-it app as they visit one of the listed outlet and redeem their cash back for shopping, phone bill payment or movie tickets. The Crown-it cash back offer can be availed at a number of e-commerce platforms including Amazon, Flipkart, Jabong and BookMyShow.
Basically, Crown-it charges merchants a marketing fee for sales driven at the outlets, and shares part of the fee with consumers as cash back.
Crown-it is targeting F&B, health, beauty & wellness and a number of local merchants in categories like florists, gift shops and local kirana stores. Currently, the app has listed around 5,000 restaurants in Delhi and is set to launch additional categories in a number of cities.
It had earlier raised angel funding from a number of individual investors.
Other major players in the cash back, deals and discounts space in India are cashkaro.com run by UK- and India-based Pouring Pounds Pvt Ltd, Hyderabad-based Shop Pirate, Pennyful.in, GoPaisa.com and topcashback.in.


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Seattle’s Neon Machine has secured $20 million in Series A funding, helmed by Polychain Capital, to advance development of its blockchain-integrated shooter game, “Shrapnel.”
Seattle-based game studio Neon Machine recently announced a $20 million influx from Series A funding led by Polychain Capital with participation from Griffin Gaming Partners, Brevan Howard Digital, Franklin Templeton, IOSG Ventures and Tess Ventures.
The funding is earmarked for the continued development of “Shrapnel,” a first-person shooter game, at what the company identifies as a “critical time,” as they gear up to release an early-access version in December, with a full launch slated for 2024.
Originally part of HBO Interactive, Neon Machine has established itself independently, amassing $37.5 million in funding from various rounds since its inception. The company boasts a workforce of over 70 employees, according to CEO Mark Long, and has diversified its portfolio, venturing into comic books and launching a PFP NFT collection in the previous year.
“Shrapnel” is set to offer a blend of solo and team-based gameplay, with a significant emphasis on user-generated content (UGC). The game’s innovative approach allows players to create in-game items using the studio’s technology, which can then be minted as NFTs. This feature, along with the integration of blockchain technology for asset ownership, represents a foray into relatively uncharted territories in gaming.
The game’s reliance on blockchain and NFTs does raise questions however about the game’s accessibility and the potential for a steep learning curve for players unfamiliar with these technologies. Furthermore, the volatile nature of the crypto market could pose risks to the in-game economy, potentially alienating players and undermining the game’s long-term stability.
Despite these concerns, the recent funding round indicates investor confidence in Neon Machine’s vision. The inclusion of notable venture partners suggests a belief in the potential of combining blockchain technology with gaming.
It remains to be seen how the team will navigate the complexities of this integration and whether it will resonate with the broader gaming community.


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You have searched for: TOI Monsoon Shopping Bonanza
- Monsoon bonanza: Indore likely to see white revolution
Milk production in the city is expected to witness a steep rise from next month due to monsoon rain that has increased the availability of green grass and water enhancing the milk producing capacity of dairy cattle. Increased output of milk may help to stabilize milk prices and kick-off the inter-state export of milk that was shut from past few months.
- Is online shopping taking over during the monsoon?
A walk in the rain can be fun. But taking home soaked shopping bags? Not so much. It’s only logical then that more than 50 per cent of the city has switched to shopping online during the monsoon. “Our online store offers huge sales during the monsoon and they last till August. Customers can shop for home décor, appliances, merchandise and footwear and we also offer facilities like easy exchange, cash on delivery and pre-booking, that attracts more people online. And 60 per cent of our customers are housewives,” says Sharad Bharadwaj, marketing head of an online store. “My husband has a busy schedule and during the monsoon we have to depend on the weather to go to malls. Besides, during the monsoon, shops are crowded and you have to hurry up with your shopping. So for the last two years, I shop for the whole year during the online monsoon sales. Besides home delivery, most of the sites also offer easy returns,” says Jyoti Trivedi, a housewife. For Dr Prem Basu, a history professor, going out to shop during the monsoon is not a pleasant task. “My family cannot resist shopping during monsoon sales, but accompanying them to a mall means wasting at least five hours. So I encourage them to shop online. Where else can you do shop even at midnight, ignoring the heavy rains?,” he shares. Harjinder Kaur, on the other hand, loves the privacy that online shopping offers. “Some things are better done alone. Online shops allow me to purchase personal items without feeling embarrassment because of people watching me and my choices,” says Harjinder, adding, “Often when we go shopping, we end up buying things that shopkeepers insist on. This too can be avoided online.” But what is the future of the retail sector with customers migrating to online shopping? Even small local vendors seem to be facing the brunt of online shopping these days, since online stores even send home groceries these days. Local vendors are now forced to up their game to compete. “I own a small grocery store. It is surprising to see customers insisting on home delivery. Most of my customers have my number and order things over the phone. Delivering affects my business because when a customers visit a shop for one item there’s a chance that they may see something else that’s fresh and want to buy it too,” says Pankaj Sahu. But not everyone is confident that online will take over completely. “I think retail stores will remain an important part of the shopping process even though online retail continues to grow. It is true that a large number of local stores are becoming victims of e-commerce. We too offer huge discounts during July-August and December-January. But the response to our year-end sale is 40 per cent better than the monsoon sale,” says Girish Tandon, the marketing head of a city mall. Acknowledging the fact that nearly 30 per cent of mall-goers are just window shoppers, Girish’s marketing team is planning to introduce more offers to attract real shoppers.
- TOI interview: Monsoon situation in Chennai
Mayor Saidai, commissioner Kapur — Metrowater chairman Chandrmohan, ministers Valarmathi and Gokula Indira held a press conference at Ripon buildings to discuss monsoon situation.
- Organic food tops shopping list in most homes during monsoon
The demand for organic food has shot up during the monsoon, as most are careful about hygiene during this season
- The Monsoon Shopping Festival 2015 launched at the Chattrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai
The inaugural edition of The Monsoon Shopping Festival 2015 at the Chattrapati Shivaji International Airport, was a great success.
- Bonanza for disabled sportspersons
Following up on its sports policy declared earlier this month, on Monday, the state government gave specifics in the assembly about cash prizes and incentives for disabled sportspersons, who excel in their fields.
- Rawat bonanza for rain-hit parts of Haridwar
Chief minister Harish Rawat on Saturday announced a clutch of projects and measures, worth about Rs 20 crore, to address the monsoon woes of Haridwar
- Entries invited for TOI contest
Times of India is organizing a World Photography Day-2016 contest to capture the culture of Bhopal.Readers are invited to share their best photographs on the theme of Bhopal's rich culture and heritage.
- Centre's pay bonanza can boost realty sector
The hefty rise in housing rent allowances will make it alluring for central government employees to go for home loans than stay in government accommodation and forgo HRA. The ceiling on the house building loan has been raised to Rs 25 lakh from Rs 7.5 lakh
- Revised DP may bring a bonanza for Sahara
Mumbai: The revised draft development plan (DP-34) will be a bonanza for some large developers like the Sahara Group, who own large swathes in the suburbs currently marked as No-Development Zone (NDZ). The BMC has now offered them several incentives to develop their land after asking them to surrender a portion of it for affordable housing and open spaces. The scheme is only for NDZ land owners who control more than 10 acres. BMC maps show Sahara owns around 81 acres in Oshiwara, surrounded by creek on three sides.“Mangroves only exist on the boundary of the land parcel. The Sahara group cannot develop that portion, but the rest of the land that was earlier marked as NDZ can be developed,“ said an officer.If the company agrees to part with a portion of its land with the BMC for affordable housing, the group will be entitled to exploit the remaining portion, which can fetch them more than Rs 20,000 crore, said sources. The adjoining tracts are shown as agriculture land. BMC officials however said that the Sahara land parcel is encroachment-free and has very high development potential. The land parcel even exceeds the size of entire areas nearby , where the Lokhandwala Complex is situated. Officials said the incentive will favour four to five big land owners who have more than 10 acres of land. Officials said that it will be difficult for small plot owners to come together and amalgamate their plots and those plots will remain as they are. “So only big land owners will get benefit of the scheme.“ According to the revised draft rules, an NDZ land owner can use 34% of his land for construction after using the Floor Space Index (FSI) of the entire plot. Land owners should keep 33% of the land for affordable housing, and the remaining 33% for public amenities and open spaces, which heshe should hand over to the BMC free of cost. For instance, if a land owner has 10 acres (4.35 lakh square ft) of NDZ land, the BMC will offer him FSI-1 of the entire plot that he or she can use on 34% of the land to construct high-rises. So the owner will get 4.35 lakh square ft construction rights on his share of the land. The owner will need to construct affordable housing on 33% of the land. There is no NDZ land in the island city . However, the western and eastern suburbs have 6,612 acres and 2,616 acres as NDZ land --mostly owned by businessmen--respectively. Mumbai: The revised draft development plan (DP) 2034 seems to have created a blunder.It has marked Aarey Colony , the city's green lungs, as a nodevelopment zone (NDZ), which means construction activity can be allowed under certain conditions, instead of a natural area tag. Even as the DP planner clarified that they are not planning any kind of construction in Aarey except the Metro car shed and zoo, municipal com missioner chief Ajoy Mehta said the BMC will correct the mistake. “ Aarey is a natural area and will remain as it is. No construction will be allowed except the proposed Metro car shed and the botanical garden and zoo,“ he said. For draft DP 2034, the town planner has divided the city's green spaces into two parts.The first is natural area--including forests, creeks, mangroves and a few salt pan lands--where no construction is allowed, and the second is NDZ land that has development potential. Most of the NDZ lands in the city are owned by businessmen. The revised draft DP had recently proposed that if the owners of NDZ lands construct affordable homes and social amenities on 33% of the built-up space and hand them over to the BMC for free, and set aside another 33% area for public open spaces, they would be entitled to build saleable houses on the remaining 34% after utilizing the FSI of the entire plot. But insiders in the civic body claimed that in future, the NDZ rule could be manipulated for construction activities inside Aarey. “It's hypothetical, but the fact remains that when they are marking it as NDZ, it means all the criteria fixed for NDZ land will be applicable for Aarey . So, in future, if the government wants, it can construct buildings inside Aarey,“ said a civic official. The DP planner defended its decision stating that though Aarey is marked as NDZ, it is not making any construction proposals there. However, there was no explanatory note to restrict construction in Aarey. “Aarey is the city's natural asset...we will not allow destruction that will benefit builders. We welcome the civic chief's assurance that Aarey will remain as a natural area,“ said D Stalin, an environmentalist.
- A themed bonanza of books for kids this summer
A four-week-long program will be running from June 1 to June 30 with themed collection of books from across the world. Puffin Books has tied up with select stores across the country for this promotion titled 'Booked for the Summer'.
- A themed bonanza of books for kids this summer
New Delhi, May 31 () This summer, children can look forward to a themed collection of books from across the world during an extensive program aimed at promoting reading culture. Puffin Books has tied up with select stores across the country for this promotion titled 'Booked for the Summer'.
- Tracking the monsoon
The monsoon usually reaches Kerala on June 1. This year the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) forecast says that it is likely to set in on June 7. Here’s a look at when the monsoon reached India over the last few years.
- TOI apologises to HC judge
In connection with a TOI report titled "Litigant complains to CJI about 'tardy disposal' by HC judge" that appeared on May 17, 2016, the publication renders an unconditional apology.
- Sustained rain revives monsoon
Aurangabad: The city and many parts of the district that had experienced light drizzle coupled with overcast conditions since the past few days, received sustained showers starting from on Wednesday evening till the wee hours of Thursday. Several city areas and outskirts recorded nearly 40mm rainfall, with Aurangabad district as a whole reporting around 18.5mm rain in the past 24 hours. Many parts of Marathwada also reported good showers taking the in surplus amount of rainfall to 114.6% so far. In the city, normal life was affected because of medium showers that last almost 12 hours. Many low-lying areas reported waterlogging due to sustained showers. Vehicular traffic was moving at snail's pace on busy roads passing through the city and outskirts. As per the official data, Aurangabad taluka reported the maximum rainfall (30.8mm) in the district, followed by Khultabad (26.33mm), Kannad (21mm), Paithan (28.2mm), Kannad (21mm), Phulambri (15.5mm) and Gangapur (12.56mm). The latest showers have taken the total rainfall in Aurangabad district to 300mm. It accounts for 106% of the normal expected rainfall. In other parts of Marathwada, Jalna (36.18mm) reported the maximum showers, followed by Hingoli (26.19mm), Nanded (15.71mm), Latur (15.34mm), Parbhani (15.09mm) , Beed (10.24mm) and Osmanabad (1.08mm). As per India Meteorological Department, Aurangabad and nearby areas are likely to get moderate rain during the next 48 hours. The city is likely to witness cloudy skies with possibility of light to medium showers.


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The World Trade Center Cape Town and the World Trade Center Lusaka to rub shoulders with Hillary Clinton and African leaders at AGOA Forum Zambia in June
The 10th annual African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum is taking place in Zambia on Thursday 9th and Friday 10th June 2011 at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre. The World Trade Center Cape Town will be present in support and will announce the launch of the World Trade Center Lusaka. We shall be promoting all our World Trade Center (WTC) partnerships and distributing our WTC publications; Diplomat magazine and the Best of Africa series.
It is anticipated that attendance will include that of heavyweights from US and African private sectors as well representatives of civil society organisations. In addition to the Ministers of Trade and Industry, Ministers of Agriculture, Transport and Finance and representatives from the World Trade Centers of Africa including WTC Lusaka and Cape Town invited to attend, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is to visit . Joining her will be Trade Representative Ambassador Ron Kirk and other senior officials from the US Government, whose aim is to discuss ways to advance the US-Africa relationship on trade and investment.
The theme is ‘Enhanced Trade Through Increased Competitiveness, Value Addition and Deeper Regional Integration’. The US Embassy has affirmed AGOA as the centerpiece of America’s trade and investment co-operation with Africa.
World Trade Center Africa
World Trade Center Cape Town
World Trade Center Dar es Salaam
World Trade Center Antwerp