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Jimmy Carter, the 39th US president, has died at 100 ATLANTA (AP) — Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has died. He was 100 years old and had spent more than a year in hospice care. The Georgia peanut farmer served one turbulent term in the White House before building a reputation as a global humanitarian and champion of democracy. He defeated President Gerald Ford in 1976 promising to restore trust in government but lost to Ronald Reagan four years later amid soaring inflation, gas station lines and the Iran hostage crisis. He and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, then formed The Carter Center, and he earned a Nobel Peace Prize while making himself the most active and internationally engaged of former presidents. The Carter Center said the former president died Sunday afternoon in Plains, Georgia. Jimmy Carter: Many evolutions for a centenarian ‘citizen of the world’ PLAINS, Ga. (AP) — The 39th and longest-lived U.S. president, James Earl Carter Jr., died Sunday at the age of 100. His life ended where it began, in Plains, Georgia. He left and returned to the tiny town many times as he climbed to the nation’s highest office and lost it after four tumultuous years. Carter spent the next 40 years setting new standards for what a former president can do. Carter wrote nearly a decade ago that he found all the phases of his life challenging but also successful and enjoyable. The Democrat's principled but pragmatic approach defied American political labels, especially the idea that one-term presidents are failures. The Latest: Former President Jimmy Carter is Dead at age 100 Former President Jimmy Carter has died at the age of 100. The 39th president of the United States was a Georgia peanut farmer who sought to restore trust in government when he assumed the presidency in 1977 and then built a reputation for tireless work as a humanitarian. He earned a Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. He died Sunday, more than a year after entering hospice care, at his home in Plains, Georgia. Carter was sworn in as president on Jan. 20, 1977, after defeating President Gerald R. Ford in the 1976 general election. He left office on Jan. 20, 1981, following his 1980 general election loss to Ronald Reagan. Jimmy Carter: A brief bio Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has died at his home in Plains, Georgia. His death comes more than a year after the former president entered hospice care. He was 100 years old. Jetliner skids off runway and bursts into flames while landing in South Korea, killing 179 SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A jetliner skidded off a runway, slammed into a concrete fence and burst into flames in South Korea after its landing gear apparently failed to deploy. Officials said all but two of the 181 people on board were killed Sunday in one of the country’s worst aviation disasters. The 737-800 operated by Jeju Air plane arrived from Bangkok and crashed while attempting to land in the town of Muan, about 290 kilometers (180 miles) south of Seoul. Footage of the crash aired by South Korean television channels showed the plane skidding across the airstrip at high speed, evidently with its landing gear still closed. Tornadoes in Texas and Mississippi kill 2 and injure 6 as severe weather system moves east HOUSTON (AP) — A strong storm system is threatening to whip up tornadoes in parts of the U.S. Southeast, a day after severe weather claimed at least two lives as twisters touched down in Texas and Mississippi. Strong storms moving eastward Sunday are expected to continue producing gusty, damaging winds, hail and tornadoes through Sunday. That is according to National Weather Service meteorologist Frank Pereira. So far, the line of severe weather has led to about 40 tornado reports from southeastern Texas to Alabama, Pereira said, but those reports remain unconfirmed until surveys of damage are completed. Israeli hospital says Netanyahu has undergone successful prostate surgery TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — An Israeli hospital says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has undergone successful prostate surgery. Jerusalem’s Hadassah Medical Center said his prostate was removed late Sunday and that he was recovering. Netanyahu’s office had said Justice Minister Yariv Levin, a close ally, would serve as acting prime minister during the procedure. Doctors ordered the operation after detecting an infection last week. Netanyahu is expected to remain hospitalized for several days. With so much at stake, Netanyahu’s health in wartime is a concern for both Israelis and the wider world. Syria's de facto leader says it could take up to 4 years to hold elections BEIRUT (AP) — Syria’s de facto leader has said it could take up to four years to hold elections in Syria, and that he plans on dissolving his Islamist group that led the country’s insurgency at an anticipated national dialogue summit for the country. Ahmad al-Sharaa, who leads Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the group leading the new authority in Syria, made the remarks in an interview Sunday. That's according to the Saudi television network Al-Arabiyya. It comes almost a month after a lightning insurgency led by HTS overthrew President Bashar Assad’s decades-long rule, ending the country’s uprising-turned civil war that started back in 2011. A fourth infant dies of the winter cold in Gaza as families share blankets in seaside tents DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A fourth infant has died of hypothermia in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by nearly 15 months of war are huddled in tents along the rainy, windswept coast as winter arrives. The baby's father says the 20-day-old child was found with his head as “cold as ice” Sunday morning in their tent. The baby’s twin brother was moved to the intensive care unit of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Their father says the twins were born one month premature and spent just a day in hospital, which like other Gaza health centers has been overwhelmed and only partially functions. Musk causes uproar for backing Germany's far-right party ahead of key elections BERLIN (AP) — Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has caused uproar after backing Germany’s far-right party in a major newspaper ahead of key parliamentary elections in the Western European country, leading to the resignation of the paper’s opinion editor in protest. Germany is to vote in an early election on Feb. 23 after Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party governing coalition collapsed last month in a dispute over how to revitalize the country’s stagnant economy. Musk’s guest opinion piece for Welt am Sonntag, published in German over the weekend, was the second time this month he supported the Alternative for Germany, or AfD.
Fans can't wait for the next film starring Timothee Chalamet, which is also directed from the maker of one of Netflix's biggest hits. It is also being touted as a blend of Wolf of Wall Street and Catch Me If You Can, and already generating buzz despite its release date being nearly a year away. The movie, named Marty Supreme, is slated for a Christmas day premiere next year, but the excitement is palpable. The anticipation can be attributed to the impressive line-up of talent involved. Josh Safdie, who previously directed Adam Sandler in the critically lauded Uncut Gems alongside his brother, is at the helm as co-writer and director. The cast includes Timothee Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Tyler The Creator, and Fran Drescher. In the film, Chalamet will portray Marty Reisman, a real-life American table tennis champion. Reisman clinched the US singles championship in 1958 and 1960 and was crowned U.S. hardbat champion in 1997, reports the Mirror Throughout his career, Reisman bagged five bronze medals at world championships and penned an autobiography titled The Money Player: Confessions of America's Greatest Table Tennis Champion and Hustler before his passing in 2012. Chalamet also features in A Complete Unknown, where he portrays musician Bob Dylan. The film is slated for release in the UK in January 2025. However, unlike Chalamet's portrayal of the singer-songwriter, this movie will be more a fictionalised account about real individuals rather than a strict retelling of a 'true' story. According to Deadline, it will loosely follow the sportsman's life and "is being billed as a cross between Wolf of Wall Street and Catch Me If You Can". The Dune and Wonka star has already shared some insights about working on the project. In a conversation with comedian Theo Von on his podcast This Past Weekend, Chalamet discussed his career and how audiences can discern if an actor isn't fully committed on screen. While making his point, he swiftly transitioned to his work on Marty Supreme. He stated: "This Safdie movie I just did, man he put me through the ringer. I felt like he was testing me early on. Josh (Safdie) knew me since I was 21." Chalamet had nothing but praise for the director, comparing him to the greats of cinema. He further added: "Early on we had stuff, the stunt guys on Marty Supreme and I saw him (Safdie) wanting me to do it (the stunts). Part of me is like, this feels like a test and I wanted to show him, and I feel like I've emerged from the other side with no broken bones thank God and Josh is the real deal man. Josh Safdie is like the modern day Martin Scorsese." Excitement is brewing among fans about the upcoming release, with many praising the string of Chalamet features scheduled for the festive seasons. A fan remarked on social media: "Wonka last year, Complete Unknown this year, this movie next year, Dune Messiah *potentially* the year after. Timothee Chalamet is the king of the Christmas release date." Another chimed in, showing anticipation for the genre-blending film: "Josh Safdie bringing this cast together with a mix of adventure and comedy? Timothee Chalamet and Tyler the Creator in one film-it's already a must-watch! Marking my calendar for this." There's also speculation that we could see another Barbenheimer-like success with Josh Safdie's brother Benny's The Smashing Machine featuring Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson, slated for 2025, if it lands a release around the same time as Marty Supreme. Marty Supreme is expected to release on December 25, 2025Ek Hain to Safe Hain is New Mantra of India, Says Modi
Pollies, peace deals, and the unravelling of a billionaire: The WA civil court rows that dominated 2024NEW YORK (AP) — No ex-president had a more prolific and diverse publishing career than Jimmy Carter . His more than two dozen books included nonfiction, poetry, fiction, religious meditations and a children’s story. His memoir “An Hour Before Daylight” was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2002, while his 2006 best-seller “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” stirred a fierce debate by likening Israel’s policies in the West Bank to the brutal South African system of racial segregation. And just before his 100th birthday, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation honored him with a lifetime achievement award for how he wielded "the power of the written word to foster peace, social justice, and global understanding.” In one recent work, “A Full Life,” Carter observed that he “enjoyed writing” and that his books “provided a much-needed source of income.” But some projects were easier than others. “Everything to Gain,” a 1987 collaboration with his wife, Rosalynn, turned into the “worst threat we ever experienced in our marriage,” an intractable standoff for the facilitator of the Camp David accords and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. According to Carter, Rosalynn was a meticulous author who considered “the resulting sentences as though they have come down from Mount Sinai, carved into stone.” Their memories differed on various events and they fell into “constant arguments.” They were ready to abandon the book and return the advance, until their editor persuaded them to simply divide any disputed passages between them. “In the book, each of these paragraphs is identified by a ‘J’ or an ‘R,’ and our marriage survived,” he wrote. Here is a partial list of books by Carter: “Keeping Faith: Memoirs of a President” “The Blood of Abraham: Insights into the Middle East” (With Rosalynn Carter) “Everything to Gain: Making the Most of the Rest of Your Life” “An Outdoor Journal: Adventures and Reflections” “Turning Point: A Candidate, a State, and a Nation Come of Age” “Always a Reckoning, and Other Poems” (With daughter Amy Carter) “The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer” “Living Faith” “The Virtues of Aging” “An Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural Boyhood” “Christmas in Plains: Memories” “The Hornet’s Nest: A Novel of the Revolutionary War” “Our Endangered Values: America’s Moral Crisis” “Faith & Freedom: The Christian Challenge for the World” “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” “A Remarkable Mother” “Beyond the White House” “We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land: A Plan That Will Work” “White House Diary” “NIV Lessons from Life Bible: Personal Reflections with Jimmy Carter” “A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power” “A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety”NEW YORK (AP) — In a string of visits, dinners, calls, monetary pledges and social media overtures, big tech chiefs — including Apple’s Tim Cook, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos — have joined a parade of business and world leaders in trying to improve their standing with President-elect Donald Trump before he takes office in January. “The first term, everybody was fighting me,” Trump said in remarks at Mar-a-Lago . “In this term, everybody wants to be my friend.” Tech companies and leaders have now poured millions into his inauguration fund, a sharp increase — in most cases — from past pledges to incoming presidents. But what does the tech industry expect to gain out of their renewed relationships with Trump? A clue to what the industry is looking for came just days before the election when Microsoft executives — who’ve largely tried to show a neutral or bipartisan stance — joined with a close Trump ally, venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, to publish a blog post outlining their approach to artificial intelligence policy. “Regulation should be implemented only if its benefits outweigh its costs,” said the document signed by Andreessen, his business partner Ben Horowitz, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and the company’s president, Brad Smith. They also urged the government to back off on any attempt to strengthen copyright laws that would make it harder for companies to use publicly available data to train their AI systems. And they said, “the government should examine its procurement practices to enable more startups to sell technology to the government.” Trump has pledged to rescind President Joe Biden’s sweeping AI executive order, which sought to protect people’s rights and safety without stifling innovation. He hasn’t specified what he would do in its place, but his campaign said AI development should be “rooted in Free Speech and Human Flourishing.” Trump’s choice to head the Interior Department, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, has spoken openly about the need to boost electricity production to meet increased demand from data centers and artificial intelligence. “The AI battle affects everything from defense to healthcare to education to productivity as a country,′′ Burgum said on Nov. 15, referring to artificial intelligence. “And the AI that’s coming in the next 18 months is going to be revolutionary. So there’s just a sense of urgency and a sense of understanding in the Trump administration′′ to address it. Demand for data centers ballooned in recent years due to the rapid growth of cloud computing and artificial intelligence, and local governments are competing for lucrative deals with big tech companies. But as data centers begin to consume more resources, some residents are pushing back against the world’s most powerful corporations over concerns about the economic, social and environmental health of their communities. “Maybe Big Tech should buy a copy of ‘The Art of The Deal’ to figure out how to best negotiate with this administration,” suggested Paul Swanson, an antitrust attorney for the law firm Holland & Hart. “I won’t be surprised if they find ways to reach some accommodations and we end up seeing more negotiated resolutions and consent decrees.” Although federal regulators began cracking down on Google and Facebook during Trump’s first term as president — and flourished under Biden — most experts expect his second administration to ease up on antitrust enforcement and be more receptive to business mergers. Google may benefit from Trump’s return after he made comments on the campaign trail suggesting a breakup of the company isn’t in the U.S. national interest, after a judge declared its search engine an illegal monopoly . But recent nominations put forward by his transition team have favored those who have been critical of Big Tech companies, suggesting Google won’t be entirely off the hook. Cook’s notoriously rocky relationship with the EU can be traced back to a 2016 ruling from Brussels in a tax case targeting Apple. Cook slammed the bloc’s order for Apple to pay back up to $13.7 billion in Irish back taxes as “total political crap.” Trump, then in his first term as president, piled on, referring to the European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, who was spearheading a campaign on special tax deals and a crackdown on Big Tech companies, as the “tax lady” who “really hates the U.S.” Brussels was eventually vindicated after the bloc’s top court rejected Apple’s appeal this year, though it didn’t stop Cook from calling Trump to complain, Trump recounted in a podcast in October. Trump hosted Cook for a Friday evening dinner at the president-elect’s Mar-a-Lago resort, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment publicly. Neither Apple nor the Trump transition team has commented on the nature of their discussions. Altman , Amazon and Meta all pledged to donate $1 million each to Trump’s inaugural fund. During his first term, Trump criticized Amazon and railed against the political coverage at The Washington Post, which billionaire Bezos owns. Meanwhile, Bezos had criticized some of Trump’s past rhetoric. In 2019, Amazon also argued in a court case that Trump’s bias against the company harmed its chances of winning a $10 billion Pentagon contract. More recently, Bezos has struck a more conciliatory tone. He recently said at The New York Times’ DealBook Summit in New York that he was “optimistic” about Trump’s second term, while also endorsing president-elect’s plans to cut regulations. The donation from Meta came just weeks after Zuckerberg met with Trump privately at Mar-a-Lago. During the 2024 campaign, Zuckerberg did not endorse a candidate for president, but voiced a more positive stance toward Trump. Earlier this year, he praised Trump’s response to his first assassination attempt. Still, Trump in recent months had continued to attack Zuckerberg publicly. And Altman, who is in a legal dispute with AI rival Elon Musk, has said he is “not that worried” about the Tesla CEO’s influence in the incoming administration. Musk, an early OpenAI investor and board member, sued the artificial intelligence company earlier this year alleging that the maker of ChatGPT betrayed its founding aims of benefiting the public good rather than pursuing profits.
Minnesota state senator and former DFL majority leader Kari Dziedzic has died of cancer at age 62, her family announced on Saturday. “Kari will be remembered by her family and those she served for her enthusiastic and humble leadership, which inspired all who knew her. She had a heart of gold, willing to go to any measure to help those she loved. Like her father, she was fearless, even as she entered her battle with an ovarian cancer diagnosis in 2023 while serving as Senate Majority Leader,” her family said in a released statement, noting that the senator had died on Friday “surrounded by her family.” In 2023, Dziedzic had surgery to remove a tumor before learning it was cancer. It happened during one of the busiest legislative sessions in years, but Dziedzic said later her illness didn’t slow down efforts to pass significant legislation. In February, she stepped down as majority leader saying her cancer had returned. “Unfortunately, in the last week, I learned that my cancer has returned, and I am facing some serious challenges,” Dziedzic said in a statement in February. “As we prepare for the next session, I decided it is in the best interest of the caucus for me to step down as Majority Leader after our caucus has selected a new leader.” At the time she stepped down, Dzeidzic said it was an honor to lead the new Senate DFL Majority last year during one of the most consequential legislative sessions in a generation. Democrats in control of state government passed paid family and medical leave, universal school meals and created protections for abortion access in state law. Those bills and others, such as universal background checks for gun sales, passed in a 34-33 Senate where Democrats had just a one-seat advantage over Republicans. Dziedzic in her announcement thanked staff and colleagues for helping her lead her caucus after her diagnosis and urged people to get early checkups, which she said are key to early detection of cancer. The eldest daughter of Walter and Patricia Dziedzic, she followed her father’s footsteps into community service, her family said. She was a lifelong “Nordeaster” graduating from Edison High School in northeast Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota. She worked as an executive assistant to U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone and in other positions for Hennepin County. She was elected to Senate District 60 in January 2012 and then served as Senate Majority Leader from January 2023 until February 2024. “Kari is survived and will be sorely missed by her mother, Pat Dziedzic, her five siblings and their spouses, her beloved nieces and nephews, and uncounted friends and colleagues,” her family said in the written statement, saying that memorial service details are pending. In a statement on Saturday, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar said Dziedzic was “an incredible public servant who gave so much to our state. She long served as my state Senator and I got to see firsthand how she listened to and worked with the people in the district and how effective she was. She governed with strength and calm and grace and was able to get big things done without political drama. That earned her the respect of her colleagues on both sides of the aisle. Our family’s prayers are with Kari’s friends and family during this difficult time.” Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy (DFL- St. Paul) said she was deeply saddened to hear of Dziedzic’s death. “Kari’s loss will echo across Minnesota, felt by her family, friends, colleagues — and by millions of Minnesotans whose lives have been made better by her work on their behalf,” Murphy said in a statement. “For the past year, I have been in awe of her strength as she continued to heroically work — with skill and compassion — as she underwent treatment for cancer. Her talents as a consequential and thoughtful leader made us all better legislators, and her examples of kindness, humor, and selflessness made us all better people. She was an uncommon leader and touched us all in a great many ways. I will miss her greatly.” Related Articles Politics | Disqualified DFL House candidate steps down, granting Republicans majority Politics | Will Minnesota go all-in on sports betting in 2025? Politics | Longtime Duluth-area lawmaker Mary Murphy dies at 85 Politics | Mary Murphy, Minnesota’s longest-serving woman legislator, in hospice care after stroke Politics | Jim Abeler: The DFL overspent, didn’t listen, and now a deficit is coming. It doesn’t have to be this wayA man called 911 for help during a home invasion. Las Vegas police fatally shot him.
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Nearly 13 months after his beloved wife Rosalynn died in November 2023, former President Jimmy Carter passed away at the age of 100, the Carter Center confirmed on Sunday. The former president made a rare public appearance at her memorial service. He sat in a wheelchair with a blanket that had a picture of him and Rosalynn together. He would also make a rare public appearance on October 1 as his hometown celebrated his 100th birthday. “Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished,” President Carter said after his wife passed away. “She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me.” The couple was married for 77 years. They met as children, both growing up in Plains, Georgia. Their storied romance started when Jimmy was 17 years old. After their first date, he reportedly told his mom, “She’s the girl I want to marry.” The pair would marry not long after — in 1946. The couple moved to Norfolk, Virginia, where Jimmy was stationed after graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy. Like many military families, the Carters moved from city to city. Their three sons were born in three different states: Virginia, Hawaii and Connecticut. Their only daughter was born in their home state of Georgia. Jimmy left the military in 1953 and began a career in politics about 10 years later. RELATED STORY | Former President Jimmy Carter dies at age 100 Rosalynn was reportedly an important member of Jimmy’s campaign team when he ran for governor of Georgia, a race he won in 1970. After serving four years as governor, Jimmy decided to run for president. During the campaign, Rosalynn traveled the country independently, proving to be a strong advocate for her husband’s vision for the country. Jimmy Carter would go on to defeat President Gerald Ford and become the 39th president of the United States. Rosalynn was an active first lady. She attended cabinet meetings and frequently represented her husband at ceremonial events. Rosalynn shared in her husband’s efforts to work to make the U.S. government more “competent and compassionate,” the White House said. After leaving the White House in 1981, the couple returned to Georgia. They would go on to become some of the most notable philanthropists in the world. They founded The Carter Center, which is committed to protecting human rights around the world.Northwestern hopes hot streak continues vs. NortheasternUConn-Louisville to tip off 2025-26 season in GermanyShares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing ( TSM -0.61% ) are sitting close to their all-time high, and Barclays analyst Simon Coles sees more upside in the next year. Last week, the analyst maintained the firm's overweight (buy) rating on the stock but raised their price target from $215 to $240. Wall Street's price targets are not all that meaningful for long-term investors. But in this case, there is a meaningful catalyst that can send shares higher in the near term: artificial intelligence (AI). Here's why the analyst might be right with his price target. AI chip demand is off the charts On the third-quarter earnings call, management said that demand for AI server processors, which include graphics processing units (GPUs) and other chips being used for AI training , is booming. It expects the revenue contribution from these chips to more than triple for the full year. While revenue from AI chips is expected to make up a mid-teens percentage of 2024 revenue, TSMC is also seeing strong growth in other areas of the business. In the third quarter, revenue grew 36% year over year with earnings per share up 54%. Despite the stock's recent gains, its valuation is still attractive. TSMC trades at 27.1 times this year's consensus earnings estimate as of this writing. And using the 2025 consensus estimate, its forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is even more attractive at just 21.5. That seems to be an unjustified discount to the S&P 500 index's average forward P/E of 23.9, considering TSMC's above-average revenue and earnings growth. Of course, demand trends can sometimes change for the worse, given the cyclical nature of the chip industry. But considering the recent opportunities in the AI chip market, TSMC should deliver strong growth in 2025 and beyond, making the stock a solid buy.
As the BJP-led NDA is all set for a convincing win in the Maharashtra Assembly elections, analysts predict an assertive spill-over impact on the Indian stock market when the trade resumes on Monday. Political stability, connected with a continuance of pro-business policies, makes it possible to switch the investor strategy from ‘defensive’ to ‘aggressive’. It shifts focus to the infrastructure and banking sectors, given the successful implementation of projects. The BJP-led alliance’s victory may boost investor sentiment, according to Palka Arora Chopra, Director of Master Capital Services. “Political stability in Maharashtra will boost confidence, especially in infrastructure and manufacturing sectors . They are aligned with the growth-driven policies of the BJP,” she said. This alignment is expected to trigger investments in urban development and real estate. Market analysts believe this could spur the risk of a pullback rally in Maharashtra election-adjusted stock market activity. Santosh Meena, Head of Research at Swastika Investmart, noted the positive reaction to election predictions last Friday. The clear mandate for NDA in Maharashtra may further strengthen the market sentiment. Investors are expecting fast movement in infrastructure projects, which would benefit key sectors such as construction and banking. Maharashtra elections impact on Indian stock market will be positive, says experts A change in investment strategies is also awaited. Mahesh M. Ojha, AVP-Research at Hensex Securities, pointed out that with the aftermath of election results, investors would possibly move from FMCG and pharma stocks to railways, infrastructure, and finance sectors. “This strategic change reflects confidence in long-term economic growth under a stable government,” he added. Avinash Gorakshkar, Head of Research at Profitmart Securities, said: “BJP policies are in full swing at both state and central levels.” Infrastructure-related companies will see higher credit demand, which will lead to more interest in banking stocks. Such news can make markets even more optimistic. The markets prepare to respond to the Maharashtra elections’ impact on stock market trends. Hence, Nifty’s performance will be closely monitored. Analysts predict key resistance levels at 24,550, with banking and infrastructure stocks likely to lead the charge. Monday’s trading session could set the tone for a robust market rally, underpinned by political clarity and investor optimism. Also, see: Gold Prices Drop to Lowest: Should You Invest in Gold in India Now?
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No. 25 Illinois rebounds in big way, blasts UMES 87-40Hull four off pace as Yin, Thitikul lead CME Group Tour ChampionshipThere is a moment of chilling power midway through Steve McQueen’s new, Apple-produced World War II drama Blitz . The film, a Dickensian exploration of London during the Nazis’ devastating bombing campaign, keeps itself mostly at the sides of either Rita (Saoirse Ronan) or George (newcomer Elliott Heffernan), its separated mother and son leads, for much of its 2-hour runtime. But then, in the midst of it all, there is a sudden detour. McQueen and cinematographer Yorick Le Saux begin to glide through a glitzy London nightclub as its performers sing and dance and its patrons gossip, drink, and delight in each other’s company. Together, McQueen and Le Saux steadicam their way through the sequence, winding in and out of the club’s hallways and even briefly dipping into its kitchen before returning to its tables and main-floor guests. The place is alight and alive with the sound of music, which McQueen repeatedly argues throughout Blitz is also the sound of life itself. But then the club’s band leader calls for quiet, and we hear them: the air raid sirens sounding. Everyone in the club looks up, fear suddenly etched on their faces, and as McQueen’s camera rises, we see them all go unnaturally still. They become humans paralyzed, trapped between the same single breath. The exhale comes shortly thereafter when McQueen cuts to another long, unbroken shot in a space jarringly devoid of light. He pans his camera long enough for us to realize that we are in the same nightclub again, now bombed to oblivion. Some of the patrons still sit in their seats — frozen forever in that same, held inhale. This is but one of several violent wartime events dramatized throughout Blitz , and McQueen, who both wrote and directed the film, does eventually connect his nightclub tangent back to Heffernan’s George. The manner in which he does is horrifying and almost cartoonishly ghoulish, and it involves a crew of grave-robbing villains — led by the psychotic Albert (Stephen Graham) — that feel, in their cruelty and willingness to loot London’s bombed homes and bodies, like they could have been plucked right out of Oliver Twist . There is something off-puttingly fantastical about them because they are seen through the eyes of George, a young biracial boy whose view of a world in which hellfire rains down every night and racism is present even in bomb shelters could only be exactly what Blitz is: whimsically heightened and yet terrifyingly brutal. The film, McQueen’s first scripted feature effort since 2018’s Widows , has already received comparisons to Steven Spielberg’s movies , specifically 1987’s Empire of the Sun . This is due, in no small part, to its young protagonist and its blend of the fantastic and the gritty. Both aspects represent unexpected changes of pace for McQueen, a filmmaker who first made a name for himself directing unsparing adult dramas like Hunger , Shame , and 12 Years a Slave . At times, McQueen’s realist style does bristle incongruously against the purposefully childlike perspective of some of Blitz ‘s scenes. In the second half of his career, however, McQueen has attempted to stretch his filmmaking prowess by continuing to explore the same heady themes of his earlier films in more straightforwardly entertaining genre works. He did so successfully in Widows , a gutsy crime thriller that flew frustratingly under the radar in 2018, and he’s done so again in Blitz . Unlike that film, which took a familiar potboiler premise and gave it a distinctly political, feminist perspective, Blitz tells a story that — on paper, at least — feels positively Spielbergian. It follows George, who decides to disobey his mother’s wish to evacuate him to the British countryside and away from the reach of the Germans’ bombs. Halfway through his ride away from London, George jumps from his train and sets off on a journey back to his mother and grandfather, Gerald (Paul Weller). His path proves to be a winding one full of dangerous close calls and chance encounters with characters who range from empathetic to conniving. At the same time, Ronan’s Rita, a wartime factory worker and single mother, is left searching for new ways to feel useful and helpful without a young boy to raise and protect. Her efforts lead her first to the pub for a girls’ night out with her friends, and then to an underground community shelter shared by those left homeless by the Blitz. For Rita and her fellow adults, questions of purpose and survival permeate the very air they breathe. How do you adapt to a time when uncertainty is constant and sudden death is a possibility every night? What is the best way to spend one’s time when it feels like your world could end at any given moment? Blitz may be set over 80 years in the past, but these questions still resonate today, and McQueen makes the certainty of doom seem uncomfortably palpable throughout. Every one of the film’s chapters feels destined to end even when they have only just begun, and while most of Blitz ‘s story is told through the eyes of its prepubescent protagonist, that doesn’t stop McQueen from repeatedly ripping George’s moments of respite and calm away from him. This approach creates a resulting atmosphere of tragedy and yearning that both unsettles and moves. Through George, McQueen finds ways to touch on some of the similar themes of institutional racism he’s explored in his previous films. The cause of his Black father’s absence is explained in one well-timed flashback, and McQueen pointedly spotlights in subsequent memories how this leaves George with only his white mother and grandfather as role models. When Blitz begins, he is so confused about his own identity that when he meets an empathetic Nigerian-British military policeman named Ife (a scene-stealing Benjamin Clementine) in one of the film’s best chapters, George isn’t sure whether or not he even identifies as Black. Why would he when — as McQueen showcases in one of the most brilliantly blocked sequences of his career — the only examples of Blackness that he can find are colored by his own country’s demeaning Imperialist perspective? There are moments when the film’s ideas about racism and the Blitz itself don’t coalesce as seamlessly as one would like, but the ideas themselves are always compelling. When they do combine together effectively, they only further reinforce the sense that the viewer has been dropped into a hostile world. McQueen doesn’t just intellectually or thematically evoke that feeling, either. He also punctuates Blitz with some of the most pulse-pounding, virtuosic set pieces he’s ever constructed, including an escape George must make when the underground train station he’s taken refuge in is flooded with waves of nearby sea water. This sequence, which McQueen expertly builds to with a series of increasingly unnerving images, strikes the perfect balance of orchestrated chaos. You know what’s happening every single moment, and that only makes the instances when George is knocked backward by a rush of water all the more terrifying. As yet another step up in budget and scale, Blitz gives McQueen the chance to prove yet again that he’s one of the most gifted visual craftsmen of his generation. Arresting images populate the film — from a point-of-view shot of George peeking through a boat’s cover to look up at the fiery, war-torn sky above him to a slow dissolve McQueen uses to briefly lay an aerial shot of London’s exploding cityscape over his young protagonist’s sleeping face. These visuals force you to not only admire the craft on display, but also think deeply about the choices Blitz is making throughout its 120 minutes. Not all of them work as well as others, but they all come together to consistently make Blitz just as thought-provoking as it is viscerally affecting. It’s a film that often leaves you, much like its many scrambling characters, holding your breath and anxiously waiting to see what happens next. Blitz is now playing in select theaters and streaming on Apple TV+.
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