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Poll: Most Americans want US leadership on global affairs, increased defense spending
Alberta releases new rules and no-go zones on wind and solar projectsSudan army reports killing 460 paramilitary fightersAn 83-year-old short story by Borges portends a bleak future for the internet
The Latest: Police believe gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare CEO has left New York City
Trump offers a public show of support for Pete Hegseth, his embattled nominee to lead the PentagonByfield scores in 200th career game as Kings hold off Kraken for 2-1 winUS stocks mostly rose Friday after a report showed a healthy jobs market, and Paris rallied as President Emmanuel Macron vowed to serve out his full term and end France's political crisis. Oil fell on concerns of oversupply and Bitcoin held at a level over $100,000 after hitting records Thursday. The world's biggest economy gained 227,000 jobs in November, more than analysts expected and up from a revised 36,000 in October, said the US Department of Labor. "The US jobs market has emphatically rebounded following October's disappointing data," said Neal Keane, head of global sales trading at ADSS. October's figures had been depressed by hurricanes and workers' strikes, while November's increases may have been exaggerated by the end of a strike at Boeing in particular -- and by retail hiring ahead of the holiday season. US stocks mostly closed higher, with the broad-based S&P 500 and tech-focused Nasdaq both hitting fresh records, although the Dow retreated slightly. Investors are mostly betting that November's jobs numbers, while comforting, are probably not strong enough to deter the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates again this month. "Investors needed a reassuring jobs report and that's exactly what they got," said eToro analyst Bret Kenwell. "The market still favors a rate cut from the Fed later this month and this report may not change that expectation." The Paris stock market closed up 1.3 percent on "hope that President Emmanuel Macron will serve out his term and that a (French) budget can be passed in the coming weeks," noted Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown. Macron on Friday was holding talks with French political leaders on the left and right as he seeks to quickly name a new prime minister after Michel Barnier's government was ousted in a historic no-confidence vote. Macron adopted a defiant tone in an address to the nation Thursday evening, just 24 hours after parliament voted out Barnier over his 2025 budget plan, which included unpopular austerity measures forced through without a vote using special powers. The luxury sector benefitted also from hopes of a pickup in Chinese demand. Gucci owner Kering topped the Paris CAC 40 as its shares gained more than six percent, while LVMH rose more than three percent. French video game company Ubisoft jumped 13 percent on takeover speculation. Frankfurt closed slightly higher, other continental markets were mixed, and London slid. In Asia, shares in Seoul sank more than one percent and the won weakened to about 1,420 per dollar as lawmakers prepared to hold an impeachment vote Saturday after President Yoon Suk Yeol's dramatic, short-lived imposition of martial law this week. While analysts said the economic fallout from the crisis would likely be limited, a political storm is ongoing. Hong Kong and Shanghai rallied as investors grew hopeful of fresh stimulus when top Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping meet to discuss economic policy next week. Bitcoin hovered above $100,000 after having blasted to the historic peak of $103,800 Thursday on news that US President-elect Donald Trump had picked crypto proponent Paul Atkins to head the nation's markets regulator. New York - Dow: DOWN 0.3 percent at 44,642.52 points (close) New York - S&P 500: UP 0.3 percent at 6,090.27 (close) New York - Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.8 percent at 19,859.77 (close) Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.3 percent at 7,426.88 (close) Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.1 percent at 20,384.61 (close) London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.5 percent at 8,308.61 (close) Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.8 percent at 39,091.17 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.6 percent at 19,865.85 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.1 percent at 3,404.08 (close) Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0566 from $1.0591 on Thursday Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2740 from $1.2760 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 149.97 yen from 150.09 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 82.93 from 82.97 pence West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.6 percent at $67.20 per barrel Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.4 percent at $71.12 per barrel gv/rl/bys/aha
Biden will decide on US Steel acquisition after influential panel fails to reach consensus WASHINGTON (AP) — A powerful government panel has failed to reach consensus on the possible national security risks of a nearly $15 billion proposed deal for Nippon Steel of Japan to purchase U.S. Steel. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States on Monday sent its long-awaited report to President Joe Biden, a longtime opponent of the deal. Some federal agencies represented on the panel were skeptical that allowing a Japanese company to buy an American-owned steelmaker would create national security risks. That's according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter. Both Biden and President-elect Donald Trump opposed the merger and vowed to block it. Nippon Steel says it is confident the deal will go ahead. Nissan and Honda to attempt a merger that would create the world's No. 3 automaker TOKYO (AP) — Japanese automakers Nissan and Honda have announced plans to work toward a merger that would catapult them to a top position in an industry in the midst of tectonic shifts as it transitions away from its reliance on fossil fuels. The two companies said they signed an agreement on integrating their businesses on Monday. Smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors agreed to join the talks. News of a possible merger surfaced earlier this month. Japanese automakers face a strong challenge from their Chinese rivals and Tesla as they make inroads into markets at home and abroad. What a merger between Nissan and Honda means for the automakers and the industry BANGKOK (AP) — Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan will attempt to merge and create the world’s third-largest automaker by sales as the industry undergoes dramatic changes in its transition away from fossil fuels. The two companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday and that smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors also had agreed to join the talks on integrating their businesses. Honda will initially lead the new management, retaining the principles and brands of each company. Following is a quick look at what a combined Honda and Nissan would mean for the companies, and for the auto industry. Survey: Small businesses are feeling more optimistic about the economy after the election A survey shows small business owners are feeling more optimistic about the economy following the election. The National Federation of Independent Businesses’ Small Business Optimism Index rose by eight points in November to 101.7, its highest reading since June 2021. The Uncertainty Index declined 12 points in November to 98, following October’s pre-election record high of 110. NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg said small business owners became more certain about future business conditions following the presidential election, breaking a nearly three-year streak of record high uncertainty. The survey also showed that more owners are also hoping 2025 will be a good time to grow. Heavy travel day off to a rough start after American Airlines briefly grounds all flights WASHINGTON (AP) — American Airlines briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical problem just as the Christmas travel season kicked into overdrive and winter weather threatened more potential problems for those planning to fly or drive. Government regulators cleared American flights to get airborne Tuesday about one hour after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a national ground stop, which prevented planes from taking off. American said in an email that the problem was caused by an issue with a vendor technology that maintains its flight operating system. The flight-tracking site FlightAware reported that more than 3,200 flights entering or leaving the U.S., or serving domestic destinations, were delayed. Twenty-eight flights were canceled. Nordstrom to be acquired by Nordstrom family and a Mexican retail group in $6.25 billion deal Century-old department store Nordstrom has agreed to be acquired and taken private by Nordstrom family members and a Mexican retail group in a $6.25 billion deal. Nordstrom shareholders will receive $24.25 in cash for each share of Nordstrom common stock, representing a 42% premium on the company’s stock as of March 18. Nordstrom’s board of directors unanimously approved the the proposed transaction, while Erik and Pete Nordstrom — part of the Nordstrom family taking over the company — recused themselves from voting. Following the close of the transaction, the Nordstrom Family will have a majority ownership stake in the company. Stock market today: Wall Street rallies ahead of Christmas Stocks closed higher on Wall Street ahead of the Christmas holiday, led by gains in Big Tech stocks. The S&P 500 added 1.1% Tuesday. Trading closed early ahead of the holiday. Tech companies including Apple, Amazon and chip company Broadcom helped pull the market higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.3%. American Airlines shook off an early loss and ended mostly higher after the airline briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical issue. Treasury yields held steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was little changed at 4.59% An analyst looks ahead to how the US economy might fare under Trump WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump won a return to the White House in part by promising big changes in economic policy — more tax cuts, huge tariffs on imports, mass deportations of immigrants working in the United States illegally. In some ways, his victory marked a repudiation of President Joe Biden’s economic stewardship and a protest against inflation. It came despite low unemployment and steady growth under the Biden administration. What lies ahead for the economy under Trump? Paul Ashworth of Capital Economics spoke recently to The Associated Press. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. American consumers feeling less confident in December, Conference Board says American consumers are feeling less confident in December, a business research group says. The Conference Board said Monday that its consumer confidence index fell back in December to 104.7 from 112.8 in November. Consumers had been feeling increasingly confident in recent months. The consumer confidence index measures both Americans’ assessment of current economic conditions and their outlook for the next six months. The measure of Americans’ short-term expectations for income, business and the job market tumbled more than a dozen points to 81.1. The Conference Board says a reading under 80 can signal a potential recession in the near future. Stock market today: Wall Street rises at the start of a holiday-shortened week Stocks closed higher on Wall Street at the start of a holiday-shortened week. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% Monday. Several big technology companies helped support the gains, including chip companies Nvidia and Broadcom. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 1%. Honda's U.S.-listed shares rose sharply after the company said it was in talks about a combination with Nissan in a deal that could also include Mitsubishi Motors. Eli Lilly rose after announcing that regulators approved Zepbound as the first prescription medicine for adults with sleep apnea. Treasury yields rose in the bond market.
It's been eight years since Rex Ryan was last a head coach in the NFL and he hasn't taken a single coaching job since despite his reputation as a top defensive mind. But with a number of NFL teams looking for new head coaches this offseason, the former New York Jets and Buffalo Bills coach wants one job in particular. Appearing on Pardon My Take, the former head coach turned NFL analyst publicly lobbied the Jets to re-hire him as their head coach. "There's way too much talent on this team to play the way we've been playing," Ryan said, referring to the Jets. "Period. And, how hard can you get a guy to play? That's the thing. Like, nobody's seen the team going to play the way... As hard as this team's going to play in the future, trust me, if I'm the guy. Trust me." "And that's going to be it," Ryan said. "That's what's going to seperate me from all these other guys you're going to bring in. You know, your Grudens [Jon Gruden], your whoever or whatever, give me a break. They ain't New York Jets. I'm all about the Jets." "And the great thing is, alright yeah, second chance. You'd get a second chance at it, things that doesn't happen very often. Yeah, well when it does, it's usually special. And so, we'll find out if I get that chance or not." “I think I’m the guy for the Jets” Rex Ryan has some unfinished business with New York @PardonMyTake pic.twitter.com/v1MQbaIvhM Ryan was the last coach to lead the Jets to the playoffs back in the 2010 season. He went 20-12 in his first two seasons at the helm between 2009 and 2010, leading them to the AFC Championship Game in back-to-back seasons. His big personality made him a great fit for New York and his bombastic style had fans loving him even after some of his worst moments. But poor quarterback play from Mark Sanchez between 2011 and 2012, followed by Geno Smith from 2013 to 2014 resulted in four straight years without a winning season and Ryan's firing following the 2014 season. Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images Ryan became head coach of the Bills mere months after the Jets fired him but he went 15-16 in two years, also failing to reach the playoffs. Should the Jets hire Ryan as their next head coach? Related: New York Sports Radio Host Wants Jets To Hire Rex RyanQuinton Byfield scores in 200th career game as Kings hold off Kraken for 2-1 win10 hot-ticket gifts we predict will sell out on Black Friday 2024
Chinese President Xi Jinping said there is a need to improve global economic governance and build a world economy characterised by cooperation. We have developed the G20 comprehensive growth strategies and established a framework for strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth. Addressing Session II of the 19th G20 Summit at Rio de Janerio, the Chinese President said, “We should stay committed to strengthening global economic partnerships, reinforcing macro policy coordination in fiscal, financial, monetary and structural reform policies in a bid to open up more possibilities for the global economy”. He said it is important to make good use of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meetings, let them serve as aballast for macro policy coordination, and foster an open, inclusive, and nondiscriminatory environment for international economic cooperation. As main creditors, international financial institutions and commercial creditors need to take part in debt reduction and suspension for developing countries and create a clean business environment by upholding a zero-tolerance stance against corruption and denying safe haven to corrupt officials and their assets. President Xi said, “It has been 16 years since the G20 Summit was launched. Over the years, we have worked in solidarity to steer the world economy on track. We have worked to face global challenges head-on, be it climate change or the Covid-19 pandemic, spearheaded technological transformation and kept renewing the G20’s responsibilities and missions.” Achievements The G20 needs to build on its past achievements and continue to act as a force to improve global governance and move history forward. We should observe the principles of the U.N. Charter and defend the international order based on international law. In light of the G20’s mandate, we could build greater international consensus in the economic, financial, trade, digital and eco-environmental fields to improve global governance and promote a multipolar world. He said, “We need to improve global financial governance and build a world economy characterised by stability. To increase the voice and representation of developing countries, the World Bank should carry out shareholding review and the International Monetary Fund should carry out quota share realignment in line with the agreed timeframe and roadmap. It is important to enhance the systems for financial risks monitoring, early warning and handling, reinforce cooperation in such areas as digital currency and taxation, and strengthen the global financial safety net. The G20 Sustainable Finance Roadmap should be implemented at a faster pace. ” “There is a need to improve global trade governance and build a world economy characterized by openness. We should place development at the center of the international economic and trade agenda, and steadily advance trade and investment liberalization and facilitation. We should press ahead with reforming the World Trade Organisation (WTO). We should work actively to keep the WTO rules relevant. Steps should be taken to improve global digital governance and build a world economy characterized by innovation. We should strengthen the function of the G20 Digital Economy Ministers’ Meeting, and let it play a leading role in digital transition, the deep integration of the digital economy and the real economy, and rules-making in emerging areas. We should step up international governance and cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI), to make sure that AI is for good and for all, not a game of the rich countries and the wealthy. China will hold another world AI conference in 2025 and welcomes the participation of fellow G20 members. Eco-friendliness We also need to improve global ecological governance and build a world economy characterized by eco-friendliness. We should honour the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, and fully and effectively implement the Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework for the sake of man’s harmonious coexistence with nature. China stands ready to continue to deepen international cooperation with all sides on green infrastructure, green energy, green mining and green transport.Global security governance is part and parcel of global governance. The G20 should support the U.N. and its Security Council in playing a greater role, and support all efforts conducive to the peaceful settlement of crises. To deescalate the Ukraine crisis and seek a political settlement. China and Brazil, together with some other Global South countries, launched the group of ‘friends for peace’ on the Ukraine crisis, with the goal of bringing together more voices for peace.Face biometrics are a common theme running through the most-read articles of the week on , along with the impact that deepfakes and synthetic data are having on the field’s market and development. New algorithms from Innovatrics and Incode performed well in NIST testing and a new training dataset of synthetic identities seeks to bridge the realism gap. A report from Entrust and Onfido reveals the alarming frequency of deepfake-fueled fraud attempts and a new group including the ACCS, AVPA and Privately is looking into defending age assurance systems against deepfakes. Facial recognition is also the mechanism that will be relied on to keep Australian teens off of social media and make Europe’s border protection plans operationally feasible. Elsewhere, Jordan Burris delves into Socure’s advice for the incoming American government on digital ID. A group of technology and child welfare advocates in Australia waded into that country’s , arguing for the a more moderate regulatory approach. The dangers of social media for children are well documented, but the proposal would affect how everyone uses the internet, while not everyone understands what is being proposed or how it would work. NIST published a new update to its 1:N FRTE track earlier this month, which shows particularly from Innovatrics and Incode. Both algorithms cracked the top 10 in multiple categories, while familiar entries from NEC, Idemia, Paravision, CloudWalk, SenseTime and Megvii showed top results. NIST also published guidelines for the U.S. federal government’s identity verification and access control system, which is based on ID cards. The new documents cover identity services. Both are final public drafts, and comments will be accepted until January 10. Digital identity should be given and a national taskforce formed to advance it, Socure says among five recommendations for the new government. Jordan Burris tells in an interview that the critical infrastructure status is a natural extension of designations already on the books, and explains how leadership and collaboration can enable a leap forward for America’s defense against fraud. Remote pre-enrollment may be the best way to with faster operations for the EU’s EES, but is running up against the requirement for fingerprint biometrics and concern about contactless fingerprint spoofing. There were key points from an industry roundtable held by eu-LISA, and featuring insights from numerous stakeholders including iProov and Mühlbauer. CBP is using to help maintain the security of biometrics and other sensitive personal data, and prevent another incident like the Perceptics breach. Even the automated tests themselves require robust data security, and they are likely to be used even more extensively as CBP migrates more systems to cloud environments. World ID enrollments are back on in Brazil, and off in the Dominican Republic, where a consumer rights regulator has ordered their suspension. The company has , from the physical appearance of its iris biometric-scanning orbs to the latest accusations of “abusive” contract clauses in the name of “privacy rocket science.” The frequency of deepfake attacks has reached every five minutes, according to the 2025 Identity Fraud Report from Entrust and Onfido. The report also shows more than half of all document fraud in the digital channel involves , and the crypto industry is a relatively common target. Deepfakes pose a potential threat beyond financial fraud as well, and stakeholders within the age assurance community have come together to launch the against presentation and injection attacks. The project is run by the ACCS, AVPA and Privately. Technology and law are both being turned against deepfakes, at predictably differing paces. Authologic’s digital ID aggregation business model gets a closeup from in the wake of its $8 million fundraise. The company’s founders believe malicious use of AI is a threat to civilization itself. Meanwhile in Minnesota, a court challenge to an anti-deepfake law has been led on a detour by an academic who filed a brief that appears to contain citations hallucinated by a large language model, according to . Synthetic data holds the potential to help train better facial recognition systems, but the existing databases fall short of the realism needed to realize that potential, say researchers from Idiap. They built a database with nearly 400,000 face images of , which they call Digi2Real, using foundational models, to address the realism gap. Please let us know about any interviews, editorials, podcasts or other content we should share with the biometrics and digital identity community either in the comments below or through social media. | | | |
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The Conservatives stalled debate on an NDP opposition day motion in the House of Commons on Friday, a day after the New Democrats intervened in the Tories' own opposition day. The NDP was set to begin debate on a motion calling on the government to extend the upcoming GST break to what the party calls "essentials," including prepared foods at grocery stores, home heating and cellphone and internet bills. The motion also calls on the government to expand the proposed $250 "working Canadians rebate" to include fully retired seniors, people who rely on disability benefits and others who did not have employment income in 2023 — a key condition of the Liberal government's rebate. Conservative deputy leader Melissa Lantsman raised a point of privilege about a protest that happened earlier this week, saying three NDP members voiced support for protesters who blocked MPs from doing their work. Members of the Parliamentary Protective Service and Ottawa Police detain participants in an anti-war protest that occupied the lobby of the Confederation Building Tuesday morning. The building houses MPs' offices. (Raffy Boudjikanian/CBC) On Tuesday, about 100 protesters held a sit-in at the Confederation Building — which houses MPs' offices — to call for an arms embargo against Israel. Most of Friday's debate time was eaten up by Lantsman's privilege motion and a series of points of order raised by MPs who seemed bent on stalling NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh's opposition motion. It was just the latest episode of procedural hijinks among opposition parties, after the NDP had delayed debate on a Conservative non-confidence motion on Thursday by forcing a debate on abortion instead. Conservatives decry 'procedural nonsense' as NDP forces House debate on abortion NDP won't back Conservative non-confidence motion that borrows Singh's own words Antiwar protesters calling for Israeli embargo ousted from Ottawa building housing MPs' offices The House adjourned for the week just before 2 p.m. on Friday. Deputy Speaker Chris d'Entremont said the debate on the privilege motion will resume on Monday. The votes on both the NDP GST motion and the Conservative non-confidence motion are scheduled to take place that day. House has been gridlocked for weeks The House of Commons has been in gridlock since late September, when the Conservatives began a filibuster on a separate privilege debate. That debate centres on the Liberals' refusal to provide unredacted documents about a now-defunct green technology fund to Parliament and the RCMP. The government has provided redacted copies of the documents, citing privacy concerns, and has said it would not be appropriate for Parliament to provide documents to the police. The RCMP says it is investigating the fund and that it likely could not use documents obtained through Parliament in that investigation. Still, the Tories say they will force the debate to continue until the Liberals hand over the documents or the NDP agrees to bring down the government. Poilievre pushes Freeland to present fall economic statement to give Canadians a look at the books Speaker schedules opposition motions after Tories block own non-confidence vote NDP, Conservative MPs accuse each other of harassment in the House Because questions of privilege take precedence over nearly all other House business, the government has not been able to advance legislation. Parliament was heading toward an unprecedented situation of being unable to vote on a request from the government for more than $21 billion in spending. Earlier this week, House Speaker Greg Fergus intervened to pause the filibuster and schedule the four remaining days for opposition business and the vote on supplementary spending. Singh has said he will not vote in favour of the latest Conservative non-confidence motion. The NDP and Bloc Quebecois have voted down the Conservatives' two previous attempts to bring down the government this fall.
For years, large drillers in California sold unprofitable wells to smaller companies willing to wring the last drops of oil out of them. The process essentially kicked the cost of cleaning up oil fields — pumping concrete down well bores, removing tanks and pipelines — to operators with less ability to pay for the eventual cleanup. Policymakers and advocates predicted that taxpayers — not the oil companies themselves — would ultimately have to pay billions for remediation once those oil and gas operations ran dry. Unplugged wells emit climate-warming methane and pose long-term hazards to soil and groundwater. But a new law may finally be slowing the so-called well shuffling, state data shows. Since the start of this year, companies have proposed selling 766 wells in the state. But before the wells can change hands, purchasers are now required to request an estimate for a bond to plug the wells from the California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), the agency that regulates drilling. Grist thanks its sponsors. Become one . To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist. Here's How The requirement is part of a new law passed last year to ensure that someone — not taxpayers — is forced to put up the money to clean up the wells before they can be sold. The state quoted bond amounts totaling $80.5 million for those hundreds of wells. Most of that money was for a bond to eventually plug 729 wells in Kern County that Vaquero Energy Inc. wanted to buy from Aera Energy. The remaining 37 wells are scattered across Santa Barbara, Orange, Kern, Fresno, and Los Angeles counties and are owned by two dozen companies. The majority of those wells were idle, and nearly all were marginal — producing less than 15 barrels of oil a day, enough to produce just 472 gallons of gas. But after the state determined how much it would cost to bond those wells, all 37 of the proposed sales fell through. The California Geologic Energy Management Division directed questions about the failed transactions to the involved companies. Grist thanks its sponsors. Become one . To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist. Here's How To Rob Schuwerk, the executive director of Carbon Tracker’s North American office, it means that the law is working as intended: Companies are no longer passing off marginal wells to operators who lack the financial means to plug them. “The law has stopped some of the bleeding,” Schuwerk wrote in an email to Capital & Main. Capital & Main reached out to all of the operators involved in the proposed sale of wells. Most did not respond to emails and phone calls. Chad Hathaway, the owner of Hathaway LLC, wanted to buy 14 wells from Kern River Holding LLC. The state required that he file a $2.6 million bond to complete the transaction. His company in the Mount Poso oil field in Kern County specializes in refurbishing and reactivating marginal wells. In an email to Capital & Main, Hathaway wrote that California “places such high costs on abandonment and remediation that it makes the transfers impossible, unaffordable, and economically unfeasible to bond.” He noted that the state’s bonding estimates run much higher than his company’s internal estimates. That sentiment is shared by other operators. Signal Hill Disposal LLC, a wastewater disposal company based in Southern California, responded with “shock and awe” after the California Geologic Energy Management Division said it needed to obtain a $651,820 bond to acquire a single well in Los Angeles County, according to division emails obtained by Capital & Main. The quoted amounts to plug wells are, however, in line with and even a little below figures included in a Sierra Club idle wells report released in December 2023 that is frequently cited by some lawmakers in Sacramento. That report put total cleanup liabilities for all unplugged wells in California at $22.9 billion. A Carbon Tracker report from 2023 estimated that the costs of decommissioning all those wells would be more than double the projected cash flows for all oil-producing companies in California given how much oil is left in the ground. Going forward, Carbon Tracker’s Schuwerk said, California needs “to increase financial assurance on all entities,” which he said could be accomplished through bonds or sinking funds , which can be dedicated to cleanup costs and which oil operators pay into over time. But any plan to clean up oil fields through bonds alone faces a major hurdle: Bond sellers have become reluctant to work with California oil operators, said Mark Karr, a senior account manager with SuretyBonds.com. “Out of all the bonds we sell, this is one of the highest risk industries,” Karr said. “A lot of surety companies think it’s not even worth it because we’ve had to pay out so many times” to the state after oil operators reneged on promises to use their own money for plugging wells. The state’s largest operators, including Chevron, may be best positioned to set aside cleanup money, considering their still very profitable global operations. But actions by driller Aera Energy, which recently merged with California Resources Corporation to become the state’s largest well operator, show how challenging it can be to make companies put up a sufficient bond. In one proposed transaction this year, Aera asked the California Geologic Energy Management Division for a bond estimate to sell 11 wells to an unidentified company. In another, where Aera wanted to sell 729 wells to Vaquero Energy, it’s not clear which company initiated the transaction. The bond amounts for the two transactions would have totaled $75.3 million, but neither moved forward. Neither Aera or Vaquero responded to requests for comment. And months before its shareholders voted in June to acquire Aera, California Resources Corporation told state regulators that its stock transfer acquisition of Aera meant no wells were actually changing hands. The California Geologic Energy Management Division agreed with the company’s interpretation of the law, and did not force California Resources Corporation to file a bond for acquiring Aera’s wells. California Resources Corporation estimated in financial statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission that its long-term costs for cleaning up all of its unplugged wells after the merger — about 38,000 — amounted to $1 billion. By contrast, the Sierra Club estimated that the two companies’ liabilities to plug their idle wells amounted to $3.5 billion combined. California Resources Corporation filed a $30 million bond for cleanup costs with the state in December 2023, the maximum amount under the law at the time. Meanwhile, the state is taking more steps to hold companies financially liable for their wells. In September, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law to charge companies thousands of dollars per idle well annually unless they start plugging them. Despite President-elect Trump’s desire to promote domestic oil production, the federal government may find it difficult to intervene in matters related to drilling on state lands. “It does not in any immediate way intersect with federal law or implicate federal interests,” said Ann Alexander, an environmental attorney and policy consultant who advocated for the oil well bonding law. The bonding law is a step in the right direction, but California needs to continue finding ways to make oil operators pay for cleanup, Alexander said. Other industries could serve as a model, such as the nuclear power sector, in which plant operators are required by federal regulations to put money into a sinking fund for decommissioning . “No matter how much people want to keep [California’s oil drilling] industry alive, it is fundamentally on the wane,” she said. 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Colts Notebook: Richardson again delivers in clutch
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Adrian Kempe and Quinton Byfield scored in the second period, and the Los Angeles Kings beat the Seattle Kraken 2-1 on Saturday. David Rittich made 19 saves for the Kings, who improved to 6-2-1 at home. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.
Middle East latest: Israeli raid and airstrikes in West Bank kill at least 8 Palestinians
A U.S. court’s decision holding an Israeli company liable for surreptitiously installing Pegasus, a spyware suite, on the phones of targeted individuals through WhatsApp, has brought the focus back on the Centre’s questionable inaction when such surveillance allegations surfaced in India in 2021. The U.S. District Court for Northern District of California ruled that NSO Group Technologies violated both federal and State laws against computer fraud and abuse. WhatsApp sued the NSO Group in October 2019, alleging that its system was used by the Israeli company to plant malware on approximately 1,400 mobile phones and devices for surveilling their users. In a summary judgment, the court agreed with WhatsApp that its application had been reverse-engineered or ‘decompiled’ to create a modified version called ‘WhatsApp Installation Server’ or WIS. In the backdrop of this ruling, the question that arises in India is about the fate of reports submitted by a court-appointed expert committee in 2022 to the Supreme Court of India. The then Chief Justice of India (CJI), N.V. Ramana, had read out a few paragraphs from the report of the panel’s overseeing judge, Justice (retired) R.V. Raveendran. The report said the Technical Committee found no conclusive evidence on the presence of Pegasus, but there was some kind of malware in five out of the 29 phones examined. The reports are yet to be made public. Even if there was no effective hearing or follow-up action, what cannot be forgotten is that CJI Ramana had observed in open court that the government did not cooperate with the committee’s investigation. It was conduct typical of the Modi regime, which has repeatedly demonstrated that silence, denial and obfuscation form its stock responses whenever allegations emerge. It showed no interest in probing disclosures that the phones of journalists, activists, doctors and court staff were targets of spyware. It made a strange claim that the country had such ironclad laws that illegal surveillance was not possible. It adopted the untenable position that acknowledging that its agencies possessed any particular software would jeopardise national security. All this, despite admitting in Parliament that it was aware of some users being targeted by Pegasus through WhatsApp. It did not respond to credible reports that Pegasus may have been used to plant evidence on computers to frame dissidents. In the light of a judicial decision, albeit an overseas one, that the NSO Group is liable for the use of its spyware by its clients, solely government entities, the time has come for sealed reports to be opened and deeper probes begun. The government should come clean on whether it possesses surveillance software. Otherwise, citizens will be rendered even more vulnerable to illegal surveillance. Published - December 25, 2024 12:08 am IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit USA / judiciary (system of justice) / Pegasus surveillance / India / laws / Israel / mobile phones / technology (general) / investigation / government / Narendra Modi / parliament / national security / softwareAhmedabad: Two men were arrested on Tuesday in connection with the defiling of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's bust in the Khokhra area. Protests had erupted after the incident in Jayantilal Vakil Chawl in front of KK Shastri College on Monday. The Dalit community in the area had installed the bust in 2019 by pooling funds, locals said. "We have arrested two men in the case from the Madhavpura area. CCTV footage shows them fleeing on a scooter after defiling the bust near Jayantilal Vakil on Monday morning. They have been identified as Mehul Thakor, 31, and Bhola Thakor, 20, from Jugaldas Chawl near the Madhavpura locality," said a crime branch officer. Police are on the lookout for three of their aides who allegedly planned the defiling. The motive behind the action, police said, was old rivalry between the accused and some residents of the chawl. "On Sunday night, the accused had a liquor party and later decided to defile the bust," said the officer, adding that around 500 CCTV clips were scanned to identify the accused. Mehul and Bhola have earlier been booked for violating prohibition laws, violation of notification and rioting, the officer said. Khokhra police registered an FIR under Section 196 (promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, etc) and Section 298 (defiling place of worship, with intent to insult the religion of any class) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) Act and under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Members of the Congress party staged a protest at the site, demanding the installation of a new bust and strict action against the accused. Guards, CCTV cameras near statues and busts In light of the Khokhra incident, city police commissioner GS Malik on Tuesday ordered deployment of guards and installation of CCTV cameras near statues and busts of political and religious figures. The law and order situation following the defiling of Dr Ambedkar's bust in the area led the CP to take steps to prevent further such attempts by miscreants. Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . 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