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Why can’t Americans buy cheap Chinese electric cars?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

By Kyle Stock | BloombergEV variety is easy to find outside the US. Where American drivers now have about 50 electric cars to choose from, Europe’s array is almost double that, and China’s nearly triple. With that variety come more small and midsize options, and more cars with price tags that won’t break the bank.Ask any US automaker and they’ll say this is mainly a profitability problem. To pay for investments in electrification, carmakers are first focusing on trucks, SUVs and other premium models. That same tension is at the center of the United Auto Workers strike, which is pitting factory workers looking to preserve pay and benefits in an EV world against carmakers who say they can’t go electric, meet union demands and stay in the black.A model stands next to the newly launched BYD Atto 3 car during the Auto Expo 2023 in Greater Noida on January 11, 2023. (Photo by Money Sharma/AFP via Getty Images) China, meanwhile, has become a global powerhouse in electric cars: It’s ex...

Kurtenbach: My boldest prediction yet — these 49ers will go 17-0

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

SANTA CLARA — I don’t think Christian McCaffrey heard himself say it.The line was a toss-away, a quick cliche amid a post-game press conference the 49ers’ running back wanted to end:“We expect to win every game.”That statement struck me, and it has stuck with me since I walked out of Levi’s Stadium Thursday night.Why can’t the 49ers win every game?It’s probably too early for proclamations like this. I know this is going to anger plenty of Niners fans who think I have hexing powers. But I can’t shake the idea, and I cannot ignore the feeling.So, I’m going to plant the flag right now with the boldest prediction I’ve ever made in this space:The 49ers will go 17-0 this season.And before you ask, yes, I really believe this. I honestly wish I didn’t.Could this go wrong in a million different ways? Of course.Is the modern NFL built for such success? Absolutely not.Is this an aggressive stance after three games, all against o...

Oprah Winfrey has entered the Ozempic chat

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

By Lisa Respers France | CNNWeight loss drugs are getting a lot of attention these days, and now Oprah Winfrey is weighing in on the topic.While hosting her Oprah Daily’s “The Life You Want Class: The State of Weight,” the mogul said she was “ready for this conversation.”“You all know I’ve been on this journey for most of my life,” Winfrey added.“My highest weight was 237 pounds,” she said. “I don’t know if there is another public person whose weight struggle has been exploited as much as mine over the years.”Talk turned to type 2 diabetes medications Ozempic and Mounjaro, which are also prescribed for weight loss.After an audience member said she lost 100 pounds with the help of Ozempic and that it had aided her “mindset” when it came to food, Winfrey seized on that.“One of the things that I’ve been so ashamed, shamed myself about and was shamed in the tabloids every week for about 25 years is not having the willpower,” said Winfrey, who is also a board member and stock owner with ...

With the House paralyzed, White House prepares for shutdown

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

By Josh Boak, Stephen Groves and Lisa Mascaro | Associated PressWASHINGTON — The White House is preparing Friday to direct federal agencies to get ready for a shutdown after House Republicans left town for the weekend with no viable plan to keep the government funded and avert politically and economically costly disruption of federal services.A federal shutdown after Sept. 30 seems all but certain unless Speaker Kevin McCarthy can convince his rebellious hard-right flank of Republicans to allow Congress to approve a temporary funding measure to prevent closures while they work on the annual federal spending plan. But the House is not expected back until Tuesday, leaving just five days to resolve his standoff.“We got members working, and hopefully we’ll be able to move forward on Tuesday to pass these bills,” McCarthy, R-Calif., told reporters at the Capitol.McCarthy signaled his preference for avoiding a closure, but a hard-right flank of his House majority has eff...

Small earthquake rumbles South Bay

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

(KRON) -- A preliminary 2.8-magnitude earthquake shook parts of the South Bay on Friday morning, the United States Geological Survey said. The small quake's epicenter was located in Cupertino at a depth of 6.7 kilometers.The earthquake struck at 11:03 a.m. According to the USGS's "Did You Feel It?" reporting system, light and weak shaking was felt by people in Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, San Jose, Saratoga, and Mountain View.

Fatal pedestrian collision in SF escalates call for safer streets

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- There’s a growing call to make streets safer following yet another pedestrian death in San Francisco.On Wednesday, a pedestrian who was crossing the street in the area of Valencia and 18th streets was struck by a vehicle, according to the San Francisco Police Department. After receiving medical aid at the scene, the pedestrian was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries but later died from his injuries.The victim has been identified as Jian Huang, 80, of San Francisco, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. This marks the city’s 14th pedestrian death of the year.Police said the driver who struck Huang remained at the scene, and impairment due to drugs and alcohol did not appear to be a factor in the fatal collision. DUI driver tried to buy alcohol after crashing into North Bay store: police According to the organization Walk San Francisco, Huang was crossing Valencia Street when an SUV making a left turn onto Valencia from...

Md. school bus association calls out Howard Co. bus contract

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

Last month in Howard County, Maryland, many public school students started their new school year waiting on the curb as school buses were hours late to pick them up or didn’t show up at all.Now, the Maryland School Bus Contractors Association, which represents 3,000 school buses in 19 of the state’s 24 jurisdictions, is weighing in and calling on the county school system to terminate its contract with California-based company Zum Transportation that operates 210+ buses for the school system.In a statement Thursday, the association said community-based contractors can provide solutions if the school system is willing to end “its failed experiment of a contract” with Zum.MSBCA President Steve Nelson called the situation “alarming” and said the school system and the contractor “failed to live up to their responsibilities to the students and families they are expected to serve.”He recommended the school system rely more on in-state contrac...

Solheim Cup Results

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

FridayAt Finca CortesinAndalucia, SpainYardage: 6,903; Par: 72United States 5 Europe 3Friday FoursomesLexi Thompson/Megan Khang, United States def. Meja Stark/Linn Grant, Europe, 2 and 1 (1pt U.S.).Danielle Kang/Andrea Lee, United States def. Celine Boutier/ Georgia Hall, Europe, 1 up (1pt U.S.).Nelly Korda/Allisen Corpuz, United States def. Leona Maguire/Anna Nordqvist, Europe, 1 up (1pt U.S.).Ally Ewing/ Cheyenne Knight, United States def. Charley Hull/Emily Kristine Pedersen, Europe, 5 and 4 (1pt U.S.)Friday FourballRose Zhang/Megan Khang, United States vs. Gemma Dryburgh/Madelene Sagstrom, Europe, tied (½ pt each).Leona Maguire/Georgia Hall, Europe def. Lexi Thompson/Lilia Vu, United States, 1 up (1 pt. Europe)Jennifer Kupcho/Allisen Corpuz, United States vs. Emily Kristin Pedersen/Maja Stark, Europe, tied (½ pt. each)Carlota Ciganda/Linn Grant, Europe, def. Angel Yin/Ally Ewing, United States, 4 and 2 (1 pt. Europe)Source

Hero or villain? Rupert Murdoch’s exit stirs strong feelings in Britain, where he upended the media

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Before he hit America, Rupert Murdoch ripped through Britain’s media like a tornado.His newspapers changed the political and cultural weather and swung elections. His satellite television channels upended the staid broadcasting scene.Journalists and politicians in the U.K. both hailed and reviled the 92-year-old mogul after he announced Thursday that he was stepping down as leader of his companies Fox and News Corp., handing control to his son Lachlan.For The Times of London, which he owns, Murdoch was “a trailblazer who changed the media.” Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the tycoon “did more than any press baron in the last 100 years to promote the cause of the global free media that is indispensable for democracy and progress.”But to his critics, Murdoch was an unaccountable, malevolent presence in British life. Nathan Sparkes of Hacked Off, a press reform group that aims to curb tabloid wrongdoing, said Murdoch “presided over a company where widespread ille...

Sabato De Sarno makes much anticipated debut at Gucci under the gaze of stars like Julia Roberts

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:34:17 GMT

MILAN (AP) — Sabato De Sarno wants people to fall in love with Gucci again, calling his debut collection “Gucci Ancora,” Italian for “Gucci Again.”The title is a touching admission of the challenges facing the 40-year-old designer, who joined Gucci this summer from Valentino, where he worked for 14 years after stints at Prada and Dolce & Gabbana.The question is: can De Sarno do again what his predecessor Alessandro Michele was able to achieve by exciting the public to swarm to Gucci, pacing revenues at a sustained double-digit growth for French owner, Kering? Until the inevitable dip.De Sarno’s debut Friday, nine months after being hired in the wake of Michele’s surprise departure, was the most anticipated on the Milan Fashion Week calendar for next spring and summer womenswear.The furor was enough to fill the front row with Hollywood A-listers including Julia Roberts and Ryan Gosling.What the collection wasn’t: It wasn’t overtly sexy in a sultry way, like in the Tom Ford-era. N...