WASHINGTON  — The Supreme Court announced Friday it will hear Monsanto’s claim that it should be shielded from tens of thousands of lawsuits over its weed killer Roundup because the Environmental Protection Agency has not required a warning label that it may cause cancer.

The justices will not resolve the decades-long dispute over whether Roundup’s key ingredient, glyphosate, causes cancer.

Some studies have found it is a likely carcinogen, and others concluded it does not pose a true cancer risk for humans.

However, the court may free Monsanto and Bayer, its parent company, from legal claims from more than 100,000 plaintiffs who sued over their cancer diagnosis.

The legal dispute involves whether the federal regulatory laws shield the company from being sued under state law for failing to warn consumers.

In product liability suits, plaintiffs typically seek to hold product makers responsible for failing to warn them of a known danger.

John Durnell, a Missouri man, said he sprayed Roundup for years to control weeds without gloves or a mask, believing it was safe. He sued after he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

In 2023, a jury rejected his claim the product was defective but it ruled for him on his “strict liability failure to warn claim,” a state court concluded. He was awarded $1.25 million in damages.

Monsanto appealed, arguing this state law verdict is in conflict with federal law regulating pesticides.

“EPA has repeatedly determined that glyphosate, the world’s most widely used herbicide, does not cause cancer. EPA has consistently reached that conclusion after studying the extensive body of science on glyphosate for over five decades,” the company told the court in its appeal.

They said the EPA not only refused to add a cancer warning label to products with Roundup, but said it would be “misbranded” with such a warning.

Nonetheless, the “premise of this lawsuit, and the thousands like it, is that Missouri law requires Monsanto to include the precise warning that EPA rejects,” they said.

On Friday, the court said in a brief order that it would decide “whether the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act preempts a label-based failure-to-warn claim where EPA has not required the warning.”

The court is likely to hear arguments in the case of Monsanto vs. Durnell in April and issue a ruling by late June.

Monsanto says it has removed Roundup from its consumer products, but it is still used for farms.

Last month, Trump administration lawyers urged the court to hear the case.

They said the EPA has “has approved hundreds of labels for Roundup and other glyphosate-based products without requiring a cancer warning,” yet state courts are upholding lawsuits based on a failure to warn.

Environmentalists said the court should not step in to shield makers of dangerous products.

Lawyers for EarthJustice said the court “could let pesticide companies off the hook — even when their products make people sick.”

“When people use pesticides in their fields or on their lawns, they don’t expect to get cancer,” said Patti Goldman, a senior attorney. “Yet this happens, and when it does, state court lawsuits provide the only real path to accountability.”

Samson Nacua took a vehicle that didn’t belong to him without permission.

But he didn’t mean to.

That’s what the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Dept. determined after investigating the events that led to the arrest of Nacua and another man, Trey Rose, for allegedly stealing an SUV belonging to Lakers rookie Adou Thiero early Dec. 18.

The sheriff’s department has asked the L.A. County district attorney not to press charges against Nacua and Rose after determining that the two men thought they were driving a vehicle belonging to Nacua’s younger brother, Rams receiver Puka Nacua, a representative for the LASD West Hollywood station told The Times on Friday.

It turns out the NFL star happens to own an SUV of the same model and color as Thiero’s, only a year or two older, according to the LASD representative. Nacua and Rose thought they were picking up Puka Nacua’s vehicle from a valet parking location in Beverly Hills but ended up with Thiero’s SUV instead.

The LASD representative called it a case of “mistaken vehicle identity, basically.”

Thiero does not want to press charges, according to the LASD representative.

Nacua played four years of college football at Utah and one at Brigham Young. A receiver like his brother, Nacua now plays for the United Football League, spending the last two seasons with the now-defunct Michigan Panthers. In April, Nacua received a one-game suspension without pay after video showed him slapping a fan at a game.

He was selected by the Birmingham Stallions in this week’s UFL draft, which included all players who were on active rosters last season.

More than two years of Israeli bombardment have left Gaza buried under an estimated 61 million tonnes of rubble, much of it dangerous. UN teams warn clearing debris is essential for recovery but could take seven years without access, fuel, machinery and sustained support.

The 2019 drama has been hailed as the ‘creepiest show ever’

An ‘unsettling’ horror drama with a rare 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating is now streaming on Netflix.

TV fans are always on the hunt for new shows and Reddit has become a hub for recommendations. One user recently appealed to others on the platform in search of the perfect weekend watch.

They wrote: “So it’s freezing cold outside and apparently I want to make myself even colder?? Looking for some good series to binge this weekend.

“Horror would be absolutely perfect (because why not add psychological chills to the physical ones lol), but I’m open to anything that’ll keep me glued to the couch.”

The post went on to ask: “What are your recommendations? Hit me with your best/scariest/most binge-worthy series!”

French drama Marianne was among the recommendations, and it likely flew under most Netflix subscribers’ radars. It premiered in September 2019 but was cancelled in January 2020, after just one season.

Despite its short run on the streaming platform, the chilling show earned overwhelming praise from critics and casual fans alike. Its plot revolves around best-selling horror author Emma Larsimon, who returns to her hometown for inspiration.

Once there, Emma discovers that the evil spirit that haunts her nightmares may not be a figment of her imagination.

French actress Victoire Du Bois leads the cast as Emma. Film fans may recognise her from Oscar-winning drama Call Me By Your Name, where she shared the screen with Timothée Chalamet.

For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website.

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Upon its debut, Marianne earned critics’ approval. Taking to Rotten Tomatoes, one reviewer wrote: “With a decidedly Stephen King-esque inspired premise that feels like a combination of It and Misery and viscerally unsettling visuals edited with hair-raising precision, Marianne is a perfect recommendation for any horror fan.”

A casual moviegoer agreed: “It was seriously unsettling and creepy as hell. The whole vibe is super eerie, and some scenes actually gave me chills.”

While another added: “Creepiest show I’ve ever watched. And I loved it! I need to watch more French horror because if this is what y’all delivering I have been missing out.”

And a fourth viewer raved: “Best horror series on Netflix on the same level as Mike Flanagan’s Haunting of Hill House… which is the highest praise I can give anything!”

Marianne is streaming now on Netflix.

WASHINGTON — Edward J. Rollins, who created a furor by claiming he schemed to suppress the turnout of black voters in the New Jersey gubernatorial election, has agreed to run a black businessman’s Senate campaign in Pennsylvania.

Joseph Watkins said Thursday he wanted to hire Rollins despite the controversy because “Ed has a great political background and knows how to win races, and I wanted him on my team.”

Watkins, 40, is a Philadelphia business consultant and a Baptist minister. He said he will announce his candidacy next week for the Republican nomination for the seat now held by Democratic Sen. Harris Wofford.

Watkins worked for then-Indiana Sen. Dan Quayle and later worked in the George Bush White House as associate director of public liaison. He said he approached Rollins about a month ago and asked him to run the campaign. He said Rollins agreed and insisted on not being paid.

“He said he made a mistake, he said he was sorry, he said he was wrong, he asked to be forgiven, and I forgave him,” Watkins said of his decision to hire Rollins.

Rollins, a veteran GOP political consultant who ran Ronald Reagan’s 1984 reelection campaign, was out of the country and unavailable for comment. But an associate confirmed that Rollins had agreed to advise Watkins.

Rollins was the lead consultant in New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman’s campaign. A week after she defeated Democratic incumbent James J. Florio, Rollins told reporters that a major factor in her victory was the use of $500,000 in “walking around money” to pay campaign workers and ministers to suppress the black vote in Democratic areas.

Rollins quickly recanted and said he fabricated the story, but state and federal agencies launched investigations of potential voting law violations. On Jan. 12, a week before Whitman’s inauguration, authorities said they had found no evidence that Republicans paid anyone to hold down the Democratic vote.

Glasner congregated all his players and staff at the club’s training ground just before noon on Friday.

What arrived did not necessarily shock the players, they all had to have been living under a rock not to know their manager was very likely leaving in the summer.

The timing, though, got tongues wagging. Why now?

Prior to his announcement to the players, his captain Guehi had confirmed his intention to join Manchester City.

Glasner is one of Guehi’s biggest supporters, he will continue to be when they part ways.

It was always the Austrian’s intention for him and his captain to leave at the end of the season, but with Guehi’s departure thrust forward it is, perhaps, no surprise that he has taken the decision to confirm his intention to go now, too.

Nevertheless, the cracks between Glasner and the Palace hierarchy began showing in the summer.

The Austrian coach had been vocal in his frustration at the lack of transfer incomings. The club signed only back-up left-back Borna Sosa and number two keeper Walter Benitez before the final week of the window, by which point the season was already under way.

They targeted a move for Sporting defender Ousmane Diomande, but the club never got close to reaching an agreement.

Glasner was steadfast in his belief that the club should capitalise on last season’s euphoric FA Cup triumph by building a squad capable of pushing up the Premier League, but also one that could cope with the demands of playing European football for the first time.

Eventually, Palace signed Yeremy Pino in a deal worth £26m while young players Christantus Uche and Jaydee Canvot also arrived.

But Uche and Canvot have hardly played, with Glasner largely relying on the same squad as he did last season with minimal rotation, a squad that lost key player Eberechi Eze to Arsenal.

Palace started the season brightly, with many tipping a push for a Champions League place.

But Glasner feared trouble was round the corner. The coach is adept at juggling domestic and European football – he won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022 after all.

Some behind the scenes believe his apprehension to rotate the team provided a clear indication that it was his intention not renew his contract.

“It’s been like he has been getting his pound of flesh from the players because he knows he is leaving anyway,” said one source.

Eventually Glasner’s concerns came to fruition. They are currently nine matches without a victory, their latest defeat arriving last Saturday against non-league Macclesfield as their efforts to retain the FA Cup came to an embarrassing end.

They are currently 13th in the Premier League heading into this weekend’s game at Sunderland.

Preventing Guehi from joining Liverpool in a deal worth £35m in the summer did represent somewhat of a victory for Glasner, who was adamant all along that the defender should not be sold even if it meant the club would lose him for nothing this summer.

Although denied by Glasner, a number of sources have indicated that the 51-year-old would have considered his position immediately had Palace sold Guehi in the summer.

Even after Glasner informed Parish of his intention to step down over dinner in October, you sensed Palace had not given up hope of somehow persuading their manager to U-turn.

For example, the club record signing of Brennan Johnson is said to have been driven by the Austrian.

Equally, Parish is understood to have played a key role in ensuring Johnson arrived early in the January window to deliver for his manager, which many interpreted as an attempt at trying to convince Glasner that the club were prioritising strengthening the squad with his imprint.

That said, Palace have been active in identifying potential candidates to replace Glasner in the summer.

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Jan. 16 (UPI) — Lebanon and Syria have been working to turn the page on decades of mistrust and tense ties since the ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad in December 2024.

But the uneasy process has been complicated by reports that former regime officers hiding in Lebanon were involved in plots against Damascus’ new leadership.

The alleged use of Lebanese territory to destabilize Syria and undermine the rule of its new president, Ahmad Sharaa, has emerged as a highly sensitive security issue, raising concerns in the two neighboring countries.

The reports were based on leaked audio recordings obtained by Al Jazeera of former Assad loyalists, including high‑ranking military officers, discussing plans to regroup, secure funding and weapons, and explore possible coordination with Israel to undermine Syria’s stability after the collapse of the Assad regime.

They were specifically considering military action involving remnants of the former regime’s forces in Syria’s coastal regions to regain influence, particularly in Alawite-majority areas.

The most alarming part was the alleged establishment of an operations command cell in Lebanon by Suhail al‑Hassan, Syria’s former special forces commander, widely feared for violently suppressing protests and ordering air strikes against civilians during the civil war.

Al‑Hassan, who has been sanctioned by the United States, European Union and United Kingdom over his role in serious human rights abuses, was among the first senior regime officials evacuated to Moscow after the collapse of Assad’s rule.

Concerns about the alleged plot prompted the Lebanese Army, military Intelligence and other security services to conduct raids in northern Lebanon, including searches in areas with Alawite villages and camps hosting Syrian refugees, as well as in a camp recently established by Hezbollah in the town of Hermel that houses displaced Syrian Alawite families.

A Lebanese Army source said all camps near the border with Syria were searched to determine whether former Syrian officers were present.

Several arrests were made, though the source did not disclose the number. Published reports indicated that those detained faced charges ranging from illegal entry to possession of weapons or drugs.

“The [Syrian] officers were not [found] in these camps,” the Army source told UPI. “We found nothing [that supports] such a plot or planning. There is nothing of that sort in the camps.”

The source said officers usually do not stay in the camps and have the money to rent apartments, but “they are not active.”

While the case is being quietly investigated by Army Intelligence, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun downplayed the reported plot, saying raids carried out in several areas across northern and eastern Lebanon uncovered no evidence of officers linked to the Assad regime and stressing that Lebanon remains in coordination with Syria on the issue.

A Syrian national identified as Ahmad Dunya was reportedly arrested in Lebanon earlier this week on suspicion of transferring funds from Assad’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, to finance fighters involved in the alleged plot.

The arrest followed a request by Syrian authorities for Lebanon to locate and hand over more than 200 former officers who fled their country after Assad’s ouster.

Hisham Jaber, a Lebanese military expert and former Army general, said the number of Syrian officers who crossed into Lebanon following the takeover by Sharaa’s forces in Syria was “unknown.”

“There are large groups [of Syrian officers in Lebanon], along with funds that could be used to attract Syrian refugees who supported the Assad regime and recruit them to carry out sabotage missions inside Syria,” Jaber told UPI, dismissing any possibility of action in Lebanon.

Those officers, however, are under close watch and surveillance by the Lebanese Army and intelligence, according to the Lebanese Army source, who said that such efforts would be “reassuring” to the Syrian authorities. “There is no such conspiracy,” he added.

What may have fueled Syria’s fears is Hezbollah’s role in providing protection to fleeing Syrian officers.

According to Jaber, Hezbollah, an ally of the Assad regime that fought in Syria to prevent its collapse, is undoubtedly “in solidarity” with them, but the question is whether the Iran‑backed party would be able to protect them.

“Hezbollah could do that in its own ghettos in the Bekaa (eastern Lebanon) and Beirut’s southern suburbs, securing their stay or providing logistics, but they can’t remain there and would have to leave if they decide to take political or military action,” he said.

Lebanon, keen to maintain the best possible relations with Damascus, would therefore need to convince Syria that it would foil any conspiracy to destabilize the country, but cannot extradite Syrian officers because of legal hurdles and a lack of evidence.

“In a way, if Lebanon hands over anyone to the new authorities in Syria without evidence, it could also be accused of committing a miscarriage of justice,” David Wood, a senior Lebanon analyst at the International Crisis Group, told UPI. “This is a very politically and legally sensitive issue.”

Wood suggested that Lebanon’s best interest is to keep these former officials under surveillance, arrest them if there is evidence that they are breaking the law, but not immediately comply with extradition requests coming from Damascus.

Lebanon, long a refuge for freedom seekers, has upheld a doctrine since its independence in 1943 of preventing the country from becoming a corridor or launchpad for conspiracies against its Arab neighbors, and of rejecting requests to hand such individuals over to their home countries.

However, the Syrian officers in question cannot be considered freedom seekers, especially if they choose to engage in military plots at a time when the Lebanese remain divided over the new leadership in Damascus, much as they did during the Assad regime.

Sharaa is seen as a strong Sunni leader by most of Lebanon’s Sunnis, while Christians appear cautious because of his jihadist past, and Hezbollah remains distrustful, according to Wood.

Sharaa’s positive rhetoric toward Lebanon since assuming power in Syria — calling for the two countries to move past their troubled history, pledging non-interference in Lebanese affairs and putting Hezbollah’s fighting alongside Assad’s forces during the civil war behind them — is encouraging, but both countries need to translate words into concrete actions.

While Lebanon and Syria have consolidated political, diplomatic and security coordination, as well as successfully curbing drug and arms trafficking, they have so far been unable to resolve urgent issues that could stabilize their relations.

These include the most volatile issue of Syrian prisoners held in Lebanon, the Syrian refugee crisis — with only half a million of 1.5 million refugees having returned home — and the demarcation of their shared border.

“Lots of things need to be worked on — all of them still at a very preliminary stage,” Wood said, noting “domestic uncertainties on both sides, with each facing challenges that are not necessarily linked to the relationship.”

However, the fate of Hezbollah and its patron, Iran, is a major factor in Lebanon’s future, and by extension in Lebanese-Syrian relations — “something fundamental that could reshape the country,” he added.

Global warming is heating up the Arctic, and global powers like the United States, Russia and China are manoeuvring to stake a claim to the resources under its melting ice. Some experts say the region, once known as an exception – an island of international cooperation in the midst of geopolitical struggles – is becoming the site of a second cold war.

Presenter: Stefanie Dekker

Guests:
Pavel Devyatkin – nonresident fellow at the Quincy Institute

Miyuki Qiajunnguaq Daorana – Indigenous rights and climate activist

Petra Laiti – Saami Council project coordinator

Emmerdale aired a comeback for a past character on the ITV soap on Friday, linked to the return of Graham Foster as there was a new twist linked to his fake death

There was a familiar face on Emmerdale on Friday night, leading to another twist linked to Graham Foster.

Graham returned from the dead after six years during the Corriedale crossover earlier this month. It was confirmed that he was alive, despite fans seeing him killed off in 2020 by Pierce Harris.

We still don’t know what happened all those years ago, and when he may be back on the show for good. But it seems he had help to fake his death, and on Friday we may have seen who that was.

DI Dent appeared in scenes with Joe Tate, after he grew suspicious about his sighting of Graham. He’d been injured in the Corriedale crash and when he was in hospital, he saw someone outside his room that he believed to be Graham.

READ MORE: Emmerdale fans concerned as missing character is replaced amid Ray’s murderREAD MORE: EastEnders fans ‘rumble’ who actually killed Anthony – but it’s not Jasmine

It was him, but Joe believed he was imagining things. He hasn’t been able to let it go though and he contacted a private investigator, hoping to uncover the truth.

When he met with the PI on Friday, also there was DI Dent. Fans will recognise the detective, played by actress Linda Armstrong, as she appeared on the soap back in 2020.

She was one of the officers investigating Graham’s murder, helping to put away his apparent killer Pierce Harris. She left the show months later, and has not been in the village since.

Dent told Joe that Graham was very much dead, and had been for six years. She revealed how she’d been the one to see his body after he was found, and that she also saw him in the morgue.

Joe took her word for it and decided Graham had to be dead after all. But when they left, Dent was seen in her car making a rather cryptic phone call.

It wasn’t clear who she was speaking with, but it was clear some sort of cover-up was in play. She told the person the job was done, and that Joe had been told what he needed to hear.

So what exactly is she covering up, and why is she lying to Joe? Is it Graham she was talking to, or somebody else that doesn’t want anyone to know he’s still alive?

Emmerdale airs weeknights at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

COPENHAGEN — President Trump suggested Friday that he may punish countries with tariffs if they don’t back the U.S. controlling Greenland, a message that came as a bipartisan Congressional delegation sought to lower tensions in the Danish capital.

Trump for months has insisted that the U.S. should control Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, and said earlier this week that anything less than the Arctic island being in U.S. hands would be “unacceptable.”

During an unrelated event at the White House about rural health care, he recounted Friday how he had threatened European allies with tariffs on pharmaceuticals.

“I may do that for Greenland too,” Trump said. “I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security. So I may do that,” he said.

He had not previously mentioned using tariffs to try to force the issue.

Earlier this week, the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland met in Washington this week with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

That encounter didn’t resolve the deep differences, but did produce an agreement to set up a working group — on whose purpose Denmark and the White House then offered sharply diverging public views.

European leaders have insisted that is only for Denmark and Greenland to decide on matters concerning the territory, and Denmark said this week that it was increasing its military presence in Greenland in cooperation with allies.

A relationship that ‘we need to nurture’

In Copenhagen, a group of senators and members of the House of Representatives met Friday with Danish and Greenlandic lawmakers, and with leaders including Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

Delegation leader Sen. Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat, thanked the group’s hosts for “225 years of being a good and trusted ally and partner” and said that “we had a strong and robust dialogue about how we extend that into the future.”

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, said after meeting lawmakers that the visit reflected a strong relationship over decades and “it is one that we need to nurture.” She told reporters that “Greenland needs to be viewed as our ally, not as an asset, and I think that’s what you’re hearing with this delegation.”

The tone contrasted with that emanating from the White House. Trump has sought to justify his calls for a U.S. takeover by repeatedly claiming that China and Russia have their own designs on Greenland, which holds vast untapped reserves of critical minerals. The White House hasn’t ruled out taking the territory by force.

“We have heard so many lies, to be honest and so much exaggeration on the threats towards Greenland,” said Aaja Chemnitz, a Greenlandic politician and member of the Danish parliament who took part in Friday’s meetings. “And mostly, I would say the threats that we’re seeing right now is from the U.S. side.”

Murkowski emphasized the role of Congress in spending and in conveying messages from constituents.

“I think it is important to underscore that when you ask the American people whether or not they think it is a good idea for the United States to acquire Greenland, the vast majority, some 75%, will say, we do not think that that is a good idea,” she said.

Along with Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, Murkowski has introduced bipartisan legislation that would prohibit the use of U.S. Defense or State department funds to annex or take control of Greenland or the sovereign territory of any NATO member state without that ally’s consent or authorization from the North Atlantic Council.

Inuit council criticizes White House statements

The dispute is looming large in the lives of Greenlanders. Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said on Tuesday that “if we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark. We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU.””

The chair of the Nuuk, Greenland-based Inuit Circumpolar Council, which represents around 180,000 Inuit from Alaska, Canada, Greenland, and Russia’s Chukotka region on international issues, said persistent statements from the White House that the U.S. must own Greenland offer “a clear picture of how the U.S. administration views the people of Greenland, how the U.S. administration views Indigenous peoples, and peoples that are few in numbers.”

Sara Olsvig told the Associated Press in Nuuk that the issue is “how one of the biggest powers in the world views other peoples that are less powerful than them. And that really is concerning.”

Indigenous Inuit in Greenland do not want to be colonized again, she said.

Niemann and Superville write for the Associated Press. Superville reported from Washington. Emma Burrows in Nuuk, Greenland and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.

Once Guehi has officially signed, those at Etihad Stadium will take great pleasure in securing the services of one of the best centre-backs in the country.

Guehi was wanted by clubs from all around Europe, not only last summer but this transfer window too.

It is understood the 25-year-old has been admired by City for a long time and they were willing to wait until the summer to bring him in, but had to act quickly and decisively after injuries to Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol.

Though youngsters Abdukodir Khusanov and Max Alleyne have filled in flawlessly, title races require finished products with the know-how of competing in big games.

Guehi will provide strong leadership having captained Palace to a shock FA Cup triumph over City at Wembley last season, as well as playing a major part in England’s run to the final of the 2024 European Championship.

Though in the final months of his contract at Selhurst Park, a £20m fee for an international player with proven Premier League experience, and one which can hit the ground running immediately, can be classed as highly satisfactory business.

Sources have said this is not a knee-jerk transfer or a panic buy because of the injury situation, instead being struck strategically for a player that is anticipated to be at the club for the long-term.

Since the start of last season, Guehi ranks inside the top 10 among Premier League centre-backs for clean sheets, duels won, aerial duels won and line-breaking passes. He will bring calmness and physical dominance to the City backline.

His potential signing could also spell the end for John Stones, with the Englishman currently out injured and his contract expiring in the summer. The 31-year-old played only 11 top-flight games last season and just seven so far this year.

Earlier this month,, external Guardiola seemingly cast doubt on Stones’ future by saying his injury record will have to be taken into account in contract talks.

Jan. 16 (UPI) — President Donald Trump said Friday that he may add tariffs to countries that oppose his plan to take over Greenland, which is under the control of Denmark, a NATO member.

He made the remarks during a White House roundtable on rural healthcare. He was talking about threatening European countries with tariffs if they didn’t pay more for prescription drugs.

“I went through country after country,” Trump said. “I just went one after another.”

“I may do that for Greenland on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland because we need Greenland for national security,” he said.

On Thursday, Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenland Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Motzfeldt met with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, but the meeting didn’t end in a diplomatic solution to the ongoing tension.

On Friday, a congressional delegation was set to visit Denmark to offer support to NATO allies against Trump’s plan to annex Greenland.

“Today, I’m leading a bipartisan delegation to Denmark to meet with Danish and Greenlandic leaders. Congress is unified in wanting to thank our NATO allies and stand firm against unnecessary threats to trusted partners,” Sen. Chris Coons, D-Vt. posted on X Friday morning.

The overall U.S. tariff average since Trump took office is about 17%, CNBC reported.

The president has used the International Emergency Economic Powers Act for many of the tariffs, though the use of that law has been heavily challenged in the courts, and several courts have found it unlawful.

The U.S. Supreme Court will soon rule on the use of the IEEPA for tariffs.

“I hope we win the Supreme Court case, because if we don’t, [it’d] be a shame for our country,” he said Friday.

It would create one of the largest free-trade zones in the world, connecting markets with more than 700 million people.

A trade pact between the European Union and the Mercosur trading bloc has been agreed after almost 25 years of talks.

That’s despite opposition from farmers in several European countries.

The deal is seen as part of Europe’s effort to curb its economic reliance on China.

And it comes against the backdrop of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on countries around the world and his recent military intervention in Venezuela.

Also, will Big Oil invest in Venezuela?

Plus, are Greenland’s vast resources profitable?

EMRATA has done it again.

Just in time for Valentine’s day, supermodel Emily Ratajkowski is making headlines by showcasing her figure in a spicy red lace lingerie set on social media.

The sultry ensemble by British brand, Lounge, perfectly highlighted her curves, as she posed while squatting down on the floor.

Emily’s bold choice of color emphasizes not only her fashion-forward approach but also her ability to bring a fresh perspective to lingerie styling.

The vibrant red outfit included a lace bra, underwear, and garter belt.

The video, shot in a New York apartment interior, showed Emily kneeling in front of a mirror, taking the selfie video.

Fans commented with clamoring admiration.

“Lord have mercy,” one fan wrote. “I can’t put it into words. My God Emily.”

Female fitness trainer, Casey Cohen, dropped three fire emojis.

An EmRata fan account responded, “The most beautiful woman in the world.”

“She is a babe,” another fan commented.

Another fan wrote, “Thank you for inspiring me to be a supermodel! Modeling is raw energy that is focused, so it’s great skill and great talent.”

In addition to her fashion choices, EmRata has garnered attention for her advocacy, often using her platform to discuss issues that matter to her.

Her recent photos, including the ones shared on her Instagram, highlight her commitment to promoting self-love and confidence.

The model, actress, podcaster, and activist rose to widespread fame after her appearance in Robin Thicke’s 2013 Blurred Lines music video.

She has since established herself in the fashion world, modeling for renowned brands such as Marc Jacobs, Tory Burch, and DKNY, while also gracing covers of major magazines like Elle, Vogue, and Sports Illustrated.

In film, she has appeared in I Feel Pretty, Gone Girl, and We Are Your Friends.

Beyond her artistic contributions, Ratajkowski is a vocal feminist and advocate for body positivity, actively engaging in discussions on women’s rights through her writing and her former podcast, High Low with EmRata.

As an entrepreneur, she launched her clothing line, Inamorata, and continues to challenge beauty standards, promoting authenticity and self-expression in her public persona.

For more stunning visuals and to keep up with EmRata’s latest fashion statements, fans can check out her Instagram profile and explore her stylish past, including her memorable 2016 throwbacks.

WASHINGTON — Most American presidents aspire to the kind of greatness that prompts future generations to name important things in their honor.

Donald Trump isn’t leaving it to future generations.

As the first year of his second term wraps up, his Republican administration and allies have put his name on the U.S. Institute of Peace, the Kennedy Center performing arts venue and a new class of battleships that’s yet to be built.

That’s on top of the “Trump Accounts” for tax-deferred investments, the TrumpRx government website soon to offer direct sales of prescription drugs, the “Trump Gold Card” visa that costs at least $1 million and the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, a transit corridor included in a deal his administration brokered between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

On Friday, he plans to attend a ceremony in Florida where local officials will dedicate a 4-mile stretch of road from the airport to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach as President Donald J. Trump Boulevard.

Another example of the unorthodoxy of Trump’s career

It’s unprecedented for a sitting president to embrace tributes of that number and scale, especially those proffered by members of his administration. And while past sitting presidents have typically been honored by local officials naming schools and roads after them, it’s exceedingly rare for airports, federal buildings, warships or other government assets to be named for someone still in power.

“At no previous time in history have we consistently named things after a president who was still in office,” said Jeffrey Engel, the David Gergen Director of the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. “One might even extend that to say a president who is still alive. Those kind of memorializations are supposed to be just that — memorials to the passing hero.”

White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said the TrumpRx website linked to the president’s deals to lower the price of some prescription drugs, along with “overdue upgrades of national landmarks, lasting peace deals, and wealth-creation accounts for children are historic initiatives that would not have been possible without President Trump’s bold leadership.”

“The Administration’s focus isn’t on smart branding, but delivering on President Trump’s goal of Making America Great Again,” Huston said.

The White House pointed out that the nation’s capital was named after President George Washington and the Hoover Dam was named after President Herbert Hoover while each was serving as president.

For Trump, it’s a continuation of the way he first etched his place onto the American consciousness, becoming famous as a real estate developer who affixed his name in big gold letters on luxury buildings and hotels, a casino and assorted products like neckties, wine and steaks.

Trump’s for-profit branding has continued

As he ran for president in 2024, the candidate rolled out Trump-branded business ventures for watches, fragrances, Bibles and sneakers — including golden high tops priced at $799. After taking office again last year, Trump’s businesses launched a Trump Mobile phone company, with plans to unveil a gold-colored smartphone and a cryptocurrency memecoin named $TRUMP.

That’s not to be confused with plans for a physical, government-issued Trump coin that U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach said the U.S. Mint is planning.

Trump has also reportedly told the owners of Washington’s NFL team that he would like his name on the Commanders’ new stadium. The team’s ownership group, which has the naming rights, has not commented on the idea. But a White House spokeswoman in November called the proposed name “beautiful” and said Trump made the rebuilding of the stadium possible.

The addition of Trump’s name to the Kennedy Center in December so outraged independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont that he introduced legislation this week to ban the naming or renaming of any federal building or land after a sitting president — a ban that would retroactively apply to the Kennedy Center and Institute of Peace.

“I think he is a narcissist who likes to see his name up there. If he owns a hotel, that’s his business,” Sanders said in an interview. “But he doesn’t own federal buildings.”

Sanders likened Trump’s penchant for putting his name on government buildings and more to the actions of authoritarian leaders throughout history.

“If the American people want to name buildings after a president who is deceased, that’s fine. That’s what we do,” Sanders said. “But to use federal buildings to enhance your own position very much sounds like the ‘Great Leader’ mentality of North Korea, and that is not something that I think the American people want.”

Although some of the naming has been suggested by others, the president has made clear he’s pleased with the tributes.

Three months after the announcement of the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, a name the White House says was proposed by Armenian officials, the president gushed about it at a White House dinner.

“It’s such a beautiful thing, they named it after me. I really appreciate it. It’s actually a big deal,” he told a group of Central Asian leaders.

Engel, the presidential historian, said the practice can send a signal to people “that the easiest way to get access and favor from the president is to play to his ego and give him something or name something after him.”

Supporters say the tributes are well-deserved

Some of the proposals for honoring Trump include legislation in Congress from New York Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney that would designate June 14 as “Trump’s Birthday and Flag Day,” placing the president with the likes of Martin Luther King Jr., George Washington and Jesus Christ, whose birthdays are recognized as national holidays.

Florida Republican Rep. Greg Steube has introduced legislation that calls for the Washington-area rapid transit system, known as the Metro, to be renamed the “Trump Train.” North Carolina Republican Rep. Addison McDowell has introduced legislation to rename Washington Dulles International Airport as Donald J. Trump International Airport.

McDowell said it makes sense to give Dulles a new name since Trump has already announced plans to revamp the airport, which currently is a tribute to former Secretary of State John Foster Dulles.

The congressman said he wanted to honor Trump because he feels the president has been a champion for combating the scourge of fentanyl, a personal issue for McDowell after his brother’s overdose death. But he also cited Trump’s efforts to strike peace deals all over the world and called him “one of the most consequential presidents ever.”

“I think that’s somebody that deserves to be honored, whether they’re still the president or whether they’re not,” he said.

More efforts are underway in Florida, Trump’s adopted home.

Republican state lawmaker Meg Weinberger said she is working on an effort to rename Palm Beach International Airport as Donald J. Trump International Airport, a potential point of confusion with the Dulles effort.

The road that the president will see christened Friday is not the first Florida asphalt to herald Trump upon his return to the White House.

In the south Florida city of Hialeah, officials in December 2024 renamed a street there as President Donald J. Trump Avenue.

Trump, speaking at a Miami business conference the next month, called it a “great honor” and said he loved the mayor for it.

“Anybody that names a boulevard after me, I like,” he said.

He added a few moments later: “A lot of people come back from Hialeah, they say, ‘They just named a road after you.’ I say, ‘That’s OK.’ It’s a beginning, right? It’s a start.”

Price and Weissert write for the Associated Press.

They cannot be serious.

They cannot be stopped.

Two months after winning a second consecutive World Series championship, the Dodgers have fired another destructively defiant shot across the bow of a battered baseball landscape, shredding losers and infuriating fans and raising an historically holy amount of hell.

Meet Kyle Tucker, the hottest free agent on the market, a right fielder who slugs the snot out of the ball and who is now a $60-million-a-year Dodger.

Of course he is.

Smile. Shrug. Giggle.

Tucker agreed to a four-year deal worth $240 million Thursday night, making him baseball’s highest annual salaried player just weeks after the Dodgers spent $69 million to make free agent Edwin Díaz baseball’s highest paid reliever.

And all of this, just one winter removed from the Dodgers signing top free agent pitchers Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki.

And all of that, just two years after the Dodgers signed star free agents Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto while locking up potential free agent Tyler Glasnow.

For Dodger fans, the dream continues.

For fans of every other team, the nightmare never ends.

Two years ago, the Dodgers built what appeared to be the best team ever.

Last season they built what appeared to be the best team ever, ever.

And now they’ve built quite possibly the best team ever, ever, ever.

With slugger Tucker in the mix, their batting order feels like it goes a dozen deep. With Díaz in the bullpen, their one weakness last season has been fixed as fast as you can say, “Timmy Trumpet.” And their starting rotation is already so strong, they shouldn’t even miss newly retired future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw.

This team could win 120 games. Check that. This team should win 120 games. Check that again. This team will probably win 97 games while they spend the regular season resting up for the playoffs.

No matter how the 2026 Dodgers finish, they are starting just as the last two Dodger teams started.

By hilariously making everyone hate.

This is a team with already such a monstrous payroll, they pay more in luxury tax than New York’s two high-priced teams combined. This is a team with individual players who earn more than some entire opposing starting lineups combined.

This is a two-time defending champion whose latest signing will be met with the same old whines from the same old chumps.

The Dodgers aren’t playing fair! The Dodgers are ruining baseball!

Actually, the Dodgers are playing totally fair, breaking no payroll rules, taking advantage of Ohtani’s incredible sponsorship impact and his massively deferred contract — he agreed to take only $2 million a year from his $700 million salary — to fund a team of all-stars around him.

And, actually, the Dodgers are totally not ruining baseball, they’re enhancing it. Last fall’s World Series ratings were up 20 percent from the previous year with Game 7 being watched by an average of 51 million viewers. That’s NFL playoff territory.

Any good drama requires a villain, and the Dodgers have been more than happy to fill that role, Manager Dave Roberts even publicly leaning into it while addressing the crowd after last fall’s National League Championship Series win over the Milwaukee Brewers.

“Before the season started, they said the Dodgers are ruining baseball,” Roberts shouted. “Let’s get four more wins and really ruin baseball!”

What they’re ruining is baseball’s current system, which favors a smart owner who is willing to reinvest the profits — hello, Dodger boss Mark Walter — over a lazy owner who won’t spend to win.

Kyle Tucker celebrates with his Chicago Cubs teammates after scoring a run against the San Diego Padres on Oct. 2.

(Michael Reaves / Getty Images)

That will surely all change after baseball’s union contract expires following this season. The owners will attempt to enact a salary cap, the players will resist, and the Dodgers will be blamed for causing some sort of labor stoppage.

So what? Who cares? If three consecutive titles blows up the game, so be it. The Dodgers’ only responsibility is to their fans, and they have more than fulfilled their civic duty, and that’s all that matters.

To those who have started bleating again about the Dodgers ruining baseball, the Dodgers owe answers only to their city, and the latest reply should be just two words.

Kyle Tucker!

They didn’t need a bat — they just won consecutive titles with a legendary lineup of bats — but they signed the best available one anyway.

Tucker is so good, during each of his last two full seasons, in 2022-2023, he had at least 29 homers and 107 RBI. He had struggled with injuries in the two seasons since, but even missing a month last year with the Chicago Cubs he still had 22 homers and 75 RBIs.

Tucker is so good, he will probably move fan favorite Teoscar Hernández from right to left field and probably move former NLCS MVP Tommy Edman from the utility man to second base and the Dodgers will be noticeably better everywhere.

Tucker is so good, while he would be arguably the best hitter on any other team he joined, he is probably only the fifth-best hitter in the Dodgers’ order

Tucker, who turns 29 on Saturday, has such a commanding left-handed hitting presence that a slowly aging and increasingly battered lineup can pretty much rest until October. Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Will Smith, Max Muncy, take a couple of weeks off and see you in the fall.

Tucker celebrated his signing Thursday night with an Instagram highlight video titled, “It’s Time for Dodger Baseball.”

Indeed, it is. Anymore, it always is.

Anybody got a problem with that, go ruin yourself.

Jan. 16 (UPI) — The Trump administration levied new sanctions on Houthi-run organizations and individuals on Friday, targeting oil, weapons and financial interests operated by the Iran-backed group in Yemen.

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated 21 groups and individuals subject to the new sanctions, which are aimed at disrupting revenue generation and smuggling networks.

“The Houthis threaten the United States by committing acts of terror and attacking commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a news release announcing the sanctions.

“Treasury is taking action to cut off nearly two dozen individuals and entities involved in transferring oil, procuring weapons and providing financial services for this Iran-backed terrorist organization. Treasury will use all tools at its disposal to expose the networks and individuals enabling Houthi terrorism.”

Originally forming in the early 1990s, the Houthis are an Islamist political and military organization that opposed the Saudi-backed Yemeni government in the civil war, which began in 2014. The Houthis seek to take full control of Yemen and oppose the governments of Saudi Arabia, the United States and Israel.

The Treasury Department’s new sanctions target what it describes as “key front companies” operating out of Yemen, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Named in the sanctions were Al Sharafi Oil Companies Services and Adeema Oil FZC, owned by Waleed Fathi Salam Baidhani and Arkan Mars Petroleum DMCC; Alsaa Petroleum and Shipping FZC, owned by Imran Asghar; Janat Al Anwar General Trading LLC; Zayd ‘Ali Ahmed al-Sharafi; and New Ocean Trading FZE.

Weapons smuggling operations named include Wadi Kabir Co. for Logistics Services; Rabya for Trading FZC, owned by Ameen Hamid Mohammed Dahan; and Al-Ridhwan Exchange and Transfer Company. Aviation companies include Barash Aviation and Cargo Company Limited, Sama Airline and businessman Adil Mutahhar Al Muayyad.

Maritime operations include Albarraq Shipping Co and its director, Ebrahim Ahmed Abdullah al-Matari; vessel ALBARRAQ Z and its captain, Ahmad Ismail; and captains Ahmad Adriss, Ahmad Bseis, Ranveer Singh and Alexander Yurovich Pshenichnyy.

We, the undersigned scholars, students, and academic workers, unequivocally condemn the Trump administration’s January 3 strikes against Venezuela and kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. The attacks are a flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter by a US president claiming, “I don’t need international law.” 

The unilateral act of aggression is the culmination of a quarter-century of US hybrid warfare targeting the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, first under President Hugo Chávez and subsequently under Maduro. This regime change campaign has included draconian economic sanctions, repeated coup attempts, financing of anti-government NGOs, and corporate media disinformation.

As the Trump administration has evidenced in its invocation of the Monroe Doctrine and brazen threats against other left-led countries in the region, the egregious onslaught on Venezuela’s sovereignty constitutes an unprecedented kinetic escalation of Washington’s crusade to shore up its declining imperial hegemony across the hemisphere and around the globe. It moreover poses a serious menace to the regime of political sovereignty that was the lasting achievement of the Bandung era of national liberation, threatening to generalize across Latin America and the Caribbean the state dismemberment and semi-colonization visited upon Iraq, Haiti, DRC, Libya, Sudan, and Syria over the past three decades. Together with the ongoing genocide in Palestine, these wars of encroachment waged by the West represent an existential danger to humanity. 

As such, we the undersigned demand the following: 

1. The immediate release and repatriation of President Nicolas Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores.
2. The immediate and unconditional lifting of all US unilateral coercive measures against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, its officials, and associated entities; the return of all pilfered Venezuelan state assets, including CITGO.
3. The immediate withdrawal of all US military assets and bases from the region, as consistent with the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States’ (CELAC) 2014 declaration of the Americas a “zone of peace.” 
4. The payment of reparations to Venezuela for the destruction inflicted in the January 3 strikes as well as for the economic losses caused by US sanctions over the last decade; the UN General Assembly should appoint an independent commission of economists to calculate the total dollar amount owed to the Venezuelan state. 
5. The end of the US blockade against Cuba and payment of reparations likewise to be assessed by an independent UNGA-appointed commission.

As of January 16, 420 researchers and scholars have signed the statement.

Partial list of signatories (click here for the statement and full list in pdf form)

1. Atilio A. Boron, Universidad Nacional de Avellaneda y Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA)
2. Sandra Oblitas, Rectora de la Universidad Bolivariana de Venezuela (UBV)
3. Miguel Mazzeo, Universidad Nacional de Lanús y UBA
4. Mariela Castro Espín, Miembro Titular de la Academia de Ciencias de Cuba
5. Steve Ellner, Latin American Perspectives
6. Omar Hurtado Rayugsen, Presidente del Centro Nacional de Estudios Históricos, Venezuela
7. Elias Jaua Milano, Centros de Estudios para la Democracia Socialista (CEDES)
8. Ramon Grosfoguel, Associate Professor of Chicanx Latinx Studies, University of California, Berkeley
9. Alejandrina Reyes, Rectora Universidad Nacional Experimental Simón Rodríguez / Instituto de Investigaciones Sociales Simón Rodríguez IISSR Centro CLACSO
10. Archana Prasad, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
11. Juan Eduardo Romero, Historiador/Diputado Asamblea Nacional de Venezuela
12. Claudio Katz, UBA/CONICET
13. Fernando Buen Abad Domínguez, Universidad Internacional de las Comunicaciones/ Cátedra MacBride
14. Néstor Kohan, Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA)
15. Paris Yeros, Federal University of ABC (UFABC), Brazil
16. Carlota McAllister, York University 
17. David Kazanjian, University of Pennsylvania
18. Max Ajl, University of Tunis & University of Ghent
19. Lucas M. Koerner, Harvard University
20. Reinaldo Iturriza López, Centros de Estudios para la Democracia Socialista (CEDES)
21. Freedom Mazwi, University of Zambia
22. Esther Lezra, University of California Santa Barbara
23. Sarah Raymundo, University of the Philippines 
24. Francisca López Civeira, Universidad de la Habana
25. Anna Zalik, York University 
26. Matteo Capasso, Northwest University, China
27. Josefina Saldaña-Portillo, New York University
28. Ilka Boaventura Leite, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina
29. Nazia Kazi, Stockton, Stockton University
30. Javier Sánchez, Universidad de Antioquia
31. Bikrum Gill, Virginia Tech
32. Javier I. Echaide, University of Buenos Aires (UBA) / CONICET, Argentina
33. Corinna Mullin, City University of New York
34. Iván Pincheira, Universidad Academia Humanismo Cristiano, Chile 
35. Nina Farnia, Albany Law School
36. Martha Prieto Valdés, Académica de Mérito de la ACC-Cuba
37. Esteve Morera, York University
38. Farwa Sial, SOAS
39. Mojubaolu Olufunke Okome, Brooklyn College, CUNY
40. Gabriel Rockhill, Villanova University
41. Patrick Higgins, University of Houston
42. Luccas Gissoni, Universidade Federal do ABC
43. Edh Rodríguez, ANEP/CFE (Uruguay)
44. Hilda Saladrigas Medina, Universidad de La Habana-ACC 
45. Jennifer Ponce de León, University of Pennsylvania
46. Olmedo Beluche, Universidad de Panamá
47. Maria Haro Sly, Johns Hopkins University
48. Nidia Matilde Beltrán Prieto, Directora y docente UBV
49. Pedro Lovera Parmo, Universidad de Santiago
50. Immanuel Ness, Brooklyn College
51. Sara Aldabe, UBA-CONICET
52. José Romero Losacco, Instituto Venezolano de Investigación Científica (IVIC)
53. Rosa Elizabeth Acevedo Marin, Universidade Federal do Pará, Brasil
54. Ernesto Wong Maestre, CEEP UBV
55. Ethel Tungohan, York University
56. Adam Miyashiro, Stockton University
57. José Antonio Hernández Macías, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
58. Vicente Battista, Escritor/Argentina
59. Jaime Caicedo Turriago, ASPU Asociación Sindical de Profesores Universitarios, Colombia
60. Renate Bridenthal, Brooklyn College, CUNY
61. Maribel Almaguer Rondón, Universidad de Camagüey, Cuba
62. Maria Auxiliadora César, Universidade de Brasilia
63. Claudia Chaufan, York University
64. Arturo Guillén, Departamento de Economía de la UAM Iztapalapa 
65. Raul Kroeff Machado Carrion, Fundação Maurício Grabois – Brasil 
66. Olga Fernández Rios, Instituto de Filosofía y Vicepresidenta Academia de Ciencias de Cuba 
67. Paula Vidal, Universidad de Chile
68. Stefan Kipfer, York University 
69. Alberto Quintero, IVIC
70. Sandra Angeleri, Independent Scholar
71. Douglas Marín, Universidad Central de Venezuela
72. Ben Norton, Tsinghua University 
73. Christo El Morr, York University 
74. Cory Fischer-Hoffman, Independent Scholar
75. Taylor R. Genovese, SUNY – Dutchess
76. Ranu Basu, York University
77. Disamis Arcia Muñoz, Universidad de La Habana
78. Magnus S. Kjærgaard, Aarhus University, DK
79. Jordan Corson, Stockton University
80. Adrienne Pine, UC Riverside
81. Jesús Peña, UNEARTE
82. Ana Sáenz, Centro Marie Langer
83. Greg Albo, York University 
84. ​​Mayda Álvarez Suárez, Academia de Ciencias de Cuba
85. Alejandro Pedregal, Aalto University
86. Jeannette Graulau, Lehman College
87. Marcelo Colussi, Escritor / Guatemala
88. Timothy Kerswell, Development Watch Centre
89. Jaime Acosta Gonzalez, UC Riverside 
90. Christian Flores, UNEARTE
91. Maria Luiza Pinho Pereira, Universidade de Brasília 
92. Marxlenin P. Valdés, IDEAS Multimedios 
93. Adrian Ortega Camara Lind, Beijing Normal University
94. Harjeet Badwall, York University 
95. Tamara Lajtman, IEALC, UBA
96. Jorge Luis Oviedo Castillo, REDH Honduras
97. Joaquin Barrutia, Emory University
98. Carlos San Vicente, UCV
99. Michael Pelias, LIU Brooklyn
100. Josefina Morales, UNAM

Netflix fans are disappointed as the streamer has cancelled an unforgettable show after just one season.

Finding Her Edge will soon be landing on Netflix but it didn’t take fans long to moan that it looks “exactly” like a series that was axed six years ago.

Jennifer Iacopelli’s 2022 best-selling YA novel Finding Her Edge, which was inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion, is finally getting its own Netflix adaptation.

Ready to make its grand debut next week on Thursday, January 22, on Netflix, Finding Her Edge is a romance about figure skating royalty Adriana Russo (played by Madelyn Keys), who is troubled by her family’s legacy and financial struggles.

This is until she begins a fake dating scheme with her new skating partner Brayden (Cale Ambrozic), while juggling feelings for her former partner Freddie (Olly Atkins), just as they’re ready to compete in the Junior World Championships.

While book fans are excited to see Iacopelli’s story brought to life, many Netflix subscribers have been experiencing deja vu.

In February 2020, Netflix released the one and only season of ice skating drama Spinning Out starring Skins legend Kaya Scodelario.

Much like Finding Her Edge, Spinning Out sees its lead character figure skater Kat Baker (Kaya Scodelario) matched with a talented “bad boy” partner which quickly leads to a romantic spark.

Unlike the upcoming YA romantic drama though, Kat was an Olympic skater who suffered a bad fall and struggled to get back on the ice due to her PTSD as well as her new bipolar diagnosis.

Nevertheless, fans haven’t been able to help themselves in comparing the two ice-skating dramas.

“So why cancel Spinning Out (which was a fantastic show) to make one that looks exactly like the other show?”, someone asked on YouTube.

Another agreed: “This is basically Spinning Out that Netflix will cancel after one season…”

A third exclaimed: “ALL THESE SAME NEW SERIES after cancelling Spinning Out ? Makes no sense.”

While a fellow user questioned: “To cancel a series like #SpinningOut to make another similar one isn’t taking the mick out of the people watching, is it?”

Finding Her Edge premieres on Thursday, January 22, on Netflix.

In the aftermath of the U.S. military strike that seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3, the Trump administration has emphasized its desire for unfettered access to Venezuela’s oil more than conventional foreign policy objectives, such as combating drug trafficking or bolstering democracy and regional stability.

During his first news conference after the operation, President Trump claimed oil companies would play an important role and that the oil revenue would help fund any further intervention in Venezuela.

Soon after, “Fox & Friends” hosts asked Trump about this prediction.

“We have the greatest oil companies in the world,” Trump replied, “the biggest, the greatest, and we’re gonna be very much involved in it.”

As a historian of U.S.-Latin American relations, I’m not surprised that oil or any other commodity is playing a role in U.S. policy toward the region. What has taken me aback, though, is the Trump administration’s openness about how much oil is driving its policies toward Venezuela.

As I’ve detailed recently, U.S. military intervention in Latin America has largely been covert. And when the U.S. orchestrated the coup that ousted Guatemala’s democratically elected president in 1954, the U.S. covered up the role that economic considerations played in that operation.

By the early 1950s, Guatemala had become a top source for the bananas Americans consumed, as it remains today.

The United Fruit Company, based in Boston, owned more than 550,000 acres of Guatemalan land, largely thanks to its deals with previous dictatorships. These holdings required the intense labor of impoverished farmworkers who were often forced from their traditional lands. Their pay was rarely stable, and they faced periodic layoffs and wage cuts.

The international corporation networked with dictators and local officials in Central America, many Caribbean islands and parts of South America to acquire immense estates for railroads and banana plantations.

The locals called it the pulpo — “octopus” in Spanish — because the company seemingly had a hand in shaping the region’s politics, economies and everyday life. The Colombian government brutally crushed a 1928 strike by United Fruit workers, killing hundreds of people.

The company’s seemingly unlimited clout in the countries where it operated gave rise to the stereotype of Central American nations as “banana republics.”

In Guatemala, a country historically marked by extreme inequality, a broad coalition formed in 1944 to overthrow its repressive dictatorship in a popular uprising. Inspired by the anti-fascist ideals of World War II, the coalition sought to make the nation more democratic and its economy more fair.

After decades of repression, the nation democratically elected Juan José Arévalo and then Jacobo Árbenz, under whom, in 1952, Guatemala implemented a land reform program that gave landless farmworkers their own undeveloped plots. Guatemala’s government asserted that these policies would build a more equitable society for Guatemala’s impoverished, Indigenous majority.

United Fruit denounced Guatemala’s reforms as the result of a global conspiracy. It alleged that most of Guatemala’s unions were controlled by Mexican and Soviet communists and painted the land reform as a ploy to destroy capitalism.

United Fruit sought to enlist the U.S. government in its fight against the elected government’s policies. While its executives did complain that Guatemala’s reforms hurt its financial investments and labor costs, they also cast any interference in its operations as part of a broader communist plot.

It did this through an advertising campaign in the U.S. and by taking advantage of the anti-communist paranoia that prevailed at the time.

United Fruit executives began to meet with officials in the Truman administration as early as 1945. Despite the support of sympathetic ambassadors, the U.S. government apparently wouldn’t intervene directly in Guatemala’s affairs.

The company turned to Congress.

It hired well connected lobbyists to portray Guatemala’s policies as part of a communist plot to destroy capitalism and the United States. In February 1949, multiple members of Congress denounced Guatemala’s labor reforms as communist.

Sen. Claude Pepper called the labor code “obviously intentionally discriminatory against this American company” and “a machine gun aimed at the head of this American company.”

Two days later, Rep. John McCormack echoed that statement, using the exact same words to denounce the reforms.

Sen. Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., Sen. Lister Hill and Rep. Mike Mansfield also went on the record, reciting the talking points outlined in United Fruit memos.

No lawmaker said a word about bananas.

Seventy-seven years later, we may see many echoes of past interventions, but now the U.S. government has dropped the veil: In his appearance after the strike that seized Maduro this month, Trump said “oil” 21 times.

Aaron Coy Moulton is an associate professor of Latin American history at Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas and the author of “Caribbean Blood Pacts: Guatemala and the Cold War Struggle for Freedom.” This article was produced in collaboration with the Conversation.