Tribute to andrew symonds

SAN FRANCISCO — Tech industry titans have navigated a lot to get where they are today — the dot-com bust, the 2008 recession, a backlash against tech power, the pandemic. They have overcome boardroom showdowns, investor power struggles and regulatory land mines. But this summer, some of them encountered their most threatening opponent yet: multifamily townhouses. Their battle took place in one of Silicon Valley’s most exclusive and wealthiest towns: Atherton, California, a 4.9-square-mile enclave with a population of 7,500, just north of Stanford University. There, tech chief executives and venture capitalists banded together over the specter that more than one home could exist on a single acre of land in the general vicinity of their estates. Their weapon? Strongly worded letters. Faced with the possibility of new construction, Rachel Whetstone, Netflix’s chief communications officer and an Atherton resident, wrote to the City Council and mayor that she was “very … [Read more...] about The summer of NIMBY in the Bay Area’s poshest town

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — An elected Florida prosecutor who was removed from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis because of his positions on abortion and transgender rights filed suit Wednesday to get his job back, saying the Republican leader violated his First Amendment rights. DeSantis said he suspended Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren this month for signing a national pledge to not prosecute women and doctors for violating state abortion laws or families seeking treatments for transgender minors. “DeSantis’s Order does not identify any actual conduct by Warren related to his official duties involving alleged criminal activity for seeking gender affirming healthcare or abortion,” the lawsuit says. “DeSantis’s Order does not identify any other conduct by Warren or other reason sufficient to justify a suspension." DeSantis, who has come under attack by Democrats for his support of abortion restrictions and bills he's signed that are seen as anti-LGBTQ, held a … [Read more...] about Florida prosecutor sues DeSantis over removal over abortion

Kate Middleton and tennis champion Roger Federer have teamed up in a collaboration that will see the Laver Cup, a tournament that Federer co-founded, donate proceeds from a charity day in London to two of the organizations patronized by the duchess. The partnership announced on Wednesday will see Federer and Kate attend a special pre-Laver Cup tennis event in East London where young people aged 8 to 15 who work with the charities of which Kate is patron will take part. No date for the event has been officially announced but it is expected to take place shortly before the Laver Cup's practice day on September 22. The Laver Cup is a unique tennis tournament that sees 12 of the world's top male tennis players split into two teams to compete against one another. The players are divided into Team Europe and Team World with three players on each team selected based on their international rankings. The additional three players on each side are selected by the team captain. Federer is … [Read more...] about Kate Middleton burnishes athletic prowess with Roger Federer collaboration

Rarely, if ever, will a wedding between two commoners have attracted so much royalty. Saturday's nuptials in the tiny, tranquil village of Englefield, Berkshire, will draw the full attention of the media in Britain and around the world. There will, after all, be at least two possible future kings on show, not to mention a queen in waiting. Related: Why Princess Diana remains an obsession in the U.S. 20 years after her death Pippa Middleton, or at least her shapely derrière , came to prominence at the wedding of her sister Kate to Prince William in 2011. Now comes the 33-year-old's big day, when she marries hedge-fund manager James Matthews at St Mark's Church on a Victorian estate. Details about the wedding have been kept mostly private, but it is known that the possible future king and queen, William and Kate, will be in attendance. Their main duties this day will be ensuring their two young children don't act up—as William famously did when sticking his tongue out at his … [Read more...] about Pippa Middleton may not be a royal, but her wedding is still a very big, and expensive, deal

Tata Power on Thursday said its renewable energy arm has raised Rs 4,000 crore BlackRock Real Assets and Abu Dhabi-based sovereign investor Mubadala Investment Company, to create India’s most comprehensive renewable energy platform. The investment is expected to fund Tata Power Renewables’ aggressive growth plans. “The Tata Power Company Ltd and BlackRock Real Assets-led consortium, including Mubadala Investment Company, have entered into a binding agreement to invest in Tata Power’s renewable energy subsidiary, Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited,” Tata Power said in a statement. It added that BlackRock Real Assets, together with Mubadala, shall invest Rs 4,000 crore (USD 525 million) by way of equity/ compulsorily convertible instruments for a 10.53 per cent stake in Tata Power Renewables, translating to a base equity valuation of Rs 34,000 crore. The final shareholding will range from 9.76 per cent to 11.43 per cent on final conversion. The statement said, “This newly created … [Read more...] about Tata Power Renewable Energy raises Rs 4,000 Crore from BlackRock, Mubadala

Any time the leaders of India and Pakistan (or China) are slated to attend a regional or multilateral event, the media and strategy community dive headlong into a high-decibel speculation about the possibility of a bilateral meeting. Though not formally confirmed, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to participate in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit at Samarkand, Uzbekistan in mid-September 2022, when India inter alia is to assume presidency of the organisation as well as host the 2023 summit. The newly minted Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is also expected to attend, triggering another round of ‘talkathon’. A similar speculation had ensued before the SCO summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (June 13-14 2019) which was attended by Modi and Sharif’s predecessor Imran Khan. No meeting eventually materialised, except for a brief exchange of pleasantries in the delegates’ lounge. That too was disclosed not by India but the Pakistani foreign minister. … [Read more...] about Will PM Modi and Shehbaz Sharif Meet on SCO Sidelines in Samarkand?

___ Which EVs qualify for new US tax credit? Websites offer help WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government is moving forward with its plan to award new tax credits to electric vehicle purchasers. It’s part of the rollout of a huge new climate, tax and healthcare law. Several new websites launched Tuesday to help people identify which vehicles qualify for the credits. Based on data submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, at least 31 new 2022 and 2023 models qualify for the tax credit. For starters, they must be made in North America to be eligible. President Joe Biden signed Democrats’ landmark climate change and health care bill into law on Tuesday afternoon. It includes a tax credit of up to $7,500 that could be used to defray the cost of purchasing an electric vehicle. ___ Companies facing 1st tax on stock buybacks in Biden bill WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats have pulled off a quiet first in legislation passed this month: the creation of a tax … [Read more...] about Business Highlights: EV tax credits, Walmart earnings

Much of the music that defined my early-2000s adolescence was written before I could walk. Listening to CD-Rs filled with songs that had been ripped from the internet, my friends and I warbled to the Pixies’ 1988 oddity “Where Is My Mind?,” moped to Tears for Fears’ 1982 dirge “Mad World” (and its 2001 cover by Gary Jules and Michael Andrews), and mewled to various versions of Leonard Cohen’s 1984 masterpiece “Hallelujah.” These songs had entered our teenage consciousness because they’d been featured in mind-blowing contemporary movies: Fight Club , Donnie Darko , and, of course, Shrek . Today, visual media remain a portal between young listeners and older artists. Thanks to its placement in the new season of the Netflix sci-fi series Stranger Things , Kate Bush’s 1985 hit “ Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) ” has again become a global sensation. Pop radio stations are slotting Bush’s operatic trills between Harry Styles’s mumbles and Lizzo’s flute tooting. … [Read more...] about The Kate Bush Resurgence Is a Reminder That We Can Have Nice Things