3 great ways to use home equity in the final weeks of 2024

El director general de Microsoft, Satya Nadella, inauguró el martes una conferencia de la compañía en Chicago con comentarios que podrían marcar la dirección hacia donde llevará la empresa su negocio de inteligencia artificial.

Monday morning, after nearly two weeks of buzz about how the recent election heralded a new era in American politics, New Yorkers were treated to a painful reminder of how much life here hasn’t changed.

Months after the disputed election, the U.S. recognized Edmundo González as the “president-elect”, after Nicolas Maduro claimed to have won.

The Giants have given up on Daniel Jones, and oddsmakers are following suit.

The evolution of the quarterback position in fantasy football has been an interesting one over the past two decades.

Judge Nicholas Moyne dismissed the case brought by former NYPD cop Tabatha Foster against Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey, which accused the chief of forcing her into an abusive yearslong affair.

New York Giants star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence had his best friend's back, as he admitted confusion over the benching of Daniel Jones coming off the bye week.

With the Dallas Cowboys looking like they may be seeking a new head coach, Michael Irvin says he has the perfect candidate in mind, suggesting Deion Sanders.

If Trump has his way, Tulsi Gabbard will be at the helm of U.S. intelligence and Matt Gaetz will be leading the DOJ, giving whistle-blower Edward Snowden his best chances yet at freedom in the U.S.

The Flames provide Noah Dobson with a better-than-average matchup to pour shots on target.

New bet365 users can access a special offer with the bet365 bonus code POSTNEWS, unlocking either $150 in bonus bets or a $1,000 First Bet Safety Net for Tuesday's slate.

Two national title contenders meet Tuesday when Marquette welcomes Purdue.

The White House has not released visitor logs for the month President Biden gave up his re-election bid, leaving questions on who was seeing the president before he dropped out.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg pushed Tuesday to create a new constitutional creature: the layaway president.

The University of Iowa has placed one of its fraternities on interim suspension after an alleged hazing incident last week.

The NFL might be tightening the vise even more on Tom Brady's broadcasting restrictions.

H&R Block, Intuit stock dropped amid a report that Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency may develop a tax filing app.

The Dallas Cowboys had a relatively quite offseason this past summer, but the franchise did not appear to expect the type of season they are experiencing.

A source exclusively tells Page Six the pop singer's reunion with her 18-year-old son was a "dream come true" after a long time apart.

A storm will wrap up nearby late tomorrow into Thursday. It could cause some brief weather excitement locally.

Say goodbye to boring gifts!

Bird flu continues to spread across the U.S., with new infections in Hawaii and continued human outbreaks in California. Experts discuss the threat to humans and how to prevent infection.

Ex-MLB All-Star Jonathan Lucroy made an appearance on "OutKick the Morning" with Charly Arnolt, where he said "hate mail" and words from haters have no effect on him.

Ohio GOP Sen.-elect Bernie Moreno is coming to the defense of Trump's Cabinet appointments and making the case that he has a "mandate" from the American people.

The cast and crew behind "Barney & Friends" on PBS share some of the death threats and backlash they received in a new podcast.

A competent and objective judge would have tossed the Trump indictment in the garbage the moment it was filed in April 2023.  It was a transparently politicized prosecution.

President-elect Donald Trump might have to wait until his presidency is over before he's sentenced for his New York "hush money" conviction. CBS News Supreme Court and legal producer Catherine Cole has more.

Where to stuff that stuffing — and the rest of your movable feast.

'We’re not going to have men in women’s bathrooms,' House Speaker Mike Johnson declares after first transgender person is elected to Congress.

Sean Hannity, a Long Island native, will emcee the sixth annual Patriot Awards on Thursday, December 5 at the Tilles Center for Performing Arts in Brookville, New York.

El presidente de Brasil inauguró el segundo día de la reunión de las 20 mayores economías del mundo el martes, pidiendo más acciones para frenar el calentamiento global, y diciendo que las naciones desarrolladas deben acelerar sus iniciativas para reducir las emisiones nocivas.

"My life looked amazing to everybody. On the outside I was doing a beautiful job but, deep down inside, I was really struggling," she writes in her new book, "elle: Life, Lessons & Learning to Trust Yourself."

The bread is toasted and the fans are hungry: it’s Cutlet Season in New York.

With the Mets hoping to bolster their outfield with superstar free agent Juan Soto this offseason, they've hit the trade market to add a new center field option.

The U.S. Justice Department has opened a civil rights investigation into Massey’s fatal shooting by a sheriff’s deputy inside her Illinois home.

Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey addressed "the elephant in the room" during a team meeting after the team's fourth straight loss to the Heat on Monday, according to a new report.

They're not putting the "glad" in gladiator.

El presidente estadounidense Joe Biden hizo un llamado urgente a los líderes mundiales el martes para que aumenten los fondos destinados a las naciones en desarrollo para combatir el cambio climático, al concluir su última aparición en una cumbre internacional importante.

A person holds a self-painted picture with an inscription referring to the short-range missile of the same name at a rally for Ukraine’s Independence Day in August in Cologne, Germany. | Thomas Banniyer/picture alliance via Getty Images Nearly three years into Russia’s full-scale invasion into Ukraine, the Biden administration gave Ukraine the green light to strike deeper into Russia using US-supplied longer-range missiles. The Ukrainian military quickly put that permission to use: On Tuesday, it attacked a weapons depot about 70 miles from Ukraine’s border.  The US and NATO allies have hesitated to provide sophisticated weapons like the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) that Ukraine used in that attack, fearing Russian retaliation against NATO sites — or even nuclear escalation.   Raising that specter on Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a new version of the country’s nuclear doctrine, which would theoretically make it easier for Russia to use nuclear weapons in this conflict. The new doctrine specifically allows for a nuclear strike in response to a strike with conventional weapons — like the longer-range missiles Ukraine now has permission to use — if those attacks involved the “participation or support of a nuclear power,” likely referring to the US and other NATO countries.  Throughout the war, Russian leaders have threatened to use the country’s nuclear weapons in the conflict if they believed they were necessary. That has led Ukraine’s allies to be cautious about the amount of aid they’ve offered, and has led to limits on what Ukrainian troops can do with those weapons. Ukraine’s new ability to use longer range missiles to strike Russian territory — and Putin’s confirmation of new nuclear rules — have again raised the question: Could Russia’s war in Ukraine escalate into a nuclear conflict? Throughout the war, experts have downplayed Russia’s appetite for nuclear conflict. But the rapid escalation of the conflict in recent weeks, and particularly Russia’s new nuclear doctrine, could mean that possibility is closer than before.  What are the chances that Ukraine’s new missile capabilities lead to nuclear escalation? Since the beginning of Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, Putin and other officials have made statements, both explicit and oblique, that Russia might be pressed to use nuclear weapons. Most experts agree that the risk of Russia using such weapons is low, but it’s not negligible.  A previous version of the doctrine Russia updated on Tuesday said the country would tap into its nuclear arsenal only under four circumstances: receiving credible data of a ballistic missile attack; nuclear or other WMD attack against Russia or its allies; attacks on Russian nuclear infrastructure; or conventional weapons attacks that threaten “the very existence” of the Russian state. Under the new doctrine, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov  indicated attacks like Ukraine’s on Tuesday could trigger a nuclear response. That change shouldn’t be taken as a response to Ukraine’s strike, however, Samuel Charap, distinguished chair in Russia and Eurasia policy and senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation, told Vox. The new doctrine “has been in the works for a long time,” Charap said. “The timing may be tied to the attack of decision, but the substance has been brewing for a while.” Putin and other officials have not, it seems, made major preparations to actually use nuclear weapons. However as the war continues, Putin and his officials’ threats have become clearer and have involved actually demonstrating nuclear capacity. As recently as July, Russia and Belarus held joint military exercises that demonstrated Russia’s tactical nuclear capabilities. Initially, the US and NATO responded to Russia’s threats with caution, denying Ukraine weapons or placing restrictions on their use. But over the past three years, as little has come of Putin’s threats of nuclear war and of war with NATO, Western countries have given Ukraine access to increasingly sophisticated weapons systems.  Besides the risk of nuclear war, Ukraine’s allies have had to balance concerns that they might be more directly drawn into the conflict. Though Ukraine is not a member of the NATO military alliance, Putin has previously warned that permission to use longer-range missiles (like those used Tuesday) inside Russia would be considered a NATO attack on Russia. US officials speaking to the Associated Press said they had anticipated a response from Russia, but that Russian officials’ warnings were viewed as inflammatory rhetoric, and would not provoke any change in US action. That suggests the US does not believe there’s much danger in Russia using its nuclear capabilities in the near term. Russia “never explicitly, on the official level, warned that they would use nuclear weapons in response to X, Y, or Z,” Charap said. “The only explicit red line that they’ve ever drawn was on the use of long range, US [or] Western weapons to strike into Russia that has now been crossed. So I can imagine people will expect their response, and it will not just be with words.”  After 1,000 days of the war, the conflict appears to be approaching an impasse. There’s no clear path to decisive victory for either side. Each side is deploying new tactics to try to gain an advantage: Ukraine with longer range missiles; Russia with recruits from North Korea. And now, Russia and the US seem to be simply responding to each others’ escalations: Russia put North Korean troops on the battlefield, the US responded by authorizing the use of longer range missiles, and Russia released its new nuclear posture. That sort of behavior is both reckless and dangerous, Charap said. “You are in a spiral that is the definition of a tit-for-tat dynamic, where your actions are driven not by your goals, but by countering what the other guy is doing,” Charap said. “That only goes in one direction — continuing to up the ante. The spiral dynamic just continues until somebody gets out of control or somebody decides to stop it.” 

Social media personalities A.J., Big Justice, and the Rizzler on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on October 28, 2024. | Todd Owyoung/NBC One of my colleagues has a theory: If you know the Rizzler, you might not have been surprised that Kamala Harris lost this month’s presidential election. If the name Big Justice doesn’t sound familiar, the results from the election may have been a total shock. Back in March, a Florida-based father-and-son duo named A.J. and Big Justice posted a TikTok expressing their enthusiasm for Costco Wholesale and its food court items. The pair — as well as their extended universe of relatives and non-relatives, like the Rizzler — have since become viral sensations, cementing their internet celebrity status with an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “The Costco Guys, the Rizzler, and this whole kind of straight-bro-coded mediaverse is a stand-in for how siloed media consumption on the left has gotten,” says senior politics reporter Christian Paz. As a result, Paz suggests, some progressives may have “missed a bit of the political evolution the country was going through.” It asks the question: Does the rise of the Costco Guys — who are in no way explicitly political — help explain a cultural landscape shaped by straight bros that presaged a Trump win? Or is their presence on the internet something more innocuous, a throwback to the early days of YouTube when regular people would go viral and get airtime on Ellen? The answers are a little complicated.  A history of the Costco Guys cinematic universe  While they officially became viral sensations back in March, the Costco Guys’ celebrity has been years in the making. Originally from New Jersey, the family’s patriarch, Andrew Befumo (a.k.a A.J.), was a professional wrestler who went by “the American Powerchild Eric Justice” before he retired and went into mortgage lending. About a decade ago, he started a family YouTube channel, featuring his wife Erika, his daughter Ashley, and his son Eric (a.k.a. Big Justice), called All Befumo’d Up. The channel featured the sort of mundane if heartwarming content you might see on a slice-of-life reality show, like cooking meals, attending an Avengers screening, and singing Christmas songs.  Since 2022, Befumo has mostly been making videos on TikTok (@a.j.befumo) with Eric — who he nicknamed Big Justice after his wrestling persona — with occasional appearances from Ashley and Erika, “The Mother of Big Justice.” Early videos show the father and son attending baseball games and reviewing local restaurants using their food review scale known as the “boom meter.” Delicious foods get a “boom!” Underwhelming or flat-out gross foods get a “doom!” — which is rare. They also recorded themselves running regular errands, like going to retail chains, with an unusual amount of enthusiasm. However, it’s that level of excitement in depicting the suburban, middle-class experience that’s part of their draw. While many famous vloggers are filming tropical vacations and helicopter rides, the Costco Guys treat a trip to Party City like a special occasion.  @a.j.befumo We’re Costco Guys‼️ #costco #father #son #family #bigjustice #boom ♬ original sound – A.J. & Big Justice These videos raked up hundreds of thousands of views and earned them some sponsorship deals. However, it wasn’t until this past spring that their affinity for Costco would give them a ticket to internet stardom. On March 1, they posted their own version of the viral “We’re X, of course we Y” trend about their love for the wholesale chain. “We’re Costco guys,” says Big Justice at the beginning of the video. “Of course we go shopping while eating a chicken bake.”  By July, they released a Beastie Boys-esque theme song, featuring Erika and Ashley, called “We Bring the Boom” that now has 14.4 million views. Since then, they’ve incorporated Costco and their extremely limited food court menu into much of their content, having guests rate the store’s “double chunk chocolate cookie” and come with them on shopping trips. They’ve released several remixes of “We Bring the Boom,” including a Christmas edition most recently. Ashley and Erika also emerged from the background of A.J. and Big Justice’s videos, creating their own page in October, @ashleyandmamajustice, where they mostly rank and review desserts.  Despite how normal these guys seem, viewers still feel like they’re watching something off-kilter and idiosyncratic. They have a wide-eyed, unflinching gaze — almost like they’re being held hostage and forced to read off a teleprompter — when staring into the camera. While you could argue that their zeal is earnest, their mannerisms are unnatural and stilted. The rap songs are inarguably cringe.  @a.j.befumo Jingle BOOM! ??#christmas #song #dance #father #son #mother #daughter #family #fun #bigjustice #boom @ItzTheRizzler @Sallyslices @Cody Chows @H00PIFY @The Makeshift Project @Cousin Angelo @Joe Felix @Real Santa Claus @Highland Bros @jerseyyjoe ♬ original sound – A.J. & Big Justice In the months since their initial virality, the “Costco boys” label has extended beyond the Befumo family to include some of their most frequent collaborators. Most notable among them is the Rizzler (a.k.a Christian Joseph), a kid influencer whose father began posting videos of him on TikTok in 2020. His father dubbed him the Rizzler, based on the slang term “rizz” that’s short for charisma. He’s since popularized the “rizz face,” a half-serious-half-smirking look similar to the alt-right meme/pose known as the “Chad face” or more broadly the “Gen Z Lip Sync Face.” A.J. said in an interview that a TikTok of the Rizzler joking around while wearing an ill-fitting Black Panther costume led him to contact the Rizzler’s father about collaborating. Other frequent guest stars include cousin Angelo, who may or may not actually be related to the Befumo family, and a TikTok dancer named Jersey Joe who posts videos dancing to Jersey Club music.  Do the Costco Guys really belong to the “bro internet”? Since their rise to prominence, the Costco Guys have earned a questionable reputation on social media as alleged Trump supporters if not avatars for an increasingly MAGA-fied internet. The evidence is mostly superficial. They live in Florida. They spend much of their time in the big-box stores closely identified with the suburban American experience. Their logos and merch prominently feature the American flag.  “There’s a lot of stuff about their content that is seemingly Republican-coded,” says EJ Dickson, senior culture writer at The Cut. “The main one is that they’re part of a demographic of white men in a state that overwhelmingly voted for Trump. The other aspect is the American flag imagery — very early on in their career. Actually, when A.J. was working in the mortgage industry, he was making content in front of an American flag.”  Other examples are more eyebrow-raising.  Their fanbase — at least based on their account’s commenters — leans heavily white and male; comments on one Costco Guys’ livestream featured rows upon rows of the N-word in all-caps. Logan Paul knows about them.  Unlike Paul, though, the Befumo family has largely — and intentionally — avoided politics in their journey to fame. In an interview with internet reporter Taylor Lorenz, A.J. said that they’ve been approached by presidential candidates to collaborate but that political content was “not in their wheelhouse.”  Possible political affiliations aside, Dickson, who profiled A.J. and Big Justice for Rolling Stone in July, doesn’t think this accounts for all of their popularity.  “I do think people genuinely enjoy seeing this guy and his kid just being goofy and making this incredibly silly content together,” says Dickson. “A lot of people think their content is charming in its way.”  She also argues that their videos may be more subversive than progressives online give them credit for: a father and son spending an immense amount of time together, showing each other affection and bonding over food. She compares them to bona fide right-wing personality Andrew Tate, who “built his brand in the thrall of his domineering and withholding father.”  The fact that A.J. is monetizing time with his family has not gone without criticism. A behind-the-scenes video of A.J. sternly directing Big Justice in a video made the rounds in August and reinforced the assumption by some that he’s a stage dad. Still, the image of fatherhood he promotes is adoring and hands-on.  “Even though [A.J.] performs masculinity with the way he looks and the workouts, he’s kind of doing the opposite by virtue of just clowning around on camera and spending a lot of time with his kid,” says Dickson. Regardless, the Costco Guys do ultimately exist in a lineage of influencers and celebrities that draw straight, white, right-leaning male fans. Several moments this year have shown, from the conservative appropriation of Sydney Sweeney to the overnight success of Hawk Tuah Girl, that it’s not totally up to public figures to decide who they appeal to.

President-elect Donald Trump is set to attend a SpaceX rocket launch from Starbase in Texas in a sign of his close ties with the company’s billionaire founder and CEO Elon Musk. Today’s launch, scheduled for 5pm EST, marks Starship’s sixth test flight.

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Former ESPN anchor Sage Steele continued to show her support for President-elect Donald Trump this weekend, this time through her fashion choices.

Maryland State Police arrested and charged 46-year-old Kevin Gross in the shooting of a man along a Maryland highway.

Taylor Swift fans went after their latest target, the wife of Bills linebacker Baylon Spector, after she bragged about beating the Chiefs this past weekend.

Legal experts and members of the House GOP are at odds over whether Speaker Johnson and President-elect Donald Trump could, and should, bypass the Senate.

Donald Trump se dirigió el martes a Brownsville, Texas, para presenciar una prueba del cohete Starship de una de las empresas de Elon Musk.

Post Malone unveils his 2025 tour plans, which will seemingly bring him back to Coachella. He kicks off the Big Ass Stadium Tour with two shows in Indio.