Latest news with #WashingtonMonument
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Raleigh's bronze tribute to George Washington gets a makeover
From his perch on Capitol Square, George Washington projects a jaunty self-confidence, his gaze steady, his chin lifted, his wig tied in a respectable bow — keeping a patriot's post with sword at the ready. But after 168 years, even a founding father needs a good scrubbing, especially this ex-president in bronze, who's turned a bit green from corrosion in the four decades since his last bath. So over the next week, the man on the $1 bill will get full restoration treatment down to a fresh coat of lacquer. 'He'll look better and last longer,' said Kara Deadmon, site administrator at the N.C. Capitol. 'He'll be a shiny bronze color.' Washington's makeover, funded through a nonprofit support group, comes as the state continues to tinker with Raleigh's most visible downtown square. An N.C. House proposal would add a statue of the Rev. Billy Graham, which would be the Capitol's latest addition since the Confederate monument removal in 2020. Washington has kept steady watch over Fayetteville Street since 1857, when a reported and likely exaggerated crowd of 10,000 people witnessed his statue being dedicated on the Fourth of July — complete with brass bands and explosions. 'As the covering of the statue was removed,' raved The Weekly Standard, 'the roar of cannon brought vividly before our mind's eye many of the terrifying scenes in which the father of his country had stood by her, as her destiny paled and flickered, calm and unmoved as the inanimate figure before us.' Raleigh held a special fondness for the commander-in-chief, having lost its original Washington statue in the 1831 fire that destroyed the Capitol. That marble monument from Italian sculptor Antonio Canova was widely considered a world masterpiece, depicting the first president in sandals and a Roman military kilt. So even though the bronze statute was only a copy, one of more than 30 produced nationwide, it represented Washington's triumphant return to Raleigh — a symbolic arrival considering the drumbeats of secession pounding across the South. As N.C. architectural historian Catherine Bishir has noted: 'By the 1850s, Washington's symbolic importance as father of the nation had grown with the years, as evidenced by the Washington Monument under construction in the nation's capital ... By this time, too, Washington's personification of national identity carried added meaning amid rising tensions between North and South.' Washington was widely considered stiff as a statue in his own lifetime, described by filmmaker Ken Burns as 'opaque and unknowable.' But as Raleigh's mascot for independence, none of Washington's awkwardness comes through — only his steely gaze fixed on righteousness, liberty and other important things. So pardon his scaffolding. Gallantry requires maintenance.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Billionaire David Rubenstein says his hiring red flag is people who try to cut ethical corners
Private equity billionaire David Rubenstein says building a successful business starts with hiring good people. Like Amazon and Duolingo's CEOs, he says being a decent human being is non-negotiable: 'You want people that have integrity. Becoming a billionaire doesn't happen overnight, but if you're determined to join the top 1% of earners, it might be best to take advice from those who have already made it. For billionaire David Rubenstein, co-founder of the private equity firm Carlyle, success starts with finding good people to help you. 'You want people that have integrity, that aren't trying to cut ethical corners,' he said at an event last week hosted by education company ETS. It's perhaps no surprise, then, that the 75-year-old says his hiring green flag is a good attitude. 'Hire people who are hopefully smarter than you, reasonably hard-working, people who are interested in what you're doing with your company,' he added. 'They believe it's a valuable thing to do, so they're going to have some interest in working hard and hopefully thinking that they're doing something useful for society.' Rubenstein's advice may seem intuitive, but Gen Z has particularly struggled at becoming standout employees in the workplace. According to one study, close to 60% of employers report having fired those early in their career, citing a lack of professionalism. Moreover, Gen Z is increasingly being known for backstabbing others in the office—something that's unlikely to fly working for a billionaire. There's no question Rubenstein knows a thing or two about working hard, having grown his now $14 billion company from the ground up—and he practices what he preaches when it comes to doing good. He's given millions to the National Park Service to restore historical landmarks like the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial in addition to purchasing and lending copies of documents like the Magna Carta, Declaration of Independence, and Emancipation Proclamation. 'My theory is that you can always build a pyramid and take your wealth with you. But there's no evidence you need it in the afterlife, so I've decided to not do that,' he told The Washington Post in 2018. Finding people who hold the same philosophy—that using money for good is better than keeping it—is also part of what Rubenstein looks for in hiring. 'You want people who want to do something that makes society better by the result of what they're doing, so not just making money, (not) just hoarding it, but actually giving it away or doing other useful things for their time and their money and resources,' he said last week. Being at the top of a successful business is notoriously lonely, which is likely why Rubenstein and other leaders are adamant on finding the right people to work with. Billionaire Warren Buffett, whose net worth is some $166 billion has said that the secret to becoming a millionaire is surrounding yourself with the right people. 'Figure out what your strengths are and then pick the right people and don't be afraid of making mistakes,' Buffett recently said. But on a more basic employee level, having an entire company of people with the right skills can help drive success. The founder of Shake Shack Danny Meyer, for example, said he looks for six emotional skills in all his new hires: integrity, optimism, intellectual curiosity, work ethic, empathy, and self-awareness. Countless CEOs have highlighted that they prioritize hiring for attitude. Amazon's Andy Jassy has said that an 'embarrassing amount of how well you do, particularly in your twenties,' depends on it. Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn told Fortune he won't hire 'assholes.' And employers are increasingly sneaking personality tests into interviews to sniff out bad apples. This story was originally featured on
Chicago Tribune
21-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Today in History: Malcolm X shot to death
Today is Friday, Feb. 21, the 52nd day of 2025. There are 313 days left in the year. Today in history: On Feb. 21, 1965, civil rights activist Malcolm X, 39, was shot to death inside Harlem's Audubon Ballroom in New York. Three men identified as members of the Nation of Islam were convicted of murder and imprisoned; all were eventually paroled. (The convictions of two of the men were dismissed in November 2021, when prosecutors said new evidence had undermined the case against them.) Also on this date: In 1885, President Chester Arthur dedicated the Washington Monument. In 1911, composer Gustav Mahler, despite a fever, conducted the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall in what turned out to be his final concert. (He died the following May.) In 1916, the Battle of Verdun, the longest battle of World War I, began in northeastern France. In 1972, President Richard M. Nixon began a historic visit to China, where he met with Chinese leader Mao Zedong. In 1973, Israeli fighter planes shot down Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 114 over the Sinai Desert, killing all but five of the 113 people on board. In 1975, former Attorney General John N. Mitchell, former White House Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman, and former White House Domestic Affairs Adviser John D. Ehrlichman were sentenced to 2 1/2 to 8 years in prison for their roles in the Watergate cover-up. (Each ended up serving less than two years.) In 1992, Kristi Yamaguchi of the United States won the gold medal in women's figure skating at the Albertville Winter Olympics; Midori Ito of Japan won the silver, Nancy Kerrigan of the U.S. the bronze. In 1995, Chicago adventurer Steve Fossett became the first person to fly solo across the Pacific Ocean by balloon, landing in Leader, Saskatchewan, Canada. after a 5,400 mile, four-day flight from South Korea. Today's birthdays: Film and music executive David Geffen is 82. Actor Tyne Daly is 79. Actor Anthony Daniels is 79. Actor William Petersen is 72. Actor Kelsey Grammer is 70. Country musician Mary Chapin Carpenter is 67. Baseball Hall of Famer Alan Trammell is 67. Actor William Baldwin is 62. Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona is 61. Actor Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor is 56. Musician Rhiannon Giddens is 48. Actor Tituss Burgess is 46. Actor Jennifer Love Hewitt is 46. Filmmaker-comedian Jordan Peele is 46. Singer Charlotte Church is 39. Actor Elliot Page is 38. Actor Joe Alwyn is 34. Actor Sophie Turner is 29.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
On This Day, Feb. 21: New Yorker magazine published for 1st time
Feb. 21 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1848, The Communist Manifesto was published by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A rare copy of the publication sold at auction for $39,600 in 1986. In 1878, the New Haven, Conn., Telephone Co. published the first phone directory. It listed 50 subscribers. In 1885, the Washington Monument, a 555-foot-high marble obelisk built in honor of America's revolutionary hero and first president, was dedicated in Washington. In 1916, Germans launched the Battle of Verdun. More than 1 million soldiers in the German and French armies were killed in nearly 10 months of fighting. It was the longest battle of World War I. In 1925, the first issue of The New Yorker was published. In 1934, Nicaraguan guerrilla leader Cesar Augusto Sandino was killed by members of the country's national guard. In 1953, Francis Crick and James D. Watson discovered the double helix structure of the DNA molecule. It took another three decades for scientists to produce a clear, direct picture of the DNA molecule. In 1965, Black Muslim leader Malcolm X was assassinated at a rally in New York. In 1972, Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit the People's Republic of China. In 1994, longtime CIA counterintelligence officer Aldrich Ames and his wife, Maria, were arrested and charged with selling information to the Soviet Union and Russia. Ames was sentenced to life in prison; his wife got a five-year term. In 1995, a Russian commission estimated up to 24,400 civilians died in a two-month uprising in the separatist republic of Chechnya. In 2007, nuclear neighbors India and Pakistan signed a treaty in New Delhi aimed at preventing the accidental use of atomic weapons. In 2014, U.S. President Barack Obama met the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, at the White House after the Chinese government warned the meeting would damage U.S.-China relations. A White House statement said Obama "reiterated the U.S. position that Tibet is part of the People's Republic of China and that the United States does not support Tibet independence." In 2019, the Japanese Space Agency's Hayabusa-2 probe touched down on asteroid Ryugu. It was the first probe to deploy working rovers onto an asteroid. In 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered "peacekeeping" troops into two separatist regions of eastern Ukraine under new decrees recognizing them as independent republics. Three days later, Russia invaded Ukraine.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Elon Musk's budget-slashing hits political reality of suffering Americans
Nearly everyone agrees that the federal government has become this bloated monster that needs to be cut down to size. The massive bureaucracy, attacked by some as evil, is absurdly overstaffed and wastes massive amounts of money. What President Trump is doing in trying to shrink the size of government is popular – even if his billionaire budget-slasher, Elon Musk, is not – and many of the court battles are likely to be resolved in his favor. But the equation is turned on its head when actual people feel the impact. And the media start highlighting sad cases of devastated folks. And Republican lawmakers start objecting to the cutbacks that hit home. What Has Doge Cut So Far? That's why it's so hard to cut the federal budget. It's not like going into SpaceX and firing a bunch of software engineers. The political pressures can be intense. Read On The Fox News App Virtually every program in the federal budget is there because some group, at some time, convinced Congress it was a good idea. There are noble-sounding causes – cancer research, aid to veterans, subsidies for farmers. In fact, farmers are threatened by the near-abolition of USAID – while most people hate foreign aid, food programs provide a crucial market for American farmers, many of whom are now stuck with spoiling surpluses or loans they can't repay. Now there's plenty of game-playing that goes on with government programs. Let's say, for the sake of argument, that agencies could cut one of every 10 employees without damaging their core functions. Anyone who's looked at the endless cycle of conferences, conventions, training confabs, office renovations and the like knows how much fat there is in these budgets. When you throw in lucrative payments to well-connected contractors, that figure skyrockets. But when agency officials come under fire, they immediately insist that any cutbacks will instantly hurt the poor and downtrodden, or working-class folks living paycheck to paycheck. It used to be called the Washington Monument defense, the notion that any attempt to reduce funding for the Interior Department would cause the memorial's immediate shutdown. Doge Says It Found Nearly Untraceable Budget Line Item Responsible For $4.7T In Payments NIH, for instance, does world-class research that benefits the country. But the battle between Musk's DOGE and the institute centers on how much is spent on indirect costs. Musk says his aim is "dropping the overhead charged on NIH grants from the outrageous 60 percent to a far more reasonable 15 percent." But an NBC story is headlined: "NIH Cuts Could Stall Medical Progress for Lifesaving Treatments, Experts Say." The piece quotes Theodore Iwashyna, a physician at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, as saying his "father had pancreatic cancer, and the care plan developed for him existed only because of research funded through organizations like the NIH." Iwashyna says the overhead is needed for "computers, whiteboards, microscopes, electricity, and janitors and staff who keep labs clean and organized." Alabama Sen. Katie Britt, whose state is getting $518 million in NIH grants, mainly to the University of Alabama at Birmingham, is raising objections. The conservative Republican told a reporter she wants the administration to take a "smart, targeted approach" so as not to endanger "groundbreaking, lifesaving research." Doge Needs To 'Cut Deeper' And Must 'Keep Slashing' To Succeed, Says Kevin O'leary The examples are legion. Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski has asked the administration not to restrict funding for diversity programs among American Indian tribes. As the New York Times puts it, "some Republicans" have sought "carve outs and special consideration for agriculture programs, scientific research and more, even as they cheered on Mr. Trump's overall approach." Musk's DOGE team seems to be using a meat-ax method. Why lay off hundreds of FAA technicians and engineers just weeks after the fatal plane crash at Reagan National Airport, when there's already a major shortage of air traffic controllers? FEMA, which is already stretched thin after the Los Angeles wildfires and the Kentucky flooding, is preparing to fire hundreds of probationary workers, reports the Washington Post. Such workers, who have been with the government for one or two years, basically have no rights. But there has been zero effort to assess them. Some were told their performance was the issue, but showed the Post their evaluations. "Above fully successful," said one, for a fired GSA worker. "An outstanding year, consistently exceeding expectations," said the review for a fired NIH staffer. But viewed from a different angle, the hometown paper and other outlets buy into the notion that federal employees should have tenure for life. Everyone in Washington knows that before Trump it was virtually impossible to fire such employees, even for cause. Subscribe To Howie's Media Buzzmeter Podcast, A Riff On The Day's Hottest Stories By contrast, Southwest Airlines just announced a 15% cut of its corporate workforce. No one is rushing to interview those laid off, because this sort of downsizing is routine in the private sector. But the Beltway ethos is that federal workers are entitled to their jobs. Now intellectual honesty requires the observation that even radical cuts to the federal payroll won't have much impact on the $840 billion budget deficit or the $36 trillion federal debt. The bulk of the budget consists of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, defense spending and interest on the debt. Can Elon Musk and DOGE at least make progress on rooting out waste, fraud and abuse? Maybe. But the level of pain being inflicted on ordinary Americans, including in red states, and the natural tendency of politicians to shield local residents from that pain, and the media's relentless spotlight on those suffering, are going to be a giant article source: Elon Musk's budget-slashing hits political reality of suffering Americans
