A group of hooded and masked people broke dozens of windows and spray painted anti-government graffiti on the Multnomah County Elections building in what Portland police called an “orchestrated attack.” The attack happened just before 2 a.m. Monday and suspects fled as police arrived at the office, which was not occupied at the time, police…
Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz, Jr administers the Oath of Office to Governor Matt Meyer, son Levi decides he’s ready for it to end – and gets handed off to his brother so the Oath of Office can be completed / Image courtesy Delaware.gov UPDATED – 5:15pm – Delaware has a new…
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On Monday, Shou Zi Chew stood atop the dais watching as Donald Trump was sworn into office as president for the second time. It would be a monumental moment for the Singaporean TikTok CEO if it weren’t so utterly bizarre.
In recent days, in order to save the social media app he runs, Chew has had to fully prostrate himself at Trump’s feet, rising only to kiss the once and future president’s ring.
“On behalf of everyone at TikTok and all our users across the country, I want to thank President Trump for his commitment to work with us to find a solution that keeps TikTok available in the United States,” Chew said in a video posted to TikTok on Friday after the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of a law banning TikTok unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, divests. “This is a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship.”
Chew is right that TikTok being banned is due to arbitrary censorship and that this law is an affront to the First Amendment rights of its 170 million users in the United States. But praising Trump’s action is more akin to performance art than traditional lobbying.
It was Trump, after all, who initiated the first effort to ban TikTok in 2020, citing national security concerns over Chinese data collection and influence operations. That said, it was possibly sparked by an embarrassing incident that June where TikTok users coordinated to buy up tickets at a Trump rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, causing his campaign team to vastly overestimate attendance.
That August, Trump issued an executive order invoking his emergency economic powers to force mobile app stores and internet service providers to cut off access to TikTok due to vague concerns about national security. Multiple federal judges halted the law, finding that the executive order likely exceeded Trump’s statutory authority. Trump also tried to force ByteDance to sell the app to an American company—maybe Microsoft, maybe Walmart, maybe Oracle, the latter of which got a massive cloud deal to store TikTok’s U.S. user data, which continues to this day, but ultimately Trump did not act to secure a deal before his first term ended in January 2021.
The effort to ban TikTok picked up in 2024 when a bipartisan group of legislators passed a law effectively accomplishing the same thing that Trump attempted in his executive order citing similar national security concerns—albeit with more legal heft since Trump had limited authority to ban TikTok unilaterally. Former President Joe Biden signed the bill into law in April and TikTok took the government to court, an ordeal that concluded on Friday with the Supreme Court’s ruling upholding the law.
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But in this time, Trump changed his mind about TikTok—perhaps because one of his top donors, Jeffrey Yass, is a major TikTok investor, perhaps because he thought TikTok’s users helped him win the election in November, or perhaps because he wanted to be viewed as a savior.
In the final days of his administration, Biden seemed to get cold feet about banning the popular social media app, reportedly promising he would not enforce the ban. But without an explicit statement on that front, TikTok went dark for less than 24 hours—partially out of legitimate concern for the uncertainty of the law, but also seemingly as a publicity stunt—setting up Trump to be the savior he desired.
Kissing Trump’s ring, it turns out, is easy business for a social media CEO with everything on the line.
At the inauguration, Chew stood near Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the man who once lobbied Trump to ban TikTok. Chew doesn’t have the luxury that Zuckerberg has. Meta is the all-American social media company and TikTok faces an eternal uphill battle to convince Washington that it’s not controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. But Chew has eyes and can see that even in so-called free speech havens such as America, the lords of media and tech in Trump’s age are expected to bow and kiss the ring.
After all, is that not what Zuckerberg has done by removing fact-checkers and relaxing its content rules to allow more hate speech? In the next four years, users can expect that their favorite social media companies kowtow to Trump with fawning messages and actions favorable to right-wing edgelords. Let he who is without stomach-turning sycophancy cast the first stone.
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Canadian T. A. Keenleyside Receives International Recognition Through the INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD® – Politics News Today – EIN Presswire Trusted News Since 1995 A service for global professionals · Tuesday, January 21, 2025 · 779,040,733 Articles · 3+ Million Readers News Monitoring and Press Release Distribution Tools News Topics Newsletters Press Releases Events & Conferences…
The New Delhi World Book Fair 2025 is poised to be a grand literary celebration, drawing readers, authors, and publishers from across the globe. Scheduled from February 1 to 9, 2025, at Bharat Mandapam in Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, this event promises a rich blend of cultural exchange, intellectual discourse, and an expansive showcase of books. Organized by the National Book Trust, India, under the Ministry of Education, in collaboration with the India Trade Promotion Organisation, the fair aims to celebrate India’s literary heritage while embracing global trends. With attractions like the Children’s Pavilion, Authors’ Corners, and international exhibits, it is an event no book lover should miss.World Book Fair 2025 event detailsDetailsInformationEvent NameNew Delhi World Book Fair 2025DatesFebruary 1 to February 9, 2025Timings11:00 AM to 8:00 PM dailyVenueBharat Mandapam, Pragati Maidan, New DelhiTheme”Republic@75″ – Celebrating 75 years of India as a RepublicTicket AvailabilitySelect Delhi Metro Stations (Details to be announced by NBT India website)Ticket PriceAdults – Rs 20Children – Rs 10Nearest Metro StationSupreme Court Metro Station (Blue Line)Entry GatesGate 10 (main), Gates 4 and 6 for additional access, with wheelchair facilities at Gates 4 and 8Contact InformationVisit the official website: www.nbtindia.gov.in or follow their social media channelsHow to buy World Book Fair 2025 tickets onlineTickets for the New Delhi World Book Fair 2025 will be available from January 26. Here’s how to book tickets online:Visit the official website nbtindia.gov.in.Select the ticket option and click the “NDWBF 2025 entry ticket” link.Choose your preferred visit date.Specify the number of tickets you wish to purchase.Proceed to payment and complete the transaction.Download your ticket with a QR code for entry.Buy World Book Fair tickets offlineTickets can be purchased in person at Bharat Mandapam, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. Starting February 1, tickets will also be available at metro station exits for added convenience.School students and senior citizens will enjoy free entry to the event.Using the metro for transportation is highly recommended, as it provides an easy way to access tickets directly upon exiting the stations, ensuring a seamless and efficient experience.World Book Fair 2025 themeThe World Book Fair 2025 will operate daily from 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM. This year, the theme “Republic@75” commemorates India’s 75th anniversary as a republic, emphasizing ideals of equality, justice, and freedom. The slogan “We, the People of India” underscores the nation’s collective aspirations. Key attractions include the Children’s Pavilion, storytelling sessions, thematic exhibitions, and interactive workshops. International participation will bring diverse literary perspectives, while platforms like the YUVA Corner will spotlight emerging Indian authors.World Book Fair 2025: Special featuresVisitors can explore a range of events and activities:Children’s pavilion: Dedicated to young readers, featuring storytelling and workshops to nurture a love for books.Authors’ corner: A space for dialogues, book launches, and panel discussions with prominent and upcoming writers.International exhibits: Showcasing global literature and promoting cultural exchange.Cultural programs: Celebrating India’s multilingual literary heritage through music, dance, and performances.New Delhi rights table: A platform for discussions on publishing rights and licensing.World Book Fair 2025 tickets price and access Tickets will be available at select Delhi Metro stations. Visitors can access the venue through the Supreme Court Metro Station, conveniently located near Pragati Maidan. Entry gates 4, 6, and 10 will offer seamless access, with facilities like wheelchair support for enhanced inclusivity.Ticket price for adults – Rs 20Ticket price for children – Rs 10World Book Fair 2025 highlight: The “Festival of Festivals” initiativeA highlight of this year’s event is the “Festival of Festivals,” which brings together literary festivals from across India. With over 100 sessions on topics like AI in literature, contemporary poetry, and historical narratives, this initiative fosters a vibrant exchange of ideas.The New Delhi World Book Fair 2025 is more than just a marketplace for books; it is a hub of cultural interaction and intellectual growth. It provides a platform to promote Indian literature globally while fostering an appreciation for diverse literary traditions. Through its extensive programming, the fair underscores the transformative power of literature in shaping societal values and preserving cultural heritage.Also read | Genshin Impact Codes | Fruit Battlegrounds Codes | Blox Fruits Codes | Peroxide Codes
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Jan 21, 2025 —
Louis Wain sketched thousands of surreal cats for the other people institutionalized with him at the Springfield Mental Hospital in South London in the late 1920s.
He spent years as a commercial artist drawing cartoonish cats for advertisements and magazines, but it was in the asylum author Kathryn Hughes says Wain, ironically, felt free to pursue his interest in Japanese and surreal art.
In “Catland: Louis Wain and the Great Cat Mania,” Hughes threads together Wain’s biography and influence with a social history of how cats were taken out of the alleyway and brought into the home.
The New York Times and The New Yorker have raved about the book, so NCPR book reviewer Betsy Kepes dove into it with Northern Light co-host Monica Sandreczki.
Their conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.
Examples of Wain’s commercial work.(Left to right) “K. Little Kathleen Out With Her Kite, It Broke From Her String, And Flew Out Of Sight.” “G Stands For Georgie, A Gardener. He Is Digging Away Just As Hard As He Can Be.” “When Suddenly The Lecture Platform Became Too Hot To Hold Him”
BETSY KEPES: The thing to remember about this book is it’s not just about funny cat drawings.
It’s about a man and a time.
[Hughes] calls it a biography of a time period from about 1870 to the eve of World War II, when cats went from being these miserable, scrawny things that people kicked and tried to get out of the way, to valuable pets that could make money at a cat show.
You might even recognize some [of Wain’s illustrations] if you saw them.
They’re cats that walk on two legs. They wear clothes. They have very expressive faces. They do things like jump out of boats, swim or play cricket.
There’s one photo that I loved of an illustration of a royal cat couple with this sort of fawning other couple; and the royal couple has these great disdainful cat faces.
(Left to right) “Flowers for You.” “A Mad Rush.”
MONICA SANDRECZKI: Like you’ve indicated, this was happening in England, but it also connects to the US.
KEPES: Right. It’s at this same time period that this “cat mania,” was happening, not just in England, but in the United States, France, Germany and even Japan and Italy. This idea that cats went from being, let’s call them, “big rodents,” into these cute and valuable pets; if you got a Persian cat, you could breed it and make some money.
It was a fun read. Having all the illustrations really helps you visualize the time period because Louis Wain, besides doing all these cat pictures for postcards, would do them for advertisements. He would draw kids books. He did something called a Christmas annual every year, which had all of his drawings in it. At that time period, I think everybody would have recognized a drawing by him.
SANDRECZKI: The subtitle includes the phrase “cat mania.” Was that cat mania like?
KEPES: Well, it was crazy. They started breeding these different kinds of cats. The one kinda gross chapter was about the cats’ meat men who would buy horses that had been slaughtered, and then chopped into bits, and went around London selling bits of meat for the cats.
SANDRECZKI: Also, this rise of cat shows, too.
KEPES: We think of dog shows; at this time period, they started cat shows, which were definitely run by rich white women, but also were open to the public. That really interested the public to see these different kinds of cats they hadn’t seen before. How about you? What did you get from it? I know you listened to an interview.
Wain got so skilled at sketching cats that he could draw one in 45 seconds.(Left to right) “Dark-eyed cat.” “Sketches of Burmese cats.” “Three cats.”
SANDRECZKI: Yeah, I listened to an interview with the author and she talked about this connection that comes up between cats and women. And, with this rise of cats becoming more palatable to people, it was a niche for women to be able to make a little bit of money, for middle class women to stud cats, or to cat sit for other people. These women who used to be governesses could make just as much money taking care of cats.
KEPES: And be more independent.
SANDRECZKI: Exactly.
KEPES: My favorite chapter was actually one that’s called, “Sisters Under the Cat Skin.” It’s about women suffrage and the chapter opens with this old poster of a cat wearing a bonnet and it says “Votes For Women.” And you’re like, “oh, that’s so great!” This is actually an anti-suffrage poster. That women are only as good as cats; they’re catty. As a 21st-century person, I didn’t get that context.
Then, the last photo in that chapter is of a very famous poster from England of a giant cat with a woman draped in his mouth. She has a banner on (she’s a suffragette) and this is in the time period when the suffragettes were going on hunger strikes and being force fed. England finally had a law that would allow them out of prison if they were almost dead, but then when they recovered, they had to go back in [prison]. They called it the Cat and Mouse Law because of this idea of playing with these women. Apparently, this particular poster, which is graphically beautiful, made a big difference in this idea that women do deserve to have the vote.
SANDRECZKI: Threading together the whole book is this biography of the artist Louis Wain.
See the progression of Wain’s work over the course of his time confined in asylums. (Left to right): “Untitled.” “Untitled.” “Untitled.”
KEPES: He had a mother and five spinster sisters that he had to support (his father had died of alcoholism), so his art is very commercial in most of his life because that’s what sold.
He kind of went insane in his 60s and was put in what they called an insane asylum. The author said it was probably the best thing that ever happened to him because, finally, he was released from having to do the cute cats. He had seen some of the art shows that came to England with Van Gogh and Cezanne, and he was also very interested in Japanese art and futuristic art. His last stuff he did started moving away from these detailed, realistic cats into sort of surreal-looking paintings. Actually, in the 1960s (he died in the 1930s), the pop art movement got very interested in his late art work.
SANDRECZKI: Who would you recommend this book for?
KEPES: Anybody who’s interested in social history of that time period – that late Victorian, Edwardian [Era]. This is just before World War II that’s going to bring in new technologies like radio and TV. This is a time of visual art that was everywhere, and a man who had a talent and a bad life, but who I think needs to be recognized as a real artist.
Netflix
2014 wasn’t a great year for Cameron Diaz. The actor who shot to stardom when she debuted in 1994’s “The Mask” suddenly found herself at the center of three films that garnered reviews ranging from lukewarm to downright malicious with “The Other Woman,” “Sex Tape,” and “Annie.” Diaz’s best movie (at least according to Rotten Tomatoes) was long behind her at this point, and the actor disappeared from movie-making after “Annie” bowed in theaters. Now, she’s back in a movie that will surely do little to make up for the poor reviews of 2014 but will, at least, give her global exposure, assuming the Netflix viewing figures are anything to go by.
Diaz appears alongside her “Any Given Sunday” and “Annie” co-star Jamie Foxx in “Back in Action” in which the pair play former spies who settle down and start a family in the suburbs of Atlanta. As you might have guessed from the title and the feeble premise, however, the couple are quickly drawn (sigh) back into action, with Foxx and Diaz’s Matt and Emily having to escape mercenaries sent by their former boss and protect their kids in the process.
Director Seth Gordon (“Identity Thief,” “Baywatch”), told Tudum that “Back in Action” came from him contemplating the idea of “What would it be like for Jason Bourne if he had kids?” Well, finally this question that surely every Bourne fan has been asking since Matt Damon’s franchise debuted has been answered with yet another sorta okay Netflix movie that will soon wash away amid the inexorable tide of streaming “content.” Before it becomes yet another forgotten streaming effort, however, it will evidently manage to capture our increasingly diminishing collective attention span, as the whole world appears to be happily streaming Diaz’s return to movie-making.
Cameron Diaz is back in action on Netflix
John Wilson/Netflix
Before Cameron Diaz disappeared from Hollywood, she was easily one of its biggest stars. While a middling Netflix action comedy might not seem like the sort of thing that would remind us of the actor’s star power, “Back In Action” is at least proving hugely popular on Netflix. The movie hit the streamer on January 17, and immediately proved to be nothing short of a sensation. According to FlixPatrol, a site that tracks streaming viewership data across the various platforms, the movie is an indisputable success for Netflix, not only topping the U.S. most-watched charts but also becoming a global hit.
Stateside, “Back in Action” debuted on the most-watched film charts the day after it arrived on the service, hitting number one on January 18, 2025, and staying there ever since. As of January 20, it’s still in the top spot and looks set to remain there for some time, becoming one of Netflix’s biggest releases of 2025 thus far. It’s the same story around the world, too, with “Back in Action” managing to repeat its chart-topping success in every other market.
As of January 20, the film is number one in 92 countries, only failing to top the charts in New Zealand, where it currently sits at number two. Even then, “Back in Action” was number one in New Zealand for its first two days on Netflix. If that’s not impressive enough, Diaz’s triumphant return has been number one every day since it hit Netflix in 88 countries around the world, suggesting it will not only be dominating the U.S. charts for some time, but that it will also likely remain in the global rankings for the foreseeable future — especially since in every country where it’s charting, it hasn’t dipped below the number two position in any of them.
Is Back in Action worth watching?
Netflix
You might think it unfair to belittle yet another Netflix movie when it has the star power of Cameron Diaz propelling it. Well, while I hesitate to direct your attention to Rotten Tomatoes, which maintains there are only two “perfect” war movies and that Sean Connery’s best movie is “Darby O’Gill and the Little People,” that 23% score for “Back in Action” ain’t great. Rotten Tomatoes is doing little to maintain the success of the film, which also bears a lowly 4.4 out of 10 average rating. In his two-star review, The Guardian’s Benjamin Lee wrote, “While it might prove that Diaz still possesses that same particular magic, it also shows that she should be far more discerning with how she chooses to share it.” “Back in Action” certainly seems like an odd choice for Diaz’s big return to filmmaking, but then, the audience numbers appear to suggest otherwise.
Case in point: Jack Black actually forgot he was in a Christmas movie with Diaz which recently saw a resurgence on Prime Video for Christmas 2024. While “The Holiday” didn’t fare all that much better critically than “Back in Action,” it has a certain charm of its own, mostly because of Diaz’s own inherent charisma, which is on full display in the romantic comedy. As such, the revival of “The Holiday” in 2024 was arguably a better return for the actor than “Back in Action,” which, with its meta title, seems like exactly the kind of thing Netflix’s ungodly AI algorithms would churn out after crunching the viewership numbers.
Madman Entertainment
Content warning: the following discusses the death of a pet, so please proceed with caution.
At the time of writing, it’s only been a few days since my family and I bid farewell to one of our dear beloved cats (who had been diagnosed with cancer a couple of months earlier). A grey and white sweetheart, he was a part of our lives for nearly 13 years. I’ve never met anyone, animal or human, who loved to be petted by and snuggle other cats and people as much as him (nor a cat who purred quite so loudly when he was happy). He was also a charming rascal and lovable weirdo who left us with countless anecdotes to regale ourselves with. To say my family and I are heartbroken would be putting it mildly.
In my sorrow, as I’ve always done whenever I lose someone dear to me, I’ve found myself drawn to media that speaks to my feelings. (Yes, for whatever reason, I’m apparently an emotional sadist who only really wants to watch sad stuff when I’m sad. Go figure.) As chance had it, I’d already made plans to check out what wound up being the perfect movie for my current state of mind: “Memoir of a Snail.”
The latest “clayography” written and directed by Adam Elliot is loosely inspired by events in the Australian filmmaker’s real life. This underseen 2024 critical darling centers on Grace Pudel (portrayed as a grownup by Sarah Snook of “Succession” fame, who speaks in her native Aussie accent to deliver a graceful, empathetic voice performance). Grace is, by her own admission, an introverted oddball in a family of oddballs. Growing up in 1970s Melbourne, Grace spends her youth being bullied (first because of her cleft lip and then, after going through puberty, her body type) and enduring a string of tragedies. This culminates in her and her fiercely loyal, protective twin brother Gilbert (voiced by Kodi Smit-McPhee as an adult) being sent to different foster homes — each neglectful or, in Gilbert’s case, outright abusive in their own way — on opposing sides of the continent.
Over time, Grace retreats even further into herself, hoarding snails and snail-themed items to deal with her loneliness (including the homemade snail hat she’s been wearing since she was a kid). As the film continued, though, it occurred to me that “Memoir of a Snail” has a remarkable amount in common with another underseen animated 2024 gem — one that, on the surface, seems like it’s worlds apart.
Memoir of a Snail and Flow are both about how we survive in a cruel world
Janus Films
“Flow,” the much-celebrated new animated feature from Latvian filmmaker Gints Zilbalodis, is about as far removed from “Memoir of a Snail” as an animated movie can get … that is, at a passing glance. Where the latter features practically non-stop voiceover narration by Snook, “Flow” is completely dialogue-free. It follows a pack of animals (a black cat, a yellow Labrador Retriever, a ring-tailed lemur, a capybara, and a secretary bird) as they find themselves stuck together in the same small boat trying to survive a catastrophic and effectively Biblical global flood. “Flow” also takes place in what feels like a slightly fantastical version of the real world, whereas “Memoir of a Snail” is very much based in our reality, contrary to what its stylized stop-motion imagery might suggest.
In terms of their aesthetics and tone, the pair seem equally unlike. Whereas “Memoir of a Snail” is shot in mainly locked-down compositions that draw from a fairly subdued color palette, “Flow” is brightly lit, with its virtual camera frequently moving like it would in an open-world video game. (Not for nothing, Zilbalodis made his feature-length debut on the similar video game-inspired animated film “Away.”) Along those same lines, “Memoir of a Snail” has a predilection for quirky details and raunchy whimsy that recalls the work of Jean-Pierre Jeunet (parents be warned, this is not a movie meant for kids), while “Flow” is an all-audience affair despite dealing with some heavy subject matter.
Global warming metaphors aside, however, “Flow” is basically about the same thing as “Memoir of a Snail.” Each of them explores how we deal with loss and the life events that rock our world forever, setting us adrift (be it in a literal and/or figurative sense). Losing a loved one or dealing with everyday human bullies the way Grace does might seem like small potatoes compared to an actual apocalyptic event, and there’s likewise a part of me that almost feels guilty for calling attention to my current woes in light of the unfathomable disaster the L.A.-based folks I work with have had to deal with since 2025 got underway. But “Flow,” like “Memoir of a Snail,” doesn’t minimize its characters’ personal suffering, no matter how trivial it comes across in the grand scheme of things. Case in point: a scene where one of the movie’s animals is separated from a treasured object they picked up — a rare source of comfort in the face of the environmental devastation unfolding around them — is depicted with the same earnestness as anything else that happens in the story.
Nobody survives alone in either Memoir of a Snail or Flow
Madman Entertainment
Friendship and the role it plays in allowing us to survive a cruel world is a recurring theme in Elliot’s films, and “Memoir of a Snail” is no exception. As she gradually comes of age, Grace forms a most unexpected relationship with Pinky (a delightful Jacki Weaver), a far older and more experienced yet even more idiosyncratic soul who becomes a pillar of support for Grace throughout her many hardships and bouts of self-sabotage. To be sure, “Memoir of a Snail” recognizes we can often be our own worst enemies and that the people we care about, be they related by blood or members of our found family, are instrumental in helping us to not only stay alive but also to overcome our worst impulses.
So it also goes with the black cat in “Flow,” who essentially acts as the movie’s protagonist. Our nameless and extremely anxious four-legged hero spends the majority of the movie panicking and nearly getting itself killed, all the while struggling to figure out how to exist harmoniously with its newfound — and strikingly different — bedfellows. If that doesn’t make them one of the most relatable film characters in all of 2024, then, suffice it to say, we are very different people. Once again, though, it’s only through the kindness and support of others (even the smallest of gestures) that our lead makes it through thick and thin, a concept exemplified beautifully by the symmetry of the movie’s opening and closing shots.
The importance of community (no matter the shape or size) and the role it plays in supporting the most vulnerable members of society, helping them to live a full life even in the face of dire circumstances, is another common thread in not just “Memoir of a Snail” and “Flow” but a lot of 2024 and recent metamodern cinema in general (see also: the partly animated documentary “The Remarkable Life of Ibelin” and “The Wild Robot” for two other relevant, terrific examples). It’s a vital message we could all stand to take to heart as we head into the future, as well as an important lesson we all have to learn at some point in our own individual journeys.
These films also know it’s impossible to truly express our gratitude to those who’ve helped us along the way when the time comes to bid them farewell. Still, the very least we can do is take a moment and try, if only to briefly honor them, be they human or a pet (nay, a friend) who made our hearts just a little less lonely and filled even our darkest days with some much-needed light.
“Memoir of a Snail” is currently streaming on AMC+. “Flow” is available to rent or purchase on digital.