SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — State Farm will discontinue coverage for 72,000 houses and apartments in California starting this summer, the insurance giant said this week, nine months after announcing it would not issue new home policies in the state The Illinois-based company, California’s largest insurer, cited soaring costs, the increasing risk of catastrophes like wildfires … Read more
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday thanked Russians for casting ballots in a presidential vote in which he cemented his grip on the country for another six years after the harshest crackdown on dissent since Soviet times. Any public criticism of Putin or his war in Ukraine has been stifled, independent media have been crippled, Putin’s … Read more
WARSAW, Poland — Thousands of farmers marched in Poland’s capital and Spanish farmers cut off traffic on highways near the French border on Tuesday in the latest protests against food imports from Ukraine and the European Union’s agricultural policies. The actions follow similar protests across Europe in recent weeks, and come as the West is … Read more
WESTROZEBEKE, Belgium — It was the puddles of green sludge left by the tires of massive tractors in western Belgium’s industrial farmlands that drew the attention of biological engineer Ineke Maes. The slime was destructive algae, the result of the excess of chemicals used by farmers to boost their crops, but at a high cost … Read more
Air Canada’s argument that its AI-powered customer chatbot was solely liable for its own actions didn’t hold up in civil court (thank goodness), and now the airline must refund a customer who was given the incorrect information about being comped for his airfare. The 2022 incident involved one Air Canada customer, Jake Moffatt, and the … Read more
MADRID — Thousands of Spanish farmers on tractors blocked highways and some city streets Friday in a fourth consecutive day of protest against European Union agriculture policies and to demand measures to offset production cost increases, reduced profits and competition from non-EU countries. The actions follow similar ones in France, Poland, Greece and other EU … Read more
China did not have a good 2023. Official statistics released this month showed that the world’s second-largest economy—which analysts had projected would bounce back after its strict COVID-19 prevention measures were lifted in December 2022—underperformed in just about every economic indicator. For what it’s worth, GDP growth was at 5.2%, a bit higher than expected, … Read more
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Apple has updated its App Store policies to spell out how developers can link to outside payment platforms, as reported by 9to5Mac. Developers will still owe Apple a cut if they use an outside payment platform. Apple will take a 27 percent cut (as opposed to the 30 percent in many cases) or 12 percent … Read more
OpenAI may be paving the way toward finding out its AI’s military potential. First reported by the Intercept on Jan 12., a new company policy change has completely removed previous language that banned “activity that has high risk of physical harm,” including specific examples of “weapons development” and “military and warfare.” As of Jan. 10, … Read more
Now that the holidays are behind us, you’re probably done shopping for the year. And if you have gifts that you or a recipient didn’t want or need, it’s important to know what the big retailers’ return policies are in case you need to make a return. This story is part of 12 Days of … Read more