College Football Playoff betting guide: First-round odds, title favoritesGloria Allred wants all of Trump's cabinet picks to be asked uncomfortable sex question at confirmation hearings
Overbilling by power firms unacceptable at all costs, warns PM Shehbaz
HOUSTON , Dec. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Essency, a leading provider of innovative hot water solutions, has announced the continuing rollout of its revolutionary EXR water heater, which is now available in 18 states as well as the District of Columbia . The Essency EXR, the world's first high-capacity electric water heater, brings homeowners a new level of durability and simplicity. Its cutting-edge technology employs intelligent temperature management and quick recovery to deliver an 80-gallon First Hour Rating in a standard-size residential tank footprint. And, the innovative design of the EXR makes it the perfect choice for households of all sizes. Unlike traditional storage tank water heaters, which typically last only an average of eight years, the Essency EXR is built to serve fresh, clean, hot water for over 30 years, providing unmatched durability and performance. Following its success in Arizona , Colorado , Florida , Georgia , North Carolina , South Carolina , Tennessee , and Texas , the product's distribution has expanded to Alabama , Delaware , Kentucky , Louisiana , Maryland , Mississippi , Nevada , New Mexico , Virginia , West Virginia , and the District of Columbia . "With the positive reception from contractors who tell us that installing an EXR is practically 'plug and play,' we are excited to continue expanding our distribution of this product," says Scott Isaksen , National Sales Director for Essency. "Plumbers praise the ease of installation and customer satisfaction, thanks to the product's reliable performance and 20-year transferrable warranty. We're excited for more U.S. homeowners to experience the benefits of the EXR." Whether as a direct replacement for a standard tank water heater, for new-build installations or wherever a new residential water heater is required, the EXR seamlessly integrates into any setting. Its elegant cabinet-type shape sets it apart, making it the most functional and most beautiful home water heater on the market today. Plumbers also appreciate its light weight and built-in handles, which make it much easier to maneuver than a standard tank heater. New owners of the Essency EXR have noted how happy they were about the simplicity of installation without a lot of home reconstruction. They're finally able to have all the hot water their family needs throughout their home whenever they need it while also saving real dollars with features like "Water Saver" and "Vacation Mode." About Essency Founded in 2010, Essency is committed to reimagining the hot water industry. The Essency EXR is the winner of the prestigious 2023 Edison Award in the category of Consumer Solutions- Sustainable Design. For more information about Essency and the EXR, visit www.essencyhome.com . Essency water heaters are available for installation by professional, factory-trained plumbing contractors in 18 U.S. States and the District of Columbia . Ferguson is the exclusive U.S. distributor to the plumbing wholesale trade for Essency water heaters. SOURCE Essency
Pete Hegseth, president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of Defense, has close ties to an Idaho-based Christian nationalist church that aims to turn America into a theocracy. Hegseth is a member of a Tennessee congregation affiliated with Christ Church, a controversial congregation in Moscow, Idaho, that has become a leader in the movement to get more Christianity in the public sphere. In an appearance last year on the Christ Church-connected streaming show “Crosspolitic,” Hegseth talked about how building up fundamentalist Christian education systems is important in what he sees as a “spiritual battle” with the secular world. He sees Christian students as foot soldiers in that war and refers to Christian schools as “boot camp.” “We’re in middle phase one right now, which is effectively a tactical retreat where you regroup, consolidate and reorganize and as you do so, you build your army underground with the opportunity later on of taking offensive operations — and obviously all of this is metaphorical and all that good stuff,” he said on the show. Hegseth did not immediately respond to requests for an interview. Hegseth has spoken positively about Christ Church Pastor Doug Wilson’s writings Christ Church is led by Pastor Doug Wilson, who founded the Calvinist group of churches called the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, or CREC. CREC has congregations in nearly all 50 states and several foreign countries. Hegseth’s church is a member of CREC, and Hegseth has spoken positively of Wilson’s writings. Wilson and his allies have a rigid patriarchal belief system and don’t believe in the separation of church and state. They support taking away the right to vote from most women, barring non-Christians from holding office and criminalizing the LGBTQ+ community. Recently, Wilson has increased his influence nationally as he’s built a religious, educational and media empire. His Association of Classical Christian Schools has hundreds of fundamentalist schools around the country, and his publishing outfit Canon Press churns out dozens of titles a year as well as popular streaming shows that highlight unyielding socially conservative ideals. In the recently released podcast, “Extremely American” (created by this reporter), Wilson says one of his goals is to get like-minded people into positions of influence. In an emailed response for this story, he said he’s closer to that post-election and that he supports Hegseth’s nomination, though he downplayed any influence he has on him. “I was grateful for Trump’s win, and believe that it is much more likely that Christians with views similar to mine will receive positions in the new administration,” he said. Hegseth nomination could threaten cohesion, diversity of U.S. military, experts say That’s what worries Air Force veteran Mikey Weinstein, who is the president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. Weinstein says Hegseth, if confirmed as secretary of Defense, would threaten the cohesion of a religiously and racially diverse U.S. military. “Pete Hegseth is a poster child for literally everything that would be the opposite of what you would want to have for someone who’s controlling the technologically most lethal organization in the history of this country,” he said. Weinstein sees Hegseth’s nomination as an example of the dangers of Project 2025, a 900-page policy paper written by far-right political activists. It lays out a plan to gut the federal government and install Christian nationalist ideals. “Christian nationalism is an absolute fatal cancer metastasizing at light speed (for) the national security of this country,” he said. “It is a Christian version of the Taliban.” Matthew D. Taylor, senior scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian and Jewish Studies, said Hegseth is “one of the most extreme far right figures ever nominated to a cabinet post, at least in modern memory.” Taylor said he’s broadly concerned about Christian nationalists, who tend to take a dim view of democracy, potentially having a lot of sway in this administration. “I think we should expect a profound degradation of our democratic norms of the rule of law, and I think we are edging closer to a de facto Anglo Protestant establishment, of the kind where Anglo Protestant Christianity as the de facto official religion in the United States,” he said. Hegseth faces some headwinds in his nomination process due to multiple marital sex scandals and the recent revelation that he paid a woman who accused him of sexual assault in exchange for her not speaking about it. He denies he assaulted her but admits he paid her. He’s also gotten criticism for tattoos that are symbols of the Crusades and wrote a book titled “American Crusade,” where he derides Muslims. Before becoming a TV personality, Hegseth led the conservative veterans group Concerned Veterans for America, which advocated for increased privatization of veterans’ health care. He has also said that women should not be allowed to serve in combat roles in the military, and has complained about what he terms “woke” policies in the military.Surat Businessman Attacks Family, Then Attempts Suicide; Wife and Minor Son Murdered, Parents InjuredA video has emerged on social media showing Man City boss Pep Guardiola in a fiery confrontation with a fan in Manchester city centre. The Citizens ended a seven-match winless run in midweek with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League. Man City are currently fourth in the Premier League table , two points behind Chelsea and Arsenal, and nine points adrift of leaders Liverpool, who are having a brilliant season under Jurgen Klopp’s successor Arne Slot. Guardiola recently signed a two-year extension to his contract at the Etihad Stadium but he’s been showing signs of the increasing pressure with the Man City boss appearing in a post-match interview covered in a cut and scratches after a draw with Feyenoord. When asked how he got his cut, Guardiola revealed. “I cut it with my finger.” He then jokingly said: “I want to hurt myself.” And on Friday a video emerged of him being held back after being heckled by a Liverpudlian fan, who was heard saying “right mate, just cause you lost”. Guardiola had to be restrained by two members of his entourage while saying “do you know what is lost?” before being led away. There have been suggestions that is from Man City losing 2-1 to Man Utd in the FA Cup final back in May and not during their recent bad run of form. A video of Pep Guardiola in an altercation with a fan is going viral currently... 😳 pic.twitter.com/FnelwLvsH1 — CentreGoals. (@centregoals) December 6, 2024 MORE MAN CITY COVERAGE ON F365... 👉 Man City, Newcastle swap deal including transfer-listed ‘disaster’ mooted as Guardiola ‘insists’ 👉 Guardiola ‘puts four Man City players on transfer list’ as legend’s ‘days are numbered’ 👉 Man City FFP: ‘Expulsion unlikely’ but ‘punishment expected’ amid ‘timeline’, ‘notable aspect’ reveal Man City face Crystal Palace on Saturday and Harry Redknapp expects Guardiola to guide his side to a second successive victory in a 3-1 win. Redknapp told BetVictor : “Are Manchester City out of the woods? Their performance against Nottingham Forest was far from perfect, with too many stray passes for my liking, so the jury is out on that one for the moment. “Then there’s all the gossip about Kevin De Bruyne’s rift with Pep Guardiola before the game, and lo and behold, KDB goes and scores! Sometimes the pundits stir up stuff that isn’t there. “There were goals galore in the week, and quite a few stunners. No less than Jean-Philippe Mateta’s match-winning chip against a gob-smacked Ipswich. To be fair, the game was seriously lacking in class up until that point. “Oliver Glasner will be pleased with his side’s performance but will not relish a visit from Man City with the bit between their teeth. “I had no doubt that City would turn up against Forest. That match will likely be their springboard back to winning ways.”
January in the Garden for Central Florida
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ServiceTitan, a provider of cloud software to contractors, priced its IPO at $71 a share on Wednesday, above the expected range. > Philadelphia news 24/7: Watch NBC10 free wherever you are The company is set to debut on the Nasdaq on Thursday under ticker symbol "TTAN." ServiceTitan previously raised its price range to between $65 and $67. ServiceTitan sold 8.8 million shares in the offering, which would amount to a raise of almost $625 million. At the IPO price, ServiceTitan is worth about $6.3 billion. Technology IPOs have been sparse since late 2021, when inflation and rising interest rates pushed investors out of riskier assets. Cloud software stocks quickly went out of favor after remote work during the pandemic had accelerated their growth. In March of this year, social network Reddit went public, followed by data management company Rubrik the following month . In September, less than two weeks after the Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark rate for the first time since 2020, chipmaker Cerebras filed for an IPO. However, the company has yet to debut on the market. ServiceTitan, based in Glendale, California, filed to go public on Nov. 18 . The company has said some proceeds would go toward redeeming all outstanding shares of its non-convertible preferred stock. It had issued that stock in 2022 to repay loans to finance the $577 million acquisition of pest control software provider FieldRoutes. While raising money in 2022, ServiceTitan agreed to "compounding ratchet" terms that encourage the company to quickly go public and prevent unnecessary dilution, according to an analysis from venture firm Meritech Capital. Bessemer Venture Partners, TPG and Iconiq are among the company's top shareholders, alongside founders Vahe Kuzoyan and Ara Mahdessian. Mahdessian's father had a contracting business, and Kuzoyan's father dealt in plumbing, according to the Los Angeles Times . The founders said in a pre-recorded IPO roadshow that they saw technology as a way to modernize their family businesses. Their software can help with marketing, sales, scheduling and customer service. ServiceTitan's preliminary results for the October quarter show a net loss of about $47 million on $198.5 million in revenue. That suggests approximately 24% year-over-year revenue growth, the highest rate since mid-2023. But the company's net loss widened from around $40 million in the October quarter last year. WATCH: Many tech companies have effectively completed IPOs as private businesses, says Mitchell Green
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National League side Tamworth are criticised for charging staggering ticket prices for FA Cup tie at home to Tottenham Tamworth have been criticised for their ticket prices for FA Cup third round tie The National League side are set to host Tottenham Hotspur on January 12 LISTEN NOW: It's All Kicking Off! New formation, some new faces, but the optimism has gone at Old Trafford By JEORGE BIRD Published: 13:28 EST, 28 December 2024 | Updated: 13:29 EST, 28 December 2024 e-mail View comments Tamworth have been criticised for their staggering ticket prices for their FA Cup third round tie at home to Tottenham . The National League side will host Ange Postecoglou 's team at The Lamb Ground on January 12 in one of the most intriguing ties of the round, with the game to be shown live on ITV 1. However, many fans are unhappy with Tamworth's ticket pricing for the fixture and have accused the club of trying to cash in on the occasion. The Lamb Ground has a capacity of 4,963, which includes just 518 seats. Tamworth announced that it will cost £42 for an adult to sit in the main stand , while it will cost £38 for an adult to stand on the terraces. Supporters aged over 66 will have to pay £37 for a seat in the main stand, with a standing ticket costing £33. Under-17s, meanwhile, will be charged £34 for a seat or £30 to stand. Under-10s will have to pay £29 for a seat and £25 to stand. Tamworth have been criticised for their ticket prices for their FA Cup third round tie at home to Tottenham. The National League side are set to host Ange Postecoglou's team on January 12 Tamworth's ticket pricing has provoked a backlash on social media. One user stated that they not won't be attending the game due to the extortionate prices. They wrote: 'I was going to go to that and root for Tamworth as I've seen them a couple of times but there's no way I'm being ripped off.' Meanwhile, another user described Tamworth's approach as 'abysmal'. They wrote: 'That’s abysmal by the club tbh, a chance to get ppl in that may then want to become regulars & boost attendances yet they’ve priced a lot of ppl out of it now & this is more likely to cost them fans than gain them!'. A further user branded the ticket prices 'disgraceful'. They wrote: 'Absolutely disgraceful prices. Should be ashamed of yourselves.' Another user stated that the prices are 'shameful'. They wrote: 'Shameful and nothing to do with the scrapping of replays (which is a disgrace, though)'. A further comment read: 'That pricing is an absolute disgrace. You should seriously reconsider what you’re doing. What a joke.' Many fans of various clubs have hit out at Tamworth's approach to pricing for the fixture There was more criticism of Tamworth as they were accused of being unfair to their supporters with their pricing. They wrote: 'I get it, this is an opportunity for you to make some money as it’s a huge fixture for the club, but these prices aren’t fan friendly at all.' One user wrote: 'Wow, just wow. What scandalous prices. That will certainly dampen the mood and what happened to the once proud family club.' Another user claimed that Tamworth should be ashamed of themselves. They wrote: 'Should be ashamed of yourselfs hope no one turns up at them prices! Feel for the regular fans having to pay that to see you get hammered'. Tottenham Hotspur FA Cup Ange Postecoglou Share or comment on this article: National League side Tamworth are criticised for charging staggering ticket prices for FA Cup tie at home to Tottenham e-mail Add commentMADRID (AP) — Spanish King Felipe VI used his traditional Christmas Eve speech to remember the victims of the catastrophic Valencia flash floods , and urged the country to remain calm while addressing hot-button issues such as immigration and housing affordability. In a pre-recorded speech that usually reviews the year's most relevant issues, Felipe said Spain “must never forget the pain and sadness" the floods caused. The Oct. 29 floods killed more than 225 people in eastern Spain, damaging countless homes and leaving graveyards of cars piled on top of each other. In some towns, the heavy downpours that caused the floods dropped as much as a year's worth of rain in just eight hours. In early November, as Spaniards' shock at the wreckage turned into frustration, a political blame game began, directed especially at regional authorities who failed to send timely emergency alerts to cell phones on the day of the floods. The frustration of residents in hard-hit Paiporta near Valencia was on display when people tossed mud and shouted insults at the king and government officials in early November when they made their first visit to the town. “We have seen — and understood — the frustration, the pain, the impatience, the demands for greater and more effective coordination," Felipe said about how the disaster was managed. He also addressed the country's housing crunch and high rents, which have become a leading concern in the southern European country that is the eurozone's fourth-largest economy. Fast-rising rents are especially acute in cities like Barcelona and Madrid, where incomes have failed to keep up, especially for younger people in a country with chronically high unemployment. Felipe urged that “all the actors involved reflect” and "listen to each other” so that they facilitate bringing access to housing under “affordable conditions.” Spain's immigration debate should keep in mind the country's European partners and immigrants' countries of origin, Felipe said, warning that “the way in which we are able to address immigration ... will say a lot in the future about our principles and the quality of our democracy.” Felipe said Spain needed to remain calm in the public sphere, even in the face of a “sometimes thunderous” contest in its politics.
