>>Best And Worst States For Women 2024
(New York, NY) -- A new survey is finding where women in the U.S. can find the best opportunities. WalletHub compared the 50 states and Washington, D.C. across 25 key indicators of living standards for women including median earnings for female workers, to women's health care, to the female homicide rate. The top performing states were generally in the northeast with Massachusetts taking the top spot, followed by D.C, Minnesota, Vermont, Maine, Maryland, New York, Hawaii, New Jersey, and Delaware. The worst states for women according to the survey are Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, Arkansas and West Virginia.
>>SCOTUS Appears Divided On 1st Amendment Social Media Cases
(Washington, DC) -- The Supreme Court appears to be divided after hearing arguments in cases involving how social media companies handle online content. The court is examining Republican-backed laws in Texas and Florida that were put in place over claims TikTok, Facebook, YouTube and others dislike conservative speech. The laws were enacted in 2021 after the companies banned former President Trump from their platforms. Some of the justices expressed concerned the laws could be cover other platforms like Uber, Google and Amazon Web Services. The social media companies have compared themselves to newspapers who can't be told which information to publish. But supporters of the new laws argue the companies are like telephone operators since they are transmitting content created by others, not themselves.
>>Trump Appeals Verdict In Civil Fraud Case
(Washington, DC) -- Donald Trump is appealing the verdict in his New York civil fraud case. Trump's legal team filed a notice of appeal of the judgement finding him liable for fraudulently inflating his net worth on financial statements. The judge in the case recently ordered Trump to pay more than 450-million in fines and barred the former President for three years from running a business in New York. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and says the case is politically motivated.
>>Amazon Joins Dow Replacing Walgreens
(New York, NY) -- Amazon is officially joining the Dow Jones Industrial Average this morning. The e-commerce giant is replacing Walgreens Boost Alliance in the 30-stock index. Analysts say the addition of Amazon will increase the Dow's exposure to tech and consumer retail business areas.
>>FTC Sues To Block Merger Deal With Kroger And Albertsons
(Washington, DC) -- The merger deal between Kroger and Albertsons is in jeopardy after the Federal Trade Commission sued to block the deal. The FTC alleges the deal, which would be the largest supermarket merger in U.S. history, would create higher prices for consumers. The deal was announced in 2022 and looked to combine the fifth and tenth largest retailers in the country. In a statement, the FTC said the merger would eliminate competition in the grocery industry and lead to store closures and job losses.
>>Most Popular Bill In America: The Hundred Dollar
(New York, NY) -- The number of hundred-dollar bills has more than doubled between 2012 and 2022, which is faster growth than any other denomination. According to Federal Reserve data, 60-percent of all payments are made with debit or credit cards, despite there being more 100-dollar bills in circulations than there are one-dollar bills. One reason is they enter circulation far quicker than they leave. Hundreds can last over a decade longer than ones-and-fives, partly because people are more likely to hold than spend them. Research shows people are less willing to purchase items when they are given a 100-dollar bill compared with five twenties. Economists have also called for slowing down the printing of hundreds, due to their use in illicit activity.
