Kanye West, the rapper now known as Ye, is suing his former project manager and his lawyers, alleging they wrongfully put a $1.8-million lien on his former Malibu mansion.
The suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday, alleges that Tony Saxon, Ye’s former project manager on the property, and the law firm West Coast Trial Lawyers, “wrongfully” placed an “invalid” lien on the property “while simultaneously launching an aggressive publicity campaign designed to pressure Ye, chill prospective transactions, and extract payment on disputed claims already being litigated in court.”
Saxon’s lawyers were not immediately available for comment.
Saxon, who was also employed as West’s security guard and caretaker at the Malibu property, sued the controversial rapper in Los Angeles Superior Court in September 2023, claiming a slate of labor violations, nonpayment of services and disability discrimination.
In January 2024, Saxon placed the $1.8-million “mechanics” lien on the property in order to secure compensation for his work as project manager and construction-related services, according to court filings.
A mechanics lien, also referred to as a contractor’s lien, is usually filed by an unpaid contractor, laborer or supplier, as a hold against the property. If the party remains unpaid, it can prompt a foreclosure sale of the property to secure compensation.
Ye has denied Saxon’s allegations. In a November 2023 response to the complaint, Ye disputed that Saxon “has sustained any injury, damage, or loss by reason of any act, omission or breach by Defendant.”
According to Ye’s recent complaint, he listed the property for sale in December 2023. A month later, he alleged, Saxon and his attorneys recorded the lien and “immediately” issued statements to the media.
The suit cites a statement Saxon’s attorney, Ronald Zambrano, made to Business Insider: “If someone wants to buy Kanye’s Malibu home, they will have to deal with us first. That sale cannot happen without Tony getting paid first.”
“These statements were designed to create public pressure and to interfere with the Plaintiffs’ ability to sell and finance the Property by falsely conveying that Defendants held an adjudicated, enforceable right to block a transaction and divert sale proceeds,” the complaint states.
The filing contends that last year the Los Angeles Superior Court granted Ye’s motion to release the lien from the bond and awarded him attorneys fees.
The Malibu property’s short existence has a long history of legal and financial drama.
In 2021, West purchased the beachfront concrete mansion — designed by Pritzker Prize-winning Japanese architect Tadao Ando — for $57.3 million. He then gutted the property on Malibu Road, reportedly saying “This is going to be my bomb shelter. This is going to be my Batcave.”
Three years later, the hip-hop star sold the unfinished mansion (he had removed the windows, doors, electricity and plumbing and broke down walls), at a significant loss to developer Steven Belmont’s Belwood Investments for $21 million.
Belmont, who spent more money to renovate the home, had spent three years in prison after being charged with attempted murder for a pitchfork attack in Napa County. He promised to restore the architectural jewel to its former glory.
However, the property has been mired in various legal and financial entanglements including foreclosure threats.
Last August, the notorious mansion was once again put on the market with a $4.1 million price cut after a previous offer reportedly fell through, according to Realtor.com.
The legal battle surrounding Ye’s former Malibu pad is the latest in a series of public and legal dramas that the music impresario has been involved in recent years.
In 2022, the mercurial superstar lost numerous lucrative partnerships with companies like Adidas and the Gap, following a raft of antisemitic statements, including declaring himself a Nazi on X (which he later recanted).
Two years later, Ye abruptly shut down Donda Academy, the troubled private school he founded in 2020.
Ye, the school and some of his affiliated businesses faced faced multiple lawsuits from former employees and educators, alleging they were victims of wrongful termination, a hostile work environment and other claims.
In court filings, Ye has denied each of the claims made against him by former employees and educators at Donda.
SAINT JOHN’S PROGRAM FOR REAL CHANGE HAS IMPROVED THE LIVES OF SACRAMENTO AREA WOMEN AND CHILDREN. THE NONPROFIT PROVIDES A SAFE PLACE TO LIVE AND AN ARRAY OF SERVICES FOR FREE. IT ALSO OFFERS A REAL COMMUNITY FOR WOMEN WHO ARE WORKING TO STABILIZE THEIR LIVES. KCRA 3’S LEE ANNE DENYER INTRODUCES US TO A LOCAL WOMAN WHO SAYS SAINT JOHN’S NOT ONLY KEPT HER FROM LIVING ON THE STREETS OF SACRAMENTO, BUT ALSO TRANSFORMED HER ENTIRE WAY OF THINKING. GET YOURSELF SET UP. EVEN WITH HER RESPONSIBILITIES IN THE KITCHEN AND HER CLASSES, THERE’S TIME FOR REFLECTION. SO WE ALL MIGHT HAVE DIFFERENT STORIES, AND WE ALL ARE DIFFERENT PLACES AT DIFFERENT TIMES. BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE ALL KIND OF HAVE ENDED UP HERE AND WE ALL HAVE. THERE’S ALWAYS SOMETHING IN COMMON. LAUREN LOUDERMILK SAYS IT WASN’T ONE THING THAT LED HER HERE. I WAS PROBABLY ENTERING LIKE A MENTAL BREAKDOWN. I WAS ABOUT TO LOSE EVERYTHING. CHALLENGES WITH HER MENTAL HEALTH, HER PHYSICAL HEALTH AND EVICTION. BEING A SINGLE MOM WERE MOUNTING AND SHE HAD NOWHERE TO GO. AND I HAD MY CAT ON A HARNESS, AND I WAS TRULY PREPARED TO LIVE ON THE STREET OF SACRAMENTO IF I WERE NOT SAINT JOHN’S, I WOULD BE ON THE STREET. I WOULD BE. AND IT’S IT’S SCARY TO THINK, BECAUSE I WOULD NOT BE HEALTHY. THERE’S NOWHERE YOU CAN BE ON THE STREET AND BE HEALTHY. BUT A FAMILY MEMBER, SHE SAYS, CONNECTED HER WITH SAINT JOHN’S PROGRAM FOR REAL CHANGE IN SACRAMENTO. WHEN WOMEN AND CHILDREN ARE STAYING HERE, WE PROVIDE ALL THE WRAPAROUND SERVICES THAT THEY WOULD NEED AS THEY’RE WORKING TOWARDS RECOVERY AND THEIR GOALS. SO THAT INCLUDES BEHAVIORAL HEALTH, EDUCATION, CHILDCARE, JOB TRAINING, FAMILY SERVICES, ALL OF THOSE THINGS KIND OF TOGETHER. THE NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION HAS HELPED WOMEN FOR DECADES, GIVING THEM A SPACE TO LIVE, HEAL AND REBUILD WITH SUPPORT AND AT THEIR OWN PACE. THIS IS A PLACE WHERE YOU DO SOME HARD WORK. YOU REALLY HAVE TO THINK ABOUT WHERE YOU’RE AT, WHAT’S HAPPENING WITH YOUR FAMILY. CHANGE WAS EXACTLY WHAT LOUDERMILK NEEDED. SO MANY THINGS HERE TO REALLY HELP US LEARN TO TAKE CARE OF OURSELVES AND REALLY HELP US DIVE DEEP AND FIGURE OUT, LIKE WHAT WE’VE HAD THAT’S, YOU KNOW, CAUSING TRAUMA AND WHAT WE HAVEN’T HEALED FROM TO SOMEONE ELSE. MORE TASKS AFTER AN AFTERNOON LUNCH RUSH MIGHT BE SOMETHING ELSE THAT JUST NEEDS TO GET DONE. FOR LOUDERMILK, IT’S JOB TRAINING, IT’S STRUCTURE. IT’S A WAY TO GIVE BACK. AND THAT ALL STARTED WHEN SHE ASKED FOR HELP. WE ALL HAVE TO BE READY ON OUR TIME, BUT DO NOT BE ASHAMED TO ASK FOR HELP. DO NOT BE ASHAMED. THERE IS. THERE IS STRENGTH IN ASKING FOR HELP. SHE’S FINDING HER STRENGTH AND LOOKING FOR EMPLOYMENT AS SHE CONTINUES HER PROGRAM WITHIN SAINT JOHN’S. GRATEFUL TO BE A PART OF THIS COMMUNITY OF WOMEN BECAUSE LIFE HAPPENS ON LIFE’S TERMS AND YOU ARE RESILIENT FOR FOR MAKING THE CHOICE TO GET YOURSELF THROUGH IT. IN SACRAMENTO COUNTY, LEE ANNE DENYER KCRA THREE NEWS. FOR ANYONE INTERESTED IN GETTING INVOLVED IN THE WORK THAT THEY’RE DOING THERE AT THE SAINT JOHN’S PROGRAM FOR REAL CHANGE, YOU CAN TAKE A TOUR, VOLUNTEER YOUR TIME, OR DONATE MONEY. PEOPLE CAN SUP
Saint John’s Program for Real Change offers hope to Sacramento women and children
Saint John’s Program for Real Change in Sacramento provides wraparound services and a supportive community to help women and children rebuild their lives.
For more than 40 years, Saint John’s Program for Real Change has been a lifeline for women and children in Sacramento, offering safe housing and a wide range of services to help them stabilize their lives.“The idea behind real change is that we are looking for people that really want to work towards change, for themselves and for their families,” said CEO Scott Richards. Lauren Loudermilk, 35, said she was on the verge of “breakdown”, had been evicted and was preparing to live on the streets of Sacramento when a family member connected her to Saint John’s.“I was about to lose everything,” she said. “If I were not at Saint John’s, I would be on the street. I would be. And it’s scary to think, because I would not be healthy. There’s nowhere you can be on the street and be healthy.”Loudermilk said, for the first time in her life, she’s felt able to combat the inner and outer challenges she has faced over the years. “What’s most beneficial to me here is the testimonies,” she said. “There are so many things here to really help us learn to take care of ourselves and really help us dive deep and figure out, like, what we’ve had that’s causing trauma, what we haven’t healed from.”Services offered to the women participating in the program range from behavioral health, to education, job training, and family services. Childcare and housing are also provided. “We provide the space to allow people to figure out where they want to go, help them give the resources and skills development that they need so they can reach those goals,” Richards said.As she continues her program within Saint John’s, Loudermilk is continuing to build her strength and resiliency — and looking for employment.“We all have to be ready on our time, but don’t be ashamed to ask for help. Do not be ashamed. There’s, there’s strength in asking for help,” she said.For those interested in supporting the work at Saint John’s Program for Real Change, opportunities are available to take a tour, volunteer, or donate to support individual clients, families, and specific programs.Saint John’s Program for Real Change is a nonprofit organization whose programming is possible due to city, county and state partnerships as well as private and corporate donations. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
For more than 40 years, Saint John’s Program for Real Change has been a lifeline for women and children in Sacramento, offering safe housing and a wide range of services to help them stabilize their lives.
“The idea behind real change is that we are looking for people that really want to work towards change, for themselves and for their families,” said CEO Scott Richards.
Lauren Loudermilk, 35, said she was on the verge of “breakdown”, had been evicted and was preparing to live on the streets of Sacramento when a family member connected her to Saint John’s.
“I was about to lose everything,” she said. “If I were not at Saint John’s, I would be on the street. I would be. And it’s scary to think, because I would not be healthy. There’s nowhere you can be on the street and be healthy.”
Loudermilk said, for the first time in her life, she’s felt able to combat the inner and outer challenges she has faced over the years.
“What’s most beneficial to me here is the testimonies,” she said. “There are so many things here to really help us learn to take care of ourselves and really help us dive deep and figure out, like, what we’ve had that’s causing trauma, what we haven’t healed from.”
Services offered to the women participating in the program range from behavioral health, to education, job training, and family services. Childcare and housing are also provided.
“We provide the space to allow people to figure out where they want to go, help them give the resources and skills development that they need so they can reach those goals,” Richards said.
As she continues her program within Saint John’s, Loudermilk is continuing to build her strength and resiliency — and looking for employment.
“We all have to be ready on our time, but don’t be ashamed to ask for help. Do not be ashamed. There’s, there’s strength in asking for help,” she said.
For those interested in supporting the work at Saint John’s Program for Real Change, opportunities are available to take a tour, volunteer, or donate to support individual clients, families, and specific programs.
Saint John’s Program for Real Change is a nonprofit organization whose programming is possible due to city, county and state partnerships as well as private and corporate donations.
A date has been set for a memorial service to honor Greg Biffle and the six other victims who died in a plane crash earlier this month.
The memorial will be held at Bojangles Coliseum on Friday, January 16. The event is open to the public and is expected to be live-streamed, according to a NASCAR spokesperson. A time has not been made public.
Biffle, his wife, their two children and three others perished during a plane crash at the Statesville Regional Airport on Dec. 18. He was 55. The plane was owned by Biffle. The cause of the crash has not been revealed.
Biffle, an experienced pilot, took the lead on several rescue missions during Hurricane Helene — providing supplies to communities in need.
“I’ll tell you, the feeling you get when you win a race, you can only ask drivers, right? Because the feeling you get when you win that race, that’s the feeling you get when you’re able to help people in need,” Biffle told NASCAR last October during a conversation about his Helene recovery efforts.
Days after his death, fans of Biffle’s NASCAR legacy and admirers of his work during Hurricane Helene came to pay their respects at his marker on the North Carolina Auto Racing Hall of Fame in downtown Moorseville. Bouquets of flowers surrounded the portrait on his marker which was granted to him earlier this year.
This story was originally published December 30, 2025 at 4:38 PM.
Briah Lumpkins is the emerging news reporter for the Charlotte Observer. In this role, she finds important and impactful enterprise stories impacting the Charlotte-metro region. Most previously, Briah spent time in Houston, Texas covering underrepresented suburban communities at the Houston Landing. Prior to that, she spent a year at the Charleston Post and Courier for an investigative reporting fellowship through FRONTLINE PBS. When she’s not at work you can find her binge reading on her kindle or at the movie theater watching the latest premieres.
The meat processing company JBS is closing a packing facility in Riverside and will lay off 374 employees, according to a notice from the California Employment Development Department.
The closure comes as a limited cattle supply has led to record-high beef prices this year.
The Riverside facility, operated by JBS subsidiary Swift Beef Co., prepares meat for sale in U.S. grocery stores but does not slaughter animals, JBS spokesperson Nikki Richardson said.
The affected employees will be given opportunities at other JBS plants, including relocation support, Richardson said. Employees who choose not to relocate will be given a 60-day notice period before their employment ends.
The price of beef has soared in recent months as ranchers have cut their herds due to a drought across pastureland and a parasite known as screwworm, which forced a halt to U.S. imports of Mexican cattle. Last month, meat processing giant Tyson Foods closed one if its largest beef-processing facilities in Nebraska.
JBS said production handled at the Riverside plant will be transferred to other company facilities without interrupting customer supply or service.
The transition is expected to be complete by early next year, the company said.
“JBS is committed to supporting impacted team members through this transition,” Richardson said in a statement. “The company remains focused on delivering high-quality products and dependable service while strengthening its operational footprint to meet evolving market demands.”
The Riverside plant closure is part of a broader company strategy to optimize and simplify its operations. Shares of JBS were down less than 1% in midday trading Monday and have remained flat this year, rising about 2% since January.
The company, which has a U.S. headquarters in Greeley, Colo., also has facilities and offices throughout Europe and Australia.
The landscape is shifting in California’s oil industry as well, with Valero Energy Corp. planning to shut down a major refinery in the state by spring 2026.
Last year, Chevron moved its headquarters from San Ramon, Calif., to Houston, citing challenging business regulations in the Golden State. This year, the last factory that turned sugar beets into sugar in California shut down, leading to the elimination of hundreds of jobs in the Imperial Valley.
According to a Chapman University economic forecast released this month, California’s job growth totaled just 2% from the second quarter of 2022 to the second quarter this year, ranking it 48th among all states.
The state lost jobs consecutively from June to September. Also, next year the state is expected to add 62,000 jobs.
California also experienced a net population outflow of more than 1 million residents from 2021 to 2023, with the top five destinations being states with zero or very low state income taxes: Texas, Arizona, Nevada, Idaho and Florida, the report noted.
California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta sued the Trump Administration Tuesday seeking to stop a federal policy change that advocates say could force 170,000 formerly homeless Americans back on the streets or into shelters.
The lawsuit focuses on a federal program known as Continuum of Care that sends money to local governments and nonprofits to fight homelessness.
This month, the Trump Administration announced it was drastically cutting the amount of money the program will pay for rental subsidies in permanent housing and shifting those dollars to temporary housing and services instead.
With subsidies for permanent housing reduced, advocates say 170,000 people could return to homelessness. Locally, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority has warned 5,000 L.A. County households, containing 6,800 people, could be at risk of losing their homes, which would erase the small decline in homelessness reported this year.
“This [federal] program has proven to be effective at getting Americans off the streets, yet the Trump Administration is now attempting to illegally slash its funding,” Bonta said in a statement.
HUD did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This month, the department said its policy change “restores accountability to homelessness programs and promotes self-sufficiency among vulnerable Americans” in part by redirecting most money to transitional housing and supportive services that it sees as more effective than permanent housing.
Bonta filed the lawsuit along with 19 state attorneys general and two governors.
The lawsuit alleges the HUD policy change violated the law in several ways, including that the department failed to properly notice the change and that the new restrictions on funding violate the separation of powers because they were not imposed by Congress.
In addition to capping the amount of funds that can be spent on permanent housing, HUD is requiring more total homeless dollars be subject to competitive bidding.
Bonta‘s office said the new rules also “eliminate funding to applicants that acknowledge the existence of transgender and gender-diverse people” and make it harder for cities and counties to get funding if they don’t “enforce certain policies this Administration favors, like bans on public camping.”
The Times spoke to several therapists, social workers, researchers and organizations serving Thai and Asian Americans to examine how treatment and recovery can be tailored toward their needs. These recommendations emerged: addressing a client’s practical needs, involving family and community in their care and practicing mindfulness in the context of community.
Addressing clients’ practical needs first
Gordon Hall, a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Oregon, explained that Asian Americans have high dropout rates after going to therapy. Helping them solve practical problems can be a way to keep them engaged.
“[Some therapists] may spend the first three weeks on [a client’s] thoughts and feelings, and maybe that will eventually get to the person’s practical problems,” Hall said. “But for many Asian Americans, they may think: What do my thoughts and feelings have to do with this conflict I’m having with my mom, or this issue with my boss about asking for a raise?”
Natyra Na Takuathung, a case manager at Asian Pacific Counseling & Treatment Centers, works with psychiatric social worker Wanda Pathomrit to help clients, many of whom are Thai immigrants, apply for social benefits. Pathomrit meets with clients to understand their mental health anxieties, and Na Takuathung can help them apply for programs like CalFresh or CalWorks.
Pathomrit explained that she integrates case management into her therapy sessions because many clients with depression, trauma or avoidance behaviors may struggle to maintain relationships with case managers or follow through on referrals. Instead of separating the roles, she uses real-world situations — navigating the Department of Public Social Services or substance treatment centers — as opportunities to build coping skills, practice emotional regulation and foster self-compassion.
“By coaching in the moment, I help clients grow confidence and self-esteem while accessing services,” Pathomrit said. “For high-need, high-risk cases, this intensive approach is not ‘extra’ — it’s critical for progress.”
But some clients are hesitant to accept help, explained Na Takuathung, because they believe they will “burden” society by doing so.
“They had this idea that if they did not ask for public benefits, then they were ‘good immigrants,’” Na Takuathung said. “They would think it’s better that they struggled and made their own money, and even if it wasn’t enough, they would just struggle in silence.”
The choice is ultimately up to them, Na Takuathung said. But she explains how these programs can relieve some of their stress, reminding them that they do not have to feel guilty.
“You’ve been living in this country. You contributed to this country, too,” Na Takuathung said. “You deserve kindness.”
Involving family in care
In a study examining culturally competent treatments for Asian Americans, Hall and co-author Janie Hong explain that Western-based approaches tend to emphasize individualism and personal reflection.
“You go in, you have to talk about your problems, you have to verbalize what’s going on inside to a stranger within 50 minutes, and that healing happens through this vocalization of your internal experiences,” said Hong, a clinical associate professor at Stanford Medicine.
In contrast, many Asian communities are rooted in collectivist cultures, where identity and wellness are deeply intertwined with family and group harmony.
“If you’re in a community where everyone’s supposed to be taking care of you and you’re supposed to be taking care of them, if you have a problem, that implicates your whole group,” Hall said. “Approaches that are very focused on the individual … may deter Asian Americans from seeking treatment.”
As the chief clinical officer of Richmond Area Multi-Services, one of the country’s first agencies addressing Asian American and Pacific Islander communities’ needs for culturally competent services, Christina Shea has observed the value of involving family members in a person’s care.
“If you work with [a client] in the Western psychology, it helps because that’s one unit,” Shea said. “But if you work with, say, somebody from Southeast Asia [and] you work with one individual, that’s not enough. That’s not a unit, because that person is connected with the family.”
Phramaha Dusit Sawaengwong sees these dynamics frequently as a monk at Wat Thai of Los Angeles. He commonly observes conflict when immigrant parents’ high hopes and expectations clash with their children’s own career aspirations.
Phramaha Dusit Sawaengwong, monk and secretary, stands inside the temple at Wat Thai of Los Angeles.
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
Language barriers can exacerbate the disagreement. A common Thai word used to describe suffering is hua òk ja tàek, which means that one’s chest (heart area) is about to shatter. But parents with limited English may have difficulty conveying this sentiment to their child.
“[They] want to say something, but [they] don’t know how to say it,” he said.
Since parents often visit him at the temple for counseling help, he advises them to let their child absorb all the different opportunities available to them and to let them bloom.
“Don’t expect … just let them learn,” Sawaengwong said.
Support can extend beyond family.
Danielle Ung, a counseling and health psychology assistant professor at Bastyr University, is examining the mental health toll on Southeast Asian students during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. She works with patients to identify communities where they can receive support, viewing community as “concentric circles that surround that person.”
“Community can mean friends, extended families, adopted families, even the community which you live in,” Ung said.
Pam Evagee and Ta Sanalak are volunteer teachers at Wat Thai temple who coordinate Thai-language lessons and cultural programs to foster communication and understanding between family members. They ask parents to understand how living in the U.S. can influence their child’s beliefs while explaining to the student the importance of learning traditional customs because of where their parents grew up.
“We understand the parent because we are Thai, and we understand the kid because we’ve lived here [in the U.S.] for quite some time,” Sanalak said.
Families can also support each other at Wat Thai.
Some kids may be the only Thai student at their school, explained Evagee. At the temple, they can form friendships with other Thai students who understand their challenges. And many parents will cook meals together at the temple for their children while sharing advice on handling conflicts within families.
Mindfulness is a core tenet of Buddhism. According to the Pew Research Center, 90% of adults in Thailand identify as Buddhist, and many Thai Americans continue to practice the religion.
According to Hall, many Western therapies incorporate mindfulness, but the focus remains on the individual, whereas Eastern-based mindfulness practices account for the self within a community.
“There’s what’s called loving kindness meditation, where you focus on someone who’s done something for you,” Hall said. “You might meditate on your mother to the extent that she’s taken care of you, the gratitude you have for [her] and what you [owe] her.”
Buddhist monk Phiphop Phuphong frequently employs this approach when visiting people who are ill or hospitalized.
A diabetic man who had his leg amputated expressed deep grief over the loss and shame at “becoming a burden,” feeling dependent on his mother and sister. Phuphong guided him through mindfulness exercises to help him find peace with his new reality while encouraging him to stay strong for his mother’s and sister’s sake.
“Your body is your present,” Phuphong said through an interpreter. “Bring your mind back to your home.”
Health policies and training have come a long way
The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health has services to reach underserved communities. It supports cultural competency through translation and interpreting services, culturally and linguistically inclusive services and bilingual bonuses for employees. But language is just the start.
“We’re trying to cover all of our bases, but I do think there’s still a lot of work to be done,” said Dr. Lisa Wong, who heads the department. “And I don’t think we’re going to make a huge amount of progress until we bring a more diverse workforce into mental health.”
Wong added that it is difficult to recruit clinical professionals from diverse ethnic backgrounds because many new immigrants and their children choose higher-earning professions rather than mental health fields.
In addition, much of the training and education for practitioners are still based on Western concepts of mental health and recovery. Many evidence-based models were developed from research on predominantly Eurocentric populations, explained Carl Highshaw, executive director of the National Assn. of Social Workers’ California chapter.
“While these models have value, they often fail to capture the realities of immigrant and collectivist cultures,” Highshaw said. “We need to adapt and co-create interventions that honor cultural traditions, family systems and community networks.”
Hong appreciates that many therapists are now acknowledging clients’ cultural context. Equally important, she said, is finding methods that do not stereotype.
“Not all Asian Americans are going to respond to a problem-solving approach, and not all Asian Americans are collectivist or interdependent,” Hall added. “[Some] may really want the mainstream cognitive behavioral approach. They want to talk about their thoughts and feelings, and that may actually help them.”
Approaches that have worked for the Thai community and for Asian Americans can work for other communities too, Hall said.
For Highshaw, cultural competence is “not optional,” especially in a diverse state like California.
“Moving beyond a one-size-fits-all approach,” he said. “Ensuring that interventions reflect the lived experiences, values and strengths of the communities we serve … is an ethical responsibility.”
Interpreter Supakit Art Pattarateranon contributed to this report.
Have you ever been in or traveling through an area where there is no or low traditional cell service and thought, “What if I had an emergency and needed to call 911?”Now, because of a well-known cell service provider’s connection to a popular network of satellites, there’s a solution when you have an emergency and are off the grid and out of reach of a terrestrial cell tower’s signal.Related video above: A different new piece of technology helps guide rescuers to woman stuck in swampThe service is called Text to 911, and its availability is all thanks to T-Mobile’s new T-Satellite with Starlink, a service that, according to a recent release from the mobile carrier, was rolled out in July and connects compatible phones to an array of Starlink satellites orbiting the Earth.But if you’re not a T-Mobile customer, don’t fret. You don’t need to be a subscriber of the provider to use Text to 911. The service is available to anyone in the U.S. who has a compatible, satellite-capable iPhone or Android phone, and is designed to work anywhere in the 500,000 square miles of the U.S. not reached by traditional cell towers.That means even customers of providers like AT&T and Verizon can sign up for Text to 911.How to sign up for and use Text to 911While the service is free to use, non-T-Mobile customers are required to sign up in advance to use Text to 911. That can be done on the company’s website. The company said T-Mobile customers can add the service under “Manage Data & Add-Ons’” in their account or in T-Life. You don’t need to take any special action to use Text to 911. The mobile provider says that all you need is a view of the sky, and that using the service is just like sending a normal text message. All you need to do is enter a message on your phone’s native messaging app and enter 911 in the number field. From there, all you’ll need to do is hit “send.”While some areas around the U.S. already have the ability to text 911, this new service allows users to do so even when they can’t get reception from a traditional cell tower. If that’s the case, Text to 911 finds you a signal from a satellite up in space.The company said it “was a no-brainer” to make Text to 911 available and free for any person who enrolls and has a compatible phone.“There’s a good chance you’ve had that moment in your life at some point. Badly rolled ankle deep into a backcountry hike. Stuck in a tree well while skiing. Flat tire on a backcountry road. Or a million other situations that require access to emergency services in a place without cell service. It’s an absolutely terrifying feeling that we don’t want anyone to have ever again,” Mike Katz, president of marketing, strategy and products for T-Mobile, said in announcing the availability of Text to 911 on Nov. 5.
Have you ever been in or traveling through an area where there is no or low traditional cell service and thought, “What if I had an emergency and needed to call 911?”
Now, because of a well-known cell service provider’s connection to a popular network of satellites, there’s a solution when you have an emergency and are off the grid and out of reach of a terrestrial cell tower’s signal.
Related video above: A different new piece of technology helps guide rescuers to woman stuck in swamp
The service is called Text to 911, and its availability is all thanks to T-Mobile’s new T-Satellite with Starlink, a service that, according to a recent release from the mobile carrier, was rolled out in July and connects compatible phones to an array of Starlink satellites orbiting the Earth.
But if you’re not a T-Mobile customer, don’t fret. You don’t need to be a subscriber of the provider to use Text to 911.
The service is available to anyone in the U.S. who has a compatible, satellite-capable iPhone or Android phone, and is designed to work anywhere in the 500,000 square miles of the U.S. not reached by traditional cell towers.
That means even customers of providers like AT&T and Verizon can sign up for Text to 911.
How to sign up for and use Text to 911
While the service is free to use, non-T-Mobile customers are required to sign up in advance to use Text to 911. That can be done on the company’s website. The company said T-Mobile customers can add the service under “Manage Data & Add-Ons’” in their account or in T-Life.
You don’t need to take any special action to use Text to 911. The mobile provider says that all you need is a view of the sky, and that using the service is just like sending a normal text message. All you need to do is enter a message on your phone’s native messaging app and enter 911 in the number field. From there, all you’ll need to do is hit “send.”
While some areas around the U.S. already have the ability to text 911, this new service allows users to do so even when they can’t get reception from a traditional cell tower. If that’s the case, Text to 911 finds you a signal from a satellite up in space.
The company said it “was a no-brainer” to make Text to 911 available and free for any person who enrolls and has a compatible phone.
“There’s a good chance you’ve had that moment in your life at some point. Badly rolled ankle deep into a backcountry hike. Stuck in a tree well while skiing. Flat tire on a backcountry road. Or a million other situations that require access to emergency services in a place without cell service. It’s an absolutely terrifying feeling that we don’t want anyone to have ever again,” Mike Katz, president of marketing, strategy and products for T-Mobile, said in announcing the availability of Text to 911 on Nov. 5.
This Veterans Day (Tuesday, November 11), Houston’s restaurants are stepping up to say thanks to the heroes who’ve served our country. From free bbq and burgers to half-off promos and discounts on the tab, check out the local spots honoring veterans and active-duty military this holiday:
Axelrad, 1517 Alabama Veterans and active-duty military enjoy 20 percent off their tab on Veterans Day and all year long.
Dog Haus, multiple locations Veterans can enjoy a free Haus Dog at participating locations by showing proof of service at checkout.
In honor of Veterans Day on November 11, Feges BBQ, co-owned by Purple Heart recipient Patrick Feges, is offering free plates with two meats, two sides, a dessert, and a drink for those who’ve served, served at the Greenway location from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and the Spring Branch location from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Guests can also pay it forward by purchasing Veteran Plates ahead of time to help provide free meals for others. The goal is to have 400 plates purchased by November 10.
Golden Corral is celebrating Veterans Day with a complimentary buffet dinner for all active-duty military, retirees, reservists, guardsmen and veterans, available dine-in only from 4 p.m. to close.
While military service members and veterans always get 15 percent off year-round, Grimaldi’s is upping the deal to 25 percent off for all active, veteran and retired military with ID on November 10–11
All military veterans and active service members receive one complimentary kolache of their choice on Veterans Day with valid military ID.
Molina’s Cantina, multiple locations Service members get half off their bill (excluding alcohol) on Veterans Day with valid military ID. Dine-in only.
The Original Ninfa’s, 1700 Post, 2704 Navigation The Original Ninfa’s honors veterans all year long, offering 50 percent off their bill on Veterans Day and every other day.
Perry’s Steakhouse, multiple locations Veterans can get a free Dinner-Cut Pork Chop with a guest purchase, half-off pork chops if dining with other veterans, or access the Military Menu from 4 p.m. to close with valid military ID.
PINCHO, multiple locations Military members enjoy 25 percent off in-store orders every day with valid ID, including burgers, bowls, kebabs, and milkshakes.
Pizaro’s Pizza, 11177 Katy, 1000 West Gray Veterans enjoy 10 percent off their bill on Veterans Day and throughout the year at Pizaro’s award-winning pizza locations.
Raising Cane’s is honoring those who serve with its Hero Discount Program: active or nonactive military, fire, police, EMTs and their families receive 10 percent off their entire purchase year-round when they mention the program at the register.
Teriyaki Madness, multiple locations Veterans and active-duty military get a free bowl of their choice with valid military ID at participating locations.
On Veterans Day, November 11, all veterans and active U.S. military members can enjoy a free taco and non-alcoholic beverage with valid military ID or proof of service.
Veterans and active-duty service members can enjoy a free lunch from a select menu between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. at participating locations with valid military ID.
Via 313, multiple locations Veterans and active-duty service members can get a $5 Cheese Bread for dine-in only on November 11 with valid military ID.
Willie’s Grill & Icehouse, multiple locations Veterans and active military members get a free Bacon Willie with choice of regular side. Military ID required.
There you are, sitting in traffic in your car, listening to Taylor Swift on Spotify because it’s easier than subjecting yourself to a new, more challenging artist. An ad pops up in your stream. It’s serious stuff, evidenced by the dystopian tone of the narrator: “Join the mission to protect America,” the serious man’s voice commands, “with bonuses up to $50,000 and generous benefits. Apply now … and fulfill your mission.”
It’s an Immigration and Customs Enforcement recruitment ad, part of the Trump administration’s investment of $30 billion to add more than 10,000 deportation officers to its ranks by the end of the year. You would have been spared the outrage if only you had paid for Spotify’s ad-free tier of service, but there’s no way the audio streamer is getting your money now. You’ll be switching to, say, Apple Music. Maybe Tidal?
The experience of being subjected to recruitment ads for a domestic military force, assembled by a power-hungry president, has generated intense backlash that’s culminated this week in calls for boycotts of streaming services and platforms that have featured ICE spots. They include Pandora, ESPN, YouTube, Hulu and Fubo TV. Multiple HBO Max subscribers bemoaned on X that they were subjected to ICE recruitment videos while watching All Elite Wrestling: “Time to be force-fed ICE commercials against my will for two hours again #WWENXT,” @YKWrestling wrote.
Recruitment ads — Uncle Sam’s “I Want You” poster comes to mind — are an American staple, especially in times of war. But the current recruitment effort is aimed at sending forces into American cities, predicated on exaggerated claims that U.S. metro areas are under siege and in peril due to dangerous illegal immigrants, leftist protesters and out-of-control crime rates. The data, however, does not support those claims. The American Immigration Council found that from 1980 to 2022, while the immigrant share of the U.S. population more than doubled (from 6.2% to 13.9%), the total crime rate declined by over 60%.
Yet there’s a far scarier doomscape on the horizon if ICE’s recruitment efforts are successful: a mercenary army loyal only to Trump, weaponized to keep him on the throne. If that sounds more dystopian than the aforementioned Spotify ad, consider that the administration has spent more than $6.5 million over the past month on a slew of 30-second commercials aimed at luring in police officers.
The ads aired on TVs in more than a dozen cities including Chicago, Seattle and Atlanta and opened with images of each specific metro area’s skyline. Then came the commanding narration: “Attention, Miami law enforcement!” It’s followed by the same messaging that is used in ICE ads across the country: “You took an oath to protect and serve, to keep your family, your city, safe. But in sanctuary cities you’re ordered to stand down while dangerous illegals walk free — Join ICE and help us catch the worst of the worst. Drug traffickers. Gang members. Predators.”
But are the ads working? It’s hard to say since transparency isn’t a hallmark of the MAGA White House. For what it’s worth, a Sept. 16 press release from the DHS claimed that it had received more than 150,000 applications in response to its campaign and had extended 18,000 tentative job offers.
As for the power of consumer-led boycotts, there’s hope. More than 1.7 million Disney, Hulu and ESPN subscriptions were reportedly canceled between Sept. 17 and Sept. 23 during Jimmy Kimmel’s temporary suspension by ABC (Disney is ABC’s parent company). The network pulled the show after the host’s comments related to Charlie Kirk’s assassination angered MAGA supporters and the Trump-appointed FCC chair appeared to threaten the network. But after a week with a significant increase in cancellations — a 436% jump compared to a normal week — Kimmel was back on the air.
As of today, Spotify appears unmoved by the pressure to pull those intrusive ICE ads. “This advertisement is part of a broad campaign the US government is running across television, streaming, and online channels,” a Spotify spokesperson said in a statement this week. “The content does not violate our advertising policies. However, users can mark any ad with a thumbs up or thumbs down to help manage their ads preferences.”
Thumbs down. Frowny emoji. Cue the dystopian narrator for a counter ad: “Join the mission to protect America: Cancel Spotify.”
Homeboy Industries has kicked off a fundraising campaign to raise $100 million for a major expansion of its facilities downtown.
The gang-member rehabilitation center has big plans to upgrade its campus near Men’s Central Jail downtown to accommodate more people and teach more skills.
Homeboy Industries founder Father Greg Boyle and real estate developer Frank McCourt announced on Friday a campaign to fund a complex that would include temporary housing for people leaving jail and provide services such as healthcare, drug addiction treatment, job training and career development.
McCourt, founder of McCourt Partners and former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, pledged the first $10 million to launch the campaign. Homeboy is hoping to raise the rest over the next five years from private donors, along with corporate and philanthropic organizations.
Homeboy was founded 37 years ago to help thousands of formerly incarcerated people and gang-involved youths acquire new skills and avoid returning to jail or prison.
Homeboy is already “the largest gang intervention rehab reentry program on the planet,” Boyle said, with 500 trainees at a time working with 300 staff members, most of whom have completed the rehabilitation program themselves.
A successful expansion could serve as a national example of how to break the cycle of young former offenders returning to jail instead of becoming productive citizens because they don’t see another path forward, Boyle said.
“We’re a supplier of hope for people to whom hope is foreign,” he said.
Rendering of planned housing to serve Homeboy Industries in downtown Los Angeles.
(KFA)
Temporary housing would help them find their footing, he said, because 70% of people who enter the program are effectively homeless, sleeping in their cars or couch surfing.
Housing with 200 apartments would be the first phase, to be built on a parcel of land formerly used to store damaged police cars, Boyle said.
After that would come 35,000 square feet of space dedicated to essential services for trainees, including mental health care, substance use disorder treatment, job training and career development.
The expansion designed by Culver City architecture firm KFA would increase Homeboy Industries’ capacity to deliver education, legal assistance, healthcare, and reentry services, Boyle said. Other services include tattoo removal.
Father Greg Boyle, with glasses and a white beard, marches with program enrollees at Homeboy Industries to City Hall for a ceremony marking Father Greg Boyle Day in Los Angeles on May 17, 2024. A vacant lot, behind the fence, is planned to be part of the expansion of Homeboy Industries along Alameda Street in Los Angeles.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
As part of the expanded Homeboy campus known as the Fr. Gregory Boyle Center for Radical Kinship, the Homeboy Art Academy would expand into a new 5,000-square-foot space, where hundreds could learn about creative expression across multiple art forms.
The art program is among the 14 social enterprises operated by Homeboy, Boyle said, that include food service, dog grooming and electronic recycling.
During an 18-month training program, trainees work in all 14 social enterprises, acquiring new skills, Boyle said, “and when their 18 months are up, we locate jobs outside of Homeboy.”
The Homeboy development aims to expand a cluster of philanthropic services in the neighborhood, including temporary housing for homeless people provided by the Weingart Center and an affordable housing and medical services complex planned by the California Endowment.
McCourt said his $10-million pledge is intended to “prime the pump” to get the expansion underway and that his firm will provide real estate expertise to help navigate design, construction and other aspects of property development.
McCourt attended Jesuit schools, including Georgetown University, and said he is moved by the approach Boyle, a Jesuit priest, is taking to address what McCourt sees as “dehumanization” of people who have experienced incarceration, gang life and other challenges.
“We need to get back to treating people as people with dignity, respect and provide opportunities,” he said. “Economic development helps because it brings jobs and vitality, but it’s really about caring for people.”
Rite Aid, once one of America’s biggest pharmacy chains, shuttered its remaining 89 stores this week after filing for bankruptcy in May for the second time in less than two years.”All Rite Aid stores have now closed. We thank our loyal customers for their many years of support,” the company said in a statement on its website.The company’s website, which has since removed all of its services, remains available for former customers to request pharmaceutical records or locate another nearby pharmacy to fulfill prescriptions.The full-service pharmacy first opened in 1962 and became well-known for its cult-favorite ice cream brand, Thrifty, which has since been sold due to the store’s bankruptcy. Rite Aid first filed for bankruptcy in October 2023, largely because of competition from bigger chains and its debt pile, which topped $4 billion due to expensive legal battles for allegedly filling unlawful opioid prescriptions.Rite Aid emerged from that bankruptcy in September 2024, having slashed $2 billion in debt, securing $2.5 billion in funds to maintain operations and closing about 500 locations. In May, Rite Aid had about 1,250 remaining stores, cut by about half from its 2023 operations.The drugstore announced in May that it sold most of its US stores’ pharmacy services to rivals CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens, Albertsons and Kroger, which collectively claimed more than 1,000 locations.It’s a saving grace for former Rite Aid customers, who may have otherwise lost access to their nearest pharmacy. When drugstores permanently close, as has been the trend in recent years, patients often have to travel farther to get their medications, posing a larger risk to older adults.CVS announced in November 2021 that it would close 900 stores by 2024 after it had closed 244 stores between 2018 and 2020. Former Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth had told the Wall Street Journal last year that about 25% of its stores aren’t profitable, and the company announced in October 2024 that it would close 1,200 stores.
CNN —
Rite Aid, once one of America’s biggest pharmacy chains, shuttered its remaining 89 stores this week after filing for bankruptcy in May for the second time in less than two years.
“All Rite Aid stores have now closed. We thank our loyal customers for their many years of support,” the company said in a statement on its website.
The company’s website, which has since removed all of its services, remains available for former customers to request pharmaceutical records or locate another nearby pharmacy to fulfill prescriptions.
The full-service pharmacy first opened in 1962 and became well-known for its cult-favorite ice cream brand, Thrifty, which has since been sold due to the store’s bankruptcy. Rite Aid first filed for bankruptcy in October 2023, largely because of competition from bigger chains and its debt pile, which topped $4 billion due to expensive legal battles for allegedly filling unlawful opioid prescriptions.
Rite Aid emerged from that bankruptcy in September 2024, having slashed $2 billion in debt, securing $2.5 billion in funds to maintain operations and closing about 500 locations. In May, Rite Aid had about 1,250 remaining stores, cut by about half from its 2023 operations.
The drugstore announced in May that it sold most of its US stores’ pharmacy services to rivals CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens, Albertsons and Kroger, which collectively claimed more than 1,000 locations.
It’s a saving grace for former Rite Aid customers, who may have otherwise lost access to their nearest pharmacy. When drugstores permanently close, as has been the trend in recent years, patients often have to travel farther to get their medications, posing a larger risk to older adults.
CVS announced in November 2021 that it would close 900 stores by 2024 after it had closed 244 stores between 2018 and 2020.Former Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth had told the Wall Street Journal last year that about 25% of its stores aren’t profitable, and the company announced in October 2024 that it would close 1,200 stores.
Sarah Mullally was on Friday appointed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, becoming the spiritual leader of 85 million Anglicans worldwide and the first woman to hold the role in its 1,400-year history.Mullally, 63, was made Bishop of London in 2018 – the Church of England’s third most senior bishop after the archbishops of Canterbury and York. Before her ordination, Mullally worked as a nurse at hospitals in London, going on to serve as Chief Nursing Officer for England.“As I respond to the call of Christ to this new ministry, I do so in the same spirit of service to God and to others that has motivated me since I first came to faith as a teenager,” Mullally said.“At every stage of that journey, through my nursing career and Christian ministry, I have learned to listen deeply – to people and to God’s gentle prompting – to seek to bring people together to find hope and healing.”The Archbishop-Designate for years led the Church of England’s process exploring questions of marriage and sexuality and was supportive of the move to allow ministers to offer blessings to same-sex couples in churches. She is renowned as a strong administrator who has worked to modernize the running of her London diocese while playing a leading role in the church’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.Mullally’s elevation to archbishop was only possible due to reforms under Justin Welby, the former leader, who allowed women to be consecrated as bishops a decade ago.The role of Archbishop of Canterbury has been vacant for almost a year after Welby resigned in November 2024 over his failure to report prolific child abuser John Smyth, who was accused of attacking dozens of boys, including those he met at Christian camps, in the 1970s and 1980s.A damning independent report found that by 2013 the Church of England “knew, at the highest level,” about Smyth’s abuse, including Welby, who became archbishop that year.Welby’s resignation, according to church historian Diarmaid MacCulloch, was “historic and without exact precedent in the 1,427-year history of Archbishops of Canterbury” given no previous archbishop had stepped down to accusations of negligence over sexual abuse.The Archbishop of Canterbury is the most public face of an institution that has struggled to stay relevant in a more secular nation. The archbishop is often called on to speak at significant national moments, presiding over major royal events, including the recent coronation of King Charles.Candidates for the Archbishop of Canterbury are chosen by the Crown Nominations Commission, a body chaired by Jonathan Evans, the former head of MI5, Britain’s domestic security service. The commission, comprising 17 voting members, decide on a preferred candidate, to whom Prime Minister Keir Starmer then gives his assent.It is, however, King Charles, the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, who formally appoints the archbishop. The British monarch’s role dates to when King Henry VIII broke away from the authority of the pope and declared himself head of the new church.In July, Evans had said he wanted to avoid a list of candidates “all of whom are white, Oxbridge, male and come from the southeast of England.” He said there was “a desire for somebody who can give genuine spiritual leadership and direction to the church,” and who can “speak authoritatively and graciously with a Christian voice into the affairs of the nation.”Announcing Mullally’s appointment, Evans thanked the members of the public who shared their views on the direction of the church in a public consultation earlier this year. “I shall be praying for Bishop Sarah as she prepares to take up this new ministry in the coming months,” he said.Mullally will now preside over a church fighting to reclaim relevance and trust. She will lead efforts to address declining numbers of church goers, including reaching younger people, and address financial challenges.Mullally will be installed officially in a service at Canterbury Cathedral in March 2026, becoming the 106th archbishop since Saint Augustine arrived in Kent from Rome in 597.
LONDON —
Sarah Mullally was on Friday appointed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, becoming the spiritual leader of 85 million Anglicans worldwide and the first woman to hold the role in its 1,400-year history.
Mullally, 63, was made Bishop of London in 2018 – the Church of England’s third most senior bishop after the archbishops of Canterbury and York. Before her ordination, Mullally worked as a nurse at hospitals in London, going on to serve as Chief Nursing Officer for England.
“As I respond to the call of Christ to this new ministry, I do so in the same spirit of service to God and to others that has motivated me since I first came to faith as a teenager,” Mullally said.
“At every stage of that journey, through my nursing career and Christian ministry, I have learned to listen deeply – to people and to God’s gentle prompting – to seek to bring people together to find hope and healing.”
The Archbishop-Designate for years led the Church of England’s process exploring questions of marriage and sexuality and was supportive of the move to allow ministers to offer blessings to same-sex couples in churches. She is renowned as a strong administrator who has worked to modernize the running of her London diocese while playing a leading role in the church’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mullally’s elevation to archbishop was only possible due to reforms under Justin Welby, the former leader, who allowed women to be consecrated as bishops a decade ago.
The role of Archbishop of Canterbury has been vacant for almost a year after Welby resigned in November 2024 over his failure to report prolific child abuser John Smyth, who was accused of attacking dozens of boys, including those he met at Christian camps, in the 1970s and 1980s.
A damning independent report found that by 2013 the Church of England “knew, at the highest level,” about Smyth’s abuse, including Welby, who became archbishop that year.
Welby’s resignation, according to church historian Diarmaid MacCulloch, was “historic and without exact precedent in the 1,427-year history of Archbishops of Canterbury” given no previous archbishop had stepped down to accusations of negligence over sexual abuse.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the most public face of an institution that has struggled to stay relevant in a more secular nation. The archbishop is often called on to speak at significant national moments, presiding over major royal events, including the recent coronation of King Charles.
Candidates for the Archbishop of Canterbury are chosen by the Crown Nominations Commission, a body chaired by Jonathan Evans, the former head of MI5, Britain’s domestic security service. The commission, comprising 17 voting members, decide on a preferred candidate, to whom Prime Minister Keir Starmer then gives his assent.
It is, however, King Charles, the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, who formally appoints the archbishop. The British monarch’s role dates to when King Henry VIII broke away from the authority of the pope and declared himself head of the new church.
In July, Evans had said he wanted to avoid a list of candidates “all of whom are white, Oxbridge, male and come from the southeast of England.” He said there was “a desire for somebody who can give genuine spiritual leadership and direction to the church,” and who can “speak authoritatively and graciously with a Christian voice into the affairs of the nation.”
Announcing Mullally’s appointment, Evans thanked the members of the public who shared their views on the direction of the church in a public consultation earlier this year. “I shall be praying for Bishop Sarah as she prepares to take up this new ministry in the coming months,” he said.
Mullally will now preside over a church fighting to reclaim relevance and trust. She will lead efforts to address declining numbers of church goers, including reaching younger people, and address financial challenges.
Mullally will be installed officially in a service at Canterbury Cathedral in March 2026, becoming the 106th archbishop since Saint Augustine arrived in Kent from Rome in 597.
Sacramento police have let go 41 retired officers who were working part-time after a CalPERS audit found compliance issues with their employment conditions.These reserve officers, known as retired annuitants, were often considered extra help and included individuals brought in on an interim basis to fill vacancies or prevent emergencies.The audit found that one officer returned to work only 30 days after retirement, instead of the required 60 days. In another instance, some officers did not submit the required documentation showing they had not received unemployment insurance prior to their return to work.Dustin Smith, the president of the Sacramento Police Officers Association, said the audit marked the end of decades of service for dozens of officers. “For most of them, it’s just heart-wrenching because this is a big part of who you are and what you do in life,” Smith said. “We have 40-year employees that have given their life, their heart and soul to this community, that are all basically with a phone call, were told, ‘I’m sorry, we have to let you go.’”Smith said the reserve officers would generally help with things like cold case investigations, jail intake, and special events. He said losing them will hurt—especially amid a staff shortage.“There’s going to be more police officers pulled off the streets, trapped in a place like jail, doing basic admin work instead of coming back out to handle calls for service. So, call response times and all the things we talk about routinely to help the community are going to go down again,” Smith said. Sacramento Police shared a statement saying in part, “At this time, we are still working with City Human Resources to determine how the work previously performed by retired annuitants will be addressed, and we do not yet have details on what the impact will be to staffing.”Meanwhile, CalPERS released a statement saying, “We are working with the city to resolve the issues and ensure that the retired annuitants they want to utilize are processed correctly. CalPERS did not prohibit the hiring of any officers and ultimately the city is responsible for their hiring decisions.”Smith said this is a big loss for something he called a minor issue.“We really need the people at PERS and the city to get together and sit down and just use common sense. This was a technicality and it was an accident,” Smith said. “There’s a lot more to it than just numbers and response times. We’re losing some really good people.”See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
Sacramento police have let go 41 retired officers who were working part-time after a CalPERS audit found compliance issues with their employment conditions.
These reserve officers, known as retired annuitants, were often considered extra help and included individuals brought in on an interim basis to fill vacancies or prevent emergencies.
The audit found that one officer returned to work only 30 days after retirement, instead of the required 60 days. In another instance, some officers did not submit the required documentation showing they had not received unemployment insurance prior to their return to work.
Dustin Smith, the president of the Sacramento Police Officers Association, said the audit marked the end of decades of service for dozens of officers.
“For most of them, it’s just heart-wrenching because this is a big part of who you are and what you do in life,” Smith said. “We have 40-year employees that have given their life, their heart and soul to this community, that are all basically with a phone call, were told, ‘I’m sorry, we have to let you go.’”
Smith said the reserve officers would generally help with things like cold case investigations, jail intake, and special events. He said losing them will hurt—especially amid a staff shortage.
“There’s going to be more police officers pulled off the streets, trapped in a place like jail, doing basic admin work instead of coming back out to handle calls for service. So, call response times and all the things we talk about routinely to help the community are going to go down again,” Smith said.
Sacramento Police shared a statement saying in part, “At this time, we are still working with City Human Resources to determine how the work previously performed by retired annuitants will be addressed, and we do not yet have details on what the impact will be to staffing.”
Meanwhile, CalPERS released a statement saying, “We are working with the city to resolve the issues and ensure that the retired annuitants they want to utilize are processed correctly. CalPERS did not prohibit the hiring of any officers and ultimately the city is responsible for their hiring decisions.”
Smith said this is a big loss for something he called a minor issue.
“We really need the people at PERS and the city to get together and sit down and just use common sense. This was a technicality and it was an accident,” Smith said. “There’s a lot more to it than just numbers and response times. We’re losing some really good people.”
The Sacramento City Unified School District is facing a $43 million budget deficit, leading to a spending freeze starting Oct. 1.Administrators said the freeze is necessary to cover payroll and maintain operations. The district received the grim news about the massive budget shortfall at its Thursday meeting from the chief business and operations officer, Janea Marking. She showed a photo of a city about to be consumed by a large tsunami wave. “SCUSD, no one in particular, it’s in our DNA, has a bad, bad habit of uncontrolled, unbudgeted, unexpected expenses,” she said.The district is scrambling to find ways to come up with $43 million after unexpected budget items, including late payroll payments, unexpected invoices, and unauthorized contract payments. Managers say there were $62 million in unauthorized contracts last year, most for special education programs. “A contract that has not been authorized by the school district, but they provided a service ahead of time because they needed to provide services to students immediately,” Assistant Superintendent Cindy Tao explained.The spending freeze will affect non-classroom hiring, new contracts, travel, and non-emergency overtime, but not teachers’ contracts. “Stretched thin already, and we’ve just accomplished a lot of additional supports for our students that have been long needed and long deserved by our students,” said the president of the Sacramento City Teachers Association, Nikki Davis Melevsky.The SCTA wants the district to be accountable for why and how this happened.”They need to look into who signed these contracts, who authorized them, and why did they not go through the appropriate procedures so that the Budget Office would have been aware that they were out there and that they were needing to be paid?” asked Davis Melevsky.District spokesperson Alexander Goldberg discussed the spending freeze in a statement: “Those measures alone will not fix our problems. There will be many other budgetary sacrifices to make in the coming months to get the district back on a path to solvency before the end of the fiscal year. In reaching that goal, it is our every intention to avoid major disruption to student opportunities, programs, and the day-to-day educational experience.”School Board President Jasjit Singh said in an email, “The board is committed to ensuring our district is financially sound while maintaining the services crucial to student success. School district budgets are in a constant state of fluctuation. We are confident in our staff’s efforts to help cut costs and implement saving ideas.”The board is expected to get an update in December on where they stand financially after a couple of months of a spending freeze.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
The Sacramento City Unified School District is facing a $43 million budget deficit, leading to a spending freeze starting Oct. 1.
Administrators said the freeze is necessary to cover payroll and maintain operations.
The district received the grim news about the massive budget shortfall at its Thursday meeting from the chief business and operations officer, Janea Marking. She showed a photo of a city about to be consumed by a large tsunami wave.
“SCUSD, no one in particular, it’s in our DNA, has a bad, bad habit of uncontrolled, unbudgeted, unexpected expenses,” she said.
The district is scrambling to find ways to come up with $43 million after unexpected budget items, including late payroll payments, unexpected invoices, and unauthorized contract payments. Managers say there were $62 million in unauthorized contracts last year, most for special education programs.
“A contract that has not been authorized by the school district, but they provided a service ahead of time because they needed to provide services to students immediately,” Assistant Superintendent Cindy Tao explained.
The spending freeze will affect non-classroom hiring, new contracts, travel, and non-emergency overtime, but not teachers’ contracts.
“Stretched thin already, and we’ve just accomplished a lot of additional supports for our students that have been long needed and long deserved by our students,” said the president of the Sacramento City Teachers Association, Nikki Davis Melevsky.
The SCTA wants the district to be accountable for why and how this happened.
“They need to look into who signed these contracts, who authorized them, and why did they not go through the appropriate procedures so that the Budget Office would have been aware that they were out there and that they were needing to be paid?” asked Davis Melevsky.
District spokesperson Alexander Goldberg discussed the spending freeze in a statement: “Those measures alone will not fix our problems. There will be many other budgetary sacrifices to make in the coming months to get the district back on a path to solvency before the end of the fiscal year. In reaching that goal, it is our every intention to avoid major disruption to student opportunities, programs, and the day-to-day educational experience.”
School Board President Jasjit Singh said in an email, “The board is committed to ensuring our district is financially sound while maintaining the services crucial to student success. School district budgets are in a constant state of fluctuation. We are confident in our staff’s efforts to help cut costs and implement saving ideas.”
The board is expected to get an update in December on where they stand financially after a couple of months of a spending freeze.
President Donald Trump and prominent members of his “Make America Great Again” movement paid tribute Sunday to Charlie Kirk, praising the slain political conservative activist as a singular force whose work they must now advance.Stream the service in the video player aboveThe memorial service for Kirk, whom Trump credits with playing a pivotal role in his 2024 election victory, drew tens of thousands of mourners, including Vice President JD Vance, other senior administration officials and young conservatives shaped by the 31-year-old firebrand.“For Charlie, we will remember that it is better to stand on our feet defending the United States of America and defending the truth than it is to die on our knees,” Vance said. “My friends, for Charlie, we must remember that he is a hero to the United States of America. And he is a martyr for the Christian faith.”Speakers highlighted Kirk’s profound faith and his strong belief that young conservatives need to get married, build families and pass on their values to keep building their movement. They also repeatedly told conservative activists, sometimes in confrontational tones, that the best way to honor Kirk was doubling down on his mission to move American politics further to the right.Kirk’s assassination at a Sept. 10 appearance on a Utah college campus has become a singular moment for the modern-day conservative movement. It also has set off a fierce debate about violence, decency and free speech in an era of deep political division.High security and a full stadiumThose close to Kirk prayed and the floors shook from the bass of Christian rock bands as the home of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals took on the feel of a megachurch service.“Charlie looked at politics as an on-ramp to Jesus,” said the Rev. Rob McCoy, Kirk’s pastor.People began lining up before dawn to secure a spot inside State Farm Stadium west of Phoenix, where Kirk’s Turning Point organization is based. Security was tight, similar to the Super Bowl or other high-profile event. The speakers delivered their tributes from behind bullet-proof glass.The 63,400-seat stadium quickly filled with people dressed in red, white and blue, as organizers suggested.Kirk’s widow, Erika, in her own address said in the midst of her grief she was finding comfort that her husband left this world without regrets. She also said she forgives the man who is charged with killing him.“My husband, Charlie, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life,” said Erika Kirk, who is taking over as Turning Point’s leader. She added, “I forgive him.”A 22-year-old Utah man, Tyler Robinson, has been charged with killing Kirk and faces the death penalty if convicted of the most serious charges. Authorities have not revealed a clear motive in the shooting, but prosecutors say Robinson wrote in a text to his partner following the shooting that he “had enough” of Kirk’s hatred.Kirk’s legacy of conservative political influenceTurning Point, the group Kirk founded to mobilize young Christian conservatives, became a multimillion-dollar operation under his leadership with enormous reach.“Charlie’s having some serious heavenly FOMO right now,” Tyler Bower, Turning Point’s chief operating officer, said, likening the moment to bringing “the Holy Spirit into a Trump rally.”The crowd was a testament to the massive influence he accumulated in conservative America with his ability to mobilize young people.His impact on modern-day conservatism went beyond U.S. shores.Kirk “was very effective because he was convinced of his views and knew how to argue them,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said at a political rally Sunday in Rome.Kirk was a MAGA celebrity with a loyal following that turned out to support or argue with him as he traveled the country for the events like the one at Utah Valley University, where he was shot. Kirk grew the organization, in large part, through the force of his personality and debating chops.“He slayed ignorance,” said Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. “He cut through lies. He woke people’s minds, inspired people’s hearts and imparted wisdom every day.”Speaker after speaker, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, expressed their awe at Kirk’s ability to go into what many conservatives saw as the lion’s den to make the conservative case: college campuses.“Why don’t you start somewhere easier,” Rubio joked when he first heard about Kirk years ago. “Like, for example, communist Cuba?”
GLENDALE, Ariz. —
President Donald Trump and prominent members of his “Make America Great Again” movement paid tribute Sunday to Charlie Kirk, praising the slain political conservative activist as a singular force whose work they must now advance.
Stream the service in the video player above
The memorial service for Kirk, whom Trump credits with playing a pivotal role in his 2024 election victory, drew tens of thousands of mourners, including Vice President JD Vance, other senior administration officials and young conservatives shaped by the 31-year-old firebrand.
“For Charlie, we will remember that it is better to stand on our feet defending the United States of America and defending the truth than it is to die on our knees,” Vance said. “My friends, for Charlie, we must remember that he is a hero to the United States of America. And he is a martyr for the Christian faith.”
Speakers highlighted Kirk’s profound faith and his strong belief that young conservatives need to get married, build families and pass on their values to keep building their movement. They also repeatedly told conservative activists, sometimes in confrontational tones, that the best way to honor Kirk was doubling down on his mission to move American politics further to the right.
Kirk’s assassination at a Sept. 10 appearance on a Utah college campus has become a singular moment for the modern-day conservative movement. It also has set off a fierce debate about violence, decency and free speech in an era of deep political division.
High security and a full stadium
Those close to Kirk prayed and the floors shook from the bass of Christian rock bands as the home of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals took on the feel of a megachurch service.
“Charlie looked at politics as an on-ramp to Jesus,” said the Rev. Rob McCoy, Kirk’s pastor.
People began lining up before dawn to secure a spot inside State Farm Stadium west of Phoenix, where Kirk’s Turning Point organization is based. Security was tight, similar to the Super Bowl or other high-profile event. The speakers delivered their tributes from behind bullet-proof glass.
The 63,400-seat stadium quickly filled with people dressed in red, white and blue, as organizers suggested.
Kirk’s widow, Erika, in her own address said in the midst of her grief she was finding comfort that her husband left this world without regrets. She also said she forgives the man who is charged with killing him.
“My husband, Charlie, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life,” said Erika Kirk, who is taking over as Turning Point’s leader. She added, “I forgive him.”
A 22-year-old Utah man, Tyler Robinson, has been charged with killing Kirk and faces the death penalty if convicted of the most serious charges. Authorities have not revealed a clear motive in the shooting, but prosecutors say Robinson wrote in a text to his partner following the shooting that he “had enough” of Kirk’s hatred.
Kirk’s legacy of conservative political influence
Turning Point, the group Kirk founded to mobilize young Christian conservatives, became a multimillion-dollar operation under his leadership with enormous reach.
“Charlie’s having some serious heavenly FOMO right now,” Tyler Bower, Turning Point’s chief operating officer, said, likening the moment to bringing “the Holy Spirit into a Trump rally.”
The crowd was a testament to the massive influence he accumulated in conservative America with his ability to mobilize young people.
His impact on modern-day conservatism went beyond U.S. shores.
Kirk “was very effective because he was convinced of his views and knew how to argue them,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said at a political rally Sunday in Rome.
Kirk was a MAGA celebrity with a loyal following that turned out to support or argue with him as he traveled the country for the events like the one at Utah Valley University, where he was shot. Kirk grew the organization, in large part, through the force of his personality and debating chops.
“He slayed ignorance,” said Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. “He cut through lies. He woke people’s minds, inspired people’s hearts and imparted wisdom every day.”
Speaker after speaker, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, expressed their awe at Kirk’s ability to go into what many conservatives saw as the lion’s den to make the conservative case: college campuses.
“Why don’t you start somewhere easier,” Rubio joked when he first heard about Kirk years ago. “Like, for example, communist Cuba?”
A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration’s deployment of U.S. military troops to Los Angeles during immigration raids earlier this year was illegal.
U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer found the deployment violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which limited the use of the military for law enforcement purposes. He stayed his ruling to give the administration a chance to appeal.
“President Trump and Secretary Hegseth have stated their intention to call National Guard troops into service in other cities across the country … thus creating a national police force with the President as its chief,” Breyer wrote.
The ruling could have implications beyond Los Angeles.
Trump, who sent roughly 5,000 Marines and National Guard troops to L.A. in June in a move that was opposed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, issued an executive order declaring a public safety emergency in D.C. The order invoked Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act that places the Metropolitan Police Department under direct federal control.
In June, Breyer ruled that Trump broke the law when he mobilized thousands of California National Guard members against the state’s wishes.
In a 36-page decision, Breyer wrote that Trump’s actions “were illegal — both exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the 10th Amendment to the United States Constitution.”
But the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals paused that court order, allowing the troops to remain in Los Angeles while the case plays out in federal court. The appellate court found the president had broad, though not “unreviewable,” authority to deploy the military in American cities.
In his Tuesday ruling Breyer added: “The evidence at trial established that Defendants systematically used armed soldiers (whose identity was often obscured by protective armor) and military vehicles to set up protective perimeters and traffic blockades, engage in crowd control, and otherwise demonstrate a military presence in and around Los Angeles. In short, Defendants violated the Posse Comitatus Act.”
Scotland-based accountancy firm Wbg has launched a new service offering part-time chief financial officer (CFO) expertise to support the financial management needs of small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs).
The move is tailored to companies that do not require a full-time CFO but still need professional guidance in their financial operations and strategic planning, the company said.
The fractional CFO service will complement Wbg’s existing portfolio of financial services, which already includes areas such as compliance, VAT, bookkeeping, management accounting, and cashflow management.
The new offering is designed to provide SMEs with the necessary financial oversight and advice to facilitate their growth and development.
Experienced CFOs from various sectors will be available to assist businesses in setting and pursuing strategic goals, formulating and executing financial strategies, and ensuring financial reporting and budgeting.
The service is particularly geared towards businesses that are in the process of expanding or planning their exit, the company noted.
Catherine Livingstone, a partner in Wbg’s Accounts & Business Advisory Service, said: “With our new fractional CFO service, we aim to deliver objective, unbiased guidance that’s both flexible and responsive to the unique requirements of each business.
“No two businesses are the same – each faces distinct challenges – and our service is designed to offer personalised solutions that address those specific needs.”
Livingstone added: “This service allows us to give our SME clients access to tailored financial guidance and strategic support. The fractional CFO service means a business can have an in-house advisor on a flexible schedule, providing expert input precisely when it’s needed.
Clarke, who brings experience from his previous roles including finance director and COO at Localist, will be responsible for driving Wbg’s growth plans.
He succeeds Yvonne Kemp, who transitions to support investment initiatives with Wbg shareholders N4 Partners.
“Wbg introduces CFO service for SMEs seeking financial leadership ” was originally created and published by International Accounting Bulletin, a GlobalData owned brand.
The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Israel has always wrestled with questions of motivation, service, and sacrifice. Yet when tested, the country has rediscovered its resolve.
The IDF on Wednesday announced plans to call up some 60,000 reservists over the next two weeks in preparation for a large-scale assault on Gaza City.
News of the call-ups will spark speculation about battle fatigue among reservists and their families, how many will report, and how strong their motivation will be. Inevitably, there will be comparisons to the immediate aftermath of October 7, 2023, when some 360,000 reservists were called up in the largest mobilization since the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
Then, the response was overwhelming. Israelis cut short trips abroad, postponed studies, left new jobs, and rushed to their units. The figure most often cited was 130% turnout, meaning scores of men and women not even called up reported for duty. Some reservists told of a lack of weapons to hand out to all who showed up.
Fast forward nearly two years. The enthusiasm has faded. The war drags on, 50 hostages remain in Gaza, and questions about leadership and strategy weigh heavily. Reservists, who have already put their civilian lives on hold multiple times since October 7, are being asked to do so again.
Some openly ask whether their sacrifice was squandered as the IDF returns to areas they have already fought in. Others complain that the war lacks a clear endgame, is being waged for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political survival, or that it is unconscionable to be called up again while the government seeks to exempt tens of thousands of yeshiva students from service.
Yet alongside this disenchantment runs another current: among regular soldiers, the 18- and 19-year-olds who make up the backbone of the IDF, motivation is surging. Surveys show 95% of draft-age youth who are going into the IDF actually do want to serve, with nearly three-quarters of eligible young men volunteering for combat units. Among women, too, more than half of those qualified now express a desire to serve in fighting units, a record high.
Israel in 2025: A country weary yet determined
This contrast – between exhausted reservists and energized conscripts – says much about Israel in August 2025. It is a country weary, yet determined; cynical about politics, yet convinced the war against Hamas is existential; fatigued, but far from broken.
The complaints of reservists and their families are as understandable as they are familiar. After the Second Lebanon War in 2006, after Operation Protective Edge in 2014, and after shorter Gaza campaigns, complaints about low reservist motivation abounded. Numbers were cited illustrating declining turnout, commanders fretted about morale, and commentators wondered whether Israeli society was tiring of seemingly endless wars.
But time and again, those predictions have proven exaggerated.
When the orders are issued, the reservists – perhaps not at 130% but at solid levels – report for duty. They may curse the government, complain about the lack of vision, demand an exit strategy, or gripe about a system that exempts large parts of the population, but when the call comes, they lace up their boots.
Before Operation Gideon’s Chariots in May, there was concern that turnout would be no more than 60%. While the IDF does not publicize these figures, the actual percentage far exceeded that, though it was short of the 130% of October 2023. In a Knesset committee meeting in May, Brig.-Gen. Rami Abudraham, then chief of staff of the Ground Forces, put the figure at “over 75%.”
Considering the number of days many reservists have served since October 7, often more than 300, that is impressive. Here lies the paradox: The frustration is real, but so is the commitment. Israelis argue, protest, and grumble – and then, for the most part, show up.
If the reservists represent the weariness of a society carrying the same burden repeatedly, the regular soldiers represent its renewal.
For years, the IDF worried about declining motivation. An IDF survey in 2019 showed only 64% of inductees were interested in combat units, down from 80% in 2010. The trend seemed clear: Individualism, hi-tech aspirations, and a culture that glorified private success over collective sacrifice were eroding the combat ethos.
Then came October 7. The Hamas massacre jolted the country and upended assumptions. Suddenly, teenagers who once sought hi-tech tracks like cyber or intelligence saw combat service as the most meaningful contribution they could make.
The numbers are dramatic. According to an IDF survey on motivation from January, reported in Israel Hayom in May, nearly three-quarters of men and more than half of women going into the army said they wanted to serve in combat. This year, 80% of those invited to often-grueling tryouts for elite units showed up, compared to just 55% before the war.
This is a strategic asset. While much of the West struggles to fill its military ranks, in Israel – now in its longest war since 1948 – young people are stepping forward in the greatest numbers in decades, with the glaring exception of most haredi (ultra-Orthodox) and Arab youth. That willingness speaks to a national spirit that, even battered and divided, remains strong.
It would be easy to read these stories as contradictory: a tired generation of reservists vs a motivated crop of teenagers. But they are better seen as two sides of the same coin.
Reservists’ fatigue reflects the price of endurance: careers disrupted, businesses shuttered, families strained. Their questions – “Where is this going?” – are not the complaints of whiners or shirkers but of citizens who have already given more than most democracies ever ask.
Conscripts’ enthusiasm reflects the renewal of purpose. For them, the current war is not an endless cycle but the defining national challenge of their generation, a moment to prove themselves and their turn to safeguard the country.
Together, these realities reveal a society waging war with fatigue and resolve. Israel’s wars have always been fought by both its fathers and its sons, sometimes literally together. Today, the fathers are growing weary, even as the sons remain eager. And both understand their service is essential.
What does this divergence reveal about how Israel views this war?
First, despite fatigue, most Israelis still see the war as unavoidable. The reservists may protest, but few refuse outright. Numbers called up are still met, even if the percentages no longer dazzle. Israelis may despair of their leaders, but they do not despair of their country.
Second, October 7 reminded Israel of its vulnerability. That day shattered the illusion that missile defenses and technological superiority meant security or that the country’s enemies had given up on the dream of trying to destroy the Jewish state. The current generation of conscripts has internalized those lessons and shown that it understands that the state’s survival depends on them.
Finally, for all its divisions, Israeli society still understands the need to fight to survive. Protests continue, politics roil, families of hostages rage at the government. Yet beneath it all lies a common understanding: If Israel does not fight, it does not exist.
Israel has always wrestled with questions of motivation, service, and sacrifice. From the earliest days, critics warned that prosperity and modernity would sap the pioneering spirit. Yet, when tested, the country has rediscovered its resolve.
The current call-up reflects that pattern. Yes, reservists are weary, and many are angry at the government. But the younger generation’s determination shows that the national spirit has not been extinguished. It has been passed down, renewed, and even strengthened.
That is perhaps the ultimate takeaway: Israel remains a society where the collective still matters. The reservists grumble; the new conscripts burn with youthful zeal. Together, they form an army fighting a war barbarically thrust upon the country – unwanted, seemingly endless – but one it cannot yet set aside and one both those called back and those just called up know it cannot afford to lose.
Each week on Polygon, we round up the most notable new releases to streaming and VOD, highlighting the biggest and best new movies for you to watch at home.
This week, Despicable Me 4, the latest Minions movie starring Steve Carell, comes to VOD following its theatrical premiere earlier this year. That’s not all, though, as we’ve got several exciting streaming premieres this weekend as well like The Bikeriders on Peacock, La Chimera on Hulu, The Instigators on Apple TV Plus, and more.
Here’s everything new that’s available to watch this weekend!
Genre: Action comedy Run time: 1h 40m Director: Lee Myung-hoon Cast: Hwang Jung-min, Yum Jung-Ah, Jeon Hye-jin
A retired secret agent (Hwang Jung-min) finds himself unexpectedly thrown back into the fray of international espionage when he becomes involved in a mission involving his wife (Yum Jung-ah), a detective who knows absolutely nothing about her husband’s former life.
Genre: Period comedy-drama Run time: 2h 13m Director: Alice Rohrwacher Cast: Josh O’Connor, Carol Duarte, Isabella Rossellini
The latest from masterful Italian filmmaker Alice Rohrwacher (Happy as Lazzaro, Le Pupille) stars one of the Challengersboys as a British archaeologist in a story of stolen historical artifacts. La Chimera was a Palme d’Or nominee at Cannes 2023.
New on Prime Video
One Fast Move
Where to watch: Available to stream on Prime Video
Genre: Action drama Run time: 1h 58m Director: Kelly Blatz Cast: K.J. Apa, Eric Dane, Maia Reficco
K.J. Apa (Riverdale) stars in this sports drama as Wes, a troubled young man who attempts to convince his estranged father Dean (Eric Dane) to teach him how to become a professional motorcycle racer. Taking him under his wing, Dean and Wes are forced to work through their troubled relationship as they attempt to create a new future for themselves.
New on Apple TV Plus
The Instigators
Where to watch: Available to stream on Apple TV Plus
Image: Apple
Genre: Heist comedy Run time: 1h 41m Director: Doug Liman Cast: Matt Damon, Casey Affleck, Hong Chau
Matt Damon and director Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity) reunite for this irreverent crime comedy co-starring Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea) and Hong Chau (The Whale). Damon stars as Rory, an ex-Marine who agrees to work alongside an ex-con (Affleck) to rob a mayoral fundraiser. When the botched robbery incites a city-wide manhunt by the police and the vengeful crime boss behind the plot, the pair “consensually kidnap” Rory’s therapist (Chau) in their desperate bid to escape and survive.
New on Peacock
The Bikeriders
Where to watch: Available to stream on Peacock
Image: 20th Century Studios
Genre: Crime drama Run time: 1h 56m Director: Jeff Nichols Cast: Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, Tom Hardy
The Bikeriders follows a motorcycle club over the course of a decade, as they go from a simple gathering of enthusiasts to a hardened gang. Jodie Comer plays Kathy, a young woman who gets swept up in the biker gang world after meeting hotheaded Benny (Austin Butler).
The Bikeriders is a film of old-fashioned, simple pleasures: great tunes, perfect costumes, myth-making shots, and a cast of great character actors really going for it. (Including, but not limited to, Michael Shannon, West Side Story’s Mike Faist, Justified’s Damon Herriman, and a completely unrecognizable Norman Reedus as a shaggy Californian wildman biker.) It’s a film about looking at the gorgeous, unknowable people on the screen — and that one gorgeous, unknowable person in particular — just as Hardy’s character does at one point with Marlon Brando in The Wild One, and thinking: What would it be like to be them?
New to rent
Despicable Me 4
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Image: Illumination
Genre: Comedy Run time: 1h 34m Directors: Chris Renaud Cast: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Pierre Coffin
Formed supervillain-turned-secret agent Gru is back with an all-new adventure! Despicable Me 4 sees Gru relocate his family when his former rival Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) re-emerges seeking revenge. As Gru’s family attempt to adjust to their new home, Gru’s teenage neighbor attempts to follow in his villainous footsteps, while Gru’s minions decide to become superheroes. That’s a lot, I know!
Despicable Me 4 is full of good ideas, with lots of them specifically appealing to what people like about these movies: Minion antics, Gru’s villain-ness versus his normal family life, and over-the-top Big Bad Guy theatrics among them. But all these bits and pieces are jumbled together and not cohesive enough to make sense as a story. The movie is discordant, like a bunch of musicians playing unfamiliar instruments (or a bunch of — dare I say — Minions given instruments) and trying to make a coherent song. But amid that chaos, sometimes the music starts sounding good — a cool jazzy saxophone solo soars briefly above the cacophony. You just have to grit your teeth and ignore the clanging drums and out-of-tune oboes around it.
Dandelion
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Image: IFC Films
Genre: Drama Run time: 1h 53m Director: Nicole Riegel Cast: KiKi Layne, Thomas Doherty, Melanie Nicholls-King
KiKi Layne (If Beale Street Could Talk) stars in this musical drama as Dandelion, a struggling singer-songwriter who travels the country performing gigs, all the while yearning for a career breakthrough she fears will never happen. After striking up a romance with Casey (Thomas Doherty), a fellow disgruntled musician, their love proves to be the inadvertent catalyst for Dandelion’s discovery of an authentic artistic voice all her own.
Widow Clicquot
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Image: Vertical Entertainment
Genre: Drama Run time: 1h 30m Director: Thomas Napper Cast: Haley Bennett, Leo Suter, Natasha O’Keeffe
This period drama stars Haley Bennett (Swallow) as Barbe-Nicole Clicquot, the widow of an 18th century vigneron who becomes the head of their fledgling vineyard after his untimely passing. Weathering financial difficulty and political turmoil, Barbe-Nicole must struggle to make a name for herself and nurture the company to fruition.
Each week on Polygon, we round up the most notable new releases to streaming and VOD, highlighting the biggest and best new movies for you to watch at home.
This week, A Quiet Place: Day One, starring Lupita Nyong’o and Joseph Quinn, arrives on VOD along with Maxxxine, the third installment in Ti West’s horror series starring Mia Goth. That’s not all there is to watch this weekend. The long-awaited director’s cut of Zack Snyder’s sci-fi epic Rebel Moon finally come to Netflix alongside the “Minus Color” version of Godzilla Minus One, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes struts onto Hulu, and Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers makes its streaming debut on MGM Plus.
Here’s everything new that’s available to watch this weekend!
New on Netflix
Rebel Moon director’s cut
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Image: Netflix
Genre: Sci-fi epic Run time: 3h 21m (Chapter 1); 2h 53m (Chapter 2) Director: Zack Snyder Cast: Sofia Boutella, Djimon Hounsou, Ed Skrein
Zack Snyder is back, this time with the “true” version of his critically-panned sci-fi epic Rebel Moon. Set in a galaxy ruled by a tyrannical empire known as the Motherworld Imperium, the film follows Kora (Sofia Boutella), a former Imperium soldier who recruits a band of warriors to defend a small lunar farming colony from an oncoming invasion.
The question is: Will these versions be it any better than the ones released last year? Only one way to find out!
Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Image: Toho
Genre: Kaiju drama Run time: 2h 4m Director: Takashi Yamazaki Cast: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada
Godzilla Minus One, the Oscar-winning kaiju drama from director Takashi Yamazaki, was surprise added to Netflix back in June. Now, the “Minus Color” version of the film, which screened for a limited time in theaters early this year, is now available to stream on Netflix starting this weekend. Having seen both in theaters, I can confidently say that no matter which version you happen to choose, the film itself is phenomenal.
Tarot
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Image: Screen Gems/Sony Pictures Releasing
Genre: Horror Run time: 1h 32m Directors: Spenser Cohen, Anna Halberg Cast: Harriet Slater, Adain Bradley, Avantika, Jacob Batalon
From the screenwriter of Moonfall, Tarot follows a group of friends who find a mysterious cursed tarot deck… and after using it, the figures from the cards that they drew all start to manifest and brutally murder them. They must race to figure out the secret of the tarot deck before they all get picked off one by one. All to say — maybe don’t use creepy tarot decks while in a strange mansion.
Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Image: Netflix
Genre: Adventure comedy Run time: 1h 22m Director: Liza Johnson Cast: Carolyn Lawrence, Tom Kenny, Clancy Brown
Sandy, the Texan squirrel, takes the lead in the new SpongeBob movie. And this time, the underwater denizens venture to the surface — Sandy finally gets to visit home and see her whole family! But they all have to join forces to save Bikini Bottom from an evil CEO.
Genre: Post-apocalyptic sci-fi Run time: 2h 25m Director: Wes Ball Cast: Owen Teague, Freya Allan, Kevin Durand
Picking up 300 years after the events of Matt Reeves’ War of the Planet of the Apes, this new installment in the franchise follows Noa (Owen Teague), a young ape who embarks on a journey to rescue his tribe from Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand), a maniacal ape who has twisted Caesar’s legacy to create an empire built on conquest and slavery.
As a story, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes rarely reaches above narrative competence. But because of its almost single-minded focus on the apes, its technical prowess in their rendering is always front and center. It is frankly incredible what the team at Wētā FX has done in conjunction with all of the film’s other effects artists to bring the apes to life, to give them all distinct body language, and to faithfully transpose actors’ every tic and subtle expression onto their faces. These are some of the most soulful digital creations ever seen in a blockbuster action movie, and it’s incredible to see them in a film that is so pedestrian.
New on MGM Plus
Challengers
Where to watch: Available to stream on MGM Plus
Image: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures/YouTube
Genre: Sports drama Run time: 2h 11m Director: Luca Guadagnino Cast: Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, Mike Faist
Luca Guadagnino’s sensual sports drama, about a love triangle in professional tennis, has set certain circles of the world on fire since its release in late April and is one of the best movies of the year. Now, you can enjoy it at home.
That script is a terrific three-course meal for Faist and O’Connor. They get to trade off face and heel roles from scene to scene and era to era, as Art and Patrick help and hurt each other in equal measure. But it’s an absolute smorgasbord for Zendaya, who even in starring roles has never been given this much room to stretch. Tashi is a gratifyingly rich character, both righteously angry over the thwarting of her ambitions and cruelly angry at all the men who have the nerve to keep on playing the game that was taken away from her. She’s hungry for affection and withholding it at the same time, by turns sensually curious and coldly dispassionate, ambitious and exhausted, conflicted and confident. She’s the kind of character that media master’s theses are made of, and unpicking Tashi’s conflicting motives and how she integrates them is likely to become a pop culture obsession in the months to come.
This quirky independent romcom follows a bickering couple as they attempt to navigate their relationship, and retain their sanity, in the midst of a global pandemic. Shot on a Hi8 camcorder, New Strains is an authentic slice-of-life story from the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
New to rent
Maxxxine
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Photo: Justin Lubin/A24
Genre: Horror Run time: 1h 41m Director: Ti West Cast: Mia Goth, Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney
The third installment in Ti West’s trilogy of period-specific horror films stars Mia Goth, this time reprising her role as Maxine Minx from 2022’s X. Set six years after surviving the terrifying ordeal that transpired in rural Texas, Maxine now lives and works in Los Angeles as an adult film star and erotic performer on the verge of her first big break in an upcoming horror film. But when a mysterious stalker and an unscrupulous private investigator begin to hound her around town, and harm those closest to her, Maxine will have to summon every ounce of her cunning in order to come out on top.
Maxxxine is sharper, slicker, faster-paced, and more direct than the other two films in the series, and it’s certainly entertaining, for those who can stomach its purposefully challenging, envelope-pushing gore. But this time around, it feels like West has, as Kurt Vonnegut would put it, become what he was formerly just pretending to be. That isn’t just a matter of taxonomy, irrelevant to everyone but nitpickers and librarians trying to figure out which shelf Maxxxine goes on. It winds up affecting the story in some frustrating ways.
A Quiet Place: Day One
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Image: Paramount Pictures
Genre: Horror Run time: 1h 39m Director: Michael Sarnoski Cast: Lupita Nyong’o, Joseph Quinn, Alex Wolff
Lupita Nyong’o stars in the prequel to 2018’s A Quiet Place as Samira, a cancer patient living in New York who witnesses first-hand the arrival of the blind extraterrestrial creatures who overtake the planet. With the help of Eric (Joseph Quinn), a law student, and Henri (Djimon Hounsou), a fellow survivor, Samira must find a way to escape the city alive.
A Quiet Place: Day One isn’t so much a spinoff and prequel of John Krasinski’s 2018 horror movie as it is a riveting drama that plays in the series’ sandbox. You can spot the odd bit of new world-building here or there, about just how and why there are so many damn echolocating aliens, but these tidbits are just background noise (shh, not so loud!) to a much more interesting human story. A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place Part II are rural sci-fi horror, but Day One — from Pig director Michael Sarnoski — moves the setting to New York City and crafts its story in the vein of large-scale disaster cinema. It’s likely the best Manhattan mayhem film since Cloverfield, and it’s also a downright excellent Hollywood blockbuster, if an entirely unexpected one.
The People’s Joker
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Image: TIFF
Genre: Parody comedy Run time: 1h 32m Director: Vera Drew Cast: Vera Drew, Nathan Faustyn, Kane Distler
This DC Comics parody follows the story of Vera, a trans woman from Smallville who moves to Gotham City to break into stand-up comedy under the name “Joker the Harlequin.” Together with her friend The Penguin (Nathan Faustyn), Vera forms an anti-comedy troupe and goes head to head with her abusive partner Mr. J (Kane Distler) and a tyrannical vigilante known as the Batman (Phil Braun).
The film isn’t entirely a comedy in-joke, however — which is good, because the story of Vera/Joker’s “anti-comedy” career is the most straightforward and least memorable aspect of the film. Lengthy discussions about the role of comedians as truth-tellers between Joker and the Penguin are standard stuff for podcasts and documentaries about the art form. Comedic first-person trans coming-of-age narratives, particularly ones where the transition is accomplished by falling into a vat of feminizing hormones, are more rare. Dedicated “to mom and Joel Schumacher,” The People’s Joker is also a sincere exploration of Vera’s journey toward self-realization, beginning with her childhood as a “miserable little girl” trapped in a boy’s body in Smallville.
Daddio
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Image: Phedon Papamichael/Sony Pictures Classics
Genre: Drama Run time: 1h 40m Director: Christy Hall Cast: Sean Penn, Dakota Johnson
Remember Locke, that 2013 chamber piece starring Tom Hardy as a construction foreman who talks to himself and several off-screen characters while driving on the freeway? Well, Daddio is kinda like that, but there’s a crucial difference: Instead of one, there are two on-screen characters talking to each other! Dakota Johnson stars as a woman who has a frank conversation with Clark (Sean Pean), a cab driver who gives her a ride to her apartment in Manhattan from JFK International Airport. What do they talk about? Oh y’know, life and love and vulnerability and stuff like that.
The Vourdalak
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple, and Vudu
Image: Oscilloscope
Genre: Horror fantasy Run time: 1h 31m Director: Adrien Beau Cast: Kacey Mottet Klein, Ariane Labed, Grégoire Colin
If you, like me, are chomping at the bit to see Robert Eggers’ Nosferatuwhen it premieres later this year, you might consider sinking your teeth into this new supernatural horror movie from director Adrien Beau.
Kacey Mottet Klein stars as the Marquis Jacques Antoine Saturnin d’Urfe, an emissary of the King of France in 18th-century Europe, who is welcomed to stay at the home of a man named Gorcha, who has left to fight against the Turks. When Gorcha fails to return after six days, his family fears that he has been transformed into a Vourdalak — a breed of vampire that feeds on the blood of their family members.
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25557395/The_Instigators_Photo_0101_H_2024.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24982500/bikeriders_dtrl1_4k_r709f_stills_230831.089040.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25515729/2539_FP_00360A.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25563721/MWbtuikQ.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25563719/Clicquot_first_look_still.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25548290/godzilla.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25548709/sony_tarot.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25547252/Saving_Bikini_Bottom__The_Sandy_Cheeks_Movie_n_00_03_43_18.jpg_Saving_Bikini_Bottom__The_Sandy_Cheeks_Movie_n_00_03_43_18.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25440661/KPA_TP3_00087400.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25390936/zendaya_challengers.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25552047/886cda5f_9f84_4bc9_b44d_21f0321f2554.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25517543/TP2_08937_R.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25272108/quiet_place_day_one.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24022751/Screen_Shot_2022_09_14_at_12.07.56_PM.png)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25551897/daddiore.jpg)
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25547273/Vourdalak.jpg)