Aurelia Butler

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    South Korea’s Defense Minister Steps Down Over Martial Law Decree

    South Korea’s president, Yoon Suk Yeol, announced on Thursday that he had accepted the resignation of his defense minister, the first member of Mr. Yoon’s cabinet to lose his job since the president’s short-lived declaration of martial law on Tuesday night stunned the country.The defense minister, Kim Yong-hyun, had tendered his resignation on Wednesday, saying that he considered himself responsible for the crisis that the martial law decree had created for Mr. Yoon’s government. He did not directly address allegations among opposition lawmakers and local media that he had suggested the idea to Mr. Yoon.A statement from the presidential office said that Mr. Kim would be replaced by Choi Byung Hyuk, a retired army general who has been serving as South Korea’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia.Mr. Yoon withdrew the martial law declaration early Wednesday morning, after the National Assembly voted unanimously against it and protesters gathered to denounce the move. Opposition lawmakers later introduced a motion to impeach Mr. Yoon, which could be voted on as soon as Friday.If two-thirds of the 300 lawmakers in the National Assembly vote for the motion, Mr. Yoon will be impeached and suspended from office until the country’s Constitutional Court makes a final ruling on whether to reinstate or remove him. All 192 opposition lawmakers support impeachment, but they need at least eight votes from members of Mr. Yoon’s People Power Party to impeach him.The head of that party, Han Dong-hoon, said on Thursday that he would try to persuade its lawmakers to vote against impeachment, to prevent what he called national “confusion.”But at the same time, Mr. Han tried to distance the party from Mr. Yoon, calling his martial law decree “unconstitutional” and demanding that he give up his party membership. Mr. Han also said that military leaders who were involved in imposing martial law must be removed from their posts. He did not identify any commanders by name.“We must show to the military that if they get involved in an unconstitutional and illegal martial law, they will be punished immediately,” Mr. Han said.Gen. Park An-su, the army chief of staff, led the martial law command during the several hours before the decree was rescinded. Hundreds of troops were sent into the National Assembly in what opposition lawmakers called an “illegal” and “unconstitutional” attempt to stop them from voting against the decree. Staff members barricaded hallways with furniture and used fire extinguishers against troops to keep them from entering the voting chamber.Mr. Kim, the outgoing defense minister, said the troops had been following his orders when they entered the National Assembly. Mr. Yoon has insisted that martial law was needed to protect the country from disruptive political opposition that had paralyzed his administration.This is a developing story. More

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    Bitcoin Price Surges to a Milestone: $100,000

    The price of a single Bitcoin rose to six figures for the first time, an extraordinary level for a 16-year-old cryptocurrency once dismissed as a sideshow.In May 2010, Laszlo Hanyecz, an early cryptocurrency enthusiast, used Bitcoin to buy two pizzas from Papa John’s. He spent 10,000 Bitcoins, or roughly $40 at the time, in one of the first purchases ever made with the digital currency.It has turned out to be the most expensive dinner in history.On Wednesday, the price of a single Bitcoin rose to more than $100,000, a remarkable milestone for an experimental financial asset that had once been mocked as a sideshow and a fad. The total cost of those pizzas today: $1 billion.Bitcoin now stands as arguably the most successful investment product of the last 20 years. The value of all the coins in circulation is $2 trillion, more than the combined worth of Mastercard, Walmart and JPMorgan Chase. The motley assortment of hackers and political radicals who embraced Bitcoin when it was created by an anonymous coder in 2008 have become millionaires many times over. And the invention has spawned an entire industry anchored by publicly traded companies like Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange, and promoted by celebrities, athletes and Elon Musk.Even the president-elect says he is a believer. During the campaign, Donald J. Trump marketed himself as a Bitcoin enthusiast, vowing to create a federal stockpile that could push its price even higher.

    Note: As of 10 p.m. Eastern on Dec. 4Source: Investing.comBy The New York TimesBitcoin began as “essentially an experimental hobbyist project,” said Finn Brunton, the author of a 2019 book about the history of cryptocurrency. “To see where it is now is to see a really impressive feat.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    NYT Crossword Answers for Dec. 5, 2024

    Garrett Chalfin turns us every which way and teaches us an important lesson.Jump to: Today’s Theme | Tricky CluesTHURSDAY PUZZLE — People turn to crossword puzzles for all sorts of reasons, including the soothing effect they can have on us when life feels out of control. I understand that some themes may drive solvers up a wall, but that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the comforting feeling of methodically filling in blank squares, being distracted from your problems and the joy of conquering a puzzle that you thought might conquer you. When you’ve completed it, a sense of control is restored, even if it’s just for awhile.Constructors can feel that happiness and sense of satisfaction, too. After filling their grids in a way that is pleasing to them and submitting their crosswords, receiving an acceptance from the puzzle editors can bring a joy that is hard to describe. I vividly remember my first acceptance, and that was 20 years ago. No matter where or how many times I was published, it never got old. Maybe some of the Wordplayers who are published constructors can explain the feeling in the comments.Allowing yourself to feel joy and to recall them when life is hard can be healing. Garrett Chalfin’s constructor notes provide an excellent lesson on coping with trauma. He tells a story about how, after a harrowing experience, the habit of substituting a happy memory for intrusive thoughts under the guidance of a therapist helped him begin his healing process.I think his story will resonate with a lot of people. No matter where you are in life, everyone can use more coping tools.Today’s ThemeMr. Chalfin’s puzzle uses the Pixar film “INSIDE OUT” (62A) to give us a hint at how to read the five theme entries, all of which contain gray squares.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    Trump Picks Kelly Loeffler, a Top Donor, to Head Small Business Administration

    President-elect Donald J. Trump chose Kelly Loeffler, a top donor to Mr. Trump’s 2024 campaign and a former Georgia senator, to head the Small Business Administration.“Kelly will bring her experience in business and Washington to reduce red tape, and unleash opportunity for our Small Businesses to grow, innovate, and thrive,” Mr. Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday. “She will focus on ensuring that SBA is accountable to Taxpayers by cracking down on waste, fraud, and regulatory overreach.”Ms. Loeffler has little experience in public service. She was appointed to fill a vacated Senate seat in Georgia by Gov. Brian Kemp, serving from early 2020 until she was defeated in a special election by the Rev. Raphael Warnock in January 2021. In the final days of her Senate career, Ms. Loeffler played a prominent role in Mr. Trump’s effort to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election.Ms. Loeffler underwent a significant political transformation during the first Trump administration. She had been seen as a moderate, business-oriented Republican when she was appointed to the Senate — a move viewed by many as an effort to make the Georgia Republican Party more widely appealing.But Ms. Loeffler made a hard-right turn in office, portraying herself as a fervent supporter of and rubber stamp for Mr. Trump as she prepared to defend her seat in the 2020 race. Mr. Warnock ultimately won by two percentage points in a runoff election.If confirmed by the Senate, Ms. Loeffler would lead an agency that is responsible for delivering billions in loans and disaster assistance to small businesses across the country. The S.B.A. played a major role during the Covid-19 pandemic, when it distributed hundreds of billions of dollars to help businesses stay open and continue paying their employees.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    How NYPD Will Use Cameras to Help Find Brian Thompson’s Killer

    The cameras caught the gunman standing alone for five minutes on West 54th Street, ignoring the early-morning rush of people streaming by.They caught him again as he stood in the dark at 6:44 a.m. and locked into his target, Brian Thompson, the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare, who was walking on the other side of the street.And they captured video of the gunman, who was dressed in black and wearing a gray backpack, crossing the street and walking up to Mr. Thompson. He appeared calm as he raised a gun, fired several times and then walked away.The seconds before Wednesday morning’s shooting of Mr. Thompson, the fatal moments and the immediate aftermath were all captured on surveillance cameras, leaving investigators with a trail of digital evidence to help search for a man who was “proficient” with firearms, according to Joseph Kenny, the chief of detectives for the New York Police Department.After the Sept. 11 attacks, the Police Department, with help from the federal government, poured resources into expanding its surveillance capabilities. New York City now has a vast system of cameras, both public and private, that the police can scour to locate people.The city has “investigatory capabilities that are above and beyond most municipalities,” said Brittney Blair, a senior director in the investigations and disputes practice at K2 Integrity, which advises companies on risk management and security.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    The Biggest Takeaways From the DealBook Summit With Jeff Bezos, Sam Altman and More

    Serena Williams, Jerome H. Powell, Jeff Bezos and other leaders across business and technology discussed artificial intelligence, inflation, the media and what the world would look like under a second Donald J. Trump presidency.Mr. Bezos, for one, thinks the president-elect has “a good chance of succeeding.”Elon Musk wasn’t in the room, but he was present throughout at the DealBook Summit. The speakers were largely optimistic about his efforts in the new administration.The event, hosted by Andrew Ross Sorkin, founder of DealBook, has taken place since 2011.Here are five main themes:Inflation is still an issue, but there’s a chance for growth.Jerome H. Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, said the economy was in a “very good place.” Inflation has come down, and the labor market has rebounded. The big takeaway for investors: The central bank can afford to be more cautious when it considers lowering interest rates, Mr. Powell said. (The next Fed meeting will be Dec. 17-18.)Ken Griffin, the billionaire founder of the hedge fund Citadel and a top donor to the Republican Party, placed the blame for inflation squarely on the Biden administration, which, he argued, “put this country on an inflationary path that was unprecedented in our lifetime.” Mr. Powell has “had to deal with cleaning up the mess,” he added.Former President Bill Clinton said inflation was the “fundamental problem” that helped Mr. Trump return to the White House.“The average person had not really lived through something like this for 40 years, since the ’70s,” Mr. Clinton said.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    Read the Justice Department’s Report

    E. MPD Unnecessarily Escalates Encounters with Children.
    We have serious concerns about MPD’s treatment of children and the lasting impact of
    police encounters on their wellbeing and resilience. 42 During interactions with children
    regarding minor issues, MPD officers escalate the encounters with aggressive and
    demeaning language and, at times, needless force.
    At times, MPD aggressively escalates encounters with children who have committed no
    crime or where the child is a victim. In one incident, officers handcuffed and used force
    against a 16-year-old Black girl who called MPD to report she had been assaulted.
    Before arriving at the precinct to give a statement, officers handcuffed the girl after she
    refused to give them her phone. When she became agitated and reactive, the officers
    responded with insults and threats, telling her, “When [the handcuffs] do come off . . .
    Ooh, I’m itching,” “I leave my gloves on when I fight,” and “If I gotta whip your ass, I will.”
    After three hours, officers removed the handcuffs to reposition them. As she complained
    that her hands were hurt and swollen and tried to move her wrists, the officers grabbed
    her and pushed her face down onto the ground to handcuff her again. The girl was then
    arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.
    MPD has escalated interactions when enforcing laws that are intended to keep children
    safe. After two Black boys (ages 15 and 16) ran from an officer who was citing them for
    a curfew violation, officers demeaned the boys and threatened violence. When one boy
    asked if they were going to jail, the officer responded, “If it’s my decision, hell yeah . . .
    I’d have so much damn fun rolling your ass down to jail. I’d love doing that shit.” Another
    officer threatened to assault the boys when he worried that he may have lost his MPD
    mobile device during the foot pursuit: “I am fucking these little kids up, man… I am
    fucking you all up, I just wanted to let y’all know that.”
    MPD officers have mistreated children in crisis, even when it is clear the child has
    significant disabilities. In one incident, a CIT officer threatened to take a 14-year-old
    Black boy to adult jail because the boy ran away from home. The boy was diagnosed
    with autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, and developmental delays and had the intellectual
    functioning of a four-year-old. The boy’s mother had called the police after the boy, who
    had been released from a mental health facility that day, got upset at bedtime, threw a
    garbage can and a chair, and ran from home. After the boy was found, a CIT officer
    raised his Taser toward the boy, who was calm and compliant, and told him, “I don’t
    want to use it on you, but if you don’t listen to me, I can.” Officers planned to take the
    boy to the hospital for psychiatric treatment. But the CIT officer continued to threaten
    him, saying that he would take the child to jail “with the big boys,” and “If I have to come
    42 Interactions with the police can lead to damaging and lasting outcomes for children, especially Black
    and Latinx teens, including post-traumatic stress, increased levels of depression, diminished academic
    performance, and increased chances that a child will engage in delinquent behavior in the future.
    56 More