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Should you buy now, pay later for your wedding?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

As wedding season approaches, couples are booking venues, compiling guest lists and hiring a dizzying array of vendors — and they’re digging deep into their pockets to pay for it.The average U.S. wedding cost $30,000 in 2022, a $2,000 increase from 2021 , according to a study from wedding website The Knot. Though weddings have long been expensive, inflation is pushing costs higher.Couples may turn to increasingly popular “ buy now, pay later ” payment plans to ease the burden. These plans let you divide the total cost of your purchase into installments, often with no interest and zero fees if you pay on time.But they have risks, and there may be better ways to fund your nuptials.HOW BUY NOW, PAY LATER WORKS FOR WEDDINGSPopular buy now, pay later providers like Affirm, Afterpay and Klarna partner with thousands of merchants, including retailers in the wedding industry.Affirm partners with David’s Bridal, Men’s Wearhouse, Kay Jewelers and Zales , among others, to offer its pay-later p...

CNN preaches patience as ratings tank during turnaround

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — CNN’s leadership is preaching patience even though thousands of viewers are abandoning the network during its attempted turnaround, with no indication yet whether it will be rewarded.Cable news ratings are down across the board compared to 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was fresh in the news. CNN’s dip is most dramatic — 61% in prime time in March, with Fox News Channel down 27% and MSNBC off by 12%, according to the Nielsen company.Fox averaged 2.09 million viewers in prime time in March, with MSNBC at 1.14 million and CNN at 473,000, Nielsen said. In the key 25-54 age demographic for advertisers, CNN is seeing some of its lowest numbers in decades.CNN is a year into new corporate management with Warner Bros. Discovery, which hired ex-CBS producer Chris Licht to run the network. The chief goal has been to rebuild trust as a non-partisan news brand after years of criticism by former President Donald Trump and his followers, at a time Fox an...

Porsche stolen in daylight armed carjacking in Aurora; suspect sought

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

A suspect is in custody and police are searching for another after a crash and armed carjacking in York Region.Officers responded to reports of a carjacking in Aurora, in the area of Bathurst Street and McClellan Drive, around 12:50 p.m. on Tuesday.Police say a 24-year-old man was driving a black 2018 Porsche Cayenne southbound on Bathurst when he stopped at an intersection. While stopped, the Porsche was struck from behind by a black Ford Escape.It is alleged an armed suspect got out of the Ford and approached the driver of the Porsche, threatening him and demanding he get out of the vehicle. The victim got out and the suspect drove away in the stolen Porsche with the Ford following close behind.The two vehicles were last seen travelling southbound on Bathurst.Police say a patrol officer noticed a Ford Escape with damage a short time later at a gas station in Richmond Hill. The officer investigated and arrested the male driver.No injuries were reported during the carjacking or subs...

Bahrain sentences 3 for questioning Islamic teachings

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Prosecutors in the Arab Gulf nation of Bahrain on Thursday have handed down yearlong prison sentences to three people for debating Islamic theology in a series of blog posts and online videos.The three are part of a local cultural society called Tajdeed, Arabic for Renewal, that says it questions traditional Islamic scholarship and jurisprudence but not the religion itself. Critics, including prominent Shiite clerics in the kingdom, have accused the group of attacking the foundations of Islam and have waged a campaign of incitement against them.The case has divided the majority Shiite community in Bahrain, which is ruled by a Sunni monarchy.The public prosecutor’s office said the three defendants were guilty of “infringing on the foundations of the Islamic faith” and insulting its prophets, in part by dismissing purported miracles as popular myths. It did not name the defendants, but activists have identified them as Jalal al-Qassab and Redha...

Man United report $7.7M net profit in latest results

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester United reported a net profit of 6.3 million pounds ($7.77 million) in its second quarterly fiscal results on Thursday.The English Premier League club, which is subject to takeover bids, released its key financial figures for the three months ending Dec. 31, 2022. United’s total revenue was 167.3 million pounds, down 9.8% year-on-year. While the club’s commercial revenues of 78.7 million pounds were up by 22.2% year-on-year, it reported decreases in broadcasting and matchday revenues.Broadcasting was 58.7 million pounds, which a decrease of 32.1%. Matchday revenues totaled 29.9 million pounds, down by 13.6%.United said broadcasting revenues were down “primarily due to the men’s first team participating in the UEFA Europa League compared to the UEFA Champions League in the prior year.”Matchday revenue was down due to playing two less home games than in the previous period.United’s non-current borrowings of $650 million remained u...

MLB debut players will have special patches on jerseys

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Players making their big league debuts will be especially marked this season.Major League Baseball announced before Thursday’s openers that players making their first appearances will wear debut patches on their jerseys. The patch will appear on different places of a sleeve, depending on the team and any anniversary of sponsor patches.After a player appears in his first game, the patch will be authenticated and placed on a Topps baseball card as part of an agreement reached by MLB and the business wing of the players’ association with Fanatics Collectibles, a division of Fanatics that acquired the trading card company Topps last year.One card with the patch will be available for each player. ___AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsThe Associated Press

2 Ohio women reported missing after New Mexico vacation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) - Two Ohio women have been reported missing by a police department in New Mexico.According to a social media post by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, authorities are looking for 46-year-old Robyn Bodine and 52-year-old Tracie Shoe, both from Brookville. They were reported missing after going on vacation in New Mexico at Riverbend Hot Springs. 9 soldiers dead after 2 Black Hawk helicopters crash on training mission in Kentucky Both are described as white females standing at 5 feet, 6 inches tall. Bodine has brown hair with highlights and brown eyes and weighs 145 pounds. Shoe is said to have strawberry-blonde hair and green eyes and weighs 170 pounds.Brookville Police Department said in a release that neither of their families have been able to contact the women since before noon on Tuesday, March 28. The department began an investigation and has been working with the FBI, the Truth or Consequences Police Department, and the Montgomery County Sheriff's ...

Aldermen to vote for more independence from Mayor's office Thursday

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

CHICAGO —The group of aldermen are pushing for more independence from the mayor's office happening just a week before a new mayor is elected to run the city.The aldermen are looking to increase the number of committees and subcommittees from19 to 28 which would include adding a youth services subgroup and another focused on entertainment and conventions. The group also wants council members to pick their own committee chairs instead of thew power belonging to the mayor.City Council has allowed mayors to hand-pick committee chairs for the past few decades, helping ensure the mayor could push through their legislation more quickly.Another change is stopping ordinances from being introduced last minute without making information available to the public. A rare Michael Jordan card is up for auction Even though the vote is taking place Thursday, any rules approved later would still have to be re-approved by the newly elected City Council once the new term starts.WGN reporters spoke to ...

IHOP brings back popular item in menu revamp

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

(KTLA) -- IHOP on Wednesday announced it will roll out a revamped menu that includes more than a dozen new food and drink items, plus the return of a fan favorite on April 3. The breakfast company’s latest menu overhaul is its biggest to date, according to a news release.As part of the revamp, Cinn-A-Stack pancakes are being re-introduced to IHOP menus. Guests have frequently inquired about when the menu item will return since its departure, according to a news release. In 2020, IHOP simplified its menu by discontinuing multiple food items. It brought back or introduced new dishes, like burritos and bowls, in 2021, but the menu has yet to reach its pre-pandemic size.The new menu will be available at participating restaurants nationwide and includes new food items for breakfast, lunch and dinner.IHOP on Wednesday introduced a revamped menu that includes more than a dozen new food and drink items, plus the return of a fan-favorite food offering. (IHOP) The new menu will include eggs ...

Gamma-burst temporarily blinds Earth's satellites; brightest in human history

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:49:50 GMT

Hawai'i (KXAN) - The brightest gamma-ray burst in human history was recently detected, scientists with the American Astronomical Society (AAS) announced on Tuesday. Nicknamed the BOAT, Brightest of All Time, NASA said in a release that it temporarily blinded Earth's satellites.The burst was initially detected on October 8th, 2022 by Voyager 1.According to a paper published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, the gamma-ray swept through our solar system 19 hours after it was initially detected. NASA said the burst was so bright, satellites were unable to "directly record the real intensity of the emission."Scientists used data collected by the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope to study the burst. Eric Burns with Louisiana State University said in the paper that gamma-ray bursts this bright pass Earth "roughly every 10,000 years."Gamma-ray Bursts are high energy explosions. They are an electromagnetic event and are considered the most energetic and brightest such events in the known u...