- The wealth of the world’s billionaires grew by $5.7 billion a day while 44% of the world’s population lives in poverty on $6.85 a day
The wealth of the world’s billionaires grew by two trillion in 2024, three times faster than in 2023. The latest inequality report reveals that the world is now on track to have five trillionaires within a decade! The report, titled Takers Not Makers, comes as many of the world’s political leaders, corporate executives and the super-rich travel to the Swiss ski resort of Davos for the annual World Economic Forum meeting from Monday. Oxfam’s examination of billionaire assets also coincides with Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president. Trump is expected to include several billionaires in his team of close advisers, including the Tesla and SpaceX chief executive, Elon Musk, and to offer large-scale tax breaks to the wealthiest US citizens. At the same time, the number of people living under the World Bank poverty line of $6.85 a day has barely changed since 1990, and is close to 3.6 billion – equivalent to 44% of the world’s population today, the charity said. One in 10 women live in extreme poverty (below $2.15 a day), which means 24.3 million more women than men endure extreme poverty.
- Do you work for the Federal Government? Yikes, your job might be in jeopardy as the new guy takes office
By stripping those positions of requirements for merit-based hiring and firing, and the right to appeal adverse personnel actions, Trump would open up the possibility of staffing the government with loyal political operators. Early lists of potentially affected employees from the first Trump administration showed Trump’s team intended to interpret the category broadly, applying it to positions as varied as IT specialists, office managers and attorneys. Monday’s executive order from Trump did not directly create the Schedule F category. Instead, Trump reversed a Joe Biden executive order, published in the early days of Biden’s presidency, that revoked Trump’s previous October 2020 executive order creating Schedule F. The Biden order was among scores that Trump reversed Monday.
- She was a firebrand. Activist Cecile Richardson transformed Planned Parenthood into a political powerhouse
She didn’t mince words! Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2022 she lamented the end of Roe v Wade, “It’s not only abortion — it’s the thought of the country being ruled by a minority, and moving more into this completely totalitarian regime where it doesn’t matter what the majority thinks, whether it’s on gun reform, the right to make your own decisions about pregnancy, climate. It’s just horrifying that we are living in a non-democratic country right now.” Agree or disagree, she was one of our generations respected liberal voices.
- Beneath a veneer of calm, Trump’s inauguration holds warning signs for US democracy
At first glance, President Donald Trump’ssecond inauguration seemed like a continuation of the country’s nearly 250-year-long tradition of peaceful transfers of power, essential to its democracy. And there was much to celebrate: Trump won a free and fair election last fall, and his supporters hope he will be able to fix problems at the border, end the war in Ukraine and get inflation under control. Still, on Monday, the warning signs were clear. The pardons of those who tried to violently overturn the results of the 2020 election are particularly worrying. It’s harder to imagine a greater affront to the rule of law than to give pardons to those who tried to overthrow the government! Even after regaining the highest office in the land, Trump continued to lie about his 2020 election loss. His actions are more of a third world dictator than the president of a free and democratic nation.
- Get used to it: your brick and mortar bank is soon to be extinct. Technology continues to reshape the banking industry
From credit cards to NFC readers and AI banking solutions, financial technology has rapidly transformed banking in the last few decades. Big data analytics has been the major innovation affecting us today, allowing providers to gather more customer insights and optimize their operations like never before. New and existing technologies based on big data will continue to redefine the way we manage and trade our money in 2025—let’s break down some of the key trends to watch. [7 trends]
- What is your opinion of Pete Hegseth? (Only 2 in 10 Americans approve of Hegseth being nominated as the secretary of defense
The survey, which was conducted before Hegseth’s confirmation hearings began, finds that roughly one-third of U.S. adults disapprove of Trump’s choice, and about 1 in 10 say they neither approve nor disapprove. About one-third of Americans say they don’t know enough about Hegseth to have an opinion. Hegseth’s experience in the Army National Guard is seen by the incoming administration and supporters in Congress as an asset for the job, but he also brings a jarring record of past statements and actions, including allegations of sexual assault, excessive drinking and derisive views about women in military combat roles, minorities and “woke” generals. He has vowed not to drink alcohol if he is confirmed to lead the Pentagon. Hegseth acknowledged during his hearing that he does not have the traditional background of past defense secretaries, promising to be a “change agent” for the branch.
- Do you know anybody who doesn’t have an achy back!? These exercises might help
When you spend a ton of time sitting—especially if you’re hunched over a screen—your head, neck, and shoulders tend to pull forward, leading to that rounded improper posture that can cause uncomfortable tightness. The muscles associated with good posture are the ones that retract the shoulder blades, depress the shoulder blades, and put the shoulder blades in a good position in order to help keep you upright. Working these muscles, as well as other muscles in the back of your body, like your latissimus dorsi (the large, triangular muscles that span the width of your lower back), help counteract that forward slouch and work to build muscles. This workout will give you a complete back-of-the-body burn in just over 20 minutes. [See the workout]
- Donald Trump will become the first president to take office with a felony conviction on his record. Sentenced to no punishment in his historic hush money case.
The judgment that lets him return to the White House unencumbered by the threat of a jail term or a fine. The New York case became the only one of Trump’s four criminal indictments that has gone to trial and possibly the only one that ever will. Trump called the case “a weaponization of government” and “an embarrassment to New York.” He maintained that he did not commit any crime and reiterated that he would appeal his conviction. Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchan could have sentenced the 78-year-old to up to four years in prison. Instead, Merchan chose a sentence that sidestepped thorny constitutional issues by effectively ending the case but assured that Trump will become the first president to take office with a felony conviction on his record..
- La Niña has arrived. And brought the snow. Here’s what the country can expect for the winter months
The forecast is not too bad. The climate pattern — which typically has an outsized influence on winter weather in the US — is rather weak and may not stick around for long. But that won’t totally eliminate its effect. And, despite its late arrival, it’s already played a clear role in this winter’s weather. California is the most obvious example. Northern California has had plenty of rain while Southern California is so tinder-dry that thousands of acres ignited this week. La Niña also typically delivers more precipitation to the Midwest, having one of the wettest starts to winter to date. Periods of brutally cold Arctic air have dominated the eastern two-thirds of the country since December and winter storms have delivered disruptive weather on a weekly basis since the year began.
- Tax deadline 2024: When is the last day you can file taxes in 2025?
Taxes for 2024 are due for most of us by April 15, which falls on a Tuesday this year. If you don’t expect to file by then, you can request a six-month extension. When do I get my refund? If you filed electronically and chose to receive your refund by direct deposit, your refund will probably be issued within 21 days, the IRS says. If you mailed a paper return, the wait could be four weeks or longer. What happens if I miss the tax deadline? If you fail to file your federal tax return on time, the standard penalty is a whopping 5% of any tax due for every month the return is late, up to 25% of the unpaid balance. If you file a return but fail to pay any taxes you owe, or if you get an extension, you typically face a much smaller monthly penalty of 0.5% of any unpaid amount.
- Nikki Glaser cracked up the stars at the Golden Globes. There were highs and lows but a good night of tv watching all in all
In the acting races, unexpected wins for the likes of Demi Moore, Fernanda Torres and Sebastian Stan produced some of the most heartfelt speeches of the night. Both poignant and relatable, Moore spoke movingly about her career struggles over more than 30 years, The award for “cinematic and box office achievement” debuted in 2024, and it was, unsurprisingly, given to “Wicked.” The official criteria is that it is the “most acclaimed, highest-earning and/or most viewed” feature. For an ostensibly glamorous ceremony, the show itself looked terrible onscreen. Presenters were filmed awfully close up, giving everything a harsh and casual vibe.
- Are you an investor in the stock market? You had a heck of a good year in 2024
Big Tech stocks led this year’s rally, pushing the Nasdaq to a yearly gain of 28.6%. The Dow, which is far less weighted with tech, rose 12.9% for the year. The stock market’s record-breaking turn in 2024 was certainly much better that what most people on Wall Street predicted. U.S. markets’ stellar run was driven by a growing economy, solid consumer spending and a strong jobs market. Skyrocketing prices for companies in the artificial-intelligence business, such as Nvidia and Super Micro Computer, helped lift the market to new heights. Solid corporate earnings growth also helped. Wall Street expects companies in the S&P 500 to report broad earnings growth of more than 9% for the year.
- Self-Checkout Is a Failed Experiment. Some companies have removed the kiosks entirely
When self-checkout kiosks began to pop up in American grocery stores, the sales pitch to shoppers was impressive: Scan your stuff, plunk it in a bag, and you’re done. Long checkout lines would disappear. Small talk with cashiers would be a thing of the past. Store associates, freed from the drudgery of scanning barcodes, would be close at hand to answer your questions. Didn’t happen! You still have to wait in line. The checkout kiosks bleat and flash when you fail to set a purchase down in the right spot. Scanning those items is sometimes a crapshoot—wave a barcode too vigorously in front of an uncooperative machine, and suddenly you’ve scanned it two or three times. [More]
- 3 Big Medicare Prescription Drug Changes Coming in 2025. Millions of Part D beneficiaries will save money on medications.
The biggest change coming in 2025 is a new $2,000 cap on annual out-of-pocket prescription drug expenses, which will help an estimated 3.2 million people in Medicare prescription drug plans save money on their covered medications next year, a recent report from AARP shows. Part D enrollees who reach the cap will save an average of $1,500 in 2025, and some will see savings of $3,000 or more. The new $2,000 cap — a provision in the AARP-backed prescription drug law signed in 2022 — takes effect Jan. 1 and will be adjusted each year along with the other parts of the Part D benefit. [Read about other significant changes]
A newspaper by and for seniors, Senior News Daily scours the internet each morning for news of interest to active men and women of retirement age. Coverage includes financial and health news, politics, retirement strategies and assisted living news and helpful blogs about aging.
Senior News Daily is written by and for active seniors. We believe seniors have a sense of humor and can laugh at themselves. We know our readers are intelligent, influential, have active lives and get their news from a variety of national sources, both left and right of the political center. We don’t simply duplicate what they report. Each day we scour the internet for articles that interest and benefit seniors. We publish health and financial news for seniors, breaking political news, and retirement and community news of value to seniors. Humorous or serious, they advocate for our generation of AARP members. In addition to news by and for seniors, Senior News Daily publishes a Blog featuring posts from our editors and the opinions of our contemporaries. Occasionally there are reviews of products and services we test and endorse.