Business

CNET reports: Apple on Tuesday unveiled a variant of its flagship phone as part of the (Red) program, which funds programs that combat HIV and AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. The special edition of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will come in 128-gigabyte and 256GB configurations, starting at $749. They will go on sale Friday. While Apple has long …

FAKE NEWS! The BBC reports: Microsoft founder Bill Gates again tops Forbes’ list of the world’s richest people, in a year when the number of billionaires rose 13% to 2,043. According to the magazine’s annual rich list, Mr Gates’ fortune rose to $86bn, from $75bn, followed by investor Warren Buffett, up $14.8bn to $75.6bn. It was bad news for US …

Get away from her, Amazon! Via Gizmodo: What would you do if you were a billionaire? Elon Musk is trying to get to Mars. Peter Thiel wants to live forever. And Jeff Bezos, well, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos apparently wants to rule the world in a gigantic robot. At least that’s the impression you might get from the photos and …

CNN reports: “Beauty and the Beast,” Disney’s live action remake of its beloved 1991 animated film, made an estimated $350 million worldwide this weekend. Of that total, $170 million came at theaters in North America. The domestic total exceeded what people in the industry had expected, and it broke the record for the biggest box office opening in March. The …

Via press release from Christian Newswire: Here’s the Perfect Lenten Gift for the Christian who has everything! This unique novelty gift will bless all who receive it, this Lenten Season! The ‘GODLY’ message, on all of our Lenten Blankets, will be forever cherished by Christians around the world! Its message is for everyone who has accepted Jesus Christ as their …

The New York Times reports: A class-action lawsuit about overtime pay for truck drivers hinged entirely on a debate that has bitterly divided friends, families and foes: The dreaded — or totally necessary — Oxford comma, perhaps the most polarizing of punctuation marks. What ensued in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and in a 29-page …

The Palm Beach Post reports: President Donald Trump has taken to calling his Mar-a-Lago spread on Palm Beach the “winter White House.” Palm Beach County Commissioner Dave Kerner wonders if it should have another name: “municipal service benefit unit.” Kerner’s name is far less catchy than Trump’s, but it could give the county a way to impose a special tax …

Because the world NEEDS an inexpensive bracelet solution. Dollar stores, here she comes! The New York Times reports: Over the last few weeks, it seemed like Neiman Marcus could not make up its mind about whether to sell Ivanka Trump’s fine jewelry. The brand’s baubles disappeared, reappeared and then disappeared again from the department store’s website. But now, Neiman Marcus …

Bloomberg reports: A company owned by the family of Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, stands to receive more than $400 million from a prominent Chinese company that is investing in the Kushners’ marquee Manhattan office tower at 666 Fifth Ave. The planned $4-billion transaction includes terms that some real estate experts consider unusually favorable for the …

The Associated Press reports: China has granted preliminary approval for 38 new Trump trademarks, paving the way for President Donald Trump and his family to potentially develop a host of branded businesses from hotels and golf clubs to bodyguard and concierge services, public documents show. Trump’s lawyers in China applied for the marks in April 2016, as Trump railed against …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Disney’s Beauty and the Beast doesn’t open for another 9 days, however, Fandango today indicated that the live-action feature adaptation of the Oscar-winning 1991 animated pic is already beating the pre-sales of both Captain America: Civil War and Finding Dory. Those two movies turned out to be last summer’s and Disney’s top titles in regards to openings …

If the haters aren’t already boycotting Coke, this will probably do it. Britain’s Attitude Magazine reports: Coca-Cola have just released an early contender for our favourite ad campaign of the year – and it’s one that manages to combine humour with a refreshingly inclusive take on modern family life. The hilarious new commercial sees a hunky pool boy inspire some …

CBS News reports: How much chicken is actually in your chicken sandwich? A study by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s consumer affairs show “Marketplace” says researchers conducted DNA tests on several chicken sandwiches from fast-food restaurants and found that Subway’s chicken breast contained only about half chicken. The rest was mostly soy. Subway said Tuesday the report was “absolutely false and …

The New York Times reports: For the first time in seven years, New York City officials expect the number of foreign visitors to decrease, a drop they attribute to the protectionist policies and rhetoric of President Trump — saying that those moves are scaring off many of the visitors who have helped fuel the city’s robust growth since the last …

Via World Net Daily: News came this week that Family Christian Stores is finally shuttering all 240 locations. The 85-year-old chain filed for bankruptcy protection in 2015, and now the end has come for the Christian retail giant that employed 3,000 and stretched across 36 states. They did it to themselves. The explosion came from within, as decades of pandering …

Every time Macy’s closes a few stores or Target has a bad quarter, the right wing celebrates their “victory.” So today we get this: Family Christian, the “World’s largest retailer of Christian-themed merchandise” is set to close at 240 stores in 36 states after 85 years. The non-profit store, which employs 3,000 people, said that the store had been seeing …

Mental Floss reports: After months of anticipation, fans of The Golden Girls can finally pour one out for late actress Rue McClanahan (who played sultry Southern belle Blanche Devereaux) and the rest of her senior gang at New York City’s brand-new Rue La Rue Café. Plans for the Girls-themed eatery were first announced last summer; now, The New York Times …

Yes, really. Quartz reports: Robots are taking human jobs. But Bill Gates believes that governments should tax companies’ use of them, as a way to at least temporarily slow the spread of automation and to fund other types of employment. It’s a striking position from the world’s richest man and a self-described techno-optimist who co-founded Microsoft, one of the leading …

Reuters reports: Samsung Group chief Jay Y. Lee was arrested on Friday over his alleged role in a corruption scandal rocking the highest levels of power in South Korea, dealing a fresh blow to the technology giant and standard-bearer for Asia’s fourth-largest economy. The special prosecutor’s office accuses Lee of bribing a close friend of President Park Geun-hye to gain …

The Associated Press reports: The Washington state Supreme Court has ruled that a florist who refused to provide services for a same-sex wedding broke anti-discrimination laws. The nine justices posted their unanimous ruling on Thursday. Barronelle Stutzman, a florist in Richland, Washington, had been fined by a lower court for denying service to a gay couple in 2013. Stutzman had …