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Beloved fast-food chain in business for more than 60 years quietly closing locations
It has been a tough year for several restaurant chains.
Blackhawks may remain short-handed vs. slumping Pens
A season-high six-game losing streak may be in the rearview, but the Chicago Blackhawks still have the trouble of skating without injured forwards Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar for a bit longer.
Beloved Middle Tennessee businesses that closed in 2025
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — From new restaurants opening to old favorites closing their doors after years of service, the dining scene in Middle Tennessee was busy in 2025. As some businesses saw lines wrapped around buildings for their much-anticipated openings, such as California-based burger chain In-N-Out, several beloved staples said goodbye for good. Here’s a […]
Brown-Forman sale, battery plant layoffs, Wawa debut headline Louisville area business news of 2025
From restaurants and bars opening and closing to major company shifts, 2025 was a big year for business in the Louisville area.
Christmas Standings: How the Penguins sit after a December fall
The Penguins got to Thanksgiving holiday and the end of November with the fourth best points percentage and similar spot in the division. December didn’t go as smoothly, they leave in seventh place in points, and barely sixth in points%, thanks to a 1-5-4 slump that saw losing every which way you can go. We’ll […]
Circle Furniture has closed all its stores - including one opened this year on Cape Cod
After decades in business, Circle Furniture abruptly announced it was closing all Massachusetts stores and laying off all employees.
Pelle Larsson, Heat attempt to extend Pacers' losing streak
Pelle Larsson is emerging as a key contributor for the Miami Heat, who face the visiting Indiana Pacers on Saturday.
Jay M. Savage, witness to disappearing frogs and builder of tropical science
In the late 1980s, something began to go wrong in places that were supposed to be safe. Protected cloud forests, buffered from chainsaws and bulldozers, started losing animals that had persisted through far rougher times. Amphibians—often abundant, often overlooked—were vanishing in patterns that did not fit the usual explanations. Field biologists, trained to distrust drama, […]
Google is at last letting users swap out embarrassing Gmail addresses without losing their data
Google has finally answered users' cries, allowing Gmail users to swap out embarrassing teenage email addresses.
Christmas loss reveals Lakers have problems that need fixing
With the Lakers now on their longest losing streak of the season, some tough questions are about to be asked.
Pacers vow to 'keep fighting' ahead of rematch with Celtics
The Indiana Pacers will try to find their scoring touch and end a six-game losing streak when they meet the Boston Celtics on Friday night in Indianapolis.
Healey explores options to cover residents losing health insurance
With insurance premiums set to spike, thousands are dropping coverage or hunting for higher priced plans on the Massachusetts Health Connector
Historic Ann Arbor store closes after more than a century in business
After nearly 120 years serving the Ann Arbor community, Downtown Home and Garden welcomed customers for the final time on Christmas Eve before closing its doors permanently.
Scientists found a way to restore brain blood flow in dementia
A new study suggests that dementia may be driven in part by faulty blood flow in the brain. Researchers found that losing a key lipid causes blood vessels to become overactive, disrupting circulation and starving brain tissue. When the missing molecule was restored, normal blood flow returned. This discovery opens the door to new treatments aimed at fixing vascular problems in dementia.
Craft Brewing Business is closing up for the holidays — thank you for another great year
As the year winds down, Craft Brewing Business is taking a break for the holidays. Before we do, we want to pause and say thank you. This year reminded us why we started this site in the first place — to cover the independent brewing industry honestly, thoughtfully and without hype. It has been anotherRead More
Local business openings and closings to know
Plus, 18 ways to ring in the new year from Phoenixville to Kennett Square.
Knights take out frustrations on Sharks, 7-2
A five-goal first period set the tone for a rout that ended Vegas' three-game losing streak.
Which Mid City Mall businesses are closing? What we know
Mid City Mall went on the market in 2024, according to previous reporting by The Courier Journal.
After 70 years of business, Circle Furniture is closing its doors
On Tuesday morning, employees received an email confirming they’re being laid off.
What voters say they want for Christmas
Political opposites are closing 2025 as they did 2024: on each side of America’s Donald Trump divide. But CNN’s “All Over the Map” survey did provide several interesting takeaways. Some may be instructive about the midterm election climate, at least at this beginning stage.
Nine mental-health tips for a happier 2026
Regardless of any resolutions you may have for 2026, one thing is for sure: Everyone wants to have a happy new year.While losing weight or saving money may be great goals, the most straightforward path to happiness is caring for your mental and emotional health. A robust body of research shows that simple cognitive and behavioral strategies can reliably boost happiness and reduce stress – and they’re generally free and accessible to all.These strategies don’t have to be super time-consuming, but they do require intention: They only work if you do them.Here, psychologist Valentina Ogaryan, PhD, clinical director of the Simms/Mann UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology, shares her top tips for cultivating more calm, centeredness and happiness in the new year (or anytime):Make time for playPlay isn’t just for kids, and it’s far from frivolous. The National Institute for Play says engaging in silliness, fun and just-for-pleasure activities reduces stress and increases optimism and resilience. A recent review also found that play improves mental health.“Adults can benefit from play as much as children,” Dr. Ogaryan says, “not just as a reward, but something that helps regulate.”So go ahead and dance with your dog, build something with Legos, tell a joke, sing karaoke or do anything else that feels like fun. Don’t worry about being productive, just enjoy yourself. And, if you can, opt for more analog play, Dr. Ogaryan suggests, as a respite from our ever-more-digital world. Move your bodyWhether you dance, ski, do yoga, play pickleball, ride a bike, roller-skate, hike or lift weights, physical movement benefits overall happiness and well-being. A 2018 review study of more than 1.2 million adults in the U.S. found that doing any kind of exercise was “significantly and meaningfully associated” with better self-reported mental health.The sweet spot was 45 minutes of movement three to five times a week, but even short bursts of physical activity can boost brain health, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.“Movement helps support mood and regulate the nervous system,” Dr. Ogaryan says.Plus: exercise can improve sleep quality, and sleep is essential for mental health.Prioritize sleep“Sleep plays a major role in managing stress,” Dr. Ogaryan says. Research shows that lack of sufficient sleep increases the risk of various diseases, including depression.While stress can interfere with sleep, practicing good sleep hygiene can make logging ZZ’s easier. That means maintaining a consistent bedtime; keeping the bedroom cool, dark and quiet; and avoiding social media, news and stimulating shows before bed.Consume lessWe live in a consumer culture, inundated by endless streams of content and advertising everywhere we go, which makes it easy to get overstimulated.“Something really helpful for stress reduction is to simply consume less,” Dr. Ogaryan says – less news, less social media, less information, less noise, less screen time. “It’s about reducing the input,” she says.Consider setting a maximum number of news articles per day, for example, or a time limit on scrolling. Maybe even go device free for an afternoon or a whole day.Practice present-moment awarenessWith so much coming at us all the time, focusing on the here and now can make life feel more manageable, Dr. Ogaryan says: “When everything feels super overwhelming, when everything feels larger than life, let’s make our world a little bit smaller for that moment in time.”She suggests taking things one day, or even one hour, at a time. Ask yourself: What’s my next right action? Release the need to know how everything turns out and liberate yourself from having to handle everything right now. Let the future take care of itself and just focus on the current moment. Then the next one. Have a daily anchorFrom work to the daily commute to family and life responsibilities, our days can feel jam-packed. Dr. Ogaryan recommends creating a centering daily anchor that can fit into even the busiest day.Maybe it’s a 10-minute walk during your lunch break or mindfully enjoying your coffee in the morning. Let your anchor adapt to your needs each day, she says, but be intentional about using that time to ground yourself and calm your nervous system. You might even say to yourself, “I choose this walk to help me become centered,” or “My day already feels stressful, so I’m going to take the next 10 minutes to enjoy this cup of coffee, feel the warm mug in my hand and just be present.” Having an anchor won’t erase the busy-ness from your day, but it will allow you to approach it more calmly.Be kind to yourselfMost of us have a harsh inner critic in our heads who works overtime. But that critical voice only increases our stress, triggering the same fight-or-flight response as caustic words from another person.To feel happier, we need to replace that inner critic with a kinder, more compassionate voice, Dr. Ogaryan says. Studies show that self-compassion is a source of eudaimonic happiness – the kind of happiness associated with purpose and meaning in life.While our knee-jerk reaction may be to self-criticize – “How could you let it get to this point? You didn’t manage your time well and now the project is going to be late. You’re so inept.” – we fare better mentally by treating ourselves with kindness, like we would a friend. That might sound like, “You’ve got a lot on your plate, but you are capable and you’ll get it done. I believe in you.”We may think that speaking kindly to ourselves means letting ourselves off the hook, so we end up becoming lazy do-nothings. But research shows the opposite: People who are self-compassionate are more likely to try harder in the face of failure and ultimately reach their goals.You can thank your inner critic for its good intentions, but resolve to talk to yourself in a kind, compassionate voice.Connect with othersHumans are social animals built for connection. Stress can be isolating and cause us to withdraw, but connecting with others is a salve for the psyche, Dr. Ogaryan says.“We know that not all relationships are always easy, but if we can think about intentional, nourishing connection – even in really small doses – it could really help center us,” she says.Take a moment to laugh with your colleagues, hug your pet, have a conversation with a friend or smile at the barista making your coffee. A study found that even tiny interactions with casual acquaintances and strangers decreases loneliness and improves happiness and well-being.Seek supportIf you try these practices and happiness remains elusive, or if you can’t access the wherewithal to follow these tips, seek support from your physician or a therapist. Mental health conditions are among the most common health issues in the U.S. and around the world – more prevalent than diabetes or heart disease. One in five people in the U.S. experiences a mental illness each year, with depression and anxiety the most common, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.“We can all think about these tips,” Dr. Ogaryan says. “But it’s important to recognize if you’ve done everything you can and you’re still really struggling, it’s really important to seek help.”
‘It breaks our heart’: These 30 business locations across Pa. are closing
The businesses on the list are located in 12 counties.
SF Sunset businesses rally after 40-hour PG&E outage coincides with winter solstice celebration
"Without power, how can you survive?" Some Sunset District businesses reported losing $40,000 - 60,000 as they had to empty out large inventory for Sunday's Winter Solstice celebration.
10 Major Business Openings, Closings, Developments For South Jersey In 2025
Smaller establishments closed, bigger names took root, and signs of the changing political and economic landscapes were visible throughout.
“Losing the Console Race by Miles”: Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT) Ticks Up as the Console Wars Gain a Bit of Clarity
Things are not good right now for tech giant Microsoft ($MSFT) on the gaming front. It has been systematically losing ground to chief rival Sony ($SONY) for the las...
Bookman: Republicans are fighting a losing battle on health care
In politics, as in war, victory often depends on your choice of battlefield. Here in Georgia, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff has chosen health care and the economy as the grounds on which he will defend his Senate seat in next year’s election. His Republican opponents have chosen loyalty to Donald Trump and, I guess, “wokeness.” […]
Medicaid Health Plans Step Up Outreach Efforts Ahead of GOP Changes
Even as President Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers say the One Big Beautiful Bill Act targets waste, fraud, and abuse, Medicaid health plans are hosting events across the U.S. to prevent low-income families from losing health insurance and food benefits next year.
As Mike Tomlin extends 19-year streak without losing season, do Steelers need Aaron Rodgers to be great?
West Hartford Business Buzz: December 22, 2025 - We-Ha
A round-up of openings, closings, and other news about West Hartford businesses. Business Buzz is sponsored by NBT Bank, and we are very thankful for their support! By Ronni Newton It's rare for me to be breathing a sigh of relief with just days left before Christmas, but last week was so
NJ family hobby shop to close after more than 40 years in business
"All good things must come to an end," said the owners of AAA Hobbies and Crafts, a family business that dates back to a basement in the 1950s.
Trump’s Assault On Health Care, Seen From a Country That Does Health Care Better
Japan is a showcase for universal health care, and what we’re losing in GOP attacks on the Affordable Care Act.
Prisco's Week 16 NFL picks: Patriots vs. Ravens prediction and best bets
Pete Prisco reveals all of his Week 16 picks, including New England losing its second straight game.
Most fear sports betting damaging games’ integrity: Poll
A growing number of U.S. adults are losing trust in pro and college sports, thanks to the proliferation of online gambling and sports wagering options, according to a new survey. The NBC News Decis…
These Bexar County businesses were affected by layoffs in 2025
Layoffs affected numerous companies in Bexar County throughout 2025, with hundreds of people losing their jobs.
News Analysis: Trump's math problem: Rising prices, falling approval ratings
Rising prices have given President Trump a major political problem: Many of the voters who backed him last year are losing faith.
Coming off historic win, Nets fall to Heat 106-95
Norman Powell scored 24 points, Kel’el Ware had 22 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks, and the Miami Heat snapped a five-game losing streak with a 106-95 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night.
Finally off the schneid, Oregon squares off with Portland
Oregon looks to build off the momentum of ending a five-game losing streak last time out when it hosts Portland on Wednesday night in Eugene, Ore.
Tennessee crushes Louisville 83-62
Tennessee delivered just what the doctor ordered to end their losing streak, dismantling the #11 Louisville Cardinals 83-62 inside the Food City Center. Ja’Kobi Gillespie led all scorers with 23 points, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds, going a perfect 10-10 from the free throw line. Nate Ament had 13 points and 7 rebounds, and Jaylen […]
US added 64K jobs in November after losing 105K in October, delayed report shows
The Labor Department released the highly anticipated November jobs report which showed the U.S. economy added jobs despite uncertainty over inflation.
WHO highlights health risks and opportunities in the global waste crisis
A new World Health Organization (WHO) report, Throwing away our health: the impacts of solid waste on human health – evidence, knowledge gaps and health sector responses, warns that poorly managed solid waste is driving a public health crisis and calls for urgent action to protect people and the environments they live in.Globally, the volume of municipal solid waste is growing at an unprecedented rate. Yet, many countries still lack the systems and resources to manage this waste safely. “Solid waste reflects how our societies produce and consume, and how we treat people and the environment in the process,” said Dr Ruediger Krech, Director a.i., Department of Environment, Climate Change, One Health & Migration at the World Health Organization. “If we continue to treat waste as an afterthought, we will lock in avoidable disease, climate pollution and deep social inequities. This report is a clear call to put health and equity at the centre of how we design, manage and ultimately reduce waste.”The report summarizes evidence on how solid waste – especially municipal solid waste – affects health through polluted air, water, soil and food. When waste is not collected, or is dumped, burned or not poorly treated, it can release hazardous chemicals, contaminate drinking-water sources and create breeding grounds for insects and rodents.Communities underserved by waste management services, those living near dumpsites and poorly managed landfills and incinerators, children and pregnant women, as well as waste workers – particularly those working informally – face the greatest risks. For the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) community, the report underlines that safe management of municipal and health care waste is integral to safely managed, climate-resilient systems.A large share of municipal solid waste is still not collected or is disposed of in uncontrolled conditions, including open dumpsites and open burning. These practices damage ecosystems, contribute to climate change and undermine efforts to build healthy cities. When waste is properly managed, however, it can become a resource – generating energy and creating green jobs. The report calls for a coordinated, multisectoral response grounded in the waste hierarchy: preventing waste where possible, then reducing, reusing and recycling, with safe recovery and disposal.Key actions for governments and partners include reducing waste generation at source; expanding affordable and reliable waste collection services, especially in underserved communities; improving control at recovery and disposal facilities; and eliminating open dumping and burning, including hazardous waste. The new report identifies a central role for the health sector in addressing solid waste as a public health threat. The health sector can prevent and minimize health-care waste at source, improve segregation and safe treatment, invest in cleaner climate-resilient technologies, and advocate for health-protective policies and standards. The report also encourages more surveillance, research and biomonitoring to strengthen the evidence base, and promotes social protection and inclusion of informal waste workers.“This report gives countries and health authorities a very practical agenda,” said Mr Bruce Gordon, Head, Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Unit, WHO. “Health ministries can start now by ensuring safe management of health-care waste, developing strong occupational health programmes for waste workers, and working with municipalities to reduce health risks from solid waste by closing open dumps and burn sites and gradually improving towards safe services. These concrete steps save lives today and will make cities cleaner and healthier in the future.
5 business openings + 1 closing in North Alabama
🚀 OPENINGS IN HSV: Check out these 5 businesses coming + 1 heading out in Huntsville.
What does losing Harris Democratic Party endorsement mean for John Whitmire?
Harris County Democratic Party officials argue that today’s political climate will force them to be more outspoken in future races — even the nonpartisan ones.
'Immersive enteratainment experience' at suburban mall closing after less than a year
The immersive experience, from Sony Motion Pictures, opened to the public at Oakbrook Center Mall in January of 2024.
National Avenue businesses losing customers to construction
A major reconstruction project hasn't even begun, but work moving underground utilities has made access to parking and some businesses difficult.
Fremantle Closes ‘Don’t Pick Up The Phone’ Maker Wag Entertainment’s Production Arm
Fremantle is closing Wag Entertainment and Steven Green is exiting the Asacha-owned 'Don't Pick Up The Phone' producer.
Chelsea 2-0 Everton
We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League defeat at Chelsea. Here are some of your comments: Jack: As David Moyes has already said, not a bad performance but no real goal threat. Jack Grealish looked a bit off and losing Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was s big blow.
Pelicans 114, Bulls 104: No winning streak for Chicago
Coming off the win against the Charlotte Hornets that snapped a seven-game losing streak, the Bulls were back on the wrong side of the win column, losing 114-104 to the New...
SNOW FOX | Business, childcare and church closings/delays for Monday, Dec. 15, 2025
This list will be updated frequently.
LIST: School, business closings and delays for Dec. 15, 2025
Wintry weather is impacting most of our viewing area and with that comes delays and closings.
Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia after losing the Heisman to Fernando Mendoza: 'F-all the voters'
Live updates: Eagles look to snap 3-game losing skid against Raiders
Follow along for live updates as Jalen Hurts and the Eagles look to snap a three-game losing skid against the Raiders.
Former Starbucks To Be Demolished, Replaced With New Bank: CT Business News
Longtime Business Closes / CT's Top Restaurants, Chefs Of 2025 / Downtown Landmark Celebrates 50 Years / Stop & Shop Closing Store & More...
Pelicans, Bulls battling to build winning streak
The Chicago Bulls host the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday night in a matchup of teams that just ended their seven-game losing streaks.
LaNorris Sellers nearing return to South Carolina as top QB bypasses transfer portal
The Gamecocks are closing in on a result that could stabilize the program and alter the transfer quarterback market
On 23rd Street, ethnic restaurants are losing a lot of business, as ICE fears keep diners home
On 23rd Street in Richmond, ethnic restaurants are losing a lot of business, as ICE fears keep diners home.
Bulls 129, Hornets 126: Losing streak ends at seven games
With four days off to get back in the lab, the Bulls finally ended their seven-game losing streak with a 129-126 win against the Charlotte Hornets. Injuries aren’t an excuse for...
Franklin restaurant to close after nearly 30 years of business
Barbara’s Home Cookin' shared in a Facebook post that it would be permanently closing on December 31.
Small Business Administration offices in Palisades, Eaton fire zones to close next week
The Small Business Administration is preparing to close its two Los Angeles area offices, but those impacted by the January wildfires can still get help.
SNOW FOX | Business, childcare and church closings/delays for Friday, Dec. 12, 2025
This list will be updated frequently.
Metro Atlanta doctor warns health insurance premiums could spike 800%, leaving thousands at risk of losing coverage
A metro Atlanta physician says her monthly insurance bill is set to jump from $100 to $800 — and she fears millions of Americans may soon face the same impossible choice.
Two Spenard businesses are shutting their doors
Two Spenard businesses announce they are closing their doors, they say the economy is impacting them both
Anderson Hay CEO says company isn’t closing after Ellensburg business files for bankruptcy
Anderson Hay Enterprise, Inc. of Ellensburg has filed for bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Washington.
The Game Awards are losing their luster
A lot of flash concealing increasingly shrinking substance.
No one is safe from the world’s next superbugs. Is this new science the solution?
Old antibiotics are losing effectiveness — and new ones aren’t being discovered fast enough. Our best hope to save lives may be AI.
Report says states along northern border losing business because of White House policies
A report released Wednesday by congressional Democrats says states along the Canadian border are losing business because of President Donald Trump's policies, including tariffs.
A Democrat wins Miami mayor’s race for the first time in nearly 30 years
Democrat Eileen Higgins won the Miami mayor’s race on Tuesday, defeating a Republican endorsed by President Donald Trump to end her party’s nearly three-decade losing streak and give Democrats a boost in one of the last electoral battles ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Small-business owners are losing confidence
The Chamber of Commerce finds inflation the biggest challenge for small business.
Teachers Make Closing Push For Affordable Health Care
Over 100 New Haven public school teachers and supporters showed up to Monday's Board of Education meeting to back the teachers union's push for the district to lower educators' healthcare costs -- by moving teachers onto a state health insurance plan.
Netflix CEOs: ‘We’re Super-Confident’ of Closing Warner Bros. Discovery Deal, Say Merger Will ‘Protect Jobs in Entertainment Industry’
Netflix's co-CEOs projected confidence about closing Netflix's takeover of Warner Bros. and HBO Max despite Paramount's hostile bid for the studio.
Another restaurant in beleaguered San Francisco mall closing
Shake Shack closes San Francisco Westfield location Dec. 14, affecting 26 workers as new mall owners force all tenants out of struggling downtown property.
LIST: School, business closings and delays for Dec. 7, 2025
Wintry weather is impacting most of our viewing area and with that comes delays and closings.
An 88-year-old worked 5 days a week at a supermarket. Then strangers raised almost $2 million so he could finally retire.
The internet rallied behind 88-year-old Ed Bambas, who has been working at a supermarket after losing his pension from General Motors.
Angst Turns to Anger in Hollywood as Netflix Hooks Warner Bros.
Much of the entertainment capital fears that Netflix’s deal will lead to more job losses and theater closings and fewer boundary-pushing movies.
Golden State plays Cleveland, aims to end road skid
Golden State comes into a matchup with Cleveland after losing three road games in a row
UK University Health Pharmacy closing Dec. 19
Patients are able to transfer their prescriptions to another UK Retail Pharmacy location through an online form.
Winter Meetings could define the Tigers’ future with Tarik Skubal
Detroit must decide whether to build around Skubal or risk losing its window.
Report says iPhone Air is losing its resale value at a record pace
The 1TB iPhone Air currently holds the worst resale value of any iPhone since 2022. The iPhone Air is shaping up to be a sales flop, and that’s also...
CNBC Sport: U.S. men’s soccer is sick of losing the World Cup — and now it has a plan
The 2026 World Cup is coming to the U.S., Mexico and Canada. The draw for the World Cup will be held Friday in Washington, D.C., sorting 48 teams into groups.
For many contractors, losing ACA subsidies means losing health care
The GOP's unprecedented premium hikes put chronically ill workers—especially freelancers—in peril.
New Hampshire faces Merrimack, seeks to stop 3-game skid
New Hampshire will try to stop its three-game losing streak when the Wildcats take on Merrimack
Zeroday Brewing Co. to shut down flagship Taproom, adding to business closures in Harrisburg
Zeroday Brewing Co. plans to shutter its flagship taproom and restaurant, dealing another blow to Harrisburg’s once-vibrant dining and nightlife scene. On Wednesday evening, co-founder Theo Armstrong said that he and his partners made “the difficult decision” to close the location at 925 N. 3rd St. The last day will be Sunday, Dec. 28. “Closing […]
Longtime Garner business, Little Details Boutique, closing 'due to tariffs,' smaller margins
Little Details Boutique has been a staple in the Garner community for 13 years.
Ohio State OC Brian Hartline to take USF job: Buckeyes losing top recruiter
Ryan Day will be looking for a new Ohio State offensive coordinator once again
Amy Schumer dropped 50 pounds to battle disease that 'can kill you' if untreated
Comedian Amy Schumer opens up about her health journey, Cushing syndrome recovery, and using Mounjaro medication after losing 50 pounds for her wellbeing.
Mason restaurant closing after years of business citing rent hikes
A restaurant in Mason, Ohio is closing its doors after more than a decade of business, citing rent hikes.
Letters to the Editor: As production moves overseas, it’s American entertainment workers who suffer
'As with any business that goes to other countries, people here start losing their incomes and life possibilities. This leads to a downward spiral of any household, community, town, city or state now missing spending potential and tax benefits,' writes an L.A. Times reader.
LIST: School, business closings and delays for Dec. 2, 2025
Wintry weather is impacting most of our viewing area and with that comes delays and closings.
Trending Timberwolves look to extend Pelicans' losing ways
The Minnesota Timberwolves' trip to New Orleans to face the Pelicans on Tuesday looks like a mismatch on paper.
Raptors, Trail Blazers plan to learn from respective losing streaks
The Toronto Raptors aim to regain their winning touch during a five-game homestand that starts Tuesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.
South Shore Health resolves contract dispute that could have affected 2,000 patients
Patients had faced losing access to their doctors starting in January.
Rams upset by Panthers; Chargers win, but Justin Herbert is injured
The Rams are no longer the top seed in the NFC after losing, while the Chargers win, but Justin Herbert breaks his left hand.
Science must move from materialism to mystery
Theoretical physicist and neuroscientist Àlex Gómez-Marín argues that modern science has become trapped in a framework that mistakes matter for the whole of reality. In this wide-ranging interview, Gómez-Marín challenges the foundations of materialism, defends the scientific study of near-death experiences, and calls for a new type of science grounded in mystery and a renewed sense of the sacred. He suggests that abandoning materialism could open the door to a deeper understanding of consciousness, death, and the purpose of human existence. Simon Custer: You are both a theoretical physicist and a neuroscientist, and you have also been fiercely critical of materialist theories of mind and consciousness. What do you think the ultimate nature of reality is?Àlex Gómez-Marín: I don't know what the ultimate nature of reality is, but what I try to first assess is whether the stories that they [mainstream science] have told us about it are right, or maybe whether there are other alternatives. That's why I've been a fierce critic of materialism. As a scientist, I realized that they had sold us this idea that to be a good scientist you also had to subscribe to many other -isms, like materialism, reductionism, and even secularism. And so first I think one needs to unmount these -isms, and then, as is happening today in consciousness studies, we have a huge landscape where there isn't only one game in town, the idea that matter is the only thing that really exists. But because we are studying the hard problem of consciousness, it may be the case that other views of reality, like idealism, or even dualism, or other theories like dual aspect monism... these are philosophical ideas that now, I think, have room in science to be taken seriously. How does something like materialism relate to dualism or idealism? What is materialism in the first place?Well, materialism is the philosophical position that matter is the only really ‘real’ thing in the universe. And I think that worked kind of well because science started 400 years ago and Galileo made that split, I call it the foundational wound. It was a great business move.He said, let's start doing science on that portion of reality that lends itself more easily to mathematization and measurement. So, for some reason, the solidity of this table or the movement of planets lend themselves very well to this foundational idea of science. But as time went on, 400 years later, we realized that we had forgotten the other side, which is what really matters.What really matters is pain, is love, is feelings, sensation, consciousness, which is very hard to define, but very intimate. We all know what it is. It's that thing that disappears when we go into deep sleep and comes back in the morning. SUGGESTED VIEWING On the edges of knowledge With Michael Shermer, Rupert Sheldrake, Güneş Taylor It's what it is like to be, as Nagel said. It's the feeling of being alive. So, materialism is good to study certain things, but then when it ossifies into this ideology and then is dressed like science, now it's preventing us from understanding these key questions that are really that everybody wants to know.Why are we here? Why do we feel reality? Where do we go when we die? And so we need other ways. We need pluralism. I'm only asking for having more options on the table and taking them seriously. Why does materialism fail to explain consciousness? For example, if you were to lobotomize me, I would not be a functional human being. What do you say to someone who might think that materialism adequately explains the mind?Well, here we could speak about different things. We could talk about physics or about neuroscience. I happen to have training with both.For instance, for neuroscientists, 99% of them, I'm not included in that portion, believe that the brain can only be a productive organ. It's an organ that somehow, somewhere, consciousness emerges. It's like a lamp. And then something happens, magic happens, and then consciousness emerges.That's the position you need to be if you're a materialist because if the only really ‘real’ thing is matter, then you need to say, just give us some more time and money and we'll figure out how mind emerges or is produced from matter. There are many philosophically sophisticated ways of criticizing this.Now there's another option, which is the brain as a permissive organ. This was said by William James more than 100 years ago.Now then the brain wouldn't be like this machine, like for instance, a heat engine whose smoke is consciousness, which is what we would have in the first big model, the productive model. But in the permissive model, the brain would be a kind of a filter. And so the brain would still have a very important role in consciousness, but it wouldn't be a productive role.It would be permissive, much like a filter or much like a prism which would receive light. And - I'm speaking metaphorically - it would receive the light of the mind and then it could reflect it and refract it.Now, with these two big options on the table, I think we can make progress into what I call the edges of consciousness, which are all these experiences, weird experiences that many people have, but we don't talk about enough, like near-death experiences, precognitive dreams, synchronicities. These experiences are very important for humans and they have a place in the permissive hypothesis and they are literally impossible in the productive hypothesis. So that's yet one more reason to explore alternatives to materialism. There may be anecdotal evidence for near-death experiences, but is there robust evidence that would be accepted by the majority of scientists who subscribe to the scientific method?Sure. And the plural of anecdotes, someone said, is data.And there's a lot of data. Actually, this year is the 50th anniversary, half a century, since Dr. Raymond Moody realized that we have two ears and one mouth and started listening to what his patients had to say about their experiences while they were clinically dead.The heart had stopped, breathing had stopped in these patients. These patients would come back and tell him these amazing stories that some people may say are hallucinations, but for the patients were hyper-real, like seeing light at the end of the tunnels, seeing deceased family members waiting for them, feeling bliss.___I would say the evidence suggests that the mind can survive the death of activity of the brain.___And so he and others started taking them seriously and writing their accounts down. And then you can do a science based on that material of experience that people have. Now, on the more objective side, more recently people have started to measure what's going on in the brain when people are clinically dead and brought back. This has opened a proper field of study, which is near-death studies.Evidence is a difficult word, because sometimes people think that when you say evidence, this is just the final proof. Evidence is like in a jury. You bring testimony, you bring pieces of data that point in one direction or another.I would say the evidence suggests that the mind can survive the death of activity of the brain. When brains are broken or shut off, there can still be mind going on. And that's revolutionary.That would entail that when we die, it's not game over, which, by the way, is the thesis of materialism. If consciousness survives, materialism dies. It's game over for materialism if something of us continues after we die. Do you think that there is mental continuity after death?Well, I think so, and I believe so, and I could also say I may have experienced it myself, because four years ago I had a near-death experience. I was in the hospital, I lost a lot of blood, and I saw those beings at the end of the tunnel, three beings, and there was yellow light. I was in a well, I was looking upwards, and I hadn't read about NDEs by then, but when I came back from this experience, I decided I would try to integrate this also in my professional life. Not just my personal life, of course, but my professional life as a physicist and as a neuroscientist. So I may have had the experience of glimpses of what an afterlife would be, and I'm not ashamed to say it in this way, and then one can do science of it, and then one can do philosophy of it.One can think about what -isms we were discussing, what views on reality would allow those experiences to be really ‘real,’ as opposed to, well, poor guy, the brain was kind of broken, it must have been a hallucination. Do you have a view about whether individuality or “the ego” persists after death, or whether we sort of merge into some sort of cosmic consciousness instead?I don't know, but my view would be along those lines you're suggesting. I think we could speak about a kind of universal mind, and then the problem is not how we emerge from matter, but how we fragment from a more holistic consciousness into these individual eddies and then when we die, this kind of dissipates.But I'm not sure. For instance, idealism would promote that view, but then what would survive of us after these eddies just vanish and become again the big Consciousness, I'm not sure what that would be. I don't know for sure, but I would tell you I believe something of us survives.And there are other lines of research, not just near-death experience, that can address this really hard question of survival. For instance, there are children who remember previous lives. This was studied by Ian Stevenson at the University of Virginia for more than 50 years.___Research takes place within a selection mechanism that also sometimes reinforces things that are not very scientific.___It's amazing research. He went all over the world, especially in the East, and collected all these case studies, all these stories. In plural, these were data of kids, very young age, who would describe up to 40 items that then he could go and verify.There was no internet. There was really no way the kid could know. Why would the kid say that when I was living in this other body and I was a woman and that's how my house would look like or that's how I would die, right? Again, there is evidence, not proof, but there's evidence not only that something weird and interesting is happening as we cross the threshold, but also when we come back to this life.Scientists should not be afraid of studying this, but they are because there's stigma. There's usually stigma upon the enigma, and this is so unfortunate. And one of the reasons is because of the ideology of materialism, because those things cannot be possible. What is wrong with the politics of science such that they have generated this stigma?So many things. Science is a human activity to begin with.So it falls prey to all our passions and ego and greed. That's one thing. Science is a job for the good and for the bad.You need to get a salary. You need to get grants. Research takes place within a selection mechanism that also sometimes reinforces things that are not very scientific.And then, we didn't have time to unpack this, but science for many years become entangled, as I was suggesting before, to other -isms, materialism, secularism. So anything that smells like the afterlife, people may think has to do with God, and then they freak out.Anything that suggests that there's something about the mind that may not need a physical material substrate to exist, it smells like non-materialism. So, all these -isms are ideologically blocking that kind of research, and then there are all these sociopolitical constraints as to what should be studied and what shouldn't be studied.I call it the backstage of science. Sometimes we scientists or science communicators seem to speak as if the data is the only thing that matters. We say, well, data and theory.But then there's a third leg of this stool, which is all the politics that goes behind the scenes. And we often don't speak about this, and it's quite vicious and petty, and it's very real. Why is materialism so attractive to most scientists?Well, an easy answer is because we've grown up with it.It's what the educational system promotes, and that's what you hear when you go to university. So it's like growing in a culture. It feels like the air in which you breathe.So it's very hard to begin with to detect, well, maybe there's another alternative. Maybe there are other ways of doing science, other environments in which one could do science. That's one reason.And other reasons maybe are more profound, and I'm not qualified to explain them, but I could say, looking at this 400-year history of science, since it started around 1623 with Galileo's book The Assayer, that science went and coupled with all what's going on in the West.And so the fall of religion, you could say, and science presented us this new alternative that then could be coupled very well with other -isms, and this idea of growth, and then science losing its good twin brother, which was philosophy. There's a whole natural history of science starting as philosophy, kind of emancipating or breaking out from philosophy, and then marrying technology, and then marrying other social systems.From that point of view, materialism is a very convenient idea to propose. There were attempts, like the German idealists tried to do a more romantic science. But no, the idea prevailed, like Francis Bacon said: You should pursue nature through all her corners, he said, and make her spill her secrets.Our attitude towards nature in the science that dominates is very much reflecting how we treat nature in our society, in our culture, like a resource to extract secrets by force and then dominate it. How is materialism related to the notions of growth and progress? What's wrong with having a productive citizenry?This is another very interesting and very difficult question to answer.But there's this recent book coming out by Paul Kingsnorth. In it, he explains this idea of the machine and this idea of progress. And this, again, this conflation of more is better, of we need to go forward always, and convincing us that the way to do that is to continually extract more from nature. But because we don't have the religious context anymore, because God is dead, then what do we have? We have what we can do as humans with our own gadgets.It's kind of the story of the Promethean fire. We will just build anything to make ourselves God.A good example today is transhumanism. Transhumanism is this pseudo-religion dressed in technoscientific language whose goal is very religious. They promise immortality, they promise redemption, they promise transformation of the entire natural world, but it's done by human means through technology. Are you suggesting that we can't have ethics without religion?Well, we should have ethics with or without religion. That's another pruning that has happened in science. We say, forget about aesthetics, although some physicists still think that beautiful means probably true, and forget about politics. We pretend there's no backstage of science, and even let's forget about ethics.___Science needs to be in the service of mankind.___Scientists, when they become more like engineers, they're just thinking how to make things work so that they can go to the moon, go to Mars, make machines that think, but they don't think whether that's a good idea.And also consider metaphysics. Many scientists for a long time pretended, and maybe that comes from the stream of positivisms, that really one doesn't need metaphysics at all, except that materialism is always the metaphysics running the system.You see, it's not just ethics. It's the pruning of all of these, you could say, five main legs of philosophy that just makes a kind of unconscious science, a science that doesn't really know what it's doing. It's doing it very well locally, but it just doesn't know what it's doing globally. Do you think science has to have an ultimate vision and purpose behind it for it to be effective or for it to be meaningful and transformative?Yes, a way I would say that is that science needs to be in the service of mankind. And it hasn't been that. And we can see it through, you know, when we discovered the secrets of the atom, and all of a sudden, the Manhattan Project, and then we create nuclear weapons.And now we're trying to crack how machines may think, and now we're creating this mess, right? So science needs to be in service of mankind, not in service of a few ideas that maybe want to make more money or just dominate upon nature. What about planes, trains, automobiles, and modern medicine? Hasn't science served mankind by helping us develop those technologies?Yes and no. I see where you're going, and it's fair.I came here by plane, and it's a blessing. When I almost died, the surgeons did their job, and they saved my life. But these two forced choices between Luddites and Silicon Valley types, I think, of course, it's a false dichotomy.Progress, in a way, it's good, but we often don't speak about the dark side of the moon. We say the great things that progress has brought, and we don't speak about the disasters, the side effects that it has come with, and the same when we promise new technologies. We tend to think that any technology is great, that email is going to save us so much time because we don't need to write letters and send them anymore.Is that true? I spend so many hours a week writing emails. Let's just say there are great things about it and bad things about it. People like Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, for example, argue that we've made moral progress over time because of the Enlightenment. Do you think that's totally wrong-headed?I think he's emphasizing a side of the moon, and he does that very well, and you can find tons of plots where there's a slope going up and say it's great. But I think he should also tell the not-so-friendly story.But if your ideology is just to resist and continue to explain that the Enlightenment is the best thing ever and reason is the best thing ever… this feels to me like you're worshipping these abstractions.I'm very critical of it and also of these, again, science communicators and scientists that say, Oh, science says, in the name of science, experts say. It's like, come on, let's be careful because we can shoot ourselves in the foot by putting forth to the people an image of science that we know is not really true. Recently there's been a resurgence of spirituality and of people who say that they're spiritual but not religious, especially in the United States. If materialism is going away, what is going to fill that gap? Are we going to return to traditional religion? Do you see that being connected with the rise of the political right?I'm not a fortune teller, so I don't know what's going to happen. But, yeah, we could say we're in this post-materialist age and even post-secular age. One cannot come back to the past, but maybe just to contact with the roots is a good idea.What do I mean by that? I think we need to do a science 2.0, a science that says thank you to Galileo and thank you to materialism, but we need to reinvent even a new kind of scientific method. We need to do so in a culture where we realize humans cannot thrive in a vacuum where there's this idea that the sacred has to be removed.Now, how do we do that without bringing in back all the vices of religion? I don't know. I'm from a Catholic country.Here we are in England, so there are differences and interreligious dialogue has always been a challenge. But I think maybe a way of putting it is: after all these conflicts and branchings I was quickly alluding to, science from philosophy and then also from religion, now there's a time of reconciliation perhaps and maybe debates in the proper sense, like exchange of ideas in service of learning and getting into something higher than both poles. We need science to talk to religious people and it's interesting when people say they're spiritual and not religious.I think this is just a way of saying, no, I don't want to go back, I want to go forward. But at the end of the day, religions have offered us practices and grounding that we now desperately need. Everybody can and should just meditate or pray or do whatever they want, but we're in a crisis and it's time for reconciliation. What do you say to critics that say you are merely projecting our need for meaning onto a fundamentally indifferent universe?Yeah, I know that the typical science communicator says something like this. But we're not projecting. Human beings feed on meaning.It's the other way around. If you're a materialist, because the only thing that there is is matter, all that comes next, free will, consciousness, meaning, this is a kind of illusion that we need to explain.They're just craving for meaning, but there isn't really for them. I would also like to remind my materialist friends that for decades, if not centuries, they've said in the name of science, we know that this and this and this doesn't really exist. I think now they sense they're forced to say, well, actually, we don't know. We've been saying, for instance, that there's nothing after you die, and now probably they need to admit that they don't know the answer.___We need to do a science 2.0, a science that says thank you to Galileo and thank you to materialism, but we need to reinvent even a new kind of scientific method.___So it's a moment to open up possibilities and also to gently but fiercely critique these claims that I think harm society. If you say in the name of science, get on with it, when your father dies, you'll never see him again. Well, what the F do you know about it? You haven't studied the literature, you haven't had any of those experiences, and basically what you're doing is you're just doing marketing on ideology. This needs to stop. Do you think that it's scarier for some people to entertain the thought that there might be life after death, compared to a materialist worldview where you just die, given that there might be consequences for unsavory behaviour?Well, death and dying is scary. It's maybe the ultimate ending. It's a limit on life, and when we're in this conquest mode, we don't like limits.And it also has, there's a shockwave backwards, so I think if you change your notion of what death is or may be, you live differently. It also has consequences, as you're saying, for the future because this is not our only goal here and we come back in whatever form. And again, different religions would say different things. I the East, they are more happy with the idea of reincarnation, and here in the West, there are other preferences. But in any case, it changes how we live, and that's really what matters.It's not about just projecting or imagining what we'll be after, but how we live now and also how we treat those who are dying. So it goes from the individual to the families, to the hospitals.Now in the near-death research I do, this has ramifications at all these levels, all the way to society.But our society is thanatophobic. It has a phobia of death. We don't want to hear about death, and this is another thing we need to put on the table and be willing to talk about it. Do you think that we might get closer to answering ultimate questions like why is there anything at all if we jettison materialism?That’s an excellent question, Simon. Two things: we should stop treating reality, I believe, as a great sudoku, as an enigma, as something that with intelligence, money, and time that we will crack and instead treat reality more like a mystery. And what you do for in front of a mystery is not to be the clever guy in a class and say “I’ll solve you” but more like “I will bow and you will transform me.”I know this sounds a bit like a scientist speaking like a mystic. But I think this reorientation is needed. In the end, we won’t crack the big questions, but they will transform us. If we free ourselves from this prison of materialism, the way we will explore these questions will be freer, more creative, and in service of mankind. Do you think exploring mystery is the reason why we are here?I think we are here because, and this pseudo-theological argument I’m making off the cuff, But the One, the Absolute, if there is such a thing, had everything except limitation. We are that absolute experiencing that contingency. It’s like an act of divine proprioception. It’s a wonderful adventure, it’s just incredible to be alive. Perhaps we have forgotten why we are here and the whole point is to experience the flesh.Let me end by saying this. I criticize materialism harshly. I bang on this dead horse, because I think it’s dead. But matter is a great mystery. So maybe my invitation is as follows: hey materialist friends, come here, let’s work on materialism 2.0! Consciousness is a mystery, but matter is also a mystery. The fact that we can have an intersubjective experience consensus, the fact that we can apply mathematics, that we can measure things... the physical world we take for granted, but it is a great mystery too.Maybe that’s related to your last question: why are we here? Why did spirit decide to incarnate? Being in the flesh may be a great thing if spirit decided to do so.Àlex Gómez-Marín, thank you very much.My pleasure.
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