Tag: Miami

Trump Highlights Bright Spots Of US Economy Under His Leadership

Trump Highlights Bright Spots Of US Economy Under His Leadership

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During his speech at a major business forum held in Miami, Florida, US President highlighted bright spots of the national economy that were realized during his administration this year, according to a news report by Breitbart. It should be remembered that Trump was re-elected last year and there was series of economic hardships (including the worst inflation in decades) during the four years of failed US President Joe Biden.

To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from Breitbart’s news report. Some parts in boldface…

President Donald Trump touted economic bright spots–including rising wages, lowering costs of goods, and falling interest rates–during his speech at the American Business Forum in Miami, Florida, on Wednesday.

Trump noted that under his presidency, miner wages have risen by an average of almost $5,000, construction worker wages have climbed by $2,200, and factory worker wages are up $1,300.

While wages are up, prices on many key goods are falling. Trump touted Walmart’s announcement that the average Thanksgiving Dinner will see a substantial drop this year. As Breitbart News reported late last month, Walmart’s bundle to feed 10 on Thanksgiving will run just under $40, averaging about $4 per person.

This is down from the average of $7 per person under last year’s pricing, when President Joe Biden was commander-in-chief on the heels of the 40-year-high inflation his and Democrat lawmakers’ economic policies brought upon Americans.

Trump also highlighted that egg prices are down 85 percent since March. In comparison, the Biden-Harris administration oversaw a 147 percent increase from the beginning of their administration through August 2024, just months before Trump’s historic election win on November 5, the first anniversary of which was Wednesday.

Other areas of dwindling costs Trump touted included energy prices and the typical new mortgage costs, which have dropped $3,000 this year. Moreover, interest rates are down to the 3.75-4 percent range after a second-quarter point rate cut this year at the end of October, as Breitbart News reported.

Trump touted job statistics as well on Wednesday, noting that 1.9 million more natural-born Americans are employed since he took office, and all new jobs created under him have been through the private sector.

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this development? Do you think the US economy is on the verge of taking off in connection with the many positive economic developments that happened since Trump returned as President? Are Americans becoming better off economically today than four years prior? 

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

Grand Theft Auto VI coming to Xbox Series X|S in 2025

Grand Theft Auto VI coming to Xbox Series X|S in 2025

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It has been more than ten years since the day I first played Grand Theft Auto V (GTAV) on my Xbox 360 and that game was very in-depth and provided loads of fun gameplay. I replayed GTAV on Xbox One and most recently on my Xbox Series X console via Xbox Game Pass (XGP).

Recently, Rockstar Games released the official trailer of the much-awaited new game Grand Theft Auto VI (GTAVI or GTA6 for short) online ahead of schedule (note: someone shamelessly leaked the trailer which compelled the publisher to do an early launch) which attracted many millions of views from fans and gamers on varied platforms online. The new game will be released on Xbox Series X|S consoles sometime in the year 2025. To begin with, watch the official trailer below…

And below is a statement from Rockstar Games founder Sam Houser…

“Grand Theft Auto VI continues our efforts to push the limits of what’s possible in highly immersive, story-driven open-world experiences,” said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. “We’re thrilled to be able to share this new vision with players everywhere.” (source – official press release)

A view of a beach and the buildings of Vice City. Clearly the city is inspired by Miami in real-life.

As expected, the GTA6 official trailer looks really impressive and I would not be surprised that the developers will make the gameplay experience more varied by means of implementing lots of features and play styles. The trailer even showed images of in-game social media which will most likely become a gameplay feature eventually as it will resonate with gamers who mostly spent a lot of years using social media accounts in real life.

In the press release, the fictional Vice City and the state of Leonida were explicitly mentioned. For the newcomers reading this, Vice City was the main setting in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002) and the said city will be getting the modern game presentation and design similar to what happened to Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto IV, and Los Santos in GTAV. Vice City is clearly patterned after the real-life city of Miami in Florida and within the new game are lots of parties (lots of neon colors too), populated beaches, wildlife, desolate locations for exploring and groove-related activities.

We will find out soon enough how detailed a populated in-game beach like this will turn out on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
Interacting with the wildlife in the game’s more isolated environments could resonate nicely with those who played Red Dead Redemption 2 extensively.

Expect Rockstar Games to make adjustments and refinements not only with the core gameplay but also with the way cops and criminals will react to each other. Lastly, it seems that the developers took inspiration from the real-life American crime couple Bonnie and Clyde for the in-game couple that was several times within the game trailer. That being said, the developers are not only staying away from the 3-protagonist formula of GTAV, they are also challenging themselves to create something new and even more compelling with the GTA6 couple for players to experience.

I am also interested to see how Rockstar will design the open-world environments this time. I have never been to Miami but I visited Orlando during my one and only trip to Florida. I noticed how different Florida’s physical surroundings were compared to other states in America I visited, and I noticed in the GTA6 trailer the more desolate locations filled with varied forms of vegetation were inspired by the said state. Oh yes, there were also images of alligators in the trailer which remind me of real-life Florida sightings of the creatures in populated places. I can only imagine how this will add variety to the gameplay and exploration in GTA6. Check out the news videos below…

Grand Theft Auto VI is still far from release and a lot could happen as the release date gets closer. Here is hoping that Rockstar Games will deliver a game that is not only great but also turn out to be truly worth the wait of over a decade. For the Xbox fans reading this, do you think the Xbox Series S version of GTA6 will turn out good? If you already have an Xbox Series S as well as extra money, would you be willing to upgrade by buying the Xbox Series X console for GTA6?

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

A Look Back at UltraForce #5 (1995)

A Look Back at UltraForce #5 (1995)

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Disclaimer: This is my original work with details sourced from reading the comic book and doing personal research. Anyone who wants to use this article, in part or in whole, needs to secure first my permission and agree to cite me as the source and author. Let it be known that any unauthorized use of this article will constrain the author to pursue the remedies under R.A. No. 8293, the Revised Penal Code, and/or all applicable legal actions under the laws of the Philippines.

One of the things I enjoyed best about the UltraForce done by the solid creative team of Gerard Jones and George Perez is the fact that the team’s lesser known characters such as Pixx (the lone minor), Contrary, Ghoul and Topaz are richly layered, highly interesting and engaging members who really stand on their own and don’t get overshadowed by their major teammates (the Ultraverse’s premier lead heroes Hardcase, Prime and Prototype). Of course, the presentation of Pixx, Contrary, Ghoul and Topaz would not have been great had Gerard Jones failed to deliver the solid writing and managing required.

That being said, it’s time to find out more on how balanced the presentation of UltraForce members will be as the conflict with Atalon escalates further in this look back at UltraForce , published in 1995 by Malibu Comics with a story written by Jones and Perez.

The spoileriffic cover.

Early story

The story begins with Ghoul (still in the presence of Atalon and far away from his teammates) having a nightmarish vision of death, chaos, rioting and disasters. He recognizes a certain teammate included in the vision. His personal concern for his teammate grows, and king Atalon notices his distress. Atalon states he has cleared the final obstacles and what he has planned will push through. He intends to use many nuclear missiles on the world.

“When my warheads strike the raw nerve centers of your world, the surface will blossom with the fires of chaos and war,” Atalon tells Ghoul. “And the launching begins now. You see, Ghoul? Your world is dead. There’s nothing you can do. There’s no point in worry at all.”

Over at Miami, Florida, Pixx talks to her mother via the telephone and assures her that she is in good hands with UltraForce with a role to give her teammates the youth point-of-view. After the phone talk, Pixx personally struggles with the stress of being with the team which itself has gotten involved not only with the global conflict with Atalon but also with the concerned world leaders and the ever demanding public.

Prime approaches her and, because she noticed her looking troubled, he asked her if she could handle the situation they are in. Pixx answers back and does some posturing that she is strong and capable. Prime, who is really teenager Kevin inside, feels he screwed-up and knows well that Pixx is older than him.

The UltraForce then meet on the top of the building…

Quality

Dynamic action drawn by the legendary George Perez supported by inkers and colorists!

Strong writing – check. Great visuals with high detail – check. The high quality and strong creative energy of the Jones-Perez team continued to shine brightly in this comic book. Definitely a very well-made comic book that also continued to deliver the great stuff like strong character engagement and development, dynamic action (hey, this is George Perez’s art!) and the like.

While issue featured Atalon’s background story and some references about the history of his people, this comic book has its spotlight on the teenage member Pixx. Her dialogue and character development are very well crafted and as the story goes on, you will start to care about her.

The conflict with Atalon here shows the stakes raised high once more as the said leader of the creatures from deep below the surface acquired mankind’s nuclear weapons and really starts to control them. I should also state that this comic book is another spectator-filled pay-off story that succeeded issue which was mainly a build-up type of story.

If there is anything wrong with the comic book, it is the cover as it truly is a major spoiler. Too bad that the art showed Pixx in the presence of a nuclear warhead because the imagery alone took out some of the power behind her story in the big conflict of the comic book.  

Conclusion

This art by Perez looks great and worthy of the cover!

UltraForce is another solid read thanks again to its creators. I should also state that even though the cover art was a spoiler, at least the ending was intriguing and powerful to see.

If you are seriously planning to buy an existing hard copy of UltraForce (1995), be aware that as of this writing, MileHighComics.com shows that the near-mint copy costs $16.

Overall, UltraForce (1995) is highly recommended!

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me as well. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me at HavenorFantasy@twitter.com