The new Apple Visitor Center is seen in Cupertino, California.

Apple will offer free genetic screening for diseases to its Silicon Valley employees, according to CNBC.
The free genetic tests, which will reportedly be carried out through a partnership with Color Genomics, are one of many health perks Apple is rolling out for its workers.
Apple now runs its own health clinics known as "AC Wellness" that allow workers to get medical treatment close to their offices.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Apple's Silicon Valley workers can now receive on-site genetics tests for free, CNBC's Christina Farr first reported.

The tests will reportedly be carried out at Apple's health clinics through a partnership with Color Genomics. Apple's clinics, called "AC Wellness," provide on-site healthcare to employees and their dependents — just one of many high-end perks Apple offers in order to recruit and retain top talent.

The genetics tests are meant to screen for inherited diseases or risks of health complications passed on genetically. According to Color, genetics tests can give people insight into preventative steps they can take to reduce future illnesses.

Genetic testing can be expensive — a standard test from Color costs nearly $300, according to its website. The test scans for gene mutations that can predict an increased risk of cancer or heart disease, and also provides information on a person's ancestry.

Apple won't have access to workers' genetic test results, even though they're subsidized and carried out by Apple's AC Wellness clinics, according to CNBC. In order to comply with health privacy laws, AC Wellness clinics' administrative functions are incorporated through a separate subsidiary of Apple, and its clinicians are not employed by Apple.

Neither Apple nor Color immediately responded to Business Insider's request for comment.

Apple isn't alone in offering high-end healthcare perks to its employees. Amazon has also begun piloting a virtual care platform called Amazon Care, which is exclusive to Amazon workers.

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NOW WATCH: 8 weird robots NASA wants to send to space

ivanka trump

Ivanka Trump will reportedly speak on a major panel at CES 2020, the largest trade show of the year for consumer technology.
CNET reports that the president's daughter will speak on a panel with Gary Shapiro, the president of the Consumer Technology Association, the organization that puts on CES.
Ivanka Trump has played a role in the White House's tech initiatives: She's announced a new job training effort alongside Google CEO Sundar Pichai, accompanied her father to a tour of an Apple production facilty, and visited a school in Idaho with Apple CEO Tim Cook in 2018.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Ivanka Trump will reportedly headline the largest tech trade show of the year in January.

CNET reports that President Donald Trump's daughter will speak on a panel at CES 2020 alongside Gary Shapiro, the president of the Consumer Technology Association, the organization that puts on the trade show. However, it's unclear what Shapiro and Ivanka Trump will discuss on the panel.

Neither the White House nor the CTA have responded to Business Insider's request for comment, or confirmed that Ivanka Trump will be at CES 2020.

CNET reports that Trump's presence was discovered after CES started to upload placeholder URLs for livestreams of the event's keynote speeches, including a link to one for "Ivanka Trump." Trump won't be the only White House official at CES 2020: It's already been announced that Elaine Chao, the US Secretary of Transportation, will deliver a keynote speech at the event.

Trump, 38, has played a role in the White House's push into technology as a senior adviser to the president. In charge of overseeing the president's job training efforts, Trump appeared alongside Google CEO Sundar Pichai in October when the company announced it was committing to a White House worker initiative. She's also held two high-profile events with Apple CEO Tim Cook: She visited schools with him in Idaho in 2018 as part of the administration's focus on STEM education, and toured an Apple factory in Austin this year with Cook and President Trump.

However, Ivanka Trump's scheduled panel alongside Shapiro is surprising, given that Shapiro has been an outspoken opponent of the president. He was quick to publicly oppose Trump's presidency in a blog post on Medium in July 2015, just weeks after Trump announced his bid.

Shapiro has also publicly rebuked the White House's increase of tariffs on products imported from China, saying the trade war is taking a financial toll on US chipmakers and the nation's tech industry.

"Instead of making America great again, the president is using tariffs to make a great economic mistake — again,"Shapiro said in an August statement.

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NOW WATCH: Most maps of Louisiana aren't entirely right. Here's what the state really looks like.

birth control condom

When oral contraceptives first came out in 1960, the amount of estrogen and progestin was much higher than it is today.
Since estrogen at higher doses can increase appetite and cause fluid retention, many women who took early forms of the pill gained weight as a result.
Not everyone responds to birth control in the same way. However, modern birth control contains lower levels of hormones and multiple studies have shown that it is not linked to weight gain.
That said, there is one birth control injection, Depo-Provera, which is highly effective but also linked to weight gain because it's thought to trigger signals in the part of the brain that controls hunger.
This article was reviewed by Olivia P. Myrick, MD, who is a clinical assistant professor with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at NYU Langone.
Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

If you're concerned about gaining weight while on birth control, you're not alone. Many women choose to avoid hormonal birth control methods or go off of them altogether because they believe the increase on the scale is a direct result of the method they're using.

But most studies disagree. Here's what you need to know about birth control and your weight.

Significant weight gain on birth control is unlikely

If you're just starting birth control, you may gain a few pounds. But that extra weight most likely isn't from fat, it's from fluid retention — and it's only temporary.

Turns out, researchers have found that estrogen is linked to fluid retention in women. So if you're taking birth control that raises your estrogen levels, it could lead you to gain some water weight.

The good news is that as your body adjusts, the fullness you feel from any fluid retention typically subsides within two to three months and your weight should return to its starting point.

"Women on birth control pills should monitor their weight regularly, but keep in mind that most studies do not show significant weight gain," says Felice Gersh, MD, an OB-GYN and founder and director of the Integrative Medical Group of Irvine.

For example, a 2014 meta-analysis in the Cochrane Library reviewed 49 trials of 52 different types of birth control and found no convincing link between weight gain and any of the types of birth control. Moreover, intrauterine devices and contraceptive implants are also not widely associated with weight gain, even though they still are hormonal forms of birth control.

That said, there is one birth control method linked to weight gain, but not in the way you might think.

Depo-Provera may cause weight gain

Depo-Provera is a progestin-only hormonal injection given four times a year, every three months, in order to suppress ovulation. It is a very effective form of contraception. But, according to Yale Medicine, it may also trigger signals in the part of the brain that controls hunger.

"In my experience, the injections of Depo-Provera are the worst offenders," says Gersh. She says progestins are used to induce weight gain in the elderly and ill or frail people. "Synthetic progestins in high doses, as with Depo-Provera, alters metabolism in a negative way."

Moreover, if you check out the FDA's prescribing information for Depo-Provera, it lists weight gain as a possible side effect, especially with long-term use.

When administered every three months, the FDA says the average weight gain for a one-year treatment period was 5.4 pounds. After two years, the average gain totaled 8.1 pounds.

However, if healthy choices are made regarding eating habits while taking Depo-Provera, it still may be the right contraceptive medication for some women, and weight gain may not be an issue.

The fear of weight gain is decades old

When oral contraceptives first came out in 1960, the amount of estrogen and progestin was much higher than it is today.

For example, according to a 2012 review published in the journal Canadian Family Physician, the first marketed pill, Enovid 10, contained both forms of progestin and estrogen, like many birth control methods today. However, Enovid 10 had anywhere from 3 to 100 times more progestins and 3 to 7 times more estrogens than modern birth control methods.

Since estrogen at higher doses can increase appetite and cause fluid retention, many women who took Enovid 10 and other early forms of birth control gained weight as a result. But modern birth control has lower levels of hormones, so women on birth control today are less likely to gain weight from it.

Tips for managing your weight while on birth control

Maintaining your weight while on most forms of birth control is no different from when you weren't taking birth control. So before you decide to toss your highly-effective birth control method, consider trying these tips for managing your weight.

Participate in 150 to 300 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise. Plus, two to three days of strength training, focusing on all the major muscle groups.
Stick to a diet that includes plenty of vegetables, fruit, lean protein, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats. Plus, reduce the amount of added sugar and processed food.

Be open about what you want out of the program and what you can give to the school

In the application process, it's integral to focus on two main ingredients, said Andrew Kwan, a 2019 grad and supply-demand planner for Apple. "My application demonstrated a deep understanding of Stern's core values of passion, curiosity, and community and how the school's unique offerings would best supplement my goals," he noted.

Andrew Kwan

Going into business school, Kwan wanted to make a career switch — he had worked in financial services in wealth management and wanted to ensure he was exposed to a range of new experiences. "Stern's experiential course work, company visits, and networking opportunities allowed me a wide breadth of chances to really see where my MBA could take me," he said.

Answering the question "What mark I would leave on the school?" is also helpful to think about. The impact Kwan wanted to leave at Stern related to the leadership skills he wanted to acquire and harness during his MBA years.

"Through my various interests, I knew I could take on roles within clubs that would allow me to make decisions that impact student life, whether this was to plan yearly conferences, to organize events that helped educate students on different opportunities, or to work with the school administration to drive new initiatives. I knew that Stern prides itself on being a highly student-driven community and that I would be able to take ownership on aspects that were important to me," he added.

Kwan stressed highlighting the opportunities that only NYU Stern, as opposed to other MBA programs, could provide. "As a career switcher, working previously at Citibank, I knew that Stern and NYC would provide me many opportunities to explore different functions and industries through internships, experiential learning, and a focus on international learning. By showing how these things would compliment by previous experiences, I was able to demonstrate both how Stern would benefit me as well as what I would give back to the community," he said.

Get comfortable talking about yourself in interviews

Lasith Lansakara, who graduated from NYU Stern in 2008 and is now a senior manager at Deloitte Canada, pointed to the in-person interview as a key way to impress admissions officers. "Be clear how you can further [your] career through Stern," he advised, "and also touch on your personal interests. Don't be afraid to talk about yourself."

Lasith Lansakara

In his interview, Lansakara spent some time revealing his passion for graphic design and why it meant a lot to him. "I wanted to showcase the right side of my brain. I figured that since most of the application process focused on logic and structured thinking, I wanted to paint a more rounded picture of myself. I think it probably did help the admissions committee get a deeper understanding of me," he explained.

Steven Avila, a 2019 NYU Stern graduate and associate at New York-based McKinsey, agreed that it's important to get comfortable telling your story.

Steven Avila

"Be prepared to share what happened to you in the past to get you interested in Stern," he said. "It's OK if you come from an unconventional background, like how I came from government, working for over two years at President Obama's Department of the Interior, and told Stern how the school would unlock doors that wouldn't be open to me otherwise. Getting an MBA would offer a versatility to where I could work, because I know companies like Amazon hire MBA grads as well as investment banks and consultancy organizations. Also, being a school in New York, Stern is so close to the many companies I'd be looking to work for after graduation."

Are you an entrepreneur? Say it loud and proud.

When Lia Winograd, a 2019 grad, applied to Stern's MBA program, she made sure to highlight her work as the founder and CEO of Pepper, her body-positive bra company. In the essay required by every applicant, "I looked at how I came from a world where I'd seen many business situations from a variety of angles," she said. "With my startup, I was able to figure out things from the ground up, and how I plan to fund and scale Pepper to develop it from where it was then."

Lia Winograd

When she applied to Stern, she said she already had tangible results for her idea for Pepper. She and her team had launched a successful Kickstarter campaign, which was fully funded in the first 10 hours and raised 470% above its original goal. "We had paying customers and validation for our idea, which I wanted to scale rather than launch from scratch during my MBA program," she said. "Most MBA applications I've seen touch on having a passion for entrepreneurship but nothing to back that up."

She said applicants should hone their essay to reveal who they are beyond their academic profile. "You can put so much energy into getting good grades [that] you don't invest energy into other parts of the application, like the essay. It can give Stern a clear idea of your identity and your personality," Winograd added.

Don't skimp on highlighting your other extracurricular work

Applicants shouldn't be shy about listing any volunteer responsibilities on their applications, even if they feel irrelevant to business school.

For example, Avi Gutman, a 2010 grad who now works as a GMAT math teacher, said he told NYU Stern in his essay and interview about an impressive list of extracurricular work under his belt: one year at Junior Achievement Southern Alberta in Calgary, where he visited classrooms to share with students what staying in school instilled in him, and several years volunteering for the Israeli military, where his primary role focused on evaluating new recruits.

"I've often been a collaborative person, in work and in volunteer jobs, so I let that shine through in the interview," Gutman recalled. "I showed them a few times where I put the team ahead of my personal goals."

Gutman said his essay describing his military service in Israel demonstrated those team-building assets he believed Stern looks for in applicants. In his essay, he wrote about commanding a team of 50 soldiers, interviewing as many as 900 recruits per day.

"I collaborated frequently with the head of IT to optimize our reporting system, and the changes we implemented were adopted in other Psychotechnical Testing units across the country," he explained. "My innovations brought wait times down by 10%; employees were able to leave the base up to an hour earlier every day thanks to our improved efficiency."

Show who you really are in your 'Pick Six' photo essay

Relatively new to the application process at NYU Stern's MBA program is what they call "Pick Six." Since 2017, the school has asked applicants to submit six images, such as pictures or illustrations or graphic design work, along with captions.

Lisa Rios

"This is one of the ways for us to get insight into candidates outside of their academic profile and written work," said admissions director Lisa Rios. "They can have fun with it, too, and show us their personal side with Pick Six."

Lauren Marinaro, currently enrolled in her first year in the NYU Stern MBA program, said with her Pick Six selections that she "wanted [to] tell a story of who I am that no resume or essay could." Among the photos was an image of her and a friend finishing a half marathon to show how Marinaro has always been competitive and goal driven. Another photo revealed an MRI brain scan: "Since having brain surgery at the age of 16, I've taken a different approach to life, seeking new experiences and taking greater risks. The MRI scans were meant to capture this and my resilience," she said.

She also demonstrated her artistic skills by painting a portrait of her partner of 11 years. "Humor and creativity are aspects of my life I could not live without, and thus I thought the portrait I painted of my partner making a silly face would capture both these characteristics well," she said.

What stands out in the many photo submissions Stern has received since 2017 is a package of images showing the applicant's true self. "This reveals who they are as a person, and it doesn't have to be a photograph, but can be something like an emoji even," Rios said.

She said one of the missteps in this area, and other parts of the application process, is being inauthentic. "Don't be someone you're not," Rios said. "Don't show us something [you] think we want to see or hear. Employers are looking for graduates who are true to themselves and we want to see that in the application."

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NOW WATCH: Taylor Swift is the world's highest-paid celebrity. Here's how she makes and spends her $360 million.

retired couple

Blooom is an investment company that helps you save more for retirement by cutting 401(k) fees and diversifying your portfolio.
Blooom will analyze your retirement account(s) for free, and you'll pay $120 to become a Blooom member and receive all its benefits.
You'll learn how much you're paying in fees, how much risk you're taking, and how diverse your portfolio is — and read about Blooom's recommendations for doing it all better.
While Blooom can be useful, it doesn't link to every company's retirement accounts.
Analyze your 401(k) for free with Blooom and see how you can save more for retirement »

Saving for retirement isn't as simple as just putting money into an account. You have to make numerous decisions, and if you don't know the ins and outs of investing, the process can become confusing.

For example, should you invest in a target date fund or an index fund? And what's an ETF? What does it mean to diversify your portfolio?

When you aren't an expert in investing, it's hard to know if you're making the right decisions with your retirement account. That's where Blooom can be useful.

Blooom is an investment company that analyzes your retirement account(s) and offers advice on how to prepare for retirement more effectively.

Blooom spells out two goals: to help you cut costs and help you save more. I used Blooom to analyze a family member's 401(k) to see the kinds of suggestions it would make for her to save for retirement more strategically.

The basics of Blooom

When you create an account with Blooom, the company analyzes your retirement account(s) for free and explains whether your not you're maximizing your retirement savings.

After Blooom conducts its analysis, you can decide whether you want to become a member for $120 per year.

What do you get for $120? Well, Blooom researches and selects the best funds available for your plan, eliminates hidden investment fees where it can, diversifies your portfolio, and handles your account's transactions.

Blooom does not move your money into a new account, hide its fees, or try to time the market. (If anyone tells you they can time the market, sprint in the opposite direction!)

Use Blooom to analyze your 401(k) and stop spending money on unnecessary fees »

Getting started with Blooom

There are four steps to using Blooom: provide your personal information; link your retirement account(s); receive Blooom's analysis; and take what Blooom refers to as the "next steps," which really means becoming a Blooom member.

First, provide information about your retirement accounts and plans in the "about you" section. Blooom asks questions to gain an understanding of how much risk you want to take with your investments.

Some questions are directly related to the stock market, and others are about how likely you are to take risks in other aspects of your life, like at your job or on vacation.

After assessing your risk preferences, Blooom recommends the best balance of stocks and bonds based on your answers.

Now it's time to link your retirement account. You'll provide Blooom with the username and password for your online account so it can access your information. Blooom then analyzes your investments, and explains how it can help.

After reading Blooom's analysis, you can decide whether you'd like to become a member.

Blooom's analysis is thorough and easy for beginners to understand

Blooom analyzes three main aspects of your retirement account: fees, risk, and diversification.

First, it shows how much you are paying in fees versus how much you would pay with Blooom. (This number is based on its client median investment fee expense.)

Then, it shows how much risk you are currently taking versus how much it thinks you should be taking based on your previous answers about risk.

Finally, it shows how diverse your portfolio is compared to how diverse Blooom thinks it should be.

At each stage, you can click "Tell me more..." to read an in-depth explanation of why you're paying certain fees or how Blooom could help you save more.

For example, the family member whose 401(k) I analyzed only invests in a target date fund because the investment adviser at her place of employment recommended this option when she created the account.

When I clicked on "Tell me more...," Blooom explained that target date funds typically charge higher fees than many other types of funds.

When you visit the main "analysis" page, Blooom shows how and why it would change the way you invest. For example, here's what it says about my relative's target date fund:

No, Blooom doesn't offer a free trial. But it does provide you with a ton of personalized information before you have to decide whether or not to pay for a membership.

Blooom only links with certain companies

Blooom is great — if it works with your financial services company. And while it supports many of the big-name companies, it doesn't link with all of them.

My original plan was to use Blooom to assess my family member's 401(k), my husband's 401(k), and my own IRA. However, I ended up only being able to use Blooom with my relative's 401(k), because she uses John Hancock, a popular retirement-plan service.

I hit a roadblock with my husband's 401(k) because he works for the State of Tennessee, and Blooom doesn't support the State of Tennessee's retirement plan yet. (Although they say they hope to soon.) Blooom does support some state governments' plans, though.

I reached a dead end with my IRA, too. I save with Ameriprise Financial, but when it comes to IRAs, Blooom only works with Fidelity, Vanguard, and Charles Schwab.

A customer support agent explained to me that Blooom has chosen these companies because they believe they provide "the best low-cost index funds and ETFs."

If you have trouble logging into your account or are confused about whether Blooom links with your company, you can always hop onto customer support chat. I had a positive experience with customer support. (My agent even livened up the conversation with a "Parks and Recreation" GIF.) She explained why I was having trouble logging in, redirected me, and made the process much smoother.

Whether you decide to become a Blooom member or not, you'll have a pleasant, risk-free experience with its free product. Plus, you'll become more knowledgeable about yourself and your retirement account.

Blooom's analysis tool is free and easy to use. Find out how to maximize your retirement savings today »

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NOW WATCH: 9 items to avoid buying at Costco

Ben Mack Harrods visit

Located in London, Harrods is one of the most famous department stores in the world.
It is also one of the most expensive.
I visited recently, and though it was just as fancy as I was expecting, it was the friendliness of staff that really blew me away.
I felt very welcome, even though I'm not rich and normally hate shopping.
I had so much fun, I'd go again — and would even recommend it to people visiting London.
Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

"Ok, so 80 grams of the gold ajwas comes to £20 ($26)."

I couldn't believe what was happening. There I was, buying dates made with literal gold — at Harrods, no less, the famous London department store equally famous for its high prices as it is for its extravagance, as Insider Inc. CEO Henry Blodget discovered when he visited back in 2013.

I hated shopping. But there I was in the place where Asma al-Assad — wife of Syrian president Bashar Assad — would regularly spend thousands upon thousands of dollars, even as the Syrian Civil War raged. It's also where actual lions, tigers, panthers, alligators, and even elephants (one, named Gertie, was apparently even sold to former US president Ronald Reagan, no less) were sold regularly (at least until the Endangered Species Act in the 1970s), and where even today you can find some of the most expensive chocolate and coffee in the world. Oh, and they also once had an actual live cobra guard a pair of shoes that had diamonds, rubies, and sapphires (which only cost £62,000, or $83,000) — that was as recently as this century.

Here's what it was like to visit — and why, thanks to the friendliest and most welcoming store staff I've ever met, I'd go back again in a heartbeat.

Harrods is an institution. A very large, very expensive institution.

On its website, Harrods calls itself the "world's most famous department store," and it's hard to argue. Dating back to the 1800s, it's synonymous with luxury and opulence. With more than 300 departments and 1.1 million square feet of selling space, it's also the largest department store in Europe. Allegedly even having its own post code, it has the motto "Omnia Omnibus Ubique"— Latin for "all things for all people, everywhere."

It is also well-known for its association with Princess Diana.

At the time of her death in a car crash in Paris in 1997, Princess Diana was dating Dodi Fayed, the son of then-Harrods owner Mohamed Al-Fayed. Harrods is owned today by Qatar's royal family, and in 2018 a bronze statue depicting Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed was removed from the store, even though Mohamed Al-Fayed had previously claimed "Innocent Victims" (as the statue is called) would remain in Harrods forever.

Never one for shopping and anything but rich, I didn't know what to expect.

"The next station is... Knightsbridge," said the woman's voice through the intercom on the tube. Stepping off the train, ample signage pointed me in the direction of Harrods. The Knightsbridge tube station was nice, but it wasn't luxurious by any stretch of the imagination.

The outside didn't exactly wow me, but then again, I'm used to Dubai opulence.

The cold wind stung slightly as it struck my face like so many splashes from an icy bucket of water. Looking around, the seven-story Harrods building was nice, but it didn't wow me in any way. Maybe I'd been spoiled from living in Dubai for more than a year, or seeing amazing architecture on a regular basis as part of my travels.

I was struck by how ordinary it seemed.

There were no shiny Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Bugattis, or Maybachs parked outside, like a coworker had said there would be. Likewise, I didn't see people in fancy fur coats or carrying designer handbags and wearing expensive-looking shoes.

But that all changed as soon as I walked towards the door, and met a friendly doorman named Mustapha.

"Hello, how are you doing today?"

Dressed in a sharp green uniform reminiscent of "The Wizard of Oz," Mustapha's friendliness was infectious — and not at all what I was expecting. I'd heard Harrods had a dress code for shoppers, and was fully expecting the people at the door to have dour faces as they acted more like stereotypical club bouncers keeping people out. Instead, Mustapha had a smile that seemed to stretch for miles.

Stepping inside, it was like I'd stumbled into another world — or at least left ordinary life behind.

I was not expecting this. Passing through the doors that Mustapha graciously held open, I'd stepped into a gold-draped, gilded world where shiny things were so numerous, they weren't at all extraordinary next to the other shiny things.

It's one thing to hear Harrods is fancy — it was something else entirely to really see it for myself.

Eyes darting in every direction, all around were amazing things you normally only see in magazines, or being worn or in the homes of the rich and famous (or royals). This did not seem like just another department store: this was an experience far, far removed from the rather more humble horse farm I grew up on in the seemingly perpetually rainy hills west of Portland, Oregon, where a trip to a big, "fancy" store was either shopping at a local Fred Meyer or, on rare occasions, Macy's or Sears.

The scale of everything was almost overwhelming. There was a department for seemingly everything — and a host of rather unique services.

There are more than 300 departments in Harrods, according to the BBC, spread across seven stories above ground and one below. That was intimidating enough, but it was the massive list of in-store services that really was almost overwhelming. There were the expected things like valet parking, lots of restaurants and cafes, a florist, cobbler, and luggage storage — but also some things that seemed truly over the top, like a "Champagne terrace," luxury piercing (which I assumed was a bit more upscale than your typical shop on the street), and something called a "toy concierge."

Of course, there were some things that, cool as they were, didn't make sense. Like full-size glass guitars ...

If you have a lot of money and don't know what to do with it... well, even then there are probably other things you could spend your money on besides a full-size glass guitar.

I found it telling — and unsurprising — that a price for the guitar was not listed. In hindsight, however, I should have asked a staff member. Though I'm sure the number they'd list would be eye-watering.

... and boots made from what I was sure was real snakeskin — and possibly a species of snake that wasn't common.

While these snakeskin shoes were not being guarded by an actual, living snake, I had a sneaking suspicion that, the minute I touched them, bad things would happen unless I was really going to buy them. Spoiler: I was not.

Some of the clothes were very cool. I liked this bright coat that looked like it was straight off a fashion week runway ...

I like fashion. I like bright colors (at least a whole lot more now than during my high school goth phase). And, having arrived in London after traveling by train for several days and fitting all of my life's possessions into just two suitcases, I needed a coat to keep warm. I normally bought all my clothes at secondhand shops, but London is of course a great fashion city, and I needed to up my fashion game.

... Until I saw it cost nearly £1,300 ($1,700).

I could not afford it.

Enough said.

Naturally, there was a lot of designer stuff ...

I may not have been able to afford the clothes, but they were a lot of fun to look at. I kept thinking how I could take pieces I already had and style them to look a bit like the stuff I was seeing on the racks.

... And fur, too.

I was not surprised to see fancy fur coats at Harrods. The only thing that surprised me was that I did not see more of them.

The decor was as distracting as the actual items for sale, too.

A particularly fearsome golden lion on the second floor particularly stood out. I was actually surprised it was not for sale — or at least I didn't see a price tag on it. But maybe it was for sale if someone offered the right amount.

I was most impressed by the staff, however. They made me feel very welcome.

It wasn't just Mustapha. It was the man in the shoe department, the woman selling what looked like literal polo gear, Yasser selling dates (you'll meet him in a minute), the uniformed security guards (of which there were surprisingly few) — everyone was smiling, everyone was friendly, and everyone was helpful. And, perhaps most surprisingly, no one seemed to be judging me, even though I was wearing scuffed old boots I wore when traveling.

It was crowded, but not as crowded as I thought it would be.

Yes, there were a lot of people — Harrods is a major tourist attraction, after all. But it wasn't quite as shoulder-to-shoulder, pushing and shoving and shouting and screaming like I was afraid it would be, especially since it was the holiday season. In fact... it actually seemed less crowded than many stores I'd been in before.

I was also impressed by the diversity of customers and staff.

English, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Spanish, French, Turkish, Portuguese... the sheer number of languages I heard people speaking was beautiful. It was also heartening to see people of all ages, though fortunately none of the children I encountered were screaming or throwing tantrums.

With so many departments and floors, I could see why someone might easily spend hours at Harrods, even if they weren't buying anything.

It went on. And on. And on. And on. And on. And on. And on.

You get the idea.

The elevators were rather opulent ...

I was surprised by how old-timey the elevators felt. I was also surprised how empty they were — again, I was expecting to have to squeeze in to fit. Instead, by the time I got off on the fifth floor, there was no one else on.

... As were the escalators ...

Sixteen escalators clad in nickel and bronze can be found in the new entrance hall at Harrods— a project that only cost about £20 million ($27 million).

But Harrods' relationship with escalators runs much deeper. In fact, Harrods had among the first "moving staircases" in Britain, making its debut in 1898.

... And even the ceilings.

I shouldn't have been surprised the ceilings were nice. Still, they reminded me more of an actual palace than a store.

While I normally hate shopping, I didn't mind this.

In this labyrinthine realm of luxury and refinement, time seemed to be meaningless. Before I knew it, I'd been in the store for more than two hours — quite possibly longer than I had ever been in any other store, anywhere.

I wandered down to the food halls, which seemed to go on forever.

The ground floor food halls reminded me in a way of Seattle, Washington's famous Pike Place — but far, far fancier. Entire rooms were dedicated to different kinds of foods. "Wow," was a word people were heard saying often.

The food halls alone were a sight to behold — and there was a lot to smell.

By far the busiest part of Harrods, the food on display seemed almost too perfect to be real. It was an absolute feast for the eyes — and probably the stomach, if one could afford it.

I kept telling myself I wouldn't do it — there was nothing I needed to buy. But as if under the spell of Harrods, I found myself giving in.

Perhaps it was the large straw hat that Yasser, the man who'd later serve me, was wearing that caught my eye (a lot of staff were wearing them. As a fine millinery aficionado, I was envious). Or maybe it was his friendly greeting and wide smile, which though not as wide as Mustapha's was still one of the widest I'd ever seen. Or maybe it was the fact out of the corner of my eye while walking past I saw rows upon rows of fancy dates, a food I'd come to love from my time living in the Middle East. But the next thing I knew, I'd sharply turned 90 degrees on my heels, and was bending over to intently examine the dates on display.

Harrods had me.

They were covered in gold, and cost £20 ($26) for 80 grams, or seven pieces.

I'd never eaten anything covered in gold before — or even seen food covered in gold before with my own eyes.

"What can you tell me about these?" I heard myself saying.

Without thinking, I bought seven pieces — just enough to take back to the Insider office and share with some of my coworkers. At £25 ($33) per 100 grams (or an eye-watering £250, or $330, per kilo), the seven pieces of gold-covered ajwa dates cost £20 ($26).

What had I done?

Eventually though, I did feel it was time to head back to work. Unfortunately, I didn't know how to get out ...

Wandering the halls with my newly-purchased gold dates, I glanced at my phone — and discovered I'd been in Harrods for about three hours. I needed to get out, lest I end up spending even more money on things I really didn't need.

... But another friendly staffer was able to show me how to locate the nearest exit, which still took quite a few minutes to reach.

With a smile, the woman told me to take a right and walk to the end of the hall, where the escalators would eventually lead down to the ground floor.

"Don't forget to follow the signs!" she said, laughing.

I thanked her for her help — for without it, at least with my famously poor sense of direction, there's a fair chance I might still be stuck in Harrods.

Stepping outside into the London rain again, it felt like returning to reality.

I couldn't believe it, but I was actually sad to leave. Never in my wildest thoughts about what it would be like to visit Harrods did I think I'd feel that.

Harrods seemed so welcoming, and staff so friendly, I'd go back — and would even recommend others visiting London to stop by.

Harrods was not at all like my expectations. I was expecting cold, indifferent — and boring. Instead, it was warm, welcoming, and far more exciting that I could have anticipated. While I normally can't stand shopping, this really was so fun, I'd have no hesitation telling others to have a wander through — and maybe even ask if I could tag along.

I spent 8 days taking trains across Europe for under $500. Not only was it cheaper than some flights, it was the adventure of a lifetime

I visited Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, and the lack of selfie-snappers gave me hope for the future of travel

I stayed in the hotel room where 'Murder on the Orient Express' was written and searched for the secret notebook apparently hidden there

I took trains all the way from Istanbul to London, and eastern and western Europe felt like different worlds

Prince Andrew Newsnight Interview

In the announcement that he was stepping back from royal duties last month over public criticism for his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, Prince Andrew said he was willing to talk to law enforcement.
While his status as a prince complicates matters diplomatically, legal experts told Insider that Andrew could be compelled to talk to investigators if they file a request through The Hague.
Sources told Insider that any interview would likely happen in the UK, with certain conditions to help protect the prince from legal recourse.
They also opined that the prince is more likely to agree to an interview for public relations reasons.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Ever since his car-crash interview last month, there has been mounting pressure for Prince Andrew to speak to US investigators about his friendship with deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The prince seems to be warming to the idea of sitting down with US investigators to talk about his relationship with Epstein, which he admitted last month was "ill-judged."

In his BBC interview, he said if his lawyers signed off on talking with American authorities, he "would be duty-bound to do so." And when he announced he was stepping back from public life last month, he said he would be "willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required."

But just how such a talk would go down remains up in the air. Insider spoke to three legal experts with experience in federal and sex abuse cases, who gave insight into the the likelihood of an Andrew interview, the conditions that could be set, and the possibility that he could become a target of the investigation.

Prosecutors and investigators will likely want to talk to Prince Andrew

Jeffrey Epstein Though Prince Andrew hasn't given too many details about what he witnessed during his friendship with Epstein — and he claims to have had no direct knowledge of illicit activities — investigators will still likely want to interview him, lawyer Dominique Penson told Insider.

Penson — a partner at Barasch, McGarry, Salzman & Penson — has represented sexual abuse victims in the past, in cases involving the Catholic Church and Jehovah's Witnesses.

"I'm sure they would be interested in talking to him, because he was apparently close to Epstein on a number of occasions, and then of course everybody now knows the allegations made by Ms. Giuffre," Penson said, referring to Virginia Giuffre (née Roberts), who said Epstein paid her to have sex with the prince when she was 17 (the prince has said he has no recollection of ever meeting Giuffre).

Penson added: "If true, he had a close inside look into Epstein's sex-trafficking operation."

Since Epstein died in jail before facing trial, justice for the dozens of women who accused him of molesting, assaulting, or trafficking them has been in limbo. Prosecutors could turn their attention to Epstein's possible co-conspirators, which Giuffre has alleged includes Prince Andrew and Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's one-time girlfriend and alleged madame.

virginia roberts giuffre

There's a good chance an interview could happen because of the public scrutiny against the prince

Juliet Sorensen, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches public corruption and criminal law at Northwestern University's Pritzker School of Law, told Insider there's a good chance that Prince Andrew will speak to US investigators so that he can repair his tarnished reputation.

The media's reaction to Andrew's BBC interview about his relationship with Epstein was widely panned, with many criticizing the prince for failing to show regret about the friendship or sympathy for the victims. Shortly after the interview, he announced that he would be taking a step back from public duties.

Speaking to investigators could be a step toward changing the public perception of him and returning to royal work.

When asked whether it was likely that Andrew would agree to speak to US officials, or if he was just trying to get brownie points by offering, Sorensen said "it's probably both."

"That is to say, he's probably received the advice that it's going to make him look better if he agreed to speak. It appears that the scrutiny of him and the pressure on him is increasing," Sorensen said.

royal ascot prince andrew jeffrey epstein

He might not have a choice whether to cooperate or not

But whether or not he talks to American investigators could be out of Prince Andrew's control.

Since both the US and UK are members of The Hague Convention, international law could come into play, Penson said. If prosecutors were proactive, they could file a request through The Hague, compelling Andrew to testify in the case.

The same goes for Epstein's victims — if they want Andrew's testimony badly enough or named him as a defendant, he could be compelled to testify.

Faced with the possibility that he could be forced to talk anyway, his recent offers to talk may have just been a move to get him some good PR, Penson said.

"If I were his lawyer and I thought, 'Gee, if they want it badly, they're telling me they're going to go through The Hague,' and I thought they're going to get it. Then — because you also have to have the public relations mind — probably better to cooperate," Penson said.

epstein prince andrew

If an interview were to happen, it would likely take place in the UK

Volunteering to sit down for an interview would also give Prince Andrew more power in setting the terms of the talk, Penson said.

Sorensen said that if she were the prince's lawyer, she would demand that the talk happen in the UK.

"Prince Andrew is not going to travel to the US and face the possibility of either exposure to US journalists or some type of arrest warrant that can only be effectuated if he comes to US soil," she said.

However, she said being arrested in the US is still highly unlikely for Andrew, since he's the son of Queen Elizabeth II.

queen elizabeth prince andrew

Andrew's status as a member of the British royal family complicates matters

While the Queen is the only member of the royal family who has diplomatic immunity (called "sovereign immunity"), her son's royal pedigree certainly complicates matters.

If US officials obtain evidence that Prince Andrew committed a crime in the course of their investigation, they can demand his extradition to the US to face trial.

The extradition treaty between the US and UK works like this: If the US government wants to prosecute a British national for a crime, that act must also be a crime in the UK. Ultimately, it's up to a British judge whether to sign off on the extradition order, have the suspect arrested, and sent to the US.

But Sorensen says it's unlikely that American investigators would ever demand the prince's extradition because it could harm diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"I think that's totally unlikely because the US has other fish to fry, and has intimate relations with the United Kingdom that arresting a member of the royal family would jeopardize," Sorensen said.

prince andrew headlines

The fact that Andrew is a prince also means that decisions about his involvement in the case will be decided at the highest levels in the Department of Justice, University of Chicago law professor Sharon Fairley said.

"There's going to be a whole heck of a lot of scrutiny and hoops that are going to be jumped through to compel him to testify or charge him, if that is even possible under international law," Fairley, a former federal prosecutor, told Insider.

She continued: "Certainly those decisions are going to be made by the highest levels at the Department of Justice because of the political implications. That's a pretty serious matter when you're bringing in someone of that stature. I imagine that's going to be really discussed all the way up to the top."

Prosecutors would only offer immunity if they knew Andrew has valuable information

Prosecutors only give out immunity when they know that a witness has information that they won't be able to win their trial without, Fairley said.

"I think that's what prosecutors are probably trying to figure out right now — what information he could potentially have that would inform their case," she said.

Even if they decide to offer immunity, Fairley said full immunity is rare.

prince andrew jeffrey epstein mar a lago

"Sometimes what you'll have is what's called a 'proffer discussion.' And that's where anything that a witness says in the context of a proffer interview cannot be used against them in a criminal trial," Fairley said, adding that what they say must be truthful in order to count.

Interestingly, this tactic is also called getting to be "Queen for a day."

(Fairley said it's important to note that the government can still use the information that they get in a proffer interview to develop leads in a case that could potentially uncover other evidence that might be used against the witness.)

Penson said prosecutors could also offer to keep Andrew's testimony under seal, or protect him from being served with a lawsuit if he comes to the US for the talk.

The former is less likely though, due to the public interest in the case, Penson said.

Prince Andrew's woes are likely more about his image than legal concerns

Prince Andrew's connection to the Epstein affair is Giuffre's allegation that Epstein paid her to sleep with the prince twice, when she was a minor (again, Andrew denies having met her).

Virginia Roberts Giuffre

Though Giuffre alleges that sex acts with Andrew date back to 2001, there is no statute of limitations on the federal level when it comes to participating in the sex trafficking of a minor, so Andrew could technically still be charged if investigators find evidence to back up her claim.

But the language of the law provides him an out. The law says it's a federal offense "to knowingly recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, obtain, or maintain a minor (defined as someone under 18 years of age) knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that the victim is a minor and would be caused in engage in a commercial sex act."

In other words, if Andrew can prove he didn't know Epstein was paying Giuffre to sleep with him (if her allegation as such is true), then he wouldn't be guilty of sex trafficking.

But there are still a lot of unknowns in the case.

As his involvement with Epstein has been described currently, Penson thinks the main thing weighing on Andrew is how doing or not doing an interview would impact his public perception.

"My guess is that his concerns are far more about public relations that they are about the legal process," Penson said.

Both the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and representatives for Prince Andrew declined to comment for this story.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's how to escape a flooding vehicle

Stacey Abrams On a late election night Democratic nominee for Governor Stacey Abrams speaks to cheering supporters and announced that she'll be in in a runoff with her opponent, at the Hyatt Regency in Atlanta, Georgia on Tuesday November 6, 2018.

Georgia politician and voter rights activist Stacey Abrams has been using a spreadsheet to document her life goals since the age of 18.
"I realized that I'd been so focused as a young person on titles," Abrams told Business Insider. "That's one of the reasons I've always gone back to the spreadsheet, because part of it is not just to anchor titles that I want, it is to think about the work I wanted to do."
Abrams spoke to Business Insider about fighting against voter suppression with her organization Fair Fight, producing a CBS drama based on her novel "Never Tell," and her advice for young black female politicians.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

In college, Georgia politician Stacey Abrams created a spreadsheet to plan her life goals. More than 25 years later, she is still using that same spreadsheet.

"When I was 18, I spent an evening in our college computer lab, the fluorescent lights crackling overhead reflecting off the near-green screen," Stacey Abrams wrote in her memoir "Lead From the Outside.""In the lab that night, I created a spreadsheet. The Lotus 1-2-3 document laid out my life plans for the next 40 years. Seriously."

For Abrams, goal-setting with a spreadsheet — including columns for the year, her age, her desired job, and tasks — helped her envision what she wanted to achieve and begin creating a concrete roadmap to get there.

At age 18, Abrams' goals included writing a best-selling spy novel by age 24, being a millionaire running a corporation by age 30, and becoming the mayor of Atlanta by age 35. Abrams' inspiration for writing a goals spreadsheet was John D. Rockerfeller — who she had read kept detailed lists of his goals — but the impetus was her college boyfriend who had suddenly broken up with her. Instead of wallowing over the breakup, Abrams got serious about plotting her future, and she put it all in a spreadsheet.

Abrams' turn towards introspection and goal-setting has paid off big time. She's even accomplished versions of the very goals she set as a teenager: Abrams has written eight romantic suspense novels (one of which will be turned into a CBS drama), cofounded the financial services company Nowaccount Network Corporation, and served as minority leader in the Georgia House of Representatives.

Abrams was the first black woman to be nominated by any major party to run for governor. She ran for the position in Georgia in 2018 and lost in an extremely close election in which Abrams says voter suppression played a role.

Business Insider spoke with Stacey Abrams about her thoughts on goal setting, voter suppression, and her advice for young black female politicians.

Here's a look at Stacey Abrams' goals spreadsheet

Abrams on the value of maintaining a career goals spreadsheet for more than 25 years

"What I want people to understand about the spreadsheet is not that it's a task list that I must be X by Y date," Abrams said.

"It is much more of a guide map that says, here are the things that I want, here's why I want it. And it helps me concretize the steps necessary," she said. "Because, without that anchor of, here are the steps between where you are and where you want to be, people often wander. My goal is to give myself a bit more of a GPS directional path."

Abrams set a goal at age 18 to become mayor of Atlanta

"At the time I wrote the spreadsheet, there had never been an African American woman to serve in any higher office than mayor, other than Congress — there had never been a woman senator, there had never been a woman governor, or a woman president, and certainly not a black woman," Abrams said.

Writing down her goal of becoming mayor on the spreadsheet led Abrams to take concrete steps towards achieving her goal. She knew she would have to get to know the city of Atlanta and learn how government works, so she attended city council meetings. Eventually, she was hired by the city.

"Each time I had a new step, my approach was to go back to the spreadsheet and really think about: what does this mean, how does it fit in, and what can I do with this new opportunity to make certain I'm still focused on my ultimate goal," Abrams said.

Abrams leaves room for career spontaneity and focuses on work instead of titles

Abrams told The New York Times in August that she "would be honored to be considered by any nominee" in the 2020 presidential race, which suggested she is open to serving as vice president to a democratic candidate. Business Insider asked Abrams how she makes room for career spontaneity, like a potential vice presidential offer.

"Part of the spontaneity is to always harken back to the 'why' of what you're doing," Abrams said. "What my spreadsheet helps me do is to remember the 'why' — the 'what' can change."

Abrams explained that a career opportunity may not present itself under the title you had originally envisioned. For example, she ultimately did not run for mayor, despite her spreadsheet goal at age 18, because she focused on the work she wanted to do separate from the title.

"When I realized that I'd been so focused as a young person on titles, I really hadn't given myself the space to think about why did I want this job," Abrams said. "That's one of the reasons I've always gone back to the spreadsheet, because part of it is not just to anchor titles that I want, it is to think about the work I wanted to do."

"Instead of running for mayor, I ran for state legislature, and then for governor. And when that didn't work out, I thought through what jobs would help me, again, do the work I want to do," Abrams said.

Abrams is fighting against voter suppression, and she's passionate about getting people involved with voting rights advocacy in 2020

Abrams is currently running her organization Fair Fight, which is championing fair elections in her home state of Georgia and the country while educating voters about their rights.

The second piece of the puzzle is Fair Fight 2020, which Abrams describes as the organization's nationalized, more political approach to addressing voting rights and fair elections in 20 states.

"Part of what Fair Fight is looking at is not just fighting back against voter suppression, but our core mission has always been, how do we expand voter access?" Abrams said.

The issue of voter suppression is important to Abrams, as it impacted the gubernatorial election that she lost in Georgia in 2018: 1.4 million voters were purged from the voting rolls, 53,000 votes weren't processed, and thousands of voters were given provisional ballots, Abrams told The New York Times Magazine in April.

"We've been very aggressive about encouraging local government to expand their voting rights apparatuses; I think that's something that local citizens can do," Abrams said.

"We keep waiting for action on the federal level and sometimes at the state level, but we forget that cities and counties often have some say over how they will engage," Abrams explained. "I encourage folks to think about, how local can you be with your work? Can you volunteer to be a poll worker or poll observer? Can you work with a registration organization in your community?"

"You don't have to live in a state that faces voter suppression to be able to help," Abrams said. Virtual phone banks and text banks are one way citizens in other states can help. Abrams gave the example of a virtual phone and text bank that Fair Fight ran, which had participants from around the country — in New York, Texas, and Tennessee — helping to notify 300,000 Georgians at risk of being purged from the voter rolls.

Abrams will be producing a CBS drama based on her novel "Never Tell"

In November, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Abrams would be producing a CBS drama based on her novel "Never Tell" about a professor and a journalist who work on cases for the New Orleans police department.

"One thing I want people to understand about this spreadsheet is that it wasn't just about political goals," Abrams said. "I tried to think about the different dimensions of my life and how I could be successful and accomplish and achieve the things I wanted."

That included writing novels. Her intention at 18 was to become a best-selling spy novelist. Under the pen name Selena Montgomery, Abrams has written eight romantic suspense novels.

Abrams on not achieving every goal and becoming an entrepreneur

"Part of my goal was to be a millionaire by 30 — completely missed the mark there," Abrams chuckled. "But, because I thought about how I could engage in entrepreneurial ventures, how I could create financial opportunity for myself, I became an entrepreneur."

Abrams cofounded Nowaccount Network Corporation, a financial services company that Abrams said is "doing exceptionally well." Abrams is currently a chief shareholder.

"Because of the spreadsheet I was able to really put into context my mission of financial security and financial capacity," Abrams said. 'This allowed me to be more open to opportunity."

"So whether it was starting a financial company or being able to take the work, my writing, and monetize it not only as a book but also as a television series, these are real opportunities that I also included in that spreadsheet because it helps me continue to look at and think about what are the multiple pathways that can go from the core of who I am and what I do," Abrams said.

Abrams on deciding to pass on a run for Senate

"That spreadsheet helped me really think about the fact that I didn't want to run for Senate because the Senate could not do, in the way I like to operate, the work I wanted to do," Abrams said.

Abrams told The New York Times in August that her current focus is fighting voter suppression and setting the stage for fair elections in 2020.

"I declined to run to the Senate because that's not the job that I want to do," Abrams told Business Insider. "It's a fantastic opportunity, but also if you run because you think you should and not because you want to, it becomes incredibly difficult to win or to even do the work."

The three things Abrams would tell young black women considering a run for office

"One, it's going to require money, and learning how to raise money is a skill. It's a skill like learning the law, and you've got to learn that skill and understand it. Two, run when you're ready. Don't wait for someone to ask — call yourself. And then three, when you run, make sure you're running for the job you want, not the job you think you should want," Abrams said.

noah pozner

On Dec. 14, 2012, a gunman shot and killed 20 children and six staff members at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.
One of those children was 6-year-old Noah Pozner. His grandmother writes about how the murder devastated her family, and how they no longer celebrate Christmas in the way they once did.
Noah's grandmother is an advocate for sensible gun control measures and urges others to get involved.
Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

It has been seven years. Noah has now lived longer in our memories than in the flesh.

Seven years today since a dark soul carried a semiautomatic rifle into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, and murdered everyone in his sight, including 20 children and six staff members.

Our grandson Noah had turned 6 three weeks before. We lived near Seattle at the time and I had flown cross-country just before Thanksgiving to be with him and his twin sister on their birthday. It would be the last time I would see him in person, although one of my most precious memories is chatting with him on Skype a couple of nights before he and his classmates were murdered.

My 6-year-old grandson Noah was killed in the Sandy Hook shooting. His twin sister survived.

The red-eye flight back East on the evening of Dec. 14, 2012 was a mix of agony and disbelief. I can't remember whether or not I managed to slumber. But I do remember an enormous weight pressing down on my rib cage and a burning sensation in my chest.

When we got home at the end of January, our house was exactly as we had left it mid-December: half-ready for Christmas. The stepladder was still up in the hall where my husband had been attaching red and white garlands; the tree had turned brown and brittle; ornaments had slid off the drooping branches and shattered on the floor; 11 little cardboard windows remained unopened on the advent calendar.

Noah Pozner

The holiday decorations were swiftly put away, not to be taken out for a few years. It would be an understatement to say that we were done with Christmas. We still are.

On Christmas, I can't bear to take out the stockings knowing I will never hang Noah's again

But our youngest grandkids eventually reached an age where they would notice and ask questions. We took the Christmas boxes out of storage again. Every year when I open them, I find the stockings.

I don't put them up anymore as I couldn't bear taking out all of them but one.

And we no longer put up a big tree. Just a tiny symbolic one.

When I last saw Noah on Skype, he and his sisters were trimming their own tree at home. They were taking ornaments out of boxes, exclaiming over each one, running to the computer to show me, then running to the tree to hang them.

Families affected by gun violence never stop suffering

At one point, Noah found himself alone in front of the camera. I could hear his sisters chatting excitedly by the tree in the background. He sat uncharacteristically quiet, looking at me. I had zero premonition, but I remember a stirring in my soul as if, in the silence, something had been said and acknowledged.

I used to love Christmas. Now it is a relief to put everything away again as soon as the holiday is over.

Noah Pozner memorial

Gun violence isn't a statistic. It isn't abstract. It isn't political.

Families hit by gun violence don't ever recover. We may still laugh, sing, revel and rejoice. But inside, we bleed.

After seven years, Noah hasn't become an abstraction. I think about him every day of my life and I watch him grow. He was 6 when I last saw him. He'd be 13 today.

I think about Noah every single day. I imagine how he would be as a teen

Everywhere I go, I see the gleam of his pensive, luminous, and mischievous eyes. There is nothing creepy about it. Noah isn't a ghost. He is a presence. A comforting one.

Even the grief is welcome. If it had started to assuage, then it would mean I would have started to forget. There is no chance of that.

sandy hook memorial

My mom lost her first baby 36 hours after his birth. He had been a beautiful 7-pound little boy and just like that, he was gone. He was born at home, as was then the custom in provincial France. A midwife and a local doctor both attended the birth. It had been uneventful and both the mom and the baby had been doing well. Nobody ever had any explanation for why he stopped breathing.

All her life, my mom cried whenever she spoke of her lost little boy. In her final hour, he was the only one whose name she still remembered. I know, I was there, and I am the one who uttered his name. She was a few months shy of her 96th birthday.

One doesn't get over the death of a child. Or a grandchild.

Is it worse when the child is murdered inside his classroom by a killer bent on inflicting maximum pain onto the largest possible number of families? I can't say. I don't believe a scale exists to measure the pain of losing a kid.

But I can tell you that had Noah died in his bed, the last seconds of his life wouldn't have been filled with deafening noises, blood and terror. I can also tell you that no parent or grandparent should have to live with that thought.

That is the reality of gun violence. Not an abstraction. Not a statistic. Sure, there are numbers. But each and every one of them represents a brutal ending, a gaping hole. Stunned and broken families stand around these holes in ever- expanding circles of anguish and grief. The trauma never heals. It goes down the generations. A legacy of pain, anxiety and dysfunction.

What happened to Noah could happen to any child at any moment

What happened to Noah and 19 other children in a peaceful little New England town 10 days before Christmas seven years ago could happen to a kid you love.

To your kid. To your grandkid.

Today. Tomorrow. Anytime. Anywhere.

I don't know how to prevent it. But I know we can't just sit tight and hold our breath. Or stick our heads in the sand.

On this seventh anniversary of the mass murder at Sandy Hook Elementary school and in memory of Noah, of his classmates and of his educators, I beg you to consider doing something if you haven't already.

Joining Moms Demand Action would be good place to start.

And today would be a good time.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 5 things about the NFL that football fans may not know

Marc Benioff

Salesforce is incredibly selective when hiring for technical roles like software engineer and data scientist.
Business Insider asked Salesforce executives for their insights into the application and interview process.
We learned about the importance of leveraging your professional network and showing that you care about something bigger than your job.
Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Salesforce is in the midst of its biggest hiring push of the year.

From November to January, the enterprise-software giant brings on the bulk of its annual hires to prepare for the next fiscal year. And it has ample résumés to pick from. Salesforce receives over 1 million applications every year and interviews over 80,000 people for various roles for positions in its 59 offices.

But for the critical technology roles that Salesforce relies on, it is still competing for an extremely limited pool of candidates. Data science and engineering are two of the top three skills missing among job applicants across corporate America, according to a 2019 report from the Society for Human Resource Management.

To help maintain its edge, the 20-year-old company relies on its reputation as one of the most admired organizations in the world — and the clout of cofounder and co-CEO Marc Benioff, who regularly ranks high on Harvard Business Review's list of top leaders.

The pay isn't too shabby, either. Lead software engineers can make over $200,000 a year, while data scientists can pull in salaries topping $170,000, according to Glassdoor, which relies on self-reported data from current and former employees. And Salesforce prioritizes fair compensation. In 2018, Salesforce undertook a $10.3 million effort to adjust pay disparities between male and female workers across the enterprise after an internal analysis showed wide variation in salaries.

Companies across the globe — like State Farm, Adidas, T-Mobile, and Toyota — rely on Salesforce to manage, among other things, their customer relationships. Marriott, for example, relies on Salesforce's platforms to manage the mountains of information from the hotel chain's millions of customers.

But getting a job at Salesforce is hyper-competitive. Of those 1 million applicants, the company hires only about 10,000 new employees each year across its business units. With interest in the company so high, a big challenge for candidates is simply getting noticed. To stand out, potential employees need to focus on the core competencies that Salesforce's best performers exhibit, and embody the four values that Salesforce swears by: trust, innovation, equality, and customer success.

"We want people who are going to bring us their special sparkle and who are going to shine. And the only way to do that is by truly focusing on the competencies," executive vice president of global recruiting Ana Recio told Business Insider.

Recio has been with Salesforce since 2013, and has helped the company figure out exactly what makes the best Salesforce employees. We asked her and other top execs for their best advice to position yourself for a job at the company and nail the interview process. And because Salesforce doesn't rely heavily on outside recruiters, according to one headhunter, these officials are the gatekeepers for aspiring employees.

Here's what we learned.

Get your foot in the door with a referral from a current employee

At most organizations, your chances of getting a job offer are higher if you were referred by a current employee than if you weren't. At Salesforce, your chances are much higher. Roughly 52% of new hires at Salesforce come through referrals from existing employees, according to Recio.

"My biggest advice would be to leverage your referral network," Recio said. "Salesforce has 45,000 employees globally, and so you're bound to know somebody here"— preferably somebody who can vouch for the quality of your work and the value you'd add to the organization.

The company has a referral program, under which employees who suggest candidates that eventually get hired are rewarded with a cash bonus. Referrals are provided unique links to apply for jobs — which are different than those on the internal job board — and the employees who recommended them are able to then track their progress through the interview process.

Many Salesforce employees also started out as interns there. Salesforce said it hires 15% of its workforce from its internship program, and those associates tend to stay at the company longer than those hired through other pathways.

Prepare for the interview by knowing the answer to 3 questions

Ana Recio Salesforce takes seriously its four foundational values: trust, innovation, equality, and customer success.

Equality, for example, was illustrated in founder Benioff's opposition to an Indiana measure that would have allowed business owners to discriminate against LGBTQ patrons.

And in 2013, when Salesforce was on the verge of losing Merrill Lynch, its biggest customer at the time, leadership quickly mobilized to remedy the situation — a clear example of putting client success above all else. Top executives traversed the US to visit the wealth management firm's various offices to learn what issues it was having and how to fix them, Benioff recounted in his recent book "Trailblazer: The Power of Business as the Greatest Platform for Change."

In the hiring process, Recio and her recruiters seek candidates that exemplify the values. They ask three questions to determine whether a candidate's values align with Salesforce's.

What are the values that drive you?
What is your purpose?
What was your best professional day ever?

There's no template response to these questions. Instead, Recio wants applicants to show they're committed to something bigger than their day job, like making a positive impact on their community — a focus that comes from the top.

"When bright employees see misalignment with their values, they view it as a personal betrayal — and then they walk," co-CEO Benioff wrote in the recent book "Trailblazer: The Power of Business as the Greatest Platform for Change."

The company employs a model it calls "1-1-1," where employees are encouraged to spend 1% of their time on philanthropic endeavors. Salesforce also then donates 1% of its profits and 1% of its resources to charity. But it goes beyond just outside involvement. One former employee said Salesforce looks favorably on those individuals who also get involved internally, including joining or leading employee groups.

A key red flag for recruiters, however, is arrogance.

"The whole Silicon Valley, the whole globe, is full of really talented people. And it's individuals who think that they're a little bit more special than the rest. That's not going to work," said Recio. "If you walk into a room, and you have this sense that you're the smartest one there, you're probably not going to have a good experience at Salesforce."

While applicants are encouraged to talk about themselves, recruiters are watching for whether someone fails to adequately credit the team behind a major accomplishment. That means potential hires should watch how often they say "I" during interviews, a strategy that pays off at other companies as well.

Emphasize your ability to inspire a team

Salesforce Jody Kohner Based on biannual employee surveys, Salesforce learned what really makes a great leader there. Jody Kohner, Salesforce's senior vice president of employee engagement, shared with Business Insider her key takeaway from the surveys.

The company's best leaders don't just make their numbers, whether that's revenue or new client leads. Beyond that, Kohner said, "We're able to hold managers accountable to creating teams that are enthusiastic about Salesforce and who are having a great experience."

Specifically, those people managers cultivate psychological safety, or an environment where people feel comfortable taking risks. If you do land a leadership role at Salesforce, you can assess your own team's level of psychological safety with five questions based on research by Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson, though this strategy is useful for managers at any organization.

Salesforce applies these findings in both its hiring and promotion processes. Every leadership position at Salesforce has different requirements, but if you're applying for a people-management role, be sure to highlight the ways you've kept teams engaged and motivated in the past.

If you want a software developer job, learn Java

Salesforce strives to release three new products each year. To do that, it needs to keep a robust pipeline of tech talent that actually builds the offerings. This year, for example, the company rolled out a voice-assistant on its Einstein AI platform that allows employees to manage tasks like updating customer records conversationally.

The most important skill set is Java, a software-programming language that has been around for decades but remains critical due to its use in everything from applications that manage financial transactions to algorithms that automatically trade on the stock markets.

"There is never going to come a point at Salesforce that we're going to say, 'Oh no, we've got our fill, we're all good.' We can never have enough Java developers," Recio said.

Artificial-intelligence developers and data scientists are also a hiring focus for Salesforce. Finding that talent, however, is increasingly difficult as much of corporate America is rushing to adopt the advanced tech and seeking experts to help develop the applications.

Over the next decade, US companies are projected to need an additional 1 million more science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professionals, according to federal statistics.

To overcome that hurdle, Salesforce sources tech candidates through internal referrals, outside applications, and internships. During job interviews, recruiters ask applicants to solve problems that Salesforce might face to test their problem-solving skills.

Standout candidates are those who keep the customer top of mind and seek to build a roadmap to address the challenge. Recruiters want to hear candidates ask questions such as:

Who is the end user for this product?
What does success mean for the customer?
Who is the team, and what are the resources?
Who are the other stakeholders involved?

If you don't get the job, take Salesforce's advice and try again

Rendering of Dreamforce 2019 location Some career experts advise job candidates to request feedback from the hiring manager on why they were rejected. At Salesforce, candidates don't even need to ask.

The company tries to make its feedback to denied applicants as beneficial as possible. It's so effective that many of those individuals end up applying again and getting other jobs at the company, according to Recio.

Recio urges her recruiters to outline the candidates' strengths, as well as areas where they underperformed compared to other interviewees. Recruiters also suggest courses on Trailhead, Salesforce's online learning platform, that can boost their chances of landing another job at Salesforce down the line.

Trailhead programs are open and free to anyone, including people who don't work at Salesforce. Professionals can take courses online and earn badges in areas like coding and data management.

From Salesforce's perspective, it pays to spend time and energy telling applicants how to improve their candidacy.

It helps to build "an amazing relationship" with job candidates because they "took a lot of time to come and interview, prepare for Salesforce," Recio said. She added, "Here's the return on that investment. You spent time with us and as a result you can come away with really great objective feedback."

Standout applicants who weren't selected are also placed in an internal database to ensure the company stays in touch with them. Even if these people never end up working at Salesforce, they could become customers or partners in the future.

"It really is just a matter of time before you come back into the Salesforce ecosystem," said Recio. "It's really a responsibility to treat our candidates much like we do our customers."

If you are a current or former Salesforce employee who would like to share your experience with the company's hiring process, contact the reporters at jwilliams@businessinsider.com or slebowitz@businessinsider.com.

Join the conversation about this story »

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The period between Christmas and New Year's tends to be one of the most expensive times to travel, with high demand resulting in increased prices for airfare, hotels, and vacations.
But if you're still looking for a last-minute getaway by the year's end, many hotels are offering deals and packages at competitive rates. Brands such as Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton, IHG, Preferred Hotels, and others are discounting prices and offering perks to sweeten the deal.
Availability and pricing varies by day, with the best prices over the Christmas holiday. Many promotions must be booked by December 17, while others extend into the New Year.

The period between Christmas and New Year's tends to be one of the most expensive times to travel. Many people take time off of work or need to hit the road in some capacity. Such high demand typically translates to overall increased prices for airfare, hotels, and vacations.

But if you've found yourself with extra use-it-or-lose-it PTO, are itching to tack a trip onto existing holiday travel, or just need to feel the warmth of the sun, there are still deals to be found. No surprise, the majority are in Florida, but I found other deals around the country and abroad, too.

Some of our favorite hotel brands are offering enticing rates and packages, no gift wrap needed. Better yet, showing loyalty offers a double bonus in point-earning potential, which is a great way to get closer to 2020 award travel.

Below are a few highlights rounded up by brand, which were available at the time of publishing. But get clicking, many of these offers expire by early next week, and are subject to change. If you do miss out, check back here. We'll continue to update this post as we find great deals leading up to Christmas.

Keep reading for the best travel deals for Christmas

SEE ALSO: Insider Picks Hotel Reviews

Marriott Bonvoy

Cadillac Hotel & Beach Club, a member of Marriott's Autograph Collection, seeks to draw families to the beach this year with their Family Night In package. The booking dates are ongoing and cheaper after the holidays, but if you book over Christmas you'll find rates around $400 for oceanfront views and bond-encouraging perks such as an in-room movie, two 12" wood-fired pizzas with up to two toppings, two non-alcoholic beverages, one bottle of house red, white or rosé, and of course, one family-size portion of gourmet popcorn.

Spend family night in Miami at the Cadillac Hotel starting at $400 over Christmas

The Westin Tampa Bay has shockingly low rates over Christmas week, as low as $140 per night for the four-star hotel, no package needed. You'll have to be a Marriott Bonvoy member to score the best prices though. The waterfront locale has lovely bay views and is just three miles from Tampa International Airport and close to other pretty areas such as Clearwater Beach and St. Petersburg.

Book the Westin Tampa Bay over the holidays starting at $140 per night

IHG Hotels

IHG is the parent company of brands such as Kimpton, Intercontinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and others, and has extended their Cyber Monday sale through December 17.

Stays are valid until May 31, 2020, and participating hotels offer 20% off the Best Flexible Rate, with an additional 5% discount for IHG Rewards Club members. Opting in to the latter is smart, considering it also provides benefits such as extra point-earning potential and complimentary Wi-Fi.

Book IHG's extended Cyber Monday sale here for savings of up to 25% off

Kimpton, in particular, has loads of standout deals, starting with their Winter Sun offering.

Sun seekers can head south to Florida and receive up to 20% off hotels' best flexible rates in Downtown Miami, South Beach or Vero Beach. You must book by December 19, and do so at least 10 days in advance of travel, which can take place between December 19 to March 31, 2020. Different properties have different availability, but I found the Winter Sun package to be available over Christmas at the Kimpton Angler's Hotel South Beach for a suite with a terrace for $225 per night.

Spend Christmas in Florida in a suite starting at $225 per night

Kimpton's family-friendly package for Hotel Palomar in Washington, DC might make taking kids on the road more attractive.

With a central location in Dupont Circle, and rates as low as $96 per night, the promotion includes a 50% discount on daily parking, complimentary breakfast for kids 12 and under, and signature Kimpton perks like happy hour, free morning coffee, complimentary bikes, yoga mats, and other wellness perks.

Book Kimpton's Family Package at Hotel Palomar for travel through December 31

Spend Christmas wrapped in a cozy blanket by the fire as the snow falls while enjoying the rustic charm of a boutique hotel. Kimpton's Taconic Hotel in in picturesque Vermont is offering 15% off their best rates through the end of the year when you stay three nights or more. I found nightly rates as low as $260 for Christmas Eve.

Stay longer and save in Vermont with 15% off three nights or more

If family time stresses you out, Kimpton's "Outlaw the In-laws" package places you oceanfront in Huntington Beach, California at the Kimpton Shorebreak. Rates are as low as $166 for Christmas and New Year's week for entry-level rooms and only rose to a reasonable $265 for New Year's Eve. Better yet, the package includes a welcome bottle of wine and is available through January 12, 2020 if you're not in a hurry to get back to the office.

Outlaw the in-laws in Huntington Beach starting at $166 with a free bottle of wine

California residents looking for a staycation or in-state getaway can take advantage of Kimpton's 25% discount at the Everly Hotel in Hollywood. I found rates as low as $264 for the weekend after Christmas, so long as you stay and book by December 31.

Book Kimpton's Everly Hotel Good Neighbor Rate to receive 25% off your booking

Hop the pond to London and enjoy a suite stay at the Kimpton Fitzroy. The aptly named "Suite Dreams in London" promotion offers complimentary breakfast for two, a bottle of Champagne on arrival, £60 food and beverage credit to use in any of their four restaurants and bars, and two garments pressed on check-in.

The package price starts at about $400, though if you're willing to feel a tad less luxurious, regular rooms are being offered as low as $150 per night for one bed over Christmas. The offer is actually available for most of 2020, but must be booked by Jan 31, 2020.

Book the suite life package in London starting at $400, or $150 for a standard room

Hilton Hotels

DoubleTree Resort by Hilton Myrtle Beach Oceanfront is offering a New Year's Eve package to ring in the New Year, including a southern buffet breakfast and late check-out for those who stay up past midnight. The offer is available for stays Dec. 26 through Jan. 3 using the rate code "0NE." Book New Year's Eve and pay just $129.

Spend New Year's Eve in Myrtle Beach at the DoubleTree Hilton for $129

Another DoubleTree, the Gates Hotel is a Miami boutique property offering a few different ways to save over the holidays. Hilton Honors members who book direct can secure a King bed with a pool view for $194. Opt for the Holidays Extra package and you'll get the same room for $239, but also receive premium Wi-Fi, daily breakfast, and late checkout.

Book the Gates Hotel South Beach, a DoubleTree by Hilton for under $200

Preferred Hotels

The folks at Preferred Hotels know that some of the best travel is spontaneous and are offering savings of 35% off last-minute bookings at luxury hotels around the world.

The deals are available for travel by January 19, 2020, but must be booked no later than December 16, 2019. The full list of properties participating are here and include the US, Europe, and Asia. Some standouts include the five-star K Club in Ireland for around $300 per night, the Hammock Beach Resort in Palm Coast, Florida starting at $149 per night, the Royal Park Hotel Tokyo for $138, the Hotel California Paris Champs Elysees starting at $200, and the all-suite Hyde Resort in Hollywood, Florida beginning at $200 per night.

Book last-minute discounted luxury travel at Preferred Hotels for at low as $138 per night

Love Home Swap

If you love the wintry movie delight "The Holiday," check out the vacation swap site inspired by it, Love Home Swap. The global home exchange program matches you up with other travelers for a safe, secure booking that takes care of all the details. You have to be a member to take part in the cool concept, and they're currently offering a free two-week trial followed by a promotion running as low as $140 for a year. After that, you use points to swap homes with other users.

Swap homes like Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet in "The Holiday" for $140, with a free two-week trial

greta thunberg

At 16 years old, Greta Thunberg has become the face of the youth climate movement. On Wednesday, Time magazine named her its 2019 person of the year.
President Donald Trump criticized Time's choice as "ridiculous," tweeting that Thunberg has an "Anger Management problem" and needs to "Chill."
Thunberg changed her Twitter bio to include Trump's insults.
Earlier in the week, Thunberg had a similar interaction with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who called the teenager a "little brat."
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Usually, Greta Thunberg's Twitter bio reads: "16-year-old climate and environmental activist with Asperger's." But these days, that bio seems to be in constant flux, depending on which world leaders insult her.

On Tuesday, Thunberg's bio simply said "pirralha." That translates to "little brat" or "pest" in Portuguese — a reference to comments Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro made about her.

Today, Thunberg's bio reads: "A teenager working on her anger management problem. Currently chilling and watching a good old fashioned movie with a friend."

The change came after President Donald Trump said in a tweet that Thunberg "must work on her Anger Management problem, then go to a good old fashioned movie with a friend! Chill Greta, Chill!"

Trump's tweet came after the news that Thunberg was named Time magazine's 2019 person of the year— a title for which Trump was also in the running.

These social-media tactics are the latest in a series of Thunberg's clever responses to her critics. In short, she's mastered the art of being a Twitter troll.

Thunberg has trolled Trump before

In September, after Thunberg gave a fiery, impassioned speech to UN leaders, Trump mockingly tweeted: "She seems like a very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future. So nice to see!"

Less than 24 hours later, Thunberg hit back by changing her Twitter bio to: "A very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future."

thunberg trump UN

Bolsonaro's recent "pirralha" comment, meanwhile, came after Thunberg denounced the killing of indigenous Brazilian people in the Amazon in a tweet on Sunday. She included a video of a drive-by shooting that left two indigenous leaders dead in Maranhão, Brazil.

"Indigenous people are literally being murdered for trying to protect the forest from illegal deforestation. Over and over again," Thunberg wrote on Twitter. "It is shameful that the world remains silent about this."

Bolsonaro was clearly irked.

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro gestures during launch of the Green and Yellow program to create formal jobs for young people, at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil November 11, 2019. REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino

"Greta's been saying Indians have died because they were defending the Amazon," Bolsonaro told reporters in Portuguese on Tuesday. "It's amazing how much space the press gives this kind of 'pirralha.'"

In October, Russian President Vladimir Putin also weighed in on Thunberg. At an energy forum in Moscow, Putin said he did not share "the common excitement" about her, though he added that he was "sure that Greta is a kind and very sincere girl."

Thunberg once again leaped into action, changing her Twitter bio to read: "A kind but poorly informed teenager"— a reference to Putin's platitude.

'They must simply feel so threatened'

Many pundits, including the US conservative commentator Michael Knowles, have also criticized Thunberg.

The night after Thunberg's speech at the UN in New York, Knowles appeared on Fox News' "The Story" and called Thunberg "a mentally ill Swedish child." Fox later apologized.

That time, Thunberg tweeted a long thread that did not acknowledge Knowles by name but called out "the haters."

"As you may have noticed, the haters are as active as ever — going after me, my looks, my clothes, my behaviour and my differences,"she wrote. "I honestly don't understand why adults would choose to spend their time mocking and threatening teenagers and children for promoting science, when they could do something good instead. I guess they must simply feel so threatened by us."

greta thunberg

At the culmination of the same UN climate summit, Thunberg joined 15 other children in filing a legal complaint alleging that five countries' inaction to address climate change violates the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The countries named were Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and Turkey.

French President Emmanuel Macron pushed back against Thunberg after that, telling Europe 1 that her position was "very radical" and likely to "antagonize societies."

"All the movements of our youth — or our not so young — are helpful," Macron said. "But they must now focus on those who are furthest away, those who are seeking to block the way."

The president added that he didn't feel "that the French government nor the German government, currently, were blocking the way."

The next day, Thunberg retweeted a video posted by the UK television personality Mark Humphries titled "THE GRETA THUNBERG HELPLINE: For adults angry at a child."

The video stars a man who acknowledges he's "irrationally angry at a Swedish girl who wants to save the planet."

A patient female operator explains in the video: "If you're a grown adult who needs to yell at a child for some reason, the Greta Thunberg Helpline is here to tolerate you."

Hang in there! Help is available. https://t.co/aenieXxVut
— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) September 26, 2019

DON'T MISS: Teenage activist Greta Thunberg changes her Twitter bio to clap back at Trump's tweet calling her Person of the Year honor 'ridiculous'

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NOW WATCH: French president excoriates Trump in English over US withdrawal from climate deal

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO

2019 has been especially tumultuous for Facebook.
The biggest issue the company faces stems from political advertising, and Facebook's policy not to fact-check that advertising.
"Facebook exempts politicians from our third-party fact-checking program," VP of global affairs and communication Nick Clegg wrote in late September. "We rely on third-party fact-checkers to help reduce the spread of false news and other types of viral misinformation, like memes or manipulated photos and videos."
"We don't believe, however, that it's an appropriate role for us to referee political debates and prevent a politician's speech from reaching its audience and being subject to public debate and scrutiny," Clegg said.
Facebook execs have defended the controversial decision with arguments about freedom of speech, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg even delivered an hour-long speech at Georgetown University where he argued Facebook's stance.
Here's why Facebook's stance on political ads stance has become so controversial, and where the situation is at right now.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Facebook is embroiled in yet another controversy, but this time it's not about your data: It's about foreign interference in American elections, and partisan politics, and freedom of speech.

It all stems from a relatively simple announcement Facebook made about how its advertising works: Facebook refuses to fact-check political ads that run on its platform.

"We don't fact-check political ads," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a wide-ranging speech at Georgetown University in mid-October. "We don't do this to help politicians, but because we think people should be able to see for themselves what politicians are saying. And if content is newsworthy, we also won't take it down even if it would otherwise conflict with many of our standards."

But that decision — one that Zuckerberg frames around freedom of speech and American traditional values — has prove highly controversial. Here's what's going on.

In late September, Nick Clegg, Facebook's vice president of global affairs and communications, laid out Facebook's policy on political ads: "Facebook exempts politicians from our third-party fact-checking program."

Facebook relies on third-party fact-checking for the majority of ads run on its social network. It adheres to an international standard for fact-checking: The International Fact Checking Network, run by Poynter.

That third-party fact-checker scrutinizes "public, newsworthy Facebook posts, including ads, with articles, photos, or videos." There is one exception to this fact-checking effort: political advertising.

Facebook lays out its reasoning in an official document. Under the question, "Why are politicians not eligible?," the explanation is as follows: "Our approach is grounded in Facebook's fundamental belief in free expression, respect for the democratic process, and the belief that, especially in mature democracies with a free press, political speech is the most scrutinized speech there is. Just as critically, by limiting political speech we would leave people less informed about what their elected officials are saying and leave politicians less accountable for their words."

This is at the heart of Facebook's latest controversy: The company refuses to fact-check political ads.

Facebook says this isn't about the money it makes from running political ads.

When a political ad runs on Facebook, whoever runs that ad has to pay Facebook. Given that, it stands to reason that Facebook's interest in keeping political ads is a question of profit.

Not so, says Facebook.

"We're not doing it because of the money," Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said in an October interview with Bloomberg. "This is less than 1% of our revenue and the revenue is not worth the controversy."

Zuckerberg made a similar argument during Facebook's third quarter investor earnings call.

"In a democracy, I don't think it's right for private companies to censor politicians or the news," he said. "And although I've considered whether we should not carry these ads in the past, and I'll continue to do so, on balance so far I've thought we should continue. Ads can be an important part of voice — especially for candidates and advocacy groups the media might not otherwise cover so they can get their message into debates."

He added that next year — amid a flurry of presidential campaigns — less than half of a percent of Facebook's revenue will come from political ads. The messaging is clear: This isn't about the money, it's about a principled stand.

So, what is it about? According to Zuckerberg, it's about free speech.

During his speech at Georgetown University in mid-October, Mark Zuckerberg laid out a full-throated defense of Facebook's reason for not fact-checking political ads.

Here's Zuckerberg's argument (emphasis is ours):

"We recently clarified our policies to ensure people can see primary source speech from political figures that shapes civic discourse. Political advertising is more transparent on Facebook than anywhere else — we keep all political and issue ads in an archive so everyone can scrutinize them, and no TV or print does that. We don't fact-check political ads. We don't do this to help politicians, but because we think people should be able to see for themselves what politicians are saying. And if content is newsworthy, we also won't take it down even if it would otherwise conflict with many of our standards.

I know many people disagree, but, in general, I don't think it's right for a private company to censor politicians or the news in a democracy. And we're not an outlier here. The other major internet platforms and the vast majority of media also run these same ads."

In short, Zuckerberg believes that banning political ads from Facebook — or fact-checking them — would be overstepping Facebook's role. His argument is rooted in American law and the so-called "marketplace of ideas."

The logic is simple: Freedom of all speech — facts and lies and everything in between — enables a transparent public discourse, and that public discourse, over time, leads to "the truth" as bad ideas are discarded and good ideas win out.

Critics — including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — argue that Facebook is doing a disservice to the public by not fact-checking political ads. Facebook's own employees wrote a letter to Zuckerberg challenging the decision.

Nearly as soon as Facebook began clarifying and defending its policy of not fact-checking political ads, criticism began.

The criticisms are many and varied.

Facebook's former head of global elections integrity ops, Yaël Eisenstat, published a scathing op-ed against the decision in the Washington Post. "The real problem is that Facebook profits partly by amplifying lies and selling dangerous targeting tools that allow political operatives to engage in a new level of information warfare," Eisenstat wrote in early November.

Additionally, a group of current Facebook employees collaborated on a letter they sent to Mark Zuckerberg internally.

"Free speech and paid speech are not the same thing," the letter reads, according to a copy of it published by The New York Times. "Misinformation affects us all. Our current policies on fact checking people in political office, or those running for office, are a threat to what FB stands for. We strongly object to this policy as it stands. It doesn't protect voices, but instead allows politicians to weaponize our platform by targeting people who believe that content posted by political figures is trustworthy."

Both Rep. Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Warren backed the letter and the employees who wrote it.

"Facebook's own employees know just how dangerous their policy allowing politicians to lie in political ads will be for our democracy," Warren wrote. "Mark Zuckerberg should listen to them — and I applaud their brave efforts to hold their own company accountable."

That's just a small smattering of folks who have criticized the move.

Facebook is reportedly considering a label for political ads that spells out when they're not fact-checked.

As recently as this month, Zuckerberg said in an interview with CBS This Morning cohost Gayle King, "In a democracy it's really important that people can see for themselves what politicians are saying so they can make their own judgments. I don't think that a private company should be censoring politicians or news."

But a report in the Washington Post reveals that Facebook is considering some major structural changes to how it shows political ads.

Specifically, Facebook is considering a label on political ads that spells out that they haven't been fact-checked.

Discussions within Facebook appear to be ongoing, and the report said that a variety of ideas have been floated as the social media giant holds ongoing discussions with officials from both major political parties.

Beyond straight up labeling ads as not fact-checked, the company is also reportedly considering imposing a variety of limits on political ad campaigns — from limitations on total number of ads run to limitations on ad targeting.

Facebook has yet to announce any official changes to its political ad policy. "We are looking at different ways we might refine our approach to political ads," a Facebook spokesperson told Business Insider.

But Facebook isn't the only major social media company facing the difficult question of how to deal with political advertising.

No matter where you land on the controversy, one thing is for certain: It's a tremendously complicated issue.

Twitter decided to outright ban political ads.

"This isn't about free expression," Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said on Twitter, where he announced the ad policy change. "This is about paying for reach. And paying to increase the reach of political speech has significant ramifications that today's democratic infrastructure may not be prepared to handle. It's worth stepping back in order to address."

Some politicians praised the move, including former Vice President Joe Biden and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton — but President Trump's campaign manager, Brad Parscale, asserted that the move was, "yet another attempt to silence conservatives."

If Facebook were to ban political ads, it would run into another issue — one that Twitter is almost certain to face: deciding what is and isn't "political" speech.

Zuckerberg highlighted as much during his speech at Georgetown.

"Even if we wanted to ban political ads, it's not clear where we'd draw the line," he said. "There are many more ads about issues than there are directly about elections. Would we ban all ads about healthcare or immigration or women's empowerment? If we banned candidates' ads but not these, would that really make sense to give everyone else a voice in political debates except the candidates themselves?"

It's a reasonable point — if Facebook were to ban "political" ads, it would have to spend a lot of time defining what is and isn't political speech. And then it would come under fire for policing free speech.

"There are issues any way you cut this," Zuckerberg said, "and when it's not absolutely clear what to do, I believe we should err on the side of greater expression."

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell announced a state of emergency after the city was hit by a cyberattack on Friday.
The city started powering down servers and computers at 11 a.m. on Friday.
Mayor Cantrell said that although ransomware was found in the city's systems, no ransom demand has been made.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Mayor of New Orleans LaToya Cantrell declared a state of emergency on Friday after the city's network was discovered to have been infiltrated by a cyberattack.

The city's chief information officer Kim LaGrue told journalists at a press conference that suspicious activity was spotted in the city's network at 5 a.m. on Friday. By 11 a.m. experts had uncovered a "cybersecurity incident" and the city started shutting down servers and computers to contain the threat.

The City of New Orleans' Twitter account tweeted a copy of the declaration of state of emergency.

A declaration of a state of emergency has been filed with the Civil District Court in connection with today’s cyber security event. pic.twitter.com/OQXDGv7JS4
— The City Of New Orleans (@CityOfNOLA) December 13, 2019

According to tweets from NOLA, New Orleans' emergency preparedness campaign 911 calls were not affected by the incident. CCTV cameras also continued to work, although they were not feeding back live footage to the city's Real-Time Crime Center.

Emergency communications are not affected by this cybersecurity incident. Please continue to call @opcd911 9-1-1 for emergencies. @NOPDNews, @NOLAFireDept& @NewOrleansEMS are responding to incidents as usual.
— NOLA Ready (@nolaready) December 13, 2019

Mayor Cantrell told reporters that ransomware, a kind of malware that steals data and demands ransom in return for it, was found in the city's systems. She said that the City of New Orleans has not yet received any ransom demands. Cantrell also said that her knowledge no city information has been compromised or lost.

No suspect has been named yet, but Louisiana State Police, the Louisiana National Guard, the FBI, and Secret Service are all investigating the incident per CNN.

Ransomware has been used to target US cities before, in August 23 towns in Texas were the victims of a coordinated ransomware attack. Last month Louisiana governor John Bel Edwards also declared a state of emergency following a cyberattack on state government servers.

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starbucks

Two uniformed police officers said a Riverside, California, Starbucks denied them service, CBS Los Angeles reported.
This is just the latest of several alleged police discrimination acts at Starbucks this year.
In July, Tempe police officers tweeted that they were asked to leave an Arizona Starbucks location. In November, an Oklahoma Starbucks employee was fired after a police officer received his coffee order with the word "PIG" written on it.
Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Two uniformed police officers said a Riverside, California, Starbucks refused to serve them, CBS Los Angeles reported.

"Two uniformed deputies say this Riverside Starbucks denied them service,"reporter Nicole Comstock wrote on Twitter. "The Riverside Co. Sheriff says the anti-police culture at Starbucks has to end. Starbucks tells @CBSLA the deputies were ignored for 5 minutes & apologizes for any 'intentional or unintentional disrespect.'"

Two uniformed deputies say this Riverside Starbucks denied them service. The Riverside Co. Sheriff says the anti-police culture at Starbucks has to end. Starbucks tells @CBSLA the deputies were ignored for 5 minutes & apologizes for any “intentional or unintentional disrespect.” pic.twitter.com/Ar2Ap3Ne68
— Nicole Comstock (@ComstockNEWS) December 14, 2019

This isn't the first time Starbucks has been called out for police discrimination this year.

In July, the Tempe Officers Association tweeted that six officers, including some veterans, entered a Tempe, Arizona, Starbucks and purchased beverages, Business Insider previously reported. A barista then reportedly asked the officers to either remove themselves from a customer's line of sight or leave the store because the customer "did not feel safe" with the officers' presence, and the officers chose to leave.

It spawned the hashtag "#DumpStarbucks" to trend on Twitter, after the Tempe Officers Association tweeted a logo seemingly designed in 2012 by the National Organization for Marriage to protest Starbuck's support of same-sex marriage.

Don't appreciate @Starbucks asking our #Tempe cops to leave your establishment on the #4thofjuly2019. Several of those cops are #veterans who fought for this country! #ZeroRespect pic.twitter.com/oGaDKhlYX3
— Tempe Officers Association (@ToaAz) July 5, 2019

Starbucks Executive Vice President Rossann Williams issued an apology to the police department, writing that the officers "should have been welcomed and treated with dignity and the utmost respect by our partners."

But another anti-police instance occurred at a Glenpool, Oklahoma, Starbucks in November when an employee was fired after labeling a police officer's cup with the word "PIG," a derogatory term used for police officers.

Amy Slanchik, a news reporter from the local Oklahoma news channel News On 6, first tweeted about the incident. The Kiefer Police Department officer was buying his team thank you coffees for working on Thanksgiving, she wrote.

Kiefer Police Chief Johnny O’Mara says one of his officers picked up five cups of coffee today at the Glenpool @Starbucks for his dispatchers, as a thank you for working on Thanksgiving.

“PIG” was printed on all five labels, he says. @NewsOn6 pic.twitter.com/tmEwid8JRc
— Amy Slanchik (@amyslanchik) November 28, 2019

Starbucks released an official apology to the officer in which they called the incident "absolutely unacceptable." Following the incident, Starbucks and the Kiefer Police Department released a statement saying they would work to "promote greater civility together."

DON'T MISS: Starbucks responds to Tempe police after officers were asked to leave a store for making customers feel unsafe on July 4: 'I want to sincerely apologize'

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Venture capitalists are the startup experts, the ones who have their finger on the pulse of which fledgling companies will boom and which will bust.

artificial intelligence robot

As part of Business Insider Prime's comprehensive coverage of the startups that will strike gold in 2019, we asked VCs to name the startups they think are going to be hot this year. They told us about companies they currently have in their portfolios, as well as ones they haven't put any money into yet but are at the center of positive news.

And from those discussions, one particular group of startups came up repeatedly: those that specialize in artificial intelligence tech.

From AI robots to software that uses machine learning to automate tasks, Silicon Valley is chock full of AI-focused startups.

Take, for example, Transfix, a freight marketplace that companies use to hire trucks from carriers. The startup is trying to transform the $800 billion trucking industry by using AI to match loads with carriers. It's raised $131 million so far.

There are hundreds of noteworthy startups focusing on AI today, so BI Prime has gone to the expert venture capitalists to select the cream of the crop and create a full list of 12 AI Startups to Watch that include:

A company that automatically audits expense reports
A startup that builds self-driving, robot tractors
A software bot that helps create other software bots
And other startups looking to transform industries through AI

BI Prime is publishing dozens of stories like this each and every day. Want to get started by reading the full list?

>> Download it here FREE

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An Australian family of 8 commissioned an 8-wheel, double-decker luxury camper to explore Australia's most remote regions.

Dubbed the Commander 8x8, the vehicle is built on a military-grade MAN TGS truck base.

The camper's defining feature is its 6.5-foot roof lift. Activated with the push of a button on an LCD screen, it transforms the RV from one story to two.

The camper also boasts a state-of-the-art electric system comprised of lithium batteries charged by a solar panel system as well as a diesel backup generator and alternator.

No inch of space is underutilized. Case in point: The washer unit and sink are accessed from the camper's exterior.

SLRV designed the camper to have all of the comforts of home, including ducted air conditioning and heating.

The first floor includes a lounge area that can seat up to 10 people ...

... as well as a fully functional kitchen with a double burner stovetop, two microwave ovens, and two fridges.

Past the kitchen are the bathroom and shower ...

... and the master bedroom.

To accommodate additional guests, the lounge can also be converted into a bedroom.

Between the dinette and kitchen, floating stairs lead up to the second level ...

... which has a TV and six single beds with reading lights and individual windows.

And there's plenty of storage for life on the road.

Today's travelers are increasingly seeking meaningful, transformational experiences, and luxury RVs help them achieve that in style and comfort.

Early on in the series, Monica served as a waitress at the Moondance Diner.

As a head chef, Monica would be working some really long hours.

It seems like Joey had a pretty charmed life as an auditioning actor.

As a soap-opera actor, Joey would probably be spending a lot of time on set.

As a paleontologist and professor, Ross should perhaps be doing a lot more writing and editing.

Even though she worked at a cafe, Rachel was never really seen making specialty drinks or bringing people food.

Rachel's roles in the fashion industry would probably have more to do with numbers and less to do with clothes.

Although it's not too clear what Chandler's job is for most of the show, it would likely involve a lot of numbers.

As a junior copywriter at an advertising agency, Chandler would probably be working late nights.

Phoebe's part-time gig as a musician probably wouldn't pay very well.

As a freelance massage therapist, Phoebe doesn't seem to be hustling enough.

How we use our time affects our ability to build wealth

Be open about what you want out of the program and what you can give to the school

Get comfortable talking about yourself in interviews

Are you an entrepreneur? Say it loud and proud.

Don't skimp on highlighting your other extracurricular work

Show who you really are in your 'Pick Six' photo essay

The basics of Blooom

Getting started with Blooom

Blooom's analysis is thorough and easy for beginners to understand

Blooom only links with certain companies

Harrods is an institution. A very large, very expensive institution.

It is also well-known for its association with Princess Diana.

Never one for shopping and anything but rich, I didn't know what to expect.

The outside didn't exactly wow me, but then again, I'm used to Dubai opulence.

I was struck by how ordinary it seemed.

But that all changed as soon as I walked towards the door, and met a friendly doorman named Mustapha.

Stepping inside, it was like I'd stumbled into another world — or at least left ordinary life behind.

It's one thing to hear Harrods is fancy — it was something else entirely to really see it for myself.

The scale of everything was almost overwhelming. There was a department for seemingly everything — and a host of rather unique services.

Of course, there were some things that, cool as they were, didn't make sense. Like full-size glass guitars ...

... and boots made from what I was sure was real snakeskin — and possibly a species of snake that wasn't common.

Some of the clothes were very cool. I liked this bright coat that looked like it was straight off a fashion week runway ...

... Until I saw it cost nearly £1,300 ($1,700).

Naturally, there was a lot of designer stuff ...

... And fur, too.

The decor was as distracting as the actual items for sale, too.

I was most impressed by the staff, however. They made me feel very welcome.

It was crowded, but not as crowded as I thought it would be.

I was also impressed by the diversity of customers and staff.

With so many departments and floors, I could see why someone might easily spend hours at Harrods, even if they weren't buying anything.

The elevators were rather opulent ...

... As were the escalators ...

... And even the ceilings.

While I normally hate shopping, I didn't mind this.

I wandered down to the food halls, which seemed to go on forever.

The food halls alone were a sight to behold — and there was a lot to smell.

I kept telling myself I wouldn't do it — there was nothing I needed to buy. But as if under the spell of Harrods, I found myself giving in.

They were covered in gold, and cost £20 ($26) for 80 grams, or seven pieces.

Eventually though, I did feel it was time to head back to work. Unfortunately, I didn't know how to get out ...

... But another friendly staffer was able to show me how to locate the nearest exit, which still took quite a few minutes to reach.

Stepping outside into the London rain again, it felt like returning to reality.

Harrods seemed so welcoming, and staff so friendly, I'd go back — and would even recommend others visiting London to stop by.

Prosecutors and investigators will likely want to talk to Prince Andrew

There's a good chance an interview could happen because of the public scrutiny against the prince

He might not have a choice whether to cooperate or not

If an interview were to happen, it would likely take place in the UK

Andrew's status as a member of the British royal family complicates matters

Prosecutors would only offer immunity if they knew Andrew has valuable information

Prince Andrew's woes are likely more about his image than legal concerns