The father of Jonathan Ross, the ICE agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minnesota, has come forward to defend his son's actions and believes he will be cleared of any wrongdoing.

Most people don't think of retail jobs as anything to write home about, with the general assumption that such jobs are marked by low pay, high turnover, and not always the greatest working conditions. But there are exceptions to every rule, and if there's one big exception to the retail rule, it's Costco. Costco is beloved by customers for its fair prices and quality products. Its Kirkland Signature brand products are almost always the best things on the shelf, and when you're done shopping, you can grab a jumbo hot dog and a large soda for the criminally low price of $1.50. (In fact, one of the chain's cofounders once threatened the then-CEO with severe bodily harm should he ever raise the price of the hot dog combo. And Costco never has.) Deans Charbal/Wikimedia Commons However, it seems not everyone is aware of Costco's stellar reputation as an employer, since a woman sharing her joy at landing a job there was initially met with surprising derision on social media. But the critics were quickly corrected by both Costco employees and people familiar with the company's employment practices, launching a celebration of Costco as a responsible business that takes care of its employees.A woman named Doreau shared a selfie from her car holding up her Costco employee badge with a caption that read, "After almost 3 months. I'm officially hired."Whether she'd been searching for a job in general for three months or had been in the hiring process with Costco for that long isn't clear, but her smile and triumph emoji indicated that she was proud of the accomplishment. — (@) Not everyone was so enthusiastic, though, in what appears to be a misunderstanding by some about what it means to work at Costco.Some commenters mocked the woman, indicating that working at Costco was nothing to boast about, as if it's just another retail job. As one example, someone wrote, "Who tf spends 3 months chasing a job at Costco."First of all, anyone who's been in the bowels of a modern job hunt knows that landing any kind of stable employment in 2025 should be considered a major win. But at Costco? You could throw a damn parade and still not be considered too excited.People in the know shut the haters down immediately."They must not know that Costco’s employee turnover rate…She hit a lick on that one!!""Costco pays their employees INCREDIBLY well and has benefits unlike any other grocer. I’m so happy for her!!!""Man i’ve been trying to get a job at costco for sooo long i know somebody who works at the door checking receipts and makes $25/hour""The best employee benefits, satisfaction, retention and upwards mobility in American retail. God bless her.""My guy has been at Costco for 20yrs, makes 6 figures and has almost 1M in his 401k. No stress at work, tons of PTO, and has a wonderful work/life balance. Y'all still struggling with basic life stuff.""People don’t leave Costco when they find employment there. It’s getting your foot in the door that’s the hard part. Good for her."People in the comments job shaming her meanwhile I’m so happy for her because this economy is monstrous.Congratulations pretty! Hope you end up the CEO one day or something ???? https://t.co/1clz0Qs0a7— The Nostalgia Queen (@Snow_Blacck) January 4, 2025 Reposts with hundreds of thousands of likes showed that she had every right to be proud of landing that Costco badge, especially in an economy where people seem to be having a hard time finding jobs despite low unemployment rates.Months later, her posts indicate she's still working there, which says a lot. Once hired, people tend to stay with Costco for a long time because — again — it's a great place to work! — (@) What makes Costco a great place to work?Of course, you can find people who will complain about any job, but the numbers at Costco speak for themselves. According data cited in the Harvard Business Review, Costco's turnover rate—the percentage of employees that leave—is only 8%, a notably small fraction of the retail industry average rate of 60%.There's a reason for that extraordinary statistic—several of them, in fact.Costco prioritizes paying employees well—including good benefitsAccording to an Ethics Unwrapped case study, Costco pay tends to be around 40% more than Walmart and Target and the company provides more comprehensive health and retirement benefits as well. Part of what enables them to do that is the money they save with their low turnover rate, as it costs a lot to hire and train new employees.Costco cofounder Jim Sinegal rejected the idea that a company had to either take care of its shareholders or its workers, calling that "a false choice.""It's really pretty simple. It's good business," Sinegal said in 2009. "When you hire good people, and you provide good jobs and good wages and a career, good things are going to happen."It truly is that simple. Costco's philosophy hasn't changed since Sinegal's retirement in 2012; it's all about the reciprocal care between employee and employer: "Costco’s success depends on the well-being of employees within all areas of our business. Our operational practices, benefits, and paid time-off policies acknowledge and reward employees for their continued contribution to our culture and success."According to Investopedia, Costco's average wage is over $30 per hour, around $5.50 per hour higher than the national retail average. Its minimum wage is $19.50/hr. Costco may not be fancy, but it is beloved.Curlyrnd/Wikimedia Commons Costco provides lots of opportunity for advancementLook no further than Costco's new CEO, Ron Vachris, for proof of Costco's internal promotion philosophy. Vachris began as a forklift driver at Costco as a teenager (technically when it was known as Price Club, before it became Costco). Now, at 58, he runs the whole company.He's an extreme example, but Costco has purposefully opportunity baked into its employment model, encouraging employees "to view Costco as a place for a long-term career rather than just a job." As the company website states:"When it comes to employee development, our goals are to:● Provide all employees with training, education and opportunities for career development and advancement.● Ensure there is fair access and resources to help employees succeed.● Encourage leaders to continue to teach and mentor employees, so that employees will be prepared for opportunities and greater responsibility.● Encourage employees to take advantage of opportunities for development and advancement."From the stories people tell of moving up the ranks in their Costco careers, that's not just lip service. Doreau herself, depending on whether she's working full-time or part-time, is likely already in line for a raise — sticking it even further to her doubters. Costco GIF by hero0fwar Giphy Costco has a well-earned reputation as an ethical companyCostco is often held up as an ethical example of capitalism in the way it treats the people it employs, serves, and works with. Internally, the company abides by a 4-rule code of ethics, which seems remarkably simple on the surface:1. Obey the law.2. Take care of our members.3. Take care of our employees.4. Respect our suppliers.But when you dig into what each of those rules entails in the company's Mission Statement and Code of Ethics, it's easy to see why it works. "At the core of our philosophy as a company is the implicit understanding that all of us, employees and management alike, must conduct ourselves in an honest and ethical manner every day," the document reads. "Dishonest conduct will not be tolerated. To do any less would be unfair to the overwhelming majority of our employees who support and respect Costco’s commitment to ethical business conduct… If you are ever in doubt as to what course of action to take on a business matter that is open to varying ethical interpretations, TAKE THE HIGH ROAD AND DO WHAT IS RIGHT."Well, that's quite clear. Costco demonstrated its own commitment to its own ethics when it resisted pressure to abandon its DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives in late 2024, saying, "Our commitment to an enterprise rooted in respect and inclusion is appropriate and necessary." — (@) Perhaps most importantly, Costco emphasizes that abiding by this code of ethics is what enables shareholders to be rewarded, and at this point, they've proven that to be true. A good business practicing good ethics ultimately leads to good results—it really does seem to be that simple.All that to say, next time you visit Costco, don't for a second think the employees are toiling away in a retail job they hate. No company is perfect, but overall, this warehouse giant is considered one of the best places in the country to be employed. And that is why Doreau was so excited to celebrate.This article originally appeared in January. It has been updated.

Have you ever watched a movie or read a book or listened to a piece of music and wondered, "How did they come up with that idea?" The creative process is so enigmatic even artists themselves don't always know where their ideas come from, so It's a treat when we get to hear the genesis of a brilliant idea straight from the horse's mouth. If you've watched Wicked and Wicked: For Good, and wondered where the idea for the friendship between Elphaba (the Wicked Witch) and Glinda (the Good Witch) came from, the author of the book has shared the precise moment it came to him.The hit two-part movie Wicked is based on the 20-year-old hit stage musical, which is based on the novel "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West" written by Gregory Maguire. While the musical is a simplified version of the 1995 book, the basic storyline—the origin story of the two witches from "The Wizard of Oz"—lies at the heart of both. In an interview with BBC, Maguire explained how Elphaba and Glinda's friendship popped into his head.Maguire was visiting Beatrix Potter's farm in Cumbria, England, and thinking about "The Wizard of Oz," which he had loved as a child and thought could be an interesting basis for a story about evil.Wicked Glinda Elphaba GIFfrom Wicked GIFs "I thought 'alright, what do we know about 'The Wizard of Oz' from our memories,'" he said. "We have the house falling on the witch. What do we know about that witch? All we know about that witch is that she has feet. So I began to think about Glinda and the Wicked Witch of the West…"There is one scene in the 1939 film where Billie Burke [Glinda the Good Witch] comes down looking all pink and fluffy, and Margaret Hamilton [the Wicked Witch of the West] is all crawed and crabbed and she says something like, 'I might have known you'd be behind this, Glinda!' "Begone Twoo GIFfrom Begone GIFs "This was my memory, and I thought, now why is she using Glinda's first name? They have known each other. Maybe they've known each other for a long time. Maybe they went to college together. And I fell down onto the ground in the Lake District laughing at the thought that they had gone to college together."In Wicked: Part One, Glinda and the soon-to-be Wicked Witch, Elphaba, meet as students at Shiz University, a school of wizardry. They get placed as roommates, loathe each other at first, but eventually become best friends. The story grows a lot more complicated from there (and the novel goes darker than the stage play), but it's the character development of the two witches and their relationship with one another that force us to examine our ideas about good and evil.Gelphie Glinda GIFfrom Gelphie GIFs Maguire also shared with the Denver Center for Performing Arts what had inspired him to use the "Wizard of Oz" characters in the first place."I was living in London in the early 1990’s during the start of the Gulf War. I was interested to see how my own blood temperature chilled at reading a headline in the usually cautious British newspaper, the Times of London: 'Sadaam Hussein: The New Hitler?' I caught myself ready to have a fully formed political opinion about the Gulf War and the necessity of action against Sadaam Hussein on the basis of how that headline made me feel. The use of the word Hitler – what a word! What it evokes! When a few months later several young schoolboys kidnapped and killed a toddler, the British press paid much attention to the nature of the crime. I became interested in the nature of evil, and whether one really could be born bad. I considered briefly writing a novel about Hitler but discarded the notion due to my general discomfort with the reality of those times. But when I realized that nobody had ever written about the second most evil character in our collective American subconscious, the Wicked Witch of the West, I thought I had experienced a small moment of inspiration. Everybody in America knows who the Wicked Witch of the West is, but nobody really knows anything about her. There is more to her than meets the eye."And to think, that little inspiration would turn into a critically acclaimed pop culture juggernaut. Arguably not just because of the dazzling costumes, choreography, and vocal prowess of both grande and Erivo…but because of the very real human elements interwoven throughout the story. Ariana Grande Glinda The Good Witch GIFfrom Ariana Grande GIFs Authors and artists—and their ideas—help hold a mirror up to humanity for us to see and reflect on who we are, and Wicked is one of those stories that makes us take a hard look at what we're seeing in that mirror. Thanks, Gregory Maguire, for launching us on a collective journey that not only entertains but has the potential to change how we see one another.This story originally appeared last year.

Conflict is a natural and healthy part of our daily lives, so it can be very productive when we know how to have productive disagreements. In fact, you can argue that learning to have difficult and challenging, even confrontational conversations, with others is essential to a happy life.However, it's extremely difficult to keep conflicts from spinning out of control into arguments. Has getting into a heated argument with your significant other, a coworker, or a child ever solved anything? Probably not. Heated arguments often lead people down the dark path of personal attacks, animosity, and getting so riled up that they stop making sense altogether. "If no one ever argues, you’re not likely to give up on old ways of doing things, let alone try new ones. Disagreement is the antidote to groupthink,” organizational psychologist Adam Grant said, according to Psychology Today. “We’re at our most imaginative when we’re out of sync." So the big question is, how do we prevent heated arguments from happening and steer them to more productive territory instead? Researchers have been on the case and may have a solution.A group of scholars at the University of Wisconsin found that it’s essential for people to create a safe environment for discussion, and the key to doing so is to ask open-ended questions that lead to points of agreement. Specifically, the researchers say to use “I” statements, such as “I feel frustrated” or “I feel concerned,” when expressing yourself during the disagreement. It's an old therapy trick that's often used to prevent other people from feeling attacked by accusations. However, the most effective phrase researchers identified is one that clearly directs the discussion toward agreement. We face disagreements in every area of life. Handling them properly is harder than it seems. Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash The best way to stop an argument, they say, is with the phrase: “I’d actually like to focus on all the things we agree on.”There are 3 big reasons why the phrase is so effective at stopping arguments from happening. First, the phrase immediately changes the mindset of both people from the areas where they disagree to one of agreement. We are no longer arguing about why we like or don’t like pineapple on pizza. Instead, we’re focusing on the toppings we both enjoy, such as pepperoni or black olives. This subtle shift turns the person we disagree with from enemy to collaborator.Another big reason “I’d actually like to focus on all the things we agree on” is such an effective phrase because it extinguishes the other person’s anger. When we search for a way to agree, we suddenly become an unappealing target for the other person’s rage.Finally, this phase makes you the good guy in the disagreement because you are looking for a positive solution. You’ve just taken a right turn onto the high road and have become the rational party in the conversation. This tactic is especially effective when a third party, such as a boss or sibling, is involved in the disagreement and wants to see who is acting in good faith. This will encourage the person you’re having a dispute with to be more cooperative to save face.The key is to be genuine about seeking agreement and maintain a sincere tone when presenting your approach. Once the potential fight has been quelled, you can work together to reach the best possible agreement. - YouTube www.youtube.com The paper provides some helpful acronyms anyone can remember during their next disagreement, in addition to the one key phrase:Validate Ask (open-ended questions) Listen (to test assumptions) Uncover interests Explore options Decide (on solutions)The researchers also further recommended some active listening techniques in addition to asking question, like mirroring or paraphrasing the other person's statements and words, and priming. Priming involves "[making] a guess out loud about what the other person might be thinking or feeling. One must choose the words carefully and use a calm tone to avoid worsening the situation. The goal is to make the other person feel comfortable speaking." @therapytothepoint 6 Listening Skills to Listen Like a Therapist. 1) Minimal encouragers 2) Validation 3) Silence 4) Open/Close ended questions 5) Summaries 6) Reflection #listeningskills #activelistening #howtolisten #communicationskills #listeningiseverything #therapyskills #therapistsontiktok #therapytok Using "I" statements also helps because we're avoiding using "you" statements. "Anyone who’s ever been in conflict with someone knows that hearing a you-statement is hearing yourself be blamed for something, identified as the problem. 'You never listen to me,' 'You’re always late,' 'Why are you so stubborn?' And even if you don’t know consciously that you're being blamed, your reflexive reaction of defensiveness tells you that you know it when you hear it," Gregg Levoy, author of "Vital Signs: The Nature and Nurture of Passion," writes in Psychology Today.Learning how to prevent heated arguments can strengthen the relationship with the person you disagree with. Resolving a conflict together makes their relationship stronger and more enduring. So, a conflict can be a gift that you can use to skillfully bring yourself closer to someone. The key is to focus on the areas of agreement and to be sincere so you can resolve the issue together without leaving any lingering resentment.This article originally appeared in January. It has been updated.

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J.D. Vance just went NUCLEAR on the media over their lies

Company issues statement saying "owner/operator of this franchised restaurant confirmed that this flyer was posted without approval."