Dollar General CEO says even $100k earners shopping like bargain hunters

Sep 16, 2026, 11:37 AM ET

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News

Dollar General (DG) CEO Todd Vasos said earlier in the week that sustained inflation and high gas prices (UGA) (XB1:COM) are squeezing shoppers across all income levels, driving even those earning over $100K to adopt budget-conscious habits and positioning the discount retailer to capture a broader demographic.

Speaking at a Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail conference, Vasos highlighted that economic distress is no longer limited to the chain's core consumer base. He noted that whenever gas prices approach or surpass $4 a gallon, Dollar General’s (DG) traditional customers radically shift their behavior. To manage costs, these shoppers opt to stay closer to home, making more frequent trips but purchasing less on each visit.

As the Middle East conflict lingers and drives up global energy (USO) (BNO) (XLE) prices, the national average for a gallon of regular gas is sitting well above that threshold at around $4.36, according to recent AAA data.

The financial strain has also cascaded up the income ladder. According to Vasos, middle- and upper-middle-class consumers are now mirroring the purchasing habits of lower-income shoppers due to years of sustained inflation on basic goods. Even households earning over $100K—which Dollar General (DG) categorizes as high income—are feeling the pinch.

Vasos said that the retailer is hearing more from this demographic, noting that many say they no longer feel like high-income earners because of persistent economic headwinds.

Despite the challenging macroeconomic environment for consumers, Vasos remains optimistic about the company's outlook, believing Dollar General (DG) is in a strong position to serve this newly budget-conscious spectrum of shoppers across all demographics.

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It Starts Oct 1st... (The Trucker Revolt)

 

India to Climate Cartel: Count Us Out

The narrative of a rapidly degrading Indian environment due to energy consumption is demonstrably false.

By Vijay Jayaraj

August 1, 2026

Sometimes a story gets buried not because editors conspire against it, but because the news cycle has room for only one crisis at a time. This year the big news has been the Iran war. But even accounting for competing headlines, the silence around a genuinely consequential development is telling.

And that is the story of India’s explicit rejection of the global net zero movement. India has walked away from its bid to host the COP33 UN climate conference, and the world’s climate press has treated it as a footnote rather than the signal it is.

India had spent years projecting a rising voice in the development of climate policy, and hosting a COP33 is the closest thing the bureaucracy has to a coronation. Then, quietly, without public explanation, India withdrew its offer. No press conference. No elaboration. Just a government stepping back from a role for which it auditioned for years.

The truth is India has run the numbers on the cost of a net-zero energy transition for a population of 1.4 billion climbing out of poverty, and it does not like what it sees. The notion that India should shackle its economy by adhering to restrictive climate policies, while its people still grapple with energy deficits, is illogical and morally indefensible.

What if America Went Completely Dark?

The power grid relies on thousands of aging, hand-built transformers. If enough fail, the blackout could last years.
Photo illustration by Justin Metz

By Christopher Cox

Christopher Cox traveled to California and Nevada and interviewed more than two dozen experts in grid technologies and grid reliability.

Aug. 18, 2026Updated 9:20 a.m. ET

The snipers had been shooting for nearly 10 minutes before someone called 911. A man driving down the highway told the police he thought he heard fireworks as he passed Pacific Gas and Electric’s Metcalf electrical substation, 15 miles southeast of San Jose. An engineer at a nearby power plant said he thought it was gunfire. Maybe more calls would have come in, but the communication link between the substation and PG&E, along with several phone and internet cables, had been severed. It was April 16, 2013.

The shooters — two, maybe more — took up positions 30 to 40 yards outside the substation fence, in the dry scrubland near Coyote Creek. At 1:31 a.m., after a security camera recorded what looked like a signal from a flashlight, they began firing high-powered rifles into the facility. Sparks flew into the air whenever the bullets grazed the chain-link fence, but most of the shots hit their apparent targets: a row of truck-size power transformers, which step down high-voltage electricity to lower voltages so it can be sent to local homes and businesses. Because this was Silicon Valley, those customers included some of the largest tech companies in the world.

After some 120 shots, 17 of Metcalf’s transformers had been disabled. The attackers knew to aim for the units’ cooling systems, oil-filled fins similar to those on a radiator, which draw heat away from the electrified core. That allowed the oil, 52,000 gallons of it, to drain out slowly so that the transformers wouldn’t fail right away, which would have triggered an alarm. The gunmen could take their time.

At 1:50 a.m., there was another flicker from a flashlight, and the shooting stopped. One minute later, the police arrived at the substation, but by then, the shooters were gone. The police looked around and, finding nothing suspicious, left as well. It wasn’t until a utility worker arrived at 3:15 a.m. that the extent of the damage was clear.

Mistaken Zeal - Maranatha Our Lord Is Coming - May 28

  

Maranatha Our Lord Is Coming: Mistaken Zeal, April 28, by Ellen G White


Clash Of Minds

Apr 27, 2025

For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. Romans 10:2.

There is a noisy zeal, without aim or purpose, which is not according to knowledge, which is blind in its operations and destructive in its results. This is not Christian zeal. Christian zeal is controlled by principle and is not spasmodic. It is earnest, deep, and strong, engaging the whole soul and arousing to exercise the moral sensibilities. 

The salvation of souls and the interests of the kingdom of God are matters of the highest importance. What object is there that calls for greater earnestness than the salvation of souls and the glory of God? There are considerations here which cannot be lightly regarded. They are as weighty as eternity. Eternal destinies are at stake. Men and women are deciding for weal or woe. Christian zeal will not exhaust itself in talk, but will feel and act with vigor and efficiency. Yet Christian zeal will not act for the sake of being seen. Humility will characterize every effort and be seen in every work. Christian zeal will lead to earnest prayer and humiliation, and to faithfulness in home duties. In the family circle will be seen the gentleness and love, benevolence and compassion, which are ever the fruits of Christian zeal.... 

Oh, how few feel the worth of souls! How few are willing to sacrifice to bring souls to the knowledge of Christ! There is much talking, much professed love for perishing souls; but talk is cheap stuff. It is earnest Christian zeal that is wanted—a zeal that will be manifested by doing something. All must now work for themselves, and when they have Jesus in their hearts they will confess Him to others. No more could a soul who possesses Christ be hindered from confessing Him than could the waters of Niagara be stopped from flowing over the falls.

Eternal life should engage the deepest interest of every Christian. To be a co-worker with Christ and the heavenly angels in the great plan of salvation! What work can bear any comparison with this! From every soul saved there comes to God a revenue of glory to be reflected upon the one saved and also upon the one instrumental in his salvation.

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These Common Food Preservatives May Be Linked To Cancer, According To A New Study

Here's what the research found and what experts say to do next.

By Amanda Mactas

PUBLISHED: FEB 23, 2026

oscar acosta / 500px//Getty Images

• A large study followed more than 100,000 people for nearly 15 years and found links between higher intake of certain preservatives and a modestly higher cancer risk.
• The researchers flagged a handful of additives, but experts stress the results show association, not causation, and may reflect overall ultra-processed diets.
• If you’re concerned, focus on limiting ultra-processed foods, reading labels, and building meals around whole foods rather than panicking and purging your kitchen.

A recent study called into question the long-term health effects of common food preservatives. The study, published by BMJ Group, tracked more than 100,000 people for nearly 15 years and found that a handful of common food preservatives may be linked to a higher risk of cancer. While previous research has suggested certain preservatives can damage cells and DNA, scientists wanted to see whether these additives were associated with increased cancer risk in real-world diets.

The study examined 17 preservatives and found that only some were linked to a higher cancer risk. In particular, potassium sorbate, potassium nitrate, sodium nitrite, and sulfites were associated with an increased risk of overall cancer, as well as specific types like breast and prostate cancer. However, just because people who consumed more preservatives had a higher risk of developing cancer doesn't mean the preservatives themselves caused it—other factors could also be at play.

Cuba Reportedly Pleads With Vatican To Get The US Off Its Back As Energy Crisis Grows

(Photo by ADALBERTO ROQUE/AFP via Getty Images)

Derek VanBuskirk

Reporter

March 30, 20266:23 PM ET

Cuban officials have reportedly petitioned the Vatican to advocate for the island nation in an effort to maintain power and secure aid as the communist country struggles amid an energy crisis.

The crisis, which has resulted in rolling blackouts, arose following a late January executive order characterizing Cuba as an “unusual and extraordinary threat” and imposing a tariff on any country that provides or sells oil to Cuba.

In the two months since the de facto oil blockade was put into place, the Cuban government has conducted senior-level meetings with Holy See officials — including the pope — in the hopes that they would function as an interlocutor between Cuba and the U.S., according to The Washington Post (Post). 

On Feb. 20, the senior diplomat at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Mike Hammer, and the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, Brian Burch, held meetings with Latin American ambassadors to the Vatican, according to the Post.

They spoke of “how to work with the Church to support the Cuban people’s desire for economic opportunity and freedom,” the outlet reported. The U.S. diplomats reportedly also met with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher.

Hammer told the Latin American Church diplomats that Cuba’s regime would fall “in a matter of days,” a person familiar told the outlet.

Hammer and Burch also held a meeting with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin. A source familiar with the conversation said the Vatican hopes for a resolution that is “not as traumatic” as Trump’s arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Trump pauses attacks on Iran's energy plants

Will U.S. stop it? Russian tanker with desperately needed oil closes in on Cuba

March 25, 2026 Updated Wed., March 25, 2026 at 2:46 p.m.

A man rides his bicycle past an empty gas station in Havana, Cuba, on Feb. 19, 2026. (Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images/TNS) (Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS) X

Antonio María Delgado

Miami Herald


A Russian oil tanker carrying hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude is steadily approaching Cuba, setting up a high-stakes test of Washington’s willingness to enforce its tightening energy embargo on the island as it grapples with a deepening fuel crisis.

Jorge Piñón, an energy expert at the University of Texas at Austin, said the vessel — the Anatoly Kolodkin — appears to be maintaining a steady course toward Cuba.

“This morning — when I checked it; I haven’t checked it just now — it was en route to Cuba. It is maintaining a speed of roughly 12 knots,” Piñón said. “I imagine it should arrive sometime within the next six days. However, for the moment, it hasn’t changed either its direction or its speed.”

Ferrying an estimated 700,000 to 730,000 barrels of Russian crude across the Atlantic, the tanker is widely believed by analysts to be heading for the Cuban port of Matanzas, despite broadcasting a misleading destination.

Its approach comes at a moment of heightened geopolitical tension, as the United States seeks to tighten pressure on Havana while managing global energy disruptions triggered by conflict in Iran and ongoing confrontations with Russia.LL

Ilhan Omar’s Daughter Says She Is ‘Honored’ To Be in Cuba

PUBLISHED
MAR 22, 2026 AT 08:12 PM EDT

UPDATED
MAR 22, 2026 AT 08:13 PM EDT

By Adeola Adeosun

Weekend Night Editor

Isra Hirsi, the daughter of Democratic Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar, publicly defended her visit to Cuba on Sunday, saying on social media she was "honored to be here" and "honored to make history" on the island amid escalating tensions between Havana and Washington.

Omar later reposted her daughter's message on X.

Why It Matters

Hirsi's visit comes as U.S.-Cuba relations are at a particularly volatile point. President Donald Trump has publicly floated the idea of "taking Cuba in some form," while Havana has said its military is actively preparing for the "possibility of military aggression" from the United States. The trip — and Hirsi's public defense of it — is likely to draw sharp criticism from Republicans, who have long targeted her mother over her progressive politics and immigration background.

What To Know

Hirsi responded to a New York Post X post that characterized her trip and those of others as "tone-deaf," writing: "yes i am in cuba! people are here from across the globe to express solidarity with the Cuban people. people who are standing against the oppressive blockade exacerbated by the trump administration. i am honored to be here. i am honored to make history and Eid Mubarak to all."

Cuba is currently grappling with a severe energy crisis, driven in large part by a U.S. campaign to restrict oil shipments to the island. Trump signed an executive order threatening tariffs on any country that exports fuel to Cuba, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio has publicly signaled support for leadership change in Havana. The island has experienced repeated nationwide blackouts throughout March, and Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has warned that any external aggressor would face "impregnable resistance."

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Britain’s green energy disaster should be an awful warning to Americans Capell Aris

Blade inspectors carry out work recently in the North Sea - Antonie Robson

© Antonie Robson

Last year, the Biden administration set an ambitious new goal for the USA: to deploy 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind capacity by the year 2030, increasing US offshore capacity more than seven hundred times over. The UK already has 15 GW of offshore wind, more than 300 times as much as the USA: and our experience should be a terrible warning to Americans.

The UK’s electricity prices are the highest since records began in 1920 and are now amongst the highest in all Europe. One reason for this is obvious: slightly less than half our electricity comes from gas-burning Combined Cycle Gas Turbines (CCGTs) and gas now costs £90 per megawatt-hour (MWh), nearly five times higher than normal. CCGTs are cheap to build (around £650m per GW) and operate. In normal times they would generate electricity at a total cost of £40 per MWh. That’s now risen to nearly £150/MWh, thanks to Vladimir Putin and his impact on the gas market.

But that’s not the whole story. The other reason why British electricity is so expensive is because we have so much wind power: particularly, so much offshore wind power. Bad though the current situation is, we would be an even worse state if we had built even more offshore wind, as the British government plans to.

G7 energy, environment leaders haggle over climate strategy

Energy Crisis Being Engineered for Evil Purposes

France’s Macron and Germany’s Scholz to discuss energy, defence