All posts tagged: setbacks

Vance Iran, Orbán setbacks could threaten Trump successor status

Vance Iran, Orbán setbacks could threaten Trump successor status

Published by Sam Flores

U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaks during a Turning Point USA event at Akins Ford Arena at the Classic Center on April 14, 2026 in Athens, Georgia. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images President Donald Trump this month sent Vice President JD Vance to Hungary to boost its embattled prime minister and then to Pakistan for peace talks with Iran in hopes of ending the war the U.S. and Israel started. Both trips ended with highly visible setbacks and some awkward moments, leading to questions about whether Vance’s political star is still rising or if he’s being saddled with some of the administration’s heaviest burdens. Vance became the face of the U.S. delegation that last weekend failed to clinch a peace deal with Iran after a marathon 21-hour negotiating session in Islamabad. Tehran would not affirmatively commit to not seeking a nuclear weapon, Vance said. The talks generated an unusual split-screen: As Vance delivered the news from the Pakistani capital that “we have not reached an agreement” with Iran, Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio …

College Setbacks and Failure—How to Bounce Back Stronger

College Setbacks and Failure—How to Bounce Back Stronger

Published by Jenni Sidey

When college setbacks happen—as they inevitably do from exams, grades, internships, and relationship issues—many students turn inward with harsh self-criticism. Negative experiences often activate a familiar inner narrative: “I’m not good enough.” “I should just quit.” “It doesn’t matter what I do.” These thoughts don’t just sting—they shape how students respond to failure. Why Setbacks Feel So Personal in College College is a time when identity and self-worth are often tied to performance. Students are particularly vulnerable to feeling not-enough in areas where they already feel uncertain: grades, intelligence, productivity, relationships, or future success. What’s easy to forget during stressful moments is that setbacks are not permanent verdicts. They are brief moments in a much longer developmental journey. Learning how to respond to them with awareness and compassion is a powerful mental health skill. Practice Supportive Self-Talk (Without Forcing Positivity) We don’t need to pretend everything is fine to talk to ourselves positively. It’s about responding to setbacks in a supportive, realistic way instead of piling on shame. “This is hard, but it doesn’t define …

Why Small Setbacks Derail Us So Easily

Why Small Setbacks Derail Us So Easily

Published by Jenni Sidey

I often hear the same pattern play out in my counseling office, in relationship ups and downs, in classrooms, in the workplace, and when stepping on a scale. Someone is trying to get healthier, has a night of emotional eating, or a parent loses their patience after a tough day at work, or a child of any age gets a poor grade on a test. When we step back and look at these isolated negative events, they often do not reflect the real picture of how we are doing in life. But within minutes, our minds, wired to always be on the lookout for danger and to react, can really mess us up if we let them. When Overthinking Sets In, We Feel a Desire to Check Out One of the most common traps I see is not the setback itself, but the meaning we attach to it. Our negative thoughts quickly turn into something like “Why bother trying again?” Recently, a very upset college graduate who was rejected for a job said it with …

Loosening grip? Trump skirts setbacks in State of the Union speech – The Debate

Loosening grip? Trump skirts setbacks in State of the Union speech – The Debate

Published by Sam Flores

What does a boss who’s built an image as a tough guy from Queens do when naysayers claim he’s reached his limits? To dispel doubts, he can for instance hold the floor for an hour and 47 minutes. In the longest ever State of the Union address, US President Donald Trump proved he can stick to script instead of rambling. Trump was as combative as ever: bashing immigrants, Iran, the opposition Democrats and even the US Supreme Court for last week’s ruling striking down many of his tariffs, the biggest pushback yet for a president who’s wielded historically grand executive powers since returning to office 13 months ago. We ask about his plans to not only double down on tariffs – he’s saying they can replace income taxes – but to do so without congressional approval. Read moreTrump’s marathon State of Union: Big claims and the questions he left unanswered We weigh Trump’s methods, his arguments and ask about blurred lines between public policy and personal interest. As a term-limited president approaches midterm elections that could further corner …

Louvre director resigns after a series of high-profile setbacks for the museum

Louvre director resigns after a series of high-profile setbacks for the museum

Published by Sam Flores

French President ​Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday ​accepted the resignation of the head of Paris’s Louvre museum, ​which ‌has been ⁠grappling with the fallout from ‌a high-profile jewel heist and rolling ⁠strikes. Read moreBurst water pipe and ticket fraud charges add to Louvre museum’s woes Macron’s office said the president accepted Laurence des Cars’ resignation while praising “an act ‌of responsibility” at a time when the world’s largest ‌museum “needs calm” as well as a renewed mission to spearhead major projects including ​a security revamp and an overall modernisation. Des Cars has faced intense criticism since burglars made off in October with jewels ‌worth an estimated $102 million that are still missing, exposing glaring ​security gaps at the world’s most-visited museum. Several suspects were later arrested. Strikes over pay and poor conditions have led to ​regular closures, adding to a list ​of woes that included two water ​leaks as well as a massive ticket fraud investigation.  The looted list: Louvre jewels added to international database To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and …

Trump administration’s legal setbacks are good news for offshore wind — and the grid

Trump administration’s legal setbacks are good news for offshore wind — and the grid

Published by skeptic

The Trump administration suffered a series of legal setbacks this week after judges allowed work to restart on several offshore wind farms under construction on the East Coast. The Department of the Interior had ordered a stop to five projects totaling 6 gigawatts of generating capacity in December, citing national security concerns. The judicial orders will allow three projects to resume construction: Revolution Wind off Rhode Island, Empire Wind off New York, and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind off — you guessed it — Virginia. The developers each filed lawsuits shortly after the Trump administration issued the stop work order, which had been effective for 90 days. When announcing the halt just days before Christmas, the government cited concerns the wind farms would interfere with radar operations. It’s a valid concern, and one the government and project developers grappled with throughout the siting and permitting process. Wind farms can be located to minimize disruption to existing radar facilities, and the radar equipment itself can be upgraded to filter out noise generated by whirling turbine blades. President Trump himself …

Macron in Africa in bid to turn the page on French setbacks in the Sahel

Macron in Africa in bid to turn the page on French setbacks in the Sahel

Published by skeptic

French President Emmanuel Macron intends to make good on his pledge to reorient France’s approach to Africa through a five-day tour this week that will take him to Mauritius, the G20 summit in South Africa, Gabon and Angola.   The aim is to turn the page on French setbacks in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, after the military juntas in these countries severed defence agreements with Paris and forced the withdrawal of French troops in 2022 and 2023.   The withdrawals confirmed the decline of former colonial power France in Africa against a backdrop of rising anti-French sentiment and increased competition on the continent from Russia and China.  Read more‘Time to move on’: France faces gradual decline of influence in Africa The French president’s trip aims to revitalise France’s relationship with Africa, according to the Élysée Palace, and confirm a break from France’s colonial legacy – something Macron had spoken about early in his first term.   “I am from a generation that doesn’t come to tell Africans what to do,” Macron, then 39, said during a speech to students in Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou in 2017.  “I will be alongside those who believe that Africa is neither a lost continent nor one that has been saved,” he said.  However, eight years later, the situation …