What investors are paying for is not necessarily the K-pop group or its management company, but its huge, highly connected ecosystem of followers

What investors are really paying for is not necessarily the K-pop group or its management company, but its huge, highly connected ecosystem of followers.

We have all seen them before – armed, military-like figures like those showing up at the state capitol building this past spring to protest the pandemic lockdown in the state, or in broadcast coverage of Black Lives Matter protests or counter-protests. Their numbers – both formal and informal – have vacillated over the years, often a bi-product of current day events. Today, these paramilitary organizations are on the rise again. Welcome to the militia movement.

With three properties in Las Vegas now committed to reducing smoking, a question looms: could all of Sin City’s hotels and casinos go smoke-free?

With three properties in Las Vegas now committed to reducing smoking, a question looms: could all of Sin City’s hotels and casinos go smoke-free?

Communion from a common cup. Handshakes and hugs. Even meeting for coffee and doughnuts after the service. All are worship practices that have disappeared over the past six months as the coronavirus pandemic hit Southern Nevada.

They are supported by the Second Amendment to the Constitution, a text that considers the right to possession of weapons inalienable. They also use the internet for an almost devotion to rifles, in addition to engaging in advocacy for violence and radical political discourse. So-called "watchmen" and "militias" have made headlines in the United States. On August 26, three days after Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back by the police, anti-racism protests erupted in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Armed groups arrived from neighboring Illinois and clashed with activists from the Black Lives Matter movement (BLM, “Black lives matter”).

When hundreds of Black Lives Matter protesters came out to a Confederate monument in downtown Greenville earlier this summer, men with guns who called themselves a "militia" showed up, too.

Prosecutors say Kyle Rittenhouse, armed with a semi-automatic rifle, killed two people and injured one on the streets of Kenosha, Wisconsin, when he opened fire on Aug. 25 during protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

The K-pop group’s English music video attracts more than 101 million views on the streaming platform within 24 hours.

Southern Nevada, like much of the country, is struggling to come to terms with racial justice. The death of George Floyd was followed by dozens of protests in the streets of Las Vegas.

On 24th March 2015, Germanwings flight 9525 headed to Dusseldorf, Germany crashed into the French Alps, killing all 150 people on board. Thousands around the world flooded social media to express their shock and grief, sending the hashtag #Germanwings to the No.1 trending spot on Twitter worldwide. Less than 24 hours after the crash, international sensation One Direction announced on Facebook that Zayn Malik was leaving the group after five years.