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• The Bureau of Labor Statistics won’t be publishing the next jobs report as originally scheduled.
• That’s due to the partial government shutdown.
• BLS said it will reschedule the reports once funding resumes.

Economists and job seekers will have to wait longer to know how the job market performed in January.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics said it won’t be able to release scheduled data reports on time because it’s one of the agencies affected by the partial government shutdown. BLS told Business Insider it “will suspend data collection, processing, and dissemination” during the shutdown and release the reports once funding resumes.

BLS was scheduled to publish new data on Tuesday that would indicate how job openings, layoffs, quits, and other job-market indicators fared in December. Metropolitan area employment and unemployment numbers were supposed to be released on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the highly anticipated monthly jobs report was set to be released on Friday. It would’ve shown how job growth, unemployment, wages, and more looked in January. It was also expected to show revisions to job growth for the past few years. The most recent report showed the US added 584,000 jobs in 2025, the lowest level since 2003 outside recessions.

“Once funding is restored, BLS will resume normal operations and notify the public of any changes to the news release schedule on the BLS release calendar,” the bureau told Business Insider.

The Senate passed a spending package on Friday that would fund several agencies, but it still needs to go through the House, which wasn’t in session over the weekend.

• Lauren Brusie’s grandparents are 87 and 90 years old, and she sees them weekly.
• They’re incredibly involved in her seven children’s lives, even hosting sleepovers at their house.
• She feels so lucky to have such an incredible support system like them in her life.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Lauren Brusie, mom of seven. It has been edited for length and clarity.

Last year, my 87-year-old grandmother, Doris, and 90-year-old grandfather, Jerry, hosted nine of their 14 great-grandchildren for a Christmas sleepover at their house. It’s an annual tradition they started several years ago that involves a night of eating cookies and ice cream, kids playing, boys wrestling, and movie watching, all culminating in Doris and Jerry waking up bright and early the very next day to cook breakfast for everyone, smiling and chipper as ever.

As their 34-year-old granddaughter, I’m not sure how they have the energy they do.

They are the most joyful, generous, busy, and amazing people I know, and they have been a constant presence in my life. They were always there. For all six of us grandchildren, for every game, every school event, they were there. We spent our weekends with them, holidays with them, and summers at their cabin.

They’ve definitely helped shape my cousins and me, and they continue to maintain that loving presence and involvement with all their great-grandchildren, including my seven children.

My grandparents have been there for my kids since day one

Just like I can’t remember a day in my own life without my grandparents in it, neither do my kids. They were waiting outside the door for their first great-grandchild, my daughter, to be born, and they’ve been there for everything, just like they were for me.

We even lived next door to them for a few years, and we spent every day with them. They are two of the people my kids are most comfortable with, and because of that, they are often our first choice for babysitters on a quick errand. The kids just love to be with them.

We have since moved, but they still stop by at least once a week, call the kids, attend their sporting events, and even help me with running them to and from practice or school.

One of their most beloved traditions is taking out each great-grandchild for a birthday lunch/shopping trip to spend one-on-one time with them. They had a rule that the child needed to be 4 years old, but they have bent it twice now for two of my younger children, taking them on their third birthdays because they were just so excited about it.

Both of my grandparents are in great health, and while some of their longevity and energy is probably genetic, I think their overall joy and love of people has kept them going. They always have something going on with others, whether it’s hanging out with their camping club, golf leagues, bowling leagues, card nights, casino trips, or following us kids around. They’ve always just worked hard and enjoyed life.

They are the biggest blessing in our lives

I’m not sure how to put into words what our relationship with my grandparents means. I’m aware of how unique this is, and I’ve never taken a moment with them for granted. I don’t think my kids will understand it all until they’re older, so for now, I just try to take as many pictures as I can so they’ll know how truly blessed and loved they were by these amazing people.

As life has gotten busier and the kids have gotten older, we make it a priority to continue our relationship with my grandparents. For instance, we’ll stop in to visit, and we try to do malt nights on the weekends with them, just like I did as a kid.

I also try to make them my first call if I do need help with the kids. It gives them purpose, and it really does help me too!

I don’t know anyone who has great-grandparents so involved in their family’s lives

When I try to think of anyone who, like my kids, has not just their grandparents, but their great-grandparents so actively involved, it’s not even a close comparison. And it’s not just my kids — Doris and Jerry still travel all over the state to attend events and visit my cousins and their kids, too. I know my cousins feel the exact same way I do about our grandparents: they are the most incredible people we know, and we’re so lucky to have them.

I am not sure I even appreciated how amazing they were when I was a kid. It took me having my own kids to realize that the relationship I had with them wasn’t necessarily normal either. They are truly one of a kind.

There is so much that inspires me about my grandparents, like their joy and how they’ve dealt with all the ups and downs of life. And let’s be honest: I’d love to have their energy too, but I’ll never count on that!

My grandparents are also so humble about their involvement. Doris simply says that the reason they spend so much time with all of us is because they love us, so why wouldn’t they want to be with us?

Both of them attribute their energy and longevity to being “lucky” and hope that all their grandchildren and great-grandchildren will remember that they were good to them and loved them. I’d say mission accomplished!

• Every month, the large amounts of money on our credit card bills worried me.
• At the beginning of the year, I looked more closely at one particular statement than I had before.
• I was shocked by the number of transactions I didn’t recognize. They turned out to be subscriptions.

My 17-year-old daughter told me that she’d been offered a special deal at the Verizon store: access to Apple Music for up to six people for $10 a month. She was desperate to take advantage of the promotion and said the streaming service had an amazing selection of songs.

I said no, not only because we have Spotify, but also because I’d had a rude awakening after New Year’s.

My husband and I were worried about how much we were charging to our credit cards, especially during the holiday period.

We decided to do a financial tune-up, and I was responsible for reviewing the Mastercard statement. We only used it as a secondary payment method if a merchant didn’t accept American Express.

I thought I’d been subject to fraud

As a result, I rarely looked at the bill. This time, however, I printed the statement covering November 11 to December 12, 2025, when we did most of our Christmas shopping.

There were a few transactions for items like coffee at a little café that doesn’t take Amex and some co-pays for doctors’ visits, but there were others I didn’t recognize.

What on earth was Uexton? I’d paid them $19.99 on November 11. Then there was Sportelx, to whom I’d paid $29.55 on November 21. I’d never heard of it.

I Googled to find that Uxeton was a gaming website and Sportelx was a sports news service.

I’d been a victim of fraud on several occasions, and assumed it had happened again.

Then, I looked over the rest of the bill and saw payments of $29.99 to ESPN New York, $14.99 to Canva, and $11.95 to Audiobookstore.com. As far as I was concerned, neither my husband, kids, nor I had used any of them.

There was also a $25 fee to Rockin’ Jump, where my son went once a week before getting too old for a trampoline park. Why were we still paying for his membership?

I reviewed the last two months’ statements and realized the suspicious payments had occurred before, on the same day each month.

It wasn’t fraud. The recurring fees were subscriptions we’d signed up for before switching banks and credit cards. Some went back years. We had failed to cancel Rockin’ Jump. I didn’t know how the rest had come about.

Over the next few hours, I racked my brains trying to figure out where they came from. The only thing I could think of was that my spouse or I must have shared our credit card information at some point to get a trial subscription.

We’d wasted almost $1,600 annually

We must have forgotten to cancel at the end of the free or discounted period. The total of our unnecessary payments was $131.88 a month, the equivalent of a family cellphone plan.

Over the years, I calculated that we’d spent almost $1,600 annually on streaming and other services we didn’t touch. It was hard to blame the companies that use subscription models when I had been the one to drop the ball. I felt dumb and ashamed.

I sprang into action, canceling as many fees as I could. In most cases, I found it much more difficult to unsubscribe than to subscribe because of the hoops you have to jump through.

Still, the experience taught me a lesson. It’s no thank you to tempting — but ultimately useless — offers from now on.

• China placed a top general under investigation, deepening a sweeping anti-corruption purge.
• Dozens of senior officers have been removed, thinning experience at the highest levels of command.
• The shakeup raises questions about combat readiness.

China’s drive to modernize its military to rival the US armed forces is running parallel with an aggressive purge of its senior leaders.

The People’s Liberation Army has been repeatedly shaken by a massive anti-corruption campaign led by Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Now, the military leadership is under renewed scrutiny after one of China’s most senior generals was placed under investigation.

The latest disruptions within the PLA, the world’s largest military and one of its most powerful, raise questions about who is leading the force and how the shake-ups are affecting the military as an organization and impacting readiness.

This past weekend, China’s defense ministry announced investigations into Gen. Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, and Liu Zhenli, the chief of staff of the commission’s joint staff department. Zhang was widely believed to be one of Xi’s trusted military advisors.

An editorial published in official PLA media said the two had “seriously betrayed the trust and expectations” of both the Communist Party and the CMC and “fostered political and corruption problems that undermined the party’s absolute leadership over the military and threatened the party’s ruling foundation.”

Analysts Business Insider spoke with said the accusations suggested more than just financial corruption, which has been the case for others. Rather, the language indicates Zhang and Liu challenged Xi’s authority, whether through disagreements on modernization goals, failures to meet expectations, or power and influence struggles within the ranks. The reasons may never be known, as China’s “black box” opacity increasingly blurs realities inside its government.

A report from the Wall Street Journal raised the possibility Zhang leaked nuclear weapons data to the US. Business Inside is unable to independently verify the information.

Of the seven officials appointed to the Central Military Commission in 2022, only two — Xi himself and Zhang Shengmin, the commission’s anti-graft officer — remain in power. The rest are either under investigation or have been expelled.

Two defense ministers have been ousted, and last October, nine top PLA commanders were purged. The exact number of senior military leaders affected is unknown, but there are indications the purge has deeply impacted the senior officer corps.

Zhang is the highest-ranking official affected by Xi’s crackdown on the military. And across the lower ranks of the PLA, dozens of other officers have been removed from their positions.

“This is kind of the ultimate crescendo of this anti-corruption campaign in the military,” Jonathan Czin, an expert at the Brookings Institute who previously served as a top China analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency and director for China at the United States National Security Council, told Business Insider.

“It sends a very clear sign throughout the system that nobody is safe regardless of what kind of relationship you had or have with Xi Jinping,” he said.

More investigations may follow those of Zhang and Liu. Officials with ties to the two men could come under suspicion as well, analysts said. Other senior people have been notably absent from important meetings in recent months, suggesting more shakeups.

That leaves Xi with a difficult next step: deciding who can credibly fill the vacancies.

Because so many senior officers have been removed or face investigations, “the pool of candidates for refilling top positions has been winnowed,” Brian Hart, the deputy director and fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ China Power Project, told Business Insider. “Xi could continue to use the existing command structure of the CMC and fill it with new people loyal to him,” he added. “It is also possible Xi could try to start over with a bit of a blank slate by more fundamentally remaking the PLA’s leadership structure.”

Fewer experienced commanders could slow coordination across China’s military — a serious challenge for complex operations like a blockade or invasion of Taiwan.

Some PLA watchers argue Xi appears willing to accept those short-term costs if the result is a force that is more politically loyal and disciplined over time. The PLA Daily editorial framed the campaign as a net positive, arguing that “the more the People’s Army fights corruption, the stronger, purer, and more combat-capable it becomes.”

A senior Pentagon official previously speculated that the extensive corruption in China’s military was hindering its modernization.

Amid disruptions in the force, China may seek to send a signal that shake-ups aren’t affecting military readiness.

“You could actually see an uptick in the number of major exercises around Taiwan, but internally it could mask significant upheaval and disarray within the PLA,” Lyle Morris, a senior fellow for foreign policy and national security at the Asia Society Policy Institute’s Center for China Analysis, told Business Insider.

China staged large joint exercises around Taiwan following earlier purge waves. Such actions could project readiness despite leadership turmoil.

The internal upheaval is likely having an effect, though, China watchers said. “It is hard to deny that this creates challenges for the PLA in the short term,” Hart said. “Any leader deciding on using force would want senior leaders and commanders in place who are loyal, experienced, and effective in their roles. The immense turnover within the PLA’s highest ranks complicates that.”

Disney theme parks have become significantly more expensive, with prices for food, merchandise, and tickets rising much faster than inflation. A Mickey ice cream bar that cost $2.75 in 2009 now costs $6.50, and top-tier annual passes have nearly doubled in price over the past decade. While Disney cites inflation, labor costs, and heavy investment in new attractions, changes in pricing strategy — including demand-based tickets and paid add-ons — have played a major role. As Disney’s streaming business struggled, its parks became the company’s biggest source of profit, raising questions about how much fans are willing — or able — to pay for the magic.

• Even as a Maui local, I was surprised by how familiar, yet new, Molokai felt.
• The island’s slow pace and tight-knit community reshaped how I think about travel in Hawaii.
• Molokai’s history, environmental realities, and quiet landscapes left a lasting impression.

Growing up on the west side of Maui, I could always see Molokai, but I never made the trek across the channel.

For years, it was easy to visit, with a ferry running between my hometown of Lahaina and Molokai’s main town, Kaunakakai.

When the ferry was discontinued in 2016, a short commuter flight on Mokulele Airlines became the primary way to access Molokai — one reason it’s considered the least touristy Hawaiian island.

After 30 years, I finally visited Molokai. Here are the nine things that surprised me most about my trip to the so-called Friendly Isle.

Parts of Molokai looked and felt similar to Maui.

Flying in, Molokai’s rugged mountains reminded me of Pu’u Kukui on Maui, with deep ridges layered in countless shades of green.

Patches of iron-rich earth felt familiar, too. As a kid, I always called it “red Maui dirt,” but traveling throughout Hawaii taught me it isn’t exclusive to my home island.

At Molokai Airport and Pala’au State Park, towering ironwood trees instantly transported me back to Kapalua.

These similarities aren’t a coincidence: Over a million years ago, Maui, Molokai, Lāna’i, and Kaho’olawe were once a single landmass known as Maui Nui.

Kindness wasn’t surprising, but being remembered was.

Molokai’s nickname, the Friendly Isle, quickly proved accurate. Everyone I met was warm and welcoming — even before they knew I was from a neighboring island.

A man who worked at the Molokai Museum and Cultural Center invited me to the town’s monthly First Friday market. When I arrived, he greeted me by name, remembering it from the museum guestbook.

At Molokai Hot Bread, the woman behind the counter offered to store my bread in her personal fridge to keep it fresh until my flight home.

When I returned to pick it up, she greeted me by name, too.

Driving without traffic lights was relaxing, not chaotic.

I expected the absence of traffic lights to feel chaotic, especially in downtown Kaunakakai. Instead, driving here felt calm and intuitive.

There were still speed limits, stop signs, and road etiquette. Using your indicator felt even more important than usual.

One exception was the east side of Molokai, where oceanfront roads were largely empty, and some stretches didn’t even have guardrails.

Though locals occasionally passed my rental car, I never encountered any traffic.

I kept running into familiar faces — people I already knew from Maui and new connections I made on Molokai.

Running into someone I knew on the flight there felt like a coincidence, but seeing another familiar face on the return trip reminded me just how interconnected Hawaii’s island communities are and how easily they intersect.

As I met new people throughout my trip, I kept seeing them elsewhere on the island.

My favorite moment came after a guided hike through Halawa Valley, where the only other participant turned out to be a fellow Hotel Molokai guest.

When we parted ways, she said, “Have a nice life,” but I reminded her there’s no Hawaiian word for goodbye — only a “hui hou,” meaning “until we meet again.”

Sure enough, we saw each other again at sunset back at the hotel, and we both laughed when I said, “I knew I’d see you again!”

Learning from a cultural practitioner changed how I think about Hawaiian language and identity.

My guided hike through Halawa Valley included stories rooted in oral tradition, offering insight into Molokai’s history and Hawaiian culture at large.

One surprising takeaway was that many Molokai residents don’t use ‘okina or kahakō in everyday language. According to my guide, this supports pronouncing the island as “Molo-kai” rather than “Molo-kuh-e” — a debate Iʻd heard many times growing up.

He also shared that, in his family’s teachings, anyone born in the state is Hawaiian, while Native Hawaiian refers specifically to those with Hawaiian ancestry. That distinction stood out to me, especially since I’ve often corrected people who assumed I was Hawaiian simply because I was born and raised here.

Importantly, he emphasized that beliefs vary by family and region, and the best practice is always to ask and listen.

Finding litter and plastic debris on a remote beach brought a major global issue into perspective.

After my hike, I walked down to Halawa Beach and was struck by the dramatic beauty of the valley meeting the ocean.

Once on the sand, I noticed countless pieces of trash and plastic embedded throughout the shoreline. Instead of swimming or sunbathing, I spent about 30 minutes picking up the multicolored fragments, eventually filling my hands with a rainbow of debris.

It was a sobering reminder that even Hawaii’s most remote places aren’t untouched by global environmental issues.

Kalaupapa Lookout felt deeply grounding, both historically and spiritually.

Kalaupapa’s history has stayed with me since childhood. This peninsula was once used as a forced quarantine for people with Hansen’s disease before a cure was discovered.

Seeing it in person was heavy and humbling, especially knowing access remains limited, even today.

What surprised me most was the spiritual energy of the place. I initially explored other parts of the park, but strong winds seemed to guide me toward the lookout, and I arrived just in time to see a vivid rainbow stretch across the cliffs.

I knew hunting was a popular pastime, but I didn’t expect to see so many wild game birds and bones.

I didn’t expect to see wild turkeys roaming near the road, or so many bones scattered across the island.

My Halawa Valley guide explained that game birds like turkeys, pheasants, and quail were introduced for hunting. I also learned that while Maui has a large axis deer population, the species was first introduced to Molokai.

During various hikes, I spotted everything from small joints to full skulls, and even a naturally shed deer antler.

A slow pace was expected, but it felt surreal to experience so many empty spaces.

I expected Molokai to move slowly, but I didn’t anticipate just how empty it would feel.

From beaches and roads to entire towns, I often had places entirely to myself. Visiting in early December may have played a role, but the quiet seemed intrinsic to the island.

That stillness is part of Molokai’s allure — and a testament to it being Hawaii’s least touristy island.

Seeing Maui from a distance gave me a new appreciation for home.

Not only did I get to see my home island from an angle I’d never experienced before, but returning from Molokai also made me appreciate how much there is to do on Maui.

Any hint of island fever I’d been feeling quietly faded, replaced by gratitude for the pace and variety of home.