Can Joe Biden and Liz Cheney help each other?
And other interesting, important, and somewhat bizarre items in the news.
In Cheney's loss, Biden has an opportunity…
In a CNN OpEd piece, the authors make the case that President Biden should appoint Liz Cheney as a cabinet-level czar on election integrity and the preservation of democracy, once her term is up in January. “Creating this post would allow her to continue the work she so adroitly began as the co-chair of the January 6th Committee and empower her to fight against the violent and pseudo-autocratic undercurrents that have seeped into conservative politics and pose a real existential threat to our democracy….Such a move by Biden certainly has ample precedent. Both Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama appointed notable Republicans to serve in their Cabinets. The symbolism of bringing members from an opposing party into an administration is a strong signal of bipartisanship, putting the country ahead of party.” Cheney’s historical policy positions may not please many on the left, but at a time when credibility is at a premium, Cheney has demonstrated integrity, under pressure. Focusing her future on defending democracy would be a non-partisan strategy with appeal to old-school Republicans, Independents and Democrats alike.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/17/opinions/liz-cheney-seat-loss-wierson-honan/index.html
Inflation perception isn't reality: People think price hikes are higher than they actually are…
As reported by Axios, "Perceptions of inflation don’t always match reality" and "there’s a misalignment of consumer perception to reality, according to a new McKinsey report on a survey of more than 4,000 adults.
With the exception of our collective perception of gasoline prices, for example — and a few other items — people seem to think inflation is higher than it is, according to the McKinsey data.
For example, 30% of consumers think prices increased "significantly" for toys and baby supplies in July, but that category was up only 2% compared with a year earlier.
For jewelry, 25% of consumers thought prices rose significantly, but the category was up only 1%.
The bottom line: Inflation is bad, but it's not bad everywhere — and yet people's perceptions of price increases are likely contributing to their dour mood about the economy.”
https://www.axios.com/2022/08/17/inflation-prices-economy-price-increases
Japan launches a contest to urge young people to drink more alcohol…
Yes, you read that correctly. Japan is actually running a contest to urge young people to drink more. Why? Because the country depends heavily on tax revenues related to the sales of alcohol products. As reported by NPR, “the contest is aimed at "revitalizing the liquor industry and solving problems." But it has hit a sour note with many people online, prompting pointed questions about why a government that has previously encouraged people to drink responsibly or abstain is now asking for help in getting young people to drink more.”
Bottoms up!
https://www.npr.org/2022/08/18/1118163173/japans-tax-alcohol-young-people-campaign
Say it ain’t so Placido…
As reported by NPR, opera legend Plácido Domingo has been linked to a criminal ring in Argentina, at least that’s what prosecutors say. According to reports, “Numerous broadcast channels in Latin America have been airing excerpts of audio recordings, obtained by wiretap, that include the voice of a man whom authorities claim is Domingo making plans with members of the alleged criminal ring. The dates of these wiretap recordings have not been made public.” Placido was a household name worldwide, thanks to his participation in The Three Tenors alongside the late Luciano Pavarotti and José Carreras.
“Since 2019 more than 20 women have come forward publicly with misconduct claims against Domingo. As a result of those accusations, Domingo parted ways with New York's Metropolitan Opera and resigned from his role as general director of LA Opera in California. In March 2020, Domingo's name was removed from the young artist early career program at the Washington National Opera in Washington, D.C., where he served as artistic director and later general director from 1996 to 2011.” These latest allegations won’t help…
The Default Tech Settings You Should Turn Off Right Away
There are controls, buried inside products from Apple, Google, Meta and others, make us share more data than we need to. This report from The NY Times provides the details (if you are not a NY Times subscriber, you can still access at 5 articles per month at no charge. This might be one to include).
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/27/technology/personaltech/default-settings-turn-off.html
