Today's cheese pun references sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior; you'll see a lot of that in today's reasonably high-quality newsletter. Meanwhile, Caprice is also a surface-ripened goat's cheese made from partially skimmed milk in the Lombardy region of Italy. It is aged for just 8–10 days and goes well with Pinot Grigio. Just like this newsletter! The cheddlines: Now you must leave me. I want to be provolone. —Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor |
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"We are addicted to meetings. It's just gotten worse and worse since the pandemic. I think a lot of that comes from a culture of indecisiveness." – Dale Whelehan |
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1. X Marks the U-Turn? Elon Musk Bows to Brazil |
In the digital equivalent of storming off in a huff and then sheepishly returning to pick up one's forgotten umbrella, Elon Musk's rebellious social network, unpopularly known as X, has kowtowed to Brazil's Supreme Court. For three weeks, Musk, the indefatigable paladin of what he sometimes calls "free speech," treated Brazil's court orders like unwanted spam. But the allure of Brazil's 20 million users and a threat to the firm's ad revenue has evidently brought about a remarkable shift.
When ordering X to be blocked last month, a Brazilian judge said it was because Mr. Musk wanted to "allow the massive spread of disinformation, hate speech and attacks on the democratic rule of law."
So not "free speech," after all? I guess it's a case of potayto/pot-ah-to. Let's call the whole thing off.
The move comes after Musk openly refused to obey what he deemed illegal censorship orders and even dismissed local employees in response to the fines imposed by the court. The Supreme Court said X still needs to submit proper paperwork and gave X five days to provide further documentation. I think that's their way of saying, "No, you hang up. No. You." Read More |
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2. Coming Soon: The Emoji of an Exhausted Face With Eyebags |
Eight new emoji will make their way onto smartphones and computers next year including: a harp; a root vegetable; a purple splatter: and a flag for the remote island in the English Channel, Sark. Because that's where sarc-asm comes from. No, really.
My personal favorites are the exhausted face with bags under its eyes (which also won the most anticipated emoji award in the World Emoji Awards) and the leafless tree—which is meant to represent awareness of drought and climate change, but will probably be coopted by the hair-regrowth industry. Perhaps the best, though, is the humble shovel, which I shall start to use immediately to replace the words "keep digging" every time I'm talking to an idiot. Which is often. Speaking of which, please send me your comments on this reasonably high-quality newsletter. Read More |
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| It's like Terminator meets The Last of Us. 🤖🍄
Engineers have designed a new type of robot that's powered by living fungi. This biohybrid robot uses electrical signals from an edible mushroom called the king trumpet to navigate and sense its surroundings.
Created by a diverse team from Cornell University in the US and Florence University in Italy, this machine could kick off a whole new era in living robotics. |
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3. California to Plastic Bags: You're Banned! And This Time We Mean It! We're Not Kidding! |
Back in 2015 I showed up in South Carolina with a ton of plastic bags from California, as part of a campaign to ban plastic bags in the Golden State. We were telling Novolex, a major plastic bag manufacturer, to
I was such an idealist. Sadly, while the protest did help persuade legislators to ban plastic bags, it inadvertently led to a 50% increase in plastic bag waste. This was largely attributed to a loophole that allowed the distribution of thicker, ostensibly "reusable" plastic bags for a fee, which, despite their intended sustainability, predominantly ended up as… trash. It was like asking for commentary on a newsletter.
Oops. Now revised legislation, signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, aims to close this loophole by completely prohibiting the sale of plastic bags at grocery checkouts, emphasizing the state's commitment to a pollution-free future.
California's aggressive stance toward eliminating plastic bag waste reflects a broader ambition to address the environmental and health hazards posed by plastic, particularly its enduring presence in oceans and landfills and its breakdown into harmful microplastics. The state also just sued Exxon Mobil for "a decades-long campaign of deception that caused and exacerbated the global plastics pollution crisis."
It's all well and good, this new law, until you show up at the grocery store in California and want to, like, take home that gallon of milk and a dozen eggs. Then you'll be glad California has not yet outlawed pockets. Read More |
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4. Why a Champion of the Four-Day Workweek Believes In It So Much |
The trend is gaining traction in Australia and Europe—but in the U.S., not so much, says Dale Whelehan, CEO of 4 Day Week Global, which coaches companies through the months-long process of shortening their employees' work hours.
"There's a lot of evidence to suggest we need to do something fundamentally different in the way we work," Dale said. "We have issues of burnout. We have a recruitment and retention crisis in many industries. We have increased stress within our workforce, leading to health issues, issues with work-life balance, work-family conflict."
The four-day workweek is a good idea because "the reduction of working time brings about productivity gains by people having naturally more time to rest and recover," he said (85% of companies see productivity gains with the move). "Allowing them to come back into a new week more engaged and well-rested—that's one way in which you see productivity gains."
The biggest way you can work fewer hours, he said, is to have fewer meetings.
"We are addicted to meetings," Dale said. "It's just gotten worse and worse since the pandemic. I think a lot of that comes from a culture of indecisiveness."
Or…does it? Read More |
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5. Defying Trump, Republican Leaders Will Keep U.S. Government Open (If Not Functional) |
Defying the demands of former President Donald Trump for more restrictive voting measures as part of the bill, the House of Representatives, under Republican control, is on the verge of passing a bipartisan funding measure aimed at keeping federal agencies operational as November's elections approach.
Trump had previously insisted on tying future government funding to legislation—known as the Save Act—that would require voters to show proof of U.S. citizenship. But House Speaker Mike Johnson, who had previously backed Trump's line, said it would be "political malpractice" not to move ahead with the separate funding bill on Sunday. Trump is yet to respond to the news. Politico called it an act of defiance.
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell explained the risks earlier this month: "The one thing you cannot have is a government shutdown," he said. "It would be politically beyond stupid for us to do that right before the election because certainly we'd get the blame."
On the other hand, wouldn't it also be "stupid" to tweet "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT" after she had endorsed your opponent? Or to say that "the Jewish people" would be responsible if you lost an upcoming election? And yet…
Then again, you're talking to the stupid guy responsible for a 50% increase in plastic bag waste in California, apparently. Read More |
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