Brigadoon Daily
July 29, 2021
Brigadoon Daily | Exclusively for Brigadoon Members
Peace, Love, and Rage
Sponsored by | Caracal
TOP FIVE
1. Mexico says officials spent $61 million on Pegasus spyware
2. The role of AI in the design industry
3. Biden proposes Buy American rule for government procurements
4. Lollapalooza to require vaccination card or negative test
5. 'Pressure is a privilege', says Djokovic
GLOBALIZATION + STATECRAFT
England border to open for millions of US and EU travelers: The Times reports millions of fully vaccinated travelers from Europe and the US will be allowed to enter England without quarantining from next week as part of a significant reopening of the border.
England set to welcome double-jabbed US and EU tourists: FT reports relief for the travel sector as the government prepares to ease border and quarantine restrictions.
AFP: France to introduce anti-COVID pass for cafes, trains from Aug 9
Pegasus affair: Israel tells France it is taking spyware allegations 'seriously'
AFP
Biden backs embattled democracy movement in Belarus: AP reports Biden spoke out for embattled pro-democracy forces in Belarus on Wednesday in a White House meeting with that country’s main opposition leader. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who was forced to leave Belarus after unsuccessfully challenging President Alexander Lukashenko in the 2020 elections that the opposition and the West say were rigged, has been touring Washington this month, seeking concrete US backing for her country’s opposition.
Politico: Biden nominates Mark Gitenstein for EU ambassador
+ The proposed envoy previously served as US ambassador to Romania.
Blinken pulls India closer amid challenges in Afghanistan, China: WP reports India will receive $25 million in coronavirus assistance as the two countries pledge cooperation in Asia.
Quad to tackle 'most important issues of our time,' Blinken says in India: Jaishankar joins the US in affirming the call for a stable, sovereign Afghanistan.
Nikkei
+ The leaders of North Korea and South Korea are considering a summit in a bid to restore strained relations between the two governments.
Under Xi Jinping, the number of Chinese asylum-seekers has shot up: More and more people are fleeing his rule.
Economist
China-Taliban ties warming ahead of US withdrawal: AP reports China’s foreign minister met Wednesday with a delegation of high-level Taliban officials as ties between them warm ahead of the U.S. pullout from Afghanistan. A photo posted on the ministry’s website showed Wang Yi posing with senior Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and his delegation in the city of Tianjin, then sitting down to talks. The highly conspicuous show of friendliness had the appearance of a diplomatic mission at a time when the Taliban are craving legitimacy.
Marxism v markets: China’s techlash gains steam. Again: Online-education firms will not be the last victims.
Economist
Beijing’s threat to VIEs triggers Wall Street angst over China stocks: Investors worry crackdown on the structure used by education companies could spread to other sectors.
FT
Analysis: China engages in fierce propaganda war during Sherman visit: Using online media, Beijing shapes the narrative while the meeting was ongoing.
Nikkei
Biden is tougher on China and nicer to Russia than Trump: White House will focus on an increasingly contentious relationship with Beijing.
Ian Bremmer - Nikkei
Mexico says officials spent $61 million on Pegasus spyware: AP reports Public Safety Secretary Rosa Icela Rodríguez said records had been found of 31 contracts signed during the administrations of President Felipe Calderón in 2006-2012 and President Enrique Peña Nieto in 2012-18. Some contracts may have been disguised as purchases of other equipment.
Peru: Pedro Castillo was sworn in as president: DW reports the political novice was inaugurated on the country's 200th independence day. Castillo, however, faces difficulties in the polarized nation.
DISRUPTION + INNOVATION
Love robots + UI: The role of AI in the design industry
Canvas Editorial
AMERICAN POLITICS
Today: Biden is expected to announce a federal vaccine requirement that would apply to all federal workers and contractors.
Buy American: Biden to increase the share of US-made parts for government purchases: USA Today reports products the federal government buys would need a higher share of US parts to qualify as "made in America" under new rules the Biden administration proposed Wednesday. Promoting the changes in Pennsylvania, President Joe Biden said the new policy would strengthen American manufacturing and crucial supply chains and make companies more inclined to hire and invest in their future.
Biden proposes Buy American rule for government procurements: WSJ reports under the rule, contractors would be required to prove American content.
Donald Trump’s low-energy night in Texas: The leader of the Republican Party couldn't elect his handpicked candidate in a congressional special election.
Ben Jacobs - NY Mag
In a major upset against a candidate backed by Trump: Texas Tribune reports that Ellzey, a state representative, beat fellow Republican Susan Wright, who was backed by Trump. Ellzey will finish the term of Ron Wright, who died earlier this year after contracting COVID-19.
Gavin Newsom needs Democrats to get worried about the recall election
Ed Kilgore - NY Mag
PA-SEN: Conor Lamb preparing to launch Senate run in August: Roll Call reports the Pennsylvania Democrat joins crowded primary for open Toomey seat.
Home sales: Sales of new homes fell 6.6 percent in June of 2021, with the rate falling to an annualized 676,000 homes, down from 873,000 in March and a peak of 993,000 in January.
COMMERCE
Fortune: Delta extends frequent flier statuses until 2023
How Netflix can go big in gaming: The streaming-video leader’s modest approach is too timid for such a competitive industry. Going bold and buying Cyberpunk maker CD Projekt could make a difference.
Tae Kim
Facebook eyes a future beyond social media: Advertising has made the social network into a trillion-dollar company. Can new ventures take it further?
Economist
Facebook profits top $10B as revenue soars: AP reports Facebook doubled its profit in the second quarter thanks to a massive increase in advertising revenue, especially the average price of the ads it delivers to its nearly 3 billion users.
Facebook told employees it will require them to be vaccinated for COVID-19 in order to return to the company’s US offices.
Google is postponing a return to the office for most workers until mid-October and rolling out a policy that will eventually require everyone to be vaccinated once its sprawling campuses are fully reopened.
+ GM and Ford have announced a return of mask mandates for their workers in COVID hot spots.
Netflix has become the first major Hollywood studio to implement a blanket policy mandating vaccinations for the casts of all of its U.S. productions.
Apple plans to restore a mask requirement at most of its US retail stores on Thursday for both customers and staff, even those who are vaccinated.
Sephora said it will more than double the number of Black-owned brands it carries by the end of 2021, part of the beauty retailer’s efforts to boost diversity among its suppliers and in its ranks.
Tesla co-founder’s battery recycling start-up raises $700m: JB Straubel’s Redwood Materials seeks to upend US electric vehicle supply chain.
FT
Why it’s so hard to find child care right now: 80% of centers are understaffed: Fortune reports many child care centers struggling with staffing shortages are enrolling fewer children, which presents challenges for parents who have to work.
SPACE + SCIENCE
Katie Mack: ‘As a scientist, there’s always an ambition to make new discoveries’: Q&A with the theoretical astrophysicist on growing up in Los Angeles, getting a pilot’s license, and her dream of going into outer space.
FT
PERFORMANCE
Learning to be a better leader
Knowledge @ Wharton
CULTURE
Hollywood head spinner: Universal spends big for new ‘Exorcist’ trilogy: NYT reports the deal, expected to be announced this week, is for more than $400 million and is a direct response to the streaming giants that are upending the film industry’s economics.
RIP: ZZ Top: Bearded bassist Dusty Hill dies in his sleep at 72
Lollapalooza to require vaccination card or negative test: AP reports The four-day festival starts Thursday and is expected to be back at full capacity, with roughly 100,000 daily attendees. After missing last summer because of the threat of the coronavirus, it will easily be Chicago’s largest gathering since the pandemic started, and one of the country’s. This year’s festival will look very different than in the past. To gain entry, attendees will have to present their vaccination cards or a printed copy of a negative COVID-19 test that is no more than 72 hours old.
Watch Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage: Here's the trailer.
Forty years ago, MTV changed music forever. These four rock icons remember all too well.
LAT
SPORT
Gannett, publisher of USA Today and more than 100 daily newspapers in the US, landed a deal with a major sports betting company. The five-year, $100-million agreement with Tipico USA Technology is a first-of-its-kind deal for a major US newspaper publisher. It reportedly includes $90 million in media spend, with Tipico providing sports betting content throughout the USA Today Network.
Sporting Kansas City announced that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has joined the Major League Soccer club’s ownership group.
AFP: 'Pressure is a privilege', says Djokovic of life at the top
‘OK not to be OK’: Mental health takes top role at Olympics
AP
The Tokyo Olympics are turning into NBC’s worst nightmare
LAT
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
Curation and commentary by Marc A. Ross | Founder @ Brigadoon
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