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BUSINESS/INVESTING:
- Two large Apple shareholders say it needs to research the impact of smartphones on kids (TechCrunch) "In an open letter, the two investors said that after reviewing research, they believe that Apple needs to give parents more resources and software tools to make sure their kids are using their devices 'in an optimal manner.'" and Zuckerberg’s Dilemma: When Facebook’s Success Is Bad for Society (WSJ - Paywall) "Apple wasn’t the only technology behemoth to face ethical concerns...as a growing roster of Facebook investors and former executives have publicly said that the social-media network is both psychologically addictive and harmful to democracy. The Journal’s Christopher Mims says Facebook and Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg are at a crossroads similar to the one faced by tobacco companies when scientists started linking cigarettes to cancer, and posits 'the multibillion-dollar question' to Mr. Zuckerberg: Is he willing to sacrifice revenue for the well-being of Facebook’s more than two billion users?"
- 6 Best Vanguard Index Funds for 2018 and Beyond (Kiplinger) "...if you don't enjoy poring over mutual fund statistics, and you don't want to pay an advisor to do the heavy lifting for you...The key is leaning on Vanguard index funds. Rather than trying to beat a market benchmark, index funds strive to mirror the performance of the indexes they track. They quite simply dare to be average. Actively managed mutual funds employ managers and analysts... That costs money... On a $100,000 investment, you'd pay Vanguard $80 a year for the index portfolio. By contrast, with an average active fund, you'd pay $1,200. ...the only index funds you need to achieve investment success [are]: Vanguard Total Stock Market Index, Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Index, Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Index, Vanguard Developed Markets Index, and Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond Index."
- High-frequency trading is now a shadow of its post-crisis peak (Quartz)
HEALTH:
- 30 years after Prozac arrived, we still buy the lie that chemical imbalances cause depression (Quartz) "Depression...is caused... bya chemical imbalance in the brain. This explanation, widely cited as empirical truth, is false. It was once a tentatively-posed hypothesis in the sciences, but no evidence for it has been found, and so it has been discarded by physicians and researchers. ...we don’t know how Prozac works, and we don’t even know for sure if it’s an effective treatment for the majority of people with depression. It also casts aside the social factors that contribute to depression, such as isolation, poverty, or tragic events, as secondary concerns. There are currently no known biomarkers to definitely show who will respond to what antidepressants. It’s nearly impossible to get good data to explain why depression treatments work for some and not others. Depression is real. The theory that it’s caused by chemical imbalances is false."
LIFE:
- Is Your Child Lying to You? That’s Good (NYT) "Should parents be troubled when their kids start to deceive them? ...research suggests the opposite is true. Lying is not only normal; it’s also a sign of intelligence. Why do some children start lying at an earlier age than others? What separates them from their more honest peers? The short answer is that they are smarter. The psychologist Kang Lee...likes to tell parents that if they discover their child lying at age 2 or 3, they should celebrate."
- Kids don't need a cellphone; they need a digital diet (LA Times) "...studies show that screen time is associated with higher levels of obesity, shorter attention spans and more psychological problems, including higher rates of depression. ...deprivation is not sustainable, substitution is. When you take away phones and tablets, you have to give your kids other things..."
NEWS:
- How U.S. Intelligence Agencies Underestimated North Korea (NYT) "One official who participated in the early policy reviews said estimates suggested Mr. Kim would be unable to strike the continental United States until 2020, perhaps even 2022. Within months, those comforting assessments looked wildly out of date. ...their [U.S. intelligence community] inability to foresee the North’s rapid strides over the past several months now ranks among America’s most significant intelligence failures, current and former officials said in recent interviews. ...many in the Pentagon see the failure to anticipate the North’s recent breakthroughs as an ominous reminder of how much could go wrong."
- A New Silk Road (New Yorker) "China is investing billions in building pathways to Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East. In 2013, President Xi Jinping announced that the Silk Road would be reborn as the Belt and Road Initiative, the most ambitious infrastructure project the world has ever known—and the most expensive. Its expected cost is more than a trillion dollars. When complete, the Belt and Road will connect, by China’s accounting, sixty-five per cent of the world’s population and thirty per cent of global G.D.P. So far, sixty-eight countries have signed on."
- Making China Great Again (New Yorker) "China has never seen such a moment, when its pursuit of a larger role in the world coincides with America’s pursuit of a smaller one. In a speech to Communist Party officials last January 20th, Major General Jin Yinan, a strategist at China’s National Defense University, celebrated America’s pullout from the trade deal [Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)]. 'We are quiet about it,' he said. 'We repeatedly state that Trump ‘harms China.’ We want to keep it that way. In fact, he has given China a huge gift. That is the American withdrawal from T.P.P.' Jin, whose remarks later circulated, told his audience, 'As the U.S. retreats globally, China shows up.' By setting more of the world’s rules, China hopes to 'break the Western moral advantage,' which identifies 'good and bad' political systems..."
- The 100-year capitalist experiment that keeps Appalachia poor, sick, and stuck on coal (Quartz) "One of Mullins’ ancestors received 12 rifles and 13 hogs—one apiece for each of his children, plus a hog for himself—in exchange for the rights to land that has since produced billions of dollars worth of coal. ...the idea that the region’s coal industry is dying is not quite true...as state and federal governments have, directly and indirectly, subsidized coal companies to keep the industry afloat. The costs of this subsidy aren’t tallied on corporate or government balance sheets. The destruction of central Appalachia’s economy, environment, social fabric and, ultimately, its people’s health is, in a sense, hidden. But they’re plain enough to see on a map. It could be lung cancer deaths you’re looking at, or diabetes mortality. Or try opioid overdoses. Poverty. Welfare dependency. Chart virtually any measure of human struggle, and there it will be, just right of center on a map of the U.S.—a distinct blotch. ...decades of subsidizing coal profits over investment in human capital and technology has led to a dearth of opportunities for young central Appalachians."
SPORTS:
- For Kraft, Brady and Belichick, is this the beginning of the end? (ESPN) "For almost two decades, Belichick has managed to subvert the egos of his best player, his boss and himself for the good of the team, yielding historic results. This year, though, the dynamics have been different. ...according to interviews with more than a dozen New England staffers, executives, players and league sources with knowledge of the team's inner-workings, the three most powerful people in the franchise -- Belichick, Brady and owner Robert Kraft -- have had serious disagreements. They differ on Brady's trainer...over the team's long-term plans at quarterback; over Belichick's bracing coaching style; and most of all, over who will be the last man standing. Those who know Belichick and Brady well are amazed that they've co-existed this long, two ruthless and proud self-made men, both secure though still unfinished in their legacies, both loved and hated, both having received stiff penalties for cheating, both motivated by ego, humility and -- as much as anything -- doubt."
TECHNOLOGY:
- Here’s How People Say Google Home And Alexa Impact Their Lives (Fast Company) "People perceive the devices as more than just an electronic toy, they’re more akin to another person or a friend. ...there’s several reasons we’re increasingly adopting devices like Amazon’s Echo and Dot, and Google Home. First, people say they think having one lets them multitask more easily than before. Second, it lets them do things more quickly than devices like their phone or laptop. Third, they like getting fast answers to questions. And finally, it leads to an easier daily routine.”
- What Would Really Happen If Russia Attacked Undersea Internet Cables (Wired) "It might seem like nightmare scenario. A terrorist organization or nefarious nation state decides to derail the global internet by faulting the undersea fiber optic cables that connect the world. ...if Russia or anyone else were to snip a handful of the garden hose-sized lines, experts say that the consequences would likely be less severe than the picture the military paints. That’s not to say that the world’s undersea cables aren’t at risk, or that they don’t need protection—especially in areas of the world with less internet infrastructure, like Africa and some parts of Southeast Asia. When a fault happens there, the consequences can be more severe, including genuine internet disruption."
TRUMPTEL:
- Trump's secret, shrinking schedule (Axios) "President Trump is starting his official day much later than he did in the early days of his presidency, often around 11am, and holding far fewer meetings, according to copies of his private schedule shown to Axios. This is largely to meet Trump’s demands for more 'Executive Time,' which almost always means TV and Twitter time alone in the residence, officials tell us. Aides say Trump is always doing something — he's a whirl of activity and some aides wish he would sleep more — but his time in the residence is unstructured and undisciplined. He's calling people, watching TV, tweeting, and generally taking the same loose, improvisational approach to being president that he took to running the Trump Organization for so many years. Old habits die hard." and Why ‘executive time’ is a particularly bleak scoop about President Trump (WaPo) "And the reason Swan's scoop paints such a bleak picture of Trump is because it suggests he's not particularly interested in the official duties of being president. Whatever you think about Trump's policies or his fitness for the job, the job requires one to be fully engaged, to be processing information (preferably from sources other than cable news), and to always be, for lack of a better word, on. The idea that Trump doesn't take his daily intelligence briefing until 11 a.m. is shocking just by itself. And whoever leaked his official schedules to Swan seems to be concerned that Trump just isn't up to the job right now."
TRUMPTEL:
- Trump's secret, shrinking schedule (Axios) "President Trump is starting his official day much later than he did in the early days of his presidency, often around 11am, and holding far fewer meetings, according to copies of his private schedule shown to Axios. This is largely to meet Trump’s demands for more 'Executive Time,' which almost always means TV and Twitter time alone in the residence, officials tell us. Aides say Trump is always doing something — he's a whirl of activity and some aides wish he would sleep more — but his time in the residence is unstructured and undisciplined. He's calling people, watching TV, tweeting, and generally taking the same loose, improvisational approach to being president that he took to running the Trump Organization for so many years. Old habits die hard." and Why ‘executive time’ is a particularly bleak scoop about President Trump (WaPo) "And the reason Swan's scoop paints such a bleak picture of Trump is because it suggests he's not particularly interested in the official duties of being president. Whatever you think about Trump's policies or his fitness for the job, the job requires one to be fully engaged, to be processing information (preferably from sources other than cable news), and to always be, for lack of a better word, on. The idea that Trump doesn't take his daily intelligence briefing until 11 a.m. is shocking just by itself. And whoever leaked his official schedules to Swan seems to be concerned that Trump just isn't up to the job right now."
- Obstruction Inquiry Shows Trump’s Struggle to Keep Grip on Russia Investigation (NYT) "President Trump gave firm instructions in March to the White House’s top lawyer: stop the attorney general, Jeff Sessions, from recusing himself in the Justice Department’s investigation into whether Mr. Trump’s associates had helped a Russian campaign to disrupt the 2016 election. Mr. McGahn’s argument to Mr. Sessions that day was twofold: that he did not need to step aside from the inquiry until it was further along, and that recusing himself would not stop Democrats from saying he had lied. Mr. McGahn was unsuccessful, and the president erupted in anger in front of numerous White House officials, saying he needed his attorney general to protect him."
- Situation All Fouled Up, Not Normal (Weekly Standard) "So the president wants a book banned. He wants a political opponent in jail, and, for good measure, maybe the former FBI director, too. He thinks his former top adviser is insane. This isn’t normal. And it’s not just 'Trump being Trump,' the preferred dodge of elected Republicans. It’s a reflection of the president’s troubled mind and of his erratic, irrational judgment. ...this is a president who played a mine-is-bigger-than-yours game in public with the leader of a rogue nuclear state. This is something more than abnormal; it’s dangerous. We were lucky in 2017. The United States didn’t face a crisis that required presidential leadership. We didn’t have to have the sober judgment of a thoughtful statesman. We won’t be lucky forever."
- Washington's growing obsession: The 25th Amendment (Politico) "The conversation about Trump’s fitness to serve is ongoing – and gaining steam after Trump’s tweet...taunting the leader of North Korea with my-nuclear-button-is-bigger-than-yours bravado. Her [Yale University psychiatry professor Dr. Bandy X. Lee] professional warning to Capitol Hill: 'He’s going to unravel, and we are seeing the signs.'"
- Trump thrives in destructive chaos (WaPo) "Some of Trump’s defenders are claiming, in effect, that the FBI is engaged in a 'coup d’etat' (the words of Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz) — a politically motivated attempt to reverse the results of the 2016 election. Their evidence? That some senior investigators donated to Democrats, supported Hillary Clinton and called Trump an 'idiot.' If that last charge were considered a disqualification, we would have the political equivalent of the Rapture (including, apparently, some of the Cabinet). But the larger point is this: Trump Republicans are willing to smear a man of genuine integrity, and undermine confidence in federal law enforcement, for reasons they must know are thin to the point of transparency. This is beyond cynicism. It is institutional arson. This is the profoundly anti-conservative strategy of Trump supporters against any institution (the courts, the media, law enforcement) that exposes the administration’s deception and corruption: Burn, baby, burn. Other presidents would be restrained by the prospect of social division and political chaos. For Trump, these may be incentives. He seems to thrive in bedlam. But the anarchy that sustains him damages the institutions around him — a cost for which he cares nothing."
- Situation All Fouled Up, Not Normal (Weekly Standard) "So the president wants a book banned. He wants a political opponent in jail, and, for good measure, maybe the former FBI director, too. He thinks his former top adviser is insane. This isn’t normal. And it’s not just 'Trump being Trump,' the preferred dodge of elected Republicans. It’s a reflection of the president’s troubled mind and of his erratic, irrational judgment. ...this is a president who played a mine-is-bigger-than-yours game in public with the leader of a rogue nuclear state. This is something more than abnormal; it’s dangerous. We were lucky in 2017. The United States didn’t face a crisis that required presidential leadership. We didn’t have to have the sober judgment of a thoughtful statesman. We won’t be lucky forever."
- Washington's growing obsession: The 25th Amendment (Politico) "The conversation about Trump’s fitness to serve is ongoing – and gaining steam after Trump’s tweet...taunting the leader of North Korea with my-nuclear-button-is-bigger-than-yours bravado. Her [Yale University psychiatry professor Dr. Bandy X. Lee] professional warning to Capitol Hill: 'He’s going to unravel, and we are seeing the signs.'"
- Trump thrives in destructive chaos (WaPo) "Some of Trump’s defenders are claiming, in effect, that the FBI is engaged in a 'coup d’etat' (the words of Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz) — a politically motivated attempt to reverse the results of the 2016 election. Their evidence? That some senior investigators donated to Democrats, supported Hillary Clinton and called Trump an 'idiot.' If that last charge were considered a disqualification, we would have the political equivalent of the Rapture (including, apparently, some of the Cabinet). But the larger point is this: Trump Republicans are willing to smear a man of genuine integrity, and undermine confidence in federal law enforcement, for reasons they must know are thin to the point of transparency. This is beyond cynicism. It is institutional arson. This is the profoundly anti-conservative strategy of Trump supporters against any institution (the courts, the media, law enforcement) that exposes the administration’s deception and corruption: Burn, baby, burn. Other presidents would be restrained by the prospect of social division and political chaos. For Trump, these may be incentives. He seems to thrive in bedlam. But the anarchy that sustains him damages the institutions around him — a cost for which he cares nothing."
- It's Been an Open Secret All Along (Atlantic) "Who is also in on this open secret? Virtually everyone in a position to do something about it, which at the moment means members of the Republican majority in Congress. We are watching the political equivalent of the Weinstein board pay off the objects of his abuse. We are watching Fox pay out is tens of millions to O’Reilly’s victims. But we’re watching it in real time, with the secret shared worldwide, and the stakes immeasurably higher."
WOLFF BAIT:
- Don’t believe Michael Wolff’s trashy efforts to undermine Trump (NYT) "The idea that he [Trump] didn’t think he could win, or never wanted to become president, an assertion made by Wolff in his book, is ludicrous on its face. I know because I was there. ...to say we were shocked by the outcome is nonsense. This is a narrative the mainstream media continues to push in an obvious attempt to delegitimize Trump’s election and his 304 electoral votes."
- ‘Yesterday morning, he was key. Today, I’m not sure’: Bannon’s allies start to abandon him (WaPo) "Candidates who once embraced Bannon distanced themselves from his efforts, groups aligned with his views sought separation, and his most important financial backer, the billionaire Mercer family, which has championed him for years, announced that it was severing ties. Even his position as chairman of Breitbart News, a website he has referred to as one of his most effective “weapons,” was being reviewed by the company’s leadership..." and Breitbart Owners Debate Ousting Bannon Amid Trump Feud (WSJ - Paywall)
- Bannon apologizes (Axios) "...Steve Bannon is trying to make amends with the Trump family, providing a statement to Axios that expresses 'regret' to President Trump and praises his son, Donald Trump Jr. While Bannon's statement may seem like a baby step, he's as stubborn as Trump when it comes to apologizing and admitting he has made a mistake. He views any concession as a sign of humiliating weakness."
BOTTOM OF THE NEWS:
- Confessions of an Open House Addict (NYT) "I had noticed the house for years, with a handsome bay window and lush landscaping. I just had to see what was inside. Before you write this off as time wasted, let me tell you, dear reader, the visit was worth every moment spent out in the icy rain."
- A drunk reveler on New Year’s Eve took a 600 km taxi ride between Denmark and Norway—and then ran away without paying (Quartz) "$2,220"
TODAY'S SONG:
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WOLFF BAIT:
- Don’t believe Michael Wolff’s trashy efforts to undermine Trump (NYT) "The idea that he [Trump] didn’t think he could win, or never wanted to become president, an assertion made by Wolff in his book, is ludicrous on its face. I know because I was there. ...to say we were shocked by the outcome is nonsense. This is a narrative the mainstream media continues to push in an obvious attempt to delegitimize Trump’s election and his 304 electoral votes."
- ‘Yesterday morning, he was key. Today, I’m not sure’: Bannon’s allies start to abandon him (WaPo) "Candidates who once embraced Bannon distanced themselves from his efforts, groups aligned with his views sought separation, and his most important financial backer, the billionaire Mercer family, which has championed him for years, announced that it was severing ties. Even his position as chairman of Breitbart News, a website he has referred to as one of his most effective “weapons,” was being reviewed by the company’s leadership..." and Breitbart Owners Debate Ousting Bannon Amid Trump Feud (WSJ - Paywall)
- Bannon apologizes (Axios) "...Steve Bannon is trying to make amends with the Trump family, providing a statement to Axios that expresses 'regret' to President Trump and praises his son, Donald Trump Jr. While Bannon's statement may seem like a baby step, he's as stubborn as Trump when it comes to apologizing and admitting he has made a mistake. He views any concession as a sign of humiliating weakness."
BOTTOM OF THE NEWS:
- Confessions of an Open House Addict (NYT) "I had noticed the house for years, with a handsome bay window and lush landscaping. I just had to see what was inside. Before you write this off as time wasted, let me tell you, dear reader, the visit was worth every moment spent out in the icy rain."
- A drunk reveler on New Year’s Eve took a 600 km taxi ride between Denmark and Norway—and then ran away without paying (Quartz) "$2,220"
TODAY'S SONG:
- What Lovers Do - Slushii Remix (Maroon 5, Slushii, SZA)
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