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Stranger Than Fiction
A brief daily note of things you might find interesting or useful
You can support the newsletter that you’re reading right now using PayPal, Venmo, CashApp, or purchase a subscription on Substack.Don’t forget to join us in the Stranger Slack for access to source documents and a running feed of news throughout the day. (this link was broken for awhile and has now been fixed)TOP NEWS
U.S. economy contracted at a record 32.9% annual rate last quarter and weekly jobless claims rose to 1.43 million, amid signs of a slowing recovery “Recent high-frequency data show “that the pace of the recovery looks like it has slowed since the cases began that spike in June,” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday, noting a drop in debit and credit-card spending, flattening hotel occupancy rates and fewer restaurant and salon visits.”
U.S. leads the world in #COVID19 deaths, passing a grim milestone yesterday with 150,000 deaths. “New coronavirus cases in the U.S. climbed back above 70,000 as some states reported record death tolls, while parts of Asia faced a resurgence in infections. Total confirmed coronavirus cases world-wide rose above 17 million Thursday, with the U.S. accounting for more than a quarter of that number, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. death toll neared 151,000.”
Mission to Mars - This morning, NASA launched an ambitious new rover on a mission to Mars. This interactive story on Mars that we launched today to coincide with the launch is truly spectacular, please check it out.
Big Tech’s Power Comes Under Fire at Hearing “The CEOs of Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Google faced relentless criticism, with Democrats and Republicans alike challenging their business practices.”
Virus relief talks hit impasse on Capitol Hill “A meeting between top White House officials and Democratic leaders ended with no agreement on extending emergency unemployment benefits that expire Friday or on reviving a moratorium on evictions that lapsed last week.”
Deal Reached for Drawdown of Federal Agents in Portland “Oregon and the Trump administration said they have reached a deal for a potential drawdown in Portland of federal agents whose controversial presence was at the heart of sometimes violent protests in the city over the weekend”
WHAT I’M READING + WATCHING + LISTENING TO
🎧 LISTEN: AMERICAN SKYJACKER - Between the years of 1967 and 1972 over 300 commercial airplanes were hijacked worldwide, with over 130 of those happening in the United States alone. This period would become known as "The Golden Age of Hijacking."
'It's Othering' – British-Japanese Artist Rina Sawayama Can’t Enter British Awards
The site of Van Gogh’s last painting revealed, thanks to a postcard
THE COMMENT
“Big tech’s dominance has serious consequences. America has lost thousands of media outlets because of the concentration of ad revenue in the hands of Google and Facebook; two thirds of American counties now have no daily newspaper. The nation lost 100,000 independent businesses from 2000-2015, a drop of 40%, many due to Amazon’s exploitation of legal advantages from the avoidance of sales tax to its apparent violation of antitrust laws in underpricing rivals. Hundreds of thousands of merchants now depend on Amazon’s platform to sell goods, and Amazon has systemically hiked fees on them. Just a few years ago these third-party merchants paid 19% of their revenue to Amazon, now it’s up to 30%, which is, coincidentally, the amount Apple demands from hundreds of thousands of app makers who have to reach iPhone users. It’s no secret why small business formation has collapsed since the last financial crisis; these giant platforms tax innovation.” - Matt Stoller
THE STRANGEST
THE AV ROOM