Few things feel better than to — finally — arrive at retirement confident about all the planning and saving you did to cause it to happen. It was decades in the making, but now it’s here.
Unfortunately, you may not be out of the financial woods yet.
A number of risks to your retirement strategy can still lurk even as you appear to have safely arrived at your post-work destination. Some of the most common ones include:
A significant market drop shortly before or early in your retirement. We all know that what the market gives, the market can take away. But a sudden market drop right when you are reaching retirement can be especially devastating. You have less time to make a comeback, especially when you are starting to withdraw from those accounts at the same time the market is giving you fits. Think of it this way. If you have $1 million, and take a 10% loss, that’s a $100,000 drop, taking you to $900,000. Now let’s say the market rebounds 10%. That means you recover only $90,000 of the $100,000. And if you had withdrawn some of the money to live on, you will recover even less. One way to at least partially avert this risk is to begin moving some of your portfolio into more conservative investments as you near retirement age. When you were relatively young and in the accumulation phase of investing, you could afford to take some risks. But now your investment strategy needs to focus more on keeping what you have.
Inflation that reduces your spending power over time. Even when it seems like you have enough money in retirement, it’s possible you don’t if you failed to factor in for inflation. Let’s take a look at that $1 million again and say that each year you plan to withdraw 4%, or $40,000, for living expenses. That $40,000 won’t have the same spending power in year 10 of retirement as it did in year one. That’s why it’s important to account for inflation as you are creating your financial plan and trying to determine how much money you need for retirement.
Unexpected medical and/or long-term care expenses. As you age, health problems can emerge that could quickly drain your money as you pay for hospitalizations, expensive prescriptions, and numerous visits to specialists. At some point, you could require long-term care, which comes with a staggering price tag. The average cost of a semi-private room in a nursing home is $7,756 a month, according to the Genworth annual cost of care survey. Genworth also reports that seven out of 10 people will require long-term care in their lifetimes. One option for planning for this is to purchase long-term-care insurance, but there are other routes to explore as well.
Outliving your assets. People are living longer than ever, which is great, but longevity increases the odds that you could outlive your money. If you are calculating that you just need enough money for a 10 or 20-year retirement, you could be in for a surprise. For example, more than one in three 65-year-old women will live to be 90. For 65-year-old men, it’s more than one in five. Of course, many will live beyond 90. It’s best to expect a long life and plan your finances accordingly.
While all of these factors pose a significant risk to your retirement, a financial professional should be able to help you create a plan that will reduce some of your exposure.
Retirement should be a time of enjoyment, not a time to fret over every dollar and how tomorrow could bring unpleasant surprises.
Jim Braun is president of Tri-State Retirement and helps clients optimize Social Security, reduce Medicare costs, and create retirement income strategies that will last the rest of their lives.
After days of contentious debate and last-minute amendments bouncing between chambers, the Republican-controlled state House and Senate came to an agreement and party-line votes approved Senate Bill 90 on the eve of Florida's final day of the legislative session.
The bill, which Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday night he will sign, will create restrictions such as adding new ID and signature requirements for voting by mail, limiting who can return a completed mail-in ballot, expanding partisan observation power during ballot tabulation and creating additional restrictions for drop box use.
DeSantis said on Fox News Thursday night that he will "for sure" sign the bill.
"We've had voter ID. It works. It's the right thing to do," DeSantis said, adding that Florida's 2020 election was "fair and transparent, and the reforms we have coming will make it even better."
The bill is part of a Republican-led effort nationwide to restrict voting access at the state level in the wake of record turnout in last November's elections. A tally by the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice at New York University found that 361 bills with provisions that restrict voting had been introduced in 47 states as of March 24.
In the last month, the effort to restrict voting has intensified as state legislatures begin to head into the final months of their respective sessions.
"This bill is just a vindictive way of trying to punish people for an election that some people just didn't like at the national level," said state Sen. Audrey Gibson, a Democrat, during one of several emotional debates over the legislation this week.
Perhaps the biggest changes in the bill involve limits and restrictions on ballot drop boxes, used by around 1.5 million Florida voters in the 2020 election.
The legislation cuts access to drop boxes by limiting their use to early voting hours unless they are located at election supervisors' offices. All drop boxes must always be staffed in person by election supervisors' office workers if they are in use. The bill also requires supervisors to set and publish drop box locations 30 days before the election. Those locations cannot be moved for any purpose.
The continued public fallout from the election overhaul bill signed into law in Georgia in March was frequently brought up by Democrats during debate, calling the Florida bill "revival of Jim Crow in this state."
"That bill that was passed in the state just north of us sent us a message, and the response to that bill should let us know we should not be doing this," Democratic state Rep. Michael Greico said during House debate, pleading, "Please do not Georgia my Florida."
Florida Republicans, who have repeatedly acknowledged that Florida ran a successful and secure 2020 election, said the bill would provide "guardrails" to prevent anyone from "gaming the system" in the future.
"This is an incremental legislative approach to address these issues, similar to what we had to do to get the timeliness problem solved, to get the efficiency problem solved -- we are now focusing on making sure that every vote is a valid vote," said state Rep. Wyman Duggan, a Republican who is a member of the House Public Integrity & Elections Committee.
Republican Rep. Ralph Massullo took umbrage at Democrats' accusations of voter suppression, saying, "I take some issue with the fact that we are trying to somehow restrict the vote. There are more ways to vote in Florida, and a longer opportunity, than just about any state in the nation. You all know that."
Several of the most restrictive measures originally in the bill were watered down, but Democrats pointed out that what remains will likely have the greatest impact on low-income and older voters, voters of color and those with disabilities.
"I think it will target people of color. It will affect them," Democratic state Sen. Randolph Bracy told CNN.
"SB 90 is a blatant violation of Floridians' freedom to vote and represents a direct backlash to last year's record-breaking turnout," said Florida State Director for All Voting is Local Brad Ashwell in a statement after the bill passed the House on Thursday night. "By erecting onerous barriers to request and return a vote-by-mail ballot, this legislature has made voting a test of stamina and resources rather than a statement of civic responsibility."
During floor sessions, Democrats often called the bill an unfunded mandate, arguing it mandates more work that will likely require more manpower for election supervisors' offices but does not include additional funding for them. The legislation also bans county offices from taking private funds to conduct elections.
People who want to vote by mail now must request ballots every election cycle, instead of every two cycles. An eleventh-hour agreement between the two chambers did grandfather in those voters who are already on the request list through the 2022 election.
Another measure of SB 90 that critics say will disproportionately impact low-income voters and voters of color is stricter limits on who can pick up and return a voter's ballot on their behalf. The bill says a person can be in possession only of their own ballot, a ballot of their immediate family member and two others per election cycle. Immediate family does include grandchildren, but not other extended family members or caretakers. Democrats said their failed attempts to change the language from immediate family to household were to better represent immigrant family dynamics, which often include extended family members in the home.
Under SB 90, Floridians will be required to provide their Florida driver's licenses, state identification numbers or the last four digits of their Social Security numbers when requesting mail-in ballots, changing their party affiliations or names.
CNN's Veronica Stracqualursi contributed to this report.
When Apple unveiled its new AirTag tracker, my thoughts immediately went to how useful this button-sized device could be for frequent flyers travelling with checked luggage.
After all, using the AirTag to keep tabs on everyday items ranging from backpacks and suitcases to expensive jackets, an umbrella, purse or your car keys is a given. If you lose it, an AirTag can track it and help you find it again.
But we’ve all stood around airport luggage carousels, waiting for bags to be disgorged from the chute and then make their way along that snaking conveyor belt to wherever we’re standing.
Could Apple’s newest gadget be the hottest travel accessory since noise-cancelling headphones?
Executive Traveller headed to the airport with AirTagged luggage in tow to find out.
Apple AirTag 101
If you’re not up to speed on the Apple AirTag, here’s a quick recap.
The size of a 20c piece and the shape of a coat button, AirTags are wireless gizmos which can be attached to anything you’re likely to temporarily misplace, leave behind or full-on lose.
Powered by a replaceable CR2032 coin battery, each AirTag is constantly broadcasting a silent, sonar-like Bluetooth ping.
(There’s no ‘off’ switch: the AirTag springs to life as soon as you insert the battery, which lasts for a year and alerts you when it’s running low.)
If you lose it, an Apple AirTag can help you find it – sometimes with the help of a friendly stranger.
If an AirTag is within Bluetooth range of your iPhone, iPad or even Apple laptop or desktop – which usually means the AirTag is somewhere in your house – its location will appear in Apple’s Find My software (which can already be used to locate iPhones, iPads, AirPods and what-not) to help you find it.
In fact, if you’ve got an iPhone 11 or 12 series and are even closer to your missing item (roughly what’s known in Hide and Seek as ‘getting warm’), your iPhone will switch to Precision Finding mode and guide you to the AirTag by accurately reporting both distance and direction.
This relies on Ultra Wideband technology, enabled by these iPhones and the AirTags both containing Apple’s special U1 microchip. It’s dead clever stuff.
AirTags are predictably sleek: shiny stainless steel on one side, glossy white (with optional laser engraving) on the other.
What if your gear has wandered much further afield?
Any of the billion-plus other devices in Apple’s cloud-based Find My network – other people’s iPhones, iPads etc – can pick up the Bluetooth signal from any nearby AirTag and privately relay its location back to the owner.
Because the Find My software is baked into Apple’s operating systems and usually always active, this happens automatically: Apple is, in effect, crowd-sourcing an ever-vigilant global search party.
You can even flag an AirTagged item as ‘lost’ so that you get a location alert when it surfaces while the AirTag itself can communicate a contact phone number and message to any Apple user or even Android smartphone user (using NFC) who stumbles upon it.
Ironically, most AirTag holders cost more than the AirTag itself.
AirTags are predictably sleek – shiny stainless steel on one side, glossy white on the other (this surface can be customised with laser-etching) and not outrageously priced, at $45 each or $149 for a pack of four, although if you want to attach the AirTag to something you’ll need a cost-extra key ring, loop strap or holder (starting at $20).
The AirTag goes head-to-head with similar trackers such as Tile and Samsung’s SmartTag, but it’s an obvious choice for anybody already in the Apple ecosystem, and cleverly taps into the massive size of the Apple device market.
Using Apple’s AirTag for airline luggage
Now let’s get down to the travel-centric nitty-gritty.
You’re off on yet another flight – hopefully a holiday, although it’s probably work – and you decide to attach an Apple AirTag to each checked bag.
Put a new AirTag next to your iPhone and it’s automatically and elegantly paired to your iPhone (and your Apple iCloud account, which is the backbone of the Find My network), just like AirPods.
To describe what the AirTag is tracking, choose from a list of suggested names – each accompanied by a preset icon – or give it a unique name and choose an icon to suit.
(Of course, you can easily change an AirTag’s name and icon if you need to move it from one device to the another.)
Setting up your AirTag is an effortless delight.
Attach that AirTag to your luggage, head to the airport and drop off your checked bags as usual.
Obvious question #1: the AirTag is continually transmitting little Bluetooth burps, but don’t airlines want Bluetooth gadgets disabled during flight?
Other luggage trackers such as Tile have been doing the same thing for years, while passengers have wireless Bluetooth headphones and earphones, so this is really not an issue.
Also worth noting: while airlines have banned rechargeable lithium-ion battery packs from checked luggage (including so-called ‘smart luggage’), this doesn’t apply to the tiny single-use lithium CR2023 cells. Besides which, they’re already in millions of Tiles and key fobs sitting in cargo holds.
It's easy to change the name, and icon, of an AirTag.
Putting Apple’s AirTag to the test
Here, then, is the scenario: you step off your flight and head to a carousel that’s already packed with luggage, with more bags being disgorged by the minute.
But this time your bag has had a high-tech upgrade, courtesy of the AirTag dangling from the handle or more subtly snugged into a side pocket.
Instead of trying to peer over and through the crowd, watching for your luggage to appear, you just stand back – maybe even grab a seat – launch your iPhone’s Find My app and wait for your AirTagged bag to make its presence known.
Apple AirTag, $45; Apple AirTag Loop, another $45 (or just can slip the AirTag into a pocket inside the bag).
Here’s the bad news: having thoroughly tested the AirTag at an airport, we can report this is not what happens. In this scenario, Apple’s AirTag simply doesn’t work.
The first issue is that the AirTag’s live here-I-am tracking isn’t intended for objects that are moving, unless they’re doing so at the most leisurely pace.
And while the average airport luggage belt is no threat to Usain Bolt, it runs too fast for the AirTag’s virtual hand-waving to be properly identified by your iPhone.
(During my AirTag media briefing earlier in the week, Apple had suggested this might be the case: although to its credit the Find My app was aware the luggage was moving.)
Sadly, the AirTag can't track moving objects such as bags on a luggage claim belt.
Even with an iPhone 12 to take advantage of Precision Finding, the only time the AirTagged bag appeared on my screen while being carried along the belt was when it was literally right in front of me.
Of course, if you’re standing at the edge of the luggage belt then you’ll see your bag before anything else; and if you’re stuck behind a three-people deep throng of fellow travellers, you may still spy the bag but the iPhone certainly won’t see it.
What about using all that congestion in your favour? While those plane-loads of passengers are catching up with email and texts and social media on their iPhones, can their combined input to Apple’s Find My network at least show if your bag’s on the carousel?
Again, no. Pinpointing very specific locations on the Find My screen relies on Apple Maps, which simply doesn’t drill down to such a granular level, and certainly not deep inside an airport terminal.
Everyone with an iPhone can help track your AirTags without knowing it.
Where the AirTag works like a travel charm
So does this mean that Apple’s AirTag is a total fail for the frequent flyer? Far from it.
AirTags have a clear application to help find anything you might travel with but also risk leaving behind or losing: your passport wallet, a briefcase or jacket, even the carry case where your noise-cancelling headphones reside when not in use (there’s a reason noise-cancelling cans are among the most numerous items when airports auction off their lost property).
And there are other times when an AirTag will come to the rescue of your checked luggage.
During peak periods, airport staff can move bags from one flight – even if it’s only recently landed – off the luggage belt as bags from another flight pour in. You finally get through the customs and immigration checkpoint, reach the carousel and waste a half-hour waiting to see your bag on the belt before discovering it’s been sitting in that corral over there.
There’s a good chance the Find My app – especially with Precision Finding – could help show where your bag really is, given that it’s stationary rather than on a moving belt.
In our testing, the iPhone 12 identified and gave clear directions to an AirTagged bag almost 10 metres away.
Apple's AirTag Precision Finding, available on the iPhone 11 and 12 series, in action.
Likewise, when a large bag checked in for your flight is unexpectedly directed to the oversized baggage office instead of coming out on the luggage belt, an AirTag could save you plenty of time and frustration.
Another example: a colleague recounted how, on arriving on a flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, her bag failed to appear on the belt, and she was eventually told her bag was in fact among many which were not loaded at LAX.
That turned out not be the case – all the bags had made it to Sydney Airport – and a quick check of the Find My app would have shown they were somewhere in the vicinity rather than 12,000km away.
The take-away? While Apple’s AirTags won’t solve all of your baggage belt blues, they’re still going to find a very welcome place in your travel kit.
David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.
Legacy systems are relied upon to perform an organization’s day-to-day work. But, in many cases, technology has improved drastically since companies first implemented those systems, leading to a point at which the tasks those systems perform could strain those systems beyond what they can handle. This opens the door to failure, user frustration and more.
“When your system no longer supports scalability, you lose the competitive advantage in the market,” says Nishan Kumar, project manager at EOX Vantage.
Smart Business spoke with Kumar about how to recognize when it’s time to address the problems caused by older legacy systems, and how upgrades can improve workflows.
What are some of the signs that a legacy system is not working well?
One of the signs that a legacy system should be tuned up or augmented is the maintenance cost. Fixes to a legacy system often require the use of older technologies, which means a specific skill set is required to maintain the system. That typically comes from an in-house team member or long-time outside vendor. But sometimes the person who installed it or who has the expertise to fix it is no longer with the company, or the vendor stops providing the specific support the legacy system requires. That can leave a company with a system that can’t be fixed, which puts it in a risky spot where a failure of any sort could happen.
Integration is one of the most critical aspects of modern-day technology. This is the ability of systems to talk to each other, for example through third-party APIs for user authentication and data sharing. When a legacy system is isolated from other systems, it increases the costs of operations because of the maintenance of these multiple systems, as well as degradation in accuracy and execution of tasks such as the publication of work and ability to perform repetitive tasks. All of this collectively increases the time necessary for completion or turnaround of an activity.
Compliance and security issues can also arise with legacy systems. Some companies operate under heavily regulated standards. Non-compliance with these policies can lead to significant penalties. It can also make any updates or changes very expensive because the often-outdated technology is not supported, or there is limited expertise to implement the required change. Legacy systems are also vulnerable to cyber attacks as the outdated technology or the software no longer gets patched, creating security gaps.
What issues are created when there are multiple systems attempting to work together?
A business ecosystem comprises multiple components, each performing a specific function. Given this, there are multiple systems designated and dedicated to execute them independently. The problem with having multiple systems is that you have no visibility or control over these disparate data sources. There may be compatibility issues with the system that can lead to nightmares when you’re compiling a report. There may be issues with multiple logins, for which multiple user credentials need to be maintained. Limited maintenance and support options also add to the problems.
How might organizations address issues with legacy systems?
Problems with legacy systems can be diagnosed by a knowledgeable vendor, in part by mapping critical business processes through the system to find gaps and inefficiencies that impact the overall turnaround times of important or regularly performed tasks.
Solutions can be found, depending on the type of business and who interacts with the system, that streamline individual components or systems. There are ways to automate manual, repetitive tasks and free the human resources to focus on more critical tasks, allowing the system to take care of the rest. Automation workflows and unification of critical components of the system can improve turnaround time and reduce costs.
Find an outside provider, preferably one that has experience within the organization’s industry as well as experience addressing issues with legacy systems. It’s best to find a provider that has cross-platform experience and can come at it from a consultative standpoint, not one that’s predisposed to a solution that comes from a single product.
Insights Digital Transformation is brought to you by EOX Vantage
In your opinion, what was the biggest surprise of the night?
For me, there were three. The Notre Dame linebacker, Owusu-Koramoah, not getting drafted in the first round. The Eagles, for the second straight year, spending a first-round pick on a small receiver. And Virginia Tech tackle Christian Darrisaw lasting until the 23rd pick. That worked out exceedingly well for the Vikings to trade back nine spots, get some extra picks, and still get Darrisaw.
Chase from Minnesota City, MN
A TE with the fourth pick? Given Atlanta's track record (Julio Jones), that probably shouldn't surprise me, but it does.
It was unusual for a tight end to be considered the best (non-QB) offensive player in a draft, but the opinion seemed rather universal.
Andrew from Simi Valley, CA
There is no doubt that not having No. 69 on the field impacted the NFC Championship; but he didn't give up a touchdown before half time or fumble the ball right after the half or drop a two-point conversion or get called for pass interference. A lot of other things went against us and we should have been able to win without him.
I wholeheartedly agree, and have said as much before. This all started with someone asking me if I thought the Packers win the game if Bakhtiari is healthy. I said yes. That was it. And for those who don't know me well enough, I absolutely caught the "Fletch" reference the other day. I would never miss a "Fletch" reference. Why do you think I posted it? But that doesn't change the fact that the submission didn't actually make sense. OK, time to move on, on both fronts.
Christopher from Frederick, MD
Which would you prefer: another season of "The Newsroom," or a sequel to "Draft Day"?
Wes may differ here, but give me "The Newsroom" in a heartbeat. I would think a sequel to "Draft Day" would be almost impossible. If you make it more realistic, it would be boring, and you can't make it more outrageous, right?
Joel from Green Bay, WI
Good morning! The Packers currently have 72 players under contract, meaning they can add 18 this week without cutting anyone they already have. Assuming they add 10 players through the draft, and given the UDFA signing bonus pool limit of $160,000 per team, do you think it's to the Packers' advantage to only be able to add eight UDFAs, as they could offer higher signing bonuses to get the "cream of the crop," versus a team signing 20 UDFAs?
Given the considerably smaller volume of players in this draft pool, the math says the UDFA crop won't be as strong as it normally is. I don't see the Packers handing out larger signing bonuses just because they can, if they aren't confident those players can make a legitimate run at a roster spot.
Bill from Little Chute, WI
Is the real reason GB has never formally retired No. 1 is because they need it for the first-pick photo?
After an extremely long day and night, this actually made me chuckle. Thanks.
An election worker sorts vote-by-mail ballots at the Miami-Dade County Board of Elections in Doral, Fla., on Oct. 26, 2020. Florida's state legislature on Thursday approved a bill that would alter how residents can vote by mail. Lynne Sladky/AP
Lynne Sladky/AP
Both chambers of Florida's state legislature approved new election reforms Thursday that would place restrictions on ballot drop boxes and residents' ability to vote by mail.
It's the latest Republican-led effort to alter state voting rules following record-breaking turnout during the 2020 election.
SB90 passed the Florida Senate with a vote of 23-17 and the House 77-40. The measure now heads to DeSantis for his signature and he is expected to sign it.
Earlier versions of the legislation would have banned the use of ballot drop boxes altogether, but last-minute changes allowed for their use under new limitations.
Changes include restrictions on who can drop off a voter's ballot, requiring the location of a drop box to be chosen at least 30 days before an election and election officials must supervise the drop boxes in person while they're open.
The measure also limits who can hand out any item, including food or water or election-related material, to voters waiting in line. Items can't be given to voters within 150 feet of a ballot box. Only volunteers or staff working with the election supervisor can "provide nonpartisan assistance," to voters within that area.
The bill would also require voters to request to mail-in ballots regularly and places restrictions on third-party voter registration groups. Ballot counting observers would be allowed for each political party official and candidate after polls close.
Florida's voting reform bill is part of a nationwide effort to alter how states conduct elections and to restrict expanded voter access. A controversial law approved in March in Georgia was slammed by voting rights activists and Democrats as voter suppression.
The letter was drafted after Greenberg asked Roger Stone, a close ally of former President Donald Trump, for help obtaining a pardon during the final months of Trump's term, the outlet reported.
"On more than one occasion, this individual was involved in sexual activities with several of the other girls, the congressman from Florida's 1st Congressional District and myself," Greenberg wrote in the letter in reference to the minor, according to The Daily Beast.
"From time to time, gas money or gifts, rent or partial tuition payments were made to several of these girls, including the individual who was not yet 18. I did see the acts occur firsthand and Venmo transactions, Cash App or other payments were made to these girls on behalf of the Congressman."
CNN has not seen the letter and can't verify the details of The Daily Beast's story.
In earlier drafts of the letter obtained by The Daily Beast, Greenberg claims that he and Gaetz had sex with a minor who they thought was 19 at the time but later learned was underage.
"Immediately I called the congressman and warned him to stay clear of this person and informed him she was underage," Greenberg wrote, according to the outlet. "He was equally shocked and disturbed by this revelation."
News of the letter is sure to fuel fresh scrutiny of Gaetz, who the Justice Department is investigating over allegations involving sex trafficking and prostitution.
A spokesperson for Gaetz told CNN in a statement Thursday evening, "Congressman Gaetz has never paid for sex, nor has he had sex with a 17 year old as an adult. Politico has reported Mr. Greenberg's threats to make false accusations against others, and while The Daily Beast's story contains a lot of confessions from Mr. Greenberg, it does not add anything of substance, and certainly no evidence for the wild and false claims about Rep. Gaetz. In fact, the story goes some way to showing how Rep. Gaetz was long out of touch with Mr. Greenberg, and had no interest in involving himself in Mr. Greenberg's affairs."
Greenberg's attorney declined to comment to CNN, citing attorney-client privilege.
In a series of messages exchanged over the encrypted messaging app Signal and obtained by The Daily Beast, Greenberg wrote to Stone: "If I get you $250k in Bitcoin would that help or is this not a financial matter."
"I understand all of this and have taken it into consideration," Stone replied, according to the outlet. "I will know more in the next 24 hours I cannot push too hard because of the nonsense surrounding pardons."
"I hope you are prepared to wire me $250,000 because I am feeling confident," Stone later wrote to Greenberg.
CNN's Chris Cuomo said Thursday evening that Stone said to him that he doesn't buy this, he didn't help, he never took any money from anybody, he doesn't recall any letter and he has never heard of Greenberg implicating Gaetz. He told Cuomo that The Daily Beast's text communications are out of context and incomplete, and that he never tried to get Greenberg a pardon.
Stone told The Daily Beast that Greenberg had tried to hire him to assist with a pardon, but he denied asking for or receiving payment. He did tell the outlet that he had Greenberg prepare "a document explaining his prosecution."
IT’S NOT THE ECONOMY, STUPID — President Joe Biden likes to say — really likes to say — that when he thinks about climate change, he thinks about jobs. He has said it repeatedly on the campaign trail,in the White House, and he said it again last night in his address to Congress: “For too long, we’ve failed to use the most important word when it comes to meeting the climate crisis: Jobs. Jobs. Jobs.” And in case anyone had missed the point: “For me, when I think climate change, I think jobs.”
It’s true that climate action can create jobs installing solar panels, weatherizing homes, assembling wind turbines, building electric vehicles and planting trees. It’s good politics to keep pointing this out, and it was probably clever of Biden to tuck $1 trillion worth of green investments into his infrastructure-focused American Jobs Plan instead of trying to sell a stand-alone climate plan.
But marketing strategies aside, climate action is not really about creating jobs. It’s about making sure the one planet that has oxygen, Boston terriers, that scoop-there-it-is GEICO ad and everything else we love remains habitable and enjoyable for humanity. We’re currently on track for about 3 degrees Celsius of average warming by 2100, which would produce unfathomable environmental, meteorological and geopolitical cataclysms. The last time the earth was that hot was 3 million years ago, when global sea levels were about 50 feet higher. That’s why climate is a crisis.
It’s terrific that accelerating America’s transition to clean energy has the potential to boost America’s economy, but there’s a danger that prioritizing job creation over emission reductions could delay that transition and make it harder to solve the climate crisis. Biden said last night that the green investments in the American Jobs Plan were guided by one principle, Buy American, so that wind turbines and lithium-ion batteries can be produced in Pittsburgh rather than Beijing. That may be a worthy and popular goal, but it is not the same goal as Fix the Climate. The key to rapid decarbonization will be to continue to drive down the cost of clean energy so that it’s much cheaper than fossil energy, and it’s not clear whether well-paid union workers in America can manufacture a simple product like solar panels as cheaply as the Chinese can.
It’s not even clear whether a jobs-jobs-jobs message is the most effective way to sell green policies. Climate wonks spend an inordinate amount of time debating communications, as if magic words could transcend the partisan polarization of a shirts-and-skins nation. Some want to emphasize wildfires, hurricanes and other negative impacts that show the climate threat is here and now. Others argue that excessively apocalyptic messages alienate the public. Green New Deal progressives have tried to shift the focus to social and racial justice. The non-wonk James Carville actually suggested this week that climate messaging has been insufficiently emotional.
But not even Anthony Leiserowitz, director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, is sure which climate messages are the best motivators for climate action. In fact, while it’s clear Americans care more about the economy than climate change, he’s skeptical that jobs are a more persuasive talking point than climate risk for selling green policies — although that calculus might change if the intended audience is West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who may control the fate of Biden’s infrastructure plan.
The larger point is no matter how Biden decides to sell his climate policies, jobs should not be the main goal of those policies. An infrastructure bill that dramatically expanded renewable energy and electric vehicles in America would help fix the climate even if it created jobs in China. And the climate desperately needs fixing. Elon Musk may want to get us a backup home on Mars, in case we broil our starter home, but it makes a lot more sense to try to make things work on the planet we already have. Ruining it would be a catastrophe. And no matter how it polls, that’s the word we should think about when we think about climate.
BREAKING THE ICE — Health care reporter Rachel Roubein emails Nightly with the latest edition in our occasional series about what the Covid immunization drive looks like around the world:
In Alaska, a small group of public health doctors are trying to increase demand for the coronavirus shots as vaccination rates begin to plateau nationwide.
One day, they’ll Zoom into a village that’s accessible only by dog sleds in the winter. The next, they’ll meet virtually with residents of a remote mining town. And then they’ll beam into a fishing boat, or downtown Anchorage, or a community council meeting.
Alaska, like many states around the country, has seen its supply of the vaccine begin to outpace demand. Nearly half of all residents have gotten their first shot, but 23 percent of Alaskans 18 and over say they are hesitant about receiving a coronavirus vaccine.
That’s why the state’s new physicians speaker bureau, comprising roughly a dozen state health officials and volunteers, has stepped in. Formed during the pandemic, the group is using Covid-era technology to facilitate dozens of conversations in a state that’s vaster than Texas, California and Montana combined. The doctors start with a PowerPoint presentation, and then they open the floor to questions. There’s no standard length of time for the talks. If the group is given 10 minutes on a meeting’s agenda, that will do. If the conversation flows for an hour, that’s great, too.
“Our goal is to meet all Alaskans where they’re at, and give a safe, comfortable spot where people can ask whatever questions they have,” said Lisa Rabinowitz, a staff physician at Alaska’s health department.
The questions range widely: Can pregnant people get the vaccine? How safe are the shots? When will the pandemic end? How long will masks need to be worn?
“We answer them truthfully, and honestly,” said Anne Zink, Alaska’s chief medical officer.
Oftentimes, those in the audience will dive into why they decided to get vaccinated — a peer-to-peer message that public health officials say is so critical to persuading the hesitant to get the shot.
And slowly, one-by-one, they’re changing minds. For Zink, the evidence lies in her Zoom chat box, where nearly every session, a participant messages her to say they’ve decided to get vaccinated.
On the Hill
DESERT SOLITAIRE — Mark Kelly is a reliable ally of Biden. Except when it comes to the border, writes co-congressional bureau chief Burgess Everett.
Though Kelly’s home state shifted toward Democrats during the presidency of Donald Trump, the GOP is using Biden’s handling of the border in an effort to hobble the former astronaut’s reelection campaign next year. Gearing up to try to take back a Senate seat in Kelly’s once reliably red state, Republicans are already criticizing him for not being a more aggressive check on Biden. But Kelly says that’s exactly what he’s doing.
“This continues to be a major problem that shouldn’t fall on the shoulders of Arizona communities. And I think it was important to highlight that it wasn’t part of the address last night,” Kelly said in an interview.
What'd I Miss?
— Ukrainian ex-lawmaker says he spoke to FBI about Giuliani: Andrii Artemenko made a star turn in Rudy Giuliani’s controversial Ukraine documentary and once tried to pitch the Trump administration on a plan for peace between Moscow and Kyiv. Now, he says, he’s told the FBI what he knows about the former mayor. Artemenko first drew major attention in the U.S. when The New York Times reported he gave Trump’s then-lawyer Michael Cohen a draft of a peace plan between Ukraine and Russia.
— U.S. economy grew at a 6.4 percent rate last quarter: Powered by consumers, the U.S. economy grew at a brisk annual rate last quarter — a show of strength fueled by government aid and declining viral cases that could drive further gains as the nation rebounds with unusual speed from the pandemic recession.
— Lawmakers press Biden’s top scientist on gender, race and Epstein connections:Eric Lander, Biden’s pick to lead the White House’s top technology office, pledged today to advance equity and diversity in science, after mounting concerns from both Republicans and Democrats about his record on race and gender issues and his past meetings with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
From the Health Desk
THE NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM OF THE VACCINE WORLD — It might feel like Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are the center of the vaccine world, but there’s a lot more out there. Health care reporter Sarah Owermohle breaks down what you need to know about the different vaccines in use globally in the latest POLITICO Dispatch. Bonus: Sarah and Dispatch’s Jeremy Siegel answer this key question: If your vaccine were a Harry Potter character, which would it be?
The news comes against the backdrop of growing Czech-Russian tensions, writes Siegfried Mortkowitz. Last week, Prague expelled 60 diplomats and staff from its Russian embassy in an escalating standoff over allegations the Kremlin was behind a deadly 2014 explosion in the Czech Republic.
But it’s also the latest setback in what has been a rocky week for the Russian jab. On Wednesday, Brazil’s drug regulator said it had found abnormalities in its Sputnik V samples, leading it to refuse to import the vaccine. This follows a negative assessment from Slovakia’s drug regulator earlier in the month, when it said that the Sputnik V doses delivered were different to those supplied elsewhere or to the European Medicines Agency.
Czech Health Minister Petr Arenberger said earlier this month that Sputnik V could be used in clinical trials to determine its efficacy. But according to Storová, her agency has yet to receive an application for clinical trials.
Nightly Number
Parting Words
NOT KOOL — More than 85 percent of Black Americans who smoke report using menthol products, and the Biden administration’s proposed ban on menthol cigarettes has divided Black lawmakers: Rep. Jim Clyburn recently softened his opposition to a menthol ban, but did not vote on a February House bill that would have outlawed the cigarette and e-cigarette flavor. Rep. Karen Bass, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, praised the move today.
No, I do not agree with that. The disproportionate use of menthol is the product of years of targeted marketing to promote menthol smoking in urban Black communities starting in the mid-1960s. The fact of the preference cannot be separated from history of how that preference has been cultivated and nurtured.
In 2009, when legislation for the first time gave the FDA authority over tobacco regulation, and flavored cigarettes were banned across the board, menthol with the only flavor that was exempted. The reason is that a small subset of Black lawmakers argued it would be discriminatory, when a vast majority saw menthol as an enticement to start smoking. The only reason we’re even debating menthol goes all the way back to the fact that it was exempted in this curious bit of horse trading.
What about the criminal justice arguments that groups like the ACLU are making against this ban?
The argument is that consumers love menthol smoking, so much that if they weren’t available they would engage in black market sales. It’s possible. Then the policing of illegitimate sales would produce police surveillance and that police surveillance would result in deaths of many more Black people. You can see the multiple steps here that are necessary for you to argue that therefore we should keep menthol on the market.
One needs to look critically at the question of racial discrimination. Sometimes there’s a legitimate concern. Sometimes these arguments are merely being marshaled for political effect in order to beat back a rolling momentum towards regulation.
Also this doesn’t keep in mind the number of silent deaths that have happened as a result of menthol smoking over the course of multiple decades. The major organizations that speak on behalf of the health and well-being of Black people by and large now line up in favor of a menthol ban.
Why not ban smoking completely, then?
When you have these significant moments in new tobacco regulations, people often say things like, What’s next? To me those are mostly distracting arguments. What is on the table now is a ban on a form of smoking that has long been deemed to be an illegitimate enticement for young people to smoke. It’s a leftover from legislation from 12 years ago. We wouldn’t even be having this conversation if Congress hadn’t acted boldly to give FDA jurisdiction over the tobacco industry. The Obama administration banned it once, the industry sued them and won in court on a technicality. During the Trump administration Scott Gottlieb announced they were moving forward and got pushback from tobacco growing states. This is the third round of doing something that makes extraordinary public health sense.
Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here.
Microalgae of the dinoflagellate group are known for their ability to survive in other animal cells. These tiny single-cell organisms have engaged in mutually beneficial relationships with corals since primeval times. By passing on critical nutrients to their hosts, dinoflagellates allow corals to thrive even in barren areas. A research team from the Centre for Organismal Studies (COS) of Heidelberg University recently discovered that such symbioses within the cell essentially depend on the ability of the algae to suppress the immune system of their host cell and thereby avoid being "spit out" again. At the same time, the researchers found indications that this cellular immune response is an evolutionarily ancient immune mechanism that is more widespread than previously assumed.
This mechanism is known as vomocytosis. Contrary to previous assumptions, microalgae ingested by corals are not digested by the cell if they prove unsuitable as symbionts -- that is, partners in a symbiotic relationship. Instead, they are "spit out" again in the process of vomocytosis. Special dinoflagellates are able to specifically suppress this immune response of their host cells in order to remain in the cell. A study led by cell biologist Prof. Dr Annika Guse at the COS demonstrated how they are able to do that. "The challenge for the corals is to differentiate between beneficial and potentially harmful microorganisms. For their part, the algae have to circumvent the immune response of the host cell, establish an intracellular niche where they can survive, and coordinate their own cell functions with those of their host to efficiently exchange nutrients," explains the researcher.
Until now, there has been no experimental evidence that could explain any of the conventional theories. Using the model system Exaiptasia diaphana (Aiptasia) of the sea anemone species, Prof. Guse's team recently uncovered how immune suppression by the symbionts helps the host cell to recognise suitable microalgae and tolerate them for the long term. The Aiptasia anemone larvae ingest the symbionts from the environment in the same way as coral larvae. Furthermore, their size and transparency make the larvae of this sea anemone perfect for high-resolution imaging and cellular experiments.
Aiptasia continually ingests various particles from the environment without differentiating between suitable and unsuitable particles or organisms. Incompatible particles are "spit out" again after a certain amount of time. Symbionts avoid this process of vomocytosis, presumably by disrupting the signal pathways of the toll-like receptors (TLRs) of the host cell. These receptors play a critical role in activating the cell's own immune system and ensure that unwelcome intruders are detected and removed. In most animals, the toll-like receptors are controlled by the MyD88 gene. "We were able to prove that the algae symbionts suppress MyD88 and thus initiate symbiosis. That is how they elude vomocytosis," explains Prof. Guse.
At the same time, the findings of the Heidelberg researchers indicate that vomocytosis involves a mechanism that is more widespread than assumed. Until now, it was believed that the expulsion of harmful intruders was self-initiated to evade the in part highly specialised immune responses of the potential host cell. The study of the Aiptasia model, however, suggests that this process can also be triggered by the host cell. The researchers therefore assume that vomocytosis is an evolutionarily ancient immune mechanism that corals or cnidarians like Aiptasia use to select appropriate symbionts. Prof. Guse: "This suggests that vomocytosis is an important process that led in the first place to the emergence of the intracellular lifestyle of the coral symbionts."
"that" - Google News
April 29, 2021 at 11:48PM
https://ift.tt/2Py7Swr
Corals that 'spit' algae: An ancient immune response regulates the development of beneficial symbioses - Science Daily
"that" - Google News
https://ift.tt/3d8Dlvv
He phoned former President George W. Bush to alert him to a pending announcement about withdrawing troops from Afghanistan, a war Bush had begun 20 years ago. The conversation, aides said, was short but warm -- even if it left Bush skeptical.
Biden made a final call to former Vice President Walter Mondale, then in the last days of his life, from home in Delaware, a coda to a long relationship with the inventor of the modern vice presidency.
And he discussed his troop withdrawal plans with former President Barack Obama, the man he had warned a decade ago against getting jammed by his generals and who, according to aides, he now speaks with regularly about policy decisions, personnel matters and his family.
While Biden has looked to history for inspiration, he appears to value the still-living primary sources of presidential knowledge just as much, seeking advice and comparing notes on a job that can really only be understood fully by the small fraternity of men who have served in the Oval Office. He told CNN earlier this year that speaking to the former presidents provides grounding in a job that otherwise can feel overwhelming in its burdens.
Biden's consultations with the men who served in the White House before him amount to a robust return to the type of presidential dialogue that went by the wayside in the years before he took office. Except for a birthday call early in his tenure, President Donald Trump's only interaction with the past presidents was at the funeral for one of them, George H.W. Bush. By the end of his term, he'd publicly insulted them all.
Biden, on the other hand, is making ample use of the advice and knowledge of those who faced similar decisions as he pursues one of the most sweeping agendas in recent history -- all the while making clear where he thought mistakes had been made that he hopes to avoid.
His outreach to the exclusive club of former presidents not only underscores his confidence in the role, a longtime ally said, but also points to the ambitions he has long harbored.
"He's wanted to be part of this group for more than three decades!" the longtime friend told CNN, pointing to the first Biden bid for the presidency in 1988. "It's a point of great pride for and a mark of a return to decency for the office."
The President's planned trip to the Atlanta area on Thursday presented an opportunity to get together with the Carters.
"President and Mrs. Carter were unable to attend the inauguration, so this is an opportunity for the Bidens to see the Carters in Georgia," a White House official told CNN. The two last spoke the night before Biden's inauguration, January 19, the official said.
And, the official noted, Biden was the first US senator to endorse then-Gov. Jimmy Carter's run for the presidency.
Consulting historians and history-makers
Biden's historic consultations have stretched further back, from devouring accounts of Franklin D. Roosevelt's early presidency to studying Dwight Eisenhower's public works initiatives and Lyndon Johnson's expansion of the social safety net. He has hosted historians at the White House to gauge their assessment of what worked and what didn't in the past two centuries of presidential history.
"I always in the past looked at the presidency in the terms of Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt and George Washington -- like they're superhuman," Biden told CNN's Anderson Cooper at a town hall in February. "But I had to remind myself that the really fine men that I knew well -- the last seven presidents -- are people who I knew well enough to know that I could play on the same team with."
The one exception, as before, is Trump, with whom Biden has not spoken since they shared a debate stage in October. Holed up in South Florida plotting a political comeback, Trump did not receive the same phone call ahead of Biden's Afghanistan decision, though he later released a statement supportive of pulling troops out, even as he questioned delaying doing so until September 11.
The 45th President did write Biden a letter on Inauguration Day, described by somewhat surprised aides as gracious and rather long. But Trump didn't invite Biden to the White House before the swearing-in.
Carter still plays an active role in the presidents' club
Biden's inauguration was the first one Carter had missed since his own swearing-in in 1977. But Biden saluted him for "his lifetime of service" in his speech.
Carter has maintained an active post-presidency, even into his 90s, with a particular focus on global health issues and helping those in need.
He was the only former president who maintained a working relationship with the Trump administration, telling CBS News in 2018 that a White House official had briefed him on the situation in North Korea and he had offered to travel on the Trump administration's behalf, and speaking by phone with Trump on China trade issues in 2019.
But his ties to Biden run far deeper.
"For decades, he has been my loyal and dedicated friend," Carter said in a video played at the Democratic National Convention last year. "He understands that honesty and dignity are essential traits that determine not only our vision but our actions. More than ever, that's what we need."
Staying close with his former boss
While Biden has spoken to all of his predecessors except Trump since taking office, he has conversed the most with Obama, who is also the only living former president to still reside in Washington. Obama has not visited the White House since Biden took office, though the two men talk regularly by phone, White House officials said.
Among the general topics they have discussed, according to one person familiar with the matter: dealing with Congress, the Affordable Care Act and personnel decisions for administration posts. Obama and Biden also spoke at length during Biden's campaign, the vice-presidential selection process and the presidential transition, when Biden was selecting members of his administration.
The full extent of Biden's calls with Obama isn't known and isn't likely to become public anytime soon: The two men are usually the only ones on the line, and both have been circumspect in describing them to aides. Yet a person close to both men tells CNN that Obama has been careful to avoid inserting himself into Biden's presidency, usually weighing in when helpful or as part of a choreographed moment.
While Obama and Biden forged a close partnership during their eight years in office, they speak far less frequently these days.
"It's Biden's presidency -- not a third term of Obama's," a senior Democratic official who worked for both men told CNN. "That was important to establish."
Biden's relationship with his Oval Office predecessor goes well beyond professional or political ties; their families are close, and they often discuss matters that have little to do with the presidency.
Biden "doesn't need my advice," Obama told CBS late last year. "I will help him in any ways that I can. Now, I'm not planning to suddenly work on the White House staff or something."
Over his first months in office, people familiar with the matter say, Biden has taken a liking to comparisons that show him taking bolder steps than Obama did, including proposing and signing into law a $1.9 trillion Covid relief package that dwarfed the $800 billion recovery measure Obama oversaw during his own first months as president.
Viewed by some in Obama's orbit as more of an old-fashioned Washington type than a progressive change-maker, Biden has relished the shift in perception, even if the circumstances and political environment have changed dramatically since the 44th President was in office.
Biden has also been open about not repeating what he viewed as a mistake during the Obama years of failing to sell the stimulus measure, suggesting his advice wasn't accepted in 2009 when he recommended to the then-President that the administration take more credit for the package.
"We didn't adequately explain what we had done," Biden told a group of House Democrats in a caucus meeting earlier this year, making his case for a do-over this time around. "I kept saying: Tell people what we did. He said, 'We don't have time. I'm not going to take a victory lap.' And we paid a price for it, ironically, for that humility."
Biden also faced another redo on Afghanistan after his advice on troop withdrawal during the Obama years -- written in memo form and faxed to the White House from his Thanksgiving vacation on Nantucket -- went unheeded.
"Listen to me, boss," Biden told Obama, according to Obama's recent memoir recounting their conversations. "Maybe I've been around this town for too long, but one thing I know is when these generals are trying to box in a new president." According to the former President's account, Biden brought his face a few inches from Obama's and stage-whispered: "Don't let them jam you." But Obama surged troops anyway, before eventually beginning a drawdown.
Bush remains involved over his wars
When he was in office, Obama made a point of telephoning his own predecessor, George W. Bush, before announcing changes to the wars started under his watch.
Biden followed that approach, phoning both Obama and Bush before making his announcement. He mentioned his call to Bush in his speech, which he delivered from the same spot in the White House Treaty Room where the 43rd President had announced the first airstrikes on Afghanistan in 2001.
"While he and I have had many disagreements over policy throughout the years, we're absolutely united in our respect and support for the valor, courage and integrity of the women and men of the United States armed forces who served," Biden said.
The conversation between the nation's 43rd and 46th presidents was brief, according to two officials familiar with the call, who also described it as warm and cordial.
Bush has adhered to a strict practice of refraining from commenting on the policy decisions of his successors -- breaking from that slightly in an interview with the Texas Tribune in February, saying of Biden: "He's off to a good start it looks like" -- although he has spoken privately about his support for the US military's mission in Afghanistan.
Still, he hinted at his reaction to Biden's telephone call in the weeks following the announcement.
"My first reaction was: These girls are going to have real trouble with the Taliban," he said in an interview on NBC's "Today," where he was promoting a book of portraits he had painted of immigrants.
