LyrArc Article Gist
During Euro Cup soccer 2024 Germany's faltering rail system Deutsche Bahn presents challenges with frequent cancellations and delays. So frequent are the delays that they are announced matter of factly as if it was standard way of operating the trains. One can see this in Frankfurt, which has a vast rail network operating connecting most of Europe from its main rail station. It is a result of failure to invest in upgrading rail systems and signalling, tracks, rolling stock. 

LyrArc Article Gist
What was once seen as a debacle on CNBC and Wall Street in 2015- the decision of CEO McMillon at Walmart to raise wages from 7.25 an hour to $9.00 an hour with share price drop of 10% turns into a big win by 2025. Mcmillon did not hestitate to show slides at NYSE for Earnings per share drop of 12% instead of 6%, $2.7 billion investment. Pay is now about $18 an hour in 2025 and this is only one metric as the benefits include free college and technical education, parental leave, more job training, job promotions, cleaner better stores. The remarkable thing is that it spread to other stores Target and TJ Maxx, and over time to a broad swath of American companies. Cost of living is an issue today for Americans in 2025, imagine what things would be like if leaders from the University of Arkansas with deep connections to the Bentonville region had not taken a decision independent of ideas on Wall Street and NYSE, CNBC. As McMillon retires the new CEO is also from the University of Arkansas with deep connections to the Bentonville area- John Furner, the current CEO of America region. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Greece's new Syriza government plans to put a bill through parliament on the minimum wage as one of its first steps. It will reverse plans to sell the government's 67% stake in the port of Piraeus, and a planned sale of the state controlled utility will be held back. Sigmar Gabriel, the Social Democratic leader in the coalition government in Germany says Germany is ready to show solidarity with the Greek people, and says the new government has the opportunity to take better action against corruption and tax evasion in Greece than previous governments. Previous governments including governments of the Pasok and New Democracy parties which make up the ruling political elite in Greece failed to make the serious changes in tax collection needed in Greece whereby the upper class in Greece pay the fair amount of taxes due. The IMF's Lagarde also emphasized the tax collection, and separated it from austerity issues where most of European and American opinion believes growth oriented policies are the right path....

LyrArc Article Gist
Edison's learning mindset and his persistence has lessons in work today.

These lessons apply to individuals as well as countries and groups, to create a thinking mindset. Will this plan work, what are the assumptions and what is it based on, test it out. If it fails try changing it. Test again. Does it work. What were the assumptions and what is it based on, what if we change this part. Try again. In this way Edison found answers to difficult problems in his inventions. 

The search for a vaccine, other problem solving at the individual, small group, and national level, can be done in this way. For the vaccine there is the added factor of time- how quickly can we do this? The Oxford vaccine works with an approach that has worked for other types of coronavirus in the past research efforts, what component can be changed or inserted so that a tested approach can be used instead of starting from scratch in this case.

LyrArc Article Gist
The $125 billion rescue package adds 10% to Spain's debt, increasing it to 90% of GDP, say analysts. Fitch Ratings says, Spain's debt would reach 95% of GDP in 2015 even if it uses only 60 billion euros of the rescue package to recapitalize banks. An earlier forecast by finance minister Luis de Guindos put the debt to GDP ratio at 78% for 2012. The lack of the architectural underpinnings for a common euro currency such as deposit insurance and guarantees for deposits at eurozone banks, and the fiscal supervision of banks by a European financial authority that goes with it, has resulted in the continued lack of confidence in financial markets after the rescue package.

LyrArc Article Gist
Brazilians turn to pawn shops lending by government owned bank Caixa, in a regulated portion of the lending industry, as credit card rates increase. Brazil experienced a huge surge in credit card debt in the years when consumer loans were freely made in the last decade. Between 2004 and 2014, consumer credit in Brazil increased 658% to $297 bilion, according to the National Association of Executives in Finance, Administration and Accounting. Central bank figures show 6.7% of personal bank loans and 26.3% of credit card accounts being in default. As in Turkey much of the country's growth was fueled by increased spending and consumer credit. The credit binge and the lower revenues from a decline in commodity prices is leading to slow growth and a stagnant economy.

LyrArc Article Gist
It costs about 8 million pounds for maintenance of St Paul's Cathedral. St Paul's Cathedral income declined by 90% as the pandemic led to fewer visitors and ticket sales. The government provides 3.3 million pounds from its culture recovery fund. Because this is not enough for maintenance, much less the 15 million pounds needed for the repair of the 17th century lead roof, one of England's best known cathedrals had to dip into and nearly exhaust its reserve funds. If this is the condition of St Paul's one can imagine what decades of misallocation of capital have done in the rest of the country. St Paul's Cathedral remained a defiant symbol of British resistance in the Second World War during the Battle of Britain.  The dean of the cathedral Very Rev. David Ison says "if we don't have the resources to pay for heating and lighting we may have to close our doors." Imagine closing England's most famous cathedral and symbol of its spirit for lack of funds. Notre Dame Cathedral by contrast in Paris is being renovated with $100 million euros donated by two French businessmen and $700 million pledged so far to rebuilding and renovation of Notre Dame. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Twenty years after Japanese prime minister Koizumi visited Pyongyang in 2004, Japan's PM Kishida plans to talk to North Korean leader Kim. Koizumi had talks with Kim's father in 2004. The effort is to reduce tensions in the region with elections approaching in Japan, India, and the US in 2024, and to bolster the sense that Japan can manage its role in the region. The Europeans are doing the same as the French and the British are taking a bigger role in Europe during Ukraine conflict. After the Gaza conflict, the Houthis in Red Sea maritime channels, there is a sense that reducing tensions proactively is a better approach rather than wait for things to take their own course in directions that are not good for the world, or taking rigid ideological or other motivated positions that serve no constructive purpose and exacerbate tensions. Gandhiji used to say "tit for tat makes the whole world blind." It is not idealistic to say that but very practical and useful because if you do that you end up with situations where you lose leverage and ability to take positive action and come up with better outcomes, than if you let some unforeseen event or some events by other actors without proper motives to intervene to your serious and the world's detriment. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
As the British parliament prepares to vote on Brexit deal put forward by prime minister Theresa May, Joanna Sugden summarizes what is expected as the next step if parliament rejects it.  Why are a faction Conservative members opposed to it? There is the Irish backstop which they oppose. Keeping open the border between the two Irelands- Northern Ireland as part of Britain and Ireland as a EU country is important to preserve peace achieved through the Good Friday Agreement between the Catholic and Protestant communities.May wants to keep the border open. Far right Conservatives see this as keeping Britain connected to the EU in some way which they oppose. They stubbornly hold onto this view. Add to this the opposition from the Remain campaign which sees leaving the EU as bad for Britain's economic future. Some Leave supporters now see the dangers of Brexit, especially leaving with no deal made with the EU. Most of the Labour Party members fall into this group. What happens if parliament rejects May's deal by a small margin? The deal would be renegotiated with the EU to tweak it for more support. What happens if parliament rejects it with a huge margin? This would result in several options. May could call a general election. Britain could have a second referendum on Brexit. Or in a chaotic situation Britain could leave the European Union without a deal altogether, something everyone wants to avoid because of the disruptions it would cause. May is using this risk as  a way to persuade reluctant MP's but it may not work.     ...

LyrArc Article Gist
NATO Air Drills with active participation of the US and Germany including Japan near Eastern European borders with Russia, are meant to show that the US and allies can move quickly in both the European region and in the area near Taiwan if needed. It follows a drill exercise by Russia with Chinese forces close to Japan in 2022.

LyrArc Article Gist
Experts discuss the tactics used by the FBI acting in the Mueller investigation into meddling in the U.S. presidential election campaign to arrest Roger Stone.

Use of a tactical response team in this manner in pre dawn hours is rare say experts and attribute this to the possibility that evidence in the case could be destroyed if swift action was not taken.

LyrArc Article Gist
In extended diplomacy Carney visits Beijing, China and says middle powers are seeking ways to interact and trade in a world of big power rivalry. His visit is followed by visits by UK's Starmer and Germany's Merz, and preceded by Macron. At the same time Merz visits Ahmedabad for a kite festival and signs a new trade agreement with India, followed by Leyen and Costa of the EU who sign a EU-India trade agreement for 27 countries of the European Union. All this suggests carefully planned effort in Europe to create new channels of trade and reorient existing trade relationships that will be more resilient with the US shifting to focus on Monroe Doctrine idea of the Western hemisphere as its region of influence and security. This report shows pictures of Starmer and Xi meeting at the Plough Pub in UK in 2015 and reflects on how this has changed 11 years later with China now  a dominant power with the world's 3rd largest economy and a third of world's manufacturing and logistics. How does this change the relationship with China in 2026 for UK and Canada, and the EU? At the same time Germany-India and EU-India relationship creates a 2 billion people market with capital, technology and labor potential to create the largest potential driven economic group in the world, combining EU's 20 trillion to India's $4 trillion economy and mutually complementing, which has potential to rival the US at $30 trillion by 2030 as India grows rapidly in the new EU/Germany/India market and the EU gets a new boost with the complementarity of the two regions by 2035. This suggests that something new is happening and Germany after a lot of soul searching have hit on something we should see blossom by 2030 in the way China has grown since that picture with Cameron of Xi at the Plough Pub in UK. A problem China faces as it continues to push exports is that EU/ India and US will take in less exports and there is only so much it can put in Latin American and African market, UK/Canada market leading to industries with massive oversupply. Major economic redirection may result from the Merz/Leyen/Costa visit and firming up trade agreements with India if the EU, Germany and India have the determination to seize this opportunity in the 21st Century. As Leyen said it has the potential to create a stable world with values of the Bible, the Bhagavad Gita, and Mahajima Nikaya of the Buddha supporting the industrial states that emerged from the Industrial Revolutions. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Cecilia Wang is herself a birthright citizen from parents on student visas from Taiwan hence her views reflect her position before the the Court on DJT Executive Order.  She says the admission of Wang Kim in an 1898 case to US citizenship is a 128 American tradition when history shows very little sentiment in the American public and in the US Congress favoring legal immigration of any form from Asia (Japan, China and India). In fact a deal made by Teddy Roosevelt with Japan included an understanding with the Japanese government in the 1900's that Japan would restrict immigration from Japan to the US. Throughout the period 1850-1960 for 110 years one finds very little immigration of Asians to the US- mostly European selectively in phases after 1900 by steamboat as can be seen at the Smithsonian museum exhibits in Washington DC. Thus the Court is taking up a narrative that was never true. It was only JFK and LBJ who changed this by the 1960's- if one reads JFK and his grasp of the events in Indonesia, India, of Asia in WWII from his experiences as a soldier in the Asia Pacific region- not as the narrative suggests as an extension of civil rights for Black people, but for a deep respect and understanding of Asian people's aspirations that he opened up immigration to the US in the 1960's for Asians. This is why it is a stretch of the imagination for Cecilia Wang to say- Cecilia Wang -"your ancestors could be on the Mayflower or be undocumented immigrants but you and I are exactly the same as US citizens." Even after 60 years of reading the speeches and writing of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, TR and FDR, JFK, of Carl Sandburg's volumes of Lincoln, the poetry of America of Walt Whitman, committing Robert Frost poems to memory, there is more a sense of humility and even greater earnest  desire to learn about this Nation, and of the scientific endeavors of Europe since 1600 that eluded Asia, than making statements about the first voyages and the people who ventured out on the Mayflower. One has to look with awe at the sculptures in Geneva, Switzerland, of these brave people in the 1600's who for religious and other reasons made their way in difficult voyages over the Atlantic to America, much less say were the same as them. It is more about honoring JFK's words in appreciation of his opening for Asia, on thinking more about what you can do for your country than what your country can do for you. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
The US abortions increased by about 9% from 2017 to 2020 says this report in WSJ, going from 862,000 to 930,000 according to the Guttmacher Institute. Some states expanded Medicaid access to abortions and increased funding, leading to more services being added. Illinois for example had 25% increase which may have included women from Missouri going to Illinois. If the Supreme Court reverses Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 precedent that established the constitutional right to abortion, 25 states would restrict or prevent the access to abortion.

LyrArc Article Gist
Now that the euro dollar parity is reached what happens next. This report in WSJ shows there is room for more downside because of the weaker European economy. It says Europe had less of the covid payments to lower income groups and smaller payments than in the US. As a result this shows up in consumer spending. The parity with the dollar does not reflect the event of a shutoff of Russian supplies of gas to Germany. If this happens it will impact the euro further.

LyrArc Article Gist
Germany's Siemens and chancellor Scholz say the lack of a turbine from Siemens is not the reason why Russia is reducing supplies of Nordstream pipeline gas. The turbine is ready to be shipped to Russia if Russia wanted it. 

Mr. Scholz is looking at keeping 3 remaining nuclear plants operating which would meet 6% of Germany's needs. A review of nuclear plant operating condition is being done to make the decision to continue with nuclear energy and not phase it out completely.

LyrArc Article Gist
The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence in the UK is urging adults to use a tape measure to check that their waist circumference does not exceed half their height. Other BMI guidelines do not provide an accurate measure of body fat and other ways are needed. Waist and height measure are "simple and effective" way to know if someone is overweight, says NICE. Today a majority of people in UK between 45 and 74 years are overweight. This is true in many parts of the world.

LyrArc Article Gist
Biden says about passing the bills for his $3.5 trillion agenda including infrastructure spending, and a plan for American families and workers- "It does not matter when, it does not matter if it's done in 6 minutes, 6 days or 6 weeks. We're going to get it done."

Earlier moderates looked to get infrastructure done earlier and progressives wanted the entire package to be done together. Biden opted for doing it all together, it wouldn't matter when.

LyrArc Article Gist
New laws in California are designed to protect renters and workers in the internet ride getting business. Landlords will not be allowed more than a 5% increase in rent annually. Workers cannot be classified as independent contractors in the ride hailing business dominated by Uber and Lyft so that workers can benefit from overtime pay, minimum wages, and sick leave.  Other laws in 2019 protect consumers privacy by requiring companies to delete information they collect and stop selling it if consumers request this. 

LyrArc Article Gist
France's Macron introduces a three step plan for reopenings after lockdown, with dates of December 15 and January 20 for reopening the economy. Shops will be allowed to open under strict social distancing rules for Christmas sales. If cases per day drops below 5000 the government will lift the lockdown on Dec. 15 and replace it with a 9 pm curfew. " After saying that spirits can be low, debates get heated, Macron said "we need to do everything to prevent a third wave, a third lockdown."

LyrArc Article Gist
Washington Post's Sarah Kaplan takes us to Greenland where scientists are drilling through the ice to predict the future of climate change. This means drilling thorough 1600 feet of ice to reach the bedrock below. Scientists can analyze the rocks to find when a glacier last melted. The agile subgeological ice drill drills through 500 metres of ice from the US National Science foundation- amazing. If the whole of Greenland ice sheet melted it would raise sea water levels by 24 feet devastating coastlines.