LyrArc Article Gist
The English loss in the 1-1 game with Italy in the Euro soccer finals at Wembley stadium, that was decided in a penalty shootout. Gareth Southgate, the English team manager, talks about his team and how they played to get so close. 

LyrArc Article Gist
Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, calls for fresh elections on September 20, 2021. His term ends in 2023. Trudeau called for elections early as government aid programs have helped Canadians during the pandemic, and Canada has managed to vaccinate 70% of the population over age of 12. The economy is expected to increase by 6% in 2021. Trudeau's party, the Liberals, are popular and Trudeau hopes to increase his progressive base. He currently leads a minority government making it difficult to pass legislation on the government's priorities for child care, clean environment, healthcare, and affordable housing.

LyrArc Article Gist
Bangladesh elections after student protests and departure of PM Hasina- 900,000 unemployed and 700,000 university graduates entering labor pool annually. Not much has changed for the economy since Hasina's ouster in student protests which were also about job opportunities in addition to other grievances. Bangladesh now finds itself alone in the region as it struggles to address unemployment and lack of capital investment. Imports of capital machinery dropped by 25% in 2025 slowing industrial growth. 

LyrArc Article Gist
Peter Magyar says-  "You performed a miracle today, Hungary made history today." Magyar's party needed 133 seats in the 199 seat Hungarian parliament to reverse some of Orban's more controversial policies on the judiciary and on government. Magyar's party Tisza won 138 seats and 57% of the vote compared to about 38% for Viktor Orban's Fidesz that has ruled Hungary from 1998-2002 and 2010 to 2026. Magyar likens the win to the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, a spontaneous uprising against Soviet rule, and an earlier revolution in 1848. Voter tunout was the highest it has ever been at 78%. The city on the Danube river Budapest was lit up, parliament was lit up as Hungary celebrated a win for reintegration into Europe. For 400 years since 1600 the Hapsburg dynasty helped push back the Ottoman Turks invasion of Hungary and Vienna, and was one of the major Empires of Europe, with Britain, France, Russia, Prussia competing for influence. The Hapsburg  base was in both Vienna and Budapest and reflects the history of Central Europe from the Renaissance to the Scientific and Industrial Revolution. Magyar's first visit is to Poland. He will join European leaders from France, Britain and Germany, Italy, as they formulate policy on Ukraine and the future of the European Union. Under Orban Hungary was the lone dissent or combined this with Poland's Law and Justice Party government in the European Union. In 1923 the Law and Justice Party was defeated, in 2026 Fidesz is defeated, and the European Union is now able to speak with one voice in its opposition to Russia. As the US moves away from NATO the new European Union is in a better position to take on responsibilities for its defense. ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Vice President Harris speaks at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, about a fundamentally different economic vision for the country- one for the Middle Class and the other for the wealthiest in the country. "For Trump our economy works the best if it works for the people who own the skyscraper, not those who build the skyscrapers, those who wire them, the people who mop the floors." "I have pledged that a strong middle class will be the defining goal of my presidency. It is not about ideology, it is about common sense. It is just common sense." "Like generations before us let us be inspired by what came before us. I believe in what FDR called "bold persistent experimentation." "I believe in free and fair markets- in transparent rules of the road. To respect the rights of unions, and workers, and fair competition. And where this is violated I will hold them accountable. I believe the active partnership between the government and the private sector is the best way to unlock the opportunities in our Economy." ...

LyrArc Article Gist
Drop to 22,000 from 127,000 for irregular migration after border checks in Germany under chancellor Merz of the CDU coalition. Family reunification is ended for subsidiary migration. Step by step Germany is regaining control of the country and taking responsible actions to prevent extreme responses and protecting democracy from every source of danger.

LyrArc Article Gist
Following the pandemic France is boosting aid to Africa increasing foreign aid and combining development agencies to target funding to create value for the people of Africa. The aid to all parts of the world increased from 10.9 billion euros to 12.8 billion euros in 2020, By 2022 the target for Macron and France is 0.55% of GDP for world aid.

LyrArc Article Gist
A lot has been written about inflation in car pricing. This is true also of airlines and hotels this summer. Dawn Gilbertson in the WSJ says the 2023 travel rush continues, hotels and airlines have pricing power, and inflation is squeezing budgets. The solution is to have Plan B destinations, shorter trips, and plan airline reservations in advance looking at different alternatives based on airline and alternative destination choices. Average daily hotel rates have jumped to $180 this year in the US, up 10% since 2022 and 15% since 2019.

LyrArc Article Gist
The US added 517,000 jobs in January 2023. Forecasters had estimated only about 200,000. Much of the coverage focused on tech layoffs. Amazon for instance laid off 18,000 workers and it has a workforce of 1.5 million people. By comparison the US labor workforce is 168.5 million people. And there were 11 million vacant jobs by the end of December 2022, according to the US Labor Department. Some of the tech workers laid off were hired in other business. The labor market is also much larger than tech.

LyrArc Article Gist
Just as Democrats and Mr Biden learned from the experience of earlier lockdowns in the US and opened up the US economy in 2021 and 2022, China is now taking its own steps to move away from its earlier policies that affected the economy with frequent lockdowns and tight restrictions. There are some risks but in the long run this could get China to a better place after the people's fatigue with lockdowns that is similar to what happened in the US getting the US to where it is today.

LyrArc Article Gist
A ban on foreigners buying homes in Canada by the Trudeau government is intended to put a lid on house price increases. Immigration is increasing to Canada as Canada needs more people. About 3.5 million new homes have to be built in Canada to achieve house affordability for all. The government has proposed 465,000 new permanent residents in 2023 and 500,000 in 2025. Immigration from India and China and other Asian countries is the main source of permanent residents. The new infusion is needed as Canada's economy grows.

LyrArc Article Gist
The shutoff in Russian gas is resulting in additional efforts to increase solar energy in Germany. In 2020 Germany had 10% of its energy come from solar. July 2022 was the third month in a row that solar energy output was at record levels. Photovoltaic systems generated about a fifth of net electricity production. Installed solar power capacity is now at 59 gigawatts in Germany. For 2032 the target is around 250 gigawatts of solar energy, about 4 times what it is now.

LyrArc Article Gist
NHK Japan created the song "Flowers Will Bloom" in support of people affected by the disaster from the tsumani and earthquake of 2011. It is now in 11 languages with performances by many famous artists. It is a message of hope- after the world experienced a series of natural and manmade disasters since 2009. The great financial crisis of 2009 from financial misdeeds, the tsunami and earthquake of 2011 in Japan, the wars in Syria and Yemen, the Coronavirus pandemic in 2020, and now the war in Ukraine in 2022.

LyrArc Article Gist
Awesome pictures of the lunar eclipse in the night sky on Wednesday, May 26, 2021. It combined a supermoon, lunar eclipse, and a blood moon. Blood moon refers to the reddish hue as light filters through the earth's atmosphere. In native American cultures this is referred to as the flower moon. Lunar eclipses happen when the Earth passes between sun and moon, blocking the sunlight that normally illumines the moon's grayish white cratered surface. The next one is on May 16, 2022.

LyrArc Article Gist
In 2020 soccer at filled football stadiums in northern Italy acted as superspreader events. Here the NYT looks at conventions as superspreader events and one recent convention in New York City, Anime (Japanese animation) convention at Javits Center, in late November 2021, that potentially could have acted as a spreader event though not confirmed according to NYT. Dense atmosphere and large crowds increase the risk of a super spreader event happening say experts.This happens as the new omicron variant in South Africa is seen in several countries. 

LyrArc Article Gist
New fixed rate 30 year US mortgages have interest rates of 7% in September 2023. Interest rates on car loans also have become much higher. The American Association of Realtors says the typical American family cannot afford to buy a median priced home. The typical American household would need 42 weeks of income to buy a new car up from 33 weeks in 2020. Car buying is unaffordable for buyers now because of high car prices and high interest rates on car loans, says the chief of Moody's Analytics.

LyrArc Article Gist
The Inflation Reduction Act has $8.8 billion for heat pump rebates and assistance. Heat pumps are more efficient than existing furnaces or air conditioning units. Only 22% of Americans know about the heat pump rebate compared to 32% who know about the EV vehicle rebate of $7500. Heat pump rebate is for $2000 by the federal government, and $8000 for a rebate from the state beginning in 2024. Heat pump installations surged with new home sales in 2022 and slowed as home sales slowed with higher interest rates. 

LyrArc Article Gist
A boost in supply in 2024 after the pandemic squeezed supply chains is likely to increase the US growth rate by summer to 4.9%. This is not expected to increase inflation which is down to 2.8% by November 2023, because of higher productivity and higher labor participation rate. The labor participation rate has reached a high of 83.5% not reached since 2001. The Fed sees this as a temporary jump in the growth rate that does not induce inflation so that no Fed action is necessary.

LyrArc Article Gist
About two thirds of American 4th graders lack Reading Proficiency in English as shown in this report in NAEP. Resources are needed in this work when $346 billon went into investments in new ventures with much capital wasted in 2021. And a negative return of -7% for venture firms in 3rd quarter 2022, as reported in WSJ. The entire capital allocation system is flawed and not doing what it is supposed to do, to invest in America and the potential of its people.