SCREWS OAN WORKERS

OAN asks judge to drop the company's executives from Dominion's defamation lawsuit — but leave employees on the hook

Jacob Shamsian
Fri, November 19, 2021

Chanel Rion of One America News Network speak's to White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany during a White House press briefing in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on November 20, 2020 in Washington, DC.Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

One America News filed a motion to dismiss Dominion's $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against the network.


The far-right news network asked the judge to drop executives Charles and Robert Herring as defendants.


Its lawyer said two OAN employees named in the suit could defend themselves in Colorado instead of DC.

The far-right media organization One America News (OAN) asked a judge to dismiss a defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems over election conspiracy theories — or, failing that, to at least let the company's executives off the hook.

"The allegations related to OAN, Charles Herring, and Robert Herring, Sr. demonstrate that they have insufficient contacts with this jurisdiction to hale them into court here," Blaine C. Kimrey, an attorney representing all the defendants in the lawsuit, wrote in a motion filed to court Thursday night.

But the judge can leave two the OAN employees named in the lawsuit as defendants, Kimrey wrote. On-air talent Chanel Rion is already embroiled in a similar lawsuit in Colorado, he argued. Correspondent Christina Bobb would benefit from moving it to Colorado as well, Kimrey wrote, because courts there move faster than the ones in Washington, DC.

"Rion is already litigating these same issues in Colorado and Bobb is an OAN employee who would benefit from the convenience afforded to OAN," Kimrey wrote. "Any minor convenience to Bobb is clearly outweighed by Colorado being the more convenient forum for all other parties."

Dominion filed the lawsuit against OAN in August, demanding $1.6 billion in damages and accusing the company of pushing damaging, false conspiracy theories about the election technology company's role in the 2020 presidential election. The lawsuit named Rion and Bobb as defendants; it also named Robert Herring, Sr. and Charles Herring, the father-son duo who founded OAN and serve as CEO and president, respectively.

Unlike Fox News and Newsmax, which Dominion later sued, OAN doubled down on election conspiracy theories in its programming in the wake of lawsuit threats — even as it quietly deleted stories from its website.

Dominion's lawsuit said the network "deputized" Rion "as an in-house spokesperson for all Dominion-related content." It also accused Bobb of "simultaneously and covertly moonlighting as a Trump Campaign advisor" as OAN "[raced] to the bottom with Fox [News] and other outlets such as Newsmax to spread false and manufactured stories about election fraud."
OAN wants the lawsuit moved to Colorado if it isn't dismissed

OAN's attorney argued that Dominion's lawsuit in DC should be moved to Colorado if it isn't dismissed. He pointed out that Dominion is based in Denver, and the lawsuit has factual similarities to a separate lawsuit filed by Eric Coomer, a former Dominion executive, in the state.

The defendants in Coomer's defamation case include Rion, One America News, and parent company Herring Networks.

"While not their home state, Colorado is much more convenient for California residents OAN, Charles Herring, and Robert Herring, Sr. than the District of Columbia (in part because OAN and Rion are already litigating these issues there)," Kimrey wrote.

MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell is interviewed by the One America News Network during former U.S. president Donald Trump's rally at the Lorain County Fairgrounds in Wellington, Ohio, U.S., June 26, 2021.Gaelen Morse/Reuters

Dominion's defamation lawsuit against OAN is one of many it and rival technology company Smartmatic has filed against election conspiracy theorists and media organizations they say perpetuated those false theories.

It filed most of those cases in federal court in DC because that's where it alleges the defamatory actions took place, including three against conspiracy theorists Sidney Powell, Rudy Giuliani, and Mike Lindell and his company MyPillow.

Days before Dominion filed its lawsuit against OAN, US District Judge Carl J. Nichols, who is overseeing the cases, ruled against all of their motions to dismiss and allowed the cases to proceed in DC federal court.

The same day Dominion sued OAN, it also sued Newsmax and former Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne. Byrne filed a motion to dismiss the case on Wednesday, arguing his remarks about Dominion's role in the 2020 election were justified and didn't rise to the level of defamation. Newsmax hasn't yet filed a motion in response to the election technology company, but settled Coomer's lawsuit against the company earlier this year.

A judge in Delware state court is still weighing whether to accept Fox News' motion to dismiss Dominion's lawsuit against it.

Elon Musk reportedly asks Tesla managers who don't execute orders to 'resign immediately,' according to leaked emails

Emily Walsh
Sat, November 20, 2021

Tesla CEO Elon Musk.Pool

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has three options for managers if they get a request from him, according to emails obtained by CNBC.

The two leaked emails were sent by Musk to "everybody" at Tesla during the first week of October.

The emails discuss listening to music at work and what managers should do when they're sent directions by Musk.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk tells managers who don't execute orders or explain why he's wrong that they will have to "resign immediately," according to leaked emails obtained by CNBC.

The two emails were sent by Musk to "everybody" at Tesla during the first week of October. During that time, Tesla announced it delivered a record 241,300 vehicles during the third quarter of 2021, and "Full Self Driving Beta" was launched and later put on hold after safety concerns. The company also lost a lawsuit against a former Tesla employee who said he was racially harassed while working as an agency staffer.

Musk's first email discusses factory employees listening to music while working. The CEO said that he supports "any little touches that make work more enjoyable" and that listening to music was allowed as long as employees had one earbud out for safety reasons.

His second email details the three steps managers should do when they're sent directions. Musk tells them to reply and explain why what he said was incorrect since he can occasionally be "plain wrong," to ask for clarification, or to execute the directions because "if none of the above are done, that manager will be asked to resign immediately."

Musk did not immediately respond to Insider's request to comment on the leaked emails.

Musk, who is known for his alternative corporate communication style, has had emails leaked in the past. The CEO typically takes to Twitter to communicate his thoughts and the latest news associated with two of his major companies Tesla and SpaceX.

BRO CULTURE

Report: Activision Took Years To Fire Someone Who Signed Emails '1-800-ALLCOCK'


Ethan Gach
Fri, November 19, 2021


A California lawsuit earlier this year alleged sexual harassment, discrimination, and a pervasive “frat boy culture” at Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard. At least in one instance, that culture included an employee signing all of his work emails as “1-800-ALLCOCK.”

That detail comes from the latest episode of The Wall Street Journal podcast which elaborates on some of its recent bombshell investigative report outlining new instances of misconduct and coverups, including by CEO Bobby Kotick.

“There was one example where an Activision employee had for years just signed his email signature 1-800-ALLCOCK,” reporter Kirsten Grind said in a transcript of the podcast. “So if you were a woman, you would get that email and that was just the normal course, right? Just guys being guys joking about it and you just sort of felt like that was what happened at Activision.”

Activision reportedly didn’t take action regarding the email signature until it received a complaint about it just this past summer, at which point it fired the employee after a month-long investigation. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The podcast episode also interviewed a former employee about her time at Sledgehammer Games, maker of the recently released Call of Duty: Vanguard. Ashley Mark, hired as a quality assurance analyst in 2016 during the production of Call of Duty: WWII, described the male-dominated workplace like this:

You’ve got people who want to...Basically are very nerdy, want to make a good game, and then you’ve got the gun-loving group because it’s Call of Duty so you’re going to attract people who love guns, and then you have got people who are really into fitness. There’s a lot of people who are into fitness at least at that time at Sledgehammer Games. So there were people who would go into groups and that you would go to the gym and they would just get pumped up. So it’s very masculine.

Mark recalled a 2017 studio anniversary party where one former Sledgehammer manager “put his arm around my female coworker almost like a choke hold” while hugging her and repeatedly saying her name. That former manager told The Wall Street Journal he didn’t remember the details of the evening in question because he was too drunk, but confirmed he was put on a two-week paid suspension before being moved to a different role.

Sledgehammer Games was also where one former female employee was reportedly raped twice, incidents that were not investigated until she sent a letter from her lawyer after she had already left the company. According to the new podcast episode, when she originally to her complaint to studio HR, a representative for the department tried to get her to down play what had happened and reframe it in a more positive light.

Until recently, most of the attention has been on allegations about past misconduct and discrimination at Blizzard. But these latest reports reinforce parts of the original California lawsuit which cited booze-filled offices and work events, and negligent HR departments, as recipes for mistreatment across the entire Activision Blizzard business.

This week, the heads of both PlayStation and Xbox spoke out about the latest revelations. Girls Who Code cut ties with the company. And some shareholders joined over 2,000 current Activision Blizzard employees in calling for Kotick to resign.

“It’s pretty clear that the only forces that can create change at Activision are its customers (whose money is the ultimate corporate goal), its investors and the employees whose talent makes Activision’s games worth buying,” Paul Reiche, former head of Activision Blizzard’s Skylanders studio, told Axios today. “If the new stories I have read are true, I can’t see how Activision can continue its success without new leadership”

Microsoft reportedly evaluating relationship with Activision amid CEO turmoil

Brett Molina, USA TODAY
Thu, November 18, 2021,

Activision Blizzard says it hired a law firm to help ensure a "respectful and inclusive" workplace.

Microsoft is reportedly evaluating its relationship with video game publisher Activision Blizzard following allegations CEO Bobby Kotick knew for years about sexual misconduct claims at the company.

Xbox head Phil Spencer sent an email to staff, according to Bloomberg, saying he is "evaluating all aspects of our relationship" with Activision Blizzard following a report from The Wall Street Journal claiming Kotick didn't inform the board of allegations of sexual misconduct at the publisher.

In a statement emailed to USA TODAY in response to the report, Spencer said he personally has strong values for a welcoming and inclusive environment for Xbox employees.

"This is not a destination but a journey that we will always be on," said Spencer. "The leadership at Xbox and Microsoft stand by our teams and support them in building a safer environment for all."

Activision told USA TODAY in an emailed statement it respects feedback from its partners and is engaging with them further.

Employees at Activision Blizzard staged a second walkout demanding Kotick be removed as CEO, NBC News reported. A Twitter account representing employees of the company shared a petition seeking Kotick's removal that has more than 1,000 signatures.



In a statement released Tuesday after the Journal report, Activision's board showed support for Kotick. "The Board remains confident that Bobby Kotick appropriately addressed workplace issues brought to his attention," it said.

Earlier this year, the state of California sued Activision Blizzard claiming the publisher fostered a sexist culture and paid women less than men despite doing more work.

The lawsuit prompted employees' initial walkout urging changes within the company's culture.

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Activision Blizzard: Microsoft reportedly evaluating relationship

Xbox is re-evaluating its relationship with Activision Blizzard


Kris Holt
·Contributing Writer
Thu, November 18, 2021

Phil Spencer is reportedly reassessing Xbox's relationship with Activision Blizzard following new bombshell reports about the company and CEO Bobby Kotick. Spencer, who runs Microsoft's Xbox division, reportedly told employees in an email that he's “evaluating all aspects of our relationship with Activision Blizzard and making ongoing proactive adjustments,” in the wake of an investigation by The Wall Street Journal.

In the memo, which was obtained by Bloomberg, Spencer said he and other leaders at Xbox are “disturbed and deeply troubled by the horrific events and actions” that reportedly took place at Activision Blizzard. "This type of behavior has no place in our industry,” Spencer wrote.

Kotick is said to have known about instances of sexual misconduct at the company for years without reporting them to the board. He has also been accused of mistreating women on numerous occasions.

Spencer has joined Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan in expressing deep concern about the situation. In an internal memo, which also leaked earlier this week, Ryan wrote that he was "disheartened and frankly stunned to read” The Journal's report. He also criticized Activision's response to the allegations. Earlier this week, the company told Engadget that the report presented a “misleading view of Activision Blizzard and our CEO.”

More than 900 Activision Blizzard employees and contractors have now signed a petition demanding Kotick's removal. A shareholder group has also urged the board to remove Kotick and for the board's two longest-serving directors to retire by the end of the year. In addition, Polygon and Eurogamer both called for Kotick's resignation. Strongly worded statements from leaders at Microsoft and Sony, two of Activision Blizzard's most important business partners, will further crank up the pressure.

"We respect all feedback from our valued partners and are engaging with them further," an Activision Blizzard spokesperson told Engadget. "We have detailed important changes we have implemented in recent weeks, and we will continue to do so. We are committed to the work of ensuring our culture and workplace are safe, diverse, and inclusive. We know it will take time, but we will not stop until we have the best workplace for our team."

Activision Faces Internal Rifts in Bid to Blunt Uproar Over CEO



Jason Schreier
Wed, November 17, 2021

(Bloomberg) -- Some employees at Activision Blizzard Inc. said they were let down by internal meetings that were held Wednesday morning to discuss the new revelations about the company and Chief Executive Officer Bobby Kotick.

The gatherings took place on video calls across the game publisher’s three primary organizations, Activision, Blizzard and King. Executives in charge of each division took questions and shared similar talking points after the Wall Street Journal reported detailed allegations that Kotick was aware of sexual misconduct at the company years before a California lawsuit made them public this summer and failed to report alleged instances of rape to the board.

Hours after the article was published on Tuesday, more than a hundred employees staged a walkout to demand Kotick’s resignation. The board said it’s standing by Kotick, but partners and shareholders have raised questions about his handling of the crisis. Sony Group Corp.’s PlayStation chief Jim Ryan criticized Activision’s response in an email to staff Wednesday, Bloomberg reported. When asked for comment, the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, which owns more than a million shares in Activision, said in a statement that it recognizes that sexual harassment and misconduct incidents can result in “significant” risks to its portfolio holdings and that it continually monitors its holdings to address those risks.

The leaders said Kotick would be working to “regain trust” of employees throughout the company, according to partial transcripts from two of the meetings shared with Bloomberg. Activision president Rob Kostich told people in his group that Kotick wouldn’t be resigning, according to two attendees. Blizzard’s top executive, Mike Ybarra, told staff in what appeared to be pre-recorded remarks that he understood their frustrations and apologized for not being more active as a leader, according to two attendees.

Some employees of King, the makers of Candy Crush, asked whether a sudden announcement on Monday that they’d be getting bonus vacation days next week for Thanksgiving was meant to preempt the article. Activision Blizzard Chief Operating Officer Daniel Alegre denied that was the reason. In response to a question about whether Activision’s newly instituted “zero tolerance” policy on harassment, announced last month, would also apply to Kotick, Alegre said that his boss was “deeply and personally committed to doing the right things.”

Alegre also addressed the reported pay disparity between Ybarra and Jennifer Oneal, who were named co-leaders of Blizzard this summer following the lawsuit. Oneal, who resigned earlier this month, said she was paid less than Ybarra. Alegre said that Oneal was paid “differently” than Ybarra because of complications involving cash and equity and that “they were both offered the exact same compensation.”

But Oneal told Blizzard employees that she wasn’t offered compensation equal to Ybarra’s until she tendered her resignation, according to a Slack transcript reviewed by Bloomberg. Gaming website IGN earlier reported on the Slack exchange. Pay discrimination was one of the items listed in the California lawsuit.

The company also told staff that it’s banning alcohol in all offices. Many people were given the opportunity to take paid mental health days, which some staff said hadn’t mollified them. On video calls and in Slack channels across the company, calls for Kotick’s ousting continue. Many Activision Blizzard employees are even publicly demanding on their own personal Twitter feeds that the CEO be fired.

In an email to Blizzard staff on Tuesday reviewed by Bloomberg, Ybarra wrote that “if there’s a silver lining to the last few months, it’s that they’ve proven that Blizzard is full of incredible employees who are making progress every day to improve our culture, our game communities, and ourselves.” Ybarra added that “our best years are ahead of us.”

But with morale low and Kotick still in place, some employees are skeptical about that.

AMERICA'S BIRD

Wild turkeys are everywhere: How they made their comeback and why they taste different


Susan Pike
Thu, November 18, 2021,

For those of us old enough to remember the 1970s, turkeys were not part of the normal backdrop of life in New England like they are now. Today, turkeys are everywhere.

Huge flocks graze on suburban lawns and block roads. They visit our porches. They menace our pets and our children. They chase us away if they don’t like what we’re doing. But, back in the early 1970s, there were no wild turkeys in New England. In fact, there hadn’t been any in these parts since the mid-1800s when they were driven to near extinction by over-hunting.

It is estimated there were as few as 30,000 wild turkeys left in the United States by the early 1900s, a tiny number given there are now a whopping 7 million or more wild turkeys nationwide. They were on their way to extinction.

A wild turkey crosses a street in Kittery in 2020, approaching potholes in the road.

When did wild turkey restoration efforts begin?

It wasn’t until the Pittman-Roberson Act of 1937 that efforts began to bring the wild turkey back by taxing sporting arms and ammunition, and paying for programs to bring back wildlife. The 1940 federal Wildlife Restoration program began returning wild turkeys to their original habitat. This was good timing: the shift of farming out of New England and the widespread failure of farms during the Great Depression heralded the return of forests, ideal habitat for the reintroduced turkeys. However, It took awhile for turkeys to make it back to New England.

Wild turkeys leave an area near a bird feeder and head to the woods in South Berwick on a cloudy Wednesday morning Nov. 10, 2021.

Early efforts to reintroduce wild turkeys failed. It was difficult to capture large numbers of wild turkeys to transplant to new locations, so early reintroduction efforts focused on using captive-bred wild turkeys. These were genetically wild birds, but because they were raised in captivity they never received normal parental training and so never learned the social behaviors and survival skills necessary to be successful in the wild. It wasn't until methods were developed that were geared towards capturing large numbers of wild birds that turkeys were finally able to be successfully transplanted into their restored habitat.

How do you catch a flock of wild turkeys?

The cannon-net was the real game changer. This involved concealing a folded mesh net on the ground and setting out bait for turkeys as the trapper waited in a nearby blind. When the turkeys arrived, the trapper could remotely detonate black-powder cannons that would propel the net over the unsuspecting turkeys.

A wild turkey perches on a backyard deck of Jamie Eno's home in Dover.

After some unsuccessful starts, wild turkeys were reintroduced into New Hampshire and Maine in the 1970s. In 1975, New Hampshire Fish and Game officials transplanted 25 wild turkeys from New York and Pennsylvania into the Connecticut River Valley, a location that was picked because of its large number of dairy farms. Dairy farms have a lot of corn waste and manure that can provide food for overwintering turkeys (turkeys do not migrate and do not do well during harsh winters). In 10 short years, New Hampshire had a large enough turkey population to open a hunting season.

Nature news: Salamanders on hunt for their winter homes. Should you help?

How many wild turkeys are there in NH, Maine?

Maine’s reintroduction efforts in 1978 were equally successful. Forty-one wild turkeys were transplanted from Vermont to the southern towns of York and Eliot. These turkey reintroductions exceeded expectations. Maine now has a solid population of approximately 60,000 birds, New Hampshire has close to 45,000, according to wildlife officials.

The rural-suburban communities found throughout Maine and New Hampshire provide the conditions wild turkeys need to thrive: large tracts of mature hardwood forest (especially nut-producing oaks and beech) interspersed with mature pine as well as grassy openings and thickets for raising their young. Bird feeders and farms help them overwinter north of their normal range by providing a stable source of food.

2020 hunting season: Maine hunters get more cracks at wild turkeys

The wild turkey reintroduction has been a huge success. In just 50 years, they have grown from tiny populations found in a fraction of their original habitat to burgeoning populations wherever they have been reintroduced. Wild turkeys are now found throughout the United States, in every state except Alaska. According to the National Wild Turkey Federation, wild turkeys occupy more square miles of habitat than any other game bird in North America, a tribute to modern wildlife management practices and to the resilience of the wild turkey.

When can you hunt wild turkeys?

These robust populations of turkeys delight turkey hunters everywhere. According to New Hampshire Fish and Game Turkey Project Leader Alison Keating, the New Hampshire wild turkey population has remained relatively stable for the past several years. Turkeys are more abundant in the southern part of the state than the northern part due to more suitable habitat and milder winters in the southern part of the state. A spring and a fall hunt help to keep the wild turkey population under control.

Bears in the back yard?: A NH Fish and Game expert explains rise in Seacoast bear sightings

What does wild turkey taste like?

According to Keating, wild turkey is a fundamentally different dining experience than domesticated turkey (a sub-species of wild turkey). In general, wild turkeys are smaller than domestic turkeys. An adult male turkey typically weighs between 15 to 25 pounds. They do not have as much breast meat as a domestic farm-raised bird because wild turkeys use their breast more for flying and they eat a wild diet of nuts, seeds and berries as opposed to domestic turkeys being given feed (generally corn-based) on a farm. Wild turkey meat is darker, more intense in flavor and has a firmer texture.

Susan Pike

Susan Pike, a researcher and an environmental sciences and biology teacher at Dover High School, welcomes your ideas for future column topics. She may be reached at spike3116@gmail.com. Read more of her Nature News columns online at Seacoastonline.com and pikes-hikes.com, and follow her on Instagram @pikeshikes.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Wild turkeys in Seacoast NH and Maine, once over-hunted, bounce back

The story about Benjamin Franklin wanting the National Bird to be a turkey is just a myth. This false story began as a result of a letter Franklin wrote to his daughter criticizing the original eagle design for the Great Seal, saying that it looked more like a turkey.

Did Benjamin Franklin Want the National Bird To Be A Turkey?

'Sad & disgusting': Enes Kanter says Lebron James chooses 'money over morals' on China and slave labor



Bryan Ke
Fri, November 19, 2021


The Boston Celtics’ Enes Kanter recently took another jab at Los Angeles Lakers star player LeBron James for reportedly choosing money over morals on the issues of forced labor in China, Uyghurs and Tibet.

What happened: Kanter, 29, took to social media on Thursday to again call out James, 36, for not standing up against Nike and its alleged use of forced labor when manufacturing its shoes.

“Money over Morals for the ‘King,’” Kanter tweeted, referencing James. “Sad & disgusting how these athletes pretend they care about social justice. They really do “shut up & dribble” when Big Boss (China) says so.”

“Did you educate yourself about the slave labor that made your shoes or is that not part of your research?” the NBA center asked James.

He also posted pictures of four new sneakers featuring James. On one of the sneakers, the "Space Jam 2" star can be seen being crowned by China's Xi Jinping. The other shoes’ messages read, “I Am Informed and Educated on the Situation” and “Hey, Still Researching and Getting Educated?”

Kanter has been speaking out against China on several political issues, including their treatment of Uyghurs, Tibet and Taiwan. Last week, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen thanked the NBA star for supporting Taiwan's freedom. He also called for the boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing while calling Xi an "insecure tyrant."

Lessened court time: Speaking to “Fox and Friends” on Wednesday, OutKick founder Clay Travis claimed Kanter is facing consequences for his strong criticism of China on the basketball court. This is a claim that the basketball player seemingly hinted at in an Instagram post he shared this week.

Travis believes Kanter’s continued criticism of China and its leader has resulted in him being given less playing time.

The player appeared in all 72 games with the Portland Trailblazers in 2020, with an average of 24.4 minutes on the court. However, Kanter reportedly only played eight minutes during Monday’s Cleveland Cavaliers game, which was his first court appearance since Oct. 30.

“My thing is strictly basketball,” Celtics coach Ime Udoka said about Kanter’s lessened court appearance. “We’re switching a lot and doing some things that probably are not as natural for him and that’s limited his time to some extent. Nothing basketball-related will be based on (social media).”

Get Used to Expensive Coffee. And It’ll Probably Taste Worse Too




Archie Hunter, Marvin G Perez and Mumbi Gitau
Fri, November 19, 2021

(Bloomberg) -- Coffee snobs  cognoscenti have a lot to worry about right now. A global shortage of beans is already threatening to push up prices at cafes and supermarkets. Now, your morning cappuccino or latte might start leaving a bitter taste for other reasons too.

The world is facing a desperate shortfall of arabica coffee, the variety that gives the smoothest flavor and makes up about 60% of world production. Supplies were decimated after extreme weather destroyed crops, and with a La Nina pattern forecast through early 2022 expected to further hurt yields, it could take years for the market to recover. Arabica prices are surging to reflect the mounting crisis, while global shipping congestion is making it even harder to get beans where they are needed.

“This is not just a short-term issue,” said Kona Haque, who leads research at commodity trader ED&F Man in London. “It’s actually something that we’re going to be factoring in for the next couple of years.”

Coffee roasters and retailers must now decide whether to increase their own prices. But they’ve got another option too: arabica’s harsher cousin, robusta. Some are already using more of the cheaper variety, which is typically drunk in instant coffees and contains more caffeine that gives it a bitter flavor.

The crisis has its roots in Brazil, the world’s main supplier of arabica, where once-in-a-generation frosts followed droughts to wreak havoc on the crops. Crucially, it’s not just the current harvest that farmers have to worry about, some have been “stumping” or removing badly damaged trees; newly planted ones will take several years to mature. On top of that, they’re also grappling with surging costs for fertilizers and labor shortages.

Arabica bean prices have spiked by about 80% this year. While researchers and analysts are still busy surveying the remnants of Brazil’s damaged coffee harvest, the reports so far are not encouraging.

In the meanwhile, just about everyone in the supply chain is scrambling for beans.

“We have a lot of customers who don’t usually buy from us buying bigger quantities and different origins than what is normal,” says Joanne Berry, head of sourcing and procurement at Tropiq, a Norwegian company that buys high-grade, specialty coffee for roasters around Europe. “We have disproportionate demand I think because of the general lack of supply.”

While robusta prices have also risen this year, they’ve lagged arabica’s gains and are less than half the price. That makes it increasingly tempting for roasters to use more in their products.

Some cafes and brands focus exclusively on one or the other variety, but many use a blend of both to create a specific taste. Arabica is sweeter and typically used in drinks like cappuccinos and lattes, robusta has traditionally been popular in Italy for espresso or freeze-dried for use in instant coffee.

Both varieties have been caught up in the logistics snarl-ups that are gripping the world at the moment. Coffee is shipped in containers, and a global shortage has restricted exports of millions of bags to demand epicenters such as the U.S., Japan and Europe.

Vietnam, the biggest exporter of robusta, is expecting a second bumper crop this year, but freight holdups mean exporters are struggling to ship the beans out. Still, unlike arabica, traders know that it’s just a matter of time and the robusta will hit the market eventually.

Of course, many brands and cafes will be reluctant to risk alienating customers by changing blends and flavor profiles. In a small and rough poll of premium coffee stores in the City of London this week, all the staff that Bloomberg spoke to were adamant that there were no plans to add robusta to their mix.

Any switching that does happen globally is likely to be slow, though some roasters in Brazil are already making the change.

Either way, it’s looking increasingly likely that coffee retail prices are set to rise.

Roasters from Nestle SA to Israel-based Strauss Group Ltd have already flagged that the increased price will eventually be transferred to end-consumers, another example of inflation in the post-pandemic economy. It’s not just coffee bean costs that have risen, said said ED&F Man's Haque.

"Coffee roasting companies are also facing higher labor costs and energy bills,” she said. “And because inflation is already being flagged, I think consumers can be almost certain of what’s going to happen."

The Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma 
Massive platform of volcanic rock emerges from the sea

Massive platform of volcanic rock emerges from the sea

Lauren Fox
Fri, November 19, 2021,

The Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma, one of Spain's Canary Islands, has been erupting since mid-September, and recently the volcano's violent eruptions have sent lava pouring into the Atlantic ocean, causing a large area of volcanic rock to rise from the sea.

A stream of molten lava that reached the Atlantic Ocean during the second week of November created a platform-like figure out of volcanic rock in the water. The rock reached a popular local surf spot, Los Guirres beach.



A scientist watches as lava flows from a volcano reaching the sea on the Canary island of La Palma, Spain, Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021. The Spanish Navy has begun helping farmers on the volcanic island of La Palma as they try to reach by sea their lava-surrounded banana plantations. (AP Photo/Taner Orribo)


When hot lava pours into the ocean, it first begins to boil and steam, as lava can reach temperatures as high as 2,012 degrees Fahrenheit, or 1,100 degrees Celsius. The lava can cause the ocean water to boil away, Newsweek reported.


The lava can also form a lava delta, which according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), is new land created at the entry point in the ocean for the lava, extending outward from the coastline. These can be dangerous as they can suddenly collapse and trigger explosions as they do. The collapse of a lava delta can also create waves -- which are dangerous as the lava makes the water scalding hot.

A video of the lava that had reached into the ocean and created a pileup of debris in the water was shared by Spain's Geology and Mining Institute. Water vapor and gas can be seen coming off of the newly-formed structure.



The first time the lava reached the sea over a month ago, authorities called on residents to stay indoors. However, this time officials said that is not necessary.

"New confinements are not necessary because the populations are far away from the point of contact with the sea that occurred last night," a spokesperson for emergency services told Reuters last Wednesday, Nov. 10.


Members of UME (Military Emergency Unit) stand as lava flows from a volcano reaching the sea on the Canary island of La Palma, Spain, Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021. The Spanish Navy has begun helping farmers on the volcanic island of La Palma as they try to reach by sea their lava-surrounded banana plantations. (AP Photo/Taner Orribo)


The affected area is not heavily populated and consists mainly of banana plantations. However, on Nov. 14, the first death associated with the volcano was reported. A 72-year-old man in the municipality of El Paso was found dead after a roof he was working on collapsed.

The last major eruption on the island came around 50 years ago and resulted in toxic gases that killed one person.

This eruption has also released emissions of toxic sulfur dioxide, but the emissions have begun to dwindle since the initial eruption. On Nov. 9, La Palma's council said the island's air quality was still good.

FORDISM IS GLOBALIZATION
Vietnam carmaker VinFast will start selling two EV models in the US next year as it challenges Tesla on its home turf

Huileng Tan
Thu, November 18, 2021

VinFast Global CEO Michael Lohscheller unveils an electric vehicle the Los Angeles Auto Show .Patrick Fallon/AFP

Vietnamese automaker VinFast is setting up US HQ in LA and is also shopping for a factory site.

VinFast is the auto manufacturing subsidiary of Vingroup, the largest conglomerate in Vietnam.

VinFast has not disclosed prices in the US, but it's selling a smaller EV in Vietnam for $30,500.

Vietnam carmaker VinFast has entered the US with its answer to Tesla, unveiling two full battery-electric SUV models at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

VinFast is the car subsidiary of VinGroup, the largest conglomerate in Vietnam helmed by the country's richest man, Pham Nhat Vuong.

It's introducing the VF e35 midsize and VF e36 large electric SUVs to the US, where it plans to start taking orders in the first half of next year and start delivery in the fourth quarter, VinFast said in a press release.

The VF e35 will have a maximum range of 310 miles per charge, and the e36 will be able to travel up to 422 miles per charge, VinFast global CEO Michael Lohscheller told the Associated Press. Teslas get between 262 and 405 miles per charge, depending on the model, according to SolarReviews.com.

VinFast has not revealed prices for the e35 and e36 vehicles, with Lohscheller told CNN it's "a little too early to talk about" the pricing for the US market, but it wants to offer "world-class product quality, reasonable prices, and then really good service."

In Vietnam, the VF e34 SUV — a smaller model — is listed on VinFast's website for 690 million dong ($30,500.) Teslas start at around $47,000 and top out at around $250,000 (for its yet-to-be-released Roadster), according to Motor Trends.

The SUVs will initially be built at a factory in Vietnam, but the carmaker is planning US production in the second half of 2014, AP reported. The company is now shopping for a site.

The carmaker is also setting up US headquarters in Los Angeles, it said in another press release. There are plans to list on the US stock market in the next few years, Lohscheller told Reuters.

The VinFast VF e35 SUV.VinFast

VinFast will sell only EVs in the US where it faces stiff competition not just from market leader Tesla, but also start-ups like Rivian and Lucid — although these new names making it into the mainstream could also help VinFast, Stephanie Brinley, IHS Markit auto industry analyst, told CNN.

"Our branding position here in the US is inclusive," said Nguyen Van Anh, CEO of VinFast US, per CNN. "We want to provide a premium product at a reasonable price."

Ford and Rivian’s Breakup: Sour Grapes, Growing Confidence or Something Else?

November 20, 2021

Rivien spokespersons confirmed on Friday.

This is actually not a big surprise.

Nonetheless, the move may leave investors wondering why joint development is not a good idea and what the split means for the actions of the two automakers.
First of all, a little background. Even before the split, Ford (ticker: F) canceled a program in 2020 that would have seen one of its vehicles built on a Rivian chassis (RIVN). And last spring, Ford relinquished its seat on Rivian’s board of directors in the run-up to Rivian’s IPO, even though it might have made sense for competitive reasons.

“As Ford scaled its own electric vehicle strategy and demand for Rivian vehicles increased, we mutually decided to focus on our own projects and deliveries,” Rivian said in a statement. “Our relationship with Ford is an important part of our journey, and Ford remains an investor and ally on our shared journey towards an electrified future. “

For Ford, the breakup comes with an irony: The company helped Rivian take off by investing in the electric vehicle startup in 2019. Rivian’s market cap, however, has since exploded to around $ 125 billion. , based on its full number of diluted shares. That eclipses Ford’s, which is around $ 77 billion.

But sour grapes on stock prices rarely result in business disruptions. And Ford still owns around 100 million shares of Rivian, which are worth around $ 13 billion.

There are two other dynamics that better explain why automakers have gone their separate ways. The first is that Ford is doing better in the EV game now than when he originally staked Rivian. Ford, which has sold around 22,000 Mustang Mach Es so far this year, plans to sell 600,000 electric vehicles a year by 2023. Ford executives also announced an $ 11.4 billion investment plan. dollars, which will give the company the assembly and battery capacity to manufacture about 1 million additional electric vehicles each year.

Ford has also had some success with its electric vehicles: its Mustang Mach E was named car and electric vehicle of the year in July. The company also plans to start selling its all-electric F-150 pickup in 2022, competing with the Rivian R1T pickup.

The other dynamic: Partnerships between automakers may not make as much sense in a battery-powered world as it does in a gasoline-powered world.

Consider the fact that partnerships between automakers for traditional automobiles were all about scale. The companies would jointly develop a platform for a vehicle, so that they could spread the development dollars over the sales of two companies.

Scale still matters in an EV world, but not in the same way.

Here’s why: Engines, transmissions, and a gas tank provide power to traditional automobiles, with engine displacement varying depending on vehicle size. But with electric vehicles, batteries and electric motors provide the power. Larger EVs typically get more batteries and another electric motor, usually mounted on an axle, than smaller EVs.

The EV platforms come with their own built-in scale, which can be operated on many types of vehicles that the automaker already sells.

Scale still matters and two companies can always jointly develop an EV platform. In fact, Ford and

Volkswagen
(VOW3. Germany) share some of the EV technology with each other. There is just less urgency in forming the kind of partnerships that were profitable in the past.

When it comes to stocks, Friday’s news doesn’t mean much to Ford or Rivian. Ford stock, which closed 0.9% lower in the regular session, slipped about 0.3% in after-hours trading on Friday. Rivian stock, meanwhile, ended up 4.2% as post-IPO volatility continued, before falling around 1.2% after-market.

Investors have yet to pick the winners and losers in the growing electric vehicle industry, but they currently appear to be giving startups the edge. However, they shouldn’t count Ford or other traditional automakers. Based on the level of spending and new products from traditional players, it seems that they are not going quietly overnight.

GM flags concern over renewable energy in Mexico, sees investment risk


FILE PHOTO: General Motors plant is seen in Silao, Mexico


Fri, November 19, 2021
By Sharay Angulo

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A senior executive of carmaker General Motors (GM) raised concern about the future of renewable energy usage in Mexico, saying that without a solid legal basis for it, automotive investment in Latin America's no. 2 economy would suffer.

Francisco Garza, chief executive of GM Mexico, spoke as debate rages over a Mexican government proposal to give priority to the state-run power utility in the electricity market at the expense of private investors, particularly in renewable energy.

Participating in a panel in Mexico City, Garza said it was important for Mexico to forge conditions enabling investment in renewables, to which the company was itself committed.

"Unfortunately, if the conditions aren't there, Mexico won't be a destination for investment, because the conditions won't be given that permit us to meet our objective of having zero emissions in the long term," Garza said.

"We're evaluating that if there aren't the conditions, that dollar that was going to be invested in Mexico will go to the United States, Brazil, China or Europe, and Mexico will no longer be a key destination," he added.

Garza did not make explicit reference to the government's electricity initiative, although others on the panel did.

GM, which has been one of the top investors in Mexico since the start of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, earlier this year said it planned to invest $1 billion https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/general-motors-make-1-bln-electric-auto-investment-mexico-2021-04-29 to build electric vehicles in the northern state of Coahuila.

After Garza spoke, GM Mexico spokesperson Teresa Cid told Reuters that GM was "at no time threatening" not to make the investments it had pledged for Mexico.

"GM must meet its (zero emissions) vision and we must follow that path," she said. "So that's where the risk would be."

(Reporting by Sharay Angulo; Editing by Sandra Maler)

Hungary opposition leader vows to restore western alliances




Hungary Opposition LeaderPeter Marki-Zay, the joint opposition candidate who will challenge Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban in next spring's elections, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in Hodmezovasarhely, Hungary, Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021. An independent conservative candidate for prime minister in Hungary is vowing to restore western alliances he says have frayed under the leadership of right-wing leader Viktor Orban. In an interview with the Associated Press, Marki-Zay said he will reverse the closening ties Orban has pursued with autocracies in Russia and China, and mend conflicts between Hungary and the European Union. 

(AP Photo/Laszlo Balogh)More


JUSTIN SPIKE
Fri, November 19, 2021

HODMEZOVASARHELY, Hungary (AP) — Hungary's opposition leader wants to restore his country's frayed ties with the West — and also has a message for American fans of right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

"Let me state very strongly for all Americans that to be a part of Putin’s fan club doesn’t make you a conservative,” said Peter Marki-Zay, a self-described conservative Christian running against Orban in next year's elections, in an interview with The Associated Press.

"Orban is betraying Europe, Orban is betraying NATO, Orban is betraying the United States,” he said.

Marki-Zay, the 49-year-old mayor of the small city of Hodmezovasarhely, is leading a diverse coalition of six opposition parties aiming to defeat Hungary's hard-line leader and his ruling Fidesz party in parliamentary elections scheduled for April.

If elected, Marki-Zay says, he will reverse the closer ties Orban has pursued with autocracies in Russia and China, and improve his country's relations with the European Union and other Western allies.

“I still stand for Western values, and we cannot accept a corrupt thug ... who betrays Western values and who is now a servant of Communist China and Russia,” he said.

Governing Hungary with a two-thirds majority in parliament since 2010, the right-wing populist Orban and his anti-immigration party have dominated the fractured opposition in all subsequent elections, and cemented their power through changes to election laws, stacking institutions with loyalists and dominating large portions of Hungary's media.

While Orban's critics in Europe have warned of an alarming erosion of democracy in Hungary as its relations with EU have frayed, some of his policies — like his staunch rejection of refugees and generous financial support to families with children — have attracted glowing praise from right-wing American commentators.

Fox News host Tucker Carlson broadcast from Budapest for a week this summer, and praised Orban's migration policy and rejection of the EU's liberal mainstream. Rod Dreher, senior editor of U.S. publication The American Conservative, spent several months in Budapest this year on a fellowship financed by a right-wing think tank close to Orban's government.

But Marki-Zay, a devout Catholic with seven children and a former Fidesz voter himself, says that despite Orban's proclamations of building an illiberal “Christian democracy” in the Central European country, he considers the leader neither a Christian, nor a conservative, nor even a democrat.

“Real conservatives consider Christianity to be something very much (the) opposite” of Orban's policies, he said.

Orban's party has accused Marki-Zay of being a left-wing candidate posing as a conservative, a charge stemming from his cooperation with several left-of-center parties in the opposition coalition.

Last week, Marki-Zay travelled to Brussels where he met with some key EU figures — spurring further accusations that he aims to undermine Hungary's sovereignty in favor of adhering to EU dictates.

A fierce critic of the 27-member bloc, which Hungary joined in 2004, Orban has compared EU membership to the Soviet domination Hungary endured for 40 years, and has pursued close diplomatic and economic ties with China and Russia.

But agreements with those countries on major investment projects have both weakened Hungary's geopolitical position and come at the expense of Hungarian taxpayers, Marki-Zay says.

He cites as an example a roughly $2.3 billion Chinese-led project to modernize the railway between the capital cities of Hungary and Serbia, part of China's Belt and Road global trade initiative that is financed by the Hungarian state primarily from a loan from a Chinese state bank.

Another project — a no-bid contract awarded to Russia's state nuclear energy corporation Rosatom to expand a Hungarian nuclear power plant at an estimated cost of over $11 billion — is “against the national interests of Hungary,” he said.

Sitting in his office in Hodmezovasarhely's city hall, the candidate wears a blue ribbon on the lapel of his jacket, something he said represents an “anti-corruption fight" against the kind of governance that has plagued Hungary since its democratic transition from Communism in 1990.

Hungary has become a “country with no consequences,” he said, where corruption "has been totally centralized and it’s absolutely a part of the system. It is now organized by the government itself.”

If elected, Marki-Zay says he will immediately join the European Public Prosecutors Office, an independent EU anti-fraud and corruption body, and set up a domestic anti-corruption office in Hungary.

“Most people in Hungary recognize that there is a corruption problem," he said. "I really hope that in the last four years I have already proven here in Hodmezovasarhely that not all politicians are corrupt.”

Running as an independent outsider with no past ties to Hungary's liberal opposition parties, Marki-Zay has vowed to tackle corruption even-handedly, whether it was committed by those currently in government or by the earlier Socialist-led governments that are now in opposition. Two of the parties in his own coalition have been associated with past corruption cases.

Recent polling shows the six-party coalition in a tight race with Orban and his party, suggesting the race will be the closest since Fidesz took power 11 years ago.

Still, Marki-Zay says a media environment which favors the ruling party and an imbalance in financial resources will mean elections next year will not be free and fair.

In an effort to safeguard next year's ballot, the opposition coalition has launched a campaign to recruit 20,000 civilian vote counters to be present at every polling station in the country.

While Marki-Zay expects a highly competitive campaign, he believes that his conservative bona fides and political outsider status can mobilize both disaffected Fidesz supporters and undecided voters who are turned off by corruption.

“We have to get the truth to even the last house in the last village,” he said. “We have to give them true and credible information that they were robbed.”

Report: China is now the world's richest country



Carl Samson
Fri, November 19, 2021,

China has beat the U.S. to become the world’s richest nation, according to a new report.

Key findings: Global net worth soared from $156 million in 2000 to $514 trillion in 2020, making the world wealthier than it was at any point in history. China accounted for nearly a third of the increase, the report from management consultancy firm McKinsey & Company stated.

McKinsey analyzed the national balance sheets of 10 countries that represented 60% of the world’s income. Of these nations, China accounted for 50% of the growth in net worth, followed by the U.S. (22%) and Japan (11%).

The report found that China’s wealth rose from $7 trillion in 2000 to $120 trillion in 2020. The U.S., on the other hand, saw its wealth more than double to $90 trillion in the same period.

The big picture: While the world is wealthier today, inequality still persists. In both China and the U.S. alone, more than 67% of wealth is controlled by the richest 10% of households ― and they continue to make more.

The report found that 68% of the world’s net worth lies in real estate. The remainder can be found in infrastructure, inventories, machinery and equipment and “intangibles” such as intellectual property and patents, according to Bloomberg.

With rising costs in real estate, China could suffer a financial crisis similar to the 2008 housing bubble burst in the U.S. Shenzhen-based property developer Evergrande, for instance, is already in hot water over debts totaling $300 billion, which reportedly forced its chairman to sell his personal assets, according to CNN.

A collapse of global asset prices could wipe out as much as 33% of the world’s wealth, McKinsey noted. To avoid such a scenario, the report encouraged productive and sustainable investments that contribute to the global gross domestic product (GDP).