6 killing covid, gasoline demand has peaked

every year at our work, we choose who gives us performance reviews. out of curiosity, we tried typing in our CEO’s name, and lo and behold - despite being 739 degrees separated in the hierarchy, we could ask him for an eval! well, now we’re asking you to give us your feedback. email us your comments.

big idea: light at the end of the tunnel

1. it’s been a solid week covid-wise, and ‘muricans are growing confident that a semblance of normality will return soon. more than 100 million vaccine doses have been given (40+ days sooner than promised by Joe), two states have expanded vaccine eligibility to all adults, and the CDC revised its guidelines making it easier for schools to reopen. things are going so well that Joe is loaning canada & mexico four million vaccines. Trudeau, like any true canadian, has already apologized for no reason for the inconvenience.

2. not everything is peachy yet - infections are falling nationwide, but rising in locales like michigan and west virginia. remember, it takes two weeks after your second shot for the vaccine to work its magic, so no beach parties just yet.

3. internationally, the picture is more complicated. europe abruptly halted and then restarted its vaccination campaigns after the oxford vaccine (which isn’t being used here) may have caused some fatal blood clots. because of their slow vaccination efforts, parts of france and italy are re-entering a lockdown. europe was largely unwilling to partner its public health systems with private pharmaceutical companies to the same degree as ‘murica, resulting in the botched rollout. you don’t hear progressives singing the praises of european-style healthcare these days, huh?

4. so, you can’t blame us for being hopeful about the situation here in the states. we’re sixth in the world at 12% of ‘muricans being fully vaccinated, and 23% receiving at least their first shot. 

story to watch: global gasoline demand has peaked

1. the International Energy Association has predicted that global demand for gasoline peaked in 2019, with demand never again reaching pre-covid levels. this is due to covid permanently reducing the need for commutes (Ford and British Airways announced work-at-home policies this week) and because governments are encouraging the adoption of EVs. these two factors will offset the rise in demand in developing countries.

2. the report comes out even as traders begin to speculate that oil prices will rise as the economy recovers, especially in the US. however, considering that a whopping 40% of the crude oil drilled today goes towards increasingly-unpopular gasoline, that doesn’t seem as likely. the IEA does predict that overall demand for oil will increase modestly in the future, again because of developing countries and also due to rising jet fuel demand.

3. this will have widespread geopolitical ramifications, not the least of which is ‘murica will stop caring what happens in the middle east and turn more of its attention to its competition with china #endlesswars

this week’s image: floating sky lanterns

• (The Guardian) syrian children light a sky lantern, but we’re pretty sure their smiles are brighter.

this week’s number: uber will have to pay its UK drivers a $12.40 minimum wage

1. following a court ruling in the UK, uber will be forced to pay its drivers there the minimum wage (about US$12.40), vacation time, and a pension. this is the first time uber has ever acknowledged its drivers are more than just independent contractors anywhere in the world. five stars UK courts, five stars.

2. despite these additional costs, uber still forecasts that it will be profitable in the UK by the end of the year, putting to rest the argument that guaranteed wages for gig workers are impractical. expect other tech companies operating in the UK to announce similar moves in the future. barring major legislative breakthroughs in the US though, don’t expect the same on this side of the pond.

what we’re reading: “Raven Rock”

1. a bizarre and at times morbid read by a former white house reporter, this is the most detailed look ever at ‘murica’s secret doomsday plans to save the government while everyone else dies in a zombie apocalypse (or, slightly less likely, a nuclear holocaust)

2. it includes fun details like how government planners were certain democracy would be the price for survival, how the defense department delayed breaking up AT&T in the 70’s because of how critical the company was for wartime communications, and how the FBI prepared lists of thousands of people to immediately imprison in case of a doomsday

and, in case you missed it:

• a pennsylvania mom used deepfake videos to try to get her daughter’s enemies kicked off the high school cheerleading squad

• Joe has had a busy week: coming out in favor of filibuster reform, confirming two historic cabinet picks, and nearly falling down a flight of stairs

• the latest middle eastern fad is drinking coffee from baby bottles. for real.

the weekly rundown is produced by Yunus, Faisal, and Ahmed. learn more about us and email us your comments and feedback!