What we’re reading (1/4)
“The Coming American Labour Market Shock” (Financial Times). “What would the country have done if 2022-24 immigration had averaged half a million instead of 2.2mn, and demand for workers stayed strong? It’s an interesting question…This time, with LFPR already high and the US continuing to age, wages would probably have had to rise very sharply, far more than actually happened. After all, the retiree sitting on the sidelines will only enter the job market is they are enticed into doing so. And even with higher wages, actual job creation would likely have been far less. Meanwhile, high wages would have passed into inflation, pushing it even higher than it peaked this cycle.”
“Advertisers Keep Avoiding News Sites, And Publishers Have Had Enough Of It” (Wall Street Journal). “The Washington Post’s crossword puzzle was recently deemed too offensive for advertisers. So was an article about thunderstorms. And a ranking of boxed brownie mixes. Marketers have long been wary about running ads in the news media, concerned that their brands will land next to pieces about terrorism or plane crashes or polarizing political stories. That advertising no-go zone seems to keep widening. It is a headache that news publishers can hardly afford. Many are also grappling with subscriber declines and losses in traffic from Google and other tech platforms, and are now making an aggressive push to change advertisers’ perceptions.”
“The New Science On Alcohol And Cancer: 4 Studies That Found A Link” (Business Insider). “[US Surgeon General Vivek] Murthy outlined the research that persuaded him — and other medical professionals — that alcohol is a serious and under-appreciated health concern…There are four ways alcohol causes cancer, Murthy said, citing a 2021 Nutrients study. The first two are widely accepted, he wrote. Most physicians agree that when alcohol breaks down in the body it can bind to DNA, damaging cells and fueling tumors. There is also robust evidence that alcohol can drive inflammation, which is linked to cancer…The science on alcohol is not cut-and-dry, though. some of the healthiest people in the world — in the Mediterranean and so-called Blue Zones — drink wine daily. Researchers believe the social aspect of alcohol may have strong benefits for longevity. Plus, Murthy's report clashes with a major report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which was published in December.”
“Nazi Ties To Credit Suisse Ran Deeper Than Was Known, Hidden Files Reveal” (Wall Street Journal). “Switzerland thought it came to terms with its Nazi-assisting past after harrowing probes in the 1990s led its two largest banks to pay more than $1 billion restitution to Holocaust victims. Documents unearthed in bank archives show it might have been at least in part a whitewash.”
“Inside Zildjian, A 400-year-Old Cymbal-Making Company In Massachusetts” (WBUR). “[I]n 1618 the Ottoman sultan summoned Avedis [I] to the Topkapi Palace to make cymbals for elite military bands. The metalsmith’s work pleased the ruler, who gave him permission to found his own business in 1623. The sultan also bestowed Avedis the family name ‘Zildjian’ which actually means cymbal maker…[b]y the 1700s European composers, including Mozart and Haydn, added Zildjian cymbals to their symphonies. ‘So, that's how the reputation grew,’ Debbie [Zildjian] said. Zildjian became synonymous with cymbals after her grandfather Avedis III, an ethnic Armenian, emigrated to the U.S. in 1909. Two decades later he re-located the family’s cymbal business from Turkey to Quincy, Massachusetts with his uncle.”
