The Daily Valet. - 10/15/19, Tuesday
✔️ What's Prime Worth to You?
Tuesday, October 15th Edition
I want an electric motorcycle ... but it looks like I’ll have to wait.
Cory Ohlendorf , Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf
Today's edition is presented by
Today’s Big Story
Amazon Tries to Clean Up Their Act
But more than 2,000 workers in eight states will lose their jobs
Amazon has abruptly canceled its contracts with three major delivery firms. A move that will put more than 2,000 people out of work and may signal a shift in how the online retail giant plans to deliver millions of packages going into the holiday season. The company announced its decision after BuzzFeed News and Propublica published investigative stories about how these contracted independent delivery companies mistreated their employees and threatened public safety in order to meet the high demands of Amazon.
Atlanta's Inpax Shipping Solutions, Sheard-Loman Transport out of Northern Illinois and Letter Ride LLC in San Diego are the three contractors impacted by the decision. All three of the companies have been linked to deaths related to their delivery practices.
A civil suit brought by the family of an 84-year old grandmother who was run down by a delivery truck claims that Amazon put undue time pressure on Inpax and its drivers. The suit is still pending and Amazon has denied responsibility.
But dropping these problematic delivery companies shows that Amazon executives are acknowledging some major flaws of their existing system. And a willingness to make significant changes in their logistics network to prevent similar tragedies and other problems in the future. Up until this point, many contracted drivers for the company have had little to no delivery experience. Some also moonlight as Doordash and Postmates drivers. And most are only given a few days of training. The results of such quick and dirty practices? More than 60 serious crashes, 10 of which have resulted in fatalities. If you're like me, you've succumbed to the ease of Prime delivery. But I don't think any of us believe that convenience should come at this cost.
↦ In Oddly Related News: Amazon is now offering Prime customers free one-day shipping on items that cost less than $5.
A Fort Worth Police Officer Has Been Charged With Murder
First he resigned, then he was jailed
Aaron Dean, the Fort Worth officer who killed Atatiana Jefferson over the weekend was jailed on a murder charge Monday. Dean, who is white, fatally shot the 28-year-old black woman through an open window in her own home early Saturday morning as she played video games with her nephew.
After a neighbor called a non-emergency line to report that the front door to Jefferson's home had been left open, officers responded. Body cam footage shows officers going into her backyard without identifying themselves. When they saw someone near a window inside the home, Dean apparently fired after "perceiving a threat."
Interim Fort Worth police chief, Ed Kraus, said that the department was conducting a criminal investigation into the officer’s actions. The New York Times reports he also reached out to the F.B.I. about the possibility of starting a civil rights investigation.
My take? This clear and quick accountability is how you handle such a terrible situation. Dean had been on the force since early 2018, which means he's not so far from his initial training. I can understand that these cops are human and humans can panic. But isn't that what the police academy training is for? Why are these officers immediately shooting? And even so, isn't the policy to "shoot to wound," not kill?
Special Promotion
The couple that undresses together … MeUndies has an adorable program where you and your signifiant other can pick up matching underwear in whatever style best suits you. (And you can save 15% with the code below)
What to Expect From Tonight’s Debate
Is this when the Democratic presidential candidates take the gloves off?
CNN and The New York Times will co-host the fourth Democratic presidential primary debate tonight from Otterbein University in Ohio. And it's a big one, literally. Twelve candidates will appear onstage together, which the Times reports makes the debate the largest primary debate in recorded American political history.
So far, the candidates have been rather polite to one another. Will this be the night that the debate gets heated? After all, this is the first debate since Bernie Sanders had a heart attack. Surely that will be called into question. What about Biden's connection to Trump's impeachment inquiry? Or Warren's tax plan and Harris's past as a prosecutor? As Frank Bruni writes, "assuming that Trump lasts until November 2020, he’s going to use every potentially unflattering detail of his opponent that he can dig up ... so now is the time, well before the voting in caucuses and primaries begins ... to discover how persuasively they can explain the parts of their biographies and records that cry out for some explanation."
The other large question hanging in the air, is whether Democratic voters want a period of calm and order post-Trump or a crusade that promises more disruption of the status quo? That's where contenders like Biden, Warren, Harris and Buttigieg will have make their case and stand apart from the pack.
↦ Watch It: The debate will air and stream at 8 pm EDT on CNN.
Harley Pulls the Plug
Harley-Davidson stops electric motorcycle production due to charging problem
Harley-Davidson has halted production and delivery of its first electric motorcycle, the LiveWire, after discovering a problem with the bike’s charging equipment. The company told the The Wall Street Journal that they're still safe to ride, but it’s asking the first few customers to only charge the $30,000 bikes at dealerships, indicating that there may be a problem with plugging them into lower-voltage outlets, such as the ones found in most homes. The LiveWires only just started shipping in September.
First introduced as a concept cycle back in 2014, the project dipped out of sight for a few years before Harley reintroduced the LiveWire in production-ready form last November. The company has since put the bike at the center of its attempts to appeal to a younger, more diverse crowd of riders. It's a bold move for an iconic American company trying to stay relevant. Of course, that strategy could take a hit by this production snafu.
↦ Other electric Bikes: The Verge has a great guide on buying electric bicycles.
Other Things We’re Talking About Today
+
Special Promotion
Upgrade Your Underwear
MeUndies makes it easy to match your bottom half to your better half
File this under “didn’t know I needed it until now.” MeUndies, the popular direct-to-consumer maker of comfortable underwear and feel-good loungewear, has a program where you and your signifiant other can pick up customized matching underwear in whatever style best suits you. Choose from a range of boxers, briefs and sporty trunks for yourself and then pick up a matching pair for “your boo,” be they female or male. I say, turn it into a challenge: Pick up a few pairs and try to guess what the other is wearing. Come bedtime, strip to see if you’ve matched.
↦ Get 15% Off your first purchase w/code MEFAM15 at MeUndies
How to Keep Screens From Ruining Your Vision
According to an eye doctor
Blue light has gotten a bad rap, according to Fast Company, getting blamed for loss of sleep and eye damage. And while it's true that personal electronic devices emit more blue light than any other color, they may not be as harmful as we all once thought.
Laboratory studies have shown that prolonged exposure to high-intensity blue light damages retinal cells in mice. But epidemiological studies on real people tell a different story. That's because human eyes are different than rodent eyes.
Of course, just because blue light isn’t burning out our retinas doesn’t mean our devices are harmless. Because of its wavelength, blue light does disrupt healthy sleep patterns. Which is why it's recommended you break from screens 20 minutes before going to bed and consider using dark mode on your device—which seems to be gaining popularity these days. What you probably don't need are those specialty blue-light-blocking glasses.
↦ FYI: The average American spends 1,176 hours looking at a screen each year. That breaks down to 49 full days.
What We’re Buying
With the weather finally dipping below "way too hot for October," it's time to start thinking about how to stay warm this fall. The first transition is adding slim sweats or joggers to your off-duty wardrobe. This double set from ASOS makes for a reasonably priced starter pack. Any athleisure brand will be selling the same thing for double, even triple, the cost. Add these slim sweats to any hoodie/sweater/sneaker combo and you'll have a modern, easy-going look.
↦ Get It $49 / $31.50 at ASOS
Morning Motto
Hang in there …
↦ Follow: @sophia.joan.short
That’s all for today...
Valet Media LLC350 Lincoln Road, 2nd FloorMiami Beach, FL 33139[email protected]