The Daily Valet. - 10/26/20, Monday

✔️ Here We Go Again

October 26, 2020

Monday, October 26th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

Did that weekend fly by for you too?

Cory Ohlendorf , Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today's edition is presented by

Today’s Big Story

COVID-19 Spikes Across the U.S.

As the White House Chief of Staff says administration won't be able to "control the pandemic."

As President Donald Trump barnstorms the swing states, downplaying the coronavirus pandemic before mostly unmasked crowds, the nation continues to inch toward what challenger Joe Biden (citing health experts) warns will be a “dark winter” of disease and death.

The Associated Press reports about half of U.S. states have seen their highest daily infection numbers so far at some point in October, and the country as a whole came very close to back-to-back record daily infection rates on Friday and Saturday.

White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said in a heated interview Sunday that the Trump administration won't be able to “control the pandemic.” He was also pushed about Vice President Mike Pence's decision to continue campaigning after four of his aides tested positive for the virus.

The news comes just as the United States suffers its third surge in infections across the nation, with a record number of daily new cases (nearly 84,000) over the weekend and a death toll that has risen to almost 225,000.

And after months of improvement, parts of Europe are going back into lockdown or ramping up restrictions again amid a spike in infections. Italy imposed at least a month of new restrictions across the country on Sunday, insisting that people outdoors wear masks, shutting down gyms, pools and movie theaters, and putting an early curfew on cafes and restaurants.

Remember how seriously we all took this back in March? Seems like so long ago now ...

↦ Meanwhile: Officials have scrapped a plan to provide Santa Claus performers early COVID-19 vaccine access in exchange for their participation in a controversial federal public service campaign.

Early Vote Total Already Exceeds 2016

Democrats dominate but Republicans are narrowing the gap.

With a little more than a week until Election Day, more people already have cast ballots in this year’s presidential election than voted early or absentee in the 2016 race as the start of in-person early voting in big states led to a recent surge in turnout, reports the Associated Press.

The opening of early voting locations in such states as Florida, and Texas has piled millions of new votes on top of the mail ballots arriving at election offices as voters try to avoid crowded polling places on Nov. 3 during the pandemic.

According to The Hill, registered Democrats continue to lead registered Republicans with 51% to 31% of all votes cast, though the gap has closed slightly in recent days as early in-person voting has begun.

But Forbes reports that early voting numbers are a usually a poor guide to predicting an election—and now this is especially the case in the wake of COVID-19 and how voters view the virus. Why? Because polling has shown a wide partisan fear gap regarding the virus, with Republicans generally looking to return to some semblance of normalcy while Democrats are far more likely to worry about public gatherings.

↦ FYI: A total of 58.6 million ballots cast as of Sunday evening.

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Glitter Loses Its Luster

Plastic pollution is a real problem. But banning the sparkly stuff may not help.

Glitter is notorious for getting everywhere, isn't it? Touch some Halloween decorations or a holiday card and you’ll be finding flecks of the sparkly stuff in your food, hair and sofa for what seems like weeks.

It really does go everywhere—including to the furtherest corners of the Earth. According to Treehugger, when it eventually gets washed away, those tiny pieces of mirrored plastic make it into storm drains and then waterways. And it doesn't seem to make much of a difference if the glitter is biodegradable. It's still causing harm.

Which is why more retailers are banning the product this season. That means no glittery snowflakes on cards, no sparkling snowmen or twinkling stars on wrapping paper. (Anyone up for a “war on Christmas” joke?)

But according to Bloomberg, humans release 1.5 million tons of primary microplastics into the ocean annually, a sum equivalent to one plastic bag for every person each week. A comprehensive 2017 study of the problem found that synthetic fibers, tires and microbeads from grooming products were the biggest sources of microplastic litter. Glitter didn't even make the list.

↦ FYI: People have covered political lawn signs in Vaseline and glitter to deter (or punish) anyone who tries to steal them.

A Stone Dashboard?

Bentley extends its cabin customization options to more than 5,000 finishes, including stone

As the average age of Bentley clients continues to fall, the choice provided to the customer is becoming increasingly diverse and modern. Nowhere is this more evident than the newly expanded suite of interior veneer options, reports Motor1.

The automaker now offers more than 5,000 possible combinations for its ultra-luxurious bespoke division, Mulliner. They include everything from painted veneers and open pore wood to technical finishes and even genuine stone.

Using cutting-edge technology, Bentley can take natural slate and quartz and create veneers less than a tenth of a millimeter thick. The stone is sustainably sourced from Indian quarries and cured in a custom resin before being shaped by hand.

If you're now wondering how much said stone veneer weighs, don't worry; such a thin covering can't be much. Right? If, on the other hand, your concerns lie more with how safe a countertop-like dashboard could possibly be in the event of an accident, well ... good question.

↦ FYI: Bentley was founded in 1919 when 31-year-old Walter Owen Bentley opened a backstreet London garage to “build a fast car, a good car, the best in its class.”

In Other News

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

SNL’s 2020 fortune sketch

New things you’ll want to try

These voters

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