The Daily Valet. - 12/1/23, Friday
✔️ Get the Lead Out
Friday, December 1st Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
Did this week kick anyone else's butt? Let's take it easy this weekend, ok?
Today’s Big Story
Biden Requires the Removal of Lead Pipes
ripping out nine million pipes across the U.S. would nearly eliminate the neurotoxin from drinking water
I have to say, I was a little shocked by the number. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that around 9.2 million lead pipelines bring water to people across the U.S. The pipes can corrode over time when water has high acidity or low mineral content. And exposure to the extremely toxic heavy metal can have dangerous health effects. Which is why the Biden administration on Thursday proposed new restrictions that would require the removal of virtually all lead water pipes across the country in an effort to prevent another public health catastrophe like the one that came to define Flint, Michigan.The proposal would require most American cities to replace any existing lead water pipelines within the next 10 years—regardless of the lead levels in tap or other drinking water samples. Experts agree that no amount of lead exposure is safe. Excessive exposure can put adults at higher risk for cancer, stroke, kidney disease and other poor health outcomes. It's particularly harmful for children; even low levels of lead can negatively affect a child's growth and development, and childhood exposure can lead to long-term harm, according to the CDC.Of course, digging up and replacing lead pipes from coast to coast is no small undertaking. The EPA estimates the price at around $20 billion over a decade. Much of the funding for the project will in part come from the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The legislation included $15 billion for lead service line replacement and $11.7 billion in safe drinking water funds that can also be used to replace pipes. The rest, however, would require the nation's utilities—and most likely their ratepayers—to absorb the difference.In addition to replacing pipelines, the agency wants to lower the lead level threshold at which utilities are required to take action and improve tap sampling requirements. Companies will be forced to provide water filters to customers if at least 10 parts per billion of lead are found in 90% of samples taken within three rounds of testing, and the method for how water samples are tested will be updated.A 2021 analysis by an environmental nonprofit found that more than half of the population drank from water systems that had detected lead levels exceeding those recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. But now, the EPA will accept public comments on the proposal for 60 days and could still make changes to it before making it final sometime next year.
FYI:
In 1986, Congress amended the Safe Drinking Water Act, prohibiting the use of new lead pipes in the United States.
Israel-Hamas Truce Extended to 7th Day
Israel agrees to protect civilians when Gaza war resumes
After a tense and lengthy back-and-forth on extending the truce into a seventh day, the Israeli government eventually accepted a proposal for Hamas to release eight new Israeli hostages on Thursday. Israel agreed to count two Israeli-Russian hostages who were set free on Wednesday as part of Thursday's release, multiple sources familiar with the discussions told CNN.As the day came to a close, Israel indicated it would support another extension in order to allow for the release of more hostages, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Israel to take “more effective steps” to protect civilian life. The Washington Post called it a sign of the intensifying U.S. pressure that Israel faces to recalibrate its approach amid the war's grave humanitarian toll.The latest discussions to prolong the truce that has temporarily halted Israel's bombardment of Gaza coincided with Blinken's arrival in Israel to push for a more permanent resolution to the conflict. But the Israelis left no doubt that they intended to abandon the week-long pause in their military campaign as soon as Hamas stops releasing hostages. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said that Israeli forces will resume operations to “crush Hamas” once the truce expires.
Meanwhile:
Israeli officials obtained Hamas’s battle plan for the Oct. 7 terrorist attack more than a year before it happened, but they dismissed it as aspirational and ignored warnings.
People Keep Suing Celebrities Over Crypto Losses
Cristiano Ronaldo, Gisele Bündchen, and Larry David have all landed in legal Trouble
Soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is facing a $1 billion class action lawsuit in the U.S. after promoting his collaboration with cryptocurrency exchange Binance on social media. He partnered with the crypto exchange in November 2022 and released “CR7” NFTs, which he claimed were “going to change the game and take football to the next level.” Now, he's facing legal action for promoting the teetering brand.And he's not the only one. A series of class-action suits targeting celebrity endorsers of crypto exchanges like FTX and Binance have been piling up in federal court in Miami, all filed by the same group of South Florida lawyers. The legal team has brought the suits on behalf of investors who lost money in the crypto collapse against paid endorsers including Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen, Shaquille O’Neal, Mark Cuban, Shohei Ohtani, Larry David, Steph Curry and Naomi Osaka.The plaintiffs are investors who claim the celebrities' promotion of the cryptocurrency exchanges led them to make loss-making investments. As Quartz put it, the expectation is that every celebrity be more like Taylor Swift. “The most bankable music sensation at the moment, the Midnights artist decided against working with FTX because it couldn't answer her question: Can you tell me that these are not unregistered securities?”
FYI:
The SEC says assets like cryptocurrencies can be considered “securities” (financial assets that can be traded) and thus celebrities endorsing them must follow U.S. law.
Cybertruck Deliveries Finally Start
But there’s still a long road ahead for the angular, polarizing truck
Call it a Christmas miracle: At its Austin-area factory Thursday, Tesla finally handed over the first Cybertucks to customers—marking the official start of sales for this unique model that was unveiled back in 2019. Jalopnik warns that it's “hard to call this a 'production' launch, as they'll still be effectively in the hands of in-house beta testers, but it's a lot closer to production than the truck was a year ago.”The company also provided updated details about the pricing range and features for the truck, much of which has changed significantly from the originally announced numbers. The rear-wheel drive version of the electric truck will start at $60,990—up from the original price of $39,900 in 2019—and will get 250 miles of range on a full charge. That version won't be available until 2025.In the dimly lit event space within Tesla's headquarters, Elon Musk hyped up the fans in attendance saying, “What we have here is a better truck than a truck, while also being a better sports car than a sports car in the same package.” The Cybertruck is the automaker's first new passenger-vehicle model in more than three years, and executives are counting on it to bring new buzz to the brand. Already, Tesla is facing fiercer competition in the EV space, including from automakers such as Ford Motor and Rivian Automotive that have beat Tesla to the market with electric pickups.
FYI:
Hundreds of thousands of people have placed $100 refundable deposits, but we don't know how many of those will translate into real sales.
In Other News
Maverick Carter told the feds he bet thousands on games over a year.
An Appeals Court Reinstates Gag Order That Barred Trump From Maligning Court Staff in New York Fraud Trial
Have you heard about ...
A Weekend Pairing
‘May December’ + a Nor’easter Cocktail
A tawdry tabloid tale becomes a gripping melodrama in the buzzed-about film fest darling May December, now streaming on Netflix. Director Todd Haynes' study of human behavior, arrested development and what happens when deep emotional scars are left to scab over features a handful of excellent performances from its leads (Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore), including a breakout performance from Riverdale's Charles Melton.Loosely based on the Mary Kay Letourneau saga of a high school teacher falling for her student, Portman plays a television actress, who's visiting Savannah, Georgia, to study for a role. She's spending time with Gracie (Moore) and Joe (Melton), a couple who were the center of a nationwide scandal when Gracie slept with Joe, with whom she worked at a pet store, when she was 36 and he was just 13 years old. It's now 20 years later. Gracie served time for her crime and is now married to Joe with kids, but what will this rehashing bring back up? While some reviewers have called the film campy, others call it “brilliant and heartbreaking.” If it's too early to break out the holiday films, this might be a good one to watch this weekend.
Pair It With
Honestly, I wasn't sure what to pair with this story, but I figured something strong and maybe ... spicy? The Nor'easter uses Ancho Reyes liqueur for a hint of sweetness, and a touch of spice. And that seems fitting.
Also Worth a Watch:
‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe’ on Hulu; ‘The James Bond’ franchise on Max
Shopping
What We’re Buying
A coffee table book
When you don't know what to get someone, but you want to make an impact and show them you do know something about their tastes and personality, opt for a book. Ideally, a coffee table book. The great thing about them is that they're meant to be savored. Oversized and plenty thick, they tend to take a while to get through. You pick one up, indulge yourself for a while and then set it back down. When you give a coffee table book, you're giving an activity, a true objet d'art and the gift of time. Here are a handful of our team's favorites to spruce up someone's space and pique their intellectual curiosity.
Our Pick:
Tokyo Chic, $105 by Assouline
Morning Motto
Go for it.
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