The Daily Valet. - 1/25/22, Tuesday

✔️ We've Made Serious Progress

Tuesday, January 25th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

Warning: this newsletter will make you want comfort food for lunch.

Cory Ohlendorf , Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s Big Story

COVID Progress

But don’t assume we’re reaching the ‘end game’, warns WHO

World health officials are offering hope that the ebbing of the omicron wave could give way to a new, more manageable phase of the pandemic. But there are still difficult weeks ahead and there is always the possibility of another, more dangerous variant arising.

In the U.S., cases have crested and are dropping rapidly, following a pattern seen in the first countries where it first showed up, with researchers projecting a period of low spread by the end of March. Though U.S. deaths—now at 2,000 each day—are still rising, hospital admissions are falling and a drop in deaths is expected to follow.

On Monday, the World Health Organization warned that it was dangerous to assume the omicron variant would herald the end of COVID-19’s acutest phase, exhorting nations to stay focused to beat the pandemic. “We’re now entering the third year and are at a critical juncture,” the WHO chief told Reuters. “We cannot let it continue to drag on, lurching between panic and neglect.”

So far, by either dumb luck or my Moderna booster, I’ve yet to test positive for the virus. I still mask up, but have recently returned to feeling comfortable going to more public places and eating at restaurants. In truth, I’m probably not living that much differently from those who declare themselves #DoneWithCovid. The phrase was trending on Twitter on Monday, in response to Bari Weiss’s declaration on Real Time With Bill Maher.

Of course, the desperate desire to get back to normal is understandable. Over the weekend, Dr. Anthony Fauci talked on ABC This Week about a “best-case scenario” where COVID-19 would fall to manageable levels so the United States could get “back to a degree of normality.” But as Michelle Goldberg argues, America won’t seem remotely normal until it’s a lot less sick.

Meanwhile, we should be vigilant about protecting ourselves and others. And just as free at-home tests are landing in the mailboxes of people who ordered them, the first free N95 masks for the public have started to arrive at pharmacies across the country, with more on the way in the coming days.

↦ FYI: More vaccinated people may get “hybrid” immunity after a breakthrough infection.

Student Loan Debt Strikes Are Coming

After being paused for nearly two years, repayment will return. Unless they don’t.

Student loan debt is currently crushing more than 43 million Americans and one of their highest-ranked allies says it's time to do something about it. Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren is calling for a student loan debt strike.

“The current pause on student loan debt repayment has shown how significant it is in the lives of millions of Americans,” she told Teen Vogue. “The pause has given people a chance. It's a reminder of how student loan debt now profoundly affects our economy.”

Warren has been beating the drum of reforming student loan debt for nearly a decade, since she got to the Senate in 2013. Her first piece of proposed legislation was to lower student loan interest rates.

Yesterday, the Student Debt Crisis Center reported the student loan total reached $1,877,711,241,136. In a survey last year, more than two-thirds of federal student loan borrowers said they would be financially screwed if they had to resume paying their student loans. But unless the Biden Administration acts soon, the freeze will expire on Jan. 31, 2022.

↦ FYI: Do you qualify for $5 billion of student loan forgiveness? Forbes has everything you need to know.

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Is Comfort Food a Myth?

That guilty pleasure you’re craving won't magically reverse negative feelings

I don't know about you, but I ate a lot of junk in the early stages of the pandemic. My sourdough-baking friend even showed me how to make fresh butter over FaceTime. There were cookies and a whole heap of chips and guacamole.

But that makes sense, right? Comfort food is an effective balm whenever we're going through a tough time. It's tasty, it's often filling and usually comes with a side of nostalgia. But it might be more of a placebo effect.

Recent research from the University of Minnesota concluded, in fact, that comfort food does not positively impact one's bad mood. That's not to say we're imagining things when comfort food gives us a “boost.” Some foods do release happy neurotransmitters like dopamine. But it's a short-lived rush, and if eaten regularly, it'll lose its potency.

Researchers found that whether participants ate comfort food, any food or no food didn't make a difference in their mood. “If you eat comfort food you might feel better, but if you didn't eat it, you would also feel better just with time going by,” one of the doctors told the New York Times. “People believe in comfort food, and they are giving it credit for mood improvements that would have happened anyway.”

↦ Meanwhile: So-called “comfort food” is now emerging on menus across the country because it's currently so craved.

Self-Driving Cars to Be Scored for Safety

Insurance safety watchdog says no automaker currently meets the new criteria

The technology goes by many names. Tesla calls it their Autopilot, Volvo says it's Pilot Assist and in GM vehicles, it goes by Super Cruise. Whatever name you give the fancy driver assistance systems in today's cars, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) is going to start figuring out just how safe they really are.

The insurance safety watchdog just announced it will create “safeguard ratings for partial automation” technology and will rank these features with one of four ratings: Good, Acceptable, Marginal, and Poor. The reason, IIHS said, was because “there is no evidence that these automation systems make driving safe. In fact, the opposite may be the case if systems lack adequate safeguards.”

According to Jalopnik, IIHS will issue its first official ratings later this year, in part because it has had trouble getting cars to test because of the chip shortage.

Consumer Reports also shares the same concerns. The organization recently announced that it will test driver monitoring systems for cars that are equipped with these systems. The only automakers that passed their parameters were Ford and General Motors. But, these new IIHS parameters are even stricter and on the upside, the ratings will no doubt make these worrisome systems much more safer.

↦ Dig Deeper: In the announcement, IIHS pointedly mentioned a deadly Tesla Model X crash in 2018.

In Other News

↦ Idaho Is Sitting on One of the Most Important Elements on Earth

↦ Guys Are Paying $10,000 to Become 'Real Men’ at Warrior Camps

↦ George Jetson Will Be Born in 2022 and Other Predictions From The Jetsons

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

Sid’s style

Celebrities we’ve lost to NFTs

This retro bar set

Take a Chance

Don’t be timid. Being risky can often pay off.

Here’s an interesting story about Brett Goldstein, the British actor and comedian who plays the lovably gruff Roy Kent on Ted Lasso. Or rather, about how he was never supposed to be on the series.

He was hired as a writer and in the early days of the show's development, he was hit with an overwhelming sensation. “We were in the writer's room and by about episode five, I started to think: 'I really understand Roy Kent. I really understand Roy Kent,'” he told For The Win. But he knew he ran the risk of stepping on someone's toes if he suggested himself for the part.

But he mustered the courage to put an audition on tape and quietly sent it to Jason Sudeikis and the entire production team. He advocated for himself, explaining that he wanted the role and felt he'd make an excellent Roy Kent. But he also mentioned that if the scenes were horrible, then he'd happily go back to being just a writer for the show. The rest, as they say, is history.

When you look back on your life or career to date, are there times where you wish you'd been a little braver? Trusted in your own abilities more? Perhaps been less cautious in the chances you took? We're not telling you to be careless, but we do want to remind you that with no risk, there is no reward.

↦ Read: Why you should take a chance

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Don’t Just Give a Gift

Solstice organic chemise, $48 by Coyuchi

Anyone can give a gift. Buy something and toss a bow on it ... you know the routine. But the best gifts say something about the giver and the recipient. It should be thoughtful—designed to delight or offer a helpful solution. Maybe it's an upgrade on something she uses daily. Maybe it's a piece of jewelry or lingerie that you know she'll love but wouldn't splurge on for herself. This is your opportunity to give her something that makes her world a little better each day. Herewith, a few well-curated selections from the Huckberry team.