The Daily Valet. - 4/10/23, Monday
✔️ Can This Be Cool Again?
Monday, April 10th Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
Share this newsletter with someone you think would benefit. If we get over 100 new subscribers in the next 24 hours, I'll change my photo to one with a milk mustache.
Today’s Big Story
Can Milk Regain Its Cool?
Alarmed by dwindling sales to Gen Z, the dairy industry is going all out to get younger Americans on the milk train
Do you remember the ads? That “Got Milk” campaign was, for my generation at least pretty cool at the time. But did it really work? Because it seems to have turned some '90s and early-aughts kids into dairy-wary adults. And the people younger than us are even less interested in cow's milk.In a recent New York Times article, Generation Z was dubbed the “Not Milk generation” because they bought 20% less milk than the national average last year. And who could blame them? This was the first group to grow up as alternatives like almond milk and oat milk became trendy.Industry experts worry that if those trends continue, milk's sales might never be able to recover. The dairy industry is trying to do everything it can to make cow's milk cool again. They've pivoted from “Got milk?” to “Gonna need milk,” which positions the beverage as the ultimate sports drink. (You picturing downing some milk on the treadmill, too? Yikes.) The campaign's website prominently features athletes and influencers, showcasing milk's hydration and muscle-building powers—and looks a lot more like it's advertising Gatorade than milk. Is this what the Zoomers want?But we can't just blame the kids. While the glut of cool, plant-based alternatives might seem like the obvious scapegoat, there seem to be several factors involved in milk's downfall. The decline has been happening for decades. Americans' annual milk consumption peaked at 45 gallons per person in 1945, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It fell to about 23 gallons in 2001, and by 2021 it was down to around 16 gallons.Of course, the Times points out that dairy milk is still a big business. Last year, milk sales were almost $15.7 billion, compared with $2.4 billion for alternative milks. Milk's real competition is other beverages—everything from water, both bottled and tap, and specialty coffee drinks, often served with a splash of ... you guessed it, oat milk.
Shhhhh:
The Beet reported on a study which said 49% of Gen Zers “felt ashamed to order dairy in public in front of their peers.”
Leaked Pentagon Docs Spread Online
What Do these Alleged Classified Documents Contain and Who Leaked Them?
This is messy. One of the largest leaks of alleged classified American military documents in years has sparked an official investigation by the Department of Defense and could complicate U.S. support for Ukraine shortly before a major offensive by Kyiv.Complete with timelines and dozens of impenetrable military acronyms, the documents, some of them marked “top secret,” paint a detailed picture of the war in Ukraine. A lot of the details are familiar. There's just a lot more of it, and it's all in one place. According to NBC News, the documents first appeared online (photographs of classified Pentagon briefing reports), and a senior U.S. official said over the weekend that the government's “working theory” is that they are real, although some of them could've been altered.But one big detail that's been learned is that Ukraine may be running out of antiaircraft missiles. Without a huge influx of munitions, the country's entire air defense network, weakened by repeated barrages from Russian drones and missiles, could fracture. If that's true, the New York Times points out, Putin could unleash his lethal fighter jets in ways that would soon change the course of the war.
Dig Deeper:
The investigative open source intelligence group, Bellingcat, looks at how the documents found their way from the messaging platform Discord, to 4Chan and Telegram.
Access to Abortion Drug Is in Limbo
Health secretary slams abortion pill ruling as ‘not America’
The nation's top health official said Sunday that the Friday-night Texas court ruling threatening the availability of a main drug used in medication abortion was “not America” and he did not rule out defying the judge's order if necessary. Meanwhile, a Washington state judge issued a competing ruling, ordering that access to the drug be preserved in 17 states.Health Secretary Xavier Becerra stressed that for now, women do have access to the abortion medication mifepristone. The drug was first approved in 2000 by the Food and Drug Administration, and has been widely available and the most commonly used method of abortion in the United States for two decades.President Joe Biden vowed to fight the Texas ruling and the Justice Department voiced its disagreement with the opinion as well. But the Supreme Court's move to strike down Roe v. Wade last year has done what many had feared: Thrust the issue of reproductive rights back into the spotlight ahead of the 2024 election. Democrats are pledging to fight against the rollback of abortion access, while many Republicans seek to further curtail access.
Dig Deeper:
How exactly does the medication work? NPR explains how and why it's used and the difference between mifepristone and Plan B.
Who’s Up for Karaoke?
Don't pass up using Karaoke Mode on Apple Music, Spotify, and More
Driving can be a real pain, but the one thing I miss is being able to just vibe out and sing in a safely enclosed capsule. Thankfully, I currently live in Tokyo—a city known for countless karaoke joints that will happily provide you with a similar enclosed capsule (and bonus, serve you drinks!). But even if you don't have that at your disposal, you can still belt out your favorite songs on your own device.Suddenly, every top music streaming service has a special mode that will highlight the lyrics in time with the music, while minimizing the main vocal tracks so you can shine through—for better or worse. And according to internal data, they're getting used more and more these days.Wired says that despite being a latecomer to the music streaming party, Apple currently has the best options, including a unique way to break up duet vocals to make it easier to sing with a partner. But Spotify and Amazon Music, even Deezer and Tidal, all have their own versions as well.
Meanwhile:
The karaoke account of scandal-ridden Representative George Santos has been unearthed on the singing app Smule.
In Other News
A $377 million box office weekend.
Have you heard about ...
The Stylish Man’s Secret
Taking care of your shoes is the best way to save money on quality footwear
Writer Brett F. Braley-Palko believes that spending upwards of $500 on a single pair of shoes can be a bit ridiculous. Which is why he doesn't ... or, rather, he hasn't since 2019, when he started using a cobbler.Most people would tell you that shoes really aren't built the way they used to be. But some still are. And those are usually an investment. If you're fed up with cheap, uncomfortable footwear that wears out in less than a year, then you're better off buying quality shoes and then taking care of that investment. Or buying high-end shoes secondhand and taking them to a cobbler to be refurbished. I'll let Brett explain.
Get Started:
The benefits of employing a cobbler.
Shopping
What We’re Buying
Hybrid shorts
Is it too early to break out the shorts? Perhaps. But this is when you want to buy a good pair, before they sell out. Buck Mason makes some really good hybrid shorts ($98) that are cut from a four-way stretch that makes them easy to move in, as well as quick-drying for adventures in and out of the water. The brand's signature Venice Wash combines small-batch garment dyeing and natural enzyme rinsing to create subtle color variation. Which means while these look like the perfect vintage shorts, they feel incredibly modern.
Want More?
The five stylish items you should be buying this week.
Morning Motto
It’s Monday. Don’t rush it.
▾
Follow:
Share today’s motto:
