When Minnesota's Operation Safety Net, a coordinated effort among nine Minnesota law enforcement agencies, was announced in February 2021, its mission was to ensure the trial of Derek Chauvin would proceed peacefully. It also promised to protect people's right to gather and demonstrate peacefully.
We investigate the political economy of Buy Now, Pay Later companies. What are they, where did they come from, how do they work, why are they booming, and who is winning and losing? We focus our analysis on the big three BNPLs – Klarna, Afterpay, Affirm – each one a super decacorn company that has benefited immensely from debt fuelled spending during the pandemic.
Some stuff we reference:
••• Would You Take Out a Loan for a Pair of Jeans? | Susie Cagle racked.com/2017/11/29/16710502/affirm-loan-shopping
••• Buying a new purse? This startup wants to help you pay for it — but could also get you into debt. | Susie Cagle vox.com/platform/amp/the-goods/2019/1/14/18178772/afterpay-stores-installment-urban-outfitters
••• BNPLs: Businesses Needing Provided Legibility | Patrick McKenzie bam.kalzumeus.com/archive/buy-now-pay-later/
••• I Bought a Burrito From Chipotle in Four Easy Payments | Ryan Felton consumerreports.org/shopping-retail/the-downsides-of-expanding-buy-now-pay-later-plans-a2840564542/
••• The Risks of Buy Now, Pay Later Programs | Penelope Wang consumerreports.org/shopping-retail/risks-of-buy-now-pay-later-programs-a1000664957/
••• Predatory Inclusion and Education Debt: Rethinking the Racial Wealth Gap | Louise Seamster, Raphaël Charron-Chénier journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2329496516686620
Subscribe to hear more analysis and commentary in our premium episodes every week! patreon.com/thismachinekills
Grab fresh new TMK gear: bonfire.com/store/this-machine-kills-podcast/
Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (twitter.com/jathansadowski) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (twitter.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (twitter.com/braunestahl)
On this week’s edition of The Best of the Gist, Mike bemoans Russia’s arrest of basketball star Brittney Griner and what it says about our current moment. Then, we listen back to a happier time…March 7, 2017, to be exact, when Henry “Fonzie” Winkler was our guest. Fun Fonzie Fact: Did you know that Henry has written dozens of children's books featuring the character Hank Zipzer? True story. Happy Days are here again, literally.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law that could impose fifteen years in prison on anyone who publishes or broadcasts what the Russian government considers "false information" about the invasion of Ukraine. The law makes it illegal to use the word "war" or "invasion," a move aimed at shutting down the last remaining independent Russian media outlets.
Even as news is being censored and social media platforms are being shut down, some people in Russia are determined to be heard. The Russian independent human rights group OVD-Info reports that more than 13,000 protesters in 147 cities have been detained since the war began just over two weeks ago.
Yulia Zhivtsova is one of those protesters. She was detained in Moscow for taking part in protests the day after Russia invaded Ukraine. She's one of the thousands of protesters across the country who are defying the threat of violence and prison to express their opposition to the war in Ukraine.
And we'll hear how Russian immigrants and Russian Americans are showing support for Ukraine as attitudes among some in their community shift from acceptance of Putin to outrage.
We try to catch up on what the Court did since we last recorded, but end only making it through the Court's opinions in United States v. Zubaydah and Wooden v. United States.
A company's financials are more than just a set of numbers. They can tell a story that helps us understand the core of a business and where its growth opportunity lies.
John Rotonti talks with fellow Motley Fool senior analyst Auri Hughes about the financials to watch before putting your money into a publicly traded company. They discuss: - Profit drivers in a company’s balance sheet - The portions of a 10-K that investors should pay close attention to - Metric that provide insights about a company’s growth prospects
Stocks discussed: AAPL, SBUX, CPRT, CNSWF
Host: John Rotonti Guest: Auri Hughes Producer: Ricky Mulvey Engineer: Tim Sparks, Rick Engdahl
Guest Rogue, Brian Wecht; News Items: Solid State Batteries, Are Coronal Loops Real, COVID Anosmia, Alcohol and the Brain; Special Report: Update on String Theory; Quickie with Bob: Bacteria Convert Sunlight to Energy; Who's That Noisy; Science or Fiction
On this edition of the “Weekly Recap,” NLW wraps up the week with a look at a growing macro discourse around the possibility of recession, along with catching up on important stories in crypto including the election of a new, pro-crypto president in South Korea.
-
Take your crypto to the next level with Nexo. Invest and swap instantly, earn up to 20% APR on your idle assets or borrow cash against them at industry-leading rates. Get started today at nexo.io to receive up to a $100 welcome bonus. Valid through March 31.
-
Arculus™ is the next-gen cold storage wallet for your crypto. The sleek, metal Arculus Key™ Card authenticates with the Arculus Wallet™ App, providing a simpler, safer and more secure solution to store, send, receive, buy and swap your crypto. Buy now at amazon.com.
-
FTX US is the safe, regulated way to buy Bitcoin, ETH, SOL and other digital assets. Trade crypto with up to 85% lower fees than top competitors and trade ETH and SOL NFTs with no gas fees and subsidized gas on withdrawals. Sign up at FTX.US today.
-
“The Breakdown” is written, produced by and features Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with editing by Rob Mitchell, research by Scott Hill and additional production support by Eleanor Pahl. Adam B. Levine is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. The music you heard today behind our sponsor is “I Don't Know How To Explain It” by Aaron Sprinkle. Image credit: mikroman6/Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk. Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.
In the Indiana Jones movies, Indiana is usually searching for a rare artifact with mystical powers while some other nefarious archeologist, usually a Nazi, is trying to find the artifact before Indy.
Believe it or not, that trope of a Nazi archeologist looking for an item of incredible power actually has a kernel of truth to it.
Sort of.
Learn more about Otto Rahn and the real-life Nazi search for the Holy Grail on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.