Making America Great Again -- August 17, 2017; Laptop Buying

Consumer confidence: almost double that of last year. Link: https://today.yougov.com/news/2017/08/14/americans-see-better-economic-news-republicans-tur/. See first comment.

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Confidence in Kids

$15/hr minimum wage will kill summer jobs? From The WSJ today -- youth jobless rate falls to level of 1969.

The unemployment rate among young Americans fell this summer to match the lowest level in nearly a half-century.

Wow, 1969:

• the year I graduated from high school; that summer, the first of many great summer jobs
• the best year ever for music, bar none

From another blog:

The top 100 songs of 1969.

There was an 18-month-period, from late 1968 through mid-1970 that clearly had some of the best music ever. 

This was the year of Woodstock.

The Beatles were still going strong, but touring less, and would soon stop completely. 

Led Zeppelin's first two albums, Zeppelin I and Zeppelin II, were released in 1969.

The era of "free love" and the uncertainties of the Vietnam War probably contributed to some of this really incredible music. Speaking of the Vietnam war, I turned 18 in 1969. My lottery draft was July 1, 1970; my lottery number was 103. The highest lottery number called for this group was 125; all men assigned that lottery number or any lower number, and who were classified as available for military service, were called to report for possible induction. I would have been deferred by virtue of being enrolled in college. I was worried that I would be called up before I graduated from college. I was convinced, but wrong, that the war would still be going on when I graduated from college.

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Laptop Shopping

Page B1 of today's Wall Street Journal: how to ease the pain of laptop shopping.

Cut to the chase: what's one laptop the writer would be happy with right now? the 13-inch HP Spectre x360 -- starts at $940.

• no port drama: 
• it has a standard USB-A for accessories you already own
• two USB-C ports for charging and future add-ons
• 2.89 pounds; weighs less than the MacBook Air (2.96 pounds)

Microsoft Surface: survey suggests 25% of Microsoft products were having problems by the of their second year -- much higher than for other brands

MacBook Air?

• 7-year-old model, but keeps getting updated
• $1,000
• great battery life: over 10 hours in writer's test
• but don't buy it: 
• the Air's screen isn't HD-quality
• writer predicts it will go away once Apple can get its super-slim 12-inch MacBook down to $1,000

Which Mac laptop is worth buying? many reasons to buy a Mac, but ...

• the problem: Apple's latest line, the ultralight MacBook and MacBook Pros, jacked up prices and put sleek looks ahead of functionality
• they only come with the smaller USB-C ports
• Apple charges $25 for a cable to plug in an iPhone