Twenty Minutes -- Fast And Furious -- September 25, 2020

Note: I apologize for all The WSJ links. I know they are behind a paywall. When I get caught up, I will post additional material for each of the more important WSJ stories. In addition, there are often ways to get around the paywall; and, many of the stories are re-printed elsewhere by other sources.

First things first:

• oh, my bad. Stanley Cup -- game tonight, not last night. Moving on.

PAC-12: re-posting.

• I find this incredible. The west coast flip-flop on college football. Speaks volumes about priorities. I can only guess "they" were watching all those college football games being played on TV the past two weeks and finally came to their senses; so much for player safety (which, of course, was never the issue); in The WSJ; 
  

Did You EverHave To Make Up Your Mind? MonaLisa Twins ft John sebastianApple:

• writer for The WSJ -- target audience, millionaires -- readers won't spend extra $129 for the new  Watch; yes this will get a stand-alone post; link here;
• the business and pleasure of dining out, The WSJ;
• how much does fine dining cost?

Cheating scandal:

• UC, admissions, Senator Feinstein's husband; story has no legs; in The WSJ;

EVs:

• California's ban on new gasoline-fuel automobiles will upend the market; in The WSJ;

Nikola:

• background; be sure to read the comments; helps explain things; at this link, this social media comment:
• GM deal has zero risk for GM. It look like in hindsight that the deal was a hail mary by Nikola to pivot and get some product and revenue on the table. They were paying GM $2.7B for GM to build a plant owned and operated by GM that would then produce vehicle for profit to sell to Nikola. If Nikola had done this pivot a year earlier it might have been successful I think they just stuck with the con until it was too late. 
• If the deal falls apart before GM gets paid anything then GM walks away with nothing but loses nothing. If GM gets paid some of what they are owed and then the deal falls apart GM comes out ahead. If GM gets paid everything they are owed and then the deal falls apart GM comes out more ahead. If somehow Nikola turns the corner and survives long enough to start selling GM trucks with a Nikola sticker on them then GM is even more ahead.
• If I were running GM I would take any deal where an outsider pays me $2.7B to build a plant I get to own and then acts as a sole supplier to supply them trucks on a cost plus basis after they built the plant on their dime.

Global warming and rising sea levels:

• UK home buyers don't care; aren't worried; 
• UK home buyers pay nearly 50% more to live "on the water"
• waterfront homes command major premiums as a rush of home buyers descend on rural and second-home markets;
• estuaries -- where fresh and saltwater meet -- command the greatest price premiums, commanding as much as 70% premium;
• “The U.K. lockdown provided people with plenty of time to think about their current lifestyles and reassess where they want to live,” said Chris Druce, a senior researcher for the report. “It is no surprise that waterfront living, in keeping with people’s desire for more space and greenery, remains in such high demand.” 
  

Pandemic:

• less food spoilage; Costco cashing in; The WSJ;
• high jobless claims: labor market recovery is slowing; actually it's something else;

Not so random:

• the 1955 Rand Corp book of a million random digits turns out not to be so random. Again, The WSJ.

Deep doo-doo:

• OPEC in trouble as oil outlook worsens. Link to Irina Slav.
• Russia: value of Russia's oil reserves drops b $129 billion; link to Charles Kennedy;
• Hope springs eternal, but it still won't be enough: GS expects Brent to hit $49 by year-end; link to Tsvetana Paraskova;

Mideast on the brink:

• Iran opens naval base along oil chokepoint. Link to Bloomberg via Rigzone.  Also, interestingly enough, a link to Charles Kennedy.
• US is preparing military response to wave of Iranian-backed attacks on its forces in Iraq;
  

Big_Orrin on supply and demand: link here.

And done!! Will correct typos and content later. Will fill out stories later, especially my favorite: Apple.