Wednesday Night #2214

The 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC)
We are glued to and loving the NPR Network coverage of the DNC. What a joy to see Judy Woodruff reunited with Amy Walter and David Brooks. Although he’s no Mark Shields, Jonathan Capehart contributes some original viewpoints, while News Hour Co-hosts Geoff Bennett and Amna Nawaz do an excellent job of keeping things on track.
Night 3
Tim Walz will have his moment Wednesday night when he accepts the Democratic Party’s vice presidential nomination.
As on the previous nights, the platform will be crowded: – Nancy Pelosi, sure to be outshone by the always eloquent and thoughtful Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg – not to mention William Jefferson Clinton!
Night 2
With humor and hope, Obamas warn against Trump, urge Democrats to ‘do something’ while Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff delightfully described life with Happy Warrior ‘Momala’ Harris.
‘Black jobs’ and ‘basement dwellers’: Memorable lines from DNC Night 2
Michelle Obama turned Donald Trump’s comment against him. Barack Obama framed the election as a stark choice. And Doug Emhoff described his first date with Kamala Harris.
The only disappointment for us was Nancy Pelosi’s NPR guest appearance. We hope she does (much) better on Wednesday night
Night 1
Biden passes the torch to Harris on first night of DNC
The convention’s first night emphasized the history-making nature of Vice President Kamala Harris’s candidacy.
The crowd greeted the president with chants of “We love Joe!” He responded, “I love you too.”
Earlier, Hillary Clinton delivered an emotional address — part of a lineup packed with women, a nod to the glass ceiling Ms. Harris is seeking to break.

Should you need any more convincing, Doug Sweet suggests Trump Isn’t Finished Powerful arguments about how a second Trump term would be far, far worse than the first

Believe it or not, there are other important developments in the rest of the world.
Just when everyone had pretty well given up -or at least moderated expectations- Ukraine appears to have bounced back.
Ukraine launches Moscow drone attack as Kursk offensive continues
Robert Clark’s analysis of the psychological effect on Putin and his oligarch supporters makes for a very good long read (below).

Israel, Hamas, U.S. and Middle East
After an initial flurry of optimism over the weekend as the U.S. presented a new ‘bridging proposal’ and Antony Blinken undertook his (9th) visit to Israel and the Middle East, by Wednesday hopes had faded, if not been dashed. President Biden once again spoke with Netanyahu but there seems little hope that Israel and Hamas will come to agreement on a cease-fire deal in any immediate future.

No solution in sight for Venezuela‘s crisis
Venezuelans stage global protests, seek recognition of election victory
In Venezuela and cities around the world, protesters carried vote tally receipts collected by the opposition showing that their candidate won more votes.

One of the week’s more bizarre stories is the Mike Lynch yacht disaster:
Sicily yacht sinking: five bodies reportedly found; two identified – English banker Jonathan Bloomer and American lawyer Chris Morvillo reportedly confirmed as among bodies recovered by Italian rescuer
…the disappearance of British tech tycoon Mike Lynch in stormy seas off the coast of Sicily was even made stranger by the fact that two days earlier, his business partner Stephen Chamberlain was fatally injured in a car accident. There is nothing so far to indicate foul play in either man’s respective accidents, which have been put down to a tragic coincidence.
Following the sale of Autonomy in 2011, Lynch co-founded the cybersecurity firm Darktrace and Chamberlain was appointed chief financial officer.
The Cambridge-based company fights cyberattacks using software that learns the behavioral patterns of every actor within an organization and detects unusual activity.
According to Politico Eu, adding to the intrigue are the business partners’ ties to the worlds of U.K. and U.S. intelligence. Read on for the fun part

We have queried Marc Nicholson about how 1880 Hong Kong will take advantage of (monetize?) the news that Hong Kong’s 4 new giant pandas called game-changer for tourism industry — City can adopt animal as mascot, develop range of IP products and use its image on Cathay planes,tourism leaders and lawmakers say There should be some good graphics possibilities for 1880.

Canada has made it into AP nightly news headlines: Canada’s two major freight railroads may stop Thursday if contract dispute isn’t resolved
CTV is slightly more restrained.
Commuters, billions of dollars could be affected by rail strike;
All will be anxiously watching the resolution -or not- of the national railway strike threat. According to the Railway Association of Canada, affected rails carry more than $1 billion worth of goods each day. More than 32,000 rail commuters in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver will also be impacted, but government intervention not likely.
‘A war zone’ in Jasper: What it’s like to come home after a wildfire
Recent rainfall has dampened the spread of the wildfire, which is still burning. “We’re not expecting any future growth or any threat to the municipality at this time,” said Mathew Conte, the fire chief for the Municipality of Jasper.
Jasper residents, business owners and professionals helping them are returning to town.
Quebec continues to navel gaze over linguistic/health issues.
Hope you all saw:  ‘Every 4 to 6 months, they pick an issue and attack the English-speaking community’
Quebec’s directive on language in the health care system is just another example of political pandering, says lawyer Eric Maldoff.
He was joined on/at The Corner Booth by Maldoff was joined by Sylvia Martin-Laforge,  who added the messaging she’s received from Quebec officials has not assuaged her concerns. “Either the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing or there’s serious obfuscation here about their intentions around the English-speaking community,” she said

U.S. economy
Brooks and Capehart on Harris’ economic policy proposals

Varia
How Wharton and Other Top Business Schools Are Training MBAs for the Climate Economy
As corporate America reckons with the climate crisis, business schools are adapting MBAs to focus on climate and sustainability.
In May, The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania graduated its first cohort of MBA students with a new Environmental, Social and Governance major. The program came in response to the pressure climate change has placed on businesses and industries to grapple with related financial risks—and capitalize on the transition to renewable energy. Along with studying traditional Master’s of Business Administration subjects like marketing and finance, the 52 students also delved into topics such as water governance, carbon offsets and greenhouse gas emissions.
The White House plan to stop companies from wasting our time
(NPR) … What if, in some instances, making their customers’ lives a nightmare can actually help companies make a profit? Like, for example, making it unnecessarily difficult to cancel a subscription, get an airline ticket refund, or file an insurance claim.
A new initiative from The Biden-Harris administration aims to stomp out corporate shenanigans that it says “add unnecessary headaches and hassles to people’s days and degrade their quality of life.” They’re calling it the “Time Is Money” initiative, and it’s a suite of executive actions across numerous federal agencies aimed at eradicating time-sucking business practices.
‘Life and Death’ for Pets: Elizabeth Warren Targets Firm Buying Veterinary Offices
The progressive senator says private equity takeovers of veterinary practices are harming “veterinarians and customers alike”
pet medical costs [have] surged. Fortune recently highlighted one reason why: Private equity firms have rapidly acquired veterinary practices, and now own nearly 30 percent of the marketplace.
The magazine’s investigation focused on a Houston-area veterinary hospital owned by JAB Holding Company, a German-owned private equity firm best known for its investments in bakery chains and beverage companies. In recent years, JAB has scooped up so many specialty and emergency veterinary hospitals that the Federal Trade Commission has already twice ordered the firm to divest its clinics in certain areas. The firm is also buying up pet insurance companies.

Long reads/listens
Very, very long, fascinating and instructive Heather Cox Richardson video including an introductory segment on the history of Chicago
Ukraine’s drones hammer Moscow, bringing a harsh message to Russian oligarchs
War is coming and you cannot sit it out as spectators
Ukraine’s incursion into Russia was risky but ‘worth it,’ says history professor (audio)
Kyiv estimates troops captured 1,000 square kilometres of Russian territory
New Canadian ‘centrist’ party accuses rivals of extremism (audio)
A new federal political party, the Canadian Future Party, is pitching itself as a centrist alternative for voters disillusioned with the Conservatives and Liberals. It’s already announced candidates for two upcoming byelections.