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- Salty Ginger Talk Newsletter
Trump won’t pause tariffs but is willing to negotiate
Our take: A major part of then-candidate Donald Trump’s economic plan was to impose tariffs on countries that were not acting as good trading partners with the US. True to his word, sweeping tariffs were imposed on dozens of countries last week. When asked about the tariffs, Trump said he has no plans to pause or remove the tariffs but was willing to negotiate with other countries.
Even as he signaled an openness to hear out world leaders' concerns with the steep tariffs, Trump said that doesn't mean the tariffs won't be permanent.
“They can both be true,” Trump said. “There can be permanent tariffs, and there can also be negotiations because there are things we need beyond tariffs.”
“We’re not looking at that,” Trump said when asked about a potential pause on his tariffs, which rattled the stock market for the third consecutive trading day on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 367 points.
“We have many, many countries that are coming to negotiate deals with us,” Trump added. "They're going to be fair deals, and in certain cases, they're going to be paying substantial tariffs."
The tariff play is a risky one, no doubt. That said, one of the things we do not hear many people talking about is the fact that many of these nations were already imposing tariffs on US imports into their countries. These tariffs in many cases put US businesses at a significant trade disadvantage, tipping the scales in favor of the home countries businesses.
We suspect, despite statements to the contrary, Trump will reduce or eliminate these tariffs if other countries come to the negotiating table with deals that create a more level environment for US businesses.
COURTESY: USA TODAY
Amazon driver saves woman who signaled him for help during delivery
Our take: Amazon has brought affordability and convenience to countries around the world. Some love Amazon, and some loathe Amazon. But we can all tip our caps to an alert driver in Florida who called police after a woman in distress secretly asked him for help when he made a delivery to her house.
Frank Mandolini, 43, was arrested on Friday after an Amazon delivery driver called 911 to report that "while making a delivery a female whispered 'help me' to him," according to an Indian River County Sheriff's Office arrest affidavit.
Authorities responded to the address around 4:45 p.m. local time, and a deputy with the sheriff's office arrived at the home to find the woman, who "appeared in distress and had obvious red marks on her neck," sitting on the front porch with Mandolini, the affidavit said.
The woman told authorities that she and Mandolini, who had been divorced for 7 years but were still living together as a family unit, were lying in bed when she "confronted Frank about his phone and tablet" and "accused him of using them to talk to other women or watching porn." The accusation infuriated Mandolini, who then allegedly grabbed her by the neck, dragged her to the floor, and began choking her. The woman said Mandolini only let her go when she began to "lose consciousness and almost blacked out."
Talk about being in the right place at the right time. Kudos to this alert driver for not only recognizing the situation was a legitimate emergency but also for taking action and alerting police so they could help this woman escape her abuser. Hopefully we only need Amazon to deliver cheap crap to our house and not save us from an emergency.
COURTESY: USA TODAY
Our take: In the latest version of “Fuck around and find out,” several engineers at Microsoft were terminated after they interrupted AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman during a 50th anniversary celebration last week.
Ibtihal Aboussad, a software engineer in the company's artificial intelligence division who is based in Canada, was fired Monday over "just cause, wilful misconduct, disobedience, or wilful neglect of duty," according to one of the documents.
Another Microsoft software engineer, Vaniya Agrawal, had said she would resign from the company on Friday, April 11. But instead of her chosen resignation date, Microsoft terminated her role on Monday, according to an internal message viewed by CNBC. The company wrote that it "has decided to make your resignation immediately effective today."
"Mustafa, shame on you," Aboussad said as she walked towards the stage at the event in Redmond, Washington. "You claim that you care about using AI for good, but Microsoft sells AI weapons to the Israeli military. Fifty thousand people have died, and Microsoft powers this genocide in our region."
Aboussad also called Suleyman a "war profiteer."
Alrighty then! I guess it's good that these folks stood up for what they believed in. That said, they had to know this was a one-way ticket to the bread lines before they did it. We do not understand why people think they can say whatever they want on the company nickel without fear of recrimination. This seems like a big price to pay for a few moments of self-satisfaction, but that’s their choice.
We would love to be a fly on the wall at their next interview when the interviewer asks, “So, tell me why you left your last role at Microsoft.”
COURTESY: GEEKWIRE
Tip of the day
Some people work best when they wake up early, while others find success working at night. Determine the time of day when you feel you're at your best and try to get most of your work done during those hours.Just as important as choosing a schedule is making sure you can commit to it. Consistency is key in creating new habits that last. Staying consistent with your schedule can also help you be more productive. Having a set of hours when you know you're going to be working can train your brain to be active during those hours.
Quote of the day
“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” — John Quincy Adams