readers, as we mark the end of 2021, we’re announcing that TWR is closing up shop. our last two quarters haven’t seen the reader growth or engagement that we aimed for, so it seems like an appropriate time to wrap things up. we’ve enjoyed our ride together immensely, and are incredibly proud of the issues we put out and you all read. 

so, for all three of us, thank you for your support, and we’re sure your inboxes won’t miss our 7am wakeup calls on sundays. as we end 2021 and our run, enjoy our top three story picks of the year:

• down with the monarchy, our soapbox rant against the british royalty
• Facebook really is evil, our soapbox rant against Facebook
• and before you think we just ranted this year, auf wiedersehen Angela, our ode to Angela Merkel

readers, as we wrap up the third quarter of TWR, we’re reevaluating how we produce this newsletter and how we can make all of you happier. if you have any suggestions, please reach out - sooner than later! if you’d be interested in joining our team as a writer, editor, or narrator, please also shoot us an email.

1. Joe finally admitted late this week that his big $2 trillion social policy and climate change bill would not pass by the end of the year, possibly dooming his signature “Build Back Better” campaign promise. for the past several months, Joe and senate leadership have insisted that the bill would be passed before christmas, but alas, the Grinch has stolen it. and when we say Grinch, we mean Joe Manchin of course, the most conservative dem in the senate.
2. Manchin is taking issue with the overall price tag of the bill, and specifically seems to be targeting the child tax credit. that $600 per month per child check to most families costs a lot, and was originally passed as a temporary COVID stimulus measure, which progressive democrats wanted to make permanent. this impasse comes even after days of private negotiations between the two Joes, though to be honest we’re surprised either of them have the intact mental capacity for such prolonged thought…
3. dems need unanimous support within their party in the senate to pass anything, so expect to see continued drama over this, immigration, and election rights well into the new year

1. the Fed announced this week that it plans on hiking interest rates three times next year, beginning in march. they are also more rapidly than previously anticipated ending stimulus measures they began at the start of the pandemic. this all comes amid better than expected jobs growth and higher than expected spikes in the cost of consumer goods and inflation. generally speaking, raising interest rates tends to slow down the economy and inflation.
2. of note, the Fed chair only announced his reversal on interest rates after he was reappointed to another term by Joe, which gave him some capital to spend on this politically unpopular move. more likely though, the Fed is realizing that the pandemic permanently shrunk the american labor force, which will force it to maintain higher interest rates than in the past, even if there’s the same level of economic growth.
3. just after the Fed made its announcement, the European Central Bank (the Fed’s equivalent in the eurozone) came out and said they would not be raising interest rates at all next year, and would be continuing its stimulus measures. this would probably be an appropriate time to mention what the Bank of England has going on, but ever since Brexit, we just can’t seem to care at all what the british are up to…
4. anyways, while europe and the US are in different phases of their recoveries, it’s clear that the...

part of our team is traveling this week, so if you’re listening to the audio version of the newsletter, you’re probably noticing a different, more suave, more...distinguished voice. don’t worry, our usual nasally midwestern half-asleep narrator will be back next week, but in the meantime...enjoy. we’re looking for narrators, authors, and editors to join our team, so reach out if you’d like to join in the fun.

1. we get it dude, inflation is on the rise. do we really need to spend like four issues on this? prices of consumer goods rose by almost 7% year-over-year last month, the largest rise in inflation in almost forty years. new car prices continue to have a huge effect on that number, with the chip shortage crippling the industry. restaurant prices have also increased by about 8% since last november, reflecting rising wages across the hospitality sector.
2. what’s confusing the heck out of businesses and economists is the asymmetry in demand for goods versus services. it makes sense to some degree - COVID is making it more difficult for people to travel and play, so inflation in service industries remain low. instead of spending money on services, people are spending money on buying more goods (aka trying to fill the heart-shaped hole in their chests with junk), resulting in crazy high inflation in things like the consumer price index.
3. this goods-services dynamic is the opposite of the typical economic recovery, which is why everyone is a little confused. the big question is how long this role reversal will last, and if full employment can be reached before inflation gets out of control. in the meantime though, continue enjoying those low airline ticket prices, but really - you’ll still be overpaying for 28” of legroom.

1. a Starbucks in buffalo voted to unionize thursday, the first corporate-owned location in the US to do so. this occurred despite a well-publicized and funded anti-union push by the company over the past few months. one other buffalo location voted against unionizing, and a third location voted in favor, but is facing a recount. union organizers are hoping this will inspire viral collective action not only at other Starbucks locations, but across the unskilled sector.
2. the number of americans in unions has halved since just the 1980’s, and the failure to unionize an Amazon warehouse earlier this year was a big loss as well. however, this small Starbucks win will definitely put some wind behind unions’ sails, especially when considering americans are quitting their jobs in droves and unions have the best public image since the 1960’s. we always knew being a Starbucks barista must suck, but apparently misspelling everyone’s names just isn’t a big enough perk to keep them around…

• (The Guardian) finally, a good use of dogs - comforting children as they get COVID shots

1. an analysis this week found that people living in counties which voted heavily for You-Know-Who in 2020 had about