My morning train WFH reads:
• The Unexpected Winner of Rising American Tariffs Is Mexico: Its exports to the U.S. have surged since President Trump imposed new duties on countries this year. (Wall Street Journal)
• Earth Is Running Out of Sand … Which Is, You Know, Pretty Concerning: Sand is the second most-used resource after water, but it’s unregulated and ripping environments apart. (Popular Mechanics) see also A huge cache of critical minerals found in Utah may be the largest in the US: The discovery could reshape the clean energy supply chain. (Grist)
• Car Payments Now Average More Than $750 a Month. Enter the 100-Month Car Loan. This fall, typical new car broke $50,000 barrier; ‘We don’t have $300 monthly payments any longer.’ (Wall Street Journal)
• Is the Federal Reserve truly independent? Who will be chosen as the chair of the Federal Reserve? (Washington Post)
• New York’s Congestion Pricing Is Working. Five Charts Show How: Congestion pricing is working as planned, with a significant drop in pollution and traffic declining by 11% in the tolled zone. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is poised to beat its target of generating $500 million of revenue from the program after expenses. Despite initial concerns, the business impact in the district doesn’t appear to be as onerous as some had feared, with a 3.4% increase in visitors and a 6.3% boost in sales-tax revenue. (CityLab)
• The Santa Presidency: Trying to fix the economy by handing out cash. (The Atlantic)
• How diamonds are powering a new quantum revolution: By inserting tiny imperfections into the stones, scientists open up possibilities in computing, encryption, and sensors. (Financial Times)
• The Nordic diet can help you sleep better and live longer: The Mediterranean diet’s colder-climate cousin comes with the same health benefits thanks to its combination of anti-inflammatory- and antioxidant-rich foods. (National Geographic)
• Here Are 5 Wars Trump Started or Expanded in 2025: The U.S. military is fighting or preparing to fight in more countries than it was when the self-proclaimed “peace president” took office. (Reason) see also 25 Worst Villains of the Trump Admin: This most difficult part of this exercise was only picking 25. (Meidas+)
• The intellect of LeBron James: As the NBA great nears retirement he shows how the mind works. (Washington Post)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview with comedian Jay Leno, former Tonight Show host, and creator of Jay Leno’s Garage.
Almost no jobs have been added to the American economy since April 2025; 710,000 more people are unemployed since November 2024.
Source: Robert Reich
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