The Daily Briefing highlights the news of the day and research that reveals the spirit of the day.
The Daily Briefing is a newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning that provides biblical insight on today's news.
Top News
6. Immigrant-led business group votes to sue NYC over Mamdani’s taxpayer-funded grocery stores, alleging unfair competition (NY Post)
“An immigrant-led business group is gearing up to sue New York City over Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s controversial plan to open five taxpayer-funded supermarkets — claiming the $70 million project will create unfair competition for nearby stores, The Post learned on Tuesday. As the far-left mayor announced new details of his plan this week — including a 30% discount on basic items like produce, meat, milk, cheese and bread – the Multicultural Business Coalition’s board voted to file a lawsuit in the coming weeks to block the pricey initiative, the group’s chairman Frank Garcia told The Post.
“MBC — formed earlier this year to create a unified front against Mamdani’s grocery policy — includes 50 chambers of commerce representing Asian, African, Caribbean, Hispanic, Middle Eastern and Jewish-owned businesses in New York.The nonprofit MBC plans to raise $1 million to fight some of the mayor’s initiatives, Garcia said, adding that the suit “should be a non-partisan initiative.” The group plans to send a letter in the coming days notifying Mamdani’s office of its plans to take legal action.”
The further you look back into the past, according to Churchill, the more clearly you can see into the future. If the past is any indication, city-run grocery stores don’t have a long shelf life… From Kansas to Florida to Chicago, previous attempts have proven that this concept hasn’t failed because it hasn’t been truly tried, but failed because it was tried.
Does NYC need another market? A recent study ranked NYC the No. 1 U.S. metro area in terms of residents’ “equitable access” to a local supermarket, and found that the city would need only 2 new stores to achieve an ideal level of grocery store access via a 10-minute walk or less. A USDA study concluded that the New York City area had just 3.5 percent of its low-income population living in supposed “food deserts”—one of the lowest shares in the country.
If you build it, will they come? Some argue that poor dietary habits are largely connected to the lack of nutritious options for purchase. However, study after study after study consistently shows that there’s a weak linkage between a neighborhood’s access to healthier foods and its eating habits or overall health. A noteworthy study, focused on a government-subsidized supermarket in Philadelphia, had no noticeable effect on locals’ reported fruit and vegetable consumption. “Simply improving a community's retail food infrastructure may not produce desired changes in food purchasing and consumption patterns.”
Render to Caesar… While we will be accountable to God for what we have done (and left undone), the government of the people will be accountable to the people for the work they have done on behalf of the people. We are all investing what we have been entrusted with while our master is away. In his book Designed for Dignity, Richard Pratt puts it well: "The great King has summoned each of us into his throne room. Take this portion of my kingdom, he says, I am making you my steward over your office, your workbench, your kitchen stove. Put your heart into mastering this part of my world. Get it in order; unearth its treasures; do all you can with it. Then everyone will see what a glorious King I am.” (Mt. 25)
5. Fauci’s diary reveals his thoughts on a ‘rambling’ Trump and his own fame (WaPo)
“Anthony S. Fauci, the National Institutes of Health scientist who helped lead the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic before stepping down in late 2022, privately complained about President Donald Trump’s “rambling” and reveled in media coverage of his role. Sen. Rand Paul posted the documents over the weekend, took them down on Monday evening and reposted them by Tuesday morning with redactions. This was all in advance of Wednesday's Senate hearing, where Fauci will testify. Paul has maintained for years that Fauci helped cover up the possibility that the coronavirus leaked from a lab, a claim that Fauci has persistently denied.
“The personal diary consists of more than 1,000 pages of near-daily entries during the pandemic’s most critical months, providing an intimate look at how the prominent scientist at the center of the nation’s pandemic response navigated two presidential administrations during the spiraling health crisis.
“On January 26, 2020, Fauci wrote: “It now appears using epi data and genomic data that the first infection was in early December and was not connected to the market. The infections spread among people weeks before the Chinese reported that they were dealing with a new infection and that gave the virus time to establish itself in multigenerational (sustained) spread... Now we know the market was not the source, it was the amplifier.”
Channeling George Strait, Dr. Fauci decided to Write This Down… An illuminating experiment highlighted the value of diary entries. The researchers shared journal entries between Pakistanis and Americans. After only a week of the exchange, Americans who read Pakistani entries and Pakistanis who read American ones felt closer to one another, and held fewer negative stereotypes about the other group. At the core, and in this instance, entries tend to shatter stereotypes and reveal who someone really is.
A fascinating study looked at 135 university undergraduates' diary entries. After a short period of time, they were asked on a scale of 1-to-7 how curious they were to re-read their entry. The students gave an average rating of 3. A few months later, the students were asked again, and the average answer jumped to 4.34. “Even simple interventions (e.g., taking a few minutes to document the present) could generate unexpected value in the future.”
If the tongue is a small spark, Dr. Fauci finds himself by the campfire (James 3:5). Phillip Brooks noted: "The man who lives right, and is right, has more power in his silence than another has by his words." Today we are learning what God has already known. He will hold us accountable, but he will also extend us grace. (2 Cor. 5:10, 9:8)
4. Trump honors Lindsey Graham with praise in eulogy (USA Today)
“Sen. Lindsey Graham, the son of pool hall owners who rose to become one of his generation’s more influential U.S. politicians at home and abroad, was eulogized Tuesday as “a true American original” during memorial services in Washington. Graham’s flag-draped casket arrived for a tribute at the U.S. Capitol, where the Republican served for more than 30 years as an indefatigable dealmaker who talked and laughed and badgered his colleagues into action. Later, President Donald Trump joined guests including foreign leaders at Washington National Cathedral, a testament to Graham’s stature on the global stage.
“Trump called Graham “a giant of the United States Senate, a true American original who left us much too soon.” In remarks the president described his onetime presidential rival turned ally as “the first person to make you laugh and one of the last people that you’ve ever really wanted to fight.”
How do you want to be remembered? Researchers call the answer the Sinatra Syndrome: on the whole, we want to be recognized posthumously for who we were… warts and all. In a series of 4 studies, the vast majority of people want to be remembered as they really are. “Being misremembered, even positively, seems to be less appealing than being remembered authentically.”
There are 3 main overlapping categories when it comes to legacy: biological legacy, which we leave through our bodies and genetics (kids, organ donation, etc.), material legacy, represented by our wealth and possessions, and the legacy of our values, such as faith, culture, and heritage.
It was said that Moses lived until he died. Regarding Paul, others glorified God because of him. What will be said of you? I love how Randy Pausch put it in his book The Last Lecture: “Time is all you have. And you may find one day that you have less than you think… We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.” (Deut. 34:7, Gal. 1:24)
Cultural News
3. 3 in 5 overestimate how much gas prices have risen (The Hill)
“As ongoing fighting in the Middle East continues to influence prices at the pump, a new survey signals many Americans overestimate gas price increases. The Politico poll found roughly 3 in 5 adults in the U.S. believe the cost of gas in their area rose more than the data shows. Nearly a quarter of respondents said fuel in their zip code rose by $3 or more, which it did not. The average price of gas this week was $4, a level it has fluctuated around since the U.S. and Israel launched renewed strikes on Iran earlier this month. Before the war, the average hovered around $3, according to statistics.”
Tal Bachman thinks She’s So High, but gas prices aren’t that high… There are at least 2 reasons why we may overestimate gas prices: illusory truth effect and the anchor bias. One study found that even a single exposure to a fake headline made it seem truer. This demonstrates the illusory truth effect, which refers to how familiarity and ease of understanding function as shorthand for truth. Basically, the more something is repeated, the more familiar it feels whether it is misinformation or fact.
Then there is the anchor bias. Also known as the anchored-to-your-own-history bias, this refers to how you rely too much on the first piece of information you see. For example, if you grew up when gas was $1.50, this serves as the standard by which you judge everything else. Morgan Housel noted: “Your personal experiences make up maybe 0.00000001% of what’s happened in the world but maybe 80% of how you think the world works.”
Beware of the grasshopper... When Moses sent 12 scouts to explore the Promised Land, they returned with evidence that the land was fertile. However, 10 of the spies panicked at the sight of the fortified cities and local inhabitants. "All the people we saw there are of great size... We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them." In this moment, when many tend to exaggerate, James Clear rightly notes: “Anxiety is thought without control. When the world seems uncontrollable, focus on what you can control. Stick to your routines in whatever way you can." (Num. 13-14)
News You Can Use
2. First year lifeguard in California pulls off an incredible rescue to save a little boy, is officially tougher than the waves
Watch it here. ”Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Josh. 1:9)
1. Squirrel runs onto field during MLB game
Watch it here. “Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?” (Job 35:11)
