There are two possible realities, when you take out all the fluff; people who use ketchup for foods that benefit from the condiment, and individuals who use ketchup on everything. Even the most desolate of refrigerators manages to have a bottle of ketchup somewhere in there, but what is the history of this delectable paste-like substance. According to National Geographic, sources suggest the British encountered ketchup somewhere along their conquests in Southeast Asia, and when they got home, they thought, “oh dear, we must recreate this stuff.” In the late seventeen and eighteenth centuries, a recipe was published for “Ketchup in Paste,” by Richard Bradly, which referenced “Bencoulin in the East-Indies” as the origin of condiment. The original recipe called for tomato pulp, various spices, and brandy, but failed to include the crucial components of vinegar and sugar. Though I’d love to continue explaining the history of ketchup, we must get back to our business, so here’s what you missed in the news yesterday.
Lyft; The Vehicular Underdog
Since its inception, Lyft has played a massive game of catch-up in a market dominated on all fronts by Uber Technologies. While both companies have emerged as the leading brands in the ride-hailing industry, Lyft has historically ridden in the back seat, with Uber confidently at the wheel, touting a potential $120 billion valuation. In an effort to stay relevant in the eyes of both consumers and investors in the ride-share space, Lyft unleashed its own fleet of electric scooters in major cities across the country back in September. As for their first target location, the Company decided to drop its wheeled friends in Denver, Colorado. Though I cannot confidently say that I’ve seen nearly as many Lyft scooters as I have Jump, Bird, and Lime, the latter two belong to two other major companies in the micro mobility sector.
“Lyft Bikes and Scooters will be our most affordable transportation options, and will extend mobility to communities that have historically been underserved. We will work alongside leading local non-profits and community groups across the country. Together we will develop income eligibility programs and community outreach to ensure transportation access and affordability to those who need it most.”
–John Zimmer & Logan Green, Lyft Co-founders
In recent news, Lyft is partnering up with Segway NineBot, the company to blame for manufacturing the electric scooters you see on your sidewalks, to roll out the next generation of shared scooters, according to TechCrunch. For those unaware of the abuse some of these scooters undergo, I’d highly recommend checking out the”Bird Graveyard” Instagram account, a profile replete with content featuring everyday citizens destroying electric scooters by lighting them on fire, throwing them off bridges, and any other violent act of scooter-based aggression you can imagine. Segway Ninebot is well aware of this unintentional wear and tear and, with the help of Lyft, the Company plans on releasing a more durable scooter, the Model Max, sometime later this year. Per the reports regarding the new scooter, Model Max is designed “taking into consideration complex shared usage scenarios, consumer overuse of vehicles, operation models and maintenance cost.” While I can guarantee that no scooter will be flame/bridge retardant, Segway Ninebot says they will share more information towards the end of January.
McConnell With The Block!
Several media outlets took a break from covering Jeff Bezos’ impending divorce to cover Mitch McConnell’s electing to block Senate Democrats from getting the chamber to vote on spending bills to reopen the government. If you’re just tuning in, I’m unsure how you’ve made it thus far with your head buried beneath the sand. Chunks of the United States Federal Government have been shut down for twenty days since President Donald Trump threatened and made good on his words to shut down the government if Democratic leadership in Congress refused to grant him his long-standing billions dollar budget proposal to construct a massive border wall along the US-Mexico border.
House Democrats are insisting that the Senate reopen parts of the federal government not related to the border wall after reports surfaced that thousands of government employees are struggling to feed their families since they’ve been out of work for the last three weeks. Regardless, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, in congruence with President Trump, has made it abundantly clear that he won’t budge on any legislation related to the shutdown that he feels demonstrate “pointless show votes that make up political stunts that won’t get us anywhere.”
