Several people have asked me if I would ever consider running for a political position, whether on a local level or perhaps even in the executive branch. I can’t say that the thought has never crossed my mind, but as of now, I am not interested. Naturally, I owe you an explanation, so here we go. America is far from perfect, as are its systemic injustices. The fact that one in three African-American men are more likely to end up in jail than in any form of collegiate education is disgusting. Additionally, we speak about protecting our borders with walls and tightening up immigration laws to keep our citizens safe, and yet the path to citizenship for individuals not born in the country is incredibly difficult. Our nation was born from immigrants. Have you ever stopped to consider that the foods we consider to be “American cuisine” all come from other countries? If I were to run for office, I would clearly have my hands full. While I have no intention of running for office presently, that opinion may change.
Thank you for indulging my stream of consciousness. As your reward, here’s what you missed in the news yesterday.
Cigarettes Are Bad, Mmmkay!
As the traditional act of smoking cigarettes has fallen drastically behind e-cigarettes and vapes, Altria Group (MO), in an effort to remain both relevant and profitable, announced on Wednesday morning that it was buying a 35% stake in Juul Labs Inc. for $12.8 billion. Juul Labs has recently come under mass scrutiny for the number of underage users of its products, and, in their announcement of the Altria (MO) deal, they explained that their “intent was never to have youth use JUUL products. Nevertheless, the company agreed to a minority investment with Altria (MO), a company belonging to an industry notorious for corrupting youths with habitual cigarette smoking.
“Altria today announced a minority investment of $12.8 billion into JUUL for a 45% ownership in the company along with services to accelerate our mission. We understand the controversy and skepticism that comes with affiliation and partnership with the largest tobacco company in the US. We were skeptical as well. But over the course of the last several months, we were convinced by actions, not words, that in fact, this partnership could help accelerate our success switching adult smokers.”
–Kevin Burns, Chief Executive Officer, JUUL Labs
Another Administration Member Bites The Dust
Yes, you heard it hear folks, another member of the Trump administration is calling it quits. President Trump announced on Thursday evening that Defense Secretary James Mattis will be retiring in February, stepping down “with distinction” after two years in the position.
“During Jim’s tenure, tremendous progress has been made, especially with respect to the purchase of new fighting equipment. General Mattis was a great help to me in getting allies and other countries to pay their share of military obligations. A new Secretary of Defense will be named shortly. I greatly thank Jim for his service!
–President Donald Trump on Twitter
