Angry hornets, sick cows and infectious birds, oh my

The birds and the bees are not alright. [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a new contagion of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - We must discuss [the birds]( and [the bees](. - Rebuilding [the bridge]( should be a breeze. - Smoking weed? Please don’t [grab the keys](. - Think UK stocks are cheap? [Check out these](. Bird-to-Cow-to-Human Ugh. Please, no: BIRD FLU in our DAIRY SUPPLY?! My first thought was: You have got to be kidding me. I am so very tired of this. It feels like the Covid pandemic just ended yesterday. I want more of a break. I don’t want to worry about scientists discovering a new contagion. I don’t want to deal with the skyrocketing price of eggs. I want PEACE and QUIET and a mint chocolate chip milkshake that won’t kill me. Is that too much to ask?? I did manage to calm down a bit after reading Lisa Jarvis’s [column on avian influenza](. As it turns out, fatal milkshakes are unlikely, and Lisa writes that “the risk to the general public remains low.” The human who got infected only has conjunctivitis, or eye inflammation. “That the infection is mild is reassuring,” she notes. Even so, “the situation needs careful monitoring and coordination between agencies to ensure the spread is contained.” While examples of [wild]( and domestic animals being infected are widespread — ferrets, dogs, cats, foxes, sea lions, otters and recently [even a polar bear]( — this new outbreak is the [first time]( bird flu has ever been detected in cow herds, and researchers are worried that cow-to-cow transmission is happening. What about that [carton of 2%]( in your fridge? Experts say there’s no need for you to hoard milk. Farmers are required to destroy the milk produced by sick cows, and even if it did end up in your cereal bowl, bird flu is killed during the pasteurization process. The only people who might want to put poison control on speed-dial are the Joe Rogan hard-cores whose morning routine is to chase [six raw eggs]( with a glass of [unpasteurized milk](. “If the raw milk cranks start the next pandemic, I’m going to lose my mind,” @TheLastFarm [tweeted](. Ah, the folly of man. If bird flu weren’t bad enough, Lara Williams has some upsetting nature news from across the pond: The Asian hornet — an invasive alien species that eats honeybees for dinner — was recently spotted in the quaint English village of Ash. “Just one Vespa velutina can eat as many as 50 honeybees a day, catching them as they enter or leave their hives, and their mere presence can make bee colonies less likely to forage and scare other fertilizing bugs away from flowers,” she [writes]( (free read). How did an insect that’s indigenous to southeast Asia fly its little wings all the way to Southeast England? Lara says the hornet initially caught a lift alongside some pottery from China, eventually landing in Europe. “While trade and travel get them through the door, climate change could make things much, much worse in the years ahead,” she writes. Already, the fallout from the invasion is leading to major [bee colony loss]( in France, forcing beekeepers to spend a considerable chunk of their honey revenue to replace their bees. Perhaps they could simply [borrow some]( from America. And it’s not just hornets screwing up the supply chain: Red imported fire ants cost an estimated $32 billion globally. Japanese knotweed emerged six weeks earlier than usual this year thanks to mild weather. There’s a population of about 4,000 feral red-eared terrapins in the UK, which can stick around for as many as 30 years. All in all, invasive species [cost the global economy]( more than $423 billion in 2019. That’s a whole lot of milkshake money. A Bridge Too Far Plenty of questions in this world have no easy answers. How much should [child care cost](? Why is the [state of the media]( so pathetic? What is the [appeal of cruise ships](? (Actually, that one is easy: It is nonexistent.) Which is kinda why you’re reading this newsletter, come to think of it. People have opinions about all the gray stuff in life! And it’s my job to tell you about them. But when a 1,000-foot-long cargo ship that weighs more than 100,000 tons runs into a 1.6-mile bridge in the middle of the night and kills six construction workers, that’s pretty black and white! Which is why President Joe Biden assured the state and public on the SAME DAY the incident happened that the government would cover the cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. That didn’t stop Representative Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania from [labeling]( the promise “outrageous.” Or Representative Jeff Duncan of South Carolina [saying]( that “before we spend one more dime for domestic infrastructure, we must build” — wait for it — “a border wall.” What happened to basic human decency?! “It’s as if Republican lawmakers can’t help themselves when it comes to anything requiring bipartisanship — even in the face of disaster,” Patricia Lopez [writes](. The GOP response to the catastrophe stands in stark contrast to Aug. 1, 2007, when the eight-lane I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River near Minneapolis [suddenly collapsed](. Thirteen people died and more than 100 vehicles fell with the bridge. “It took Congress just three days to authorize $250 million in federal funds for repairs to the bridge. President George W. Bush promptly signed the bill,” Patricia notes. “The bridge was rebuilt and ready to roll within 13 months — three months ahead of schedule.” Today’s Republican lawmakers have clearly dropped the ball on the whole “for-the-good-of-the-nation” part of their job. Bonus Politics Reading: There’s too much at stake for high-profile [never-Trump Republicans]( to remain silent. The country needs them. — Nia-Malika Henderson Telltale Charts Another easy question: Is legal marijuana making our roads deadlier? Yes. In Canada, one [study]( found a 475% increase in emergency-room visits for cannabis-related crashes in Ontario between 2010 and 2021. And in the US, motor-vehicle fatalities involving cannabis use [soared]( to 21.5% in 2018, up from 9% in 2000. “More than 1,000 Americans could be dying annually because of marijuana-related accidents — and that’s just in states where legalization has occurred,” Bloomberg’s editorial board [writes](. The solution is simple: Don’t smoke and drive! The M&A mall is alive and well, judging from this chart on UK deal volumes. “Buying an entire UK company means burning a hole in your pocket,” Chris Hughes [writes](. But plenty of companies in the US are willing to do just that: In the first quarter alone, announced UK bid approaches exceeding $500 million nearly matched the total for all 2023, he notes. “It’s tempting to ask why there’s so much foreign interest. Perhaps the real question should be: Why aren’t we seeing even more?” A real chin-scratcher indeed. Further Reading Free read: Wall Street doesn’t seem [to understand]( retirement. — Allison Schrager Thinking about flying? [The price]( is only going up, up, up. — Thomas Black Compared to Europe, [the US economy]( is on a healthier growth path. — Mohamed A. El-Erian The Fed is wrong about how [low interest rates]( will go. — Bill Dudley Sorry, but Joe Biden can’t build [the EV charger]( of your dreams. — Mark Gongloff [Fast-food work]( can no longer be categorized as low-skill. — Leticia Miranda James Bond and Jason Bourne [ruined spies]( for Americans. — Samuel Townsend and Amy Zegart ICYMI Biden [ramps up pressure]( on Netanayhu. Gaza’s children [face starvation](. The eclipse [conspiracy theories]( have arrived. How Bluey became a $2 billion [smash hit](. Kickers Billie Eilish has [110 million]( “close friends.” Burger King gets [a new blue drink](. Why are restaurant [water glasses]( so small? Notes: Please send frozen beverages and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Threads](, [TikTok](, [Twitter](, [Instagram]( and [Facebook](. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. 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