Confronting Saudi Arabia has its own rewards

[Bloomberg]( Today’s Agenda - Dictators: Can’t [coddle ‘em](, can’t [live without ‘em](. - Brexit: Everything is [not going to be OK.]( - Uber: May or may [not be worth $120 billion](. - High Drug Prices: [Shame]( is not a [strategy](. - Sexist Algorithms: [They’re everywhere](. Khashoggi and Compromises Life is about compromise. The trick is knowing how much to compromise to get what you want. You don’t, for example, have to spend every holiday with the in-laws to stay happily married. And you don’t have to completely mollycoddle dictators to get cheap oil. America has been exploring the boundaries of the latter bargain this week, after the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi. Turkey claims U.S. ally and oil supplier Saudi Arabia had the journalist killed and dismembered. President Donald Trump has tried to project some concern about this, while also seeming to take the kingdom’s side, helping spread a “rogue killers” theory of the alleged murder and ruling out a ban on arms sales. As we [wrote yesterday](, there’s no strategic need for Trump to bow down to the Saudis. And doing so in this case [would set a terrible precedent](, writes Hal Brands. We can’t just write off unsavory strategic partners like the Saudis, but we also have to set hard boundaries for their behavior, or we’re going to make our problems worse. Trump did the right thing with Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, demanding the release of imprisoned American pastor Andrew Brunson. And he actually got his way – and maybe changed the attitude of Erdogan a bit in the process. Both Turkey and the U.S. should [seize on this opportunity to reset their relationship](, Bloomberg’s editors write. And Trump should reflect on how defending American ideals can pay dividends. Bonus unsavory regime reading: Russians are starting to [sour on Putin’s tough-guy act](. – Leonid Bershidsky Time to Freak Out, Britain Brexit is kind of like climate change: There’s a huge and obvious catastrophe looming, but [nobody seems adequately freaked out about it](. Therese Raphael writes the U.K.’s mood these days is a lot like the one ahead of the original Brexit referendum. Brexiteers lied about the benefits of leaving the EU, and Remainers never really dreamed the electorate would be so dumb as to go through with it. Turns out they were just that dumb. Now the deadline for Brexit is fast approaching, and the risk is rising that Britain will leave the EU without settling the terms of future trade. As with the 2016 vote, Theresa writes, Brexiteers falsely claim it will be no problem, while everybody else just assumes there will be a last-minute deal. Meanwhile, economic [disaster draws nearer]( with every tick of the clock. One sterling (get it?) example of this complacency is the British pound, which John Authers writes [doesn’t seem to have accounted]( for all the Brexit risks. (Oh, and you can sign up for [his new newsletter here](.) Uber Would Like You to Give It $120 Billion Uber Technologies Inc. is [reportedly floating IPO proposals]( that would value the ride-hailing company at $120 billion. That is a … lot of money and would put Uber in roughly the top 40 of U.S. companies by market value. But Shira Ovide writes that, as a multiple of revenue, [$120 billion is not “completely crazy](.” Even so, that still doesn’t answer Uber’s existential question: “The big challenge is it’s hard to confidently say that Uber’s business works under normal conditions — because conditions haven’t been normal for all of Uber’s life. The company has never had to stand on its own feet financially, thanks to a constant stream of cash … .” Read the [whole thing](. Naming and Shaming Drugmakers Won’t Help Prices Trump’s campaign promise to crack down on high prescription drug prices is laudable, but his solutions so far aren’t cutting it. Yesterday his Department of Health and Human Services proposed making drug companies publish the list prices of drugs that cost more than $35 a month. Theoretically, this will shame them into lowering prices. But few consumers actually pay list prices, writes Max Nisen. Your bill at the pharmacy is the end result of a Rube Goldbergian system of discounts and incentives involving doctors, insurers and pharmacy benefit managers. Trump’s proposal probably [wouldn’t cut prices and would only confuse]( consumers, Max writes. Joe Nocera points out the name-and-shame plan would have no effect on [drugmakers’ ability to game the patent system]( to fend off cheaper generic-drug challengers for comically long stretches. Sexist Algorithms Are Everywhere Amazon.com Inc. made some embarrassing news lately when it revealed an algorithm it set up to evaluate potential hires was rabidly sexist. But Cathy O’Neil, who audits algorithms for a living, writes [the only thing unique about Amazon’s algo]( is that the company caught it and ‘fessed up to it. The truth is, problematic algorithms for hiring and other business operations are everywhere, and most companies just don’t want to admit it. Chart Attack Netflix Inc. [has spoiled consumers](, writes Tara Lachapelle. We don’t want ads, and we don’t want to pay for TV. Good luck turning a profit, everybody. Tobacco makers have high hopes for vaping. They [haven’t been paying off](, writes Andrea Felsted. If you thought Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were less [ exposed to booms and busts](, then think again, writes Stephen Gandel. Quick Hits Germany’s [political center is rapidly disappearing](, which is bad news for Germany and Europe. – Editorial board Trump would [regret firing James Mattis](. – Eli Lake The judge was [right to throw out Stormy Daniels's libel]( suit against Trump. – Noah Feldman James Madison certainly didn’t imagine America being [run by the minority party](. – Jonathan Bernstein Japan is turning a population squeeze into an [opportunity to get economically inventive](. – Dan Moss Nigeria needs to [break its unhealthy dependence on oil](. – Noah Smith Italy’s new budget is an improvement, but still bears [too many false promises]( and over-optimistic forecasts. – Ferdinando Giugliano Carl Icahn is about to make a lot of [well-deserved trouble for Michael Dell](. – Brooke Sutherland W.W. Grainger Inc. is the latest company to raise [worries about a peak in the industrial cycle](. – Brooke Sutherland Twitter is making it [impossible to study tweet data](. – Kara Alaimo We can’t just [rely on carbon capture]( to fight climate change – we’ve also got to do away with dirty fuel. – Faye Flam ICYMI Mitch McConnell [blames entitlements](, not tax cuts, for deficits. Trump is legally [free to insult Stormy Daniels](. RIP [Paul Allen](, whose sports teams may be [up for sale](. Kickers Sometimes we [worship complexity](. Apple has [fixed its bagel emoji](, finally. (h/t Scott Duke Kominers) No, LaCroix is [not poisoning you](. Exercise might [“clean” the Alzheimer’s brain](. Inherited trauma [shapes your health](. Hero critic tries all of [Trader Joe’s pumpkin-spice stuff](. [Seven paperbacks]( to read this month. Correction: Yesterday’s newsletter misspelled Jamal Khashoggi’s name. Note: Please send suggestions and kicker ideas to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net. Bloomberg Ideas On Oct. 25, Bloomberg Opinion columnists will participate in three long-form discussions, bringing their unique perspectives on technology, finance, politics, law, business and economics. They’ll cover topics central to the tech industry: how government should (or shouldn’t) regulate tech, the economics of AI, and the state of cryptocurrencies. [Click here if you're interested in attending.]( *** New subscribers can [sign up here](. [FOLLOW US [Facebook Share]]( [Twitter Share]( SEND TO A FRIEND [Share with a friend] You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022 If you believe this has been sent to you in error, please safely [unsubscribe](.