Kanye West exposes the downside of our vibes-based economy

This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a vibes-based economy of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. Sign up here.Today’s Agenda Gap has a Kanye West pro [Bloomberg]( Follow Us [Get the newsletter]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a vibes-based economy of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - Gap has a [Kanye West problem](. - Trump’s [political power is in question](. - There’s good news in [the bond market’s implosion](. - The market doesn’t seem to think [the Fed is behind the curve](. Same, bro. Credit: CBS Kanye Is Harshing Gap’s Vibe Calvin Coolidge once ([basically]() said, “The business of America is business.” But that was 100 years ago. Today the real business of America is vibes, a concept that would likely be alien to Calvin Coolidge, a man whose vibe could perhaps be described as “statue with [jokes](.” It’s no longer enough for a company to have such modest goals as selling a quality product at a fair price and [draining the world's oceans](. Businesses today must have a fine ear for the national vibe. With few [exceptions](, nobody has to tell them twice to support social movements or stop doing business with Russia. For the most part, this doesn’t really hurt anybody. In some cases it’s even helpful. But the relentless corporate pursuit of vibes can backfire. Most often this takes the form of bad brand tweets, the vibes of which typically fall on a spectrum between [cringe]( and [career-ending](. Then there’s Gap. This company has at least one classically [bad tweet]( on its record, when it told people to shop online during Hurricane Sandy. More recently, it tried to boost both sales and vibes by teaming up with Kanye West, a/k/a Ye, on a clothing line. It might have seemed like a smart move at the time. The rapper/fashionista had a solid history of success working with Adidas on his Yeezy shoe and clothing line.   But as Andrea Felsted notes, [Ye’s vibe has soured of late](. He has gone from “weird but harmless MAGA uncle” to “guy who makes creepy videos [threatening]( his ex-wife’s boyfriend.” Then he got [suspended]( from Instagram, the font from which all vibes flow, for using a racial slur to attack Trevor Noah for expressing sympathy for Kim Kardashian. I aged 10 years typing that sentence. This is, as Andrea points out, potentially far worse for Gap’s business than any dumb tweet. Will the youths still want to buy clothes from a toxic Ye? Gap has invested a lot of money and cred in this partnership. Finding a replacement will be difficult. But it could be what the vibes demand. Read the [whole thing](. Trump Vs. DeSantis The 2024 election is just 956 days away, which means it’s time to start vetting the candidates. Donald Trump is still the front-runner and spray-tanned lodestar of the Republican Party, but there are signs his influence is weakening a smidgen. Jonathan Bernstein points out [Trump’s endorsement power seems to be waning](, if it was ever all that potent in the first place. Meanwhile, Republicans are increasingly eyeballing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis as a possible Trump alternative. The standard Democratic knock on DeSantis is that he’s just another Trump with better hair. But Ramesh Ponnuru argues there are key differences between the two that could make him [more appealing to GOP-inclined voters]( who were turned off by Trump. Current President Joe Biden yesterday said he’d feel “[very fortunate](” to run against Trump again. Republican voters might want to take that seriously. Telltale Charts Sure, yes, OK, the bond market has taken an absolute drubbing for the past year and change. But the upside is that [bond yields are attractive again](, writes Aaron Brown — a bonanza for bond investors. All the people saying the Fed is behind the curve on inflation have for some reason [failed to convince the bond market](, writes Matt Winkler. Further Reading The U.S. needs to just [get back in the CPTPP already](. It needs strong global economic ties to combat Russia and China. — Bloomberg’s editorial board Soaring bread prices due to the Ukraine war [pose a challenge for Arab leaders](, especially in Egypt. — Bobby Ghosh Israel should be [more welcoming to Ukrainian refugees](. — Zev Chafets It’s not only possible to [try Vladimir Putin for war crimes](, it’s necessary. — Therese Raphael Imran Kahn is [blowing it in Pakistan](. — Mihir Sharma Reforms are making the [British education system far more meritocratic](. — Adrian Wooldridge It wouldn’t hurt to [have a little cash around the house](, but don’t panic and start stuffing mattresses or dumping investments. — Erin Lowry ICYMI Russia hinted it’s [losing the war](. Homeowners are using [cash-out refis to buy rentals](. Antarctica’s [Conger ice shelf collapsed](. Kickers [3-D mammograms may give false positive]( results half the time. Thirty-seven percent of America’s [jobs can be done at home](. A brain implant lets a [completely paralyzed man express his thoughts](. A [goblin expert explores “goblin mode](.” Notes: Please send goblins and complaints to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Instagram](, [TikTok](, [Twitter]( and [Facebook](. Like Bloomberg Opinion Today? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com and get much, much more](. You’ll receive our unmatched global news coverage and two in-depth daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close.  Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. 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