What does the Monroe Doctrine have to do with Godzilla?

Both were built to last. [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a special contraption that has been in Bloomberg Opinion’s family for generations. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - America’s [nuclear comeback](. - [McDonald’s Crocs](: Shoe or snack? - The Santos saga? There’s [a lot to unpack](. - [Mandatory spending]( is way off track. The Old Ways Are the Best How many [cookies]( does the world need every December? According to [one estimate](, Santa will consume 395 million baked goods — a total of 30.9 billion calories — on Christmas Eve, so I can only imagine the caloric intake of the entire human race this month. In my house alone, we’re making [18 different recipes]( over the course of two weekends. Before you ask, yes, there is an hour-by-hour Excel spreadsheet, and yes, my sister (who is in charge of the schedule) is [an unapologetic Virgo](: Some of these cookies require special contraptions that have been in my family for generations. To make the delicate stars on the left, for instance, you need [a rosette iron](. To make the neon green trees on the right, you need [a spritz machine](. Both tools still work spectacularly well. As James Bond [learns]( in Skyfall, “Sometimes the old ways are the best.” That’s true not just for cookies but for plenty of other things, from atomic fuel to foreign policy to Godzilla. Let’s first consider commercial nuclear energy. In 1957, Westinghouse Electric built America’s first atomic power station. Although nuclear power has fallen out of favor since then, a renaissance is afoot, Jonathan Ford [writes](. During President Donald Trump’s tenure, regulators extended reactor lives to 80 years — twice what many were originally designed for — to help bridge the gap before new plants could be built. This was not an act of climate altruism, Jonathan notes; Trump was promoting US nuclear power as a counter to Russia and out of “crudely mercantilist” reasons. When Joe Biden became president, America’s nuclear embrace tightened even further, as he rejoined climate agreements and dealt with the fallout from the war in Ukraine. Although the US still needs more reactors to reach its net-zero goals, Westinghouse’s old ones were clearly built to last: Now let’s consider foreign policy, specifically [the Monroe Doctrine](. It just celebrated its 200th anniversary last weekend, but you’d be forgiven for not knowing that. There were no birthday celebrations, considering most officials in Washington and Latin America “now see it as an embarrassing anachronism,” Hal Brands [writes](. And yet it remains the foundation of the liberal international order the US leads today, he argues. In fact, he says, it just might be our best bet for surviving Cold War II. Which brings me finally to Godzilla. As it turns out, Japan’s cinematic strategy for Cold War II is also an extension of its strategy for Cold War I. The newly released [Godzilla Minus One]( — the 30th Japanese-made movie in the series — is being hailed as one of the best Godzilla films ever. “The concept has remarkable (city-smashing) legs — indeed, it’s the [longest-running movie franchise]( in history,” Gearoid Reidy [writes](. The seven-decade old monster is an enduring hit both in Japan and in the US because it “speaks to our fear of the atomic age,” Gearoid explains. For decades, “the specter of thermonuclear annihilation, atomic fallout and invisible but deadly radiation have been at the center of the kaiju’s space in the public imagination.” So. The next time someone asks you, “What do Godzilla, the Monroe Doctrine, a nuclear reactor and a cookie press have in common?” you’ll have an answer: They were all built to last. And who knows, maybe I’ll watch Godzilla after making cookies this year. I hear that it’s [a great Christmas movie](. You Want Crocs With That? Last week, the Wonka movie went viral, not because people are obsessed with the origins of Timothée Chalamet’s [rap career](, but because the actor collaborated with Nike to release eight pairs of hand-stitched chocolatier-inspired Dunks. Five of those pairs will be given away in a special [contest](, which urges fans to submit videos to win a series of golden-ticket-like custom collectibles from brands including [Xbox](, [Beats by Dre]( and [Chanel](: Although Wonka is not an actual chocolate factory, the PR stunt speaks to a burgeoning trend in the food world: From [$25 Panera mac n’ cheese pillows]( to a [$70 McDonald’s branded Crocs](, “corporations are looking to capitalize on any opportunity to align their name with cultural moments that make them more than just a place to grab a cup of soup or late-night McFlurry. They want to be seen as a kind of lifestyle brand,” Leticia Miranda [writes](. Under this theory, no merch idea is too weird. In fact, the more unconventional the product is, the better its odds of standing out. The options are limitless: 7-Eleven has [a 14K gold-plated pendant]( with King Ice. Dunkin’ thinks you need a 6-foot-tall [inflatable spider donut](. Microsoft [makes]( ugly Christmas [sweaters](. PepsiCo sells a $200 Pepsi-themed [Polaroid camera](. Ikea created a blue [bucket hat]( out of its infamous shopping bag. Not only do these businesses profit off this merchandise, they gain exposure. Imagine someone paying you to become a walking, talking billboard for your brand. It’s a no-brainer from an advertising standpoint. Just be careful of mismatched outfits. Bonus retail reading: Pressure [on the global supply chain]( is at a six-year low, Matthew Yglesias [says](, which makes Biden’s holiday promise to keep it running smoothly something of a puzzle. SupercalifragilisticexpialiSantos No one can tell me that Bowen Yang’s Saturday Night Live [performance]( was not a work of art. Not only did he nail George Santos’ look (down to the trench coat), he captured his intonations and facial expressions with scary precision: Nailed it. Sources: Annabelle Gordon/Bloomberg (left) and Saturday Night Live (right) It’s only fitting that the now-expelled congressman was the subject of SNL’s cold open, considering he’s only the third House member to be expelled since the Civil War. Apparently HBO is already working on [a movie]( about him, and Ziwe appears to have landed [an interview]( that could very well change the course of history: It’s clear that the GSS — George Santos Saga — was a kind of congressional stimulus package for the entertainment industry. And although our columnist Jonathan Bernstein says Santos was “mostly a harmless amusement,” Congress could still stand to learn a few things from his expulsion and his *checks notes* [13 federal indictments](. “It demonstrates that political parties should invest more resources in vetting their candidates — especially in races they really don’t expect to win,” he writes. Santos was “radically unsuited for the job,” having been “quickly exposed as a fabulist who had [invented]( a phony life story, as well as a fraudster.” Republicans should have known something was amiss before reached the House primaries, not after he was sworn into Congress. Read [the whole thing](. Bonus Republican Reading: The Voting Rights Act and Hart-Celler Immigration Act profoundly altered the US, opening the door to non-White political power. The GOP is [trying to rewrite]( history. — Francis Wilkinson Telltale Charts Although the US government would love nothing more than to cure the national obesity epidemic with its [new guidelines]( on ultra-processed foods, Bobby Ghosh says nobody really cares about that. The real meat of the weight-loss industry is the market for obesity treatments, which Chris Hughes says could balloon to $44 billion by 2030. Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Roche is belatedly buying its way into the booming trend with [a $3 billion biotech deal]( focused on early-stage weight-loss drugs. It’s a gamble, but Chris says that even late entrants may end up experiencing significant sales. The faction of GOP rebels who enjoy whining about the evils of America’s “discretionary spending” might want to take a look at [this pie chart](. “Discretionary spending, which amounts to a little more than a quarter of the federal budget, isn’t the problem. It stands at 6.6% of GDP, down from 9.6% in 1973,” Bloomberg’s editorial board writes. Instead, the real driver of long-term debt is mandatory spending, which mainly persists in the form of entitlement programs. “As the US population ages, the combined outlays for Social Security and Medicare are projected to rise to 10.1% of output by 2033, up from 8.2% this year. Together, the two programs account for 95% of the country’s unfunded liabilities,” they explain. Further Reading Free read: India’s identity is more [hardline Hindu]( than ever before. — Ruth Pollard OpenAI’s [new model called Q*]( (pronounced “q star”) is alarming, but not in the way you think. — Parmy Olson As more people abandon their cable bill, we must [make baseball free again]( on TV. — Adam Minter What if China creates [a spy car](? Modern autos are scarily perfect for aiding espionage. — Tim Culpan One way fix to the UK’s dire shortage of homes: Treat houses [like Teslas](. — Matthew Brooker The [Hall & Oates dispute]( has disheartened fans, but the duo is a business like any other. — Stephen L. Carter ICYMI Spotify is [laying off]( 17% of its workforce. Your stocking is full of the [squishiest creatures](. Bitcoin [is above]( $40,000 and Joe Weisenthal has [thoughts](. Florida says its [libraries]( are “a forum for government speech.” Kickers The “wedding of the century” ended in [an arrest](. Bobby Ghosh wants you to check out this new [Filipino restaurant](. An heir to the Cox empire is building a [mysterious commune](. This struggling California region could become [very, very rich](. Bottlenose dolphins may have [an electric sense](. Notes: Please send bovine bile 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. 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](. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Opinion Today newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( [Ad Choices](