☕ More Florida drama

Lettuce is getting a high-tech upgrade... May 18, 2023 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( TOGETHER WITH [Edmunds]( Good morning. Yes, summer is for checking another national park off the list, dancing at weddings, and sipping High Noons on a lakeside dock. But, if you’re looking to upgrade your business skills in between cornhole showdowns, check out our Business Essentials Accelerator. You’ll learn the Xs and Os of what makes companies tick and meet some pretty great people. Get the details and apply [here]( four-week course begins on June 5 and requires just a five-hour weekly commitment. —Matty Merritt, Cassandra Cassidy, Molly Liebergall, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 12,500.57 +1.28% S&P 4,158.77 +1.19% Dow 33,420.77 +1.24% 10-Year 3.569% +2.6 bps Bitcoin $27,367.48 +1.28% WeWork $0.26 -24.71% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 4:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Stocks [surged]( after both President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy expressed confidence that a debt ceiling deal to prevent a US default would happen soon (though some nervous Democrats are reportedly still pushing for [other possible solutions](. - Stock spotlight: WeWork, a company that’s no stranger to unpredictable CEOs, plunged on the surprise announcement that its current leader, Sandeep Mathrani, will soon step down.  EDUCATION [Another company goes after FL’s ‘anti-woke’ agenda]( [Books disappearing from bookshelf]( Francis Scialabba Publisher Penguin Random House and advocacy group PEN America [sued]( a Florida school district yesterday over book bans, joining Disney in pushing back against the state’s “anti-woke” policies that critics say censor free speech and infringe on civil rights. The details: PEN America, Penguin, and five authors of banned books filed a federal lawsuit against the Escambia County School District and School Board, claiming they violated the First Amendment by banning 10 books from its school libraries. The suit also alleges the school district and school board violated the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment because most of the books targeted included themes of race, sexuality, or gender. A number of books, including George M. Johnson’s All Boys Aren’t Blue, Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, and Judy Blume’s Forever… were challenged by one single language arts teacher, according to the suit. And it claims that despite a review committee ruling the books were OK for young readers, the school board still removed them. The lawsuit wants the banned books back in libraries. Escambia County School District has declined to comment. It’s also in Florida… ...which has been churning out laws restricting what educators can say and teach, including at the [collegiate level](. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is widely expected to run for president, signed four bills limiting LGBTQ+ rights yesterday, one of which expanded the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law to prohibit teachers from discussing gender or sexual orientation with students through eighth grade (up from third grade). That’s the law at the center of the bitter dispute between Disney and DeSantis. Disney, one of the biggest private employers in Florida, criticized the legislation and has sued DeSantis over what it called an “anti-business, and patently unconstitutional” effort by the governor to punish Disney for its criticism. Looking ahead…it remains to be seen whether DeSantis’s spat with Disney and his broader “anti-woke” agenda will be popular among voters as he gears up to run for president. He took an L this week when Jacksonville, the largest city in Florida, [elected a Democrat]( as its next mayor over DeSantis’s candidate.—MM, NF   TOGETHER WITH EDMUNDS [Drivin’ some serious value]( [Edmunds]( Demand for used cars is hiiigh, with the average trade-in value in April 2023 being 80% higher than it was just 4 years ago. Wondering what you can get for your car? Edmunds’ [free online appraisal tool]( gives you an accurate valuation in a flash. And while you’re looking at its potential value, you can even get a no-obligation offer for your car from a dealer. Talk about a one-stop shop. In the market for a new set of wheels? Edmunds also helps you browse vehicles and make an informed purchase. Oh, and if you’re going electric, you can use Edmunds’ [EV incentives page]( search by model to find electric vehicles in your area that qualify for tax credits, rebates, and more $avings. [Start your engines](. WORLD Tour de headlines [TikTok lock ban bad]Francis Scialabba Montana bans TikTok. Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a law that makes Montana the [first US state]( to comprehensively ban the Chinese-owned app. While other states have banned TikTok on government-issued devices over national security concerns, Montana’s law blocks the app from operating inside its borders and penalizes app stores from making TikTok available for download in Montana. The ban goes into effect on Jan. 1, but you can bet opponents (like TikTok and free speech advocates) will take Montana to court over this major escalation. Things are about to get heated. The World Meteorological Organization [estimates]( that there’s a 66% chance the world will experience warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels, at least temporarily, by 2027. The number has long been considered a breaking point for keeping climate change in check. The group expects that the extra heat from the natural El Niño weather phenomenon coupled with human-caused warming will likely make the next five years the hottest on record. Uber to let teens ride. To expand its user base, Uber is preparing to take on one of the most thankless parenting tasks: ferrying teens around. The dominant ride-hailing company will now permit [unaccompanied teens]( aged 13+ to use the service, though initially only in certain cities. They’ll have to use new teen accounts attached to family profiles that will summon only “experienced and highly rated drivers” and will allow their parents to track rides in real time, Uber says. MEDIA [Harry and Meghan say they were chased through NYC]( [Harry and Meghan say they were chased through NYC]( MEGA/Getty Images Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and Markle’s mom were involved in a “near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi” for over two hours on Tuesday night after leaving a gala in New York City, according to the couple’s spokesperson. As the news hit yesterday morning, everyone was reminded of the paparazzi chase that Harry blames for the death of his mother, Princess Diana. But police painted a [different picture]( than the “near catastrophic” episode described by Harry and Meghan. The NYPD said that there were no collisions or injuries reported, while police sources told ABC that the amount of paparazzi involved was not at the levels described by the couple’s spokesperson. At one point in the night, the couple got into a taxi. The driver didn’t feel threatened by the photographers: He [told the Washington Post]( that his passengers “were quiet and seemed scared, but it’s New York—it’s safe.” Prince Harry versus the tabloids This isn’t the only tangle Harry has going on with the tabloids. He and Meghan are actively involved in three lawsuits against newspapers in the UK, alleging unlawful information gathering via phone hacking. And Harry is serious about controlling the narrative: He’s expected to testify in court next month. The last time a senior member of the royal family appeared in court was in 1891, when Edward VII served as a witness to an alleged card-cheating scandal.—CC   TOGETHER WITH AT&T CONNECTED CAR [AT&T Connected Car]( Adventure awaits. Get 4 free days of [Unlimited In-Car Wi-Fi]( from AT&T this Memorial Day weekend so you can stay connected on the go. Stream videos, music, and games no matter where your road trip leads you—and do it all with no limits, thanks to AT&T. [Get 4 days free](. FOOD TECH [CRISPR lettuce for your summer salad]( [Scientists at Pairwise have gene-edited mustard greens to be less bitter]( Hannah Minn Genetically edited mustard greens are coming for the salad base throne thanks to scientists who have figured out how to remove the trait that makes the nutritious vegetable taste so bitter. The new and improved milder mustard greens from agriculture startup Pairwise will be the first food on the US market to have been tweaked using the revolutionary gene-editing tool CRISPR. The modified greens are already being served in a few restaurants and will begin hitting grocery stores this summer. But you probably won’t know they’re anything special from the packaging. Unlike GMO foods that bend the laws of nature by incorporating genes from other species, gene-edited foods contain modified versions of their own genes, so the USDA doesn’t require the “bioengineered” label it slaps on GMOs. The logic is that gene-editing merely speeds up a process that can occur naturally: Rather than using the centuries-old crossbreeding methods that can take a decade to alter traits, scientists used CRISPR to directly edit the mustard greens DNA for debittered lettuce in just four years, according to [Wired](. New priorities: Until recently, gene editing and genetic modification had been used mainly to boost crop yields. Mustard greens 2.0 is all about getting consumers to substitute iceberg and other nutrient-lacking lettuce for a more nutritional vegetable.—ML   GRAB BAG Key performance indicators [Strippers protesting for union rights at The Star Garden in Los Angeles]FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images Stat: Dancers at LA’s Star Garden Topless Dive Bar may become the only [unionized]( strippers in the US. An official union vote count is scheduled for today after the club’s management agreed to stop opposing it, leaving the dancers poised to join the 51,000-member Actors’ Equity Association. During their 15-month effort to unionize, the dancers brought attention to their cause with colorful protest themes like “twerking-class heroes” and “dress as your club’s OSHA violation.” Quote: “Unfortunately, the lack of generational wealth/seed capital from ethically bankrupt sources left me unable to weather the quiet winter season.” Running a small business is hard, and running an avowed anti-capitalist one is probably even harder. The Anarchist, a Toronto coffee shop that opened in March 2022 and billed itself as an “anti-capitalist, anti-colonial cafe, shop, and radical community space on stolen land,” plans [to close]( at the end of the month. Its owner said the anti-capitalist cafe suffered from the most capitalist of headaches: not bringing in enough cash. Read: How TikTok took over the menu and made everything cheesier, saucier, and covered with caviar. ([Grub Street]( NEWS What else is brewing - [F1’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix]( scheduled to take place in Imola, Italy, this weekend, has been canceled after heavy rain and flooding led to at least eight deaths and the evacuation of 5,000 people in the area. - [Target]( says it expects its losses from organized retail crime to spike by $500 million this year. - [Elizabeth Holmes]( has been ordered to report to prison on May 30 after an appeals court denied her bid to stay out of jail while she challenges her conviction for defrauding Theranos’s investors. - [Google]( plans to start deleting inactive accounts, so if you’ve got one you haven’t used in two years but want to hang onto, now’s the time to log in. - [Perdue]( which is known for selling chicken, is getting into the beer business, specifically the business of selling cans of limited edition “Beer Can Chicken Beer” for shoving inside poultry. RECS [To do list Thursday] When life hands you pythons: Make cute [purses](. Inconceivable: Inigo Montoya is not here for [Elon Musk’s misquote](. Seeking an original name? This list of old-timey [Quaker favorites]( includes gems like Furly Loosvelt and Scotting Potts. Really big spa day: Here’s what it looks like when [whales exfoliate](. Hey, HR pros: Let HR Brew’s weekday newsletter keep you in the loop on the latest happenings in the HR universe. [Subscribe for free today](. Equip + empower: Devs need access to infrastructure, services, and tools to deliver value at an accelerated pace. In this webinar, The DevOps Institute and AWS cover how to get it done with Terraform. [Register now]( *This is sponsored advertising content. GAMES The puzzle section Brew Mini: This one is a serious brain workout—Neal completed it in 2:47. Can you beat that? [Try here](. Three headlines and a lie Three of these headlines are real and one is faker than the phrase “made with real fruit flavor.” Can you spot the odd one out? - Ikea is holding [raves]( as part of new customer experience - A Minnesota man [invented]( a motorcycle that runs on beer - Colorado man tries to trade places with dog to [avoid]( DUI arrest - Concert venue “crowders” will [guard]( your spot during a bathroom break AROUND THE BREW [Long story short]( [Long story short]( Hey, social media managers, are your Stories making an impact? [Marketing Brew dives]( into how to use the 24-hour-only format for your brand. Join Money with Katie, Morning Brew’s personal finance wiz, for [a virtual event]( today where she’ll discuss finance careers with the experts. 🛒 Want to know the secret to keeping your customers coming back? Hint: It’s about how deeply you understand them. [Find out more here](. 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