Cuba, China, Cohen, California

Cuba, China, Cohen, California

Marc Ross Daily
February 21, 2019
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross

Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia 

Marc Ross Daily  = News + Analysis at the Intersection of Globalization + Disruption + Politics

TOP FIVE

✔️ US, China sketch outlines of deal to end trade war

✔️ Four-day week: Trial finds lower stress and increased productivity

✔️ DOJ preparing for Mueller report in coming days

✔️ Vox Media is expanding tie-in with podcast company Stitcher

✔️ Samsung unveils foldable and 5G phones

ROSS RANT

"Hollywood is now irrelevant. Netflix has won this game. No one can get, I believe, to their level of subscribers, which gives them real dominance." -- Barry Diller
 

GLOBALIZATION

Reuters: Cuba denies military in Venezuela, charges US readies intervention

Three pro-EU Tory MPs defect to independent parliamentary group: FT reports, move by Europhiles is a big setback for Theresa May and her Brexit policy.

FT - Editorial: Honda sounds a further Brexit warning to Britain: Leaving the EU will imperil decades of success in UK carmaking. 

Soft China deadline: March 1 is supposed to be the end of the new-tariff truce between the US and China, but Trump now says it is "not a magical date," suggesting it isn't much of a deadline after all—even though USTR Lighthizer has characterized it as a "hard deadline." 

US, China sketch outlines of deal to end trade war: Reuters reports, the United States and China have started to outline commitments in principle on the stickiest issues in their trade dispute, marking the most significant progress yet toward ending a seven-month trade war, according to sources familiar with the negotiations.

Bloomberg: US, China are working on multiple memorandums for trade deal

"The MoUs would cover areas including agriculture, non-tariff barriers, services, technology transfer and intellectual property."

The US and China fear their leaders will cave in on trade: WSJ reports, despite their sharp differences in style, background and policies, Xi Jinping and Trump share a common problem: growing concerns on the home front that they are going to cave in to the other side.

Janan Ganesh: US shift to Asia is more than a short-term pivot: Trump is the third president in a row to focus on the world’s largest continent.

Manila warns of China threat after US nuclear pact exit: FT reports, defense minister reflects regional fears over balancing Beijing and Washington links.

DISRUPTION

Four-day week: Trial finds lower stress and increased productivity: Guardian reports, the study of pilot at New Zealand firm finds staff were happier and 20% more productive.

Designers in demand like never before: In 2012, IBM employed one designer for every 72 engineers. Today, IBM has eight engineers to every designer, and that ratio goes to 3:1 on mobile.

POLITICS

Justice Department preparing for Mueller report in coming days: WP reports, with dwindling personnel, the special counsel appeared to be close to ending his investigation of the president and alleged Russian election interference.

Michael Cohen, a former lawyer for Trump, agreed to go before the House Oversight Committee for an open hearing on February 27.

Trump officially organizes the Space Force under the Air Force ... for now: Defense News reports, Trump on Tuesday signed a directive centralizing all military space functions under a new Space Force, which will be overseen by the Department of the Air Force. 

LAT: Bowing to Congress, Trump scales back proposed 'space force'

"The scaled-down plan would still establish a new military service focused on war-fighting in outer space — the first new branch since 1947 — with a four-star commander who would become a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff."

@kaylatausche: NEW: House Ways & Means to hold China trade hearing next Wednesday, Feb. 27. Amb. Lighthizer is the only witness.

Possible O'Rourke White House bid spurs action to mobilize students: Reuters reports, a Democratic group seeking to persuade former Texas congressman Beto O'Rourke to run for president will launch mobilization efforts on college campuses nationwide to coincide with what they believe will be his entry into the race by month's end.

Your phone and TV are tracking you, and political campaigns are listening in: LAT reports, welcome to the new frontier of campaign tech — a loosely regulated world in which simply downloading a weather app or game, connecting to Wi-Fi at a coffee shop or powering up a home router can allow a data broker to monitor your movements with ease, then compile the location information and sell it to a political candidate who can use it to surround you with messages.

COMMERCE

Hyatt is making a dramatic push into the wellness segment. The company is increasingly focused on tapping into a quickly growing segment at the intersection of tourism and everyday life by developing offerings for its employees to maintain their well-being and for its customers to be able to continue their wellness and mindfulness practices from the comfort of Hyatt’s hotel rooms.

American Airlines is offering helicopter rides to the airport and private lounges in Los Angeles and New York for super VIPs.

Honda says up to 7,000 jobs at risk from closure of UK plant: FT reports, carmaker says electric cars and small size of Europe market responsible for shutdown.

Ford is shuttering a factory in Brazil that it's operated for more than half a century. The closure of the Sao Bernardo do Campo plant, which involves the loss of 2,800 jobs.

How Huawei lost its PR battle in the west: Foreign advisers say they were ignored and undermined by Chinese management. https://on.ft.com/2SVvtrG

Google will next month launch a game-streaming service to rival those from Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo.

Tesla will have all of its self-driving car tech ready to roll by the end of the year, Elon Musk said.

Vox Media is expanding its tie-in with podcast company Stitcher to launch a new tech news podcast as part of a multimillion-dollar deal.

THR: Amazon chief unveils plan to battle Netflix: 30 films per year

Lyft is preparing to list shares on the Nasdaq around the end of March.

Samsung's new Phone Folds in Half and Costs Nearly $2,000.

Nikkei: Samsung unveils foldable and 5G phones days ahead of Huawei

Nike takes a beating after Zion Williamson’s shoe explodes: WP reports, unfortunately for Williamson and college basketball fans everywhere — and very unfortunately for Nike — Williamson didn’t last long against the Tar Heels, because he was forced from the game in the first minute with a knee injury. The mishap occurred as the 285-pound forward was planting his left foot to pivot — and his shoe exploded.

CULTURE

Laurene Powell Jobs is investing in Reese Witherspoon’s production company, marking her latest push into entertainment. Powell Jobs’s Emerson Collective is joining AT&T Inc.’s Otter Media, an earlier backer, in financing Witherspoon’s company, Hello Sunshine.

California’s winter: Storms have dumped an estimated 18 trillion gallons of rain — nearly half the volume of Lake Tahoe — in February alone.

Who killed Tulum? Greed, gringos, diesel, drugs, shamans, seaweed, and a disco ball in the jungle. http://bit.ly/2SRMT8e

Brexit, Greece, Macedonia, China, 2026 World Cup, Plastic Straws

Brexit, Greece, Macedonia, China, 2026 World Cup, Plastic Straws

Marc Ross Daily
June 13, 2018
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross

Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia

Marc Ross Daily  = Business News at the Intersection of Global Politics + Policy + Profits

Subscribe here: https://goo.gl/bSQKwA

TOP FIVE

✔️ May plans Brexit bill amendment after Commons rebellion

✔️ Greece and Macedonia solve bitter 27-year name row

✔️ The unexpected winner from the Trump-Kim summit: China

✔️ Indian PM trots and treads in fitness video

✔️ US, Canada and Mexico to host 2026 World Cup

ROSS RANT

The gig is 9 to 5 and is the employment is formal

Last Thursday the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) found less than 4 percent of workers--5.9 million persons--held contingent jobs.

Contingent jobs are those assignments which are temporary in nature.

In addition to contingent workers, the BLS survey also identified workers who have various alternative work arrangements or what many of us refer to as gigs. 

In May 2017 the BLS data found there were 10.6 million independent contractors (less than 7 percent of total employment), 2.6 million on-call workers (1.7 percent of total employment), 1.4 million temporary help agency workers (0.9 percent of total employment), and 933,000 workers provided by contract firms (0.6 percent of total employment).

So roughly 10 percent of American workers in 2017 were employed in some form of what the government calls “alternative work arrangements." 

This broad category includes Lyft drivers, freelance designers, and people employed through temporary-help agencies — essentially anyone whose primary source of work comes outside a traditional employment relationship. 

As reported by the New York Times, this far from a boom in gig work and goes against conventional wisdom when to comes to employment.

“I think everybody’s narrative got blown up,” said Michael R. Strain, director of economic policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute.

The largest category of alternative workers, independent contractors, are disproportionately in their mid-40s or older and familiar in sectors like construction that have not been disrupted by Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. They earn about as much, on average, as standard employees, and are relatively happy with their arrangements: Nearly eight in 10 say they prefer being an independent contractor to being an employee.

Outside of plumbers, roofers, and general contractors, most Americans work 9 to 5 in a formal work environment.

Don't believe the gig economy hype.

GEOECONOMICS

Trump in the UK: Trump will stay in London when he visits the UK – but might fly over the protests in a helicopter. Whitehall sources suggested that early searches had been unable to find accommodation outside the capital large enough for the president's vast entourage. When George W Bush visited in London in 2003 he brought 700 people with him, while Barack Obama sometimes travelled with as many as 900 staff. A Whitehall source said: "The Americans can't find anywhere big enough outside London for them all to stay. Not just the Trumps, but the circus that comes with him."

May plans Brexit bill amendment after Commons rebellion: FT reports, MPs to be given ‘real say’ over any proposal to leave the EU without a deal.

UK announces new ‘start-up visa’ for entrepreneurs: FT reports, move follows growing disquiet over impact of Britain’s restrictive immigration policies.

Italy vows migrant ship cannot dock as Paris-Rome clash escalates: Reuters reports, Italy said on Wednesday its decision to shut its ports to hundred of migrants aboard a charity ship was firm, as a clash between Rome and Paris over migrant policy heated up.

Greece and Macedonia solve bitter 27-year name row: AFP reports, the prime ministers of Greece and Macedonia say they have agreed on "Republic of Northern Macedonia" as the new name for the Balkan country, ending an acrimonious 27-year dispute.

OTD: In 1900 the Boxer Rebellion began in China.

WSJ: The unexpected winner from the Trump-Kim summit: China

China gets everything it wanted from Trump's meeting with Kim: Bloomberg reports, the biggest winner from President Donald Trump’s summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un -- aside from Kim himself -- was unquestionably the government of President Xi Jinping, which had been advocating the very process that Trump has now embarked upon.

@marcorubio: One more thing about KJU. While I know @potus is trying to butter him up to get a good deal, #KJU is NOT a talented guy. He inherited the family business from his dad & grandfather. He is a total weirdo who would not be elected assistant dog catcher in any democracy.

Huawei patent case shows Chinese courts' rising clout: Reuters reports, a smartphone patent fight between Huawei Technologies and Samsung Electronics could reach a global resolution through a ruling by a Chinese court, a development that reflects the growing attractiveness of China as a quick and effective forum for intellectual property disputes. The case is being closely watched because it has set up a clash between the two judicial systems, with a US judge instructing Huawei not to enforce a ruling it won against Samsung in China, said Erick Robinson, a Beijing lawyer who previously was Qualcomm Inc’s Asia patent director.

Trump could slap China with tariffs as soon as Friday: Politico reports, Trump is expected to impose tariffs on Chinese goods as soon as Friday or next week, according to two sources briefed on internal deliberations, a move that is sure to further inflame tensions and spark almost immediate retaliation from Beijing. The administration on Friday is planning to publish a final list of Chinese goods that will take the hit. 

Wall Street firms face a new $15 billion hurdle in China: WSJ reports, Beijing is expected to allow foreign firms to run their own securities businesses in China, but the devil is in the details. China’s leadership made a pledge to ease foreign ownership caps on domestic securities firms to 51% from 49%, in part to cool trade tensions with the US. The catch: China’s securities regulator is requiring that majority owners have at least 100 billion yuan (about $15.6 billion) in net assets. 

China state planner and top bank set up US$47 billion fund to invest in emerging industries: SCMP reports, the National Development and Reform Commission and China Construction Bank are targeting sectors including new materials, biotechnology and new-energy vehicles. The initiative comes as China aims to nearly double the contribution of emerging industries to its economy to 15 per cent by 2020, up from 8 per cent in 2015, according to a state plan.

Australia agrees Solomons internet cable after China concern: AFP reports, Australia will help fund and build an underseas communications cable to the Solomon Islands, it was agreed Wednesday, after the Pacific nation was convinced to drop a contract with Chinese company Huawei. The impoverished country and Huawei inked a deal in late 2016 to construct the fibre-optic cable from Australia to Honiara to improve its often unreliable internet and phone services.

Indian PM trots and treads in fitness video: AFP reports, Narendra Modi, whose supporters boast of his physical prowess and indifference to sleep, has shared the secrets to his morning fitness regimen in a video where the Indian premier thrusts a staff, walks backward, and flexes over a boulder.

BRICs inventor says G7 ‘irrelevant’ because China and India are left out: Bloomberg reports, Trump was right to call for a shakeup in the Group of Seven membership. He just picked the wrong emerging market to add, according to Jim O’Neill. The former chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, who famously coined the “BRICs” in 2001 to refer to the fastest growing emerging markets, said the G-7 can’t be taken seriously when it excludes China, whose economy is set to overtake the eurozone this year, and India, whose gross domestic product already eclipses Italy’s.

Share of global GDP (PPP):

1980
G7: 51%
China: 2.3%
India: 2.9%

2018
G7: 30.1%
China: 18.7%
India: 7.7%

Global economy to drive strong oil demand in 2019, says IEA: WSJ reports, the world’s appetite for oil should remain robust throughout next year even as US production continues to dominate supply growth, the International Energy Agency said.

AMERICAN POLITICS

Navarro on his Justin Trudeau comments: Says his job last Sunday was to send a signal of strength. "In conveying that message I used language that was inappropriate and basically lost the power of that message. I own that, that was my mistake, my words."

The glorious absurdity of American diplomacy under Donald Trump: The president spent the week offending his closest allies and praising a dictator.
FT - Roula Khalaf

Web of elite Russians met with NRA execs during 2016 campaign: McClatchy reports, several prominent Russians, some in President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle or high in the Russian Orthodox Church, now have been identified as having contact with National Rifle Association officials during the 2016 US election campaign, according to photographs and an NRA source. The contacts have emerged amid a deepening Justice Department investigation into whether Russian banker and lifetime NRA member Alexander Torshin illegally channeled money through the gun rights group to add financial firepower to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential bid.

Senators see no Trump pushback on their move to kill ZTE deal: WSJ reports, ZTE again appeared to teeter on the brink of demise, as senior Republican senators signaled that President Trump was unlikely to block a congressional effort to derail a deal he brokered to resuscitate the Chinese telecom giant.

Reuters: Investors wipe $3 billion off China's ZTE as US settlement sinks in

Reuters: ZTE stocks plummet 40% after US sales ban

A radical trade prescription from the Federal Reserve: Stop complaining about China, and pay US workers better: One doesn’t normally look to the Federal Reserve System for radical economic prescriptions, but it’s a good place to find reasoned economic analysis. A recent economic brief from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis offers both: a solid explanation of the US trade deficit, and advice to stop blaming China for the decline in US manufacturing.
LAT - Michael Hiltz

In primary races, Republican voters rewarded loyalty to Trump: WSJ reports, Republican primary voters rewarded loyalty to President Trump in primary races, ousting South Carolina Rep. Mark Sanford, a vocal critic of the president, and nominating ally Corey Stewart for a Virginia Senate seat. 

Radical plan to split California into three states earns spot on November ballot: LAT reports, the history of California, admitted to the Union on Sept. 9, 1850, has been marked by more than 200 attempts to either reconfigure its boundaries, split it into pieces or even have the state secede and become an independent country.

ENTERPRISE

NYT: AT&T takeover of Time Warner cleared, in blow to Justice Dept.

The approval of AT&T’s merger with Time Warner paves a clear path for Comcast to bid for 21st Century Fox assets.

DOJ may appeal the decision - developing

HSBC intends to upgrade its technology and expand into strategic Asian markets. 

Marriott CEO on tech giants: ‘We are in an absolute war for who owns the customer’: Skift reports, Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson, along with his fellow hotel CEOs are right: It's not the "disruptors" like Airbnb that are the biggest threat, but the already established tech giants like Amazon, Google, Facebook, Tencent, Alibaba, and others that are the real competition for the hotel industry.

DraftKings is raising more money to launch a sports betting business.

SeaWorld, Ikea, and Royal Caribbean are getting rid of plastic straws and bags: WP reports, less than two weeks after a pilot whale died off Thailand with 80 plastic bags in its stomach, three major companies - SeaWorld, Ikea and Royal Caribbean - have vowed to remove plastic straws and bags from their properties.

FT: Toyota pours $1bn into ride-hailing group Grab

TRENDS

Chinese university exam: The University of New Hampshire will be the first flagship state school to accept scores from the Chinese university entrance exam as a basis for admission.

A chip in the windshield: China’s surveillance will soon track cars: WSJ reports, China is establishing a nationwide program to track cars using an electronic identification system, according to records and people briefed on the matter, adding to a growing array of its surveillance tools used to monitor its citizens.

The long wait for a productivity resurgence: Improvement in living standards depends almost entirely on rising output per worker
FT - Martin Wolf

"You can see the computer age everywhere but in the productivity statistics.” Today, we could repeat this celebrated 1987 statement by Robert Solow, Nobel laureate founder of modern growth theory, with the substitution of “technology” for “computer”. 

CULTURE

Daily Mail: Middle-classes care more about where their coffee comes from than their cocaine, says Tory peer

Air Force captain with top-secret clearance, who disappeared in 1983, is discovered living in California: WP reports, before he mysteriously disappeared and landed on the Air Force Most Wanted list, Capt. William Howard Hughes Jr. phoned home to tell his mother and father that he was going to the Netherlands. He told his parents he was supposed to come back from the Netherlands on Aug. 1. But no one ever saw him again. His family feared that he had been abducted. Others speculated that he had defected — possibly to the Soviets — with the highly classified information, a notion that fomented conspiracy theories for years.

SPORT

Today: FIFA selects the host for the 2026 World Cup. The US, Canada, and Mexico have submitted a joint bid; Morocco is the only other contender.

WSJ: US, Canada, and Mexico to host 2026 World Cup

NAFTA wins!

Spain fires coach: Julen Lopetegui was dismissed as Spain’s coach hours before the start of World Cup 2018. Earlier this week he was named the new coach of Real Madrid.

World Cup 2018: A guide to every team https://on.wsj.com/2l8p60J

China
- Population: 1.38 billion
- Did not qualify for World Cup

India
- Population: 1.32 billion
- Did not qualify for World Cup

USA
- Population: 325 million
- Did not qualify for World Cup

Iceland
- Population: 334,252
- Qualified for World Cup

Brexit, China, Mexico, Howard Schultz, Reese Witherspoon, Vermont

Brexit, China, Mexico, Howard Schultz, Reese Witherspoon, Vermont

Marc Ross Daily
June 5, 2018
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross

Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia

Marc Ross Daily  = Business News at the Intersection of Global Politics + Policy + Profits

Subscribe here: https://goo.gl/bSQKwA

TOP FIVE

✔️ UK hints at staying in European VAT area after Brexit

✔️ How China skirts America’s antidumping tariffs on steel

✔️ Mexico slaps tariffs on US steel, agricultural products

✔️ Howard Schultz will leave Starbucks at end of month

✔️ Manafort attempted to tamper with potential witnesses

GEOECONOMICS

Reuters: Trade war turns Canada's G7 summit into six-plus-Trump

FT: UK hints at staying in European VAT area after Brexit

"Britain takes ‘active role’ in shaping tax rules for 2020s despite leaving the EU"

The case for a second Brexit referendum https://ind.pn/2Ja3Ea9

The Times: May has a week to head off Tory rebellion over EU customs union

Brexit Britain wants to be a world leader in driverless vehicles: Bloomberg reports, the government is awarding 25 million pounds ($33 million) this week to as many as six projects that will research and test autonomous vehicles on highways and on trials of remote-control parking.

AFP: Switch to e-cars will cost Germany 75,000 jobs: study

France: Emmanuel Macron hosts Benjamin Netanyahu in Paris.

How China skirts America’s antidumping tariffs on steel: WSJ reports, government-backed manufacturers have avoided steep US and EU levies by shutting production at home and expanding overseas.

US can slow China’s manufacturing upgrade, Moody’s says: Caixin reports, in the long run, however, China can succeed in moving its industrial sector up the value chain.

China revives its push to make the yuan go global: Bloomberg reports, after more than two years on the back-burner, there are signs that China is once again focusing on its efforts to increase the yuan’s status in global finance. The yuan grabbed a record 2.8 percent slice of global payments three years ago, before a crackdown on outflows in the wake of the 2015 devaluation saw that figure shrink to 1.7 percent as of April.

Former US intelligence officer accused of trying to spy for China: FT reports, a former US intelligence officer has been arrested after allegedly trying to sell American defence secrets to China, during a period of heightened tension between Beijing and Washington over both trade and national security. Ron Hansen, a former Defense Intelligence Agency officer, was arrested by US authorities at the weekend on federal charges, including the attempted transmission of national defence information to China’s government.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters Sunday that the roughly 28,000 US troops based in South Korea are “not going anywhere.”

Reuters: Mexico slaps tariffs on US steel, agricultural products

AMERICAN POLITICS

Today is Day 501 of the Trump presidency. Enjoy the ride.

Reuters: Manafort attempted to tamper with potential witnesses -US special counsel

"Manafort had attempted to call, text and send encrypted messages in February to two people from "The Hapsburg Group," a firm he worked with to promote the interests of Ukraine."

WP: Trump’s legal team readies for fraught showdown with Mueller, even as president declares broad powers

ESPN: Eagles' visit to White House canceled over national anthem dispute

NYT: Trump abruptly calls off Eagles Super Bowl celebration at White House

Business economists worry about possible recession in 2020: AP reports, the National Association for Business Economics says in its latest quarterly outlook that its panel of 45 economists expects the economy, as measured by the gross domestic product, to expand 2.8 percent this year. That is down slightly from the panel’s March forecast, which put GDP growth this year at 2.9 percent.

Reuters: California, New Jersey primaries crucial to November US elections

In California, Democrats have targeted 10 of the 14 seats held by Republicans. 

California’s unusual primaries heighten stakes for parties: WSJ reports, eight states hold primaries Tuesday. The most important contests are in California, where the top two vote-getters—regardless of their party—will advance to the general election. Both parties are at risk of being shut out of key elections for Congress and governor.

LAT: Today is make or break for Democrats in California's House races

WSJ: Koch-backed groups launch campaign to end tariffs

Sard Verbinnen has named former RNC chair Ed Gillespie as the chairman of its just-launched Washington public affairs practice.

ENTERPRISE

Facebook has been sharing “deep data” about its users through partnerships with at least 60 device makers during the last decade.

AccorHotels is considering an investment in Air France-KLM which would bring the company that much closer to being a full-service travel service organization.

Tesla has roughly 11,000 energy storage projects currently underway on Puerto Rico.

Singapore Airlines’ affiliate Vistara is expected to buy 60 jets from Airbus.

SBUX: Howard Schultz is stepping down from his role as executive chairman of Starbucks, effective June 26, according to a memo sent to employees Monday.

@andrewrsorkin: Breaking News: Howard Schultz will leave @Starbucks at end of month. End of era. Says he will consider “public service” among options. Speculation will mount about 2020.

Inside tip - he's running.

Rossignol has partnered with IDG Capital to expand in China, seizing the opportunity presented by the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games.

Twitter is slated to join the S&P 500 before trading opens on Thursday.

Sydney joins Airbnb crackdown to ease rental concerns: FT reports, Paris, Tokyo and Madrid to add to cities restricting short-term holiday lets.

Nikkei: Walmart-Flipkart deal in question as Indian trade bodies protest

Rue La La is buying Gilt.

Mastercard has ended its international Goals for Meals campaign after a backlash.

Tyson Foods acquires Smart Chicken brand in bid to boost organic business.

Here's Adidas' 90-second World Cup ad http://bit.ly/2sF1CDK

TRENDS

'Frenemies' by Ken Auletta, a tour through ad industry hell http://bit.ly/2sHYvuB

The best cities in America according to Resonance Consultancy, in ranking order, the top 10 big cities (and their lead attributes) were:

1. New York (culture, nightlife)

2. Chicago (conventions, nightlife)

3. Los Angeles (social media clout, diversity)

4. San Francisco (household income, educational attainment)

5. Las Vegas (attractions, culture)

6. San Diego (quality of natural and built environments, household income)

7. Houston (restaurants, number of Fortune 500 companies)

8. Miami (diversity, quality of natural and built environments)

9. Seattle (educational attainment, household income)

10. Boston (quality of natural and built environments, safety)

CULTURE

OTD: In 1944, just before midnight, airborne troops took off from English airfields on their way to Normandy for D-Day

Vermont will pay workers up to $10,000 to move to the state and telecommute.

How Reese Witherspoon is flipping the script on Hollywood: The Hello Sunshine founder is channeling women’s voices into top-tier entertainment–and altering the dynamics of the entire industry along the way. http://bit.ly/2sDivOY

SPORT

Time: By canceling Eagles visit, Trump hands the NFL another anthem headache

Hockey: The Washington Capitals are one win away from their first Stanley Cup - game 5 set for Thursday night.

Chinese athletes to receive training in Alaska for 2022 Olympics: Xinhua reports, some of China's athletes will arrive in the United States northwest state of Alaska soon to take training for the 2022 Winter Olympics to be held in Beijing, Alaska KVTA TV channel reported Monday. The training program is part of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between Alaska Pacific University (APU) and the sports authorities of Heilongjiang province in northeast China during an Alaska trade mission led by Alaska Governor Bill Walker to China last month.

Do you speak ‘World Cup’? https://on.ft.com/2Jc4YcD

AFP: Beckham backs North America World Cup bid

2018 World Cup groups: Previews and predictionshttps://wapo.st/2kO6gf5

RIP: Dwight Clark, former 49ers wide receiver best known for making “The Catch” off a Joe Montana pass in the 1982 NFC championship game, has died at 61 after battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Golf: Discovery has a 12-year, $2 billion deal with the PGA Tour that gives the company exclusive international rights to televise and stream some 150 golf tournaments.