Extra, Extra

Campaign and Suffering: “This time, Willy Ochoa brought reinforcements.
This time, unlike the last time, he’d be ready for cartel attacks. He was accompanied by three truckloads of national guard troops. Two state police cars with flashing red lights. He rode in his own bulletproof SUV, and had a complement of muscular bodyguards. One sat in the bed of a pickup truck, his eyes fixed on the sky. ‘He’s making sure they don’t fire a bomb from a drone,’ Ochoa explained.” This is what it’s like to run for the Senate today in Mexico. WaPo (Gift Article): The elections next door: Mexico’s cartels pick candidates, kill rivals.

+ Work (For Someone Else) From Home: Instead of following orders to return to the office, a lot of top tech employees just switched companies instead.

+ Fee No Evil: “A federal judge in Texas has blocked a new government rule that would slash credit card late-payment charges, a centerpiece of the Biden administration’s efforts to clamp down on ‘junk’ fees.” (This could go to the Supreme Court, and you can guess the outcome there.)

+ Kitty Twitter Chitter Glitter: Roaring Kitty posted a drawing of a video gamer leaning forward. And with that, meme stocks are back. GameStop stock gains more than 70%, gets halted for volatility after ‘Roaring Kitty’ post.

+ Golden Gates: “Melinda French Gates has played a significant role in the size and reach of the foundation. She added that she’ll depart with $12.5 billion to commit to programs for women and children.” Melinda French Gates resigns from Gates Foundation.

+ What About Bob? “When Sen. Bob Menendez walked into a Newark federal courthouse for the first day of his 2017 corruption trial, so many reporters were watching him that the courthouse assigned them a spillover room.” This time it’s different. His latest case begins just down the street from another case that’s getting just a little more attention. Bob Menendez corruption trial, round 2.

+ A Flare for the Dramatic: A solar storm with solar flares and coronal mass ejections sounds pretty dangerous. But it sure looked sweet.