Skimm'd while piñata shopping

theSkimm50 West 23rd Street, Suite 5B; New York, NY, 10010, United States Update Profile

JULY 18, 2018

ARCHIVE

theSkimm
Celebrating theSkimm's 6th Birthday
Skimm'd while piñata shopping

  QUOTE OF THE DAY  

"It served my family and I really well, I think it will serve yours" – A CEO who gave his car to an employee who walked 20 miles to work. Brb, buying tissues.

LET'S MAKE A DEAL

The Story

The EU and Japan just shook hands on a major trade agreement.

Give me the lowdown.

The deal creates an open-trade zone between the two. And waves goodbye to almost all tariffs between them. Everything from wine and cheese from the EU to cars and electronics from Japan. It's expected to save companies in the EU a little over $1 billion a year. Not too shabby.

Tell me more, tell me more…

The deal's been in the works for years. The EU and Japan reached an agreement about a year ago – a few months after the US pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP for short: the trade deal for Pacific Rim countries that Japan is also part of). The two trade partners signed on the dotted line yesterday. Now it's up to their parliaments to give it the thumbs up before it can take effect – which could be next year.

Why should I care?

This is being called the largest bilateral trade deal ever – and Japan and the EU produce almost a third of the world's GDP. And both used the opportunity to make some not-so-subtle digs at President Trump.

Why?

Because he's not a fan of trade deals. He pulled the US out of the TPP. He's threatened to ditch NAFTA. And he's been slapping tariffs on everyone from China to the EU. He says this will help US workers by bringing jobs back to the states. Many lawmakers say this will hurt the US economy overall. The IMF says trade wars could cost the world economy billions of dollars.

theSkimm

This was a show of force by Japan and the EU. And their way of telling the US 'we're moving on without you.'

REPEAT AFTER ME...

What to say when your coworker overhears you talking about them…

Oops. President Trump says that he misspoke. He actually doesn't see any reason why it wouldn't be Russia that attacked the 2016 presidential election. He just accidentally said otherwise in front of the Russian prez, because English.


What to say when you have to pay a late fee…

Not as bad as this. The EU is expected to reach into Google's wallet today and hit the co with a record $5 billion antitrust fine. Google's Android operating system runs on the majority of smartphones around the world (sorry Tim Cook). And the EU says Google's been taking advantage of this – by writing up contracts with Android phone makers that require them to pre-install Google apps like Chrome. Google says 'didn't do anything wrong.' This comes on top of a $2.7 billion antitrust fine the EU slapped Google with last year for another case. Ouch.


What people are talking about…

These lawsuits. Earlier this week, four former wrestlers from Ohio State University sued the school for ignoring complaints about sexual abuse by a team doctor. This is the same university where Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) – who used to be assistant wrestling coach there – was accused of knowing about the abuse and not doing anything. Meanwhile, MGM Resorts International is suing hundreds of victims who sued or threatened to sue it over the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. The company owns the resort and the venue where the attack happened. And says it isn't liable for anything because it used an outside gov-certified security company for the concert. Meanwhile, Iran's suing the US for bringing sanctions back after pulling out of the Iran deal. It accuses the US of violating a decades-old treaty and is taking the issue up with the UN's top court.


What to say when you hear the WNBA's Liz Cambage stacked up all the points…

Jupiter is stacking up all the moons. Scientists have found a dozen new moons orbiting around Jupiter – bringing up the planet's total moon tally to almost 80. (Cue air horn.) But one small moon doesn't understand direction and could crash into another someday. Fingers crossed the little guy can moonwalk its way back on track.


What to say when you hear Sade's reportedly working on a new album...

Queen.

SKIMM BIRTHDAYS

* indicates Skimm'bassador. Pop some confetti

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