enRICHed: Volume 36

Written By Rich BFF

Packing Up

I know that summer is officially in full swing when I am living out of my dop kit and constantly repacking my suitcase every Thursday night. This Friday kicked off two back-to-back wedding weekends, and next weekend I will be flying to Martha’s Vineyard to celebrate my fiancé’s childhood friends. Normally, a trip to the Vineyard would mean a massive road trip + a ferry ride, but thanks to my credit card points, we could afford to fly! Which is exactly what Vivian covers on this week’s Networth and Chill. The Points Guy sits down with our Rich BFF to discuss all things travel and how to make your credit card work for you. Highly recommend this one guys!!! The more you know about points, the less stress there is when it comes to summer travel - I promise!

Uber Expands

  • Taking on the likes of Turo, Getaround, and Zipcar, Uber announced a new arm of business: car sharing.

  • With the acquisition of Car Next Door, Uber Carshare will launch soon in Boston and Toronto, after initial success in Australia.

  • How will it work? As a car owner, you’ll be able to set your own pricing and availability. There is no requirement for advance booking, fuel is included, and insurance is available through Uber.

  • What’s in it for Uber? Well, obviously, this is a new opportunity for revenue. Uber already exists to make transportation easier for people in cities, so car-sharing makes sense as a next step. It also is a step for its zero-emission pledge: according to data from Zipcar, sharing a car reduces carbon footprint by up to 1,600 pounds per person per year.

  • HYCU; Viv always talks about easy side hustles!!! If Uber Carshare takes off and you are a car owner, this could be something to keep an eye on!

It Was All Yellow…

  • In case you missed it, New York City had the worst air quality in the world on Wednesday. The sky turned an eerie yellow, glowing with smoke that made it impossible to see the famous skyline.

  • The smoke from raging wildfires in Canada made its way down the North East Coastline, heavily affecting the tri-state area. 414 wildfires had burned about 9.4 million acres by Thursday, which is almost 15 times the 10-year average seen in Canada.

  • Even though NYC was in the “spotlight”, health officials from Vermont to South Carolina and as far west as Ohio and Kansas warned that spending time outdoors could cause respiratory problems. It is the worst smoke seen in years.

  • HYCU; the fires and smoke have an affect on everyone, not just those in Canada. People with health problems were forced to stay inside or risk trips to the hospital. Money was lost all over the place: with the Yankees cancelling a home game, stores closing early, flights being grounded, workout studios cancelling classes, and people staying inside and avoiding any type of socialization that might otherwise occur on a summer Wednesday in New York. Once again, we see the power of climate change in our own backyard, and it is scary.

America, Uninsured

  • State Farm and Allstate have announced that they will no longer provide home insurance to the state of California. Inflation and “rapidly growing catastrophe exposure” aka climate change are causing both companies to stop accepting new applications for policies.

  • The announcement follows a growing trend in Florida, Louisiana, Colorado and Oregon. Places that are susceptible to wildfires, flooding, hurricanes, and other natural disasters are becoming too expensive for insurance companies. The only other option for them is to increase rates, which makes them too expensive for home owners.

  • As claims pile up across these states, insurance companies have gone insolvent, or have left, canceling or refusing to renew existing policies. It’s a vicious cycle with seemingly no end.

  • HYCU; the decision to stop accepting new customers does help existing policy owners, as it buoys the financial health of the companies. However, the move is worrisome as places in the US become simply uninsurable - where will every one relocate to?

The Trump Indictment

  • What’s going on? On Thursday, the Justice Department lodged federal criminal charges against former President Trump. The charges accuse him of mishandling classified documents and then obstructing the government’s efforts to reclaim them. Trump was actually the one to break the news online.

  • What are the charges? 31 counts are related to the withholding of national defense information, 5 counts are related to concealing possession of classified documents and 2 counts are related to false statements made to the F.B.I. The entire indictment has been annotated by the New York Times if you are interested in the details.

  • If Trump is found guilty, he could spend up to the rest of his life in prison. But it is unlikely that the criminal trial will be resolved before the 2024 election, which makes things unprecedented if he is to win the Republican nominee.

  • HYCU; this story is groundbreaking and likely will continue to be in the news consistently. We wanted to give you some of the background, and encourage you to do your own reading and listening to gain a greater understanding of the stakes.

PGA and LIV Shock the Sports World

  • The PGA Tour and LIV Golf, the Saudi-backed golf tour that has taken the golf scene by storm, have agreed to merge this week. The two tours have been rivals since LIV’s launch last year, so the merger came as a huge shock when it was first announced.

  • LIV has been poaching the PGA’s talent with massive amounts of money, in the form of prize pots and appearance fees, and that talent hasn’t been allowed to participate in PGA events as a result - which hurts viewership. Let’s be honest though - if you’re Phil Mickelson and you’re being offered $100 million by LIV just to show up, it’s hard to say no.

  • The PGA often pointed to the Saudi's government's human rights abuse record as a main sticking point in its rivalry with LIV, so the merger seems like a large reversal in morals to many involved.

  • HYCU; in a WSJ exclusive this weekend, we found out that the main driver behind the merger was money - shocker. The PGA was unable to stay competitive, despite attempts to increase prize packages at tour events this year. The merger also saves the PGA millions in legal fees, as it had also entered anticompetitive litigation with LIV. LIV throwing hundreds of millions of dollars at the situation won out in the end, and golf fans are thrilled at the potential to see all of their favorite stars on the course together moving forward.

Rich BFF
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