This past week I spent time in Eleuthera, Bahamas. If you’ve never been before, I highly recommend it. Eleuthera, which lies 50 miles east of Nassau, is both a single island and an associated group of smaller islands that form part of the Great Bahama Banks. This area offers a beautiful contrast to Nassau and Grand Bahama. Tourists visit Harbor Island to see Pink Sands Beach but will be pleased to discover much more.
This vacation forced me to turn off the news for a week and focus on rum, reggae, and fishing (not in that order) and ponder the existential question—could you be loved? It also created an excellent opportunity to introduce my second podcast. My interview is with Pablo Conde. He is a Cuban-American serial entrepreneur who currently runs two companies, Concealment Express and Pink Sand Spirits. The son of immigrant parents who fled Castro’s communist reign, Pablo has a fascinating life story that showcases an immigrant’s meaningful, symbiotic relationship with our nation. Some of the topics covered are as follows:
The Cuban-American experience
The highs and lows of entrepreneurship
The experience of selling a business and achieving a successful exit
Eleuthera, Bahamas as a getaway destination
This podcast is my second effort, so I appreciate the feedback. And let me know if you have an interesting story to share and would like to be on a future podcast. ToMorrow’s View is officially on Spotify, so thank you in advance for following me on that platform!
Please note that this podcast is an unscripted, one-take, unedited recording. Accordingly, any bloopers, awkward segues, and the occasional cuss word should be overlooked and only add to the production’s charm. (GRIN)
I. Below are the articles I found interesting the past week:
Older Americans stockpiled a record $35 trillion. The time has come to give it away.
Donald J. Trump: Why I’m suing big tech
The next great disruption is hybrid work—are we ready?
II. Stats that made me go WOW!
- In what’s being coined as the “Great Resignation,” 4 million people, or 2.7% of US workers, quit their jobs in April. That’s a record going back to 2000. In all, 41% of workers globally are considering leaving their current employer this year, according to a survey from Microsoft. Experts have floated several explanations.
- This year’s Scripps National Spelling Bee champion, Zaila Avant-garde, is also a record-holding basketball dribbler and math prodigy. The 14-year-old from Harvey, Louisiana, holds three Guinness World Records for basketball tricks and would like to play basketball at Harvard before becoming an NBA coach or join NASA or pursue neuroscience. Plus, she can read 1,150 words per minute. Avant-garde is the first Black American to win the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
- The percentage of Americans who identify as white Christians, which has been on the decline for the last 45 years, has stabilized. The Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) reveals that the percentage of white and Christian Americans is now 44%. That number was 80% in 1976 and 66% in 1996. Though white Christians no longer make up a supermajority of the US, their number appears to have stopped declining.
- Billionaire Richard Branson is going to suborbital space this weekend aboard a Virgin Galactic space plane, less than two weeks before Amazon founder Jeff Bezos makes his journey. Branson will travel aboard the VSS Unity, which will reach just over 50 miles above the Earth. That counts as “space,” according to NASA and the FAA, though it’s below the Kármán line, an area 62 miles above the Earth considered by some experts to be the boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space
- According to CDC modeling, the Delta variant is now the dominant strain of coronavirus in the US. The CDC says approximately 51.7% of cases recorded between June 20 and July 3 are linked to the virulent strain, first identified in India. Drugmaker Pfizer said Thursday it is seeing waning immunity from its coronavirus vaccine and says it is picking up its efforts to develop a booster dose to protect people from variants. Of the 158 million fully vaccinated people in the US, more than half received the Pfizer shot.
- Children over the age of 12 are eligible to receive a coronavirus vaccine. It’s unclear when the shots will be available for children under 12, though clinical trials are underway, with results expected by fall. At this point, 24% of children between 12 and 15 are fully vaccinated, and that number rises to 36% among 16- and 17-year-olds. The CDC urges schools to promote vaccination to all eligible students, as they have been shown to reduce transmission and remain largely effective against the delta variant.
III. Name that Tune!
I am listening to “Could You Be Loved” by Bob Marley and The Wailers as I write this newsletter.
Bob Marley was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and musician. He is considered one of the pioneers of reggae, and his greatest hits album Legend in 1984 became the best-selling reggae album of all time. However, Marley’s influence expands beyond music into politics and culture. He is a Rastafari icon, and he infused his music with a sense of spirituality. He was outspoken in his support for the legalization of marijuana and advocated for Pan-Africanism.
In 1963, Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh, Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, and Cherry Smith were called the Teenagers. They later changed the name to the Wailing Rudeboys, then to the Wailing Wailers, at which point record producer discovered them, and finally arrived at simply Wailers. The Wailers disbanded in 1974, with each of the three principal members pursuing a solo career. Despite the break-up, Marley continued recording as “Bob Marley & The Wailers,” and under that name, released 11 albums. Marley ranks as one of the best-selling artists of all time, with estimated sales of more than 75 million records worldwide. Rolling Stone ranks Marley as No. 11 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
In 1977, Marley was diagnosed with acral lentiginous melanoma. He died as a result of the illness in 1981. Jamaica gave Marley a state funeral, and fans around the world mourned the loss.
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Episode 58: Could You Be Loved?