The Pour Over Today - Friday, November 11, 2022

Episode Date: November 11, 2022

Today, we’re talking about ongoing election results, a crypto catastrophe, a happier Wall Street, and other top news for Friday, November 11th. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over. Pay What You Want for The Pour Over (new annual members a Daily Kairos Journal, one of our favorite Bible resources)

Today, we're talking about ongoing election results, a crypto catastrophe, a happier Wall Street, and other top news for Friday, November 11th. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over. Here's the quote of the day, Lord, make my way prosperous, not that I achieve high station, but that my life be an exhibit to the value of knowing God. Jim Elliott Let's get started with some espresso shots.

Welcome to day four of election day, the gift that keeps on giving. Republicans appear poised to win a narrow majority in the House, but not by the red wave margins polls were forecasting. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the Republican from California, formally announced a bid to be Speaker of the House. The race to control the Senate is as close as promised. As of last night, Republicans have 49 seats after winning a close race in Wisconsin, and Democrats have 48, with ballots still being counted in Arizona and Nevada. Meanwhile, Georgians can expect a heaping side of political ads for Thanksgiving. There will be a runoff election on December 3rd between Herschel Walker and Raphael Warnock, as neither gained over 50% of the vote as required by state law. Culturally hot topics like elections frequently make people think, speak, and act poorly,

including us. We can respect others and represent God better if we are quick to listen and slow to speak, seeking to love our political enemies. James 1.19 and 20 says, Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for human anger does not accomplish God's righteousness. The crypto exchange FTX is in serious trouble and its almost-savior, rival company Binance, just took off its superhero cape. A recent report revealed that FTX was using its custodial assets, which should not be touched, to fund its sister company, Alameda Research, and most of its cash reserves were actually its own cryptocurrency, FTT. All at once,

everyone holding FTT tried to cash out, FTX was short about $8 billion, and the company crumbled. Binance announced it would buy FTX, reportedly for just $1, to bail out its competitor, but backed out after getting a peek behind the curtain. They called FTX a financial, quote, black hole and cited concerns that U.S. regulators are currently launching investigations. It appears that FTX, which was valued at $32 billion earlier this year, may soon be valued at zero. If our hope is based on economic security, then we are right to live in fear because at any moment we could lose everything. If our hope is rooted in the eternal security provided by Christ, then we can weather any storm,

even economic collapse. Psalm 18.2 says, my God, my rock where I seek refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Annual inflation in October was 7.7%, and despite what the 2021 version of yourself might think, this is actually good news. Consumer prices rose 0.4% last month, meaningfully below the expected 0.6%, thanks in part to declines in the prices of used cars, medical services, and apparel. The stock market was pleasantly surprised. The Dow jumped 1,200 points and the S&P 500 surged 5%. It's their biggest rally since April 2020. Even heavily battered big tech stocks had a good day, though some of their employees didn't. Meta, which is up 10.3%, announced its largest ever layoffs. 11,000 employees were zucked to the curb.

Amazon is up 12.2% and they are, quote, reviewing unprofitable units and positions. Apple, up 8.9%, confirmed iPhone 14 production issues caused by COVID restrictions and protests in China. Here's a verse to consider when your joy seems suspiciously tied to the stock market. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13.8 We believe that the news can actually be a force for good, helping people find rest and comfort in Christ while spurring them on to loving action, instead of, you know, creating division, anger, and a persistent feeling of impending doom. For example, keep this in mind while reading today's news. Even if everything goes wrong, your eternity is secure. It costs about 20 cents per subscriber

per month to operate the pour-over, but many readers are unable or unwilling to pay. You can sling seven of them on your back and support our staff and mission for just $1.99 a month. You can pay what you want for the pour-over, and new annual members get a daily Kairos journal, one of our favorite Bible resources. We've got links for you in the show notes. In other brews, we've got a rapid round of updates. It wasn't just politicians on the ballot. State constitutional amendments enshrining the right to abortion passed in California, Michigan, and Vermont, while pro-life initiatives failed in Kentucky and Montana. Votes to legalize recreational weed passed in Maryland, Michigan, and Vermont, while pro-life initiatives failed in Kentucky

and Montana. Votes to legalize recreational weed passed in Maryland and Missouri, but failed in Arkansas, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Colorado's bid to decriminalize psychedelics remains too close to call. Russia says it's retreating from the annexed city of Kherson, but Ukraine remains skeptical, suspecting the major surrender is likely a trap. Moscow has been increasingly strapped for supplies, and the U.S. has accused North Korea of sending munitions to Russia, an allegation North Korea officially denied. In this week's episode of Not Again, Hurricane Nicole hit Florida's eastern coast overnight Thursday as a Category 1 storm,

the first November hurricane since 1985. The storm has caused two deaths and knocked out power to hundreds of thousands. WNBA star Brittany Griner was moved to a Russian penal colony to serve her nine-year prison sentence for possession of cannabis oil, though her family and lawyers don't know her exact whereabouts. The U.S. government condemned the move, and President Biden said he's, quote, determined to get her home. Twitter Blue, the $8 a month subscription that comes with a verified check, is now available and is adding to the Wild West vibes. A fake but verified LeBron James requested a trade, while a fake but verified Nintendo tweeted Mario making a rude gesture. Twitter briefly rolled out a second gray, quote, official checkmark on certain accounts, but backtracked hours later.

That's all we have for today. Thanks so much for listening. Here's a breakdown on how you can best support us. If you're listening on the Apple Podcast app, give us a five-star rating and drop a review. If you're listening on Spotify, give us a follow and hit the notification bell to never miss a new episode. And finally, the simplest way to help us grow is to send this episode to a friend. We hope you have a great rest of your weekend and we'll see you back here on Monday.