The Pour Over Today - Friday, November 18, 2022

Episode Date: November 18, 2022

Today, we’re talking about big election updates, an ultimatum for Twitter employees, an update on the missile that hit Poland, and other top news for Friday, November 18th. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over. Join us in partnering with World Concern. $12 feeds a child for a month. We’re matching the first $1,200. 

Today we're talking about big election updates, an ultimatum for Twitter employees, an update on the missile that hit Poland, and other top news for Friday, November 18th. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over. Here's the quote of the day. Honesty is often very hard. The truth is often painful. But the freedom it can bring is worth the trying. Mr. Rogers.

Let's jump right in with some espresso shots. A few more pieces of this lengthy election are falling into place. Most notably, the AP projects the Republican Party has won a majority in the House of Representatives. As for leadership, Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican from Kentucky, will remain GOP Senate leader. Representative Kevin McCarthy, Republican from Kentucky, will remain GOP Senate leader. Representative Kevin McCarthy, Republican from California, won an intraparty leadership vote, but may face an uphill battle to gain the necessary 218 votes to become Speaker of the House. Representative Nancy Pelosi announced yesterday she's stepping down as House Democrats' top leader after 20 years. Meanwhile, this lame-duck congressional session is shaping up to be busy.

Congress is expected to take action on federal budget, codifying same-sex and racial marriage, electoral reform, and raising the debt ceiling. On Wednesday, the House passed a bill to make NDAs related to workplace sexual harassment unenforceable. We shouldn't allow the success or failure of a political party to consume our thoughts, emotions, or hope for the future. Regardless of your circumstance, our mission remains the same. Love God and love others. Matthew 22, 36-40 says, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it. Love your neighbor as yourself.

greatest and most important command. The second is like it. Love your neighbor as yourself. Twitter reported over 250 million daily active users, a 20% increase from the pre-Musk era, and an all-time high for the social media company. But the mood at Twitter HQ is far from celebratory. On Wednesday, Musk gave employees an ultimatum. Work, quote, long hours at high intensity, unquote, Musk gave employees an ultimatum. Work, quote, long hours at high intensity, unquote, or take three-month severance. They had until 5 p.m. yesterday to decide. Meanwhile, Musk told a judge Wednesday he plans to, quote, reduce his time at Twitter and find somebody else to run Twitter over time, unquote, during a hearing for a lawsuit brought by Tesla investors suing Musk over his $55 billion

compensation package. Separately, Elon Musk announced Twitter's blue check subscription will return on November 29th and will be, quote, rock solid. The initial launch caused confusion and stock swings thanks to the proliferation of fake but verified accounts. Here's a verse to consider when someone pretends to be you on Twitter. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. Matthew 5, 44. Crisis averted. At least, for now. Polish and NATO officials announced that there's absolutely nothing to suggest that the missile

that struck Poland killing two people was an intentional attack by Russia, but was most likely a stray Ukrainian defense missile meant to counter Russia's attack. For a bit there, things were, uh, tense. Poland is a member of NATO, a US-led alliance of 30 nations that has a mutual defense agreement. If you attack one, all 30 will retaliate. There were concerns that if this had been an attack by Russia, it could have been the start of World War III. Instead, NATO seems content to call it an unfortunate accident, which they blame on Russia for its illegal war against Ukraine, and move on. Be quick to point to God and give him the credit for your hope, strength, and love during times dominated by uncertainty and fear. Even in the midst of chaos, everything of ultimate importance is secure. Psalm 18.2 says,

The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock where I seek refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Somalia seems poised to get an unwanted upgrade. The United Nations says portions of the East African country will likely graduate from a food emergency to outright famine within months, the highest classification of a food crisis, indicating a significant death rate from outright starvation. It's no secret what pushed Somalia to this point. Drought and the war in Ukraine. East Africa is experiencing their worst drought in 40 years, which has left tens of millions of people without access to clean water, killed millions of livestock, and decimated crops. Meanwhile, 90% of Somalia's wheat came

from Russia and Ukraine. No longer. And humanitarian aid has been focused on Europe. In short, it's been the perfect storm, and it's led to an alarming increase in child malnutrition. We're asking the Pour Over community to join us in partnering with World Concern to help get emergency nutrition packs, water, and hygiene products to those in most need. $12 feeds a child for a month. We're matching the first $1,200, and you can give through the link in our show notes. James 2, 15-16 says, If a brother or sister is without clothes and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, go in peace, stay warm, and be well fed, but you don't give them what the body needs, what good is it?

In other brews, here's a rapid round of updates. The World Cup starts Sunday in Qatar, and the location is making as many headlines as the sport. Foreign fans will outnumber citizens 10 to 1, and it's unclear if local Islamic laws will be enforced. European officials say Qatar's World Cup app presents security concerns, and some celebs are boycotting the event over the nation's human rights record. Yale and Harvard law schools announced they would no longer participate in U.S. News and World Report's annual ranking. Yale, who's been number one since 1990, backed out first, followed by Harvard, currently number four.

Yale called the rankings profoundly flawed. Both schools said the rankings conflict with their commitments to student diversity and affordability. What do you get when 14 million people try to buy 2 million tickets? Ask Ticketmaster. The website repeatedly crashed on Tuesday during the pre-sale of Taylor Swift's Eros tour. This led to hours-long waits, exorbitantly priced resale tickets, and the cancellation of general sale this morning. And for good measure, an investigation by the Tennessee Attorney General.

Apparently she didn't just want you for Christmas, she also wanted to be queen. Mariah Carey's application to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to be known as the Queen of Christmas was rejected, along with her requests for QOC and Princess Christmas. She'll have to settle for holding those titles in our hearts. And that's all we have for today. Thank you so much for listening. If you're listening on the Apple Podcast app, you can 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. We appreciate your support and we hope you have a great weekend. We'll see you on Monday.