Sorry Goose, it’s time to Buzz the Private Equity Tower
Plus: The Innocence Project takes up Scott Peterson’s case, America’s spewing hot garbage problem & the White House strips the walls for copper wire.
It once was golden, then wildly chased, but now thought cooked. I am, of course, speaking of The Goose. Canada Goose, proprietors of the priciest parkas in creation. Bain Capital, the controlling shareholder, is considering flying the coop and selling part or all of its shares in the company. On the bright side, with a strong supply chain in Canada, they won’t have to waddle far to source materials even if tariffs hit them. And what’s down is up, as shares in Canada Goose rose 5.7% since the potential sale was announced.
Canada Goose is not the status symbol it once was. I remember Rob Henderson telling a story about fellow Yale students wearing absurdly expensive Canada Goose jackets (they go for upwards of $1000!), but now I only see people getting them if they can find a used one or one that made its way to whatever the luxury version of a TJ Maxx is.
Welcome to the Gist List—a gander at the news, things you should know, and my thoughts leading up to today’s podcast episode.
Here’s what’s on my mind:
👼 Why is the Innocence Project trying to get Scott Peterson out of jail? (🔒)
☢️ Nuclear has bipartisan support, so what’s the holdup?
🥉 The Trump administration is stripping the walls for copper wire.
💩 America’s steaming, hot garbage problem. (🔒)
💃 The Moulin Rouge goes topless.
The Gist List
A New Scott Peterson Mystery: Why Is the Innocence Project Trying to Set Him Free? (LA Times)🔒
The Los Angeles branch of the Innocence Project has reignited interest around Scott Peterson’s 2004 conviction for the murder of his pregnant wife, Laci Peterson. They cited new forensic analysis and investigative efforts that they claim cast doubt on the original verdict.
Peterson’s attorneys are now presenting a “comically” abundant amount of circumstantial evidence. They are also floating theories like her baby dying several days after Laci was last seen, and the handwritten notes about where to buy boat anchors “probably” being written by Laci.
My first thought was, “Why is The Innocence Project trying to get Scott Peterson out of jail?” My first answer wasn’t “he’s innocent.” It has more to do with the fact that local chapters of the organization are merely affiliated with the OG organization, but otherwise operate independently.
The Innocence Project has a history of doing great work overturning wrongful convictions, especially those based on junk science. And unpopular and even unlikable people indeed deserve a proper defense, especially if they were wrongfully convicted. It is also worth mentioning that The Innocence Project, or at least the LA affiliate of it, does run the risk of undercutting its authority by going after high-profile cases and throwing huge amounts of circumstantial, even conspiratorial-sounding, evidence at it. On the other hand, that’s a good way to land a job as either director or deputy director of the FBI.
Republicans and Democrats Finally Agree on Nuclear. It’s the Industry That’s the Problem (Politico)
Finally! Everyone is on the same page over nuclear energy. It’s a veritable mushroom cloud of concordance.* So what’s the holdup? According to this Politico article, the nuclear industry itself—not regulation or public opposition—is impeding progress. I, naturally, have some objections.
It claims, among other things, that the escalating costs, few new facilities being built, and the labor force’s learning curve are holding progress back. But for decades, Democrats—including progressives and environmentalists—opposed nuclear energy as almost a creed. Finally, in the last few years, the Biden and Obama administrations started backing limited proposals for expansion. But is it so inexplicable that an industry that was for years prevented from building and innovating, when finally given a dim green “Go” signal, is slightly sluggish to respond? But considering how late in the game this is coming and how costly and time-consuming it is to build these massive nuclear smoke stacks, it might take a while to get going.
* I joke, I joke, I know nuclear energy and nuclear bombs are VERY, VERY different things, and nuclear energy is one of the safest, cleanest forms of energy, and that the association with nuclear weapons has unfairly harmed the industry. And I apologize. That said, wasn’t Atomic Habits a best seller?
Trump Says 50% Tariff on Copper Imports Will Begin Aug. 1 (CNBC)
President Donald Trump has announced a 50% tariff on copper imports, set to take effect on August 1—provided he doesn’t change his mind again—citing national security concerns. Copper is essential to military and tech infrastructure, used in everything from semiconductors and missiles to radar systems and hypersonic weapons. Yet nearly half of our copper comes from Chile.
So… how exactly are tariffs supposed to help, other than making defense projects more expensive? The Trump administration is hoping this move will eventually ramp up domestic copper production and reduce reliance on foreign sources. But in the short term, it feels a bit like stripping copper wire out of the walls to pawn it for meth money—not a great investment strategy, especially when Congress just took out a massive loan on the house.
Also in Tariff news, Trump threatened a 50% tariff on Brazil, citing the prosecution of former President Jair Bolsonaro as a "witch hunt,” so it would be naïve to assume that the U.S. will be making truly rational tariff-related decisions up until August 1.
America’s Hot Garbage Problem (Bloomberg)🔒
And her name is Laura Loomer.* No, it’s not. It’s that in Val Verde, California, residents are dealing with the fallout from the nearby Chiquita Canyon Landfill. As it turns out, you can only put so much trash into a landfill before it starts spewing out hot garbage. The landfill has grown by over 200% since the 1990s, and in 2022, a suspected “underground fire” exceeded temperatures of 200°F—well above federal safety thresholds. It has started emitting toxic gases like benzene, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon monoxide, and residents have reported headaches, nosebleeds, chronic sinus issues, miscarriages, cancers, and even dead pets on top of the already noxious smells in the area.
* I joke, I joke. Lovely gal, keeping the Intel Community honest that LaLo.
Moulin Rouge Blades to Spin Again, One Year After Falling Off (Le Monde)
The Moulin Rouge, known for its topless performers, is staying on brand. In April 2024, the iconic Parisian cabaret lost its blades—and the letters M, O, and U—leaving behind a marquee that read simply “Lin Rouge.” Luckily, there were no injuries, but they fell off due to a failure in the windmill’s central axis, taking with it the motor. Now, 14 months later (presumably due to the French national pastime of protesting and retiring early), the windmill is fully functional again.
I had to look up what it looked like at the time they fell off, and I do love seeing the blades in the dumpster surrounded by blasé Frenchmen.
Yesterday on The Show: How Trump Outsmarted the Democrats in 2024
An interview with Wall Street Journal reporter Josh Dawsey, co-author of 2024: How Trump Retook the White House and the Democrats Lost America, covers Biden’s decline, Trump’s courtroom rage, and the political strategy behind legal delays.
This newsletter was put together in collaboration with Kathleen Sykes. Mistakes and goose puns belong to Mike Pesca.
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