Hello, N2K’ers!

This week, our world-famous News Haiku™ competition theme is that the U.S. Air Force is eyeing the purchase of Tesla Cybertrucks — in order to blow them up. Send me a haiku on the subject by today at noon ET right here. Winner gets glory.

Nice. Now let’s talk about the news you Need2Know?

—Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor

News You Need2Know

• You can get milk and blueberries on Amazon now

• Millions of Americans are rethinking alcohol

• SoCal Police find $30K worth of stolen Labubus

• Spirit Airlines just can’t take it any more

• What happens when you cut vaccine research?

What’s the stock market up to, eh?

$SPX ( ▼ 0.01% ) $DJI ( ▼ 0.13% ) $NDX ( ▲ 0.09% )

Companies mentioned in today’s newsletter

$AMZN ( ▲ 2.93% )  $WMT ( ▼ 0.14% )  $CART ( ▼ 2.71% )  $TGT ( ▼ 1.66% )  $FLYY ( ▲ 1.01% )  

You can get milk and blueberries on Amazon now

Amazon $AMZN ( ▲ 2.93% ) is making waves in the grocery delivery space with its newly expanded perishable delivery service.

Prime members across the U.S. can now enjoy the convenience of same-day delivery for fresh groceries, such as fruits, vegetables, and dairy, alongside household essentials — all without the indignity of setting foot in something called a “grocery store,” which honestly sounds appalling. I can’t imagine how generations of people have done such a thing without self-immolation afterward, but still. Happy days are here!

The service is currently available in over 1,000 cities and towns and is expected to reach 2,300 locations by the end of the year. For orders over $25, Prime members can enjoy free delivery. Those with smaller orders still benefit from a low $2.99 fee, while non-members can access the service for $12.99. The move aims to integrate fresh grocery delivery more comprehensively into the “Prime membership experience.”

The move adds pressure on competitors like Walmart $WMT ( ▼ 0.14% ) Instacart $CART ( ▼ 2.71% ) , and Target $TGT ( ▼ 1.66% ) .

Song of the day: Hayes Carll, ‘We’re Only Human’

What Folk Alley calls “a songwriter’s songwriter,” Hayes Carll “gazes steadily at the world around him and stares deeply into the human soul, especially his own.” This is the title track from his tenth album and echoes something I often say to my wife whenever she says something nice about me. It annoys her a lot. Still. She’s only human.

Millions of Americans are rethinking alcohol

A growing number of Americans are rethinking their relationship with alcohol, driven by rising awareness of its potential health risks. That’s according to a recent Gallup poll which shows 53% of adults now believe that even moderate alcohol consumption is harmful to health. 

That’s a dramatic increase from 28% in 2015. This shift is particularly driven by younger adults, with about two-thirds of individuals aged 18 to 34 viewing moderate drinking as unhealthy. However, older adults are also beginning to reconsider their views, with 1 in 2 Americans aged 55 or older expressing concerns.

Lydia Saad, Gallup's director of U.S. social research, attributes this generational difference to how health information is perceived. “Older folks may be a little more hardened in terms of the whiplash that they get with recommendations," said Saad. They also probably need a drink at the end of the day to cope with paying the goddamned bills.

Gallup also found that reported alcohol consumption in the U.S. has fallen to a three-decade low, with just 54% of adults saying they drink.

Clearly, there’s no hope for America.

Today on the ‘gram: Because it can?

Post of the day: Why is he working a construction job in the ocean?

Quote of the Day

SoCal Police find $30K worth of stolen Labubus

Southern California police have recovered $30,000 worth of stolen Labubu dolls from a warehouse theft. The Chino¹ Police Department said the highly sought-after collectibles were taken in multiple trips by two suspects who worked at the warehouse.

According to authorities, the stolen Labubus were discovered at a home in Upland, California, located in the Inland Empire region. “One suspect attempted to flee during the search but later surrendered,” the department stated. The second suspect was apprehended shortly after in a nearby city. Both were booked into San Bernardino County juvenile hall on charges of burglary and conspiracy to commit burglary.

The case sheds light on the growing demand for Labubu dolls, which have seen a surge in popularity. Created in 2015 by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung and sold by China’s Pop Mart, the toothy collectibles have become prized items among fans. Detectives uncovered 14 boxes of stolen items at the suspects’ residence, along with evidence pointing to plans to resell and ship the dolls nationwide.

This announcement follows another theft in nearby La Puente, where $7,000 worth of Labubus were stolen from a store. Meanwhile, a group of conservative Christians plans to purchase $150K worth of Labubu dolls for destruction, claiming they’re an incarnation of the devil² .

Should you check your 401(k) today?

👍️ 

Yesirree, Bob.

Spirit Airlines just can’t take it any more

Spirit Airlines $SAVEQ ( ▲ 0.43% ) , the Florida-based budget carrier known for its bright yellow planes and no-frills service, is facing significant financial, excuse me, turbulence. Just five months after emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the airline has issued a dire warning about its future, stating that it has “substantial doubt” about its ability to stay in business over the next year.

I mean, don’t we all? But you don’t see me going around making such statements. I just whisper them into my pillow every night. And my pillow whispers back: You’re only human.

The airline’s struggles stem from a variety of factors, including persistent weak demand for domestic leisure travel and mounting operational challenges. Despite restructuring its debt and securing new financing after its bankruptcy filing, Spirit has been unable to overcome rising costs and lagging revenue. The company, which since the start of 2020 has already lost $2.5 billion — or more than anyone reading this newsletter will make in their lifetime — says these difficulties are likely to persist through 2025.

In an effort to cut costs, Spirit has announced plans to furlough 270 pilots and downgrade 140 captains to first officers in the coming months. Additionally, the airline is exploring asset sales, including aircraft and real estate, to generate much-needed cash.

JetBlue and Spirit called off their planned merger last year after Joe Biden’s Justice Department blocked it. Do you think there’s a slim chance that Donald Trump’s Justice Department might now allow the move to go ahead?

What happens when you cut vaccine research?

We spoke with Dr. Richard Besser, who leads the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. He was once an acting director of the CDC and had a few things to say about the cancellation of nearly half a billion dollars in mRNA vaccine research funding by Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr.

Besser, who previously led emergency preparedness and response at the CDC for four years, described his reaction to the move as "shocked."

Besser emphasized the critical role of speed in pandemic response, stating, "When a pandemic hits, what matters most of all is speed. How fast can you develop measures to protect the population?" He lauded the achievements of Operation Warp Speed during the first Trump administration, calling it "absolutely miraculous" for delivering "many vaccines safe and effective to protect the population" in record time, saving "millions of lives." The current administration's actions, he believes, have effectively "tied our hands behind our back and remove what was an extremely promising tool to have us ready for whatever comes next."

When asked about Secretary RFK Jr.'s actions, Besser stated, "He's delivering as advertised." He characterized the secretary as "one of the nation's leading anti-vaccine proponents" who "came in with a clear anti-vaccine agenda, and he is step-by-step dismantling one of greatest public health interventions of all time."  

Despite the current challenges, Besser believes that rebuilding is possible, though it "will take a long time." He recalled a time when "public health was one of those things that was not political like this" and that "everyone wanted their community to be ready and to be protected." He hopes that Congress will "step up and say, this doesn't work. This doesn't for the people who elected me on both sides of the aisle, and we need to change this. We need to hold the department accountable." The biggest challenge, he concluded, is "having such an ideologue in Secretary Kennedy in such a critical position."

Poll of the Day:

Poll of the Day: A.C. or D.C.?

We asked: “What do you think of Donald Trump's decision to deploy the National Guard to Washington, D.C.?”

You answered:

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ It's good. They'll be able to "get rid of the slums," as he said. (82)

 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 It's "unsettling and unprecedented," as the mayor of D.C. said. (789 votes)

871 Votes via @beehiiv polls

1  No relation to the pants.

2  Sure, why not?