December 2020

AS THE FINAL DAY OF 2020 FADED INTO DARKNESS, AN ORANGE BALL WAS SINKING BELOW THE HORIZON IN OUR NATION’S CAPITOL, LIKE THE CALM AFTER

AMAZON BOASTS IT SUPPORTS SMALL BIZ DURING THE PANDEMIC “investing more than $18 B to help independent businesses grow their sales on Amazon..spending more than

AMAZON DELIVERED MORE THAN 1.5 B TOYS THIS HOLIDAY, incl. home products, beauty & personal care & electronics. They’ve made Santa their gig worker, spreading

AS OF MID-NOV., THERE ARE 2.1 M FEWER RESTAURANT WORKERS THAN BEFORE THE PANDEMIC. My youngest daughter is one of them. Here are the states

FAA ISSUES RULES FOR DRONES: can’t cause injury to a humans that is = to or > the severity of injury caused by a transfer

THIS CHART SHOWS % GROWTH OF ONLINE RETAIL SALES VS. % DROP IN BRICK & MORTAR SALES —but B&M sales were $4.71 T vs $794.5

A YEAR OF COVID DID WONDERS FOR ONLINE SHOPPING. BRICK & MORTAR IN-PERSON SALES DROPPED BY $234.5 B. Online sales projections rose $120 B—but even

DID YOUR 401k GET CUT? 51,000 employers—many small biz—cut funding to their 401k retirement plans due to Covid cost cutting. 92% of companies did not

WALMART HAD A “CHAOTIC XMAS EVE” IN REDDING, CA. A woman was killed by police following a carjacking, a shooting & a car driven inside

BIG US SENATE ELECTION IN GEORGIA, WHERE BIG ONLINE RETAILERS GAINED THE MOST JOBS: AMZN, WMT, HD. 176,000 Atlantans are jobless. Are Dems making lost

HOME DEPOT PAYS $8 B TO BUY KEY COMPETITOR, a national distributor of maintenance, repair, & operations (MRO) products. If you’re not a HD shareholder,

RESTAURANT SALES ONLINE USING DOOR DASH, UBER EATS & GRUBHUB DOUBLED TO $45 B IN 2020–but restaurants eat high fees charged by delivery services. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.eater.com/platform/amp/2019/5/29/18636255/delivery-apps-hurting-restaurants-grubhub-seamless-ubereats

WALMART IN TENN. GOES INTO LOCKDOWN AS TWO CUSTOMERS PULL GUNS ON EACH OTHER. “We’re glad no customers or associates were seriously injured,” said Walmart—the

CONGRESS SENDS XMAS GIFTS TO SMALL BIZ: A 2nd round of $284.5 B in Economic Injury Disaster Loan Advances— $10,000 tax-free loans & can deduct

WORKERS AT AN AMAZON WAREHOUSE IN NEW JERSEY HAVE XMAS OFF TODAY—NOT BECAUSE ITS A HOLIDAY—but because of a sharp rise in asymptomatic covid cases.

EMAIL YOUR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS: $2,000 STIMULUS CHECK FOR AMERICANS WITH ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME IN 2020 OF < $100,000! https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-your-members-of-congress-2000-stimulus-checks-now/?link_id=0&can_id=bf105c37430844170c83cc823f42ff2a&source=email-2000-letters-to-congress-for-2000-checks&email_referrer=email_1030543&email_subject=2000-letters-to-congress-for-2000-checks Read more on Facebook

RETURN WARS (1) AMZN now allows you to return items until January 31st & provides a free box & label at Whole Foods, Kohl’s and

RETURN WARS (2) WANT TO RETURN WHAT YOU BOUGHT ONLINE AT WALMART? If you fill out the request on your computer, Fedex will come to

DOJ FILES CIVIL SUIT SAYING WALMART “HELPED FUEL A NATIONAL CRISIS” OVER OPIOID PRESCRIPTIONS, allowing its pharmacists to fill thousands of Rx it knew were

“SHOPPING LOCAL IS ONE OF THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL FACETS OF A HEALTHY ECONOMY…small businesses lack access to economies of scale and buying power,” said Ahmed

CONGRESS PASSES ANOTHER ROUND OF PPP LOANS FOR VERY SMALL BIZ & 100% TAX DEDUCTION FOR BUSINESS EXEC. MEALS. Trump said it would save restaurants—but

WALMART CLOSES STORE IN GARLAND, TX. AFTER 10 WORKERS TEST COVID POSITIVE. WMT HAS TEMP. CLOSED 17 STORES IN TX SINCE PANDEMIC BEGAN. That’s 17

HOME DEPOT PAYS $20.75 M TO SETTLE EPA LAWSUIT UNDER THE TOXIC SUBSTANCE CONTROL ACT, charging HD’s crews “were improperly trained on how to handle

HOME DEPOT IS STILL IN COURT FOR ITS 2017 MASSIVE CREDIT CARD DATA BREACH SETTLEMENT FOR $27.25 M. HD is balking over having to pay

1,500 WORKERS AT AMZN WAREHOUSE IN AL. ARE HOLDING A UNION VOTE. “We offer some of the best jobs available everywhere,” AMZN says. “Compare our

AMZN SIDEWALK, “a free shared network that helps devices work better. Allows devices to stay online outside their home wifi. Help find pets or valuables,

NORTHFIELDCAN IN MA. HAS RELEASED A POST ABOUT THE DEC 17TH PLANNING BOARD MEETING WITH THE KANSAS-BASED MOODY CENTER. HERE ARE EXCERPTS: “We thank Planning

31 MILLION BIZ WITH < 500 EMPLOYEES REPRESENT 99.9% OF ALL COMPANIES...Small & medium-size businesses—esp. those dependent upon seeing & serving people...are facing the existential

SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS SHARE 2020 STORIES: “American Dreams Disrupted: 247 entrepreneurs share their stories…reinventing themselves to stay relevant in an age of social distancing.” https://www.bizjournals.com/bizjournals/news/2020/05/28/the-big-pivot-plenty-of-screen-time.html?ana=sbbm_lp

LOCAL DRIVER CO-OP—THE FIRST RIDE-HAILING GLOBAL FEDERATION—DRIVERS KEEP 90% OF REVENUE: “the lowest cost of delivery & ride-hailing for consumers…the largest compensation for drivers.” https://finance.yahoo.com/news/direct-global-direct-co-ops-161400956.html

FOR $60/YR AN AMAZON “PERSONAL SHOPPER STYLIST” WILL SELECT FASHION ITEMS THAT MATCH YOUR “STYLE & FIT PREFERENCES.” They can dress you like Jeff Bezos-or

AT 4 PM TODAY, NORTHFIELD RESIDENTS GET TO HEAR FROM THE MISSOURI DEVELOPER WHO WANTS TO BUILD 24 ATTACHED APARTMENTS AT THE END OF ONE

LARGE COMPANIES DURING THE PANDEMIC ARE PUTTING SMALL BIZ IN A CASH SQUEEZE—BY NOT PAYING THEIR BILLS. Payment delays are “fatal for many small businesses.”

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WALMART PUSHES AHEAD WITH DRIVERLESS TRUCKS, a pilot program using self-driving box trucks to cover a 2 mile route between a warehouse & a WMT

CALIFORNIA AG SUES AMAZON OVER STALLING IN COVID SAFETY INVESTIGATION OF WAREHOUSES SINCE LAST MAY. AMZN says “We’re puzzled” by the charges. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/12/14/amazon-california-coronavirus-suit/%3foutputType=amp Read more

SUPERMARKET INDUSTRY WANTS YOU TO KNOW THAT THOUSANDS OF THEIR PHARMACIES WILL HAVE COVID VACCINES, including Stop & Shop, Giant, Hannaford’s, Albertsons, Costco, H-E-B, Hy-Vee,

FOR SOME REASON THE MEDIA IS PROMOTING WALMART AS THE SOURCE FOR COVID VACCINES, and almost as an aside “other pharmacies including CVS & Walgreens

WALMART DOESN’T REVEAL HOW MUCH FEDERAL TAXPAYERS ARE PAYING THEM TO GIVE COVID VACCINES. It’s just another profit center. Many smaller pharmacies will have the

WALMART: THE MOST DANGEROUS PLACE IN AMERICA TO SHOP: Georgia Police say a WMT loss prevention employee tried to talk with an alleged shoplifter inside

NEXT COVID RELIEF BILL MAY INCLUDE $300/WK UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS FOR 16 WEEKS, plus $300 B for a 2nd round of Small Business Paycheck Protection Program

SHOPPING LOCAL IN OHIO: “ONE THING YOU GET WHEN YOU SHOP SMALL IS THAT PERSONAL TOUCH, where the people in the store know you &

FRENCH PRIVACY REGULATORS SLAP GOOGLE WITH $121 M FINE, & AMAZON WITH $42.35 M “for breaking France’s rules on online advertising trackers” (cookies) on users’

AFTER THE TEXAS LAWSUIT FIZZLES, IT SEEMS LIKE ALMOST EVERYONE HAS DESERTED 45…BUT HE STILL HAS ONE FRIEND LEFT: Read more on Facebook

AMAZON ‘HALO’HEALTH BAND TAKES BODY SCANS & VOICE TONES. “Multiple layers of privacy… delete your data anytime…no one will view it without your permission, &

ROSS PEROT, JR IS ONE OF DEVELOPERS BUILDING 1.3 M SF AT 2 WAREHOUSES THAT AMAZON WILL LEASE NEAR DETROIT AIRPORT. Bezos has not asked

IT TOOK SIX YEARS TO SETTLE THE HOME DEPOT DATA BREACH, WHICH AFFECTED 53 MILLION CUSTOMERS, INCLUDING CREDIT CARD DATA & EMAIL ADDRESSES—46 STATES SETTLED

NORTHFIELD, MA RESIDENTS REACT TO “MISSOURI MODERN” APARTMENT BUILDING PROPOSED IN HISTORIC RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOOD. If DL Moody was alive today—he would be leading the charge

IF YOU TOOK THE COMBINED WEALTH OF 651 BILLIONAIRES IN AMERICA OF $4 TRILLION, YOU’D HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO TRANSFER $3000 TO EVERY CHILD, WOMAN

SCALPER ROBOTS ARE BUYING UP POPULAR ITEMS, LIKE PLAY STATION CONSOLES, ONLINE FROM STORES LIKE WALMART TO RESELL THEM SECONDS LATER AT A HIGHER PRICE