Podbit · Up First from NPR
The DOJ's Antitrust Division just waved through the biggest like-for-like merger in Hollywood history with zero conditions. Two of the last remaining legacy studio empires — plus two streaming services and two major TV news channels — are about to become one.
Nine months into the fiscal year, the U.S. is more than $1.3 trillion in the red — and the interest bill alone has already surpassed $1 trillion. That single line item now costs more than virtually every government program except Social Security.
The Supreme Court struck down the president's sweeping import taxes, and now the government is footing an $80 billion refund bill. While the administration scrambles to impose new tariffs, the fiscal fallout from the old ones is still being tallied.
Twelve states filed a lawsuit to block Paramount's $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, arguing it would harm competition and raise prices for consumers. Paramount says it will vigorously defend the deal.
US consumer spending jumped 6.3% in June year-over-year, the strongest growth in four years, boosted by the World Cup and an early Amazon Prime Day. But the gains may be fragile: spending is rising faster than wages, raising sustainability questions.
Gen Z isn't just bad with money — they're trapped in a doom loop. Negative algorithms convince them the future is hopeless, so spending recklessly feels rational. Consumer sentiment is at a near-all-time low despite the economy not being that bad, and the pessimism is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Bankruptcy costs thousands in legal fees, tanks your credit for up to a decade, forces you into predatory 25% car loans, and means credit cards with monthly fees even when you pay on time. But the real hidden cost is that it changes nothing about the behaviour that got you there.
People blame debt on emergencies, but Caleb Hammer flips the logic: if you had no savings before the emergency hit, the emergency didn't cause your debt — your lifestyle did. The emergency just revealed a savings problem that was already there.
The biggest financial train wrecks on Financial Audit aren't low-income guests — they're people earning $200K to $500K. Higher income means approval for more debt, bigger lifestyle inflation, and a longer fall. The people making the least are often in better shape than those making the most.
$5 million liquid is the number where you can weather almost any emergency — including a serious cancer diagnosis — and live off ~$60K/year using the 4% rule. Caleb agrees with O'Leary's target but disagrees on the vehicle: stock market index funds beat T-bills for anyone with time on their side.
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