Merry Monday, my money nerds! Happy to have you here once more. Jim and I have been bookmarking our favorite money stories from around the web, as always. Let’s look at what we have to kick off the week!
“I accidentally uncovered a nationwide scam on Airbnb.” [Vice] — “Even if my scammers had been slightly foiled, there was no guarantee that they couldn’t just start fresh with new profiles. The system was still in place. Airbnb has created a web of more than 7 million listings built largely on trust, easily exploitable by those willing to do so.”
It’s okay to change your mind. [Fiery Millenials] — “When making a big decision, just remember you don’t have to stick with it if you don’t want to. You might not be able to go back to your exact pre-decision situation, but at least you’ll know what works best for you and can go about building that life…Our lives are too short to be stuck in something that isn’t working for us. We are not trees — we can change our situation any time we want.”
Buying less is better than buying green (for the planet and your happiness). [Science Daily] — “Study participants who reported having fewer materialistic values were much more likely to engage in reduced consumption. Consuming less was, in turn, linked to higher personal well-being and lower psychological distress. Green buying — which may have some positive environmental implications, although to a lesser degree than reduced consumption — was not found to improve consumer well-being, Helm said.”
And here’s a piece of news you’ve probably seen already. I don’t care. I like this so much, I have to share. I believe strongly in equality off opportunity for all, and I’m pleased with the progress the U.S. has made in my lifetime. But I sometimes worry that we’re taking steps backward — and this regression comes from those who think they’re most accepting.
Well, former president Barack Obama feels the same way. And he’s found rare bipartisan support by challenging “woke” culture.
The Washington Post writes:
Former president Barack Obama offered some advice earlier this week to young people hoping to change society: participating in cancel culture isn’t the way to do it. ‘This idea of purity and you’re never compromised and you’re always politically woke and all that stuff, you should get over that quickly,’ the 58-year-old said Tuesday while speaking at the Obama Foundation Summit in Chicago. ‘The world is messy. There are ambiguities. People who do really good stuff have flaws.’
In our current divided “black and white” culture, in which people on both sides of the political fence are quick to point fingers and condemn their opponents, this is a welcome observation.