Camelot Newsletter

Sumer travel just got a whole lot easier 🎉 

The US Department of Transportation has announced new regulations aimed at expanding consumer protections. Specifically; airlines have been ordered to issue full refunds for canceled or significantly changed flights instead of those dreaded “vouchers” and to stop hiding fees.

One of the final rules announced Wednesday requires airlines to show the full price of travel before passengers pay for their tickets. The other will force airlines to provide prompt cash refunds when flights are canceled or significantly changed.

As someone who has experienced a 20 hour flight delay where the airline refused to return bags or issue refunds because the flight was not “cancelled” it was delayed, forcing my entire flight to sleep in the airport overnight, I feel the thrill of vindication with this one! We all do 🎆 

A Little Healthy Competition

The Federal Trade Commission voted Tuesday to ban nearly all noncompete agreements. Noncompetes typically prevent workers from joining competing businesses or launching ones of their own. They stifle growth and innovation and handcuff workers to toxic workplaces.

The FTC estimates about 30 million people, or one in five American workers, from minimum wage earners to CEOs, are bound by noncompetes. It says the policy change could lead to increased wages totaling nearly $300 billion per year by encouraging people to swap jobs freely.

I will be honest with you, Lina Kahn the Chair of the FTC is quickly becoming one of my favorite people. This woman is kicking all the right asses, and doing it with style. 👏 

Meta’s Llama 3 Review

It’s invasive and offers no discernible benefit. Much like every product Meta has ever released outside of Facebook. This article pretty much summed it up: Meta ai - doesn’t quite justify its own existence but free is free. 

In other news…

• Tesla having a bummer couple of weeks! Not only have they received this weeks Camelot Turkey (below) for the total recall of their Cybertrucks, their profits fell 55% YOY and the longtime Autopilot investigation, by the National Highway Traffic and Safety Commission, closed after feds found 13 fatal crashes attributed to misuse.

• Election interest has hit a new low - I knew I wasn’t alone in my “I am so over this, I hate everyone” attitude!

• Tik Tok Ban Update:

  ByteDance (Chinese parent company to Tik Tok) says they have no intention of selling

  This is stark contrast to the US stance that Tik Tok must be sold within one year or face an outright ban, per the law passed on Wednesday

  This is essentially how politicians get their kicks playing chicken but on a global scale

• Net Neutrality is back y’all! We can all look forward to faster, safer and more reliable internet connections. What this means is that internet service has been deemed an essential service by the FCC. Providers are now more accountable for outages, require more robust network security, protect fast speeds, and require greater protections for consumer data. This also means that for example: Comcast can’t throttle your internet speed when you’re watching Netflix as a means of manipulating you into using Xfinity their cable television service instead. Big win!

Turkeys and Angels

Every week brings new and exciting antics! Here I nominate one Turkey; a squawky or nefarious critter deserving of the “You are a Turkey” moniker. Because we must always bring balance to the force, an Angel will additionally be recognized for bringing laughter, love or all around goodness to the world.

This week’s Turkey: The Tesla Cybertruck

Not only is this thing super ugly but it also doesn’t work right. Tesla has recalled all 3,878 Cybertrucks due to the pad on the accelerator pedal slipping off and getting stuck in the “depressed 100 percent full throttle” position. 🫣 When you do Ketamine and design trucks, this is what happens folks.

This week’s Angel(s): Women who are crushing it; Lina Khan and Victoria Beckham respectively.

Lina! In 2021, President Biden appointed Khan as a Commissioner of the FTC at age 32, one of the youngest ever. Under Khan's leadership, the FTC has taken a more aggressive stance against mergers and anti-competitive conduct across industries. This woman is crushing it. Check her out here on the Daily Show speaking on antitrust and ai oversight. She mentions her part in the judgement against Martin Schkreli whom we talked about in Black Hats and White Horses Part I. She is our angel this week for her work in getting some laws passed with the most far reaching day-to-day impact that I have seen in a long time. (mentioned above)

Posh Spice! Queen of the ultimate glow up rebrand - from girl group pop icon to sophisticated high fashion powerhouse this woman is the ultimate in keeping it classy decade after decade. She celebrated her 50th birthday by reuniting the Spice Girls for a celebratory performance and shared this sage wisdom “it’s important to evolve and try new things,” commenting on how she feels she has even better opportunities now than she did when she was young.

So let’s put a little spice 🌶️ into this weekend and try something new!