8/18/26: Tariff Refunds Boost Corporations, MAGA Sheriffs Revolt On Border Wall, Screens Ruining Education

Tariff refunds are turbocharging earnings for large S&P 500 companies, but consumers are not getting the benefit.

Companies raised prices during the tariff period and are not lowering them now, pocketing refunds instead.

Cutting capital gains taxes for home sales under $2 million is a massive giveaway to rich retirees and the ultra-wealthy.

Lowering capital gains taxes could encourage risky day trading among less educated investors.

Ending beneficial ownership reporting and deleting the registry makes it easier to commit fraud and money laundering.

Small businesses that comply with regulations are hurt more by this loophole than the ultra-wealthy who exploit it.

Construction was paused due to bipartisan pressure, and the project risks ceding 280,000 acres of Texas land behind the wall.

MAGA sheriffs and local Republicans are opposing the wall because it destroys the landscape without improving security.

Digital technology in classrooms correlates with lower literacy and numeracy scores because screens disrupt spatial memory and focus.

A statistician critiques Horvath's methodology, arguing that comparing ed tech to a high benchmark is unrealistic.

Using an average effect size benchmark of 0.4 to 0.5 shows ed tech underperforms compared to traditional instruction.

Parents should keep all homework and learning analog because kids associate screens with entertainment and rapid media switching.

Video games with voice chat may offer some social interaction benefits compared to texting, which lacks biological bonding signals.