We bring you the best coverage of Covid-19, posts about face masks everywhere, how to earn extra miles on groceries, we go aboard the Diamond Princess nightmare, Warren Buffett AMA, banks are trying to get us all to spend more in these pandemic times, we learn about ghost airline Air Sinai, go around the world in livestream cameras, check out Do Not Disturb signs around the world, visit a unique hotel in Uruguay, what to do if you lose a spouse, meet the crappy world of dropshipping wannabes, revisit an amazing story about some murders in Texas and ponder if an innocent man was executed, see the state of press freedom while our buffoon President calls the press the enemy of the people like Stalin who he probably never heard of, a crazy dude running a marathon every day, getting some unsolicited but good advice because I care for you, see how a fellow hobbyist gave up on the hobby and probably think harder if we all should do the same and more while looking for a conversion like a guy with the remote trying to find a live event on ESPN that is not ridiculous…See you Friday, keep the faith.
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COVID-19
Is it just me or is Bill Gates becoming THE authority figure to listen to in these pandemic times or what? Must read update from Bill on What you need to know about the COVID-19 vaccine. Probably the most educational piece I read on where we stand on vaccines! We will get there…eventually, we all hope so!
Yeah, really! Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing. A guide to making sense of a problem that is now too big for any one person to fully comprehend. Must read!
But much else about the pandemic is still maddeningly unclear. Why do some people get really sick, but others do not? Are the models too optimistic or too pessimistic? Exactly how transmissible and deadly is the virus? How many people have actually been infected? How long must social restrictions go on for? Why are so many questions still unanswered?
Be careful out there, there is a lot of crap all over! Pandemic Science Out of Control. A toxic legacy of poor-quality research, media hype, lax regulatory oversight, and vicious partisanship has come home to roost in the search for effective treatments for COVID-19. Yeah, it’s sad! And for God’s sake, never ever inject disinfectants okay!
First is the willingness on the part of clinicians to abandon the prime dictum of medicine, to do no harm, and rush into treatments that not only may not work but may well cause serious harm.
The second issue exposed by the pandemic is the role the media invariably play in hyping science and the physicians who purvey it without regard to the quality of the underlying studies.
Third, as has been disturbingly revealed over and over in the past decade or more, too much biomedical research simply isn’t very good.
Maybe TIME magazine should name Face Mask as the person of the year? How the face mask became the world’s most coveted commodity. The global scramble for this vital item has exposed the harsh realities of international politics and the limits of the free market. Even drug dealers have diversified into selling masks now WTF!
More details into the PREDICT program. Deadly Leaps. These scientists saw the coronavirus coming. Now they’re trying to stop the next pandemic before it starts. There are so many viruses out there!
Mowing down forests for large-scale agriculture, harvesting timber, and sprawling cities — all these activities were forcing bats into close quarters with people. “It’s not the animals’ fault for carrying these diseases,” he said. “These are things that we do to the environment around us.” Over the past century, the human population has exploded. At the height of the 1918-1919 Spanish flu pandemic, the global population was around 1.8 billion, less than a quarter of what it is today. In the past century, millions of humans have spent years slaughtering wildlife; cutting down trees; placing cows, chickens, and pigs in close contact with wild animals — providing ample opportunity for viruses to make a deadly leap.
I was never a fan of George W. Bush. Donald Trump’s Presidency though has been the best thing that could have been done to enhance his legacy! And then you get an incredibly powerful message to us all and all I can say is…well done George!
Great explainer about these antibody tests we have all been hearing about and had no clue what they were…among so many other things before this tiny phucking virus came into our lives and messed them up: Should You Get an Antibody Test?
And now the Chinese are trolling us…
We are all getting tired of this quarantining thing and we might be ready to move on, but COVID-19 isn’t; therein lies the rub. It sure does…
MILES & POINTS
HOT CREDIT CARD OFFERS: New: The CitiBusiness AAdvantage Platinum now offers 70k AA miles. There is an offer for the United Explorer card offering 60,000 miles. The IHG Rewards Club card offering 140k points too, highest ever. For a standard workhorse card I recommend the 60k Chase Sapphire Preferred card. For a standard premium card I recommend the 50k Chase Sapphire Reserve card. For a standard 2% cash back card I recommend the Citi Double Cash card. Available with my links. Lets move on!
Finally it looks like the banks got the message that life has changed and they should do something to get their credit card holders to spend more. These Credit Cards Are Adjusting to the “New Normal” with Great Bonus Offers. Amex giving streaming and wireless statement credits, more points on groceries and restaurant delivery and take out and other select business purchases. Chase cards go big on grocery spend until June 30. And Citi will now allow statement credits on its Prestige card for restaurant and grocery spend.
For a more detailed look on what Amex is doing with its premium cards, check this out: Amex Plantinum New Benefits and Beyond – What Do You Do Now?
If you want to get more details on how to maximize your grocery spend: Grocery Shopping = Points Galore: Sizing Up the New Grocery Bonus Offers. Very nice table with the ranking of how you can get the most bang for your grocery buck! Personally, when I am done with the 5%x quarterly grocery spend on my Chase Freedom card, I will borrow son’s Chase Sapphire Reserve (and will Venmo him what I spend on it) and then move on to my own World Of Hyatt card…
As I said, banks are really trying to make us get and keep their cards! Hilton free weekend nights become anytime nights valid for 2 years. I may go for the premium Amex Hilton Aspire card later this year as this appears to be the final year I am holding on to the CNB card…I just need to find a way to use the CNB points! First world problem to have I guess 🙂
Enhancements to Free Weekend Night Rewards
Weekend night becomes anytime night
Unexpired and new Free Weekend Night rewards issued through December 31, 2020 can now be used any night of the week.
New free nights valid for 24 months
New weekend free night awards issued from May 1 to December 31 2020 will be valid for 24 months from the date of issuance (previously 12 months).
And I was also targeted for this by Citi: To thank you for your continued loyalty, every dollar spent on purchases made with your eligible1 Citi® / AAdvantage® credit card that posts to your AAdvantage® account between May 1 – Dec. 31, 2020, will count as 1 mile toward Million MilerSM status. One million miles give you AA Lifetime Gold (and 35,000 bonus AA miles). 2 million miles you give you Lifetime Platinum (and for one-way systemwide upgrades). Tempting 🙂
Most of the major banks now allow you six (instead of three) months to satisfy the minimum spending when you get a new travel rewards credit card and earn the signup bonus. So, no excuses! If you are still having issues completing this step, this hobby is not for you!
Most of the credit cards mentioned above can be applied with my links. Got questions? Ask away
TRAVEL
Anyone ever flown Air Sinai? The Ghost Airline That Has Linked Cairo and Tel Aviv for Decades. Fascinating indeed.
We may not be traveling these days but that does not stop us from traveling virtually! Travel the World with These Livestream Cameras.
Maybe this belongs in the Covid-19 section but it is my blog and I can do what I want. So I am sticking it here and there is nothing you can do about it lol. 27 Days in Tokyo Bay: What Happened on the Diamond Princess. OMG, can you believe being on board? This article takes you inside the ship and…you won’t believe what you read next!
Do Not Disturb signs from all over the world, by country!
Anyone been to Club Hotel Casapueblo in Puntal del Este, Uruguay? Found a reference to it in a Greek travel website. Apparently, the hotel was built by an artist over many years. It looks so unique!
And what a great photo!
PERSONAL FINANCE
Good article, hope it does not happen to you anytime soon! 13 Financial Moves to Make After Losing a Spouse.
Everything Warren Buffett said in the 2020 Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting. Oh, by the way, he sold ALL airline stocks! I picked the best three:
Warren gives a shout out to Powell: “The Fed acted in mid-March [on the 23rd] in a huge way that enabled things play out they way that they have. Businesses who raised cash in late March should write a thank you note to the Fed. We do know the consequences of doing nothing.”
Buffett said he made a mistake in investing across the airline business. He mistakenly believed airline earnings “would go up across the industry. The airline business has changed in a major way and the future of airlines is much less clear. [Airlines] have too many planes.”
“Negative interest rates are the most interesting question in economics. We’re facing a period where we will test whether the world can continue to do this. We are doing things where we don’t know the ultimate outcome.”
ODDZ & ENDZ
Texas Monthly does it again. The Murders at the Lake. Wow, amazing story! In 1982 a brutal triple homicide shook the city of Waco and soon became one of the most confounding criminal cases in Texas history—one that still haunts the many people who have tried to solve it.
Avoid these people! ‘It’s bullshit’: Inside the weird, get-rich-quick world of dropshipping Not sure whether to laugh or cry after reading about these youngsters trying to get rich. I actually feel sad for them.
Interesting map! Mapped: The State of Press Freedom Around the World.
This dude has issues: The Man Who Runs 365 Marathons a Year. Did not think this was even possible!
Some of these are great! 68 Bits of Unsolicited Advice My top three:
Pros are just amateurs who know how to gracefully recover from their mistakes.
Promptness is a sign of respect.
How to apologize: Quickly, specifically, sincerely.
BLOG BUZZ
We are now entering BLOG BUZZ, a section for advanced hobbyists and veterans of this fast imploding hobby and also a section where I go on and on about some stuff that happens in my life because it helps me feel better about myself.
ANNOUNCEMENT: If you have not posted anything in three months (six if I really like you) your blog will no longer be listed on the world famous Blogs I Like list. You have been warned, time for a cleanup. If you keep linking to these blogs your blog does not deserve to be in my esteemed list.
Thanks to the reader who asked for my Plastiq referral link. I do not have one. For several reasons, among them being I do not like paying fees, I do not like how their marketing hammered me offering me bribes to use them, security reasons (I am paranoid), etc. Besides, I only feel comfortable with a few services I use myself and can recommend in good conscience. Of them, Rakuten is one I definitely recommend for online shopping. They have extended their great deal where you can sign up with MY REFERRAL LINK and get $30 off buying at least $30 worth of stuff you probably need or do not need. In other words, Freeeeeeeeeeeeeee! And I also get $30 #winning.
RIP to Mike Huckaby, a Detroit deep house legend!
Someone recently asked me when I am buying a Tesla. Say what? NEVER! Sticking with Ford and, besides, what the hell is wrong with this Elon dude, wow!
It was an easy week of running to recover from last week’s half marathon PR. Will be stepping it up again this week…
We are all struggling at home. We are not used to this, we are social beings. But we need to keep it up and stick to it…to turn things around. But it is a bit disheartening to hear son say “I miss the office” lol.
The Freddie Awards happened. It takes a lot of nerve to do this in these pandemic times #meaninglessmarketingbullshit
Amex RAT team is getting really absurd now! American Express Airline Incidental Clawbacks Intensify – Now Clawing Back 2 Years Worth Of Credits. WTF happens if they do this on a card you long ago canceled and…remains unpaid for months and ruin your credit? MFers!
It is really funny seeing Boarding Area credit card marketers being mad at TPG lol. Are we starting to see Red Ventures phasing out the 6.7 tall Brian?
Hobbyist friend gets out of the game for cash. This will NEVER happen in any other blogs because, you know, you do not cut your own throat!
And I leave you with this…
TBB
travelbloggerbuzz@gmail.com
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Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
Good morning.
Too bad the Wall Street Journal is gated. The story on Florida’s experience and the horrible defect rate on imported mask are both terrific.
The Florida story would help explain why the NBA seems to be considering restarting in Disney world.
Been a long day already, up since 3.22 am…Which WSJ story?
Not seeing the NBA going to one location to continues its season…But you never know these days!
Liquidating points & miles if you have no apparent need for the cash is horribly stupid. Maybe he wanted to invest in airlines or bitcoins :p Seth calls him out nicely…
‘Livestream cameras’, eh? I remember clicking on webcams on various obscure locations via the earthcam website back in 1998 or 2000, talk about old wine in new bottles 😉
I disagree. Travel is most likely shut for a year or two, get some cash out of it now, holding on will only devalue (of course but maybe at an even steeper rate), prices will crash trying to get travelers on planes and hotel rooms so why even bother with miles/points. Of course I do NOT expect this to be blogged about in any blogs!
Seth who?
Yeah, webcams, we go back to simpler times lol.
Seth is Seth Miller of the Wandering Aramean blog. He is a smart guy and working from the inside, he knows a lot about FF programs. It was my mention of last week’s 10% UA deval on partner awards that triggered his saying that cashing out miles is a 20-50% haircut.
Seth knows a lot but 140 charecters isn’t much space for comparing valuations, especially for 3D chess like FF point valuations. If he was comparing 1. the cash someone could get today and use for a cash ticket to 2. the list price today of an award, then his 20%-50% would be fine, in many cases.
But this will be in the future, not today. And the only certainty about future FF awards is that they will cost more, be harder to get and offer less value than they do today. I say that with certainty as it has always been the case in this hobby. If you doubt that, tell me what exactly ‘dynamic pricing’ will turn into.
And in valuing awards, be sure to include the costs no one ever does: The airport fees that apply on awards but are included in cash tickets; the value of your time in chasing award availabiity; the cost of getting jerked around with 5 hour layovers in Toronto, and of course, “Mixed Cabin” awards and Married Segmnents.
OK- Award costs are high and getting higher, but what about cash prices? I look at pictures of dozens of parked planes and I see a lot of future competition for cash passengers down the road.
Would I cash out today as Hao Tran is doing? Well, not today. But with some bloggers that pump them now valuing UA miles at 1.2 cents and the Amex Plat paying 1.25 cents for MRs, ask me again tomorrow.
I am not cashing out today. I have a miles and points blog 🙂
I agree with most of your points. But especially this!
“And in valuing awards, be sure to include the costs no one ever does: The airport fees that apply on awards but are included in cash tickets; the value of your time in chasing award availability; the cost of getting jerked around with 5 hour layovers in Toronto, and of course, “Mixed Cabin” awards and Married Segments.”
When did the computer nerd Bill Gates become an authority on vaccine development?
When it comes to life science, let the experts speak. Here’s an informative article about the vaccine front runners. I didn’t see Bill mentioned.
https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2020/04/23/a-close-look-at-the-frontrunning-coronavirus-vaccines-as-of-april-23
Why is the market cap of Ferrari greater than Ford?
DJT is the foremost expert on the Covid19 topic. And he loves to speak, so all is good.
If we had only listened…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Af6b_wyiwI
Talking is cheap. If only he would have spent a few billions/year to develop a functioning vaccine platform, poor uncle Warren would not have lost a few $B buying airline stocks. Life’s about priorities. $100M+ to Duke University etc, didn’t do much good.
And yes Bill gives away a lot of money. He could spend it so much more efficiently. At least he’s not building rockets and sending dikk pics at the expense of tax payers.
What happened to the tea party?
Hey TBB – Many thanks for the link to our grocery spend article and chart! Sounds like you’ve mapped out a very solid and valuable strategy. And thanks for sticking with us while we had to take a publishing hiatus to move houses! ~Craig
So you are giving up on the legal route against AA? Flying them still?
The marathon thing is impressive, but to me not as impressive as completing an Iron man every day for 50 days.
https://www.redbull.com/us-en/iron-cowboy-50-marathons-50-states-50-days
Google it more, he didn’t really do what you thought he did. Points for attempting, but subtracted due to fraud.
He ran, swam, and biked the equivalent of 50 iron man races in 50 days. That’s what I think he did. If you have any references contesting that, I’ll read through them.
Wow!
It is amazing what the human body can do…while I am practicing social distancing from my fridge again tonight lol.
I googled on the Anonymous assertion, did not find much, please enlighten us.
I don’t get it, how is gary mad a tpg? he commented on an article headline talking about the points guy and showing a photo that isn’t brian kelly
I don’t know what will implode first, Elon Musk or Tesla.
The day started off great until I listened to a podcast with Dr Doom (Nouriel Roubini). I’ve been depressed ever since.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2020-05-03/nouriel-roubini-sees-a-bad-recovery-and-a-depression-podcast
I just find it funny how “mad” the BA boys are at TPG. Me thinks they are a little jealous? 🙂
I would never want to be near Elon, that dude has issues.
Dr. Doom is so depressing I tune him out lol
Fantastic post George. The deluge of BS from different angels is brutal, so it’s always good to read your posts. Regarding one of your pics, I’ve been to Casapueblo, it’s a great place where you have the best views is Uruguay. It houses a museum of its founder’s art.
I wish I still had an AA account so I could spend 250k miles RT in Y from the US (no kidding, AA still gauges its customers, COVID be damned)
Thanks for letting us know about Casapueblo, good to know the place is legit.
Sorry abt your AA account and thank you.
NASDAQ Is positive for the year. Who said 2020 is a bad year? And unemployment rate in KY is only 47%.
And you can BUY Aeroplan points for 1c/mile.
What a time to be alive!