An Oakland man who recorded himself getting thrown out of a Palestinian-owned cafe has been celebrated for pushing back against anti-Semitism. But a history of public outbursts raises questions about his story. sfstandard.com/2024/11/01/vir… Jonathan Hirsch was told to leave the Jersusalem Coffee House on Oct. 27 after the owner took issue with his Star of David baseball cap. Video he shot of the encounter quickly went viral.

https://x.com/SFJCRC/status/1851668935533564238

Here's an interesting one: There's a startup, @UnitUnionizing, whose whole thing is organizing independent labor unions. Its investors include Mike Bloomberg's VC firm and Tim Draper, one of the most anti-union VCs alive. @SamAugustDean has the details. latimes.com/business/story… Unit's founder, @jamieearlwhite, says demand for union protections is way up but there's a shortage of unions willing to help workers organize. Unit's trying to fill that gap, and give organizers better tech than they have now.

A few thoughts on BAYC & Buzzfeed. The backlash isn’t surprising but it betrays deep ignorance about the function of journalism and an entitled belief that crypto must be covered on its own terms. The job of journalists is to bring information about powerful entities and public figures into public view. That’s it. There is no requirement that the subjects want that information made public (they often don't!) or that they be guilty of wrongdoing.

With their net worth skyrocketing, the ultra-rich are snapping up yachts sight unseen -- the bigger the better. "The biggest problem is we can't get boats fast enough," one broker tells @byandreachang. latimes.com/business/story… Everyone in the yacht economy -- brokers, mechanics, cleaners, etc. -- braced for a downturn when COVID hit. Instead they're busier than they've ever been as cash-flush clients look for a way to spend their money that doesn't involve air travel.

The rules were pretty clear in the latest California lockdown: no gatherings, no dining out, no non-essential in-person services. Some businesses felt they couldn't afford to follow them. @byandreachang talked to them. latimes.com/business/story… After the salon where she worked shut down, hairstylist Joanna Ho borrowed a chair, bought some air filters and started seeing clients in her home. "I keep going back and forth -- should I or should I not?" she said. "You just try to do the best you can."