Let's start with a little history, shall we?
On July 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln informs his chief advisors and cabinet that he will issue a proclamation to free slaves, but adds that he will wait until the Union Army has achieved a substantial military victory to make the announcement. As promised, Lincoln waited to unveil the proclamation until he could do so on the heels of a successful Union military advance. On September 22, 1862, after a victory at Antietam, he publicly announced a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves free in the rebellious states as of January 1, 1863. Lincoln and his advisors limited the proclamation’s language to slavery in states outside of federal control as of 1862. The proclamation did not, however, address the contentious issue of slavery within the nation’s border states. In his attempt to appease all parties, Lincoln left many loopholes open that civil rights advocates would be forced to tackle in the future. (We watched "Lincoln" recently and the movie was outstanding, IMO)
On this day in 1987, In a dramatic turnaround, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev indicates that he is willing to negotiate a ban on intermediate-range nuclear missiles without conditions. Gorbachev’s decision paved the way for the groundbreaking Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with the United States. Gorbachev’s change of mind was the result of a number of factors. His own nation was suffering from serious economic problems and Gorbachev desperately wanted to cut Russia’s military spending. In addition, the growing “no-nukes” movement in Europe was interfering with his ability to conduct diplomatic relations with France, Great Britain, and other western European nations. Finally, Gorbachev seemed to have a sincere personal trust in and friendship with Ronald Reagan, and this feeling was apparently reciprocal. In December 1987, during a summit in Washington, the two men signed off on the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which eliminated an entire class of nuclear weapons.
On this day in 1933, American aviator Wiley Post returns to Floyd Bennett Field in New York, having flown solo around the world in 7 days, 18 hours, and 49 minutes. He was the first aviator to accomplish the feat. Post, instantly recognizable by the patch he wore over one eye, began the journey on July 15, flying nonstop to Berlin. After a brief rest, he flew on to the Soviet Union, where he made several stops before returning to North America, with stops in Alaska, Canada, and finally a triumphant landing at his starting point in New York. Two years earlier, Post had won fame when he successfully flew around the northern part of the earth with aviator Harold Gatty. For his solo around-the-world flight in 1933, he flew a slightly greater distance–15,596 miles–in less time. For both flights, he used the Winnie Mae, a Lockheed Vega monoplane that was equipped with a Sperry automatic pilot and a direction radio for Post’s solo journey. In August 1935, he was attempting to fly across the North Pole to the USSR with American humorist Will Rogers when both men were killed in a crash near Point Barrow, Alaska.
Now for some stock and investing news-
Futures kick off Wednesday with the Dow and S&P down 0.4% while the Nasdaq is flat. Crude is down 1.3% and Gold is up 0.7%.
Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) discloses that quarter-to-date sales are up 2.5% Y/Y through July 18 off strong demand for computers, appliances and tablets.
"We've been clear that we will take strong enforcement action on behavior that has the potential to lead to offline harm," the company said via its Twitter Safety account. "In line with this approach, this week we are taking further action on so-called 'QAnon' activity across the service." A Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) spokesperson said more than 7,000 QAnon-related accounts were banned in recent weeks, while the platform limited the distribution of 150,000 others.
Tesla's (TSLA -4.5%) market cap has averaged $150B for a six-month period to trigger a second payout to Elon Musk of stock options. Each tranche gives Musk the option to buy 1.69M Tesla shares at $350.02 each. At Tesla’s current stock price, Musk would theoretically be able to sell the shares related to the tranche that vested in May and the current tranche for a combined profit of $4.2B ($2.1B for each). How exciting! More money for Elon Musk based not on making a profit but rather on market cap. How interesting! (More on Tesla, the favorite of Seeking Alpha, tomorrow)
Off to Google Finance-
Ford Motor (F) - Get Report Tuesday introduced the Mustang Mach-E 1400, an all-electric version of the iconic muscle car.
On Tuesday, silver for September delivery SI00, 3.93% surged nearly 7%, the highest settlement since March 2014, and 83% above its March lows. Silver was up in the early hours of Wednesday as well.
Where is Jon Corzine and is MF Global buying silver today?
Where is Marissa Mayer and does her online sports betting company have MLB pennant odds yet?
Where is Elizabeth Holmes and will her "massive" fraud trial, rescheduled for fall, be rescheduled again?
Have a great day everyone. Stay safe out there.
This is the day The Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.