#5SmartReads - August 29, 2022

Hitha on student debt, frivolous lawsuits, and why this Miss Universe is worth following

August 29, 2022

Do you know who was the most vocal advocate for student debt relief and reform within the White House?

Vice President Kamala Harris - and much of her policy positions from her own presidential run (such as the $20,000 forgiveness for those with Pell Grants) made it into the executive orders that President Biden signed into law over the past year and half.

While I loathe this headline, this is a really detailed piece on how the recent student debt relief order became a reality (and gave way to the greatest Twitter thread I’ve ever seen).

Is this EO perfect? Far from it. Do I think it will raise inflation the way some economists predict? No. Could we do more (especially on interest forgiveness and rectifying the underlying problems of the rapidly rising costs of secondary education)? Absolutely.

But we have to start somewhere - and this administration has forgiven more student debt than any other in recent history. And that’s a pretty great start, from my perspective.

My secret behavior is to watch interview clips on YouTube when I’m getting ready in the morning and at night, and Trevor Noah’s with the reigning Miss Universe Harnaaz Sandhu (and the third Miss India to wear the crown!) grabbed my attention immediately:

It led me down a Google rabbit hole to learn more about this empathetic and smart woman, and her fight for menstrual equity throughout the world.

Harnaaz’s ability to shift the conversation to her platform when answering questions about how she takes care of herself or what she still wants to accomplish. I’m also in a phase of learning more about Hinduism and building my own relationship with my faith, and to hear someone talk openly about prayer in a personal way is inspiring.

I love this series from The Cut (and to be featured in it is one of my own goals), and this was definitely one of my favorite interviews.

A lot of people sent me this news alert last week. And I am 1) thrilled to see folks paying close attention to life sciences news, and 2) here to tell you that this is one of the most common things that happens in this industry, and frustratingly a large waste of money, time, and resources that could be better invested in R&D.

When a product is a commercial success, lawsuits like these are the norm and often rooted in weak IP (from both sides). In this case, many of the patents being challenged are focused on the lipid encapsulation of the mRNA encoding the spike protein.

While the mRNA being encapsulated may be new and novel, lipid encapsulation or drug delivery technology is not.

It will be years before there is any decision made on this lawsuit, which is also very normal. In short - this is the rule, not the exception, and one of the things I find the most frustrating about my industry.

The Williams racing team and Alex Albon claimed my heart early on in my Drive to Survive watching spree.

Williams, because it was a family-run team with that rare woman in charge. Albon, for his incredibly inspiring personal story and the clear talent and heart he possesses as a racing driver and as a person.

If you’re new or want to join the F1 fandom (and I hope you do!), my friend Lily’s podcast Choosing Sides is the perfect primer for you. And if you’d like to join me in supporting Williams (they’re basically the Philadelphia Eagles of F1), please do - I have high hopes for them after a few rebuilding seasons.

I urge you to watch this Reel from @burqasandbeer after reading this article, and to call your Member of Congress and Senators to voice your support to pass the bipartisan Afghan Adjustment Act, because everything she said is absolutely correct.

It is a travesty that the 60,000+ Afghans who applied for humanitarian parole (at great financial cost and risk, as many of them served as translators or worked with our armed forces during our occupation of Afghanistan) are still waiting while we expedited nearly 100,000 humanitarian applications for those fleeing Ukraine.

We can and must support both - and we must do better for the Afghan people who continue to risk their own lives every single day.

Here’s a quick script you can use:

“Hi there,My name is (insert your name here) and I live in your state/district, in zip code (insert your zip code). I’m calling to ask the Member/Senator to vote YES on the Afghan Adjustment Act when it comes to the floor for a vote. Thank you very much for your time."

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