Events

As predicted, Eddie Lampert has succeeded in driving Sears into the ground: In announcing the news, Sears said Edward Lampert stepped down as CEO effective immediately and remains chairman. Sears and Kmart stores and online platforms will remain open, though the company also said it would close 142 unprofitable stores near yearend, with liquidation sales at those locations "expected to begin shortly." The company said it has commitments for $300 million of debtor-in-possession financing from its senior...

I think I've finished 95% of my packing. I've only got, you know, several hundred small items that I'll wind up throwing in boxes marked "misc" tomorrow night. So done.

On Thursday, Singapore Airlines reinstated its nonstop flight from Newark, N.J., to Singapore—an 18-hour, 45-minute marathon that covers 16,734 km: What accounts for this sudden ultra-long-haul boom? Partly, it is technological advances. The Singapore-Newark flights will use new Airbus A350-900 ULR (ultra-long-range) planes, which are made of lightweight carbon-fibre materials, have extra fuel capacity, and conserve fuel by using only two engines rather than the typical four on long-haul jumbo jets....

Citing a $10m budget shortfall, Lyric Opera of Chicago has cut their orchestra's year by two weeks and cut six performances. In response, the Chicago Federation of Musicians has gone on strike, forcing the cancellation of La Boheme and possibly other productions: The orchestra and management have stalled on contract negotiations, and according to bassoon player Lewis Kirk, musicians have been working without a contract since June. Kirk said management had issued “severe demands.” He pointed to...

If the Kanye West–Donald Trump crazyfest didn't do it for you, there are plenty of other things to take a look at this lunchtime: Jonathan Capehart just laughed at Kanye. So did Katie Rogers, but more subtly. US Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) calls for a halt to weapon sales to Saudi Arabia. Let's once again review the case against leafblowers. Read Andrew Sullivan's weekly column. Bruce Schneier worries about physically-capable computers. Despite the cold, you can still get a drink alfresco in Chicago or go...

I just read through the complete, official transcript of Kanye West's meeting with President Trump yesterday, and...wow. That man has some serious untreated mental illness and should seek help. I know, that sentence was ambiguous, because "that man" could refer to either Trump or West, but in this case I thought West came across as the less coherent. Sample: MR. WEST:  We have a good — and the thing is, let’s stop worrying about the future.  All we really have is today.  We just have today.  Over and...

Oh, Sears. You've come to represent much that is wrong with American corporate culture, especially a CEO who embodies the Dunning-Krueger Effect with every syllable he utters. Crain's Joe Cahill argues that Eddie Lampert, while Sears' proximate cause of death, didn't act alone in its murder: There's no denying the hedge fund mogul who thought he knew more about retailing than the retailers made critical errors that turned Sears' struggles into an inexorable decline. But Sears started down the wrong path...