Facing Out: The Week’s Most Interesting News

November 18, 2023

A frosty dawn on Connery Pond in North Elba with a snow-capped Whiteface Mountain reflected in the water. Nancie Battaglia

Good morning, Colleagues and Friends:

Do you have your turkey?  If not, we have some good news from the poultry department. The American Farm Bureau Federation estimates that the typical Thanksgiving feast for 10 will come in at $61.17, just $6.12 a person. For those who are keeping track, that’s a 4.5% decline from last year’s record-high price tag but still 25% higher than in 2019. The bird itself will cost only about 2% more, nowhere near the 14% flight in prices between 2022 and 2023.  Real Simple has helpfully updated the most popular Thanksgiving recipes for 2023. (Who’s the kid who ordered roast beef?) And Country Living has the 10 best leftover turkey sandwiches. Enjoy, everybody!

ROAD TO A DIPLOMA: For every New York teenager who sweated passing a New York State Regents exam to graduate, this news comes a little late. An advisory group formed by New York State’s Education Department will recommend that all high school students be given options other than Regents exams to prove they have mastered material and deserve to graduate. Students could still choose to take the Regents tests, but now they would also be given new ways to show they are academically prepared, such as capstone projects, presentations or “performance-based assessments.” High school graduation tests have fallen out of favor across the country over concerns that the mandates hurt disadvantaged teenagers.

STILL LIVING WITH MOM: You can see why Giants quarterback, New Jersey native Tommy DeVito, still lives at home. His mom does his laundry, makes his bed, makes his meals (chicken tendies!) and his parents handle everything in his life outside of football. Plus, the house is in Cedar Grove, N.J., nine miles away from the team's practice facility and stadium. Here’s what we want to know: What posters are on his wall? And does he have a bed shaped like a racecar?

ADD TO CART: Beginning in 2024, you will be able to buy a new car on Amazon. Hyundai cars will be first. José Muñoz, chief operating officer of Hyundai, said consumers “see how easy it is to buy all the products on Amazon, and they want that convenience when buying a car.” Customers will be able to purchase the car from a local dealership and either pick it up or have it delivered. 

HERE’S A TIP: You’re getting hit up for gratuities a lot more these days. Some people call it tipflation. Tip screens seem to be everywhere. Older consumers traditionally see tipping as a choice while younger consumers tip by default, a Pew survey says. As we told you here a few weeks ago, food-delivery app DoorDash is now warning consumers that a failure to leave a tip could affect the timeliness of their order.  But how much to leave? Here’s a handy guide as to what to leave the butcher, the baker and the fancy drink maker from Nerd Wallet which, to our great amusement, found it necessary to explain to nerd readers how to calculate 20%.

A photo from Onhwa’ Lumina, an enchanted night walk into the heart of Huron-Wendat culture in Wendake, Quebec, offers a preview of what Winters Dream will be like at Fort William Henry Museum in Lake George. The attraction opens Dec. 8.

THE MAGICAL SEASON: Lake George, N.Y., is busily preparing to host two new, major, memory-making winter-long attractions: Winter’s Dream and Winter Realms. From the producers of Ice Castles, Winter Realms opens with dazzling lights, towering trees, ice skating and Santa on the evening of Black Friday, Nov. 24. Winter’s Dream, created by Montreal’s Moment Factory (think NBA, Disney, Billie Eilish), opens its high-tech multimedia attraction on Friday, December 8. Two events, one magical winter place: Lake George, N.Y. “We look forward to bringing people together,” says Vincent Crocitto II, president of the Warren County Winter Coalition. Tickets are on sale now for Winters Dream and Winter Realms.

NOT SO INNOCENT BUZZ: Promoted as an alternative to alcohol, kratom drinks are made from a plant native to Southeast Asia. It has a reputation for producing an innocent buzz, but it can have addictive, opioid-like properties, according to the National Institutes of Health — and in some extreme cases, it has even led to fatal overdoses. As it has grown in popularity, so have concerns over its risks. Some states are trying to regulate kratom, but there’s been little regulatory action at the federal level. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns consumers against using kratom, suggesting that it’s unsafe and there are no approved uses for it. The Drug Enforcement Administration has listed it as a “drug of concern.”

ALPACAS ON THE RISE: For those with the wherewithal to go beyond raising chickens, alpacas are an increasingly popular choice. At last count, there were more than 200 Alpaca farms registered in New York State. Part of the Camelid family that also includes camels and llamas, alpacas are gentle animals and grow soft fiber that can be sheared and made into mittens, hats and blankets. They grow to be 150 to 200 pounds, and, unlike llamas, are less inclined to spit at you. Always a consideration.

NO ENDORSEMENT WHATSOEVER: Mayor Mark Olson of Fayetteville, NY, kept his seat on the Onondaga County Legislature last week, by a margin of 51 votes, less than 1% of those cast, and only confirmed days after the election in a hand recount. But the news was not about his slim victory. A flier Olson circulated just before the election listed CSEA Local 834, which represents 10,000 county workers, as a supporter. The fact is Local 834 endorsed his challenger Democrat Carrie Ingersoll-Wood. Shame, cried the Syracuse Post-Standard editorial board. Olson will have to give up his role as mayor on Jan. 1 when new Onondaga County ethics rules take effect saying elected officials can’t hold more than one elected job.

ROUGH TERRAIN: Skiing is an expensive sport to begin with, but Windham Mountain in the Catskills may have taken things to new heights. Windham has long been known for good beginner terrain and a family-oriented approach with a surrounding town that has more to do than other ski resorts in the Catskills. But this week came the unfortunate reveal of the Windham Ski Club, a new semi-private resort where people can buy lifetime memberships for $175,000. Windham still will sell traditional lift tickets, but not on Saturdays. The cap on total skiers allowed on the mountain per day will be lowered, and the resort’s mountain biking trails will close. Club membership at some point may include access to a private golf course, a spa, and a “river outpost” with kayaking. Some promotions, since removed, even said, “Say goodbye to Windham Mountain” and promoted the skiing experience at Windham as “a rare time in rarified air.”  

STEAK IN THE FUTURE: Don’t bring up the impact of beef on the planet if you want to enjoy your filet mignon. Advocates claim that beef is single most damaging food for the planet and the largest agricultural source of greenhouse gasses worldwide, with a bigger carbon footprint than any other type of protein. The Beef: It’s What’s For Dinner people point out that emissions from cattle are natural, account for less than 0.5% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions and are declining. Anyhoo, a growing number of ranchers believe there are solutions that address climate change and fill demand, for a world in which people can still enjoy beef with a clear conscience. They point to efforts to change how cattle are raised to retain more carbon in the ground, to develop feed supplements that reduce gas releases, and to make genetic breakthroughs so animals digest their food without brewing up harmful gases.

DR. BILL POWELL, for more than three decades, led a team that pioneered genetic engineering techniques to bring the iconic American chestnut tree back from the brink of extinction. He died just as federal regulators are set to approve Darling-58, the world’s first transgenic chestnut tree, for public release. Powell was a biology professor at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, where he and his colleague, Charles Maynard, founded the American Chestnut Research and Restoration Project in 1989. American Chestnut trees, called the redwood of the East, were decimated by disease nearly a century ago. Bringing them back to their former glory was Powell’s life’s work. Powell was 67.

MELINDA MACK was known for her passion for workforce development and equity. As the executive director of New York Association of Training and Employment Professionals, she “lived workforce development,” said colleague Ryan Silva, executive director of the New York State Economic Development Council. “She believed in the power that providing career opportunities could bring to individuals and people across the state.” In February, Mack announced she would be undergoing surgery to remove a mass in her brain. Despite her health challenges Mack remained dedicated to her mission. “If you have a few moments over the next several weeks, what I really need from all of you in terms of support is not food or gifts. I need you to be the voice of the system while I cannot,” she wrote. Mack was just 42.

JOHN HANNA MORRIS was born in Manhattan, son of a youth advocate and a deputy New York City Police Commissioner, whose early work in lighting design and stage production in New York and London led naturally to promoting rock concerts. In 1968, he earned a place in rock lore when he helped open Fillmore East. Then came the big job: Production coordinator for Woodstock. He helped promoters lure major acts and was the famous voice echoing through rock history announcing Woodstock was “a free concert from now on.”  He was 84.

JOE SHARKEY was a former executive city editor of The Albany Times Union who pursued a storied career as a national travel writer. He was returning home in in 2006 when the executive jet in which he was flying collided with a Boeing 737 at 37,000 feet over the Amazon rain forest in Brazil.  The commercial jet nose-dived, killing all 154 on board. The executive jet managed to land safely at a remote military airport. Sharkey recounted his near-death experience for  New York Times readers in a Page One account headlined “Colliding With Death at 37,000 Feet, and Living.” He was 77.

“If you want to save a species, simply decide to eat it. Then it will be managed – like chickens, like turkeys, like deer, like Canada geese.” – Ted Nugent

AWKWARD LIE: On the par-three 13^th hole at the World Tour Championship in Dubai Thursday, golfer Rory McIlroy somehow planted a ball in the lap of a female spectator laying on the grass to the right of the green. She seemed completely unfazed and remained in the grass with the ball lodged between her legs. So, what now?

NEXT WEEK: With a team that will be too full of tryptophan to type, Facing Out will take a break next week. See you the following week. Happy Thanksgiving to all.

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Principal Author: Leigh Hornbeck

Sincere thanks to our contributors: Mark Behan, Ryan Moore, Bill Callen, John Brodt, Troy Burns, Tina Suhocki, Kristy Miller, Claire P. Tuttle, and Nancie Battaglia.

FACING OUT is what we do. We help companies, organizations and individuals work effectively with their most important external audiences – their customers, their shareholders, their communities, the government and the news media.  www.behancommunications.com

Facing Out features news and other nuggets that caught our eye, and that we thought might be of value to you, our friends and business associates. Some items are good news about our clients and friends, others are stories that we hope will leave you a bit more informed or entertained than you were five minutes ago. As always, we welcome your ideas and feedback. 

Let’s make it a conversation: mark.behan@behancom.com