• A secret Israeli plan to resettle 60,000 Palestinians in South America has been discovered in a declassified state archive.
• In 1969 Israel struck a deal with Paraguay, 7,000 miles away, to accept Palestinians from Gaza who wanted to emigrate.
• After the Six-Day War, when millions of Palestinians came under Israel's control, Israel has explored a series of outlandish plans to alter the demographic balance.
• The plan was approved in the same year the Mossad decided to stop hunting Nazi fugitives and architects of the Holocaust, many of whom had found sanctuary in Paraguay.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A secret Israeli plan to re-settle 60,000 Palestinians living in Gaza to Paraguay has been discovered in a state archive of government papers.

Eran Mor-Cicurel, a senior reporter with KAN (IPBC) — Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation — said he discovered the lost chapter of Israeli history in "a pile of old documents" while trawling through declassified cabinet minutes from 1969.

" The extent, the numbers and the methodology was quite amazing, through the eyes of someone who lives in the 21st century," he told Business Insider. 

In 1967, Israel captured Gaza, an enclave beside the Mediterranean on its southern border, from Egypt in the Six-Day War. It also occupied Egypt's Sinai peninsula, the Golan Heights that had been part of Syria, and the West Bank, controlled by Jordan.

Today, Gaza is controlled by Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by the US government. The area is the constant conflict flashpoint between Israel and the Palestinians.

In recent days, hostilities have reignited as Palestinians launched multiple incendiary balloons and rockets across the border. Israel has retaliated with airstrikes.

For Mor-Cicurel, in 1969, the Israeli government, led by Prime Minister Golda Meir, had an inkling of the conflicts that would follow. However, at the time, relations between Israel and Gazans could not have been more different than the enmity that exists today. 

"The Palestinian population (in Gaza) was very peaceful at the time. Israel was a welcome occupier. Israelis were going to Gaza and shopping, sitting on the beach, and talking about how people were friendly. Relations were basically very good at the beginning," he said.

But the Paraguay transfer plan emerged because, "the Israel government identified the problem in advance," he said.

"After the '67 war, the Gazan economy was disconnected from the Egyptian economy. There was very high unemployment. In Golda Meir's view, it was a humanistic attempt to solve a difficult problem — it seemed reasonable."

Palestinians to Paraguay

What to do with the millions of Palestinian Arabs that came under the Jewish state's control after 1967 has been an intense debate in Israeli politics ever since. As recently as 2019, a senior government official said that Israel was willing to help Palestinians emigrate from Gaza.

One idea that never got off the ground, Mor-Cicurel said, was to establish agricultural settlements in northern Sinai for 50,000 Palestinians. But in reality, there was no local solution, so Israel's leaders, advised by its spy agency, Mossad, began to look further afield.

 "Paraguay was basically a dictatorship. You had a strongman there who you could reach an agreement with," said Mor-Cicurel. 

Paraguay was ruled by Alfredo Stroessner, who took power in a military coup in 1954 and ruled until his overthrow in 1989. The period was marked by sustained human rights abuses of opponents.

The Mossad brokered a secret agreement with the Paraguayan regime.

According to the archived cabinet minutes, the head of the Mossad, Major General Zvi Zamir, said: "The proposal in question is the consent of the Paraguayan government, through the Paraguayan Institute of Agriculture and Immigration, to absorb for a minimum period of four years — although it can continue longer if things develop — 60,000 Arab Muslim people, Who by definition are not communists. She is willing to absorb them into the country, When the Government of Israel fulfills certain conditions."

The plan guaranteed Israel would cover the emigrants' travel expenses. It said they would be paid $100 each, plus $33 per person would go to the Paraguay government. On arrival, the Palestinians would receive residency rights, and citizenship after five years.

"According to the Israeli state papers, a down payment of $350,000 was made for the first 10,000 emigrants. The total bill for the 60,000 resettled Palestinians was estimated at $33 million.

"The idea was to seduce people to leave Gaza," said Mor-Circurel.

To facilitate the movement of the Palestinians, Israel set up a travel agency in Gaza to entice people and provide them with the relevant documentation.

Wishful thinking

Through the human rights lens of 2020, the plan may appear shocking, said Mor-Circurel, but the Israeli leadership perspective in the late 1960s was formed from their own historical experience.

"Transferring populations from one place to another was common to these people. All of them were basically immigrants. Most of the policymakers came from other countries to the State of Israel," he said.

"In the eyes of today, the idea of transferring the population is quite strange. But 1968 was not so far away from the division of Pakistan and India and the transfer of populations. It wasn't considered human rights abuse."

The secret Paraguay plan also mingles with the history of the Holocaust. Mor-Circurel points it formed as Israel wound down its hunt for fugitive Nazi war criminals.

Paraguay was a safe haven for many notorious fugitives from Hitler's Third Reich. Josef Mengele, the so-called "the angel of death," who carried out horrific medical experiments on Jewish prisoners at Auschwitz, was gifted Paraguayan citizenship under his real name in 1959.

Mor-Circurel believes that Israel made a realpolitik decision that it was better to develop relations with South American countries than continue efforts to hunt down Nazis.

"The head of Mossad said it was too expensive to continue the Nazi-hunting operation and it should concentrate on security threats not 'ghosts from the past'," said Mor-Circurel.

Only 30 Palestinians ever made the 7,000 thousand-mile journey before the project came to a shuddering halt.

Two immigrants shot a young clerk at the Israeli Embassy in Asunción. This has since been framed as the first act of Palestinian terrorism against Israel abroad.

Mor-Circurel says his research suggests that the motive was more likely they were disgruntled with life in their new South American home. "It was convenient to claim they were terrorists," he said.

It created a scandal around the Paraguayan resettlement plan, and Stroessner, fearing the Arab world's wrath, aborted the project.

"This is an unusual story," Professor Colin Shindler of the University of London (SOAS), told Business Insider, by email

"It was soon after the Six-Day War and there were no negotiations with the Arab states — a stalemate. It also coincided with the rise of Palestinian nationalism, Arafat and the PLO," he said.

"Perhaps they believed that exporting 60,000 Palestinians would help to mitigate the problem. However, 60,000 is such a small number in the context of the population of the West Bank and Gaza that it would have made no difference.

"It sounds more like a temporary flight of fancy than a thought through idea. More wishful thinking than confronting the political reality," he said.

• In just one generation, the international market for argan oil has risen from 200 liters to 4,000 metric tons.

• This artisanal oil was originally sold on the roadside in recycled bottles for as little as $3 per liter.

• It takes one woman approximately 24 hours to produce one liter of argan oil.

• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Below is a transcript of the video:

Argan oil can cost as much as $300 per liter, making it the world's most expensive edible oil. Just 20 years ago, however, the production of argan oil was isolated to local villages in Morocco, with international sales virtually nonexistent. But since then, the formation of women-run cooperatives has transformed the production into a billion-dollar industry.

So, why has argan oil suddenly gained such popularity? And what makes it so expensive?

Argan oil is predominantly used in high-end cosmetic products and Moroccan cuisine. The oil comes from the seed of the argan tree, native only to the narrow strip of semi-desert between Morocco's Atlantic coast and the Atlas Mountains. The Amazigh people of North Africa have been using the argan seeds for centuries, and the methods for creating this costly oil haven't changed in years.

Khadija Heeda: The first stage of production is the collection. We collect the fruits of the argan. We collect them when they are mature. The young fruit is this color, green. We can't collect it by striking the tree with sticks or picking it from the tree. We wait for it to mature and drop to the ground, and its color turns to brown.

Narrator: Once collected, the argan fruits are sun-dried before being peeled and de-pulped by hand to remove the fleshy outer layers. The leftover argan nut then needs to be cracked to retrieve the oil-rich kernel inside.

Khadija Heeda: This is a difficult stage. Not just anybody can crack this nut, because you need to know the technique to crack it correctly to maintain the structure of the nut and not grind it. To obtain a liter of argan oil, we need 40 kilograms of the fruit, or about 20 kilograms of the nuts, to obtain one liter.

Narrator: The next stage is grinding, which is often also done by hand.

Khadija Heeda: We grind the argan kernels in this traditional method that we learned from our ancestors and that is known in our Moroccan heritage. This is a time-consuming method. To obtain one liter, this method takes two hours. That is why we developed, and now we are able, when we have a large order, to use the machine. The machine — it takes little time. In five minutes, it can produce one or two liters.

Argan oil is not like other oils. The best quality is known as "red gold" because it is very expensive. Argan oil requires a lot of effort to produce. For one woman to produce one liter of argan oil, it would take her approximately 24 hours.

Narrator: The leftover pulp removed from the fruit is sold as animal feed, particularly for goats, who are intrinsically linked to the argan tree. In some areas, it's tradition to allow goats to climb the trees to freely feed on the fruits. Argan kernels are then collected from their excrement, saving the laborious work of cracking open the nuts manually. But nowadays, in most argan forestries, this peculiar sight is mainly used as a tourist attraction.

Khadija Heeda: When oil produced that way was studied, it was found to be unfit for consumption. If the goat has any problem, it becomes harmful. Goats are a part of this region — tourists enjoy seeing the goats in the argan trees, and they like to take pictures with them.

Narrator: Traditionally, Amazigh women, who until 1956 required the man's permission to leave their homes, made argan oil primarily for culinary purposes using methods passed down through generations. This artisanal oil was occasionally sold on the roadside in recycled bottles for as little as $3 per liter.

Zoubida Charrouf: We found out that the women who prepared this oil in a traditional way had very soft skin and no wrinkles at all. But we had no scientific proof.

Narrator: Zoubida Charrouf first studied the argan tree for her PhD in the late 1980s, when the species was in dangerous decline. After conducting scientific research to support the moisturizing benefits of argan oil on hair and skin, Charrouf planned to transform the environmental problem into an economic solution.

Zoubida Charrouf: The objective was not to keep these results in the drawers at the university, but to go out into the field and organize the sector. These women were not organized at all, who produced argan oil in the traditional way at home. It was very difficult. It was something new. They didn't know what a cooperative was. Then, they never left their homes. But we started with 16 women, and as soon as the others saw how this first cooperative turned out, a lot of women came to see us who also wanted to organize themselves into cooperatives and benefit from the marketing of Argan oil.

Narrator: Sure enough, the rapid rise in popularity of argan oil not only brought profit to the region, but also revitalized an entire ecosystem. The newfound respect for the value of argan trees ensured stability for the species, and in turn, the surrounding wildlife and community reaped the benefits. The argan tree, known locally as "the tree of life," provides food, shelter, and protection from desertification, and its deep roots prevent soil erosion, allowing vegetated grass to grow for grazing livestock. It's estimated that up to 90% of the economy in this region is owed to the argan tree.

Zoubida Charrouf: There are almost 3 million people who subsist on the argan tree because it provides a lot of working days for the local population. The extraction of the
oil alone provides almost 1 million working days. But the most important role is the environmental role. The argan tree is really the last green curtain on the desert.

Narrator: In just one generation, the international market for argan oil has risen from just 200 liters to 4,000 metric tons in 2019. By 2025, the state's ambition is to sell over 10,000 metric tons. To facilitate this increase, the area for producing the oil has expanded more than 100 miles south of Essaouira and is due to expand north.

As with any costly ingredient, argan oil products are often adulterated. Both cosmetic and culinary argan oil is often labeled as "pure" despite the undisclosed percentage of Argania kernel oil being mixed with a host of chemical compounds.

And cheaper, mechanically extracted oil has begun to appear on the market for as little as $22 a liter, threatening the stability of the local cooperatives. However, some cosmetic giants, such as L'Oréal, have committed to fair-trade programs to help ensure the stability of their argan oil and the preservation of the forest's biodiversity.

With the help of the cooperatives, the traditional skills held by the Amazigh women have created a booming industry. But even though this income has granted some financial independence in a male-dominated society, the women normally make less than $220 a month - below Morocco's recommended national minimum wage.

With the argan oil industry predicted to continue its growth, the prosperity of the Amazigh women remains to be seen.

• Filmmaker Michael Moore has warned that history may be repeating itself, and as in 2016 complacent progressives are ignoring the huge and fervent support President Trump has in battleground states. 
• "I'm warning you almost 10 weeks in advance. The enthusiasm level for the 60 million in Trump's base is OFF THE CHARTS! For Joe, not so much," wrote Moore on Facebook. 
• Moore cited a series of polls showing Biden and Trump tied, or the race narrowing, in swing states that helped propel Trump to a shock victory in 2016. 
• Moore, a supporter of Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign, was one of few to predict that "Rust Belt" voters would abandon Democrats and propel Trump to victory in 2016. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Filmmaker Michael Moore has warned that enthusiasm for President Donald Trump is "off the charts" in key battleground states, and complacent Democrats risk the same shock they suffered in the 2016 election when many wrote off Trump's chances. 

Moore, who comes from Flint, Michigan, has spent his career documenting the plight of working-class Americans in the "Rust Belt," whose decision to flip from Democrat to Republican was key to Trump's shock victory four years ago.

He was one of few political observers to successfully predict in 2016 that Trump would defeat Hillary Clinton, as Trump's America First message resonated in states where traditional industries have been decimated. 

In a Facebook post on Saturday, he warned progressives against complacency as national polls continue to show Democratic candidate Joe Biden with a lead over Trump. 

"Are you ready for a Trump victory? Are you mentally prepared to be outsmarted by Trump again? Do you find comfort in your certainty that there is no way Trump can win? Are you content with the trust you've placed in the DNC to pull this off?" he wrote. 

"I'm warning you almost 10 weeks in advance. The enthusiasm level for the 60 million in Trump's base is OFF THE CHARTS! For Joe, not so much," warned Moore. "Don't leave it to the Democrats to get rid of Trump. YOU have to get rid of Trump. WE have to wake up every day for the next 67 days and make sure each of us are going to get a hundred people out to vote. ACT NOW!" wrote Moore. 

He went on to claim that recent polling shows the race tightening in swing states. 

In the post, Moore claimed that "when CNN polled registered voters in August in just the swing states, Biden and Trump were in a virtual tie."

The August 17 CNN poll taken ahead of the party conventions found that of registered voters in battleground states, 49% backed Biden and 48% Trump.

"In Minnesota, it's 47-47. In Michigan, where Biden had a big lead, Trump has closed the gap to 4 points," continued Moore. 

In a poll on August 20, the GOP-leaning Trafalgar Group found Biden and Trump tied at 47% in Minnesota, while an August 20 poll by the University of Wisconsin-Madison found Biden with a five-point lead over Trump in Michigan.

The most recent battleground state poll, released by CNBC-Change Research on Wednesday, found that Biden currently leads Trump by 3 points in six battleground states, and his lead is narrowing. 

Back in October 2016, as polls showed Clinton with a commanding lead over Trump and many pundits were writing off his chances, Moore warned that "Trump's election is going to be the biggest 'f*** you' ever recorded in human history."

"Whether Trump means it or not is kind of irrelevant because he's saying the things to people who are hurting, and that's why every beaten-down, nameless, forgotten working stiff who used to be part of what was called the middle class loves Trump," Moore said at the time. 

• Female protesters broke through a riot police cordon in Minsk, Belarus on Saturday as anti-government demonstrations against President Alexander Lukashenko and his government intensify.
• In a dramatic video, a group of women can be seen pushing back police officers who had their linked arms to create a barrier, while chanting "this is our city."
• The protest marks the latest anti-government demonstrations calling on authoritarian President Lukashenko to step down after a much-disputed election earlier this month. 
• Authorities in Belarus have launched a press crackdown and withdrawn the accreditation of many Belarusian reporters covering the large anti-government protests.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A phalanx of female protesters broke through a riot police cordon during a protest in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday, in a dramatic moment captured on video. 

The incident happened during a so-called "march of solidarity," the latest of a series of anti-government protests that have rocked the country since the disputed presidential election.

In the video, a group of women push through a line of police officers who had their linked arms to create a barrier. As the police struggle to stick together, the protesters appear to successfully break through the cordon while chanting, "this is our city."

Later in the video, another powerful moment ensued when female protesters rushed to hug and protect a man who had been approached by a police officer.

Watch the clip below: 

—Joyce Karam (@Joyce_Karam) August 29, 2020

The protest marks the latest of anti-government demonstrations that have called on authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko and his government to step down after a much-disputed election earlier this month. 

Lukashenko denies opposition accusations that he rigged the August 9 election to prolong his 26-year rule and claims that the protests — which have brought hundreds and thousands of people to the streets — are funded by the West. 

Many of the protesters were wearing a national dress and were waving flowers and flags, ignoring the calls by police not to disturb public order. Streets along the protest route had been cordoned off and blocked with vans.

While no mass arrests took place during the march, US state-run Radio Free Europe claimed that the police detained two of its reporters.

Authorities in Belarus have withdrawn the accreditation of many journalists reporting on the post-election protest, including two journalists with the BBC's Russian service.

In a statement released on Saturday, the BBC said it condemned "in the strongest possible terms this stifling of independent journalism."

Read more:

• Belarus erupts in protest after opposition alleges rigged election
• The Republican National Committee used stock footage from a 2019 protest in Spain to show rioting in 'Biden's America'
• I'm a professor who studies protests and activism. Here's why the George Floyd protests are different.
• A world on fire: Here are all the major protests happening around the globe right now

• President Donald Trump has suggested that his autograph could sell for as much as $10,000 during a visit to hurricane-hit Louisiana.
• The president was at Lake Charles fire station for a briefing on Hurricane Laura's impact, which has killed 14 people and left vast numbers of people without electricity.
• Signing pieces of paper for autograph seekers, he said: "Here, sell this tonight on eBay, you'll get 10,000."
• On Friday, Trump approved a declaration that made FEMA funding available for Louisiana.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump said that his autograph could sell for $10,000 on eBay in remarks made during a visit to Louisiana to survey hurricane damage.

In footage circulated on social media, the president signed autographs for officials at a Lake Charles fire station, where he was briefed about conditions in the city following Hurricane Laura.

"Here, sell this tonight on eBay, you'll get 10,000," he said, handing an autograph to a police officer. He elaborated on his signatures' value, telling another autograph-seeker: "If I put your name down, it loses a lot of value. So just sell it tonight on eBay," to laughter from some onlookers.

Trump was visiting both Louisiana and Texas to view the damage from the hurricane, which killed 14 people and left hundreds of thousands without power as of Saturday. 

On Friday, the president approved a major disaster declaration for Louisiana, enabling the state to access FEMA relief funding. 

"Our hearts go out to families who lost loved ones," he said on Saturday, according to Lafayette newspaper The Daily Advertiser.

The footage of him signing autographs was circulated by conservative anti-Trump campaign The Lincoln Project with the comment: "Unbelievable."

—The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) August 29, 2020

Trump has previously bragged about the value of his signature, telling eBay's interim CEO in January that even "senators and congressmen" put his autograph up for sale. 

Numerous items purportedly signed by the president end up on sale on eBay, though few sell for much more than $1,000 at the time of writing.

• More than 300 coronavirus patients have joined a COVID-19 "bootcamp" to address their lingering symptoms.
• The virtual program involves physical activities like breathing exercises and cardio, as well as lectures, meditations, and motivational talks.
• Marissa Oliver, a 36-year-old who's had symptoms for more than five months, said the program has improved her psyche and reduced tightness in her diaphragm.
• Eventually, it could feed into a long-term treatment plan.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Each day, Marissa Oliver logs onto her computer after work and sees the familiar face of Dr. Noah Greenspan, a physical therapist with colorful tattoos on both arms. He offers Oliver — and many other coronavirus patients with long-lasting symptoms — a daily motivation: They are not their illness. Things will get better. 

Before the pandemic, Dr. Greenspan worked with elderly patients diagnosed with cardiovascular and pulmonary disease in New York City. But as the coronavirus spread, he began to hear more and more from COVID-19 patients who said they hadn't recovered. That's the case for Oliver: The 36-year-old has had difficulty breathing since March 11. 

So Greenspan decided to see how these COVID-19 "long-haulers" would respond to some of the same exercises he often gave his elderly patients, even though many, like Oliver, are much younger than the people Greenspan previously treated. His initial program turned out to be too rigorous, so Greenspan launched a specialized, virtual "COVID-19 bootcamp," on August 2.

More than 300 patients have signed up, he said, and their progress is offering clues about how to treat the disease's long-term effects.

"Each week, we are seeing patients, throwing a little pebble, letting the pool ripple, seeing how things go," he said. "We're starting to be able to map out a consistent treatment plan and a consistent rehabilitation plan that will likely work for the majority of people, as long as we do it the right way."

The daily program starts with a meditation or inspirational lecture, then moves on to breathing exercises, strength training, and cardio. It's donation-based, so patients have the option to sign up for free.

"Since I started, I've actually noticed a lessening of the diaphragm tightness, which was a symptom I've had nonstop for four and a half months," Oliver, who manages an arts organization, said. "It's these exercises that I tie directly to helping relieve my pain naturally."

Rehab programs address long-term COVID-19 symptoms

Greenspan said limited hospital capacity earlier in the pandemic meant that many COVID-19 long-haulers had to deal with severe cases on their own at home — some had pneumonia, blood clots, or high fevers.

"If this were any other time in the history of the world, a huge number of the patients would have been admitted to the hospital," Greenspan said. "For all we know, had they been admitted right off the bat, maybe they wouldn't be long-haulers or maybe the severity of their symptoms would have been a lot less."

Other long-haulers never developed life-threatening symptoms, and their brain scans, chest X-rays, and blood work have since come back normal — yet they've continued to experience heart palpitations, dizziness, fatigue, and difficulty breathing for months. Some doctors suggested to these patients that their symptoms might be psychological.

"We know for sure now that that's not true," Greenspan said.

He believes there's a way for many of these patients to fully recover.

The six-week bootcamp involves recorded, virtual daily sessions — patients can tune in from anywhere at any time. The short-term goal of the lessons and exercises in the sessions is to improve patients' flexibility and balance, and to teach them how to regain control of their breath when they start to feel winded. 

Sessions last around 30 minutes to start, but patients have the option to break up the exercises throughout the day or tack on more time as they grow stronger. The exercises vary each day. 

At the start of the bootcamp, each patient fills out a quality-of-life survey. Greenspan said it's too early to administer a second survey to anyone, but he plans to track patients' progress once they've finished.

The bootcamp is the US's first online rehab program for COVID-19 patients. 

But it's not the first to treat long-haulers using physical therapy: The Detroit Medical Center began offering an in-person rehab program for COVID-19 patients in June. A rehabilitation clinic in Genoa, Italy, is also walking long-haulers through light, in-person exercises. And a clinic at St. Luke's Hospital in Bradford, England, has enlisted a dietitian, psychologist, and chronic-fatigue specialist to care for long-haul patients.

Greenspan's bootcamp has adopted a similarly holistic approach.

Patients do tai chi, yoga, and meditation as part of the program. They listen to relaxing music while walking in place, while gazing at serene footage from around the world on the screen. They also watch lectures from top physicians, pulmonologists, cardiologists, and neurologists, and can submit questions about their health. 

"At first I thought, 'Oh, it's kind of cheesy,' but honestly, I can tell that it's improving my psyche," Oliver said, adding, "the emotional and mental impacts of the virus have been just as severe as the physical ones." 

The breathing exercises are what she finds most useful, Oliver added. They often involve deep inhales through the nose and long, extended exhales through pursed lips. 

In May, Oliver was diagnosed with pleurisy, or inflammation in her lung tissue. Right around the time that she started the bootcamp, her pulmonologist prescribed a steroid, which she said made her feel "really weird." Greenspan's program has made her feel like she can manage her symptoms without the steroid, she said.

Too much activity can push patients 'over the edge'

Oliver has nicknamed her lasting, fluctuating symptoms "the COVID coaster." Her health is hard to predict, she said, and it's often hard to know which types of activity will exacerbate her illness. 

"One of the things about COVID is it's definitely not orderly," Greenspan said. "It's completely chaotic. There's no rhyme or reason to it."

That might be because an aggressive inflammatory response to the virus can impair the autonomic nervous system, he said, which regulates blood pressure, heart rate, and body temperature. This would explain why some patients feel dizzy or experience a racing heart after merely sitting up or walking across a room. Breathing, he said, is the portal to helping the nervous system heal and improve.

"You're only going to heal as quickly as your slowest system, and unfortunately the neurological system is one of the slower systems to heal," Greenspan said. "Until that inflammation goes away, you may not see the change."

Like patients with chronic fatigue syndrome, many COVID-19 long-haulers say their symptoms get worse after exercise. 

"You have to go extremely slow with COVID patients because sometimes they can feel perfectly fine during a treatment, or they can feel perfectly fine during an activity, but if you go that one step over the edge, then they could be knocked out for a week after that or they can have a flare in their symptoms," Greenspan said.

He encourages patients to go slower than they might think is necessary. The ultimate goal, he added, is to help them manage their recovery on their own and eventually resume normal activities.

"It's like if you were all of a sudden in a pitch-black room," Greenspan said. "Until you adjust to that darkness, you're going to tip toe around, taking slow steps, feeling things out. Eventually, as you gain confidence with that, we can start to move at a quicker pace."

• President Donald Trump shared a message from far-right news network One America News (OAN ) Saturday, branding ongoing anti-racism protests an attempted coup. 
• Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has accused Trump of rooting for violence at ongoing demonstrations, which have resulted in deadly clashes between rival protesters in recent days. 
• Republicans though, have accused Democrats of ignoring violent unrest at protests.
• On Saturday, a man was shot and killed in Portland, Oregon, after clashes between pro-Trump and Black Lives Matter demonstrators. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump shared a message Saturday from far-right news network One America News branding ongoing anti-racism protests a "coup" aimed at unseating him. 

For weeks, the president has been seeking to portray protests that swept America following the killing of George Floyd as the work of extremists and agitators.

The Trump campaign has seized on images of violence and looting at some protests to promote the president as a champion of law and order, with the theme at the center of last week's GOP convention.

On Saturday, Trump doubled down on the argument, sharing a message by OAN featuring a program on the network seeking to expose the protests as part of an anarchist coup.

"According to the mainstream media, the riots & extreme violence are completely unorganized. However, it appears this coup attempt is led by a well funded network of anarchists trying to take down the President," reads the message shared by the president. 

The ADL has previously labeled attempts to portray the protests as mainly the work of extremists as disinformation. It pointed to the role of far-right media in spreading the claim. It pointed to the role of far-right media in spreading the claim. 

The tweet comes amid growing concern about violence between pro-Trump and Black Lives Matter demonstrators at protests, and concerns the president's incendiary rhetoric helps instigate the unrest.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden told CNN last week that he believes Trump is hoping for violence at the demonstrations, because it enables him to detract from his failed response to the coronavirus. 

A 17-year old Trump supporter is accused of shooting dead two BLM demonstrators in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Wednesday. In Portland, Oregon, on Saturday, one man was shot dead following clashes between rival demonstrators. According to initial reports, the man killed was wearing a hat emblazoned with insignia of the far-right Patriot Prayer group. 

Compared to its rivals, OAN has a tiny audience, but President Trump has repeatedly promoted conspiracy theories and disinformation broadcast by the network to his supporters. 

The network has repeatedly aired groundless and bizarre pro-Trump conspiracy theories, including the claim in May that the coronavirus was invented in a US lab as part of a plot by infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci, who has clashed with Trump over measures to contain the virus. 

• Off Highway Van created the Doc Holiday, a customizable Mercedes-Benz Sprinter camper van.
• The van can accommodate up to six people, making it a good camper van for families with children, according to Off Highway Van's co-founder Seth Riddle.
• The Doc Holiday has skyrocketed in popularity amid the pandemic as more families started opting for road trips instead of international travels.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Off Highway Van created the Doc Holiday, a customizable family-friendly Mercedes-Benz Sprinter camper van that has seen skyrocketing interest from families since the start of the pandemic. 

Doc Holiday can accommodate up to five to six people, which is done by having two separate sleeping spaces.

The first is a foldable, three-panel bed that is topped with a four-inch foam mattress. This accompanies the second sleeping space, which doubles as a seatbelt-equipped bench seat during the day. At night, this four-seater bench can unfold into a 68-inch by 73-inch bed at night.

According to Off Highway Van's co-owner Seth Riddle, this five to six-person capacity is one of Doc Holiday's biggest selling points, therefore securing its place as a family-friendly camper van and the second most popular build that the company offers. 

Almost every customer who has purchased a Doc Holiday has been a parent or grandparent who wants to bring their children or grandchildren on road trips, contributing to the van's skyrocketing popularity amid the pandemic as more families started canceling international trips and opting instead for road travel around the US.

When a listing of the Doc Holiday was posted by Off Highway Van amid the pandemic, the company started receiving three to four calls a day from interested customers, amounting to 75% of its inquiries.

"The van sold in a heartbeat," Riddle told Business Insider. "All these families are like, 'Oh, you know what? We've been planning to do this down the road, but we've got all this time now, [so] let's commit to it.'"

Beyond the Doc Holiday, inquiries for builds by Off Highway Van has been so high, the company is now struggling to meet demands and has a six-month waiting list as a result.

"[The uptick in demand] opened our eyes," Riddle said. "There's this huge market for the family that has been ignored by the market for years, and upfitters are starting to come around to it."

There is a wide variety of possible camper van bases, but the Utah-based company went with the ever-popular Mercedes-Benz Sprinter.

According to Riddle, the Sprinter is in high demand because of its appearance, diesel engine, torque, and four-wheel-drive capabilities.

The van can either come as a 144-inch or 170-inch, the latter providing a larger kitchen and living area.

Despite this option for a longer interior, the 144-inch — which was built more for weekend vacations or short bi-annual trips — is the more popular choice.

"A lot of people love the 144...because of its versatility," Riddle said. "Some people are like, 'it's gotta be compact, fit it in a parking spot, and I want this to be the soccer mom car,' but then on the weekends, they're hitting the trails...and getting lost."

The 170-inch is a more popular choice for camper vanners interested in taking an extended trip.

For example, a 170-inch Doc Holiday build is currently being used by a customer who once lived in New York, but decided to move to Wyoming amid the pandemic.

This Doc Holiday owner is now using the van as a "satellite home base" for trips in conjunction with a friends' home and personal property.

The camper costs between $68,900 for the base build, but can range up to $200,000 with different add-ons.

The cabinets and walls are made by Off Highway Van's team using light aluminum and wood-less composite materials, creating a waterproof and strong structure, according to its makers.

Source: Off Highway Vans

The ceiling is lined with vinyl fabric, while the walls are tweed fabric.

The van, which comes insulated, has a roof fan and several windows, such as awning windows with screens by both sides of the bed.

When it's dark out, the interior can be brightened up with its eight LED lights.

Its interior is powered in part by its 2,000-watt inverter charger, 200-watt solar panels, and a 224-amp hour battery system.

These power systems also supply the energy needed for the van's USB, 12-volt, and 110-volt outlets.

For family meals on the road, the kitchen has a 22-inch by 20-inch butcher block countertop, refrigerator, and freezer ...

... and a sink that accompanies the 15-gallon fresh water tank and five-gallon grey water tank.

The main bed platform sits 37 inches above the floor, making room for accessories, such as mountain bikes, in the cargo area.

The cargo garage space also has an L-track mounted onto the floor to help keep gear in place.

Other amenities, such as an exterior shower, air conditioner, and roof rack, come at additional costs.

• Car search engine and automotive research firm iSeeCars.com compiled a list of the 10 fastest selling used cars during the pandemic.
• There are three Teslas in the compilation, including the Model 3, which tops the list with its average sell time in 29.3 days.
• Besides the three Teslas, a BMW, Subaru, Infiniti, and two Toyotas and Hondas are included as well.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Car search engine and automotive research firm iSeeCars.com has compiled a list of the 10 fastest-selling used cars amid the pandemic.

On average, used cars sold in 68.9 days during the pandemic. However, the 10 cars iSeeCars identified for its study have all sold 1.3 times faster than this over a two-month time frame.

This includes the Tesla Model 3, which tops the list with its average of 29.3 days on the used car market before being sold.

The slowest-selling vehicle on the top-10 list also happens to be another Tesla: the Model S, which averages at around 59.7 days. The third Tesla included in iSeeCars' list is the Model X, sitting in sixth place with an average of 47.6 days on the market.

Other than these three electric vehicles, iSeeCars' list is occupied by a BMW, a Subaru, an Infiniti, and two Toyotas and Hondas.

iSeeCars analyzed over 4.8 million car sales for the study, which includes new and used vehicles. For the used segment, iSeeCars pulled data from vehicles in the 2015 to 2019 model year that were sold between March to June 2020. However, heavy-duty and low volume cars  — as well as vehicles taken off the production line before the 2020 model year — were excluded from the study.

Keep scrolling to see which cars made the cut:

10. Tesla Model S — 50.7 days on average

According to iSeeCars, the Model S' price — which averages $53,776 used — started dropping when the Model 3 arrived on the market. 

Used Teslas dominant this list because the vehicles still remain popular in the used car market due to the automaker's over-the-air software updates, according to the study.

9. Toyota Corolla Hatchback — 50.2 days on average

The hatchback iteration of the Corolla arrived on the market last year, accounting for its low inventory in the used segment. Despite this low inventory, the vehicle has an average used price of $18,602, making it the third less expensive car on the list.

8. Honda Accord — 50 days on average

The Accord, and its previous Honda companion on this list, are both popular cars in the US.

The Accord has an average used price of $18,702, just $100 more than the Corolla.

7. INFINITI Q60 — 49.4 days on average

"The sporty two-door coupe is known for its powerful engine, and is likely popular for buyers who want to enter the luxury sports car segment," iSeeCars CEO Phong Ly said in a statement.

The Q60 has an average used price tag of $30,726.

6. Tesla Model X — 47.6 days on average

According to iSeeCar's study, the Model X isn't as frequently spotted in the used car market since it was unveiled in 2015. It's also the most expensive used car on the list with an average price of $68,380.

5. Honda Civic — 47.4 days on average

The Civic has an average used cost of $16,725, securing its position as the second least expensive car on this list.

4. Toyota Yaris — 44.8 days on average

According to iSeeCars, the Yaris is popular because it has Toyota's reliability at a lower price: $14,118, on average, for a used version.

The Yaris is the least expensive vehicle in this compilation.

3. Subaru BRZ — 44.5 days on average

According to the study, the BRZ — with its average used price of $20,276 — doesn't heavily populate the used car market since it has a more "niche audience."

2. BMW X6 — 43 days on average

According to iSeeCars, the BMW X6 is one of the quickest depreciating SUVS, giving it a big discount (an average used price of $40,235) in the used car market.

1. Tesla Model 3 — 29.3 days to sell on average

"The Tesla Model 3, which was the automaker's least expensive vehicle, had the highest number of preorders of any car ever produced, and the long wait time helped further drive the high demand for the vehicle which has been sustained in the secondary marketplace," Ly said.

A used Model 3 has an average price tag of $53,776 and a low inventory in the used car market because the electric vehicle was first introduced in 2018, according to iSeeCars.

 

• The Deliver-e is Bollinger Motors's latest all-electric delivery van concept.
• Bollinger Motors is the company behind the all-electric and Tesla Cybertruck-challenging B1 and B2. 
• The Deliver-e is still just a concept for now, but CEO Robert Bollinger told Business Insider that the company has "accepted custom specs from several prospective customers."
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The future of package delivery might soon become whisper-silent and all-electric.

Bollinger Motors, the company behind the Tesla Cybertruck-challenging, all-electric and all-wheel drive B1 sport-utility truck and B2 pickup truck, unveiled the Deliver-e delivery van concept on Thursday. Like the B1 and B2, the Deliver-e also exclusively runs on battery-electric power. 

The Deliver-e uses a front-wheel-drive platform. Bollinger Motors has plans to engineer it to meet Class 2B, 3, 4, and 5 truck classifications. The company says that the total cost of ownership for each class is "significantly lower than gas and diesel versions on the road today," according to an emailed press release.

The Deliver-e concept follows Amazon's announcement in February that it had ordered 100,000 custom delivery vehicles from Rivian, another EV startup. Additionally, Business Insider reported on Friday that Amazon has also just ordered 1,800 electric delivery vans from Mercedes-Benz for European deliveries.

All-electric delivery vehicles are a nice idea. They would cut down on neighborhood noise and pollution levels if successfully implemented.

Keep reading to learn more about the Deliver-e concept.

The Deliver-e is an all-electric delivery van concept from Bollinger Motors, the company responsible for the Cybertruck-challenging B1 and B2.

The Deliver-e will be front-wheel drive and designed to meet Class 2B, 3, 4, and 5 truck classifications.

Bollinger says 70, 105, 140, 175, and 210 kWh battery packs will be available, as well as variable lengths in the wheelbase.

With a floor height of 18 inches, loading cargo in the Deliver-e should be a breeze.

The production version of the delivery van will have a high-strength steel frame with a 10-year durability target.

CEO Robert Bollinger told Business Insider, “We’ve already accepted custom specs from several prospective customers, and are in the process of developing proposals for how the Deliver-e can be built to their needs.”

Bollinger says it’s working with a manufacturing partner to build the Deliver-e in the US.

Deliver-e production is scheduled for 2022. No pricing was announced at this time.

• During this pandemic, the way we view our safety versus the way we view the safety of others illustrates a divide in how Americans view basic liberties.
• The debate over wearing masks is a perfect example of this.
• There are four views of liberty according to author David Hackett Fischer, and they each illuminate the way Americans are behaving during the pandemic.
• George Pearkes is the Global Macro Strategist for Bespoke Investment Group.
• This is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed are those of the author.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

How we treat other people in society reveals our fundamental understanding of liberty. Different understandings of the concept of liberty have very different impacts on individuals and society as a whole, and the arrival of COVID is helping to highlight the tradeoffs of the freedoms we preserve for ourselves and each other. 

In the midst of a global pandemic, the liberties we take with others' safety and the liberties we hold for ourselves reveal fundamental, competing differences in how Americans conceive of our freedoms.

But the coronavirus offers a chance for us to reassess our assumptions about the costs to others that taking liberties impose, and illustrate the need for a more egalitarian approach to making our way in the world.

Four views of liberty

In his massive book on the migratory origins of America's voluntary society, Albion's Seed, David Hackett Fischer identifies four different conceptions of "liberty" that all found their way into our national political culture: ordered, hierarchical, natural, and reciprocal.

These liberties are different ways of viewing the concept of freedom, and they have all played roles in American culture. The conflicts in our society highlighted by COVID generally and the push to wear a mask specifically neatly highlight these various conceptions of freedom.

Efforts to require masks are a straightforward expression of ordered liberty. The concept of ordered liberty argues that without structure and a set of rules which are enforced for the common good, society would devolve into chaos. Mask orders are quite literally saving society from itself, so that we can be more free than we would if COVID spread even further and faster.

Hierarchical liberty takes a different view: that hierarchy is the source of liberty. In this understanding, people of a lower rank do not have the same liberties or rights as those with higher rank, and that system of inequality actually improves society. To a believer in hierarchical liberty, hierarchy brings harmony and therefore freedom.

You won't find much respect for hierarchical liberty among those who follow a more natural liberty, which boils down to refusing any authority at all. Mask orders from local government and local business are seen as equally unacceptable to a natural libertarian, but they're also not going to be bothered by someone else deciding to mask...after all, that's their business.

Finally, we come to reciprocal liberty, which is best thought of as a generic application of The Golden Rule. Under principles of reciprocal liberty, any threat to one person's freedom or safety is a threat to the freedom or safety of all people, because that same threat may eventually be turned on whoever is avoiding it today. This approach would dictate mask-wearing not out of paternalistic concern for the wearer, but out of the wearer's concern that they may endanger the people they interact with.

These principles of liberty may be understood through a meal at a restaurant.

A diner focused on ordered liberty would assiduously follow the rules for patrons laid out by the restaurant itself, and by applicable government regulation. If not required to by the rules established, the diner wouldn't wear a mask. The fact that staff did wear masks wouldn't be strange to them...after all, the rules don't say they can serve without a mask, unlike the diner.

If that same diner had a hierarchical view of liberty, they might decide it was right and proper for the diner to be protected by mask-wearing staff's face coverings, but pay no mind to the risks their unmasked exhales create for staff. After all, there is an order established, and their liberty is greater being from a higher class or socioeconomic standing.

The natural libertarian may reject wearing a mask in the restaurant, complain about how spaced out seats were, or go the other way entirely and assiduously dine in an N95 out of fear of the virus. Either way, others wouldn't factor much in their thinking, regardless of position.

Finally, a reciprocal conception of liberty would dictate that any time a server approached the table, diners would pause, don masks, and keep them on until distance was re-established. After all, the server is at risk if the diners are not wearing masks themselves.

My wife and I decided that our first dinner out in a post-COVID world would be dictated by those reciprocal principles. It made the meal quite nerve-wracking by the standards of fine dining, both in terms of explaining our thinking to staff who had not encountered that sort of behavior before, and because we had to constantly look out for servers approaching the table. But we also felt more comfortable knowing that we were doing our best to treat servers as we expected to be treated ourselves.

American liberties before the virus

Our stratified and increasingly unequal society has been cast in even sharper relief by COVID. By-and-large, American society has steered further towards its hierarchical influences over the last several decades, with some influences of ordered and natural liberty sprinkled in.

Our economic model is reliant on services consumption, and the conventional wisdom for successful service is "the customer is always right". This dynamic appeals to both hierarchical and natural concepts of liberty: customers are on a pedestal above the services workers who cater to them, and face little restriction in their desires from any authority.

In a system of ordered libertarian thinking, disrupting a business because an order is incorrect makes no sense; a loud argument that bothers others is just as problematic as an incorrect order. Similarly, venting frustration and petty tyranny upon service workers makes no sense to a reciprocal libertarian, because receiving that sort of treatment is such a difficult experience.

Another example of hierarchical liberty current reckoning with police violence. But unlike consumer culture, police brutality appeals to ordered liberty; a conception of freedom requiring order sits at the core of any argument that atrocious force in response to disruption is justified. 

A path forward

Just as the virus may offer us the opportunity to make choices that are more reciprocal, society as a whole would be well-served by a reciprocal approach to problem solving. 

At the individual level, it requires a simple application of human empathy. In any situation of conflict or dispute, simply asking oneself "how would I feel being treated the way I am treating someone else?" can go a long way.

In public policy, renewed focus on solutions grounded in consent, agency, and discussion are more reciprocal than institutions which enforce order, create hierarchy, or retreat from intervention of any kind. Reciprocal libertarians always take up the pen and the chat over the gun or the court, and encouraging that sort of approach would do much to improve conditions for all Americans.

• The 1928 Rolls-Royce 40/50hp Phantom I Ascot Dual Cowl Sport Phaeton used in the 1974 film "The Great Gatsby" is headed to auction via Classic Promenade Auctions.
• From 2011 to 2019, it underwent a ground-up restoration that cost $1.2 million.
• It is estimated to sell for between $1.5 million and $2 million.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Scott Fitzgerald fans rejoice: You'll soon have a shot at owning the iconic yellow Rolls-Royce famously featured in the 1974 film "The Great Gatsby," which starred Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. 

The 1928 Rolls-Royce 40/50hp Phantom I Ascot Dual Cowl Sport Phaeton will be auctioned through Classic Promenade Auctions starting on Monday, October 12, Hagerty first reported. An emailed press release claims that this example is believed to be the only Ascot Sport Phaeton built with the dual cowl to match the description in The Great Gatsby: "…terraced with a labyrinth of windshields that mirrored a dozen suns."  

In the interest of accuracy, the car was repainted in this creamy yellow color and its interior dyed green in order for it to make its film debut. 

Classic Promenade is giving the car a pre-sale estimate of between $1.5 million and $2 million. Keep scrolling to see more.

This 1928 Rolls-Royce 40/50hp Phantom I Ascot Dual Cowl Sport Phaeton is the one famously used in the 1974 film “The Great Gatsby.”

In the movie, the car is driven by Jay Gatsby, who was played by Robert Redford.

Author F. Scott Fitzgerald gave Gatsby a Rolls-Royce because it represented the utter opulence and extravagance that the character surrounded himself with.

In the book, it is described as having “a rich cream color, bright with nickel” and “a sort of green leather conservatory.”

For the movie, the car was repainted yellow and its interior dyed green to match the book’s description.

It will soon be up for online auction through Classic Promenade Auctions, which is based on Phoenix, Arizona.

You can view the listing here.

The car underwent a ground-up restoration between 2011 and 2019.

In total, the cost of the restoration was about $1.2 million.

It was even shown at the 2019 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

The car has appeared with Redford on magazine covers, as well as in GQ and Vogue articles.

Because of its big-screen fame, literary association, and restoration, this is a Rolls-Royce unlike any other.

Classic Promenade gives the car a pre-sale estimate of between $1.5 million and $2 million.

It shows 73,848 miles on the clock.

And looks to be truly a massive car in person.

The car was originally delivered to and owned by Mildred Loring Logan of New York City.

Later on, it was owned by George Washington Hill, the president of American Tobacco Company.

The Gatsby Rolls will be available via online auction from Monday, October 12, through Sunday, October 25.

Bidding begins at 10 a.m. PST.

• Airbus' Silicon Valley incubator Acubed is pressing forward with a data collection program that will support future autonomous flight operations.
• Acubed's Project Wayfinder just acquired a Beechcraft Baron 58 and equipped it with onboard cameras and instrumentation to be used as a flying lab for researchers.
• Successful test flights of a self-flying Airbus A350-1000 XWB proved the concept of self-flying planes viable with Project Wayfinder aiming to make it a reality. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Airbus proved that autonomous flight for passenger airliners is possible earlier this year with its self-flying A350-1000 XWB that performed successful taxi, take-off, and landing tests entirely on its own without pilot input.

Performing over 500 flights as part of the Autonomous Taxi, Take-off, and Landing project, the aircraft was successfully able to distinguish airport runways and taxiways, skillfully piloting itself through each phase of flight and taking the idea of autopilot to the next level. 

Each flight was performed at Airbus' headquarters and main production facility in Toulouse, France, where the aircraft performing the tests was also assembled. But the software powering the flights had been driven by data from researchers and engineers 5,000 miles away in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Airbus' Silicon Valley incubator, Acubed, is home to Project Wayfinder, which aims to create autonomous solutions for the future of flight, whether it be manned and unmanned. Its findings may have implications in the development of new commercial aircraft but could also shape the creation of autonomous air taxi and eVTOL flights.

Following the success of the autonomous A350 trials, Project Wayfinder just acquired its own flying testbed as part of Airbus' quest to build a robust dataset that will enable autonomous with uses in urban air taxis and commercial aircraft.

Here's a look inside Project Wayfinder and its newest flying research aircraft. 

Self-flying planes were once believed to be the hallmark of a truly futuristic world, a technologically superior era where planes roamed the skies powered by artificial intelligence.

But Airbus has been proving the concept viable using passenger aircraft that are already flying today – such as the A350 – and crafting technology that use machine-learning backed by countless hours of test flight data.

With new technology – which integrates with onboard cameras – an Airbus A350-1000 XWB passenger jet was able to recognize taxiways and runways to perform successful take-off, landing, and taxi maneuvers without the pilot touching the controls.

Read More: Airbus' self-flying plane just completed successful taxi, take-off, and landing tests, opening the door for fully autonomous flight

Pilots barely had to do anything besides ensure the plane was making the right calculations and adjustments in each phase of flight.

Even Airbus' military division is benefiting from autonomous systems, with some being tested on air-to-air refueling planes.

The tech would recognize fighter jets and other military planes as they approached and conduct an automated refueling process.

Read More Airbus just beat Boeing to be the first to complete a wholly automated air-to-air refueling operation

Though, before the tech can be used widespread on planes like the Airbus A350 XWB...

More data needs to be collected on planes like this one.

Project Wayfinder just acquired this Beechcraft Baron 58 and outfitted it with cameras, sensors, and computers to capture valuable flight data as it flies around the Bay Area.

The flying lab collects imagery from each flight which is then auto-labeled and given to machine learning algorithms. That data, in turn, helps the system "see," according to Airbus.

The onboard cameras work in tandem with navigational charts to collect position data.

Here's what the machine sees when the aircraft approaches a runway.

The green outline indicates that the software recognizes it as a runway and data will be collected to analyze how the plane behaves as it approaches land.

The software needs to be able to detect runways from miles away, which isn't always an easy task.

The Baron 58 was chosen, in part, because it's a twin-engine aircraft – like most passenger jets – which leaves the nose area free of obstructions to increase the visibility and field of view for the onboard cameras.

Single-engine planes typically have a propeller affixed to the nose, which would obstruct the front view of the aircraft.

It's a far cry from an Airbus A350-1000 XWB but the principles of flight remain the same.

Onboard cameras are configured using a black and white checkerboard, called a calibration board.

The successful autonomous flights of the Airbus A350 spurred the ramp-up of data collection at Project Wayfinder.

The new flying lab took flight on July 28 and is already providing data to Project Wayfinder's machine learning team to process.

Test pilots will continue flying around the Bay Area collecting data while researchers and engineers process the data and fine-tune the hardware and software used for further data collection.

Once all the data is collected, Project Wayfinder researchers will have a better understanding of just how viable autonomous flight can be on a large scale.

Beyond commercial aircraft, the data provided by the flying lab could also power other autonomous projects like Airbus' eVTOLs program.

Airline pilots can also rest easy knowing Project Wayfinder's stated purpose is to increase safety in the cockpit by having autonomous systems reduce pilot workload and not completely replace pilots.

• Mark Cuban told "The David Rubenstein Show" that his buy-and-hold strategy had led him to big returns on Netflix and Amazon.
• The "Shark Tank" investor who owns the NBA's Dallas Mavericks said he stuck with companies he believed in.
• Cuban also said he used to be an active trader but no longer was. "There's a lot more money chasing fewer stocks, so it's harder to trade and be successful," he said.

• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The billionaire investor Mark Cuban spoke with "The David Rubenstein Show" on Tuesday about his buy-and-hold strategy that he said had given him skyrocketing returns over the long term.

The Dallas Mavericks owner said he'd owned Netflix stock since it cost $50 a share. The streaming service closed Wednesday near $550, giving Cuban a roughly 1,000% return on his investment. He also said he was buying Amazon when it was between $500 and $700 and more recently had owned more shares at just under $2,000.

On Wednesday, Amazon closed at $3,441.85 — meaning an investment of $500 would have gained more than 500%. Cuban confirmed these returns with Business Insider.

Cuban said his strategy in recent years had been to stick with companies he believed in. 

"I pretty much make my own decisions," the "Shark Tank" investor told Rubenstein. 

"I used to trade a lot," he added. "I used to be very, very active as a trader. And back in the '90s and early 2000s, there was a lot less money chasing more stocks, and now there's a lot more money chasing fewer stocks, so it's harder to trade and be successful."

Read more: GOLDMAN SACHS: Buy these 9 stocks that are poised to continue crushing the market as the 'shared favorites' of Wall Street's biggest investors

Beyond Netflix and Amazon, Cuban said he had "some scattered things" that he'd "owned over the years that I've held on to."

But the investor said that he no longer traded the way he used to and that the Federal Reserve's inflation of financial assets had given him a tailwind.

Cuban added that while the coronavirus pandemic had forced many small businesses to close and harmed some large companies, this uncertainty created opportunities for new innovation, especially in the digital realm.

"I think there's a lot of unique opportunities that are available to people who are creative, who have a vision for the future," he said. "I think 10, 15, 20 years, we'll look back and there will be 10, 20, 30 world-class companies that were created by people who we probably are thinking are crazy right now."

Read more: Chris Mayer wrote the book on how to make 100 times your money with a single stock. He gives an in-depth assessment of the latest company that 'checks all my boxes.'

• Researchers from The University of Chicago analyzed which jobs can be done from home given their characteristics and work duties.
• Given this classification of telework jobs, we decided to look at which jobs are high-paying and can be done from home but do not require a college degree.
• Using education requirements and typical salary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we looked at jobs from the University of Chicago list that earn more than the US average annual salary and where the typical minimum education is a high school diploma or no formal education.
• Transportation managers made the top of the list with an average annual salary of $103,320 and a minimum educational requirement of a high school diploma or equivalent.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The kinds of jobs that can be done from home range from managers and supervisors to sales agents, and not all of these jobs require you to be a college graduate.

Jonathan Dingel and Brent Neiman from The University of Chicago researched the kinds of job that can potentially be done from home based on an occupation's characteristics and responsibilities found on The Department of Labor's Occupational Information Network (O*NET). 

Using two work questionnaires on O*NET, if an occupation met conditions like a "majority of respondents say they work outdoors every day" or "performing general physical activities is very important," then the researchers classified this occupation as one that cannot be done from home. The full list of these kinds of questions can be found in their white paper. 

To check this method, the researchers manually gave each occupation their own score. The O*NET and manual classifications were mostly the same, agreeing for about 85% of the jobs.

Athletes, coaches, umpires, and related workers were one of the jobs that did not match between the two assessments. The O*NET classification found these jobs can likely be done from home, while their manual classification believed these jobs are not suited for telework. Private detectives and investigators showed a similar difference.

Based on their O*NET method, they found about 37% of occupations can likely be done remotely. 

Given the large number of people working from home during the pandemic, Business Insider decided to look at high-paying remote jobs that don't require a college education. To do this, we used The University of Chicago's classification of jobs that likely can be done from home based on the O*NET classification scheme and found those where the typical minimum requirement is a high school diploma or its equivalent, or does not have a particular educational requirement. Of these occupations, we looked at those that make more than $53,490, the average annual salary of all occupations as of May 2019. 

The following are the 16 highest-paying jobs that you can do from home that don't require a college degree based on O*NET classifications. Education and occupational data are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

16. Brokerage clerks

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $55,190 

Number of people employed: 47,990 

15. Private detectives and investigators

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $57,000 

Number of people employed: 35,000 

While the job-characteristic-based method found private detectives and investigators can work from home, the researchers' manual assignment found that this occupation probably cannot work from home. 

14. First-line supervisors of transportation and material moving workers, except aircraft cargo handling supervisors

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $57,840 

Number of people employed: 455,390 

13. First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $60,130 

Number of people employed: 1,487,870 

12. Farm labor contractors

Education requirement: None

Salary: $62,060 

Number of people employed: 160 

11. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $62,920 

Number of people employed: 542,690 

10. Insurance sales agents

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $67,780 

Number of people employed: 410,050 

9. Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $68,940 

Number of people employed: 287,960 

8. Wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives, except technical and scientific products

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $71,110 

Number of people employed: 1,344,530 

7. Property, real estate, and community association managers

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $71,720 

Number of people employed: 220,750 

6. Postmasters and mail superintendents

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $78,220 

Number of people employed: 13,850 

5. Real estate brokers

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $81,450 

Number of people employed: 42,730

4. Intelligence analysts

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $86,030 

Number of people employed: 105,620 

Intelligence agents are included in the broader category of detectives and criminal investigators, but the researchers at University of Chicago found criminal investigators and special agents likely cannot work from home. These specific occupation titles from O*NET, intelligence analysts and criminal investigators and special agents, both use wage data for detectives and criminal investigators from BLS.

3. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $86,180 

Number of people employed: 249,090 

2. Athletes and sports competitors

Education requirement: None

Salary: $93,140 

Number of people employed: 11,330 

While the O*NET job-characteristic-based method found athletes can work from home, the researchers' manual assignment found that this occupation probably cannot work from home. 

1. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

Education requirement: High school diploma or equivalent

Salary: $103,320 

Number of people employed: 132,040 

• Arnold Spielberg, a World War II veteran and father of acclaimed director Steven Spielberg, died this week at 103.
• Arnold's experiences were a major influence on his son's films, some of which were inspired by his wartime service.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Steven Spielberg's father served in World War II and the director's dad has been a major influence on the director's career. Arnold Spielberg died this week at 103, so let's take a look at how he inspired his son to make some of the greatest films and TV shows about the greatest generation.

Like many young men of his generation, Arnold Spielberg enlisted in the Army within a month of the December 7, 1941, Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

He served as a radio operator and chief communications man for the 490th Bomb Squadron, nicknamed the "Burma Bridge Busters" after their assigned mission to bomb Japanese bridges and railroad lines. Spielberg volunteered for two combat tours in the China Burma India theater of war.

Arnold married Leah Posner after his return home and son Steven was born in 1946 at the beginning of the post-war baby boom. He developed a fascination with gadgets during his military service and got an engineering degree from the University of Cincinnati on the G.I. Bill.

That led to a career in the new field of computer science that included stints working for RCA, GE, Electronic Arrays, SDS, Burroughs and IBM.

Steven credits his dad for his own devotion to new technology. "When I see a PlayStation, when I look at a cell phone — from the smallest calculator to an iPad — I look at my dad and I say, 'My dad and a team of geniuses started that.'"

Arnold Spielberg also supported his only son's devotion to movies, giving him access to gear and helping his teenage son make his first films with a home movie camera. The 1961 short "Fighter Squad" was shot at the Sky Harbor Airport hangar in Phoenix and featured grounded former WWII fighter planes.

Here are five World War II movies from a storied career, movies that would never have been made without the influence and early support of Arnold Spielberg.

1. 'Saving Private Ryan'

"Saving Private Ryan," released in 1998, refocused American minds on the heroes of World War II and kicked off two decades of tribute to the men and women who won the war.

Capt. John Miller (Tom Hanks) leads his men behind German lines to rescue a missing soldier and teaches everyone the importance of shared sacrifice. The 20-minute opening sequence recreates the Allied Forces' D-Day landing on Omaha Beach and stands as the greatest battle sequence in movie history.

"Saving Private Ryan" is currently available to stream on HBO Max and on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.

2. '1941'

"1941," released in 1979, lampoons the panic in Los Angeles about a rumored Japanese invasion in the days immediately after Pearl Harbor. American wasn't exactly ready for a World War II farce back then and the movie has a reputation as one of Spielberg's rare failures.

Seen 40 years later, the movie plays as a cross between "Animal House" and "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World," bringing together young comedy talent like John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd and John Candy alongside Hollywood legends like Robert Stack, Christopher Lee, Warren Oates and Slim Pickens. It's flawed but still very funny.

"1941" is currently available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.

3. 'Schindler's List'

"Schindler's List," released in 1993, won seven Oscars, including Best Picture and Spielberg's first Best Director Oscar. More importantly, it told the story of the Holocaust for a mainstream audience by focusing on one of the few heroes from that terrifying chapter of World War II history.

Oskar Schindler was a German industrialist who protected his Jewish employees from Nazi extermination by employing him in his factories. The real-life Schindler is credited with saving 1,200 lives during the war.

Spielberg's family is Jewish and the movie is just as much about the lives lost as the lives saved. It's shot in black-and-white and effectively conveys the horror and the sadness while chronicling the heroism of a man who chose to resist the Nazi regime.

"Schindler's List" is currently available to stream on Netflix and on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.

4. 'Empire of the Sun'

"Empire of the Sun," released in 1987, features a 12-year-old Christain Bale in a movie based on J.G. Ballard's novel about a young English boy living in Shanghai, China after the Japanese invasion. Separated from his family, he's forced to grow up to survive over the course of the war.

The movie was originally set to be directed by the great David Lean and produced by Spielberg. Lean won Oscars for directing "The Bridge on the River Kwai" and "Lawrence of Arabia." Both movies also won Best Picture and stand among the greatest war pictures ever made. Spielberg considers Lean a major influence on his filmmaking and aimed to make the same kind of epic once Lean dropped out of the movie.

"Empire of the Sun" is currently available to stream on HBO Max and on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.

5. 'Escape to Nowhere'

Let's hope the 1961 "Escape to Nowhere" is safely stored in the Spielberg family archives and will be available for aspiring filmmakers to study someday. For now, we've only got the blurry (but still impressive) excerpt that's available on YouTube.

The clip that exists shows that young Steven was already learning how to shoot and edit a scene. Are uniforms wrong? Are the production values non-existent? Sure, but what were you doing when you were 15?

This list doesn't include the Spielberg productions of "Band of Brothers" (2001) and "The Pacific" (2010). Each epic HBO series took its inspiration from the camaraderie on display in "Saving Private Ryan" and told more stories collected by historian Stephen Ambrose. Both shows are streaming on HBO Max and available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.

Spielberg and Apple TV+ are making yet another World War II series called "Masters of the Air" and have yet to announce a release date.

Spielberg also produced the outstanding Netflix documentary "Five Came Back," based on Mark Harris' book about five of Hollywood's most legendary directors and their service in World War II.

Arnold Spielberg may have had the most influence on "The Mission," a 1985 episode of the original "Amazing Stories" television series personally directed by Steven. Kevin Costner and Kiefer Sutherland star in this show about a WWII tail gunner trapped in the belly of a B-17. You can stream this episode in the NBC app or on NBC.com. The "Amazing Stories" series is available on DVD and digital.

Finally, don't forget the Nazi bad guys in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981) and "Indiana Jones and Last Crusade" (1989). Some people want to count them as World World II movies, but even we're willing to admit that's a stretch. Both are streaming on Netflix and both are available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.

The legacy of Arnold Spielberg offers a great lesson for parents. Support your kids. Encourage their creativity and provide them with whatever gear you can. Raise them right. They might not become one of Hollywood's greatest directors but they'll make you proud some other way.

• A man was fatally shot in Portland on Saturday, on a night of confrontation between pro-Trump and Black Lives Matter supporters, according to multiple reports. 
• Portland Police, who have opened a homicide investigation, has not confirmed whether the shooting was connected to the protests. 
• Images of a man being treated for an apparent gunshot wound in Portland show a man in a Patriot Prayer hat. Police have not confirmed the identity of the shooting victim.
• Patriot Prayer is a Portland-based pro-Trump group with far-right connections. 
• A caravan of around 600 vehicles had arrived to express support for President Donald Trump, according to the Associated Press (AP).
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A man was shot and killed in Portland on Saturday evening, as protesters and counter-protesters clashed, according to multiple reports. 

Portland Police have opened a homicide investigation. In a statement, the police did not say whether the shooting was connected to the confrontations downtown that evening between a large caravan of Trump supporters arriving in the city and Black Lives Matter protesters. 

The identity of the man who was killed has not been confirmed. However, a photographer working on assignment for the Associated Press (AP) said the victim was wearing a hat with the insignia of Patriot Prayer, a Portland-based pro-Trump group with far-right connections. 

A Getty Images photograph from the protests also shows police treating a man, apparently white, at the scene in a Patriot Prayer hat. The block around the scene of the shooting has been cordoned off. 

"Portland Police officers heard sounds of gunfire from the area of Southeast 3rd Avenue and Southwest Alder Street," read the police statement. "They responded and located a victim with a gunshot wound to the chest. Medical responded and determined that the victim was deceased."

During the day, a rally of around 600 vehicles in support of President Donald Trump had arrived in the city, according to the AP.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, police tweeted that there had been some clashes between the Trump supporters and the Portland protesters. 

—Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) August 30, 2020

The shooting took place after most of the pro-Trump caravan had left downtown, according to local newspaper The Oregonian. Organizers of the rally had encouraged the Patriot Prayer protesters to arrive armed, but not to wear weapons openly, the paper reported.

This is the third consecutive weekend that has seen clashes between competing groups, according to the paper.

Portland has seen continual protests from Black Lives Matter supporters since the police killing of Black man George Floyd in late May. 

• Throughout the Republican National Convention, speakers tried to paint President Trump as the "law and order" president.
• But Trump has routinely shown a disregard for the law, sown chaos across the country, and promoted disorder in our society.
• Michael Gordon is a longtime Democratic strategist, a former spokesman for the Justice Department, and the principal for the strategic-communications firm Group Gordon.
• This is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed are those of the author.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Throughout the Republican National Convention, a variety of voices cast the incumbent as the "law and order" president. 

According to President Trump's offspring, the dog whistlers of St. Louis and various elected officials like Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, Democrats are soft on crime. They even encourage crime and are hell-bent on abolishing the police. 

These speakers have assured people that Trump will keep law-abiding Americans safe, even if it means deploying US troops on our own soil. 

But this narrative, like many spun by the Trump campaign, is more farce than fact, another attempt to draw focus from Trump's handling of the pandemic, economy, and racial injustice. Make no mistake, Trump is not the law and order President. He is the lawless and disorder President.

Lawless

Our "law and order" president has consistently shown a disregard for the "law" portion of that idea throughout his time in office.

He has abused the pardon power to shrug his shoulders at corruption - perhaps because it's fundamental to his life's work. He has granted clemency to Jared Kushner pal Patrick Nolan, who pled guilty to racketeering; Conrad M. Black, a friend convicted of fraud; and former governor. and Celebrity Apprentice contestant Rod. Blagojevich, who infamously tried to sell a US Senate seat. 

Like the member of a good crime syndicate, Trump protects his buddies who protect him. He rewarded Roger Stone's silent loyalty with commutation. His Justice Department dropped charges against Michael Flynn after Flynn pleaded guilty to the charges. And with Steve Bannon's days of freedom in peril, it feels as if the question isn't if Trump will pardon him but when.

Instead of standing up for truth in justice, Trump bristles at perjury charges - such as when Rudy Giuliani cried "perjury trap" to explain why the president would not be interviewed by Robert Mueller. Truth is truth, despite Giuliani's claim to the contrary, and there's no need to claim "perjury trap" when the facts are on your side.

Trump has even built lawlessness into his public policy. Dozens of officials from other countries have spent money at his properties, likely in violation of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution. His foreign policy decisions reek of corruption and conflicts of interest, and his immigration policies have likely violated domestic and international law. 

Crooked

Even before his presidency, Trump was involved in more than 3,500 lawsuits, including for his "sham university" that defrauded students and for underpaying his undocumented employees.

Then, there were his 2016 election crimes. The Republican-led US Senate Intelligence Committee did what Special Counsel Robert Mueller failed to do: prove decisively that Trump's campaign colluded with Russia. Meanwhile, there is strong evidence that Trump also broke campaign finance laws that same year by participating in hush-money payments to women.

Ultimately, some of his crimes in office would be too clear and obvious for Trump to slink away from entirely. He was of course impeached -- but not convicted -- of crimes that can be punishable by several years in prison. 

Despite his stain on history, Trump seems ever more emboldened to cross legal and ethical lines.

Disordered

President Trump also fails on the second half of his "law and order" claim., 

His words and actions don't help maintain order but rather sow division, unrest, and chaos. 

He speaks out against an "angry mob" of peaceful protesters but encourages mob violence at his rallies. He calls himself an ally to peaceful protesters but sends federal troops to tear gas them so he can have a photo op. He calls on foreign leaders not to kill their protesters but warns Americans that "when the looting starts, the shooting starts." 

It's never been about order. It's a faux strength masking a President's deep insecurities. 

A president who openly meddles with the Justice Department cannot be a shield for our nation. A president who calls peaceful demonstrators "thugs" but sees "very fine people on both sides" in Charlottesville cannot restore "order" to a nation awakened to racial injustice. 

If Donald Trump were truly a man of order, he would unequivocally condemn this week's murder of protesters allegedly at the hands of a young supporter. He would turn off the heated rhetoric that inspires far-right violence. But by now we know he's not capable.

Trump claiming the mantle of law and order is like the US claiming victory over COVID-19. It immediately fails the smell test.  

There are many words to describe heads of state who freely bend, flout, and manipulate laws for personal and political ends. Think dictator or strongman, not president. 

Trump's past and present prove that he is the last person capable of hoisting the law and order banner, and the last person we need in the White House for four more years. It's not what it is.

• S&P 500 corporate profits are holding up far better than they did in past recessions, and it helping fuel the stock market's summer rally, says James Paulsen, chief investment strategist at The Leuthold Group.
• Shrinking GDP typically drives profit declines roughly four to five times larger than what was seen during the 2020 downturn.
• Companies were able to limit earnings-per-share damage to "one of the mildest recessionary contractions of the post-war era," Paulsen said. They did that despite the coronavirus fueling the biggest economic downturn in nearly a century
• Outlined below are the four reasons why profits have held up so well during the coronavirus recession, according to the strategist. 
• Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories.

Some of the stock market's extraordinary rally from March lows may have to do with how little corporate profits were pummeled by the coronavirus pandemic, says James Paulsen, chief investment strategist at The Leuthold Group.

Earnings weren't supposed to hold up as well as they did. The coronavirus pandemic prompted the largest quarterly and year-over-year gross domestic product declines in US history. Unemployment skyrocketed, consumer spending slowed immensely, and overall activity ground to a halt.

Plunges in US GDP have historically driven earnings-per-share declines four to five times larger than what was seen, the strategist found. This year's downturn reversed the trend. Though GDP has contracted nearly 11% from its recent high, EPS only dropped by 15%.

Companies were able to limit EPS damage to "one of the mildest recessionary contractions of the post-war era" despite the coronavirus fueling the biggest economic downturn in nearly a century, Paulsen said.

Read more: GOLDMAN SACHS: Buy these 9 stocks that are poised to continue crushing the market as the 'shared favorites' of Wall Street's biggest investors

"If firms are successful at minimizing the earnings impact of a record collapse in the economy, why shouldn't the stock market recover faster and more robustly?" he wrote in a note to clients.

Detailed below are the four factors Paulsen says reinforced corporate earnings before and during the coronavirus recession.

(1) Fed to the rescue

To start, the government and Federal Reserve's response to coronavirus economic fallout was faster and larger than in any other recession. The Fed stepped in with unprecedented lending programs and asset purchase strategies, while Congress passed the historic $2.2 trillion CARES Act to inject fiscal relief into the economy.

The response was more than double the size of aid efforts used during the financial crisis, and seven times larger than those used after the dot-com bust, Paulsen said. The cocktail of fiscal and monetary relief "buffered company sales trends" from the damage typically incurred in a recession, he added.

Sales data for S&P 500 companies shows just how directly the policy response buoyed earnings. For the first time in data going back to 1990, annual sales per share growth fell less than nominal GDP growth during a recession. The former even avoided contraction despite the dire backdrop.

Read more: 35-year market vet David Rosenberg warns the stock market's rally features distortions that were glaring during the tech bubble — and lays out his plausible scenario for a crash

(2) Companies battened down the hatches

Just as the government responded to the virus's sudden shock, so did the nation's biggest corporations. Firms slashed costs by unprecedented amounts through layoffs and liquidations to maintain their cash piles. By the second quarter, the US output gap — a measure of how much firms under-utilize the economy's resources — sank to a post-war low.

Though the pandemic itself wasn't anticipated, companies were prepared themselves for the resulting economic hit, Paulsen said.

"Because this recession was predictable, businesses moved more quickly and more assertively than ever in lowering breakeven points to preserve profits more effectively than in past cycles," the strategist added.

(3) Shrunken household debt piles

In past recessions, US households entered downturns with increasingly high levels of debt. Such indebtedness tends to worsen slumps, as Americans lack the extra cash to restart the country's economic engine.

This year has been different. The household debt burden sat near record lows when the recession started, leaving Americans with plenty more power to maintain spending and keep companies afloat. The personal savings rate heading into the recession was also double that seen before the 2000 and 2008 downturns. In all, these positive trends helped drive corporate sales and pad against a worse plunge than past recessions, the strategist said.

Read more: MORGAN STANLEY: Buy these 12 underappreciated stocks that offer strong profit growth and are due for a surge

"The US consumer came into this crisis in uncommonly strong financial shape, surrounded by a robust job market and with fewer headwinds than one normally faces when entering the recession," Paulsen said, adding the lack of hurdles could be "why many consumer spending categories have bounced back quicker and stronger than most expected."

(4) Bolstered rainy-day funds

Companies also entered the coronavirus recession in better positions than usual. S&P 500 firms' debt to earnings ratios stood at historic lows, and cash flow per dollar of sales was higher than in past downturns. Combined, the gauges reveal companies had less debt to worry about and healthier cash buffers once the pandemic stifled sales.

"Having financial strength and flexibility, as opposed to the worsening vulnerabilities that often characterize the health of businesses in advance of a recession, provides far greater options when challenges emerge once in a recession," Paulsen wrote.

Now read more markets coverage from Markets Insider and Business Insider:

Savita Subramanian uses her philosophy major more than her math degree as Bank of America's US equity chief. She told us how it guides her investing strategy — and shared the drivers behind her career success.

The US tech sector is now worth more than the entire European stock market, Bank of America says

Credit Suisse fired a banker who forged a wealth-management client's documents and cost the firm $11 million, a new report says

• Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's Republican National Convention speech this week was seen by critics as similar to the rest of Trump's foreign policy: brash, defiant, and not always reflective of reality.
• That doesn't matter, because Pompeo doesn't care what critics think, and what he's offering is what you can expect from Trump's "America First" politics after Trump is gone, writes New America fellow and Arizona State University professor Candace Rondeaux.
• This is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed are those of the author.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Is Mike Pompeo the Teflon Don reincarnated? If you watched the US secretary of state's pre-recorded speech to the Republican National Convention on Tuesday, you'll know your answer doesn't matter, because Pompeo doesn't really care about what you, many Americans or the world thinks.

Pompeo delivered his address from Jerusalem while on an official diplomatic trip to the Middle East, breaking decades of political norms, and likely federal ethics laws. In this new era of American gangster diplomacy, what matters is always being right — as Pompeo sees it — and always being unapologetic in strong-arming the world into accepting the Republican Party's isolationist and increasingly authoritarian bent under the GOP's godfather-in-chief, President Donald J. Trump.

Federal laws prohibit civil servants from using their office, title or government resources to influence election results. So Pompeo's remarks provided more proof that he genuinely believes that those laws don't apply to him, and that he's a made man as long as Trump's "America First" vision of the world prevails.

The Democratic chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Eliot Engel, said this week that his committee would launch an investigation into whether Pompeo's RNC convention speech from the rooftop of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem violated the Hatch Act, a federal statute that bars civil servants, including Cabinet secretaries, from mixing their official government duties with partisan politics.

But like New York City's one-time mafia kingmaker, John Gotti, who repeatedly escaped prosecution, Pompeo has played the role of an untouchable and loyal mafioso, enforcing Trump's new world disorder and repeatedly testing the limits of the rule of law since his appointment as America's top diplomat in 2018.

Pompeo and his close associates have twice been the subjects of investigations into misconduct at the State Department.

First, there was the State Department inspector general's congressionally mandated inquiry into whether the department's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs overrode a vote by Congress last summer to block the sale of $8.1 billion in arms to Saudi Arabia. Then, there was the investigation into allegations that Pompeo and his wife routinely ordered his State Department staff to run personal errands on his behalf, and used State Department resources to enhance his political profile.

So far, Pompeo has managed to escape accountability for these alleged abuses of power and government resources, in part by appearing to commit more of them.

First, he convinced Trump to fire the State Department's inspector general, Steve Linick, who was investigating him. Then, Linick's replacement, Acting Inspector General Stephen Akard, abruptly resigned in early August, though he was, in any case, apparently held in poor regard by many in the US diplomatic corps.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee has since taken up an investigation into Linick's firing. But with the Republicans in firm control of the Senate in what is shaping up to be a precarious election year for endangered incumbents, not much is likely to come of the effort to hold Pompeo's feet to the fire this year.

America's top diplomat has at the same time been a key frontline warrior in Trump's unwinnable trade war of attrition with China, while playing small ball on the much more winnable "tech wars" by imposing bans on popular Chinese-owned social media apps TikTok and WeChat.

In his convention speech, Pompeo also cheerily reminded the world that Trump's series of friendly summits with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un helped "lower the temperature" with the regime in Pyongyang, while carefully eliding the fact that North Korea has carried out 52 missile tests since Trump took office in January 2017, according to the nonpartisan Nuclear Threat Initiative.

There are 46 other countries on the Asian continent other than North Korea and China, including Turkey, Japan, India and Pakistan, which constitute by far America's most consequential, if at times inconsistent, partners in a wide region where geopolitical competition between the US and China is likely to be the most intense for generations to come.

As it is, tensions between China and India over the disputed Himalayan border territory of Ladakh only seem to be worsening, with India's defense chief, Gen. Bipin Rawat, saying that military options remain on the table. Given Pakistan's close diplomatic relations with Beijing, and its dependence on China for military goods and trade, the high-stakes standoff between Chinese and Indian soldiers on the world's rooftop sets up the possibility for a three-way shooting war involving three nuclear-armed countries.

This is one time when it might make sense for America's secretary of state to signal that a focus on allies is as important as adversaries in US foreign policy. It was only six months ago, after all, that Trump proudly touted his bromance with India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, on his last major diplomatic trip before the coronavirus pandemic. Trump has similarly tried to muscle Japan's prime minister, Abe Shinzo, into being a key ally in an America First coalition of the coerced, arrayed against a rising China.

Yet there was not a single mention of Japan or India in Pompeo's convention speech.

Pompeo also enthusiastically touted the US assassination of Iran's top general, Qassem Soleimani, in January, ignoring the determination by UN human rights investigators that the American drone strike in Baghdad that killed him was unlawful.

He praised the Trump administration's shredding of the Iran nuclear deal, even as it became clear that the UN Security Council would reject the Trump administration's demand to trigger "snapback" sanctions against Iran that were part of the deal the White House trashed and withdrew from unilaterally.

Then there was the most embarrassing part of the speech, Pompeo's blithe commentary on the state of US-Russia relations, Ukraine and NATO.

"Today, because of President Trump, NATO is stronger, Ukraine has defensive weapon systems, and America left a harmful treaty so our nation can now build missiles to deter Russian aggression," he declared.

While there are ultimately sound reasons for the recent US decision to redeploy thousands of American troops stationed in Germany to Poland, it is undeniable that the White House's move, and how it made it, has created more fissures within the already unsteady trans-Atlantic alliance.

It's all well and good that after more than a year of dithering, Ukraine now appears to be prepared to deploy its US-made Javelin anti-tank batteries closer to the contested region of Donbass in eastern Ukraine. But there is zero indication that there is a Ukrainian-American game plan in the event that Russia escalates its operations in Ukraine, either in response to ongoing negotiations over the status of Donbass and Crimea, or to the still bubbling situation in neighboring Belarus.

On top of all that, why anyone would view the idea of ramping up another nuclear arms race with Russia after the US pullout from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty as a good thing is beyond me, and probably several million other Americans. There is so much that is illogical about the Trump administration's Russia policy, including the lack of response to repeated provocations between Russian and American forces in the field, most recently in Syria this week.

Pompeo's RNC speech was, in a nutshell, just plain defiant and deceptive. But it was also pretty scary. If you were at all curious about what America might look like under Trump's most avaricious and aspiring political heir apparent, Pompeo's taxpayer-funded campaign speech and preening to the RNC is probably the closest thing to a crystal ball.

Trump or no Trump, the trajectory of the GOP's foreign policy is unlikely to veer far from this brand of ultranationalist diplomacy as long as Pompeo remains a leading light of the party.

Candace Rondeaux is a senior fellow and professor of practice at the Center on the Future of War, a joint initiative of New America and Arizona State University. Her WPR column appears every Friday.