9.7.2017

Budget Deal.
President Trump caught congressional Republicans by surprise on Wednesday, agreeing to a Democratic plan to bundle almost $8 billion in Hurricane Harvey aid with stop-gap spending measures. Under the deal, both the debt ceiling (the maximum amount the government can borrow to cover its bills) and federal appropriations (the ability for the government to spend money) will be extended for three months to December 15th. The proposal was opposed by both Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R, WI-01) - with Ryan dismissing the plan as "ridiculous" just hours before Trump struck the agreement. Items like the debt ceiling are considered "must pass" - meaning that Democrats will have leverage to push for a major bipartisan deal in December. 

Francis.
The Pope arrived in Colombia yesterday for the beginning of a six-day visit as the country tries to bring an end to a 50-year war between the government and Marxist rebels. The main rebel group, known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, officially gave up arms and entered the political arena on August 31st under a transition plan signed in 2016. The FARC had carried on a guerrilla war since the mid-1960s, in an extended civil conflict that killed almost 222,000 people - 80% of which were civilian non-combatants. The Pope's visit - the first papal visit since 1986 - will look to heal divisions as over 7,000 FARC rebels transition into civilian life under amnesty granted by the peace deal. Pope Francis may have a greater effect in Latin America where - unlike the US, people are moving away from organized religion - almost 90% identify as Christians (70% Catholic), and tend to be more observant. 

US Open.
The semifinals of the women's US Open will be all-American for the first time in 36 years, after 20th-seeded CoCo Vandeweghe beat top-ranked Karolina Pliskova in straight sets. Vendeweghe will join 9th-seeded Venus Williams, 15th-seeded Madison Keys, and 83rd-ranked Sloane Stephens - all of whom represented the US in the Rio Olympics, Stephens - a rising star who bounced back from an 11-month hiatus due to a foot injury in July - is coming off a run to the semis of Toronto's Rogers Cup in August. Stephens will face Williams, and Vandeweghe will face Keys, starting at 7pm EST on ESPN.
 

Researchers find protein that triggers mating in single-cell organisms (More)
Massive study shows natural selection weeding out mutations linked to Alzheimer's, other diseases (More)
US House votes to streamline rules on self-driving cars (More)
 

Federal Reserve Vice Chair Stanley Fischer to step down (More)
Genetic Testing biz 23andMe raising $200M at $1.5B valuation (More) | Sports e-commerce site Fanatics raising $1B at $4.5B valuation (More)
Trustee recoups $687M for Bernie Madoff victims (More)
 

Kim & Kanye West expecting baby due January via surrogate (More)
DWTS: Terrell Owens, Nick Lachey headline Dancing With the Stars Season 25 cast (More)
NFL star Michael Bennett accuses police of excessive force (More) | NFL regular season kicks off tonight with Pats-Chiefs (More) 
 

Trump courts Sen. Heitkamp (D, ND) on tax reform on board Air Force One (More) | Ivanka Trump pitches doubling child tax credit (More)
McCain (R-AZ), Gov. Kasich (OH) lead prominent Republicans in brief to Supreme Court to end gerrymandering (More)
15 states plus DC sue to block Trump rollback of DACA rules (More)

The Guardian | Linda Kinstler. After WWII - well, a decade after - Germany launched a crack team to hunt down members of the Third Reich who had evaded capture and spread around the globe. Now that the youngest suspects are 90 years old, the world's most infamous cold case will soon be closed forever. 
 

National Geographic | Frank Viviano. By the year 2050 the world’s population will reach the double digits - 10 billion. A staggering number, and the largest looming problem of the 21st century will likely be hunger. To put this into perspective, we will have to harvest more crops in the next 40 years than all farmers have in the past 8,000 years. But the Netherlands has a plan - one that includes reducing water dependence by nearly 90%, while using almost no chemical pesticides and significantly reducing antibiotics in livestock. The Dutch are now the number two exporter of food as measured by value, yet they are 270x smaller than the US - maybe we should hear them out. 

More than half of US counties don't have hospitals with basic maternal care.

Ugh Millennials: Are quickly losing interest in democracy.

Artificial Intelligence can (almost) identify protesters hiding behind masks and scarves.

Market Dynamics: Legal weed is quickly getting cheaper.

Stanford study finds tech leaders aren't libertarians - just weird liberals. 

Data Porn: US divorce rates by occupation and salary.

Enlightening: WSU head coach Mike Leach expounds on Big Foot, aliens, and God.

They Aren't Tears It's Raining In My Kitchen: Why onions make you cry. 

San Francisco is considering a robot tax.

Clickbait: Woman trapped in window trying to retrieve feces after Tinder date (yes with photos).

Historybook: HBD Elizabeth I (1533); US nicknamed Uncle Sam (1813); Guillaume Apollinaire arrested for stealing the Mona Lisa (1911); HBD Buddy Holly (1936); Hoover Dam turns on (1936); The Blitz begins (1940); McNamara Line Announced (1967); Panama gains control of Canal (1977); RIP Keith Moon (1978); Marino throws 100th TD (1986); Tupac Shakur shot multiple times (1996); Borat premieres (2006)

"WE'RE MADE TO GROW. YOU EITHER EVOLVE OR YOU DISAPPEAR."
-Tupac Shakur

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