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AUGUST 03, 2018

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  QUOTE OF THE DAY  

"Decided to take in some sun and relax for a few minutes" – A deer jumped in a pool and then worked on its tan. That warm weather, doe.

BRAZIL

The Story

Today, Brazil's Supreme Court has abortion on its mind.

Back up.

Abortion is legal in Brazil only in cases of rape, to save a woman's life, or when the fetus suffers from a deadly brain disorder. Women who do it for other reasons could face up to three years in prison. Each year, about a quarter of a million women get unsafe abortions there and end up in the hospital – and hundreds reportedly die.

How did it get to the Supreme Court?

Last year, a woman petitioned the Supremes for permission to end her pregnancy safely. Her case was dismissed, and she had an abortion abroad. One pro-choice professor also helped bring a case challenging Brazil's abortion laws. The Supreme Court is hearing it – and reportedly inviting doctors, gov officials, experts, advocates, and religious orgs to share their thoughts, too.

What's the environment?

Brazil is mostly Catholic – and reportedly only around a quarter of the country think women should be able to end a pregnancy. The issue is so heated there that the professor who fought for this case reportedly went into hiding after getting death threats – but she still plans to show up in court today.

Anything else?

Speaking of things affecting women, a Japanese medical school is being accused of tweaking women's test scores for years to keep them out. The reason? Women are more likely to stop practicing in order to raise kids. Cool cool cool.

theSkimm

This year, three heavily Catholic countries have taken up the issue of abortion. First, it was legalized in Ireland. Now, Brazil's thinking about it. Next week, Argentina's putting it to a vote.

REPEAT AFTER ME...

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Zimbabwe has an announcement, too. The electoral commission said it's counted the votes and the president is...Emmerson Mnangagwa. This is the guy who used to be veep under Zimbabwe's long-ruling dictator, Robert Mugabe. And got the army to help kick Mugabe out last year. This week, the country headed to the polls for what was looking like a tight race between him and a young opposition candidate. But after days of waiting for results, people started to suspect this thing was rigged. It turned into rowdy protests and a deadly gov crackdown. At least six people have died. Now, Mnangagwa – who apparently got just over half of the votes – says he's ready to fix the country's struggling economy. He just needs foreign observers to sign off that these elections were free and fair so that the West can lift sanctions. And the IMF can give it some cash money. TBD if they do it. In the meantime, the opposition promises to keep protesting.


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You overachiever you. Yesterday, Apple became the first public US company valued at one trillion dollars. Yes, Dr Evil, that's a million million. Here's a fun game: how many companies do you need to add up to be worth that much? The answer: a lot. Yesterday, the Fruit's stock soared to airplane mode after the co said it beat Q3 expectations – mainly because its phones are pricey AF. Now, Jeff Bezos is asking, 'Alexa, when is it my turn?'


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Be less efficient. The Trump administration is hitting 'reverse' on car mileage standards. Under the Obama admin, carmakers were told to produce more fuel-efficient cars, starting in 2020. The goal: to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. But the Trump admin says this would make cars way more expensive – so it's proposing to hit the brakes on these rules. Some carmakers are happy, while others just want to know WTF they're supposed to do. Meanwhile, four cities are suing the Trump admin over its edits to health care. They argue that the admin's recent moves – like expanding insurance options that don't comply with Obamacare rules – show President Trump isn't "faithfully executing" the law...and therefore is violating the Constitution.


Who's changing things up...

Pope Francis. Yesterday, the Pope issued a decree against the death penalty. It calls capital punishment an attack on the dignity of the person being executed. Now, the church is working to try and abolish it around the world. TBD how that plays out in the US, where the death penalty is legal in more than 30 states. And where more than half of Catholics are believed to support it.


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You like conspiracy theories, don't you?