Conflict In Ohio, Corruption In Brazil, A Hunt For Sperm Donors And More

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 IN A NUTSHELL: MUST READ

Same Conversation Reignited After Another Teen Is Killed By Police

An investigation is underway to understand why Tyree King, a 13-year-old black teenager, was fatally shot by police in Columbus, Ohio. Officers said they were responding to a report of an armed robbery Wednesday night when they encountered a person who was carrying what appeared to be a gun. An officer opened fire, shooting King multiple times. The following morning, police identified the young teenager and clarified that the possible handgun in question turned out to be a BB gun with an attached laser site.

The press has found King’s death to be eerily similar to that of Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old black child with a toy gun who was shot by police in Cleveland, Ohio. Unlike Rice’s case, it appears none of the Columbus officers were wearing body cameras, and so investigators are still searching for any possible video of the shooting. The ongoing conversation on police misconduct and America’s black communities captured much of the spotlight yesterday. The family of Sandra Bland, the black woman who died while in police custody in Waller County, Texas, reached a $1.9 million settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit.

Duterte’s Former Assassin Complains About The Lack Of HR

In a nationally televised senate committee hearing, a self-confessed former assassin revealed some of his worst memories of working for Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte. The testimony is worse than we ever imagined, and that’s really saying something. Duterte has already earned himself a reputation, having killed over 3,000 suspected drug dealers since he assumed the presidency in June.

According to 57-year-old Edgar Matobato’s testimony, Duterte has ordered members of a death squad to kill his opponents and even personally “finish off” a justice department employee with a submachine gun. Of the supposedly thousands of killings, Matobato personally carried out about 50, including one that involved feeding a man to a crocodile in 2007. What’s even scarier is that these ordered killings took place when Duterte was only the mayor. Now he’s the president.

 NUTS AND BOLTS: SHOULD READ

 And Another One’s Gone: Lula Indicted On Corruption Charge In Brazil

Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – but his friends call him Lula – was charged with “passive corruption” in connection with a scandal that has touched nearly all of Brazil’s top politicians. Prosecutors say Lula was pulling the strings on a multibillion dollar corruption ring while he was president from 2003-2010. However, the only formal allegation announced on Thursday is that he illegally received $1.1 million in renovations to a beachfront apartment – one that he and his wife (who was also indicted) claim isn’t theirs.

Despite the accusations of Lula’s involvement in the corruption scandal that lead to Brazil’s recession, Lula remains popular and is considered a leading candidate for Brazil’s 2018 presidential election. If indictments keep coming at this rate, all current and former Brazilian politicians will be indicted by the end of the year.

#pnut4prez: Doctor’s Notes And Tighter Polls

We know that not all of you are signed up for our weekly roundup of the campaign trail (hint: you can sign up here), so we wanted to give you a quick pulse of what’s going on:

• Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump both want you to know that they are aging like a pair of fine wines. Both candidates presented us with notes from their doctors this week that showed Trump to have “stamina” and Hillary to be in “excellent mental condition.”
• New polls coming out are showing a much closer race than people expected. Hillary’s lead has narrowed or disappeared both nationally and in key battleground states like Ohio and Nevada. Meanwhile, FiveThirtyEight’s election tracker only shows a ~60% chance of Hillary winning in November, one of the lowest since they started forecasting. Gary Johnson and Jill Stein are polling at 8% and 6% respectively.
• Journalists are starting to shift focus from the Clinton Foundation to the Trump Foundation with the Washington Post and Vox exposing some of the shady ways that the Trump Foundation raises and spends its money, like buying a $20,000 painting of the Donald. The renewed scrutiny on Trump is clearly irking his children. Both Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. cut off interviews after tough questioning.

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Japan’s Government Gets A Needed Dose Of Diversity

Japan has been showing a lot of love for its multi-ethnic citizens recently and we’re not just talking about the crowning of half Japanese, half Indian Priyanka Yoshikawa as Miss Universe Japan. Renho Murata – know just as Renho – was elected by a landslide to lead Japan’s biggest opposition party. She joins Yuriko Koike and Tomomi Inada as one of three women in senior political positions in the Japanese government as of 2016. Rehno is changing up the Japanese political game by adding more than just gender diversity. The 48-year-old wants to offer the Japanese people a political alternative to the incumbent LDP, or as she referred to it,“giant ruling party” – whilst also being a low-key badass. She used to be an anchor woman, and before that, a swimsuit model.

Still, the most sensitive element of Renho’s appointment is her dual Japanese, Taiwanese citizenship – the latter she claims to have revoked as a teenager. Conservative Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun stated that it was “out of the question… to leave [her] nationality obscure.” The implication being that she might act as a double agent for Taiwan and hand them over the hotly contested Senkaku islands. Though this may be a bit far fetched, it is worth noting that the islands, despite being under Japanese jurisdiction, are also being claimed by both Taiwan and China.

KEEPING OUR EYE ON:

Religion: According to a recent study, religion in the United States is worth $1.2 trillion a year, making it equivalent to the 15th largest national economy in the world. The faith industry is valued higher “than Google and Apple combined.”

Syria: The ceasefire faces a few hiccups as Russia and the United States exchange accusations. Russia’s Defense Ministry said the US was not fulfilling its obligations under the Syrian ceasefire agreement, while the US accused Moscow of also not holding up their end of the bargain.

Samsung: The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a formal recall of the Galaxy Note 7 phone, because it is literally causing fires. Samsung has received 92 reports of the batteries overheating, sparking fires in cars and garages.

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 LOOSE NUTS: FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT

 New Zealand Panics Over Their Lack Of Sperm

New Zealand is desperately seeking sperm donors now that health officials warn there is only enough left to treat approximately 80 families. Due to recent legislation that bans a donor from receiving payment or remaining anonymous, women are now waiting up to two years for sperm. The “sperm drought” has become such a dire issue that fertility clinic manager compared it to climate change. Fertility specialists are even warning that too many New Zealand women have turned to traveling overseas for “reproductive tourism,” or, as we like to call it, studying abroad.

 WEEKEND READS:

• Are you signed up for the Sweet Chili Delivery yet? It’s our weekly email every Monday with our favorite jams (songs, not the fruit preserve). We just put together the first edition, and we’re pretty excited about it.
• Last month, the Department of Justice announced that private prisons won’t be a thing anymore. But did you read the fine print? Here’s what that announcement really means.
• From our founder: 9 strange things that might explain the anti-establishment fury.
• Where are they now? Looking at where the refugee crisis is today.
• Women often get drowned out or have men take credit for their ideas. Here’s how female staffers at the White House fought back.
• Is the US divided? Bloomberg takes a look at what divides us and keeps us together.
• What is hate speech? What is free speech? What is political correctness? In an era where Donald Trump tries to blur the line between those three, the London Review of Books takes a look at free speech and its limitations.
• Are the Saudis coming clean on how they funded terrorism?
• Meanwhile, Iran’s chief diplomat isn’t so diplomatic in this recent op-ed in the New York Times, blaming Saudi Arabia for everything.
• The New York Times explores what separates voters from non-voters.
• Politico talks to Ann Coulter, the “Doyenne of the Deplorables.”
• Are you watching Narcos? This piece examines the uncomfortably cozy relationship between the US and some drug lords.
• The Wall Street Journal looks at how decaying social institutions are fueling the rise of Trump (paywall).
• Marxist Philosopher Slavoj Zizek says we shouldn’t romanticize refugees and that the Left needs to stop pretending there is no problem.
• This map shows you where gay marriage is happening in the US.
• How the House of Rothenberg, a party animal turned VC, collapsed.