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EU Declares Belarus Elections Illegitimate

The European Union will not recognize the results of Belarus’ Aug. 9 presidential election, calling the results fraudulent on Wednesday. The European Council also promised to impose sanctions on a “substantial number of individuals responsible for violence, repression, and election fraud” in Belarus.

Mali Government & Parliament Resign In Coup

Soldiers in Mali arrested the country’s president and prime minister in an apparent coup Tuesday night, forcing the resignation of its democratically elected government and parliament. A spokesman for the soldiers said the arrests were justified by years of bad governance, corruption, nepotism, and a deteriorating security situation. On Wednesday, the leaders of the coup - which resulted in four deaths - said they plan to set up a transitional civilian government and hold new elections.

Operation Legend Records Nearly 1,500 Arrests

Attorney General William Barr said Wednesday that federal agents helped make 1,485 arrests across nine cities as part of anti-violent-crime Operation Legend. Of those arrests, Barr said 217 defendants had been charged with federal crimes, and DOJ investigators assisted state and local authorities in bringing homicide charges against more than 90 individuals.

Worth Noting: The German Institute for Economic Research began a three-year study of universal basic income (UBI), giving 120 Germans ~$1,400 per month.

🔵🔴 DNC Convention: Day Three Recap (featuring speeches by VP candidate Kamala Harris, former Pres. Barack Obama, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, & Hillary Clinton.)

👨‍🚒 Continuing today’s fire theme... four wildfires are raging in Colorado, including the Pine Gulch Fire, which grew 42% to encompass over 125k acres (the second-largest in CO history). In Texas, a massive fire broke out at a plastics plant in Grand Prairie early Wednesday.

🐯 If He Hollers, Let Him Go… the Oklahoma zoo at the center of the hit Netflix series Tiger King closed suddenly on Tuesday after the USDA suspended its animal exhibitor license.

Twice Is Nice

Apple became the first U.S. company to reach a market capitalization of $2T on Wednesday, just over two years after it became the first publicly-traded company to reach the $1T mark. On July 31, Apple surpassed oil giant Saudi Aramco to become the most valuable publicly traded company in the world. The company’s shares are up ~60% year-to-date.

BNB Goes For IPO

Airbnb confidentially submitted draft registration to the SEC for an initial public offering. The company did not disclose its financial information or specify how many shares would be offered. Airbnb received a $31B valuation in March 2017, but its latest round of funding in May saw that number fall to $18B.

FB Bids Adieu To Q

Facebook removed and will limit the spread of accounts celebrating or suggesting violence, including those associated with the QAnon conspiracy theory. The social giant deleted ~2400 QAnon-related pages, groups, and ads, and also restricted the reach of over 10k Instagram pages and ~2k FB groups promoting the theory.

Worth Noting: Data analytics company Palantir is relocating its headquarters to Denver, CO, from Palo Alto, CA. It’s not immediately clear how the company’s 2,500+ global employees will be affected.

Look For The Helpers

While out on daily walks with his mother during quarantine in March, 15-year-old Joseph Beer of England noticed dozens of neglected street signs and hedgerows. Worried about the potential dangers to local drivers, the youth, who has autism and ADHD, decided to take action.

With the help of his dad, Joseph rigged up a trailer attachment for the back of his bike and headed out to tidy up. Almost every day since, Joseph has scrubbed street signs and cleared hedges to make his community a safer place. His efforts have not gone unnoticed - a local GoFundMe campaign raised over $1K for the teen, which he turned around and donated to a food bank.

If You Teach A Man To (Store) Fish

Around 6,000 tons of fish are harvested each day on the rural Nigerian side of the Niger Delta, but due to the hot climate only ~2,000 tons are sold fresh. The same goes for fruits and vegetables, which have an average lifespan of two days in the heat and humidity.

Recognizing the dilemma, local entrepreneur Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu invented the ColdHub, a solar-powered walk-in refrigerator, where local farmers and fishermen can store their haul for just $1 per day. Nnaemeka’s company so far has installed 24 ColdHubs, saving over 20,000 tons of food from spoilage and increasing user profits by an average of 25%.

Bob Loblaw’s Law Blog Pt. 2: Dog Blog

As a person with high-functioning autism, 14-year-old Luke Berridge of Odessa, TX, struggles with anxiety, making it difficult for him to navigate public situations independently. Wanting to help build Luke’s confidence as he enters his teenage years, his mother decided that her son would benefit from a service dog's companionship. After learning how expensive it can be to buy and maintain such an animal, the Berridge family decided to raise funds by baking brownies.

The family was astonished by their community’s outpouring support for the project, receiving more than $4,000 for a service dog in just two weeks. Although the Berridges have not yet chosen a dog for Luke, they thank donors and keep neighbors updated on their progress through a Facebook page, called Luke’s Dog Blog.

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