The Powers That Be

Steve Bannon Charged With Defrauding Wall Donors

Former Trump campaign adviser Steve Bannon was arrested Thursday morning and charged with defrauding the donors of a private fundraising effort called We Build The Wall. Federal prosecutors allege Bannon and three other defendants siphoned hundreds of thousands of dollars from the online crowdfunding campaign to fund personal expenses (the campaign raised over $25M ostensibly to build portions of a U.S.-Mexico border wall). Bannon pled not guilty in court later Thursday, and was released after paying a $1.75M bail.

U.S. Demands UN Reimpose Iran Sanctions

The Trump administration formally demanded the UN reimpose all sanctions on Iran on Thursday. In a letter to the UN Security Council, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo cited significant violations of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which the U.S. withdrew from in 2018. In a joint statement, France, Germany, and the UK refused to support Pompeo’s actions.

Putin Rival In A Coma After Alleged Poisoning

Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny is in a coma after falling ill on a flight from Siberia to Moscow. A spokeswoman for Navalny, who campaigned to challenge Pres. Putin in 2018 before he was barred from running, said the politician was poisoned by a substance in the tea he drank at the airport. A doctor at the hospital where Navalny is being treated told reporters he is in grave - yet stable - condition, and that doctors are considering a variety of diagnoses, including poison.

🧊 Worth Noting: In a new analysis published in Nature, scientists say Greenland ice loss set a record high in 2019, breaking the previous mark by 15%.

🔵🔴 DNC Day 4: The event concluded last night, featuring speeches from CA Gov. Gavin Newsom, Andrew Yang, and presidential nominee Joe Biden. (Recap: Left Center | Right Center)

License Reinstated

A CA appeals court on Thursday temporarily halted an injunction that would have forced Uber and Lyft to classify its drivers as employees (instead of independent contractors). The injunction is now on hold until the court rules on the companies’ appeal, with oral arguments scheduled for Oct. 13. The court said Uber and Lyft must prepare to reclassify drivers soon in case they lose future rulings and an upcoming statewide referendum to exempt their drivers from employee classification (Prop 22).

More: Uber’s former chief security officer, Joe Sullivan, was charged Thursday with obstructing justice and concealing a felony for attempting to cover up a 2016 hack that compromised the data of millions of customers.

Put To The Test

Johnson & Johnson confirmed plans to begin the largest, late-stage trial testing of a COVID-19 vaccine in September. The company’s Phase III trial would enroll up to 60k healthy volunteers ages 18 and older - roughly double the size of other pivotal studies that have started recently or are expected imminently for vaccines developed by Moderna, Pfizer, and AstraZeneca.

Coming Soon To A Theater Near You

AMC, Regal, Cinemark, and Marcus theater chains reopened on Thursday for the first time in five months. The first new film to play at these theaters will be Unhinged starring Russell Crowe, with Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster Tenet set to debut in the U.S. over Labor Day weekend.

⚾ MLB Hall-of-Famer Cal Ripken Jr. on Thursday said he made a full recovery from prostate cancer.

Anyone Can Cook

Octavius ‘Tay’ Nelson grew up washing dishes as a part-time job in the restaurants where his father served as cook. After Octavius’ father passed away, he wanted to honor his memory by channeling their shared passion for food. There was just one problem - Octavius didn’t know how to cook!

The South Carolina native turned to YouTube, watching endless “how-to” videos that covered everything from how to cook different types of meat to business-related tips on running a successful restaurant. Using his newfound skills, Octavius opened a thriving restaurant in 2018, named Bobby’s BBQ after his father.

The Great Escape

Nature has the capacity to be breathtakingly beautiful, but also incredibly heartbreaking - just ask the production crew for BBC Earth’s “Dynasty” series. Normally, such crews vow never to interfere with nature’s workings, no matter how hard it may be to witness. That promise was put to the test when the crew spotted more than 50 emperor penguins trapped in a deep, icy gully.

After several hours spent observing the penguins and realizing they couldn’t organically find a way to freedom, the crew unanimously decided to make an exception to the rule. The solution was simple enough - they shoveled several steps into the steep walls of the gully, and almost immediately the penguins managed to climb up and escape to safety.

Horsin’ Around

Last month, in a small village in Norfolk, England, an old stuffed toy horse, well-worn by years of play, was left on the curb to be picked up as trash. Although this moment could have marked the end of the plush animal’s life, it instead symbolized a new beginning - some curious children whisked the horse away from the street before the sanitation workers arrived.

The stuffed stallion has since become the village’s unofficial mascot, traveling among households in the small community for a new adventure each day. Nicknamed Derek Trotter by one resident, the horse - now adorned with a shirt and miniature bowler hat - enjoys a Facebook following of 400 neighbors who excitedly trade the steed among one other, documenting his exciting new life.

How are you managing stress?

Modern Holistic Health focuses on addressing the root causes of physiological illness and mental health imbalances. During this difficult time, we’re working overtime to help calm our clients and the community.

And community is more important than ever.
So we want to share some stress-management tips to help you get through this time:

• Help others. This simple - yet powerful - act can empower you in times of uncertainty.
• Practice Sleep Hygiene. Eight hours of sleep each night ensures your body and brain have the time they need to regenerate, manage stress, and keep your immune system strong.
• Exercise daily. Whether it’s taking time out for yoga, dancing, running, or walking - just be consistent and do something every day. Not only will this help manage stress, but it also helps support your immune function, healthy sleep cycles, and your mindset.

For more tips like these...
We host Q & A sessions with our team & guest experts in the health field weekly. Register to participate here.

You can also visit our website to get more health tips or schedule a consultation today.