Good morning. Our third-annual Pet Playoffs competition is now down to its final matchup, which takes place later today. More on that further down in the newsletter.

But first:

• The opening debate of the 2024 presidential election is here
• IKEA is experimenting with new store formats
• West Virginia University is about to cut majors and trim its faculty

… and more.

Let’s do this thang.

🚀⏰ Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~4.93-minute read.

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“Don't spend major time on minor things.”

–Jim Rohn (1930-2009)

At 9 pm ET tonight, eight of the top Republican presidential candidates will gather onstage in Milwaukee for the inaugural debate of the 2024 election cycle.

The candidates – who each needed at least 1% support in certain polls and 40,000+ individual donors ahead of Monday’s deadline to qualify – are (from left to right in the above pic):

• South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott
• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
• Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson
• Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley
• Former Vice President Mike Pence
• Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie
• North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum
• Former biotech executive Vivek Ramaswamy

Notably absent from the list is former President Donald Trump, who satisfied the requirements months ago but has consistently said he sees little upside in attending primary debates. Instead, his team is planning to post a pre-recorded interview between Trump and Tucker Carlson on X (formerly Twitter) that’ll run concurrently with tonight’s debate, per the AP.

🤔 What do the polls say?... Trump is the current GOP front-runner by a wide margin, per FiveThiryEight’s polling aggregator. Among likely Republican voters, the former president’s base of support is 3.5x larger than second-place Ron DeSantis, at 52% to 15%. And, with the exception of Vivek Ramaswamy at 9%, no other GOP candidate is polling above 5%.

🔵 On the Democratic side… President Biden officially announced his reelection bid in April. Two political activists with no elected experience – Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Marianne Williamson – have also thrown their hats into the ring, but are currently polling far behind Biden.

• The DNC has already committed to supporting Biden’s reelection, and isn’t planning to hold any primary debates.

🥊 Head to head: In a hypothetical 2024 matchup, Biden is currently polling slightly behind former President Trump, and slightly ahead (or better) when placed against all other GOP candidates.

📊 Flash poll: If next year’s presidential election were held today, who would you vote for?

The Democratic candidate

The Republican candidate

A third-party candidate

I’m too young/I don’t vote

Unsure/other

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🇵🇰 Eight people were stranded in a cable car in Pakistan for over 15 hours before being safely rescued. The cable car, which allows the otherwise isolated village of Pashto to access a nearby school and hospital, was carrying seven students and one teacher when two of its supporting cables snapped, leaving the passengers stranded some 900 feet above the ground. Pakistani authorities initially rescued one student via military helicopter, in an act described as “risky” since the rotors could upset the last supporting cable. About 10 hours later, in the dark of night, officials managed to rescue the remaining seven passengers using a zip line and harness.

🇬🇧🎮 Microsoft submitted a revised Activision Blizzard acquisition deal to UK regulators. Under the new deal, Microsoft would forfeit cloud-streaming rights for all of Activision’s existing games – as well as all games published over the next 15 years – to rival gaming giant Ubisoft. Microsoft would still be allowed to include Activision games on its cloud-streaming service Xbox Game Pass, but would first need to obtain a license from Ubisoft. Analysts say Microsoft’s proposed changes will likely satisfy UK regulators, who previously rejected the $69 billion Activision acquisition over concerns it could reduce competition in the cloud-streaming market.

🇯🇵☢️ Japan will be releasing nuclear wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima plant into the ocean this week. Officials confirmed yesterday that over 1 million metric tons of wastewater will start to be released on Thursday. The plan has drawn condemnation from neighboring countries like Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, and China, some of which banned Japanese seafood imports in response. Last month, the UN’s nuclear agency said Japan’s plan meets the agency’s safety standards and isn’t likely to pose a health threat.

Later today, IKEA will officially open the doors of a new type of store in downtown San Francisco.

The location is designed to be a pared-back version of the Swedish retailer’s sprawling suburban stores – only stocking half of the company’s 11,000 products – and have an emphasis on catering to smaller living spaces.

It’s also an integral part of IKEA’s current growth strategy. The retailer is experiencing high demand for its furniture and other housewares, and is in the midst of adding 17 US stores as part of a planned $2.2 billion expansion.

And, as this expansion comes along, expect to see a couple of new store formats increasingly pop up:

• “Plan and order” points. The goal of these locations will be to enable customers to plan out their bedroom, kitchen, or living room with the help of in-store consultants, then have those products ordered for delivery. IKEA already runs three such stores in the US, two in LA and one in Arlington, Virginia, that opened earlier this month.
• Pared-back locations in urban – instead of suburban – areas. These stores, like the one opening today in San Francisco, are designed to focus specifically on catering to a shopper living in urban spaces (read: smaller).

🏬 Zoom out: Other major retailers are also experimenting with new store formats. Macy’s announced yesterday that it’s opening four more smaller stores located in strip malls following a successful test, in a departure from its traditional strategy of opting for large department-stores anchoring malls.

Last week, West Virginia University announced its intention to trim staff and cut some of the majors it offers, in a bid to plug its $45 million budget deficit.

The moves – which are currently open for appeal before being voted on in mid-September – would result in the university laying off 7% of its faculty, or 169 people, as well as the discontinuation of 32 of the university’s 338 majors. The eliminated majors, including all world language-related disciplines, would impact an estimated 434 students, or ~2% of WV’s student body.

🤔 How did we get here?... School officials attribute WV’s existing budget deficit – which is projected to grow to $78 million by 2028 without any major changes – to declining enrollment and higher employee costs.

• Between fall 2013 and fall 2022, West Virginia’s Morgantown campus lost ~16% of its student body population, from 29,466 students to 24,741. A majority of the university’s revenue is derived from tuition payments.
• In addition, WV learned this spring that an increase in insurance premiums for public employees would inflate university costs by $10 million.

🎓✂️ Zoom out: Other universities are also dealing with enrollment/cost issues, and could opt to make similar cuts. Penn State and Rutgers, for example, are both staring down deficits north of $60 million this year, even after measures like increasing tuition and cutting costs.

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💬 Quoted… “Guys, this is your chance to get in.”

Billy McFarland, founder/organizer of the fraudulent Fyre Festival, is back and giving the concert industry another try.

• In an Instagram video posted Monday, McFarland said tickets for Fyre Festival II are now officially for sale – despite no confirmed date, venue, or musical performers. The announcement comes roughly a year after McFarland was released early from prison while serving a six-year sentence for defrauding the original Fyre Festival investors.

🚫🚌 Stat of the Day: All 50 US states have experienced at least one instance of a “major bus driver shortage” so far this year, per a new USA TODAY analysis. Maybe we should change the song to: “And the wheels on the bus sometimes go ‘round.”

🤔 Did You Know?... Hamilton, the capital city of Bermuda, has the highest cost of living in the world, with average prices nearly 40% higher than in New York City.

📰 Worth a Read: How Jennifer Aniston Went From Sitcom Star to Hollywood Power Player → (WSJ)

• ☝️ You’re looking at a nearly 100-year-old wooden house that survived the Lahaina fire on the Hawaiian island of Maui earlier this month; experts say the house was likely saved due to it being built of California redwood – a fire-resistant wood – as well as a lack of nearby flammable vegetation.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 💰 US markets closed mixed (S&P: -0.3%; Dow: -0.5%; Nasdaq: +0.1%). | 📉 Dick's Sporting Goods fell 24% yesterday after missing earnings, its worst day ever.
• 🏢 Goldman Sachs is reportedly cracking down on employees not working from the office five days/week.
• 💼 The average “reservation wage” – the minimum acceptable salary to switch jobs – rose 8% year-over-year in Q2 to reach $78,645, per newly released data from the New York Federal Reserve; that’s the highest level ever in a data series dating back to the beginning of 2014. | 📉 At the same time, pay for new hires is shrinking; among postings for more than 20,000 job titles on ZipRecruiter’s site in 2023, the average pay for a majority of roles has declined year-over-year; tech and transportation are among those experiencing the steepest drops.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

in partnership with Ice Barrel

• ⚾ The MLB placed Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco on administrative leave yesterday; the move comes as the league and authorities in the Dominican Republic are investigating Franco's alleged relationships with multiple underaged girls.
• 🏀⚖️ The New York Knicks are suing the Toronto Raptors; the suit centers on allegations that a former Knicks employee sent confidential files to Toronto.
• 🎤 Demi Lovato and Idina Menzel have reportedly parted ways with music manager Scooter Braun; some sources also claimed Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber have left Braun, but other news orgs say those reports are false. | 👶 Rihanna and A$AP Rocky welcomed their second child earlier this month, TMZ reports.

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

in partnership with myBalto

• 💉 The FDA this week approved a first-of-its-kind RSV vaccine administered during pregnancy to protect newborn babies from the virus.
• 👀🐟 A species of fish called a hogfish has light-sensing skin which it uses to “see” its surroundings, per a peer-reviewed study published yesterday in Nature Communications.
• 🔭 A recent cyberattack has left several large telescopes at the National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory unable to operate for weeks; it marks the second-such attack targeting major telescopes since October.

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MISCELLANEOUS

• 🌀 Tropical Storm Harold made landfall in Texas yesterday morning, delivering up to six inches of rain to the southern part of the state.
• ⛪ The Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco filed for bankruptcy on Monday due to more than 500 lawsuits alleging past child sexual abuse.
• ⚖️ The FTC is suing a pair of “gurus”; they’re brothers who allegedly offered e-commerce training and management services but failed to deliver, leaving customers deep in debt.

CLICKBAIT

• 🗣️ Scientists witnessed the birth of a new accent in Antarctica.

The adorable field of dozens has been whittled down to just three – the top cat, bunny, and dog will be competing today for the title of Top DONUT Pet 2023, as well as $250 cash.

Meet the finalists:

• 🐈 Moxley (@marlapayant)... hails from Lincoln Nebraska. That’s about all we know🤷‍♀️.
• 🐇 Rey (@obibunfuriends)... is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She loves to wake up every morning and jump on the bed to demand breakfast, has six furry siblings (five rabbits and a chinchilla), and was rescued in 2019 after being surrendered to a shelter for a second time. Hobbies include sunbathing, cuddling with her husbun, and snacking on dill. She’ll be donating the money if she wins it to animal rescues.
• 🐶 Harold (@haroldpug_life)… hails from LA. He hates the word “bye” (he has separation anxiety and will bark a ton), pees doing a handstand (which gets a lot of comments), is an only child, and loves cuddles.

And there ya have it, folks. Who will be the one pet to rule them all?

P.S. Make sure to follow us on Instagram to participate in the final voting, the story poll will be going live soon.

High school math teacher Julio Castro loves his students. Known around school as everyone's favorite teacher, he's always going above and beyond to ensure their success. 

But while Julio loves his job, he could definitely do without the 2+ hour commute.

• It starts at 4:30 am with a seven-mile trek to the metro station on his scooter, then is followed by a 90-minute bus ride and one mile walk to school. And that's just one way.

❤️🚙 Thanks, teach... All of that changed at a recently held "teacher's appreciation assembly." After months of fundraising, Julio's students finally revealed a big surprise for the beloved teacher: a dark blue 2019 Mazda, along with a year's worth of insurance and gas money. 

• “We’ve been taught certain values like empathy,” shared one of this students. "Mr. Castro is the embodiment of that. With this car, with this new opportunity, he’s only going to find more and more ways to help other people around him.”

+Editor's note: This story previously ran in Positive DONUT, a separate newsletter we publish weekly that recaps all the good things happening throughout the world (your antidote to news-induced outrage and/or anxiety). Subscribe here for free.

How to play: We provide an incorrect stat. Then you guess whether the actual number is over or under the stated value.

1. 🪙 120: Number of ridges on a dime.
2. 🍫 20: Amount of vending machines per person in Japan.
3. 🐧 18 MPH: Max swimming speed of a penguin.

1. 🪙 Under, 118
2. 🍫 Over, 23 per person
3. 🐧 Over, 22 mph