The Presidential Daily Brief - 10/10/2015

October 10, 2015 Follow Us: Presented by     Important     Fires blaze after a car bomb exploded Thursday in a rebel-held area of Aleppo, Syria. Source: Getty Could Joe Biden Still Jump Into the Presidential Race? He'd be cutting it close. The first Democratic debate, moderated by Anderson Cooper, will air Tuesday night, and according to CNN's rules, Vice President Joe Biden could declare his candidacy and win a spot in the debate as late as Tuesday afternoon. It's a situation that leaves Hillary Clinton the daunting task of preparing for a debate with the four declared candidates, including ideological firebrand Bernie Sanders, and the ghost of a chance that a formidable fellow establishment candidate - already a heartbeat from the Oval Office - will join her onstage. Sources: Huffington Post, The Hill, CNN, Washington Post Share: U.S. Retrenches as Russian Guns Blaze in Syria Putin's not pulling any punches. The week started with news that America planned to facilitate a major anti-ISIS offensive while Russia flexed its military muscle with everything from long-range (and perhaps errant) cruise-missile strikes to warplanes covering Assad's ground offensive against rebels in the west. Then the Pentagon announced Friday that its program to create a rebel corps to fight ISIS was a bust, and it would instead rely on existing fighters. Until the U.S. plan bears fruit, the Kremlin's shadow will loom large on the battlefield.  Sources: NYT, LA Times, Chicago Tribune Share: Christine Lagarde Diversifies the IMF It can be a thankless job. Since taking the reins as the IMF's first female managing director in 2011, the 59-year-old attorney has faced an array of crises, from the Greek collapse to the ongoing influx of refugees. Having stepped in for the disgraced Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Lagarde is not stingy with her opinions, calling Americans "noisy" and saying Greece has a fiscal "culture" problem. But she's also mindful to balance new initiatives like gender equality and climate change - handy issues should she decide France is ready for a woman president. Sources: Huffington Post Share: Dictators Who Fly Under the Radar If we paid attention, they'd be pariahs. These leaders are waking nightmares for their people, even if the rest of the world barely knows they exist. Belarus' Alexander Lukashenko - like others of his ilk - is known for having opponents who disappear, and still calls his secret police the KGB. Uzbekistan's Islam Karimov, meanwhile, has a reputation for boiling prisoners alive, and Gambia's Yahya Jammeh once threatened to decapitate all homosexuals. OZY's Laura Secorun Palet has profiled them and other little-known despots in hopes that one day, their reputation might just precede them. Sources: OZY Share: Briefly Obama consoles Oregon families in wake of two more college shootings. (NYT) N.C. Rep. Ellmers denies rumored affair with ex-candidate for House speaker. (Chicago Tribune) Nationwide anti-Islam protests planned for weekend worry U.S. Muslims. (USA Today) North Korea displays military might in 70th anniversary parade. (BBC) Oil prices rise 9 percent for week as Middle East tension mounts. (FT) sub     INTRIGUING     Italy May Become Europe's Newest Pot Spot The next celebrated puffs of smoke rising over Rome might not be from the Vatican. Italian lawmakers are mulling over a bill that would decriminalize all forms of marijuana possession and use, while putting major production in the hands of the government to shut out the Mafia. Skeptics say it's an unlikely fit for the conservative country, which passed draconian anti-bud laws in 2006. But faced with overcrowded prisons, overburdened police and crushing debt, many Italian legislators say a deal with the devil's cabbage could be the path to salvation. Sources: OZY Share: Jane Goodall Knows Chimps - and People We're not so different. The 81-year-old primate expert says working with chimpanzees for years helped her understand another primate - humans - much better. While our hairy cousins share the human trait of shunning migrants from another territory like we sometimes do, chimps could teach us about sustainability, she says, as they don't over-harvest fruit. Now, as a U.N. Messenger of Peace, she's reminding people to collaborate to save the natural world before it's too late - not just for the animals' sake, but for ours as well.  Sources: Der Spiegel Share: Zappos Thinks It Can Manage Without Bosses He's blazing a trail, but where does it lead? CEO Tony Hsieh has positioned his $1 billion-a-year shoe firm to step toward one possible future of corporate organization. In April, he introduced Holacracy, a trademarked way of running a company that eliminates managers and lets employees make decisions facilitated by "lead links." The move could make the online retailer the largest example of this revolutionary philosophy, but resistance - notably among tech employees - makes some wonder if it'll be assimilated into the notoriously competitive culture of its parent, Amazon. Sources: New Republic Share: Nicki Minaj: 'Why Are We Never in Control?' What's good? Nicki Minaj, that's what - the hip-hop/pop crossover queen with strong opinions about race and the music industry. She's tussled on Twitter with Taylor Swift and at the MTV Video Music Awards with Miley Cyrus over the ideological underpinnings of cultural hegemony. Minaj, who is vocal about her problems with an industry that co-opts the culture and art of Black Americans, but discounts their opinions and concerns about that culture, is sure to continue disrupting, both artistically and with her sizable platform for change.  Sources: NYT Magazine Share: Morris Is Giving Soccer Fans an Education He's playing it smart. Stanford junior Jordan Morris is deferring lucrative offers from pro teams to savor his school days. The 20-year-old striker still trains with the U.S. men's national soccer team - in fact, he's the first collegian on the American side since 1999. Still, he's at a disadvantage against competitors, as college players' practice time is limited. But Morris says he's compelled to be surrounded by both academic and athletic excellence, and he'll soon be squeezing in Olympic qualifying games with the U.S. under-23 team. Sources: Grantland Share: Your 8 must reads to get you ahead of the curve GOOD SH*T Spreading the Gooey Gospel of the S'more Read In Full PROVOCATEURS Hu Shuli: China's Elegant Muckraker Read In Full TRUE STORY How Was Your Day ... High School Sports Announcer? Read In Full 20M people love reading OZY every month. Be part of the revolution. Add us to your Address Book | Having trouble viewing this email? Read Online This email was sent to PhillipPhillip787@gmail.com This email was sent by: OZY Media 800 West El Camino Mountain View, CA 94040 Manage Subscriptions | Update Profile | Unsubscribe| Privacy Policy