Happy Thursday Everyone! Today’s newsletter: 1,369 words…5 mins
🗞 Today’s Edition: U.S. Quits Gaza Talks, King Charles & Modi Talk Yoga, Starlink Ghosts World, Trump & Powell Go Viral, Sweeney Spikes Meme Coin… & much more!
🚨 Watch For:
President Trump heads to Scotland - meetings with PM Starmer and EC President Von der Leyen scheduled
U.S.-EU trade deal to be announced shortly
📜THE HIGHLIGHT
One killer insight to stash in your back pocket
🇺🇸 🇮🇱 U.S. Delegation QUITS Gaza Talks
The U.S. has officially withdrawn from ceasefire negotiations with Hamas in Doha,
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff announced the team’s return to Washington, while Israel also yanked its delegation—signaling that the fragile process is on ice, not quite dead.
"[Hamas] shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza...Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith. We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home...It is a shame that Hamas has acted in this selfish way."
Why it collapsed:
Hamas demanded massive prisoner releases—200 prisoners with life sentences, 2,000 more detained in 2023—and a total Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, far beyond the previously mediated framework.
Israel offered a 60-day pause, release of 10 living hostages + 18 bodies, phased prisoner exchanges—and NO withdrawal from key security corridors like Netzarim.
Egypt, Qatar and the U.S. accused Hamas of “foot-dragging” and last-minute non-essential demands that made a deal nearly impossible.
🧨 The Red Line:
Countries belonging to the Abraham Accords including the Saudi and UAE emphasize a complete disarmament of the Hamas terrorist organization - something Hamas is not willing to do.
Current discussions revolve around joint governance between the Palestinian Authority and other international “neutral” partners.
"When you get down to those last 20 hostages...it's going to be very hard for Hamas to make a deal because they lose their shield...Hamas didn't really want to make a deal. I think they want to die."
What’s next:
Diplomatic vacuum: The U.S. stepping back weakens mediator momentum
Humanitarian fallout: Hamas has been accused stealing aid and of blocking Gazans from seeking meals and aid given by the GHF - the joint US-Israeli mission. This move deepens the crisis.
Unclear path forward: Washington hinted at “alternative options,” but hasn’t said what that means—military, diplomatic, or covert.
🔥 Why It Matters: With the U.S. off the board and Hamas refusing to disarm; Gaza talks are rudderless—and innocent civilians are the ones paying the price.
♟️THE CHESSBOARD
Geopolitics Decoded In 3 Moves
Top-Left: PM Kier Starmer with PM Modi at a tea stall for a cup of Indian Masala Tea; Bottom-Left: PM Starmer and Modi at the entrance of Starmer’s country residence in Buckinghamshire; Right: King Charles III with PM Modi at Sandringham Palace.
🇮🇳 🇬🇧 Modi Signs Blockbuster UK Trade Deal, Talks Yoga With The King
PM Modi was warmly received by Starmer at the UK Prime Minister’s country residence, Chequers in Buckinghamshire as they renewed the special relationship starting with some “Indian masala tea brewed in England.”
Highlights:
Signed the India-UK Comprehensive Economic & Trade Agreement—the biggest UK deal post-Brexit.
Rolled out joint roadmaps on defence, tech, education, and climate (with UK universities opening campuses in India).
The Defense Industrial Roadmap will enable joint arms production and tech transfer.
Royal Encounter: King Charles III received PM Modi at Sandringham. They bonded over Ayurveda, yoga, and trees — the PM even gifted him a tree sapling to plant in the fall.
💡 Why it matters: As the West eyes India as a democratic counterweight to China, this deal is both - economic flex and geopolitical chess.
🇪🇺 Meta Nopes Out of EU Political Ads
Meta will block all political and social issue ads in the EU starting October, citing “unworkable” transparency laws under the bloc’s new TTPA regulation.
Platforms must now reveal who funded what, for how much, and why—or face fines up to 6% of revenue.
Google already pulled out too.
🧠 Bottom Line: Big Tech’s ad retreat weakens campaign outreach—while the EU doubles down on misinformation crackdowns.
🇫🇷 💥 France Recognizes Palestine: Sparks Global Ruckus
France will formally recognize the State of Palestine at the UN in September—becoming the first G7 nation to do so. President Macron says it’s a moral stand to revive the two-state solution and ease Gaza’s crisis.
Hamas and the PA (Palestinian Authority) welcomed the move.
Israel and the U.S. slammed it as reckless, empowering terrorists.
Netherland’s Geert Wilders threw shade at France, “Happy Suicide!”
UK says they won’t recognize Palestine until Hamas is out.
France insists it’s against Hamas—but Hamas is celebrating.
What it means: The NYTimes notes that this recognition is largely symbolic and could exacerbate tensions without addressing core issues like Hamas’s disarmament and Israel’s security demands.
💡 Bottom Line: Paris may have meant peace—but just handed Hamas a political win and cracked open an EU–U.S. rift.
🗽THE EMPIRE FILES
Political Drama From DC To NYC
President Trump and Fed Reserve Chairman Powell sparring about cost overruns
🇺🇸 The Office: The Trump-Powell Edition
😆 If there’s one clip you watch today, this should be it. Two old men in hard hats sparring in front of the Press - a real life scene out of The Office.
President Trump and Fed Chair Powell donned hard hats and toured the Fed’s $2B+ HQ renovation staging a passive-aggressive duet in scenes that went viral.
Trump said the reno cost had risen to $3.1B, eliciting a puzzled look from Powell. The President then pulled out a cost sheet from his pocket like a courtroom drama reveal—only for Powell to deadpan, “You just added in a third building, that’s what that is.”
When a reporter asked if the Fed Chair could do anything to win his favor, Trump playfully slapped Powell on the back saying, "Well, I’d love him to lower interest rates."
⚡ Bottom Line: Both remained hard-headed in their positions; but the world got some serious meme material.
🇺🇸 💰Venmo For Uncle Sam? Debt Donations Go Digital
You can now Venmo the U.S. government to help pay down its $36.7T debt. Yes, the Treasury has its very own tip jar and now you have digital donation options via Pay.gov…But critics call it symbolic fluff.
Since 1996, Americans have chipped in just around $67M.
Bitcoin execs say it's like “sending crypto to a burn address.”
Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” adds $3.4T to the deficit over the next decade.
You can access these digital payment systems like Paypal and Venmo at the “Gifts to Reduce the Public Debt” page on “Pay.gov”, NPR’s Jack Corbett noted.
⚡ Roast: This is like your ex asking for gas money after crashing your car.
🤖 CODES & POWER
Tech Wars, Crypto Chaos, and AI’s Black Mirror Moments
👖 Sydney Sweeney = American Eagle’s Meme Stock Icon
American Eagle stock surged 17.6% after her new viral campaign titled “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” dropped Wednesday—featuring sexy Americana visuals and viral Gen Z energy.
Retail bros on Reddit and Stocktwits declared Sweeney “all the DD I need,” sparking a mini meme stock frenzy.
But the denim dream didn’t last: shares crashed 6% the next day. Financials still bleak.
Why it matters: Though AEO’s had a rough 2025 (down 32% YTD), Sweeney might’ve done what earnings reports couldn’t: get Gen Z — and meme traders — to care again.
🚨 Starlink Outage Sparks Chaos, Paranoia—Even In Ukraine
Starlink’s rare 2.5-hour global outage on July 24 nuked internet access for tens of thousands—prompting panic in Ukraine, where officials briefly thought the U.S. had cut them off mid-war.
📡 The glitch? A software meltdown in Starlink’s core network after the release of T-Mobile’s satellite service, T-Satellite.
⚠️ Why it matters: This wasn’t just a tech fail—it exposed how deeply modern warfare and national security now depend on commercial satellites. Even the fog of war now runs on WiFi.
📺 FUN FACTS & TRIVIA
Walt Disney
Disney’s first hit character was Oswald the Lucky Rabbit—Disney lost control of Oswald due to a contractual dispute with Universal's producer, Charles Mintz. His revenge? Creating Mickey Mouse - and a $100B empire.
Bonus: Critics labeled “Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” as “Disney’s Folly” because they doubted its potential for success and predicted total financial calamity for the studio. They were wrong.
The movie was a phenomenal success and became the highest-grossing film of 1937.
💀 THE ROAST
Because World Leaders Beg To Be Dragged
Why does it look like they're about to hit a Broadway musical number
— #Morning Brew ☕️ (#@MorningBrew)
8:34 PM • Jul 24, 2025
I said lower interest rates bitch 👊🏼😂
— #Politi_Rican 🇵🇷 𝕏 🇺🇸 (#@TheRicanMemes)
12:23 AM • Jul 25, 2025
showing the intern his after-tax compensation
— #low yield lucy (#@picotop)
10:45 PM • Jul 24, 2025