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How Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani problem could lead to postseason elimination

This issue for the Dodgers' biggest superstar could sink their playoff hopes.

Oct 6 • 2:43 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

macOS 27.2 Further Hints at MacBook With Touch-Enabled OLED Display

The latest macOS 27.2 beta released this week further hints at the long-rumored MacBook with a touchscreen, which is expected to be unveiled by next month. Specifically, when you click and hold on an app icon in the Dock on the third developer beta of macOS 27.2, the icon gets a little bit larger. A similar animation occurs when you long press on an iOS or iPadOS app, so the fact that the animation now extends to macOS could be another subtle clue that a touch-enabled MacBook is coming.

Oct 6 • 2:22 PM EDT • Technology • macrumors.com

Brewers Must Closely Monitor May’s Workload in NLDS Game 3

The Milwaukee Brewers turn to Dustin May to eliminate the San Diego Padres. Success hinges on precise bullpen management and limiting his exposure against a desperate lineup.

Oct 6 • 2:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Health Alert – U.S. Embassy Moscow, Russia (October 6, 2026)

Health Alert – U.S. Embassy Moscow, Russia (October 5, 2026) Location: Irkutsk, Russia Event: The U.S. Embassy is aware of press reports from the Irkutsk region of suspected pneumonic plague resulting in the death of an individual and of associated quarantine measures in, and closures of, hospitals in Irkutsk. We continue to track the situation closely. The U.S. government has limited ability to help U.S. citizens in Russia, especially outside of Moscow. U.S. government personnel may face additional restrictions for personal and official travel to specific regions due to health and security concerns. The State Department’s Level 4 Travel Advisory (Do Not Travel) for Russia remains in place and states U.S. citizens currently in Russia should depart immediately. U.S. citizens planning travel to Russia are again strongly advised not to travel to Russia due to risk of wrongful detention and security concerns. Actions to Take: S. citizens in the area should follow the guidance of local health authorities, avoid affected facilities, and seek medical care promptly if they develop fever or respiratory symptoms. Visit the CDC Page on Plague for additional information about the disease. Visit the CDC Travelers’ Health Page for Russia for country-specific health updates. Monitor your health for 14 days following travel if you traveled to an area experiencing the outbreak. Review the S. Embassy country page for general health information. Refer to the Embassy’s list of medical providers. Check with your travel insurance provider about medical evacuation options should you fall ill while overseas. Have a plan to depart in an emergency that does not depend on U.S. government help. Monitor local media for updates. Be prepared to adjust your plans. Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program(STEP) to receive health and security updates. Assistance: U.S. Embassy Moscow, Russia +7 495 728-5577 MoscowACS@state.gov U.S. Embassy Moscow web page State Department – Consular Affairs (+001) 888-407-4747 or (+001) 202-501-4444 Russia Country Information Follow us on Facebook and Twitter State Department – Consular Affairs 1-888-407-4747 or 1-202-501-4444

Oct 6 • 1:48 PM EDT • Health • ru.usembassy.gov

EU launches network to harness health data and AI for cardiovascular care

A new EU-funded flagship initiative to harness the power of health data and artificial intelligence (AI) across the continuum of cardiovascular care has been launched, with funding from the EU4Health Program.

Oct 6 • 1:30 PM EDT • Health • news-medical.net

When Did Animals First Evolve? New Evidence From Mongolia Suggests It Could Be As Far Back As 800 Million Years Ago

New research pushes back what previously had been the early limit of animal evolution by 200 million years.

Oct 6 • 12:35 PM EDT • Science • iflscience.com

The 2026 Bluebird Banter Haiku Contest: Voting

Time to vote. I took all the haiku that had five or more recs. I had to put them into two polls because of an arbitrary limit that we have on Feed polls. 1: TCasserole Perfection and grace Gallant strides and vapour trails When Kirk steals second 2: Tom__M Walk, single, single Double play, strike […]

Oct 6 • 12:30 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

New on DVD: Get ready to mingle with 'DTF St. Louis'

Last month's Emmy winner for best limited series tops the DVD releases for the week of Oct. 13. "DTF St. Louis": HBO's seven-episode drama stars Jason Bateman as TV weatherman

Oct 6 • 11:49 AM EDT • Entertainment • recorderonline.com

Kilmar Ábrego Garcia is set to be back in court as he battles deportation to Liberia

WASHINGTON (AP) — Kilmar Ábrego Garcia on Tuesday will be back in federal court, where the federal government will continue its attempt to deport him in an 18-month saga that began when he was mistakenly sent to El Salvador last year. The government is moving to vacate a preliminary injunction put in place by U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis preventing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from detaining and deporting Ábrego Garcia to the West African

Oct 6 • 11:08 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org

Old Dominion University Researchers Explore Connection Between Sinus Health and Voice Problems

A stuffy nose, facial pressure and a diminished sense of smell are familiar symptoms for people with chronic sinus problems. Changes to the voice may be less obvious. Researchers in Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion University are exploring a connection patients may not always recognize: the relationship between sinus conditions and voice problems.

Oct 6 • 10:44 AM EDT • Health • odu.edu

Brazil: Lessons from a Disaster

By Antonio Martins (Outras Palavras) Defeats become deeper and more prolonged when we misunderstand what caused them, avoid correcting course, and embrace “solutions” that only compound our mistakes. Lula’s government and the Brazilian left suffered a disaster in Sunday’s election. Contrary to every poll, the president finished the first round 2.2 million votes behind Flávio Bolsonaro—and, more significantly, 3.4 million votes below his total four years ago, when the machinery of the state was working against him and in favor of his opponent. His vote share declined in 98 percent of Brazil’s municipalities. The PL, the main party of the far right, elected 121 deputies and 28 senators, becoming the largest caucus in both houses of Congress. The parties aligned with the Centrão—Brazil’s bloc of transactional center-right parties—were somewhat diminished, but will still hold roughly 250 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 35 in the Senate. That will make it easier to assemble the majorities needed to amend the Constitution or impeach Supreme Federal Court justices. If elected, Flávio Bolsonaro could appoint four members of the Court, substantially altering its internal balance of power. What produced these results? How can the far right be prevented from consolidating them into a prolonged political hegemony? And what is the essential change of direction the left now needs? Explaining the Disaster Across the commercial media and the exuberant chaos of digital platforms, interpretations are multiplying. Some focus on specific episodes: Lula’s absence from the Globo debate, his very close relationship with Alexandre de Moraes, or his emphasis on issues supposedly remote from most people’s everyday concerns, such as rare earth minerals. Among the more systemic interpretations, three seem especially questionable. One argues that the principal defeat was not the left’s, since its congressional representation declined only slightly. The decisive movement captured at the ballot box, according to this view, was a shift within the right itself—from the more moderate and transactional forces of the Centrão toward the more ideological and radicalized forces of the PL and Novo. A second interpretation holds that the nature of electoral and political processes has changed. The material interests and aspirations of society, it argues, no longer play the central role they once did; they have given way to forms of subjective self-identification that the left has yet to understand. And a third concludes that, because of these two developments, we should expect a political winter: a prolonged period in which the far right and the broader right dominate Brazilian political life. There are important elements in all three interpretations. The problem lies in what they deny or leave out: Lula’s third government was a small-bore government. It offered the majorities that elected it neither a clearly better life nor reasons to believe again in politics and its power to transform society. These failures flowed from two fatal accommodations, which I will examine below. As a result, the government suffered a slow but steady erosion of support. And, as has happened in so many Western countries, it gave the far right the opportunity to present itself as anti-system and to benefit from popular frustration and distress. The interpretation that emphasizes the migration of votes from the center-right and traditional right toward the far right has been advanced, among others, by the courageous journalist Leonardo Sakamoto. In his UOL column on Monday, October 5, he highlights the miserable behavior of the traditional conservative parties. Over the past four years, they repeatedly joined forces with the “neo”-fascists, helping to “normalize” them—a criticism that could equally be directed at almost the entire corporate media. Believing they could use the far right as a stepping stone, they instead ended up partly devoured by it. This was especially true in the Senate, where the PL’s gain of 13 senators and Novo’s gain of two came at the expense of the PSD, which lost nine; the MDB, which lost two; the PSDB, which lost two; and the PP, which lost one. Sakamoto’s observation is accurate and necessary, but it leaves uncomfortable questions unanswered. Why did the erosion of the Centrão benefit the far right rather than, for example, producing growth for the left—as has happened so many times before, both in Brazil and elsewhere? The answer is not difficult. Throughout its four years in office, Lula’s third government was almost invariably associated with the Centrão. Here lies its first accommodation: accepting the limits imposed by conservative institutions; avoiding, as much as possible, any attempt to strain those limits through popular pressure; and believing only in the modest changes that could be squeezed through openings in Congress. The failure of the campaign to end the six-day workweek is emblematic. Lula could have electrified the presidential race by pairing it with a popular campaign for passage of the measure. Instead, he chose to place his hopes in the hands of Senate president Rodrigo Alcolumbre. He generated no mass mobilization, did not force his opponents onto an uncomfortable defensive, and won no victory. In September 2025, the government squandered the greatest of its many opportunities to shake up conservative power in Congress. Popular opposition to the so-called Shielding Amendment—which, if approved, would have restricted criminal proceedings against members of Congress—brought crowds into the streets, mobilized primarily by artists and social movements. This opened the possibility for a broader political education: a campaign that could begin exposing the limits and dysfunctions of Brazil’s political system while putting Bolsonaro’s movement on the defensive for its predictable support of political privilege. The amendment was defeated. But the executive branch then backed away from the fight. It remained associated with an institutional world widely seen as corrupt, elitist, and indifferent to ordinary people’s struggles. In doing so, it forfeited its credibility as a vehicle for the protest vote. On Sunday, it reaped the bitter fruits. Are We Doomed? Taking a different approach from Sakamoto, the philosopher Moysés Pinto Neto and other writers have drawn attention, in their first analyses of October 4, to the fragmentation of the public sphere produced by Big Tech platforms. Through their algorithms, these platforms present each person with a different view of social reality. As a consequence, it becomes much harder to identify common material problems and demands—for example, the fight for labor rights or for a properly funded public health system. Voters no longer embrace such demands, these authors argue, because they no longer see themselves as part of a collective. Instead, they tend to value the identities assigned to them by neoliberal subjectivity—the role of the entrepreneur, for example. On this interpretation, the left’s possible error lies in clinging to outdated illusions. Moysés’s warning is highly relevant and resonates with arguments such as Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor’s “Apocalyptic Fascism and the Billionaires’ Bet.” Unlike a century ago, the far right no longer promises a radiant future. It concentrates instead on resentment—especially that of young men. “They belong to a generation that fears it may never own a home, but compensates with the pleasure it gets from constantly provoking progressives online. Convinced their future has been stolen, they share memes romanticizing historical authoritarian regimes,” the authors write. But Moysés seems to confuse this danger with inevitability. He fails to see that the left’s answer cannot be adaptation. On the contrary, it must strengthen the possibility of politics as collective action. Nor does he recognize that precisely such a reversal is already becoming possible in some of the most promising mobilizations of the twenty-first century: the election, at the end of 2025, of the young Muslim Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York, on a platform centered on the intensely material fight for an affordable city; the Left Party’s victory in Berlin two weeks ago, built around the demand to expropriate private real-estate corporations; and the very recent wave of demonstrations in Spain—including an occupation of Madrid’s Puerta del Sol—in which tens of thousands of young people mobilized by the Tenants’ Union have demanded limits on rents. By putting itself in the straitjacket of the “fiscal framework” in the first months of 2022, Lula’s third government adopted the second fatal accommodation of its term. Faced with conservative institutions and a country devastated by four years of Bolsonaro, increased public investment was the government’s remaining weapon for offering a more dignified life to the majority and forging an anti-conservative pact with them. The same state that disburses 1 trillion reais a year to enrich a small class of rentiers could instead spend money to extend the Family Health Strategy to every Brazilian, at a cost of 30 billion reais; provide full-day public schooling and childcare to all adolescents and children—and, especially, relief to their mothers; achieve universal sanitation while cleaning up polluted urban rivers; multiply metro systems; begin transforming the urban peripheries; and undertake many other urgently needed projects. In April 2023, an article in Outras Palavras warned that the fiscal framework could “shrink the Lula government and preserve the forces that condemn the country to inequality and regression.” A year later, another article showed that restraints on public spending were strangling policies vital to ordinary people and undermining the president’s popularity. In November 2024 came a reality check, in the form of the government’s humiliating defeat in the municipal elections. Even then, the fiscal lock was neither removed nor loosened. On the contrary: throughout the government’s four years, fiscal restraint remained central to its political narrative. The administration proudly proclaimed that it had “put the state’s accounts in order,” without grasping either how misleading that phrase was—given the payment of 1 trillion reais in interest—or how badly the message was hurting it politically. Lula finally woke up in September 2026. The increase in Bolsa Família benefits, after four years of being frozen; the announcement that anti-obesity drugs would be offered through Brazil’s public health system; and the ban on online betting showed that the state has the power to act decisively on behalf of the majority when those in government are willing to confront obstacles. The huge marches that closed the campaign in Fortaleza, Salvador, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo on the eve of October 4 showed how such initiatives can mobilize activists and the broader public. But it was too late—and too little to change the outcome of the first round. History has not ended The possibility of a turnaround in the three weeks leading up to November 25 cannot be ruled out. It will not be simple or easy. Lula must not only make up a deficit of 2.2 million votes; he must also offset the movement of voters who backed other right-wing candidates in the first round, most of whom are likely to move toward Flávio Bolsonaro. Pulling that off will require a broad, grassroots effort to win over voters, potentially reinforced by new initiatives from Lula. The coming hours and days will be decisive. If Bolsonaro’s movement also wins the presidency, the result will create a high-risk situation for Brazilian sovereignty and democracy. The enormous challenges posed by such an outcome would require the left to reexamine, in depth and with a genuine willingness to engage in self-criticism, its political projects—or its lack of them—and its practices. But would that mean we are condemned to the long winter of far-right hegemony that some analyses are beginning to forecast? It is far too early to say, suggests a recent text by Álvaro García Linera, the thinker who served as vice president of Bolivia under Evo Morales. His central hypothesis is that this political current will prove short-lived. At a moment when the entire world is once again talking about sovereignty and protecting national economies, the far right offers a stale, recolonizing neoliberalism. Its submission to the United States is as blatant and pathetic as Flávio and Eduardo Bolsonaro’s overtures to Donald Trump. Its project amounts to something like every man for himself: greater inequality, capitalism without limits, devastation, and supremacism. Will it work? In the United States, just two years into his second term, Trump himself is reaching record levels of unpopularity and may be on the verge of losing Republican control of both the House and Senate in November. Every new beginning is difficult. Whatever the outcome of the second round, the defeats of October 4 show how profoundly the Brazilian left will have to rethink and rebuild. But just as it would be foolish to underestimate the seriousness of its mistakes, it would be equally foolish to conclude that rebuilding a political project is no longer possible. History has not ended. The times are moving faster than ever. Originally published in Portuguese by Outras Palavras. English translation by Eric Blanc; I’ve added the subtitles. More We can’t stop the far right at home or abroad without a revitalized labor movement, which is yet another reason why you should become a sustaining supporter of the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee (EWOC) — one of US labor’s pivotal bright spots. Relatedly, Jacobin published a short piece of mine reflecting on a decade of Bernie Sanders inspiring a whole new generation of young worker organizers.

Oct 6 • 10:08 AM EDT • Politics • laborpolitics.com

ConocoPhillips Reviews Norway Business & UK Teesside Asset Divestment

COP is weighing a potential Norway and Teesside asset sale valued at about $7 billion, supporting portfolio optimization and capital flexibility.

Oct 6 • 9:50 AM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com

Northern Virginia business leaders grow more pessimistic about the national economy, survey finds

One in five respondents is based in Alexandria. A majority said data centers are good for the region's economy.

Oct 6 • 9:42 AM EDT • Business • alexandriabrief.com

FBI investigated anti-ICE protesters after Trump demanded probe over TikTok video, whistleblower alleges

The FBI opened preliminary investigations targeting anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protesters in Southern California, a former FBI intelligence official alleged in a whistleblower complaint, adding that she believed the move violated the law and agency policy.

Oct 6 • 9:22 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

Amazon Prime Big Deal Days Offers Major Discounts on AirPods, iPads, and Much More

Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days has officially kicked off, offering shoppers the first chance to save on holiday shopping from a major retailer. Similar to last year's fall Prime Day, it will last for two days, and you can find a large selection of deals across Amazon's storefront, covering savings on tech, clothing, video games, groceries, and much, much more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon.

Oct 6 • 8:43 AM EDT • Technology • macrumors.com

NFL fans question officiating after Mahomes call

Ringo Chiu/Shutterstock.com Mahomes penalty sparks debate over NFL officiating NFL fans are debating a roughing-the-passer call involving Patrick Mahomes and Dolphins linebacker Chop Robinson. The penalty came during Kansas City’s 24-10 win over Miami and sparked questions about how quarterbacks are protected. A similar-looking play involving Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and Washington rookie…

Oct 6 • 8:15 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Christian Science church in Lincoln Park gets new life as multimillion-dollar condos

The name of the new development, Beman Lincoln Park, honors Solon Beman, the architect of the early 20th-century church as well as the town of Pullman.

Oct 6 • 7:00 AM EDT • Science • chicagobusiness.com

Arsenal star in contention for Golden Boy 2026 award

Myles Lewis-Skelly is among the leading Premier League youngsters nominated for the 2026 Golden Boy award, after reclaiming his place in the Arsenal and England teams.During the second half of last se...

Oct 6 • 7:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Christian Science church in Lincoln Park gets new life as multimillion-dollar condos

The name of the new development, Beman Lincoln Park, honors Solon Beman, the architect of the early 20th-century church as well as the town of Pullman.

Oct 6 • 7:00 AM EDT • Business • chicagobusiness.com

Netflix's 'East of Eden' cast explain 'poetic' final scene, 'Timshel' meaning

Spoiler alert! The following story contains major details about the "Timshel," the seventh and final episode of Netflix’s limited series “East of Eden” (now streaming).

Oct 6 • 5:47 AM EDT • Entertainment • centraloregondaily.com

ClickFix Smuggles Payloads Through Browser Cache to Bypass Windows Run Limits

Microsoft observed ClickFix attacks using browser cache smuggling to execute cached VBScript and launch a credential-targeting malware chain.

Oct 6 • 1:22 AM EDT • Technology • thehackernews.com

“The Designs Are Way Cuter”: The Big Business of Bootleg Merch

It’s been a busy season for bootleggers in New York, with the Knicks’s championship and the World Cup leading right into Harry Styles’s MSG residency. How did this gray market get so big?

Oct 6 • 12:30 AM EDT • Business • vogue.com

Apple Announces iPhone Duo Apps Can Now Be Submitted to App Store

Apple today announced that apps optimized for the iPhone Duo can now be submitted for App Store approval, ahead of the foldable device launching on Friday, October 23. While existing App Store apps will automatically run on the iPhone Duo, only apps built with the iOS 27.1 SDK or later can dynamically resize to fill the entire space of the inner display, whereas unoptimized apps will have black borders.

Oct 5 • 10:15 PM EDT • Technology • macrumors.com

Apple invites developers to submit iPhone Duo-ready apps to the App Store

With the iPhone Duo launch fast approaching, Apple is now accepting submissions of iPhone Duo-optimized apps and games built with Xcode 27.1.

Oct 5 • 8:52 PM EDT • Technology • 9to5mac.com

Scientists finally see how nature moves energy so efficiently

Researchers have captured key steps in a chemical reaction that helps nature transfer energy with remarkable efficiency. Ultrafast X-rays revealed how changes involving electrons and protons are closely linked to the rearrangement of surrounding water molecules. Because similar reactions drive photosynthesis and other energy-conversion processes, the technique could help scientists develop better catalysts, fuel cells, and flow batteries.

Oct 5 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com

What control! Zidane oozes class during France match 🎥

Zinedine Zidane has reasons to make fans optimistic about the future of the French national team.And on Monday (5), he gave fans another reason to rise from their seats at the Stade de France.During t...

Oct 5 • 7:56 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Wisconsin voters to decide limits on governor’s partial veto power

LA CROSSE, Wis. (WXOW) – Wisconsin voters will see three proposed constitutional amendments on their Nov. 3 ballot, including one dealing with the governor’s partial veto power.

Oct 5 • 6:24 PM EDT • Politics • wxow.com

The Harvard Crimson (@theharvardcrimson)

24 likes, 0 comments - theharvardcrimson on October 5, 2026: "Caroline B. Kennedy ’80 introduced the Institute of Politics’ 60th anniversary forum Thursday, marking her first known public appearance at the Institute since she resigned from its Senior Advisory Committee more than six years ago. Kennedy — the daughter of President John F. Kennedy ’40, to whom the IOP is dedicated – stepped down as the committee’s honorary chair in 2020 amid concerns over the IOP’s diminished independence, declining programming, and tensions with Harvard Kennedy School leadership. Full story linked in bio. 🖋: Jen L. Phan and Mirei S. Saneyoshi 📷: Grace E. Yoon".

Oct 5 • 6:15 PM EDT • Politics • instagram.com

AI startup offers tools to minimize flight delay losses

Oct 5 • 5:48 PM EDT • Business • cnn.com

The Case for Hope for Washington Nationals Ahead of Offseason

With the offseason arrived, why there's reason for optimism surrounding the Washington Nationals this offseason

Oct 5 • 5:38 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

College of Ag Sciences clubs get philanthropy boost from visiting ag company

Three clubs in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences got a recent boost from a new donation from Pivot Bio, a company specializing in products that optimize crop production through specific nitrogen delivery.

Oct 5 • 5:02 PM EDT • Science • psu.edu

How to Watch Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent Season 2 Premiere

Watch Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent live with TV channel, start time and streaming info. Stream Season 2 Premiere on Fubo — no cable required.

Oct 5 • 3:47 PM EDT • Entertainment • fubo.tv

Mass. business confidence rises in September but remains pessimistic

Massachusetts business confidence rose modestly in September after a sharp decline in August.

Oct 5 • 3:34 PM EDT • Business • wbjournal.com

Doyon Foundation Selects New Executive Director

Doyon Foundation selected Geraldine “Geri” Simon, a Doyon, Limited shareholder from Allakaket, as the nonprofit’s Executive Director.

Oct 5 • 2:11 PM EDT • Business • akbizmag.com

Google's Mysterious New Fitbit Just Got a Lot More Real

The Fitbit Edge has a screen and a similar collection of sensors to the company's recent screenless wearable, according to new leaks.

Oct 5 • 1:50 PM EDT • Technology • gizmodo.com

Enabling, Denying, and Spiking the Proverbial Political Football

ANDOVER TOWNSHIP – Republicans are claiming victory over a proposed data center. But it really isn’t that simple. As one critical observer noted on a Stop Andover Data Center social media page: It was the all-Republican township committee that “opened the door (to a data center) in the first place.” This is a local issue to be sure,[...]

Oct 5 • 1:41 PM EDT • Politics • insidernj.com

Darling completes sale of sausage casings business to SARIA

Sale positions company for continued growth and value creation potential while optimizing portfolio and reducing debt.

Oct 5 • 12:43 PM EDT • Business • feedstuffs.com

Northwell Health lays off 'limited number' of workers across the organization

The health system, which employs over 100,000 statewide, did not specify where cuts were made.

Oct 5 • 12:25 PM EDT • Health • newsday.com

Nutritional countermeasures to spaceflight studied at URI

KINGSTON, R.I. – Oct. 5, 2026 – As humans spend longer periods of time in outer space and venture further from Earth, it’s increasingly important for scientists to learn how varied gravity levels affect muscle function and muscle loss, and how those effects can be counteracted or minimized. Theodoros Pavlidis, a second-year doctoral student who […]

Oct 5 • 12:19 PM EDT • Health • uri.edu

Dennis Hastert, speaker disgraced by sex abuse, dies at 84

Dennis Hastert, whose rise to U.S. House speaker in 1999 was as unexpected as the criminal conviction that sullied his reputation and sent him to prison years later, has died.

Oct 5 • 12:03 PM EDT • Entertainment • thederrick.com

Dennis Hastert, House speaker sullied by abuse case, dies at 84

Dennis Hastert, whose rise to US House speaker in 1996 was as unexpected as the criminal conviction that sullied his reputation and sent him to prison years later, has died. He was 84.

Oct 5 • 10:13 AM EDT • Politics • chicagobusiness.com

Jeffries says House Democrats aiming to repeat 2018 sweep by flipping Trump districts

The Democratic Party is working to expand the map by going on offense in Republican-held districts, while President Donald Trump hits the trail in a red-state sprint to boost voter enthusiasm and shore up support from his base.

Oct 5 • 9:18 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org

CD Cuarte, the first opponent in the Copa del Rey

Girona FC will visit CD Cuarte, an Aragonese team from the Tercera Federación, in the match corresponding to the first round of the 2026/2027 Copa del Rey. The single-elimination match will be played...

Oct 5 • 8:10 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Lexology Index Recognizes Five Hecker Fink Partners in 2026 Business Crime Defence Guide

Hecker Fink Partners Shawn Crowley, Jenna Dabbs, Mike Ferrara, Sean Hecker, and Amy Jeffress have been recognized in the Lexology Index guide for Business Crime Defence. The 2026 guide honors leading lawyers worldwide who “stand out among peers for their exceptional work representing companies, corporate officers, and individuals in criminal litigation arising from their business activities.”

Oct 5 • 8:00 AM EDT • Business • heckerfink.com

Scientists reveal what seven days of fasting does to the human body

Scientists found that prolonged fasting triggers major changes throughout the body, but many of the most interesting effects only appeared after about three days without food. The results suggest fasting may influence health in ways that go beyond weight loss and could eventually inspire treatments that mimic its effects.

Oct 5 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com

Reclaiming 'Health Sovereignty': EU Gastein Forum Confronts A Fragmenting Global Order

Health, long treated as a sanctuary of diplomatic consensus, has entered an era of high politics and ideological division. Leading the closing panel of the EU Health Forum Gastein (EHFG) on Friday (2 October), session chair Ilona Kickbusch, founder of the Global Health Centre at the Graduate Institute in Geneva, highlighted how recent votes at the UN General Assembly demonstrate that nation-states increasingly split and vote instead of searching for consensus.

Oct 5 • 7:29 AM EDT • Health • healthpolicy-watch.news

The Optimist: A statement win and a much needed rest

The Panthers head into a much needed bye week with head held high

Oct 5 • 6:58 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Yale School of Medicine On the Science of Childhood Anxiety, Say, Anxiety Disorders Are the Most Common Mental Health Challenges In Youth

Credit: Matt Bradbury October 5, 2026 - By Isabella Backman - Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health challenges in youth. Left untreated, they can disrupt the lives of both children and their families. The good news is that with intervention, most children will overcome these conditions. Across Yale School of Medicine, scientists are working to understand anxiety at every level, from common anxious behaviors to molecular biomarkers in the brain. They are using their findings to develop and disseminate new evidence-based treatments for childhood anxiety. Today, the go-to treatment for childhood anxiety disorders is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This is a form of psychotherapy that teaches children skills for confronting anxious thoughts and helps them practice managing situations that cause anxiety. While it is the gold-standard treatment backed by considerable scientific evidence, up to 50% of children will not see sufficient benefit from CBT alone. Wendy Silverman, PhD, Alfred A. Messer Professor in the Child Study Center, co-directs the Anxiety and Mood Disorders Program alongside Eli Lebowitz, PhD, associate professor in the Child Study Center. One of their main interests is learning how to improve outcomes beyond CBT. “We’re developing cutting-edge, research-based knowledge that can reduce the suffering that anxiety causes children and their families,” says Silverman. Changing parent behavior YSM experts are investigating how to improve CBT outcomes for children by involving the parents. Silverman’s research has uncovered two main components of parent intervention that improve childhood anxiety: not enabling children to completely avoid the things that make them anxious and taking steps to enhance their autonomy. Parents may unintentionally reinforce their child’s anxiety by allowing them to avoid what makes them anxious. They also may unintentionally limit the children’s sense of autonomy by being overly intrusive. “One of the things that we take pride in is that we’ve focused on trying to understand what parents need to do, and to test our ideas and see if changing the parents’ behaviors is enhancing the effects of CBT,” Silverman says. “Our findings thus far suggest that they do." As much as CBT can be helpful, it can also be challenging to get one’s child to do the necessary steps for CBT to work. This is one important reason why Lebowitz created a novel intervention program for parents named Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE). Existing intervention programs often teach parents to act as therapists for their child, such as training them on how to practice breathing exercises. “It makes sense, but this doesn’t work very well in practice,” says Lebowitz. “And part of the reason, I think, is that it’s not easy to get your kid to do things, especially if they’re not excited about doing it.” SPACE is unique because it focuses entirely on parent involvement and changing parental behavior—children are not involved in the sessions. For example, parents learn how to use supportive messages that convey confidence that their child can tolerate and manage distress. “It might sound like a parent saying to a child, ‘I get that this is really hard for you, but I know that you can handle it,’” Lebowitz says. The program also works with parents to identify the ways in which they are accommodating anxious behaviors. “We’ll pick one thing that parents are doing that is an accommodation and help them make a detailed plan for how they’re going to change that,” Lebowitz explains. Treating Anxiety in Children and Adolescents Much of the existing research on SPACE has focused on parents of children under age 14. Ongoing studies are now exploring its use with parents of older teens. “Both anxiety and accommodation can interfere with normative developmental shifts during the teen years, including increased autonomy and individuation from parents,” says Rebecca Etkin, PhD, associate research scientist in the Child Study Center. “In this sense, SPACE may be particularly well-suited for anxious teens and their parents. We want to see whether it is effective during this distinct developmental window.” Unfortunately, many families in need of CBT face barriers, including limited availability of services and geographic constraints. One way to improve access is digital interventions. Silverman and her team are developing an evidence-based digitized intervention program for parents that they can access directly from their computer or smart phone. “The work we’re doing will be one of the very few parent interventions that is digitized and importantly tested for effectiveness,” she says. Creating interventions for anxiety-related challenges Silverman and Lebowitz recently received a generous gift to develop and test other interventions that help parents reduce other child anxiety-related behavioral and emotional difficulties, such as restrictive eating and unexplained somatic symptoms. One of these projects in particular focuses on understanding the risks of social media and its potential benefits, including offering a sense of connection. “A lot of research has focused on the idea that social media is harmful and the less of it the better,” says Lebowitz. “But we actually see is that this is not quite right—there are negatives, but there are also positives. So, we’re trying to get a little bit more nuanced of a picture.” The team is working with teens with social anxiety and their parents over an extended period to better understand their social media habits and how their anxiety levels affect engagement with different platforms. The teens will answer questions sent to an app on their phones about mood and social media usage in an effort to capture emotional responses as they unfold. “We hope to develop interventions that can help make the best of social media while protecting against the more problematic effects,” Lebowitz says. The brain’s role in anxiety Researchers are also testing therapies to address anxiety at the neurological and molecular levels. In collaboration with Dylan Gee, PhD, professor of psychology in Yale's Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and Hilary Blumberg, MD, John and Hope Furth Professor of Psychiatric Neuroscience at Yale School of Medicine, Lebowitz and Silverman are using brain imaging to identify changes in a child’s brain before and after parents enroll in SPACE. In one study, children viewed anxiety-inducing images while undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); the researchers conducted scans with and without the children’s parents nearby. Before SPACE, children’s brains were better able to activate the regulatory circuitry needed to turn off an anxious response when their parents were nearby. But after SPACE, children could activate this circuitry even without the parent around. “As parents work on gradually reducing some of their accommodations, you can see a child get better at regulating their own fear system in the brain,” Lebowitz says. “It’s remarkable.” Research into the molecular underpinnings of anxiety can also inform new childhood anxiety treatments. In a recent study, Lebowitz, Silverman, and Flora Vaccarino, MD, Harris Professor in the Child Study Center, discovered that a protein known as fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2) could be protective from the toxic effects of stress. FGF2 levels in children and their parents were linked to the children’s risk of developing anxiety and depression, the study showed. The findings could help explain why some children who are exposed to early life trauma such as poverty or abuse are more prone to developing mental health disorders. And FGF2 could be a target for treatment. “This is very novel because it starts to give a clue to what is the molecular chain that connects those lived experiences to the actual psychological outcomes,” Lebowitz says. New ways to study and treat childhood anxiety Michael Crowley, PhD, associate professor in the Child Study Center, collaborates with Silverman and Lebowitz to study the role that attention plays in development and maintenance of childhood anxiety. There is a large body of research that shows that anxious children, like anxious adults, are prone to focus on threatening stimuli such as angry faces compared with neutral faces. This has led to innovative interventions that involve attention retraining. The idea is that if experts train children to look away from threatening stimuli, it may reduce their anxiety—especially children with social anxiety who are most prone to attend to threats. The researchers have just completed a clinical trial for attention retraining with 10- to 14-year-olds with social anxiety disorders and are currently analyzing the findings. Besides this innovative attention retraining research, as Crowly notes, “I like to design tasks that are engaging to kids,” Crowley says. “My goal is to assess something without the kids knowing what we are assessing.” With this goal in mind, Crowley has created a virtual game, named Boom, to study threat processing in children with anxiety disorders. The game is similar to that of hot potato—the child and three digital players take turns virtually passing a ball to each other’s gloves. At some point, the ball turns into a bomb, and as the bomb lands in each player’s glove, the outline of the glove turns yellow. The goal is to avoid having the bomb go off in your glove. What isn’t obvious is that the game is designed to measure different types of threatening stimuli, both ambiguous and direct. In the game, the direct threat occurs as the bomb is traveling towards your glove. The ambiguous threat is the yellow outlined glove as it is unknown where the bomb will travel next. While children play the game, Crowley’s team measures their brain activity using electroencephalography (EEG). The researchers have discovered that in kids with anxiety, the brain reacts more strongly to ambiguous threats than it does in their peers, but less strongly to direct threats. They believe that the initial abnormally large brain response to not knowing where the bomb is going impairs the brain's ability to properly respond when the threat is actually traveling the child’s way. “The brains of children with anxiety are unable to differentiate between threats you need to do something about and those that are not your problem.” Michael Crowley, PhD, develops innovative games for studying anxiety in children and adolescents.Credit: Matt Bradbury Based on these insights, Crowley hopes to study whether interventions like attention training could restore appropriate threat processing. Crowley’s team is also working on a test called the Balloon Risk Avoidance Task, which evaluates risk-taking and avoidance behaviors. It features a digital balloon that is full of air and about to burst. Kids have six seconds to let air out of the balloon. The more air they let out, the less risk they face that the balloon will pop. But at the same time, the balloon becomes less valuable as it deflates. “The more air you keep in the balloon, the more points you get,” Crowley explains. So far, the researchers have found that when the balloons pop unexpectedly, teens with social anxiety show distinct brain responses. Studying these responses can help psychologists understand the underlying pathways driving the various manifestations of anxiety. The genetics of anxiety When Thomas Fernandez, MD, associate professor in the Child Study Center and of psychiatry, was still in training, there was a lot of excitement about understanding the genetics associated with autism spectrum disorder. Since then, scientists have identified around 250 genes associated with autism. The genetic contribution to anxiety disorders, on the other hand, has historically received less attention. Anxiety is less heritable than autism, but the genetic contribution for anxiety disorders that emerge in childhood may be higher than for anxiety disorders overall. While scientists estimate the heritability of anxiety disorders in general to be around 30% to 50%, some studies suggest higher heritability for certain childhood-onset anxiety presentations. “I saw firsthand how researchers in the field went about finding vulnerability genes for autism,” Fernandez says. “So, we’re using a very similar playbook for childhood anxiety.” “I saw firsthand how researchers in the field went about finding vulnerability genes for autism. So, we’re using a very similar playbook for childhood anxiety.” Thomas Fernandez, MD Associate Professor In the Child Study Center and in Psychiatry Now, Fernandez and Emily Olfson, MD, PhD, assistant professor in the Child Study Center, are studying children and their parents to identify genetic changes that are present in the child but not the parents, known as “de novo mutations.” “All of us have some de novo mutations—maybe about 50 to 100 sprinkled throughout the genome,” Olfson says. “But when they occur within the coding regions of genes, they can be really disruptive.” Previous research shows that people with autism have higher rates of damaging de novo mutations than the general population. In 2022, Olfson, Lebowitz, Silverman, and Fernandez published a study on 68 children and their families that found that children with anxiety had similarly high levels of these mutations. Studying de novo mutations can help point the researchers to where they should be looking for genes associated with anxiety. “The end game is using the genes to steer us toward the right part of biology that we can then target to come up with better treatments,” Fernandez says. Building on those findings, the team is now studying more families to better understand how these de novo mutations, along with other genetic and environmental factors, shape pediatric anxiety disorders. They recently received a National Institutes of Health grant to enroll 750 new families over the next five years. Olfson is the principal investigator, with co-investigators Lebowitz, Fernandez, Silverman, and Shuangge Steven Ma, PhD, department chair and professor of biostatistics at Yale School of Public Health. Neurodevelopment, Risk Genes, and Mental Health Conditions - The Olfson Lab Joel Gelernter, MD, Foundations Fund Professor of Psychiatry, is interested in how different anxiety disorders differ genomically. “We are studying social phobia, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder, working to understand why people differ in their risk to these specific anxiety disorders and evaluating various risk factors,” he says. Gelernter was recently involved in one of the largest studies to date of the genomics underlying anxiety disorder. The study included around 122,000 people with anxiety disorders and around 730,000 without. It found that some genetic differences associated with anxiety were linked to signaling that helps reduce overactivity in the nervous system. Many anxiety medications available today work by targeting this process. “It’s nice when the biology that you get out of a large genome-wide study ratifies things that we already know because that can help increase confidence in further findings from the study,” Gelernter says. Uncovering the neurobiology of psychiatric disorders John Krystal, MD, Robert L. McNeil, Jr. Professor of Translational Research and chair of the Department of Psychiatry, is interested in the neurobiology of psychiatric disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), of which anxiety is a major symptom. In the late 1980s, Krystal’s team discovered that the drug yohimbine activated symptoms in patients with PTSD. “This was the first time we could link a specific biological mechanism to the symptoms of PTSD,” Krystal says. At the time, he adds, this finding was highly controversial. “A lot of people felt that PTSD was a purely psychological syndrome that didn’t have an underlying biology.” Since then, Krystal has dived deep into understanding the neurobiology of PTSD to learn how to better treat it. His team is evaluating the use of ketamine and psychedelics. These would be among the first treatments to be developed specifically for PTSD. They may also be applicable for other disorders including anxiety disorders, Krystal adds. An important gap in PTSD treatment is the absence of biological tests that inform how to best help patients manage their PTSD symptoms. A doctor doesn’t diagnose cancer based on how they feel. Rather, they use tests of the biology of the cancer to determine the best course of treatment. “And we can’t do that in any psychiatric disorder other than Alzheimer’s disease,” Krystal says. “But now we are building a foundation for this approach to the treatment of anxiety disorders for the first time.” Source: Yale School of Medicine

Oct 5 • 6:44 AM EDT • Science • goldrushcam.com

HR org SHRM heads to court in latest workplace discrimination case

The HR trade group was sued over a claim that it mishandled a request to bring a service dog to the office.

Oct 5 • 6:35 AM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com

Apple and a Hacker’s Future

I was happy for years in Apple’s walled garden; with AI, however, their protections feel like limitations.

Oct 5 • 6:00 AM EDT • Technology • stratechery.com

To Make More Money, Rolls-Royce Is Aiming Higher on Price, Not Production

The luxury carmaker is expanding its factory in Britain to focus on rarefied custom cars. First up is a $3.5 million-plus electric roadster.

Oct 5 • 5:00 AM EDT • Technology • nytimes.com

Pee Dee business leaders worry poor infrastructure, workforce shortages will limit economic growth

Pee Dee business leaders have high ambitions to expand commercially and develop the region, but many also worry that utility and infrastructure issues could limit economic growth.

Oct 5 • 5:00 AM EDT • Business • postandcourier.com

Closed Business Day highlights importance of online security for businesses

On 5 October, the day after Open Business Day (an open door in hundreds of companies), the Centre for Cybersecurity Belgium (CCB) is calling on organisations and businesses to close their doors. Not to the public, but to cybercriminals. With Closed Business Day, the CCB is drawing extra attention to business cybersecurity.

Oct 5 • 3:18 AM EDT • Business • belganewsagency.eu

Rules analyst reveals game-changing referee mistake

Earlier this season, the Michigan Wolverines benefited from a controversial replay decision that put one more second on the clock, allowing for one last heave at the end zone, only for governing bodies to later conclude that protocol was not correctly followed. A similar situation happened this week at the FCS level. During Friday night’s…

Oct 5 • 1:39 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Northwell Health eliminating “limited number” of positions

The organization says the moves were necessary to maintain the stability of the organization in the currently challenging healthcare landscape.

Oct 5 • 1:31 AM EDT • Health • longisland.news12.com

Woody Marks scores for a second straight game in Week 4

Woody Marks limited to 22 total yards in Week 4 loss to the Cowboys.

Oct 5 • 12:46 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Ageless Novak Djokovic Stays Perfect in Beijing

Age is supposed to slow a tennis player down. Nobody has told Novak Djokovic. At 39, the Serb eliminated world No. 2 Alexander Zverev in the China Open quarterfinals and extended a streak in Beijing with no Open Era precedent. Djokovic is now 32-0 at the tournament. No player in the Open Era has won …

Oct 5 • 12:13 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Tennessee business leaders remain optimistic about state’s economy

More than half of Tennessee business leaders absorbed higher fuel costs rather than passing them on to customers, according to a new survey by the Boyd Center for Business and

Oct 4 • 11:30 PM EDT • Business • greenevillesun.com

49ers get optimistic Kyle Juszczyk update after scary knee injury

San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk seems to have avoided the worst after injuring his knee against the Denver Broncos.

Oct 4 • 10:14 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Accenture Completes Acquisition of Mjølner Informatics, Bringing Deep Software Engineering Expertise for Energy, Utilities and Manufacturing Clients in Denmark

Accenture has completed its acquisition of Mjølner Informatics from Norlys, strengthening Accenture’s software engineering, digital engineering and embedded software development capabilities in Denmark.

Oct 4 • 8:00 PM EDT • Business • newsroom.accenture.com

Can HRT help prevent dementia? New research suggests it might

As debate continues over whether hormone replacement therapy can protect against dementia, new studies suggest timing and formulation are key.

Oct 4 • 7:15 PM EDT • Health • scmp.com

Juan Soto Is Impressed By Rookie Who Mimicked His Move

Oct 4 • 4:40 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Trump Is Promising Health Care Checks Before the Midterms. How Far Will They Go?

Trump’s promised rebates come as Americans worry about health care costs. For Medicare recipients, a one-time payment may offer limited relief from rising premiums.

Oct 4 • 4:38 PM EDT • Health • time.com

Marcus Mariota productive before injury

Commanders QB Marcus Mariota sees limited work before suffering injury

Oct 4 • 1:46 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Hassett blames ‘partisan pollsters’ for pessimistic consumer sentiment and says ‘the economy is booming’

Oct 4 • 11:07 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

Puka Nacua expected to handle regular workload

Puka Nacua not expected to have any limitations in return to action

Oct 4 • 10:29 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

How Americans’ Financial Health Is Faring In The “K-Shaped” Economy

Hey all, Jason here. Money20/20 is still two weeks away, but I’ve already started packing (not procrastinating for once!). My calendar is already filling up with various sessions I want to catch, meetings, and of course happy hours, dinners, and other side events. If you’ll be in Vegas and want to catch up, let me know by replying to this email, and we can try to find a time amidst the chaos of the Venetian. A big if not totally unexpected piece of news dropped on Friday: the Independent Community Bankers of America, a trade group that represents smaller U.S. banks, filed a lawsuit against the OCC and Comptroller Jonathan Gould, arguing that the regulator’s move to grant trust bank charters to firms seeking to use them to conduct substantial non-fiduciary activities exceeds the authorities granted to the OCC by Congress. I haven’t had time to fully digest the legal filing or speak to folks in my network about it, but you can expect to see coverage and analysis on it in next week’s newsletter. Subscribe or Support by Upgrading The NerdCon agenda just dropped. It’s stacked. Partner content: Nubank built an AI-first bank. Chime built its own banking core. Figure and Valon are rebuilding the mortgage stack. At NerdCon, you’ll hear from the people behind those bets: what they chose, what they learned, and what they’re still figuring out. The agenda is live, with leaders from Nubank, Chime, OpenAI, Remitly, Mercury, Figure, Valon and more. Follow the mainstage conversations, bring the problem your team is wrestling with to a hands-on workshop, or pull up a chair at a roundtable. Pick your quests. Meet us in San Diego, November 18–20. Fintech Business Weekly readers save 20% with code FBW20. Explore the Agenda Things To Know & Other Good Reads Federal Reserve Board finalizes changes to enhance the transparency and public accountability of its stress test and reduce volatility in its stress test-related capital requirements (Federal Reserve Board of Governors) FDIC Announces Conclusion of Independent Monitorship (FDIC) Modernizing Financial Regulation: Initial Observations from eSLR (Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman) The Data Version of Godzilla versus Kong: FRED Takes on AI (Fed Governor Christopher Waller) Financing the AI buildout (Brookings) Q3’26: Rules for Banks but Not for Crypto (Fintech Takes Banking) The Inevitability of Local Stablecoins (Lombard Notes) Delusions of AI Governance: The Human-in-the-Loop Comfort Blanket (Fintech Snark Tank) Stripe agrees to acquire Parafin to expand revenue opportunities for platforms and help small businesses grow (Stripe) Listen: Fighting Fraud in the Age of AI, with SEON’s Tamas Kadar (Fintech Business Weekly) How Americans’ Financial Health Is Faring In The “K-Shaped” Economy If there is one overarching theme across the economy and politics in the U.S. at the moment, it’s “affordability.” The term is vague enough to encompass a panoply of factors shaping Americans’ day-to-day lives: rising costs for the hallmarks of being “middle class,” including healthcare, housing, childcare, and education, inflation and rising interest rates, and a job market with the specter of AI hovering over it. At the same time, policy shifts under the Trump administration have resulted in reduced subsidies to those who get health insurance under the Affordable Care Act and new restrictions on qualifying for Medicaid and SNAP, the impacts of which have yet to be fully felt. These factors are contributing to declining consumer confidence and general dissatisfaction with the economy, despite continuing GDP growth and stock market records. This divergence is encapsulated in the idea of the “K-shaped” economy, in which a small proportion of Americans have seen their wealth balloon, while the majority of American households struggle to preserve the lifestyle they have. Perhaps the greatest determinant of which branch of the “K” a household is on is whether their wealth and income are primarily derived from employment vs. from assets. Nearly two decades of low interest rates and, more recently, elevated rates of inflation have benefited asset owners, while those whose income is primarily or solely derived from labor have largely seen real purchasing power stagnate or decline. This is reflected in recent Bureau of Labor Statistics data showing that labor share of U.S. GDP — the fraction of economic output that accrues to workers as compensation in exchange for their labor — dropped to just 52.8% in Q2 2026, the lowest since the BLS began keeping records. In 1947, approximately 2/3rds of economic output accrued to workers; even as recently as 2001, labor’s share of GDP was 64.1%. Against this backdrop, we’ve seen the rise of more credit and credit-like products: cash advance apps, “no-fee” overdraft, earned wage access, and buy now pay later, which are often used as small-dollar short-term borrowing mechanisms to meet immediate consumption needs or pay other bills (eg utilities, cell phone, other debt payments). With the markers of a middle class existence and, increasingly, basic financial stability seemingly out of reach for many, it should be no surprise there’s been an increase in “financial nihilism,” something industry peers like Alex Johnson and Frank Rotman have discussed and analyzed the roots of. The explosion of gambling and gambling-adjacent products and services — often marketed under the guise of being an “investment” — is inextricably intertwined with the rise of financial nihilism. Crypto, sports betting, and, more recently, prediction markets offer an escape or even hope of sorts, like a contemporary, digital version of a scratch-off lottery ticket, while leaving the overwhelming number of people who use such products worse off. Share of Households That Are Financially “Vulnerable” Ticks Up The Financial Health Network’s 2026 Financial Health Pulse® report adds context on how American households are faring. (I linked to this report in last week’s newsletter, but wanted to take time to further unpack the data in the report this week.) The Financial Health Network publishes the report annually, providing insight into how Americans’ financial circumstances are changing over time. The 2026 report is derived from a survey fielded in April and May 2026. The report leverages survey responses to assess indicators of financial health across spending, saving, borrowing, and planning/protecting and to determine a zero to 100 “FinHealth” score. Those with scores between 0 and 39 are considered “Financially Vulnerable,” consumers with scores ranging between 40 and 79 are defined as “Financially Coping,” and those with scores of 80 to 100 are “Financially Healthy.” The report found that moderate improvements in 2025 were reversed, with the share of respondents considered financially “vulnerable” rebounding to 17%. The longitudinal data reflect the impact of pandemic-era programs, like expanded unemployment, cash stimulus payments, and pauses of federal student loan payments. The positive impacts of those programs, as reflected in the Financial Health Pulse reports, had largely disappeared by 2023. While pandemic-era inflation — to be fair, in part caused by the various support and stimulus measures — had come down from as high as 9% in 2022, it has rebounded since the start of Trump’s second term, with tariffs and energy market disruptions owing to the war in Iran pushing prices back up. Specific indicators in the survey that deteriorated from 2025 to 2026 include the share of respondents spending less than their income over the past 12 months, the share paying all bills on time over the past 12 months, the share that have a manageable amount or no debt, the share that are “moderately” or “very” confident their insurance is adequate to cover them in an emergency, and the share that “somewhat” or “strongly” agree that their household plans ahead financially. Unsurprisingly, lower- and moderate-income households are more likely to struggle to pay their bills on time and have any funds leftover to save. The share of low-income households whose income exceeded their spending dropped from 35% in 2025 to 31% in 2026, while the share of upper-income households whose income exceeded expenses remained unchanged at 63%. Households with student loans or revolving credit card debt reported having “a bit more” or “far more” debt than was manageable at rates far higher than those not carrying these types of debts. The share of those with student loan debt indicating their debt load was too high to manage increased from 50% in 2025 to 55% in 2026, while the share of those with revolving credit card debt saying the same ticked up from 51% in 2025 to 54% in 2026. Households that had student loans were markedly more likely to be financially “coping” or “vulnerable” vs. those without student loans. In 2026, 27% of households with student loans were considered financially vulnerable, a jump of 6% points vs. 2025. Households without student loans saw just a 1% point increase (not statistically significant) in those considered financially vulnerable. Households’ perception of the affordability of categories of goods and services paints a stark picture, with less than one-fourth considering higher education affordable, about a third deeming childcare affordable, and less than half viewing healthcare as affordable. Fintech Business Weekly is made possible by the generous support of paying subscribers — bringing you independent analysis of banking, fintech, and crypto without fear or favor. You can support my work by becoming a paying subscriber if you aren’t already. Paying subscribers enjoy: access to the entire archive of nearly six years of newsletters extended versions of the weekly newsletter, with additional content and analysis and (for founding member tier) quarterly personal 1:1 fintech Q&A / strategy calls with me, tapping into my unparalleled knowledge of the intersection of banking and fintech and experience working in the sector, including helping to launch Goldman Sachs’ retail bank Marcus Support Fintech Business Weekly You can also support Fintech Business Weekly by sponsoring a newsletter or podcast, putting you in front of 93,000+ of the most influential decision makers in banking, fintech, and crypto. Learn more about sponsor opportunities or request a media kit by dropping me an email. Democratic Senate Report Highlights How Iran Uses Tether to Evade U.S. Sanctions Iran uses stablecoins, specifically Tether, to evade sanctions, fund regional proxies, and to purchase military drones, a report released last week by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations says. The report was authored by committee ranking member Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and the minority staff. Crypto and stablecoin proponents will often push back on criticism that criminals make use of these assets by arguing that, on an absolute dollar basis, far more illicit funds flow through traditional banking systems and payment rails than via crypto and stablecoins. And while that is likely true, it elides the reality presented in news story after news story: whether state actors — Russia, Iran, North Korea — or criminal groups, those looking to engage in illicit transactions increasingly favor stablecoins and, specifically, Tether (USDT). The report from the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations released last week adds context to how Iran uses Tether has a lynchpin in its shadow banking system. The report analyzed 846 wallets that have been sanctioned or targeted for seizure, finding that 84% of them transacted exclusively or primarily in Tether. The ability to create near limitless, anonymous wallets and to move funds effectively instantaneously and irreversibly have made crypto a favored financial mechanism for bad actors. Stablecoins solved key drawbacks of bitcoin, namely, the original cryptocurrency’s highly volatile value in dollars. And while Tether (the company) has the technical ability to “freeze” or destroy funds, the company is often limited and reactive in its approach to doing so, the Senate report argues. Tether, which is nominally based in crypto-friendly El Salvador, “has stated that its compliance with OFAC sanctions is ‘voluntary’ and that it follows ‘OFAC guidelines,’” the Senate report says. Owing to these favorable attributes, Tether “became a primary cryptocurrency for Iran, Hamas, Hizballah, and the Houthis beginning in 2023 and has expanded in scale since,” according to the report. Tether’s role in Iran’s shadow banking system, the report says, is enhanced by crypto exchanges like Bybit, Kyrrex, OKX, Gate, and Binance, and through “over the counter” exchanges and hawala networks. The consequences of these financial flows aren’t hypothetical. The Senate report links Tether as a funds transfer mechanism to Iranian proxies in the region, including Hizballah, the Houthis, and Hamas. Tether has also been used to make payments to secure components necessary to manufacture drones, the report says. The report concludes by arguing that “[s]tablecoin issuers with a significant nexus to the United States, particularly those that offer dollar-denominated stablecoins, should be subject to American sanctions law rather than being allowed to hide behind foreign jurisdictions.” Stablecoin issuers like Tether must be held accountable for repeated failures to prevent illicit finance and sanctions violations by law enforcement, the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and OFAC, the report argues. [Paying Subscriber Exclusive] OUSD Goes Live, Make Your Own Neobank, U.S. Sanctions Russia’s A7 Network As “Transnational Criminal Organization” OpenUSD, the stablecoin issued by the Open Standard consortium that includes Stripe, Visa, Mastercard, core providers, crypto firms, and numerous banks, went live last week. Social commerce platform Whop raised eyebrows in fintech by offering creators on its platform the ability to launch their own neobanks, which the company describes as “great businesses that are easy to run,” in just 15 minutes. And OFAC and FinCEN target Russia’s “shadow banking” A7 Network — more on these stories after the paywall.

Oct 4 • 8:59 AM EDT • Health • fintechbusinessweekly.substack.com

Germany XI vs Greece – Predicted lineup and team news

Germany will meet Greece again in the UEFA Nations League on Sunday, with Jürgen Klopp’s side aiming to make up for their defeat in the opening meeting between the two teams.Klopp’s time in charg...

Oct 4 • 7:31 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

TV and streaming viewing picks for October 4, 2026: How to watch MLB Postseason, NFL Week 4 and WNBA Semifinals

All Times Eastern College Field Hockey Stanford at Louisville — ACC Network/ESPN Unlimited, noon College Football ACC Huddle: Final Score — ACC Network, 8 a.m. SEC Football Final — SEC Network, 8 a.m. The Final Drive — Big Ten Network, 10 a.m. Inside College Football — CBS Sports Network, 11 a.m. College Football Final —…

Oct 4 • 7:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Colorado’s mobster democracy

The issues on your ballot aren’t just questions about trains, taxes and spending. They are exhibits in a larger case: dishonesty, intimidation and political bullying have become standard operating procedure at the Colorado Capitol. The message from lawmakers is increasingly simple: Vote however you like — we’ll make sure it turns out the way we […]

Oct 4 • 7:00 AM EDT • Politics • coloradopolitics.com

At Supreme Court: Can oil companies be forced to pay for climate woes?

The outcome of the Colorado case could affect California's 2023 lawsuit against the five largest oil companies and other similar litigation.

Oct 4 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • latimes.com

Costa’s coffee shops return to profit with iced drinks and matcha on the menu

Costa Limited reports operating profit of £20m in year to 31 December 2025 after losses of £13.5m in 2024

Oct 4 • 5:50 AM EDT • Business • theguardian.com

Blue Jays Handed Clear Offseason Message on Pirates’ Oneil Cruz

After reaching the World Series last year, the Toronto Blue Jays failed to reach the postseason this year. As a result, the Blue Jays’ front office will need to bolster the team if it wants to return to the Fall Classic. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had an awful 2026 season by his standards, hitting .260 while […] The post Blue Jays Handed Clear Offseason Message on Pirates’ Oneil Cruz appeared first on HEAVY.

Oct 4 • 5:21 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Roma make contact for Endrick’s loan in January

Endrick is back on Roma’s radar ahead of the winter transfer window. The Brazilian continues to find limited playing time at Real Madrid and is reportedly considering a January departure to revitali...

Oct 4 • 4:45 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Gemini app limiting what models free & AI Plus users can access, AI Pro adding Deep Think

Following the compute-based usage change in May, Google is introducing limits on what Gemini models free and AI Plus users can access.

Oct 3 • 4:57 PM EDT • Technology • 9to5google.com

Noah Fant listed as questionable for Week 4

Saints TE Noah Fant questionable for Week 4 after three limited practices

Oct 3 • 3:18 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Valorant Player Banned Due To Previous GPU Owner’s Cheating

In a wild coincidence a German player was penalized over the playing habits of their Ryzen 7's previous owner, claiming that nothing short of replacing the entire PC will overcome Riot's infamous anti-cheat detection

Oct 3 • 3:06 PM EDT • Technology • kotaku.com

Israel boss shuns politics before Republic of Ireland clash

Israel boss Ran Ben-Shimon insisted he is “not dealing with any politics” ahead of his side’s behind-closed-doors Nations League meeting with the Republic of Ireland in Serbia on Sunday. Republic manager Heimir Hallgrimsson’s press conference on Saturday morning in Backa Topola ended abruptly following a confrontational conclusion, after an Israeli journalist accused Irish players of calling their opponents "monkeys" in Hungary, where the reverse fixture was held.

Oct 3 • 1:48 PM EDT • Politics • sports.yahoo.com

Lewis Hall Allowed To Shine Under Matthias Jaissle’s New System

The England international is thriving as a dynamic playmaker, trading rigid defensive duties for a versatile role that maximizes his technical composure and aggressive attacking instincts.

Oct 3 • 12:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Rams’ plan for Puka Nacua revealed ahead of Eagles game

Puka Nacua will return for Los Angeles Rams vs. Philadelphia Eagles, but Los Angeles may limit his workload.

Oct 3 • 11:10 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Chapel Bell Curve:

You’ve got to do something before kickoff. And if you’re looking to maximize your preparations for today’s matchup with Vanderbilt that something should be listening to Nathan and Yara preview the Commodores. Among other audio goodness in this episode you’ll find the following: As always we ask that you like, rate, subscribe, and patreonize the show wherever […]

Oct 3 • 10:45 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Spain: Massive protests after housing bills voted down

Organizers estimated that 500,000 people turned out in the streets of Madrid to demand affordable housing. Similar protests were held in around 50 other Spanish cities.

Oct 3 • 10:18 AM EDT • Politics • dw.com

A $28B hemp THC industry is fighting to save itself from a looming federal ban

America’s multibillion-dollar market for impairing hemp products faces potential elimination before the end of the year.

Oct 3 • 10:01 AM EDT • Business • seattletimes.com

$28B hemp THC industry fights to save itself from looming federal ban

America’s multibillion-dollar market for impairing hemp products faces potential elimination before the end of the year

Oct 3 • 10:00 AM EDT • Business • abcnews.com

Why 'East of Eden' Star Mike Faist Looks Familiar

Mike Faist stars as Charles Trask in the Netflix limited series adapatation. Here's where you may have recognized him before.

Oct 3 • 9:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • purewow.com

A growing number of House Republicans privately believe they won’t win the House

Four weeks to Election Day, a growing number of House Republicans privately fear their chances of holding onto the majority are vanishing and have begun focusing on how to limit the size of a potential Democratic wave.

Oct 3 • 6:30 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

Anthropic Is Aiming To Transform Healthcare—Here’s How

Anthropic is pushing Claude into prior authorization, medical records, drug discovery and global health. A physician explains what it means for doctors and patients.

Oct 3 • 6:00 AM EDT • Health • forbes.com

U.S.-Russia Talks on Ukraine Now Involve an Oil Deal Tied to Trump Allies

President Vladimir V. Putin brought up a sale of Russian energy assets with President Trump’s envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, pushing a deal that raises new questions about conflicts of interest.

Oct 3 • 5:02 AM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

Culture refocuses attention on the Palestinian cause: ‘It has always been central to political struggle’

Musicians’ tours, film festivals and literary forums keep the flame for Gaza alive and spark debates about the limits of free expression and the concepts of censorship and cancellation

Oct 3 • 12:00 AM EDT • Politics • english.elpais.com

Smaller walnut crop may be good news

USDA announced Oct. 1 that 2026 California walnut production is forecast at 680,000 tons, down 16% from the 2025 production of 809,000 tons. The preliminary estimate of producing bearing acres

Oct 2 • 9:30 PM EDT • Business • hanfordsentinel.com

What Are Reasonable Expectations for Aday Mara?

Aday Mara is an exciting name for many Oklahoma City Thunder fans, and a limited role this season shouldn't put a damper on that.

Oct 2 • 8:20 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

European Leaders Mostly Optimistic About Paramount-WB's Future

European industry leaders are cautiously optimistic now that Paramount is about to complete its takeover of Warner Bros., but there are many unknowns.

Oct 2 • 5:10 PM EDT • Entertainment • variety.com

Noah Fant limited in practice on Friday

Noah Fant is raising the potential of him playing in Week 4.

Oct 2 • 4:52 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Zay Flowers listed as questionable

Ravens WR Zay Flowers questionable after a limited practice Friday

Oct 2 • 4:36 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

‘HomePad’ coming: Will Apple hold an October special event?

With Apple reportedly planning to unveil new products on October 13, here’s when the company could announce an event, based on the timing of its previous October announcements.

Oct 2 • 4:31 PM EDT • Technology • 9to5mac.com