Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Boris Johnson asks to suspend parliament. The UK prime minister is expected to again request a prorogation from the Queen that lasts until Oct. 14, days before a crucial European Union summit where he would need to get his new Brexit deal signed off. Unlike last time, a suspension probably won’t be ruled illegal.
The EU’s antitrust chief has a job interview. Margrethe Vestager will be grilled by European lawmakers who need to approve her new role as a vice-president of the European Commission. The new role would expand her tech responsibilities.
The US Supreme Court rules on a landmark LGBTQ case. If the court finds that current employment anti-discrimination laws cover sexual orientation and transgender identity, the ripple effect could have an impact on housing and education as well.
While you were sleeping
Donald Trump threatened to destroy Turkey. After abruptly announcing he would withdraw US troops from northeast Syria on Sunday, the president vowed he would “totally destroy and obliterate the economy of Turkey” if it does anything considered to be “off limits.” The withdrawal received widespread condemnation in the US as it’s seen as leaving the Kurdish minority vulnerable to a Turkish attack.
The Hong Kong bourse dropped its bid for the LSE. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing said it would not proceed with a $39 billion bid to take over London Stock Exchange as it could not get the target’s board on side with its unsolicited takeover. The LSE had firmly rejected an earlier offer.
The US blacklisted Chinese companies over Xinjiang. The commerce department added 28 companies to the Entity List, which restricts their ability to do business with American firms. These include tech companies such as Hikvision and SenseTime, whose software has been used as part of the surveillance apparatus to crack down on China’s Uighur Muslim population.
Saturn overtook Jupiter as the “moon king.” Scientists discovered 20 new moons orbiting Saturn, bringing the total to 82, three more than Jupiter. The public is invited to name the new moons.
Quartz Membership
Welcome to the age of the gray zone, where states use “intimidation and coercion in the space between war and peace,” as the US National Defense Strategy Commission defines it. For a time, deaths from armed conflict fell around the world, but now, driven by the complex interaction of global power politics and local ideologies, the world is seeing its bloodiest years since the 1980s. Quartz reporter Tim Fernholz breaks it down in his state of play for this week’s field guide on the future of war.
Quartz Obsession
Ebola is inevitably fearsome—but maybe it’s not inevitable. One vaccine currently in development is even showing a 90% success rate if administered early. But perhaps more important is basic medical care, without which there’s a 90% rate of mortality. Ebola isn’t airborne and victims are only contagious when symptomatic, so the best prevention is improving health systems more generally. Get the prescription at the Quartz Obsession.
Matters of debate
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Automating entry-level jobs kills careers. Machines don’t just take jobs—they take away a stepping stone into an organization.
Free speech isn’t absolute. Placing reasonable limits protects people from hate speech and the real world violence it inspires.
Grown-ups can’t help hating modern music. Their brains are just less primed to take in new tunes.
Surprising discoveries
African countries were dubbed by bumbling European explorers. Marco Polo mis-recorded “Mogadishu” as “Madageiscar,” and a whole other country was named.
South Park “apologized” to China. After the show was censored in China following an episode mocking Chinese censorship, its creators said, “We too love money more than freedom and democracy.”
Britain’s public health service is treating game addiction. The National Health Service just opened a clinic in London to help those between 13 and 25 who are addicted to video games.
Tree thieves terrorize US forests. The ne’er-do-well lumberjacks sell bigleaf maple trunks on the black market for a handsome fee.
Apple is censoring the Taiwan flag. In a recent update to iOS 13.1, Apple removed the Taiwanese flag emoji from its keyboard for users in Hong Kong and Macau.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, contraband maples, and oldies to hi@qz.com. Join the next chapter of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Isabella Steger and edited by Tripti Lahiri.