The Daily Briefing highlights the news of the day and research that reveals the spirit of the day.
The Daily Briefing is a newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning that provides biblical insight on today's news.
Top News
6. Saudi nuclear deal in doubt as Trump adds new condition regarding Israel (WaPo)
“Saudi Arabia would need to normalize relations with Israel to receive the U.S. nuclear technology it has long sought, President Donald Trump said Thursday, adding a new and potentially deal-ending stipulation to an agreement signed just a day earlier. The nuclear deal — which was fiercely opposed by Israel and others concerned about nuclear proliferation — is “totally subject” to Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords, Trump said in a social media post, referring to the effort from his first term to normalize relations between Israel and Muslim-majority countries from which it had long been estranged. The Saudis have thus far refused to join the accord.
“It was the latest whiplash-inducing policy shift from the White House, which had faced-down considerable political opposition to push forward with the Saudi deal. The Biden administration also discussed a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia, but tied any agreement to opening diplomatic relations with Israel, a move that has the potential to reshape dynamics in the Middle East, but which remains distant.”
"What you need is the courage to act...even when the path isn't clear," according to Jay Yang. In his book You Can Just Do Things, Yang asserts that opportunities “rarely come gift-wrapped. They don't announce themselves with fanfare or arrive on a silver platter… The truth is, most traditional paths aren't designed for speed. They promise stability but deliver stagnation. They ask you to wait your turn in a system built for slow, linear progress while the most meaningful opportunities are taken by those willing to step outside the lines."
This is a bold move by the president, and a public one, which may be just what is needed, according to Yang. "People don't just want results. They want to see how things are made. By working in public, you build trust, visibility, and momentum...all before you 'arrive.'"
Fortune favors the bold? From Jonathan sneaking out of the camp to attack a Philistine outpost alone to Esther approaching the king without being explicitly summoned, the Bible is littered with examples of bold actions that were followed by unexpected results. This is a bold action from Pres. Trump, but as Yang notes: "Most people don't miss opportunities because they're not capable, they miss them because they're afraid." (1 Sam. 14, Est. 4-5)
5. Trump administration imposes new tariffs on dozens of countries over forced labor concerns (CBS News)
“The Trump administration will impose tariffs of around 10 percent on goods from more than 80 countries on Friday, its latest effort to put in place an expansive protectionist policy that has been repeatedly challenged in court.
“The tariffs will range from 10 percent to 12.5 percent and take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, replacing a global 10 percent duty set to lapse at the same time. Mr. Trump issued that earlier tariff in February, after the Supreme Court struck down duties he imposed last year.
“The duties will be issued under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the president to impose tariffs on foreign countries that engage in unreasonable or discriminatory trade practices. The administration has cited the failure of foreign countries to pass or enforce laws banning the importation of goods made by forced labor into their own countries, saying that disadvantages U.S. businesses that do follow such laws.”
This is a real problem, but is this move a real attempt to address it? Walk Free estimates that as of 2023, roughly 28 million people were in some form of forced labor worldwide. The International Labor Organization highlights how this number is growing, indicating an increase of 2.7 million in the number of people in forced labor since 2016.
Scott Lincicome of Cato documents how under Section 301, USTR is supposed to investigate first, decide later, and—if all else fails—impose countermeasures to push a foreign government to fix its “unfair” trade practice. However, recent comments from the president, the treasury secretary, and the US trade representative all seemed to suggest that the case would produce a certain result before it was even finished. “One can argue about whether a given case’s findings and recommendations are correct, but we can all agree that—as plainly stated in the law itself—the conclusions aren’t supposed to be written in advance… For a document meant to justify tariffs on more than $1 trillion of trade with 60 countries (including several close U.S. allies), the report is nearly devoid of evidence.”
The idea of slavery shocks the conscience because it is antithetical to the gospel. Traffickers target and enslave victims in hopes of using them repeatedly, whereas our God rescued us and paid the ultimate price for us once and for all. Instead of loving them as neighbors, they abuse them by selling them to their neighbors. Like the exploits of the satraps in Daniel, I have questions about the true reason for the deployment of tariffs, but none about the need to eliminate forced labor. (Dan. 6, Heb. 10:1-18)
4. West Virginia state lawmaker arrested on sex abuse charges with minor (ABC News)
“A West Virginia state delegate was arrested and charged with sex assault Wednesday after federal investigators said he allegedly used social media platforms to entice and sexually engage with a teenage student at the school he taught, according to a federal complaint. Republican Del. David Elliott Pritt, 36, who was the assistant majority leader, was charged with coercion and enticement of a minor and sexual assault in the third degree following a two-week-long investigation by Homeland Security, according to the criminal complaint. U.S. Marshals took him into custody, the complaint said.
“The 15-year-old victim's family contacted law enforcement on July 9 and investigators soon discovered the alleged interactions between the girl and Pritt, who had a second job as a teacher, the criminal complaint said.”
Every 9 minutes, officials find evidence for a claim of child sex abuse here in the US. One in 9 girls under the age of 18 experience sexual abuse or assault at the hands of an adult. There are an estimated 500,000 online predators active each day.
Is this grooming, which describes how an abuser will use manipulative behavior to gain access to a potential victim? The Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network identifies 5 components to grooming: selection (identify possible victim based on ease of access or perceived vulnerability), isolation (abuser attempts to physically and emotionally separate victim from group), trust development (abuser shares secrets and other information to create a close relationship), desensitization (harmless touching which escalates into more explicit behavior), and minimization (abuser makes actions seem normal to keep suspicions minimal).
When the disciples turned the children away, they distorted the earthly image of heaven. Our actions should make our neighbors homesick for heaven. This elected official welcomed the children and then allegedly abused them. He, like Onan, didn’t just distort the heavenly image but abused those whom the God of heaven died for. (Gen. 38, Mt. 19:13)
Cultural News
3. LinkedIn is the ‘most AI-saturated platform,’ new study suggests (Fast Company)
“The amount of AI-generated content you scroll through might be far greater than you think, according to a new study by the AI detection platform Pangram. On X, a quarter of long-form content was fully written by AI, but another 23% was AI-assisted. Substack was the long-form platform with the lowest rate of AI-written content, yet more than one-fifth of its posts were still flagged as AI-generated or -assisted. But LinkedIn had the highest proportion of AI-generated pieces, the Pangram data suggests. More than 40% of LinkedIn posts longer than 250 words were flagged as being fully written by AI. And while LinkedIn made up for a third of Pangram’s scanned content, posts on the platform accounted for nearly two-thirds of all the AI content flagged.”
Thank You Very Much, Mr. Roboto? You can say that again, Styx. Interestingly enough, a recent study analyzed the digital activity of more than 10,000 workers. They found that when people adopted AI, their life became more intense, not less. The AI bots did more, which allowed them to do even more.
In a must-read column in The Atlantic, David Brooks identifies 3 types of people relative to their use of AI: the Productive Passengers, the Reluctant Optimizers, and the Mental Marathoners. The Productive Passengers are those “with a low need for cognition will tend to use AI to think less. Their great gain is that AI will make them more productive because it makes tasks so easy. Their great loss will be that AI will diminish their mental capacities because it makes tasks so easy.” The Reluctant Optimizers have “a medium need for cognition and will understand that AI might hollow them out… They will resolve, earnestly and with good intentions, to not let themselves fall victim. But in the crowded and stressful rush of everyday life, they will get sucked in.” Then there are the Mental Marathoners, who will “put in the effort because they want to accomplish things—they want to expand their capacities… Some people hate the stress stirred up by that situation, but it’s what mental marathoners live for.”
Your attention has never been more valuable... In this AI-slop world, social media will attempt to capture your time, but our God has died to redeem your time. Just because you can read something doesn’t mean you need to read everything. -- especially on LinkedIn. As David Foster Wallace observed: “Learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to.” (Pro. 2:4-5)
News You Can Use
2. Officer speaks out after dramatic burning car rescue
Watch it here. “Whoever has a bountiful eye will be blessed, for he shares his bread with the poor.” (Pro. 22:9)
1. 32/35 students failed this professor's midterm using AI because he secretly hid some white font in his text.
Watch it here. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Tim. 2:15)
