Amazon Settlement, Huntington's Treatment, and a $1M Skateboard

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Adam Rogers
September 26, 2025

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Amazon will pay a record $2.5 billion to settle FTC charges over deceptive Prime membership practices. The settlement includes $1 billion in penalties, plus $1.5 billion to consumers who were tricked into enrolling or blocked from canceling between 2019 and 2025.
The FTC accused the company of making it difficult to buy items without subscribing to Prime, using checkout buttons that enrolled customers without clearly stating this. Canceling required navigating a complex three-page process that company leadership refused to simplify despite internal concerns.
Prime generates over $12 billion annually with more than 200 million members paying $139 yearly. The company admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to the settlement after a two-year legal battle. The case is the largest consumer protection penalty in FTC history.

Doctors successfully treated Huntington's disease for the first time, slowing the fatal brain condition by 75% in patients. The gene therapy delivered during 12-18 hours of brain surgery targets the toxic protein that kills neurons. Results show that what normally declines in one year now takes four years.
The treatment uses a modified virus to deliver genetic material into the brain, turning neurons into factories that produce therapy to prevent their own death. Patients expected to need wheelchairs are still walking, and one who was medically retired returned to work.
Huntington's kills brain cells, causing symptoms that resemble dementia, Parkinson's, and motor neuron disease combined. The hereditary condition runs in families with a 50% inheritance rate and typically appears in the 30s or 40s before proving fatal within two decades. It affects 75,000 people in the UK, US, and Europe, and hundreds of thousands more carry the gene.

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was sentenced to 5 years in prison for accepting illegal help from Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi during his 2007 campaign. The judge denied his appeal request, making him likely the first modern French president to serve jail time.
He was convicted of leading a criminal conspiracy after the court found his team secretly met with Gaddafi's representatives to seek campaign funding. However, prosecutors couldn't prove Libyan money actually reached his campaign accounts. Nine associates were also convicted.
Sarkozy denies wrongdoing and called the verdict 'a scandal.' Despite multiple legal troubles since leaving office, he remains influential in conservative politics and recently met with the new Prime Minister.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called an unusual meeting of generals and admirals from worldwide for next week, but won't explain the rare gathering. (More)

Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters will leave his job to run a conservative group aimed at destroying teachers’ unions after pushing Bible teaching in schools. (More)

US fighter jets intercepted four Russian warplanes flying near Alaska on Wednesday, the ninth time this year. However, Russia stayed in international airspace. (More)

Russia extended its fuel export ban through year-end after Ukrainian drone attacks on refineries caused shortages and higher gas prices. (More)

Polish climber Andrzej Bargiel became the first person to ski down Mount Everest without oxygen after reaching the summit on Monday. (More)

Drones forced Danish airports to close on Wednesday night across multiple cities. Officials called the coordinated flights a "hybrid attack" on infrastructure. (More)

US stock markets closed lower on Thursday (S&P -0.50%, Nasdaq -0.50%, Dow -0.38%). Tech stock selloff drove the market down for a third consecutive day. (More)

President Trump approved a $14 billion TikTok deal Thursday that lets the app stay in America while giving US investors majority control. (More)

Starbucks will close hundreds of stores across North America and Europe while laying off 900 office workers as part of its turnaround plan. (More)

Eight MLB teams have clinched playoff spots, including division winners Seattle, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles, plus Toronto, New York, Chicago and San Diego. (More)

The 45th Ryder Cup begins this morning with Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Thomas facing Tyrrell Hatton in the opening foursome. (More)

Sean Combs returned to court Thursday seeking to overturn his prostitution conviction, arguing he was just a consumer, not a pimp. (More)

Duke researchers discovered that children experiencing stress as young as age 9 face higher risks of heart disease and diabetes as adults. (More)

NASA's new Earth-mapping satellite captured detailed radar images of Maine's coast and North Dakota farmland in its first pictures from space. (More)

Microsoft stopped providing cloud services to an Israeli military unit after investigating reports it used the technology for mass Palestinian surveillance. (More)

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