World: President Obama has stepped into the Syrian civil war, asking Congress for $500 million to train and equip “appropriately vetted” members of the Syrian opposition. The danger of sending equipment to Syria is that weapons can fall into the wrong hands. There are many opposition factions, some of which are part of the push to topple the government over the border in Iraq. It also risks the US taking sides in what is partly a religious conflict in both countries.

Ukraine: President Petro Poroshenko signed a trade deal with the European Union that had been opposed by Russia. Failure to sign the deal was a major factor in the overthrow of Poroshenko’s predecessor.

Futebol: US soccer lost to Germany 1-0 in the World Cup but survived the “Group of Death” with a 1-1-1 record to advance to the “knockout” round of 16 teams. It’s too complicated to explain, but the US is able to stay in the tournament because Portugal beat Ghana, eliminating both of those teams.

Beautiful Game: Uruguay’s soccer star Luis Suárez was suspended for nine matches and banned from the game for four months after he bit Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini on the shoulder during a World Cup match Tuesday. On the video he looks like a lunging killer whale attacking a seal pup in a National Geographic documentary. It’s the third time Suárez has been caught biting an opponent. One comedian suggested his punishment should be to have his teeth pulled.

The Supremes: In a flurry of decisions before heading to the beach, The Court yesterday struck down the Massachusetts law that barred protesters from being with 35 feet of the entrance to an abortion clinic. The law had been enacted to protect clients from harassment, but it was challenged based upon a First Amendment right for abortion opponents to speak with women about to have the procedure.

The Court also challenged presidential power, ruling that President Obama’s three recess appointments to the National Labor Relations board were unconstitutional because the recess was too short. But the majority said recess appointments are OK in a break of 10 days or more. Obama has resorted to recess appointments because congressional Republicans have blocked his appointments. Writing for the minority, Justice Antonin Scalia scolded, “The majority practically bends over backwards to ensure that recess appointments will remain a powerful weapon in the president’s arsenal,”

Selfie: GoPro, the maker of small action-video cameras used by adventurers, documentary makers, and the self-obsessed, went public yesterday and ended the day valued at $4 billion. The GoPro was invented by a surfer in 2004.

The Obit Page: The gentle former senator from Tennessee, Howard Baker, known as “the Great Conciliator,” has died at 88. Conservative, but not overtly partisan, Baker was against school busing for racial integration but in favor of fair housing and voting rights legislation. He briefly ran for president and served President Reagan as Chief of Staff. As a senator during the Watergate hearings Baker was the one who asked the piercing question that became a national catchphrase, “What did the president know, and when did he know it?”

Drink Up: A New York Court yesterday refused to re-instate the Bloomberg ban on large sugary drinks in New York City. Mayor Michael Bloomberg imposed the ban to fight obesity among New Yorkers. But you can now go back to getting a Big Gulp in the Big Apple.

Futenote: We’re not big fans of the game, but we’d like to point out that conservative valkyrie Ann Coulter wrote in a column that “Any growing interest in soccer can only be a sign of the nation’s moral decay.”

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