Cheat Sheet - The U.S. Doesn't Know Who to Hit in Iraq

Read This, Skip That .... June 16, 2014 GUESSING GAME 1. The U.S. Doesn't Know Who to Hit in Iraq The U.S. military has the power to launch an air strike against Iraqi insurgents in just a matter of hours. The problem, reports Kimberly Dozier and Eli Lake, is that it's not certain who to attack. Current defense officials say the Pentagon and CIA do not know who exactly makes up the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). Now the intelligence community is scrambling to determine who is the enemy and what can be done—legally and militarily—to control it. Read it at The Daily Beast COOLING THE HEAT 2. Spurs Crush LeBron and Co. for NBA Title On Sunday night, the San Antonio Spurs proved revenge is a dish best served cold. They dominated the NBA Finals to freeze back-to-back defending champions the Miami Heat in their tracks. In the fifth game of the series, the Spurs cruised to a 104-87 victory over LeBron James and the Heat. Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard earned the Most Valuable Player award, nabbing 29 points for his team in the third game against the Heat. It was redemption for the Spurs, who lost to the Heat in the finals last year. The team had a 14-point average margin of victory for each game of the NBA Finals (even with a loss), which was a championship series record. "It just makes the journey even more worth it. It was worth all the pain," said the Spurs' Tony Parker. "It's so sweet to win a championship the way we did." Read it at Spurs Nation GOOD FROM BAD 3. U.S., Iran Near Talks on Iraq Could Iraq bring two longtime foes together? With ISIS taking control of Tal Afar and claiming it executed 1,700 Iraqi Shiites, Iran and the United States are planning to conduct direct talks starting this week to address the carnage and rapid terrorist gains in Iraq. The talks come as the West is seeking to reach a deal by late next month to curb Iran's nuclear program. U.S. officials say the two sides might use a diplomatic channel through Vienna for the Iraq talks. Read it at BBC UNEXPECTED BENEFIT 4. Italy's Transgender Ruling Gives Green Light to Civil Unions When Alessandro Bernaroli became Alessandra, he created a legal dilemma that may have inadvertently ushered in civil unions for same-sex couples in Italy. Bernaroli's marriage to another Alessandra was annulled against her will after she transitioned to become a woman, but Italy's high court has allowed the two women to remain married. Barbie Latza Nadeau writes that it is a sign that Italy is slowly moving away from the Catholic Church's refusal to even recognize same-sex unions. Read it at The Daily Beast VENTI NEWS 5. Starbucks Makes College Free for Baristas This may make dealing with a customer demanding a grande, non-fat, soy cinnamon dolce latte worth it. Starting in the fall, Starbucks is offering free tuition for baristas who work 20 hours a week and enroll in Arizona State University's online courses in their junior and senior years. If they enroll as freshmen and sophomores, they are eligible for $6,500 on average in scholarships at a school where tuition runs between $480 to $543 per credit hour. The new, no-strings-attached program could make a massive difference in the lives of 135,000 Starbucks workers. Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz will announce more details of the plan along with ASU President Michael Crow and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on Monday. Read it at AZ Central MISSING Netanyahu: Hamas Abducted Three Teens Including an American citizen. RECOVERY F1 Driver Michael Schumacher Out of Coma After December ski accident. CLAUSTROPHOBIA Hoarder Dies Beneath Her Own Clutter Floor collapsed. HORRIBLE 48 Killed Watching World Cup in Kenya Islamic militants blamed. VICTORY Santos Wins 2nd Term as Colombia's Prez Will continue talks with guerrillas. GET The Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of news and must-reads from across the Web. You'll love the featured original stories on politics, entertainment, and more from The Daily Beast's diverse group of contributors. GET Culture Beast Weekly cultural recommendations from The Daily Beast. Best 'Game of Thrones' Season Yet by Andrew Romano Tiny Penises, Big Hearts in Brooklyn by Tessa Miller Spurs Star's Father's Day Triumph by Marlow Stern

ABOUT US | CONTACT US | SUBSCRIBE Copyright 2014 The Daily Beast Company LLC 555 W. 18th Street , New York NY 10011 Privacy Policy

If you are on a mobile device or cannot view the images in this message, click here to view this email in your Web browser. To ensure delivery of these emails, please add thedailybeast@e2.thedailybeast.com to your address book. If you have changed your mind and no longer wish to receive these emails, or think you have received this message in error, you can safely unsubscribe here.