August 10, 2026

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Yo. Did you hear about the guy who hooked up his hamster’s wheel to Strava? That little critter has been clearing up to 6 miles per night since he started on July 29. We’re concerned that he’s running on the wheel of time, though, because it’s definitely been getting darker earlier since then…

—Holly Van Leuven, Brendan Cosgrove, Neal Freyman

In today’s newsletter, we’ll look at:

Buc-ee’s launching a lot of trademark lawsuits
The US “low-keying it” with Iran
Berkshire Hathaway spending Warren Buffett’s cash horde

Markets: Year-to-Date

Nasdaq

26,690.62

+14.84%

S&P

7,757.64

+13.32%

Dow

54,036.93

+12.43%

10-Year

4.660%

+49.7 bps

Bitcoin

$65,003.77

-25.72%

Hims & Hers

$31.59

-2.71%

Data is provided by

*Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 11:00pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean.

Markets: All three major indexes are coming off their best week in months, thanks to a strong showing led by tech stocks on Friday. This week, it’s all about prices and the US consumer, the backbone of the country’s economy (more on that later).
Stock spotlight: Over the past six months, Hims & Hers Health is up more than 63%, but still down year to date. The telehealth company will report earnings today after the closing bell.

Three chains in a beaver suit

Buc-ee’s goes beast mode on trademark protection

Brandon Bell/Getty Images

We thought the only Angry Beavers were Norbert and Daggett, but it might be time to add Buc-ee to the list. Buc-ee’s has garnered a lot of attention for a series of lawsuits it’s filed regarding alleged trademark infringement on its beloved buck-toothed boi.

Beaver says ‘leave it’

The convenience mart-slash-gas station chain based in Texas recently thrilled international World Cup fans, but public sentiment has since shifted.

On July 26, John Oliver dedicated a segment of Last Week Tonight to the barrage of lawsuits Buc-ee’s has lodged against smaller businesses. These include:

Suing the clothing brand Born United for an apparel line featuring a beaver strikingly similar to the Buc-ee’s mascot carrying an automatic weapon. The brand pulled the offending products from its site.
A dog park in Missouri called Barc-ee’s, which shut down as a result of the lawsuit.
Choke Canyon Bar-B-Q, a San Antonio, TX-based restaurant chain with a circular logo featuring a cartoon alligator. A jury in Houston, TX, ruled it was too similar to Buc-ee’s.

The suit that may have garnered the most negative PR, though, is the one it lodged against the Mickey’s convenience store chain in Ohio with 42 locations:

Mickey’s has been operating since 1982, the same year the first Buc-ee’s opened in Clute, TX.
The Ohio chain’s logo boasts a cartoon moose, which has apparently coexisted with the Buc-ee’s beaver in the convenience-mart-sphere for 35 years without a prior dust-up.
But in February of this year, two months before Buc-ee’s opened its first Ohio location, Team Beaver sued Mickey’s, saying that its moose was too similar because it also featured a “cartoon animal facing right with wide eyes and a smile.”

When asked about the case by the Wall Street Journal, a Buc-ee’s representative said the company doesn’t comment on ongoing litigation.

Zoom out: The governor of Ohio wants Buc-ee’s to let it be…aver, and thinks it should drop the suit. Mickey’s CEO said in a statement, “We intend to move forward as the Mickey’s you’ve always known…we aren’t going anywhere.” However, the case is still pending, and a settlement conference is scheduled for Sept. 9.—HVL

Reader Poll

Do you think Buc-ee’s is being overly aggressive with its trademark lawsuits?

Yes, do less, Buc-ee’s.
No, protecting the brand is everything.
Maybe, but I’d like more court verdicts to decide.