Trump is a sell out.

So, let me get this right. It is okay to buy petroleum from Russia while they build jets capable of attacking NATO.

It is okay to purchase petroleum from Russia while Iran is in the crosshairs.

What is wrong with this picture?

Trump makes deal with Putin for diesel (click here)

...“I have just concluded a highly successful discussion with President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, wherein it was agreed that Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace, another 500,000 Tons during the month of November, and 1,000,000 Tons immediately thereafter,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social....

Trump is putting everything at risk in order to try to bribe the American people. Now, it is diesel. Before it is $90 to seniors. All that is supposed to buy their votes? I don't think so. The entire mess the USA is in when it comes to petroleum products has many failures by the government, but, the absolute biggest failure is Trump entering into a war with Iran. How shortsighted is this guy anyway?

Trump rather hate Canada and carry on as if his dreamscape of owning the Western Hemisphere and support Russia than do the right thing.

The sustainable, scalable potential in Canadian biofuels (click here)

The primary opportunities in Canada lie in renewable and drop-in fuels. Scalable, sustainable production is made possible by Canada's immense and diverse renewable biomass resources, ranging from agriculture and forest products to dedicated energy crops and waste-based feedstocks.

These natural advantages are significantly bolstered by an established energy industry, substantial government support and innovation within the sector.

Coupled with a clear national strategy to boost production, firms operating in Canada are positioned for growth across the entire renewable fuels value chain....

The Republicans really are the enemy. Better to support Russia and buy it's petroleum than support an EV business with significant investments. 

Honestly, Russian oil and Data Centers before allies and Americans.

Talk about attacking car companies, the Republicans have the record hands down.

February 3, 2026

Last year was a tough one for electric vehicles in the United States. (click here) The Trump administration and Republicans in Congress tossed out a $7,500 tax credit for E.V. purchases, giving buyers just a few months’ notice. They also challenged California’s plan to phase out sales of new gas-powered cars by 2035.

Amid it all, Ford took a $19.5 billion hit to its profits to cover a major strategic shift as it reconsidered its E.V. strategy. Tesla lost its place as the top seller of E.V.s worldwide, and its domestic and European car sales slumped.

The E.V. pullback has left a nascent U.S. battery industry with a shrinking market to sell its products. Now, some companies are eyeing a new line of business that could play a critical role in helping renewable energy power the grid — if they can beat Chinese manufacturers on cost.

Ford is now attempting to pivot, repurposing car battery production lines to make bigger batteries for data centers and utilities. Tesla is expanding efforts in the same space. Neither company responded to an interview request.

Today, we look at car companies’ big battery dreams, and why a complicated snarl of tariffs, trade wars and tax credits that have slowed their E.V. plans just might end up boosting grid-scale battery production....

While Hegseth is destroying the USA jets, Russia is building more.

October 9, 2026

Russia’s Aerospace Forces (click here) received their second batch of newly produced Su-34 (NATO: Fullback) fighter-bombers this year on Wednesday, Oct. 7, according to the manufacturer the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), part of the Rostec state-owned consortium.

“The timely fulfilment of this state defense contract is a key task of the UAC. Our workforce carries out this important job with honor,” UAC CEO Vadim Badekha was quoted as saying.

He added that the two batches, the earlier delivered in July, would not be the last this year, saying, “These aircraft are the basic strike power of our frontline aviation and demonstrate their efficiency in real combat conditions.”...

Nidal Hasan is a Palestinian. Hegseth is trying to incite fear, anger, and hatred.

Executions of any kind should not be viewed by anyone except those that will validate the death on the death certificate.

October 8, 2026

By Amy B Wang and Aoife Walsh

The Defense Department (click here) said in a statement Thursday that the firing squad execution of convicted Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan will be live-streamed for the public to watch.

The announcement came after earlier comments Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made indicating he wanted the execution to be public.

“He’s going to get a firing squad of soldiers. As it should be,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in an interview with far-right political activist Jack Posobiec. “We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it. That it’s public. Because people need to understand that there’s serious consequences for these types of things.”...

His parents live in the West Bank. It is mental cruelty of others that cared for him at any time in his life. It is simply wrong.  His family did not commit the crime and should not be subject to the execution. That is disgusting. Any public display of his execution will inspire martyrs and not only Hamas either.

November 9, 2009

By Lulu Garcia-Navarro 

In the West Bank, (click here) Palestinian relatives of the alleged Fort Hood shooter are shocked and saddened by the mass killings in Texas. Born in Virginia, Nidal Malik Hasan made his first visit to the Palestinian territories a dozen years ago, and had been in touch with relatives in the town of El Bireh on numerous occasions since then....

I swear this is the truth.

I never have problems with my phone. So, I don’t know which of you bozos are listening in on my conversations about my over active bladder but you are welcome to do so. If you have suggestions from the Surgeon General pass it along.

But, guys, really; it is just me. I am not a member of a vast conspiracy to overthrow the government like all of you. So, you can relax. I simply put my opinions out there for what they are worth to others because I care deeply about my country, the people of the world, but, most of all the moral aspect of living that seems to be missing by those that lead in the USA. Morals and ethics. They may or may not be law, but, if everyone lived by them we wouldn’t need laws.

These UK guys are awesome.

October 6, 2026

A seventh man was arrested (click here) Tuesday over a major incident last month at a British military airbase used by the United States to launch strikes on Iran, police said. The arrest came a day after President Donald Trump said the United States had withdrawn all B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford because of "threats" he believed were linked to Tehran. A 22-year-old British male was arrested in London "on suspicion of preparation of terrorist acts", Britain's Counter-Terrorism Policing network said in a statement. Six men in their 20s have already been arrested and released on bail after three suspicious vans were stopped near the base in southwest England on September 27. FRANCE 24's Bénédicte Paviot reports from London.

This is another fine mess Trump has us in.

So, let me get this right. Hegseth is staging a movie with about 500 military guys that look like Hegseth running as if it is important while B1Bs are under threat from so far seven Iranians; and Hegseth and Trump's answer is to turn tail and run because they can't afford to replace a $31 million jet yet alone 12 of them (click here).

Iran won this round.

What was the issue in the first place? Parking B1Bs in the UK or Hegseth being stupid enough to believe they never needed protection like the jets and personnel in Jordan. Does Hegseth and Trump understand military vulnerability? Moving them back home was the best decision they could make but not because of seven Iranians, but, because Tehran may very well have missiles that can reach the UK.

Trump removed the best qualified leaders the USA had for our military and replaced them with men too worried about the vulnerability of the USA to refuse to do Trump's bidding. AND, the Republican House and Senate completely allowed such danger to our military and our national security.

March 5, 2026

Once again, (click here) Susan Collins sided with Donald Trump, voting against a war powers resolution that would have halted U.S. military action against Iran that Trump initiated without authorization from Congress.

Instead of defending Congress’s constitutional authority to assert a critical check on executive power, Collins chose to protect Trump – giving him broader authority to act without accountability....

Trump assassinated a Grand Ayatollah and at least 100 girls in a school on the compound completely unprovoked. 

So, Collins reconsidered about backing the Iran War and as Senate Appropriations Chair covered her butt by pretending the 60 day limit was important. If the 60 day limit was to be HONORED AS THE LAW DEMANDS, then why isn't it?

The facts about the Republicans and this president are obvious; they consider Trump above the law, including Collins. She does nothing but give lip service to the Rule of Law.

April 30, 2026
By Avani Kalra, NOTUS

Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (click here) voted Thursday to introduce a measure to curb the Trump administration’s military operation in Iran, a sign of wavering support among Republican lawmakers as the war is set to reach its 60-day mark at midnight.

Collins’ reversal comes as she is engaged in a tight contest to hold onto her Senate seat in Maine — a race that narrowed earlier Thursday when Democratic Gov. Janet Mills dropped out of the primary race.

Collins and Sen. Rand Paul were the two Republicans who backed the war powers resolution, along with all Democrats except Sen. John Fetterman. The measure fell short of the 51-vote requirement for it to proceed to a vote.

Collins has opposed a number of previous war powers resolutions on Iran since the operation began in February. She told reporters this week that “Congress has to act” if the conflict hits 60 days, which is the limit under the 1973 War Powers Act for a White House to secure congressional authorization.

Collins said in a statement after the vote that she would like to see the Trump administration lay out a plan to withdraw from the region....

“Further military action against Iran must have a clear mission, achievable goals and a defined strategy for bringing the conflict to a close,” Collins said. “I voted to end the continuation of these military hostilities at this time until such a case is made.”...

Giving Susan Collins the benefit of a doubt is not possible. She backs Trump past the 60 day expiration of his war powers and she is completely quiet about Hegseth's plans for women in the military.

Go home and have babies, ladies. Be good women, know your place. Marry your peers and get pregnant without birth control or abortion. Raise those babies to kill for the Republican war agenda. Indeed!

From disbanding a gender advisory board (click here) to misrepresenting women’s ability to meet combat standards, the defense secretary’s record shows a clear mission: push women out of service.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth made headlines when he summoned hundreds of senior military leaders to a military base in Quantico, Virginia and made troubling comments about equity in the military. President Donald Trump’s address to the generals was also alarming, calling for troops to be deployed in U.S. cities as “training grounds” and to fight the “enemy within.” The ACLU has denounced such deployments as an unlawful abuse of power.

Ask Tammy Duckworth and all the other women that served this country since it's inception if doing so is a feminist agenda. Go ahead, ask. Serving this country is about national defense and nothing short of it.

Thank you Susan Collins for standing up for the USA Constitution after the fact Trump came first. 

September 23, 2025
By Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart

...On Tuesday, (click here) a Pentagon spokesperson said Hegseth had decided to terminate the committee because it is "focused on advancing a divisive feminist agenda that hurts combat readiness, while Secretary Hegseth has focused on advancing uniform, sex-neutral standards across the Department."
The Committee is among the oldest advisory panels within the U.S. military and has submitted over 1,100 recommendations to Pentagon chiefs, with about 94% either fully or partially adopted, according to the committee's website.
"Recommendations have historically been instrumental in effecting changes to laws and policies pertaining to military women," it says....

Tennessee can no longer be the decision maker.

 A death sentence is one thing, a botched death sentence is another, and declaring a viable life brain dead is a violation of human rights as well as a violation of the law. No one is declared brain dead by accident. Who is waiting for her organs?

(click here)

I don't know what is going on here, but, the State of Tennessee is botching everything, not just a death penalty.

Christa Pike cannot be treated as a THING. She is not a thing. She is a human being capable of feelings. She has a conscience and I am sure she made her peace with her maker, but, her being declared brain dead opens up an entirely different venue of insult to this woman. 

When I worked in intensive care there was only one way of declaring a patient brain dead. An EEG was ordered by the attending physician after consulting with the family/significant other. That EEG had to be repeated on three consecutive days and read by a neurologist capable of declaring a person dead by brain death. There is just no way, unless there was complete incompetency (which is possible considering all the incompetency to date), for any neurologist to declare a person brain dead without proper protocols. It looks like conspiracy to commit murder against a prisoner already damaged by prison staff incompetency overseen by the Governor.

Regardless of how anyone views these circumstances, it is a completely different issue today and requires Christa to be transferred to a place safe for her habeas corpus.

This is new precedent. It cannot be taken lightly. This is about a prisoner on life support because the State of Tennessee insisted on carryout an execution even the prisoner knew would be botched. This is an outrageous reality. There needs to be court proceedings to find the way forward. I am sure some people see this as straight forward and execute the damn woman. WRONG. This is entirely a new set of circumstances without rules to govern the outcome. That means any other prisoner can face uncertainty in their sentence being carried out and there is the issue of declaring a prisoner dead when they are not. No magic worked on Christa Pike. She woke up because her mind was still viable. This is an outrage and carries enormous weight in the care prisoners are provided by any prison system. if this is treated with indifference and simply looked at as a method of ending a life, the State of Tennessee is too dangerous an administration to be considered responsible.

The victim's family can sue for damages, but, they cannot sue to demand a sentence to be carried out with such extenuating circumstances and precedent. There is a lot of pain and suffering here. Society needs to make sure that doesn't translate into danger to other prisoners.

Susan Collins

I don’t understand the doubt to replace her. She voted for an Associate Justice that justified his bad behavior on being drunk on beer. In voting for Bret Kavanaugh she disavowed the testimony of every brave woman that came forward. How could she do that with a clear conscience while actually believing Kavanaugh when he said Roe v. Wade was settled law. 

All those that went against Stare decisis to defeat Roe are not even following their own legal doctrine. Kavanaugh was proven to disregard respect for women and she voted for him anyway. It was an assault on decency and his promises to uphold a woman’s right

 to choose was a lie. Everyone knew that, why didn’t she?

Kavanaugh also professionally wrote some bizarre opinions before he became a Justice that lead to permission of the court we have now. The entire episode with Kavanaugh and this country is a lesson we should not forget.

Opps is not allowed anymore. Slipping off a moral platform that supports women’s independence is not allowed. 

The Democratic candidate was leader of his government of elected representatives and senators at a time when Maine had a ridiculously difficult governor. The Republicans ruined and are ruining the peoples’ sane and human American lifestyle and hope for their children. Oops is not allowed as justification for bad decisions.

Russian Plague Death?

The W.H.O. and the CDC should be chasing this down.

Christa Pike is conscious.

She is speaking. 

The drugs were injected into the subcutaneous tissue and deep epidermis where they acted as a slow release medication. As a consequence Christa had slow absorption of the medication and it kept her unconscious. They injected her twice. So there was twice the amount of drugs to absorb.

The death penalty is wrong to begin with and now Christa Pike’s reality makes it unconstitutional. I wonder what her mental anguish is now. Probably an incredible shock to realize her estimation of this reality before the attempts to kill her was spot on. 

$317 million

That is the cost of every one of the combat bombers returned to the USA from the UK. Hasn’t Hegseth lost enough bombers and jets for one lifetime. Americans can’t afford Hegseth’s poor judgement.

Is there an accurate count of the casualties HEGSETH caused? 

By the way, the Republicans are starting their last minute war dance to the elections. That is probably the real reason the jets are back on USA soil. No one can blow them or better said; no foreign cell can blow them up before elections. 

But, the B1B’s aside, the Republicans are throwing $1 billion into the midterms. Here come the glamorized lies. 

There is this, too.

(Click here)

The USA Coast Guard was fired upon at the border with Mexico. The Mexican President is demanding responsibility and an investigation. It is currently believed the shots were fired by the USA Border patrol. At any rate, the USA Coast Guard rightfully returned fire. No Coast Guard were reported to the public as injured. 

The "Manosphere" is not okay.

October 4, 2026
By Windsor Johnson

When Olivia Petter first saw the news (click here) about the sexual assault allegations at Cornell University, she was shocked by how familiar parts of the story felt for her.

"The more I found out, the more triggered I became," she said. "I think for me, the worst thing was seeing the group messages that these boys were allegedly sending to each other on the night of the alleged rape."

Reading those exchanges brought the London-based author back to boarding school in England, where she says older boys targeted her and her friends from the age of 13....

Factional Differences Within the Manosphere

The manosphere is divided into several distinct subcultures, each approaching the topic of women, consent, and sexual assault differently:

Incels (Involuntary Celibates): This is the most extreme wing of the manosphere. Academic studies and watchdogs like the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) have documented that within incel forums, extreme misogyny, violent rhetoric against women, and the normalization or justification of rape—including collective or structural violence against women—are frequently expressed.
Pick-Up Artists (PUAs): The PUA community focuses on manipulation techniques to secure sexual encounters. Critics and sexual assault advocates argue that PUA philosophy heavily emphasizes overriding a woman's boundaries ("Last Minute Resistance"), which directly blurs the lines of legal consent and can lead to the justification of sexual assault.
Men's Rights Activists (MRAs) and MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way): These groups generally focus on legal grievances, anti-feminism, or separating themselves from women entirely. Rather than openly condoning violence, these spaces are more likely to exhibit "rape culture" tendencies—such as systemic skepticism toward rape victims, heavy focus on false accusations, and shifting blame onto the victim.

Intersection with "Fraternity Culture" and Real-World Impact

Legal experts and sociologists frequently note a strong overlap between extreme manosphere ideologies and toxic male peer groups in real life.

The USA needs a woman president in order to return balance back from a hypermasculine culture that is out of control. The hypermasculine culture of the USA has destroyed women's rights to even control the health and well being of their own bodies.. Today women are being marginalized and forced to be thought of as baby machines, housekeepers, and the vessel of sexual satisfaction. It is basically a hate culture of women. Women are to know their place and stay in it.

Online misogyny (click here) is making its way into schoolyards, workplaces and intimate relationships. Learn more about where it comes from and how it spreads.

May 23, 2024

Ten years ago, (click here) a misogynist incel declared “war on women” before embarking on a deadly rampage in the beachside community of Isla Vista, California. On the evening of May 23, 2014, Elliot Rodger stabbed his two housemates and their friend to death before traveling to his ultimate target: a UC Santa Barbara sorority house. In his manifesto, he wrote that these women “represent everything I hate in the female gender.”

After he was unable to gain access to the sorority house, Rodger shot three women outside the house. He then proceeded to drive around Isla Vista, shooting at pedestrians and running others over with his car. Before finally killing himself, Rodger murdered six people and wounded 14 others....

If this is linked to Tehran, then they are POWs and not terrorists.

October 3, 2026

A dual U.K.-Iranian national arrested (click here) on suspicion of plotting a terror attack following a security incident at a U.S.-run military air base in England has been released on bail, authorities said Saturday.

The 25-year-old man was arrested Thursday in London on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts close to the RAF Fairford air base, which has been used by American bombers to strike Iran. He was the sixth person taken into custody and then released on bail as detectives investigate the incident.

British authorities have linked the incident to Tehran.

The five other men were not named, but police said they are all British nationals in their 20s and from London....

I think it is the same issue with the Houthis. These are not separate incidents. It is all related to the attacks by Trump on Iran. These events would not have happened if there was no dead Iranian people. The Shia Crescent encompasses many countries. It is the Iranian diaspora. They are defending their homeland. They have certain rights in their detainment as POWs. They can be deported to Iran.

POWs are supposed to be repatriated to their homeland. (click here) The UK should consider making their homeland safer by sending these men back to Iran.

To Americans it is an illegal war. To Iranians it is a war carried out in the deaths of many. To Iranians the muscle flexing of Hegseth only enforces the idea there will be more aggression and death to a country unable to defend itself. The Crescent is looking for ways to disarm the American military before their worst nightmares actually occur.

Iran cannot necessarily end the aggression of the diaspora even if it is encouraging it and the generals are directing it. That means negotiations are exceptionally complex in achieving a peace throughout the region. 

Trump insists on making empty promises to the American electorate while stealing money from the Treasury for political ads.

This isn't all he is doing. He is promoting the enlistment of men into the military through increase combat pay rates, but, at the same time he is increasing the cost of Air Force lodging rates to help pay for the spending elsewhere. The rate increase is global and will definitely effect families (click here). 

Why not increase pay rates across the board rather than just combat pay? It would seem combat is going to occur and it is an enticement to fight. Trump and Hegseth has planned a holy war. Americans will die. The plan involves attacks on Iran no different than the landing of D Day. There will be numerous deaths. 

October 3, 2026

By Melissa Golden

President Donald Trump (click here) is promising more payments to voters just ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections — this time, to more than 20 million seniors, giving them $90 each to help pay for Medicare premiums.

The announcement, made late Friday night by Trump on social media, comes after the president last month said about 1 million people would get rebate checks of $500 for Affordable Care Act premiums. He has also promised on the campaign trail to send every American adult $5,000 if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate in the midterm elections.

That pledge — which would require approval from Congress — would likely cost more than $1 trillion, adding to the deficit and worsening inflation.

Trump highlighted his $5,000 promise at a rally in Vandalia, Ohio, on Saturday night, and told supporters that 70,000 families in the state would receive the ACA rebates “within the next couple of days.” He also reminded voters about the $1,776 payments to military members, announced in December — though he mused that they should have been timed better....

October 1, 2026
By Cory Dickstein

Pentagon officials (click here) have approved a rare increase in special combat pay for all of the Defense Department’s troops serving in certain dangerous areas.

The Pentagon doubled its hostile fire pay rate from $225 per month to $450 per month and boosted its monthly cap for imminent danger pay from $225 per month to $275, according to a memorandum issued by Tim Dill, the Pentagon’s assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs. The changes became effective Thursday.

“Those who face combat deserve higher compensation that reflects the risks that they willingly undertake on behalf of our nation,” said Anthony J. Tata, the under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness. “Raising imminent danger and hostile fire pays for the first time in two decades is a step toward recognizing that sacrifice.”...

October 2, 2026

By Joshua Goodman

A former Miami congressman (click here) and longtime friend of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison in connection with a secret $50 million lobbying campaign on Venezuela’s behalf during the first Trump administration.

Republican David Rivera has been jailed since jurors found him guilty in May on all counts, including failing to register as a foreign agent and conspiracy to commit money laundering as part of his work for former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro ’s government.

Rivera, 61, appeared stone-faced as Judge Melissa Damian denounced him for betraying his life’s mission, saying he would surely have been judged harshly his many friends had the millions of dollars come from the Cuban regime instead of its allies in Caracas.

“Nobody would accept that’s ok and I don’t think this is different,” the judge said. “There’s no dispute this money came from the Maduro regime.”...

Trump is abusing power in officially stating he would pardon any members of his administration if they intentionally broke the law to benefit Trump's agenda. 

That is called racketeering.

Texas Paul is correct..

 This election is about the Constitution and our quality of life as a democracy under governance that respects the people and not the dollar. 

There will be plenty of time during the next session of Congress to look to a third party or better yet independent candidates to achieve civility and concern for the American. 

We need to put Democrats into power in the majority to ensure the well being of the USA Constitution.

They will do the right thing.

How do we know that? 

Because they have had two years to learn and participate in corruption and haven't. It was easy to step away from the people and become a supporter of a corrupt president and secure a seat of power that would be profitable for a long time. That didn't occur. The Democrats have a conscience and believe in ethics. 

Vote for Democrats without fear and stay engaged in the democracy and freedom we all cherish.

Tennessee's Governor political CYA moment.

The Executor is not the problem, the fact he has no sincerely effective method is the problem.

The resignation itself is not political. I don't care if both men affiliate with the same party or not, the point is the resignation does not solve the problem before the prison systems in regard to death row inmates.

Pope Leo opposes any death penalty. Any professional that does not carry out a death penalty killing is on the right side of their faith beliefs and that of the ethics of their professions.

October 1, 2026

By Devin Watkins

Following the botched execution (click here) of Christa Pike, the Catholic and Episcopal Bishops of Tennessee call for the US state’s Governor to commute her death sentence and uphold their opposition to the death penalty....

The facts of the matter are obvious, even Chirsta Pike predicted her disabling outcome. There aren't qualified people starting the IV that required with the fatal injection. Christa's arms are burned and badly bruised because the person attempting to find a blood vessel could not achieve that goal. Those administering the fatal cocktail believed they had a patent IV access regardless of the first failure. They tried to inject the killing drugs and failed to reach Christa's heart or any system organ, including her brain, that would have ended her life.

The resignation of the commissioner of the Department of Corrections is not the problem. The resignation is a symptom of the right wing politics of the day that demand convicted death row inmates to be killed. It is not necessary to have such executions in the face of complete disregard of the profound reality of the prison system in carrying out the deaths of incarcerated people.

There is a problem beyond the problem of the lethal injection. It is defined by an organization called, "The Innocence Project (click here)." If there were no innocent people found on death row there would less reason to end such a heinous criminal sentence. But, there are innocent people on death row and it has been proven. That should be enough for a moral USA to stop this indignity of death as a criminal punishment.

October 2, 2026
By Ed White

The head of Tennessee’s prison system (click here) is resigning, Gov. Bill Lee announced Saturday, the first major staff shake-up since Christa Pike’s stunning failed execution left her unconscious and on a ventilator at a hospital.

Frank Strada, commissioner of the Department of Correction, will step down this month, Lee said. Some of the governor’s fellow Republicans and other elected officials had been urging a change in leadership.

It was the second time since May that Tennessee has not been able to execute a prisoner who was seemingly moments away from death.

Strada said in a statement that resigning was “in the best interest of Tennesseans” while an independent review determines what happened Wednesday when the state failed to execute Pike despite administering two doses of a lethal drug, pentobarbital.

“I believe this review is entirely appropriate and necessary, and I look forward to doing everything I can to help determine exactly what occurred,” Strada said.

Pike, now 50, was 18 when she and her boyfriend tortured and killed a classmate, Colleen Slemmer, in a jealous rage in 1995. She became one of the youngest women to be sent to death row....

Attacks on Cuba.

If there is anyone trying to protect the Cuban people it is the Cuban military. 

February 26, 2026

The American speedboat (click here) that Cuban officials said opened fire on border agents Wednesday was carrying 10 armed Cubans who were attempting to infiltrate the country “for terrorist purposes,” the country’s Interior Ministry said.

Cuban authorities seized assault rifles, handguns, molotov cocktails, body armor and fatigues from the Florida-registered vessel, the ministry said in a statement late Wednesday. The men on board were Cuban nationals who had been living in the United States, the ministry said.

The speedboat was less than a nautical mile off Villa Clara province on Cuba’s northern coast Wednesday morning when Cuban border agents approached and asked for identification, the ministry said earlier. The men on the speedboat opened fire on the Cuban vessel, the ministry said, wounding its commander....

The USA under the direction of Trump and Hegseth is causing a humanitarian crisis in Cuba through still yet another oil embargo. It is the same tactic as used on Iran. There is no Strait of Hormuz involved. There are no drug runner boats full of cocaine or any other substance. This is nothing but a brutal attack on people in Cuba that have no influence or power to stop this cruelty. Someone needs to build solar panels or China needs to fly them in to Havana. Wind power takes a long time to build. 

July 27, 2026

By Jack Nicas
Videos by Alex Pena
Photographs by Lisette Poole González

For months, (click here) President Trump has been predicting that Cuba is about to collapse.

“It’s just going to fall,” he told reporters on Jan. 4, a day after taking control of Venezuela’s oil, which had been Cuba’s lifeline.

He then imposed an oil blockade that has pushed the island into its worst ever energy crisis, with mass blackouts now lasting nearly all day. And yet, more than six months later, the Cuban government and people are still standing.

This month, we visited the country to understand how. After a week on the ground, we found that while Cubans are clearly suffering, they are also doing what perhaps they do best: adapting....

Additionally, ICE has taken at least one Cuban (at one time had special status) from his life here in the USA and deported him to a very little known country where he is a prisoner. He was not a prisoner in the USA until he was arrested by ICE. To the best of my knowledge there was no legal process to arrest him or deport him. 

March 20. 2026
BY Marianna Parraga

A tanker carrying fuel originally ‌bound for Cuba (click here) on Friday changed its destination to Trinidad and Tobago, according to LSEG ship-tracking data, a blow for the island amid a severe fuel scarcity that has triggered power blackouts.

Cuba on Tuesday reconnected its power grid and ​brought online its largest thermal electricity plant, ending a nationwide blackout that lasted more than ​29 hours. But the U.S. move to choke off fuel supply to Cuba's government ⁠could cause more outages, Cuban officials have said....

October 2, 2026

The U.S. Coast Guard (click here) announced on Friday the seizure of two ships bound for Cuba that were illegally carrying thousands of gallons of diesel fuel amid the ongoing fuel blockade to the country imposed by President Donald Trump.

The "Grace," a 300-foot tanker, was seized on Sept. 5 by the Coast Guard and Mexican authorities in the Caribbean Sea between Cuba and Mexico, after it was alleged to use covert operations to traverse the high seas, according to Coast Guard officials. Another ship, carrying 200,000 gallons of fuel, was seized by the Coast Guard in June....

There is absolutely no reason for this man to have been arrested in the first place. 

NONE.

In my opinion, this occurred as a scare tactic to the Cuban immigrant population both inside the USA and in Cuba as Hegseth carries out his assault against the people of Cuba.

August 12, 2026

By Nicholas Casey

As he stepped out of the American military cargo plane, (click here) Roberto Mosquera still couldn’t tell where he was or why he had been taken there. When federal immigration agents forced him onto a secret flight 30 hours earlier, it was a hot July afternoon in Texas. Now, after traveling thousands of miles, he felt a cold winter’s morning in the air.

He was in the kingdom of Eswatini, a tiny, landlocked country in southern Africa that until recently was called Swaziland. Mosquera had never heard of it. He hadn’t set foot outside the United States since he was 12, when he arrived on a fishing boat as part of the 1980 Mariel boatlift from Cuba with his mother, a sister and her infant daughter. As a teenager, he joined a Miami gang, and in his 20s, he took a plea deal after being charged with attempted murder for shooting a rival gangster in the leg. That would have been grounds to deport him had he been from almost any other country. But Cuba wasn’t cooperating with the United States on deportations, so Mosquera was allowed to stay, provided he checked in with the authorities each year. He built a new life for himself, becoming a specialty plumber and a born-again Christian; he married and had four daughters....

Trump has no respect for the integrity of government. He is a political animal and nothing else and sees to boundaries to spending taxpayer monies.

September 29, 2026

The Trump administration used funding allocated for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) (click here) in Republicans’ “One Big Beautiful Bill” to pay for President Trump’s government funded political ads that started running last week. House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) and House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee Ranking Member Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28) released the following statement:

“After gutting $1 trillion from Medicaid, stripping health care coverage from millions of Americans, giving the very richest Americans and large corporations massive tax breaks, adding more than $4 trillion to the deficit, and more than quadrupling funding for mass deportations, it turns out the Trump administration used Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill to pay for President Trump’s political ads.

“When Democrats reclaim control of Congress next year, the House Appropriations Committee will work to uncover and reverse misuses of taxpayer money like this and hold those who abused their power accountable.”

This comes after Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought moved $20 million in resources to the Department of Homeland Security for this purpose on September 19.

It is a matter of the citizens' right to transparency. It us out money Trump is using for political purposes.

Ranking Member to the Appropriations Committee is Rosa L. DeLauro (click here) 

It is obvious what Trump and Netanyahu are up to in building tensions between themselves and Iran.

Iran feels trapped. That is probably what is intended. Its economy is failing and the idea they can negotiate with extremists in power in the USA and Israel is becoming clear that any negotiations is a lie on the part of the opposition to a sovereign Iran. 

I find the fact the USA has left Iraq more than curious. Hegseth is pulling out all the stops before the Midterm elections to escalate the war into anticipated combat after the elections. A permanent automatic registration for the draft in the USA starts in December. 

Trump and Hegseth are banking on a war theater would be irreversible no matter what happens in November with the elections. I don't see that as a hurdle. If an ILLEGAL war is started by Trump and Hegseth the idea of ending it is obvious and not an estimation of any kind. The new Congress will end any war powers involved in this insane unprovoked aggression. Oh, Hegseth is pulling 200 USA troops out of Nigeria. 

Europe is making headway into African alliances. Italy is becoming absolutely amazing in it's ability to ally with Egypt and recently Libya. The military strength of other nations is growing in the face of an erratic and provoking USA president and Secretary of Defense. No country worth it's sovereignty is taking anything for granted from the USA anymore. That is truly unfortunate.

I STAND WITH WATSON. 

(click here)

One thing to remember about Major Watson, besides the fact he is a Major, it that he works in logistics. He knows more than he can say about his own point of view. After 17 years as an officer in the field of USA logistics his view of the world is different than most Americans. His decision to speak out was not a simple one for him.

This is what has been reported in "Stars and Stripes," the paper taken over by Hegseth. The update about no probable cause was not reported.

Major Jason P. Watson can demand equal time in any newspaper or media service under the law of this country for the truth to be heard. 

(click here)

An Air Force major who stood on the U.S. Capitol steps and called for the impeachment of President Donald Trump could face dismissal from the service and loss of his security clearance.

Maj. Jason P. Watson, 40, is under investigation by the service and restricted to Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C., according to Jessica Denson, founder of the Removal Coalition, which hosted the news conference where Watson spoke prior to his protest Wednesday. The group lobbies members of Congress to impeach Trump.

“Who I am is immaterial,” Watson said during the news conference. “In the grand scheme of things, I’m just a nobody. What matters far more than who I am is what I have to say and the price I’m willing to pay to say it.”

The 17-year logistics officer, dressed in his blue service uniform and flight cap, outlined the reasons he called for the impeachment of Trump and Vice President JD Vance, beginning with military involvement in Venezuela, Cuba and Iran....

Most of what Trump and his cabinet does is illegal.

The administration does not engage the public to validate the need for changing policy. Where citizens may be engaged about changes to policy the points made are mute because the administration already wrote he rules and will not implement them. The rules this administration writes is in violation of the rule of law. It is time for the criminality be exposed so citizens can see it for themselves.

Trump's administration changes policy that was legislated without engaging Congress with information that proves the changes are necessary. This administration is so corrupt it conducts itself outside the law. Citizens can carry good reasons to interrupt and stop changes in policy but their input is never taken seriously. Public comment periods for this administration is a formality with little leverage to the plans it has for the wealth that belongs to Americans and their quality of life.

Hegseth is assaulting the ROTC offered in colleges. While there is nothing wrong in beginning programs in good colleges and universities it is completely wrong to end these programs in places like Harvard, Brown, Cornell, and other major universities. These universities participate in preparing leaders for our military. They receive excellent credentials along with their ROTC status. There is just no justification for what is occurring with funding and policy with this administration. 

Cornell University: The only Ivy League institution that hosts on-campus detachments for all three military branches (Army, Navy/Marine Corps, and Air Force).

University of Pennsylvania: Hosts an on-campus Naval ROTC program and coordinates Army and Air Force ROTC through neighboring institutions like Drexel University and St. Joseph's University.

Princeton University: Sponsors an on-campus Army ROTC unit, while Air Force and Naval ROTC are offered through a cross-enrollment agreement with Rutgers University.

Dartmouth College: Sponsors an on-campus Army ROTC program.

Harvard University: Offers Army, Navy, and Air Force ROTC options via cross-enrollment agreements hosted primarily at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Harvard is being eliminated in sponsoring ROTC when it is hosted at MIT. That is simply insane.

Columbia University: Provides access to Army, Navy, and Air Force ROTC through cross-enrollment with institutions like Fordham University and Manhattan College.

Yale University: Hosts Air Force and Naval ROTC on campus, while participating Army ROTC students travel to the University of Connecticut.

Brown University: Offers Army ROTC through Providence College, Naval ROTC through the College of the Holy Cross, and Air Force ROTC through Worcester Polytechnic Institute

ROTC programs in some of the finest universities in the country provide for a better prepared and effective military.

The bad judgement of this administration and it's bizarre policies need the attention of the courts because there is no dealing with them otherwise. 

October 2, 2026

...In the lawsuit, (click here) Attorney General Nessel and the coalition argue that this is the latest front in a multi-year campaign of failed attempts by the administration to terminate, withdraw, or place conditions on funding that supports programs Congress has chosen to fund, but with which the President disagrees. Impoundment — the administration’s refusal to spend funds Congress has lawfully appropriated for particular purposes — violates the separation of powers, the Appropriations Clause, and the Presentment Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The coalition further argues that the impoundment of funds is unlawful agency action in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act....

Christa Pike received an amateur attempt at execution. She knew the executioners would fail.

The State of Tennessee has no alternative but to end the execution of their death row inmates. The idea behind a full life sentence without parole is to protect society from these criminals. 

The reason there are botched attempts at executions is because there are no medical personnel anywhere that will be a part of this barbaric form of justice. Marsha Blackburn is basically stating she has the guts to attempt another execution by signing a piece of paper as if that means there is competency in the execution. A signed paper only proves the State of Tennessee has no valid method of execution. A signed paper by a governor is not going to mean the prisoner will be deceased humanly or at all.

The death penalty in the USA is more a judgement of a society and it's inability to limit cruelty in the obvious presence of failure. 

Ms. Pike was 50 years old and she may have lived another 20 or 30 years. What difference does it make if a prisoner is incarcerated if they will never be back in society? As a nation we have a right to dignity. A life behind bars is not as much a deterrent as the death penalty? I believe it is. Crimes of passion as is the case with Christa Pike occurs in the face of consequences.

I am not a victim's family and perhaps they can answer the question about the cruelty of the death penalty in Tennessee, but, the issue is justice and finding methods that work to eliminate and not deter crime. These cases are a challenge to society to find solutions for such crimes rather than seeking a form of justice that leaves society scarred with the cruelty that accompanies it.

October 2, 2026

By Emily Cochrane

Christa Pike was unconscious, intubated and on a ventilator (click here) in a Nashville hospital a day after surviving a botched execution attempt, her lawyers said in a court filing, raising questions about whether the state could legally try to execute her again.

As of Thursday evening, Ms. Pike, 50, was critically ill, they wrote in the Friday filing in Davidson County Chancery Court, and both of her arms were swollen, burned and blistered when she arrived at the hospital.

Her condition sets the stage for an unprecedented ethical and legal quagmire: A future attempt to execute Ms. Pike could hinge on whether she is determined to be capable of what the Supreme Court has described as a “rational understanding” of the reason she is to be put to death.

And although Gov. Bill Lee has paused executions for now, the front-runner to be elected governor next month, Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn, said that she would try again to execute Ms. Pike, who was convicted of the 1995 murder of a classmate....