Iranian lawmakers are debating the wording of a proposed deal with Oman on the Strait of Hormuz, with U.S. President Donald Trump insisting an agreement is getting closer. Trump said the talks are “moving along” and gave no additional comment when asked about progress by White House reporters late Thursday. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said earlier this week that an understanding with Oman had been reached “in principle,” and state TV cited one lawmaker on Friday as saying the final text and details of an agreement with Muscat will be announced “soon.” Some Iranian politicians are pushing for…
Texas Attorney General and Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton will have to take his fight over the “gun-free” state fair to the Texas Supreme Court after an appellate court upheld the ban on Thursday. Paxton, along with several individual plaintiffs, filed suit after the State Fair of Texas announced in 2024 that the lawful carrying of firearms would no longer be allowed. The move came after a shooting during the fair in 2023, one that was committed by someone who couldn’t legally carry a gun. The lawsuit contended that the State Fair of Texas and the…
The newly created Military Spouse Commission has opened an online form to allow those with vested interests in the commission to submit comments. President Donald Trump created the commission on Monday via an executive order to support the lives and experiences of spouses of those enlisted in service. The commission will provide recommendations to address themes including housing, employment, health care and childcare. There are more than 1 million military spouses in the U.S. They are affected by numerous issues including disproportionate levels of unemployment, according to Stars & Stripes. The publication reported that 20% of military spouses are unemployed,…
I really get sick of the claim that mass killings with a firearm only happen in the United States. That’s what the phrase “uniquely American” means when describing the phenomenon. To be fair, we do have more than most people, even if you account for population, but we are also a very different country than most. Thailand, however, seems to also be having a bit of a problem. Despite acting to tighten gun restrictions after previous massacres, it doesn’t look like it did a whole lot of good.Not today, at least, as six people are…
Some military photographs make their importance obvious, while others look ordinary until you learn the story behind the image. Five brothers pose aboard a Navy cruiser. Women sort packages in a crowded warehouse. A pilot stands among children near an airfield. At first glance, photographs could be routine snapshots of military life, but once you learn the story that led up to or followed the camera click, you’ll realize they’re anything but. Each image carries a story of survival, loss, courage or deception that the photograph alone cannot explain. Once you know these stories, it becomes impossible to see the…
Widows of service members who died while serving our country are often faced with a difficult choice, years after their loss. By federal law, a financial benefit known as Dependency and Indemnity Compensation or DIC, equating to about $1,700 per month, ends as soon as a surviving military spouse remarries, or stays in place as long as the spouse remains single through age 55. The organization known as the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) has been urging lawmakers to protect the DIC benefit, rather than strip it away, no matter a surviving spouse’s marital status. “The compensation is intended…
The United States ruling class is alleging that Iran fired missiles at a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday night. These strikes threaten to destabilize the already shaky memorandum of understanding signed by both the US and Iranian presidents. Donald Trump announced “major combat operations” against Iran on February 28th, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting military, government, and infrastructure sites. This was, which “ended” in a US surrender, is precariously perched on an agreement that is a huge loss for the US. In spite of the agreement, the US and Iran nonetheless exchanged limited strikes in late…
Virginia rolled hard toward gun control this year. Never mind that Gov. Abigail Spanberger ran as a moderate, said little to nothing about guns during her campaign, said she was about affordability, and then took office and did nothing about the cost of living. Instead, she tried to redistrict the state–something she expressly said she wouldn’t do–and tried to take everyone’s guns away. I was ready to hold onto Cam’s guns for him if he needed it, but thankfully, that hasn’t been necessary.Part of the reason it’s not necessary is because of grandfather clauses thankfully,…
The ATF has quietly proposed a rule that could dramatically change how law-abiding Americans buy firearms from licensed dealers. And despite what you’ve probably seen flying around social media, it doesn’t eliminate background checks or create some Wild West free-for-all. According to Armed Attorneys, the proposal would simply allow certain identity verification steps that currently happen in person to be completed remotely through secure video technology. If adopted, the rule could let a customer purchase a firearm from an in-state FFL, complete ATF Form 4473 online, verify their identity over a live video call, pass the same NICS background check,…
U.S. Coast Guard crews are still assessing ports and waterways across Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands following Super Typhoon Bavi, as commercial traffic remains shut down while officials check for damaged navigation markers, hazardous seas and debris. U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam said Tuesday that the ports of the Marianas remain under Port Heavy Weather Condition ZULU, meaning they are closed to commercial traffic until crews complete post-storm assessments and resolve safety issues. The port closures affect a region that is central to the U.S. military’s posture in the Pacific. Guam is home to Naval Base Guam, Andersen…
As the sun began to peek over the horizon, waves slammed my lower back against fiberglass. If I wasn’t awake before, I sure was now. As the young guy on board the bay boat, I volunteered myself as tribute for the “seat” that wasn’t really a seat. Through the waves, I tried distracting myself by staring at the Academy H20X Factor rods on board, armed with all manner of interesting baits for snook, sea trout, and, if we were lucky, tarpon. Honestly, I had a lot of trepidation about the rods. I’m not a snobby person, but when it comes…
Americans weren’t waiting around. Newly released NSSF-adjusted NICS background check figures show firearm purchases jumped sharply in June, led by huge spikes in Virginia and Rhode Island as gun buyers rushed to purchase Modern Sporting Rifles before state bans took effect on July 1. According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, there were 1,123,006 adjusted background checks in June 2026, an 11.7% increase over June 2025. But the biggest story came from states where lawmakers approved new restrictions on America’s most popular rifle. Virginia recorded 123,699 background checks, a staggering 241% increase over June 2025. Rhode Island followed with a…
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday insisted that the United States should be in control of Greenland rather than NATO ally Denmark, renewing tensions in Europe even as the trans-Atlantic military alliance was announcing billions in arms deals at a summit in an attempt to appease the mercurial U.S. leader. Trump called the semiautonomous island “an important part” for the United States, as he repeated the false claim that it’s surrounded by Chinese and Russian ships and said he won’t let Greenland be threatened. “That should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark,” Trump told…
Yosemite National Park is home to one of the most famous (and oldest) groups of trees: Mariposa Grove. This area is full of mature giant sequoia trees that are thousands of years old and hundreds of feet tall. The Grizzly Giant, a 3,000-year-old tree, looms in the center; along with Half Dome and El Cap, this tree is one of the park’s most iconic structures. It has endured climate change, forest fires, and invasive species, and scientists and park officials were wondering just how well this old colossus was holding up. To find out, a group of researchers climbed the…
How many actual rights do we have preserved in the Constitution that have an age limit? Voting, of course, does, but what else? Even the 21st Amendment, which repealed Prohibition, didn’t include an age limit on who could drink. Then again, it didn’t actually say drinking was a right, either. And yet, while we acknowledge adulthood at 18, and people can register to vote then, some states have decided that despite someone otherwise having the totality of their rights when they reach the age of majority, they can’t have guns because…well, because.One of those is…
A Fort Worth homeowner is being hailed as a hero after police say he shot and killed a machete-wielding man who turned on him while allegedly attacking a woman. According to CBS Texas, the terrifying incident unfolded just after 10 p.m. on Ross Avenue in north Fort Worth last week. Neighbors told police they heard a woman screaming for help as she was dragged down the street by a man armed with a machete. A nearby Ring camera captured part of the encounter. Witnesses told CBS Texas they saw the suspect striking the woman with the handle of the machete…
The first camera was simply pointed the wrong way. In early April 2025, Jerry Reina, leader of a local neighborhood watch in the Harbor View area of Suffolk, Virginia, noticed that one of their community’s six Flock Safety cameras had been turned away from the road it was installed to monitor, according to his testimony at a preliminary hearing reported by WAVY. A Suffolk police sergeant who helps oversee the city’s camera program soon found another aimed into a wood line. By summer, entire poles were down. Some cameras were thrown from the Hampton Roads Parkway onto Interstate 664 below,…
Health care workers helping treat and control the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo are threatening to strike as the hemorrhagic disease continues to spread. Yesterday, healthcare workers in Ituri issued a 24-hour notice of an impending strike. Those working on the Ebola frontlines said that the working conditions were too poor to continue. They reported unpaid benefits, low wages, and inadequate supplies since the outbreak officially began in May. The DRC Ministry of Health has now confirmed 1,561 cases in the outbreak, with the epicenter in Ituri province and significant transmission in North and South Kivu provinces, as…
