Hamas on Ice: Protesters Don Skates to Spoil Toronto Celebration

Molly Bruns
-
0
Hamas on Ice: Protesters Don Skates to Spoil Toronto Celebration

(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) Pro-Palestinian protesters interrupted the Toronto Mayor’s annual skating party in the city’s Nathan Phillips Square, the Toronto Sun reported.

Mayor Olivia Chow hosted the annual event with several other members of the city council in order to bring in the new year.

According to the National Post, the event allows citizens to meet their local politicians and players from the city’s women’s hockey team.

This year, Chow invited fire-keeper Geoff Daybutch to teach about the significance of ceremonial fires in indigenous cultures.

Pro-Palestinian protesters also took to the ice with flags, megaphones and signs in order to verbally accost skaters attending the event.

The protesters continually interrupted Chow’s speech, which she briefly paused to clarify that she previously called for a cease-fire between Hamas and Israel.

As they shouted, she explained to the reporter that “what you’re seeing is democracy in action.”

Some of the protesters were shown holding a sign that read “Black Panthers, IRA, Nelson Mandela… Hamas? Terrorists or freedom fighters?”

Like Hamas, both the U.S. Black Panthers and the Irish Republican Army relied on traditional terrorist tactics, such as bombings, in pursuit of their radical objectives.

The rioters harassed locals attending the event, calling them “terrorists” and chanting “shame on you.”

The mayor’s casual reaction as the protesters aggressively harassed fellow skaters drew comparisons to other recent episodes of Islamic unrest in Toronto.

At another protest on Saturday, reporters captured footage of Toronto police officers delivering Tim Hortons coffee and doughnuts to Pro-Palestine protesters after blocking the other half of their party.

Several Twitter users sarcastically expressed relief that Nathan Phillips Square was so close to a Tim Hortons location, making it convenient for the police to deliver coffee and doughnuts to the protesters as necessary.

“Where’s the police?” asked. “Oh they are in line at Tim Hortons getting the protestors coffee nvm.”

Mayor Chow did not address the incident in a Twitter post after the fact, simply thanking those who attended and assisted with the event.

Animated Character Named Marlon May Help Trump Win Iowa’s Caucuses

Editor 1
-
0
Animated Character Named Marlon May Help Trump Win Iowa’s Caucuses

(Headline USA) Well before Donald Trump takes the stage, a waiting audience of hundreds of supporters sits captivated as dramatic music begins to swell throughout the room. On projector screens, a rotating Planet Earth appears.

“Making America Great Again starts one place on Earth, and one place only,” a deep-voiced narrator begins as the image zooms into the middle of the U.S. “Right here in Iowa.”

It’s the beginning of a nearly three-minute “Schoolhouse Rock!”-like video featuring an animated character named Marlon, who informs viewers of “everything you need to know about how to successfully caucus for President Trump.”

The goal is to generate a commanding win for the former president in Iowa’s leadoff caucuses on Jan. 15, setting the stage for a romp through the Republican primary and a strong start to the general election campaign.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley are battling for a notable finish in Iowa that could propel one of them to a head-to-head challenge with Trump for the GOP nomination.

Most campaigns use face time at events to encourage Iowans to caucus for the candidate, and they rely on pledge cards with names, addresses and phone numbers to contact supporters again later. But the Trump campaign doesn’t wait until after the voters leave the venue—-they are filling in any gaps in knowledge of how the caucuses work on site.

The civics lesson, with its easy-to-follow instructions, is a reflection of just how quirky the caucus process is. Unlike primaries, which allow voters to cast their ballots throughout the day, Iowa caucusgoers are required to show up at a specific time—7 p.m. Central time on the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday—and at a site that may be different from their usual polling place.

Caucusgoers also have to stay put for what can be a lengthy process of protocol and supporting speeches.

And it’s often cold, sometimes snowing. Below-zero temperatures are forecast across Iowa on caucus day.

“We’d love bad weather,” Trump said Saturday in Newton, arguing that it will dissuade other candidates’ supporters but not his. “My people will walk on glass.”

But it’s not only the weather that may make it challenging for people to participate.

Marin Curtis, 25, from North Liberty stood in line for a Trump rally in Coralville, but she has never been to a caucus before and she doesn’t know much about it. Besides, she said, she has a toddler and might not be able to make it.

Ron Wheeldon, 64, an undecided truck driver from Newton, Iowa, was scoping out candidates at several campaign events, even though he’ll have to work the night shift on the day of the caucuses.

And in Sioux Center last month, Steve and Shari Rehder of Hawarden were attending a forum of some major candidates, including DeSantis and Haley. They said they were interested in an alternative to Trump. But whoever they like won’t be getting their vote on caucus night—they’ll be out of state on vacation.

The get-out-the-vote efforts by Trump’s 2024 campaign are a nod to the lessons learned since 2016, when the political novice acknowledged not knowing the first thing about caucuses.

Trump finished second to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz that year in Iowa’s leadoff voting, though he would go on to win the next three early states, the GOP nomination and ultimately the presidency.

This year, the former president has been touting his lead in national and early state polls, but he has also warned his supporters not to get complacent and says he isn’t taking Iowa for granted.

In Sioux Center last Friday, he kicked off the first of at least eight “commit to caucus” events and noted he plans to be back in Iowa on caucus day.

“Look, we gotta get out and vote because, you know, bad things happen when you sit back,” Trump said, encouraging the crowd to “really show the strength” of support. “We’re voting now, but it’s going to make a big difference in November.”

Wrapped in a blanket waiting in line for Trump’s rally, Josie Zeutenhorst, a 20-year-old from Sioux Center who attends Dordt University, said she wanted to hear from Trump in person instead of on TV. She recognizes how much of an impact voters can have on election results but wasn’t planning on participating in a caucus.

“I don’t know enough, I guess,” she said. “I don’t really know how it works.”

In a follow-up interview after the rally, Zeutenhorst said she found the caucus instructional video “very helpful” and felt more comfortable having learned the process.

“I really am considering it,” she said of participating in the caucuses, though she still isn’t sure it’ll work with her schedule.

Regan Ronning, 52, who attended a Trump rally back in 2016, said the Trump campaign called him a few months ago to ask if he’d be a caucus captain. Now he’s door knocking and making phone calls to people in his area.

“Education’s a big part of it,” he said. Ronning thinks the videos and volunteers help, since some of the people he talks to are confused about what a caucus is. “I just try to tell them what the process is, that it’s nothing scary.”

Trump’s team has said they’ve held hundreds of trainings for their volunteers and precinct captains, the individuals representing the campaign within a given precinct on caucus night.

The campaign also has had captains prioritize a new assignment—to bring 10 people to the caucuses who have never participated in one before. The campaign has identified several hundred thousand Trump supporters across Iowa who fit the bill.

It’s an approach they hope to replicate in the general election, as they seek to chip away at the Biden coalition and win over voters who have generally supported Democrats.

Meanwhile, Trump’s competitors are trying to persuade voters in Iowa that the race isn’t over yet.

“This is the most impactful vote you can cast. The number of people that go to these caucuses is 150-, 200,000 people,” DeSantis told a crowd in Sioux Center last week. “So if you’re coming and you bring neighbors or family members, all that, you’re packing a big punch.”

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

Fulton DA Fani Willis Conducting Love Affair w/ Subordinate, Violating Professional Conduct

Jacob Bruns
-
0
Fulton DA Fani Willis Conducting Love Affair w/ Subordinate, Violating Professional Conduct

(Jacob Bruns, Headline USA) Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis—who is currently waging a lawfare attack on former President Donald Trump and 14 co-defendants for challenging the 2020 election—is allegedly engaged in an ongoing affair with a subordinate official, Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade, conservative watchdog Techno Fog reported on his Substack blog.

Attorneys for defendant Michael Roman filed a motion with the allegations in a recent attempt to get Wade dismissed from the case.

According to Roman’s attorneys, Willis and Wade have spent time together at lavish and romantic vacation getaways.

The duo allegedly “traveled personally together to such places as Napa Valley, Florida and the Caribbean, and the special prosecutor has purchased tickets for both of them to travel on both the Norwegian and Royal Caribbean cruise lines,” wrote Techno Fog

Making matters even more suspect, Willis and Wade have reportedly been seen in private together, and may have “cohabitated in some form or fashion at a location owned by neither of them.”

The attorneys also suggested that those close to both Wade and Willis “have confirmed they had an ongoing, personal relationship during the pendency of the special prosecutor’s divorce proceedings.”

If there were indeed a romantic relationship between the two, Wade’s status would face severe legal scrutiny.

The Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct, for instance, require an attorney to practice with “independent judgment … in the performance of their official duties.”

Such an affair would likely obscure any notion of impartiality.

According to Stephen Gillers, a legal and judicial expert at the New York University School of Law, if the allegations are true, then “Willis was conflicted in the investigation and prosecution of this case,” which would in turn mean that she failed to meet the standard of “independent professional judgment.”

Further, there would be a clear conflict of interest if Willis appointed her lover to see the trials through.

Making matters even more murky, Wade reportedly spent time consulting at the White House on two separate occasions in 2022, earning $4,000.

Willis already faced the prospect of a House investigation following concerns that she may have improperly colluded with U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., when he was overseeing House Democrats’ Jan. 6 Committee to investigate Trump.

The new allegation is likely to add fuel to GOP-led calls to hold her accountable in both Congress and the Georgia legislature.

It is not the first time that Willis and her investigation have faced criticism, however.

The daughter of a prominent Black Panther revolutionary, Willis was forced to abandon her plans to investigate state Sen. Burt Jones after she made an appearance at a campaign event for Jones’s political rival, triggering an ethics rebuke.

Willis also was slammed for the lack of discipline after the grand-jury foreman overseeing the indictment process went public with a series of unhinged, anti-Trump interviews.

And the county Clerk of Court appeared to publish the indictment before the grand jury had actually voted on it, fueling widespread suspicious and calls for a mistrial. County officials later claimed that it was a sample indictment and not the actual one.

Headline USA’s Ben Sellers contributed to this report.

Jan. 6 Provocateur Ray Epps Gets off Lightly w/ Probation

Ken Silva
-
0
Jan. 6 Provocateur Ray Epps Gets off Lightly w/ Probation

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Jan. 6 defendant Ray Epps, who encouraged others to go into the Capitol and committed violence against police officers, received a year of probation for his crimes on Tuesday—fueling conspiracies that Epps was a government provocateur.

Epps was also ordered to serve 100 hours of community service.

Despite describing his behavior on Jan. 6 as “felonious,” the Justice Department only charged him with a lone misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct. The DOJ recommended six months in jail for Epps leading up to Tuesday’s sentencing.

According to journalist Christina Urso, who attended the sentencing, the government bizarrely went to bat for Epps during the hearing.

“The prosecutor praised Epps ‘de-escalation tactics’ and had a whole slide show for it entitled ‘Attempts to De-escalate.’ Both Judge Boasberg and the prosecutor both claimed ‘he never tried to go into the Capitol,’” Urso said.

Epps’s attorney also noted that the DOJ and FBI initially closed their cases on Epps in July 2021—a fact first reported last week by Headline USA.

Along with whitewashing Epps’s conduct on Jan. 6, the DOJ also apparently didn’t mention that he likely has an outstanding arrest warrant in Pennsylvania.

The relatively light sentence drew widespread criticism from right-wing politicians and journalists who’ve followed the three-year Epps saga.

“Ray Epps, the man who directed people to go into the Capitol and privately claimed credit for orchestrating the Capitol breach, gets one year probation. Nothing to see here!” mocked Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky.

Epps has claimed that the DOJ’s trespassing charge against him disproves the theory that he was a federal asset who encouraged Trump supporters to commit violence on Jan. 6.

“In May 2023, the Department of Justice notified Epps that it would seek to charge him criminally for events on January 6, 2021—two-and-a-half years later. The relentless attacks by Fox and [Tucker] Carlson and the resulting political pressure likely resulted in the criminal charges,” Epps said last year in a lawsuit against Fox News, which is still ongoing.

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

Gold Has Outperformed the S&P 500 in the 21st Century

Money Metals News Service
-
0
Gold Has Outperformed the S&P 500 in the 21st Century

(Mike Maharrey, Money Metals Exchange) Gold has outperformed both stocks and bonds since the turn of the century.

Gold was among the best-performing assets of 2023.

According to analysis by the World Gold Council, gold outperformed emerging market stocks, U.S. bonds, the U.S. dollar, global treasuries, and commodities in general. The only asset classes that performed better than gold were U.S. stocks and developed-market foreign stocks.

But if we go back deeper in time to 1999, gold has narrowly outperformed stocks on an annualized basis as well.

Dow Jones Commodity Index Gold (DJCI) tracks the gold market using the futures index. Dating back to the turn of the century, the DJCI has produced a 7.8 percent annualized return, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices head of commodities Brian Luke.

That compares to a 7 percent return for the S&P500 over the same period.

gold v S&P500

Bonds are even further behind in the race. The iBoxx USD Overall Index, measuring the performance of government and corporate bonds, has charted an average return of 4.1 percent since 1999.

Adjusting for volatility, gold has also demonstrated better risk-adjusted returns than stocks in the 21st century, with a Sharpe ratio of 0.48 versus 0.45 for equities.

The DJCI reached an all-time high in December, charting a 12.8 percent return. That outpaced both bonds and the broader commodity markets. Equity markets won 2023 with a 26.3 percent return for the S&P500.

Gold charted a strong performance in 2023 despite significant headwinds, including a strong dollar and rising interest rates.

Gold is a non-yielding asset. It doesn’t pay dividends like many stocks, and it doesn’t produce interest income like bonds. That means there is a higher opportunity cost when holding gold in a higher interest rate environment.

This is often cited as a knock on the yellow metal, and it certainly impacted gold’s performance through the first three quarters of 2023. Nevertheless, gold has proven to be a strong addition to an investment portfolio through the 21st century.

Luke noted that central banks have taken notice of gold’s performance over the long haul. Total central bank gold buying in 2022 came in at 1,136 tons.

It was the highest level of net purchases on record dating back to 1950, including since the suspension of dollar convertibility into gold in 1971. That buying spree continued into 2023 with central banks adding another 800-plus tons of gold to their reserves through November of last year.

Gold has historically provided investors an alternative to fiat currency,” Luke wrote. “Digging into the central bank purchase data, countries including Russia and China have led the increase in central bank holdings. Foreign central banks appear to increasingly value gold’s hedge against inflation, debt default and dollarization.

Peaceful Jan. 6 Protestors Can Still Be Charged w/ Disorderly Conduct, Judge Rules

Ken Silva
-
0
Peaceful Jan. 6 Protestors Can Still Be Charged w/ Disorderly Conduct, Judge Rules

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Capitol Hill protestors who were completely peaceful on Jan. 6, 2021, are still being charged with disorderly conduct—and a recent court ruling ensures that those charges will stick.

Indeed, the US Court of Appeals in DC upheld on Friday a disorderly conduct charge against Jan. 6 protestor Russell Alford, who was sentenced to a year imprisonment over his participation in the Capitol Hill event.

The appeals court found that during Alford’s brief time within the Capitol, he was neither violent nor destructive.

“Nevertheless, we affirm his convictions because a jury could rationally find that his unauthorized presence in the Capitol as part of an unruly mob contributed to the disruption of the Congress’s electoral certification and jeopardized public safety,” the appeals court ruled, also affirming Alford’s sentence.

“[I]t is equally clear from caselaw that even passive, quiet and nonviolent conduct can be disorderly,” the court added.

According to court records, Alford reached the Capitol building around 2 p.m. on Jan. 6. He allegedly climbed the steps as other rioters knocked on Upper House Door to attract the attention of rioters already inside the building, who then threw open one of the double doors.

Alford then entered the building and remained inside the Capitol for approximately thirteen minutes.

“While inside, he mostly stood to the side and observed. He filmed protestors chanting ‘stop the steal’ and pounding on a door that led to the floor of the House,” Friday’s court ruling said.

The court’s ruling comes at same time as the Justice Department promises to potentially charge thousands of more protestors simply for being on Capitol grounds.

“We have used our prosecutorial discretion to primarily focus on those who entered the building or those who engaged in violent or corrupt conduct on Capitol grounds. But if a person knowingly entered the restricted area without authorization, they had already committed a federal crime,” US Attorney Matthew Graves said Saturday.

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

After Caving to Nazi Federal Inmate, DOJ Pushes for Sex Changes in State Prisons

Ken Silva
-
0
After Caving to Nazi Federal Inmate, DOJ Pushes for Sex Changes in State Prisons

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) In November, Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, pressed Bureau of Prisons Director Colette Peters about whether federal inmates have an Eighth Amendment right to receive sex changes.

Nehls was asking his question in relation to former neo-Nazi and domestic terrorist Pete/Donna Langan, who became the first inmate in history last year to receive a taxpayer-funded sex change—as first reported by this publication.

Langan had sued the BOP, claiming that inmates should have an Eighth Amendment right to gender dysphoria treatment. The Justice Department settled Langan’s lawsuit in secret—prompting Nehls to inquire about the matter.

Peters didn’t answer Nehls’s question last November, but the DOJ made it clear in a Monday court filing that the Biden administration does indeed consider prison sex changes to be an Eighth Amendment right.

The DOJ’s court filing was made to support a lawsuit filed by an unnamed inmate against the Georgia Department of Corrections. Details of the inmate’s crimes weren’t included in the filing.

“The Eighth Amendment requires prison officials to provide incarcerated people with adequate medical care for serious medical conditions. It is well established that gender dysphoria is a serious medical condition,” the DOJ said in its statement of interest, supporting the inmate’s lawsuit.

“Prison officials demonstrate deliberate indifference to a substantial risk of serious harm—and thus violate the Eighth Amendment—when they categorically refuse to provide medically necessary gender-affirming surgery to an incarcerated individual with gender dysphoria.”

The DOJ also issued a press release on Monday, explaining its decision to support the inmate’s lawsuit.

“People with gender dysphoria should be able to seek the full protections of the American with Disabilities Act, just like other people with disabilities,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

“We are committed to ensuring constitutional conditions inside our jails and prisons so that those detained inside these facilities, including people with gender dysphoria can live safely and receive needed medical care. The U.S. Constitution requires that people incarcerated in jails and prisons receive necessary medical care, treatment and services to address serious medical conditions.”

According to the press release, Doe alleges that the state of Georgia denied adequate medical treatment for gender dysphoria, including gender-affirming surgery that has been recommended by four clinicians and consistent hormone therapy.

Because of the inadequate care and exacerbation of her gender dysphoria, Doe has engaged in repeated self-harm, including attempts at suicide and self-castration, according to the press release.

Doe reportedly seeks a preliminary injunction that would grant her access to medically necessary treatment for gender dysphoria.

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

Dishonest Capitol Police Officer Now Running for Congress

Ken Silva
-
0
Dishonest Capitol Police Officer Now Running for Congress

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn, who’s made numerous false statements about his role on Jan. 6, 2021, is now running for Congress.

Dunn announced his candidacy last week on Twitter, stating that he’ll be running as a Democrat for Maryland’s 3rd District. He’s running to replace Rep. John Sarbanes, D-Md., who is not seeking reelection.

Dunn has made numerous dubious claims about what happened on Jan. 6, including that protestors called him the N-word and shouted numerous other slurs at him. Dunn should have the body cam footage to prove his claims, but so far no footage has shown protestors attacking him or shouting racist slurs.

More recently, Dunn was found to have given false statements about the Oath Keepers, according to an investigation from Blaze Media.

Citing recently released Captiol Hill surveillance footage, Blaze’s October investigation centered around Capitol Police Special Agent David Lazarus, who told in 2022 that he witnessed an “antagonistic” standoff between several Oath Keepers and Officer Dunn.

Lazarus was shown a video at the trial of four Oath Keepers with Dunn inside the Capitol on J6, and was asked by a prosecutor whether he recognized those men—to which Lazarus said, “Yes.”

However, “The problem with Lazarus’ testimony about this significant event is that, according to direct video evidence the jury never saw, it never happened,” Blaze Media said.

Blaze Media then launched into a detailed, step-by-step breakdown of the Capitol Hill CCTV footage that show’s Lazarus’s and Dunn’s movements—finding various contradictions with trial testimony along the way.

“By analyzing the footage from multiple CCTV cameras and comparing the timelines associated with Officer Dunn’s actual interaction on camera with the Oath Keepers, it is clear that Lazarus did not arrive at the bottom of the staircase until three and a half minutes after the last of the Oath Keepers had left the area and were exiting the Capitol Building,” the media outlet said.

“Lazarus emerged from the top of the stairwell just after 3:05 p.m., after tactical units from the ATF and D.C. Metro Police had completely cleared the top of that staircase, the Speaker’s Lobby, and the speaker’s offices of all protesters.”

Blaze further noted that Lazarus’s testimony also contradicts Dunn’s forthcoming book, in which he wrote that he observed Lazarus in a conflict with Oath Keepers—and not the other way around.

Blaze journalist Steve Baker, who spearheaded the investigation into Dunn, promised more damning revelations about the congressional candidate.

“Unfortunately for now-Congressional candidate Dunn and those who have engaged in the cover-up of his many hidden indiscretions — on and off duty — our series on ‘A Day in the Life of Harry Dunn’ has only just begun,” Baker said.

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

1st U.S. Moon Shot in 51 Years Likely Doomed after ‘Critical’ Fuel Leak

Editor 1
-
0
1st U.S. Moon Shot in 51 Years Likely Doomed after ‘Critical’ Fuel Leak

(Headline USA) The first U.S. moon landing attempt in more than 50 years appeared to be doomed after a private company’s spacecraft developed a “critical” fuel leak just hours after Monday’s launch.

Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic Technology managed to orient its lander toward the sun so the solar panel could collect sunlight and charge its battery, as a special team assessed the status of what was termed “a failure in the propulsion system.”

It soon became apparent, however, that there was “a critical loss of fuel,” further dimming hope for what had been a planned moon landing on Feb. 23.

Late Monday, the company said the leak was continuing and estimated that the lander would start losing solar power in about 40 hours.

The trouble was reported about seven hours after Monday’s predawn liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket provided the lift for Astrobotic’s lander, named Peregrine, putting it on a long, roundabout path to the moon.

A propulsion system problem “threatens the ability of the spacecraft to soft land on the moon,” the company said. The lander is equipped with engines and thrusters for maneuvering, not only during the cruise to the moon but for lunar descent.

Astrobotic released a photo from a lander-mounted camera, which the company said showed a “disturbance” in a section of thermal insulation. That aligns with what is known so far of the problem, the company said.

Astrobotic was aiming to be the first private business to successfully land on the moon, something only four countries have accomplished. A second lander from a Houston company is due to launch next month. NASA gave the two companies millions to build and fly their own lunar landers.

The space agency wants the privately owned landers to scope out the place before astronauts arrive while delivering tech and science experiments for the space agency, other countries and universities as well as odds and ends for other customers. Astrobotic’s contract with NASA for the Peregrine lander was $108 million, and it has more in the pipeline.

Before the flight, NASA’s Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration, noted that while using private companies to make deliveries to the moon will be cheaper and quicker than going the usual government route, there will be added risk.

He stressed that the space agency was willing to accept that risk, noting Monday: “Each success and setback are opportunities to learn and grow.”

The last time the U.S. launched a moon-landing mission was in December 1972. Apollo 17’s Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt became the 11th and 12th men to walk on the moon, closing out an era that has remained NASA’s pinnacle.

The space agency’s new Artemis program—named after the twin sister of Apollo in Greek mythology—looks to return astronauts to the moon’s surface within the next few years. First will be a lunar fly-around with four astronauts, possibly before the end of the year.

Highlighting Monday’s moonshot was the long-delayed initial test flight of the Vulcan rocket. The 202-foot rocket is essentially an upgraded version of ULA’s hugely successful workhorse Atlas V, which is being phased out along with the company’s Delta IV. Jeff Bezos’s rocket company, Blue Origin, provided the Vulcan’s two main engines.

ULA declared success once the lander was free of the rocket’s upper stage, nearly an hour into the flight and before the spacecraft’s propulsion system malfunctioned and prevented the solar panel from properly pointing toward the sun.

Landing on the moon has long been a series of hits and misses. The Soviet Union and the U.S. racked up a string of successful moon landings in the 1960s and 70s, before putting touchdowns on pause. China joined the elite club in 2013 and India in 2023. But last year also saw landers from Russia and a private Japanese company slam into the moon. An Israeli nonprofit crashed in 2019.

Next month, SpaceX will provide the lift for a lander from Intuitive Machines. The Houston company’s Nova-C lander takes a more direct one-week route to the moon.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

Massive Explosion at Historic Texas Hotel Believed to Be Gas-Leak Related

Editor 1
-
0
Massive Explosion at Historic Texas Hotel Believed to Be Gas-Leak Related

(Headline USA) An explosion at a historic Texas hotel in Fort Worth on Monday blew out windows, littered downtown streets with large sections of debris from the building and injured 21 people, including one who was in critical condition, authorities said.

The blast flung doors and entire sections of wall onto the road in front of the 20-story hotel, where authorities said rescue crews found several people trapped in the basement.

Fifteen people were taken to hospitals, including six whose conditions were described as “semi-critical” by MedStar, which provides ambulances and emergency medical services in Fort Worth.

Authorities did not indicate anyone was missing but fire officials said late Monday that they would continue searching the building.

More than two dozen rooms were occupied at the Sandman Signature Hotel at the time, officials said. Authorities said they believe a gas leak caused the explosion—which happened in the middle of the afternoon at the start of the workweek—and said the hotel had been undergoing construction.

“There was debris. There was insulation. There was office furniture,” Charlie Collier, 31, told the Associated Press. He was working nearby when he said he saw a large flash and what sounded like thunder.

“Everything that was in the first couple floors of the building was blown out all over the street,” he said.

The Sandman Signature Hotel is in a busy area of downtown about one block from the Fort Worth Convention Center. Footage from news helicopters showed firefighters picking their way through the piles of drywall, shattered glass and mangled metal that coated the street outside the hotel. Authorities urged people to avoid the area.

Craig Trojacek, a spokesman for the Fort Worth Fire Department, said a restaurant in the building had been under construction but said it was not definitive that is where the blast occurred.

Rebecca Martinez was among those in nearby buildings who recalled hearing a loud crack and seeing a wall of dust and debris sweep through the city streets. Stepping outside to see what happened, she came upon a man and a woman leaned up against a fire hydrant.

“The man was all bloody, his face was all bloody,” Martinez said. “Then I started smelling natural gas, real intense and I thought, ‘I might need to get away from here.’”

Moments later, she said, authorities evacuated her building and some of the surrounding neighborhood.

Paula Snider, a delivery driver for UPS, was doing a pickup nearby when she said she heard a large boom and saw a puff of black smoke. A large piece of metal grating landed under her truck and another dropped nearby.

“I jumped out and took off running,” she said.

A gray haze covered normally busy streets of downtown Fort Worth as firefighters walked through layers of debris. Remnants of the building lay scattered across the street and over parked vehicles, and gaping holes could be seen on the ground.

Trojacek said investigators were working with federal investigators to determine the cause of the blast. The scene had left rescue teams unable to immediately reach some parts of the building.

“We had reports of people trapped down in the basement, and because of the explosion that took place, some of those access areas were either covered up or it didn’t feel safe at that point to get people down into,” Trojacek said.

Technicians from Atmos Energy, a Dallas-based natural gas distributor, were examining the blast site Monday. A spokesperson for the Railroad Commission of Texas, the state’s oil and gas regulator, said an agency inspector was also on the scene and working with local authorities.

Northland Properties Co., the Canadian company that owns the hotel, said in a statement that it was working with officials to determine how the explosion occurred and how much damage it caused.

“The safety and well-being of our team members and guests is our priority,” the company said. “We are working with those who have been injured to fully support them at this time.”

According to the hotel website, the Sandman Signature Fort Worth Downtown Hotel has 245 rooms and was built in 1920 as the “Waggoner Building,” named after cattle rancher and oilman William Thomas Waggoner. The building has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1979.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

1...1,5361,5371,538...3,871Page 1,537 of 3,871