- Thursday August 27th, 2026
- "It Is Not A Question of Who Is Right Or Wrong But What Is Right Or Wrong That Counts."
- --Geoff Metcalf
- Providing an on line Triage of the news since 1998
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World & Nation
Tanker attacked as it tried to sneak through Hormuz via US-protected route hit — after Iran vowed retaliation for sanctions
An oil tanker was attacked and disabled near the Strait of Hormuz
overnight — as Iran vowed to retaliate against the US over the latest
sanctions and economic threats slapped against the regime.
The tanker was operating off the coast of Oman, where ships have been
sneaking through the strait under US protection, when an unknown
projectile hit the vessel, according to the UK Maritime Trade
Operations (UKMTO).
The blast damaged the ship’s engine room and left the tanker inoperable in the waters, but no casualties were reported.
UKMTO issues warning after second ship struck in Strait of Hormuz
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organization (UKMTO) issued a warning
Thursday after an oil tanker was struck by an unknown projectile in the
Strait of Hormuz near Oman.
"Local authorities have reported a tanker has been hit by an unknown
projectile causing fire to the vessel which has since been
extinguished," the organization wrote in its warning.
"All crew are reported as safe and accounted for and there has been no report of environmental impact," the warning continued.
Netanyahu Says No Iran Deal Possible, Told Trump 'Savages' Can't Be Trusted
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that he doubts a
diplomatic agreement can be reached with Iran’s leadership, recounting
a recent conversation with President Donald Trump in which the two
discussed the possibility of diplomacy, military action and increased
economic pressure on Tehran.
Netanyahu said he discussed the options with Trump during their July 28
meeting at the White House and expressed doubts that negotiations could
produce an agreement with Iran’s current leadership.
Recounting that conversation at an event Tuesday night, Netanyahu said
he told Trump he was skeptical that an agreement could be reached with
Iran.
No Negotiations With Iran, All Options on Table
The United States and Iran are not currently holding talks to end the
war, as Washington focuses on increasing economic pressure on Tehran.
However, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday
that President Donald Trump continues to keep all options “on the
table.”
Speaking to Fox News, Leavitt said Trump’s main objective remains
preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. She said the
administration had used “Operation Epic Fury” to target Iran’s military
and was now pursuing “Operation Economic Outcast” to weaken the
country’s economy.
Pete Hegseth under fire as Pentagon 'drama' erupts over his own army
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is facing fresh scrutiny after a new
Army policy on academic standards for future officers was abruptly
withdrawn just days after being announced. The reversal has raised
questions about decision-making inside the Pentagon and added to
reports of tension between Hegseth and senior Army officials.
The dispute comes as the Army is already dealing with significant
leadership uncertainty. With Army Secretary Dan Driscoll now reportedly
expected to leave his post by the end of 2026 and Gen. Christopher
LaNeve serving as acting Army chief of staff, the latest policy fight
has placed renewed attention on Hegseth's relationship with the service
he oversees.
Ukraine-Russia talks possibly including US may be held in September, Zelensky’s top aide says
Talks between Ukrainian and Russian teams could be held in September
and include US representatives, the Ukrainian president’s chief of
staff Kyrylo Budanov said on Thursday.
Budanov said Ukraine was aiming to revive the talks, with further developments likely next month.
The US-led peace talks stalled this year as Ukraine refused Russian
demands to cede more territory and as Washington became increasingly
preoccupied with the conflict with Iran.
Florida becomes first state to block welfare cash for tattoos, vapes and more
Trump administration urges states to follow Florida’s new first-in-the-nation welfare-spending limits
Florida is becoming the first state to impose sweeping new limits on
how welfare cash can be spent, blocking recipients from using
cash-assistance benefits loaded onto EBT cards for purchases like
tattoos, theme park tickets, video games, vaping products and other
items not generally considered "basic needs" under a plan the Trump
administration is urging other states to emulate.
Florida’s cash-assistance program, known as Temporary Cash Assistance
(TCA), is funded through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) program. It is separate from SNAP, the food-assistance
program, though families may receive both types of benefits through
separate balances on the same EBT card.
The Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for
Children and Families (ACF) determined Florida’s updated TANF plan to
be complete Thursday in a letter sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis and obtained
by Fox News Digital. The letter praised the Sunshine State governor for
putting "common-sense restrictions" on what it calls inappropriate,
luxury and non-essential purchases.
Experts zero in on likely cause of deadly Nepal mudslide, with more than 1,300 missing
The disaster was initially attributed to a 4.4 magnitude earthquake before satellite imagery revealed a debris flow
The catastrophic floods in Nepal and Tibet that have killed at least
273 people were triggered by a massive glacier collapse and debris flow
that registered as a magnitude 5.2 landslide, according to the U.S.
Geological Service (USGS).
The USGS originally pinpointed the cause of the mudslides as a 4.4
magnitude earthquake but later updated its analysis after observing
data from nearby seismic stations, long period seismic waves and
satellite imagery. That data suggested that no earthquake had occurred.
Climate experts at the Kathmandu-based International Centre for
Integrated Mountain Development told The Associated Press that
Wednesday’s flash floods were likely triggered by a glacial avalanche.
Ruthless exclusive: Pentagon CTO reveals reasoning for Anthropic removal
Pentagon official tells 'Ruthless' that it found Anthropic contract too binding for defense
Pentagon's Emil Michael tells 'Ruthless' why department removed Anthropic AI
In an exclusive interview with the "Ruthless Podcast," Emil Michael,
the under secretary of war for research and engineering and Department
of War chief technology officer, explained why Anthropic was removed
from the Pentagon.
"I got the [artificial intelligence (AI)] portfolio," Michael said in
an interview released Thursday morning. "Six months into the job, I
read the [Anthropic] contract. ‘You can't use AI for battlefield
management.’ I was like, ‘What does that mean?’ 'You can't use AI to
defend yourself from a missile attack.' What?’"
This spring, the Pentagon froze its relationship with the AI company
while signing new contracts with competitors SpaceX, OpenAI, Google,
NVIDIA, Reflection, Microsoft and Amazon Web Services.
CIA Chief Warned Moscow Against NATO Escalation
CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s unannounced trip to Moscow on Tuesday was
intended to warn Russia not to use its stalemated war with Ukraine as a
reason to escalate tensions with America’s NATO allies Estonia, Latvia,
and Lithuania, Politico reported Wednesday, citing two people familiar
with the matter.
Ratcliffe also pressed Russia to reduce military and economic support
for Iran, Politico reported, citing one of the people familiar with the
matter and a U.K. official with knowledge of the trip.
All three sources were granted anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
News of the trip sparked widespread speculation in Washington and
Europe because it marked the first known visit to Russia by a CIA
director since 2021 and the first during either of President Donald
Trump’s administrations.
Saskatchewan Sets 50 Percent Tariff on US Alcohol
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said on Wednesday his province would
impose a 50% tariff on American alcohol, in response to Canada's
deepening trade war with the United States. Saskatchewan and Alberta
are the only provinces that still sell American wine, beer and
spirits.
Every other province has removed U.S. alcohol from its shelves, a source of irritation to U.S. President Donald Trump.
Moe said he supported Prime Minister Mark Carney’s retaliatory tariffs
on $20 billion worth of U.S. products and that the U.S. will continue
to be Saskatchewan’s biggest trading partner. The province produces
grain, potash and uranium.
How Putin’s Black Sea food fight puts the world — and your grocery bill — at risk
By Peter Doran
The oil war in the Black Sea between Russia and Ukraine is turning into a food fight — with potentially disastrous implications.
Moscow, fuming at strikes on its “shadow fleet” of sanctions-evading
oil tankers, is refusing to halt attacks on peaceful food shipments in
the Black Sea.
That will mean famine in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, as well as
higher US grocery bills in the coming months — unless Washington steps
up pressure on the Kremlin.
Russia and Ukraine feed the world: Together, they provide close to 30% of global wheat and barley exports.
The catch? They typically send around 90% of that cargo through the Black Sea.
Hasan Piker’s radical rhetoric is becoming Democrats’ 2026 brand
Hasan Piker is from the extreme left, and the record is full of his inanities and his outrages
By Hugh Hewitt
Social media influencer Hasan Piker wears his Mao jacket and hoses his
Twitch audience down with absurd political takes that do not betray any
evidence that Rutgers University obliged him to read even a book or two
of serious history before he graduated in 2013. Rutgers is a fine
school and anyone can get a great education there, but Piker’s "body of
work" shows us that serious study there is quite obviously not
obligatory.
Piker uses social media to monetize the worst impulses of the extremes
in American politics. In the course of doing so, he has become the face
of the Democratic Party in the 2026 midterms and has personally carried
the most radical major-party candidate in memory — Michigan Democrat
Abdul El-Sayed — to his party’s nomination for United States Senate.
Piker has now gone so "supernova radical" that some Democratic leaders
and elected officials have had to rebuke him without naming him —
including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Sen. Elissa Slotkin
— and others, like New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, have slapped Piker down
by name.
