Random News and Notes 25 July
On this date in 1759 The British and their Indian allies take Ft. Niagara from the French after a 20 day siege. This gave the Brits control of the Niagara portage – a key supply route – and opened up much of the Canadian interior to British forces.
The Battle of Lundy’s Lane was fought on this date in 1814, during the War of 1812, between an invading American army and a British and Canadian army near present-day Niagara Falls, Ontario. It was one of the bloodiest battles of the war, and one of the deadliest battles fought in Canada, with approximately 1,720 casualties including 258 killed.
While the Battle itself was a draw, with no clear winner, it ended US campaigns in Canada during the war of 1812.
On this date in 1898, US forces launch their invasion of Puerto Rico as part of the Spanish-American war. The approximately 110-mile-long, 35-mile-wide island was one of Spain’s two principal possessions in the Caribbean. With little resistance and only seven deaths, U.S. troops under General Nelson A. Miles were able to secure the island by mid-August. We have been saddled with it ever since.
On this date in 1943, Benito Mussolini, fascist dictator of Italy, is voted out of power by his own Grand Council and arrested upon leaving a meeting with King Vittorio Emanuele, who tells Il Duce that the war is lost. Mussolini responded to it all with an uncharacteristic meekness.
On this date in 1946, the first underwater test of a nuclear weapon takes place at Bikini Atoll in the Pacific. The Baker test was the second detonation of Operation Crossroads – the first nuclear weapon tests since Trinity on July 16, 1945, and the first detonations of nuclear devices since the atomic bombing of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. The purpose of the tests was to investigate the effect of nuclear weapons on warships. The bomb was known as Helen of Bikini and was detonated 90 feet (27 m) underwater.
Radioactive sea spray caused extensive contamination and the scheduled Charlie test was cancelled.
Back to Chiraq for more news about the stinking pile of bovine excrement that is the Obama Presidential Library. At least 3 more contractors have filed mechanics liens on the crapulent structure. The claims target structural steel ($620,000 from Area Erectors), excavation and concrete ($236,000 from CSI 3000), and gymnasium flooring ($25,000 from Floors Incorporated) on the 60,000-square-foot basketball facility at the library. These three new claims add to ongoing payment disputes since the center’s June opening, including a $1.7 million lien from a now-closed plumbing firm that laid off 25 workers.
The Obama Foundation says it paid the main contractor Lakeside Alliance fully and has no direct deals with subs, while Lakeside notes closeout work continues amid hundreds of trade partners.
Staying in Hellinois for a minute, U.S. District Judge David W. Dugan ruled that Illinois laws like the RISE Act and DREAM Act violate a 1996 federal statute by giving in-state tuition, financial aid, and scholarships to undocumented students who attended local high schools—benefits denied to out-of-state U.S. citizens. The decision, from a Thursday ruling in a DOJ lawsuit filed in September 2025, permanently bars these perks unless offered equally to all citizens nationwide.
It follows a similar DOJ suit against Colorado and reflects a broader push against such policies in over a dozen states.
A memo from POTATUS’s advisers was recently uncovered by Senator Eric Schmidt. The January 2, 2024 memo, obtained by Schmitt from the National Archives, outlined options like redesignating countries such as Guatemala, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to protect 3.1 million noncitizens ahead of Trump’s inauguration. Advisors aimed to counter anticipated mass deportations through litigation, noting requests from Democratic senators like Cory Booker and Dick Durbin.
While the full plan wasn’t implemented, Biden did extend TPS for nearly 1 million from existing groups like Venezuela and Ukraine through fall 2026 in some cases. Schmitt labeled it a ‘deportation shield’ that ignored voter mandates on immigration.
A couple of nights ago, cops in Madison Wisconsin tried to arrest one Corey Ruiz for trying to break into cars. Ruiz did not want to be arrested and pulled a knife. In the ensuing struggle Ruiz – who dindu nuffin – managed to stab an officer before they shot him to death.
Ruiz has at least 40 convictions including assault, battery, auto theft and drug related offenses. But he was a good boy and his lengthy criminal history didn’t define who he was according to his sister.