“Police investigating the alleged murder of Ann Widdecombe say there is ‘nothing to suggest it was politically motivated’. Devon and Cornwall Police added they are not looking for anyone else in connection with her death, following the arrest of a 28-year-old white British man in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, on Saturday. The former MP and MEP, 78, was found dead on Thursday at her home in Haytor, Devon, having sustained serious injuries. Police believe she had been attacked almost 24 hours earlier. … Widdecombe served as the Conservative MP for Maidstone for 23 years, holding ministerial roles in John Major’s government between 1994 and 1997.” (07/12/26)
“A United States federal court has dismissed the seditious conspiracy cases against four members of the Proud Boys, the far-right group involved in the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. On Friday, Judge Timothy J Kelly, an appointee of President Donald Trump, granted the government’s motion to dismiss the case with prejudice, meaning it cannot be revived in future. But Kelly made it clear that the defendants — Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl and Dominic Pezzola — had been ‘convicted of serious offences’. He wrote in his seven-page ruling that his decision was ultimately rooted in the separation of government powers, not in the merits of the case.” (07/11/26)
“A disgraced Colorado DNA analyst’s guilty plea is putting JonBenét Ramsey’s murder back in the spotlight, as her father renews his push for cutting-edge DNA testing that he believes could finally solve the case. John Ramsey told Fox News Digital he has long understood former Colorado Bureau of Investigation forensic analyst Yvonne ‘Missy’ Woods had no involvement in his daughter’s case because the earliest DNA testing was performed by an independent laboratory. … The DA’s office said investigators also met with the Ramsey family several months ago, plan to continue providing updates and are reviewing evidence to ensure the investigation benefits from the latest advances in forensic science.” (07/12/26)
“The Sal and Mark Show is back with a packed episode and Wayne is back to join us. First up, Vic from CakeWallet joins to announce the launch of Radar Chat — a privacy focused Bitcoin Lightning messaging app built on Signal that lets you send payments seamlessly while you chat. A game changer for everyday crypto adoption.” (07/10/26)
“Japan’s experimental reusable rocket took off and safely landed in a first test flight Saturday as the country seeks to achieve the technology key to cut launch costs and compete in the global space market dominated by SpaceX. The RV-X rocket lifted off, hovered and moved horizontally before landing during its less than one-minute flight at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Noshiro Testing Center in northeastern Japan, which was livestreamed by the NVS, a group of space fans. … Japan seeks to catch up with the technology Elon Musk’s SpaceX has been using for several years to cut launch costs of delivering payloads into space.” (07/11/26)
“California’s new recycling law is leaving dairy manufacturers panicked that the legislation’s fees and mandates could be devastating to their business and could send Californian’s grocery bills even higher. The 2022 law is designed to increase recycling participation and reduce landfill waste in California by making companies responsible for what happens to their products after they’re thrown away. That includes charging companies an impact fee for each product they sell and phasing out materials that cannot be adequately reused, recycled or composted. … Katie Davey, the executive director of the Dairy Institute of California, said companies are facing impact fees as high as $15 million and will be forced to either charge customers more or shut down entirely.” (07/12/26)
“Apple on Friday sued OpenAI in federal court in Northern California, alleging trade secret theft, saying that the artificial intelligence lab took the iPhone maker’s intellectual property in order to develop its own consumer hardware. ‘This much is clear, however: at every level, from members of its Technical Staff to its Chief Hardware Officer, and in coordination with business partners, OpenAI has been stealing Apple’s trade secrets and confidential information,’ the company said in a legal filing. It’s a shocking reversal for the two companies, which entered into a high-profile partnership in 2024, when ChatGPT was integrated into the iPhone’s operating system. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman visited Apple’s headquarters for the announcement. But relations between the two companies have chilled since OpenAI announced plans to enter the hardware industry last year, when it bought former Apple designer Jony Ive’s startup, called IO Products, for $6.4 billion.” (07/10/26)
“The United States launched new airstrikes against Iran early Thursday, and Tehran responded by targeting U.S.-allied Mideast countries in an exchange of fire that threatened an interim deal intended to help end the war in the Middle East. Back-and-forth attacks, including a day earlier, have repeatedly threatened the ceasefire. But Thursday’s appeared bigger all around, with sirens sounding at least three times in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters, and missiles targeting Kuwait and Qatar. … An Iranian official accused the U.S. of launching an airstrike later Thursday targeting the area around Iran’s sole nuclear power plant, and other explosions were reported elsewhere in the country during the afternoon.” (07/10/26)
“Bitcoin’s best session of the week came out of Seoul and Tokyo. The largest cryptocurrency rose 3.5% to nearly $64,000 on Friday, recovering the ground it lost when President Trump warned that strikes on Iran could intensify. It traded as low as about $61,850 before buyers returned, and roughly $28 billion changed hands over 24 hours. Bitcoin is up 4.2% on the week, CoinDesk data shows. Ether rose 2.6% to $1,760 and is up 4% on the week. Solana added 2.6% to $78 while still carrying a 2.1% weekly loss, the only major that has not clawed back to green. XRP gained 2.2%, TRON climbed 1.2% and leads the majors at 4.7% over seven days, hyperliquid’s HYPE added 1.8% to $68, and dogecoin rose 2.6% while remaining 0.8% underwater on the week.” [editor’s note: As of 5 am Friday when I found this story, BTC was trading at $64,200 – TLK] (07/10/26)
“Ukraine’s military has intensified its attacks near Russian-annexed Crimea, following up strikes on Russia’s land corridor to the peninsula by targeting maritime supply routes as well. Ukraine’s drone force commander Robert Brovdi, also known as Magyar, says at least 25 ships have been hit and set on fire over the past four days in the Sea of Azov, the inland sea linked to the Black Sea by the Kerch Strait.” (07/09/26)
