“A former Illinois sheriff’s deputy won’t get an early medical release from his two-decade prison sentence for killing Sonya Massey inside her home after the [b]lack woman called 911 about a possible prowler, state officials decided on Friday. Sean Grayson had been diagnosed with colon cancer prior to the 2024 shooting, and his attorney noted in January that the cancer had advanced to his liver and lungs. The three-member Illinois prisoner review board voted unanimously on Friday to deny Grayson’s application for early medical release, panel spokesperson Liz Mitchell said in an email. Grayson, who is white, was convicted in October of second-degree murder for Massey’s killing, a case that sparked protests over systemic racism and a US justice department review.” (07/31/26)
“A heroic armed citizen tried to take out a gunman as he opened fire on an Idaho In-N-Out, according to heart-stopping video and witnesses. Harrowing footage shows a man with a handgun exchanging fire with the shooter outside the restaurant in Twin Falls. Two people were killed and seven wounded. The gunman is believed to have killed himself, according to police. The actions of the good Samaritan may have saved lives by distracting the gunman long enough for diners and workers at the crowded burger joint to get away, according to Lane Koehn, who took the video from his car.” (08/02/26)
“FIFA dropped Friday a plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors after severe backlash from worldwide soccer confederations. President Gianni Infantino had revealed earlier this week a plan to create FIFA Forward Enterprise, which would have offered a 20% stake to private investors in the $20 billion venture. … Finding investors for FFE would have been handled by Thrive Eternal — an investment firm owned by Joshua Kushner, who is the brother of President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. But the move was widely panned. The Union of European Football Associations said its 55 national teams would boycott all upcoming FIFA competitions ‘so long as these proposals remain alive.'” (07/31/26)
“Flight attendants at Canada’s second-largest airline WestJet have gone on strike during one of the busiest summer holiday weekends in the country. As of early Sunday morning, 309 flights have been cancelled, according to the airline. The industrial action centres on issues related to pay, specifically compensation for work they do when the plane has yet to take off – known as ground pay in the airline industry. … Flight attendants and WestJet have been engaged in contract negotiations since September 2025.” (08/02/26)
“President Donald Trump is appealing a federal judge’s decision to continue investigating whether his lawsuit against the IRS was part of a greater scheme to mislead the court. Trump filed his notice to appeal the ruling by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams, who ruled earlier this month that her court had the authority to continue probing a $10 billion lawsuit Trump, his family and businesses filed against the IRS for failing to safeguard his tax return information from leaks. The parties announced a controversial out-of-court agreement in May in which the Justice Department — representing the IRS — would create a nearly $1.8 billion ‘anti-weaponization fund’ …. In a blistering order July 13, Williams accused Trump of filing the lawsuit to ‘gain the imprimatur of judicial legitimacy for a ‘settlement’ that had no viable basis in law or fact.’ She also said exempting Trump from audits would violate a federal law that prohibits the White House from directing IRS investigations.” (07/31/26)
“A sanctioned tanker loaded with crude is leaving a growing trail of oil in protected waters off the coast of Oman, according to newly reviewed satellite images, as experts warn the stranded vessel could break apart during the region’s rough monsoon season. Satellite images reviewed by The Associated Press show an oil sheen covering roughly 20 square kilometers, or about 8 square miles, around Dhofar’s Qibliyah Island, part of Oman’s protected Hallaniyat Islands. Dark patches of crude have also reached the shoreline. … The 899-foot, Cameroon-flagged Caroline Bezengi has been stranded off Oman’s southern coast since June after its crew reported an onboard explosion, according to maritime news outlets.” (08/02/26)
“Former Peruvian President Ollanta Humala has been released from prison after the country’s Constitutional Court overturned his 15-year prison sentence for a case linked to a globe-spanning corruption scandal involving Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht. Humala was serving his sentence at a special detention facility in eastern Lima that houses several of Peru’s jailed former leaders. The 64-year-old and his wife, Nadine Heredia, were found guilty last year of money laundering for receiving illegal contributions from Odebrecht, now known as Novonor, and the Venezuelan government in two presidential campaigns. … Humala, a former army officer who led the country from 2011 to 2016, was the first Peruvian ex-leader to face trial in the Odebrecht corruption scandal, which has also tainted three other former presidents.” (07/31/26)
“Farmland across the Sacramento Valley sank rapidly as water was drained from underground aquifers during the historic 2020 drought, a new study found, a sign that the Central Valley’s water problems could be spreading north. Satellite observations over the Sacramento Valley detected ‘irreversible deformation’ from 2020 to 2022 due to increased groundwater pumping, according to research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Monday. The study found that land did not rebound following the extreme drought years. The rapid and extensive land subsidence in the region pointed to a loss of storage capacity in the aquifer system, which researchers said poses ‘a serious threat to California’s water resources and infrastructure.'” (08/02/26)
“The Justice Department admitted Friday that President Donald Trump’s $14 million renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was ‘hasty and botched,’ and it is dropping the criminal case against former Olympian David Hearn that accused him of vandalizing the pool, according to a new court filing from DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro. … Three other people have been swept up in the administration’s push to blame the pool’s problems on alleged vandals — each pleading not guilty to lesser, misdemeanor charges. Federal prosecutors dropped the charges against at least one of those people as well Friday, according to DC court records.” (07/31/26)
Yep, it’s another FIREHOSE FRIDAY at the freedom movement’s daily newspaper. We’ve got more than 100 news stories, opinion pieces, and audio/video links lined up for you today, but only here at our web edition.
The reason for the string of “web-only” Fridays was that Steve was traveling and I was covering the whole daily feed … so I felt entitled to save a little time on formatting, etc. once a week. If everything went well, Steve got home late last night and we’ll be back to “normal” as of Monday.
And, of course, a secondary reason for ANY “web-only” edition is to get in your face a little and remind you that we’re a reader-supported publication 😉
