Salmonella Warning Issued for Jalapeños

On the heels of a nationwide surge in cyclosporiasis, US health officials are investigating a multistate outbreak of salmonella linked to jalapeños (medium-sized chili peppers of the species Capsicum annuum), which has sickened 345 people so far. 

Their illnesses began on dates ranging from June 19 to July 20, 2026 and reported in 27 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At least 36 people have been hospitalized with the food-borne illness. 

In an August 05 food safety alert, the CDC identified the source of the outbreak: fresh jalapeño peppers distributed by Coast Citrus Distributors to wholesalers and restaurants nationwide. 

After Coast Citrus Distributors initiated a recall of their jalapeño peppers, Taylor Farms followed suit, recalling their prepared foods made with the recalled jalapeños, including salsa and guacamole, per the Food and Drug Administration. The affected products were distributed to Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Target, among other retailers. Some tainted jalapeños were served at Chipotle and Qdoba and have since been removed from stores. 

Salmonella is a type of bacteria found in the intestines of humans and animals that can cause food poisoning known as salmonellosis. People become infected by ingesting contaminating food or water. 

Infection with salmonella causes severe and sometimes bloody diarrhea, vomiting, fever and stomach cramps, per the CDC. In rare cases, salmonella can enter the bloodstream and cause life-threatening complications. 

Most people recover on their own, but some groups are at higher risk of severe illness. These include adults over 65, young children and people with weak immune systems. 

Salmonella is a leading cause of food poisoning in the US, and infections are more common in the summer because the bacteria thrive in warm conditions, per the CDC. 

However, the recent outbreak has stoked fears about the safety of US produce, especially after a summer of dodging the “diarrhea parasite” cyclospora linked to iceberg lettuce.

Following consecutive league wins against Dundee and Kilmarnock, an in-form Celtic launched their Scottish League Cup defense with a dominant 4-0 victory against Dundee United yesterday. 

The opening goal came when Auston Trusty headed the ball directly into the net from a corner kick in the 22nd minute. 

Two minutes afterward, Camilo Durán Marquez doubled the lead with a clinical strike, marking his debut goal for the club. 

Sebastian Tounekti scored Celtic's third goal in the 54th minute by collecting a through-pass from Benjamin Nygren and slotting a low finish into the bottom corner of the net. 

Nine minutes later, Mika Baur produced a lovely wee flick to Tounekti, who quickly fed the ball into Nygren; the Swede then arrowed a sweet shot high into the net from 18 yards.

The CIA-Edited Wiki Feeding Your AI

Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger warns that the platform has devolved into a biased propaganda tool, creating a dangerous ripple effect as its compromised data increasingly trains modern artificial intelligence systems. 

In an interview with the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung published on Friday, Sanger argued that Wikipedia’s lack of an adequate governance structure allowed “specific ideological viewpoints” to shape its content, turning the online encyclopedia into a “globalist, academic, secular and progressive” consensus. 

“Wikipedia was recognized early on as an important propaganda organ”, Sanger (left) told the media outlet. 

He argued that while the platform’s anonymity policy makes it difficult to determine who edits its content, “what we know as fact, based on all sorts of evidence, is that the CIA have already edited Wikipedia”. 

Evidence of CIA and FBI edits first emerged in 2007 after programmer Virgil Griffith created WikiScanner, a tool linking anonymous Wikipedia edits to organizations’ IP addresses. The tool attributed edits to the CIA, FBI, corporations, and government agencies, including changes to Iraq War casualty figures. 

“Wikipedia is already compromised. That’s clear”, he said. Sanger argued that any ideological bias embedded in Wikipedia is now being amplified because large language models increasingly rely on its content as a reference source when answering factual queries. 

To address the problems, he proposed sweeping reforms, including public identities for senior functionaries, due-process protections in disciplinary cases, public article ratings, and elected officials responsible for setting Wikipedia policy. 

Sanger is not the only prominent critic of Wikipedia. Conservative commentators have long accused Wikipedia, which relies on donations, of betraying its promise of neutrality on contentious topics. 

Elon Musk mocked the platform as “Wokipedia” and once offered $1 billion if it agreed to rename itself “Dickipedia” for a year. 

Russian officials have accused the platform of political bias. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in 2024 that Wikipedia almost always reflects a Western-centric interpretation of events and contains outright fabrications.

The Brink of Dawn: Rewriting US Nuclear Strategy

The US military is drawing up a new nuclear weapons strategy that breaks with decades of established guidelines. ☢️☢️☢️

The strategy is being overseen by War Department policy chief Elbridge Colby (left) and breaks with guidelines followed for decades. Five people familiar with the plans say the update emphasises using shorter-range tactical weapons in regional conflicts. 

The new plan is designed to provide the US President with updated crisis-response options by seeking to deter adversaries from exploiting regional conflicts while preventing conventional warfare from escalating into a nuclear exchange.  

Colby made a scheduled visit and keynote speech at the US Strategic Command (STRATCOM) in Omaha, Nebraska, on August 05, 2026, where he addressed military leadership and attendees during the closed-door 2026 Deterrence Symposium. It came after the Pentagon previously warned that America faces two major nuclear rivals at the same time in China and Russia. 

On July 23, 2026, the Department of War designated three Chinese civilian research universities – Fudan University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Shandong University (alongside the Aerospace Information Research Institute under the Chinese Academy of Sciences) – as national security threats. These institutions join a growing blacklist that now comprises 130 foreign entities.

Celtic faced Kilmarnock yesterday, seeking back-to-back wins, and they didn't disappoint as they steamrolled past the latter 5-1. 

The Scottish champions were quick to launch an attack down the left side. Kieran Tierney passed to Arne Engels, who delivered a high cross to the far post for Kasper Høgh to head into the net in the second minute, scoring his first goal for Celtic. 

In the 33rd minute, Camilo Durán intercepted a defensive pass, linked up with Benjamin Nygren, and fed Høgh on the left side of the box for a sharp finish. 

During another fluid Celtic attack two minutes later, Nygren slipped the ball to the right for Durán, who sent in a cross that bypassed the goalkeeper, allowing Høgh to tap into an open net and complete his hat-trick. 

Nygren added to the tally in the 47th minute after intercepting a poor goal kick and firing a high shot straight into the top corner. 

While the Killies pulled one back in the 56th minute, Luke McCowan sealed the win with a 75th-minute volley after Kilmarnock failed to clear a looping corner kick.

Data in the Deep

China has taken AI computing beneath the sea, where cold ocean water cools servers while saving energy and millions of litres of freshwater every year. 

Off Hainan’s coast, China operates commercial underwater data centres around 35 metres below the surface. These sealed submarine-grade steel modules use natural seawater to dissipate heat through internal conduction and external radiators, bypassing the energy-hungry mechanical chillers and large amounts of freshwater required by conventional land-based facilities. 

At full capacity, its first phase is expected to save about 26,000 tonnes of water and 3.4 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually compared with a similar land-based facility.

Don't equate Iran with Venezuela.

A truism. 

This statement was made during an interview with ⁠Mehr News, published on July 20, 2026. 

[That "one person" in question is former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. 

The comment was made in direct reference to a US military operation on January 03, 2026, during which American forces quickly captured and forcibly removed Maduro from power. 

Following his kidnapping, Venezuela’s interim government – led by Acting President Delcy Rodríguez – swiftly endeared themselves to Donald Trump and entered into US-supervised talks, granting new oil and energy concessions to Washington. To put it bluntly, Venezuela capitulated].

On July 28, their Foreign Ministry officially summoned Iranian Ambassador Ali Chegini to deliver a formal note of protest, demanding a strict "cessation of all allusion or comparison that undermines the dignity, sovereignty, institutional framework, or good name" of Venezuela. 

😂😂😂

The Cool City Blueprint

As cities across the tropics search for ways to cope with rising temperatures, Singapore has turned to a multi-layered urban heat mitigation strategy that combines extensive tree planting, cool building materials, district cooling, and high-tech climate modeling. 

The city is planting one million new trees and expanding parks to provide natural canopy shade, which reduces street-level temperatures by up to 2.6°C. To decrease solar heat absorption, workers apply high-albedo, reflective paints to public housing and building roofs. Urban planners design building layouts with optimal porosity to preserve natural air paths and sea breezes through dense urban canyons. Finally, major districts utilize centralized chilled-water networks for district cooling, which cuts down waste heat from individual air conditioning units. 

Singapore's proactive, tech-driven approach integrates nature with advanced engineering, offering a scalable blueprint for global urban centers balancing rapid growth with surging thermal trends. 

The largest cyclosporiasis outbreak in US history is not expected to end anytime soon. 

[For background info, kindly refer to my earlier posts dated July 23 and 28, 2026]. 

Michigan Department of Health and Human Services confirmed on Monday, the first two deaths linked to a mass Cyclospora surge that is tied to contaminated iceberg lettuce. The multi-state outbreak of the intestinal parasite has affected at least 45 states, with cases originally detailed in reports from AP News.

Marco Rubio’s Hot Take

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (right) helpfully pointed out "... that China wants to become the most powerful country in the world, and they want to do so at our expense. Obviously, we are Americans; we're not going to allow that to happen". 

This was said in an interview aired on the Fox News Channel program "My View with Lara Trump" on July 28, 2026.

Cue the dramatic gasp. A classic case of stating the obvious.  

While China is undoubtedly a rising global superpower, it is not yet the most powerful country on the planet. However, it is closing in rapidly; it's simply a matter of time.

Get used to it, Rubio!

😂😂😂

A historic opening round of six top-flight Scottish Premiership matches wrapped up at Celtic Park yesterday with the Celtic-Dundee fixture. 

Of course, the Scottish champions won, albeit a narrow 1-0 victory over the Dees. After a drab first half, Sweden midfielder Benjamin Nygren met a magnificent cross from Kieran Tierney on 52 minutes for the game's only goal. 

As Celtic head honcho Martin O'Neill said: "The most important thing is to win the game".

AI Slop Map of Africa at AIDS Conference

A US State Department map of Africa mislabeled every country they depicted during a presentation at the AIDS 2026 conference (July 26-31, 2026) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 

The slide was so egregiously wrong that multiple attendees whipped out their phones to get a shot of it; Emily Bass, a writer and AIDS expert, wrote about it at length. 

"The US government's failure to catch this error before displaying the slide at the top international AIDS conference in the world, in a session that featured the Director General of Nigeria as an invited guest, is not only disrespectful to African collaborators, it's also a significant tell", wrote Bass.

Senior officials from several African governments were reportedly among those present. 

The map shows six countries receiving US health funding and none of them are correctly named or placed. Nigeria has migrated north to become landlocked in the Sahara. Mozambique has roughly replaced Ethiopia. The Ivory Coast was placed in southern Africa, far from any coast, its name an ignored clue. Uganda and Malawi are not so far off, but drawn with wrong borders. Cameroon was named but assigned no territory at all. While one country on the Gulf of Guinea – a hypothetical union of Ghana, Benin and Togo? – went unnamed. Perhaps that is Cameroon now. 

The speaker was Jeff Graham, the US health envoy who oversees PEPFAR (⁠President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), a United States government initiative.

Whoever ⁠created and approved this slide did not know where countries in Africa are and did not care to check their work. And Reuters reviewed video of the presentation and concluded that the map was AI slop. 

A Reuters analysis found the image of the map included in the presentation contained an artificial intelligence watermark that signals it was made with OpenAI tools. 

The company said they were investigating the report. The State Department said they took "full responsibility" and blamed a staffer who changed the slide deck shortly before the event. 

This sort of thing is normal in the Trump administration. Last year, the White House's "Make America Healthy Again" report cited studies that did not exist, with fabricated references and other hallmarks of AI slop.

The Flagship America Can't Have

It’s been quite a while since Huawei were driven out of most global markets by losing out on Google’s services and apps, with market share plummeting in numerous regions as a result. 

However, as the company continue to innovate and dominate sales back home in China, it turns out that Americans wish they could still purchase and use Huawei phones as well. 

Despite a strict US government ban preventing their devices from being sold through official channels, Huawei recently emerged as the top choice for American tech enthusiasts. In a major industry poll conducted by the mobile technology publication ⁠PhoneArena, asking which Chinese smartphone brand consumers would most like to see properly enter the United States with full carrier support, Huawei led the vote with nearly 31 percent of the total selection. 

This strong showing highlights a deep, ongoing demand among premium Android users for the brand's hardware innovation, even as the broader landscape of international smartphone options shrinks. 

This suggests that Americans not only still miss the company but would be willing to give up Google’s services and accept Huawei’s HarmonyOS as well. Huawei have been pushing out some crazy powerful devices with very unique designs and gimmicks, and you want to get your hands on them. 

Getting a Chinese smartphone in the US is a gargantuan hassle, and no channels exist to purchase one like you would a Samsung, Google Pixel, or Apple phone. Most people who do use Chinese phones in the US get an unlocked model and have to use workarounds to have an almost normal experience. 

But from the said reader poll, we now know how much Americans want access to other Chinese brands after Huawei. In second place is Oppo, with a little over 23 percent of respondents wishing that it would be sold stateside. 

Xiaomi followed with 22 percent of the votes, as the company have been pumping out some excellent smartphones in the last few years with spectacular specs and great ideas like a second display on the rear. 

Meanwhile, a little under 12 percent want Vivo to take on Samsung, Google, and Apple in the US. iQOO got over seven percent of the votes and Realme came last with a little under five percent of you wanting it to operate normally in the States. 

Malaysian women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan secured their first semi-final appearance since the All England in March with a hard-earned victory at the Taipei Open yesterday. 

The world No. 5 had to work hard for their 21-14, 21-17 win over Taiwan's world No. 39 Lin Chih Chun-Yang Chu Yun in the quarter-finals.

The important thing is they won! 💪💪💪

But young women's doubles pair Low Zi Yu-Noraqilah Maisarah Ramdan's brave run came to an end. The world No. 67 suffered a 21-11, 20-22, 22-24 heartbreak to Thailand's world No. 36 Hathaithip Mijad-Napapakorn Tungkasatan after a titanic battle. 😞😞😞

End of the Talc Legal War

A decade of courtroom warfare culminated Monday as US attorneys cemented a historic $5.5 billion settlement with Johnson & Johnson, delivering a decisive blow in the fight over cancer-linked talc products. 

J&J said the settlement covers about 76,000 claims, including ones consolidated in federal court in New Jersey, and related cases in state court, representing nearly all of the remaining talc claims against the company. J&J previously settled most of the cases alleging that their talc contained asbestos and caused mesothelioma. 

Plaintiffs' legal teams affirmed that the agreement marked a successful conclusion to an enduring legal battle. The deal must be accepted by 95% of the ovarian cancer claimants in state ⁠or federal court before it becomes final. 

J&J's vice president of litigation, Erik Haas, maintained the claims were "meritless" and that the company were willing to settle in order to get closure. 😂😂😂 

J&J have long denied that their ⁠talc products caused cancer, saying that talc was safe and did not contain asbestos. Still, the company stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the US in 2020, switching to a cornstarch product. 

Litigation only revived in March 2025 after a three-year standstill. This delay was triggered by Johnson & Johnson's collapsed "Texas two-step" legal strategy, where the corporate giant pushed a shell subsidiary into bankruptcy three distinct times to escape full liability. Each bankruptcy ended in dismissal. 

Before the bankruptcy attempts, J&J had a mixed record in talc trials, with a multibillion verdict in favor of 22 women who said baby powder caused their ovarian cancer. The company won some trials outright and had other verdicts reduced on appeal. 

Unlike ⁠the proposed bankruptcy settlements, Monday's agreement applies only to existing claims and does not address future lawsuits.

Geopolitics Claims the Lab

The US has escalated its tech crackdown by adding top-tier educational institutions Fudan University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University to its defense blacklist. 

The updated US defense blacklist names 88 mainland Chinese entities deemed security risks, focusing on research and funding restrictions. Under the new rule, which takes effect at the start of the 2026 fiscal year (i.e., October 1st), the Pentagon will prohibit any funding for fundamental research conducted in collaboration with these schools, or for projects that use their equipment.

This signals a tightening of Washington’s research‑security crackdown, which previously focused mainly on military‑linked entities. 

Officials say the move is part of a broader effort to safeguard sensitive technologies and prevent the transfer of critical knowledge that could enhance China’s military capabilities. 

Both Fudan and Shanghai Jiao Tong have long been recognized for their strengths in engineering, computer science, and advanced materials – fields that are of particular concern to US defense planners.

Academics and university leaders have expressed concern that the restrictions could hinder international collaboration and impede open scientific exchange. Nonetheless, the Pentagon maintain that protecting national security interests outweighs the risks to academic openness. 

The expansion of the US blacklist to include universities like Fudan and Shanghai Jiao Tong signals a fundamental shift in strategy where the line between civilian research and military capability has officially vanished. This trend indicates that the pursuit of innovation is becoming firmly bound by national borders, marking a new era of restricted academic collaboration.

On this Wednesday morning, I had an epiphany, a calm moment of clarity:

:

The Lettuce Outbreak: 11,000 Sickened Across 41 US States

Remember my post "US Explosive Diarrhoea Outbreak" on Thursday? Well, the foodborne illness is actually a lot worse! 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state health officials are tracking a record-breaking outbreak of cyclosporiasis, with total reported illnesses now exceeding 11,000 cases across 41 US states. The bulk of the surge is concentrated in the Midwest, particularly in Michigan (which has reported over 7,100 cases) and Ohio. 

Health officials explicitly warn that the true number of infections is likely much higher. 

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are actively investigating five separate clusters of illnesses. One major outbreak has been epidemiologically linked to shredded iceberg lettuce supplied by ⁠Taylor Farms, leading to voluntary product recalls. 

However, the FDA have also launched an investigation into a separate outbreak from an unidentified source, meaning case counts are expected to keep rising.

👇The eighteen oldest languages still spoken today:

Russia Has No Right to Exist

Ukraine’s new commander-in-chief, Major General Mikhail Drapaty, declares that Russia has no right to exist.

On Wednesday, the YouTube documentary channel Ukrainer W released an interview with Drapaty originally recorded in 2023. 

Speaking to journalist Karina Pilyugina, the general (right) said that he had long anticipated a war with Russia. 

“We see that you cannot call them neighbors. It is a nation, together with its leadership, that has no right to exist. Over thousands of years, nothing has changed there in civilizational terms – neither its mentality nor its imperial ambitions”, he said.

Vladimir Putin's Special Military Operation in Ukraine is already 4 years, 5 months, and 3 days. It is taking forever. Regrettably, his military strategy in Ukraine is one of calculated moderation. 

Putin should stop pulling his punches!

This is the exact opening statement made by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday, July 23, 2026, to reporters on the sidelines of the ⁠ASEAN meeting of foreign ministers in Manila, Philippines. 

"The problem with Iran is every time they make a deal, the people that are in charge there either break it or want to change it. It looks like they're not ready to make a deal. So they're going to continue to pay a price. Every night the price gets higher and higher, and that's what's happening now", he added emphatically, when addressing escalating US-Iran tensions and open military conflict.

Oh, really? 😆😆😆

Americans are natural liars, fibbers and prevaricators!!!

Iran Threatens Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump made the threat to send Iran back to the Stone Age on April 01, 2026. He delivered this statement during a prime-time address from the White House. 

Six days later, he issued a second apocalyptic threat against Iran. Ahead of an 08:00 PM Eastern Time deadline regarding the Strait of Hormuz, he declared on social media that "a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again". 

Now, Iran has unveiled giant billboards in Tehran sending a direct counter-threat to Trump. 

A giant hoarding showing him lying inside an open black coffin was erected July 15, 2026 in Tehran’s Enghelab Square (Revolution Square), with graffiti-style text reading “We Will Kill Trump” written across the image in both Persian and English. 

The display also featured an inscription reading "In memory of Minab's children", referencing the massacre at an elementary school that was struck by US missiles in the southern Iranian city of Minab. 

Another one, at Palestine Square in Tehran, displaying headshots of Trump and members of his family, including Melania, Ivanka and Don Jr, on top of coffins draped with US flags, was unveiled around mid-July 2026 (specifically reported by international news outlets on July 16–17). 

Iran’s state media, Fars News Agency, even published an English-language video across multiple social media platforms, including the agency's official Telegram channel on July 17 titled “Where Do We Kill Trump?” purporting to show the motorcade route to his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, USA. 

It was later removed from X. 

Meanwhile, the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, warned Saturday of “unforgettable lessons” if the US continued its attacks on Iran.

For sure, at some point, the Americans will get what they deserve!

I'm only interested to know: the Iranians can talk the talk, but when are they going to walk the walk?

Donald Trump's Truth Social War Stats

US President Donald Trump published the post immediately below on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, July 21, 2026: 

He captioned the visual data by writing, “These are the real facts. REPORT THEM!” to push back against congressional critics regarding the costs and objectives of the current Middle East operations.

He has been roundly denounced for the post because he belittled the deaths of service members in the listed conflicts. 

Former supporter Marjorie Taylor Greene said Trump was “bragging about killing 18 US soldiers”. California Governor Gavin Newsom called the president a “disgusting Little Man”, while commentator Brian Krassenstein said Trump was minimizing “18 soldiers [who] have died from his stupid Iran war”. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called the post “beneath contempt”, and Senator Chris Van Hollen said Trump was “downplaying” the loss of American lives. 

On Wednesday, Trump courted controversy once again when he appeared to dismiss the conflict, referring to it as a "skirmish".

It shouldn't come as a surprise. He's a deviant. A degenerate. A sicko. 👿👿👿

US Explosive Diarrhoea Outbreak

Mexico’s Ministry of Health and the National Committee for Epidemiological Surveillance (CONAVE) issued an official preventive travel advisory. 

The advisory warns of an outbreak of cyclosporiasis, a parasitic stomach illness, that has infected at least 1,645 people across 34 US states. No deaths have been reported from Cyclospora infection, but at least 94 people have been hospitalised. 

Newsweek was first to report on this alert in English, and highlighting that US health agencies detected a sharp spike in infections since May. 

The parasite (Cyclospora cayetanensis) causes severe intestinal issues and is typically spread by consuming fresh produce or water contaminated with infected feces. 

As at Monday, US investigators had not confirmed a source, though the FDA were examining shredded iceberg lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. capitata) supplied by Taylor Farms. 

Taco Bell, known for meticulous supply chain management, were among the first to identify themselves as using Taylor Farms produce and warn recent diners they may be about to enter the launch cycle. 

Health officials in Mexico are urging citizens traveling north for the summer to carefully monitor their health for up to two weeks upon their return.

Malaysian women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan bounced back from last week’s first-round exit at the Japan Open by advancing to the second round of the China Open yesterday. 

The world No 5 pair were in complete control as they defeated the 29th-ranked Japanese pair Ririna Hiramoto-Kokona Ishikawa 21-16, 21-12 in just 31 minutes. 

Pearly-Thinaah will face Ukraine's Polina Buhrova-Yevheniia Kantemyr, for a place in the quarter-finals today.

$6B Budget for Next World Cup

🚨 FIFA are preparing a budget of around $6 BILLION for the 2030 FIFA World Cup. 💰 

The tournament will mark the 100th anniversary of the World Cup, with FIFA planning a landmark edition to celebrate a century since the inaugural tournament in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1930. 🏆🌍

And six countries have already secured their 2030 places after the global governing body for football officially confirmed the tournament’s unique hosting arrangement spanning three continents. Morocco, Portugal and Spain will serve as the main hosts of the expanded tournament, while Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will stage special centenary celebration matches. 

A US official told The Intercept that recent attacks had wounded “far more” personnel than are reflected in the Pentagon’s current casualty count. They did not provide numbers but said “dozens” had received medical attention. 

According to ⁠Al Jazeera citing CENTCOM, the ongoing conflict with Iran has resulted in 17 confirmed US military deaths, one service member missing, and over 420 wounded. 

And reporting by The Intercept previously found that the Pentagon’s official tally of dead and wounded personnel is a gross undercount, stemming from what one US government official called a “casualty cover-up”. 

There's nothing new about this because it has always been the US practice!

On the Iranian side, at least 3,000 have been killed according to Iranian reports and Al Jazeera's live trackers, though independent monitors like the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) estimate around 3,684 fatalities, with more than 26,500 to 27,000 individuals injured. 

We should anticipate that devastating human losses across Iran will escalate under the weight of continuous US bombardments. CENTCOM already announced they finished their latest round of strikes on Monday, marking the completion of the tenth consecutive night of American air attacks on Iran. 

And US President Donald Trump warned Tuesday on Truth Social that the United States was "not finished" attacking Iran. 

I say it again! Iran should stop pussyfooting with the evil regime that is the US. It's time to declare war and go on the offensive. 💣💣💣

Truce to Ashes

Eight straight nights of relentless US bombing have surely left the proposed ceasefire completely in tatters by Saturday. 

It looks like Donald Trump has been convinced that – oh my God – Iran is on the ropes and if he just keeps bombing them, they'll surrender. 

The ink had barely dried on the MoU before this continuous bombing campaign completely disintegrated the truce. [Read my post "Iran Wins, USA Loses" published June 21, 2026].

Whether Iran likes it or not, they should accept that diplomacy is dead. Iran's only correct move is an outright declaration of war against the United States.

Iran should just do it!

Air Cambodia have inked an agreement to buy twenty C909 aircraft from Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), making the Cambodian carrier the first foreign flag carrier to place a bulk order for the Chinese-made jet, according to a Saturday report by Chinese civil aviation industry portal CARNOC.com and cited by Global Times. 

The initial C909 aircraft are scheduled to be delivered to Air Cambodia in batches and enter service in the second half of 2026, CARNOC.com said.

The Real Cost of FIFA’s World Cup Record Revenue

Despite initial fears, football fans have unequivocally proven that they are willing to pay steep ticket prices to experience the 2026 FIFA World Cup. 

In fact, FIFA effectively won the battle for fans' wallets, turning the tournament into a historic commercial success. 

However, the data shows that this nearly 99.7% occupancy rate and the staggering 6,527,410 total attendees through the first 100 matches tell a more complex story than just universal fan approval. 

Truth be told, a vast percentage of the tickets were purchased by corporate sponsors, hospitality packages, and affluent travelers – a group that possess the immense purchasing power required to absorb the record-high costs. 

And while the overall cumulative data is record-breaking, early matches featuring less prominent football nations did suffer from noticeable, televised swathes of empty seats (e.g., June 11th's South Korea vs. Czech Republic fixture in Guadalajara, Mexico). 

Furthermore, to combat severe backlash regarding accessibility, FIFA introduced a last-minute Supporter Entry Tier right before the tournament began. This program, which allocated heavily discounted $60 tickets to loyal national federation fans, helped fill gaps in lower-demand games. 

Sure, Gianni Infantino might subscribe to the view that FIFA's pricing model has succeeded financially and that global demand for the World Cup is incredibly resilient, but it has left a lasting debate regarding the tournament's overall inclusivity. 

And if I may repeat, the hostile US treatment towards Iran is a blardy disgrace!

In Kenya, No Human, No Copyright

Kenya’s Copyright Tribunal, on July 09, 2026, delivered a landmark ruling determining that works generated solely by AI cannot receive copyright protection. 

The decision establishes that sufficient human effort, judgment, and original expression are strictly required to qualify for copyright, as only humans can be legally recognized as authors. 

The dispute involved author Cynthia Beldina Akoth and her contracting company, Aryeh Movement Ltd. Beldina had written a collection of Bible scripture stories using AI tools. Following a fallout, she discovered the company had registered the AI-assisted literary works in their own name. 

The Tribunal ruled against the company's copyright claim, stating that while AI is an acceptable creative tool, it cannot replace human authorship. To claim copyright over AI-assisted works, the creator must provide proof of substantial human intervention and creative control. 

Note that the Kenyan ruling itself does not legally apply outside of the country, because copyright laws are strictly territorial and governed by each country's national courts. 

However, the legal logic used by the Kenyan Tribunal matches the approach taken by most major global powers. As of 2026, there is no unified international treaty governing AI copyright, leading to a highly fractured legal landscape. 

In the US, content generated entirely by AI goes directly into the public domain. Copyright is strictly reserved for human beings. E g., In March 2026, the US Supreme Court officially denied certiorari in Thaler v. Perlmutter, upholding lower court rulings that AI cannot be an "author". 

The same goes for the European Union. Under the EU AI Act and established case law, works must reflect the "author's own intellectual creation" through human choices. Pure AI output cannot be copyrighted. 

UK law, though, has a legacy provision protecting "computer-generated works" without a human author, awarding copyright to the person who arranged the generation. 

In China, the courts have taken a drastically different, pro-innovation stance, granting copyright to AI-assisted images if the human prompter shows significant effort. Landmark rulings, including a major decision reported by the Changshu People’s Court, confirmed that a user's prompt sequence and parameter adjustments can meet the "originality threshold". 

Global framework treaties like the ⁠Berne Convention allow authors to protect their books and art across borders, explicitly requiring human intellectual effort to qualify. Because international frameworks do not recognize AI systems as legal persons, pure AI content cannot be protected globally.

World No. 5 Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan crashed out of the Japan Open in a major first-round upset after squandering a one-game advantage to lose 9-21, 21-17, 21-17 to Taiwan's Hsu Yin-Hui-Lin Jhih Yun on Tuesday.

I'm distressed.