Trending News
What we know so far about fast-moving fire that killed 4, injured dozens at CFB Wainwright
Details of the tragic fire that killed four and injured dozens at a Canadian Armed Forces base in Wainwright, Alta., on Saturday are still emerging as people mourn across the country. Officials say 39 people were injured and taken to hospital, including 19 in critical condition, following a grass fire that broke out while soldiers were training.
Justice Department carries out California sweep targeting alleged noncitizen voters
Federal authorities charged more than two dozen foreign nationals Monday in California as part of a statewide sweep targeting people who officials say have illegally registered and voted in U.S. elections.The arrests are part of a Trump administration effort to root out noncitizen voting ahead of next month’s midterm elections, even though data shows that the problem is incredibly rare, difficult to prove and has not been shown to change the outcome of races. They also reflect a further escalation in a simmering voter roll fight between the federal government and California that came into focus last week when the Justice Department sued the state and later warned that local election workers who knowingly process or tabulate ballots submitted by noncitizen voters are at risk of investigation and potential prosecution.The Justice Department said the 28 people who were charged as part of a sweep dubbed Operation Protect the Vote are lawful permanent residents — but not U.S. citizens who are permitted to legally vote. They are charged with crimes including making false statements on a naturalization application and submitting fraudulent voter registrations."This causes real damage to real elections and real damage to American citizens,” Trent McCotter, the acting deputy attorney general at the Justice Department, said during a news conference in Los Angeles to announce the charges. Elections Sep 17 Bay Area voter guide: What to know about the November 2026 election Decision 2026 Oct 2 What to know about California propositions in the November election California emerges as a flashpoint for voting dispute The federal government has made noncitizen voting a priority this year, demanding detailed voter information — including dates of birth, addresses, driver's license numbers and partial Social Security numbers — from the states. While some states voluntarily handed over the information, the department sued 30 states and the District of Columbia to obtain it — lawsuits that so far have been unsuccessful.The Justice Department said Monday it has charged 113 people in 20 states with illegal voting and illegal registration offenses over the last several weeks, It earlier said it had charged about 90 people for various types of election misconduct so far this year, including 50 who are alleged to have voted as noncitizens. There were more than 227 million registered voters in the United States during the 2024 presidential election.The operation Monday involved the four U.S. attorneys’ offices across California in what the Justice Department intended as a statewide show of force.Among the dozens of people arrested was a 72-year-old Belize-born man who is accused of voting illegally in four elections.Dozens of federal agents descended on the man’s residential cul-de-sac in Commerce, a small city in Los Angeles County, to make the arrest. The man was put in handcuffs in his pajamas and taken into federal custody downtown. Others emerged from the house to watch and questioned the number of heavily armed officers present for the arrest, as well as the need for handcuffs.The arrests were the latest in a flurry of activity that has unfolded in heavily Democratic California, which is not typically regarded as a key battleground state but does have a handful of competitive congressional races that could help determine which party controls the U.S. House for the final two years of President Donald Trump's term. Over 23 million people are registered statewide.The administration last week sued California to prevent it from counting mail ballots from people the federal government has identified as "likely" noncitizens until their immigration status can be confirmed.The complaint was filed after California officials were given, and did not meet, a 48-hour deadline to review a password-protected thumb drive that contained a list of 20,000 names. The federal government says those are likely noncitizens who were sent ballots to participate in the Nov. 3 election, although the secretary of state said the administration has provided no evidence to support that claim. The state mails ballots to all registered voters.McCotter said the 20,000 number was likely to rise."That's just the floor," he said.As part of its lawsuit, the Justice Department filed paperwork Monday seeking a court order that would force California to set aside ballots from suspected noncitizens and to independently, or in conjunction with the federal government, verify their citizenship status before tabulating their mail-in ballot. The Justice Department asked for the order to be entered in time for the Nov. 3 election.Absent that order, the government said, "there is a significant risk that American votes will be diluted."Requests for comment sent Monday to the secretary of state, state attorney general and governor’s office were not immediately returned.Attorney General Rob Bonta ‘not impressed’ by federal caseCalifornia Attorney General Rob Bonta was asked about the arrests during a news conference in San Francisco focused on the state’s efforts to combat cryptocurrency scams.Bonta said that while voter fraud is serious, the number of arrests announced Monday represents roughly .0001% of the state’s more than 23 million registered voters and that the arrests aren’t evidence of widespread voter fraud, even if the allegations turn out to be true.“I think the announcement today by the United States DOJ makes the point that there is no widespread voter fraud, but when there are isolated incidents, one-off incidents of voter fraud, those are wrong, those are illegal, and those individuals should be held accountable,” Bonta said.Bonta also said the DOJ’s list of “likely noncitizens” doesn’t include any evidence to support the federal government’s suspicions.“They’re not saying that we have visible proof. They’re not even saying that we know,” Bonta said. “They’re not even saying we think we have. They’re saying we believe it’s likely.”He said the last time federal prosecutors made a similar claim was when they thought there were 16,000 ineligible voters in Nevada but were unable to substantiate a single case of voter fraud.“We are not impressed by their case. We are not impressed by their position,” Bonta said. “We believe their case is meritless and will make our position very clear in court.”A warning for poll workers On Friday, the Justice Department followed up with a letter warning that state election officials who knowingly process ballots cast by noncitizen voters are at risk of investigation."The legal consequences for either facilitating or ignoring a federal crime are significant. Noncitizen voting in a federal election is a federal crime — and knowingly facilitating such conduct is equally unlawful," warns the letter from McCotter.It adds: "If persons knowingly tabulate ballots cast by individuals identified by federal agencies as noncitizens, they risk becoming aiders and abettors to a federal crime."The letter is addressed to the Los Angeles County Counsel's office and also is copied to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Registrar Dean Logan, effectively putting the entire state on notice.In response to the letter, Logan said his office is focused on conducting a fair and secure election while noting that Election Day is a mere 18 days away."The U.S. Department of Justice has chosen to litigate their unverified assertions of voting eligibility. At this point, it is best for this to be addressed in court," he said.___Bay City News and Associated Press writer Eric Tucker contributed to this report.
Bland ISD voters consider $269k bond proposal on Nov. 3
2026 Midterm ElectionWhen is Early Voting? Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 19 and runs through Friday, Oct. 30. A list of voting locations is here for Collin County, Dallas County, Denton County, Tarrant CountyWhen is Election Day? Tuesday, Nov. 3, is Election Day and polling locations will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. You can vote if you’re in line by 7 p.m. on Election Day.Federal races: (U.S. Senate, U.S. House)State races: (Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, Comptroller, GLO Commissioner, Agriculture Commissioner, Railroad Commissioner, State Board of Education, Texas Senate, Texas House)County races: (Collin, Dallas, Denton, Tarrant, Rockwall)Judicial races: (Texas Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals, Court of Appeals, District Courts, County Courts, Justice of the Peace Courts)Bonds and Props: There are several bonds and propositions on ballots; they’re broken down here by schools, municipalities and counties.Previous results: Here are the results from the March primary and runoff.Bland ISD is asking voters to consider a tax increase that will increase maintenance and operations tax revenue by 8.49% for the District, an additional $268,919.Bland ISD Election - Proposition ATHIS IS A TAX INCREASE Ratifying the ad valorem tax rate of $0.91090 per $100 valuation in Bland Independent School District for the current year, a rate that will result in an increase of 8.49 percent in maintenance and operations tax revenue for the District for the current year as compared to the preceding year, which is an additional $268,919.HOW ARE TEXAS SCHOOL DISTRICTS FUNDED?Texas school districts are funded by three sources: Federal money, state money and local taxes. Local taxes comprise two tax rates, Maintenance and Operations (M&O) and Interest and Sinking (I&S), set by the school board. M&O is the money used to pay for the day-to-day operations of a school district, including salaries and professional development, utilities, curriculum, building maintenance, and student services. I&S is the money generated from bonds to pay for new buildings, renovations, security, buses and other large expenses. The I&S tax rate is used to repay the bonds. Funding approved for M&O and I&S projects can’t be mixed.HOW CAN BOND MONEY BE SPENT?Bond money can only be spent on capital projects like new buildings, renovations, security upgrades, land acquisition, and other non-recurring costs. It can’t be spent on salaries, staff, utilities, fuel, or other recurring costs. The money repaid from a bond will include interest over time, generally 30 years. Many districts try to repay their bonds early to save on the interest obligation.WHAT IS A VATRE?VATRE stands for Voter Approval Tax Rate Elections. If a district needs to increase funding for salaries, daily operating expenses, or other recurring costs, then they have to ask voters to approve of an increase of the M&O Voter Approved Tax Rate (VATR). Many districts hold VATREs to increase M&O funding because they have a deficit. Prior to the 2025 legislative session, state legislators went six years without increasing funding for schools, and with inflation and the addition of unfunded mandates, such as adding an armed officer on each campus, many school districts say they are strapped for cash.‘THIS IS A PROPERTY TAX INCREASE’A state law requires Texas school districts to include the statement, "This is a property tax increase," on every ballot proposition. That is true even if the proposition does not increase the tax rate. In their proposals, many Texas school districts say they can issue bonds without increasing the I&S rate. This is often done by taking on new bond debt as old, declining debt is paid off. Read the district’s proposal thoroughly to understand whether voting for the bond package will result in a tax rate change. Even without an increase in the tax rate, changes in property tax appraisals could result in a larger tax bill for the property owner.Election Day is Nov. 3; early voting begins Monday, Oct. 19, and runs through Friday, Oct. 30. Decision 2026 Decision 2026 23 hours ago Early Voting Guide: Here's who and what is on the midterm ballot in North Texas Decision 2026 6 hours ago Texas voter suspense list grows to nearly 1.8 million. Here's what to know Decision 2026 7 hours ago No, a signature on your ballot will not disqualify your vote, Dallas County election officials say
Evening news wrap: Manipur on boil again as 3 killed by militants; France PM orders curfew as protests grow & more
India dismissed the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir as malicious and biased. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is set to visit India from October 21 to 23 for discussions. In Manipur, three individuals were killed in a militant ambush, leading to protests in Imphal. Meanwhile, three men were arrested in Rajasthan regarding the firing at actor Tiger Shroff's car.
Eagles left searching for answers after dismal loss to Panthers
The Eagles got the ball first on Sunday against the Panthers and promptly went 3-and-out on a drive that netted zero yards and took just 1 minute and 32 seconds off the clock.As Braden Mann took the field for the punt, the press box braced for boos. And they didn't come. Sure, there was a smattering, but the Linc was just mostly silent.You know what's worse than anger from the fanbase? Apathy.We've reached that portion of the Eagles' 2026 season. It's hard to tell for sure, but it seemed like many of the fans who showed up for Sunday's game sort of expected the Eagles to lose. And can you blame them? They were right, of course. The Eagles trailed the whole way on Sunday afternoon and fell 25-14 to the Carolina Panthers — a solid team, but far from a juggernaut.The Eagles have now lost four consecutive games for the first time under head coach Nick Sirianni. They're 2-4 with three games to go before they mercifully reach the bye week."I don't think I've ever lost this many games in any sport I've played in a row," Cooper DeJean said. "So it's pretty frustrating."For the first five weeks of the season, the hope was that the Eagles were a good team that was playing poorly. But what Week 6 revealed is much worse: The Eagles just aren't good.You can start to explain it away, of course. The team is insanely injured; there were literally 24 players on the injury report this week. The offensive line has been in a constant state of flux, Saquon Barkley is still out and now Jalen Hurts is on IR with a blood clot in his calf.But even with backups, this is still really bad.In this four-game losing streak, the Eagles have scored 20 points or fewer in every game. According to NFL NextGen Stats, that's the first time the Eagles have done that since Weeks 10-13 in 2020 — the final year of the Doug Pederson Era.And they have just 874 total yards during this losing streak. That's the worst four-game span since Weeks 2-5 in 1999 when Andy Reid was finding his sea legs with Pederson at quarterback.There are a bunch of other stats to prove to you what you already know, that the Eagles are bad.They have been out-gained in these last four weeks 1,597-874. They have been outscored 95-55. They have just 56 first downs and have given up 93. OK, you get it.They were blown out in Chicago, lost back-to-back close ones to the Rams and Jaguars and then were simply out-classed by the Panthers.This losing streak has the Eagles searching for answers and they're not easy to find."The only thing that comes to mind is want-to. The want-to," Mailata said. "The want-to to execute that rep, the want-to to dominate the guy next to you. That's all stuff that we can control. When it comes to the play, that's out of our control. But your effort in the down is the only thing you can commit to. Don't know how. Got to watch the film. I just know from right now, that's probably just how I'm feeling. The want-to and then getting guys just finish the blocks."When asked about that comment from Mailata, Sirianni said he didn't question his team's toughness and he didn't question its effort in the wake of a fourth straight defeat.And Sirianni's right. The Eagles played with effort on Sunday, which makes the loss even more damning because there's no easy way to fix this. It's Oct. 19 and there's a long way to go in this season. It's just hard to have faith the Eagles will be able to figure this out.By the time Sunday's game ended, there wasn't even a packed house left to boo. Plenty of the 69,000+ fans were already in the parking lots or in their cars going home — off to enjoy the rest of their Sundays.
Burnham urges officials to come up with more radical options for Thames Water
Exclusive: Utility seen as 'litmus test' of PM's promise to bring 'essentials of life' under public controlAndy Burnham has told officials to rip up their plans for how to fix Thames Water and present him with more radical options for what to do with the stricken company.In an early test of his promise to bring "the essentials of life" under public control, the prime minister is urging his advisers to go back to the drawing board and create a new list of policies for the utility. Continue reading...
Alberta Referendum: Live results and how to vote
The Alberta referendum polls are open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., after which Global News will have in-depth results coverage and analysis online and on air.
Albertans head to polls in historic referendum on whether they want to stay in Canada
EDMONTON - The polls are open as Albertans mark their ballots in a historic vote on whether they want to stay in Canada.
Premier 'deeply appalled' after Indi MP Haines injured – as it happened
This blog is now closed'Deeply appalled': politicians condemn alleged attack after Helen Haines critically injuredHelen Haines, the principled MP respected across parliamentWhat we know so farGet our new political email, free app or daily news podcast'No ongoing threat to community': Victoria policeMason tells journalists there is "nothing to indicate at this stage" that the two parties are known to each other, but police are still investigating.I can provide some assurance to the community that we certainly do not have any intelligence that there is any further or ongoing threat to any other person or the broader community. We are treating this as an isolated incident at this point in time.We've still got a lot to work through here. As you can imagine, it's been quite dynamic this afternoon. We've got quite an extensive crime scene.We have investigators present and they'll continue to work through and try and collect all available evidence to ascertain exactly what has occurred and how it has occurred. We've got the Major Collision Investigation Unit who are currently en route from Melbourne. Continue reading...
Israeli police detain 10 people in rare raid against West Bank settlers
Move comes after US photojournalist and group of European diplomats and Palestinians were assaulted in separate attacksIsraeli police have detained 10 people in a rare raid against settlers, after a weekend of extreme violence in the occupied West Bank including an attack on US photojournalist Heidi Levine, which she described as an "attempted lynching".She was knocked down, kicked and beaten by a group of masked Israeli men as she covered the olive harvest in a Palestinian village on Friday. The militants broke four vertebrae and a rip, ripped open her finger so it required surgery and left her with lacerations across her body. Continue reading...
On TV

Nothing airing worth remote control today. The screen can rest.

New Music

No new drops today. Go rediscover something in your old playlists.

In theaters
Wildwood (132 minutes)
Prue and her classmate Curtis are drawn into a magical forest filled with enchanted creatures, loyal allies, and formidable adversaries as they embark on a desperate quest to rescue Prue's abducted baby brother from a murder of crows led by a mysterious woman named Alexandra.
Launching today
H3-24 | Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) — Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (19:41 UTC)
MMX is a Japanese scientific mission to land on Phobos, one of the two moons of Mars, to collect samples before bringing them back to Earth. The mission includes a small French/German rover to explore the surface of Phobos.
Useless Fact

In golf, a ‘Bo Derek’ is a score of 10.

The loonie
CAD → USD
0.7094
▲ 0.0029
CAD → EUR
0.6325
▲ 0.0039
Today In History
2003 — Pope John Paul II Beatifies Mother Teresa
Pope John Paul II beatified Mother Teresa, who had won the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize for her charity work
1987 — 1987 Black Monday Stock Market Crash
The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted nearly 23 percent, the largest one-day percentage drop in the stock market's history
1914 — First Battle of Ypres Marks Start of Trench Warfare
During World War I, the First Battle of Ypres began in western Flanders; the Allies and Germans settled into the trench warfare that would characterize the remainder of the war on the Western Front
1897 — George M. Pullman, Pullman Sleeping Car Inventor, Dies
American industrialist George M. Pullman, inventor of the Pullmansleeping carused onrailroads, died
1864 — Confederate Raid on St. Albans, Vermont
Confederate soldiers based in Canada crossed into St. Albans, Vermont, and robbed three banks in order to agitate the Union during the American Civil War. How much do you know about the American Civil War? Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc
1812 — Napoleon's Disastrous Retreat from Russia
In 1812, Napoleon Bonaparte led a massive French invasion of Russia, but the campaign ended in disaster. After initial victories, the French army was eventually forced to retreat from Moscow due to the harsh Russian winter, supply shortages, and relentless attacks by Russian forces. This retreat marked a major turning point in the Napoleonic Wars, as it led to the eventual downfall of Napoleon's empire.
1789 — John Jay Sworn in as First U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice
John Jay, a Founding Father of the United States, was sworn in as the first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Why are there nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court?
1781 — Surrender of Lord Cornwallis
On this day in 1781, Britain's Lord Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, Virginia, handing a huge victory to American General George Washington and effectively ending the American Revolution and assuring America's independence

This is today, boiled down to the essentials. The full stash lives at logicalchaos.ca. Go get lost in it.