by RJ Johnson

It is rare to find eleven unknown children anywhere in the world. So when they are found in the middle of New Mexico starving and being trained to use guns, it raises plenty of red flags.

During an unsuccessful search for a missing 3-year-old boy named Abdul-Ghani, Authorities found the eleven other children inside of a compound located in Amalia, New Mexico. Searching for Abdul started nine months ago in Jonesboro, GA.

When the investigation began, the primary suspect for the kidnapping was Abdul-Ghani’s own father Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, as reported by New York Times. The two of them were last seen together traveling through Alabama with other children and adults.

The report of these two going missing by their mother was key for finding the rest of these children in the compound. Although the initial report was for Abdul, there was no sign of him being there with the other children.

This led police to believe that he was there weeks prior, and had been taken elsewhere by his father.

The children who officials did find ranged from ages 1 through 15, and were taken to the compound for weapon training in hopes of future violent acts being performed. Siraj Wahhaj is believed to be a Muslim extremist, giving police more insight on the reasoning behind the kidnapping and training.

Taos County Sheriff Jerry Hogrefe told the press in a statement that the environment of the compound is the “[The compound is] the saddest living conditions and poverty I have seen,” said Taos County Sherriff Jerry Hogrefe. “[The children] looked like third-world country refugees not only with no food or fresh water, but with no shoes, personal hygiene and basically dirty rags for clothing.”

With seeing the condition of the 11 children found, this only raises more concern for the last unaccounted child Abdul-Ghani.

Hakima Ramzi posted about her son Abdul disappearance on her Facebook page in January.

“He’s sick, he needs his medications,” she said, fighting back tears. “He needs everything. I don’t know if he’s alive, or he is, well, I don’t know his condition now.”

Hamika Ramzi has been the only person to come out and make a missing persons report. The remaining children have not had anyone come out and do the same. This raises suspicion as to where the children have come from.

Wahhaj is the only one out of five defendants in the group to be charged with 11 counts of child abuse stemming from neglect. The search for Abdul-Ghani is still on, further action will be taken once he is found. Allowing the Officials and Taos County Police to put the kidnappers behind bars.

by Sean Singleton

“The Space Force”: a future legacy or an unnecessary burden to the American taxpayer? President Donald Trump has been taking credit for a new Space Force without outlining the scope and cost of the proposed military branch.

The United States Space Force could be an outer space military force composed of troops, with a space command headquarters on Earth. President Trump believes the next major war will take place in space, prompting him to feel the need to create this new branch.

President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence are not the first people to consider a Space Force. In fact, the concept has been tossed around for decades.

“In 1999, Senator Bob Smith entertained the idea, and the following year, another commission suggested making a Space Corps within the Air Force,” according to National Geographic.

Many of the components that Donald Trump and Mike Pence discussed have been implemented by other branches of our military, specifically the Air Force Space Command and the National Reconnaissance Office. More than 30,000 people work weekly in the Space Command, making the Air Force more than capable of handling space-related missions without a completely separate branch. 

“[We will] be creating the Space Force to prepare for the next battlefield where America’s best and bravest will be called to deter and defeat a new generation of threats to our people [and] to our nation,” according to the Trump Administration.

Although this may be true, the United States cannot legally bring weapons into space due to the Outer Space Treaty that President Lyndon B. Johnson signed along with Russia and the United Kingdom in 1967.

“These countries may not place nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit or on celestial bodies or station them in outer space in any other manner,” according to the treaty.

This would be a major obstacle in the creation of the Space Force.

“The United States should focus on wars that we are currently in, like cyber warfare. [We] should focus on that because it is much more of a threat to our democracy and our way of life right now than a future science fiction warfare,” says Commander Scott Kelly, an astronaut who has been in space longer than any man in history and has spent 20 years working at NASA.

Though the future is never certain, Trump’s proposal for a Space Force without a clearly defined mission, roles and responsibilities could become a waste of money when we already have deficit problems in our country.

by Kevin Aguilar

As of August 19th, 2018, 227,098 acres have been destroyed along with 1,079 residences, 22 commercial structures, and 63 outbuildings alongside a tragic 8 fatalities have occurred.

The air quality has drastically been worsened in Northern California as a result of the recent fires. The quality has also been worsened in a few neighboring states–Oregon, Washington, and Nevada to name a few. But what may have caused such a series of tragedies? The California fires in Northern California, most notably what is known as the “Carr fire” has had an enormous impact on Northern California. 

The start of the wildfires began on July 23rd, 2018 at approximately 1:15 P.M, and the temperature in the area soared above 100 Degrees as the cause of the fire was believed to have started after a vehicle suffered a mechanical failure according to officials. The fire started at Highway 299 and Carr Powerhouse Road, located around Whiskeytown. What began as just a mechanical failure turned into what is currently the 6^th largest California fire in history.

“Wildfires across the state have killed eight people and scorched 200,000 acres by the end of July,” according to the Los Angeles Times. 

Many residents of the cities of Redding, Shasta Lake, Summit City, Douglas City, Igo, Ono and French Gulch have been evacuated as a result of the fire spreading 1,500 acres within the course of a day. French Gulch however has gone through a fire in the past. This fire took place in August of 2004 and 103 structures and 1,345 acres were burned and affected. Over 30,000 residence lost their homes and place of business or work that same day.

Two firefighters were killed in action during the first day of the current fire. The first death was caused by one being crushed by a tree and the other dealt with the firefighter being trapped in the wildfire. By July 28th, 2018 the confirmed death toll rises to 5.

“More than a dozen people have been reported missing,” said county Sheriff Tom Bosenko. By August 1st, 2018, 121,049 acres would be destroyed and the overall death toll rose to 6.

“[This fire] is being magnified and made so much worse by the bad environmental laws which aren’t allowing massive amounts of readily-available water to be properly utilized. It is being diverted into the Pacific Ocean. We must also clear trees to stop this fire from spreading!” said President Donald Trump in a tweet responding to the fires in California.

Trump is claiming that all water in California is not being used efficiently and needs to be directed toward putting out this wildfire. However, the fire department of California claim that there is actually enough water for the fires throughout California. President Trump also claims that removing trees will help reduce wildfires. This tweet would then inspire interior secretary Ryan Zinke to respond to this issue.

“It doesn’t matter whether you believe in climate change [or not], what is most important is how we manage our forest,”  Zinke said.

A tire from the RV of the couple’s vehicle popped, which then led to the rims scraping against the asphalt, creating sparks that would ignite nearby dry bushes, grass, and trees.

After a course of 3 weeks the fire has destroyed many homes and individual companies, along with causing grief for the families of the those who have lost loved one’s in fighting these wildfires.