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.