As Trump’s descent into insanity accelerates, here is the ultimate cause for concern

Trump has sole authority to launch nuclear weapons on a whim

By Jon Letman , Truthout

The global security landscape has changed dramatically since Donald Trump’s first term, but one thing that remains constant is U.S. presidential authority to use nuclear weapons. From the moment he took the oath of office until the moment his successor assumes the presidency, Trump has the authority and the means to order a nuclear attack at any moment and for any reason if he chooses to do so.

Dating back to the Eisenhower administration, the system that gives U.S. presidents the ability to launch a nuclear strike at a moment’s notice revolves around what is known as the “nuclear football.” The “football” (formally called the presidential emergency satchel) is carried by a military aide who accompanies the president wherever he goes. As a backup, a second aide carrying another “football” follows the vice president.

The bulky, black, leather-bound 45-lb.-aluminum satchel is believed to contain laminated sheets printed with dozens of nuclear war plans and options, instructions on communicating with the public during a national emergency, and a secure satellite phone — all intentionally low-tech and offline to avoid vulnerability to hacking or technical glitches.

At all times, the president and vice president also carry sealed plastic cards, roughly the size of credit cards, informally called “biscuits” for their resemblance to cookies in a foil wrapper. Officially called the sealed authenticator system, the “biscuit” contains alphanumeric authentication codes to be used by the president to verify their identity.

Fun in the snow. This will be us on Sunday

Every Sunday....

Come and support Sam Wilcox, the best candidate for Senate District 34

Cold Water, Hot Bites - Winter Trout & Salmon Stocking

DEM - thanks for the fish

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will stock trout and Sebago salmon from Tuesday, Jan. 27, to Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026 in the following areas:

• Barber Pond, South Kingstown – Rainbow Trout, Salmon
• Round Top Ponds, Burrillville – Brook Trout
• Olney Pond, Lincoln Woods State Park, Lincoln – Rainbow Trout, Salmon
• Carbuncle Pond, Coventry – Rainbow Trout, Salmon
• Meadow Brook Pond, Richmond – Rainbow Trout, Salmon
• Silver Spring Lake, North Kingstown – Rainbow Trout, Salmon
• Simmons Mill Pond, Little Compton – Rainbow Trout, Salmon
• Stafford Pond, Tiverton – Rainbow Trout
• Watchaug Pond, Charlestown – Rainbow Trout
• Willet Pond, East Providence – Rainbow Trout
• Wyoming Pond, Hope Valley – Rainbow Trout
• Peck Pond, Burrillville – Rainbow Trout
• Upper Melville Pond (Thurston Gray) – Golden Rainbow Trout, Salmon

Hidden Chemicals in Food Linked to Testicular Damage and Lower Sperm Counts

Big Ag kicking you in the nuts

By George Mason University

A new review finds that widely used farm pesticides may reduce sperm quality and cause testicular damage in animal studies. Researchers warn that because these chemicals remain inside many foods, everyday exposure could pose an underrecognized fertility risk. Credit: Shutterstock

Modern farming relies heavily on chemical treatments, making it increasingly difficult to avoid ingesting trace amounts of substances that may pose risks to human health over time. These exposures often occur without consumers realizing it, through everyday foods produced using conventional agricultural methods.

Serious snowstorm on Sunday - current prediction for Charlestown

Rough going - be prepared and stay safe. 

Here is the outlook from NOAA and the National Weather Service:

Time change for protest at Citizens Bank

Save now, pay later: Critics warn McKee’s plan to ease energy bills comes with a tab

McKee plays the energy card to boost his re-election chances

By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current

Gov. Dan McKee framed his proposed rollbacks of green energy incentives around affordability — saving Rhode Island ratepayers $1 billion in their energy bills over the next five years, according to analysis by the state budget office.

Tina Munter, Rhode Island policy advocate for Green Energy Consumers Alliance, offered a different summation of the governor’s fiscal 2027 budget proposal on energy bill charges.

“It’s mind-boggling,” Munter said in a recent interview. “Rhode Island’s reliance on natural gas for heating and electricity is what keeps the region in flux with energy prices. The longer we rely on natural gas, the longer we’re stuck in a cycle of seeing [energy] bills spike, seeing ratepayers be confused and shocked and surprised, versus having more stability.”

This logic persuaded lawmakers in 2022 to enact the most ambitious renewable electricity timeline of any state in the nation. The Renewable Energy Standard law, heralded by McKee at the time of its passage, required Rhode Island to gradually transition to entirely renewable energy sources for its electricity needs, reaching 100% by 2033. 

Now, McKee wants to push the deadline to 2050, which is the same deadline for the state to achieve net-zero emissions overall under the separate Act on Climate law. The proposed 17-year postponement, with immediate relaxation of existing incremental benchmarks, accounts for more than half of the $1 billion projected savings to Rhode Island ratepayers, cutting nearly $64 million from bills in 2027, and $572 million over the next five years, according to the state Office of Management and Budget.

America's Gestapo

What you can do to stop ICE's mayhem

Robert Reich

ICE and Border Patrol agents must be reined in. I’ll tell you how in a moment.

Since Renee Good’s death, clashes between ICE and the residents of Minneapolis have escalated. On Wednesday night, an ICE agent shot and wounded someone who, ICE claimed, was fleeing arrest. (Sure, just like Good supposedly was trying to run them over when she turned her car away from them and said, moments before an agent fired three bullets into her chest and head, “That’s fine, dude. I’m not mad at you.”)

I’ve always loved Minneapolis. Its people have midwestern common sense. They also have a deep sense of fairness and justice.

On Wednesday, Trump threatened that if Minneapolis and the state of Minnesota didn’t stop the protesters, whom he referred to as “insurrectionists,” he would “institute the INSURRECTION ACT … and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State.”

Let’s be clear. The problem is not the protesters. It’s the armed thugs who are shooting and murdering them. (Trump seems capable of seeing a similar dynamic playing out in Iran and vows to protect the protesters there, but not in America.)

Free TACO for everybody!

Rhode Island's plans to protect your right to vote

Remembering Renee Good

McKee nomination of McCaffrey for judgeship opposed based on his record on women’s rights

Also seeks slate of bills to protect women's rights

Womxn Project in SteveAhlquist.news

The rule of law at the state level is the essential defense against the erosion of civil protections, unlawful paramilitary tactics, and escalating attacks on bodily autonomy targeting women, minorities, LGBTQ+ people, and immigrant communities, said The Womxn Project. In recent years, the organization, in coalition with partners, helped secure the right to choose in Rhode Island law so that abortion access would be protected even after the fall of Roe v. Wade.

This year, The Womxn Project will support legislation to codify core protections of the 1965 Voting Rights Act into Rhode Island law, ensuring that ongoing federal rollbacks do not weaken voting rights for any class of Rhode Islanders. State-level voting rights protections create a critical legal basis to resist efforts to curtail participation, especially in communities of color and other historically disenfranchised groups.

December Saw Fastest Monthly Food Price Increases Since Pandemic

Another one of those "Day One" promises broken

By Chris Walker

This article was originally published by Truthout

For months, Donald Trump has falsely claimed that food prices have gone down under his watch — but a new federal report shows that prices have increased overall since he reentered the White House, particularly for some staple items.

Trump has peddled false narratives regarding price decreases at several junctures, including in late November, when he claimed that costs for groceries were down by 25 percent, citing the price of an annual deal offered by Walmart on holiday foods. 

“My costs are lower than the Democrats on everything,” Trump boasted in a Truth Social post at the time. 

In reality, the price of the deal from the superchain went down in large part because it included fewer items than in previous years. 

A new Consumer Price Index (CPI) report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) published earlier this week demonstrates that food prices went up over the past year.

For the category of “food at home” (e.g. grocery food items), costs increased at a rate of 2.4 percent year-over-year. For the broad category of meats (beef, pork, ham, poultry, seafood, etc.), prices increased by 6.9 percent. On specific items within that category, price increases were more profound — the cost of ground beef, for example, went up by 15.5 percent in 2025. Coffee, which two-thirds of Americans drink each day, also saw sharp price increases, going up by 19.8 percent. 

There is no sign of the price increases stopping anytime soon — indeed, the change from November to December, a 0.7 percent uptick in food costs, was the fastest increase in grocery store prices in over three years.