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Sign up for the Quick Strike Newsletter The hottest fishing news, tips, and tactics Backlashes flat out suck. I’ve yet to meet an angler who enjoys the task of picking out tangled line from a baitcaster after a bad cast. So the advent of digital control (DC) reels that use an internal microcomputer to monitor spool speed and apply magnetic braking was a thing of pure genius.  As Shimano came out with several different DC offerings, I was lucky enough to add a few to my reel collection and start spending time on the water with them. Almost instantly, I…

President Donald Trump unexpectedly left Turkey on Wednesday aboard an older Air Force One rather than the newly renovated Qatari-donated jet that brought him there, but later boarded the new plane in Britain for the flight to Washington.The trip to Turkey for the NATO summit, the first international travel for the new plane, took place as hostilities escalated with Iran, a country that borders Turkey. The unexpected plane switch followed months of scrutiny over the luxury gift intended to serve as a temporary replacement while Boeing struggled to deliver long-delayed next-generation Air Force One planes.Critics questioned the cost, security and…

KYIV, Ukraine — The United States is already testing Ukrainian-made aerial and maritime drones and has given Kyiv “very positive feedback,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday, the clearest sign yet that a long-stalled drone-production deal with Washington worth billions is moving ahead.The confirmation came a day after U.S. President Donald Trump at the NATO summit in Ankara pledged the U.S. would give Ukraine a license to build its own Patriot interceptors, a long-sought goal for Kyiv as a global shortage of the missiles and intensifying Russian strikes leave its cities exposed.Zelenskyy stopped short of tying the license to the…

A U.S. Air Force airlift wing executed the largest-recorded aerial transport of around 50 metric tons of lethal narcotics for destruction.433rd Airlift Wing Reserve airmen, alongside Drug Enforcement Administration personnel, used the force’s largest and heaviest aircraft to remove 23 pallets with an estimated value of $5 billion over the course of three days in Operation Burnout, according to a Tuesday release.In mid-May, the wing airlifted the narcotics using a C-5M Super Galaxy from March Air Reserve Base, California, to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, ahead of its transport to an incinerator facility in Indiana to be destroyed.The release did…

The Department of Veterans Affairs’ disability claims backlog dropped below 70,000 this week for the first time in six years, a milestone the VA hasn’t seen since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.VA officials said Monday the number of backlogged claims — those pending for 125 days or more — has fallen by 74% since President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20, 2025. They added that currently, just 11.6% of all pending claims were older than 125 days, compared with 70% of the 600,000 claims pending more than a decade ago.The VA has invested millions in automated systems, including…

This article was originally published by Michael Snyder at The End of the American Dream.  Massive explosions are being reported all over Iran as the U.S. conducts airstrikes in Iranian territory for a second night in a row. This isn’t exactly a surprise because just hours ago President Trump declared that the ceasefire is “over” and he openly warned that “we’re going to hit them hard again tonight”. Of course, the Iranians have absolutely no intention of backing down. They are reportedly preparing a very large response, and they are considering moves that would definitely take this conflict to the next level.…

After more than five decades of carrying Marines to shore, the U.S. Marine Corps’ assault amphibious vehicle made its final appearance this month during a military exercise in Romania before beginning its next task defending allied countries in the Black Sea region, the Marine Corps said in a Thursday release.The AAV-P7, or AAV, affectionately known to Marines as Trax, is being replaced by the amphibious combat vehicle. But rather than being retired to storage, the battle-tested tracked vehicles are slated to be transferred to partner nations by experienced instructors. The AAV entered the service in 1972 and morphed into a…

Sign up for the Outdoor Life Newsletter Get the hottest outdoor news from Outdoor Life. The initiative to criminalize hunting, fishing, and ranching in Oregon will likely be on the ballot in November. While the initiative will surely fail at the polls, the fact that campaign organizers were able to get enough signatures and raise funding from out-of-state sources hints at a long-term effort that outdoorsmen everywhere should pay attention to.  Initiative Petition 28, the PEACE Act (People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions) is funded by several donors totaling 2,154 transactions worth $315,008.33 in the last two years.…

Two Republican House members have asked Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins to review the Veterans of Foreign Wars’ authorization to help veterans file disability claims following the group’s use of a provocative cartoon that protests proposals to cut VA benefits.House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Bost of Illinois and Rep. Jack Bergman of Michigan, wrote Collins July 1 saying the VFW’s use of the cartoon raised questions regarding the organization’s “fitness to represent claimants before the department.”They asked Collins to review whether the VFW’s accreditation was consistent with serving as a veteran service organization, examine whether the VFW’s licensing…

We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. Learn More › Sign up for the Outdoor Life Newsletter Get the hottest outdoor news from Outdoor Life. If you’re in the market for a large-window pistol red dot, the Holosun 507 Comp and the Vortex Defender XL are the two top options to consider (at least without spending Trijicon SRO money). They’re both reliable, have generous-sized windows, and are generally good red dots. So, which one should you buy? Here’s a breakdown of the key differences and similarities. Durability Drop Testing the Holosun…

The U.S. Army is consolidating its official social media presence, drastically slashing the number of allowable accounts and ordering commanders to remove newly-unauthorized accounts within 30 days, the service announced in a late-June memorandum.The directive, signed by Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll, limits official social media accounts to a set list of higher-level organizations, effectively ending the digital footprints of many subordinate units. In a Wednesday statement, the Army said the move was intended to “ensure a clear, unified voice, reduce operational risk, and improve information access for Soldiers, Families and the public.” The service said the policy does…

“Universal Basic Capital” is a much-needed solution to the continued advancement of artificial intelligence technology’s consistent advancement. Universal basic income (UBI) was a popular topic years ago, especially as AI gained a foothold in the economy, beginning to replace human workers; however, the newer UBC concept is now gaining traction. According to a report by The Atlantic, the idea has been endorsed by figures as ideologically diverse as Bernie Sanders, Gavin Newsom, Steve Bannon, Sam Altman, and even Donald Trump. In both cases, UBI and UBC are policies that would give every single human a baseline salary, whether they contribute…

The world’s largest aircraft carrier pulled into Norfolk Naval Shipyard on Tuesday to begin scheduled repairs after wrapping up the longest post-Vietnam carrier deployment.The USS Gerald R. Ford and its sailors returned to Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, on May 16 following 326 days at sea that saw a non-combat fire in the main laundry room and significant plumbing issues. The Ford most notably operated in the Middle East in support of U.S. Central Command and Operation Epic Fury against Iran. “This marks Gerald R. Ford’s first regularly scheduled availability at a public shipyard as well as the first time a…

Sign up for the Quick Strike Newsletter The hottest fishing news, tips, and tactics Fly fishing is synonymous with trout. When most people think about fly fishing, they conjure images of mountain streams and fish sipping mayflies and caddisflies off the surface. It’s true that the origins of fly fishing are squarely rooted in the trout scene, but the sport has grown well beyond brooks, browns, and rainbows. These days, muskies, myriad saltwater species, bass, and even carp are pursued with fly rods. Panfish, however, don’t rank very high on the list of fly rod targets, which is a shame…

The world’s oldest commissioned warship is still afloat — thanks to a forest in Indiana. The USS Constitution, named by George Washington and built with copper bolts forged by Paul Revere, was launched in 1797. The three-masted heavy frigate earned is famous nickname — “Old Ironsides” — during the War of 1812 after an astonished American sailor reportedly watched British cannonballs bounce harmlessly off the ship’s exceptionally thick oak hull and shouted, “Huzzah, her sides are made of iron!” according to the National Park Service.While the wooden ship remains a symbol of durability and strength, its longevity would not be…

Sign up for This Happened to Me News on backcountry adventure and wilderness survival. We’d walked for hours, breaking the portage into stages, shuttling loads back and forth. Four trips per stage. Nine stages total.  Black flies sounded like rain landing on my hood. My daughter was ahead with a dry bag, picking her way through dog-hair spruce. The canoe bit into my shoulders. Wind turned our 17-foot boat into a weathervane, forcing me to stop every few minutes. Twelve days into our trip, we were carrying our boat and gear 36 miles around the Thelon Canyon. My hands had…

Healthcare workers on the frontlines of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have begun an unofficial strike. Those on strike say that they are working in poor conditions with inadequate safety equipment and low wages. As of today, an X post by BNO News reported that 1,729 Ebola cases and 582 deaths have occurred in the DRC and Uganda, where the Bundibugyo strain of the virus is spreading in an already chaotic region gripped by conflict and mass migration. Government officials in Ituri said the missing payments are because of the broader implications of the outbreak.…

Editor’s note: This article first appeared on The War Horse, an award-winning nonprofit newsroom covering the human impact of military service, in partnership with The Sacramento Bee. It is republished here with permission. Subscribe to The War Horse’s newsletter here and The Sacramento Bee here.The Disabled American Veterans post in Sacramento, California, needed work. The small white building with blue trim and an American flag out front was built decades ago. Its heating and cooling system was ancient. The parking lot was riddled with potholes.So when Chapter Treasurer Eldra Jackson Jr. learned they’d be getting a check for more than…

A U.S. Air Force contingency response wing dispatched to Venezuela to assist authorities following high-magnitude earthquakes that devastated the country almost two weeks ago.Airmen in the 621st Contingency Response Wing are supporting Venezuelan authorities with airfield operations to land C-17s that are delivering essential earthquake relief, according to a Wednesday social media post.U.S. Southern Command announced a day after the quakes that the U.S. would be sending C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft, alongside C-130 Hercules, the amphibious transport ship USS Fort Lauderdale and the littoral combat ship USS Billings.On June 24, two devastating earthquakes hit Venezuela with magnitudes of 7.2 and…

Sign up for the Deer Camp Newsletter Get everything from whitetail news and opinion pieces, to advanced hunting tactics and cutting-edge gear reviews. IT WAS UNLIKE any eve before deer season I had ever known. We were camped above 11,000 feet, and that was certainly a novelty. It was August 27 of last summer— that’s right, August. But here’s the topper. As I sat in camp with my back against a big spruce and binoculars to my eyes, I saw three elk walk out onto a knob above the lake and stand there looking around. Presently, they walked in single…