Adopts

Rey is teaching Sunny, aged about two weeks, all her adopted baby needs to know to fend for herselfBefore last month, a young southern sea otter named Rey would never have imagined she would be a mother.That changed when she met Sunny, a pup – about two weeks old – found orphaned and alone on Asilomar state beach in February. The pairing went off without a hitch. Continue reading...

• The U.S. House of Representatives adopted a Senate-approved budget resolution on April 29, 2026, enabling billions in funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). • Republicans utilized a filibuster-skirting procedure to advance the blueprint, criticized by Democrats like Congresswoman Doris Matsui as prioritizing enforcement over other needs. • This move supports Trump administration immigration policies amid ongoing border security debates and midterm election pressures.

• The Snohomish County Board of Health approved new protections mandating septic system inspections prior to any home sale. • Ordinance aims to prevent buyer exposure to faulty systems, promoting public health and property safety. • Impacts thousands of rural Washington homes reliant on septic over municipal sewer.

• Deputy Secretary of Defense Steve Feinberg declared Palantir's Maven Smart System an official program of record in a March 9 letter, locking in long-term use of Palantir's weapons-targeting technology across the U.S. military. • Feinberg stated embedding Maven would provide warfighters "with the latest tools necessary to detect, deter, and dominate our adversaries in all domains," with implementation expected by the close of fiscal year 2026 in September. • Maven is a command-and-control software platform that analyzes battlefield data and identifies targets; it is already the primary AI operating system for U.S. military operations.

• The US Army selected the M111 Offensive Hand Grenade (OHG) to replace the Mk3A2 series, in service since 1968, for room and trench clearing. • This upgrade addresses needs in enclosed spaces amid evolving special operations requirements. • The decision enhances US military capabilities in close-quarters combat scenarios.