Nukes for Iran?
What kind of topsy-turvy world do we find ourselves in if we must choose between believing Marjorie Taylor Green or Donald Trump? In a post on X, Green alleges Trump and members of his cabinet have discussed using nuclear weapons during strategy meetings about the Iran conflict. Once a staunch ally of Trump, Greene resigned her position representing Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives after a sudden and very public falling out with Trump over his handling of the Epstein files. Over the last eight months, she has consistently criticized the Trump Administration. A strong and vocal opponent of the Iran war, Greene characterized the discussions as “pure evil”.
Although she has offered no proof of discussions, does anyone doubt that it is within the realm of possibility that this administration has discussed the possibility of using nuclear weapons against Iran? We need only review Trump’s past statements to know that it is.
What could happen if the Trump Regime were to use nukes in Iran?
Death Toll: hundreds of thousands of civilians would be killed and many more would be injured.
Regional Escalation: Iran and its proxies would retaliate against U.S. bases and assets in the region as well as against Israel.
Environmental Damage: the detonation would cause long-term environmental poisoning that could spread to neighboring Gulf states depending on the wind direction.
Energy and Economic Crisis: The Strait of Hormuz would remain shut down, causing oil prices to increase due to refinery infrastructure damage and supply disruption. The rise in energy costs would drive increases in the prices of food, manufacturing, and transportation worldwide. Stocks would crash, and a deep global recession would ensue.
Geopolitical Fallout: Our allies would condemn the action, possibly sever diplomatic ties, and possibly impose sanctions against us. Our adversaries would use our actions to justify their own aggressive policies, and it would spark a race to acquire nukes. There would be a real risk of another World War.
Bottom line, it would be reckless and stupid of the Trump Administration to use nuclear weapons against Iran. But when has “reckless and stupid” not been a fitting description for this administration? They didn’t even deny the accusation. They just attacked Greene. As a nation, we have less than 80 days to hold them accountable. Republicans in Congress are standing by and saying nothing. They work for us. It’s time to show up and vote!
Stephen A’s Thumbs Down
Stephen A. Smith is a sports analyst and a political commentator on ESPN. We’ve covered him before here on Pragmotiv News, highlighting the problematic way he criticizes Black women. This week, the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) announced the recipients of their Annual Thumbs Down Award, and Smith was one of the recipients. The Thumbs Down Award is the association’s way of calling out those individuals and companies that it feels have done harm to the Black community.
The NABJ says Smith has “established a recurring public pattern of disparaging commentary directed at prominent Black women across politics, sports, and media. Such commentary reinforces harmful narratives, undermines the fair and respectful representation of Black women in public discourse, and stands in direct conflict with NABJ’s long-standing commitment to accurate, responsible, and inclusive portrayals of Black communities”.
Smith took to the internet and television newscasts and lamented about how unfair it was for the NABJ to target him with this “hit job”. He then used the fact that he was raised in a household full of Black women as proof of his innocence. But his upbringing does not absolve him of his public, documented attacks on Black women.
We at Pragmotiv don’t intend to allow his tantrum to overshadow and dim the spotlight on the bad behavior of the other recipients. As such, here is the list of the other recipients and the reason they were given the award:
Brendan Carr, Chair of the Federal Communications Commission – “Since assuming leadership of the FCC, Carr has repeatedly used the agency’s regulatory authority in ways that have raised serious concerns about press freedom and editorial independence. His actions have targeted news organizations through licensing scrutiny, while amplifying efforts to pressure media and communications companies to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Together, these actions have contributed to a chilling environment for independent journalism and threaten the diversity of voices essential to serving the public interest”.
CBS – “Under its current leadership, CBS eliminated its race and culture unit and implemented newsroom workforce reductions thatdisproportionately affected journalists of color. The company has also faced sustained internal disputes over editorial independence and newsroom decision-making. Taken together, these actions have diminished specialized coverage of underrepresented communities and raised significant concerns about the organization’s commitment to diverse journalism, editorial integrity, and public trust”.
DuJuan McCoy, Owner, President and CEO Circle Broadcasting (Parent Company of WISH-TV) - “McCoy’s leadership has been the subject of multiple allegations regarding the treatment of Black journalists, raising serious concerns about workplace equity, newsroom culture, and professional accountability. These reported practices are inconsistent with the standards of fairness, inclusion, and respect that NABJ has long championed throughout the journalism profession”.
The Washington Post – “The Washington Post implemented layoffs and newsroom restructuring that disproportionately affected Black and other journalists of color, including reporters covering race, identity, and extremism, protest movements and other essential public interest beats. The reductions also weakened reporting capacity across opinion, international, local, and sports coverage. These decisions diminish newsroom diversity and subject matter expertise at a moment when robust, inclusive journalism is critical to public accountability and democratic understanding”.
When you consider the actions of these individuals and companies in their fullness, there is no doubt they all deserved the award.
ICE Shock Gloves: The Pain Is the Point
Immigration and Customs Enforcement wants to use $20M of your tax dollars to buy gloves that shock people. There is a device called GLOVE (Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter) that is designed to deliver an electric shock through direct skin contact. Written guidance from the maker of the glove, Compliant Technologies, says that failure to follow use limitation guidelines could result in “injury or death”. The manual also encourages officers to “always give the subject (s) a reasonable opportunity to comply before force is used”.But when exactly have we seen this administration lead with care? ICE’s hiring standards have been grossly lowered as they have increased their ranks, casting a wide net with compromises in the areas of screening and training. These relaxed standards have come at the cost of human lives like those of Renee Good, Alex Pretti, Keith Porter, and Lorenzo Salgado. Does anyone reading this believe that ICE will give people they encounter time to comply? We can only look at their past actions for indications of what they will do in the future.
ICE officers are poorly trained, insufficiently vetted, and given quotas to fill. So, who is going to stop them from abusing people as they continue to maraud U.S. cities and attack people who fit their profile.
Grieving Mother Attacked
As Nolan Well’s family continues the fight to find out what happened to him, they held a memorial this past week, to commemorate what would have been his 19th birthday. This family is grieving the loss of a loved one under bizarre circumstances, while trying to get answers from local authorities in Jackson County, Mississippi.
Wells was found dead on Horn Island, off the coast of Mississippi, on July 6, 2026. He went there with a group of friends to celebrate the Fourth of July. The friends returned to the mainland without him around 4:30 pm on July 4th. The friends maintain that Nolan chose to stay behind with a girl he met that day on the island. The girl in question, Katie McCormack, and her sister Gracie says that is not true and that she saw Nolan about to get on the boat he came on.
During the birthday memorial, this past Wednesday, Pastor Jamal Bryant of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Stonecrest Georgia remarked on the unfair and callous treatment the family has received from some in the public and the indifference they have received from law enforcement conducting the investigation into his death.
Indeed, Christine Wells Wonsley, a Registered Nurse Practitioner and Nolan’s Mom, has received numerous attacks and constant criticism for simply asking for answers about what happened to her son. She was targeted through her employer’s website. Strangers began leaving malicious reviews aimed at damaging her career and reputation.
Earlier this month, an anonymous individual filed a formal complaint with the Mississippi Board of Nursing. The board is legislatively mandated to investigate all complaints. Thus, a file was opened but rapidly dismissed and closed. The board found the complaint completely frivolous and unfounded.
Jackson County District Attorney, Angel McIlrath released a statement on August 18, 2026. Her statement reiterated that Mississippi state law and strict ethics rules prevent her from sharing details of the case with the public. She vowed to present all findings to the grand jury and stated her role is to guarantee a thorough investigation, complete evidence presentation and an understanding of the law.
However, the family’s legal team, headed by Attorney Benjamin Crump, has cited a consistent lack of urgency and transparency regarding Nolan’s death:
Local law enforcement failed to find and secure Nolan’s cellphone during the initial stages of the investigation. The phone was found by his parents in the possession of one of the “friends” who returned without Nolan.
The team has raised flags over contradictions between Snapchat and Life360 location histories and has expressed concern that data was deleted before the family retrieved Nolan’s phone.
The family was forced to fund an independent autopsy because the official autopsy findings were kept heavily guarded, and not all of Nolan’s body parts were turned over to them.
The legal team has also publicly questioned why local authorities seemingly glossed over a July 4th Sea Tow marine distress call. The caller explicitly stated the boat was sinking, but a relative of the caller, the boat owner, called back shortly after to cancel the rescue. Crump hired independent audio engineering experts to review the tapes because the sheriff’s office did not treat it with proper weight.
The team alleges there was an environment where key witnesses did not feel comfortable talking to local police but were willing to speak with the family’s independent investigators.
Nolan’s supposed friends, Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo, and Morgan Seymour appeared in a series of exclusive interviews with right-wing podcaster Brandon Tatum of The Officer Tatum Show. During one of the episodes, one of the young men leveled criticism at Christine Wells Wonsley stating that since she has put them on blast on social media, they can’t even enjoy a meal in public.
Your “best friend” is dead, and you are criticizing his mother in front of millions of people. They also did not attend the funeral of the person who was “like a brother” to them.
Politicians Took Away Californians’ Gun Rights
Modern conservative rhetoric frames all gun regulation as an invention of the Democratic Party. But did you know that California’s strict gun law, the Mulford Act of 1967, was the brainchild of a Republican Assemblyman named Don Mulford and was backed by the National Rifle Association? The law made it illegal for a citizen of California to publicly carry a loaded firearm.
The NRA’s support for the law was a direct response to the Black Panther Party exercising their open-carry rights to monitor police behavior in Black neighborhoods. During that time in California, Black residents experienced police brutality and attacks by White mobsin their own neighborhoods, so the Panthers took up arms to protect citizens.
Republicans are very much in favor of gun rights, but as soon as Black people start exercising those rights, there must be laws to curtail them. During the presidency of Barack Obama, Republicans continuously stoked fear that Obama wanted to “take away your guns”. In true Obama fashion, the former president addressed a voter’s question at a town hall saying that neither he nor Hillary Clinton ever proposed confiscating guns from responsible gun owners; pointing out that more guns were sold during his presidency than any other time in U.S. history.
He also noted the absurdity of a policy loophole that allows the federal government to put a known ISIL sympathizer on a “no-fly list” but that same flagged individual cannot be prohibited from walking into a gun store and purchasing weapons and ammunition.
Today, law-abiding citizens can legally and openly carry a handgun in states like Texas or Louisiana, but that right completely vanishes the moment they cross state lines into California or New York, for that matter. Protecting the rights of responsible gun owners and implementing common-sense safety laws is not mutually exclusive. Public safety should not be a partisan issue and fear should not dictate national policy.
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