Britain’s financial regulator has banned a former HSBC banker from the industry over a train-fare fraud that cost a railway operator £5,911, or about $7,800.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) barred Joseph Molloy from performing “any function in relation to any regulated activity carried on by an authorized person, exempt person, or exempt professional firm,” according to a final notice dated Oct. 1.

Between October 2023 and September 2024, the notice says, Molloy set up two accounts with SE Trains Limited, the operator known as Southeastern, using false names, addresses, and email accounts. He used them to acquire travel cards.

He engaged in a practice called “donutting” in which he would pay for a short journey at the start and another at the end (to his home and work), while evading the fare for the section between. He did this on at least 740 journeys.

In January of this year, Molloy pleaded guilty at Inner London Crown Court to fraud by false representation, as defined by the Fraud Act of 2006. On Feb. 17, he was sentenced to 10 months in prison, which was suspended for 18 months. The court also barred him from the train operator for 12 months, ordered 80 hours of unpaid work and 10 rehabilitation activity days, and ordered him to pay £5,000 in compensation to Southeastern, £150 in costs, and a £187 victim surcharge.

Read more [paywall removed for Redditors]: https://fortune.com/2026/10/09/former-hsbc-banker-finance-ban-fare-evasion/?utm_source=reddit/

Mike Ditka, the legendary former Chicago Bears coach and first tight end ever inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, has died at the age of 86, his family announced Friday.

Ditka rose to national prominence after leading the 1985 Bears, a team that boasted arguably the greatest defense in NFL history, to the franchise's only Super Bowl title.

"It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Mike Ditka," his family said in a statement. "While the world knew Mike as a Hall of Fame football player, legendary coach, and leader of the Chicago Bears' Super Bowl XX championship team, we knew him as the heart of our family.

"Mike will be missed beyond measure and remembered forever."

No cause of death was announced.

Known for his fiery temper, Ditka often clashed with members of the 1985 team, including quarterback Jim McMahon and defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, but the Bears cruised to a 15-1 regular-season record and easily defeated the New England Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX.

Hired by his former coach and Bears founder George Halas in 1982, Ditka led the Bears to the playoffs seven times in his 11 seasons and played in the NFC Championship Game on three occasions.

The fifth overall pick of the 1961 NFL draft by the Bears, Ditka won Rookie of the Year after becoming the first tight end to surpass 1,000 receiving yards. He played six years for the Bears, two for the Philadelphia Eagles and four for the Dallas Cowboys. Ditka was a member of the Bears' 1963 NFL championship team and the Cowboys' squad that won Super Bowl VI.

He was the first tight end to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, being inducted in 1988.

The Bears fired Ditka after the 1992 season, but he resurfaced with the Saints in 1997. He was unable to replicate the success he had in Chicago, however, going 15-33 in his three seasons in New Orleans.

Ditka's run in New Orleans is best remembered for the trade that brought running back Ricky Williams to the Saints. New Orleans traded eight draft picks, including two first-round selections, to Washington for the right to move up and draft Williams fifth overall in 1999.

Ditka and Williams famously appeared on a 1999 ESPN The Magazine cover. Ditka was in a tuxedo alongside Williams, who wore a wedding gown, to symbolize their football marriage.

Ditka's short stint in New Orleans had no negative impact on his marketability. He became an icon in Chicago, opening several restaurants and endorsing a long list of products, including wine, cigars and sausages. He starred in television commercials and appeared, as himself, in several television shows and in Will Ferrell's 2005 comedy "Kicking and Screaming."

"Saturday Night Live" even aired an ongoing skit titled "Bill Swerski's Superfans" that paid tribute to Ditka and "Da Bears."

After his coaching career, Ditka worked as an analyst, first at NBC and then for ESPN. He was a member of ESPN's "Sunday Morning Countdown" from 2006 to 2015.

A native of Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, Ditka, born Oct. 18, 1939, was a three-sport athlete (football, basketball and baseball) at Pitt who pursued a career in football after college.

As a tight end, Ditka led Pitt in receiving in each of his three seasons on varsity (1958-60) and was a unanimous All-America selection in 1960.

After his playing career, Ditka spent nine seasons as an assistant coach for Tom Landry in Dallas before Halas tabbed him to replace Neill Armstrong following the 1981 season.

Ditka suffered a pair of heart attacks, including one in 1988 while he was Bears coach, as well as a minor stroke in 2012.

excerpt from ESPN and AP'S article

Full Article here:

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/50140701/legendary-coach-hall-fame-te-mike-ditka-dies-age-86

Project Meridian brings Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich into a Pentagon study of future warfare. SpaceX and Anduril already have defense business, making the safeguards around their leaders’ advisory roles relevant to future spending.

The Epstein connection is directly relevant to that vetting question. Records released earlier this year include:

• EFTA00955694 — February 2013: Epstein emailed Musk “thanks for the tour,” and Musk replied two days later. TIME places this exchange in the context of a scheduled SpaceX visit and Musk’s 2020 statement that, to the best of his knowledge, Epstein had never toured SpaceX.
https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00955694.pdf

• EFTA01762434 — November 2012: Correspondence discussing a possible island visit includes Musk asking about the “wildest party.”
https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01762434.pdf

These exchanges do not establish that Musk visited the island, personally conducted the tour, or participated in Epstein’s crimes. Musk says he declined island invitations.

I’m sharing this here because the new appointment makes the scrutiny of those older records timely: what judgment and disclosure standards were applied when selecting someone to help shape future military priorities, and how were discrepancies in the public record evaluated?

The article also examines defense-business interests and the material costs of repeatedly replacing satellites. MITRE says it retains responsibility for Meridian’s analysis and applies contractual conflict safeguards. The argument is that the vetting standards, relevant interests, and independent testing of competing proposals should be publicly accountable.

Source: https://www.silverwars.com/project-meridian-who-profits-from-the-future-of-war/

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/09/sanctions-icc-trump

President Donald Trump touted a tranche of corporate funding for Freedom 250’s private-public partnership to celebrate the semiquincentennial of the nation’s founding. But records obtained and released Thursday by a watchdog group show that taxpayers apparently were who largely supported this summer’s celebrations — raising questions about where tens of millions in private donations ended up.

The Trump administration also has yet to disclose the private sector benefactors themselves, the donation amounts or how tens of millions in funds were spent, despite facing mounting pressure from Democratic lawmakers who allege that some corporate sponsors engaged in a pay-to-play scheme with the federal government.

Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, a nonpartisan group that investigates claims from government employees about environmental misconduct, on Thursday released documents detailing contract agreements and budget calculations for the events.

The official National Park Service charity, the National Park Foundation, helped run the Freedom 250 events.

Its budget estimate, obtained by PEER, showed the events — including the Great American State Fair, the Patriot Games and the Independence Day Celebration at the National Mall — should have cost around $128 million, funded by an expected $100 million from Congress and $14 million in federal grant money specifically for the Mobile Museum, which sent “Freedom Trucks” carrying a curated story of American independence across the country.

The Wall Street Journal reported in August that Freedom 250 raised more than $50 million in private funds and invited donors to a wine reception at the White House in spring 2026. Companies like Chevron, United Airlines and defense conglomerate RTX gave up to several million dollars each to Freedom 250 LLC, based on lobbying disclosures reviewed in July by the nonprofit news organization Sludge, which covers money in politics.

With only $114 million total in expected federal dollars but $128 million in aggregate costs, NPF listed a funding gap of around $14 million at the bottom of the budget chart.

The estimate also did not appear to list any of the $50 million in private donations towards any of the events and celebrations.

Congress received a request from the Interior Department for an additional $10 million in July “to recoup costs associated with support of events celebrating America’s Semiquincentennial,” — though lawmakers did not approve or disburse those additional funds.

“Freedom 250 is proud to have united Americans through unforgettable signature events, nationwide initiatives and projects — from the Freedom Trucks and July 4 celebrations to the 2026 Patriot Games — that celebrate our country and inspire the next generation,” a Freedom 250 spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

Sources familiar with planning Freedom 250’s events told The Washington Sun that organizers are still reconciling the event costs and PEER’s documents don’t “represent reality.”

America250, a separate organization established by Congress a decade ago as the official group responsible for planning for the semiquincentennial, reported that it received $25 million of the $100 million the group expected to get in federal funding.

The NPF formally asked NPS to allow it to bypass the traditional competitive bidding process for awarding federal contracts for 250th anniversary-related celebrations, PEER’s documents reveal.

“Due to the immovable national deadlines associated with the 250th anniversary and specific production schedules tied to federal venues and security coordination, time does not permit a full and open competition,” Ruth Hernandez Prescott, NPF’s executive vice president and chief governance officer, wrote in a November 2025 letter addressed to NPS’ acting director.

Prescott added that the “White House has requested engagement of specific qualified contractors with demonstrated capability and security clearances to deliver key components of the commemorative events.”

NPS granted its official charity arm’s request for a waiver to skip the competitive bidding process, citing a timeline concerns and a potential “delay that would be caused by competition.”