Number 4. The Guardian. Religious exemption allowed for ceremonial knives, which are murder weapons. This story is a confluence of racism, internationalism, alcohol, and religious practice. The mix resulted in one dead and another sentenced to twenty years in prison. Last December, 18-year-old Henry Nowak was stabbed to death in the UK, late at night, by 23-year-old Vickrum Digwa. Henry was a white Englishman, Vickrum is British-born and of Indian extraction. Henry had been drinking, though according to police he was not drunk. There was a verbal altercation outside a bar which ended with Digwa stabbing Nowak multiple times with an 8-inch knife. Digwa’s brother called police. When they arrived, the brother asserted that Nowak had thrown racist slurs at Digwa, who merely took steps to defend himself. Apparently racist slurs are taken seriously by police, because they then handcuffed the stabbed and bleeding Nowak, who was down on the pavement. Nowak died there a few minutes later. Vickrum Digwa gave the 8-inch knife to his mother with instructions to hide it at home, which she did. The ensuing trial saw Mr. Digwa sentenced to two decades in prison for murder. No word on how the police are dealing with the notion of handcuffing a stabbing victim. It is possible the deceased actually did throw racist slurs, so some have probably concluded he got what he deserved. Unfortunately for Mr. Nowak, he got into a dispute with a member of the Nihang order of Sikhs. As part of Sikh religious observance, Digwa felt it appropriate and legal to carry a ceremonial fixed-blade knife called a kirpan. Vickrum Digwa was indeed carrying his at the time of the attack—a small version with a short blade. However, on this night he also opted to carry the more traditional full-size Nihang knife. The larger knife was the murder weapon. Now the story has become all about the blade. Carrying a knife, or at least carrying a knife of that size, in public is illegal. But Digwa is a Sikh, and the rules get a little muddy. Both males and females are permitted to carry the kirpan (the smaller version) which creates interesting carve-outs (no pun intended) for exceptions to forbidden venues. Government offices, schools and hospitals come to mind. The aftermath of the trial has devolved into arguments over whether the Nihang fighting blade satisfies the Sikh requirement for carrying the kirpan, or should be considered overkill. As it were. Once cultures are combined in an environment where “Thou shalt not kill” is not a commonly accepted value, things become confusing. And in this case, deadly. It almost makes one think that there is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. John Adams, second American president, pointed out exactly this problem. Without common agreement on certain bedrock principles of behavior, no amount of laws will make a society work. The Ten Commandments make a pretty good bedrock. But that is so yesterday. Meanwhile, it might be safer to recall the Apostle’s words, “As much as possible, try to live in peace with all men.” If that doesn’t work, then bring a gun along just in case you happen to get into a knife fight. Number 3. Yahoo News. Trump plans new granite landing pad for Marine One, further degrading White House aesthetics. I can hardly wait to see the legal haggling over this one. Since 1978, the incumbent president has been transported to and from the White House in a Sikorsky VH-3D Sea King helicopter, always identified as Marine One. The Sea King is being retired, finally, and replaced with a new Sikorsky model VH-92A. In a clear victory for the U.S. Marine Corps public relations office, the new airframe will also be called Marine One when carrying the Chief Executive. The older model weighed 21,000 lbs; the new one will add 5,000 lbs. All of that weight has traditionally been borne by the grass turf on the south lawn of the White House. With the newer, heavier airframe coming, Mr. Trump had decided to provide a paved landing pad to protect the grass. Besides the additional weight, the new Sikorsky’s exhaust system points downward, sure to ruin turf without a solid surface underneath. Added to the new ballroom, a new flagpole, a refurbished Reflecting Pool, alterations to the Rose Garden—not to mention renaming the Kennedy Center—I am quite sure there were will be furor over this outlandish upgrade to the White House lawn. Pretty soon, a Biden- or Obama-appointed judge will hand down an order to cease construction. Meanwhile, a simple concrete pad will of course be insufficient. This is the White House, after all, and Donald Trump has required granite, embossed with a hundred-foot-diameter White House seal carved into it. When I was in D.C. during the W. Bush years, not long after 9/11, we witnessed Marine One departing with the president aboard. On that occasion, there was not one, but three identical helicopters that took off simultaneously. They immediately scattered to disparate compass points. W. Bush was on one of them, but three were used to confuse potential malicious agents. I wonder if Mr. Trump will build three granite pads? Given the proven level of hostility toward him, that may not be a bad idea. And, by the way, it is reported that Sikorsky (or its parent Lockheed Martin) is paying for the new $6 million granite pad. Or pads. Number 2. Politico. EU shuts down air conditioning, but not for Important Persons. Temperatures in Brusssels, like everywhere else in Europe this summer, have spiked up near 100 degrees F. Most of Europe is not air conditioned, on which more later. At European Union headquarters, the heat has caused a strain on the electric grid. This week, President Ursula von der Leyen ordered that air conditioning be shut off in the 13-story EU headquarters building. Or… not exactly, perhaps. The order was that the A/C for floors 1-7 be turned off. Floors 8-13 would continue to be cooled. It turns out that President Ursula’s offices, and those of the other 26 commissioners and 3,000 staffers (yes, 3,000) are all on floors 8-13. Well… at least half the building is helping save electricity. I hope the elevator rides do not become uncomfortable as they descend among the commoners. And this from France, re the air conditioning: According to surveys, 80 percent of French homes are not air conditioned. This has been challenged somewhat this summer, but the resistance is due to a widespread conviction that the use of air conditioning is deadly to Earth’s longevity, dependent as the A/C is on the use of fossil fuels. If you are an ignorant American reading this in decadent air conditioned comfort, you must understand that A/C requires electricity, and electricity is generated by burning petroleum products, and that process generates CO2, and CO2 kills… something… and that something causes the earth to get hotter. Maybe my linkages are wrong, but the idea is that air conditioning is bad because of the fossil fuels. Nowhere in this logical construction have the French acknowledged that something like 70% of France’s electricity is generated by nuclear power. No fossils, or at least very few, are damaged by cooling apartments in France. This is a clear example of a perfectly idiotic syllogism: The major premise (“A/C uses fossils”) and the minor premise (“Fossils kill the earth”), as well as the conclusion (“Therefore, A/C kills the earth”) are all suspect. Okay… so I only took one semester of logic, and even then I paid attention only occasionally. But really: Can 10,000 Frenchmen possibly be wrong? Sweltering in a hot apartment might be a good time to re-evaluate one’s convictions. Number 1. Vanity Fair. Princess Kate looks the part as she challenges mountains. On to happier subjects. Fresh from surviving her 2024 battle with cancer, the Princess of Wales this week completed Britain’s National Three Peaks Challenge. It is a 23-mile hike requiring the participant to climb three mountain peaks, for a combined 10,000-foot elevation gain, in less than 24 hours. The three mountains are Snowdon in Wales (3,500 feet), Scafell Pike in England (3,200 feet), and Ben Nevis in Scotland (4,400 feet). Small potatoes by U.S. standards perhaps, but the effort also includes 11 hours of driving between trailheads. It’s a challenge, and one worthy of respect. Two years ago, hearing of her Royal Highness’s cancer, I sent her a signed copy of Alligator Wrestling in the Cancer Ward with a hand-written note. In due course, I received an airmail reply from Kensington Palace, thanking me for the gift and wishing me well. Maybe one of these days the Paparazzi will catch her with the book under her arm, and sales will spike up. Hope springs eternal. Meanwhile, Kate used her National Peaks publicity event to raise funds for the Royal Marsden Hospital charity, where she received treatment, and where she still visits patients regularly. With all the tawdry royal family gossip that occupies so much attention, this story caught my eye. And thanks for joining The Alligator News Roundup for Friday, July 10, 2026. Not to be a thorn in your side, but for everything you planned to accomplish this year, it’s half gone already. The sand runs through the glass. The prophet Isaiah used nautical imagery when accusing his people of laziness in the face of righteous work that lay before them: Your rigging hangs loose: The mast is not held secure, the sail is not spread. Then an abundance of spoils will be divided and even the lame will carry off plunder. (33:23) So take heart! Like Kate, climb that mountain! Get a stylish new pair of hiking boots and a cute beanie... or not. But the mountain, yes. Have a good weekend! Get full access to The Alligator Blog at alligatorpublishing.substack.com/subscribe
