Latest news with #JamesMcHenry
Agriland
02-06-2025
- General
- Agriland
Concerns grow over re-wilding impact on land value in parts of Northern Ireland
Concerns have been expressed that re-wilding could soon become a reality in many upland parts of Northern Ireland in the not-too-distant future, at the . Driving this process is the lack of succession currently taking place within the farming industry. James McHenry farms close to Glenariffe in north Co. Antrim. He has been a sheep farmer for many years and fears that his way of life could soon become a thing of the past. 'Young people, for the most part, do not see hill farming as an attractive career option,' he said. 'The next few years will see the current generation of farmers passing on. 'In many cases I can predict that the assets of these businesses with a meaningful value will be sold off and the land let go back to nature.' These are issues that have not gone unnoticed amongst policy staff members of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) Northern Ireland. A heathland flower growing on the Garron Plateau in Co. Antrim They want to see meaningful supports made available to hill and upland farmers in recognition of the public good they can deliver in terms of peatland restoration and the encouragement of grazing systems that maximise biodiversity. These debates are taking place at a time when Northern Ireland's Environmental Farming Scheme (EFS) is about to be replaced by new farm support measures. RSPB's Mark McCormick commented: 'Hill farmers must be allowed to invest in the future of their businesses. And this means allowing them to make sustainable incomes. 'The potential of these farm businesses to deliver for the public good is immense. And they must be supported accordingly by central government.' According to the RSPB representative, peatland management and the introduction of bespoke, conservation-friendly grazing systems are equally valuable within a hill farming scenario. He believes that hill farming must be made an attractive career option for young farmers. If this is not achieved then the momentum to maintain the conservation value associated with large swathes of Northern Ireland will be lost. Re-wilding bog walk RSPB Northern Ireland staff recently hosted a visit to the Garron Plateau area of Co. Antrim for members of the Guild of Agricultural Journalists. This area of outstanding natural beauty is home to a significant number of farmers currently accessing the support monies made available through the EFS. And they are deeply concerned that funding has been withdrawn from the scheme for new entrants while replacement measures are agreed.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Fort McHenry to celebrate 100th anniversary as national park and country's only historical shrine
BALTIMORE – Fort McHenry will celebrate its 100th anniversary as a national park this March. The anniversary will fall on March 3, but special events led by the park rangers are scheduled for March 1-2. During the special events, the national park will unveil the new 100th-anniversary museum exhibit. The park has a long-lasting history ingrained in the story of America and helped shape the country. On March 3, 1925, as the value of the fort declined, Congress decided to designate the stronghold as a national park and perpetual shrine as the birthplace of the "Star Spangled Banner," referencing the flag that flew over the stronghold during the War of 1812. Fort McHenry was originally known as a small star fortress called Fort Whetstone during the Revolutionary War. Due to the fort's geographic location, military experts saw the importance of the coastal defense the fortress had to offer. The fort was then renamed Fort McHenry, after George Washington's Secretary of War James McHenry, a native of Baltimore, Maryland. After the completion of the fort in 1803, it had a brief period of peace which allowed the U.S. Army to set up an outpost. On June 12, 1812, the U.s. declared war on England. The fort's role became vital during this period, especially in 1813 when British forces invaded Chesapeake Bay. The war served as a delicate part of American history, as British forces captured and burned the White House in August 1814. One month later, 5,000 British troops invaded the Northeast side of Baltimore. To further advance the attack, the British Navy needed to enter Baltimore Harbor to aid in the attack, but standing in its way was Fort McHenry and its 1,000 American troops. Fort McHenry would go on to serve in prominent roles in every major U.S. conflict leading up to World War II. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Fort McHenry served an important role in the defense of Baltimore from a coastal attack. The fort also served as an intimidation factor to residents in favor of seceding from the Union. In response, the fort pointed all cannons toward the center of the city. During World War I, the fort served as a hospital due to the defenses being outdated for modern combat at the time. The fort was transformed into a massive 100-building and 3,000-bed hospital. This was the busiest time in the fort's history. In 1939 the fort was redesignated as a National Monument and Historic Shrine, the first and only of its kind. Fort McHenry was briefly called back into service in World War II as a training site for the U.S. Coast Guard. Today, Fort McHenry is still the only National Park Service unit, out of 421 units, with the designation of being a historical article source: Fort McHenry to celebrate 100th anniversary as national park and country's only historical shrine
CBS News
07-02-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
FBI agents sue Trump administration over Jan. 6 scrutiny as FBI discloses list of over 5,000 agents to DOJ
Two groups of anonymous FBI agents who worked on the Jan. 6 Capitol riot investigation and other federal probes tied to President Trump are suing the federal government over the Justice Department's plans to review the FBI's workforce and scrutinize agents who may have worked on the sensitive investigations, according to two separate lawsuits filed monday. The agents and the FBI Agents Association — an organization that represents thousands of current and former agents — are suing the Justice Department and its interim head, Acting Attorney General James McHenry, to prevent the public release of the names of the agents facing scrutiny. Tuesday's lawsuits are the latest salvo in an ongoing rift between career FBI employees and Justice Department leadership over the Trump administration's potential personnel changes within the bureau. On Friday, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove ordered Acting FBI Director Brian Driscoll to compile a list of all current and former FBI employees who were assigned "at any time" to the Jan. 6 investigation "to determine whether any additional personnel actions are necessary," according to a memo reviewed by CBS News. In response, on Sunday, agents across the country were asked to complete questionnaires about their involvement in the Jan. 6 and Trump probes as part of a Justice Department evaluation of the workforce. According to a U.S. official familiar with the process, the FBI subsequently turned over the requested agent and personnel information to Justice Department leadership on Tuesday afternoon. Information like employee ID numbers and titles of 5,000 individuals were on the list, the official said. There is no indication yet about what actions the Justice Department may take against anyone on the compiled lists and so far, a handful of senior career officials have been fired, while rank-and-file agents remain on the job. The nine unnamed FBI agents who filed the first lawsuit on Tuesday alleged, "The purpose for this list is to identify agents to be terminated or to suffer other adverse employment action." Their attorneys asked for a jury trial and wrote that the agents feared "this list might be published by allies of President Trump, thus placing themselves and their families in immediate danger of retribution." The second group of agents and the FBI Agents Association alleged social media activity indicated some charged during the Jan. 6 probe who have since been pardoned by the president, "link to each other in posts promoting violence and insurrection against law enforcement agents." The Justice Department has not "made any reasonable efforts to ensure that the maintenance and public release of the records at issue in this case are accurate, complete, timely, and relevant for agency purposes," the lawsuit said, adding later, "This bell cannot be unrung, and once the Plaintiffs' personal information is released it will be eternally available on social media." The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. McHenry also recently instructed the U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C., to fire certain prosecutors who had been assigned to investigate the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, according to a separate memo dated Jan. 31, and reviewed by CBS News. That decision, which mostly affected contract lawyers brought in on an interim basis to prosecute Jan. 6 cases, is not subject to the new lawsuit. And last week, eight executives at FBI headquarters and the heads of various field offices including in Washington, D.C., were forced to resign, retire or face termination. James Dennehy, assistant director in charge of the New York FBI office, wrote in a memo to 1,200 agents and support personnel on Friday: "Today we find ourselves in the middle of a battle of our own as good people are being walked out of the FBI and others are being targeted because they did their jobs in accordance with the law and FBI policy." The personnel moves make good on a Trump campaign promise to clean house at the Justice Department. Soon after taking office, the president signed an executive order to take on the "weaponization of the federal government." Other attorneys and the FBI Agents Association have also sounded the alarm on the recent employment actions and threatened additional legal action. On Tuesday, Driscoll — who is leading the FBI on an interim basis while Kash Patel, Mr. Trump's nominee to be director, is considered by the Senate — released a video in which he praised the work of the FBI's workforce but made no mention of the ongoing turmoil. "We will never take our eyes off of our mission: protecting the American people and upholding the Constitution. Because at the bureau, we are focused on our work," Driscoll said.
