Richard P Gallagher, residing in Merritt Island, Florida, boasts a multifaceted background that enriches his role as a photographer. His eight years of service in the Army, including combat deployments and hurricane response missions, instilled discipline and adaptability. Equipped with a Digital Photography certificate from Eastern Florida State College and a Bachelor's degree from Akron University, Richard has a strong educational foundation. As an active member of the Professional Photographers of America, he's dedicated to continuous improvement through workshops and conferences. Richard's talent shines in capturing the drama of rocket launches.
Satellite High School in Satellite Beach, Florida. Image: Facebook
Students, parents and teachers continue to speak out in the case of Brevard County school teacher Melissa Calhoun, a veteran educator at Satellite High School in Brevard County, Florida. Calhoun, as of now, will not have her teaching contract renewed following a February 2025 incident in which she used a student’s preferred name without parental consent, violating a 2023 Florida state law.
Trump’s cabinet meeting at the White House. Source: X.com
Eighty-five days into Donald Trump’s second term, and it’s been like a quad espresso venti to the nation’s veins—no dozing Joe Biden shuffling through the White House here, folks! With a cabinet meeting straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster, Trump’s team reported on the progress to save us from open-border chaos, a drug epidemic fueled by China’s, and a debt crisis that has our nation on the ropes. The last administration was asleep at the wheel, but Trump is here to drive this train now and remind us what “America First” really looks like—and China’s not happy about it.
Let’s start with the border, where Trump’s turned the tide on a security nightmare. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem reported a second month of record-low border crossings, rolling out a self-deportation program with a legal return path. This comes after Trump shut down Biden’s CBP One app on day one, which had 280,000 migrants logging in daily to waltz across our border. Now they remain in Mexico, and the Pentagon’s building walls, not bridges, to keep it that way.
A ULA Atlas rocket with four sold rocket boosters at LC-41 on 8-28-23 carrying NROL-107. Image by Richard P. Gallagher | FMN
Tomorrow, Wednesday, April 9, 2025, United Launch Alliance (ULA) is set to launch an Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, carrying the first batch of production satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper internet constellation. Another ULA rocket, the Vulcan, will not be launching a previously assigned military GPS satellite. It has been reassigned to SpaceX’s Falcon 9, marking the second such change in recent months. Here’s what you need to know about these developments in the world of spaceflight.
America—while we’ve been busy playing the world’s economic punching bag, other nations have been laughing all the way to the bank, raking in our dollars and slapping us with trade barriers so lopsided they’d make a funhouse mirror blush. For years, we’ve been in a tariff war—don’t kid yourself—but we’ve been the chumps who brought a butter knife to a gunfight.
F-35 roars past the crown during this high-speed past. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN
Lakeland, FL – April 1, 2025 – The skies above Lakeland Linder International Airport roared to life today as the 51st Annual Sun ‘n Fun Aerospace Expo kicked off, marking the start of “Aviation’s Season Opener.” Running from April 1 to April 6, this week-long celebration of flight promises a thrilling lineup of airshow performers, a bustling vendor scene, and a host of family-friendly activities—all under the blazing Florida sun. With temperatures expected to climb into the high 80s and low 90s, attendees are gearing up for both high-flying action and the challenge of staying cool and safe.
Elon Musk, the Department of Government Efficiency’s relentless taskmaster, gets flak for his brash, unemphatic biting style—yet delivers results that dwarf the whining of his critics. Sound familiar? The SR-71 Blackbird soared to once impossible heights and speeds due to innovators like Kelly Johnson, whose demanding approach and boundless thinking crushed notions of impossibility. Henry Ford churned out Model Ts while steamrolling naysayers who thought no one needs to go 40mphs. Tesla didn’t just invent—he illuminated the future, and we’re finally seeing it.
Muireann Bradley from Ballybofey in County Down singing Candy Man Blues. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN
Florida is full of things to do, and no doubt cruising is one of the most popular. FMN’s Richard Gallagher recently spent a week pursuing hidden gems in one of his passions: the Blues. Read Richard’s account of what he discovered on the Norwegian Gem during a “Blues Cruise” from Miami last week.
Credit: Screenshot from video uploaded by Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“Hey, Geniuses: Vandalizing Teslas Is as Dumb as a Bag of Hammers”
Oh, you brave eco-warriors, you absolute paragons of logic! You’ve gone from hugging trees and praising Elon Musk as the messiah of green tech—remember when his electric cars, solar shingles, and charging stations were going to save the planet?—to smashing windows and chucking Molotov cocktails at Tesla dealerships.
Last night, the King Center for the Performing Arts in Melbourne became a sanctuary for blues-rock aficionados as Joe Bonamassa delivered a sold-out performance that capped his US Spring Tour 2025 with electrifying finesse. The three-time Grammy-nominated guitarist, backed by a stellar ensemble of veteran musicians, reaffirmed his status as a titan of the genre, blending fresh tracks from his latest album Time Clocks with timeless favorites that spanned his prolific career.
SpaceX’s Gigafactory in the foreground of its three high bays at Starbase in Texas. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN
March 19, 2025 – SpaceX’s Starship program, critical to NASA’s lunar goals and Elon Musk’s Martian dreams, is at a crossroads, with experts offering starkly contrasting visions. While one leading engineer champions a smaller “Mini-Starship” to expedite human landings on the Moon and Mars, critics slam Starship for its repeated failures as evidence of a doomed design.
Joe Bonamassa on KTBAS lX. Image by Richard P Gallagher | FMN
March 18, 2025
MELBOURNE, FLORIDA — The humid air of Melbourne, Florida, will buzz with anticipation as blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa takes the stage at the King Center for the Performing Arts March 19th at 8pm.
Oh, the horror! The pearl-clutching elites and free-trade fanatics are at it again, wailing about President Trump’s tariff policies like they’re the end of civilization. “Higher prices!” they shriek. “Trade wars!” they moan. Well, grab your shovels, snowflakes, because I’m here to tell you why Trump’s tariffs are the glorious, red-white-and-blue gut punch the world deserves—and needs.