—From Franklin, Tenn.

Sons of Anarchy: Nine people were killed and 18 wounded yesterday in a shooting melee between rival biker gangs at a Waco, Texas restaurant in a shopping mall. Police said that a fight over parking spaces began inside the Twin Peaks restaurant and eventually spilled into the parking lot. It escalated from a fistfight to a death match involving chains, knives, clubs, and eventually guns.

Police say 192 people have been arrested.

Waco Police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton said, “In 34 years of law enforcement, this is the worst crime scene, the most violent crime scene I have ever been involved in.”

The Waco police said 12 officers had been stationed in the parking lot to guard against trouble. The bikers started shooting when the cops tried to break up the fight and they returned fire.

Nation: In an effort to reduce the tensions with local citizens, President Obama today is expected to stop the distribution of certain kinds of military hardware to local police departments. As the US has wound down its wars, the military has been giving excess equipment to police forces. Facing demonstrators last year, police in Ferguson, Mo. turned out with heavy weapons prepared to rock and roll. Obama doesn’t want cops to have tracked armored vehicles, 50-caliber guns and camouflage uniforms that make them into an army rather than a police force.

On Track: Train service between New York and Washington is resuming today after last week’s crash in Philadelphia that killed eight people. Amtrak has vowed to improve safety and finish installing a speed warning system.

Icarus: Well-known BASE jumper, rock climber, and wing suit flyer Dean Potter and his friend Graham Hunt were killed late Saturday in Yosemite National Park when they took flight from a 7,500-foot promontory overlooking the valley. Potter was 43, Hunt, 29. The two were trying to fly along terrain that required them to pass through a rocky notch. Their spotter heard what may have been the impact.

World: Islamic State forces have taken the important Iraqi city of Ramadi in what has been their biggest win so far this year. Iraqi security forces retreated. ISIS is reported to have ransacked the local military headquarters, taking a large number of weapons and killing people loyal to the government. The bodies of men, women and children were reported to have been seen in the streets. It’s a failure for the Iraqi attempt to take back the western Anbar Province with American air support.

History Lessons: Republican presidential hopefuls in Iowa spent the weekend debating whether they would have fought the Iraq war launched by former President George W. Bush.

Brother Jeb is still wobbling and waffling about what he might have done, knowing what we know now, but he says he supports the decision George made.

Sen. Rand Paul asked, “Is Iraq more stable or less stable since Hussein is gone? Is there more chaos or less chaos? Is ISIS more of a threat now because of the instability?”

Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum came out as the tough guy. “They want to bring back a 7th century version of jihad. So here’s my suggestion. We load up our bombers and we bomb them back to the 7th century.”

And he knows exactly where the 7^th Century is.