Is It Profiteering?

(This reminds me of Halliburton coming into a few lucrative contracts before and during the GWOT. -A.)

Tech, defense and support services companies make millions off new ICE contracts

By Indy Scholtens May 28, 2025 11:09 am

^{Palantir employees, including CEO Alex Karp, made millions in campaign donations in 2024. In April, the company won a $30 million contract to develop software to help ICE manage deportations. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)}

In early April, hundreds of military and tech companies exhibited their products at the Border Security Expo, which brought “government leaders, law enforcement officials, and industry innovators” together. During the two-day event in Phoenix, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Todd Lyons said he would like ICE to operate more like a business: “like [Amazon] Prime, but with human beings.” He added that “the badge and guns” should do “the badge-and-gun stuff, everything else, let’s contract out.”

The event illustrates how companies are rushing to secure government contracts as the Trump administration ramps up its spending on ICE to reach its deportation goals. The House approved a spending bill in early May that sets aside $175 billion for immigration enforcement – about 22 times ICE’s annual budget – and includes $45 billion for detention, $14.4 billion for transportation and removal operations and $8 billion for hiring new ICE staff. The Trump administration ordered DHS to hire an additional 20,000 ICE officers.

OpenSecrets previously reported on the private prisons and air carriers that are poised to benefit from President Donald Trump’s plans to increase deportation. This final article in the series focuses on other for-profit companies benefiting from deportations.

New contracts

In April, ICE awarded software company Palantir Technologies a $29.8 million contract for developing ImmigrationOS, a tool to help ICE with identifying and prioritizing the deportations of individuals who are considered a risk, such as violent criminals; tracking who is self-deporting; and managing cases from the individual’s entry through detention, hearing and deportation. Palantir is expected to provide a prototype of the ImmigrationOS tool by Sept. 25. The tool is an extension of systems that Palantir has already delivered as part of its almost $128 million contract signed in 2022.
Deployed Resources, an emergency management company that has provided mobile restrooms, sinks and tents to music festivals such as Lollapalooza and emergency relief following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and Hurricane Sandy, has been awarded over $4 billion in government contracts to build and operate border tents since 2016, according to ProPublica. The company earned a $3 billion contract with ICE in 2022 for running tent detention facilities around the border. On April 11, ProPublica reported that ICE awarded a new contract worth up to $3.8 billion to Deployed Resources. On April 17, however, the billion-dollar contract was canceled for reasons unknown. The next day, ICE submitted a $5 million proposal for Deployed Resources to deliver unarmed guard services for 30 days at an ICE facility in El Paso, Texas. ProPublica also revealed that ICE has housed detainees at a tent facility in El Paso operated by Deployed Resources since March. The facility was previously used by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, but the Trump administration used the Department of Defense to award Deployed Resources an unannounced $140 million contract to run the site for ICE, citing the declaration of an emergency at the southern border. The facility can house up to 1,000 detainees, and ICE started transferring detainees on March 10, according to ProPublica.
Axon Enterprise, a company that develops technology and weapons for public safety, law enforcement and the military, took part in the Border Expo. The company was awarded a year-long $5.1 million contract on March 10 to deliver body cams and equipment. A day later, the company was awarded a $22,376 contract to deliver tasers that have been used specifically in deportations. ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division bought $2.6 million worth of Axon tasers in 2020 and 2021.
Parsons Government Services, a “technology provider,” was also at the Border Expo. The company was awarded a contract worth up to $8.9 million for COVID-19 testing supplies in February, as well as an $87,467 contract in March and a $118,758 contract in April with ICE, both to provide “mobile biometric collection devices in support of the biometric identification transnational migration alert program.” The company is already wrapping up a one-year, $4.2 million contract for the transportation and guard services of ICE detainees in Newark.
General Dynamics, a weapons company, was awarded new $101,034 and $80,050 contracts in March to purchase non-lethal ammunition for training purposes for ICE’s Office of Firearms and Tactical Programs.
Sig Sauer Inc., a firearms company, was awarded more than $200,000 worth of contracts with ICE for firearms and firearm accessories in the first months of 2025: $57,163 in February, and $19,824, $35,106 and $90,854 contracts in April.
Paragon Professional Services, was awarded a $1.1 million contract on April 1 for transporting people who are detained by ICE in the New York City area and a $458,400 month-long contract to provide transportation of ICE detainees in Baltimore on April 17.

Follow the money

Palantir spent $5.8 million on lobbying the federal government in 2024. The company’s employees also made almost $5 million in campaign contributions during the 2024 elections. The largest contributions included $1 million to Make America Great Again Inc, $1 million to MAGA Inc and $344,914 to the Republican National Committee. Palantir’s CEO, Alexander Karp, contributed to Democratic as well as Republican candidates during the 2024 elections. In 2023, Karp contributed $163,800 to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and $154,920 to their Republican counterparts. Karp increased his contributions to the Republican Party after Trump was elected: On Dec. 12, 2024, Karp contributed $1 million to MAGA Inc., the Trump-supporting super PAC. In the first months of 2025, Karp contributed $360,000 to Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) Grow the Majority PAC and a combined $310,100 to the National Republican Congressional Committee. Palantir also spent $170,000 on lobbying in the first quarter of 2025.
Even though the company has no lobbying history, Deployed Resources has hired more than a dozen former government insiders, according to ProPublica, including some high-ranking ICE officials. Marlen Pineiro joined Deployed recently, after working for the Department of Homeland Security in Central America developing policies with Panama, and a decade as a senior official at ICE, according to her LinkedIn profile. A month after Trump’s victory, former ICE field office director Sean Ervin announced he was joining Deployed Resources as a senior adviser for strategic initiatives.
Axon Enterprise contributed to both the Democratic and Republican parties. The CEO, Patrick Smith, donated $25,000 to the Scalise Leadership Fund of 2024, a joint fundraising committee run by House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.). James Norton, the vice president of the company, contributed several thousand dollars to Republicans in the past two years. Axon Enterprise spent $1.5 million on lobbying in 2024 and $510,000 in the first quarter of 2025, a $180,000 increase compared to Q1 2024. One of Axon’s lobbyists, Helen Tolar, also served as a transition advisor to Doug Collins, Trump’s secretary of veterans affairs.
Employees and PACs related to Parsons Government Services’ mother corporation, Parsons Corporation, contributed $592,053 in the 2024 elections, with $27,715 to Kamala Harris and $13,076 to Donald Trump. The company spent $950,000 on lobbying in 2024, mostly on defense issues. In the first quarter of 2025, the company ramped up its lobbying to $590,000, a $370,000 increase from the same quarter in 2024. Parsons Corporation has its own PAC, which spent $247,600 on Republican federal candidates in the 2024 elections, and $151,250 on Democratic candidates.
Sig Sauer Inc.’s PAC contributed $87,715 in the 2024 elections, mostly to Republican candidates. The company’s CEO, Ron Cohen, contributed $25,000 in 2024 to Preserve America, a super PAC supporting Donald Trump. The company spent $530,000 on lobbying in 2024 and $260,000 in the first quarter of 2025, a $180,000 increase from the first quarter in 2024. It did not lobby on specific bills in 2024.
General Dynamics contributed $3.4 million in the election, both to Republicans as well as Democrats. The company also spent $12.2 million on lobbying in 2024, mostly regarding defense issues. It spent $3.3 million on lobbying in the first quarter of 2025, a $340,000 increase from the previous year.
Paragon Professional Services LLC is a subsidiary of Bering Straits Assn., which contributed $15,305 in the 2024 elections, both on Democratic as well as Republican candidates. The company lobbied to the tune of $280,000 in 2024, mostly on the Coast Guard Authorization Act and the Department of Defense Appropriations Act. It has spent $60,000 on lobbying in 2025 so far. CEO Gail Schubert spent several thousand dollars on Republican candidates in Alaska.

Why does it matter?

(snip-It Matters! MORE on the page; click through above on the article headline.)

Annoying A.I.

Readers Annoyed When Fantasy Novel Accidentally Leaves AI Prompt in Published Version, Showing Request to Copy Another Writer’s Style

Bot Romance May 23, 9:06 AM EDTby Victor Tangermann

“I just about fell out of my chair when I read this!”

Artificial Intelligence / Ai Chatbots / Amazon / Artificial Intelligence

Readers were annoyed to discover something galling: evidence that an author used AI, right in the middle of a novel.

The novel, titled “Darkhollow Academy : Year 2,” penned by author Lena McDonald, falls under a romance subgenre called “reverse harem,” which conventionally follows a female protagonist with multiple male partners.

But as eagle-eyed fans of the genre were irritated to discover, the author left glaringly obvious evidence of not only using an AI chatbot to write portions of the book — but also of a naked attempt to copy the style of a real fellow writer.

“I’ve rewritten the passage to align more with J. Bree’s style, which features more tension, gritty undertones, and raw emotional subtext beneath the supernatural elements,” a since-deleted passage in chapter three of the novel reads, as seen in screenshots posted to the ReverseHarem subreddit earlier this month.

J. Bree is the human author of an internationally bestselling series of romance and fantasy novels.

The instance is yet another illustration of how Amazon is being flooded with self-published AI slop, a trend that has been going on ever since the tech went mainstream a few years ago. It’s a real problem for human authors, too, with AI-generated books drowning out their work in search results pages.

In one particularly egregious example, author Jane Friedman discovered back in 2023 that roughly a dozen books were being sold on Amazon with her name on them.

Understandably, the small ReverseHarem community on Reddit was outraged after McDonald was caught blatantly using AI to rip off the voice of a real author.

“I just about fell out of my chair when I read this!” wrote the user who shared the screenshots.

“I got the book to provide secondary confirmation that this is real,” another user chimed in. “Which means everyone has now read part of the book, which qualifies for a Goodreads rating, and possibly even Amazon.”

Readers tore into the book in a storm of one-star reviews.

“This was written with generative AI, as is clear by the prompt that was left in the book before uploading to Amazon,” one disgruntled reviewer wrote. “I will support authors in many, many ways, but generative AI is theft and it’s not a replacement for actual writing.”

“I would assume all of her other writing uses AI as well, as book 1 of this series released 1/24/25, book 2 on 3/13/25, and book 3 on 3/23/25,” one GoodReads reviewer wrote. “That’s faster than Steven King.”

A book reviewer account called Indie Book Spotlight put it a lot more bluntly in a Bluesky post.

“F**k you if you steal and copy authors’ works,” the user wrote. “F**k you if you use gen ai and call yourself a writer. You’re an opportunist hack using a theft machine.”

McDonald’s blunder is just the tip of the iceberg. Two other purported authors identified by Indie Book Spotlight were caught dabbling with generative AI to churn out novels.

Earlier this year, a writer who goes by KC Crowne was also seemingly caught leaving ChatGPT prompts in the text of their work.

“Thought for 13 seconds,” one passage of a book titled “Dark Obsession” on Amazon reads, as seen in screenshots posted to the RomanceBooks subreddit in January. “Certainly! Here’s an enhanced version of your passage, making Elena more relatable and injecting additional humor while providing a brief, sexy description of Grigori.”

Crowne’s Amazon page features a whopping 171 titles, each adorned with an AI-generated cover of topless, tattoo-covered men.

“International Bestselling Author and Amazon Top 8 US Bestseller,” the author’s bio reads.

A third writer, who goes by Rania Faris, was also caught using an AI chatbot.

“This is already quite strong, but it can be tightened for a sharper and more striking delivery while maintaining the intensity and sardonic edge you’re aiming for,” reads a passage one Threads user discovered in a printed copy of Faris’ book.

Oddly enough, Crowne’s novels are getting predominantly positive reviews on GoodReads, indicating they have found their niche, and readers may either not care or not be aware of the use of AI.

Users on Bluesky were sharing theories as to why.

“Oh wow, I just caught up on the KC Crowne AI thing,” award-winning Canadian author Krista Ball wrote in a post back in January. “So setting aside the AI prompt left in the book, I am amazed that this wasn’t mentioned anywhere by the early readers, the street team, etc – which leads into my paranoid theory that a percentage of readers are just skim reading.”

“Remember back in the day when writing fast was like a good reputation builder?” she added. “Now it’s sus as all hell.”

Neither McDonald nor Faris has publicly listed contact information. Crowne, at least, is taking accountability for the situation.

“Earlier this year, I made an honest mistake,” Crowne wrote in an email to Futurism. “I accidentally uploaded the wrong draft file, which included an AI prompt. That error was entirely my responsibility, and that’s why I made the tough decision to address it publicly.”

Crowne claimed that “while I occasionally use AI tools to brainstorm or get past writer’s block, every story I publish is fundamentally my own,” saying that “I only use AI-assisted tools in ways that help me improve my craft while fully complying with the terms of service of publishing platforms, to the best of my ability.”

AI or not, Crowne has somehow published 171 novels over the last seven years.

Whether the use of generative AI in self-published books on Amazon breaks any rules remains somewhat unclear. An Amazon spokesperson pointed us to the company’s content guidelines, which govern “which books can be listed for sale, regardless of how the content was created.”

The guidelines have an entire subsection dedicated to the use of AI, which stipulates that “AI-assisted content” is permitted and sellers aren’t even “required to disclose” its use. However, any “AI-generated images include cover and interior images and artwork” have to be labeled as such.

The internet at large is also facing an existential threat in the shape of an AI slop tsunami. Do we really need to extend that trend to 300-page fantasy novels to read on the subway to work?

Self-published authors who are trying to stand out in an already busy marketplace aren’t hopeful.

“They bring down the reputation of those of us who don’t touch AI to write our books,” author Catherine Arthur tweeted. “Being tarred with the ‘self-published = written by AI’ label is not good, and if they don’t stop, then that’s what may happen.”

More on AI slop: Journalists at Chicago Newspaper “Deeply Disturbed” That “Disaster” AI Slop Was Printed Alongside Their Real Work

An update on the car situation. Changed the plugs

So as many may have read here we recently took the car to the Ford dealership for an oil change. On the way there the engine light came on. Ron had noticed the car was running rough when first started. I had not noticed as I thought the thing always sounded like it needed a new muffler. But when they took the car back they came and told Ron that it needed a new engine for $10 grand. Ron did not fall for it and after three hours drove it home.

So on Monday Ron called the mechanic that works from his home or will come to yours. He said to bring it over Tuesday morning. I followed Ron over because we did not know how bad the car was and if he might need to keep it. He had six cars in his driveway. He moved one out and had Ron drive our car in its place. He had a tablet that he plugged into the car and it told him everything also he could control the car from it. The dealership wanted $360 to do what he did for free. He showed us how the #1 plug was not firing. That is why it sounded rough. He shut it off and the car smoothed out. I asked if we needed to leave it, and he said no it was a quick and easy fix, replace the plugs. So I left, he and Ron went out to get the plugs. He put them on his account so they would be cheaper and Ron paid for them. So $40 dollars for plugs.

He then put them in and had Ron drive it for 5 to 10 minutes. Put it on the diagnostic on it and it showed all plugs firing. He did say it might foul again and if it did then it was the valve cover gasket that would need to be replaced. So Ron asked how much he owed for the repair and the guy said $80 dollars. Ron was stunned. He had spent hours in the sun doing this for only $80. Ron gave him $100. I figured that was smart. The guy did great by us and took the car right away. We might need him again. Plus the dealership charged us nearly $500 to do the test and change the oil. This driveway mechanic did the diagnosis for free and changed the plugs for $80 plus the $20 tip Ron wanted him to have. Hugs

An update on the engine that the dealership claimed we needed to replace.

So first I thank all of you who read and responded to the post about how the dealership was trying to extort my 70 yr old husband into giving them the car and either buying a $10,000 engine for a 7-year-old car, or trying to force him into buying a set of hybrids they have not been able to sell … the 1.5 hybrid engine which no one wants. I learned a lot from each of you. I am clueless about engines.

A couple of years ago when the dealership smashed the front of our car due to a worker taking it for the butler service that we paid for that touched up the paint and applied a new clear coat, they wanted us to take one of the 1.5 engine hybrids. We wanted to have the same 2.0 engine we had only in the hybrid model. However they had a three-year waiting list for them. They dicked us around for nearly five months with each call telling us how they could put us in one of those stuck on the lot. We did not give in.

So everyone knows how they tried to get Ron to leave the car. I did not realize until today they asked that while Ron was in the service line. The guy took the car information and then told Ron they would gladly take him home he shouldn’t wait. Ron told them he wanted only an oil change so it shouldn’t take much time. They then pulled the thing of making him wait two hours then coming to tell him the engine was blown and needed to be replaced, so they would take him home. Ron at that time told them he drove it in and he would drive it home. I learned today that he told the service rep, “See those windows? They will be iced over and blocked by 8 feet of snow before I leave my car here. Bring it out to me as I am driving it home”.

It still took them an hour to return the car to him. They claimed not to have done anything other than hook the diagnostics thing to it despite Ron telling them not to. They took $100 off the price because Ron told them not to do it, still they charged us $260 for the diagnostic. All they claimed to have done is the oil change and rotate the tires along with checking fluids. It took over three hours.

Which makes what I am going to write next make them even more sinister. So Monday Ron called the guy that fixes cars at his home on his driveway or comes to your home with his fully equipped van. He told Ron to bring it over on the next day, Tuesday morning. We did, I followed Ron to his home. He had six vehicles in his driveway but he moved a car out and put ours in his driveway.

He had a tablet with programs that could diagnose the car issues. He showed us how the cylinders were firing. #2, #3, #4 were firing normally. He shut # 1 off and even I could hear how the car smoothed out. I just never noticed it before. The number 1 plug was not working well, firing only a bit of the time. I got panicked. Then he told us that it looked to him that the car needed the plugs changed. He asked if we noticed smoke or other stuff and we had not.

Ron sent me home and he and the guy went and got the four new plugs. The guy put them on his account so we would get his discount and Ron paid for them. So they were $10 dollars apiece and it cost us around that price. Then he took the plugs out and put the new ones in. Then he checked it on his tablet and showed Ron how all cylinders were firing as they should. He then asked Ron to drive the car around for ten or 15 minutes to see if it was running right.

Ron said the car was running perfectly so he went to pay the guy. Remember Ron bought the plugs at the guy’s discount, so the guy told Ron that all his work over 3 or 4 hours were only costing $80 dollars. Ron bless his heart and I love him doing what I would have done had I been there. He said sorry, but no. You took our car in with only one day’s notice, put it first, worked with us to keep us from all the things the dealership wanted to do to us. You need more than $80 dollars. Ron gave him $100 because the guy wouldn’t accept anything more. But he did say that he was willing to work on our van that has the issue of the lights on the A/C part of the dash not working.

A decent man well worth paying. This is the third time we have used his service, and each time we are stunned by how great he is at repairing the problem and the low cost. The dealership wanted to charge us $360 for doing the diagnostics. This man did it for free with a tablet that showed him everything and he could shut the plugs off with it showing us the difference with the bad plug out of the system. No $360 dollar charge. Our friend James who lived with us and still sends me texts calling me dad … oh how I wish … is having car troubles and Ron is sending him this guy’s information. I think the world is not as dark as I thought a week ago. There are still some people willing to do good in this world of darkness. Hugs

‘Appeased To Meet You’, and more in Peace & Justice History for 5/21

https://www.peacebuttons.info/E-News/peacehistorymay.htm#may21

Republicans caused or did this. We should ban them.

Comer: James Comey Was “Trying To Jizz Up A Coup”

Trump Admin To Close Famed NASA Research Center

Photo: Acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro, who also serves as Kennedy Space Center director, a post she assumed in 2021. Trump elevated Petro to lead NASA after he ousted former Sen. Bill Nelson for believing in climate change.

WaPo: The Federal Brain Drain Is Rapidly Escalating

As previously reported here, European governments have pledged hundreds of millions of dollars to lure US scientists.

OK Schools Chief Calls Education Ranking “Fake News”

Newly-released data shows that Oklahoma ranks 46th in per-pupil spending, but Walters, who is eyeing a run for governor, has called for cuts to his state’s “wasteful” education spending, including $250,000 to provide school districts with emergency inhalers.

In his KFOR interview, Walters did boast about getting new teachers a signing bonus, but as was widely reported the time, $290,000 of that money had to be clawed back because it had gone to teachers who did not qualify. Some of those teachers had already spent the money.

Combat Sports Clubs Are Recruiting White Nationalists

The SPLC’s report is here. The February 2024 report linked below shows that the same thing is happening in the UK.

Tesla Effectively Bans Its Investors From Suing Them

Guess who donated to the Texas Republicans behind the new law?

Felon Has Another Screaming Fit On “Stolen Election”

Trump Demands That Walmart “EAT THE TARIFFS”

Feds Seize Shipment Of Shirts From Anti-ICE Brand

Something something free speech.

New: CBP seized a shipment of t-shirts from @cola.baby featuring a swarm of bees attacking a cop. The company also sells "ELIMINATE ICE" t-shirt and previously was threatened by LAPD for "FUCK THE LAPD" shirts and hats. Shirts to be "destroyed under CBP supervision"www.404media.co/cbp-seizes-s…

— Jason Koebler (@jasonkoebler.bsky.social) 2025-05-15T19:44:07.171Z

Forbes: Canadian US Tourism Boycott Is Growing

Canadian Travel Boycott Has Strengthened—Car Travel To U.S. Plummeted 35% In April, Fourth Consecutive Month Of Year-Over-Year Declines

— Forbes (@forbes.com) 2025-05-13T11:53:03.619Z

Trump Posts Video Claiming Hillary Is A Serial Killer

OH GOP Bill Would Designate “Natural Family Month”

Rep. Beth Lear first appeared here in January 2024 when she defended her anti-trans bathroom bill by citing the “millstones” bible verse which calls for drowning anyone who hurts children.

She later blamed “depraved monster” Alfred Kinsey, liberals, and the ACLU for transgender people even existing.

Rep. Josh Williams first appeared here in July 2024 for his bill that would criminalize drag shows in the presence of children. Williams reintroduced his bill last week.

Let’s talk about Trump cutting veteran and rural programs….

Wry Giggle…

Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal

By Zach Weinersmith

https://www.gocomics.com/saturday-morning-breakfast-cereal/2025/05/15

The dealership lied to try to get our car.

So after about two hours a different person than who checked him in came into the waiting room and told Ron they did the diagnostic and it showed this spark plug dome clearance problem so Ron needed to buy a new engine. Ron told them him drove it in and he was driving it out. The guy said that it could cause more damage to the engine and he shouldn’t drive it. Ron told him he was leaving with the car!

That seemed to cause them some problems because it took them almost another hour to bring Ron the car. It was the person who checked him in who came into clear the paper work with Ron over what was done. When Ron questioned them on what spark plugs they put in she said none they did not even do anything like that. She showed him the paperwork and it said that they put it on the diagnostic machine and it gave an error code meaning that the spark plug was seized with an intrusion of coolant fluid. The suggested thing was to try to remove the spark plug.

Instead they did the oil change, checked the fluids, and rotated the tires. The standard stuff for an oil change. They discounted the $360 dollar diagnostic tests $100 because Ron told them to not do it but they had already started it, they don’t say if they completed it. When he signed in the woman tried to tell him he needed the 60,000 mile fluid flush and it would cost $650.00. Yet she did not tell him and the paperwork did not say how much each fluid was or cost.

When he got home Ron told me the other part of this. Our car is the top of the line with all option. It has had all maintenance done at the dealership along with us having bought the “butler service” keeping the paint job as grand as possible by redoing the clear coat after doing touch up work. It has a very high resale price. The dealership has been sending us offers to buy the car back or give us a great trade in for it. Seems they have wanted it back so badly someone thought if they went in and told this senior citizen that their car that would be paid off next month and was 7 years old needed a 10 grand engine replacement they might get him to deal the car away to them.

The thing that I stick on is after they told Ron that and he said no he was taking the car home it took them an hour to bring it out from the garage to the waiting room area. Why. Did they just not do anything for a couple of hours and then tell him that thinking he would be too scared to try to drive it home? So then they had to do the service he had an appointment for? Or did they do it and had something else going on that they had to do to get the car ready to come back to the front? It took three hours to run the diagnostic machine, do the oil change and fluid check, and rotate the tires. Seems a long time to me. I would love to hear the thoughts you all have. Hugs.

I need help from any auto minded mechanics who come here please.

Ron took our 2018 Ford Escape to the dealership this morning for an oil change and that the car ran rough when first started. On the way there the check engine light came on. No blinking but steady. So the dealership told Ron that to even do the tests would be $360 plus the cost of the oil change along with any needed repairs. They came back to Ron nearly 2 hours later and told him we needed a new engine for $10,000 because of a dome spark plug clearance problem. Ron told them he drove it there with no issues and he was driving it home. I called Randy who has some knowledge and works with mechanics who say that it is possible but not likely and that the engine should go for $3,500 not $10,000. I found online that normally it is the plug that is the problem, using the wrong plug or the plug specs have changed a small amount. But like anything online I couldn’t find a real clear answer. I could use some help if anyone out there understands engines and this stuff. Thanks and hugs