"Bail Out Trump's A**"

There is renewed questioning... Is Trump Putin's stooge?

Boy, did Trump blow it! Now everyone is mad at him. He has been clutching at straws as he goes down.

Down, down, down, down

I'm goin' down, down, down, down

I'm goin' down, down, down, down

I'm goin' down, down, down, down

Bruce Springsteen "I Goin' Down"

Nobody likes it at all! Well, except Putin... he's got Trump beholden to him now.

"Getting paid by Putin": Democrats criticise Trump's waiver of sanctions under Lindsey Graham Act

ANI News

Oct. 17, 2026

Several US representatives and democrats have strongly criticised President Donald Trump decision to waive sanctions related to Russian fuel sales that were to take effect under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, a month after signing the Bill.

The law, which has now been paused, would have imposed tariffs of up to 100% on goods brought into the US from the five largest importers of Russian crude oil or gas, which include India and China.

The move comes amid a diesel deal with Russia in the backdrop of soaring diesel prices in the United States ahead of the November midterm elections.

Several US lawmakers accused Trump of siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

California Governor Gavin Newsom‘s office accused Trump of getting paid by Putin. “OK. Someone has to be getting paid by Putin. Who? And how much?” the X post read.

This has raised a lot of questions. 

Trump invoked Section 115 of the Graham Act, which authorises the President to waive the application of any sanctions provision with respect to a foreign person, any restriction with respect to a person, and any duty under the law.

"I have submitted to the Congress a certification that the issuance of such a waiver is in the national interests of the United States and a report explaining the basis for the certification, consistent with section 115(b) of the Graham Act," Trump said in the order.

Somehow, I don't see Congress seeing bailing out Trump's ass from the fire as a "National Interest."

If this had happened six months ago, Republicans would have been groveling at Trump's feet... but now, the emperor has no clothes!

And get this, even the Russian Pravda had this to say: "Betrayal of the people of Ukraine": 12 US senators write to Trump over deal with Putin.

No... Trump & company are on a sinking ship... and you know what rats do on a sinking ship?

The Canadian CBC writes,

'Betrayal' of allies

"Granting Moscow the ability to sell Russian diesel freely in global markets damages American security interests and is a betrayal of the people of Ukraine, who continue to defend themselves from Putin's murderous, illegal war," the senators said in their letter.

"This deal is a gift to our adversary and a betrayal of ‌our Allies; it should be rescinded."

The letter was signed by Republicans Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Susan Collins of Maine, Alan Armstrong of Oklahoma, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska ​and John Cornyn of Texas, as well as six Democrats.

[...]

The administration has not yet told lawmakers whether it would impose the sanctions or issue ⁠a waiver.

I don't know about Congress, but... I think the public knows what's happening!

Israel dangles a plum in front of Trump → Trump bites it → Gets stuck in a quagmire → Frantically looks for a way out → Iran laughs at him and cuts off the oil → Trump grasps at the life ring Putin throws at him.

No... this is not "National Interest," this is "Bail Out Trump's Ass." The people know the truth!

Down, down, down, down

I'm goin' down, down, down, down

I'm goin' down, down, down, down

I'm goin' down, down, down, down

Low-Hanging Fruit: The Long History of Targeting Trans People

[Essay]

I’m a trans woman. I transitioned back at the turn of the century and there were never any problems. 

The state is very accepting, I changed my federal documentation with no problems… but now!

It seems to me that the current administration, dating back to Trump's first term, has attacked trans people. Why?

As far as I can tell, there haven’t been more than a handful of trans people who committed any rapes… there have been more Republican legislators arrested than trans people.

We have been around since the dawn of time; there are some who even say we are in the Bible. They forget Renée Richards, Christine Jorgensen; they forget Lili Elbe, whom the film The Danish Girl made famous.

There are records from when the 2^nd President of the United States [John Adams] was involved in a case where a trans person (Note: we do not know how M. Gray identified; I will use male pronouns) was hit by M. Pitt in 1771. The jury's verdict ultimately drew a sharp line: even though cross-dressing violated colonial law, that law didn't give someone the legal right to track the person down and crack them over the head with a cane. How do you think that case would turn out now?

But all that changed with Trump… like all authoritarians, they need a target! And all through modern history, we are “it” for dictators and would-be dictators. Currently, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is attacking all LGBTQ+ people, Putin has passed anti-LGBTQ+ laws, and Viktor Orbán, the former strongman in Hungary, went after us. We are the low-hanging fruit that is easy pickings, and 

Trump has followed in their footsteps.

This is not the first time Republicans have gone after the LGBTQ+ community. Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued Executive Order 10450 in 1953, which officially banned gay men and lesbians from federal employment, labeling them as "sexual perverts" unfit for government service.

In 1950, Senator McCarthy held hearings about us during what later became known as the Lavender Scare, but their attacks on us didn’t end there. Along came Anita Bryant and her "Save Our Children" campaign! The campaign gathered momentum with state legislatures passing anti-LGBT laws, but it fizzed when it met Harvey Milk.

But this time, their crusade of hate is backed by billionaires’ money and Trump’s hatred of us. Trump is a predator; he devours people. I believe that the attacks on the LGBTQ+ community are personal with him, I believe he sees himself as a "hypermale," and LGBTQ+ people feel like an attack on his manhood!

---

How do we counter that coordinated crusade of hate against us and our communities?

The Fourteenth Amendment! The Equal Protection Clause. That is our weapon!

Republicans and far-right conservatives think one day we wake up and say: “Gee, I want to be trans! It must be so fun to be beaten up and discriminated against, that sounds like it will be so much fun!”

We have to gather all the evidence we can find to prove that we are covered under the 14th Amendment.

“A lie doesn't become truth, wrong doesn't become right, and evil doesn't become good, just because it's accepted by a majority.” — Booker T. Washington

[/Essay] 

They Have Our Backs

The bigoted right is at it again, attacking us on the playing field!

The right is pushing its anti-trans fury on the WNBA. Players and fans are loudly pushing back

As the WNBA finals kick off Saturday in San Francisco, the pro-LGBTQ+ sports fanbase push a message of inclusion in the face of anti-trans attacks

The Guardian

Lex McMenam

Sat 17 Oct 2026

At Wilka’s Sports Bar in lower Manhattan, a crowd of mostly LGBTQ+ fans was fired up during a WNBA playoff game between the New York Liberty and the Atlanta Dream. When the Liberty’s Jonquel Jones blocked the Dream’s star forward Angel Reese at the basket, then chest-bumped her – leading teammates to separate them – the bar erupted in cheers. One fan quietly joked: “Now kiss!”

“I love strong women, and I love supporting strong women,” said August, a trans organizer and Liberty fan who asked to go by their first name for privacy reasons.

The scene at Wilka’s, where a sign reading “trans people belong in sports” hangs prominently behind the bar, exemplifies much of the WNBA fanbase, which, like the league itself, is heavily queer. But many wouldn’t know that from reading recent headlines about the league. Since the summer, the WNBA has become the target of rightwing activists pushing their agenda to ban trans women and girls from sports. The league has no explicit rule barring or permitting trans women and there are no trans women in the WNBA

This wouldn't be a problem except for Trump.

“Good Work Girls”: Sophie Cunningham Praises Washington Girls for Refusing to Compete With Transgender Athlete

Essentially Sport

Siddharth Rawat

Oct 17, 2026

Thirteen high school runners locked arms and walked off the track rather than compete alongside their transgender teammate. That’s what Sophie Cunningham came out to show support for on Instagram. The Indiana Fever guard has never been shy about voicing her stance on transgender athletes competing in women’s sports, famously stating that she wanted to protect “young girls” from “biological men.” Now, the guard has shown more direct support.

The post itself highlighted a protest by 13 members of the Camas High School girls’ cross-country team in Clark County, Washington, who refused to compete in a meet. They locked arms and walked off the track. This was because one of their teammates was a transgender woman.

The transgender teammate, who uses she/her pronouns, began the season on the boys’ junior varsity team before moving to the girls’ division. Because the student is a minor who has not given consent to be identified, she has not been named.

Most of these know noting about trans people and sports except for the garbage the right dishes out.

She also competed in the Nike Hole in the Wall meet, an invite that included some of the top cross-country runners from all over the Pacific Northwest. She placed 39th on October 10, when the event took place.

Under the rules set by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, athletes are allowed to participate in divisions that correspond to their gender identity. According to a statement from the Camas School District, the WIAA’s rules had not been violated. The Association also added that it had not received any challenge to the athlete’s eligibility, and that its gender policy did not prevent her from switching divisions within the season. Despite WIAA approval, the athlete’s participation sparked immediate backlash.

Most of these critics know nothing about trans people and sports except for the garbage the right dishes out.

Hey folks! Thirty-ninth! Not number one, not number two, not even the 25th! No, it was 39th out of 135 contestants, not even in the top quarter!

These detractors don't even take the time to learn about trans people or the rules governing trans athletes; they just parrot the conservatives!

Do you know the definition of a bigot?

bigot

noun

Simple Definition

: a narrow-minded person who obstinately adheres to their own opinions and prejudices

especially : one who strongly and unfairly dislikes or feels hatred toward others based on their group membership

Merriam-Webster

 

Think Before You Vote!

Something is going on in this country. We are becoming like 1930s Germany, where the far-right has cashed in on the anger of the people. We, the middle class, are being squeezed. Wages have been flat. The deck is being stacked against us.

We feel trapped. And they throw us under the bus, blaming radical lefties as the cause of all our problems. They threw immigrants under the bus, and they threw us under the bus. Just like in 1935 when the Nazis changed Paragraph 175 to turn it against us!

Here now in the United States, Republicans have passed hundreds, if not a thousand, anti-trans bills. Why? Are we so much of a problem that politicians spend all of the legislature's time on us?

We are the "hook" used to channel anger into the voting booth and vote "Red" which is an ironic color for a party, considering where other countries went after LGBTQ+ folks:

Nazi Germany (1933–1945)

The Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin (1920s–1950s)

Cuba (1960s–1970s)

Francisco Franco’s Spain (1939–1975)

And now there's:

Iran

Afghanistan

Russia

North Korea 

Turkey 

What do they all have in common?

They all authoritarian regimes and they other characteristics in common also:

Centralized Power

Control of Information

Managed Institutions

Digital Surveillance

One-Party Dictatorships

What do they all have in common?

Whew, we're safe, we have a two-party system!

Yeah... how many times have you heard Trump or other Republicans say that Democrats should be locked up?

Think before you vote! Think of where you want this country to be. Think about the "others" and how this government is attacking them to make them scapegoats for all the country's ills.

 

Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Somewhere Over Laredo (2025)

On Saturdays I take a break from the heavy stuff and have some fun…

  

Unfamiliar with this week's song? Hear it here.
   
1) In this song, Laney Wilson namechecks Tito's Vodka. Is there a product you you are very brand loyal to? (It doesn't have to be liquor. Maybe you always reach for Dawn Dishwashing Liquid, even if another soap is on sale.)
 I buy store brands... but for dishwashing detergent I buy the brand name. I found it cleans better.

2) The lyrics start with her in a window seat on a flight out of Houston. Do you prefer the window or the aisle?
Well the last time that I flew in the first decade of this century. I like a window seat so I can watch the ground go by.
 
3) She's dreaming of rodeo nights with the guy she loves. If you could spend this evening with anyone at all, anywhere at all, where would you go and who would be with you?
Well now a days an evening out means dinner at 5 so I can be home by bedtime… 8 o’clock!
 
4) Lainey is from Baskin, LA, population 200. Do you prefer big cities or small towns?
Small towns. The town is mostly wooded which is slowly being chipped away. On a street over, an old farm they just cut the tree for the road way. From what I understand the price is going to be $800,000 to $1,000,000. Fifty house in wooded one acre lots... right next to a private golf course.
 
5) There's a Netflix documentary about Lainey called Keepin' Country Cool. What show have you recently streamed?
Okay, I don’t any long time followers will be surprised… Nova
 
6) This week's song borrows liberally from "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," so much so that "Rainbow" songwriters Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg receive credit. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" is the most beloved song from The Wizard of Oz. Can you name another?
William Tell Overture.
Sorry I just got finished watch the Long Ranger!

7) In 2025, when this song was popular, more patients took advantage of telehealth than ever before. Have you ever had a virtual doctor visit?
No.

8) Also in 2025, smart home technology was integrated into more new home construction. Do you use smart devices to automate your lights, thermostat, or doorbell?
I use X-10 from the 1990s! They call it a legacy system… jut like me.

9) Random question – On which day are you happier: a) the day you take off on vacation or b) the day you return home from your trip?
Yes. To both, i looking forward to going on the trip and then usually toward the end I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed.

---

They just keep coming, roadblocks to going back to the Cape, losing a crown, weather problems, etc. etc. etc.

The Students Know

A parent said NO! And the school caved in and said no also... however the students knew better and the play is going on... just not in the school.

Copley students, parents push back after high school cancels 'She Kills Monsters' amid controversy

Copley students and parents believe the planned high school performance of the play 'She Kills Monsters' was canceled over LGBTQ+ themes.

WKYC

By Nyorkor

September 24, 2026

Students and parents in the Copley-Fairlawn City School District are speaking out after administrators canceled a planned high school production of the play "She Kills Monsters," a decision that has sparked debate over LGBTQ+ themes, school procedures, and student expression.

Members of the Copley Thespian Society said they were excited when the fall production was announced. The coming-of-age play — set in Athens, Ohio — follows a young woman who embarks on a fantasy role-playing adventure after her sister's death and explores themes that include family, grief, bullying, friendship, and LGBTQ+ identity.

"Our principal told us, 'We don't know yet for sure, but there's a very real chance that we might not be able to do this show anymore because a parent complained about the content,'" Emily explained.

Notice: "a parent."

In another WKYC article they write that the parents are hopping mad at the cancellation!

Carrie Coon calls out high school for canceling LGBTQ+ play that students were rehearsing

“The kids are not stupid. They knew that wasn’t the reason why.”

LGBTQ Nation

John Russell (He/Him)

September 25, 2026,

The Gilded Age star Carrie Coon is criticizing her alma mater after it canceled a play featuring LGBTQ+ themes.

“I find it absurd and offensive,” Coon told The Akron Beacon Journal of Copley High School’s recent decision to cancel a student production of playwright Qui Nguyen’s 2011 dramedy She Kills Monsters. “I just find that a wild abridgment of their First Amendment rights.”

According to the outlet, the Summit County, Ohio, high school’s drama club had already cast the production and were two days into rehearsals when they were informed that the play had been canceled.

[...]

However, Kirsch also admitted that her investigation of the production was sparked by a letter from a parent expressing concern that the Copley community would be “upset” to learn that the school was hosting a play that “explicitly explores sexuality and LGBTQ identity.”

However,

According to the New York Times, following its initial run at The Flea Theater in New York City, She Kills Monsters has become one of the most popular productions among amateur and school theater programs across the US, with 652 schools and colleges staging the play between 2013 and 2021. Over 400 of those productions used Nguyen’s “Young Adventurers Edition,” a version he adapted for younger performers and audiences. (It’s unclear which version of the play Copley High’s drama club intended to use.)

But as arts administrator and writer Howard Sherman told the Beacon Journal, high schools in multiple states have canceled the play in recent years. Two Ohio schools, Hillsboro High School and Hudson High School, canceled student productions in 2021. Hillsboro City Schools Superintendent Tim Davis claimed the Young Adventurers Edition was not appropriate for a K-12 audience.

But the bigots prevail!

The students are mad... about the play being canceled but also because the adults lied! That the Board didn't have the guts to tell the truth!

Question. Why is it all right to discriminate against us? Why is okay to say that 14^th Amendment doesn't apply to us? When we were born this way!

WTF!

Did you know that the government thinking about running ads in South Africa for White South Africans to come here?

US officials considering ad campaign to urge South African Afrikaners to emigrate

Exclusive: Trump has falsely claimed Afrikaners are facing ‘white genocide’, but very few have applied to live in US

The Guardian

Joseph Gedeon

Thu 15 Oct 2026

The US government could spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a media campaign in South Africa to figure out why more white Afrikaners are not applying to become refugees to the US, as Donald Trump had hoped.

State department officials, according to an August proposal seen by the Guardian, outlined a roughly $335,000 research and advertising effort after applications to the refugee program “trended lower than expected” since Afrikaners were allowed to apply directly online in November 2025. The document, written by the US mission in South Africa with a department research unit for the embassy in Pretoria, admits officials know little about why.

Do you need anything to tall you that the Trump adminstration is racist?

Every Time I Open The News…

It is like I opened some dystopian novel!

This time it is not 1984 or Brave New World or Fahrenheit 451; this time it is closer to Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid's Tale. 

If you remember, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid's Tale was about a dystopian government that totalized the eradication of bodily autonomy! Government surveillance and the rewriting of science and the law became the norm."

EPA launches drinking water study looking for traces of abortion pills

The Hill

by Nathaniel Weixel

09/21/26

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is launching a drinking water quality study that will for the first time look for traces of abortion pills mifepristone and misoprostol — something anti-abortion activists, attorneys general and lawmakers have been lobbying the agency to do for years.  

The agency stopped short of making mifepristone an official water contaminant that would require regulation, but abortion opponents are hopeful the move is a precursor to restricting access to the drug, or at a minimum influencing a debate about its safety.  

“It is exciting after a very long journey that’s been almost 10 years, to have this be taken seriously enough to be on an official list,” Kristi Hamrick, head of policy at Students for Life of America (SFLA), said in an interview. “But that doesn’t change the fact that there’s a lot of information that we need, for it to be useful for people to know.”  

EPA earlier this month announced it will be conducting a “cutting edge scientific study” that will test for “emerging” contaminants. The agency will pick several locations in metropolitan areas across the country and screen for more than 1,400 pharmaceuticals, pesticides and other chemicals, including mifepristone and misoprostol.

This is right out of the Handmaid's Tale!

The 19th News reported:

After pressure from anti-abortion advocates, Republican lawmakers and state officials, the Environmental Protection Agency announced this month that it will launch a study to test for trace amounts of abortion pills as a water contaminant in multiple cities. Scientists say there’s no evidence that mifepristone and misoprostol, the two-drug regimen that is highly effective in ending a pregnancy, harms the environment or people.

While there is no scientific evidence that abortion medication is contaminating Americans’ water supply, it has nonetheless become a central claim by the anti-abortion movement. Activists, Instagram influencers and Republican Party officials — including state and federal lawmakers — are doubling down on what experts describe as a disinformation campaign that mixes environmental policy and reproductive rights, and risks exploiting legitimate concerns about clean water.

Hmm… could they do that for puberty blockers?

On June 5, 14 Republican state attorneys general and 19 GOP lawmakers in Congress urged the EPA to classify and regulate mifepristone as a water contaminant. In two concurrent letters, officials argued that the abortion medication, part of a safe and effective two-drug regimen to terminate pregnancies, is “a growing threat to the country’s waterways” and violates the Safe Drinking Water Act.

One letter was signed by attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, Louisiana, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas. The other letter, led by Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey, made similar claims and was signed by 18 other GOP lawmakers.

It is all a lie! The conservatives create a rumor and then say they have to investigate it! All based on a lie!

Reproductive Rights reported that…

Summary

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is the federal agency charged with ensuring that water is available and safe, based on scientific testing methods. As attacks on the abortion pill mifepristone continue to grow, anti-abortion extremists have peddled false environmental claims about these abortion pills. They have gone so far as to meet with EPA officials about the possibility of using water regulations to institute new, targeted restrictions on abortion pills. This campaign is baseless, in part, because EPA already continuously monitors water safety as part of its regular work. This fact sheet breaks down that (very wonky!) process.

[…]

Earlier this year, the Trump administration directed career scientists at EPA to assess whether the agency could develop methods for detecting traces of mifepristone—a drug commonly used in medication abortion—in wastewater. Similarly, anti-abortion extremists and lawmakers are pushing to add mifepristone to the CCL and UCMR at the federal level, with the aim of requiring local public water systems to surveil the use of and limiting access to medication abortion.

To be clear, there is no scientific evidence that mifepristone impacts our drinking water. In fact, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the agency tasked with regulating mifepristone, has analyzed the potential environmental impacts of mifepristone as recently as January 2025 and concluded that “it is predicted to have no effect on the environment.”

But they lie! The water treatment plants do not test for mifepristone and misoprostol because it is not required by law for them to do so! Now, if you were a water treatment plant, would you test beyond the requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act and Clean Water Act?

Reproductive Health goes on to report…

In September 2026, EPA launched a study to test a broad set of potential drinking water contaminants seemingly outside of the CCL and UCMR processes detailed above. This research includes mifepristone, misoprostol, as well as several contraceptives and hormones used in birth control, hormone replacement therapy, and gender affirming care. One important limitation is that the test being used in this research can only inform a researcher if a substance is present in drinking water generally but cannot and does not tell a researcher the amount or concentration of the item present in the water.

Yup! They are also going after us!

It is genuinely terrifying that we've reached a point where the government is testing your pee. It has gotten to the point where the Republicans are weaponizing municipal wastewater and the water supply just to chase down ideological boogeymen. How many millions are they going to spend on this witch hunt? This has crossed the line right over into totalitarianism!

Don’t piss in the shower… Big Brother is watching!

So Whose The "Real" People?

I just got a flyer from the Republican House candidate.

When I contacted my state representative in the past, I’d get a personal reply. Now, I get a “Thank you for your inquiry” or some other kind of brush-off.

I used to joke with him that I was “Troublemaker Diana.” Now, I get these brushoffs! The Republican representative... that raised a look of eyebrows... is this discrimination? 

So, about that flyer the town Democrats posted this in reply…

Question: Who are the “Real People”? Who are the fake people? Me? Blacks? Non-Christians? Who?

I want representatives who represent everyone! I don’t want a legislator who represents only the “Beautiful People.”

I Just Realized Why I’m So Stressed.

It is the elections.

I’m worried.

I’m worried about me.

I’m worried about Trump.

I’m worried about our country.

But most of all, I’m worried about me.

As we learn more and more about the vindictiveness of the Trump administration, I am worried about being trans under this administration.

I look at how DOGE mined IRS files for immigrants!

And I am worried that they can do the same for us—the trans community. With the press of a button, you can find out I’m trans. Trans people in Germany were rounded up and put in concentration camps.

Politicians in this country have said the same things!

Republicans have talked about institutionalizing people!

I worry about what will happen on November 4th.

That’s why I’m stressed.

I remember James Baldwin’s words…

"It is a terrible thing to be completely at the mercy of another people... but it is even more terrible to have to fight every day, from the moment you wake up until the moment you go to sleep, just for the right to breathe."

He is right!

Never in my 78 years did I think I would be scared of what my government would do to me.

Burn, Baby, Burn!

Earlier this morning I wrote about how the Republican candidate for governor is apposed to solar and wind power. His idea of burning fossil fuel just setback because of Trump and the national Republicans.

‘We’re done’: Ukraine resumes strikes on Russian oil refineries as anger mounts with Trump

Satellite internet functionality while in motion via Starshield — the military version of the SpaceX service — had been restored Thursday morning, according to a source in Ukraine’s defense ministry.

NBC News

By Yuliya Talmazan, Abigail Williams and Dan De Luce

Oct. 15, 2026

Ukraine has resumed strikes on Russian oil refineries after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy angrily accused the United States of betraying Kyiv with the “dangerous” withdrawal of support critical to its defense against Russia.

Ukraine held off on attacks for three days after President Donald Trump’s unilateral “energy ceasefire” announcement, but accused Russia of repeatedly attacking its power grid. Zelenskyy voiced mounting frustration over the Kremlin’s failure to abide by the truce, and what he sees as U.S. attempts to pressure Kyiv after gaps in intelligence sharing on Russian attacks and restrictions on the Starlink internet service.

Satellite internet functionality while in motion via Starshield — the military version of the SpaceX service — had been restored Thursday morning, according to a source in Ukraine’s defense ministry, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the topic.

When Trump announced the ceasefire... it seemed like Zelenskyy didn't know about the ceasefire. It was like "That's news to me!"

Zelenskyy signals surprise at Trump claim of Russia-Ukraine ‘energy ceasefire’ but would back it if Moscow does – as it happened

Ukraine’s president reportedly says Kyiv would accept a deal if Moscow does after US president posts announcement with no detail on social media

The Guardian

Charlie Moloney (now) and Fran Lawther (earlier)

Sun 11 Oct 2026

Here is a summary of today's events:

• Donald Trump has claimed Russia and Ukraine have agreed to an “energy ceasefire”, though the US president gave no details of the purported agreement. “Effective immediately, there is an ENERGY CEASEFIRE in the War between Russia and Ukraine. Both parties have agreed. Do not break it!” he wrote on his Truth Social network.
• Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy ⁠has said the “energy ceasefire” was news to him. He told the news outlet ⁠Axios ​that he was not aware of ⁠an “energy ceasefire” between Ukraine and Russia announced by Trump, but ‌added that if Moscow ‌agreed to such a ceasefire, Kyiv would accept it.
• Russia has yet to comment on Trump’s claim that Kyiv and Moscow had reached an energy ceasefire.
• Zelenskyy said he has discussed an energy ceasefire with the leaders of Canada, Finland and Nato and is awaiting details from the US. The president of the EU Commission later said she had spoken to the Ukrainian leader. Ursula von der Leyen posted on X that she “fully supported the call of President Zelenskyy for a ceasefire that would protect global food supplies and energy infrastructure in Ukraine and Russia”.
• Russia’s military said on Sunday it had struck a logistics centre in southern Ukraine’s Mykolaiv region and a cargo vessel in the Black Sea. A Russian defence ministry statement posted on Telegram said the logistics centre in the town of Ternivka was used to store military and dual-use cargoes for the Ukrainian military.
• The US is threatening to stop the procurement system that provides Ukraine with weapons in order to press Kyiv to halt its deep strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing officials in Europe.

I don't know about you but... Putin jumped into Ukraine think it will be a "Short Glorious War" to win back a former Soviet territory but now it is a a quagmire with no exit insight! Trump followed right in Putin footstep of a "Short Glorious War" and with a little coaxing Israel jumps headfirst into his quagmire. Now both are muddling around looking for exit strategies!

With them there is no long range planning... everything is now focus on put out we are operating in a 20^th century political system in a 21st century world with AI and drones! 

$4.39/gal $5.64/gal

The first is the current price of gasoline, and the second is the price of home heating oil here in Connecticut.

Right now, the Republican candidate for governor is attacking the governor over the price of electricity, claiming that he can bring it down! But his own party is doing everything it can to shut down wind and solar power, and he agrees with them! His stated policies include expanding natural-gas infrastructure and scaling back support for renewable energy!

Trump administration targets offshore wind project — for a third time

Federal officials want to reconsider the permit for Revolution Wind off Rhode Island.

Politico Pro

By: Ian M. Stevenson, Benjamin Storrow, Kelsey Tamborrino, Nico Portuondo

10/13/2026

The Trump administration is taking aim at an offshore wind project operating off the coast of New England, in a move that could threaten a fragile bipartisan truce over infrastructure permitting in the Senate.

What happened: The Interior Department, which oversees energy development in federal waters, is seeking to review Revolution Wind's compliance with federal law, according to a Friday filing from a Department of Justice attorney. If granted, the move could allow officials to revoke the project's approval.

Free energy! But Trump would rather burn coal, oil, and gas! And our Republican candidate for governor is following right along in Trump's footsteps. His stated policies include expanding natural-gas infrastructure and scaling back support for renewable energy.

Ryan Fazio campaign policy pitch promises cheaper electricity

CT Mirror

by Mark Pazniokas

February 2, 2026

In his first campaign news conference, Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Fazio outlined plans Monday to lower the high cost of electricity, asserting that Connecticut’s longstanding efforts to promote carbon-free energy have burdened ratepayers without mitigating climate change.

Fazio said he would end Connecticut’s 21-year commitment to RGGI, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, and oppose further state spending on building an EV charger network, subsidizing the installation of climate-friendly heat pumps or anything else increasing the cost of or demand for electricity.

“Affordability should be the priority,” said Fazio, a state senator from Greenwich and a prominent GOP voice on energy. “And just the simple mathematics of it is, if Connecticut dropped off the face of the earth, it wouldn’t have any significant effect on carbon emissions globally.”

I totally agree! “Affordability should be the priority.” So why does he want to keep burning fossil fuels?

According to his website, he promises to:

• Reduce electricity bills by 20%, a campaign goal rather than a guaranteed outcome.
• Eliminate or scale back programs and charges that support renewable-energy initiatives.
• Expand natural-gas pipeline capacity and electricity generation.
• End Connecticut's participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a regional program that limits carbon emissions from power plants.

So, please tell me, Mr. Fazio with... Brent Crude  the international benchmark, trading at approximately $104.60–$106.03 per barrel, how in the world are you going to lower energy prices when all you seem to want to do is burn, baby, burn?

He is nothing more than a Trump wannabe.

---

Updated: 10/15 @ 5:30PM

CT News Junkie reports:

“Despite millions of dollars spent flooding the airwaves with desperate and misleading attacks against Governor Ned Lamont, Connecticut voters see right through it,” said Lauren Gray, a spokesperson with the Lamont campaign. She said Lamont had delivered results and had acted as a bulwark against President Donald Trump.

“While Ryan Fazio clings to President Trump and his agenda, Governor Lamont remains focused on what matters most, and that’s keeping Connecticut moving forward,” she said.

 Like I said, a Trump wannabe.

Big Brother Knows Where You Are!

Halloween is coming. You want to be scared?

What would you say if ICE and DHS could find your house just from a photo of your interior?

You know all those photos that you post online. Maybe of having the gang over for a party... snap, snap, snap... all those selfies and photos of the gang being goofy? You know the photos I'm talking about.

Or maybe they're photos from people selling their homes.

Maybe the view through the window in the background.

Those are all being collected!

---

I was speechless this morning! I was seeing if AI could find an article about me in The New York Times (it didn't), and the reply shook me up. First, I asked it to search for an article in The New York Times about me. It wanted my name and anyone else in the article, so I gave my last name and the last names of two friends.

So I was expecting it to say yes, it found the article, or no, it didn't. But instead, it said... are you ready for this? It found our yearbook pictures and was using them to search for the article.

WHAT? WHOA! YOU DID WHAT?

It found our photos in the yearbook, and it searched the files of the NYT for our photos and names! On its own it thought to look for the photos.

Are you scared yet?

---

Then I saw this article in my feeds this morning...

Police are using AI to locate homes from a single interior photo, and even a picture of a washing machine can be enough

Raven can turn ordinary household photos into location clues, raising fresh concerns about privacy and surveillance

TechSpot

By Rob Thubron

October 12, 2026

A hot potato: AI has been helping police forces across the US over the last few years, for better and for worse. The latest use of the technology allows law enforcement to input an interior photo of a home and have the AI figure out the location, though there are some caveats.

The tool, which is called Raven, is being used by the Los Angeles Police Department and Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office (MDSO), reports 404 Media. Made by a company called Graylark Technologies, Raven had been called GeoSpy before its new home-identification features were added.

The limitation is that Raven can't just identify any home in the world solely from an interior photo. Its abilities appear limited to certain properties. Graylark CEO Daniel Heinen demonstrated its power in a LinkedIn post, showing how a regional search can be carried out on something as simple as a photo of a washing machine and dryer.

Are you scared yet?

It's noted that this isn't a simple reverse image search. Raven picks out distinctive details in a photo and uses them to find likely matches from the same property on sites such as Airbnb, even when the images differ.

But wait there's more...

GeoSpy was trained on millions of images from around the world and designed to identify distinct geographical markers such as architecture and soil. Raven extends that ability to buildings.

As with pretty much every use of AI for law enforcement purposes, Raven is raising privacy questions. Airbnb said it has technical safeguards in place to try to limit automated data collection from its site and was reviewing the case. Zillow said scraping data is against its terms of use, adding that it pursues legal avenues when necessary. Vrbo did not respond to questions for comment.

Maybe this will scare you...

ICE has spun a massive surveillance web. We talked to people caught in it

NPR News

By Kat Lonsdorf, Jude Joffe-Block, & Meg Anderson

March 5, 2026

On an evening in late January, Emily was driving through her Minneapolis neighborhood doing something that had become part of her routine in recent weeks: patrolling for ICE.

Emily, who NPR is only identifying by her first name because she fears retribution from the federal government, says she followed an ICE vehicle at a safe distance into a parking lot. "And then someone leaned out of the passenger side of that SUV and took a picture of me and my car," she says.

Emily says she decided to leave at that point, but the SUV made a sudden U-turn and barreled towards her, braking next to her driver's side window. A female agent wearing a gaiter-style mask rolled down the window, leaned out — and addressed Emily by name.

[...]

Activists and journalists spoke of tactics they felt were intimidating: agents photographing their faces or license plates; calling them by name; or leading them to their homes. Immigration lawyers told NPR their clients had been subjected to facial recognition technology. One ICE agent, testifying under oath, spoke of an app that showed the likely home addresses of people targeted for deportation.

Are you scared now?

I asked what else the AI could do? The AI responded:

Different types of photo-based location recognition

1. Street-view location identification: Identify a street, city, building, or intersection from a photo using visual clues such as storefronts, road signs, architecture, and landmarks.

2. Indoor visual positioning: Recognize where you are inside a mall, airport, hotel, office, or other building using signs, interiors, floor plans, and visual landmarks. Coverage varies significantly by building.

3. Live camera location recognition: Point your phone camera at your surroundings and use AI or visual navigation to identify nearby places or help determine where you are.

4. Photo geolocation: Upload an existing image and use AI to estimate the exact location, potentially down to a street or building, from visual details and available image metadata.

---

During my research into this topic the AI made suggestions and the result of one suggestion was this. I asked which path are we heading down, that we are at a crossroads and it took that and ran with it. Coming up with...

We Stand at a Crossroads — But Is There a Third Path?

We stand at a crossroads in human history.

Will we take the path Aldous Huxley envisioned in Brave New World — a society where we surrender our freedom for comfort, exchange independent thought for endless entertainment, and become so distracted by our own desires that we fail to recognize what we have lost?

Or will we take the path George Orwell warned us about in 1984 — a world where surveillance becomes ubiquitous, privacy disappears, truth is manipulated, and Big Brother watches our every move?

Perhaps the most frightening possibility is that we are already traveling down both paths simultaneously.

But what if there is a third path?

A path where technology serves humanity rather than controls it. Where artificial intelligence expands our freedom instead of quietly diminishing it. Where privacy is a fundamental right, truth is protected, and the power to observe is balanced by the power to hold those who observe us accountable.

A future where progress is measured not by how much data we collect, how efficiently we predict human behavior, or how completely we can monitor a population, but by how much freedom, dignity, and opportunity we preserve.

This third path will not emerge on its own. It requires awareness, difficult questions, informed citizens, ethical choices, and the courage to challenge systems that demand our freedom in exchange for convenience or security.

Huxley warned us that we might surrender our freedom because we learn to love our distractions. Orwell warned us that we might lose it because we learn to fear those who control us.

The third path begins when we refuse to accept that either outcome is inevitable.

The question is no longer simply which dystopia we will choose.

It is whether we have the wisdom, the will, and the collective courage to choose a different future — before the choice is made for us.

The third path gives your writing something more powerful than a warning: a reason for hope, coupled with a responsibility to act.

And it raises a question worth exploring throughout your work: Is the third path primarily about protecting individual rights, placing democratic limits on technology, changing human behavior, or all three?

Because perhaps the real crossroads isn't between two dystopias. It's between allowing technology to shape humanity according to its capabilities and consciously shaping technology according to our values.

The Economy... Naw

And let us not forget all the anti-trans bills! 

Approximately 150 national bills targeting transgender individuals, military policies, federal funding for gender-transition care, and Title IX athletic definitions have been introduced during the 119th U.S. Congress

A Loser!

You can tell the quality of a person by the promises he keeps.

Now, regarding that diesel deal... do you think his advisor should have said something—maybe that this isn't a good idea because it breaks the law? The Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act (Public Law 117-109) bars the importation of oil from Russia. The law sets certain conditions for the import of oil products.

Under Section 3, the president must:

1. Consult the relevant House and Senate committees at least 45 days before submitting the required certification.
2. Certify that Russia has agreed to withdraw its forces and cease hostilities under an agreement accepted by Ukraine, poses no immediate military threat to a NATO member, and recognizes Ukrainians' right to choose their government.
3. Wait 90 days after submitting the certification before the ban terminates, subject to Congress's power to disapprove

None of these conditions have been met. However, on Friday, the Treasury Department issued General License 135, authorizing certain transactions involving Russian-origin diesel. The question is... was it legal?

Trump picks fight with GOP senators over Russia diesel deal

The Hill

by Alexander Bolton 

10/13/26

President Trump is picking a fight with Senate Republicans right before the midterm elections with his surprise deal to allow Russia to export diesel to the United States.

Four Republican senators — Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), John Curtis (Utah) and Thom Tillis (N.C.) — have already spoken out against the controversial deal between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Many others are likely privately critical of the stunning move, which Trump executed without advanced warning or consultation with Republican senators.

“I think there are a lot more people that are privately critical of it. The question is whether they want to go public with it,” said Vin Weber, a GOP strategist and former member of the House Republican leadership.

This is only "touchy-feely" it offers false hope.

Trump has a history of announcing big projects that never come to fruition.

Trump's spree of new project announcements mirrors the run-up to the 2018 midterms

Yahoo Financal

Ben Werschkul

Tue, October 13, 2026

President Trump has been appearing around the US in the run-up to the midterm elections, announcing economic development projects — from a possible pipeline in Alaska to a steel plant in Iowa to an aluminum smelter in Oklahoma — that he says will transform the country.

"In the real economy, we are blowing it away," he said at a weekend stop in Tennessee.

Trump's message of confidence comes as the ultimate shape of these projects remains far from certain and often directly echoes his pitch at this stage in the 2018 midterm elections, a Yahoo Finance review found.

That election eight years ago was the last time Trump faced midterm voters and also saw him tout projects — most notably a Foxconn electronics manufacturing plant planned for Wisconsin — that turned out to be less than advertised.

Promises or lies?

You remember the steel plant for the Midwest back during the primaries? Do you remember a new steel mill by Mesabi Metallics?

Skepticism mires Trump’s Iowa steel plant project: ‘Promises are not the same as jobs’

The project has sparked doubts over whether the plant will be built and delivered as promised, given Trump’s record

The Guardian

Michael Sainato

Wed 7 Oct 2026

[...]

Most recently, the Trump administration announced plans to construct the largest steel plant in the US, a $15bn plant in Lee county, Iowa, to be built by India-based Mesabi Metallics.

But the project and claims surrounding it have incited skepticism over whether the plant will be built and delivered as promised, given Trump’s record and the financial history of Mesabi Metallics’ parent company, Essar Global.

The plant had originally been scheduled to be built in Minnesota, a state that usually votes for Democrats. The shift to Iowa – where Republicans are struggling in the midterms – has also attracted attention.

Doug May, who worked for 43 years as a steelworker at a mill in Granite City, Illinois, characterized the announcement as “political pandering” given the timing and how tariffs are hurting Iowa farmers.

“He pulled the same thing in 2018, just before an election, when he announced that $10bn Foxconn project,” May said.

That project, in swing state Wisconsin, failed to produce the jobs Trump and Foxconn had promised.

The people are seeing through his shenanigans.

---

Updated: @ 11:30AM

This Is Treason!

Starlink has been cut for the Ukraine military was using to track missiles and drones. Blinding the Ukraine military!

Starlink terminals operations restricted in Ukraine overnight, adviser to Zelenskyy says

EroNews

By Sasha Vakulina

14/10/2026 

The development has raised concerns that access to critical American satellite communications could become another source of leverage over Kyiv.

Ukrainian forces reported restrictions on the military use of SpaceX's Starlink satellite communications system on Wednesday, saying an overnight change disrupted several drone missions amid escalating tensions between Kyiv and Washington.

The restrictions appear to affect StarShield, the military-grade version of the satellite communications service, with connectivity reportedly cut when terminals move at speeds exceeding approximately 160 kilometres per hour.

Serhiy Beskrestnov, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on military technology, known as "Flash", said SpaceX had introduced the speed limit overnight without notifying Ukrainian forces.

Snip...

"Our defence forces did not receive a warning about this limitation and this led to the disruption of several missions," Beskrestnov wrote on Telegram.

There is strong hints that Trump was behind it...

Ukrainian volunteer Serhiy Sternenko also reported the disruption, suggesting that SpaceX might have introduced the restrictions at the request of US President Donald Trump's administration.

There is, however, no independent evidence that the White House ordered the change, and the reason for the reported restrictions remains unclear.

If this is true then Trump purposely cause deaths for his oil deal... that is criminal! It goes against Congress! 

They Have Our Back!

Guest who has our back?

The Daughter of the American Revolution!

Daughters of the American Revolution axes chapter that challenged transgender membership

The New York Post

By Fox News

Oct. 11, 2026

The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) voted Saturday to disband its Martha Laird Chapter in Texas that fought to bar transgender women from joining the historic organization, citing violations of its national bylaws.

In a letter to chapter members, DAR Organizing Secretary General Marguerite Hogan Fritsch announced that the National Board of Management had approved the chapter’s dissolution by a two-thirds majority vote.

“On October 10, 2026, at the meeting of the National Board of Management of the National Society, Daughters of the American Revolution a resolution passed by two-thirds majority vote to disband the Martha Laird Chapter, NSDAR,” Fritsch said in the letter. “The actions of the chapter have been found in violation of Article XIX, Section 4 of the Bylaws of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution,” the letter continued.

[...]

 “The National Board of Management voted on October 10 to disband the Martha Laird Chapter in Texas after finding that chapter officers had used the chapter’s name, leadership positions, communications, and governance processes to further the goals of a separate advocacy organization,” the group told Fox News Digital. “The Board determined that it was this use of chapter authority and resources – not the views being advocated – that constituted conduct discrediting the National Society under Article XIX, Section 4 of the National Bylaws.”

Boy that was a fancy two step... the chapter was struck from the DAR because they aligned with an anti-trans organization... not the fact that it was anti-trans.

 “The Board’s decision was not based on the chapter’s or its members’ views concerning membership eligibility, their efforts to propose changes to the National Bylaws, or their right to advocate for changes in National Society governance,” the statement continued.

From that statement it seems they are saying if you don't like trans members... then bring it up at the DAR Board meeting, and they also pointed out that the members approved of adding trans members.

Back in July...

Daughters of the American Revolution votes to keep trans members

“I am one of those trans daughters,” said one member. “Thank you so very much for being such steadfast allies.”

LGBTQ Nation

Greg Owen

July 12, 2026

At their annual Continental Congress gathering last week, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) rejected a proposal to define trans women out of membership in the organization.  

The vote was the culmination of a two-year battle among members over who does and doesn’t qualify as a “daughter” in the American lineage society.

Of course the Republicans are hoping mad! Two of them introduced bills in Congress!

Daughters of the American Revolution Membership Integrity Act

Introduced July 15, 2026, by Representative Ben Cline (Republican, Virginia), with Republican cosponsors. It would amend the DAR's federal charter to impose a sex-based membership eligibility requirement. The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee

---

Daughters of the American Revolution Membership Integrity Act

Introduced July 28, 2026, by Senator Marsha Blackburn (Republican, Tennessee), alongside Senators Katie Britt, Mike Lee, Tommy Tuberville and Kevin Cramer. It would similarly amend the DAR's federal charter to restrict eligibility. It was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Unc

Can you teach an Unc new tricks?

Ukraine just took out Russian data centers, and boy, did it hurt Russia! The question is… did Trump learn a lesson?

Ukraine’s attacks on Russian data centers have silenced the pro-Trump and pro-AfD bots on social media

Info.ro

Cristiana Dida

12 October 2026,

Attacks attributed to Ukraine against data centers in Russia may have reduced the activity of bots connected to Yandex infrastructure by more than 99%, with effects observed on social media in the United States and Europe. The incident occurred on Sunday, amid political tensions ahead of the U.S. congressional elections.

Three major data centers were hit, according to information cited by Le Parisien: first in Sasovo, in the Ryazan region, then in the Kaluga region and, finally, in the Vladimir region, east of Moscow. The infrastructure was used by Yandex, Russia’s leading provider of online and cloud services.

The company announced that the Vladimir data center was damaged in a drone attack and that operations were disrupted. Cloudflare subsequently reported a decline of more than 99% in bot activity originating from Yandex infrastructure compared with the previous week.

Hello? Donald? Are you listening? Your pal Putin can’t influence our elections… you’re on your own!

Meduza.io writes….

Ukraine hit a data center operated by the Russian tech giant Yandex. How vulnerable is Russia’s internet to further drone attacks?

Overnight on October 8, Ukrainian forces struck Yandex’s data center in Sasovo, in Russia’s Ryazan region, with drones, causing a fire. No one was injured, but the data center temporarily shut down completely. This disrupted some of Yandex’s own services, as well as those of companies that used the tech giant’s infrastructure in Sasovo.

[…]

Data centers can withstand a temporary power outage thanks to their own diesel generators, the loss of an individual communications link thanks to connections to multiple telecom providers, and even a small fire thanks to automatic fire suppression systems. But, like online retailers’ warehouses, they have proved defenseless against drone strikes. Unless, of course, they are housed in former Cold War shelters — Europe has several such data centers.

Hey folks, this also affects you… all the stuff you have on the cloud could go poof! In a fraction of a second. Gone!

Russia's Yandex bot traffic nearly eliminated overnight after Ukraine drone strikes cripple multiple of 'Russia's Google' data centers — Ukraine intensifies bombing of Yandex data centers in response to Moscow’s strikes on Kyiv data centers

The world is getting a break from Russian bots thanks to Kyiv.

Tom’s Hardware

By Jowi Morales

Russian bot traffic has dropped dramatically in the past few days after Ukraine knocked out Yandex’s biggest data centers, with a third attack happening last night. Cloudflare reports that bot traffic from the Yandex network has dropped to just 0.4% of the maximum number of HTTP requests recorded in the past two weeks. It initially dropped to around 57% on Oct. 8, which happened when Ukraine hit a Yandex data center housing two supercomputers in Sasovo, Russia, located around 195 miles to the southeast of the Kremlin. A second, bigger Yandex campus in Kaluga, about 220 miles to the west of Sasovo, was knocked offline yesterday.

These attacks are apparently Ukraine’s response to Moscow’s strikes on its own data centers, some of which resulted in the outage of some of the most popular piracy websites.

So this is Russia’s Google… imagine if Google got taken out? Tom’s Hardware noted that these sites housed:

    • State-sponsored "bot farms" & disinformation operations

    • High-performance supercomputers & AI models

    • Dual-use industrial & military tech

Did Hegseth and Trump learn anything from this?

We used to think warfare meant lines drawn on a map; tanks on land, warships at sea, fighter jets in the air. That’s traditional, symmetric warfare, where the side with the bigger budget and the heavier hardware usually wins. But asymmetric warfare flipped the board upside down.

There are no frontlines anymore. The battlefield is everywhere—and the ultimate weapon isn't a billion-dollar stealth fighter. It’s a $20,000 drone taking out a multi-million-dollar server farm.

I am sure that the Ayatollahs are stroking their beads over this.

So can a Unc learn new things?

Hey! You Want To See What Canada Thinks About Us?

 I know that I will be using this a lot before the election.

Beyond Christian Nationalist!

Hyper-masculine content is the far right's new elixir.

From Hesgeth check soldier's testosterone levels to Baron Trump becoming friends with podcasters online who push... "manosphere".

The rise of the Jim Crow theobros

A group of Reformed pastors and influencers has wedded old-school segregationist theology with the hypermasculinity of the manosphere and the savvy of the attention economy to preach and sell white supremacy, antisemitism and patriarchy to angry young men. Its audience is small but growing, and their movement has ties to powerful religious and political figures.

Religious New Service

Bob Smietana

September 24, 2026

Michael Spangler does not look like a white supremacist and antisemite.

He has no visible tattoos, no shaven head, no black overcoat or jackboots. No hood, no Confederate flag and no Nazi images appear in the background as he sits in front of a screen for a recent Zoom interview.

Instead, the soft-spoken Christian school teacher and pastor of Piedmont Presbyterian Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, sporting a neatly trimmed beard, was dressed in a charcoal suit and sat in front of a fish tank that seemed straight off the set of Pixar’s “Finding Nemo.”

Then he began talking about Jews. And a broad smile broke across his face. 

“You’re asking if I oppose the Jews who murdered Christ?” said Spangler as he paraphrased a verse from the Apostle Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians, which he says labels Jews as “the enemies of God and all men.”

“We need to consider them and treat them accordingly.”

A segregationist and “race realist” whose start-up church, which has a handful of families, bars Black people out of fear of “harmful race-mixing,” Spangler is one of a small but growing group of pastors and internet influencers who openly embrace racist and antisemitic views, casting them as true Christian ideas.

These are the extremists of the extremists. 

Barron Trump’s Secret Ties To Andrew Tate Revealed

The former president’s youngest son emerges from the shadows, forging connections with controversial influencer Andrew Tate and taking a surprising role in his father’s campaign.

Grand Pinnacle Tribune

December 12, 2025

Key Points

AI-Generated Summary

• Report reveals Barron Trump engaged in private Zoom calls with Andrew Tate, accused of serious crimes and whose release was aided by the Trump administration.
• Barron Trump developed mentorship ties with Tate's associate Justin Waller, including receiving dating advice and socializing within Tate's influencer circle.
• Barron actively advised Donald Trump's 2024 campaign on targeting young male voters through popular podcasts, earning praise from senior campaign advisor Jason Miller.

Barron Trump, the youngest son of former President Donald Trump, has long been something of an enigma. At 19 years old and a student at New York University, Barron has managed to keep a remarkably low profile compared to his older siblings, shunning social media, business ventures, and the political spotlight—at least until recently. But a series of revelations over the past week have pulled him into the public eye, painting a strikingly different portrait of the young Trump than many may have expected.

According to a December 10, 2025 report by The New York Times, Barron Trump has been engaging in private Zoom conversations with Andrew Tate, the controversial influencer and self-styled manosphere leader who has been accused of sex trafficking, rape, and other crimes in Romania. Tate and his brother Tristan were, until earlier this year, prohibited from leaving Romania as authorities investigated allegations that they pressured women into pornography and other illicit activities. The Times further reports that the Trump administration played a role in securing the Tate brothers' freedom earlier in 2025, a move that has raised eyebrows and sparked debate about the intersection of power, politics, and celebrity influence.

I would like to point out that Baron's father lost a civil case on rape.

The Rise Of The Jim Crow Theobros

How a network of pastors and influencers is repackaging segregationist theology—and finding an audience for it online.

Religious News Service

Complexified

October 1, 2026

[...]

WOODWARD: Bob, you’ve recently published a story with a very provocative title, “The Rise of the Jim Crow Theobros.” First of all, what is a theobro?

SMIETANA: Sure. There’s a kind of subset of evangelical pastors. They’re known for their beards and their dark suits and their very serious demeanor. They’re mostly Calvinists or part of what it’s called the Reformed Church.

WOODWARD: Okay.

SMIETANA: So they believe in things like predestination, and they’re very concerned that men should be in charge of both the household and the church. There’s a bit of a stereotype, you know, the nickname theobro. It’s like bros who are into theology.

WOODWARD: So what turns a regular theobro into a Jim Crow theobro?

SMIETANA: So they’re followers of John Calvin, who’s one of the reformers. Calvin was French, but he was known for a couple things: his work on predestination, so that God predestines some people to be saved and some people to be damned, his idea that, you know, the sovereignty of God, that God’s in charge of everything. And for these folks, there’s this kind of idea that men should be in charge. It’s called complementarianism sometimes. Part of what they are is a response to nondenominational Christianity, which kind of downplays theology. There’s a whole group of people who studied John Calvin, who was their first exposure to really serious theology, and they became part of this reformed movement.

So this is all party of the "Woman's place is in the kitchen barefoot and pregnant." anti-LGBTQ+, anti-foreigners, and anti-non-Christians. Only fire and brimstone religions are allowed. They think that only men should vote.

People who want to turn us into a Christian Afghanistan. In other words into a fascist theocracy. 

Bored, Bored, Bored

I surfed the channels, nothing but football and sitcoms. I try PBS... nope, nope, nop... wait a minute! Trans?

A New PBS Documentary Offers a Gentle Message to Our Polarized Times. I Hated It.

Bucks County, USA examines our political divisions and finds very fine people on both sides.

Slate

By Sam Adams

Sept 21, 2026

Philadelphia’s collar counties are some of the most sought-after real estate in American politics, the swingingest part of a critical swing state. And Bucks County, which sprawls northward along the New Jersey border, is the most evenly divided of them all. In 2024, the county cast more than 400,000 votes for president; Donald Trump won by fewer than 300. So it was a shock even to some locals when the Bucks County school board took a massive turn to the right in 2021, with a newly radicalized Republican majority pulling books from school libraries and banning pride flags and other symbols of support from the classroom. It must have seemed like the perfect spot for Barry Levinson and Robert May to set a five-episode docuseries on the political polarization of America, centered on the friendship between two high school girls whose parents hold vastly different political views.

[...]

Where Levinson and May get into trouble is in treating those epithets as equivalent, as if bigot and transphobe were merely unkind insults, out of bounds no matter how extreme the views of the people they’re describing. Donte King, the Black father of a young daughter, recalls the pain that flooded into his face when his daughter innocently repeated a racist joke she’d heard from a classmate, and Lily Freeman, a trans high school senior, relates the physical and mental abuse she’s suffered at school. But like the deaths that prompted the COVID closures in the first place, their injuries are minimized or simply denied by enraged conservatives who’ve only just cottoned on to what their kids are learning in school.

It is on Passport, so I'll be watching the show and I'll let you know what I think of it.