When is “your” truth not your truth?

When it rubs progressives the wrong way, of course.

‘This is MY list and if you disturb my peace here…vanquished.’

Truth bombed

Actor Ryan Phillippe recently found out when he dared to share a list of 18 things he no longer wants to engage with. Nestled at No. 3 — after “Halloween” and “Fantasy football” — was “Politics.”

“Putting this on main to keep me accountable,” the 52-year-old wrote, stressing: “It’s MY list, not imposing it on anyone.”

His critics were more than happy to pick up the slack.

Some readers immediately attacked Phillippe for seemingly being unsympathetic to their concerns. A recurring complaint was that disengaging from politics amounted to not caring about life and death.

Disengaging with politics is not a choice when “there are lives that depend on it,” one freelance writer replied.

“People are legit being kidnapped and killed by ICE and you can’t be bothered with politics lol,” wrote an aspiring food blogger.

RELATED: Actor Ryan Phillippe says ‘firm and fervent belief in God’ helped him shed addiction and depression

Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

‘Must be nice’

A self-described Latino from Houston suggested Phillippe could afford to disengage only because his own children weren’t at risk of being abducted or shot for looking like illegal immigrants.

“I mean no one is snatching your kids up or shooting them just bc they look ‘illegal’ so yeah you can afford not to engage in politics,” the man wrote.

Other backlash ranged from simple messages like “Must be nice” to bashing Phillippe for using a Drake song on his post.

“Meanwhile you have a [pedophile] song playing on this post – have you tried growing tf up?” one reader said.

By contrast, his criticism of professional sports and gambling attracted comparatively little attention among the negative responses cited here, despite receiving the longest explanation on his list.

Phillippe said he was dropping professional sports as a pastime — with the notable exception of his beloved Philadelphia 76ers — primarily because of the industry’s partnerships with “corrosive gambling sites and apps.” He also cited rampant injuries, particularly in the NFL.

That complaint appeared alongside “doom scrolling” and “doomsday scenarios,” as well as more personal grievances such as “fake love,” “being used,” and “insincere obligations.” And then there was “Halloween,” which drew some humorous replies of its own.

RELATED: GUITAR HERO: Metallica front man puts music before political ‘bulls**t’

Jake Giles Netter/Disney/Getty Images

Peace out

Phillippe’s desire to cut unnecessary negativity out of his life may also reflect a spiritual journey he has discussed publicly. The actor previously said that working on the movie “Prey” helped reconnect him with God.

“It was right after filming it where I went on this spiritual journey where I started going really deep inside,” he remembered. “I got back into reading the Bible and various other religious tomes, but I found myself drawn to this notion of spirituality.”

“You look for more,” Phillippe added. “I wanted to have a relationship and understanding with God, and I was craving that.”

In response to the backlash in his comments, Phillippe wrote, “This is MY list and if you disturb my peace here…vanquished.”

Phillippe isn’t the only celebrity to suggest that politics doesn’t need to intrude on every aspect of entertainment. Artist Ed Sheeran and the band Metallica have also expressed reluctance to turn their public appearances into political diatribes or activism.

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​Ryan phillippe, Progressives, Ice, Entertainment 

Fourteen people have been charged with numerous crimes related to an apparent smuggling scheme that resulted in the deaths of seven migrants, including a 14-year-old child.

The alleged smugglers loaded up seven migrants into a Conex shipping container on a stationary train in the Del Rio, Texas, area on or about May 9, according to a Monday press release from the Department of Justice, citing court documents.

‘These defendants showed no regard for the value of human life and put people in harm’s way to pad their own pockets.’

The smugglers allegedly used red bolt cutters to cut the lock on the shipping container and then closed the door after leaving the migrants inside, the press release said.

The shipping container had no ventilation or cooling system, and the migrants were inside when outside temperatures reportedly reached 88 to 92 degrees Fahrenheit. “It was secured from the outside and could not be opened from the inside,” the press release said.

When the container arrived in San Antonio, the smugglers allegedly discovered the migrants in distress and fled the scene, the press release continued. They even allegedly left the body of a deceased migrant near the railroad tracks.

On May 10, a worker at the rail yard in Laredo saw a human leg sticking out of a container, and a subsequent search of the container found the remains of six deceased migrants. San Antonio law enforcement then found the body of the seventh migrant victim that had been left on the tracks.

Four of the deceased migrants were from Mexico, while three were from Honduras.

Twelve of the defendants were charged with conspiracy to transport aliens resulting in death. They may face life in prison if convicted.

The 14 defendants face numerous other serious charges related to their alleged part in the smuggling scheme. Some of the charges carry a sentence of decades in prison.

Seven of the 14 defendants are illegal aliens, four are U.S. citizens, and three are non-citizens, said the Justice Dept.

The smugglers were paid between $1,500 and $10,000 for each smuggled migrant to be brought into the U.S., court documents said.

RELATED: Illegal alien arrested for brutal murder of Virginia mom had been released under Biden: DHS

“By allegedly orchestrating this deadly human smuggling scheme, these defendants showed no regard for the value of human life and put people in harm’s way to pad their own pockets,” read a statement from Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva.

“Seven people are dead as the result of another callous alien smuggling scheme,” read a statement from U.S. Attorney Justin Simmons. “To those alien smuggling organizations like the one responsible for these seven deaths, your date with American justice will come, and when it does, we will hold you accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

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​Human smuggling, Immigration, Politics 

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has won his bid to become the top Republican in the House next term.

Opposed by Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), Jordan reportedly won the secret-ballot race for House Republican minority leader on Tuesday 106-73. Jordan’s experience as Judiciary Committee chairman may have contributed to his win, with subpoena and impeachment threats already flying after Democrats’ midterm victory.

‘Jim is exactly the right man for the job to fight back against the radical, crazy agenda of Democrats.’

Jordan promised party unity and campaigned on his familiarity with Democrats’ tactics in the House.

“I am battle-tested on the oversight front, and I know the Democrats’ playbook,” Jordan wrote in a letter to other House Republicans prior to his win. “I know what it will take to lead our Conference in the minority, to stay unified, and to coordinate and calibrate our response to the Democrats’ tactics.”

Jordan was widely considered to be the more conservative option and has remained close to President Donald Trump since 2016.

RELATED: With Trump’s backing, Hegseth vows to fight impeachment

Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris celebrated Jordan’s victory in a statement posted to X.

“Congratulations to Jim Jordan, House Freedom Caucus founder and former chairman, on being elected House Republican Leader! A fierce fighter, uniter, principled conservative, and relentless advocate for the American people,” Harris wrote. “Jim is exactly the right man for the job to fight back against the radical, crazy agenda of Democrats.”

Neither Trump nor outgoing Speaker of the House Mike Johnson intervened in the race.

Current House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) was elected minority whip by a similarly large margin to Jordan, cruising to victory over Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas), 103-76, in the secret-ballot vote.

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​Donald trump, Freedom caucus, Jim jordan, Mike johnson, Minority leader, Steve scalise, Politics, Tom emmer 

A mailman spotted a chilling note at the entrance of a New Jersey home late last week and alerted authorities, which led to a grisly discovery inside the residence.

Dom Clements, a carrier for the United States Postal Service, was delivering mail along his route in Mount Holly on Friday when he noticed something unsettling.

‘The whole situation was weird.’

Clements told the New York Post he saw a sign at the entrance of the home that read: “9-1-1 Inside.” He said the writing was above a drawing of two sad faces with Xs for eyes.

“I thought it was weird because the only person that would have been able to see that sign would have been me, ’cause I’m the only one that goes to that house every day,” Clements told the Post. “And it’s just like, nobody else can, you can’t see that sign from outside.”

The paper noted that it was a “ramshackle” and “dilapidated” home with “peeling paint and rotting window frames.”

Clements said the sign had been attached to the home using clear wrapping tape. The mailbox on the property also was sealed with the same clear wrapping tape, according to Clements.

Clements notified police about the ominous note.

Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw said in a statement that three deceased elderly individuals were found inside the home Friday afternoon.

The prosecutor said their identities were being withheld until next of kin can be notified.

A neighbor told WCAU-TV that officers informed him there was “a lot of blood” when police found the bodies in the home.

Authorities said the Burlington County Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct autopsies.

Neighbor David Babcock told WCAU-TV the residents of the home were two brothers and a sister in their 60s.

People magazine indicated that authorities have not said if foul play was involved, or if there are any suspects in the deaths of the three siblings.

RELATED: 4 children found dead. Now, toxicology report reveals what mom and grandmother allegedly drugged them with in murder-suicide.

Mount Holly Police Chief Clifford Spencer stated, “I want to reassure our residents that, based on the preliminary investigation, there is no ongoing threat to public safety.”

Spencer acknowledged that the situation is “deeply concerning to our community.”

“As your chief of police, I want to assure you that the safety and security of our residents remain my highest priority,” the chief added.

Police said the investigation is ongoing.

Clements told the Post the sign was “so bizarre” and “weird.”

The USPS employee added to the paper that “the only person who goes up to the door is the mail carrier.”

“It’s weird. The whole situation was weird,” Clements added. “Definitely don’t want it to happen again.”

Clements noted that the people who lived at the home seemed like “nice people.”

A local resident, who did not want to be identified, told the Post, “I mean, we’ve been here 50-some years. They were here before us, but they pretty much stayed by themselves.”

“I do know that one sister was a crossing guard for years,” the resident continued. “My kids knew her and everything like that. And so she worked parades and other things as a crossing guard here in town.”

The resident recalled, “The one brother, he was like clockwork. He would always walk down to 7-Eleven around 2:30, 3, and walk on back. I think he would get lottery tickets and something to drink. But other than that, they would barely leave their house. And none of them drove anywhere.”

When asked if he was surprised that something terrible happened at that residence, Babcock told WCAU “not really,” but he added that he didn’t expect it to be that horrific.

“We thought the house would get condemned, and they would send them to a group home,” Babcock said.

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​New jersey, Weird news, Bodies found, Usps, Crime 

Britain’s leftist government is set to offer interest-free loans to Muslim university students so that they can be compliant with Sharia law — an initiative that former Home Secretary Suella Braverman said will create a “two-tier education system.”

The U.K. Department for Education noted last year that while interest has historically been charged on all student loans in the isles, “some people feel unable to use existing student loans for university or college, due to their faith or conscience.”

‘Sharia loans are, by their very definition, exclusionary.’

Muslims, specifically, are prohibited by Sharia law from engaging in “riba” — the practice of charging interest or fees on loans, which is regarded as usurious and exploitative.

Britain has long humored implementing a Muslim loans system. At last, the Labour government — ever-keen to chase the support of the over 3.9 million Muslims in England and Wales — is poised to make good on its promise of introducing a “student finance product with an alternative to interest payments” that would be based on the Islamic finance principle of Takaful and certified by the new Islamic Finance Supervisory Board comprising appointees of the Islamic Finance Council UK.

Takaful, which comes from an Arabic word meaning “joint guarantee,” is a Saracen system of insurance where participants pool money together in a shared fund to support each other and protect one another from risk.

The Sharia-compliant program will not require borrowers to pay interest on the principal. Instead, they will pay an equivalent “contribution” that will be set aside to help future borrowers instead of going to the British Treasury, the Telegraph reported Tuesday.

RELATED: ‘Can’t wait to be arrested’: John Cleese formally reported to UK’s ‘counter-terrorism’ regime for criticizing Islam

Depiction of a Muslim university in Cairo. Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images.

According to the government,

Students with the same circumstances will get the same amount of financial support. Students will make contributions back to a Takaful fund of the same amount and at the same time as students making repayments for conventional loans. We will base these contributions on what people earn, not what they have received.

The Sharia loans, which will be available to non-Muslims as well, are already advertised at numerous British universities including Oxford University, De Montfort University, and the University of Bristol, which characterized the option as an “interest-free” student-funding option.

Suella Braverman, the former home secretary now serving as an MP and Reform U.K. education spokeswoman, told the Telegraph, “This outrageous anti-British scheme creates a two-tier education system and divided society.”

“The scheme from Labour proves they are addicted to double standards in all aspects of British life,” continued Braverman. “Sharia loans are, by their very definition, exclusionary and for the benefit solely of Muslim students, thus creating parallel institutions that are incompatible with the British way of life.”

Braverman, who has in recent years sounded the alarm about the failure of multiculturalism, added, “The whole idea is made even more farcical by the fact that the Treasury, and therefore British taxpayers, will have to foot the bill if they fail to pay.”

The burden of delinquent borrowers already weighs heavy on the British taxpayer.

According to a House of Commons Library report published in July, £21 billion is loaned to around 1.5 million higher-education students in England. As of March, the value of outstanding loans was over £295 billion.

The government estimated that only 55% of full-time undergraduates who enrolled in the 2025-2026 academic year would repay their loans in full.

A spokesman for the Department of Education told the Telegraph that it would be “completely false to assert that Alternative Student Finance arrangements would give favourable treatment to Muslim students.”

While a date has not yet been set for the program’s full implementation, the government has suggested that it will be launched in the 2026-2027 academic year.

Jacqui Smith, the Labour minister of state for skills, reiterated in a written parliamentary response on Oct. 7 that “the government is committed to introducing an Alternative Student Finance (ASF) product compatible with Islamic finance principles and continues to make progress towards its delivery.”

Smith noted further that “ASF will be introduced as soon as possible following the introduction of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement and will mirror the mainstream student finance offer, requiring the same repayments to the scheme as those required for conventional loans.”

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​United kingdom, Sharia law, Muslim, Politics 

Vanderbilt students logged on to school computers to hear a cryptic message this week: “You have been compromised.”

On Monday morning, the university realized it had been hacked, with the audio message being embedded into its systems.

‘If you could not tell already, your databases are locked.’

After realizing the school’s computer system had been compromised, university IT teams reportedly went from classroom to classroom telling students and faculty to close Microsoft Word documents and disconnect from cloud services like OneDrive and Dropbox.

The breach was first discovered at 9:50 a.m. CT on Monday, school newspaper the Vanderbilt Hustler reported, with hackers leaving an audio warning to users across campus: “You have been compromised by BYOD. We suggest you reach out to us as soon as possible. Instructions have been placed on your desktop. Failure to communicate will result in this estate being brought to the ground completely. Make the right choice or rot with the wrong one,” an automated voice stated.

Ransomware group BYOD claimed responsibility for the breach and posted a threatening message warning Vanderbilt that the entire network had been downloaded, including private student information.

RELATED: Nvidia CEO admits to affair — as suspected lover is accused of smuggling banned chips to China-linked cutouts

“If you could not tell already, your databases are locked. We have your entire estate and research data. Over 1 million [Social Security numbers], full names, email addresses, phone numbers, student & employee records, full takeover of your DC, whatever was on your network, we possess,” the statement read, per Ransomware.live.

The statement concluded, “Anyways, you know where to find us (contact tab). We will take you down when communication has been established between our team and yours.”

This is at least the second university hack BYOD has claimed responsibility for in the last week. Michigan State University was victim of a hack recently that BYOD claimed had taken data related to 1.3 million current and former students.

RELATED: It’s getting harder to prove you’re human — and this ‘solution’ is only making it worse

Christopher Morris/Corbis/Getty Images

Vanderbilt students began expressing their frustration in the late hours of Monday night. The student government asked leadership for answers but stated they have not received adequate communication.

This came after the school said it would operate as normal on Tuesday, posting generic messages on its social media accounts asking faculty to “teach classes as scheduled.”

The university had previously asked students to disconnect from school Wi-Fi and be extremely vigilant if on their networks.

“Students are concerned about the cyberattacks and extortion threats, particularly what information was stolen, how it may be used, and how it could affect them personally,” the student government said in a statement. “We are frustrated by the university’s lack of clear communication, and our priority is ensuring that students receive timely updates and are not academically penalized for circumstances beyond their control.”

As of Tuesday morning, the student paper said little information had been provided by the school’s public safety team, but added that campus Wi-Fi and applications like Outlook, Zoom, and Google accounts were now safe to use.

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​Hacking, Vanderbilt, Tech 

I have a neighbor, a good neighbor. He’s the best neighbor I’ve ever had, to be quite honest. He has a snowblower and I don’t. So because he is such a good neighbor, he comes by our place every time he’s out there evicting the snow from his driveway and does the same to ours.

I try to beat him out there in the morning with a snow shovel in hand when it’s coming down hard, but I never can. I’ve been able to get my boots on a few times, but as soon as I am about to walk out the door, I see him and his gas-powered machine clearing our driveway with modern ease.

Life is too quiet, and so much of the living happened in the past. Maybe there just isn’t enough life.

In good Midwestern fashion, I plead with him every winter and tell him that he doesn’t have to do it, but he insists that he wants to. I’ve told his wife that he doesn’t have to as well, and she tells me that I need to let him. So I have to believe them and I have to let him.

Staying busy

I always end up talking with our neighbors more than my wife does. I don’t know if it’s because I’m outside more or if I am more receptive to conversation, but wherever we have lived, the neighbors always end up talking with me. They tell me all sorts of stuff. Some personal stuff, some neighborhood stuff, some stuff about kids and grandkids, and all the kinds of stuff neighbors might talk about.

My nice neighbor told me he was a single father to three young kids. His first wife — their mother — left, and he ended up with full custody. That’s a strange thing to happen, but it happens, I guess. He told me he just got used to staying busy and cleaning a lot during those years. And so he still does that same thing. He’s outside cleaning and cutting and snowblowing all the time. So I let him snowblow our driveway.

His kids have kids too. One just had his fifth. Both he and his wife are busy helping with grandkids these days. He dictated a convoluted schedule to me the other day. They pick them up for school, or maybe it was soccer or something. I don’t know or don’t remember. Whatever it is, they end up helping out a lot right now.

Kids welcome

He asks about our kids whenever I see him. He knows them pretty well too. They are outside a lot, and whenever they see him raking or mowing or taking something out to the trash, they run over and talk to him. They also climb up in the trees and peep into his back yard and look through the cracks in the fence despite us telling them not to be such creeps.

He doesn’t judge our terrible yard of balding grass and tons of toys, and he doesn’t get ticked off at our crazy kids. He says he remembers that well.

We are expecting our fourth in January. He asked me if we are done after that or if we just let whatever happens happen. I told him the latter. He said he grew up in a family of six kids, intimating that he understands bigger families.

We got to talking about birth rates and how people don’t have those kinds of big families any more. We are the only big family on the street. Yes, in America of 2026, a family with three kids is considered a big one, believe it or not. We talked about how fun it is being part of a bigger family, sharing a room as a kid, and all that kind of stuff.

He’s a nice neighbor because he’s a nice guy. And he is a nice guy because that’s who he is. Though I wonder if he is nicer because he has kids and grandkids. He’s not crotchety or grumpy. He isn’t calling the cops on our kids yelling and screaming in the back yard because they are having a good time outside rather than sitting indoors on an iPad.

RELATED: What is culture? Look around your dinner table.

Heritage Images/Getty Images

Full of life

All of it makes me think about the less obvious impacts families have on our social fabric. Of course, families mean more people in the future, but I wonder about the other things that come with having lots of families around.

Kids make noise. They leave toys everywhere. They climb trees and look through cracks in fences. Grandkids need rides to school and soccer practice. Somebody else’s driveway needs snowblowing. When there are a lot of people around, the world is busier and noisier. It’s messier and more chaotic. It’s more full of life.

Maybe part of the grand ennui that seems to be coursing through our culture is due to the fact that there aren’t enough families around. Life is too quiet, and so much of the living happened in the past. Maybe there just isn’t enough life.

Or maybe it’s that being around more life makes you more alive yourself. There are more people to talk to, more people needing things from you, more reasons to get out of the house and do something.

My neighbor certainly doesn’t seem to mind. Every time it snows, he finishes his driveway and comes over to do mine.

​Family, Neighbors, Snowblower, Lifestyle, Birth, Culture, Large families, The root of the matter 

A Bruce Springsteen social media fan club with nearly 20,000 members closed down over bickering about the rocker’s political activism.

Springsteen has become more and more vocal about his political beliefs, but his endorsement of Democrat Abdul El-Sayed for the U.S. Senate pushed the group over the top, according to their co-founder Howie Chaz.

‘What should have been respectful differences of opinion too often deteriorated into personal attacks, bullying, insults, and some genuinely vile and hateful rhetoric.’

On Sunday, Howie and Julie Chaz announced that the “Spring-Nuts” Facebook page would shut down after 11 years.

“As the world grew increasingly divisive, hostile, those tensions inevitably spilled into our little corner of the E Street world,” their statement read.

“What should have been respectful differences of opinion too often deteriorated into personal attacks, bullying, insults, and some genuinely vile and hateful rhetoric.”

The 77-year-old rocker publicly acknowledged the group in 2022 and thanked them for raising money for charity.

Springsteen has been more strident in recent years about his opposition to President Donald Trump and Trump supporters. That activism led to his endorsement of El-Sayed, who went on to win his campaign for one of Michigan’s seats in the U.S. Senate.

“El-Sayed is … a fighter against the corrupt, lawless, and anti-American leadership currently in the White House,” Springsteen wrote on Instagram on Nov. 2, just before Election Day.

The Chazes, who described themselves as “proud Jews,” said Springsteen’s politics made it harder to run their fan group.

“Adding to the division, and most disturbing to us was Bruce’s recent endorsement of Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, who has strong relationships with people who have open disdain for America and Jews,” they said

They cited El-Sayed campaigning with influencer Hasan Piker, who had said in 2019 that the U.S. deserved the 9/11 terror attacks.

RELATED: ‘Bitter old man’: Journey band member BASHES Bruce Springsteen for pushing leftist politics

“Ultimately, that brings us to the incredibly difficult decision to close this chapter of Spring-Nuts. Not because of one endorsement, one disagreement, or one individual, but because of the cumulative toll that years of increasing division have taken on the very spirit of this community,” the message added.

The Chazes said they will rebrand to cover music more generally, but said they have no ill will toward Springsteen.

El-Sayed easily defeated Republican Mike Rogers to become the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate ever.

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​Bruce springsteen, Political activism, Social media, Us senate, Politics, Abdul el-sayed 

“I do not watch it. I do not look at it,” says Katie Pasitney, spokeswoman for Universal Ostrich Farms, referring to video footage of Canadian government agents killing more than 300 ostriches at the farm one year ago.

The footage is painful enough. But Pasitney says the harassment she has endured since the killing has taken its own toll.

‘Remember how beautiful our birds were today. Remember their names. They had character. They had personality.’

“My home address was leaked. My layout of my home was leaked. I’ve had people outside of my home, and when I went to the police, nothing was done. So the trauma is so real, and the pain will never go away.”

Grim anniversary

It was a year ago, on November 6, 2025, when the Supreme Court of Canada refused to hear the farm’s final appeal to stop the Canadian Food Inspection Agency from killing the ostriches owned by farmer Karen Espersen and her business partner, Dave Bilinski.

The CFIA had ordered the birds destroyed after two ostriches that died during an avian influenza outbreak in late 2024 tested positive for H5N1. But the surviving flock had lived for months without further reported deaths from the disease. The farm insisted that the birds were healthy and demanded further testing before they were killed.

The CFIA refused to exempt the surviving birds from its disease-control policy, and the courts upheld the agency’s decision.

The case produced intense media coverage around the world, especially in the United States, where the farm gathered support from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Dr. Mehmet Oz, and businessman John Catsimatidis. The CFIA’s subsequent occupation of the farm was marked by repeated allegations of animal cruelty.

Now, one year later, the family is fighting back with a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the CFIA, the attorney general of Canada, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The civil suit, filed October 30 in British Columbia Supreme Court, alleges unlawful search and occupation, inadequate compensation, unlawful seizure of ostrich eggs, and property damage and trespass. The plaintiffs are seeking damages and an accounting of birds, eggs, and other property they say were taken or destroyed. The allegations have not been proven in court.

In a statement accompanying the announcement of the lawsuit, Catsimatidis renewed his criticism of the CFIA for refusing offers of assistance from American officials.

“I was disappointed that the CFIA did not have enough respect to allow Secretary Kennedy, Dr. Oz, or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, one of the world’s leading health agencies, to test the ostriches as they had requested,” he said.

Pasitney, Espersen’s daughter and a familiar face to everyone who followed the ostrich farm saga, spoke to Blaze Lifestyle about the past year and the emotional cost of the family’s battle with Ottawa.

‘The pain will never go away’

Pasitney says she has gone to hell and back over what happened at the farm.

She was able to leave and resume some semblance of normal life. Her mother, however, still lives with the reminders every day.

“My mom wakes up every day with her overalls hanging that she used to do chores, and her purpose was destroyed,” Pasitney told Align. “She has to witness the field that has been left a mess, a bloody straw mess, where there once was decades of life that pounded the ground and they boomed their song.”

“I got to leave,” she continued.

“I’ve felt the effects of the trauma more, where my mom is still in fight or flight.”

The experience has also given Pasitney a new appreciation for the mental health struggles facing Canadian farmers.

“I feel honored to be able to understand the mental health problem that this causes, the mental health effects of what the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is doing to our farms, our families,” she said.

She described some of her own darkest moments in recent months, including thoughts that it might be easier if she were no longer alive.

Part of the strain, she says, has come from the hatred directed at her online.

“I always made a promise to everybody. I said, ‘You will never see my name under any of those negative comments, unless there was something I really needed to speak out on.’ I will not play into the rhetoric, into the hate, and into the insanity. But it does creep up on you.”

Public health and safety?

Pasitney is still floored by the fact that people continue to defend the government’s decision to kill the ostriches as a necessary measure to protect public health and safety.

“Even if you believed we had the most virulent threat of avian influenza on our farm, and we were a public safety and health risk … would you have said yes if you ever thought that they would have been gunned down in the middle of the night in the pouring rain, running for their lives?”

Pasitney also questions the CFIA’s handling of biosecurity during and after the operation. She alleges that agents failed to follow proper protocols, drove through contaminated areas, and left bloody straw behind after the shooting.

“Why did the Canadian Food Inspection Agency never step foot on our farm again since the day that they left?” she asked. “Would you not want to test our soil? Would you not want to test our water? Would you not want to test all that blood in that straw? Would you not want to make sure that you were protecting Canadians? Why did they never come back?”

The CFIA has maintained that the cull was necessary under its policy for controlling highly pathogenic avian influenza. The agency has also disputed allegations about its care of the animals during its occupation, saying it provided feed, water, bedding, and veterinary oversight.

But Pasitney says the agency’s actions on the night of November 6 remain impossible to reconcile with its stated concern for the birds’ welfare.

She remembers hearing gunshots through the windows of the family home. She says there was no warning that the shooting was about to begin and that gunfire could still be heard the following morning.

“After they were all gone, the clouds broke, and this big, beautiful beam of sunshine shone right down in their kill pen,” she recalled.

RELATED: Can political dissent be classified as harassment? One Canadian city says yes.

Toronto Star/Getty Images

‘Remember how beautiful the birds were’

Pasitney says the ordeal has taught her a lesson she will never forget.

“As humans, we need to make sure that this never happens again to anybody, and more so that it never happens to any animal that is decades old,” she said.

She remains grateful for the international support the farm received and especially for the prayers that poured in during the battle to save the flock.

“Everybody thought we were asking for money,” she said.

“I don’t think you’ve ever heard me ask for money. I asked for a prayer.”

And she wants people to remember the birds themselves, not simply the controversy surrounding their deaths.

“Remember how beautiful our birds were today. Remember their names. They had character. They had personality. And remember the majestic animals that we’ve lost due to culling, due to forgetting science.”

“Please remember that our ostriches were heroes. They are the heroes of today, and they can’t be heard any more. But remember they’re booming in the fields. Remember they’re dancing when they were happy.”

“They were loved for three decades, but they knew that they were here to create change. We didn’t know, but now we have to do the work to make sure that their legacy moves forward in hope and that we can create a better Canada and secure our agricultural industry and protect the farmers as the heroes that they are.”

​Avian influenza, Canadian farmers, Cfia decision, Dr mehmet oz, John catsimatidis, Ostrich killing, Robert f kennedy jr, Royal canadian mounted police, Universal ostrich farms, Ostrich egg seizure, Lifestyle, Canada, Letter from canada 

The Republican Party just got a brutal midterm wake-up call, but Florida somehow escaped the carnage.

As Democrats swept key races across the country, the Sunshine State held its ground — and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) says there’s a reason his state didn’t get swallowed by the blue wave.

“We had a seawall around Florida. That’s where this blue wave, this tsunami that swept out everybody, didn’t happen,” BlazeTV host Pat Gray comments.

“There’s only one reason, and that’s Ron DeSantis,” he adds.

“He delivered,” Jeff Fisher agrees. “He said what they were going to do, and they did it.”

“And he keeps doing it,” Gray says. “And he’s been doing that since 2018. And so they were protected as a result.”

And in a statement following the elections, DeSantis warned that the blue wave was “as close to an extinction-level event for Republicans in many parts of the country as we’ve probably seen in the last 100 years.”

“But it didn’t happen here. Out of the 10 largest states in this union, only one state will have Republican control of their state, and that is Florida,” he added.

Gray believes that DeSantis’ well-deserved public victory lap is “preparation for him to run for president in 2028.”

“I don’t think there’s any question he’s going to run,” he says. “He’s got to.”

Want more from Pat Gray?

To enjoy more of Pat’s biting analysis and signature wit as he restores common sense to a senseless world, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Florida, Ron desantis, Red state, 2028, Blazetv show 

The Charlie Kirk murder trial has been scheduled — but not in a way his family and supporters would like.

Fourth District Judge Tony Graf has set jury selection to begin on June 21, 2028, nearly three years after Kirk was assassinated on September 10, 2025, at Utah Valley University.

‘As we continue down this difficult road, we remain deeply grateful for the love, prayers, and support that have sustained our family through these painful months.’

June 2028 is still well ahead of the accused party’s request to have the trial begin in the third quarter of 2029, Breitbart reported.

The court reserved 105 court days for the death-penalty trial of Tyler Robinson, the man accused of shooting Kirk. Robinson has pleaded not guilty to the aggravated murder charge against him.

The delay in the trial, however, was called “deeply disappointing” by the Kirk family.

RELATED: UVU releases report on Charlie Kirk assassination

In a statement from Erika Kirk’s X account on Monday, the Kirk family said, “Today’s decision to delay the trial of the man accused of murdering our beloved Charlie until at least June 2028, is deeply disappointing. While nothing will restore the time we have lost with Charlie, every additional day without justice prolongs our family’s pain and forces us to wait even longer for accountability.

“As we continue down this difficult road, we remain deeply grateful for the love, prayers, and support that have sustained our family through these painful months,” the statement concluded.

Commentator Eric Daugherty weighed in on the trial date announcement and agreed with the Kirk family.

“That is way too freaking long,” he said. “Seems like the judge just divided it down the middle to not cause any massive waves.”

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​Charlie kirk, Death penalty, Jury selection, Murder trial, Tyler robinson, Utah valley university, Politics 

“Do you know that you’re going to die on Friday?” Brigitte Kranendonk asked her grandmother.

The 83-year-old woman began to cry. “I’ve made a mistake,” Brigitte Stegemann told her granddaughter, according to Kranendonk. She wept for nearly an hour.

This is not compassion if the person about to die cannot make herself understood. It is the machinery of death moving past the one vulnerable human being whose wishes should govern it.

Two days later, on July 10, Stegemann was dead. A physician had administered a lethal injection under Canada’s medical assistance in dying program. The question her family wants answered is as elementary as it is horrifying: Did she understand what was being done to her, and did she freely consent?

The details come from Kranendonk’s account of her grandmother’s final days. They demand serious scrutiny, not a soothing recital of the word “choice.”

Stegemann was a devout Christian with stage 4 stomach cancer. She had lived for about 18 months at a long-term care home in Cannifton, Ontario. She was hard of hearing, German was her first language, and her family says her understanding and memory were impaired. Kranendonk had helped care for her for 12 years and held her power of attorney for six.

According to her family, Stegemann had previously rejected an assisted death because it violated her faith. Yet while Kranendonk was away on a 10-day trip, staff arranged a MAID assessment. The granddaughter says she was told about the process only after it was under way. She had received routine updates about a fall and her grandmother’s need for a wheelchair, but nothing suggesting that death was now imminent.

When Kranendonk returned, she said, her grandmother was still eating, talking, and joking. At a subsequent eligibility assessment, Kranendonk says, the physician spoke of “medicine” and feeling “at peace,” without plainly explaining that the procedure would end Stegemann’s life.

“She doesn’t understand what you’re saying,” Kranendonk protested.

During questioning about her family, Stegemann gave answers her granddaughter knew were wrong. She said she had no living siblings, though two survived. Kranendonk was then asked to leave. Shortly afterward, she says, the physician announced that Stegemann had been deemed eligible for MAID.

On Wednesday, July 8, Kranendonk asked to see the paperwork authorizing her grandmother’s death. She was told Stegemann had signed it the previous day. Kranendonk says she has never seen the documents and does not know who witnessed the signature or how the request was explained. That was when she asked her grandmother whether she knew she would die Friday.

“I’ve made a mistake.”

RELATED: Canada kills 83-year-old Christian grandmother without consent, family claims — outrage ensues

ROMAIN PERROCHEAU / AFP via Getty Images

Kranendonk told her she could refuse. The following day, they ate ice cream, shared memories, and danced to a traditional German polka. “We had the best day,” the granddaughter recalled. Such ordinary tenderness makes what followed almost unbearable to read.

On Friday morning, according to Kranendonk, a nurse struggled repeatedly to insert an intravenous line, leaving her grandmother bleeding. When the doctor arrived, she asked whether it was all right to give Stegemann “medicine.”

“My Oma is not moving. She doesn’t open her eyes. She doesn’t nod. She doesn’t say anything,” Kranendonk recalled. The doctor, she says, responded: “OK, well, I’m going to proceed.”

Stegemann was pronounced dead within minutes, her hands clasped in prayer.

The care home and practitioners have not publicly answered these allegations in detail. They reportedly maintain that Stegemann legally consented. No wrongdoing has been established. But Belleville police confirmed in September that the death was under investigation, and the family has sought a review by Ontario’s chief coroner.

Canadian law requires a voluntary, informed request and independent assessments. Ordinarily, it also requires express consent immediately before death. A narrow exception permits a written waiver of final consent when specific conditions are met. Even that waiver cannot overcome a patient’s demonstrated refusal or resistance.

RELATED: ‘Dead people don’t collect disability benefits’: Is pause on euthanizing the mentally ill in Canada just smoke and mirrors?

Hannah McKay – Pool/Getty Images

The unresolved questions are therefore specific and grave. What did Stegemann sign, and when? Could she understand its meaning? Was there a valid waiver? Did she withdraw consent or express resistance? The documents and findings must answer them. Her granddaughter’s account cannot by itself establish a crime. It is more than enough to demand an investigation.

Defenders of euthanasia invoke “autonomy.” But autonomy requires comprehension, freedom from pressure, and a choice that belongs to the patient. It cannot be supplied by a doctor’s euphemism, a form no family member has seen, or silence interpreted as permission.

This is not compassion if the person about to die cannot make herself understood. It is the machinery of death moving past the one vulnerable human being whose wishes should govern it.

The burden belongs to those who ended Brigitte Stegemann’s life: Show that she understood. Show that she chose. Until then, do not ask her family to call it mercy.

​Ontario, Medical assistance in dying, Maid, Canada, Lethal injection, Brigitte stegemann, Euthanasia, Death, Medical care, Christian, Faith, German, End of life care, Paperwork, Opinion & analysis 

A proposition imposing a new tax on billionaires in California has been defeated despite being endorsed by notable far-left politicians.

Proposition 40 called for imposing a one-time tax that would apply only to billionaires, confiscating 5% of their net worth with some assets exempted from the calculation. In order to pre-empt billionaires leaving the state to avoid the tax, it would be imposed retroactively to residents living in California on Jan. 1, 2026.

‘It will be the beginning of not only a broader U.S.-wide movement, ultimately paving the way for a federal wealth tax.’

Opponents of Proposition 40 said the tax would backfire and lead to less tax revenue as billionaires would flee the state for lower-tax locales.

Supporters hoped the proposition would spark a global movement to tax the ultra-wealthy in order to fund massive increases in social spending. Among the supporters of the bill were Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.).

“If California says, ‘We can tax billionaires. We can tax the wealthiest, most powerful people in the world,’ it will be the beginning of not only a broader U.S.-wide movement, ultimately paving the way for a federal wealth tax — but I think it will be the beginning of an international movement,” said economist Gabriel Zucman to the “Planet Money” podcast.

Zucman estimated the tax would bring in $100 billion in revenue, which would add up to about a third of the total California budget.

But others like Stanford economist and Hoover Institution senior fellow Joshua Rauh came to a different conclusion based on estimates of billionaires fleeing the state to avoid the tax.

“It would not raise $100 billion for the state,” Rauh said. “We calculate that Proposition 40 would cost the state of California $39 billion.”

California voters shot down Prop 40 last Tuesday with 52.8% voting no and 47.2% voting yes, according to the AP and NBC News.

RELATED: Bernie Sanders gets obliterated for dragging Melania into left-wing criticism of WaPo layoffs

One estimate found that opponents of the proposition had poured about $333 million into defeating the billionaires’ tax.

Although he was hopeful for the proposition to pass, even Zucman admitted that other ultra-wealthy taxes had a dismal track record of success in other countries.

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​Billionaire tax, Bernie sanders, California, Socialism, Politics