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In 2013, Mississippi ranked 49th out of the 50 U.S. states in grade four reading achievement on the National Assessment of Educational Progress — the largest continuing national assessment of American students’ knowledge and capability in math, reading, science, and writing.

In what has repeatedly been dubbed a “miracle,” the state made its way up the list — to 29th in 2019 and then 10 spots higher to ninth place nationally for reading scores last year.

According to the NAEP, black students in Mississippi ranked third nationally last year among their cohort for reading and math scores; Hispanic students in the state ranked first in the nation for reading and second for math scores; and poor students in the Magnolia State ranked first for reading and second for math scores nationally.

‘No, it’s not impossible to teach children, and no, it’s not very costly.’

The assessment noted that “Mississippi is one of only a few states with improved NAEP scores since 2013. In most states, NAEP scores have been falling over the past decade.”

While there have been numerous attempts to explain Mississippi’s success, it appears the “Mississippi miracle” is attributable ultimately to the state’s 2013 Literacy-Based Promotion Act, which conservative commentator Rich Lowry recently noted effectively came down to adopting phonics and setting high standards for students.

Noah Spencer, a researcher at the University of Toronto’s economics department, analyzed the impact of the LBPA — the three pillars of which are improving teaching, identifying and helping kids with reading deficiencies, and holding back third-graders who can’t hack it on an end-of-year reading assessment — in a study published last year in the Economics of Education Review. Spencer found that:

the policy, which included investments in teacher training and coaching, early screening for and targeted assistance to struggling readers, and retention for deficient readers, increased both grade 4 reading and math test scores on a national assessment by 0.14 and 0.18 [standard deviations], respectively, for students with any amount of exposure to the policy, and by 0.23 and 0.29 SDs for students with K-3 exposure to the policy.

Spencer stressed the significance of these increases, citing previous research that found “that ‘children with test scores that are one standard deviation higher at age 12 report 1-2 more years of schooling by age 22’ in the lower- and middle-income countries they study.”

RELATED: Trump admin takes major step toward dismantling Department of Education

Linda McMahon. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images

“While these estimates likely do not apply precisely to Mississippi’s context, it does seem reasonable to suggest that, given the LBPA’s sizable effects on test scores for children exposed from kindergarten to grade 3, it may also increase earnings for exposed cohorts in the future,” wrote Spencer. “The impressive effects of this policy change should be noted by policymakers in other jurisdictions.”

Lowry echoed this sentiment, noting that Alabama, Louisiana, and Tennessee, which have employed similar strategies, have also made gains.

“With reading scores nationally sliding the wrong way, especially for the bottom 10% of students, Mississippi and the other Southern states offer a beacon of hope,” wrote Lowry. “Their example shows that, no, it’s not impossible to teach children, and no, it’s not very costly. It’s a good sign that even California just passed a phonics bill.”

‘It’s really smart, local innovation at work.’

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon has extolled the approach taken in Mississippi, telling the New York Post in September, “What I’m seeing now is a great return to classical learning.”

“We’ve tried a lot of things, you know — No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top — and I believe they were done with the best of intentions, but they were not successful,” said McMahon. “But what we have clearly seen is the science of reading is successful.”

Despite the noted success of the LBPA in Mississippi, some lawmakers around the country still haven’t taken the hint.

Democrats in Michigan, for instance, reportedly repealed similar reforms, eliminating, for instance, an A-F grade-ranking system for every public school in the state and scrapping the requirement that illiterate third-graders get held back.

Whereas last year, the average score of fourth-grade students in Mississippi for reading was 219/500 — higher than the national average score of 214 — the average score in Michigan was 209, which was lower than scores in 31 other states and jurisdictions.

The Mississippi Department of Education announced on Nov. 13 that 85% of the Magnolia State’s third-graders passed the reading assignment required to transition to grade four, a 1-percentage-point increase over last year.

The U.S. Department of Education noted, “Mississippi’s literacy climb may be called ‘miracle,’ but it’s really smart, local innovation at work.”

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On November 7, country music artist Kelsea Ballerini released a single titled “I Sit in Parks.” The two-minute track is a heart-wrenching lamentation of the forsaking of motherhood for career aspirations — a rare message from the secular music world.

The chorus: “Did I miss it? By now is it / A lucid dream? Is it my fault / For chasin’ things a body clock / Doesn’t wait for? I did the d**n tour / It’s what I wanted, what I got / I spun around and then I stopped / And wondered if I missed the mark.”

Ballerini, a 32-year old divorcee with no children, vulnerably admits in the ballad that she chose the freedom to pursue her music career over becoming a mother — a decision that causes her intense regret and pain.

The song has garnered a ton of attention — triggering the girlboss feminist crowd and delighting pro-natalists who hope the feminist stronghold keeping young women single, childless, and on the hamster wheel of careerism is finally beginning to crack.

Allie Beth Stuckey, BlazeTV host of “Relatable,” falls into the latter category, believing the song indicates a positive cultural shift.

“I can see how this vulnerability is speaking to what a lot of people feel. This is certainly not Christian, but it’s kind of reflecting this trend that we’re seeing among a lot of young people … wanting to go back to tradition, wanting to go back to church, wanting to go back to marriage, wanting to actually have children,” she says.

The lie so many young women fall for, Allie explains, is that motherhood isn’t for everyone. Feminist dogma convinced them that being a mom is burdensome and a hindrance to personal ambition. The essential truth it leaves out, however, is that while one can reject motherhood, one cannot reject the motherhood instinct. It is wired into women by God and will always be a central piece of their nature.

“This motherhood instinct that we all have when we’re little girls — it doesn’t go away,” says Allie. “We take care of our pets; we take care of our dolls; we take care of our flowers because that is the instinct that God has given us in general as women.”

Even the women who say they never want a husband or children can’t escape the pull of motherhood. It’s usually just channeled toward their “fur babies,” houseplants, businesses, or elsewhere. And it leaves them deeply unfulfilled.

Allie acknowledges that marriage and childbearing aren’t God’s plan for everyone, but motherhood nonetheless is. That instinct to cultivate and nurture can be and should be channeled toward people in some capacity via ministry, mentorship, or mission work. That’s the only thing that will fill the motherhood cup if marriage and having children aren’t in the cards.

Ballerini’s “I Sit in Parks” is a bleak and honest picture of what happens when women forsake motherhood altogether or channel it in unhealthy directions: a deep loneliness that hollows women out.

To hear more of Allie’s analysis, watch the episode above.

Want more from Allie Beth Stuckey?

To enjoy more of Allie’s upbeat and in-depth coverage of culture, news, and theology from a Christian, conservative perspective, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

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Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence platform has seemingly been left out of a government program to launch the technology forward.

On Monday, the White House announced a new project aimed at accelerating innovation and discovery to “solve the most challenging problems of this century.”

‘The Genesis Mission will bring together our Nation’s research and development resources.’

The new Genesis Mission is described by the Department of Energy as “a national initiative to build the world’s most powerful scientific platform.”

An executive order from the president titled “Launching the Genesis Mission” explained plans to integrate federal scientific datasets to train AI to test new hypotheses, automate research, and speed up the occurrence of scientific breakthroughs.

“The Genesis Mission will bring together our Nation’s research and development resources — combining the efforts of brilliant American scientists, including those at our national laboratories, with pioneering American businesses; world-renowned universities; and existing research infrastructure, data repositories, production plants, and national security sites — to achieve dramatic acceleration in AI development and utilization.”

With Elon Musk making strides in 2025 with both the advancement of his Grok chatbot and its video generation model, Imagine, tech enthusiasts were shocked to find out that Musk’s xAI was not on a list of partners for the project.

RELATED: Big Tech’s AI boom hits voters hard — and Democrats pounce

— (@)

The Department of Energy includes 55 companies on its lists of collaborators for Genesis, with xAI and Grok nowhere to be found.

Aside from the fact that Musk was a special government employee under the Trump administration, his exclusion is even more surprising given both the length and generic nature of the companies that are involved. Amazon Web Services, Google, and Microsoft were announced as partners, as were AI companies like OpenAI and Scale AI.

It should be noted that company xLight, which is listed by the DOE, is not affiliated with Musk.

RELATED: Log into this Gmail clone to read all the Jeffrey Epstein emails as if you were Epstein himself

— (@)

“For [xAI] to not be a part of the Genesis Mission, it is not just an oversight, it would have to be an intentional omission,” AI engineer Brian Roemmele wrote on X. “I spoke to someone on this project who asked for my input today, and it is the first thing I brought up. I am certain they will see the error made.”

Blaze News contacted xAI for comment but did not receive an immediate reply. This article will be updated with any applicable response.

Whether a rift exists between Musk and the Trump administration is unclear, but the government seems steadfast in believing its mission is monumental in terms of importance, likening it to the World War II nuclear arms race.

“The world’s most powerful scientific platform to ever be built has launched,” the DOE claimed on its X account. “This Manhattan-Project-level leap will fundamentally transform the future of American science and innovation.”

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Pope Leo XIV joined Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople and other Eastern Orthodox bishops on Friday at the site in modern-day Turkey where their predecessors met 17 centuries earlier to affirm and codify the core tenets of the Christian faith.

This meeting of leaders on either side of the Great Schism at the place of the Nicene Creed’s adoption signals another major step in what the pope weeks ago called “the path towards the reestablishment of full communion among all Christians.”

‘We return to this wellspring of the Christian faith in order to move forward.’

The pope made reference to the lasting significance of the Council of Nicaea in his Friday address at the archeological site of the ancient Basilica of St. Neophytos on the shore of Lake Iznik, especially the council’s rejection in the 4th century of the Arian heresy.

Pope Leo said that the question of who Jesus Christ is in the lives of men and women today “is especially important for Christians, who risk reducing Jesus Christ to a kind of charismatic leader or superman, a misrepresentation that ultimately leads to sadness and confusion.”

The pope noted in a separate address earlier in the day at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Istanbul — where he blessed the first stone for a Catholic parish in Dallas — that the “new Arianism” attempts to reduce Christ to “a great historical figure, a wise teacher, or a prophet who fought for justice — but nothing more.”

“By denying the divinity of Christ, Arius reduced him to a mere intermediary between God and humanity, ignoring the reality of the Incarnation such that the divine and the human remained irremediably separated,” the pope said on the shore of Lake Iznik in the presence of the Eastern Orthodox bishops. “But if God did not become man, how can mortal creatures participate in his immortal life? What was at stake at Nicaea, and is at stake today, is our faith in the God who, in Jesus Christ, became like us to make us ‘partakers of the divine nature.'”

Speaking of the creed, the pope noted that “this Christological confession of faith is of fundamental importance in the journey that Christians are making towards full communion,” as it binds Christians across the world and paves the way for “ever deeper adherence to the Word of God revealed in Jesus Christ, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, in mutual love and dialogue.”

RELATED: Together, pope and patriarch return to Nicaea on 1,700th anniversary of defining moment in Christendom

TIZIANA FABI / Contributor, Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

“We are all invited to overcome the scandal of the divisions that unfortunately still exist and to nurture the desire for unity for which the Lord Jesus prayed and gave his life. The more we are reconciled, the more we Christians can bear credible witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is a proclamation of hope for all,” added Pope Leo.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, considered first among equals among Eastern Orthodox bishops, noted at the ecumenical service in Nicaea that he was “deeply moved” by the Christian leaders’ decision to “honor through this joint pilgrimage the memory and legacy of the First Ecumenical Council held here, at Nicaea, seventeen-hundred years ago.”

Emperor Constantine I called over 250 bishops — 318, according to tradition — in the year 325 to convene during the pontificate of Pope Sylvester I in the Bithynian city of Nicaea.

The council that assembled 55 miles southeast of present-day Istanbul not only dealt with various ecclesiastic matters and set a date on which to commemorate Jesus’ resurrection but tackled the Arian heresy, affirming that Christ is indeed “God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made.”

While similarly acknowledging the divisions that have marked many intervening centuries, the patriarch stressed that the purpose of the meeting was not simply to remember the past but to “bear living witness to the same faith expressed by the Fathers of Nicaea.”

“We return to this wellspring of the Christian faith in order to move forward. We refresh ourselves at these inspired waters of rest in order to become strong for the tasks that lie ahead,” said the patriarch.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew noted further:

The Nicene Creed acts like a seed for the whole of our Christian existence. It is a symbol not of a bare minimum; it is a symbol of the whole. Having the fervor of the faith of Nicaea burning in our hearts, “let us run the course” of Christian unity “that is set before us” (cf. Hebrews 12:1); let us “hope to the end for the grace” that is promised “at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (cf. 1 Peter 1:13); and, finally, “let us love one another, that with one mind we may confess: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Trinity consubstantial and undivided.”

The patriarch told the Agence France-Presse ahead of the meeting that his meeting with the pope was “especially significant” in light of the conflicts currently underway across the globe.

– YouTubeyoutu.be

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After a quarter of a century, one console still reigns supreme.

It has been nearly 25 years to the day since iconic photos and video of the Paris launch showed just how crazy the world was for PlayStation 2.

‘I never leave my house.’

On November 24, 2000, crowds in Europe lined up, camped, and even pushed through crowds to get their hands on a PlayStation 2 for the first time. The launch was almost a month after the American Oct. 26 debut and signified a true consumerism-fueled riot that became synonymous with Black Friday.

From its launch day through Christmas 2000, Sony said it sold 1.35 million units in North America and another 1 million units in Europe during that same period.

The PS2 has sold an average of over 6 million consoles per year since then, or 500,000 per month, totaling more than 160 million lifetime units sold as of this November.

RELATED: A kid got a mint PS1 from his grandpa, and the internet is freaking out

As reported by Techgaged.com, the PS2 eclipses two Nintendo products at the top of the list.

The second-most sales are for the handheld Nintendo DS at 154 million, followed by the Nintendo Switch portable console at 152 million.

A steep drop occurs for fourth place with the original Game Boy, released in 1989, having 118 million units sold. Sony’s PS1 and Nintendo’s Wii are the only other gaming systems to have sold over 100 million.

Interestingly, the PlayStation 2’s main competitors during its era, the Nintendo GameCube (launched in North America on Nov. 18, 2001) and the original Xbox (launched in North America on Nov. 15, 2001), do not even crack the top-20 list.

The Xbox, Microsoft’s first foray into gaming systems, has sold 24.65 million units in its lifetime, while the GameCube has sold 21.74 million units.

Both company’s modern systems — Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch — have already surpassed the sales of their 2000s counterparts.

RELATED: The price tag on Mark Zuckerberg’s bid for ‘superintelligence’ will blow your mind. Will the product?

Photo By Eduardo Parra/Europa Press via Getty Images

The PS2 was so pervasive, historical image banks provide a bounty of time capsules showing celebrities flooding PS2-themed parties that were constantly taking place to promote the product.

There were events like the PlayStation 2 and the Hip-Hop Summit “Race to the Polls” event in 2004, or the mouthful, PlayStation 2 Celebrates Red White and Blue with Poolside Party at the Bentley Hotel in NYC, temporarily referred to as the PlayStation 2 Hotel for the occasion, in 2003.

Super Bowl parties became linked with the console during that era too. The Sony PlayStation 2 Game Over Party saw celebrities like NSYNC in its first year and Paris Hilton in its second year. In fact, the celebrity sightings and performances connected to PS2 events at that time are nearly limitless.

If readers don’t believe the PS2 was as much of a cross-cultural phenomenon as it seems, refer to this quote from “Friends” actor Matthew Perry in 2000.

“I used to have a social life, go on dates, go to dinner parties, have a job. Now all I do is sit in a big chair and play PlayStation 2,” Perry said, per Digital Journal. “I never leave my house. My friends have wondered what happened to me. Howard Hughes must have had one of these.”

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The confusing saga continues surrounding a Dallas Cowboys tradition that happens almost every year.

During a spectacular 31-28 Thanksgiving win against the Kansas City Chiefs, Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson somehow avoided a fine for performing a controversial celebration, but he may have gotten off on a technicality.

‘Nothing like a Zeke being dropped into one of our kettles!’

As announced by tattoo-laden singer Post Malone, the Cowboys continued their Thanksgiving- and Christmas-season partnership with the Salvation Army. This included the tradition of placing giant red kettles behind the endzones, directly in front of the first row of fans.

During the third quarter, Ferguson seemingly tapped his toes into the endzone for an epic touchdown, ran over to one of the kettles at AT&T Stadium, and jumped in. No flag was thrown on this play for excessive celebration, and the NFL has not announced any fines.

However, this is where things get confusing.

RELATED: ‘We’re getting set up’: NFL running back says league is baiting players into getting celebration fines

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott climbed into a Salvation Army kettle after a touchdown run in the second quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, Dec. 18, 2016, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. (Richard W. Rodriguez/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

After a lengthy review, Ferguson’s touchdown was overturned and taken off the scoreboard, adding another curveball to an already convoluted situation given that the kettle celebration has been overlooked by the NFL at times, while also resulting in fines in some instances.

In 2024, the kettle’s use in post-touchdown antics caused such a stir that Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown boldly made the claim that the league was baiting players into getting fined.

With four kettles placed around the field, Brown apparently couldn’t help but jump into one during a matchup against the Cowboys. He was subsequently fined $5,481 by the NFL for unsportsmanlike conduct.

The enforcement surrounding the celebration has been about as inconsistent as imaginable, dating back to former Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott performing the act in 2016. That year, the celebration was so well received it even garnered praise from the Salvation Army.

“Nothing like a Zeke being dropped into one of our kettles!” the organization wrote on X, then Twitter.

Strangely, the following year the NFL started its own confusing tradition of going back and forth on punishing the celebration.

RELATED: Salvation Army gives perfect response to reporter who ripped Ezekiel Elliott’s epic TD celebration

ARLINGTON, TX – NOVEMBER 23: Dallas Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland (26) jumps into the Salvation Army Kettle after returning an interception for a touchdown during the game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Commanders on November 23, 2023 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

In 2017, Seattle Seahawks cornerback Justin Coleman jumped into one of the kettles after returning an interception for a touchdown; he was not fined but got penalized during the game.

In 2018 though, Elliott performed the celebration again, but this time was fined $13,369 by the NFL.

Fast-forward to 2022 when the NFL managed to confuse players and fans even more. A Whac-a-Mole celebration in late November had three Cowboys players get into a kettle and see no discipline at all. One week later, the Cowboys, including Elliott, used a kettle in a different unique celebration. This time, participants Elliott and quarterback Dak Prescott were fined $13,261 for unsportsmanlike conduct.

On Thanksgiving 2023, a seemingly preplanned celebration that involved four Cowboys players eating turkey legs that were inside a kettle did not result in any fines.

As the confusing tradition continues, the Salvation Army did not make mention of the celebration on its X account in 2025. The charity showcased only its partnership with the Cowboys, sharing a video of the aforementioned Post Malone.

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Two West Virginia National Guardsmen patrolling the national capital were shot the day before Thanksgiving, allegedly by a 29-year-old Afghan national who Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem indicated “was one of the many unvetted, mass paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome on September 8, 2021, under the Biden Administration.”

While 24-year-old U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe is reportedly still fighting for his life, Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom succumbed to her wounds on Thursday evening.

“My baby girl has passed to glory,” the fallen guardsman’s father, Gary Beckstrom, noted in a Facebook post on Thursday. “… This has been a horrible tragedy.”

‘Apologize and repent.’

Amid the general outpouring of prayers and support for the victims and their families, the New Yorker magazine’s chief Washington correspondent, Jane Mayer, decided to publicly trivialize the military members’ sacrifice.

“This is so tragic, so unnecessary, these poor guardsmen should never have been deployed,” wrote Mayer. “I live in DC and watched as they had virtually nothing to do but pick up trash. It was a political show and at what a cost.”

Mayer’s apparent suggestion that the National Guardsman who died and others overseeing a historic and transformative decrease in violent crime in Washington, D.C., were glorified garbage pickers did not go over well with the American people and their White House.

White House communications director Steven Cheung, responding on X from his official account, wrote, “Jane, respectfully, shut the f**k up for trying to politicize this tragedy.

“They were protecting DC and trying to make the nation’s capital safer,” continued Cheung. “People like you who engage in ghoulish behavior lose all credibility. Not like you had any to begin with.”

RELATED: Trump to ‘permanently pause’ migration from third-world backwaters in wake of National Guard member’s grisly murder

Military members and civilians pray outside the hospital where the two wounded National Guardsmen were taken. Photo by Tom Brenner for The Washington Post via Getty Images.

The official White House rapid response account similarly castigated the liberal journalist, writing, “You sick, disgusting ghoul. Two of these heroes were just SHOT IN BROAD DAYLIGHT. The Guard has saved countless lives — backed up by evidence (which you’re clearly too stupid to notice). They are American patriots.”

In August, President Donald Trump federalized the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., and deployed the National Guard there in order to “re-establish law, order, and public safety” to a city that had a higher violent crime, murder, and robbery rate than all 50 states.

D.C. immediately witnessed a dramatic drop in crime.

There was a 44% decrease in violent crime in the first three weeks of the anti-crime initiative when compared to the same stretch the previous year and a 27% drop in crime from Aug. 11 through Oct. 15 relative to the same period in 2024. In addition to saving lives, the reduction in crime led to savings of over $450 million as of Nov. 4, according to the America First Policy Institute.

The White House was not alone in its disgust over Mayer’s remarks.

Georgia Rep. Mike Collins (R) responded, “Apologize and repent.”

“Stop supporting the murder of American soldiers,” wrote BlazeTV host Auron MacIntyre.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) wrote, “All these sick people on the Left do is blame the victims. I’m thankful for our guardsmen and praying for them and their families as they keep protecting the peace.”

While others similarly bashed Mayer over her rush to politicize the attack on the guardsmen by a suspect apparently imported by the Biden administration, some critics refuted the New Yorker writer’s narrative by providing accounts of critical actions taken by the National Guard in the District of Columbia.

— (@)

For instance, Wallace White, a reporter at the Daily Caller News Foundation, noted, “On my walk back from work a few weeks back, a man was dangling off the ledge of the metro tracks at Farragut West clearly trying to commit suicide by train. If two national guardsmen weren’t there at the time, he’d be dead. These people are heroes.”

Logan Dobson, vice president of the political advertising agency Targeted Victory, noted that he lives in D.C. and that the city is safer thanks to the National Guard, adding on the basis of murder statistics, “Dozens of Washingtonians are alive today that wouldn’t be if not for the Guard.”

When confronted by Dobson with evidence of the drop in crime following the National Guard’s deployment to D.C., Mayer said, “I’ve covered crime in Washington since 1981- let’s skip the mansplaining. You can play with the stats but homicides were dropping before the troops got here.”

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A decade ago, Julian Assange warned that “we are the last free generation.”

Now, Americans are living in the dystopian reality he once predicted.

And Gabriel Shipton, the brother of Assange, is continuing to sound the alarm, sitting down with BlazeTV host Nicole Shanahan to discuss what has turned into a nearly full-blown surveillance state.

“We are at a tipping point now where it’s not even being hidden,” Shanahan tells Shipton. “It’s actually in clear daylight that the government has every intention to rip away our civil liberties, our constitutional rights. Julian’s watching all of this go down. What does he think?”

“You can look back to his writing, you know, even from 10 years ago, and he was predicting all this, predicting this surveillance even before the Snowden leaks. They knew it existed, but they didn’t have confirmation in black and white from actual leaked information about this NSA spying,” Shipton explains.

“But he’s written about this and, you know, said things like ‘we are the last free generation.’ You know, soon we’re going to be manipulated in more and more subtle ways that we don’t even understand,” he continues.

“And I think this FISA bill, combined with things like, you know, the potential for AI integration with all this surveillance,” he says, before Shanahan chimes in, “Well, it’s already happening.”

“We are very well aware that many government agencies are using AI for censorship and surveillance. I mean, they go hand in hand. They’re not even truly even hiding it after the pandemic,” she says.

“I think generally there’s awareness, but I think there’s an outcry that is being limited and almost herded. I feel like everyone who’s stepping out there and trying to show everybody what’s going on and what’s at stake is being quieted and herded,” she continues.

However, while Assange predicted the surveillance state we currently reside in, he is optimistic about some things.

“I believe he is excited about those independent journalists that are out there doing work. I know he, you know, engages with a lot of independent journalism as much as he can given his limited connection to the outside world,” Shipton says.

“You know, you can draw a line from Wikileaks’ work to this flowering of independent journalism, the loss of confidence in corporate media. And I think that is due to a lot of Wikileaks’ work,” he continues.

“They exposed the corporate media for what it actually was,” he adds.

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The Department of Homeland Security confirmed earlier this week that it was initiating a review of the hundreds of thousands of refugees imported by the Biden administration, citing evidence that many of the migrants were rushed into the homeland without adequate vetting.

While activists clutched pearls over the Trump administration’s new initiative to ensure that Americans today aren’t further endangered by decisions made by the previous administration, a 29-year-old man whom Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed was among the horde of migrants admitted from Afghanistan in 2021 allegedly drove across the U.S. and gunned down two members of the National Guard.

‘The seriously retarded Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both.’

After the death of one of the victims, 20-year-old Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services indicated that it had halted the processing of all immigration requests pertaining to those Afghans previously brought into the U.S. “pending further review of security and vetting protocols.”

President Donald Trump made clear, however, that he intended to go far behind just pausing immigration requests, announcing that he will cut off the flow of migrants to the U.S. from third-world backwaters, seek to remove all noncitizens presently squatting in the homeland who are not presently making a positive contribution, and denaturalize those radicals who threaten American peace.

The president noted in a Truth Social post on Thursday evening that the country has been “divided, disrupted, carved up, murdered, beaten, mugged, and laughed at, along with certain other foolish countries throughout the World, for being ‘Politically Correct,’ and just plain STUPID, when it comes to Immigration.”

Trump suggested further that the foreign population — Current Population Survey data indicates that as of January 2025, the foreign-born or immigrant population was 53.3 million, 15.8% of the total — is not only heavily reliant on U.S. taxpayer-funded benefits but greatly contributing to “social dysfunction in America” as manifest in “failed schools, high crime, urban decay, overcrowded hospitals, housing shortages, and large deficits.”

RELATED: SHOCK: Trump administration finds Biden policies let in terrorists, including ISIS plotters

Photo by Drew ANGERER / AFP via Getty Images

The president pointed to the Gopher State for evidence of the “refugee burden,” noting that “hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia are completely taking over the once great State of Minnesota.”

Trump added:

Somalian gangs are roving the streets looking for “prey” as our wonderful people stay locked in their apartments and houses hoping against hope that they will be left alone. The seriously retarded Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both, while the worst “Congressman/woman” in our Country, Ilhan Omar, always wrapped in her swaddling hijab, and who probably came into the U.S.A. illegally in that you are not allowed to marry your brother, does nothing but hatefully complain about our Country, its Constitution, and how “badly” she is treated, when her place of origin is a decadent, backward, and crime ridden nation, which is essentially not even a country for lack of Government, Military, Police, schools, etc.

Trump announced last week that he was terminating the Temporary Protected Status designation for Somalia following a report by BlazeTV host Christopher Rufo and investigative reporter Ryan Thorpe on the alleged fraud perpetrated by numerous members of the Somali community in Minnesota as well as on the alleged direction of stolen Minnesota Medicaid and welfare funds by members of the Somali community to terrorists abroad.

‘Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation.’

Minnesota Rep. Omar, who claimed last year that the “U.S government will do what [Somali-Americans] tell the U.S. government to do,” vowed in response to help members of her community avoid status revocation and removal.

Trump, however, emphasized in his Thanksgiving message that he is deadly serious about seeing America unyoked of its imported problems.

“I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover, terminate all of the millions of Biden illegal admissions, including those signed by Sleepy Joe Biden’s Autopen, and remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States, or is incapable of loving our Country, end all Federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens of our Country, denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization,” wrote the president.

“Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation,” wrote Trump. “HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL, except those that hate, steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for — You won’t be here for long!”

Joe Edlow, the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, noted Thursday in a post on X that at the direction of the president, he has “directed a full scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern.”

When asked for clarification, USCIS stated the countries of concern are those listed in Trump’s June 4 proclamation, namely: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

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​Donald trump, Trump, Immigration, Migration, Third world, Afghanistan, President donald trump, Somalia, Syria, Afghan, Murder, National guard, National security, Green card, Deportation, America first, Thanksgiving, Rahmanullah lakanwal, Politics 

In the aftermath of Zohran Mamdani’s electoral victory earlier this month, it became clear that socialism is a greater threat on the left than ever before. It is also clear that the GOP could no longer coast along by proclaiming, “Vote for us because he’s a socialist,” assuming that people would forever have a knee-jerk reaction to that word.

One issue that defined New York’s mayoral race — and increasingly politics throughout the country — is affordability. For millions of Americans, affording rent, groceries, health care, and a home seem further out of reach than ever before. The issue has been winked at by politicians across the spectrum for years around election time with precious little results to show for it.

Explaining to voters why they are wrong — or even worse, outright dismissing their concerns — has never worked politically, and that is not going to change now.

We have largely reached a point where this can no longer be avoided: We are now seeing regular releases of ever-worsening economic figures. The median age for all U.S. home buyers is 59 — a staggering statistic by itself, made even worse by the fact that it is up from just 28 back in 1991.

And it is not just that people are getting priced out of home ownership — rents have gone up astronomically over the past decade, leading us to a situation in which the American consumer is clearly struggling to get by. From credit card debt at record highs with seriously delinquent accounts hitting 12%, the highest since 2012, to auto repos matching 2009 levels, it is pretty clear that the consumer is maxed out.

Looking around at how conservative pundits spent the last few weeks talking though, you would not know it at all. You would be forgiven if you thought they had just come off a huge electoral victory. Conservatism simply cannot reduce itself to being the worst caricature of cold elitism that turns a blind eye to the very real economic struggles many in the country are facing.

Ben Shapiro kicked things off after suggesting to young people that they simply should not live in places like New York City, criticizing the idea that someone would deserve to live where they grew up and where job opportunities are heavily concentrated.

That same week, Donald Trump opened a rift within his own base — a rare sight for sure — in an interview with Laura Ingraham over the issue of H-1B visas. When she pushed him on his stance, saying that we have “plenty of talented people here,” he interrupted with, “No you don’t, no you don’t.” Instead of focusing on how to make American workers more competitive through better education or training, the message heard by many was that Americans were not up for the job.

Worst of all may have been Dinesh D’Souza, who felt the need to weigh in on Vivek Ramaswamy’s meritocratic education reform by essentially race-baiting, saying: “How ironic it will be if a brown American like Vivek actually helps to fix education and raise the prospects of white kids, while all the professional whiteys on X continue their idle boasting.” Whatever the merits of education reform, mocking struggling Americans — especially through whatever “professional whiteys” is supposed to mean — is not doing anyone any favors.

With approaches like these from the right, who needs the left anymore? It took Ramaswamy’s opponent in the Ohio gubernatorial race, Amy Acton, all of 24 hours to put together an ad saying that Ramaswamy thinks “Ohioans are lazy and mediocre. He’s wrong.” It practically wrote itself.

Arguments like these from conservatives do more damage to the defense of capitalism than attacks from socialists ever could and are totally disconnected from what free markets actually are. Capitalism has delivered more prosperity than any system in human history, and it is not even close — but it did not get there by running on the platform of saying, “You’re too poor to live where you grew up, our country isn’t talented, move aside.”

New York City is famous throughout the world because it is the city where generation after generation of people who wanted to work hard could go and make something of themselves. Nobody I have seen on the right is asking for a luxury life handed to them on a silver spoon while they sit on the couch. They are frustrated by the fact that the world seems to be increasingly out of reach for them.

The only person in the GOP who seems to be able to see this, I’m horrified to say, appears to be Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.), who spent the last few weeks getting attacked for acknowledging that many “young adults are barely making it” and accusing Trump’s allies of gaslighting Americans about the cost of living. On Saturday, she posted on X: “My heart is with Americans who struggle to afford life in America today.”

To her credit, she has been consistent in prioritizing cost-of-living issues — something that has become far too rare in the GOP since Donald Trump took office. She has taken the lead in warning that health insurance premiums would double for millions of Americans — including her own adult children — when enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies expire, while Republican leadership has largely sidestepped the problem.

RELATED: Mamdani sells socialism — and Republicans peddle the Temu version

Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

We on the right have long embraced a tougher-love approach that certainly includes prioritizing a strong work ethic, and nobody needs to give that up. But that is not the issue here at all — Ben Shapiro’s comments are not directed at people who do not want to work; they are directed at and felt by those who do work and still cannot afford many basic things that previous generations took for granted.

Explaining to voters why they are wrong — or even worse, outright dismissing their concerns — has never worked politically, and that is not going to change now. Support for capitalism has now fallen to 54% overall, with Democrats preferring socialism 66% to 42%.

Peter Thiel’s now-viral email from 2020 captures exactly what is underlying this shift:

From the perspective of a broken generational compact … when one has too much student debt or if housing is too unaffordable, then one will have negative capital for a long time … if one has no stake in the capitalist system, then one may well turn against it.

He was right then, and he is right now. The only thing left to be seen is whether the right will wake up to that reality before it is too late.

If this month’s performance is any indication, I am not holding my breath.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published by RealClearPolitics and made available via RealClearWire.

​Capitalism, Socialism, Zohran mamdani, Home prices, Food prices, Opinion & analysis, Ben shapiro, Dinesh d’souza, Controversy, Affordability, Economy, The right, The left, Republicans, Democrats, 2026 midterms 

Though you’re probably still recovering from a tryptophan-induced slumber, it’s officially that time of the year again. Christmas is nearly upon us, which means it’s a great time to start thinking about gift ideas for your loved ones.

And why not support proud American businesses while enjoying the Christmas season with your family? Whether you’re looking for handmade jackets and boots or artisan tools and gadgets, we found some of the best American companies and their offerings. Give them a gift that will last a lifetime from companies that embody the American spirit.

From heirlooms to stocking stuffers at a variety of price points, here are 12 of our top picks of made-in-the-USA products that will never fail to impress.

1. Billykirk

Billykirk

Based in Jersey City, New Jersey, Billykirk was founded in 1999 by the brothers Chris and Kirk Bray. Self-proclaimed pioneers of the Made in America movement, the Bray brothers have been longtime giants in the revitalization and support of the American leather industry. Focused on producing leather products that blend traditional craftsmanship with modern functionality, Billykirk has always been committed to the intersection of art and utility. The No. 155 Card Case is one of the company’s original designs, tracing back to the beginning of the company and showcasing the brothers’ artful expertise for enriching everyday products. MSRP: $95.00

Visit Billykirk’s website for more gift ideas.

2. Bullhide Belts

Bullhide Belts

Bullhide Belts, a proud U.S. manufacturer based in Ohio, shows meticulous attention to detail and lives up to its commitment to quality. With a promise of “buckle to tip excellence,” Bullhide Belts’ craftsmen have been at work since 2010, delivering a superior belt with full-grain leather that many people have come to love. The Admiral Belt, available in widths of 1.25” and 1.5” and in black, brown, and medium brown, is a timeless accessory designed to effortlessly transition from the boardroom to weekend casual. The company also crafts a variety of other leather goods, including wallets, cellphone holsters, rifle slings, and much more. MSRP: $69.99

Visit Bullhide Belts’ website for more gift ideas.

3. Sullivan Glove Company

Sullivan Glove Company

Sullivan Glove Company is one of only three glove companies left that still makes everything in the USA with American materials. Sullivan prides itself on ensuring that its customers are not supporting the many unsavory practices common in the textile industry. The company sources and handcrafts its leather from American deer, elk, buffalo, and goat, all from its headquarters in Bend, Oregon. Pictured is the golden Elk Roper, which is tough enough for most types of work but also versatile enough for everyday use. MSRP: $95.00

Visit Sullivan Glove Company’s website for more gift ideas.

4. All American Clothing

All American Clothing

All American Clothing’s story speaks volumes in the wide and terrible seas of outsourcing and globalization. The company’s founder, Lawson Nickol, initially worked as a sales manager at another denim manufacturing company; however, one day, he found out at a store that his old company was outsourcing labor to Mexico. The discovery filled him with sadness for the American job loss. Acting immediately on principle, he quit his comfortable job and launched All American Clothing. His new company is committed to sourcing and manufacturing its products 100% in the USA. The high-quality All American Dark Stonewash Boot Cut Jean is but one of the fine fruits of Lawson Nickol’s dedication to his dream. MSRP: $79.95

Visit All American Clothing’s website for more gift ideas.

5. New Balance

New Balance

Independent since 1906, New Balance has always been committed to producing excellent products. New Balance continues to adhere to its mission to stay “fearlessly independent” while delivering the best shoes without compromise. The company’s Made in the USA collection boasts the highest-quality shoes it has to offer. This collection is the product of over 75 years of collective expertise and knowledge of the craft. New Balance is also on the cutting edge of cool, as the “dad sneaker” has returned to vogue among hipsters and Zoomers. This collection, dropped in August 2024, explores many subtle color schemes on shoes of the highest-quality material, all — you guessed it — made in the USA. MSRP: $200.00

Visit New Balance’s website for more gift ideas.

6. Quoddy

Quoddy

Quoddy gets its name from the West Quoddy Head Lighthouse, originally built in 1808, which in turn derives its name from an Indian word for the area. With over 200 years of history behind its name, Quoddy commits itself to providing the highest-quality, built-to-last boat shoes, moccasins, and other footwear without cutting corners. Quoddy’s made-to-order footwear is handcrafted in Maine under the shadow of its namesake. The Quoddy Head Boat Shoe is a perfect example of this company’s adherence to the time-tested wisdom of the craft. Starting from the comfortable and supportive design of the “foot cradle,” Quoddy’s craftsmen then add custom features to make this footwear stylish and durable. MSRP: $249.00.

Visit Quoddy’s website for more gift ideas.

7. Russell Moccasin

Russell Moccasin

Founded in 1898, Russell Moccasin Co. has made a name for itself as the quintessential boot for all types of outdoorsmen. Russell has shod trailblazers, hunters, trappers, hikers, and those at the heights of power and influence, including four U.S. presidents. Named after its founder, William Russell, this company has handcrafted its footwear across three centuries, all from Berlin, Wisconsin. The Backcountry, Russell Moccasin’s flagship boot, promises to accompany any traveler from the sea to the mountaintops with its lightweight yet rugged design. Buying a pair of Backcountry boots is like buying a piece of history for yourself. MSRP: $750.00

Visit Russell Moccasin Company’s website for more gift ideas.

8. Middleton Made Knives

Middleton Made Knives

Founded in 2010 by Quintin Middleton, Middleton Made Knives was built “on faith and a dream.” The realization of a childhood passion for bladesmithing, the company crafts custom, high-carbon steel blades in the small town of Saint Stephen, South Carolina. Quintin is known as the South’s premier bladesmith, even making custom blades by hand for some of America’s top chefs. Middleton Made Knives’ Classic and Signature Collections include a wide variety of culinary blades with bright bursts of color, making the company a perfect example of American artisanry. MSRP: $500.00

Visit Middleton Made Knives’ website for more gift ideas.

9. Silver Stag

Silver Stag

Born from a garage-based hobby more than 20 years ago, Silver Stag has built a nationally respected brand by taking a “step back in time.” Committed to a hands-on approach whereby all knives are fashioned from the ground up in the company’s Blaine, Washington, facility, no two blades will be the same. With handles sourced from North American shed antler and hardwoods and blades from high-quality steels, each blade is specialty-made by the small team of skilled workers at the nine-person company. Offering a wide array of knife styles, Silver Stag will have your back when it comes to addressing all your needs — both in hunting and in the kitchen. MSRP: $170.00

Visit Silver Stag’s website for more gift ideas.

10. WeatherWool

WeatherWool

Family-owned and operated since 2009, WeatherWool was founded as a passion project to make luxury wool garments entirely in the USA. Tired of being told that this was impossible, Ralph and Debby DiMeo set out to create their own “hardcore luxury” brand. Sixteen years later, WeatherWool has stayed true to its vision without cutting any corners. So sure are they of the quality of their products that you can find blog videos on their website of Ralph himself battle-testing their jackets in extreme weather. The All-Around Jacket, sourced and manufactured “100%” in the USA, is made from “100% WeatherWool Certified Fine Wool,” a material the company said is 100% worth the premium price tag. MSRP: $985.00

Visit WeatherWool’s website for more gift ideas.

11. Wintergreen Northern Wear

Wintergreen Northern Wear

Wintergreen Northern Wear’s story is just about as American as it gets. The company’s flagship fleece and shell anoraks are the products of decades of dedication to developing a high-quality winter jacket for extreme conditions. Field-tested at the North Pole and inspired by local clothing from Inuit and Scandinavian cultures, the anorak was worn by many adventurers on unaided expeditions to the North Pole, unsummited peaks, and in many other extreme environments. With an emphasis on breathable, quality materials, Wintergreen Northern Wear manufactures all its adventure products in the small town of Ely, Minnesota, to this day. MSRP: $339.00

Visit Wintergreen Northern Wear’s website for more gift ideas.

12. Red Rooster Camano Coffee Mill & Small Batch Fire Roasted Coffee

This plastic-free, made-in-America hand grinder features several settings for consistent and plentiful grind options, from super fine Turkish to coarse French press. And it’s handsome enough to admire even when at rest, replete (but not too replete) with timeless old-world charm. MSRP: $225.00 (coffee mill) / $20.00 (small-batch, fire-roasted coffee)

Visit Red Rooster’s website for more gift ideas.

​Align, Christmas, Christmas gift, American made, Made in the usa, Black friday 

Medication may be able to stabilize symptoms, but BlazeTV host Allie Beth Stuckey and Dr. Greg Gifford believe the real healing when it comes to depression and hopelessness is in looking to God — not at ourselves.

“No one should hear this, watch this, listen to this, and think I’m saying depression doesn’t exist, because I’m not saying that. And no one should hear this, watch this, listen to this, and think I’m saying anxiety doesn’t exist, because I’m not saying that,” Gifford tells Stuckey.

“I’ve never said those things. What I’m saying is let’s start to uncover what’s going on in depression,” he continues, using physiological issues, vitamin deficiencies, and thyroid issues as examples that can have an effect on the mind.

Another example Gifford uses is some sort of cyst or growth on the brain that could be affecting mood regulation. However, physiological issues aren’t the only causes of depression or anxiety.

“So if I don’t have any known physiological problems, doctors can’t find anything, there’s nothing going on in the organ of my brain. Thyroid looks great. All my bloodwork comes back, and it looks nice. Then maybe, just maybe, I should be open to what’s happening in my mind,” he explains.

“What am I thinking about? What am I putting my hope in? Why? Why? Am I disappointed and so discouraged? Did something change in my life recently that was not physiological but was circumstantial and that’s what triggered this depression? Then you’re not talking about a biological problem at all. You’re actually talking about a spiritual problem,” he continues.

The solution, Gifford says, is taking “you back to the nature and the character of God and His promises.”

“We want to set you free that God is faithful. 2 Corinthians 1, He’s the God of all comfort. That His mercy is unending for you, that even in the low point, if someone’s watching this in bed, right, even in that low point, God draws people out of the mud and the muck and the mire and He sets them on a firm rock, which is Himself,” he says.

“That is the hope that people need. An antidepressant can’t touch that. We need to behold the glory of God, not behold the glory of our problems, not behold the glory of ourselves, not behold the glory of psychotropics,” he continues.

And while many people struggling with depression will turn to therapy over the Bible, the former often only makes it worse.

“One of the key features of depression is often just a constant dwelling on your own problems,” Stuckey says, pointing out that author Abigail Shrier made this point well in her book “Bad Therapy.”

“She says start class every day by asking your students how they feel, and you’re actually going to make them feel worse,” Gifford agrees. “And it’s like, Shrier’s not arguing for a biblical worldview, but there is something correct about that, which is a self-centered worldview makes me more miserable.”

Want more from Allie Beth Stuckey?

To enjoy more of Allie’s upbeat and in-depth coverage of culture, news, and theology from a Christian, conservative perspective, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Camera phone, Sharing, Video, Upload, Video phone, Free, Youtube.com, Relatable with allie beth stuckey, Relatable, Allie beth stuckey, The blaze, Blazetv, Blaze news, Blaze podcasts, Blaze podcast network, Blaze media, Blaze online, Blaze originals, Psychology, Scripture, Healing, Depression, Therapy, Abigail shrier, Bad therapy 

I am a retired Navy lieutenant commander who served our nation for nearly two decades in the intelligence community. My wife, Sharon, and I spent years running a successful software company serving federal agencies. We were living peacefully on our small family farm in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley when, in a pre-dawn SWAT raid, armor-clad FBI agents shattered our lives following the January 6 protest at the nation’s Capitol.

What followed was my arrest for a crime I never committed, solitary confinement in what I can only describe as an icy dungeon, and a battle through a politically driven legal system determined to crush everything Sharon and I had built together.

The thought consumed me: I’m never getting out of here. Why not take control?

There are moments in life when everything you thought defined you simply ceases to exist. For me, that moment came in a Virginia supermax solitary confinement cell, lying on cold concrete after being struck in the spine by a guard, unable to draw a full breath, watching uniformed backs disappear through a steel door that slammed with finality.

In that cell, I had no pride, no dignity, no vanity, no vitality, no ambition, no joy, no self-respect, no ego, no hope. I was reduced to what I can only describe as the rapidly hammering heart of human anguish.

I’ve spent considerable time thinking about whether places of extreme suffering have the power to trap a person’s essence — whether dungeons and passageways can hold people captive by imprinting upon them the heartache, grief, and distress endured, replaying that wretchedness and pain in a perpetual loop across time itself. In those solitary confinement catacombs, I felt that I was living in exactly such a place.

The darkest thought came to me with unexpected clarity: As a Christian, I know I am going to heaven. This knowledge, when I thought too much about it, formed an excellent argument for suicide. Why endure this abuse when I could be with Jesus, with friends and family, with my puppy in heaven? I wouldn’t shake there. I wouldn’t hurt or ache any more. It would stop the pain. In the depths of my hopelessness, this thought gave me a feeling of relief. My suffering would end, and Sharon could live and be free.

I was so far gone that I let the enemy put these thoughts in my head. Death, which should have come to me many years from now as a benevolent old friend bringing gifts of peace and rest, instead clung to my being like a fungus rooted in desperation and despair. I heard other inmates talk of it through the walls and in the passageways — to no one in particular, or at least to no one somebody else could see.

The thought consumed me: I’m never getting out of here. Why not take control?

So I told the Lord then and there that I wanted to come home to Him, to end all of this, and I asked Him to make it so. My will to go on had fled me. Unless you have reached the point of total physical and emotional collapse, I’m not sure I can make you understand. In a way, I was already dead.

That might have been the first and only time this confessed control freak had ever said “Your will be done, Father,” and really meant it.

I had no control over anything in my desiccated world, but I had the ability to relinquish control of my life that day. Nothing that I owned or that I thought was a part of me existed in that hell. Was this “dying to self”? Those curious Bible words suddenly made sense.

It had something to do with my idea of the sum of me as a human being — my personal, selfish desires, the things I wanted or ever thought I did, my plans for a happy future with Sharon. I couldn’t clearly picture them any more. They were lost like last night’s dreams, forgotten with the free man’s morning coffee.

Right now, they counted for exactly nothing.

I didn’t know how to pray at that moment. I was too beaten down, and I didn’t have the tongue for it. All I could offer was: “Whatever You have planned is much better than this, Lord. Let’s try that, please, because this place totally sucks.”

With the warning lights on the remnant of my life force glaring a constant red, He took me in.

RELATED: The grace our cruel culture can’t understand

Gary Hershorn/Getty Images

That surrender — that complete, desperate relinquishment of control — was the moment my faith stopped being something I professed and became something I lived. Not in victory, but in total defeat. Not in strength, but in absolute weakness. It was there, in that place of utter brokenness, that I discovered what faith actually means: trusting God when you have nothing left, not even yourself.

Through years of persecution, Sharon and I were repeatedly pulled from the brink by what I can only describe as miraculous events. Our marital bond and our enduring faith in God sustained us through a battle against overwhelming odds. In a federal courtroom where I faced slander, perjury, and falsification of evidence, it was that moment of complete surrender in solitary confinement — when I finally meant “Your will be done” — that gave me the strength to endure what seemed unendurable.

I am living proof that faith isn’t found in our strength, but in God’s strength when ours has completely failed.

​Faith, Suicide, Prison, Opinion & analysis, Weaponized justice, January 6 

As this story’s headline indicates, I’m not much of a cook.

I can do meatloaf in a pinch and can manage some roasted veggies — and I’ve even been known to create some of the best baked spicy chicken wings this side of … well, this side of my street. Maybe.

‘Let’s get to cookin’!’

That said, this Thanksgiving Day, do you have plans for all those leftovers that have predictably piled up after dinner is done? All of that turkey, stuffing, and, of course, cranberry sauce?

Sure, there are plenty of exotic recipes for leftovers out there that require a bit of effort — as well as ingredients that may not be so easy to procure if you don’t already have them on hand (especially amid crowded Black Friday shopping conditions). And who wants to exert even more effort after hours and hours of prep time and cooking time on this holiday?

Certainly not me — and I’m not even the one doing the Thanksgiving cooking. Ease and speed and comfort are the kings in this kitchen.

In an effort to help y’all think ahead, how about a trio of post-holiday sandwich ideas that can win the day and pare down the piles of food left in your fridge?

Thanksgiving leftover sliders

This entertaining fellow — his YouTube handle is @morehowtobbqright — presents on video what appears to be an easy recipe for sliders that even I’d be game to try. (He also calls them “samiches,” so you know they’re gonna be good.)

Our chef tells us, “Let’s get to cookin’!” and then shows us how.

Looks like you need a pack of King’s Hawaiian Savory Butter Rolls — but hey, maybe you can repurpose leftover dinner rolls from your T-Day feast too. He says you then place all the bottom roll halves on foil, pile up a bunch of American cheese slices, followed by leftover turkey pieces, then your leftover stuffing, then your leftover cranberry sauce — followed by, you guessed it, more of those American cheese slices — and then you pop the top halves of the rolls on top to crown your creation.

Our chef also instructs us to melt some butter and brush it on the top of the “samiches,” after which you wrap ’em all in foil and then bake them on a tray for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Then you uncover the sliders and bake them for 15 more minutes to brown the tops.

Thanksgiving leftover quesadillas

Believe it or not, even easier than the sliders.

Our chef — her YouTube handle is @MealsWithMaria — shows us in a less-than-30-second video how simple these quesadillas are to create.

Just warm some butter in a skillet over medium heat and add a tortilla. Then add leftover mashed potatoes, leftover sweet potatoes, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, and chunks of leftover turkey. Then you fry it all up until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is crispy.

Finally, for the last minute of heat, you add some leftover cranberry sauce on top and fold over the tortilla. She suggests slicing it in half and, if you want, dipping it in leftover gravy.

Thanksgiving leftover deluxe grilled cheese sandwiches

OK, now for the “deluxe” portion of our program.

Our YouTube guide — his handle is @Chef_Tyler — presents a snazzy grilled cheese sandwich recipe in his brief video. First, he suggests toasting your leftover bread in an oiled pan before assembling the stuff in the middle. (It also looks like he’s slicing part of a leftover hard-crusted loaf. This is already a mighty big cut above the grilled cheese I typically make.)

He then tells us to mix our leftover cranberries with mayo — to prevent things from getting soggy — and then spread the mixture on the toasted bread. (Oh, got any herbs on hand? They’re good for that cranberry-mayo spread too.)

Then you put your cheese on top of the spread — he recommends slices of aged cheddar or gouda, but anything will do. Then the leftover turkey chunks. The drier the better, believe it or not. (And don’t forget to heat the turkey in the pan before putting it on top of the cheese, as Chef Tyler says that will help the cheese melt faster.)

It appears you cook the sandwich on both sides until the crust is golden brown — natch — and then dip it in leftover gravy if you want.

Happy Thanksgiving — and the days after — one and all!

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​Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving leftovers, Recipes, Sandwiches, Non-cooks, Align, Food, Leftovers, Lifestyle 

President Donald Trump has spent the last decade producing some of America’s most iconic political moments. Some were divisive, some were historic, and many of them were hilarious.

Here are the top five Trump moments that make me thankful for his presidency.

5. Turn them OFF!

Trump had many memorable moments during his first presidential campaign, earning a reputation for being a totally candid and unapologetic candidate. Almost a decade ago at a rally in Atlanta, Georgia, Trump put his personality and political talent on full display, turning a technical hiccup into a chant with countless rallygoers.

The stage lights abruptly went off in the middle of his campaign speech, prompting Trump to quip that the venue “didn’t pay the electric bill,” sending applause and laughter through the audience. To Trump’s dismay, the lights quickly blared back on, and he began to shout, “No! Get those lights off!”

“Turn them off! They’re too bright! Turn them OFF!”

Trump later encouraged audience members to join him in chanting, “Turn off the lights!”

“That’s the way we have to negotiate for our country,” he added.

4. From the standpoint of water

During Hurricane Florence in September 2018, Trump posted a video in which he thanked first responders and all those involved in mitigating the pain inflicted by the natural disaster. Although this would have been a routine exercise in any other administration, the orator in chief delivered one of his most iconic Trump lines that never fails to make people chuckle.

While Trump has several memorable one-liners, this one was uniquely pre-approved and posted to a personal social media account.

“I just want to thank all of the incredible men and women who have done such a great job in helping with Florence,” Trump said. “This is a tough hurricane.”

“One of the wettest we’ve ever seen from the standpoint of water. Rarely have we had an experience like it, and it certainly is not good,” he added.

3. Trick or treat

Some of the most iconic Trump moments were entirely unscripted, and 2018 Halloween was no exception.

The White House was hosting the annual trick-or-treat festivities where the president and first lady Melania Trump hand out candy to kids dressed up in their Halloween costumes. One such trick-or-treater showed up in a Minion costume from the well-known “Despicable Me” films, which quickly proved to limit the child’s candy-collecting abilities.

The child’s costume seemingly obstructed his hands, but Trump didn’t want to deprive the Minion of his Halloween harvest. Instead, Trump opted to simply place the candy bar on top of the Minion’s head as onlookers erupted in laughter.

2. The N-word

Trump’s unprompted one-liners are usually the most controversial, but also the most entertaining. His speech to military brass at Quantico earlier this year was no exception, after Trump veered off script and produced one of the most viral moments so far in his second term.

“It was really a stupid person that … mentioned the word ‘nuclear,'” Trump said during the address.

“I moved a submarine or two … over to the coast of Russia, just to be careful, because we can’t let people throw around that word,” he continued.

“I call it the N-word,” Trump added. “There are two N-words, and you can’t use either of them.”

Campaigning as the peace president and working around the clock to end conflicts around the globe, his play on words was both in line with the administration’s agenda and with Trump’s comedic instincts.

1. ‘Because you’d be in jail’

One of Trump’s most iconic political feuds was with none other than failed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The two sparred on a number of issues and exchanged many notable insults at each other, but few are as memorable as the October 9, 2016, presidential debate.

This mic drop speaks for itself.

“Last time, at the first debate, we had millions of people fact-checking, so I expect we’ll have millions more fact-checking because, you know, it’s just awfully good that someone with the temperament of Donald Trump is not in charge of the law in our country,” Clinton said.

Trump picked up the mic and simply said, “Because you’d be in jail.”

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​Donald trump, White house, Halloween, Minion, Turn the lights off, Thanksgiving, Thankful, From the standpoint of water, Hurricane florence, Melania trump, Despicable me, Trick-or-treat, N-word, Nuclear, Quantico, Hillary clinton, 2016 campaign, 2016 presidential election, 2016 presidential debate, 2024 presidential election, Politics 

Christians are brutally persecuted the world over. According to the watchdog group Open Doors, over 380 million Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith, and over 4,476 were killed for their faith in 2024 alone.

While the top 10 worst countries for Christians are all in Africa, Asia, and the Indian subcontinent — Nigeria, for instance, saw over 300 Christian schoolchildren abducted during a raid by bandits on Friday — Christians are also subjected to violent attacks, discrimination, and state suppression in supposedly civilized Western nations.

’15 incidents featured satanic symbols or references.’

The U.S. and Canada have together, for instance, seen thousands of acts of hostility against churches in recent years.

Across the Atlantic, a British court handed a grieving father a criminal sentence last year for praying silently near the abortion clinic that killed his unborn son. In France, Christians were reportedly arrested at gunpoint for peacefully protesting the mockery of their faith during the 2024 Olympics opening ceremony. In Spain, a maniac broke into a monastery in November 2024, savagely attacking several people and fatally bludgeoning a Franciscan monk. Farther afield, an Islamic terrorist stabbed an Assyrian bishop on April 15, 2024, in an Australian church.

The Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination Against Christians in Europe, a Vienna-based watchdog group, recently revealed that violent attacks on Christians spiked in Europe and the U.K. last year.

The watchdog noted in its annual report that a total of 2,211 anti-Christian hate crimes were documented by European governments and civil society organizations in 2024.

OIDAC hinted that the actual number of hate crimes may be much higher, as surveys indicate they are grossly underreported. In Poland, for example, nearly 50% of Catholic priests surveyed indicated that they were met with aggression sometime in the past year, yet over 80% failed to report such incidents.

RELATED: ‘Mass slaughter’: Trump moves to help Nigerian Christians under attack

Photo by VALERY HACHE/AFP via Getty Images.

Nevertheless, OIDAC indicated that this reflects a general decrease over 2023 — a year when there were 2,444 reported hate crimes. The decrease is partly the result of a dip in recorded incidents in France but largely the result of “lower figures reported by U.K. police, which noted a change in methodology in its official report,” the report reads.

Of the 516 anti-Christian hate crimes independently recorded by OIDAC last year, the most frequent form of violence was vandalism, at 50% of reported incidents, followed by arson attacks, 15%; desecration, 13%; physical assaults, 7.5%; theft of religious objects, 5.5%; and threats, accounting for 4% of incidents. These figures do not account for burglaries at religious sites, of which there were nearly 900 additional recorded cases.

While reported anti-Christian hate crimes have generally decreased, the number of personal attacks — including assault, harassment, and threats — “rose from 232 in 2023 to 274 in 2024.”

The watchdog indicated on the basis of police and civil society data that the top five European nations most affected by anti-Christian hate crimes last year were, in descending order, France, Britain, Germany, Austria, and Spain.

Among the incidents highlighted in the worst-rated country, France, were the destruction of historic Church of the Immaculate Conception in Saint-Omer by an arsonist on Sept. 2, 2024, and the March 11, 2024, vandalism of a church and desecration of the cemetery in the village Clermont-d’Excideuil, where “Isa will break the cross” and “Submit to Islam” were spray-painted on graves, the war memorial, and the church door.

Since many of the offenders have not been apprehended, the watchdog group could not say definitively what is driving this trend. However, among the 93 cases OIDAC documented wherein the perpetrators’ motives or affiliations could be established, “the most common were linked to radical Islamist ideology (35), radical left-wing ideology (19), radical right-wing ideology (7), and other political motives (11). Additionally, 15 incidents featured satanic symbols or references.”

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​Europe, Faith, Religion, Christianity, Christian, Catholic, European, France, Spain, Leftism, Islam, Terrorism, Crime, Politics 

The speed of tech is a formidable force, so we have paused to catch you up on the cutting-edge devices and gadgets you might want to bump to the top of your list if you’re hoping to speedrun Black Friday this year.

Best wearables to buy during Black Friday

Apple Watch Series 10 or 11

Apple Watch is one of the best-selling wearables on the planet, largely due to its customization options, iconic style, and wide range of fitness features. However, while Apple used to add fun new sensors and capabilities every year, newer Apple Watches have reached a point of innovation stagnation. Aside from battery life improvements, last year’s Series 10 has all the new features that landed on the Series 11, including high blood pressure detection and sleep score tracking, plus all the usual tricks like heart rate monitoring, ECG scans, blood oxygen levels, AFIB detection, and more.

There’s no telling how long the gadgets on your list will be on sale.

While I do recommend an Apple Watch for anyone in the Apple ecosystem, your money would be better spent on a Series 10, if you can find one. Otherwise, you’re looking at $399 MSRP or more for a Series 11.

The Series 11 looks great, but for your money, the Series 10 wins out.Photo courtesy of Apple

Pixel Watch 3 or 4

On the Android side, Pixel Watch has quickly become one of the best wearables available. With Fitbit integration, heart rate tracking, daily readiness scores, and a host of other features, Pixel Watch is the best that Android users can buy. As for which model deserves a spot on your wrist (or list), last year’s Pixel Watch 3 is where the device really started to hit its stride, while the newest Pixel Watch 4 for $349.99 adds quality-of-life improvements (40 hours of battery life per charge and a larger domed display) that further refine the experience. You’d be safe with either one of these under the tree this season.

The Pixel Watch 4: just like the 3, only better.Photo courtesy of Android

Oura Ring 4

For anyone who wants an ultra-sleek or unconventional wearable fitness tracker, Oura Ring 4 is easily the best ring the company has ever made. With a new slimmer design, it looks more like a piece of jewelry than a tech gadget. It comes in a range of sizes and finishes from $249 to $499, and it tracks everything you’d expect from a larger smartwatch, including heart rate data, sleep and rest, and stress levels. Although Oura Ring is great for men and women, its added female health features make it especially great for the lady in your life.

Oura Ring 4 hits new highs.Photo courtesy of Oura

One more thing: Speaking of Fitbit, it’s easy to recommend a Charge series fitness band or Versa watch to anyone looking to slim down in the New Year. However, hold off for now. Google recently confirmed that new devices are on the way soon, so only buy a Fitbit this week if you get a really good discount.

Try something totally new for Black Friday

For the more adventurous gift-giving type, a new product category is making waves in the tech space. From Apple to Google, Meta and more, everyone is trying their best to make augmented reality, virtual reality, and extended reality glasses, goggles, and headsets a thing. The category is still very young and OEMs are still trying to figure out exactly what users want, but if you’d like to try it out for yourself or with a loved one, here are a few devices to keep in mind.

Apple Vision Pro

Apple’s first foray into AR didn’t go so well. The first-generation Vision Pro was heavy, clunky, and very expensive. It didn’t sell in high numbers, either. However, that didn’t stop Apple from finally launching a sequel that hit shelves last month. With a much faster M5 chip and an improved dual-knit headband for comfort, the second-generation Vision Pro offers an immersive spatial computing experience that puts you directly inside your work, movies, and memories. If you ever wanted to know what it was like to wear an iPad on your face, this is the one to do it.

First was worst, second is best: the new Vision Pro.Photo courtesy of Apple

One more thing: Vision Pro is an impressive piece of tech, but keep in mind that developers have been slow to create apps for the headset. Nearly two years after the first version launched, several critical apps are still missing from the App Store, including YouTube, Netflix, and Spotify. At this point, there’s no telling if or when the platform will ever take off like iPhone, Apple Watch, and Mac, so only pick this one up if you’re really curious about AR/VR/XR.

RELATED: Fooled by fake videos? Unsure what to trust? Here’s how to tell what’s real.

Qilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Samsung Galaxy XR

Almost one full year ago, Google announced its glasses operating system called Android XR. Even then, the company hinted that the first Android XR device would come from Samsung, and after months of teases and unveils, it is finally here. Samsung Galaxy XR is Android’s first direct Apple Vision Pro competitor. Using the same concept — building a product that lets users dive directly into the action — Galaxy XR differentiates itself in several key ways. For starters, Gemini sits at the center of the user experience, helping users navigate the UI, pull up information, and learn more about whatever they see on their screens. The device itself is also lighter than Vision Pro, making it easier to wear for longer sessions. Android XR supports most apps already found on the Google Play Store, which means it does have access to YouTube, Netflix, and other entertainment apps, all ready to go.

Samsung’s Galaxy XR wants you scrolling past the Vision Pro.Photo courtesy of Samsung

One more thing: While Samsung Galaxy XR is an interesting alternative to Apple Vision Pro, its underlying software is brand-new. Developers will likely make tweaks and squash bugs as they flesh out the feature list for Android XR. It’s also worth noting that Google has a reputation for killing projects early if they don’t amass a large user base within the first several years. In other words, if the Samsung Galaxy XR isn’t a success, Android XR may get the axe sooner than later. No one has a crystal ball, though, so it’s hard to predict what will happen until a bit more time has passed.

Ray-Ban Meta Glasses (Gen 2)

Where Apple Vision and Samsung Galaxy XR are meant to be worn while sitting down in a controlled space, Ray-Ban Meta Glasses (Gen 2) are smart glasses that are meant to be worn with you out in the world. These don’t have displays, but they have built-in cameras controlled by an AI assistant that can see what you see and tell you about the world around you in real time. Ask it about the architecture of a building, capture high-quality videos and photos of memories as they happen in front of you, or play music through the built-in open-air speakers. If you ever wanted an AI assistant for your face, Ray-Ban Meta Glasses (Gen 2) are a good place to start.

Play it cool with the new Meta Glasses, and you might not get the wrong kind of stares.Photo courtesy of Ray-Ban/Meta

Let the deals begin!

The Black Friday deals have already started to roll out, and many of them will carry into Cyber Monday and the weeks leading up to Christmas. Still, there’s no telling how long the gadgets on your list will be on sale, so grab them sooner rather than later to make sure you have exactly what you want under the tree.

Happy Black Friday weekend and merry Christmas!

​Tech 

Nearly a dozen whistleblowers have accused an organ procurement organization of numerous offenses, including allegedly covering up an attempted organ recovery from a patient who showed signs of life.

Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) and Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) sent a letter on November 19 to the New Jersey Sharing Network demanding documents and over 30 transcribed interviews with staff following the whistleblower claims.

‘Industry interests have tried to dismiss allegations in the past as hearsay, but, in this case, the call is coming from inside the house.’

The letter accused the organization of “several egregious actions and potential violations of federal and state statutes that raise serious concerns about whether [the Sharing Network] has fraudulently billed Medicare and should retain their tax-exempt status.”

The letter claimed that the Sharing Network skipped hundreds of patients on the wait list, harvested organs without appropriate consent, operated a fraudulent taxpayer-funded research program, potentially lied to Congress, and created a culture of fear and retaliation within the organization.

In one alleged instance where the Sharing Network ignored the proper sequence of the wait list, dozens of those skipped have since died, while several others have been removed because of worsening medical conditions.

Lawmakers expressed concern “that under the current Medicare reimbursement framework, OPOs are incentivized to allocate out of sequence in this manner to ensure reimbursement and can provide a quid pro quo to transplant hospitals.”

The whistleblowers’ most shocking allegation claimed that the Sharing Network attempted to “cover up” details involving a circulatory death case. Circulatory death occurs when there is an irreversible loss of circulatory and respiratory function.

RELATED: ‘Donor may still be alive’: How organ donation groups allegedly exploit grieving families to cash in on billions

Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

The lawmakers’ letter, which redacted the incident date, stated that the patient “reanimated” after the organ recovery process began. When the administrator on call contacted the Sharing Network about this, the organization allegedly told staff to proceed with the recovery despite the patient’s signs of life. The hospital ultimately intervened and stopped the recovery process.

The hospital did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

According to whistleblowers, the Sharing Network “deleted or otherwise manipulated” documents related to the case.

The OPO was also accused of discarding 100 pancreata in one day. The organs were reportedly processed for research. The committee expressed concern that the bulk discarding pointed to an effort to artificially boost Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services performance metrics by recovering more pancreata than needed, under the guise of performing so-called research.

“While organ research has driven remarkable innovations that improve and save lives, it is concerning that [the Sharing Network] is alleged to have taken advantage of a loophole in the current framework,” the letter read.

A senior Ways and Means staffer familiar with the investigation stated that Rep. Smith, if necessary, is prepared to use subpoena power to require the Sharing Network to produce the requested documents and to compel staff interviews.

“The allegations these brave whistleblowers have brought forward are some of the most disturbing we have seen in our ongoing investigation into organ procurement organizations,” read a statement from Smith provided to Blaze News. “Families place extraordinary trust in this system at the most painful moments of their lives, and what we have uncovered puts the integrity of America’s organ procurement system at stake. Every organization entrusted with this lifesaving work must meet the highest standards, and any refusal to do so is unacceptable.”

“If this OPO or any of its senior officials attempt to mislead Congress, destroy records, or obstruct our efforts to get the truth, subpoenas are on the table,” Smith continued. “Compliance is not optional. The Ways and Means Committee will not hesitate to use every tool at our disposal to protect patients, taxpayers, and the families who rely on a system that must be built on trust, as well as the brave whistleblowers who have come forward from retaliation.”

RELATED: Harvested alive: Organ donor wakes up on the table

Rep. Jason Smith. Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images

Many individuals familiar with the organ donation industry have sought to bring more national attention to issues and abuses within the OPO networks.

Greg Segal, the founder and CEO of Organize, told Blaze News that this latest congressional investigation suggested that the Sharing Network’s “patient abuse is premeditated and systemic, rather than just accidents or one-offs.”

“This letter was informed by a dozen whistleblowers who shared documentation regarding specific abuses and potential crimes,” Segal said. “Industry interests have tried to dismiss allegations in the past as hearsay, but, in this case, the call is coming from inside the house. This is a watershed moment and, I believe, moves these investigations squarely into criminality and corruption, rather than just incompetence or bad federal policy.”

Jennifer Erickson, a senior fellow with the Federation of American Scientists, called it “a public health emergency.”

“The Ways and Means Committee documented shocking allegations of cover-ups at the highest levels of New Jersey Sharing Network, including the attempted harvesting of organs from a patient who was still alive,” she told Blaze News.

“This is a public health emergency, and just as the Trump administration recently moved to protect patients in Florida, I hope they now take immediate action to protect patients in New Jersey,” Erickson added, referring to steps taken by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to decertify a Miami-based OPO accused of Medicare fraud and lapses in patient safety.

HHS, CMS, the HHS Office of Inspector General, and the New Jersey attorney general were copied on the committee’s letter.

When asked if it could confirm receipt of the letter and whether there were any plans to investigate the allegations, the attorney general’s office stated, “As a general rule, the office doesn’t confirm or deny the existence of investigations.”

HHS told Blaze News that the Health Resources and Services Administration had received the letter and had directed the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network “to investigate these allegations.”

“As highlighted in the July 21 and September 18 HHS press releases, under Secretary Kennedy’s leadership, HHS is restoring integrity and transparency to organ procurement and transplant policy by putting patients’ lives first,” HHS stated. “These reforms are essential to restoring trust, ensuring informed consent, and protecting the rights and dignity of prospective donors and their families.”

CMS informed Blaze News that it is collaborating closely with HHS to ensure that organ procurement organizations adhere to the highest standards. The agency emphasized its ongoing commitment to protecting patients, enhancing accountability, and eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse, adding that it will continue taking appropriate action to safeguard patients and the Medicare program.

The Sharing Network did not respond to a request for comment.

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​News, Organ procurement organizations, Organ procurement organization, Opos, Opo, New jersey, Jason smith, David schweikert, New jersey organ and tissue sharing network, Njto, Organ procurement, Organ donation, Greg segal, Jennifer erickson, Ways and means committee, Ways and means, Politics 

This Thanksgiving, consider the poor turkey. Is there any animal we consume with less gusto?

It has become something of annual tradition to denigrate the day’s traditional fare. Nearly 35% of Americans claim turkey is their least favorite part of the feast, according to one recent survey.

This vintage Better Homes and Gardens recipe is a bit of a cheat, as it does use turkey — although not in any form you’re likely to recognize

The internet just stokes the hatred. Every year the same tiresome “contrarian” opinions: “Stop pretending you like turkey. It’s no good on Thanksgiving, or any other day.”

Even celebrity chefs can’t resist punching down. “Turkey is wildly overrated,” says restaurateur David Chang.

“The only reason to cook the turkey is to get the gravy, and then you can just give the turkey away.”

We must admit that turkey-haters have a point. Yes, turkey meat can be dry and flavorless (although brining is a dependable way to avoid that). And yes, the tradition of eating turkey — and most Thanksgiving foods — was essentially created by advertising in the early 20th century. (College freshman home for fall break voice: “It’s all a scam by Big Cranberry!”)

While we’re content to stick with the standard flightless fowl, there were plenty of other contenders in the great battle for the Thanksgiving table. As a service, we provide the following recipes for anyone wanting to change it up.

1. Roast eel (1621)

Among the meats served at the first Thanksgiving in Plymouth would surely have been this vital freshwater food source. The 1622 promotional pamphlet for the Plymouth colony “Mourt’s Relation” describes how the Wampanoag native Tisquantum (better known as Squanto) taught the Pilgrims to catch the slippery, succulent treats.

Tisquantum went at noon to fish for Eels, at night he came home with as many as he could well lift in one hand, which our people were glad of, they were fat & sweet, he trod them out with his feet, and so caught them with his hands, without any other Instrument.

Here’s how they might have prepared it:

Ingredients

2 lbs cleaned freshwater eel Salt, splash of vinegar Sage or bay, butter

Instructions

Soak eel 30 minutes in salt water and vinegar.Dry; rub with salt and herbs.Split a roasting stick down the middle, coil eel around stick. Roast over open fire 20-25 min. Baste with butter.

2. Roast swan (17th-18th centuries)

Long a favorite of European royals (peasants were forbidden to hunt them), swan was plentiful in the New World and was most likely one of the waterfowl consumed at the first Thanksgiving.

Here’s a recipe from Hannah Woolley’s “The Queen-like Closet,” (1670) a cookbook that later colonists would have had in their kitchens:

To bake a Swan.
Scald it and take out the bones, and parboil it, then season it very well with Pepper, Salt and Ginger, then lard it, and put it in a deep Coffin of Rye Paste with store of Butter, close it and bake it very well, and when it is baked, fill up the Vent-hole with melted Butter, and so keep it; serve it in as you do the Beef-Pie.

For something more elaborate, here’s a preparation from the late 14th century cookbook “Le Menagier de Paris”:

Pluck like a chicken or goose, scald, or boil; spit, skewer in four places, and roast with all its feet and beak, and leave the head unplucked; and eat with yellow pepper.

Item, if you wish, it may be gilded.

Item, when you kill it, you should split its head down to the shoulders.

Item, sometimes they are skinned and reclothed.

RECLOTHED SWAN in its skin with all the feathers. Take it and split it between the shoulders, and cut it along the stomach: then take off the skin from the neck cut at the shoulders, holding the body by the feet; then put it on the spit, and skewer it and gild it. And when it is cooked, it must be reclothed in its skin, and let the neck be nice and straight or flat; and let it be eaten with yellow pepper.

3. Passenger pigeon pie (1700s)

Though extinct for more than a century, passenger pigeons were once as abundant as the kind you see fouling statues in urban parks. While we wouldn’t recommend eating those birds, Cornish game hen or squab make a decent substitute.

Mock-passenger pigeon pie:

Ingredients

2 Cornish game hens (substitute for extinct passenger pigeons)1 onion, quartered2 tbsp butter2 tbsp flour1-1½ cups chicken or turkey stockSalt and pepper, to taste1 tsp dried thymeDouble pie crust (bottom + top crust)

Instructions

1. Prepare the meat

Simmer game hens with the onion until fully cooked and tender.Remove hens; pick the meat from the bones.Place shredded meat in a bowl.

2. Make the gravy

Melt butter in a pan.Add flour and cook until lightly browned.Stir in stock to form a smooth gravy.Season with salt, pepper, and thyme.Simmer until slightly thickened.

3. Assemble the pie

Line a pie dish with bottom crust.Add shredded meat.Pour warm gravy over the meat.Cover with top crust and seal edges.Cut a small vent in the center.

4. Bake

Outdoor Dutch oven method (historical):

Preheat Dutch oven with coals above and below.Elevate pie pan inside the Dutch oven on metal hooks or a trivet.Bake ~10-20 minutes, checking frequently to avoid burning.

Modern oven method:

Bake at 375°F for 35-45 minutes, until crust is golden.

5. Serve. Let cool slightly before slicing.

4. Sautéed calf’s brains with mushrooms, sour cream, and dill

In 1904, railroad heir George Vanderbilt and his wife, Edith, hosted a lavish Thanksgiving at their Asheville estate, Biltmore. Turkey was on the menu — but so were calf’s brains. Here’s one preparation that guarantees a delicate, custardy mouthfeel:

Ingredients

1 lb brains (veal, pork, or lamb) Water for soaking Salt (for poaching water) 2 tbsp butter 1 cup sliced white mushrooms 2-3 tbsp sour cream 1-2 tbsp fresh dill, minced Toasted bread, for serving

Instructions

1. Prep the brains

Soak brains overnight in cold water to remove blood pockets. Drain. Poach gently in salted water (bare simmer) for 10-15 minutes until firm. Cool slightly, then peel off the thin outer membrane. Cut brains into bite-size pieces.

2. Cook the mushrooms

In a skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until they release their juices and the butter turns lightly browned and nutty.

3. Add the brains

Add chopped brains to the skillet. Toss gently with the mushrooms and browned butter for 1-2 minutes.

4. Finish the sauce

Remove skillet from heat. Stir in sour cream to form a loose sauce. Add minced dill. Adjust salt if needed.

5. Serve. Spoon the mixture over warm toast. Serve immediately.

5. Celery au naturel (late 1800s-early 1900s)

Now the most unwanted vegetable on the crudite platter, this Bloody Mary garnish was a highly coveted status symbol of the Gilded Age (it was hard to grow). Everyone will want the recipe.

Ingredients

1 bunch crisp celery Cold water Ice cubes (optional) Salt (for serving, optional)

Instructions

1. Trim the celery

Cut off the root end. Remove tough outer stalks if desired. Trim leafy tops to a neat fan.

2. Refresh the stalks

Place celery in a bowl of cold water (add ice for extra crispness). Chill 15-30 minutes.

3. Present with appropriate ceremony

Stand stalks upright in a tall glass, vase, or celery jar. Arrange so the tops flare elegantly.

4. Serve. Place the celery in the center of the table. Offer a pinch dish of salt on the side.

Note: In the late 19th century, this was considered a showpiece delicacy. Your guests are encouraged to admire its beauty before eating it exactly as it is.

6. Turkey lime molded salad (1969)

This vintage Better Homes and Gardens recipe is a bit of a cheat, as it does use turkey — although not in any form you’re likely to recognize.

Ingredients

2 packages (3 oz each) lime-flavored gelatin ¼ tsp salt 2 cups boiling water ½ cup cold water 1 (7 oz) bottle ginger ale 2 cups diced cooked turkey 1 cup sour cream ¼ tsp ground ginger 1 (16 oz) can pears, drained and diced 6½-cup gelatin mold

Instructions

1. Make the gelatin base

Dissolve lime gelatin and salt in 2 cups boiling water. Add ginger ale and ½ cup cold water. Chill until partially set.

2. Prepare the turkey layer

Fold diced turkey into the partially set gelatin. Pour into a 6½-cup mold. Chill until almost firm.

3. Prepare the sour cream-pear layer

Beat sour cream, ground ginger, and ½–1 cup of the remaining unset gelatin until smooth. Chill until partially set. Fold in diced pears.

4. Add second layer

Spoon the pear-sour cream mixture over the firm turkey layer. Chill until completely set.

5. Unmold and serve

Dip mold briefly in warm water. Invert onto a serving platter. Lift mold carefully to reveal two layers.

​Thanksgiving, Lifestyle, Culture, Recipes 

“Every facet of the coffee industry, in fact, is rooted in racism. From the moment the whites viciously stole coffee from black and brown people to the present-day Karen sipping her morning cup of white supremacy, whites have been able to drink the fruits of our labor and our culture with impunity.”

What you just read is an actual quote from an article published in 2023 — back when literally everything was labeled racist by the woke mafia.

In this throwback Allie Beth Stuckey piece, we remember some of the most ridiculous things the critical race theory-obsessed left has used to label white people racists over the years. And sadly, coffee isn’t even close to the most absurd one on the list.

Picnics

A 2020 article from the Philadelphia Inquirer posited that “picnics” were racist because there was once a time when “Southern white people made lynchings a regular occurrence at picnics.”

If you are going to continue using the word “picnic,” then you need to make sure “that history is being talked about,” author Elizabeth Wellington wrote.

“That’s not what people think of when they’re thinking of going out to a park, laying a blanket down, and eating some sandwiches,” scoffed Allie.

Brain pairings (like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches)

Speaking of sandwiches, PB&Js are apparently the perfect metaphor for “implicit bias” against black males in America, according to a video released by the New York Times in 2016.

Social psychologist and management professor at the New York University Stern School of Business Dolly Chugh argued, “I somehow know that if you say peanut butter, I’m gonna say jelly. That’s an association that’s been ingrained in me. … In many forms of media, there’s an overrepresentation of black men and violent crime being paired together.”

Dairy

In 2022, a KFF Health News article reported that 28 civil rights and child advocacy groups — including one led by Al Sharpton — sent a letter to the USDA accusing the National School Lunch Program of “dietary racism.”

Their reasoning? Offering only cow’s milk, ignoring non-dairy alternatives, was racist because children of color apparently have higher rates of lactose intolerance.

Bicycling

A 2021 article from the Washington Post argued that American cycling is racist because a really long time ago, black people were excluded from bicycling clubs.

And then, of course, there’s the issue of racist white cops. “For black Southerners, the cost, dangers and white policing of cycling mobility combined with the weakening of its middle‑class status, meant that the popularity of the bicycle declined within the black community,” author Nathan Cardon wrote.

Equestrianism

If a piece of equipment doesn’t fit you properly, the designers are obviously racist against you. At least that’s the position the New York Times took in a front-page article from 2023 titled “Black equestrians want to be safe. But they can’t find helmets.”

In it, author McKenna Oxenden condemned racist manufacturers of equestrian equipment for not making helmets that accommodate certain black hairstyles, like dreadlocks.

“Is a helmet going to be safe if it’s like six inches off of your skull? No, it’s not. I don’t think it has anything to do with you being black,” Allie retorted.

Recreational running

In 2020, Medium published an article titled “Running is too white. It doesn’t need to be,” in which author Ryan Fan complained that America’s recreational running community is “too white.”

There was only one possible explanation for that, said Fan: systemic inaccessibility and exclusion. All those white runners just make people of color feel unsafe and unwelcome.

“We can do better. We have to,” he pleaded.

“Agree. I don’t like running, so running is too white. And it is because I am an ally that I choose not to,” Allie joked.

National parks

In 2020, ABC published a melodramatic article titled “America’s national parks face existential crisis over race.” In it, authors Stephanie Ebbs and Devin Dwyer reported that national park visitors were “overwhelmingly white” — 77% compared to 23% of non-whites.

The piece quoted then-Associate Director of the Sierra Club Joel Pannell, who fretted that this racial disparity in park visitors spelled doom for the country’s national parks (many of which have been going strong for over a century).

“If we don’t address this … then we’re going to risk losing everything,” he lamented.

“Not enough black people are going outside, so that’s the problem,” Allie mocked.

STD names

In 2022, NPR published an article titled “Critics say ‘monkeypox’ is a racist name. But it’s not going away anytime soon.” In the piece, author Bill Chappell quoted several critics upset about the name monkeypox, as it apparently stigmatizes the black and LGBTQ+ communities.

“There is a long history of referring to blacks as monkeys. Therefore, ‘monkeypox’ is racist and stigmatizes black people,” said global health advocate Ifeanyi Nsofor, ignoring the fact that the virus’ name was coined after it was originally discovered in lab monkeys in 1958.

Energy

Yes, energy — the stuff that powers the world — is “inherently racist,” suggested a 2022 article from Utility Dive.

Author Robert Walton reported that environmental justice advocates were up in arms because the U.S. energy sector is supposedly structurally racist due to historical policies like redlining and discriminatory infrastructure, which have disproportionately burdened low-income and communities of color with high costs and pollution.

Highways

In 2021, the Washington Times published a piece titled “When highways are racist,” in which author Cheryl Chumley lambasted Biden’s Department of Transportation for weaponizing civil rights laws to block a Houston highway project under the absurd pretext that infrastructure can be racist.

Ballet

A 2021 article from Marie Claire bemoaned the art of ballet as structurally white supremacist. Author Chloe Angyal argued that ballet — its aesthetics, history, and culture — is inherently racist because it reinforces a narrow, European ideal that marginalizes dancers of color.

“Ballet is not just white. It is white on purpose,” Angyal complained.

“There’s just not enough black people going up on their tiptoes,” Allie jeered.

Camping

Pitching a tent and roasting some marshmallows under the stars isn’t as innocent as it sounds, said Fast Company writer Elizabath Segran in a 2021 article called “The unbearable whiteness of camping.”

The monopoly white people apparently have on the outdoors all goes back to our colonial roots when colonizers took Indigenous land and turned it into “wilderness” for white recreation, she argued. Those mean ol’ white settlers romanticized themselves as “pioneers” while condemning Native people as “savages” for living out in nature, only to turn around and make nature an element of white culture.

Fast-forward a few hundred years and that same stigma still keeps non-whites from venturing outdoors. Patagonia jackets are too expensive; REI ads are too pale; and black people are apparently disproportionally targeted when they brave the elements.

Philosophy

Much of the genius that came from some of the greatest thinkers of the Enlightenment and German Idealist philosophy has bias baked into it, argued Aeon writer Avram Alpert in a 2021 piece titled “Philosophy’s systemic racism.” Ideas from the likes of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel must be “decolonized,” meaning we must expose how their core logic secretly ranks non-Europeans as irrational “savages” who need white reason to evolve, then flip the script to affirm that people of color already have their own internal progress — no European “uplift” required.

Organized pantries

Those little spice jars with the labels and the matching containers for your pasta and rice? Yeah well, they’re racist, said Associate Professor of Marketing at Loyola University Jenna Drenten.

Dubbing the trend of having aesthetically pleasing cupboards “pantry porn,” Drenten wrote, “Cleanliness has historically been used as a cultural gatekeeping mechanism to reinforce status distinctions based on a vague understanding of ‘niceness’: nice people, with nice yards, in nice houses, make for nice neighbors. What lies beneath the surface of this anti-messiness, pro-niceness stance is a history of classist, racist, and sexist social structures.”

“So you hear that black people? This professor doesn’t think that you can organize your pantry; you need to make it messy in order to really be pro-black and anti-racist,” laughed Allie.

This throwback to the peak-woke era — when coffee was cultural theft and PB&J pairings were microaggressions — proves one thing: The fever has broken, but the receipts still make us laugh.

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