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Three North Carolina state senators have introduced a bill to ban participation trophies for children, but some say the move is more performative than substantive.The bill, proposed by three Republican lawmakers, says awards should be based on "identified performance achievements" and not solely on children’s participation in sports or other activities. Fox News’ Greg Gutfeld argued the bill was a "waste of time." "I think it's a lousy statement. It's a waste of time. You know, it's obvious that… it's a thumb in the eye," he explained this week on "The Five."

American officials report that Ukraine will start its counteroffensive in May.Source: The New York TimesQuote: "Ukraine is preparing to launch a counteroffensive against Russian forces as early as next month, American officials say, in the face of immense risks: Without a decisive victory, Western support for Ukraine could weaken, and Kyiv could come under increasing pressure to enter serious negotiations to end or freeze the conflict."Details: It is stated in the article that American and NATO allies have supplied Ukraine with extensive artillery and ammunition for the upcoming battle, and officials now say they are hopeful the supplies will last.

80-Year-Old Chicago Man Shoots Violent Attackers. Four men were charged with robbery and home invasion in Bethlehem Township, Northampton County after they entered a home on the 2000 block of Willow Park Road around 4 a.m. on Thursday. The men were identified as Millito Delgado, 45; Michael Matas, 29; Francis Ferrando, 23; and Anthony Santiago, 29. Three people were in the house at the time. According to the Northampton County District Attorney’s Office, during the home invasion, one of the occupants shot at least two of the home invaders. The good-guy with a gun fired at the intruders, hitting Matas...

President Biden would handily defeat former President Donald Trump in the 2024 Electoral College — but lose to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, according to a new analysis of national and state polling. According to WPA intelligence, which examined seven national popular vote polls since mid-February, the 76-year-old Trump would lose to Biden by an average of 3.1%, while DeSantis, 44, would win the popular vote over the incumbent by an average of 1.2%

“We’re bored of waiting for Oasis to reform, so we’ve got an AI-modelled Liam Gallagher to step in”A UK band used AI to imagine what Oasis might sound like if they were to reform and release a new album in 2023. The eight-track album – cleverly entitled ‘AISIS’ – was developed by indie band Breezer, who created their own tracks, then added an AI version of Liam Gallagher’s voice over the top. It envisions how the band might sound today, if they were to reform and release new music that fitted in with their iconic sound captured throughout the ’90s....

The show was originally cancelled over anti-Semitism claimsRoger Waters has won a legal battle to play a forthcoming concert in Frankfurt after it was initially cancelled over claims of anti-Semitism. The former Pink Floyd frontman was supposed to play at the publicly owned Festhalle on May 28, but Frankfurt City Council called off the performance over the musician’s views on Israel. They later described him as “one of the world’s most widely-known anti-Semites”. Despite the cancellation, Waters suggested earlier this month he’s “coming anyway” in an update on Instagram update alongside a photo of the grave of Sophie Scholl, a...

Barack Obama @BarackObama Proud of all that @JoeBiden and his administration have accomplished these last few years. He’s delivered for the American people — and he’ll continue to do so once he’s re-elected. Let’s get to work! http://joebiden.com

Bonus song, just for funsies!

Harry Belafonte has died at the age of 96. Belafonte died Tuesday of congestive heart failure at his New York home, his wife Pamela by his side, said Paula M. Witt, of public relations firm Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis. Besides singing, Belafonte was also known for his acting and as a supporter of the civil rights movement. ... Belafonte was also remembered by the founder of Motown. "My friend, Harry Belafonte, was truly a man of cause, conviction and principle," Berry Gordy said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "Besides being a great entertainer, he was a major...

There is no evidence that shielding benefited vulnerable people as a COVID pandemic response, according to a new study. A new study of health data has examined the policy of shielding those deemed “Clinically Extremely Vulnerable” (CEV) to the virus, with the study’s main author claiming the UK government policy “was sort of made up at the time and implemented.” The shielding practice involved minimising interaction between CEV persons and others. Top oncologist Angus Dalgleish, who is now speaking out against COVID vaccine boosters, told The Epoch Times that he was not surprised by the results of the study, and...

Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville on Tuesday blocked a plan from Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren to resume Senate approval of outstanding military promotions, which have stalled due to the conservative lawmaker's hold on such proceedings in protest of a Pentagon plan to fund out of state travel for servicemembers seeking abortions. Tuberville has insisted that the "Biden administration has turned the DoD into an abortion travel agency" with its policy and has vowed to uphold his block on the nominations until the Pentagon changes choices. Strictly speaking, Tuberville cannot single-handed stop all of the military's outstanding promotions outright. Rather,...

Today, April 23, is Saint George’s Day, which used to be widely celebrated, especially in England, as George is that nation’s patron saint.To underscore just how much things have changed between England and its patron saint, consider the following “what if” scenario offered by English historian Edward Gibbon (1737-1794). Had the Muslims won at the pivotal Battle of Tours (732 A.D.), Gibbon predicted that:Perhaps the interpretation of the Koran would now be taught in the schools of Oxford, and her pulpits might demonstrate to a circumcised people [meaning Brits would now be Muslim] the sanctity and truth of the revelation...

A coalition of gun rights advocacy groups and individual citizens have filed a lawsuit against a new Washington state ban on firearms deemed “assault weapons” as soon as the legislation was signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee. The complaint filed by the Firearms Policy Coalition and Second Amendment Foundation in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington argues that HB 1240’s ban on certain types of semi-automatic rifles, pistols and shotguns violates the Second and Fourteenth Amendment. Taking effect the moment it was signed by Inslee on April 25, HB 1240 bans more than 60...

BISMARCK, North Dakota (LifeSiteNews) — North Dakota has become the latest state to prohibit minors from being chemically or surgically mutilated through transgender drugs and surgeries. House Bill 1254, signed on April 19 by Republican Governor Doug Burgum, prohibits medical professionals from performing “castration, vasectomy, hysterectomy, oophorectomy, metoidioplasty, orchiectomy, penectomy, phalloplasty, or vaginoplasty” on minors. It also prohibits a mastectomy and the administration of puberty blockers. There are exceptions for intersex individuals and anyone who has already started one of these medical procedures. Intersex and transgender are not the same thing, as explained here by LifeSiteNews’ Jeremy Williamson. The American...

The famed Hollywood studio Warner Bros. is celebrating its hundredth anniversary this year, and it certainly has a rich history to showcase. The studio could have coasted through its anniversary year by rolling out some of its classic films, which range from the very beginnings of cinema to today, to new audiences. But some daring young innovative thinker at Warner Bros. decided to do something at once more audacious, more risky, and much more certain to produce ghastly results: Warner is going to mark its hundredth birthday with “a short film series that reimagines the Studio’s iconic films through a...

AUSTIN, Texas (LifeSiteNews) — Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is refusing to allow gender ideology and sloppiness to dictate the workplace by requiring his employees and interns to dress according to their sex and in a professional manner. “An employee’s appearance should reflect the culture, dignity, and professionalism of the Texas Department of Agriculture,” the memo states. It was released on April 13 but The Texas Observer and other media only first began reporting on it this week. “All employees, regardless of assignment, are expected to present themselves in a professional manner that cultivates a favorable impression from coworkers, other...

Explanation: Did you see an aurora over the past two nights? Many people who don't live in Earth's far north did. Reports of aurora came in not only from northern locales in the USA as Alaska, but as far south as Texas and Arizona. A huge auroral oval extended over Europe and Asia, too. Pictured, an impressively red aurora was captured last night near the town of Cáceres in central Spain. Auroras were also reported in parts of southern Spain. The auroras resulted from a strong Coronal Mass Event (CME) that occurred on the Sun a few days ago. Particles...

THIRD WEEK OF EASTER Mark 16:15-20 Friends, today’s Gospel gives us Mark’s very laconic account of the Ascension: “Then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God.”Now, don’t literalize this language—there aren’t chairs in heaven—but take it very seriously indeed. What Mark is suggesting is that Jesus is now reigning;he’s in the attitude of a king on his throne. This means that he is directing the things of earth from his place in heaven. Again, don’t think of this spatially, as though heaven were a...

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Florida’s largest LGBTQ civil rights group has issued a travel advisory for the state.