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**SNIP** This feels lousy to say, because I was rooting for a huge success to follow the noxious backlash to the trailer last year: Some people apparently couldn’t handle the audacity of reinventing a cartoon character as a Black actress. But star Halle Bailey, in the role of Ariel, has nothing to apologize for: She’s the best thing about this movie. Unfortunately, that’s faint praise. A lot of ink and pixels have testified to the value of Black children and their moms being able to see themselves in a Disney heroine, and that’s a powerfully admirable goal – as well...

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Professor Seifert: Catholic Church in ‘Terrible Danger of Complete Collapse in Many Countries’ Unless Cardinals and Bishops Speak UpCatholic philosopher Professor Josef Seifert has said he sees a “terrible danger of a complete collapse of the Catholic Church in many countries” unless cardinals speak up about a “tremendous crisis” within the Church, one he says is possibly the greatest she has ever faced.In comments following the publication of an open letter he wrote April 30 calling on all cardinals, bishops and Church leaders to stand up for the truth of Catholic teaching in the face of prevailing relativism and situational...

Being a boat owner is not all it is cracked up to be. Most people have their first experience with boats as a passenger on somebody else's boat. A hot summer day on a New Hampshire lake, for example. They board a cabin boat of an acquaintance with a cooler full of alcoholic beverages early on a Saturday morning in Meredith, NH by Lake Winnipesaukee. To them, it is a fun experience. Once out on the lake, cruising around Governor's Island, they enter a state of bliss while they crack their third can of beer, sitting on their deck chair...

It appears righteous conservative fury over McCarthy caving to Joe Biden over the debt ceiling has reached a new boil. Earlier today, Cristina Laila reported that the House Freedom Caucus left open the possibility of filing a motion to vacate and get rid of McCarthy if the Speaker pushes through the garbage debt deal. Following the press conference, Rep. Dan Bishop (R-N.C.), a member of the Freedom Caucus, became the first House Republican to explicitly signal support for ousting McCarthy according to Politico. Politico asked Bishop in an interview whether he would support a motion to vacate the chair. He...

That anonymous internet persona with an anime cartoon avatar in your Discord chat might actually be a contractor sent to spy on you. Enter the world of “threat intelligence.” It’s the term of art for a growing set of surveillance and security firms that create fake online personas to infiltrate and scrape data from private corners of the internet. The industry provides corporate and government clients with insight into conversations on private, invite-only Discord chats, WhatsApp groups, Reddit forums, and dark web message boards to help those powerful customers keep tabs on a variety of potential threats, from political hacktivists...

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) indicated Tuesday he would support moving the bill to raise the debt limit to the floor for a full House vote, a pivotal step as House leaders race to rally enough support to send the bill to the Senate this week. Massie, one of nine Republicans on the House Rules Committee, had been holding out on taking a firm stance on the bill, which includes some of Republicans’ desired spending reductions and other provisions. The spending hawk became known this year for wearing a debt limit counter on his suit jacket, which shows the national debt...

Will he crash Rumble too?

A Los Angeles man who received no jail time and mental health diversion for a 2021 stabbing that nearly killed a construction worker is now charged with the murder of his neighbor. Stefen Sutherland, 31, was charged with assault with a deadly weapon in November 2020 after slashing a construction worker's neck because he was making noise, according to law enforcement sources.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — British Columbia will send hundreds of cancer patients across the international border for treatment in Bellingham beginning this week in a multimillion dollar, desperate and controversial effort to restore government funded health care to some of its most vulnerable residents. It is a highly unusual, yet not entirely unprecedented effort by the free universal health care system Canadians have long enjoyed. It will also mean two Whatcom County clinics stand to make millions in payments from the BC government. “I don't think people who are suffering right now and in this immediate period should have to...

The Texas State Legislature passed a bill on Sunday that would ban the performance of “sexually oriented” shows in front of minors. The State House approved Senate Bill 12 in an 87-54 vote. If the legislation is signed into law, performers who violate the law could be charged with a Class A misdemeanor and punished with a $4,000 fine or one year in jail. Meanwhile, businesses caught hosting such performances could be fined as much as $10,000.

China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang has told Tesla CEO Elon Musk that his country will improve the business environment for foreign companies. The two met in Beijing on Tuesday. China's Foreign Ministry says Qin stressed that China is committed to promoting a policy of opening-up and creating a better business environment for investors including Tesla. Qin said a healthy, stable and constructive bilateral relationship will be beneficial for China, the United States and the world. Musk reportedly said the interests of both countries are inseparable. He expressed his opposition to a decoupling of the US and China economies, while stating...

The Missouri man accused of ramming White House security barriers in an attempt to “kill the president” and “seize power” wrote a “coup” speech which ended with “Sieg hail”— a misspelled version of the Nazi term “sieg heil,” or “hail victory.” Sai Varshith Kandula, 19, was arrested after emerging from a rented U-Haul truck without a weapon, waving a Nazi flag following the crash last Monday. Inside the truck police recovered Kandula’s “green book” which included writings “about harming family members and other individuals” and his speech for when he had claimed power, which was released by the government Tuesday....

The Duchess of York met with Jeffrey Epstein in 2010 even though he was still under house arrest for having sex with underage girls, files obtained by DailyMail.com indicate. The pedophile's private calendars from March that year reveal that he would make room in his schedule for Sarah Ferguson, the ex-wife of Prince Andrew. At the time Epstein still had five months of house arrest left for admitting to soliciting a minor for prostitution, an offense for which he served a 13-month jail sentence and was labeled a registered sex offender. Epstein told his assistant: 'Duchess anytime.' .....

The Miracle of Conversion, A Mystery of God's Grace: Aqua's Story (Part 1)16th century painting of St. Paul on the road to DmamascusEditor's comment: One of my regular readers, Aqua, left a comment about his conversion that intrigued me. So I asked him if he would tell his story. He graciously accepted and I offer it here in two parts. To see God's grace at work reminds us that He, indeed, is our rock and our salvation. May God bring us all to conversion every day and fill us with the joy of living in His presence. Convert us, Lord,...

U.S. Charles Manson cult follower Leslie Van Houten should be paroled, appeals court rules May 30, 2023 / 6:02 PM / AP A California appeals court said Tuesday that Leslie Van Houten, who participated in two killings at the direction of cult leader Charles Manson in 1969, should be let out of prison on parole. The appellate court's ruling reverses an earlier decision by Gov. Gavin Newsom to reject parole for Van Houten in 2020. She has been recommended for parole five times since 2016. All of those recommendations were rejected by either Newsom or former California Gov. Jerry Brown,...

GOP Rep. Nancy Mace grew a swelling list of Republicans who are balking at the cost of the debt limit deal Speaker Kevin McCarthy cut with President Biden. The debt limit deal includes $136 billion in budget cuts and suspends the debt ceiling until Jan. 1, 2025 - after the 2024 election. Some of the opposed Republicans, who passed a bill last month - the Limit, Save, Grow Act - that would only raise the ceiling by $1.5 trillion, say the debt limit suspension goes beyond that is necessary and gives the Biden administration the ability to overspend for the...

Three local Marines are currently in recovery after a terrifying assault by a large group of teenagers near the San Clemente Pier on Friday night. According to one of the self-identified Marines, Hunter Antonino, he and his two friends were relaxing on their day off and were walking along the San Clemente Pier when a group of about 30 to 40 teenagers showed up. The teenagers were reportedly setting off fireworks, and when the debris struck him in the face, he politely asked them to stop.

""Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest." "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting." Revelation, Chapter 15 1 And I saw another sign in heaven, great...

Former President Donald Trump is dominating the Republican primary race in West Virginia, the latest East Carolina University (ECU) survey found. The survey showed a majority of Republicans, 54 percent, backing Trump in the 2024 primary. No other candidate comes remotely close. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who jumped into the presidential race last week after months of speculation, comes in 45 points behind with nine percent support. Former Vice President Mike Pence comes four points behind DeSantis with five percent support, followed by South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott (four percent), former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (three percent), anti-woke businessman...