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In this episode, I take a hard look at what really happens in Mecca, the holiest site in Islam, and ask whether the reality matches the image presented to the world. I examine disturbing footage and reports from the Hajj pilgrimage — from stampedes and harassment to the sheer chaos and commercialization surrounding the rituals — and compare these scenes with the spiritual ideals the pilgrimage is supposed to represent. I also explore the historical claims surrounding the Kaaba, the lack of open archaeology in Mecca, and the enormous financial machine built around the pilgrimage, asking whether the narrative surrounding...

President Donald Trump said Sunday that he will not sign any bills until the SAVE America Act is passed, adding that a “watered down” version of the act would not do.

Americans for Citizens Voting announced it has collected more than 750,000 signatures in hopes of placing its proposal for a new voter ID requirement on the ballot in 2026. Now, it's up to the Michigan Bureau of Elections and the Board of State Canvassers to confirm their validity. "We submitted over 750,000 signatures yesterday to the Secretary of State, and now we look forward to a speedy review by the Bureau of Elections and approval by the Board of State Canvassers to get us on the ballot for 2026," said Kristen Combs, general consultant for the ballot proposal campaign. If...

Seats in state legislature: Greens 56 (down 2); Christian Democrats 56 (up 14); Alternative 35 (up 18); Social Democrats 10 (down 9); Free Democrats 0 (down 18) RECAP: Right of Center 91 (up 14); Left of Center 66 (minus 11)

New documents show the crew on board the United States' newest aircraft carrier are growing increasingly frustrated by design flaws that lead to regular failures in the ship's toilet system. The USS Gerald R. Ford has been deployed for seven months since it left Norfolk in June. On board the carrier, the crew is battling a toilet system that the General Accountability Office reported in 2020 was undersized and poorly designed. The system continues to fail during deployment, forcing the crew of 4,600 sailors to live with a system that randomly breaks down during their months at sea. NPR has...

title says it all

For the freedom you enjoyed yesterday... Thank the Veterans who served in The United States Armed Forces. Looking forward to tomorrow's freedom? Support The United States Armed Forces Today! ~ Hall of Heroes ~ Leonard C. Brostrom Info from here. Leonard Carl Brostrom was born on November 23, 1919 in Preston, Franklin County, Idaho. He was the first child of Carl John Brostrom (Feb. 17, 1894 - Mar. 13, 1975) and Louise Adolfina Hillstead (Aug. 17, 1893 - Sep. 25, 1961) who were married on August 21, 1918. Leonard was Killed in action on October 28, 1944 near Dagami,...

A Washington state special needs student who graduated with a padded 3.78 GPA is suing her school district, claiming her diploma was a “participation trophy” that propelled her into financial strain. Makena Simonsen claimed she graduated from the Edmonds School District in Lynwood reading at first-grade level — and was handed a high school diploma that blocked her from entering a free vocational program that helps special needs grads transition to independent life, King 5 reported. “I should have earned that diploma,” the 22-year-old former student charged. “Not just something that really got me nowhere.” Makena Simonsen claimed she graduated...

[snip] Jordan accused members of the administration of treating the war like a “video game” and implied they were using the conflict to compensate for personal insecurities: “And far too many members of this administration have been treating it like it's a video game and some way to, you know, exercise their repressed masculinity that they have issues with, I guess. But all of the faux bravado, it just, it really does make me want to puke in my stomach.Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

Eileen Gu, the American-born Olympic skier who chose to represent Team China at the Winter Games, was honored at Chinese New Year celebrations in San Francisco on Saturday. Gu was the grand marshal for the parade and expressed in an interview before the festivities what the honor meant to her. "This is a special thing to be Grand Marshal, and be part of it," she told KGO-TV.

Explanation: Yes, but can your tree do this? Pictured is a visual coincidence between the dark branches of a nearby tree and bright glow of a distant aurora. The beauty of the aurora -- combined with how it seemed to mimic a tree right nearby -- mesmerized the photographer to such a degree that he momentarily forgot to take pictures. When viewed at the right angle, it seemed that this tree had aurora for leaves. Fortunately, before the aurora morphed into a different overall shape, he came to his senses and captured the awe-inspiring momentary coincidence. Typically triggered by solar...

Iranians have flooded social media with dark humor and mocking comments about the delayed burial of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei after authorities on Wednesday canceled a planned procession and what they described as a public farewell to his body due to security concerns. The situation triggered a wave of posts across social media platforms, particularly on X, many of them sarcastic, angry or openly celebratory. One widely shared comment drew a comparison with the authorities’ treatment of families whose relatives were killed during protests.

“War is the continuation of politics by other means.” – Carl von Clausewitz Seven days into the U.S.–Israel war with Iran, the central question is not simply what has happened on the battlefield, but whether the strategy behind the war is working. In classical strategic terms, war must always be evaluated through the relationship between political objectives and military action. The Prussian military theorist Carl von Clausewitz argued that the political objective determines the military means used to achieve it. The success of a war cannot be measured simply by explosions, missile launches, or headlines. It must be measured by...

Iran has threatened to attack any oil tanker passing through the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil transits. US oil futures rose 18% to about $108 a barrel, their highest level since July 19, 2022. Brent futures, the global benchmark, increased 16%, near $108 a barrel. Surging oil prices have weighed heavily on stocks in recent days, as traders fear that a prolonged spike in fuel prices could lead to another spike in inflation and hurt the economy. Dow futures dropped more than 800 points, or 1.7%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures fell 1.6%. Triggered by...

Dear Lord, save us from Lindsay Graham

The Trump administration has turned Venezuela into a significant U.S. oil supplier, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Sunday, arguing the shift will help offset Middle East disruptions and ease pressure from the global shipping crisis. "[Venezuela] was a sanctioned adversary, and now they're a strategic ally with the largest reserves with no threat of the chokehold like we have in the Strait of Hormuz," Burgum told "The Sunday Briefing." "Venezuelan oil can flow to America freely and is starting to flow, will continue to flow, and these are the kinds of things that are going to bring gas prices down...

8 March 2026 3rd Sunday of Lent St John of God Church, Somerset, MAReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Violet. Year: A(II).First readingExodus 17:3-7Strike the rock, and water will flow from itTormented by thirst, the people complained against Moses. ‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt?’ they said. ‘Was it so that I should die of thirst, my children too, and my cattle?’ Moses appealed to the Lord. ‘How am I to deal with this people?” he said. ‘A little more and they will stone me!’ the Lord said to Moses, ‘Take with you some of the elders of Israel...

Zara Larsson has found herself at the center of a social media storm after responding to a fan’s TikTok post that referenced abortion, prompting widespread debate about humor, boundaries and celebrity responsibility. The controversy began earlier this week when a TikTok user shared a video from one of Larsson’s recent concerts, filmed during her performance of "Midnight Sun." In a caption overlaid on the clip, the fan wrote that she had not realized she was pregnant at the time of the show and added that "at least my baby got to hear Midnight Sun before I aborted it." Larsson, 28,...

“ The NYPD said the investigation is being conducted with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York through the Joint Terrorism Task Force. Suspect referenced ISIS as FBI investigates incident as possible terrorism. BREAKING UPDATE: Additional details surfaced Sunday from law enforcement sources who spoke with NBC News reporter Tom Winter. According to the sources, the incident is being evaluated as “a possible act of terrorism” because “one of the suspects directly referenced ISIS in statements to law enforcement.”

The NYPD and FBI are investigating the improvised explosive device recovered from outside Gracie Mansion during Saturday's protests as a potential act of terrorism in part because one of the two suspects in custody directly reference ISIS in statements to law enforcement, multiple people familiar with the matter said. The device was one of two ignited during dueling protests outside of the official residence of Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Manhattan's Upper East Side. The law enforcement investigation continued into Sunday afternoon, when the NYPD Bomb Squad dispatched a robot several blocks away from the protest scene to search a car...