Monthly Archives: June 2026

It Really Is Time For This To End

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According to Townhall, the Iranians have walked out on negotiations in Switzerland. Other sources say the talks are ongoing. The supposed  walkout is in objection to Israel defending itself from Hezbollah attacks. The article also noted that Qatar’s intermediary ignored Vance’s attempt to shake hands with him, more than suggesting that Qatar is acting on behalf of Iran at this stage. That shouldn’t come as a surprise–if Iran is the number one sponsor of world terrorism, then Qatar is the number two sponsor. There are also varying reports on whether or not Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz. I will say that President Trump has a whole lot more patience than I do.

On Saturday, The Independent Journal Review reported:

Iran announced Saturday it will close the Strait of Hormuz, accusing Israel of launching strikes in Lebanon in violation of a ceasefire which had just taken effect.

The Israeli strikes took place hours after the ceasefire with the Hezbollah terror group took effect Friday at 4:00 p.m. local time, Reuters reported, citing Lebanese Civil Defense. The strikes preceded an announcement by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that ships should not attempt to cross the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media outlet Seraph News reported.

Iran claimed the Israeli strikes violated the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran, which called for an immediate halt to hostilities between Iran, Lebanon, the United States, and U.S. allies.

Israel, meanwhile, claimed Hezbollah fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight, Reuters reported, citing an unnamed Israeli military official.

“Israel wants to attack Hezbollah, and they also are happy to screw up the ceasefire,” Defense Priorities Policy Director Benjamin Friedman told the Daily Caller News Foundation (DCNF). “They pushed us into the war, and they want us to continue it, even if it tanks the global economy.”

The strikes killed 16 people and injured 12 others, the Lebanese Civil Defense wrote in a Saturday post to X.

It really is time to turn the bombers loose and totally defeat Iran. Peace is not possible any other way.

Saving America: Meritocracy

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Author: R. Alan Harrop, Ph.D.  

This is another article in the series on issues critical to perpetuating America as we have known it for the past 250 years. America was founded on the principle of freedom and the opportunity for all citizens to achieve success in life based on their own hard work, perseverance, and responsible behavior regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or religion. This has earned America the title of the “Land of Opportunity” and is the reason so many people want to immigrate to our country. Sadly, over the past few decades we have been moving away from being a meritocracy (where work and effort determine success) to a system where merit is not rewarded. 

Here are some examples: Promotions in one’s career should be based on a person’s skills and achievements. In many corporations and businesses, promotions are now determined by quotas. A corporation must have the correct percentage of people in various positions based on race and gender. Diversity-Equity-Inclusion (DEI), propagated by the Marxist left, has become a controlling principle that many corporations are following.

 Schools and universities follow similar practices not only in hiring but in grading the achievement of their students. The traditional grading system of A, B, C, D, and F has been either replaced by Pass/Fail or so distorted that very few if any students ever are graded below B. For example, a survey of colleges and universities showed that the Grade Point Average (GPA) was 2.83 in 1983; it is now 3.3. In 1965, 18% of students received an A grade average; it is now up to 62%!

 Another example of not rewarding those who achieve is participation trophies. Instead of giving trophies to the best and most accomplished, everyone gets a trophy. This just reinforces the Marxist principle of equal outcomes regardless of effort and demonstrated ability/achievement. It does not encourage students to do their best and work harder.  It is not the American way!

Marxism started in the mid-1800s, attempting to divide societies by economic class: worker vs owners/managers. That strategy worked in some countries like Russia, but failed in America because we had a middle class with an acceptable standard of living, and, most importantly, opportunities to advance based on a person’s own effort and achievement. The American Dream was a real possibility for most Americans. What are the Marxist leftists attempting now? They are attempting, and in some places succeeding, to divide the country by race and ethnicity. They use the notion of victimization to allow people to blame others for their own failure to achieve. If you are a minority race and not successful, it is because America is inherently racist; and therefore, it is not your fault that you are failing to achieve your dreams. The only solution, according to the Left, is to “fundamentally change America” as Barack Obama stated on many occasions. Transform to what you might wonder? Communism of course. The recent election of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a proud communist, has shown how the Left’s strategy is working with a large number of people. This must be stopped if America is to be saved.

 Most, if not all, of the significant technical advances in civilization are made by high achievers who are free to apply their skill and intelligence to creating. America needs to return to recognizing and rewarding achievement at all levels of society. Striving to achieve the best one can is what built this country to the most successful in the history of mankind.  High standards of living are not created by low achievers. It is essential that we instill this principle in the youth of our country if America is to continue the success we have had over the past 250 years.

Arresting The People Who Committed Fraud

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On Saturday, Legal Insurrection posted an article about the arrest of Herbert Leon Kimble, who after pleading guilty to fraud, didn’t bother to show up for his sentencing.

The article reports:

Just over two weeks after the FBI unveiled its new Most Wanted Fraudsters list, the administration has notched its second capture, and the message is getting through.

Herbert Leon Kimble, who pleaded guilty to orchestrating one of the largest Medicare fraud schemes ever prosecuted in the United States and then simply didn’t show up for sentencing, has been arrested in the Philippines and returned to face justice. The FBI had offered a reward of up to $150,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

According to the FBI, Kimble’s scheme generated more than $1.2 billion in fraudulent Medicare charges and victimized thousands of beneficiaries, many of them elderly Americans who trusted the healthcare system. 

The arrest marks the second capture from the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters list, which launched on June 4, 2026, and initially featured eight fugitives accused of major fraud offenses.

The list is a centerpiece of the administration’s broader effort to crack down on fraud, waste, and abuse, an effort that, so far, appears to be producing results. 

The article concludes:

Kimble’s arrest comes as the administration makes good on its promise to pursue fraud in federal programs with renewed seriousness. In March 2026, President Donald Trump established the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, chaired by Vice President Vance, to coordinate enforcement efforts across the federal government.

Earlier this month, Said Abdullahi Ereg surrendered to federal authorities in Minneapolis.

Ereg is accused of participating in the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme and allegedly received more than $4.2 million through fraudulent reimbursement claims tied to a federal child nutrition program.

Federal officials have made clear that more arrests are coming. Six of the eight fugitives on the Most Wanted Fraudsters list remain at large, but if the first two weeks are any indication, that number may not hold for long.

It is good to see people being held accountable for their actions.

Finding The Fraud

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On Friday, Townhall posted an article about the amount of fraud the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is finding in federal programs.

The article reports:

The Trump administration continues to crack down on waste, fraud, and abuse in federal welfare programs, as the Secretary of Agriculture revealed that over the past year, hundreds of thousands of instances of alleged SNAP fraud have been uncovered across the country. The majority of those instances, she said, have come from red states that have been eager to partner with the federal government to help ensure fraud is rooted out of their systems. Blue states, on the other hand, have been more reluctant to allow the federal government to review their programs.

The article includes the following X post:

This is the link to the post:

https://x.com/SecRollins/status/2067750726034448433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2067750726034448433%7Ctwgr%5Ec3bdeca2e4761dd46bd281d2bb268dee8015bfe0%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftownhall.com%2Ftipsheet%2Fdmitri-bolt%2F2026%2F06%2F19%2Fthe-trump-admin-continues-to-crack-down-on-fraud-n2678006

The article concludes:

She (Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins) went on to praise Vice President JD Vance’s leadership in the White House Fraud Task Force, as the Trump administration has made rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse a central priority.

“The vice president has done a remarkable job of leading the fraud task force. And he and our other senior team has said the more fraud we can root out, the more we can protect those who really need these programs, but also protect the taxpayer and ensure that we’re doing everything we can to finally balance the budget,” Rollins added. “The federal government’s footprint has significantly shrunk. I read that the government is about the same size today as it was in the 1960s, which is a remarkable achievement as we move people from welfare to work. But this fraud is a really big component of that.”

Just ending the fraud in government spending will put us much closer to balancing the federal budget.

How We Got The Department Of Education And What It Has Done

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On Saturday, Amuse-X posted an article reviewing some of the history of the Department of Education and the impact it has had on America children’s education. The formation of the Department was an attempt to get President Jimmy Carter re-elected in 1980. Obviously, it didn’t work.

The article reports:

The Department of Education was not born of an educational emergency. It was born of a campaign promise. During his 1976 run for the White House, Jimmy Carter pledged the National Education Association that he would create a stand-alone, Cabinet-level education department, and in exchange the NEA gave the first presidential endorsement in its history. This was a union that had wanted a federal department for roughly a century, and that had never before put its weight behind a candidate. In 1976 it did, and the payoff in raw political muscle arrived immediately. Some 172 NEA delegates sat at the 1976 Democratic convention, the largest single bloc in the hall. Walter Mondale, whose own brother worked for the union, carried the promise to the membership. The transaction was not subtle, and the principals did not pretend otherwise.

…Now follow the money, because the scale is the point. When the Department opened in 1980 its budget, in constant 2024 dollars, stood at roughly $56.9 billion. By 2024 that figure had climbed to $268.4 billion, nearly a fivefold increase in real terms. In nominal dollars the jump is starker still, from about $14 billion at the founding to $268 billion today. Summed across more than four decades of outlays, cumulative federal education spending runs into the trillions, more than $4 trillion by reasonable accounting. And this is only the federal slice. Taken as a whole, American education spends at levels no other nation approaches. In 2024 the US led the world with $1.353 trillion in government education spending, with China a distant second near $906 billion. Our K-12 systems spend an average of $20,387 per pupil, third highest among 40 developed OECD nations. At the college level we spend $37,400 per student, behind only Luxembourg and more than double the OECD average. By every measure of inputs, we are not merely generous. We are first.

The article concludes:

So the conclusion writes itself, and it is not a call for one more reform or one more reorganization, the traditional Washington ritual of renaming failure. It is a call to finish what Reagan started. Gut the Department of Education. Return its genuinely necessary functions to the states that ran them competently for generations, and return its dollars to the families and classrooms the agency was supposedly built to serve. We have run the experiment. We tripled the money and we froze the mind. The kindest thing we can say about the Department of Education is that it faithfully served the adults who created it. The truest thing we can say is that it was never built for the children, and after 50 years and more than $4 trillion, the children’s own results have told us so.

Please follow the link to read the entire article. It tells a story we all need to be aware of.

God Is Alive And Well And Working In Israel

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On Friday, 7 Israeli National News posted an article about a miracle on the Israel-Lebanon border.

The article reports:

Elyashiv, a soldier in the IDF Military Rabbinate, may have inadvertently saved many lives by providing a religious service to soldiers.

Approximately a month and a half ago, as part of his job, Elyashiv installed an eruv at a military outpost near the Lebanese border.

An eruv is a boundary, typically created using poles and strings, that, under Jewish law, permits Jews to carry items such as keys, prayer books, and food within the enclosed area on the Sabbath.

A few days after the installation, Hezbollah launched an explosive FPV drone toward the area. The drone got tangled in the eruv’s string and could not continue its flight.

As a result, the drone detonated on the eruv and did not fall to the ground. No one was injured in the incident.

God has a very special relationship with Israel.

In referring to the descendants of Abraham, Genesis 12:3 (New International Version) states:

3 I will bless those who bless you,
    and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
    will be blessed through you.”[a]

The fact that the Jewish people still exist after everything that has been done to them is a miracle.

Fighting For Your Religious Beliefs

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On Friday, Just the News posted an article about a lawsuit filed by a group of Catholic nuns against the State of New York.

The article reports:

The Justice Department is indicating it will intervene in a lawsuit filed in New York by Catholic nuns after the state forced them to house biological men with women.

The Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne allege that the New York law requiring the housing of biological men with women violates the U.S. Constitution’s equal protection clause, and the DOJ agrees.

“States should take notice that they cannot require Americans to abandon their religious beliefs in the name of woke gender ideology,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in a statement Thursday announcing the DOJ’s involvement. 

“For more than a century, the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne have provided free palliative care to indigent cancer patients in their last days. New York’s law would force these religious women to choose between their faith and their license if they wish to continue serving the dying.”

The DOJ’s complaint alleges that New York Public Health Law § 2803-c-2 violates the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause by forcing religious facilities to violate their beliefs. The New York law requires long-term care facilities to provide rooms to transgender residents based on their “gender identity” rather than their biological sex, and forces facility staff to use preferred pronouns and names.

The First Amendment does not provide ‘freedom from’ religion–it provides the freedom to practice your religion. The requirements that the State of New York is placing on these nuns are in violation of the nuns’ religious belief that biological sex is God-given and cannot be changed, and doing so is a form of lying. This should be an easy victory for the nuns.

Who Is In Charge?

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On June 19th, The New York Post posted an article with some concerning news about Iran.

The article reports:

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz was flowing Friday — under Iran’s monitoring — after a radio message to vessels in the region suggested the waterway had been closed over tensions with Israel and the US.

“The armed forces of Iran, in accordance with the memorandum of understanding [MOU] to end the war dated June 18, 2026, have taken the necessary measures to ensure the safe passage of commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, and shipping in this route is currently underway,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Friday, according to Iran’s Fars News Agency.

Earlier, an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) statement read over maritime radio channels warned vessels from entering the strait because the US was in violation of the MOU between Washington and Tehran, which President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed Wednesday.

I suspect that this is only the beginning of the problem of knowing who is in charge in Iran. We took out the first two tiers of leadership, and now the Iranian elites are fighting among themselves for control. That is a good thing for America and a bad thing for Iran.

The article concludes:

Meanwhile, Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) — which Tehran recently formed so it could control the strait and, critics say, charge fees — released a set of new “terms and conditions” for ships passing through the vital waterway.

While the MOU requires Iran to hold off demanding payment from shipping firms for the next 60 days, the document explicitly states Tehran “reserves the right to introduce” new fees in the future.

The document also requires all ships to get a permit from the PGSA to pass through the strait, which was not required before the war began Feb. 28, as the strait is considered international waters.

The White House and State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Frankly, I will be surprised if the Iran deal lasts for two weeks. I am not sure it was meant to last. I believe it was meant to illustrate the character of those currently in charge in Iran.

If They Came Here Illegally, They Didn’t Respect Our Laws

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There have been a lot of people who came into America in recent years who came here illegally. Not all of them were bad people–some were simply fleeing really bad situations and hoping for a better life in America. However, there were some bad people in the group. All of those who came here illegally showed a lack of respect for America’s laws. Some became law-abiding citizens, but some others continued on a downward spiral of ignoring the law.

On Thursday, Breitbart posted an article about the actions of some of the questionable people who entered America illegally.

The article reports:

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced charges against 15 individuals, including 11 illegal aliens, for a benefits fraud scheme in which the suspects allegedly stole some $1.4 million in food stamps, health benefits, disability benefits, and unemployment benefits.

At a press conference in Boston, Massachusetts, Thursday federal officials detailed the charges brought against the 11 illegal aliens and four American citizens, including how much each individual is accused of stealing and from which benefits programs.

Here a just a few examples:

    • Heriberto Rodriguez of Framingham, Mass., is charged with passport fraud, SNAP fraud, and aggravated identity theft in connection with $546,463 in total benefit fraud loss ($175,182 in MassHealth fraud; $146,944 in Social Security fraud; $185,194 in HUD fraud; and $39,000 in SNAP fraud);
    • Mirian Chalas, 33, a U.S. citizen living in Salem N.H., is charged with making false statements in connection with $266,000 in MassHealth fraud; $25,000 in Social Security Disability fraud; and $12,000 in SNAP fraud;
    • Santo Escolastico Cuello, 56, a Dominican national unlawfully living in Worcester, Mass., is charged with aggravated identity theft and making false statements relating to a health care program in connection with $162,180 in MassHealth fraud;
    • John Doe, age unknown, suspected to be in the United States illegally, is charged with false representation of a Social Security number, aggravated identity theft and making false statements relating to a health care program in connection with MassHealth fraud totaling $75,000;

These are not people we want in our country.

The article concludes:

“There isn’t any place else in the world where you can go and be handed free food, free housing, free healthcare and free monthly checks, while being in the country illegally,” Foley said. “However, it appears that you can come to Massachusetts and steal as many benefits as you want without fear and without any accountability. This is all ending on my watch. Beginning today, we will be announcing benefit fraud charges on a rolling basis.”

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin said each of the illegal aliens will be deported once their sentences are served, should they be convicted.

The illegals need to be deported immediately after their trials if they are found guilty. Why do we need to house and feed them? The American citizens involved should spend a long time in jail.

Taking A Stand

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I need to say up front that I don’t hate or dislike gay people. What they do in their private lives is none of my business. However, when an organization tries to convince me that an alternative lifestyle should be celebrated, I am not impressed. On Thursday, Fox News posted an article about some members of a professional baseball team who refused to celebrate the homosexual lifestyle.

The article reports:

A professional baseball team in Pennsylvania will be forfeiting a game Thursday that was scheduled to be the team’s Pride Night after players refused to wear LGBTQ-themed jerseys, the team announced.

The York Revolution of the Atlantic League, the same league in which Trevor Bauer plays, said the decision “was not reached lightly” in announcing the forfeit against the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs Wednesday.

The team was not afraid to throw its players under the bus in a rather scathing statement, saying it was “deeply troubled and profoundly disappointed by the decisions of these few players.”

The players have every right to stand up for what they believe.

The article notes:

“To be clear, this action by the players is completely inconsistent with our vision as the Most Welcoming Place in York,” the team’s statement continued.

The jerseys, which would have been worn on the team’s 11th annual Pride Night, had rainbow sleeves.

The team announced it would be making a $10,000 donation to the Rainbow Rose Center “as a small token of our regret for the last-minute change of plans and support for our LGBTQIA+ representing partners … to support and further their work in making sure the York community is as inclusive as we strive to make WellSpan Park in York, Pennsylvania.”

When is the league going to host ‘heterosexual pride day’?

The Long-Term Consequences Of Closing The Strait Of Hormuz

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On Wednesday, The Liberty Daily posted an article detailing some of the plans to Middle Eastern countries to avoid the problems of a shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz in the future. This is called good planning. I remember Pat Robertson being concerned about the possibility of a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz back in the 1990’s. Iran’s using the closing of the Strait as a weapon should really have not surprised anyone.

The article reports:

The shuttered Strait of Hormuz is expected to reopen within days, though conflicting reports suggest the US-Iran memorandum of understanding could be formally signed as early as today, Thursday, or Friday. Either way, the interim peace deal appears likely to be signed within the next 48 hours, setting the stage for energy flows through the critical maritime chokepoint to begin normalizing, a process that could take many months.

The broader takeaway is that buyers of crude, refined products, and LNG now have to rethink their sourcing stack after the US-Iran conflict effectively shut Hormuz for several months. That means diversifying supply chains and reducing exposure to single-point maritime chokepoints. For Gulf energy producers, the Hormuz disruption will accelerate a massive push toward alternative export channels that bypass Hormuz entirely, potentially reducing Tehran’s ability to use the strait as a lever in future conflicts.

The article includes the following map:

The article concludes:

The UAE can reroute more crude through pipelines to eastern ports, but LNG, aluminum, container imports, and other commodities are harder to shift. Dubai’s Jebel Ali remains the world’s largest container hub outside Asia, and moving more cargo through eastern ports would raise inland transport costs and boost shipping times.

In recent weeks, the Iraqi cabinet approved plans to accelerate crude exports through the Kurdistan-Turkey pipeline network, which would more than triple its existing shipments from 220,000 barrels per day to 770,000.

“Iraq is in a much more complicated situation because we know that most, if not all, of its oil transits through Hormuz,” Alan Lemangnen, senior economist at QuantCube, told CNBC in an interview.

What is becoming increasingly clear is that the Hormuz squeeze is rewiring the Persian Gulf’s energy map. Over time, that shift could render Iran’s leverage over the Hormuz chokepoint far less effective, if not obsolete.

Perhaps Tehran has already read the writing on the wall. That may help explain why Iranian officials are now willing to play ball with the Trump administration through an MoU to reopen Hormuz and eventually enter talks over the country’s nuclear ambitions.

I am not sure how many countries in the Middle East believe that the Strait will remain open permanently.

Moving Shipping Through The Strait Again

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On Thursday, Zero Hedge posted an article about resuming shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

The article reports:

  • Kuwait Petroleum CEO says Energy Production to Ramp in a Week 
  • Iran Media says Southern Ports Traffic Begins Normalizing 
  • Hormuz Normalization Begins As Saudi Supertankers Exit And A Flood Of Persian Gulf Oil Heads For Asia

The article notes:

Energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz are beginning to restart on Thursday after the interim U.S.-Iran peace deal, with several Saudi-controlled supertankers transiting the critical waterway and exiting the Persian Gulf.

There is a massive backlog of crude and LNG tankers in the Persian Gulf, preparing to exit the Hormuz chokepoint bound for Asia. Bloomberg says 31 supertankers, carrying about 62 million barrels of crude, could soon exit.

The actual number of crude and LNG tankers preparing to exit could be much higher, as some tankers may turn off their transponders. Once exited, many of those tankers are slated for ports in East Asia and will take roughly three weeks to arrive.

One of the key developments overnight was that three Saudi-controlled supertankers, including Bahri-controlled Saudi VLCCs Shaden, Jaham, and Awtad, switched on their transponders and began exiting the Persian Gulf.

Maritime traffic remains far below normal levels and could take many months to return to normal.

This is good news. There are also other consequences of the reopening of the Strait that are good news. If the price of a barrel of oil drops to $50 or $60 a barrel, it is going to be very difficult for Russia to fund its war in Ukraine. The other piece of good news will be the price of gasoline at the pump in America and around the world.

I am not totally sold on the Iran deal, but it may be a necessary interim step. America has never done a good job of regime change in other countries, so it may be just as well that we did not insist on it in Iran. Iran is currently being governed by its third string (we bombed the first two out of existence), and it is quite possible that the third string is operating in a way that wants to avoid the fate of the first two strings!

The Atrocities Hidden By The Cover-Up

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This article is rated PG-13.

On Thursday, Hot Air posted an article about what the investigations into the ‘grooming gangs’ scandal in Britain.

The article reports:

Rupert Lowe, who ran the independent grooming gang (rape gang) inquiry because the Labour Party refused to do so, has released his report to the public. 

It is so, so, SO much worse than anybody imagined. Which, you would have thought, was impossible. After all, given what we knew, how could it be?

Well, it turns out that no matter how much you hate the British ruling elite, it is not nearly enough.

Now, while some people—mostly Muslim advocacy groups—are claiming that the inquiry was biased and that all the testifiers were lying slags, few people actually believe that. Even the government, which up until now has resisted any disclosure and tried to tamp down the crisis, has ordered local police forces to investigate offenses dating back over a decade.

The cover-up is, if not completely exposed, no longer tenable. What we know is far too explosive.

According to an X post included in the article:

The inquiry estimates AT LEAST 250,000 girls. A QUARTER MILLION. They are overwhelmingly white girls and they were raped, trafficked & tortured over decades. The 250k number is the MINIMUM, the FLOOR… there are likely even more than this.

The article notes:

The sheer scale and time frame in which this took place is staggering. The earliest cases date back to the 1950s, which explains why the sheer number of victims is so large. I would assume that the reason things got going then was the collapse of British India and the subsequent wave of migration to the UK. There were two massive waves of immigration from the region—the 1950s, during post-war reconstruction, and since the 1990s, when “Global Britain” became a thing.

The article concludes:

All this matters to us across the pond for a simple reason: Britain is not some alien culture, and this is not some ancient tragedy. This is what a modern liberal democracy based on the same fundamental system of justice and traditions can do when it deviates from the norms we have all come to expect.

We tend to assume that “that couldn’t happen here,” when all the evidence is that it certainly could. For all the wallowing in generational guilt when it comes to “colonialism,” it turns out that the sense of guilt so distorts our consciences that we turn our back on our own citizens.

“What did you think decolonialism looked like?” That was the leftist refrain after October 7th. You could say the same thing here.

This is what decolonial ideology leads to. And it is uglier than you can imagine, just as October 7th was.

A Few Observations On Iran

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On June 18th, Victor Davis Hanson posted an article about the war in Iran at American Greatness. The purpose of the article is to clear up some of the current misconceptions about the war and the agreement to end the war.

The article begins with addressing the mistaken idea that the Strait of Hormuz was open before the war and is now closed, so the war was a failure.

The article notes:

The Strait was open because an appeased Iran had no reason to close it—given that no nation on earth dared to end its nuclear dreams of dominating the Middle East, funding anti-Western terrorists, and threatening Europe and the U.S.

So the rub was always disarming Iran and then dealing with its inevitable desperate strategy of closing the Strait.

The second misconception is that Trump’s agreement will simply be a copy of Obama’s earlier Iran deal.

The article notes:

Obama dealt from a position of abject weakness. Iran assumed correctly that Obama would offer endless concessions and cash, while never considering force.

Does Obama really believe that Iran in 2015 was stronger than it is now after 40 days of intense American, Israeli, and Gulf state bombing?

Trump is dealing with a bankrupt Iran, a neutered military, a restive Iranian street, a wounded regime, and the specter that the U.S. can do whatever it wishes militarily to a shattered Iran for the foreseeable future.

The next misconception is that the U.S. is bereft of allies and strategically isolated in the war.

The article notes:

During the war, the unthinkable occurred when Israel de facto became an ally of the Arab Gulf monarchies. Other than a few rogue nations and Arab terrorist clients—the weakened Hezbollah, the crushed Hamas, and the wary Houthis—Iran has zero friends.

Neither China nor Russia offered Iran much in the way of aid, other than satellite imagery and some smuggled supplies. Both lost their once-prominent positions among clients in the Middle East who deeply resented their siding with Persian Shiite theocrats over Arab oil suppliers and arms buyers.

Israel has more combat aircraft than the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. The Gulf monarchies do so as well. Both Israel and the Gulf states have been flying bombing missions against Iran. There is a far greater chance of Arab-Israeli rapprochement after the war than before it.

Please follow the link to read the entire article. It explains exactly where we are right now.

Securing All Of Our Border

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On Wednesday, Fox News posted an article about a recent incident in Florida involving the role of the Coast Guard in border security.

The article reports:

In a stark warning that U.S. borders are closed “by land or sea,” the U.S. Coast Guard opened fire to disable a noncompliant vessel attempting to smuggle 25 Chinese nationals into the country off the coast of Florida.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told Fox News Digital that on June 10, a boat carrying 25 illegal immigrants from China refused to comply with Coast Guard orders to stop one mile south of Key Biscayne.

Crews from Coast Guard Station Miami Beach initially deployed warning shots, but when those proved ineffective, they used “disabling fire” to successfully halt the vessel, according to DHS. No injuries were reported.

…”This sends a clear message to illegal aliens attempting to enter the United States: don’t even think about it,” Bis told Fox News Digital. “By land or sea, our borders are CLOSED.”

Lt. Matthew Ross, commanding officer of Coast Guard Station Miami Beach, emphasized local, state and federal maritime law enforcement partners remain vigilant against unlawful migration ventures.

The article concludes:

“Anyone considering one of these dangerous voyages should understand that they are risking their lives at sea and can expect to be interdicted and repatriated,” Ross said.

The enforcement action falls under Operation Vigilant Sentry, a layered approach by the Coast Guard and its partners to maintain a continuous presence across the Florida Straits, Caribbean Sea and surrounding waters to deter and prevent illegal maritime migration.

The process for legal immigration needs to be simplified and made more accessible to people who want to come here. However, at the same time, immigration needs to be limited to numbers that can assimilate into America, and people who don’t plan to assimilate should be denied entry to America.

The Need To Know Who Is In The Country Illegally

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On June 18th, The New York Post posted an article about the alleged ringleader in the planned attack on the White House during President Trump’s birthday celebration.

The article reports:

The alleged “ringleader” of the explosive drone attack plot against the UFC event at the White House is an illegal immigrant from Mexico, the Department of Homeland Security said Thursday.

Abraham Alvarez, 31, came to the US as a child and failed to leave the country when his B2 visa expired in 2001, but was granted deportation relief under the Obama administration through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Alvarez was one of five alleged co-conspirators in the scheme to kill President Trump and other top government officials at the combat sports spectacle held late Sunday on the White House South Lawn attended by thousands of fight fans.

The plotters allegedly wanted to attack the UFC Freedom 250 event with explosive-laden drones and then pick off fleeing members of the crowd with a team of snipers.

Authorities told the outlet Alvarez was responsible for planning, organizing and directing the coordinated attack, which was thwarted by the FBI and local authorities.

“This illegal alien from Mexico should never have been allowed in our country,” DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “He was the ringleader of a failed terror attack targeting UFC Freedom 250 at the White House.”

“He will face justice and swiftly be removed from our country,” she added of Alvarez.

Let’s hope that if this man is convicted when he eventually stands trial, he is deported. Let’s hope that at that time (which could be years from now) we have a President who is enforcing the border so that this alleged plotter cannot sneak back into the country.

Some Thoughts On World Cup Soccer

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“You Don’t Know What You’ve Got Until You Lose It” was a 1961 hit song written by Paul Hampton and George Burton and recorded by Ral Donner. That lyric applies to a lot of Americans right now. I hope we never lose what we have in America, but many of us are a long way from appreciating our country and way of life.

The Europeans and Asians who are here to see the World Cup are giving Americans a lesson in appreciating the life we live in America. Our visitors are posting their adventures on X, YouTube, and Instagram, and the videos and comments are being shared on Facebook and across all social media. Please search these posts out if you have not yet seen them. The visiting Europeans and Asians appreciate many simple things Americans take for granted.

I love the videos of visitors experiencing Buc-ee’s for the first time. One visitor was amazed at people having their picture taken with a statue of a giant rodent. Visitors visiting a restaurant discovered ranch dressing. There is also a video of a visitor discovering free drink refills. These are things we take for granted as Americans.

The visiting Europeans and Asians brought some of their own national personalities here. The Japanese cleaned up one of the stadiums after the game. The Norwegians sat down on an escalator and rowed in sync. The Norwegians also did “the row” in one of the stadiums where Americans might do “the wave.”

I wasn’t all that excited when I heard that the World Cup was coming to America, but now I can really see the value of the event. Much of the world is simply having fun together and enjoying a sport. Many of the world’s ideas about America are being changed. Many of the visitors have talked about how friendly Americans are.

As Americans, we need to wake up and realize that we live in the greatest country in the world–and we are free.

This is one example of the adventures of our visitors:

A Good Temporary Move

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On June 17th, The Gateway Pundit posted an article about the results of the first Federal Reserve Board meeting since Kevin Warsh became Chairman.

The article reports:

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday held rates steady in Kevin Warsh’s first meeting as Fed Chairman.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) voted unanimously to keep rates unchanged.

The benchmark rate is currently 3.5% to 3.75%.

Late last year the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates by 75 basis points – or 0.75%.

I believe that at least temporarily this is a good move. Right now we are experiencing some degree of inflation because of the impact of the war in Iran. If the peace treaty holds, that inflation will subside, and rates can be lowered in the future. I have read that despite the treaty about to go into effect, drones are being fired at ships in the Strait of Hormuz. If that firing continues, I am not sure the treaty will hold. The fighting in Lebanon also may have so impact on the success of the treaty.

The article quotes CNBC:

Kevin Warsh’s first meeting as Federal Reserve chairman concluded Wednesday with no change in interest rates, the removal of key language indicating a bias toward future cuts, and a dramatically shorter policy statement.

The Federal Open Market Committee voted unanimously to keep its benchmark overnight borrowing rate anchored in a range of 3.5%-3.75%. The federal funds rate has held there since the central bank lowered rates by three-quarters of a percentage point in the latter part of 2025.

With a bevy of intrigue over Warsh taking the central bank helm, the meeting followed the same pattern as the others this year regarding rates but differved otherwise.

Wall Street did not like this decision. I think that all things considered, it was the right decision. The decision also affirms the independence of the Federal Reserve from the wishes of the President. I wish we could get rid of the Federal Reserve, but as long as we have it, I don’t want it controlled by the White House, regardless of who is President. If you have never read THE CREATURE FROM JEKYLL ISLAND by G. Edward Griffin, this would be a really good time to read it.

What Is Promised vs What The Numbers Actually Say

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On Monday, The Washington Free Beacon posted an article about Democratic Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger’s decision to rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

The article reports:

Democratic Virginia governor Abigail Spanberger’s decision to reenter her state into a controversial green energy program is projected to cost Virginians nearly $1.2 billion over the next two years, due to higher electric bills, despite Spanberger’s claim that the move was about “cost savings” and “lowering bills for families who need help most,” according to state filings.

Spanberger’s Republican predecessor, Glenn Youngkin, had pulled Virginia out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative in 2022, calling it a hidden and “regressive” tax that disproportionately impacted lower-income families.

The RGGI, which critics say functions like a carbon tax, forces utility companies in participating states—11 Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states, all but one with a Democratic governor—to pay states for greenhouse gases they emit. The states are then supposed to reinvest that money into green energy programs, including so-called environmental justice programs that make the homes of lower-income families more energy efficient. That would, the theory goes, eventually lower these families’ electric bills.

Spanberger, who ran as a moderate Democrat in 2024 but since entering the governor’s mansion has pulled the state sharply to the left, quickly rejoined the RGGI.

The article notes:

Dominion Energy, the state’s main electricity provider, calculated RGGI’s shocking $1.2 billion price tag for Virginians based on the number of “allowances” it would be forced to buy to account for the carbon emissions from its power plants, according to the filings it submitted this month with state regulators.

Typically, power companies subject to the RGGI simply pass down the costs to their customers. Dominion said the $1.2 billion allowance cost would be applied to residential bills in the form of a surcharge, increasing the average Virginian household’s electric bill by roughly $13 per month, or 7.5 percent. Virginia’s State Corporation Commission must approve that surcharge before Dominion can implement it.

Green energy programs are generally NOT about green energy. They are generally about funneling money to entitles and friends who make large donations to Democrat candidates.

I’m Grateful For The Federal Bureau Of Investigation (FBI)

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On June 16th, Fox News posted an article about the most recent attempt to attack the White House.

The article reports:

The FBI and its law enforcement partners disrupted an alleged plot targeting this weekend’s UFC Freedom 250 event in Washington, D.C., officials told Fox News Digital.

Five people were in custody as of Monday, and investigators identified 23 people as part of a potential network of plotters. The alleged plan involved using explosive-laden drones to hit buildings near the event, force a mass evacuation and steer crowds toward a pre-staged sniper team, officials said.

A “second wave” was then allegedly planned to storm the White House gate, according to officials.

The FBI first learned of the threat on June 10 and worked with partners to secure probable cause for an arrest in Cincinnati, where one suspect was taken into custody.

…Investigators later uncovered Signal chats in which multiple people allegedly discussed attacking the UFC event. An initial review of one suspect’s iPhone identified at least 23 Signal users discussing pre-operational activity, officials said.

Some of those involved allegedly planned to travel to Fredericksburg, Virginia, on June 12 or 13 to prepare for the attack.

One suspect allegedly told investigators the goal was to target “capitalist elites,” “billionaires” or politicians who received donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

This planned attack is the result of the rhetoric we are currently hearing from the Democrats and the mainstream media. It is not only anti-Semitic, it is anti-American.

I hope all the events centered around America’s 250th birthday will have the increased security they deserve. Some of the rhetoric from the media and from the anti-Semitic elements of America is not helpful.

Is This A Surprise To Anyone?

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On June 16th, Hot Air posted an article about the latest scandal involving the Obama Presidential Library. The Obama administration claimed to be scandal-free, but much of the information coming out about the administration since President Obama left office has shown that was not the case. The Obama Presidential Library is also not scandal-free.

The article reports:

It'[s going to be a big party when the doors open, but there are some people who were involved in the construction who might not have the thirty bucks to get a ticket to darken the doors.

It turns out there are many unhappy and unpaid contractors on this massive project, and a required endowment for future maintenance and repairs on behalf of the Obama Foundation of $470 million that has never once climbed above the initial $1 million deposited in the account years ago.

,,,The Obama Presidential Center opens to the public on Chicago’s South Side on June 19, the Juneteenth holiday, with a grand opening ceremony the night before. The 19.3-acre campus in Jackson Park houses a 225-foot museum tower, a digital library, an athletic facility, a café, conference space, a branch of the Chicago Public Library, and offices for the Obama Foundation, which will run the center as a private nonprofit.

The center cost roughly $850 million to build, nearly triple the original $300 million projection. Public infrastructure spending tied to the project has crossed $350 million by state and city transportation department figures alone, with no agency producing a final consolidated total. 

A $470 million reserve fund the Obama Foundation pledged to seed for the center’s long-term operations stands at roughly $1 million. Median rents in the neighborhoods near the campus have risen 43 percent and home values 130 percent since the center was first announced in 2015. Days before the opening, several Black-owned subcontractors who built the campus say they are owed millions and are fighting to keep their businesses open.

In March, Fox News reported:

The Obama Foundation is looking for 100 unpaid volunteers to work alongside the former president’s highly paid cronies at the $850 million Obama Presidential Center in Chicago when it opens in June.

Officials are pitching the no-paycheck gigs as rooted in former President Barack Obama’s legacy of civic engagement. The recruitment campaign comes after Fox News Digital reported that the organization’s CEO, former top Obama aide Valerie Jarrett, was paid $740,000 in 2024.

Maybe the people paying the bills at the library need to revisit their priorities.

A Victory For The First Amendment

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On Monday,  The Alliance Defending Freedom posted an article about a recent lawsuit brought by a North Carolina high school student who was defending her First Amendment right to free speech.

The article reports:

To settle a lawsuit brought by a North Carolina high school student and her parents after school officials censored the student and repeatedly violated her constitutional rights, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education agreed to adopt a new student speech policy, exonerate the student, and pay $95,000 in damages and attorneys’ fees.

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys represent the Ardrey Kell High School junior, who seeks to share her Christian faith and values with others at school. After the assassination of free speech advocate Charlie Kirk last year, she felt inspired to use her voice to commemorate Kirk’s strong public defense of Christianity. She received permission from the school to paint a message on the school’s “spirit rock”—a large boulder on school grounds frequently used for the expression of various messages—in support of Kirk’s Christian message. Within hours, however, school officials ordered her message to be censored and then engaged in public efforts to humiliate her and the friends who helped her, prompting the lawsuit, G.S. v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education.

…The student had seen other messages on the rock—ranging from support of National Football League teams to Black Lives Matter—so last September, after receiving permission from school officials, the student, her parents, and two fellow students painted it with the words “Freedom 1776” and “Live Like Kirk—John 11:25.” Within hours, the student learned from social media that officials ordered the “Live Like Kirk—John 11:25” portion to be painted over.

The next day, school officials sent out a schoolwide e-mail accusing her of “vandalism” and said that law enforcement was conducting an investigation; the statement aired on a local news station as well. The day after that, officials called the student out of class to write an official statement describing her actions and forced her to show them her phone logs. School officials never obtained permission from parents to go through her phone, nor did they inform the students or parents about their constitutional right to remain silent and contact an attorney during a criminal investigation.

I hope she received enoughs of the settlement to make a serious addition to her college fund!

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There will  be no articles on the Iran peace deal until I have a clue. Right now we don’t have the details, and I do know that Israel is not happy. However, there are a lot of moving parts to this deal, and I am waiting until we know the details to post them. None of my good Middle Eastern sources are currently saying much.

Saving Taxpayer Money By Educating Doctors

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On June 15th, The Federalist posted an article about Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s push to prioritize nutrition education in medical training. You really are what you eat, and the American diet is anything but healthy.

The article reports:

Under the leadership of Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nutrition education will now be prioritized in U.S. medical organizations through a new initiative to equip doctors to tackle America’s burgeoning health crisis. This joint effort of both the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education aims to raise the standards of nutritional education for a variety of the nation’s foremost medical organizations, including medical schools and hospitals. In addition to the 54 medical schools that have previously vowed to implement a minimum of 40 hours of nutrition education, 19 more schools voluntarily agreed to do so, signing the Nutrition Education Pledge, HHS announced Monday. This growing initiative will affect more than 52,000 medical students in 36 states.

Kennedy has spearheaded the initiative as a way to help combat America’s chronic disease crisis. America has a comparatively high rate of chronic illness, with conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease ranking among some of the nation’s leading causes of death. Many of these diseases are caused by a combination of factors, such as lifestyle choices and poor exercise. However, one of the major factors leading to chronic illness is poor nutrition.

“Poor diets are the primary driver of America’s chronic disease epidemic,” Kennedy stated Monday. “Today’s announcement reflects the shifting landscape toward placing nutrition and prevention at the core of patient health.”

The article notes:

Battling chronic disease won’t just save HHS money; it will also save on the entire nation’s medical costs, giving much needed relief to taxpayers. America spends about $5.3 trillion on health care per year. From the budget, more than $4.5 trillion goes to chronic diseases and mental health care. Cardiovascular diseases directly cost America’s healthcare system $223.2 billion annually, with that number slated to hit $2 trillion within the next 25 years.

It is going to be interesting to watch this play out. Secretary Kennedy is right, but Americans are addicted to fast food and unhealthy diets. It will be interesting to see if that addiction can be broken.