There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. —Soren Kierkegaard. "…truth is true even if nobody believes it, and falsehood is false even if everybody believes it. That is why truth does not yield to opinion, fashion, numbers, office, or sincerity–it is simply true and that is the end of it" – Os Guinness, Time for Truth, pg.39. “He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.” – Blaise Pascal. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. We live in a “post-truth” world. According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Going beyond the MSM idealogical opinion/bias and their low information tabloid reality show news with a distractional superficial focus on entertainment, sensationalism, emotionalism and activist reporting – this blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” ― Soren Kierkegaard
John Bradford (1510–1555) was an English Reformer, prebendary of St. Paul’s, and martyr. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London for alleged crimes against Queen Mary I. He was burned at the stake on 1 July 1555.
We can all agree that when it comes to membership in the human race, worry is part of the package. We also know that it’s a useless and unhealthy vice.
Corrie ten Boom used to recite a little couplet: “Worry is an old man with bended head, carrying a load of feathers which he thinks are lead.” She understood that anxiety is ultimately foolish because it concerns that which isn’t. It lives in a future that can’t be foreseen. It deals in what-ifs and could-bes, speculation and possibility.
And as long as we dwell on the worst-case scenario, we guarantee our own misery, for an extensive catalog of calamity is always within reach of the imagination.
Worry in the Bible
The Bible chooses its language carefully when describing worry. The basic Biblical word has the meaning of “to take thought” or “to be careful.” Those are good things, at first glance. But the Greek gives us the word picture of a divided mind. The worrier has a mind torn between the real and the possible, the immediate and the potential. He’s trying to fight the battle of life on two fronts, and he’s bound to lose the war.
The worrier attempts to live in the future, and that presents him with two problems: the future isn’t here, and the future isn’t his. Nothing can be done, and no amount of worrying affects the issue one iota. The future is unknown, uncontrollable, and therefore irrelevant in terms of our peace of mind.
When Jesus preached the greatest sermon of all history (found in Matthew 5–7), He was very clear on this issue of anxiety. In a nine-verse passage in Matthew 6, He uses the expression “Don’t worry” three times. So if you’d like to have the teachings of Jesus on the subject of anxiety, we can state them in full in two words: don’t worry.
Realistic Concern vs. Restless Anxiety
There are those who quote Philippians 4:6 (“Be anxious for nothing”) as an excuse for a careless lifestyle. “Don’t worry, be happy.” But that’s not what we’re talking about at all. If you don’t worry about your children playing near traffic, you’re a terrible parent. If you’re not concerned about walking off the roof of a skyscraper, you’ll learn the meaning of that old poster that said, “Gravity: It’s not just a good idea. It’s the law.”
But realistic concern and restless anxiety are separate matters. So what is the difference? In short, concern focuses on the present; worry is attached to the future. The present is before us, and there are actions we can take. The future is out of our hands.
Jesus wants us to live — a day at a time. There’s a reason God placed us within the moment, bracketed away from both the past and the future. They’re both off-limits to us, and we need to post No Trespassing signs. The past is closed for good, and the future is still under construction. But today has everything you need.
That’s what you and I must do when the world seems upside down. We must dwell on the miracle of what lies before us today, this moment, this second. All else is dim by comparison.
Weapons Against Worry
I’d like to leave you with some weapons you can use against worry — four verses to help you when your mind is prone to anxiety, and six words to rally around. Copy the following verses down and keep them handy. Better yet, commit them to memory.
“Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me” (Psalm 50:15, NKJV).
“Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved” (Psalm 55:22, NKJV).
“Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7, NKJV).
And here is the pinnacle passage concerning worry: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” — Philippians 4:6–7 (NKJV)
And what are the six words of wisdom for worriers?
Worry about nothing — pray about everything!
Make those words your battle cry as you take on the giant of worry.
Will you finish the race strong? Dr. David Jeremiah offers biblically based keys to keeping your faith steadfast when life hits you hard. Regardless of the circumstances, God will hold you up to help you face whatever comes your way.
Keep the Faith is published by HarperCollins Christian Publishing, the parent company of Bible Gateway.
Spiritual growth is possible because of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit actively works in our lives to make us more like Christ. He accomplishes His sanctifying work in a number of different ways:
He Intercedes for Us – Ro. 8:26-27
There are times when we simply do not know what we should pray for. Life becomes so overwhelming that we feel like we can’t even find the words to pray. In those moments, we can take heart in the fact that the Spirit overcomes our weakness by praying on our behalf. With full knowledge, wisdom, and power, He prays for those things that perfectly match God’s will for our lives. As one Bible teacher notes, “Our failure to understand God’s purposes and plans, to ‘see the beginning from the end,’ does not mean that effective, powerful prayer for our specific needs is absent.”[1] Knowing that the Spirit is praying for us gives us quiet confidence in the power, presence, and purposes of God in times of uncertainty or suffering.
He Assures Us – Ro. 5:5; 8:15-16
Through His assuring ministry, the Spirit makes us increasingly aware of God’s unwavering love for us in Christ. He plants within our hearts a love for the Lord and a growing understanding of His love for us. The Spirit confirms the genuineness of our salvation by the fruit He produces (Gal.5:22-23) and the power that He supplies for holiness and service (Acts 1:8; Ro.8:13).
The Spirit assuring us is part of His teaching ministry. He enables us to lay hold of the precious promises of God’s Word. As our minds are renewed through the Scriptures, He assures us that we are indeed God’s children.
He Comforts Us
The Spirit gives believers a joy and peace that the world cannot understand (Jn. 14:27; 15:11). In times of trouble and distress, the Spirit ministers His life-giving presence, peace, and comfort as we draw near to the Lord through prayer and the Word. In fact, one of the names of the Spirit is Comforter / Helper (Jn. 14:26; 15:26). The Spirit not only provides comfort, but also joy in the midst of our struggles. Because of the Spirit’s work, we can confidently declare that the “joy of the Lord is my strength” (Nehemiah 8:11).
He Illuminates the Scriptures – I Cor. 2:11-16
As we study the Scriptures, the Spirit gives us the grace to see and understand the importance, significance, and application of God’s Word. An unbeliever can, or course, understand the words he is reading from the Bible. He fails, however, to grasp the importance of God’s Word because he doesn’t have the Spirit within him.
It’s important to note that the Spirit illuminates our minds and hearts as we prayerfully study the Scriptures (2 Tim. 2:15). If we are not diligent to read, study, and meditate on God’s Word, we should not expect this ministry of the Spirit to take place in our lives.
He Teaches Us – Jn. 14:26; I Jn.2:20,27
The Spirit is referred to by Jesus as “the Spirit of Truth” (John 16:13). One of His primary ministries is to teach us the truth and guard us from error. There are a number of ways that He does this. For example, He convicts us of sin so that we might repent and be restored to fellowship with God. As mentioned earlier, He enables us to see the meaning, significance, and application of Scriptures as we study God’s Word.
I’ve heard some folks wrongly misconstrue this truth by arguing that believers don’t need pastors or teachers since the Spirit is our teacher. That argument, however, completely contradicts the clear teachings of Scripture. In the wisdom and kindness of God, the Spirit uses faithful teachers and pastors to teach us the truth of Scripture (Ro.12:7; Eph.4:11-16). God calls, gifts, and empowers pastors and teachers to faithfully, skillfully, and wisely teach the Scriptures to God’s people.
Guides Us
The book of Acts is filled with examples of the Spirit guiding faithful believers in their ministry endeavors (for example, Acts 8:29; 10:19-20; 13:2-4; 16:6-7; 20:22-23). These examples, however, do not necessarily mean that the Spirit guides us in the same way that He guided believers in the early church era. According to the Scriptures, the Spirit guides us through His Word (2 Tim. 3:16-17), godly counsel (Pr. 15:22; 20:18), providential circumstances (Acts 16:17), and godly desires that line up with Scriptural principles (Ps.37:3-5).
He Empowers or Fills Us – Eph. 5:18-21
To be “filled” with the Spirit is to be “under the influence” of His power. The Spirit empowers us so that we might live in obedience to God’s Word and bear the fruit of Christlikeness (Gal. 5:22-24). According to the Scriptures, there are two essential ingredients (for lack of a better term) for the filling of the Spirit:
God’s Word (Col. 3:17): God’s Spirit influences us through God’s Word. The more God’s Word “dwells richly within us,” the more the Holy Spirit empowers us to know and obey God’s commands.
Prayerful dependence (Eph. 3:14-21): God is the One who gives us the desire and the power to do His will (Phil. 2:13). Apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5). To be filled with the Spirit, we prayerfully depend upon God to do in and through us what we cannot do on our own.
Concluding Thoughts:
Because the Spirit is at work in our lives, we can become more like Christ. His work, however, demands a response. We must renew our minds with Scripture, submit to the wisdom of God’s Word, and prayerfully depend on God’s Spirit to empower us to grow in grace.
[1] Douglas Moo, The Epistle to the Romans, New International Commentary of the New Testament. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishers, 1996), 526.
“And He said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest” – Exodus 33:14
Precious promise! LORD, enable me to appropriate it as all my own. We must go at certain times from our abode, for here we have no continuing city. It often happens that when we feel most at home in a place, we are suddenly called away from it. Here is the antidote for this ill. The LORD Himself will keep us company. His presence, which includes His favor, His fellowship, His care, and His power, shall be ever with us in every one of our marchings. This means far more than it says; for, in fact, it means all things. If we have God present with us, we have possession of heaven and earth. Go with me, LORD, and then command me where Thou wilt! But we hope to find a place of rest. The text promises it. We are to have rest of God’s own giving, making, and preserving. His presence will cause us to rest even when we are on the march, yea, even in the midst of battle. Rest! Thrice blessed word. Can it ever be enjoyed by mortals? Yes, there is the promise, and by faith we plead it. Rest comes from the Comforter, from the Prince of Peace, and from the glorious Father who rested on the seventh day from all His works. To be with God is to rest in the most emphatic sense.
Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness.
GALATIANS 6:1
It is quite natural, and even spiritual, to feel sorrow and heaviness when we see the professed followers of Christ walking in the ways of the world. Our first impulse may be to go straight to them and upbraid them indignantly, but such methods are seldom successful. The heat in our spirit may not be from the Holy Spirit, and if it is not then it can very well do more harm than good.
Satan has achieved a real victory when he succeeds in getting us to react in an unspiritual way toward sins and failures in our brethren. We cannot fight sin with sin or draw men to God by frowning at them in fleshly anger, “for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.”
Often acts done in a spirit of religious irritation have consequences far beyond anything we could have guessed. Moses allowed himself to become vexed with Israel and in a fit of pique smote the rock. With the same stroke he closed the land of promise against him for the rest of his life.
It is not an easy task to stand for God as we should in our generation and yet maintain a spirit of kindliness toward the very ones we are sent to reprove—but it is not impossible! In this as in everything else, Christ is our perfect example and He can do the impossible if we but yield and obey. He will surely show us how to oppose with kindness and reprove with charity and the power of the Holy Spirit within will enable us to follow His blessed example!1
Could there be a sweeter word in any language than that word “forgiveness,” when it sounds in a guilty sinner’s ear, like the silver notes of jubilee to the captive Israelite? Blessed, for ever blessed be that dear star of pardon which shines into the condemned cell, and gives the perishing a gleam of hope amid the midnight of despair! Can it be possible that sin, such sin as mine, can be forgiven, forgiven altogether, and for ever? Hell is my portion as a sinner—there is no possibility of my escaping from it while sin remains upon me—can the load of guilt be uplifted, the crimson stain removed? Can the adamantine stones of my prison-house ever be loosed from their mortices, or the doors be lifted from their hinges? Jesus tells me that I may yet be clear. For ever blessed be the revelation of atoning love which not only tells me that pardon is possible, but that it is secured to all who rest in Jesus. I have believed in the appointed propitiation, even Jesus crucified, and therefore my sins are at this moment, and for ever, forgiven by virtue of his substitutionary pains and death. What joy is this! What bliss to be a perfectly pardoned soul! My soul dedicates all her powers to him who of his own unpurchased love became my surety, and wrought out for me redemption through his blood. What riches of grace does free forgiveness exhibit! To forgive at all, to forgive fully, to forgive freely, to forgive for ever! Here is a constellation of wonders; and when I think of how great my sins were, how dear were the precious drops which cleansed me from them, and how gracious was the method by which pardon was sealed home to me, I am in a maze of wondering worshipping affection. I bow before the throne which absolves me, I clasp the cross which delivers me, I serve henceforth all my days the Incarnate God, through whom I am this night a pardoned soul.1
THE apostle again expostulates with the Galatians for falling into legality, and points out to them the true path of the believer, namely, holiness produced by the Spirit of God.
Galatians 5:7–26
7, 8 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.
It is not of God, or it would be consistent with what you have been taught by his Spirit before.
9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
One man’s influence may mislead thousands; one piece of false doctrine may taint our whole creed.
10, 11 I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased. (Some even said that Paul himself had preached ceremonialism, but he denies it, and backs up his declaration by the fact that men had not left off persecuting him, as they would have done had he diluted the gospel.)
12 I would they were even cut off which trouble you. (It were better that they were cut off from the church than remain to sow false doctrine. As lepers must be put out of the camp, so must evil teachers be cast out of the church.)
13, 14 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
This is more important than symbolic rites: to destroy love to preserve a ceremony is to kill a child in order to preserve its clothes.
15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. (Every new man is two men: there is a warfare within.)
18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
19–21 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (No matter what they profess, or what sacraments they may partake of, those who live in these sins are not alive unto God. What a list we have here! Surely sin is a prolific mother.)
22, 23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. (For the works of the flesh there is no gospel, and against the works of the Spirit there is no law. Both God and man agree to commend such actions as those which are here mentioned; let us abound in them.)
24 And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.
Our evil desires are nailed to the cross, but they are not yet dead; we have need therefore to abide under the influence of the ever-blessed Spirit, and we certainly have no ground for boasting or despising others. Be it ours under the divine guidance to cultivate love and peace, and flee from all pride and envy.
Daniel 6:2 — When the president of a new political party takes over in Washington, he usually replaces all of the previous president’s cabinet appointees. Daniel survived not just a new party but a new empire as well!
Daniel 6:3 — Pray for the “Daniels” in office today!
Daniel 6:11 — If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?
Daniel 6:21 — Even having been thrown into the lions’ den, Daniel was still respectful to the king.
2 Peter 3:2 — Peter is again emphasizing the importance of Scripture, the Old Testament prophets, and the New Testament apostles. In 2 Peter 3:15-16, Peter affirms that Paul’s writings are not just inspired Scriptures, but they also contain “some things hard to be understood.”
Uniformitarianism is the modern name for the doctrine, prophesied long ago by Peter for those living in the last days, that “the present is the key to the past.” That is, the study of present-day natural processes (biological recombination, geological sedimentation, etc.) operating in the past as they do at present, are sufficient to determine the origin and development of all things. To them, no supernatural cause (such as God!) is needed. Even “creation” is still going on by these natural processes, since “all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.”
Peter, however, not only predicts this philosophy but also condemns it! “For this they willingly are ignorant of!” (v. 5). That is, people who believe in the unbroken continuity of all things are willful in their refusal to consider the overwhelming evidences of dis-continuity, particularly at the times of the special creation of all things in the beginning and the cataclysmic destruction of all things at the great flood, when “the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished” (v. 6).
2 Peter 3:11-12 — If this world is going to burn, where should you lay up your treasure? In the New Heavens and the New Earth! We read about it in Ezekiel and will read about it again in Revelation!
And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest.Genesis 28:15
Do we need journeying mercies? Here are choice ones—God’s presence and preservation, In all places we need both of these, and in all places we shall have them if we go at the call of duty, and not merely according to our own fancy. Why should we look upon removal to another country as a sorrowful necessity when it is laid upon us by the divine will? In all lands the believer is equally a pilgrim and a stranger; and yet in every region the Lord is His dwelling place, even as He has been to His saints in all generations. We may miss the protection of an earthly monarch, but when God says, “I will keep thee,” we are in no real danger. This is a blessed passport for a traveler and a heavenly escort for an emigrant.
Jacob had never left his father’s room before; he had been a mother’s boy and not an adventurer tike his brother. Yet he went abroad, and God went with him. He had little luggage and no attendants; yet no prince ever journeyed with a nobler bodyguard. Even while he slept in the open field, angels watched over him, and the Lord God spoke to him. If the Lord bids us go, let us say with our Lord Jesus, “Arise, let us go hence.”
If you would consider to dare to know Jesus, I invite you to give Him some serious thought today.
Whether you’re a Christian or not, you probably claim to know Jesus, at least in broad strokes.
In fact, worldwide, no one person has influenced history more than Jesus. The way we even measure history has been using His birth since A.D. 532. While using “BC” (Before Christ) has become less politically correct, the era still changes approximately at His birth.
But which Jesus do you know?
There is only one historical Jesus in reality. But how He is painted, described, even taught can vary wildly.
And sadly, not every person who describes herself as a Christian even knows the real Jesus.
We live in a culture of busy. We don’t have the time to research everything that comes across our screens, so we take for granted (too often) that we can trust the source has done careful, objective research from objective, intelligent sources.
But it’s hard to be objective about Jesus.
He turns everything upside down and asks you to see things His way. His way is generally not the natural way we want to see things. So, meeting Jesus is something we each need to do personally.
No matter where you are, I would love to invite you to take a few minutes thinking about this Jesus fellow in a new way, as a historical person who really lived, was really crucified.
Maybe you’ve heard that Jesus never really existed. This is called the Jesus Myth.
But a significant majority of experts in ancient history, both atheists and believers, believe Jesus lived and died. We have quite a bit of scholarly evidence to attest to both.
And his body was never found by some people who really, really wanted Him to be dead and stay dead.
That His disciples (who didn’t know his body was missing) could have managed to get past armed guards and roll the stone away without being killed seems highly unlikely.
And the way their lives radically changed following the Resurrection certainly lends credence to their stories of seeing the risen Jesus.
If you’ve never considered Jesus, TheJesus Dare is a great place to start as is the Gospel of John.
John is beautifully written and contains a clear picture of the true nature of Jesus.
If you’re not quite ready to dive into the Bible, The Jesus Dare is a good, quick read that clearly walks through who Jesus is and the core messages He preached. The book is designed to introduce seekers to the real Jesus, step by step with a few apologetics concepts thrown in.
Jay Payleitner writes with a sense of humor and a heart for people. He also manages to condense a lot of spiritual guidance and wisdom in a brief text. In some ways, this makes an excellent Christianity 101 for new believers as well as those who are curious about Christ.[1]
And if you’ve spent too much time listening to what other people say about Him, maybe it’s time to know Jesus for yourself.
I had spent too much time just knowing the Sunday school answers. I even had a decent handle on mainstream theology. But it was no good knowing the book without knowing the author.
Knowing Bible stories is not the same thing as surrendering my entire life to God and inviting Him into my life, heart, and mind to change me from the inside out.
When you take the risk of really knowing Jesus, you risk never being the same again.
And following Jesus is like taking the road less traveled, it will make all the difference.
Are you curious?
If you’ve never had a moment that everything went from black and white to color, the scales fell from your eyes, and you could see and know God’s love, you’re missing out on a great adventure.
I no longer struggle to fill the gaping void in my soul. Confident in my identity in Christ, I live the truth of how He has transformed me everyday.
Now, I have purpose and passion for people. Before I came to Christ, I was broken, angry, bitter, unable to love.
I couldn’t give away what I didn’t have. But now I am loved, cherished, forgiven, accepted. And can love others with the love of Christ.
Isn’t that worth daring to know Jesus?
References:
[1] You can also carry The Jesus Dare to offer to those who would dare to know Jesus! If you already know Jesus, I would recommend this book as one to carry in your purse or pocket to share with seeking people you encounter in daily life. It’s a great place to start for anyone curious about who Jesus is and what Christians believe.
Counter Culture Christian: Is the Bible True? by Frank Turek (Mp3), (Mp4), and (DVD)
How Can Jesus be the Only Way? Mp4, Mp3, and DVD by Frank Turek
Jennifer DeFrates is a former English and Social Studies teacher turned homeschool mom and Christian blogger at Heavennotharvard.com and theMamapologist.com. Jennifer is a 2x CIA graduate (the Cross-Examined Instructors Academy) and volunteers with Mama Bear Apologetics. She has a passion for discipleship through apologetics. Her action figure would come with coffee and a stack of books. She is also the reluctant ringleader of a small menagerie in rural Alabama.
In this episode of the Cold-Case Christianity Broadcast, J. Warner describes several important principles to consider when evaluating alleged Bible “contradictions”. J. Warner uses the example of the sign over Jesus’ cross to demonstrate how these simple investigative principles can be employed to determine if Biblical passages are truly contradictory.
“War is not the best engine for us to resort to; nature has given us one in our commerce, which if properly managed, will be a better instrument for obliging the interested nations of Europe to treat us with justice.” —Thomas Jefferson (1797)
Douglas Andrews, Thomas Gallatin, & Jordan Candler
Security
Middle East “peace” deal goes into effect: The Middle East peace agreement between Israel and Hezbollah went into effect overnight, but to what end? Its duration is for 60 days, which perhaps not coincidentally means it’ll expire just days after Donald Trump takes office and Joe Biden has gotten safely out of Dodge. There were celebrations across the besieged country of Lebanon, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made clear that his country was bargaining from a position of strength. As the New York Post reports, “Netanyahu said the agreement comes after Israel decimated Hezbollah’s leadership, ranks, infrastructure and hidden bunkers along the border. The deal allows a five-nation monitoring committee, led by the US, to oversee the de-escalation and allow hundreds of thousands of displaced people in Israel and Lebanon to return to their homes after more than a year of daily missile attacks. The cease-fire deal also includes assurances for Israel to maintain a military presence near the border and retaliate against any future Hezbollah attack.” All this is good, but Hezbollah didn’t abide by the terms of a 2006 peace deal with Israel, so what’s the likelihood that it’ll behave honorably this time around?
Hamas claims it’s ready for Gaza ceasefire after Hezbollah’s deal with Israel (NY Post)
Canada braces for immigrant surge ahead of Trump’s crackdown: Canada is scrambling to increase its border enforcement ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration in anticipation of a surge of illegal aliens fearing deportation. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sgt. Charles Poirier explained, “We knew that if Mr. Trump came into power, the status quo at the border would change.” Interestingly, Canada’s border security increase comes amid Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recently announced scale-back on the annual total legal immigration numbers — down to 365,000 by 2027. Furthermore, Canada will send asylum seekers back to the U.S. to await adjudication of their requests, similar to Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy. Suddenly, borders seem to matter again to leftists.
“Don’t test us”: Trump’s border czar threatens sanctuary city leaders seeking to block mass deportations (NY Post)
China frees three U.S. prisoners serving harsh sentences ahead of Trump’s return to Washington (NY Post)
Chinese ship suspected of deliberately dragging anchor for 100 miles to cut Baltic cables (WSJ)
Government & Politics
Trump’s anti-lockdown NIH pick is karmic gold: During the COVID pandemic, few people were more correct and few people suffered more malicious repercussions than Stanford epidemiologist, health policy professor, and Great Barrington Declaration coauthor Jay Bhattacharya. He steadfastly refused to accept the now-deeply discredited position of both sheeplike lawmakers and the medical establishment that lockdowns were the right thing to do. In fact, the lockdowns were ruinous. Ditto for masking and vaccine mandates. And now, Dr. Bhattacharya has been tapped by Donald Trump to head the National Institutes of Health. As The Blaze reports: “Although he and other principals behind the Great Barrington Declaration were ultimately vindicated, at the time, he faced incredible abuse. President Joe Biden’s former chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci and former National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins conspired to issue a ‘quick and devastating takedown’ of Bhattacharya’s criticism while many of the professor’s peers personally attacked him. Adding injury to insult, Bhattacharya was censored online.” It’s hard to imagine what the good doctor’s first day on the job will be like, but in the words of Jackie Gleason, “How sweet it is.”
Was Kamala’s video cringeworthy by design? After having abandoned her vice-presidential post for a couple of weeks and heading to Hawaii to lick her electoral wounds, Kamala Harris now appears in a brief video in which she sort of shrugs her shoulders at having tossed $1.5 billion of her supporters’ money into a roaring dumpster fire over the course of 100 days. “I just have to remind you,” she says in the brief clip, “don’t let anybody take your power from you. You have the same power that you did before November 5, and you have the same purpose that you did. And you have the same ability to engage and inspire. So don’t ever let anybody or any circumstance take your power from you.” The video was part of a longer call that she and her weirdo running mate, Tim Walz, did for their supporters. It’s hard to tell whether Harris had been drinking, but it wasn’t a good look. Maybe that was the point. Maybe the Democrat powers that be are heading off the prospect of another $1.5 billion bonfire in 2028 by letting the failed candidate herself remind the American people why they rejected her in the first place.
Humor: Kamala’s 2028 campaign already $700 million in debt (Babylon Bee)
Harris’s internal polls weren’t optimistic: On a recent podcast interview, Kamala Harris’s senior advisor and former Barack Obama campaign manager David Plouffe admitted that Harris’s internal polling wasn’t great leading up to the election. The election results “surprised people because there were these public polls that came out in late September, early October, showing us with leads that we never saw,” Plouffe noted. “It was just basically a race that in the battlegrounds was 46-47, 47-48.” Plouffe later added, “We were hopeful. I don’t know how optimistic we were.” In other words, the Harris campaign saw the same trend that the aggregate polling averages showed: Donald Trump rising and Harris fading as Election Day approached. Plouffe also tacitly acknowledged that the Harris campaign was essentially doomed from the start: “I think the political atmosphere, the desire for change, all those fundamentals that you’ve spent a lot of time talking about really presented huge challenges for us.”
Biden’s Rivian loan is the worst form of crony capitalism: If Gavin Newsom is positioning himself for a 2028 presidential run, he has an idiotic way of showing it. This week, the California governor said that if Donald Trump ends the federal government’s $7,500 electric vehicle rebate program, he’ll soak his fellow Californians instead to make up the $7,500. Except in the case of Tesla, the world’s leading manufacturer of EVs. If Newsom gets his way, there’ll be no rebates for Tesla owners, who’ve committed the unpardonable sin of having purchased a vehicle from that notable pro-Trump deplorable, Elon Musk. Against this backdrop, let’s consider an even more brazen act of crony capitalism: a $6 billion loan from Joe Biden’s Department of Energy to Rivian, an EV competitor of Musk’s Tesla, for building an EV plant in Georgia. Talk about picking winners and losers. As Just the News reports, “The plant was expected to bring 7,500 jobs to the area and begin in 2024.” For those of you keeping score at home, that’s around $880,000 per job. And those are your tax dollars at work.
Climate
John Kerry calls for climate emergency: At the recent UN COP29 climate change confab, John Kerry, Joe Biden’s former climate czar, once again hit on his favorite climate alarmist hobby horse. “We’re on the brink of needing to declare a climate emergency, which is what we really have,” Kerry opined. “We need to get people to behave as if this really is a major transitional challenge to the whole planet, to everybody.” How authoritarian of him. He further argued that America should pay for the developing world’s energy infrastructure: “People in Africa who don’t have electricity need to choose the right kind of electricity, and we need to help them be able to afford it and do it. We have the largest economy in the world — $24 trillion or $23 trillion economy, maybe more by now.” After comparing America’s GDP with that of China, Germany, and Japan, Kerry stated, “You don’t think we have some sort of obligation out of that to be responsible? I think we do.” Kerry exposes the problem with globalists like himself — they don’t value national sovereignty, individual liberty, and personal responsibility. This explains why he makes such sweeping, illiberal, authoritarian, and inherently unjust statements.
Detroit using eminent domain to plop panels instead of people on vacant lots (Hot Air)
Economy
Consumer confidence surges post-election: The consumer confidence index has soared in November, rising to 111.7, its highest mark in over a year. Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board, assessed the reason for this jump: “November’s increase was mainly driven by more positive consumer assessments of the present situation, particularly regarding the labor market. Compared to October, consumers were also substantially more optimistic about future job availability, which reached its highest level in almost three years.” While the Conference Board did not point to Donald Trump’s sweeping election victory as the primary cause for the surging consumer optimism since it did not include any questions regarding the election in its survey, it did note “that write-in responses about politics, including the November elections, surged to above 2020 levels.” Pantheon Macroeconomics chief economist Samuel Tombs said, “The increase in the headline likely was driven by euphoria among Republicans.” We’d say that’s not just Republicans.
Federal Reserve officials signal cautious path for rate cuts amid still-high inflation (The Hill)
Donald Trump just sent a shot across the bow of our two closest neighbors. In a series of Truth Social posts, Trump said that he would slap 25% tariffs on all goods from Canada and Mexico. Interestingly, he also threw China into the mix, yet with a lower tariff rate of 10%.
“Both Mexico and Canada have the absolute right and power to easily solve this long simmering problem,” Trump said. “We hereby demand that they use this power, and until such time that they do, it is time for them to pay a very big price!”
In other words, as the businessman that he is, Trump is flexing his enforcement muscles with an eye toward getting a deal done that will serve both America’s interests as well as Canada’s and Mexico’s. This is designed to get our trading partners to the table. It’s the Art of the Deal. Trump is using America’s biggest asset, the world’s leading economy, as a weapon in order to get things moving his way before he even takes office. He’s signaling that the rules of the game are about to change, and if America’s neighbors don’t want to lose out, then they need to adjust now.
At issue for Trump are both border security and the cartel-driven fentanyl crisis, for which he believes there is plenty of blame to go around in addition to that borne by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Trump has also made it clear that he wants to bring manufacturing back to the U.S. He sees this not just as an economic positive but also, correctly, as a national security issue. It wasn’t all that long ago that big-box stores like Walmart proudly advertised “Made in America.” Trump, along with the majority of Americans, wants to see those days return.
Trump wants our nation’s free-trade agreement with Canada and Mexico reworked to address the rising threat of China’s influence and its underhanded role in our fentanyl crisis — specifically, its supplying of the chemicals used by the Mexican cartels to make the drug. “This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!” he wrote.
Predictably, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum pushed back, claiming, “Threats and tariffs won’t be the way to address the migration phenomenon or drug use in the United States. One tariff will be followed by another, and so on until we put companies at risk.” In other words, expect retaliation. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, on the other hand, almost submissively said he “had a good call” with Trump after the announcement.
Within the U.S., a number of economists worry that Trump’s protectionism could work negatively against the economy. “Trump’s clear determination to use tariffs as a tool of international diplomacy will have significant disruptive effects on U.S. and global trade,” says Cornell University economics and trade policy professor Eswar Prasad.
The fact that this latest tariff threat focuses on Canada and Mexico is interesting given that during his first term, Trump reworked the old NAFTA trade agreement, which he called the “worst trade deal ever made,” changing it to the USMCA. Now, he’s looking to revisit that agreement to include immigration and drug control.
While free-market economists are wary of tariffs’ negative impact on the price of goods in the U.S., they are also not running to the fainting couches to suggest that Trump’s actions will tank the economy. Instead, they seem to be starting to see that he’s engaged in negotiations to bring about some needed course correction.
Douglas Andrews: Tom Homan Gets Serious — Donald Trump’s border czar made it clear to sanctuary-city types that they’d best get out of his way.
Emmy Griffin: Exterminating Collegiate DEI — Some colleges are ending their DEI departments ahead of a second Trump presidency.
Michael Swartz: How Democrats Rigged a Few House Seats — Some radical gerrymandering and sketchy 2020 Census miscounting gave the Democrats some crucial House seats they didn’t deserve.
Nate Jackson: The Biden (Read: Trump) Ceasefire — The current president claims credit he doesn’t deserve for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
Linda Moss Mines: A Quick Step Toward Armed Conflict — On the morning of April 12, 1861, Confederate guns opened fire. The United States Civil War had begun.
Latest PodcastPopCon #72: ThanksgivingFor some Americans, this Thanksgiving may be a bit awkward. Threats of cancellation or making the annual gathering about politics have popped up across the internet, in op-eds, and in vlog posts. How many disgruntled leftists will make good on these threats, and is there any hope of reminding them about the true spirit of the holiday? Join Thomas, Sterling, and Andrew as they tackle this question in a Thanksgiving episode.
‘The Panic Is So Outrageous’ — A CNN panel goes nuts when Scott Jennings observes that the ideological perspectives expressed on X are balanced.
We Are the Media Now (And They Don’t Like It) — Among the many things revealed by the 2024 presidential election, the most prominent among them must be the revelation that mainstream media is no longer mainstream at all.
“We’re on the brink of needing to declare a climate emergency, which is what we really have. And we need to get people to behave as if this really is a major transitional challenge to the whole planet, to everybody.” —John Kerry
Upright
“While debates over women’s sports and bathroom access are often framed as issues of safety and fairness — and those concerns are valid — we must recognize that these are symptoms of a much deeper problem. … True resolution will not come from policies alone but from a transformation of hearts and minds.” —Tony Perkins
For the Record
“Israel sees this ceasefire [with Hezbollah] as just that: a ceasefire until Joe Biden is gone. It is a 60 day ceasefire. Joe Biden leaves office in 54 days. That is not a coincidence.” —Ben Shapiro
“The people who drove America’s institutions into the ground are upset that Donald Trump isn’t leaving the ‘experts’ in charge. … The sky — or in this case, the institutions — have already fallen, destroyed by the very elites who now scaremonger about the damage outsiders will cause.” —Victor Joecks
“Abortion is when a baby gets the death penalty for the behavior of someone else.” —Anna Lulis
“You can’t outsource loving your neighbor to the government.” —Seth Dillon
“If you can’t find waste in Washington, there can only be one reason: you didn’t look.” —Senator Joni Ernst
“Me and the Denver mayor, we agree on one thing: He’s willing to go to jail. I’m willing to put him in jail.” —incoming border czar Tom Homan
Observations
“It is a symptom of how perverse the immigration debate has become that it is treated as the norm to allow millions of people to defy our laws, but it’s a five-alarm fire if an incoming U.S. president vows to get serious about enforcing those same laws.” —Rich Lowry
“Prediction: Democrat officials will get arrested for violating federal law as they block attempts to deport illegal aliens and the press will claim it as an example of Trump rounding up his political enemies so they can further inflame tensions in the country.” —Erick Erickson
“The various investigations of Robert Mueller, John Durham, and Jack Smith have cost taxpayers a cumulative $90 million. For all that, Democrats are left with nothing but destroyed credibility and the bitter, self-therapeutic lie that this all means Trump ‘gets away with it.’” —Nate Jackson
Food for Thought
“I think at least half of Trump’s base are actual populists and they will challenge him if he goes awry. No one on the left will believe me, they think everyone in MAGA is in a cult and will follow Trump no matter what.” —The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur
Belly Laugh of the Day
“Kamala is considering a run for California Governor. Apparently Doug wants it to be an even bigger Nanny State.” —Jimmy Failla
And Last…
“As we gather together this Thanksgiving to ask the Lord’s blessings … let us thank Him for our peace, prosperity, and freedom.” —President Ronald Reagan, 1988
After nearly 14 months of war, Israel agreed to a cease fire deal with the Iranian backed terror group Hezbollah. The holiday travel push is well underway. This week is expected to be the busiest Thanksgiving period on record. Churches are struggling to meet the needs of parents whose children identify as transgender. That’s why a Pastor in Northern Virginia opened his church doors to a support group to help them. We have a first look at the upcoming new season of “The Chosen” plus a preview of a coming-of-age biblical film on the life of Jesus’ mother Mary.
On today’s Jerusalem Dateline: Hezbollah rains down 500 missiles on Haifa and cities in central and N. Israel, while the US pushes for a ceasefire. Kibbutz Ruhamma offers temporary shelter to displaced families of Kibbutz Kfar Aza. Features: Zak’s Gifts in Jerusalem and Artza Box.
Today’s 20-min top headline news brief includes:
[4:47] -Jack Smith files to dismiss J6 charges against Trump, for now. [Newsmax Breaking]
[7:10] -Corey Lewandowski: The two-tiered justice system will end on Jan. 20th. [American Agenda]
[14:53] -Rob Finnerty: Democrats still don’t get why Kamala lost the election. [Finnerty]
[23:33] -Rebel News founder Ezra Levant: “Woke” Canada cops aid pro-Hamas mob, arrest journalists. [Rob Schmitt Tonight]
The arrest of Sean “P. Diddy” Combs on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering reveals the moral corruption embedded in our elite circles, echoing the vile patterns of Jeffrey Epstein’s criminal enterprise. These aren’t isolated incidents; these are part of a broader network of powerful figures in entertainment, media, and politics who manipulate culture for their own depraved ends. Combs allegedly orchestrated drug-fueled orgies—his infamous “freak offs”—where victims were coerced into silence through violence and blackmail, mirroring Epstein’s heinous activities. Yet it took years of abuse before law enforcement acted.
Why is this relevant? Because these cultural elites shape the values of our society. The moral rot they embody is passed down, eroding our culture and undermining the very foundations of self-governance. The fact that figures like Beyoncé, Jay Z, and Jennifer Lopez attended these parties raises serious questions. Did they know? Were they complicit? How deep does this rabbit hole go? Combs’ connections to politicians, including former President Obama, further blur the lines between celebrity and political power, exposing a troubling fusion of decadence and influence.
For decades, the ruling class has gaslit Americans, dismissing concerns about sex trafficking and elite corruption as mere conspiracy theories. But as these scandals continue to surface, it’s clear: we’ve been lied to. The Founding Fathers knew that a free republic could only survive if rooted in virtue. John Adams warned that “our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.” Yet today, moral decay is glorified by those in power, pushing society into chaos.
If we don’t reclaim our culture from these morally bankrupt elites, we will lose our ability to hold leaders accountable, and our constitutional liberties will crumble. In the end, corruption in our culture paves the way for tyranny.
In his book, All Failing Faiths, Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III writes, “In the end, when all else had been leveled, the 1960s went after God.[1]
Unfortunately, those words are true – as our nation has become increasingly confused spiritually as the Left took over America’s churches in the 1960s.
While the march toward liberalism immolating mainline Protestant churches started back in the progressive era, much of it, like with our universities, was hatched in the relatively silent liberal takeover of seminaries in the 1950s while America was perhaps at its churchgoing peak.
In the 1960s, nearly every mainline Protestant denomination, but particularly, the Church of Christ (Congregationalist), Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Episcopalian churches, discarded belief in the fundamental tenets of the Bible such as biblical inerrancy and that it is only through faith in Jesus Christ that one can obtain eternal life.
In addition, these churches rejected sexual purity, and male-female complementarianism, and embraced radical sexual liberation and the progressive ethos. In addition, these churches started to attack America and its role in the world.
While the 1950s are still looked upon as the height of American spirituality, there were definite storm clouds on the horizon. Yes, record numbers of Americans were going to church, and many still espoused, even if they didn’t necessarily adhere to, an established moral code. The mainline religion of the 1950s was socially acceptable, did not require sacrifice, and in many instances, was more therapeutic than challenging. For many, church attendance was simply a box to be checked off each week. In many ways, American spirituality was a mile wide but an inch deep.
Thus, churches focusing more on preaching platitudes than on genuine and authentic faith and discipleship, were ripe for takeover by radical leftists seeking spiritual cover and approval for their secular agendas. By trying to be relevant they became irrelevant instead—and in the process enabled the acceleration of moral and cultural decay while losing fans quicker than a 100-loss baseball team.
Because of the mainline denomination’s embrace of liberalism in the 1960s, there is no longer a clear and consistent message of Christ from our churches. Instead, America increasingly hears a confused and muddled voice when it comes to matters of faith.
This has also resulted in the weakening of Christian witness and in providing cover for the full societal implementation of the progressive sexual agenda—including abortion, the redefinition of marriage, gender identity, and leftist economic theory—through organized religion.
And without that clear voice, Americans tuned religion out. The mainline Protestant congregations have now become increasingly irrelevant, living off endowments and with aging populations who attend more out of tradition than a vibrant, growing faith, slowly dying off and leaving nothing but empty pews and decaying buildings. In fact, increasing numbers of mainline churches are closing their doors at an alarming rate.
The biggest decline has been in the denominations that discarded biblical truth in the 1960s. At their peak in 1965, mainline Protestant churches counted 31 million members out of a U.S. population of fewer than 200 million.[2] But then the great decline started and remains unabated to this day. Ten years later, nearly a third of Americans were still affiliated with mainline denominations. But now, just one in ten Americans are.[3] The United Methodist Church has declined from 11.2 million members in 1967 to 5,714,815 in 2022, with many of its members aged 60 and above. [4]
The downward trend in religious faith in America, particularly among the old mainline denominations, started to occur when they drifted away from preaching truth to embrace “social justice.” Without absolute truth as an anchor to fortify one’s faith, the church became nothing more than another philanthropic group or social club of like-minded adherents without a compelling reason to be a member.
Thus, while those on the Left decry what they perceive to be the politicalization of the church, it is the Left’s actual politicalization of our churches in the 1960s that led to the decline of so many denominations.
The abandonment of biblical truth in churches since the 1960s has not only led to a hemorrhaging of members but also increasing numbers of youth who have become alienated from the faith. Because these churches are no longer salt and light in their communities, they have become increasingly irrelevant. By conforming to the culture, rather than transforming it, they are rapidly disappearing from the culture completely.
Sadly, similar voices, including some in orthodox and evangelical circles, who led to the church’s abandonment of truth and subsequent decline are calling for the church to repeat this mistake and forsake truth to reach younger generations. These voices are recommending the church embrace a bevy of trendy social issues and concerns to entice young churchgoers.
Yet true social justice only occurs from a citizenry that embraces the truth of Scripture—that we are all made Imago Dei, in the image of God, and thus all human beings should be treated with dignity and respect. The “social justice” drift of the past sixty years has only left empty pews, often with a few gray-haired individuals scattered across an increasingly cavernous sanctuary.
For instance, according to a 2022 Pew Research Study, 73 percent of adults between the ages of thirty to thirty-four (millennials born in the 1980s and early 1990s) now have no religious affiliation. The number in that age range raised in homes identifying as Christian dropped from 90 percent in 1990 to 65 percent in 2020.[5]
Over the past sixty years, churches have poured millions of dollars into youth programs emphasizing entertainment and marketing over truth. The result is many young people walked away because they saw no difference between the church and the world, or because they had no biblical foundation the minute their faith was challenged, or simply because they faced temptations they were not equipped to combat. Kids want boundaries and truth, in the home and at church. When neither provides them, they end up shunning both institutions.
As the church chooses to conform to the culture rather than transforming it, its voice in our culture becomes weaker—to the point of irrelevance—and our children are paying the price. This is evident in the following statistics, especially when it comes to today’s young adults—even those in what are perceived to be conservative, evangelical churches.
A few years ago, Pew Research reported 58 percent of white evangelicals said cohabitation was acceptable as long as the couple eventually plans to marry.[6] Alarming as that statistic is, it is more sobering among young evangelicals. Nine years ago, a General Social Survey reported more than 40 percent of evangelicals between the ages of twenty and twenty-nine thought cohabitation was acceptable even if they had no plans to marry.[7]
But there is hope. While public opinion polls share what seem to be depressing statistics about the religiosity of young Americans, those polls only share numbers, not commitment.
Many Bible-believing churches that have opened their doors have found young adults flocking inside—drawn to authentic faith, instead of the “going through the motions” faith of the churches that abandoned biblical truths in the 1960s. They are also rejecting the evangelical overcorrection to “be relevant” by watering down messages or trying to conform, rather than transform the culture.
A good friend of mine and his wife who live in a large metropolitan area launched a young adult ministry about four years ago—deciding to open their house to any young adult who wished to come and experience serious Bible discussion and authentic community. That small group eventually led to the church becoming aware of the need to reach young adults between the ages of twenty and thirty-five and starting a Tuesday night young adults’ group. That group now draws well over one hundred young adults each week, many of whom drive from over fifty miles away, because they are hungry for biblical truth.
That is how we are going to reverse the 1960s’ damage to religion—not by trying to out-social justice each other or water down truth to make it “palatable,” but by opening our doors and hearts to future generations—who, once they hear the real gospel will respond and reject the false gospel of the 1960s.
[1] J. Harvie Wilkinson III, All Falling Faiths: Reflections on the Promise and Failure of the 1960s (New York: Encounter Books, 2017), 163.
Lindi Li was on the Kamala Harris finance committee. She not only donated large sums of her own money to the campaign, she convinced others to do so, mostly based on the fact that the campaign kept telling her that they were going to win.
This week, Li participated in a call with Kamala Harris, campaign officials and top donors. Li was hoping that someone would address the fact that they misspent almost two billion dollars but according to her, no one is taking any responsibility.
Li even claims that Kamala Harris spent part of the call talking about Thanksgiving recipes.
Just yesterday, another major donor said that this lack of financial accountability makes Kamala Harris ‘disqualified forever.’
Harris campaign is ‘self-congratulatory’: DNC committee member
A DNC finance committee member said the Harris campaign was “self-congratulatory” during a call with top donors Tuesday, making no mention of what the party could have done better.
Lindy Li, a member of the DNC finance committee, told NewsNation she was “stunned that there was no sort of postmortem or analysis of the disastrous campaign.”
“It was just patting each other on the back,” Li said. “They praised Harris as a visionary leader, and at one moment during the call, she was talking about her Thanksgiving recipe.”…
She called party leaders “detached from reality” after they discussed how more than $1 billion was spent during the nearly 110-day campaign during an interview with “Pod Save America” Tuesday.
“They failed to mention that hundreds of millions of dollars went to them and their friends right through these consulting firms. These consultants were the primary beneficiaries of the Harris campaign, not the American people,” Li said.
Watch the video below:
This issue is going to haunt not only Kamala Harris, but the Democrat party and anyone connected to the Harris campaign. Who is going to donate money to their next presidential nominee when so many small donors were essentially ripped off in this election cycle?
If the trajectory of the war in Ukraine remains the same, Russia will win. The only way that Ukraine could win would be for NATO to get directly involved in the conflict, and we are dangerously close to seeing that happen. If Ukraine keeps firing long-range missiles provided by NATO into Russian territory, the Russian responses to those missile strikes will keep getting more intense. Eventually, the Russians may do something so dramatic that it would give NATO justification to enter the war, and that is precisely what many among the western elite want. But of course a direct conflict with Russia could spark a nuclear war that would kill hundreds of millions of people. So by choosing to greatly escalate the war in Ukraine, the western elite are literally gambling with all of our lives.
On Tuesday, it was being reported that Russia is gaining territory in Ukraine “at the fastest rate since the early days of the 2022 invasion”…
Russian forces are advancing in Ukraine at the fastest rate since the early days of the 2022 invasion, taking an area half the size of London over the past month, analysts and war bloggers said on Tuesday.
The corporate media in the U.S. doesn’t talk much about Russian victories, and so most Americans don’t even know that this is happening.
Pasi Paroinen, a military analyst with Finland’s Black Bird Group, said Russian forces had taken control of an estimated 667 sq km (257 sq miles) this month, citing data he said could include some October gains noted with a delay.
President Vladimir Putin, who replaced his defence minister in May, has repeatedly said that Russian forces are advancing much more effectively – and that Russia will achieve all its aims in Ukraine, although he has not spelled them out in detail.
The Ukrainians are outmatched, and they have been worn down by more than two years of relentless fighting.
If things remain the same, the Russians will continue to march forward.
Russia controls 18% of Ukraine including all of Crimea, just over 80% of Donbas and more than 70% of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions in the south, as well just under 3% of the eastern Kharkiv region, according to open source maps.
The western elite are absolutely determined to do something to change the momentum of the conflict, and so they have decided to allow Ukraine to launch long-range missiles that NATO has provided into Russian territory.
But the Russians are promising that every time this happens, there will be a response…
“Missile strikes deep inside Russian territory are an escalatory step,” Lavrov told Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper. “All of our warnings that these unacceptable actions will be met with an appropriate response have been ignored.”
Those behind attacks on Russian citizens and infrastructure will face “well-deserved punishment,” the minister warned. He added that “no escalation coming from the enemy would force us to abandon our goals” in Ukraine.
The brand new Oreshnik missile that the Russians have unveiled is a game-changing weapons system.
According to Scott Ritter, the Oreshnik is unlike anything that we have ever seen before…
The Oreshnik was designed to carry between four and six IPBVs. The one used against Dnipropetrovsk was a six IPBV-capable system. Each war head in turn contained six separate submunitions, consisting of metal slugs forged from exotic alloys that enabled them to maintain their form during the extreme heat generated by hypersonic re-entry speeds. These slugs are not explosive; rather they use the combined effects of the kinetic impact at high speed and the extreme heat absorbed by the exotic alloy to destroy their intended target on impact.
The military industrial target struck by the Oreshnik was hit by six independent warheads, each containing six submunitions. In all, the Dnipropetrovsk facility was struck be 36 separate munitions, inflicting devastating damage, including to underground production facilities used by Ukraine and its NATO allies to produce short- and intermediate-range missiles.
The U.S. does not have anything remotely similar.
In fact, the U.S. does not have any operational hypersonic missiles at all.
The sad truth is that we are way behind the Russians in this area.
How in the world did we allow that to happen?
The Russians have begun mass production of the new Oreshnik missile, and according to retired MIT professor Theodore Postol we have absolutely no defense against it…
None of the current missile defense systems worldwide can intercept Russia’s new intermediate-range ballistic missile, the Oreshnik, Theodore Postol, a leading US missile technology expert and retired MIT Professor Emeritus of Science, Technology, and National Security Policy, told TASS.
He dismissed claims that existing missile defense systems, including Aegis, Aegis Ashore, THAAD, Patriot, and Iron Dome, could counter the Oreshnik. “No, no, absolutely not,” said the expert, who is a former science adviser to the US Navy chief of staff and has also worked at Stanford University and Argonne National Laboratory. “There’s nothing available that can engage that system and offer any meaningful defense against it,” Postol emphasized.
We are also being told that the Oreshnik can also carry nuclear warheads.
In addition to the Oreshnik, the Russians have developed highly advanced ICBMs that are far superior to anything that we have.
The Russians now possess the most advanced nuclear missiles in the world by a very wide margin, and meanwhile the U.S. is still relying on hopelessly outdated technology from the 1970s and 1980s.
We do not want to fight a nuclear war with the Russians.
It would not go well for us.
Recently, FEMA issued an updated guide for how to survive nuclear war, and it contains some very questionable advice…
FEMA’s guidance emphasizes three crucial steps: “Get Inside, Stay Inside, and Stay Tuned.” Citizens are encouraged to seek immediate shelter in a sturdy building, ideally in a basement or a central room away from windows, to reduce exposure to harmful radiation. Remaining indoors for at least 24 hours is essential unless authorities provide different instructions. Staying informed through official channels is vital; it’s empowering, ensuring you receive timely updates and directives and putting you in control of your safety.
The agency highlights the severe consequences of nuclear explosions, which include intense heat, blast waves, and radiation, all of which can cause catastrophic damage and casualties. A particular concern is fallout—the radioactive debris propelled into the atmosphere, which can reach ground level within 15 minutes of the detonation. This fallout poses significant health risks due to the high levels of radiation it emits.
First of all, if a nuclear war erupts most experts encourage people to stay inside for a minimum of 48 hours after the last nuclear detonation in your region of the country has occurred. But personally, I would recommend staying inside for at least two weeks.
Secondly, why are they telling us to stay informed “through official channels” when nuclear war will destroy our power grid and nobody will be broadcasting?
If a nuclear war erupts, tens of millions of Americans will instantly die, and tens of millions of Americans are likely to die in the aftermath as a result of being exposed to nuclear fallout.
Of course the famine that follows nuclear war would kill more Americans than anything else.
It has been projected that more than 90 percent of the U.S. population will end up dead if there is a full-blown nuclear war with Russia.
So why are the western elite gambling with all of our lives?
Is it really worth it?
Ukraine and Russia had agreed to a peace deal in the early days of the war, but the western elite vetoed that peace agreement.
They told the Ukrainians to keep on fighting, and since then approximately 600,000 precious Ukrainians have been killed.
Now the western elite are putting all of our lives on the line, and that should deeply concern us all.
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