WORLD NEWS
War with Hezbollah Looms as Blinken Visits Israel
Israel and the Iranian-backed terror group Hezbollah in southern Lebanon drew closer to war Monday as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was set to arrive in Israel on Monday evening.
Over the weekend, Hezbollah had launched a rocket attack on an Israeli base on Mount Meron, in northern Israel — a serious escalation of its attacks. In return, Israel attacked a Hezbollah command post in southern Lebanon, killing a major commander, reportedly Wissam al-Tawil (or “Jawad”) of the “elite” Radwan force.
Israel has warned Hezbollah for weeks not to open a second front in the war, as it battled Hamas terrorists in Gaza. As the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has dismantled more and more of Hamas’s military capabilities, Hezbollah has faced more pressure to act.
The U.S.S. Ford, one of two aircraft carriers dispatched by U.S. President Joe Biden to the eastern Mediterranean to deter Iran from opening a second front, reportedly left the region last week — which may have opened the door to the ongoing escalation.
Blinken is seeking regional support for a deescalation in the conflict and an agreement on the post- Hamas future in Gaza.
Judges in England and Wales are Given Cautious Approval to Use AI in Writing Legal Opinions
England ́s 1,000-year-old legal system – still steeped in traditions that include wearing wigs and robes – has taken a cautious step into the future by giving judges permission to use artificial intelligence to help produce rulings.
The Courts and Tribunals Judiciary last month said AI could help write opinions but stressed it shouldn ́t be used for research or legal analyses because the technology can fabricate information and provide misleading, inaccurate and biased information.
“Judges do not need to shun the careful use of AI,” said Master of the Rolls Geoffrey Vos, the second- highest ranking judge in England and Wales. “But they must ensure that they protect confidence and take full personal responsibility for everything they produce.”
At a time when scholars and legal experts are pondering a future when AI could replace lawyers, help select jurors or even decide cases, the approach spelled out Dec. 11 by the judiciary is restrained. But for a profession slow to embrace technological change, it’s a proactive step as government and industry – and society in general – react to a rapidly advancing technology alternately portrayed as a panacea and a menace.
“There ́s a vigorous public debate right now about whether and how to regulate artificial intelligence,” said Ryan Abbott, a law professor at the University of Surrey and author of “The Reasonable Robot: Artificial Intelligence and the Law.”
“AI and the judiciary is something people are uniquely concerned about, and it ́s somewhere where we are particularly cautious about keeping humans in the loop,” he said. “So I do think AI may be slower disrupting judicial activity than it is in other areas and we ́ll proceed more cautiously there.”
Shooting businesses including shops and clubs have blown the whistle on their treatment at the hands of cancel-happy banks, which have been embroiled in a ‘debanking’ scandal revealed by Nigel Farage last year.
British countryside stalwarts like gun shops, shooting syndicates, and gun clubs are being “treated like criminals” by big banks that are “cancelling the countryside”, they claim, with the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) reporting a third of such businesses have had their accounts closed, and two-thirds have struggled to open new accounts.
15 different UK-operating banks are implicated in the claims, British legacy-conservative newspaper the Daily Telegraph reports. The paper notes gun clubs and shops are being treated like “sex workers” by banks apparently using any pretext to withdraw essential banking services from businesses that don’t meet their social standards.
The report cites a note by the Financial Conduct Authority that states: “We have received submissions from representatives of the gun trade and sports shooting, and adult entertainment (including sex work). These highlight the challenges, for the members/affiliates of business types or sectors that may divide wider opinion, of obtaining or maintaining a payment account.”
BASC hit back at the moral equivalence made between the shooting industry and sex workers, with a spokesman saying just because a “very small minority of people opposing shooting”, it does not become a “reputation risk” for banks to have on their books. “A small minority of people oppose the banking system, that doesn’t mean dealing with banks is a reputational risk to their client”, they said.
The association warned against banks “discriminating against perfectly legal and respectable accounts that have been run for years on a proper basis”, which they said was damaging. The body said: “Financial service providers are cancelling the countryside… You wouldn’t expect your water electricity or gas to be shut down because of your interest in shooting so why should banks be allowed to get away with politicising fundamental financial services to the taxpayers that not that long ago bailed them out.”
While debanking is a longstanding problem that has been causing considerable difficulty to individuals and organisations for years, it broke into the political lexicon last year after Brexit leader Nigel Farage revealed he was in the process of being debanked by Coutts, the banking house he’d kept his money with for decades. While Coutts and its parent group Natwest denied the charges, it was later revealed they had lied and briefed against Farage, and he was in fact being debanked for political reasons.
The debanking of shoots and gun shops follows similar attacks on other traditional countryside organisations like mounted fox hunts having card facilities withdrawn as “restricted businesses” despite pursuing trail hunts legally, being classified alongside “illegal or questionable businesses”.
WATCH: Trudeau’s Police Arrest Rebel News Reporter for Asking a Question
David Menzies, a reporter for Canada’s conservative Rebel News Network, was arrested Monday for asking Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland a question after a police officer accused him of assault in what appears to be a fabricated charge.
Video of the event, posted by Rebel News chief Ezra Levant, went viral on Monday. It shows Menzies asking Freeland about Canada’s refusal to label Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IGRC) as a terrorist organization — an ordinary question.
As Menzies walks down a public sidewalk, keeping pace with the Deputy Prime Minister, a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stands in his way — then begins executing an arrest, claiming that Menzies “assaulted” him.
Menzies barely appears to notice the RCMP officer because his attention is on Freeland. The officer appears to set a “pick,” basketball-style, as a pretext for accusing Menzies of assaulting him when there is no evident sign of any intent to do so.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is known to hate Rebel News, which is one of the only conservative outlets in Canada. In 2021, Trudeau’s security detail roughed up Menzies as he stood on a public sidewalk, hoping to interview Trudeau at an event.
Levant confirmed to Breitbart News that Rebel News intends to sue the RCMP on Tuesday for “False arrest, false imprisonment, [and] assault.” Civil liberties have suffered a decline in Canada under Trudeau, notably during the coronavirus pandemic.
DHS Chief Mayorkas’s Border Fix: Bus More Illegal Aliens into U.S. Towns
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is lobbying Congress to allocate billions to bus more border crossers and illegal aliens into the United States.
During a press conference near the U.S.-Mexico border in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Monday, Mayorkas went on defense and accused critics of lying about his record as DHS secretary under President Joe Biden.
“Some have accused DHS of not enforcing our nation’s laws. This could not be further from the truth,” Mayorkas said.
At Mayorkas’s direction, DHS has overseen year-after-year record-breaking levels of illegal immigration. In fiscal year 2023, more than 3.2 million illegal aliens were encountered at the nation’s borders, nearly 2.5 million of which arrived at the southern border.
Mayorkas, though, urged Congress to pass Biden’s supplemental budget request that the White House issued in October 2023, which would have billions more in American taxpayer dollars going toward apprehending, detaining, and then releasing millions of illegal aliens into U.S. communities.
“We need Congress to provide the supplemental funding that President Biden requested months ago,” Mayorkas said:
We need more Border Patrol agents and more case processors so that the agents can be out in the field doing the heroic work that is their fundamental mission. We need more officers so that migration surges do not force mitigation measures of last resort, like bridge closures. We need more asylum officers and immigration judges so that we can resolve asylum claims quickly — granting relief when it is warranted, removing migrants when it is not, and reducing the three-million-case immigration court backlog that has been growing for years and years. We need more technology to combat the smuggling of fentanyl through our ports of entry, and more facilities to process and detain migrants during immigration enforcement proceedings. We need more transportation funding to facilitate an increase in removal flights, and more resources for detention beds and Alternatives to Detention, and to bolster our Family Expedited Removal Management, or FERM, process. [Emphasis added]
The rate at which Mayorkas’s DHS is releasing border crossers and illegal aliens into the U.S. interior is already historically unprecedented. As Breitbart News reported, those arriving at the southern border have less than a five percent chance of being deported from the U.S. within the same year.
Meanwhile, Fox News’s Bill Melugin reports that Mayorkas privately admitted to DHS officials that the rate at which border crossers and illegal aliens are being released into the U.S. interior exceeds 85 percent.
U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
Driver Crashes Into White House Gate, Secret Service Says
A driver crashed a vehicle into a White House gate last night, the Secret Service said in a statement posted to Twitter.
“Not long after 6 p.m., a vehicle collided with the exterior White House gate,” Chief of Communications for the United States Secret Service Anthony Gugliemi posted in a statement on Twitter. President Joe Biden was not at the White House at the time of the collision as he is traveling from South Carolina to Texas to pay respects to late Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson.
The driver of the vehicle has been taken into custody and the Secret Service is investigating the manner of the collision and the motive behind the crash. Secret Service pointed the Daily Caller to Gugliemi’s tweet when asked to confirm the incident.
Trump Files Motion to Dismiss Georgia Election Case, Argues He Has Immunity
Former President Donald Trump on Monday filed several motions to dismiss his election case in Fulton County, Georgia, where he and more than a dozen others face state charges for allegedly conspiring to overturn the 2020 election.
The former president’s legal team argued in one filing that as president, he was legally entitled to immunity from prosecution. The arguments are similar to ones he made in a separate case in Washington, where he was indicted by special counsel Jack Smith on federal charges relating to his activity after the 2020 election.
His lawyers have argued that he was working in his official capacity as president when he moved to try and investigate what he described as election fraud following the election.
“The indictment in this case charges President Trump for acts that lie at the heart of his official responsibilities as President. The indictment is barred by presidential immunity and should be dismissed with prejudice,” President Trump’s lawyers wrote in the Georgia case.
The “historical practice over 234 years” in the United States has reaffirmed that the capacity to charge a current or former president “does not exist,” argued his legal team led by attorney Steve Sadow. “Such immunity is particularly appropriate for the President because the Presidency involves especially sensitive duties, requires bold and unhesitating action, and would be crippled by the threat of politically motivated prosecutions,” they wrote.
Any communication between the former president and state officials in connection to the 2020 election fell within his “official duties” as president, it added.
“Making statements to the public on matters of national concern—especially matters involving core federal interests, such as the administration of a federal election—lies in the heartland of the President’s historic role and responsibility,” his attorneys wrote.
Separately, his lawyers also argued in separate motions that the case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, a Democrat, should be dismissed on due process administrative grounds and that it should be scrapped based on the Constitution’s 5th Amendment, which includes a clause that a defendant cannot be charged twice with the same crime.
“President Trump has filed three persuasive, meritorious pretrial motions seeking a complete dismissal of the indictment and thus an end to the Fulton County District Attorney’s politically-based prosecution,” Mr. Sadow told Atlanta News First. “Also still pending is President Trump’s First Amendment as-applied challenge which seeks the same relief.”
Forty-nine U.S. states were under various weather alerts as a strong winter storm moves quickly throughout the country, coming after a winter storm brought significant snowfall across parts of the East Coast over the weekend.
“Significant winter storms will track across the Lower 48 through this week,” the National Weather Service said in a bulletin issued on Jan. 8.
Blizzard conditions are occurring across the Midwest and Plains states, and winter storm warnings and advisories have been issued for areas in Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, and Ohio.
The storm, described as a “strong surface cyclone,” was intensifying across the Texas and Oklahoma panhandle regions on Jan. 8, the agency stated, noting that the system will deepen further as it reaches Missouri on Jan. 9, before “bottoming out in pressure across the Lower Great Lakes early Wednesday.”
Separately, winter storm advisories were issued for parts of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, and California. The National Weather Service posted wind advisories and high wind warnings throughout the southern and eastern states.
The agency also noted that a strong winter storm may affect the Pacific Northwest, some western states, and the Cascade, Olympic, and Rocky Mountain areas.
Polar vortex, extreme weather events set to slam U.S.
The next two weeks will feature multiple “powerhouse” storm systems and a polar vortex event that together will affect the U.S. from coast to coast, snarling travel, threatening lives and causing damage.
Threat level: The first storm is poised to bring multiple hazards from Monday through Wednesday, including a “ferocious blizzard” in the Plains, plus torrential rain, severe weather and high winds on the Gulf and East Coasts.
The warm side of this first in a series of storms is where heavy rain, severe thunderstorms including a strong tornado risk, coastal flooding and widespread high winds are likely.
This weather system is projected to propel an atmospheric river with record levels of water vapor for this time of year from the Gulf Coast northward into New England through Wednesday.
This could lead to widespread flooding, especially in New England. The Weather Prediction Center has issued a “moderate” risk of excessive rainfall over the Gulf Coast on Monday and across the heavily populated I-95 corridor from northern Virginia to Connecticut on Tuesday. This is the second-highest risk level.
By the numbers: As of Monday morning, flood watches were in effect for about 62 million people, mainly in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
High wind warnings, watches and wind advisories were in effect for about 141 million people from New Mexico to Maine as of mid-morning Monday.
Zoom in: The Monday through Wednesday storm may generate winds of 50 mph or greater across at least a dozen states, including the dense urban corridor connecting Washington to Boston.
“Prepare for power outages,” the National Weather Service stated Sunday.
A similar storm knocked out power to more than 500,000 customers in the Northeast shortly before Christmas, and the wider scope of this event means the power outage numbers may soar into the millions.
The strong southerly flow of air ahead of the storm’s cold front is also predicted to cause “significant” coastal flooding along portions of the Gulf Coast and eastern seaboard, per the NWS. The threat for this is highest in the Carolinas, Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
Of note: A second storm is likely to form next weekend and rapidly intensify across the Great Lakes, possibly reaching bomb cyclone status and bringing blizzard conditions to Chicago.
More rain on the East Coast is a worrying prospect, given how much heavy precipitation the East has seen during the past few weeks. (The West isn’t missing out, however, with several feet of snow falling in the mountains during the next two weeks.)
Context: Climate change is adding even more moisture to atmospheric rivers, studies show, enabling them to dump higher rain and snow totals.
This is occurring because increasing ocean and air temperatures are causing more heat and moisture to be transferred into the atmosphere, providing more fuel to storm systems.
Polar vortex swirls south for significant cold snap
What we’re watching: There is also the increasingly likely prospect of a major Arctic outbreak hitting the Lower 48 states beginning late this week.
The frigid air is associated with a lobe of the tropospheric polar vortex that is slated to break off from its Arctic origins and blast southward.
Like the coast-to-coast storms, it could affect much of the Lower 48 states before temperatures moderate again.
Multiple computer models are projecting that extreme cold will be associated with this feature, with temperatures as frigid as 50°F below average or more for mid-January in some spots.
This may be the coldest air mass to affect many parts of the U.S. in several years. The first areas to see the ultra-cold air are likely to be the northern Plains and Pacific Northwest.
There are numerous studies that suggest polar vortex excursions may be becoming more likely in a warming world, but this is still an area of active research.
The intrigue: If the Arctic outbreak plays out as projected, it would set up a sharp temperature gradient across the country, giving an extra boost of energy to the coming series of winter storms and others to follow.
The next two weeks of extreme weather events could define the winter of 2023-24 and be one of the most active periods of winter weather for the U.S. in recent years.
The bottom line: It will be difficult for federal, state and local leaders to prepare for and recover from multiple storms and plunging temperatures. It’s a test for warning systems and infrastructure while offering a preview of what may be to come during a stormier, extreme weather world.
St. Louis Abruptly Rescinds Mask Mandate 24 Hours After Issuance
Authorities in St. Louis, Missouri, have rescinded their recently-announced mask mandate while acknowledging they did not properly present the current levels of infection.
Dr. Matifadza Hlatshwayo Davis, the health director of St. Louis, told city workers recently that they would be required starting Jan. 5 to wear masks indoors and when riding with at least one other person in city vehicles, according to a letter obtained and published by KMOX-AM.
Dr. Davis said the new mask mandate was being implemented because influenza cases were 55 percent higher than the “highest median value of the past five years.” She also said cases of respiratory syncytial virus, known as RSV, and COVID-19 hospitalizations were up.
“Influenza, RSV, and COVID-19 diagnoses and hospital visits have been sharply increasing,” she said, adding that “we must take action to slow transmission and prevent strain on our hospital systems.”
The mandate was pulled about 24 hours later, St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones said.
“The City of St. Louis has updated its communications with employees surrounding masking,” the mayor’s office told news outlets in a statement. “The City of St. Louis Department of Health strongly recommends masking indoors for all City of St. Louis employees, effective immediately.”
Portland area man finds missing door ‘plug’ torn from Alaska Airlines flight in backyard
A missing door plug that blew off an Alaska Airlines plane in mid-air on Friday has been recovered in the backyard of a Portland, Oregon home, the National Transportation Safety Board has revealed.
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said the missing Boeing 737 Max 9 door plug was found in the backyard of a Portland schoolteacher who was only identified as Bob.
According to Ms. Homendy, the schoolteacher contacted the NTSB after discovering the missing part of the aircraft in his backyard and sent two photos of it. Ms. Homendy refused to disclose any details about the location.
“We’re going to go pick that up and make sure that we begin analyzing it,” she added.
Investigators had been looking for the plug that blew off the plane after takeoff from Portland, Oregon, en route to Ontario, California, on Friday, prompting the pilots to make an emergency landing.
The airplane, carrying 171 passengers and six crew members, safely returned to Portland International Airport and landed at approximately 5:30 p.m. local time on Friday, according to Alaska Airlines.
The airline said on Sunday that it was willing to conduct inspections of the mid exit door plugs on its 737-9 MAX fleet. Alaska Airlines has canceled hundreds of flights following the incident.
“While we await the airworthiness directive (AD) inspection criteria from the FAA and Boeing, our maintenance teams are prepared and ready to perform the required inspections of the mid exit door plugs on our 737-9 MAX fleet,” the airline stated.
“The 737-9 MAX grounding has significantly impacted our operation. We have cancelled 170 Sunday flights and 60 cancellations for Monday, with more expected,” it said.
The NTSB had earlier requested the public’s help in locating the missing plug, as the agency believed it could be a “key missing component” that would help determine the cause of the accident.
“Our structures team will want to look at everything on the door—all of the components on the door to look at witness marks, to look at any paint transfer, what shape the door was in when found. That can tell them a lot about what occurred,” Ms. Homendy said.
She said the force from the loss of the plug door was strong enough to blow open the cockpit door during flight.
“They heard a bang,” Ms. Homendy said of the pilots, who were interviewed by investigators.
A quick reference laminated checklist flew out the door, while the first officer lost her headset, she said.
“Communication was a serious issue… It was described as chaos,” she added.
Ms. Homendy said the cockpit voice recorder did not capture any data because it had been overwritten and again called on regulators to mandate retrofitting existing planes with recorders that capture 25 hours of data, up from the two hours required at present.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered the grounding of some Boeing Max 9s operated by U.S. airlines or flown into the country by foreign carriers until they are inspected. The emergency order affects about 171 planes worldwide.
The so-called door plug is installed on some jets with fewer seats instead of an emergency exit panel. The jets ordered grounded by the FAA all have those panels installed.
United Airlines, the world’s biggest operator of Max 9s, grounded its entire fleet of 79 Max 9s and is seeking to “clarify the inspection process and requirements for returning” them to service. United said it canceled 90 flights because of the grounding Saturday and about 180 Sunday.
Another batch of documents from a defamation lawsuit related to Jeffrey Epstein were released on Monday morning.
The Gateway Pundit obtained the 17 new documents on Monday and they are explosive!
The new documents, which were reviewed by this reporter, reveal there are alleged sex tapes of Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew and Richard Branson.
“When my friend had sexual intercourse with Clinton, Prince Andrew and Richard Branson, sex tapes were in fact filed on each separate occasion by Jeffery,” said the witness, Sarah Ransome.
BILL CLINTON, PRINCE ANDREW AND RICHARD BRANSON’S FACES ARE ALL CLEARLY IDENTIFIABLE IN THE ALLEGED SEX TAPES.
“THANK GOD SHE MANAGED TO GET A HOLD OF SOME FOOTAGE OF THE FILMED SEX TAPES, WHICH CLEARLY IDENTIFY THE FACES OF CLINTON, PRINCE ANDREW AND BRANSON HAVING SEXUAL INTERCOURSE WITH HER.”
According to the witness, Sarah Ransome, Hillary Clinton sent her henchmen to intimidate her friend after she went to the police in 2008 to report she was forced to have sex with Bill Clinton, Richard Branson and Prince Andrew on video.
“She was made to feel like a dirty whore and liar and wasn’t taken seriously,” Sarah Ransome said of her friend.
“A couple months later, she was then approached, by Special Agents Forces Men sent directly by Hillary Clinton herself, in order to protect her presidential campaign in 2008. The heavily intimidated her, ruffled her up (luckily she took photos as evidence) and was then forced to sign a confidentiality agreement which ensures that she can never come forward publicly implicating her husband,” the witness said.
Also according to the witness, her friend was given a “substantial payout directly from the Clinton Foundation to keep her quiet.”
“She was then given a substantial payout, directly from the Clinton Foundation to keep her quiet. She is 1000% certain that the FBI did a cover up and she has the individual names of Hillary’s Special Agent Officers involved in intimidating her. She was then forced against her will to sign a legally binding confidentially (sic) agreement on Hillary’s behalf for her eternal silence. If she breaks this agreement, she is dead,” the witness said.
The witness alleged she has footage of the Clinton, Branson, Prince Andrew sex tapes “backed up” on “several USB sticks” and said she has a kill switch just in case something happens to her.
“Unfortunately, I cannot send you the footage without her consent due to massive consequences to her safety but I can confirm that I do have footage in my possession. I have backed up the footage on several USB sticks and have securely sent them to various difference locations throughout Europe with only one other person close to me, knowing where their locations are, just in case anything happens to me before the footage is released,” the witness said.
Image credit: Techno Fog
Explosion at Fort Worth hotel, 21 injuries reported, missing person located
A hotel explosion shook downtown Fort Worth, Texas, on Monday afternoon, leaving at least 21 injured and prompting a swift response from emergency crews.
The explosion blew out the windows of the historic Sandman Hotel located on Houston Street, near the city hall, at around 3:30 p.m. local time, leaving sizable debris piles on the streets.
It has been reported that the hotel was in operation during the explosion, with 26 rooms occupied.
At least 21 people were injured, including one in critical condition and two more in serious condition, the Fort Worth Fire Department said on X, formerly Twitter. One person had been declared missing but was later found.
Of the 21 injured, 19 were treated on the scene, one took themselves to an area hospital, and no casualties have been reported, Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Craig Trojacek told reporters at a news conference on Monday evening. Crews rescued people from the hotel’s basement who weren’t able to get out on their own, he said.
“We do know that there was some construction that was being done down at the restaurant,” he added. “We’re not 100 percent sure that that’s where it actually started at this point in time.”
Mr. Trojacek said that the scene remains active, and collaborative efforts with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and FBI, particularly their arson and bomb division, are ongoing.
According to Sara Abel, a spokesperson for the ATF, investigators attribute the explosion to natural gas, which officials said they smelled upon arriving at the scene. The fire department said on X that this had not yet been confirmed as the cause.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Gen Z jobseekers are bringing parents to interviews, employers say: ‘Unprepared’
Helicopter parenting has reached a new level. Employers are going above and beyond to not hire recent college graduates in favor of older workers, a new survey found.
The survey uncovered many reasons why older applicants are preferred — including that Gen Z jobseekers are even bringing mom and dad to interviews.
In December, Intelligent, an online magazine focused on student life, surveyed 800 managers, directors and executives involved in the hiring process.
It found that 39% of employers actively avoid hiring recent college graduates for roles they’re qualified for.
Out of the 800 people surveyed, a startling one in five (19%) said a recent college graduate brought a parent with them to their job interview.
But that’s not the only aspect stopping employers from hiring Gen Z applicants.
One in five employers say that recent college graduates are “unprepared” for interviews — and are often unprofessional.
Fifty-three percent of employers surveyed said that recent college graduates struggle with eye contact, 50% said they ask for unreasonable compensation, 47% said they don’t dress appropriately for interviews, and 21% said they refuse to turn their cameras on for virtual interviews.
But Diane M. Gayeski, a professor of strategic communications at Ithaca College, “Employers need to recognize that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, young people graduating from college had more than two years of disruption in their education as well as their social and professional development,” Gayeski said in the report. “Current seniors were in their freshman year at the height of COVID. They likely took classes online and were unable to participate in clubs, internships or summer jobs.”
Additionally, 63% of those involved in hiring claimed tht recent college grads can’t manage their workload, 61% said they are frequently late to work, 59% claimed they often miss deadlines, and 53% noted that they are frequently late to meetings.
Employers aren’t exactly fans of Gen Z’s attitudes, either.
Fifty-eight percent said Gen Z jobseekers get offended too easily and are unprepared for the workforce in general, 63% said they are entitled, 57% believed they lack professionalism, 55% said they don’t respond well to constructive feedback, and 52% claimed they have poor communication skills
Of those surveyed, 47% admitted that they had fired a recent college graduate.
Meanwhile, employers are pursuing great lengths to avoid hiring a recent graduate, including offering more benefits for older employees (60%), paying higher salaries to older employees (59%), allowing older workers to work remotely or in a hybrid environment (48%) and hiring older employees for roles they’re overqualified for (46%).
National Association of Realtors President Resigns After Blackmail Threat
The president of the National Association of Realtors said Monday that she is stepping down from her position after receiving a blackmail threat.
Tracy Kasper told the NAR’s leadership “that she recently received a threat to disclose a past personal, non-financial matter unless she compromised her position at NAR,” the group said in a statement Monday. “She refused to do so and instead reported the threat to law enforcement.”
The NAR describes itself as America’s largest trade association. It represents more than 1.5 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
“As a result of the recent threat and given the significance of this moment for myself, my family and the organization, it is again time for me to put the interests of NAR first,” Kasper said in the statement.
“The Leadership Team is deeply concerned about any attempt to undermine its governance and, as a result, is taking steps to protect the integrity of the organization,” the NAR said. “NAR appreciates Ms. Kasper’s service and her years of dedication to the association, and in particular her commitment to advocating for homeownership for all.”
Kasper will be replaced by president-elect Kevin Sears, the group said.
HEALTH
Please note: The information provided on this site is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for advice from your physician or other health care professional.
Study reveals simple ways to reduce risk of early-onset dementia
Defined as a syndrome, dementia is caused by diseases that gradually deteriorate nerve cells and compromise brain functionality. Individuals with dementia eventually experience a decline in cognitive abilities, impacting their thinking processes compared to their younger years.
Early-onset dementia, occurring in younger individuals, poses particularly severe challenges. Yet, a recent research study carried out in the United Kingdom and featured in JAMA Neurology provides insights into some of the most effective strategies for reducing the risk of early-onset dementia.
Decoding dementia: Vitamin D, alcohol, and beyond
The most recent study on dementia indicates that both vitamin D deficiency and alcohol consumption are contributing factors to early-onset dementia. This research examined a total of 15 distinct risk factors for early-onset dementia, focusing on lifestyle choices and genetic and environmental factors.
The study encompassed 350,000 participants residing in England, making it the most extensive study of its kind. The investigation targeted individuals aged between 30 and 60 who had been diagnosed with young-onset or early-onset dementia.
Data for the study were sourced directly from the UK Biobank, an extensive longitudinal study focused on gathering health-related information from UK residents. The primary objective of the UK Biobank is to explore the impact of environmental influences and genetic predispositions on disease development.
The researchers carried out an initial assessment over a four-year span from 2006 to 2010. Subsequent follow-up assessments were conducted in 2018 and 2021. Through comprehensive systematic data analysis, a total of 39 specific risk factors were identified.
One of the study’s key motivations was to challenge the prevailing belief that genetics alone predominantly cause the syndrome. The aspiration is that pinpointing particular lifestyle and health-related factors that contribute to early-onset dementia will lead to preventative measures that can deter the onset of the syndrome in younger individuals.
Strategies for boosting vitamin D levels and limiting alcohol intake
While altering our genetic makeup remains beyond our reach, we all possess the ability to enhance our vitamin D levels and curtail alcohol consumption. After all, our lifestyle decisions will impact our genetic expression. Here are some healthy suggestions:
Get a reasonable amount of sun exposure: Spend 30 minutes daily outdoors to help your body to generate vitamin D, naturally. Just be sure to avoid getting sunburned.
Eat a healthy diet: Include vitamin D-rich foods like wild-caught fatty fish, organic (raw) dairy, and pasture raised (organic) egg yolks.
Consider supplementation: Consume a high-quality vitamin D supplement
Minimize or avoid alcohol consumption: Track your habits and identify triggers for overconsumption.
Set goals: Aim for alcohol-free days or reduce intake gradually. Plus, make regular exercise a top priority.
If needed, get support: Join support groups or consult professionals for guidance.
Explore alternatives: Try non-alcoholic beverages or new hobbies as substitutes.
By adopting these measures, you can make strides in improving your health and reducing your risk of early-onset dementia.
GIN-SOAKED RAISINS (PURPORTED ARTHRITIS REMEDY)
DIRECTIONS
- Before you get started, make sure to read the label of your gin to check that it is made from or includes juniper berries. This is critical!
- Put the raisins in a shallow glass container and pour enough gin into it to just cover the raisins. They have to be GOLD RAISINS (the others won’t work)!
- Cover the container with cheesecloth and allow to stand until the raisins absorb the gin and the remaining liquid evaporates, about one week.
- Each day, eat NINE of these “drunken” raisins.
- I have read that it might take six weeks for this remedy to work, so be patient.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Weinstein To Carlson: W.H.O. Intends To End Free Speech In America
Free Speech is on the chopping block in 2024. We know now who started the conspiracy to commit murder, how they will carry it out, and how they will cover their tracks afterward. If they are successful, it will mean the collapse of America and the end of personal freedom and liberty. Do you care enough to stand up and fight them? Now is the time to support Citizens for Free Speech!!
VIDEO INTERVIEW: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MIESbBnA2k&t=40s
GARDENING, FARMING & HOMESTEADING
Creating a huge bonfire is not only a skill but an art that combines safety, technique, and a bit of spectacle. I’ve had my fair share of bonfire experiences, and I want to share with you how to create a memorable and safe bonfire that can be the highlight of an outdoor gathering or a personal accomplishment in your homesteading journey.
Planning and Safety First
Before diving into the construction of a bonfire, it’s crucial to prioritize planning and safety:
- Location: Choose a flat dirt area in a large clearing. This minimizes the risk of the fire spreading.
- Safety Measures: Ensure that the bonfire is surrounded by a non-flammable area. For example, having snow or a cleared area around the bonfire site is vital to prevent the spread of fire.
- Legal and Environmental Considerations: Always check local laws regarding bonfires and consider environmental impacts.
Constructing the Bonfire
The key to a huge, lasting bonfire lies in its construction:
- Base Structure: Use fresh cut green logs, slightly notched at each end. This helps in creating a stable structure.
- Log Arrangement: Arrange the logs in a criss-cross pattern, similar to playing with Lincoln logs.
- Internal Fuel: Fill the gaps within the structure with split, dry firewood. This will aid in igniting the green logs and maintaining the fire.
Lighting the Bonfire
- Starting Small: Begin with a smaller fire within the structure. This will gradually ignite the dry wood and eventually the green logs.
- Observation: As the fire grows, it’s crucial to monitor its progress and ensure it remains controlled.
Enjoying the Bonfire
- Safety Distance: Maintain a safe distance as the bonfire reaches its peak. It’s mesmerizing to watch but safety should always come first.
- Duration: A well-constructed bonfire can burn for hours, providing warmth and a fantastic spectacle.
Key Takeaways
- Preparation is Key: Proper planning and constructing a stable structure are essential for a safe and successful bonfire.
- Safety Cannot Be Overstressed: Always prioritize safety and legal considerations when planning a bonfire.
- The Beauty of the Burn: A well-made bonfire is not just a source of heat, but a work of art that can provide hours of enjoyment.
Concluding Thoughts
Building a huge bonfire is a gratifying experience that combines skill, safety, and a deep respect for nature. Whether it’s for a special occasion or just an adventurous endeavor in homesteading, the glow of a well-made bonfire is truly unforgettable.
Pros and Cons of Shipping Container Houses
We escaped city living to build an off-grid shipping container home in Oregon. Learn from our list of pros and cons of shipping container houses.
We escaped city living to build an off-grid shipping container home in Oregon. Learn from our list of pros and cons of shipping container houses.
About two years ago, Pacific Pines Ranch was born from our idea to escape the city life and chase our dreams out in the Oregon forest. We decided to change our life and start from ground zero to develop an off-grid shipping container home, ourselves, with little to no construction experience.
The reasons why we decided to meander down this road in life vary. We think it’s important for us to expand our abilities and learn valuable DIY construction skills such as welding, framing, electricity, plumbing, finishing work, mechanics, wood working, concrete setup/finishing, etc. There are so many aspects that go into building a house, and they all offer great experience in the different realms of construction. We wanted to challenge ourselves as individuals and teach ourselves how to build something not only unique, but also to build our dream house with our own hands. Our overall goal with this project is to change our lifestyle and become as self-sufficient as possible, and to learn to live off the grid.
Pros of Shipping Container Homes
Shipping containers, like any construction technique, come with many pros and cons. One of the biggest pros of containers are their strength. Each container can hold 55,000 to 72,000 pounds, depending on what size they are. They are made to store large amounts of cargo inside and shipped around the world, which also means that they are extremely durable. They go years enduring the toughest coastal and oceanic conditions and are made to survive the wear and tear of life between sea and port.
They are made with CorTen steel, which is a special kind of steel that is designed to resist against corrosion and have high-tensile strength. Because they are used for shipping around the world, they are usually easy to find near any coastal area or shipping port.
Shipping containers are easy to transport due to their design and weight. They also offer great designs capabilities and can be setup in many different ways or configurations, essentially like life-size Legos.
They’re also fireproof, and can withstand intense weather situations such as tornadoes, hurricanes, and floods.
Cons of Shipping Container Homes
- One of the cons of shipping container builds is they can require quite a bit of work to make them livable. To create any openings, panels need to be cut out, which compromises the strength of the container and can require reinforcements.
- They can also be hard to get if the building site is not near any shipping area, such as a port or railway hub. Depending on the location and design of the build, they can require cranes to place the containers onto the foundation which can be a costly expense.
- Overall, they require a lot of ingenuity to make them work as structures, and can be labor-intensive depending on the size of the structure and the design.
COVID RELATED NEWS
Fauci to testify before Congress on COVID origins, pandemic response
Dr. Anthony Fauci arrived in Washington yesterday to answer questions on how he flipped his position on public policy for masks, how the agency he headed funded risky research in China, and how post-infection immunity was downplayed.
Dr. Fauci, 83, a chief architect of the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic, is behind closed doors for two days of questioning from the U.S. House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic. It’s the first time he’ll answer questions under oath since November 2022.
Dr. Fauci agreed to appear to answer questions for about seven hours on Monday and Tuesday, but only if he could bring two personal lawyers and two government lawyers, the panel announced in late 2023.
Dr. Fauci also testified to Congress that his agency did not fund a type of work called gain-of-function, or testing that enhances a virus, in China. But documents released by the NIAID’s parent agency showed experiments conducted in Wuhan on a bat coronavirus resulted in mice becoming sicker when compared to the original virus.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a doctor, and others have said Dr. Fauci lied. Dr. Paul asked U.S. prosecutors to prosecute Dr. Fauci but there has been no indication they have pursued the referrals.
Fauci ‘doesn’t recall’ much about COVID pandemic start, House panel chair says
Dr. Anthony Fauci said a surprising number of times that he could not recall when he was asked questions about the COVID-19 pandemic in a close-door session with a Congressional committee, top lawmakers said on Jan. 8.
“There may be over 100 or so, so far, ‘I don’t recall’, ‘I don’t remember’ answers,” Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) told reporters on Capitol Hill after answering questions for seven hours.
Dr. Fauci, the longtime head of the U.S. National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) until around the end of 2022, was testifying to the U.S. House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic. He was speaking in the private session under oath for the first time since he left office. The last time he spoke under oath, he also said he didn’t recall in response to a number of questions. Dr. Fauci was accompanied by two personal lawyers and two government lawyers.
CANCEL CULTURE
South Korea Lawmakers Cut Dog Meat from National Menu
South Korea lawmakers on Tuesday passed a bill banning the breeding, slaughtering, and selling dogs for their meat. The move ends a centuries-old practice activists have slammed as a national embarrassment.
South Korean cuisine has long featured dog meat and at one point up to a million dogs were killed for the trade every year, according to activists cited by AFP.
But consumption has sharply declined recently as Koreans welcome pet ownership in droves and embrace loving their four-legged friends rather than eating them.
AFP reports official support for a ban has grown under President Yoon Suk Yeol, a self-professed animal lover who has adopted several stray dogs and cats with First Lady Kim Keon-hee — who is herself a vocal critic of dog meat consumption.
The bill, which was proposed by both the ruling and main opposition parties, was passed unanimously by a 208-0 vote.
Under the law, raising or slaughtering dogs for consumption will be banned, as will distributing or selling dog meat. Those found guilty of doing so could be sent to jail.
Those butchering dogs could face up to three years in prison, while those who raise dogs for meat or sell dog meat could serve a maximum of two years.
However, the consumption of dog meat itself will not be illegal, the BBC notes.
It will come into effect following a three-year grace period after it receives final approval from Yoon.
“The ruling and opposition parties and the government must now take the lead in protecting… animal rights,” he said in a statement.
Activists also welcomed the bill saying it was “history in the making” to formally declare the end of dog meat consumption, a practice still widely observed in other countries including China, Indonesia and Vietnam.
“We reached a tipping point where most Korean citizens reject eating dogs and want to see this suffering consigned to the history books,” JungAh Chae, executive director of Humane Society International/Korea, said in a statement.
“Today our policymakers have acted decisively to make that a reality,” she said.
“While my heart breaks for all the millions of dogs for whom this change has come too late, I am overjoyed that South Korea can now close this miserable chapter in our history and embrace a dog friendly future.”
According to government statistics seen by the BBC, South Korea had around 1,600 dog meat restaurants and 1,150 dog farms in 2023.
PET NEWS
Americans can’t afford their pets. It’s pushing animal shelters to the brink.
Lonely and stuck at home, millions of Americans turned to animals for comfort in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, adopting and fostering cats and dogs from shelters at record rates. Videos of empty animal shelters went viral; Wired called it “the feel-good pandemic story you need right now.”
“It was a really fun time to be in animal welfare,” said Bobby Mann, chief programs officer of the Humane Rescue Alliance, the largest animal shelter in the Washington, DC, metro area. “We did absolutely see an uptick in adoptions.”
But starting in 2021, shelters began filling back up as there were more animals entering than leaving, and now many are packed to the brim. From Rhode Island to Seattle and everywherein between, shelters are reporting they’re at capacity, forcing an increase in the number of dogs killed due to space constraints. Earlier this year, almost half of shelters surveyedreported an increase in euthanized dogs, while only 10 percent reported a decrease.
“Perfectly adoptable dogs are losing their lives and it is a crisis,” said one municipal shelter that was surveyed. “We need volunteers, fosters, and adopters.”
“By and large, shelters are screaming from the rooftops that they’ve been in crisis for a while, and it’s not letting up,” said Stephanie Filer, executive director of Shelter Animals Count, an organization that collects and publishes data from thousands of animal shelters and conducted the euthanasia survey. The group predicts the situation will continue to worsen this year.
The trend threatens the immense progress that animal shelters have made to reduce the number of animals put down since the 1970s, when 13.5 million of the 65 million dogs and cats in the US — more than one-fifth — were euthanized. In 2019, fewer than a million dogs and cats, about 0.7 percent of the country’s 135 million, were put down.
Lawsuit Alleges Prescription Pet Food Marketing Is Deceptive
The class-action suit, filed on behalf of Illinois pet owners, claims that it’s a deceptive practice for Hill’s to restrict the sale of its prescription diet food to those with a prescription from their vet.
- A group of pet owners filed a class-action lawsuit against Hill’s Pet Nutrition
- The class-action suit, filed on behalf of Illinois pet owners, claims that it’s a deceptive practice for Hill’s to restrict the sale of its prescription diet food to those with a prescription from their vet
- Hill’s charges a premium for its prescription pet food, justifying the cost by implying it may treat and cure pets of certain disease, but the food does not contain ingredients or medicine that aren’t found in common non-prescription pet food
- Many consumers purchasing the product have been misled into paying high prices for a “prescription” food that contains ingredients found in non-prescription foods, and nothing more
- The suit is seeking to recover more than $80 million for people in Illinois who purchased Hill’s prescription diet products; similar lawsuits are also pending against Hill’s and other pet food manufacturers in different states, including California, Missouri and Kansas
GOOD NEWS
How a Bladesmith from Alaska Turned His Passion into a Business
Trevor Barrett stokes the coals of his forge as he contemplates his next project—a Tolkien-inspired sword—all while listening meditatively to the enchanting choral rhythms of Skyrim. Like the dwarves of Middle Earth, he readies his hammers, planning to strike out on anvil a rune-encrusted sword. Only, he lives in Alaska.
Just the right mix of passion for hunting, Lord of the Rings, and epic overworld video games planted in his mind the seeds for the blade-smithing business he would successfully launch.
Add a few YouTube DIY tutorials, and the 36-year-old from Haines, an old gold rush town, became an entirely self-taught bladesmith. His outlandishly ornamental, yet fully functional, swords are an ode to craftsmanship
Besides “reading things like Lord of the Rings” while growing up, “being a hunter in a woodland here in Alaska, I started to be interested in what makes a good blade,” Mr. Barrett told The Epoch Times.
“I went on YouTube and I googled how, and I taught myself how to do it. Trial and error.”
It started with the search for the perfect hunting knife. He wanted a jack of all trades, not too big, not too small, a knife for “a little bit of everything when you’re trying to survive out in the wilderness,” he said.
He was a gas station attendant when that search began eight years ago. His initial labors bore fruit, with his first forged blade becoming the knife he’s now known for, his flagship and best seller, named the Denali—honoring his Alaskan roots.
But blade smithing became a full-time job in his own shop thanks to Instagram. Mr. Barrett, who believed he lacked the personality to be an influencer, found people loved watching him forge blades the traditional way. And not just any old blades, either.
“Eventually, somebody was like, ‘Hey, are you selling?’” he said. “One thing led to another, and eventually it became my full-time profession.”
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Growing in skill, though, he found something was missing in his ideal hunting knives. Besides having the requisite edge retention (strength), flexibility, and comfort in the hand, they lacked personality—a soul.
“I would always be a bit dissatisfied,” he said, adding that he grew bored with mere banal utility. “It needs something more.”
That something more was found drawing from the classic Tolkien trilogy: “The Lord of the Rings.”
He already knew his metallurgy: Hammering bars of high carbon steel, he could forge the basic shape of a simple, medium-sized sword in a day. It would be quenched in oil for hardness. Then tempered in fire for flexibility. Swords were balanced for optimal handling or else would be useless scrap metal. Lastly, the grinding and polishing brought its edge and ornamentation to the perfect finish.
But to imbue something more, he found the engraving of runes—fantasy script—gave a “personality and a presence behind it,” he said. “That just stuck with me, and I loved it.”
And so, channeling this inspiration, he forged Andúril, the two-handed sword of Aragorn, based on a movie replica he ordered. It features a heavy pommel for balance and handle done in leather for comfort.
Later came Aldrissil, derived from Tolkien naming conventions, made of Damascus steel—no mean feat to produce, for Damascus involves hundreds of folds and complex chemistry. This heavily ornamented sword was the culmination of his efforts. It bore a northern lights stone set in the guard—again honoring Alaska.
Both swords took him upwards of three months each to finish.
Currently, Mr. Barrett’s is working on a 300-layer Damascus rapier from “The Princess Bride.” It is to be a client’s “engagement sword” and set with red and black opal. Clients pay big money for such fantasy weapons—north of $10,000 for a fancy sword—but that’s because of how much labor they require, he said. It’s the price of authenticity.
“Aldrissil, Blade of Nightsong.” (Courtesy of Trevor Barrett)
Today, blade smithing has become something of a ritual for Mr. Barrett. It’s not just about the perfect blade anymore, but incorporates the experience and aesthetic of forging the old-fashioned way.
“I use more traditional-looking hammers for some reason,” he said. “In the summertime, the shop’s windows are open constantly so then you get to smell the forest.”
Mingling with the scent of oil in the quench tank, it’s intoxicating.
“I try to work without the lights as much as I can and just let the natural lighting come in,” he said. “I love seeing the sun streaming in the window.”
One hears a chorus of dwarven chanting seemingly in the background. Mr. Barrett fondly plays the soundtracks of fantasy films and the Skyrim video game—just the atmosphere for contemplating his next hammer strike.
He must focus on “letting go of everything outside the shop,” he said. “I slow it down.” For if he’s distracted, not taking time to visualize what he is making, in an instant one slip of the hammer could cost him weeks of work.But, when he strikes, he strikes with a purpose.
Mr. Barrett forges blades in his shop.”Stormyr, Kopesh of the Wildwood”; Each stroke is intentional, deliberate, and careful, he said. It is acting “with intention, with deliberate forethought, not just wildly hammering.”
Incorporated in his process are modern metal grinders and compounds to add strength to wooden handles, yet he endeavors to keep things as traditional as possible.
Someone once told Mr. Barrett this is a slow way to make money. He should be more efficient, they said.
“I’m not interested in just getting a brand of blade,” he said, adding that his interests lie more in “learning how they used to do it.”
He said, “It hasn’t changed very much in thousands of years. And that’s because we figured it out.
“No, I do just about everything with the hammer on the anvil.”
ICYMI
Report: Four-Time Deported Illegal Alien Accused of Killing Colorado Mother and Her Teenage Son
A four-time deported illegal alien is accused of killing a mother and one of her three sons
in a fatal drunk-driving crash, a new report details.
Jose Guadalupe Menjivar-Alas, a 37-year-old illegal alien from El Salvador, was arrested and charged in December with killing 46-year-old Melissa Powell, a mother of three sons, as well as her 16-year-old son, Riordan Powell, in Broomfield, Colorado, on December 12.
Jennie Taer at the Daily Caller broke the news that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency confirmed Menjivar-Alas’s illegal alien status and his repeated illegal re-entry into the United States despite being deported four times.
Menjivar-Alas has had four prior convictions in Boulder County, Colorado, for drunk driving from 2007 to 2019, Taer reports. Only days before the crash that killed Melissa Powell and Riordan Powell, Menjivar-Alas had been given a slap on the wrist by a county judge.
ICE officials told Taer that Menjivar-Alas was deported from the U.S. in June 2009, June 2012, November 2014, and January 2015 before ultimately illegally re-entering, likely via the southern border.
Family and friends have set up a GoFundMe for Melissa Powell’s other two sons, Chris and Halen. Melissa Powell and Riordan Powell “were both a light in many of our lives, and it is hard to even understand and grasp the situation,” the fundraiser’s page reads:
According to the Broomfield Police Department, Menjivar-Alas was drunk driving at the time of the crash, going at least 80 mph, weaving in and out of traffic, and crossing double yellow center lines before hitting Melissa Powell and Riordan Powell.
Melissa Powell died at the scene, while Riordan Powell died later at a nearby hospital.
Police allege that Menjivar-Alas’s vehicle reeked of alcohol and that there were beer cans and open beer cases with missing beer cans on the floor. When Menjivar-Alas later took a blood-alcohol test, his level was 0.249, which is three times the legal limit.
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