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The Blaze 6 days ago
@The Blaze image Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk announced her endorsement of Vice President JD Vance for president in 2028 during her Thursday speech at the AmericaFest conference.Vance will speak on Sunday at the conference organized by Turning Point USA, the organization founded by Charlie Kirk in 2012. 'If JD Vance runs for president, he's going to be our nominee.'"We're gonna ensure that President Trump has Congress for all four years," she said. "We are going to get my husband's friend JD Vance elected for 48 in the most resounding way possible!" The thousands at the conference in Phoenix, Arizona, responded with resounding applause. Vance has not said if he's running for president yet, but he's seen as a prominent front-runner for the nomination."My attitude is, the American people elected me to be vice president," he said in October. "I'm going to work as hard as I can to make the president successful over the next three years and three months, and if we get to a point where something else is in the offer, let's handle it then."Secretary of State Marco Rubio, also considered a potential presidential candidate, said that he would support Vance if the vice president ran for the Oval Office. "If JD Vance runs for president, he's going to be our nominee, and I'll be one of the first people to support him," Rubio said to Vanity Fair. RELATED: JD Vance responds to the possibility of Vance-Rubio presidential ticket Vance has said Kirk's organization was pivotal in the re-election of Trump in 2024. "So much of the success we've had in this administration traces directly to Charlie's ability to organize and convene. He didn't just help us win in 2024; he helped us staff the entire government," he said. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/erika-kirk-vance-president-endorse
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The Blaze 3 weeks ago
@The Blaze image Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter, a pair of convicted hackers based in Alexandria, Virginia, were arrested on Wednesday over an alleged conspiracy to destroy government databases and other crimes.After doing prison time for wire fraud and conspiring to hack into the U.S. State Department, the Akhter twins, one of whom previously served as a cybersecurity contractor with the State Department, managed to secure jobs as federal contractors — working as engineers for Opexus.'Their actions jeopardized the security of government systems.'Opexus, a company that handles sensitive data for most federal agencies and has received over $50 million in contracts from various agencies over the past decade, determined earlier this year that it had been compromised in February by two employees.A Bloomberg investigation revealed in May that after one of the agencies with which Opexus was working, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, flagged the twins as possible threats on account of their criminal records, the duo were fired on Feb. 18.The company later discovered that while being fired and immediately afterward, the twins allegedly accessed sensitive documents and compromised or scrubbed dozens of databases, including those containing data from the General Services Administration and the Internal Revenue Service.The FBI, FDIC Office of Inspector General, Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.The brothers were indicted on Nov. 13 for allegedly working to harm Opexus and its U.S. government clients "by accessing computers without authorization, issuing commands to prevent others from modifying the databases before deletion, deleting databases, stealing information, and destroying evidence of their unlawful activities," the DOJ said in a release.RELATED: Could hackers target your car's tires? Muneeb Akhter. Photo by Evelyn Hockstein/Washington Post via Getty ImagesAccording to the indictment, Muneeb Akhter allegedly deleted approximately 96 databases storing U.S. government information — including databases containing records and documents related to Freedom of Information Act matters as well as sensitive federal investigative files.Muneeb Akhter is also accused of asking an artificial intelligence tool how they could cover their tracks after deleting a DHS database.After he got fired from Opexus, Muneeb Akhter allegedly obtained data from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and is accused further of stealing copies of IRS information including federal tax information and other identifying information for at least 450 individuals.Opexus did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News."These defendants abused their positions as federal contractors to attack government databases and steal sensitive government information," said Matthew Galeotti, acting assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice's Criminal Division, in a statement. "Their actions jeopardized the security of government systems and disrupted agencies’ ability to serve the American people."Muneeb Akhter has been charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and to destroy records, two counts of computer fraud, theft of federal records, and two counts of aggravated identity theft. His twin, Sohaib Akhter, was charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and to destroy records and computer fraud.While Sohaib Akhter faces a maximum penalty of six years in prison, Muneeb Akhter faces a mandatory minimum penalty of two years of prison time for each aggravated identity theft count and a maximum penalty of 45 years for the other charges.The duo pleaded guilty in 2015 to a different set of crimes.Muneeb Akhter hacked into the website of a cosmetics company and stole thousands of customers' credit card and personal information. He and his brother used the stolen data to pay for flights, hotel stays, various goods, and attendance at professional conferences. Muneeb Akhter proceeded to hand off the stolen data to a "dark net" operator who cut him in on the profits from the sales.The other brother, meanwhile, used his contract position at the State Department in 2015 to steal personally identifiable data belonging to various people including co-workers and a federal law enforcement agent who was investigating him.According to the Justice Department, Sohaib Akhter later hatched a scheme to ensure perpetual access to various State Department systems and, with the help of his twin, attempted to install an electronic collection device inside a State Department office, which would have enabled the hackers to remotely steal federal data.Years earlier, Muneeb Akhter hacked into a Maryland-based private data aggregation company that he was performing contract work for, giving his brother access to a database of federal contract information to give their technology company an upper hand when bidding for contracts and clients.Like Blaze News? 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The Blaze 3 weeks ago
@The Blaze image Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter, a pair of convicted hackers based in Alexandria, Virginia, were arrested on Wednesday over an alleged conspiracy to destroy government databases and other crimes.After doing prison time for wire fraud and conspiring to hack into the U.S. State Department, the Akhter twins, one of whom previously served as a cybersecurity contractor with the State Department, managed to secure jobs as federal contractors — working as engineers for Opexus.'Their actions jeopardized the security of government systems.'Opexus, a company that handles sensitive data for most federal agencies and has received over $50 million in contracts from various agencies over the past decade, determined earlier this year that it had been compromised in February by two employees.A Bloomberg investigation revealed in May that after one of the agencies with which Opexus was working, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, flagged the twins as possible threats on account of their criminal records, the duo were fired on Feb. 18.The company later discovered that while being fired and immediately afterward, the twins allegedly accessed sensitive documents and compromised or scrubbed dozens of databases, including those containing data from the General Services Administration and the Internal Revenue Service.The FBI, FDIC Office of Inspector General, Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.The brothers were indicted on Nov. 13 for allegedly working to harm Opexus and its U.S. government clients "by accessing computers without authorization, issuing commands to prevent others from modifying the databases before deletion, deleting databases, stealing information, and destroying evidence of their unlawful activities," the DOJ said in a release.RELATED: Could hackers target your car's tires? Muneeb Akhter. Photo by Evelyn Hockstein/Washington Post via Getty ImagesAccording to the indictment, Muneeb Akhter allegedly deleted approximately 96 databases storing U.S. government information — including databases containing records and documents related to Freedom of Information Act matters as well as sensitive federal investigative files.Muneeb Akhter is also accused of asking an artificial intelligence tool how they could cover their tracks after deleting a DHS database.After he got fired from Opexus, Muneeb Akhter allegedly obtained data from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and is accused further of stealing copies of IRS information including federal tax information and other identifying information for at least 450 individuals.Opexus did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News."These defendants abused their positions as federal contractors to attack government databases and steal sensitive government information," said Matthew Galeotti, acting assistant attorney general at the Department of Justice's Criminal Division, in a statement. "Their actions jeopardized the security of government systems and disrupted agencies’ ability to serve the American people."Muneeb Akhter has been charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and to destroy records, two counts of computer fraud, theft of federal records, and two counts of aggravated identity theft. His twin, Sohaib Akhter, was charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and to destroy records and computer fraud.While Sohaib Akhter faces a maximum penalty of six years in prison, Muneeb Akhter faces a mandatory minimum penalty of two years of prison time for each aggravated identity theft count and a maximum penalty of 45 years for the other charges.The duo pleaded guilty in 2015 to a different set of crimes.Muneeb Akhter hacked into the website of a cosmetics company and stole thousands of customers' credit card and personal information. He and his brother used the stolen data to pay for flights, hotel stays, various goods, and attendance at professional conferences. Muneeb Akhter proceeded to hand off the stolen data to a "dark net" operator who cut him in on the profits from the sales.The other brother, meanwhile, used his contract position at the State Department in 2015 to steal personally identifiable data belonging to various people including co-workers and a federal law enforcement agent who was investigating him.According to the Justice Department, Sohaib Akhter later hatched a scheme to ensure perpetual access to various State Department systems and, with the help of his twin, attempted to install an electronic collection device inside a State Department office, which would have enabled the hackers to remotely steal federal data.Years earlier, Muneeb Akhter hacked into a Maryland-based private data aggregation company that he was performing contract work for, giving his brother access to a database of federal contract information to give their technology company an upper hand when bidding for contracts and clients.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/convicted-hacker-twins-who-landed-jobs-as-federal-contractors-nabbed-for-allegedly-deleting-government-databases
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The Blaze 1 month ago
@The Blaze image For most of modern Western scientific history, mind reading has been dismissed as fantasy. It’s a topic mainstream medicine ignores, as it can’t be explained without challenging the materialist worldview — that the universe and everything in it is merely physical stuff — which has dominated science since the Enlightenment.But one person is changing that. Dr. Diane Hennacy, a neuroscientist and author, says her research proves that mind reading, telepathy, and other paranormal abilities are not only possible, they’re thriving in a very specific population: nonverbal autistic people.In this riveting interview, Glenn Beck speaks with Dr. Hennacy about mind-bending phenomena that will upend the way you think about human consciousness. Dr. Hennacy’s research inspired the highly popular podcast “The Telepathy Tapes” — a deep dive into claims of telepathy, savant skills, and other types of extrasensory perception in nonspeaking autistic people.Most believe that autistic individuals who cannot speak aren’t cognitively functioning at full capacity. In other words, they’re not “all there,” but Dr. Hennacy says the opposite is true. They’re ultra there. Even though autism is the result of a disruption in one’s brain development, the brain doesn’t necessarily fail to develop; it just pivots and develops differently to accommodate for a loss of sensory motor skills.Her theory is that when autism bars a child from verbal communication and typical cognition, he taps into different kinds of processing. “It's a more primal sense that I think we all have, but what happens is it gets buried ... and it atrophies to some extent,” she explains.These alternative pathways to knowledge and communication give people abilities the neurotypical world can’t even begin to fathom, like the ability to read minds, communicate telepathically, accurately predict the future, perform complex skills they’ve never been taught, and access hidden information — almost as if they see beyond the physical realm into an immaterial plane of universal knowledge.Dr. Hennacy gives several examples: a boy who could sense illness in people, children who can read their caretaker’s mind with near perfect accuracy, and people who can perform extraordinary tasks without ever having been taught.Non-speakers she’s met and studied from all over the world report congregating at a place dubbed “the hill” — an immaterial spiritual space they say is “guarded by angels,” who teach them things.“If you look at spiritual traditions, [specifically] Eastern spiritual traditions, they talk about a place that sounds just like the hill, and it really is a spiritual realm that you can go to when you reach a certain level of spiritual development,” says Dr. Hennacy.“In a way, I think that we all come from the hill, and what happens is as we identify more and more with this identity — as Diane or Glenn or whoever ... we become more and more disconnected from the source that we come from,” she theorizes.“Now what we need to do is we need to learn how to climb the hill back up, and I think that these autistic kids, it's almost like they’re our sherpa guides.”To hear Dr. Hennacy’s story — how she went from a scientist committed to the materialist paradigm to one of the world’s leading experts in extrasensory perception — and hear more of her stunning research, watch the full interview above.Want more from Glenn Beck?To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream. https://www.theblaze.com/shows/glenn-beck-podcast/what-if-autism-is-actually-a-doorway-to-the-spirit-realm-leading-neuroscientist-says-its-true
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The Blaze 1 month ago
@The Blaze image Students and alumni of the University of Pennsylvania were surprised to receive a vulgar email from the university's account after it was hacked Friday.The university confirmed that the email came from a security breach and that its incident response team was investigating the incident.'This is obviously a fake, and nothing in the highly offensive, hurtful message reflects the mission or actions of Penn or of Penn GSE.'"The University of Pennsylvania is a dogs**t elitist institution full of woke retards. We have terrible security practices and are completely unmeritocratic," reads the hacked email, which was posted to social media. "We hire and admit morons because we love legacies, donors, and unqualified affirmative action admits. We love breaking federal laws like FERPA (all your data will be leaked) and Supreme Court rulings like SFFA," the email continues. "Please stop giving us money."The subject heading reads, "We got hacked (Action Required)." The hackers referred to the Supreme Court decision in favor of the Students for Fair Admissions in 2023 that forbid race-based affirmative action in admissions to colleges. They also accused the college of violating the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, which protects students' school records data. RELATED: Cybersecurity expert says he accidentally discovered 'disturbing' data transfers from TikTok: 'The app should be banned' A university spokesperson released a statement decrying the email. "A fraudulent email has been circulated that appears to come from the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education," the statement reads. "This is obviously a fake, and nothing in the highly offensive, hurtful message reflects the mission or actions of Penn or of Penn GSE."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/upenn-email-hacked-vulgar
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The Blaze 1 month ago
@The Blaze image Students and alumni of the University of Pennsylvania were surprised to receive a vulgar email from the university's account after it was hacked Friday.The university confirmed that the email came from a security breach and that its incident response team was investigating the incident.'This is obviously a fake, and nothing in the highly offensive, hurtful message reflects the mission or actions of Penn or of Penn GSE.'"The University of Pennsylvania is a dogs**t elitist institution full of woke retards. We have terrible security practices and are completely unmeritocratic," reads the hacked email, which was posted to social media. "We hire and admit morons because we love legacies, donors, and unqualified affirmative action admits. We love breaking federal laws like FERPA (all your data will be leaked) and Supreme Court rulings like SFFA," the email continues. "Please stop giving us money."The subject heading reads, "We got hacked (Action Required)." The hackers referred to the Supreme Court decision in favor of the Students for Fair Admissions in 2023 that forbid race-based affirmative action in admissions to colleges. They also accused the college of violating the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, which protects students' school records data. RELATED: Cybersecurity expert says he accidentally discovered 'disturbing' data transfers from TikTok: 'The app should be banned' A university spokesperson released a statement decrying the email. "A fraudulent email has been circulated that appears to come from the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education," the statement reads. "This is obviously a fake, and nothing in the highly offensive, hurtful message reflects the mission or actions of Penn or of Penn GSE."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/upenn-email-hacked-vulgar
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The Blaze 2 months ago
@The Blaze image An outage on Amazon's web hosting service caused a sweep of app outages after the company faced issues at an east-coast operations center.AWS hosts about 6.3% of all websites, but some of the biggest brands' communications platforms also rely on the service.'I don't trust Signal anymore.'When reports started rolling in around 3 a.m. Eastern Time, Amazon said it was dealing with an "operational issue" that was affecting 14 services at its northern Virginia center.Snapchat, McDonald's, and even Ring doorbell cameras were among some of the applications affected. Even gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite were affected, as were messaging and communications programs like Zoom and Signal. According to NBC News, about 6.5 million reports piled up that said over 1,000 sites and services had gone offline.After 6:30 a.m., AWS said it had "fully mitigated" the issues; that was until 10:14 a.m., when it confirmed "significant API errors and connectivity issues across multiple services in the US-EAST-1 Region."The widespread outage sparked conversations about the fragility and dependency of major companies and even institutions, as the blackout affected the U.K. government's HM Revenue and Customs department, which handles tax services.With Signal affected, purporting to be an encrypted chat, X owner Elon Musk jumped on the opportunity to cast doubt on the app and direct readers to his own version, X chat.RELATED: Amazon invests $500M in mini nuclear reactors to power AI operationsThe messages are fully encrypted with no advertising hooks or strange “AWS dependencies” such that I can’t read your messages even if someone put a gun to my head. You can also do file transfers and audio/video calls. https://t.co/l0GIIZYz6y— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 20, 2025"I don't trust Signal anymore," Musk wrote on X, responding to a user alarmed that Signal was not working.Just over 20 minutes later, Musk started promoting his own messenger: "The messages are fully encrypted with no advertising hooks or strange 'AWS dependencies' such that I can't read your messages even if someone put a gun to my head."This is a contrast from May 2024, when Musk openly praised AWS for developing generative AI that helps write website code."Impressive. My hat is off to what Amazon has accomplished with AWS," Musk wrote at the time.RELATED: AI isn’t feeding you — (@) This is not the first time Signal has been accused of being insecure. In a 2023 interview with the popular online influencer group Nelk Boys, conservative host Tucker Carlson claimed the NSA had hacked his Signal account around the time he was attempting to interview Russian President Vladimir Putin.Carlson said he got a call from someone in Washington, D.C., who sat down with him and had knowledge of his conversations about planning an interview with Putin because the NSA had allegedly read Carlson's messages.An NGO called Article 19, which describes itself as a group "defending freedom of expression and information around the world," told NBC News that the organization felt the disruptions were "democratic failures.""When a single provider goes dark, critical services go offline with it — media outlets become inaccessible, secure communication apps like Signal stop functioning, and the infrastructure that serves our digital society crumbles."According to Wojciech Gawroński, who runs the website AWS Maniac, Amazon has suffered one to two major outages per year between 2011 and 2021.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/amazon-web-services-outage-worldwide
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The Blaze 2 months ago
@The Blaze image On Monday, Sept. 23, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Royal Canadian Mounted Police invaded and occupied Universal Ostrich Farms near Vernon, British Columbia.They haven’t left. Hundreds of federal police and CFIA inspectors remain on-site, many now in hazmat suits they only donned after questions were raised about why, if the birds were truly a health threat, they had originally worn only uniforms without masks.Pasitney and her mother were arrested that same day on charges of 'animal cruelty.' Their alleged crime was trying to feed their birds.Karen Espersen and Dave Bilinski own the farm, which is managed by Espersen’s daughter, Katie Pasitney. Since an alleged H1N1 avian flu outbreak on Dec. 19, 2024, Pasitney has become the farm’s public voice. Although the ostriches have remained healthy for more than 250 days, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal government still insists that all 399 birds must be destroyed.Even interventions from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Mehmet Oz have not persuaded Ottawa to reconsider.'Animal cruelty'?What frustrates Pasitney most is that the CFIA refuses to test the birds — or even allow the farmers to do so. Under quarantine orders, testing a single ostrich could result in a $200,000 fine and six months in jail per bird.After losing in the Federal Court of Appeal, the farm won a temporary reprieve last Wednesday when the Supreme Court of Canada granted an interim stay of execution while it decides whether to hear the case.But the ordeal has only worsened. Pasitney and her mother were arrested that same day on charges of “animal cruelty.” Their alleged crime was trying to feed their birds. The Supreme Court ruling requires the CFIA to remain on the farm, now responsible for providing the ostriches with food and water. “It’s like putting the foxes in charge of the henhouse,” Pasitney told Align.RELATED: Dead bird walking: RFK Jr. is the only hope for 399 healthy ostriches on Canada's chopping block David Krayden/Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images‘A classic display of punishment’Exhausted after two nights without sleep — due to RCMP patrols circling the property with headlights flooding her home — Pasitney spoke to this reporter.What you're seeing here is a classic display of punishment. This is not justice. This is punishment for standing up for what’s right. It started as a request for collaboration — we explained that we know our animals and that they’re healthy. All we asked was to test them without facing six months in jail and $200,000 fines. Instead, the government is spending millions in taxpayer dollars to persecute humble farmers who love their animals.Pasitney said political support has been slow. While some Conservative MPs have spoken out, party leader Pierre Poilievre — who narrowly lost the last federal election — has remained silent.“Where are our leaders?” she asked. “When 40 police cars came down the highway at dawn, we knew it might be the last time we stood on our own property with our animals.”Escalating intimidationPasitney recounted how she and her mother endured arrest, while hay bales were mysteriously set on fire and RCMP helicopters and drones harassed their livestock.That should never happen to anybody, especially when you have healthy animals. The world is screaming for them to be saved. … Instead, our taxpayer dollars are being used to take down law-abiding farmers while real criminals — rapists, murderers, pedophiles — roam free. https://www.theblaze.com/align/classic-display-of-punishment-canada-targets-family-ostrich-farm-for-destruction
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The Blaze 2 months ago
@The Blaze image Reality is hard for many people across the political spectrum to accept, especially when it comes to children being raised by their married, biological mother and father.“Before you post your caveats and your kind of exceptions to that, that is the ideal. That is in general true. That is in principle true. Every data set we have — and we’ll get into some specific numbers — shows that kids are best suited to live with their married biological mom and dad,” BlazeTV host Allie Beth Stuckey says.While sometimes the scenarios that lead to a child being separated from both or one of his biological parents are tragic, sometimes they’re also simply because of the “sexual revolution that has occurred over the past 20 years and especially the past 10 since Obergefell.”“We are talking about intentionally creating motherless and fatherless children, intentionally taking children out of the ideal and putting them in — in the most charitable terms — a less than ideal situation, knowing that the data shows us that this is not best for their well-being,” Stuckey explains.And it’s no longer just two men or two women ensuring that children grow up in these less than ideal, fatherless or motherless situations.In Canada, three men who are in a “polycule” adopted a three-year-old girl through Quebec’s youth protection services. The “polycule” had to be approved first as foster parents, which they say required “a lot of work and openness to their relationship.”“It’s through that process that they learned that we are a little different because we’re three, but we’re not different from any other family,” one of the men said in an interview.“You actually are, though, because you’re three dudes, which tells me you have no moral limits. Like if you’re willing to not only defy nature, and you are willing to defy even liberal definitions of marriage, and you live in some kind of inherently unstable polycule situation, then you do not have the correct components to raise a child,” Stuckey says.“Even if we take religion out of it, let’s just look at this scientifically,” she continues. “Two men or two women who want to be in a relationship have to acknowledge that they do not have the parts that are needed to create a child. And therefore, because biology, not bigotry, has set limitations on your reproductive abilities, then there should be limits and restrictions and regulations around your ability to obtain and raise a child.”“I’m very sad for this little girl. … This little girl would be better off in foster care until she is 18 years old than living with three men who are living in a polycule situation. One hundred percent. Because there is no end to the confusion and instability and chaos that a situation like this can cause,” she adds.Want more from Allie Beth Stuckey?To enjoy more of Allie’s upbeat and in-depth coverage of culture, news, and theology from a Christian, conservative perspective, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream. https://www.theblaze.com/shows/relatable/polyamory-adoption
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The Blaze 3 months ago
@The Blaze image Yesterday, 23-year-old Robin Westman fired through windows of Annunciation Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, killing two children, aged 8 and 10, and injuring 17 others, 14 of whom were children and three of whom were elderly parishioners. Westman also died from a self-inflicted gunshot.Shortly after the heinous event, it was revealed that Westman identified as transgender. Before he changed his name to Robin, his name was Robert.But before the news about Westman’s gender identity broke, Liz Wheeler, BlazeTV host of “The Liz Wheeler Show,” intuitively knew the shooter would be trans.“Before we knew the identity of this shooter, this murderer, I predicted ... that the shooter would be trans,” she says.How was Liz able to predict Westman’s gender identity with such precision?Because there’s an undeniable link between transgenderism and violence. “The transgender ideology is intended to be violent. The transgender ideology is intended to do exactly what it did to Audrey Hale in Nashville and exactly what it did to Robert Westman in Minneapolis,” she says. “It’s intended to turn vulnerable young people into kamikazes.”Transgender ideology, coupled with critical race theory, is how the left unleashes destruction, Liz explains, noting that both of these frameworks are “offshoots of critical theory” — “a Marxist theory that came out of the Frankfurt School back in the 1960s.”Critical theory, she explains, uses “relentless criticism of institutions,” using the “Marxist dialectic” of “the oppressor versus the oppressed” to sow discord and bring destruction on the culture, specifically race and gender.“So what happens when our children are indoctrinated with critical race theory and then trans ideology?” she asks.When it comes to CRT, white kids “start feeling this incredible self-loathing because they’re told it doesn’t matter how you think about people of another race; it doesn’t matter if you aren’t racist at all. ... Because the color of your skin means that you enjoy white privilege. All of your success is built on the back of those who were oppressed by people who look like you hundreds of years ago, and you bear responsibility for that.”Then they’re hit with queer theory, which tells them that if they experience “any kind of feelings of confusion or discomfort in [their] body, [they] can change [their] gender.”What is the effect of this combination? Ashamed white children, but especially boys, are damned to wear the badge of white oppressor unless they can prove that they’re also a victim. And how do they do that?“Become one of the oppressed,” Liz says.“Put on this mantle, this LGBTQIA+++ mantle. Suddenly, you’re one of the oppressed, and you’re okay. You’re not bad. You’re not toxic. You’re not evil. You’re a victim.”The final stage of grooming comes next. Once a child is blinded by the victimhood narrative, they’re told that the oppressors are Christians, conservatives, and anyone who opposes their ideology.“They’re told, ‘Watch out. You’re going to be subject to a genocide inflicted by Republicans and by Trump,”’ Liz says. “They are turned against themselves and everything around them.”Hatred consumes them, and they convince themselves that heinous acts of violence are justified. They may even see themselves as heroic — as “vanguards” of the revolution.That’s how people like Robert Westman and Audrey Hale are born, and that’s why Liz knew that the Minneapolis shooting was almost certainly a transgender-identifying person.“Christ have mercy on our nation,” she pleads.To hear more of Liz’s analysis, watch the episode above.Want more from Liz Wheeler?To enjoy more of Liz’s based commentary, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream. https://www.theblaze.com/shows/the-liz-wheeler-show/why-liz-wheeler-knew-sadly-that-the-minneapolis-shooter-was-transgender
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The Blaze 4 months ago
@The Blaze image After a week of online outrage over its rebranding, the Cracker Barrel restaurant chain announced that it was giving in on one key part of its revised image. In a statement to Fox Business on Tuesday, the company said it would be reverting back to its original logo after having released a cleaner, text-only logo that excised the "old-timer" character. 'We said we would listen, and we have.' "We thank your guests for sharing your voices and love for Cracker Barrel," the company said. "We said we would listen, and we have. Our new logo is going away, and our ‘Old-Timer’ will remain. At Cracker Barrel, it's always been — and always will be — about serving up delicious food, warm welcomes, and the kind of country hospitality that feels like family."Some on social media tied the announcement to advice given by President Donald Trump earlier that day on Truth Social. "Cracker Barrel should go back to the old logo, admit a mistake based on customer response (the ultimate Poll), and manage the company better than ever before. They got a Billion Dollars worth of free publicity if they play their cards right," the president wrote."Very tricky to do, but a great opportunity. Have a major News Conference today. Make Cracker Barrel a WINNER again," he added. The rebranding also included a decluttering of the famous interiors to make them more sleek and modern. RELATED: Cracker Barrel desperately rewrites 'inclusion' and DEI web page after backlash Photo by GREGORY WALTON/AFP via Getty Images The day after the rebranding announcement, the stock price for the company plummeted initially by about 15%. It has since regained much of that loss. Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck vehemently criticized the rebranding. "Woke ideology has changed our country in countless ways, some of which we may never get back. But Cracker Barrel has always represented the one thing I think so many Americans currently crave: nostalgia," Beck said. "'Rebrand' all of that to something more modern, something more inclusive, and something that erases those feelings, and you're 'rebranding' the sole reason why anyone goes there to begin with," Beck added.Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino had previously said the rebrand effort was an attempt to make the chain relevant again. "As a proud American institution, our 70,000 hardworking employees look forward to welcoming you to our table soon," the company concluded. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/cracker-barrel-rebrand-caves-logo
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The Blaze 4 months ago
@The Blaze image Approximately 3 million people have signed a petition in support of Harjinder Singh, an illegal alien truck driver accused of killing three Americans on a Florida highway.Last week, the nation was rocked when video appeared to show Singh attempting a U-turn on the Florida Turnpike while driving an 18-wheeler, pulling the rig across two lanes of traffic and killing three passengers in a minivan that crashed into his truck.Singh has been charged with three counts of vehicular homicide and three counts of manslaughter, jail records show. He also has been placed on an immigration hold.Now, a Change.org petition has popped up in support of the illegal alien driver, which contains bizarre requests and even more strange messages of support.'I know it was an accident. He made a terrible mistake, not a deliberate choice to harm anyone.'The India Times reported that Singh failed an English proficiency test, answering just two of 12 questions correctly while also being unable to identify more than one of four road signs.The petition, however, claims that Singh should get lenient sentencing because he has no prior "criminal intent or history," despite being an illegal immigrant. The petition does not mention his failures in the post-crash testing.Instead, the petition suggests a "proportionate and reasonable sentence" or "alternative sentencing measures," such as "restorative justice, counseling, or community service."The comments in support of Singh are also garnering attention, as many appear to be pre-prepared and identical.RELATED: License to kill: The nationwide scam turning America's highways into death traps The petition highlights three featured comments on the page, chosen by creator Manisha Kaushal. Two of those comments are exactly the same, word for word (archived here).The page also includes video testimonies from supporters, many of which are also identical, as pointed out by an X user. Account XJosh showcased four different supporters reciting the following: I am in support of Harjinder Singh. I know it was an accident. He made a terrible mistake, not a deliberate choice to harm anyone. He was working hard to support his family like so many of us. One wrong decision changed everything. A 45-year prison sentence is not justice. Other comments, such as "shame on your white injustice" and "please save our brother," revealed that some supporters harbor racist sentiments.Blaze News reached out to the petition's creator and asked for clarification on the possible "alternative sentencing measures," as well as Singh's immigration status and his failure to properly communicate in English. No reply was provided.RELATED: American trucking at a crossroads: Deadly crash involving illegal alien exposes true cost of Biden’s border invasion ICE officers and Florida Lt. Gov. Jay Collins escort Harjinder Singh toward a waiting plane for Singh's extradition to Florida. Dean J. Condoleo/The Modesto Bee/Tribune News Service via Getty Images As previously reported by Blaze News, the Department of Transportation says 1,500 illiterate drivers have been taken off the road since June. Department of Homeland Security official Tricia McLaughlin has also noted that Singh's work authorization was rejected in 2020 under President Trump but granted under President Biden in 2021.Singh was granted a commercial driver's license in both California and Washington.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/indians-read-off-script-trucker
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The Blaze 4 months ago
@The Blaze image Months after scrapping its digital service tax in the face of threats from President Donald Trump, Canada's liberal government has caved once again.This time, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney — who put on quite the show about defying the U.S. while campaigning for office earlier this year — announced on Friday that Canada is dropping retaliatory tariffs on a number of American products in hopes of improving both relations with the White House and outcomes in future trade talks with the United States.Canada was one of the only countries in the world that retaliated against Trump's tariffs, imposing three rounds of retaliatory measures, reported the Globe and Mail. These measures included a 25% tariff on roughly $21 billion of American goods including orange juice and motorcycles and a 25% tariff on American cars.Citing Trump's tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, "substantial trade actions" on the Canadian lumber industry, Trump's reciprocal and sectoral tariffs, and recent deals struck between the U.S. and other countries, Carney noted that "the breadth and depth of the changes in U.S. trade policy have become more fully apparent.""Under the new U.S. approach, countries must now 'buy access to the world’s largest economy' through tariffs, investments, unilateral trade liberalization, and policy changes in their home markets," said the prime minister.Carney attempted to put a positive spin on the situation, stating that as a result of America's reaffirmation that Canadian exports to the U.S. that are compliant with the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement won't be subject to IEEPA tariffs, the "actual U.S. average tariff rate on Canadian goods is 5.6% and remains the lowest among all its trading partners, and more than 85% of Canada-U.S. trade is now tariff-free."RELATED: Trump's policies are stifling transgender activists in Canada, and there's nothing they can do about it STEFAN ROUSSEAU/POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesIn the interest of preserving what Carney framed as "the best trade deal with the United States," the prime minister said that effective Sept. 1, Canada will remove all of its tariffs on American good specifically covered under the CUSMA.Canada, like the U.S., will, however, retain tariffs on steel, aluminum, and automobiles.'He is showing extraordinary weakness.'"The United States is the world’s largest, most dynamic economy, and Canada is one of its most important commercial partners," said Carney."Canada is the second-largest foreign investor in the U.S., and many of our companies are essential to the complex supply chains that drive American competitiveness," continued the prime minister. "Canada is embarking on a transformation of our military and security capabilities to defend Canadians — investments that will create multiple opportunities for new defense and security partnerships."Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Friday that he had a "very good call with Prime Minister Carney of Canada yesterday morning," that "we want to be very good to Canada," and that the removal of the tariffs was "nice."Canadian Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre mocked Carney, calling the tariff removal "another capitulation and climbdown by Mark Carney," reported Canadian state media."Today, he removed even almost all the tariffs on the United States and got none lifted for Canada," said Poilievre. "He is showing extraordinary weakness."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/another-capitulation-canada-caves-to-trump-dropping-retaliatory-tariffs
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The Blaze 4 months ago
@The Blaze image Pastor and contemporary Christian music performer Sean Feucht says his recent experience in Canada — being banned from public venues in six cities — is a sobering reminder of how different America could have been under a President Kamala Harris.In an exclusive interview, Feucht praised religious freedom under President Trump, while expressing hope that Canada would soon find its own "deliverance:"'There are dark spiritual forces at play. And I think a lot of people's eyes are being opened to that reality.'“It was looking really dark in the Biden administration — attacks on churches, weaponizing the IRS, weaponizing the DOJ to go after pro-life activists," Feucht told me. "Now, we're so grateful, because we have a president that is standing up in religious liberties, the right to worship, that does fear God.""I just did a worship record inside of the White House," Feucht marveled. "It gives me a lot of hope that if God can do it in my country, that He can do it in Canada as well. I’m praying that those days of deliverance would come soon to the ... frozen chosen in Canada.”Feucht told me that his real wake-up call came at his July 25 concert. After a planned appearance in Quebec City was canceled, Feucht and his team managed to find a Spanish-language evangelical church willing to host them in Montreal. Over the objections of Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante — and the presence of police — the show went ahead. Now the Ministerios Restauración Church faces a $2,500 fine.Feucht said police who arrived on the scene did little but intimidate his congregation, declining to react even when an Antifa protester threw a smoke bomb.Despite the less-than-warm welcome from authorities, Feucht remains determined to bring his message to Canada.Nothing shuts us down — not the weather, not Antifa, not mayors, not governors. When we say we’re going to come somewhere and worship, we’re going to do it. ... They just could not bear to see the fact that we were not going to be controlled.Feucht told me that he drew much of his strength from the pastors and congregants who stood with him.“In the face of enormous opposition, we saw fearlessness,” Feucht said. “That is a picture of what God is doing all across Canada right now — He's raising up that remnant bride, that remnant strong body that's not going to be pushed around.”Canadian media also did its part to oppose Feucht, repeatedly labeling him “MAGA-affiliated” or an agent of Donald Trump. Feucht calls that lazy journalism.“They’re banking on the fact that people won't actually research and look at our tons of videos and recaps and ... podcasts — you could not assume ... that we come to Canada with a MAGA agenda,” he said. “It’s ridiculous.”RELATED: Worship leader Sean Feucht blindsided by Canada's anti-Christianity Anadolu/Getty ImagesFeucht rose to prominence during the COVID lockdowns, when he launched "Let Us Worship" to push back against what he calls government overreach into churches.Feucht called the anti-Christian attitude in Canada “demonic” and stood by that description during our interview, saying there were “dark spiritual forces” behind the political oppression.“You can only say that it is spiritual, you know, that there are spiritual forces at work,” Feucht said, observing that it wasn’t just evangelicals or “churchgoing folks" who questioned the treatment he received while in Canada.Why are you attacking … outdoor worship services, deeming them a public safety hazard and canceling all the permits and then allowing, essentially, Antifa to infiltrate a church and throw smoke bombs. I mean, it's just at the point where you begin to realize, man, there are dark spiritual forces at play. And I think a lot of people's eyes are being opened to that reality.Feucht will return to Canada on Aug. 20 with a concert in Winnipeg, followed by shows in Saskatoon, Edmonton, and Abbotsford.Edmonton’s event will be held on the steps of the Alberta provincial legislature at the invitation of Premier Danielle Smith. Abbotsford, despite its Bible Belt reputation, has denied him a public venue; he is petitioning that decision on his website.“God will use things like this to expose,” Feucht said. “It’s happening in the U.S., and in Canada, and around the world. As believers, we've got to pay attention, we've got to be like those who understand the times and the seasons in which we live."Watch my interview with Sean Feucht here: https://www.theblaze.com/align/sean-feucht-exclusive-if-god-can-do-it-in-my-country-he-can-do-it-canada
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The Blaze 4 months ago
@The Blaze image Yesterday, in yet another act of mass violence, a gunman identified as Shane Tamura killed four people, including an NYPD officer, and critically wounded another in a shooting at 345 Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan before taking his own life.“You're going to hear all kinds of things,” says Glenn Beck. “You're going to hear ‘more gun control,’ yada yada yada. But will we ever talk about the real issues here?” The real issue, he explains, is not guns but mental illness, which Tamura had a “history of.”According to a handwritten note found in his pocket, Tamura targeted the office building on Park Avenue specifically because the National Football League headquarters are located there.“He wanted to express his grievance with the NFL,” says Glenn. Tamura claimed to suffer from chronic traumatic encephalopathy — a degenerative brain disease linked to repeated head trauma.Thus far, police have found no evidence to confirm whether Tamura had CTE, but it was confirmed that he played football in high school.In his suicide note, Tamura requested that his brain be studied.“This is a tale of insanity,” sighs Glenn. It’s “a tale of evil, a tale of broken minds, a tale of innocence destroyed in the place where it was least expected, a skyscraper in New York turned slaughterhouse and a Monday night that turned to mourning.”And it’s no isolated tale. Around the same time as Tamura’s murderous rampage, another gunman killed three people and injured three others in the valet area and parking lot of the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada. The suspect was shot by police and taken into custody in critical condition.While “no motive has been determined so far,” it’s clear that “we have an epidemic of mental illness in this country,” says Glenn.Just a couple of months ago, Glenn experienced this personally when he and his wife were in Manhattan.“A black guy on a bike rides towards us, and he begins to circle us on his bike on the sidewalk … all the while looking me right directly in the eye and pointing with one hand, the other on the handlebars, saying, ‘I'm going to kill me a white man today,”’ Glenn recalls.“Luckily, he noticed that I had two armed security people behind us. He recognized maybe they might kill a black man on a bike today. He rode away. The man was clearly unstable.”“We have become a society that has gone into madness. … How much more madness will it take before we stand up and say enough is enough?”To hear more of Glenn’s commentary and analysis, watch the episode above.Want more from Glenn Beck?To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream. https://www.theblaze.com/shows/the-glenn-beck-program/glenn-beck-manhattan-and-reno-killing-sprees-are-proof-that-we-re-in-the-throes-of-a-mental-health-crisis
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The Blaze 5 months ago
@The Blaze image I didn’t want to write this. I still don’t.The push notification lit up my phone while I was working out — campers swept away as the Guadalupe River surged dozens of feet in under an hour. I walked out of the gym and teared up in my truck.Now I’m stuffing sunscreen and swimsuits into two trunks. My older two kids head off to sleepaway camp next week. How do I tell them the adventure they’re so giddy about just turned fatal for other families? What can a keyboard jockey like me offer when other parents are living a nightmare? My first instinct was to close the laptop, whisper a prayer, and stay quiet.But silence isn’t always the faithful response.Entire campsites — from Kerr County to the back roads of Texas Hill Country — have been wiped away. Parents who expected mosquito bites and ghost stories are now scanning riverbanks for anything recognizable. They don’t need punditry. They need the rest of us to witness their grief without turning it into the next battleground in the culture war.That’s the part I dread most.Within hours of the first siren, the internet erupted in blame. Was it climate change? Outdated flood maps? Local negligence? Federal failure? Pick your camp, rack up your retweets, move the score marker. The bodies weren’t even identified before the hashtags started trending. It’s as if we’ve forgotten how to mourn without also trying to win.'Where was God?' feels like the only honest question when the water rises. But storms don’t mean vengeance, any more than sunsets are God’s apology.Then there’s that phrase believers lean on — “thoughts and prayers.” “Ts and Ps,” as Gen Z sneers. If I lost one of my kids, those words would feel like a whispered lullaby in a room suddenly emptied of breath — tender, well-meaning, and painfully inadequate.Not because prayer is pointless. Because the cliché is.When calamity struck, Job’s friends “sat with him on the ground seven days … and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.” No carbon emissions debate. No X threads. Just presence. Silence. Solidarity.Maybe that’s the posture we need now — especially along a river whose name, Guadalupe, traces back to “river of the wolf.” Creation still has teeth. Even waters we picnic beside can turn predator in a single thunderstorm. Wolves hunt in packs. They also protect their own. Maybe that’s the symbolism: The same river that devoured so many calls the rest of us to move as a pack — toward the survivors, not away.Real faith doesn’t show up as a hashtag. It comes in the form of casseroles and chain saws, spare bedrooms and Venmo links. It hauls soggy photo albums into the sun. It listens more than it lectures. When Jesus met Mary and Martha at the tomb, He wept before He preached. Maybe that’s the order we’ve lost.RELATED: Liberal women quickly learn what happens when you say vile things about little girls killed in the floods Photo by Jim Vondruska/Getty ImagesSo what can we do from a distance?Give until it pinches — money, blood, bottled water, even unused PTO if your workplace allows donations. Relief crews will need support for months, not days.Go if you can. Student ministries, church groups, skilled contractors — this work doesn’t end when the cameras leave.Guard these families’ dignity. Share verified donation links, not drone footage of recovered bodies. If you wouldn’t show the image to your child, don’t post it.Grieve aloud. Let your kids see adults who don’t numb tragedy with mindless scrolling.And yes, pray — not as a substitute for action, but as its source. Prayer is oxygen for those on their feet. When the apostle James said, “Faith without works is dead,” he might as well have been looking out the window of a rescue chopper.I get the temptation to shake a fist at heaven. “Where was God?” feels like the only honest question when the water rises. But storms don’t mean vengeance, any more than sunsets are God’s apology. Scripture calls Him a refuge and redeemer, not a puppet master yanking strings to break hearts. Turning away from God now is like fleeing the only lighthouse in a gale.If grief makes prayer sound hollow, answer the hollowness with action — and with the stubborn belief that the Creator remains good, even when creation feels cruel.I still don’t want to write this. I’d rather tuck my kids in tonight and pretend rivers respect property lines and holiday weekends. But if this piece offers anything, let it give permission to mourn without politicizing. For one day — one hour even — let grief be grief. Let dads hold their kids tighter. Let moms remind us that safety doesn’t come with a zip code. Let the church prove it’s more than a Sunday address.With the sparklers of Independence Day barely cooled, maybe the most patriotic thing we can do is recover the lost art of compassionate presence. No monologue — including this one — can fill a bunk bed left empty. But through gifts, sweat, silence, and prayer, maybe we can shoulder a sliver of the weight.If you’re reading this in a dry living room, remember the families whose furniture is floating somewhere downriver.Before you post, pause.Before you debate, donate.If “thoughts and prayers” still feel hollow, add two more words: “Here’s how.”Then go do it. https://www.theblaze.com/columns/opinion/sometimes-the-most-christian-thing-to-do-is-shut-up
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The Blaze 6 months ago
@The Blaze image This July, Earth's greatest heroes meet their most formidable foe yet ... an indifferent audience.At least, that's the worry as DC and Marvel go head-to-head for summer blockbuster season's main event: Disney's "The Fantastic Four: First Steps" vs. Warner Bros.' "Superman."To be fair, Garner's character is canonical — she plays Shalla-Bal, the female successor to OG Silver Surfer Norrin Rad. It still feels like Marvel is up to its old tricks.Does the fate of the world hang in the balance? No, but the fate of Hollywood might.After years of alienating moviegoers by prioritizing leftist virtue-signaling over entertainment, the industry hopes to put people back in the seats next month with some good, old-fashioned tentpole crowd-pleasers. And what better to lure them in than two big-budget exemplars of the genre that has dominated the multiplex for the better part of two decades?Except that audiences have been showing signs of superhero fatigue in the last few years, raising worries that this much-ballyhooed showdown may turn out to be box office Kryptonite.'Superman' (July 11) When Warner Bros. hired James Gunn as co-head of DC Studios, the announcement was met with mixed feelings.While many were excited for the "Guardians of the Galaxy" director to dip his toes in the world of DC after the successes of "The Suicide Squad" and "Peacemaker," some feared his signature humor and style would be a turnoff to mainstream audiences. Emotions on both sides intensified when Gunn announced he would be writing and directing the first movie of the post-Zack Snyder DCEU, "Superman."Newcomer David Corenswet takes the reins from Henry Cavill as the Man of Steel, with Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, and Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, a leading member of the Green Lantern Corps.RELATED: The fast track to collapse: How AI and wokeness are speeding up Hollywood’s downfall David McNew/Getty ImagesMultiple trailers have led to plenty of speculation — and with it, sparring. Detractors cite poorly received test screenings, as well as unconfirmed rumors that the plot revolves around Lex Luthor using social media to garner hate for Superman with the hashtag “#Supers**t."One thing seems certain: Whatever some fans find to criticize about the new "Superman," it won't be political pandering. Having himself felt the wrath of cancel culture, Gunn seems dead set on appealing to as wide an audience as possible.Commenting on the film's first teaser trailer, which features shots of a bruised and battle-weary hero, Gunn said,We do have a battered Superman in the beginning. That is our country. ... I believe in the goodness of human beings, and I believe that most people in this country, despite their ideological beliefs, their politics, are doing their best to get by and be good people — despite what it may seem like to the other side, no matter what that other side might be. This movie is about that. It’s about the basic kindness of human beings and that it can be seen as uncool and under siege [by] some of the darker voices [and] some of the louder voices.”Considering how vocal Gunn has been about his disdain for Donald Trump in the past, it’s refreshing to see the director offer signs that his movie will let viewers leave their differences at the door.Fans of this new take have praised the performances, bright color palette, and a tone that feels more in line with the iconic 1978 Christopher Reeve-led "Superman." Will "Superman" save the industry? Strong pre-ticket sales suggest it has enough wind under its cape to soar well above Hollywood’s expectations.'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' (July 25) "The Fantastic Four: First Steps" looks to continue the goodwill earned by this spring's "Thunderbolts*," which opened to high praise from audiences and critics alike despite disappointing box office.After underwhelming iterations of Marvel's first family in 2005 and 2015 (the less said about the unreleased 1994 version, the better), the studio is hoping the third time's the charm.Starring Pedro Pascal as Mr. Fantastic/Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Invisible Woman/Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as Human Torch/Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as The Thing/Ben Grimm, "The Fantastic Four: First Steps" features the team going up against one of Marvel’s most feared villains: Galactus, the devourer of worlds.If that will appease traditionalists, the gender-swapping of beloved Marvel mainstay the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner) is bound to raise eyebrows — and attract more sniping at the "M-SHE-U."To be fair, Garner's character is canonical — she plays Shalla-Bal, the female successor to OG Silver Surfer Norrin Rad. Point taken, but it still feels like Marvel is up to its old tricks.Comments by producer Grant Curtis earlier this month certainly don't help matters.“If you do go back through the comics," said Curtis, "you realize that Sue Storm is arguably the leader of the Fantastic Four, because without Sue Storm, everything falls apart.” Many fans will be quick to point out the obvious: Mr. Fantastic has always been portrayed as the leader, with Invisible Woman taking on a more motherly role. For his part, however, Pedro Pascal doesn’t seem to mind being sidelined. In fact, he seems to welcome it.I love being led in a way. What you may identify as generosity for me, it just isn't. I'm only inspired by … I guess just powerful women have been the thing that has gotten me through being alive. So to have the opportunity to stand by one, to learn from one — just a partner, it's partnership; it’s male and female, but it's also just a kind of transcendent sort of partnership in the work and in the characters. And so I don't really know what the f**k I'm gonna do without you [Vanessa] honestly,".In addition to flaunting his "male feminist" bona fides (and giving fans the "ick" with his awkward shows of affection toward Kirby), Pascal has also drawn negative attention with his outspokenness on immigration policy. None of this has won over those for whom Pascal is simply and profoundly miscast as Reed Richards.Worse, rumors that stars including Adam Driver, Jake Gyllenhaal, Christopher Abbott, and Jamie Dornan passed on the role before it went to Pascal suggest that it's the script's revisionist portrayal of Mr. Fantastic that is the problem — despite director Matt Shakman's insistence that he has looked to the original comics for inspiration.That inspiration is certainly evident in the film's setting, a futuristic 1960s alternate reality that nicely pays homage to the original vision of "Fantastic Four" creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Pascal aside, the casting of "Fantastic Four" promises a satisfying adaptation, as does the comic-book-accurate appearance of Galactus (Ralph Ineson) — a far cry from the cloud-like space cluster depicted in 2007 sequel "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer."While "First Steps’" pre-sales trail behind those of "Superman," they're impressive enough for Marvel to be optimistic.Of course, no amount of hype, armchair producing, or post-credits "Avengers: Doomsday" teases can turn either of these movies into a hit. That power remains squarely with us: the audience.In that spirit, which of these two movies are you looking forward to seeing? Or will you be forgoing superheroics altogether in favor of the seventh "Jurassic Park" movie? Let us know in the comments below. https://www.theblaze.com/align/new-superman-and-fantastic-four-face-fearsome-foe-audience-fatigue
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The Blaze 7 months ago
@The Blaze image The top leaders of the Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed in a recent interview that the evidence in the suspicious death of sex offender billionaire Jeffrey Epstein pointed to a definitive conclusion. While the circumstances of Epstein's death have led many to suspect that he was killed in order to protect those who were complicit in his alleged underage trafficking ring, FBI Director Kash Patel said the evidence supported the official explanation of suicide. 'You know a suicide when you see one, and that's what that was.' Patel made the admission while he and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino were being interviewed by Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business. Video of the interview aired on Sunday. "You said Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide," said Bartiromo. "People don't believe it." "They have a right to their opinion," Patel replied, "but as someone who has worked as a public defender, as a prosecutor who's been in that prison system, who's been in the metropolitan detention center, who's been in segregated housing, you know a suicide when you see one, and that's what that was." "He killed himself," Bongino agreed. "Again, I've seen the whole file. He killed himself."Video of the interaction between Bartiromo, Patel, and Bongino was widely circulated on the internet, where it garnered millions of views. Some members of the Trump administration had been criticized for promising to release Epstein files and apparently stalling on the issue. RELATED: Federal judge orders dozens of names of Jeffrey Epstein associates be unsealed Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck responded to the admission from the FBI on social media. "FBI Director @Kash_Patel and @dbongino now claim they believe Epstein's death WAS a suicide," wrote Beck. "They didn't used to believe that. I STILL don't believe that. However, I know Dan Bongino. I think he's a credible guy. He loves his country. I know Kash Patel. I think he's an honorable guy. He loves his country." Beck listed the evidence that the FBI must release in order to alleviate the suspicions of many who doubt the official story of Epstein's death. "I tend to believe Patel and Bongino. I don't believe there's some sort of conspiracy inside MAGA," Beck added. "But I also believe that Epstein didn't kill himself with a PAPER SHEET. So, show us the facts. We must restore trust."One of the Epstein accusers, Virginia Giuffre, died in April from suicide, according to a statement from her family, which sparked even more speculation. The 41-year-old had been in a bus accident and accused her husband of abuse prior to her death. Authorities have initially said the suicide was not suspicious. RELATED: Pam Bondi says Epstein client list is sitting on her desk 'right now' and being reviewed for release Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/epstein-bongino-patel-suicide-confirm
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The Blaze 8 months ago
@The Blaze image Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced Wednesday that she referred two "deep-state criminals" to the Department of Justice.She noted that a third criminal referral is "on its way."The accused individuals allegedly leaked sensitive information to the press, including the Washington Post and the New York Times. It is unclear at this time what specific materials were turned over to the news outlets.'These deep-state criminals leaked classified information for partisan political purposes to undermine POTUS' agenda.'Gabbard stated that the individuals are within the intelligence community and are accused of sharing classified information.She wrote in a post on social media, "Politicization of our intelligence and leaking classified information puts our nation's security at risk and must end. Those who leak classified information will be found and held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.""Today, I referred two intelligence community LEAKS to the Department of Justice for criminal referral, with a third criminal referral on its way, which includes the recent illegal leak to the Washington Post," Gabbard continued. "These deep-state criminals leaked classified information for partisan political purposes to undermine POTUS' agenda."She added that she plans to partner with the DOJ and the FBI "to investigate, terminate and prosecute these criminals."The Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security have also opened similar internal investigations to clamp down on leaks to the press.An official with the Office of DNI told Fox News Digital that Gabbard's referrals should serve "as a warning" to the intelligence community. The official noted that the recent actions were only the first step in "holding these individuals accountable.""We are aggressively investigating other leaks and will pursue further criminal referrals as warranted," the official told the news outlet. "Any intelligence community bureaucrat who is considering leaking to the media should take this as a warning." Last month, Gabbard stated that the Trump administration planned to "aggressively" pursue any leakers within the intelligence community. She also provided a list of recent examples of information that had been shared with the press."A leaker who has been sharing classified information with the Huffington Post," she said. "A leaker within the IC sharing information on Israel / Iran with the Washington Post."Gabbard noted that an intelligence community leaker also provided information to NBC News about foreign relations with Russia. "Any unauthorized release of classified information is a violation of the law and will be treated as such," Gabbard remarked.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here! https://www.theblaze.com/news/deep-state-criminals-who-leaked-classified-secrets-to-the-press-face-doj-referral-gabbard
The Blaze's avatar
The Blaze 8 months ago
@The Blaze image If you’re an American woman, there’s a high likelihood you grew up playing with the classic American Girl dolls — where each doll came with a story depicting a historical, pure Americana tale. But if you’re a young girl in today’s America, that’s all changing. The classic American Girl doll has taken a turn for the politically correct, with its latest Instagram post featuring an American Girl doll celebrating the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Fitr as a part of its “Cultural Celebrations” outfit line. Allie Beth Stuckey of “Relatable” grew up playing with the dolls and devouring their stories, so she's more than a little disappointed that her daughters won’t experience the same magic that once was. “I’m a girl mom who has three little girls who love dolls and would love American Girl. I would love to take them to the American Girl store. I grew up reading the American Girl books. They were some of my favorite books. I remember their lives; I remember their stories and all of their different personality traits,” Stuckey recalls. “They always championed basic virtues and also just showing appropriate confidence as a girl and the value and the uniqueness of being a girl,” she continues. “But we’ve started seeing some sketchy things over the years, because as we know, as a principle, if an institution is not explicitly biblical, not just explicitly conservative, but explicitly biblical, it will end up veering into degeneracy.” “It will end up veering to the left, questioning basic realities like gender, breaking down the moral values that we have agreed upon at least as culturally Christian Americans for a very long time,” she adds. Stuckey’s concern is that Islam is now being seen as a formidable part of American society. “When I look at Muslim-majority countries everywhere, most of them are completely rot with archaic violence and chaos and oppression of the most vulnerable. When we look at all of the major terrorist groups around the world,” she says, “all of these terrorist groups, save a couple, are Islamic in nature.” “When we look at the religious affiliations of the groups most violently persecuting both Jews and Christians around the world, it’s all Islam,” she continues. “That is not to say that every person who is Muslim is violent; that is not to say every person who is Muslim is going to be a terrorist or is going to be a radical extremist, but obviously we see the common denominator there.” Want more from Allie Beth Stuckey?To enjoy more of Allie’s upbeat and in-depth coverage of culture, news, and theology from a Christian, conservative perspective, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream. https://www.theblaze.com/shows/relatable/islam-american-girl