“U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order that aims to block the seizure of Venezuelan oil revenue held in U.S. Treasury accounts. The executive order states that the revenue, which is held in foreign government deposit funds, are ‘held solely for sovereign purposes’ and that any court attempt to seize the funds will ‘materially harm the national security and foreign policy’ of the U.S. The order, which declared a national emergency, said the funds are the sovereign property of Venezuela held in U.S. custody for governmental and diplomatic means, and are not assets subject to private claims. Any use of judicial process against the funds will interfere with efforts to ‘ensure economic and political stability in Venezuela,’ the order says.” (01/10/25)
“Please look something up: Find out how many times Jesus, himself, used the words obedience or obey. (blueletterbible.org is a good source.) Those of you who do will find a shocking result … a grand total of zero uses. About the best you can get, and only in a few versions, is a single word in John 3 that’s mistranslated. (It’s believe in most versions.) And that word didn’t come out of Jesus’ mouth anyway. Isn’t it strange, then, that modern Christian doctrine is almost fully obsessed with obedience and disobedience? This is, to the theologians, the fundamental Divine pivot; the entire drama of salvation turns on obedience and disobedience. Why, then, did Jesus never mention it?” (01/09/26)
“Thousands of nurses at some of New York City’s biggest hospitals could go on strike Monday during a severe flu season, three years after a similar walkout forced some of the same medical facilities to transfer some patients and divert ambulances. The looming strike could impact operations at several of the city’s major private hospitals, including Mount Sinai in Manhattan, Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx and NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Nearly 15,000 nurses could walk off the job early Monday if a deal is not reached, amounting to the largest nurses strike in city history, according to Nancy Hagans, president of the New York State Nurses Association.” (01/11/26)
“Apart from a few details, I never saw much difference between Trump’s America First shtick and MAGA’s chief foe, the neconservatives. It appeared to be merely a squabble over details, such as whether democracy or strongman rule abroad best served the so-called national interest. No one believes in America Second, Third, or Nth. Trump’s action in Venezuela confirms my impression. Beneath the surface, the contrast between Trumpian America First and neoconservatism disappears.” (01/09/26)
“Myanmar on Sunday held the second phase of a vote organised by a junta-appointed election commission, with the ballot missing Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party, the landslide winner of the last two general elections, which was banned after the 2021 coup. … With Suu Kyi sidelined and her massively popular party dissolved, democracy advocates say the vote has been rigged by a crackdown on dissent and a ballot stacked with military allies.” (01/11/26)
“In the shadows of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation blitz, a lethal pattern has emerged. Since July, immigration agents have shot at least six people behind the wheel of a vehicle (two of them fatal, including Wednesday’s shooting). In each instance, the playbook is the same: the agent claims self-defense, asserting they ‘feared for their life’ as a vehicle was ‘weaponized’ against them.” (01/09/26)
