220 Easter 3: Personnel Matters
Personnel Matters
In a crisis, personnel matters come down to clearly defined and embraced roles.
The Protected Village is an important insight. You don’t have to be a prepper to see the value of safety in numbers. Any group together is less likely to be a target of a malicious actor than alone. This is why Christians go to Church!
Active life in a congregation will teach you that just because we all want to be here does not mean that we all agree about who and what “we” and “here” are. If we do not agree on our source of authority, if we have differing visions of what our future should be, then humans are as likely to argue about how one ought to shut the gate as they are to close it before the barbarians arrive.
This is why the most essential protected village is the family, and understanding the chain of command inherent in Patriarchal Headship is the most important personnel decision you can make before conflict arises. You certainly don’t want to be arguing with your pre-teen about hem length while trying to load up the car and outrun the zombies.
But you don’t want to be arguing with your pre-teen to begin with. You want to be teaching her.
You can’t plug all the holes. But you must plug the holes that you notice. It’s time to circle your wagons, team up and lean forward under the grace of Christ. Building a clean and filial chain of command, especially within extended family, is not just good practice for emergency preparedness. It is good Christian practice.
To know wisdom and discipline is to receive everything from Jesus.
Until next time….
The Mad Christian
Politics
Congressional lawmakers have voted to reauthorize section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. “The law, which gives the government expansive powers to view emails, calls and texts, has long been divisive and resulted in allegations from civil liberties groups that it violates privacy rights.” A small group of GOP holdouts were hoping to add a requirement that intelligence agencies secure warrants before surveilling people, but the vote tied along party lines. Intelligence heads said warrants slow down the process of surveilling and would essentially gut FISA of its power. Cynically, critics say that the whole point of FISA is to spy on Americans: “The FISA system is not meant to stop the intelligence community from inappropriately spying on us, which they’ll do with or without it. FISA is there to give the intelligence community legal and political cover when they get caught.” (The Guardian, The Hill, The Federalist)
Democrats are divided about whether to call on Justice Sonia Sotomayor to retire while they hold a Senate majority. The oldest liberal justice is not in the best of health and memories are fresh of the late Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsburg. RBG dismissed calls to retire during President Obama’s term leading to Republican-appointed justices tipping the ideological balance of the Court. (NBC)
Justice Ann Walsh Bradley has announced she will not seek re-election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court next year, potentially upsetting the liberal majority of that bench. (Epoch Times)
It looks like the Francis Scott Key bridge will be rebuilt, with suggestions already swirling that a name change is in order, given that Key was a slaveholder. (Washington Times)
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has been visiting Washington to discuss tensions in the Pacific and vouch support for America. “I detect an undercurrent of self-doubt among some Americans about what your role in the world should be..You are not alone. We are with you." He also talked about the anticipated sale of US Steel to Japanese manufacturers and shoring up semi-conductor supply. Kishida also encouraged the US to continue supporting Ukraine’s efforts to repel Russia. Japan will also send more cherry trees to Washington as a sign of goodwill. (NBC, ABC News, Reuters)
Thunderdome
New York Attorney General Letitia James is once again looking to start seizing property owned by former president, Donald Trump after a court questioned whether the company posting the $175m bail was liquid enough to come up with the money. Taking Trump’s properties may not be as straightforward as it seems, with commercial properties held in a “complex web of ownership and titles, subject to mortgages and co-ownership claims.” (Newsweek, The Guardian)
Donald Trump’s criminal “hush money” trial begins today. (The Hill)
Pro-life Divided
The Digital Age
Synchron, a rival to Neuralink, is set for a large-scale trial of its brain implants. The company which boasts Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates amongst its investors is seeking to assist people suffering from paralysis. (Reuters)
Apple has announced that iPhone repair will be slightly easier with approval for the inclusion of used parts. “Customers and independent repair shops will be able to fix the handset using compatible components.” (TechCrunch)
The head of Xbox, Sarah Bond, has set up a team dedicated to forward compatibility and game preservation. (Windows Central)
The tiny island nation of Aruba has digitized its historical documents and archived them on the Wayback Machine. (Internet Archive Blog)
Crime and Punishment
Idaho teen who had pledged allegiance to ISIS was planning to attack churches. In online messages, he worried that he could not be a good Muslim if he didn’t kill Christians. (Hot Air, Front Page Mag)
The New York Police Department will pay $17.5m to settle a lawsuit involving two Muslim women who were forced to remove their hijab for mugshots. (Reuters)
Norfolk Southern Rail Company has agreed to pay out $600 million to settle a class action arising from a chemical spill and train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio last year. (WNG)
Allegations against rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs are stacking up, with a former bodyguard claiming he trafficked young women and held orgies for prominent politicians, celebrities and preachers participating. (ZeroHedge)
Thieves made off with $30m from a Los Angeles vault last weekend. (LA Times)
Second Amendment
Vice President Kamala Harris has announced new laws intended to close the “gun show loophole”. “Under this regulation, it will not matter if guns are sold on the internet, at a gun show, or at a brick-and-mortar store: if you sell guns predominantly to earn a profit, you must be licensed, and you must conduct background checks,” Attorney General Merrick Garland told reporters. (Daily Wire, The Guardian)
Money, Markets and Jobs
Cosmic inflation? New figures for inflation have many Wall Street boffins concluding that tax cuts this year are definitely out of the question. (ZeroHedge)
The Biden administration will cancel more student debt bringing the total to about $153 billion for 4.3 million students, according to the White House. (CBS)
According to estimates, Costco sells between $100m -$200m gold per month. (CBS)
The US Federal Communications Commission has laid out new rules that require broadband providers to advertise a “nutrition label” style summary of costs for customers to compare deals. (WNG)
Paid training, lack of debt, and potential AI threats are drawing young people to trades. (The Hustle)
God’s Green Earth
The US Environmental Protection Agency has issued regulations which limit the amount of “forever chemicals” known as PFAS in the water supply. (CBS News)
Europe’s highest human rights court has sided with a group of senior ladies who scolded EU nations for not doing more to protect them from the effects of climate change. (AP)
A simple little bristle worm with super vision confounds evolutionists. “Its eyesight is on a par with that of mice or rats, despite being a relatively simple organism with a minuscule brain."(University of Copenhagen)
A truck carrying hatchling salmon has crashed, releasing the fish into the wrong Oregon river. (BBC)
The Eclipse
In case you are one of those who can’t get enough photos of the US solar eclipse here are some more! (ABC News, Not the Bee) And fascinating images from space. (Forbes)
We couldn’t determine whether this was faked, but the image sums up something about our country perfectly! (Not the Bee)
Happy Monday!
Hearts and Minds
Retreating into the darkness seems a severe way to find some focus, but people are flocking to places where they can spend “82 hours, alone, in the absolute absence of light.” One adventurer finds that without light to orient and things to distract, weird things start to happen. “You only need a few hours in the dark to figure out what’s important to you…With nothing to distinguish night and day, my circadian rhythm is fully whacked. Sleep comes in fits and starts, and time is meaningless.” This story prompted us to give thanks that our wise God gave “lights in the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years.” (Outside)
A new study of 34 years of interactions across several social media platforms has noticed persistent patterns of conversations. The longer the conversation goes, the more likely it was to be “toxic”. However, “toxic language does not invariably discourage people from participating in a conversation, and toxicity does not necessarily escalate as discussions evolve.” The researchers believe their findings underscore “the pivotal role of human behaviour in shaping online discourse.” So maybe we don’t need better algorithms, but to be better people. (Nature)
Researchers say writing down negative thoughts then shredding them can help relieve anger. (Probably don’t shred them angrily though..) (The Guardian)
Births, Deaths and Marriages
An independent review of the UK’s “gender identity services” for young people has concluded that there is no good reason to give children cross-sex hormones or other transgender treatments. Dr. Hillary Cass, a prominent physician, said, “The reality is that we have no good evidence on the long-term outcomes of interventions to manage gender-related distress.” Dr. Cass reiterated that most children who present “gender in-congruence” at young ages, desist by the onset of puberty. Needless to say, trans ideologues had a bit of a melt down. (The Federalist)
“The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, the governing body for mostly small colleges, announced a policy Monday that all but bans transgender athletes from competing in women's sports.“ (ESPN)
A proposed referendum to put abortion on the ballot in Maine has failed to gain the needed two-thirds majority. The measure would have asked voters whether to enshrine abortion into the state constitution come November. (WNG)
Arizona’s Supreme Court has ruled that an 1864 law restricting abortion only to situations to save the life of the mother is enforceable, despite newer rulings since the Dobbs decision. The rule was in effect until 1973 when Roe vs Wade became the law of the land. (WNG, NBC)
Obituary:
OJ Simpson footballer and felon died, aged 76. (Hot Air, Fearless podcast)
Proposer of the “God particle”, physicist Peter Higgs died, aged 94. (BBC)
Health, Medicine and Food
Top Republican on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, Kentucky's Rand Paul, claims that US government departments pitched a plan to make chimeric coronaviruses in 2018. (Just The News)
A small study has found that a ketogenic diet reduced symptoms associated with persistent mental illness (major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and schizo-affective disorder). (NCBI)
Ag robber barons: Market analyst and Yale Fellow Austin Frerick is sounding an alarm about the monopolization of America’s food production and supply. Frerick says seven companies have a stranglehold on agriculture and grocery retail having taken advantage of policies formulated for a very different time. For example, Cargill (“largest private company in America”) controls every aspect of production from “the second grain is picked to when it's put on your plate.” Frerick says having so few in control of the nation’s food leads to worse tasting food (and we suspect, less nutritious) and advocates for bringing animals back to the land. “We’re playing with fire by having so many genetically similar animals packed into these metal sheds. We’re just asking for [more] disease.” (Civil Eats, Forbes)
Arts, History and Sport
A British man has run the length of Africa, raising £700 000 for charity. Russell Cook said “he had struggled with his mental health, gambling and drinking, and wanted to ‘make a difference”‘. (BBC)
Dude Perfect, who post trick shots online, gets a $100m contract. The boys hope to take on giants like Disney: “Our mission is to create the most trusted entertainment on earth...Families are constantly looking for ways to come together and actually have shared moments and memories.” (Hollywood Reporter)
Inclusivity comes for Scrabble. (New York Post)
The modern culinary technique that started in alchemy. (Gastro Obscura)
Stunning frescoes newly unearthed in Pompeii. (BBC)
As if horror movies weren’t troubling enough, critics are applauding the rise of abortion messaging in horror film plots. (Den of Geek)
Last week in history:
1859 Samuel Langhorne Clemens gets a steamboat pilot’s licence and takes the name Mark Twain. (History)
1965 Houston’s Astrodome opens as the first indoor baseball stadium. (Britannica)
2001 Netherlands becomes the first country to legalize euthanasia. (Britannica)
Religion and the Church
Young women (Gen Z) are leaving the church, according to new data. It has been widely reported that young women are now more educated and more liberal than their male counterparts, which may be leading to a lack of interest in church. As a counterpoint, one pollster has suggested that young women hold conservative views more often than assumed, but hide them to maintain relationships with friends and family. Spaces that women frequent (social media, higher education) are dominated by leftists and the pressure to conform is significant, says Kimberley Begg who works for the consulting firm doing the research. (Not the Bee, The Federalist)
The Vatican has reiterated its opposition to gender-affirming surgery, "gender theory," and surrogate parenthood, which should be a no-brainer. (Reuters)
Pastor Christopher Heaton has some simple advice for helping those who struggle against the temptation of pornography. (Issues Etc)
Stories from Far Away
🇧🇷 Elon Musk is also in the crosshairs of Brazil’s Supreme Court after refusing to shut down the X accounts deemed to be spreading misinformation by the government. Activist judge, Alexandre de Moraes is “engaged in a sweeping crackdown on free speech” according to independent journalist, Michael Shellenberger. (ZeroHedge, Reclaim the Net)
🇻🇳 Vietnamese real estate developer Truong My Lan has been sentenced to death after being convicted of a $44bn fraud. Commentators say Lan’s business dealings were well known and believe her case is being used by the Communist party to reassert its influence over the corporate sector. (BBC)
🇬🇧President Biden is considering dropping charges against Wikileaks founder, Julian Assange. (AP)
🇿🇼 Zimbabwe has launched a new gold-backed currency. (Barrons)
🇷🇺 Goldilocks principle? Chechnya’s government has banned music that is too slow or too fast. This will mean “many songs in musical styles such as pop and techno will be banned.” (CNN)
🇬🇧Britain’s Derwent River has hosted spawning Atlantic salmon for the first time in century, due to restoration efforts. (Phys)
🇸🇦Saudi Arabia is scaling back its plans for a linear city in the desert. (The Guardian)
🇪🇸 Spain is set to scrap its “golden visas” scheme where foreigners gain citizenship by purchasing properties of a minimum value. The current government claims the visas are driving property prices out of the reach of ordinary Spaniards, but others say it is a supply issue. (BBC)
War and Rumors of War
Iran has fired a number of missiles and drones into Israel, most of which were intercepted. President Biden has called on Israel to show restraint in responding to the barrage. The USA had been warning of an Iranian attack for a while. (ABC)
Hamas has said it cannot locate 40 Israeli hostages to comply with a proposed ceasefire. The framework for a weeks-long ceasefire would depend on the release of “40 of the remaining hostages, including all the women as well as sick and elderly men.” Hamas would receive hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in return. It is not clear how many of the remaining 133 hostages from the October 7th attack are alive. (CNN)
European defense contractors have warned that Western countries are too dependent on Chinese cotton for munitions production. Cotton linters are used to produce nitrocellulose and China produces almost half of the world’s supply. China is also selling its “guncotton” to Russia. (Financial Times)
A power plant and other critical infrastructure sustained damage from a bombardment of missiles and drones sent by Russia. (ZeroHedge, Euro News)
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🕶️ We’ll say it: Mozart was pretty talented
🇮🇹 Mount Etna is puffing out awesome smoke rings
♭ How vinyl records work
🐉 The tiny Wisconsin town where Dungeons and Dragons began
🇩🇪 German security guard fired after hanging his own art in gallery
🏴 An Aberdeen Star Wars fan was mistaken for “armed man”
🚌 A Massachusetts high schooler has fixed his own school bus after seeing it broken down by the road
🌟 Glowing houseplants could be big business
⌚ A very thin watch
🏁 Men really did drive these very fast
⚭ “What God has Joined Together - A Lutheran Conference on Marriage” May 3-5, 2024, Ontario, Canada. Featuring keynote speaker, Dr Adam Koontz. Details here.
✝️ Join us on Memorial Day in Rockford IL to learn how you can start your local men's group and nurture Christian brotherhood. Come check out the Hebron Collegium, share your experience with praying the scriptures, and participate in the mutual consolation of the brothers. Bring a tent or bedroll if you'd like to camp out, or else reach out for more info on lodging opportunities. Wives and children are welcome to attend, but lodging options are more limited. To RSVP or for more info, send an email to sos.113.487@gmail.com or reach out via the SoS contact page.
Stop the White Noise (YouTube or Rumble) was a family affair this week, with Chloe Fisk joining Meridith to discuss life from the perspective of an oldest child and about issues facing teens. Nominating a “favorite” can be a paralyzing affair, but songs currently on the Fisk’s radar include:
Our disclaimer: These are some resources the Fisks have found edifying, but when dealing with human-authored texts, apply discernment liberally!
This Week Preached:
Podcast Release:
Let us pray. O God, through the humiliation of Your Son You raised up the fallen world. Grant to Your faithful people, rescued from the peril of everlasting death, perpetual gladness and eternal joys; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
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