One can readily admit that the Magisterium's manner of expression does not seem very easy to understand at times. It needs to be translated by preachers and catechists into a language which relates to people and to their respective cultural environments. The essential content of the Church's teaching, however, must be upheld in this process. It must not be watered down on allegedly pastoral grounds, because it communicates the revealed truth.
Distinction Matter - Subscribed Feeds
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Site: Fr Hunwicke's Mutual EnrichmentS Paul loved his fellow Jews, his 'kinsmen' and believed "the gifts and call of God are irrevocable". He believed that at the End, those among them who had rejected Christ would be brought in to the chosen people. He believed that they were like olive branches which had been cut off so that the Gentiles, wild olive branches, could be grafted in. But, when the fulness of the Gentiles had entered Fr John Hunwickehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17766211573399409633noreply@blogger.com3
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Site: Fr Hunwicke's Mutual EnrichmentLex orandi lex credendi. I have been examining the Two Covenant Dogma: the fashionable error that God's First Covenant, with the Jews, is still fully and salvifically valid, so that the call to saving faith in Christ Jesus is not made to them. The 'New' Covenant, it is claimed, is now only for Gentiles. I want to draw attention at this point to the witness of the post-Conciliar Magisterium of theFr John Hunwickehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17766211573399409633noreply@blogger.com13
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Site: Fr Hunwicke's Mutual EnrichmentWe have seen that the Two Covenant Theory, the idea that Jewry alone is guaranteed Salvation without any need to convert to Christ, is repugnant to Scripture, to the Fathers, even to the post-Conciliar liturgy of the Catholic Church. It is also subversive of the basic grammar of the relationship between the Old and the New Testaments. Throughout two millennia, in Scripture, in Liturgy, in her Fr John Hunwickehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17766211573399409633noreply@blogger.com7
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Site: Fr Hunwicke's Mutual EnrichmentThe sort of people who would violently reject the points I am making are the sort of people who would not be impressed by the the Council of Florence. So I am going to confine myself to the Magisterium from the time of Pius XII ... since it is increasingly coming to be realised that the continuum of processes which we associate with the Conciliar and post-Conciliar period was already in operationFr John Hunwickehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17766211573399409633noreply@blogger.com0
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Site: Fr Hunwicke's Mutual EnrichmentIn 1980, addressing a Jewish gathering in Germany, B John Paul II said (I extract this from a long sentence): " ... dialogue; that is, the meeting between the people of the Old Covenant (never revoked by God, cf Romans 11:29) and that of the New Covenant, is at the same time ..." In 2013, Pope Francis, in the course of his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, also referred to the Old Fr John Hunwickehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17766211573399409633noreply@blogger.com10
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Site: Fr Hunwicke's Mutual EnrichmentSince the Council, an idea has been spreading that Judaism is not superseded by the New Covenant of Jesus Christ; that Jews still have available to them the Covenant of the old Law, by which they can be saved. It is therefore unnecessary for them to turn to Christ; unnecessary for anybody to convert them to faith in Christ. Indeed, attempting to do so is an act of aggression not dissimilar to theFr John Hunwickehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17766211573399409633noreply@blogger.com11
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Site: Mises InstitutePeople claim to support “equal opportunity” over the idea of equal outcomes, but when one examines both concepts, it becomes obvious that neither is possible or even desirable. Murray Rothbard understood more than most that equality of opportunity is a chimera.
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Site: Mises InstituteThis is a rendition of Leonard Read‘s famous, “I, Pencil,” but with a new twist: tariffs now restrict the importation of producers‘ goods needed to make the pencil, which means there will be fewer of them for us to use.
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Site: PaulCraigRoberts.org
A Peace Deal or a Deception
Is Putin Again Being Deceived, or Are Putin and Trump Deceiving Their Own Populations?
Paul Craig Roberts
The details of the peace deal presented by US special envoy Steve Witkoff are consistent with the report in the Financial Times discussed in my previous article and with Larry Sparano in the posted interview. Putin will halt the Russian advance prior to driving Ukrainian soldiers out of all of the territory that has been reincorporated into Russia. It appears to be the case that the borders between Russia and Ukraine will be the current front line, so Putin is withdrawing Russia’s claim to the Russian territories still under Ukrainian occupation.
In exchange Washington will give de jure, that is legal, by right, recognition to Crimea as a constituent part of Russia, and Washington will give de facto, that is accept the facts on the ground whether legal or not, recognition of the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Luhansk People’s Republic, Zaporozhye, and Kherson as provinces of Russia according to the present boundaries in the conflict.
By withholding de jure recognition of Russia’s battlefield gains, Ukraine can continue to claim, and demand return of, Russia’s battlefield gains. In other words, the agreement evades the central issue.
According to the agreement, Ukraine must renounce all NATO aspirations. But Putin’s other demands, demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine are apparently not included in the agreement.
Washington will lift the sanctions against Russia, and there will be US-Russia economic cooperation, which seems to mean that Russia will open aspects of its economy to foreigners for exploitation, a disastrous Russian decision.
This is what the Russian oligarchs and Atlanticist Integrationists, who have never supported the war, want. How the Russia’s military feels about victory being shoved aside by a negotiated settlement is unknown.
But is it a settlement? Zelensky’s latest statement at this time of writing is that he will not concede a square inch of territory to Russia. If Zelensky has to be coerced, and as he is not legally or constitutionally the current president of Ukraine as his term of office has expired, successive Ukrainian governments can legitimately claim that the agreement is not valid.
Moreover, Ukraine and Europe have placed themselves behind an alternative agreement. In their proposed agreement, Ukraine will consent to begin talks with Russia, Europe, and the US about the territorial issues. Moreover, Ukraine will be granted US security guarantees similar to Article 5 in the NATO treaty. In other words, Ukraine becomes essentially a de facto member of NATO. Additionally, there will be no restrictions on Ukraine’s armed forces or on the operations of foreign forces on Ukrainian territory, and Russia will compensate Ukraine for war damage.
Clearly, the two proposals have nothing in common. Unless Europe gives in to Trump, a split is implied between the US and NATO, a split that could leave the US and Russia in an alliance that excludes Europe. I have no explanation why Europe is taking this risk.
As we can see from the facts, only two of the four parties agree to the deal. Moreover, even if there is a deal, in the absence of de jure recognition of Russia’s territorial claims, the deal amounts to little more than kicking the can down the road.
In fact, John Helmer says that the deal is just a mechanism, a cover, for moving Russia aside so that Washington can get on with its war with China.
Here is how Helmer describes the situation:
“The politico-military strategy driving the US negotiators and prompting Trump’s tweets, is not a peace deal with Russia, nor even US withdrawal from the war in Europe. It is a strategy of sequencing one war at a time – the war in Europe to continue in the Ukraine with rearmed Germany, Poland and France in the lead, supported by Trump; and the US war against China in Asia.
“Sequencing these wars so as not to fight both enemies simultaneously – that’s the formula devised for Trump by Wess Mitchell, a former State Department appointee in the first Trump Administration, and his business partner Elbridge Colby, now the third-ranking Pentagon official as Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. ‘The essence of diplomacy in strategy,’ Mitchell has just declaimed in Foreign Affairs, ‘is to rearrange power in space and time so that countries avoid tests of strength beyond their ability.’ . .
“Mitchell and Colby have convinced Trump and his negotiators that Russia has been badly damaged by the Ukrainian war which the Obama and Biden Administration have fought. Russian weakness, especially the perception that President Putin is both politically vulnerable and personally susceptible to US business inducements, is Trump’s strong card, and he should play it now.”
The goal is not peace, but to make money off of two wars: Europe and Ukraine’s war with Russia, and Washington’s war with China. And perhaps a war with Iran for Israel thrown in.
Readers can listen to Helmer’s presentation of what he says is actually occurring in his discussion with Ray McGovern on Nima Alkhorshid’s program ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgG4ZmTZQww ), and they can read it in several of Helmer’s recent articles in Dancing with Bears ( https://johnhelmer.net/one-war-at-a-time-and-plenty-of-money-to-be-made-in-the-meantime-this-is-trumps-game-as-the-russian-and-chinese-general-staffs-understand/ ).
Helmer’s source for his explanation of what is really happening is an article in Foreign Affairs by West Mitchell, Assistant Secretary of State for Europe and Eurasia in the first Trump term. Mitchell is currently working with Trump’s current Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby to sequence America’s wars with Russia and China as the US lacks the power to take on both simultaneously. Mitchell’s article was published on April 22, 2025, in the May/June 2025 issue of Foreign Affairs.
Mitchell writes that the process of sequencing the wars with Russia and China should begin “by bringing the war in Ukraine to an end in a way that is favorable to the United States. That means that when all is said and done, Kyiv must be strong enough to impede Russia’s westward advances” [for which no evidence exists, showing Mitchell’s mind to be controlled by the false narrative]. Washington should use the Korean War formula: “prioritize an armistice and push questions about a wider settlement into a separate process that could take years to bear fruit, it it ever does.” This, of course, is what Washington’s de facto recognition of Russia’s territorial claims ensures.
Mitchell carelessly then reveals the intended deception of Babe-in-the-Woods Putin: “The United States should pursue a defense relationship with Ukraine akin to the one it maintains with Israel: not a formal alliance, but an agreement to sell, lend, or give Kyiv what it needs to defend itself. But it should not grant Ukraine [ de jure ] NATO membership. Instead, the United States should push European states to take responsibility for Ukraine—and for the security of their continent more generally.” This strategy capitalizes “on Putin’s special relationship with the Russian oligarchs” and dupes Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s negotiator, ” into pressing the Kremlin to accept a short-term military armistice which stops well short of the demilitarization and denazification goals of the Special Military Operation.”
So, as Mitchell describes it, the “peace agreement” is a Washington deception to set up, yet again, “Babe-in-the Woods Putin” for the eventual destruction of Russia.
Can I believe this? Yes, I can. Helmer has been watching things for a long time and reporting on them. This scenario is not a product of Helmer’s imagination. It is spelled out in an article in Foreign Affairs, long the arbiter of American foreign policy. The author, West Mitchell, a former Trump high official, clearly holds to the neoconservative policy stated by Defense Undersecretary Paul Wolfwitz that the purpose of American foreign policy is hegemony over the world. If American hegemony requires war, war it is.
The Russians, with a large part of the mindless Russian establishment so desirous of being part of the West, have never paid any attention to the implication for Russian sovereignty of the neoconservative doctrine of US hegemony. This doctrine has not been denounced by President Trump. Consequently, Russia will be destroyed as the Russian government stupidly walks into deception after deception. Under Putin and Lavrov it will be one Minsk Agreement after another.
The question I have is: Is Trump a part of the deception not only of Putin but also of the American people, or is this a deal he has accepted without realizing its consequences because he is desperate to end the conflict as he promised? If Trump himself is part of the deception, then we have the explanation why the American Establishment did not prevent his reappearance in the Oval Office.
“The Return of Great-Power Diplomacy, How Strategic Dealmaking Can Fortify American Power, by A. West Mitchell, Foreign Affairs, May/June 2025, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/return-great-power-diplomacy-strategy-wess-mitchell?utm_medium=promo_email&utm_source=lo_flows&utm_campaign=article_link&utm_term=article_email&utm_content=20250424
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Site: AsiaNews.itThe pontiff's death has a special echo in the special autonomous region where Catholicism is deeply rooted. His call to be 'a poor Church for the poor' prompted local Catholics to develop services for migrant workers and the elderly. The agreement with Beijing on episcopal appointments was 'a step toward greater progress in evangelisation'.
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Site: LES FEMMES - THE TRUTH
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Site: Catholic Herald
During his funeral Mass, Pope Francis was remembered for his extraordinary legacy of service to those on life’s margins and praised for his constant emphasis on God’s mercy and the importance of fraternity in a divided world.
“It’s important to note that Pope Francis always placed the Gospel of mercy at the centre, repeatedly emphasising that God never tires of forgiving us,” said Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, in his homily.
“[God] always forgives, whatever the situation might be of the person who asks for forgiveness and returns to the right path,” Re said, adding: “Mercy and the joy of the Gospel are two key words for Pope Francis.”
Pope Francis died on Monday, April 21, at the age of 88 after a lengthy battle with respiratory illness, having made his final public appearance in St Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday, giving the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing and greeting the faithful in the square from his popemobile.
Ecumenical delegations from 34 other Christian churches and traditions attended, including a delegation from the Patriarchate of Moscow led by Metropolitan Antonij of Volokolamsk, chairman of the patriarchate’s department for external church relations. Other interfaith delegations were also present.
According to Vatican estimates, around 250,000 people came to pay their final respects to Pope Francis during his three days of lying in state.
Some 130 delegations, 50 heads of state and 10 reigning monarchs attended his funeral Mass on Saturday, bidding farewell to a maverick pope who left a deep mark on the Church and the world, including United States President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Re, in his homily, thanked the various heads of state and dignitaries for their presence, saying the outpouring of support following the Pope’s death illustrated “how much the profound pontificate of Pope Francis touched minds and hearts.”
He reflected on the Gospel reading, in which Jesus asks Peter, “Do you love me more than these?” and tells him, “Feed my sheep.”
“This will be the constant task of Peter and his successors, a service of love in the footsteps of Christ, our Master and Lord, who came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many,” Re said.
Despite Pope Francis’s serious illness and physical suffering in the final years of his papacy, he chose “to follow this path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life,” Re said. “And he did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God.”
Noting that Francis already had a wealth of leadership experience when he was elected to the papacy on March 13, 2013, having served as provincial superior of the Jesuits in Argentina and Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Re said this experience served as a foundation for his whole pontificate.
The decision to take the name Francis, he said, “appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi.”
“He maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church,” Re said, pointing to Francis’s closeness to the people and his attention to the poor and marginalised.
Pope Francis, he said, “was a pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone. He was a pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.”
Recalling the Pope’s vivid use of imagery and symbols, and his familiar language and vocabulary, Re said Francis offered a response to Christians amid the challenges and contradictions of modern times, which he often described as an “epochal change.”
“He had great spontaneity and an informal way of addressing everyone, even those far from the Church,” he said, praising the Pope’s warmth, deep sensitivity to contemporary challenges, and his ability to share in the sufferings and hopes “of this time of globalisation.”
Re praised Pope Francis’s “charisma of welcome and listening,” and his ability to touch hearts and “reawaken moral and spiritual sensibilities.”
“Evangelisation was the guiding principle of his pontificate,” he said, especially with his emphasis on the joy of the Gospel as “a joy that fills the hearts of all those who entrust themselves to God with confidence and hope.”
Invoking Francis’s frequent description of the Church as a “field hospital” to treat the suffering and wounded, he said the guiding thread of Francis’s mission was his conviction that the Church “is a home for all,” with its door always open.
Re also praised Pope Francis’s attention to the poor, migrants, refugees and the displaced, pointing specifically to his visits to the Italian island of Lampedusa, the Greek island of Lesbos, and the United States-Mexico border. The crowd applauded loudly when he made this statement.
Of special significance was his 2021 visit to Iraq, “defying every risk” at the time, including Covid-19 and security threats on the ground. He called that trip “a balm on the open wounds of the Iraqi people, who had suffered so much from the inhuman actions of ISIS.”
“It was also an important trip for interreligious dialogue, another significant dimension of his pastoral work,” Re said.
He reflected on the importance of mercy and fraternity throughout Pope Francis’s pontificate, saying fraternity, in particular, “ran through his entire pontificate with vibrant tones.”
Pope Francis, he said, “wanted to revive a worldwide aspiration to fraternity, because we are all children of the same Father who is in heaven. He often forcefully reminded us that we all belong to the same human family.”
Re also recalled the Pope’s 2019 visit to Abu Dhabi, during which he signed A Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, later signed by various international interfaith leaders.
Finally, Re remembered Pope Francis’s constant attention to the environment and his frequent calls for peace amid the wars raging throughout the world in recent years, “with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction.”
“Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions. War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals and schools,” Re said.
“War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone,” he said, echoing Pope Francis’s many statements.
The crowd in St Peter’s Square again applauded loudly at Re’s words condemning war.
He pointed to Francis’s frequent exhortation to “build bridges, not walls,” saying his service as pope was always dedicated to humanity “in all its dimensions.”
Noting that Pope Francis ended nearly every public address by asking for prayer, Re said the Church now asks Francis to pray for them.
“May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope,” he said.
At the end of the funeral Mass, Pope Francis’s coffin was scheduled to be taken by car to the Roman Basilica of Saint Mary Major, where he was to be welcomed by a group of poor and homeless before being entombed inside the basilica.
Home to Rome’s famed Maria Salus Populi Romani icon, or Mary, Health of the Roman People, the basilica was a favourite of Pope Francis, who visited before and after every international trip, and will now serve as his final resting place.
(Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Images)
The post Cardinal Re’s homily remembers Pope Francis’s legacy first appeared on Catholic Herald.
The post Cardinal Re’s homily remembers Pope Francis’s legacy appeared first on Catholic Herald.
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Site: Catholic Herald
Leaders from across the world have gathered in St Peter’s Square to attend the funeral of Pope Francis.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is representing the British Government, while Prince William is representing the United Kingdom.
Francis’s native Argentina is represented by President Javier Milei, who is seated in the front row according to Vatican protocol. President Milei had initially been hostile towards the Pontiff; however, following his election at the end of 2023, he sought to mend the fractured relationship. Milei visited Pope Francis at the Vatican during the canonisation of Argentina’s first female saint, María Antonia de Paz y Figueroa, and enjoyed an hour-long conversation described as “very good and very friendly.” Upon the death of Francis, Milei declared a seven-day national mourning period in Argentina.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are present. Former President Joe Biden and former First Lady Jill Biden are also attending. Trump has been accused of making the event political by saying his attendance is in part due to him winning the Catholic vote. When asked about his attendance, the president said: “You know, I won the Catholic vote, and I think it’s the first time that ever happened where a Republican won the vote, and I won it by a lot.” The claim is incorrect. The Catholic vote nearly always aligns with the winning candidate, and George W. Bush relied on it to win the 2004 election. Trump is seated in the third row.
Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are seated in the second row, as Vatican protocol grants precedence to Italy.
King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain are leading the Spanish delegation in paying their respects to the late Pontiff, while Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and First Lady Janja Lula da Silva are leading the Brazilian delegation.
King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, and Prince Albert II of Monaco are also present. Other heads of state and government, including French President Emmanuel Macron, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Indian President Droupadi Murmu and Irish President Michael D. Higgins, are seated in subsequent rows. European Union leaders, including Ursula von der Leyen, António Costa and Roberta Metsola, are also present.
The Vatican’s seating protocol for world leaders is guided by a combination of diplomatic tradition and symbolic significance. Priority seating is accorded to the Pope’s homeland and the host nation, followed by royalty and subsequently heads of state and government officials. Within each category, dignitaries are seated based on the French alphabetical order of their countries’ names.
The post World leaders at Pope Francis’s funeral: who is there and where are they seated? first appeared on Catholic Herald.
The post World leaders at Pope Francis’s funeral: who is there and where are they seated? appeared first on Catholic Herald.
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Site: Crisis Magazine
I am looking at a couple of random lines lifted from a bleak little poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins, S.J., written at a sad time near the end of a short and, by his own reckoning, unfulfilled life. He was quite mistaken about that, by the way. His last words, whispered aloud about how happy he was to be going home to God, certainly put that misconception to rest. Nevertheless, the lines he wrote…
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Site: Rorate Caeliby Serre VerweijApril 26, 2025[Read our previous piece on the Conclave here.]The spectre of the coming conclave hangs ever over the heads of more than 130 cardinal electors and 1.2 billion Catholics. Speculation is rife. Will the next Pope be like Pope Francis or more ‘conservative’, like Pope Benedict?This question is crucial. The Vatican is dealing with grave financial problems. Pope Francis New Catholichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04118576661605931910noreply@blogger.com
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Site: AsiaNews.itWith all his soul, the pope wished to rescue the face of Russia's "mad holiness", that of its monks and pilgrims, its great artists and musicians, its writers capable of opening horizons of true universal union. That is why he often quoted Dostoevsky. Now, in his death, he promises us that in this inextricable inner struggle between good and evil, the face of Christ is always revealed in the human soul.
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Site: Fr. Z's BlogIf you care about this things… here is the rite of the closing of the coffin of a pope. It might have some variations from JPII. They seemed not to want to treat Benedict XVI with the respect due to … Read More →
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Site: Fr. Z's BlogIn Friday, a major holiday for Italy, the sun came up at 06:12 and it sank back down at 20:05. It’s nice that the days are getting longer. The Roman Station was at the Pantheon, aka, Santa Maria ad martyres. … Read More →
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Site: Mises InstituteWhy do mainstream economists suddenly think clearly when it comes to tariffs—but abandon logic elsewhere? Mark Thornton unpacks why even Krugman and Marx agree with Austrians on free trade.
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Site: The Unz ReviewThere is a good reason that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and it has nothing to do with heredity, dendrology, or gravity. The reason is that trees understand the further away the apple is dropped, the easier it is to steal. This is understood by the oligarchs who compose influential factions around...
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Site: Real Jew News
A Solemn Vow
April 25 2025___________________________________
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Site: PaulCraigRoberts.org
The Ukraine “Peace Deal”
April 25, 2025
Paul Craig Roberts
The details of the peace deal presented today by US special envoy Steve Witkoff are consistent with the report in the Financial Times discussed in my previous article and with Larry Sparano in the posted interview. Putin will halt the Russian advance prior to driving Ukrainian soldiers out of all of the territory that has been reincorporated into Russia. It appears to be the case that the borders between Russia and Ukraine will be the current front line, so Putin is withdrawing Russia’s claim to the Russian territories still under Ukrainian occupation.
In exchange Washington will give de jure, that is legal, by right, recognition to Crimea as a constituent part of Russia, and Washington will give de facto, that is accept the facts on the ground whether legal or not, recognition of the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Luhansk People’s Republic, Zaporozhye, and Kherson as provinces of Russia according to the present boundaries in the conflict.
By withholding de jure recognition of Russia’s battlefield gains, Ukraine can continue to claim, and demand return of, Russia’s battlefield gains. In other words, the agreement evades the central issue.
According to the agreement, Ukraine must renounce all NATO aspirations. But Putin’s other demands, demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine are apparently not included in the agreement.
Washington will lift the sanctions against Russia, and there will be US-Russia economic cooperation, which seems to mean that Russia will open aspects of its economy to foreigners for exploitation, a disastrous Russian decision.
This is what the Russian oligarchs and Atlanticist Integrationists, who have never supported the war, want. How the Russia’s military feels about victory being shoved aside by a negotiated settlement is unknown.
But is it a settlement? Zelensky’s latest statement at this time of writing is that he will not concede a square inch of territory to Russia. If Zelensky has to be coerced, and as he is not legally or constitutionally the current president of Ukraine as his term of office has expired, successive Ukrainian governments can legitimately claim that the agreement is not valid.
Moreover, Ukraine and Europe have placed themselves behind an alternative agreement. In their proposed agreement, Ukraine will consent to begin talks with Russia, Europe, and the US about the territorial issues. Moreover, Ukraine will be granted US security guarantees similar to Article 5 in the NATO treaty. In other words, Ukraine becomes essentially a de facto member of NATO. Additionally, there will be no restrictions on Ukraine’s armed forces or on the operations of foreign forces on Ukrainian territory, and Russia will compensate Ukraine for war damage.
Clearly, the two proposals have nothing in common. Unless Europe gives in to Trump, a split is implied between the US and NATO, a split that could leave the US and Russia in an alliance that excludes Europe. I have no explanation why Europe is taking this risk.
As we can see from the facts, only two of the four parties agree to the deal. Moreover, even if there is a deal, in the absence of de jure recognition of Russia’s territorial claims, the deal amounts to little more than kicking the can down the road.
In fact, John Helmer says that the deal is just a mechanism, a cover, for moving Russia aside so that Washington can get on with its war with China.
Here is how Helmer describes the situation:
“The politico-military strategy driving the US negotiators and prompting Trump’s tweets, is not a peace deal with Russia, nor even US withdrawal from the war in Europe. It is a strategy of sequencing one war at a time – the war in Europe to continue in the Ukraine with rearmed Germany, Poland and France in the lead, supported by Trump; and the US war against China in Asia.
“Sequencing these wars so as not to fight both enemies simultaneously – that’s the formula devised for Trump by Wess Mitchell, a former State Department appointee in the first Trump Administration, and his business partner Elbridge Colby, now the third-ranking Pentagon official as Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. ‘The essence of diplomacy in strategy,’ Mitchell has just declaimed in Foreign Affairs, ‘is to rearrange power in space and time so that countries avoid tests of strength beyond their ability.’ . .
“Mitchell and Colby have convinced Trump and his negotiators that Russia has been badly damaged by the Ukrainian war which the Obama and Biden Administration have fought. Russian weakness, especially the perception that President Putin is both politically vulnerable and personally susceptible to US business inducements, is Trump’s strong card, and he should play it now.”
The goal is not peace, but to make money off of two wars: Europe and Ukraine’s war with Russia, and Washington’s war with China. And perhaps a war with Iran for Israel thrown in.
Readers can listen to Helmer’s presentation of what he says is actually occurring in his discussion with Ray McGovern on Nima Alkhorshid’s program ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgG4ZmTZQww ), and they can read it in several of Helmer’s recent articles in Dancing with Bears ( https://johnhelmer.net/one-war-at-a-time-and-plenty-of-money-to-be-made-in-the-meantime-this-is-trumps-game-as-the-russian-and-chinese-general-staffs-understand/ ).
Helmer’s source for his explanation of what is really happening is an article in Foreign Affairs by West Mitchell, Assistant Secretary of State for Europe and Eurasia in the first Trump term. Mitchell is currently working with Trump’s current Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby to sequence America’s wars with Russia and China as the US lacks the power to take on both simultaneously. Mitchell’s article was published on April 22, 2025, in the May/June 2025 issue of Foreign Affairs.
Mitchell writes that the process of sequencing the wars with Russia and China should begin “by bringing the war in Ukraine to an end in a way that is favorable to the United States. That means that when all is said and done, Kyiv must be strong enough to impede Russia’s westward advances” [for which no evidence exists, showing Mitchell’s mind to be controlled by the false narrative]. Washington should use the Korean War formula: “prioritize an armistice and push questions about a wider settlement into a separate process that could take years to bear fruit, it it ever does.” This, of course, is what Washington’s de facto recognition of Russia’s territorial claims ensures.
Mitchell carelessly then reveals the intended deception of Babe-in-the-Woods Putin: “The United States should pursue a defense relationship with Ukraine akin to the one it maintains with Israel: not a formal alliance, but an agreement to sell, lend, or give Kyiv what it needs to defend itself. But it should not grant Ukraine [ de jure ] NATO membership. Instead, the United States should push European states to take responsibility for Ukraine—and for the security of their continent more generally.” This strategy capitalizes “on Putin’s special relationship with the Russian oligarchs” and dupes Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s negotiator, ” into pressing the Kremlin to accept a short-term military armistice which stops well short of the demilitarization and denazification goals of the Special Military Operation.”
So, as Mitchell describes it, the “peace agreement” is a Washington deception to set up, yet again, “Babe-in-the Woods Putin” for the eventual destruction of Russia.
Can I believe this? Yes, I can. Helmer has been watching things for a long time and reporting on them. This scenario is not a product of Helmer’s imagination. It is spelled out in an article in Foreign Affairs, long the arbiter of American foreign policy. The author, West Mitchell, a former Trump high official, clearly holds to the neoconservative policy stated by Defense Undersecretary Paul Wolfwitz that the purpose of American foreign policy is hegemony over the world. If American hegemony requires war, war it is.
The Russians, with a large part of the mindless Russian establishment so desirous of being part of the West, have never paid any attention to the implication for Russian sovereignty of the neoconservative doctrine of US hegemony. This doctrine has not been denounced by President Trump. Consequently, Russia will be destroyed as the Russian government stupidly walks into deception after deception. Under Putin and Lavrov it will be one Minsk Agreement after another.
The question I have is: Is Trump a part of the deception not only of Putin but also of the American people, or is this a deal he has accepted without realizing its consequences because he is desperate to end the conflict as he promised? If Trump himself is part of the deception, then we have the explanation why the American Establishment did not prevent his reappearance in the Oval Office.
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Site: LifeNews
Planned Parenthood and its affiliates have a few less clinics than they did five years ago, but a look at the organization’s recent efforts and activities show it has taken steps to ensure its abortion business stays busy even after Dobbs. Dobbs is, of course, the Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe in June of 2022 and made it possible for states to prohibit abortion and protect innocent unborn children from destruction.
Here’s an overview of what we found.
*In 2020, Planned Parenthood listed 641 clinics on its website, 388 of which performed abortion. While the overall count has dropped to 585, the number of abortion-offering clinics has risen to 398.
*Continuing a trend that goes back several years, many smaller affiliates with only a few clinics continue to be absorbed into larger, richer, more politically powerful affiliates, so that a lot of these larger affiliates now have operations covering multiple states.
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*By our count, there were 57 affiliates in 2020, but just 48 in 2025. (For the record, there were over a hundred as recently as 2010.) Some were just several affiliates in a given state combining to form a larger state affiliate (e.g., becoming Planned Parenthood of Greater New York) but others joined affiliates on the other side of the country (e.g., Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky joined a large affiliate in the Northwest to become Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawai’i, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky).
Here’s the breakdown on the clinics.
The number of clinics would have been even smaller, but this time around, 45 of those 594 clinics are “virtual.” Virtual clinics are not brick-and-mortar buildings at a fixed address. They are some sort of interactive website where patients can log on or call up and chat with a clinician about their health issues, get prescriptions for contraceptives or even treatment for STDs (sexually transmitted diseases).
Many of these virtual clinics also offer abortion pills which can be prescribed and delivered by mail without a woman ever having to come in for an appointment or exam.
While just 159 of Planned Parenthood’s clinics perform surgical or “in clinic” abortions, nearly all (396) of Planned Parenthood’s abortion performing clinics offer chemical abortions with mifepristone. Notably, at least 70 advertise that they make the pills available to women up to 12 weeks LMP (pregnancy measured from a woman’s last menstrual period), which is two weeks past the government’s official authorized 10 week protocol.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) limited use of these drugs to 10 weeks LMP because complications to women increased and efficacy decreased with increasing gestational age, that is, the older the baby about to be killed.
The last five years reveals a subtle but significant change in how late chemical abortions are offered at Planned Parenthood. There seems to be a unified shift in the extension of how long Planned Parenthood clinics offer chemical abortion by at least a week across the country, despite there being no change from the FDA extending the cut-off.
For example, in 2020, 286 clinics offered chemical abortions at 10 weeks, with no clinics offering chemical abortions after 10 weeks. However, in 2025, 282 clinics now offer abortion at 11 weeks and, as referenced above, more than 70 clinics offering it at 12 weeks.
Most of the Planned Parenthood clinics that do surgical abortions advertise their willingness to do late abortions. In 2025, 113 clinics indicate they are willing to perform abortions at 14 weeks gestation or more; 58 say they’ll perform abortions of at least 19 weeks. A dozen say they’ll do them at 23 weeks plus. Four in California and one in Oregon advertise abortions at 24 weeks, and one in Illinois says they’ll even take women at 26 weeks!
We do not yet know how many abortions Planned Parenthood performed in 2025. But the number it reported in its 2022-2023 Annual Report would make it responsible for nearly 38% of abortions the Guttmacher Institute says were performed in the U.S. in 2023.
Fluctuations in the States
One might assume that most of the closing clinics were in the states with new protections in place for the unborn after Dobbs. This is not entirely correct.
A lot of “red states” (ones passing pro-life protections after Dobbs) did see the number of abortion performing Planned Parenthood clinics in their states drop to zero – Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Texas. (Kentucky and Louisiana each had two Planned Parenthood clinics in both 2020 and 2025, but neither offered abortions in either of our measured years. North Dakota, West Virginia, and Wyoming either had no clinics previously or had a clinic that didn’t provide abortion in 2020 or 2025).
Planned Parenthood actually kept most of these clinics open after Dobbs, though, often as quasi “travel agencies” arranging for women to travel to affiliated clinics in other states which still legally performed abortions.
There were drops in the number of brick-and-mortar Planned Parenthood clinics in Indiana (-7), Texas (-5), Florida (-4). Idaho, Iowa (-2), Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Alabama (-1). However, the actual numbers of such clinics in other states that passed protections for the unborn – Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, and West Virginia – all stayed the same from 2020 to 2025.
At the same time, though, a few notoriously pro-abortion states also saw decreases in the number of clinics (or have announced shut downs by the summer of this year). Michigan will end up closing six clinics that were open in 2020, New York ten, Minnesota four, Connecticut two, and Alaska and Nevada one.
Some of these, of course, are now supplemented by virtual clinics ready to “pick up the slack” and offer services such as abortion that used to be available from clinics with physical locations. This is a clear sign that at least some affiliates are dealing with other issues such as management, staffing, budget or a dwindling customer base.
The numbers in a few states are complicated to interpret, perhaps because they initially sought to protect the unborn but saw those protections overturned by court decisions or referendums. For example, while Ohio saw its overall number of clinics drop by one, it added two new virtual clinics and actually added surgical and chemical abortion services to at least one clinic since 2020.
If one disregards the virtual clinics, only a handful of states actually added physical clinics between 2020 and 2025. They are Arkansas, California, Delaware, and Virginia. Arkansas, Delaware, and Virginia all added just one new brick-and-mortar site, though only the new clinics in Delaware and Virginia offered abortion.
Three of the four clinics California officially added were virtual, but the number of clinics in that state offering abortions rose by 14, a clear sign of abortion expansion. Most were clinics simply adding chemical abortion to their offerings, but there were two new surgical facilities added to California’s clinic list in 2025.
Several others similarly kept their clinic numbers largely the same, but increased their number of abortion-performing clinics, usually by the addition of chemical abortions.
Maryland and Maine both added chemical abortions to four clinics. Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington added three. Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Virginia added two. Kansas, New York, and Vermont added one. (Some of these involved the addition of a virtual clinic offering abortion pills.)
What these changes mean
All these changes together point not to an organization shutting down after Roe’s fall, but one adjusting to the new post-Dobbs reality.
The data appear to show Planned Parenthood keeping its abortion business going in two ways: (1) by keeping most old clinics in pro-life states open as travel agencies to send women to clinics in other states; and (2) by emphasizing chemical abortions, which require minimal staffing and facilities.
Planned Parenthood affiliates have expanded operations in states where abortion is still legal to handle more cases, especially at large centers near the border. Others have added customers by adding virtual clinics, prescribing abortion pills by webcam or phone and shipping pills to women’s homes so they never have to come to the clinic.
Though they continue to pursue legal challenges, Planned Parenthood does not appear to be performing abortions in states with the new protections. They will instead try and do what the law allows: send women to clinics in other states like California, Colorado, and Illinois, where there are no practical limits.
The rise of telemedicine that came with COVID and the ascendancy of abortion pills presented Planned Parenthood with both a challenge and an opportunity.
Women did not want to come into an old, dirty storefront clinic if they didn’t have to, and some of Planned Parenthood’s older clinics shuttered during the pandemic. But others adjusted and shifted some of their clients to virtual clinics, aided enormously by Biden-era deregulation of chemical abortion.
These new watered-down “safeguards” from Biden’s FDA authorized screening and prescription to be done online or by phone and allow pills to be mailed to women’s homes or made available for pickup from their local drugstore.
Many of the clinics that remain are large, modern mega-clinics, capable of handling large numbers of patients and hosting a busy virtual hub. So there may be fewer clinics overall and fewer low-level clinicians. This leaves a limited number of surgically trained abortionists to handle the later (more profitable) surgical cases at the bigger clinics and a handful of tech-savvy certified chemical abortionists to manage a lot of the virtual contacts.
There are overworked, underpaid staffers at the other clinics not happy with this top-heavy arrangement, but the organization considers it essential to Planned Parenthood’s ability to operate (NY Times 2/15/25).
Not to be missed is how this new financial arrangement and organizational model just happens to leave lots of money and staff for abortion advertising and advocacy.
Clearly, the abortion cause is still primary at Planned Parenthood. The organization’s motto is officially “Care. No Matter What,” but the data show it is more accurately “Abortion. No Matter What.”
LifeNews.com Note: Randall O’Bannon, Ph.D., is the director of education and research for the National Right to Life Committee.
The post Planned Parenthood Has Even More Centers Killing Babies in Abortions Than Ever Before appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Unam Sanctam Catholicam
When Pope Benedict XVI resigned in 2013, I was alarmed that papal resignations would become normatve from there on out—that future popes would simply expected to resign, such that a pope actually dying in office would become a relic of a bygone age. The life tenure of a pope is, ultimately, reminiscent of the historically monarchical nature of the papal ministry. The pope holds the place of the Prince of the Apostles and is himself a monarch over Vatican City.Since Vatican II, however, almost every other symbol of papal monarchy has been systematically expunged, from the papal tiara to the sedia gestatoria to abolition of the Papal Court. Why should not the lifetime tenure of the pope also be abolished? Could not Benedict's resignation serve as a kind of template for a modern Church wishing to divest itself of the final remnants of papal monarchy? Indeed, Benedict's resignation was roundly praised at the time for this very reason, that it showed a way forward for the papacy to evolve into something more representative of the modern spirit. We even had commentators gushing over the idea that there could be multiple living Popes Emeritus at any one time, who would constitute a sort of "council of elders" for the reigning pope to consult.It is supremely ironic that the final act of Benedict XVI—the "pope of tradition"—was his greatest novelty. The papal resignation, unprecedented in modern times, paved the way for the election of Jorge Bergoglio and the twelve years of ensuing chaos. Francis, of course, owed his pontificate to this act of resignation, and stated that Benedict XVI had "opened the door" the possibility of future papal retirements. Francis himself was frequently asked whether he might consider resigning if worn down by illness, to which he often gave contradictory answers. But I think those of us who understood the nature of this pope knew very well he would never resign. For His Humbleness, the papal office was an exercise of raw power, a mandate of plentitude that allowed him to entirely remake the Church in his own image and likeness. There was never any chance he would step down. Francis would cling tenaciously to power until his dying breath.Ironically, Francis's dogged refusal to resign is perhaps his one decision I agree with the most. While I was certainly no fan of this pontificate, I do believe the papacy is for life. Had Francis imitated Benedict in resigning, it would have reinforced papal resignation, transforming Benedict's singular novelty into a precedent. Future popes would simply be expected to resign, just like each successive pope is expected not to use the sedia gestatoria. With two popes as diverse as Benedict and Francis each resigning in turn, it would have created momentum, a sense of change, a sense of "this is the way we do things now." I understand that Francis's refusal to resign was not grounded in any lofty motives about the preservation of the monarchical view of the papacy, but frankly, I don't really care what his rationale was. I'm just glad he didn't do it.Interestingly, had Francis hypothetically resigned the papacy, he stated that he would have taken the title "Emeritus Bishop of Rome," not "Pope Emeritus" as Benedict XVI had done. This is, of course, a more precise and fitting title for a former pope than "Pope Emeritus." Francis also said, furthermore, he would not have continued to live at the Vatican but at a home for retired priests in Rome, which is, of course, fitting, since he would not longer have been pope and would have no business remaining in the Vatican. It is ironic that Francis's plans for a hypothetical retirement would have been handled in a more traditional manner than Benedict's was.Did I support Francis's vision for the Church? Heck no. And while part of me likes the idea that we could have had a much shorter Franciscan pontificate, when I consider the big picture, I am glad he didn't resign. A resignation would have gotten rid of Francis sooner, but it would have undoubtedly enshrined the act of resignation as a new norm that each successive pope would be expected to follow. And that, I think, would profoundly warp how the Church views the papal office. It would have encouraged Catholics to consider the papacy in fuctional terms, almost according to utilitarian criteria, even more so than they already do.While there is undoubtedly a performative aspect to the papacy, the pope is ultimately a spiritual father. We may debate whether Francis was a good spiritual father, and I know very well where I stand in that discussion. But fatherhood itself extends beyond concerns that are merely functional. The biblical Book of Sirach reminds us that a father remains a father even when his faculties fail him: "O son, help your father in his old age...even if his mind fails him, show forbearance" (Sir. 3:12-13). I am convinced that when we start pressuring popes to resign as soon as they become incapable of being globe-trotting celebrities, we are doing violence to the office of the papacy—an office which is bigger than the individual who happens to be holding it. Fatherhood is for life, and this should be respected in the lifetime tenure of the papal office. Francis certainly did incalculable damage to the office he inherited, the ramifications of which will be discussed by historians for generations to come. But at least, in dying at his post, he did something right, for which I will give him credit. -
Site: Henrymakow.com
This conversation took place on August 10, 2013 at the Wilderness Festival in Oxfordshire, England
Ghislaine Maxwell and Carney's wife Diana were close friends.
See below- Mark Carney is a tax cheat.
by Jane Santos
(henrymakow.com)
Newly discovered photos show that Mark Carney spoke with notorious child trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, a recruiter for Jeffrey Epstein's depraved and notorious network of underaged victims and extremely wealthy and powerful men.
Their conversation took place on August 10, 2013 at the Wilderness Festival in Oxfordshire, England.
Maxwell was later arrested in 2020, convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison. A set of photographs from the event was published by a British photography company at the time, and at least one of that set has been attributed to photographer Adrian Sherratt of Shutterstock, and was published by a major newspaper.
It is likely that the same photographer shot all the photos from the set. None of the photos were created by A.I. technology, as they were all uploaded to the internet in 2013, long before such technology was invented, and none were altered.
In a response from the Mark Carney campaign in January 2025 to photos that showed Carney with Maxwell, Carney's campaign stated that Maxwell was someone that Carney simply "bumped into" in "public settings" and that "they they are not friends."
(Carney enjoys intimate moments with Epstein's arranger)
However, at the time, only a photo of Carney standing side-by-side with Maxwell and others was released by the mainstream media. Another newly discovered photo from the festival shows Carney laying on his hands and knees next to Maxwell, who is laying down on the grass with her back and arms on the ground in close proximity to Carney.
The photo appeared in a 2013 article about the festival, and was taken by photographer Chris Eades of the BPPA (The British Press Photographers' Association). That is awfully close contact for someone that is simply "bumped into" in public settings. Perhaps it reflects a greater familiarity with Ghislaine Maxwell than Mark Carney wishes to admit to.
Also of note is that Ghislaine Maxwell wore a tag that said "AAA Escort" at the festival, which according to a source familiar with such tags, allows anyone who wears one to walk anyone else into the backstage area and the green room. It's a VIP pass at the least, and at most, reflects that her role was to escort VIPs into backstage areas and anywhere else on the Festival grounds.
Several mainstream outlets, including The Daily Mail and The Standard, reported that Carney also stayed in the manor house that is located on the Wilderness Festival grounds, which is also where the owner of the festival (Lady Rotherwick) lives. Lady Rotherwick is also the sister of Mark Carney's wife.
An article about the festival mentions only one special guest in attendance, besides the musicians and other performers, and that was Mark Carney.
A few months prior to this in November 2012, Carney had been appointed the Governor of the Bank of England, a very prestigious and powerful job. Interestingly, Lady Rotherwick said in an interview regarding the festival that "I have got hundreds of people camping on my lawn and the house will be chock-a-block."
The British term "chock-a-block" is defined as "very full of people or things" according to the Cambridge Dictionary. Was Lady Rotherwick too busy to escort Carney to his room in her very full home?
Since Maxwell was wearing the VIP Escort badge, was she assigned by Lady Rotherwick to escort the VIP Mark Carney around the grounds, making sure he makes the appropriate stops, and bringing him to his bedroom in Lady Rotherwick's large house?
The Carney campaign has stated that Lady Rotherwick "went to the same high school" with Ghislaine Maxwell but "are not friends," while on the hand, the British celebrity gossip publication The Tatler claims that Maxwell and Rotherwick are in fact old friends, even considering the possibility that Maxwell went into hiding at Rotherwick's home at one point.
It would therefore only make sense that Lady Rotherwick would only trust a good friend to escort her VIP with full access to her entire grounds including her private home and to escort Mark Carney around the festival and to the house. The Tatler also claims that Jeffrey Epstein himself attended the first Wilderness Festival with Ghislaine Maxwell a couple years prior in 2011 and paid the bills.
Did Maxwell have a room in the home as well in 2013, since the home was full of people, and did Epstein pay those bills again, and was Maxwell travelling with Carney and his wife, and did Epstein pay those bills as well?
It should be noted that Ghislaine Maxwell's modus operandi was to send underage girls to perform illicit acts for high-profile, powerful people.
The most famous of which was Prince Andrew, the second-eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II. Prince Andrew's underaged victim filed a lawsuit, which was settled in February 2022 with Prince Andrew paying an undisclosed amount to her.
According to the underaged victim, Maxwell simply told her to "do for (Prince Andrew) what you do for Epstein" and Jeffrey Epstein paid her $15,000 to do so. Epstein refused to answer questions over whether he attempted to blackmail Prince Andrew, according to court documents.
But Epstein was not present during the first time that Prince Andrew abused and exploited the underaged victim, according to the victim, and that abuse actually took place in England at Maxwell's home, where the infamous photo of the three was taken. That was Maxwell executing a plan from start to finish, with likely involvement from Epstein.
The pressing questions for Mark Carney therefore ought to be: 1) What did you talk about with Ghislaine Maxwell?
2) Did she escort you anywhere, and if so, did she escort you to your bedroom?
3) Did she try to compromise you in any way, shape or form, and was she successful?
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Related- Ezra Levant - BREAKING: I followed the trail of Mark Carney's money-laundering scheme
I thought it was eye-opening to see how casually the man who was "selected" to become our prime minister, engages in unethical tax-dodging for his well-connected friends.
https://www.rebelnews.com/breaking_i_followed_the_trail_of_mark_carney_s_money_laundering_scheme
"That's why I'm here: because two and a half years ago Mark Carney set up a shell company to avoid paying taxes in Canada. The Isle of Man has very few taxes -- no capitals gains tax, no inheritance tax, no wealth tax. Income tax is just 22%. Corporate taxes are 10% or less.
But the Isle of Man does something more important: it allows oligarchs from around the world to pay taxes on their global income to the Isle of Man. So they can operate around the world, but choose to pay a fraction of their real tax obligation in the Isle of Man."
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James Corbett-- "Meet Mark Carney, Globalist Insider":
https://corbettreport.com/meet-mark-carney-globalist-insider/
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Site: LifeNews
Pro-abortion extremists knew this was coming but frankly they don’t care.
A man posted on Reddit asking for advice. He and his girlfriend became pregnant. “We talked for about a week deciding whether to keep the baby or not…” The “not” didn’t mean making an adoption plan for their child.
They were in a long-distance relationship, attending separate universities. Their baby was seventeen weeks along, yet they chose the chemical abortion pill. This was an illegal abortion, far beyond the FDA guidelines.
The young man’s girlfriend had to go through the gruesome process alone. In the end they were both shocked when an actual dead baby came out of her body. He said, “I had no idea this would happen.” She was dealing with pain, bleeding and likely depression. He asked Reddit readers what more he could have done.
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My advice would’ve been to immediately get her to a pro-life pregnancy center where they can access her for possible medical intervention and address her emotional pain.
A pregnant teen went to an abortion facility but was told she was too far along to have an abortion, meaning she was likely twenty-four weeks or more. So, she and her mother bought illegal abortion pills, which was a very dangerous thing to do this far into pregnancy. The end result was a dead baby – but the girl and her mother were horrified by what they saw.
In a text to her friend the teen mother described the infant as “a full baby.” The girl’s mother also expressed shock, noting “fingernails and lips and a nose.” Perhaps their devastation and alarm were the reasons the girl kept the baby in a container under her bed for two to three weeks before burying the child in their back yard.
Authorities later retrieved the body of the baby.
I wish I could tell you these were isolated tragedies, but they’re not. Unregulated and dangerous chemical abortion pills are routinely mailed upon request, usually without medical supervision. Or sent, no questions asked, to a sexual predator covering his criminal tracks.
There is no accountability. Once the credit card clears, the abortion industry is off to its next vulnerable victim.
These deaths didn’t have to happen. And the parents didn’t have to be burdened with the tormenting memory of taking the lives of their babies and grandbaby.
States are passing legislation that in the future will equip students about the wondrous development of the unborn child. Scientifically and medically accurate information that will remind them of the humanity of their baby if faced with an unexpected pregnancy.
North Dakota, Tennessee, Idaho, Kansas and Arkansas have passed legislation that requires students be presented with accurate material or videos on fetal development as part of school curricula.
The states of West Virginia, Iowa, Missouri, and Kentucky are working to pass similar legislation.
A bill was passed by the Arizona legislature but vetoed by the governor.
Had these college students or the teenager and her mother accessed this information, they may have changed their minds about abortion. And dramatically altered the trajectories of their lives to include cherished family members.
LifeNews.com Note: Bradley Mattes is the President of Life Issues Institute, a national pro-life educational group. File photo.
The post Woman Shocked When Delivering Dead Baby After Taking Abortion Pill: “I Had No Idea This Would Happen” appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: LifeNews
As Planned Parenthood faces growing scrutiny over patient safety and service quality, a surge of political advertising seeks to shield the organization while targeting pro-life lawmakers.
The ads, backed by Reproductive Rights for All (formerly NARAL), attempt to portray legislative efforts to defund abortion providers as attacks on women’s health care, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America reported.
“These ads peddle false claims about defunding Big Abortion chains like Planned Parenthood,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. “They want the viewer to believe defunding abortion businesses would cut benefits to women. Nothing is further than the truth.”
Dannenfelser emphasized that ongoing pro-life efforts to shift taxpayer funding do not reduce women’s health benefits but instead aim to redirect resources away from abortion providers and toward federally qualified community health centers, which she noted “outnumber Planned Parenthood by 15 to 1.”
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The political spin comes as new revelations spotlight Planned Parenthood’s declining health care services and troubling operational practices. A recent New York Times exposé detailed unsanitary and negligent conditions, including a facility in Nebraska where a sewage leak lasted several days, making women vomit from the stench. Other documented incidents include the implantation of an IUD in a woman who was unknowingly pregnant — resulting in a stillbirth — in Nebraska and the use of moldy medical equipment in Missouri.
“But if the unsanitary conditions revealed by the New York Times aren’t enough, consider this: while Planned Parenthood’s government money has gone up, their contraceptive and cancer screening services have plummeted,” Dannenfelser added. “The services that have gone up are abortion, gender transitions and political campaigns to defeat Donald Trump and Republicans.”
Katie Glenn Danel, director of legal affairs and policy counsel at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, criticized Planned Parenthood’s current trajectory.
“Planned Parenthood is an abortion business, not a health care provider,” she said.
Danel pointed to data showing a 43% increase in taxpayer funding since 2010, while services such as cancer screenings, breast exams, and pap smears have dropped by more than 70%.
“Women deserve quality, comprehensive care,” Danel continued, later adding, “Americans will no longer subsidize the industry that endangers women, kills unborn children and spends millions to elect woke politicians.”
The post Abortion Activists Say You Hate Women if You Don’t Want Your Tax Money to Fund Abortions appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: The Remnant Newspaper - Remnant ArticlesThis evening, at 8:00 p.m. [Rome time], at the Altar of Confession in St. Peter's Basilica, the rite of the Closing of the Coffin of the Roman Pontiff took place.
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Site: LifeNews
A new report from the Guttmacher Institute, a longtime advocate for legally unlimited abortion, estimates that total U.S. abortions increased in 2024. The report covers the more than two-thirds of states that have not revived or enacted pro-life laws in the wake of the June 2022 Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Altogether, using a combination of survey samples of abortion facilities and historical methods, Guttmacher concluded that some 1,038,100 abortions took place in 2024, a little less than 1% more than occurred in 2023.
Scholar and statistician Michael New has responded to the data and noted that, given its methodology of sampling and historical estimation, it should be greeted with some skepticism. It would be better reported, as the details show, as a range rather than a concrete number in which there is great confidence. Over the decades, Guttmacher has relied on a triennial system of securing data directly from as many of the nation’s abortion facilities as it could reach. These reports are more accurate and detailed than what Guttmacher calls its Monthly Abortion Provision Study (MAPS). There is value in getting data much more rapidly than the triennial scheme allowed, but New’s caution is well taken. The core problem remains with the U.S. system of data collection on abortion, which relies on voluntary reporting at the national level and a patchwork of state policies under which major states with ultra-permissive policies do not collect and report their data in any public forum.
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Still, there is enough information in the Guttmacher report to spur sober reflection. First, it’s clear that the Supreme Court decision to reverse Roe v. Wade did not result in a major reduction in the incidence of abortion in the United States. Only a handful of countries in the world have a collection of regional/provincial/state governments, and likewise only a handful of countries have abortion policies as permissive as the United States.
Second, the changing landscape of abortion provision, which is shifting from an in-clinic experience to at-home measures, has driven increases in reported abortions that began well before the Dobbs ruling. Total abortions have been increasing in the United States ever since its lowest tally in 2017. Perhaps the biggest factor driving change has been the relaxation and non-enforcement of limits with respect to the distribution of abortion drugs, which have migrated from a wide variety of regulations to ensure physician supervision to today’s system of mail-order abortion without significant tracking of physical and emotional impacts on women.
Changes in state policy continue to play a key role as well. The Guttmacher MAPS report notes that six states led the way with significant increases in abortion incidence in 2024: Wisconsin, Arizona, California, Kansas, Ohio, and Virginia. California has gone out of its way to make itself an abortion destination, while other states have seen liberalizing trends through legislative enactment, ballot initiative, or judicial decree. Abortions in Wisconsin, for example, increased from 1,300 in 2023 when a pro-life law was in effect to 6,100 in 2024 after a Dane County Circuit Court held that an 1849 Wisconsin law prohibiting abortion was limited to assaults by third parties and did not apply to a woman consenting to the procedure. Rhode Island offers another example. Abortions increased in the Ocean State by 20% in 2024 after the state decided to publicly fund them.
Meanwhile, several states that have revived or enacted protections for the unborn saw their in-state abortion rates and numbers decline. Guttmacher focuses on South Carolina and Florida, each of which has enacted a law limiting abortion early in pregnancy. For 2024, abortions declined by 12,100 in Florida where a six-week “heartbeat” bill was passed and then ratified by popular vote under the leadership of Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. In South Carolina, abortions declined by 3,500 after the state’s six-week heartbeat law was upheld by the state supreme court in August 2023, again spearheaded by a governor, Henry McMaster (R). How many abortions these laws ultimately averted is difficult to assess given the number of abortions taking place in liberal jurisdictions on out-of-state residents and the willingness of abortion suppliers to ship drugs across state lines in defiance of the receiving states’ pro-life laws.
The number of abortions carried out on women and girls from out of state is substantial — an estimated 155,000 in 2024, which would constitute roughly 15% of total U.S. abortions. This number is down slightly from 2023. To give a sense of its scope, a full 71% of abortions in Kansas are carried out on non-residents. The percentage is 69% in New Mexico, 39% in Illinois, and 36% in North Carolina. In terms of abortions arranged online and carried out in pro-life states using state laws in an attempt to conceal or protect the supplier, a separate study by the Society for Family Planning (SFP) tallied 34,500 abortions carried out this way in the first half of 2024 alone.
Clearly, understanding and assessing changes like these, which are rapid and historically unprecedented, is a matter of vital public interest. Abortion policy has been plagued for decades by misreporting and underreporting. Innate problems like the disjunction between where abortions occur and where injured mothers are treated, often not the same medical site, have always been present and are now aggravated by the advent of abortion drugs taken at home and often at great distance from medical aid. National abortion reporting, as noted above, misses hundreds of thousands of abortions per year and collects limited data. Some states’ reporting practices are deteriorating even as others are not collected in the first place (e.g., California, Maryland, New Hampshire). In New Jersey, only hospitals and certified ambulatory surgical centers are required to report abortions to state health officials, leaving researchers to rely on estimates rather than hard data.
Proposals to strengthen abortion reporting via making data collection mandatory have not made much headway, but in their absence, the best source of data will remain estimates created by groups that advocate for legal abortion. Abortion is a practice that, like many other issues fraught with public policy and social concerns, tends to draw the interest of analysts who are motivated by ethical considerations. Researchers from the Guttmacher Institute to ANSIRH to the Charlotte Lozier Institute, and more besides, take a view on their subject matter and debate among themselves about their methods and findings. This is as it should be. This is also why on such a critical issue, public bodies without institutional stances should be tasked with and fully funded to identify and gather information from the appropriate sources. This is especially vital in our federal system, where state health bodies are charged with gathering data and no national health system exists to provide a single source of basic information. International studies illuminate many questions better than U.S. bodies, but the American way of handling large datasets can be dramatically improved.
The Norman-Ernst Ensuring Accurate and Complete Abortion Data Reporting Act, introduced in January, would serve this goal by making certain federal family planning funding for the states contingent on their timely filing of abortion data with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). As a press release accompanying the introduction of the bill stated, “The American taxpayer continues to fund family planning programs despite having little understanding of how effective those programs are at reducing the number of abortions throughout the country. If all states were to submit accurate abortion data to the CDC, lawmakers would be better informed on family planning policy decisions and Medicaid funding for those programs could be more suitably allocated.” The bill (S.178/H.R. 627) identifies 10 areas where data should be supplied to the CDC, a list that should continue to be refined and developed as new issues emerge in this area of public policy.
In the meantime, the well-being of children in the womb and the health of mothers are being compromised daily by the decreasing quality and comprehensiveness of data collection and by politically motivated attacks on science and statistical research. Ironically, the more controversial a subject is intrinsically, the more likely it is to spur advocates of one stripe or another to scorn and even censor studies and findings with which they take issue.
Whether the topic is COVID, climate change, nutrition, or abortion, issues on which the data and the debates should be free flowing, the more some partisans strain to suppress alternative views. Receiving the Robert Zimmer Medal from the American Academy of Science & Letters last October, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya summed up the situation well, saying, “During pandemics, the public depends on experts to share their expertise openly without fear or favor and to speak their minds openly about their scientific and policy evaluations.” The same should hold true for what is, on a worldwide scale, a pandemic of disrespect for the most vulnerable human lives.
LifeNews Note: Chuck Donovan is a 50-year veteran of the national debate over the right to life and served from 1981-89 as a writer in the Reagan White House.He is the former Executive Vice President of Family Research Council.
The post Over 1 Million Babies are Killed in Abortions a Year. When Will This End? appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: LifeNews
Operation Rescue is investigating three more women who were rushed to the hospital after botched abortions in Illinois between December 2024 and March 2025. Each incident involved women who suffered heavy bleeding—likely caused by uterine perforation, a well-known but potentially life-threatening complication of surgical abortion. These cases, documented in emergency call recordings and reported by pro-life eyewitnesses, raise alarming flags regarding clinic oversight and safety standards in Illinois.
1. Carafem Health Center, Skokie
At 1:37 p.m. on December 6, 2024, a 31-year-old woman was rushed from the Carafem Health Center in Skokie, Illinois to a hospital. Carafem is part of a national chain committing abortions in Illinois, Washington, Georgia, and at least 17 other states via “telemed.” The Carafem worker reportedly called 911 to request help for a patient with severe hemorrhaging. According to a 911 recording provided courtesy of Pro-Life Action League, the caller noted that the patient was “bleeding a lot.” This bleeding was likely caused by a uterine perforation—a puncture of the uterus that can occur during surgical abortion procedures and requires emergency medical intervention.
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In another alarming portion of the call, the staffer states a nurse practitioner (NP) was with the patient. In 2023, the Illinois legislature passed an omnibus bill that allowed Nurse Practitioners to perform medical and surgical abortions. NPs have far less training than a medical doctor, especially in surgery and surgery complications. This same bill protects abortionists from legal action.
Less than three months later, at 3:51 p.m. on March 5, 2025, another emergency unfolded—this time at Planned Parenthood in Aurora, Illinois. According to another 911 call provided courtesy of Pro-Life Action League, Emergency Medical Services were dispatched after a woman in her late twenties began bleeding heavily following a “procedure” (i.e. an abortion).
Sadly, this is the third botched abortion requiring emergency care to occur at Planned Parenthood of Aurora this year. Operation Rescue investigated two others that happened on January 18 and February 8 of 2025. Three botches in three months does not equal “safe and legal.”
3. Hope Clinic for Women, Granite City
The most recent incident took place around 1:20 p.m. on March 9, 2025, at the Hope Clinic for Women in Granite City, Illinois – also known as “Hopeless” Clinic. Eyewitnesses on the scene reported an ambulance arriving at the facility. Although 911 records for this event have not been released yet, Operation Rescue secured a recording of the EMS radio dispatch indicating the emergency: a 30 year old woman suffering from significant bleeding after her abortion. As in the previous two cases, the symptoms were consistent with a possible uterine perforation.
“Hopeless” Clinic earned Operation Rescue’s title for “Worst of the Worst” in 2023, the same year that the Illinois legislature passed sweeping expansions for already unregulated abortion clinics. In that year, Operation Rescue investigated 30 medical emergencies from the state, most of which happened at this clinic. That is a dozen more emergencies than were reported in 2022.
A Call for Oversight and Accountability
“These increasing medical emergencies raise crucial questions about the total lack of safety practices and regulatory oversight for abortion facilities in Illinois,” says Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.
Currently, Illinois does not require abortion clinics to be licensed by the state, a policy which allows facilities to operate without accountability or routine inspections. There is no way to tell if basic sanitation, hygiene, medical attention, anesthesia protocol, licensure of medical staff, or other crucial safety standards are being observed.
In January of 2024, State Representative William E. Hauter (R) introduced a bill that would mandate all abortion clinics in Illinois be licensed by the Department of Public Health. This meant such facilities would have to be inspected. Unfortunately, such a bill was unable to get any traction and did not even make it out of committee this year. This shows the attitude of legislators who are willing to protect abortion and abortionists at all costs while ignoring patient safety and the numerous injuries sustained by women entering these clinics.
“There are health regulations for making fast food french fries,” adds Newman, “but none to protect a woman at a surgical abortion clinic. Babies get killed and women get injured in the process almost every week, yet the mainstream media and other ‘women’s rights advocates’ remain silent. We will not be silent! With God’s help, we will keep pushing for the truth and exposing the abortion cartel in America.”
LifeNews Note: This article was originally published by Operation Rescue, a leading pro-life, Christian activist organization dedicated to exposing abortion abuses, demanding enforcement, saving innocent lives, and building an abortion-free America. The author, Ricardo Pinedo, writes for Operation Rescue.”
The post More Illinois Women Face Medical Emergencies After Botched Abortions appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: LifeNews
We recently reported on our unsettling discovery that Biden’s Army had been instructing Fort Bragg (formerly Fort Liberty under the Biden Administration) trainees that pro-life Americans were domestic terrorists as far back as 2011. We also learned that the Biden Army’s investigator had essentially covered up the shocking actions with a report containing demonstrably inaccurate claims and even contradicted itself.
As promised, we’ve just sent a letter to President Trump’s new military leadership, specifically Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll, bringing our critical findings to their attention – and respectfully urging them to take action to weed out this nonsense from our military training doctrine. This is the only way to make things right for our client and all pro-life Americans.
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Last year, we sent a demand letter to Biden’s Army Secretary, and the response we received, along with what the Army’s then-leadership told Congress, would have been enough of a win – if it had been true and complete. We have now confirmed that it was not.
Our legal instincts told us to look deeper. Sure enough, the need for our letter to Secretary Hegseth became evident after we reviewed the records acquired through our Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. This trove of documents clearly showed that the Biden Army’s “PR” talking point, that an unvetted PowerPoint slide slipped into the presentation, was knowingly false.
They had claimed that it was simply a matter of a wrong “title” (“Terrorist Groups”) being placed on the slide displaying the “Choose Life” license plate image and pro-life organizations’ logos, including that of our client Operation Rescue.
But now, we know that their own investigation revealed that the training, which soldiers described in sworn statements, came across like “teaching doctrine” and had targeted pro-life Americans for almost 15 years. Our client’s (Operation Rescue) logo has been included since at least 2017, and slides targeting pro-lifers generally as terrorists have been included since at least 2011. But amazingly, the investigator assessed that it was simply a “mistake.” A 15-year mistake? As we summarized:
The investigation report concluded that “Labelling the slide ‘Terrorist Groups’ was a mistake” instead of recognizing that pro-lifers should not have been included in the entire “Terrorism Awareness” presentation in the first place. This is far more egregious than simply stating that the title of one slide was a “mistake,” as the entire training was about terrorism. Further, the conclusion that the labeling of that slide was a “mistake” is unsupported by a shred of evidence in the investigation file. The attempt to brush this under the rug is glaring.
It was no mistake. True to its typical swamp-like bureaucratic form, “woke” and Leftist ideologues intentionally used Army resources and a captive audience to indoctrinate soldiers to hold the view that pro-lifers are terrorists and that millions of pro-life Americans are a threat to security. And even that “Choose Life” license plates issued by 33 states (including North Carolina, where Fort Bragg sits) are evidence of terrorist threats. Planned Parenthood must be pleased.
This insanity must end. While Biden’s Army assured everyone that the problem had been corrected, we simply don’t believe them. What we discovered through our FOIA request confirmed our suspicion. And that’s why we just wrote to Secretary Hegseth and Secretary Driscoll. They are now in a position to bring this to a resolution and make this right. We are hopeful because they’ve demonstrated the desire to free America’s fighting forces from this Leftist nonsense.
As we said in our letter, “Given your clear stand and demonstrated record of calling out and opposing all ‘woke’ Leftist/Marxist ideology and propaganda from our Nation’s great fighting forces, we are hopeful you will see this matter as worthy of your attention and action.” We specifically made these requests:
- To direct the Army to issue a meaningful direct apology to our client, Operation Rescue, and its Director, Troy Newman, for the wrongful actions committed by the Army under the prior Biden Administration.
- To make a public statement, or at least one addressed to all trainees, that the United States military considers pro-life Americans and organizations neither terrorists nor extremists, that all prior training to the contrary is false, along with a direction that any such training or propaganda be removed and reported to appropriate Army personnel.
- To direct, forthwith, the immediate production of all remaining Army records concerning this subject, including, but not limited to, the Exhibits in the investigation file we have obtained.
- To address Congress’ concerns by issuing a new statement that rectifies and replaces the prior misleading representations.
We look forward to working with our military’s new leadership, one that is reimplementing dominant warfighting as its institutional goal, not woke indoctrination and social science experiments on soldiers at the Constitution’s expense. We’ll keep you updated on our progress.
LifeNews Note: Jordan Sekulow is the Executive Director of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ).
The post Hegseth Asked to Ensure Army Training Program Never Calls Pro-Life Americans “Terrorists” Again appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: RadTrad Thomist
“If you had been of the world, the world would love its own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” Jn. 15:19
The crowds, feeling like hundreds of thousands of people, who "lined up" last night to pass by Jorge Bergoglio's open casket, were faces without tears. I checked. Was there one person in that ocean of people trying to get into Vatican City, who gave off even the slightest appearance of feeling sorrow in their hearts over the passing of the man whom the world knew as Pope Francis. Maybe mourning is something that has passed from our collective consciousness? But I don't think so. There is always tears, sometimes streams of them, when a person dies, especially when a person dies "before their time." There is also or there should be, a spirit of gravity as friends and family collectively confront the stern realities of life and death, absence and the hole that opens up in one's soul when a "presence" is suddenly lacking. What goes on in the inner recesses of men's hearts is unknown, however, there was absolutely no such manifestation of sorrow or lack or even sober dignity and reflection in the crowd that I pushed against in the universal push to present at a truly unique historical event. This was a expectant and exuberant crowd that snaked its way around the walls of St. Peter's, sent in different direction by the long lines of yellowish green jackets of the security details that now occupy the major Catholic places in Rome. We were lined up down both sides of the nave as we headed to see the man who had done more than almost any to erase all the lines distinguishing "Catholic" from "non-Catholic." Maybe this was his triumph, the man who lay so frighteningly in his coffin. You could not tell if anyone was Catholic or not. When we approached the body, the guards insisted that we must put away all cameras. This was about 20 feet from the casket. As people approached, being allowed only a few seconds to "stand in front of the body," really there was no standing at all but a moving through, no one that I saw made the sign of the cross. No one tried to stop a tear. I kept watching people and there was not one. They just passed and went through the church, just as in the way that you would pass through any of the great churches in Rome at a curious and observational state. No one was weeping or even seeming to be sad, as we went down the stairs of St. Peter's. The power of the idea of the papacy obviously drew people to some degree. Something drew all of these people. It might be the realization that a historical event was unfolding that they should be a part of. But there were no tears.
Francis, to my surprise, looked awful. Previously I had only seen him once at a distance. As he lay there, in the simplest and most minimal of episcopal robes. he looked a ghoulish green color, to me how looked a solid lime green. His features were distorted a distended and exaggerated way. His entire look was that of a thick wax mask. His expression was like that of someone who had just been interrupted when making a mistake. But had Bergoglio succeeded really. Had he created a church without sorrow or even without the deep sobriety that used to characterize the Catholic Faith. Had these crowds finally merged into the Noosphere, become part of the mass that was no longer needs tears and black vestments. Well, if atheists go to Heaven, I suppose Jorge Maria Bergoglio is safe!
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Site: Catholic Herald
It might be thought to be stating the obvious, but before electing a new pope the Church has to bury the last. The papal funeral is first of all about offering a fitting burial for the deceased pontiff, recognizing not just his dignity as a simple Christian, but also the high office he held. It also has important external, even juridical, significance for the whole Church.
In a monarchy with a line of succession, the cry “The King is dead, long live the King,” not only announces the death of the sovereign, but also the immediate transition of power to his successor. In the case of the papacy, there is no such direct continuity. The election of the new pope has to take place, which means that there must be a certain verification of the vacancy of the Petrine office before this can even be contemplated, let alone carried out.
This is one of the ceremonial purposes of the rather elaborate funeral rites that are still reserved for the pope today. There is a sense in which they are of course modelled on the funerals of every Christian, because every pope is first of all a member of the faithful who deserves a reverent and decent funeral, and who needs commending to Almighty God by the Church. But there are also distinctive rituals proper to the death of the Roman Pontiff that “announce” (as it were) the death of the pope, and the vacancy of the papal office, so as to permit the election of the next pope in a free and legitimate way.
Historically, this was very important indeed. In the eleventh century, Gregory VII’s (c.1015-85) enemies challenged the legitimacy of his pontificate by claiming he had been elected before his predecessor, Alexander II (d.1073), had even been buried. While Honorius II (1060-1130) was still alive, the process of electing his successor began with such earnest that the result was a determination binding on future generations: attempted elections before the burial of the last pope would lead to excommunication.
All of this confusion went back to the seventh century, when during his nine-month papacy Boniface III (February-November 607) had decreed that the election of a pope could not begin before his successor was dead. But doubt about the Latin word depositio (which could mean dead, rather than more specifically buried) in Boniface’s legislation left this open to challenge. The Lateran Synod of 1059 confirmed Boniface III’s earlier text, but it was only a little later that it was clarified to say burial (sepultura).
This is also where the idea of a very public papal funeral came in. When Celestine III died in 1198, there was an attempt to get moving with the process to elect Lothar of Segni, who would go on to become Innocent III (1161-1216). Lothar, however, wanted to be present at the papal funeral in Old St Peter’s, so that he could be seen to be honouring the man who would become his predecessor, and so avoid any possible challenges to his motives or, still worse, to his actual election.
We see vestiges of all of this in the papal funeral rites even today. The public attestation of the death of the Roman Pontiff by the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, the convening of the cardinals to be present in Rome for the funeral rites, the lying-in-state of the deceased pope, the elaborate processions not just through St Peter’s Basilica, but outside in the Square: all of these point to the public, liturgical-juridical nature of the papal funeral ceremonies, which are as much about giving due reverence to the deceased Vicar of Christ, as making a very public display of his death so as to avoid any challenges to the election of his successor.
Even in today’s world, this has value real value, as the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI – and the several clarifications about the Office of Pope Emeritus that followed – revealed. Pope Francis’s funeral will introduce some modest simplifications to the papal funeral rites. But these can only ever go so far. The Church needs not just the opportunity to mourn her Holy Father and commend him to God in prayer, but also the more human experience of seeing the transition to the next papacy begin to take place before her very eyes.
Father James Bradley is Assistant Professor of Canon Law at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, where he teaches Liturgical and Sacramental Law.
Photo: Late Pope Francis lies in state in a coffin at St Peter’s Basilica at The Vatican, on April 25, 2025. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
The post Friends, Romans, countrymen: a papal funeral is more than the burial of a body first appeared on Catholic Herald.
The post Friends, Romans, countrymen: a papal funeral is more than the burial of a body appeared first on Catholic Herald.
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Site: Zero HedgeStocks Stumble After Trump's China CommentsTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 14:00
Stocks are trimming gains after President Donald Trump noted US levies on China won’t be dropped unless “they give us something substantial,” adding that opening up the country would be a “big win.”
He also noted that another tariff pause is unlikely.
Trump says he is “speaking to a lot of people from China” when a reporter asks if he has spoken to President Xi since taking office.
Nasdaq is still less than 2% away from pre-Liberation-Day levels...
Prior to these comments given to reporters on Air Force One as Trump heads to the Pope's funeral, the president told Time magazine in an interview released Friday that 20%, 30% or 50% tariffs a year from now would be a “total victory."
“The deal is a deal that I choose,” Trump said in the interview.
“What I’m doing is I will, at a certain point in the not too distant future, I will set a fair price of tariffs for different countries.”
Headline roulette remains firmly in place as the world appears ready to take China's side against The White House's claims that there are ongoing talks with Beijing.
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Site: Zero HedgeWalmart Opens Channel For Battered Chinese Exporters To "Quickly Expand" In Domestic MarketTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 14:00
Walmart in China rolled out a new program this week to support Chinese exporters reeling from President Trump's 145% tariffs on U.S.-bound goods. The initiative offers exporters a chance to pivot their strategy by selling domestically through Walmart's hundreds of stores across the world's second-largest economy.
The new program was announced on Walmart's WeChat account on Thursday and comes in response to the Chinese government's call for the "integrated development of domestic and foreign trade."
Here's a snippet of Walmart's WeChat statement:
Walmart's supplier recruitment system was recently launched, and we sincerely invite high-quality companies with the same values to join us and jointly create high-quality, high-value products for customers. In order to actively respond to the call for the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade, Walmart has opened a green channel for qualified foreign trade companies, simplified the access process, accelerated the approval efficiency, and helped related companies quickly expand the domestic market.
As of 2024, Walmart operated nearly 400 retail stores and clubs across more than 100 cities in China, supported by almost two dozen distribution centers. In the most recent quarter, Walmart reported a 28% net sales growth in the country.
China's Ministry of Commerce has been working with domestic retailers and e-commerce platforms to redirect export-oriented goods toward domestic consumers, aiming to prevent a shock to the manufacturing sector. This initiative also includes JD.com's move to help offload unsold export inventory within the domestic market.
Some of the latest trade headlines suggest China is already under pressure, while the lag in any shock is about to hit the shores of U.S. West Coast ports as soon as next week...
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So, what about the U.S.? Why hasn't Walmart set up an 'America First' campaign to promote products from mom-and-pop companies with patriotic signage such as "Made in America" at stores nationwide?
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Site: Henrymakow.com
Please send links and comments to hmakow@gmail.omMark Carney, 60 is a Communist by virtue of the fact that he is an obedient and willing stooge of the Communist World Economic Forum"Heartbreaking to know that so many folk are sleepwalking about Canada ending up under Communist rule. To date, not much about this in mainstream or social media, but then again, a majority of the Canadian media has been bought and paid for by outgoing PM Justin Trudeau.Mark Carney, 60 is a Communist by virtue of the fact that he is an obedient and willing stooge of the Communist World Economic Forum. He's, in fact, a first class WEF'er.Whatever the WEF says and does, Mark Carney will say and do, including wanting all citizens living under the sick WEF motto: "owning nothing and being happy".Canada is headed on the Highway to Hell, government probe warns'Why this isn't blazing the front pages of every news outlet in the country right now is beyond me,' says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, of a government report painting a plausible nasty future for Canada
Carney think tank planning government control over every aspect if our lives--Trump surrounded by occult Chabad Orthodox Jews.The Grayzone's Max Blumenthal and Aaron Mate on Donald Trump's close relationship with the cult-like, settler-tied Chabad Lubavitch sect, as one of its key operatives is elevated to an administration post.--Trump laundered money for the MafiaThey bought and sold condos in Trump Towers. Trump is a gangster.-
Radical Zionist extremist Ben Gvir spoke at Mar-a-Lago. He told House GOP House Majority Whip Tom Emmer that Israel must bomb Gaza's food storage facilities. Gvir claims Republicans agreed.-Trump Says US Talking With China on Trade After Beijing's DenialTrump is talking up the market by claiming trade talks with China are taking place. China denies this.-China waives tariffs on some U.S. goods, but denies Trump's claim that talks are underwayTrump Administration Texted College Professors' Personal Phones to Ask If They're JewishThe school later told staff it had provided the Trump administration with personal contact information for faculty members.They are spinning this as "antisemitism" when it is the exact opposite. They are seeking to punish "antisemites" and identifying people opposed to Israel's genocidal megalomania.--Trump WH web site is blaming China for COVID lab leak and throws Fauci under the busThe Proximal Origin of SARS-CoV-2" publication -- which was used repeatedly by public health officials and the media to discredit the lab leak theory -- was prompted by Dr. Fauci to push the preferred narrative that COVID-19 originated naturally.Forgetting Trump is complicit in this hoax.--
Chinese Ambassador To Russia Zhang Hanhui: 'The American Side Has No Idea On How To Build Relations With China'"The American side has no idea how to build relations with China and demonstrates its inability in civilized interstate interaction, while continuing to revel in the policy of forceful pressure and blackmail against the entire world. History and facts will prove that raising tariffs will not solve U.S. domestic problems - it is similar to 'taking a medicine based on a wrong prescription,' which not only will fail in dealing with the [U.S.] trade imbalance, but will also deliver a blow to America itself, disorganizing international trade. The bottom line is: America is sawing off the branch on which it sits.-€55,000 to get migrants to go home? Sweden ups golden handshakes to encourage remigrationSweden wants to pay migrants tens of thousands of euros to leave the country and go homeMigration Minister Johan Forssell confirmed the agreement among the coalition parties and emphasized that the program would include strong oversight mechanisms, telling Swedish news agency TT that the government wants to minimize the risk of people exploiting the allowance by coming to Sweden solely to claim the payment.
The Secret Jewish History of NostradamusThis July 2 will mark the 450th anniversary of the death of Nostradamus (1503-1566), the French apothecary and supposed seer of Jewish origin. Born Michel de Nostredame in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France, his most famous work was "The Prophecies," a collection of four-line texts that purported to tell the future.Quote: "Beneath their skins, Jews keep all their black magic as their most precious treasure. In every era of upheaval, automatically loom up their prophetic traveling salesmen, seers, Jewish oracles...Nostradamus...Cagliostro... Mesmer... Marat... Marx... etc...These are the 'world Hebraic cataleptics'...Their predictions, their warnings, are quite often admirable in correctness and pertinence. They make mistakes, but often they are right on the dot...Thus Nostradamus, around 1620, already announced very exactly the date of your great 1793 Revolution."Reader--"Of course they were on the dot: The Zohar = the curse of Zechariah 5. It is INDEED from the Lord God Almighty."--Muslim Brotherhood are Freemasons and include Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran. Netanyahu and Trump are also Freemasons. Get the picture?Jordan bans Muslim Brotherhood after alleged sabotage plot against Hashemite KingdomAmman's Interior Ministry says it will seize Hamas ally's assets, as police surround, search headquarters of Brotherhood-linked party, the largest in Jordan's parliament-
WHO Announces 'Significant' Layoffs Three Months After Trump Halts US FundingTedros insisted that the most significant impact would likely be felt at the organisation's headquarters in Geneva. "We are starting with reductions in senior management," he said."We are reducing the senior leadership team at headquarters from 12 to seven, and the number of departments will be reduced by (more than) half, from 76 to 34," Tedros said.WHO's regional offices would meanwhile be affected "to varying degrees", he said, adding that some country offices in wealthier countries would likely be closed."These are very painful decisions for all of us," Tedros said.An Industry Insider Explains Why the Coming Shortages Are Going to Be So CrazyOur economy literally cannot function normally without Chinese imports, and now most of those imports will no longer be coming across the ocean.-When Was the Bible Written? In the Persian Era", by Michael D. Magee, PhD"The Old Testament is alleged to have been written by Persians in their era of rule by Ezra from old Perisan, Akkadian & Sumerian stories as well as what little might have been known of ancient Israel. It is claimed that Ezra was a Persian official and that this concoction was to help them solidify their empire in Israel.-
Pentagon to allow Trannies to serve; Resume Providing Sex Change Treatments and Surgeries for Transgender Service members and Their Dependents"Service members and all other covered beneficiaries 19 years of age or older may receive appropriate care for their diagnosis of [gender dysphoria], including mental health care and counseling and newly initiated or ongoing cross-sex hormone therapy," the memo, signed by Stephen Ferrara, acting assistant secretary of Defense for health affairs, read."Service members may also receive voice therapy and appropriate surgical procedures," the memo continued. -
Site: Zero HedgeUSDA Directs States To Make Sure Illegal Immigrants Don't Receive Food StampsTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 13:40
Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) told states on April 24 to take steps to make sure illegal immigrants do not receive benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), colloquially known as food stamps.
States must at a minimum verify the identity of program applicants, collect applicants’ Social Security numbers, compare the Social Security numbers to the federal government’s Social Security death data, and check whether the applicants are listed in a Department of Homeland Security database as being in the country illegally, John Walk, the USDA’s acting deputy undersecretary for food, nutrition, and consumer services, said in a memorandum to states.
The USDA released a letter from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that advised states that they can now use the Department of Homeland Security’s database for free.
State agencies must also verify U.S. citizenship for applicants “for whom there is an indicia that the applicant’s claim to United States citizenship (whether natural born, naturalized, acquired, or derivative) is questionable,” Walk wrote.
Federal law allows U.S. citizens and some legal immigrants to receive SNAP benefits but prohibits illegal immigrants from receiving food stamps. About 11.7 percent—approximately $10.5 billion—of the SNAP benefits paid by the USDA in fiscal year 2023 were improper, including improper payments to illegal immigrants, the Government Accountability Office said in a 2024 report.
States “did not always verify certain program eligibility requirements,” including citizenship, the report stated.
USDA officials are also encouraging states to require the verification of U.S. citizenship for each SNAP applicant, as the law allows states to mandate verification of certain factors and increase the number of in-person interviews of applicants.
“Benefit fraud is unacceptable in all forms, including use by illegal aliens. This guidance serves as a foundation for future compliance endeavors that will not only deter, but end access to benefits by illegal aliens. I appreciate your attention and assistance in making certain only those eligible receive SNAP benefits,” Walk said in the memo.
Walk cited President Donald Trump’s Feb. 19 executive order directing the USDA to “enhance eligibility verification systems, to the maximum extent possible, to ensure that taxpayer-funded benefits exclude any ineligible alien who entered the United States illegally or is otherwise unlawfully present in the United States.”
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins earlier this year sent a letter to states that said her guiding principles for SNAP included taking action to minimize fraud and waste while enforcing legal requirements.
“The days in which taxpayer dollars are used to subsidize illegal immigration are over,” Rollins said in a statement on Thursday. “Today’s directive affirms that the U.S. Department of Agriculture will follow the law—full stop.”
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Site: Zero HedgeAmid Worst Start To A Year On Record, Scott Bessent Affirms The Dollar Is Not DyingTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 13:20
Despite a growing chorus of pundits claiming the “death of the dollar” is imminent, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the dollar will remain the world’s reserve currency.
The dollar is in the midst of its worst start to a year on record...
The following clip from Bloomberg was based on a speech Scott Bessent gave Thursday morning to the IMF and World Bank:
More broadly, the Treasury secretary reinforced backing for the central role of the US and its dollar in the global financial system.
“I think that the US will always, for my lifetime, be the reserve currency,” said Bessent, age 62.
He also quipped of the global reserve role, saying “I am actually not sure that anyone else wants it.”
As RealInvestmentAdvice.com reports, some believe Donald Trump’s economic policies are designed to end the dollar’s role as the world’s reserve currency.
Scott Bessent clears up such misinformation, affirming the dollar’s status as the reserve currency.
In Trump’s Economic Revolution, we opined on the long-standing Bretton Woods Agreement that made the dollar the reserve currency and how Trump may be steering away from some of the “rules” that evolved since the agreement was signed in 1944.
The agreement and its unwritten rules are economically unsustainable. Trump is rightfully taking action to change them.
However, that doesn’t mean he intends to change the dollar’s status as the reserve currency.
As we summarized in the article mentioned above:
The dollar will likely remain the world’s reserve currency as no reasonable alternative exists. However, the unspoken agreements and promises surrounding the global economy may change drastically.
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Site: LifeNews
Joe Biden, a self-identified Catholic whose aggressive promotion of abortion rights has long clashed with Catholic Church teachings, is expected to attend the funeral of Pope Francis.
The decision will likely draw sharp criticism from pro-life advocates, who point to Biden’s record of supporting unrestricted, taxpayer-funded abortion up to birth as a direct contradiction of Catholic doctrine on the sanctity of life.
Biden has positioned himself as a devout Catholic throughout his political career, frequently attending Mass and invoking his faith in public remarks. However, his unwavering support for abortion up to birth and his radically pro-abortion record as president has placed him at odds with the Church’s teaching that life begins at conception and must be protected. In recent years, Biden’s policies have shifted dramatically toward a more radical pro-abortion stance, including advocating for federal funding of abortions and opposing restrictions on late-term procedures.
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Once a supporter of the Hyde Amendment, which barred federal funding for most abortions, Biden reversed his position in 2019 amid pressure from progressive activists and pushed to force taxpayers to fund abortions. His administration also pushed to codify abortion into federal law, aiming to override state-level restrictions and ensure access to abortion throughout pregnancy.
Pro-life groups have particularly criticized Biden’s efforts to redirect taxpayer funds toward abortion-related initiatives. In 2023, his administration faced backlash for denying Medicaid funds to programs supporting mothers of newborn babies while allocating resources to expand abortion access.
The Catholic Church’s stance on abortion is unequivocal, with Pope Francis himself calling it “murder” in 2021 and describing support for abortion as an “incoherence” with Catholic teaching. Despite this, Biden has continued to receive Communion in some Catholic parishes, prompting debate among U.S. bishops about whether pro-abortion Catholic politicians should be denied the sacrament.
In 2021, Pope Francis reportedly said he would not withhold Communion from Biden, stating that his abortion stance was “between him and God.” However, pro-life Catholics argue that Biden’s public actions demand a stronger response from Church leaders.
Biden’s expected attendance at Pope Francis’ funeral will likely reignite these tensions.
The Vatican typically allows governments to select their representatives for papal funerals, and it has not commented on the decision.
However, pro-life advocates will undoubtedly see his presence as a scandal that undermines the Church’s moral authority
In 2019, Biden met with Pope Francis at the Vatican, where the two discussed climate change and global poverty but reportedly did not address abortion. Some pro-life critics speculated that Francis, known for his pastoral approach, might have privately urged Biden to reconsider his stance, though no such conversation was ever confirmed.
The upcoming funeral, expected to draw global leaders to Rome, will place Biden on a world stage alongside the Church he claims as his own, even as his policies continue to draw condemnation from its pro-life faithful.
The post Pro-Abortion “Catholic” Joe Biden Will Attend Pope Francis’ Funeral appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Mises InstituteIt is often asserted without challenge that “life is like a race” and it wouldn‘t be a fair race without the same “starting-line.” While this analogy has some truth, it is largely fallacious and more than implies an ever-present state to provide “equal opportunity.”
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Site: Zero HedgeDNC Chair Rebukes Vice Chair David Hogg's Push To Unseat Incumbent DemocratsTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 13:00
Authored by Joseph Lord via The Epoch Times,
Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Ken Martin on Thursday rebuked DNC Vice Chair David Hogg’s plan to fund primary challenges against some incumbents within his own party.
Hogg, a 25-year-old survivor of the Parkland High School shooting and one of the best-known DNC officials, and Leaders We Deserve, a progressive political organization founded by Hogg and others in 2023, announced the intention to primary Democrats on their website on April 15.
After Hogg came out as a leading proponent of the push, Martin was critical, saying that the DNC needed to be a “referee” with its officials remaining neutral on primary contests.
“Let me be unequivocal: No DNC officer should ever attempt to influence the outcome of a primary election, whether on behalf of an incumbent or a challenger,” Martin said during an appearance on Fox News.
“If you want to challenge incumbents, you’re more than free to do that, but just not as an officer of the DNC, because our job is to be neutral arbiters. We can’t be both the referee and also the player at the same time.”
Hogg took the opposite stance in an X thread on Thursday defending the push, saying that he could remain affiliated with the DNC in his official capacity while also working against Democratic incumbents that progressives perceive as weak.
“This moment requires us to have the strongest opposition party possible to stop [President Donald] Trump ... and to provide a real alternative to the Republican Party for voters that we simply do not have right now,” Hogg said.
“As we’re seeing law firms, tech companies, and so many others bowing to Trump, we all must use whatever position of power we have to fight back. And that’s exactly what I’m doing.”
Hogg also said he isn’t breaking any rules by targeting certain Democratic incumbents for replacement.
“The role of the DNC is to set the Presidential primary calendar, set the Presidential debate schedule, to help strengthen our state parties, play a key role in building our data infrastructure for the party, and to be the campaign in waiting for whoever the next Democratic nominee is,” Hogg wrote.
“Nothing I’m doing is at odds with any of that.”
David Hogg talks to people after speaking at the 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington on Aug. 26, 2023. Andrew Harnik/AP Photo
Leaders We Deserve announced the push earlier this month, indicating that they were seeking a change in the status quo.
“Too many elected leaders in the Democratic Party are either unwilling or unable to meet the moment and are asleep at the wheel while Trump is demolishing the economy, challenging the foundations of our democracy, and creating new existential crises for our country by the day,” a page dedicated to the topic reads.
The group said Washington has an incumbent-favoring culture.
“Today’s party politics has an unwritten rule: if you win a seat, it’s yours for life. No one serious in your party will challenge you. That is a culture that we have to break.”
The organization is seeking to replace long-serving incumbents with new, younger Democrats—and have committed $20 million to that end.
“Younger leaders simply bring a different level of urgency that we just aren’t seeing in our politics right now,” the statement said, referencing young Democrats’ perception of urgency on issues like climate or gun control.
“Our politicians have failed to make [democracy] work for the people, and instead made it work for the special interests destroying our future.”
Democrats Search for Identity Post-Trump
The escalating feud fits into a larger identity crisis for the Democratic Party in the wake of Trump’s sweeping 2024 electoral victory, when he took all seven swing states as well as the popular vote.
Since then, Democrats have been scrambling to articulate their platform and stances amid Trump’s much more aggressive second term.
Meanwhile, young progressive Democrats—including figures like Hogg and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.)—have increasingly sought to assert a presence over the party.
At the end of the 117th Congress, mounting pressure from younger Democrats led three longtime House leaders—Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), all of whom were octogenarians—to step down, making way for the ascent of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and other younger Democrats.
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Site: non veni pacem
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Site: LifeNews
Right To Life UK is calling for an immediate end to the ‘pills by post’ at-home abortion scheme, after a jury was told that one of the UK’s largest abortion providers, MSI Reproductive Choices (previously Marie Stopes) supplied pills through this scheme, which the jury heard were used to end the life of an unborn baby through an abortion at 26 weeks gestation.
Right To Life UK is alo calling for a full inquiry into the abortion provider, MSI Reproductive Choices, whom the prosecution told the court had provided the abortion pills that were used for the abortion at 26 weeks gestation through the at-home abortion scheme.
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MSI Reproductive Choices runs an at-home abortion scheme under which it sends out abortion pills without an in-person consultation with a medical professional.
Before the introduction of the at-home abortion scheme, women were required to have an in-person consultation with a medical professional and take mifepristone, the first abortion pill used for a medical abortion, under medical supervision in the clinic.
The case outlined to the jury could not have happened had the gestation of the baby been accurately identified by ultrasound or a physical examination during an in-person appointment. If an in-person appointment takes place, the gestation of the baby can be accurately identified, and abortion pills cannot be sent out if the baby is beyond the 9 weeks and 6 days limit for at-home abortions.
This follows the recent case where Stuart Worby was sentenced to 12 years in prison after using pills sent out using the ‘pills by post’ at-home abortion scheme to induce an abortion against her will and without her knowledge. Before at-home abortion schemes were made permanent, MPs warned that the scheme would likely be used to obtain pills that would be used by third parties to perform an abortion on a woman without her knowledge. In-person appointments allow signs of coercion or abuse to be more easily assessed.
52 MPs backed law change to end ‘pills by post’ at-home abortion scheme
Last year, 52 MPs tabled an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill that would have seen an end to the at-home abortion scheme.
The amendment (NC115) was signed by a cross-party group of 52 MPs including former Deputy PMs Thérèse Coffey and Damian Green, former leader of the Conservative Party and cabinet minister Sir Iain Duncan Smith, former Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron, former Cabinet minister Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, Labour MP Rachael Maskell and Maggie Throup, who was the health minister responsible for abortion services when at-home abortion schemes were made permanent in March 2022.
Widespread support for law change
Polling published in the Daily Telegraph shows that 71% of women supported the proposed law change and only 9% are in favour of the status quo. In contrast, only 16% of the public support current proposals to decriminalise abortion.
Over 800 medical professionals signed a letter to all 650 MPs outlining the risks of late-term at-home abortion and calling on MPs to make a law change to end the at-home abortion scheme.
Spokesperson for Right To Life UK, Catherine Robinson, said:
“We are calling for the Government to immediately end the ‘pills by post’ at-home abortion scheme, under which a jury was told MSI Reproductive Choices provided these abortion pills, which were used for an abortion at 26 weeks”.
“We are also calling for a full inquiry into the abortion provider, MSI Reproductive Choices, which the jury was told provided the abortion pills”.
“At around 26 weeks gestation, this baby was a fully-formed human child”.
“If her mother had been given an in-person appointment by MSI Reproductive Choices, where the gestation of the baby would have been accurately identified by ultrasound or a physical examination, this tragic case would not have happened. This baby would still be alive”.
The post Abortion Pill Used to Kill 26-Week-Old Unborn Baby appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Zero HedgeBeijing Vows To Stabilize China's Sinking EconomyTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 12:40
As we have shown on several recent occasions, the US-China trade war is notable in that while the Xi and Trump admins are clearly going at it, their core "support" organizations such as the Fed and PBOC have taken on decidedly different paths: while the Chinese central bank (which is controlled by the communist party) is doing everything to prop up markets and the yuan, and give Beijing the upper hand when it comes to market leverage in the war with Trump, the Fed is doing just the opposite, allowing the dollar to tumble and letting stocks slide, refusing to intervene in the market.
In fact one of the biggest tension points in recent weeks has been Trump's anger at Powell, and his desire to "remove" the Fed chair due to the Fed's reluctance to cut rates now, versus cutting them in September 2024, when the market was at all time highs and the Biden economy was reportedly so much stronger.
China PPT: propping up Chinese stocks literally every day
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) April 17, 2025
Fed's Powell: fuck your calls pic.twitter.com/VGXMNNwccvPerhaps not surprisingly, with every passing day this dynamic only gets more acute, because while the Fed is desperately seeking reasons to avoid cutting rates such as predicting inflation may jump in a year or so - despite increasingly dovish comments from the likes of Fed officials Waller and Hammack who realize that the US would be in recession long before inflation kicks in - China’s leadership overnight vowed to stabilize the economy and society, "as the country is now at a critical stage in handling the unprecedented trade war with the United States."
In an economic-analysis meeting on Friday, the 24-man Politburo, China's main decision-making body headed by President Xi Jinping, said authorities would roll out specific plans to support companies and individuals affected by the trade war.
They pledged to “coordinate domestic economic work with international economic and trade engagements, resolutely focus on doing our own affairs, steadfastly expand high-level opening up, and focus on stabilizing employment, businesses, markets, and expectations”, according to a meeting readout released by Xinhua.
“By enhancing the certainty of high-quality development, we can effectively respond to the uncertainties brought by drastic changes in the external environment,” it said.
In other words, the PBOC will continue doing more of the same, creating a false sense of stability, even as stateside, the Fed encourages the all too real sense of instability.
The Politburo meeting typically sets the tone for the country’s economic work in the second quarter. This year, it has come amid uncertainty over how the world’s second-largest economy will fare in an escalated tariff war with the US while trying to meet leadership’s annual growth target of “around 5 per cent”, after a solid start in the first quarter saw gross domestic product rise by 5.4%, but the growth rate is expected to tumble in coming months.
To boost the role of domestic consumption in driving economic growth, Beijing will strive to increase the income of the lower- and middle-income groups while vigorously developing service consumption, the authorities said. Which is desperately needed since unlike the US, China does not have a social safety net, and therefore how long its economy can remain stressed depends entirely on how long the middle class refuses to revolt.
Beijing will also step up measures to stabilize the housing market, including renovating dilapidated housing in urban areas and refining policies for the acquisition of commercial housing inventory, according to the readout. On the other hand, why Beijing has failed to do this for the past 5 years ever since China suffered a spectacular collapse in its housing sector which crushed the middle class, is anyone's guess. Actually, it's not a guess: the reason why China can not do anything to forcefully stabilize its housing market is because China has way too much debt, and any attempt for massive fiscal stimulus will lead to a quick sugar high... and epic crash shortly after. And Beijing is well aware of this, which is why China has perfected the art of jawboning constantly and doing absolutely nothing.
In response to Trump tariff hikes, China vows to unleash much more stimulus, as it has every week for the past 3 years.
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) April 7, 2025
Luckily, at 330% debt/GDP China has lots of fiscal space for stimulus
Oh wait... pic.twitter.com/UmJL9ZwjnQThere's more: authorities said they will also maintain stability and boost vitality in the capital markets, in other words the PBOC and "National Team" plunge protection teams will be even more active... while Powell goes fishing.
The Politburo reiterated that Beijing would implement a more proactive fiscal policy and moderately loose monetary policy, by accelerating the issuance of government bonds and cutting the reserve requirement ratio and key policy interest rates at an appropriate time.
It will also launch new lending facilities to boost technological innovation, consumption and trade.
To support companies significantly impacted by tariffs, the proportion of job-retention refunds from unemployment insurance funds will be increased, the readout added. “We must focus on ensuring people’s livelihoods,” it said correctly, although it will be short by a few trillion yuan when it's all said and done.
Earlier this week, the International Monetary Fund cut its forecast for China’s economic growth this year to 4%, down from 4.6%, while slashing the US growth outlook to 1.8%, a 0.9% drop from its January projection, as the trade war between the two countries raises the risk of a prolonged decoupling.
And speaking to just how debt-constrained China truly is, the Politburo meeting did not announce any new stimulus measures beyond the budget approved in the National People’s Congress in March, but it "reflects the government’s readiness to launch new policies" when the economy is affected by external shocks, according to Zhang Zhiwei, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management.
“It seems Beijing is not in a rush to launch a large stimulus at this stage,” Zhang said. “It takes time to monitor and evaluate the timing and the size of the trade shock.” Actually, the only reason China is not in a rush to launch a large stimulus, is because it can't: if it does, all it does is buy a few quarters of time before a far more dire crash as deflationary debt-crisis spreads across the country.
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Site: Mundabor's blogYes, you should be outraged at the vulgarity of the idiots taking selfies near the corpse of Francis lying in state. Such a behaviour is really the gutter, from gutter people, that is: from the FrancisCatholics the guy has contributed to form. However, reflect whether such a behaviour would have happened if Francis had been […]
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Site: LifeNews
National Right to Life deeply mourns the passing of David N. O’Steen, Ph. D., who led the organization from 1984 to 2022.
“There are likely millions alive today because of Dr. David O’Steen’s influence and guidance,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life. “He was a humble man known for his quiet and devoted leadership, but he is a giant among those who have dedicated their lives to protecting the right to life. He will be grievously missed.”
Under Dr. O’Steen’s leadership, National Right to Life developed model legislation and spearheaded the passage of protective legislative measures such as the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, the Unborn Victims of Vilence Act, and the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act.
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“Dr. O’Steen dedicated his life to protecting the unborn, the medically vulnerable, and the elderly,” said Tobias. “He will be remembered for his unwavering commitment.
Dr. David N. O’Steen was born in Greensboro, North Carolina and received his bachelor’s degree from Guilford College. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Georgia and received his doctorate in mathematics from the University of Houston.
Dr. O’Steen was a professor of mathematics and later became department chairman at the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota. While in Duluth, he led the Duluth chapter of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life (MCCL). A brilliant mathematician, in 1975, David made the personal sacrifice of leaving academics to become the executive director of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life.
In 1984, Dr. O’Steen became executive director of National Right to Life, a position he held until December 2022. Dr. O’Steen retired from his role as National Right to Life’s Senior Advisor in January 2024.
The post Pro-Life Leader David O’Steen Passes Away appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Zero HedgeUS Warns Foreign Nationals Over Birth TourismTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 12:20
Authored by Rachel Acenas via The Epoch Times,
The U.S. State Department issued a warning on Thursday to foreign nationals who plan to obtain U.S. citizenship for their children through “birth tourism.”
Tourist visas will be denied to those who travel to the country for the primary purpose of giving birth on U.S. soil, the State Department said.
“It is unacceptable for foreign parents to use a U.S. tourist visa for the primary purpose of giving birth in the United States to obtain citizenship for the child, which also could result in American taxpayers paying the medical care costs,” the State Department wrote on X.
“This is known as birth tourism and U.S. consular officers deny all such visa applications under U.S. immigration law.”
For visitor visas, a foreign national who wishes to enter the U.S. temporarily for business can obtain a B-1 visa. For tourism, they can apply for a B-2 visa. The State Department warned that visa applicants who violate immigration law through birth tourism may be ineligible to travel to the United States in the future.
33,000 Births Per Year
The State Department says that an entire industry has evolved around birth tourism to help pregnant women from other countries come to the country to obtain U.S. citizenship for their children by giving birth on U.S. soil.
According to the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), birth tourism results in 33,000 births by women on tourist visas every year, and “hundreds of thousands more are born to mothers who are illegal aliens or present on temporary visas.” According to CIS, birth tourism in the United States is practiced by people from around the world, especially citizens of China, Taiwan, Korea, Nigeria, Turkey, Russia, Brazil, and Mexico.
The federal government has sounded the alarm over birth tourism due to potential burdens on public resources, criminal activity, and national security risks.
The 14th Amendment states that children born on U.S. soil are automatically granted U.S. citizenship by virtue of birthright citizenship.
Executive Order
On Jan. 20, President Donald Trump signed an executive order seeking to restrict birthright citizenship. However, the directive has been met with legal challenges and halted nationwide by three district courts.
The Trump administration has argued that children of noncitizens are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States, a phrase used in the 14th Amendment, and therefore not entitled to become American citizens automatically.
The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on Trump’s birthright citizenship restrictions in May.
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Site: LifeNews
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a self-professed “Catholic” whose vocal support for abortion has long drawn criticism from pro-life advocates, has been selected to attend the funeral of Pope Francis. Pelosi appears to have been selected by Congressional Democrat leaders.
Pelosi’s selection will undoubtedly spark renewed debate over her standing within the Catholic Church. The decision comes despite her own bishop, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, barring her from receiving Holy Communion in 2022 due to her unwavering advocacy for abortion on demand.
The Vatican, which typically defers to governments on such delegations, has not commented on the decision.
Pelosi, 85, has been a polarizing figure in Catholic circles for decades.
While she frequently cites her faith as a guiding force in her political career, her consistent defense of abortion and infanticide has put her at odds with Catholic teaching, which holds that life begins at conception and that abortion is a grave moral evil.
In May 2022, Archbishop Cordileone issued a public letter declaring that Pelosi was not to be admitted to Communion unless she publicly repudiated her pro-abortion stance. The decision followed years of dialogue between the archbishop and Pelosi, during which Cordileone urged her to align her public positions with Church doctrine.
Archbishop Cordileone reminded Pelosi in the letter: “The Church’s ancient and consistent teaching that ‘from the first moment of conception life must be guarded with the greatest care while abortion and infanticide are unspeakable crimes.’”
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He continued, “A Catholic legislator who supports procured abortion, after knowing the teaching of the Church, commits a manifestly grave sin which is a cause of most serious scandal to others.”
He then cited Canon 915 from the Catholic Code of Canon Law, writing: “Therefore, universal Church law provides that such persons ‘are not to be admitted to Holy Communion.’”
Pelosi eventually bragged about receiving communion elsewhere despite her pro-abortion record.
Pelosi told NCR, “I received Communion anyway. That’s his problem, not mine. My Catholic faith is, Christ is my savior. It has nothing to do with the bishops.”
Her remarks were met with outrage from pro-life groups, who accused her of flouting Church authority while claiming a Catholic identity.
When in Washington D.C., Pelosi regularly attends Holy Trinity Parish in Georgetown and she and other pro-abortion Catholic politicians frequently receive communion there because that church has a liberal position on communion and abortion.
In 2019, Pelosi met with Pope Francis during a congressional trip to Italy, where she received a papal blessing and attended Mass at the Vatican. The meeting drew criticism from pro-life Catholics, who noted that the Vatican did not address her abortion advocacy.
The post Pro-Abortion “Catholic” Nancy Pelosi Chosen to Attend Pope Francis’ Funeral appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Zero HedgeProsecutors File Notice To Seek Death Penalty For Luigi MangioneTyler Durden Fri, 04/25/2025 - 11:40
Authored by Katabella Roberts via The Epoch Times,
Prosecutors on Thursday formally filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, the man accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York in December 2024.
The filing, submitted by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office for the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York, alleged that Mangione “presents a future danger because he expressed intent to target an entire industry, and rally political and social opposition to that industry, by engaging in an act of lethal violence.”
It alleged that Mangione “took steps to evade law enforcement, flee New York City immediately after the murder, and cross state lines while armed with a privately manufactured firearm and silencer.”
Prosecutors filed the notice just one day before Mangione, 26, is scheduled to appear in Manhattan federal court for an arraignment.
Mangione is facing both federal and state charges over the Dec. 4 death of Thompson, a 50-year-old father of two who was killed as he walked outside a hotel in Midtown Manhattan, where UnitedHealthcare was gathering for an investor conference. UnitedHealthcare is the insurance division of UnitedHealth Group.
Mangione, a prep school and Ivy League graduate, has pleaded not guilty to murder, terrorism, and other charges brought by the state prosecutors in New York.
He is to enter a plea for charges of murder and stalking in the federal case against him. If convicted in that case, the jury would determine in a separate phase of the trial whether or not to recommend the death penalty.
Any such recommendation would need to be unanimous, and the judge would be required to impose it.
Attorney General Pam Bondi directed federal prosecutors to seek capital punishment for Mangione on April 1.
In an April 1 statement, Bondi said the death of Thompson, who headed the biggest health insurer in the United States, was a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America.”
“After careful consideration, I have directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in this case as we carry out President Trump’s agenda to stop violent crime and Make America Safe Again,” she said.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January directing the attorney general to help states obtain drugs to carry out executions and seek the death penalty in specific cases, such as when the crime is severe or involves the murder of law enforcement officers.
Mangione’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
His attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, previously described seeking the death penalty for Mangione as “barbaric.”
“While claiming to protect against murder, the federal government moves to commit the pre-meditated, state-sponsored murder of Luigi,” Friedman Agnifilo said.
Mangione is currently being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center, a federal jail in Brooklyn.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged last year that Mangione meticulously planned Thompson’s murder over several months “in an effort to initiate a public discussion about the healthcare industry.”
The killing sparked a nearly week-long manhunt that ended with Mangione’s arrest at a fast-food restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania. According to the DOJ, Mangione was found with, among other things, a 9 mm pistol and a sound suppressor consistent with the weapon used to kill Thompson, as well as multiple fake IDs.
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Site: Catholic Herald
ROME – One of Pope Francis’s most consistent geopolitical priorities throughout his 12-year reign was peacemaking, most notably through his constant push for building bridges, keeping channels of dialogue open and strengthening multilateralism.
The world’s first non-Western pope made it a personal mission to carry forward a “diplomacy of dialogue” in various contexts and situations, from engagement with China to the war in Ukraine and conflict in the Middle East.
He has consistently pushed a strategy of multilateralism as a solution to resolving common issues such as migration and climate change, and while this advocacy was not always appreciated by everyone, he never failed to continue pursuing this agenda.
Now, one of his final acts will come at his funeral Saturday, as some 30 delegations, 50 heads of state and 10 reigning monarchs come together to pay their final respects and bid farewell to a maverick pope that left his mark on the church, and the world.
Most notably, among the attendees will be United States President Donald Trump, accompanied by his wife Melania, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (pictured), who in the past few weeks and months have been unable to occupy the same space without the eruption of some sort of disagreement.
Now, Pope Francis, who was unable to mediate the conflict in Ukraine during his papacy, is successfully bringing many of the various parties involved together for a moment of prayer and remembrance of a man who dedicated his life and his ministry to working for peace.
Heads of state and top dignitaries who have said they will attend the pope’s funeral, including Trump and Zelenskyy, include: Argentinian President Javier Milei; Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; French President Emmanuel Macron; British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Prince William for the UK; and Hungarian President Viktor Orbán.
Others include United Nations secretary general António Guterres; Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni; King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain; President Michael D Higgins and Taoiseach Micheál Martin of Ireland; President of Poland Andrzej Duda; Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and its prime minister, Luís Montenegro; Mexican Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez; and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of the Philippines.
Notable absentees on the list include Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu, both of whom have outstanding warrants from the International Criminal Court.
Russia will be represented by its culture minister, Olga Lyubimova, and Israel will not send a delegation at all, being represented solely by their Ambassador to the Holy See, Yaron Sideman.
During Pope Francis’s funeral Mass Saturday, heads of state and dignitaries will be seated on the right side, facing the basilica.
Milei, representing Francis’s home country, which he notably never returned to as pope, will sit in the front row, alongside Mattarella and Meloni representing Italy.
Reigning sovereigns will come in the next row, followed by the various heads of state, according to the French alphabetical order of the states that will be represented.
From Wednesday at noon to Friday at noon, some 150,000 people had come to pay final respects to Pope Francis while lying in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica.
While crowds have packed the square to overflowing in the final hours remaining before St. Peter’s Basilica closes at 7p.m. local time, marking the end of the ability to bid Francis one final in-person farewell, roads have already been blocked off and routes secured for the arrival of so many high-profile attendees Saturday morning.
Barriers have been set up inside and outside of St. Peter’s Basilica to control crowds, security checks have been set up, and defense and security measures have been deployed throughout the city, including anti-drone weaponry, no-fly zones secured by fighter jets, and jamming technologies. Anti-terrorism and anti-sabotage units have also already been set up on the ground.
More than 2,000 police officers have been deployed to patrol the area, supported by 400 police officers who will assist in managing the movements of diplomatic convoys.
While every papal funeral draws together the world’s most powerful leaders and is a show of just how relevant and important the papacy is generally, Pope Francis in his final act is accomplishing something he desperately wanted to do, but was unable to, during his life: bringing together individuals and nations with deep-seeded divisions in a context where the focus is not on what divides, but jointly remembering a globally beloved figure respected and esteemed most prominently for his efforts toward peace.
(Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP via Getty Images)
The post The world leaders attending the Pope’s funeral first appeared on Catholic Herald.
The post The world leaders attending the Pope’s funeral appeared first on Catholic Herald.
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