Sunday, December 14, 2025
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On Sunday, Venezuelan opposition-leader-in-exile and Nobel Peace Prize awardee María Corina Machado sat down with CBS News Face the Nation host Margaret Brennan to discuss the (hopefully) coming downfall of Venezuelan strongman dictator Nicolás Maduro - and she gave the United States and President Trump a great deal of credit for helping in the efforts to oust Maduro.
Here are some highlights.
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said she's "absolutely" supportive of President Trump's strategy in the country amid his administration's increased pressure campaign against the regime of President Nicolás Maduro.
"We, the Venezuelan people, are very grateful to him and to his administration,
Two people were found dead Sunday afternoon inside a Brentwood home owned by director and actor Rob Reiner, multiple law enforcement sources told NBCLA. The LA Fire Department said a man and a woman were found deceased inside, approximately 78 and 68 years old. LAPD Robbery Homicide Division detectives were assigned to the case. Several other LAPD officials said they were aware of the investigation but could not share any information. There is a large police presence at the home Sunday evening. LAFD paramedics were called to the home on Chadbourne Avenue around 3:30 p.m. Within a few
Chile hasn't had a conservate leader in decades, but as of Sunday night, that is over. As we predicted last month, Chileans took to the polls on Sunday and voted for former congressman José Antonio Kast to become the country's next president over Jeannette Jara, a member of the Communist Party.
You can tell what type of leader he'll be based on the MSM headlines. I just did a quick Google search to see what people were saying, and all the usual suspects are calling him "far-right" and "ultra-conservative." Let me interpret that for you.
Kast campaigned on being tough on crime and restoring
SYDNEY - Two alleged gunmen who killed 15 people at a Jewish celebration at Sydney's Bondi Beach were a father and son, police said on Monday, as Australia began mourning victims of its worst gun violence in almost 30 years.
The father, a 50-year-old, was killed at the scene, taking the number of dead to 16, while his 24-year-old son was in a critical condition in hospital, police said at a press conference on Monday. Officials have described Sunday's shooting as a targeted antisemitic attack. Forty people remain in hospital following the attack, including two police officers who are in a serious
SANTIAGO, Chile — Chile’s ultra-conservative former lawmaker José Antonio Kast secured a stunning victory in the presidential election Sunday, defeating the candidate of the center-left governing coalition and setting the stage for the country’s most right-wing government in 35 years of democracy.
Kast won 58.2% of the votes as Chileans overwhelmingly embraced his pledge to crack down on increased crime, deport hundreds of thousands of immigrants without legal status and revive the sluggish economy of one of Latin America’s most stable and prosperous nations.
His challenger, communist candidate Jeannette Jara, clinched 41.8% of the vote
While the rest of Europe shivers under the self-imposed austerity of net zero mandates, Norway in the frozen north is keeping the lights on and the bank vaults full as it avoids the “green” ideological quicksand that has defined the continent’s energy policy.
Despite pressures to decarbonize, Norway has increased efforts to exploit oil and natural gas reserves. The crown jewel of this fossil fuel renaissance is the Johan Castberg field. Located in the Barents Sea, 100 kilometers north of the 20-year-old Snøhvit natural gas field, Johan Castberg is expected to be a beast of a producer—450 million–650 million barrels over 30 years, with a peak daily capacity of 220,000 barrels.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and federal agencies on Dec. 12 over the ballroom construction project at the White House.(snip)The National Trust describes itself in the complaint as a private, charitable, educational nonprofit corporation that Congress chartered in 1949. Its purpose is “to further the historic preservation policy of the United States and to promote the public’s awareness of and ability to comment on any activity that might damage or destroy our nation’s architectural heritage.” The trust has filed preservation lawsuits against several presidential administrations, the complaint said.
Trumpomachean Ethics
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Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics is full of good advice and wise observations. So is the upbeat summary of Donald Trump’s practical ethics, presented in his video “Eleven Life-Changing Lessons.”
Did you snicker when you saw the names “Aristotle” and “Donald Trump” juxtaposed? Of course you did. Aristotle is one of the greatest philosophers in history, and his Ethics, along with his Politics, may lay claim to being among the greatest repositories of practical wisdom in the Western tradition.
And Donald Trump? Well, he is a conspicuously successful businessman, a devoted father, and a celebrated media personality. He is also, in case you hadn’t noticed,
key congressional panel focused on China’s impacts on human rights and religious freedom is urging Congress and the Trump administration to do far more to combat Beijing’s transnational intimidation and repression campaigns in the United States and across the globe.
In a sweeping 2025 annual report, the Congressional Executive Commission on China, co-chaired by Republicans Sen. Dan Sullivan and Rep. Chris Smith, warned of a continued multifaceted campaign of transnational repression against members of Chinese communities in the U.S. and abroad and critics aimed at intimidating individuals and stifling dissent.
New York City’s mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has said he may arrest Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents if he determines they are breaking the law.
During an interview with MSNOW Senior Political and National Reporter Jacob Soboroff, Mamdani was asked about how he intends to follow through on his promise to help block President Trump’s policy of mass deportation of illegal aliens residing in New York City.
Here is a transcript of the exchange:
Often in international relations, negotiations are held ‘where an intermediary travels back and forth between parties who are unwilling to communicate directly with each other’.
They call this shuttle diplomacy.
Because of Donald J. Trump’s vision that peace and cooperation with Russia will open up an age of prosperity for all involved, the US is devoting considerable resources to try to bridge the positions of Moscow and Kiev, and bring about a peace settlement.So, even if, like me, you are tired of the seemingly endless rounds of negotiation, we have to admit that it’s a heroic task worthy of our respect.
Super Flu? More Like Super Hype
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The BBC informs us that we have entered a ‘Super-Flu’ crisis, “unlike anything since the pandemic”. Other outlets scream that hospitals are facing a “worst case scenario”. Wes Streeting expands by telling us that a “tidal wave of flu” is tearing through them. Schools have closed pre-emptively, particularly in Wales. Some closures are to provide ‘firebreaks’, not because they have many cases. Leeds schoolchildren have been told not to sing in assembly. Shadowy ‘NHS Leaders’ advise the public to wear masks, with this recommendation shuffling-ly endorsed by the PM. Masking has been mandated at a few hospitals.
Netanyahu Accuses Leftist Australian PM
of Having Fuelled Antisemitism Before
Bondi Terror Attack replies
of Having Fuelled Antisemitism Before
Bondi Terror Attack replies
Top Israeli officials accused the leftist government in Australia of failing to meaningfully confront antisemitism before the deadly terror attack against the Sydney Jewish community in Bondi on Sunday.
Multiple gunmen opened fire at a Hanukkah event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday, killing at least 11 and injuring 29, including a Rabbi, a police officer, and an Israeli citizen, in what is being described as a terrorist attack. One of the suspected attackers was reportedly killed during the incident, while the other is said to remain in custody.
One of the shooters has been identified by ABC News as Naveed Akram. Only described as having lived in the multicultural
How fears of being labeled 'racist' helped
'provide cover' for the exploding Minnesota
fraud scandal replies
'provide cover' for the exploding Minnesota
fraud scandal replies
In the aftermath of the massive Feeding Our Future scandal and broader allegations of systemic fraud in Minnesota’s social programs, a troubling theme has emerged: accusations of racism repeatedly used to deflect scrutiny, intimidate investigators and stall accountability.
Rumors and reports of fraud in Minneapolis, primarily within the city’s exploding Somali community, have been circulating for at least a decade, but criticism of the fraud has been largely dismissed by elected Democrats as "racist" or being underpinned by animosity toward foreigners. News stories focused on Somali fraudsters in recent years were shot down as "racist."
Six teenagers were wounded in a mass shooting at a Brooklyn catering hall early Sunday morning – with a pair of gunmen still on the loose, according to police.
Cops responded to Burbuja Events at 2929 Atlantic Avenue in Cypress Hills on a 911 call shortly after 1:15 a.m., where they found the victims with gunshot wounds, police said.
At the scene, they found three 15-year-olds, a girl with wounds to the chest, hip and leg, another girl wounded in the right leg, and a boy shot in the left arm.
Also wounded were a 16-year-old boy shot in the right arm, another 16-year-old bo
Nearly a year after a mammoth wildfire tore through Pacific Palisades, leveling 7,000 structures and leaving many displaced, some residents watched as the mayor of Los Angeles hailed a “major milestone” in the effort to recover. A new home had been built, the first since the firestorms that killed at least 12 people in the Pacific Palisades and 19 people in Altadena, and the Los Angeles department of building and safety had issued a certificate saying it had passed inspection and was ready for people to move in. “The Palisades community has been through an unimaginable year, and my heart
A “person of interest” in the Brown University mass shooting is in custody following an 11-hour manhunt — as witnesses revealed he shouted something before opening fire.
Two students were killed and nine others wounded in the attack on a final exam study session.
Witnesses said that the gunman shouted something, but revealed they were not sure exactly what. Detectives are still trying to figure out what the gunman said, authorities revealed.
It was also revealed that the gunman had a firearm with unique characteristics that helped cops tie him to the deadly shooting, according to NBC News.
However, authorities would not comment
Twelve people have died – including one suspected gunman – after a terrorist attack on Sydney’s Bondi Beach targeted Jewish families celebrating Hanukkah, police have confirmed.
At least 29 people were injured in the mass shooting on Sunday evevning, including two police officers, while searches of the area continue after improvised explosive devices were found in a car near the scene.
A second suspected attacker detained following the incident is in a critical condition. New South Wales Police Force, who locked down the area and urged the public to take shelter, have said they will investigate whether there is a third attacker or anyone else linked to the atrocity.
Beauty Queens In the News
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Long-time readers may remember that I used to cover the main international beauty pageants, Miss Universe and Miss World. Why? Two reasons: I generally admired the young women who competed in them, and it seemed like almost every time, an interesting news story would emerge from the pageant. Plus, it was fun to post photos of contestants and identify favorites.
So why did I stop? To paraphrase Ronald Reagan, I didn’t leave the pageants, the pageants left me. They became politically correct; they downgraded the swimsuit competition or abandoned it completely; and, worst of all, they started producing terrible web sites with zero content that would make it possible to write
The hospital that allegedly fired a pediatric cardiologist in response to a "mob" who opposed his role in a federal vaccine advisory panel has "un-fired" him, according to his wife, citing the "intervention" of a trusted colleague. Kimberly Milhoan updated supporters of Kirk Milhoan, who has chaired the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices for less than two weeks but presided over its changed recommendations for hepatitis B inoculation, while the couple was on a layover coming back from a medical conference in Hong Kong.
Reviving Trump's 'America First' Space
Dominance, Hegseth Unveils Space Command
HQ in Alabama replies
Dominance, Hegseth Unveils Space Command
HQ in Alabama replies
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth arrived at Redstone Arsenal Friday to unveil the new headquarters for the U.S. Space Force, solidifying Alabama as the epicenter of America's orbital defense operations and marking a triumphant return to President Trump's vision of unchallenged U.S. superiority in space.
The event, also attended by Space Command Commander Gen. Stephen Whiting, Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink, and other local leaders, featured Hegseth pulling back the curtain on fresh U.S. Space Command signage at the sprawling Redstone facility.
German police have arrested five men in connection with an alleged Islamist terror plot to attack targeting a Christmas market in southern Bavaria. According to the Bild newspaper, three Moroccans aged 22, 28, and 30 were arrested alongside a 37-year-old Syrian and a 56-year-old Egyptian suspected of planning to use a vehicle to attack people at a Christmas market in the town of Dingolfing The paper, citing sources within the Bavarian State Office for the Protection of the Constitution (LfV), reported that the Egyptian man is believed to have been a mosque prayer leader.
Mark Kelly: unworthy of respect
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Among the first things I taught my new students at the beginning of every new school year was the difference between deference and respect. One defers to others because of their position of authority, regardless of whether they are honest, honorable, decent and capable. Respect, however, must be earned every day. We defer to others because of their positions and to a lesser degree, their accomplishments. We respect others because of who they are, because they’ve proved themselves worthy of our respect regardless of their positions of authority.
In the military, you defer to rank, but you respect those who don’t trade on it, or who fling their accomplishments
US President Donald Trump may believe that selling F-35 stealth warplanes to Turkey will help the country forge closer ties with the US at the expense of Russia. The reality, though, is that by providing such sophisticated fighter jets to a country that supports Hamas terrorists -- and whose president recently said that "Israel will have no choice but to kneel in front of Turkey" -- Trump is merely stoking the flames of a future war aimed at destroying Israel.