Today is Craig T. Nelson’s birthday (born in 1944) and I thoroughly enjoyed him in the series Coach. This article from Mental Floss details some interesting facts about the series.
From Mental Floss:
Before Parenthood, Craig T. Nelson starred as college football coach Hayden Fox on Coach, a sitcom that most people would be surprised to realize ran for nine seasons and 197 episodes, from 1989 through 1997. On the 20th anniversary of the series’ finale, we’re taking a look back at the original show that started it all.
1. MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY WAS ACTUALLY THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA.
Even though the first seven seasons of Coach were set at the fictitious Minnesota State University, series creator Barry Kemp graduated from the University of Iowa’s Department of Theatre Arts, and paid homage to his alma mater by giving his main character a similar name as legendary Iowa football coach Hayden Fry. The exterior shots of the show were from the Iowa campus as well.
2. IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY’S MARCHING BAND PLAYED THE SHOW’S THEME SONG.
John Morris composed the opening number for Coach, which doubled as Minnesota State’s theme song. Iowa State University’s football marching band won a 1995 college marching band contest to have their version of the theme song play on the show, which ran during the opening credits until the end of the series.
3. TWO REAL-LIFE MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITIES POPPED UP AFTER THE SHOW BEGAN.
When Coach premiered on February 28, 1989, Minnesota State University was a fictitious college. In 1998, Mankato State University became Minnesota State University, Mankato. On July 1, 2000, Moorhead State University became Minnesota State University Moorhead.
4. CRAIG T. NELSON THOUGHT ABC HATED HIM.
Craig T. Nelson was persuaded by Barry Kemp to audition for the network. The actor was so convinced that ABC wasn’t enjoying his efforts in their initial meeting that he left early. To his surprise, they offered him the part the very next day.
5. JERRY VAN DYKE AND NELSON HAD TO WORK ON THEIR CHEMISTRY.
In an interview with Popdose, Jerry Van Dyke, who played defensive coordinator Luther Van Dam, said that he and Nelson had to work on finding their chemistry when the show began. Though he says that they’ve remained friends and talk all the time, Van Dyke admitted that Nelson was “not easy to get along with” and that “he’s pretty much a loner.”
6. IT WAS JERRY VAN DYKE’S FIRST SUCCESSFUL TV SHOW, AT THE AGE OF 57.
Van Dyke had previously—and infamously—starred on the one-season sitcom My Mother the Car in 1965, which TV Guide ranked as the second worst television show of all-time in 2002. Kemp specifically wrote the part of Luther Van Dam for the actor because of his “everyman quality.”
7. DICK VAN DYKE MADE AN UNCREDITED APPEARANCE ON THE SHOW.
It had to happen sooner or later. In 1993, during the show’s sixth season, Jerry Van Dyke’s brother, Dick, appeared on the show as a partygoer who walks across the screen when Luther insists that he can’t be related to anyone at his family reunion in “Christmas of the Van Damned.”
8. CHRISTINE ARMSTRONG WAS A REGULAR IN ELVIS PRESLEY MOVIES.
Actress Shelley Fabares, who played Hayden Fox’s girlfriend-turned-wife on the series, co-starred with The King in Girl Happy, Spinout, and Clambake.
9. CHRISTINE ARMSTRONG ALSO SANG A NUMBER ONE SONG.
Fabares sang “Johnny Angel,” which was the number one song for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in April 1962.
10. CLARE CAREY GOT THE ROLE OF COACH’S DAUGHTER BECAUSE SHE WAS THE MOST BELIEVABLE MIDWESTERNER.
Clare Carey, who played Hayden’s daughter Kelly, was born in Zimbabwe and grew up in Santa Barbara, California. But in an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Carey said that what got her the role was that, “They thought I was the most believable Midwesterner!”
11. DAUBER’S FIRST NAME WAS MICHAEL.
Coach‘s Michael Daubinksy was usually only referred to by his nickname, “Dauber.” In one episode, even Hayden didn’t know who Michael Daubinsky’s girlfriend was speaking of when she referred to him by his given name.
12. DAUBER IS THE VOICE OF PATRICK ON SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS.
Bill Fagerbakke’s run as Offensive Coordinator Dauber ended in 1997, the same year that he successfully auditioned to voice Patrick Star on SpongeBob SquarePants. For the first few years of SpongeBob, he referred to Patrick as “AquaDauber.”
13. SHOWRUNNERS BEGRUDGINGLY AGREED TO TAKE PART IN AN ABC CROSSOVER STUNT IN ITS FINAL SEASON.
Competing with the 39th Annual Grammy Awards on February 26, 1997, ABC had characters from The Drew Carey Show, Ellen, Grace Under Fire, and Coach meet each other in Las Vegas on a night called “Viva Las Vegas.” Craig T. Nelson refused to take part, so Luther ended up on The Drew Carey Show getting into a bidding war with Mimi in Sin City. (For what it’s worth, Ellen DeGeneres also refused to take part.) The title of that night’s installment of Coach was “Viva Las Ratings.”
14. THE SERIES FINALE OF COACH REFERRED TO A CLASSIC SHOW WITH ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS SERIES ENDINGS OF ALL TIME.
In “Leaving Orlando,” Hayden return to Minnesota to find three brothers—Larry, Darryl, and Darryl—in his cabin. Yes, the same Larry, Darryl, and Darryl from Newhart, which was also created by Barry Kemp.
15. NELSON, VAN DYKE, AND FAGERBAKKE REUNITED ON TV IN 2004.
Nelson played police chief Jack Mannion on the CBS drama The District, which was on the air from 2000 to 2004. In “The Black Widow Maker,” Van Dyke played what he described as a “cranky and brusque” small-town judge, while Fagerbakke played a kindly officer who was described in the script as “better suited to being a florist.” Though, in 2015, it was announced that a reboot of the show would be coming back to screens, plans to resurrect Coach were eventually scrapped.
SOURCE: MENTALFLOSS.COM
Sew Colorful 
Always Have Kitter Litter On The Ready
“Kitty litter can be a surprisingly purr-fect hack in the kitchen! Here are some handy hacks:
1) Odor Absorber: Place a bowl of unscented kitty litter in the fridge or under the sink to absorb and neutralize unpleasant odors.
2) Trash Can Freshener: Sprinkle some kitty litter at the bottom of your trash can to soak up leaks and reduce smells.
3) Spill Clean-Up: Use kitty litter to quickly clean up spills, especially oil or grease. Simply pour some litter over the spill, let it absorb, and then sweep it up.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
keep it in the trunk in the winter–gives you traction on icy surface.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep – I used it several times in VA.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Use Bread Soaked In Vinegar As A Deodorizer
“We have all dealt with this problem before, you go to throw out some garbage and as soon as you lift the lid you are hit with a wall of terrible smells. Disgusting! Then you try and clean it with sprays you can buy from the supermarket, but those don’t really help. Now your garbage will smell like chemicals and rotting food. Luckily, there’s a better solution and you likely have the items in your house already. All you need to do is take a piece of bread (stale one is even better) and soak it in some plain old distilled vinegar. Throw it in the bottom of any garbage can overnight, then in the morning toss it away. All the nasty smells will be gone!”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Place A Dryer Sheet In Your Mailbox
“Nope, the mailman won’t think your weird. In fact, many of them are likely used to seeing this done! Placing a dryer sheet in your mailbox can serve a few practical purposes:
1) Repelling Insects: Dryer sheets are known to deter certain insects. The fragrance in dryer sheets can help keep pests like spiders, ants, and wasps away from your mailbox.
2) Freshening Up: The pleasant scent of dryer sheets can help keep your mailbox smelling fresh, which is especially useful if it tends to get musty.
3) Static Reduction: If you live in a dry area, static electricity can sometimes make it ‘shocking’ to handle your mail. A dryer sheet can reduce static build-up inside the mailbox.”
LikeLike
Potatoes…In The Dishwasher?
“Need to make a ton of potatoes and dread having to wash them all? You can totally wash potatoes in the dishwasher to save some time and keep your hands clean! (But, fair warning, some folks think it’s not the greatest idea especially if you can’t guarantee no soap residue at all). If you’re still curious and want to give it a whirl, here’s how you can do it:
1) Place your unwashed potatoes on the TOP rack of an empty dishwasher.
2) Run the dishwasher’s rinse cycle without ANY soap.
Keep in mind, the rinse cycle takes about 10–15 minutes. Inspect the potatoes to ensure cleanliness and no possible soap residue or scent.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
“These tunnels were dug by a Giant Ground Sloth that lived 10.000 years ago in Brazil…The third photo are the claw marks… OMG!”
Strange Sounds, Apr 04, 2025
“These tunnels were once believed to hide religious fortunes deep in their chambers…
But the real treasure is found in who – or what – created them.
The mysterious diggers were giant ground sloths, described in one paper as “a hamster the size of an elephant.” They grew up to 4m long and walked on all fours, although research suggests some could stand and move bipedally. Almost 100 different species of sloths roamed the Americas between 15 million to 10,000 years ago…
Alongside car-sized giant armadillos that also dug long tunnels through rocks in Brazil. The claw marks… TERRIFYING!
In the last 15 years, more than 1,500 TUNNELS have been recorded in southern and south-eastern Brazil…WORLD-RECORD of having the highest concentration of megafauna paleoburrows in the world… Something you can be proud of…
Nobody knows for sure why the south of Brazil has so MANY OF THESE PALEOTUNNELS. Most are in the states of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. Minas Gerais, another southern state, boasts some remarkable examples, including a 340m-long paleoburrow and a collection of six 40m-long tunnels that lead to 10m-wide by 4m-high chambers.
Kind of crazy that it was 10,000 years ago that creature lived on earth, at first sight I would have thought millions of years ago…Anyway, I have no problem believing that an animal that could weigh up to four tons could create something like that!”
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20231127-brazils-mysterious-tunnels-made-by-giant-sloths
LikeLiked by 1 person
holy crap!!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
NGO in Minnesota receiving taxpayer funding pays its CEO $720 MILLION a year…
FTA
Minnesota’s hunger crisis is growing—and apparently so is the appetite for big executive pay at one of the state’s top food nonprofits.
Allison O’Toole, CEO of Second Harvest Heartland, earned $721,000 in total compensation in 2022—even as the nonprofit has lobbied for taxpayer funding and warned of rising hunger across Minnesota, where 26% of households with children are food insecure, according to its own research.
Now, as O’Toole steps down after six years at the helm, lawmakers are raising questions.
Concerns first raised during legislative hearing
Rep. Pam Altendorf, R-Red Wing, told Alpha News that O’Toole’s salary issue first surfaced during a recent “food day” at the Capitol, when food shelf representatives, including O’Toole, testified before the House Children and Families Committee.
“Rep. Bjorn Olson pulled the 990 [tax form] and shared Allison O’Toole’s salary with our committee members right before she testified,” Altendorf said. “That’s when the questions started.”
Rep. Marion Rarick, R-Maple Lake, later raised the issue during a March 17 House committee hearing where a DFL lawmaker questioned why a GOP bill was reducing funding for Second Harvest Heartland in a proposed agriculture budget.
“It looks like the base funding for Second Harvest Heartland is $3.4 million and you reduce it by $900,000 in both the first biennium and the tails,” said Rep. Zack Stephenson, DFL-Coon Rapids.
But Rarick said she thinks the organization “can handle it.”
“They do have a $260 million, that’s their gross revenue,” she said during the hearing. “What’s even more interesting, I think, is that their CEO, their top person, makes $721,000. Yeah, $721,000 is the top person … and they have 10 people that make more than the governor, which is more than $150,000. So that’s well over $2.6 million in their highest-paid people.”
What in tarnation!!!
CEO Salary = $721,000
⁉️WHO thinks a NON-PROFIT asking MN tax payers for GRANTS should be making that kind of money…?
Apparently feeding “hungry people” is an EXTREMELY Profitable Business!🤯
MONEY
FUNNELING
SYSTEM https://t.co/FnBx13FX2M
— Pam Altendorf (@PamAltendorf) March 18, 2025
About a week after the salary figures were brought up at the committee hearing, Second Harvest announced O’Toole’s resignation.
Altendorf said days later, Second Harvest lobbyists pulled both her and Rarick off the House floor for a private hallway meeting. At the time, Altendorf’s tweet highlighting O’Toole’s salary had received more than 65,000 views.
“I reassured them that no one questions the need for food banks in Minnesota,” Altendorf said. “But now that this has been exposed, everyone is questioning why an organization that claims to be a nonprofit is paying its CEO nearly a million per year. This is disgusting and incomprehensible to the average person who’s living paycheck to paycheck.”
Millions in revenue, taxpayer funds
Records show Second Harvest brought in roughly $260 million in total revenue in 2022—with over $6 million coming from government grants, according to a report in the American Experiment.
And it’s not just O’Toole earning well into the six figures at the food shelf.
Several executives at Second Harvest earn over $300,000 annually, with at least seven staffers making between $140,000 to $280,000 per year, according to the 2022 tax records.
Despite the high salaries, Second Harvest Heartland has maintained a strong presence at the Capitol this session, requesting public funding to address what it calls record-breaking demand for food assistance.
We have to get a handle on every single Nonprofit coming to the legislature asking for money. Salaries are out of control. https://t.co/GoivLxwv8A
— Rep. Marion (O’Neill) Rarick (@MarionONeill1) March 18, 2025
Altendorf also pointed to what she sees as a deeper issue. She says the nonprofit hired a “voter engagement coordinator” in 2024 to conduct get-out-the-vote efforts—something she calls “a huge conflict of interest” for an organization receiving taxpayer dollars.
“The public is waking up to the money funneling system happening within the Minnesota state government,” Altendorf said. “And I’m hearing loud and clear—taxpayers have had enough.”
https://alphanews.org/minnesota-food-bank-ceo-steps-down-as-legislators-question-her-721k-salary/
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying 4 civilian passengers over the poles has splashed down safely.
LikeLiked by 1 person
good!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wall Street Apes
@WallStreetApes
🚨 DOGE needed immediately
Department of Energy awarded a management and operating $1.4 billion dollar contract for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve
LikeLiked by 1 person
https://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2025/04/the-strategic-petroleum-reserve
https://strategicstoragepartners.com/ = “Launching soon”
https://opengovus.com/colorado-business/20191885737
LikeLiked by 1 person
Another issue – the guy in the video says the “Department of Energy won’t be running it any more…” – they weren’t before – they’ve just changed contractors.
LikeLiked by 1 person
this does not sound legit to me…you???
LikeLiked by 1 person
It doesn’t concern me at the moment. The people involved seem to be very experienced in the field. And it makes sense that he would support people he has worked with before. If he has his fingers in that pie, it will come out soon enough, I would guess.
LikeLiked by 1 person
ok…if you say so. me? i’m not so sure.
LikeLiked by 1 person
We’ll see what comes out.
LikeLike
Just The News: “President Donald Trump announced Friday that he would sign an executive order to keep the social media app TikTok running for an additional 75 days.
Trump insisted his administration had made great progress on a deal to keep the social media app running in the U.S., but that it needed more time to finalize it.
“The Deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed, which is why I am signing an Executive Order to keep TikTok up and running for an additional 75 days,” Trump wrote on TRUTH Social. “We hope to continue working in Good Faith with China, who I understand are not very happy about our Reciprocal Tariffs (Necessary for Fair and Balanced Trade between China and the U.S.A.!).”
“My Administration has been working very hard on a Deal to SAVE TIKTOK, and we have made tremendous progress. The Deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed, which is why I am signing an Executive Order to keep TikTok up and running for an additional 75 days. We hope to continue working in Good Faith with China, who I understand are not very happy about our Reciprocal Tariffs (Necessary for Fair and Balanced Trade between China and the U.S.A.!). This proves that Tariffs are the most powerful Economic tool, and very important to our National Security! We do not want TikTok to “go dark.” We look forward to working with TikTok and China to close the Deal. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114280893859636366
April 6 was the deadline for the China-based ByteDance to either sell the app or face a ban on U.S. operations. The founder of OnlyFans and Amazon made offers to buy the app earlier this week.
“We do not want TikTok to ‘go dark.’ We look forward to working with TikTok and China to close the Deal. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump’s post concluded. “
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Two leaders of the anti-COVID lockdown “Freedom Convoy” in Canada were convicted on “mischief” charges Friday, according to multiple sources.
Tamara Lich and Chris Barber were cleared of most charges against them after they led massive groups of truckers to block road ways across the nation in February 2022 protests of a federal COVID-19 vaccination mandate, according to the BBC and The New York Times. The protests lasted nearly four weeks and included a blockade around Parliament hill in Ottawa, Canada, the nation’s capital.
The defense argued that Barber and Lich never encouraged any illegal activity and regularly cooperated with authorities, according to the BBC.
Mischief charges in Canada apply to anyone who willfully “obstructs, interrupts or interferes with the lawful use, enjoyment or operation of property,” carrying a maximum sentence of ten years in prison if damages exceed $5,000.
In response to the protests, Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act in February 2022 during the protest, which allowed the government to crack down on protesters, but retracted the order just weeks later. A federal court in Canada later ruled that Justin Trudeau’s use of the Emergencies Act was unconstitutional.
“The decision to issue the Proclamation does not bear the hallmarks of reasonableness – justification, transparency and intelligibility – and was not justified in relation to the relevant factual and legal constraints that were required to be taken into consideration,” Federal Court Justice Richard Mosley wrote in the decision.
The Canadian protest spurred U.S.-based truckers to start their own convoy, taking to the D.C. “beltway” to protest former President Joe Biden COVID policy.
The Canadian Prime Minister’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
(The Center Square) – U.S. Senators have voted to begin debate on the chamber’s amendment to the House budget resolution, bringing Republicans one step closer to fulfilling President Donald Trump’s tax, border, energy, and defense agenda.
The 52 to 48 procedural vote Thursday night on the Senate’s concurrent resolution showed stark partisan divide, with Democrats blasting the bill as fiscally irresponsible and Republican leaders calling it a win for taxpayers.
Unlike the House’s original budget resolution, which had priced a 10-year extension of President Donald Trump’s tax cuts at $3.8 trillion, the Senate’s budget framework assumes the extension will cost nothing, as The Center Square reported.
By adopting a current policy baseline, which treats renewing the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as a continuation of current law rather than new policy, Senate Republicans drastically reduced the amount of spending cuts they’d need to make in order to offset the plan.
The bill also authorizes an extra $1.5 trillion in spending to enact some of Trump’s other tax goals, such as eliminating taxes on Social Security and tips.
While outside fiscal organizations like the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget say the actual cost of the Senate’s resolution hovers around $5.8 trillion, Senate Leader John Thune, R-S.D., denounced warnings as “hysteria” from Democrats.
“Using the current policy baseline is not some bizarre new gimmick,” Thune told lawmakers Thursday. “No matter how many times Democrats attempt to distort or outright lie about what we’re trying to do here, Republicans intend to deliver a permanent extension of the tax relief that we passed in 2017.”
If the Trump tax cuts expire, the average taxpayer will see a 22% tax hike as well as their guaranteed deduction slashed in half. The child tax credit would also reduce from $2,000 per child to $1,000 per child, The Center Square reported.
The Senate will hold debate over the bill throughout Friday and potentially into Saturday as lawmakers will introduce amendments before voting on final passage. If passed, the House will take up the concurrent resolution for a vote next week.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Trump Admin Moves To Shutter Another Taxpayer-Funded Think Tank” by Thomas English
EXCERPT: “Nearly all employees at the Wilson Center, a taxpayer-funded foreign policy think tank in Washington, D.C., were abruptly placed on leave Thursday as part of a sweeping government downsizing campaign under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Roughly 130 staffers were blocked from their work accounts and ordered to vacate the premises by the end of the day, according to internal communications obtained by The New York Times. The move came just days after Elon Musk’s DOGE task force reportedly entered the building, signaling the center’s closure was imminent following a March executive order.
“This Executive Order eliminates non-statutory functions and reduces statutory functions of unnecessary governmental entities to what is required by law,” the order’s fact sheet reads. “Affected entities include the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars … This action builds on an Executive Order President Trump previously signed to reduce unnecessary governmental entities and Federal advisory committees.”
The Wilson Center’s workforce reduction follows a now-familiar playbook from the Trump administration’s government overhaul strategy. DOGE has already dismantled or hollowed out several federal institutions and nonprofit entities that rely on government funding — most similarly the U.S. Institute of Peace….”
https://thedailybs.com/2025/04/04/trump-admin-moves-to-shutter-another-taxpayer-funded-think-tank/
LikeLiked by 1 person
what the hell does a “think tank” DO for taxpayers?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Damned good question!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
thank you…thought of it all by myself!
LikeLiked by 1 person
👏👏👏👏👏👏
LikeLike
North Carolina SC election is in turmoil.
FTA
What was hailed by Democrats as a narrow 734-vote victory for Allison Riggs in the 2024 North Carolina Supreme Court race is now spiraling into electoral chaos, as a court ruling has cast doubt over tens of thousands of ballots that could flip the outcome in favor of conservative challenger Judge Jefferson Griffin.
In a stunning decision filed Thursday, the North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled that approximately 65,000 ballots—cast by voters with incomplete registration information, missing photo identification, or submitted by individuals who have never lived in North Carolina—may be invalid under state and federal election law.
The 2-1 decision was authored by Judges John Tyson and Fred Gore, both registered Republicans. Judge Tobias Hampson, a Democrat, dissented from the majority opinion.
The court ordered election officials across the state’s 100 counties to notify affected voters, giving them 15 business days to prove they are legally eligible to vote, or their ballots could be tossed out, handing conservatives a chance to reclaim a critical seat on the state’s highest court.
WeThePeople2016
April 4, 2025 2:26 pm
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
So will this also affect the Dem down-ballot sweep last November as well when Trump won the state?
North Carolina Supreme Court Race in Turmoil: Democrat’s 700-Vote Victory Now in Jeopardy as 65,000 Voters Ordered to Prove Eligibility or Be Removed from Count
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/04/north-carolina-supreme-court-race-turmoil-democrats-700/
LikeLiked by 1 person
Of course the dem “dissented!”
LikeLiked by 1 person
naturally
LikeLiked by 1 person
(The Center Square) – Republican U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Jim Banks, R-Ind. introduced a bill to create Education Savings Accounts for the children of active-duty service members. The bill would amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow parents of eligible military-dependent children to establish Military Education Savings Accounts.
“School choice is the civil rights issue of the 21st century, and parents should never have to choose between serving their country and ensuring that their children have access to a quality education,” Cruz said, adding that the bill “will ensure that military families are empowered to choose and secure the right education for their children.”
The bill also “supports military readiness by helping attract and retain top talent, ensuring service members don’t have to sacrifice their children’s education,” Banks said.
It would direct the secretaries of the departments of Education and Defense to carry out the program ‘‘at the request of a parent of an eligible military dependent child, establish an account on behalf of such child … into which the Secretary shall deposit funds” and “establish a procedure under which the parent of the child may use funds in the account to pay for the educational expenses of the child in accordance” with the law, according to the bill language.
It would create ESAs for up to $6,000 to apply to reading, writing, language, mathematics, science and social studies instruction. The amount would increase over time in accordance with inflation, apply for one academic year and can be renewed, according to the bill language.
The bill also would create a lottery system if the appropriated funds are insufficient to fully fund the program. It prioritizes siblings of children already benefitting from the ESA program, children of enlisted members, warrant officers and then commissioned officers.
ESAs provide taxpayer subsidies for families to use for educational purposes. The bill would prohibit ESA funds from being used for public school education. Applicants are prohibited from enrolling their child “in a public elementary school or a public secondary school, on a full-time basis while participating in the program,” the bill states.
ESA funds are permitted to be used for private elementary or secondary school tuition; educational co-op, micro-school, learning pod, or hybrid school tuition, including religious schools; private online learning programs; private tutoring; individual classes, extracurricular activities, athletic programs, and educational trips; summer camps and academic camps; materials prescribed by educational therapists or medical professionals; textbooks, curriculum programs, or other instructional materials; computer hardware, software or other technological devices for educational purposes; private school uniforms; fees for nationally standardized tests, advanced placement exams, college or university admission exams; education transportation costs; apprenticeship or vocational training program costs; contributions to a college savings account, among others.
Unused funds would roll over from year to year; funds left over after students graduate high school could be used to finance higher education tuition or costs associated with an alternative professional training, according to the bill language.
The bill also includes stipulations for the Education Secretary to administer the program, includes fraud prevention and reporting requirements, and prohibits religion-based discrimination. It doesn’t apply to National Guard members’ children, excludes postsecondary education, and limits the program to students once they turn 22 or 26, if disabled.
The military ESAs are also tax exempt. Cruz previously introduced the Education Savings Accounts for Military Families Act in 2023, which went nowhere in a Democratic-controlled Senate during the Biden administration.
LikeLiked by 1 person
sounds fair to me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
OK, I’m tired of rain…..been raining most of the day and only 44. Brrrr…..I did see, however, that the Turtle Doves are back and breeding furiously. Well, the males are trying anyway….
LikeLiked by 1 person
LOL…our robins are trying too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep – them, too! ‘Tis the season!
LikeLike
Just The News: “A federal judge in Maryland on Friday ordered the Trump administration to bring one of the state’s residents back to the United States immediately, after he was mistakenly sent to El Salvador.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ruled that the administration must return Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the U.S. by midnight Monday, after the administration violated an immigration court order that Garcia not be deported to the prison, according to Politico.
“This was an illegal act,” Xinis told a Justice Department lawyer. “Congress said you can’t do it, and you did it anyway.”
The Trump administration has admitted that Abrego Garcia’s deportation was an “administrative error” but that they could not get him back because he was in another country, USA Today reported. Abrego Garcia was part of the hundreds of alleged MS-13 and Tren de Aragua members who were deported last month.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
so why can’t we deport a gang member?
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s ridiculous!
LikeLike
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
it IS glorious! lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
Statue of Neptune rising from the sea at Melenara Beach in Spain…
LikeLiked by 1 person
EXCERPT: “…..So, the Virginia GOP has itself a primary race, but the real race between Sears and Chase might actually be for Donald Trump’s endorsement. There’s no assurance he will endorse in this primary, of course, but Sears has some ground to make up with the president. Back in 2022, she joined a chorus of voices on the right who were calling on Trump to not run again in 2024, which led to him post on Truth Social that Sears had “turned on the MAGA movement.”
Endorsements have poured in for Sears, and her fundraising machine has been hard at work since last year, so it’s her primary to lose. Be on the lookout for whether or not Donald Trump decides to get involved.
As for the unopposed Abigail Spanberger, she’s busy trying to portray herself as a moderate while wracking up donations from lefty donors like Reid Hoffman. Parents might remember that, back in the COVID days, she advocated for keeping public schools closed until all staffers had been vaccinated. Needless to say, she’s a darling of the teachers’ unions.
Spanberger is also a fan of abortion and has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood. While still in Congress, she voted against the Laken Riley Act, which enabled the Trump administration to take an MS-13 leader off the streets of Virginia last week, and for the Equality Act, which opened the door for men to compete in women’s sports. She once wanted illegals counted in the U.S. census, which would favor Democrats if legislative boundaries were ever redrawn, and has happily celebrated “Trans Visibility Day.”
Virginia Republicans have a fight ahead of them, but the race is far from over. Winsome Sears enters the primary as the frontrunner, but Amanda Chase won’t go down without a fight—especially if she can capture Trump’s endorsement. Meanwhile, Spanberger will try to mask her far-left record under the guise of “moderation,” but Virginians remember her COVID-era school policies, her alignment with the radical left on immigration and gender ideology, and her deep ties to Democrat mega-donors.
So, who’s ready for another election season?”
https://redstate.com/terichristoph/2025/04/04/update-on-governors-race-in-virginia-n2187478
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Cervical Cancer ‘Nearly 100% Preventable’ With Regular Screenings — But Media Push Vaccines
Some researchers and media outlets suggest vaccination is the best way to prevent cervical cancer. But Dr. Sin Hang Lee, a pathologist and expert in molecular diagnostics, told The Defender, “the most important risk factor for developing cervical cancer … is the failure to receive regular screening with a Pap smear.”
CHD, by Brenda Baletti, Ph.D., April 4, 2025
excerpt: “Fewer women are getting routine screenings for cervical cancer, according to recent studies. Some researchers and media outlets suggest vaccination is the best way to prevent cervical cancer.
But experts like Dr. Sin Hang Lee, a pathologist and expert in molecular diagnostics, told The Defender that while infection with certain strains of HPV is one of the strongest known risk factors for cervical cancer, “the most important risk factor for developing cervical cancer, at least from the point of view of what we can do about it now, is the failure to receive regular screening with a Pap smear.”
“Cervical cancer is nearly 100% preventable,” Lee said.
The percentage of women screened for cervical cancer fell from 47% in 2019 to 41% in 2023, according to a research letter published last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
The study, by Jessica Star and a team of researchers from the American Cancer Society, also reported that early-stage diagnoses for cervical cancer — typically identified by screening — have continued to decline.
In its report on the JAMA study, NBC News suggested that late diagnosis of cervical cancer has increased since 2012, indicating that more cancers are being missed early on and turning up later.
The JAMA study examined how cancer screening rates have changed since the COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers compared screening trends for cervical, breast and colorectal cancers from 2019 through 2023. The study found that screening rates for breast cancer and colorectal cancer had increased 7% and 12%, respectively, and had rebounded since drops in 2020.
However, it found that cervical cancer screening rates were down in 2023, remaining 14% below 2019 estimates and unchanged since 2021…..”
https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/cervical-cancer-preventable-regular-screenings-media-push-vaccines/
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ahhh! I remember those days….
Uh, yeah…..no fricking way!!!
“What’s going on back there???”
LikeLiked by 1 person
SPIT! that last one! LOLOLOLOL
LikeLiked by 1 person
IKR? I busted out laughing! Crows can be so personable!
LikeLiked by 1 person
i love that you make me laugh when i least expect it sometimes. and I’m not talking about a smile or a little chortle–I’m talking belly laugh out loud so hubby looks at me and wonders who he married…LOL
LikeLiked by 1 person
Excellent! A belly laugh can make almost anything better!
LikeLiked by 1 person
it’s the best exercise other than sex.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ooops!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
cool pictures!
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLiked by 1 person
The fisher (Pekania pennanti) is a carnivorous, cat-like weasel native to North America.
LikeLiked by 1 person
that snowy one makes me shudder…LOL
we have fishers here. we rarely see them, but every once in a while they come to the pond
LikeLiked by 1 person
I figured – I immediately thought of your pond!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Just The News: “The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the Trump administration can cancel $65 million in education grants that were part of the administration’s crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
The 5-4 ruling lifts an injunction from a federal judge in Boston, and allows the administration to terminate the grants while litigation on the issue continues. The Trump administration has been trying to cancel millions of dollars in grants and contracts, but has been blocked by multiple federal courts.
Chief Justice John Roberts dissented in the case, along with the court’s three liberal justices, according to Politico.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
roberts needs to be impeached
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good luck with that!
LikeLike
I am adding a short daily prayer to the board. I would invite each of you, if you wish, to also add one or maybe two of your own liking. I do not want to stifle anyone but please limit yourself to one or two religious postings. here’s one I found that I liked.
LikeLike
LikeLike
LikeLike
Good night, Pat!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good Night Filly!
LikeLiked by 1 person
LikeLike
LikeLike
Good Night All!
LikeLike
LikeLiked by 1 person