Colorado State Tree: Blue Spruce

State Trees 1 Minute

The magnificent Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens) is the official state tree of Colorado. School children of the state voted to name blue spruce as the state tree on Arbor Day in 1892, however it was not until 1939 that the Colorado blue spruce was officially adopted as the tree symbol of Colorado.

Known for its stately, majestic, symmetrical form and its beautiful silver-blue color, the Colorado blue spruce was first discovered on Pikes Peak in 1862 by botanist C.C. Parry, and named by George Engelmann in 1879. Blue spruce (Picea pungens Engelm) is also the state tree of Utah.

Sometimes called the silver spruce, the Colorado blue spruce ranges in color from green to blue to silver. In Colorado, it grows in small, scattered groves or singly among ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, alpine fir and Englemann spruce.

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Published by pat frederick

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116 thoughts on “Colorado State Tree: Blue Spruce”

    1. Good morning!

      48* and sunny, light south wind.

      I’ve never been to Colorado. 🌲🌲🌲

      Son asked to visit with dil today. 🤔 Can only mean one thing. 😁

      Take care, God Bless 🙏

      Liked by 2 people

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      1. Good Morning Gina!
        I’ve never been either, but my daughter, SIL and granddaughter went last summer–they hiked and hiked and spent most of the time on their feet…LOL
        they’re not skiers–but they do enjoy snowmobiling.

        hmmm…good luck and God Bless!!!

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      2. Good morning, Gina! What do you think it means? I lived in Pueblo, CO for 2 years before I joined the WAC – I loved it. It was kind of in a valley between Co. Springs & Raton Pass, NM – both of those could be totally closed with snow, yet we would only get a fraction.

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  3. Nick Sortor

    @nicksortor

    🚨 JUST IN: President Trump throws his full support behind DNI Tulsi Gabbard for the second time in a WEEK

    The rumors of her resigning or being fired are TOTAL BS REPORTER: “Do you still have confidence in Tulsi Gabbard?”

    TRUMP: “Yeah. Sure, she’s a little bit different in her thought process than me, but that doesn’t make somebody not available to serve.”

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    1. IMO, this was targeted towards Iran. From the article: “President Donald Trump is weighing a potential military operation to seize nearly 1,000 pounds of uranium from Iran, a high-risk mission that could place U.S. troops in the country for an extended period, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.

      U.S. officials told the Journal that Trump has not made a final decision but remains open to the idea as part of his broader goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

      The proposed operation would be complex and dangerous, potentially requiring American forces to operate on the ground in Iran for days or longer. Officials said Trump is considering the risks to U.S. personnel before moving forward.

      At the same time, the president is pushing for a diplomatic solution, urging advisers to press Iran to hand over the uranium as a condition for ending the conflict.

      According to the report, Trump has made clear in private discussions that Iran cannot retain the material and has raised the possibility of taking it by force if negotiations fail.

      Regional powers, including Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt, have been acting as intermediaries between Washington and Tehran. However, direct negotiations between the U.S. and Iran have not taken place.

      “It’s the job of the Pentagon to make preparations in order to give the commander in chief maximum optionality. It does not mean the president has made a decision,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said…..”

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        1. Well, they kinda already know what we’re going after – anything related to their nuclear program. Don’t you think that Iran has already considered that anyway? It’s all part of the game of wielding power.

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  6. Charlotte99

    March 30, 2026 3:23 am

    An apostates view on Islam;
    Quite to the point

    Someone asked me where my feelings for Islam come from. There’s the problem. I don’t have “feelings” for Islam.

    I simply have facts about the religion.

    They follow a man named Mohammed. This man was a pedophile. He married a six year old and had sex with her when she was nine.

    His teachings are ones that tell his followers to kill anyone who doesn’t believe in Islam.

    He preached that you could lie to anyone who didn’t believe in Islam and tell them anything you felt like to convert them.

    Islam treats women like shit. They have to wear burqas and are second-class citizens in every situation. It’s totally permissible to beat the living hell out of your wife for no reason.

    Rape is also permissible to any woman who is not a Moslem. It’s literally a tool of war in Islam.

    Mohammed’s followers also take on the role of “jihadist” in which they kill anyone who doesn’t believe in their religion.

    They’ve convinced themselves that the best thing on earth is a black box and they pray to it five times a day in doggystyle position.

    They won’t touch bacon and think it’s deadly.
    They can’t use toilet paper.

    They can’t even draw a picture of the Prophet they love so much. Must be an ugly dude!

    They’ve even been convinced by their Pedophile Prophet that dogs are impure and dirty.

    Now, these facts make it a pretty shitty religion if you ask me… and that would be fine if they practiced it in silence and didn’t try to impose it on others.

    They have 55 countries where they are able to practice it, however flawed it may be.

    I don’t have to live there so that’s fine.

    But they’ve decided to come to the West and want me to change my way of life to adapt to their way of life.

    I’m supposed to eat halal meat because they eat halal meat.

    I’m supposed to give up my dog because they don’t like dogs.

    I’m supposed to let the take down the World Trade Center and not complain about it and just move on and allow them to worship their Allah?

    I’m supposed to believe that the book they love to reference is a book of peace.

    And if I question any of it I’m Islamophobic.

    So, when you ask how I developed my feelings on the Moslems… I quite simply evaluated the facts. The facts make it clear this is not something for me.

    Despite knowing that, they tried to impose it on me anyway. So now I cannot stand it. And that’s all. –

    https://nitter.poast.org/ImtiazMadmood/status/2038219026304827491#m

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  8. Val1

    March 30, 2026 7:37 am

    -The U.S. Supreme Court is set to rule on the constitutionality of President Donald Trump’s 2025 executive order restricting birthright citizenship by summer 2026, with oral arguments scheduled for April 1, 2026, in the case Trump v. Barbara.

    PRESIDENT TRUMP’S TRUTH SOCIAL TODAY:
    “Birthright Citizenship is not about rich people from China, and the rest of the World, who want their children, and hundreds of thousands more, FOR PAY, to ridiculously become citizens of the United States of America.
    It is about the BABIES OF SLAVES!

    We are the only Country in the World that dignifies this subject with even discussion.

    Look at the dates of this long ago legislation – THE EXACT END OF THE CIVIL WAR!

    The World is getting rich selling citizenships to our Country, while at the same time laughing at how STUPID our U.S. Court System has become (TARIFFS!).

    “Dumb Judges and Justices will not a great Country make!””

    https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/116317726153845042

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  9. a dem county commissioner n PA indicted for more than 100 drug counts…

    A Pennsylvania Democratic county commissioner is facing a sweeping set of felony charges after prosecutors alleged he conducted drug deals from inside government spaces as well as an official meeting.

    Authorities said Zachary Cole Borghi, serving in Lehigh County, was arrested Wednesday and charged with more than 100 drug-related felonies. 

    Investigators alleged the 35-year-old used his personal cellphone to coordinate cocaine transactions, which sometimes occurred while inside county buildings.

    According to charging documents, Borghi faces 89 felony counts tied to the alleged use of a communication device to facilitate drug sales, along with 14 additional felony counts for cocaine delivery and one count related to distributing psilocybin mushrooms.

    Prosecutors outlined their case in a 175-page affidavit that reportedly includes more than 1,000 text messages exchanged between Borghi and three cooperating witnesses. The messages allegedly show detailed negotiations over pricing and arrangements for drug handoffs.

    Investigators also alleged that payments for the transactions were conducted through digital platforms, including Apple Cash and Cash App.

    https://justthenews.com/government/local/pa-democratic-commissioner-arrested-more-100-felony-drug-charges

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  10. and where do the defrauded seniors go to collect what was stolen from them????

    The Epoch Times)—A Chinese national on a work visa has pleaded guilty to her role in a scheme to defraud elderly people, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida announced on March 26.

    Liu Xin, 40, was residing in Apopka, Florida, on an H-1B visa at the time of the offenses. A federal grand jury in Gainesville indicted her in December last year, and she later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

    Prosecutors said Liu conspired with a China-based co-conspirator and others to defraud elderly victims through fraudulent phone calls and electronic messages.

    Under the scheme, Liu acted as a courier, driving to locations across Florida to collect cash packages from victims and deliver them to other conspirators. According to prosecutors, Liu made at least six such trips from July 22, 2025, to July 30, 2025, picking up or attempting to pick up more than $95,000 from victims.

    “Elder fraud is a devastating crime that is growing increasingly common, as fraudsters like this alien and her China-based co-conspirators prey upon our vulnerable retiree population to enrich themselves,” John P. Heekin, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, said in a statement on Thursday.

    “Stopping elder fraud depends upon educating the public about schemes like this, and encouraging victims to report these crimes to law enforcement as quickly as possible,” Heekin added. “My office will continue to investigate and aggressively prosecute every member of these fraud schemes to hold them accountable for their heinous crimes and achieve justice for their victims.”

    According to a six-page court filing by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Liu joined the scheme after responding to a social media job posting, through which she contacted the China-based co-conspirator. The two communicated in Mandarin, and the co-conspirator directed her to pickup locations.

    On July 29, 2025, Liu traveled to Manatee County and attempted to collect $25,000 in cash from an elderly victim who had been duped by other members of the scheme into believing his accounts had been “compromised” and that he needed to transfer his money to the Federal Trade Commission to “secure” them. The conspirators falsely claimed Liu was an FBI agent who would collect the funds.

    When Liu arrived, the victim questioned her identity and reported the incident to law enforcement, according to the court document.

    Liu asked the China-based co-conspirator “for more work” on the very next day, and she was directed to Gainesville to pick up cash from a 73-year-old victim who lived in an “assisted living apartment complex for seniors,” according to a court filing.

    “This victim was falsely informed by an individual purporting to work for the Department of Treasury that he was a victim of identity theft and people were removing money from his account to purchase Bitcoin,” the court filing reads.

    The 73-year-old victim handed Liu $15,000 in cash. She kept $1,400 for herself before delivering the remaining money to a person in St. Petersburg.

    On July 31, 2025, Liu asked about “even more work,” but before she could take on another job, the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office arrived at her residence to question her about her attempt to collect money two days earlier.

    “With the exception of the July 29, 2025 transaction in Manatee County, Liu personally verified the contents of each package and was paid with a portion of the fraud proceeds. Liu’s actions resulted in substantial financial hardship to at least one victim,” the court filing reads.

    Liu is scheduled to be sentenced on June 16, and faces up to 20 years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. She is expected to be deported after completing her sentence.

    The Epoch Times contacted Liu’s lawyer for comment, but did not receive a response by publication time.

    https://retirement.media/chinese-national-pleads-guilty-to-defrauding-elderly-victims-in-florida/

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  13. MichaeloKeeffe

    @MickOKeeffe

    Almost 250,000 people have been granted Irish citizenship since 2011.

    But it gets even worse, in 2004 we had a referendum on birthright citizenship, 79% voted against it.

    The people of Ireland clearly stated that being born in Ireland doesn’t make you Irish, but in the two decades since our country has undergone rapid demographic change.

    We voted against this, but they forced it on us anyway.

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  14. “Either John Thune Leads the Senate and Ends the Filibuster, or JD Vance Needs to Step In: The SAVE America Act cannot wait on procedural timidity. Senate Republicans have one senator to convince — and if their Majority Leader won’t do it, the President of the Senate must.”

    JD Rucker, Mar 30, 2026

    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “There is a moment in every legislative fight when the machinery of procedure either serves the people or becomes an excuse for cowardice. We are in that moment now. The SAVE America Act — legislation that Republicans campaigned on and that the American people voted to see enacted — sits hostage to the filibuster, that hallowed Senate tradition that has, once again, transformed majority-rule governance into a veto wielded by a determined minority.

    https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/either-john-thune-leads-the-senate-and-ends-the/id1523858902?i=1000758147417

    Senate Majority Leader John Thune has acknowledged the core problem plainly enough: four Republican senators remain opposed to eliminating the filibuster. Four. Not fourteen, not forty — four. That is not a wall. That is a door with a single deadbolt. The only question is whether Thune has the will, and the skill, to find the key.

    To be clear about the math: Thune does not need to convince all four senators. He needs one. A single member of his own caucus persuaded to put the interests of the American people above procedural sentiment — that is all that stands between the Senate’s stated agenda and its actual accomplishment. One senator. One conversation, perhaps several, conducted with the full weight of majority leadership behind it.

    “Thune does not need to convince all four. He needs one. That is not a wall — it is a door with a single deadbolt.”

    That is what leadership looks like. It is not comfortable. It is not the kind of thing done over polite lunches and collegial handshakes. Real whipping of votes requires arm-twisting, horse-trading, pressure applied where pressure is warranted, and a willingness to spend political capital accumulated over years in the chamber. Thune has that capital. The question being asked of him now — and increasingly loudly — is why he refuses to spend it.

    The filibuster, in its current form, is not a constitutional protection. It is a Senate rule — one that has been modified, reformed, and worked around repeatedly throughout American history. The nuclear option, invoked for judicial nominees in 2013 and executive branch nominees before that, demonstrated that the Senate’s rules are neither sacred nor immovable when the legislative moment demands action. Republicans know this. They have benefited from these rule changes directly. The argument that the filibuster represents some untouchable constitutional architecture simply does not hold.

    What does hold is the legitimate concern that eliminating the legislative filibuster sets a precedent that a future Democratic Senate majority could exploit. That is a real consideration and deserves honest engagement, not dismissal. But here is the counterargument those four senators must weigh: a Senate that cannot pass the agenda the American people elected it to pass is not protecting democracy — it is undermining it. Procedural purity is cold comfort when the business of governing goes undone.

    The SAVE America Act is not a fringe priority cooked up in committee. It represents a significant piece of the platform on which Republicans ran and won. Allowing it to die — or languish indefinitely — because of intraparty hesitation over Senate rules would be a failure of governance of the first order. The voters sent a majority to Washington. That majority deserves to function as one.

    “If the Majority Leader cannot or will not bring the necessary vote into alignment, the Constitution offers another avenue: the President of the Senate.”

    And so we arrive at the second option — the one that should not be necessary but may become unavoidable. If the Majority Leader cannot, or will not, bring that necessary vote into alignment, the Constitution offers another avenue: the President of the Senate, Vice President JD Vance.

    The role of President of the Senate is not ceremonial wallpaper. It carries real constitutional weight, and in a closely divided chamber it carries real procedural power. Vance has already demonstrated he understands this. As an active and engaged Vice President, he has made clear that he is not content to be a passive tie-breaker on the margins of Senate business. He is a political actor with a mandate and an agenda, and that agenda aligns precisely with what the SAVE America Act is designed to accomplish.

    If Thune’s leadership proves insufficient to move the necessary votes — if the caucus cannot be organized around the clear will of the party’s electoral mandate — then Vance must be willing to use every tool available to him as President of the Senate to change the rules and clear the path. The Vice President has the ability to make rulings from the chair, and majorities have the ability to sustain those rulings. This is not a radical interpretation of Senate procedure. It is the procedure, applied with intention.

    Critics will call this a power grab. They will invoke norms and traditions and the sanctity of Senate deliberation. But norms have never been a one-way ratchet applied only to Republicans when they hold power. The Senate is a majoritarian institution struggling under a counter-majoritarian rule. Correcting that imbalance — so that the people’s elected representatives can actually govern — is not an assault on the institution. It is the institution doing its job.

    None of this reflects ill on John Thune personally. He is a skilled legislator with a long record of Senate service, and he faces genuine internal pressures from members of his own caucus who hold sincere views about the filibuster’s value. But the measure of majority leadership is not how well a leader manages comfortable unanimity — it is how effectively a leader builds consensus when consensus is hard. That is the test Thune faces now.

    He has time. But not unlimited time. Legislative momentum is a perishable commodity, and every week the SAVE America Act sits idle is a week that opposition can organize, that public attention drifts, and that the window for passage narrows. The case for acting now — for finding that one vote and ending this procedural standoff — is a case that strengthens with urgency, not patience.

    So here is the simple, clear choice before the Republican Senate: John Thune leads — genuinely leads, with everything the Majority Leader’s office commands — and delivers the filibuster’s end through the regular work of coalition-building. Or JD Vance, as President of the Senate, steps into the breach and ensures that the chamber’s rules serve the majority that the American people elected. One way or another, this gets done.

    The only unacceptable outcome is the one where nothing happens at all — where four senators hold a majority agenda hostage indefinitely while leadership shrugs and the SAVE America Act quietly fades from the calendar. The American people did not vote for that. They voted for results. It is past time to deliver them.”

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        1. the thing about dems is they stick together with few exceptions…that’s how they roll and that’s how they get their agenda passed.
          the repubs claim to have principles and bs, but the truth is, they do not know HOW to lead. they are more comfortable being the minority begging for money so they’d be better NEXT time.
          it’s all a game.

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  15. Here’s my issue with “eliminating the filibuster.” What happens when the shoe is on the other foot….when the Dems are pushing something really, really bad for the country and there is no recourse since the filibuster has been removed…..what about that scenario??? All too often, things like this come back to bite us in the ass!!!

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    1. i don’t think that’s an argument. the dems ALWAYS do what the hell they wanna do. they lie, cheat and steal…do you really think A RULE will stop them? we get rid of the filibuster. if and when THEY want it back–they’ll simply bring it back when they’re in the majority.

      this is OUR TIME and we are acting like sniveling cowards…

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  18. “They may be brothers in uniform and service, but when the skates go on, the gloves come off. A pair of brawls broke out during Sunday’s charity hockey game between the FDNY and NYPD at UBS Arena, as New York City’s first responders renewed their rivalry on the ice.” 

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  22. “According to the Cleveland Clinic, Exploding Head Syndrome (EHS) is a sleep disorder that makes you hear a loud noise or explosive crashing sound in your head. Healthcare providers also call it episodic cranial sensory shocks.

    EHS is a parasomnia. The sound isn’t real and nobody else can hear it. But it can still be a scary, frustrating interruption. Parasomnias are disruptive sleep disorders involving undesirable physical behaviors, emotions, or experiences – such as sleepwalking, talking, or night terrors – that occur while falling asleep, during sleep, or upon waking. They often stem from genetic factors, stress, or other sleep disorders, and are treated through improved sleep hygiene, safety measures, and occasionally medication. 

    Exploding head syndrome isn’t dangerous, but you might want to talk to a ‘healthcare provider’ (shrink maybe?) if you’re experiencing any new symptoms that affect your sleep. Remember, I’m not a doctor, but I used to play one when I was old enough to know what ‘playing doctor’ really meant…”

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  24. I just don’t trust proclamations like this…..there’s no way they can possibly know!

    “Did you know that 2,266 years ago today, a Greek astronomer accidentally sparked a revolution in human thought? It was March 30, 240 BC – a date we pinpoint with modern astrophysics – when Aristarchus of Samos looked up and witnessed a solar eclipse.

    In the ancient world, the sky was the realm of the gods. Thunder was Zeus, the sunset was Helios’s chariot, and an eclipse? That was usually a bad omen. But Aristarchus didn’t see an omen. He saw geometry.

    While others were looking for signs from Mount Olympus, Aristarchus was doing the math. By observing the eclipse, he began calculating the relative sizes and distances of the Sun and Moon. But here is where it gets wild: the logical conclusion of his work led him to a dangerous, heretical idea.

    He proposed that the Earth was not the center of everything. Aristarchus suggested that the Earth moved. He theorized that it rotated on its axis and orbited a stationary Sun—a full 1,800 years before Copernicus was even born.

    It was too radical for his time. Critics argued, “If the Earth moved, we would feel it, and the stars would shift.” The idea was silenced, buried under the authority of Aristotle and Ptolemy for nearly two millennia. But on that March morning in 240 BC, Aristarchus looked at the shadow of the Moon crossing the Sun and saw a universe governed by laws, not whims.”

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  25. All the talk about the worst part of society doesn’t mention the homeless or mentally friggin’ deranged. Nope – it’s these scumbags. Hundreds of agitators violently clashed with police outside a federal complex in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday as “No Kings” protests swept across Southern California and the rest of the nation. About two hundred troublemakers headed to the site to taunt officers, shaking metal gates set up to protect the complex and shouting profanities at officers.

    “Fuck you, fucking come and get me,” one shouted. Protesters, many masked and promoting anti-ICE, anti‑war and pro‑Palestine causes, baited agents with megaphones, calling them “scumbags” and daring them to confront the growing crowd.

     Protesters resisted arrests, creating chaotic scenes in the streets outside the detention center. Police arrested 70 people in relation to the protests yesterday. It is unclear if the duo in the video were among those arrested. There’s video of the attacks here.”

    Liked by 1 person

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  26. “A Florida fisherman changed his luck recently in a big way. Captain Jose Rodriguez Jr. of Cudjoe Key, Florida, takes clients out four to five times a week on a Florida Keys fishing charter to reel in trophy fish. But he’d never come close to catching a monster 500-pound swordfish.

    On Feb. 18, Rodriguez, along with a Pennsylvania family, landed a giant 480-pound swordfish, one of the largest of its kind caught in the Keys in recent years. At first, the Pennsylvania family didn’t realize the importance of what was happening, he said. But the two children aboard were big supporters.

    Once the swordfish was caught, there was plenty of work to be done. For starters, there was no simple way to store a fish that huge. “A fish that big actually lies on the back deck with ice bags on top of it with towels,” Rodriguez said. “There’s really no other spot” for it. Then he and his mate sprayed it with saltwater to bring its core temperature down. 

    When they were ready to filet the fish, they completed the process on the boat. They didn’t have a crane to lift the fish. “Not everyone’s prepared to catch a 500-pound fish,” the captain said.

    After Rodriguez’s catch, there were about 50-70 people in his community who turned out to admire the fish. “The whole community was eating swordfish that day,” Rodriguez said, chuckling. When asked if he felt like a local celebrity, he said, “Almost, yeah. Everybody knows about it. It’s just about being in the right place at the right time, and it ended up happening to me.”

    Liked by 1 person

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  27. WTF???????

    I had to pay for mine!

    Wall Street Apes @WallStreetApes

    WOW 🚨 I just verified this and it’s 100% real

    There is a scholarship specifically for illegals The Dream US is the nation’s largest college and career success program specifically for undocumented immigrant students

    Illegals get – $33,000 for a bachelor’s degree – $16,500 total for an associate’s degree

    These scholarships are only for –

    Undocumented, temporary protected status (TPS), DACA, or similar

    ‘They’ve awarded over 12,000 scholarships to date and partner with 80 colleges across 20+ states and DC. It’s designed to help cover costs that undocumented students’

    Amount is to $16,500 total for an associate’s degree or up to $33,000 total for a bachelor’s degree. Awards can also include a stipend, up to $6,000 for books, supplies, and transportation. It’s renewable each year as long as you stay full-time and meet GPA

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  28. just talked to Mom. She won something at bingo yesterday but she hid it in her dresser drawer and she said she would find it later and call me…LOL

    It seems some of the residents know how to unlock the doors there and can get in your room (like when you’re at meals, etc). if they see something you have setting out, they’re apt to take it. sigh. So the staff told her to always put things away in her drawers.

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      1. nope…some days she’s like that. sigh. she’s now so worried about the other residents stealing her things that she hides them…then forgets.

        it’s almost usually miniature candy bars. one special day they had jewelry but mostly it’s just candy bars.

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  30. “Teen Awarded the Boy Scouts Medal of Honor After Saving His Scout Leader’s Life During Whitewater Rafting Trip”

    Not The Bee, Harriet Rigby, Mar 29, 2026

    Image for article: Teen Awarded the Boy Scouts Medal of Honor After Saving His Scout Leader's Life During Whitewater Rafting Trip

    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “A Texas Boy Scout, Devon Champenoy, was on a rafting trip at a Summer camp in Georgia with several teens from his troop when their scout leader, David Lemley, fell into the water, getting his foot caught under the seat at the stern of the raft. Stuck with his body over the edge of the raft, and his head in the water, his helmet protected his head from the rocks as the raft went through the rapids.

    Champenoy, who was just 13 at the time, climbed into the front of the boat and released Lemley’s foot. Kayakers on the rapids assisted with the rescue after that point, but the proud scout leader told KHOU 11,

    I have no doubt that if Devon hadn’t released my foot I was going to die.

    After the rescue, Devon went on to pilot the raft for the remaining 20 minutes of rapids, bringing the whole troop back to safety after a harrowing ordeal. Devon told reporters that he just acted instinctively, saying,

    It took a while for me to take in the fact that this happened and I saved a life.

    Lemley went on to nominate Devon for the Scout’s Honor Medal with Crossed Palms for heroism demonstrated in saving a life, which Devon was recently awarded. The Honor Medal is one of the highest and most rarely awarded honors in the history of the Boy Scouts.

    Devon says he hopes to become an Eagle Scout, something I think he’ll be more than qualified for.”

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  32. He taught that moss a lesson

    Cold and Rocky. What does someone do for a living in such a place, I wonder?

    Just having a relaxed conversation

    Excellent Living Space

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  33. Shadow of Ezra

    @ShadowofEzra

    President Trump has confirmed that the U.S. military is constructing a large complex beneath the ballroom.

    He says the complex was massive and only came to light because of a lawsuit.

    Trump adds that the ballroom serves as a cover for what’s being built underneath by the military, including drone-related operations.

    “The glass is extremely thick. It’s high-grade, bulletproof glass.”

    Liked by 1 person

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  35. Justice is served

    In Deep

    Who put the pool in the driveway?

    Detail of the “Saffron Gatherers” 3,675-year-old fresco from Akrotiri, the Bronze Age city of Santorini entombed by volcanic ash

    Liked by 1 person

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  38. “Trump Confirms US MIL Building Subterranean Structure Beneath White House Ballroom”

    Clandestine, Mar 30, 2026

    “It all makes sense now. The Dems/MSM don’t care about the ballroom. They are upset about what’s beneath it. Trump just confirmed that the ballroom construction is a cover for some sort of subterranean Military structure.

    Either something nefarious was already there and the US MIL found it, or the US MIL are creating something more secure, that clearly the Deep State are not happy about.

    The outrage over the White House ballroom construction was never about preserving history, taxpayer money, or any of the other bullshit reasons the Dems/MSM have been spewing.

    This is a US MIL operation, hence why the Dems have been squealing so much about it.”

    Liked by 1 person

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  39. Massive Roman aqueduct built in Segovia, Spain by emperor Trajan (r. 98-117 AD).

    That Hair…

    Somewhere in a Francophone country

    Toe of the Glacier

    Jumping down to fight

    Liked by 1 person

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  41. “Trump Term Two: More Partners, Fewer Enemies. Yes Leadership Change, No Regime Change — The Art of Building Alliances.”

    Jordan Schachtel, Mar 30, 2026

    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “The foreign policy establishment has spent years trying to fit President Donald Trump into a familiar ideological box. Is he a hawk? A dove? A realist? An isolationist? The answer is simpler than any of those labels, and more coherent than his critics will admit: Trump is a pragmatic dealmaker who believes that America will be best positioned to win its global competition with China by recruiting more friendlies and having fewer foes.

    The clearest expression of this worldview is in his leadership change doctrine. President Trump is not pursuing regime change in the traditional sense, which consists of the wholesale dismantling of a government and its replacement with something ideologically friendly to the current government in Washington. As Americans are all too familiar with those gambits, democracy projects are expensive, bloody, and reliably counterproductive.

    President Trump, a longtime pragmatist, has little to no interest in it. What he is pursuing is narrower and considerably more achievable: removing or isolating specific leaders who have aligned themselves with America’s top adversaries and replacing them, or creating conditions for their replacement, with figures who are at minimum willing to collaborate with the United States.

    Venezuela is the clearest current example. Nicolás Maduro spent years building Caracas into a node in Beijing’s hemispheric influence network, offering oil flows, political cover, and geographic positioning in exchange for economic lifelines that have allowed his government to survive decades of sanctions and internal pressure.

    Trump’s approach has not been to call for revolution or democratic transformation (which has long been the standard interventionist script) but to methodically chip away at what Maduro left behind in Caracas. This includes tightening the economic vice, and backing governmental and opposition figures who signal a willingness to reorient Venezuela’s foreign relationships. The goal is not a Venezuela that looks like a Jeffersonian democracy. The goal is a Venezuela that is no longer a reliable asset for Beijing, Moscow, Tehran, and Havana.

    Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodriguez speaks alongside US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum after their meeting at the Miraflores Presidential Palace in Caracas, Venezuela, on March 4, 2026. FEDERICO PARRA / AFP

    Iran follows the same logic. The Islamic Republic under the late Ali Khamenei positioned itself as a strategic partner of China, Russia, and North Korea, offering a sanctions-busting energy relationship and a permanent pressure point on U.S. interests from the Levant to the Gulf. The president’s maximum pressure campaign was primarily about the nuclear file. And as the ongoing military operation against Tehran shows, it was also about the question of who leads Iran and whether that leadership’s survival depends on America’s adversaries or on coming to terms with Washington.

    Critics from both the left and the right will find something to dislike in this approach. Liberal internationalists will object that the human rights situations in target countries are being subordinated to realpolitik. They are correct, and Trump probably would not dispute it. Interventionists will argue that full regime change is being left off the table, which also seems correct in the case of Iran today. But that is precisely the point.

    Regime change is expensive and risky. Leadership change is surgical, deniable, and reversible if the incoming leadership proves unreliable. It also allows for the Trump Administration to not consume the baggage of their predecessors. Sure, the upside of an Iran with the regime still in place is considerably lower than without the mullahs, but ultimately, those long term plans must be guided by the Iranian people and not foreign armies.

    What Trump understands, and what the foreign policy establishment has repeatedly failed to internalize, is that the United States does not only need to prioritize ideological allies. It also needs to increase its pool of reliable economic and trading partners. A Venezuela that trades oil on open markets instead of routing it through Beijing’s shadow networks serves American interests regardless of what political system governs Caracas. A neutered Iran that dismantles its regional proxies serves American interests regardless of whether the mullahs remain nominally in some ceremonial position atop the leadership ranks.

    The game is not to build a coalition of on-paper, like-minded democracies (see: our grossly incompetent European partners for how well that’s working right now). The game is to build a coalition of American trading and security partners, and to ensure that China’s coalition shrinks. Every government that moves from Beijing’s orbit into even a neutral posture is a partial win. Every leader who depends on Chinese economic patronage for survival is a problem to be managed or, where possible, replaced.

    President Trump is not a hardened ideologue, though he is a fierce competitor, and he understands what’s at stake in our competition with China. And judging by the actions of his second term in office, his uniquely Trumpian foreign policy doctrine is making progress in adding more players to America’s team, while simultaneously isolating and weakening antagonists. This pragmatic POTUS is not letting perfect become the enemy of good.”

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  43. Star S.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

    @DominguezH31015

    The VP’s ruling on what is approved on a reconciliation bill overrules the Parliamentarians suggestions. The parliamentarian’s opinion is advisory only—not binding.

    The presiding officer of the Senate (typically the Vice President) makes the actual ruling on any Byrd Rule point of order raised by a senator. The Vice President can choose to follow the parliamentarian’s advice or overrule it, effectively deciding what stays in or is struck from the reconciliation bill.

    -Overruling the Ruling: If the Vice President (as presiding officer) rules in a way that allows a disputed provision to remain (against the parliamentarian’s advice), any senator can appeal that ruling or move to waive the Byrd Rule point of order. Overturning the Vice President’s decision requires 60 votes (a three-fifths supermajority of the Senate, assuming no vacancies).

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  44. Just The News: “Federal authorities declared Monday that an attack on a Michigan synagogue earlier this month is now considered an “act of terrorism” that was inspired by the terrorist group Hezbollah in Lebanon.

    Ayman Mohamad Ghazali has been accused of ramming his vehicle into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan, on March 12. Ghazali is a naturalized citizen born in Lebanon who came to the United States in 2011 on an immigrant visa as the spouse of a U.S. citizen and lives in Dearborn Heights.

    Ghazali was the only person killed in the attack, but one security guard was injured after Ghazali crashed his vehicle and 30 law enforcement officers were treated for smoke inhalation from a fire that erupted in the crash.

    Authorities said Ghazali’s brothers were members of Hezbollah’s rocket unit and were killed in an Israeli attack in Lebanon shortly before the crash. His niece and nephew also died in the Israeli strike.

    “Based on the evidence gathered to date. We assess this attack to be a Hezbollah inspired act of terrorism, purposely targeting the Jewish community and the largest Jewish temple in Michigan.” FBI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Runyan said in a news briefing.

    U.S. Attorney for the District of Eastern Michigan Jerome Gorgon told CBS News that officials previously described the attack on the synagogue as a “targeted attack on the Jewish community,” but the new distinction as an act of terrorism is important to accurately describe the attack and threat facing Jewish communities.

    Officials said Ghazali allegedly recorded himself before the attack that described his “operation,” which was specifically intended to “kill Jews and burn their world.” 

    Ghazali’s phone was allegedly found at the scene, CBS News reported, and a search of the device found the suspect’s browsing history contained “pro-Hezbollah news, shootout videos … and news coverage of an Iranian fatwa for jihad against the U.S. military.”

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  45. “What is Going On Beneath Washington DC?”

    Clandestine, Mar 30, 2026

    “Hear me out. Trump and the US MIL have secured and/or remodeled multiple subterranean structures at multiple locations across DC.

    When Trump secured DC with the US MIL/NG in August 2025, the Trump admin publicly disclosed they were reviewing the Smithsonian tunnels and their full archives. Trump secured the Smithsonian tunnel network that runs beneath the Capitol and National Mall. Meanwhile, US MIL presence was mainly focused on metro hubs, like Union Station, and other metro stations around the Capitol and White House.

    When Trump was touring the Trump/Kennedy Center in March 2025, he criticized the $250 million allocated for unused “underground rooms”, to which he later announced the close of the Trump/Kennedy center for a 2 year renovation.

    In addition, now we know that the Military are the ones who wanted the “ballroom”, not Trump. According to Trump himself, the ballroom is just a “shed” to cover whatever “massive complex” the US MIL are building beneath the surface.

    What’s my point? That there seems to be a focus on subterranean DC. As for what exactly is going on, I am unsure, but I know a trend when I see one.”

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  47. “If you’re a fan of ‘Mexican Coke’, you’re with me on this one. Coca Cola bottled in Mexico uses cane sugar instead of artificial or corn sweeteners, and you can really taste the difference – at least I can. It tastes like the Cokes we drank as kids. 

    Well, every year at Passover Coca Cola bottles a goodly amount of their product here for the Jewish market, because a lot of most religious and fervent Jews will abstain from any corn products during Passover. 

    Coke is always Kosher, but it’s just not ‘Passover Kosher’, ergo the change. Grab ’em if you see any. You’ll taste the difference. Trust me. It really is ‘The Real Thing’…”

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