Happy National Washington Day!

Uncategorized 2 Minutes

Planning on visiting Washington? Make sure to see these destinations that Trip Advisor recommends!

Chihuly Garden and Glass

This must-see museum exhibits creative and colorful blown glass sculptures of renowned artist Dale Chihuly. Eight indoor galleries and lush landscaped gardens feature a mix of new and past significant works. They are awe-inspiring whether you visit during the day, or in the evening when the sculptures are lit up. The highlight here is a 100-foot-long glass sculpture suspended in a glass conservatory—one of his largest ever.

Space Needle

Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, this iconic landmark and observation tower was built for the 1962 World’s Fair. Perch on the glass benches known as “Skyrisers” and gaze out of floor-to-ceiling windows, snap a selfie at the outdoor deck, or head upstairs to The Loupe, an indoor lounge featuring the world’s first and only rotating glass floor. Here, you’ll be greeted with 360-degree views of the downtown Seattle skyline, Mount Rainier, Elliot Bay, and the Olympic and Cascade Mountains.

Pike Place Market

The Pike Place Market has been a defining Seattle icon for more than a century. Considered by many “the soul of Seattle,” the Market spans nine historic acres in the center of downtown where everyday locals and tourists alike shop, visit, eat and discover. Founded in 1907, the Market is one of the oldest and largest continuously operating public markets in the United States and is brought to life by the hundreds of farmers, crafters, small businesses, and residents that call it “home”.

The Museum of Flight

Walk the aisle of JFK’s Air Force One and climb aboard the Concorde at Seattle’s Museum of Flight. Built around Boeing’s original factory, it is the world’s largest air and space museum. Here, you can learn everything about the history of aviation, from the Wright Brothers and the exploration of Mars, to revolutionary aircrafts and spy planes. You’ll get to barrel-roll a Mustang, land on the moon, soar over Puget Sound in a simulator, and even sit at the controls of the fastest jet on Earth. Certain days of the month have free entry, so check before you go.

Mount Rainier

At 14,410 feet, Mount Rainier is the fifth highest mountain in the continental 48 states.

SOURCE: TRIP ADVISOR.COM

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Published by pat frederick

Published

87 thoughts on “Happy National Washington Day!”

  1. Morning All!

    we slept in a little this morning…we could hear the rain on the roof…sigh. another wet, soggy day on tap. temp is around 40* though, so it’s cold, but not snow-cold.

    we had 3 orioles on the front deck railing waiting for the jelly, 2 grosbeaks on the side railing and the hummers sitting on the back of the deck chairs….lol

    see what today brings…

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    1. Good Morning, Pat! Happy Saturday! 50*, nice sunrise, cloudy now.

      Surprised to see artist Dale Chihuly has a museum in Washington. He also has a display at John Ball Park (Grand Rapids, Michigan) zoo complex.

      Take care, God Bless 🙏

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    2. Good morning, Pat! Temp is 56 here this morning – when I first got up, the sun was shining but it’s clouding up now. Your place is the place to be for the birds! I just saw an Oriole on the jelly feeder here 5 minutes ago…..still chasing those pesky blackbirds off of the suet feeder. Grrrrr……gotta make a run to Bomgaars later for some coconut fiber liners for my 4 hanging baskets, as well as a few other items. I also need another bag of potting soil.

      Eureka! I stepped out on the patio for a minute and lo and behold, there sits Wheezer, hunkered down on the foot stool in front of the chair. Why, you wonder, the hard stool vs. the soft cushioned chair??? 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️ Your guess is as good as mine!!!

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      1. Good Morning Filly!
        I was worried about you!!!
        yesterday I refilled the jelly feeder three times! of course, mine is small–a small sour cream container cut to about an inch tall…lol. When it’s empty, the one oriole comes beneath the hummer feeder on the riling and sings. then i go out and check and it’s empty…lol

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        1. I use this small one w/a glass custard cup inside it for the jelly. Not that expensive…..

          Here us another one that holds the whole jar:

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      1. Liked by 2 people

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  5. Ben Hart
    @BenHart_Freedom
    HOLD ON! https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/1f6a8.svgTHE VIRGINIA SUPREME COURT’S CANCELLING OF THE DEM CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING MAP NOW CALLS INTO QUESTION THE LEGALITY OF CALIFORNIA’S REDISTRICTING!https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/1f6a8.svg

    California’s constitution requires a 30-day waiting period after a bill is introduced before any action can be taken. 

    The only way the waiting period can be waived is by a three-fourths vote of the legislature. This did not happen . . . because waiving the 30-day waiting period does not have 3/4ths of the votes in the legislature.

    Prop 50 was introduced on August 18, 2025, and passed on August 21, 2025.

    There’s also the issue that mid-decade redistricting is illegal under California law, which the California Supreme Court had already ruled was prohibited under Article XXI of the California constitution.

    These issues have not been litigated yet in any court. 

    While there is near zero chance any California court would overturn the new map (that awards Dems 5 seats), the Federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, might overturn Proposition 50, which was enacted in clear violation of California’s own laws and state Constitution.

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  7. Kamala says Black women in politics need to start saying “I’m gonna get mine also,” but that appears to be the problem:

    Cori Bush illegally funneled campaign funds to her husband to serve as her personal bodyguard.

    Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick was indicted for stealing $5 million in FEMA funds.

    Louise Lucas was raided by the FBI for bribery and corruption.

    Ayanna Pressley used her office to secure contracts for her felon husband Conan Harris’s real estate rentals and consulting firm.

    Maxine Waters was charged with three ethics violations in 2008 for securing $12 million in TARP bailouts to her husband Sidney Williams’s OneUnited Bank.

    Ilhan Omar’s net worth exploded by 6,500% since taking office, then said it was an accounting error, and helped her Somali friends steal over $250 million meant for hungry kids.

    Jahana Hayes paid $500,000 to her daughter and other relatives from campaign funds for “part-time services.”

    Jasmine Crockett spent tens of thousands from campaign funds on luxury goods and limo rides, stole money from an unaware elderly donor via 53 unauthorized ActBlue transactions, and failed to report 22 stock transactions.

    Sheila Jackson Lee was found to have received campaign donations from dead voters during her 2023 mayoral run, among other improper contributions.

    Corrine Brown was convicted in 2017 on 18 fraud and tax counts for a sham nonprofit scholarship scheme.

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  8. haitian national brutally beat victim with a hammer–he fled, was found and arrested. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty (case is in FLA) and Florida is now open for cases like this to use the firing squad. If found guilty, I hope they do.

    WHAT HAPPENED:Florida prosecutors have announced they will seek the death penalty against Rolbert Joachin, a Haitian national accused of murdering gas station clerk Nilufa Easmin with a hammer in Fort Myers on April 2. The attack, described as “incredibly violent,” was captured on video and occurred after Joachin allegedly smashed the windshield of the victim’s car.

    DETAIL: Surveillance footage reportedly showed the suspect repeatedly striking the victim in the head before fleeing the scene, prompting a citywide manhunt that ended with his arrest. Lee County State Attorney Amira Fox described the killing as “extremely brutal” and said the severity of the crime justified pursuing capital punishment. Federal officials said Joachin entered the United States in 2022 and was later granted Temporary Protected Status despite a removal order, drawing criticism from immigration enforcement advocates and political leaders. The case comes after President Donald J. Trump approved the use of firing squads in federal death penalty cases, with Florida officials stating they were also open to using firing squads. Republican Governor Ron DeSantis passed legislation last July stating that any form of execution was permissible in Florida as long as it was not deemed unconstitutional.

    KEY QUOTE: “This crime was so violent, so extreme, so unwarranted… It is something that—once seen—is never to be forgotten.” – State Attorney Amira Fox

    IMPACT: The case has reignited national debates over immigration enforcement, with President Donald J. Trump criticizing the former Biden regime for allowing Joachin to remain in the U.S.

    https://thenationalpulse.com/2026/05/08/prosecutors-seek-death-penalty-for-haitian-hammer-killer/

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  11. Freedom Ring

    May 9, 2026 8:29 am

    Satellite imagery revealed a massive suspected oil slick spreading near Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export terminal, in what experts say could be evidence that Tehran’s oil infrastructure is buckling under mounting U.S. pressure. The slick, seen in Copernicus Sentinel satellite images between Wednesday and Friday, covered roughly 45 square kilometers west of the island, according to analysts cited by Reuters.
    “At this stage I see two plausible explanations, and they’re not mutually exclusive,” Miad Maleki, an Iran sanctions and energy expert at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital.
    “One is operational: they simply didn’t ramp down extraction fast enough relative to their true onshore capacity and over-counted on empty tankers slipping through the blockade,” he said. Maleki said another possible explanation is mechanical failure tied to Iran’s use of aging tankers as floating storage or sanctions-busting carriers.

    https://www.foxnews.com/world/trump-blockade-squeezing-iran-so-hard-regime-may-dumping-oil-gulf-experts-say

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  14. this one aged well…LOL

    Liked by 1 person

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  17. I Meme Therefore I Am https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/1f1fa-1f1f8.svg
    @ImMeme0
    Woman who went to work for the social services department said she started out as a full liberal, but by the time she left the job, she came out a Republican.

    She says that through anyone’s Social Security number who applied for benefits, she was able to tell whether a person was working, owned property or cars, the status of their bank accounts, and their salary.

    However, she says there is a loophole that allows illegal aliens without a Social Security number to also apply for benefits such as food stamps, healthcare, housing, WIC, and childcare. 

    If these illegals had children, their kids would receive benefits as well. According to her, the department had no way to verify whether these immigrants had income, owned property, or how much money they made.

    She claims that illegal immigrant parents would receive $1,200 per child, plus $275 per person in cash assistance and food stamps, not mentioning free housing or other benefits. She also says that some people applying for benefits would show up with their hair and nails done, carrying expensive accessories and driving luxury cars.

    Meanwhile, American citizens often would not qualify for the same benefits. She added that this exists especially in liberal-led states like California, where leadership does not put regulations in place and allows this kind of fraud and abuse, while hard-working citizens are left to pay the bill.

    If this doesn’t make you angry, I don’t know what will.

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  20. Oh, my! Tales from the Oriole war!!! A male and female both landed on the frame, the female close by the big feeder, with the male perched on the top rail watching over her. She was just starting to feed when another male intruded and started chasing her, which necessitated HER male getting into the mix. Then another female showed up… they have all flown off now. A LOT of activity today – I wonder if the coming rain might affect that – still mostly males, tho. I’ve only seen 2 females so far.

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    1. the orioles aren’t fighting with each other anymore–they’re fighting with the grosbeaks…lol.

      there is one BIG grosbeak–a female and she acts like the queen of the jelly. then the bigger male oriole challenges–sometimes she backs off–some times she won’t.

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  21. Just The News: “U.S. forces fired upon two vessels Friday that were attempting to get past the U.S. blockade in the Strait of Hormuz. The two empty oil tankers were sailing under Iranian flags, heading through the strait to ports in Iran, according to U.S. Central Command. 

    A U.S. Navy fighter jet from USS George H.W. Bush fired precision munitions into the smokestacks of the ships, disabling them both. 

    On Wednesday, a Navy fighter jet fired rounds from a 20mm cannon into the rudder of another empty Iranian oil tanker and disabled it before it could reach Iran. 

    “U.S. forces in the Middle East remain committed to full enforcement of the blockade of vessels entering or leaving Iran,” Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander, said in a statement.”

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  22. Just The News: “A federal judge Friday scheduled former FBI Director James Comey’s upcoming criminal trial for July 15 at her court in North Carolina, after a grand jury in the state indicted him on two criminal charges. The decision comes a day after the same judge agreed to cancel Comey’s first court appearance in the state, because he had already surrendered himself to authorities and appeared in a Virginia court for the same case. His appearance was scheduled for Monday.

    Comey was indicted by a grand jury in North Carolina last month for posting a photo of shells on a beach last year with the inscription “86-47” that prosecutors alleged was a threat against the president. 

    U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan, who will oversee the trial, instructed Comey’s legal team to file all of its pretrial motions by June 5 and said Comey can make his first official appearance in her court to enter his plea on June 30.

    Comey’s team is expected to frame the case as a retribution campaign and will seek to toss the new indictment as selective and vindictive prosecution, according to The Hill.

    The former director has been officially charged with making a threat against the president and transmitting a threat in interstate commerce. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.”

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  24. This guy, Dan Osborn, is a flat-out liar and I will never, ever vote for him!!! He’s a big union guy. Nebraskans aren’t stupid, except those around the Omaha and Lincoln area, maybe North Platte, which has been overrun with Hispanics for many years! Just more election shenanigans!

    EXCERPT: “Nebraskans will vote next week in the U.S Senate primary race to determine which Republican and which Democrat will face off in November for the congressional seat. But a closer look reveals the latest in Democrat election rigging — complete with legal help from Russia Collusion hoaxer Marc Elias. The apparent master plan involves leveraging the primary race to prop up the so-called “nonpartisan” candidate vying for the Senate seat, who, under an “independent” facade, has deep leftist ties that could threaten fair representation in the red state.

    On May 12, Democrat candidates Cindy Burbank and William Forbes will face off in the Democrat primary for the U.S. Senate seat. Republican incumbent Pete Ricketts will face his primary opposition on the same day. However, as The New York Times points out, if Ricketts secures the primary victory, his competitor in the general election is most likely to be Dan Osborn — the “nonpartisan” candidate endorsed by the Nebraska Democrat leaders and widely known to be a “fake independent.”

    Osborn has claimed he is “not beholden to a party boss.” But as Fox News has detailed, Osborn received campaign contributions from prominent, out-of-state Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and, during his failed 2024 campaign for the same seat, Sen. Chuck Schumer’s PAC.

    Osborn has also been a client of Fight Agency, a Democrat strategist agency that also collaborated with leftists like Bernie Sanders and Zohran Mamdani. Osborn also uses the clearly fraud-ridden Democrat fundraising platform ActBlue and has come under fire for “funneling” a large quantity of campaign cash to members of his family.

    National Republican Senatorial Committee Regional Press Secretary Nick Puglia told The Federalist “there’s no doubt” Osborn “wants to import the radical left’s agenda into Nebraska.” According to Fox, “even top Democrats have suggested they will pick up another seat in Congress if Osborn wins.”

    Unlike in 2024, candidates are running in a Democrat primary in Nebraska for the U.S. Senate seat this year. As previously mentioned, this includes Burbank, who was thrown off the primary ballot in March by Republican Secretary of State Bob Evnan. According to the Nebraska Examiner, Evnan’s decision came after Nebraska Republicans filed a complaint alleging Burbank “is not a ‘good-faith’ candidate, because she has no plans to serve in the office she seeks.” They highlighted remarks on the Democrat’s website, where she “wrote that if she won the Democratic nomination, she would support nonpartisan candidate Dan Osborn against Republican U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts.”

    Burbank successfully sued to get back on the ballot, represented by none other than Democrat lawfare-fiend Marc Elias‘ law firm. (Notably, Elias’ law firm is also on Osborn’s payroll, according to FEC filings.)

    Burbank’s campaign website still endorses Osborn, including her obvious commitment to help him secure a “fair shot against Ricketts.” In fact, the primary purpose of Burbank’s campaign is clearly to promote Osborn and disparage her fellow Democrat candidate, Forbes, whom she and other state Democrats claim is a “fake” planted by Ricketts in the primary to “split the vote against him and win.” Forbes said he voted for Trump in previous elections but also insisted “that he’s a lifelong Democrat,” CNN reported…..”

    https://thefederalist.com/2026/05/08/this-is-a-con-democrats-use-nebraska-senate-primary-to-boost-fake-independent/

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  29. The United States executed a brilliant military gambit that forced the Islamic Republic to expose parts of its hidden naval and missile network in the Persian Gulf.

    As Sun Tzu wrote: “Offer the enemy a bait to lure him; feign disorder and strike him.”

    That is exactly what appears to have happened in the Strait of Hormuz.

    The three U.S. Arleigh Burke-class destroyers involved in the May 7 confrontation, USS Truxtun, USS Rafael Peralta, and USS Mason, were not simply transiting the Strait of Hormuz. 

    They were positioned as highly visible targets designed to provoke an Iranian response.

    Iran’s IRGC took the bait.

    Its so-called “mosquito fleet” doctrine relies on swarms of fast attack boats, drones, coastal missile launches, and asymmetric harassment tactics launched from concealed positions along the Persian Gulf coastline and nearby islands.

    The destroyers looked vulnerable. They were not.

    The moment the attack began, U.S. ISR assets, including radar aircraft, drones, satellites, and naval systems, traced launch signatures and identified attack vectors in real time.

    That allowed the U.S. military to rapidly expose and target parts of Iran’s hidden launch infrastructure connected to the assault.

    Reported targets included:

    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/26aa.svg IRGC-linked positions on Qeshm Island, Bandar Abbas, Bandar Khamir, and Sirik

    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/26aa.svg Coastal missile launch infrastructure

    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/26aa.svg Drone and fast attack boat staging sites

    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/26aa.svg Mine-laying vessels

    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/26aa.svg Weapons storage and logistics facilities

    No U.S. destroyers were hit.

    The broader significance is that Iran’s asymmetric naval doctrine was temporarily turned against itself.

    For years, the Islamic Republic relied on concealment, deniability, underground infrastructure, dispersed launch systems, and swarm tactics designed to complicate retaliation and avoid direct conventional confrontation.

    Instead, the attack exposed elements of that network in real time and allowed the U.S. to rapidly strike supporting infrastructure behind it without a prolonged escalation cycle.

    This is modern military strategy at its most effective: force the enemy to reveal hidden systems through aggression, map operational networks instantly, and destroy critical nodes before they can reposition or disappear.

    The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most strategically important maritime chokepoints, with roughly 20% of global oil flows moving through it.

    By forcing Iran to expose key components of its coastal strike network, the U.S. not only defended its vessels but also dealt a significant blow to one of the Islamic Republic’s core asymmetric warfare capabilities in the Gulf.

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  30. 47,000%???? UNREAL!

    @EricLDaugh
    https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/17.0.2/svg/1f6a8.svg JUST IN: NORTH CAROLINA has just reported a *47,000% THOUSAND PERCENT* increase in autism billings, Nick Shirley’s right-hand man David Hoch reveals

    The fraud is literally EVERYWHERE.

    “Now we see in North Carolina, the story came out today that they’ve had a 47,000% increase in autism billings, 47,000% over what 4 years?! It’s impossible!”

    North Carolina needs Nick Shirley!

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  32. running as an independent? splitter strategy….

    Marina

    @TheRealMarina0

    Senator John Fetterman will register as an Independent to run for re-election in 2028. “I can’t see continuing to associate with my current party,” said Fetterman, “I’m never gonna be a communist who believes men should use the girls’ bathroom.” Fetterman says he’s evolved a lot since coming to Washington. “I’ve learned that everyone in the Democrat party is willing to lie, cheat, and steal if they think it hurts President Trump.”

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  33. AWESOME…they ARE NOT self governing!

    kalbokalbs

    kalbokalbs(@kalbokalbs)

    Online

    Wolf

    May 9, 2026 15:18

    Texas Orders Unauthorized Dallas-Area Muslim ‘University’ to Cease Operations Immediately
    Governor Greg Abbott has directed the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) to order the immediate shutdown of an unauthorized Muslim “university” operating in the Dallas suburb of Richardson.
    The fake “university,” calling itself the “Texas American Muslim University at Dallas,” has been marketing and enrolling students in degree programs, including master’s degrees in Artificial Intelligence and bachelor’s programs in computer science, IT, cybersecurity, and health informatics, without state approval.

    The school openly promoted that roughly 30 percent of its curriculum consists of mandatory Islamic studies courses, billing itself as “the first university in the USA to offer STEM degree programs embedded with mandatory courses in Islamic Studies.”

    On Thursday, the THECB issued a formal cease-and-desist letter demanding that the institution immediately “cease advertising, offering, and enrolling students in degrees or programs of study” and stop using protected terms such as “university.”

    More…
    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/05/texas-orders-unauthorized-dallas-area-muslim-university-cease/

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  34. FloridaFredOutWest

    May 9, 2026 1:44 pm

    Krish Vignarajah here gets paid $700,000 a year to use your money to flood your community with welfare-dependent third worlders.

    She is the CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (Global Refuge) which has received $ 1.7 billion for refugee resettlement since 2011.

    She previously worked in the Obama White House as Policy Director for Michelle Obama and at the State Department as Senior Advisor under Hillary Clinton and John Kerry.

    https://x.com/Oilfield_Rando/status/2052873918218694696

    Another Indian immigrant citizen being enriched by the taxpayer to destroy American culture. A perfect example of the fraud machines disguised as NGOs and religious charitable organizations.

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  36. Well, alrighty then…..the remaining plants have now been potted (2 additional ones I got @ Bomgaars earlier and the 4 red wave petunias for the hanging baskets) and the mouse chased out of the bag of bird seed!

    I picked up another bag yesterday that is bigger than my usual size so I had just plopped it down on top a bunch of twigs and branches in a metal bucket on the patio until I could make room in the bin in the house.

    Didn’t take long for that little fucker to find it!!! I shook the bag and he jumped out and hid under the branches in the bucket so I took the entire bucket outside and set it in the driveway. He had already tried the bait I put out when I got home – I could hear the container moving around. It’s one of those little “house” types that the mouse goes inside to eat the poison.

    Phew! I also picked up some Salonpas heat patches with capsicum for my back. It’s really hurting after all the carrying and bending – hope it helps a little at least. But knowing that I’m done with my planting helps, too.

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    1. I would have been screaming from the mouse!

      We just got my mom something called Bio-Freeze for her knees. they hurt her so bad she didn’t want to walk. it’s a roll on like a deodorant. the aid was happy we got it for Mom–she herself uses it–and while we talked to Mom, she said her knees were already feeling better and better.

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      1. Meh! They don’t bother me that much but I do NOT want them in my house or on my patio!!! It’s wonderful that she’s feeling less pain. Even tho I can’t feel the heat with my hand, my back does seem to be hurting less so we’ll see how it goes.

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  37. Just The News: “Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is calling for the U.S. Secret Service to conduct a full audit of “every single employee on its payroll,” citing numerous security concerns such as the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting as a recent example.

    Blackburn said the correspondents’ dinner incident shows the agency needs to be cleaned up.

    “Following a string of scandals, personnel issues, and security failures, I am calling on the Secret Service to conduct an immediate audit of every single employee on its payroll. If this agency does not root out the rot, our nation will suffer the consequences,” Blackburn wrote on X alongside a copy of her letter.”

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  38. Liked by 1 person

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  39. Wall Street Apes
    @WallStreetApes
    Nick Shirley says it’s getting harder to investigate fraud for a number of reasons

    – He’s become very recognizable to fraudsters because of social media
    – Fraudsters are on high alert right now because of his reporting
    – Fraudsters are covering up the fraud
    – some fraudsters are taking what they’ve stolen and leaving America

    Impact 

    – The Federal Government shut down over 500 hospices in California. Not a single hospice has said, hey, open our hospice back up. 

    – In Minnesota, they froze $250 million of payments for childcare there. Not a single daycare sent a single receipt

    – They just raided 22 daycares and other welfare programs. Not a single mother complained about her child not being able to go to a daycare. 

    The real problem is none of the politicians who have let it happen have been held accountable. Not a single one

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  40. “This describes a famous experiment conducted by the Greek scholar Eratosthenes around 240 BCE to measure the size of the Earth.

    Observation: Eratosthenes noticed that at noon on the summer solstice, the Sun was directly overhead in Syene (modern-day Aswan), casting no shadow down a deep well. At the same time in Alexandria, further north, he observed that a vertical stick (gnomon) did cast a shadow.

     He measured the angle of this shadow, which was approximately 7.2 degrees, or 1/50th of a circle. 

    By assuming the distance between the two cities was roughly 5,000 stadia (about 800 kilometers) and multiplying that distance by 50, he calculated the Earth’s circumference to be about 40,000 kilometers, a value remarkably close to modern calculations.”

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  49. “The Iran War: Who Will Win?”

    Michael T. Flynn LTG USA (RET), May 09, 2026

    “To invoke theory for a moment; wars are fundamentally contests of national willpower backed by capability, directed by strategy. Achieving victory requires the victor to overcome the enemy’s resistance. The side that manages the combination of resources & willpower while imposing its political objectives usually wins.

    While there is no single factor, victory is the outcome of multiple interlocking advantages that compound over time. History shows no magic bullet; even overwhelming superiority in one area can be negated by failure in others (think Vietnam, Somalia, Afghanistan, even Korea). All to say, the war with Iran does not equate to WWII conditions.

    What determines victory?

    1. Political will and coherence among the political machinery of a nation. The side that can sustain higher costs longer, maintain domestic support, and clearly define winnable goals usually prevails. You can win militarily and still lose the war. The side whose political system better handles the stress of prolonged conflict holds the edge.

    2. Economic and logistical power or the ability to sustain a prolonged war. There is a saying in warfare, “amateurs talk tactics; professionals talk logistics.” Industrial capacity, supply chains, finance, and the ability to replace losses decide long wars. History teaches many examples where this was simply not the case. Especially in wars of attrition (ie., Vietnam).

    3. Strategy and operational art or better stated, good strategy multiplies force; bad strategy wastes it. Strategies such as maneuver warfare used by the Germans in WWII (see above), attrition strategies that favor your strengths (Russians fighting Napoleon & Hitler along their Eastern Front), or exhaustion strategies (the use of Fabian tactics, simply wearing your opponent down). A boxing fan would know this as the rope-a-dope strategy applied by heavy weight boxing champion, Muhammad Ali. Learning faster than the enemy, adapting to clear weaknesses, and using good intelligence wisely, all matter. History is replete with many “genius” generals who lost because their strategy didn’t match the resources or the politics along with their failure to adapt nor recognize their need to adapt.

    4. Technology and force quality where technology advantages are real but transient and rarely decisive alone (stealth drones, aircraft carriers, hypersonic weapons, suicide bombers, AI, electronic warfare, cyber, robotics, targeting from space, etc) are all being shaped or are reshaping modern warfare at speed. Victory can be achieved by the adapter of risk and new technology matched by courage in the political halls as well as on the battlefield. Superior training, sound but flexible doctrine, and human capital often matter more than raw equipment, essentially the side that integrates new technology faster wins (ie., Houthi rebels using ballistic missiles and drones to deny passage thru the Red Sea).

    5. Manpower, morale, and alliances matter when quality is comparable. High morale (belief you’re fighting for something real) can sustain casualties. So far we’ve been blessed that our casualty figures are low (one casualty is hard but the human cost of war is real). Coalitions bring resources and legitimacy but add friction. Geography clearly favors the defender Iran in this case. And our need to project power is necessary but super expensive.

    So what? What type of war is this? Is it a short war, is it another long war, is it an asymmetric war?

    Bottom line: There is no romantic answer for this war. War is a failure of diplomacy. War is ugly. War is costly. Wars are usually won by the side better at converting resources into sustained, coherent violence in service of achievable goals. The loser is often the one that miscalculates the other’s resolve or their own vulnerabilities. I pray we didn’t do that here. This war is a test of endurance as much as tactics.

    Pray America & Americans can endure.”

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    1. i think iran’s resources are getting thin. unless they keep getting supplied by other countries they’re toast. POTUS is definitely trying not to go “nuclear” on them…giving them every chance to negotiate. BUT also hoping the iranian people will rise up and help.

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