TBoneTX

Interesting points here, contrasting current Papal views with historical views. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Pope Francis continues his war on Israel What most people don't know is that, for around 1,600 years, the papacy, while it hasn't embraced the Jews (obviously), has been the Jews' protector. The papacy recognized that Jews and Christians are family, bound together by the God of the Old and New Testaments. More recently, the papacy has recognized that leftism, which seeks to destroy a Biblical world, is the Jews' and Christians' common enemy. Pope Francis' increasingly openly expressed enmity toward Israel, the world's only Jewish state, marks a profound break with this tradition and speaks to my personal belief that his values are informed more by Marx than by Jesus. [...] https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2024/12/pope_francis_continues_his_war_on_israel.html

What do you see as the pros & cons? Comment, please. I like the first commenter: "Let the Israelis do this... at cost plus 20%." --------------------------- 'Hope Trump makes this hell less hot': Trump's threats to take out Mexico's cartels has Mexicans cheering Over the weekend, President-elect Trump stated that he intended to declare Mexico's drug cartels 'terrorist' organizations and come after them. As Reuters reported: [...] https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2024/12/hope_trump_makes_this_hell_less_hot_trump_s_threats_to_take_out_mexico_s_cartels_has_mexicans_cheering.html

Sabotaging Trump's presidency With only a month to go in his term as president, Joe Biden is making sure that he is known as a nasty, vindictive loser who cares nothing about the country or the people in it. Biden is "solely focused on sabotaging the incoming Trump administration" during his final weeks in office, said Fox News host Sean Hannity. Reflecting a desire for vengeance rather than constructive governance, Biden's actions don't "seem to make any sense at all to anybody. All vengeance." [...] https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2024/12/sabotaging_trump_s_presidency.html

Guess Who's Having an Energy Crisis? [...] Iran sits on some of the most expansive energy reserves in the world, both in oil and natural gas. Had they spent the last two decades developing those fields rather than nuclear weapons, perhaps Iranians would be able to turn on the lights and the heat this winter. Instead, the teetering mullahcracy faces a potentially destabilizing energy crisis, right when they face other pressures related to their decisions in their conflict with Israel: [...] https://hotair.com/ed-morrissey/2024/12/24/guess-whos-having-an-energy-crisis-n3798195

https://x.com/ShouldHaveCat?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1871324863815713174|twgr^186d0c5b9fad506800a97fa6b281ae48251b3ef3|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpjmedia.com%2Fstephen-kruiser%2F2024%2F12%2F24%2Fthe-morning-briefing-greenland-seems-like-a-wonderful-stocking-stuffer-n4935393 See the above!

Bombshell Photos Reveal Joe and Hunter Biden's Ties to Chinese Officials It's hardly news that Joe Biden is a liar. And lately, he's actually being called out for it. After repeatedly denying he would pardon his son Hunter, he went ahead and did it anyway—as anyone could have predicted. Another lie he repeated often was that he never discussed business deals with Hunter. The evidence proving he was lying has been out there for a long time now, but new photos released this week further undermine Joe's claims. The National Archives released a series of photos showing Joe Biden, during his vice presidency, meeting with Chinese officials and Hunter Biden's business associates. This release came after mounting pressure from the conservative group America First Legal and raises serious questions about Joe Biden's repeated denials of involvement in his son's business dealings. [...] https://pjmedia.com/matt-margolis/2024/12/24/bombshell-photos-reveal-joe-and-hunter-bidens-ties-to-chinese-officials-n4935413

Somebody is setting off fireworks on Christmas Eve, why man?!

Other neighbor (retired mechanical engineer) doesn't think it's our leak, no D ma'am. He looked at our street meter and saw no needle moving, confirmed by we man man. It's not our neighbor on the flooded side, just checked she man. It might be a neighbor across back fence who's had recent tree work done, tentatively conclude we man man. If this is correct, it's merely a soggy mess (inhibiting mow-lawning) until resolved, shrug we man. We were not looking forward to paying a plumber, NO man!

Thrilling Tuesday report, see man: We had an Occupational Therapy caucus (hands/wrists) set for 1 p.m., long drive man. They had cancellations and asked if we could come earlier, agree to noon we man. We ate nothing and blew out of the casa, fearing bad traffic man. We arrived at half-an-hour-till-noon, traffic not that fierce man. We were seen precisely at noon, see they man we man man. Nice OT-ess took careful history, functional readings, and measurements, thorough she man. Gave us exercises, names of equipment & where to get it, and encouragement, si man. After the full hour, we left feeling encouraged, amazing man. This was perhaps the best medical hour that we've ever experienced, conclude we man. Traffic worse on return, fiercer man. We stopped at Costco Business Center for 2 soon-to-be-needed items, don't run out man. We left with Many (2+2+1) items, all pleasant finds man. One was a pack of Many (2+2+1) Subway gift cards for the price of Many (2+2), financially savvy we man. We were very well pleased, pleased we man. Returned to casa at half-of-half till Many p.m., return we man. Miu was interested in miu-lunch, lobby miu we man man. We dealt with miu and purchases, si man. Breakfast/lunch/din-din was the remaining Many (2+1) slices of 'roni 'za, ingest we man. A wonderful siesta was taken thereafter, zzz we man. Side yard is flooding, uh-oh man. The outside spigot is bone-dry, that part good man. We suspect an underground leak, we man. Plumber will be expen$ive, and man. Party with the rubias this eve, cavort we man. And that was/is our thrilling Tuesday, report we man.

No rob-cradling here, no man. It would be worse for longer if hurricane season started later, consider man. Gracias and the same, si man. We have quite enough Pre-Owned Toilet Seats of our own, gracias anyway man. If you want that seat to be revived fashionably, you underpaid, man!

And why would this be desirable when humans are inferior primates? Derailing thread -- reported!!! Discriminating against a group on the basis of shared characteristics -- reported!!! Now back to topic, si and see man.

Addendum to Thrilling Monday Report, see additionally man: We curbsided the garbage, jetsamic we man. We noted a wet part of the sidewalk, weird because no rain man. The lawn leading up to it was wet, uh-oh man. We blew through our casa around to the back of our casa, blow we man. The grass there was wet, uh-oh man. Our one outside spigot was dry, relief man. We investigated farther back in the back yard, investigate we man. It was wet all the way to our back fence along the side fence, discover we man. Neighbor in back probably left a hose running or has a leak, have to notify man. Miu was highly interested during garbage and in/out processes, interested miu man. Miu is currently zooming around, aysheep miu man. We are currently finishing Mini-B.'s partially consumed half-gallon of chocolate milk, ingest we man. This and the 'roni 'za box will soon be curbsided, efficient we man.

As a reminder, some of the top stories are here: https://theonion.com/our-annual-year-2024/

Report: Requests To Prove One Is Not A Robot Up 400,000% Over Past 500 Years NEW YORK—In a report released Tuesday that has been hailed as equal parts fascinating and perplexing, researchers at Columbia University found that requests to prove one is not a robot have gone up 400,000% over the past 500 years. "During the Elizabethan era, for example, people were rarely asked to prove they were not a robot," said report author Walter Lockwood, who noted that he and his colleagues were left scratching their heads over the staggering increase in requests that had occurred over the past half millennium. [...] https://theonion.com/report-requests-to-prove-one-is-not-a-robot-up-400-000-1851557038/

We never mentioned this, to my knowledge. South Korea got all the press. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Romanian court annuls result of presidential election first round Romania's constitutional court has annulled the result of the first round of voting in the presidential election just days before the second round was due to take place. It means the process will be restarted from scratch, with the government due to decide a date for a new vote. The first round was won by Calin Georgescu, an almost unknown far-right Nato-sceptic who has previously praised Vladimir Putin. The court's decision comes after intelligence documents were declassified, suggesting Georgescu benefitted from a mass influence operation – conducted from abroad – to interfere with the result of the vote. Hours after the court's decision, Georgescu told a Romanian TV channel that the country's democracy was "under attack", describing the verdict as a "formalised coup d'etat". [...] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4x2epppego

Name your top several moments of 2024, ranked. ------- Mine are: 1. "Soft landslide" reelection of Trump. 2. Israelis explode Hezbollah pagers ("From the liver to the knee!"). 3. Attempted Trump assassination #1.

Thoughts on this? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ How Will a Merger of Honda and Nissan Affect the Auto Industry? Two Japanese automakers are merging and planing to create the third-largest auto manufacturer in the world. It's a move that hopes to rejuvenate the Japanese auto industry. "Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan have announced plans to work toward a merger that would form the world's third-largest automaker by sales, as the industry undergoes dramatic changes in its transition away from fossil fuels," the Associated Press reports. "The two companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday and that smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors Corp. also had agreed to join the talks on integrating their businesses." The two companies want to fast-track the merger. They're aiming at drafting a formal merger agreement by the summer and putting the new company on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by August 2026. The merger would put the new company just behind Toyota and Volkswagen as the third-largest automaker worldwide. [...] https://pjmedia.com/chris-queen/2024/12/23/how-would-a-merger-of-honda-and-nissan-affect-the-auto-industry-n4935379

Great article on an under-discussed subject. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Canada, the Panama Canal, and Now Greenland. What's Behind Trump's Expansionist Rhetoric? First, President-elect Donald Trump tweaked Canada's far-left Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about becoming governor of the 51st state of the United States of America. Then he said that the Panama Canal should once again come under American control. Make that the 52nd state. And now, are you ready for a 53rd state? On Sunday, Trump renewed a call he made during his first term: that the United States should buy Greenland from Denmark. Could the man possibly be serious? [...] https://pjmedia.com/robert-spencer/2024/12/23/canada-the-panama-canal-and-now-greenland-whats-behind-trumps-expansionist-rhetoric-n4935388

Scintillating Monday repartee, yawn man. ----- Thrilling Monday report, see man: Awoke >1 hour before alarm went off again today, man. Was just in time for a text from the JC, junior chica man. Trying to work out meeting up with us on a trip next month, unclear at this writing man. Went out on an errand today, venturous we man. Traffic was awful, never seen anything like it man. Breakfast/lunch/din-din was a 'roni 'za from the place with the Monday specials, ingest we man. Have a medical caucus 2 Manyzen miles from the casa on Tuesday, man. Not looking forward to fighting more traffic, no man. Party with the rubias tonight, cavort we man. And that was/is our thrilling Monday, report we man.

As is anyone who supported Beeto, Beeto [dumb bum dumb bum]

If he gets to sniff the kids' hair!

Dunno about the exemption, but you might contact a Federal judge to learn what the legal implications are. It would be interesting to hear them.

Thus trashing the juries' decisions, the judges' sentences, and the families' closure.

Way to remember this thread, Bill, and thanks for the update.

Thread is moved to the Removing Conditions forum.