ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (TCN) — A 67-year-old man stands accused of living with his 92-year-old mother’s decomposing body.
According to the St. Petersburg Police Department, on April 6, a landlord requested a welfare check for his tenant, Susan King, because they had not heard from her for several months. Responding officers made contact with King’s son, Michael Moulton, who claimed his mother was “visiting a friend’s home and would be back in a day or two.”
Police went back to the residence the following day to see if King had returned. However, officers searched the home and reportedly located King’s body in an “advanced stage of decomposition.” An autopsy showed no signs of trauma or foul play.
Police said they arrested Moulton for a 2013 warrant for failure to appear on a theft charge. Additional charges are pending. Moulton was booked into the Pinellas County Jail.
Man Lived with Mother’s Decomposing Body – St. Petersburg Police Department
Beijing: China on Thursday said it will resolutely adopt countermeasures after President Donald Trump imposed 34 per cent tariffs on over USD 438 billion Chinese imports to America, which is China’s third largest export market.
Trump announced tariffs on Chinese imports on Wednesday, unveiling them as part of a sweeping “Liberation Day” package aimed at reshaping American trade policy.
China firmly opposes the US “reciprocal tariffs” and will resolutely adopt countermeasures to safeguard its rights and interests, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce said after Trump’s announcement.
The tariffs brought the total levies on China to 54 percent, close to the 60 per cent Trump threatened during his presidential campaign. [the US President] had earlier imposed two rounds of 10 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods, first in February and then in March this year, while saying he would consider lowering tariffs on China if Beijing supported a deal for ByteDance to divest its short-video app TikTok to a US buyer.
China earlier also retaliated against Trump’s tariffs with an additional 15 per cent tariff on American goods and initiated legal action against Washington in the WTO. Additionally, China added 10 US firms to the country’s unreliable entity list and took corresponding measures against them. They include a number of companies linked to defence and security besides AI, aviation, IT and “dual-use” items that carry both civilian and military applications.
Though Chinese officials argue that the new tariffs would hurt US consumers more, the new tariffs were expected to lower substantial exports to the US, hitting its industries back home heavily, which are already reeling under the impact of the slowdown of the Chinese economy.
The US constitutes China’s third biggest export destination after ASEAN and the European Union, with the US total goods trade with China estimated at USD 582.4 billion in 2024, according to the figures from the Office of the US Trade Representative. US goods exports to China in 2024 were USD 143.5 while the US imports from China in 2024 totalled USD 438.9 billion. The US goods trade deficit with China was USD 295.4 billion in 2024.
With heavy tariffs, Trump is putting pressure on China to buy more US industrial and agricultural goods and products.
Speaking from the White House’s Rose Garden, Trump said
“We’re going to be charging a discounted reciprocal tariff of 34 per cent”.
[According to Trump], China charged tariffs of 67 per cent to the US, noting that the figure included the effects of currency manipulation and trade barriers. The new 34 per cent tariffs on Chinese imports reflect a 10 per cent universal baseline plus 24 per cent specific to the country. The 10 per cent will come into effect on April 5 while the higher reciprocal tariffs will take effect on April 9.
Trump had vowed for months to impose reciprocal tariffs to match other countries’ higher tariff rates for specific goods and offset non-tariff barriers that put US exports at a disadvantage, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.
Trump emphasised that the new levies would correct years of “unfair” trade during which other countries had been “ripping” off the US. At the White House, Trump described his actions on China as “tough love”.
“I have great respect for President Xi (Jinping) of China, great respect for China, but they were taking tremendous advantage,” he said.
Responding to the tariff announcement, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said: “China’s opposition to the imposition of additional tariffs has always been consistent and clear.”
“China believes that protectionism leads nowhere, and trade and tariff wars have no winners,” the Post quoted Liu Penguy.
See more news from Siasat Daily
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(SOURCE)
Header featured image (edited) credit: Illustration TAYLOR CALLERY. Emphasis added by (TLB)
LINCOLN COUNTY, Mo. (TCN) — A woman who has reportedly fostered more than 200 children over the years allegedly abused a teenage girl she was supposed to care for and abandoned her in a dirty Texas house.
According to an April 6 news release from the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and Prosecuting Attorney, the investigation began after the victim disappeared and was later located in Texas. Authorities arrested and charged a suspect, Brenda Deutsch, on charges of neglect, child abuse, and child endangering as a result.
Per a probable cause statement reviewed by KSDK-TV, the young victim told police Deutsch allegedly struck her with a paddle, wooden trim, shoes, and her hand. The victim alleged that in one instance, someone held the girl down while Deutsch hit her bare buttocks.
The victim reportedly claimed that as punishment, Deutsch would take her clothes and give them away, and the suspect once had her transported to a psychiatric hospital and then admitted to a residential facility for nine months.
According to the probable cause statement, Deutsch had the girl stay with one of the suspect’s friends in Texas, where she was allegedly abandoned with exotic animals in unclean conditions. Deutsch allegedly told her friend she could keep the victim, but she would “be keeping the check.”
In a statement obtained by KSDK, Lincoln County Prosecutor Mike Wood said, “Two things that really stood out was the number of children that had been fostered through that home and then the allegations that these types of abuse and emotional neglect had been going on for what seemed to be perhaps a decade.”
Wood reportedly said investigators are looking into allegations claiming Deutsch traded the victim for a monkey. The prosecutor added, “A witness who had come forward with some information regarding the systemic abuse that was going on in the home had said that they had been asked to bring the child down to Texas and bring the monkey back in return. Obviously we have to do more investigation to see if that’s actually credible or if that’s true.”
The girl was reportedly transported to Child Protective Services in Texas.
Deutsch was booked into the Lincoln County Jail on $250,000 bond on April 6.
News Release – Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office/Lincoln County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
Woman who has fostered more than 200 children facing ‘particularly heinous’ abuse charges – KSDK
Labour Friends of Israel vs ICC: A Political Showdown
The Labour Government has opted to remain silent after the chair of the party’s prominent pro-Israel faction criticized the ICC for its arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu.
21WIRE
On February 6, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its Chief Prosecutor, Karim Khan. This order seeks to obstruct the ICC’s independent functions and poses a significant threat to the institution and its staff. United Nations experts have strongly condemned this move, calling it “an assault on the global rule of law” that undermines international justice.
IMAGE: LFI Chair Jon Pearce MP with Israel’s President Isaac Herzog (Source: Labour Friends of Israel)
In contrast, the Labour Government has opted to remain silent after the chair of the party’s prominent pro-Israel faction criticized the ICC for its arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu. Jon Pearce, the Labour Member of Parliament who leads the Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) group, which maintains strong connections with senior officials in the UK Government, stated that his organization considers the ICC warrant to be “morally questionable and legally uncertain.”
An investigation conducted by Declassified UK reveals that Labour Members of Parliament have received more than £280,000 from pro-Israel lobbying groups. Among those benefitting from this funding, eleven MPs have been supported by Trevor Chinn, a wealthy businessman and veteran advocate for pro-Israel interests. Notably, eight of these MPs are presently part of Keir Starmer’s shadow cabinet, which could explain why UK ministers remained silent as Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) attacked the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu….
IMAGE: Former Labour Friends of Israel vice-chairs, now UK Government ministers (from left) Peter Kyle, Diana Johnson, Rachel Reeves, Pat McFadden, and Jonathan Reynolds (Source: PA)
UK ministers silent as Labour Friends of Israel mounts attack on ICC
The Labour Government has remained silent after the chair of the party’s most prominent pro-Israel group attacked the International Criminal Court (ICC) over its arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu.
Jon Pearce, the Labour MP who chairs the Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) group, which has close ties to the very top of the UK Government, said his organisation believes that the ICC warrant is “morally suspect [and] legally dubious”.
“We wouldn’t have dropped Britain’s objection to it,” Pearce added in a column for the Jerusalem Post, which was written after a trip to Israel in which he met with top ministers including the country’s president Isaac Herzog, and first reported in the UK by Turn Left Media’s Lewis Aaron.
Pearce further said that LFI opposes the UK Government’s decision to suspend 30 out of around 350 weapons export licences to Israel, and tacitly criticised Labour for restoring funding to UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.
IMAGE: Labour Friends of Israel chair Jon Pearce MP (Source: LFI)
It is unclear exactly who Pearce was speaking for because LFI no longer publishes a list of its supporters, as it did during the previous Westminster parliament, and declined to provide one when asked.
LFI also does not reveal its funders, but in 2017, its now-director Michael Rubin was filmed saying the group and the Israeli embassy “work really closely together”. The group did send an email confirming that Pearce is its chair and that it currently has three vice-chairs: MPs Sharon Hodgson, Damien Egan, and Mike Tapp. LFI then tried to recall that email, though it is unclear why.
According to a list which is no longer on the LFI website but can be viewed through the Internet Archive, some of Labour’s most senior ministers were members of the group.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, Technology Secretary Peter Kyle, and Crime Minister Diana Johnson were all LFI vice-chairs before last July’s General Election.
Asked if those ministers still supported LFI and backed Pearce’s criticism of the ICC, all five of their respective UK Government departments refused to comment.
“If I were them, I would be deeply concerned that a fellow colleague had made comments that would associate me with suggesting that we’re calling into question the International Criminal Court,” SNP MP Chris Law said. “That’s being as mild as possible.
“They’re probably not commenting because they don’t want division, but at the same time, silence is complicity.”
“The bottom line for me is the UK Government needs to make a statement to say that we fully uphold international rules-based order and international law, that we are fully committed to the International Criminal Court,” Law, the SNP MP for Dundee and his party’s international development spokesperson at Westminster, went on.
“I think the UK Government should make itself extremely clear. And for those individuals that are in the Labour Friends of Israel group, I would have thought it’d be wise for them to make it clear that the views held by Jon Pearce are not their views.
“If you don’t get that, that’s deeply worrying and should be raised in parliament because when the Government goes silent on stuff, it causes real concern about whether or not they still uphold the values, in this case, of the ICC.”
Law said the issue was particularly pressing given Hungary’s decision to withdraw from the ICC rather than uphold its obligations and arrest Netanyahu when he visited the country last week.
“What horrendous timing for Jon Pearce to write such a thing, because he’s taking the side of leaders such as Victor Orbán or Donald Trump, which is not a great look, to say the least,” the SNP MP said.
IMAGE: Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister of Israel Yoav Gallant have both been issued with ICC arrest warrants for crimes against humanity (Source: People & Power Documentary)
The ICC issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu and former Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024, saying the pair were wanted to stand trial for “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts”.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has been evasive about whether Labour would live up to the obligation to see Netanyahu arrested should he set foot on UK soil, saying only that “there is a proper legal process that has to be followed”. The ICC Act 2001 obliges UK ministers to see ICC warrants executed, with the “proper legal process” being only that it must be rubber-stamped by a legal official “satisfied that the warrant appears to have been issued by the ICC”.
Reeves, McFadden, Reynolds, and Kyle all attended an LFI event at the Labour Party conference last September, with The Independent reporting that it saw “one of the most significant and largest turnouts by senior ministers” of the entire conference.
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner also attended, reportedly in Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s place. Rayner, Reeves, and Pearce all spoke at the event, with Reeves thanking LFI “from the bottom of [her] heart” for changing Labour.
According to Declassified UK, Reeves, McFadden, Reynolds, Johnson, and Kyle have all visited Israel with LFI, and all but Kyle have accepted financial assistance from the Israeli state.
Other Labour ministers, including Health Secretary Wes Streeting, Foreign Secretary David Lammy, and Media Minister Chris Bryant have also gone on LFI-funded trips.
During Pearce’s visit to Israel late last month, he met with the country’s president Herzog, deputy foreign minister Sharren Haskel, opposition leader Yair Lapid, and Democrat’s leader Yair Golan.
After breaching a ceasefire agreement last month, Israel has ramped up its attacks on Gaza, which experts say amount to genocide. Last week, Netanyahu said Israel was “cutting up” the Palestinian region with a new “security corridor” through its south.
READ MORE ISRAEL NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Israel Files
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(TLB) PUBLISHED THIS ARTICLE FROM 21WIRE
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In this episode of “True Crime News,” Sergio Pino, a well-known Miami real estate developer, allegedly hired hit men and schemed to have them kill his wife amid their contentious multimillion-dollar divorce. Plus, Joe Gliniewicz was a beloved police lieutenant, youth mentor, and Army veteran. But he and his wife harbored a secret that led to his death.
Craig Murray writes about the radicalshift in Western philosophy
Major parties in most Western “democracies” support Israel’s genocide. This represents a radical shift in philosophy and structural movement among governments of the worst kind.
It is all a part of the same phenomenon. Western governments actively assisting genocide in Gaza; attacks on benefits for the disabled; a deliberate official narrative of Russophobia; rampant Islamophobia boosting the rise of extreme right-wing parties and fuelled by government anti-immigrant rhetoric; an incredible accumulation of wealth by the ultra-rich; rampant erosion of freedoms of speech and expression.
It is not happenstance that all of this is happening at the same time. It represents a radical shift in Western philosophy.
This shift is not simple to trace because anti-intellectualism is an essential part of the new philosophy. Therefore, this philosophy does not really have its equivalent of Bertrand Russell or Noam Chomsky, whose careful exposition of societal analysis and ideals, based on a comprehensive understanding of previous philosophical discourse, is being superseded.
IMAGE: Bernard-Henri Levy addresses students at Kyiv Mohyla University in Kyiv on May 16, 2014 (Source: AFP / Sergei Supinsky)
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If there is a current equivalent, we may look at Bernard Henri Levy, whose rejection of collectivism and support of individual rights moved ever rightwards into support of raw capitalism, invasions of Muslim countries and now outspoken support for the genocide in Gaza. If you want to find an embodiment of the shift in Western philosophy, it might be him. But few any longer pay attention to academic intellectuals sitting in their studies. The now-threadbare mantle of “public intellectual” in the West has passed to lightweight figures like Jordan Peterson and populist Islamophobes like Douglas Murray.
Part of this is institutional. In my youth, Bertrand Russell or AJP Taylor were quite likely to turn up giving serious talks on the BBC, and John Pilger was the most celebrated documentary maker in British media. But now left-wing voices are effectively banned from mainstream media, whilst left-wing academics are most unlikely to progress in academia. Academia is itself now entirely run on a corporate model in the UK as throughout all the West.
A young Noam Chomsky would almost certainly be told by the University authorities to stick to linguistics and leave aside the philosophy and politics, or not get tenure. Chomsky was already a renowned linguist in 1967, when he published his breakthrough essay “On the Responsibility of Intellectuals”. Essentially a call for academics to support the protest movement, a young professor who published it today would almost certainly get suspended if not sacked and even, in today’s climate, quite possibly arrested.
The deportations of students from the USA who have broken no law but protested against genocide; the fines there on universities for allowing free speech; the deportations of EU citizens from Germany for speaking out on Palestine; the police raid on the Quaker meeting house in London and the widespread “terrorism” charges against peaceful journalists – these are just examples of a wave of repression sweeping the major Western states.
They are all linked. It is a structural movement in government of the worst kind. It can only be compared to the wave of fascism that swept much of Europe in the 1930s.
The great irony, of course, is that it is the Western destruction of Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and the Western destabilisation of Syria that led to the massive wave of immigration to Europe that caused the rise of the far right. Over 1.5 million Syrian “refugees” were granted asylum in the EU, because they claimed to be on the anti-Assad side, which the West was supporting. AfD is very much a result of Merkel’s decision to accept 600,000 Syrian refugees in Germany.
IMAGE: ‘The East gets it done: Summer, sun, remigration’ — AfD campaigns on an anti-immigration platform in the eastern states (Source: dts-Agentur/dpa/picture alliance)
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Fascinatingly, now their side has “won” and a Western-backed government has been installed in Damascus, less than 1% of these refugees have returned to Syria. Despite the official anti-immigrant narratives of almost all Western governments, there seems to be no attempt to suggest that they might return. Indeed, those Western politicians most keen on deporting immigrants are the least likely to suggest that the reliably Zionist anti-Assad Syrians should leave, even though those same politicians portray Syria under al Jolani as a liberal paradise and rush to give it money.
The neo-con immigration narrative in Europe is peculiarly complex and flexible. Effectively, immigrants viewed as on the West’s side in its wars (Sunni Syrians, Ukrainians) have an open door.
Mass immigration to Europe is therefore a direct result of imperialist foreign policy, and that plays out in complex ways, with the West’s victims arriving against official disapproval and the West’s clients arriving with official approval.
Equally, the economic dislocation and large rise in inflation which also has strengthened the populist right, is itself exaggerated by Western foreign policy. The proxy war in Ukraine is largely responsible for the step change in Europe’s energy prices, with the destruction of the Nord Stream pipeline a key factor in the major struggles of German manufacturing industry.
Incredibly, for a year, the entire Western media and political class tried to enforce the lie that Russia destroyed its own pipeline – just as they claimed Hamas blew up the first of the dozens of hospitals and health centres destroyed by Israel.
IMAGE: Israeli leader Netanyahu is currently wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and egregious crimes against humanity.
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We come back to Gaza, as all serious discussion must at present. I cannot come to terms with the fact that the takeover of the political Establishment by Zionist interests – itself a consequence of the massive growth of the comparative wealth of the ultra-rich – is making it possible for the most brutal genocide possible to happen before the eyes of the world, with active support from the Western establishment.
It is not that the people do not want to stop it. It is that there is no mechanism connecting the popular will to the instruments of government. The major parties all support Israel’s genocide in almost all the Western “democracies”.
It has become impossible to deny the intention of Genocide now. Israel has stepped up its killing of children to dozens every day, is openly executing medics and destroying all healthcare facilities, is bombing desalination plants and is blockading all food.
The Zionist narrative on social media has shifted from denial of genocide to justification of genocide.
I simply cannot understand the mainstream tolerance of this Holocaust. I am living in an age where the power structures and social narratives I do not recognise as part of a societal organisation to which I can consent to belong. It is the British Labour Party which is actively supporting genocide whilst targeting the most vulnerable at home for cuts in income. It is the EU which is doing everything possible to promote World War 3 and transforming into a militarily aggressive organisation of Nazi leanings.
Still, it’s not all bad news.
Israel’s genocidal President Isaac Herzog welcomed Ruth Smeeth, Louise Ellman, Christian Wakeford and Margaret Hodge with open arms.
Look at Margaret’s face. She was having the time of her life. Bless her.
— Frank Owen’s Legendary Paintbrush (@OwenPaintbrush) April 6, 2025
The UK, US and other first-world nations are radically cutting overseas aid to provide money for imperialist military aggression. The broadly social democratic consensus of the Western world in my youth involved much dull compromise, but it was infinitely better and more hopeful than this Hell we are creating.
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Read more from Craig Murray’s blog
Header featured image (edited) credit: IMAGE: Destroyed buildings and roads seen after the Israel Defense Forces withdrew from the areas in Khan Younis on February 02, 2024. (Source: Abdulqader Sabbah/Anadolu). Emphasis added by (TLB)
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The Liberty Beacon Project is now expanding at a near exponential rate, and for this we are grateful and excited! But we must also be practical. For 7 years we have not asked for any donations, and have built this project with our own funds as we grew. We are now experiencing ever increasing growing pains due to the large number of websites and projects we represent. So we have just installed donation buttons on our websites and ask that you consider this when you visit them. Nothing is too small. We thank you for all your support and your considerations … (TLB)
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(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for emails of Dena Perkins, a section chief of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), regarding whistleblower retaliation (Judicial Watch Inc. v. U.S. Department of Justice (No, 1:25-cv-00891)).
Perkins was identified by Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, as an official who retaliated against whistleblowers who were considered pro-Donald Trump:
So, now I’m going to spend some time sharing statements from the whistleblowers who were retaliated against by some of the FBI officials Trump has recently fired.
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A third FBI whistleblower said, “On January 6, 2021, I took leave and went to see the President speak on the Ellipse. Later, my wife and I were among a crowd southwest of the Capitol. Even though we were involved in no violence, never set foot on the steps leading to the Capitol building, and never entered it, I self-reported my presence to the FBI after seeing the violence in news reports. The FBI did nothing at first, but more than a year later suspended my security clearance. Under the supervision of Jeff Veltri and Dena Perkins, investigators questioned my co-workers about whether I ever vocalized support for President Trump or objections to the COVID-19 vaccine. I was forced to take early retirement to pay bills and have essentially been sidelined from employment opportunities due to FBI abuse of the clearance system to target me for my political beliefs.”
A fourth FBI whistleblower and a registered Democrat said, “As a Security Division employee, I witnessed abuses committed against multiple employees by FBI senior leaders, particularly by Jeff Veltri and Dena Perkins. I also saw Security Division retaliate against five of its own employees for protesting these unlawful practices. Because I spoke out against these abuses, Perkins and Timothy Dunham suspended my security clearance, costing me my job and continuing employment, totaling approximately $700,000 in lost wages and retirement benefits.”
A fifth FBI whistleblower said, “Although some FBI leaders who abused the clearance process like Dena Perkins and Jeff Veltri have already left, they weren’t alone. Timothy Dunham approved Perkins’s wrongdoing and engaged in his own. While most Security Division employees are fantastic, some FBI leaders still remain within the Security Integrity and Investigations Section who’ll continue this abuse of the process.”
From FBI whistleblower Marcus Allen, “Jeff Veltri and Dena Perkins caused the suspension of my security clearance because I questioned whether the FBI Director was truthful to Congress and whether the FBI was obeying the law and Constitution in the January 6, 2021 investigations. Their actions left me without pay for over two years while other FBI officials prevented me from having other income. Although the FBI ultimately reinstated my clearance and settled my lawsuit, my career at the FBI was over and the financial and emotional damage to me and my family will never be completely restored.”
Another FBI whistleblower said, “After I was assigned to review Marcus Allen’s security clearance case, I noticed the file was missing relevant communications of Jeff Veltri, who ordered the opening of the case, Dena Perkins and FBI attorney Tasha Gibbs. Allen was entitled to those communications, which were evidence that his clearance suspension was retaliatory. Shortly after I completed the vast majority of work on the communication recommending Allen’s reinstatement, the Allen case was reassigned to another adjudicator and I was transferred to a different unit, apparently in reprisal for reporting the wrongdoing in the Allen suspension. I soon resigned from the FBI to avoid further retaliation. I believe Veltri, Perkins and Gibbs were responsible for retaliating against Allen, and that Giulio Arseni, Perkins and Gibbs were likely responsible for the retaliation against me.” [Marcus is represented by Judicial Watch.]
From FBI whistleblower Garret O’Boyle: “I faced retaliation from junior, mid and senior level ‘leaders’ in the FBI. More than 29 months later, I’m still indefinitely suspended without pay and benefits. Other whistleblowers have since confirmed that the FBI intentionally stranded me in the middle of a move and withheld our possessions to maximize the pain of my suspension. A new era of accountability and true whistleblower protection at the FBI is long overdue. FBI officials like Sean Clark, Sean Fitzgerald, Jeff Berkebile, Dena Perkins, Jeff Veltri, Jennifer Moore, Michael Schneider, Timothy Dunham and other leadership up to Christopher Wray are responsible for what happened to me and my family. Ensuring that they no longer work at the FBI isn’t retribution, its responsible leadership.”
Judicial Watch sued after the Justice Department failed to respond to a May 10, 2024, FOIA request for:
1. All emails sent to and from Section Chief Dena Perkins regarding “whistleblower”, “whistleblowers”, “O’Boyle”, “Veritas” and/or “Trump”.
2. All SF-50s and SF-52s for SC Perkins.
SF-50s and SF-52s are documents recording personnel actions such as promotions.
Perkins was among several FBI officials reportedly fired by the Trump administration.
“Our lawsuit shows elements of the FBI are still in cover-up mode about its mistreatment of agents who indicated support of Donald Trump or opposition to FBI abuses,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said. “Transparency and accountability can’t come soon enough.”
Judicial Watch is perhaps the nation’s leading FOIA litigant against the FBI on its corruption issues, as well as lawfare against President Trump.
In March 2025, Judicial Watch filed suit against the Justice Department for details of any investigations, inquiries, or referrals concerning potential misconduct of any person working for Special Counsel Jack Smith.
In September 2024, Judicial Watchsuedthe Justice Department for messages among top leaders of the FBI referencing social media posts of Special Agent Jeffrey Veltri, head of the Miami Field Office, which is investigating the September 15 assassination attempt against Donald Trump.
In May 2024, Judicial Watchuncovereda recording of aphone messageleft by an FBI special agent for someone at the Secret Service in the context of the raid on President Trump’s home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida.
In April 2024, Justice Departmentrecordsshowed that the FBI opened a criminal investigation of Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt after her killing and listed four “potential violations of federal law,” including felony rioting and civil disorder.
Judicial Watch in January 2023suedthe Justice Department for records of communications between the FBI and social media sites regarding foreign influence in elections, as well as the Hunter Biden laptop story.
In November 2023, Judicial Watch, along with CatholicVote Civic Action, receivedFBI recordsshowing top officials rushing to craft a public response to theleakedFBI intelligence memo that revealed its targeting of Catholics who adhere to traditional beliefs on church issues. In December 2023, heavily redacted recordsfrom the FBI showed that the agency’s Office of General Counsel reviewed the controversial targetingof the Catholics by the Richmond field office of the FBI.
In his book Rights and Freedoms in PerilJudicial Watch President Tom Fitton details a long chain of abuses officials and politicians have made against the American people and calls readers to battle for “the soul and survival of America.”
Creative Outlets: Finding Time for Art in a Busy STEM Student Schedule
Published 8:42 am Wednesday, April 9, 2025
The rigorous nature of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics curricula can consume nearly every waking hour, leaving little room for pursuits outside the realm of analytical thinking. Yet, there exists a compelling case for STEM students to cultivate creative outlets alongside their technical studies. This article explores practical strategies for incorporating artistic expression into even the most challenging academic schedules, examining both the benefits of this balance and actionable approaches to achieve it.
Image source:
The typical STEM student’s day might include attending lectures, completing problem sets, conducting laboratory experiments, and participating in study groups. When deadlines loom, it’s tempting to delegate secondary tasks—”I’ll just do my Excel homework tonight and leave the painting for next weekend”—but consistently postponing creative endeavors often means they never happen at all. This pattern, while seemingly necessary for academic success, can lead to burnout, diminished cognitive flexibility, and a narrowing of perspective that ultimately undermines performance, even in technical fields.
The Science Behind the Art-STEM Connection
Research increasingly supports the notion that artistic engagement enhances, rather than detracts from, scientific and technical capability. A 2019 study published in the Journal of Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts found that regular creative practice correlates with improved problem-solving abilities and cognitive flexibility—skills essential for success in STEM fields. Similarly, the journal Nature reported that Nobel laureates in the sciences are significantly more likely than their peers to engage in artistic hobbies, suggesting a relationship between creative expression and scientific innovation.
Practical Strategies for Integration
1. Micro-Creative Sessions
For the time-constrained student, the concept of “micro-creativity” offers a practical solution. Rather than attempting to schedule lengthy art sessions that inevitably fall victim to academic demands, consider incorporating brief creative interludes throughout your day:
10-minute sketching breaks between study sessions
A quick poem or journal entry during lunch
15 minutes of playing a musical instrument before bed
These brief engagements with creativity function both as mental refreshment and as a way to maintain creative practice without overwhelming your schedule.
2. Dual-Purpose Projects
Look for opportunities to combine creative and academic pursuits. Many universities now encourage interdisciplinary projects that marry technical knowledge with artistic expression:
Data visualization that emphasizes aesthetic appeal as well as information clarity
Technical writing that incorporates creative narrative techniques
Engineering projects with attention to design elegance and user experience
These approaches allow you to fulfill academic requirements while simultaneously exercising creative muscles.
3. Technology-Enabled Creativity
Digital tools have democratized many forms of artistic expression, making them more accessible to those with limited time:
Digital drawing applications can eliminate setup and cleanup time
Music production software enables composition without the need for physical instruments
Photography with smartphone cameras requires minimal equipment
These technological solutions lower the barriers to entry for creative practice, making it more feasible to engage artistically even within the constraints of a demanding STEM schedule.
4. Community and Accountability
Joining a community of like-minded individuals can help sustain creative practice when academic pressures mount:
Student clubs that combine technical and artistic interests
Online communities that provide prompt-based creative challenges
Accountability partners who share similar goals for creative-technical balance
These social structures provide both motivation and structure, increasing the likelihood that creative pursuits will remain a priority even during academic crunch times.
Overcoming Common Obstacles
Despite the compelling case for incorporating creativity into STEM education, several common obstacles prevent students from doing so:
Perfectionism Many STEM students avoid creative pursuits because they hold themselves to the same standards of perfection they apply to technical work. Embracing the concept of “process over product” can help overcome this barrier, focusing on the cognitive benefits rather than the artistic outcome.
Guilt Time spent on art can trigger guilt for students accustomed to maximizing academic productivity. Reframing creative practice as complementary to, rather than competitive with, technical learning can address this emotional hurdle.
Lack of Structure Unlike academic coursework, creative pursuits often lack external structure and deadlines. Creating self-imposed frameworks—such as daily sketching prompts or weekly writing targets—can provide the organizational scaffolding that STEM students often find comfortable.
Conclusion: The Integrated Thinker
The dichotomy between artistic and scientific thinking represents a false choice. History’s most innovative minds—from da Vinci to Einstein to Jobs—have demonstrated the power of integrating creative and analytical approaches. Today’s STEM students needn’t choose between technical excellence and creative expression; rather, they can pursue both as complementary aspects of a comprehensive intellectual life.
ER Editor: Minnesota seems to be doing at least a couple of things right this week, one being Bill HF 3152 —
BREAKING – Minnesota Files Bill HF 3152 to Ban mRNA Injections
Minnesota becomes 11th U.S. state with legislative efforts to ban mRNA shots. “No person shall provide or administer a gene-based vaccine to another person in this state. For purposes of this section, “gene-based… pic.twitter.com/PMAAOct5uh
— Peter A. McCullough, MD, MPH® (@P_McCulloughMD) April 8, 2025
The other being Bill HF 3151
It’s sad we have to write laws to protect children from doctors. Thank you @ShaneMekeland for filing HF 3151 banning gender mutilation of minors in Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/1QcKC4Mzlr
— Dr Margaret Aranda Ferrante, MD PhD FACFEI (@TheRebelPatient) April 8, 2025
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A few hours ago, Minnesota State Representative Shane Mekeland filed bill HF 3152 to prohibit the administration of gene-based vaccines:
A bill for an act relating to health; prohibiting the administration of gene-based vaccines; providing a penalty; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 144.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Section 1. [144.063] PROHIBITION ON ADMINISTERING GENE-BASED VACCINES.
Subdivision 1. Prohibition on vaccine administration.
(a) No person shall provide or administer a gene-based vaccine to another person in this state. For purposes of this section, “gene-based vaccine” means a vaccine developed using messenger ribonucleic acid technology, modified messenger ribonucleic acid technology, self-amplifying messenger ribonucleic acid technology, or deoxyribonucleic acid technology.
(b) The appropriate licensing board shall review the license of a person who administers a gene-based vaccine in violation of this section and take appropriate licensing action if the person is found to violate the requirement in this section.
Subd. 2. Penalty.
A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and is subject to a fine of $500 per incident.
This brave effort makes Minnesota the 11th U.S. state with legislative efforts to ban mRNA injections:
Unfortunately, the Bio-Pharmaceutical Complex has suppressed most of these efforts — most of which pass initial committee hearings but get killed without vote by “leadership.”
If you want to learn more about efforts to ban mRNA shots and how to ban them in your state, I recommend you read the following situation update:
SITUATION UPDATE – Efforts to Ban COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines Gain Momentum
Nicolas Hulscher, MPH
Epidemiologist and Foundation Administrator, McCullough Foundation
www.mcculloughfnd.org
Please consider following both the McCullough Foundation and my personal account on X (formerly Twitter) for further content.
Source
Featured image source:
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Published to The Liberty Beacon from EuropeReloaded.com
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Local educator, former Andalusia city councilman passes away at 78
Published 4:51 pm Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Dr. James Krudop, a lifelong resident of Andalusia, a longtime educator at LBW Community College and a former city councilman, passed away on Friday, April 4, at the age of 78.
A 1965 graduate of Andalusia High School, Krudop spent 50 years as an educator, including 40 years at LBW. Dr. Krudop earned his bachelor’s degree at Auburn University and then earned a master’s degree and a Doctor of Philosophy Degree from the University of Alabama.
He began his career teaching Speech and English courses at Andalusia High School before going to the University of Alabama for graduate studies. After earning his master’s and doctorate degrees, he accepted the position of director of school relations at Birmingham-Southern College in 1974.He joined the LBW staff as dean of students in 1978.
During his time at LBW, Krudop served in a variety of executive level positions in instruction, finance, and institutional advancement. He served as interim president on two occasions and was the second-in-command for many years. He retired from LBW in 2018. In honor of his service, he was designated vice-president emeritus of LBW by the Alabama Community College System.
“Jim was a very dedicated and loyal employee of LBW,” said Seth Hammett, former college president. “During thetime I served as president, he was my right-hand man. I could tell Jim what we should do, and I never had to think about it again. He would get it done.
“He was always a real pleasure to work with. He did a lot of work that the people didn’t recognize as his work, or have forgotten that he did. He loved not only LBW, his God, and his family, but he also loved Andalusia, and worked to make it a better place.”
In addition to his contributions in education, Dr. Krudop served two terms as a member of the Andalusia City Council, from 1980 to 1988. Andalusia Mayor Earl Johnson knew Krudop since the two were 5-years-old and were classmates in AHS’s Class of 1965. Johnson ordered that flags in the city be flown at half-staff in honor of Krudop.
“We went through East Three Notch Elementary together; we went through high school together; and when we went to Auburn, we lived on the same hall,” Johnson said.
Both returned to their hometown to pursue careers.
“Jimmy Krudop was one ofthe most straight-arrow guys I’ve ever known,” Johnson said. “He always tried to make things better. He was a smart guy, a community leader, a leader in his profession, and an all-around good person. I never had a better friend.”
Krudop was an active member and volunteer with a variety of local organizations, including the Andalusia Area Chamber of Commerce, the Andalusia High School Scholarship Foundation, Andalusia Health Services Board, and the LBW Foundation. He was also involved in other state and national organizations, including serving on the board of Camp ASCAA.
Krudop also is remembered as an outstanding Rotarian, who had served as president of both the Andalusia and Greenville Rotary clubs, and had been active at the district level, as well.
“Jim was perhaps the best Rotarian in our club,” Johnson said. “Even after his health declined and it was too difficult for him to attend weekly meetings in person, he participated through Zoom weekly, up until two days before he passed.”
Krudop helped carry on an Andalusia Rotary Club tradition begun by his father, Bellaire Krudop, at Christmas, when club members bring gifts to exchange. When the senior Krudop began the tradition, he would bring items like fresh greens or pepper sauce.
In addition, Krudop was a longtime member of First Baptist Church of Andalusia.
Dr. Krudop is survived by his wife of 54 years, Hollace Moore Krudop, and two children, Dr. Ashley Krudop Powell and Dr. Hadyn Krudop Swecker.
A funeral service for Dr. Krudop was held Tuesday, April 8, with a graveside service following at Andalusia Memorial Cemetery. For more details see today’s obituaries on Page 3.
IMAGE: LFI Chair Jon Pearce MP with Israel’s President Isaac Herzog (Source: Labour Friends of Israel)
IMAGE: Former Labour Friends of Israel vice-chairs, now UK Government ministers (from left) Peter Kyle, Diana Johnson, Rachel Reeves, Pat McFadden, and Jonathan Reynolds (Source: PA)
IMAGE: Labour Friends of Israel chair Jon Pearce MP (Source: LFI)
IMAGE: Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister of Israel Yoav Gallant have both been issued with ICC arrest warrants for crimes against humanity (Source: People & Power Documentary)
IMAGE: Bernard-Henri Levy addresses students at Kyiv Mohyla University in Kyiv on May 16, 2014 (Source: AFP / Sergei Supinsky)
IMAGE: ‘The East gets it done: Summer, sun, remigration’ — AfD campaigns on an anti-immigration platform in the eastern states (Source: dts-Agentur/dpa/picture alliance)
IMAGE: Israeli leader Netanyahu is currently wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and egregious crimes against humanity. 
