what the hell do they imagine they're doing?
Many consumers feel pride in avoiding the glazed pastries in the supermarket and instead opting for "all natural" granola that comes packed with extra protein. Same goes for low-fat yogurts "made with real fruit," "organic" plant-based milks and bottled "superfood" smoothies. Buyer beware: Healthy grocery buzzwords like those often cover up an unhealthy amount of sugar. Added sugars are difficult to quickly spot because many companies use clever marketing to distract consumers, said Nicole Avena, a professor of neuroscience and psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical School and Princeton University who has studied added sugars. Avena said while some health-forward brands know people are starting to become aware of the hazards of added sugars, "a lot of the bigger brands don't worry so much about people's health." Here's how to spot hidden sugars and what to do about it. Read more
Minnesota's great welfare heist is the grift that keeps on giving for prosecutors, with the Justice Department last week filing more charges. But on a positive note, Indiana Gov. Mike Braun's administration has announced hundreds of millions of dollars in Medicaid savings from common-sense reforms. The Justice Department charged six new defendants in schemes to defraud Minnesota's Medicaid program. "What we see in Minnesota is not a handful of bad actors committing crimes. It's a staggering industrial-scale fraud," Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said. "When I look at the claims data and the providers, I see more red flags than I see legitimate providers." Mr. Thompson estimates fraud losses since 2018 could top $9 billion. Gov. Tim Walz says the fraud isn't large or pervasive, but the latest evidence suggests it is and goes well beyond the state's Somali community.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently published Treatment for Pediatric Gender Dysphoria: Review of Evidence and Best Practices. Given current widespread distrust of HHS, especially regarding vaccines, we knew this review, which we co-authored, would be met with skepticism. So, it is worth noting that we, along with most of the other authors, are liberals. While everyone should be concerned when vulnerable populations do not receive appropriate medical care, those of us on the left side of the political spectrum need to pay special attention. This is because many of the organizations and individuals we trust have gotten this issue wrong.
If followers of Jesus are to give their total allegiance to God's Kingdom, how should they relate to the governments and power structures of their own day?
In this video, we'll see how the experience of Daniel and his friends in Babylonian exile offers wisdom for navigating this tension.
Following Jesus in the 21st century means learning the way of the exile.
Trump says he had 'very productive' call with Putin ahead of Zelensky talks. Trump has taken to Truth Social to say he's spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of his meeting with Zelensky later today. "I just had a good and very productive telephone call with President Putin of Russia," Trump says on the platform. He adds that the meeting with Zelensky will take place in the main dining room of Mar-a-Lago and that journalists are invited to attend. Read more
Maybe It Was a Mistake to Tinker around with the Kennedy Center Honors
An Afrikaner who came to the U.S. after President Donald Trump claimed the country would be a safe haven for people like him has been held in federal detention for months since his arrival. Benjamin Schoonwinkel came to the U.S. in September, believing he would be protected after Trump's many statements to that effect. But on arriving at an Atlanta airport, he was detained and handcuffed by the U.S. border agents whom Schoonwinkel told he was seeking asylum. The South African man was transferred to a federal detention facility within two days and has remained there ever since. After leaving behind a life of relative comfort on the word of Trump, he now sleeps on a metal bunk bed. "I never expected this to happen," Schoonwinkel said in a video interview with The New York Times this month. "I expected a little bit of red tape."
A global INTERPOL operation against the illegal trafficking of wild fauna and flora has led to the seizure of nearly 30,000 live animals and the identification of 1,100 suspects.
On 25 Dec 2025, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) intercepted 19 asylum seekers of Haitian origin near Havelock, in Quebec's Monteregie region, during dangerously cold temperatures after receiving an alert from the US Border Patrol.
Participants in the World Naked Bike Ride face attacks as Britain becomes less tolerant of nudity.
The state's parole board has released 39 "emerging adult" murder convicts who were originally sentenced to life without parole, but who later became eligible after a court ruling. The Massachusetts Parole Board has issued 51 parole decisions since the Supreme Judicial Court last year ruled that emerging adults who were 18 to 20 at the time of the offense cannot be sentenced to life without parole. Read more
In a post on Truth Social earlier today, Donald Trump reminded everyone of Jeffrey Epstein - and he seems to be reverting back to his claim that much of it is a hoax. Read more
Defense attorney Joe Tamburino, who is not affiliated with the case, reviewed the decision and analyzed it for KARE 11 News. He says Judge West ruled that the state's case "relied heavily on circumstantial evidence," and that she believed the state didn't rule out other "reasonable inferences." "That in fact, there could have been other reasonable theories other than guilt in this case. That's what it comes down to," Tamburino said. Despite the ruling, even Judge West wrote that she is "troubled by the manner in which fraud was able to be perpetuated at Promise Health." Read more
