New findings reveal the social media abbreviations that are confusing people the most, and FB' has come in first place.
For decades, APEC has helped integrate economies along the Pacific Rim. But on-again, off-again tariff escalation between the world's largest economies means more uncertainty and less room for cooperation. read more
Hurricane Melissa followed what has unfortunately become a pattern for major storms: It formed late in the season, intensified rapidly, then stalled near the coast. read more
Steven Hatfill had a notable history before his abrupt ouster. read more
Messages in a bottle written by two Australian soldiers a few days into their voyage to the battlefields of France during World War I have been found more than a century later on Australia's coast.
@#4 ... practised using automatic weapons at a shooting range ...
DNR shooting range rules
www.michigan.gov
... Rifle/pistol range rules
- - - One Shot Rule: A blanket permit has been issued, which allows more than one round to be loaded at a time on the rifle/pistol ranges. Up to six rounds may be loaded in the magazine and chamber combined, with a minimum of three seconds required between shots. Range officers may suspend this permission, based on their discretion, when conditions exist that may compromise the safety of the shooters and others. ...
[DNR = Dept. of Natural Resources]
@#43 ... These killings are so obviously illegal, yet no one is refusing shows the base cowardice in the military that is wrapped in "honor" and "duty" ...
Now look at Pres Trump's stated intent to deploy and train the military in the US, train the military upon US citizens.
Then look at this thread ...
Are We Losing Our Democracy?
drudge.com
Renaissance - At The Harbor (1973)
www.youtube.com
Lyrics excerpt ...
...
Out at daybreak to the sun
Seas are drifting glass
The tides were turning to the storm
Winds were moving fast
Women waiting at the harbour
Silent stand around
Weather storms another day
For men the sea had found
Fishermen were laying nets
The barrels spread the bait
The seagulls warning echoed round
Winds that wouldn't wait
People gathered at the harbour
Waiting for the tide
Eyes half closed against the spray
And tears they cannot hide
Shadows falling at the harbour
Women stand around
Weather storms another way
For men the sea have drowned
Hulls were creaking crashing sails
Rains were slating down
The oilskins flapping, decks awash
Slanting turning round
Thunder roaring at the harbour
Women drawn in fear
Huddle up to wait the time
And pray the sky will clear
Howling winds and the raging waves
Cracked upon the boats
And torn from safety, torn from life
Men with little hope
Ghostly echoes at the harbour
Whispering of death
Women weeping holding hands
Of those they still have left
...
@#27 ... Do the cartels just call it the cost of doing business ...
Venezuelan fishermen in fear after US strikes on boats in the Caribbean (October 16, 2025)
www.bbc.com
... Wilder Fernndez has caught four good-sized fish in the murky waters of a small bay north of Lake Maracaibo.
The contents of his net will serve as dinner for his small team before they set out to go fishing again in the evening.
But this daily task is a job he has recently become scared of doing.
After 13 years as a fisherman, Mr Fernndez confesses that he now fears his job could turn lethal.
He is afraid he could die in these waters not at the hands of a night-time attacker -- a threat fishermen like him encountered in the past -- but rather, killed in a strike launched by a foreign power.
"It's crazy, man," he says of the deployment of US warships, fighter jets, a submarine and thousands of US troops in waters north of Venezuela's coast. ...
@#12 ... But the press has a hard time admitting that some religions are more prone to violence than others ...
Top 10 Massacres by Christians in Modern History
medium.com
Holy Violence Then and Now
christianhistoryinstitute.org
... Christian History: In the first three centuries, Christians were pacifists. By 1096, they embarked on a holy war. What caused such a huge change?
Jonathan Riley-Smith: First, the early church was not entirely pacifist. In Romans 13, for example, Paul justifies the violence of the pagan emperor, for the emperor is yet a minister of God. And Christians served in the Roman army from the second century on.
Following the conversion of the emperors, in the fourth century, the church became more open to using violence. Church leaders, after an initial shock, began supporting the use of force against heretics. ...
@#2
'I actually think the president would be blamed.' Trump's 2011 shutdown comments resurface (Octoer 3, 2025)
www.usatoday.com
... Old news clips are circulating on social media showing President Donald Trump saying the fault of a government shutdown should lie with the president. ...
Boys Don't Cry - I Want To Be A Cowboy (1985)
www.youtube.com
Lyrics excerpt ...
...
[Verse 1: Nick Richards]
Riding on the range
I've got my hat on
I've got my boots dusty
I've got my saddle on my horse
He's called (T-T-T-T-T-Trigger)
Of course
[Chorus: Nick Richards]
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
[Verse 2: Heidi Lea & Nick Richards]
Riding on the chuck wagon
Following my man
His name is Ted
Can you believe that?
(Ted, oh, Ted! Fighting off danger)
Camping on the prairie
Plays havoc with my hair
Makes me feel quite dirty
Though we all do sometimes
(Ted gets so dirty)
[Chorus: Nick Richards]
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
[Guitar Solo]
[Verse 3: Nick Richards]
Looking like a hero
Six-gun at my side
Chewing my tobacco
(Whip crack, away, whip crack, away, whip)
Out on the horizon
I see a puff of smoke
Indians on the warpath
(White man speaking with forked tongue, isn't it?)
Or not
[Chorus: Nick Richards]
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
And you can be my cowgirl
I wanna be a cowboy
...
US senators want answers on 'anti-drug' strategy as Venezuela tensions rise
www.reuters.com
... Republican and Democratic leaders of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee said on Friday the Trump administration had yet to provide details of its operations against drug cartels and their legal basis they had sought.
U.S. strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean and Pacific have killed dozens of people since early September, raising tension between Washington and Caracas.
In a rare bipartisan action on the strikes, Republican Senator Roger Wicker and Democrat Jack Reed said in a statement hey had not received information sought from the administration about its strategy to fight drug cartels.
Wicker, of Mississippi, is the chairman and Reed, of Rhode Island, is the top Democrat on the committee, which oversees the U.S. military. ...
@#1 ... Play this out.
A clerk can refuse a gun license if guns are against the person's ""sincerely held religious beliefs"
A public-school teacher can refuse to teach black children if teaching them runs counter to their "sincerely held religious beliefs"
A pharmacist can refuse to sell you condoms if selling them is against their "sincerely held religious beliefs"
A judge can refuse to marry interracial couples of doing so goes against their "sincerely held religious beliefs"
A police officer can ignore a domestic violence victim's claims if they happen to believe a man can physically abuse their spouse due to "sincerely held religious beliefs"
These are public officials who are permitted to refuse to enforce laws if those laws run counter to their beliefs.
This is outrageous. ...
Yup.
100% agreement.
In this case, a Judge is part of a branch of Government that needs to serve the people it governs.
If you, as a Judge, are unable to do that, then maybe you should not be in a position where you need to serve the people.
Asked from a different perspective... how might those Judges rules upon the cases before them? Will they allow their religious beliefs to taint their decisions?