ReportWire

Tag: Freedom

  • Contributor: Iran’s crisis is a test of U.S. moral leadership

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    Right now, as you read this, Iranian protesters are facing live ammunition in Tehran’s streets. Women risk execution for removing their hijabs. Some 12,000 to 20,000 people are feared dead from the protest crackdown. The regime is vulnerable, weakened by strikes on its nuclear program, facing economic collapse, confronting a population that has repeatedly chosen death over submission. The window to support regime change is open. But it’s closing fast.

    The Trump administration made commitments to the Iranian people. Now, facing the moment of decision, there’s troubling hesitation. This isn’t just another foreign policy challenge: It’s a binary test of whether American leadership still possesses the will to act on its stated principles. Fail here, and we confirm that international relations have lost their moral compass entirely.

    Harvard’s Joseph Nye taught that foreign policy morality requires integrating intentions, means and consequences. Good intentions without adequate implementation produce catastrophic outcomes. We’ve stated our intentions. The question is whether we’ll employ the means — or allow bureaucratic caution and geopolitical calculation to paralyze us until the opportunity passes.

    The Iranian regime is a 47-year totalitarian theocracy that has terrorized its population, sponsored terrorism from Hezbollah to Hamas to the Houthis, supplied drones to Russia for killing Ukrainian civilians and pursued nuclear weapons while declaring itself America’s mortal enemy. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has ordered protesters “put in their place.” The judiciary announced all participants will be tried for moharebeh — “enmity against God” — a capital offense.

    Yet the international left remains conspicuously silent, frozen in power analysis and identity politics. In too many minds around the world, Iranian protesters fail to generate solidarity because their oppressors — the mullahs — are classified as victims of Western imperialism.

    This pattern repeats globally. In Nigeria, 32 Christians are reportedly killed daily — 7,087 killed in the first 220 days of 2025 alone. More than 50,000 in five years. In Sudan, 3,384 civilian deaths in just the first half of 2025. Genocide Watch declares it stage nine: extermination. Only a small fraction of needed humanitarian funding has been committed. Some suffering by Palestinians sometimes generates international outrage. The selective morality is devastating and deliberate.

    Consider the Tudeh Party — Iran’s communist left. As protesters face bullets, they condemn the demonstrations while warning against American imperialism. Some progressive Iranian American academics have dismissed calls for change as Westernized and illegitimate. They use anti-imperialism to silence Iranians demanding their God-given rights. When ideology replaces principle, you get moral blindness masquerading as sophistication.

    The stakes transcend Iran. Since the modern nation-state system was organized by the Treaty of Westphalia in 1688, state sovereignty has been the bedrock of international law. But it’s become a shield for regimes that brutalize their populations. The post-1945 American-led international order assumed sovereign states would protect citizens’ basic rights and that the international community would act when they did not. We face a choice: sovereignty conditional on protecting citizens, or cynical realism where might makes right.

    What’s required is clear. First, an unambiguous statement that the U.S. supports the Iranian people’s right to choose their government and will not accept continued mullah rule. Second, escalating sanctions targeting the regime’s economic foundations while ensuring humanitarian aid reaches Iranians. Third, robust communications infrastructure support so protesters can coordinate despite attempts at censorship. Fourth, diplomatic isolation and coalition-building. Fifth, material support for opposition forces sufficient to tilt the balance.

    The question is whether the Trump administration recognizes this as a defining test — whether it understands that failure here signals to every authoritarian regime that the West lacks resolve, to every oppressed population that American principles are empty rhetoric, to every ally that American commitments are negotiable.

    If we allow the window to close — if bureaucratic hesitation or fear of opposition paralyzes us — the regime will reconsolidate. It will crush the protests with even greater brutality. It will execute thousands more. And it will emerge convinced that the West lacks the will to oppose it meaningfully. Every adversary will be emboldened. Every ally will question our word.

    But if we act — if we follow through with real support for removing the mullahs — we affirm that moral principles still matter in international affairs. We demonstrate that the Judeo-Christian foundations of American order remain vital and actionable. We show that universal human dignity still commands our allegiance, that freedom is still worth defending at cost and risk.

    The American founders understood rights as flowing from the Creator, not the state. They established a republic acknowledging transcendent moral law as the foundation of human law. Thomas Jefferson recognized that resistance to tyranny is obedience to God. The Iranian people are asking us to honor these principles — not abstractly, but concretely.

    Protesters have risen despite knowing the cost. They’ve demanded freedom despite facing torture and execution. They’ve trusted that America stands for something beyond geopolitical calculation. The time for decision is now. Not next month, not after more studies, not when conditions are perfect. Now. And on that decision hangs not only Iran’s fate but also the moral credibility of the entire international order we claim to defend.

    We can support the Iranian people’s efforts to remove the mullahs, or we can watch another opportunity for freedom slip away while we hesitate. History will record which we chose.

    Daniel J. Arbess is founder of Xerion Investments, a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a co-founder of No Labels, a political group promoting bipartisan collaboration.

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    Daniel J. Arbess

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  • ‘Doomsday Plane’ appearance at LAX sparks online worry

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    The federal government’s Boeing E-4B Nightwatch — a military aircraft known, somewhat alarmingly, as the “Doomsday Plane” — touched down at Los Angeles International Airport this week, in what may be the famed aircraft’s first-ever LAX landing.

    Aviation enthusiasts spotted the plane Thursday on its approach to LAX. It is billed by the U.S. Air Force as a “highly survivable command, control and communications center.”

    The plane is equipped to serve as an airborne operations center for the president, the Defense secretary and the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the event of a disaster that wipes out command centers on land.

    Its sudden appearance at a busy commercial airport sparked a flurry of online speculation.

    “WAR IMMINENT?” one X user posted, in one of several anxious social media responses to the plane’s appearance.

    In this case, the plane was ferrying Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to Southern California as part of his monthlong “Arsenal of Freedom” tour.

    Hegseth spoke Thursday at a Long Beach manufacturing plant, Rocket Lab, the second stop on what the Department of Defense described as a monthlong tour of U.S. industrial defense companies.

    The Defense Department later posted images on social media of Hegseth working out with the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps at UCLA.

    Far-right activist Laura Loomer, Breitbart News reporter Olivia Rondeau and media figure L. Todd Wood accompanied Hegseth on the trip and shared photos of themselves with the plane online.

    The E-4B is a militarized version of Boeing’s 747 aircraft, and is designed to withstand electromagnetic pulses and the heat of a nuclear attack. The Air Force keeps at least one at the ready at all times in case of an emergency.

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    Corinne Purtill

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  • Contributor: California’s place in enslaved people’s struggle for freedom

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    In one version of U.S. history, California is a place where slavery was prohibited from the founding, in the 1849 state constitution, and where that ban was reaffirmed by the state’s ratification of the 13th Amendment in 1865. In another telling, it was a place that had ended the practice some 30 years earlier — when it was part of Mexico.

    Despite being on the periphery of the Spanish empire and Mexico before becoming part of the United States, California had an important place in the larger struggle by enslaved people for their freedom. California connects Mexican and U.S. history while also serving as a reminder that there are few corners of the Western Hemisphere that are untouched by the legacy of slavery.

    The story of the rise and fall of African enslavement is often presented as a national story in the United States — and a mostly Southern one — rather than as the hemispheric phenomenon that it was. Enslaved Africans could be found as far south as Chile and Argentina all the way up to Canada. Likewise, the end of slavery was not solely brought about by the Civil War in the U.S., but also by centuries of resistance through rebellions, wars, sabotage and self-emancipation, across the entire Americas. This, too, was part of California’s story.

    After the Spanish toppled the Mexica empire in 1521, they wasted little time bringing captive Africans to the place they called New Spain — a vast territory that would later expand to the north to include New Mexico and California. By the 1530s there were reports of conspiracies to revolt, as well as the establishment of colonies by escapees from slavery. The leader of one such community, Gaspar Yanga, forced Spanish authorities to recognize its autonomy, after troops failed to vanquish him in 1608. This land outside of Veracruz became the first free Black town in Mexico, today known as Yanga. It was a significant victory at a time when an estimated 130,000 Africans were brought to New Spain, resulting in one of the highest African slave populations in the 17th century Americas.

    However, by the 18th century the center of enslavement had shifted farther north, toward the sugar plantations of the Caribbean, and the numbers dropped in Mexico. In addition, there was still Indigenous labor in Mexico, which was often exploited. This was also the case in the lands that would become California, as well as New Mexico, where indentured and often “detribalized” Indigenous people, known as genízaros, were often forced into a servitude that often bore more than a passing resemblance to slavery.

    In 1829, president of a now-independent Mexico, Vicente Guerrero, who was of partial African descent, abolished slavery. This triggered an immediate outcry in the Texas territory, which was largely populated by slave-owning immigrants from the U.S. By 1836 Texas was independent, and slavery in Mexico was officially finished the following year. Now Mexico became a land of possible refuge for people fleeing enslavement in Texas or nearby places such as Louisiana. It was far closer than the Underground Railroad leading to the northern states or Canada. Historian Alice Baumgartner has estimated that between 3,000 and 5,000 enslaved people escaped to Mexico from the U.S.

    However, this potential zone of freedom was significantly reduced by the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848. In the aftermath of that conflict, 51% of Mexico was ceded to the United States. This included New Mexico, which had been part of Spain’s empire since the early 1600s, and California, which was colonized in 1769. Ultimately, the entire territory would form the states of California, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Nevada and parts of Colorado and Wyoming.

    People in the lands ceded from Mexico were forced to confront the issue of slavery anew as part of the U.S. Gold miners were racing to California, and some were from the South, bringing enslaved people to work on their claims. By the time of statehood in 1850, according to one estimate, there had been around 500 to 1,500 enslaved people brought to California, their status obscured even after the state constitution was enacted. Although the shadow of Southern slavery stalked California, some people managed to find freedom in those early years. However, in 1852, California enacted a Fugitive Slave Law, which applied to people who were brought before statehood and led to many being sent back to the plantations of the South. The Utah and New Mexico territories — which would not become states until 1896 and 1912 — passed slave codes, which permitted slavery and were meant to regulate the treatment of people in servitude or bondage, both Black and Native Americans.

    Farther south, however, most of the new republics of Spanish America had ended their involvement with the slave trade and implemented gradual emancipation measures as early as 1811, and with final abolition in place by the mid-1850s. Had California remained part of Mexico, it would have been in this larger, earlier wave of abolition, rather than seeing the continuation or return of enslavement.

    Slavery shaped the Americas for four centuries, blighting the entire hemisphere. The long struggle to dismantle it did not happen only in the U.S. or only in the South; in fact, in Cuba, Puerto Rico and Brazil it continued for decades after the U.S. Civil War. Simple narratives such as “California banned slavery at its founding” and “slavery ended in 1865” obscure much of its connection to this larger story. What happened to California illuminates the unevenness of abolition and the many false promises of freedom. It also serves as a reminder of the need for a wider lens when thinking about enslavement and freedom throughout the Americas today.

    Carrie Gibson is the author of the forthcoming “The Great Resistance: The 400-Year Fight to End Slavery in the Americas” and of “El Norte: The Epic and Forgotten Story of Hispanic North America.”

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    Carrie Gibson

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  • A beginner’s guide to Kwanzaa

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    Kwanzaa has become a nationally recognized celebration of African culture and community in the United States since its founding in 1966, and also is celebrated in countries with large African descendant populations. The holiday, which serves as a nationwide communal event reinforcing self-determination and unity in the face of oppression, spans seven days from the day after Christmas through New Year’s Day. It is observed in large, city-sponsored events as well as in smaller communities and homes across the nation. Kwanzaa has grown in popularity in the decades since its founding and is celebrated by 3% of the country, according to a 2019 AP-NORC survey. Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama all released statements commemorating the holiday, and in 1997, the U.S. Postal Service began issuing Kwanzaa stamps. It is not recognized as a federal holiday. Kwanzaa emerged during the Black Freedom Movement of the 1960s as a way to reconnect Black communities in the U.S. with important African cultural traditions that were severed by the trans-Atlantic slave trade. It also promotes unity and liberation.”It was also shaped by that defining decade of fierce strivings and struggles for freedom, justice and associated goods waged by Africans and other peoples of color all over the world in the 1960s,” Maulana Karenga, the holiday’s founder, wrote in his annual Kwanzaa address in 2023. “Kwanzaa thus came into being, grounded itself and grew as an act of freedom, an instrument of freedom, a celebration of freedom and a practice of freedom.”Karenga, an African American author, activist and professor, founded Kwanzaa following the Watts Riots, also known as the Watts Rebellion, in Los Angeles in 1965.Karenga described Kwanzaa as a “political-motivator holiday” in an interview with Henry Lewis Gates Jr. for PBS. “The idea is for African and African descended people to come together around family, community and culture so we can be in spaces where, in Dr. Karenga’s words, we feel fully African and fully human at the same time,” said Janine Bell, president and artistic director at the Elegba Folklore Society in Richmond, Virginia. Many people who observe Kwanzaa, which is a secular holiday, celebrate it alongside religious festivals such as Christmas. People of any faith, race or ethnic background can participate.The name Kwanzaa derives from “mutanda ya kwanza,” a Swahili phrase meaning “first fruits” or “first harvest.” The final “a” was added to the name to accommodate the seven children present at the first Kwanzaa, each of whom was given a letter to represent.The holiday is governed by seven principles, known collectively as the Nguzo Saba, and a different principle is celebrated each day: umoja (unity), kujichagulia (self-determination), ujima (collective work and responsibility), ujamaa (cooperative economics), nia (purpose), kuumba (creativity) and imani (faith). The Nguzo Saba is represented by a candleholder with seven candles called a kinara. Each night, one of those candles is lit. The candles are the same colors as the Kwanzaa flag: Black representing the people, red their struggle and green their hope.Large Kwanzaa celebrations happen across the country every year in cities including Los Angeles, Atlanta and Detroit. These events often feature storytellers, music and dance. The holiday is also observed in individual homes, often focusing on children because they are key to the survival of culture and the development of community. This concept of children and the future they embody is often represented symbolically by corn.”The intention is that it’s 365 (days a year),” Bell said. “The need for the principles and the strengthening value of the principles don’t go away on January 2nd.”Family celebrations also involve giving gifts and sharing African American and Pan African foods, culminating in the Karamu, a feast featuring dishes from across the African diaspora. Typical meals include staples of Southern cuisine like sweet potato pie or popular dishes from Africa like jollof rice. Activities over the seven days are geared toward reaffirming community bonds, commemorating the past and recommitting to important African cultural ideals. This can include dancing, reading poetry, honoring ancestors and the daily lighting of the kinara.

    Kwanzaa has become a nationally recognized celebration of African culture and community in the United States since its founding in 1966, and also is celebrated in countries with large African descendant populations.

    The holiday, which serves as a nationwide communal event reinforcing self-determination and unity in the face of oppression, spans seven days from the day after Christmas through New Year’s Day. It is observed in large, city-sponsored events as well as in smaller communities and homes across the nation.

    Kwanzaa has grown in popularity in the decades since its founding and is celebrated by 3% of the country, according to a 2019 AP-NORC survey. Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama all released statements commemorating the holiday, and in 1997, the U.S. Postal Service began issuing Kwanzaa stamps. It is not recognized as a federal holiday.

    Kwanzaa emerged during the Black Freedom Movement of the 1960s as a way to reconnect Black communities in the U.S. with important African cultural traditions that were severed by the trans-Atlantic slave trade. It also promotes unity and liberation.

    “It was also shaped by that defining decade of fierce strivings and struggles for freedom, justice and associated goods waged by Africans and other peoples of color all over the world in the 1960s,” Maulana Karenga, the holiday’s founder, wrote in his annual Kwanzaa address in 2023. “Kwanzaa thus came into being, grounded itself and grew as an act of freedom, an instrument of freedom, a celebration of freedom and a practice of freedom.”

    Karenga, an African American author, activist and professor, founded Kwanzaa following the Watts Riots, also known as the Watts Rebellion, in Los Angeles in 1965.

    Karenga described Kwanzaa as a “political-motivator holiday” in an interview with Henry Lewis Gates Jr. for PBS.

    “The idea is for African and African descended people to come together around family, community and culture so we can be in spaces where, in Dr. Karenga’s words, we feel fully African and fully human at the same time,” said Janine Bell, president and artistic director at the Elegba Folklore Society in Richmond, Virginia.

    Many people who observe Kwanzaa, which is a secular holiday, celebrate it alongside religious festivals such as Christmas. People of any faith, race or ethnic background can participate.

    The name Kwanzaa derives from “mutanda ya kwanza,” a Swahili phrase meaning “first fruits” or “first harvest.” The final “a” was added to the name to accommodate the seven children present at the first Kwanzaa, each of whom was given a letter to represent.

    The holiday is governed by seven principles, known collectively as the Nguzo Saba, and a different principle is celebrated each day: umoja (unity), kujichagulia (self-determination), ujima (collective work and responsibility), ujamaa (cooperative economics), nia (purpose), kuumba (creativity) and imani (faith).

    The Nguzo Saba is represented by a candleholder with seven candles called a kinara. Each night, one of those candles is lit. The candles are the same colors as the Kwanzaa flag: Black representing the people, red their struggle and green their hope.

    Large Kwanzaa celebrations happen across the country every year in cities including Los Angeles, Atlanta and Detroit. These events often feature storytellers, music and dance.

    The holiday is also observed in individual homes, often focusing on children because they are key to the survival of culture and the development of community. This concept of children and the future they embody is often represented symbolically by corn.

    “The intention is that it’s 365 (days a year),” Bell said. “The need for the principles and the strengthening value of the principles don’t go away on January 2nd.”

    Family celebrations also involve giving gifts and sharing African American and Pan African foods, culminating in the Karamu, a feast featuring dishes from across the African diaspora. Typical meals include staples of Southern cuisine like sweet potato pie or popular dishes from Africa like jollof rice.

    Activities over the seven days are geared toward reaffirming community bonds, commemorating the past and recommitting to important African cultural ideals. This can include dancing, reading poetry, honoring ancestors and the daily lighting of the kinara.

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  • Jimmy Kimmel defends free speech in ‘alternative Christmas message’ for Britain

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    Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel took aim at U.S. President Donald Trump as he warned Thursday about the rise of fascism in an address to U.K. viewers dubbed “The Alternative Christmas Message.”The message, aired on Channel 4 on Christmas Day, reflected on the impact of the second term in office for Trump, who Kimmel said acts like he’s a king.”From a fascism perspective, this has been a really great year,” he said. “Tyranny is booming over here.”The channel began a tradition of airing an alternative Christmas message in 1993, as a counterpart to the British monarch’s annual televised address to the nation. Channel 4 said the message is often a thought-provoking and personal reflection pertinent to the events of the year.The comedian has skewered Trump since returning to the air after ABC indefinitely suspended the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” show in September following criticism of comments the host made over the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.Kimmel made remarks in reference to the reaction to Kirk’s shooting, suggesting that many Trump supporters were trying to capitalize on the death.Trump celebrated the suspension of the veteran late-night comic and his frequent critic, calling it “great news for America.” He also called for other late-night hosts to be fired.The incident, one of Trump’s many disputes and legal battles waged with the media, drew widespread concerns about freedom of speech and freedom of the press.Hundreds of leading Hollywood stars and others in the entertainment industry urged Americans to “fight to defend and preserve our constitutionally protected rights.” The show returned to the air less than a week later.Kimmel told the U.K. audience that a Christmas miracle had happened in September when millions of people — some who hated his show — had spoken up for free speech.”We won, the president lost, and now I’m back on the air every night giving the most powerful politician on earth a right and richly deserved bollocking,” he said.Channel 4 previously invited whistle-blower Edward Snowden and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to deliver the alternative Christmas message.Kimmel, who said he didn’t expect Brits to know who he was, warned that silencing critics is not just something that happens in Russia or North Korea.Despite the split that led to the American Revolution 250 years ago, he said the two nations still shared a special relationship and urged the U.K. not to give up on the U.S. as it was “going through a bit of a wobble right now.””Here in the United States right now, we are both figuratively and literally tearing down the structures of our democracy from the free press to science to medicine to judicial independence to the actual White House itself,” Kimmel said, in reference to demolition of the building’s East Wing. “We are a right mess, and we know this is also affecting you, and I just wanted to say sorry.”

    Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel took aim at U.S. President Donald Trump as he warned Thursday about the rise of fascism in an address to U.K. viewers dubbed “The Alternative Christmas Message.”

    The message, aired on Channel 4 on Christmas Day, reflected on the impact of the second term in office for Trump, who Kimmel said acts like he’s a king.

    “From a fascism perspective, this has been a really great year,” he said. “Tyranny is booming over here.”

    The channel began a tradition of airing an alternative Christmas message in 1993, as a counterpart to the British monarch’s annual televised address to the nation. Channel 4 said the message is often a thought-provoking and personal reflection pertinent to the events of the year.

    The comedian has skewered Trump since returning to the air after ABC indefinitely suspended the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” show in September following criticism of comments the host made over the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

    Kimmel made remarks in reference to the reaction to Kirk’s shooting, suggesting that many Trump supporters were trying to capitalize on the death.

    Trump celebrated the suspension of the veteran late-night comic and his frequent critic, calling it “great news for America.” He also called for other late-night hosts to be fired.

    The incident, one of Trump’s many disputes and legal battles waged with the media, drew widespread concerns about freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

    Hundreds of leading Hollywood stars and others in the entertainment industry urged Americans to “fight to defend and preserve our constitutionally protected rights.” The show returned to the air less than a week later.

    Kimmel told the U.K. audience that a Christmas miracle had happened in September when millions of people — some who hated his show — had spoken up for free speech.

    “We won, the president lost, and now I’m back on the air every night giving the most powerful politician on earth a right and richly deserved bollocking,” he said.

    Channel 4 previously invited whistle-blower Edward Snowden and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to deliver the alternative Christmas message.

    Kimmel, who said he didn’t expect Brits to know who he was, warned that silencing critics is not just something that happens in Russia or North Korea.

    Despite the split that led to the American Revolution 250 years ago, he said the two nations still shared a special relationship and urged the U.K. not to give up on the U.S. as it was “going through a bit of a wobble right now.”

    “Here in the United States right now, we are both figuratively and literally tearing down the structures of our democracy from the free press to science to medicine to judicial independence to the actual White House itself,” Kimmel said, in reference to demolition of the building’s East Wing. “We are a right mess, and we know this is also affecting you, and I just wanted to say sorry.”

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  • The best distraction blockers to jumpstart your focus in the new year | TechCrunch

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    If you’re someone who struggles to stay on task or simply want to boost your productivity as the new year approaches, there are several apps and extensions you can try that are designed to help you focus by blocking out distractions. 

    Whether you need to limit social media scrolling or block off time to be productive, these tools will keep you focused. Here are some of the best options.

    Freedom

    Image Credits:Freedom

    If you want to block distractions across all of your devices at once, Freedom is a good option. You can choose which websites and apps to block for a specific period of time. So if you’re working on your laptop and then try to open TikTok on your phone, you won’t be able to — you’ll instead see a green screen indicating the app is blocked.

    The app lets you start a session right away, schedule an upcoming one, or set a recurring one. If you know you need to be free of distractions at a certain time every day, you can set up a Freedom session to start at that specific time automatically.

    If your task doesn’t require internet access, you can block the internet altogether. You can also block all websites except the ones you need for work. If you really don’t trust yourself to get your work done, you can use the app’s “Locked Mode,” which prevents you from ending a Freedom session early. 

    Pricing starts at $3.33 per month when billed annually or $8.99 per month when billed monthly, with a $199 lifetime subscription option. Freedom offers a seven-day free trial. 

    Cold Turkey

    Image Credits:Cold Turkey

    Cold Turkey is a good option for people need strict accountability. While many distraction blockers let you back out or “cheat,” Cold Turkey makes it nearly impossible to stop a block once you start it. 

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    You can block websites and apps, or even the entire internet. Once you have selected what you want to block, you can set a timer for how long you want the block to run. After you have started the block, you can’t stop it.

    Cold Turkey has a “Frozen Turkey” mode that locks you out of your computer altogether. The app also lets you schedule breaks to step away from your computer. If you don’t trust yourself gentler distraction blockers, this might be the tool you need to stay focused. 

    Cold Turkey’s basic features are free, but you can unlock scheduling and the option to block apps in addition to websites with a one-time $39 fee. 

    Opal

    Image Credits:Opal

    Opal is a focus and screen-time app that blocks distracting apps and websites on iPhone, Android, and desktop. You can create “focus blocks” — scheduled periods to prevent access to specific apps and websites. You can block entire categories like social media, games, and messaging. 

    You can set one-off blocks or create recurring sessions. For example, you can automatically block access to social media and games during work or school hours. 

    Opal also lets you set daily usage limits for specific apps to prevent excessive scrolling. You’ll get a “focus score” showing how much time you spend focused versus distracted. The app provides real-time stats and weekly reports to track your progress. 

    Opal’s basic features are free-to-use, but you can unlock unlimited recurring sessions, harder blocking difficulties, and more for $19.99 per month or $99 per year. 

    LeechBlock NG

    Image Credits:Leechblock

    LeechBlock is a free browser extension for people who want a straightforward way to block distracting websites. The extension lets you select which sites you want to block, then prevents your browser from loading them.

    You can create multiple block sets with different sites, schedules, and limits. The extension lets you set blocks during specific times of the day or trigger one-off blocks. 

    If you don’t want to block a site outright, you can set a countdown delay before the page loads. For example, you can set it so that visiting a site starts a 10‑minute timer. You can still access the site once the countdown ends, but the delay can be enough to disrupt impulsive browsing habits. 

    It’s worth noting that since LeechBlock is a browser extension, you need to have a bit of willpower to avoid simply switching browsers to do things watch Netflix or browse X.

    Forest

    Image Credits:Forest

    Forest gamifies productivity while supporting real-world environmental efforts. When you need to focus, you open the app and plant a virtual tree. The tree grows as you focus until the timer finishes. If you leave the app early, the tree will wither and die. 

    You can set “Allow Lists” for different apps that you’re using to be productive, like an email app or Microsoft Word. The app also lets you track your productivity.

    Over time, you build a digital forest that represents your productivity. If you’re competitive, you can share your forest with others and compare your progress. As you stay focused and grow virtual trees, you earn coins that can be saved and used to help fund real tree-planting projects around the world through the organization Trees for the Future.

    Forest’s browser extension is free. The iOS app costs $3.99, while the Android app is free with ads or $1.99 to remove ads.

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    Aisha Malik

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  • Commentary: Trump’s callous political attack on Rob Reiner shows a shameful moral failure

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    Hours after Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele, were found dead in their home in what is shaping up to be a heartbreaking family tragedy, our president blamed Reiner for his own death.

    “A very sad thing happened last night in Hollywood. Rob Reiner, a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star, has passed away, together with his wife, Michele, reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME, sometimes referred to as TDS,” President Trump wrote on his social media platform. “He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness, and with the Golden Age of America upon us, perhaps like never before. May Rob and Michele rest in peace!”

    Then, in the Oval Office, Trump doubled down on Reiner.

    “He was a deranged person,” Trump said in response to a reporter’s question about his social media post. “I was not a fan of Rob Reiner at all, in any way, shape or form. I thought he was very bad for our country.”

    Rest in peace, indeed.

    It’s a message steeped in cruelty and delusion, unbelievable and despicable even by the low, buried-in-the-dirt bar by which we have collectively come to judge Trump. In a town — and a time — of selfishness and self-serving, Reiner was one of the good guys, always fighting, both through his films and his politics, to make the world kinder and closer. And yes, that meant fighting against Trump and his increasingly erratic and authoritarian rule.

    For years, Reiner made the politics of inclusion and decency central to his life. He was a key player in overturning California’s ban on same-sex marriage and fought to expand early childhood education.

    For the last few months, he was laser-focused on the upcoming midterms as the last and best chance of protecting American democracy — which clearly enraged Trump.

    “Make no mistake, we have a year before this country becomes a full on autocracy,” Reiner told MSNBC host Ali Velshi in October. “People care about their pocketbook issues, the price of eggs. They care about their healthcare, and they should. Those are the things that directly affect them. But if they lose their democracy, all of these rights, the freedom of speech, the freedom to pray the way you want, the freedom to protest and not go to jail, not be sent out of the country with no due process, all these things will be taken away from them.”

    The Reiners’ son, Nick Reiner, has been arrested on suspicion of murder. Nick Reiner has struggled with addiction, and been in and out of rehab. But Trump seems to be saying that if Nick is indeed the perpetrator, he acted for pro-Trump political reasons — which obviously is highly unlikely and, well, just a weird and unhinged thing to claim.

    But also, deeply hypocritical.

    It was only a few months ago, in September, that Charlie Kirk was killed and Trump and his MAGA regime went nuts over anyone who dared whisper a critical word about Kirk. Trump called it “sick” and “deranged” that anyone could celebrate Kirk’s death, and blamed the “radical left” for violence-inciting rhetoric.

    Vice President JD Vance, channeling his inner Scarlett O’Hara, vowed “with God as my witness,” he would use the full power of the state to crack down on political “networks” deemed terrorist. In reality, he’s largely just using the state to target people who oppose Trump out loud.

    And just in case you thought maybe, maybe our president somehow really does have the good of all Americans at heart, recall that in speaking of Kirk, Trump said that he had one point of disagreement. Kirk, he claimed, forgave his enemies.

    “That’s where I disagreed with Charlie,” Trump said. “I hate my opponent and I don’t want the best for them.”

    There’s a malevolence so deep in Trump’s remarks about Reiner that even Marjorie Taylor Greene objected. She was once Trump’s staunchest supporter before he called her a traitor, empowering his goon squad to terrorize her with death threats.

    “This is a family tragedy, not about politics or political enemies,” Greene wrote on social media. “Many families deal with a family member with drug addiction and mental health issues. It’s incredibly difficult and should be met with empathy especially when it ends in murder.”

    But Trump has made cruelty the point. His need to dehumanize everyone who opposes him, including Reiner and even Greene, is exactly what Reiner was warning us about.

    Because when you allow people to be dehumanized, you stop caring about them — and Reiner was not about to let us stop caring.

    He saw the world with an artist’s eye and a warrior’s heart, a mighty combination reflected in his films. He challenged us to believe in true love, to set aside our cynicism, to be both silly and brave, knowing both were crucial to a successful life.

    This clarity from a man who commanded not just our attention and our respect, but our hearts, is what drove Trump crazy — and what made Reiner such a powerful threat to him. Republican or Democrat, his movies reminded us of what we hold in common.

    But it might be Michael Douglas’ speech in 1995’s “The American President” that is most relevant in this moment. Douglas’ character, President Andrew Shepherd, says that “America is advanced citizenship. You’ve got to want it bad, because it’s going to put up a fight.”

    Shepherd’s rival, a man pursuing power over purpose, “is interested in two things and two things only — making you afraid of ‘it’ and telling you who’s to blame for ‘it.’ ”

    Sound familiar?

    That our president felt the need to trash Reiner before his body is even buried would be a badge of honor to Reiner, an acknowledgment that Reiner’s warnings carried weight, and that Reiner was a messenger to be reckoned with.

    Reiner knew what advanced citizenship meant, and he wanted badly for democracy to survive.

    If Trump’s eulogy sickens you the way it sickens me, then here’s what you can do about it: Vote in November in Reiner’s memory.

    Your ballot is the rebuke Trump fears most.

    And your vote is the most powerful way to honor a man who dedicated his life to reminding us that bravery is having the audacity to care.

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    Anita Chabria

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  • Opinion | Why America Is a ‘Creedal Nation’

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    Democracy is a powerful and dangerous force, as America and the European democracies are discovering. Elites on both sides of the Atlantic haven’t done a very good job of handling it.

    We have some anniversaries coming up next year that may help us. We have, of course, the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The same day is the bicentennial of the deaths of the two founders most responsible for that great document, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration is vital to understanding who we are as Americans.

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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    Gordon S. Wood

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  • President Trump threatens possible military action in Nigeria

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    President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he is directing the Pentagon to prepare for possible military action in Nigeria, as he accused the country’s government of failing to stop the killing of Christians. “If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” Trump wrote on social media. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, whom the Trump administration is now referring to as the Secretary of War, responded soon after with his own post, saying, “Yes sir.” “The killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria — and anywhere — must end immediately,” Hegseth wrote.On Friday, Trump also said he would designate Nigeria “a country of particular concern” for allegedly failing to rein in the persecution of Christians. Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu responded on social media Saturday, saying his administration is open to deepening cooperation with the United States and the international community to protect people of all faiths. He also acknowledged the country’s security challenges but rejected Trump’s framing of his government’s response. “The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality, nor does it take into consideration the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians,” Tinubu said. More from the Washington Bureau:

    WASHINGTON —

    President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he is directing the Pentagon to prepare for possible military action in Nigeria, as he accused the country’s government of failing to stop the killing of Christians.

    “If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” Trump wrote on social media.

    Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, whom the Trump administration is now referring to as the Secretary of War, responded soon after with his own post, saying, “Yes sir.”

    “The killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria — and anywhere — must end immediately,” Hegseth wrote.

    On Friday, Trump also said he would designate Nigeria “a country of particular concern” for allegedly failing to rein in the persecution of Christians.

    Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu responded on social media Saturday, saying his administration is open to deepening cooperation with the United States and the international community to protect people of all faiths. He also acknowledged the country’s security challenges but rejected Trump’s framing of his government’s response.

    “The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality, nor does it take into consideration the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians,” Tinubu said.

    More from the Washington Bureau:

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  • Trump Honors Charlie Kirk With Presidential Medal Of Freedom On What Would Be His 32nd Birthday – KXL

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    President Donald Trump speaks as he meets with Argentina’s President Javier Milei in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday posthumously awarded America’s highest civilian honor to Charlie Kirk, the assassinated activist who inspired a generation of young conservatives and helped push the nation’s politics further to the right.

    The ceremony coincided with what would have been Kirk’s 32nd birthday. It came just over a month after the Turning Point USA founder was fatally shot while speaking to a crowd at Utah Valley University.

    In a sign of Kirk’s close ties to the administration, he was the first recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom in Trump’s second term. The president also spoke at at Kirk’s funeral in September, calling him a “great American hero” and “martyr” for freedom, while Vice President JD Vance accompanied his body home to Arizona on Air Force Two along with Kirk’s widow, Erika.

    “We’re here to honor and remember a fearless warrior for liberty, beloved leader who galvanized the next generation like nobody I’ve ever seen before, and an American patriot of the deepest conviction, the finest quality and the highest caliber,” Trump said Tuesday afternoon.

    Of Kirk’s killing, Trump said: “He was assassinated in the prime of his life for boldly speaking the truth, for living his faith and relentless fighting for a better and stronger America.”

    The Presidential Medal of Freedom was established by President John F. Kennedy in 1963 for individuals making exceptional contributions to the country’s security or national interests or to world peace, or being responsible for significant cultural endeavors or public and private initiatives.

    Tuesday’s event followed Trump returning to the U.S. in the pre-dawn hours after a whirlwind trip to Israel and Egypt to celebrate a ceasefire agreement in Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza that his administration was instrumental in brokering.

    Trump joked that he almost requested to move the ceremony because of the trip.

    “I raced back halfway around the globe,” Trump said. “I was going to call Erika and say, ‘Erika, could you maybe move it to Friday? And I didn’t have the courage to call. But you know why I didn’t call? Because I heard today was Charlie’s birthday.”

    In a sign of Trump’s breakneck schedule, Argentine President Javier Milei, w ho had been visiting with the president at the White House earlier, stayed on to attend the ceremony.

    Trump has awarded a string of presidential medals going back to his first term, including to golf legend Tiger Woods, ex-football coach Lou Holtz and conservative economist Arthur Laffer as well as to Yankees Hall of Fame closer Mariano Rivera and conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh, the latter of which came during the 2020 State of the Union. He awarded posthumous medals to Babe Ruth and Elvis.

    This term, Trump has also announced his intentions to award the medals to Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor and a close former adviser, and to Ben Carson, who served as Trump’s first-term secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

    Kirk founded Turning Point USA in 2012. Trump has praised Kirk as one of the key reasons he was reelected.

    But Kirk’s politics were also often divisive. He sharply criticized gay and transgender rights while inflaming racial tensions. Kirk also repeated Trump’s false claims that former Vice President Kamala Harris was responsible for policies that encouraged immigrants to come to the U.S. illegally and called George Floyd, a Black man whose killing by a Minneapolis police officer sparked a national debate over racial injustice, a “scumbag.”

    Trump wrote in a social media post hours before the event that he was moving the ceremony from the White House’s East Room to the Rose Garden to accommodate a crowd he said would be “so big and enthusiastic.”

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    Jordan Vawter

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  • Commentary: McCarthyism in a MAGA hat? Trump’s campus deal sounds familiar to her

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    Bettina Aptheker was a 20-year-old sophomore at UC Berkeley when she climbed on top of a police car, barefoot so she wouldn’t damage it, and helped start the Free Speech Movement.

    “Power concedes nothing without a demand,” she told a crowd gathered in Sproul Plaza on that October Thursday in 1964, quoting abolitionist Frederick Douglass.

    She was blinded by the lights of the television cameras, but the students roared back approval, and “their energy just sort of went through my whole body,” she told me.

    Berkeley, as Aptheker describes it, was still caught in the tail end of the McCarthyism of the 1950s, when the 1st Amendment was almost felled by fear of government reprisals. Days earlier, administrators had passed rules that cracked down on political speech on campus.

    Aptheker and other students had planned a peaceful protest, only to have police roll up and arrest a graduate student named Jack Weinberg, a lanky guy with floppy hair and a mustache who had spent the summer working for the civil rights movement.

    Well-versed in those non-violent methods that were finally winning a bit of equality for Black Americans, hundreds of students sat down around the cruiser, remaining there more than 30 hours — while hecklers threw eggs and cigarette butts and police massed at the periphery — before the protesters successfully negotiated with the university to restore free speech on campus.

    History was made, and the Free Speech Movement born through the most American of traits — courage, passion and the invincibility of youth.

    “You can’t imagine something like that happening today,” Aptheker said of their success. “It was a different time period, but it feels very similar to the kind of repression that’s going on now.”

    Under the standards President Trump is pushing on the University of Southern California and eight other institutions, Aptheker would likely be arrested, using “lawful force if necessary,” as his 10-page “compact for academic excellence” requires. And the protest of the students would crushed by policies that would demand “civility” over freedom.

    If you somehow missed his latest attack on higher education, the Trump administration sent this compact to USC and eight other institutions Thursday, asking them to acquiesce to a list of demands in return for the carrot of front-of-the-line access to federal grants and benefits.

    While voluntary, the agreement threatens strongman-style, that institutions of higher education are “free to develop models and values other than those below, if the institution elects to forgo federal benefits.”

    That’s the stick, the loss of federal funding. UCLA, Berkeley and California’s other public universities can tell you what it feels like to get thumped with it.

    “It’s intended to roll back any of the gains we’ve made,” Aptheker said of Trump’s policies. “No university should make any kind of deal with him.”

    The greatest problem with this nefarious pact is that much of it sounds on the surface to be reasonable, if not desirable. My favorite part: A demand that the sky-high tuition of signatory universities be frozen for five years.

    USC tuition currently comes in at close to $70,000 a year without housing. What normal parent thinks that sounds doable?

    Even the parts about protests sound, on the surface, no big deal.

    “Truth-seeking is a core function of institutions of higher education. Fulfilling this mission requires maintaining a vibrant marketplace of ideas where different views can be explored, debated, and challenged,” the document reads. “Signatories acknowledge that the freedom to debate requires conditions of civility.”

    Civility like taking your shoes off before climbing on a police car, right?

    As with all things Trump, though, the devil isn’t even in the details. It’s right there in black and white. The agreement requires civility, Trump style. That includes abolishing anything that could “delay or disrupt class instruction,” which is pretty much every protest, with or without footwear.

    Any university that signs on also would be agreeing to “transforming or abolishing institutional units that purposefully punish, belittle, and even spark violence against conservative ideas.”

    So no more talking bad about far-right ideas, folks. That’s belittling to our racists, misogynists, Christian nationalists and conservative snowflakes of all persuasions. Take, for example, the increasingly popular conservative idea that slavery was actually good for Black people, or at least not that bad.

    Florida famously adopted educational standards in 2023 that argue slavery helped Black people learn useful skills. In another especially egregious example from the conservative educational nonprofit PragerU, a video for kids about Christoper Columbus has the explorer arguing, “Being taken as a slave is better than being killed, no? I don’t see the problem.”

    And of course, Trump is busy purging the Smithsonian of any hints that slavery was a stain on our history.

    Would it be violating Trump’s civility standards for a Black history professor to belittle such ideas as unserious and bonkers? What about debates in a feminism class that discuss Charlie Kirk’s comment that a good reason for women to go to college is to find a husband?

    Or what about an environmental science class that teaches accurately that climate change denial is unscientific, and that it was at best anti-intellectual when Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth recently referred to efforts to save the planet as “crap”? Would that be uncivil and belittling to conservatives?

    Belittle is a tiny word with big reach. I worry that entire academic departments could be felled by it, and certainly professors of certain persuasions.

    Aptheker, now 81, went on to become just the sort of professor Trump would likely loathe, teaching about freedom and inclusivity at UC Santa Cruz for decades. It was there that I first heard her lecture. I was a mixed-race kid who had been the target of more than one racial slur growing up, but I had never heard my personal experiences put into the larger context of being a person of color or a woman.

    Listening to Aptheker and professors like her, I learned not only how to see my life within the broader fabric of society, but learned how collective action has improved conditions for the most vulnerable among us, decade after decade.

    It is ultimately this knowledge that Trump wants to crush — that while power concedes nothing without a demand, collective demands work because they are a power of their own.

    Even more than silencing students or smashing protests, Trump’s compact seeks to purge this truth, and those who hold it, from the system. Signing this so-called deal isn’t just a betrayal of students, it’s a betrayal of the mission of every university worth its tuition, and a betrayal of the values that uphold our democracy.

    Gov. Gavin Newsom has rightfully threatened to withhold state funding from any California university that signs, writing on social media that the Golden State “will not bankroll schools that sell out their students, professors, researchers, and surrender academic freedom.”

    Of course, some universities will sign it willingly. University of Texas called it an “honor” to be asked. There will always be those who collaborate in their own demise.

    But authoritarians live with the constant fear that people like Aptheker will teach a new generation their hard-won lessons, will open their minds to bold ideas and will question old realities that are not as unbreakable as they might appear. Universities, far from assuaging that constant fear, should fight to make it a reality.

    Anything less belittles the very point of a university education.

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    Anita Chabria

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  • Friday Night Hits: Week 6 Scoreboard and Recaps

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    HE’S NOT BAD, EVEN THOUGH HE IS NEW TO MELBOURNE HIGH SCHOOL. WE GO. THE DOGS WERE OUT TONIGHT TAKING ON THE OSCEOLA COWBOYS WITH THE BULLDOGS. FIRST QUARTER HANDOFF TO CAMERON JOHNSON. TOUGH 19 YARD GAIN. BUT THE DRIVE WOULD END IN A PUNT. SECOND QUARTER OSCEOLA ALREADY UP BY SIX ELIJAH JENKINS WE SAY THAT NAME A LOT ON THIS SHOW. HE CUTS UPFIELD FOR 22 YARDS AND A FRESH SET OF DOWNS THAT SETS UP THE PLAY ACTION. AMARI RUTLAND 15 YARD STRIKE TO JEFFERY. NOBODY CATCHES HIM. OSCEOLA SCORES FOR THE SECOND TIME IN THE HALF 31 YARD TD TOSS. BULLDOGS DO MAKE IT A GAME, BUT THEY CAN’T CATCH THOSE COWBOYS FROM KISSIMMEE. OSCEOLA WINS IT ON THE ROAD. 1810. THE FINAL SCORE OUT TO COLLEGE PARK. WE WILL GO SENIOR NIGHT AT EDGEWATER. EAGLES HAVE FLOWN THROUGH THE SEASON SO FAR FIVE ZERO COMING INTO TONIGHT. TAKING ON LYMAN WAS A ROUGH GO FOR THE GREYHOUNDS. OPENING PLAY OF THE GAME CARTER EMANUEL. THE QUICK SCREEN TO MALIK JOHNSON. HE WILL BREAK THROUGH THE TACKLE AND NO ONE WAS STOPPING HIM. IT WAS JUST THAT KIND OF NIGHT FOR EDGEWATER. STILL IN THE FIRST QUARTER. THEY’RE UP 14. NOTHING NOW. CARTER EMANUEL IS OUT. REMI JARMAN IS IN AT QUARTERBACK. GETS IT TO DAMIEN MOORE. FIRST QUARTER SECOND TOUCHDOWN OF THE NIGHT. THIS IS THE FIRST QUARTER. STILL EAGLES HAD THE RUNNING CLOCK BY HALF. EDGEWATER. THEY WIN BY A LOT 84 TO 6 IS THE FINAL. THAT’S SO MANY POINTS. ALL RIGHT. ONE OF THE BREAKOUT TEAMS SO FAR THIS SEASON LAKE BRANTLEY. THEY MAKE THE SHORT TREK TO SANFORD TONIGHT. LAKE BRANTLEY HADN’T LOST SO FAR THIS SEASON. HAD MORE WINS ALREADY THIS YEAR THAN THEY DID ALL OF LAST SEASON. A LOT OF SUCCESS FOR THE PATRIOTS SO FAR, BUT TAKING ON A SEMINOLE TEAM THAT HAS ALSO BEEN VERY GOOD IN THE PAST AND TRYING TO GET BACK ON TRACK THIS SEASON. LET’S HEAD UP TO SANFORD. AS THE PATRIOTS TRY TO INVADE THE SEMINOLE TERRITORY, LAKE BRANTLEY WOULD STRIKE FIRST IN THIS ONE. JACKSON STECKER WILL ROLL OUT AND FIND DEVIN WASHINGTON FOR THE SCORE 28 YARD STRIKE SEVEN. NOTHING. LAKE BRANTLEY IN FRONT LOOKED LIKE THE PATRIOTS WOULD DO WHAT THEY’VE DONE ALL SEASON LONG. SEMINOLE ON THE MOVE. HOW ABOUT JALEN CHAPLIN? HE’S GOING TO FUMBLE THE FOOTBALL PICK IT UP THEN RACE 22 YARDS DOWN TO THE TEN YARD LINE. THEY’D SWITCH ENDS WHEN THE QUARTER ENDS. FOUR PLAYS LATER IT WILL BE CHAPLIN IN FOR THE SCORE. HOW ABOUT SEMINOLE? THEY STORMED BACK FOR A BIG WIN 4321. THE FINAL SCORE. ALL RIGHT. LAKE MARY HOSTING HAGGERTY TONIGHT. RAMS LED BY TEN AT THE HALF. THIRD QUARTER IS WHERE WE WILL START NOAH GRUBBS OVER TO BARRETT SCHULTZ FIVE YARD TOUCHDOWN TOSS. EXTENDS THE LAKE MARY LEAD. BUT HOW ABOUT SOME DEFENSE ON OUR SHOW. CHANDLER CONDUIT AND LAVON CRUMPLER THEY MEET AT THE QUARTERBACK. THAT’S A BIG TIME SACK. LATE IN THE THIRD. MORE FROM THE OSHO GRUBBS TO SHEA FAISON 4117. AT THAT POINT, NOAH HAD SIX TOUCHDOWN PASSES TONIGHT. HOW ABOUT THAT LAKE MARY HAMMERING HAGGERTY, 5517. THE FINAL SCORE. APOPKA OVIEDO TRYING TO GET SOME MOMENTUM BACK ON THEIR SIDE AFTER AN UP AND DOWN START TO THE SEASON. THIS IS A GOOD WAY TO DO IT. BROCK JOYCE UP THE GUT SIX NOTHING. LIONS WITH THE LEAD STILL IN THE FIRST. DESHAWN FABRES COMES IN MOTION FOR THE TOSS. GETS TO THE OUTSIDE AND TO THE ENDZONE. HE GOES 14. NOTHING. OVIEDO STILL OUT IN FRONT. LYONS FAR FROM DONE. HOW ABOUT ANOTHER TOUCHDOWN ON THE GROUND. KAMARI SOLOMON WILL SPRINT ALONG THE SIDELINE AND OOH 64 NOTHING OVIEDO ROLLS PAST THE STING GAME. WE’RE GOING TO STAY IN APOPKA TONIGHT. THE BLUE DARTERS HAVE HAD A TOUGH SEASON SO FAR. IT GOT TOUGHER HOSTING WEST ORANGE. JADEN HAMMOND SPRINTING UP THE SIDELINE FOR SIX. VALHALLA AS THEY SAY. TOUCHDOWN MADE IT 30. NOTHING. WEST ORANGE TO THE THIRD QUARTER. AMMONS HAD HIMSELF A NIGHT TONIGHT RUNS INTO A WALL OF BLUE DARTERS RIGHT HERE BUT BREAKS RIGHT THROUGH IT 75 YARDS TO THE HOUSE. WEST ORANGE ROLLING. AND THEY WERE STILL NOT DONE. LATE THIRD QUARTER. THIS TIME IT WILL BE ANDREW CHUNG DEEP OVER THE MIDDLE TO DAREN GLOVER. THIS WILL BE A HOUSE CALL WEST ORANGE OVER APOPKA. ANOTHER SHUTOUT TONIGHT 51 NOTHING ROUGH NIGHT IN WEST ORANGE COUNTY TO THE AIR. OLYMPIA MAKING THE SHORT TRIP DOWN TO DOCTOR PHILLIPS. SECOND QUARTER ONE POINT GAME WHEN ZION MATTHEWS WILL TAKE THE HANDOFF. WEAVE THROUGH THE DEFENSE AND GET IN FOR SIX. TIME TO CELEBRATE. PANTHERS IN THE LEAD. MORE DP, MORE WILLIAMS. HE’LL TAKE ANOTHER HANDOFF AND DO THE SAME THING RIGHT UP THE GUT. IN FOR THE SCORE. DOCTOR PHILLIPS WINS WITH EASE, 42 SIX OVER THEIR NEARBY RIVALS. THAT’S A FINAL DOWNTOWN JONES HOSTING AN AUBURNDALE SQUAD THAT HAD WON FOUR STRAIGHT. BUT HOW’S THIS FOR AN ARRIVAL AS CHOPPER TWO ARRIVES? IT’S A JONES TOUCHDOWN PASS, EXTENDING AN ALREADY LARGE LEAD THERE. WE GOT IT. AUBURNDALE DOES MANAGE A FIELD GOAL, BUT THAT WILL BE IT. JONES PICKS UP ANOTHER WIN 37 THREE IS THE FINAL SCORE. ALL RIGHT. SOME SCORES FROM AROUND CENTRAL FLORIDA. HOW ABOUT TAVARES TAKING ON EUSTIS TONIGHT BY 59 POINTS. TOHO TOPS HARMONY 28 TO 16. MORE SCORES COMING YOUR WAY FROM TONIGHT. UNIVERSITY UP OVER FLAGLER. PALM COAST 2113 AND E

    Week 6 of Central Florida high school football is in the books. Scores across Central FloridaFriday Night Hits Week 6: Game of the Week DeLand at Spruce Creek (postponed)Friday Night Hits Week 6: You Pick 2 Game Eau Gallie 27, Titusville 14Davenport 41, Lake Minneola 6 Tavares 65, Eustis 6 West Orange 51, Apopka 0 Mount Dora Christian 48, The Master’s Academy 0 Tohopekaliga 28, Harmony 16Dr. Phillips 42, Olympia 6 Lake Mary 55, Hagerty 17 Ocoee 42, West Port 0 Winter Park 63, Freedom 8 Oviedo 64, Wekiva 0 East Ridge 84, Celebration 7 Colonial 35, Cypress Creek 15 Osceola 18, Melbourne 10 Winter Springs 20, Horizon 14 Gateway 20, Liberty Kissimmee 0Edgewater 84, Lyman 6Bishop Moore 29, Tampa Catholic 20 Jones 37, Auburndale 3 Windermere 36, Lake Buena Vista 0 Central Florida Christian Academy 46, Windermere Prep 21South lake 30, Forest Ocala 25

    Week 6 of Central Florida high school football is in the books.

    Scores across Central Florida

    Friday Night Hits Week 6: Game of the Week

    DeLand at Spruce Creek (postponed)

    Friday Night Hits Week 6: You Pick 2 Game

    Eau Gallie 27, Titusville 14

    Davenport 41, Lake Minneola 6

    Tavares 65, Eustis 6

    West Orange 51, Apopka 0

    Mount Dora Christian 48, The Master’s Academy 0

    Tohopekaliga 28, Harmony 16

    Dr. Phillips 42, Olympia 6

    Lake Mary 55, Hagerty 17

    Ocoee 42, West Port 0

    Winter Park 63, Freedom 8

    Oviedo 64, Wekiva 0

    East Ridge 84, Celebration 7

    Colonial 35, Cypress Creek 15

    Osceola 18, Melbourne 10

    Winter Springs 20, Horizon 14

    Gateway 20, Liberty Kissimmee 0

    Edgewater 84, Lyman 6

    Bishop Moore 29, Tampa Catholic 20

    Jones 37, Auburndale 3

    Windermere 36, Lake Buena Vista 0

    Central Florida Christian Academy 46, Windermere Prep 21

    South lake 30, Forest Ocala 25

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  • ‘Disgusting, vile’: Leaders across the political spectrum react to fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk

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    Politicians and leaders are reacting to the fatal shooting of political activist Charlie Kirk during a speaking event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.Kirk, the 31-year-old co-founder and CEO of the youth organization Turning Point USA, is the latest victim of political violence across the United States.”The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie,” President Donald Trump posted on social media platform Truth Social. “He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”On X, Vice President JD Vance posted a screenshot of Trump’s post and added, “Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.”Former President Barack Obama responded on X as well, saying, “We don’t yet know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children.”Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said on X that he was being briefed. He later posted a tribute to Kirk, saying, “This murder was a cowardly act of violence, an attack on champions of freedom like Charlie, the students who gathered for civil debate, and all Americans who peacefully strive to save our nation.””The terrorists will not win. Charlie will,” he added.During a press conference at 6:30 p.m., he called it a “political assassination,” saying it is a “tragic day for our nation.”In Washington, Utah Sen. John Curtis told reporters, “This is my backyard. This is very, very personal because of that, and leaves a scar.”Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote on social media, “Once again, a bullet has silenced the most eloquent truth teller of an era.” He called Kirk a “relentless and courageous crusader for free speech.”Democratic politicians reactAfter the shooting but before Kirk’s death was confirmed, California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “The attack on Charlie Kirk is disgusting, vile, and reprehensible. In the United States of America, we must reject political violence in EVERY form.”On the same platform, Democratic Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker wrote that political violence “should never become the norm.” Also among the leaders reacting was Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker whose husband was seriously injured at their California home in 2022 by a man wielding a hammer, who authorities said was a believer in conspiracy theories.Pelosi, a Democrat, posted that “the horrific shooting today at Utah Valley University is reprehensible. Political violence has absolutely no place in our nation.”Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and potential national candidate, has firsthand experience with political violence. He and his family were evacuated from the governor’s mansion earlier this year after a man broke into the building and set a fire that caused significant damage.“We must speak with moral clarity,” Shapiro wrote on X. “The attack on Charlie Kirk is horrifying and this growing type of unconscionable violence cannot be allowed in our society.”Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey wrote on X, “Violence has no place in our politics — ever. What happened to Charlie Kirk is horrific and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms. The growth of political violence in our country must be stopped.”State politicians across the country have condemned the killing and the rise of political violence.The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    Politicians and leaders are reacting to the fatal shooting of political activist Charlie Kirk during a speaking event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.

    Kirk, the 31-year-old co-founder and CEO of the youth organization Turning Point USA, is the latest victim of political violence across the United States.

    “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie,” President Donald Trump posted on social media platform Truth Social. “He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”

    On X, Vice President JD Vance posted a screenshot of Trump’s post and added, “Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.”

    Former President Barack Obama responded on X as well, saying, “We don’t yet know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children.”

    Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said on X that he was being briefed. He later posted a tribute to Kirk, saying, “This murder was a cowardly act of violence, an attack on champions of freedom like Charlie, the students who gathered for civil debate, and all Americans who peacefully strive to save our nation.”

    “The terrorists will not win. Charlie will,” he added.

    During a press conference at 6:30 p.m., he called it a “political assassination,” saying it is a “tragic day for our nation.”

    In Washington, Utah Sen. John Curtis told reporters, “This is my backyard. This is very, very personal because of that, and leaves a scar.”

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote on social media, “Once again, a bullet has silenced the most eloquent truth teller of an era.” He called Kirk a “relentless and courageous crusader for free speech.”

    Democratic politicians react

    After the shooting but before Kirk’s death was confirmed, California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “The attack on Charlie Kirk is disgusting, vile, and reprehensible. In the United States of America, we must reject political violence in EVERY form.”

    On the same platform, Democratic Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker wrote that political violence “should never become the norm.”

    Also among the leaders reacting was Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker whose husband was seriously injured at their California home in 2022 by a man wielding a hammer, who authorities said was a believer in conspiracy theories.

    Pelosi, a Democrat, posted that “the horrific shooting today at Utah Valley University is reprehensible. Political violence has absolutely no place in our nation.”

    Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and potential national candidate, has firsthand experience with political violence. He and his family were evacuated from the governor’s mansion earlier this year after a man broke into the building and set a fire that caused significant damage.

    “We must speak with moral clarity,” Shapiro wrote on X. “The attack on Charlie Kirk is horrifying and this growing type of unconscionable violence cannot be allowed in our society.”

    Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey wrote on X, “Violence has no place in our politics — ever. What happened to Charlie Kirk is horrific and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms. The growth of political violence in our country must be stopped.”

    State politicians across the country have condemned the killing and the rise of political violence.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • Hundreds gather at California State Capitol to mark Ukraine’s Independence Day

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    Hundreds of people gathered in front of the California State Capitol to mark Ukraine’s Independence Day, creating a somber yet spirited celebration as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues.”This day is a reminder to the whole world what freedom is about. And Ukraine fighting for their freedom,” said Vlad Skots, a Ukrainian American.Skots explained the evening’s significance, noting, “I would say we are not necessarily celebrating. We are here to remark the courage of the Ukrainian people. We are here to celebrate the American support.”While many Ukrainians want to celebrate, they are also mourning the lives lost in the fight to protect their freedom as the war continues.”The war today, it’s not only Ukrainian problem, that’s the global problem. And I deeply believe the United States will support Ukraine,” Skots said.Despite the current state of their country, attendees waved Ukrainian flags, danced to music and created a sense of community for refugees like Liana Lischenko, who arrived in Sacramento three years ago. “I remember my country, and I realize that I’m in Ukraine right now, and I have friends here who speak Ukrainian. And this is so kind,” Lischenko said.The gathering served as an important reminder of what they are still fighting for. “It’s not something particularly about country. It’s not about this group as a country only. No, that’s more than country. This is our value, our freedom, independence, what we stand for and what we will fight for,” Skots said.The event raised money for the Ukrainian military and featured multiple resource tents for those looking to get involved in the community.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

    Hundreds of people gathered in front of the California State Capitol to mark Ukraine’s Independence Day, creating a somber yet spirited celebration as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues.

    “This day is a reminder to the whole world what freedom is about. And Ukraine fighting for their freedom,” said Vlad Skots, a Ukrainian American.

    Skots explained the evening’s significance, noting, “I would say we are not necessarily celebrating. We are here to remark the courage of the Ukrainian people. We are here to celebrate the American support.”

    While many Ukrainians want to celebrate, they are also mourning the lives lost in the fight to protect their freedom as the war continues.

    “The war today, it’s not only Ukrainian problem, that’s the global problem. And I deeply believe the United States will support Ukraine,” Skots said.

    Despite the current state of their country, attendees waved Ukrainian flags, danced to music and created a sense of community for refugees like Liana Lischenko, who arrived in Sacramento three years ago.

    “I remember my country, and I realize that I’m in Ukraine right now, and I have friends here who speak Ukrainian. And this is so kind,” Lischenko said.

    The gathering served as an important reminder of what they are still fighting for.

    “It’s not something particularly about country. It’s not about this group as a country only. No, that’s more than country. This is our value, our freedom, independence, what we stand for and what we will fight for,” Skots said.

    The event raised money for the Ukrainian military and featured multiple resource tents for those looking to get involved in the community.

    See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

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  • ‘Do not despair,’ Harris tells supporters as she concedes the election

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    WASHINGTON —  Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday acknowledged her defeat to President-elect Donald Trump in a speech marked by emotion as well as a resolve to never give up the fight for a more just union.

    “My heart is full today, full of gratitude for the trust you have placed in me, full of love for our country, and full of resolve,” Harris told supporters at Howard University, her alma mater.

    Harris’ 12-minute speech, behind bulletproof glass in front of the brick, flag-lined Frederick Douglas Memorial Hall, took place less than 24 hours on the site where her supporters had gathered to celebrate what they had hoped would be the election of the first female president.

    On Tuesday night, revelers were dancing to 1990s hip-hop but grew somber as states began falling for Trump. On Wednesday, supporters and staffers embraced, wiped away tears and questioned whether this nation would ever elect a woman, notably a Black woman, president.

    “The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for,” Harris told the crowd. “But … hear me when I say, the light of America’s promise will always burn bright, as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.”

    Harris, typically stoic from her days as a prosecutor, displayed flashes of disappointment and sadness after telling the crowd that she was proud of the whirlwind campaign they ran over 107 days after President Biden announced he would not seek reelection.

    “Now, I know folks are feeling and experiencing a range of emotions right now. I get it,” she said, with a wry chuckle. “But we must accept the results of this election.”

    The crowd booed when she said that she had spoken with Trump earlier in the day to congratulate him. But as she continued speaking, they soon returned to cheering as she described the peaceful transition of power, which she pledged to assist him with, as a bedrock of democracy.

    “A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results,” Harris said, her voice quivering. “That principle, as much as any other, distinguishes democracy from monarchy or tyranny, and anyone who seeks the public trust must honor it. At the same time, in our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president or a party, but to the Constitution of the United States.”

    She did not mention that, before the election, Trump and other leading Republicans had hedged on whether they would accept the results, saying they would have to see if the balloting was conducted fairly and properly.

    However, these statements were clearly an allusion to the former president’s refusal to accept the 2020 election outcome and the ensuing insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, as Congress worked to certify the electoral college vote.

    Harris said that while she accepted the election results, she refused to concede the fight for freedom, opportunity and fairness that girded her campaign.

    “That is a fight I will never give up,” she said.

    She implored young people not to give up on fighting for their ideals because of her loss.

    “Do not despair. This is not a time to throw up our hands,” Harris said. “This is a time to roll up our sleeves. This is a time to organize, to mobilize and to stay engaged for the sake of freedom and justice and the future that we all know we can build together.”

    She concluded with one of her favorite adages — that the stars can only be seen when the night sky is dark. “I know many people feel like we are entering a dark time,” she said. “For the benefit of us all, I hope that is not the case. But here’s the thing, America. If it is, let us fill the sky with the light of a brilliant, brilliant billion … stars, the light, the light of optimism, of faith, of truth and service.”

    After Harris concluded speaking and walked back into Memorial Hall, the music stopped playing as crews began dismantling the stage.

    Several current members of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the historically Black sorority Harris joined at Howard, gathered in a circle. The young women, wearing dresses in various shades of pink, one of the sorority’s colors, softly sang their national hymn.

    “Through the years as we struggle // With main and with might // To capture a vision fair // There is one thing that spurs us // To victory’s height // With a fellowship sincere and rare // O, Alpha Kappa Alpha // Dear Alpha Kappa Alpha”

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    Seema Mehta

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  • Paradigm Shifts: A Complete Change in Worldview

    Paradigm Shifts: A Complete Change in Worldview

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    Discover the power of paradigm shifts in driving individual and societal transformation, from overcoming cognitive dissonance to fueling scientific revolutions.

    When’s the last time you changed your mind about something?

    Many people are stuck in their beliefs and worldview, especially once we reach a certain age. Our map of reality is shaped most by early life experiences, including lessons we’ve learned from parents, teachers, and friends.

    A worldview can be hard to break out of on a purely psychological level.

    Once we are set in a view, we seek new information that continues to confirm these beliefs by only looking at sources that already agree with us. When new information contradicts these beliefs, we can easily ignore it or distort it to keep our map of reality intact.

    Accepting that we are wrong about something can be hurtful to our ego and pride, and in many ways our brains are designed to protect ourselves from this discomfort by simply ignoring contradictory information unless it has a real world effect on our lives. As Philip K. Dick once said, “Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.”

    The average person isn’t primarily driven by a search for truth, they just need a map of reality that is good enough to navigate their lives effectively and not get themselves into too much trouble, which includes social pressures to conform to certain beliefs or stay silent about others.

    People can go through radical changes in beliefs though. Young adults and teenagers may go through “phases” as they come-of-age, where they question what they’ve been taught, rebel against orthodoxy, and search for their own meaning or purpose in life. These transformative years can lead to paradigm shifts that last a lifetime, such as adherence to new political, religious, or philosophical ideologies. Many may still return to their old beliefs later in life, but with a fresh new perspective.

    Learning about a new worldview, ideology, or philosophy doesn’t mean you need to adopt it – and it doesn’t necessarily lead to a paradigm shift. Often times learning about radically different belief systems can give us a firmer understanding of our current beliefs. There’s wisdom in learning about worldviews you find wrong, mistaken, or incorrect; at the very least, it will give you a better understanding of where other people are coming from.

    Paradigm shifts aren’t just new or updated knowledge, they represent a complete change in your perspective that makes you see and interpret old knowledge in a different way.

    This shift in perspective can be jolting and uncomfortable at first. We depend on worldviews to make sense of reality, so deep changes in perspective can often make reality feel more confusing or unstable at first.

    We often need to re-evaluate old knowledge and experiences through a new lens, and re-integrate them into a new and better map of reality. This is a mental shift that can sometimes take months or years before it is fully developed.

    My Paradigm Shifts

    My mind has changed a lot over the past decade, which hopefully is a sign that I’m learning and growing. When I first started this website over 15 years ago, my worldview was very different than what it is today.

    A few ways my mindset has changed:

    • Less Individualistic – During my college years, I explored a lot of libertarian philosophy that emphasized the individual over the collective. This is a common starting point in many “self help” circles too, which have an ethos of “take responsibility” and “pull yourself up by your boot straps.” While I still believe strongly in individual responsibility and initiative, I’ve grown to recognize the “no man is an island” mantra and focus more on the importance of social support, community-mindedness, and asking for help. This understanding has led to changes in my political and economic views too.
    • Less Materialistic and Money-Focused – It’s a bit embarrassing looking back on it, but I used to want to be rich and famous. I think a lot of it is just part of America’s narcissistic culture, where everyone strives to become some type of celebrity. As I get older, I’ve discovered new core values that have helped me focus on the more important things in life. I’ve also learned that a lot of my drive for money was really a drive for independence, and those aren’t the same thing. A person can make a lot of money and be trapped in their career to sustain their luxurious lifestyle, but a person of more modest fortune, who can be happy with less, often has more independence because they can then focus on other things in life. That was a counter-intuitive idea for me that took awhile to process.
    • Focus on Social and Cultural Forces – When I was younger, and likely a product of my libertarian days, I used to focus more on the importance of economics rather than culture. Generally, I saw things like music, art, and film as just a peripheral aspect of society, but now I’m beginning to understand their central importance. Every culture reflects and propagates a certain set of values, and a culture that promotes harmful and destructive values will lead to a harmful and destructive society. When I look at today’s world, I see a lot of cultural forces going in the wrong direction. I’m not pro-censorship in anyway, but I find many aspects of our culture need to be analyzed, criticized, and abandoned if they are hurting the happiness and health of a people.

    This is how my mindset has shifted over the years – and my mind will likely keep changing as long as I stay open to new information, new knowledge, and new experiences. At this point, most of my learning has happened outside of school and that’s a path I will continue on for the rest of my life.

    The Structure of Scientific Revolutions

    One of the most popular discussions on the topic of paradigm shifts is Thomas Kuhn’s 1962 book
    The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.

    Kuhn describes that scientific progress isn’t just an accumulation of facts, which he calls “normal science,” but also periods of “revolutionary science,” where anomalies are discovered that force scientists to look at a field in a completely new way.

    Common examples of paradigm shifts in science include:

    • The Copernican Revolution in the 16th century, where there was a change from geocentrism (“earth is the center of the universe”) to heliocentrism (“sun is the center of the solar system”)
    • Newtonian Physics in the 17th century, where classical mechanics discovered by Isaac Newton replaced previous models of Aristotelian physics.
    • Darwin’s theory of evolution and natural selection in the 19th century, which changed how humans viewed themselves in relation to animals and nature.

    Often there is initial resistance to accept new paradigms, which can go through heated periods of controversy and criticism among contemporary scientists and laymen.

    However, once these new paradigms were adopted, they allowed for research and discoveries into new phenomenon which ultimately expanded the boundaries of science and learning.

    New paradigms completely change how a scientific field is looked at. Thomas Kuhn used the example of the duck-rabbit optical illusion to demonstrate how new paradigms can change how we see old information:

    duck-rabbit optical illusion

    A duck or rabbit? It depends on your perspective.

    New paradigms can take awhile to be fully adopted. Old facts need to be looked at through a new lens. New books, research, studies, lectures, and textbooks need to be re-written from this new perspective, leading to a type of cognitive restructuring of society. The philosopher Immanuel Kant referred to the advancements of Greek mathematics and Newtonian physics as “revolutions in thinking,” and they take time to process.

    Generally, new scientific paradigms are better than old ones because they have more explanatory power over understanding natural phenomenon and predicting future outcomes.

    The best measure of scientific truth is its predictive power: if a new paradigm fails to better explain or predict a natural occurrence over a previous paradigm, then there’s no real point in replacing the old model (from a scientific perspective).

    Paradigm Shifts: An Antidote to Cognitive Dissonance

    Paradigm shifts are spurred on when new facts don’t fit into old worldviews. This leads to feelings of cognitive dissonance which is when someone is forced to hold two contradictory beliefs at the same time.

    Often the only way to reconcile this disconnect between facts vs. experience is to find a completely new paradigm that accounts for all old and new knowledge. This may require recognizing wrong or mistaken beliefs from your past, or cultivating a worldview with more complexity and nuance.

    Cognitive dissonance is a painful experience that most people choose to ignore or avoid. Many people double-down on wrong beliefs when they are passionately invested in them, which leads to excessive confirmation bias and conspiracy theories when beliefs continue to be held unchecked.

    At the same time, cognitive dissonance can be a catalyst for change – it’s a signal that we need to adjust our understanding of reality. This can become a real avenue for transformative thinking as long as you are honest with yourself, seek out diverse sources of information, and open-minded enough to see things in a new light.

    Conclusion

    Paradigm shifts are a part of learning and growing on both an individual and societal level. They are necessary for both radical self-improvement and radical scientific progress.

    While it’s important not to “change your mind just for the sake of changing your mind,” honest searches for knowledge and truth inevitably come up against walls that require a paradigm shift to get over and move onto the next stage.


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    Steven Handel

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  • Column: At Homeboy, the scoop on Father Greg and his latest honor, from those who know him best

    Column: At Homeboy, the scoop on Father Greg and his latest honor, from those who know him best

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    When Father Greg Boyle of Homeboy Industries was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Biden on May 3, I thought about dropping by to talk to him, but then I hesitated.

    He’s not one to take bows, and I knew he’d credit everyone but himself. So it would be tough to come up with a new angle, even with the city of Los Angeles now proclaiming that May 19 will be Father Greg Boyle day in honor of the man who started the world’s largest gang intervention and rehabilitation program.

    But then I got an idea. What if I talked to former gang members and inmates rather than to the patron saint of second chances, who turns 70 on Sunday? They know him better than anyone, and maybe I’d find out things I didn’t know.

    A photograph of Father Greg Boyle receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden has been added to the walls of his office at Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles.

    (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

    My timing was perfect, because Boyle was out of the country.

    “Go for it,” he said in an email from Ireland.

    I dropped by Homeboy on Tuesday and spent a few minutes with Pamela Herrera, 39, who arrived in 2011 after her release from prison.

    “When I walked into his office, he asked me, ‘Hey, kiddo. What are you here for?’” Herrera said. “I told him I wanted to change my life.”

    And she did. Herrera is general manager of Homegirl Cafe, and although she had never heard of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, she said Boyle is a worthy recipient. I asked if she’d seen him wearing the medal, because I know that if I had won one of those, I’d wear it everywhere.

    “He needs to do that,” she agreed, but no, she hadn’t seen the medal.

    Hector Verdugo smiles as he shares stories about Father Greg Boyle.

    Hector Verdugo, associate executive director for Homeboy Industries, smiles as he shares stories about Father Greg Boyle.

    (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

    Hector Verdugo, 49, didn’t know what had come of the medal, either. The former gang member, who arrived 18 years ago and now helps run Homeboy as associate executive director, knew what he would do if he were to win the hardware.

    “I would wear it,” he said. “I would cruise down Whittier Boulevard on my motorcycle.”

    I can’t begin to tell you how much I love that visual, but unfortunately, that’s not Boyle’s style. In fact, Verdugo said, the padre is in the habit of giving away things that are gifted to him.

    “The only time you’ll see him keep a gift is if it’s a bottle of whiskey,” Verdugo said.

    Now we’re getting somewhere. Boyle likes single malt Scotch, and Verdugo has observed a tradition in which clergy imbibe at an evening “social.”

    I knew I liked the Jesuits.

    I asked Verdugo and others if Boyle, behind the scenes, is a tough boss. Nobody had any beans to spill, but Verdugo said there is one rite of passage at Homeboy in which Boyle is inflexible.

    “He takes you to a steak dinner,” Verdugo said, “and then he says, ‘How would you like your steak, son?’ Or the waiter will ask. And homies are, ‘Well done?’ He’ll say, ‘Order a hamburger. You’re not going to have a steak that’s well done. That just ruins it.’”

    Jarvis Thompson talks about Father Greg Boyle receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

    “In reality, he deserved every bit of that award,” said Jarvis Thompson about Father Greg Boyle receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom at Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles.

    (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

    Who would have thought that a man so generous and accommodating — so famously nonjudgmental — could be so particular when it comes to how you order your steak?

    I tested Verdugo’s account with Jarvis Thompson, 30, who told me he traveled to Texas with Boyle to make a speech about his transformation at Homeboy, where he works in community relations.

    Texas is a cattle state, I said. Did you go out for a steak, and if so, did Father Boyle offer any advice?

    “I wanted it well done,” Thompson said.

    And what did Boyle tell him?

    “You’re going to mess the steak up,” Thompson said.

    Stefanie Rios, 39, assistant cafe manager, had one more tidbit of interest.

    “I mean, he kind of cusses sometimes,” Rios said.

    I hope he’s coming clean in confession.

    To be honest, though, all anyone wanted to talk about was a man who created a place that feels like home.

    Thompson calls Boyle “Pops,” as do many others, including Verdugo, 49. I sat with him in Boyle’s office, where there’s a photo of President Biden putting the medal around Boyle’s neck.

    “This one’s special. Our nation’s leader is honoring our Pops, our father, and I don’t say father in a priestly way,” Verdugo said. “I say father like he’s our father. And I’m honored that that’s my Pops right there. He calls me. I call him. He calls me his son, you know what I mean? And now he’s getting accolades from one of the most powerful people in the world. As it should be.”

    Homeboy hasn’t worked for everyone over the years. Some have fallen away, some can’t surmount the damage they’ve absorbed or inflicted on others, and too many have died young.

    But it’s worked for thousands, largely because Boyle understands the deep layers of their troubles and the countless roadblocks to recovery.

    “He always told me to never stop coming back,” said Rios, who was in and out of lockup for years. “He said, ‘I don’t care how many times it takes you. I don’t care if you mess up. My doors will always be open to you, and never give up.’”

    A group of people share their stories about Father Greg Boyle.

    Noel Rubio, from left, Hector Verdugo, associate executive director for Homeboy Industries, Taloma Miller and Steve Montoya share their stories about Father Greg Boyle at Homeboy Industries.. “He’s blessed me so much,” said Miller about Father Greg.

    (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

    Noel Rubio, 62, a kitchen worker at Homeboy, said he sold drugs as a youngster and used to see Boyle riding through the neighborhood on his bicycle.

    “I wanted to steal his bike because I wanted a beach cruiser,” Rubio said. “He said, ‘You need to quit selling drugs and come work with us.’”

    Rubio ignored Boyle and spent half his life in prison.

    “Thank God he was able to find me,” Rubio said. “Since I’ve been here he taught me how to love people, how to respect people.”

    Father Boyle had a radical idea, said kitchen worker Manuel Ornelas, 50, who heard about Homeboy while in prison. I asked what that idea was.

    “That we deserve a second chance. That he believed in us when nobody else did,” Ornelas said. “If you know his history, he went into the middle of shootouts. … He was willing to put his life on the line to get through to us.”

    Line cook Taloma Miller, 51, said she spiraled into addiction and incarceration after her 14-year-old son, basketball prodigy Semaj, was murdered in 2020. One day she saw Boyle in a TV news clip and he looked like Santa Claus to her.

    “I was like, ‘He has a beautiful spirit. I wanna be there,’” Miller said. “When I walked through the doors and I saw him, he was just smiling. … He hugs me, he tells me, ‘I love you.’ He prays for me. … I ask him, ‘Am I in the right place?’ He says, ‘You’re here, right? How do you feel?’ I feel so good being here, because there’s nothing like home.”

    Verdugo said he’s been awed by Boyle’s patience and generosity but used to wonder if the new arrivals needed a firmer hand.

    “I would say, you have more patience than I do. … They’re taking advantage of you,” said Verdugo. “And he’d say, ‘No, son. I’m giving them the advantage.”

    A few years ago, I asked Boyle if he ever considered retirement. He told me Jesuits retire in the graveyard, and that seems to be what his Homeboy family expects.

    “I think that man has a purpose on this earth,” said Steve Montoya, 36, who doesn’t see Boyle hanging it up.

    “To be honest, I think he’s going to do this until the end,” said Thompson.

    “When he’s in heaven, he’s going to be doing this,” said Miller. “He’s going to be sending his special workers, his special elves and his little angels to take care of this foundation. This is a foundation that will never be shaken.”

    True to form, Boyle’s official reaction to being one of 19 people to receive the nation’s highest civilian honor in May was to say the recognition “honors many thousands of men and women who have walked through our doors … since 1988.” He added that it “acknowledges their dignity and nobility and the courage of their tenderness” and marks the need to “invest in people and to create together a community of cherished belonging.”

    A Scotch and a steak to that.

    Medium rare, of course.

    steve.lopez@latimes.com

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    Steve Lopez

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  • Britney Spears ends protracted battle with her father over conservatorship legal fees

    Britney Spears ends protracted battle with her father over conservatorship legal fees

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    Britney Spears and her father Jamie Spears, her former conservator, have settled their protracted legal dispute over the payment of his legal fees and how he managed her finances during her 13-year conservatorship.

    The two parties settled for an undisclosed amount Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court after first filing about the issue in December 2021. The settlement helps the 42-year-old pop superstar avoid continued litigation, including a hearing that had been set for May, over her father’s alleged financial misconduct during the controversial legal arrangement.

    The infamous court-ordered guardianship, which was implemented in 2008 after Spears exhibited a spate of erratic behavior, dictated the superstar’s personal and professional life, and controlled her money, for more than a decade. Jamie Spears, 71, served as the conservator of her person and estate for years before resigning as her personal conservator in 2019 over “personal health reasons.” He was removed as a conservator of her estate in September 2021, and the legal arrangement was terminated altogether more than two years ago, but the fallout over accounting issues and legal fees carried on in court until last week.

    “Although the conservatorship was terminated in November 2021, her wish for freedom is now truly complete,” the singer’s attorney, Mathew S. Rosengart, said Monday in a statement to The Times. “As she desired, her freedom now includes that she will no longer need to attend or be involved with court or entangled with legal proceedings in this matter.”

    Rosengart, who changed the trajectory of the Grammy winner’s situation after he was hired as her personal attorney in July 2021, said it has been an “honor and privilege to represent, protect, and defend Britney Spears in that matter.”

    Jamie Spears’ attorney, Alex Weingarten, also confirmed that a settlement had been reached to resolve all outstanding disputes but would not comment on the specifics because the settlement is confidential.

    “At the insistence of counsel for Ms. Spears, the settlement is confidential and I cannot discuss it,” Weingarten said Monday in an email to The Times. “Jamie has nothing to hide and would be happy to disclose everything about every aspect of the conservatorship so that the public knows the actual truth. Jamie loves his daughter very much and has always done everything he can to protect her.”

    Last week, Weingarten told People that Jamie Spears is also “thrilled that this is all behind him,” adding that it is “unfortunate that some irresponsible people in Britney’s life chose to drag this on for as long as it has.”

    Jamie Spears, who had sought court approval for more than $2 million in payments to multiple law firms before officially relinquishing control of his daughter’s finances, also sought fees to be paid to his own attorneys. However, Rosengart objected to the fees, arguing that Britney Spears should not have to pay her father’s legal bills because he had paid himself millions as her conservator, improperly surveilled her and engaged in financial misconduct during his tenure, the New York Times reported.

    Jamie Spears has denied any wrongdoing.

    The “… Baby One More Time” and “Toxic” singer appeared to address the latest legal development on Instagram in a since-deleted post that blasted her parents.

    “My family hurt me !!! There has been no justice and probably never will be !!!” she wrote, according to a screenshot of the Sunday post published by TMZ.

    “The way I was brought up I was always taught the formative of right and wrong but the very two people who brought me up with that method hurt me !!! I am so lucky to be here !!!,” she added.

    Spears, who has long contended that she’s afraid of her father, said she hasn’t told her parents her thoughts face to face. The mother of two also said she misses her home in Louisiana and wishes she could visit but “they took everything.”

    Meanwhile, citing sources with “direct knowledge,” TMZ reported Monday that Spears is in “serious danger” on both the mental and financial fronts, faring far worse than she had been when she was under the control of the conservatorship.

    Rosengart and Weingarten declined to comment on the allegations.

    After the conservatorship ended, the “Mickey Mouse Club” alum wrested back control of her life and narrative and has basked in her newfound freedom, including making moves that have seemingly led to new revenue streams.

    In 2022, the former Las Vegas headliner landed a $15-million book deal that resulted in the publication of her bombshell memoir “The Woman in Me” last fall. The revelatory account — chronicling her early career, romances with Justin Timberlake and Kevin Federline and the conservatorship — was released to much fanfare and impressive sales. It sold more than 1.1 million copies in the United States its first week. In January, Gallery Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, announced that the book had sold more than 2 million copies in the U.S. alone across multiple formats. The audiobook, recited by Oscar winner Michelle Williams, became the fastest selling in the company’s history.

    Hollywood producers, including Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and Reese Witherspoon, have reportedly also been looking to adapt the book for the big screen.

    Although Spears has largely retreated from her live-performance career, she has been flaunting her freedom and lifestyle on Instagram, posting photos from the various destinations she has traveled to via private jet. She is also presumably enjoying the royalties from her 2022 collaboration with Elton John on “Hold Me Closer,” a reimagining of his 1970s classic “Tiny Dancer.”

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    Nardine Saad

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  • 2024 World Happiness Rankings: USA Falls Out of Top 20, Youngest Hit Hardest

    2024 World Happiness Rankings: USA Falls Out of Top 20, Youngest Hit Hardest

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    What are the top 20 happiest countries in the world? How do mental health and well-being trends look in the United States and Canada? The 2024 World Happiness Report is in!

    The World Happiness Report is a research initiative to compare happiness levels between different countries.

    The project first launched in 2012, surveying more than 350,000 people in 95 countries asking them to rate their happiness on a 10-point scale.

    Each year they release a new report and the 2024 full report was just published a few weeks ago. There are some interesting findings in it that are worth highlighting.

    First let’s look at the happiness rankings by country.

    Top 20 Happiest Countries

    Here are the top 20 happiest countries in 2024 according to the report.

    The scores are on a scale of 1-10. Each participant was asked to think of a ladder, with the best possible life for them being a “10” and the worst possible life being a “0.” They were then asked to rate their current lives. The final rankings are the average score for each country.

    (By the way, this simple test for measuring subjective well-being is known as the “Cantril Ladder,” it’s a common tool used in public polling especially the Gallup World Poll.)

    The results:

      1. Finland (7.741)
      2. Denmark (7.538)
      3. Iceland (7.525)
      4. Sweden (7.344)
      5. Israel (7.341)
      6. Netherlands (7.319)
      7. Norway (7.302)
      8. Luxembourg (7.122)
      9. Switzerland (7.060)
      10. Australia (7.057)
      11. New Zealand (7.029)
      12. Costa Rica (6.955)
      13. Kuwait (6.951)
      14. Austria (6.905)
      15. Canada (6.900)
      16. Belgium (6.894)
      17. Ireland (6.838)
      18. Czechia (6.822)
      19. Lithuania (6.818)
      20. United Kingdom (6.749)

    The top 10 countries have remained stable over the years. As of March 2024, Finland has been ranked the happiest country in the world seven times in a row.

    There was more movement in the top 20 rankings. Most notably, this is the first year that the United States dropped out of the top 20 (from rank 15 to 23 – an 8 place drop).

    More alarming are the age gaps in happiness reports. In both the U.S. and Canada, those above the age of 60 report significantly higher rates of happiness than those below 30.

    Above age 60, the U.S. ranks 10 overall on the world happiness rankings. Below age 30, the U.S. falls to rank 62, just beating out Peru, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

    Could this be a sign of a continuing downward trend in places like the U.S. and Canada?

    Potential Factors Behind Life Evaluation

    How to measure happiness is always a controversial topic.

    To this day, psychologists and social scientists don’t really have a reliable way to determine happiness besides simply asking someone, “How happy are you?”

    However, the World Happiness Report attempts to take the above findings and break them down into six main factors that contribute to overall life evaluation on a societal level.

    These factors don’t influence the final rankings, they are just a way to make sense of the results:

    • GDP per capita – A general measure of a country’s overall wealth.
    • Life expectancy – A general measure of a country’s overall health.
    • Generosity – The level of a country’s trust and kindness through charity and volunteering.
    • Social support – The level of a country’s social cohesion and community.
    • Freedom – The level of a country’s freedom to live life as a person sees fit.
    • Corruption – A general measure of government competence and political accountability.

    Each factor helps explain the differences in overall happiness between countries, with some countries performing better in certain areas over others.

    One benefit of this model is that it looks beyond GDP (or “Gross Domestic Product”) which has long been the overall benchmark for comparing countries in the social sciences. The U.S. has the highest GDP in the world and frequently ranks in the top 10 per capita, but the happiness rankings show there is more to the picture.

    Conclusion

    The World Happiness Report is a good guideline for comparing happiness and well-being between different countries. How does your country rank? It will be interesting to see how these rankings change over the next few years, do you have any predictions?


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    Steven Handel

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  • Trump Vs. Colorado, Plus Friendship and Freedom With Mandii B

    Trump Vs. Colorado, Plus Friendship and Freedom With Mandii B

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    Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay talk about Taraji P. Henson and pay disparities in Hollywood (11:45) before discussing a Black gay Republican’s experience being heckled at a MAGA event (29:47). Then, constitutional law professor Caroline Mala Corbin joins to break down the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision to remove Donald Trump from the ballot (36:25) before switching gears to welcome podcast host Mandii B to talk No Jumper and Adam22’s “friendship” with Crip Mac (55:38).

    Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
    Guests: Caroline Mala Corbin and Mandii B
    Producers: Donnie Beacham Jr. and Ashleigh Smith

    Subscribe: Spotify / Apple Podcasts / Stitcher

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    Van Lathan

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