As readers of Blaze News are aware, porch pirates have been a rampant and widespread problem for quite a long time. But one Philadelphia couple recently decided to issue a bit of payback to crooks who steal their delivered packages.Travis Giarraffa and Lauren Goffredo told WTXF-TV they took action after someone stole a box of toilet paper while they were just feet away.'I shook it to make it all dirty in there, so if they even put their hands [in], it's all over their hands.'"[The package thief] walked off with a big thing of toilet paper, so last night [Travis is] like, 'You know, I got to clean up all the poop in the yard. Let's just box it up and put it outside,'" Goffredo told the station.Goffredo added to WTXF: "This is Louis. He's our poop-machine French bulldog."With that, the couple boxed up their canine's waste, shall we say, and left it outside overnight, the station said.RELATED: Package thief leaves snarky 'thank you' note for victim. But she hopes to have last laugh with decoy box featuring 'a little gift' from her dog. Giarraffa and Goffredo told WTXF that surveillance video actually captured someone taking the package at 4 a.m. last Wednesday."It was probably disgusting and gross and a lot — and I shook it to make it all dirty in there, so if they even put their hands there, it’s all over their hands," Giarraffa noted to the station."It was stinky, for sure," Goffredo added.Bottom line: The couple told WTXF their hope is that the prank will make would-be thieves think twice before stealing packages in the future.Giarraffa added to the station that he's also willing to help neighbors repeat the experiment: "If you need some dog poo for a package, hit me up. We have a whole dog poo dumpster out there."More from WTXF:Philadelphia police encourage anyone who experiences a theft or any crime to call 911 or visit their nearest police district. A spokesperson said, "If you experience a theft or any crime against you, it is important to report it to the police. ... If you have video evidence, it can be very helpful for investigators in locating the offender(s)."The station added that neighbors in the area are staying vigilant and sharing information to help prevent future thefts.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Over the past year, the Food and Drug Administration has done important work drawing attention to how food choices affect health. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. deserves credit for shining a light on food additives and America’s dependence on processed foods.I’m a registered nurse and a mother. I applaud that work. But I also need to ask a hard question: Why aren’t childhood vaccines getting the same attention and urgency?We don’t force anyone to vaccinate. We shouldn’t. But we do owe families accurate information about the real risks of preventable diseases and the real protection vaccines provide.I’ve spent years in intensive care watching people of all ages fight respiratory illness. Even with experience, it’s brutal to see a patient cling to life through ventilators, intubation, or ECMO machines.Last year, I watched in horror as a measles outbreak took the lives of two unvaccinated children in Texas. Whooping cough killed two infants in Louisiana. Closer to home, my own child caught whooping cough. It was frightening and exhausting to see how coughing fits made it almost impossible for him to catch his breath.He was old enough to have received his vaccines. I believe that reduced the severity of his illness and likely kept him out of the hospital. That experience leaves me with one request to RFK: Give childhood vaccines the same serious focus you’ve given food safety.Kennedy says he cares about children. I believe him. That’s why I’m urging him to speak clearly about routine childhood immunizations — because I’ve seen what happens when preventable diseases return.Hospitals are treating illnesses that routine vaccines usually prevent or blunt. Last year, the CDC reported an increase in meningococcal disease, a dangerous illness that immunization can prevent. South Carolina is dealing with a record-breaking measles outbreak. These diseases can bring devastating outcomes: brain swelling from measles; brain damage, limb loss, or deafness from meningococcal infection.Gaps in routine immunization also open the door to pathogens we once had under control. A paralytic polio case in an unvaccinated person in New York in 2022 underscored what’s at stake: Irreversible paralysis still remains possible when vaccination rates fall.Childhood vaccines rank among public health’s most effective tools. They prevent outbreaks and protect children from serious infections and lifelong complications. They also fit comfortably inside a conservative framework. They’re voluntary. They’re widely available. They’ve been used for decades. Parents make informed choices for their families.RELATED: MAHA is sick: RFK’s FDA is drifting the wrong way Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesHigh vaccination rates also protect the most vulnerable. They reduce transmission, which helps safeguard infants too young to be vaccinated and children with medical conditions that keep them from receiving certain shots. That means fewer hospitalizations, less strain on health care systems, and healthier schools and communities.That’s why recent messaging from Washington worries me. Telling Americans to “talk to your doctor” sounds reasonable, until you face the reality on the ground. Roughly one-third of Americans lack access to primary care, and many children don’t have a regular provider. For millions of families, “talk to your doctor” translates to “you’re on your own.”Parents in small towns and working-class neighborhoods don’t always have easy access to specialists who can walk them through immunization questions. They want to do the right thing. They need clear, trustworthy guidance from national health leaders — not signals that create doubt about vaccines that protect kids.Vaccine conversations can get sensitive fast. Parents have questions, and they deserve honest answers. But they also deserve clear, consistent leadership that says what decades of evidence has shown: Routine childhood immunization works, and it protects children.We don’t force anyone to vaccinate. We shouldn’t. But we do owe families accurate information about the real risks of preventable diseases and the real protection vaccines provide.As a nurse, I work to prevent harm. As a mother, I refuse to accept a return to diseases we already know how to stop. As a conservative, I don’t want to break systems that save lives.We can make America healthy again by tackling chronic disease and by protecting kids from preventable infections. These goals don’t compete. They reinforce each other.

Former U.S. Navy SEAL Shawn Ryan routinely has warriors on his podcast who have battled men using modern weaponry. Last week, he spoke to a warrior who battles demons using timeless weaponry: Christ's name, prayer, and the authority of his vocation.Over the course of his four-hour conversation with Ryan, Fr. Chad Ripperger — a Thomistic philosopher, psychologist, and founder of the Doloran Fathers — shared insights drawn from years serving as a Catholic exorcist in the Archdiocese of Denver, as well as from his study of church history and Christian theology.In addition to discussing potential signs of the Antichrist's imminence and the possibility that extraterrestrials might be the trappings of a demonic psy-op, Fr. Ripperger explained the different types of diabolic influence and described how the Church's major exorcism rite is carried out. Varieties of diabolic influence Fr. Ripperger — who stressed that he had "no intention of being an exorcist" and only does it out of obedience — identified several forms of diabolic influence, beginning with infestation, "where they infest houses or locations, inanimate objects, animals."'The demon's not necessarily in the driver's seat all the time.'The exorcist priest turned to Scripture for an example of animal infestation, referencing the ruination of pigs by the evil spirits cast out by Christ from the demoniac in Gergesa.Fr. Ripperger suggested that infestations are often the localized byproduct of sin: "It's because somebody has done something particularly evil in a location and, as a result, the demons have gotten their foot in the door there." Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty ImagesWhile occult activity can grease the way for an infestation, the exorcist said the sins demons tend to "gravitate toward the most — because they're easiest to get human beings to fall into — are the sins against the Sixth Commandment like fornication, masturbation, pornography, those types of things."Another form of diabolic influence — "the primary way" and a universal challenge — is ordinary temptation, where demons plant notions "in our imaginations," skew perspectives, and manipulate emotions. Though relatively subtle, Fr. Ripperger noted that this form of influence can still be destructive, particularly within relationships and families.Diabolic obsession is another variety in which demons "attack our interior faculties, specifically the imagination and emotions again — but unlike ordinary temptation, this is extraordinary, where it's very powerful and very strong," capturing the victim's attention and imagination and leaving them with a kind of spiritual "tunnel vision."While someone experiencing diabolic obsession may initially have periods of lucidity, Fr. Ripperger said those moments of reprieve can diminish over time if the influence persists. Eventually the victim may capitulate and commit a grave sin at the demon's urging — or possibly even become possessed.The priest described two kinds of diabolic possession. The first is "perfect possession, where the person has given themselves over to the demon entirely, and then the demon possesses the whole body, and the demon is manifested all the time."According to Fr. Ripperger, this condition — outward signs of which include malice, mendacity, animus, and destructiveness — is rare. Individuals in such a state rarely seek out priests, since they are not desirous of liberation.Partial possession, by contrast, refers to a temporary and localized possession of part of the body where "the demon's not necessarily in the driver's seat all the time."The exorcism riteWhen asked about the process of conducting an exorcism, Fr. Ripperger said the approach is structured, though the particulars vary depending on what is known about the individual, whether they have had prior encounters with dark forces, and what stage of diabolic influence they appear to be in."So in many cases, if the person who's possessed can tolerate it, we'll actually offer Mass so that the person can receive Holy Communion, which then weakens the demon significantly," he said, noting that confession is encouraged beforehand.After Mass but before the exorcism ritual begins in earnest, a series of prayers are recited "to provide everybody protection that's in the room.""So we do a series of prayers — binding prayers — which bind the demon from being able to do certain things, and then we'll actually start the formal ritual."The Latin ritual typically begins with the Litany of the Saints. According to Fr. Ripperger, this serves as a kind of diagnostic tool because a demon's reaction to the names of certain saints can reveal clues about "the demon's particular sin" and how best to proceed.From there, the exorcist alternates between "deprecatory and imprecatory prayer" — the former asking Christ for help and the latter commanding demons directly, ordering the evil spirits to consider specific truths that cause them pain.The goal, Fr. Ripperger explained, is to allow the demon's pain "to build to where they finally give you what you need to know in order to get them out."Canon law stipulates that "no one can perform exorcisms legitimately upon the possessed unless he has obtained special and express permission from the local ordinary."Such permission is granted "only to a presbyter who has piety, knowledge, prudence, and integrity of life."The Catholic Church also requires that a suspected demoniac undergo "thorough examination including medical, psychological, and psychiatric testing" before being referred to an exorcist.The Church distinguishes between minor exorcisms — used, for example, in baptismal preparation — and major exorcisms, the rite discussed by Fr. Ripperger, which may only be performed by a bishop or an authorized priest.Fr. Ripperger told Ryan that "Protestants have a certain degree of efficacy [in exorcisms] by using Christ's name because it has a force of its own."However, he suggested that certain types of possession require the authority of the Catholic Church and its clergy — authority that traces back to Christ's commissioning of the apostles.Bad signs and end timesAsked where evil appears to be gaining ground in society, Fr. Ripperger said the forces of darkness have increasingly targeted good families — "families that historically led good lives, were raising their kids properly, very often very religious, doing the things that they're supposed to do."The priest suggested this "full-blown attack" on previously resilient targets may indicate that demons are emboldened by a worsening moral climate — or that they "know their time is short," possibly because a divine "corrective" is approaching.'That is not a reference to the Jewish temple.'Ryan asked whether such developments might signal the approach of the end times.While acknowledging that "we don't really have any certitude," Fr. Ripperger said several conditions traditionally associated with the Antichrist appear increasingly plausible.Among them: "A worldwide implosion of people's morality," in which "people just aren't following the laws of God or the natural law in any sense of the term"; The emergence of technological and institutional systems — such as unified global financial systems and digital currencies — capable of controlling populations on a mass scale; and Internal crisis within the Catholic Church prior to a future renewal. Fr. Ripperger also expressed skepticism about the idea that rebuilding a third Jewish temple in Jerusalem is a necessary precursor to the end times. He argued that the Church Fathers consistently held that such a temple would never be rebuilt and that the prophecy often cited in this context has been widely misunderstood.RELATED: Understanding hell — Part I Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images"The difficulty is people tend to misinterpret the Book of Daniel, which says when the abomination of desolation takes its seat in the temple," he said. "What they don't realize is that that is not a reference to the Jewish temple."Instead, he suggested that the New Covenant superseded the Old Covenant and that the "holy place" referenced in such passages should be understood as the Catholic Church. 'It permanently robbed a person of the possibility of the beatific vision.'Whatever the signs of the times, Fr. Ripperger emphasized that Christians must remain faithful.It is critical, he said, that believers "follow Christ regardless of the personal cost."Demonic psy-opFormer President Barack Obama claimed in an interview last month that aliens are "real."Although Obama later walked back the remark, President Donald Trump announced he would nevertheless be "directing the Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies, to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs)."Asked about UFOs and extraterrestrials, Fr. Ripperger suggested that some sightings could simply be government experiments — a suspicion reinforced by a 2025 Wall Street Journal report that found the Pentagon had at times disseminated false information about aliens to obscure sensitive weapons programs.However, he noted that many accounts of alien abductions closely resemble descriptions of demonic encounters.RELATED: What Shia LaBeouf's public struggle shows us about Christian redemption Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images"If you strip the veneer of the alien aspect of it off, then in point of fact what you're dealing with is just — they're just demons," he said.Fr. Ripperger added that some unidentified anomalous phenomena could also be what he called "diabolic mirage[s]" — supernatural illusions permitted by God in rare circumstances.Abortion: Demonic empowermentAfter Ryan brought up Baphomet — the goat-headed occult figure whose likeness the Satanic Temple adopted as its logo and displayed in a statue in the Iowa Capitol in 2023 — the conversation turned to abortion. Ryan asked about the demonic interest in child sacrifice.Fr. Ripperger said demons are empowered by abortion not only because it involves the killing of an innocent but because it denies the child the opportunity for baptism."We know of no other means of their salvation other than baptism. ... And so historically, the Church always considered abortion to be such a heinous crime because it permanently robbed a person of the possibility of the beatific vision. This is why the Church considered it so evil," he said.Obtaining an abortion is an excommunicable offense in the Catholic Church.The priest argued that demons "are so wed to" the widespread practice of abortion that they will "expend enormous amounts of energy protecting it" in order to prevent children "from ever seeing God."According to the Guttmacher Institute, an estimated 1,038,000 abortions were executed in states without total bans in 2024. There were nearly 600,000 abortions in the first six months of 2025.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Burning and ransacking of a local communist party building in Cuba was captured on video Friday night, with Cuban officials saying the violence "threatens citizen tranquility."The city of Morón was the focal point of the outrage, which local outlets said was in response to the current energy crisis and lack of access to food.'There will be no impunity for vandalism and violence.'A small group of people reportedly began protesting peacefully on Friday night, but later turned to vandalism after an exchange with territorial authorities. Eventually, cameras captured a group of protesters surrounding a large fire outside the communist party building. Multiple people were seen having scaled the building, running in and out of the second floor window, throwing building contents out into the streets.Cuban outlet Invasor said that protesters destroyed the entrance, started a fire inside the building, and damaged a nearby pharmacy and retail outlet. As a result, five people were arrested.On Saturday, outlets began reporting claims that a man had been shot outside the building by authorities.RELATED: Cuba next? Trump admin eying possible regime change after Maduro arrest: Report Fox News reported on a man's apparent collapse caught on video, which followed the sound of a gunshot. Protesters reportedly said, "They shot him! They're shooting!" before the man was carried away by other protesters.However, state outlet Vanguardia claimed in an X post that "there were no gunshot wounds" and that the "shots were fired into the air to disperse the riot.""The young man they're trying to portray as a victim was one of those responsible for the riots. While trying to tear off the Party ID, he suffered a fall. His own comrades transported him on a motorbike, and he is currently receiving medical attention in the hospital," the outlet wrote, per X's translation.Vanguardia also noted that "tranquility" remains predominant in the province. The same verbiage was echoed by Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel.RELATED: America First — or American Empire? Trump’s aggressive global moves signal a new doctrine The president wrote that while it was "understandable" for blackouts to cause distress, he blamed an increasingly cruel and intensified "U.S. energy blockade" for the unrest."And complaints and claims are legitimate, as long as they are made with civility and respect for public order," Diaz-Canel went on. "What will never be understandable, justified, or acceptable is violence and vandalism that threatens public tranquility and the security of our institutions. There will be no impunity for vandalism and violence."Morón is in the province of Ciego de Avila and is located about 250 miles east of Havana, with a population of around 70,000.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Once a niche instrument for occult enthusiasts, mystics, and fringe spiritual groups, tarot cards are a highly trendy item you can pluck off a Walmart shelf today. They’re no longer considered just a tool for divination either. In the modern world, tarot cards are used in many games as well as for self-reflection, spiritual guidance, and storytelling. There are even “Christian” tarot card decks available now.For years, tarot cards were viewed by the majority of Christians as off-limits because of their connection to divination, which Scripture strictly prohibits. But today, views have softened as these colorful, illustrated decks have been absorbed into mainstream culture.But Rick Burgess, BlazeTV host of the spiritual warfare podcast “Strange Encounters,” warns: Tarot cards, regardless of stated purpose or Christian branding, are “highly, highly dangerous.” Rick begins by recounting the strange history of tarot cards.They began as a regular card game — with no spiritual element whatsoever — in Italy in the early to mid-1400s.“But then in the 1780s, French occultists ... took these cards, and they started to make it popular that ... these cards held some sort of ancient Egyptian secrets, and this is when they started the fortune-telling,” Rick recounts.“I don’t want to be sitting down anywhere throwing out a bunch of cards that are used by the occult for some sort of fortune-telling because we know that that’s divination, and the Bible completely, I mean, rejects that. How this has crept into Christianity, I will never know,” he adds.Rick then reads from Deuteronomy 18:10-12: “Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD; because of these same detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you.”To those who think tarot cards, psychic mediums, and fortune tellers are all a hoax, Rick issues this dire warning: “If you start dabbling in these cards, it opens the user up to demonic forces because what you’re saying to demonic forces is, instead of seeking guidance from God, ... you want to seek guidance from whoever shows up.”And spiritual beings do show up, he insists. But they’re never on your side.“Evil spirits — that’s who you’re going to deal with,” he says.“You may very well get a supernatural message from these cards. ... But it’s not from God, and that’s where the caution is. ... It’s misplaced trust. We trust in God and God alone.”To hear more of Rick’s biblical wisdom, watch the full episode above.Want more from Rick Burgess?To enjoy more bold talk and big laughs, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.