We face wars, invasions, lost morality, corrupt, bloated bureaucracies, and criminal gangs roaming our streets while our debt rises dangerously. If all those things were addressed, cellphones might be the next target. However, why is Congress worrying about nationwide cellphone bans in schools while not addressing major issues like judicial tyranny? Can’t the schools handle […] The post As the Western World Decays, Politicians Focus on Cellphones in Schools appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

The world is mourning the death of Pope Francis, the leader of the Catholic church who died on Easter Monday at the age of 88. “Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis. At 7:35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father,” Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Camerlengo of the Apostolic Chamber announced Monday. “His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of His Church. He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and most marginalized.” Francis’ death comes a few months after he contracted bronchitis in February and was hospitalized in Rome, per Associated Press. He later contracted double pneumonia and experienced “two episodes of acute respiratory failure,” according to the Vatican. On March 23, he was released from the hospital after a 38-day stay. Pope Francis made a few public appearances after his release from the hospital, including waving to the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday. World leaders have posted their messages of condolences, as did several celebrities who shared about Pope Francis’ death on social media. Vice President J.D. Vance, who just met with Pope Francis on Sunday, shared his thoughts with a post on X. “I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis. My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him,” Vance wrote. “I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill. But I’ll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early days of COVID. It was really quite beautiful,” he continued. “May God rest his soul.” “The View” host Whoopi Goldberg showed a photo of herself meeting the Holy Father. “He was the closest in a long time that seemed to remember that Christ’s love enveloped believer and none [sic] believer,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “He felt more like Pope John the 23rd who made belief real. Sail on Pope Frances [sic] with your love of humanity & Laughter.” “Truly anointed,” actress Viola Davis wrote on Instagram.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by VIOLA DAVIS (@violadavis) “Pope Francisco has died — a man who, at the head of the Catholic Church, showed kindness, love, and mercy to the neediest people,” actor Antonio Banderas wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of himself with the Holy Father. “A beautiful day in Rome, but, a sad day for the faithful. RIP Francis,” wrote “Gladiator” star Russell Crowe alongside a photo of Rome. “A wonderful, wonderful man!” Sylvester Stallone wrote. “Rest in peace holy father!” Prince Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, wrote in Instagram Stories, “No better example of total humility in kindness and compassion. Thank you for leading us with not just your words, but with your unwavering service to humanity.”

The funeral of Pope Francis will depart from the traditional funeral proceedings of popes in several significant ways at the request of the late pontiff. Francis died on Monday at the age of 88 after a severe bout of double pneumonia. Before he passed away, the Bishop of Rome made some stark changes to his funeral rites last year, breaking from the forms followed by his predecessors. Popes have typically been laid to rest in the crypt of St. Peter’s Basilica. Francis directed that he should be interred in Rome’s St. Mary Major Basilica, to which the late pope had a “very strong” connection. Francis, as pope, visited St. Mary’s more than 100 times, according to the New York Post. Francis’ coffin will also be a marked departure from tradition. Popes have typically been buried in a series of three interlocking coffins made of cypress, elm, and lead. Francis has directed that he should be buried in a simple wooden casket with a zinc lining. The Vatican’s death bells rang out 88 times to mark the pope’s passing at noon on Monday. Traditionally, the bells have been saved until the hour of the pope’s death or the announcement of his death. VATICAN CITY—Already departing from Tradition, the Vatican chose to ring the death bells for Pope Francis, not at the hour of his death (or even when it was announced), but at noon, today. The bells rang 88 times for his 88yrs on earth: ?: @MountainButorac pic.twitter.com/1a7mbcgYkD — Bree A Dail (@breeadail) April 21, 2025 Vice President JD Vance was one of the last people to see Francis alive, meeting with the pontiff on Easter Sunday during an official visit to Rome to meet with members of the Italian government. Francis gifted Vance a Vatican tie, rosaries, and three chocolate Easter eggs for his children. The Vatican said that the vice president and the pope shared a “cordial conversation” during the brief visit. WATCH: MICHAEL KNOWLES EXPLAINS HOW THE NEXT POPE WILL BE SELECTED Vance reacted to the pope’s passing in a post on X on Monday. “I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis. My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him. I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill. But I’ll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early days of COVID. It was really quite beautiful. May God rest his soul,” Vance posted, sharing a homily Francis gave in 2020. I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis. My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him. I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill. But I’ll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early days… — JD Vance (@JDVance) April 21, 2025

The Defense Department and the White House, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth himself, fired back over an anonymously-sourced New York Times piece claiming that Hegseth had shared “highly sensitive military information” in a second Signal chat group that allegedly included his wife, his brother, and his attorney. The story comes on the heels of a previous incident in which The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg was mistakenly added to a different Signal chat group — and an attack on Houthi terrorists was described in some detail before Goldberg went public with both his presence in the group and the contents of the conversation. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz ultimately took responsibility for Goldberg’s accidental inclusion, which may have been linked to his iPhone’s algorithm that populates “automated contact suggestions.” The second chat group, according to the NYT, was nicknamed “Defense | Team Huddle” and was accessed via Hegseth’s personal phone rather than his government phone. Citing several anonymous sources, the NYT stated that the private Signal chat had included at least two of three DOD officials who were recently relieved of duty amid an investigation into “unauthorized disclosures” to media. The article offered no evidence suggesting that Hegseth had ever discussed anything of a sensitive nature in that group. On Sunday, Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell released a statement responding to the story: Another day, another old story—back from the dead. The Trump-hating media continues to be obsessed with destroying anyone committed to President Trump’s agenda. This time, the New York Times — and all other Fake News that repeat their garbage — are enthusiastically taking the grievances of disgruntled former employees as the sole sources for their article. They relied only on the words of people who were fired this week and appear to have a motive to sabotage the Secretary and the President’s agenda. There was no classified information in any Signal chat, no matter how many ways they try to write the story. What is true is that the Office of the Secretary of Defense is continuing to become stronger and more efficient in executing President Trump’s agenda. We’ve already achieved so much for the American warfighter, and will never back down. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:4/20/25 STATEMENT: Another day, another old story—back from the dead. The Trump-hating media continues to be obsessed with destroying anyone committed to President Trump’s agenda. This time, the New York Times — and all other Fake News that repeat their… — Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellATSD) April 21, 2025 Hegseth, who was present at Monday’s Easter Egg Roll at the White House, responded directly to the story as well: What a big surprise that a bunch of leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax. This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees, and then they try to slash and burn people and ruin their reputations. Not going to work with me. We’re changing the Defense Department, putting the Pentagon back in the hands of warfighters — and anonymous smears from disgruntled former employees on old news doesn’t matter. Pete Hegseth shuts down the fake news media: "What a big surprise that a bunch of leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax." "This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former… pic.twitter.com/H4AmR88BJR — Townhall.com (@townhallcom) April 21, 2025 White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also defended Hegseth during a Monday morning appearance on “Fox & Friends,” telling anchor Brian Kilmeade that the president was standing behind Hegseth, “who is doing a phenomenal job leading the Pentagon.” .@PressSec: "The President stands strongly behind @SecDef @PeteHegseth, who is doing a phenomenal job leading the Pentagon." pic.twitter.com/8exZQSJr5a — Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 21, 2025 National Public Radio (NPR) followed up the NYT report with an anonymously-sourced story claiming that the White House was already looking for a replacement for Hegseth — a claim that Leavitt immediately disputed. “This @NPR story is total FAKE NEWS based on one anonymous source who clearly has no idea what they are talking about. As the President said this morning, he stands strongly behind @SecDef.” This ⁦@NPR⁩ story is total FAKE NEWS based on one anonymous source who clearly has no idea what they are talking about. As the President said this morning, he stands strongly behind ⁦@SecDef⁩. https://t.co/5Npig8968v — Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) April 21, 2025  

Hundreds of passengers were forced to evacuate a Delta jet through the emergency slide after an engine caught fire at Orlando International Airport on Monday. Delta Air Lines Flight 1213, an Airbus 330, was preparing for departure at around 11:15 a.m. for a quick flight to Atlanta and had just pushed back from the gate when one of the engines burst into flames, CBS News reported. There were 282 passengers, 10 flight attendants, and two pilots onboard, according to the airline. A video on social media showed a large flame shooting out from an engine on the right side of the plane as passengers slid down the emergency slide. According to Delta, the plane’s crew evacuated the Airbus after they noticed a fire in the tailpipe of one of its two main engines. Passengers had to evacuate on emergency slides after a Delta plane caught fire on the tarmac at Orlando International Airport on Monday, the FAA said. Delta Air Lines Flight 1213, bound for Atlanta, was pushing back from the gate for departure around 11:15 a.m. when an engine… pic.twitter.com/kLJ1LR7DeF — CBS News (@CBSNews) April 21, 2025 No one was injured, according to initial reports, and the passengers were taken back to the terminal, where they will board another aircraft to take them to Atlanta, according to Delta. The flames were contained by fire crews at the airport. The cause of the fire was not initially known, and the Federal Aviation Administration said it is investigating the incident. “Nothing is more important than safety and Delta teams will work to get our customers to their final destinations as soon as possible,” Delta said in a statement. In February, 18 people were injured when a Delta plane flipped upside down after landing at the Toronto Pearson International Airport in Canada. A preliminary report from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada on the crash landing found that the pilot of the Delta passenger jet, which took off from Minneapolis, was descending at twice the speed that qualifies as a “hard landing,” The New York Times reported.

The lowland tapir is a native of South America. This pair of totally spoiled tapirs resides at Peak Wildlife Park in Winkhill, Leek, in central England. You’ll understand why we call them spoiled after you watch this tapir grooming session. Please note that spoiled tapirs are not a bad thing. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Peak Wildlife Park (@peakwildlifepark) The tapirs seem to enjoy a good grooming session thoroughly. Those chin scratches brought out some silly smiles. We’re reasonably sure the animals were not ready to end the spa session. Both animals were enjoying the brush action and would have been begging for more if they could speak. It isn’t easy to hear over the wind, but they are making little snuffling sounds and chuffing with enjoyment. Tapirs are short, rotund, barrel-bodied beasties with a prehensile snout. They are also the largest land mammals in South America. Their bodies range from six to eight feet long and can weigh between 330 and 705 pounds. They are herbivores and live primarily on a diet of leaves. However, they consume over 100 different types of plants. Because of their diverse diet, they are a critical part of the ecosystem as seed dispersers. Use your imagination here because we are not getting graphic. Tapirs are listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. Animals classified as vulnerable, endangered, and critically endangered are in danger of extinction. Some of the most significant factors in population decline are encroachment and deforestation. Follow Peak Wildlife Park on their socials for updates and more information about these fascinating animals. You can find them on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube in addition to their website. The park features a wide variety of unique animals. Please share this tapir grooming session. You can find the source of this story’s featured image here. The post Wildlife Park Shares Hilariously Adorable Up-Close “Grooming Time For The Tapir” appeared first on InspireMore.

'He demanded complete control over her time and body'

What a coward