When regulators in Europe began peeking behind the sleek black frame of the modern television, they weren’t expecting to find a minor surveillance operation humming quietly in the background. But that’s exactly what they found: TVs behaving less like passive displays and more like digital tattletales with a direct line to an international network of data brokers, software vendors, streaming services, and anyone else willing to pay for a piece of your living room. Become a Member and Keep Reading… Reclaim your digital freedom. Get the latest on censorship, cancel culture, and surveillance, and learn how to fight back. Join Already a supporter? Sign In. (If you’re already logged in but still seeing this, refresh this page to show the post.) Having trouble logging in? Get help here. The post Big Brother Comes Built Into the Screen appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

A kitten who came from a rough beginning was determined to live life to the fullest. She found two house cats to show her the ropes. MindyNikkiMindy, a tiny black kitten, was only three weeks old when she arrived at the municipal shelter in desperate need of care.Rescued from a hoarding situation, she had already endured more than most at her young age. Without a mother cat to nourish her, she required round-the-clock bottle feeding to survive. That's when Nikki, a dedicated rescuer and fosterer with Hearts Alive Village, stepped in to help."I feel like she's always been a very strong little girl," Nikki told Love Meow. NikkiNikki prepared a playpen with a cozy nest, a snuggle toy, and a litter tray, but Mindy had bigger ambitions. The pint-sized kitten made it clear she wasn't content with playpen walls and insisted on having full rein of the house.Though tiny, her spirit was mighty. "Not only does she enjoy life and all that it has to offer, but she also has a strong will to live." NikkiFrom the beginning, Mindy was a pro at bottle-feeding with an insatiable appetite. Her ears appeared almost oversized compared to her petite frame, but what she lacked in stature, she more than made up for in grit.She would wiggle those big ears with determination as she latched onto the bottle, never leaving a single drop behind. NikkiHer trademark "bat ears" remained until she finally grew into them. As she grew, so did her adventurous spirit.For a short time, Mindy had a playmate, another rescue kitten named Mork. Sadly, despite every effort, Mork lost his fight to what was likely a congenital condition. Lonely and in need of companionship, Mindy soon found comfort in Nikki's resident cats. NikkiStella, Nikki's blind resident cat, was the first to befriend Mindy. Through play, she showed the kitten that nothing could hold them back from living life to the fullest. Mindy eagerly followed her lead, chasing toys, tearing through the room, and even batting at Stella's tail."She's a happy, playful girl who loves all toys." Mindy and StellaNikkiBut it was Wallace, Nikki's other resident cat, who truly stole Mindy's heart.Wallace was the perfect match for Mindy's wild energy. He loved rough-and-tumble games and wasn't afraid to put her in her place when she got too rambunctious. Far from being bothered, Mindy adored him for it. At last, she had found a kindred spirit. Mindy and WallaceNikki"As soon as she wakes up, she runs over to him and starts mischief," Nikki shared. "She gets him to wrestle with her, and then she screams when he finally catches her. She's a little dramatic."By day, Mindy wrestled and played with Wallace. By night, she cozied up in Stella's room. And whenever she spotted Nikki, she switched instantly into cuddle mode. Nikki"Some of her favorite things are curling up in my lap as soon as I sit on the sofa and pull out a cozy blanket. She will make biscuits, purr, and fall asleep with you."Mindy also had a playful habit of leaving little "gifts"—tiny puff balls—tucked into Nikki's slippers after a round of play. Seeing how much Mindy thrived on companionship, Nikki was determined to find her a forever home with another cat to share her adventures. NikkiAt ten weeks old, Mindy is blossoming into a sleek little house panther. Her baby-blue eyes are fading into a soft amber, and she has sprouted three white whiskers that set her apart.Best of all, yesterday, she went to her foster-to-adopt home with a loving family. Nikki"She has a feline friend named Penny to play with and lots of toys and cat wall climbers."As Mindy begins her happily ever after, Wallace and Stella are ready to welcome the next foster who needs their mentoring. NikkiShare this story with your friends. More on Mindy and Nikki's fosters on Instagram@myfosterkittens and Facebook and Hearts Alive Village @heartsaliveanimalrescue.Related story: Tiny Kitten Abandoned Outside Shows So Much Strength, Now Has a Cat to Watch Her Grow

UK Muslims Celebrate Terror Attack on Synagogue in...UK

ABC News fill-in moderator Joy Behar continued her doom and gloom crash out from earlier in week during Friday’s edition of The View. This time however, Behar was sent reeling by Trump ally Corey Lewandowski saying that Immigration and Customs Enforcement would be enforcing immigration at the Super Bowl next year, since singer Bad Bunny was preforming. Behar suggested that ICE would start violent clashes with Super Bowl attendees and that ICE arresting people showed they hated America. Near the top of the show, Behar played a soundbite of Lewandowski’s comments as if he was an official in the Trump administration (despite him not being involved in any way with ICE or the Department of Homeland Security). She bizarrely griped that Lewandowski would argue that Bad Bunny hated America when it was the Trump administration arresting people: LEWANDOWSKI: [T]here is nowhere that you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you, we will apprehend you, we will put you in a detention facility, and we will deport you. So, know that is a very real situation under this administration. [Transition] It's so shameful that they've decided to pick somebody who just seems to hate America so much to represent them at the halftime game. [Cuts back to live] JOY BEHAR: We will arrest you, but they hate America!     “Okay, so Bad Bunny has spoken out against Trump's immigration policies and he even refused to do a nationwide U.S. tour because of ICE raids. Now, is that why they're sending ICE to the game? They're mad at Bad Bunny, right?” she asked the rest of the table. Fake Republican Ana Navarro boasted that “the Latino community is taking a victory lap” because of the Bad Bunny performance. She proclaimed that "the more mad" "racist snowflakes" get about Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl, "the more gleeful I am!" Behar chimed in to read false talking points off a card again to insist that the Supreme Court had given ICE approval to use racial profiling and were using it at the court themselves: BEHAR: The Supreme Court ruled that federal agents can get you and question you if you are speaking Spanish. SUNNY HOSTIN: Yeah. BEHAR: Or if you look Spanish. HOSTIN: Yes. BEHAR: They can take you in for questioning. They gasped because I said to somebody – [Crosstalk] I don't think people know that, that the Supreme Court itself is racial profiling.     “I don’t like it. I don’t like it,” Behar later interrupted to decry the idea of ICE doing their jobs. “I feel as though it's normalizing these ICE people showing up all over the place.” Behar would on to suggest that ICE would be the cause of mass violence at the Super Bowl and start attacking people because they looked Hispanic: BEHAR: Don’t you think that their presence might cause violence in the group? (…) BEHAR: What are they just going to be looking around saying, oh, you're Spanish, you're Spanish? Get out of here! What type of country are we living in? Is what I want to know.     Faux conservative Alyssa Farah Griffin did note that “the Department of Homeland Security always has a huge presence at the Super Bowl because there are always threats against it, terrorist and otherwise.” But floated the idea that ICE being there could “detract resources” from the broader mission to protect the event. But what she didn’t mention (or was too ignorant to know) was that ICE had been present at Super Bowls in the last. “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will have a large presence in Houston, Texas, over the next week as the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots prepare to face off in Super Bowl LI on Sunday, Feb. 5,” the agency wrote in 2017. “Personnel from ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) will be on hand to help protect the estimated one million fans traveling to Houston for the numerous events throughout the week.” They’re likely to be doing the same in 2026. The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read: ABC’s The View October 3, 2025 11:02:30 a.m. Eastern (…) COREY LEWANDOWSKI: [T]here is nowhere that you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you, we will apprehend you, we will put you in a detention facility, and we will deport you. So, know that is a very real situation under this administration. [Transition] It's so shameful that they've decided to pick somebody who just seems to hate America so much to represent them at the halftime game. [Cuts back to live] JOY BEHAR: We will arrest you, but they hate America! Okay, so Bad Bunny has spoken out against Trump's immigration policies and he even refused to do a nationwide U.S. tour because of ICE raids. Now, is that why they're sending ICE to the game? They're mad at Bad Bunny, right? (…) 11:03:49 a.m. Eastern ANA NAVARRO: Look, there is no doubt that the Latino community is taking a victory lap on this, because, listen, you know, at a time when you see Latino immigrants being racially profiled, when you see immigrants being hunted down like animals, when it's been a really hard nine months for the Latino community, most of us, many of us. To hear that Bad Bunny is going to be in that huge stage representing makes us -- gives us something to be happy about and to celebrate. And you know what? The more mad they are, the more gleeful I am! So the fact – [Cheers and applause] -- The fact that the racist snowflakes are having a meltdown that Bad Bunny is going to be there. I have news for them, Bad Bunny was already in the Super Bowl halftime. He was a guess artist with Shakira in 2020. And you know what? None of your heads exploded, so it's okay. You're going to be fine. Somebody – there’s another racist hand to hold. BEHAR: The Supreme Court ruled that federal agents can get you and question you if you are speaking Spanish. SUNNY HOSTIN: Yeah. BEHAR: Or if you look Spanish. HOSTIN: Yes. BEHAR: They can take you in for questioning. They gasped because I said to somebody – [Crosstalk] I don't think people know that, that the Supreme Court itself is racial profiling. (…) 11:07:52 a.m. Eastern NAVARRO: I think Corey Lewandowski just wants an excuse to be at the Super Bowl to watch Bad Bunny. SUNNY HOSTIN: Yes! It’s possible. NAVARRO: For free! BEHAR: I don’t like it. I don’t like it. I feel as though it's normalizing these ICE people showing up all over the place. ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN: To be honest – [Crosstalk] FARAH GRIFFIN: - a bunch of super wealthy people! BEHAR: Don’t you think that their presence might cause violence in the group? I mean - FARAH GRIFFIN: Well, we should note, by the way, DHS, the Department of Homeland Security always has a huge presence at the Super Bowl because there are always threats against it, terrorist and otherwise. So, there's a very important law enforcement role to keep people safe there. I would hope that this wouldn't detract resources from that because that is -- BEHAR: What are they just going to be looking around saying, oh, you're Spanish, you're Spanish? Get out of here! What type of country are we living in? Is what I want to know. (…)

"The NFL is proud to announce that country music star Jason Aldean will be the halftime performer at the 2026 Super Bowl. Jason has announced that he will cap his performance with a special rendition of his megahit, 'Try That in a Small Town.'"  Imagine the fulminations about "racism" and "white nationalism" from the Morning Joe crew if that scenario became reality. The Super Bowl hasn't had a country-music halftime show since 1994. But when conservatives complain that the NFL actually chose Bad Bunny, an ardent Trump critic and endorser of Kamala Harris? Someone who has refused to perform in the United States because of "f-ing ICE." Someone with a song with lyrics [English translation: all BB songs are in Spanish] that are so sexually explicit and vulgar that it exceeds Cardi B's "WAP"? Well, that's different. Conservatives are guilty of "snowflakery" and "performative outrage," says Morning Joe. WILLIE GEIST: Gene Robinson, putting aside the performative outrage, and everybody getting whipped up about a guy who's going to perform for 12 minutes at halftime of the Super Bowl, and the snowflakery that goes along with all that, there's also this idea that there have been these safe havens over this last decade or so, free of politics, generally speaking, entertainment, sports, things like that, where we all get together and cheer together regardless of who you support politically, and now, sort of the long arm of the government even reaching into the Super Bowl. EUGENE ROBINSON: Yeah, no one is safe, no place is safe from politics these days, from political showmanship. I mean, how many illegal aliens are they going to catch at the Super Bowl, where, it's just ridiculous. Speaking of "snowflakery" around pro football, it was Willie Geist & Co. who had a cow in 2018 over the NFL requiring players to stand for the national anthem or remain in the locker room. Eddie Glaude compared Trump to Turkish strongman Recep Erdogan. Standing for the national anthem should be an occasion to get together and unite. If the NFL had wanted to keep the Super Bowl "free of politics," it wouldn't have invited hyper-political Bad Bunny to take center stage. But Willie apparently believes that if the NFL decides to spit in the face of millions of Americans, they should just shut up and take it.  Speaking of performative outrage, there was Mika's segment-ending performance, where she appeared to get choked up [see screencap] while commenting on Corey Lewandowski's statement: "There is nowhere that you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you." Mika made a blatantly political pitch in response, saying of Lewandowski's statement:  "That is not what I think where Americans want to be. I hope that bears out at the polls and in the voting booths." Given that Trump's approach to immigration was one of the keys to his '24 victory, Mika's hope seems unlikely to be fulfilled. But hey, give it a try! Suggested campaign slogan: "Vote Democrat: We'll Go Easier On Illegal Immigrants!"  Here's the transcript. MSNBC Morning Joe 10/3/25 6:37 am EDT   MIKA BRZEZINSKI: A top advisor to President Trump says ICE agents will be at next year's Super Bowl in California after music superstar Bad Bunny was announced to be the halftime show performer. NBC News White House correspondent Gabe Gutierrez reports.  GABE GUTIERREZ: He's one of the biggest pop stars in the world, with the most streams on Spotify for three straight years. Bad Bunny is facing mounting MAGA backlash.  COREY LEWANDOWSKI: It's so shameful that they've decided to pick somebody who just seems to hate America so much.  GUTIERREZ: Bad Bunny was just selected to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show, but he's been an outspoken critic of President Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration, recently revealing why he opted not to tour the continental U.S., saying, quote, ICE could be outside my concert.  Now President Trump's Homeland Security Advisor Corey Lewandowski is suggesting there will be immigration agents at the Super Bowl.  BENNY JOHNSON: Will ICE have enforcement at the Super Bowl for the Bad Bunny Super Bowl halftime show?  LEWANDOWSKI: Benny, there is nowhere that you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you.  GUTIERREZ: A DHS spokesperson tells NBC News ICE always supports the highest security events.  . . .  WILLIE GEIST: Gene Robinson, putting aside the performative outrage, and everybody getting whipped up about a guy who's going to perform for 12 minutes at halftime of the Super Bowl, and the snowflakery that goes along with all that, there's also this idea that there have been these safe havens over this last decade or so, free of politics, generally speaking, entertainment, sports, things like that, where we all get together and cheer together regardless of who you support politically, and now, sort of the long arm of the government even reaching into the Super Bowl. EUGENE ROBINSON: Yeah, no one is safe, no place is safe from politics these days, from political showmanship. I mean, how many illegal aliens are they going to catch at the Super Bowl, where, it's just ridiculous. . . .  JONATHAN LEMIRE: We should note that Bad Bunny also hosting SNL this weekend for its season premiere. David Drucker, you know, he is political. I actually was mildly surprised in an era where so many big corporations seem to be bending the knee to the White House, that the NFL would go with Bad Bunny to host the Super Bowl halftime show this year.  But to Gene's and Willie's point just now, this is just performative outrage. But we're going to see it also next year at the World Cup sites, the administration has said. They're going to have ICE agents there as well, and they're injecting politics into what should be just a celebration of sport and culture.  DAVID DRUCKER: You know, I think most Americans, if you were to travel the country and talk to them, and I mean most Americans, would say, yeah, I don't know if I like this performer or that performer, but, you know, who really cares? Is their music good? It's a football game. It's a halftime show. And I don't really care as long as their music is good. My biggest complaint is, are you any good if I'm going to have to sit there and listen to you for 30 minutes with a microphone?  . . .  MIKA: Well, my takeaway from watching this just play out, this segment, and listening to some of the sound that we played is, I mean, it is really jarring and disturbing to see, and I'm going to continue to be jarred by this and not become inured to it. But it is jarring and disturbing to see somebody from Department of Homeland Security reveling in the policy that has been in place.  It is their policy, I have to respect that, but the coarseness and the cruelty of reveling in a policy. To hear these people from Homeland Security saying, we will come and find you, we will track you down, we will run you down, and relishing the concept of plucking migrants off the street and throwing them into cars, and loving that, and just enjoying talking about it and enjoying engaging in the threats of it all.  That is not what I think where Americans want to be. I hope that bears out at the polls and in the voting booths, but it is hard to watch. I don't know anybody who would support enjoying that act, whether it's the policy or not. It is really, really sad and cruel and painful for these people. 

“This madness must end,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a press event Friday, calling on Democrats to end their government shutdown’s “intentional sabotage of our country.” Leavitt was citing a statement released earlier in the day by Business Roundtable CEO Joshua Bolten urging Democrats to reopen the government by voting for a continuing resolution to fund the government that’s identical to the previous one, which Democrats voted to pass: "Just this morning, Business Roundtable — an association of more than 200 CEOs of America's leading companies representing every sector of the U.S. economy — put out a statement urging Congress to pass the clean C.R." “This madness must end,” Leavitt said, deeming the Democrats’ actions “an intentional sabotage of our country and our people.” “All we need are five Democrat senators to do the right thing and to stop this shutdown,” the press secretary said, alluding the number of additional Democrat votes needed to break their party’s filibuster of the continuing resolution. .@PressSec: "Just this morning, Business Roundtable — an association of more than 200 CEOs of America's leading companies representing every sector of the U.S. economy — put out a statement urging Congress to pass the clean C.R." https://t.co/5482JbBizH pic.twitter.com/wTnGih9E8J — Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 3, 2025

There is something about eco-terrorism and pipelines that seems to get public broadcasting excited. The latest installment in this series came on Thursday’s Amanpour and Company on PBS as actress and far-left activist Jane Fonda lamented to host Christiane Amanpour that people who used IEDs at a North Dakota pipeline protest have been “called domestic terrorists.” Of course, neither Fonda nor Amanpour found such information relevant. Amanpour led Fonda by lamenting there is no great counterculture movement like there was when Fonda was younger, “What do you think, as an activist and a counterculture member of the '60s, while you were being a great actress as well, you were also right in the middle of the counterculture. There doesn't seem to be an evolved counterculture in the West anymore. The '60s, whether it was in Paris when you were living in France, whether it was in the United States, all over, it was somehow people responding to what was happening to threaten their freedoms. Why—?”     Apparently, being countercultural means posing with a North Vietnamese anti-aircraft crew. Fonda, who thinks joking about murdering people for their political beliefs is hilarious, replied, “Well, right now, if—you know, the counterculture, it's not like it was in the '60s, because this is—the needs are different right now. But we can't allow the people who are kind of counter to be called domestic terrorists. Greenpeace was just—they were sued at a trial in North Dakota. They were sued, and now they have to figure out what to do about it. $660 million, it's called a SLAPP suit. It's using Greenpeace as an example to silence public protest. We can't allow this to happen. We just have to fight it.” Back in 2017, project executive for the Dakota Access Pipeline and Executive Vice President of Energy Transfer Partners Joey Mahmoud told Congress that: Protestors assaulted numerous pipeline personnel, one of whom required hospitalization. Millions of dollars in construction equipment was destroyed. Two publicly owned vehicles were burned and a pistol was fired at law enforcement personnel. The makings of improvised explosive devices were found at a bridge crossing, one of which exploded causing a protestor to lose her arm. Local ranchers reported incidences of stolen cattle, buffalo, fuel, and farm equipment. As of February 9, over 660 protestors have been arrested for arson, criminal trespass, interference with law enforcement personnel, and in one case, attempted murder. Fewer than 6% of those arrested are from North Dakota. A year earlier, the North Dakota governor’s office also referenced gunshots, IEDs, and killed livestock. Despite the fact that Fonda was ostensibly on to promote the idea that free speech is under attack, for some reason, Amanpour’s “truthful, not neutral” side did not emerge after Fonda’s omission of shooters, bomb makers, and killed cattle. Instead, she detoured into remembering the life of Robert Redford. Here is a transcript for the October 2 show: PBS Amanpour and Company 10/2/2025 CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: What do you think, as an activist and a counterculture member of the '60s, while you were being a great actress as well, you were also right in the middle of the counterculture. There doesn't seem to be an evolved counterculture in the West anymore. The '60s, whether it was in Paris when you were living in France, whether it was in the United States, all over, it was somehow people responding to what was happening to threaten their freedoms. Why—? JANE FONDA: Well, right now, if — you know, the counterculture, it's not like it was in the '60s, because this is — the needs are different right now. But we can't allow the people who are kind of counter to be called domestic terrorists. Greenpeace was just — they were sued at a trial in North Dakota. They were sued, and now they have to figure out what to do about it. $660 million, it's called a SLAPP suit. It's using Greenpeace as an example to silence public protest. We can't allow this to happen. We just have to fight it.

Iconic comedian Dave Chappelle was among those who chose to perform at the controversial Riyadh Comedy Festival in Saudi Arabia, and he further enflamed criticism with his comments about the U.S. The comedy festival includes many comedians who have made left-wing statements in the past but are unlikely to criticize the host country for its decidedly authoritarian policies regarding women's rights and religious freedom. 'They’re going to do something to me so that I can’t say what I want to say.'During Chappelle's performance, he claimed that speech is freer in Saudi Arabia than it is in the U.S. "Right now in America, they say that if you talk about Charlie Kirk that you’ll get canceled," said the comedian, according to the New York Times. "I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m gonna find out," he added. "It’s easier to talk here than it is in America."He also reportedly added later, "They’re going to do something to me so that I can’t say what I want to say." Chappelle's comments were especially ironic given that the comedians were restricted from criticizing the Saudi royals or any religion at the festival, according to an order posted by one of the comedians. The comedian was lambasted on social media for the comments. "Hey, Dave ... How about — if you're so concerned about free speech, you go ahead and talk s**t about the royals in Saudi Arabia ... No? Crickets? Huh! Enjoy the blood money," replied writer Patrick Read Johnson. "That a**hole Dave Chappelle took the money from Saudi Arabia — which executes people w/no due process, which sawed journalist Jamal Khashoggi up alive — and joked that it's easier to speak freely there than the U.S. (while adhering to written rules about what NOT to say there)," said writer Matthew Rettenmund. "Pretty remarkable that the entire time Chappelle was raging against cancel culture in the U.S. he was actually just auctioning himself off to the highest bidder," replied sports analyst Luke Thomas. RELATED: Dave Chappelle responds to transgender outrage: 'I am not bending to anybody’s demands' Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame "Chappelle is a disgrace and a liar! I've always said he was a ghetto slime who made it big and he is proving it now," responded another critic.Others who performed at the Riyadh Comedy Festival included Bill Burr, Pete Davidson, Jimmy Carr, Louis CK, Wayne Brady, Kevin Hart, Tom Segura, and Chris Tucker.They were reportedly paid between $375,000 and $1.6 million each. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The Taliban has denied shutting down its tech sectors after residents went 48 hours without cellphone or internet service.The largest phone service providers, the foreign-owned Roshan and Etisalat, were restored on Wednesday afternoon after internet, satellite television broadcasts, and even flight operations were disrupted.'This measure was taken to prevent immorality.'According to the Independent, not only were at least five flights at Kabul airport canceled, but banking operations were also affected during the shutdown.The reports of a shutdown started with an X post on Monday by NetBlocks, which wrote that Afghanistan is "now in the midst of a total internet blackout as Taliban authorities move to implement morality measures, with multiple networks disconnected through the morning in a stepwise manner; telephone services are currently also impacted."When asked, the Taliban had a different story. The ruling terrorists said the internet blackout was simply a case of "decaying fiber-optic infrastructure" and any inference that it was part of a ban were just "rumors."According to the Taliban, the regime was just replacing the broadband internet infrastructure, which caused interruptions in service.What paints the claim with uncertainty, however, is the fact that the Taliban openly cited morality as a reason to cut off internet access to residents just a few weeks prior.RELATED: Trump reveals why the US is trying to get back Bagram Air Base Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images In mid-September, outlets reported that the Taliban banned fiber-optic internet in the Northern Afghan province of Balkh.The province, which sits on the southern border of Uzbekistan, left government offices, private residences, and public institutions without Wi-Fi, all in the name of morality."This measure was taken to prevent immorality, and an alternative will be built within the country for necessities," said Haji Attaullah Zaid, a provincial government spokesman, according to Gulf Today.The spokesman said there was a "complete ban" in the province by order of Hibatullah Akhundzada, the leader of the Taliban. No reason was given as to why only Balkh was cut off from the world wide web.RELATED: State Department isn't buying ProPublica's sob story about Taliban alumnus whose funding was exposed by DOGE Photo by Haroon Sabawoon/Anadolu via Getty Images During the shutdowns, the BBC ran multiple stories about Afghan women being cut off from online learning, their only option for advanced knowledge since they are banned from receiving formal education after the age of 12.The Muslim regime has also removed any books written by women from its universities, which, according to the BBC, was part of a ban on teaching about human rights and sexual harassment.Approximately 140 books were allegedly found to be of "concern" to the Taliban, which found them to be "anti-Sharia" and violating "Taliban policies."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Theologian and Pastor Voddie Baucham was a beacon of hope and a bright mentor for the black community — but he tragically passed away after a medical emergency at only 56 years old.And despite his profound message, many black churches tend to avoid him.“Voddie in his presentation wasn’t the stereotypical black minister. Wasn’t a lot of emotion,” BlazeTV host Jason Whitlock says, before pointing out that after Baucham’s passing, he couldn’t find any mainstream media articles on his legacy.“Maybe that’s changed,” Whitlock admits, but adds, “And it’s almost like they wanted … to keep Voddie a secret from the traditional black Protestant leftist. They didn’t want us to know about Voddie. And it’s tragic.”“I think you’re absolutely spot-on,” BlazeTV contributor Chad O. Jackson agrees. “I mean, Voddie’s been on CNN all of one time and they told him, ‘We’ll have you back.’ And they never had him back because of how he was able to embarrass them just by leading into the word of God, quite frankly.”“But you’re absolutely right. I mean, when you look at black pastors, typically what comes to mind are your Jamal Bryants, your T.D. Jakeses ... even Eric Masons. I know Eric Mason had beef with Dr. Voddie Baucham, even going so far as to, in one of his sermons, use kind of slave vernacular to explain what Voddie Baucham was doing,” Jackson explains.Jackson tells Whitlock that Mason was “basically accusing Voddie Baucham of making up words like ethnic narcissism to explain or to protect white supremacy.”“Just this utter nonsense,” he says, calling Baucham “one of the few pastors” he’s aware of who “are unafraid to call out hollow and deceptive philosophies, how these ideologies are infiltrating and subverting God’s people, and how we need to be made aware of them.”“The Bible says to test every spirit to see if it’s of God. And that’s what Voddie was doing from behind the pulpit,” he adds.Want more from Jason Whitlock?To enjoy more fearless conversations at the crossroads of culture, faith, sports, and comedy with Jason Whitlock, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.