A major retaliatory attack by Iran on Israel could come as soon as Friday‚ according to an American media report‚ as the top United States general in the Mideast visited for talks with the defense brass on military readiness amid the Iranian threats.Citing two unnamed US officials‚ CBSreportedthe attack could possibly include more than 100 drones and dozens of missiles aimed at military targets inside the country‚ the officials said‚ while warning Israel would be challenged to...

It looks like Israel and Iran are going to war‚ and the United States might join in. Two weeks ago‚ Israeli forces bombed the Iranian consulate in Damascus‚ Syria‚ and killed seven Iranian military officers‚ including a general. Iran has vowed to respond‚The Wall Street Journalreportsthat the U.S. government expects a direct Iranian attack on Israel over the weekend.On Friday‚ the State Department issuedtravel restrictionsfor staff at the U.S. Embassy in...

The House voted to renew a powerful surveillance program on Friday‚ two days after a band of 19 conservative privacy hawksrevoltedagainst Republican leadership and blocked the legislation on the floor when their demands were not met.The vote was 273-147 and was overwhelmingly bipartisan‚ with both Republicans and Democrats voting in favor of the legislation. Of those who supported the legislation‚ 126 were Republicans and 147 Democrats. It followed a dramatic vote to narrowly...

Iran sent a message to the Biden administration through several Arab countries earlier this week: if the U.S. gets involved in the fighting betweenIsrael and Iran‚ U.S. forces in the region will be attacked‚ three U.S. officials told Axios.Why it matters:The U.S. and Israel arepreparingfor Iran to retaliate against Israel for an airstrike that killed atop Iranian generalin Damascus last week.The Iranian supreme leader hasthreatened";...

I will leave the political office the same way I entered it: with my integrity intact‚ my conscience clear‚ and my heart full.Rep.Spencer Roach‚ a North Fort Myers Republican known for his devout faith and thoughtful approach to policymaking‚ will not run for a fourth term in the House.He announced his decisionon X.After deep self-reflection and prayer‚ I have decided not to seek re-election to the Florida House of Representatives‚ he said.The book of...

The Omen franchise is centered around the ominous tale of Damien Thorn‚ a child born of Satan and entrusted to Robert and Katherine Thorn. As the saga unfolds‚ it is revealed that Damien is destined to be the Antichrist. The sequels delve deeper into Damiens life‚ his dark heritage‚ and the chilling events surrounding the Thorn family. The franchise includes several supernatural horror films‚ such as the original The Omen (1976 directed by Richard Donner) and its sequels‚ as well as a TV series and its newest addition‚ 2024s prequel‚ The First Omen.The First OmenSince childhood‚ Margaret has been a ward of the Church. When the American Cardinal with whom she grew up has her transferred to Italy to be confirmed as a nun‚ she feels blessed. However‚ it doesnt take Margaret long to begin to realize that something is very wrong with the faithful surrounding her.The First Omen is a wonderfully shot piece of horror cinema. It lovingly channels the cinematography and pacing of its 1976 progenitor and mostly eschews todays trend of thousands of fast cuts in every scene. These long continuous shots held on performers masterfully dripping with silent subtext allow for the slow-building tension that fans of the genre used to enjoy before horror became a race to see who could get the most graphic and disgusting gore past the MPAA.Aided by a perfectly haunting score and equally spine-tingling performances‚ The First Omen has all of the talent on both sides of the camera needed to cement itself as a worthy heir of the franchise‚ one that could usher in an entirely new era of horror that thrills rather than repulses. Unfortunately‚ it somewhat fumbles this with a handful of counter-intuitive gross-out moments that arrest the tension that had been building. Even more disappointing is The First Omens underwhelming conclusion. Prioritizing the franchises continuation over solid storytelling or continuity‚ it wraps things up with a quick and easy cheesy bow that might as well read To Be Continued.However‚ where the movie truly fails is in its needless and blasphemous retconning of Damiens origin (i.e. the entire film). It unnecessarily dumbs down the Churchs leaders in order to propagate a narrative full of Kola Superdeep Borehole-sized logical (let alone doctrinal) inconsistencies because.WOKE ELEMENTSThe Old Girl NetworkThe First Omen is a heavily female-centric film‚ with the handful of men in it being relegated to tertiary supporting roles. However‚ this does not a woke movie make. While almost certainly‚ the behind-the-scenes discussions leading up to its creation were peppered with progressive clichs like‚ Its about time‚ the film is crafted in such a way that the female-laden cast makes complete sense. Furthermore‚ the male characters arent sacrificed at the altar of beta cucks to make the lady folk look better.Thirty Pieces of SilverThe movies greatest sin‚ earning most of its BASED score of 0%‚ is only its entire premise. There is no way to explain it without spoilers‚ so be forewarned.***SPOILERS*** The film has retconned Damiens origin so that he is no longer born from a jackal and protected by Satanists. Now‚ a misguided cult (that goes all the way to the top) within the Catholic Church brings about the AntiChrist. They so fear the freedom and loss of power born from the growing secular movement that they believe the only way to once again gain the trust of those whom theyve lost is to breed young women with demons and the resulting female offspring with their own demon father. They contend that the fear‚ death‚ and depravity fomented by the AntiChrists reign will be such that it will drive people back to the Church.***END SPOILER***The post The First Omen first appeared on Worth It or Woke.

The thing about Gen X being in our 40s and 50s now is that we were never supposed to get ";old."; Like‚ we';re the cool‚ aloof grunge generation of young tech geniuses. Most of the giants that everyone uses every dayGoogle‚ Amazon‚ YouTubecame from Gen X. Our generation is both ";Friends"; and ";The Office."; We are‚ like‚ relevant‚ dammit.And also‚ our backs hurt‚ we need reading glasses‚ our kids are in college and how in the name of Jennifer Aniston';s skincare regimen did we get here? It';s weird to reach the stage when there';s no doubt that you aren';t young anymore. Not that Gen X is old50 is the new 30‚ you knowbut we';re definitely not young. And it seems like every day there';s something new that comes along to shove that fact right in our faces. When did hair start growing out of that spot? Why do I suddenly hate driving at night? Why is this restaurant so loud? Does that skin on my arm lookcrepey? As they so often do‚ Penn and Kim Holderness from The Holderness Family have captured the Gen X existential crisis in a video that has us both nodding a long and laughing out loud. Salt-n-Pepa in the waiting room at the doctor';s office? Uh‚ no. That';s a line we are not ready to cross yet. Nirvana being played on the Classic Rock station? Nope‚ not prepared for that‚ either. Watch: Hoo boy‚ the denial is real‚ isn';t it? We grew up on ";Choose Your Own Adventure"; books‚ for goodness sake‚ and it';s starting to feel like we made a wrong choice a chapter or two back and suddenly landed our entire generation in a time warp. This isn';t real‚ is it? Thirty years ago was the 1970s. That';s just a Gen X fact. So what if we';ve lived long enough for our high school fashions to go out of style and then back into style and then back out of style again? Seriously‚ though‚ we can either lament our age and stage in life or we can laugh about it‚ and people are grateful to the Holdernesses for assisting with the latter. Gen X fans are also thrilled to see their own experiences being validated‚ because at this point‚ we';ve all had that moment in the grocery store or the waiting room when one of our jams came on and we immediately went into a panic. ";They were playing The Cure in the grocery store and I almost started crying‚"; wrote one commenter. ";I mean‚ how ';alternative'; can you be if you';re being played in Krogers? You guys are great! Thanks for making us laugh.";";I couldnt believe it when I heard Bohemian Rhapsody being played in Walmart‚"; shared another. ";That was edgy in my day.";";I know!!! Bon Jovi at the grocery store!!! That was my clue in!!"; added another.";Long live Gen Xers! We have to be strong!! We can get through this together!! #NKOTBmeetsAARP"; wrote on commenter.You can find more from the Holderness Family on their Facebook page‚ their podcast and their website‚ theholdernessfamily.com.This article originally appeared on 1.28.24

A distillation of desire.The post Anemotional‚ pure id outburst:David Byrnes favourite punk song first appeared on Far Out Magazine.

The guitarist talks new wave and punk roots.The post Jerry Garcia‚ Grateful Dead and the new wave: who were the original punks? first appeared on Far Out Magazine.