Israel’s security cabinet voted to approve the ceasefire and hostage deal between the Jewish state and Hamas on Friday. The deal is still awaiting a vote in the full cabinet in order to be approved. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, both of whom have voiced their reservations about the deal’s potential risks to Israel’s security, voted no. Ben-Gvir threatened to quit the government if the deal was approved. Netanyahu’s Likud Party responded by stating that “Anyone who dissolves the right-wing government will be remembered as an eternal disgrace.” In the deal’s first phase, about 33 hostages will be exchanged for 1,000 Palestinian terrorists in Israeli prisons. The Israel Defense Forces will also withdraw from parts of the Gaza Strip. The fate of the 65 hostages who remain in Gaza is set to be discussed in the later stages of the deal. The names of the 33 hostages have been released, and the list includes two Americans: Keith Siegel, 65, and Sagui Dekel-Chen, 36. The first three hostages could be released as early as Sunday, pending the deal’s approval. Only 22 of those hostages are believed to be alive. French President Emmanuel Macron said on X that two French citizens, Ofer Kalderon and Ohad Yahalomi, are expected to be among the first released.  The full cabinet is expected to meet later on Friday. Israeli President Isaac Herzog welcomed the vote’s results, stating that he expects “the government to follow suit in swiftly affirming this decision.” “This is a vital step toward fulfilling the highest covenant between the state and its citizens,” he said. “There is no greater moral, human, Jewish, and Israeli duty. We must bring all of our hostages back home.”

Most jobs require training with periodic refreshers. When you have a hands-on job like a zoo keeper, training for animal escapes and other emergencies is imperative. Keeping employees engaged during training is a task almost no one is good at. However, the zoo director at the Rockhampton Botanic Gardens & Zoo, wearing an ostrich costume, managed perfectly. She was able to accomplish training, give everyone a great laugh, and keep the entire team engaged! @7newsaustralia A ‘down to earth’ Queensland zoo director has gone above and beyond her call of duty, dressing up in an ostrich costume to train her staff on how to wrangle a getaway cassowary. zoo dressup escape bird Queensland 7NEWS ♬ original sound – 7NEWS Australia – 7NEWS Australia The training exercise was on How to Contain a Runaway Cassowary. The costume shop was out of cassowary costumes, so the zoo director chose the ostrich costume. When an animal escapes its enclosure, personnel must work quickly and efficiently to return it. During zoo hours, they must protect patrons and present a united front. That takes practice. The zoo director decided having staff chase her in the ostrich costume would be a realistic training exercise. The zoo posted a longer video on Facebook that is even more hilarious than the shortened TikTok version. You can watch that video here. Image from Facebook. If you aren’t sure what a cassowary is, it is a large, flightless bird that is a cousin of the ostrich. The similarity is why the zoo director was comfortable selecting the ostrich costume. The ostrich is the largest in size order, followed by the cassowary and emu. The cassowary has distinctive blue and yellow feathers along its neck. They are known as the “most dangerous bird in the world.” They have deadly claws, a powerful beak, and a lot of weight to put behind blows. The Zoo Director’s Ostrich Costume Makes A Big Hit When the call went out, zoo keepers were not told it was a training drill. The initial call-out was for an escaped cassowary, with the location. Nobody knew it was training until they arrived to find the zoo director in her ostrich costume. When they got to the scene they were ready to wrestle an unruly cassowary. They brought containment panels called baffle boards. Then they noticed their boss strutting her stuff. The boss was acting the part all the way. While waiting, she was pretending to forage on nearby vegetation. When the team of zoo keepers arrived, she went full cassowary. She kicked at the baffle boards and pushed back against the barrier. She used the beak to peck at the handlers above the boards. Image from Facebook. It was the most realistic training they could have without actually letting a real cassowary out. The boss did not make it easy on them. When they thought the unruly bird was secure, she bolted off in a different direction. The zoo director finally let the team “capture” the stray ostrich/cassowary. Everyone had a fabulous time during training. They worked together to corner the animal and steer it back to its enclosure. While the training wasn’t horribly serious, it was realistic and helped the team work together. They did very well carrying out the standard procedures and still had some laughs. Kudos to this zoo director for putting so much effort into vital training. Please share if you laughed. You can find the source of this story’s featured image here. The post Straight Out Of “The Office”: Zoo Director Dons Unusual Attire To Assist In Staff Training appeared first on InspireMore.

They're eating themselves

A post shared on Facebook claims former President Jimmy Carter purportedly said, “an eternity without [President-Elect Donald] Trump is the greatest gift of all.” Verdict: False The claim is false and originally stems from a Jan. 9 satire post shared by Andy Borowitz via his Substack newsletter, “The Borowitz Report.” Fact Check: Carter’s funeral took […]

'Non-negotiables'

By the author of Dear Diary: It’s Me, Jessica So in chapter two of Dear Diary, It’s me, Jessica, I mentioned “lard bead.”  Long-time reader and regular commenter Val, said, “And I’d love the recipe for lard bread!” Once again, our OP readers are quick and ahead of me!   Here it is! The Pre-ferment What is a “pre-ferment?”  It is flour, water, yeast and a little sugar to get the yeast fermentation process going.  Usually, it is used to add characteristic flavor to your bread.  However, if you let it continue to ferment in the fridge for two to three days, it will have a slightly alcoholic smell to it.  This acts as a preservative.  Your bread will last five to seven days before mold begins to form, depending on environmental conditions.  It is a two-fer; both adding character and flavor, and acting as a preservative at the same time.   ¼ cup of bread flour (room temperature) Water lukewarm ½ teaspoon dried yeast ½ teaspoon of sugar Mix the flour, yeast and sugar in a clean bowl.  Add enough warm water and mix to form a sticky ball of dough.  Cover with a clean, terry cloth-free towel and let sit in a warm (ideally upper 70s to low 80s), draft-free place for an hour to a few hours till it rises, nearly doubling in size.  Punch down, cover in plastic wrap, and put in the fridge for two to three days.  By the second or third day, it should have a slight alcohol smell to it.   The Bread Lard bread is actually a variant of an Italian bread called Casatiello.   Casatiello bread adds eggs, butter, chunks of hot smoked ham, cooked fresh or cured sausage, and cheese (note: Val suggested cheese too! She is sharp as sharp cheddar cheese!).  In this case, we are going to use lard or bacon fat in place of the eggs and butter.  It adds both flavor and the calories that Jack, Jessica, Rae, and Savannah will need for their mission to the city and saves the eggs and butter for other uses.   2 cups of bread flour (room temperature) 1 cup of whole wheat flour (room temperature) ½ teaspoon of dried yeast ½ teaspoon of sugar 12 oz of luke warm water 5 tablespoons of lard or bacon grease in liquid form Pre-ferment 5 to 6 slices of cooked bacon, crumbled (or diced hot smoked ham, cooked fresh or cured sausage) Chunks of a flavorful cheese (mozzarella, smoked gouda, sharp cheddar cheese etc.) Add the yeast and sugar to the water and allow to proof/become frothy in about 10 minutes give or take a few. Mix the flours together in a mixing bowl.  Add the water/yeast mixture, lard, and pre-ferment.  Mix well to form a slightly tacky ball of dough.  Add flour or water to adjust accordingly.  Cover with a terry-cloth-free towel and set in a draft-free, warm place to rise.  After the dough has risen to about twice its size, turn it over in the bowl, then again about thirty minutes later.   On a clean, lightly floured surface, pour the dough out.  Lightly flour the top of the dough.  Turn the dough over once then gently stretch it out.  Add half of the meat and cheese.  Fold the dough over on itself.  Add the other half of the meat and cheese and fold the dough over itself again (If you are feeling really punchy, add a third layer of meat and cheese and fold again!) Gently form the dough into a ball and place it on a piece of parchment paper.  Cover with your towel and allow it to rise again.   Dutch Oven Method I use the Dutch Oven Method to bake bread.  I use a cast iron Dutch Oven or similar heat-proof pot, sized in relation to the size of the bread I am baking.   Place the Dutch Oven or pot with lid into the oven.  Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees.  Once up to temperature, with oven mitts, carefully place the hot Dutch Oven or pot onto a heat-proof surface.  Put one ice cube (provides steam for a rich, crunchy crust) in the bottom of the Dutch Oven or pot.   Remove the cloth from over the dough, pick up the dough by the parchment paper, and place into the hot Dutch Oven or pot. Cover with the hot lid.  Return the Dutch Oven or pot to the oven.  Set a timer for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes have passed, remove the hot lid and place on a heat proof surface to cool.  Set the timer for 20 minutes.  After 20 minutes have passed, check the bread (oven temperatures can vary from oven to oven).  Your bread should be a rich, deep golden brown color.  If not, bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes or until you get the desired color.  Don’t burn it, though!  Remove the Dutch Oven or pot and place on a heat proof surface.  Using the parchment paper, remove the bread and place it on a wire rack to cool.   Enjoy! Let us know how it turned out if you make it. What would you add into the dough? Is this something you’ll try out? Let’s talk about it in the comments section. About 1stMarineJarHead 1stMarineJarHead is not only a former Marine, but also a former EMT-B, Wilderness EMT (courtesy of NOLS), and volunteer firefighter. He currently resides in the great white (i.e. snowy) Northeast with his wife and dogs. He raises chickens, rabbits, goats, occasionally hogs, cows and sometimes ducks. He grows various veggies and has a weird fondness for rutabagas. He enjoys reading, writing, cooking from scratch, making charcuterie, target shooting, and is currently expanding his woodworking skills. The post How to Make Lard Bread appeared first on The Organic Prepper.

By the author of Dear Diary: It’s Me, Jessica So in chapter two of Dear Diary, It’s me, Jessica, I mentioned “lard bead.”  Long-time reader and regular commenter Val, said, “And I’d love the recipe for lard bread!” Once again, our OP readers are quick and ahead of me!   Here it is! The Pre-ferment What is a “pre-ferment?”  It is flour, water, yeast and a little sugar to get the yeast fermentation process going.  Usually, it is used to add characteristic flavor to your bread.  However, if you let it continue to ferment in the fridge for two to three days, it will have a slightly alcoholic smell to it.  This acts as a preservative.  Your bread will last five to seven days before mold begins to form, depending on environmental conditions.  It is a two-fer; both adding character and flavor, and acting as a preservative at the same time.   ¼ cup of bread flour (room temperature) Water lukewarm ½ teaspoon dried yeast ½ teaspoon of sugar Mix the flour, yeast and sugar in a clean bowl.  Add enough warm water and mix to form a sticky ball of dough.  Cover with a clean, terry cloth-free towel and let sit in a warm (ideally upper 70s to low 80s), draft-free place for an hour to a few hours till it rises, nearly doubling in size.  Punch down, cover in plastic wrap, and put in the fridge for two to three days.  By the second or third day, it should have a slight alcohol smell to it.   The Bread Lard bread is actually a variant of an Italian bread called Casatiello.   Casatiello bread adds eggs, butter, chunks of hot smoked ham, cooked fresh or cured sausage, and cheese (note: Val suggested cheese too! She is sharp as sharp cheddar cheese!).  In this case, we are going to use lard or bacon fat in place of the eggs and butter.  It adds both flavor and the calories that Jack, Jessica, Rae, and Savannah will need for their mission to the city and saves the eggs and butter for other uses.   2 cups of bread flour (room temperature) 1 cup of whole wheat flour (room temperature) ½ teaspoon of dried yeast ½ teaspoon of sugar 12 oz of luke warm water 5 tablespoons of lard or bacon grease in liquid form Pre-ferment 5 to 6 slices of cooked bacon, crumbled (or diced hot smoked ham, cooked fresh or cured sausage) Chunks of a flavorful cheese (mozzarella, smoked gouda, sharp cheddar cheese etc.) Add the yeast and sugar to the water and allow to proof/become frothy in about 10 minutes give or take a few. Mix the flours together in a mixing bowl.  Add the water/yeast mixture, lard, and pre-ferment.  Mix well to form a slightly tacky ball of dough.  Add flour or water to adjust accordingly.  Cover with a terry-cloth-free towel and set in a draft-free, warm place to rise.  After the dough has risen to about twice its size, turn it over in the bowl, then again about thirty minutes later.   On a clean, lightly floured surface, pour the dough out.  Lightly flour the top of the dough.  Turn the dough over once then gently stretch it out.  Add half of the meat and cheese.  Fold the dough over on itself.  Add the other half of the meat and cheese and fold the dough over itself again (If you are feeling really punchy, add a third layer of meat and cheese and fold again!) Gently form the dough into a ball and place it on a piece of parchment paper.  Cover with your towel and allow it to rise again.   Dutch Oven Method I use the Dutch Oven Method to bake bread.  I use a cast iron Dutch Oven or similar heat-proof pot, sized in relation to the size of the bread I am baking.   Place the Dutch Oven or pot with lid into the oven.  Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees.  Once up to temperature, with oven mitts, carefully place the hot Dutch Oven or pot onto a heat-proof surface.  Put one ice cube (provides steam for a rich, crunchy crust) in the bottom of the Dutch Oven or pot.   Remove the cloth from over the dough, pick up the dough by the parchment paper, and place into the hot Dutch Oven or pot. Cover with the hot lid.  Return the Dutch Oven or pot to the oven.  Set a timer for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes have passed, remove the hot lid and place on a heat proof surface to cool.  Set the timer for 20 minutes.  After 20 minutes have passed, check the bread (oven temperatures can vary from oven to oven).  Your bread should be a rich, deep golden brown color.  If not, bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes or until you get the desired color.  Don’t burn it, though!  Remove the Dutch Oven or pot and place on a heat proof surface.  Using the parchment paper, remove the bread and place it on a wire rack to cool.   Enjoy! Let us know how it turned out if you make it. What would you add into the dough? Is this something you’ll try out? Let’s talk about it in the comments section. About 1stMarineJarHead 1stMarineJarHead is not only a former Marine, but also a former EMT-B, Wilderness EMT (courtesy of NOLS), and volunteer firefighter. He currently resides in the great white (i.e. snowy) Northeast with his wife and dogs. He raises chickens, rabbits, goats, occasionally hogs, cows and sometimes ducks. He grows various veggies and has a weird fondness for rutabagas. He enjoys reading, writing, cooking from scratch, making charcuterie, target shooting, and is currently expanding his woodworking skills. The post How to Make Lard Bread appeared first on The Organic Prepper.

Appalling: Georgia State Senator Arrested for Trying to Attend State of the State Address

Israel: Deal Signed. For Now.

Footage of the falling debris is eclipsing footage of the booster getting caught mid-air.