Start Quiz Jorge Gardner/Unsplash Jorge Gardner/Unsplash There are 195 countries in the entire world, with dozens of cities filling up each one. These diverse countries offer tons of culture, beautiful landscapes, and more. While some are more populous than others, these countries are all part of the same planet. Since most people have not visited every country, they’re going to have to bank on... Source

NY Times Tech Reporter: Bluesky is Fantastic

Axelrod, Left Panic Over Prospect of 'Competent' Presidential Wingman at DoJ

It took a stinging election defeat for the truth to sink in with Joe Scarborough. And this morning, he was forced to yield to reality. For all his endless--and we do mean endless-wailing about "fascism," and Mika's fearmongering on abortion rights, on today's Morning Joe Scarborough admitted that voters cared less about that, and more about the price of gasoline and groceries.  Scarborough wondered out loud to John Avlon: "I talked a lot over two years about fascist rhetoric . . . There were threats of retribution, there was the issue of women's reproductive choices and health, rubbing up against, pounding up against, the price of groceries, the price of gasoline. How do you balance that when, obviously, what voters said was, we care more about the price of gas and we care more about the price of groceries?" Avlon's response was a statement that, while obvious, has been beyond the comprehension of most Democrats and liberal media types like Scarborough: so long as people are worried about the cost of living and their personal safety, everything else is secondary. Here's a tip for Scarborough: if you want your message to penetrate beyond the boundaries of the liberal cocoon, speak plainly.  On Mika's pet issue, Scarborough employed four different euphemisms: "Women's reproductive rights. Women's reproductive healthcare. Freedom for women to decide what they do with their bodies. Women's reproductive choices and health." Spit it out, Joe: abortion. It was a surprise to see Avlon on the set. He had been a CNN commentator until leaving to run for Congress from a Long Island, New York district. Scarborough praised Avlon for running a virtually "pitch-perfect race," but, claimed Joe, he lost because he ran into "headwinds." Avlon outspent his Republican opponent by over $8 million--and still lost by over 11 points! That wasn't a "headwind," Joe. It was the voters telling Avlon "nope"— at Cat 4 hurricane strength! Here's the transcript. MSNBC Morning Joe 11/22/24 6:38 am ET JOE SCARBOROUGH: Let's get specific here. I want to get specific. So we -- we -- I, I'll just talk about myself. I talked a lot over two years about fascist rhetoric. Threats of retribution. Mika talked a lot about women's reproductive rights. Women's reproductive healthcare. Freedom for women to decide what they do with their bodies.  And we talked about that a lot. And after the election, 75 million voters or so said, well, okay, we're focused on the price of gas, the price of groceries, whatever. I'm asking, so -- so how do you run a campaign where when you hear rhetoric, you don't want to call it fascist, let's just say authoritarian. Right? Whatever you want to call it! JOHN AVLON: Righ. I got you. SCARBOROUGH: However you want to define that, the definitions don't matter. There were threats of retribution, there was the issue of women's reproductive choices and health, rubbing up against, pounding up against, the price of groceries, the price of gasoline. How do you balance that when, obviously, what voters said was, we care more about the price of gas and we care more about the price of groceries? How do you do that? AVLON: At that moment. Look, I think life is a struggle between the urgent and the important, right? And I think for a lot of people, the urgent issues they face are about affordability, right? And here's what Democrats -- and about personal safety. Here's where Democrats gotta get the big things right. If people don't feel safe. If they don't feel economically secure. Everything else is secondary.

Back on November 14, the Washington Post’s Rebecca Ritzel reported on Logos Theatre, a South Carolina theater company “gaining traction” in Washington known for its adaptations of some of C.S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia books and other works of Christian literature. While people may go to see Logos’ life-sized lion puppet, the Post made sure to warn people that this Christian theater really is Christian. Ritzel wasted no time trying to paint director Nicole Stratton as a weirdo: In the recent stage version of “Pilgrim’s Progress” created by Logos Theatre, the Vanity Fair scene features a multicultural parade of 17th century amusements: a maypole, a fortune teller, a tinker’s cart hawking festive wares. The revelers wear long petticoats, velvet pantaloons and carnival masks. All the makings of a late-Renaissance good time, with one exception… Cleavage. None of the women onstage is wearing the push-up corset or off-the-shoulder bodices that were all the rage in the 1670s because, as director Nicole Stratton explains, ‘We wouldn’t want the audience to stumble.’ Sometimes, to produce Christian theater, you have to strategically alter the necklines. The piece then turns into a relatively normal history piece, eventually getting to how Logos made its way to the nation’s capital, “Jerry Pattengale, a Christian author who serves as ‘founding scholar’ and senior adviser to Carlos Campo, the [Museum of the Bible’s] CEO, visited the Logos warehouse soon after Hinton and came home convinced that Logos was not a community theater, as they had been told, but a scrappy, student-powered operation with professional-level behind-the-scenes skills. ‘All of a sudden, around the corner came this giant horse. I thought it was a robot. I was not prepared.’ Pattengale said. ‘They told me they had puppets, but no one told me they were life-size.’"   Opening TODAY!#TheChroniclesofNarnia: #TheHorseHisAndHisBoy at Ark Encounter is already looking amazing! Tickets: https://t.co/Ngpg1fJyjP#TheLogosTheatre #NarniaOnTour #AslanisontheMove pic.twitter.com/0PR4C8S5JJ — The Logos Theatre (@LogosTheatre) January 10, 2024   After some history on Stratton’s past and future Narnia and Pilgrim’s Progress adaptations, Ritzel turned to Logos belief system. “Logos” is the Greek word for “word” from John 1:1, so it should not be surprising that Logos Theatre subscribes to a Biblical sexual ethic, but apparently it is: Performing arts organizations in Washington, like so many other theater towns, promote diversity in gender and sexuality, including performers’ pronouns in programs and offering Pride Night ticket discounts. Not Logos, which doesn’t allow LGBTQ performers. Line 12 of the company’s “belief statement” reads, in part: “We believe that any form of sexual immorality, such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, pornography or any attempt to change one’s sex, or disagreement with one’s biological sex, is sinful and offensive to God.” Ritzel cites Fuller Theological Seminary assistant professor of theology and arts Kutter Callaway saying “For most of the last century, churches were more likely to abide by a kind of don’t-ask-don’t-tell policy; everybody might have known the organist was gay, but nobody said anything. ‘What’s new here isn’t necessarily the theological position, but doubling down on outing people,’ Callaway says.’ It’s a bit of a tragedy to me, if now we’re going to create this artistic community exploring creative endeavors, and now we’re making it an exclusive club.’” The strange argument about the organist notwithstanding, Logos’ belief statement on sexual morality reads like any other statement you would expect from a Christian organization’s terms of employment. In the meantime, anyone in the Taylors, South Carolina, D.C., or any other areas that Logos Theatre tours in should make time to see one of their plays.

On Friday, ABC, CBS, and NBC used their flagship morning news shows to pivot away from former Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL) withdrawing from the nomination fight to lead President Trump’s Justice Department towards deriding the new pick Pam Bondi as merely a “Trump loyalist,” foreign lobbyist, and former Florida Attorney General whose “tenure [was] not without controversy.” Unsurprisingly, the Trump-hating ABC had Good Morning America put chief Washington correspondent and three-time anti-Trump author Jonathan Karl on the case, who said the important fact about Bondi is he’s a reflection of Trump “showing once again that among the top qualifications he is seeking for his cabinet is personal loyalty.”     Boasting she’s “a Trump loyalist, sometimes seen on stage at Trump rallies,” Karl suggested her two terms as Florida’s top law enforcement official (which was an elected position and at times when Florida was far less red than it is now) was defined by “controversy” with scandals such as “her decision to pass on a case against Trump University, shortly after receiving a donation from the Trump Foundation, but both Trump and Bondi deny any wrongdoing.” Karl continued, dismissing her as a shady lobbyist and partisan hack for Trump’s first impeachment: After Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election, Bondi backed Trump’s false claims of election fraud. More recently, she has worked as a lobbyist and registered foreign agent. Among her past clients the government of Qatar. Perhaps most importantly to Trump, she’s been a loyal member of his inner circle for years now, joining him on the campaign trail back in 2016...and serving on Trump’s legal team during his first impeachment trial. He later fretted that Bondi’s selection means Trump’s picks to lead the top three spots at the Justice Department (Bondi, Todd Blanche, and Emil Bove) and Solicitor General (John Sauer) have “all...worked in some way as his personal lawyer” and now will work for the American people.     Co-host Michael Strahan — who was picked given his stardom as an NFL player — kvetched in response that “it seems like he has a lot of personal relationships with everyone he is having join him.” On CBS Mornings, co-host Gayle King also tagged her as “one of his most loyal defenders, including his first impeachment trial” and political correspondent Ed O’Keefe led the characteristic of “longtime defender” before even getting to her past as the Sunshine State’s attorney general. “The former two-term Florida attorney general defended Trump during his first impeachment trial and is now being asked to carry out his legal agenda,” he said. O’Keefe resurfaced on CBS Mornings Plus and doubled down and, when he did bring up her time in Tallahassee, he argued the Trump “loyalist” used her post to go after ObamaCare and lobbying post-AG’s office. He did at least admit she’s “far less controversial” than Gaetz (click “expand”):     O’KEEFE: Bondi, 59-year-old former two-term Attorney General of Florida and a longtime Trump loyalist. This is somebody that goes back all the way to when he first began running for president in 2015, 2016, somebody who was by his side throughout it all. And critically, at a big point in his presidency, was one of the defense attorneys on his first impeachment trial. So yet again, he’s going to a loyalist, someone who has stood by him in good times and bad to take on the top prosecutor job in the country. Someone who, when she was Florida Attorney General, sued to block or curtail the scope of the Affordable Care Act, has done other conservative legal work like that, both when she was attorney general and in the years since. One of the lines of scrutiny will be the lobbying work that she’s done in more recent years with a firm that’s closely aligned with a lot of people in Trump’s orbit, and among other things, representing the country of Qatar. But in some ways, that’s sort of standard review of a potential cabinet pick, and far less controversial than the accusations that were facing Gaetz. KING: Ed, you know, this pick came so quickly, so, you know, that got people talking. A, was she just on deck? Was this a game plan all along? And why does he, Donald Trump, see this post as so essential? What do you make of all the theories about what went into this decision so quickly? O’KEEFE: Yeah. Well, we know for one thing that the President-elect had been working the phones yesterday morning in the hours before Gaetz made his announcement, trying to sort out with Republican senators directly and other associates whether he had what was needed to get confirmed. And he was told, and we’ve learned since, that at least eight, I heard in one case, up to 15 Republican senators were potential no-votes for Gaetz, given the controversy around him, given the fact that he’d never served as a prosecutor, a government prosecutor, in any kind of role the way Pam Bondi has[.] Admittedly, NBC chief White House correspondent Peter Alexander admitted on Today that, while Bondi is “one of [his] most loyal supporters,” she “is likely to have a much smoother path to confirmation as attorney general than Matt Gaetz[.]” “Trump particularly praising her work combating the opioid crisis. A long time Trump ally, Bondi helped amplify Trump’s false claims about the 2020 election,” he added. To see the relevant transcripts from November 22, click here (for ABC), here (for CBS Mornings), here (for CBS Mornings Plus), and here (for NBC).

President-elect Donald Trump is doubling down on his promise of mass deportations, announcing plans to use the U.S. military to carry out the largest deportation effort in U.S. history. In a recent post on Truth Social, Trump confirmed he plans on declaring a national emergency and deploying military assets to assist in removing millions of undocumented migrants — and incoming border czar Tom Homan is completely on board. “As far as a deportation operation, we will prioritize public safety threats and national security threats because they’re the biggest. They pose the biggest danger to the United States,” Homan said in a recent interview on Fox News. Homan went on to explain that the deportation operation will be “out of the gate” and the “priority.” “Second thing is secure that border, lock that border down, and catch and release, and secure the border,” he continued, adding, “We got over 300,000 missing children.” Those children, Homan claimed, were released by the Biden administration. “Some of these children are in forced labor, we already found some in forced labor, some are in forced sex trafficking, some are living with pedophiles. We need to save these children,” he added. Pat Gray of “Pat Gray Unleashed” is thrilled with Homan’s appointment but notes that “liberal politicians are promising they’re not going to cooperate.” One of those politicians is Boston Mayor Michelle Wu. “Elections have consequences, and the federal government is responsible for a certain set of actions and cities,” Wu said in a recent interview. “No individual city can reverse or override some parts of that, but what we can do is make sure that we are doing our part to protect our residents in every possible way, that we are not cooperating with those efforts that actually threaten the safety of everyone by causing widespread fear and having large scale economic impact,” she continued. The police chief in Los Angeles, California, was also reported to have said he would not participate in any deportations. “Continue to support illegal activity in this country,” Gray comments, adding, “Your family must be proud.” Want more from Pat Gray?To enjoy more of Pat's biting analysis and signature wit as he restores common sense to a senseless world, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

The family of a Marine veteran made a miraculous discovery of a Bible stuck on a fence post in an area of North Carolina absolutely devastated by Hurricane Helene. The Bible was opened to the book of Revelation — a divine sign, according to the family. Hurricane Helene ravaged Western North Carolina with catastrophic rainfall in late September. One of the areas that was devastated by Hurricane Helene was the town of Old Fort, roughly 25 miles east of Asheville, North Carolina. 'So if that’s not a message, somebody needs to wake up.'Marine veteran Scotty Swann had his home flooded by the high waters. The water was so high that Swann was forced to retreat to the roof of his house and had to be rescued by a raft. Once the floodwaters receded, Swann's family began working to restore the flooded property and discovered a Bible pinned to a fence post. In an eye-opening coincidence, the Bible was opened to the book of Revelation. The Bible has become a symbol of faith and hope for the community.A TikTok post with the caption "God is everywhere," shows a close-up photo of the Bible that miraculously survived Hurricane Helene. The family of Swann saw the Bible as a powerful reminder of resilience and encapsulated it in a protective case. Another TikTok video shows the wondrous Bible being encased. According to Fox Weather, the brother of Swann shared a video of the Bible. "This Bible was stuck on this fence post, open to Revelations," the unnamed brother said. "Of all the things destroyed, that was left open, and it’s sitting there, and we’re not touching it.""So if that’s not a message, somebody needs to wake up," he noted.The brother revealed that a man from South Carolina constructed and donated a cross made out of cedar to stand next to the miraculous Bible. The woodworker, Joey Brown, put a plaque on the cross that read: "Donated to victims of Hurricane Helene." Brown told Swann that he donated the cross to "spread the word of God and tell people that they're not alone in this hurricane and in this challenge." Swann's brother said, "So this is just amazing on how people have responded." Hurricane Helene unleashed approximately 30 inches of rain — or nearly four months’ worth of rain — in just three days on Western North Carolina in late September. According to data from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, there are 103 verified storm-related fatalities in North Carolina due to Hurricane Helene as of Nov. 21. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here.

MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle freaked out on Friday because, according to her, Elon Musk bought then-Twitter to turn it into a tool for now-President-elect Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" movement.Since the election, many prominent Democrats and liberal activists have left X, where conservatives are no longer oppressed, to go to Twitter alternative Bluesky. Comparing herself and other Democrats on X to "fat chickens," Ruhle said on "Morning Joe" she does not think leaving such an important platform is the best thing to do."Election's over. Everyone is getting smarter and better. I'm not sure the right idea is to leave Twitter and just go to Bluesky, a friendlier place, because then we remain in our echo chambers," she added."Elon Musk bought X and turned it into the social media arm of the MAGA movement. And we all sat there right in the middle of it during the campaign, possibly not realizing that we are sitting there like fat chickens just getting attacked all day and just being part of this MAGA messaging," Ruhle complained.Comcast is looking to 'spin off' MSNBC, CNBC, and other cable networks.Ruhle's claim is not supported by recent reporting by CNN. Senior political data reporter Harry Enten revealed in 2022 that the platform then called Twitter was dominated by Democrats. Today, party affiliation is more even, with 48% of users identifying as Democrats and 47% of users as Republicans."Now, this new overall makeup matches the overall electorate far better, Enten said.As for whether Musk's acquisition of Twitter was worth it in terms of dollars, Enten pointed out that Musk's net worth has increased from $252 billion in September to $314 billion today.Another big purchase by Musk could be on the horizon. He has publicly toyed with the idea of acquiring MSNBC from parent company Comcast.Comcast is looking to "spin off" MSNBC, CNBC, and other cable networks.When prompted by Donald Trump Jr. about the idea, Musk asked how much MSNBC would cost, later adding, "The most entertaining outcome, especially if ironic, is most likely."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Just when you thought woke weirdness in commercials couldn't get any worse, along comes Jaguar as if to say, "Hold my beer."Just as the iconic British carmaker drives its brand off a cliff with its latest ad, Bud Light continues to win back customers with its latest effort — its second spot starring stand-up Shane Gillis.The Gillis campaign returns Bud Light to its pre-woke era, when the brand embraced comedy to appeal to its young, male customer baseAs Blaze News reported in February, the beloved beer brand signed a marketing deal with Gillis in an attempt to repair the damage caused by its disastrous partnership with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney. The latter caused conservatives to spearhead a boycott, which caused Bud Light to drop from the top-selling beer to the third, while parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev lost roughly $1.4 billion in sales. In a bit of meta-commentary, the spot — entitled "Wrong Commercial" — finds Gillis showing up at what he thinks is the set of his latest Bud Light commercial — only to encounter a snake-handling femme fatale and an existentially depressed guitarist (all shot in black and white). "I think I'm in the wrong commercial," the flannel-clad Gillis announces, Bud Light in hand. "Yeah dude, this isn't right." Meanwhile, the actor who is supposed to be in the avant-garde fragrance ad is at the Bud Light set: a raucous sports bar where he has the time of his life drinking beer, eating wings, and watching football. Gillis' first Bud Light commercial debuted in September.The Gillis campaign returns Bud Light to its pre-woke era, when the brand embraced comedy to appeal to its young, male customer base in a series of memorable ads, including "Real Men of Genius," "Bud Light Institute," "The Hitchhiker," "Paper or Plastic," "Magic Fridge," "Swear Jar," "Dog Sitter," and "Rock, Paper, Scissors."This run ended in 2022 when the company promoted Alissa Heinerscheid to vice president of marketing, the first female to fill the role. From the start, Heinerscheid was outspoken about her intentions to shake things up. During an interview in March 2023, Heinerscheid declared that Bud Light needs to welcome more "inclusivity." "So I had this super clear mandate. It's like, we need to evolve and elevate this incredibly iconic brand," Heinerscheid proclaimed. "And my ... what I brought to that was a belief in, OK, what does evolve and elevate mean? It means inclusivity. It means shifting the tone. It means having a campaign that's truly inclusive and feels lighter and brighter and different and appeals to women and to men."Heinerscheid expressed disgust for Bud Light's previous marketing campaigns."And we had this hangover. I mean, Bud Light had been kind of a brand of fratty, kind of out-of-touch humor, and it was really important that we had another approach," she stated. You can watch the Shane Gillis Bud Light commercial below. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here.