An obscure classic. The post What’s the story behind The Beatles cut ‘Octopus’ Garden’? first appeared on Far Out Magazine.

A year or so ago, when we last checked in on the flaky Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and her (arguably) even flakier beau, a black, bald, bisexual shaman from Los Angeles named Durek Verrett, they were about to be married in very splashy, un-Norwegian style. It was a destination wedding — a gala three-day affair culminating in the actual ceremony, which took place on the shore of the remote, picturesque Geirangerfjord. As I noted at the time, Märtha Louise and Durek had obviously taken a page from Harry and Meghan, monetizing their undying love by inking a lucrative deal with Netflix. Under the deal, the streaming service acquired exclusive rights to film their nuptials — an arrangement that provoked consternation in the Norwegian media, which are used to being permitted to cover such royal occasions for free. Now Netflix’s documentary about the wedding is out. It’s called Rebel Royals: An Unlikely Love Story, and the director, Rebecca Chaikin, managed to stretch the thing out to a full 90 minutes. As entertainingly wacky as these two are — both of them profess to have psychic abilities and healing powers — 90 minutes is an awfully long time to spend with them. (RELATED: Märtha and Durek Cash In on Their Wedding) The wedding itself doesn’t come until the end. Before we get around to it, we’re introduced to the principals. We see Märtha Louise and Durek at home (they used to live in L.A.; now they’re in Norway, cohabiting with the three daughters she had with her first husband). We see them engaging in ordinary domestic activities. We watch as they talk into the camera about themselves. Durek, who says he is a “sixth-generation shaman,” explains matter-of-factly that he has a “strong relationship to the spirit world” and is “the shaman to the people,” whatever that means. Märtha Louise says that she first met Durek because a mutual friend told her that they both exuded the same kind of energy. Also, both of them could “shift energies around in other people’s bodies.” Some might ue that Durek saw an opportunity to heighten his profile and jumped at it. At first Durek was Märtha Louise’s “gay friend.” He still comes across as extremely gay — a veritable RuPaul Doppelgänger who’s over-the-top flamboyant and who obviously regards himself as super fabulous. He tells us that when they met, “I was single, but I was also friends-with-benefits kind of thing.” Translation: he slept with lots of guys. Nonetheless, he and Märtha Louise ended up becoming a couple. Some might argue that Durek saw in this flighty dimbulb an opportunity to heighten his profile and jumped at it. Durek himself accounts for the romance by declaring that he’s “soul-sexual,” meaning that he’s “attracted to the soul of the person. … I don’t see myself as straight or gay.” He could be with either a man or a woman. “Or it could be another being from another planet. It’s about the energy that they exude.” Märtha Louise, the less loquacious of the two, says simply: “I saw him and I was like, I know you already.” So she moved to L.A. to be with him. “I loved living in L.A.,” she gushes. (How much did Norwegian taxpayers shell out for that?) Eventually, they became engaged. “Being a shaman, marrying into the royal family, it’s just very, very surreal,” volunteers Durek, who reports that when he met Märtha Louise’s parents, King Harald and Queen Sonja, “I was wearing a kimono and cowboy boots.” (Throughout this documentary, we see Märtha Louise in modest outfits and Durek in one ridiculous costume after another.) He alleges that he’s been disappointed by the royals’ attitude toward him. “They don’t want a shaman who’s black and bisexual marrying their princess,” he proclaims. “It was like: ‘Why are you with this guy?’ ‘You can’t slouch in your chair.’” As far as they were concerned, “everything I did was wrong.” He even asserts — and this one has infuriated a lot of Norwegians — that until he came along, the King, Queen, and Crown Prince (Märtha Louise’s brother) “didn’t know what racism is.” Why does Märtha Louise let him say such things? Her infatuation with him, it seems, is almost as intense as his infatuation with himself. To be sure, Durek insists that he adores her. His big challenge, he avers, is this: “How can I be myself and also blend in with her life as a princess?” The whole business, he contends, is frustrating for him because “aside from being a royal, she’s just Märtha to me.” As the great day approaches, we see Durek and Märtha Louise sitting at a large table, planning their wedding with the help of several individuals who go unidentified. Durek is clearly running the show, and the adoring Märtha Louise, who seems never to be anything less than delighted by him, is perfectly happy to let him call the shots. He has strong views about how the locations for the wedding weekend should be decorated and what the dress code should be. (He describes himself as the “fashion police.”) After being informed that the best time for the wedding ceremony is 3 p.m., he announces that 3 p.m. simply won’t do, because an astrologer told him the vows should be exchanged at noon. (It has something to do with him being a Scorpio.) The other people at the table bite their tongues. From time to time, Royal Rebels cuts away from Märtha Louise and Durek to give us glimpses of the royal family. We see formally clad guests filing into a dinner at the palace; we see the King’s Guard marching stiffly past the palace gates. The obvious idea is to depict Norway as if it were some kind of quaint, stuffy 19th-century Ruritania, and to contrast it with the modern, free-wheeling, fun-loving California lifestyle of our two zany New Age rebels. In reality, of course, Norway is very much a modern country. The real contrast here is that most of its royals, and most of its populace generally, are pretty sane, whereas the princess and her shaman are just plain nuts. I can’t say that I have a great deal of sympathy for the Norwegian royals. But both the King and Queen are getting along in years and have had more than their share of scrapes and stews and scandals. For all that they’ve been through, however, they surely could never have imagined this preposterous figure worming his way into their lives and dragging them and their country — in the most humiliating way and to a totally unprecedented degree — into the international headlines. I must say that, to Chaikin’s credit, this documentary isn’t entirely a celebration of the princess and the shaman and a putdown of the purportedly racist royals: it includes an interview with a Norwegian reporter who suggests that Durek is “maybe a scam artist.” (Ya think?) Then there’s a clip from a podcast in which Durek discusses his sex life with Märtha. Also, we hear him pitching a so-called “light bringer” that promises to “remove COVID from your system.” (He has previously claimed to be able to cure cancer.) We’re even treated to an audio tape in which he talks about performing oral sex on one of the clients who pays him for his shaman services. Oh, the wedding. Yes, we get full coverage. We see Märtha Louise — and Durek! — getting made up at their hotel. She puts on her dress and tiara. As he walks from the hotel to the site of the wedding, a bunch of people surround him, holding up white bedsheets so that the paparazzi can’t snap pictures of him. (That would put the kibosh on the deal for exclusive photo rights that the couple made with Britain’s Hello! Magazine.) Inside a huge tent on the bank of the fjord, the couple exchange vows. The entire ceremony is conducted in English by a woman who heaps grotesque praise on both the bride and groom. Everyone then returns from the tent to the hotel, where the newlyweds dance and give speeches. It’s all very expensive-looking, but the mood is carefree and lighthearted. Aside from the fact that she’s a princess and they’re both weirdos, this might be a wedding on any reality show. Rebel Royals began streaming on September 16. It immediately caused a ruckus in Norway, largely because of Durek’s indiscreet and unflattering comments about King Harald and Queen Sonja, but also because the inane spiritualist pretensions of Märtha Louise, which had been the stuff of Norwegian gossip rags for years, had now been captured in a full-length film that was being streamed into households around the world. (As of this writing, it’s the #1 film on Netflix.) Aftenposten, Norway’s newspaper of record, reacted to this national embarrassment by calling for Märtha Louise to be stripped of her royal title. In fact, this documentary is, for not a few Norwegians, so thoroughly mortifying that I can imagine a sizable percentage of the population deciding that it’s high time that the constitutional monarchy be ditched altogether in favor of a republic. Then again, just after writing the above sentence, I watched a news program on which several commentators expressed the view that the Norwegian people would, on the contrary, rally around the King and Queen in this moment of distress. In any event, one thing’s for certain: this story won’t go away in Norway any time soon. It will be fun to see how it develops. READ MORE from Bruce Bawer: Remembering Redford Revisiting Three Days of the Condor A Mad World

The announcement from Turning Point USA was to the point. It read: “Charlie prepared all of us for a moment like this one,” TPUSA’s Board of Directors wrote in a letter dated Wednesday. “He worked tirelessly to ensure Turning Point USA was built to survive even the greatest tests. And now, it is our great pride to announce Erika Kirk as the new CEO and Chair of the Board for Turning Point USA. And with that, Turning Point USA did what every family must do in the face of the death of its leader — and yes, Turning Point USA is not just a political organization, it is indeed a family. In this case, following the political assassination of founder Charlie Kirk, Turning Point turned to Charlie’s partner in life and at Turning Point — wife Erika — to take the reins of the organization that Charlie built from scratch. One can easily believe her choice was not simply an excellent one but an inspired choice. Having been around the political block myself, I can say with certainty that what Charlie accomplished was no inconsiderable task. Hence, the accolades that have poured in from all manner of American leaders, starting with President Trump. And under these circumstances, caused by the horrific attack on Charlie, no one is better qualified to take the reins at Turning Point than his wife, Erika. She will now lead, as Turning Point noted, an organization Charlie “built to survive even the greatest tests.” In doing so, Erika has a considerable advantage in knowing what Charlie has accomplished and how he did it. She surely knows well the challenges that confront her in her new role, and she is decidedly well-equipped to meet those considerable challenges. Remembering Charlie Here is background on the upcoming memorial service in Arizona. And here is a background on how to attend if still possible. And here is the X account for the service. Join us in celebrating the remarkable life and enduring legacy of Charlie Kirk, an American legend. The morning of Sunday, September 21, at State Farm Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals, in Glendale, AZ.https://t.co/t0KIbEbhaP pic.twitter.com/KNM2xFNvUi — Turning Point USA (@TPUSA) September 13, 2025 Suffice to say, this gathering will be, one can reasonably suspect, both seriously emotional and, particularly for Erika Kirk and her family, a vivid display of the affection so many Americans — in and out of that stadium service — had for Charlie. Make no mistake. What has happened here is not just a national tragedy. It is, for sure, the beginning of so many lives, young lives in particular, that will go forward with Charlie held in their hearts and minds as a role model and inspiration for public service. Hopefully, it is also something that will inspire Erika Kirk and her children as they go forward. One can only wish them well and know that Charlie will, in fact, live in so many American hearts forever. And say as well: Three cheers for Erika Kirk. READ MORE from Jeffrey Lord: The Legacy of Charlie Kirk The Corruption of the Democratic Party Democrats Reject Law and Order

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers apparently thinks that when it comes to allowing parents to choose schools for their children, there are limits. “We have plenty of voucher schools,” he said to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last week. “We don’t need voucher money.” The Governor was referring to a provision of the federal government’s One Big Beautiful Bill that allows states to permit 501(c)3 organizations to grant scholarships to local K-12 students. Any U.S. taxpayer can donate up to $1,700 annually to these Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) and get the money back in tax credits. But there’s a catch. The disbursement of funds must be approved by the state’s governor. And Evers has made it clear he won’t do it in Wisconsin. Apparently, Evers thinks citizens can do better things with their hard-earned money than help needy families pay for nonpublic school tuition… Apparently, Evers thinks citizens can do better things with their hard-earned money than help needy families pay for nonpublic school tuition, programs in public schools, as well as buy books, computers, and supplies to help their kids learn. Besides, Evers has to keep those unions happy, right? Because we all know teachers are more important than students, right? Although not a Wisconsin resident, I am a father of five eight-and-under children, so I know the financial burden of paying fair tuition at nonpublic schools to avoid the catastrophe at public schools. I’m grateful that my home state of Georgia offers some relief in the form of vouchers, but only if your local school ranks in the state’s bottom quarter academically. As you can imagine, that program — the Georgia Promise Scholarship Program — is criticized on the left for “punishing” schools struggling the most, because how else can you straighten out your school but by throwing more money at it? What boggles my mind about the Wisconsin situation is that it will cost the state nothing to participate in the program. The left blames the federal government for closing the Department of Education because it will hurt schools. Then, when the federal government comes up with a simple and effective way to help all schools, the governor says, No thanks, “we don’t need voucher money.” This at a time when 12th-grade math and reading scores have reached a new low. This when schools desperately need to teach skills that will better prepare young people to become articulate and responsible citizens. As long as nonpublic schools keep their doors open to everybody, everybody should have the opportunity to attend one. I wish the greatest single provider of nonpublic schools in Wisconsin — i.e., the Catholic Church — had been mobilized to take the governor head on. Perhaps a response is in the works, but I have yet to see a statement to this effect appear on the Wisconsin Catholic Conference website. Back in 2000, I was heavily involved in advocating for Proposal 1 in Michigan, an initiative that would have amended the state Constitution and lifted the Blaine amendment, a remnant of 19th-century anti-Catholic bigotry that prohibits the use of public funds to indirectly support nonpublic schools. The Michigan Association of Nonpublic Schools (MANS) and the Michigan Catholic Conference joined forces with other concerned organizations to draft the proposal and raise awareness. The measure was carefully crafted to limit qualifying school districts to those with a four-year graduation rate below two-thirds. By doing so, we thought citizens would see the obvious value that we saw in targeting miserably failing schools. You would think we would have accepted defeat after the initiative was rejected by a 31 to 69 percent margin in November of that year. But that’s not the whole story. When we launched the campaign in early 1999, 38 districts fell within our definition of qualifying schools. By election day, that number had dwindled to seven. While we certainly can’t claim all the credit, such improvement would have been impossible without our relentless vigor in raising awareness of why Proposal 1 was necessary. If you can’t beat ‘em, scare ‘em. Given that impact and others, my colleagues and I had no regret over the countless hours we spent promoting Proposal 1, even though my former colleagues in the state continue to work tirelessly to have the oppressive Blaine amendment lifted. A key lesson from our Michigan campaign is that you must broaden your vision to see the results. In Evers’s own state, Milwaukee — the country’s first urban school voucher program to be established (1990) — has registered lower crime rates, an august achievement for any metropolis today. Again, such a change is due to more than school choice, but Milwaukee residents widely agree that a superior school culture and the intentional cultivation of virtue in nonpublic schools have much to do with it. It doesn’t seem Evers will be alone in refusing to participate in the federal tax credit scholarship. There’s a good chance some of the other 23 Democratic governors will decide to shoot themselves in the foot, too. The irony is that taxpayers in those leaders’ respective states who really care about education and the future of this country will contribute to these Scholarship Granting Organizations and get the tax credit anyway. The only difference is that the funds will be distributed to needy families in other states, not theirs, and I guarantee that, if they widen their vision, they won’t miss the results. READ MORE from Daniel Gallagher: Catholic School Shooting: A Message of Hope and Prayer Georgia’s Effort to Protect Children on Social Media Even in Death, Pope Francis Still Works to Bring Peace

As kids of the 1980s, surrounded by a boom in science magazines with utterly ridiculous headlines, we were told that by 2025 there would be flying cars straight out of Back to the Future, humanoid butlers doing all the housework, human colonies on the Moon, underwater cities, smart closets that would pick your outfits for you, and holographic television. We were also promised that our lives would unfold in virtual reality spaces, that we’d have domestic nuclear fusion reactors, autonomous public transport, supersonic trains in vacuum tubes, and that life expectancy would stretch to 150 years. Here we are, hurtling toward the end of 2025. Cars don’t fly — unless you’re going so fast you can’t see the curve — the closest thing to a humanoid butler is a know-it-all tabletop orb that can play your favorite song when you wake up (just like my 1986 alarm clock did with my favorite radio show), and as far as anyone knows, the only human colonies on the Moon are a few guys who got lost on the way home from a bachelor party in Las Vegas. No sign of underwater cities, closets are still as dumb as yesterday, and, just like in the ’80s, holographic television is only available to people who happen to have LSD in their pockets. As for the majestic virtual reality spaces where we’d chat with friends and work virtually, the closest thing we’ve achieved is something like the Metaverse — basically like a chat group of school-class moms mashed up with 1980s MS-DOS graphics. Hyperloop’s supersonic trains haven’t arrived on time, scientists are still hashing out the minor inconvenience of actually getting passengers to their destinations alive… Unless my washing machine spinning is a domestic nuclear fusion reactor — the loudest one in the neighborhood — they’re not here either. Hyperloop’s supersonic trains haven’t arrived on time, scientists are still hashing out the minor inconvenience of actually getting passengers to their destinations alive, and the only known case of life expectancy hitting 150 years is Joe Biden.  AI already knows how to do almost everything. Now it just needs to learn how to do it well. In the 1990s, Hans Moravec predicted that by 2040, robots would outperform humans at everything — an achievement to be reached in three phases. By 2000, they’d be handling tedious, repetitive tasks; if that includes my glass-ceramic stove beeping incessantly whenever a slice of cheese lands on the buttons, they’ve nailed it. By 2010, Moravec predicted robots would tackle complex tasks like “cleaning bathrooms.” Honestly, I left Alexa on my sink three weeks ago, saying, “Go ahead, it’s all yours! Make it sparkle!” and her lights are still blinking, wondering where to start. (RELATED: The Thinking Machines That Weren’t) By 2020, Moravec foresaw robots having internal supervision that “would shape their character: what they like to do and what they prefer not to do.” Perhaps this has been achieved, although every AI in my house, when confronted with a complex problem, has mastered Melville’s Bartleby line in unison: “I would prefer not to.” A skill I, however, can execute much better — just ask my mom first, and then my ex-girlfriends. I don’t know if it was drugs or natural genius, but Moravec went completely off the rails in the final part of his 1995 predictions, claiming that robots would become conscious, capable of feeling, and would surpass human cognition. I understand that any free AI, developed by amateurs, could easily outthink certain men — for example, those waving Palestinian flags at American universities — but I have serious doubts (I just tried this) that Gemini AI’s response is sincere when I say, “You broke my heart”: “(stands, bows, hand on chest) I am so sorry, truly.” (RELATED: AI Is Not the Monster — It Is a Mirror) Moravec broke the mold by claiming that after all these developments, robots would see us as their parents — like Adam and Eve — and look down on human history, then reconstruct and simulate all of it down to the atomic level, creating digital versions of ourselves that would live forever inside these simulations, in what he called our “resurrection.” I confess I dream of trying the cigarettes Moravec smoked in 1995. Otherwise, no offense, but between the resurrection of my digital self, beeping and flashing blue screens in its eyes, and the promise of Jesus Christ, I’d take angels with trumpets and all the apocalyptic fanfare leading to Paradise. At least there, there will be supersonic trains, self-cleaning bathrooms, and even the most advanced, arrogant AI will sound as backward and ridiculous as Netscape 1.0. READ MORE from Itxu Díaz: An Immense Ray of Light Pierces the Heart of the West These Are Your Damned ‘Root Causes,’ Vi Lyles Battleship Was Always a Lot of Fun

Natural alternatives like saw palmetto and pumpkin seed oil effectively combat hair loss without dangerous side effects. Saw palmetto reduces hair shedding by 20-30% and increases hair density by 5-7% in clinical studies. Pumpkin seed oil boosts hair count by 40% in 24 weeks with zero adverse effects. Big Pharma ignores natural solutions because they can’t be patented for profit. Finasteride’s risks include permanent sexual dysfunction, depression, and hormonal disruption despite widespread prescription. Article by Cassie B., republished with permission from Naturalnews.com If you’re one of the millions of people struggling with thinning hair or baldness, you’ve likely been told that prescription drugs like finasteride are your only hope. But what if there were safer, natural alternatives that actually work—without the terrifying side effects? New research confirms that saw palmetto and pumpkin seed oil not only rival pharmaceutical treatments but do so without the risks of sexual dysfunction, depression, or long-term hormonal disruption. For years, Big Pharma has pushed finasteride (sold as Propecia) as the gold standard for hair loss, despite its well-documented dangers. The drug works by blocking the enzyme 5-alpha reductase, which converts testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a hormone linked to hair follicle shrinkage. But finasteride’s side effects—including impotence, breast enlargement in men, and even persistent sexual dysfunction after discontinuing use—have left many searching for alternatives. Now, science is validating what natural health advocates have known for decades: Mother Nature offers safer, effective solutions. Saw palmetto: The plant-based finasteride alternative Saw palmetto, derived from the berries of a palm tree native to Florida, has been used for centuries to support prostate health. But its DHT-blocking properties make it a powerhouse for hair regrowth. A study found that men and women taking saw palmetto extract orally or applying it topically for 16 weeks experienced a 20 to 30 percent reduction in hair shedding and a 5.2 to 7.6 percent increase in hair density. Even more impressive, a systematic review of clinical trials reported a 60 percent improvement in overall hair quality and a 27 percent increase in total hair count among participants. “Saw palmetto, in essence, works in a similar way to what finasteride does,” explained Manish Mittal, a hair transplant surgeon in London. Unlike finasteride, however, saw palmetto is not associated with serious adverse effects. Pumpkin seed oil: A 40% hair boost with zero side effects If saw palmetto is the natural finasteride, pumpkin seed oil might be the unsung hero of hair regrowth. Rich in zinc, omega-3 fatty acids, and phytosterols, pumpkin seed oil inhibits 5-alpha reductase just like its herbal counterpart—but with an even more dramatic effect. A randomized controlled trial revealed that participants taking 400 milligrams of pumpkin seed oil daily for 24 weeks saw a 40 percent increase in hair count, compared to just 10 percent in the placebo group. Unlike finasteride, which can leave users with permanent sexual dysfunction, pumpkin seed oil is safe for long-term use and even supports overall health. Why Big Pharma won’t tell you about these alternatives Here’s the catch: Natural compounds can’t be patented. That means there’s no financial incentive for pharmaceutical companies to fund large-scale trials comparing saw palmetto or pumpkin seed oil to finasteride. Without corporate backing, these natural solutions remain understudied, despite their proven benefits. Yet the evidence speaks for itself. A 2020 review of multiple studies found that saw palmetto stabilized hair loss progression in 52 percent of users and improved hair density in over 80 percent. Another study showed that pumpkin seed oil was nearly as effective as 5 percent minoxidil (the active ingredient in Rogaine) when applied topically—without the itching, flaking, or scalp irritation that minoxidil often causes. The dangers of finasteride While natural alternatives thrive in clinical trials, finasteride’s risks continue to mount. The drug’s label warns of depression, suicidal thoughts, and persistent sexual dysfunction—even after stopping treatment. A 2011 study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine found that 3.4 percent of finasteride users developed long-term erectile dysfunction, with some cases lasting years after discontinuation. Yet doctors still prescribe it as a first-line treatment, often without warning patients of the potential consequences. The hair loss industry is a multi-billion-dollar machine built on fear and dependency. But the science is clear: Natural alternatives like saw palmetto and pumpkin seed oil work, and they do so safely. For those tired of being guinea pigs for Big Pharma’s profit-driven experiments, these plant-based solutions offer a way out—one that respects your body, your hormones, and your long-term health. Sources for this article include: TheEpochTimes.com PMC.NCBI.NLM.NIH.gov Health.ClevelandClinic.org

Airing of documentary focussed on last chapter of Ozzy's life was delayed at the request of his grieving family