Welcome to all of my new followers. Glad to have you here. This is the place to get real news with no narratives or censorship. I walked away from my high-paying job in the mainstream media to do this. Thank-you all for being here!!

 

 

CHICAGO, IL - McDonald’s has ended certain diversity goals for its leadership and suppliers following a review that included the legal impacts of a US Supreme Court decision that barred racial preferences in university admissions.

The fast-food chain said on Monday that it will drop “representation goals”. The company had previously aimed to have women to account for 45 per cent of global leadership roles and for 35 per cent of US company leaders to come from “underrepresented,” or non-white, groups, by the end of 2025.

McDonald’s also said it will no longer ask suppliers to sign a pledge known as the Mutual Commitment to DEI. The company’s diversity team will now be called the “Global Inclusion Team” and it will

 

FREELAND, Mich - Michigan’s environmental agency could fine a Freeland man $1.7 million for deepening his own pond.

From 2020-2023, Joshua Wenzlick expanded a small pond on his property. The state considers the land, a former sand mine, a regulated wetland, according to his brother Zachary Wenzlick, who spoke to Michigan Capitol Confidential in a phone interview.

After confirming that the local government didn’t require him to obtain a permit for the project, Joshua hired Schlicht Ponds of Montrose, a licensed contractor, to excavate the pond to about 20 feet in one section. That depth is sufficient to sustain wildlife when the pond freezes over in the winter, ensuring there would be enough oxygen.

Joshua stocked the pond with about 700 fish — a mix of bass, bluegill, crappie, and perch. After stocking the pond, ducks, geese, and painted turtles moved into the pond, Zach said. Click here to read more.

 

JACKSON, OH - An Ohio teacher who resigned after refusing to use students’ preferred pronouns and names will receive a $450,000 settlement from her school district.

Vivian Geraghty sued the Jackson Local School District in 2022, and the settlement was reached last month, the New York Post reported over the weekend. She was aided in her suit by Alliance Defending Freedom, which released a statement to NBC4 late last week.

“The school tried to force Vivian to accept and repeat the school’s viewpoint on issues that go to the foundation of morality and human identity, like what makes us male or female, by ordering her to personally participate in the social transition of her students,” said Logan Spena, legal counsel for ADF. “The First Amendment prohibits that abuse of power, and Jackson Local School District officials have learned that comes at a steep cost.” Click here to read more.

 

BOSTON, MASS - Police charged five students at Assumption University with ambushing, chasing down and falsely accusing a soldier of being a sexual predator back in October.

Police alleged that the five accused lured the 22-year-old victim to campus with the purpose of framing him as a sexual predator looking for underage victims, WCVB 5 reported. The students were inspired by the TV series “To Catch a Predator” and a recent TikTok trend of people mimicking the show, police said. (RELATED: Influencer Who Allegedly Uploaded Video Of Herself Stealing From Target Shoplifted From Same Location, Police Say)

One student — 18-year-old Kelsy Brainard — allegedly messaged the victim on a dating app. Their messages developed in a sexual manner and her friends organized the plot, according to police. Brainard took the man into a basement lounge and watched TV with him, court documents citing campus video footage said. Almost 30 students then allegedly approached the man. Click here to read more.

 

LANSING, MICH - With Trump-endorsed Republican Mike Johnson from Louisiana retaining the Speaker’s gavel after the Friday vote on January 3rd, members of Congress have been sworn in and are officially back to work.

Republicans are now poised to control Congress with what will be a razor-thin 217-215 majority. This count excludes former GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, who did not return to Congress, as well as two other representatives transitioning to roles in the Trump Administration.

Four of the 215 Democratic Representatives – Michigan’s Debbie Dingell, Haley Stevens, Rashida Tlaib, and Shri Thanedar – returned to Congress after winning re-election, despite all four voting against the deportation of illegal immigrants convicted of sex crimes.

The Nancy Mace-sponsored “Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act” which was voted on less than four months ago sought to remove rapists, pedophiles, domestic abusers, stalkers and other predators from U.S. soil. But these four Michigan Democratic Reps, along with 154 others at the time, decided the legislation was a step too far for them to vote for as we reported back in September. Click here to read more.

Welcome to all of my new followers. Glad to have you here. This is the place to get real news with no narratives or censorship. I walked away from my high-paying job in the mainstream media to do this. Thank-you all for being here!!

 

 

SACRAMENTO, CALIF - California is looking to hire people who can reshape the state’s view of air quality through the lens of “racial equity.”

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has posted a job application for a “community expert” to “help shape the California Air Resources Board’s approach to advancing racial equity.”

The job posting says the agency “is developing a racial equity impact analysis tool, known as CARB’s Racial Equity Lens, to advance the agency’s vision for racial equity — a future where all Californians equitably breathe healthy and clean air, benefit from actions to address climate change, and where race is no longer a predictor of life outcomes.”

CARB says it is seeking five “passionate community leaders and racial justice experts” to shape the Racial Equity Lens, which it calls “ground truthing.” To do this, these “experts” will need to “validate data and information by comparing it with direct, real-world observations or measurements from community members the tool is intended to serve.” Click here to read more.

 

LANSING, Mich - Samsung SDI America plans to lay off 179 workers from its EV battery headquarters in Auburn Hills next month, the latest sign Michigan’s big bet on EVs may be a bust.

The company outlined the permanent cuts impacting workers at both it’s Atlantic Boulevard and Continental Drive facilities in a Dec. 18 notice to the state.

“The layoffs are expected to take place between February 24, 2025, and February 28, 2025, and are expected to be permanent,” the notice read.

Affected employees include managers, engineers, specialists technicians, and more than 100 operators.

Samsung SDI, a subsidiary of the South Korean tech giant Samsung, did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Crain’s Detroit Business about the reason behind the layoffs, but the move follows similar cuts in the EV industry amid waning demand that was already soft in the first place. Click here to read more.

 

WASHINGTON D.C. - Four years after what the FBI describes as an act of domestic terror--the protest at the Capitol on January 6, 2021--federal authorities have not yet solved the most consequential crime of that day: the presence of two explosive devices within blocks of the U.S. Capitol.

A report issued today by Representatives Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky), chairmen of House subcommittees examining the events of January 6 and the work of the January 6 Select Committee, details how the FBI investigation into the so-called pipe bomber went cold by early 2021 despite dedicating significant resources into finding the suspect and initially identifying several “persons of interest.”

The FBI originally claimed an individual wearing a hoodie planted the devices near the headquarters of the Republican National Committee and outside the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee on January 5, 2021 between the hours of 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Click here to read more.

 

LONDON, ENGLAND - At least 1,400 children were subjected to appalling sexual exploitation in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013, a report has found.

Children as young as 11 were raped by multiple perpetrators, abducted, trafficked to other cities in England, beaten and intimidated, it said.

The report, external, commissioned by Rotherham Borough Council, revealed there had been three previous inquiries.

Council leader Roger Stone said he would step down with immediate effect.

Mr Stone, who has been the leader since 2003, said: "I believe it is only right that as leader I take responsibility for the historic failings described so clearly."

The inquiry team noted fears among council staff of being labelled "racist" if they focused on victims' descriptions of the majority of abusers as "Asian" men. Click here to read more.

 

BIRMINGHAM, AL - - Gerry Hecht, a 94-year-old veteran in Phoenix, says he can’t get the care he needs after his claim has been denied by Veterans Affairs.

Once an officer in the Navy, Hecht served in a combat area in Korea on the USS Duncan.

Now, he said he can’t walk, needs an oxygen tank and the only person taking care of him daily is his 88-year-old wife, who has her own medical troubles.

“You have two aging people here. Not one but two, and we have to rely on each other and that’s difficult when you get to be well up in years,” Hecht said.

Every month, he said his kids must fly back to care for their parents.

“His health problems are impacting her health problems. He needs help getting up out of his chair. Now, my mom has a horrible back because she’s having to help him up every day,” his son, Dave Hecht, said.

To help with Gerry Hecht’s growing need and medical costs, he said he recently applied to the VA for an electric wheelchair and respite. Click here to read more.

Subscribe now

For just $6 a month, gain exclusive access to my shows and support local journalism by becoming a paid subscriber - cancel anytime. I can’t do this without all of you.

Become a Supporter

 

 

GAYLORD, MI – A 420-acre swath of state forestland will be cleared for a solar farm near Gaylord under a lease agreement with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, confirmed a top state official.

Officials with the DNR recently assessed 1,200 acres of public trust land in Otsego County near a major power transmission line to decide whether it was suitable for solar arrays. Agency leaders ultimately decided to lease 35% of that land to accompany other adjacent solar projects already in the works.

A public notice advertising competitive bidding for solar proposals on 420 acres of state land in Otsego County’s Hayes Township is expected to be published in coming days in both the Gaylord newspaper and on the DNR website, confirmed Scott Whitcomb, DNR director of public lands office.

He said the DNR will schedule a public hearing if requested by local governments and enough members of the public. Click here to read more.

 

President Joe Biden is reportedly preparing to restrict offshore oil and gas drilling in his final days in office, a move that would placate the environmentalist lobby and potentially obstruct President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to unleash the U.S. energy sector, according to Bloomberg News.

Biden’s reportedly forthcoming order would permanently ban new lease sales for oil and gas drilling in certain regions of the outer continental shelf, according to Bloomberg News, which cited anonymous sources familiar with the situation. Some elected Democrats and many well-funded green groups have pushed Biden to implement permanent environmental policies in the waning days of his presidency to fluster Trump’s “energy dominance” agenda.

While the scope of the order is currently unclear, there have been internal discussions about targeting certain areas off the coast of California and in the Gulf of Mexico, according to Bloomberg News. It is also unclear when the administration will announce the policy, though it could be within a matter of days. Click here to read more.

 

U.S. Navy veteran Harry Chandler, a medic who helped rescue injured service-members from the water during the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941, died earlier this week at the age of 103. There are just 15 survivors of that devastating attack who now remain living.

Chandler, according to his grandson-in-law Ron Mahaffee, passed away in Florida at a senior living center, The Associated Press reported. It was also noted that while he had suffered from congestive heart failure, the cause of death was primarily attributed to his age.

“Pearl Harbor survivor Harry Chandler who passed away on Monday at the age of 103. Chandler was serving as a hospital corpsman 3rd class when the Japanese attacked on 7 Dec 1941. He boarded a boat and helped pull oil-covered sailors from the water,” the U.S. Naval Institute shared photos of Chandler on Wednesday. Click here to read more.

 

NEW YORK CITY — Financial giant Morgan Stanley is the latest bank to depart the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA), a company spokesperson told The National News Desk (TNND) on Thursday.

The UN-backed initiative represents a group of financial institutions dedicated to “financing ambitious climate action.” NZBA writes via its website it aims to push the economy toward net-zero greenhouse emissions by 2050.

In a statement Thursday, Morgan Stanley explained its decision to leave the group would not alter its commitment to improving the climate.

“Morgan Stanley’s commitment to net-zero remains unchanged,” a spokesperson told TNND. “We aim to contribute to real-economy decarbonization by providing our clients with the advice and capital required to transform business models and reduce carbon intensity.” Click here to read more.

 

WINNIE, Texas - A Texas pastor says it’s a true miracle that he’s alive after he and a friend were caught in a tornado while out fishing.

Brian Johnson, his dog Sam and a friend were out fishing Saturday in Winnie, some 60 miles east of Houston. The bass were biting because a storm was on its way.

What Johnson and his friend didn’t realize was that they were about to get caught in the middle of an EF-3 tornado.

When the twister hit, Johnson’s boat flipped into the water. He had to hang on because his pants were stuck on something, and his legs were trapped underneath.

“I’m holding onto the boat… ‘cause the wind is just ripping,” Johnson told KTRK. “And I’m like, ‘It’s gonna pick me up out of this water any second.’” Click here to read more.