Nashville Electric Services (NES) has shared a list of tips on how to stay safe and conserve energy usage during periods of extreme heat.
Read the full storyNashville Electric Services Shares Tips for the Upcoming Extreme Heat Period
Category: Culture
Angel Studios’ ‘Sound of Freedom’ Child Trafficking Exposé Becomes America’s Top Movie on July 4 Opening Day
Fans of Sound of Freedom, the true-life thriller that exposes the sinister world of child trafficking, have propelled the film to the top spot at the box office on its July 4 opening in America.
The film, distributed by Angel Studios (The Chosen), is based on the true story of former government agent Tim Ballard, played by The Passion of the Christ’s Jim Caviezel, who quit his job to rescue a little girl from sex traffickers in the jungles of Colombia, and ended up saving many more children and adults.
Read the full storyACLU Submits Signatures for Radical Ohio Late-Term Abortion and End to Parental Consent Ballot Initiative
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) submitted signatures Wednesday for its Ohio ballot initiative that would not only bring late-term abortions to the state but also end parental consent laws and other protections for women and children.
Protect Women Ohio (PWO) is a parental rights and pro-life coalition that is seeking to block radical leftist organizations’ attempt to rewrite Ohio’s Constitution via the ballot initiative that would eliminate parental notification and consent requirements for minors obtaining abortions and gender transition hormone drugs and surgeries.
Read the full storyMark Levin: Target Refuses to Sell Book Critical of Democrats
Mark Levin, author and host of “Life, Liberty & Levin” on Fox News, claimed in a Wednesday tweet that Target told him it will not carry his new book because customers may be offended by the title.
Target reportedly informed Levin’s publisher, Simon & Schuster, that the retail giant will not carry his new book, “The Democrat Party Hates America,” which is set to be released on Sept. 19, because the title may offend customers, Levin said on Twitter. Target has been the center of several recent controversies that include selling LGBTQ merchandise for children during Pride Month and funding an anti-militarization group.
Read the full storyCommentary: Two Americas Collide at the Supreme Court
When President Biden fumed that the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling is “not normal,” he spoke more truth than he may have intended. It is certainly not normal nowadays to acknowledge, even implicitly, that discrimination against whites is possible, or even wrong. The Supreme Court blasted the vaporous pretexts that elites have used to justify this invidious scheme, which has carried on indefinitely, feasting on countless dreams without satisfying a bottomless hunger of unquantifiable grievance. The sentimental and, arguably, self-serving wailing of the dissenters, particularly Justice Jackson, draws from that same source.
Read the full storyConfidence in U.S. Government Plummets
The percentage of Americans who have confidence in the U.S. government has plummeted in recent years, a new poll shows.
Gallup released the poll that found that only 31% of surveyed Americans say they have confidence in the U.S. government. That is down from 46% who said the same in 2020.
Read the full storyPoll: Taxes, Cost of Living Driving Away Young Pennsylvania Residents
A new survey suggests the price residents pay to live in Pennsylvania tempts younger generations to move.
Results from the Commonwealth Foundation poll conducted last month show more than half of respondents between the ages of 18 and 44 have considered moving to another state – or know someone who wants to do the same.
Read the full storyConnecticut Baby Born at 22 Weeks Is ‘Story of Hope’ as She Survives Odds and Is Discharged Home
The smallest baby ever born at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut, was celebrated by staff across the hospital as she was discharged last week following four months in the neonatal intensive care unit.
“Born at just 22 weeks, Baby Zahraliz Francis Angueira, the smallest baby ever born at Saint Francis Hospital, graduated from our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) after four months and headed home today!” the hospital posted to Instagram. “Our colleagues from across the hospital gathered to provide well wishes to the family and celebrate their story of hope.”
Read the full storyArizona GOP Legislative District 3 Declares July ‘Pride in America’ Month
A large majority of Republican Party officials in a Maricopa County-area legislative district voted to declare the month of July “Pride in America Month.” The June 29th move comes at the close of a contentious “Pride Month” recognizing the LGBTQ+ community.
In all, two-thirds of the precinct committeemen (PCs) in Arizona’s Republican Legislative District 3 (LD3) voted to pass the resolution.
Read the full storyLouisiana Governor Vetoes Bill Protecting Minors from Transgender Hormone Drugs and Surgeries
Gov. John Bel Edwards (D-LA) has vetoed the Stop Harming Our Kids Act, legislation that would have protected children and teens from transgender hormone drugs and surgeries, claiming “there was never any evidence or testimony” that gender transition surgeries on minors have been occurring in Louisiana.
In a six-page letter, dated June 29, to Louisiana House Speaker Clay Schexnayder (R-Ascension), Edwards wrote HB 648 is “punitive,“ discriminatory,” “part of a targeted assault on children,” and “denies healthcare to a very small, unique, and vulnerable group of children.”
Read the full storySecret Service Confirms Cocaine Found in White House
The U.S. Secret Service has confirmed that cocaine was found at the White House on the eve of Fourth of July, the discovery of which prompted a West Wing evacuation, according to ABC News.
Secret Service agents discovered the substance in the West Wing on Sunday, two days after President Joe Biden’s son Hunter was seen leaving the building, as part of a routine security sweep of the building, and initially suspected it was anthrax, prompting an evacuation of the building. The agency confirmed that the substance was cocaine Wednesday after conducting a drug test, according to ABC News.
Read the full storyMiddle Tennessee Animal Shelter Warns of Pet Scammers
A middle Tennessee animal shelter is urging pet owners to take caution as it says scammers are assuming its identity.
According to reports, scammers pretending to be employees of the Montgomery County Animal Shelter are attempting to bilk the owners of lost pets out of money. The scam involves calling those owners of lost pets and claiming that their pet has been found. The scammers then ask for payment in exchange for return of the pet.
Read the full storyDrag Queen ‘Peaches Christ’ Blames ‘Bigoted Christians’ at Google for Tech Company’s Removal of Performance from ‘Pride’ Events
A drag queen who uses the name “Peaches Christ” lashed out against ‘bigoted Christians” in a social media post after Google removed its affiliation from his previously scheduled performance during the company’s “pride” events.
As CNBC reported, Google appeared to distance itself from its original plans to sponsor drag queen Joshua Grannell’s performance at a San Francisco LGBTQ bar as part of its “pride” month events after a petition circulating among the tech giant’s employees expressed opposition to its anti-Christian theme.
Read the full storyMinnesota Abortions Increased Significantly in 2022, Report Says
Abortions in Minnesota experienced a significant increase of 20% in 2022, as revealed in a report released by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).
This sharp rise comes on the heels of new abortion laws passed by lawmakers during the 2023 session, removing restrictions on abortion throughout pregnancy and repealing long-standing abortion laws, including portions of the reporting law that governs the release of the MDH data.
Read the full storyCommentary: Social Conservatism Is Rebounding
It was just a matter of time. Decent Americans have had radical race and LGBTQ+ agendas shoved in their face for too long, and now they are fighting back. Too bad not all conservatives are on board.
Former House Speaker Paul Ryan recently said that he was not a “cultural war guy,” contending that he is more concerned about the debt crisis. This is what we would expect from someone who is at home sitting on the board of directors of Fox News’ parent company, Fox Corporation.
Read the full storyCommentary: The Left Does Not Believe in the Rule of Law
The fulminations against the Supreme Court’s recent rulings confirm what I have long suspected: The Left, or at least much of it, just doesn’t believe in the concept of law; for leftists, everything is about doing “the right thing” as they perceive it in any individual case — not following the law.
Read the full storyStudy Finds Use of Contraceptive Pill from Young Age Increases Risk of Depression in Women by up to 130 Percent
A study from the UK finds women who began using the combined contraceptive pill as teenagers increased their risk of depression by 130 percent, while those who began to use the contraceptive in their 20s or older showed a 92 percent increased risk of depressive symptoms.
The population-based cohort study that utilized data from more than 250,000 UK Biobank women was published in Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences and online by Cambridge University Press.
Read the full storyCommentary: On Independence Day, Remember Why Economic Liberty Matters for America
I’ve often thought there is something providential about the Declaration of Independence being drafted and promulgated throughout the American Colonies the same year that Adam Smith’s book “The Wealth of Nations” was published.
After all, both texts were revolutionary, and both were fundamentally concerned with protecting and promoting liberty.
Read the full storyCommentary: The Surprising Origins of the ‘No Taxation Without Representation’ Slogan
Ask most Americans where the slogan “No taxation without representation!” came from and the likely response will be “American colonists protesting against Britain in the 1760s.” But the spirit, if not the precise letter of the phrase, originated more than a century before. Moreover, we can thank the Brits themselves for it. It started with something called the “ship tax.”
Since the early Middle Ages, English custom allowed the monarch to impose a special levy in times of war upon citizens who lived in coastal settlements. They could meet the requirement by providing ships, shipbuilding materials, or money for the Crown to build ships (hence the name, “ship tax”). Kings and Queens levied the “tax” as a royal prerogative, meaning they skipped the annoyance of securing the consent of Parliament as required in the Magna Carta of 1215.
Read the full storyCommentary: New Hampshire U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster’s Very Un-American Fourth of July
by Michael Graham If you’re at one of the many Fourth of July celebrations across New Hampshire this week and happen to spot Congresswoman Annie Kuster in the crowd, please loan her your copy of the Declaration of Independence. In particular, this part: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Kuster does not concur. Instead, Kuster declared on the eve of Independence Day weekend that she believes some people are more equal than others. Kuster made the statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 6-3 ruling that racial preferences violate the “all men are created equal” principles of the Constitution. Rather than celebrate equal treatment, Kuster attacked the Court and defended the race-based policies Harvard and the University of North Carolina used to reject qualified applicants based on their skin color. In particular, Kuster supports the policy of turning away qualified Asian students in the name of “diversity.” Why does Annie Kuster support anti-Asian discrimination? You’ll have to ask her. (Kuster will not respond to questions on the topic from NHJournal.) It’s…
Read the full storyCommentary: The Bidens’ Existential Threats to the American Rule of Law
President Joe Biden, the Biden grifting conglomerate, the Department of Justice, and the FBI under its fourth consecutive weaponized director, are in danger of subverting the American system of law.
They are in various ways undermining the tradition of self-reported income tax computation and voluntary compliance.
Read the full storyConstitutional Experts Welcome Supreme Court’s Takedown of Affirmative Action but Warn of Universities’ Attempts at ‘Workarounds’
Many of those who are applauding the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Thursday that struck down affirmative action are also warning that universities that have been steeped for decades in “equity” and “diversity” ideology are not likely to go quietly.
“My elation regarding the opinion’s vindication of the rule of law and rejection of racial discrimination is tempered somewhat by the fact that the Left began preparing for this result a couple of years ago by abandoning objective admissions measures such as the SAT, etc., Peter Kirsanow, a member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, said in comments to The Star News Network following the Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College.
Read the full storyCommentary: Actually, They ARE Coming for Your Children
From the South Lawn of the White House to the pulsing heartbeats of North America’s bustling metropolises, Democrats are stepping into the 2024 electoral fray armed with a transgender-dominated platform that makes the riots of 2020 look like a block party.
This time, the spotlight is focused on the very future of the country: our children.
Read the full storyTexas Abortion Ban Leads to Additional 10,000 Births, Paper Concludes
An abortion ban in the state of Texas has led to nearly 10,000 additional live births in the state, researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health estimate.
Between April and December of 2022, the researchers conclude that the state witnessed 9,799 additional births that would not have been occurred but for the existence of the state’s abortion ban, the researchers concluded. The state’s previous law allowed abortion up to 22 weeks of gestation, while the current legislation prohibits abortion on detection of embryonic cardiac activity, i.e. the detection of a fetal heartbeat. This can occur as early as 5-6 weeks into pregnancy.
Read the full storyCommentary: FreedomFest’s Journey to Memphis Echoes the Anthem of Liberty
This year, from July 12 to 15, FreedomFest takes its spirit of liberty on the road, landing in a city steeped in history, resilience and innovation – Memphis, Tennessee.
FreedomFest isn’t just a conference; it’s a gathering of free spirits and forward-thinkers, a celebration of every aspect of liberty we cherish in our lives – be it political, financial, social, creative, professional, physical or intellectual. From academics and business tycoons to free-market aficionados and cultural powerhouses, the event brings together a melting pot of ideas and individuals all bound by a shared respect for liberty and freedom.
Read the full storyCommentary: Today’s Youth Are Digital, De-Churched, and Depressed
The kids aren’t alright, and it’s starting to show. Last week, the New York Post published a front-page story that heralded “The New Great Depression,” tracking the twin rise of social media and juvenile depression.
Since 1991, the University of Michigan has annually polled thousands of students in middle and high school, asking whether they agree with the following three statements: “I can’t do anything right,” “I do not enjoy life,” and “My life is not useful.”
Read the full story4th of July Activities Begin This Weekend Across Tennessee
Tennesseans will begin celebrating Independence Day as early as Friday night, according to a state travel guide.
The Chattanooga Lookouts, a minor league baseball team, will have a fireworks show after the team’s Friday and Sunday night games.
Read the full storyChristian Organizations Celebrate Supreme Court’s Ruling Against Forcing Web Designer to Work for Same-Sex Weddings
Christian groups applauded the Supreme Court’s ruling Friday that held “The First Amendment prohibits Colorado from forcing a website designer to create expressive designs speaking messages with which the designer disagrees.”
Organizations, including the Catholic League, Family Research Council, and the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, submitted friend of the court (amici) briefs in support of 303 Creative, the custom website design business owned by Lorie Smith.
Read the full storyTwo Suicide Deaths Reported at Nashville International Airport This Week
Two deaths have been reported within one week at Nashville International Airport (BNA).
Read the full storyConnecticut U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro Draws Fire for Claiming Church Teachings Allow Catholics to Embrace Abortion
Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) has fueled the ire of many Catholics for asserting the teachings of the Catholic faith justify her claim that Catholics may support and promote ending the lives of unborn babies.
“I am a Catholic—baptized, raised, and confirmed,” DeLauro tweeted. “The fundamental tenets of my faith compel me to defend a women’s right to access abortion. I am proudly part of the faithful large majority of US Catholics who support legal protections for abortion access.”
Read the full storyMinnesota Lutheran Church Recites ‘Sparkle Creed,’ Professes Belief in ‘Non-Binary God’
A Lutheran church in Edina stood for the reading of the “sparkle creed” during a church service, according to a livestream available on its YouTube page.
“I believe in a non-binary god, whose pronouns are plural,” Pastor Anna Helgen said during Sunday’s service. “I believe in Jesus Christ, their child, who wore a fabulous tunic and had two dads.”
Read the full storyEnvironmental Activists Push to Cancel July 4th Fireworks Shows
Multiple fireworks shows slated for July 4th along Los Angeles’ coastline have been canceled in the wake of a county mandate that was initially spurred by environmental activists, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The L.A. Regional Water Quality Control Board implemented a firework permit rule in an effort to clamp down on pollutants from firework displays, which reportedly affect nearby water sources, the LA Times reported. The Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation (CERF) brought a lawsuit against Long Beach’s Big Bang on the Bay, alleging that a firework show in 2022 violated the Clean Water Act.
Read the full storyMosquitoes Infected with West Nile Virus Detected in Tennessee
Batches of mosquitoes infected with West Nile virus have recently been collected in both Davidson County and Shelby County.
Read the full storyStudy Finds Abortion in First Pregnancy Linked to Increased Risk of Later Mental Health Problems
While a common abortion industry narrative claims restrictions on abortion cause mental health harms to women, a new study has found that abortion during a first pregnancy is associated with a greater incidence of mental health problems after the procedure than giving birth.
The study, conducted by Dr. James Studnicki, vice president and director of data analytics at the pro-life Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI), and his colleagues, was published at the International Journal of Women’s Health.
Read the full storyCommentary: Ohio Constitutional Amendment Would Abolish Parental Consent
Broad, sweeping language can easily mislead those caught up in its charm, especially in discussions about abortion “rights.” A deceptively worded constitutional amendment that pretends to protect the “right” to abortion in the Buckeye State would, in fact, abolish the need for parental consent laws for abortion, should it be placed on the ballot this fall and approved by voters.
Abortion activists are proposing an extreme amendment to the Ohio constitution that would go as far as denying loving parents the ability to consult with their own daughters about their abortion decision. Such a dangerous change to the 172-year-old constitution would do nothing but threaten young women for years to come.
Read the full storyLibrary Group’s ‘Intellectual Freedom’ Director Tells Libraries How to Censor Christian Story Hours
The American Library Association is offering guidance to public libraries on how to prevent events like an upcoming one by leading Christian children’s book publisher and marquee author Kirk Cameron, arguing they’re an attempt to “censor” or “silence” LGBTQIA library-users and their materials.
The guidance came from Deborah Caldwell-Stone, the association’s director of the Office for Intellectual Freedom, during a virtual library conference earlier this month.
Read the full storyGoogle Backs Down from Pride’ Drag Show After Employees Claim Discrimination Against Christians
Tech giant Google has reportedly distanced itself from a ‘pride month’ drag performance it had planned to sponsor in San Francisco after several hundred employees signed a petition expressing opposition to the event, arguing it discriminates against the Christian faith.
According to a report Tuesday at CNBC, a drag queen known as “Peaches Christ” was scheduled to perform at Beaux, an LGBTQ bar in San Francisco, at a “pride” event sponsored by Google.
Read the full storyLGBT Activists Say ‘We’re Coming For Your Children’ Chant Is Just ‘Misunderstood’
Several LGBT activists dismissed concerns about NYC Drag March participants chanting “We’re coming for your children” after a viral video of such an incident drew blowback this week, according to NBC News.
A video of NYC Drag marchers chanting “We’re here, we’re queer, we’re coming for your children” garnered 5 million views on Twitter this week and considerable criticism from conservatives. A Tuesday NBC article claimed the phrase had been used at Pride events for years and that it’s intended to destigmatize the LGBT community and take the sting out of accusations of “grooming” children into various sexual identities.
Read the full storyTennessee Department of Transportation to Halt All Lane Closure Activity for Independence Day Travelers
The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) announced Monday that Independence Day travelers would not be delayed by construction on Tennessee roads during this year’s holiday.
Read the full storyVoters Sour on Biden on Wide Range of Issues in New Poll showing ‘Buyers Remorse’
The latest Harvard/Harris survey has delivered a strong mix of bad news to President Joe Biden, with much of the public appearing to disagree with him on key policy issues, expressing concerns about his age and fitness and raising skepticism about the Justice Department’s handling of former President Donald Trump’s criminal indictment.
Read the full storyTennessee Right to Life Celebrates 10,000 Babies Saved After Dobbs Ruling
With a graphic emblazoned across a map of Tennessee saying “Good-bye Roe, hello Dobbs,” Tennessee Right to Life and its county chapters have been celebrating one year since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court ruling that gave individual states the right to make their own abortion laws.
“More than 10,000 children have been saved from abortion in our state this first year! Let us rejoice and be glad,” the organization said on its website. “Let us make a joyful noise to the Lord and let us re-commit ourselves to keeping Tennessee a safe place for unborn children and their mothers!”
Read the full storyCommentary: Western ‘Democracy’ Has Lost Its Way
Forty-five years ago, anti-communist dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn caused a stir at Harvard with a famous commencement speech deploring the decadence of the West. The rivalry of the Cold War was not as neat as it appeared, he said.
Read the full story‘Gender-Affirming’ Pediatricians Help Kill Maine Bill to Prohibit Children’s Social Transition at School Without Parental Consent
With the help of pediatricians from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Democrats in the Maine House and Senate killed a bill Friday that would have prohibited public school staff from helping children to socially transition to another gender by allowing them to use new names and pronouns without written consent from parents.
LD 678 was defeated by house Democrats by a vote of 76-52, and by senate Democrats, 20-12.
Read the full storyNavy, Marine Corps Shelling Out Thousands to New Enlistees Amid Unrelenting Recruitment Slump
The Navy and Marine Corps are bumping up enlistment bonuses for people looking to fill highly technical occupations as the military battles to find sufficient numbers of new recruits.
The Marine Corps announced recruits joining the cyber and crypto operations enlistment field would get up to an extra $15,000 for the remainder of fiscal year 2023, the largest enlistment bonus currently being offered, according to a memo posted Monday. Service officials have attributed recent recruiting struggles to a historically low number of Americans who are both eligible to serve and express an interest, as well as intense competition and often better-paying, less demanding offers from the private sector.
Read the full storyEndocrinologist Warns America on Wrong Track with Pushing Transgender Lifestyle on Children
Endocrinologist Dr. Roy Eappen warns that while other nations have already urged caution in the use of transgender hormone drugs for children and teens, America is “standing still, or, perhaps, going backward.”
In a recent op-ed at the Daily Herald in Chicago, the senior fellow at Do No Harm, an organization of physicians, other healthcare professionals, and policymakers seeking to “protect patients, physicians, and healthcare itself from radical, divisive ideology,” urged Americans to be aware that “European countries are rapidly pulling back” from transgender drug treatments, “based on growing evidence that children are suffering.”
Read the full storyREVIEW: Kari Lake’s New Book ‘Unafraid’ Is Chock Full of All the Juicy Details You’d Expect
Kari Lake is releasing new book, Unafraid: Just Getting Started, on June 27. The Arizona Sun Times was provided with a review copy in advance. In the book, which contains a forward by Donald Trump, Lake went over the bias she discovered while working in media, her race for governor, election fraud, and other issues like border security that she has championed.
Lake explained in detail why she decided to leave her anchorwoman job, discussing how she observed the tactics broadcast TV used to make Republicans look bad and Democrats look good. She asked God for guidance when she became troubled about saying things on air regarding COVID-19 she knew were wrong. She opened her Bible and 1 Timothy 6:7 jumped out at her, “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.”
Read the full storyFirst Lady Jill Biden Makes Appearance at Nashville Pride Festival
First Lady Jill Biden made an appearance at the Nashville Pride festival over the weekend, sharing a message of support on behalf of herself and President Joe Biden.
“Today I’m here on behalf of Joe my husband, Kamala and Doug to say loud and clear that you belong, that you are beautiful, that you are loved,” she reportedly said.
Read the full storyChildren’s Hospital Charges Schools Thousands For Trainings On How To Teach About Gender Identity, Anal Sex
An Illinois children’s hospital is charging school districts thousands of dollars for a sex education workshop that features lessons on how to teach kids about anal sex and gender identity, according to documents obtained through a public records request by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago is charging school districts up to $1,500 for a presentation to educators on “inclusive sexual health ed practices” that promotes the National Sexuality Education Standards (NSES), a K-12 sexual education curriculum, according to a copy of the presentation obtained by the DCNF through a public records request. The presentation recommends that fifth graders should learn several different sexual orientations, while eighth graders should be taught about anal and oral sex.
Read the full storyAcademics: Allowing Kids to Opt Out of Drag Storytime Is a ‘Dangerous Setback’ for Gay Rights
A pair of academics affiliated with York University in Canada believe that allowing parents to opt out their children from drag storytime events is a “dangerous setback for 2SLGBTQ+ human rights education.”
Writing in the Toronto Star, Beyhan Farhadi, a fellow at York’s Institute for Research on Digital Literacies, and “community educator”/York M.Ed student Joy Henderson say the Toronto School Board’s decision to allow opt-outs from the “family-friendly” activity “sends a message that [queer] rights are debatable.”
Read the full storyNearly Half of Californians Are Considering Fleeing the State: Poll
Nearly half of Californians are considering leaving the state, according to a June California Community poll.
The top cited reasons residents had for wanting to leave the state included the cost of living and political disagreement, according to the poll results. The poll was conducted between June 6 and June 16 and is an “ongoing partnership between Strategies 360 the Los Angeles Times,” the website reads.
Read the full story