01a Apocalyptic

Blurb:

The U.S. Postal Service is seeking to temporarily place a fee on packages due to rising fuel prices as the war in Iran continues to rattle energy markets.

The 8% fuel surcharge on packages under Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, USPS Ground Advantage, and Parcel Select is expected to take effect on April 26 and remain in place until Jan. 17, 2027. The Postal Regulatory Commission must review and approve the fee before it is enacted. If approved, first-class stamps and other mail services would not be affected.

“Transportation costs have been increasing, and our competitors have reacted with a number of surcharges,” the service said in a statement on Wednesday. “We have steadfastly avoided surcharges, and this charge is less than one-third of what our competitors charge for fuel alone.”

The development comes as the war in Iran has triggered the largest disruption to the global energy supply in history, due largely to Iran’s sweeping blockage of the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices have spiked roughly 40%, approaching a record $120 a barrel earlier this month before stabilizing slightly.

Blurb:

Just weeks earlier, Larry Fink expressed hope for a “neutralized Iran,” framing the conflict as a good investment opportunity

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has warned of an impending global recession if the US-Israeli war on Iran drags on and oil prices remain above $100 a barrel. The stark prediction comes just weeks after Fink framed the conflict as a good long-term investment opportunity.

In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC this week, Fink said oil prices could stay above $100 per barrel for years if Iran “remains a threat,” potentially hitting $150 and sparking “a probably stark and steep recession.”

Blurb:

The Russian public is pushing back against the planned ban of a popular app created by two Russians, with even pro-Kremlin voices fearing it could backfire. In a rare public opposition to blocking Telegram, the country’s most popular messaging channel, Vladimir Putin has been warned that the proposed ban could have negative consequences at home and on the battlefield.

But authorities have increasingly portrayed Telegram as contributing to terrorism and criminal activity, restricting the app and targeting its founder. Similar grounds have already been used to restrict other messaging apps, including the February block on WhatsApp.

From April 1, Telegram should be blocked completely too. Instead, the Kremlin is steering users towards its new state-backed messaging app, MAX, which is feared to be used for surveillance. The “national messenger” is similar in functionality to Telegram, but it’s also integrated with Russia‘s government services portal and can serve as a digital ID.

Blurb:

The Democrats have set a new record for single-month lobbyist fundraising. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee reported a record $4.1 million in lobbyist-bundled contributions in February, according to a Sludge analysis of Federal Election Commission filings, a dramatic increase in corporate-linked fundraising as House Democrats are campaigning on “affordability.” The lobbyist-derived cash made up nearly one-third of the DCCC’s fundraising last month.

Lobbyist bundling, in which registered lobbyists collect checks from their clients and colleagues and deliver them in a single package, is a key way that corporate interests work to gain influence with lawmakers. Federal law requires disclosure of bundled contributions above $24,000.

The DCCC’s February total shatters previous records and builds on a trend of the Democrats’ increasing reliance on lobbyist bundling for their funds. January’s $3.6 million was itself a high-water mark, and as recently as 2023, monthly lobbyist bundling reported by the DCCC was generally much lower, typically in the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Blurb:

 

In midterm elections in which control of all or part of Congress flips away from the president’s party, a common pattern emerges.

The party out of power grows stronger on the hypothetical midterm-election ballot as the year moves toward Election Day.

A president isn’t on the midterm ballot, but his/her popularity and the perception of how the country is doing factor in to how voters vote in a midterm election.

The perception of both Donald Trump’s performance and the country’s current situation is not good.

Blurb:

An explosive new undercover video has exposed an alarming ballot fraud scheme in California, revealing that a major operation is underway to buy votes by paying homeless people to forge signatures of real voters, without their consent.

The footage, published by O’Keefe Media Group (OMG), is raising serious concerns about election integrity in California.

The reporting uncovers evidence of a coordinated scheme in which homeless individuals are paid to forge signatures using the identities of registered voters, without their knowledge or consent.

Petition circulators were filmed operating on Skid Row, paying individuals small amounts of cash to complete ballot petitions under assigned names and addresses.

Blurb:

 

Once again, academic freedom is suddenly a concern. Funny how this is never a worry when it affects conservatives.

Campus Reform reports:

Princeton professors discuss resisting Trump administration’s anti-DEI policies at panel

Faculty at Princeton University are organizing opposition to the Trump administration’s efforts to eliminate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, with panelists warning that the policies could affect academic freedom on campus.

About 30 professors gathered for a recent American Association of University Professors (AAUP) panel to discuss how faculty should respond to the Department of Education under President Donald Trump, as the group reportedly increased its meeting frequency in response to federal actions targeting DEI initiatives.

The panel featured Princeton professor Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor and Institute for Advanced Study professor emerita Joan W. Scott, who argued that recent federal policies reflect a broader effort to influence higher education. Taylor said at the meeting as reported by The Daily Princetonian that the changes have “created conditions of fear, intimidation, and repression on college campuses.”

Speakers also pointed to organizations such as the Heritage Foundation as influential in policy discussions surrounding higher education reform and DEI programs.

Blurb:

Monday’s edition of Amanpour & Co., airing on PBS (and CNN International) showcased eponymous host Christiane Amanpour assenting to the radical view of her guest, Yale University professor Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: Also ahead, “White Supremacy in Donald Trump’s White House.” Princeton Professor Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor speaks to Michel Martin about Trump’s war on DEI.

The above shows the host quoting a featured article by her guest. But Amanpour was also comfortable straight-up saying Trump’s White House was a “white supremacist” house.

AMANPOUR: Since the start of his second term, President Trump has signed a number of executive orders targeting DEI policies, uttered rhetoric deemed racist at immigrants and is generally eroding the, quote, “melting pot identity” the U.S. once prided itself on. Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor is a Princeton professor of African American studies and she’s the co-founder of the black politics and culture magazine Hammer & Hope. In her recent piece, she describes a white supremacy in Donald Trump’s White House and joins Michel Martin to discuss the rollback of civil rights.

Blurb:

Democrats have once again refused to fund the Department of Homeland Security, which has been subjected to a lengthy 39 day shut down due to their unwillingness to come to the bargaining table.

Blurb:

Russia launched almost 1,000 drones against Ukraine within 24 hours between March 23 and 24, making it one of Moscow’s largest aerial attacks since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.

Following a massive barrage of missiles and drones overnight, Russia carried on its attack during Tuesday in a rare daytime wave of over 550 attack drones targeting central and western regions.

At least three people have been killed and over 30 have been injured across Ukraine during the daylight attack, following the overnight missiles and drone assault, killing at least four people and injuring 21, according to regional authorities.

Lviv in Western Ukraine got hit and 17 people were wounded when Russian drones hit civilian areas in the city not far from the border with Poland.

Blurb:

Four ambulances belonging to a Jewish charity were set on fire early Monday in London in what British police are investigating as an antisemitic hate crime. Detectives are working to determine whether a claim of responsibility from a group with alleged links to Iran is authentic.

Though it has not been classified as a terrorist incident, counterterror officers have been put in charge of the investigation. No one was injured in the nighttime attack, which shattered windows in nearby homes and left the vehicles charred shells.

Blurb:

A horrific explosion at a Texas crude oil refinery prompted an immediate shelter-in-place order.

The blast occurred at the Valero Refinery in Port Arthur, Texas.

“At this time, numerous emergency crews are on the scene following a major explosion at a Valero refinery. Large flames are visible, with heavy smoke rising and seen for miles. Multiple witnesses reported feeling the ground shake at the time of the blast,” Rawsalerts wrote.

“A shelter-in-place order has been issued for nearby residents as a precaution while crews work to contain the situation. The cause of the explosion remains unknown and is currently under investigation,” the post added.

Blurb:

45,800.

That’s how many more ballots were counted than were cast in Riverside, California.

Let that sink in. If tens of thousands of ballots can appear out of nowhere in a single county, how many elections—local, state, even federal—have been compromised? How many outcomes were decided not by voters, but by a broken system no one wants to examine?

Passing the SAVE Act isn’t optional. It’s urgent. It’s the bare minimum to start restoring order to an election system that’s spiraling out of control.

ABC7: RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KABC) — Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco has launched an investigation into a potential discrepancy in the number of ballots cast in last year’s special election. On one hand, the Riverside County registrar of voters said the number of ballots counted by machines numbered more than 657,000. But an independent investigation by a group of concerned citizens shows the number of handwritten logs filled out by various elections officials and poll workers showed just more than 611,000 votes cast. “I’m not saying anyone is lying, or there’s a series of mistakes,” said Bianco at a news conference Friday morning. “I’m saying I don’t know.” “We’re not talking about ten, we’re not even talking about a thousand. We’re talking about the difference between having a perfect count, and a 45,800 vote difference. That’s massive,” he said. (ABC 7)

Blurb:

 

Yes, that is exactly what the UK needs, more jihad. More sharia. More antisemitism. More Jewish ambulance burnings.

Robert Spencer: He will get his wish. But as the transfer of power takes place, and shattered, staggering, dhimmi Britain comes under Muslim rule, no Muslims will ever call for greater non-Muslim representation in parliament.