The Faithful Watchman

LASER FOCUS Chinese satellite gathering intel for Pearl Harbor-style hypersonic missile attack by using green lasers, claim experts

CHINA used green lasers fired from satellites to gather intelligence for a surprise hypersonic missile attack on Hawaii, it has been warned.

The satellite was recorded flashing lasers for a fraction of a second by a livestream camera attached to a telescope on top of a mountain on one of the islands.

Initially the lights were thought to come from a NASA satellite before it was finally established it was a Chinese pollution monitoring satellite the Daqi-1.

But questions immediately began to be raised about why the Chinese would feel it necessary to monitor pollution in Hawaii, given the large US military presence there.

And it comes just weeks after China flew a giant balloon over the US – which was widely understood to be a spy tool even as Beijing claimed it was a civilian weather airship.

Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Hawaii remains vital for the United States military and the presence of the satellite comes amid increased tensions between the US and China.

Stoking Fears Of An All-Out Nuclear Conflict — Is The Threat Credible?

The diplomats of the world are making noise about Russia more and more looking like it will come to the nuclear option in finally defeating the Ukrainians. Thus, more and more people are becoming nervous that we are headed for World War III.

The worry—the threat—has always been that, once a nuclear weapon has been used, things will escalate until all-out atomic war results. All the big nukes on all the tips of the ICBMs and other delivery systems will be unleashed. Planet earth will be turned into a cinder–or at the very least, it will be made inhabitable.

Russian President/dictator Vladimir Putin, among wanting more control and power in his region of hegemony, wants to secure the wheat and other grains of Ukraine to add to Russia’s considerable grain possession. In this way, he will control the food of the world—at least to a considerable extent.

It is said that, even now, Putin and his top adjutants are hunkered in underground facilities for protection from the nuclear exchanges that are to come. Of course, a lot of things are said these days about a lot of things.

In fact, a lot has been said about a lot of things for a long time. We have heard that economic collapse is coming within days for—literally—years, even decades.

In first, scientists create mice with cells from 2 males

Researchers say the work “opens up new avenues in reproductive biology and fertility research” for animals and people. Down the road, for example, it might be possible to reproduce endangered mammals from a single male.

For the first time, scientists have created baby mice from two males. This raises the distant possibility of using the same technique for people – although experts caution that very few mouse embryos developed into live mouse pups and no one knows whether it would work for humans.

Still, “It’s a very clever strategy,” said Diana Laird, a stem cell and reproductive expert at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not involved in the research. “It’s an important step in both stem cell and reproductive biology.”

Scientists described their work in a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature.

First, they took skin cells from the tails of male mice and transformed them into “induced pluripotent stem cells,” which can develop into many different types of cells or tissues. Then, through a process that involved growing them and treating them with a drug, they converted male mouse stem cells into female cells and produced functional egg cells. Finally, they fertilized those eggs and implanted the embryos into female mice. About 1% of the embryos – 7 out of 630 – grew into live mouse pups.

CDC Bought Phone Data To Monitor Americans’ Compliance With Lockdowns, Contracts Show

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) purchased data from tracking companies to monitor compliance with lockdowns, according to contracts with the firms.

The CDC paid one firm $420,000 and another $208,000. That bought access to location data from at least 55 million cellphone users.

The contracts, approved under emergency review due to the COVID-19 pandemic, were aimed at providing the CDC “with the necessary data to continue critical emergency response functions elated to evaluating the impact of visits to key points of interest, stay at home orders, closures, re-openings and other public heath communications related to mask mandate, and other merging research areas on community transmission of SARS-CoV-2,” the contracts, obtained by The Epoch Times, state.

The CDC said it would be using the tracking data to “assess home-by-hour behaviors (i.e. curfew analysis) by exploring the percentage of mobile devices at home during specific period of time.” The data could also be integrated with other information “to provide a comprehensive picture of movement/travel of persons during the COVID-19 pandemic to better understand mandatory stay-at-home orders, business closure, school re-openings, and other non-pharmaceutical interventions in states and cities.”

Employers Now Must Cover Abortion Leave Under Federal Law?

Employers must provide “pregnant persons” with accommodations to procure and recover from abortions under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), a memo from the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) recently declared.

President Joe Biden signed H.R. 1065, the PWFA, in December 2022. National abortion organizations such as NARAL Pro-Choice America and Planned Parenthood advocated for the bill, as well as the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Prior to the bill’s passage, CatholicVote warned that PWFA could be used to force employers to pay for abortion-related expenses.

“I’m surprised some pro-life groups just didn’t seem to realize how this bill is going to impact their own operations,” said CatholicVote Director of Government Affairs Tom McClusky this week. “Under the bill, as the NWLC is now clearly stating, pro-life organizations can be sued if they don’t provide their employees special leave to get abortions.”

The NWLC, founded in 1972, is a legal advocacy group fighting for “gender justice – in the courts, in public policy, and in our society.” The website notes “for 50 years, NWLC and our supporters have been on the leading edge of every major legal and policy victory for women,” including the fight against Hobby Lobby in 2014.

Utah Teacher Has Kids Eat Bugs Because Cows Are Destroying the Environment

In the interest of full disclosure, I have eaten bugs. I was in Cambodia on a human trafficking awareness mission. A woman was selling roasted crickets, and I bought a bag for a buck and ate one or two. Maybe three. I always believe in trying new dishes so I thought, “Why not?” They weren’t half bad. A little heavy on the salt and soy sauce. And to be honest, I wouldn’t eat a bowl full of them while watching football. But they were alright. That said, I have two steaks marinating in the fridge right now that are headed to grill this evening. The upshot is, I have tried eating ze bugs. I know whereof I speak when I say I’ll take a pass. I’ll take a cheeseburger every time. Except on steak night. Which is tonight.

But of course, there are those who have been baptized into the First Church of Climatism. Some, if not most of these folks I think, enjoy the power that comes with posturing, hectoring, and bossing people around under the banner of saving the planet. In fact, I am convinced that 75% of climate outrage is the product of people getting in touch with their inner totalitarian. With that in mind, we take you to Spring Canyon Middle School in Springville, Utah. As part of an English assignment, teacher Kim Cutler purchased bugs approved for human consumption from a website and gave them to her students. It was part of an assignment on–what else? Climate change. The premise was that cows, which produce methane, are depleting the ozone layer and should be replaced with ze bugs. According to Fox News, the school issued the following statement, “Middle schoolers loved the ‘ewww’ factor, many of them gave bugs a try (and even a few staff members!). Many thanks to our English teachers for creating fun and engaging lessons.” And the kids may have had a fine time since middle school students are still young enough to enjoy icky stuff and it was probably a fun change of pace from the usual lesson plan.

However, there was also an essay assignment. For the essay, students were told that they could only argue for eating bugs and against eating beef, since cow flatulence poses a dire hazard to said ozone layer and life on Mother Earth. According to Ms. Cutler, there is no evidence to support eating beef over bugs and thus any pro-beef argument cannot exist. Well, there are other points of view, whether Ms. Cutler chooses to acknowledge them or not. What seems to be the case here is that the evidence Ms. Cutler likes is the only evidence that should be considered, and she has appointed herself the Holy Arbiter of Facts. One mother, Amanda Wright, was concerned that children were being indoctrinated into the religion of climate change and talked with the principal about how her daughter was not given the chance to create a rebuttal or discuss the other side of the issue. The principal, Alison Hansen, said that the assignment was about finding facts. Cutler stated, “All the evidence has suggested, that we probably should be eating bugs – it’s good for the environment, etc. But I didn’t know that that was an offensive topic to indicate.” Exploring and even debating climate change is not offensive.

Old people should embrace ‘mass suicide’, says Yale professor

Old people in Japan should kill themselves to avoid burdening the state, a professor at Yale University has said.

Yusuke Narita, an assistant professor of economics, has also suggested that euthanasia could be made compulsory.

Last year, official statistics in Japan revealed that over-75s accounted for 15 per cent of the country’s population for the first time. Those over 65 account for 29.1 per cent of the total, making the Japanese population the oldest in the world.

“I feel like the only solution is pretty clear,” said Mr Narita, 37. “In the end, isn’t it mass suicide and mass ‘seppuku’ of the elderly?” – referring to the act of disembowelment employed by dishonoured Samurai in the late 19th century.

Prof Narita told The New York Times his comments had been taken out of context, adding that they related to demands for older people in leadership positions to make way for the younger generation. He said his primary concern was how old people dominated positions of influence in Japanese society.

The references to “mass suicide” and “mass seppuku” touched a raw nerve in a country which honoured kamikaze pilots during the Second World War.

Universities Scrap SAT, Scramble To Stay Diverse Ahead Of Affirmative Action Ruling

Advocates claim standardized tests harm minority students.

Last week, Columbia University became the first Ivy League school to permanently scrap its standardized test requirement, allowing hopeful applicants to skip the dreaded SAT and ACT.

The move makes the prestigious New York City school the latest in a string of elite institutions to move away from the tests as the argument that standardized testing harms minority students picks up steam. Previously, a low SAT or ACT score meant automatic elimination at many top-tier schools.

In a March 1 release, Columbia University wrote that “students are dynamic, multi-faceted individuals who cannot be defined by any single factor.” The admissions process respects the “varied backgrounds, voices and experiences” of students in order to determine whether a student will thrive at the school, Columbia said. Students may still submit test scores, but those who do not will not be at a disadvantage.

During the pandemic, many universities — including Harvard and Princeton — jumped at the chance to indefinitely suspend their standardized test admission requirements while in-person testing was on hold. Now, some like Columbia don’t want to go back.

This fall, more than 80% of undergraduate colleges will not require ACT or SAT scores from students, according to one estimate.

The SAT and ACT are also not the only standardized tests schools are ditching over “equity” concerns. Dozens of law schools have scrapped their LSAT test requirement. Advocates are even pushing for medical schools to stop requiring the MCAT, alarming critics who worry that schools could end up graduating less qualified doctors, putting patients at risk.

The argument that standardized tests are inherently racist has given rise to eyebrow-raising explanations for why minority students on the whole do worse on these tests. Black students perform poorly on standardized tests because they fear incorrect answers will confirm negative stereotypes about their race — they perform badly because they’re afraid of performing badly, essentially — a 2011 Stanford University study found.

Woke Christianity: Historic London Church to Host Drag Queen Performance

A historic Anglican Church in the heart of London will for the first time put on a drag queen performance featuring former RuPaul’s Drag Race UK contestants to “celebrate artistry and ingenuity in every walk of life”.

The 17th-century St James’s Church, Piccadilly in London, which claims to have demonstrated a “pioneering welcome of LGBTQAI+ communities and other marginalised people and groups”, will for the first time in its 340-year history put on a “drag night” dubbed PREACH! within the church.

The Church of England parish church said that it would be hosting at least two performances of PREACH! — with one on Saturday, March 4th, and the second on June 3rd.

The show on Saturday was set to feature drag performers River Medway and Veronica Green, both of whom have appeared as contestants on the RuPaul’s Drag Race UK television programme.

“St James’s will welcome drag icons from around the world to perform beneath its ornate gold ceiling, showcasing some of the biggest names in the art of drag, as well as fresh talent,” the church said.

Despite claiming that it is “committed to the safeguarding of children, young people and adults” St James’s did not say the drag show age-restricted, indicating that children would be allowed into the show.

Walmart Set to Close All Stores in Portland amid Record-Breaking Retail Theft

Walmart announced its plan to close its final two locations in Portland, Ore., at the end of March following underwhelming financial results.

“We have nearly 5,000 stores across the U.S. and unfortunately some do not meet our financial expectations,” the corporation said in a statement according to KPTV. “While our underlying business is strong, these specific stores haven’t performed as well as we hoped.”

The closures, which will result in nearly 600 employees being laid off, come after a statement by Walmart CEO Doug McMillion in December 2022 noting that record-breaking retail theft had undercut the company’s economic performance of late.

“Theft is an issue. It’s higher than what it has historically been,” McMillon told CNBC. Prices “will be higher and/or stores will close,” the executive added if Oregon authorities failed to address rampant shoplifting.

Companies shuttering stores in Portland has become increasingly common. Last year a clothing store, Raind PDX, shut down operations with the company specifically citing the cost of doing business in the wake of historic retail theft.

“Small businesses (and large) cannot sustain doing business, in our city’s current state. We have no protection, or recourse, against the criminal behavior that goes unpunished,” a letter posted on the company’s store read. “Our city is in peril.”