Growing up in an ethnic church community, I saw first hand, legal immigrants assimilate into a community. In fact, there was a woman at the International Institute of Flint, Dorothy Sloan, who had a connection to many of the Macedonian immigrants in the Flint area. Possibly Dorothy was a teacher of the English language or she assisted immigrants from St. Nicholas Orthodox Church, however, what ever her role, she was very well respected in the community. There was a man at St. Nicholas, “Tomas” we will call him, who owned a restaurant in Flint, along with other family members and Tomas was a very generous man. He felt that he had been blessed and he gladly shared and gave his money to get other family members over, paying for legal counsel, paid for plane tickets and often sent money overseas to support them while they awaited their journey to the United States for their legal immigration. I remember hearing that Tomas wanted to purchase two lots in the neighborhood/subdivision so that he could build one large home for his wife and children, his wife’s sister and her family and his mother-in-law. He went to the builder, explained his situation and the custom of many family members living within one home in the village of Bouf, Macedonia where they all came from. The prominent developer in the area very nicely (& respectfully) explained to Tomas that there was an ordinance against such situations and that he would gladly build two homes next-door to one another on two separate lots, but there’s no way that the situation Tomas had hopes for was not a possibility so that’s exactly what he did and the mother-in-law Lived with Tomas and his family. These immigrants as well as many immigrants from Europe came over with the same mentality. They wanted to work hard, bring their wife and children over and live the American dream. My dad and uncle did the same thing they sent money over to the old country for family members and they helped secure their travel here once their paperwork was done. When these families arrived, they had to have a sponsor employment already lined up and then they waited the five years before they could officially become citizens. They gladly waited their turn, and they gladly assimilated into Flint society and culture. These people were proud of where they came from, but they eagerly embraced the American ways and the American dream. They wanted their children to attend public schools and learned the language. These people were not looking for handouts, they were looking for an opportunity to work, provide for their families and provide the life beyond anything they ever could’ve imagined in their little village across the sea…
Fast forward to today’s current and most recent scam. If you haven’t read about the scam involving some Somalis in Minnesota then you should take a deep dive as this is very interesting and troubling. These people were funnel to Minnesota, from Somalia where they could carry enough votes to get their own congresswoman, elected who by the way it is alleged to have married her brother to get here, which is against the law. Many of the people involved in the scam are people associated with the congresswoman, Ilhan Omar. The biggest problem with Ilhan Omar is that she frequently speaks of her bad feelings toward the United States. The country who took her in, even under alleged false information given to immigration officials. So the country that embraced her and many from her home country, is a ‘bad place.’ Where else in the world could a refugee rise to such prominence? When questioned about the recent Somali Scam, Omar’s comments included that there were no ‘guard rails’ on the program, intended to help people during the Covid debacle and instead many took advantage of the system, milking it for millions of dollars. Incidentally, Ilhan was the congressperson who introduced the legislation that led to the $250 million being defrauded from federal child-nutrition programs in Covid-19 aid, according to the New York Post. Some of Ilhan’s inner circle personally profited from the now up to $1 billion welfare fraud scandal in her district. At this point we do not know if she is involved. When pressed, she brought out the race card implying that the Somali’s were only targeted for investigation because of their brown and black skin color. That excuse, is an insult to the hardworking minority men and women who busted their asses working diligently to provide for their families or to get through college, some on to professional schools asking for nothing but a chance to prove themselves at a turning point in history. Omar may just have some explaining to do. To question waste and fraud of tax payers money is fair game for anyone. To hold accountable anyone who who receives government money is reasonable. If money was acquired under false means or used for non-stated purposes, there should be payback of funds and appropriate consequences administered , regardless of ones ethnicity, sex or background. Word is, that there is a community of immigrants from Somalia in Columbus, Ohio being looked at for fraudulent activity and abuse of government funds. Hum…
A few weeks ago, our granddaughters stayed over night. One of them is very much a rule follower and as I was going to braid the girls hair before bed, she very proudly announced, “Yana, we do not share combs and brushes with other people or at other people’s houses! That’s what Mommy says.” Without hesitation I responded, “I follow exactly what your Mommy says and you do too. I can braid your hair without brushing it out, I can use my fingers,” and I did. A parent deserves for no one to usurp their rules and authority. Now, there are caveats to that rule. At school, it is the principal and teacher who have the authority on behalf of the parents and they are to protect the child on behalf of them. However, for anyone to interfere with that chain of command - unless safety is involved, is just wrong. So, when I saw the “Seditious 6” referring to the 6 democratic congressional members, who all have some military or security background, who last week, made a video which looked like, prompting military personnel to ‘buck’ orders from their superiors, it made me think about the whole chain of authority question.. Not a military person myself, but yet I clearly understanding the importance of NOT disrupting the chain of command, hence the parenting story just mentioned. For such behavior to have occurred posed a threat of weakening the chain of command within our military. One legislator even went so far as to threaten any governmental official who participates in the strikes on boats carrying drugs that would eventually be smuggled into the country with ‘war crimes’ and that they will be ‘gone after’ when the democrats are in back in power. Senator Mark Kelly has spoken out claiming that the naval officers who called for a second strike on a watercraft carrying the drugs that was not completely destroyed in the first attack, that person and others should face charges of war crimes and that they violated the Geneva Conventions-which are a set of treaties/agreements that address humanitarian law and exercising humanitarian conditions during war. For Mark Kelly to be calling for “War Crimes” to be charged on a sitting Director of the Department of War, is interesting, especially since President Trump has deemed that the drug traffickers are terrorist organizations. Question. Why are American legislators siding with terrorist/drug cartels and criminal activity? What do they have to gain from such outrage. Hum…
Candace Owens, a political commentator and podcaster, who formerly was part of Turning Point USA and the Daily Wire, has created a stir by claiming that she has information that that could very well aid in the assassination investigation of her longtime friend, Charlie Kirk. Candace has done her own sleuthing and has had tips from around the world from a variety of sources. I have followed her here and there through the years-she is a wife and mom of four young children. In her investigating, she has uncovered some controversial information and has endured law suits and cease and desist letters. Some who were close to her have turned their back on her like her former affiliations with Turning Point USA, (as their communications director)whom she has questioned in wake of Charlie’s death and the Daily Wire, where she had a political talk show until March of 2024 when they let her go. Just a couple of days ago, Ben Shapiro, Cofounder of DW, made of joke of her in a spot leading up to the Greg Gutfield show. It’s hard to know what to make of questions Candace has posed. She is an investigative journalist who ‘brings the receipts’ and she has taken a deep dive into the details of her friend’s death. At times, it seems as if she has more interest in finding answers than Charlie’s close friends and family. The more she uncovers the darker the story gets. She often says during her podcast, “Christ is King” and “the truth will come out.” She was told by a TPUSA leader that she was originally the intended target for the assassination . Why she would lie about or make this stuff up I don’t know. Yes it all seems like a very tangled web and her intentions seem noble. Her safety must be a big concern for her family. We’ll see how it all plays out. Wishing her safety as she takes this journey and hoping she will uncover the truth. Turning Point USA has agreed to a question and answer session with Candace, which would give them an opportunity to address her concerns. Time will tell. Hum…
Yesterday, a suspect was arrested in the January 6, 2021 pipe bomb incident. The FBI of the prior administration had accumulated some evidence and data and it seems as if the bureau under the new administration took that information and connected the dots that resulted in yesterday’s arrest. This suspect may or may not lead to more questions. Those in yesterday’s press conference from law enforcement to prosecutors to the current US Attorney General, spoke of the case being closed in by old fashioned detective work that resulted in the arrest of the young Virginia man. It will be interesting to see where and who this leads to. Hum…
Sarah Adams a former CIA “targeter” and well respected expert in the field of security has reason to believe that a “9-11 like” attack is possible in the month of December in New York City and around the country, by terrorists cells within our borders already. Others in the security space have made this claim as well. On an episode of Candace Owen’s podcast this week, she even made reference of it. It’s not a pleasant thing to think about it but really, is one surprised, with the amount of people who were allowed to enter this country unvetted? Not really. In fact if the numbers are what we have been told, it’s surprising a large scale event has not happened yet. Especially since we see the numerous crimes committed by illegals from car accidents, to murders to rapes, thefts and now scams. For the families who bear the burden of living with the consequences of their loved one being a victim of a crime committed by someone who’s shouldn’t be here, they full well feel the weight of what happens when individuals aren’t adequately vetted. Just ask Sarah Beckstrom’s family of West Virginia, most recently or the countless others of those who have lost loved ones due to a drug overdose from drugs brought across the border illegally. Hum…
It seems like every time we turn on the news or open our phones there’s another chapter of crime and bad stuff all around us. It’s enough that could bring one down if they thought too much about it, even this time of year during the holidays. It seems like the good news stories don’t outweigh the bad. However, no one said life here would be easy. In fact, the Bible mentions that there will be trials and tribulations. Times now are no different than the times of the Bible. Pick up your Bible and read a few chapters from the Old and New Testament. It is very evident that evil is nothing new. People might find new ways to commit evil, but the evil is there. When one thinks of the stories out there now, someone with a ‘Candace Owens or Sarah Adams like’ quest for knowledge and truth could try to draw the dots together to predict a large scale tragedy, as these two women have. However, even if one had knowledge of such a grand scheme, think of how difficult it would be to the thwart such evil. I’m not saying we should not have people whose job that is to be on the lookout to try to prepare or prevent such activity. In fact we trust that there are people who do that, yet every day each one of us takes our life into our own hands when we back out of our driveway or get on a train, airplane or in an Uber to get on with the activities of our life…
I recall a sermon we heard from a very well respected pastor the Sunday before the 2020 election. Think back to that time. We were in the midst of COVID-19, masks, the shutdowns, of vaccines, people being prevented from going to school if they weren’t vaccinated and all of the unrest, both domestically and internationally. It was not a great time. I remember the Pastor wrapping up the sermon where he described what was going on and his final points were and I’m paraphrasing here, “no matter what happens or who wins the election, we’ll be ok, it will be ok.” I remember thinking at that point as he’s wrapping it up, but I want more like give me more information. I want a solution and then he went on. (Again paraphrasing) “ you see it’s all in God‘s hands. The people who commit things that aren’t right they have to answer to God eventually. We’re not in control here. God is and no matter what happens on this earth. It isn’t the end there’s more. That’s our promise and our gift from God, who sent Jesus to this earth to save sinners like us.” I remember leaving church that Sunday, and I felt that my mind was cleared of the heaviness of what was going on in the country at that time. It was a very good message and one that I will never forget.
We can at times get bogged down by the bad news the bad characters the dark subjects, it’s very easy to do. I know some people who don’t even want to listen up to it. I talked to a man earlier this week who told me that after Charlie Kirk was assassinated he stopped reading the news. He stopped watching the news as well, and he decided to only listen to selected people who spoke a positive message about subject he is interested in. There’s nothing wrong with that if that is comforting to someone, I think they should do it.I like to know what’s going on. I like to read and listen to different sources from different aspects and perspectives. It’s interesting to hear what’s going on and both sides of the story. I do know that I have no control yet I like to be aware of as a citizen of society.
My thoughts on this subject…Don’t let the heaviness of the times we are living in bring you down. It’s fair to be concerned and worry for our loved ones who travel or live in danger zones. If you like to know what’s going on, balance it with reading from the Bible or listening to your favorite pastor or priest or better yet, get to Church. Candace is right “the truth will come out and Christ is King.” Enjoy this time of the year as you gather with family and remember those you love with phone calls and encounters that bring you happiness. The birth of our Lord and Savior that we celebrate this time of the year gives us hope that this isn’t all there is. That gives me the greatest comfort and security. It’s all in God’s hands and there are Great Days ahead ❤️
