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Category: Culture
December 21, 2023
Culture
News
Politics

New York Establishes Commission for Slavery Reparations.

New York is establishing a commission to come up with an estimate for slavery reparations. Governor Kathy Hochul signed the bill creating the commission into law on Tuesday.

“In New York, we like to think we’re on the right side of this. Slavery was a product of the South, the Confederacy,” said Hochul, a Democrat. “What is hard to embrace is the fact that our state also flourished from that slavery. It’s not a beautiful story, but indeed it is the truth.”

New York, which abolished slavery in 1827, follows California, which entered the U.S. as a free state, in establishing its slavery task force.

State Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt spoke out against the commission, noting the “reparations of slavery were paid with the blood and lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans who fought to end slavery during the Civil War.”

“A divisive commission to consider reparations in unworkable,” he argued, predicting an “astronomical cost” for a policy that “will only further divide our state.”

New York City is already facing enormous pressure on its budget due to the ongoing migrant crisis, with the Big Apple playing host to tens of thousands of migrants and Mayor Eric Adams predicting the influx will “destroy” the Big Apple if it continues.

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New York is establishing a commission to come up with an estimate for slavery reparations. Governor Kathy Hochul signed the bill creating the commission into law on Tuesday. show more
December 21, 2023
Culture
News

Minnesota Picks New, Somalia-Style State Flag After Old One Deemed ‘Offensive’ to Native Americans.

A Minnesota commission set up to redesign the state’s flag has unveiled its new design. The replacement flag is minimalistic, featuring a plain white star against a dark blue stripe and a light blue stripe. Some have compared it to the Somali flags for the Puntland and Jubaland regions, particularly as Minnesota is home to the largest community of Somalis in the United States, including Rep. Ilhan Omar.

“Minnesota’s new flag captures the imagination while standing apart from all other state flags with its unique design that depicts the shape of our state. Minnesotans have so much to be proud of from the beauty of our land, to our rivers and lakes, to our recognition as the North Star State – all of which are reflected in this flag,” claimed Secretary of State Steve Simon, a Democrat.

“I hope Minnesotans will find commonality in this flag and unite around it for generations to come,” he added.

Minnesota’s current state flag, which is well over a hundred years old, is far more intricate, featuring the full state seal on a blue background. The state seal depicts a white farmer plowing a field, with a rifle propped against a tree stump nearby and a Native American riding on horseback in the background.

Deemed offensive by woke activists and politicians, the commission to replace the flag took four months and spent $35,000 sifting through thousands of possible replacements.

Pushback from the two Republicans on the commission, who did not have the power to vote on the redesign, was mealy-mouthed.

“I’m not saying the flag that was chosen is a bad flag. What I’m saying is this process should have taken a lot longer,” said Rep. Bjorn Olson, (R-Fairmont). “We should have taken more public testimony. We should have heard from more Minnesotans. And on top of that, I hope that in the commission’s report we will include… that we advise the state Legislature to put this to a vote of the people.”

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A Minnesota commission set up to redesign the state's flag has unveiled its new design. The replacement flag is minimalistic, featuring a plain white star against a dark blue stripe and a light blue stripe. Some have compared it to the Somali flags for the Puntland and Jubaland regions, particularly as Minnesota is home to the largest community of Somalis in the United States, including Rep. Ilhan Omar. show more
December 20, 2023
Jack Montgomery
Culture
News

Toppling of Arlington Confederate Memorial Resumes After Court Ruling.

The toppling of the Confederate Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) resumed on Wednesday, after an attempt to halt its dismantling in the courts failed.

Federal judge Rossie D. Alston Jr rejected a bid by the Defend Arlington group to stop the desecration of the memorial, which doubles as the grave of its Jewish designer, Moses Ezekiel.

“I hope you would understand that the illustrations on that memorial may be difficult and hurtful to some people,” Alston said, declaring: “We should not be celebrating slavery – that’s what some people believe.”

The memorial was designed in 1914, long after the abolition of slavery, and was designed to represent peace and reconciliation between North and South, while providing the dwindling number of Confederate veterans and their families with a place to honor their fallen comrades and relatives.

The Biden regime set its sights on toppling the memorial early on, with a so-called Naming Commission established to purge various historic monuments branding it “problematic from top to bottom”.

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The toppling of the Confederate Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) resumed on Wednesday, after an attempt to halt its dismantling in the courts failed. show more
Christmas
December 19, 2023
Culture

On This Day: 1843 Debut of ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens.

On this day 180 years ago, Charles Dickens’s classic Christmas story A Christmas Carol was published. Dickens, who had already achieved critical acclaim following the release of works including Oliver Twist and The Pickwick Papers, penned the story in a few short weeks for publication before Christmas 1843.

The story and its message have withstood the test of time, becoming a permanent fixture of the festive season. Ebenezer Scrooge, the book’s rich, miserly main character, stands as a timeless symbol of redemption. Despising Christmas and the joy it brings, Scrooge’s transformation from a man deriving pleasure only from his wealth to one filled with goodwill still resonates.

Characters and phrases from the book have remained relevant for well over a hundred years. The term ‘Scrooge’, for instance, is still a byword for a miser, while the phrase ‘Bah, humbug’ remains an expression of grumpy disdain.

The National Endowment for the Arts has described it as “a holiday staple for nearly two centuries,” inspiring a plethora of adaptations. Notable among these are the 1951 black-and-white movie featuring Alistair Sims as Scrooge, and the non-traditional retelling in The Muppet Christmas Carol.

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On this day 180 years ago, Charles Dickens's classic Christmas story A Christmas Carol was published. Dickens, who had already achieved critical acclaim following the release of works including Oliver Twist and The Pickwick Papers, penned the story in a few short weeks for publication before Christmas 1843.

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December 19, 2023
Jack Montgomery
Culture
UK

Scotland Mulls Taylor Swift Ticket Tax.

Scotland’s left-separatist government is considering a “Taylor Swift ticket tax” on people attending stadium gigs for popular musicians, to raise tax revenue after blowing billions on welfare programs and mass migration. The tax would take the form of a £1 (~$1.30) levy on ticket purchases.

“We have gone through a pivot point during the pandemic; there has been a change in social behaviors and there has been extreme distress in the arts and cultural sector,” said Angus Robertson, Minister for Culture in the Scottish Government.

“We acknowledge that and we have tried to support the sector through that difficult period,” he continued, saying the “levy proposal is worthy of further consideration.”

The Scottish Government, headed by the Scottish National Party (SNP) in coalition with the Scottish Greens, currently faces a £1.5 billion budget shortfall. Nevertheless, First Minister Humza Yousaf is currently lobbying to import thousands of Gazans, which would strain public finances even further.

Arts and culture funding is not always spent wisely, with the Scottish Government previously funding “queer datasets” used to produce artificial intelligence drag shows.

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Scotland's left-separatist government is considering a "Taylor Swift ticket tax" on people attending stadium gigs for popular musicians, to raise tax revenue after blowing billions on welfare programs and mass migration. The tax would take the form of a £1 (~$1.30) levy on ticket purchases. show more
December 18, 2023
Jack Montgomery
Culture
News
World

Empire State Building Lit Up in Colors of Islamist Dictatorship Which Funds Hamas.

New York’s Empire State Building was lit up in the colors of the State of Qatar from midnight Sunday until sunrise on December 18th, to celebrate the Islamist dictatorship’s national day. Qatar is a state sponsor of global terrorism and even funds and houses Hamas leaders.

The iconic building is owned by the Empire State Realty Trust. The trust is run by Anthony Malkin, who has donated tens of thousands of dollars mainly to Democratic politicians, including Chuck Schumer and John Fetterman. Another 10 percent of the trust was acquired by the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) in 2016. The QIA is owned and controlled by the Qatari state.

Qatar is ruled by an emir with dictatorial powers and boasts a legal system based on sharia law. The decision to honor it therefore met with considerable backlash on social media.

The Empire State Realty Trust previously refused to light the building in gold for Childhood Cancer Awareness in 2021. The American Childhood Cancer Organization confirmed the trust has been rejecting similar requests for almost a decade in September 2023. It has also rejected a request to light the building in Polish colors for Revolutionary War hero Casimir Pulaski.

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New York's Empire State Building was lit up in the colors of the State of Qatar from midnight Sunday until sunrise on December 18th, to celebrate the Islamist dictatorship's national day. Qatar is a state sponsor of global terrorism and even funds and houses Hamas leaders. show more
December 18, 2023
Culture

UPDATED: Arlington Confederate Memorial Removal Paused After Restraining Order by Federal Judge.

MONDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE:

A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order barring removal of the memorial as originally reported below. A group called Defend Arlington filed a lawsuit on Sunday, according to the Associated Press, which led to the restraining order. A hearing on the matter is now scheduled for Wednesday. Our original report, unedited, appears below. Defend Arlington is fundraising for legal costs to fight the removal of the memorial.

ORIGINAL MONDAY MORNING REPORT:

The iconic Confederate memorial in Arlington National Cemetery is set to be removed this week, a cemetery official announced Saturday. Moves to desecrate the site – first intended as a “peace” monument which also serves as the grave site for its designer, America’s first globally renowned Jewish artist Moses Ezekiel – began Monday.

The decision to trash the stunning monument was made over a year ago part of efforts to erase Confederate iconography from America. Objections raised by over 40 Republican congressmen eventually went unheeded, with a total sum of over $62 million allocated for the removal of a number of Confederate and otherwise “problematic” statues.

The monument was first unveiled in 1914, with Ezekiel explaining at the time: “The intention is that it is a peace monument… Without forgetting the sacrifices and the heroism of the South, and emphasizing the fact that they were fighting for a constitutional right, and not to uphold slavery, I have attempted to have the dominant idea the future and not the past, to show that the intention of the South is to rest the future on her industry and her agriculture, and let the past go, but not be forgotten.”

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin says he plans to relocate the statue to the New Market battlefield state historical park in the Shenandoah Valley.

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MONDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE:

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Editor’s Notes

Behind-the-scenes political intrigue exclusively for Pulse+ subscribers.

RAHEEM J. KASSAM Editor-in-Chief
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Satanic
December 12, 2023
Culture
Religion

WATCH: Statehouse Displays Satanic Baphomet Idol in Kim Reynolds’s Iowa.

The Iowa Statehouse is hosting an idol of the demon Baphomet. The ram-headed statue is being maintained by the Satanic Temple, which has billed it as an expression of “religious freedom”. It has been sited near traditional Christmas trees and Jewish menorahs, with critics questioning why Governor Kim Reynolds, who recently endorsed Ron DeSantis for the GOP presidential nomination, is allowing it.

“We’re going to really relish the opportunity to be represented in a public forum. We don’t have a church on every street corner,” boasted Satanic Temple co-founder Lucien Greaves. They were able to abuse rules allowing anyone to apply for a permit for a display to install the idol. Lawmaker Brad Sherman described this as “a tortured and twisted interpretation of law that affords Satan, who is universally understood to be the enemy of God, religious expression equal to God in an institution of government that depends upon God for continued blessings.”

“I hope that people realize spiritual warfare is real. That there are evil Satanic forces that are trying to infiltrate our state,” commented Shellie Flockhart, part of a Christian prayer group opposed to the demonic display.

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The Iowa Statehouse is hosting an idol of the demon Baphomet. The ram-headed statue is being maintained by the Satanic Temple, which has billed it as an expression of "religious freedom". It has been sited near traditional Christmas trees and Jewish menorahs, with critics questioning why Governor Kim Reynolds, who recently endorsed Ron DeSantis for the GOP presidential nomination, is allowing it. show more
December 7, 2023
Jack Montgomery
Culture
News

After Attacks on NYC Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony by Pro-Palestinians, California Tree Lighting Will Be Virtual.

The traditional “holiday tree” lighting at the California Capitol in Sacramento will be “virtual”. Officials in the Democrat-led state fear violent protestors would target an in-person ceremony, as happened in New York.

“As we continue to see protests across the country impacting the safety of events of all scales – and for the safety and security of all participating members and guests including children and families – the ceremony this year will be virtual,” said a spokesman for Governor Gavin Newsom.

Newsom’s office offered no specifics on those behind the protests. The Sacramento Regional Coalition for Palestinian Rights had planned a march and rally to coincide with the tree lighting, however. It now complains “Newsom [is] hiding from the public because he doesn’t want to face their anger at his shameful stance in regard to the genocide in Gaza.”

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting ceremony in New York City was targeted by pro-Palestinian activists. Police had to establish barricades, and exchanged fists with rioters who tried to rush through.

California is not the only place to curtail or eliminate seasonal festivities for fear of protestors. Across the Atlantic in London, municipal officials scrapped a planned menorah-lighting ceremony to mark the beginning of Hanukkah.

“[I]t would be unwise to move forward with the installation which could risk further inflaming tensions,” the officials claimed. Jewish community leaders accused them of capitulating to the mob.

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The traditional "holiday tree" lighting at the California Capitol in Sacramento will be "virtual". Officials in the Democrat-led state fear violent protestors would target an in-person ceremony, as happened in New York. show more
December 6, 2023
Jake Welch
Culture
News
Politics

School Board Gets Death Threats After Refusing $10K From LGBT+ Group.

A school district in Lynchburg, Virginia, has received multiple death threats after the Washington Post published an article that claimed the board created a “blueprint for how to belittle, betray and dismiss kids” because it refused a $10,000 donation from a radical LGBT-pushing group.

The Lynchburg City School Board voted 7 to 2 against the creation of LGBT “safe spaces” in its schools – designed to take children out of lessons and allow them to talk about their feelings in “comfortable chairs, blankets and low light” – with funds from the charity “It Gets Better.”

The rejection infuriated Petula Dvorak of the Post, who reports that the school kids were left feeling “terrified” and “incandescent” with rage. The decision was “[a]nimated by a conservative movement linking parental fears and grievances to anything related by being LGBTQ+,” Dvorak asserts.

The school board began receiving death threats shortly after the piece was published on November 30. The police have opened an investigation into the messages after the board became sufficiently concerned to contact the authorities.

“I know that these emails are affecting some of the board members to a greater extent than they are affecting other board members, and to that end, we are taking this very seriously,” said Christian Depaul, a member of the board.

Worse still, Depaul hit out at the Jeff Bezos-owned newspaper for neglecting to mention that the district “plans on providing safe spaces” for students but does not want It Gets Better funding to do so.

The LGBT charity was founded by the gay activist Dan Savage and his husband, Terry Miller, in 2010. Savage is best known for a number of controversial remarks, such as wishing Republicans “were all f*cking dead” as well as suggesting “abortion should be mandatory for about 30 years.”

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A school district in Lynchburg, Virginia, has received multiple death threats after the Washington Post published an article that claimed the board created a "blueprint for how to belittle, betray and dismiss kids" because it refused a $10,000 donation from a radical LGBT-pushing group. show more