President Trump just posted this clip of VP Vance and Michelle Obama comparing what it’s like to have kids and live in the White House.
— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) May 12, 2026
The drastically different perspectives of these two people epitomize the difference between the right and the left.
Vance says it’s a… pic.twitter.com/vJclomOXmw
Tuesday, May 12, 2026
OMG! The Contrast Is VERY Revealing!
Sherril Is Savaging Public Education In NJ!
Senator Declan O’Scanlon (R-Monmouth) released the following statement regarding his request for Governor Sherrill to restore school aid that was arbitrarily capped in the Governor’s proposed budget.
“Our first big test of the Sherrill Administration’s interest in veering away from the disastrous, unfair, and amoral direction of the Murphy Administration when it comes to education & property taxes is in. And it’s a whopping smash in the throat to the property taxpayers and school children of New Jersey. The issue is simple. Hundreds of school districts were told by the Murphy Administration, while they were having their aid slashed massively that ‘sorry, we don’t care how much it devastates your kids education or property taxpayers, WE HAVE TO FOLLOW THE FORMULA!’ This ‘formula’ by the way was outdated since before Murphy took office. It’s unfair, unsustainable & devastating to hundreds of school districts. Regardless, Murphy plowed on. But as soon as the devastated districts were due aid increases under the formula, suddenly following it was optional! Random caps on aid increases were applied. Because the Governor and legislative leaders wanted to give $ hundreds of millions in pork to pet projects…someone had to get screwed. New Jersey’s property taxpayers and school children were the victims. It’s that simple. And Governor Sherrill has followed that path. It’s incredible, It’s devastating, and it’s a horrific omen.“This release isn’t a blind political attack. It comes after months of discussions and warnings that it was coming. We presented the problem, we outlined scalable solution options. The Governor’s response was essentially, ‘too bad, so sad.’ That kind of dismissive arrogance might play well in Trenton political circles, but it’s a slap in the face to the families watching programs get cut, the taxpayers getting hammered with higher property taxes, and the students sitting in overcrowded classrooms because the state once again decided fairness was optional. And to be clear, this isn’t something that can be fixed next year. The damage, to taxpayers and kids year on year, is permanent.
“What makes this even more infuriating is that the money exists. Revenue projections are improving, hundreds of millions in wasteful pork spending remain untouched, and the Governor and legislative Democrats continue throwing taxpayer dollars at politically connected pet projects like it’s Monopoly money while schools are told to tighten their belts yet again,” said Sen. O’Scanlon.
Below are some recent examples of districts negatively impacted by the arbitrary 6% cap:
Brick Township Public Schools:
Lost nearly $20 million in formula aid under Murphy
Plans to cut 40 positions, including 24 general education teachers and 12 special education staff members
Average class sizes are projected to rise to 27 students in elementary schools
Missing out on almost in $3 million in aid for the upcoming school year as a result of Sherrill’s 6% cap on aid increases
Jefferson Township School District:
Has already closed two schools and terminated 100 staff members
Lost more than $10 million in formula aid under Murphy
Missing out on more than $1 million in aid for the upcoming year due to the 6% cap
Lacey Township School District:
Has cut 163 staff positions over the past eight years, including 17 teaching jobs and two administrative positions last year
Courtesy busing and new curriculum materials have been eliminated
Class sizes have climbed to more than 30 students
Lost nearly $14 million in formula aid under Murphy
Missing out on more than $800,000 for the upcoming year due to the 6% cap
Little Egg Harbor School District:
Plans to lay off 81 full-time paraprofessionals from local elementary schools and refilling their positions with part-time workers who won’t receive benefits
Lost more than $1.7 million in formula aid under Murphy
Missing out on more than $1 million for the upcoming year due to the 6% cap
Middletown Township School District:
Plans to cut 40 teachers and close two schools
Lost more than $2.6 million in formula aid under Murphy
Missing out on more than $1 million for the upcoming year due to the 6% cap
Toms River Regional School District:
Has cut 250 positions, slashed programs, and sold a school building
Lost more than $37 million in formula aid under Murphy
Missing out on nearly $4 million for the upcoming year due to the 6% cap
“Republicans offered practical solutions to restore this aid without raising taxes, but those ideas were ignored. Trenton has hid behind the school funding formula while districts were getting screwed with aid cuts. Now that the very same formula says these communities are finally entitled to relief, the Administration suddenly decides the formula only matters when it benefits their political agenda. At some point, this stops being a budgeting issue and starts becoming a question of values and basic respect for the people paying the bills and the kids whose quality education is being dismantled. That time is now, and Governor Sherrill has failed the values and respect test with disappointingly flying colors,” O’Scanlon concluded.
Early Successes: Melania's Impressive Record!
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Sondheim's Life: Struggles, Demons, Triumphs
The brilliant Broadway composer and lyricist, Stephen Sondheim, was every bit as difficult, complicated, and sometimes frustrating as the puzzles that he collected and so enjoyed over his lifetime.
Sondheim's many quirks, squabbles, grudges, demons, peaks and valleys are richly detailed in the new biography, Stephen Sondheim, Art Isn't Easy, by Daniel Okrent, for the Jewish Lives series from Yale University Press.
Here are some of the things we learn in this biography which illuminates the life, struggles and triumphs of Sondheim in a way heretofore unavailable:
- The author tells us that for all intents and purposes, Sondheim was an alcoholic. He drank almost every day of his life. Yes, there were periods when he went off the bottle, but invariably he returned to his previous ways. He enjoyed almost every kind of alcoholic beverage, including scotch, vodka, bourbon, martinis, champagne, wine or whatever would do the trick and he resisted any efforts to get him into a program such as Alcoholics Anonymous.
- Like many great artists, Sondheim was also a perfectionist who obsessed over his work and, even after he completed a composition, was often less than satisfied with it. He was known to return to previously "finished" works to correct what he still perceived as mistakes or oversights. And no, whatever natural talent he had didn't make the pursuit of his art any easier. Thus, the subtitle Art Isn't Easy.
- Sondheim was also a notorious procrastinator, either because he found it difficult to face a looming task or because he worked best under pressure. This often presented a difficult dilemma for his collaborators and the many others who depended on his output in the high-pressured theatrical world of Broadway. Still, when the pressure was on, more often than not, he delivered mightily. But oh, the waiting!
- They called Sondheim a genius, and he certainly was significantly above average in intelligence. In school, he skipped both kindergarten and seventh grade and entered college at 16. In first grade he read aloud from the New York Times. But, like many high IQ people, he could be awkward in social situations and found such settings difficult. He was an enigma, difficult to get to know and not what you would call a "people person."
- Yes, some might characterize him as a "tortured genius" as he also sometimes obsessed over small slights or things that were said or written about him and he was known to hold grudges, sometimes letting things fester for years or even decades. But, he could just as easily blow up, let off steam and then put his anger aside and act as if all was well again. Friends learned to deal with his sometimes volatile behavior and treasured their relationships with him nonetheless.
- Drugs were another part of Sondheim's life, though apparently not to the point where he became an addict. The musical Sunday in the Park With George was written largely with the help of marijuana at a time when weed was not legal and Into The Woods was reportedly helped along with cocaine and even ecstasy.
- Sondheim suffered two heart attacks, one just beyond the middle of his life and one a bit later and he did clean up his act a bit after each one, incorporating an exercise regimen and sticking with wine instead a variety of liquors. But, in both instances, he returned to his old ways and, incredibly, managed to live to the age of 91 -- still very alert, cogent, and still working on a new musical (Here We Are) at the time of his death.
- Though he avoided sentimentality in all his shows, Sondheim himself proved to be a sentimentalist at times. He was deeply moved by the mere mention of the word "teacher" because he felt that teachers had the greatest impact on his life and on the life of others. And though, he was an insular person, Sondheim was known to cry easily. In fact, he cried, whenever he played the song Someone In a Tree which was deeply personal to him.
The product of a fractured marriage (and a resulting deep personal animus toward his mother) Sondheim, according to Okrent, was motivated by a feeling of vengeance, and this unfortunately carried over into many of his dealings with others. Throughout his life, he also felt a deep sense of separateness and an inability to connect with others. On top of all that was a persistent ambivalence, which carried over into the lyrics of many of his songs. This ambivalence added to the mystique of Sondheim and was depicted in the tales disconnected prople, particularly in an urban setting. And this, of course, is most dramatically expressed in the musical Company.
Alienation. Ambivalence Revenge. These three run through some of Sondheim's greatest works.
Alienation crops up in characters who often appear to be mere observers of the world around them rather than active participants and it is a frequent trait of artists who spend the bulk of their time observing and creating, often necessarily shutting themselves off from others. Think Sunday In The Park With George and Merrily We Roll Along. Ambivalence finds a home in a secular world devoid of moral underpinnings, guidelines or even any semblance of a road map. Think Company and Follies. Revenge often grows from past traumatic events, sometimes even criminal. Think Sweeney Todd.
As gruesome as Sweeney Todd was, the strong propulsion of revenge that characterized his macabre tale was something that Sondheim could understand. Asked once about the difference between himself and Sweeney, Sondheim didn't flinch. "I tuned it into art," he answered.
Though Sondheim may have passed on nearly five years ago, we remain abundantly grateful for the art he created which lives on among all of us. Or, as George Bernard Shaw once said: "You can lose a man like that by your own death, but not by his".
Monday, May 11, 2026
Worlds Out There: Alien Revelations And UFOs
We're talking ALIENS. No, not those aliens but aliens from way, way out there (and those newly released UFO files) as I chat with Adam Perry. And we're considering the spiritual implications as well.
Sunday, May 10, 2026
Rarely Seen Video: President Trump's Mother
Circa 1991. President Trump's mother, Mary Anne, talking about her Scottish roots, her family and the son she tragically lost.
🚨 President Trump’s mother in a rare interview talking about her family, including the son she tragically lost.
— Alec Lace (@AlecLace) May 10, 2026
At the time, Trump was filming his Home Alone 2 cameo. She also talks about the thrill of flying on her son’s helicopter.
Trump was raised by a First Class Mom. pic.twitter.com/R1szJY5Oak
A Plea For My Mother -- And ALL Mothers!
It's been one of those sort of Hallmark Holidays that has become wildly commercialized to the point where some moms simply want to be left alone during the holiday. They'd like a break -- some quiet, peaceful time away from the daily work and stresses of motherhood. With moms working harder than ever (both at home and on-the-job) can you blame them if they think the best gift they can be given is a bit of refreshing solitude?
My mother was a working mom long, long before working moms were common. She worked as a seamstress in a coat factory, otherwise known as a sweat shop. No, there was no air conditioning and summer was their busiest season because that's when they made winter coats. It was hard work -- grueling work.
But my mother was always there for me. She would rush to my nearby schoolyard at lunch time to bring me a fresh orange while my classmates and I were out to play. These and millions of other loving memories of her fill my heart every hour of every day.
Which only reinforces the fact that we shouldn't need Mother's Day to remind us that mothers are important.
And hopefully most people really don't need Mother's Day for such a reminder.
I know I don't.
Even though my Mother passed away more than 20 years ago, she is still with me every day. She is still at my side. And I remember the simpler, more meaningful observances of this day. Those essential memories endure.
So, my mom is still here for me.
She still comforts me.
She still encourages me.
She still cheers me up.
She still urges me onward.
Why?
Because she gave me unconditional love.
And love really is eternal.
It never leaves us. It never goes away. It never dies.
When a mother gives boundlessly and unconditionally of her love, she actually seizes a slice of immortality. That's one of the great miracles of motherhood. And that's why it's been said that God's greatest gift is a mother's love.
My mother was a very proud woman -- proud but always accessible, always approachable. She carried herself with great dignity and actually appeared taller and more regal than she really was. In fact, she was our Queen!
But she was irrepressibly human.
She was also funny and quite a cutup. She had a knack for mimicking others in a generous but nonetheless targeted manner. Quickly, and shrewdly, she sized people up and then followed her instincts.
Though not formally educated past grade school, she read the newspapers assiduously every day. So, she had a keen sense of what was going on around her and throughout the world. She was curious and engaging and modern in her own way.
She did not dwell on the past but rather always looked to the future.
She didn't burden herself with unpleasant thoughts and didn't have an ounce of spitefulness or vindictiveness in her.
She was not a complainer, even under the most trying circumstances. She rarely cried and never whined. She never wanted to be fussed over and even on Mother's Day, she sought no special attention.
Always, she was sustained by her immediate family. Her family always came first.
She was happiest when her family was with her. She never smiled so brightly or so warmly or so genuinely as when she gazed upon her family.
And we were there for her till the very end, doing all that we could to give back to her just a bit of the love that she gave us.
So, we never needed Mother's Day then and we don't need it now.
Just as my Mother's love was never in doubt, the love that my sister and I gave back to her was constant and unequivocal.
And it continues to this day and every day.
Saturday, May 9, 2026
Stand Your Ground, Don't Be Intimidated: THAT'S Democracy!
From facebook friend Joseph Fosco:
When a Democrat corners you - a Republican - with the loaded question “Do you accept the 2020 presidential election results?” they aren’t seeking truth. They’re hunting a gotcha. The moment you answer honestly, they brand you a traitor who “defies democracy.”That single tactic proves one thing, and one thing only - the Democrat is guilty of precisely what they accuse you of.They are the ones eroding democracy.The First Amendment to the United States Constitution explicitly protects the right to form and voice one’s own political opinions free from government compulsion. It does not require any citizen to affirm an official election narrative as a loyalty test. Forcing such an affirmation under threat of public ostracism constitutes compelled speech - the exact violation the Framers designed the Amendment to prevent.By weaponizing the question, the Democrat reveals a premeditated scheme to punish independent judgment, equate dissent with sedition, and replace open debate with enforced orthodoxy. That is not democratic accountability. That is the classic authoritarian deflection - projecting onto you the very suppression they are attempting in real time.Democracy does not die when citizens retain the right to question. It dies the moment anyone claims the power to strip that right away.The real threat to the republic is the Democrat demanding you surrender your mind to pass their test.
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