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Your Friday Five: 09.12.25

This week's Friday + Five brings another addition of Randomocities.

I could have easily titled this one, "things that pissed me off this week," or "things that made my stomach turn and made my blood boil" because wow, what a week. In some ways, I don't want to give this stuff oxygen, but I also think it's sometimes beneficial to understand what those on opposing "sides" are saying. I also think it is often cathartic to have a good rage cry or scream. You have been warned. Apologies in advance. Have a scream into the void for me.

ONE || White nationalist Christians maybe, but Christians are not being persecuted in the United States . . .

"Trump task force report says Biden administration discriminated against Christians: In the report, dated June 6 but made public this week, task force members said they found a pattern of bias against Christians during the Biden administration."

During his campaign to return to the White House, Donald Trump promised to return Christians to power and prominence in American life and to root out any anti-Christian policies in the federal government.

Not long after taking office, Trump ordered cabinet members to form a task force to eliminate anti-Christian bias in their departments.

“My Administration will not tolerate anti-Christian weaponization of government or unlawful conduct targeting Christians,” Trump wrote in an executive order dated Feb. 6.

Read the full article from RNS

TWO || The hypocrisy is on full display, and it is dangerous...

"Far-right commentators echo Trump in calling for ‘vengeance and retribution’ for Charlie Kirk’s death: Even as the suspect and motive remain unknown, incendiary rhetoric from major political commentators spread rapidly online and Trump blamed the left"

“We have to have steely resolve,” said the conservative political strategist Steve Bannon on his show War Room. “Charlie Kirk is a casualty of war. We are at war in this country. We are.”

“If they won’t leave us in peace, then our choice is to fight or die,” wrote Elon Musk on X.

“They are at war with us, whether we want to accept it or not. What are we gonna do about it?” Fox News host Jesse Watters said on air Wednesday night. “Everybody’s accountable … the politicians, the media, and all these rats out there. This can never happen again. It ends now. This is a turning point and we know which direction we’re going.”

“We are up against demonic forces from the pit of Hell,” wrote commentator and podcaster Matt Walsh on X. “This is existential. A fight for our own existence and the existence of our country.”

Read the full article from The Guardian

THREE || Our culture is sick.

"The school shooting industry is worth billions — and it keeps growing"

There have been more than 400 school shootings since Columbine in 1999, according to an analysis by The Washington Post. The latest was last month, when a former student opened fire at a Catholic school in Minneapolis. Two students were killed and at least 18 other people were wounded.

In the wake of those shootings, an industry has emerged to try to protect schools — and business is booming. According to the market research firm Omdia, the school security industry is now worth as much as $4 billion, and it's projected to keep growing.

Read the full article from NPR

FOUR || Sinister and insidious does not begin to capture what our government is doing.

"From Uncle Sam to social media memes: inside homeland security’s push to swell ICE ranks: Homeland security lowers hiring standards and floods social media with patriotic, often xenophobic, recruitment posts"

The overall campaign strategy also appears to attempt to replicate in some ways the US army’s “Be All You Can Be” campaign – likening the recruitment of immigration enforcement officers to a military recruitment campaign and an act of patriotism, experts say. One video shows supposed immigration officers training in a military facility and people jumping out of planes. The caption: “Hunt cartels. Save America.”

In its latest video the DHS boasts about its 5,000th arrest in Los Angeles that starts with Hollywood-style footage of immigration officers putting on their military tactical gear and ends with a compilation of mostly brown men being arrested or detained.

“The targeting of Black and brown immigrants with false information and using pictures of Uncle Sam as if this is military recruitment at the time of war is an unprecedented use of propaganda for civil immigration enforcement,” said Nayna Gupta, the policy director at the American Immigration Council.

Read the full article from The Guardian

FIVE || Maybe THE most dangerous development from the past few weeks. Theological malpractice and a threat to national and global health. (From a few weeks ago, but the fall out continues)

"Florida aims to ban vaccine mandates for schoolchildren"

Florida is aiming to become the first US state to cancel all of its vaccine mandates, many of which require children to get jabs against diseases like polio in order to attend public schools.

The state's top health official, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, likened the mandates to "slavery", in announcing the plans.

"Who am I to tell you what your child should put in your body?" he said. "I don't have that right. Your body is a gift from God."

Read the full article from BBC

Peace,

From the Camera Roll: As many of you know, one of my gigs is as the Church Relations and Development Officer at Zephyr Point Conference Center near South Lake Tahoe and located on the shores of Lake Tahoe. While I only give them a few days a month to this endeavor, I make the sacrifice to go up there to meet with staff every so often to catch up with what's going on so I can share with the world.

As a bit of an antidote for the above links, here is a video I took while I was there this past week. You should really feel sorry for me 😜. If you care to share it, you can also find it on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.