Bits & Bytes

2-WEEKS: HJ Res 7, a measure to immediately end the COVID-19 national emergency, passed the House (229–197) on Feb. 1 and the Senate (68-23) on March 29. But instead of signing it immediately, thereby ending the ridiculous requirement for legal visitors to show proof of the jab before coming here for the Easter holiday, CINO Joe waited until Monday. I’m very grateful to the border agent who did not ask my dear cousin for proof of the jab, which she has not and will never get.

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/biden-signs-measure-ending-covid-19-national-emergency_5185150.html

FBI: Internal documents obtained by the House Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government show the FBI sought to use Catholic churches as “new avenues for tripwire and source development,” including at “mainline Catholic parishes” and among “local diocesan leadership.” The FBI has repudiated the claim.

In other news, the conservative Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project recently obtained copies of FBI training materials that include a glossary of terms to help them identify individuals whose allegedly extremist ideology “may constitute a basis for reporting or law enforcement action when observed with suspicious criminal or potentially violent activity.”

These terms are then listed with inaccurate definitions. For example, according to the FBI, “taking the red pill or becoming ‘redpilled’ indicates the adoption of racist, anti-Semitic, or fascist beliefs.” In my experience, conservatives use it as shorthand for waking up to the Left’s Big Fat Lie that conservatives are racist, anti-Semitic, and fascist.

• https://catholicvote.org/new-docs-fbi-sources-catholic-churches/
• https://www.theepochtimes.com/rep-jordan-subpoenas-fbi-director-wray-says-undercover-agent-developed-plan-to-spy-on-catholics_5184643.html
• https://www.theepochtimes.com/fbi-includes-based-and-redpilled-in-its-glossary-of-extremist-terms_5184056.html

IDAHO: Gov. Little has signed into law a bill that makes it a crime for doctors to provide children with so-called “gender-affirming” surgeries or medications, including puberty blockers.

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/new-idaho-law-criminalizes-transgender-surgeries-medications-for-children_5173847.html

ITHACA, NY: I often refer to my old hometown as “The Berkeley of the East”, a tag that it richly deserves. Case in point … the Elizabeth Ann Clune Montessori School of Ithaca STILL requires all staff and students to mask, both indoors and outdoors, and STILL prohibits students from talking during lunch. Since the school has no cafeteria, students eat in their classrooms; IOW, they talk during class time, but must be silent during lunch time. Some kids report having made up their own sign language so they could communicate.  While some parents and staff have abandoned the school, others claim to feel “fortunate” that these rules are still in force. The author of the Free Press article (linked below) interviewed parents who are unhappy with the rules, but said they are too timid to challenge the administration. The EACMS is a private school whose tuition ranges from $11,000 to $18,000 a year per student.

• https://www.thefp.com/p/the-school-that-couldnt-quit-covid < Published April 12
• https://www.instagram.com/eacmsi < I went to this site earlier today and there were loads of photos of masked kids. I went again a few hours later (at 7:23 pm) and there were ZERO posts. It looks like the Free Press article hit a NERVE.

MASKS: Before 2020, the CDC and the WHO guidelines said there was no justification for mask-wearing in the general public. Suddenly, when COVID-19 hit, all the studies showing masks weren’t effective were ignored and people around the world were forced to mask. Now, a meta-analysis of 2,168 mask studies reveals the original guidelines were accurate. Masks are not only itchy and uncomfortable, but also increase carbon dioxide concentration, leading to itching, acne, dizziness, shortness of breath, and Mask-Induced Exhaustion-Syndrome (MIES). The study suggested that “several mask-related symptoms may have been misinterpreted as symptoms of long COVID.”

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/health/masks-cause-headaches-itching-and-lower-oxygen-intake-study_5181866.html

PSA: Avoid using public phone charging stations in airports, hotels or shopping centers. Hackers have figured out how to infect connected devices.

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/fbi-warns-against-free-public-charging-stations-for-phones-citing-hacking-risks_5184153.html

SUFFERING: We all have unrepentant people who have said and done hurtful things to us. I’ve noticed that, whenever such a person or incident comes to mind, I feel angry and broody until I manage to truly forgive, after which I just feel sad … for the unrepentant soul, for the consequences of their sins, and for the brokenness of our relationship. This morning, the Holy Spirit showed me that, instead of just carrying all this sadness around, I can unite it with the sadness Jesus experienced over Judas’ betrayal and suicide. What a relief it is to have a positive use for it!

GRAMMY NOTES: Way back when I drove a school bus, one of my jobs was to take the football team and cheerleaders to away games. On one absolutely miserable fall night … cold, rain, yuck … the boys had a locker room at half time, but the girls had to pile into my bus to get warm. I heard one of them complain while shivering, “My mom SAID I should bring a coat. I HATE it when she’s right!“