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Child under age of 12 euthanised in the Netherlands for the first time after law change

A seriously ill child under the age of 12 has been euthanised in the Netherlands for the first time after a law change two years ago.

In a letter to parliament, Dutch health minister Sophie Hermans said that the child had died last year but did not clarify their age, date of death or the illness that they suffered, according to broadcaster NOS.

The law in the Netherlands was changed in 2024 to extend euthanasia to children under the age of 12 to allow them to “die with dignity” if there was no route to escape extremely severe pain or suffering.

Previously the procedure had only been permissible for newborns and children aged over 12. Patients under the age of 18 require the consent of a parent or guardian.

Under euthanasia laws, a person must be in a state of intolerable suffering with no realistic hope of relief and it should only be applied in exceptional and extreme circumstances.

In order to undergo the procedure, a doctor must persuade the authorities that euthanasia is appropriate and that there is no humane alternative. The threshold is extremely high when applying the legislation to young children.

Hermans said that the review committee has examined the case and spoken to the doctor involved, according to NOS.

The committee’s judgment has been forwarded to the Public Prosecution Service (OM) who must ultimately determine whether the doctor acted in accordance with the law. The recommendation of the review committee will be made public shortly, she explained.

When the rule was changed it was expected only to apply to around five children every year.

“Euthanasia is only allowed for patients whose unbearable suffering with no prospect of improvement has a medical dimension,” government guidance says.

“Termination of life is only allowed if a child is terminally ill and is suffering unbearably with no prospect of improvement.

“This means the child is in constant, severe pain. And that there is no cure, and no reasonable alternative to relieve the child’s suffering, even through palliative care.

“In this situation, the doctor may decide, together with the parents, to terminate the child’s life. This decision is always made in consultation with the parents and, if possible, also with the child.”

In the UK, a bill to allow adults in England and Wales with fewer than six months to live to apply for an assisted death – subject to the approval of two doctors and an expert panel – will return to the House of Commons this September.

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Big Corporations Get Rich From Their Secret Seed Patents — Taxpayers and Farmers Pay the Price

The U.S. is one of only a handful of countries that allows companies to hold patents on plant varieties.

As a result, a small number of corporations can — and do — suppress competition in the seed industry, stifle innovation and turn taxpayer subsidies intended for farmers into corporate profits.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has found that two companies control more than 70% of U.S. corn and soybean seed sales, and the top four cottonseed companies control nearly 94% of that market.

In a May court filing in a legal dispute between two U.S. seed companies, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said patents on seeds are obstructing competition and research in the agriculture industry.

As researchers who work on plant breeding and seed policy, we have seen how that plays out.

When huge companies assert their patents, smaller businesses and public plant breeders, who often lack the legal resources to fight back, are frequently dissuaded from conducting research and development that might actually not be illegal at all.

And a lack of competition allows dominant companies — not always based in the U.S. — to collect large sums of taxpayer money that Congress allocated in hopes it would help farmers, not shareholders’ and executives’ bottom lines.

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Here’s How Dark Money Uses Children In Deep Red States To Spread LGBT Agenda

Among the rolling hills and twisting rivers of central Indiana stands a bustling city named Carmel. The town is split almost 50-50 Republican and Democrat, which stands out in the largely conservative state where only four out of 92 counties lean Democrat. Yet the city is still small enough, rural enough, that one would not expect an inconspicuous “pride” festival that popped up in 2021 to become the second-largest such event in the state, attracting an estimated 6,000 people last year and hosting a former RuPaul’s Drag Race contestant this year.

The question is, how? How does LGBT propaganda infiltrate conservative states and areas, turning them into sensual celebration grounds? The answer: through children backed by big billionaires.

The annual Carmel Pride Festival started in 2021 when a group of high schoolers in the Gender and Sexuality Alliance club (GSA) at their local school decided to create a “pride month” celebration for the city. Around 2,500 people showed up at the modest student-run celebration. The next year, the group of teenagers reached out to It Gets Better and received $10,000 to put toward their next “pride” event.

It Gets Better is a nonprofit organization that targets children to promote LGBT ideologies “to uplift, empower, and connect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth around the globe,” its website states. Through its 50 States. 50 Grants. 5000 Voices program, the organization gives hundreds of thousands of dollars to “middle and high schools throughout the United States” to support “projects that uplift and empower LGBTQ+ students.” While reporting on the grant project, PR Newswire bragged that the money went to “many traditionally conservative areas.”

The GSA club in Carmel seems to have received continual funding since 2022 from It Gets Better. An article from 2022 confirms the club received another $10,000 in support for the 2023 event, and the Carmel Pride website currently gives “a big thank you” to It Gets Better under the list of 2025 donors. The left-wing activist group the American Civil Liberties Union and the “gay-owned” pro-LGBT surrogacy agency New Dawn are also listed among the donors.

One of It Gets Better’s biggest donors is American Eagle. On It Gets Better’s financials, it lists American Eagle as a “Ground Shaker” for giving more than $100,000 in 2024 alone. The fashion company recently tried to appeal to conservatives through its Sydney Sweeney ads.

A vast swath of cosmetic brands that support LGBT marketing also back It Gets Better, including MAC VIVA GLAM under the Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation, Bath & Body Works, e.l.f. Cosmetics, and Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation, among many others. The latter two organizations gave at least $50,000, while the other contributed $100,000 or more in the past year.

One common denominator between the cosmetic brands and American Eagle is their ties to BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street, or the “Big Three.” The asset firms hold about a fourth of each of the above companies that fund It Gets Better when their shares are combined, and all three firms are known for pushing leftist ideology.

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Mamdani Tells New Yorkers to Set Thermostats to 78 Degrees to Alleviate Stress on the Grid Amid Life-Threatening Heat Wave

Far-left NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Wednesday urged New Yorkers to set their thermostats to 78 degrees to alleviate stress on the energy grid.

Temperatures are soaring into the triple digits in the Midwest and East Coast this week and into the July 4th holiday weekend.

Mamdani encouraged New Yorkers to raise their thermostats amid the life-threatening heat wave.

“I am asking every New Yorker to make a heat plan before the worst of this weather arrives,” said Mayor Mamdani on Wednesday.

“The best protection against extreme heat is air conditioning. If you don’t have it at home, know now where you’ll go to stay cool. Check in on your neighbors, especially seniors, and if you see someone outside who appears to be in distress, call 311 so we can get help to them. This administration is using every tool we have to keep New Yorkers safe, but the strongest city is one where neighbors look out for one another.”

“And to every business owner, please set your thermostats to 78 degrees to alleviate the stress on our grid,” Mamdani told New Yorkers.

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HHS Terminates the COVID-19 Emergency Use Authorization Declarations Covering mRNA Shots, Drugs, and Biologics

Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services finally moved to terminate the COVID-19 Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) declarations that have been in place since the early months of the pandemic.

The termination is not immediate. HHS has established a transition period of up to 12 months for EUA drugs and biologics and 180 days for EUA medical devices. According to the agency, the phased wind-down is intended to avoid disruptions and allow manufacturers and healthcare systems time to transition away from the emergency framework.

These declarations formed the legal foundation for the authorization of COVID-19 mRNA injections, monoclonal antibodies, antiviral drugs, diagnostic tests, ventilators, personal protective equipment, and numerous other medical products deployed during the pandemic response.

Unfortunately, the deadly Pfizer and Moderna mRNA injections are already fully FDA approved, meaning this action will have little practical effect on their continued use. The emergency framework that enabled their rapid rollout is finally being dismantled, but the products themselves have already moved beyond it.

While today’s announcement marks the formal beginning of the end of the COVID EUA era, it does not produce the outcome many of us had hoped for, including but not limited to the removal of mRNA products from the market.

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Ukraine’s Desperate Propaganda Campaign While Russia Advances Along The Entire Front

Volodymyr Zelensky and his Western backers have launched a desperate 40-day “campaign of terrors” — which includes a mix of military escalations and a massive information/psyops operation designed to portray Russia as collapsing and Putin as facing an imminent uprising or coup. The goal is to force Russia into a ceasefire. Western audiences are being flooded with social media and regular media articles that paint a dire picture of Russia’s military campaign, while touting Ukraine’s incredible accomplishments. It is all a load of crap, but that is all the West has left in its quiver as Russia’s campaign of attrition continues to pulverize Ukraine.

The Western-led propaganda campaign consists of the following elements:

  • Information Warfare — Heavy push of 24/7 propaganda about Putin’s “imminent downfall,” including staged videos of supposed Russian soldiers announcing a mutiny.
  • Fake Psyops — Coordinated attempts to stoke panic in Russia (e.g., false claims of fuel/gas shortages, which were partly caused by panic buying triggered by the rumors).
  • Symbolic Actions — Staged drone flag-drops (e.g., on the Kinburn Spit near Crimea) meant to symbolize Russian retreat and collapse — quickly debunked and mocked.
  • Broader Objective — Combine these narratives with actual strikes on Russian infrastructure to create the impression of regime instability, pressuring Putin politically.

Now for the reality. Yes, Ukraine has hit some Russian refineries and created some spectacular visuals of billowing smoke and fire. However, this is nothing more than military political theater that is intended to distract from Ukraine’s setbacks all along the front. As a side note, Russian oil exports have increased during this same period, putting to bed the narrative that Russia’s oil industry in suffering catastrophic losses.

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Creepy California State Sen. Scott Wiener Helps Kill Bill That Would Have Barred Sex Offenders from Public Office, Says ‘Some People Just Have Flaws’

California State Senator Scott Wiener helped kill a bill that would have barred registered sex offenders from running for or holding public office in California.

On Tuesday, Wiener’s Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee defeated Assembly Bill 2753 after the measure had sailed through the State Assembly unanimously.

Authored by Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria of Merced, the bill would have prohibited anyone required to register as a sex offender under California’s three-tier system from seeking or serving in state or local offices such as city council, school board, or the legislature.

The legislation was introduced after registered sex offender Rene Campos, who pleaded no contest in 2018 to a misdemeanor involving possession of child sex abuse material, announced a bid for Fresno City Council.

Soria had promised her constituents she would act to prevent sex offenders from running.

“It’s deeply disturbing that this issue is unfolding in my own backyard. The idea that a registered sex offender could run for public office in the City of Fresno is unacceptable,” Soria said in a press release announcing the bill. “This bill will ensure once and for all that registered sex offenders are prohibited from seeking public office in California, so voters can have confidence that those seeking to represent them meet the most basic standards of public trust.”

Wiener, who chairs the committee, opposed the bill and said he would support it only if amended to apply solely to lifetime Tier 3 registrants.

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Democrat Nominee Chris Rabb Trashes Declaration of Independence: ‘This Is a Nation Born on Stolen Land and Stolen Labor’

Pennsylvania state Rep. Chris Rabb, the Democrat nominee for Pennsylvania’s 3rd Congressional District, denounced the Declaration of Independence, capitalism, billionaires, and what he called “American exceptionalism.”

Rabb made the remarks during the “America at 250 — Trump Fascism, Historical Erasure, and the Battle Over Truth” panel, held June 26 at People’s Plaza on Independence Mall in Philadelphia. Rabb is running unopposed in Pennsylvania’s heavily Democrat 3rd Congressional District and is widely expected to win election to Congress in November.

During the discussion, Rabb argued that the Declaration of Independence did not deliver freedom to everyone and instead helped preserve the power of a privileged class.

“Those screeds that were very lofty but were notoriously catering to a performative aspect of collective genius that purposely erased indigenous and black peoples,” Rabb said.

“It created distance from an empire to help very privileged people continue that privilege and ultimately institutionalize that through the U.S. Constitution many years later. But it certainly did not provide independence to indigenous and black peoples. And we cannot talk about anything today without acknowledging that this is a nation born on stolen land & stolen labor.”

Rabb also said reparations would be one of his priorities if elected to Congress, calling himself “one of the few unapologetic reparationists going to Congress.”

According to Rabb, reparations are not simply about compensating black Americans but about reshaping society as a whole.

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The Unfinished Revolution: When Rights Become Privileges

“What country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?”—Thomas Jefferson

What exactly are Americans celebrating this Fourth of July?

Two hundred and fifty years after the Declaration of Independence proclaimed that all people possess inalienable rights, we now live under a government that increasingly behaves as though rights belong to the government to distribute, restrict and revoke as it sees fit.

Freedom has become conditional.

Equal justice under law has become selective.

Constitutional rights have become political bargaining chips.

Government now claims the authority to decide which religious beliefs deserve accommodation and which may be excluded—a clear violation of the First Amendment’s warning against both establishing a religion and favoring or disfavoring one religion over another.

It insists that some speakers deserve constitutional protection while others may be censored, surveilled or punished—a violation of the right to free speech.

It proclaims itself the defender of unborn life while dismantling programs that protect the health and welfare of children already born.

It welcomes some immigrants with extraordinary speed while denying others the full measure of due process promised by the Constitution.

It pays lip service to equality under law while dismantling programs designed to ensure equal opportunity and root out discrimination.

It invokes the sanctity of children while narrowing which children may claim the birthright citizenship guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment.

It insists that no one is above the law while expanding presidential immunity and removing many of the traditional checks on executive power.

None of these contradictions exists in isolation.

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Man Who Sued Pepsi Over Fighter Jet Finally Gets His Reward 30 Years Later

Three decades after suing Pepsi for refusing to give him a fighter jet, John Leonard finally got a reward that may be even better, according to a post at Supercarblondie. 

Leonard became the center of one of advertising’s most famous legal battles after taking a 1996 Pepsi commercial at face value. The ad, promoting the company’s Pepsi Points loyalty program, jokingly claimed customers could redeem seven million Pepsi Points for a military Harrier jet.

Rather than laugh it off, the Seattle college student raised enough money to buy the required points and submitted a claim for the aircraft. Pepsi rejected it, insisting the jet was never a real prize.

The article says that the case went to court, where a judge ruled that no reasonable person would believe Pepsi was seriously offering a fighter jet in a soft drink promotion.

Although Leonard lost the lawsuit, the bizarre dispute became legendary and was later chronicled in the Netflix documentary Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?.

Now, nearly 30 years later, Frontier Airlines gave the story a happy ending. As part of a Super Bowl campaign called “The Big Redemption,” the airline converted Leonard’s original seven million Pepsi Points into seven million Frontier Miles, effectively giving him free flights for life.

The airline even featured Leonard in a tongue-in-cheek commercial, handing him the keys to an Airbus A320neo as a nod to the decades-old saga.

Now in his 50s with a wife and children, Leonard joked that unlimited airline miles are far more practical than owning and maintaining a military fighter jet. After waiting three decades, he never got the Harrier, but he may have received an even better prize.

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