Who Thought This Was OK?

Who Thought This Was OK?

Steve Watson

10th October 2026

City-Backed Festival Let a Man STRIP for Cash in Front of CHILDREN
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A small city in upstate New York sponsored a “family friendly” arts festival, then stood by while grown men stripped down and took cash tips a few feet from toddlers. Rather than issuing an apology, the Democratic mayor issued a lecture on free speech.

Footage from the September 19 City of the Hills Festival in Oneonta now circulating online shows one performer peeling off clothing, working the crowd for money, and dancing like a stripper in Muller Plaza, a public downtown space.

Local parents have started a petition. City Hall has treated their objection as the real problem.

The hour-long show was billed by organizers as “Draglesque to Downtown.” It was put on by the Community Arts Network of Oneonta and held on the plaza’s stage area during a festival that, according to a Daily Caller report, drew sponsorship from the City of Oneonta and the New York State Council on the Arts.

Advertisements did not warn that stripteases were part of the act. Videos and photos reviewed by the Caller show toddlers and young children seated just feet from the performers.

One performer, identified on Facebook as Teejae Dee, stripped down to a thong-style costume, did floorwork, climbed across picnic tables, and took money from the audience.

Dee promoted the slot in advance as a “Sickening Showcase,” with shows at 4 p.m. Asked whether the performance was appropriate for children, the organization did not answer.

Satanic prayer causes uproar at city council meeting

CHAD DRURY Courier staff writer


OTTUMWA — An invocation at the beginning of Tuesday's Ottumwa City Council meeting overshadowed everything else that took place over the course of 80 minutes.

Resident and former council member Matt Dalbey read a satanic prayer — capped off by "Hail Satan" — to kick off the meeting at City Hall, leading to a reaction from New Life Center pastor Rick Bick during a contentious opening few minutes of the meeting.

In a private message, Dalbey said the prayer is used by the Satanic Temple of Iowa, of which he is a member, "but has nothing to do with the belief in a satanic deity."

The Satanic Temple of Iowa is "a resolutely non-theistic" religious organization that follows seven core tenants, according to its website.

Soon after Dalbey left the podium and after the council, staff and audience recited the Pledge of Allegiance, Bick had his turn, and was out of turn with the meeting's protocol of speaking on agenda items.

"Let's just reverse this curse that was put on our city. That 'Hail Satan' is not welcome here," Bick said.

Council member Cara Galloway, who has never stood for an invocation, said that Bick should speak during the portion of the meeting where citizens can speak on either agenda or non-agenda items; Bick spoke after the roll call was taken and the council was to discuss the consent agenda.

"It needs to be done now," he said. "I appreciate what Ms. Galloway is saying, but that was a curse put on the city. Most of you know that, and we need to just stop and reverse it."

Mayor Benjamin Foote then called for a 30-second moment of silence "to reflect on whatever it is we need to reflect on at this time," but again, Galloway said "it was time to move forward" before being overruled by the mayor.

Dalbey's invocation was within the scope of the city's invocation policy, which was approved Jan. 20, with Galloway the only council member to vote against it. In part, the policy says:

Age Of Delusion

OPINION

INGERSOLL: Age Of Delusion

(Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)


Geoffrey Ingersoll Editor at Large

October 05, 2026 11:36 AM ET


Below is State of the Day, a morning newsletter by Daily Caller Editor-at-Large Geoff Ingersoll. 

__________

Greetings, Dear Reader,

Welcome back to State of the Day, where I strip the euphemism and misdirection off that day’s news and give it to you straight, no ice, no mixer.

I should also welcome you to the …

AGE OF DELUSION

Richard Barrera entered a long recent history of left-wing politicians openly encouraging delusion when he sat for an Oct. 4 interview with Conan Nolan of NBCLA.

Recently, we’ve got Lindsay Clancy as innocent and Sydney Sweeney as guilty. We’ve got a girl who literally admitted to planning a fake rape accusation at the center of a new actual rape investigation in NY. We’ve got AI orgy polycules lobbying Dems to recognize their code has a soul and should be given special economic status.

And now we’ve got Barrera.

He’s the leading candidate for state superintendent in California, the chief executive of K-12 public education. In a clip posted by NBC, Nolan asks a simple question (emphasis mine):

Conan Nolan:

“Turning to higher education policy: there’s been an ongoing debate across California universities regarding admissions standards and standardized testing. Would you vote to bring back the SAT?”

Richard Barrera:

“Absolutely not. That, again, is an approach that’s about — if kids are struggling or not ready to do college-level work …

United in debt: America has become a nation of fake rich people

by John Mac Ghlionn, opinion contributor - 09/26/26 1:00 PM ET

Phoenix-based content creator holds up a house margarita while filming content during the grand opening of Padeland, a venue for the racket sport padel in Chandler, Ariz., Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Noble)


The U.S. now functions as two distinct, fully realized nations occupying the same geographic coordinates. One exists in concrete and brick, where citizens drive 20-year-old sedans and buy generic eggs. The other exists within a six square-inch, forever-vibrating rectangle, where every third twenty-something is a lifestyle curator living a life built on reckless financial decisions.

A recent report by Empower, a major financial services company based in Colorado, found that 24 percent of Gen Zers experience intense pressure to display material wealth on social media, even as 41 percent of all Americans don’t consider themselves financially well-off. The math is simple, brutal and undeniable. Millions of broke people spend borrowed money to convince other broke people they live like oil barons.

Walk into a cafe in any major city on a Tuesday morning. The line stretches out the front door with men and women waiting to pay $7 for an oat milk latte. The transaction takes three seconds via a plastic card. The coffee is gone in ten minutes. The debt remains on the balance sheet for 30 days at a 28 percent annual percentage rate.

The person holding the cup takes four photos of the foam art before taking a single sip, uploading the image to an audience of 700 acquaintances doing the exact same thing three blocks away. It’s entirely absurd and slightly insane, but this is modern-day America, where a sandwich that costs more than most can reasonably afford becomes a status symbol for a sick, performative culture.

The physical economy relies on the illusion of endless prosperity. A $400 T-shirt made of standard cotton moves off the rack because it contains a small but highly visible logo. The owner wears it to a sit-down dinner, paid for with a buy-now-pay-later app that splits a $120 pasta bill into four easy installments due every two weeks.

NYC Episcopal priest Flourish Klink sparks outrage for claiming Jesus is trans and God is nonbinary in outlandish sermon

Story by Nicholas McEntyre

A New York City Episcopal priest sparked outrage by claiming that Jesus Christ was transgender and that God is nonbinary — a belief once shared by seminarian and Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico.

Father Flourish Klink, who is nonbinary and transgender, made the outlandish assertions during a recent sermon at Christ & St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church on the Upper West Side.

“God is nonbinary,” Klink startlingly exclaimed, according to a livestream clip shared on X Wednesday. “But I’m going to go further than that, and I’m going to say God is actually also trans.”

Father Flourish Klink, a nonbinary and transgender priest with the Episcopal Church, Diocese of New York, claimed Jesus is transgender and God is nonbinary during a recent sermon on the Upper West Side. X/The Dissenter

Klink, who prefers “they/elle/hen” pronouns, went on to describe how transgender people are given a gender by “folks based on what they see” when they are born — and used it as grounds to why “God is trans.”

“When we’re old enough, we realize that wasn’t right and we’re not, in our deepest selves, the gender that everyone thought we were. Reasonable working definition of a trans person, right?” Klink asked the congregants.

“When God, who – as we have established is nonbinary – was born in human form as our Lord Jesus Christ, Mary said, ‘Oh look, a baby boy.'”

Klink, who has a spouse and daughter, paused for a second before claiming, “God isn’t a boy, we have established this. God is beyond boy and girl.

“God was assigned a gender at birth, and later on it became clear that that gender wasn’t right.

“So if you’re gonna deny that God is trans, I think you’re going to be denying the divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ and I have some notes about that,” Klink said.

Klink continued the sermon, alleging Jesus didn’t live the traditional life of a man from the first century by not getting married and instead chose to teach and engage with women in unusual ways — instead of the “traditionally masculine way.”

The priest used details from the Bible on how Jesus looked different after his resurrection as proof he was trans.

“There was something different about Jesus,” Klink said before admitting the Bible doesn’t directly say what was different.

“The Bible doesn’t tell us why it is that Jesus’ best friends, his disciples, the people who had walked with him to the end of his life, the people who had buried him in the tomb when it was politically difficult, who were committed to him still didn’t recognize Jesus for a good long time,” Klink added.

Klink, who prefers “they/elle/hen” pronouns, described how transgender people are given a gender by “folks based on what they see” when they are born, as basis for the claim “God is trans.” Instagram/fatherflourish

Why the DSA Is WRONG About the Nordic Model

 

Taiwan pet owners honor departed pets

 

Illinois Mom Accused of Killing 2-Year-Old Son After Becoming ‘Invested’ in Lindsay Clancy Case

“This is a tragedy for the Walsh family, all of whom are mourning the loss of this child,” an attorney for Corie A. Walsh said in a statement
By

 
Angel Saunders
Published on September 5, 2026 05:17AM EDT

Corie Walsh.Credit :
Will County Sheriff's Office

NEED TO KNOW

• Corie A. Walsh, 40, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her 2-year-old son, Barrett Walsh
• Walsh allegedly believed her son was the “anti-Christ” and had been following the Lindsay Clancy murder trial
• Her attorney claims she experienced a psychotic episode, and she remains in custody receiving medical treatment

An Illinois mother is accused of killing her toddler shortly after texting friends about Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial.

Corie A. Walsh, 40, was charged with three counts of first-degree murder on Tuesday, Sept. 1, according to online court records viewed by PEOPLE.

The charges are in connection with the death of her 2-year-old son, Barrett Walsh, NBC Chicago, ABC 7 Chicago, and Fox News reported, citing court documents.

PEOPLE reached out to attorneys for Walsh, but did not immediately receive a response.

BECOMING a DEMON (DOCUMENTARY)

I agree with most of the statements, except* the part about the Sons of God, so-called NEPHELIM:

*(26:16 Mins. -  44:50 Mins.)

The Sons of God mentioned in Genesis 6 were the descedants of Seth, the third son of Adam & Eve.

Lake America EXPOSED THE DOUBLE STANDARD And Canada Discovered HISTORY MATTERS Overnight!!

 

Mayor Mamdani Promised To TAX The Rich — Then Something TERRIBLE Happened

This Pastor Wants ONLY Christians in Power | PBD Podcast #846

This Pastor Wants ONLY Christians in Power | PBD Podcast #846

PBD Podcast

Premiered Aug 19, 2026  PBD Podcast

Patrick Bet-David sits down with Joel Webbon, senior pastor of Covenant Bible Church and founder of Right Response Ministries, whose growing influence in the New Christian Right has made him a controversial voice in American Christianity. 

Webbon lays out his vision for a more explicitly Christian America, arguing that believers should pursue political power and explaining what he would do with it. The conversation challenges his views on race, immigration, Israel, Islam, and marriage, before turning to the deeper divide over liberalism, Protestantism, Catholicism, and the future of the Christian Right.

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Over 1,500 Migrants SWARM Into Spain During Chaotic Mass Border Crossing

New York Post

Jul 30, 2026 

Thousands of migrants streamed into the tiny Spanish territory of Ceuta from Morocco on Thursday, prompting local officials to call on Spain to declare a national emergency and send the army to restore the frontier.

Spain’s interior ministry said it would guarantee the safety of citizens and the integrity of the nation’s border, but that the government could not declare a national emergency over migration concerns.

“The situation is absolute chaos,” said Rachid Sbihi, head of the association that represents Spain’s Civil Guard officers in Ceuta, who police the border. “It’s not possible to give precise numbers, but there are thousands of migrants crossing,” he said, adding that the border had “totally collapsed.”

Read more at https://nypost.com/2026/07/30/world-n...

BREAKING: Dr. Fauci invokes Fifth Amendment at Senate hearing

 

Spiritual interference before World Cup Final, Argentina fan frenzy in NYC

 

13-year-old Christian girl fights in court to escape custody of Muslim abductor: 'Serious injustice'

By Jon Brown, Christian Post Reporter Tuesday, July 14, 2026

Maria Shahbaz, a 13-year-old Pakistani Christian girl, is fighting in court to escape the 30-year-old Muslim man who abducted her from her home in 2025. | Courtesy Alliance Defending Freedom

A 13-year-old Pakistani Christian girl is fighting in court to reunite with her family after a judge returned her to the custody of the 30-year-old Muslim man who abducted her last year.

Maria Shahbaz was kidnapped from her Christian home in July 2025 by Shehryar Ahmad, who married her against her will and forced her to convert to Islam. Shahbaz has since been "exposed to grave abuse and exploitation," according to a press release from Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a nonprofit legal advocacy group.

An earlier investigation found that she was a minor and that her marriage documents were forged. Even so, Pakistan's Federal Constitutional Court reportedly did not confirm her age before ruling in February that she should remain in Ahmad's custody. The ruling contradicts Pakistani law, which does not allow minors to consent to marriage or religious conversion.

As Shahbaz awaits another court hearing, local lawyer Lazar Allah Rakha said the Pakistani judiciary has a chance to correct a grave error.

"The court that is due to hear this case has an opportunity to correct a serious injustice. Maria is a child. She was abducted, her documents were found to be forged, and the court handed her back to the man who took her — without even confirming her age. That cannot be allowed to stand," Rakha said.

"This is not just about Maria, though Maria's situation is urgent and she must be brought home. This ruling, if it stands, will further erode the confidence of the minority communities in the justice system. This review petition is an opportunity for the court to relook at their previous order and implement the law," he added.

Despite heated debate among lawmakers, Punjab, Pakistan's largest province, passed updated legislation this year to reinforce the minimum marriage age of 18 and require courts to prioritize the best interests of the child in such cases. The bill replaced provisions of Punjab's Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929, which allowed girls to marry at 16 and boys at 18.

The change came as international bodies — including United Nations experts, members of the European Parliament and U.K. lawmakers — have repeatedly raised concerns about forced marriages and conversions in Pakistan, where more than 1,000 underage girls are reportedly subjected to these practices each year.

WATCH: Two people climb to top of Empire State Building | NBC New York

 

Mamdani-backed socialist primary winner founded group whose goal is to ‘eradicate' Western civilization

Darializa Avila Chevalier helped launch Columbia University Apartheid Divest, which said it wants to end the West

 By Peter D'Abrosca Fox News

Published June 25, 2026 9:50am EDT


The socialist backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani who won Tuesday night’s primary election in New York’s 13th Congressional District founded a group in college that called for the total destruction of the West.

Darializa Avila Chevalier, 32, a Democratic nominee for U.S. Congress who made career out of "community organizing," wrote in her biography for an opinion piece in independent news outlet The Electronic Intifada that she "helped launch the boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign Columbia University Apartheid Divest."

"We are Westerners fighting for the total eradication of Western civilization," the group said in a now-deleted 2024 Instagram post.

In May 2024, eight years after she graduated from Columbia, Chevalier was back on campus advocating alongside the group she founded, known as CUAD, wearing a keffiyeh and a t-shirt emblazoned with the group's name.

Darializa Avila Chevalier, Democratic candidate for Congress in New York's 13th Congressional District, speaks with a voter in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan on June 14, 2026, in New York, N.Y. (Shuran Huang/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Avila Chevalier was interviewed by the Associated Press at the school's infamous encampment against Israel that year, which was later broken up by police.

Only months after that, CUAD, caused a firestorm when it reportedly posted its goal of eradicating Western Civilization.

Iran blamed for ship attack as escorts halted in Strait of Hormuz

Socialists Are Setting the Agenda in New York City

Claire Valdez and Brad Lander rapidly won their primaries Tuesday night, sending a sign of strength for an NYC left led by Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Akela Lacy

June 23 2026, 9:55 p.m. ET

Congressional candidates Claire Valdez and Brad Lander, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and Darializa Avila Chevalier at a rally with Sen. Bernie Sanders at the Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, N.Y., on June 18, 2026. Photo: Anthony Behar/Sipa USA via AP

Two key primaries in New York City delivered whopping victories for an emboldened left led by Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday, as democratic socialists sought to define the future of the Democratic Party.

Mamdani-backed congressional candidates Claire Valdez and Brad Lander were declared the winners in their two districts less than half an hour after polls closed. While democratic socialist challenger Darializa Avila Chevalier was still neck-and-neck with fifth-term incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat, one message from the night was clear: The left isn’t just having a moment — it’s dictating how Democrats play the game of electoral politics.

“Even when we are outspent, our agenda and operation bring out voters in a way the Democratic Party establishment no longer aspires to,” Gustavo Gordillo, co-chair of the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, told The Intercept. “It is democratic socialists who are defining much of the political terrain in New York.”

Several races played out as proxy wars between the Democratic Party establishment and progressive insurgents, or even between progressives and socialists, to prove who would do more to disrupt the status quo. In hotly contested primaries spanning four out of five NYC boroughs, candidates touted endorsements from Mamdani and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., as well as their proximity to the most unconventional wings of the Democratic Party.

“If you’re an establishment Democrat, that’s spent,” streamer Hasan Piker told local outlet Hell Gate Tuesday night. “We’re not giving another dime to Israel, hopefully an arms embargo, or at least pushing for one. We’re gonna make sure that we change the American trajectory.”

As Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman put it to CNN on Tuesday, “The dirtbag left is surging.”

Lander, who represents the clearest bridge between socialists and progressives out of the three Mamdani-endorsed congressional candidates, was the first to sail to victory Tuesday night. Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., fell to Lander less than 10 minutes after polls closed, with roughly a third of votes counted in the 10th Congressional District. Goldman, an heir to the Levi Strauss fortune and a staunch supporter of Israel, had lagged in public polling for months, suggesting the energy on the ground was firmly against the incumbent.