We know from testimony that there were abuse videos made and sent to Epstein. Trigger warning the meme below is very graphic and difficult to read. Hugs
U.S. news, too; scroll past what you’ve seen. I like to know what’s happening outside the U.S. as well as here; I loved to read newspapers when they were big and full of news from everywhere. I don’t make time to read this often enough.
-Congressional negotiations on a spending bill to reopen the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have stalled, as Democratic and Republican leaders remain divided on changes to immigration enforcement practices.
DHS, which houses the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, entered a partial shutdown on Saturday after Congress failed to pass a funding bill amid the standoff.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer agreed to a compromise bill to fund all government agencies except for DHS through September as they negotiated changes to immigration enforcement tactics.
Ahead of the funding lapse, congressional Democrats called the White House’s counterproposals insufficient.
-Americans’ approval of Trump’s immigration policies has fallen to a new low, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.
-Stephen Colbert said that CBS forced him to not air an interview with Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico on his late-night show, saying that executives were fearful that the appearance could draw ire from the Federal Communications Commission.
The interview was posted to The Late Show’s YouTube page. View it here:
Earlier this month, the FCC opened an investigation into ABC’s The View after an appearance by Talarico.
The latest move came just as early voting began in Texas, where Talarico, a State Representative, is facing off against Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett in the Democratic primary.
The election will be held on March 3.
-Arizona Senator Mark Kelly said he will “seriously consider” a bid for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination.
-In a Presidents’ Day message, former President George W. Bush paid tribute to George Washington, saying he “ensured America wouldn’t become a monarchy, or worse.”
-On this day in 1931, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison was born in Lorain, Ohio.
In 1938, Joseph Kennedy Sr., the father of future President John F. Kennedy, was sworn in as U.S. Ambassador to the Court of St. James’s in the Oval Office as President Franklin Roosevelt looked on.
In 1967, J. Robert Oppenheimer, the “father of the atomic bomb,” died at the age of 62.
In 1988, Anthony Kennedy was seated as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court.
Nominated by President Ronald Reagan, Kennedy would go on to serve as the Court’s crucial swing vote on issues of abortion, affirmative action, and gay marriage.
In 2010, President Barack Obama signed an executive order establishing the Fiscal Responsibility Commission, tasking Republican Alan Simpson and Democrat Erskine Bowles with identifying strategies to improve the country’s long-term fiscal outlook.
The body, known as the Simpson-Bowles Commission, issued a report titled “The Moment of Truth,” later that year, calling for a combination of spending cuts, tax and entitlement reforms, and other measures to reduce the deficit.
-Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan scorned Israel’s recent recognition of Somaliland, the breakaway region of Somalia, saying the move did not benefit the Horn of Africa region.
Israel officially recognized the Republic of Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state in December, becoming the first member of the United Nations to do so.
In response, Somalia called the move an “existential threat,” with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud saying that his country would “fight in its capacity” to prevent an Israeli military presence in the region.
Somaliland declared independence in 1991 following a five-year civil war.
-Nigeria’s defense ministry said yesterday that 100 more U.S. military personnel had arrived in the country as part of a mission to counter Islamist militant groups in the West African country.
President Trump ordered strikes on Islamic State targets in the country on Christmas Day and has accused the government of failing to protect Christians in its northwestern region, a claim it rejects.
-The new U.S. Ambassador to South Africa, conservative activist and writer Leo Brent Bozell III, arrived in the country yesterday amid strained bilateral ties.
-Unemployment in South Africa declined to 31.4% in the fourth quarter, a five-year low.
The jobless rate in the country has remained above 20% since the mid-1990s and remains one of the highest in the world.
-On this day in 2004, President Bush hosted Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in the Oval Office as Washington sought the North African country’s cooperation in its war against terrorist organizations.
According to press reports, Bush also urged Ben Ali to adopt democratic reforms.
Ben Ali ruled Tunisia with an iron fist from 1987 until 2011 when he was ousted by a pro-democracy movement that would sweep the region, which would become known as the Arab Spring.
-Peru’s Congress voted to remove interim President Jośe Jorí from office yesterday over undisclosed meetings he held with Chinese business executives.
Peru’s Congress in Lima on February 16, 2026.
Jorí had just assumed office in October. His removal comes just ahead of a presidential election in April and as the public expresses outrage over rising crime in the Andean nation.
The country has had seven presidents since 2016.
-Guatemala lifted a state of emergency one month after the killing of 10 police officers by suspected gang members.
-The Colombian government said yesterday it would resume peace talks with the country’s largest illegal armed group.
-Prison deaths have continued to rise in Ecuador despite President Daniel Noboa’s strategy to rein them in, according to Reuters.
-Qatar’s prime minister arrived in Venezuela yesterday.
The Gulf nation has often acted as an intermediary between the United States and the government in Caracas.
-Canadians have cut their travel to the United States for a second consecutive year, according to new data.
-Annual inflation in Canada slowed to 2.3% in January, according to government data released yesterday. The decline was fueled by a steep drop in gasoline prices, offsetting a rise in food and clothing costs.
-On this day in 1940, President Roosevelt visited the Panama Canal Zone as part of an inspection tour.
-Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Tarique Rahman was sworn in as prime minister yesterday, capping two years of political instability in the South Asian nation.
The BNP secured a landslide election victory in last week’s parliamentary vote—the first since the ouster of authoritarian Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2024.
Hasina resigned her post following massive student-led protests against a job quota system. After a harsh crackdown by her government, protesters marched on her official residence, forcing her to flee to India.
For decades, the BNP acted as the primary opposition to Hasina’s ruling Awami League, facing persistent targeting by the government.
The country was led by a transitional government headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus since Hasina’s ouster.
With a population of 285 million, Bangladesh is the eighth-most populous country in the world.
-Japan’s lower house of parliament, known as the Diet, will meet today to formally elect Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Earlier this month, Takaichi’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party secured a landslide election victory following a snap parliamentary vote.
-President Trump said yesterday that Japan plans to invest $36 billion for industrial projects in Georgia, Ohio, and Texas.
-Negotiators from Ukraine and Russia will meet today for a second round of U.S.-mediated talks as President Trump pushes Kyiv to agree to a settlement to end the nearly four-year-long war.
Just ahead of the talks in Geneva, Switzerland, Russia launched strikes across Ukraine, damaging the power network in the southern port city of Odesa.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the persistent overnight attacks have left tens of thousands of residents without heat and water amid freezing temperatures.
Next week, the war will enter its fifth year. On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale military invasion of the country, seeking to quickly capture the capital, but was met by resistance from Ukrainian forces.
Since then, Russia has captured roughly 20% of Ukraine’s internationally recognized territory, with fighting stalling along the frontlines in recent months.
Meanwhile, an estimated 100,000 to 140,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed, compared with 275,000 to 325,000 Russian troops.
-Russia sentenced a U.S. citizen to four years in prison.
-According to a new poll, one in five Europeans say dictatorship is preferable to democratic rule.
-On this day in 1971, President Richard Nixon hosted Italian Prime Minister Emilio Colombo at the White House.
Colombo, who served as premier from 1970 to 1972, was the last surviving member of the Constituent Assembly that drafted the 1948 Italian Constitution and abolished the country’s monarchy.
Today, he is regarded as a “founding father” of what would become the European Union.
-The United States and Iran held a second round of talks in Geneva, Switzerland, yesterday, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi saying the two sides agreed to “guiding principles.”
The talks come as President Trump seeks to get Iran to agree to limit its nuclear program, threatening military action if it does not.
In June, Trump ordered strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities in a bid to disable its nuclear program. Tehran insists the program is for peaceful purposes, which Washington and European capitals reject.
In his first term, Trump withdrew Washington from the pact struck by his predecessor, Barack Obama, that placed curbs on Tehran’s then-nascent nuclear program. The Biden administration sought to bring Iran back into compliance with the terms of the deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), but was unsuccessful.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran possesses a substantial stockpile of enriched uranium, the fissile material needed to build a nuclear bomb. The watchdog reports that Iran has over 400 kg of 60% enriched uranium, which is just a short step from 90% weapons-grade.
-Israel’s cabinet has approved a plan that would mandate land registration in the West Bank, a move Palestinians regard as “de facto annexation.”
-Hezbollah rejected a plan by the government for the terrorist group to disarm.
-On this day in 1952, Turkey joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as the western military alliance’s 12th member state alongside Greece.
Today, the Middle Eastern country contributes the second-largest army in the bloc.
Last week I recorded the audiobook for How To Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay and then I collapsed in a limp pile of exhaustion, which is embarrassing because why is “just talking” for two days so hard? Regardless, I spent several nights that I would have normally been drawing while watching 90-Day-Fiance (don’t judge me) instead just hiding under the covers and recovering from being human in public for too long. And that’s why this week’s doodle is unfinished:
But the good news is that because it’s unfinished you can print it out and color it or draw on it and then you can share your version in the comments if you want. EVERYONE WINS.
Here’s a fun tip: I sometimes use the recolor app to upload my drawings and color them:
(PS. I’m not getting paid to plug them. It’s just a free app I stumbled on.)
So anyway…this is just to remind you that it’s okay to not hit every deadline (or any deadline) because you are so much more than your output. And so am I.
Thank goodness.
Hugs,
me
PS. As tax for not having a finished drawing, please accept this picture of a very sleepy Dorothy Barker intentionally laying on my art so that I will pet her instead of drawing.
A man does something beautiful making so many happy. But haters have to try to ruin something that doesn’t affect them at all. None of the attackers are being asked to have same sex with the men, the attackers are not being asked to go to the wedding. So seriously why be so angry that they attack a man for claiming his love for another man? This shit is starting to get far too normal where straight cis people assault, injure, and make LGBTQ+ people afraid to be themselves openly in public. For some reason it seems to infuriate these hateful bigots just to know someone not cis or straight exists. Anyway. At least in Germany he has free healthcare and even though the right wing fascists are rising as a political force driven by wealthy haters, Christian nationalists, and Russia their government is still left leaning. I really wish the US government was still leaning left. Hugs
A German soccer referee, who recently went viral for proposing to his boyfriend, was attacked outside his home.
Pascal Kaiser stole the hearts of millions last week after he proposed to his fiancé in Cologne’s RheinEnergieStadion during a match in front of 50,000 people. According to the French publication L’Equipe, Kaiser was assaulted in his home by three men late Saturday night into Sunday morning.
The publication wrote that the bisexual referee, prior to the incident, had reported that he was receiving threatening messages, including ones that included his address. Police told him there was no immediate threat. But Attitudereports that 20 minutes after he got off the phone with authorities, Kaiser was attacked while smoking a cigarette in his garden, which resulted in an injury to his right eye.
Carla Antonelli, a Spanish politician and LGBTQ+ advocate, uploaded a post to Instagram in support of Kaiser and shared a photo of his bruised face. “Terrible message, if you make yourself visible, we’ll put you in the closet: Referee Pascal Kaiser, who proposed to his partner before the Cologne-Wolfsburg match, was assaulted at his home. It is known that prior to the assault, the address of Pascal Kaiser’s house had leaked on social media and received direct threats,” her caption reads. “Police intervened after the attack, and Pascal Kaiser is now in a safe place under police protection.”
Kaiser’s Instagram account, and the couple’s account he shares with his partner, are now both locked and private.
Last week, Kaiser got down on one knee and professed his love for his fiancé while delivering a prepared speech, declaring, “I want everyone to see that I love this person. A man. As a man. In football.” After the proposal, FC Köln, a professional soccer team that plays at the field where they got engaged, uploaded a video of the couple’s special moment and wrote in the caption, “Pascal Kaiser is a referee and a huge FC fan. Pascal is queer and came out three years ago. Today, he had a special plan, which FC Cologne supported. Pascal proposed to his long-term partner at the RheinEnergieStadion, but see for yourselves!” The team continued, writing, “Congratulations, you two!”
Kaiser has long been an advocate for LGBTQ+ visibility in sports. As he previously told Schwulissimo, a major German news outlet, “I see this as my mission: to create visibility. To be a voice. And to encourage people who aren’t yet brave enough to speak up,” he said. “I know how lonely it can be to think you’re the only one. I want no one to have to feel that way again.”
ICE nearly kills another child by mistreatment and ignoring their worsening health and healthcare needs. This is so familiar if you remember history. Lack of food, no healthcare, no humanity. Hugs
Children cry, thinking their parents will be taken if ICE follows them home. All because they are brown skinned. Is this the USA? Hugs
I decided I wanted grilled cheese sandwiches. So at four PM I started supper. And yes I made far too many as I can only eat one or one and half. But here are the steps I go through to make good cheesy thick grilled cheese and ham sandwiches.
I start with getting all the ingrediance out and ready.
If you notice I have already buttered the bread. I is important to use real butter and not a substitute as the substitutes burn before the bread is toasted, the cheese melted, and the ham hot. Now to build the sandwiches.
First the cheese on the bread.
I used two different cheeses on on each side of the bread. Swiss and the other side colby Jack. Then two slices of ham.
Then the rest of the cheese.
Then grill to perfection.
But again I made too many. I ate 1 and a half sandwiches. I wish Ron was here he would eat the rest. Hugs
I went out shopping early this morning. Then I came home and after putting the stuff away I did all the dishes. It was not a lot but three days worth and last night I cooked a good meal. I am washing all the bed linens and all the towels in the chairs / places that Tupac lays on. So as I try to do they cartoon / meme post for tomorrow …. My mind is fractured. So these songs are in my mind. Sorry if this hurts anyone. Also remember I am not in danger of self-harm. I won’t do that to all of you who I respect so much. Hugs or best wishes to all as you appreciate the gesture. The songs below are shattering my thoughts. I walk alone, and I wish for the sound of silence. Oh, to have the thoughts in my mind stop! I desperately wish for it. I have not eaten yet today, nor did I after breakfast yesterday and Ron has called me 3 times asking me to eat. Even telling me to order something if it is more pleasing to me. I just can’t. I bought salad stuff today so maybe a salad later. I am so confused. I had four more ready to post and suddenly realized it was useless. Is my life useless? I do good things. My husband loves me. His cat sleeps pressed up against me at night, yet even last night as I struggled to sleep and he moved up onto my pillow I took no comfort from him. I am feeling so numb inside when I let myself feel anything at all because the government is forcing my pain doctors to reduce my medications despite the new MRI showing severe and increased damage to my spine. My doctors say it my be necessary for me to do surgery to get relief because RFK Jr. has determined that all pain clinics lower their clients morphine equviancy to less than 100. Those who do not feel chronic pain or live in long pain because they dont hve to suffer … well illegal drugs all of a sudden get a hollier than though about drugs. Seriously, this former drug adic is restricting needed medication from people like me with seriously damaged spines and no contributions to his campaigns. But drugs from a qualified pain doctor can mean the difference between living a quality life and suffering in even more agony. Hugs
I am sorry. I do not not want to worry anyone or cause fear. But I feel so… out of sync with the world. I just hurt. It is part physical and a lot emotional. The MRI I had just had showed many parts of my lower spine are showing far more damage than my doctors had thought. They thought I had a few more years before surgery. I cannot afford surgery. The MRI moved many of my lower vertebrae from the moderate to severe to extremely severe zone. One the report said was in civilian terms destroyed. The bone matrrial decaded, the inside soft stuff pushed out and the nerves were caught by the edges of the jagged edges of the bones both being forced out and being pinched and being pinced inside as I moved. It is why I cannot sit in my chair very long. Ron is going to get me an air seat when he gets home but I doubt it will help. I am sitting here thinking of why when my spine shows ever more damage the government is requiring that my pain doctors reduce everyone’s pain medications. Just because the former coke addict RFK Jr dosent feel the crippling pain that people like me do doesn’t mean he gets to stop our pain medication or at least shouldn’t. All that does is force us on to illegal drugs to get relief. I wonder if that is the point all along. Think of it, all the friends in pain suddenly not able to vote would change the election in plenty of ways. Hugs
Sorry, but I keep repeating the songs over and over. Hugs
Every body hurts. But today I hurt terribly. Sorry. Now I have to go struggle to make the bed because I washed the bed sheets. More pain. Hugs
Scottie's Playtime 