Turning around to return to camp, they quickly realized how close they had come to death.  Nailed to the backs of the trees, German signs warned, “Minen!”  Had they moved through the woods earlier that morning, they would have been “blown to bits.”

Weeks later in mid-December, Mac got a letter from his mother.  “Can you remember where you were on Thanksgiving Day?” she asked.  His mother explained that she had awakened just after midnight with a sense of terror.  “I had a strong feeling that you were in great danger.  When I opened my Bible, a phrase in Second Chronicles [20:17] gleamed on the page: ‘Stand ye still and see the salvation of the Lord with you…’”  Stand…ye…still.  Mac had definitely received his mother’s Thanksgiving message.

I came across Mac’s story in this collection of inspiring Thanksgiving miracles.  It spoke to me because I have had my share of similar moments in life — when a whisper stopped me in my tracks and moved me in a different direction.  In each of those instances, the choice before me seemed small, but the voice inside my head insisted that it would be consequential.  That voice has always been right.  So it is in this world: sometimes a single step is our undoing, and sometimes a single step is our salvation.  When you hear an unexpected whisper, it’s best to listen.

We don’t always listen, though, do we?  Sometimes we ignore any misgivings and continue down our original path.  And when those choices burn us down the road, we have an even more consequential decision to make: do we let our past mistakes define our futures, or do we use our newly gained wisdom to defeat challenges yet to come?

It is not easy to admit when we’ve been wrong.  It is even harder to find peace when our bad decisions harm others.  It is tempting to cover up one bad choice with another.  You do that enough times, though, and you eventually realize that you’ve done nothing but bury important truths.

When I was younger, a wise man told me to be thankful for my regrets.  “Thankful?” I remember thinking in disbelief.  I preferred to carry my regrets like weights around my neck.  I refused to let them go.  Living like that means living with inconsolable pain.  But there was something else that old philosopher said that stuck with me: your regrets give you a chance to be a better person today than you were yesterday.  Be thankful for your regrets, he argued, because they are the instruments that mold our character.  Use your pain to grow, or your pain will one day use you up.  Some of the best people around us have profound regrets.  Often, it is their profound regret that has shaped them into such morally excellent people.

Be thankful for the hard lessons.  Wisdom is rarely obtained with ease.  If it were, everyone around us would be wise.  Wise people stand out because wisdom comes with a cost.  We humans all suffer in one form or another.  Only some of us, however, learn to use that suffering to become better versions of ourselves.

Sometimes bits of wisdom seem contradictory.  In a single evening with friends, you might hear one argue, “People never change,” and another insist, “People do change.”  Are our natures set in stone from the moment we enter this world, or are we capable of real, substantial growth?  I have always been fond of what the Ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus had to say on the matter: “A man’s character is his fate.”  Who we are affects our decisions, and our decisions ultimately affect our futures.

But think about the advice from the old wise man I mentioned above who encouraged me to be thankful for my regrets.  If our character is shaped by how we handle our regrets, then surely we have some measure of control over our fates.  Perhaps the more we understand about ourselves, the more capable we become of creating our own futures.

There have been only a few times in my life when I was near someone who gave me the shivers.  If you’ve ever found yourself around such a person, it is difficult not to believe in the existence of evil.  Aside from truly evil human beings, though, most people are capable of doing both bad and good things.  You can take a boy without a family, give him a gun, and tell him to protect his neighborhood gang.  Awful acts soon follow.  You can give a boy a family, help him learn from his mistakes, and encourage him to protect his community.  The same boy becomes a selfless police officer.  Often, it is not a question of whether we humans change or not but rather how we channel our inherent natures.  When we are wise enough to learn from our mistakes and listen to those who wish to help us, we become better people.

As Mac St. Johns’s Thanksgiving Day story from WWII shows, sometimes the difference between life and death is a steadfast faith in God.  Will we listen when He whispers, or will we walk the other way?  Will we allow Him to shape our character, or will we insist on doing so without His help?  So much is at stake.  At any moment, we might face the most consequential decision of our lives.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving this year, many of us are also celebrating President Trump’s election victory.  Something has been rotten in America for quite some time.  Our national borders, shared history, and common love for freedom have been disappearing.  Multinational corporations and international bureaucrats have long exerted more influence over our country’s direction than the people who call America home.  Our national debt is unsustainable.  Our government is corrupt.  Our Constitution is ignored.  Our Union is divided.  Our culture is vulgar.  Our moral compass is broken.  President Trump’s return to office offers the prospect of needed change.

The questions now are straightforward: will we learn from our past mistakes?  Will we admit that we have sometimes taken the wrong path as a nation, caused unnecessary harm, and hurt ourselves?  Will we stop covering up one bad choice with another?  Will we make use of our suffering and grow stronger?  Will we learn from painful experiences and gain wisdom?  Will we choose to be thankful for our many regrets?

A country’s character is its fate, too.  Any country is capable of both tremendous good and shocking atrocity.  Any country can nurture its people’s best impulses or exacerbate its people’s worst instincts.  Any country can submit to evil or seek God’s guidance and forgiveness.

If we have been given a second chance this year, let us be supremely grateful.  Let us be penitent.  Let us demonstrate wisdom.  Let us harness the best parts of our natures.  Let this be the first of many joyous Thanksgivings to come.  Above all else: let us be still…and listen.

Dr Jay Bhattacharya is a famous critic of the NIH and the COVID-19 policy they put forth. Bhattacharya has advocated for a major shakeup of the NIH and accused former NIH leaders Francis Collins and Anthony Fauci of suppressing scientific debate and research during the pandemic.

To support Robert F Kennedy Jr, President Trump has also announced the nomination of Jim O’Neill to serve as Deputy HHS Secretary. O’Neill comes from the stable of Peter Thiel a billionaire ally of RFK Jr and Elon Musk. O’Neill was CEO of the Thiel Foundation.

Jim O’Neill held several roles at HHS during the George W. Bush administration including principal associate deputy secretary.

— Read More: theconservativetreehouse.com

The report comes ahead of one of the country’s most popular travel periods, where many families travel across the U.S. for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

The report, published by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, found that American Airlines, Delta, United, Spirit, and Frontier brought in a total of $12.4 billion in seating fees between 2018 and 2023. United brought in $1.2 billion in seating fees in 2023 alone.

“Our investigation has exposed new details about airlines exploiting passengers with sky high junk fees,” committee Chairman Richard Blumenthal said in a statement. “This report pulls back the curtain on tactics like dynamic pricing that burden travelers and boost airline revenue.”

Airlines have eliminated the extra cost of changing their flights, but have added fees for special seating requests, according to NBC News.

“As we head into the Thanksgiving weekend, we regret that travelers will be charged millions of dollars in fees that have no basis in cost to the airlines but simply fatten their bottom lines,” the senator said.

Blumenthal released the statement and report ahead of a hearing on the matter on Dec. 4. All five major airlines, including budget airlines Spirit and Frontier, are expected to testify about their pricing structure at the hearing.

The report also claimed budget airlines have paid gate agents millions of dollars to crack down on customers who try to get the upgrades without paying for it.

Airlines for America, which represents the major carriers, said airline fees have gone down in recent years to make air travel more affordable, but customers have the freedom to choose if they want any upgrades.

“The report demonstrates a clear failure by the subcommittee to understand the value the highly competitive U.S. airline industry brings to customers and employees. Rather, the report serves as just another holiday travel talking point,” the group told NBC.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.

Nobody is more apoplectic about it all than legacy media. Some are trying to play nice. Others are abandoning the little sanity they have left. But there are a few that are actually trying to figure out how to continue their existence under the Trump administration.

Meanwhile, transgender members of the military appear to be on their way out. We covered this and other topics, including why President Trump should NOT allow his appointees to have their backgrounds checked by the FBI, on today’s episode of The JD Rucker Show.

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But here’s the thing. There is nothing in the law that requires a background check of any sort on appointees. The “tradition” in the Senate for conformation is just that, a tradition. Those who claim that they want background checks for the sake of national security are hoping Americans don’t realize that anyone who will receive classified documents must go through a non-FBI background check AFTER THEY ARE HIRED. It is conducted by the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Administration.

These Democrat and RINO Senators aren’t concerned about national security. They’re concerned about their own interests and their own power.

More Senate Republicans other than the gang of 4, McConnell, Collins, Murkowski, and Thune are now openly speaking out against confirmation of Trump nominees without a lengthy process and FBI background checks.

Maybe it's the RINO's who need investigated. Traitors!

— Mike Engleman (@RealHickory) November 25, 2024

Under no circumstances should President Trump let any of his top appointees be dragged through the mud in the form of a scandal-seeking background check by the FBI.

House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) has tapped Greene to head up the new committee, which was conceptualized by tech entrepreneur Elon Musk and former businessman Vivek Ramaswamy. The two businessman were tasked with heading up the “Department Of Government Efficiency,” or “DOGE,” by President-elect Trump a little over a week after his re-election bid.

Greene’s committee will work with the two on carrying out the department’s tasks, which, according to Ramaswamy, will consist of massive cuts to several departments and the outright elimination of several federal agencies.

During an appearance on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures,” Greene provided an early look at some of the committee’s first priorities, which includes the reduction or outright cancellation of funding for National Public Radio (NPR).

“We’ll be looking at everything from government-funded media programs like NPR that spread nothing but Democrat propaganda, we’ll be going into grant programs that fund things like sex apps in Malaysia, toilets in Africa,” she told host Maria Bartiromo. […]

— Read More: trendingpoliticsnews.com

Phillip issued her diagnosis of the Democratic Party’s issues when speaking at the Institute of Politics for the Harvard Kennedy School of Business last week.

“Democrats are in that place now where they have to break out of it, and I think it is a real problem. It’s not as simple as wokeness or whatever. It’s about people who are being incentivized to think about issues in a particular way,” Phillip said.

The CNN anchor said that Democrats could fall victim to “groupthink” if they become too circular in their lines of communication.

“I have observed that elites increasingly talk only to each other and come to believe that because there is consensus among them, that that consensus is shared broadly, and there are not enough voices that are confident enough to disagree and to present alternatives,” she said. “And we as a society need to find better ways to uplift divergent voices. Otherwise, we will be victims of groupthink.”

Phillip chalked the party’s problem up to “elitism in general.”

“There needs to be more courage among people to speak out and to voice diverging opinion. Otherwise, you know, I think it’s a real issue, and it’s not just the Ivy League. I think it’s elitism in general,” she said. […]

— Read More: www.breitbart.com

Personally, I wholeheartedly support him for the role, and perhaps if it becomes necessary I’ll make the case for why I believe he’s ideal to take on the UniParty Swamp as the top law enforcement leader in the nation. But for now I just want to add clarity to the conversation because there seems to be a lot of confusion about what happens from here.

I discussed it in detail in a segment of my show (apologies for the backup YouTube link but I don’t have it posted on my Rumble channel yet):

For those who prefer to read rather than watch, here are the four paths for Gaetz to become Attorney General. I’ve put them in order from least to most ideal.

“Forced” Recess

There has been a lot of buzz about Speaker of the House Mike Johnson “forcing” the Senate into recess if upcoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune is unwilling or unable to adjourn for the required 10 days so Trump can make recess appointments.

What Johnson was referring to was a resolution calling for both chambers to adjourn. If the Senate does not want to adjourn, they can send back their edits to the resolution. If Johnson then denies the edits, the chambers are in a “state of disagreement” over adjourning. If that happens, then President Trump would decide when they adjourn and for how long.

If it sounds too good to be true, that’s because it is. This has never happened in Congress for a reason. All Thune has to do is… nothing. If he does not reply to Johnson’s resolution, it goes into limbo. Nothing happens other than Johnson being able to say he gave it his best shot.

Temporary Appointment

The Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 allows President Trump to appoint Gaetz as Attorney General in an “acting” role. This will give him full power over the Department of Justice and does not require the Senate’s advice or consent.

But it only lasts for 210 days. If President Trump nominates someone else during that time, then Gaetz can remain in the role until the Senate confirms the new Attorney General, but not longer than another 210 days.

This would give us 7-14 months with Attorney General Matt Gaetz. It’s better than nothing and a lot can be done in that time. But obviously it’s not ideal for those of us who want him to fill the role for at least four years.

Planned Recess

The option that most seem to be hoping for is a recess appointment made with a cooperative Senate and Senate Majority Leader adjourning for 11 days. This is what Trump called for before the secret GOP Senate leadership vote and all three contenders agreed to some extent.

Fast forward to today and this seems less likely, but I still think it could happen if Thune really is on Trump’s side and if he doesn’t see a path to confirmation. Gaetz can only afford to lose three GOP votes and some are saying ten or more Republican Senators are not committed to voting for him.

The reason this isn’t the most ideal scenario is because even though it’s faster than going through the confirmation process, it also opens the doors for lawfare to slow or even stop it. Trump wants the option available but he would prefer…

Senate Confirmation

A SPEEDY confirmation process for Gaetz and everyone else Trump appoints is the ideal scenario. Trump knows this which is why he’s been hitting the phones to stir up support among Republican Senators.

The risk here is if Thune works at Mitch McConnell’s speed. During Trump’s first term, McConnell was only able to confirm one of Trump’s picks before Inauguration Day. Compare that to Barack Obama and George W. Bush who both had key people in place with double-digit confirmations before they even stepped foot in the Oval Office.

I neither like nor trust Thune but he’s who we have so I’m going to give him the opportunity to prove me wrong about him. I hope and pray that he can buzz through confirmations and have Trump’s team in place early. If he can unify the caucus behind Gaetz, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, Pete Hegseth, Tulsi Gabbard, and any of the other controversial picks, then Thune will earn my respect for now. If he pulls a McConnell and acts to subvert Agenda 47, then he will prove to be the UniParty Swamp creature that I believe him to be.

The second Trump term looks VERY different. From Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk to Matt Gaetz and Tom Homan, the team is quickly turning into a dream.

On today’s episode of The JD Rucker Show, we went over the current picks, including today’s two surprises, Attorney General Matt Gaetz and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

But as bad as he is, Senator John Thune would be worse if he is selected as McConnell’s replacement. The secret ballot to determine who will lead the Senate next year is happening Sunday.

On today’s episode of The JD Rucker Show, I will explore why Thune is so bad, why Senator John Cornyn is almost as bad as Thune, and why Senator Rick Scott needs to be the guy. Scott isn’t perfect. Far from it. His embrace of Red Flag Gun Laws is conspicuous and concerning. But compared to his opponents, he’s exponentially better.