Impressive victory for transgender-resisting Christian teacher

Byron Tanner Cross 

The Virginia Supreme Court on Monday affirmed a lower court's decision to reinstate Tanner Cross, a physical education teacher at Leesburg Elementary School, to his position after Loudoun County Public Schools suspended him for expressing his views on the board's transgender agenda.

The district has been ground zero in America for the fight over transgender mandates in public schools in recent weeks, and just days ago formally adopted a policy demanding adherence to the socio-political agenda.

The lower court had ruled Cross' suspension was likely unconstitutional as it was because of his speech, which is protected by the First Amendment. The school then appealed to the high court.

"Teachers shouldn’t be forced to promote ideologies that are harmful to their students and that they believe are false, nor should they be silenced for commenting at a public meeting," Tyson Langhofer, counsel for Cross. "The lower court’s decision was a well-reasoned application of the facts to clearly established law, as the Virginia Supreme Court found. But because Loudoun County Public Schools is now requiring all teachers and students to deny truths about what it means to be male and female and compelling them to call students by their chosen pronouns or face punishment, we have moved to amend our lawsuit to challenge that policy on behalf of multiple faculty members. Public employees cannot be forced to contradict their core beliefs just to keep a job."

The board's new dictate forces all school district students and staff to refer to "gender-expansive or transgender" students using whatever pronouns they can choose.

In response to the board's adoption of the mandate, several other teachers are being added to the case as plaintiffs.

When the lower court ordered Cross reinstated, the district near Washington, D.C., decided to double down on its punishment, filing the now-unsuccessful appeal.

At that time, the district insisted, "Leesburg Elementary School and Loudoun County Public Schools experienced – and continue to experience – significant disruption since the May 25 School Board meeting during which Cross addressed the board. Many students and parents at Leesburg Elementary have expressed fear, hurt and disappointment about coming to school. Addressing those concerns is paramount to the school division's goal to provide a safe, welcoming, and affirming learning environment for all students. While LCPS respects the rights of public-school employees to free speech and free exercise of religion, those rights do not outweigh the rights of students to be educated in a supportive and nurturing environment."

Actually, the court pointed out there were only a few parental comments that followed the case.

Earlier, Judge James E. Plowman Jr. found there was little evidence of any "disruption," with only a handful of emails.

Cross had spoken out during May as the board was considering new requirements that would accommodate and promote the transgender agenda. He said as a Christian he could not do that.

He was suspended within 24 hours, when the school claimed his comments caused a "disruption."

Plowman said, "The court finds that the plaintiff's speech and religious content are central to the determination made by the defendants to suspend plaintiff's employment. Defendants shall immediately reinstate the plaintiff to his position as it was prior to the issuance of this suspension and remove the ban that was placed upon him from all buildings and grounds of Loudoun County Public Schools."

The injunction controlling the school district's actions is to remain until the end of 2021, unless the fight is resolved earlier during a trial on the issues.

The judge found that the Cross was speaking as a citizen, and on a matter of public concern, and that there was "no actual disruption to school operations" because of his comments.

Further, the judge noted that any loss of First Amendment freedoms, "for even minimal periods of time," is "irreparable," and that "similarly situated employees" in the district already have been "chilled from speech" because of the administrators' actions.

"Enjoining a retaliatory suspension will not serve to harm the defendants," the judge said. "Further, it will serve to restore, to some degree, the reputation of the plaintiff that may have been harmed by defendants' actions."

The judge noted that the district even told the "community" by email of its actions against the teacher and that action was "an unnecessary and vindictive act."

The fight already has spilled over into the community. WJLA reported the county's Democrat leadership was targeting Pastor Gary Hamrick of Cornerstone Chapel.

He backed an effort to recall six Loudoun County school board members who were part of the attack on Cross.

He told his congregation, "We've got to take back our schools. What are we to do, just throw our arms up, surrender? And allow our kids to be taken over by liberal Marxist ideology?"

He cited the fight facing Cross, who with his wife attends the church.

"Friends, this is now where we are. Jesus calls us to occupy until he comes. Part of occupying is to be what Jesus tells us to be which is salt and light."

He said the application of those substances sometimes is "very uncomfortable."

But he said, "to be passive is to be complicit."

Lissa Savaglio, the chief of the county's Democrat Party, had accused the pastor of having dangerous opinions.

"Child abuse is a crime. And for him to go up and accuse our school board members of that, I think it is dangerous," she charged.

Impressive victory for transgender-resisting Christian teacher (wnd.com)

Braided Bread

Braiding a challah whether it's three strand, four strand, or even six strand is truly the only part in the entire recipe that's slightly challenging. The rest of it is surprisingly easy. All the more reason to bake your own to have on hand for the best french toasts of all time, epic grilled cheeses, or whatever you like to use challah for.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 1/4 cup (515g) bread flour

• 2 whole eggs (100g)

• 4 egg yolks (67g)

• 1/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp (102g) water @90-95F or 32-35C

• 3.5 tbsp (78g) honey

• 1/4 cup (60g) vegetable oil like sunflower

• 1 Tbsp (16g) fine sea salt *you can reduce this amount if you don't like the loaf as salty*

• 2 tsp (6g) instant yeast

Egg Wash Ingredients:

• 1 egg

• 1 Tbsp of water

INSTRUCTIONS:

Braiding A Four Strand Challah:

• Start by labeling your strands A,B,C, and D from left to right with the open part facing you. move A to the center, C to the far left, D to the center, B to the far right, C between A and D, and A to the far left, B in between C and D, D to the far right, you're back in your beginning position, just repeat what you just did until there isn't enough room to continue doing so, then bring the edges together and pinch together. Lightly fold 1/4 inch of the edges under the loaf to ensure they don't come undone.

Method:

1. Start off by mixing instant yeast with water warmed to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Give a little mix until dissolved, and let it sit for 5-8 minutes.

2. In a small mixing bowl, mix together bread flour and fine sea salt. Transfer to a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook; and with your mixer on low speed, add in your yeast mixture along with honey.

3. Toss in the remainder of your ingredients - 2 whole eggs, 4 egg yolks and vegetable oil. Mix on medium-low speed, scraping the sides if necessary for 4-6 minutes.

4. Lightly grease a medium sized bowl and shape your dough into a ball by gently tucking the bottom into itself and rolling it onto a work surface. Place your taut ball in your bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Let sit at about 76 degrees Fahrenheit for one hour.

5. Once that hour is up, perform some light stretch and folds by grabbing one edge and folding it over to the middle; repeating all the way around the dough. Then, pick up your dough and flip it over seam side down. Cover and let it rest again for one more hour.

6. After that hour has passed, remove your dough from the bowl and divide it into 4 pieces; each weighing about 232 grams.

7. Take each piece and shape it into a rough rectangle that’s relatively even. Fold the top part of the rectangle to the middle and repeat with the bottom; overlapping the top. Gently seal it and lightly conform to an even tube shape. Repeat with all of your remaining dough, cover and allow to rest for 15 minutes.

8. Once they’ve rested, dust a work surface with flour and gently roll out your dough into 13-14 inch strands; starting from the middle and working your way out to taper off the edges.

9. Take your 4 strands and meet them all at one point from the end facing farthest away from you. Conjoin all of those strands together.

10. *See above for a guide on braiding your loaves.*

11. When you’re done braiding, pinch all of the edges together and push that edge underneath the loaf.

12. On a baking sheet, spray on some cooking oil and then place down parchment paper. Place your braided loaf on the baking sheet and brush with egg wash. Once done, place in an oven that’s turned off with the light on. Let it rise for 2 hours. During this time, brush the loaf every 40 minutes with egg wash.

13. To test and see if the loaf is done proofing; dip your finger in egg wash and poke the loaf. If it springs back easily, it’s ready to bake; if not, it needs to proof more.

14. Set your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and brush your loaf one last time with egg wash. Place your loaf in the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 325 and bake for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown.

    https://www.joshuaweissman.com/post/braided-bread

Taliban Begin House-to-House Executions With US Government's Full Departure from Afghanistan

 

Now that the United States government’s last plane has gone and Americans and their allies were abandoned in the process, the Taliban are reportedly going from house to house and executing residents.

Originally reported by Fox News, a video posted by an American ally filmed a video where gunshots can be heard not too far away.

“I think there’s a conflict between the Taliban, I have no idea where I’m located. From everywhere I hear the sounds of shooting, gunfire. I have no idea how to leave,” the man who recorded the clip said.

That the Taliban are going door to door and executing people comes from an unnamed senior U.S. official. Fox News reported that the worst of the Taliban activity was kept away from Kabul due to all the media attention it was receiving at the time. With the withdrawal of the U.S., it’s likely that the Taliban will begin resuming regular activities such as the executions:

Last Wednesday, a former translator for a high-ranking U.S. Army Ranger told Fox News the Taliban had started executing allies of the U.S. in public, in provinces away from the media attention of Kabul.

“They are not doing really bad stuff in Kabul right now because there’s a lot of media focus on Kabul, but they already started public execution in other provinces where a lot of media is not available or covering it,” the interpreter said.

The Taliban seems to be very wary of the power of the media and wants to be able to manipulate people in the west as much as possible. For instance, the Taliban recently said one of their biggest concerns as a new government is “climate change,” which is obviously a lie, but may very well work on people within the media and climate alarmists.

(Read: Taliban Declare They’re Going to Tackle Climate Change In Clear Attempt to Manipulate the Media)

This news makes the list given to the Taliban by the U.S. government filled with names of Americans and American allies all the more sinister. With no one watching, the Taliban will likely slaughter or torture anyone abandoned by the U.S. government’s swift retreat. This makes the claims that the list would ultimately be a “kill list” overwhelmingly true.

This may be one of the greatest betrayals the U.S. government has ever committed, not just on its own allies, but its own people.

Taliban Begin House-to-House Executions With US Government's Full Departure from Afghanistan – RedState

Gold Star Mother of Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui Will Leave Home After His Funeral for White House and Demand POS Biden Resign

Shana Chappell is the mother of slain US Marine Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui. Lance Cpl. Nikoui was killed last week when a suicide bomber was allowed into the inner perimeter of the Kabul Airport and blew himself up killing 13 American servicemen and women and over 100 Afghans.

Shana Chappell not only lost her Marine son she had her Instagram account deleted after she posted a photo and tribute message to her dead son.

** Here is the post that got her Instagram account disabled.

Shana Chappell was angry at Joe Biden and wrote about it on Instagram and for this she had her account deleted by the tech giant. No dissent against the regime is allowed.

But this didn’t stop Shana, on Monday Shana Chappell posted a letter to Joe Biden after she returned home from Dover Air Base.

President Joe Biden Joe Biden This msg is for you! I know my face is etched into your brain! I was able to look you straight in the eyes yesterday and have words with you. After i lay my son to rest you will be seeing me again! Remember i am the one who stood 5 inches from your face and was letting you know i would never get to hug my son again, hear his laugh and then you tried to interrupt me and give me your own sob story and i had to tell you “that this isn’t about you so don’t make it about you!!!” You then said you just wanted me to know that you know how i feel and i let you know that you don’t know how i feel and you do not have the right to tell me you know how i feel! U then rolled your fucking eyes in your head like you were annoyed with me and i let you know that the only reason i was talking to you was out of respect for my son and that was the only reason why, i then proceeded to tell you again how you took my son away from me and how i will never get to hug him, kiss him, laugh with him again etc… u turned to walk away and i let you know my sons blood was on your hands and you threw your hand up behind you as you walked away from me like you were saying “ ok whatever!!! You are not the president of the United States of America Biden!!!! Cheating isn’t winning!!!You are no leader of any kind! You are a weak human being and a traitor!!!! You turned your back on my son, on all of our Heros!!! you are leaving the White House one way or another because you do not belong there!MY SONS BLOOD IS ON YOUR HANDS!!! All 13 of them, their blood is on your hands!!!! If my president Trump was in his rightful seat then my son and the other Heros would still be alive!!!! You will be seeing me again very soon!!! Btw as my son and the rest of our fallen Heros were being taken off the plane yesterday i watched you disrespect us all 5 different times by checking your watch!!! What the fuck was so important that you had to keep looking at your watch????You are nobody special Biden!!! America Hates you!!!!! 

Shana Chappell then promised to drive to the White House the day after her son’s funeral and hold a protest demanding that POS Biden resign “and take his whole corrupt admin with him.”

We stand with you Shana Chappell.  Please let us know how we can support you.

Thank you for your courage.  We thank your son for his service.

God bless you.  May your hero son rest in peace.

BREAKING: Gold Star Mother of Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui Will Leave Home After His Funeral for White House and Demand POS Biden Resign (thegatewaypundit.com)

State instructs teachers to exclude role of Islam in 9/11 attacks

Classes on 20th anniversary to focus on 'anti-Muslim racism'

By Art Moore WND
August 30, 2021

As the 20th anniversary of 9/11 approaches, teachers in Virginia schools are being instructed to avoid connecting the attacks to Islam and instead focus on "anti-Muslim racism."

The state's Department of Education hosted a speaker described as an "education leadership scholar" who alleged that anti-Muslim sentiment rises around the anniversary of the attacks targeting the nation's political, military and economic centers that killed nearly 3,000 people.

The speaker, Amaarah DeCuir, delivered a PowerPoint presentation that stated school and classroom 9/11 commemorations "are sites for increased anti-Muslim racism," the Daily Wire reported.

"This year's 20th anniversary commemorations will likely result in heightened risks of racist discourse, threats, and violence targeting Muslim students in schools and society," it states. 

"Educators are well-positioned to disrupt these risks by centering the socio-emotional needs of Muslims in their commemoration plans."

DeCuir presented a list of teaching standards that are "in" and "out."

"In" is "acknowledgment of anti-Muslim racism."

"Out," among others things, are the "false assumption of Muslim responsibility for 9/11" and "American exceptionalism."

She said examples of "harmful teaching" on 9/11 include "reducing 9/11 instruction to death counts and fear mongering," "teaching about Islam and/or Muslims" and "amplifying the extremists and extremist acts of 9/11."

DeCuir also insisted teachers should not be "demanding the condemnation of 9/11" or "reproducing a single, American narrative that marginalizes other students."

The Daily Wire noted DeCuir's bio from American University describes her as an education scholar who "focuses on the intersections of leadership, gender, and diverse cultural contexts to advance social justice."

On Twitter, she called on "antiracist" educators to help "disrupt" the current education of 9/11.

The Daily Wire reported Virginia State Senator Steve Newman condemned the presentation, urging educators instead to teach "the facts."

“I lived through 9/11," he said. " ... This one event was due to Muslim extremists and their actions, the desire of these individuals to kill as many Americans as possible at one time. Why do we need to change history, again? Just tell the facts,” Newman said.

The lawmaker said children must be taught "the awful truth about the events of that day, and the evil intent behind the terrorists."

Which mask to buy?

 Which mask to buy?

Democrats Slam Supreme Court’s Eviction Moratorium Decision

 Why Pelosi and her fellow Democrats have nobody to blame but themselves.

Democrat House Speaker Nancy Pelosi denounced the Supreme Court for ruling that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) had exceeded its statutory authority when it unilaterally issued its latest moratorium order regarding evictions of tenants during the COVID-19 pandemic. The CDC had done so following the expiration of its previous moratorium order.

The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision, issued on August 26, 2021, was in response to an application for emergency relief by a group of realtors and rental property managers.

“If a federally imposed eviction moratorium is to continue,” the eight-page unsigned majority opinion declared, “Congress must specifically authorize it.” The three more liberal Supreme Court justices dissented.

Pelosi accused the Supreme Court of “immorally” ripping away relief for beleaguered tenants in “a ruling that is arbitrary and cruel.” Pelosi added that “Congressional Democrats have not and will not ever accept a situation of mass evictions.”

Pelosi has nobody to blame but herself and her fellow Democrats. “Congress was on notice that a further extension would almost surely require new legislation,” the majority opinion pointed out, “yet it failed to act in the several weeks leading up to the moratorium’s expiration.”

The Democrats control both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Yet they failed to pass the necessary congressional authorization, even after an earlier Supreme Court 5-4 decision had allowed the CDC’s previous eviction moratorium to run its course until its expiration date of July 31, 2021 with one major caveat from a key conservative member of that majority. Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh warned that he would not support any further extension beyond the July 31 expiration without “clear and specific congressional authorization (via new legislation).”

The signal to Congress could not have been any clearer – do your job! But the Democrat-controlled Congress, including the House that Pelosi normally rules with an iron hand, failed to legislate. The votes were simply not there. Instead, Pelosi and her progressive allies demanded that the Biden administration take executive action on its own to extend the moratorium.

Even President Joe Biden at first hesitated to go that far, after being advised by his lawyers that to do so would probably not survive a constitutional challenge. But the progressive left refused to take no for an answer.

Representative Cori Bush of Missouri, a radical member of the “Squad,” conducted a sit-in on the U.S. Capitol steps to press for a new eviction moratorium.

“Get better lawyers,” Pelosi said in scolding the Biden administration for initially taking the Constitution seriously.

So much for respecting the Constitution’s system of checks and balances and the rule of law. The progressive left believes that the ends justify the means in obtaining their desired outcome.

Biden buckled under the pressure, as he so often does. His CDC issued what it claimed was a new, more targeted eviction moratorium order in early August. The new moratorium order applied to evictions of any qualified tenants who live in a county or territory that is experiencing substantial or high levels of COVID–19 transmission and who make certain declarations relating to their financial circumstances.

However, in practice, the CDC was simply putting old wine in new bottles. At the time that the CDC issued its new order, which carried criminal penalties for violations, its reach covered areas where approximately 90% of the U.S. population lives.

The Supreme Court majority was not fooled. “Apart from slightly narrowing the geographic scope, the new moratorium is indistinguishable from the old,” the majority opinion said.

The majority found that the CDC stretched the provision in a decades-old health statute it was relying upon for its regulatory authority beyond any reasonable bounds. “Regulations under this authority have generally been limited to quarantining infected individuals and prohibiting the import or sale of animals known to transmit disease,” the majority opinion declared.

“Since that provision’s enactment in 1944, no regulation premised on it has even begun to approach the size or scope of the eviction moratorium,” the majority observed. “And it is further amplified by the CDC’s decision to impose criminal penalties of up to a $250,000 fine and one year in jail on those who violate the moratorium.”

Progressive leftists characterize people as either oppressors or oppressed, defined according to group identities such as race or class. They rarely look at individuals as distinct human beings with their own unique needs, circumstances, and aspirations. Under the progressive left’s vision of the world, all landlords are bad, and all tenants are good. But that is not the real world.

There are plenty of landlords just scraping by who need the monthly revenue from rents to prevent foreclosure and deterioration of their properties. Brookings estimated that about “40 percent of residential property units are owned by individual investor landlords. Among those owning residential investment property, roughly a third are from low- to moderate-income households; property income constitutes up to 20 percent of their total household income.”

There are also plenty of tenants who have been gaming the system with devastating consequences for their landlords. A Holocaust-survivor landlord, for example, found herself homeless after the tenant to whom she had rented her Hamptons house in New York refused to vacate after the tenant’s lease expired this past June. The tenant stayed put, claiming that she was protected by New York’s own pandemic-related eviction ban.

Blue state New York also happens to be one of the states that have failed most miserably to distribute monies they received from the federal government to help needy tenants having trouble paying their rent. The $46.5 billion federal rental aid program was funded as part of two federal pandemic relief packages that Congress has passed during the last year. Only about 11 percent of the money Congress allocated for distribution by states and localities  - $5.1 billion – has reached the intended beneficiaries through the end of July. New York lags far behind in distribution of the relief money it received.

Finally, the progressive left’s ‘rules for thee, but not for me’ brand of hypocrisy is outrageous. Exhibit A is Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, the far left “Squad” member from Michigan. Tlaib lashed out at the Supreme Court’s eviction moratorium decision, which she claimed, without any evidence, “will evict millions of people from their homes amid a growing pandemic.”

Tlaib accused the Supreme Court of protecting “the interests of the rich and corporations at the expense of workers.” Tlaib checked her compassion for tenants struggling to pay their rent last year at the door, however, when she put on her landlord hat and collected rent from her own tenants.

Democrats Slam Supreme Court’s Eviction Moratorium Decision | Frontpagemag