Josh Razini

LOLA WASN’T JUST THE FAMILY DOG. SHE WAS FAMILY. 🐾❤️

Lola, a small black-and-white Fox Paulistinha, traveled with her family in their pickup truck on a trip to attend a family funeral in Brazil.

She wasn’t left behind or treated like a pet riding separately. She traveled alongside the family, just as she always had.

When the journey ended, the family chose to say goodbye to Lola with the same dignity they would give any other beloved member of their family.

She was placed in a coffin, a final gesture that showed just how deeply she was loved.

Sources: Campo Grande News, g1

WHAT GADDAFI GOT RIGHT — AND WRONG ABOUT 9/11

In a 2009 interview with Larry King, Muammar Gaddafi was asked about Osama bin Laden and the September 11 attacks.

One part of his answer was broadly correct: the 19 hijackers were not Afghan or Iraqi. They came from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Lebanon. Several also received flight training in the United States.

But one key detail was wrong.

Gaddafi claimed the hijackers' planes had departed from JFK Airport in New York. They did not. American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 departed from Boston Logan. American Airlines Flight 77 departed from Washington Dulles, while United Airlines Flight 93 departed from Newark.

King also raised bin Laden's claimed responsibility. Gaddafi treated that as a separate question rather than accepting the claim as settled during the interview.

The historical record therefore gives a mixed picture: some of Gaddafi's details were accurate, while his claim about where the four aircraft originated was demonstrably false.

Sources: CNN transcripts, The 9/11 Commission Report, Federal Aviation Administration

FROM STOCK DISCLOSURE TO A TRADING BAN 📊

More than a decade ago, Congress chose disclosure over prohibition.

The STOCK Act requires members of Congress to publicly report certain financial transactions within 45 days. It did not ban lawmakers from trading those assets.

The newer proposals take a different approach. Instead of relying primarily on post-trade disclosure, legislation such as the No Getting Rich in Congress Act would restrict covered investments, including securities, commodities, futures and digital assets, with exceptions such as qualified blind trusts.

The debate has therefore shifted from “How quickly should officials disclose their trades?” to “Should members of Congress be allowed to trade these investments at all?”

Sources: The Hill, Quiver Quantitative

LINCOLN AND WASHINGTON TOGETHER STILL TRAILED OBAMA IN THIS POLL 🇺🇸

A recent poll measuring which presidents Americans admire produced an unusual lineup.

Barack Obama led with 30%, followed by Donald Trump at 19%. Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan each received 9%, John F. Kennedy had 6%, and George Washington received 5%.

Put Lincoln and Washington together, and their combined 14% still falls well below Obama’s 30% in this particular survey.

Another notable result: nearly 10% of respondents said they did not admire any president. Only six individual presidents reached at least 5% in the figures cited.

The results illustrate how strongly Americans’ views of presidential legacies can vary depending on the era, political affiliation and the wording of a survey. CNN has also reported significant differences in which presidents Americans admire across party lines.

Sources: CNN; Newsweek

HE WALKED ACROSS THE STAGE — BUT THE APPLAUSE WAS FOR HIS FATHER ❤️

Jefferson Monfardini, 49, has spent 26 years working for the same gas company. Unlike his son, he never had a graduation stage, cap, gown or packed auditorium celebrating his years of hard work.

His son had spent five years studying for his degree. When graduation day arrived, he decided his father deserved to be part of the moment in a different way.

He took his father’s gas cylinder, placed it on his shoulders in front of the crowd, and then raised it above his head.

For that moment, the cylinder represented something much bigger than a job. It represented 26 years of sacrifice, work and providing for his family.

The applause that filled the auditorium wasn’t just for a graduate.

It was for the father who helped make that graduation possible. ❤️

Sources: Terra; G1

MAMDANI STAYED UNTIL THE END — WHILE OTHERS LEFT

During New York’s 25th-anniversary 9/11 ceremony at Ground Zero, Mayor Zohran Mamdani remained through the full reading of the victims’ names. CNN confirmed that the names were read one by one as relatives and loved ones honored those who died.

Gov. Kathy Hochul left before the ceremony concluded to appear on CNN, while reports also said Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Chuck Schumer departed during the event.

Mamdani later met with victims’ families, according to reporting from the New York Post.

But another moment dominated the online reaction: a brief video showed Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez smiling during the ceremony. Critics, including Sen. Ted Cruz, condemned the moment as disrespectful, while others argued the short clip lacked context.

The ceremony itself remained focused on remembering the nearly 3,000 people killed on September 11, 2001.

Sources: CNN; New York Post

THE MEDAL OF HONOR HERO WHO CAN’T REMEMBER HIS OWN ACT OF COURAGE 🇺🇸

Other Marines saw the gr***de land.

The Marine who ultimately shielded his fellow service members from the blast has no memory of that moment. His account of what happened comes from the people who witnessed it and from the evidence investigators later documented.

Those Marines watched as the gr***de landed before he moved over it. Investigators later determined where the blast occurred relative to his position.

Today, the story of that split-second decision is preserved through the testimony of those who witnessed it—not through the memory of the man who made it.

That is part of what makes the Medal of Honor story so extraordinary: the person at the center of the moment cannot tell you what he did.

Sources: White House; Stars and Stripes

WHY WOULD A MAN WORTH MILLIONS KEEP A 2003 TRUCK? 🚙

Christian Bale bought a used Toyota Tacoma years ago — and instead of replacing it with something more luxurious, he kept driving it.

His reasoning is surprisingly practical. Bale told The Daily Beast that he loves motorcycles and can use the truck’s bed to transport them. His friends also use it whenever they need to move things. And because the Tacoma is already scratched and worn, he simply doesn’t worry about adding another dent.

During the Ford v Ferrari press tour, an interviewer mistakenly referred to the truck as a 2006 model. Bale immediately corrected her: “2003, thank you very much.” The moment became a memorable example of just how well he knows his old pickup.

For a Hollywood star associated with Batman and blockbuster movies, Bale’s choice is a reminder that expensive doesn't always mean better — sometimes the vehicle that does exactly what you need is the one worth keeping.

Sources: The Daily Beast, The Drive, Ford v Ferrari press tour footage

NANCY MACE SAYS “NO MERCY” IS FAIR IN CLANCY CASE

Rep. Nancy Mace has weighed in on the Lindsay Clancy case, saying that a harsh response is justified after the deaths of Clancy’s three children: Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months old.

Clancy’s defense has argued that she was experiencing postpartum psychosis and was unable to understand right from wrong at the time. Prosecutors have argued that she understood her actions and that the deaths were planned.

The first trial ended in a mistrial after seven days of jury deliberations, leaving the case unresolved. A retrial remains possible as the court considers the next steps.

Sources: Rep. Nancy Mace (X); Associated Press

🦜💙 52 BLUE MACAWS CROSSED A CONTINENT TO COME HOME

For years, the Spix’s macaw existed only in captivity after disappearing from the wild in Brazil. One of the largest captive populations was maintained by a German conservation organization, which helped breed the birds for a return to their native habitat.

In 2020, 52 Spix’s macaws were transferred from Germany to Brazil as part of a carefully planned reintroduction program. They were taken to a specialized facility in the Caatinga, close to the habitat where the species once lived.

Then came a historic milestone. In 2022, 20 of the birds were released into the wild—more than two decades after the species’ last confirmed wild bird disappeared. The first year produced promising survival and breeding results.

The comeback became even more remarkable when Spix’s macaw chicks were successfully born in the wild in Brazil, marking a new generation for a species once considered extinct in its natural habitat.

From captive breeding in Germany to a new life in Brazil’s Caatinga, the journey represents decades of conservation work—and an extraordinary second chance for one of the world’s rarest parrots. 💙



Sources: Bird Conservation International, Mongabay. 