Good Morning!

Jean Kilbourne, a writer known for speaking out against alcohol and tobacco advertisements, once observed:

“Addiction begins with the hope that something ‘out there’ can instantly fill up the emptiness inside.”

Is that what’s behind the drug pandemic raging within the military?

1. Overdose a leading cause of death for Fort Bragg soldiers 

From TheBlaze:

An alarming new exposé from Rolling Stone highlights the fact that the U.S. military is not immune to the nation’s ongoing opioid epidemic.

Through casualty reports obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, Rolling Stone found that a total of 109 soldiers assigned to Fort Bragg, active and reserve, lost their lives in 2020 and 2021. Only four of the deaths occurred in overseas combat operations.

Fort Bragg, located in North Carolina south of Raleigh, is one of the largest military bases in the world and is the headquarters of several of the Army’s commands.

After suicide, accidental overdose is the leading cause of death at Fort Bragg. A total of 21 deaths in the two years ending December 2021 can likely to attributed to drug overdoses, according to Rolling Stone.

And another pandemic:

2.   The Rise of Wokeness in the Military 

From Hillsdale College’s Imprimis:

Wokeness in the military is being imposed by elected and appointed leaders in the White House, Congress, and the Pentagon who have little understanding of the purpose, character, traditions, and requirements of the institution they are trying to change. The push for it didn’t begin in the last two years under the Biden administration—nor will it automatically end if a non-woke administration is elected in 2024. Wokeness in the military has become ingrained. And unless the policies that flow from it are illegal or directly jeopardize readiness, senior military leaders have little alternative but to comply.

Woke ideology undermines military readiness in various ways. It undermines cohesiveness by emphasizing differences based on race, ethnicity, and sex. It undermines leadership authority by introducing questions about whether promotion is based on merit or quota requirements. It leads to military personnel serving in specialties and areas for which they are not qualified or ready. And it takes time and resources away from training activities and weapons development that contribute to readiness.

Wokeness in the military also affects relations between the military and society at large. It acts as a disincentive for many young Americans in terms of enlistment. And it undermines wholehearted support for the military by a significant portion of the American public at a time when it is needed the most.

3. Juul Settles Multistate Youth Vaping Inquiry for $438.5 Million 

From The New York Times:

Juul Labs, fighting for its survival in the United States, on Tuesday tentatively agreed to pay $438.5 million to settle an investigation by nearly three dozen states over marketing and sales practices that they contend set off the nation’s teenage vaping crisis.

The company said that it did not acknowledge any wrongdoing in the settlement, but that it was trying to “resolve issues from the past” while awaiting a decision by the Food and Drug Administration over whether it would be permitted to continue to sell its products. Juul has been trying to reposition itself as a seller of vaping products that could help adults quit smoking traditional cigarettes, in an effort to rehabilitate its tarnished reputation and improve its diminished market value.

The tentative settlement prohibits the company from marketing to youth, funding education in schools and misrepresenting the level of nicotine in its products. But Juul had already discontinued several marketing practices and withdrawn many of its flavored pods that appealed to teenagers, under public pressure from lawmakers, parents and health experts a few years ago when the vaping crisis was at a peak.

“We think that this will go a long way in stemming the flow of youth vaping,” William Tong, Connecticut’s attorney general, said at a news conference on Tuesday. “We are under no illusions and cannot claim that it will stop youth vaping. It continues to be an epidemic. It continues to be a huge problem. But we have essentially taken a big chunk out of what was once a market leader.”

4. Youngkin Slams Virginia School District for Transitioning Trans Students Without Parental Consent 

From Townhall:

At a rally last week, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) criticized a school district for directing teachers to transition “transgender” students without their parents knowledge.

To recap, Townhall reported last month how it was revealed that teachers in Fairfax County, Virginia were required to a complete training program ahead of the 2022-2023 school year that says parental consent is not required for transgender students who want to “socially” transition. “Social transitioning” includes going by a preferred name and preferred pronouns that align with someone’s “gender identity.”

“They [school officials] think that parents have no right to know what your child is discussing with their teacher or their counselor, particularly when some of the most important topics, most important topics that a child may want to discuss are being determined,” Youngkin said at the rally, according to Fox News Digital.

“What’s their name? What pronoun will they use? How are they going to express their gender? This is a decision that bureaucrats in Fairfax County believe that they should be able to make without telling parents,” he added.

5. Nearly 1 In 4 Democratic Voters Believe Men Can Get Pregnant: Poll 

From the Daily Wire:

Nearly one in four Democratic voters believe men can get pregnant, according to a new poll.

The online survey, conducted by WPA Intelligence from August 22-25, found 22% of Democrats agreed with the statement, “Some men can get pregnant.” The percentage rose when only including women, and a whopping 36% of white, college-educated female Democrats concurred.

“Overall, few Americans think men can get pregnant,” said WPAi Managing Director Conor Maguire. “But with 36% of a core Democratic constituency (college-educated white Democratic women) and one out of five Democrat voters believing this, one can see why Democratic leaders coddle the radical gender theory movement.”

The poll underscores the Left’s growing embrace of a radical gender theory that biological sex does not dictate gender. People born female can later “identify” as men while retaining the ability to reproduce; hence the claim “men” can become pregnant. A recent Pew Research poll found that about 5% of young adults in the U.S. believe it’s possible to identify into a gender that differs from their biological sex.

6.   How a Firebombed Pregnancy Center Is Changing the Post-Roe Landscape 

From the Gospel Coalition:

CompassCare was one of nearly 50 pregnancy centers attacked across the United States since the overturning of Roe was first leaked in May. So far, there have been “no arrests that we’re aware of,” Harden said.

In a state that spent the summer earmarking $35 million for abortion providers (including $10 million for security) and starting investigations into pro-life pregnancy centers, the lack of response to Jane’s Revenge in New York was hardly surprising.

But it doesn’t bother CompassCare as much as you’d think.

“We became a nationally recognized organization overnight,” said Kathy Mauer, CompassCare vice president of patient services. Harden “has done more than 200 interviews so far. It put us out there. And pro-life, believing Christians started helping us.”

7.   Pornhub booted off Instagram after complaints from anti-sexual exploitation group 

From the Christian Post:

A nonprofit that advocates against sexual exploitation praised Instagram’s reported decision to suspend Pornhub, citing the move as proof that the social media company acknowledges the severity of the accusations against the MindGeek-owned platform.

As the National Center on Sexual Exploitation reported on Saturday, the Meta-owned platform removed Pornhub’s account followed by over 13 million with over 6,200 posts. While the account didn’t share pornographic content, it promoted pornography and encouraged users to become pornography performers.

“Instagram was right to remove Pornhub from its platform for violating its community standards given the increasing reports of Pornhub hosting child sexual abuse material, sex trafficking, filmed rape, and non-consensual videos and images,” NCOSE CEO Dawn Hawkins said in a statement shared with The Chrisitan Post. 

“Instagram served as a distribution partner with this criminal enterprise, helping to push millions to their website, including children. We are grateful that Instagram has heard the voices of sexual abuse survivors who have been personally harmed by Pornhub’s insatiable appetite for profit,” she continued.

8.   So long San Francisco, L.A., New York: The top cities homebuyers are looking to leave 

From the Deseret News:

Here are the top 10 cities homebuyers looked to leave in July, the net outflow of users Redfin tracked that month and the portion of local users searching elsewhere. Net outflow is how many more Redfin.com users looked to leave a metro than move in.

1. San Francisco, California: 29,051 outflow of users, 24.1%.
2. Los Angeles, California: 25,017 outflow, 20.1%.
3. New York, New York: 19,782 outflow, 28.6%.
4. Washington, D.C.: 14,742 outflow, 17.8%.
5. Boston, Massachusetts: 8,742 outflow, 19.9%.
6. Seattle, Washington: 5,222 outflow, 17.5%.
7. Detroit, Michigan: 3,704 outflow, 34.1%.
8. Minneapolis, Minnesota: 3,334 outflow, 34.2%.
9. Chicago, Illinois: 3,284 outflow, 16%.
10. Denver, Colorado: 2,584 outflow, 30.2%.

9.   Best way to fend off dementia at any age? Break a sweat, doctors say 

From Study Finds:

If you want robust cognition and sharp thinking skills in old age, a recent study finds that a proper exercise routine will go a long way toward keeping your brain young – no matter how old you are.

Scientists at UC San Francisco have found that the brains of physically active elderly adults contain more of a specific type of protein known to enhance the connections between neurons and help maintain healthy cognition. Importantly, autopsies show this held up even among people whose brains contained high levels of toxic proteins associated with Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.

10. Two UK brothers to reunite after 77 years apart 

From the New York Post:

They’ve waited a lifetime for this moment.

Two brothers who’ve spent more than seven decades apart were set to meet for the first time in person Sunday.

Ted Nobbs, of the UK, was expected to hop on a plane to Australia for the long-awaited reunion with his youngest brother, Geoff, who was given up for adoption as a toddler in 1945.

“Hopefully, when I get to Australia I shall be able to meet Geoffrey, give him a hug which I’ve never been able to do,” Ted said in a recent interview with British news agency SWNS.

Geoff, now 79, was the youngest of four boys, but when their mother died of cancer at 30, their father gave up the 2-year-old, Ted recalled while holding a black-and-white framed photo of the four brothers together as tots.

“And I believe dad had this photograph taken so that we all knew one another and we could look back and we could look up one another,” Ted, 83, explained to SWNS.

Ted, from Rugby, Warwickshire, and Geoff, along with other brother Barry, were able to connect in 2014 after Geoff wrote to Barry, SWNS reported.

They’ve spoken over the phone many times and at one point, Ted said Geoff was planning to visit him for his 80th birthday before plans fell through due to COVID-19, Metro reported.