FDA Approves Therapy For Rare Disease Without Randomized Trial Data

Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The Food and Drug Administration on Aug. 14 approved a therapy for a rare disease called recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP).

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in White Oak, Md., on June 5, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Regulators cleared Papzimeos, an immunotherapy made by Precigen, citing data from a single-arm, open-label trial that looked at how it performed in adults with RRP and who needed at least three surgeries a year.

Patients received four injections of the therapy over 12 weeks following surgical procedures.

About half of the participants needed no surgery in the year following treatment. The safety profile was also deemed favorable.

“Randomized trials are not always needed to approve medical products and this approval is proof of that philosophy,” Dr. Vinay Prasad, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.

“The FDA will always demand the correct clinical study for the specific medical product and disease. Our requirements for products given to tens of millions of healthy people will be different than products given to at most hundreds or thousands of patients with unique diseases.”

The approval is the first announcement from Prasad after he rejoined the FDA following his July resignation.

Prasad had received criticism for not approving enough new drugs and therapies, including from the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal, which said that Prasad “has long criticized such single-arm studies that have no placebo groups.”

Replimune’s treatment for advanced melanoma is among the drugs the FDA has rejected since Prasad became its top vaccine and biologics official.

Prasad said in May that he favors randomized clinical trials but that for some rare diseases, it would be difficult or even impossible to complete such trials. He said that the FDA would have a “flexible regulatory standard” that takes into account “the context of a disease.”

In June, in an article co-authored by FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, he said that for some products targeting rare diseases, “premarket randomized trials may not be feasible.”

RRP, which is caused by human papillomavirus, features the development of noncancerous tumors in the air passages inside the body. Without removal, the tumors lead to problems such as difficulty breathing.

People with the disease typically undergo multiple surgeries per year because the tumors often regrow after removal.

About 1,000 new cases of RRP are diagnosed in the United States on an annual basis, according to the FDA.

Before the approval of Papzimeos, there were no approved therapies for RRP.

“For more than a century, since RRP was first recognized as a distinct disease, patients have had to rely on repeated surgeries to manage this relentless condition,” Precigen CEO Helen Sabzevari said in a statement. “Today marks a historic turning point.”

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 22:10

FDA Approves Therapy For Rare Disease Without Randomized Trial Data

Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The Food and Drug Administration on Aug. 14 approved a therapy for a rare disease called recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP).

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in White Oak, Md., on June 5, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Regulators cleared Papzimeos, an immunotherapy made by Precigen, citing data from a single-arm, open-label trial that looked at how it performed in adults with RRP and who needed at least three surgeries a year.

Patients received four injections of the therapy over 12 weeks following surgical procedures.

About half of the participants needed no surgery in the year following treatment. The safety profile was also deemed favorable.

“Randomized trials are not always needed to approve medical products and this approval is proof of that philosophy,” Dr. Vinay Prasad, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.

“The FDA will always demand the correct clinical study for the specific medical product and disease. Our requirements for products given to tens of millions of healthy people will be different than products given to at most hundreds or thousands of patients with unique diseases.”

The approval is the first announcement from Prasad after he rejoined the FDA following his July resignation.

Prasad had received criticism for not approving enough new drugs and therapies, including from the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal, which said that Prasad “has long criticized such single-arm studies that have no placebo groups.”

Replimune’s treatment for advanced melanoma is among the drugs the FDA has rejected since Prasad became its top vaccine and biologics official.

Prasad said in May that he favors randomized clinical trials but that for some rare diseases, it would be difficult or even impossible to complete such trials. He said that the FDA would have a “flexible regulatory standard” that takes into account “the context of a disease.”

In June, in an article co-authored by FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, he said that for some products targeting rare diseases, “premarket randomized trials may not be feasible.”

RRP, which is caused by human papillomavirus, features the development of noncancerous tumors in the air passages inside the body. Without removal, the tumors lead to problems such as difficulty breathing.

People with the disease typically undergo multiple surgeries per year because the tumors often regrow after removal.

About 1,000 new cases of RRP are diagnosed in the United States on an annual basis, according to the FDA.

Before the approval of Papzimeos, there were no approved therapies for RRP.

“For more than a century, since RRP was first recognized as a distinct disease, patients have had to rely on repeated surgeries to manage this relentless condition,” Precigen CEO Helen Sabzevari said in a statement. “Today marks a historic turning point.”

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 22:10

Judge Puts Infowars Up For Sale Again As Leftists Clamor For Alex Jones Takedown

The establishment media has long argued that the Sandy Hook lawsuits against Alex Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, are about "justice" for grieving parents suffering from harassment.  However, the actions of the plaintiffs and others involved in the civil case suggest that their goals are highly political and have little to do with compensating for alleged pain caused by Jones voicing his opinions on the event. 

If the suit was simply about reparations for hardship of the "victims" caused by defamation, then the payout would have been based on an amount Jones could realistically produce.  Instead, judges awarded 15 plaintiffs $1.5 billion in damages; an insane punishment designed to bury Jones forever.  

Because a bankruptcy judge in Connecticut ruled Jones' behavior was "willful and malicious" in spreading "false information" about the Sandy Hook shooting, his debt to the families cannot be erased through bankruptcy proceedings and Jones could be required to continue to pay on all future income until the the plaintiffs receive the full amount. 

Meaning, the political left wants to make Jones into a pauper or a slave for the rest of his life and a cautionary tale to others in the alternative media. 

Furthermore, officials in charge of the initial auction allegedly rigged the outcome in favor of a sale to leftist propaganda rag, The Onion.  The Onion did not have the cash on hand to service their $7 million bid for the sale, instead they relied on a deal that would have tapped into Jones' future payments to the plaintiffs, as if Jones' wallet could be treated as a bank account in control of The Onion (otherwise known as a "contingency bid").  

The Onion offered $1.75 million in actual cash for Infowars assets. First United American Companies, which runs a website in Jones' name that sells nutritional supplements bid $3.5 million, but somehow The Onion still won the auction.  Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez blocked the sale and criticized the auction process as flawed.  He said the outcome "left a lot of money on the table" for families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. 

In other words, this suggests that the plaintiffs were willing to sacrifice part of their damages just to see The Onion take control of Infowars and humiliate Jones. But again, the lawsuits weren't politically motivated at all...

A new decision by Texas Judge Maya Guerra Gamble in a Wednesday hearing orders that Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, will once again be turned over to a court-appointed receiver, who will be responsible for selling the assets and using the proceeds to pay Jones’ debts to the Sandy Hook families.

Numerous progressive legacy outlets jumped on the story this week, all of them hoping that The Onion will still be able to buy the brand and turn it into a "parody of itself".  Of course, this would require that they have more cash on hand than any competing buyers.  It also requires a level of comedy talent that doesn't exist at The Onion, which means readers would be few and the Infowars parody website would likely fade into obscurity.   

Leftists have been salivating over the possible dismantling of Alex Jones' media empire for years, believing that the selling of his assets will represent a massive "victory" for their side and remove one of their most popular enemies from the culture war chessboard. 

Of course, even if they were to get exactly what they want, Jones has already essentially won.  The leftists are on the run and the national shift has been dramatic since the Sandy Hook suit was decided.  Jones has helped to accomplish a primary goal - The defeat of woke ideology in America. 

By extension, the sale of Infowars is not looked upon as an act of "justice being served" by most of the public.  It is regarded as a petty sabotage by a fearful, shrinking political minority desperate to prevent the voices of their ideological opponents from being heard.  It is not the kind of win that the woke club thinks it is.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 21:35

Judge Puts Infowars Up For Sale Again As Leftists Clamor For Alex Jones Takedown

The establishment media has long argued that the Sandy Hook lawsuits against Alex Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, are about "justice" for grieving parents suffering from harassment.  However, the actions of the plaintiffs and others involved in the civil case suggest that their goals are highly political and have little to do with compensating for alleged pain caused by Jones voicing his opinions on the event. 

If the suit was simply about reparations for hardship of the "victims" caused by defamation, then the payout would have been based on an amount Jones could realistically produce.  Instead, judges awarded 15 plaintiffs $1.5 billion in damages; an insane punishment designed to bury Jones forever.  

Because a bankruptcy judge in Connecticut ruled Jones' behavior was "willful and malicious" in spreading "false information" about the Sandy Hook shooting, his debt to the families cannot be erased through bankruptcy proceedings and Jones could be required to continue to pay on all future income until the the plaintiffs receive the full amount. 

Meaning, the political left wants to make Jones into a pauper or a slave for the rest of his life and a cautionary tale to others in the alternative media. 

Furthermore, officials in charge of the initial auction allegedly rigged the outcome in favor of a sale to leftist propaganda rag, The Onion.  The Onion did not have the cash on hand to service their $7 million bid for the sale, instead they relied on a deal that would have tapped into Jones' future payments to the plaintiffs, as if Jones' wallet could be treated as a bank account in control of The Onion (otherwise known as a "contingency bid").  

The Onion offered $1.75 million in actual cash for Infowars assets. First United American Companies, which runs a website in Jones' name that sells nutritional supplements bid $3.5 million, but somehow The Onion still won the auction.  Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez blocked the sale and criticized the auction process as flawed.  He said the outcome "left a lot of money on the table" for families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. 

In other words, this suggests that the plaintiffs were willing to sacrifice part of their damages just to see The Onion take control of Infowars and humiliate Jones. But again, the lawsuits weren't politically motivated at all...

A new decision by Texas Judge Maya Guerra Gamble in a Wednesday hearing orders that Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, will once again be turned over to a court-appointed receiver, who will be responsible for selling the assets and using the proceeds to pay Jones’ debts to the Sandy Hook families.

Numerous progressive legacy outlets jumped on the story this week, all of them hoping that The Onion will still be able to buy the brand and turn it into a "parody of itself".  Of course, this would require that they have more cash on hand than any competing buyers.  It also requires a level of comedy talent that doesn't exist at The Onion, which means readers would be few and the Infowars parody website would likely fade into obscurity.   

Leftists have been salivating over the possible dismantling of Alex Jones' media empire for years, believing that the selling of his assets will represent a massive "victory" for their side and remove one of their most popular enemies from the culture war chessboard. 

Of course, even if they were to get exactly what they want, Jones has already essentially won.  The leftists are on the run and the national shift has been dramatic since the Sandy Hook suit was decided.  Jones has helped to accomplish a primary goal - The defeat of woke ideology in America. 

By extension, the sale of Infowars is not looked upon as an act of "justice being served" by most of the public.  It is regarded as a petty sabotage by a fearful, shrinking political minority desperate to prevent the voices of their ideological opponents from being heard.  It is not the kind of win that the woke club thinks it is.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 21:35

Judge Puts Infowars Up For Sale Again As Leftists Clamor For Alex Jones Takedown

The establishment media has long argued that the Sandy Hook lawsuits against Alex Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, are about "justice" for grieving parents suffering from harassment.  However, the actions of the plaintiffs and others involved in the civil case suggest that their goals are highly political and have little to do with compensating for alleged pain caused by Jones voicing his opinions on the event. 

If the suit was simply about reparations for hardship of the "victims" caused by defamation, then the payout would have been based on an amount Jones could realistically produce.  Instead, judges awarded 15 plaintiffs $1.5 billion in damages; an insane punishment designed to bury Jones forever.  

Because a bankruptcy judge in Connecticut ruled Jones' behavior was "willful and malicious" in spreading "false information" about the Sandy Hook shooting, his debt to the families cannot be erased through bankruptcy proceedings and Jones could be required to continue to pay on all future income until the the plaintiffs receive the full amount. 

Meaning, the political left wants to make Jones into a pauper or a slave for the rest of his life and a cautionary tale to others in the alternative media. 

Furthermore, officials in charge of the initial auction allegedly rigged the outcome in favor of a sale to leftist propaganda rag, The Onion.  The Onion did not have the cash on hand to service their $7 million bid for the sale, instead they relied on a deal that would have tapped into Jones' future payments to the plaintiffs, as if Jones' wallet could be treated as a bank account in control of The Onion (otherwise known as a "contingency bid").  

The Onion offered $1.75 million in actual cash for Infowars assets. First United American Companies, which runs a website in Jones' name that sells nutritional supplements bid $3.5 million, but somehow The Onion still won the auction.  Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez blocked the sale and criticized the auction process as flawed.  He said the outcome "left a lot of money on the table" for families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. 

In other words, this suggests that the plaintiffs were willing to sacrifice part of their damages just to see The Onion take control of Infowars and humiliate Jones. But again, the lawsuits weren't politically motivated at all...

A new decision by Texas Judge Maya Guerra Gamble in a Wednesday hearing orders that Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, will once again be turned over to a court-appointed receiver, who will be responsible for selling the assets and using the proceeds to pay Jones’ debts to the Sandy Hook families.

Numerous progressive legacy outlets jumped on the story this week, all of them hoping that The Onion will still be able to buy the brand and turn it into a "parody of itself".  Of course, this would require that they have more cash on hand than any competing buyers.  It also requires a level of comedy talent that doesn't exist at The Onion, which means readers would be few and the Infowars parody website would likely fade into obscurity.   

Leftists have been salivating over the possible dismantling of Alex Jones' media empire for years, believing that the selling of his assets will represent a massive "victory" for their side and remove one of their most popular enemies from the culture war chessboard. 

Of course, even if they were to get exactly what they want, Jones has already essentially won.  The leftists are on the run and the national shift has been dramatic since the Sandy Hook suit was decided.  Jones has helped to accomplish a primary goal - The defeat of woke ideology in America. 

By extension, the sale of Infowars is not looked upon as an act of "justice being served" by most of the public.  It is regarded as a petty sabotage by a fearful, shrinking political minority desperate to prevent the voices of their ideological opponents from being heard.  It is not the kind of win that the woke club thinks it is.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 21:35

New GPS Data Reveals Exactly Who Showed Up At White House Protests

Dark-money-funded leftist NGOs were at it again this weekend, attempting to stage a color-revolution-style regime change in Washington, D.C., right outside the White House. But as with every operation this year, dating back to "Tesla Takedown," the only people these far-left groups, funded by rogue billionaires and some with taxpayer funds, managed to summon were the usual unhinged white baby-boomer liberal, serial protesters at best, with nothing else better to do. 

Self-proclaimed investor and "CIA/NSA contractor/whistleblower" Tony Seruga wrote on X about who potentially attended the D.C. protest march on Saturday. Using device data collected from the area, Seruga found it was largely the same crowd, leftist NGO foot soldiers - or repeat protesters from previous marches... 

Here's a breakdown of Seruga's data: 

Device Analysis

• 318 mobile devices present (law enforcement, media, and demonstrators).

• 92% of devices had been at 5+ past D.C. protests.

• 67 devices tied to federal government employees, with access to secured federal buildings (DoD, VA, DHS, DOJ, FBI, Treasury).

• 9 devices accessed the White House Northwest Gate multiple times in the prior 30 days.

Demographics: Mostly local DMV residents; 86.7% from homes valued >$850,000, 34% from homes valued >$2.5 million.

Protest Details

• Branded as "Free DC" and "Fight the Trump Takeover".

• Targeted Trump's federalization of D.C. policing and National Guard deployments from GOP states.

• Route: Dupont Circle → White House (~1.5 miles). Chants/signs: "Trump Must Go", "Hands Off DC".

• Part of broader anti-Trump demonstrations nationwide.

Organizers & Funding

• Led by Community Change and Community Change Action under the "Free DC" initiative.

• Backed by $20M+ from progressive dark-money networks: Soros' Open Society Foundations Arabella Advisors network Tides Foundation

Paid Participation

• Reports of 400% surge in demand for paid protesters in D.C. after Trump's announcements.

• Crowds on Demand confirmed anti-Trump events drove most inquiries.

• Soros allegedly spent $20M on crowd-rental services for demonstrations.

GPS—there were 318 mobile devices present, including law enforcement and media. 92% have been present at 5 or more past DC protests.

67 appear to likely be federal government employees, with their mobile devices accessing both keycard required garages and federal buildings,… https://t.co/f4y1hiFNv1

— Tony Seruga (@TonySeruga) August 17, 2025

Free speech in the U.S. was never intended to serve as a perpetual vehicle for a permanent protest industrial complex funded by leftist billionaires and new indications that foreign adversaries could be sowing chaos in the U.S., exploiting the NGO sphere: Think Communist billionaire Neville Roy Singham...

Communist Billionaire Accused Of Funding Anti-ICE Riots Mysteriously Vanishes https://t.co/NjFnJGKxht

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) July 10, 2025

What certainly caught everyone's attention was a recent interview between NewsNation's Brian Entin and Adam Swart, CEO of an activist group called 'Crowds on Demand'.

Swart told Entin that an unnamed organization offered his company $20 million to recruit demonstrators for the anti-Trump protests in July. 

He told the journalist, "We had to reject an offer worth around $20 million for nationwide, large-scale demonstrations across the country. Personally, I don't think it's effective. I'm rejecting the contract not because I don't want the business, but because, frankly, this is going to be ineffective and make us all look bad."

The CEO of “Crowds on Demand” tells me he was offered $20,000,000 to recruit demonstrators for the anti-Trump protests on Thursday. pic.twitter.com/2A6ezwo0cc

— Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) July 15, 2025

From Seruga's GPS data to the interview with the Crowds on Demand CEO, the picture that readers have known all along is clear: the permanent protester industrial complex is bankrolled by leftist billionaires (and possibly group ex-US). Some of these groups were highly successful during the Marxist revolt of 2020 via BLM and other rogue non-profits, but their latest color-revolution-style operation has run into brick walls, especially after the Trump administration deployed federal soldiers into Los Angeles earlier this summer to crush the Marxist anti-ICE chaos.

The permanent protester industrial complex will march on - and its followers include unhinged white baby boomers, some of whom look like they were bused in from retirement homes.

Old White liberals carry signs during a protest against President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of policing of the District of Columbia, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Trump administration is waking up to how foreign adversaries are using rogue leftist NGO networks for irregular warfare.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 20:25

New GPS Data Reveals Exactly Who Showed Up At White House Protests

Dark-money-funded leftist NGOs were at it again this weekend, attempting to stage a color-revolution-style regime change in Washington, D.C., right outside the White House. But as with every operation this year, dating back to "Tesla Takedown," the only people these far-left groups, funded by rogue billionaires and some with taxpayer funds, managed to summon were the usual unhinged white baby-boomer liberal, serial protesters at best, with nothing else better to do. 

Self-proclaimed investor and "CIA/NSA contractor/whistleblower" Tony Seruga wrote on X about who potentially attended the D.C. protest march on Saturday. Using device data collected from the area, Seruga found it was largely the same crowd, leftist NGO foot soldiers - or repeat protesters from previous marches... 

Here's a breakdown of Seruga's data: 

Device Analysis

• 318 mobile devices present (law enforcement, media, and demonstrators).

• 92% of devices had been at 5+ past D.C. protests.

• 67 devices tied to federal government employees, with access to secured federal buildings (DoD, VA, DHS, DOJ, FBI, Treasury).

• 9 devices accessed the White House Northwest Gate multiple times in the prior 30 days.

Demographics: Mostly local DMV residents; 86.7% from homes valued >$850,000, 34% from homes valued >$2.5 million.

Protest Details

• Branded as "Free DC" and "Fight the Trump Takeover".

• Targeted Trump's federalization of D.C. policing and National Guard deployments from GOP states.

• Route: Dupont Circle → White House (~1.5 miles). Chants/signs: "Trump Must Go", "Hands Off DC".

• Part of broader anti-Trump demonstrations nationwide.

Organizers & Funding

• Led by Community Change and Community Change Action under the "Free DC" initiative.

• Backed by $20M+ from progressive dark-money networks: Soros' Open Society Foundations Arabella Advisors network Tides Foundation

Paid Participation

• Reports of 400% surge in demand for paid protesters in D.C. after Trump's announcements.

• Crowds on Demand confirmed anti-Trump events drove most inquiries.

• Soros allegedly spent $20M on crowd-rental services for demonstrations.

GPS—there were 318 mobile devices present, including law enforcement and media. 92% have been present at 5 or more past DC protests.

67 appear to likely be federal government employees, with their mobile devices accessing both keycard required garages and federal buildings,… https://t.co/f4y1hiFNv1

— Tony Seruga (@TonySeruga) August 17, 2025

Free speech in the U.S. was never intended to serve as a perpetual vehicle for a permanent protest industrial complex funded by leftist billionaires and new indications that foreign adversaries could be sowing chaos in the U.S., exploiting the NGO sphere: Think Communist billionaire Neville Roy Singham...

Communist Billionaire Accused Of Funding Anti-ICE Riots Mysteriously Vanishes https://t.co/NjFnJGKxht

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) July 10, 2025

What certainly caught everyone's attention was a recent interview between NewsNation's Brian Entin and Adam Swart, CEO of an activist group called 'Crowds on Demand'.

Swart told Entin that an unnamed organization offered his company $20 million to recruit demonstrators for the anti-Trump protests in July. 

He told the journalist, "We had to reject an offer worth around $20 million for nationwide, large-scale demonstrations across the country. Personally, I don't think it's effective. I'm rejecting the contract not because I don't want the business, but because, frankly, this is going to be ineffective and make us all look bad."

The CEO of “Crowds on Demand” tells me he was offered $20,000,000 to recruit demonstrators for the anti-Trump protests on Thursday. pic.twitter.com/2A6ezwo0cc

— Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) July 15, 2025

From Seruga's GPS data to the interview with the Crowds on Demand CEO, the picture that readers have known all along is clear: the permanent protester industrial complex is bankrolled by leftist billionaires (and possibly group ex-US). Some of these groups were highly successful during the Marxist revolt of 2020 via BLM and other rogue non-profits, but their latest color-revolution-style operation has run into brick walls, especially after the Trump administration deployed federal soldiers into Los Angeles earlier this summer to crush the Marxist anti-ICE chaos.

The permanent protester industrial complex will march on - and its followers include unhinged white baby boomers, some of whom look like they were bused in from retirement homes.

Old White liberals carry signs during a protest against President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of policing of the District of Columbia, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Trump administration is waking up to how foreign adversaries are using rogue leftist NGO networks for irregular warfare.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 20:25

New GPS Data Reveals Exactly Who Showed Up At White House Protests

Dark-money-funded leftist NGOs were at it again this weekend, attempting to stage a color-revolution-style regime change in Washington, D.C., right outside the White House. But as with every operation this year, dating back to "Tesla Takedown," the only people these far-left groups, funded by rogue billionaires and some with taxpayer funds, managed to summon were the usual unhinged white baby-boomer liberal, serial protesters at best, with nothing else better to do. 

Self-proclaimed investor and "CIA/NSA contractor/whistleblower" Tony Seruga wrote on X about who potentially attended the D.C. protest march on Saturday. Using device data collected from the area, Seruga found it was largely the same crowd, leftist NGO foot soldiers - or repeat protesters from previous marches... 

Here's a breakdown of Seruga's data: 

Device Analysis

• 318 mobile devices present (law enforcement, media, and demonstrators).

• 92% of devices had been at 5+ past D.C. protests.

• 67 devices tied to federal government employees, with access to secured federal buildings (DoD, VA, DHS, DOJ, FBI, Treasury).

• 9 devices accessed the White House Northwest Gate multiple times in the prior 30 days.

Demographics: Mostly local DMV residents; 86.7% from homes valued >$850,000, 34% from homes valued >$2.5 million.

Protest Details

• Branded as "Free DC" and "Fight the Trump Takeover".

• Targeted Trump's federalization of D.C. policing and National Guard deployments from GOP states.

• Route: Dupont Circle → White House (~1.5 miles). Chants/signs: "Trump Must Go", "Hands Off DC".

• Part of broader anti-Trump demonstrations nationwide.

Organizers & Funding

• Led by Community Change and Community Change Action under the "Free DC" initiative.

• Backed by $20M+ from progressive dark-money networks: Soros' Open Society Foundations Arabella Advisors network Tides Foundation

Paid Participation

• Reports of 400% surge in demand for paid protesters in D.C. after Trump's announcements.

• Crowds on Demand confirmed anti-Trump events drove most inquiries.

• Soros allegedly spent $20M on crowd-rental services for demonstrations.

GPS—there were 318 mobile devices present, including law enforcement and media. 92% have been present at 5 or more past DC protests.

67 appear to likely be federal government employees, with their mobile devices accessing both keycard required garages and federal buildings,… https://t.co/f4y1hiFNv1

— Tony Seruga (@TonySeruga) August 17, 2025

Free speech in the U.S. was never intended to serve as a perpetual vehicle for a permanent protest industrial complex funded by leftist billionaires and new indications that foreign adversaries could be sowing chaos in the U.S., exploiting the NGO sphere: Think Communist billionaire Neville Roy Singham...

Communist Billionaire Accused Of Funding Anti-ICE Riots Mysteriously Vanishes https://t.co/NjFnJGKxht

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) July 10, 2025

What certainly caught everyone's attention was a recent interview between NewsNation's Brian Entin and Adam Swart, CEO of an activist group called 'Crowds on Demand'.

Swart told Entin that an unnamed organization offered his company $20 million to recruit demonstrators for the anti-Trump protests in July. 

He told the journalist, "We had to reject an offer worth around $20 million for nationwide, large-scale demonstrations across the country. Personally, I don't think it's effective. I'm rejecting the contract not because I don't want the business, but because, frankly, this is going to be ineffective and make us all look bad."

The CEO of “Crowds on Demand” tells me he was offered $20,000,000 to recruit demonstrators for the anti-Trump protests on Thursday. pic.twitter.com/2A6ezwo0cc

— Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) July 15, 2025

From Seruga's GPS data to the interview with the Crowds on Demand CEO, the picture that readers have known all along is clear: the permanent protester industrial complex is bankrolled by leftist billionaires (and possibly group ex-US). Some of these groups were highly successful during the Marxist revolt of 2020 via BLM and other rogue non-profits, but their latest color-revolution-style operation has run into brick walls, especially after the Trump administration deployed federal soldiers into Los Angeles earlier this summer to crush the Marxist anti-ICE chaos.

The permanent protester industrial complex will march on - and its followers include unhinged white baby boomers, some of whom look like they were bused in from retirement homes.

Old White liberals carry signs during a protest against President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of policing of the District of Columbia, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Trump administration is waking up to how foreign adversaries are using rogue leftist NGO networks for irregular warfare.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 20:25

Flesh-Eating Bacteria Cases On the Rise: Here Are The Symptoms

Authored by Marina Zhang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A “flesh-eating bacteria” called Vibrio vulnificus has been making headlines after recent reports of deaths and hospitalizations.

Every year, around 150 to 200 severe cases of Vibrio vulnificus are reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with most cases occurring during the summer when more people are swimming in the ocean and eating raw oysters.

What is Vibrio vulnificus, and does it eat flesh?

What Are ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria?

Vibrio vulnificus (V. vulnificus) is a type of so-called “flesh-eating” bacteria that can cause life-threatening infections. While infections with these bacteria are rare, they return yearly, especially during the summer months.

Microbiologist and distinguished professor Rita Colwell from the University of Maryland, who has been studying Vibrio bacteria for 50 years, said that cases of infections have increased manyfold in recent decades.

Around 150 to 200 cases of V. vulnificus infections are reported to CDC every year and around 20 percent of those infected die within a day or two of being infected.

V. vulnificus thrives in warm, salty, and brackish waters. Hence, V. vulnificus infections are most commonly reported in Gulf Coast states such as Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and particularly Florida, which has one of the longest coastlines in the United States.

However, there has also been an increase in V. vulnificus reports along the East Coast.

“Physicians along the Gulf Coast were familiar with this infection. But now that the Vibrio is moving up the Eastern Seaboard, I think physicians there—particularly those who work in the emergency room—are having to learn more about this infection,” Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine and health policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told The Epoch Times.

Between 1992 and 2022, infection cases of V. vulnificus increased fivefold in Florida and eightfold in eastern states between 1988 and 2018, according to a 2023 research paper led by Colwell.

V. vulnificus is rare in coastal waters, however, after Hurricane Ian in 2022 and Hurricane Helene in 2024, coastal areas saw an increase in V. vulnificus infections. The turbulence from the storm created runoff with nutrients going into the water. The nutrients feed the plankton population, which creates a hospitable environment for Vibrio as Vibrio bacteria attach onto plankton, she said.

While some studies have linked increasing water temperatures to an increase in V. vulnificus, some studies have contradicted the theory, suggesting unknown factors are driving V. vulnificus’s rise in the summer.

How Do ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria Eat Flesh

Usually, if the skin barrier is intact, the bacterium cannot enter.

Flesh-eating bacteria commonly infiltrate through a break in the skin’s barrier, such as scrapes or cuts  and cause rapid and progressive tissue death as they release toxins that break down nearby muscles, nerves, and blood vessels. They can also infiltrate the abdominal wall, perianal, and groin area, usually among immunocompromised patients.

The body’s immune response also contributes to the worsening of infected tissue. As more immune cells attend infected tissues, pressure and air build up in the muscles, further accelerating the death of muscle tissues, nerves, and blood vessels.

Rapid tissue death is called necrotizing fasciitis and gives the impression that the bacterium is eating away at the flesh.

Some people can also contract necrotizing fasciitis by eating raw oysters or seafood contaminated with the bacteria.

Apart from V. vulnificus, several other bacteria can cause necrotizing fasciitis. The most common culprit behind the condition is group A Streptococcus.

Signs of Infection

The infection may first appear as a typical skin infection.

“So it starts out basically like cellulitis, with redness and swelling on the surface, and maybe within as early as 24 hours, they'll start seeing big blisters that start off clear,” Michael A. Horseman, clinical associate professor of pharmacy practice at Texas A&M Irma Lerma Rangel School of Pharmacy, told The Epoch Times.

Flesh-eating or necrotizing fasciitis causes severe pain in the infected areas due to the pressure and tissue damage.

“Incredible pain is one of the tipping points,” Dr. H. Dele Davies, a pediatric infectious disease expert and the senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean for graduate studies at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, told The Epoch Times.

Horseman said that some patients have compared the pain to that of a snakebite.

Some patients may show no signs of physical injuries, as the bacteria may have entered the body through orifices, which is more common in the immunocompromised.

Even if the bacteria entered through a wound in the skin, the infection may not appear at that entry site. Patients may also develop redness or a blister near the wound opening.

“Occasionally ... you'll see a blister that’s got blood or black blood underneath it,” Davies said, “but the key message really is they just show up with a lot of pain,” often without being able to explain the reason for the pain.

Redness, swelling, and pus formation may also occur.

Amputation Not Always Needed

Surgical intervention is the most important intervention in necrotizing fasciitis, Davies said.

The surgeon may perform a fasciotomy, opening up the skin at the area of pain to release pressure. The surgeon then examines the muscle, fascia, and soft tissues for signs of dead tissue. After dead tissue is  removed, the open cut is washed with sterile water to remove any remaining bacteria.

Antibiotics are also injected into the blood for support. However, Davies said the antibiotics cannot enter the fascia, so they are only given to prevent blood infection.

Gradually, the infection in the limbs can infiltrate blood vessels, leading to sepsis. Sepsis can cause the organs to dysfunction, and patients may experience a dramatic drop in blood pressure that can damage the lungs, kidneys, liver, and other organs, potentially leading to death.

Symptoms of sepsis include fever, shaking, chills, a drop in blood pressure, and the patient appearing pale and very ill.

Amputation in infected limbs is the final resort if the infection becomes too extensive. Usually, doctors have tried removing damaged tissues and prescribed antibiotics by this stage, yet the infection is either failing to clear or worsening.

“If they’re so sick that every time you check the blood, the bacteria is in there, that means you have a tap turned on somewhere,” Davies said, comparing the bacterial infection to water leakage in a sink. “If you don’t turn off that tap, no matter how much antibiotics you give, it’s like wiping the floor while the tap is turned on. So part of the reason you do the amputations is to basically turn off the volume of water that’s coming into the sink.”

Most People Will Be Fine

According to the CDC, one can reduce their risks of infection by avoiding salty or brackish water when they have a wound from a surgery, piercing, or tattoo.

The wound should also be covered with a waterproof bandage if there’s a chance of being in contact with saltwater, brackish water, or raw or undercooked seafood and its juices.

Wounds and cuts should also be washed thoroughly with soap and water after coming in contact with any of those things. While this may not remove all the bacteria, it can help lower the overall bacterial count and make infections more manageable, Davies said.

“All in context, this is a rare condition. Most people who are in brackish water or saltwater are going to be fine,” he said. However, anyone with underlying liver disease, diabetes, cancer, or who is in an immunocompromised condition should ensure they do not have any cuts or bruises before entering water.

Vibrio vulnificus uses iron to replicate itself, so people who naturally have high levels of iron are also at risk, Horseman said.

Cook Oysters Thoroughly Before Eating

Less commonly, V. vulnificus can cause foodborne poisoning through the consumption of raw shellfish and oysters.

Most people infected with V. vulnificus tend to experience diarrhea, stomach cramps, and vomiting for three days before recovering.

In rarer cases, people can die from a gut infection. More than 95 percent of deaths from eating seafood are caused by V. vulnificus.

An infection can come from eating raw or undercooked oysters and shellfish that entrap the bacteria.

However, healthy people usually do not develop a severe gut infection from eating raw or undercooked shellfish contaminated with Vibrio, Schaffner said.

Immunocompromised people and those with liver cirrhosis or high iron concentration in the blood are particularly at risk. For people who develop a gut infection, if the infection is not eliminated, the bacterium may infiltrate the gut lining into the blood vessels, causing potentially fatal blood infections.

“This does not bother normal people [but] immunocompromised people are admonished not to eat raw oysters,” Schaffner said.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 19:50

Flesh-Eating Bacteria Cases On the Rise: Here Are The Symptoms

Authored by Marina Zhang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A “flesh-eating bacteria” called Vibrio vulnificus has been making headlines after recent reports of deaths and hospitalizations.

Every year, around 150 to 200 severe cases of Vibrio vulnificus are reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with most cases occurring during the summer when more people are swimming in the ocean and eating raw oysters.

What is Vibrio vulnificus, and does it eat flesh?

What Are ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria?

Vibrio vulnificus (V. vulnificus) is a type of so-called “flesh-eating” bacteria that can cause life-threatening infections. While infections with these bacteria are rare, they return yearly, especially during the summer months.

Microbiologist and distinguished professor Rita Colwell from the University of Maryland, who has been studying Vibrio bacteria for 50 years, said that cases of infections have increased manyfold in recent decades.

Around 150 to 200 cases of V. vulnificus infections are reported to CDC every year and around 20 percent of those infected die within a day or two of being infected.

V. vulnificus thrives in warm, salty, and brackish waters. Hence, V. vulnificus infections are most commonly reported in Gulf Coast states such as Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and particularly Florida, which has one of the longest coastlines in the United States.

However, there has also been an increase in V. vulnificus reports along the East Coast.

“Physicians along the Gulf Coast were familiar with this infection. But now that the Vibrio is moving up the Eastern Seaboard, I think physicians there—particularly those who work in the emergency room—are having to learn more about this infection,” Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine and health policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told The Epoch Times.

Between 1992 and 2022, infection cases of V. vulnificus increased fivefold in Florida and eightfold in eastern states between 1988 and 2018, according to a 2023 research paper led by Colwell.

V. vulnificus is rare in coastal waters, however, after Hurricane Ian in 2022 and Hurricane Helene in 2024, coastal areas saw an increase in V. vulnificus infections. The turbulence from the storm created runoff with nutrients going into the water. The nutrients feed the plankton population, which creates a hospitable environment for Vibrio as Vibrio bacteria attach onto plankton, she said.

While some studies have linked increasing water temperatures to an increase in V. vulnificus, some studies have contradicted the theory, suggesting unknown factors are driving V. vulnificus’s rise in the summer.

How Do ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria Eat Flesh

Usually, if the skin barrier is intact, the bacterium cannot enter.

Flesh-eating bacteria commonly infiltrate through a break in the skin’s barrier, such as scrapes or cuts  and cause rapid and progressive tissue death as they release toxins that break down nearby muscles, nerves, and blood vessels. They can also infiltrate the abdominal wall, perianal, and groin area, usually among immunocompromised patients.

The body’s immune response also contributes to the worsening of infected tissue. As more immune cells attend infected tissues, pressure and air build up in the muscles, further accelerating the death of muscle tissues, nerves, and blood vessels.

Rapid tissue death is called necrotizing fasciitis and gives the impression that the bacterium is eating away at the flesh.

Some people can also contract necrotizing fasciitis by eating raw oysters or seafood contaminated with the bacteria.

Apart from V. vulnificus, several other bacteria can cause necrotizing fasciitis. The most common culprit behind the condition is group A Streptococcus.

Signs of Infection

The infection may first appear as a typical skin infection.

“So it starts out basically like cellulitis, with redness and swelling on the surface, and maybe within as early as 24 hours, they'll start seeing big blisters that start off clear,” Michael A. Horseman, clinical associate professor of pharmacy practice at Texas A&M Irma Lerma Rangel School of Pharmacy, told The Epoch Times.

Flesh-eating or necrotizing fasciitis causes severe pain in the infected areas due to the pressure and tissue damage.

“Incredible pain is one of the tipping points,” Dr. H. Dele Davies, a pediatric infectious disease expert and the senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean for graduate studies at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, told The Epoch Times.

Horseman said that some patients have compared the pain to that of a snakebite.

Some patients may show no signs of physical injuries, as the bacteria may have entered the body through orifices, which is more common in the immunocompromised.

Even if the bacteria entered through a wound in the skin, the infection may not appear at that entry site. Patients may also develop redness or a blister near the wound opening.

“Occasionally ... you'll see a blister that’s got blood or black blood underneath it,” Davies said, “but the key message really is they just show up with a lot of pain,” often without being able to explain the reason for the pain.

Redness, swelling, and pus formation may also occur.

Amputation Not Always Needed

Surgical intervention is the most important intervention in necrotizing fasciitis, Davies said.

The surgeon may perform a fasciotomy, opening up the skin at the area of pain to release pressure. The surgeon then examines the muscle, fascia, and soft tissues for signs of dead tissue. After dead tissue is  removed, the open cut is washed with sterile water to remove any remaining bacteria.

Antibiotics are also injected into the blood for support. However, Davies said the antibiotics cannot enter the fascia, so they are only given to prevent blood infection.

Gradually, the infection in the limbs can infiltrate blood vessels, leading to sepsis. Sepsis can cause the organs to dysfunction, and patients may experience a dramatic drop in blood pressure that can damage the lungs, kidneys, liver, and other organs, potentially leading to death.

Symptoms of sepsis include fever, shaking, chills, a drop in blood pressure, and the patient appearing pale and very ill.

Amputation in infected limbs is the final resort if the infection becomes too extensive. Usually, doctors have tried removing damaged tissues and prescribed antibiotics by this stage, yet the infection is either failing to clear or worsening.

“If they’re so sick that every time you check the blood, the bacteria is in there, that means you have a tap turned on somewhere,” Davies said, comparing the bacterial infection to water leakage in a sink. “If you don’t turn off that tap, no matter how much antibiotics you give, it’s like wiping the floor while the tap is turned on. So part of the reason you do the amputations is to basically turn off the volume of water that’s coming into the sink.”

Most People Will Be Fine

According to the CDC, one can reduce their risks of infection by avoiding salty or brackish water when they have a wound from a surgery, piercing, or tattoo.

The wound should also be covered with a waterproof bandage if there’s a chance of being in contact with saltwater, brackish water, or raw or undercooked seafood and its juices.

Wounds and cuts should also be washed thoroughly with soap and water after coming in contact with any of those things. While this may not remove all the bacteria, it can help lower the overall bacterial count and make infections more manageable, Davies said.

“All in context, this is a rare condition. Most people who are in brackish water or saltwater are going to be fine,” he said. However, anyone with underlying liver disease, diabetes, cancer, or who is in an immunocompromised condition should ensure they do not have any cuts or bruises before entering water.

Vibrio vulnificus uses iron to replicate itself, so people who naturally have high levels of iron are also at risk, Horseman said.

Cook Oysters Thoroughly Before Eating

Less commonly, V. vulnificus can cause foodborne poisoning through the consumption of raw shellfish and oysters.

Most people infected with V. vulnificus tend to experience diarrhea, stomach cramps, and vomiting for three days before recovering.

In rarer cases, people can die from a gut infection. More than 95 percent of deaths from eating seafood are caused by V. vulnificus.

An infection can come from eating raw or undercooked oysters and shellfish that entrap the bacteria.

However, healthy people usually do not develop a severe gut infection from eating raw or undercooked shellfish contaminated with Vibrio, Schaffner said.

Immunocompromised people and those with liver cirrhosis or high iron concentration in the blood are particularly at risk. For people who develop a gut infection, if the infection is not eliminated, the bacterium may infiltrate the gut lining into the blood vessels, causing potentially fatal blood infections.

“This does not bother normal people [but] immunocompromised people are admonished not to eat raw oysters,” Schaffner said.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 19:50

Flesh-Eating Bacteria Cases On the Rise: Here Are The Symptoms

Authored by Marina Zhang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A “flesh-eating bacteria” called Vibrio vulnificus has been making headlines after recent reports of deaths and hospitalizations.

Every year, around 150 to 200 severe cases of Vibrio vulnificus are reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with most cases occurring during the summer when more people are swimming in the ocean and eating raw oysters.

What is Vibrio vulnificus, and does it eat flesh?

What Are ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria?

Vibrio vulnificus (V. vulnificus) is a type of so-called “flesh-eating” bacteria that can cause life-threatening infections. While infections with these bacteria are rare, they return yearly, especially during the summer months.

Microbiologist and distinguished professor Rita Colwell from the University of Maryland, who has been studying Vibrio bacteria for 50 years, said that cases of infections have increased manyfold in recent decades.

Around 150 to 200 cases of V. vulnificus infections are reported to CDC every year and around 20 percent of those infected die within a day or two of being infected.

V. vulnificus thrives in warm, salty, and brackish waters. Hence, V. vulnificus infections are most commonly reported in Gulf Coast states such as Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and particularly Florida, which has one of the longest coastlines in the United States.

However, there has also been an increase in V. vulnificus reports along the East Coast.

“Physicians along the Gulf Coast were familiar with this infection. But now that the Vibrio is moving up the Eastern Seaboard, I think physicians there—particularly those who work in the emergency room—are having to learn more about this infection,” Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine and health policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told The Epoch Times.

Between 1992 and 2022, infection cases of V. vulnificus increased fivefold in Florida and eightfold in eastern states between 1988 and 2018, according to a 2023 research paper led by Colwell.

V. vulnificus is rare in coastal waters, however, after Hurricane Ian in 2022 and Hurricane Helene in 2024, coastal areas saw an increase in V. vulnificus infections. The turbulence from the storm created runoff with nutrients going into the water. The nutrients feed the plankton population, which creates a hospitable environment for Vibrio as Vibrio bacteria attach onto plankton, she said.

While some studies have linked increasing water temperatures to an increase in V. vulnificus, some studies have contradicted the theory, suggesting unknown factors are driving V. vulnificus’s rise in the summer.

How Do ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria Eat Flesh

Usually, if the skin barrier is intact, the bacterium cannot enter.

Flesh-eating bacteria commonly infiltrate through a break in the skin’s barrier, such as scrapes or cuts  and cause rapid and progressive tissue death as they release toxins that break down nearby muscles, nerves, and blood vessels. They can also infiltrate the abdominal wall, perianal, and groin area, usually among immunocompromised patients.

The body’s immune response also contributes to the worsening of infected tissue. As more immune cells attend infected tissues, pressure and air build up in the muscles, further accelerating the death of muscle tissues, nerves, and blood vessels.

Rapid tissue death is called necrotizing fasciitis and gives the impression that the bacterium is eating away at the flesh.

Some people can also contract necrotizing fasciitis by eating raw oysters or seafood contaminated with the bacteria.

Apart from V. vulnificus, several other bacteria can cause necrotizing fasciitis. The most common culprit behind the condition is group A Streptococcus.

Signs of Infection

The infection may first appear as a typical skin infection.

“So it starts out basically like cellulitis, with redness and swelling on the surface, and maybe within as early as 24 hours, they'll start seeing big blisters that start off clear,” Michael A. Horseman, clinical associate professor of pharmacy practice at Texas A&M Irma Lerma Rangel School of Pharmacy, told The Epoch Times.

Flesh-eating or necrotizing fasciitis causes severe pain in the infected areas due to the pressure and tissue damage.

“Incredible pain is one of the tipping points,” Dr. H. Dele Davies, a pediatric infectious disease expert and the senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean for graduate studies at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, told The Epoch Times.

Horseman said that some patients have compared the pain to that of a snakebite.

Some patients may show no signs of physical injuries, as the bacteria may have entered the body through orifices, which is more common in the immunocompromised.

Even if the bacteria entered through a wound in the skin, the infection may not appear at that entry site. Patients may also develop redness or a blister near the wound opening.

“Occasionally ... you'll see a blister that’s got blood or black blood underneath it,” Davies said, “but the key message really is they just show up with a lot of pain,” often without being able to explain the reason for the pain.

Redness, swelling, and pus formation may also occur.

Amputation Not Always Needed

Surgical intervention is the most important intervention in necrotizing fasciitis, Davies said.

The surgeon may perform a fasciotomy, opening up the skin at the area of pain to release pressure. The surgeon then examines the muscle, fascia, and soft tissues for signs of dead tissue. After dead tissue is  removed, the open cut is washed with sterile water to remove any remaining bacteria.

Antibiotics are also injected into the blood for support. However, Davies said the antibiotics cannot enter the fascia, so they are only given to prevent blood infection.

Gradually, the infection in the limbs can infiltrate blood vessels, leading to sepsis. Sepsis can cause the organs to dysfunction, and patients may experience a dramatic drop in blood pressure that can damage the lungs, kidneys, liver, and other organs, potentially leading to death.

Symptoms of sepsis include fever, shaking, chills, a drop in blood pressure, and the patient appearing pale and very ill.

Amputation in infected limbs is the final resort if the infection becomes too extensive. Usually, doctors have tried removing damaged tissues and prescribed antibiotics by this stage, yet the infection is either failing to clear or worsening.

“If they’re so sick that every time you check the blood, the bacteria is in there, that means you have a tap turned on somewhere,” Davies said, comparing the bacterial infection to water leakage in a sink. “If you don’t turn off that tap, no matter how much antibiotics you give, it’s like wiping the floor while the tap is turned on. So part of the reason you do the amputations is to basically turn off the volume of water that’s coming into the sink.”

Most People Will Be Fine

According to the CDC, one can reduce their risks of infection by avoiding salty or brackish water when they have a wound from a surgery, piercing, or tattoo.

The wound should also be covered with a waterproof bandage if there’s a chance of being in contact with saltwater, brackish water, or raw or undercooked seafood and its juices.

Wounds and cuts should also be washed thoroughly with soap and water after coming in contact with any of those things. While this may not remove all the bacteria, it can help lower the overall bacterial count and make infections more manageable, Davies said.

“All in context, this is a rare condition. Most people who are in brackish water or saltwater are going to be fine,” he said. However, anyone with underlying liver disease, diabetes, cancer, or who is in an immunocompromised condition should ensure they do not have any cuts or bruises before entering water.

Vibrio vulnificus uses iron to replicate itself, so people who naturally have high levels of iron are also at risk, Horseman said.

Cook Oysters Thoroughly Before Eating

Less commonly, V. vulnificus can cause foodborne poisoning through the consumption of raw shellfish and oysters.

Most people infected with V. vulnificus tend to experience diarrhea, stomach cramps, and vomiting for three days before recovering.

In rarer cases, people can die from a gut infection. More than 95 percent of deaths from eating seafood are caused by V. vulnificus.

An infection can come from eating raw or undercooked oysters and shellfish that entrap the bacteria.

However, healthy people usually do not develop a severe gut infection from eating raw or undercooked shellfish contaminated with Vibrio, Schaffner said.

Immunocompromised people and those with liver cirrhosis or high iron concentration in the blood are particularly at risk. For people who develop a gut infection, if the infection is not eliminated, the bacterium may infiltrate the gut lining into the blood vessels, causing potentially fatal blood infections.

“This does not bother normal people [but] immunocompromised people are admonished not to eat raw oysters,” Schaffner said.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 19:50

Witkoff Says White House Pushing To Extract 'Article 5-Like' Protections For Ukraine

Update(1918ET): It appears that the White House is ready to push for Europe's consensus - at least at the moment (or as a starting negotiating tactic) - which is to provide non-NATO "article 5 style security guarantees" for a post-peace settlement Ukraine. The only problem is that of course it would be NATO countries themselves enforcing such a rule, which will be seen as a non-starter for the Kremlin. According to the latest from Trump's top envoy:

Special envoy Steve Witkoff says the White House extracted critical wins from its Friday summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, even as President Donald Trump failed to walk away with the ceasefire he loudly advocated for.

Security guarantees offering Ukraine “Article 5-like protections” are the real prize, Witkoff told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday. They’re “game-changing,” he said.

But his wording is perhaps an acknowledgement that even the US adminstration knows it's mearly a goal and unlikely to be the realistic outcome.

He explained Sunday in the aftermath of the Alaska summit, "We didn’t think that we were anywhere close to agreeing to Article Five protection from the United States in legislative enshrinement within the Russian Federation, not to go after any other territory when the peace deal is codified."

Witkoff contineud on CNN’s State of the Union, "We got to an agreement that the United States and other European nations could effectively offer Article 5-like language to cover a security guarantee."

But whether the Kremlin actually sees it this way is another quesiton entirely. Naturally the Trump adminsitration is going to start from its own 'maximalist' position - but at least the sides are talking and are engaged. If Moscow agrees, it will certainly seek nothing less than significant territorial concessions and political recognization of at least some of the Donbass. Still, based also on Rubio's latest media comments, the hawks in the Western alliance are continuing to run the show:

"Territories will have to be discussed, it's just a fact," says the Secretary of State.

Rubio says "there's no conditions that can be imposed on Ukraine" to achieve a settlement to the war, and *Russia* may have to give up territory. Hasn't the media been screaming that Trump is shamefully scheming to force Ukraine to surrender? Rubio suggests the exact opposite pic.twitter.com/OqaPSTrdxL

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) August 17, 2025

And more, with the expected mixed messaging...

The US and Russia have agreed on security guarantees for Ukraine, but the next steps depend on Kyiv, Trump’s envoy Witkoff said. He added that territorial issues will be discussed with Zelensky on Monday, and that Moscow has made concessions on five Ukrainian regions. pic.twitter.com/IjW2enmd6G

— WarTranslated (@wartranslated) August 17, 2025

What would this look like on the ground in Eastern Europe? Putin has repeatedly warned that Russia will never accept NATO country troops on the ground in Ukraine, so certainly the provervbial devil will be in the details, and there's yet a long way to go for the negotiating sides. Much might also depend on the temperature in the room of the Oval Office on Monday, when Trump meets leading European leaders and Zelensky in the Oval.

* * *

Ahead of the planned Monday meeting between President Trump and Ukraine's Zelensky in the Oval Office, which will also have the attendance and participation of a growing list of European and NATO leaders, there's increasing talk of seeking American-supported "Article 5-style" security guarantees for Ukraine as part of any broader peace deal with Russia.

According to CNN, citing a senior European official, the proposed plan wouldn't involve NATO directly - and would effectively remove the question of membership in the military alliance - but would aim to offer Ukraine protections similar to NATO's collective defense clause.

Via The Associated Press

The specifics of the proposal remain undisclosed and unclear, and there's also the practical reality and major hurdle of just how such 'guarantees' would be enforced.

The Kremlin would likely balk at such a condition, given Russian leadership has said it would never allow any Western troop deployment or NATO-style force in Ukraine.

There has actually for years throughout the grinding war been talk among European capitals of the idea of deploying a "reassurance force" in Ukraine.

One thing that all the Western allies agree on at this early stage is that the initiative would never get off the ground without the United States officially backing and supporting it. And yet if the European leaders going to the White House lobby hard for this, it's almost certain this would break the negotiating process with Russia.

For Moscow, assurance of permanent Ukrainian neutrality remains a top priority, and so talk of an Article-5 style system which would 'protect' Ukraine in the instance of future Russian attacks is likely to a complete non-starter as an option.

But it's especially the hawks which are pushing this, and likely Moscow is going to see it as simply NATO placing its security blanket over Kiev under a different guise, or just under the cover of differing semantics.

On Sunday, more and more European leaders have confirmed they will be joining Ukrainian President Zelensky on his trip to the White House on Monday.

According to a BBC list, the below top officials have confirmed they will be attending:

• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer
• Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
• German Chancellor Friedrich Merz
• Finnish President Alexander Stubb
• French President Emmanuel Macron
• Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte
• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

This comes after most leaders on this list have strongly complained that Europe and even Ukraine have been left behind, and cut out of the negotiating process. They back Zelensky who says all decisions taken without direct Ukrainian participation are 'stillborn' on arrival.

President Trump's hope is that this swiftly moving process of talks which started with Putin in Alaska on Friday will lead to a final, and permanent peace settlement to end the war. But much of the entire Western establishment - whether government officials or the mainstream press - seems to want this process to fail...

The bourgeois press thinks the real problem with Putin is that he just needs a good therapist pic.twitter.com/T56qpm3Cnk

— Mark Ames (@MarkAmesExiled) August 17, 2025

Trump said on social media on Saturday, "President Zelenskyy will be coming to D.C., the Oval Office, on Monday afternoon. If all works out, we will then schedule a meeting with President Putin. Potentially, millions of people's lives will be saved. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 19:19

Witkoff Says White House Pushing To Extract 'Article 5-Like' Protections For Ukraine

Update(1918ET): It appears that the White House is ready to push for Europe's consensus - at least at the moment (or as a starting negotiating tactic) - which is to provide non-NATO "article 5 style security guarantees" for a post-peace settlement Ukraine. The only problem is that of course it would be NATO countries themselves enforcing such a rule, which will be seen as a non-starter for the Kremlin. According to the latest from Trump's top envoy:

Special envoy Steve Witkoff says the White House extracted critical wins from its Friday summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, even as President Donald Trump failed to walk away with the ceasefire he loudly advocated for.

Security guarantees offering Ukraine “Article 5-like protections” are the real prize, Witkoff told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday. They’re “game-changing,” he said.

But his wording is perhaps an acknowledgement that even the US adminstration knows it's mearly a goal and unlikely to be the realistic outcome.

He explained Sunday in the aftermath of the Alaska summit, "We didn’t think that we were anywhere close to agreeing to Article Five protection from the United States in legislative enshrinement within the Russian Federation, not to go after any other territory when the peace deal is codified."

Witkoff contineud on CNN’s State of the Union, "We got to an agreement that the United States and other European nations could effectively offer Article 5-like language to cover a security guarantee."

But whether the Kremlin actually sees it this way is another quesiton entirely. Naturally the Trump adminsitration is going to start from its own 'maximalist' position - but at least the sides are talking and are engaged. If Moscow agrees, it will certainly seek nothing less than significant territorial concessions and political recognization of at least some of the Donbass. Still, based also on Rubio's latest media comments, the hawks in the Western alliance are continuing to run the show:

"Territories will have to be discussed, it's just a fact," says the Secretary of State.

Rubio says "there's no conditions that can be imposed on Ukraine" to achieve a settlement to the war, and *Russia* may have to give up territory. Hasn't the media been screaming that Trump is shamefully scheming to force Ukraine to surrender? Rubio suggests the exact opposite pic.twitter.com/OqaPSTrdxL

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) August 17, 2025

And more, with the expected mixed messaging...

The US and Russia have agreed on security guarantees for Ukraine, but the next steps depend on Kyiv, Trump’s envoy Witkoff said. He added that territorial issues will be discussed with Zelensky on Monday, and that Moscow has made concessions on five Ukrainian regions. pic.twitter.com/IjW2enmd6G

— WarTranslated (@wartranslated) August 17, 2025

What would this look like on the ground in Eastern Europe? Putin has repeatedly warned that Russia will never accept NATO country troops on the ground in Ukraine, so certainly the provervbial devil will be in the details, and there's yet a long way to go for the negotiating sides. Much might also depend on the temperature in the room of the Oval Office on Monday, when Trump meets leading European leaders and Zelensky in the Oval.

* * *

Ahead of the planned Monday meeting between President Trump and Ukraine's Zelensky in the Oval Office, which will also have the attendance and participation of a growing list of European and NATO leaders, there's increasing talk of seeking American-supported "Article 5-style" security guarantees for Ukraine as part of any broader peace deal with Russia.

According to CNN, citing a senior European official, the proposed plan wouldn't involve NATO directly - and would effectively remove the question of membership in the military alliance - but would aim to offer Ukraine protections similar to NATO's collective defense clause.

Via The Associated Press

The specifics of the proposal remain undisclosed and unclear, and there's also the practical reality and major hurdle of just how such 'guarantees' would be enforced.

The Kremlin would likely balk at such a condition, given Russian leadership has said it would never allow any Western troop deployment or NATO-style force in Ukraine.

There has actually for years throughout the grinding war been talk among European capitals of the idea of deploying a "reassurance force" in Ukraine.

One thing that all the Western allies agree on at this early stage is that the initiative would never get off the ground without the United States officially backing and supporting it. And yet if the European leaders going to the White House lobby hard for this, it's almost certain this would break the negotiating process with Russia.

For Moscow, assurance of permanent Ukrainian neutrality remains a top priority, and so talk of an Article-5 style system which would 'protect' Ukraine in the instance of future Russian attacks is likely to a complete non-starter as an option.

But it's especially the hawks which are pushing this, and likely Moscow is going to see it as simply NATO placing its security blanket over Kiev under a different guise, or just under the cover of differing semantics.

On Sunday, more and more European leaders have confirmed they will be joining Ukrainian President Zelensky on his trip to the White House on Monday.

According to a BBC list, the below top officials have confirmed they will be attending:

• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer
• Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
• German Chancellor Friedrich Merz
• Finnish President Alexander Stubb
• French President Emmanuel Macron
• Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte
• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

This comes after most leaders on this list have strongly complained that Europe and even Ukraine have been left behind, and cut out of the negotiating process. They back Zelensky who says all decisions taken without direct Ukrainian participation are 'stillborn' on arrival.

President Trump's hope is that this swiftly moving process of talks which started with Putin in Alaska on Friday will lead to a final, and permanent peace settlement to end the war. But much of the entire Western establishment - whether government officials or the mainstream press - seems to want this process to fail...

The bourgeois press thinks the real problem with Putin is that he just needs a good therapist pic.twitter.com/T56qpm3Cnk

— Mark Ames (@MarkAmesExiled) August 17, 2025

Trump said on social media on Saturday, "President Zelenskyy will be coming to D.C., the Oval Office, on Monday afternoon. If all works out, we will then schedule a meeting with President Putin. Potentially, millions of people's lives will be saved. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 19:19

Witkoff Says White House Pushing To Extract 'Article 5-Like' Protections For Ukraine

Update(1918ET): It appears that the White House is ready to push for Europe's consensus - at least at the moment (or as a starting negotiating tactic) - which is to provide non-NATO "article 5 style security guarantees" for a post-peace settlement Ukraine. The only problem is that of course it would be NATO countries themselves enforcing such a rule, which will be seen as a non-starter for the Kremlin. According to the latest from Trump's top envoy:

Special envoy Steve Witkoff says the White House extracted critical wins from its Friday summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, even as President Donald Trump failed to walk away with the ceasefire he loudly advocated for.

Security guarantees offering Ukraine “Article 5-like protections” are the real prize, Witkoff told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday. They’re “game-changing,” he said.

But his wording is perhaps an acknowledgement that even the US adminstration knows it's mearly a goal and unlikely to be the realistic outcome.

He explained Sunday in the aftermath of the Alaska summit, "We didn’t think that we were anywhere close to agreeing to Article Five protection from the United States in legislative enshrinement within the Russian Federation, not to go after any other territory when the peace deal is codified."

Witkoff contineud on CNN’s State of the Union, "We got to an agreement that the United States and other European nations could effectively offer Article 5-like language to cover a security guarantee."

But whether the Kremlin actually sees it this way is another quesiton entirely. Naturally the Trump adminsitration is going to start from its own 'maximalist' position - but at least the sides are talking and are engaged. If Moscow agrees, it will certainly seek nothing less than significant territorial concessions and political recognization of at least some of the Donbass. Still, based also on Rubio's latest media comments, the hawks in the Western alliance are continuing to run the show:

"Territories will have to be discussed, it's just a fact," says the Secretary of State.

Rubio says "there's no conditions that can be imposed on Ukraine" to achieve a settlement to the war, and *Russia* may have to give up territory. Hasn't the media been screaming that Trump is shamefully scheming to force Ukraine to surrender? Rubio suggests the exact opposite pic.twitter.com/OqaPSTrdxL

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) August 17, 2025

And more, with the expected mixed messaging...

The US and Russia have agreed on security guarantees for Ukraine, but the next steps depend on Kyiv, Trump’s envoy Witkoff said. He added that territorial issues will be discussed with Zelensky on Monday, and that Moscow has made concessions on five Ukrainian regions. pic.twitter.com/IjW2enmd6G

— WarTranslated (@wartranslated) August 17, 2025

What would this look like on the ground in Eastern Europe? Putin has repeatedly warned that Russia will never accept NATO country troops on the ground in Ukraine, so certainly the provervbial devil will be in the details, and there's yet a long way to go for the negotiating sides. Much might also depend on the temperature in the room of the Oval Office on Monday, when Trump meets leading European leaders and Zelensky in the Oval.

* * *

Ahead of the planned Monday meeting between President Trump and Ukraine's Zelensky in the Oval Office, which will also have the attendance and participation of a growing list of European and NATO leaders, there's increasing talk of seeking American-supported "Article 5-style" security guarantees for Ukraine as part of any broader peace deal with Russia.

According to CNN, citing a senior European official, the proposed plan wouldn't involve NATO directly - and would effectively remove the question of membership in the military alliance - but would aim to offer Ukraine protections similar to NATO's collective defense clause.

Via The Associated Press

The specifics of the proposal remain undisclosed and unclear, and there's also the practical reality and major hurdle of just how such 'guarantees' would be enforced.

The Kremlin would likely balk at such a condition, given Russian leadership has said it would never allow any Western troop deployment or NATO-style force in Ukraine.

There has actually for years throughout the grinding war been talk among European capitals of the idea of deploying a "reassurance force" in Ukraine.

One thing that all the Western allies agree on at this early stage is that the initiative would never get off the ground without the United States officially backing and supporting it. And yet if the European leaders going to the White House lobby hard for this, it's almost certain this would break the negotiating process with Russia.

For Moscow, assurance of permanent Ukrainian neutrality remains a top priority, and so talk of an Article-5 style system which would 'protect' Ukraine in the instance of future Russian attacks is likely to a complete non-starter as an option.

But it's especially the hawks which are pushing this, and likely Moscow is going to see it as simply NATO placing its security blanket over Kiev under a different guise, or just under the cover of differing semantics.

On Sunday, more and more European leaders have confirmed they will be joining Ukrainian President Zelensky on his trip to the White House on Monday.

According to a BBC list, the below top officials have confirmed they will be attending:

• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer
• Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
• German Chancellor Friedrich Merz
• Finnish President Alexander Stubb
• French President Emmanuel Macron
• Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte
• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

This comes after most leaders on this list have strongly complained that Europe and even Ukraine have been left behind, and cut out of the negotiating process. They back Zelensky who says all decisions taken without direct Ukrainian participation are 'stillborn' on arrival.

President Trump's hope is that this swiftly moving process of talks which started with Putin in Alaska on Friday will lead to a final, and permanent peace settlement to end the war. But much of the entire Western establishment - whether government officials or the mainstream press - seems to want this process to fail...

The bourgeois press thinks the real problem with Putin is that he just needs a good therapist pic.twitter.com/T56qpm3Cnk

— Mark Ames (@MarkAmesExiled) August 17, 2025

Trump said on social media on Saturday, "President Zelenskyy will be coming to D.C., the Oval Office, on Monday afternoon. If all works out, we will then schedule a meeting with President Putin. Potentially, millions of people's lives will be saved. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 19:19

Weekend:
• Schedule for Week of August 17, 2025

Monday:
• At 10:00 AM ET, The August NAHB homebuilder survey. The consensus is for a reading of 34, up from 33. Any number below 50 indicates that more builders view sales conditions as poor than good.

From CNBC: Pre-Market Data and Bloomberg futures S&P 500 are up 10 and DOW futures are up 72 (fair value).

Oil prices were down over the last week with WTI futures at $62.66 per barrel and Brent at $65.61 per barrel. A year ago, WTI was at $78, and Brent was at $81 - so WTI oil prices are down about 19% year-over-year.

Here is a graph from Gasbuddy.com for nationwide gasoline prices. Nationally prices are at $3.09 per gallon. A year ago, prices were at $3.40 per gallon, so gasoline prices are down $0.31 year-over-year.

Billionaires For Socialism: The $2 Billion "Grassroots" Operation Behind Zohran Mamdani

Submitted by Jason Curtis Anderson of One City Rising, 

How the Working Families Party sells itself as "grassroots" — with IRS-documented, publicly admitted "common control" revealing it's really a Soros-financed political money washer.

In New York politics, there's one machine that towers above the rest. No, not the Democratic Party—it's the Working Families Party, the most powerful minor party in America. Its name sounds wholesome enough—who doesn't support "working families"? But behind that branding lies a $2 billion tax-exempt laundromat that's anything but local, grassroots, or honest.

Take Zohran Mamdani, their current belle of the ball. 

Easy answer: Zohran Mandani is the product of a grassroots washing syndicate of 501c3 and 501c4 entities funded by George Soros and Silicon Valley billionaires. He is their manufactured product.

Receipts
➡️ https://t.co/GrF1LkVo3H https://t.co/4MXlJyiOAq

— Sam E. Antar (@SamAntar) August 17, 2025

After winning his race, he announced on NBC: "I don't think we should have billionaires." Hilarious considering Mamdani's "grassroots" revolution was fueled by over $2 million in PAC and organizational spending, much of it courtesy of the very billionaire class he allegedly opposes.

Zohran Mamdani: "I don't think we should have billionaires because it is so much money in a moment of such inequality."pic.twitter.com/LOoNw4w6dF

— Joe Rogan Podcast News (@joeroganhq) July 1, 2025

This is the theater of modern politics: denounce wealth while being powered by it. And the actors know their audience. They've learned that if you slap "grassroots" on the packaging, voters won't check the label.

But let's check it anyway.

The money trail revealed in Sam Antar's breaking report is straightforward enough. Soros donates to the Open Society Institute, a $4.5 billion "charity" that enjoys generous tax deductions. OSI then transfers millions to other "charities" like Tides Foundation, which mysteriously claims to run a $350 million operation with zero employees. From there, the money "converts" into political cash: Tides passes funds to the Working Families Organization, a 501(c)(4), which then wires millions to PACs that bankroll candidates like Mamdani.

What you have is billionaire money dressed up in "working families" clothing, masquerading as the will of the people while being anything but. 

And don't take my word for it. These groups openly admit to "common control" and "shared staff" across their charities and political arms. In plain English: the same people make decisions for both sides of the ledger. One day they're signing checks for the "charity," the next for the political arm. The IRS explicitly forbids this. Charities must operate "exclusively" for charitable purposes. The moment they cross into political campaigning, their exemptions should be revoked.

Auditors have already blown the whistle. Deloitte and Withum both flagged "significant deficiencies" and "common officers" across these supposedly separate entities. The IRS has a simple doctrine for this: substance over form. If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and flaps like a duck, it doesn't matter if the paperwork calls it a horse.

The numbers are staggering. Soros's network alone controls $5.57 billion in assets, generating untaxed returns. If properly taxed, that would mean roughly $450 million a year back to American taxpayers. Instead, the money is siphoned into a political machine that signals to the public that it represents them while pushing the Open Societies agenda. 

Meanwhile, the watchdogs were compromised. Larry Moskowitz, a 15-year WFP veteran, sat on the New York City Campaign Finance Board (CFB) while these schemes played out. A senior staffer at the same agency, David Duhalde, the former deputy director of the DSA, also worked at the CFB while his organization ran someone for mayor. 

In other words, the referees were not only wearing the team jersey—they were helping write the playbook.

And so you see things that are mathematically impossible: same-day circular transactions, PACs that pay for services with money they never had, taxpayer matching funds generated by coordinated activities that should have been disqualified. In any other setting, this would be called fraud. In politics, but when progressives control the government agencies, it's called "movement-building."

It's all part of a larger hypocrisy. The WFP rails against billionaires while being funded by them. It preaches "democracy" while short-circuiting the rules designed to protect it. And it claims to stand for working families while serving as the cash pipeline for radicals whose agenda—abolishing capitalism, police, borders, and private property—would make working families' lives unrecognizable.

This is the great genius of the modern left: to run what is essentially a billionaire-backed, tax-exempt machine while insisting it's "grassroots." It's not just dishonest—it's corrosive. Because when billionaires can buy socialism tax-free, when oversight boards are stacked with partisans, and when voters are told they're seeing a bottom-up revolution while it's actually a top-down operation, democracy becomes little more than political theater.

The IRS has more than enough evidence. Over a thousand pages of filings, audits, and disclosures show the same thing: systematic tax fraud, documented in their own paperwork. The question is whether anyone in Washington has the courage to act.

If this were a conservative network, there would be hearings, front-page outrage, and high-profile perp walks. Instead, because the machine flies a progressive banner, it gets a pass. Billionaires for socialism—what a joke. But the laugh's on us, and the bill is north of $450 million a year.

Working Families? Please. This is a billionaire racket. And unless the IRS acts, it will keep laundering tax-exempt dollars into political power, one "grassroots" revolution at a time.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 19:15

Obama Judge Blocks Trump's Bid To End Child Detention Policy Seen As Fueling Illegal Immigration

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A federal judge has rejected the Trump administration’s effort to end a decades-old settlement that sets standards for the treatment of children in immigration custody, rebuffing the government’s arguments that the agreement obstructs its crackdown on illegal immigration.

Border Patrol apprehends illegal immigrants who have just crossed the Rio Grande from Mexico near McAllen, Texas, on April 18, 2019. Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times

U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee (Obama Appointee) of the Central District of California said in an Aug. 15 order that the administration had not shown grounds to terminate the Flores Settlement Agreement (FSA), first signed in 1997, which limits how long and under what conditions children can be held in Border Patrol facilities.

Government lawyers argued in court filings in May that the pact is an “intrusive regime” that prevents officials from detaining families through the full course of removal proceedings and encourages illegal immigrants to cross the border with children knowing they will be released quickly.

US District Judge Dolly Gee

“The FSA itself has changed the immigration landscape by removing some of the disincentives for families to enter the U.S. unlawfully,“ they wrote. ”Unlawful family migration barely existed in 1997.”

The FSA requires that minors be transferred out of Border Patrol holding cells within about 72 hours, and placed in licensed shelters or released to family whenever possible. A 2015 court order—also by Gee—extended those rules to children arriving with parents, creating a practical 20-day cap on family detention since the government lacks licensed long-term family facilities. That limit, government attorneys and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have argued, makes it almost impossible to detain family units together for the full length of immigration proceedings, which can stretch for weeks or months.

President Donald Trump sought to end the FSA during his first term—which was blocked by Gee in 2019—and that effort was revived when he was reelected for a second term, in part on a promise to crack down on illegal immigration. Administration officials have repeatedly blamed the FSA for fueling surges of illegal immigration and have argued that both the DHS and Health and Human Services (HHS) are currently in “substantial compliance” with the agreement, and “further continuation of the FSA is no longer equitable or in the public interest.” 

Last week, Gee held a hearing with advocates of illegal immigrant children in federal custody and Trump administration attorneys. Advocates urged the judge to keep the FSA in place, pointing to reports of poor conditions in Texas family detention centers and calling for expanded independent monitoring. Government attorneys argued that the FSA hampered the administration’s immigration enforcement efforts, with the judge describing those and other arguments in favor of ending the FSA as “déjà vu,” with her Aug. 15 order echoing the same sentiment.

“There is nothing new under the sun regarding the facts or the law,” she wrote, calling the government’s motion a repeat of prior failed attempts. Gee added that while federal agencies have improved conditions in some facilities, “to suggest that the agreement should be abandoned because some progress has been made is nonsensical.”

Gee’s ruling leaves the Flores settlement in place, meaning that the Trump administration remains bound by the 72-hour transfer rule and 20-day limit on family detention.

The Epoch Times has reached out to DHS for comment on the ruling.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 18:40

"Learn To Code" Propaganda Turned Out To Be Terrible Advice 

For about a decade, big tech firms, the government, and corporate media outlets pushed endless streams of propaganda at young people to "learn to code," luring them with promises of six-figure salaries and job security.

That hype fueled a boom in computer science majors, with the number of undergraduates more than doubling since 2014. But the coding-boom narrative has since collapsed, and a growing number of computer science graduates are finding few opportunities - some even ending up in fast-food jobs at chains like Chipotle. 

"Learn to code" actually turned out to be very terrible advice. 

Take the corporate media news matrix: According to Bloomberg data, the story count of "learn to code" exploded between 2015 and early 2021. Post 2021, those stories have dramatically subsided as reality sets in, and layoffs at major tech companies like Amazon and Microsoft, combined with the rapid adoption of AI coding tools, have left many graduates unable to land jobs, according to The New York Times.  

Data via Bloomberg... 

"The rhetoric was, if you just learned to code, work hard, and get a computer science degree, you can get six figures for your starting salary," Manasi Mishra, now 21, who was quoted by the NYT. 

Mishra said in a viral TikTok video this summer that "I just graduated with a computer science degree, and the only company that has called me for an interview is Chipotle." 

The NYT pointed out that unemployment among computer science and engineering grads has risen as high as 7.5%, which is more than double that of art history or biology majors. 

In a recent questionnaire, the NYT asked recent college grads from the Universities of Maryland, Texas, and Washington, as well as private schools like Cornell and Stanford, about their job searches. Some respondents said the tech industry had "gaslit" them about their career pathways, while others described the experience as "bleak," "disheartening," or "soul-crushing."

Zach Taylor, who earned a computer science degree from Oregon State University in 2023, told NYT he applied to 5,762 tech jobs. He said this effort only resulted in 13 job interviews and no full-time job offers. He called the whole job search game "the most demoralizing experience I have ever had to go through." 

"Computing graduates are feeling particularly squeezed because tech firms are embracing A.I. coding assistants, reducing the need for some companies to hire junior software engineers," the outlet said, adding, "The trend is evident in downtown San Francisco, where billboard ads for A.I. tools like CodeRabbit promise to debug code faster and better than humans."

Yet, is the terrible job market for computer science majors really because of the proliferation of AI, or is there another problem? 

Already a well-understood issue among readers... 

UBS: do NOT learn to code pic.twitter.com/SQUlN27h4z

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 4, 2024

There may be a confluence of issues, perhaps some AI, but what about big tech firms outsourcing jobs to cheap foreign labor - something the NYT article did not mention... 

Us: "you guys sent all the rural jobs overseas"

Them: "lol, move to the city & learn to code"

Us: "okay"

Them: "LMAO, H-1Bs go BRRRRRRR" pic.twitter.com/2fDoqj1Vc8

— Jolly Roger (@Totally_Brandon) August 11, 2025

. . . 

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 18:05

Weekly Indicators for August 11 – 15 at Seeking Alpha  – by New Deal democrat My “Weekly Indicators” post is up at Seeking Alpha. This week I quantified the difference between commodity prices in the US$ vs. a basket of all other currencies. Perhaps unsurprisingly,  the upward pressure on commodity prices appears to be all, or almost […]

The post New DEal democrats Weekly Indicators for August 11-15 appeared first on Angry Bear.

Judge Expands Restraining Order Against Beto O'Rourke Over Alleged 'Beto Bribes'

A Texas judge has tightened the legal vise on former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, slapping him and his political group, Powered by People, with an expanded restraining order that also ropes in ActBlue and any banks handling their funds.

The move came Saturday after Attorney General Ken Paxton filed an urgent motion a day earlier, accusing O’Rourke’s outfit of funneling cash to Democrats who fled the state to derail redistricting votes.

Eight days ago, a district court first barred O’Rourke’s group from raising or distributing money to the runaway lawmakers. But the Democrat firebrand thumbed his nose at the order - holding rallies, posting fundraising videos online, and defiantly declaring, “Still here, still raising and rallying to stop the steal of 5 congressional seats in Texas.”

That open defiance pushed Paxton to seek contempt charges. In an amended filing, he demanded Powered by People’s charter be revoked, blasting O’Rourke for “deceptively fundraising and handing out ‘Beto Bribes’” to lawmakers in exchange for abandoning their posts.

O’Rourke and Powered by People "have deceived donors, bought off Texas politicians, and unlawfully assisted runaway Democrats in avoiding arrest,” Paxton charged, adding that the court should “throw Beto behind bars” and shut the group down, Just the News reports.

The AG’s complaint went further - accusing the organization of steering donations into luxury perks like private jets, swanky hotels, and fine dining “disconnected from any legitimate legislative purpose."

According to the amended complaint, "O’Rourke and Powered by People are directing consumers to political fundraising platforms, such as ActBlue, for the express political purpose of ‘fight[ing]’ Republicans and protecting Democratic seats from ‘corrupt republicans,’ meanwhile the funds are actually being used for lavish personal expenditures (i.e. travel on private jets, luxury hotel accommodations, and fine dining that is disconnected from, and has no legitimate purpose relating to, their legislative positions)."

Judge Megan Fahey agreed the state faced “imminent harm,” expanding the order through Sept. 5 and setting a Sept. 2 hearing on a possible injunction. She ruled the fundraising violated Texas consumer protection laws, saying it “harms Texas consumers” and that freezing the cash flow was in the public interest.

Paxton wasted no time in declaring victory: “His fraudulent attempt to pad the pockets of the rogue cowards abandoning Texas has been stopped, and now the court has rightly frozen his ability to continue to send money outside of Texas. The cabal of Democrats who have colluded together to scam Texans and derail our Legislature will face the full force of the law, starting with Robert Francis O’Rourke.”

Still, O’Rourke showed no signs of backing down. On Saturday he headlined another rally in Austin, thanking supporters “in this fight for Texas” and boasting that more than $1 million had already been donated to the Texas Legislative Black Caucus, the Texas House Democratic Caucus, and the Mexican American Legislative Caucus during the special session.

Tyler Durden Sun, 08/17/2025 - 16:55