Marina Orlova, an estate agent from Tomsk, made the comment in a casual conversation during a podcast hosted by a friend. When asked how a woman over 30 with limited income could afford to buy a flat, Orlova replied: “That’s easy. You find a man serving in the SVO [special military operation]. He doesn’t come back, and you get the money.”
In a bizarre twist of modern warfare and desperation, a disturbing new trend has emerged in Russia. Nicknamed the new "Black Widows" — not for their association with terrorism, but for their calculated pursuit of financial gain through war widowhood — some Russian women are reportedly marrying soldiers bound for Ukraine with one chilling expectation: that they may not come back.
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Netanyahu was once Israeli Finance Minister - and it shows. He understands a lot about economics, and is worth listening to in order to get a sense for where Israel's economy is headed.
Three Houthi drones were fired at Israel on Sunday. Two were shot down and the third struck the airport in Eilat, Wounding to his Israelis and causing the airspace to be shut down.
Episode 622 - Field Producer Dennis Azato and Chuck Reminisce
My erstwhile field producer and cameraman Dennis Azato has accompanied me on ten years of adventures across the globe. Today he joins me in Ukraine and we spend some time remembering our many trips together.
Episode 622 - Field Producer Dennis Azato and Chuck Reminisce
Episode 622 - Field Producer Dennis Azato and Chuck Reminisce
My friends, Don and Elaine Schiffer, who live Just a few short miles away from where the eye came ashore yesterday, As denoted by the red arrow in this picture, have reported in and are safe. However, who knows when supplies will be delivered to them. Every road is impassable or washed out. Thank you all for continuing in prayer.
"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and tumult and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you." (Ephesians 4:31-32)
We need God's grace every day to be more thick-skinned and tender-hearted. In my natural self, I'm quick-tempered, defensive and prideful; among other shameful things. But praise be to God, that in Jesus, we are all able to love sincerely, and walk in grace and truth, through the power of His might. For we have everything we need spiritually, as new creatures, but we have to utilize His provision through faith and obedience.
"Put on the new man, who in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of truth." (Ephesians 4:24)
Hey all.... I am sure many of you are following Hurricane Melissa. This is particularly difficult for me as I spent a few years living there as a missionary/teacher. I also have good friends there now who are in the worst part of the storm at this very moment. I have been connected to this area since 1993 to some extent or another. Please pray....
Out here in the rugged hills of Armenia, there’s a place where faith meets hard work — and lives are being changed because of it. This is the Mercy Projects Rancho California, a patch of land that’s turning hope into something you can see, touch, and feel. What started as a simple vision has grown into a thriving outreach where faith and farming come together. The team here isn’t just raising animals and crops; they’re raising up the next generation of leaders for Armenia. You’ll meet the men and women who’ve worked hard to build a safe haven for this part of the world, building a community that reflects God’s love in real, practical ways. It’s gritty. It’s beautiful. And it’s proof that when people of faith step out and serve, incredible things can happen. Come along with me as we visit the Mercy Projects Ranch — a place where hope grows deep roots in the Armenian soil. Learn more or support the work: https://www.mercyprojects.org/
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“If a system pays people not to work, don’t be shocked when it produces more people who don’t work.”
The Real Cost of “Free”
Let’s do the math.
The U.S. spends trillions of dollars every year on welfare and entitlement programs—federal, state, and local combined. When you divide that by the number of taxpayers, you’re effectively paying about $3,500 a month to fund these systems.
That’s your money. Every month. Whether you like it or not.
And if only 1% of that is wasted through fraud—and I assure you it’s much more—that’s a billion dollars a month going straight into the ether.
The Government Accountability Office estimates 11% of welfare spending is lost to fraud, waste, and abuse. Eleven percent. That’s not a rounding error; that’s a hemorrhage.
“Fraud isn’t a bug in the system—it’s the business model for people who know how to game it.”
What I Found on the Ground
This isn’t theory for me. I’ve been to the villages in Guatemala and seen what happens when America subsidizes dependency.
One mountain town I visited looked like a ghost village. The mayor told me it used to hold around 2,000 residents, but now maybe 200 remain—mostly women and children. Almost all the men had gone to the United States.
And they’re not just sending postcards home. They’re sending money.
Those “remittances” are being used to build 3,000-square-foot mansions in a town where people once lived in bamboo huts with dirt floors. American tax dollars—channeled through welfare checks and under-the-table cash work—are being wired home and turned into marble staircases and brass fixtures.
Across Latin America, that story repeats. Over $200 billion a year leaves the U.S. in remittances. Not all of it is ill-gotten, but enough is that it’s propping up entire foreign economies—Mexico, India, even China—with money that originated from your tax bill.
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Ending Welfare Might Be the Most Loving Thing the Government Could Do
When compassion becomes control, dependency becomes slavery — and freedom begins with responsibility.
When God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness” (Genesis 1:26), He was establishing something radical: every human life has intrinsic worth, purpose, and responsibility. We’re not accidents of evolution — we’re image-bearers of God.
That’s why Christians defend life from conception to natural death. But the Imago Dei doesn’t just speak to abortion or euthanasia. It also speaks to the way we treat human dignity in everyday life — including how we deal with poverty, work, and welfare.
The Cruelty of “Compassion”
For decades, the U.S. government has built an entire industry around dependency. SNAP, EBT, and countless welfare programs were supposed to be safety nets, not hammocks. But when “temporary help” becomes a permanent lifestyle, it robs people of the very thing that makes them human: agency.
Work was never a punishment — it was God’s design. Adam wasn’t lounging in Eden collecting fruit stamps. He was tending a garden, naming animals, exercising dominion. Work is how human beings imitate their Creator.
That’s why Paul said in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.” Not as a threat, but as a correction. A culture that subsidizes idleness is not compassionate — it’s complicit in spiritual decay.
Mercy Isn’t Maintenance
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Welcome to the frontlines of truth and perspective! The Holton Family couldn’t be more excited to have you join us in this incredible space.
This isn’t just a platform—it’s a movement grounded in faith, courage, and a commitment to walking the path Jesus set before us. We’re building a community of people who value truth and freedom, who aren’t afraid to shine a light in the darkest corners of the world and trust that God has a plan even in the midst of chaos.
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Exclusive insights: Real stories from conflict zones and underreported areas like Armenia, Ukraine, and Russia that you won’t find anywhere else.
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