A couple of years ago I wrote here about a couple whom I described as Norway’s answer to Britain’s Harry and Meghan, although it now occurs to me that the royal half of the couple in question might also be compared to the late Princess Margaret. Margaret, it will be remembered, was Queen Elizabeth’s younger sister, the Goofus to her Gallant, the Naughty Girl to her Goody Two-Shoes. While Liz was devoutly devoted to her duties as sovereign, virtually never getting a step wrong, Margaret was a notorious playgirl. Years after she was prevented by an eighteenth-century law from marrying the divorced man with whom she’d fallen in love, RAF Captain Peter Townsend, she wed a celebrity photographer, Antony Armstrong-Jones, whom she later divorced. [T]he only surprise in all of this is that there isn’t a sizable movement in Norway to exchange this mediocre mess of a monarchy for a republic. Before, during, and after that marriage, she kept up, shall we say, a busy social life; her many liaisons, not a few of them with international celebrities, were eagerly reported by the tabloids and gossip rags. Norway’s answer to Margaret isn’t promiscuous, so far as I know, but her private life has also been the subject of hysterical tabloid and gossip-rag headlines in her native country. As I noted in my earlier article, Märtha Louise, the 52-year-old daughter of King Harald V and lone sibling of Crown Prince Haakon, was married for fifteen years to Ari Behn, a famously unimpressive novelist and archetypal beta-male man-about-town who consorted regularly with C-level Norwegian celebrities and, sadly, ended up killing himself on Christmas Day 2019, two years after divorcing Märtha Louise. (READ MORE from Bruce Bawer: Remembering the Enchanting Alain Delon) Soon afterwards, it began to be reported that Märtha Louise had a new amour who, like Behn, was a shameless fame whore but who was otherwise, in many ways, his exact opposite: Durek Verrett, a big, bald, black shaman from Los Angeles who has admitted to being bisexual and who is looked up to as something of a guru to a number of ditzy Hollywood stars, among them Gwyneth Paltrow. Now 49, Durek is also the author of a self-help book, Spirit Hacking: Shamanic Keys to Reclaim Your Personal Power, Transform Yourself, and Light Up the World, in which he explains that at age fourteen he was visited by a wizard who “flew right through him and burned a hole in his body,” whereupon “an army of angels” appeared. And that’s just the beginning of his most remarkable life journey. Later in his teens, in connection with a home break-in and subsequent fire, he spent a year in prison, another year in a youth detention center, and some time in solitary confinement. If you read Verrett’s book, you’ll learn that cancer is caused by the patient’s wish to die, but that it can be cured by — who else? — none other than Verrett himself. Hear that, Sloan Kettering? Time to close your doors. Two years ago, Märtha Louise and Verrett got engaged. For a while they shacked up together in L.A.; now they’re apparently living in Norway with her three daughters by Ari Behn. (“Living in Norway has unlocked a new level of bliss, darlings!,” gushed the ever-effervescent Durek online.) How could the princess fall for such an obvious shakedown artist, such a transparent fourflusher, such a classic example of a southern California con man, whose modus operandi is preying brazenly on the rich, famous, and stupid? Because, as it happens, Märtha Louise herself has long been operating very similar pseudo-spiritual scams. From 2007 to 2018, for example,  she ran an “alternative therapy center,” known in the Norwegian press as the “angel school,” her claim being that she could communicate with angels and with the dead, no less. Obviously, then, these two were made for each other. In fact they profess to have known each other in previous lives in ancient Egypt, which is nice. On the occasion of their engagement, Verrett wrote on Instagram: “I’m overjoyed with tears that I get to spend the rest of my life with the most pure hearted, angelic, wise, powerhouse woman who represents all levels of a goddess in my eyes. Together as a soulful spiritual couple, we will use our power to support the people to create a world based in love and acceptance.” The wedding between these two spiritually enlightened beings — or, depending on your point of view, outrageously shady entrepreneurs — is scheduled for August 31. Recently, it was reported that the couple had sold the exclusive rights to photograph their wedding to the British celebrity magazine Hello and the exclusive TV rights to Netflix, which has apparently assigned Rebecca Chaiklin, executive producer of such projects as Tiger King (2020), to the project. (READ MORE: Elizabeth the Great) According to Hello, the actual nuptials, which will take place in the village of Geiranger, on the shore of the Geiranger fjord, will be the centerpiece of a three-day “extravaganza” — including a meet-and-greet party in the quaint nearby city of Ålesund, a boat trip, a salsa party, and a wedding breakfast and reception. The site of the wedding itself is a supremely picturesque location — something right out of a painting from the Norwegian romantic nationalist period (one is reminded of Hans Gude and Adolph Tidemann’s classic 1848 canvas Bridal Procession on the Hardanger Fjord) — and couldn’t be more different from L.A. Hello also reports that the couple have asked guests to forego the usual formal attire and instead dress in a “sexy and cool” fashion. Nor have they been shy about monetizing their marriage. In order to safeguard their big hauls from Hello and Netflix, Märtha Louise og Durek’s representatives have reportedly exchanged unfriendly e-mails with the police in Møre og Romsdal (the county in which Geiranger is located), who have refused their demand that the airspace over the wedding site be closed for three days so that the Norwegian media would be unable to film the wedding using drones. Iselin Nevstd Øvrelid, the communications director for the county police, has explained that the police have no power to deny the news media the right to film or photograph anything from the air. The photo and TV rights to their wedding aren’t the only things that Märtha Louise and Durek have sold. They actually marketed their own “wedding gin” — until Vinmonopolet, the government-owned business that holds a monopoly on selling alcoholic beverages in Norway, stopped sales of the product on the grounds that the couple’s energetic promotion of it might violate Norway’s law against advertising booze. The authorities were also troubled by the label on the bottle, which featured the couple’s “wedding monogram” and Märtha Louise’s royal title. In July, after the label was changed, the wedding gin was returned to Vinmonopolet’s shelves. Then there’s the letter that one of the couple’s lawyers sent to Durek’s 81-year-old mother, threatening her with a multimillion-dollar defamation lawsuit if she didn’t take back certain things she’d said about her son in a TV interview. She’s not the first person to have gotten a letter from the same lawyer for speaking out publicly about Märtha Louise and Durek. What do Norwegians make of all this? Let’s just say that most of them, at least those who live outside of the sexier and cooler precincts of downtown Oslo, aren’t terribly thrilled. Märtha Louise blames negative public attitudes on racism and complains of “microaggressions.” (Obviously she learned a lot during her time in L.A.) In any event, by now, Norwegians should be accustomed to royal scandals. A couple of decades ago, many of them were shocked when the rather nerdy Crown Prince Haakon announced his engagement to the stunning, leggy Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby, who in a bizarre speech to the Norwegian public admitted to having been something of a floozy. (As she put it, she had led a “wild” life prior to her betrothal. Haakon was not asked to make any official statement about his own sexual past.) Well, as they say in Norway, plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. Earlier this month, Marius Borg Høiby, the strikingly handsome but otherwise unimpressive son, now 27, whom Mette-Marit had with one of her many premarital bedmates and who’s been treated since childhood as a sort of auxiliary member of the royal family, made headlines when a woman, identified as his girlfriend, called the cops on him for attacking her physically. Marius (a former car mechanic who, it emerged this week, carries a diplomatic passport), has admitted guilt and apologized publicly through his lawyers, maintaining that he has “several mental disorders” and longtime problems with “substance abuse.” Oh well. Every family has problems, right? Still, it seems to me that the only surprise in all of this is that there isn’t a sizable movement in Norway to exchange this mediocre mess of a monarchy for a republic. Or something. Anything. The post Märtha and Durek Cash In on Their Wedding appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Watching snippets of the DNC last week (because snippets are all I can tolerate in this political season) reminded me of my days in a yoga cult in California. Their themes of joy are reminiscent of an oft repeated motto hanging in every yoga studio from San Diego to San Francisco: “Good vibes only.” Finally, like the newly minted candidate’s campaign, many cults are predicated on vibes rather than substance and outcomes. Full disclosure: I do own a hoodie sweatshirt with this catchphrase on it and, I am not going to lie, it is one of my favorites. At least I’m honest, unlike the performances we witnessed at the DNC. In the “spiritual but not religious” circles I ran in, this is what’s known as “spiritual bypassing” — covering up pain, suffering, and reality in general with tones of positivity and the belief that if we just speak or sing of happier places and times, it will be so. It’s based on the conviction that we create our own reality rather than contend with it. It seems rather peculiar to hear everyone on the left and, of course, the entire mainstream media, speak of joy and the presence of “hope” in the air when a good majority of the country is struggling under staggering inflation, debt, and cultural decay with the potential of war knocking on our door. I’m all for positive thinking and seeing the glass half full, but not recognizing that most are drinking cough syrup while you’re toasting with a glass of champagne seems rather tone deaf. Or hypocritical. Take your pick. I was particularly baffled by Michelle Obama’s denouncement of wealth. Her father and mother didn’t aspire to be wealthy, she proclaimed. “In fact, they were suspicious of folks who took more than they needed.” I wonder if her parents gave her and Barack the side eye every time they saw them? I wonder how agonizing it must have been staying in any one of their four multimillion dollar homes? I bet not one Democrat batted an eye at the obvious duplicity. Delusion seems to be a necessary tool of the Democrat party these days. After the past three years, I understand why people just want to feel good. It’s been a tough road for almost everyone, no matter what side of the aisle you sit on. It would be great to have cause for celebration. But the truth is, many don’t have much to celebrate right now. (READ MORE from Jennifer Galardi: It’s Globe-fficial: Hollywood Has Lost Its Sense of Humor) Rather than acknowledge the mess they created, Democrats are determined to cover the painful reality, thinly veiling their hypocrisy with their good vibes, the truth lying just beneath the surface for all to see. However, no matter how transparent the lies are to some, others just can’t grasp them. They are swayed by speeches and proclamations of joy and love. It can be quite intoxicating, especially for someone who feels disenfranchised or lacks self-confidence. Using words to manipulate and play with emotion is a tremendous skill and one that both the elite in the Democrat party and cult leaders share. Rarely do members of a cult apprehend they are in one. Most get in for all the right reasons, often for personal development and to be a better person. Sound familiar? ‘Morals’ of the Cult Furthermore, a good portion of cults claim spiritual pursuits as their ends and one can make a strong case that the causes of the left are more religious than traditional religions are. The religions of the left have all the markings of say, Christianity, however their sins are not those that transgress the boundaries of moral virtue, but rather those that do not align with the current dogma. Typically, a Democratic sin is based on some immutable characteristic — race or sex — rather than modifiable behavior. So, there is no repentance and absolutely no forgiveness in woke religion. This is similar to the struggle sessions often performed in cults whereby a member is demeaned and broken in order to be rebuilt and reshaped to adhere to group doctrine. Finally, like the newly minted candidate’s campaign, many cults are predicated on vibes rather than substance and outcomes. There’s never accountability, particularly for those at the top of the chain. Spiritual leaders can speak rudely, lie, have sexual dalliances with whomever they desire. But you better damn well be quiet with your feet covered and sit at attention when they walk in the room. Don’t question their methods. Don’t question what you’re taught. Just “do the work” and remember — if you’re not progressing or feeling the joy, it’s your fault. You better fork over some more money, or votes, for more enlightenment. (READ MORE: CPAC: Why Jennifer Galardi Left Hollywood Behind) Lastly, and perhaps the hardest thing to understand, is you can never make someone in a cult realize they are in one. Often, they only see the truth after they’ve been so badly hurt or victimized that they are forced to see it. For others, one good wakeup call — like Covid — is all it takes to reveal the large-scale manipulation. Still, for many, neither of these will do. It is, as one wise book tells us, through grace alone they are saved. The good news is, once out of a cult, one becomes more discerning. It is easier to spot the phonies with their doublespeak and fake vibes. Let’s hope it doesn’t take another four years of hard-hitting realities for some in the Democratic party to wake up because, by then, it may be too late. The post The Democrat Party is a Cult appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

from The Salty Cracker:  TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/

? NEW: President Trump says he’s looking to put both Elon Musk AND RFK Jr. in his cabinet when elected This is the deep state’s WORST nightmare ? Trump says he’d put @elonmusk in charge of “cutting the fat” out of government, and RFK Jr. would be in charge of Making America… pic.twitter.com/T4sixVoWHL — Nick […]

by J.B. Shurk, All News Pipeline: One of the few interesting things about America’s highly choreographed political conventions is the gathering of people outside these events.  Supporters and protesters show up to yell at the top of their lungs for days.  What kinds of taunts do these opposing groups scream at each other?  Remarkably, they accuse each other […]

There was a time when all rock and pop roads led to London; you couldn't move without tripping over an icon or a star. Those days are long gone

The Islamic world of special privileges. The post Florida: Hamas-Linked CAIR Wants Rudeness Considered a Hate Crime appeared first on Frontpage Mag.