It’s no secret that Disney isn’t doing well lately. They just laid off nearly 15% of the workforce at Pixar, their movie studio that used to produce guaranteed hits. But Pixar’s recent films “Elemental” and “Lightyear” were bombs, and the division hasn’t turned a profit in more than two years. People just didn’t go for the strained interracial/immigrant metaphor in “Elemental” or the same-sex kiss in “Lightyear,” or the rehashed, stale vibe of both projects. Additionally, Disney’s much-touted “fully immersive” hotel called “Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser,” shut down late last year, after operating for less than two years. Disney had spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the project, apparently on the theory that people cared so much about the “Star Wars” brand that they’d be willing to spend thousands of dollars for the privilege of staying two nights in a windowless concrete building posing as a spaceship. That didn’t pan out. Apparently people weren’t excited to stay in a hotel where the experience is seemingly designed to be as aggressively unpleasant as possible. That same quarter, Disney’s streaming service, Disney+, reported a loss of more than a million subscribers. And that’s not even getting into Disney’s decision to get involved in Florida politics, on the side of activist teachers who want to talk to kindergartners about “gender identity” and “sexual orientation.” Faced with this brand collapse, Disney had two options. One option was to retool their content to focus on entertainment and family values instead of activism, which is what Disney used to do, when it was a universally beloved and much more financially successful company. They could get back to their roots. Not in the sense of churning out more remakes, but in the sense of being a company that makes wholesome family films that capture a sense of wonder and imagination.  The other option was to keep doing exactly what they’ve been doing, and continue to shove the same agenda — the equity/representation/LGBTQ approach — that they’ve been pushing for years now. Eight months ago, Disney’s CEO, Bob Iger, publicly pledged to pursue the first option. He declared that Disney would refocus its efforts on entertainment, not political messaging. That was the plan, or at least the plan that was shared with the public. But that’s not what happened.  Disney, over the past eight months, has apparently decided to double down on agenda-driven content, to the point that they’re openly attacking their own fans. It’s a remarkable turn of events, and it’s one that’s worth discussing because this development isn’t unique to Disney. And it suggests that “wokeness” may not be the best way to describe what we’re seeing at Disney and other major corporations like it. That’s certainly part of what we’re seeing, but there’s something else going on here. It looks a lot like corporate mediocrity run amok — the private-sector version of what we see across the public-sector bureaucracy. Unimpressive people with impressive-sounding credentials, who check the right demographic boxes, are taking the helm of businesses and products that they don’t understand. They’ve insinuated themselves into these companies like a cancer that’s evidently impossible to remove. And even when the company CEO publicly tells them one thing, they’re free to do another. To get a better idea of what I mean, take a look at this interview from the other day, featuring Leslye Headland, the creator of the new Disney Star Wars show, “The Acolyte.” I don’t want to prejudice you in any way, so I’ll just play this clip with that introduction. This is the showrunner talking about her show. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aSFW5OO8fI   Don’t worry about the story, or the plot, or the characters. Who has time for that? Instead, just listen to these two women call old Star Wars characters gay, and then giggle like schoolgirls. They are excited that this new Star Wars show will be the gayest Star Wars show yet. Which is, in every way, the exact opposite of what the audience actually wants.  The only thing you learn from that interview is that Leslye Headland is gay and has no respect whatsoever for her audience or her own show. This is how Disney is promoting the latest entry in a franchise they spent $4 billion to buy a decade ago. And that has a lot of fans wondering how exactly she was chosen for the role of showrunner. If her role is to push some subversive woke ideology, she’s not being very subversive about it. She’s just angering as many fans as she possibly can. That’s all this is. And she’s not the only one doing it. The CEO of Lucasfilm — a woman named Kathleen Kennedy — just came out in defense of her showrunner. Kennedy declared that if you’re not a fan of how Leslye Headland is handling herself, then you probably hate women.  I think Leslye has struggled a little bit with it. I think a lot of the women who step into Star Wars struggle with this a bit more. Because of the fan base being so male-dominated, they sometimes get attacked in ways that can be quite personal. … My belief is that storytelling does need to be representative of all people. That’s an easy decision for me. Yes, she really said that. “Storytelling does need to be representative of all people,” says the CEO of Lucasfilm, as she mocks her own fanbase. These people are so dumb that they don’t even understand the words coming out of their own mouths. “Representative of all people,” really? Are they going to have eight billion characters in this show, one for each person on Earth? How exactly is this going to work? Is storytelling supposed to be “representative of all people” — whatever that means — or is it supposed to be representative of the creative vision of the storyteller? WATCH: The Matt Walsh Show I was going to show some more clips of these women, but it’s honestly too painful to subject you to. These are people who can’t even communicate without descending into valley girl nonsense, and they’re putting together shows that they expect millions of people to watch. Kathleen Kennedy was lucky enough to work with Steven Spielberg, and Leslye Headland worked on rom-coms with titles like “Sleeping With Other People.” Those are their credentials, and they’re considered impressive in the industry. So they get to continue butchering “Star Wars.”  By the way, “The Acolyte” was released this week and — as has become a new tradition for “Star Wars” films and shows — it has a very high critics score on Rotten Tomatoes but a failing grade of 45% from the audience.  Joel Berry, who apparently subjected himself to at least some of the show, offered this review:  The Acolyte is a queer, Marxist vandalization of the myth of Star Wars. In The Acolyte, the Force is a metaphor for cultural hegemonic power. The Jedi are a metaphor for cisgender white oppressors who hoard the power for themselves. Yes, it really is that obnoxious and stupid. The account Wall Street Silver offered this viewer warning:  The Acolyte, Star Wars new series streaming, very woke. 1) main character has two mothers 2) main Jedi characters are all Black and Asian, no white men 3) only speaking role for white men in first episode is prisoners on prison ship. So Disney has decided to right the ship by ramming it directly into another iceberg. That’s not to pick on “The Acolyte” too much, although it obviously deserves it. Because of the fact that Disney is now pumping out “Star Wars” shows on an assembly line, there’s another one I can mock as well called “Tales of the Empire.” This one is apparently geared towards kids, and I guess it features a nonbinary Jedi, based on how all of the characters use “they/them” pronouns to refer to his corpse. Watch this, if you can get through it: This is the result of Disney’s big plan to focus on “entertainment” and not “messaging.” We have nonbinary Jedi and girl bosses making sure we get the gayest “Star Wars” ever.” And that’s not all. As Bloomberg recently reported, Disney is now banking on the upcoming film “Inside Out 2” as the, “key to restoring the magic.” They think this film — a sequel to a movie from 2015 — is going to be a smash hit, to the point that they’re going to give it a 100-day run in theaters. As Bloomberg reports: If families show up for Inside Out 2 in the kinds of numbers Pixar used to see, it will reaffirm the studio’s standing. But if the movie fails, it will fuel concerns about the company’s relevance. So what’s “Inside Out 2” going to be about? It’s hard to say, because it’s not out yet. But after some Googling, I came across this headline from an outlet called Pride.com. Here’s their assessment, based on the trailer:  The long-awaited sequel to Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out isn’t hitting theaters until this summer, but the official trailer dropped this week…and it’s looking a little gay. … Fans think Inside Out 2 is going to be gay AF. How brave is that? Are they also going to gay-ify “Inside Out” — which was kind of a middling Pixar entry in the first place? Who knows? But based on the fact that they can’t make anything that isn’t gay — we can assume the answer is yes. This is all very woke, yes. It’s also incredibly lame and stale and unimaginative. That would also be an apt descriptor for what Disney is doing with its theme parks. As the writer Peachy Keenan documented on X/Twitter yesterday, Disney is currently re-theming their famous “Splash Mountain” ride because apparently it is racist. And they’re creating a politically correct replacement. Keenan watched all of Disney’s promotional materials, and she put together a comparison of the old ride with the new one. Basically, the new ride won’t have Princess Tiana in a nice dress with a handsome prince, or even a storyline of any kind:  Instead, you get a lot of dead space, repeated boring animatronic who look like zombies compared to the Pirates animatronics, and Tiana—incredibly—in ugly baggy pants, no makeup, no nonsense hair, zero glamour. … It’s Girl Boss Tiana and she’s dressed like a Jungle Cruise. Sounds thrilling. I was trying to figure out why all of this is happening at Disney — why they’re sabotaging their own brand, despite what the CEO said they’d do. And it’s clear that, whatever’s going on here, it’s not unique to Disney. Consider what just happened at Cracker Barrel. Their CEO is a woman named Julie Felss Masino. She took the job last year. Previously, she worked at Taco Bell, Mattel, Sprinkles Cupcakes, Starbucks, and Macy’s. Of course, the clientele of every single one of these companies is very different from the typical Cracker Barrel, which skews older. But in general, her old jobs were mostly in the food industry, just like ”The Acolyte” showrunner’s jobs were mostly in the entertainment industry. And that’s good enough, so Julie Masino got the job. Unfortunately, it’s not working out too well. Masino just announced on a call with investors that the company is, “just not as relevant as we once were.” To “ignite growth,” she said, it’s necessary to “revitalize” the brand. She then outlined a bunch of generic initiatives, like rewards programs that every other restaurant offers. Her announcement sent the stock down 11% immediately, putting it down nearly 50% in the past year. And why wouldn’t the stock drop? The new CEO clearly views Cracker Barrel as completely indistinguishable from every other place she’s ever worked. If anything, she probably hates the brand. And we can assume she hates the brand’s primarily blue collar, Christian clientele.  We saw something similar with that Bud Light VP, Alissa Heinerscheid, when she dismissed her own customers as “fratty” and said Bud Light needed a rebrand. They brought on Dylan Mulvaney, and we all know how that turned out. Alissa Heinerscheid, like Julie Masino, had great credentials. She went to Harvard and Wharton, and had worked at big companies like Listerine and General Mills. But she didn’t understand Bud Light or care about the customers, so she destroyed the brand. That’s now unfolding at Cracker Barrel as well. And it’s a very preventable, slow-motion collapse. On social media, someone using the handle “Pine Barron” summed up the problem better than anyone I’ve seen. Here’s what he wrote, describing an alternative to Cracker Barrel’s current CEO:  Imagine a CEO who actually loved Midwestern and Southern culture. What about pop up concerts and endorsements by Zach Bryan and Morgan Wallen? Why not lean into its heritage as an ‘after church’ spot and create programs for church groups including discounts and shuttle bus services. Grassroots evangelical support has made huge hits of movies like the Sound of Freedom and restaurant chains like Chik-Fil-A. … Imagine a public company with leadership that didn’t hate the blue collar evangelical population. There are so many obvious partnership opportunities with brands like NASCAR or country music stars. I don’t think this is wokeness or girlbossery per se, but rather typical corporate mediocrity. … They hired a generic MBA type who built a career on the massive brand equity of Yum Brands and Starbucks. … Just a cog in the corporate machine. I hope we will see titans of industry again but this is not how we’ll get them. That does a fairly good job of putting into perspective everything we’ve been seeing over the past few years at Disney, Bud Light, and so many other major corporations. And I think it’s a more apt explanation than simply chalking all of this decline up to “wokeness.” This trend of hiring interchangeable CEOs with resumes and trendy demographics has been an unmitigated disaster because it overlooks what the leader of every company should have, at a bare minimum — which is an understanding of their product and a genuine respect for their customers. Without that, you get shows like “The Acolyte.” You get Dylan Mulvaney and angry customers, and your stock collapses along with your brand. All the combined efforts of feminism and diversity and equity and wokeness have brought us to this point. But it’s bureaucracy and inertia that’s keeping it alive, long after everyone’s tired of it. That inertia is the reason why — whether you’re going to a restaurant or a movie theater — you’re now guaranteed a product that’s as mediocre as the people who created it.

The Department of Justice official who left the Biden administration to work for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case against former President Donald Trump took a small pay cut to make the move, records suggest.  Matthew Colangelo was the third-highest official at the DOJ, earning an annual salary of $183,100, according to public salary records. He left the job to relocate to New York and be a senior counsel for Bragg, where he now earns a reduced salary of $180,000 a year, the city’s salary database shows. His move from the prestigious post in Washington D.C. to a lower position in a district attorney office in New York has raised eyebrows from critics who say it is evidence that Biden’s administration had a hand in prosecuting Trump.  The prosecution of the former president has faced widespread criticism for being politically motivated, and the key role of a Biden administration official in it has added fuel to the fire. The lack of any immediate financial benefit for Colangelo further gives the appearance that he joined the office to politically damage Trump, who has long made clear that he intended to challenge Biden in 2024.  When Colangelo announced his move to the New York office in December 2022, it was explicitly to focus on the office’s “most sensitive and high-profile white-collar investigation.” Bragg hailed Colangelo for having “the sound judgment and integrity needed to pursue justice against powerful people and institutions when they abuse their power.” He appears to have left with the blessing of Merrick Garland, who gave a statement to the New York Times praising him on his way out the door for his “wise counsel and excellent judgment” during his time at DOJ. Now Garland is forced to deny any coordination after being accused on Capitol Hill of “dispatching Matthew Colangelo” to Manhattan. “That is false. I did not dispatch Matthew Colangelo,” Garland said. “That is false.” Garland said during his sworn testimony that he played no role in Colangelo getting the job, and furthermore that he has had no communication with Colangelo since he left.  Colangelo is an overtly political figure. In 2018, during Trump’s first term, he was paid thousands of dollars by the Democratic National Committee for “political consulting,” Fox News reported last month. His wife, Anne Small, contributed thousands of dollars to Biden’s 2020 election campaign, Federal Election Commission records show. Judge Juan Merchan, who had issued a controversial gag order on Trump, also donated to an anti-Trump political group. And Bragg, the lead prosecutor, campaigned for his office on “getting” Trump.  A conservative watchdog group has sued for all records related to Trump while Colangelo was at the DOJ. The department failed to turn over the records for a public records request. “No one leaves being the #3 at the Department of Justice to go work in a district attorney’s office–no matter which one it is,” said Gene Hamilton, the executive director of America First Legal. “There is no plausible explanation other than engagement in a coordinated campaign to target one man – President Trump.” Though the move didn’t immediately benefit Colangelo, he has managed to morph from an unknown Democrat operative to one of the prosecutors who won a conviction against the former president. It is unclear whether Colangelo will remain in Bragg’s office after the case concludes.

In a new development that further complicates Boeing's troubled history with aircraft safety, two additional whistleblowers have come forward, revealing significant concerns about the safety practices and culture at the aerospace giant. These revelations add to the growing scrutiny Boeing faces over its handling of safety protocols, particularly regarding the production of its popular aircraft models.The two whistleblowers, former Boeing employees, have detailed issues related to the manufacturing processes that could potentially compromise the safety of passengers. According to reports, these employees have cited numerous instances where safety was allegedly overlooked or inadequately addressed to expedite production timelines and meet financial targets​. This disclosure follows a series of high-profile safety concerns that have plagued Boeing in recent years, notably the fatal crashes involving the 737 MAX aircraft. These incidents led to a global grounding of the model and widespread criticism of Boeing's safety practices. The new whistleblowers' allegations suggest that issues may persist across other aircraft models, raising alarms about systemic problems within the company. In recent congressional hearings, Boeing executives were grilled over these safety lapses, with lawmakers demanding more stringent oversight and accountability. The testimonies of these whistleblowers are expected to bolster calls for comprehensive reforms within Boeing and the broader aerospace industry​. Two more Boeing whistleblowers go public over plane safety: ‘Like a ticking timebomb’ https://t.co/lm1IZJcTGH pic.twitter.com/zsw9wVBuS9 — New York Post (@nypost) June 5, 2024 Adding to the gravity of the situation, earlier whistleblowers who had raised similar safety concerns faced severe personal repercussions. Tragically, two prominent whistleblowers died under controversial circumstances shortly after their public disclosures. One reportedly succumbed to an infection, while another was found dead from a gunshot wound, leading to intense speculation and calls for independent investigations into their deaths​. The latest whistleblowers have underscored issues such as improper quality control, inadequate inspection protocols, and a corporate culture that prioritizes production speed over safety. They have provided detailed accounts of these practices, including instances where defective parts were knowingly installed in aircraft and warnings from safety inspectors were ignored or suppressed. BREAKING: Two former employees of Boeing and its key contractor have told The Post that – despite the deaths of two whistleblowers within two months this year – they are more determined than ever to tell the truth about what they allege are dangerous practices at the once-great… pic.twitter.com/vVEhmK5cZg — Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) June 5, 2024 These revelations come at a critical time for Boeing, which is striving to restore its reputation and regain the trust of regulators and the flying public. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and other regulatory bodies are under pressure to enhance their oversight mechanisms and ensure that such safety oversights do not recur. Consumer confidence in Boeing has been shaken, with many questioning the reliability of the company's aircraft. This sentiment has been echoed by aviation safety experts who argue that Boeing needs to implement robust changes to its safety practices and corporate governance to prevent further incidents​. In response to these allegations, Boeing has reiterated its commitment to safety and has announced several internal reviews and process improvements aimed at addressing the concerns raised by the whistleblowers. However, critics argue that more substantial and transparent actions are necessary to rebuild confidence in the company's safety culture. As investigations continue and more details emerge, the aerospace industry and regulatory agencies are closely watching how Boeing navigates this crisis. The implications of these revelations could have far-reaching consequences, not only for Boeing but for the entire aviation sector, as it grapples with ensuring the highest safety standards amidst growing competitive and financial pressures. The post New Boeing Whistleblowers Expose Plane Safety Issues appeared first on The Conservative Brief.

Jelly Roll and his wife Bunnie XO are hoping to expand their family through IVF, and they’re sharing the journey with fans. The country singer opened up about his weight loss journey while visiting the Bussin’ With The Boys podcast on June 4th. During that conversation, he admitted that he wants to drop 60 pounds to help ensure he’s around to see all his kids get through school. “My wife and I are talking about having a baby, and it really made me realize that at almost 40, I was like, it means I got to live to at least 60. I got to see this kid into college,” he said. Initially, Jelly Roll had said his kids inspired him to take better care of himself. But he did not share that he would like to welcome another. Bunnie XO And Jelly Roll Want To Be Open With Their Fans Jelly Roll is a father to Bailee Ann, 16, and Noah Buddy, 7, whom he shares with former girlfriends. When he and Bunnie XO married in 2016, she happily jumped into her new role as a stepmother. Now that she’s realized the joys of raising a family, she would like more experiences with motherhood. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bunnie Xo. (@xomgitsbunnie) Following Jelly Roll’s big reveal, Bunnie XO told her Instagram followers that she and her husband and undergoing IVF. “Papabear dropped a surprise on this pod today,” she wrote over a clip of the interview. “We had planned on doing this privately. But decided our IVF journey needed to be shared because we’ve always been so open.” Bunnie added that the “odds” are “stacked against” them, but they’re still hopeful. She also noted that they “have only just begun.” “God Willing- Baby DeFord 2026  @bussinwtb,” she concluded. This story’s featured image is by Omar Vega/WireImage. The post Jelly Roll And Bunnie XO Are Hoping To Expand Their Family And They’re Sharing Their IVF Journey appeared first on InspireMore.

Unanswered questions

You can't get to equality by trapping poor kids in failing schools

'I'm going to fuck you up'

'no issue using children to promote the sex life of adults'

'He continued to be uncooperative'

The Call is one of the few Rocket-Assisted Frame Sidearms in Destiny 2, and a bunch of Guardians are farming for the God Roll after being introduced to the weapon in The Final Shape campaign. While it’s not the greatest weapon for the Crucible and PVP in general, The Call is a fantastic gun for PVE activities because of its high damage output, quick reload speed, and other perks. It has a strong perk pool too, so it’s hard to get a bad roll. If you want the best possible God Roll for The Call, though, here’s what you should look out for when playing Destiny 2 The Final Shape. The Call God Roll in Destiny 2 This is the PVE God Roll for The Call in Destiny 2. Barrel: Quick Launch Magazine: High-Velocity Rounds Perk 1: Lead from Gold Perk 2: Desperate Measures Masterwork: Velocity With Quick Launch and High-Velocity Rounds, you won’t have to worry as much about leading targets to hit them with this weapon’s rockets. Since The Call...