A kitten with her "perpetual surprised" face doesn't let anything stand in her way, charming people every day. BattyBatty, the kitten, came to the Chris Griffey Memorial Feline Foundation when her rescuers noticed her nose was a bit different and sought help for her."She has a cleft nose, which is when the nose is split, and the nostrils are spaced apart. Sometimes, they will also have a cleft palate, but Batty doesn't," Kimberly, the foster mom, shared with Love Meow.Upon arrival, Batty made quite an impression on everyone. Despite being just pint-sized, she was ready to conquer the world. Ellen CarozzaShe showed a strong will to live and was eager to learn to eat from a dish. Once she got the hang of it, she devoured her food with gusto. With a hearty appetite, she began to gain weight and strength.Batty's cleft nose doesn't affect her breathing. It is purely cosmetic and only adds to her cuteness. Ellen CarozzaShe was thrilled to be carried around in a pocket, staying close to her people while they worked or went about their day. She had tiny legs on a round body, and when she walked, she shuffled around like a furry ball of joy."She is so fluffy that she looks like a little ball. She loves playing with the other kittens, has glorious whiskers, and loves to watch Bird TV on YouTube." KimberlyBatty has a mighty personality, believes she's twice her size, and has an expressive face to match. She seems to sport a "perpetual surprised" look, enchanting anyone who encounters her."She is a very affectionate girl. She loves being held or just laying on you. When you touch her, she melts and rolls over for belly rubs." Ellen CarozzaWith a loving foster family and feline friends to play with, Batty's adventurous side is shining through.She zooms around the house, inspecting every corner, always the one to initiate an antic. One moment she's tumbling through the living room with another foster, the next they're sneaking into the bathroom, enthralled by the porcelain tub. KimberlyBatty leads her feline crew, creating wild romps and all sorts of mischief. There's never a dull moment in the house.Worn out from her playful frenzy, she seeks out affection and comfort, transforming into a snuggle bug. As much as she loves playing, cuddling with her humans trumps all else. KimberlyBatty likes to curl up on her foster mom when she's ready to nap and recharge. To her, there's no greater joy than the soft caress of her human's hand and the gentle rhythm of their heartbeat.She always gets what she wants with her fearless attitude and doesn't take no for an answer. KimberlyThree days ago, Batty accompanied her foster mom in the car to run errands. After getting everything they needed, they stopped in the drive-thru to get a pup/kitten cup as a treat for the tuxedo.Batty was so brave, demanding attention through the window as if she wanted to make the order herself. KimberlyShe has entered the boisterous kitten phase, zipping around like a blur. She stops her human for attention with her signature "surprised" face, knowing that look will get her whatever she desires. KimberlyAfter a rough start, Batty is living out her dreams and getting all the cuddles she ever wanted. KimberlyShare this story with your friends. More on Batty and Kimberly's fosters on Instagram. Chris Griffey Memorial Feline Foundation on Facebook and Instagram @thecatlvt (Ellen Carozza).Related story: Cat with a Bent Ear Comes Up to People for Help, They Get Her Indoors Just in Time for Her Kittens to Arrive

Rocktober Fest Continues in German Politics

In Nevada and Pennsylvania, Latino Voters Are Shifting Toward Trump

Every August of my childhood, the same thing happened. The first two weeks were still summer: the pool and the beach, baseball and camping. But then, sometime around August 15, my parents would start talking about school shopping. Moms are the ones who make you put on the jeans, walk out of the dressing room, and stand there on display while they get down on their knees and yank on the waist to see how much room you have. It was an ominous sign that summer was nearly over, a reminder that school was looming. Dreaded school. Hated school. After deliberation with each other, my mom and dad would settle on some day in the coming weeks. We would wake up and my parents would remind us to have a good breakfast because “we aren’t eating at the food court.” We would all pack in the car sometime after breakfast and make our yearly trip to the mall for school shopping. Nice pants Back-to-school shopping was an all-day affair. We would get there around 11a.m. We had to get jeans, a couple of boring pairs of nice pants, shirts, shoes, and winter jackets if we had grown out of them. Sometimes my brother and I would split off and go with my dad to look for clothes — the easy stuff: socks, underwear, undershirts. My dad wasn’t a clothes hound. He never spent five minutes inspecting the rise on our jeans, checking to see if they really fit well or if they were the right length. Moms are the ones who make you put on the jeans, walk out of the dressing room, and stand there on display while they get down on their knees and yank on the waist to see how much room you have. Tugging on the fabric and hiking up the jeans, embarrassing you in front of any random people who might walk by. You’ll never see them again, but you were always so embarrassed. “Mom!” Mall malaise Dads, generally, just want to get out of there. Or that’s how my dad was. He dreaded going to the mall for school shopping. I would say that walking around the mall, waiting for my mom and sister to finish whatever they were doing, was one of the things my dad detested most. But for us kids, it was a great day. School shopping at the mall was probably the only thing that made going to back to school somewhat bearable. School stinks. Who wants to go back to sitting at a desk after running around outside all summer? No kid in their right mind wants to be cooped up in some classroom while the sun is still high. Resting your head against the smooth painted concrete wall, looking forlorn, gazing out at the bright green grass calling you through the sealed window. Let me out! Carnival of shoes But getting new clothes was fun. It made going back to school worth it, kind of. It felt like you had a chance to be a new person this year. I imagined how different my life would be if I had cool new skate shirts from World Industries, real JNCO jeans (I always had off-brand knock-offs — the leg opening wasn’t ever that wide), and a pair of skate shoes that were way more expensive than what I got last year. Shoe Carnival was a highlight. Walking back and forth down the aisles, dreaming about which pair of shoes I would end up with. The really pricey ones were never an option. Eventually I learned I shouldn’t even try. I would finally select a few options. My mom would come over. I would put a pair on and she would have me walk down the aisle and then back again. She would study the way I walked like an Olympic judge. She did this all while the Shoe Carnival employee was there watching, of course. Then she would take her thumb and press down at the tip of the toe to make sure I had enough room to grow over the course of the next year. She would press down hard three or four times, manhandling the shoe in focused judgement. It was so embarrassing. But why, exactly? In what world does a 12-year-old get to pick out his own shoes without his parents taking a second look? No world. But when you are 12, you want that to be your world. Natural fit Kids are excited to get new clothes for school because they are new things and kids like to get new things. But kids also like their clothes. They might not talk openly about the clothes they like; they would rather talk about the clothes they don’t like. They don’t necessarily have the language at their disposal. Nevertheless, they have opinions about their clothes and they like when they get new clothes. True, they don’t like them like we do. They don’t care about nice quality or anything particularly advanced. They just want a cool-looking shirt. But they do care in their own way. It’s a natural thing to care about your clothes. Kids, for better and worse, exemplify us humans in a pure and natural state. But slowly over time we grow up, and many start to resent their clothes. Lots of guys end up viewing clothes as a burden rather than a blessing. They don’t really like thinking about them, and they don’t get too excited about them either. If they do get excited about them, they certainly won’t show it. In short, guys have issues with their clothes. They need clothes therapy. The natural state of man is not one of resentment toward his clothing but one of enjoyment and interest. Kids show us that. It’s funny to reminisce about those days at the mall before the first day of school, but there is a deeper lesson in these memories as well. We naturally care about how we look. We want to cultivate a personal aesthetic. Deep down, we want to enjoy our clothing. For the guys who have built up wall after wall to protect themselves from caring about their clothing, it’s okay to let go. It’s okay to remember how you were once so excited for the jeans your mom bought you before school. Or how you looked forward to wearing those cool new shoes that first day. How you were secretly excited to show them off. It’s not embarrassing. It’s natural.

In the United States, the ultimate check on the growth of power was the realization that, through elections, one side would eventually hand over whatever it had built to its political opponents. This seemed like a reasonable way to prevent tyrannical abuse. Trouble is, America’s founders did not anticipate the emergence of a distinct ruling class capable of maintaining power by capturing institutions.Elections come and go, but institutions remain. Progressives realized that by controlling the expert class staffing the permanent bureaucracies, they could vest significant power within them without worrying about the fluctuations of democratic politics. A weak and complacent Republican Party, content just to be included, also became invested in the perpetuation of these institutions. This allowed progressives to sprinkle a few “bipartisan” appointments into the mix while ensuring these institutions stayed under progressive control.Progressives, perhaps unconsciously, know they’ve crossed a line they can’t walk back from and fear that conservatives would be just as ruthless if given the chance.The state could continue to grow, and Democrats could grant nearly unlimited power to these institutions without fear of reprisal — until Donald Trump arrived.Trump, though deeply flawed and unable to deliver many of his promised changes, was treated as a mortal threat by the system for good reason. As an outsider, he was not heavily invested in the machinery of governance or the authority of the institutions that progressives rely on to maintain control. At times, particularly during moments of crisis like the pandemic, Trump defaulted to the authority of these institutions, leading to some of his failures. But the mere fact that he was willing to question the system shook the ruling elite to its core.Figures like Mitt Romney will dutifully maintain the status quo until the left regains official power. But a leader like Trump was never supposed to get anywhere near the levers of that machine. An incredible amount of authority has been placed in the administrative state, and that power was never intended to be handed over to a true political opponent.When Trump entered office, the institutions declared all-out war on his administration, breaking rules and disregarding norms to limit the billionaire’s ability to affect the system. The media, already hostile to Republicans, unleashed unprecedented vitriol toward Trump. A perfect storm of pandemic lockdowns, riots, and election-related changes forced the real estate tycoon out of office, and the establishment vowed to never let a populist candidate like Trump gain power again.With Democrats back in the White House, the institutions took swift revenge. January 6 protesters faced extreme prosecution from the federal government. Anti-abortion activists encountered similarly politically motivated charges and sentencing. Those who served in Trump’s administration had to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars defending themselves in court, while even Trump’s lawyers feared facing jail time.Trump faced numerous legal challenges, aiming first to bankrupt him, then to remove him from the ballot, and finally to imprison him. When those efforts failed, some Democrats resorted to assassination attempts. The FBI increasingly acted like a Praetorian Guard serving the interests of the Democratic Party, and the weaponization of the Justice Department escalated. Under the Biden administration, opposing the institutional power of the left has become increasingly illegal.Progressives, terrified at the idea that social media might break the hegemonic control on information that the left had previously enjoyed, launched a giant censorship industry under the banner of fighting “misinformation and disinformation.” Democratic politicians, worried that they may no longer be able to convince the existing American population, accelerated their ongoing project of replacement migration. The number of immigrants was so outrageous and the process so indiscriminate that even the leaders of major blue cities started to complain.Trump probably did not deserve to strike that level of terror into the heart of the system, but he did, and the immune response almost killed the system itself.Journalists now regularly draft breathless screeds warning that Trump might weaponize the Justice Department and prosecute his political enemies if he is allowed to return to office. This seems like rank hypocrisy to conservatives who have watched the Democrats treat the rule of law like a battered housewife.But the left is doing more than just projecting its own behavior. Democrats have created an incredibly powerful leviathan and unleashed it against their political opponents. Intelligence agencies spy on regime critics, secret police harass and arrest them, and the media incites its audience to violence, sometimes even encouraging the killing of political opponents. Progressives, perhaps unconsciously, know they’ve crossed a line they can’t walk back from and fear that conservatives would be just as ruthless if given the chance.Unfortunately, many conservatives still don’t grasp the current reality. They continue to act as if American politics follows a strict set of rules where the most convincing argument prevails and power is peacefully transferred. Their calls for civility and compromise fall on the deaf ears of a political movement that knows it has passed the point of no return.The Democratic Party has taken the American people hostage. It has built a leviathan of immense power and recklessly aimed it at its enemies, shattering norms and undermining the rule of law. Progressives know they’ve broken the rules and fear that if they ever lose control, they will face consequences for their actions. This fear may be misplaced — many on the right lack the appetite for revenge, and Trump alternates between calls for retribution and offering the FBI a shiny new building.Nevertheless, the possibility of a right-wing willing to stand firm still haunts the nightmares of Democrats. Like any hostage-taker, the regime’s paranoia grows by the day, and its desperation to maintain control is pushing the nation ever closer to disaster.

Our nation is suffering from record spending, debt, and deficits, which have triggered inflation. This is why Treasury yields are spiking even as the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates. Despite the record spending, we won’t have enough money to rebuild the communities devastated by Hurricane Helene without passing a supplemental disaster spending bill that will push us farther into debt. Or is there another option?Before inflation hit hard, I promised my wife we would remodel our old kitchen. In a sense, I had already appropriated the funds, but inflation crushed our finances before we could spend them. Like any family, we canceled the project and used the money to cover basic expenses. Unlike the federal government, we can’t spend all our savings because we need to reserve them for an emergency.Shouldn’t it be obvious that the residents of North Carolina deserve priority over Ukraine?Congress, on the other hand, loves to spend every last penny available, with no regard for the certainty that natural disasters will occur. AccuWeather has already estimated that rebuilding from the hurricane could cost $110 billion. Congress will undoubtedly pass a supplemental spending bill during the lame-duck session, if not sooner, to help those who lost everything — a goal we all support.But should our government act like any other family and cut wasteful spending to cover the cost of the disaster bill? There’s no better place to start than with unspent appropriated funds.A major factor bankrupting us is the collection of bills passed under Biden, combined with the trillions in fiscal and monetary spending in the immediate aftermath of COVID. These bills include the 2021 COVID relief bill, the American Rescue Plan; the trillion-dollar infrastructure law of 2021; the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act; and the Green New Deal, known as the Inflation Reduction Act.How much of that funding has already been spent?According to a Politico analysis, less than 17% of the $1.1 trillion provided by those laws for direct subsidies on “climate, energy, and infrastructure” had been spent as of April. This means that, even two years after the passage of these bills, roughly $900 billion remained unspent as of this spring.Sensing the possibility of Trump’s return to office next year, the Biden administration has accelerated the spending rate since April. “The Biden-Harris administration is focused on sprinting through the next few months, with a relentless focus on execution,” said Ali Zaidi, Biden’s climate czar, in an interview with Politico last week. “We’re implementing the largest climate investment in world history and pursuing a regulatory agenda that has secured public health and environmental gains.”We should be able to find enough unspent funds between all these bills to repurpose and provide sufficient funding for the people of Western North Carolina to rebuild. In fact, despite the Biden administration racing to spend IRA funding, $331 billion, mainly from the infrastructure bill, cannot be spent until future fiscal years and hasn’t been promised to any specific vendor. That amount more than covers the entire cost of the hurricane.Additionally, as of April, $92 billion in COVID funds remained unspent, with $53 billion yet to be earmarked. Republicans pledged to rescind these funds in the FY 2024 budget but backed down during the final appropriation bill’s passage.Then consider Ukraine funding. Much of that spending has gone toward weaponry for a war that will not yield positive results for anyone involved, yet funds allocated for the new fiscal year remain unspent. Shouldn’t it be obvious that the residents of North Carolina deserve priority over Ukraine? Shouldn’t we first redirect unspent green energy funds meant for wealthy corporations toward disaster relief?Democrats argue that these are vital programs, but so is my kitchen remodeling. Just as Americans must prioritize during a crisis, so must the federal government. If they spend all the funding and pass a new disaster bill without offsets, it will burden all Americans with higher prices for essential goods and services.As for Republicans, if they can’t fight to retract even a small portion of the unspent funds for programs that never should have been funded, what are they campaigning for this November? They have no right to talk about inflation if they can’t use any leverage to enforce modest cost-cutting, which every family does daily.

Gianni Versace became one of the most famous fashion designers in the world within 15 years of launching his first collection — but his rise was cut short when he was murdered by Andrew Cunanan in 1997. The post The Daring Life Of Gianni Versace, The Italian Designer Who Made The Fashion Industry What It Is Today appeared first on All That's Interesting.

Trump Rakes in $160 Million in September, Set to Increase Spending It in Swing States

U.S. kindergarten vaccination rates dipped last year and the proportion of children with exemptions rose to an all-time high, according to federal data posted Wednesday.The share of kids exempted from vaccine requirements rose to 3.3%, up from 3% the year before. Meanwhile,...

AUGUSTA, GA—In a deeply emotional press conference today, Vice President Kamala Harris addressed the people of North Carolina who are still reeling from the devastation left in the wake of Hurricane Helene. While she offered words of support and solidarity, residents were left somewhat confused when it became clear that financial assistance would not be coming their way. Instead, the Vice President proudly announced that $200 billion in disaster relief would be sent to Ukraine. “To the brave people of North Carolina who have lost everything, we stand with you. We see you, we hear you, and we understand your pain,” Harris said, pausing dramatically. “Of course, FEMA’s disaster relief fund is unfortunately tapped out since it is funding the living expenses of millions of military-aged asylum seekers.” The press corps, expecting some sort of compensation package for the devastated region, collectively gasped when Harris continued: “But in lieu of direct aid, we are happy to announce that we will be sending $200 billion to Ukraine in your name. It’s truly the least we can do. You’re welcome.” “We know that you need money for housing, food, and rebuilding your infrastructure,” Harris added, nodding sympathetically. “But you can take comfort in knowing that, thanks to your sacrifice, we are able to continue our vital mission of making sure Ukraine’s border is secure. And that’s really what this is all about, isn’t it? Security.” When asked about homes around the Ashville area, Harris smiled. “You know, I grew up in a middle class household. And I would have been honored to have a $200 billion donation made to Ukraine in my name.” Asked if North Carolina could expect any assistance at all, Harris suggested that people could “think creatively” and “be part of a larger solution.” She encouraged displaced families to consider relocating to Ukraine for the time being, where, she hinted, some of the aid money might eventually trickle down to those who make the move. “We’re all in this together,” Harris explained. “That’s why we’re sending the relief aid in your name. It’s like you’re contributing to global peace, one flooded basement at a time.” Back in Washington, FEMA officials confirmed that the disaster relief fund would remain empty until further notice, though they did offer some consolation. “We can’t provide North Carolina with money,” a FEMA spokesperson said, “but we do have a surplus of ‘I Stand with Ukraine’ bumper stickers, which we’ll be distributing free of charge to all hurricane victims.” Meanwhile, political analysts praised Harris for her “bold leadership” and “forward-thinking approach.” One commentator noted that diverting disaster relief funds to Ukraine “sets a powerful precedent that American citizens can feel proud of.” “Sure, they may not have roofs over their heads,” he added, “but at least they’ll know they contributed to the global good.” Back in North Carolina, residents were seen wading through waist-deep floodwaters, holding Ukrainian flags in an effort to embrace their new reality. As one displaced homeowner put it, “I guess I’ll just stand with Ukraine. I don’t have anywhere else to stand.” The post BREAKING: Harris reassures North Carolina hurricane victims that the US will be donating another $200 billion to Ukraine in their name appeared first on Genesius Times.