Author: Alex Trent

Last week, President Biden announced a new round of tariffs on Chinese products, including electric vehicles, semiconductors, and many more. In particular, Biden chose to quadruple the tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, which have been performing well domestically and abroad, amidst struggling US EV sales. Quadrupling Tariffs Source: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia The tariffs announced by Biden brought the 25% tariff on Chinese EVs up to 100%. The motivation behind these tariffs is to stop Chinese competitors from being able to threaten US jobs and undercut US EV companies. In a White House event, Biden celebrated the action. “I’m determined that the…

A Catholic political advocacy group called CatholicVote recently decried the NFL for its treatment of Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker after Butker gave a controversial speech during a college commencement ceremony. CatholicVote wrote a letter accusing the NFL of not being committed to true inclusion and also slammed what they see as a growing wave of anti-Catholic hatred contained in the backlash to the speech by others. Commencement Speech Source: kennethaw88/Wikimedia Harrison Butker, a kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs, recently created controversy after his speech during a commencement ceremony at Benedictine College went viral. Some online and in the media…

It might be surprising to learn that despite the Mona Lisa painting by Leonardo Da Vinci being one of the world’s most recognizable paintings, there is a lot of mystery that still surrounds it. Recently, a geologist claims to have figured out one of these mysteries using their expertise to determine the area where the painting is set. Leonardo Geologist Source: Johann Jariyz/Wikimedia Ann Pizzorusso is a geologist and an art historian specializing in Da Vinci and his historical era. In a recent interview with CNN, she described her work to retrace Da Vinci’s steps in her search for the…

Today, the Vatican released an anticipated rule change to the way it will evaluate visions, apparitions, weeping statues, and other supernatural phenomena. The Vatican will radically change the way it will handle norms first issued in 1978 and has argued the change needs to happen because the outdated rules are no longer helpful in the digital age. Press Conference Source: Bogomil Mihaylov/Unsplash Catholic Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, held a press conference on Friday allowing reporters to see him signing the document that will displace the previous norms established by Pope Paul VI in 1978. The new norms will go into…

One of the Las Vegas strip’s most recognizable landmarks, the Mirage Hotel and Casino, intends to shut down after over three decades in business in the area. The Mirage currently hosts a 3,000-room resort and will stop all operations by July 17 in preparation for a renovation that will completely transform it over the course of three years. Facebook Announcement Source: King of Hearts/Wikimedia On Facebook, the Mirage announced the end of the current era and that it’s looking forward to seeing what will come. “After 34 amazing years, The Mirage Hotel & Casino will be ceasing operations on July…

The Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, a religious group that has enforced the closure of beaches in Ocean Grove, New Jersey on Sunday mornings, may be ending this practice which has gone on for decades. The group has removed the rule restriction from its website in the wake of a court case with the state of New Jersey that could leverage fines against the group to the tune of $25,000 per day. Ocean Grove’s History Source: Priscilla du Preez/Unsplash Ocean Grove was founded in 1869 as a Methodist retreat to hold services for Christians who would come to worship during…

Despite public health warnings from government organizations and an interstate ban on the transport of raw milk across state lines, many avid raw milk enthusiasts have found ways to exploit a lack of enforcement and a loophole to get a steady supply and create a booming industry. Nicholas Florko, a reporter for Stat News recently documented his first foray into purchasing raw milk and how easy it is to obtain. First Time Source: Kim Gorga/Unsplash Florko, a person who has never drank raw milk, took it upon himself to see how difficult it was to order some across state lines.…

As regular religious attendance and the number of Americans identifying as religious has steadily declined in recent decades, a rising force of religious “nones” has become the largest religious group in America. However, despite their name, many religious “nones” are not choosing to identify with atheism, instead overall preferring to still believe in a higher power while rejecting religious institutions. Largest Religious Group Source: Basile Morin/Wikimedia In January, the Pew Research Center released a survey that found a category of people who have no religious affiliation became the largest “religious” group in the United States. The survey found that 28%…

The person to whom believers ascribe to being the historical Buddha in many cultures is Prince Siddhartha, who was born around the 4th century BC. While this birthday is a holy occasion shared by many practicing Buddhists, the date on which it is celebrated is not. What date one celebrates the birthday of Buddha can vary depending on the country, region, and cultural tradition. Different Days Source: Raimond Klavins/Unsplash In some Asian countries, the birthday of Buddha is celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth month when going by the lunisolar calendar, which would make the date of his…

No, this is actually real. In Indianapolis, there is a church where people come to worship that is entirely dedicated to marijuana. This place is called the First Church of Cannabis and was started in 2015 as a response to Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act Source: Wikimedia In March 2015, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) was signed into law. The governor at the time was Mike Pence, who went on to become the running mate for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election. Also known as Indiana Senate Bill 101, the law gives greater…