Actress Blasted for Reading Book to Kids With Group Probed for Child Sex Trafficking

Is it a harmless celebrity book-reading for young children, or is there a darker side tied to child sex trafficking?

Actress Jennifer Garner is coming under fire online after posting a video clip of herself reading the book “Secret Pizza Party” to young children at a Save the Children-sponsored event in Yakima, Washington.

One commenter on X said of the actress noted for “Alias” and “Catch Me If You Can”: “Hollywood actress elitist Jennifer Garner has left many of her fans disturbed after uploading a video of herself reading a book titled Secret Pizza Party to children at a Save the Children event, which is currently under investigation for child sex trafficking. The book Secret Pizza Party instructs children to keep secrets.”

One passage from the book about a thieving raccoon states: “I know what you’re thinking. Why would we keep such a delicious, delicious party a secret? Okay, sure. It’s so folks don’t show up to bonk you with brooms, but that’s not the only reason. When you make something secret, you make it special.”

(Read more from “Actress Blasted for Reading Book to Kids With Group Probed for Child Sex Trafficking” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

Medevac Plane Crash Victim ID’d as Young Girl Headed Home to Mexico After ‘Life-Saving Treatment’ in US

The young patient who was on board the small medevac jet that crashed in a Philadelphia neighborhood Friday evening was heading home to Mexico after receiving “life-saving treatment” in the US, an official said.

The girl was one of six — four passengers and two crew members — onboard the Learjet 55 that plummeted out of the sky shortly after 6 p.m., less than a minute after taking off from Northeast Philadelphia Airport en route to Missouri’s Springfield-Branson National Airport.

The child was heading back to Tijuana with her mother, a doctor, paramedic, pilot and copilot, Shai Gold, spokesman for Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, told NBC 10 Philadelphia.

“All I can say is the patient was sponsored by a third-partner charity to undergo life-saving treatment in the US,” Gold said, adding, “She did her course of care. She was going home.

“She fought quite a lot to survive, and unfortunately this tragedy on the way home.” (Read more from “Medevac Plane Crash Victim ID’d as Young Girl Headed Home to Mexico After ‘Life-Saving Treatment’ in US” HERE)

A Unique Seed Has More Protein Than An Egg And Can Help You Sleep (But There’s A Catch)

Protein plays a key role in many of your body’s functions, including building muscle, serving as chemical messengers, and producing antibodies that fight off infection. Although your protein needs vary according to your age, activity level, and weight, it’s best to spread your protein intake throughout the day rather than eating a ton of protein at night. You could start your day with eggs to help you feel a little more full until lunch and add some healthy high-protein snacks to keep your blood sugar from spiking.

Pumpkin seeds are a great snack option, and registered dietitian Angel Luk tells Health Digest that a serving of pumpkin seeds provides more protein than an egg. “In a quarter cup of pumpkin seeds, there’s about 10 grams of plant-based protein,” she said. “In one large egg, there’s about 7 grams of animal-based protein.” However, Luk noted that pumpkin seeds don’t have enough of the essential amino acids to be considered a “complete” protein. Yet pumpkin seeds surpass eggs in two nutrients that can help you sleep.

Luk says that an ounce of pumpkin seeds has 168 milligrams of magnesium compared to the 6 milligrams in a large egg. Magnesium may help improve the duration and quality of your sleep, according to a 2023 meta-analysis in Biological Trace Element Research. Observational studies (where people report their magnesium intake and sleep) suggest that magnesium is linked with sleep quality, but experimental studies using magnesium supplements have shown conflicting results on sleep disorders.

Even though pumpkin seeds don’t have all of the essential amino acids that an egg has, both pumpkin seeds and eggs have the amino acid tryptophan. Tryptophan helps your body make serotonin and melatonin, two neurotransmitters that contribute to better sleep. A 2020 review in Nutrients found that after eating tryptophan-rich foods, healthy adults slept longer, fell asleep more easily, and woke up fewer times throughout the night. When you’re depleted of tryptophan, you’ll spend less time in restorative sleep and experience more sleep disruptions. One egg provides 84 milligrams of tryptophan, but an ounce of pumpkin seeds has 163 milligrams per ounce. (Read more from “A Unique Seed Has More Protein Than An Egg And Can Help You Sleep (But There’s A Catch)” HERE)

Married Healthcare Exec Accused of Preying on Nearly a Dozen Teen Girls to Produce Child Porn

A married Nassau County health care executive allegedly preyed on nearly a dozen teen girls to produce child porn over a four-year period — including two minors he ordered to call him “daddy” and paid in exchange for the sickening content.

Jacob Walden, 38, was arraigned Wednesday morning in Central Islip Federal Court on a six-count indictment charging him with the sexual exploitation of two teens — ages 16 and 17 — he pressured to create sexually explicit videos and photos, according to the US Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of New York.

Feds recovered the disturbing images from Walden’s cellphone last April and identified at least 11 girls, as young as 14 years old, whom he contacted, coerced to send inappropriate content and paid, according to court documents.

The 16- and 17-year-old victims were located and interviewed during an investigation feds launched in September 2023.

“As alleged, the defendant enticed minors to produce sexually explicit photographs and videos of themselves and send them to him via the internet in exchange for payment,” United States Attorney John J. Durham said in a statement. (Read more from “Married Healthcare Exec Accused of Preying on Nearly a Dozen Teen Girls to Produce Child Porn” HERE)

Body Cam Video Shows Police Arrest Transgender Roommate After Finding Body of Elderly Woman in Freezer of Her Mobile Home

Video from police body cameras showed the moment that officers discovered the body of an elderly woman in her freezer after arguing with a transgender woman who claimed she was not in the home.

37-year-old Jazlynn Roush is accused of murdering 68-year-old Monique Gilbertson and hiding her body at her mobile home in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The video released by the Clark County District Court shows officers arguing with Roush on Nov. 6 to allow them into the home and look for Gilbertson. Roush claims that the woman rented the property to Roush beginning in September.

Eventually, Roush and his wife go outside and allow officers to search the home, which is strewn with garbage and appears to be ransacked. They find a locked chest freezer and make a gruesome discovery.

“Yeah there’s a person in here,” says an officer. “Go get them in handcuffs.” (Read more from “Body Cam Video Shows Police Arrest Transgender Roommate After Finding Body of Elderly Woman in Freezer of Her Mobile Home” HERE)

Once-Prominent Doctor — Accused of Sexually Assaulting Over 200 Patients — Indicted on Rape Charges

A once-prominent Massachusetts doctor accused of sexually assaulting hundreds of patients has been indicted on rape charges.

Derrick Todd is a Harvard-trained rheumatologist who had practiced at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

A Middlesex County Grand Jury on Thursday indicted Todd on two counts of rape.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said in a statement, “The indictments are for two counts of rape alleging the sexual assault of two women who were his patients at the time of the assaults.”

The alleged sexual assaults purportedly occurred during medical examinations in December 2022 and June 2023. (Read more from “Once-Prominent Doctor — Accused of Sexually Assaulting Over 200 Patients — Indicted on Rape Charges” HERE)

Christian Pronoun Hospitality: The Hidden Problem That Leads to Compromise

Should Christians engage in so-called gender pronoun hospitality?

Gender pronoun hospitality refers to the concept of using someone’s “preferred pronouns” or a trans-identifying person’s transgender name despite otherwise disagreeing with LGBTQ ideology. . .

Not to practice gender pronoun hospitality, its practitioners argue, risks offense and, ultimately, the potential destruction of relationship, which could be a barrier between LGBTQ-identifying people and the Gospel. Bible scholar Preston Sprinkle has even described pronoun hospitality as a “common courtesy.”

But according to famed pastor John Piper, Christians should not engage in gender pronoun hospitality — and for good reason.

On a recent episode of his podcast “Ask Pastor John,” Piper answered a question he received from a concerned church elder about gender pronoun hospitality and whether Christians can use it in relationships with non-Christians in evangelism contexts. (Read more from “Christian Pronoun Hospitality: The Hidden Problem That Leads to Compromise” HERE)

Meet the Lesbian Radical Group Behind ‘The Future Is Female’

Feminism has fundamentally changed the roles of men and women in the culture, and Lisa Bevere, New York Times best-selling author and co-founder of Messenger International, isn’t afraid to talk about it.

“You are one of the few Christian, female teachers I know who will just be outspoken about gender ideology and the reality of male and female,” Allie Beth Stuckey of “Relatable” says, adding, “which is sad.” . . .

“I started to do a deep dive into, ‘Wait, where’s the feminist? All these advocates for women being willing to say that men can be women, what is going on?’” She says, adding, “The deeper I went into it, the darker it became.”

That’s when Bevere started researching the origin of “the future is female.”

“It was from a lesbian separatist group in 1975 called Labyris,” Bevere explains. “Labyris is the two-headed axe carried by Amazon and the Greek and Roman goddesses, and they said the ‘future is female’ was a call to war, an invocation, and a spell to cast.” (Read more from “Meet the Lesbian Radical Group Behind ‘The Future Is Female’” HERE)

Eat This Food as a Late-Night Snack if You Have Trouble Sleeping — It’s Full of Melatonin and Magnesium

You’re having trouble sleeping — have you considered turning your insomnia into insom-nom-nom-nom-nia?

Sleep can be hard to come by in the winter because exposure to less sunlight can significantly disrupt internal clocks. There are several ways to restore restful sleep — try maintaining a consistent slumber schedule, basking in morning light and practicing relaxation.

Certain bedtime snacks can also help you catch z’s. Brain health researcher Marc Milstein, author of “The Age-Proof Brain: New Strategies to Improve Memory, Protect Immunity, and Fight Off Dementia,” said “a few simple tweaks” to your nighttime nosh routine can improve your trips to Sleepy Town.

One of his suggestions is a mash made in heaven — oatmeal.

“Oatmeal is something that is a complex carbohydrate — doesn’t cause blood sugar to shoot up or drop,” Milstein explained on Instagram.

Oatmeal boasts the hormone melatonin, which promotes sleep, fiber and protein, which significantly contribute to feelings of fullness, and magnesium, which relaxes the muscles. (Read more from “Eat This Food as a Late-Night Snack if You Have Trouble Sleeping — It’s Full of Melatonin and Magnesium” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

Some Of Hollywood’s Biggest Names Are Turning Away From Depravity, Towards Jesus

Hollywood stars often find themselves on the wrong path in life, but some of them have stepped out of the darkness by dedicating their lives to religion.

Entertainment headlines are quick to cover the downfalls and bad habits of the rich and famous. With so much scrutiny and the flash of paparazzi cameras at every turn, it’s hard for stars to keep their bad habits and undesirable moments in the personal realm. Very few of them have managed to turn their lives around by putting their focus on a higher power, and turning to religion to cleanse their sins and set them forth on a positive track.

One of the many big names that comes to mind is Mark Wahlberg. Wahlberg had a short stint alongside his brother Donnie Wahlberg in the hit pop boy band, New Kids on the Block. He then skyrocketed to fame with his independent movie career as part of Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. Wahlberg’s star continued to rise, but he had dropped out of school at the age of 13 and faced attempted murder and assault charges by the time he was just 16 years old. Wahlberg’s wrong turns led him straight to jail, where he served time and reflected on the errors of his ways. The youngest of nine, Wahlberg soon rediscovered his faith and immersed himself in his Catholic roots. He has since gone on to pursue a successful career as an actor and entrepreneur. Wahlberg has fully committed his life to God and starts each day with prayer. He spreads the word about the power of Christianity in interviews and on social media.

Russel Brand’s scandals and controversies include allegations of sexual assault by four women, complaints about his provocative, sexually-charged humor and his politically charged statements that were offensive to many. He was open about his numerous attempts at seeking professional help for his drug and sex addiction issues. His vocal, head-on approach to discussing the numerous allegations against him rubbed many the wrong way. Brand made a sudden, unexpected move in 2024 when he was baptized as a Christian in the River Thames. He turned his focus to God and threw himself into the Christian faith. Some of his podcasts and appearances are now centered around spiritual healing and the importance of faith.

Justin Bieber’s meteoric rise to fame proved to also be the source of his demise. Scooter Braun managed the 12-year-old talent, whose signature locks and catchy tunes had girls flocking to his concerts and buying his music and merchandise. It quickly became evident that the fame and media attention was far too much for Bieber to handle. He was involved in an accident involving a pedestrian in 2013, and people began to complain about his out-of-control parties. Videos of him saying racial slurs began making their rounds, and by 2015 he was found guilty of assault and careless driving, after being charged with driving under the influence in Miami the year before. The singer was reportedly involved in a Los Angeles accident involving a pedestrian, and struck a paparazzo with his truck in Beverly Hills in 2017 in an apparent accident. His antics soon led to people petitioning for his deportation from the country. Bieber publicly broke down and after a tumultuous struggle with depression and anxiety, he turned to God for help. Bieber has since embraced Christianity and dedicated his life to serving Jesus. Religion remains an important part of his daily life and is a common bond he shares with his wife, Hailey Bieber. He publicly credits his faith for helping him overcome his problems. (Read more from “Some Of Hollywood’s Biggest Names Are Turning Away From Depravity, Towards Jesus” HERE)