Matt

[Gary Sinise @GarySinise]

Thank you to all who fought and sacrificed in freedoms defense all those years ago. Incredible footage here. Blessed that both my uncles survived and will never forget the over 400,000 who did not come home.

[Victoria Flynn @AswVickyFlynn]

He's not wrong ...

[Matthew Marsden @matthewdmarsden]

I love this. Let’s make Rodney famous! Share and follow!

[Rodney Smith Jr @iamrodneysmith]

Dear @WhiteHouse, my name is Rodney Smith Jr., founder of Raising Men & Women Lawn Care Service in Huntsville, Alabama. Through our 50 Yard Challenge, over 6,000 kids across the country have signed up to mow free lawns for the elderly, disabled, veterans, active-duty military, first responders, and single parents. With America celebrating its 250th birthday this year and me also being born on July 4th, I wanted to humbly ask if a few kids from our program and myself could travel to Washington, D.C. to help mow the White House lawn for this historic celebration.

More than anything, I want these kids to see how a simple act of service something as ordinary as mowing a lawn for someone in need can lead to extraordinary places. What better lesson in community service than showing them that helping others can take them all the way to our nation’s capital? I’d also love to bring my American flag-themed mower in hopes that the President might sign it, so I can later auction it off and donate 100% of the proceeds to a nonprofit supporting veterans. It would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to highlight the importance of service, patriotism, and the impact young people can have when they choose to make a difference. 🇺🇸

[New Jersey Project @fight4newjersey]

maybe she should try fighting property taxes, wind farms and electricity prices.

[Assemblyman Alex Sauickie @AlexSauickie]

For too long, school districts in Highlands and Pinelands communities have been shortchanged. Because their land is protected, they can’t grow their tax base like other towns yet Trenton’s funding formula hasn’t kept up.

At the same time, some districts continue to receive tens of millions more in State Aid.

My bipartisan bill, A4860, helps restore balance.

Here’s what that means for Morris County:
Jefferson: +$5,000,000
Roxbury: +$1,075,250
Washington: +$5,000,000

It’s not everything but it’s meaningful.

And more importantly, it’s fair.

[Assemblyman Gerry Scharfenberger @NJAsmGerry]

.@AswVickyFlynn and I are co-sponsors of A1189, the “Fully Funding Schools and Cutting Property Taxes Act” which would address the unfair funding formula while allowing for cuts in local property taxes.

[Victoria Flynn @AswVickyFlynn]

The numbers are staggering 😳🫣😳

[Dawn Fantasia @DawnFantasia_NJ]

So let me get this straight: Newark spends $500M to LEASE a building for 667 kids, buys ANOTHER building (in an under-enrolled area with a 7:1 student-staff ratio) for $7M OVER market & gets ANOTHER $60.5M this year?!🤯

Meanwhile in Jefferson? NJDOE enforces a 21–24 class size cap in Newark, yet tells Jefferson 30+ kids in a class is fine? Jefferson is now running on a $2.9M deficit. Already closed 2 schools & eliminated 100 staff. On the table: more teacher layoffs, sports cut, busing eliminated in a town where walking isn’t an option, and there’s NO MASS TRANSIT.

What the hell is going on here???

Jefferson is sending tax dollars to pay for "priorities" in Newark that include open bars, parties, tropical trips & no-show consultants - TO THE DETRIMENT OF THEIR OWN STUDENTS.

@NewJerseyDOE? @GovSherrillNJ? @njassemblydems @NJSenDems — where are you??? How can you do this to these kids? Is this your brand of "equity"?

@HIGHLANDSIMPACT AID NOW

➡️Budget deficit puts Jefferson schools 'in uncharted territory' https://t.co/fPnsUeE9fK via @northjersey

[Victoria Flynn @AswVickyFlynn]

Good Morning @Teacher_in_NJ!

Holmdel is a perfect example of what is happening in NJ schools. Just a few years ago, the district had a healthy surplus, even while receiving very little state aid.

What changed? The explosive growth in costs for transportation and state health insurance. These are items local districts have no control over. In just a few short years, those costs have erased surpluses and created serious deficits.

Trenton has failed to address the root of the problem. There has been no meaningful relief on health benefit costs, no reform to help districts manage transportation expenses, and no adjustment to a school funding system that leaves many communities squeezed.

I implore the Governor and the leaders in the Legislature to make supporting public education a priority. We cannot as a State continue to ignore the financial realities school districts are facing. The Assembly Republicans have a bill that will address the school funding issue, which will enhance savings advocated by other legislators to make schools operate more effectively.

[Teacher_in_NJ @Teacher_in_NJ]

#greenscreen Holmdel schools and Lacey are facing $5 million deficit. Two districts, both with tough choices. NJ’s formula is broken. #newjersey #schools #budget #holmdel @Team Mikie

[Victoria Flynn @AswVickyFlynn]

@News12NJ Why is the State DOE left out of this story? County superintendents review and approve these budgets before school boards vote—and the state controls funding. This isn’t just a local failure, it’s a state oversight failure too.

[Wake Up NJ 🇺🇸 New Jersey @wakeupnj]

Phil Murphy pardoned a Democrat Powerbrokers son minutes after a jury convicted him in a fatal Atlantic City hit-and-run. The driver struck a 76-year-old man and left him dead outside a Dunkin’ before driving away

This dude was convicted and they let him go, like wtf
https://t.co/2W6qTvJkwY

[Assemblyman Alex Sauickie @AlexSauickie]

New Jersey families are paying the highest property taxes in the nation and still watching their local schools make painful cuts.

Meanwhile, in Newark, taxpayers funded a $44,000 “staff fun day” complete with inflatables, food, and entertainment — even as some school buildings still lack air conditioning for students.

Across our state, nearly 140 school districts lost massive amounts of state aid, forcing cuts to sports, electives, and programs that kids rely on.

Parents in towns like Matawan, Toms River, Plumsted, and Jefferson are being told there’s not enough money for their kids’ programs — while billions continue to flow into districts that are clearly not being held accountable.

New Jersey taxpayers deserve fairness, transparency, and a school funding formula that actually works for all students.

[Wojciech Pawelczyk @WojPawelczyk]

This gives me chills every single time: "We’ve seen war. We don’t want war, but if you want a war with the United States of America, there is one thing I can promise you, so help me God: someone else will raise your sons and daughters." - SSgt. Bellavia

[Matthew Stanmyre @MattStanmyre]

This N.J. school may lose sports forever, residents desperately fighting back. ‘This is gonna crush us.’

https://t.co/obUtXW91Z5

[DK🇺🇸🦅🇺🇸 @1Nicdar]

130 schools said no.
He led the losingest program in college football history to a national championship anyway.
Fernando Mendoza was a 2-star recruit from Miami.

He tried to walk on at his hometown school. They passed.
So did FIU.
So did FAU.
So did everyone else.

At 17, he was sitting in his bedroom, crying over a silent recruiting inbox—after driving to 18 camps with his dad and sending highlights to more than 100 programs.
Not one FBS offer.
His only option? Yale. No scholarship. No NFL path.

Everyone told him to be “realistic.”
“Know your place.”
“Be grateful.”
He didn’t listen.
Because Mendoza understood something most people miss:
The worst outcome isn’t failing.
It’s never getting the chance to try.

Two weeks before signing day in 2022, his phone rang.
Cal needed a body. One offer. Out of 134 schools.
He took it.
He arrived as the third-string quarterback.
Spent a year on the scout team.
Lost his first four starts.
Got sacked 41 times behind a broken offensive line.

Still got up. Every time.
Then Cal brought in a transfer instead of building around him.
So Mendoza left the only school that had ever said yes.
He transferred to Indiana—the losingest program in college football history.

People laughed.
“Career suicide.”
“Graveyard program.”
“Nobody wins there.”
One coach told him something different:
“I’m going to make you the best Fernando Mendoza possible.”
That was enough.
Mendoza wasn’t just playing for football.
His mother has battled multiple sclerosis for 18 years.

Before every snap, he thought of her.
“My mother is my why.”
Indiana went 16–0.
Beat six Top-10 teams.
Won their first Big Ten title since 1945.
Mendoza threw 41 touchdowns.
Won the Heisman—first in school history.
First Cuban-American to ever do it.

Then came the title game.
Miami. Near his hometown.
Fourth-and-4. Season on the line.
Quarterback draw.
The kid 134 schools rejected spun through defenders and dove into the end zone.

Game over.
Indiana—national champions.
The losingest program became the best team in America.
All because a 17-year-old refused to believe “no” was the end.

Rankings don’t decide your ceiling.
Gatekeepers don’t write your ending.
Being overlooked isn’t a verdict—it’s a starting point.

Sometimes all you need is one shot…
and the courage to bet on yourself when nobody else will.
Don’t quit.

Credit: Barclay Mullins

[PLAE @plaeglobal]

Youth. College. Pro.
One environment. One standard.
The Program NYC, designed and built with PLAE.

#RefuseSecondBest #NeverSettle

[Time Capsule Tales @timecaptales]

What made 'Tom and Jerry' (1940-1967) so special was how expressive the characters were without needing words. Music, sound effects, and animation carried the storytelling, turning simple situations into chaotic masterpieces.