Sandra Czyznikiewicz

Pissed off Cook County political activist. All views expressed are my own and not intended to represent any candidate or political group. #constitution #1A

[Joseph Fosco @FoscoJoseph]

An Open Concern About Appearances: The Catholic Church and the Midterms

I am Catholic. I say the rosary. I go to Mass. Nothing in what follows is an accusation against the Church, the Pope, or any bishop. It is a concern about how things look from the outside, and how that appearance is landing with millions of Americans right now.

This administration created a Justice Department task force on anti-Christian bias, pardoned twenty-three pro-life prisoners, stood up a White House Faith Office and a Religious Liberty Commission, designated Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern over the killing of Christians, and cut off federal funding to Planned Parenthood. For a Catholic writer, that record is not nothing. It is, on its face, one of the most tangible pro-life and pro-faith agendas in modern presidential history.

In January 2025, the same administration suspended the refugee and migrant service contracts that had funded the USCCB and Catholic Charities for decades. Over one hundred million dollars a year. More than ninety-five percent of some program budgets. By spring, staff were laid off. By summer, agencies were closing programs. The money did not come back.

Institutions that lose their largest funding stream tend to find their moral vocabulary sharpening in the same direction as their budgets. I am not saying that is what happened. I am saying that is what it looks like, and that appearance is not going unnoticed.

Fourteen months later, in April 2026, the public statements from the Vatican and from American bishops toward this administration grew noticeably louder and more pointed than anything seen during the first term. Catholics see it. Non-Catholics see it.

And when a bishop speaks out days before a national election against one party’s immigration positions—which are prudential disagreements open to debate—while remaining silent on the other’s platform positions that contradict settled Church teaching on life, on the body, on marriage, the imbalance is impossible to miss.

I am not suggesting the Church holds a grudge, or that its silence on one side was bought. I am saying that is the appearance, and appearances are what most Americans, Catholic and not, actually see. When the institution that spent a year without its largest funding stream then directs its public voice at one party near an election—the very party that delivered more concrete protections for Christian life and religious liberty than perhaps any administration in living memory—the appearance is not of a shepherd. It is of a stakeholder.

That is the embarrassment I cannot unsee.

-- Joseph Fosco
October 27, 2026

[Sandra Czyznikiewicz @MouseRoar]

@DKH013 It's on her, no doubt. But why do you feel the need to post footage from an incident from Oct of 2025? Stir the pot much?

[Wall Street Apes @WallStreetApes]

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT 🚨 American Medical Doctor in Chicago is blowing the whistle on a new practice that’s taking place

It’s called “close your eyes and immunize.” He says it’s becoming very common to vaccinate children when they go under anesthesia WITHOUT PARENT CONSENT often times because the parents are signing to do what’s best for the child under anesthesia, but doctors are now including vaccinations as necessary

Again, you take your child in for a surgery, sign the paper saying to do what’s best for your child, the hospitals are now using that consent to vaccinate your kids without your knowledge. Including with the COVID vaccine

“I'm a family doctor who practices in the suburbs and the city of Chicago. I wanted to offer some practical advice tonight to those of you who, like me, might be angry and very concerned about the news reports detailing the rise of what one hospital is calling, close your eyes, we'll immunize. This is a growing practice, perhaps pioneered at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, but something that's been around longer than the powers that be would like us to know, where children are undergoing elective and emergency medical surgeries and being immunized while they're away from their parents in the operating room”

“Parents have often given consent unknowingly or under duress for these vaccinations to be performed. And one of the things that's clear from the reports is that informed consent, which should be one of the hallmarks of medical ethics and practice today, is rarely being provided to the extent that it should be”

“Flu shot seems to be the most popular thing to administer, but RSV, COVID, and some other things are now being administered without the parents knowing while their child is in the hospital. So imagine you take your child to the hospital because they have terrible belly pain. Turns out they have appendicitis and any of appendix taken out. You sign a form saying that the surgeon and the medical team can do whatever they think is necessary to help your child. You didn't know your child's getting a flu shot 15 minutes later before the first incision is made”

Okay this is CRIMINAL in my opinion so I did my own research and found out what states this is happening in,

Pennsylvania at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia . Official “Close Your Eyes, We’ll Immunize” program running since 2023. It gave 2,054 influenza vaccine doses in the 2025–2026 season to children already under sedation anesthesia

Colorado at Children’s Hospital Colorado. Offers influenza vaccine under general anesthesia to eligible patients since 2020. More than 18,000 patients have received it. Additional vaccines are sometimes given at the request of a primary care clinician

Illinois at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and its ambulatory surgery centers. Offers flu shots under anesthesia for eligible patients age 6 months and older during scheduled surgeries and procedures

California at Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center in Northern California. First KP facility in the region to offer flu shots to pediatric surgical patients ages 6 months–18 while under anesthesia for planned procedures

[Joseph Fosco @FoscoJoseph]

Dear Bishop Joensen,

Your October 24th statement said: There are many things tied to this present Administration that are blatantly at odds with our Catholic faith. You named the administration. You did not name the party whose platform contradicts Catholic teaching more directly than any policy you cited. That asymmetry is not a pastoral observation. It is a partisan one.

Immigration enforcement is a prudential question, and Catholics may weigh it differently. On abortion, on the surgical and chemical transition of children, on the redefinition of marriage — the Church has not left room for prudential disagreement. Those positions are not at odds with Catholic teaching in some debatable sense. They contradict it outright.

If your standard is what is blatantly at odds with the faith, the Democratic Party's platform meets it more directly than any border policy. You know this. Your silence on it, nine days before a national election, while naming only the administration in power, tells the faithful something you did not say in words.

A bishop who applies the faith as a measuring stick owes the faithful both ends of it. Selective application is not teaching. It is campaigning with vestments on.

In Christ,

Joseph Fosco
October 26, 2026

[GINGERSKOL💜💛 @GlowSurfing]

The Muslim religion is the fastest growing religion per capita in the United States, especially in the minority races.
Last month, my friend attended a training. During the training session there was a presentation by three speakers representing the Roman Catholic, Protestant and Muslim faiths, who each explained their beliefs.
She was particularly interested in what the Islamic Imam had to say. The Muslim gave a great presentation of the basics of Islam, complete with a video.
After the presentations, time was provided for questions and answers. When it was her turn, she directed her question to the Muslim and asked:
'Please, correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that most Imams and clerics of Islam have declared a holy jihad [Holy war] against the infidels of the world and, that by unaliving an infidel, (which is a command to all Muslims) they are assured of a place in heaven. If that's the case, can you give me the definition of an infidel?'
There was no disagreement with my statements and, without hesitation, he replied, " Nonbelievers"
She responded, 'So, let me make sure I have this straight. All followers of Allah have been commanded to unalive everyone who is not of your faith so they can have a place in heaven. Is that correct?'
The expression on his face changed from one of authority and command to that of a little boy who had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.'
He sheepishly replied, 'Yes.'
She then stated, 'Well, sir, I have a real problem trying to imagine The Pope commanding all Catholics to unalive those of your faith or Dr. Stanley ordering all Protestants to do the same in order to guarantee them a place in heaven!'
The Muslim was speechless.
She continued, 'I also have a problem with being your friend when you and your brother clerics are telling your followers to unalive me! Let me ask you a question:
Would you rather have your Allah, who tells you to unalive me in order for you to go to heaven, or my Jesus who tells me to love you because I am going to heaven and He wants you to be there with me?'
You could have heard a pin drop.
Needless to say, the organizers and/or promoters of the 'Diversification' training seminar were not happy with my way of dealing with the Islamic Imam, and exposing the truth about the Muslims' beliefs.
In twenty years there will be enough Muslim voters in the US. to elect the President.
I think everyone in the U.S. should be required to read this, but with the ACLU, there is no way this will be widely publicized, unless each of us sends it on! This is your chance to make a difference.

Copied & pasted

[Sandra Czyznikiewicz @MouseRoar]

@John_Kass Thank you for all the years of your wit and wisdom. Prayers for an enjoyable and peaceful retirement!

[Wall Street Apes @WallStreetApes]

Listen to every word

“I voted. I was standing in that voting booth thinking about high gas prices, expensive groceries, housing costs and the financial pressure on working families. Then my mind went to France, to Dearborn, Michigan and I realized this election is about far more than gas and groceries.

It's about our future, radical Islam, national security, illegal immigration, our borders, education, parental rights, sex and gender policies, and the values our children inherit.

I couldn't see myself voting for a party that hates America, apologizes for our country, is ashamed of our flag, and wants to rewrite our history and abandon our values.

So I voted red, not because Republicans get everything right, always do right by everyday Americans, or are free from corruption, but because I believe we can only fix this country if we still have a country left to fix”

I could not have said it better myself. Voting Blue is literally voting to end America and for the eventual Islamic takeover of America. Voting Democrat means being wiped out by illegals, having our elections permanently rigged, our culture replaced and never having a way out

Everyone needs to vote Red like your life depends on it because it does

[DuPage GOP @DuPageCountyGOP]

Democrats have run Illinois for 50 years and Democrats have run Chicago for 100 years. Today we have the highest property taxes in America. We are supposed to vote blue to make things more affordable? Seriously?

[Don Carlo Cittadino @revcarlo]

♦️*OGGI SI STA RELIZZANDO LA PROFEZIA DEL 1865 DI SAN GIOVANNI BOSCO SUL DIAVOLO CHE DISTRAE I BAMBINI CON I CELLULARI*

Nel 1865 San Giovanni Bosco raccontò un sogno che lo impressionò profondamente.
Ha visto una chiesa piena di giovani.
Tutti erano fisicamente presenti, ma molti avevano la loro attenzione concentrata altrove.
Vicino all'altare apparve una figura scura che reggeva qualcosa che sembrava una strana "lanterna. "
Quando i ragazzi lo guardarono,
ognuno ha visto qualcosa di diverso:
Divertimento e giochi
Vittorie e competizioni
Ricordi della loro casa
Studi e preoccupazioni
Cose piacevoli e desideri personali
Famiglia e amicizie
Anche immagini che potrebbero portare al peccato
A poco a poco è successo qualcosa di preoccupante:
Hanno smesso di guardare l'altare.
Hanno smesso di pensare a Gesù.
Molti non erano più vicini alla Comunione.
Allora Don Bosco ha capito il messaggio
Il nemico cerca di tenere la mente occupata affinché il cuore non trovi Cristo.
La cosa più sorprendente è che questo sogno è avvenuto nel 1865.
Non c'erano cellulari.
Non c'era internet.
Non c'erano social network.
Non c'erano video digitali.
Tuttavia, quella torcia aveva una caratteristica molto particolare:
Ho mostrato a ognuno esattamente ciò che ha catturato la sua attenzione.
Oggi vediamo che quello che ha fatto quella torcia è esattamente quello che fa un cellulare, quando uno schermo conosce i nostri gusti, interessi, preoccupazioni e desideri.
L'insegnamento rimane attuale:
Non dobbiamo permettere che uno schermo o un cellulare ci impediscano di andare a Messa e avvicinarci a Dio nei sacramenti.
Il problema non è la tecnologia, né il cellulare in sé.
Il problema sorge quando qualcosa occupa il posto legittimo di Dio, ci allontana dalla Messa, o ci fa dimenticare l'importanza dell'Eucaristia
Inoltre, un bambino non dovrebbe avere accesso così gratuito a un cellulare con internet, tanto meno social network che mettono a rischio la sua purezza.
Pertanto, l'invito rimane lo stesso:
Metti da parte le distrazioni.
Alza gli occhi su Cristo.
Ritorno alla Comunione.
Dai a Dio il primo posto.
Un sogno raccontato più di 160 anni fa che oggi continua a farci riflettere.

♦️*PREGHIERA PER I GIOVANI AL SACRO CUORE DI GESÙ*

O Signore Gesù, noi ti affidiamo tutti i giovani del mondo.
Con preghiera ardente li consacriamo al tuo Cuore, perché radicati e fondati in te siano sempre tuoi, nella vita e nella morte.
Custodiscili sotto il tuo manto, proteggili dalle insidie del mondo e dona loro la forza di non allontanarsi mai dal tuo amore.
Concedi loro un Cuore come il tuo, mite e umile, affinché possano ascoltare sempre la tua voce e compiere la tua Volontà.
Dona loro il coraggio di prendere in mano la propria vita e di essere, in mezzo al mondo, testimoni di luce e di pace.
Sacro Cuore di Gesù, confido e spero in Te. Amen

[Fight for Illinois @Fight4Illinois]

Kentucky votes in 5 days. Illinois' voting season is 54.

Illinois politicians have turned Election Day into a 54-day season of loose rules, raising the risks of fraud and abuse every election.

For Illinoisans who want a better state, they’ll have to turn out in overwhelming numbers on Nov. 3 to overcome those risks.

Link to article in replies. Via Fight for Illinois.

#twill #ElectionIntegrity

[Everett Stern @EverettStern1]

Dear Secretary Bessent @SecScottBessent,

My name is Everett Stern. In 2010 I was a compliance officer at @HSBC. From a back office in New Castle, Delaware, I watched billions of dollars move to drug cartels, sanctioned regimes, and terrorist organizations. The enemies of the United States. I documented it, I escalated it, and when the bank would not act, I took it to the @FBI, the @CIA, and eventually the @SECGov.

The result was a $1.92 billion settlement. At the time, it was one of the largest in American history. It was also about five weeks of the bank’s profit. Not one banker was charged. Not one went to prison.

I paid a different price. I lost my career, my savings, and my place in the industry I had trained for. I was blacklisted. Every door in American finance closed at once. I slept on a camping cot in a 300 square foot apartment because I could not afford a bed, and I waited tables at @PFChangs to eat. I tell you this not for sympathy, but so you understand that I know exactly what it costs to do the right thing in American finance, and exactly how little the system does in return.

I made that sacrifice because I believed it would change something.

Yesterday, your department fined @BankofAmerica $1.2 billion for failing to report more than $5 billion in suspicious transactions, some of it tied by your own findings to Chinese laundering networks, narcotics, and the southwest border, alongside 475 apparent sanctions violations touching Russia, Iran, and global terrorism. The bank admitted it willfully violated the Bank Secrecy Act.

Fourteen years after HSBC. A bank with “America” in its name. And once again, not one individual charged.

Secretary Bessent, I want to say plainly what I believe you already know. The fines are not working.

A fine is paid by shareholders, absorbed by the balance sheet, and forgotten by the next earnings call. Bank of America reported earnings this morning. Nobody who set the alert thresholds, nobody who decided the 2024 cease and desist could wait, nobody who chose the backlog over the law will lose a single thing they value. Their lives are untouched. That is the entire reason the behavior repeats.

This is money laundering. This is blood money. Money that reaches a cartel buys fentanyl that kills Americans. Money that reaches a terrorist organization buys the next attack. This country has fought a war on drugs and a war on terror for decades, at enormous cost in lives and treasure, and all the while we have allowed the financing to flow through institutions we charter and regulate. Cut off the money and we win. We have never seriously tried.

There is also a question of equal justice that I cannot let go.

Before I walked into the FBI building to report HSBC, I stopped in front of the Great Seal on the wall and read the words engraved beneath it: “Justice is the defense of our liberty.” I believed that. I still want to. But every day in this country, people go to prison for crimes that are nothing next to moving money for the people who want Americans dead. A suit, a title, and a corporate badge should not be a shield from the consequences that apply to everyone else. If a street dealer goes to prison for what he sells, the banker who moved the cartel’s money should be standing next to him.

I also want to raise something that is rarely said in these conversations. Why has no one inside Bank of America come forward the way I did? The answer is that everyone in American banking knows what happened to me, and to the whistleblowers who came after. The last person who spoke up is the only policy anyone believes. That is a culture problem, and it starts with leadership, in the banks and in the agencies that regulate them.

This is not a political issue. It has spanned administrations of both parties. It is a national security issue, and I am asking you to treat it as one.

Three things would change the math overnight.

Refer individuals for criminal prosecution. Not the analyst in the queue. The executives who set the thresholds and chose the risk. One banker in handcuffs would do more than every fine in Treasury’s history combined.

End “too big to jail.” An institution cannot be too big to fail and too big to jail at the same time. If it is the first, it must be held to a higher standard, not a lower one.

And if Bank of America will not act as America’s bank, review its charter. A national charter is a privilege granted on behalf of the American people. It should be conditioned on not moving money for the people trying to kill them.

Secretary Bessent, you said yesterday that these actions send a clear message that even the biggest institutions are not above the law. With respect, the institution was never the problem. The people inside it are above the law, and they know it. Until that changes, I will keep writing letters like this one, and the next bank will keep paying the next fine.

I gave up everything I had to stop this. I am asking you to use the power you have to finish it.

Respectfully,

Everett A. Stern
HSBC Whistleblower
Founder and Intelligence Director, Tactical Rabbit

[Election NARK @ElectioNark]

Hey Cook County.

Not one GOP leader or Republican candidate in Cook County was told the date that these extra high school early voting locations would be open.
No notice given. And no response from the county clerk when people called to ask. It was by luck that one election judge found out by speaking to another election judge YESTERDAY and it was discovered these extra early voting locations are open TOMORROW, Thursday Oct 15. Why these schools? Why only these congressional districts? Why so secretive? A secret voting spot just for schools where no poll watchers know to show up…
@themodpun @ILGOPCommunity

[Dr. Lee Warren @drleewarrenmd]

Twelve hours before my son Mitch was killed, he called me.

It was the best conversation we'd had in over a year. He told me he wanted to come home, live with us again, and go back to college. Then he told me he loved me, and I told him I loved him too.

Twelve hours later, he was gone.

For a long time, that phone call felt like the cruelest part. It seemed like God let me believe everything was going to be OK, and then took my son the same day.

There's a name for what happened in my brain. It's called cognitive tunneling. After all these years, I recently learned the name of it from a post by Jim Kwik @jimkwik , author of the book Limitless.

Under trauma, your attention narrows to one terrible point, and you lose the rest of the picture. I've described it as a camera zooming in so far that it can only see a small part of the world. I've felt it and written about it, but now I have a name for it, and that's healing.

A while after Mitch died, a chaplain friend sat with me in the hospital chapel and told me to do the hard work of looking back at that day from a different angle. So I did.

On the very last day of Mitch's life, we were connected. He was looking forward to coming home. And that same day, he went to his eternal home.

That phone call was a gift God gave me to hold onto.

The third commandment of self-brain surgery is that I must believe that most of my automatic thoughts are untrue. Grief hands you a story fast. You're allowed to look at it again.

"The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit." Psalm 34:18, ESV.

If you're in that tunnel right now, I'm so sorry. Look again. It's hard and holy work, and you don't have to do it alone.

Save this for the next time hardship has you too zoomed in to see other things that are still true. Share with a friend who's in the tunnel.

And follow me to connect the dots between neuroscience and faith to help you navigate life and find flourishing.

Click the link in my bio to learn more about the Ten Commandments of Self-Brain Surgery.

#selfbrainsurgery #anxiety #mentalhealth #grief #neuroscience

[Eli Yoder @Yodertoter40]

Now the truth finally comes out that the state of New York wants the Amish people‘s properties and land so they can build their data centers. How disgusting 🤮
 The Amish of Central New York told the seditious Governor Kathy Hochul they would pack up, abandon their farms and leave if the Governor tried forcing vaccines on their children. The Governor fined them over $100,000 and demanded they comply anyway.
When the Amish decided to fight back, taking the wicked Governor to court, Hochul's minion Senator Fahy drew up even more legislation to pressure them to leave, attacking their children again, this time through an anti-homeschooling bill.
Tens of thousands of acres of cleared Amish farmland are at stake. The Amish have spent decades clearing their land by hand and horse. The hard work has been done.
But if the Governor has her way, the Amish will be forced to sell that cleared land to the solar farms and data centers knocking on the doors for it.
Who will help the Amish stand up to this maniacal Governor? We need to expose this on social media and we need to get the right people involved to represent the Amish and help them fight This evil demonic power and control of New York. 

[Kentucky Girl @Kentuckygirl1]

She was curled up on the floor, holding her stomach. Protecting her baby.

"My baby, my baby."

A soldier shot beside her told the court that's what she cried.

Another soldier, on the other side of a door, heard "Please don't, please don't. My baby, my baby."

She was shot once in the back.

Pfc. Francheska Velez was 21.

She had just come home from Iraq, about 3 months pregnant, her family said. Her dad said she had "the spirit of a child."

This is what Nidal Hasan did at Fort Hood on Nov. 5, 2009.

He planned it for months.

He asked a gun store for "the most technologically advanced handgun on the market."

He added two laser sights and 30-round magazines.

He practiced headshots at 100 yards.

He asked the range instructor how to reload faster.

That morning he gave a neighbor his Koran and his furniture.

He told another neighbor, "I'm going to do good work for God." At prayer he said goodbye. He was "going home."

At about 1:34 p.m. he walked into a room full of unarmed soldiers getting ready to deploy.

He sent the civilian clerk away.

He yelled "Allahu Akbar" and opened fire.

He covered both exits.

He shot soldiers in the back as they ran.

He shot people hiding under tables.

Pathologists testified at least 5 were shot while lying on the ground.

Spc. Frederick Greene charged him. He was shot 12 times.

Michael Cahill, 62, charged him with a chair. He was shot 6 times.

Pfc. Kham Xiong, father of 3, was shot twice in the head.

A civilian outside asked what was happening. Hasan told him it was a training exercise.

He fired more than 200 rounds.

He still had 177 left when a police officer finally dropped him.

13 killed. More than 30 wounded.

He wasn't hiding who he was. He emailed terrorist cleric Anwar al-Awlaki 18 times.

He asked if soldiers who killed fellow soldiers would be martyrs.

His slideshow at Walter Reed said "We love death more then you love life."

His business cards said "SoA," Soldier of Allah.

The Army knew. 2 officers called him a "ticking time bomb."

He ranked in the bottom 25 percent.

He got glowing evaluations and a promotion anyway.

The FBI read his emails. Its review took 4 hours. Nobody interviewed him.

Then the Obama Pentagon called it "workplace violence."

The families waited more than 5 years for Purple Hearts.

At trial he said, "The evidence will clearly show I am the shooter." He said he "switched sides."

In prison he asked ISIS to make him a citizen.

He was sentenced to death in 2013.

Nearly 17 years after the massacre, he is still alive.

His firing squad is set for Dec. 3 at Fort Hood.

Do it. Fire away.

Do it where he did this.

And yes, let America watch.

Not for him.

For them:
Michael Cahill. Maj. Eduardo Caraveo. Staff Sgt. Justin DeCrow. Capt. John Gaffaney. Spc. Frederick Greene. Spc. Jason Hunt. Staff Sgt. Amy Krueger. Pfc. Aaron Nemelka. Pfc. Michael Pearson. Capt. Russell Seager. Pfc. Francheska Velez. Lt. Col. Juanita Warman. Pfc. Kham Xiong.

[Sandra Czyznikiewicz @MouseRoar]

@DanProft My frustration has always been "I'm not voting" crowd. No, the State will never change this way. Local counts! It doesn't matter who the governor is unless we can get a foot in the door. Dan, please hit that topic on your show as early voting has begun. We need to remind folks!

[Sama Hoole @SamaHoole]

A man who passed his medical in 1996 with flying colours has four diseases today, and not one number in his body has changed.

Blood pressure 135/85. Cholesterol 210. Fasting blood sugar 105. BMI of 26.

In 1996 that was a clean bill of health and a handshake. Today the same man, with the same blood, is hypertensive, has high cholesterol, is prediabetic and overweight. Four diagnoses, and he never caught a thing.

1997: the line for diabetes drops from 140 to 126. 1.7 million new diabetics by morning.

1997: high blood pressure drops from 160/100 to 140/90. 13 million new patients.

1998: high cholesterol drops from 240 to 200. 42 million new patients.

1998: overweight drops from a BMI of 27 to 25. 29 million people go to bed normal and wake up with a weight problem.

2003: prediabetes is widened from 110 to 100. It now covers 98 million Americans, more than 1 adult in 3, for a condition the World Health Organization declines to call by that name.

2017: blood pressure again, down to 130/80. Another 31 million. Nearly half the adults in America are hypertensive.

When the cholesterol targets were tightened again in 2004, eight of the nine men who wrote them had been paid by companies that make statins.

No germ. No outbreak. No change in a single artery. Just a room, a vote, and a tablet waiting on the far side of every line.

In every other branch of medicine you have to get ill to become a patient. In this one they bring the disease to you.

The last healthy people are the ones who haven't been tested yet.

[Jessica Rojas 🇺🇸💪 @VoicesUnheard]

After watching people spend the last few days talking about Pike - her childhood, her age, her trauma, her execution, her suffering - I want to talk about Colleen Slemmer.
Because somehow the person who was murdered keeps becoming a footnote in the story of the person who murdered her.

Colleen was 19 years old.
She wasn't a case number. She wasn't simply "Christa Pike's victim."
She was a daughter. A granddaughter. A young woman who loved roller-skating, miniature golf and computers. She could take a computer apart and put it back together again. She even had a shirt that said "Computer Geek."
Her family later had that shirt made into a teddy bear so they could keep a piece of her close. ❤️

Colleen was also the kind of kid who gave up part of her own lunchtime to help children with disabilities - feeding students who needed assistance and helping kids in wheelchairs. She volunteered at Special Olympics events. One summer, she helped paint her school.

She struggled with reading, but she was smart and fascinated by computers. She wanted training that wasn't available at the Job Corps program near her home in Florida, so at 19 years old she left her family and went to Knoxville to learn computers and build a future for herself.

She never got that future.

On January 12, 1995, Colleen was lured to an isolated area near the University of Tennessee agricultural campus.
What happened next wasn't a momentary loss of control.

Colleen was beaten and tortured during a prolonged attack. She was cut repeatedly. Her throat was slashed. A pentagram was carved into her chest. She was struck with a meat cleaver and ultimately suffered devastating blows to her head with a large piece of asphalt. Afterward, Pike took a piece of Colleen's skull from the scene. These details come from the court record - not internet rumor.

Colleen was 19.

Nineteen.

And while the country is now being asked to think about what Christa Pike experienced during a failed execution, I think there's room to remember what Colleen experienced when nobody came to stop it.

There's also room to remember everything that existed before those final horrifying moments.

The girl who loved computers.
The girl who roller-skated.
The girl who helped children with disabilities eat their lunch.
The girl who volunteered at the Special Olympics.
The daughter whose mother has now spent more than three decades trying to make sure the world remembers her name.

Her mother, May Martinez, said something this week that absolutely broke my heart:
"The criminals get so much attention. Why? She has been lost in this."

She's right.

So today, I'm not posting Christa Pike's face.

I'm posting Colleen's name.

COLLEEN ANNE SLEMMER

September 20, 1975 – January 12, 1995

She was here.
She was loved.
She mattered.
And she deserves to be remembered for the life she lived - not only for the horrific way someone chose to end it.

Remember Colleen. 🤍

[Sandra Czyznikiewicz @MouseRoar]

@catturd2 They seriously need to examine what kind of psychotropics these women are on. This has been a huge problem for many years now amongst women, vets and teens. I'd like to be wrong but can't help thinking they are scrambling people's brains.

[The Buy American Movement - BuyDirectUSA ❤️🇺🇸 @BuyDirectUSA]

In 2005, Oneida shut the flatware factory in Sherrill, New York.

A town that had made silverware for MORE THAN 100 YEARS was supposed to be finished.

Two men refused to let that happen.

Their names are Matt Roberts and Greg Owens.

Roberts had managed that factory. Owens was another former Oneida manufacturing manager. When the company ended U.S. production, they bought the plant and the equipment and reopened it the NEXT DAY as Sherrill Manufacturing.

They did not have a giant rescue fund.
They did not have a Hollywood ending waiting.
They had a building, some machines, and a workforce that knew how to make forks, knives, and spoons.

At first they kept making product for Oneida.

Then Oneida pulled the remaining American work and sent it overseas.

That should have been the end.

It wasn’t.

They took government flatware contracts to keep the lights on. In 2010 they filed Chapter 11. They sold unused equipment. They sold space they could no longer fill. They leased back only the part of the factory they could still run.

They came out of bankruptcy in 2013.

Then they did the thing that saved the company.

They built their own brand: Liberty Tabletop.

They sold 18/10 stainless flatware straight to customers who wanted tableware MADE IN THE UNITED STATES.

Not through a department store that could drop them overnight.
Direct.

Today Liberty Tabletop is the only company still manufacturing stainless steel flatware in America.

Same town.
Same trade.
U.S. steel.
About 70 jobs.

They did not bring back 2,000 workers. Nobody did.

What they saved was the last line.

If you want American-made forks and spoons, this is the factory that still makes them.

Support Liberty Tabletop.
THIS is what keeping manufacturing in America actually looks like. 🇺🇸