Tom von Alten

@fortboise
214 Followers
181 Following
3.1K Posts
Writing about politics, religion, economics, engineering, life
Bloghttps://fortboise.org/blog/
Place#Boise #Idaho
AgeAnthropocene

Pope Leo XIV TODAY:

“The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants. Blessed are the peacemakers, but woe to those who manipulate religion and the name of God for their own military, economic and political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth.”

He is NOT backing down.

Minnesota continues to lead the way. Hennepin County is prosecuting an ICE agent for felony assault. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/16/minnesota-ice-agent-assault
ICE agent charged with assault for allegedly pointing gun at people in car

Minnesota prosecutors say this is first criminal case against a federal agent involved in Trump’s immigration crackdown

The Guardian
Viktor Orbán’s defeat will have consequences for the country, Europe, and aspiring autocrats around the world, writes Daniel Kelemen. https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/how-hungary-escaped-electoral-autocracy
How Hungary Escaped Electoral Autocracy

Viktor Orbán’s defeat will have consequences for the country, Europe, and aspiring autocrats around the world.

Default
Jamie Raskin: "I think that we are in the fight of our lives every day until the election, then after the election, we keep fighting all the way until we seat a new Democratic Congress."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-36KphO_ls8
Trump is trying to trample Congress’s power. Not on Jamie Raskin’s watch.

YouTube

@benroyce

So far there is one Democrat, JB Pritzker, who places prosecution of current administration officials illegal acts at the top of the list for the next administration.

https://mastodon.online/@mastodonmigration/116264604166662455

President #Zelenskyy paid tribute to WWII victims with Dutch PM Rob Jetten.

Honour the fallen, ensure justice for russia’s war crimes in #Ukraine.

Today's civil wars and religion potpourri, through a lens darkly (and one bright spot, at the end)
https://fortboise.org/blog/202604.html#p0416
Pete Hegseth is a vicious religious fanatic. His attacks on the press, couched in Christian biblical terms, are as troubling as his determination to wreak more violence in Iran. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/16/pete-hegseth-iran-energy-infrastructure
Hegseth says US is ‘locked and loaded’ to finish job of destroying Iran energy grid

US defense secretary said Iran’s energy infrastructure is ‘not destroyed yet’ at presser where he also lambasted the media

The Guardian
Another person caught up in the Republican Fascist ICE nightmare. Nobody is safe from the lawlessness. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/16/ice-immigration-court-interpreter-detained
Texas immigration court interpreter detained by ICE says ‘they want to make me disappear’

Meenu Batra, the state’s only licensed Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu interpreter, says she was treated ‘like a criminal’

The Guardian
Pelosi Calls Trump's AI Jesus Post 'Worthy Of A Diagnosis': VIDEO

Pelosi for the win.

Comic Sands