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In the midst of teaching Zoe about The Stamp Act and The Sugar Act, and a bunch of other lead-ups to the American Revolution this morning, news broke that a number of Hollywood stars and other elites were snagged by the FBI for attempting to pay out bribes to ensure their kids got into top colleges. From The Hollywood Reporter:

Actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin are among 40 charged in a nationwide college entrance exam scandal, according to court documents filed Tuesday in Boston and obtained by The Hollywood Reporter.

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Last month, my mom was admitted to the hospital for a list of reasons: kidney stones, a urinary tract infection, dehydration, anemia, and the flu. When my brother Joe called to tell me, my heart began to pound. He sounded concerned, but not overly-worried, as he explained how Mom's nursing home doctor had her transported to a nearby, affiliated hospital. This has been something of a semi-regular experience over the last few years. She has breast cancer, and being on chemo makes her very susceptible to infection. She's had so many bronchial infections at this point, I've lost count. Still... my heart was pounding and I was... scared.

This week, during one of my Lenten devotions, I came across Matthew...

President Ronald Reagan and Reverend Falwell. (Image Source)

When last we left off on Falwell, it was the mid-60's, his Thomas Road Baptist Church was growing, and he was staunchly against the Civil Rights Movement, integration, and Christian leaders, like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who was actively involved in politics. Falwell would eventually change his mind on the first two, but rather quickly changed course on the whole politics-stuff. 

(Image via IMDB)

"Sarah Mae Flemming (2nd from left) is joined by Julia E. King and attorneys Lincoln C. Jenkins & Matthew J. Perry.The photograph was taken by John W. Goodwin, a Columbia [S.C.] photographer." (Caption and photo via Columbia SC 63 Twitter)

For the past three months, I've fallen into a hole of sorts. Fallen... or actually, jumped.

Back in August, I tested my Mom's DNA through Ancestry (I've tested it before, but that other company turned out to be pretty shaky, and a quick Google search turns up a slew of angry customers... I'm not sure if it's still even in existence), and received the results back in September, just in time for her birthday. To our shock, I was matched with a few 1st and 2nd cousins, and far more shockingly, I...

Engraving by Thomas Nast in 1865. (Source)

I recently binge-listened to "Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom" by David W. Blight on Audible. It clocks in at nearly 37 hours, and makes great use of every minute. While this book contains an incredible wealth of historical, social and political information I recommend reading (or listening) to it all, I want to hone in on a particular event, which, quite interestingly, does not actually involve Douglass. Instead, Blight takes us to the White House in 1862 for a meeting between Lincoln and a group of Black leaders to discuss the future of the slaves after The Civil War. First, a little background from the book:

“Lincoln, a longtime sympathizer with colonization, set in motion...