Homeschooling Soars,Parents Find It Effective; Parents Say It Works Well,Don't Want to End It

As many schools  across the U.S. prepare to reopen this year, the number of parents opting to homeschool their children has surged in the wake of COVID-19 school lockdowns, the WND website reports today (July 31, 2021).

A common theme for a number of parents is that their kids performed well while homeschooling and they don't want to change that.

Yvonne Bunn, director of homeschool support and government affairs with Home Educators Association of Virginia, said it had to increase its staff in order to answer the spike in questions from parents.

Capitol Police Nab Those Who Don't Wear Mask; Speaker Pelosi's Mandatory Mask Rule Is the Law

A memo issued by Thomas Manger, chief of the U.S. Capitol Police, ordered officers on the House of Representatives side of the Capitol Building to arrest staff and visitors who refuse to wear a mask in defiance of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's new rule reinstating mandatory masking in the chamber, The New American website reports today (July 30, 2021). 

"Any person who fails to either comply or to leave the premises after being asked to do so would be subject to an arrest for Unlawful Entry," the memo reads. 

Per the memo, officers are not to arrest members of Congress, but they are to report the noncompliance of lawmakers to the House's sergeant-at-arms.

More Than 2 DozenTaliban Attacks This Spring; 81 Afghan Troops Were Killed as US Left Nation

A new US government report reveals today (July 29, 2021) that the Taliban offensive this spring included more than two dozen insider attacks during the 90-day period ending June 30, a wave of violence that left at least 81 Afghan troops  dead, as the U.S. withdrew its forces from the country, according to the Washington Post website. 

At least 37 Afghan troops were wounded in those attacks.

The data  underscores the enormous challenges and immense pressure facing Afghan forces who have been left to fight militants with little U.S. support.

Biden, Blinken Slam Antisemitism in US Building; After a Swastika Is Found in a State Dept. Elevator

 President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken are among the top U.S. officials to make statements condemning antisemitism after a swastika was found in a federal office building  yesterday, the JTA website reports today (July 28, 2021).

The swastika appeared in an elevator in the State Department building in Washington, D.C.

Blinken, whose stepfather survived the Holocaust, condemned the antisemitic hatred in three tweets last night. 

Biden:Federal Workers Will Need COVID Shots; Dept. of Vet. Affairs Now Requires COVID Shots

 President Biden is expected to make an announcement on Thursday, July 29th, requiring all federal workers and contractors to get vaccinated against COVID-19, the CBN News website reports today (July 27, 2021).

Biden also is expected to reveal a series of new measures to encourage vaccinations as the Delta variant spreads across the U.S.

The Department of Veterans Affairs became the first federal agency yesterday to require vaccination for its 115,000 health care workers. 

Afghan Civilians Being Killed at Record Rate; Taliban Boosts Killings as US Departs Nation

 More civilians are being killed in Afghanistan than any other time in the country's violent past, according to a new report by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, the Daily Beast website reports today (July 26, 2021).

Nearly 800 people have been killed, and 1,600 wounded in May and June, as the U.S. began to withdraw its troops.

Most were killed by roadside bombs or died in the crossfire between the Taliban and the government-backed military.

Pope:Society Must Treat Elderly with More Love; Society Is Too Concerned with Their Own Affairs

 On the first World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, Pope Francis said today (July 25, 2021) that he worried about how an individualistic society treats its older members, and urged young people to give them love and attention, according to the National Catholic Register website. 

"I worry when I see a society full of people in constant motion, too caught up in their own affairs to have time for a glance, a greeting, or a hug," the pope said in a homily today.

Pope Francis' homily was read during a Mass for around 2,500 elderly people and grandparents, together with their children and grandchildren, held in St. Peter's Basilica.