Day: March 27, 2020

AFTER FAILED MISSION TO RESCUE AFGAN PEACE TALKS, POMPEO ISSUES SCATHING REBUKE, PULLS $1 BILLION IN U.S. AID

AFTER FAILED MISSION TO RESCUE AFGAN PEACE TALKS, POMPEO ISSUES SCATHING REBUKE, PULLS $1 BILLION IN U.S. AID 
BY JAMIE MCINTYRE
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research 
purposes:

US ‘DISAPPOINTED IN THEM’: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has returned to the United States empty-handed after a whirlwind day in Kabul in which he met with feuding Afghan leaders in an unsuccessful attempt to resuscitate peace talks with the Taliban that are on life support.







As his plane left Doha, where he met with Taliban representatives, the State Department issued a statement sharply critical of Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, who both claim to be Afghanistan’s duly-elected president, accusing them of “irresponsible actions” and announcing the U.S. would immediately withdraw $1 billion in assistance and consider cutting another $1 billion next year.



“They still can’t see their way towards wanting to get on a team, the inclusive team,” Pompeo complained after neither man would bend to U.S. pressure to put aside their differences and form a unity government. Speaking to reporters on his plane en route to Washington, Pompeo said it’s not too late for them to change course. “We’re hopeful, frankly, they’ll get their act together and we won’t have to do it, but we are prepared to do that if they can’t.”



SCATHING STATEMENT: Pressed for details on the billion-dollar aid cut, Pompeo was reluctant to go beyond the official statement, which described in unusually blunt terms U.S. disappointment with the conduct of its Afghan partners. “Their failure has harmed U.S.-Afghan relations and, sadly, dishonors those Afghan, Americans, and Coalition partners who have sacrificed their lives and treasure,” the statement said.



“Because this leadership failure poses a direct threat to U.S. national interests, effective immediately, the U.S. government will initiate a review of the scope of our cooperation with Afghanistan,” it continued. “Among other steps, we are today announcing a responsible adjustment to our spending in Afghanistan and immediately reducing assistance by $1 billion this year.”



DEAL WITH TALIBAN UNRAVELING: The agreement the U.S. negotiated with the Taliban began to fall apart almost as soon as it was signed Feb. 29 in Doha, Qatar. It called for a reduction of violence, but only against U.S. and coalition forces, and committed the Afghan government to release up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners while fighting still raged as a precondition to peace talks.



So far, that’s not something Ghani or Abdullah are willing to do. “We’ll continue to cajole, to coach, and to incentivize them to have the negotiations where all the Afghans are sitting at the table,” Pompeo told reporters. “There’s prisoner release, there’s the intra-Afghan negotiations, there’s the violence level. There are many pieces to the ultimate solution here.”



NO ONE LEFT ALIVE: Pompeo’s failed rescue mission came just four days after a deadly Taliban attack killed up to two dozen Afghan security forces in southern Afghanistan and left no Afghan forces alive at the police and military outpost.



Nevertheless, Pompeo argued the Taliban are meeting the letter of the agreement, and therefore, the U.S. would continue to withdraw thousands of U.S. troops over the next four months. “We’re moving down that path. As long as these violence levels remain beneath the threshold, our commitment is that we’ll continue,” he told reporters.



“The reduction of violence is real. It’s not perfect, but it’s in a place that’s pretty good,” Pompeo insisted. “There haven’t been attacks on American forces since the peace agreement was signed, what, three weeks ago now, three-and-a-half weeks ago.”



NOT CUTTING AND RUNNING: Pompeo insisted the U.S. is not abandoning the Afghan forces that are battling the Taliban for control of the country. “We’re going to continue to do all we’ve been doing to secure that the Afghan National Security Forces remain capable and that we’ll – consistent with the commitment we made to the Taliban as well as to the Afghan leadership,” Pompeo said.



“I’m hopeful in the days ahead, we’ll begin this process, which will begin with the prisoner release and lead to getting an inclusive team together at the negotiating table, which is, in the end, the Afghans sitting together is the outcome we have to get to.”



“The United States is not abandoning our partnership with Afghanistan, nor our commitment to support the Afghan security forces, but reviewing the scope of our cooperation given the irresponsible actions of Afghan leaders,” the official statement said. “To illustrate America’s steadfast commitment to the Afghan people, the United States will be providing $15 million in assistance to help combat the spread of the coronavirus in Afghanistan.”

IRAN RELEASES 85,000 PRISONERS BECAUSE OF CORONAVIRUS, BUT KEEPS CHRISTIANS LOCKED UP

IRAN RELEASES 85,000 PRISONERS BECAUSE OF CORONAVIRUS, BUT KEEPS CHRISTIANS LOCKED UP 
BY ROBERT SPENCER
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research 
purposes:

Priorities, priorities. The Islamic Republic, quite understandably, wants to keep the most dangerous prisoners locked up.






“Iran refuses to release Christian prisoners despite coronavirus outbreak,” by Benjamin Weinthal, Jerusalem Post, March 25, 2020:





BERLIN – Iran’s mullah regime refused on Tuesday to grant a temporary release to four imprisoned Christians amid a release of some 85,000 prisoners, including political prisoners, in an effort to stop the spread of the Middle East’s worst outbreak of the coronavirus.
The religious freedom organization Article18 wrote on its website that, “Four Iranian Christians serving 10-year sentences in Tehran’s Evin prison are being denied temporary release even though their requests for retrials have been accepted.”



According to Article18, the four Iranian Christians being jailed are Yousef Nadarkhani, 42; Mohammad Reza (Yohan) Omidi, 46; Zaman (Saheb) Fadaei, 36; and Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh, who is 58 years old and suffers from a number of serious health issues.
The religious freedom organization said that the Christians “have made several requests for release on bail since their retrials were accepted in October [except for Gol-Tapeh, whose request for a retrial was accepted in February], and their families are increasingly anxious about them in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.”



Mansour Borji, the research and advocacy director for the London-based organization, told FoxNews.com that, “We at Article18 ask for the immediate and unconditional release of all Christians detained on spurious charges related to their faith or religious activities. This is even more urgent given the current health crisis that threatens these detained Christians and their families back home.



“The international community should also demand that Iran upholds its obligations to guarantee the right to freedom of religion or belief for every citizen, regardless of their ethnic or linguistic background, including converts from other religions,” Borji added.
Alireza Miryousefi, the spokesman for Iran’s mission to the UN, told the news site that, “Decreasing the number of prisoners has been a general policy by Iran’s new head of justice since last year. All Iranians imprisoned for various crimes are judged by the judiciary on an individual basis as to whether they should be released or furloughed on medical grounds or other considerations. Tens of thousands have already been released from prisons. There has been no discrimination on the basis of religion or race.”…

CHINA USES CORONAVIRUS PANIC AS EXCUSE TO CRACK DOWN ON CHURCHES

China Zerstörung der Golden Lampstand Church (picture alliance/AP Photo/China Aid)
CHINA USES CORONAVIRUS PANIC AS EXCUSE TO CRACK DOWN ON CHURCHES 
BY LUIS MIGUEL
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research 
purposes:

Religious freedom watchdogs say the Chinese Communist Party is using the coronavirus outbreak as cover for further persecuting religion, tearing down some churches and using cameras to carefully monitor others.



The Voice of Martyrs (VOM), a non-profit group that helps persecuted Christians throughout the world, reported that Chinese officials have been trampling religious worship during the COVID-19 lockdown.



“China is now holding itself up as a model for fighting the coronavirus,” VOM spokesman Tom Nettleton told Fox News. “But fighting the pandemic hasn’t stopped communist officials from persecuting Christians.”



A video shared on Twitter by China Aid founder Bob Fu showed Xiangbaishu Church in Yixing city being demolished under orders of Jiangsu province officials.



“Religious persecution continues even in the midst of #WuhanVirus,” Fu captioned the video.



As Christian Post reports, authorities ordered the removal of a cross from a church in Guoyand County, Anhui Province, earlier this month. The removal was captured on video and shared by Chinese Christian Fellowship of Righteousness. A Christian with the surname Chen told China Aid that this church has 40 congregants.



According to International Christian Concern, another church in the Huaishang district of the city of Bengbu, Anhui province, also had its cross taken down by the government. A local Christian named Ms. Yao said the act was led by the local United Front Department, an organ of the Communist Party that oversees religious affairs.



Nettleton told Fox News that officials in Shandong Province have issued rules banning online preaching, which amid the coronavirus outbreak is the primary method by which churches may worship. 



China Aid published a statement from Shandong’s two state-run Christian organizations, the Three-Self Patriotic Movement and China Christian Council that described the ban on online preaching: 



We received the guidance from leaders of the supervision departments today: 1. All livestreamed preaching should be stopped immediately! The TSPM & CCC in each city should notify churches promptly and carry it out. 2. Some people still hold fellowship secretly. Please check for them earnestly in each jurisdiction, and the fellowships that meet without approval must be completely eradicated. 3. Take [the Christians’] needs and emotions regarding their faith into consideration. It is necessary to positively guide them to other means with the caveat of not gathering together!



Other churches have reportedly been vandalized by Chinese officials, with orders being given to prohibit “unregistered” religious services because of public-health concerns.



The alleged religious suppression has not been limited to Christians. Buddhists and Taoists also claim that demolition of their temples has accelerated since the coronavirus explosion. Local worshippers say authorities often decide that buildings they themselves approved for construction fail to meet obscure building codes and must therefore be demolished immediately. Congregants have tried appeasing officials by decorating temples with posters of Chinese President Xi Xinping to no success.



“Unconditional cooperation with the government means that no photos of the demolition can be taken, no negotiations initiated, and no compensation demanded. This is typical behavior of the CCP government,” lamented a Buddhist to the human rights website Bitter Winter.



“The Communist Party is as evil as a mafia. Under the tyranny of those modern bandits, even sacred Buddhist temples cannot enjoy peace,” another worshipper said.



Another report by Bitter Winter detailed the use of surveillance cameras to keep tabs on congregations and potentially gather “evidence” of illicit speech that can later be used as justification to wipe out the church in question.



A preacher from Lankao county in Henan’s Kaifeng city said powerful cameras costing more than 10,000 Yuan (roughly $1,400), have been installed in at least eight Three-Self churches. Images from the cameras are displayed on a large screen in the county’s two Chinese Christian Councils. The government is aware of who leads the services, the content of sermons, and even how many congregants are present.



“The surveillance equipment is powerful; it can catch every single word in the church,” said a Three-Self church director. “We can get into trouble for making an incautious remark. Believers don’t dare to even chitchat with each other under such surveillance.” The director claimed he once received a phone call from an official less than an hour after complaining about the government.



Last year, more than 100 cameras were put up in several Three-Self churches in Yi’nan county in Linyi. The Religious Affairs Bureau and United Front Work Department surveil churchgoers with those cameras. Churches that refuse to have the cameras installed are shut down.



Those who attempt to remove cameras are arrested and interrogated and have their church property confiscated. The church and even the personal residence of the preacher are then at risk of being destroyed.



China’s Communist Party reportedly grades churches on a 100-point obedience scale, deducting points for things such as incorrectly displayed Communist flags and slogans. The government has shut down houses of worship whose scores fall below 60.

SENATOR COTTON: CHINA UNLEASHED THIS PLAGUE ON THE WORLD

SENATOR COTTON: CHINA UNLEASHED THIS PLAGUE ON THE WORLD

“There will be a reckoning.”

BY STEVE WATSON
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research 
purposes:

GOP Senator Tom Cotton touted legislation Wednesday that would end US dependency on China for pharmaceuticals, stating that it poses a national security risk, as he asserted that China ‘unleashed’ the coronavirus on the rest of the planet and needs to pay for it.



“Things like antibiotics and ibuprofen and Advil are made in China for the most part. It’s time to bring that manufacturing capacity back to the United States, time to bring a lot more back to the United States from China.” Cotton said during a Fox News interview.



“China unleashed this plague on the world, and there will be a reckoning when we’re on the back side of it.” he urged.







Along with Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), Cotton has introduced the “Protecting Our Pharmaceutical Supply Chain From China Act,” which promises to “cut off purchases of drugs with Chinese ingredients no later than 2025.”



Cotton has warned that the “low quality” of such drugs produced in the communist state is a danger to all Americans.



The bill would also “require drug companies to label the origins of ingredients in their drugs, so U.S. consumers are better informed of where their medicine comes from and whether it’s likely to be safe.”



The legislation will also encourage the medical industry to “manufacture in our country again by offering full and immediate expensing of factories, warehouses and capital goods related to the manufacture of drugs and medical devices on American soil.”



Cotton writes that “Emergencies like pandemics and wars break down previously dependable supply chains and relationships as nations start to fend for themselves. It’s sadly clear America gave up the ability to fend for ourselves in basic medicine long ago.”



The Senator has been vocal in blaming China for the outbreak of the coronavirus, previously demanding that the communist state prove that the virus did not originate in its own secretive bioweapons lab in Wuhan:








 Cotton highlighted how China continuously lied about the severity of the outbreak:








Back in January, Cotton called for flights from China into the US to be stopped, warning that Beijing was lying about the full extent of the outbreak.


















Meanwhile, China again claimed Tuesday that the outbreak did not start in Wuhan, and that the US is engaging in “bald-faced racism and xenophobia” by claiming it did.



Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang even bragged that the World Health Organisation and the UN agrees with the communist state, and demanded that the US government stop saying the virus originated in China.



Last week, Chinese state media again claimed that the virus could have originated at Fort Detrick, Maryland, and may have been intentionally released by the US military in China to kill people.



The claim is patently false, with numerous virologists asserting that the origin of the virus is clearly traceable to Wuhan. Scientists have said that they are even able to pinpoint the timeframe of when the virus jumped to humans to within a few days. they believe it emerged in late October or early November.

SECOND AMENDMENT FOUNDATION ADDS PLAINTIFFS TO NEW JERSEY FEDERAL COURT ACTION; PLANS OTHER 2A LAWSUITS

Gun shops across the country are open for business, or closed by gubernatorial edict, depending on the state. The Second Amendment Foundation is planning legal actions challenging such shut downs. (Dave Workman photo)
SECOND AMENDMENT FOUNDATION ADDS PLAINTIFFS TO NEW JERSEY FEDERAL COURT ACTION; PLANS OTHER 2A LAWSUITS 
BY DAVE WORKMAN
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research purposes:

Gun shops across the country are open for business, or closed by gubernatorial edict, depending on the state. The Second Amendment Foundation is planning legal actions challenging such shut downs. (Dave Workman photo)
U.S.A. ––(Ammoland.com)- The Second Amendment Foundation’s federal action against New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy just expanded as several new plaintiffs have been added to an amended complaint, and their attorneys have filed a show cause motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction, Ammoland News has learned.
SAF appears to be “leading the charge” in the legal arena, challenging gun store shut-down orders.
Murphy and Callahan are being sued in their official capacities. The case, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the State of New Jersey is known as Kashinsky v. Murphy.
The lawsuit challenges Murphy’s order shutting down so-called “non-essential businesses” that includes an order to close all gun shops. It resulted in the closure of the State Police background check portal on the agency’s website. It also names State Police Supt. Patrick Callahan as a defendant.
Now joining the SAF lawsuit are the California-based Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), Legacy Indoor Range and Armory LLC, and private citizens Gina DiFazio, Jontell Platts, Witold Kwiatkowski. They join Racing Rails LLC d/b/a Legend Firearms, the New Jersey Second Amendment Society and Robert Kashinsky.
In addition to noted civil rights attorney David Jensen of New York, Pennsylvania attorney Adam Kraut has joined the legal team.
There is another development in the case. Attorneys representing SAF and its allies have also filed a show cause motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction.
According to SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb, the New Jersey lawsuit isn’t the only action on the table. The organization is also planning legal actions challenging “shutdown” orders in California, Colorado, North Carolina, Delaware and Washington State.
While several other state governors have issued so-called “shelter-in-place” orders shutting down many businesses, those orders have identified gun stores and firearms and ammunition suppliers as “essential businesses.”
“Ten years ago,” Gottlieb said in a statement announcing the amended New Jersey complaint, “The U.S. Supreme Court proclaimed that the Second Amendment is not a ‘second-class right’ but it’s being treated that way in New Jersey. The right to keep and bear arms is not subject to the whims of any state official, and it’s time for that message to be delivered clearly by the federal courts.”
There has been no small amount of activity on this front since the COVID-19 “pandemic panic” set in several days ago. Among the more startling was the sudden about-face by Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva over the course of 24 hours.
Sheriff Villanueva initially ordered all gun stores in his county to close. However, he reversed course the following day after reportedly learning “that the county’s legal counsel had issued an opinion that such stores were essential businesses,” according to the Los Angeles Times.
That newspaper has also reported that the L.A. County Board of Supervisors “is taking steps to remove Sheriff Alex Villanueva as the head of the county’s emergency operations center during the coronavirus outbreak.” The sheriff called the move a “pure power grab at the worst time possible.”
The Los Angeles Daily News reported that “The county’s counsel, Mary Wickham, said in a statement Tuesday that the county considered gun shops as ‘essential’ businesses during the stay-at-home orders.”
Elsewhere, gun stores remain open in Illinois, Connecticut, Ohio and Rhode Island, according to KUNC News in Greeley, Colo. The Rhode Island situation has caveats, as Gov. Gina Raimondo closed “all recreational facilities, including shooting ranges,” the station reported.
Gun ranges in Washington State have also closed, and at least two cities have considered enacting emergency ordinances with language that would forbid the carrying of firearms. Gun rights advocates say that would violate the state’s 35-year-old model preemption statute and the state constitution’s right-to-bear-arms provision. Here’s what Washington State law says:
The state of Washington hereby fully occupies and preempts the entire field of firearms regulation within the boundaries of the state, including the registration, licensing, possession, purchase, sale, acquisition, transfer, discharge, and transportation of firearms, or any other element relating to firearms or parts thereof, including ammunition and reloader components. Cities, towns, and counties or other municipalities may enact only those laws and ordinances relating to firearms that are specifically authorized by state law, as in RCW 9.41.300, and are consistent with this chapter. Such local ordinances shall have the same penalty as provided for by state law. Local laws and ordinances that are inconsistent with, more restrictive than, or exceed the requirements of state law shall not be enacted and are preempted and repealed, regardless of the nature of the code, charter, or home rule status of such city, town, county, or municipality.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation has reportedly asked the White House and Department of Homeland Security, along with governors and local officials “to classify gun and ammunition dealers and manufacturers as essential businesses that must remain open.”
Meanwhile, as Americans hunker down for what could be a “stay home” situation that could last well into the Spring, SAF appears to be leading the charge to challenge any “shut down” order that includes gun shops.

Additional Documents:

About Dave WorkmanDave Workman
Dave Workman is a senior editor at TheGunMag.com and Liberty Park Press, author of multiple books #add on the Right to Keep & Bear Arms and formerly an NRA-certified firearms instructor.
_____________________________________________________

SEE ALSO:
https://www.ammoland.com/2020/03/federal-government-must-designate-gun-stores-as-essential-businesses/#axzz6HzIrduW3




SEE ALSO:







Gov. Murphy Admits Denying Press Credentials For NJ2AS News - Hates First Amendment as 



well!



Governor Murphy, who’s taken our Second Amendment rights away, told NJ2AS News (on 03/27/2020) they shouldn’t have First Amendment rights. He tried to imply Alejandro Roubian is not a real journalist and should not be allowed in his pressers. Then he outright refused to answer his question. This is unreal!


PA GOVERNOR WOLF ADDS FIREARM RETAILERS TO LIST OF APPROVED BUSINESSES DURING CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

PA GOVERNOR WOLF ADDS FIREARM RETAILERS TO LIST OF APPROVED BUSINESSES DURING CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC 
BY DUNCAN JOHNSON
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research 
purposes:

U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf added gun stores to the list of businesses allowed to stay open during COVID-19 coronavirus restrictions following emergency litigation filed by FPC Law and Joshua Prince of Civil Rights Defense Firm, Firearms Policy Coalition announced today. The Governor’s revised order and related case documents are available at FPCLegal.org.



On March 19, 2020 Governor Wolf released an Order, requiring the closure of all “non life-sustaining businesses.” Included in the list of businesses to be closed were firearms retailers, as apparently Governor Wolf doesn’t consider the Constitutionally guaranteed right to keep and bear arms ‘life-sustaining’. Firearms Policy Coalition’s Director of Legal Strategy Adam Kraut, along with well-known firearms attorney Joshua Prince, immediately challenged Gov. Wolf’s order directly at the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, invoking the Court’s King’s Bench jurisdiction.



While the State’s Supreme Court denied the King’s Bench petition on Sunday, Justice Wecht, joined by Justices Donohue and Dougherty, filed a strongly worded opinion in favor of protecting the right to keep and bear arms. The forced closure of gun shops throughout the entire Commonwealth, they said, was an “impermissible intrusion upon a fundamental constitutional right,” and that local gun shops could make accommodations in the name of social distancing just as other necessary, life-sustaining businesses have done.



Following that guidance, Governor Wolf reversed his gun store ban and published an updated “Industry Operations Guide” which now makes clear that firearms retailers are considered ‘life-sustaining’ and may remain open as long as they practice common public health measures.





“We appreciate that the Governor heard the voices of Justices Wecht, Donohue, and Dougherty and will now allow gun stores to remain open and serve the public,” said Kraut. “The right and ability to protect yourself and your family, particularly in times of crisis, is the very definition of ‘life-sustaining’ and unquestionably protected by both the Second Amendment and the State’s constitution.”



“As we have said before, there is no ‘except in emergencies’ clause in the Constitution and the government cannot shut down the People’s right to keep and bear arms,” said FPC President Brandon Combs. “Our FPC team will continue to fight for the rights of individuals and work to ensure that the People can continue to access and exercise their human rights.”






About Firearms Policy CoalitionFirearms Policy Coalition



Firearms Policy Coalition (www.firearmspolicy.org) is a 501(c)4 grassroots nonprofit organization. FPC’s mission is to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, especially the fundamental, individual Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, advance individual liberty, and restore freedom.



______________________________________________________________



SEE ALSO:

CINCINNATI, OHIO: COPS WON’T RESPOND TO ASSAULTS OR BREAKING & ENTERING

CINCINNATI, OHIO: COPS WON’T RESPOND TO ASSAULTS OR BREAKING & ENTERING
BY DANIEL GREENFIELD
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research 
purposes:

The new post-apocalyptic world is really something.



While criminals are released from prison, local police forces announce that they won't respond to even serious crimes or make arrests. Meanwhile gun shops are being closed as non-essential. Which pandemic handbook including a chapter on Escape From New York?



Or, in this case, Cincinnati. 





 Cincinnati police officers will no longer respond in person to the following reports: criminal damaging, dog bites, lost property, lost or stolen license plates, phone harassment, property damage or found property.



Police will no longer respond to assault reports, unless a suspect is still present or the victim requires medical attention, breaking and entering reports unless a suspect is still present, menacing reports "unless suspect is expected or threatens to return or is part of the elements of domestic violence" or theft reports "where there is no possibility of immediate apprehension."



Police are asking victims to report those crimes through the online or telephone reporting system.



Isaac said the announced calls for service do not require dispatch or a physical police response and will be referred for online reporting or telephone reporting when applicable.





On the bright side, the reduced reporting should lower crime rates which will be used to argue that everything is fine.



Except when the homeowner or a business owner actually shoots an intruder in self-defense.

HBO REALITY SHOW TO FEATURE DRAG QUEENS TRAINING “SMALL TOWN” AMERICANS FOR DRAG PERFORMANCE

We're Here HBO
TRAILER:
HBO REALITY SHOW TO FEATURE DRAG QUEENS TRAINING “SMALL TOWN” AMERICANS FOR DRAG PERFORMANCE 
BY HEATHER CLARK
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational and research 
purposes:

A new reality show set to premiere on HBO next month features three drag queens who travel throughout small towns in America looking for contestants who they can train to perform in drag for a one-night show.



“We’re Here” features Darius Pierce, who goes by the stage name Shangela; Christopher Caldwell, who goes by the stage name Bob the Drag Queen; and David Huggard, who goes by the stage name Eureka. The three are known from “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” a long-running television series where men in drag compete against each other for the title of “America’s Next Drag Superstar.”



According to the “We’re Here” page on the HBO website, the six-part series follows Pierce, Caldwell and Huggard as they recruit residents from across America and train them to be their “drag daughters” for a one-night performance.



“We travel across this country to take people from who they are to who they can be,” a trailer for the new show states. “We’re actually taking some locals [and] turning them into fierce drag queens.”







The trailer shows some of the selected residents learning how to dress and dance, and some also talk about how they dealt with bullying growing up.



One clip appears to be an interview of a couple whose daughter came out as a lesbian and who now apparently regret their opposition.



“My mom had this look as she thought I would go to Hell,” the daughter states.



In the trailer, drag is described as a “triumph of love over labels,” “electric” and giving one a purpose. When one man is asked how he feels dressed in drag, he replies, “Sexy as [expletive].”



The promotional video ends with a tired Caldwell propping up his feet and stating, “All in a gay’s work.”



HBO has expressed enthusiasm over the series, remarking in a statement, “Drag is about confidence and self-expression. We are so thrilled to showcase the transformative power of the art form with our audience.”



While the show claims, “You can’t live for anyone but yourself,” the Bible teaches that men are to no longer live unto themselves but for Jesus Christ.



“He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves but unto Him which died for them and rose again,” 2 Corinthians 5:15 reads.



In expounding on the verse, the late Bible commentator Matthew Henry once explained, “All were lost and undone, dead and ruined, slaves to sin, having no power to deliver themselves, and must have remained thus miserable for ever, if Christ had not died.”



“We should not make ourselves, but Christ, the end of our living and actions,” he noted. “A Christian’s life should be devoted to Christ. Alas, how many show the worthlessness of their professed faith and love, by living to themselves and to the world!”



Theologian Albert Barnes also outlined, “To live to Him is the opposite to living unto ourselves. It is to seek His honor, to feel that we belong to Him, that all our time and talents, all our strength of intellect and body, all the avails of our skill and toil — all belong to Him and should be employed in His service.”



Jesus said in Luke 9:23, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.” In Luke 14:27, He added, “And whosoever doth not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.”



______________________________________________________________