Friends and foes dominated another week of chatter in America’s heartland. Tongues wagged and toasts were made to the peace agreement brokered by President Donald Trump between Hamas and Israel. Although most rural folks think it won’t last, they were touched to see on the news people on both sides of the Gaza Strip rejoicing for the respite of gunfire and the homecoming of hostages – this is called winning in any sense of the word. But peace in the Middle East shared the social media spotlight with those progressives’ craving attention, a protest against ICE, and the act hired for the Super Bowl halftime show.
Far left Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani said, “It can’t bring back entire bloodlines that have been erased. It can’t bring back hostages that died in captivity. And so, we continue to both mourn and remember what has occurred and hope that the future will look far different than it has.” No one might know what that means, exactly, but his next point was clear as day: “If the genocide ends then I think that’s something worthy to be praised.”
An avid supporter of Israel, Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was noticeably relieved at the news, saying: “Now, enduring peace in the region is possible. Our parties are different, but we have a shared ironclad commitment to Israel and its people.”
“Let’s now support this process and bring it together, not just in a nonpartisan way in our own country, but literally internationally as a great global commitment to try to bring peace, security, stability and a better future to the Middle East,” Clinton said.
Paul Rutkovski down in Georgia commented: “What she meant was, we might as well have peace… I can’t sell missiles under the table anymore.”
Rahm Emanuel, formerly a Chicago mayor and Obama’s White House chief of staff, was quick to hand all the credit for the peace deal to President Trump. “Trump deserves credit,” Emanuel told The New York Times. “If you want to get heard on your criticism, you give a compliment and then you’ll be heard on the criticism loud and clear. If all you are is a critic, it’s harder to be heard.” Emanuel might’ve gone with Mamdani to the same political word salad 101 class offered by Kamala Harris.
Slavko Pervan from Prospect Heights, IL, felt a bit catty and said, “Them praising Trump must’ve been like pulling teeth.”
Ending a bloodbath in the warring Middle East? Number 47 does wear it well.
Federal agents arrested Debbie Brockman, an employee in WGN’s creative services department, after she allegedly hurled objects at a Border Patrol vehicle in protest of an immigration enforcement operation in Lincoln Square, Chicago.
According to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) statement, “The woman, a US citizen, threw objects at Border Patrol’s car and was placed under arrest for assault on a federal law enforcement officer.”
In McKinney, TX, Stanley Cash commented: “In the voice of Morgan Freeman… ‘Up to this point, Debbie had lived in her own little bubble, but now things were changing for her… and not for the better. She had literally, without immediately realizing it, FAFO.’”
The ICE assailant is a producer for WGN-TV, Debbie Brockman. And she looked for a camera to yell that she was a journalist and needed to be let go. There were several problems when the broth was reduced: 1.) Deb was off the clock; 2.) Deb had no camera or video to be cover the event. And the Big 3.) Deb was caught short on evidence but big on howling at her predicament. Joey Roberts in Franklinton, LA, summed it up pretty succinctly: “She’s got that Found Out look going on.”
The incident was recorded at all angles, and after Brockman was pulled from her vehicle and wrestled to the ground, instead of commenting on the alleged crime, onlookers and commenters on social media could not get past Brockman’s face – or her uncanny resemblance to random people. From Ben Franklin to Benny Hill and even actor John Goodman and the actress from the movie Throw Mama From the Train, Brockman was compared to just about everyone. Several scenarios played out in real time, and deep in the Appalachians, Roger Moore was reminded of his 1970s TV shows on Sunday, saying, “My mind goes to the old Mutual of Omaha Wild Kingdom show. I can hear Marlin Perkins now. ‘Jim’s got him, but can he hold him.’”
Nancy Binder Evans in North Carolina had a great question: “Is it me, or do they all have a look about them?”
The NFL’s decision to tap Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican reggaeton superstar, as the headliner for Super Bowl LIX’s halftime show is getting blowback worse than a fake cowgirl Beyonce. The NFL intended to show diversity. Yeah, we get it. But this guy is awfully salty.
Bad Bunny, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, has a bad habit of flipping off the USA. He recently sat through God Bless America at Yankee Stadium. That torqued off Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who called the gesture “an insult to every man and woman who’s ever worn this nation’s uniform.” Jones declared that he would use every means available to prevent Bad Bunny from headlining the upcoming Super Bowl halftime show. His message was unmistakable: “If you won’t stand for America, you don’t belong on its biggest stage.”
Of course, there are the requisite petitions in case anyone really wants to take action. And, Turning Point USA has decided to host its own halftime show with a stage of good music, patriotic speakers, and a little bit of religion thrown in to cover the bases.
That hyped up the Bunny and, during an appearance on Saturday Night Live, the Rabid Rabbit caught the attention of 50 Cent when he said: “You have four months to learn Spanish if you wanna understand my lyrics at the Super Bowl.” Most folks “From the Back Forty” will turn the channel for 15 minutes and go back to the game they love when the in-your-face portion concludes.
50 tweeted seriously at first, being the adult in the chat room, but tempers were evident: “Look, I respect what he’s doing, but telling Americans to ‘learn Spanish’ for the Super Bowl? Bro, this ain’t Duolingo halftime.”
Mr. Cent then added his version of a spanking: “Last time I checked, music supposed to bring people together, not make us download Rosetta Stone.”
But Mike D’Attoma gets the last word from Copley, OH: “At Half time I will be switching to animal planet to watch the Puppy Bowl.”
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Editor’s Note: From the Back Forty is Liberty Nation’s longest-running and most popular weekly column.