海角大神

European leaders pushed back against comments from the Trump administration about taking over Greenland, the semiautonomous territory of Denmark. The White House said yesterday that using the military is 鈥渁lways an option,鈥� while Secretary of State Marco Rubio has reportedly described the escalating rhetoric as a strategy to buy the Arctic island. Denmark鈥檚 prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, warned that an American annexation of Greenland would spell the end of NATO and said the threats should be taken seriously.

Venezuelan opposition leader Mar铆a Corina Machado pledged to return to Venezuela following Nicol谩s Maduro鈥檚 capture over the weekend. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate praised President Donald Trump for seizing the authoritarian leader, who pleaded not guilty to drug-trafficking charges in New York on Monday, and is calling for free elections. Mr. Trump, however, has cast doubt on her ability to lead the country. Meanwhile, he announced that Venezuela would begin exporting oil to the United States.

Protests have spread across Iran since a currency devaluation on Dec. 28 tapped widespread economic anger. At least 36 people have reportedly been killed and over 2,000 arrested in demonstrations across most of the country鈥檚 provinces. President Trump has threatened to intervene if the government uses deadly force against protesters, a renewed concern of Iranian leaders watching Venezuela and wary of American-backed regime change. Watch for our story from Scott Peterson.

France and the United Kingdom agreed to deploy forces to Ukraine as well as establish 鈥渕ilitary hubs鈥� around the country in the event of a peace deal. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron signed the declaration of intent in Paris alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a meeting of the so-called 鈥渃oalition of the willing鈥� on security guarantees for Ukraine. Mr. Zelenskyy called the move 鈥渁 huge step forward.鈥�

Wyoming鈥檚 Supreme Court struck down two abortion bans, ruling that they infringed on women鈥檚 rights. The laws allowed abortion only to save the mother鈥檚 life or in cases of sexual assault or incest and made Wyoming the first state to ban abortion pills. The state鈥檚 only abortion clinic sued, arguing the measures violated the right to make personal medical decisions; the state countered that abortion does not qualify as health care.

The National Institutes of Health cannot slash billions in research funding to universities, a federal appeals court in Boston ruled Monday. The Trump administration had proposed capping the funds for overhead costs at 15% of the total grant amount. Caps had previously often exceeded 30% or 40%. The decision upholds a lower court ruling that sided with 22 Democratic attorneys general, who argued the cap violated federal law and NIH regulations.

Deaths of U.S. law enforcement officers fell sharply last year, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. On-duty fatalities dropped 25 percent, from 148 in 2024 to 111 in 2025. 鈥淓ven one officer fatality is too many,鈥� the group鈥檚 chief officer told The Associated Press. Seventeen states and Washington, D.C., reported no on-duty deaths.

鈥� From our Monitor writers around the globe

Wildfires devastated LA-area communities about a year ago. There are some signs of recovery, but many residents remain uncertain about whether, or when, they will be able to rebuild their homes.

After 20 years of stand-your-ground laws, spreading to most U.S. states, experts see an accompanying rise in shooting deaths. South Carolina offers a lens on the issue.

Brigitte Macron鈥檚 legal victory over those who lied about her gender sets new limits on cyberbullying of public figures in France. But the French first lady faces a far steeper challenge seeking similar relief in U.S. courts.

In South Sudan, young people have grown up in the shadow of war and ethnic conflict. Now, they are using music to push back against the idea that those differences define them.

Women on board 19th-century clipper ships were not always welcome. But when the captain of Neptune鈥檚 Car fell ill, the skill and savvy of his 19-year-old wife, who was also pregnant at the time, brought the voyage to a safe conclusion.

The private lives of political leaders have long been fair game for opponents and investigative reporters 鈥� and, increasingly, amateur internet sleuths and online provocateurs. When the high-profile individuals are female, whether leaders themselves or their wives or partners, studies show that the scrutiny tends to be harsher and more speculative.

鈥淭he scandalization and personalization of news is profitable,鈥� observed the Character Assassination and Reputation Politics Research Lab, a joint initiative between an American and a Dutch university. However, this trend not only 鈥渄iminish[es] the public standing or credibility of the politician, but ... also divert[s] attention from substantive policy discussions.鈥�

Progressively powerful internet-enabled searching and sharing amplifies both facts and fictions, honest persuasion as well as embedded prejudices. This week, , a Paris court convicted 10 individuals of 鈥渄egrading, insulting, and malicious鈥� cyberharassment of French first lady Brigitte Macron. Seven of the defendants claimed their posts were meant in jest or constituted legitimate debate.

Within democracies, it seems, the demand confronting citizens and governments is how to better practice and protect core values that undergird freedom of speech and expression 鈥� as well as civic dialogue that avoids rancor.

In the United States, cherished First Amendment rights and definitions of truth, lies, and intended malice are at the heart of a defamation lawsuit that Ms. Macron and her husband, Emmanuel Macron, have filed in Delaware. They allege that conservative American influencer Candace Owens uses a business model of spreading false information, and is running a 鈥渃ampaign of global humiliation鈥� in promoting claims that Ms. Macron is male by birth. With 5.6 million subscribers on YouTube and over 6.5 million on Instagram, Ms. Owens鈥� statements have a wide reach.

The online proliferation of contradictory or unverifiable information from thousands of sites and content creators often leaves social media followers confused and at a loss over what to believe. How can individuals protect themselves from being targeted or taken in by such claims?聽

For Rev. David Wilson Rogers, a minister and regular media contributor, the imperative for social media users and consumers is 鈥渞efusing to outsource our moral and spiritual judgment to a machine, a meme, or realistic video.鈥� As he wrote in the Carlsbad Current-Argus last month, securing 鈥渢he future of truth鈥� requires exercising 鈥渙ur character, our discernment, our humility ... prayerful reflection and diligent research.鈥�

Nearly 120 years ago, during an era rife with the yellow journalism that perhaps presaged today鈥檚 internet 鈥渟lop鈥� and 鈥渞age-baiting,鈥� it was just such discernment and prayerful reflection that led religious pioneer Mary Baker Eddy to found this publication.

Her object in doing so 鈥� 鈥渢o injure no man, but to bless all mankind鈥� 鈥� is a fitting standard for today鈥檚 online culture.