Saturday, 10 January 2026

TREE HOUSE NEWS 🏡

NEWS AGGREGATOR & COMMENTARY

May Great Spirit bless 🙏

Another cloudy morning, but still mild out there for January. I don't mind the mild weather in the winter; the way I see it, the more mild days we get, the less winter we have to go through 😆 Not much shakin' here in the Newsroom this morning, except for waiting for the brain fog to lift so I can continue with the news. Thank you for reading the TREE HOUSE NEWS. I pray you all have a better day than you did yesterday.

🙏~ PRAYER ~🙏

Let us begin the day with a prayer for all who are in need today, and for the healing and protection of the wounded and ill.

Please, Great Spirit, guide those who still have integrity, a brave heart, and raise a true leader to come forward with lance and shield in hand—the true warriors of compassion for We, the People.

And how about The Earth Angels? There are many Earth Angels among us who are not even aware of the part they are about to play.

And please, Great Spirit, give us, We, the People, the strength and wisdom to stand up to and defeat the beast that threatens our homes, the land, and also eventually will eat away at every one of us. This beautiful land will be forever destroyed and poisoned by this vile beast, now the president. Great Spirit, you allow us to borrow the land for a short time, to tend Mother Gaia for the next generation. TODAY'S LAND USE IS KILLING MOTHER GAIA! Help us all do our part in dealing with the BEAST, then help to restore and tend to Mother Gaia and her flock as we should. AMEN!

TODAY'S DISCUSSION:

Ancient Scripts - Scriptures

I'm not a member of any religion, but I have read many texts from different faiths, attended a few churches, and talked to priests and ministers. Still, none of the religious stuff really interested me enough to stick to a religion. But I do have a Spiritual Faith, homegrown from the program of AA.

As for the Bible, Kabbalah, Torah, etc., the written texts hold many interesting prehistoric accounts that seem to go all the way back along the evolutionary path of Australopithecus africanus. As you read from a text, you perceive what the passages mean in an intellectual sense. What image or perception would you draw from considering the same scripture subconsciously, like where your imagination dwells? The Hippocampus in the neocortex in your conscious mind may give you a different picture from what's described in the text. That's the problem with interpretation: what did those who actually wrote the text of the Bible really ink on the page when they verbalized what they thought they saw?

- Google Search -

The Bible and the Kabbalah are foundational ancient texts within the Abrahamic traditions, particularly Judaism and Christianity, with the Kabbalah representing the mystical dimension of Jewish tradition.

The Bible:

The Bible is an anthology of texts, divided into the Old and New Testaments.

Old Testament (Tanakh):

This collection is sacred to both Jews and Christians and was primarily written in Hebrew and some Aramaic between approximately 1400 BCE and 165 BCE. It is comprised of three parts:

Torah (The Pentateuch):
Ketuvim (Writings):
New Testament:

Specific to Christianity, these 27 books were written in Koine Greek between 50 and 100 CE and center on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

The Qabalah - Kabbalah:

Kabbalah (Hebrew for "that which has been received" or "tradition") is the esoteric and mystical school of thought within Judaism that seeks to understand the hidden, inner meaning of the Hebrew Bible and traditional rabbinic literature.

Core Texts:
The Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Creation):

An earlier mystical work (dated between 200–600 CE) that explores cosmology through the mystical significance of the Hebrew alphabet and numbers.

The Bahir:

Sefirot:

A central concept in Kabbalah, the Sefirot are the ten divine powers or attributes through which God created and interacts with the world.

Other Related Ancient Texts

Numerous other ancient texts from the Near East and beyond share themes or historical context with the Bible and Kabbalah.

Read More - Google Search -

Question: Ancient texts like the Bible and the Kabbalah

BREAKING NEWS:

Venezuela releases first prisoners in ‘peace’ gesture: Here’s what to know

Venezuela has begun releasing a number of high-profile prisoners, including opposition politicians, in what its government has called a gesture “to seek peace” less than a week after the US operation to snatch its President Nicolás Maduro.

At least nine people had been released as of Friday afternoon, representing just over 1% of political prisoners in Venezuela, according to human rights organization Penal Forum. Tearful reunions unfolded Thursday night, with newly freed detainees seen embracing loved ones in video shared on social media and verified by CNN Español.

Among the first to be released were Enrique Márquez, a former presidential candidate, and Biagio Pilieri, a businessman and former Venezuelan lawmaker, who were being held at a detention facility in Caracas known as El Helicoide. “They were taken out in cars and dropped off far from El Helicoide,” a CNNE reporter told CNN...

A history of stifling dissent:

Read More:

Updated Jan 9, 2026, 4:36 PM ET - 17 hr ago

- CNN -

A painted flag, a Russian bluff and an 18-day chase across the Atlantic

The Bella 1 had been tailed by a US Coast Guard cutter across the Atlantic Ocean for almost two weeks when the ship’s crew employed a novel tactic to evade the US military: painting a Russian flag on its hull.

The aging, rusted crude oil tanker got a new name too — The Marinera. Moscow soon sent a diplomatic request to Washington to stop pursuit of the vessel.

It was New Year’s Eve, and the tanker, sanctioned for being part of a shadow fleet used to move illicit oil around the world, was steaming north, potentially headed for Russian waters just east of Finland. Trump officials balked at the diplomatic warning, saying the newly painted flag was illegitimate and the vessel was “stateless,” effectively calling Russia’s bluff. A Coast Guard cutter, named the Munro, remained in pursuit.

As the tanker approached the North Atlantic between the United Kingdom and Iceland, US military aircraft began prepositioning at airbases in the UK. Special operations forces, including Navy SEALs and an Army helicopter unit known as the “night stalkers,” were readied for a potential mission. Finally on Wednesday, roughly 190 miles south of Iceland, US personnel rappelled down from helicopters and boarded the tanker, taking control of it...

Cracking down on the shadow fleet:
Tanker seizures began last month:
‘Well beyond US waters’:
Navy SEALs and ‘Night stalkers’:

Read More:

PUBLISHED Jan 10, 2026, 5:00 AM ET - 5 hr ago

- CNN -

Farewell, forever wars, hello empire? The week that changed the world

In January 1899, the American gunboat USS Wilmington set out on an expedition to Venezuela, steaming up the Orinoco River toward the country’s interior. On board was an American diplomat, Francis Loomis, the US envoy to Venezuela. The mission was to show the flag, explore commercial opportunities – including routes to supply gold-mining operations – and display a little firepower.

An article in Naval History described how Loomis liked to demonstrate the ship’s Colt machine guns to local officials.

“This gun, firing some 500 shots a minute, produced a vivid impression here,” Loomis wrote in a report. “I made a point of having this gun fired anytime there were any army officials on board.”

“Gunboat diplomacy” has become a convenient shorthand for US President Donald Trump’s coercive foreign policy backed up by the threat of military force.

The events of the past week stirred memories of long-forgotten chapters of US imperialism – from gunboat diplomacy and banana wars to full-scale colonial rule – that have left Washington’s traditional allies wondering if the world is returning to an era of great powers and vassal states.

Read More:

Updated Jan 10, 2026, 9:20 AM ET - 1 hr 3 min ago

- CNN -

CANADIAN NEWS:

The U.S. wants Venezuelan oil. Does that undercut Canada's leverage in trade talks?

Experts, former officials say pursuing Venezuela's oil is risky but Canada should be alert

ust hours after the United States announced it had attacked oil-rich Venezuela and captured its president Nicolás Maduro, the wife of a top adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump issued a stark warning to Canada on social media. "The U.S. doesn't need anything from Canada," wrote Katie Miller, whose husband Stephen Miller is Trump's deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser. "Free trade is over."

It's a familiar refrain from those within Trump's orbit, and from the president himself. But the argument has taken on new meaning now that the United States could have access to Venezuela's staggeringly large reserves of heavy crude oil — similar to what's produced in Western Canada.

LISTEN | What Trump's actions in Venezuela could mean for Canada oil.

Can Venezuela displace Canadian oil?:

WATCH | Breaking down Trump's national security strategy:

Trump looks for leverage, says former official

WATCH | Carney on upcoming CUSMA talks:

WATCH | Tapping into Venezuelan oil holds many challenges:

Will CUSMA survive?:

Read More:

Posted: Jan 10, 2026 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

- CBC -

Iran escalates threats against protesters as demonstrations continue

Death penalty threatened as protests spreading across the country near 2-week mark

Protests sweeping across Iran neared the two-week mark on Saturday, with the country’s government acknowledging the ongoing demonstrations despite an intensifying crackdown and as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. But the death toll in the protests has grown to at least 65 people, and more than 2,300 others have been detained, according to the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. Iranian state TV is reporting on security force casualties while portraying control over the nation.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has signalled a coming clampdown, despite U.S. warnings. Tehran escalated its threats on Saturday, with Iran’s attorney general, Mohammad Movahedi Azad, warning that anyone taking part in protests will be considered an “enemy of God,” a death-penalty charge...

WATCH | Anti-government protests spread across Iran: