Old South Meeting House

SHOCKER: A biological male who identifies as transgender and served as a DEMOCRATIC state lawmaker in New Hampshire has been sentenced to 33 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON for s*xually exploiting toddlers as young as THREE YEARS OLD. Stacie-Marie Laughton, born Barry Charles Laughton Jr., pleaded guilty to three counts of s*xual exploitation of children after encouraging romantic partner Lindsay Groves to secretly photograph young children at the Creative Minds Early Learning Center in Tyngsborough, Massachusetts. This is absolutely horrifying. Groves, who worked at the daycare, took n*de photographs of children between the ages of 3 and 5 during routine bathroom breaks and diaper changes before sending the images to Laughton. Federal investigators uncovered more than 10,000 messages exchanged between the pair over approximately one month in 2023, including s*xually explicit discussions involving the children. Laughton made national headlines in 2012 as the first openly transgender person elected to a state legislature in the United States, winning a seat in the New Hampshire House of Representatives as a Democrat. Despite a criminal history that included a 2008 fraud conviction, Laughton was elected to the legislature three times but resigned before completing those terms amid legal controversies. Laughton pleaded guilty to the federal child exploitation charges in November 2025 and was sentenced in Boston in June 2026. Groves received a 22-year federal prison sentence for her role in the exploitation. U.S. Attorney Leah Foley condemned the abuse of trust, emphasizing that the victims were toddlers who were not even old enough to care for themselves. Parents entrusted their little children to a daycare where they should have been SAFE. Instead, a daycare employee and a former elected official exploited children who were too young to understand what was happening or protect themselves.

‘Water quadrupled. Labor nearly doubled’ If you like strawberries, this major source is shutting down. They can't afford to farm in CA anymore. Hundreds of people will be unemployed. Strawberries will not be grown, driving up the cost. ‘Water quadrupled. Labor nearly doubled’ ... and that is why that major farming operation is closing. The tragedy is that solutions to the manmade water shortage exist, but they aren't being applied because they don't fit ongoing policy. Problem-solving is not happening, despite the state budget increasing by as much as 70% since COVID while remaining deep in the red. We just pay more to live here ... which is why so many businesses and taxpayers have fled the state, which will result in taxes going up again because there are fewer taxpayers to support all the unemployed and the large population in poverty. CA has the highest taxes, gas prices, electricity prices, and housing, and accounts for 13 of the 25 most expensive water systems in the country. Why? It didn't used to be like this. CA used to thrive economically and used to be a destination state. The California Dream no longer exists. What changed? We have too many policies and regulations that are not advantageous to the population or to business. We need better balance. CA is on a downward spiral that is being blamed on everyone except those who are not fixing the numerous crises they created by not considering consequences. Blaming others is easier, even when not justifiable. Realistic plans to solve problems are the actual solution. Just fixing the manmade water shortage would at least provide local water supply to be able to support building more homes and support businesses that rely on water for things like manufacturing or growing our food. Currently, any business relying on water is struggling. And we still have millions of people needing safe drinking water. If the CA residents don't push loud and hard for changes, our Governor-elect will very likely continue the same unsustainable policies. And we will lose more than large strawberry farms while our living costs continue to increase, more farms are lost, and more businesses and taxpayers flee the state. Why are we allowing this increasing unaffordability to continue when solutions are available that benefit all water users?