Retired; ex-Comms Director @ClarkCountyNV; ex-#Vegas mayor press secretary; Vegas resident 1975-2024. Son of an immigrant from #Norway. My last name: #Italian
Monterey Co, CA; Las Vegas, NV
Joined June 2007
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Erik Pappa retweeted
Britain ran the slave trade. Britain sent seven-year-olds into the mills.
And Britain ended both. 🇬🇧
How can one country be the villain and the hero? It can't. There were two Britains.
One owned people. The other did the work.
When slavery ended, historians counted every slave owner living in Britain. About three thousand, in a country of sixteen million. 📜
Bankers, merchants, lords and MPs. The other Britain couldn't vote them out: most men had no vote, and no woman had one. 🗳️
Take Samuel Greg. In 1784 he built Quarry Bank Mill at Styal, in Cheshire. By the time he retired, it was the biggest cotton mill in the country.
More than half his workers were children. Many were orphans from the workhouse. 🧵
Four thousand miles away, the Greg family owned the Hillsborough sugar plantation on Dominica, worked by enslaved Africans. 🌴
The blankets they slept under were made at his mill. Orphan children here. Enslaved Africans there. Making money for the same family.
So who stood up to them?
In 1787 a young campaigner called Thomas Clarkson went to Bristol. ⚓
Thompson, landlord of the Seven Stars pub, refused to help trick sailors onto the slave ships. Instead he took Clarkson round the dockside pubs at night, at real risk to himself.
The crew lists showed two slave ships to Africa had killed more British sailors than eighty-three ships to Newfoundland. Their stories helped turn the country against the trade.
Manchester didn't even have an MP. So more than ten thousand people, about one in five in the town, signed a petition to end it. ✍️
In 1830 Richard Oastler heard about Bradford's mills. One boy of about ten worked from six in the morning till ten at night.
Oastler wrote to the Leeds Mercury. He called it Yorkshire Slavery. 📰
In April 1832, thousands of mill workers walked to York to fight for their children. They called it the Pilgrimage of Mercy. 🚶
Against slavery, women went door to door. One petition in May 1833 carried 187,000 women's names. Not one of them could vote. 👩
Then came two dates.
28 August 1833: Britain signs the law to end slavery across most of the Empire. 🇬🇧
29 August 1833: the very next day, it signs the Factory Act. No child under nine in most textile mills. 🏛️
Neither law was a gift from the slave owners. Both were won by people with no vote, no money and no power.
So next time someone tells you "Britain did this", ask them: which Britain?
Odds are five thousand to one you come from the side that won.
Watch the full story. 🎥
Be part of us. 🧵👈🇬🇧
Be Proud Of Us. 🙏🇬🇧
Erik Pappa retweeted
Qatar’s mediation has failed. Fars says the Islamic Republic sent its "plane packing" after just four hours.
The short visit was not evidence of progress. It was the latest failed attempt to break a deadlock that months of Qatari and Pakistani mediation have been unable to resolve.
Earlier negotiating sessions lasted between 12 and 16 hours. This plane departed after roughly four hours, while IRGC-linked Fars publicly celebrated its rapid exit as the mediator being “sent packing.”
The talks have failed because the two sides remain divided on the fundamental question of who must surrender leverage first.
The Islamic Republic insists that the United States must meet seven conditions before the Strait of Hormuz reopens or serious negotiations begin:
1️⃣ End hostilities across the region, including in Lebanon.
2️⃣ Lift the naval blockade of Iranian ports and shipping.
3️⃣ Restore sanctions relief and Iranian oil exports.
4️⃣ Release more than $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets held in Qatar.
5️⃣ Reduce the American military presence to pre-war levels.
6️⃣ Pay compensation for war damage.
7️⃣ Guarantee against future attacks and accept the Iran-Oman navigation arrangement in Hormuz.
The regime has compressed its original seven-day proposal into two days and presented this as evidence of flexibility. But shortening the timetable does not change the substance of the demands.
The United States would still be required to release money, weaken sanctions, lift the blockade, reduce its military posture and provide security guarantees before the Islamic Republic reopened the Strait or accepted meaningful nuclear restrictions.
The nuclear deadlock is equally severe. The United States wants verifiable access to key facilities and action on approximately 440 kilograms of highly enriched uranium. The regime refuses to transfer the material abroad, surrender it or accept inspections as a precondition for relief.
The frozen assets are another immovable obstacle. The Islamic Republic wants rapid access to usable funds because its economy is under severe pressure. The United States has rejected unrestricted cash transfers and is unwilling to finance the regime’s recovery before receiving concrete nuclear concessions.
This is not a dispute over language that another round of shuttle diplomacy can solve. It is a direct collision between the regime’s demand for economic rescue before concessions and the American demand for nuclear concessions before relief.
Qatar carried proposals between two sides whose conditions remain fundamentally incompatible. The Islamic Republic rejected the available ideas as inadequate, maintained its maximalist demands and sent the plane home within hours.
The mediation has not produced an agreement, a breakthrough or even a credible path toward one. It has hit the same wall again.
The talks have failed, the diplomatic off-ramp is closing and the military options waiting after the American midterms are moving closer.
Islamic Republic media has rejected the new wave of optimism surrounding negotiations and insisted that the regime’s seven conditions must be met before anything moves forward.
Fars News, one of the IRGC’s closest media channels, cited an informed source who dismissed reports of any breakthrough in indirect exchanges with the United States.
The source said messages passing through mediators were routine and did not represent progress. The regime will not reopen serious negotiations or change its position until the United States implements its seven conditions:
1️⃣ End military hostilities across the region, including in Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq and Gaza.
2️⃣ Release frozen Iranian assets.
3️⃣ Lift the naval blockade of Iranian ports.
4️⃣ Remove economic and political sanctions.
5️⃣ Withdraw American forces from the region.
6️⃣ Pay war reparations.
7️⃣ End threats and hostile rhetoric against the Islamic Republic.
Mohsen Rezaei has publicly delivered the same message, stating that there will be no further developments until the United States meets all seven conditions.
Rezaei is not a peripheral commentator. He commanded the IRGC from 1981 to 1997 and now serves as secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and the Supreme Leader’s representative on that body.
The Supreme National Security Council coordinates the Islamic Republic’s central military, security, nuclear and foreign-policy decisions. Rezaei’s dual position places him near the centre of the regime’s wartime command structure and makes his statement far more significant than ordinary political rhetoric.
Fars also claimed that the regime exercises complete military control over the Strait of Hormuz and that American naval vessels remain hundreds of kilometres away.
This should be understood as hardline signalling from the IRGC power centre, not independent journalism. Fars is closely aligned with the Revolutionary Guards, while its leadership and governing network have extensive Basij and IRGC Intelligence connections.
The agreement between Fars and Rezaei shows that routine exchanges through mediators should not be mistaken for a diplomatic opening. The Islamic Republic is still demanding that the United States abandon its economic and military leverage before the regime offers meaningful concessions of its own.
The message is clear. There is no breakthrough, the regime has not softened, and the latest optimism surrounding negotiations is not shared by the security establishment that ultimately controls the Islamic Republic’s position.
Erik Pappa retweeted
The reason this went viral is that it shows the cost of mass immigration. Let me explain.
A high-functioning society like the USA (and formerly Western Europe) is generous. Take Halloween: safe, affluent neighborhoods welcomed outsiders who wanted their kids to have a good experience. No problem.
But when outsiders exceed the surplus—like the candy—locals lose out. Kids who arrived late got nothing because the outsiders broke the system.
The same applies to schools, housing, and healthcare: outsiders overwhelm them, and we can no longer access what we built and paid for.
Halloween in my neighborhood modeled what mass immigration does to a community. Over half of the roughly 400 trick-or-treaters were not from here. Their families drove in from elsewhere and simply took, unlike the local community that decorated, gave candy, and made the evening. We ran out of candy halfway through, so when kids and families I know showed up as I closed, they got only an apology. This is exactly what’s happening to Western countries with mass immigration.
Erik Pappa retweeted
EXCLUSIVE: A Honduran illegal alien who was arrested by ICE in Minnesota during Operation Metro Surge, issued a deportation order, then ordered released from ICE detention by a Clinton-appointed federal judge on "due process" grounds has now been arrested & charged w/ raping a woman in her Minnesota home while working as a handyman after his release. Police say the rape was captured on the woman’s internal home surveillance video.
Authorities in Ramsey County, MN have charged 42-year-old MARCOTULIO MELENDEZ DIAZ with felony 1st degree criminal sexual penetration w/ coercion. According to the criminal complaint, on October 11th, MELENDEZ DIAZ allegedly overpowered and repeatedly raped the female victim in her own home in Mounds View, MN against her will while working as a handyman, and the assault was captured on the woman’s internal home surveillance system video. He is in custody on $150,000 bond and will face up to 30 years in prison if convicted. ICE has placed a detainer on him.
ICE sources tell FOX that MELENDEZ DIAZ was initially caught and released at the Texas border by the Biden administration in April 2024. ICE arrested him in Minnesota in January 2026 during Operation Metro Surge and transferred him to ICE detention in Texas where he initially crossed the border illegally. An immigration judge issued him a deportation order on 3/30/2026 and MELENDEZ DIAZ appealed. But on 8/7/2026, a federal judge in the Western District of Texas, Judge Orlando L. Garcia (Clinton appointee) ordered MELENDEZ DIAZ released from ICE custody and granted his habeas petition on grounds of “due process”, and MELENDEZ DIAZ made his way back to Minnesota.
The Board of Immigration Appeals then rejected MELENDEZ DIAZ’s appeal on 10/9/2026 and issued him a final deportation order, and two days later, police say he raped the Minnesota woman in her home.
Frustrated ICE sources say this alleged rape would have never happened if MELENDEZ DIAZ had remained in ICE custody.
I’ve reached out to Judge Garcia’s office & courtroom deputy for comment.
Erik Pappa retweeted
This is a Javan slit-faced bat, facing extinction because consumers, especially in the US, buy them for Halloween taxidermy decorations.
Apparently, people like their "rabbit-like" ears.
The Center for Biological Diversity filed a petition on October 29 asking the US Fish and Wildlife Service to list them under the Endangered Species Act.
They say listing the Javan slit-faced bat would meaningfully contribute to the species’ conservation by strictly regulating the import, export, and interstate commerce of the species, and hope the listing will also raise awareness of the species and its threats within the United States.
Let's start spreading awareness right now of the madness of driving a species to extinction for a frivolous decoration.
The full petition is in this thread. (1/2)
Erik Pappa retweeted
Ralston College’s students are “the Navy SEALs of Western civilization,” writes @tunkuv
on.wsj.com/4iuesO6
Erik Pappa retweeted
Our noses have two nostrils because they each perform a different function.
The nose serves two purposes:
- Helps us breathe
- Detects scents
Our nostrils perform both roles, but typically one handles breathing, and the other picks up scents. 🧵⬇️
Erik Pappa retweeted
All theater. the real issue is the billionaire class they own the politicians. They want cheap educated labor and India provides that. Their hate towards Indians is dumb. If they really want to resolve so called h1b issue they need to go after the corporations and politicians.
Erik Pappa retweeted
Get rid of these programs that bring in foreign workers at the expense of young Americans.
We stopped H-1Bs at our universities in Florida and other states should follow suit.
The tech job market is collapsing for young grads
Yet universities continue to lobby to flood the job market with OPT and H-1B entry-level workers to undercut their own grads
chronicle.com/article/the-co…
Erik Pappa retweeted
He shot at a politician's home 13 TIMES.
Over war? Racism? No. He was mad that the pol supports data centers.
The hate makes no sense. Data centers power everything we do online, and now AI.
That's a good thing!
"It's going to find cures for diseases," says @paigelambermont.
Erik Pappa retweeted
🚨 AMERICANS ARE STRUGGLING TO BUY THEIR FIRST HOME. MEANWHILE, SOME TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKERS CAN BORROW AGAINST THEIR HOME EQUITY.
Here’s what many Americans don’t realize.
H-1B is a TEMPORARY GUEST-WORKER program.
OPT is TEMPORARY employment authorization for international students, generally lasting 12 months, with up to 36 months total for eligible STEM graduates.
Neither automatically grants permanent residency.
Yet eligible H-1B homeowners, and potentially some OPT workers, can qualify for private HOME EQUITY LINES OF CREDIT (HELOCs).
What does that mean?
They may be able to borrow against their home’s equity to pay for:
• Vacations
• Cars and RVs
• Home renovations
• Other personal expenses
Consider this example:
Home value: $600,000
Existing mortgage: $350,000
Potential HELOC at 85% combined loan-to-value: $160,000
That’s up to $160,000 in additional borrowing, subject to lender approval, with the home as collateral.
Meanwhile, millions of Americans are struggling with down payments, mortgage payments, and housing affordability.
The Trump administration ended eligibility for NEW FHA-insured mortgages for nonpermanent residents in May 2025.
But some existing temporary-visa homeowners can still access privately funded HELOCs.
So here’s my question:
Should someone whose authorization to remain and work in America is temporary qualify for substantial home-equity credit?
And why is owning a first home becoming so difficult for so many American families?
🚨 TRUMP’S FHA MORTGAGE RESTRICTION IS HAVING A MASSIVE IMPACT.
New data shows the share of FHA purchase loans going to nonpermanent residents (including H-1B and other temporary labor visas) collapsed:
BEFORE: 5.8%
AFTER: 0.1%
That’s a 98% decline.
FHA loans are government-insured mortgages offering:
• Down payments as low as 3.5%
• Often lower interest rates
• More flexible credit requirements
• Mortgage insurance backed by taxpayers
And here’s why that last point matters.
Serious mortgage delinquency rates in Q2 2026:
FHA: 6.07%
Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac: 0.59%
That’s roughly 10 TIMES higher.
These rates cover all borrowers, not specifically nonpermanent residents.
In May 2025, Trump eliminated FHA eligibility for nonpermanent residents, including H-1B workers.
But eligible H-1B workers can STILL qualify for conventional mortgages through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Two questions:
1. Should taxpayers back mortgages for temporary guest workers?
2. Should Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac adopt similar residency restrictions?
@pulte
housingwire.com/articles/fha…
Erik Pappa retweeted
Tavern Brawl (flipped), after Gillis Van Tilborgh, 17th century, 📸 by @HagyPhoto
EDITORIAL: The wealth tax: Where did all the CA money go? lvrj.com/post/3902824 via @reviewjournal
Erik Pappa retweeted
Major win for protecting U.S. workers! Instacart has agreed to a $5 million settlement for discrimination during PERM recruitment. Thank you @andrealucasEEOC for your partnership in getting a great result and sending a message that this administration holds companies accountable.
justice.gov/opa/pr/civil-rig…
Erik Pappa retweeted
JUST IN: Matthew McConaughey sparks speculation he could run for president as an independent in 2028, declaring “Independents belong in the fight.”
