Happy Friday! Here are the topics for today’s common-sense commentary:

• Great Falls Fireworks
• Epstein Files
• Blocked by Joe Pags
• Measles in America
• One More Thing

GREAT FALLS FIREWORKS:

In case you missed it, the Great Falls City Commission is discussing a ban on fireworks in the city. 

The Electric has an outstanding report about the discussion during the last City Commission work session HERE. 

Also, there is a Change.org petition to ban fireworks in Great Falls. You can view the petition HERE. 

EPSTEIN FILES:

Reuters is reporting that most Americans think President Donald Trump’s administration is hiding information about accused sex-trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and give it poor marks on the issue after pledging to make public documents in the case, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.

The two-day poll, which closed Wednesday, showed 69% of respondents thought the federal government was hiding details about Epstein’s clients, compared to 6% who disagreed and about one in four who said they weren’t sure.

Check out the full report from Reuters HERE. 

Last evening, Trump went ballistic against the Wall Street Journal for a story they posted that was entitled:

Jeffrey Epstein’s Friends Sent Him Bawdy Letters for a 50th Birthday Album. One Was From Donald Trump

Trump says the letter is fake, which showed a hand-drawn photo of a naked woman. Since the Wall Street Journal is behind a paywall, I found an article that explains what is in the article. You can read it HERE.

The Epstein files conspiracy is splitting the MAGAs. Get your popcorn ready!  

What will Trump do to get this off the front page? 

BLOCKED BY JOE PAGS:

Conservative (MAGA) talk radio host Joe Pagliarulo, known as “Joe Pags,” is often on TikTok live in the evenings. I sometimes listen to him for a few minutes and read and submit comments.

Wednesday night, Pags was talking about the Epstein files and defending Attorney General Pam Bondi. I asked Pags a question that went something like, “Are you on the Epstein list?”

A few seconds later, I was blocked by Joe Pags. I don’t know if he will lift the ban or if I am forever unable to listen to him on TikTok. Either way, I am fine with it.  

MAGAs sure are sensitive. 

MEASLES IN AMERICA:

Everyone should read an editorial from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Editorial Board about measles in America. The title of the editorial is:

Editorial: No one should get measles in America

It begins with:

There is no good reason for any American to become infected with the measles virus in 2025. Effective vaccines reduced the incidence of the disease to nearly negligible figures by the 1980s, and since a brief resurgence in the early 1990s, most years have had fewer than 100 cases across this enormous country.

This year, however, is poised to become the worst year for the highly contagious illness since 1992, or even earlier. We’re only halfway through the year, and already America has seen more confirmed cases — approaching 1,300 — than during any full year in the last three decades.

The Editorial Board ends the editorial with:

Getting vaccinated against measles doesn’t just protect oneself: It protects one’s entire community, and in a particular way those who can’t take the vaccine due to allergies or their own weakened immune systems. There is no good reason for any American to get the measles, and that means every death is a preventable tragedy.

Read the complete editorial by clicking HERE. 

ONE MORE THING: 

You know you’re getting old when “Friends with Benefits” means having a friend who can drive at night. 

## HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND ##