Judges Who Refuse to Lay Down the Law

Good morning!

Imagine your 14-year-old daughter was raped, and her attacker was convicted—but never went to jail. In three separate cases in northeast England, judges purposefully let off teen boys convicted of rape and serious sexual assault of girls as young as 14 with nothing more than $35 fines, the Guardian reported on Friday.

[BRIEF]

• The attacks, one involving a knife and videoing for social media, occurred in late 2024 and early 2025. Judge Nicholas Rowland justified the light sentences by stating he wished to “avoid criminalizing these children unnecessarily” and support their reintegration into society.
• In another case in southern England last week, two teenage boys were convicted of raping two girls, ages 15 and 14, and a third was convicted of involvement in the attacks. The judges gave them youth rehabilitation orders—no prison, no detention.

Apparently, raping a girl is a less severe offense than speeding or illegal parking.

• Thankfully, all these cases have been referred to the Court of Appeal for being unduly lenient.

But this is no isolated failure. Several recent instances show judges prioritizing rehabilitation, age, background or equity concerns over punishment for serious crimes.

• In Stillwater, Oklahoma, last year, a 17-year-old pleaded no contest to 11 felony counts, including attempted rape, rape by instrumentation, sexual battery and strangulation against two teenage girls. Facing up to 78 years, he received “youthful offender” status and probation, community service and counseling—and zero jail time.
• Similar recent cases occurred in New Jersey and Washington State: Teenage rapists received probation and counseling, or community supervision, rather than being locked up.
• A law just passed in Hawaii requires judges to consider youth offenders’ past trauma and bars charging certain trafficked or sexually abused minors as adults, even in serious cases.
• In Illinois last year, a judge reduced a sentence for aggravated sexual abuse, citing the young black defendant’s exposure to “systemic racism” and community trauma as key mitigating factors.
• Under California’s Racial Justice Act, public defenders in San Francisco are successfully reducing felony convictions to misdemeanors, citing implicit racial bias in arrests and testimony.

What happens when judges soften consequences, even for repeat or brazen violent crimes, and instead emphasize offender characteristics—youth, trauma, race?

Scripture warns strongly that such misguided “mercy,” besides insulting the victim, hurts the criminal and breeds more injustice and crime.

• Ecclesiastes 8:11 plainly warns that when a crime is not punished speedily and justly, people’s hearts become filled with evil schemes.
• Proverbs 17:15 says God detests justifying and acquitting the guilty.
• Proverbs 24:24-25 say telling a guilty man he’s righteous brings curses, while rebuking and convicting him produces blessings.

True justice demands accountability. Without it, curses follow.

By casting aside godly wisdom and instruction, and failing to administer proportionate punishment, these foolish judges undermine justice’s moral foundation. As Isaiah 59:14 prophesies:

And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.

The result is predictable: emboldened offenders, more victims and societal decay.

Iran War Update

• Whiplash—war or peace? After it appeared a peace agreement was all but assured on Friday, fighting resumed over the weekend. The United States struck Iranian targets near the city of Goruk and on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday and Sunday, claiming this was in retaliation for Iran downing an American drone. Iran retaliated by attacking a U.S. Air Force base in Kuwait. All this as both the U.S. and Iran have claimed their blockades of Hormuz are over.
• Iranian president resigns? Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has offered his resignation to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran International claimed yesterday. Citing a source familiar with the matter, Iran International claimed Pezeshkian is frustrated that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps leadership has sidelined him from the country’s decision-making. If the report is accurate, it should be confirmed soon.

Europe Braces Its Civilians for War

Europe’s war preparations go far beyond training soldiers and rebuilding its arms industries. A Telegraph article today looks at how nations are preparing their civilian populations for war:

Across the Nordic and Baltic regions, civilians are flocking to survival courses, signing up as reservists or volunteering in civil defense units, which manage bomb shelters and rescue people from destroyed buildings.

Civil defense courses teach traditional first aid and military survival techniques updated for the 21st century, including basic navigation, how to respond to air raid sirens, how not to give away your shelter location with your cell phone, and how to light a fire that thermal imaging cameras won’t detect.

• “Prepare for war” leaflets have also been issued to every household in Finland and Sweden, with practical tips on coping with electronic warfare, finding your local bomb shelter, and how food will be rationed in a time of war.

Norway is also expanding its civil defense force from 8,000 to 12,000.

“The civil defense force is not armed, and does not participate on the battlefield, but it can respond to most crises, whether that be putting out forest fires or, in cases of war, evacuating civilians, and running air raid alarms and shelters,” a Norwegian official told the Telegraph.

Britain, meanwhile, has no civil defense force, no courses to prepare civilians, has let its bomb shelters fall into disrepair, and has not even put together a leaflet.

“Some British officials fear that if war breaks out, air defenses may be so stretched that they could face a choice between defending nuclear bases or the capital,” wrote the Telegraph.

Europe is preparing for war in a host of ways. This is just another example of the decades of warning from Herbert W. Armstrong and Gerald Flurry about the rise of a German-led European superpower, being proved true.

Peter Thiel Flees U.S. Amid Fears of Nuclear War

German-American billionaire Peter Thiel has relocated his family to Buenos Aires, Argentina, according to a New York Times report published May 28.

• One reason for the move by the cofounder of PayPal and Palantir Technologies is to flee high taxes. California is pushing a one-time 5 percent wealth tax on assets over $1 billion. This would cost Thiel an estimated $1.4 billion.

Another major reason, the Times says, is his fear of an approaching nuclear war. Fleeing high taxation may be connected. Thiel sees international financial bodies that prevent people from sheltering their wealth in tax havens as a sign of the antichrist and the coming Armageddon.

Why Argentina? As the Times wrote:

Argentina, a nation relatively insulated from potential conflicts in the Northern Hemisphere, also fits as a potential escape hatch from other risks that Mr. Thiel has publicly warned about—nuclear war and runaway artificial intelligence.

Seeking shelter with tech friends? Thiel is not the only one fearing an approaching world war. Martin Varsavsky, a Spanish-Argentine tech entrepreneur close to Thiel, is as well. He has built a ranch in Argentina, which he said could serve as a shelter in case of World War iii. On social media, he wrote in 2024:

I used to believe nuclear war was impossible. But as the world divides into U.S.A.+Europe vs. Russia and China I don’t think it’s impossible anymore. This study shows that Argentina is one of the safest places to survive nuclear war and post-nuclear famine.

The Bible reveals that nuclear war is approaching. In Matthew 24, Christ specifically warns that a time of trouble is coming that is so great it risks the survival of mankind.

• Other passages clearly show that cities in North America will be laid waste (Ezekiel 6:6) by an onslaught of a German-led, nuclear-armed European superpower. Thiel is a friend of the man we believe will likely lead this empire.

Intriguingly, Bible prophecy also indicates that Latin America will be aligned with Europe. Latin America was strongly connected to Europe in the days of the Habsburg empire and served as a refuge for Nazis going underground after World War ii.

Those who can afford to are looking for a place of safety, and some believe Latin America could be such a place. As the late Herbert W. Armstrong wrote, “There Is a Way of Escape”—and “you can be protected from the impending nuclear nightmare.” But that protection will not come through riches or knowledge.

IN OTHER NEWS

Japan deploys troops to Germany for nato training: Japan announced on Friday that it will send four military personnel to the United States Army base in Weisbaden, Germany, to join the nato Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine command, the first time Japan has joined a nato mission related to the Ukraine war. Japanese Defense Minister Shinjirō Koizumi stated this marks a “further deepening of cooperation between Japan and nato.” America’s post-World War ii effort to prevent Japan from militarizing is dead. Bible prophecy warns that Japan’s rearmament is dangerous.

Latvia has a new leader: Andris Kulbergs formed a center-right coalition that was voted for by 66 of Latvia’s 100 parliamentary seats on Thursday, making him prime minister. He replaced Evika Silina, who resigned on May 14 after the incursion of two Ukrainian drones—to which she responded inadequately. In a speech just before the vote, Kulbergs vowed to “guarantee Latvia’s security.” Europe’s leaders are becoming increasingly militaristic; those who don’t meet the challenge, lose their jobs. The Russian threat is becoming more real to Europeans, and security and defense are becoming decisive political issues.

Lithuania completes tank-shooting range for the German Army: Lithuania’s Defense Ministry announced Friday that it has completed a $1.25 million antitank weaponry firing range on the Rudninkai military training base grounds for use by Lithuanian forces as well as a German Army brigade of up to 5,000 soldiers to be stationed there. This marks another step toward Europe replacing American military guarantees with German forces.

Royal family accused of covering up for Prince Andrew: Jeffrey Epstein victim Jess Michaels accused the British royal family of covering up the former Prince Andrew’s connections to the sex offender, the Telegraph reported yesterday. “Six years ago, the palace knew Andrew wasn’t just a problem; he could face a criminal investigation,” she stated, “and they sat on it.” Court documents the Telegraph reviewed suggest that in 2020, Lord Chamberlain Earl Peel, Buckingham Palace’s most senior official at the time, received documents relating to Andrew’s conduct and apparently kept quiet. Such accusations increase the possibility that the Andrew scandal could finally end the British royal family.

One in three American men not working, not looking: The share of American men in the workforce has fallen to its lowest level in nearly two decades, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In April, only about 67 percent of men ages 16 and older were either working or actively looking for work. Excluding the unusual period right after the covid lockdowns, this is the lowest rate since 2010. The drop comes from more men retiring as they get older, more young men staying in school longer, and job losses in male-heavy industries like manufacturing, transportation and mining. Many of these men are receiving financial support from their parents, their wife or girlfriend, or disability payments, food stamps and other government welfare programs.

Can you trust AI for medical advice? A preprint study published last week led by Pennsylvania State University researchers found that 1 in 4 requests for medical advice they analyzed received a wrong answer. Researchers asked four AI models about various medical scenarios. Chatgpt-4o performed best, reaching 85 percent accuracy. Even the best AI models make mistakes, and those could prove dangerously harmful. On the other hand, it’s hard to know how the average local doctor would have performed in the same study. Many users are desperate for improvements in their health. God promises in the Bible to be our physician and to guide us in all things.