Laurel Fitzhugh

Katie Hobbs and the Fight to Keep Arizona a Democracy

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Arizona stands at a political crossroads. In 2026, voters will decide whether to preserve a balanced state government or hand unchecked power to a single party. Governor Katie Hobbs, the incumbent Democrat, is the last structural counterweight in a system where Republicans already dominate both chambers of the legislature and most statewide offices. Her veto pen has become the only thing preventing Arizona from sliding into one-party rule: a condition that would make state government functionally indistinguishable from those that have been remade under Trump-aligned control elsewhere.

This is a struggle over the survival of Arizona’s democratic architecture—the citizen-led systems that were designed to protect voters from partisan overreach. It is about preserving democracy in Arizona.


Contents: The Long Project of Consolidation → Redistricting Reforms → Citizen-Initiated Democracy → Hobbs’ Record → The Money Behind the Push → It Matters

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DGL Licorice: Strengthening the Gut’s Natural Defense

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Many people reach for acid-reducing drugs when heartburn or reflux appears, assuming the problem is too much stomach acid. In reality, excess acid is rarely the root cause. Most reflux and gastritis symptoms begin when the protective mucosal lining of the stomach or esophagus becomes thin, inflamed, or slow to repair.

Acid itself is essential for digestion and defense—it breaks down proteins, absorbs nutrients, and prevents infection. The real issue is often a weakened barrier that allows normal acid levels to irritate exposed tissue.

Deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL) supports this barrier. Instead of suppressing acid, it strengthens the mucous layer and promotes healing of the digestive lining. For many people, this makes it a logical alternative or companion approach to acid-blocking medications.

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Comprehensive Tincture ABV Reference – pdf

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The comprehensive tincture ABV reference is available as a downloadable PDF for offline use. This 22-page document contains alcohol percentages and extraction ratios for 300+ herbs. For the searchable online version, see [Herbal Tincture ABV Reference Guide](https://dittany.com/abv_reference/) [![Herbal_Tincture_ABV_Reference — Comprehensive tincture ABV reference](/wp-content/uploads/Herbal_Tincture_ABV_Reference-pdf-300×232.jpg){.alignnone}](/wp-content/uploads/Herbal_Tincture_ABV_Reference.pdf)

Social Security Privatization: The Ultimate Prize

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“In a way, it is a backdoor for privatizing Social Security.”

— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, July 2025

Bessent’s admission came during a policy panel on the Trump administration’s new “savings accounts for children.” Stripped of euphemism, this is about privatizing Social Security—the bedrock retirement program serving nearly 70 million Americans. The implications are staggering.

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The Homeland Security Gold Rush: $165 Billion in “Emergency” Funding

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In July 2025, Congress passed what President Trump called the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” allocating an unprecedented $165 billion over the next decade to the Department of Homeland Security.[1] The massive funding surge, justified as essential for border security and national defense, has triggered what industry observers describe as a contractor “gold rush”—with companies flooding DHS agencies with proposals while normal competitive bidding processes are bypassed in the name of urgency.

Seven months into this spending spree, a clear pattern has emerged:

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When Despair Drives Violence: Looking for Root Causes

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A friend recently made some important points about violence in America. He’s right that we’re seeing widespread nihilism – people losing faith that life has meaning or that their actions have positive consequences. The question is: what created these conditions? When people work full-time jobs that still leave them one emergency away from homelessness, something breaks down inside. The nihilism makes sense when legitimate paths to security are blocked off.