Test scores of United States high school students reveal a decline in college and career readiness. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reports that twelfth-grade reading and math scores fell to their lowest levels on record in 2024, and similar results were observed in the test scores of fourth- and eighth- graders.

A drastic increase in gang-related violence and other crimes has prompted the South African government to deploy military troops in several of the nation’s provinces (Deutsche Welle, March 11, 2026). Current estimates suggest that across the country between 63 and 70 people are murdered and about 50 are kidnapped each day.

Growing up, we may have let peer pressure get us involved in something without thinking it through fully. When our moms found out, they would ask, “If everyone was going to jump off the bridge, would you go jump, too?” Mom was sincerely looking out for our well-being. She said this to make us think, Why am I about to do this thing everyone else is doing? But how much of society still follows the crowd every year?

A review published in the internationally respected Journal of the American Medical Association analyzed 2,500 studies published within the past two decades on the risks and benefits of marijuana use (ScienceDaily.com, December 12, 2025).

In retaliation against Israel and the United States, Iran is attacking European assets in the Middle East and even its Arab neighbors. As a result, Iran’s Arab neighbors seem to be considering tighter cooperation and even joint military action.