non veni pacem

I have some pressing matters this morning, so I hope Mary Ann doesn’t mind me cross posting in full:

The Coup that Failed: Liars Never Prosper…

 

Is this what the board didn’t want published?

…at least in the long run.

The 8th Commandment isn’t a suggestion.

The truth about the attempted coup at LifeSiteNews is coming out and it’s ugly. You can read the whole sordid tale at Chris Jackson’s Hiraeth in Exile.

A short synopsis: Some of the board members and the co-CEO, Robert Hoover, didn’t like the direction that LifeSiteNews was taking under Westen. They didn’t want any criticism of Pope Leo’s actions. They wanted to change the brand of LSN. What exactly that brand would look like we don’t know.

 

So they took a survey. Only about 20% of the employees responded. The board claimed everybody gave John-Henry Westen a thumbs down. Stephen Kokx, the journalist fired at the same time as Westen, responded to the survey. He disputed that tale since he did not give negative comments about Westen. How many others are with him? I don’t know if Maike Hickson, whom I know personally, responded to the the survey, but following the coup she quit in solidarity with Westen.

The survey results haven’t been released. (Does this sound familiar? Were they channeling Pope Francis?)

Chris Jackson began his article with this:

LifeSiteNews was never supposed to be respectable.

It was loud, confrontational, unapologetically pro-life, and willing to say what other Catholic outlets wouldn’t: that the Church is in crisis, and that the problem isn’t just secularism, it’s the men in miters enabling it. For over two decades, John-Henry Westen was the face of that mission.

And last week, the board tried to get rid of him.

Thanks to a leaked recording and statements from former employees, we now have a clearer picture of what really happened behind the scenes. It wasn’t just a personnel dispute. It was an ideological knife fight, thinly veiled as an “administrative decision.”

The attempted coup failed, for now, and you have yourselves to thank! You let your voices be heard and it had an effect. As of July 18, 2025, Westen has been reinstated as CEO and President of LifeSiteNews, though “subject to administrative review and investigation.”

But the deeper problem remains. A once-militant Catholic news outlet is now infested with careerists, climate liturgy defenders, and opinion-policing board members who seem more scandalized by alleged sedevacantists than by sacrilege in Rome.

What bothered me most in the article was the involvement of Bishop Joseph Strickland. I hoped that he was another victim of the lies rather than an active participant in the coup attempt. But that’s hard to believe based on the leaked audio of the board meeting [Source] which is available here. [I have not listened to the entire audio, only the first It’s obvious that the anonymous sender thought the audio would sink Westen. The act seems to have backfired. Most of the employees (80%) did not reply to the survey so to make the survey the hammer was dishonest.

Jackson ends his article with this:

 

This wasn’t just a leadership shakeup. It was an attempted course correction: a quiet, donor-friendly decapitation of LifeSite’s traditionalist legacy.

The goal? Soften the tone. Broaden the appeal. Distance the site from “radicals” who question papal legitimacy or the morality of synodal documents. In short: become another respectable Catholic outlet that laments the crisis but never names its architects.

If Westen had gone quietly, the purge would be complete. But thanks to the work of Stephen Kokx, Liz Yore, Frank Walker, Steve Bannon, and the outcry from you, dear readers, it has been exposed and stopped…for now.

The question going forward isn’t just whether Westen keeps his job. It’s whether LifeSiteNews keeps its mission.

If you want even more drama, there are some very interesting comments from Jackson’s readers here. There are also some legitimate criticisms of Westen’s promotion of questionable visionaries here.

For now, John-Henry is back. Let’s pray for LSN and all the employees. I am frankly tired of the internecine warfare and this may be my last post on this soap opera. God knows the truth. I suspect much of it has more to do with egos and personality conflicts than substance.

For a brief announcement about Westen’s restoration go to Catholic Vote.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/john-henry-westen-restored-as-lifesite-president-and-ceo/

The GoFundMe for Braman raised more than $88,000, with former Texans star J.J. Watt giving $10,000 and other former teammates also contributing.

“Rest in Peace brother,” Watt wrote on social media. “Gone far too soon.”

The Eagles and Texans also shared their remorse over Braman’s death.

“During his four seasons in Philadelphia, Bryan was a loyal teammate, a supporter of the community, and a valuable member of our Super Bowl LII-winning team,” the Eagles said in a statement. “More importantly, he was a devoted father who passionately loved his family and everyone around him. We extend our deepest condolences to Bryan’s family and all who are grieving his loss during this difficult time.”

Said the Texans: “We are deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Bryan Braman. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Braman family during this difficult time.”

https://6abc.com/post/former-eagles-lb-bryan-braman-dies-age-38/17161336/

Stephen Kokx, who was also fired, from his new substack:

LifeSite’s Board Chairman Dominic Ismert has informed company co-founder John-Henry Westen that after seeking legal advice he believes Westen’s removal as CEO earlier this month was illegal.

“The vote to remove me from the Board of LifeSiteNews and from CEO was not carried out in accordance with the bylaws of our organization,” Westen said in an email that he sent to all LifeSite staff and board members today via a personal account, after speaking with Ismert.

“Therefore until such time as the Board convenes to make a lawful determination on the matter I remain both CEO and on the Board of LifeSiteNews,” he added.

The email — the text of which is below — was promptly removed from staff inboxes by new co-CEO Robert Hoover, who sent employees a new email condemning the move while also defending Westen’s removal.

Dear LifeSite staff, and Board Members,

Read the rest:

https://kokxnews.substack.com/p/breaking-lifesite-board-chair-says

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114863203348237352

Blessed Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel!

COLLECT: O God, the order of Carmel was singularly honored when the title of the most blessed ever-virgin Mary, Your Mother, was given to it. Grant that we who commemorate this solemn feast today may be shielded by Her protection and attain everlasting happiness.

Wear the brown scapular. Have yourself enrolled in it. That scapular is a mini-habit of the Carmelites. Pray the Rosary every day. You will receive many graces.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us!

—

This feast was instituted by the Carmelites between 1376 and 1386 under the title “Commemoratio B. Mariæ Virg. duplex” to celebrate the victory of their order over its enemies on obtaining the approbation of its name and constitution from Honorius III on 30 Jan., 1226 (see Colvenerius, “Kal. Mar.”, 30 Jan. “Summa Aurea”, III, 737). The feast was assigned to 16 July, because on that date in 1251, according to Carmelite traditions, the scapular was given by the Blessed Virgin to St. Simon Stock; it was first approved by Sixtus V in 1587. After Cardinal Bellarmine had examined the Carmelite traditions in 1609, it was declared the patronal feast of the order, and is now celebrated in the Carmelite calendar as a major double of the first class with a vigil and a privileged octave (like the octave of Epiphany, admitting only a double of the first class) under the title “Commemoratio solemnis B.V.M. de Monte Carmelo”. By a privilege given by Clement X in 1672, some Carmelite monasteries keep the feast on the Sunday after 16 July, or on some other Sunday in July. In the seventeenth century the feast was adopted by several dioceses in the south of Italy, although its celebration, outside of Carmelite churches, was prohibited in 1628 by a decree contra abusus. On 21 Nov., 1674, however, it was first granted by Clement X to Spain and its colonies, in 1675 to Austria, in 1679 to Portugal and its colonies, and in 1725 to the Papal States of the Church, on 24 Sept., 1726, it was extended to the entire Latin Church by Benedict XIII. The lessons contain the legend of the scapular; the promise of the Sabbatine privilege was inserted into the lessons by Paul V about 1614.

https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10604b.htm

Oh, and in case you missed it, they’ve now crossed over from aggressor to victim: