Political Discussion

**BreadBreakers is a community where people of all different belief systems and backgrounds can create community - and what better way to do that than reading together?** Join us as we combine the kind, curious, and welcoming atmosphere of a BreadBreakers dinner with the thought-provoking, fun format of a book club. Here's what to expect: * We'll be reading *Of Mice and Men*, by John Steinbeck. * This will be a one-meeting club, so if you've ever wanted to do a book club but couldn't commit to multiple meetings, here's your opportunity! * Snacks :) * BreadBreakers ground rules apply - we'll lead with curiosity, converse with kindness, and strive to dig beneath the surface level. * We'll be gathering in Meeting Room 1 at the Reston Regional Library. * Participants will be responsible for obtaining their own copies of the book. [Here's the Amazon link, if helpful.](https://www.amazon.com/Mice-Men-John-Steinbeck/dp/0140177396) * Our BreadBreakers table hosts will come ready with questions and facilitation skills - you come ready to discuss! **I've never attended a BreadBreakers event before - what is BreadBreakers?** BreadBreakers is a community where neighbors from all different beliefs and backgrounds can **hear, be heard, and know one another.** Most frequently, we do this through the ancient practice of breaking bread around a common dining table. But we're more than just a discussion group - we're a movement to heal our world's broken discourse and forge togetherness in a time of isolation and loneliness. **Through the sacred act of just "being" together, we're working to rebuild the town square, one table (or book club) at a time.** BreadBreakers is a religiously inclusive by Restoration United Methodist Church in Reston, VA. All faiths, beliefs, and stripes are welcomed, and our leadership and community include people who attend Restoration and people who don't.

Join fellow book club members for an evening out at MyHome Thai, at 19890 Belmont Chase Dr., Ashburn. Each person is responsible for any food and drinks selected. If you sign up and need to cancel, you need to notify us at least 24 hours in advance.

[Profs and Pints DC](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“How Africans Fought Slavery,”** on the hidden history of resistance to the Transatlantic Slave Trade among those targeted by it, with Richard Bell, professor of history at the University of Maryland, College Park. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/africans-fought-slavery](https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/africans-fought-slavery) .] The Transatlantic Slave Trade was the largest forced migration in human history. In all, more than 12 million African men, women, and children were kidnapped and made to board European ships destined for the New World. Generally left out of our history books is the fact that African people fought the Transatlantic Slave Trade from the moment raiders approached their villages throughout every stage of the deadly Middle Passage. Join Profs and Pints fan favorite Richard Bell for a talk that turns the slave trade’s history inside out by examining the huge varieties of African resistance to this 400-year-long nightmare. He’ll discuss how African people fought capture through fortified villages, armed flight, and deception awareness. Their struggle to stay free involved rebellions inside African coastal forts, hundreds of shipboard mutinies, hunger strikes, and mass drownings. You’ll learn how African suicides and revolts, as well as the constant threat of captive rebellion, forced European traders to spend enormous sums on weaponry, guards, surveillance, and ship redesign. Such costs, historians now calculate, saved more than a million Africans from ever being trafficked across the Atlantic. Far from being helpless victims of an unstoppable system, African captives proved relentlessly defiant, leaving a record that reshapes our understanding of the trade and the roots of African American resistance. (Door: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image: The slave ship La Amistad, site of a famous mutiny by the slaves on board. (Artist unknown / Wikimedia Commons.)

Regular boba tea meetup for people to meet, make new friends, or enjoy general conversations. Great for those who are new in town or find new activities to do!

Does your soul need a little boost on Tuesday? it's important to continue our healing/self growth journeys and build support for one another through our community. I know first hand how important it is to have people you can share and talk to along this journey. Many people don't understand it and think you are crazy. We know better, and we know we are making huge improvements in our lives. However, if you don't have support and feel alone, you could just give up. That would be a shame, so with this in mind, we will meet and explore many different parts of spirituality. This will be a free form experience, and will change according to the energy and preference of the group. Some nights we might do a meditation, some I might do some Access Healing work. Other ideas might include: Chanting, card readings, manifesting, visualizations, book discussions, crystals, affirmations, chakras, writing, past lives, Angels, coloring, clearings, astrology, mudras, nutrition and general discussions to raise your consciousness - the list is endless! We will also have guest hosts from time to time to learn about other topics under this huge umbrella! Join us to get your weekly dose of good energy, and we will all rise together! When we do, it has a ripple effect throughout our community and our whole planet! Yes, you do matter and what you do and think makes a big difference in the world! I can't wait to grow with you! We are flexible, we will start about 6:30, but if you can't get there then, join us whenever you can. This is a love based FREE event to support and help you soar, but DONATIONS are appreciated!

This popular and accomplished Toastmasters club (#4787) is open to everyone, with an average of 25 people per meeting, mainly business professionals from the Reston/Herndon area. Meetings are held on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Tuesdays of the month from 6pm to 7pm at 2310 Colts Neck Rd, Reston, VA 20191. Some of the group's members are accomplished professional speakers, while others are just starting down their path of improved public speaking, including many non-native English speakers. Whether you're just starting out and looking to improve your speaking or overcome some nervousness...or looking to gain connections and sharpen your skills, you'll feel connected with the members of Reston Town Center Toastmasters. Stop by. Check us out! Chances are you'll like us so much that you'll be back! For more information: http://towncentertoastmasters.toastmastersclubs.org/

This popular and accomplished Toastmasters club (#4787) is open to everyone, with an average of 25 people per meeting, mainly business professionals from the Reston/Herndon area. Meetings are held on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Tuesdays of the month from 6pm to 7pm at Conference Room 1 on the ground floor of 1880 Campus Commons Dr, Reston, VA 20191 SOUTH ENTRANCE. Some of the group's members are accomplished professional speakers, while others are just starting down their path of improved public speaking, including many non-native English speakers. Whether you're just starting out and looking to improve your speaking or overcome some nervousness...or looking to gain connections and sharpen your skills, you'll feel connected with the members of Reston Town Center Toastmasters. Stop by. Check us out! Chances are you'll like us so much that you'll be back! For more information: http://towncentertoastmasters.toastmastersclubs.org/

**In a time of division and isolation, come be part of the community that's rebuilding the town square, one table at a time.** In BreadBreakers, we use the common space of the dining table to have conversations where neighbors can **hear, be heard, and know one another.** If you're hungry for good discourse and deeper community, join us for a Community Dinner in Reston and help blaze the trail to a healthier, more connected society and democracy. Here’s how it works: For just two hours, multiple tables of people set aside the need to "win" and instead focus on sharing, listening, and connecting. Guided by experienced table hosts, we'll tell our stories, try to understand each other, and practice being in community with those with different views or backgrounds. **At this dinner, participants will get to choose between three different topics, including some current events.** Topics could range from the political, to the spiritual, to the philosophical, to the off-the-wall - but no matter which table you choose to sit at, you can be sure it'll be like no dinner conversation you've had before! You can also **suggest a topic** by emailing us at BreadBreakersInfo@gmail.com. Food will be provided for free. For those who wish to provide a donation to help fund BreadBreakers, you can [give here](https://pushpay.com/g/restorationrestonumc?fnd=pO6G-N7oO7FH7Mp1u-x6mA&fndv=Lock&r=No&lang=en&src=pcgl) or at the event. We'll have vegetarian and gluten-free options available. If you have any additional dietary restrictions (Celiac Disease, vegan, etc.) please let us know at BreadBreakersInfo@gmail.com so that we can implement the appropriate food handling procedures. **Join us, invite a friend, and be a part of the movement to mend our fractured society and normalize a better way of talking with one another.** BreadBreakers, an initiative by [Restoration United Methodist Church](https://restorationreston.org/breadbreakers) in Reston, VA, is a religiously inclusive community. All faiths and all stripes are welcomed. Our leadership, volunteer team, and community include people who attend Restoration and people who don't.

[Profs and Pints Northern Virginia](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“Satanic Panics,”** a look at waves of fear of demonic activity as an American tradition, with Luxx Mishou, cultural historian and former instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy and area community colleges. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-satanic-panics](https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-satanic-panics) .] The 1980s found the United States gripped by fear of Satanic cults targeting children. They were believed to be corrupting young ones in daycare centers and tempting teens through subliminal messages on heavy metal albums or through the quiet inclusion of demonic rituals in role-playing games. Satanic serial killers supposedly stalked the suburbs. Doctors helped patients uncover what were claimed to be repressed memories of ritualistic satanic abuse. Parents, police, and politicians were urged to protect impressionable youths from both moral and physical danger. With Satanic cults deemed to be a real and material threat, it was a frightening time for everyone, including those who suddenly came under suspicion for doing evil deeds. Then, suddenly, it all faded from public consciousness, just as surely as did eighties fads such mullet haircuts, leg warmers, and Cabbage Patch Kids. Why did it all start? Why did it stop? And has this happened before or since? Hear such questions tackled by Luxx Mishou, a cultural historian and media specialist who has long researched the devious and villainous in cultural artifacts. She’ll discuss moral panics as a longstanding cultural tradition, with each new one stemming from fear of cultural shifts and shaped by the time and place where it occurred. Among the panics we’ll look into are the Red Scare of the 1950s and the public response to the gruesome 1969 murders committed by the Manson Family. Delving into the 1980s panic, Mishou will describe how it began with the 1980 publication of psychiatrist Lawrence Pazder’s memoir *Michelle Remembers*, detailing the suppressed memories of ritualistic abuse reportedly suffered by a patient. As that book quickly became a best seller, its ideas saturated American culture. A California daycare center became the focus of a three-year investigation, followed by three years of trials, based on allegations that its owner had engaged in secret ritualistic abuse of the children in its care. Mishou will lead you through the media that convinced the public that devil worshipers were among them, and she’ll talk about how reactions to imagined threats can have very real social costs. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image by Canva.

0700 Buffalo Wing Factory (BWF) Hunter Woods Shopping Center this week only, with the following weeks located at the RCC Hunter Woods meeting rooms 4-5-6-7 with a free medium Ledo's Pizza. This event is for active political party participants engaging in conversation & political discourse. The primary focus of this event is recorded for YouTube Debate Practice Trials beginning at 0704-0705 after Ledo's Pizza from next door. A projector will be used throughout most of the event, especially during the 45-minute-long trial debate sessions. It is open to all 6-7 political divisions and parties & constructive comments & criticisms are welcome. VICTORY SONGS FOR ELECTION CAMPAIGNS WITH TULSI GABBARD RUNNING ON THE DEMOCRATIC TICKET FOR THE NEXT GENERAL ELECTION FOR THE WHITE HOUSE WITH EVENING NEWS BRIEFINGS ON THE TOPIC WITH THE FORMALLY ANNOUNCED AND NEWLY ANNOUNCED DEI COMMANDER IN CHIEF THATS YOU TULSI GABBARD $& PLEASE READ THE BELOW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK AND READ MY EMAILED NOTES ABOUT THE NEXT GENERAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN AND RELATED EMAILED NOTES AND SPEECH TOPICS AND RELATED BILLS THAT I SPONSORED WITH TRICRAFT’S FREELY DONATED MONEY FROM KELLY JOPLIN AT NSA HQ BLDG AND ROOM 10 BEFORE HE LEAVES BECAUSE ITS HIS LAST DAY AND YOU CAN GET THE REST FROM CNN BECAUSE I FORWARDED THESE WORDS WITH MY EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION LIKE I DID WITH CODE WORD JAMES DEAN WHICH IS RELATED TO FBI REQUESTS WRITTEN BY YOURS TRULY FOR THE FBI’S JAMES DEAN TO READ BUT NOT ACT ON IT RIGHT AWAY Victory and some democratic Campaign songs in Proper Sequence and some used for Campaign Speeches and used for ***code words*** during the campaign:; [Verse 1] Love spreads her arms, waits there for the nails I forgive you, boy, I will prevail Too much to take, some cross to bear I'm hiding in the trees with a picnic, she's over there, yeah [Interlude] Yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah, yeah, yeah [Verse 2] She didn't scream, she didn't make a sound I forgive you, boy, but don't leave town Cold black skin, naked in the rain Hammer flash in the lightning, they're hurting her again [Chorus] Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen [Post-Chorus] I have a dream, I've seen the light Don't put it out, and she's alright, yeah, she's my sister [Guitar Solo] [Verse 3] She didn't scream, she didn't make a sound I forgive you, boy, but don't leave town Cold black skin, naked in the rain Hammer flash in the lightning, they're hurting her again [Interlude] Oh, oh, oh Yeah, yeah, yeah [Chorus] Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen [Outro] I've had a dream, I've seen the light Don't put it out and she's alright, yeah, she's my sister I want it all I want it all And I want it now Only just after Aerosmith Walk This Way Talk This Way JUST-BLOW-ME-A-KISS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN May 08 0709 AM SHE BLINDED ME WITH SCIENCE JUST BEFORE THE ABOVE

Federal Executive GovCon - "Supporting Government Efficiency with Thought Leadership" When: Thursday, January 22, 2026, 5:30 – 8:00 Location: Lost Rhino, 21730 Red Rum Dr, Ste 142, Ashburn, VA 20147 (\*\* NEW LOCATION \*\*) Come network with other local GovCon Executives and enjoy a few free beers on us and engage with our sponsors and Industry speakers. Please register here for your spot and please enter full name and company so a badge will be waiting for you. Sponsorships: 1 of 2 spots are available. DM me to claim the 2nd sponsorship to highlight your company to an invitation-only executive audience.

Regular coffee meetup for people to meet, make new friends, or enjoy general conversations with coffee. Great for those who are new in town or looking for new activities to do! This will be held at Ridgetop Coffee and Tea in Sterling. Additional Note: If you are on the Wait List, you can still feel free to attend if you wish.

**Note the address says SE but it should be SW** HSLC is excited to collaborate with October One Vineyard for a monthly Yappy Hour! To support our local animals, please bring a pet food donation and you’ll be entered into a raffle for free tastings and glasses! You can also purchase raffle tickets. Your monetary donations help cover much-needed medical expenses for homeless and at-risk animals. This event will be 5-8pm on the last Friday of every month at the October One Vineyard tasting shop in Downtown Leesburg. This event is free to the public, so stop by and raise a glass. HSLC will be on hand to answer questions and let you know about available animals. Let’s “cheer” up our local area animals in need!

Let’s meet at Thai Tanium in Kentlands for some of their delicious food. Please only rsvp if you will attend. It is not fair to the restaurant to have no shows.

[Profs and Pints Northern Virginia](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“Venezuela’s Future—and Ours,”** an analysis of how the Trump administration’s intervention in Venezuela will affect that nation, the U.S., and the rest of the world, with Ernesto Castañeda, Director of the Center for Latin American and Latino Studies and the Immigration Lab at American University. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-venezuela-future](https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-venezuela-future) .] On January 3rd, after a long military buildup, the United States used special forces to seize Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from their residence in Caracas, Venezuela to stand trial here on criminal charges. The development marked a major turning point in our relationship with Venezuela and the rest of Latin America and raised a host of complex questions, not just for Venezuelans living inside and outside that country but for American citizens and other nations of the world. Coming to the stage to break down what all of this means is Ernesto Castañeda, a scholar of Latin America who has given several excellent Profs and Pints talks on immigration policy and has given dozens of interviews to media outlets around the world in the wake of the U.S. raid. In a talk offering informed perspective on the latest news developments, Professor Castañeda will discuss various theories about why the U.S. conducted the operation to get Maduro out of Venezuela. He’s put our nation’s current plans for Venezuela into context by touching on previous U.S. military interventions in Latin America and beyond. Professor Castañeda will look at the implications of recent events for U.S. politics and U.S. citizens and what such developments tell us about the balance of power in the United States. He’ll examine the distance between decisions made by the White House and public priorities, touching on how it all relates to our immigration policies and our views about peaceful protest and democracy. He’ll consider how the Venezuela raid and our actions since have altered relations between the U.S. and other nations and provide scenarios about what the future might hold. (Door: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image by Canva.

Please go to your Meetup account and elect to receive "EVENT UPDATES FROM ORGANIZERS" to help us keep you updated. Here's how... Go to "Settings" Then go to "Email updates" Scroll down to "Updates about your groups" Then go to the name of the group and click "Edit" Then select "Event updates from organizers"

Please go to your Meetup account and elect to receive "EVENT UPDATES FROM ORGANIZERS" to help us keep you updated. Here's how... Go to "Settings" Then go to "Email updates" Scroll down to "Updates about your groups" Then go to the name of the group and click "Edit" Then select "Event updates from organizers"

0700 Buffalo Wing Factory (BWF) Hunter Woods Shopping Center this week only, with the following weeks located at the RCC Hunter Woods meeting rooms 4-5-6-7 with a free medium Ledo's Pizza. This event is for active political party participants engaging in conversation & political discourse. The primary focus of this event is recorded for YouTube Debate Practice Trials beginning at 0704-0705 after Ledo's Pizza from next door. A projector will be used throughout most of the event, especially during the 45-minute-long trial debate sessions. It is open to all 6-7 political divisions and parties & constructive comments & criticisms are welcome. VICTORY SONGS FOR ELECTION CAMPAIGNS WITH TULSI GABBARD RUNNING ON THE DEMOCRATIC TICKET FOR THE NEXT GENERAL ELECTION FOR THE WHITE HOUSE WITH EVENING NEWS BRIEFINGS ON THE TOPIC WITH THE FORMALLY ANNOUNCED AND NEWLY ANNOUNCED DEI COMMANDER IN CHIEF THATS YOU TULSI GABBARD $& PLEASE READ THE BELOW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK AND READ MY EMAILED NOTES ABOUT THE NEXT GENERAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN AND RELATED EMAILED NOTES AND SPEECH TOPICS AND RELATED BILLS THAT I SPONSORED WITH TRICRAFT’S FREELY DONATED MONEY FROM KELLY JOPLIN AT NSA HQ BLDG AND ROOM 10 BEFORE HE LEAVES BECAUSE ITS HIS LAST DAY AND YOU CAN GET THE REST FROM CNN BECAUSE I FORWARDED THESE WORDS WITH MY EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION LIKE I DID WITH CODE WORD JAMES DEAN WHICH IS RELATED TO FBI REQUESTS WRITTEN BY YOURS TRULY FOR THE FBI’S JAMES DEAN TO READ BUT NOT ACT ON IT RIGHT AWAY Victory and some democratic Campaign songs in Proper Sequence and some used for Campaign Speeches and used for ***code words*** during the campaign:; [Verse 1] Love spreads her arms, waits there for the nails I forgive you, boy, I will prevail Too much to take, some cross to bear I'm hiding in the trees with a picnic, she's over there, yeah [Interlude] Yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah, yeah, yeah [Verse 2] She didn't scream, she didn't make a sound I forgive you, boy, but don't leave town Cold black skin, naked in the rain Hammer flash in the lightning, they're hurting her again [Chorus] Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen [Post-Chorus] I have a dream, I've seen the light Don't put it out, and she's alright, yeah, she's my sister [Guitar Solo] [Verse 3] She didn't scream, she didn't make a sound I forgive you, boy, but don't leave town Cold black skin, naked in the rain Hammer flash in the lightning, they're hurting her again [Interlude] Oh, oh, oh Yeah, yeah, yeah [Chorus] Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen Let me put you in the picture Let me show you what I mean The messiah is my sister Ain't no king, man, she's my queen [Outro] I've had a dream, I've seen the light Don't put it out and she's alright, yeah, she's my sister I want it all I want it all And I want it now Only just after Aerosmith Walk This Way Talk This Way JUST-BLOW-ME-A-KISS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN May 08 0709 AM SHE BLINDED ME WITH SCIENCE JUST BEFORE THE ABOVE

Please go to your Meetup account and elect to receive "EVENT UPDATES FROM ORGANIZERS" to help us keep you updated. Here's how... Go to "Settings" Then go to "Email updates" Scroll down to "Updates about your groups" Then go to the name of the group and click "Edit" Then select "Event updates from organizers"

I recently discovered this spot in Herndon, a comic-themed cafe that’s relatively new to the area. They’re building community here, not just selling coffee. They brew Counter Culture Coffee, and although their options for bites are limited, this is a good place to chill and talk about music or hobbies or anything in between. Kick off the weekend with a mellow vibe. (No discussions on politics, religion or potentially controversial topics. We're here to relax and have fun. Just be respectful and we'll be alright. Pay your own way, and enjoy!)

**Applying Dr. King’s Legacy Today** Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision was not only about hope—it was about action. This meetup invites people from all backgrounds to explore how Dr. King’s principles of justice, nonviolence, and the Beloved Community can be lived out in today’s world. Together, we’ll reflect on Dr. King’s teachings, connect them to current challenges, and discuss practical ways to apply his legacy in our daily lives, communities, and institutions. Through respectful dialogue and shared learning, we aim to move beyond remembrance toward meaningful engagement and positive change. Whether you’re new to Dr. King’s work or have long been inspired by it, this gathering offers space to listen, learn, and act—together. **All are welcome.**