Dave Barry: CHRISTMAS SHOPPING: A SURVIVOR'S GUIDE

 Dave Barry Official Website

It makes no difference whatsoever which one you go to: Under federal law, all malls in the United States must have the same 42 chain stores.

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You get the following instead: A Field Guide to the Jewish People, by Dave Barry

"The last book on Judaism you will ever have to buy, this hilarious tome from three comedy legends contains the sweetness of an apricot rugelach and all the wisdom of a matzoh ball.

Why do random Jewish holidays keep springing up unexpectedly? Why are yarmulkes round? Who was the first Jewish comedian?

These baffling questions and many more are answered by the comedic powerhouse trio of Dave Barry, Adam Mansbach, and Alan Zweibel. In A Field Guide to the Jewish People the authors dissect every holiday, rite of passage, and tradition, unravel a long and complicated history, and tackle the tough questions that have been plaguing the long-suffering Jewish people everywhere for centuries.

So gather round your chosen ones, pop open a bottle of Manischewitz, and get ready to laugh as you finally begin to understand the inner-workings of Judaism.

"An irreverent take on Jewish life, culture, and lore. No topic is off limits.... This is another zany book for Jews and those who love them." —Kirkus Reviews

“They're back again! However you say ‘three amigos’ in Yiddish, that's exactly what they are. They are like as wheatgrass shot of Jewish culture. If I was having a Bar Mitzvah, I would want to recite lines from this book. Everything I read from these three gives me Jewish envy. I laughed til I plotzed. Did I use that correctly?” —W. Kamau Bell, goyish comedian"

Ohana says Israel must not cooperate with those who call Jews in their land 'invaders'

How Hamas Targeted Jewish Families - Eileen F. Toplansky

"Gunmen were instructed to behead victims and cut off their legs. “The plan was to go from home to home, from room to room, to throw grenades and kill everyone, including women and children.'”

"Ergo, [t]hese acts are characterized by the exploitation of familial bonds to exacerbate suffering, or committed against family members in front of or in the presence of other members of their family.”

"Moreover, “[t]he acts must also be carried out as part of a widespread or systematic attack, where the perpetrator is aware of the context and implications of this overarching attack on families.’

These acts may encompass but are not limited to:

• Killing of family members.
• Inflicting serious bodily or mental harm on family members.
• Torturing family members.
• Committing acts of sexual violence, including rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, or enforced sterilization against family members.
• Separating family members by force or the threat of force.
• Hostage-taking.
• Broadcasting or disseminating any of the above acts or their effects on family members.
• Committing other inhumane acts of a similar nature." . . .  More. 

As German people had to know about the murders of
 Jews in WW2, Greta and her handlers had to know whom
 they celebrated. Useful idiots. 

UK Daily Mail "In remarks opening the Knesset’s inaugural session, Speaker Amir Ohana says there must be no cooperation with those who “spread blood libels about our fighters” and call “the Jewish people in their own land invaders,” invoking the future of Zionism and the phrase “Never again.”

Ohana says “great challenges still lie before us,” including Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and Hamas, which he says “has been dealt a devastating blow, but it still exists.”

He adds: “It is clear that Hamas is a terrorist organization, whether or not someone pays lip service to that as part of political negotiations,” referring to the Arab parties Ra’am and the Joint List, which have refused to explicitly refer to Hamas as such. . . ."

Newsom spared our daughter's killer and made mockery of her life

UK Daily Mail    

"DNA tied him to Ashley's murder and two others and he became known as the 'Hollywood Ripper.'"

Prosecutors showed Ashley Ellerin's autopsy report during the
 Gargiulo trial that showed the 47 stab wounds throughout her body.

"Michael and Cynthia Ellerin thought their daughter, Ashley, finally received justice when the man who butchered her in 2001 was put on death row five years ago.

Michael Gargiulo, who had stalked her for weeks, broke into the 22-year-old's Hollywood Hills home on February 21, 2001, and stabbed her 47 times as she got ready for a date with actor Ashton Kutcher.

He was caught seven years later, when a botched attack on a neighbor in Santa Monica left a trail of his blood behind. DNA tied him to Ashley's murder and two others and he became known as the 'Hollywood Ripper.'

At sentencing, the judge called him 'completely vicious and frightening' as he rejected the defense's push for him to be spared the death penalty.

Michael Ellerin told the court his wife let out 'mournful screams and primal wailing' when she learned her daughter had been murdered.

The family had been left with an 'altered, diminished existence,' he said, but took some solace knowing her killer would pay with his life.

Last Thursday, however, outgoing California Governor Gavin Newsom announced he was commuting the death sentences of all 548 inmates on the state's death row to life without parole, including Ashley's killer.

The Ellerins called it a 'slap in the face' to their family and to every relative of a murder victim in California.

'Someone who kills multiple people like a serial killer or someone who kills first responders in the line of duty, there is no redeeming that person,' Michael said.

'The man who killed my daughter is a serial killer and he is in that category of evil that should be put down.'

He added: 'If you're talking about the concept of closure, it's when you know that the person who killed your daughter was no longer alive and enjoying the privilege of thought, study or reflection." . . .

The Feminization Of America

 Allan J. Feifer; American Thinker   

"But the bedrock tenets of modern political feminism have advanced a philosophy increasingly at odds with the Founders’ interconnected principles of individual liberty, equal treatment, personal responsibility, and limited government."

. . . "No longer a question of equal rights or opportunities, the more consequential question today is whether the growing influence of women, coupled with the rise of political feminism, has changed not merely who governs America, but the philosophy by which America is governed. Political ideology is increasingly shaping life for everyone, not just activist feminists, leading to a future that not everyone signed up for.

"The Founders built a political system around individual liberty, personal responsibility, self-reliance, private property, competition, and limited government. They began with the idea that rights do not come from government; government exists primarily to secure them.

"Equality must mean equality before the law and the opportunity to prosper or fail through individual effort—not government-mandated equal outcomes. One philosophy protects the individual’s freedom to succeed or fail; its antithesis treats disparities among groups as evidence that institutions should intervene to ensure particular outcomes. This schism is central to modern political feminism and the power it seeks.

"The women’s suffrage movement initially aligned with the Constitution, demanding equal political rights. Second wave feminism emerged in the 1960s, initially seeking to remove barriers to women’s full participation. Again, it was constitutionally aligned. Betty Friedan’s 1963 The Feminine Mystique helped catalyze that movement. Founded in 1966, the National Organization for Women sought to secure equal rights and opportunities for women." . . .

Bruce Springsteen fan club founders say political fights, El-Sayed endorsement led to shutdown: report

Fox News    "Founded more than a decade ago, the "Spring-Nuts" Facebook group dedicated to The Boss noticed its 18,000 members were no longer focused on his music as they battled against "hateful" online discourse due to Springsteen's public stances and recent endorsement of Michigan's senator-elect, Abdul El-Sayed.

"As the world grew increasingly divisive, hostile, those tensions inevitably spilled into our little corner of the E Street world," founders Julie and Howie Chaz said in a statement posted on Sunday, Nov. 8, according to Asbury Park Press." . . .

Springsteen's November endorsement of El-Sayed as "a fighter for our American Constitution" was the final straw for admins." . . .

Bruce Springsteen endorsed Michigan senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed in November. (Getty Images)

"Mr. Sayed campaigned with Hasan Piker who openly made horrific statements that America deserved 9/11," Howie said. 

"After a Michigan synagogue was attacked back in March, obviously an act of terrorism, Sayed rationalized it by saying 'Hurt people hurt people' standing right next to the antisemitic streamer Hasan Piker who made the despicable 9/11 statement."

His endorsement was "deeply disappointing to us, given our concerns as proud Jews," Julie and Howie said."

Andrew McCarthy on the Hegseth Impeachment

Sad to read: A prominent conservative legal commentator explains why Hegseth should be convicted on at least some of the charges.

The Volokh Conspiracy Archive   

"He also notes (correctly) that previous presidents have gotten away with similar initiations of war without congressional authorization."

"Yesterday, I wrote about why Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth deserves to be impeached and convicted for his role in in starting an unconstitutional war and perpetrating over 200 cases of outright murder with the "drug boat" strikes. Today GOP Rep. Thomas Massie filed impeachment charges in the House of Representatives. Even if they don't pass in the narrowly Republican-controlled lame duck Congress, they will almost certainly do so in the incoming Democratic one. Meanwhile prominent conservative legal commentator, national security law expert and former federal prosecutor Andrew McCarthy has published an excellent overview of the charges in the National Review.

"McCarthy is far to my right, and far more sympathetic to the War on Drugs (I myself believe it should be abolished). Thus, it's notable that he and I agree that Hegseth should be convicted for his role in the drug boat strikes, which McCarthy characterizes as "indefensible":

I do not believe there is any viable justification for the extrajudicial killings by military force of operators of suspected drug boats. Drug trafficking is a crime, not an act of war. Our law addresses it through trial and imprisonment, not the use of military force…. The administration has not proved that the boats were ferrying narcotics, much less that the drugs were headed to the United States. The president's designation of Venezuelan criminal gangs as foreign terrorist organizations, besides being legally dubious (drug dealing is not "terrorist activity" as defined in federal law), does not authorize the use of force (it instead makes material support to the organization a crime and helps the government cut off funding sources). While the unauthorized killings in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific have not drawn the level of public ire that the Iran war has, they are indefensible, and Hegseth has been their loudest, crudest champion."   More,

 Ilya Somin is Visiting Professor of Law at the University of Virginia, Professor of Law at George Mason University, Simon Chair in Constitutional Studies at the Cato Institute, and author of Free to Move: Foot Voting, Migration, and Political Freedom, Democracy and Political Ignorance: Why Smaller Government is Smarter, and The Grasping Hand: Kelo v. City of New London and the Limits of Eminent Domain.

The Real Reason the Soviet Union Collapsed

 Think carefully what form of this we can expect from the DSA.

The Unraveling 

"Joseph Stalin’s drive to collectivize Soviet agriculture stripped peasants of control over their land and crops. The video examines how grain seizures and resistance unfolded across the countryside, leading to mass starvation and widespread suffering. The famine also intensified political tensions and deepened Stalin’s paranoia." Video.

The attack on SpaceX - Don Surber   "But Last is not calling for the nationalization of Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, or RTX (née Raytheon), all of which are much more vital to the defense of our nation.

"He is calling for nationalizing the company that owns Twitter. Musk bought it, renamed it X and made it part of SpaceX. That in hindsight was a genius move because any attempt to nationalize SpaceX now becomes a First Amendment issue.

"There is a Fifth Amendment issue as well—“nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” Where will Congress find the $2 trillion to take Space X?"   More.

Democrats ready to abuse their power - Don Surber

. . . "Democrats made clear after Tuesday’s stunning midterm victories that they will use their historic gains in Congress to flex their investigative muscles, swiftly issuing warnings to Trump administration officials they say have thus far dodged their oversight.

“Lawyer up,” was the two-word statement issued by incoming House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chair Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), whose side of the panel has already lobbed a number of inquiries at Trump administration officials.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) was even more brief, posting online only “Subpoenas” — a reminder that the party will now have the power to compel testimony from the administration and beyond." . . .  The Hill

The NTSB Just Listed What Came Out of the Crater. One Thing Is Missing

TYROX

"On 8 November the NTSB published the list of what investigators have recovered from the Learjet 60 N722BD crash in Greenacres, Florida: both engines, parts of both wings, the flight deck, the tail. One thing isn't on it: the cockpit voice recorder. This update walks through the dig, what a recovered engine can and can't tell investigators, the recorder rules for a jet like this, what happened to another Learjet's recorder in Philadelphia, and what the internet is arguing about, kept separate from what the NTSB has actually said.".

Several Sponsors Cut Ties with Jennifer Welch’s Podcast After Hosts Laugh About Desecrating Charlie Kirk’s Body

 Erika Kirk Slams Dave Chappelle, Jennifer Welch After 'Beyond Disgusting' Remarks About Charlie Kirk’s Murder

. . . "About a month and a half after Kirk was murdered, Welch went on a rant where she urged Democrat leaders to get with the program, and praised a No Kings leftist protester who indicated she was happy Kirk was dead:

Former Bravo star and liberal podcast host Jennifer Welch laughed as she watched footage of a “No Kings” protester celebrating conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s death, telling Democrats they need to cater to such voters going forward.

“If you think this Zohran thing is happening just in New York and you think people are waking up only in New York City, you’re mistaken,” she said, playing a clip of a “wine mom” at the “No Kings” march during an offshoot of her “I’ve Had It” podcast called “IHIP News.”She then cut to man-on-the-street footage of conservative commentator Kaitlin Bennett speaking about Kirk to a protester at the march.“Yeah, him’s horrible,” the elderly female marcher said of Kirk, weeks after his death. “Horrible. Charlie Kirk is horrible. Yes. I’m glad he’s not here.”

"Here's what Welch said:

Kudos to Bernie, to AOC, to Zohran. And that woman out in somewhere middle America saying, f**k Charlie Kirk, he was a racist, he was a piece of sh*t. There are so many more of us than there are of them. And these Democrats that continue to play patty cake with corporations and lobbyists, nobody wants that. Nobody wants you. We want politicians to speak freely and look at what the benefit is. Look at what is happening in New York. And you dips**ts are sitting on the sidelines running your social media like complete dorks. It's embarrassing. Get your sh*t together. Hakeem and Chuck, seriously get your sh*t together because the Democratic Party is moving on." . . .

Erika Kirk Slams Dave Chappelle, Jennifer Welch After 'Beyond Disgusting' Remarks About Charlie Kirk’s Murder

“To see leftist podcasters, comedians, and commentators laugh about political assassination as though it’s entertainment and the destruction of a human life is a punchline, is beyond disgusting,” Kirk wrote on Sunday on X.

“My husband, Charlie Kirk, was killed in an act of political violence, something our two children and I will live with every day for the rest of our lives,” she continued.

Several Sponsors Cut Ties with Jennifer Welch’s Podcast After Hosts Laugh About Desecrating Charlie Kirk’s Body

Several companies—including Cash App, Chewy, Zenni Optical, NOBL Travel, Boll & Branch, and Lola Blankets—publicly stated they ended or would not continue sponsorships with Jennifer Welch’s I’ve Had It podcast after a controversial joke about Charlie Kirk.

What happened   During a November 2025 episode, Jennifer Welch and co‑host Angie Sullivan laughed at a social media post joking about “digging up” conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who had been murdered earlier that year. The clip went viral and prompted public criticism from across the political spectrum 

Companies that withdrew or distanced themselves                                                  

• Cash App — Said it “does not condone violence of any kind” and confirmed it was no longer a sponsor

  
  
• Chewy — Stated it does not support or sponsor the podcast and had ended its affiliation
• Zenni Optical — Announced it had canceled advertising on the show

  NOBL Travel — Confirmed it ended its deal and does not condone violence 
• Boll & Branch — Clarified it does not currently sponsor the podcast and will not in the future
• Lola Blankets — Confirmed it no longer works with the podcast

  
  
• Additional advertisers — One report notes that 25 advertisers pledged not to advertise on the show following the incident

Why sponsors reacted

The companies cited concerns about:

• Violence-related content or jokes involving a murder victim

  
  
• Brand safety and distancing from politically charged or insensitive commentary.

Evangelical voters left their discernment in 2022

 Washington Examiner   

"But when compared to the Democratic Party, which seeks to legalize murdering babies through abortion, give children transgender surgeries, and abandon Israel — to whom God promised, “I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee” (Genesis 12:3) — the GOP looks like the God-Ordained Party." 

ChatGPT

"Everything you heard about a post-Charlie Kirk Christian revival is bunk. When the dust settled on the Republican Party’s crushing electoral defeat, the exit polls revealed that the share of white evangelical voters had decreased by nearly 30% since the previous midterm elections. And the largest religious demographic in the election? Those with no religion at all.

"According to NBC News exit polling, the “white evangelical or born-again Christian” vote made up just 17% of the electorate. As a member of this demographic, the most concerning thing to me is that 60% of voters actually identified as some sort of Christian, but those who profess to be “born again” are just a fraction of that. Biblically speaking, you’re not a Christian if you haven’t been born again. Jesus Christ Himself said, “ye must be born again” (John 3:7), and this sentiment was echoed by the apostles Paul and Peter in their epistles.

"Being a “born-again” Christian simply means that you have recognized that you’re a sinner (Romans 3:23), that all sinners have earned an eternity in hell (Romans 6:23), and that there is no way you can earn your way out of it (Galatians 2:21). But you have also recognized that Jesus Christ, who is God in the flesh, came down from heaven to die on the cross and shed His blood to pay for your sins (Romans 3:25), was buried, and rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), and you have asked the Lord to save you and give you His righteousness (Romans 10:9-10), since you can’t get into heaven through your own righteousness. This is Bible 101, so it’s remarkable and worrisome to me that so many professing Christians don’t identify as such. My advice, whether or not you claim to be born again, is, “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

"But aside from the label itself, the thing that worries me is that evangelicals made up 24% of the electorate in the 2022 midterm elections, so where did the other 7 percentage points (or 29.17% of their share) go in the last four years? There are two options: either they stayed home, or the other religious groups somehow grew rapidly in that time period. We do not see the latter option reflected in census data, so it’s only reasonable to conclude that perhaps the most reliably conservative voting bloc largely skipped the election altogether.

"Every election is a test of discernment for Christian voters because, let’s be honest, most, if not all, politicians are immoral and only out for themselves, regardless of their campaign rhetoric." . . .   More.