The Four Horsemen of the new antisemitism

 Victor Davis Hanson   

Yet few of Israel's critics could ever explain exactly what the Jewish state was supposed to do after suffering mass murder in peacetime from an enemy that had abducted more than 240 hostages —to the cheers of most Gazans.

"Few predicted that blaming Israel and the Jews who support it would flare up in the early 21st century —and in America of all places, where there are nearly as many Jews as there are in Israel.

"After all, Israel is the only consensual society in the Middle East. It holds regular elections and maintains tripartite judicial, executive, and legislative checks and balances.

"Free speech is found in the Middle East only in Israel, where religious apostasy, criticism of one's own country, gender equity, and tolerance of gays are guaranteed in marked contrast to all its neighbors.

"It was once common knowledge that Israel had survived the huge numbers of its enemies because its tiny population was better educated, freer, more adept at Western technology, more tolerant of dissent —and because it enjoyed the goodwill and bipartisan support of the United States.

"True, the recent affluence of the Gulf States has presented a thin veneer of Westernism that has fooled many in the new anti-Israel media. But just because Qatar did not censor a celebrity newsman's broadcast from Doha does not mean Qatar is a free society. After all, no Western journalist would dare schedule a broadcast from Qatar with a Qatari who had condemned the regime for its intolerance or announced his religious apostasy from Islam.

"So why and how did millions of Americans begin to express hatred for Israel and, albeit more subtly, the Jews who support it?

"There are four converging fronts in this perfect storm.

"Demography

"First, in demographic terms, the US Muslim population is expanding exponentially, due almost entirely to recent immigration and higher birth rates than the American norm (e.g., 2.5 —8 versus 1.6 —1.7)." . . .More...

Victor Davis Hanson is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow in Residence in Classics and Military History at the Hoover Institution, a professor of classics emeritus at California State University at Fresno, and a nationally syndicated columnist for Tribune Media Services.

Douglas Murray: The New York Times feeds anti-Jew hatred with a horrific lie   "In a piece that has already been widely debunked, Kristof claimed that Israeli prison guards routinely use rape as a method of torture on Palestinian prisoners. The piece portrayed Israeli prison guards and soldiers as rapists, sadists and akin to Nazi prison camp guards. Perhaps even worse.

"Kristof’s most grotesque claim is based on an anonymous source who is described as a “journalist” from Gaza. According to this source, while being held in an Israeli prison in 2024, the Gazan man was stripped naked, blindfolded and handcuffed. Then “a dog was summoned.” The dog’s handler — who we are helpfully told was speaking Hebrew — then encouraged the dog to “mount him.”

"The “source” goes on to claim that he “tried to dislodge the dog, but it penetrated him.” During this time, the Israeli guards were allegedly taking photos and filming the assault while laughing and “giggling.” . . .

"So here we get to the true question: Why would anyone make such a claim? And why would a purportedly serious newspaper publish it?

"The reasons are several-fold. The first is that the New York Times story landed just a day before an anticipated report on Hamas’ use of sexual violence on October 7, 2023." . . .

Variety Gets Wrecked for Attacking Critics of the 'Diverse' Cast of Nolan's Odyssey

Amy Curtis   

"It's not just a handful of online people, although they're easy targets on which Hollywood can deflect the blame for its failings. Audiences don't want these films because they are not good stories. They're thinly-veiled political messages wearing beloved IPs as a skin suit." 

 

                                 Siraj Hashmi posted: "Once we get this, we’ll call it even."

"Not too long ago, the Left was pulling its hair out over Hollywood casting. They argued that movies, TV shows, and even voice-over gigs had to have casting that was not only diverse but also reflected the characters, too. That is, if a character is gay or trans in the show or movie, the actor had to be gay or trans. A straight actor was no longer acceptable in those roles. In the same vein, only Black voice actors could voice Black characters, etc.

"Hollywood also instituted DEI rules for awards, meaning they didn't care about rewarding creativity, solid filmmaking, or excellent performances anymore. Instead, you would only get awards if your project checked all the right boxes. It's part of why Hollywood has been hemorrhaging cash at the box office and audiences are skipping the movie theatre.

"Director Christopher Nolan, who most recently won the Oscar for 'Oppenheimer,' is releasing an adaptation of Homer's 'The Odyssey' in July. The film has been a focus of controversy because Nolan is using a translation by British-American classicist Emily Wilson, which uses "contemporary language that strips away archaic, patriarchal interpretations of the original text." In short, a feminist-lens retelling of a man's epic journey.

"That's strike one.

"The casting is another problem, the revelation that Lupita Nyong'o would be playing Helen of Troy and her sister Clytemnestra. Helen of Troy, a Greek woman described as having white skin and blonde hair. Suddenly, it seems, representation no longer matters.

"But it's not the fault of the woke casting directors or Hollywood executives that the film is getting backlash. No, that blame lies with the audience for wanting a fair and accurate adaptation." . . .More...

Why many stopped calling them "Democratic", preferring the more soulless "Democrat"

 Why everyone hates the Democrats right now, explained in 3 charts  

"If there’s one thing a large majority of Americans have consistently agreed on this year, it’s that the Democratic Party sucks." . . .

Democrats Spit on Democracy, Midterm Voters Should be Scared

Kamala Harris Dials Up Democrats' Radical Assault on Rules of American Democracy   . . . "I've written often about the mounting radicalism of progressive plans to bulldoze central props of our constitutional order. . . " Then the paywall...

This Podcast Interview Only Reminds Us How Lucky We Are That Trump Beat Kamala Harris   

"Yeah, this is the mother lode of bad ideas. Also, as someone pointed out, this woman lost the popular vote to Donald Trump, so this Electoral College thing is a bit funny. She lost all seven swing states too, with 89 percent of all counties shifting toward the right in the last election. Lady, the nation heard you and rejected your candidacy outright."

They get crazier with every word - Silvio Canto, Jr.  About Jamelle Bouie, late of MSNBC:    . . . "So why is it always about race for Jamelle’s side?  I don’t know, but maybe it’s because they have nothing else to offer except telling black voters that only a black Democrat is capable of representing them.  And worse than that, they want The Supreme Court to guarantee that a black Democrat is going to have a seat in Congress.

"Memo to Jamelle:  You are out of touch with reality.  I guess that’s why I feel optimistic about the November elections, because Jamelle is not the only one saying these weird things on the other side." . . .

They get crazier with every word - American Thinker

A Society Without God Is a Society Without Truth

 The American Spectator  

"There is no better time than the run-up to America’s semiquincentennial — when we will celebrate the assertion of the self-evident truths that birthed the nation — to find Him once again. Frankly, America’s survival for another 250 years depends on it."

AI-generated image, ‘Ten Commandments, American society’ prompt, ChatGPT

"Next Thursday evening, Jews will celebrate the holiday of Shavuot. This holiday, which occurs seven weeks and one day after Passover (hence the name Shavuot, which literally means “weeks”), commemorates perhaps the most transformative event in all of human history: the revelation of the Word of God to the ancient Israelite nation. It was at Mount Sinai, congregated at the base of the smoking and trembling mountain, that God promised the Israelites they would be a “kingdom of princes and a holy nation” if they accepted and maintained fidelity to His covenant. In unison, before they had even received the Ten Commandments, the Israelites responded, “All that the Lord has spoken we shall do!”

"The Divine Revelation at Sinai fundamentally changed the relationship between mankind and truth. Before Sinai, mankind had understood truth as inherently subjective, subject to the ever-changing whims of the volatile gods. Now, after Sinai, there could be no such moral confusion. The one, true God — He who had created the universe and fashioned mankind in His image — had revealed His Will. Moral relativism and idolatry were now out. Moral objectivity and monotheism were now in. For the first time, there was a fixed barometer by which to judge man’s moral conduct, devise laws and political institutions, and live one’s day-to-day life more generally.

"Because of the breadth and depth of its impact and lasting influence, the Divine Revelation at Sinai was the logical starting point for what we now call Western civilization. Writing thousands of years later at another inflection point in human history, Alexander Hamilton wrote in The Federalist No. 31: “In disquisitions of every kind, there are certain primary truths, or first principles, upon which all subsequent reasonings must depend.” In the United States specifically, and in Western civilization more generally, it was long obvious what those “primary truths” and “first principles” actually meant: the Word of God Himself. Such a properly anchored and oriented society is uniquely suited to improve mankind’s lot and advance human flourishing.

"Crucially, only such a properly anchored society can claim to comprehend the truth — let alone assert that certain truths are “self-evident,” as we recall every Independence Day. Because when God falls by the wayside, truth does as well. Recent events underscore the point.

"In a Washington Post op-ed earlier this month, Gregory Conti, a politics professor at perennially top-ranked Princeton University, lamented: “Several years ago, one of my colleagues at Princeton University hosted a lecture on religion and free speech. The talk didn’t seem to be landing with the students. Finally, he realized why: The speaker had made repeated reference to the Ten Commandments, and several students didn’t know what they were.” Conti noted that Princeton students are often smart and driven, but they lack basic religious literacy — even the difference between the Old and New Testaments. In short, many of America’s future leaders do not even recognize the “primary truths” and “first principles” upon which our civilization rests." . . .More...

Pete Hegseth rights a grave injustice

"The military’s COVID vaccine mandate was a national security disaster, and Hegseth is finally correcting a historic policy failure."

 Don Brown - American Thinker  

"These were highly trained pilots, Marines, sailors, and soldiers — the backbone of our force — developing heart inflammation after taking a shot the government swore was harmless."

"Pete Hegseth just did what too many in Washington have refused to do for years: he launched a dedicated Pentagon task force to deliver full backpay and benefits to the thousands of U.S. service members discharged for refusing the experimental COVID-19 vaccine — and to fast-track reinstatement for those who still want to serve.

"This is long-overdue justice. And it’s about time.

"Biden foolishly turned the U.S. military into a big guinea pig cage to experiment with a largely untested “vaccine” in support of the governmental-pharmaceutical complex, and to further pad the profits of Big Pharma at the height of the COVID era. The whole jab scam became a game of Russian Roulette for Big Pharma profits, with our service members looking down a political gun barrel, not knowing which chamber was loaded.

"This COVID jab scam marked one of many internal attacks launched by the Democrats to threaten or destroy combat readiness, from its obsessive forcing DEI down the throats of the troops, to witch hunts looking for imaginary “white nationalists” in the ranks, to ramming men wearing panty hose and high heels into combat units and then advertising these individuals in sick, perverted recruiting posters and commercials.

"Let’s be blunt. The average active-duty service member is in their 20s or early 30s — the demographic least threatened by COVID-19. Yet the government, in lockstep with the pharmaceutical industry, pushed the mantra of “safe and effective” with religious fervor. It was a lie.

"We now know what the FDA itself has finally admitted: the mRNA shots carry a documented risk of myocarditis and pericarditis, especially in young males. A 2021 JAMA Cardiology study documented 23 cases of myocarditis in military personnel shortly after vaccination — far higher than expected rates. Pentagon data later showed the incidence was roughly 2.6 times higher in the weeks following vaccination." . . . More...

America Needs Elites … But Not the Kind That We Think

 Intellectual Takeout

 . . . "Above all, they were informed by the moral and political lessons of the Old and New Testaments. They constantly invoked these sources when framing arguments about liberty, virtue, and republican government."  

“I am obliged to confess I should sooner live in a society governed by the first two thousand names in the Boston telephone directory than in a society governed by the two thousand faculty members of Harvard University,” William F. Buckley Jr. once quipped. It was likely a fair judgment when he said it, and if you can still find a phone book, it might even hold today. Still, one may reasonably wonder how much common sense remains among the inhabitants of Boston or Manhattan.

"Yet Buckley’s remark points to something deeper: an enduring American preference for the common man. This instinct animates the MAGA movement and underlies the familiar call to “drain the swamp.” In the Trump era, candidates feel compelled to present themselves as political outsiders, regardless of how educated or well-connected they may be. It is possible, after all, to become so educated that one loses touch with common sense.

"But the more pressing question is whether elites are a problem in themselves or whether our present elites have failed in a distinct and meaningful way. To understand this tension, it is worth returning to the founding fathers, where America’s faith in the common man began.

"The founders established a government of and for the people because they believed ordinary citizens were capable of self-rule. Thomas Jefferson believed that a republic of yeoman farmers – living virtuous, independent lives – offered the surest foundation for liberty and human flourishing. This was a new and controversial idea, not without critics. In response to those who doubted the capacity of farmers to govern, Jefferson noted that American farmers “are the only farmers who can read Homer.” . . . More...

Elijah Newcomb is a graduate of Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama. He aspires to advance and defend religious liberty in public life.

Uh-Oh — The Kids Aren’t Reading the NYT!

 Ann Coulter 

" . . . a 23-year-old YouTuber, Nick Shirley, posted a video titled, “I Investigated Minnesota’s Billion Dollar Fraud Scandal,” that exposed fake Somali “daycare” centers as empty buildings being used to collect millions of dollars in government child care subsidies. It quickly racked up millions of views. The only thing the major media could do was carp about his investigation and sneer that he was “right-wing.” 

David Hitch

"Social media has been blamed for transmitting social contagions, which is ironic because the main social contagion right now is the idea that social media is bad for you. Even people who are happily online 14 hours a day feel the need to apologize, as if they’re admitting to being a heroin addict.

"The New York Times recently published an op-ed titled, “The Way to Get Kids Off Screens” that entirely dispensed with the “Why should we?” part of the argument. Times readers, not exactly free thinkers, were right on board. From the comments section: “Mom and Dad: get off your screens”; “Give the kids flip phones only. No surfing ability and no internet, period”; “Take the phone from your child. Dispose of it responsibly.”

"Scolding kids for their social media use is today’s fashionable position. Get your kids off social media, don’t wear white to a wedding, and always wear a mask or grandma dies of COVID. [RECORD SCRATCH!]

"Actually, universal masking accomplished almost nothing to prevent the spread of COVID. You’d have known that at the time, except, under pressure from Democrats, social media companies suppressed true information about COVID in the name of “safety.”

"In fact, every single thing the major media, from CNN and MSNBC to The New York Times and NPR, told us about COVID was a lie. The officially sanctioned directive was that we had to shut down the country, wear masks, socially distance, close schools, and get vaccinated (because there’s no such thing as “natural immunity”!) to prevent the spread of a virus that was going to spread everywhere no matter what we did.

"If you did know the truth, you most likely got it from social media. You sure didn’t get it from the Times.

"Consider that the progressive zealots running the Biden administration checked off nearly every item on the hard-left’s to-do list. Not surprisingly, one of those items was to crack down on social media, and demand sweeping censorship of unapproved facts.

"Similarly, long before the first presidential debate, it was mostly social media that exposed the MSM’s fairy tale about President Biden’s mental fitness. They’d assure us that the president was fit as a fiddle — and then we’d see videos of him wandering about, drooling, disoriented, and shaking hands with world leaders only he could see." . . . More...

Speaking of Ann Coulter: The Problem isn't health insurance, it's OBAMACARE!  (Video)

"Me discussing Luigi Mangione on Dan Abrams' show"

Fetterman Torches His Own 'Anti-American' Party — and He's Naming Names

RedState  

 "If you’re not going to join the right side, John, how about you at least go independent? By siding with that poisonous team, you are aiding and abetting them, despite your spot-on criticism of their antics. #WalkAway."

"The case of Pennsylvania Democrat Sen. John Fetterman has been the subject of endless fascination because he’s turned out to be so different from what numerous pundits — and many of his own voters — thought he would be. No, he’s not suddenly on the conservative team, and no, most of his policies aren’t things we’d endorse, and yes, he is still firmly a Democrat at his core.

"But all too often lately, he sounds like the only Dem in D.C. who hasn’t lost their mind. Not only has he not performed as the far-left extremist many expected, but he’s also taken to occasionally siding with the GOP on crucial issues while heavily criticizing his comrades." . . .

. . . "It’s interesting to me that he’s calling out the dangerous zaniness of the Marxist wing of his party because if even he sees it, you know it must be bad — really bad.

"Speaking on The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie in a video posted Wednesday, Fetterman said it’s not that he has changed so much — it’s that the party around him has morphed into something unrecognizable and has become “increasingly anti-American.”

"He wasn’t afraid of naming names, and boy, did he:

"I think the extremism is driving it without a doubt," Fetterman said in a Reason interview. "Look at the primaries, you know, all across in the Senate and in the House and look at the kinds of people that have already been elected.

"Like, for example, the mayor in Seattle. She's an absolute socialist, if not more, how people [go] 'Hey, I'm leaving' and she's like, ‘bye’ and just describe that kind of thing."

Fetterman was referring to Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, who last month laughed off the idea of millionaires leaving the state based on her support for a progressive tax.

 More...  Did you catch the reference to "Walkaway"?

Tennessee Republicans show how to handle Dem reps who foment chaos - Monty L. Donohew

"In a refreshing display of backbone, Tennessee House speaker Cameron Sexton delivered a clear message to the Democrat caucus: Political terrorism will not be tolerated in the Volunteer State.  As Sean Davis of The Federalist reported Tuesday, every single member of the House Democratic Caucus has been stripped of all standing committee and subcommittee assignments following their disgraceful conduct during last week’s special session on congressional redistricting.  The offenses?  Coordinated disruptions inside the Capitol, including setting fires, attacking law enforcement officers, and turning the legislative chamber into a circus." . . .  As was said: Walkaway! 

Kinocide! Hamas forced sexual torture between family members on Oct. 7

Kinocide as a Strategy of Terrorism: Legal Frameworks, Case Law Analysis, and the Need for Global Legal Recognition - GLOBAL LAW TODAY  

"The civil commission’s “Kinocide: The Weaponization of Families” report documents Hamas’s deliberate targeting of families during the October 7 attack—murdering parents in front of children, abducting family units, and broadcasting these atrocities through social media (New York Post, JNS.org)."

  NY Post  

"That included young women being threatened with marriage to their captors — and, unspeakably, family members held captive together being forced to commit sexual acts on each other."

These products of ignorance and liberalism are just fine with it.

"Hamas waged a widespread campaign of rape during the Oct. 7 massacre — including sexual torture designed to destroy entire families — and in the months following, a horrific two-year investigation released Tuesday concluded.

"The terror group left behind a trail of evidence of its horrifying acts, with the Israeli nonprofit Civil Commission on October 7 Crimes by Hamas against Women and Children unearthing over 10,000 photos and nearly 2,000 hours of footage of the atrocities during its investigation.

"Over 430 witnesses were also interviewed, who told terrifying tales of terrorists raping and mutilating women both alive and dead, humiliating them sexually, and executing women while violating them and then parading their bodies as trophies.  

"The men pulled a woman from the vehicle … forcibly removed her clothing, and raped her … They repeatedly stabbed her, killing her … They continued to rape her after her death,” Nova music festival survivor Raz Cohen told the commission.

“You hear it. It’s right next to you. You hear the screams,” said another survivor, Darin Komarov. “And then you hear silence.” . . .

Some of the worst crimes described by survivors were labeled “Kinocidal sexual violence” — which the commission described as “crimes deliberately aimed at torturing and destroying the family as a cohesive social and emotional unit.”

UPDATED: James Talarico Feels the Heat for Helping Tank Texas Bill That Targeted Criminal Illegals

 Jennifer Oliver O'Connell

In the midst of the former President's praise, Obama pronounced Talarico's last name as "Turico," butchering the state representative's last name.

Turico following n the back

"Barack Obama brought charisma, warmth and star power to the Texas campaign trail as he joined James Talarico for a series of candid interactions with voters in Austin, Texas, on May 12. From laughing with supporters to holding a child and greeting diners, the former president’s presence seemed to resonate with the public years after leaving office." . . .

"Obama and James Talarico moved from table-to-table speaking with patrons as supporters gathered around them inside the Austin restaurant. Obama spent nearly 30 minutes moving from booth to booth in a classic display of retail politicking, chatting with voters about issues ranging from data centers to voting rights while posing for group photos with an overwhelmingly younger crowd that erupted with excitement when the former president walked in.

"The images reinforced Obama’s continuing influence within Democratic politics as candidates seek to tap into his popularity and public appeal. The former president, however, did not make any public remarks or formally endorse either Democrat." . . .

Texas Democrat wins Obama's support despite name blunder

Why Won’t Barack Obama Go Away?   Unfortunately, the American people are suffering the consequences of Obama’s insatiable desire to insert himself into the national conversation. He has been vocal in criticizing the Trump-era GOP and boosting Democrats on the campaign trail ever since making the two-mile trek from the White House to Kalorama. Obama soared to the top of the political world after his 2004 Democratic National Convention speech vowed there was not a liberal America and a conservative America, but a singular United States of America. It’s a poignant sentiment. But once in power, Obama ruled as divider-in-chief.

"All these years later, he’s still acting the same way." . . .

Again; we will miss Obama...whenever.

Mayorkas: Man, Somebody Shoulda Done Sumpthin' About That Border

HotAir  

"Now we know he was just another dumb cluck ideologue dutifully carrying out the orders of the glitterati who ruled over him. Technically, he was the Director of the Department of Homeland Security. We just know him as Ray; Ray Mayorkas."

"So, I always feel heartened when I can end the evening on either a high note or one so insanely ridiculous that you can't help but laugh.

This is one of those.

And please don't cry.

Once upon a time in the legendary years of the reign of POTATUS, there was a man. As we now know, he was a very, very simple man.

At the time, we were all convinced he was a super ee-ville genius.

Now we know he was just another dumb cluck ideologue dutifully carrying out the orders of the glitterati who ruled over him.

Technically, he was the Director of the Department of Homeland Security.

We just know him as Ray. Ray Mayorkas.

He was perpetually beaten up once Republicans gained the House back.

Kash Patel Called Out This Sheriff Over the Nancy Guthrie DNA as Investigation Hits Critical 100-Day Mark

 Patriot Pulse 

Kash Patel Says the Sheriff Blocked the FBI From Nancy Guthrie Evidence

Kash Patel publicly embarrassed a sitting county sheriff over botched DNA evidence in a kidnapping case watched by the entire nation.

Now the FBI has the evidence the sheriff's office sat on for weeks – and 100 days later, Nancy Guthrie is still missing.

The question isn't whether the DNA will crack this case open.

Patel went on Sean Hannity's podcast May 5 and didn't mince words about Democrat Sheriff Chris Nanos' handling of the Nancy Guthrie abduction.

For the first four days after Guthrie vanished from her Tucson home on February 1, Patel said the FBI was shut out entirely.

"For four days we were kept out of the investigation," Patel told Hannity. "The first 48 hours of anyone's disappearance are the most critical."

When federal agents were finally let in, they immediately delivered – recovering doorbell camera footage by working directly with Google that showed a masked, armed man tampering with the camera the morning of the abduction.

"We could have gotten it days before," Patel said.

Then came the DNA.

Investigators recovered a strand from Guthrie's home that doesn't match her or anyone known to have been there – a potential gold-standard lead in a case that has produced virtually none.

Patel said the FBI offered to fly it to Quantico immediately.

"I had a fixed-wing aircraft on the ground ready to move it immediately through the night," Patel said. "And they said we're sending it to Florida."

The Florida lab held the evidence for weeks before it was finally transferred to the FBI." . . .