Female Hamas Hostages Shown Bloody and Bruised in Harrowing ‘Before and After’ Shots -

  The Messenger

The four teen Israeli soldiers are a few of the more than 130 hostages still believed to be in Gaza

"The bloodied and bruised faces of four young Israeli women, seen in a video only hours after they were taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7, are images their families are sharing in hopes of finally securing their release, some three months after the terror group hauled them into Gaza.

"The four women, Liri Albag, 18; Karina Ariev, 19; Daniela Gilboa, 19; and Agam Berger, 19, are all Israel Defense Forces soldiers who were snatched from the Nahal Oz army base as Hamas invaded southern Israel, as the terrorists killed some 1,200 people and taking more than 200 others captive.

"Each can be seen in a harrowing video that emerged soon after they were abducted, appearing afraid – some with blood-stained faces – as they are pressed against a wall in Gaza with their hands tied behind their backs.

"Photos released by their families showing each of the women before Oct. 7 provide an eerie contrast, underscoring the brutality of Hamas' surprise attack. . . .

"Their calls come as details have emerged in the months since the attack of how some former female hostages were raped and sexually assaulted by their captors." . . .

"Some of the girls were badly wounded and haven't been getting proper medical care. Gunshot wounds, even lost limbs. They said they can cope with the disability but not with the manner they were constantly violated."

What do our campus protestors have to say?

Are Protests on College Campuses “Independent of the Hamas Party Line”?

 "Meanwhile, what Hamas, which no one thinks can extract a military victory over Israel, wants is for Israel to be demonized for the fighting. Campus protests accomplish that." . . .Karen Bekker  

 "When the current war between Israel and Gaza is over and the reporting of it is reviewed and judged, this sentence written by Graeme Wood in The Atlantic will rank among the silliest written:

Those on U.S. college campuses and in European capitals calling for a cease-fire are demonstrating their admirable independence of the Hamas party line. . . In that respect, those on U.S. college campuses, as well as some in the media like Cynthia Nixon and John Oliver, are fulfilling exactly what Hamas wants of them.

"This was written in the context of an essay that argues that “Hamas Doesn’t Want a Cease-Fire” (January 2, 2024). While it may be true that Hamas does not actually want a ceasefire right now, and it’s certainly true that it would not adhere to a permanent one, this claim about campus protests shows how little its writer actually understands either Hamas and its goals, or the campus protest movement.

"To start with, as The Atlantic itself reported in early November, in the immediate aftermath of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack, National Students for Justice in Palestine promulgated a “toolkit” that states, “we as Palestinian students in exile are PART of this movement, not in solidarity with this movement,” and “this is a moment of mobilization for all Palestinians. We must act as part of this movement. All of our efforts continue the work and resistance of Palestinians on the ground.” (Emphasis added.) Commenting on those passages from SJP, Conor Friedersdorf wrote, “the declaration that SJP is united with Israel’s attackers, rather than a faction that is merely allied with them, seemingly cuts against claims of uncoordinated or independent advocacy.”

"But set that aside. Even if nominally there may have been some cases in which campus protests explicitly called for a bilateral ceasefire (though I’m not actually aware of any that have), in reality, calls for ceasefire are not directed at Hamas. Hamas is, after all, the party that broke the ceasefire on October 7, 2023, as well as on November 28, and that no one sane imagines would adhere to one permanently. In many cases, the protests also call for “intifada,” that is, continued armed attacks against Israel. If they stop their primal drumming and chants long enough for speeches, you might hear about the effects of the war on the people of Gaza, but it’s unlikely you’ll hear about the continuing rocket fire into Israel. The calls for ceasefire, functionally, then, are of course directed only at Israel." . . .   Full article...

Christie ends 2024 presidential bid that was based on stopping Trump

 

AfterMath - Home (terrellaftermath.com)

Christie ends 2024 presidential bid that was based on stopping Trump . . .

"The turning point for Christie, who staked his entire presidential primary campaign on a strong showing in the first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary, came when he failed to win the coveted endorsement of the state's GOP Gov. Chris Sununu, who instead backed former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. 

"Christie has not divulged whether he plans to endorse in the race, but minutes before the event in which he announced the suspension of his campaign, he could be heard on a hot mic saying, "She's gonna get smoked. And you and I both know it.  She's not up to this." He did not mention Haley by name in that exchange, but another voice in the conversation seemed to reference her, saying that she was still "20 points behind Trump in New Hampshire."..."

Chris Christie drops out: Why he should run for US Senate instead (northjersey.com)

Certainly his sudden announcement late Wednesday to leave the race even before next week’s Iowa caucus or the New Hampshire primary on Jan. 23, where he had focused most of his campaign efforts, gives him some time to gather his thoughts. But not much.

What’s more, Christie will have to come up with an explanation for why the U.S. Senate might now be more appealing than the White House.

Bidenomics

 

Bidenomics: How Joe Biden’s Policies Are Shaping the U.S. Economy (investopedia.com)

  Bidenomics receives strong support from some and vocal criticism from others. While praise and criticism often fall along political lines, this is not exclusively the case.

 Bidenomics: Whopping 38% of Companies Say They're Likely to Have Layoffs in 2024 Due to 4 Reasons, Survey Shows (ijr.com)  "Even as President Joe Biden runs around the country claiming that Bidenomics is “working” for America, 38 percent of U.S. companies are warning that they are looking to launch mass layoffs this year.

"Major U.S. companies began signaling late last year that they were pumping the brakes on their expectations for 2024 and are also looking to shed thousands of workers as Bidenomics continue to batter them.

"Layoffs are looming for companies including Nike, toy maker Hasbro, Roku, Amazon, Spotify, and more, according to Forbes.

"The outlook for 2024 comes on the tail of a large number of layoffs in 2023, as well. Sixty-five percent of companies had layoffs last year, worker information website Resume Builder reported." . . .

Yeah, No – We’re Not Ready to Forgive Bud Light

 Kurt Schlichter (townhall.com)

. . .This was a great moment in cultural conservatism. This is when we all came together and said, no, enough, you shall not pass. But the minute Bud Light got out its checkbook, we got pseudo-conservatives turning to us with a straight face and saying, "Well, you know, maybe Bud Light got a raw deal."

Bud Light Consumers Revolt Against Woke Ad Campaign - Todd Starnes

"Remember how we were boycotting Bud Light for trying to impose the cultural values of your standard Chardonnay-swilling divorced shut-in cat lady upon America? As you recall, Bud Light decided that it would celebrate some ugly dude who pretends to be an even uglier woman as some sort of hero, and then compounded it by having its wine woman – it’s always liberal wine women – executive explain that its consumers are a bunch of knuckle-dragging savages who are too stupid to understand the nuances of today’s society, which apparently means pretending dudes are chicks. It was obnoxious and gratuitously insulting to its audience and just caught fire. We are fed up with having giant faceless corporations trying to impose their garbage values on us, and Bud Light happened to step into the kill zone. And it got crushed.

"So, whatever happened to that? What happened to the conservative unity? We finally took a scalp (a streak continued by the destruction of pinko Harvard’s reputation). Well, as conservatives often do, they have squandered their advantage for about 30 pieces of silver."...

Harvard sued by Jewish students over 'rampant' antisemitism

  David Voreacos & Janet Lorin (jewishworldreview.com)

"Harvard was thrust into the spotlight when more than 30 student groups signed a petition blaming the Oct. 7 attack solely on Israel. Gay was heavily criticized by alumni and students for her slow response and allowing protests that Jewish students found harassing and intimidating. Classes were also disrupted by protesters."  Naturally she blamed racism with - Al Sharpton's support. 

"Harvard University was sued by Jewish students who claim the school has failed to punish campus antisemitism that soared after the Hamas attack on Israel and helped lead to the ouster of President Claudine Gay.

"Harvard administrators failed to enforce policies that should protect Jewish students from antisemitic speech and conduct, according to the lawsuit filed late Wednesday in Boston federal court. Students cited a U.S. civil rights law that's been used to sue New York University, the University of Pennsylvania and University of California, Berkeley.

"The lawsuit comes amid turmoil at Harvard, America's oldest and richest university, where Gay resigned last week after she initially failed to condemn the Hamas attack, mishandled her Dec. 5 testimony in Congress about antisemitism and faced allegations of plagiarism. Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the EU.

" 'It is clear that Harvard will not correct its deep-seated antisemitism problem voluntarily," Marc E. Kasowitz, whose firm filed the lawsuit, said in a statement. "Jewish students at Harvard are being subjected to vile and threatening antisemitic harassment and calls for the murder of Jews."

"A Harvard spokesman declined to comment, saying the school doesn't comment on pending litigation.

"Alexander Kestenbaum, a Harvard Divinity School student, sued under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bars discrimination based on race, color or national origin. They also claimed breach of contract based on various Harvard policies, including codes on student conduct.

" 'Harvard, America's leading university, has become a bastion of rampant anti-Jewish hatred and harassment," according to the complaint. "What is most striking about all of this is Harvard's abject failure and refusal to lift a finger to stop and deter this outrageous antisemitic conduct and penalize the students and faculty who perpetrate it."

"In addition to Kestenbaum, the suit was also filed by the Students Against Antisemitism Inc., a not-for-profit group that includes unidentified Harvard law students and a graduate student in public health. Kestenbaum is also a member of the organization." . . .

What John Fetterman Said About Israel and Harvard Will Make Liberals' Heads Explode (townhall.com)   

Fetterman also told Semafor that "Israel is really a beacon of the kind of values, the American values and progressive ideals, that you want to see." 

Sen. John Fetterman powerfully attacks Hamas and South Africa   "Sen. John Fetterman was arguably one of the more leftist Senators to emerge from Pennsylvania. He’s changed, though, and I can’t even begin to guess why (fully recovering from his stroke? getting treated for his depression? something else?). All I know is that we’ve got a man freely calling out rampant progressivism, strongly supporting Israel (against his party), and, in a stand-up-and-cheer moment, telling South Africa, which is attacking Israel in the International Court of Claims, to “sit it out.” Color me surprised and impressed. I know Fetterman is still a Democrat, but he seems to hark back to my dad’s days of being a Democrat." Andrea Widberg