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January 2022

Harvard President Defiant in Admissions Fight By A.R. HOFFMAN

https://www.nysun.com/national/harvard-president-defiant-in-admissions-fight/91981/

Harvard is holding firm in its fight to use race in its admissions process, the university’s president announced in an email delivered yesterday to students, alumni, and faculty on Tuesday. The missive from Lawrence Bacow came just one day after the Supreme Court agreed to hear a challenge to that very policy.

Mr. Bacow wrote that he wished the Supreme Court “would have decided differently,” but his note makes clear that Harvard will do nothing differently absent a high court order.

The future of how America’s oldest university chooses its students will be decided not in faculty lounges in Cambridge, but in judicial chambers in Washington, D.C. As the Sun has reported, the high court looks set to decide the future of college and university admissions after elevating cases against Harvard and the University of North Carolina.

Mr. Bacow struck a defiant note in response to the dramatic legal development, maintaining: “Our admissions process, in which race is considered as one factor among many, makes us stronger.” He promised to “defend with vigor” that approach against “narrowly drawn measures of academic distinction.”

Synergy between Iran’s global and domestic violence (More on Iran) Ambassador (Ret.) Yoram Ettinger

https://bit.ly/3o2RVMV

Iran’s domestic violence feeds the global Islamic Revolution

According to London-based Iran human rights review: “The combination of Iran’s human rights practices, its weapons programs, its democratic deficit and its support for listed terrorist entities make it a special and dangerous case. Human rights abuses in Iran threaten the peace and security of people elsewhere. It must be tackled, not just for the sake of justice, but also for the peace, order, and good government of Western democracies….”

Iran’s crackdown on religious and ethnic minorities, exacerbated by Iran’s anti-Western hate-education curriculum, is the most authentic reflection of the Ayatollahs’ worldview and strategic vision. However, this rogue domestic conduct has never featured prominently in the negotiation process between the US and the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Moreover, Iran’s domestic fanaticism constitutes a most productive breeding ground of recruits for the global exportation of the Islamic Revolution.

However, downplaying – or even whitewashing – the centrality of Iran’s domestic violence, provides the Ayatollahs with a robust tailwind, while generating a sturdy headwind to the battle against Islamic terrorism.

Furthermore, a focus on Iran’s domestic conduct would set the current negotiation on realistic – rather than make believe – grounds, exposing the built-in contradiction between the assumption that Iran is a potential “good-faith negotiator” and the reality of Iran as a prime epicenter of anti-US violence, driven by a 1,400-year-old fanatic and imperialistic Shiite Islamic vision.

THE BELIEVER Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch believes unapologetic Zionism is the key to Reform Judaism’s survival. His new initiative just may save it!

https://mailchi.mp/406400cf4e07/krd-news-the-believer?e=9365a7c638, 

ARMIN ROSEN profiles RABBI AMMIEL HIRSCH, Senior Rabbi at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in NYC. Rabbi Hirsch holds that unapologetic Zionism is the key to Reform Judaism’s survival:

Hirsch explained, Reform Judaism had grown out of a rejection of the particular. “I think there is a risk in our movement that we will revert to the default position of liberalism, which is the elevation of universalism at the expense of Jewish peoplehood, not as an extension of Jewish peoplehood,” Hirsch said. He now fears that the movement could be in the course of a swing back to its original historical grounding, overlooking both the tragic and near-miraculous aspects of the Jewish experience of the 20th century. “It wasn’t that the anti-Zionist period of classical Reform Judaism was the exception that had been relegated to history,” he theorized to me. “It was the 20th century that was the exception, that forced the Reform Movement back into the embrace of Jewish peoplehood.” Without peoplehood, and without commitment to a shared purpose and destiny, liberal Judaism risked losing its ability to stand for anything recognizably Jewish.

Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch is a true liberal in the classical sense (as opposed to a progressive illiberal). Many of us understand it is classical liberalism that is in danger right now:

Here’s what I learned from decades of studying and embracing liberalism: The liberal mindset is one of openness and doubt. True liberals are never so sure of themselves. We acknowledge and embrace complexity. It’s why we rely on science and evidence. Every place where people live requires repair. One of the key insights of liberalism is that I could be wrong. And I am open to being convinced.

Going ballistic in Vienna By RUTHIE BLUM

https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-694816

It was clear from the outset that the nuclear talks in Vienna would turn out to be a farce. Promoted by the administration of US President Joe Biden as a means of returning to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) from which former president Donald Trump withdrew in 2018, the move to go back to the literal and figurative table was born of a pipe dream, at best. At worst, it stemmed from cynical disregard for the consequences of a hegemonic regime in Tehran armed with weapons of mass destruction.

The fantasy on the part of American and European liberals is that achieving a new and improved JCPOA is the safest — or only — way to prevent Iran from building atomic bombs. Western “pragmatists,” meanwhile, are concerned more about trade with the Islamic Republic than matters of war and peace.

The far-left apologists for a Russia-China-Iran axis possess a mixture of the above, but with a heavier ideological bent. Members of this camp, which includes radical Islamists, have an inverted view of good and evil. They see the West in general, particularly the United States, as an embodiment of the latter.

But all share a desire for a deal to be forged with the mullah-led government of Ebrahim (“the butcher”) Raisi, along the lines of the one signed between the P5+1 countries (China, France, Russia, Britain, the US and Germany) and his “moderate” predecessor, Hassan Rouhani.

New York State is worth fighting for By Irene Heron

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2022/01/new_york_state_is_worth_fighting_for.html

Like our brothers and sisters in the other Blue State Gulags, we New Yorkers have been to hell and back these past couple of years under the reign of King COVID. Unless you have been here, those of you who are fortunate enough to live in a Free State have no idea what we’ve been going through.

We have seen our fundamental liberties and civil rights, which we used to take for granted as part of our American heritage, taken from us by a cabal of the most evil scientists, bureaucrats, and politicians ever assembled in America.

We have mask mandates, “vax” mandates, and everything in between that has been placed on our schools and workplaces, all without the benefit of the legislature’s imprimatur. Our power-hungry, unelected governor, who replaced Cuomo, the scourge of elder-care facilities, tells us that, just like her five-year-old daughter who had a meltdown because she had to wear sneakers to kindergarten, we will get used to it!

For Pure Bloods like me, New York City is pretty much off-limits these days. We are not allowed to eat in restaurants, go to concerts, shows, or museums, or pretty much do anything indoors because we haven’t been jabbed. Not only that, but who wants to take a chance on getting mugged or murdered by one of the thousands of criminals who now roam the streets courtesy of the Demo-Marxist politicians who implemented all kinds of “reforms” to enable these thugs?

Holocaust Remembrance Day: Lessons to learn from the darkest chapter of history By Rajan Laad

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2022/01/holocaust_remembrance_day_lessons_to_learn_from_the_darkest_chapter_of_history.html

The Holocaust is among the darkest chapters in the history of mankind. It was the first time an entire people were systematically targeted, discriminated against, persecuted, and murdered on an industrial scale for their religious persuasion.

But this genocide against the Jewish people did not occur in a vacuum. The Holocaust was the result of a prolonged and sinister campaign against the Jewish people.

While the shocking nature of barbarism, violence, and mass murder causes the Holocaust to the focal point of historians, the Nazi strategy that enable them to systemically target an entire people without much resistance needs to be studied.

A bit of history.

Following Germany’s humiliating defeat during World War 1 in 1914, the Germans were compelled to sign the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty required Germany to disarm, make considerable territorial surrender, and pay reparations that were the equivalent of US$442 billion in 2022.

The treaty caused great resentment among Germans who felt that the politicians had stabbed them in the back.

The Great Depression in Germany during the 1930s added to the woes of an already fragile nation. Unemployment was high and so was inflation, which eroded the purchasing power for regular people.

At such a juncture people often look toward easy scapegoats. 

Despite the fact that Jews had integrated into German society, many indigenous Germans perceived them as outsiders. There was resentment based on antisemitism, but it was seldom overt. In fact, the history of antisemitism and persecution of the Jewish people in Europe dates back to the Middle Ages.

The Nazis under Hitler managed to channel all public resentment towards the Jews; the historical antisemitism made the feelings more potent.

Virginia Governor Youngkin Opens Tip Line for Parents to Report Teachers who Teach Critical Race Theory By Eric Lendrum

https://amgreatness.com/2022/01/26/virginia-governor-youngkin-opens-tip-line-for-parents-to-report-teachers-who-teach-critical-race-theory/

On Monday, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R-Va.) announced that his office would be opening up an anonymous tip line for Virginia parents to report teachers and schools that they believed to be teaching curriculum that includes Critical Race Theory (CRT).

As reported by The Daily Caller, Youngkin made the announcement during an interview on the John Fredericks Show, with Youngkin saying that parents “can send us an email at helpeducation@governor.virginia.gov.”

“We’re asking for folks to send us reports and observations that will help us be aware of things like privileged bingo, be aware of their child being denied their rights that parents have in Virginia and we’re going to make sure that we catalogue it all,” Youngkin continued. “It gives us great insight into what’s happening at the school level and that gives us further ability to make sure that we’re rooting it out.”

Youngkin was referring to a recent incident where Fairfax County Public Schools assigned students to play a game called “privilege bingo,” where students were told that they had inherent “privilege” if they were White, male, Christian, cisgender, or the child of a member of the military, among other factors.

Since his inauguration on January 15th, Youngkin has taken numerous actions to eliminate CRT from Virginia’s schools, which was one of his signature promises on the campaign trail last year. His first executive order after taking office called for the end of “the use of inherently divisive concepts – including Critical Race Theory – in public education.”

Why Putin Has Not Been Deterred Exasperated Americans fear Vladimir Putin is deterred neither by sanctions nor by arms sales but follows only his own sense of cost-to-benefit self-interest. By Victor Davis Hanson

https://amgreatness.com/2022/01/26/why-putin-has-not-been-deterred/

Americans want an autonomous Ukraine to survive. They hope the West can stop Russian President Vladimir Putin’s strangulation of both Ukraine and NATO. 

Yet Americans do not want their troops to venture across the world to Europe’s backyard to fight nuclear Russia to ensure that Ukraine stays independent. 

Most Americans oppose the notion that Russia can simply dictate the future of Ukraine. 

Yet Americans also grudgingly accept that Ukraine was often historically part of Russia. During World War II, it was the bloody scene of joint Russian-Ukrainian sacrifices—over 5 million killed—to defeat the Nazi German invasion. 

Americans publicly support NATO. 

Yet most Americas privately worry that NATO has become diplomatically impotent and a military mirage—a modern League of Nations. 

NATO members have a collective GDP seven times larger than Russia’s. Their aggregate population is 1 billion. Yet the majority will not spend enough on defense to deter their weaker enemies. 

The second largest NATO member, Turkey, is closer to Russia than to the United States. Its people poll anti-American. 

Germany is NATO’s richest European member and the power behind the European Union. Yet Germany will soon be dependent on imported Russian natural gas for much of its energy needs. 

In a recent Pew Research Center poll, 70 percent of Germans voiced a desire for more cooperation with Russia. Most Americans poll the exact opposite. 

Worse, 60 percent of Germans oppose going to the aid of any NATO country in time of war. Over 70 percent of Germans term their relationship with the United States as “bad.” 

We can translate all these disturbing results in the following manner: The German and Turkish people like or trust Russia more than they do their own NATO patron, America. 

They would not support participating in any NATO joint military effort against even an invading Russia—even, or especially, if spearheaded by an unpopular United States. 

So, assume that NATO’s key two members are either indifferent to the fate of nearby Ukraine, or sympathetic to Russia’s professed grievances—or both. 

Indeed, most Americans fear that if Ukraine ever became a NATO member, Putin might be even more eager to test its sovereignty. 

Putin assumes that not all NATO members would intervene to help an attacked Ukraine, as required by their mutual defense obligations under Article 5. 

A Short History of Medicine and Megalomania By Linda Goudsmit

https://lobbyistsforcitizens.com/2022/01/27/a-short-history-of-medicine-and-megalomania/

It is helpful to understand the history of medicine, and how it shifted in the early 1900s from the miasma theory of disease to the germ theory of disease. The miasma theory held that sickness was caused by infectious mists or noxious vapors emanating from dirty air and water. You could smell the problem. In many cases this was true, but when it was discovered that many pathogens were invisible and without odor, medicine shifted to the germ theory. 

All this would not have been a problem without John D. Rockefeller, who in the early 1900s was forced to break up his monopoly of Standard oil and reinvest his money. He went into the pharmaceutical business and began funding medical schools across the country. Even this would not have been a problem if Rockefeller had actually been an honest man and a humanitarian. Instead, he was a globalist and a eugenicist without a moral compass who had no problem wiping out populations in Africa where his foundations supplied the money for scientific experiments on unsuspecting black populations.

The irony for me is that holistic medicine was actually the original western medicine with the objective of strengthening the immune system to fight off pathogen in the environment. It is traditional western medicine that is the “alternative” medicine because its fundamental premise is that medications are required to be healthy. I don’t think so. Everything is connected. Consider the chemical glyphosate (Roundup) which was introduced into the environment in the 1970s. Since that time the hormone-disrupting chemical has become ubiquitous. There are more than 750 products with glyphosate in them. Glyphosate is now found in drinking water. The effeminizing effects of hormone-disrupting chemicals can be seen while shopping at Publix! Just look around you – man boobs are not funny. They are symptomatic of hormone dysregulation. 40% of breast reductions are done on men! 

Evil Florida Except … the state’s good numbers don’t fit the establishment media’s narrative. John Stossel

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2022/01/evil-florida-john-stossel/

Omicron spreads. The media say, “Governments must act!”

Many have, bringing back mask mandates and closing schools.

Do these rules work?

No.

My new video shows why Florida’s approach is better.

Gov. Ron DeSantis ended pandemic restrictions last spring and refuses to impose new ones. “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result,” he said. Lockdown states let “hysteria drive them to do really damaging things.”

The media hate him for saying things like that.