Kind: Reads

Watch now (1 min) | Glimpses into some of what's being said in the Israeli press, along with a video of David Broza—Israel's James Taylor—singing with a soldier he happened upon at an army base

Hatred isn't only found on the fringe. It's also popular and mainstream. Exploring the canard of saving opposition to hate for the "real racists" to arrive.

As violence grips the Middle East, evangelical Christians root for Armageddon from the cheap seats

The liberal left alienated Jewish allies in the past. Has anything changed?

Instead of posting individually to X, Threads, TikTok, Instagram, and everywhere else, a few internet believers see a better way to post everywhere — and make it yours.

Amplifying dubious Hamas claims caused real damage. No wonder public trust in news reporting is so low.

Their feelings don't care about your facts.

Watch now (12 mins) | Years ago, when I was just starting to think about how to write my history of Israel, I knew that in telling the story of the State of Israel, music and poetry would simply have to be part of the tale. There are certain poems, like those we have discussed over the years in

*We have COVID in the Sykes household so this week’s planned travel is off. But the rest of the team will still have a great time in the Big Easy. Fingers crossed for the rest of us.* ** Rolling into a helluva new week: Chaos in the House? Hold our beer, says the GOP.

Threatening the nation that protects them Sometimes in grazing the net, a theme appears in otherwise disconnected bits of internet flotsam. The current of electrons this morning delivered several random entries pointing toward the cultural degradation of the very people in this country who decry cultural degradation the loudest. This is the real American carnage, to borrow a phrase. The meme at the top is one example. The man who entered American carnage into the lexicon spoke of “Mothers and children trapped in poverty in our inner cities, rusted out factories, scattered like tombstones across the across the landscape of our nation, an education system flush with cash, but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of all knowledge.” His most ardent followers are working at this very moment to decimate public education, to proscribe what children can learn, and to ensure children remain in poverty. Violent crime is rampant, he suggested, and does to this day. People believe him. In fact, violent crime is down. Yes, property crimes are up, but along with hate crimes targeting Blacks, Latinos, and LGBTQ+ Americans. Antisemitic crimes are up as well. Another bit of flotsam this TikTok video by comedian John Fugelsang, riffing on a theme familar to fans of this son of a former nun and former Fransiscan brother. His targets are the very “people of faith” most devoted to the former president. Post by @johnfugelsang View on Threads The Liberty Way Perhaps the most damning bit this morning comes from…

Continue readingOh ye of bad faith

Those of us who write about higher education can pay too much attention to America’s elite universities. Schools like Harvard, Yale and Stanford are seen as virtual cultural superpowers, and the battle over these schools is sometimes seen as a proxy for battles over the future of the country itself. It’s not that this argument is wrong, exactly. That’s why I’ve written about these schools myself. But it’s incomplete.

The Moral Collapse of America’s Largest Christian University by David French

The light goes out of Liberty.

There is a reason so many Jews cannot stop shaking right now. The concept of intergenerational trauma doesn’t begin to describe the dark place into which this month’s attack plunged Jewish communities around the world.

Watch now (9 mins) | Erev Shabbat, three quick clips that touch on those three subjects.

Plus: Mitt's burn book.

Consolidation isn't going to help.