Hello one and all and welcome to this week's edition of Laura's Links.
Passover and Easter have ended with a bang, literally. There is obviously much to talk about and I'm really just starting to process it all. First of all, I am trying to read a variety of commentary from different perspectives. I would recommend following a Persian commentator named Ida Turan on X. She has been pretty accurate in all of her predictions, including that Trump's "crazy" X post would bring Iran to the negotiating table. She's got other thoughts that I've linked to below.
There's no doubt that America and Israel have done a lot of damage to Iran's military infrastructure and to the nutty Shia Ayatollahtocracy. But I do agree with Mark on the point he made early on, that Iran's regime "wins" just by surviving. So the question is, will it survive?
There was obviously, and rightly, no American appetite or enthusiasm for American boots on the ground in Iran. So have America and Israel done enough damage from above to the Iranian military, clerical and economic spheres to trigger the beginning of the end of the Islamic regime? That remains to be seen. We are now entering into a two-week ceasefire period for negotiations. I don't think there is any way to predict the outcome.
Israel has also inflicted a lot of damage on southern Lebanon and has established a security zone there that is not being called a security zone because of extreme deja vu about previous iterations of the security zone. I wish I could be more optimistic in general about that situation but if the regime survives in Iran then so does the lifeline of Hizballah in southern Lebanon. I do see more Lebanese voices openly calling for peace with Israel, so that is encouraging but I think we are a long way from there. I do think there will be more open and public strategic cooperation between Israel and other Middle Eastern states because they will be putting their bets on the strong horse of the region and they have seen that Iran is willing to bomb them, and they most likely do not want their civilian population under threat and in bomb shelters, as Israel has been of late and over the past decades. Those are my initial thoughts.
Otherwise, many Matzahs later, Passover leaves us for another year, the Passover dishes are tucked away, and a freshly made batch of muffins has never tasted better. Very interesting days lay ahead of us, and much palace intrigue as well.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments, and I'll pop in as I'm able!
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North America:
"Our ruling class wants us to lose."
Canada: Culture of Death. More here. Here, too.
Canada: Demographics are destiny. RELATED.
Also related! A Jewish-owned business in Toronto was shot up for the second time. You'll never guess the name of the alleged perp. Like never, ever EVER EVAH EVAH!!!
A life taken over jeans, and the culture that excuses it.
This Swalwell fellow seems like an all-round peach of a guy.
Another liberal media lie about ICE bites the dust.
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Jews and Israel:
"What Maimonides Knew That We Forgot."
Be Elijah the Prophet for someone.
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Iran:
I follow Ida Turan on X and I find her to be intelligent and prescient and always a good read.
Are the pieces all lining up? Zineb Riboua is also an excellent analyst. More from her here at her Substack.
Islam:
Happy Easter and Passover, love ISIS.
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China:
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The Great Walkbackening, Accounting and Reckoning:
"Is Nothing Actually Real? Did the Lockdowns Kill Humanity?"
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Human Grace:
"Date my mate." Real life is so much better than online.
Getting your smile back. America, you know I love you, but it does not seem sane or normal or moral that everyday Americans have to struggle so much to get affordable dental and health care.
It's open thread time! Log into SteynOnline and let Laura know what you think of these stories or other happenings from the week that was. Commenting privileges are among the many perks of membership in The Mark Steyn Club. While going off topic is permitted on Laura's Links, do stick to the other rules as you engage: no URLs, no profanity, and no ad hominem attacks.