Hello to one and all and Happy New Year! I hope 2020 is a year of joy, health and happiness to you all. I would especially like to wish a happy New Year to the Mensch-in-Chief himself, Mr. Mark Steyn, to his family and to his entire team. It is my honour to be here as your SteynOnline In-House Jewish Mother, ushering in the New Year. I have a very strong Jewlepathy feeling that this is going to be a fantastic year for the Most Unwoke Bloke in Bespoke himself and all the good people in his midst.
I had a bunch of my usual groaners and obnoxious quips lined up for you, but as I sit to file this column I confess to being torn between taking a "business as usual" stand or a more serious and introspective approach given the truly evil and murderous attacks inside both Jewish and Christian houses of worship over the past few days. I guess the key is balance. When humans do evil things, life is never the same as it was, especially for those closest to the injured and the murdered. But if we let the evil settle in our minds and hearts permanently, we bring additional victories to dark forces. Balance. Serious moments with lighter ones. Therefore, as we begin a New Year, I would be remiss to not warn you that snowmen are evil unless you behead them so you don't go to hell. You're welcome!
Mark had a busy week as well! He guest hosted for Tucker Carlson on Boxing Day, with more choice clips here. He kicked ratings butt! The video clips were great of course because of the lovely suits, matching pocket squares and assorted cutie patootie guests and that's the main thing, right? Oh, yah also interesting, intellectual commentary of course blahblah yadda yadda yaddah stuff! Sorry where were we? It got hot in here all of the sudden...
I have to say that my favourite piece this week here at SteynOnline was Values, Complications and Evasions. You must read this one. Mark takes on anti-Semitism head on, and also delivers another glorious knock out to leftist Jewish kook Bernie Farber. Many of us here in the Deranged Dominion have a history with Mr. Farber so it's quite glorious to see his "Islamoschmoozing" (thanks Mark, gonna be liberating that one) mega-fail highlighted by our very own Prophet Mark Steyn, PBUH, ululululululu etc. Mark's such a mensch. Happy New Year to him and his and readers and supporters near and far!
Now let's take a look at some of the stories that whizzed through the internet over the past week.
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America:
Geniuses in San Franfeces decide to ban disposable cups instead of poop.
Evil walked among us in Texas, and it was stopped.
Vegan influencer is now a hunter-gatherer teaching people to kill animals. I could not love this story more.
Breitbart simply giving mainstream media a whooping.
Best and brightest immigrant to America from Albania ("ISIS wannabe") has his own version of the American dream: beheading infidels with chainsaws. How lovely and patriotic. You know the schmaltzy poem on the statue right, give us your poor, your expert headchoppers, etc.
From my enormous DUH file: how liberals are allowing anti-Semitism to flourish.
From the American Thinker: the despicable black attacks on Jews are rooted in the Democrats and their coddling of anti-Semites. Indeed.
Democrat blames Democrats on anti-Semitism.
Jews should avail themselves of the Second Amendment: arms expert suggests six firearms that will fit into a Talit (prayer shawl) bag.
Why Jews now walk in fear in America.
An armed and trained Jew is the best kind of Jew.
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Jews and Israel:
I didn't know if I should put this into "Jews and Israel" or "Human Grace" but it's both. I loved every single part of this story and kudos to Josh Eisen for putting it out there. I should also note that the phrase he used, that he put it out there "because it will have a larger reach than my arms" is so beautiful, and it is exactly the reason why I write, and why I am so lucky to write for Mark Steyn. Thank you, Josh Eisen for putting it out there and for summarizing why we do what we do.
Thoughts on America's failed Jewish leadership. I would put "leadership" in scare quotes because for the most part they are just a bunch of un-elected, weak-tea, wanker pansies. See here for example. The attacks are not "senseless" they make perfect sense to the attackers who understand that it is open season on Jews and that nothing will happen to them, especially in Democrat-controlled enclaves.
Joel Pollack: What we Jews can do to defend ourselves.
Here's a good example of what to do. G-d bless and keep the Guardian Angels. A round of concrete sandwiches for all the disgusting lowlife thugs on the prowl wherever they are:
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Europe:
The rector of Notre Dame says there's a 50% chance the cathedral cannot be salvaged. There's no will, so there's no way. I'd say there is a 100% chance that France is screwed.
A migrant (best and brightest) who murdered a Swedish teacher has his sentence reduced because pathetic, dhimmi, grovelling morons with sympathy for the devil.
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Formerly Great Britain:
Her Majesty's Idiot Constabulary spent a ton of money on vegan meals for Extinction Rebellion "activists."
Apparently, they had nothing better to do with their resources.
Persecuted Christians are being punished in Britain and by the UN and treated as enemies.
A reason for cautious optimism? Douglas Murray covers a non-event.
PM Boris Johnson remains interesting. Also flies economy, unlike Prime Minstrel Hairdo!
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Kook Left, Trans and Wokestapo:
Indiana parents walk out of public meeting in protest over plans to make their children's bathrooms accessible to predators.
What's that you say? I'm a transphobic hater? Silly me to be concerned about adults wanting access to children in bathrooms and being obsessed with it actually. When people literally tell you what they are, you bloody well better listen.
From Spiked Online: We need to fight the new thought police. Exactly. Buck up, people!
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Human Grace:
Human life is sacred. Imagine the alternative of not assuming that "vegetative" patients can understand. That they are aware of everything is unspeakably heartbreaking in so many ways. We must do better.
Grandpa surprises his ten grandkids with their very own school bus.
Police deliver Christmas gifts to child whose mom was murdered.
On Christmas Eve, Dutch schoolchildren honour Canadian soldiers.
Paralyzed football player and wife adopt five daughters.
Child with cerebral palsy falls asleep in Santa's arms.
Getting over the loneliness of Christmas by giving of yourself.
Heroic student who confronted a mass shooter honoured by Star Wars as a Jedi.
J-Lo's designer surprises teen with early aging disorder with her own bespoke outfits.
Veteran's cousin fulfills his final, dying wish.
Mom opens 'Special Kneads' bakery to employ her son with CP.
"I remember you guys": Guardian Angels return to patrol Brooklyn.
Rules to live by for 2020 (some ideas anyway).
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Bonus personal Human Grace moment:
We had some unusually nice weather here in Toronto over the weekend, so I took my disabled son out for a walk in the late afternoon on the Sabbath with his pushchair as I had earlier in the morning. We walked my husband to synagogue and when he went in, I felt pretty alone, and a little down, but we set out on our usual route.
About halfway through our route, my son (who can walk, but not for any great distance) got out of the chair and I said, "do you want to walk", and he just smiled at me from ear to ear. He walked the entire rest of the way home for the first time ever, probably almost a kilometre on his own. He was laughing and looking up at the sky and the birds, I pushed the chair with one arm and held his little mitten-covered hand with the other.
It was so normal, just me and my boy out for a walk. It was so normal it was almost like magic. Sometimes the smallest things are such big things. Even as I think about it now, I could cry. I guess some things are destined to make us happy and sad at the very same time. I think this is part of a living grieving process, for me anyway for what might have been but what isn't. I hope you all treasure the super normal things in your lives as they happen, because what seems to be the most totally mundane part of your day is mostly like a veritable human treasure trove for so many others.
Happy New Year!
Let Laura know what you think of these stories in the comments below. If you're not yet a Mark Steyn Club member and want to join in, you can get yourself or a loved one a membership here. Laura and her family will be on the upcoming Mark Steyn Cruise along the Mediterranean, so you can share your thoughts with her in person by booking yourself a stateroom.
J B McL
I've only visited a few of the links from this post. For some reason, Laura, that story at the end about you and your son out for a walk just made my day when I read it. It's a story that brings joy all out of proportion to what we would think.