Neocon: Ugly Meaning of ‘Ceasefire’
“The absurdity of what so-called ‘ceasefire advocates’” want becomes clear, argues Commentary’s Seth Mandel, when you ask “in what other hostage standoff do we yell ‘ceasefire’ at the cops negotiating the captives’ release?” “Hamas could end this war tomorrow by surrendering and returning the hostages.” So why the demands? “Because what these same sociopaths want is to erase Jewish victims from the conversation.” Witness “the practice of tearing down posters of kidnapped Israeli children” as some “act of resistance.” “Until the demand for a ceasefire includes a demand for the freeing of all hostages and closing the book on the Age of Hamas, advocates will not move the war closer to peace. But that’s not what they really want anyway, is it?”
Science watch: ‘Inclusivity’ vs. Objectivity
“A growing requirement in STEM disciplines,” warns Debra Soh at the Washington Examiner, is mandating “positionality statements” with “details about the author’s personal characteristics, such as their race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and geographic location.” This is supposedly to improve “inclusivity” and draw “attention to power imbalances.” But “there has yet to be any proof” such statements achieve that “stated purpose.” This “ideological obsession with replacing objectivity and excellence with diversity, equity, and inclusion fanaticism will only derail future scientific achievement” and “deter anyone belonging to so-called ‘over-represented’ groups, particularly white and Asian men, from pursuing scientific endeavors regardless of how competent or passionate they are.”
Libertarian: Black Moms for Ed Choice
“Who benefits from choice in education?” asks Reason’s J.D. Tuccille. The answer is “everybody” — if families are “allowed to choose schooling options.” A group of black Texas mothers hopes “to use school vouchers to launch microschools,” which “are increasingly popular across the United States.” The moms hope they can “tear down barriers to academic excellence” and “break the cycle of the school-to-prison pipeline.” One asks: “Am I responsible to the system or am I responsible to my child?” In confronting that dilemma, says Tuccille, families have “understandably chosen the needs of their children over sacrificing those needs to keep the system going.” Lawmakers can best help “by getting out of the way of families’ education choices.”
SCOTUS watch: Dems’ Next Smear
“Senate Democrats can’t accept that the Supreme Court no longer does their policy bidding, so they’re trying to discredit it,” rails The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board. Their latest effort: “a subpoena threat” against friends of Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito who gave them undisclosed gifts. In fact, Thomas and Alito at the time weren’t required to disclose such gifts, and they’re certainly “allowed to have friends” — even rich ones. Yet “this isn’t about the facts”; it’s about tarnishing the court. “The absence of subpoena threats to benefactors of liberal Justices” gives away the game. The subpoenas would need 60 votes in the Senate to be enforceable. “If Republicans wilt on this one,” they’ll be contributing “to a scurrilous campaign to damage the independence of the judiciary.”
Poll: 20% of Dems Back Hamas
“A shockingly high 20% of Democrats say they support Hamas in the current conflict,” against 54% of Dems who back Israel, with the rest “not sure,” reports Issues & Insight’s Terry Jones on the latest I&I/TIPP Poll, conducted Nov. 1-3. Republicans side with Israel 71% to 7% for Hamas; independents, 50%-6%. Broken down by age, “Among those 18-24, essentially the college years for most, just 30% expressed support for Israel, while 17% backed Hamas and 53% responded ‘not sure,’ ” with support for Israel rising with maturity until “the 65-plus crowd supports Israel by 84%, Hamas by just 2%. And only 14% are ‘not sure.’ ” So “while there is a broad majority of voters who side with Israel in its war with Hamas,” Dems “have a problem uniting the far-left of their party with the more mainstream elements over support for Israel.”
— Compiled by The Post Editorial Board
This story originally appeared on NYPost
