Culling the Herd

Greetings and welcome back to a new batch of Laura's Links.

As I mentioned in last week's column, I was preparing for the holiday of Purim. Now that's done and we are moving onto Passover preparations (BIG YIKES LOTSA WORK).

I do love the holiday, especially the Passover Seder. I love it from beginning to end. I love all the songs of the Passover seder, the food, telling the story, the history – all of it. The only thing I don't like is when my birthday falls during Passover (some years yes, some years no) because Passover cakes generally are pretty dry and gross. I know, I know, Jewish problems, zzzzz not so interesting.

Things here in Canada, and in Toronto specifically, keep deteriorating. The policies promulgated by the Trudeau government and enthusiastically supported by an increasingly death-focused culture and judiciary really keep me up at night. The whole first voluntary, then mandatory, school of thought (like they did with vaccines) seems very close at hand.

We do indeed have a deviancy problem, and a problem with not embracing a culture of life. Our leaders hate us and want bad things to happen to us. They want to limit our freedoms, our mobility and our ability to freely express ourselves. They are at war with us, at war with the concept of loyal citizenship and, for the most part, we are just quietly shuffling along and taking it up the wazoo.

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OK, not everything is completely terrible. I saw this story and thought it was worth sharing. In case you haven't heard already, brain chips are a thing. It can be a good thing or a bad thing. Here's a story that shows the good side. Technology can be used for good, or for bad and evil. The results depend on us humans.

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Speaking of bad humans, I thought this essay from Brendan O'Neill was excellent. You know, I expect antisemitism from the left. I am waaaay more apprehensive seeing it in the peripheral areas of the right. But regardless of left or right, I approach antisemitism as a poison of the human soul. I've never seen a happy or joyful antisemite. It rots the spirit. I think there's a lot of weird realignments going on right now in the word and some very strange new bedfellows are being made. On a personal level, Kathy Shaidle used to remind me that every once in a while, "you need to cull the herd". And she was so right.

Sometimes you just need to purge the people (or the web sites, or podcasts or whatever) that are just not good for you, not good for your "cause", not good for your mental health and not good for your general spiritual equilibrium. The best part about it is that you don't have to announce it out loud, you're not a human airport. You can do it quietly and confidently.

Try it! You'll like it.

OK, that's all I've got for now.

Have a great weekend and I'll see you in the comments.

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North America:

OH OK!

Not all heroes wear capes.

New Jersey jihad.

This is clearly a feature and not a bug.

Can we call it an invasion yet or nah?

How about now?

Now?

Whatever the left accuses you of, they are doing.

Twilight of the wonks? Inshallah.

It's probably nothing.

"Please shoot. We prefer it that way."

"On the right is a more recent picture."

But I was told the great replacement was a conspiracy theory?!?!

RELATED.

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Jews and Israel:

This is an absolute evisceration. Outstanding job by Douglas Murray. Can you imagine how fast the booking person was turfed out after this?

"Ms. Soussana said she was held alone in a child's bedroom, chained by her left ankle. Sometimes, the guard would enter, sit beside her on the bed, lift her shirt and touch her, she said."

"Mom knew what was going on."

"The Orthodox legal genius who may get Trump off the hook."

On the Black Sabbath of October 7-not for the faint of heart. Worth your time.

WOW.

I'm proud to say I'm now a Zionist.

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The Formerly Great Britain:

Absolutely reprehensible. This is simply not civilized behaviour. More here.

RELATED.

RELATED

ALSO RELATED

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Europe:

Remind me why Europe "needs" Palestinians?

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Today in Satan:

I have some problems with surrogacy.

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Misc:

Haha. Fat chance.

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Perverted Kooks:

This has to stop.

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Human Grace:

"I do this for my children." Really moving.

Keep dancing.

It's magic.

This is what's known in Judaism as a Kiddush Hashem: a sanctification of G-d's name.

By your side.

Words of wisdom: "The true concern of the Marxist Progressive (but I repeat myself) about museum spaces is not to ensure inclusion and representation, but to ensure that no one is stirred by beautiful art. It is to ensure that no one experiences that sense of transcendence which draws the human soul toward its origin and destiny in the divine. This is why Progressives loathe beauty – because magnificent art elevates us to a realm above politics and points us toward the True, the Good, and the Beautiful, the source of which is God. And Progressives reject God. Their religion is politics – or more specifically, the revolution is their religion."

On shame and gossip.

The feelz when you're gonna be an uncle.

It's open thread time! Log into SteynOnline and let Laura know what you think of these stories or other happenings from 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.