Wednesday Potpourri

First, a few words from our mentally challenged vice president. Speaking in Dubai, Kamala Harris said this about hostage negotiations:

I did speak with the Emir and the work and their commitment to this work is ongoing, as is ours, and our work is ongoing to support some ability to re-open the pause and to have a deal going forward where there will be a pause.

As always, her command of English is pathetic, and embarrassing.

Second, regarding the silence of Michelle Obama about the October 7 atrocities.

From Caroline Glick:

Yesterday Women's Affairs Minister @GolanMay revealed that Israel has repeatedly asked Michelle Obama to condemn Hamas's brutal, systematic gang rapes of hundreds of Israeli women on Oct. 7. Obama hasn't even bothered to respond.

Surely, you are not surprised.

Third, some sane and sensible words about the war in Gaza, from Eli Lake:

The idea that the horror of October 7 should result in a new diplomatic push for a Palestinian state is so moronic. The message has to be that spectacular terror makes statehood impossible. The precondition for any two state diplomacy now has to be new Palestinian leadership.

Fourth, in case you were wondering why Hamas has not released all of the female hostages it took on October 7, our State Department has the answer:

State Department spokesman Mathew Miller says it seems that the reason Hamas refused to release all the women who it held hostage was because the terror group didn't want them to tell what they went through while in captivity in Gaza.

Fifth, and yet, the Biden administration has certainly not produced support for Israel, among its own constituents. Is this what happens when you speak out of both sides of your mouth, via Ben Samuels:

Alarming numbers for Israel: - 63% of Democrats oppose Israel’s actions in Gaza - 67% of adults under 35 oppose Israel’s actions in Gaza - 64% of people of color oppose Israel’s actions in Gaza - 52% of women oppose Israel’s actions in Gaza.

Sixth, writing on Substack Alan Dershowitz explains how our universities have become infested with anti-Semitism. By his lights, the problem lies in diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Obviously….

Two major changes in universities have contributed significantly to the dramatic rise of antisemitism on college campuses.

The first is the creation of large bureaucracies whose purpose is to propagandize students in favor of a particular ideology: diversity, equity and inclusion. The second is the formation of special departments and programs designed to promote the ideologies of particular identity groups, such as Blacks, women, gays, Muslims, Native Americans and Jews.

The multibillion-dollar DEI bureaucracy has become a central contributor to anti-Jewish attitudes on campuses. The effect, if not the intent, of this ideological bureaucracy is to marginalize Jews.

In addition to discrimination against Jews, DEI also discriminates against dissenting views. On many campuses, applicants for admission and jobs must signify approval of DEI. Those of us who fundamentally disagree with the goals and means of DEI are threatened with exclusion if we follow our consciences.

The second development that has plagued universities over the past several decades has been the creation of special departments and programs that pander to specific identity groups. The result has been a massive increase of antisemitism emanating from these identity departments. Many of these departments have voted to boycott and divest from Israel. Others have invited only anti-Israel and antisemitic speakers, refusing to allow pro-Israel and anti-DEI speakers to express their contrary ideas to students. This includes several Jewish Studies departments, which have followed the woke progressive line of being hypercritical of Israel and Zionism 

Seventh, sane and sensible Financial Times columnist Gideon Rachman-- no Tom Friedman he-- scans the world scene and finds cause for alarm.

How many inter­na­tional con­flicts can one super­power handle at the same time? The Biden admin­is­tra­tion is cur­rently try­ing to deal with wars in the Middle East and Europe, while pre­par­ing for a surge in ten­sions between China and Taiwan.

All this is tak­ing place under the length­en­ing shadow of Don­ald Trump. His pos­sible return to the White House poses pro­found ques­tions about the future of US demo­cracy and the coun­try’s role in the world.

The com­bin­a­tion of all these events is cre­at­ing a palp­able sense of ten­sion and fore­bod­ing in gov­ern­ment offices in Wash­ing­ton. It is not just the sheer num­ber of crises com­ing at the Biden admin­is­tra­tion, but the fact that many are head­ing in the wrong dir­ec­tion — the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, for example. And the polls look bad for Biden.

Unfortunately, Rachman gets it wrong. The problem is not crisis management. The problem is Joe Biden. 

Strangely, the columnist does not see that the state of the world reflects the Biden administration weakness and incompetence. 

A ship with a disabled captain will not stay on course. A ship without a rudder will eventually run aground.

Eighth, feminists, in the person of women’s groups, have been subjected to a strict accounting. Consider this from the highly estimable Julie Burchill, in Spiked:

What is feminism for? Is it for all women, or is it for a few elite women who believe that they have a divine right to tell other women what to do – or indeed to decide who is and isn’t a woman worthy of advocacy? To hear what some left-wing feminists say – and since 7 October, what they haven’t said, considering that it took UN Women two months to condemn Hamas’s rape and murder spree – you’d think that it’s proper for a good feminist to care more about cross-dressers having their feelings hurt than about Israeli women being raped and murdered.

Ninth, Hot Air informs us of the latest Finnish study of transgenderism. It has shown that the condition should be treated as a mental illness and that what is gingerly called gender affirming care is effectively an affirmation of a delusional belief. 

And it is clinically ineffective:

A Study out of Finland tells us what every sane person already knows: gender dysphoria is not only a symptom of mental illness, but medical treatment for gender dysphoria doesn’t cure that mental illness or provide relief from its symptoms.

Tenth, meanwhile in once-Great Britain, the National Health Service decided to stop putting children on puberty blockers. Good idea in principle; not so good in practice.

It turns out that the NHS is still doing what they said they would not be doing. 

Steve Watson reports:

The number of children placed on puberty blockers for ‘gender affirming care’ has doubled in the UK in a year despite the government run National Health Service saying it would stop the practice outside of clinical trials.

As for the negative effects of puberty blockers, Watson continues:

The Telegraph reports that at least 100 children, some as young as 12, have been given the drugs since July 2022 regardless of the NHS’ decision that month to stop doing so based on a damning review by Dr Hilary Cass, former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

Dr Cass warned that puberty blockers could permanently disrupt the brain development of adolescents, and irreversibly rewire neural circuits.

Cass also charged that Tavistock clinic, where the ‘treatment’ is carried out, operates an “affirmative, non-exploratory approach”, diagnosing children with gender dysphoria without proper oversight. 

NHS England agreed with Cass’ findings and announced that “due to the significant uncertainties surrounding the use of hormone treatments” puberty blockers for children would be halted.

Eleventh, remember when work-from-home was the latest, greatest thing. Apparently, it is now showing its age. Daily Mail columnist and physician Max Pemberton has discovered cracks in the armor:

Since the pandemic, working from home (WFH) has become quite normal. While many people have welcomed this, I’m convinced it’s hugely detrimental to the nation’s mental health.

I’ve been horrified by a number of patients who are still working from home and who tell me they spend most of their day lounging around, answering emails from their bed while watching box sets. 

Of course, they struggle to focus, get easily distracted and sometimes don’t even bother to brush their teeth till the evening.

It’s not hard to see how this is a disaster for mood and self-esteem, let alone productivity at work. 

I’ve long suspected people keep their cameras off on Zoom calls, not because their connection is poor, but because they are either still in bed or sitting in their PJs.

Twelfth, I trust that you have seen all of the ads for medications that promise improved brain function. If you are starting to become forgetful, you have probably given them some thought.

Well, now, we have an alternative-- wasabi. As you probably know, it’s Japanese mustard, and it goes well with sushi. The New York Post has the story:

A new study from Japan’s Tohoku University suggests that the spicy green topping could boost both short- and long-term memory.

While the team of researchers knew that wasabi was linked to a wealth of health benefits — such as antibiotic, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties — they were “surprised” to see the “dramatic change” in participants’ cognition.

“The improvement was really substantial,” study author Rui Nouchi, an associate professor at the university’s Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, told CBS News.

Thirteenth, from the highly estimable Riley Gaines, testifying before Congress on the consequences of becoming an anti-trans activist:

.@Riley_Gaines_: "Since taking the stance that I’ve taken, my address has been leaked, I’ve had people showing up at my doorstep, drones flying above my house. I can’t even tell you the amount of death threats that I’ve had that have rendered the FBI getting involved. It’s real, the vitriol I faced. I’ve been held for ransom for over 4 hours...I’ve been hit. I’ve been spit on. I’ve had bottles thrown at me."

Fourteenth, from HJoseph, Republican presidential candidate Nikke Haley on gender transition. Say it ain’t so, Nikki.

In a better world, this would doom her candidacy:

Nikki Haley says parents should be able to let their 12 year old child get a sex change operation. Mind you, parents can’t even let their 12 year old children get a tattoo.

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