MOVIES AND TELEVISION Comments turned off

Dear White People, Black People—And All People written by Chloé Valdary

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

https://quillette.com/2019/02/06/dear-white

When Netflix’s Dear White People made its debut in April, 2017, the show immediately impressed viewers with the complex emotional multitudes it contained—showing its characters to be what author Cheryl Strayed once described as “flawed, and capable of redemption.” The plot focuses closely on the inner lives of black students at Winchester University, a fictional, predominately white Ivy League school that originally was brought to life in a 2014 film of the same name. Creator Justin Simien, who also wrote and directed the film, demonstrates that there is always more to people than what meets the eye.

Coleandrea “Coco” Conners is a young woman who adds weave to her hair and shortens her name in order to become accepted into a Black sorority. Is this an affirmation of black pride or the upholding of European beauty standards? Or both—or neither? When confronted by another student about showing up to a party where white attendees wore blackface, Coco says, “This might come as a shock to you, but these people don’t give a fuck about no Harriet motherfucking Tubman. They pay millions of dollars on their lips, their tans, their asses, Jay-Z tickets, because they want to be like us. And they got to be for a night. I’m not about to go out in the streets and protest a fucking Halloween party.”

Reggie Greene is a fierce activist for his people, and is constantly challenging them to fight for their rights in the face of injustice. But does that mean every white person he encounters who disagrees with him on race issues is a racist? What if a white friend uses the N-word—but does so in reference to a popular rap song in which the word figures prominently?

WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

Understanding Modern African Horrors by Way of the Indian Ocean Slave Trade written by Geoffrey Clarfield

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

https://quillette.com/2019/02/06/understanding

On January 15, and well into the morning of the next day, terrorists affiliated with the Somali Jihadi group Al Shabab forced their way into an upscale Nairobi hotel and business centre, killing 21 innocent civilians. Kenyan authorities, with some help from Western allies, killed some of the terrorists and captured the rest. Al Shabab justified the attack by denouncing the Kenyan government’s participation with African Union forces in Somalia, which has been in a state of civil warfare since the early 1990s.

I had driven by the targeted complex a couple of days before the attack, and once lived in this neighbourhood back when Kenya was my permanent home. On this visit to the country, I’ve noticed that—notwithstanding January’s terrible tragedy—tourism is booming, agriculture is bountiful and the Kenyan elite are benefiting from the massive Chinese investments that have transformed the landscape. The overall degree of improvement depends on which expert you believe. But the plethora of expensive cars that now jam the streets of Nairobi, and the building boom on display in many parts of the city, do suggest a surging economy.

Anyone who knows the history and tribal dynamics of East Africa and the Horn will understand that even if the Kenyan government pulled all its troops out of Somalia, Al Shabab likely would still try its best to destabilize this country. I outlined the reasons for this decades ago, when I first briefed visiting Canadian and U.S. military personnel here in Nairobi. Many of the things I told them remain as true now as they were then. That’s because the most important factors at play are rooted in history, not in recent geopolitical developments.

Specifically: Many modern problems in the area are rooted in the Indian Ocean slave trade—a scourge that was distinct from the better known slave trade that preyed on West Africa. In the eastern part of the continent, there was little to no European involvement. The practice was indigenous and ancient, and lasted more than a thousand years.

HISTORY, WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

Not Quite the Religion of PeaceBernie Power

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

https://quadrant.org.au/opinion/qed/2019/02/not-quite-the-religion-of-peace/

When sentencing a pair of jihadis, a NSW judge observed that the Islamic community needs to work out if Koranic exortations to violence are to be taken seriously or not. Predictably, there followed immediate denials that anything needs to change or, indeed, could be changed. It seems Islamic leaders could use a refresher course in their creed’s most sacred text.

NSW Supreme Court Justice Des Fagan recently incurred the wrath of Muslim leaders for suggesting that Muslims need to disavow the “belligerent” verses in the Koran. Sentencing a young couple who had planned a terrorist attack, Fagan noted:

“Terrorists’ reliance on verses of the Koran to support an Islamic duty of religious violence has been seen with more or less clarity in a number of NSW and Victorian cases. If the verses upon which the terrorists rely are not binding commands of Allah, it is Muslims who would have to say so.”[1]

The Muslim reaction has been predictable. The Grand Mufti of Australia, Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohamed, insisted there only two verses of the Koran talk about pre-emptive fighting.[2] In a classic red-herring strategy, Australian Muslim Women’s Association president Ms Silmi Ihram weighed in: “There are very few verses in the Koran that can be twisted for violent purposes, there are a lot more in other scriptures.”

One wonders if these two have been reading the same book as their jihadist co-religionists.

Admittedly the Koran is a hard read. It is not in chronological order, nor is it organized by content or theme. The text jumps from one topic to another without notice or explanation. The absence of background markers is remarkable. There are no dates or times at all. Few places are identified: Mecca and Yathrib (the earlier name for Medina ‘the city’) are mentioned only once each. Muhammad’s name occurs only four times. The Koran is, overall, a chaotic jumble of a book without context. In the absence of a commentary or the hadith, it is difficult to make sense of it.

NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

Warren Apologizes for Identifying as ‘American Indian’ on Texas Bar Application By Jack Crowe

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

https://www.nationalreview.com/news/warren-apologizes-for-identifying-as-american-indian-on-texas-bar-application/

Senator Elizabeth Warren apologized Wednesday for identifying herself as an “American Indian” on her application to the State Bar of Texas when confronted about the document by reporters on Capitol Hill.

Warren, who apologized earlier this month to the Cherokee Nation for publicizing the results of a DNA test in an attempt to corroborate her claims of Native American ancestry, explained that “family stories” informed her sense of her identity, but conceded that she failed to respect tribal sovereignty when claiming that identity in her professional life.

“This was about thirty years ago and I am not a tribal citizen. Tribes and only tribes determine citizenship. When I was growing up in Oklahoma, I learned about my family the same way most people do. My brothers and I learned from our moms and dads and brother and sisters, and those were our family stories.” Warren said. “There really is an important distinction of tribal citizenship. I am not a member of the tribe and I have apologized for not being more sensitive to that distinction.”

NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

Fairfax Accuser Describes Alleged Sexual Assault in Graphic Statement By Jack Crowe

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

https://www.nationalreview.com/news/fairfax-accuser-describes-sexual-assault-in-graphic-statement/

Vanessa Tyson released a statement Wednesday describing for the first time in graphic detail the sexual assault she alleges she suffered at the hands of Virginia lieutenant governor Justin Fairfax.

Tyson, an associate professor of politics at Scripps College in California, claims Fairfax lured her to his hotel room during the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004 and, once she was there, forced her to perform oral sex on him against her will — a charge Fairfax has vigorously and repeatedly denied:

I stood in the entryway of the room and after he located the documents, he walked over and kissed me. Although surprised by his advance, it was not unwelcome and I kissed him back. He then took my hand and pulled me towards the bed. I was fully clothed in a pantsuit and had no intention of taking my clothes off or engaging in sexual activity. In the back of my mind, I also knew I needed to return to Convention headquarters.

What began as consensual kissing quickly turned into a sexual assault. Mr. Fairfax put his hand behind my neck and forcefully pushed my head towards his crotch. Only then did I realize that he had unbuckled his belt, unzipped his pants, and taken out his penis. He then forced his penis into my mouth. Utterly shocked and terrified, I tried to move my head away, but could not because his hand was holding down my neck and he was much stronger than me. As I cried and gagged, Mr. Fairfax forced me to perform oral sex on him. I cannot believe, given my obvious distress, that Mr. Fairfax thought this forced sexual act was consensual. To be very clear, I did not want to engage in oral sex with Mr. Fairfax and I never gave any form of consent. Quite the opposite. I con

IMMIGRATION Comments turned off

Against The Evidence, Media Keeps Insisting Terrorists Aren’t Crossing The Southern Border The Times is somewhere between misleading by omission and outright lying to their readers about the threats posed by lack of border security. By Todd Bensman

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

http://thefederalist.com/2019/02/06/the-nyt-is-lying-to-readers-about-immigration-threats-from-muslim-world/

Much of the noise accompanying President Trump’s partial justification for a wall concerns the veracity of a general threat: that Islamist terror travelers in the flow of “special interest aliens” (SIAs) might easier breach the southern border without one.

Critics in the media vehemently argue that the administration is trafficking in ridiculous, baseless fearmongering. After President Trump said Muslim prayer rugs were intercepted at the border, one Vox article said migration from Muslim-majority countries only happened at “vanishingly small rates.” Another, in The Washington Post, called southern border migration from Muslim countries a “conspiracy theory.”

But perhaps the most influentially misleading article on the subject came from The New York Times. On January 18, The Times published a “Fact Check” column by Linda Qiu titled “Trump’s Baseless Claim About Prayer Rugs Found at the Border.” It essentially concluded that migration from Muslim-majority countries is an unproven conspiracy theory and, even if it did happen, no one could consider it a security threat.

The column contained numerous errors and inaccurately cited two government reports to support the story’s weak contentions. This sort of recurring problem in the media must finally be called out.

MEDIA Comments turned off

Atlantic Writer Tweets Trump Assassination Fantasy By Madeline Osburn

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

http://thefederalist.com/2019/02/06/atlantic-writer-tweets-trump-assassination-fantasy/

Jemelle Hill, staff writer at The Atlantic, wrote a mini fan fiction on Twitter during the State of the Union Tuesday night, about the assassination of President Trump with the help of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Hill tweeted that Ocasio-Cortez should yell, “GETCHO HAND OUT MY POCKET,” during the president’s State of the Union speech. The phrase “Get your hand outta my pocket!” was the same one yelled in the Manhattan Audubon Ballroom in 1965 as a distraction before the murder of Malcolm X. As the room tried to quell the commotion, another man rushed forward and shot Malcolm X in the chest.

The same assassination scene was depicted here:

The Atlantic’s motto since it was founded in 1857 has been “Of no party or clique.” The magazine insists it is a place for ideas across the political spectrum. Yet last year Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg hired then immediately fired conservative writer Kevin Williamson on the grounds that his views on abortion would make other Atlantic employees feel unsafe. Williamson thinks abortion is murder, a standard position for those who affirm that human life begins at conception.

It is hard to see how both of these things can be true: that the Atlantic is “of no party or clique” and that they don’t hire any individuals who make other employees feel unsafe. Hill’s fantasy about the president’s assassination would surely make any employee who supports President Trump feel unsafe — if The Atlantic indeed has any such employees.

ANTI-SEMITISM Comments turned off

Donald Trump chooses greatness — and so should we SOTU 2019 had a fuller agenda of things to be done and a more circumspect and humble offer to the other side of the aisle Roger Kimball

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

https://spectator.us/donald-trump-state-union-greatness/

Donald Trump is not always as charming as P.G. Wodehouse. Nevertheless, his magnificent State of the Union Address tonight put me in mind of this remark from the preface of Plum’s great novel Summer Lightning: ‘A certain critic,’ Wodehouse wrote, ‘made the nasty remark about my last novel that it contained “all the old Wodehouse characters under different names.”’ Waxing utopian, Wodehouse wondered whether, like the children who made mock of the prophet Elisha, that critic had by now been eaten by bears. Had he survived, though, said critic would not be able to make the same complaint about Summer Lightning. ‘With my superior intelligence,’ Wodehouse gloated, I have outgeneraled the man this time by putting in all the old Wodehouse characters under the same names.’

So, mutatis very much mutandis, did the president do tonight. SOTU 2019 bears a marked similarity to SOTU 2018. There was the same reaching across the aisle, the effort, as I put it last year, to restore the first person plural in American civic discourse, a ‘We’ that Democrats and Republicans and Independents could alike affirm.

Last year, the president spoke of putting aside the partisan passions that divide us in order to go forward as a people united in pursuing the goal of making a better America.

This year, he echoed that, noting that the choice before us was the politics of revenge, resistance, and retribution, on the one hand, and cooperation, compromise, and the common good, on the other. ‘Victory,’ he said ‘is not winning for our party. Victory is winning for our country.’ Sounds good to me. Nancy, Chuck, what do you think?

ANTI-SEMITISM Comments turned off

MY SAY: THE STATE OF THE UNION IS DISMAL BUT THERE IS HOPE

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

Everything that makes America great is challenged- our educational standards, our national language and culture, our porous borders and homeland security, the ability to debate without rancor and insult, and there is a pernicious hatred of capitalism and wealth without which there would be no support for all our scientific, philanthropic, and cultural institutions.

President Trump is no great orator, but he is a straight shooter and that is why I continue to support him. I liked his speech, and it pleased me that our national leader is confronting the serious issues that plague our nation. I admire his “cool” in spite of the smirks of Pelosi and Schumer and the street theater Democrat damsels in white. His rousing promise that America will never succumb to Socialism gave me hope.

The reply by sore loser Stacy Abrams was pure boilerplate Trump bashing with hyperbole and nothing to recommend. rsk

NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

Trump Tower Collusion Storyline Backfires By Julie Kelly

Posted By on February 6th, 2019

https://amgreatness.com/2019/02/05/trump-

It could be the most investigated and costliest 20-minute meeting in political history. I’m talking, of course, about the infamous June 9, 2016 encounter between top Trump campaign associates—including the president’s son and namesake—and Russian surrogates. The prodigious amount of time and energy devoted to analyzing that brief confab, which allegedly represented the vertex of the Kremlin and Team Trump, never will be fully tallied.

The “official” narrative about the Trump Tower meeting goes like this: Don Jr. met with Russians connected to the Kremlin to get dirt on Hillary Clinton a few months before the election. He spoke with his father before and after the meeting; even though the Russians didn’t reveal any scuttlebutt about Clinton, the mere fact Don Jr. arranged the meeting is evidence of criminal collusion with Vladimir Putin’s regime to influence the outcome of the presidential election.

The Trump Tower meeting has been probed by Congress and the special counsel’s office for months while pundits and lawmakers insist that Don Jr.’s participation in the meeting somehow amounts to a crime that will result in his imminent arrest. Mysterious phone calls made by Don Jr. around the time of the meeting were said to have been between father and son, further proof that Putin and Trump were in cahoots before Election Day. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) seems disturbingly fixated on the president’s son, threatening to keep investigating all of Don Jr.’s communications related to the meeting.

But now, to the chagrin of Democrats and the news media, that story line is falling apart. And with it, so is much of the Trump-Russia collusion fable.