At least six people were wounded after a stabbing attack at an event in a city square in Mannheim, Germany. Those injured include a police officer, the assailant (who was stopped only by police gunfire), and activist Michael Stürzenberger—a self-described “Islam-critical journalist,” who led the German Freedom Party before its dissolution in favor of the better-known Alternative for Germany (AfD).

The small rally held in the Marketplaz downtown square was organized in part by the Citizens’ Movement Pax Europa (BPE), an organization commited to stopping the “increasing spread and influence of political Islam.” Stürzenberger was reportedly readying to speak in front of a crowd when the stabbings began.

I have had many friends who chose “natural” remedies, and died from something that was otherwise curable. Nature is perfectly happy if we are dead. Nature is no friend.

As readers know, I believe from my understanding of the Torah that we are here, instead, to improve nature. And because I try to maintain consistency between my beliefs and my practices, you will not hear me say, “Oh, it is natural, so it is better.” I refuse to romanticize a natural world that is absent the contributions of mankind, which means that I will not hesitate to use invasive species of trees or bushes. Similarly, I am more than happy to spray to eliminate mosquitos and ticks on my land.

If you prefer video or audio, the below clip succinctly and articulately explains the Democratic Party’s tactics with regard to mobilizing minorities, immigrants and lefty white women.

Updated with more reactions

The jury has returned guilty verdicts on all 34 counts against former President Donald Trump.

Anne Lamott has done a rather cool thing for decades now.  At the end of every book, she invites people to visit her church, Saint Andrew Presbyterian Church in Marin City, California.

When my wife and I were writing a blog about visiting churches, we took her up on the offer. During the church’s greeting time, Anne made an effort to greet all the visitors, knowing that they may have come because of her invitation. She told us we had to stay after church to try her friend Gail’s “world famous potato salad” at their potluck.

If you’ve read Lamott, you know that she isn’t a fan of Republicans, especially Trump (though previously it was especially Bush, and if they had won it likely would have been especially McCain or Romney.) But she does seem to really love Jesus. And I appreciate her promotion of her church.

When I sat on a jury, one of the charges was what we could and could not take into account. They wanted us to look at the facts of the case. In this case, there was a directed verdict because the law was so very clear. We just had to debate if there should have been an award (so we said) and how much (held up on appeal, so we were apparently in the right).

However, one of the defendants on the stand was so clearly a long-term alcoholic to my eyes, it lent a lot of credence to the testimony of the plaintiff regarding the other man’s behavior. In short, the accusations against the defendant that he behaved like a belligerent drunk were totally believable.

Tough to argue with anything in Andy McCarthy’s closing analysis here:  Merchan and Trump Conceal the Holes in Bragg’s Case

It is highly likely that former president Trump will be convicted at his criminal trial in Manhattan. Here’s why.

The jury in Donald Trump’s NY trial received jury instructions this morning, began deliberations around 11:30am ET and were dismissed shortly after 4pm.

Jurors were told not to discuss the case with anyone and not to visit sites or read accounts of the case.

We are coming up on 33 years from the collapse of the Soviet Union on December 25th, 1991. That specific event merits an anniversary of sorts, even as it was the culmination of a long, drawn out denouement and thus the date would be entirely arbitrary as a landmark.  Decay and rot had accelerated through the decades leading to the 1990s, known in Russian parlance as the period of stagnation (zastoi).  Change thus occurred in the two ways well described by Mike Campbell in Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises: both gradually and then suddenly.

Some two decades earlier the dissident Andrei Amalrik had pondered whether the Soviet Union could survive until 1984.  His answer became known as the Amalrik paradox: “In order for the Soviet Union to survive it will need to change; but if it changes, it will no longer survive.”

The political situation in Gaza has taken a not-unexpected turn for the worse. Israel is conducting operations in Rafah, where, contrary to widespread expectations, it has done much to overcome the logistical nightmare of evacuating and then feeding close to a million Palestinians in Gaza, supplying some 542,570 tons of aid and 28,255 aid trucks, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Meanwhile, Hamas does what it can to wreck that operation, and Egypt remains adamant in penning up the Palestinians in Rafah, which only increases the time, costs, and risks of military operations.

But conditions on the ground seem to have little effect on the political controversies that surround that action, coming from both the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and many Western governments, including—on and off—the Biden administration. In both cases, the basic message is the same. As to Hamas, the ICJ said in its order that it is “deeply troubling” that Hamas disregarded its call “for [the] immediate and unconditional release” of the hostages. Hamas will not do so at any time and is not under any diplomatic pressure to comply. So, it is the other half of the judgment that carries all the weight. The ICJ also ordered Israel to:

I keep seeing the media present the case that Trump only helped the 1% and did nothing to help regular Americans.  That assertion is demonstrably untrue.

Let’s look at real (inflation adjusted) median wages.   (Expressed in 1984 dollars.)

Why do sharks take bites out of people? Standard Answer: sharks don’t eat people, silly! They just confuse those legs for seals.

How do we know? Do we run post-chomping interviews, like in a reality TV show, and ask the shark, “Gee, what were you thinking when you decided to sample Jennifer’s legs?”