Nov
22
2023

Sowell on Preferences

Otherwise, not much today. I'm kind of under the weather.

  • It's not a pretty picture, Emily. Jeff Maurer provides A Brief History of Political Movements Led By Little Kids. And I for one am appropriately grateful for this day before Thanksgiving.

    It’s been a rough week or so for young people in politics. In Amsterdam, Greta Thunberg shared a stage with an activist who had previously called the October 7 attacks “resistance” and who celebrated the terrorist Leila Khaled, who once threw a live grenade into an airplane full of civilians. Then, Osama bin Laden’s “Letter To America” went viral on Tik Tok, gaining favorable reviews from some young influencers 21 years after it was published. Published by Osama bin Laden. Yes, that Osama bin Laden.

    On the other hand: Has it been a bad week for young people in politics? Or has it been a completely normal week for young people in politics? You can argue that it’s been the latter, because when the very young get political, the historical results are not good. Personally, I think it’s obvious that a political movement led by kids is about as likely to succeed as a basketball team led by elderly diabetics. But this is apparently not obvious to everyone. So, I’m offering a brief synopsis of a few child-led political movements that will hopefully put the phenomenon of politically-involved minors in perspective.

    Jeff takes an offbeat look at The Childrens' Crusades; Joan of Arc; God’s Army of the Holy Mountain. Fortunately, at the remove of decades or centuries, we can afford to laugh. Like we should be laughing at Greta.

  • The pump don't work 'cause the vandals took the handles. And it happened down in Merrimack: Attack on Israeli-Owned Business in Merrimack Denounced by Both Parties, as reported by Michael Graham of NH Journal

    If the antisemitic activists of Palestine Action US were hoping to rally support in the Granite State with their attack on an Israeli-based defense contractor in Merrimack, it appears they miscalculated.

    Elbit Systems of America’s parent company – Israel-based Elbit Systems – is the largest defense contractor for Israel. Palestine Action US, which previously launched an attack on Elbit Systems’ Cambridge, Mass. location just five days after the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack, says its mission is “dismantling Elbit Systems and the Zionist War Machine.”

    The group brought that mission to Merrimack on Monday around 8 a.m. when, according to local authorities, reports began rolling into the police and fire departments of an issue at the Elbit facility on Daniel Webster Highway. Protesters were blocking the entrance, and smoke was billowing from the roof. According to a Merrimack Police Department press release, “Officers discovered the front of the building had been spray painted with red paint, windows had been smashed, and at least one of the main lobby doors had been locked shut via a bicycle anti-theft device.”

    Yeah, that's bad, and I hope they throw away the key.

    But this is a bridge too far:

    The incident comes as Granite State leaders express concerns about the increase of anti-Israel and antisemitic sentiment, particularly among college students. Sununu denounced UNH students chanting, “From the river to the sea, Palestine shall be free,” and Bradley is calling on the university administration to confront a far-left radical professor with a long history of hate speech comparing Israel to Nazi Germany.

    Needless to say, there's not a slightest bit of evidence that says UNH dimwits (including Chanda Prescod-Weinstein) inspired "Palestine Action US".