Loose Ends (198)

Seriously—who at the New York Times thought this layout for their crossword puzzle on the first day of Hanukkah (or any day for that matter) was a good idea:

You’d expect a “we’re sorry for the harm and hurt we have caused” with this image, but the Times is insisting that this is a “standard design.” NB: Clue 58 Across is “Boxcars.” Nice going Times.

Gee—who could have seen this coming?

Afghanistan: Taliban closes universities to women

The Taliban have announced the closure of universities for women in Afghanistan, according to a letter by the higher education minister. The minister says the move is until further notice. It is expected to take effect immediately.

It further restricts women’s access to formal education, as they were already excluded from secondary schooling. . . In November, the authorities banned women from parks in the capital Kabul, claiming Islamic laws were not being followed there.

I was told mass shootings only happened in America:

5 people killed in a ‘horrendous’ condo shooting in Canada, police say

Five people were killed in a shooting at a condominium in a Toronto suburb Sunday night, police said, a “terrible” crime that came amid Canada’s efforts to tighten its gun control laws.

I was told mass shootings only happen in America:

Rare gunfight kills six, including two police officers, in rural Australia

SYDNEY, Dec 13 (Reuters) – Six people, including two police officers, were killed in a gunfight at a remote property in Australia’s Queensland state, authorities said on Tuesday, after police visited a home there to investigate a missing person report.

When four officers arrived about 4:30 p.m. on Monday at the property in Wieambilla, about 300 km (186 miles) northwest of Queensland’s capital, Brisbane, two armed people opened fire and killed two of them, police said, without identifying the suspects.

I thought Australia had confiscated all guns. . . Oh, wait: maybe the liberal narrative isn’t true.

I have previously declaimed that hatred of the Catholic Church is a central principle or impulse of today’s left, and the reasons behind this can also explain rising anti-Semitism on the left. Hence this story from the Wall Street Journal is of interest:

U.S. Catholic Priests Are Increasingly Conservative as Faithful Grow More Liberal

American Catholic priests are becoming more conservative, even as their flocks are becoming more liberal.

U.S. Catholic bishops elected conservative leaders last month, continuing to resist a push from Pope Francis to put social issues such as climate change and poverty on par with the bishops’ declared priority of opposing abortion.

The U.S. hierarchy’s orientation reflects the wider trend of an American clergy with values at odds with those of an increasingly liberal laity and a pope who has encouraged the questioning of once-taboo subjects and leniency on some teachings of sexual morality. . .

Research on Catholic clergy by the Austin Institute has found that younger Catholic priests and priests ordained in more recent years tend to be noticeably more conservative than older priests on a host of issues, including politics, theology and moral teaching. The Survey of American Catholic Priests has found that since the 1980s, successive cohorts of priests have grown more conservative, according to a 2021 summary report.

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