The propensity of politicians to misuse the seasonal Menorah lighting to propound liberal messages greatly irritates Josh Hammer. Writing for Jewish World Review, Hammer reminds readers that Chanukah commemorates a historical triumph: the Jewish Maccabees’ military revolt against their Greek Seleucid overlords, regaining self-rule and reclaiming the Jewish temple in Jerusalem. And that, Hammer writes, carries a universal message: love your people and your country – and fight for them when they’re threatened.
At Least He Paid his Losing Bet
Paul Ehrlich, author of the spectacularly incorrect 1968 best-seller The Population Bomb, recently died at 93. Despite his longevity, Ronald Bailey points out in Reason, Ehrlich did not live to see even one of his numerous apocalyptic predictions come true. The world’s population certainly grew, but not merely larger, richer and fatter too. Most famously, Ehrlich once bet economist Julian Simon that the world was approaching economic collapse – but in 1990 had to mail Simon a cheque.
