The shooting in Uvalde, Texas, continues to dominate headlines -- largely because it is simply so shocking, and partly because the media and the Democrats want to push gun control and need an issue to distract from the Biden administration's many failures.
My friend, Jon Voight, has posted videos calling for some kind of certification before individuals can purchase and own guns. I'm not opposed to that, in principle, though it's not clear it would have stopped the killer in this case. We've also been through the summer of riots in 2020, largely backed by the Democratic Party, and the experience has probably ended any prospect of gun control for the near future.
There are two other alternatives: hardening the targets, i.e. hiring guards or installing metal detectors at schools nationwide; and/or using Big Data to monitor individuals who may be risks to their communities. Democrats will reject the former; both parties will probably reject the latter. So there is little hope for progress, at least at the legislative level, in dealing with this problem.
My own prediction is that school districts will take up the issue of guards on their own. The fact that there was so much controversy about the presence, or not, of a school resource officer at the start of the shooting has highlighted the issue.
Moreover, this may be one of those issues, like plan hijacking, that Americans take into their own hands. Since 9/11, passengers have rushed anyone who is a threat on a flight. After the chilling videos emerged of parents gathering outside the school in Uvalde, only to be held back by police, who waited for an hour before rushing the killer, I don't think you'll ever see Americans wait outside a school during a lockdown ever again. People will risk their lives.
This is my first broadcast from the new office and studio in Washington, DC, where I'll be for a couple of years my neighborhood back in L.A. cleans up -- and as we follow the Trump administration from a little closer up than usual.
Topics:
- The anniversary of the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump
- The escalating tariff battle with various different trading partners
- The future of the Middle East peace talks, and ongoing antisemitism
- The Jeffrey Epstein files and whether they mean anything at all
- The continued crisis of the Texas floods, and stories of heroism and survival
And more!
Special guests:
- James Rosen - Newsmax chief Washington correspondent
- Bob Price - Breitbart News Texas reporter, on the ongoing floods
- Robert Cahill - Trafalgar Polling, on a new alliance of reliable pollsters
- Rabbi Yaakov Menken - Coalition for Jewish Values - on Israel & antisemitism
Tune in: 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 p.m. PT
Call: 866-957-2874
This week’s portion tells the grand story of the prophet who tried to curse people of Israel and instead ended up blessing them.
I am reminded that these portions continue to be relevant anew, as this particular reading lent the title for Israel’s recent 12 Day War against Iran, “Operation Rising Lion.”
This week's portion includes the commandment of the red heifer -- one of the classic "irrational" commandments whose fulfillment is an expression of faith. It also includes the regrettable episode in which Moses strikes the rock.
I referred to this story in a wedding speech last night. Why was Moses punished for striking the rock in Numbers, when he struck the rock without incident in Exodus -- both for the purpose of providing water to the people?
The answer is that in the interim, the Jewish people had received the Torah, which is like the marriage contract between the people of Israel and God. In a marriage, you do not resolve things by breaking boundaries, but through love.
The additional reading, from Judges Chapter 11, is the story of Jephthah (Yiftach), a man whom the leaders spurn, but to whom they must turn to save the nation. The parallels to our present political circumstances are striking.
Shabbat Shalom and Happy Fourth of July!
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