The World and Everything in It: November 16, 2023

PREROLL: The World and Everything in It is made possible by listeners like me. I'm Martha Troxel from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I listen to The World and Everything in It at night while washing the dishes. I started supporting WORLD last year during a new donor drive. I hope you enjoy today's program.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Good morning! A dispute over transgender procedures for children may be headed to the Supreme Court. What is at stake?

AUDIO: Parents don't have the right to access dangerous medical care for children.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Also, the Supreme Court publishes a code of ethics following months of protests from the left. We’ll talk about it with a legal expert. Plus, a special World Series baseball game you won’t see on TV.

And WORLD Commentator Cal Thomas says that gratitude can be an antidote for anti-Semitism.

REICHARD: It’s Thursday, November 16th. This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

BROWN: And I’m Myrna Brown. Good morning!

REICHARD: Up next, Kent Covington with today’s news.

KENT COVINGTON, NEWS ANCHOR: Biden-Xi » Chinese leader Xi Jinping says “Planet Earth is big enough for [both the U.S. and China] to succeed.”

During his meeting with President Biden in California on Wednesday, through an interpreter, he told Biden …

XI (interpreter): China-U.S. relationship has never been smooth sailing over the past 50 years or more, and it always faces problems of one kind or another. Yet it has kept moving forward amid twists and turns. 

A decidedly warmer tone to go along with a warm handshake as the two leaders greeted each other on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific economic conference in San Francisco.

The meeting was aimed at tackling a range of issues, military tensions, trade, drug trafficking, and more.

It was not expected to yield any major breakthroughs, but President Biden said they made “real progress” during their talk. He told the Chinese leader …

BIDEN: We haven't always agreed, but our meetings have always been candid, straightforward and useful. I've never doubted what you've told me in terms of the candid nature in which you speak.

But while Xi struck a friendly tone in San Francisco, to the domestic audience in China … Beijing continues to blame the U.S. for the rift. The state-run news outlet said Washington must “establish correct views” of China  and trade its “zero-sum” mentality for cooperation.

Israel hospital » In Gaza City, Israeli Defense Forces have reportedly withdrawn from the Shifa hospital. The IDF raided the facility on Tuesday believing Hamas militants have used the hospital — and tunnels underneath it — as a base of operations.

U.S. intelligence concurs. And National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said for that reason, Israeli troops had good cause to enter the hospital …

KIRBY: But again, this means they have an added burden there, because it is a hospital, because there are real patients, and real doctors, and real nurses that have nothing to do with this fight that need to be protected as much as possible.

UN officials condemned Israel’s hospital raid. But the Israeli military said it was carrying out a—quote—“precise and targeted operation against Hamas in a specified area in the hospital.” And it said soldiers brought with them medical teams … and medical supplies.

Terror threats testimony » Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is sounding alarms on Capitol Hill. He warned members of the House Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday that authorities are at risk of losing vital defenses against terrorist attacks.

Mayorkas says a section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is set to expire at the end of December unless Congress extends it.

MAYORKAS: Expiration would leave our country vulnerable to attacks supported by American citizens and it would cripple our ability to identify and secure American citizens who are the targets of such attacks.

The law allows intelligence agencies to, without a warrant, eavesdrop on the communications of foreign suspects overseas. But Americans could also be surveilled if they’re in contact with the targeted foreigners.

That has some lawmakers worried about reauthorizing those powers … particularly with wrongdoing uncovered within the Justice Department in recent years.

GOP criticism over CR » House Speaker Mike Johnson’s honeymoon phase was short-lived, at least with some Republican members.

Texas Congressman Chip Roy ripped into the speaker on the House floor Wednesday.

ROY: I didn’t come here for more excuses. I didn’t come here to have the speaker of the House in 17 days pass a continuing resolution through suspension of the rules. $400 billion dollars. Is $34 trillion dollars of debt not enough?

Johnson relied on Democratic votes this week to pass a funding bill to avert a government shutdown ahead of a Friday deadline. More than 90 Republicans voted against the bill largely because it did not address deficit spending.

,Speaker Johnson defended the move saying, “We’re not surrendering, but you have to choose the fights you can win.”

Senators Meta » Meanwhile, in the upper chamber, senators once again have the parent company of Facebook and Instagram under the microscope. WORLD’s Christina Grube reports.

CHRISTINA GRUBE: A bipartisan group of senators penned a letter this week calling on Meta to release its internal research on the risks that its platforms pose to the mental and physical health of users, especially children.

Six senators–including Republican Linsey Graham and Democrat Elizbeth Warren— accuse Meta of hiding that safety information.

Their demand comes a week after a former Facebook executive testified to lawmakers that other executives knew of the risks Meta platforms pose to minors.

Dozens of states are also taking action against Meta. They filed a joint lawsuit last month, accusing Facebook and Instagram of knowingly using addictive features to hook young users.

For WORLD, I’m Christina Grube.

North Korea solid fuel missiles engines » North Korea said Wednesday that it has tested new solid fuel engines designed for medium-range ballistic missiles. Those missiles could target U.S. military bases as far away as Guam and Japan.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his South Korean counterpart this week signed an updated security agreement to counter the growing threat from North Korea, also known as the DPRK and the People’s Republic of China.

Austin told reporters:

AUSTIN: We discussed continued destabilizing actions by the DPRK that threaten our regional security environment, as PRC and Russian activities that undermine a rules-based international order.

The U.S. government believes Moscow may be providing military technology to Pyongyang in exchange for ammunition for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Haiti hospital » Police in Haiti have reportedly rescued hundreds of hostages inside of a hospital after armed gang members stormed the facility. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher has more.

JOSH SCHUMACHER: Heavy armed gunmen took control of the hospital in the capital of Port-au-Prince Wednesday.

The hospital director took to social media a short time later begging for help. He said the gunmen took hundreds of people hostage, though that number has not been independently confirmed.

He later reported that police had rescued the hostages. The motive for the hospital siege is still unclear. Haiti has been overrun with gang violence in recent years.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

I’m Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: The battle over age limits on transgender procedures levels up in Tennessee. Plus, special needs sports.

This is The World and Everything in It.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: It’s Thursday the 16th of November, 2023. This is WORLD Radio and we’re so glad you’re along with us today. Good morning, I’m Myrna Brown.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard. First up on The World and Everything in It: protecting children from the irreversible damage of transgender procedures.

Earlier this month, lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union asked the Supreme Court to take a case about a Tennessee law that restricts transgender treatments for anyone younger than age 18.

BROWN: Here’s WORLD Reporter Juliana Chan Erickson with what arguments the ACLU is making, and how supporters of Tennessee’s law are responding.

JULIANA CHAN ERIKSON, REPORTER: Tennessee is far from the only state setting limits on when children can get transgender medical procedures. Back in 2021, Arkansas was the first state to pass a law limiting access to puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones.

5NEWS: Arkansas lawmakers have now overridden Governor Asa Hutchinson’s veto making The Natural State the first in the nation banning transgender youth from getting gender confirmation medical care.

Alabama and Arizona followed in 2022.

12NEWS: Arizona’s legislature has passed three controversial new bills aimed at when a woman can get an abortion and transgender rights.

But then in 2023, 19 states passed restrictions.

FOX13NEWS: The Utah state Senate gave final passage to the bill on transgender youth.

KENS5: Texas lawmakers last night passed a bill  restricting transgender care for minors.

WHAS11: And tonight one of the nation’s toughest anit-trans bills is now law in Kentucky.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a similar law in March this year. Since then, lawyers have filed challenge after challenge against Tennessee and the other states. Back in June, one of those lawsuits resulted in a judge overturning Arkansas’s law.

But the rest of these challenges have gone nowhere. One month after Tennessee’s law was signed, lawyers from the ACLU challenged it in a district court. Then Tennessee’s attorney general took it to the appeals court, where Judge Jeffrey Sutton sent everyone back to square one—and upheld Tennessee’s law.

Now the ACLU lawyers hope the Supreme Court will settle it.

The group’s lawyers represent families of children who identify as transgender. One of their underage clients, a 16-year-old identified as L.W., says puberty blockers and estrogen helped resolve the teen’s depression. Here’s L.W. speaking on NPR’s Morning Edition.

L.W.: I was definitely very depressed before I went on estrogen, especially before puberty blockers, because I really just, like, wasn't myself. And it was just difficult to care about everything around me.

The ACLU argues that when Tennessee prevents biological males like L.W. from obtaining female hormones, the state is discriminating on the basis of L.W.’s sex.

I asked a few lawyers about that argument. Randall Wenger, chief counsel at the Independence Law Center in Harrisburg, Pa., says that treating groups of people differently isn’t necessarily a bad thing, or even wrong.

RANDALL WENGER: It's not sex discrimination. It's not gender identity discrimination, just because it implicates one class more than another class, it doesn't mean that it's aimed at hurting a class of people.

Wenger says Tennessee has the right to protect children from getting drugs or procedures it decides are harmful. He says this could include transgender treatments. Puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones are currently not FDA-approved for children who suffer from gender dysphoria. And researchers are still studying the long term well-being of children who use cross-sex hormones. That includes the possible effects on their fertility down the road.

The ACLU also challenged Tennessee’s ban on what the group calls “sex transition surgery.” But Wenger argues that the terminology isn’t accurate.

WENGER: We'll talk about in terms of sex reassignment surgeries, or gender confirmation surgeries, when really these are simply sexual cosmetic surgeries. You're not changing anything. You're not making something function, the way that the human body was designed to function.

Speaking of function, the ACLU is also challenging how parental rights should function in this situation. The organization’s lawyers argue that parents should have the right to decide whether their child should have puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones—not the state.

But Jonathan Scruggs, a lawyer from Alliance Defending Freedom, disagrees.

SCRUGGS: Parents don't have the right to access dangerous medical care, you know, for children, if it's dangerous, then the state can regulate.

Erin Friday, a California parent of a child who once identified as transgender, says LGBTQ advocates are telling children with gender identity issues a dangerous message about their bodies.

ERIN FRIDAY: What transgenderism is, is people colluding and telling that child Yeah, you know what, you are wrong, everything about you is wrong. And we're going to fix that. It's a really cruel movement to tell a child that they are wrong. And the only way that they're going to be fixed is if you start sticking needles into your belly and pumping your body with testosterone. It's an awful thing to do. And we need to stop doing it.

If the Supreme Court does hear this case, it could decide to strengthen the law in Tennessee and similar ones in other states. But it could also put them all in jeopardy.

Lawyers Scruggs and Wenger do not think the Supreme Court will accept this case. They told me the Court will probably wait for the proverbial dust to settle, both among states and within the scientific community. But the Biden administration upped the ante last Monday when it submitted its own petition asking the Supreme Court to weigh in. So it’s likely only a matter of time before the Court takes a case like this one. And when that happens, a lot will be at stake, both for children and for the states trying to protect them.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Juliana Chan Erikson.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: Ethics and the Supreme Court.

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court announced its first formal code of conduct to guide the ethical behavior of its nine justices. This, after a year of pressure from media outlets and some in the legislature about undisclosed hobnobbing with rich people.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: You may remember back in April, Propublica ran an investigation into gifts and travel Justice Clarence Thomas was given by Texas billionaire Harlan Crow. At the time, Democrats like Senator Dick Durbin responded to the news like it was a bombshell.

DURBIN: To restore the integrity and reputation of the court they have to do something. An investigation followed by a change in an approach on ethics.

REICHARD: Over the summer, the Senate investigated the court and asked Chief Justice John Roberts to testify, and he declined, citing the separation of powers.

And now the court has released a 15 page document explaining the ethical guidelines the justices abide by. Happy ending? Not really. Here’s Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, giving his reaction to the news on MSNBC on Tuesday:

SHELDON WHITEHOUSE: So this is a first step, but it's not meaningful until and unless they build the process for imposing it on themselves.

BROWN: Joining us now to explain what is and is not in the code of ethics is Carrie Severino. She is president of the Judicial Crisis Network and co-author of the book Justice on Trial: The Kavanaugh Confirmation and the Future of the Court.

REICHARD: Carrie, good morning.

CARRIE SEVERINO, GUEST: Good morning. Great to be here.

REICHARD: Glad you are. Well, what does the new code of conduct actually do?

SEVERINO: Well, you know, the justices I think put it out there to clarify that, unlike what everyone is saying, they do actually have ethical rules they follow. And this is really clarifying and putting out there, these are the ethical standards for when they should recuse, for how they should disclose things for, you know, all of the guidelines they have been following. So you've got them in one place, and I think it's to really put the lie to the people who are saying that justice is like the Wild West, they don't have any ethical guidelines. They absolutely do. And so it's good to have it out there just to make that clear, because you have a lot of people who are trying to attack them, not really because of any actual ethics violations, but because I think they're trying to get the upper hand over the court itself.

REICHARD: We'll talk about that more in a moment. Some may wonder why didn't the Supreme Court already have something like this in place?

SEVERINO: Well, you know, they didn't have it written down, but they did have rules that they followed. And I think it just wasn't necessary to put them all in one place. They are bound by federal law, for example, as to when you do have to recuse from cases. So that's been always the case, they are bound by the same laws in that respect as lower court judges. But I guess when the lower courts adopted their code of conduct, the Supreme Court didn't do so partly, because I think they recognize that, as there is no higher court they can appeal to, it is sort of difficult to say, well, here's this code of conduct, but we're holding ourselves to it, because that's the only possible way we can do it. So I think that's just the nature of the beast here with having a Supreme Court. And if they are supreme, that means they have to be the ones who are able to police these conduct.

REICHARD: Well, I know early on, there were many voices on Capitol Hill and the media who were saying that the news of justice Clarence's undisclosed gifts and trips undermined the reputation of the entire court and up till now, it seemed like the justices were planning to just weather the storm, ignore the media rabble rousing over this, but now that they've acquiesced and released this code of ethics, does that signal to you that the justices are concerned about the court's reputation?

SEVERINO: You know, I think you can see that what has been happening here is people from clearly political motives. I mean, this has been led by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, who is a longtime foe of the Supreme Court. He's been trying to drag the court's reputation through the mud really here. And I think the idea that behind the justices is, let's at least diffuse some of the claims. Like for example, saying, well, they have no ethics, okay? They have had these guidelines, but let's make them explicit, let's make them clear, so people can't be led astray by the misconceptions that are being intentionally fomented. So yes, their reputation has taken a hit, but it's because there are people who are spreading lies and misinformation about how the court really works. I think if people understood how it really worked, they would not be as easily led astray by people like Senator Whitehouse.

REICHARD: I didn’t read any criticism of the late justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg when she presided over same sex wedding ceremonies BEFORE the Obergefell decision in 2015 legalizing those arrangements. Is this a capitulation to partisan media pressure? How would you respond?

SEVERINO: Yeah, well, first, it's very clear that this is the right time for this come out for the left, because if anyone took a huge number of, you know, trips, and things that are much more concerning than anything Justice Thomas has done with people with no business before the Court, Justice Ginsburg was regularly receiving awards and, and receiving trips and things from people who did hear business before the court. I think the reason they're looking at it now is because she's off the court. But even in her case, I don't think there ever was any actual corruption going on. So I think that is the elephant in the room that everyone knows. There isn't any actual instances of corruption happening here. And I think, that's the big secret. I think that the left wants to be able to bully the court into what they're doing. I hope this doesn't mean the court is feeling bullied. I hope this is just them saying look for the people of goodwill out there. They should know there are clear ethical standards. But look, you're never going to be able to please Sheldon Whitehouse you're never gonna be able to please the Liberal Democrats who will not stop until they either have a veto power over which originalist justices sit on the court or whether they were until they can pack the court with people who will simply vote in terms of their political agenda.

REICHARD: Carrie Severino is president of Judicial Crisis Network. Thanks so much for your time today! Really appreciate it.

SEVERINO: Thanks, great to be here.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: We know Americans love their pets and give them all sorts of interesting names. One site’s been tracking the most popular names for years and just released their top-10 list for 2023.

WORLD Radio intern Emma Perley stopped by her neighborhood pet store in Leesburg, Virginia:

EMMA PERLEY: What’s your pet’s name? 

CUSTOMERS: Her name’s Gracie, because she’s God’s gift to me./I have an orange tabby that’s a male that I ended naming Ruby, because I didn’t realize he was a boy when I got him./Mr. Brown. Polly. Hank the Tank. Laverne. Max and Chloe.

Max and Chloe are both popular names for dogs. For the last 10 years, Max topped the charts for boy dogs. But this year, the name Charlie took the top spot, and Luna is most popular for girl dogs.

And sometimes it hard to keep all the names in mind, like this woman says:

CUSTOMER: Lily is the dog. Arri is the cat. Mixie, Leo, and, I have another one. One, two, three. Ummm, I can’t remember the other one. Maybe I have only three.

It’s The World and Everything in It.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Thursday, November 16th. Good morning. I’m Myrna Brown.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard. Coming next on The World and Everything in It: A special kind of sports.

Year-round athletic programs for people living with disabilities are hard to come by. And with the increasing rate of people diagnosed with disabilities like autism, sports programs for these individuals are more popular than ever.

WORLD reporting producer Lillian Hamman went to the Special Needs Sports baseball World Series just outside Asheville, North Carolina and brings us the story.

SOUND: [BASEBALL CROWD CHEERING]

LILLIAN HAMMAN, REPORTER: It’s a crisp fall afternoon at Bob Lewis Ballpark. Bunches of lawn chairs and lunch coolers stake out space around the baseball diamonds, and waves of cheers carry runners around the dusty bases. Outfielders keep their eyes on home plate, as batters line up ready to take their turn in the batter’s box.

AUDIO: [BASEBALL CROWD CHEERING]

Every weekend for the past few months, people of all ages and disabilities have shown up to play baseball with Special Needs Sports. Now at the end of the season, the World Series game is underway.

MUSIC: [“Come and See” by The LeFevre Quartet]

Some of the youngest players are smaller than the metal bats.

LILLIAN: What's your favorite part about it?

CORA: Batting takes like a long time to get it. So you like have to like practice to do itL. And our mom was bringing Bojangles.

Other players are scoring runs in their eighth decade.

LILLIAN: What's your name?

KAREN: Karen

LILLIAN: How old are you?

KAREN: I don't know. Ask Tara

TARA: She's 72

KAREN: 72.

The players aren’t the only ones on the field. They’re joined by family members and volunteers helping encourage them to chase after balls, wheel their chairs around the bases, and give high-fives. Many special needs athletic events, like the Special Olympics, have more rules or structure. But in Special Needs Sports, the most important rule is to have fun. Tara Simpson says that’s the best part for her son who has autism.

SIMPSON: Socially, he does so much better. Like when he's on an actual team that has more structure, he can't handle it. Something like this, he can just do whatever he wants to do. And they don't tell him how to hit it.

But players get the biggest smiles of the day when the mustached man walking around the field in a black ball cap and white sneakers gives them a hug.

JONES: They just want to have fun.

69-year old Donnie Jones started Special Needs Sports back in 2011. Jones is a former little league and school baseball coach, and an 11th generation native of Hendersonville, North Carolina. When he’s not on the field with his players, he’s under a tent handing out free snacks and drinks.

JONES: Hey buddy!

KID: Are these gummies?

JONES: Gummies? I think that's kind of what those are, aren't they? We'll say they are anyway.

Jones first got the idea for Special Needs Sports at one of his little league games. He saw a boy in a wheelchair throwing a baseball around, and realized there weren’t many athletic programs available for people with disabilities. Especially year-round programs without any restrictions on age or type of disability. So, he set out to start his own. But it wasn’t so easy in the beginning.

JONES: I think I had 10 registered, signed up to play. And I just prayed about it one night, and before that week was over we had forty. And I've never worried about anything how I was gonna do anything since then, I just plan it and said Lord make it happen and He has.

That original 40 signing up for Special Needs Sports has grown into over 130 from seven different counties. The program is free for players. That’s mostly thanks to community sponsors. But one year, Jones bought three Corvettes and raffled them off to bring in more money for the program.

JONES: I've been able to do everything at no cost to them that's my that's one thing I really want to be sure I can do.

Some of the volunteers pitching and catching during Jones’ games are from local school baseball and softball teams. But for others like Chris Rice, volunteering to pitch for Special Needs Sports is personal.

RICE: I just come out to help Donnie because he helped me out.

Rice helped Jones start the organization 12 years ago. But before that, he was just a 10-year old boy on one of Jones’ little league baseball teams. After Rice’s mom was in a car accident, Jones would pick Rice up and take him to school every day. Now with a family of his own, Rice uses any time he can get to come out and pitch for Jones.

RICE: And ever since then. I've really been part of their family too. This is a good cause so I mean, there's there's no reason not to be out here.

Special Needs Sports started off with just baseball. Now, it’s grown into basketball, volleyball, and martial arts too. Jones starts every game with the national anthem and a word of prayer.

SOUND: [ANTHEM AND PRAYER]

JONES: God's blessed it from the beginning and it wouldn't happen without His blessings and work. We're gonna do the prayer and national anthem before every game, I don't ever tell anybody they have to but they're not gonna tell me I can't. Just the way it is.

Tears flow from his clear blue eyes as he watches the players smiling and waving plastic World Series rings high in the air.

JONES: I mean, I just get to be a part of it. It's His organization. It ain’t mine. I couldn't do it by myself. I keep saying I need to quit, but I never will. ‘Long as I'm able I'm gonna do it.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Lillian Hamman in Candler, North Carolina.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Today is Thursday, November 16th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: And I’m Myrna Brown. Up next: WORLD Commentator Cal Thomas says we have a lot to be thankful for when it comes to Jewish history.

CAL THOMAS, COMMENTATOR: We have again entered the season of gratitude. You remember gratitude, don’t you? It was what we expressed before we became entitled.

Last Saturday was Veterans Day, and many Americans thanked those who served in the military and have protected our freedoms. Next week is Thanksgiving when some people will thank God for the many blessings He has bestowed on our country. Despite our rebellion against His commands, there is still much for which to be thankful.

Recently, we’ve seen the height of ingratitude in new ways around the world. Some anti-Israel and anti-Jewish protesters are saying vulgar things about the Jewish people and calling for the elimination of the democratic Jewish state. It’s true, Jewish history isn’t the story of a perfect people, but critics might benefit from having some Jewish contributions explained to them.

It was the Jews who gave us the Old Testament, which is full of information about God and wisdom for how we can live successful lives. A Jew – Jesus of Nazareth – is introduced in what Christians call the New Testament and lays out His plan for the salvation of all who believe in Him.

Despite their small percentage of the population, Jews have excelled in many fields for which everyone should be grateful. A short list can’t cover them all.

There was physicist Albert Einstein. Jonas Salk created the first polio vaccine and Albert Sabin followed with the first oral polio vaccine. Selman Waksman created Streptomycin and coined the word antibiotic. Gabriel Lippmann discovered color photography, Baruch Blumberg discovered the origin and spread of infectious diseases, and G. Edelman discovered the chemical structure of antibodies. Anthony Epstein identified the first cancer virus. Maria Mayer uncovered the structure of atomic nuclei, and Julius Mayer discovered the law of thermodynamics. Isaac Singer invented the first affordable sewing machine, and Joseph Pulitzer established the famous prize that honors journalists, literature, music and art.

Broadway would be dark and musical theater dead without the contributions of Jews. These included George and Ira Gershwin, Oscar Hammerstein, Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart, Kurt Weill, Irving Berlin, Leonard Bernstein, Neil Simon, and many more, including Marvin Hamlisch.

Jewish artists often created beauty, sometimes out of tragedy. These include Marc Chagall, whose work hangs in the Israeli Knesset. There are many other noteworthy Jewish painters and sculptors.

If you enjoy taking a break from work on weekends, credit the Jews (see Exodus 20:8). Jews also improved society and culture with their use of ideas like the census, animal rights, asylum, equality under the law, our courts, crop rotation, and monetary damages. Ignorance allows dictators and terrorists to pursue their objectives, while a properly informed public preserves and protects what is important to a free and civilized society.

If you believe such things are important, offer some gratitude, not hostility, to your Jewish neighbors.

I’m Cal Thomas.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Tomorrow: A win for free speech in Finland. We’ll talk about it on Culture Friday with John Stonestreet. And, Word Play with George Grant. That and more tomorrow.

I’m Mary Reichard.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: And I’m Myrna Brown. 

The World and Everything in It comes to you from WORLD Radio. WORLD’s mission is biblically objective journalism that informs, educates, and inspires.

The Apostle Paul defended the trustworthiness of his message: “[Yet] because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery— to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.” —Galatians chapter two, verses four and five.

Go now in grace and peace.

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