Random links of interest, concern or curiosity from the past week or so, that deserve at least a SHORT mention:

 
Iraqi Priest Pleads for Pope Francis to Help End ‘Genocide’ of Christians ~ In vain? I have yet to hear the pope speak out for these poor souls. Instead we get the Church of Nice, and are admonished to fight global warming and capitalism.
 
“Bacha Bazi”: Obama’s silence on Afghan military’s child rape ~ Michelle Malkin weighs in on the administration’s outrageous willful blindness on the evil Afghan perverts ~

This is the price the innocents pay for blind multiculturalism.

 
Following Kitzmiller v. Dover, an Excellent Decade for Intelligent Design ~ Dismantling Darwinism. Evolution News and Views highlights the many successful challenges to the theory of evolution over the last decade.

 
Selfies have killed more people than shark attacks this year ~ Narcissism kills ~

The most recent figures come after a 66-year-old Japanese tourist died after taking a tumble down a flight of stairs at the Taj Mahal while attempting to snap a selfie. There was no word on whether his picture was uploaded posthumously. As the Mashable article points out, for perspective, this figure of 12 selfie-related deaths is higher than the number of fatalities from shark-related run-ins, which stands at eight.
 
Like the Japanese tourist, the leading cause of death-by-selfie comes in the form of falling. Helpfully, there is an entire Wikipedia page devoted to selfie-related injuries and deaths.

 
VW Rigged Cars To Defeat Smog Tests. Just Like Obama Rigged The Iran Nuclear Deal To Circumvent Any Actual Inspections ~ Selective outrage. Start Thinking Right blog blasts Obama for his endless deception and shreds the Left for its outlandish hypocrisy.
 
Was It Fixed? Army General Told Subordinates: ‘A Woman Will Graduate Ranger School,’ Sources Say ~ Is anything that progressives promote truly legitimate? ~

Way back in January, long before the first women attended the Army’s elite Ranger School – one of the most grueling military courses in the world – officials at the highest levels of the Army had already decided failure was not an option, sources tell PEOPLE.

 
#ShoutYourAbortion Proves That Modern Liberalism Is A Satanic Death Cult ~ Matt Walsh isn’t kidding ~

I say this, then, not as an insult or hyperbole, but as a statement of reality. “Progressivism,” for whatever it may have been at one time, is now a death cult. Abortion evangelists have mostly dropped the pretense that abortion should be “safe but rare,” and that abortion is OK only because babies aren’t really people, and moved on to advocating murder for its own sake.
 
Many progressives — and the #ShoutYourAbortion campaign along with their support for late term abortion bears this out — believe very simply that abortion is acceptable and even laudable because it’s what a woman wants to do.

 
The Desecration of Fallen Officers ~ The disturbing underreported aspect of Black Lives Matter’s war on police. News the msm totally ignores!

An underreported aspect of the war on police is the widespread desecration of fallen officer memorials throughout the country. The increase in vandalism of police memorials directly corresponds to the increase in anti-police movements and protests. Since the formation of the Black Lives Matter Movement memorials honoring officers killed in the line of duty have been attacked in Philadelphia, Chicago, Fresno, Denver, New Orleans, Oakland, Austin, Rochester NY, Covington KY, Fayetteville AR and Raleigh NC…

 
Russian marines join Hizballah in first Syrian battle – a danger signal for US, Israel ~
Exclusive DEBKAfile Report ~ Ezekiel 38? Just sayin…

This operation runs contrary to the assurances of President Vladimir Putin to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Sept. 21 – just three days ago – that Russian forces in Syria were only there to defend Russian interests and would not engaged in combat with the Syrian army, Hizballah or Iranian troops.

10News.dk ~ Danish psychologist Nicolai Sennels is documenting the Islamification of Europe. Check out his recent video: “How the media orchestrate the refugee scam.”
 
An unlikely nun every millennial should meet ~ The inspiring story of Mother Maria Skobtsova is one of seven featured in a new book by Eric Metaxas: Seven Women; and the Secret of Their Greatness