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

 
These pictures of Iraq 60 years ago will make you wish you lived there – Basra was known as the ‘Venice of the Middle East’ ~ Before the Islamists took over, Iraq was living in the 20th century with the rest of us.
 
Canadians Shocked When Minimum Wage Hike Negatively Impacts Workers ~ Wait – what? Interfering with the free market is actually a bad thing? When will progressives ever get it? ~

(A)s soon as the new mandatory minimum went into effect on January 1st, big employers of largely unskilled, lower wage workers responded in the only way available to them. They began cutting costs, starting with perks and benefits, but also reducing hours and even laying off workers. This left many “living wage” advocates in Canada shocked and dismayed. (MSN)

 
Treehouse appeal goes to Supreme Court ~ An interesting case (The Supremes haven’t yet agreed to review it.). Lynn Tran and Richard Hazen who run a rental property called Angelinos Sea Lodge on Anna Maria Island on Florida’s west coast were initially told by the city that their treehouse wouldn’t require a building permit. Apparently it did. Now the city says it has to go. ~

If the treehouse ultimately has to go, there’s a lurking irony for the couple. To take down the structure, they’ll need the one thing they didn’t have before they began putting it up: a city permit.

 
Email from a Muslim: “Anyone who doesn’t understand that living conditions under Islam are intolerable is simply blind to reality” ~ From a young woman whose family was able to escape the ****hole of Pakistan ~

In an Islamic Society, no one, not even children are safe. In schools, they resorted to violence to get students to behave […]
 
When I visited in 2003 at the age of 5, I saw some very disturbing things. In an Islamic society, I felt very unsafe. There were gangs around to assault people. No industrialization. Streets were dirty. Thugs everywhere. In homes, there were not any toilets. Using the bathroom was gross. All of this was a result of lack of freedom.

 
‘How is This Legal?’ Victims Urge Congress to Take a Stand Against Internet Sex Trafficking ~ Introduced by Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, or SESTA, would prevent those who use the web to traffic adults and minors from escaping liability ~

Lauren Hersh, a former New York City prosecutor, left her job to become an advocate for victims when she saw the shift to online trafficking and a shortage of laws regulating the new marketplace. Hersh now works as the director of World Without Exploitation.
 
“I guess for the last six, maybe six and a half years I’ve been yelling at the computer screen saying, ‘How is this possible? How is this legal watching young people being sold day in and day out? And websites making huge amounts of money from it?'” questioned Hersh.

Libertarians (who automatically oppose most legislation) claim that SESTA is unnecessary, but proponents assert ~

The act won’t limit civil liberties. It will strike a blow to the illegal sex trade and stop tech companies from profiting from human pain […]
 
The language in the bill was narrowly crafted to apply only to those who have knowingly engaged in online sex trafficking. It does not limit the controversial or critical online speech protected by the first amendment.

 
WV pastor: Let’s have debate, Facebook, over ‘hate’ ~ This craziness needs to stop! Mis-characterizing truth about homosexuality as hate speech results in angry death treats for the offenders ~

(Pastor) Penkoski’s ongoing dispute with homosexual activists grew so dangerous to his safety over the summer that law enforcement authorities advised him to move his family.
 
Penkoski says he personally knows what constitutes “hate speech,” because he receives it constantly. “Telling somebody that they should go kill themselves, that they don’t deserve to live,” he complains. […]
 
“We don’t call them any names. We don’t use any derogatory terms to describe people,” Penkoski insists, referring to his preaching against homosexuality. “We don’t wish harm on anyone, ever.”

 
YouTube continues to restrict many PragerU videos ~ Please sign this petition to help fight back against monopolistic media censorship ~

There is no excuse for Google and YouTube censoring and restricting any PragerU videos, which are produced with the sole intent of educating people of all ages about America’s founding values. We need your help to tell YouTube that their restriction of our videos is wrong. Join the thousands of Americans who value the free exchange of ideas.

BACKFIRE: Why the Sexual Harassment Revolution FAILED ~ Kevin Jackson (TheBlackSphere.net), political commentator, talk radio host, points out the hypocrisy behind the harasser witch hunt ~

What we’ve learned about the Women’s Movement is women were complicit in hurting other women. They ALL knew what was happening […]
 
Hollywood, a system run by Leftists. Women created these male bullies, and were all too happy to get ahead in the system, then run interference for these bullies.

 
Women Are Not Powerless; They’re Misguided ~ Another truth bomb from another black man. Mychal Massie is rightly offended by the lack of respect the liberal women have for themselves ~

Those like (April) Ryan (White House correspondent), Don Lemon (CNN host), and every liberal woman and in no few instances conservative women, must be held accountable for the zeitgeist of whoredom perpetuated with Hollywood, the music industry, and as has now been shown within Congress, political circles, and the mainstream media both print and cable. And I submit that they must be held accountable because they value their so-called careers more than they do their dignity and self-esteem.

 
Teaching Children Not to Come in From the Cold ~ Dealing with adversity. How winter weather can remind us that life isn’t supposed to be all warm and fuzzy ~

Cruel are those who desire that children be shielded from all suffering and misfortune. Such children will enter the world unprepared for the trials that inevitably await them. They will experience resentment and rage because they believe misfortunes to be unfair (and they often are unfair).
 
They will feel entitled to all benefits without the effort of meriting them. These poor children will suffer much more than those who embrace misfortune. They will melt like snowflakes before adversity. They will resort to drugs and addictions as a means to escape the reality of life’s misfortunes. They will come in from the least cold.