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Plus, Introducing Education Supplies for Teachers & Homeschooler.

BUT DID ANYONE NOTICE? MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central Suspend Programming in Support of Anti-Gun National Walkout.

If going dark is Viacom’s way of pandering to its core audience, I say: Pander away!

DUE TO “HORRIFIC CIRCUMSTANCES” IN SOUTH AFRICA, Australia considers fast-track visas for white South African farmers.

NEWS YOU CAN USE? The Nine Types of Craft Beer Drinkers Who Will Drive You Nuts.

Say what you will about certain craft devotees, but we’re living in a Golden Age of beer.

I’LL BET YOU DIDN’T KNOW THAT Bruce Wayne is a Yale Law alumnus.

PITY THE KURDS: Turkish forces surround Kurdish town in northern Syria.

Turkey launched its assault on the border enclave on Jan. 20 to drive out Syrian Kurdish forces that it views as “terrorists” linked to Kurdish rebels fighting inside Turkey. The Turkish military said the siege of Afrin, the main town in the enclave of the same name, began Monday after the military took control of “critical areas.”

A passage out of Afrin remained partially open, and thousands of people have reportedly fled the town, heading toward nearby areas controlled by the Syrian government. Syria’s Al-Ikhbariya TV showed cars, trucks and tractors loaded with civilians driving out of the town.

Panic was spreading in the town as the Turkish forces approached, and some civilians came under fire when they tried to leave, according to residents and Syrian Kurdish officials.

That’s a war crime, and if true provides evidence that Ankara is conducting ethnic cleansing rather than anti-terror operations.

Related: The Missed Kurdish Moment.

DOESN’T FIT THE NARRATIVE: Florida Teen Radicalized by Islam Goes on Fatal Stabbing Spree; Nets Silent.

NOT GOOD: Ford is recalling nearly 1.4 million midsize cars in North America because the steering wheel can detach from the steering column and drivers could lose control.

Intermittent steering is not a frequently sought-after option.

BEING SYMPATHETIC IS NOT ENOUGH: ABC reports that the family of Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich, who was killed in 2016, has filed a lawsuit against Fox News and others, citing in their complaint “Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress” (among other tort claims).

Now, you’d have to be a pretty cold-blooded monster to not feel sorry for any family who loses a son to violence. And playing amateur psychologist for a moment, it’s equally plausible that in an unsolved murder, the grieving parents would seek to hold someone responsible for something.

In light of the Supreme Court’s Snyder v. Phelps ruling, though, I don’t see how this case has much change to get out of the starting gate as a matter of law. In that case, a family who lost a son in combat were mortified at the Westboro Baptist Church holding odious and offensive protests at the funeral, including holding signs that read “Thank God for dead soldiers” and “Fag troops.” Pretty ugly stuff. I’d be offended too.

That said, the Supremes got it right:

“Given that Westboro’s speech was at a public place on a matter of public concern, that speech is entitled to “special protection” under the First Amendment. Such speech cannot be restricted simply because it is upsetting or arouses contempt. “If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.”

As sympathetic and truly victimized as the family is, allowing this kind of tort claim to apply to news reports opens the floodgates for every snowflake on the left or puritanical prude on the right to sue media for merely “offensive” speech, even if it is incorrect.

*Disclosure: I was on the team of media lawyers who filed an amici brief in the Supreme Court urging the rejection of such claims.*

CHANGE: Permitted 3D printed home made in less than 24 hours for less than $4000.

WAIT, CROWDER? Twitter Suspends Conservative Comedian Steven Crowder.

PAULA BOLYARD: Some solid parental responses to the school walkout.

NEWS YOU CAN USE: Colorful Fabric Loses Magical Outrage Powers.

I’M GUESSING THIS IS NOT AN UNCOMMON CONCLUSION: I Don’t Buy Joy Behar’s Apology To Christians.

Behar didn’t seem to move on the issue, however, until another interesting piece of news popped up.

Oprah Winfrey, arguably the most powerful woman in America and number one on the Democrats presidential wish list, also believes in God, and practices her faith in much the same way Pence does.

Suddenly, Behar couldn’t apologize for her myopic mouth fast enough. I’ll let Kira Davis give you the details of her apology, as she covered them here, but the summary is that she apologized to Pence personally, then took his advice and apologized to Christians on The View.

I want to believe Behar’s apology is truthful and sincere, but I just can’t. For one, she didn’t seem concerned about Pence or Christian attitudes until Oprah counted herself among their ranks. Suddenly Behar is all about Christians.

In fact, she revealed she is one herself!

This sudden acceptance is a stark break from her in the past, as not only was she venomous toward Christians when striking out at Pence, she previously compared Christians to the Taliban for being pro-life.

Behar was never a great actress, and clearly “devout” and “contrite” are outside her range.

PROJECT: I Made My Own “Knight Rider” Trans Am Replica—Complete With a Working KITT.

HEALTH: Doctors shocked by 3.5-inch air bubble where part of man’s brain should be.

IT’S ACTUALLY AN ARTIFACT OF THE ALIENS’ DIMENSIONAL PORTAL: Strange Gamma Rays From The Centre of Our Galaxy Are Not What Astronomers Thought.

JOHN MCCAIN: CIA Nominee ‘Needs to Explain the Nature and Extent of Her Involvement’ in Torture.

SPACE: A super-Earth around a red star could be wet and wild. “Astronomers have spotted a potentially habitable exoplanet around a bright dwarf star. Odds are good we’ll hear more about K2-155d in the future.”

WELL, GOOD: The Navy’s Virginia-Class Attack Subs Just Became More Lethal. “The Virginia-class Block V submarines will be longer than previously built Virginia-class subs, to accommodate four Virginia Payload Module tubes, which will each contain seven Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAMs).”

The Block V boats are meant to replace the striking power the Navy is losing as its aging fleet of four Ohio-class SSGNs are retired.

NOT AGAIN: A raft of flaws in AMD chips makes bad hacks much, much worse. “AMD says its Secure Processor is impenetrable. Instead, it can harbor malware.”

THAT’S A LOT OF KIDS: UCLA Hecklers Accuse Treasury Sec. Mnuchin of Sentencing ‘9 Billion Children’ to Death.

CIVIL RIGHTS UPDATE: Colorado Senate passes bill approving concealed carry without permit.

The bill seems doomed in the Democrat-controlled House, however.

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: Florida lets students sue colleges for stifling their speech under new law. We need federal free speech protections, too.