Book Recommendations book review This House Has Old Bones: Shubnum Khan’s The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years Maura Krause reviews The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan By Maura Krause | Published on February 22‚ 2024 icon-comment 0 Share New Share Twitter Facebook Pinterest RSS Feed Gothic mansions with skeletal secrets creak and loom throughout centuries of literature. The architecture and landscapes change‚ and the stories inside range from satire to supernatural horror—but the house is always a force‚ not just a setting. In The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years‚ Shubnum Khan’s shadowy estate overlooks the sea on the eastern coast of South Africa. Her magic realist tale melds historical fiction and coming-of-age narrative. And the manor itself? Both it and the djinn it holds have an opinion on how much of the past should be revealed.  The girl is interfering too much; she is upsetting the house; it can no longer hold on to its secrets the way it used to. More and more of the past is slipping through its fingers‚ and the house begins to break down further; pipes start to leak‚ cracks open in the walls‚ mold spreads‚ and the cold becomes unbearable. History is beginning to emerge… Khan’s imbuement of sorrow and shame into the character of moldering 1920s palace Akbar Mansil is only one of the choices that render her American debut a triumph. Her novel is lush yet precise‚ tightly winding two narrative strands around each other to create a tapestry of love‚ loneliness‚ grief‚ and forgiveness. The central timeline is set in 2014 and follows Sana‚ a fifteen-year-old who moves to the mansion on the hill with her father‚ chasing a new home after Sana’s mother’s death four years prior. The giant house has been partially adapted into apartments where only solitary misfits stay for long. These residents are numb to the call of the house’s mysterious history‚ but Sana becomes fixated. As she begins to explore the abandoned and junk-filled east wing‚ the titular djinn hides in an untouched bedroom trembling with memories both beloved and unwelcome. After Sana at last unlocks this room‚ Khan introduces the 1920s-30s timeline of Indian sugar magnate Akbar Ali Khan‚ who immigrated from India to South Africa out of sheer love for the land‚ and the woman he loved. As the novel’s teenaged heroine discovers bits and pieces about the family that lived in Akbar Mansil‚ the text begins to intersperse scenes of these original inhabitants’ romantic drama and class tensions.  Khan’s decision to expand the historical tale into full narration‚ rather than limiting its details to those Sana finds in diaries and photographs‚ creates magic. Seeing the past as clearly as the present puts the reader not in the position of the questing Sana‚ but in the position of the house and the djinn. Even as we root for the girl to find the truth‚ we also want to protect her from the violent tragedy that we learn of before she does. Sana is haunted by so much already‚ trauma that finds physical form in a ghoulish apparition of her conjoined twin: a sister who died when the two babies were surgically separated. Despite these painful elements and vast emotional themes‚ The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is a hopeful book. Its construction is tight‚ cleaving to these two specific slices of life with only a little judiciously placed backstory‚ which keeps the novel from sprawling into the territory of a treatise on humanity. Khan’s lyrical‚ imagistic writing actually feels like memory—evocative and real‚ albeit seen through a slightly blurred lens. The cast of quirky contemporary characters at Akbar Mansil could come across as gimmicky‚ but instead these people become specific individuals who yearn to be a community despite themselves. Every image and object is included for a reason‚ either returning or becoming a motif‚ which gives the narrative a touch of the fairytale. As such‚ the story’s revelations dance from surprising to inevitable and back again‚ and it is deeply satisfying when every element of this localized mythology slots into place. Though the ending almost teeters into oversentimentality‚ its uplifting tidiness is earned by the novel’s folktale quality.  Let Khan’s poetic bent not imply that The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is unmoored from reality‚ however. Class‚ religion‚ and colorism play crucial roles in orchestrating the doom of Akbar Mansil‚ while 2014’s characters continue to clash over many of the same issues. The creeping social colonialism of Britain is especially present in one of the historical characters‚ while both timelines investigate gender roles and ethnic inequities. The book delves into its characters’ moments of suicidal ideation‚ mental illness‚ and overwhelming grief‚ all with great care and sensitivity. This foundation of the world’s cruelties melds with Khan’s rhythmic writing to create an immersive and memorable novel. The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is reminiscent of such luminaries as Isabel Allende and Elif Shafak‚ and the delicious power of its rotting manor will draw more recent comparisons to Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s incredible Mexican Gothic. Yet Shubnum Khan has created a fable all her own‚ and readers drawn to everything from historical fiction to young adult fantasy will find something to love in this haunting reverie of a book. [end-mark] The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is published by Viking. The post This House Has Old Bones: Shubnum Khan’s <;i>;The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years<;/i>; appeared first on Reactor.

In a survival horror game‚ sometimes having the ability to cheat and not worry about survival can be a nice play style. So is there a Creative Mode in Sons of the Forest? In the first game‚ The Forest‚ Creative Mode was given to you as a reward after completing the game. But how does it work in the sequel? Sons of The Forest: Is there a Creative Mode? Although the Early Access version didn’t have a Creative Mode‚ there is finally one in the full release of Sons of the Forest! If you think that means you can create a game from the jump in Creative Mode‚ you’re unfortunately wrong. In The Forest‚ you had to complete the game on any ending to unlock Creative Mode‚ and to play Creative Mode in Sons of the Forest it’s the same. We can tell from the Sons of the Forest 1.0 patch notes that Creative Mode has a new alternate inventory and it gives you the ability to skip build animations. It then confirms that this unlocks after completing the game’s story. ...

Explore the world‚ discover new secrets‚ defeat enemies‚ and‚ of course‚ collect your items. Here is everything you need to know about item rarities in Last Epoch. All Item Rarities in Last Epoch Item rarities in ARPGs and dungeon crawlers like Last Epoch will keep your character getting stronger and make you feel the slightest bit of accomplishment. Since I come from Diablo‚ seeing Legendaries rank higher than Uniques in Last Epoch is baffling to me‚ so here are all the item rarities in Last Epoch‚ explained. Last Epoch Rarities RarityColorDescriptionCommonWhiteThe most basic items you will get at the beginning of the game. These do not have any affixes – that is‚ modifiers.MagicBlueThese items are similar to the Common ones regarding their drop rate but will feature 1 to 2 affixes making them more desirable for starting players.RareYellowRare items feature 3 to 4 different affixes and are the most common drops during the midgame.ExaltedPurpleExalted items are simila...

In Last Epoch‚ you have the chance to play with other players online‚ but how does the co-op multiplayer feature work? While some games allow you to see other players roaming the world online‚ others will only let you join a party of friends that you know. Here’s how it works in this action RPG. Co-op multiplayer in Last Epoch‚ explained On March 9‚ 2023‚ Eleventh Hour Games added an online multiplayer option. But how exactly does co-op multiplayer work in Last Epoch? Well‚ you can be in a party of up to four players if you’ve chosen the “Play Online” option in the main menu upon booting up this game. While you’re allowed to play offline‚ you can choose online play for Last Epoch to play in a party with some friends. This will allow you to invite your Steam friends to join your party‚ and of course‚ they must choose to play online as well. Once someone is invited‚ a portal will appear and they can step through to enter their friend’s worl...

No‚ you can’t eat raw food and that murky water will indeed kill you at the minimum. Here is how to cure Sickness in Sons of the Forest. Sons of the Forest: How to cure Sickness There are a lot of ways to die in Sons of the Forest. Not only are you stranded on an island that will have you bring out your survival instincts or learn them the hard way‚ but you will also have to deal with an increasingly disturbing array of mutants that may have come out of a very disturbed mind – I mean‚ Legsy and Holey? Come on. Anyway‚ after a considerable amount of time‚ Sons of the Forest has left Early Access and has brought forward a lot of new additions and changes. One of those is Sickness a new status effect that you will have to suffer whenever drinking unclean water or eating bad food. Now‚ that’s realism! Thankfully‚ all you have to do to get rid of sickness is to consume meds or drink clean water. Imagine getting rid of Sickness with only a sip of clean water in rea...

A New York City law that would allow noncitizens to vote in local elections was deemed unconstitutional by a state appeals court on Wednesday. The law would have allowed roughly 800‚000 green card holders and individuals with federal work authorization living in the Big Apple to vote in the city’s elections‚ including in mayoral and City Council elections. Democratic and Republican elected officials have been in a drawn-out legal battle over the law‚ and the court’s ruling Wednesday hands Democrats a defeat. “We determine that this local law was enacted in violation of the New York State Constitution and Municipal Home Rule Law‚ and thus‚ must be declared null and void‚” Paul Wooten‚ associate justice of the Appellate Division for the Second Judicial Department in New York‚ wrote in the Wednesday ruling. The court’s 3-1 ruling determined that the state’s constitution clause that reads “every citizen shall be entitled to vote” only referred to U.S. citizens. Great news! We won in the appellate court and @NYCMayor’s attempt to implement the law to register noncitizens to vote in #NYC elections has been struck down. This is a big victory in preserving both the integrity of our elections &; the voice of American citizens!— Nicole Malliotakis (@NMalliotakis) February 21‚ 2024 The law was first introduced in January 2022 but did not go into effect amid a series of legal challenges. Several Republican officials sued immediately after it was introduced and a lower court subsequently ruled against it months later; Democratic Mayor Eric Adams and his administration had backed the law and sought an appeal‚ but that was struck down by the state court on Wednesday. Progressive Democrats put their full support behind the law‚ dubbed by them as the “Our City‚ Our Vote” bill that they claim would make elections more inclusive for the city’s massive noncitizen and migrant population. Republicans largely opposed the law‚ claiming that it would create massive voter fraud and only serve to give Democrats a win by bolstering their base in elections. “I won baby‚ I won‚” Council Republican leader Joe Borelli said in an interview on Wednesday‚ according to Politico. “This was an easy case. All they had to do was read the state constitution and municipal law. The criticism falls on the proponents of the bill.” The New York Immigration Coalition‚ a progressive organization that supported the law‚ expressed dismay at the ruling. “The lawsuit remains another shameful attempt by xenophobic Republicans who would disenfranchise residents rather than promote a more inclusive and participatory democracy‚” Murad Awawdeh‚ executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition‚ said in a statement on Wednesday. “Immigrant New Yorkers deserve a say in how their local government functions and spends their tax money‚ and we remain committed to ensuring the expansion of voting rights.” Noncitizen voting is not a widespread phenomenon in the U.S.‚ although some regions are pushing for it. Washington‚ D.C.‚ overcame hurdles and passed such a law in 2022‚ though it currently faces legal opposition; the state of Arizona has a clause in its Election Procedures Manual that could enable noncitizens to vote in federal elections. Originally published by the Daily Caller News Foundation Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post Blue City Law Allowing Noncitizens to Vote Ruled Unconstitutional appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Republicans controlled the Senate during President Donald Trump’s first impeachment trial in 2020. Then- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell‚ R-Ky.‚ allowed a full Senate trial in public view even though he would vote that Trump wasn’t guilty of the House’s charges.   Today‚ Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer‚ D-N.Y.‚ faces a similar choice with the House’s impeachment Feb. 13 of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Schumer could bury the matter in committee‚ dismiss the two articles of impeachment by a majority vote‚ or hold a Senate trial in public as McConnell did with Trump’s first impeachment.   “Democrats will do anything to avoid having to defend Mayorkas’s record‚ so Chuck Schumer is trying to break over 200 years of Senate precedent by tabling the impeachment trial and denying the American people the chance to hear the facts about Biden’s border policy‚” Sen. Ted Cruz‚ R-Texas‚ told The Daily Signal.   “The Constitution grants the Senate ‘the sole power to try all impeachments‚’ and it would be a travesty for the Senate to retreat from its constitutional duty‚” Cruz said.   Republican lawmakers argue that Mayorkas‚ appointed by President Joe Biden as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and in that office since February 2021‚ should be removed after presiding over a flood of millions of illegal aliens into the United States. Cruz joined Sen. Mike Lee‚ R-Utah‚ and 11 other GOP senators in sending a letter this week to McConnell‚ now Senate minority leader‚ urging him to “ensure that the Senate conducts a proper trial” after the House’s two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas reach the Senate. GOP leadership must push for an impeachment trial for DHS Secretary Mayorkas.We cannot allow Chuck Schumer to sweep the Biden administration’s border invasion under the rug. pic.twitter.com/qg1EFCdoF3— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) February 20‚ 2024 “Impeaching Alejandro Mayorkas was the right thing to do‚” Cruz told The Daily Signal. “Hand in hand with the cartels‚ he has aided and abetted the criminal invasion of the United States by tens of millions of illegal aliens. If the Senate were capable of neutrally evaluating the evidence of Mayorkas’ failure to enforce our border laws‚ he would be convicted 100 hundred to zero.”  The House’s first article of impeachment alleges that the homeland security secretary failed to secure America’s borders and enforce immigration laws‚ instead executing policies that incentivize illegal immigration. The second article contends that Mayorkas is in breach of the public trust and knowingly made false statements to Congress and the American people.   Mayorkas is the first Cabinet secretary to be impeached since 1876.  GOP Senators Calling for Full Trail Fellow Senate Republicans who signed Cruz and Lee’s letter urging McConnell to ensure a “proper trial” of Mayorkas are Tommy Tuberville of Alabama‚ Rick Scott of Florida‚ Eric Schmitt and Josh Hawley of Missouri‚ Ron Johnson of Wisconsin‚ JD Vance of Ohio‚ Roger Marshall of Kansas‚ Mike Braun of Indiana‚ Ted Budd of North Carolina‚ Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming‚ and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee.   “The Biden border crisis is the worst immigration crisis in American history—and it’s not even close‚” Tuberville told The Daily Signal. “This did not happen by accident‚ but by choice.  Secretary Mayorkas blindly followed the president’s orders and willfully refused to faithfully execute the laws of this country‚ as the Constitution requires‚ and for that‚ he deserves to be impeached.  We ought to remove him from office as soon as possible.”  The Daily Signal asked the offices of all 49 Senate Republicans whether they will demand Senate leadership hold a full trial on the House’s charges against Mayorkas. In addition to the 13 signers of the letter to McConnell‚ these Senate Republicans responded‚ indicating they support a trial: John Cornyn of Texas‚ Tim Scott and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina‚ Katie Britt of Alabama‚ John Kennedy of Louisiana‚ and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia. “Sen. Schumer will do everything he can to sweep this under the rug‚” Cornyn said. “I believe that the House acted appropriately‚ and Secretary Mayorkas should be impeached because he lied under oath by saying the border is secure.”  A spokesperson for South Carolina’s Scott told The Daily Signal that “accountability must be a priority” during the crisis along the southern border. Capito’s office also indicated her desire to examine the articles of impeachment in a trial.   The Senate “should fulfill its constitutional charge and hold a proper trial in full view of the public‚” Britt said. “The Biden administration cannot sweep the devastating consequences of its mass migration agenda under the rug.”  What’s Next As Senate minority leader‚ McConnell may have some sway over Schumer’s decision‚ but ultimately‚ it is up to Schumer to decide whether the Senate will hold a full impeachment trial for Mayorkas. If Schumer doesn’t call for a trial‚ he could refer the two articles of impeachment to a Senate committee and allow the matter to die there. Or‚ the impeachment articles could be dismissed altogether by a majority vote. The Daily Signal asked Schumer’s office whether he plans to hold a full trial‚ but didn’t receive a response. “The Senate has a constitutional obligation to conduct a thorough trial which examines the secretary’s willful and repeated refusal to uphold the law‚” Lummis said‚ adding: “I urge Republican leadership not to stand idly by as Sen. Schumer attempts to sweep this dereliction of duty under the rug.”   Braun noted rumors that Schumer would seek to put a Mayorkas impeachment trial “in a desk drawer by creating and referring the proceedings to a special committee.” The Senate is scheduled to return to Washington on Feb. 26.   “As United States senators‚ we have a constitutional duty to conduct a proper trial‚” Budd said. “To simply dismiss the articles of impeachment against Secretary Mayorkas without doing so would be a serious dereliction of duty on the part of Leader Schumer and Senate Democrats.”  If Schumer does greenlight a Senate trial‚ it is unlikely that Mayorkas would be convicted and removed in the Democrat-controlled chamber‚ since removal requires a two-thirds majority vote.   Vice President’s Role Earlier this week‚ Florida’s Scott also sent a letter to Vice President Kamala Harris‚ urging her to “fulfill your constitutional duty to serve as the presiding officer of Secretary Mayorkas’ impeachment trial.”   “When President Biden appointed you as the ‘border czar’ in early 2021‚ he tasked you with ‘stemming the migration to our southern border‚’” Scott wrote to Harris‚ a Democrat who formerly represented California in the Senate‚ adding: In accepting that appointment‚ you acknowledged a need ‘to deal with the root causes’ of the flows of illegal immigration across our southern border. As such‚ you should be keenly interested in learning whether a high-ranking member of your administration is one of those ‘root causes’ through his willful and persistent refusal to enforce our country’s immigration laws‚ frustrating the very core function of your role as President Biden’s ‘border czar.’  Harris’ office didn’t respond to The Daily Signal’s request for comment before publication.   Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state.  The post These Republicans Demand a Full Senate Impeachment Trial for Mayorkas appeared first on The Daily Signal.

The work of a statesman is to identify a problem that no one else has seen and courageously step forward to fix it‚ said the author of the book “Gateway to Statesmanship.”   John Burtka is the president of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute‚ commonly known as “ISI‚” an organization cofounded by William F. Buckley Jr. that promotes conservative thought on college campuses by teaching the core ideas behind the free market‚ the American Founding‚ and Western civilization. Burtka spoke on “The Kevin Roberts Show” about the issue of statesmanship and bringing honor to the world of politics.   He said that 10 years ago‚ conservatives were more accepted in the mainstream but that they acted as a “pet conservative‚” an oddity whose only purpose was to go on talk shows and newspapers and editorialize their “strange” traditionalist positions.   Currently‚ the “pet conservative” has been all but lost in big news stations and publications‚ he said. This is partly because the “mainstream” has become far more left-leaning.  Despite this‚ Burtka believes America’s situation is surprisingly better than it was. “I actually feel better about America’s position today than I did four years ago‚” he commented. “And to some extent‚ that’s because things are worse than they were four years ago.”  He reasoned that the world has become so hostile to conservatism‚ it actually empowers conservatives to fight back.  The solution to conservatives’ political estrangement is leaders with moral clarity. Burtka said that great leaders “transcend their political moment and they unite the common people towards more permanent ends than politics.”   Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts asked the author what America’s biggest downfall is. Burtka responded that the U.S. has a “spiritual problem.” He said in order to fix the issue‚ great leaders need to move society closer to “God‚ Himself.” This‚ he said‚ leads a society to greatness.  Political leaders need to unite everyone toward a higher end‚ he said‚ and that ultimate end is God.   Burtka pointed to profound moral leaders of the past as a guide‚ especially Cicero‚ the ancient Roman philosopher and statesman.  “Cicero describes what he calls a shortcut to greatness‚” the ISI president explained. In brief‚ Burtka said that shortcut is to “fake it till you make it.”    “Start dressing like that person [you want to become] and start talking like them‚” Burtka explained. “Start reading the things that they would be reading. … Start surrounding yourself with people that are virtuous‚ … because the reality is that you sort of almost have to trick yourself.”  He expressed hope in the America of today because he sees many patriots across the country as “bastions of light‚” and those bastions are “fed up” with the path the U.S. is on and are ready for change. “I think your everyday American is ready for something new.”  Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state.  The post How Not to Just Be a ‘Token Conservative’: Bringing Virtue Back to Politics appeared first on The Daily Signal.

A who’s who of transgender activists was scheduled this week to meet in Geneva at the World Health Organization to develop new guidelines on “the health of trans and gender-diverse people.” We can presume the meeting took place‚ even though public notice of it didn’t appear on the U.N. website listing meetings and conferences. Until recently‚ the international classification system of diseases treated gender confusion as a mental or behavioral disorder. But in 2019‚ the new edition of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-11) replaced “transsexualism” with the concept of “gender incongruence.” It moved its discussion to a chapter on sexual health. The purpose of that change was clear; specifically‚ to destigmatize transgender identities. According to the WHO‚ gender “refers to the characteristics of women‚ men‚ girls and boys that are socially constructed.” The United Nations‚ of which WHO is a prominent agency‚ claims that “gender identity” refers to a person’s “deeply felt internal and individual experience of gender.” That may involve “modification of bodily appearance or function by medical‚ surgical or other means.” It still concedes that sex is a real thing‚ but that concession does nothing to slow its headlong rush to embrace gender ideology. Clearly‚ the WHO is trying to create a document to endorse “gender-affirming care.” Then it can push such official guidelines on health systems throughout the world. How can we tell this is an ideological campaign? We need look no further than the biographies of the guidance development group‚ which reveal a rogues’ gallery of gender ideologues. The Heritage Foundation noted that in a comment it submitted to the WHO earlier this year. (The Daily Signal is the news outlet of The Heritage Foundation.) Take‚ for example‚ Chris McLachlan‚ a South African woman who identifies as a man and serves on the board of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (a group that pushes gender quackery). Another member‚ Cianán Russell‚ is a policy officer with ILGA Europe and claims to be “nonbinary.” The group drafting the new guidelines lacks any doctors who are critical of the “gender affirming” model of treating patients with gender dysphoria. Nor does it include any detransitioners‚ who regret their use of cross-sex hormones and invasive surgical procedures.  This push to develop gender medicine guidelines seems to violate the WHO’s own standards for developing guidance. The U.N. considers access to evidence-based medical care as part of the right to health. Its rules require‚ then‚ that any group issuing guidelines be unbiased‚ and that its recommendations be grounded in solid evidence. It’s no surprise‚ then‚ that many physicians have criticized this WHO plan. And while gender ideology has corrupted much of the U.N. human rights apparatus‚ the special rapporteur on violence against women and girls has been an outlier. Reem Alsalem still believes that women and girls deserve protection‚ privacy and single-sex spaces. She penned an open letter to Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus‚ director-general of the WHO‚ objecting to the group’s biased makeup and its disregard for women’s rights. To judge from its stated agenda‚ the group is poised to call for all U.N. member states to recognize individuals’ “self-determined gender identity” in domestic laws‚ policies and health care systems. But that’s not a health or medical issue. It’s a political goal rooted in gender ideology. Gender ideologues claim that when someone’s “gender identity” and biological sex conflict‚ governments should recognize the former‚ not the latter. That requires that men who identify as women be legally recognized as women‚ and vice versa. It erases the legal mechanisms that have preserved women-only spaces‚ such as restrooms‚ domestic-abuse shelters and prisons. This is already happening in Western countries‚ where such policies permit men to compete in female sports and require that women undress in changing rooms with men who identify as women. These policies are the direct result of replacing “sex”—or what used to be its synonym‚ “gender”—with self-defined “gender identity” in nondiscrimination laws.  This ideology is unscientific and incoherent. But whatever its merits‚ such political and metaphysical questions are clearly outside the competence and mandate of the World Health Organization. The group is also considering classifying cross-sex hormones as “essential medications” that countries must make widely available. This classification is applied to medicines used for pain relief‚ surgery‚ treating mental health conditions and palliative care. The off-label use of cross-sex hormones is a far cry from medications such as morphine‚ acetaminophen or lorazepam. This isn’t the first time that the World Health Organization has misused this designation. During the COVID-19 pandemic‚ the Global Humanitarian Response Plan treated “sexual and reproductive health services” as “essential.” It added mifepristone and misoprostol‚ used for chemical abortions‚ to the essential medications list so women could “self-manage some or all stages of a medical abortion … in the comfort of their own home.” A WHO claim that cross-sex hormones are “essential” would be a medical disaster. It would help spread the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones like a contagion across the world. But we know that this is not good medicine. There are many known health risks associated with “gender affirmation” interventions—and likely countless unknown risks. For example‚ cross-sex hormones cause sterilization when used for an extended period. Other risks include bone loss‚ loss of brain function‚ worsened mental health‚ increased cardiac risks and increased risk of cancer. Several European countries are starting to question these interventions for their own minors. Why would the WHO push them now? Under the cover of its work on combating HIV‚ Western gender activists and wealthy donors appear to be trying to funnel these drugs and medical interventions to the developing world. Despite its medical pretense‚ this looks more like a coordinated campaign to promote gender ideology around the world. Wealthy donor countries should not use the WHO to bully other countries into adopting these radical interventions. Many countries around the world struggle with real‚ dire health emergencies‚ such as tuberculosis‚ malaria‚ HIV and malnutrition. They look to the World Health Organization for sound medical guidance and critical aid dollars. Imposing experimental gender medicine on the very places that depend on financial and medical aid is public health blackmail. The WHO should disband this cabal of activists. The world’s poor need unbiased and evidence-based health advice‚ not the gender fixations of a narrow band of elites in the developed world. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the url or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post WHO Enlists Radical Gender Activists to Develop New Guidelines on Trans ‘Health’ appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Yale Reinstates Standardized Testing for Admissions