Your Daily Spiel For July 18

Houston Astros player Alex Bregman Wikimedia Commons

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu surprised Israeli lawmakers on Wednesday when he blocked a vote on a bill that would grant the government the power to remove or block content from social media sites. The Facebook law would have deleted content if it incited terrorism without criminal proceeding or any admissible evidence.

Oshri Bitau, 10, an Ethiopian-Israeli, was shown on Hadashot television playing the piano exceptionally last week. But until this weekend, Oshri’s family couldn’t afford a piano. Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak gifted the young talent with a piano on Sunday.

Alex Bregman, Jewish third baseman for the Houston Astros, snapped a 10th-inning tie with his two-run shot in the All-Star game, which led the American League to an 8-6 victory over the National League on Tuesday night in Washington, D.C. Bregman was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.

B’nai Brith Canada claims that a recent court decision is a win for freedom of expression, after a judge dismissed a libel suit against the group, citing Ontario’s relatively new law designed to crack down on strategic lawsuits against public participation, or SLAPP suits.