“Fair and balanced” is a buzz phrase that is really an excuse to skew hard to one side of the political spectrum to counter-act a message they perceive as supporting the opposite end of the spectrum. Both the left and right are guilty of it but it seems to be more often the right because they’re the ones shouting loudest about needing to present their perspective as balance. Both the left and right are engaged in a self-aggrandizing circlejerk in the name of some sort of superiority complex. I don’t know what that has to do with the links or the title of this post but this needs to be said.

Anyway, let’s just get to the links and move on with our lives. Let’s kick off with Natalie Dormer.

Despite allegations that the Planned Parenthood shooter was a transgender liberal, the man’s ex-wife says that the shooter is conservative, religious and anti-abortion. (Raw Story)

Remember when people liked Chris Christie? That was before he realized that having good relations with the White House was actually detrimental to his own White House aspirations. His Syrian refugee plans are just more evidence of how far to the right he’s going to win the nomination. (Esquire)

And while everyone on the right is willing to ban Syrian refugees, statistically, you’re seven times more likely to be killed by a gun nut than a terrorist. (Think Progress)

It’s been five years since Qatar was awarded the 2022 World Cup but there has almost no change to the treatment of migrant workers. (BBC News)

The latest Hilary Clinton emails shows how much internal conflict there was in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the Conservative government. (CP/Huffington Post)

A Quebec judge handed a man a $1 fine and then went off on Canada’s marijuana laws. It’s a good thing that the current Canadian government is working toward changing that. (Vice)

Brian Williams has been on air on MSNBC for the last two months. What has he been up to? (Associated Press)

Are you really into the farming simulation genre? You can get a $300 controller for Farming Simulator 2015. (Motherboard)

Did you know that Jingle Bells is originally a Thanksgiving song about drunken drag racing to impress women? (Upvoted)

You can take the man out of Weekend Update but you can’t take the Weekend Update out of the man. Seth Meyers breaks down Donald Trump’s use of false news and statistics.