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How Israel-Palestine broke up Sheeran-Macklemore

The implosion of Ed Sheeran’s ongoing world tour tells us something about shifting attitudes toward Israel.

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I logged onto Slack this morning to find an incredible and indecipherable message from one of my coworkers. I briefly thought he was having a fever dream or I had forgotten how to read English. “Even some pro-Israel folks who hate Macklemore are ripshit at Robert Kraft for Streisand-effecting this guy,” the message read.

…included were several links that eventually helped explain why “Macklemore,” “Robert Kraft” and “Israel” would ever appear in the same sentence.

A daily, curiosity-driven guide to the big, weird, and fascinating ideas shaping the news cycle.

For those of you who have likewise not been following the fantastic implosion of Ed Sheeran’s ongoing tour, let’s break down this wild yarn. It begins with the washed-up millennial-cringe rapper Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, better known as Macklemore, who has lately a) taken up the cause of Palestinian independence and b) been opening for Sheeran on his blockbuster, 59-date Loop Tour.

Macklemore’s advocacy has not sat well with many observers, for reasons general (Gaza is one of the........

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