Your task is to extract the thesis of an opinionated news article by selecting some of its text segments. The thesis is a summarization of what the author wants to persuade the reader of. Your answer should consist of segments of the given text. Note that you are not allowed to combine different sentences.

Input: Consider Input: Paris: Why Obama's presence Sunday would have been height of hypocrisy. Commentators from both sides of the political aisle have discussed the "optics" of President Obama's absence from the massive, anti-terrorism march in Paris on January 11 . Sadly, they've all missed the point . It would have represented a glaring hypocrisy for Mr  Obama, or any highly- ranked official from his administration, to attend the rally . A sad fact about our pundit class, conservative or progressive, is that they too often miss the obvious . That condition infects both critics and supporters of the Obama administration . They simply cannot connect the dots with this leader . After all ,  he is an unusual president . So let me draw a line between the unconnected dots . Just two years ago, the administration blamed the killing of the American ambassador to Libya, and three security personnel, on a video that negatively depicted the prophet Muhammad . Remember that? You see , it was an unknown, bigoted Christian man from California who single- handedly caused the death of our ambassador . According to the administration, the film by Nakoula Basseley Nakoulahad sparked spontaneous riots to defend Muhammad's honor , and our ambassador got caught up in the mayhem . Mr  Obama called the filmmaker a "shadowy character," and in front of the United Nations and the world, blamed the attack on the "disgusting" movie . At that podium, he declared that "the future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam." Congressional hearings later proved that the violence in Benghazi was due to a coordinated terrorist attack , and had nothing to do with a protest over the movie . But administration officials stuck to the lie . Just a few weeks after the attack, the filmmaker was arrested on parole charges by federal authorities , probably taking orders from Attorney General Holder . Now fast-forward to the rally in Paris-- the one that Holder would not deem worthy to attend, even though he was in Paris at the time . The one that President Obama, nor Vice President Biden, nor Secretary of State Kerry would attend either , even though other major world leaders rushed to Paris to demonstrate their solidarity . Let me draw the line between the dots a little darker :. Q : Who did the terrorists attack in Paris on January 7? A: A satirist magazine that had mocked Christians for years . Q: Why did the terrorists kill those specific journalists and cartoonists? A : For a mocking portrayal of Muhammad . Q : Isn't that the same issue that had enraged the White House after the Benghazi attack? A : You betcha . The "bad optics" that so many pundits are complaining about actually fit perfectly into the philosophical mindset of this White House . They do not want us to insult their Islamist friends . In the eyes of the Obama administration, the jihadists in Libya and France committed the same savagery for the same reason . Give the administration credit for consistency . They're not about to appear sympathetic to a French cartoonist when they had condemned the filmmaker from California . Having persecuted the latter , they weren't about to march to defend the former . What represents bad optics to most civilized people's worldview represents good optics to the Obama administration's worldview . It's all too clear that America and the world have no hope of stopping these never-ending barbaric acts until a Reagan-like figure steps up . A leader who will honestly and courageously define such terrorism as it really is : An Islamist's interpretation of the Koran . That's the definition recently used by President el-Sisi of Egypt, a man of far greater honesty and courage than America's current counterpart . Only with an American leader of Reagan-like strength will we be able to develop a plan and the determination to defeat the dark ideology of Islamism , just like Reagan managed to defeat the Soviet Union and its evil ideology . Dr  Michael Youssef is the founding pastor of the Church of the Apostles in Atlanta, Georgia and the author of over 30 books, including his most recent, "Jesus, Jihad & Peace: What Does Bible Prophecy Say About World Events Today?" (Feb  17, 2015, Worthy Publishers) . Find him online at www.michaelyoussef.com and follow him on Twitter: @MichaelAYoussef .

Output: It would have represented a glaring hypocrisy for Mr  Obama, or any highly- ranked official from his administration, to attend the rally


Input: Consider Input: The Observer view on the Paris attacks. Last week's attack on Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris and the subsequent, linked hostage-taking at a Jewish supermarket were appalling acts of inhumanity that should be universally condemned . Despite the killers' grandiose claim to be "defenders of the prophet", their actions amounted to cold-blooded murder of defenceless people . Their pre-planned purpose was to terrorise, divide and dismay . Their aim was cowardly, contemptible and cruel . The perpetrators deserve only ignominy and the bitter scorn of the world . The attacks should be understood, more broadly, as a crude attempt to stifle a publication and its journalists who exercised, in vivid, unapologetic terms, the fundamental, priceless right to freedom of speech and expression . This right, though never absolute, was established through centuries of struggle and is still far from fully accepted around the world . There are many others - governments, dictators, religious fanatics - who would also like to shoot it down . That the killers' made Jews their additional, parallel target lends a woefully familiar, disgustingly antisemitic twist to a three-day trail of carnage and grief . By so doing, they hoped yet another community would be left in fear . This attack was thus also an attack on the French nation as a whole, on the values and beliefs that have sustained it, and on the message of liberty, equality and fraternity it has unevenly but persistently propagated . And while its principal victims were irreverent secularists , it was also an attack on faith - an offence against moral as well as human law . It was an attack on the life spiritual itself, whether conducted through church, mosque, synagogue or personal observance. It was an act of utter godlessness . By attempting to murder love with fear, to kill laughter with hatred, to substitute inflexible dogmas for shared truths, the masked gunmen attacked us all , European, American and Arab, Muslim, Christian and Jew, black, brown and white alike . In doing so, they posed a vital question . How, in the face of this assault on our common home, our common humanity, do we respond? Do we meet terror with a greater terror of our own or do we seek another way? Shall we unite together or shall we give in to division, discrimination and distrust? In Paris, and in other cities around the world, a spontaneous reply has already been given . The marchers, demonstrators, office workers, journalists, bloggers, politicians and governments who declared, with one voice:"Je suis Charlie", sent an immediate, welcome message of solidarity and defiance . Today, this roar of courage and belief will reach ear-splitting levels when people from every background join a march in Paris for unity, freedom and democracy . Out of blood and horror a unique moment has arisen, for France and all Europe . The choice is stark and unavoidable . It is between the ongoing struggle for enlightenment - Europe's gift to the world - and a gathering, hate-filled darkness . The evident danger is that this spirit of unity may not endure . French Muslim leaders have roundly condemned the attackers . "These men are criminals... For me, they are not Muslims," said the imam of Drancy . But at less emotional moments, French Muslims also speak of routine, entrenched discrimination, of insensitive restrictions such as curbs on women wearing the veil, and of a French policy of assimilation and integration, the flipside of Britain's let- it-all-hang-out multiculturalism , which has failed to achieve equal rights and equal treatment . It is this same embattled Muslim community, fractured, underprivileged, marginalised and disrespected which produced the killers . It is clear, conversely, that many French people have a problem with Islam . According to an Ipsos survey last year, 63% of French voters said Islam was not compatible with French values . Almost three-quarters said Muslims wanted to impose their values on others . Surveys also suggest seven out of 10 voters believe sections of the immigrant community have failed to integrate over the past 30 years . Some 65% say immigration levels are out of control . Anti-Muslim and anti-immigration movements are growing in strength in Germany, Britain and across Europe . But France's already powerful far-right Front National is certain to use the Charlie Hebdo affair to exploit these fears and prejudices . The urgent, daunting challenge for President Francois Hollande's ruling socialists, and the centre-right of former President Nicolas Sarkozy, is to plot a different, more conciliatory path . Their task: to tap into this spirit of unity, forging a new reality for both majority and minority communities . Muslim world leaders can help halt the cycles of violence and confrontation , if they wish . But this common challenge will not be assisted by wrong-headed, kneejerk reactions by western security services . In France, there is justified criticism that the Kouachi brothers were not under close watch, given their past record of extremism . Yet it would be wrong to massively increase monitoring of the Muslim community , thereby exacerbating existing tensions . Much better to use any additional resources to engage, rather than confront , while focusing more exactly on identifying truly hardline fanatics . Similarly ,  calls for more cash to counter a mounting but undefined terrorist menace to Britain should be treated with both respect and circumspection . Andrew Parker, head of MI5, warned last week of the "growing gap between the increasingly challenging threat and the decreasing availability of capabilities to address it" . But extended, intrusive internet surveillance does not necessarily bring increased security . What it does do is potentially deal a further blow to personal liberty, including the ability to speak and communicate freely and openly . The response to the Charlie Hebdo killings, in the longer term, should also include wider acceptance of the proper limits to individual and social freedoms, including free speech . It is not acceptable, for example, to use racist terms to describe a different ethnic group . It is not acceptable to resort to stereotypes to vilify minorities or ,  say, members of the opposite sex . And it is sometimes not appropriate, nor particularly funny, to deliberately provoke Muslims by publishing cartoons of the prophet that they view as blasphemous, offensive and insulting . Having said that, individuals or groups should not seek to prevent or ban published material just because they do not like it, do not agree or do not get the joke . Even more so, the ridiculing of Islam, however much resented, cannot be used to justify or explain gross acts of violence . The freedom to speak, write, draw and laugh fearlessly, without censorship and unreasonable restraint, lies at the very heart of a tolerant, democratic and inclusive society .

Output: Last week's attack on Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris and the subsequent, linked hostage-taking at a Jewish supermarket were appalling acts of inhumanity that should be universally condemned


Input: Consider Input: Last minute Christmas shopping: Five things to avoid. This weekend millions of Americans will take to the mall to get last-minute gifts for their loved ones . They will pour through the already-picked-over selections to try and find "the gift." For those of you who are forced into the mall this weekend : I'm sorry . Here are five things to avoid as we enter the final shopping days before Christmas . 1 \. Believe the best bargains are found if you wait until the last minute . While it's true , retailers are starting their after-Christmas sales earlier than ever - just as the Christmas shopping season starts before you get to Thanksgiving dessert - seasoned shoppers know(1) value and(2) bargain do not mean the same thing . We all know just because something is cheap doesn't mean it's "a bargain" or a "value." It's only a bargain if it is truly something you want or need, and are able to get it at a deep discount . Often last minute shoppers don't know what they want . For those shopping this weekend you will have to settle for what circumstances present , which in many cases will be cheap materials, but not a bargains . The value is the ratio of quality (or quantity) to price . Low quality at a low price is no value , especially when compared to high quality at a low price . Values tend go early in the holiday shopping season . Cheap stays on the shelf until it's all that's left . 2 . Believe there is still money to spend in your budget this month . Last minute shopping, particularly for December, means buying during the back half of the month . That's typically when most income for the month is already committed , and any incremental spending means "borrowing against the future." It's better to buy early - and spread the purchasing over time - so you can more easily absorb the expense . Nobody likes that "January surprise." And for new last- minute shoppers, that surprise can be surprisingly BIG! 3 . Believe you can still find "just the right gift for Uncle George." Waiting until the last minute to shop means having to make compromises . Time and selection are your two greatest "friends" when you shop early . But for last minute shoppers they become your two greatest nightmares : you're pressed for time and all the best colors, sizes and values, are gone . Don't put yourself under a lot of pressure to find that perfect gift . At this stage in the game, a gift will do . 4 . Believe you still need "just one more" gift . We should all take a lesson out of Santa's playbook: 1. Make a list. 2. Check it twice . Too often last minute shopping isn't just an indication you've waited to the bitter end to buy those needed gifts . It also means you've waited too long to plan that shopping . And when that happens you're never quite sure if you have all the gifts you need (it seems keeping track of what you've bought is just as hard as planning what to buy in advance!) . So you keep buying just one more gift... just to make sure you've covered all your bases . By the way, that's when shoppers are especially susceptible to impulse buying . An attention-arresting display will attract last minute shoppers like honey attracts flies! 5 . Believe that the shopper has the advantage . While it is true that the Saturday before Christmas is still one of the busiest shopping days of the year , the advantage has swung back in favor of the retailer . With fewer hours to shop until Santa fills his sack, the retailer has the upper hand , especially if they've had a strong Q4 . For some, shopping the weekend before Christmas can bring the ultimate sense of that holiday experience . For those who enjoy shopping as a pastime, it's one of the best times to be in the mall , but for those folks who need to fulfill a shopping list, it can be one of the worst . The early bird still does get the worm . And the late bird gets ... the opportunity to pick over the dregs with a lot of other "late birds." With the brief time remaining before Christmas, use it to "shop for fun" not for necessity . It will truly help keep you in the Christmas spirit .


Output: Here are five things to avoid as we enter the final shopping days before Christmas This weekend millions of Americans will take to the mall to get last-minute gifts for their loved ones