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Ariana Grande does what Donald Trump can't

A pop star is leader of the free world for a day

terrorism, isis, ariana grande
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A good time, like the experience at a pop concert, is among the most powerful collective responses to jihadist nihilism. Photo: iSTOCK

Francis Wilkinson | Bloomberg
For a few hours on Sunday, Ariana Grande, a 23-year-old pop star from Boca Raton, Florida, was the leader of the free world. The position has been open for months. Contestants ranging from German Chancellor Angela Merkel to, improbably, Chinese President Xi Jinping have been auditioning for the job.
 
Two weeks after 22 people were killed and more than 60 injured in a terrorist attack at her “Dangerous Woman” concert in Manchester in the UK, Grande returned to the city to hallow the ground and soothe the survivors. In the process, she rededicated her generation to the proposition that all