WOW!!!!! A STRONG WAKEUP CALL

     Once again my choice of topic was preempted by another, stronger one. And while it has a particular call of an alarming wakeup for Jews, something I have been talking about for quite some time, it also speaks to the world and a choice we must all make and probably very soon, sooner than we think and definitely sooner than we had hoped for.
     People are afraid. People are desperate. Perhaps people think that this is a time never before seen or lived through, but they are wrong. Perhaps people are more cowardly, knowing that they could undergo great personal harm should they speak out? Perhaps, but then again, who says that harm will not happen should one not speak out? Nothing in history tells us that and in fact, it teaches us the opposite.
     It is said that a smart Jew will always have a passport up to date and ready but a wise one will have it in his pocket. Once that almost seemed to be a witticism but now, now.....there is concern but again, I will ask my question - where in this crazy world that we have now will there be a place of refuge, of safety, a place to raise children in security, a place for the elderly to live out their lives in peace and quiet, a place for people to build lives free of concern for their very lives, never mind their living! And it will be not only the Jews seeking haven but all the people who disagree with the powers in charge and control.
     We all remember the words of Martin Niemoller, the Protestant pastor who spoke of the taking away of people and the silence of others because they were not them and so now here is the modern version of it according to the brilliant piece I read this morning.

"First they came for the Muslims, and I did not speak out–

Because I was not a Muslim.

Then they came for the Mexicans, and I did not speak out–

Because I was not a Mexican.

Then they came for–

Wait! We were supposed to be safe this time!"

     You see there is no safety this time. The world has shrunk that much and the poison that is affecting one country, the corruptness that is sickening all countries, has arrived here as well, along with a willful blindness of the people, refusing to see and hear what is right there. We have a president elect who - dare I say it - could actually be committing treason, or colluding with those who have or already have done so being in collusion with a foreign country, Russia, and its leader for who he has already professed admiration - as he arranged for them to hack our election and interfere with the very bones of our country. Methinks the man doth protest too much now in his denial, with 17 - 17!!!- agencies confirming Russian interference. Even his own party members are calling for an investigation - which we have had already!! We have choices for office to run this nation all with one thing in common - they are all fantastically wealthy and come from areas of the economy that do not speak well for the common man, the supposed beneficiaries of a Trump presidency. What is going on? And why are we silent?

     A touch of humor in a not so funny situation? Be assured we are okay for Sarah Palin has promised that she will keep an eye on Russia. Whew! Such a relief!

     Here is why I am so concerned. The history of my people is right there and takes place again and again.

"There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them. If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them…." From the Megillah or Scroll of Esther

"We got next,  because we’ve always got next" and then the rest of you. No one is immune, no one. Esther was told by Mordechai that she had to speak up, waiting was not a good idea even if she seemingly had a good plan - NOW was imperative and so it is now. NOW we must stand up to those who would destroy our world. NOW is the time to stand up to corruption of the soul that seems to be catching. NOW is the time to call a lie a lie and not hide it under a new name. NOW is the time to stand up, demand the truth, demand that our country live up to its history and its values, that we turn aside all the bad that seems to be growing daily, replicating itself in leaps and bounds.
     We all said that we would know the signs, that we would be ready and yes, there are people, Jew and non Jew alike who do have escape plans in place, but again I ask where is that place of refuge? The world is too small for that to be. Instead, what we need to do is be brave and stand up and shout and yell and fight against a redarkening of our planet, against the new wave of young and vicious anti Semites, against the shadow of the swastika once more, against the polarization of our country and indeed the world, to fight against the loss of our souls.
     So today's  original posting will be here tomorrow - I hope - but today's had to deal with this. It is that scary and worse, that possible, in all its facets and intimations. Not again, folks, not again. Not for me and not for you and not for our loved ones and not for the world. NOW is the time to make sure that it is so.
     And so I borrow the closing quote from the article that is still giving me the shakes.
“These are the times, “ wrote Thomas Paine, “that try men’s souls.”

The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumphs."

      Let our souls and our hearts and our minds be up to the job ahead.