DOG DAYS

Yes, we are quickly approaching the dog days of summer.  Those are the last moments of the freedom of the relaxation of summer. We walk with a slower pace. Our heels hit the pavement with a softer touch, less of the staccato tempo of the work environment and its pressures.  Our thoughts are more attuned to the remaining moments, those to come, which contain the soft winds and even the heat of summer. Whether one is working or on vacation, or even taking a moment or two after work, summer is just different.

However, today, in early morning hours, I write of different dog days, those which fulfill the meaning of the maxim "every dog has its day".  Today is one of those days, a follower of many such days throughout history, the lifetime of the Jewish nation. From time immemorial every villain of history who chose to wage war against Jews, desirous of their death and extermination, has met his due and just desserts. Each and every one of them has met an awful and or untimely death, a life replete with fear and/or constantly looking over one's shoulder for the chasing Angel of Death.   

 Leaders of ancient tribes who led them to warfare against the tribe of Abraham and his sons, who raided them in the desert, the Pharaohs who enslaved them, the one who refused to heed the warnings of Moses. The nations great and small, from the Plishtim to Egypt again, through the empires of the Greeks, the Romans, Persians, Medes, and Babylonians, all had their ambitions fearfully ended. Haman and his sons who plotted against Mordechai, Esther, and the Jews of the kingdom died at the end of a rope.  

Viciously antisemitic nations of Eastern and Central Europe met their own unpleasant times.    Neither the Pale of Settlement nor the vicious anti-Jewish laws enacted and carried out, the raids of the Cossacks to the beast known as Hitler and his entire coterie could put an end to a nation with a most powerful backer, the Head of the Board, so to speak.

 The barbarians cloaked in thin human skins who perpetrated assaults and atrocities upon Jews in Israel in futile attempts to end it, through the murderers of the Israeli athletes of the 1972 Munich Olympics, the centuries old tradition of antisemitic leaders of nations, including Western Europe and in America, Iran who blew up the Jewish Center in Argentina,  those who killed, slaughtered, 11 Jews at prayers in the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, to the animals of Hamas and Oct7 and their abettors in Gaza and elsewhere, well, Haniyeh, good riddance to you as you meet your maker and face your eternal judgment, as did all of your ilk who preceded you and all who will follow, more fools they. Hopefully to be followed in your court date, quickly, by Sinwar and his abettors of evil, of slaughter of infants, murder of elderly, rape of women and instigators and cause of the deaths of fellow Gazans as you hid amongst them so as to ensure their deaths and blame it on Israel. Your war crime and so you will face the consequences in a rather more eternal day of judgement.  

Every dog has its day, so it has been stated and so it has been true. Those who bark against us will meet a stronger pack, one capable of defeating human beasts desirous of slaughter of all Jews, no matter where they live along with the destruction of the nation of Israel. Well, here is a bit of information and education, just for you and those who would follow in your stinking footsteps. 

We are here. To stay. To defeat all who plot against us. So history has proven, and so history will continue. Perhaps one day we can put an end to this ugliness, these persistent crazed and futile attempts to destroy a nation which has always and only been good for this globe and its population thereof.  

Tomorrow, along with the posting, some beautiful heartwarming news re recognition and celebration of the uniqueness of my grandson, Yitzy, may he rest in eternal peace. Organized and planned and to be carried out by those who knew him and cannot forget him and the gift he was to all. 

We so miss him and love him -

Always and forever. Always and forever.   

IF AND IF AND IF

 It is getting out of hand as apparently there seems to be no straight statements of cold, unvarnished truths. Off the permitted list. Moreover, those who are the primary front line involved parties are sidelined, the idea of equity dissolved in the acid of selfishness and double standards. No worries addressed without conditions, with those conditions set and adjudicated by others, by nations far removed from the consequences of the 'wise' decisions of those engaged in negotiations which go nowhere. 

Why? Because there is now a deadly twisted card game being played in the Middle East.  Equitable rules are anathema, have been discarded and the game is more heavily weighted for one side as opposed to the other. Outrageous demands are treated as sacrosanct all the while pressure is   applied to the side at a major disadvantage, at existential threat. When asked to make concessions inherently dangerous to their wellbeing and integrity as a nation, and safeguards are not stated clearly and irrevocably, there is a logical refusal to sign off, to commit national suicide. Then the world screams and moans dramatically, unable to understand why that refusal, or so they claim - quite untruthfully. They understand, they 'get' it, but do not care. 

Consequently, lies are reiterated time and time and time again. If this and if that conditions are demanded, grossly unfair, heavily weighted for one side, the original instigators of this tainted game. They sit tight, smirking. as the world fights their battles for them. The world demands concessions from the wronged nation with 'if this and if that' conditions impossible to accept yet apparently dangerous to deny. 

All this leads to a question as to why there must only be this limiting constricting idea of an 'only this and then perhaps that'. Why can it not be an open debate and open discussion and open exchange of ideas rather than the exchange of threats and bullets and missiles and bombs and death and bloodshed and depths of grief so deep as to be unplumbable? When this dichotomy, this rampant inequity, is taken further, we get a most dangerous situation which threatens the entire globe. Why can there not be two ideas which find a shared commonality and that point be stressed and stretched - for the betterment of all. 

 Perhaps oversimplifying the matter, an editorial yesterday raised the question of 2 seemingly conflicting themes: Idea vs Homeland. These two beliefs are apparently at war with each other. Why? Why are they mutually exclusive? Why must one be dominant over the other? Why must they be considered so different so as to be unable to share it all rather than division and hate?

I have long championed the tenet of idea, an ideal, a theme, a trend of thought, which carries over and should be applicable to all. That is the idea of America, an idea in which I am fully invested. It is an idea which should blanket all populations and sees America as more than a geographical/political entity. Far more than that. And yet accepting of that geographical/political entity with no loss to either side by their concept is a must.    

 The idea of America is what has driven this nation from inception to the present. Unfortunately, it is an idea that has been weakened, attacked as we forget why we became a nation in the first place. It was the idea of freedom, of Independence, of cutting the stultifying suffocating ties to antiquated ideas and homelands from whence we came, escaped from. Breathing fresh air and ideas and values we built and solidified. A new idea. More than a homeland, it was an ideal to be shared with others. 

Via that Idea a world of no hope and no possible fulfillment of dreams, not even the possibility of dreaming, was challenged. It was presented to the peoples of the world in its incarnation as America, a geographical and political entity imbued with almost magical powers, and an ability to transform the world at large and individual worlds as well. Without conflict, for the desire to live the Idea led one to buying into the concept of Homeland, America, a nation, a place we cared for, defended, contributed to, and shared our dreams, our hopes and cultures, erased the ugly limiting concept of "new kid on the block", automatic rejection of the one who is different, not 'like us' or not one of us, whatever that means, other than selfishness and hate and violence, seemingly approved and condoned by those who knew better but chose not to act on that knowledge. 

The Idea of America, its soul, and the entity known as the Homeland, named the United States of America, two, yet one. A homeland for the native born and the immigrant. An idea which captured the world, caught on fire, fought for - and yet we have those who would destroy it.  It is only by sharing that we enhance the Idea and the Homeland of America. By sharing and defending it, Idea and Homeland, we make it valued to all, its dreams and possibilities there for all. In denial, we create animosity and war. 

America as Idea. America as Homeland. Together.

 Stronger. Better. In peace and harmony. For all.

Would that we could. Would that we will.   

If and If and If.                             

NEVER NEVER NEVERLAND

  Nope. It will never be. People will not fly. Myriad relatives of Tinkerbelle will not appear to save the day and I seriously wonder whether there are enough adults out there who will clap for her revival knowing that good must prevail. Are there any of us left with that same hope, that same dream of people returning to their senses, shut down the over-the-top rhetoric which leaves no room for hearing and sharing, and actually talking sense, real sense and not the made-up garbage that passes for news and information these days. (sigh)

Yes, I know Neverland was not perfect. Groups waged war against each other - though no one died, other than perhaps Captain Hook, though we never actually see a death scene do we? We do hear that ticking (clock) crocodile. Perhaps analogous to    our own midnight clock which warns us how close we are to Armageddon. However, peace is made, the Lost Boys are rescued (Are they, really?) and the children return to the arms of loving parents and a feisty oversize dog.

 And Peter Pan ........

There is not always, if ever, actually, a happily ever after ending. The once upon a time intro to the next gory fairy tale is actually not once but many times with our own ogres and vicious giants along with cackling witches et al waiting, salivating at the thought and image of future meals. Yum, yum they hum, as do our ever growing more powerful enemies, as they unite to enable their agenda at the same moment that our alliances ramp up their troubles, as the gods warn us and send rumbles of ominous thunder, we, of course, remain deaf to the noise and carry on in our sloppy manner.  

Hell to pay for that, my friends, hot, fiery, and no end in sight for those forced to remain there and become denizens of that awful place. There are consequences for misdeeds and miscalculation, but then again, we have erased all thoughts and memories of consequences from the new residents, the entitled overprivileged protestors and advocates of death to their enemies. Hence, they reorganize as above, though this time they face opponents who do not hold back, who represent rescue for those in need of such from their kidnappers, to be returned to their grieving families.

As the evildoers are conquered and rescued and rescuer ascend to a most improved world, can we look forward to happily ever after? Nah! Merely one battle in an anticipated series of battles, each to be fought hard. Too many battles remain. Too many people to reorient and reacquaint to truth and responsibility - to others and of themselves. Wonder why Sisyphus and Vulcan come to mind? 

We, the potential rescuers must be alert to signs of impending danger. When a country, i.e. Turkey threatens to invade Israel in order to "aid"   Palestinians within, our hackles must be raised.  Hezbollah takes pride in the slaughter of 12 Israeli children, and rescinds that claim, for the children were indeed mourned by the nation of Israel, they were Israeli Druze, Children of their own ethnicity. And the world? Returned to sleep at the helm, for no biggie was it? Merely Israeli kids. 

The skies of Never Neverland cloud over, as truth begins to pound at the door, louder, more determined, even as the deaf world refuses to hear that pounding. Why are children dying in Gaza? Why are the dead combatants, the terrorists and the abettors of terrorists counted as civilians? All the better to inflate the numbers. All the better to turn oppressors, murderers, rapists, fiends of death to infants and elderly into whining facsimiles of victims - which they are so enormously not. 

 The world? Silence, deep and resounding in the absence of protests from nations re the deliberate 'encasement' of Hamas among their friends and neighbors, all the better to inflate the numbers and weep crocodile tears, all the while knowing that voices will be raised at Israel, even as Israel has gone far above and beyond to shelter them from their own kind!!! More than any other nation at war has ever done and that includes the USA. And Russia in Ukraine and numerous other 'small' wars round the globe. But Israel remans the target of choice. So much better, recognized and approved, with trendy fashion items as well. Cool indeed!!     

Nations of the world, even our ostensible allies, refuse to look and see the photos - the proof of the policies of Hamas. They ignore the damage done to the homes of people in the north and the south of Israel, under constant bombardment and future invasions and awful deaths -or life as prisoners, brutally treated and abused. The world discounts, belittles and disremembers our remaining hostages, the treatment they have undergone. Barbaric abuse of the girls and women and the men as well. Who remains alive - and capable of living a life after release - if ever. If any. Should there be any.   Yet we are charged to remain silent. Speak only of concessions and do not demand hostage release nor accounting. Admit guilt for the war and discard, ignore the truth, better for all other than Israel. But so what! Does anything change in our crazed Never Neverland? Not that I see. 

Perhaps a different fairy tale. Hansel and Gretel only this time the children are eaten? Nothing new there for you. On to Alice and her tree and looking glass. Nah. The denizens of that world are crazy and mean - nothing there for you either. Perhaps back to Never Neverland where there is a handy dandy plank. That's an idea. 

In the meanwhile, leaders of the world - stand up for the truth. Stand up for what is right rather than for the expedient. Separate yourself from the herd and make a difference. A good one. It will be as if you are Jack, climbed that beanstalk, and found the hen that lays the golden eggs.

Stand tall and make a difference.

Make that "once upon a time" lead to a "happily ever after".

 If only. If ever, in a perfect Never Neverland.

-----------------------------------------------------------Yitzy, if only we had that sought after happy ending to our once upon a time. But it was not to be, was it.  Miss you so much,

 Always and forever. Always and forever.    

 

 

MAYBE, MAYBE NOT - TIME TO CHOOSE

 Actually, the choice is upon inhabitants of the world, not only America, but today, mainly us, the denizens of all the niches and nooks of America. Frankly speaking, we must all crawl out of the holes and hidey places we have used as places of withdrawal from the harsh realities of present-day life within this nation and reattach sanity, conscience and wisdom   to our thought process. Only then can we initiate the quest to be "the best of who we are" as the USA Olympic Team was introduced to the world by Beyonce.  

Caught up in the fervor of the Olympics, statements are often exaggerated, caught in a positive whirlpool of courage, determination, cooperation, competition and patriotism, without the negative aspects of bile and vinegar and heaping doses of jingoism. A well-known cartoon character asks, "Can we do it?" and the answer is always, " Yes we can." Now it is up to us to prove it so, to live up to that statement.  

And it is up to the rest of the nations of the world to present the best of themselves as well. That would be the true manifestation of the spirit of the Olympics. Unfortunately, that spirit is more honored in the glaring breaches than in the observance of, and most often to be found within the administrators, coaches and unstated team policies as athletes are doped or pushed beyond all sane demands. 

The ideas of using the Seine, the talents of the world, the sights of Paris, the history of France was brilliant, the unbelievable acrobatics of the participants amazing, for the most part worked, though there were glitches. Some did not come off as planned. Some were a tad confusing as to purpose and methodology, others were amazing presentations of the talents of the participants.           Unfortunately, however, the boos and jeers directed at the athletes of Israel as they sailed by were most certainly neither appropriate nor welcome, certainly not representative of the goal to be the best we can be. They were indicative of the rampant rabid resurrected JewHatred now poisoning the very air we breathe. Certainly not the best of what mankind can be or aspire to attain.

The other notable glitch hopefully accidental and careless rather than purposeful was the improper unfurling and hanging of the Olympic flag. Properly hung three rings are on top and the two rings below. Unfortunately, it was hung upside down and the questions arose. Was it careless? Taking place in the nervousness of the moment, the jitters? Or was there a nefarious purpose behind it? Hanging an upside-down flag signifies discontent, rebellion, tantamount to open declaration of "here comes trouble". Or it can be a sign of disaster and a dire need for rescue. In the ugliness pervading the world today - who knows? Maybe, maybe not.

In any case, here in the Olympics, or the world at large, there are obvious signs of divisions, divisive, even   violent signs which bode no good for the future - unless we change. But a huge BUT-are we, the world, knowledgeable about what changes are necessary and are we capable of doing what must be done? Do we even wish to do so? Or are we content to wallow in the mess that we have made?   Or do we believe that miraculously the Lord   above will return to an active interest in our lives and rescue us from our own folly. I refer you back to the blog of tzimtzum. Basically, we are responsible for the end products of our needs and deeds. We have created the mess, and we need to fix it. Remember: "God helps those who help themselves." We are our saviors or our destructors. The choice is upon us. Maybe we will make the right choice. Maybe not.  

Signs of ominous peril ae clearly there to be seen, if we actually wish to see. When Trump says,  

 “Christians get out and vote. Just this time. You won't have to do it anymore.”  “In four more years, you know what? It’ll be fixed. It’ll be fine. You won't have to vote anymore, my beautiful Christians,” Trump added during his 70-minute long speech. “We'll have it fixed so good. You're not going to have to vote.”  

well, there goes democracy And here comes the tremors along my spine. Clearly, this man is a danger to the ethos of this country and yet there are those who, even knowing the truth, refuse to vote for his opponent because they are apparently constitutionally incapable of voting for a woman as a poll states, - shamefully so. Many nations have already had a woman as leader of the nation, in the past, in the present, and will do so again in the future. Not here. Not in America. Clearly not the best we can be. No maybe about that.

A clear, thick line can be drawn from the protests on the campuses and streets of the nation, and the lack of consequences for their violence and damage, for speech inciting hate and violence and death to Jews all the way to the ugliness in Washington as Netanyahu spoke.

"... numerous crimes committed by protesters, including the defacement of federal property, the wounding of police officers, the burning of American flags, and the dumping of mealworms, maggots, and crickets into a hotel where Netanyahu was residing. ... the protesters had been “trumpeting their hatred for America, Israel and Jews” during the demonstration.

The board further condemned members of the Democrat Party for boycotting Netanyahu’s speech, stating that the actions of the protests proved “Netanyahu’s point that ‘many anti-Israel protesters choose to stand with evil. They stand with Hamas.'"

It gets even worse when supposed leaders of our nation behave disrespectfully to a head of state. In Congress.  Right to that person's face. Evidently, if the head of nation is Jewish and Israeli there are no bars to the insults and disrespect. No decency. No shame.  No maybe about that.

Where has America gone? When have we lost our “Americanness" and chosen submission rather than standing up to the suppression of what is supposed to be. Why have we reached this nadir of ugliness and called out on its beauty and denigrated those who refused to go along? Why have we been content, even eager, to wallow in its grossness? Why have we embraced the negative and discarded the positive?  I wish I had answers, even a glimmering of one, but I do not. What I do know is that we must do something. If we do nothing we will be hastening the erasure of the dream that was. is, and supposed to remain- AMERICA. 

Do we have a chance of negating all the wrong turns we have made, all the foolish, dangerous words we have spoken and allowed, all the misdeeds we have condoned? Maybe. Maybe not.  History and time will judge us. Pray that we do not fail and do what must be done. 

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Yitzy, I hope life is easier for you now, and are not plagued with any more pain or uncertainty. But do know the certainty of our everlasting love of you, for you.

Always and forever. Always and forever.

JUST THINKING

   Thinking can be a dangerous activity, particularly when one's thinking cells have lost their elasticity.   The intake of new factors, of new information has been compromised; hence, the decision emanating from those less elastic cells is lacking, to varying degrees, mobility. It cannot be strictly limited to one cause, for the causality is based on multiple bits and pieces of data and experience. However, this difficulty of absorption must never make way for an excuse to totally discard someone, toss them on the trash pile, and in so doing, trash their life experiences and the wisdom of those years. Far better to be kind yet firm and do what must be done, what is upon us to do, with respect and kindness.

Full disclosure, I am having a bit of challenge    trying to digest the import of several articles only read moments ago. The ideas are somewhat new to me, though I am sure that somewhere during my years of education someone introduced this idea whilst my mind was elsewhere. I believe once I understand it, I will gain answers to questions long denied those answers, at least partial answers.

The idea is that of “ tzimtzum", a shrinking of the 'self' of God, why, and the consequences, positive and negative. Some might be very angry with this posting, but I believe it is worth some minutes, hours, of our time, to comprehend and follow the thread.    

"God withdrew into the Divine Self and contracted in order to make room for Creation — a mystic idea he (Rabbi Luria) " called tzimtzum."

The idea continues with that thought. After God had created the world, a time when He was very busy, He pulled back somewhat, the idea of tzimtzum, thus making way for His creations to fill that space.  Using the free will granted to us, we were to strive to fill that void via our efforts to reach the peak of creation. That is to be Mankind at its best: “Man created in the image of G-d”. That was our task, our purpose, our gift, our challenge. and our burden.

"God brought Israel and, by implication, humanity, into a covenantal partnership relationship that would enable them to grow into even greater responsibility for their lives and for the outcomes of history." 

Think on that for a moment or two. Why is there Evil? Why are terrible things occurring? Why did G-d not stop it right in its tracks? After all, He can do anything.  However, these tragedies, these horrors, were of Mankind's doing. That which mankind inflicted upon itself. All emanating from the gift/burden that G-d granted us. Free will. It was our decisions, our choices, our successes, our failures which filled the void that God bequeathed to us. An explanation for the presence and activity of Evil: Man's perversion and misuse of his free will, too often Evil overwhelming the Good of Mankind. Pushing away from the goal of Man in the image of G-d. 

" The sadness is only increased by the realization that God was incessantly calling, pleading, begging humanity to be their brothers’ and sisters’ keepers — largely in vain. The God of tzimtzum did not miraculously save the victims. Heartbreakingly, God’s designated agents for rescue (or those we might think of as such) were overwhelmingly missing in action."  

Though I have presented the passages which most 'spoke' to me, there is much more to this than one posting, one session of thought. However, it does help to explain most importantly why there is evil and tragedy, so much, so long in duration in this world. Why such tragedy? Well, perhaps this idea gives us at least a glimmer of understanding and knowledge that if we are to stop that which is wrong with the world it is we who must roll up our sleeves and get down to long and difficult work. Here at least is a piece of the answer. And more to follow.

" ... just as God had to withdraw and “shrink” in order for the world to come into existence, leaders must make themselves “smaller” in order for their followers to grow." 

 Think on that. What a lesson for us, our leaders, who must not be our bosses. We must be our inspiration. Our role models capable of creating our own small human voids. We the people, along with the leaders we have chosen or allowed to be, "create" or allow our world to be as it is. It is upon all of us to take action. and strive to better reality. To be the best we can be. Only then can we finally meet our fulfillment of the task and the attainment we so desire: to be created in the image of G-d. 

 Heavy duty consequences. But - if we carefully choose the best leaders, if we encourage the exercise of Good over Evil, perhaps, we will indeed find that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Only then can we be in reach of being created in the image of G-d.  Powerful stuff. Need to think more. Need to take it from this realm of thought and bring it, heave it into my present reality.

We all need to do the same. Stretch our elasticity to the end, into the deep void we are to fill, one way or another. As the creators of our own reality, we own the responsibility for it. We control our own maps and directional devices.       

  Think of the power we hold in our hands. The power of Evil. The power of Good. The ability to reach the highest rung of the ladder or to fall into the pit below. We got ourselves into massive mess and we must do the hard labor to get us out. Such is God's will. So we must do.

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Yitzy, I think you knew this from the moment you were born, innate within you. and it shone through via your inner and outer beauty and goodness.     Miss you so, sweet boy.  

Miss you. Love you.  

Always and forever.   Always and forever.   

 

 

AS THE WORLD TURNS

How quickly things change. One moment we have an ugly contest between two old men, neither of which boded well for the nation or for the world. One is driven by ego and the other driven by decades of service to the nation. Both refused to back down and the nation sighed in resignation to an ugly outcome, no matter the outcome. Precedent motivated those who wished to reenact the rebellion and treason of Jan6 and overthrow the government as their candidate had so clearly instigated.  Others simply wished to find a safe path through the mess that is the world and chose the second candidate as the more apt for that job. Still, there was great confusion and unhappiness.

Suddenly, the elder statesman decided to remove himself from the official fray and there stood the cheese, alone, now the old man, and there were plentiful reminders of that fact within many commentaries and articles reiterating and reenforcing the age - 78. Guess what goes around, comes around. Decrepit at 78 - and actually for many years heretofore and old, too old for the job.

So what is next for the nation and for the world? Frankly, while relieved somewhat at the events, I remain concerned. G-d forbid the psycho wins - where will America be? Where will democracy be? How far will Project 2025 go in implementation? Will we have a nation totally corrupt in structure and function, from the lowest federal employee to the entire justice system, all the way to the Oval Office? Will we return to the worst of the past, canceling out all the progress we had made? Where will we find these roads and in what condition?

Apparently only the Shadow knows, and he is not talking. In fact, the entire industry of the Shadow, that of Marvel and DC Comics, along with smaller companies, the comics are now presently infested and infected by the virus of JewHatred. Quite frankly, this is ironic beyond comprehension as the entire industry, the entire idea of a comic book was created and developed mostly by Jews. But as the Museum did in LA, celebrating Hollywood and the entertainment world, deliberately first passed over the fact of its Jewish founders, so did the comics industry. The museum then “fixed” their omission and included mention of Jews - with pejorative terms, alive with the virus of hatred and fealty to the ever-present ancient tropes of Anti Semitism.

    In excellent imitation, so did Marvel, DC Comics and all the rest. The new Daredevil villain was replete with long white beard, hooked nose and devil's horns. Gee, wonder where that came from and why it is so familiar! Wonder Woman, played by Gal Gadot was banned in many Arab and Moslem nations for she is Israeli and proud and loud about that. The decades ago introduced Sabra, the Israeli superhero, with blue and white costume and cape, with Jewish star front and center, has    vanished. Sabra is now an ex Russian spy working for the US government. Imagine, better to be that then to be acknowledged as Sabra, a strongly associated name for Israeli Jews. Better to be an enemy than a friend!! 'Jewishness' to be shunned. Not encouraging at all. Sabra only appeared in a few comics. (As an aside, I have most of them.) Now the “Jewishness” barely there.    

This is quite amazing as we compare the situation to that of Captain America, now to be Black in the upcoming movie. In the same movie, however, Sabra has been deJewified. Why? Actually, well, most of us want is to have a return to the good, solid story and movies of Marvel sadly. not up to par of late. But one cannot ignore this blatant dismissal of Sabra as she was conceived and meant to be. Jewish, Israeli, a superhero. With the origins of the comic industry being Jewish how can this be tolerated? How can they dare to emulate the falsehoods of the Museum of the movie industry and a deliberately ignore those Jewish origins, even as we know that another character, Hulk, originated from Jewish folklore, of the Golem, brought to life by the Rabbi of Lowe, his purpose to defend Jews from all harm. Would that we had the Golem here today!  Apparently very easy to 'vanish' mention of Jews and their contributions in so many arenas of life.

Thus, we can ask with deep frustration and anger, when the hell does this ever stop. When are the enemies of humanity ever to give up on their campaign of JewHatred? Of incitement to violence? Of urging a complete slaughter, wipe out every Jew on this earth. It just never ends. It is on a continuous cycle of hate. Even as its deeply rooted presence in the conscience of the world is so apparent and its clearly consequential growth into violence, murder and mayhem, it remains denied, diminished, belittled. 

And so, the virus grows in power. Its contagiousness, mighty and everlasting, when, if ever, will someone invent a vaccine, a cure.

Today's attitudes toward the possibility of Josh Shapiro as running mate with Kamala Harris, is both shocking and not so much. Despite the praise for his experience, his popularity, his character, it all comes down to "too Jewish" especially when the ticket composition would be a Black woman as president and a Jewish man to be vice president, a heartbeat away. Even as so many nations of the world have had women as leaders of government, clearly the United States remains backwards in that respect. Racism, sexism, any ISM has found a warm home here, this immigration not despised!   Nor do we follow through with consequences earned and the clear lines of morality and sanity are blurred and held in contempt. And with no consequences, the mayhem and havoc and violence are guaranteed to appear and reappear.  Sometimes the rod is the right way. 

In conversation with many today there is a growing thread of fear. Differences count for naught when talk of society and its recent trends are brought up. The fear grows. Some can say why, some cannot, but all know that their shoulders are up around their ears They are afraid of what is and what is to be. They know not of any possible solution.  

The balance beam of today's life is narrow. It is not structurally secure. We must take a minute break and shake ourselves, rebalance ourselves and get on that balance beam with confidence and surety in the fact that finally we will do what is right. We will desist from faulty flips. We will discard what is wrong. We will make a better world. 

Sounds so easy yet is so difficult. We need to have the courage and the strength to admit old tropes and create a balance beam for all to maneuver and follow. Simply put, we need to be better people, to dig deep within and find the courage, strength and backbone to do what is right, not what is easy.  Hopefully, we will find enough people to begin the journey and will teach and encourage all to walk that balance beam with courage and honesty, well balanced for a good life.  

We, all of us, those who have spoken out, have grown hoarse. We need more louder voices. We need strong ones. We need voices of courage and answers and understanding of what it means to be a human being in a tough world. If we do not, then all voices will be silenced. We will never be able to conquer that balance beam or even to approach it.

Scary. 

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Yitzy, yesterday as we celebrated the engagement of Jamie suddenly, out on the porch  there perched   a beautiful red cardinal. As we looked through the doors, we all shared the same thoughts and hopes.   My parents, especially my mom, loved cardinals and red robins. Our Yitzy, an enthusiastic birdwatcher, also loved them. Was this a message they were sending? We most certainly hope so and so we have taken it to be from all of you. Thank you. Much needed. Much appreciated. Our love for all of you is a love that is

Always and forever. Always and forever.  

 

GOOD MORNING!

  Sorry, folks, thought I would have time to write a short piece this morning - as if - but time has run out and must run to airport and hopefully the plane will take off on time and land safely at our destination. Either later today or definitely tomorrow there will be another posting. Be safe and alert.

In the meantime, please read back those you might have missed and think - A Black woman candidate for President and possibly a Jewish man for VP! Unimaginable.

The haters ae tossing and turning.

Perhaps planning more campus hate fests.

Enjoy the day and by the way, the old man left alone, is 78! Uh huh - and psycho as well. Think about that.

SPEAKING OF ...

... modern times, I wonder how modern we have become. Or is it that we have simply repackaged the past many times, taken its worst and reintroduced it as something other than what it actually is, always was, and for what it will always be. Repackaging hate and placing a pretty bow on top does not hide nor disappear the truth that lies beneath. That ugly truth permeates so much of the world, yet we are apparently incapable or unwanting to combat it and defeat it, vanquish it and its havoc for once and for all. 

Today the world is revving up for the Olympics. It is the event for which athletes train many. many years all for the sake of a few seconds or a few minutes. We cheer them on. We cry with them. We cry for them. We celebrate their victories and sympathize with their losses. And we watch as fierce competitors turn to each other at the end of the race or event and hug each other, sharing in the efforts which had led up to the moment. That behavior is part of the purpose, the aim, the goal of the Olympics- to demonstrate how competitors can be cooperative and appreciative of each other. Too bad that the ugliness of hate interferes, and the shine of the Olympics is tainted and darkened.   

Unfortunately, world politics has insinuated its nasty persona into the Olympics. Not that this is new, for it has always been so. More so during some Olympics than others, as in Munich,1972. Sadly, tragically, national politics devolve upon individual competitors and the ugliness breaks through, dimming the Olympic flame and the integrity of the circles of the Olympics.  

This contagious virus,is 'ennobled' by the falsehoods of the haters, of the murderers, of those who would take advantage of the world's amnesia regarding Jews and their history, their oppression and their slaughter and their isolation throughout the millennia. Even those who purportedly are “supporters” of Israel, call themselves our friends, G-d spare us and help us. Indeed, when we have friends like this, who needs enemies? An example? Sure. The statement of a self-declared friend of Israel: "...not just the future of Israel, but the future of American Jews. Not just safety, but their ability to thrive and prosper, as they have in this country is conditional upon one thing and that's a hard meld with Christian nationalism." G-d spare us from such friends. 

To share in the glory of the Olympics and the world does not mean, or should not mean, that one must give up one's identity. What it should mean, but too often does not, is the embodiment of the goals of the Olympics, to live and work together, to compete with each other without physical bloody warfare. It is the combined unified efforts of the nations of the world outside of war, the favored exercise of   temporary cooperation of nations, only to be refought, inevitably, down the line in a not-so-distant future.  Unfortunately, too many use the Olympics as a billboard for hate, in particular issuing their threats to national teams. Totally anathema to the meaning of the Olympics. As usual, directed mainly at the Israeli team.  

How quickly the world forgets. It loses sight of the failures of the millennia, as to persecuted, slaughtered in paroxysms of hate and in the name of the church, the mosque and the state. From literally being thrown to the Lions to being burned alive, there is no method that has not been tried and perpetrated upon the Jewish nation. The shock and the horror of October 7 are simply part of this awful ever-present truth. Thousands of terrorists and abetting civilians with only murder and hate in their hearts wreaked bloody havoc as they fell upon the victims. 

 The world as usual cried crocodile tears for much of October 7. However, by the dawning of October 8th with the fighting ongoing, the world began to turn on Israel, morphing it from victim to oppressor. The more Israel resisted, fought back, and then shifted to offense as part of their defense, the world reverted to its eternal nastiness and turned upon Israel, ignoring or minimizing its anguish, its kidnapped hostages, from a 3-month-old infant to elderly octogenarians. When it became clear that part of defense must be offense, to clean out the poison, the world went berserk.

 Oh yes, Israel had the right to defend itself, but not to kill others in defense of that right. Surely talk and cooperation could bring about peace. Well, surely not, for these vicious creatures of Hamas waged war not only upon the dream of peace, but on the dreamers of that peace as well. For such were the residents of the communities, the very communities they attacked. Evidently no good deed goes unpunished, and the world bought into the garbage spewed forth from Hamas, and consistently minimized or totally ignored what was happening within Israel, under attack from all sides. Oh yes. The world sympathized - for all of about 30 seconds. 

Back to the Olympics. Athletes have always been held up to be heroes and role models, even as their flaws were there, easily seen. Boys and girls hero worshipped these athletes and to find that some of these athletes have violated, abandoned, their roles is truly sad. It is beautiful when champion athletes of one generation pass advise to the next generation and they in turn pass it to the next in line, for that is what it is supposed to be all about. This is athletics competition at its best. Too bad we do not have enough of this. Winning is a desired goal but so is sharing. So is accepting responsibility, for we, none of us, neither individuals nor nations live in a vacuum. Our space must be shared.  Positive goals must be shared. Humanity must be shared. If we do not share, then we will have lost everything. Can we find that which has been lost? Do we even want to? That is a question for the ages.

  Increasingly we have set aside personal individual goals, values. and ethics. We have sacrificed all of them to ambition and power. We worship those who wield batons of power, who have climbed those nasty rungs to their deeply desired ambitions. In doing so they have lost the meaning of life. They have lost the challenges and the joys of life granted to us.  Sadly, rather than gain by these actions and twisted thoughts we lose. We fall down the ladders. We are crushed by those climbing around and over us. We watch our dreams crumble into dust and then we wonder why and how.

To answer those questions all we need do is look in the mirror. All we need do is look back and take account - of our behavior, of our actions and our statements, our courage and our cowardice. It is not some vague historic pressure which oppresses us. Yes, it is there, but it has been generated by the actions of individuals whose negative devious ambitions or misinterpreted misshapen dreams pull us into an inescapable morass. We create the pressures, not the other way around. It then sweeps so many into its dangerous inescapable currents.  

Hence, speaking of all that afflicts the world, all that we allowed to do so, all that we refuse to combat, all that we endorse explicitly or implicitly, by action or neglect - what the hell are we doing? Where are we going? Why are we going there? Why are we using this path? Why can we not see the obvious future and the turns we must make to better the prospects for a better, fairer world? 

I came across this statement the other day. 

“The best way to protect the future is to create it.” Sounds like a hell of a good idea. Maybe we should try it. We might actually like it. Wouldn't that be a pleasant surprise? If only?

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Hey, Yitzy. Perhaps appealing to the better side of humanity, pushing the truth and the benefits of actually doing the right thing might actually work. Worth a shot, is it not? Perhaps if we had a better world, you would still be with us. If only. 

 Love you -

Always and forever. Always and forever.

"THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE WATER"

Those words, a future iconic line from the new Alien movie, are shouted by a character in that water. He is doomed. In a real-life moment, the IOC held a conference. in which they responded to death threats directed to Israeli Olympic contenders. The idea of the meeting was to calm things down. After all, said the spokesperson, it is not uncommon, been done before, and the words are basically antithetical to the purpose of the Olympic Village and the Olympics themselves.      Evidently. these threats. mirror the world we live in, "a divisive world". Ya' think!!  Playing dumb, no mention of yet another Olympics where the divisive world made an appearance, invading that Village, oh so peaceful.

 The   Olympic Village of 1972 was the venue of choice for terrorists to invade and slaughter Israeli athletes and members of the team. A taste of what was to come down the road, on Oct7, a date which will "go down in infamy". (Thank you, FDR.) Yet another manifestation of the horrors perpetrated upon the Israeli people. The Olympic Committee ignored the violence, the horror and continued on with barely a blip. Much as the world has continued on time after time after time of every terrorist attack directed at Israeli civilians. The Olympics of 1972 gave us a brutal foretaste of what was to come, culminating in the brutality and carnage of Oct7, a mere 10 months ago. 

Downplayed by the Olympic spokesperson these threats have been presented as merely symbolic of the world we live in - the edges of it are quite sharp. Humanity, quite clumsy, slash themselves open on myriad occasions and have grown quite blase to the blood spilled with every slash. And there goes humanity, down the same road, to slash itself again and again, not rethinking its chosen routes, merely trudging on.    

We don't learn, do we?   

  The presence of thick-headed humanity is quite evident, readily seen and observed in America. (Yes, it is also to be seen in other nations of the world, but one nation at a time!) For the purpose of this post, we are focused on America. The sharp, divisive. blood seeking, blood spilling edges have flourished, cutting deep and often into our nation and there has been blood spilled.  So much venom has been slathered on those edges, that when they cut, an infection sets in. It sets off friend against friend, family member against family member.  

The culture of today does not do well for conversation and compromise. We tend to shout in real time or online We choose podcasts which testify for our beliefs, solidify them. Rather than opening our minds to present other possibilities such as improved understanding, tolerance and compromise. We reinforce the dams blockading the positive pathways. and remain mired in our own stupidity.

You think not. Sit back in your chair, close your eyes. and think. What is the state of the nation today? What is the status of our unity? Our accepting, our acceptance of such a thing as a typical American ethos. Have we grown selfish along with stupid as we bar fresh blood, new blood, new ideas. from entering our doorways. Think of what would be today had we blocked the immigrants of yesterday, those who in large ways and small contributed to the betterment of the nation and the world at large. In fact, had we shuttered, totally, irrevocably, our doors before, where would you and yours be - or not be? Are we that selfish and unthinking, mired in it all, refusing to think ahead?

To wit. our current presidential campaign, such as it is, such as it was. and such as it will be. As of yesterday, there was one old, demented, damaged. candidate left. This candidate has “gifted” the nation with a frightening possibility. Should he die, not unexpected at his age and condition, he has left us with the rather callow, mean, hypocritical person to follow. Total ban on choice, on abortion for any reason. NO contraceptives. Yet another man deciding for women. Go to Hell on that one. He wishes to turn the clock back to 1960. Sorry, JD - impossible, nor recommended for we do not want to redo all that which we have already remedied. It was not Happy Days 24/7/365/ Grow up. Do something productive other than playing yes man for purposes of advancement and spin on a dime, depending upon where it is best for you. While I support your statements re Israel, are they to be trusted? Or will the winds blow another way and carry you along with it? Show me how you can be trusted, firm and steady in your position.   

Last night Joe Biden followed LBJ and stood down from the race. Dementia afflicted Trump then shouted and waved that annoying, fascistic fist in the air, shouting "It's not over. Joe, it's not over." Well, sorry, Donny, that competition is over and onto a different race, with a younger candidate, a woman, which should definitely unhinge you. Not frozen in body and mind and not perfect, but then again, nobody is perfect. Not alive and on this planet. I await her clear policy statements even as I truly wish that she rethinks some of her recent statements regarding Israel. 

There are many issues to be discussed. Tariffs? A trade war with other nations re who buys what, so we all suffer, higher inflation, higher costs to buy? Dumb! Tax cuts for the rich? Again? Xenophobia? Medicare and Social Security. Our allies and promises. America First - again?! A dangerous retread idea.

It is now for the Democratic Party to pull up its pants and get to work. Stop the infernal internal yet out in the open bickering. That is most definitely unhelpful - for you and for all of us. Time to get back to being American. Time for the GOP to also pull up its pants, though in their case they will need undergarments as well, as their cowardice and groveling before Trump has been might powerful. 

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Yitzy, what a mess. Hope the Heavens are a better scene.  Love you, special child =

Always and forever. Always and forever.

 

WILL IT? EVER? NEVER? MAYBE? PERHAPS?

It is tiring. No. More than that. It is a fatigue that eats at one soul. It's a fatigue that never quits. No matter how good it seems something always comes along to puncture the balloon of that deception that we all buy into. We have no other choice if we are to live our lives with some semblance of sanity. However, for always, even if we manage to fool ourselves, enough so as to think there is no cause to fret or worry or plan, there is always a sharpened pin eagerly awaiting usage so as to puncture that false cocoon we wrapped around ourselves. That little niggling fear within us never quits. It is always there. Never seemingly to disappear completely, never to return, for it ever does. 

Should we take pride that we are the target of the oldest trope of hatred ever? Should we take pride in the fact that despite all that's been thrown at us, we have managed to build wonderful families and contributed greatly to society from steady workers and contributors to nabobs of the business and technical world. Should we just shrug our shoulders, let out a sigh. and say, "What can you do? You just have to live with this."

I have to disagree with that advice. I do not think we have to live with this resignation to and acceptance of this constant banging on our heads, this constant desire to erase us from history. Past, present and future. This willful blindness which negates all that we have contributed, despite all the words of important people i.e. Mark Twain, George Washington who wrote well of the Jews and about the Jews. There have been other cleareyed people    throughout the millennia. But not nearly enough.   During the unspeakable horrors of the Holocaust, there were Righteous Gentiles who risked their own lives and the lives of their families to save Jews.    Unfortunately, there weren't enough.

Unfortunately, there are those who climb happily onto the wagon of hate. They rev up the vehicles of hate. They exchange their horses for turbo engines, old manifestations for more modern and 'advanced' ones. Off they hie into the wonderful world of hate. Free to cut the reins of morality and restraint and let loose not the dogs of war, but the dogs of hate. What is most frightening is the tacit and complicit hatred.

For the most part one of the worst manifestations of hate is found within the average citizen. Throughout the frightening and persistent antisemitism, the JewHatred, the anti-Israel and anti-Zionism, all the horror during the Holocaust, its aftermath, down through the centuries and up into this century and the rest, it just never ends. It is fortified, successful, and perpetrated not by unique individuals. Rather it is the ordinary individuals with ordinary lives and ordinary careers, who, for one reason or another, or for no reason at all join in. They let loose every bit of their heretofore hidden or not so hidden cruelty, engage in abominations and then go home to family, to pets, to their otherwise normal lives. "Innocent" civilians? Not here. Not there. Not most anywhere and certainly not in Gaza. 

The civilians who stood by as the Cossacks rode into the Jewish areas of habitation, the citizens of the Ukraine area, all areas of the Pale of Settlement, in fact in most European nations, who joined in or stood watching, along with such 'lovely' comments, who joined in the looting of Jewish homes and businesses, who were caught up in the physical slaughter, the kidnapping, the raping, are as  guilty as the instigators of these abominations in all and every manifestation. The young man, the young woman, who for the first time picked up a club and struck at a Jewish neighbor fleeing from the danger. The Jews of the cities, villages, of country after country openly marched down the street into the ghettos, or into the forests, or to the handy dandy ravines nearby, the rivers which greedily swallowed Jews. Former neighbors and friends, customers and partners stood by or joined in - all share in the permanent stains to their souls and consciences.    Certainly so. When the same 'lookyloos'   quickly ran into the apartments that had been vacated and stole to their hearts content, anything, guilty.

 From Abraham down through the centuries, be it Egypt, or the tribal raids during the desert trek, the constant challenges to the autonomy of a Jewish state - all guilty as not charged!! The hatred flowed through the rich feeding grounds of Europe, the lands of Arabia, the slaughter of 1648, centuries of murderous hate, pogroms initiated by churches and mosques, by governmental policies, of Kishinev in the late 1800s, so bad that the newspapers of the world headlined it, and millions of Jews fled Russia any which way they could. Many went to America, anywhere they could find entry, legally or not. Funny is it not, the similarity in motivations and hopes of current day migrants hammering on the doors, now shut, to the land where "huddled masses yearning to breathe free" are now totally vilified and demeaned. Indeed, the more things change ...

At times during the centuries, especially in modern times, the hatred was quiet, just beneath the surface and oh so polite. It was acknowledged via clue words and sly winks of the eye. Unfortunately, there were times when this hate burst through to the surface and spread its ugliness throughout fertile grounds. Hate was visible, carried on through quotas in universities, professional schools such as medicine and law, the hiring of Jews was rather frowned upon, covenants banning sales to Jews, signs of no welcome of Jews, all present and accounted for in the good old USA. But we Jews prospered, worked hard, and contributed to the betterment of society with aid for all.

Gradually things improved and violence seemingly was rejected as policy. The KKK still lives, always maintained their anti-Jewish stand and played an active role in the lynching of Leo Frank. Nor are we to forget the recent slaughter of eleven Jews in Pittsburgh, more martyrs of a nation already with an oversupply of martyrs. And once again, faintly at first, but growing, evolving, at geometric exponential rate, the voices of hate rose in volume and toxicity, and worse, the approval of society.

On a beautiful Saturday morning, October 7, 2024, primeval ancient hate burst through. It manifested itself. Vicious brutal barbaric slaughter and rampage. Children infants the young teens young adults middle aged the elderly the ill. No distinction as they all were slaughtered, or kidnapped, to be held hostage and to be allowed to die, urged to die as the bodies were certainly easier to hold for ransom than live bodies. Thousands of uniformed members of the terrorist group Hamas along with more thousands of “innocent” civilians who joined in the slaughter and the looting, the additional members and supporters of Hamas who held hostages within their own homes and the thousands who cheered, as the kidnapped, live, dead, wounded, bloodied, raped, naked, were paraded on the streets of Gaza.  

The truth was obvious documented even by their own footage. clearly portraying delineating the viciousness of Hamas as clearly was seen. The savagery of Hamas who purposely wove themselves into the infrastructure of Gaza and crowded civilian areas both on top of the surface and below. In fact, they welcomed the death of their own supporters, their own people for to Hamas, they were nothing but fodder for their own purposes. The more the merrier was the attitude of Sinwar and Deif and Haniyah, for they remained safe. Cowards all.

Unfortunately, not unexpectedly, the world turned on a dime, on a penny, on a farthing. As usual, the Jews, the Israelis, were to blame. But of course, for why would anyone think otherwise. Israel, righteously fulfilling her duty to protect her citizens, went into Gaza to deal a crippling blow to Hamas and to rescue their family members, for we are all one family. This violation of humanity by Hamas was an attack against all world Jewry - do not be mistaken. The haters and deluded, the fools, the hidden antisemites, all who joined in with the rhetoric calling for the ethnic cleansing of Jews within and without the borders of Israel, even as Israel did its best to limit the deaths of civilians, a war policy of Hamas, well, sing and chant all you want, for what goes around comes around.   

Throughout history, it has been very clear that though the hatred of Jews appears to be well woven into the patrimony of most nations of the world, that hatred is eventually repaid and recognized, in kind, not so much by us, but as we have been reassured many times over - by the Lord Himself. The blood and tears of our slaughtered and bereaved complete their long journey to the Heavens, to the ears of the Angels, of those who have gone before us, who bring the grievances to the Lord and demand recompense and punishment. Justice delayed works well, so have patience. It's   coming; just listen for the sounds of the vibrations on those tracks and know - You Are Judged and Found Wanting!            

The struggle against Anti Semitism continues. The violence of the past 10 months visible, growing, amongst the chanters, the physical attacks against. Jews and their supporters who recognize the right of the state of Israel to exist grows apace. The world colludes in the deliberate isolation movement, to deny legitimacy to Israel, to deny it in all areas of nations, to deny the right of each and every Jew to participate and share the activities of humankind. 

The world must know, must understand, that we will not stand for this any longer. We will no longer be passive about it. We will use the power of the courts, the power of public opinion, the power of right on our side. We will force the haters to back down. We will force them to think. about what they have done and what they are doing. Adidas withdraws Bella Hadid, but that is not enough. An unthinking - or worse - deliberate -cruel campaign to highlight the Munich Olympics of 1972 where yet another brutal attack was perpetrated on Israeli athletes and Brundage could barely acknowledge the horror! To commemorate a sneaker! A shoe of that time?! Not acceptable, not the campaign, not the spokeswoman. What the hell was Adidas thinking- or knowingly planning but caught with their pants down. Boycott Adidas and any other company needful of a lesson on discerning right from wrong.

Know that we are here. Know that we do not plan to disappear. Know that we will not allow you to perpetrate more pogroms upon us. Know that there will be consequences for the universities who refuse to accept their own guilt in allowing the growth and perpetration of egregious and violent threatening antisemitism in their campuses and classrooms. There must be an end to the inculcation of poison into young minds, force fed by the hatred emanating from their bigoted professors. Know that we demand consequences. Consequences that will be carried out. Those who speak chants and encouragements of violence and murder must be met by deserved penalties.      

Know that we are here. Forever.  

Am Yisrael Chai. Lanetzach.   

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   Yitzy, how did you remain so pure of heart, so good of soul, so kind of nature? Was it your family that loved you so, that misses you so? Was it the depth of your faith, and trust in God? Or was it something else? Or a combination of all? Whatever it was, we certainly need some of that down here. No, not some, but a whole lot.

 And as usual we miss you so.

Always and forever. Always and forever.

A WOBBLY EARTH? WHAT'S NEXT?

 Have you heard the latest? Earth apparently is wobbling on its axis, and our days are going to change by 2029. What is the change? The day will get longer. By how much? Some seconds or nanoseconds, so I imagine consequential immediate effects will scarcely be noted. When there will be enough seconds accumulated to indeed elicit a recognizable effect is currently unknown, but one thing we can be sure of. It will be nothing good, nothing to write home about - or perhaps we should write home about it. Now. Particularly as the same scientists tell us that the cause of this predicted phenomenon falls directly at the clay feet of the human race. 

How proud we are as our desecration of this earth via our willful ignorance of the consequences already here. Climate change denied even in the face of its reality. Most of the globe has been burning up as of late. Heat advisories are heard daily, and people are wilting under the extreme temperatures.   We have droughts where there were none. We have floods where once there were none. Monster hurricanes and tornadoes are no longer rare and the cost in lives and infrastructure is immense. Not to forget the growing eruptions of volcanoes once thought inert and the growing shocks of earthquakes as even the ground beneath our feet becomes ever more wobbly. The ocean is rising, and the land is sinking along with the future of mankind upon this planet. Another plan or approach other than denial must be implemented and ASAP.

There are other areas in the lives of humans which have also grown quite wobbly. The foundations having been eaten away so frequently over the past decade or so are now insufficient, too weak to continue to support our society. And so, we cut back on things, trying to shed some weight. But in doing so, we have shed morality and principles of life we once supported. We refuse to see the truth. We insist on imbibing new formulations of Reverend Jones's Kool-Aid which poisons and kills off our souls, our compassion, our empathy, our drive to do good, to be better. We have gone so far astray that the path to return is barely visible. 

Yesterday was an interesting day. One person told me I should take a flying leap. Another person accused me vehemently of being grossly unwelcoming and unaccepting of the new truths of the day. Other people agreed with me but spoke with despair in their voices, wondering, so uncertain as to what will be in our immediate future. 

In addition, the sour cherry on top, our new candidate for VP of these here United States of America has basically told me and others that we are sociopaths because we support the right of women to choose. This from a man who states that a woman must carry any pregnancy to full term, be the fetus dead or dying, the mother's health in danger, even if the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest. Women will once again be known as breeders. Undeserving of aid to raise these otherwise unwanted, unable to be provided for   babies. Nothing.  Oh, but his beard is just so manly, is it not!!

The whole stink re immigration permeates the air around us, from border to border, ocean to ocean. Actually, a study just determined that there are significantly fewer border crossings now, but MAGA creeps are apparently unheeding of the facts for they do not serve them well. Standard procedure in their twisted minds. Deny truths, shout falsehoods.

Speaking of immigration and immigrants, let's talk a bit of truth. Try to answer or feel some questions. First, those crossing the border, these immigrants are doing exactly what our parents, grandparents and great grandparents did They have come searching for safety from those who would kill them, from dire poverty condemning them to bare existence.  To rescue themselves and most importantly their children, to provide a path for a better life, a life with hope.    

 Contrary to the garbage that has been now inculcated into the souls of MAGAs, the immigrants are not hordes of terrorists. Nor criminals. Nor drug addicts. Nor drug dealers. Nor riddled with disease. Nor desirous of doing various nefarious things to the population already within our borders. They wish to find jobs and build a life - and many do so. Just as our ancestors did. As we do. Are there criminals among them? For sure. Are there criminals among native born American citizens? For sure. Who the hell do you think fills our prisons to overflowing?

We all need to look deep into the mirror. We need to write our last names down. We need to write our first names down and know after whom were we named? We need to know our pasts, where we came from if we are to know where we wish to go. We need to look around our house and see what we hold dear, what we treasure. We need to remember. that every person among the population of the United States is an immigrant or a descendant of an immigrant, right down to the Native Americans considered indigenous for they too came from elsewhere.

I do not understand why so many, too many of us   have succumbed to vitriolic hate. There is no winner in this ugly game of hate topping hate. Only bottom lines of red in the process to get there. We lose our humanity. We lose our unity. We lose our sanity.  We are ceding our very souls and power of independent thinking and decision making. All to a man who somehow has caused grown people to grovel and cringe before him, to bow their heads and bend their knees to him. Loyalty is defined as being true only to him, with nothing else worthy of loyalty, for nothing is higher than he is. Nothing restricts him. Nothing prevents him from further inroads and advances on the path to the destruction of democracy and foster the growth of Amerika. What is this? Why have we allowed this?  

  His policies are destructive to the nth degree as he wishes to initiate a tariff, a trade war which will only result in a weakened dollar and loss of jobs, in the purchase power of our dollars at home, threatening food, clothing and shelter. In fact, our economy is thriving and buzzing along. In addition, he wishes the country to lift its skirts over its head to act as an island in a sea of nations. But there is no way to remain isolated in a world so interwoven and complex. He wishes to challenge and deny our rights, to ban books, to disagree, to vote, and demands that we agree to his lies, to swallow them whole, even as they turn on themselves.  Is this what we want? Is this that we should allow? Recall our wobbly earth. 

While I have troubles with the Biden/Harris team, they are not a danger to democracy. I can hope they will remember their positive contributions to this nation as they served America in various governmental positions. But I cannot trust the Trump/Vance team, not their policies, nor their promises, and certainly not their words as they are most proficient in and familiar with the art of lying. 

What a fine mass mess we have created for ourselves.  

America. America. Where have you gone? Are you planning to return? Will I ever feel welcome here again? Will I ever feel safe again? The answers to those questions are to be found only within us. We    cannot hide our heads in the sand and decide that nothing bad will happen. That is a fool's game.      In the words of Primo Levi, an Italian writer and philosopher who survived the Hell of Auschwitz, words now etched on the National Holocaust Museum of the Netherlands -  

 “It happened; therefore, it can happen again."

 

OH BOY! OH GIRL! OH amERICA!

 Oh wow. Whence goeth my country? If it even remains my country. For that matter, what is a "country"? It's a term, essentially political, which delineates a grouping of a population of shared goals and ethos, structured around a national charter and/or guide, and contains within a population loyal to it and guided by freely elected officials who place country and people above personal needs and desires. At best, these leaders are moral, intelligent and caring. They do not advocate violence nor extremism. 

All within are to be treated as equals with shared rights. Commonalities are stressed and differences are approached with tact and goals of compromise and mutuality, with no one granted the right to be superior to any other group nor above the law, and certainly not the leaders who are expected to be role models for the nation's population. Rights are to be equal for all and are not commodities to be granted or withdrawn as per the whims of a leader.   It is to be an entity of strong shared values, confident enough to accept and even celebrate differences which meld together in a shared ethos and new personality. Ergo - 'America'. Ergo 'American'. Ergo the 'United States of America'.  

Those terms, their meanings and implications, are now besieged and beset by the those who would radically change them. The very air is permeated with the shouts, rants and tirades and it becomes heated, overheated. It sears all that makes contact and enormously reshapes the nation in an atmosphere streaked with negativity and threads of anger and violence. Suddenly the terms America, the United States of America, American, come to signify other than former understandings and aspirations. Most certainly, not in a good manner.  

The question before us, the decision before us, is existential. Who are we? Who do we aspire to be? Or have we lost those aspirations? Rather than reach for the stars we now delve deep into the mud. Why? Can we not talk with each other anymore? Instead. we shout at each other. We adopt more and more extreme policies and accept and internalize absurdities. Once we would have recognized the falsehoods which we now swear to be truths. Miss and disinformation proliferate, and we accept the degradation of others where once we would have forcefully rejected that ugliness. Our anger and exaggerated differences, the fear generated, are at such peaks we have never had before. Why? Why has this come to be? Why did we allow this to be?

The fault lies within our own selves. It was neither the water, nor the air, nor the food, nor the chemicals, nor the. ozone layer. It was us. Somehow, somewhere and some time we just opened a door wide and in trooped negativities of all sizes and consequences. We bought into those negativities and are continuing to do so at present. As for the future- not boding well, is it?   

We allowed clearly incompetent people to be elected to office. We allowed them to chase out those legislators who had courage, morality, who did not place their own whims and desires above all else. We allowed for a corrupted partisan justice system, especially within the courts. And thus, here we are today.  Once a world leader, we now behave as a fourth-class nation, shockingly, unbelievably, discussing a plan book, detailed and specific, as to how to shed this country's democracy, exchanging it for one of totalitarian rule! The greatest democracy ever and well ...once upon a time.  However, the ending does not seem to be "lived happily ever after".

Once there was a concept of a melting bowl but that proved to be too demanding and not necessarily totally positive. People must not forget their origin and history. We must not melt all individuality and all heritage. Instead, we should be that salad mix in a well-constructed bowl with room for individuality and sharing and mixing, the taste enhanced by the tastes of others in that same bowl. A whole capable of managing its separate pieces and those separate pieces wanting, able, to form a whole while retaining their individuality.  Once we were such.  

Now we are not. We have strayed far, way too far. from our original foundation. We have discarded the good, the gold and silver, and adopted only the rust beneath. Perhaps we thought we were oh so sophisticated in dissing our own country to that extent. I don't know; I guess I am not wise enough to know but someone out there must know. What I do know is that we must take control of our own selves and retrain our eyes and ears and minds to hear and know the truth. To be able to separate the trash from the valued. It will take hard work to come back from so far, but we must try. And we have to begin without further delay. G-d help us if we refuse to change, to do better, or at least try to do better. We must at least attempt to reinforce and deserve this verse: "America, America, G-d shed His Grace on thee."  

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Hey, Yitzy, think this is at all possible? I am not very sure of that, but I will have hope and remember that there are good people remaining on earth. We could use a few more. ASAP

Love you, sweet boy,

Always and forever. Always and forever.

   

  

  

   

 

 

THE HUMAN .....?????

  William Saroyan wrote The Human Comedy, a rather wry portrait of the human situation. Unfortunately, if one were to write a book today it would better titled Human Tragedy. That tragedy is of our own authorship and in its creation, we have set aside all that mankind should have learned over the millennia. Instead, we have immersed ourselves neck deep in a rising tide as the sea inches higher and higher in our self-generated sea of errors. Even as we stand there trying to maintain our existence, to find a way out of this muddle, we simply return to the same old, same old and compound the old mistakes.    

 What is this intensity, this emotion, that drives humanity to do so, to always manage to surge forward and wade ever closer to the shore to safety and then tank the entire matter. We then look around and hear the ticking of the clock. The doomsday clock whose hands edge closer and closer to midnight, the point of no return. No more rabbits out of the hat. Time, and again we have managed to pull ourselves back, to stop the hands of the clock and perhaps even push it back some nanoseconds. But how many times can we pull off that same trick, find a lifesaving moment of sanity. How many times can we be so dangerously stupid as to think that if one does the same thing again and again, there will be a different result? There is not. The sooner we understand that the better off we will be.   

We can change our direction and our situation. We must delve into human history and throw everything into the pot, let it boil, until finally the main ingredient is left alone. That ingredient as I see it, is one that has been with mankind since time immemorial. It is a motivation that has positive aspects but unfortunately also has negative ones with enough power to blow the situation to smithereens and has indeed done so many, many times with varying consequences. 

(Mind you, I am not a sage of the world, and I merely interpret as I understand. I am sure there will be many detractors but at this point we are allowed to think for ourselves and so I have done.)

Some appearances and applications of this drive are seen as more positive than others. Some in their extreme applications, are totally negative. All have proponents of pro and con. In fact, I believe that without this drive mankind would never have progressed, for this drive necessitated invention, innovation, and planning for a future. 

The tragedy is the inability of humanity to see past its limiting noses and know its commonality and use that trait to work hard and compromise and mesh the drives together. We need to distinguish. between drives driven by total evil and those driven by necessity, or by those thinking it positive, and either not seeing or wanting to see the negative consequences. Easy it will not be, perhaps even Sisyphean but worth a try. The alternative - been there, done that and here we are. Well past time to get out of here.      

It is the caveman with the club desiring the other room in that cave. It is the clan that needs more room for its members. It is a group of warriors desirous of laying down arms and raising their families on a piece of hospitable territory, to establish a home, a nation, a state. It drove the explorations of the French, the Spanish, the English. It drove the settlement of what was to be America. It persisted through the centuries and endless wars over territories. It manifested itself in mainly negative ways over and over again. It was the drive of Mussolini to acquire colonies for Italy. It was the evil policy of Lebensraum of Hitler. It is the never-ending fight amongst the nations of Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, the Sudan, fighting over the same lands. It is the invasion of Ukraine by Putin's Russia. It is the American doctrine of Manifest Destiny. It is the ever-ongoing battles in the land of Israel. 

The need for living space, the coveting of a neighbor's house or property, the selfish desire to wall out the world and deny them access to shared lands, all the way to national and international desires of expansion, it is all one and the same merely different in degree. Always seeking of more room, more living space, more wealth, more influence, more power, more and more and more. 

Too often the more obtained, the more we want. It is a vicious cycle that never ends only reinforcing itself as rage, jealousy, and the use and approval of violence grow geometrically. When it appears that there is an end to a cycle almost immediately there is another. The cataclysmic end of one cycle apparently has no lasting effect or acts as a deterrent upon the next one. It is as if we need this impetus to validate our existence. Sadly so.      

Why have we not learned the obvious lesson? Why have we not taken it to heart? I think that perhaps we look at the positive, or that thought to be positive which arises out of that ugliness. America. Small lands growing more important. Researchers, scientists, and inventors encouraged and productive, moving mankind along.  Delving deeply into the mysteries of the world. New ways of thinking. New devices necessary for mankind to move on. 

There has been a slow understanding that in one nation's advance there is another nation's retreat. One nation's need seemingly obviates the other. Many Western nations have come to realize and understand the damage done and have changed some attitudes and made amends. However, it must also be understood that those indigenous nations displaced or pressured by newer people, were also displacers of earlier indigenous tribes.   

 It is an ever-repeating cycle and where it goes, we all know, even as we ignore it.  It is a cycle that goes around, comes around. Inevitably. Somehow, somewhere, some way, there must be some person, some people, bright enough, charismatic enough, to come up with a viable, even if difficult solution and convince others of it and then see to its application. 

The other day I came across this statement and I believe it is quite apropos of today's posting. If only, if only we could see and accept each other in this manner. If we understand our similarities and can find enough moments of sanity and sane people, perhaps we will live this truth and understanding. If only.    "They want to live their normal life. They are normal neighbors. Normal sports club members, normal ordinary people. They want to live well here and be part of this country and city.”

 Surely with common sense and hard work we can find enough room for all on this earth and help all to develop their lands in the best way possible, to   have sufficient air to breathe and room to expand. Is there a good alternative to this? I think not.

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Yitzy, I hate to let you near the ugliness of the world, to allow it to sully your innate purity and beauty of soul. Forgive me, but I find it difficult to omit you. I love you. 

Always and forever. Always and forever.   

   

THREE QUESTIONS

  

After waking from surgery. a patient is almost always asked three questions. These questions relate to orientation of self, of time, of place. Apparently, if you do not answer correctly, steps need to be taken. From more time to sleep off the anesthesia to more serious steps, the problem will be addressed. However, these three questions are actually quite appropriate for the general public at large today. Our rather thick-headed species refuses to learn, to take instruction, or how to place more weight on the right, perhaps the more difficult to achieve, rather than on the momentarily liberating incorrect. All along, as choices are made, very few follow the thread of that choice to its consequences. Hence, the great shock and confusion when these consequences do take place. 

The first question usually refers to self, Asking for name and date of birth. Pretty simple. Second question generally refers to a specific date, week or month and year. The specific date can be a tad more 'challenging' as so many of us often ask of others, “What's today's date?”  The third question refers to orientation to and within life itself.  "Who is the president?" Shortly after Trump achieved office, I was asked that very question. My answer, delivered in sleepy tones, was “Don't make me say it.”  That answer was deemed acceptable.

What would be the proper answer to that question if asked in 2025? Who will be the president? With both candidates unfit for office, we must, nevertheless, make a choice. Two tired old men. One has served his nation well. The other has served only himself with nary a thought for anyone other than himself. One can continue to steer the ship of state with a good crew beside him. The other will remain alone at the helm, accompanied by a groveling, frightened coterie of enablers and sycophants. 

His plans, should he be elected, are to follow the plan book so graciously laid out for him by the Heritage Foundation, so conservative they are encased in old rock! It is a 922-page tome entitled Project 2025. Contained within is his detailed plan to morph this nation, to wrench this nation, from a troubled democratic one to a dystopian troubled nation. If we indeed have a nation remaining. An   example of the violence which will prevail, which will ramp up sharply even more than in present times, is the attempted assassination of Trump and the ever-growing numbers of mass shootings. 

When violence is used as a tool, a political tool, when the system of justice is perverted, with judges egregiously partisan or ill-educated, incompetent, greedy, we had better understand that this is a precursor to an even more violent future, a future nearly upon us. "What goes around comes around." If one advocates violence, violence will inevitably nip at them, perhaps even bite. It behooves all of us particularly the champions of violence to understand that truth.  

The perpetration of that violence is part and parcel of the plans of the GOP. They rabidly oppose any form of gun reform and gun control. Telling one and all that our pistols will be confiscated; our homes will be invaded. Our pistols are safe. It is the assault   rifles. It is the semi assault rifles. It is the bump stock. It is the target of gun control. Why is there such opposition to it? This confusion as the motivation can be addressed and understood upon reading Project 2025. It sends shivers down my spine. One can easily see ahead of us a grossly dystopian future.  It is described by a strong opponent of it.

"Under the leadership of Kevin Howard, the Heritage Foundation created an ultraconservative guide for building a dystopian future life in the United States. The document takes the US way back to a time when white males were the only power, women were barefoot, pregnant, only speaking when spoken to, and any minority or racial groups were discriminated against, persecuted, and resigned to living in racial ghettos."

While that may sound extreme, it is simplified, though not grossly overly much. It may not happen overnight, though the plans are that it will happen as of Trump's Day of Rage, Revenge, and Retribution, the first day in office, G-d forbid. It is a planned ugliness which will develop a deadly momentum of its own and where it will stop - if it will stop - is anyone's guess.  

We are at a crossroads. A most crucial one which demands careful thought before embarking on the one fork or the other. Thus, for now, when asked who you are. and when you were born and who your leader is, think carefully. Who are you exactly? Are you true to the values we were taught as children, to be loyal to the nation, to do right rather than wrong, to work for fairness and rights for all? Or have you chosen otherwise for whatever reason. Please think things through. We have a rotten choice, but one is worse than the other and bodes no good for our future as a nation, as Americans, for that concept will disappear. Look around, think. How could the extreme right and the extreme left find beliefs in common? Something very rotten here! When that inevitable alien comes along and asks to be taken to our leader, who will that leader be?     

People, we all need to be better. We need to stop sniping at each other. We need to stop designing programs and speeches to appeal to the level of the lowest common denominator. We must stop shrieking and shouting so we can hear each other and our inner selves cautioning us. We must put out the fires rather than feed them. Oppose, but properly, civilly, with respect. With good intentions. 

Three questions, folks. Three questions of a lifetime. What are your answers?