UNMOORED

  That is a word used to describe the current state, increasing almost daily, of the former president, Trump. Increasingly agitated, worried, he rants and raves, sends out his ridiculously capitalized harangues to various people and grows increasingly frustrated over his lack of power to stop the Jan. 6 Committee dead in its tracks. Well, Hallelujah and Amen to that. About time.

Be that as it may, there are other 'unmoorings' these days. Joe Manchin has completely lost sight of the big picture and, perhaps, in silence and the privacy of his own home, is imagining himself as the newly, self-appointed shepherd of this country. He has grown an ego that is competitive in size with that of Trump's and believes he can run and rule this country via his neither Democratic nor Republican personas. He, now, singlehandedly, is ruining, blocking, the path to salvation of this country. Personally, I believe he had better check his own moorings, for his ship that appears so well equipped for the political seas of this country can quickly develop major leaks and go down with the tide. Taking the Captain along with it? Only time will tell, but we have seen great examples these days of how people are finding themselves adrift, no power, no sails, no motors, nothing to keep them safe in a world gone frequently unmoored itself.

There is more, unfortunately, to the story of 'unmoorings' around the country. We are increasingly hearing of inane, yet dangerous, steps that should be taken to 'overcome' the inequities of the past. Apparently, these inequities can be atoned for only via new inequities visited upon others. Tit for tat philosophy, a continuation of the schoolyard behavior of people today.  Ridiculous, yet in the frenetic bizarre temperament of the world today, nothing appears out of bounds. Nothing at all.

Here is the latest one I read about. The contents of this article were absurd, yet posed, simultaneously, a substantial impediment to any further progress and, in fact, could lead to a country caught in the throes of dangerous ideas and actions. How can it be that the inequities of others, of the past need to be visited upon others? Yet that is the gist of a school newspaper on the Oberlin campus. 

 The writer suggested that too many 'Whites' were attending campus concerts, infringing on the rights of Black people to attend, even those concerts that somehow had a special 'attraction' for Black people. Not my words, folks, but there they are. The 'cure' to this 'concertgate' is thus: 'Whites" should not buy tickets or be limited in purchase. Furthermore, at these concerts or any event, if a Black person enters and takes a seat in the rear, for that is open, or wishes to sit there, that person needs to be given the seat of a White person sitting closer to the front! Apologetically proper in the act. I kid you not.

What the heck is this? A reverse "Negroes to the back of the bus" policy? These outlandish suggestions further exacerbate the situation and allow leeway for bigots to gain adherents and converts to their own perverted causes. What is the matter with us today? Have we all become unmoored from reality? Have we all lost the moorings that connect us to sanity, to positive steps, to mutual benefits? 

Are we all to apologize for the complexion of our skins and if it comes to that, well, let's get real. White. Black. Brown. Shades of these colors. Do we now institute a list of "purity' according to shading? How does that differ in any way, shape, manner or form from the philosophies of fascism? Why is it even acceptable to publish this blueprint for further flames of racism? As for me, personally, and for all Jews, there are many bigots in this world who consider Jews to be residents of the same world as the "mud people". But what about the Jews of varying ethnicities, for we come in all colors, do we not? Absurdity, yet there it is. 

I will not apologize for being born a Jew. I will not apologize for having a skin tone closer to white than another color, though actually, the only truly 'white' people are albinos! No one need apologize for being born any color, or shade. We are not 'colors' but are people, individuals, good, bad and indifferent. We need to be proud of our heritage though not discriminatory to others. Are parts of that heritage not so praiseworthy, then act accordingly. Improve on that, but do not take it out on others. Simple as that.

Remember the song "I Need a Hero"?

I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night
He's gotta be strong
And he's gotta be fast
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight

We need to be our own heroes.

We can be those heroes. But no one is a hero on the backs of others. No one. To suggest otherwise is to join the camp of the unmoored and the ignorant, the vendors of hate and chaos.

That is not who we are. That is not who we are to be. Let us all be our own heroes, setting examples of a properly moored society, of a population that is harmonious, rather than fractured, adrift on a sea of hate and blood. That blood, by the way, for the ignorant to know, is all red. Period.

BLURRY BORDERS

 We all have dreams that take us out of reality into a world of fantasy. From the minds of people, great and small, fantasy has often been overtaken by reality as we advance in thoughts, deeds, accomplishments, and the daring to take on the "what ifs' and make them the leading question - What if....? and work from there. Trips to the moon, curing the problem faced by Charly in Flowers for Algernon, space travel - all were fantasy morphed into fiction morphed into reality and ongoing from there. All good, mostly, but at times, there is an evil turn of fantasy; we must be aware, proactive, if we are to avoid Faustian turns of fantasy into real life.

Authors, readers, moviegoers, we all love to read or watch catastrophic movies. In the main, the evil is defeated, evildoers receive their just dues, and balance is restored. Unfortunately, today and the tomorrows to come speak of fantasy taking a turn for the worse. We are staring it in the face and yet, we seem to be mired in a swamp of inertia, inability or denial - or any combination thereof. The days of reckoning are no longer to come but have already arrived. We are seriously lagging and lacking in recognizing reality and on we go and on we go and on we go - to where? Nowhere, perhaps?

Monster tsunamis. Nature gone berserk. Fires that roar out of control. Attacks by crazed people. Humans unrecognizable in new behavior and even Zombies. Okay, right now that is over the top, I know, but are we not behaving as Zombies, consuming others, rabid in our desire to have it all? Think about it. Have these things already taken place, getting worse in intensity and frequency, with more to come.? Are we to wait till nations are underwater or the land is denuded of sustainable support for life? It appears that our efforts now are perhaps too little too late. Mad Max world a reality? Who the hell knows, and yet...?

The world of man, the political structure of life within that world, has long been fertile ground for political fantasy movies. The White House attacked; governments overthrown. The President and Congressional leaders hunted down. The 'trusted" leaders of America revealing themselves as traitors. Huh! Good fiction, Makes for a good read and an exciting movie and aren't we lucky that it will never happen here. Yup. Never. Riiiight!

"Representative Jim Jordan is "a traitor" based off of a text message he sent to former President Donald Trump's then-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows about rejecting Electoral College votes on January 6."

"Ali Alexander, the conservative activist behind the "Stop the Steal" movement, recently told congressional investigators that he had communicated with several House Republican lawmakers ahead of the Jan. 6 rally and Capitol riot, along with at least one member of the Trump family's inner circle."

"...historically unprecedented and desperate efforts by Donald Trump in the final weeks of his presidency to reverse an election ...  proposals allowing state officials to thwart legitimate election outcomes –" 

 "nearly one in five Republicans still believe it is "likely" former President Donald Trump will be reinstated as president by the end of the year, "

"...they and other former senior military officials are concerned about the possibility that another contested election might lead to a breakdown in the military. The former officers warned that troops might actually choose to follow their personal politics over their loyalty to the country in such a scenario".

"Citing the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot, the generals wrote, “We are chilled to our bones at the thought of a coup succeeding next time.”

"There is only one truth: the truth of the party. And the party is Donald Trump."

 All these and more are from articles of mainstream media. All are cause for concern. This is not a movie. This is not a drill. People, people like you and me, or even perhaps, you, are planning the takedown of this country's legitimate government and imposing another upon the nation. Goodbye, America. Hello ...what? Democracy certainly hangs in the balance. Anyone who does not see this, well, perhaps a pair of mental spectacles might help. 

We have gone from bad to worse over this past half  decade, ever edging closer to turning this country upside down. Fantasy? No; this is real. This is not a case of M&Ms tied to a rocket, with a horrified question as they face reality: "This is real?" For us, yes, it is real. To real for my liking. Too frightening to contemplate and yet we must. This fantasy into reality needs to be stopped in its tracks lest it be a case of too late, see ya' next century. Perhaps. Maybe. Heck, Earth might not even be here then. So, as Alfred E. Newman used to say, "What, me worry?"

Yes, please - we must all worry. It is imperative that we put aside petty differences, pay attention to the truth, regain our sanity and balance and be Americans, one and all. Is that now a fantasy become reality? Lordy, but I hope not, I pray not.

WAVES AND MORE

  There are waves in the world. Waves of weather conditions. Waves of joy and sadness. Waves of terror and waves of repetitive nature. There are waves of hello and waves of goodbye. There are waves of fashion. Which wave one chooses says much, but there are also waves that wrap themselves around any and all in its path. Irregardless of their personal wishes. Are there ways to avoid these waves? Sometimes yes; other times no. Can we make changes in the progress or impact of these waves? All depends. At times, the waves have grown so strong that they can wipe out all in its path, disregarding the laws of Nature and the laws of mankind. 

The history of the world is replete with political waves. They appear to sweep around the globe, gather strength, wreak havoc. Then via natural processes supplemented by violence, this wave is replaced by another. Is the replacement wave good? Bad? Indifferent? Short or long term? That is often decided by the actions of people, whether they accept and support that new wave or not.

Today, having grown with a tremendously huge, ugly speed, a wave with frightening echoes has great potential to reprise an era wherein a world was caught between democracy and rights of people and those that would deny that right. Though lines were blurred - as, for example, the Soviet Union allied with the Western powers, the point was clear. You are either with or agin'. Today, right here in America, the foremost proponent of democracy, for individual rights, for personal liberty, we are under attack by a wave that should frighten the dickens out of you.

The House Freedom Caucus. America First. Proud Boys. Extremes moving into the mainstream.  Several other names, all thinly disguising their true colors. The end of democracy. The end of liberalism, of progress, of hope for the future, and loyalty to our past and our national ethos. The same old, same old which portends great danger to us all if we do not quickly react, become proactive, and call a spade a spade. The truth behind it? All these groups and their sibling groups are barely veiled disguised fascistic in nature, in outlook, in plans. 

Paul Gosar. Scott Perry. Mark Meadows. Mel Brooks. Louis Gohmert. Jim Jordan. Andy Biggs. Jr. and Eric. Mike Lindell. Clark. McConnell. Stephanie Grisham. Greene. Bohbert. We can list ad infinitum ad nauseam, but the conclusion, the facts remain, despite Trump's philosophy of forget, discard, discount what you see, what you think you know. It is different. These people are members of the government or influencers in the government. They used their power to subvert this country, to stage a coup, to enable the Great Liar to push his fascistic ambitions upon us - and worse, continue the fight. Till today. And tomorrow. And tomorrow.

This is a wave of world changing, destructive  capacity. It is a wave that should send shivers down your spine directly into your heart. Think you will be immune? Think you are white, male, thus, free from any danger? Think again. Think again and again, for the truth is that no one is immune to the injustices of a fascistic regime. No one. Even those at the top of the garbage heap walk on unsteady ground. 

We need to see beyond the misnomers of these groups, the descendants of the America First adherents of WWII times, those who would deny the beauty of America, its acceptance of all who wish to work, live in peace, build a life and future for their families. They tar all "others' with vile lies, insults and demand they be fixed in position as lesser beings, not worthy of the same rights as the rest of society. 

The most frightening thing about this whole wave is the easy acceptance it has found in the minds and hearts of once upon a time intelligent people who could discern the truth, separate the facts from the fiction, and understand what can be read between the lines, the import of the words. They bought into the blatant lies. Now, perhaps ashamed of their gullibility, they continue to back Trump and his nefarious, dangerous co-conspirators, for that is what it was - a conspiracy - lest people think the less of them, lest they be shamed in public, tarred with the brush of traitors and fools. Well, this would not be the case. America has a forgiving heart, accepts apologies, and does not generally impose harsh punishments for political crimes or mistakes. However, even as we forgive the 'trespasses' of deluded Trump adherents, we do need to come down hard, fiercely so, upon these traitors. Only that will prevent future waves of fascism right here in our country.

Accept the truth. Accept the reality. Hear the words entering your ears, the words you read. Trump is a traitor. So are the group of Congressmen who supported him, who knew of Jan. 6 and allegedly took part in its planning. Traitors, one and all, including the Trump children and all the enablers who knew what was going on, knew the ultimate plans, and continued to either do nothing to stop it, or worse, continue to aid and abet. no regrets, no repentance. Still beating that same horse and I am not sure at all that they are beating a dead horse.

 The wave of reeking odor wafting from that dead horse beats the smell of Hamlet's rat in Denmark!

We are in the midst of a most dangerous wave, if not to ourselves, then certainly for the next generations, perhaps never to return to our America. WE need to change that possibility, that ugly picture. It is upon us. No one else.

THE. TIME. IS. NOW.

YES! THE MOVIES!

  Good morning, America! Time to wake up and return to life, to make logical decisions, to prioritize properly and understand the complexities of life that we face today. But there is more to do than that and it will help place things in a more understood and understandable light.

How do we do that? How do we squeeze understanding out of chaos? How do we live life in a forever changed world without sacrificing lives? Truthfully, the answer is that there is no statement anywhere, where we are promised a trouble-free life. There is no codicil on any contract, which guarantees a life without risk. How could there be? Simply crossing the street, making a decision to turn right or left, answering a phone, texting a foolish message, and the list goes on. Everyday situations are important, more so, when we realize that as individual pages add up to a book, so do repetitive behaviors, giving us information, guidance and thought - if only we paid attention. 

Too many of us have become accustomed to a life where excuses are always available. A kid misbehaves in school, as kids do. We overreact, churning life as we seek to 'understand' why. Why? Because that is what kids do. Worst of all, is that this seeking of excuses, this denial of reality, of mis-ranking priorities, continues even as the misbehaviors edge toward criminal activity, and finally cross the line. We begin to lose focus, lose the forest, as we zero in on a tree or two. We lose direction. We lose comprehension of time and space, of balance. We find ourselves spinning out of control, whirling in the opposite direction of the planet. 

So why the title? What's movies got to do with misdirection, with excuse making, with losing sight and comprehension of the importance of trees adding up to create a forest? Take the movie we saw yesterday - West Side Story, remade version. It was basically the same story as the original movie, keeping the thread intact, the thread that ties it all the way back to the beginning of time. Forever, there have been feuds between competing groups. Forever is the time in which we will have to deal with this, with the utter stupidity of lack of comprehension, being blind to that historical thread.

Take that afore said movie. The subtle changes were at times not so subtle. Oh, and let me warn you, bring a box of tissues. You will need it. The changes are appropriate to our time, indeed to all times, through generations, for though the names and places have changed, the essence is the same. Tragically so. Until we feel that deep in our bodies and souls, we are condemning ourselves to tragedy. 

When Rita Moreno, as Valentina, sings the song Somewhere, it is overwhelming in its power. It has the same impact as Anne Heche's version of I Had a Dream in Les Miz. It turned everything on its head. Valentina sang it, influenced by her own tragic life. It was the same old, same old. Mankind, in its blindness, finds itself fighting over the trash left to them by those in power. There appears to be no end to the despair.  Will there ever be a place for us?  Will there? The hope remains, weakened, but still there: "somewhere, somehow, someday".

The more things change, the more things remain the same. Sadly, oh so sadly, tragically, so. Will mankind ever, ever, learn? 

Another tragic truth understood via this version is that the lovers, while important, are not as important as the other message, why Shakespeare wrote his masterful piece, Romeo and Juliet, why it appeals to people through the ages.

Mankind, and I stress the man part of the word, continues to pound chests, shout challenging words, refuse to tamp down the temperature. Inevitably, they find themselves pounding away on each other, to the point of death. When it is too late, there comes a glimmering of understanding of what they have done, but some results are immutable. Death is death, to people or to society. Deadly battles, bloody fields, the poppies of Flanders Field, so many killed, maimed, wounded in body and soul. 

For what? For what! As usual there is the collateral damage of this man-kind behavior. The women, the children, are left to suffer, to bear the consequences, to pay the price. West Side Story, Romeo and Juliet, and all the versions before and since, convey the same message - if only it were caught! The Duke of Verona says, " a pox on both your houses." The lovers are not truly the issue, merely the plaything of the stubbornness of mankind: the insane, dangerous, ever-present hatred between groups that lead to a fractured society and a hit to its future.

Go to the movies. Watch a movie in its entirety, rather than stop for drinks, for bathroom, for phone, for texting, for whatever. Immerse yourself in the magic of the movies, open your hearts and heads, allow the true purpose of that movie to flow through you, to you, from that giant screen. There is much to be said for the gestalt of 'going' to the movies. We do 'go', hopefully gaining insight, feeling the impact meant for you, the viewers.

Go to the movies. It is clean, safe, and fun.

Go. Cry. Laugh. Do both at one and the same time.

Let us learn from our mistakes, the same ones we insist on making, time and time again. 

Someday. Somehow. Somewhere.

MORTAL WOUNDS

 Are we truly fixed in place, a place of damage to souls, of stricken hearts, of existential harm that has moved far away from the potentiality of it all to the reality of it all? How did this happen, this blistering campaign meant to turn the world over and down, a possibility turning into a probability, almost a reality? So close, so very close, and yet here we are, running around like the proverbial chicken without a head, not seeing what is right there in front of us, behind us, all around us.

What was once unthinkable has not only gone possible, a goal dearly sought by some, but it has also moved from one side of the paper - the negative, the impossible - to the other side, a much desired, now possible goal, attainable with just a bit more effort, a few more outrageous acts. Even as the dirt spews forth, its ugliness, the awful truths, continuing to batter us daily, hourly. Many of us appear to be helpless in this new blitzkrieg effort of those wishing - and moving quickly toward success- to achieve their dastardly, bastardly, goal  of killing democracy as the ruling system right here in the good old USA.

True, more and more political analysts are speaking out loud what was only whispered about before. It was unthinkable, was it not? Americans would not turn on their country, would they? Not en masse? Certainly? Well, the extremists have won this battle, hopefully not the war. Not yet. There is some time remaining before those of us wounded in hearts and souls are overrun, consigned to what? Concentration camps? Reeducation schools? Resettled? Resourced? All misnomers for dreadful mass murders, oppression, an ugliness that we should seek to eradicate from the face of this earth, yet we humans appear to be embracing it more and more.

Hutu and Tutsi. White on Black right here in America. Non-Jews vs. Jews. Islamophobia. Asian bias. Myanmar and the Rohingya. The Uighur in China. The gall, the disappointment of Americans - Americans- going there as "tourists" to tout the beauty of China and all its humanity and generosity! Omitting the source of their support, all to gain 'followers'. The list of slaughters that continue, that grow, continues almost unabated, unstoppable, for if not them, then why not us? In either capacity - as oppressors or oppressed. And as usual, caught in the middle, are the women and the children, looked upon as spoils of war, to be used and abused, as slaves, sold on the block, tossed aside like used tissues.

This horror has reached us here, in our once thought safe cocoon of living in America. We have forgotten our hard-won battles, the battles yet to be won, forgotten the truths about ourselves. We are all immigrants. No one has a halo around their heads or emits golden glows of sainthood. Did all their ancestors, our ancestors, reach here in pristine legal conditions? Absolutely not. How often have I heard stories of ship jumping, border crossing, of shenanigans in the desperation of getting out of Europe after WWII by all. Should we now go backwards, investigate all and toss generations out, right past the sullied statue of the Lady of the Harbor? Right past Ellis Island, Castle Clinton, the ports along the seacoasts of America? Who is left? The indigenous, yet even they came from elsewhere and often migrated to other areas through need, through conquest. No one is pure oil of humanity. No one.

We have tended to tar the 'other' side, focusing on the negative. We throw the baby out with the bathwater when we emphasize the clay feet, the imperfections in our ancestors, in Founders. We lose our sense of pride. Why not emphasize the good, the attempts to atone, to change the status quo? Why not be grateful that those who have come before have striven so hard, so long, so as to enable us, their descendants to live in an improved and improvable world?

We are now at the unthinkable, now definitely possible.  "It has gone too far and gotten out of hand." Yet another statement re Jan. 6, mind shattering.

 "Yesterday was a terrible day. We tried everything we could in our objection to the six states. I'm sorry nothing worked," ...  several House lawmakers had participated in "dozens" of meetings about rallies and other events designed to whip up support for overturning the election, including the rally that preceded the January 6 attack." 

That our supposed to be loyal leaders of America could be guilty, implicit, complicit in the attempted coup - blows the mind, shattering it, as our souls are blistered by the evil of these people, our hearts shattering at the treason of presumed supporters of our democracy. How? How can this be? How have we allowed proclaimed, boasting, Fascists to be elected to our most august and powerful positions? How have we allowed the Supreme Court to become a shill for rabid right wingers, interested only in overturning precedents that narrow the rights of the individual? How? How? Why?

As I stood talking to people yesterday, I watched who passed by. We were two Jews, a Black man, and a lovely young lady with some imperfections, deemed by many as unworthy of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness". I saw Latinos go by, gay couples, cis, binary, non-binary, whatever terms people are using today, as we specialize in finding differences rather than similarities. We should celebrate what makes us one, together, a partner in the human efforts round the world to bring peace and harmony, rather than bloodshed and war.  All are at risk in an oppressive country. See, there is always something there, used as proof of pudding to justify oppression.

Are we immune to all this? Will we be able to stem the tide of authoritarianism in this beloved country? Will we be able to shake the people back to sanity, away from the once unthinkable behavior they have supported, taken part of, all to destroy us - and them too - little as they understand that.

We are America. Proud. Strong. A leader of the world. Imperfect, but trying.

We are America. Say that again and again We are America. WE ARE AMERICA.

No humor in today's post, folks. Cannot find one whit of it in the oncoming tragedy awaiting us if we do not step up and do something, be it getting out the vote, writing to your representatives in all levels of government, threatening the removal of your vote. Donate. March. Protest. Speak up. Speak out. Learn to separate the chaff from the wheat, ignoring the patently false, inciting statements put out by traitors. Cowering will not do the trick.

THIS IS AMERICA. WE ARE AMERICANS. 

LET US REMEMBER THAT AND BEHAVE ACCORDINGLY.

THIS IS AMERICA. LET US NOT LOSE HER.

 

WASHA WASHA WASHA

  Used to be "brusha, brusha, brusha" with a brand of toothpaste. However, today, it is washa, washa, washa, as we wash our dirty linens in public, shaming ourselves before the entire country and the world. How has it come to this? When did the slide begin and is there any way possible to halt that slide right now, prevent it from sliding even lower? Well, folks, I hate to admit it, but I am feeling more and more pessimistic as each day wears on, with each hour now exploding with further proof of the shocking treason of a sitting president, a sore loser of mammoth proportions, and all his enabling, cooperative, kowtowing, sniveling, weasel henchmen. Add to that shameful crowd all the deluded, the formerly sane and the crazies, the well-known rabid extremists whose poisonous views had received a validation and a welcome from that deranged man, and an encouragement to attack their own country.

Even Fox, that right wing shilling mouthpiece for Trump, knew on Jan. 6 where the dirt, the twisted buck finally landed. Right on the Resolute desk, the desk which was shamed every day by his presence. Here are some of the messages they sent to the White House. They knew the truth indeed.

 "Mark, the president needs to tell people in the Capitol to go home," Laura Ingraham texted Meadows. "This is hurting all of us. He is destroying his legacy."

from Brian Kilmeade: "Please, get him on TV. Destroying everything you have accomplished." The other was from Sean Hannity: "Can he make a statement, ask people to leave the Capitol?" 

Almost immediately, as the coup failed, Fox began to speak out of the other side of their twisted tongues and tried to downplay it all. Their messages are now revealed by the washing committee, determined to expose it all, from the trail of rot that extended outward and downward from Trump to his followers, his treasonous crowd, his acknowledged base.

"No matter what they say now, Trump's loyalists knew at the time that what was happening at the Capitol was not a peaceful protest. They knew that it was a dangerous attack on American democracy. And they knew that Trump was responsible for it. That's why they sent the texts pleading with him, through his staff, to make it stop."

 Shame on us all. Shame on what is now taking place as the GOP tries to hide the complicity of so many of its ranks, reveals them as cooperative co-planners of a scheme to turn the world upside down.

And remember - this poisonous drink that apparently all had imbibed does not lose its horrific impetus. No indeed, for it spreads, from politicians who are opponents, to groups not in the mainstream - otherwise known as White Christians, the more evangelical and extreme, the better - and continues on, ever hungry to feed upon the blood of victims. Black. Asian. Indigenous. All other  religions. Immigrants. and, of course, the oldest bias of anti-Semitism. They have no other path, no other ambition, other than to sink this country and this world deeper and deeper into the muck. Doing quite well too, are they not?!

This strain of lying has pervaded the entire country. Why? I cannot explain it, for it is a schoolyard intelligence which believes that lies work. Oh, they might, for a time, but the truth always outs. Inevitably and always. Might take time, but there it is. We are lied to every day. By the fake media who blatantly lie, refuse the facts before their eyes. We are lied to by dirty politicians. We are lied to by other 'officials' in other venues.

 For example, without saying who lied, what exactly were the lies, the truth is out. This UCO government has failed us terribly. They acquiesced to the outrageous demands of the Levys and Benenson. They have brought the financial standing of this Village to a low point, despite all the yeoman work by our present Treasurer. Not enough in reserves to complete all the patching and mending it needs in wholesale amounts. Not the little boxes and squares they so proudly show. Yes, that needs doing, but where is the whole picture? Perhaps in the guardhouses which are perpetually being cleaned, checked, tested, etc. Well, we all cannot fit in there. Other roofs need work around the Village. How about doing something about that? Surely there might be a group discount somewhere in there. At least try.  Pronto. And better than the highway robbery insurance we are now being hit with!

Where are the advisers to new and very old Presidents of Associations? Are we to wait until all the buildings need to be razed or someone falls through a hole or goes down right along with the broken balustrades? When will we hear the truth here? G-d knows, for I certainly do not. I really would like to hear it all. Perhaps it was simple incompetence or laziness, or a case of product beyond its due date. But look what hath been wrought. We can thank our lucky stars that we have a Donald who strives to plug every leak, every hole in the village, but he cannot do it all. Some in the office have done some good work, but again, more is needed.

If the system is not broken, we leave it alone. However, if it is, then fixing it is the way to go.

 We, as a people, a nation, and yes, as residents of the Village, are entitled to the truth, the myriad paths of truth denied and the stinking overlay of lies that try to cover it all up. If we do not persevere in this quest for the truth, for the prevention of further lies, well, it is said that the people get the leaders, the government, they deserve. Woe upon us.

Washa.  Washa. Washa.

Anyone have enough detergent? Oh, another area of shortage? Oh well, same old, same old.

PEOPLE PEOPLE PEOPLE

  When this word is said repeatedly it is often an attempt to gain attention, to halt the noise of an audience, or often a plaint, a plea, to the people to pay attention. Hear and see what is going on and understand it for what it is. The truth is out there; one must be receptive to it. Or willfully blind to it. Choose.

Boebert and Greene were the objects of scorn and derision on SNL and well did they deserve it. They represent the current GOP, even as Lincoln sheds concrete tears as he sits in his giant chair. Worse than that, they represent the image of women as preferred by so many of the 'base' who shore up the current GOP - dumb broads, good for nothing other than to serve the purposes of men. Take the hits, take the scorn, far better than if men were put out there like that.

So SNL took them on, and guess what!? They did not like it. They were embarrassed, I guess, at how stupid they appeared to be as they fumbled answers and projected an awful image of themselves. "..people people people" as a response to gun control reveals just how dumb they are -and how dangerous they are. Their low level of intelligence should send waves of 'shock and awe' down the spine of all Americans for they represent the government, pass its laws, attack the Constitution, the very existence of America as The. United. States. Of. America. As we play limbo in a real-world situation, as we sit precariously on the crumbling edge of a cliff, their response is "people people people". A call to OUR attention - which we too often of late have ignored.

What have we been missing? Merely the disgust of the thinking world. One well known, well liked actor states that he is "tired of crazy news and a shocking lack of understanding in the world..."   Another piece of news that should shock us, but not really, as all could see this coming from miles away, we hear of secret talks of Manchin with GOP Senators. Hmpf! Anyone with half a brain knew that sooner or later, most likely sooner, Manchin would publicly state what he really is - a card carrying member of the GOP. Give it a bit more time.....

See, there is no more loyalty to principles, only to paths which will enhance one's grasp of power, allow them to move up that filthy rope, bloodied by the blood of those who defended the government, who did their jobs, in the face of overwhelming odds, that rope reaching and revealing itself tied around Trump's bloated waist, even as he engaged in coup planning, in outright treason. 

Our country has gone bonkers, with people suing for the right to commit national suicide, to kill themselves and take their families and friends along with them on that fatal ride. Guess those people are 'collateral damage', hence no rights for them! We take 'personal privacy' as sacrosanct when talking of not taking a lifesaving vaccine, but not worth anything in the imposition of outside rules upon a woman. About her own body!! Cake and eating it too, twisted rules that defy any rights to anyone at any time, according to the pleasure of the GOP. 

Guns - yes. Voting rights - NO!. Freedom to choose - no. Next? Contraceptives? Criminalization of any and all participants in abortions? Dictatorship or meaningless elections as all opposition voices are stifled? Backwards movement in the working world as laws protecting workers, men, women and children, are struck down, one by one, many upon many. Where does it stop? At the imposition of forced medical procedures, forced pregnancies? No end in sight here either. Think not? Think again. Review our history, the history of the world, from oh, 2014 and forward, even as we move backwards.

"... the National Guard would be present to 'protect pro Trump people' and that many more would be available on standby,” 

That was an email sent out by Meadows, Trump's shadow, re the coup. "We are on the way to a right-wing coup. The whole thing is insanity,".  Yet another revelation at how other government officials and/or high-ranking military personnel, thought, what they were quite frightened about and for. In the meanwhile, that man, Trump, and his alleged fellow co-conspirators, merrily continued on in their wild, traitorous dancing, over the dead body of the USA.

People.  People.  People.

WOULD THAT I COULD

 Would that I could ever emulate the words, the message loud and clear, the five-alarm fire warning, that Brian Williams made so clear to us all in his emotional farewell to the nation. At least from his current position. However, he is exactly what we need today, a man of greatness, yet a man who has acknowledged his feet of clay and made atonement for them. Not a man, men, who refuse to recognize the entire body of worthless clay they currently worship and follow, not an independent thought among them all. No brain among them all, even if we were to total them altogether.

How have we, this proud nation of ours, descended to such a nadir, never before thought to be possible. Always, forever, in our history, we have been able to pull ourselves out of the snake filled pit into which we were consigned by internal and external enemies.  Today, today is different, a terrible 'different' and this is what Brian Williams addressed. So, in the name of that wise saying, that one does not have to reinvent the wheel, I am borrowing Mr. Williams wheel.

 He speaks whereof I have spoken and will continue to speak. I gratefully acknowledge that today, know we all need to read those words, allow them to ring inside our heads, hearts and souls and believe, with all our might, that we can still blow out the lit fuse that ever and ever grows nearer. It must be soon. It must be with a full recognition of who our enemies are and appropriate consequence for them. There can be no pussyfooting around because of positions held by these traitors and deluded, or eager participants. 

Position is no excuse; in fact, it is rather far more the opposite. They discarded their responsibilities, trampled the flag of honor, all in the name of what? Fear? Personal gain? Cowardice? Avarice? Incompetence? Choose your word or many words, but the threat remains there - unless and until we respond accordingly, meaningfully and severely. There is no other option left for us; certainly not if we are to put this threat to rest - for all time.

“This is the end of a chapter and the beginning of another. ... "I will reflect on the kindness people have shown me, and I will pay it forward." 

"I'm not a liberal or a conservative. I'm an institutionalist. I believe in this place and in my love of country. I yield to no one. But the darkness on the edge of town has spread to main roads." ... "Grown men and women who swore an oath to our constitution, elected by their constituents … have decided to join the mob and become something they are not." 

"That should scare you to no end,"

“They’ve decided to burn it all down ― with us inside,”  “That should scare you to no end as much as it scares an aging volunteer fireman.”

The state of the nation is "unrecognizable to those who came before us and fought to protect it—which is what you [viewers] must do now," 

 He speaks of a nation so changed that its own mothers and fathers would not recognize it; nor would those who fought and died to preserve it. His message is clear. Almost brutally so. It places the onus where it belongs - on us. We have allowed this, and we must change the status quo. If we lose our country, it is on us.

I close with the words of a dedication, words that struck deeply into my heart.

".... and to all of you who have been strong enough to stand up for what you believe in - in the small moments and the large ones. Making the world a better place begins with even the tiniest acts of personal bravery. May you forever hold fast to the courage to follow your heart."

May these words resonate loud and clear and forever within us all and let us behave accordingly. We are Americans and can and should do no less.

AND A BOKER TOV TO YOU TOO!

  Good morning, all. Nice to see that some people are finally getting in touch with reality, that denying  reality is foolish, more dangerous than has been admitted to so far. My comment? Where the hell were all of you all along and why has it taken so long for the truth to finally become mainstream knowledge with mainstream acknowledgement. Beats me on that point. For sure.

People have been known to being open to be fooled, to believe in nonsense, patent lies even, as long as it satisfied their deep and dark wishes to be secure on any level, by any means. The temporary feeling of 'okayness' has apparently a stronger pull than long term improvement and security. From the crowds of Romans cheering the bloody spectacles in the arenas, to the crowds of unthinking mob robots who have cheered on every dictator who promised security and a better life, to the mobs of today who cheer on hate and violently try to stage a coup in this country. All are part and  parcel of history, of a humankind needing  retuning. Desperately and immediately.

So Boker Tov to all of you who think that humanity has indeed come so far, become ever more civilized, ever more tolerant of others, open to the thinking of others. Well, have I got news for you! No, it is not raining men, as the song goes, but rather raining bodies, destroyed hopes and dreams, as the language used to slay the above grows  increasingly vitriolic, poisonous and dangerous to democracy. The world is in great danger, at least the world of democracy. So where was everybody until now? I, and many others, have been shouting this threat out for a looonnnngggg time. Apparently falling on deaf ears.

“This is an urgent matter on all our parts, in my view, because the data we’re seeing is largely pointing in the wrong direction.”  acknowledged that one of those countries in democratic decline was his own." (Biden)

Yuh-huh! As my grandchildren say. With emphasis.

Yuh- huh indeed.

Animal Farm is here to stay. GOP members and supporters are entitled to free speech, though not others as crazies sue to keep criticism of their outrageous remarks offline. Pictures of their families adorned with huge guns are sent out for Christmas. So appropriate to the holiday spirit right! And a huge Nuh-huh to that! Yet they rule.

Yet another Boker Tov to those who insist that anti-Semitism is a dead line of history. Nuh-huh! No way. The firing of a principal in Florida for insisting on the possible disbelief by others in the actual existence of the Holocaust and that includes himself. Read and weep.

"can't say the Holocaust is a factual, historical event 

Not weeping yet? Here is a bit more.

 "not everyone believes the Holocaust happened" and that as an educator he had "the role to be politically neutral."

 How can there be silence? Have we not learned anything from our history?

"But I also want us to pay attention to the polite Zionists. The ones that say, ‘Let’s just break bread together.’”

“They are not your friends,”  a well-funded campaign to bolster Islamophobia around the world and an interconnected network of Zionist-supporting organizations working to harm Muslims. She also repeated an unsupported claim, one that circulates among some activist groups, that “police officers in the United States who kill unarmed black men, women and children are trained by the Israeli military.”

 Boker Tov indeed. Will this never end, but how can that ever be when that garbage is spewed via the mouth of a prominent Bay Area Muslim attorney? How??????

I recently came across this old Chines proverb. 

"Two tigers cannot share the same mountain." 

Apparently so, but we never seem to understand the truth of that saying as we enter war after war, refusing to talk, rather than kill.

I close with this line from a gospel song which contains a great deal of wisdom and warning. We, too many, have indeed gone lost, separated from our souls in the bitter years under Trump - which seem to be everlasting. The country, as a whole, has abandoned honor, trust, faith, decency, in its insane competition and dangerous plans of Trump et al. Why and whose fault? Read on and think.

"If I should die and my soul gets lost, it's nobody's fault but mine."

NOTHINGBURGER

  Yup. I had no idea either. What the heck is that?  I backed up and reread the last few sentences. Still not clear as to exact meaning, if there truly is any, but the intent is clear. Basically, it is a rather new term, perhaps in first use, functioning as a descriptive term. Quite ingenious.

We are running out of terms to describe the egregious behavior of GOP members. Actually, they are not truly GOP members as we used to define them. Rather, they are members of a new class of, well, there it is - nothingburgers. There is no real meat to their views. There is no real truth in their words and actions. What there is, is a false declaration and representation of being patriotic Americans, true followers of Abe Lincoln and the GOP tradition, hence, the nothing in the nothingburger.

We all are truly at the point of all being nothing, whatever meat we choose to label the package. Even in the first Civil War there were always people willing to talk, to compromise, to try to find a path whereon all could walk, equally uncomfortable yet all equally comfortable at the same time. No one had to get it over on the other one. Compromise was not a dirty word, only an impossibility at the beginning, but able to be achieved, if grudgingly, at the end. If there was actually an end to the issues of the war. Doubtful. 

In any case, what we now have is the awful situation of total enmity. "Shoot when you see the whites of their eyes" is not the ruling refrain, yet many, too many, are taking it literally. Political opponents are no longer that - political opponents. Right now, Americans of differing political opinions and place on the "syndrome" of politics in America today, are bitter enemies. Yes, bitter. Yes, enemies. If a Russian troop marched down Main St. today, followed by GOP troops and then Democratic troops, I have serious doubts as upon whom would the Americans shoot in defense of what? Their country, Americans all? Or their once fellow Americans, now the enemies of each other. Rotten mess we are in, are we not? the meat in all the burgers stinks to the high heavens.

We are at the brink of crossing a Rubicon of negatives, of implemented tropes that will change this country in a most damaging and perhaps permanent way. Once again to discard, downplay the value of women, their equality, their dignity, as we stand on the brink of a truly political, rather than blind, Lady Justice. The wire hangers are being taken out, sharpened up, and bloodshed awaits.

America has always been a land where at least somewhere a religion and its adherents could find a haven. Today, we are returning to the days when America is to be a "Christian" country. What does that mean? Are we going to burn people at the stake if they refuse to adhere to that premise? Are we going to have forced conversions? What will we be doing to enforce that precept of "one nation, one religion"? Are you afraid? You should be. These nothingburgers have a great deal of misplaced power, dangerous to us all.

Rather than adhere to the separation of Church and State, these burgers are plumping for your federal dollars to shore up their religion, their mostly  prejudiced, and poorly educating schools. I sent my kids to a private school, a yeshiva, where academic excellence in both areas was demanded. We were to emerge from our schooling as proud Americans, patriotic, thankful, and proudly Jewish. Accepting all religions even as they would accept ours. State money was used to pay for secular textbooks, not for the teachers, or the students, not for anything other than secular needs and up to a point. And that is the way it should be.

I know, as I was a student there and worked within the system as an adult. The way it should be and remain so. The only safe way to keep us American. All of us. No exception.

Enough of this enmity between family members. Enough of this hostility on planes. Enough of forgetting that “today could’ve been avoided with a little human decency and compassion.” If only. Then we could rid ourselves, not of the lawyers, as Shakespeare proposed via Falstaff, but rid of all the nothingburgers in both camps. A dream, fading away more and more. A shame, truly a shame.

THAT'S IT!! I AM OFFICIALLY OLD.

Cannot deny it any further. The body aches did not faze. The various syndromes that appeared to be attracted to me as metal is to magnets - did not faze me. Me, the reader all my life, falling asleep upon reading three pages in my favorite chair - no fazing there either. But this, oh, this is bad. Someone could take out a rubber stamp of OLD and put it right there on my forehead.

What has done this to me? What has taken the wind from my sails? In one way, it was a cumulative result, a consequence of some rapidly changing terms and ideas which took a great deal of reading, studying, and finding my grandsons! On the other hand, there are terms now emerging which just shock me to the bones, my apparently fragile bones, and the future does not look any better, or more encouraging. In fact, it is beginning to look like the worlds of the various sci-fi and science fantasy movies where reality is not, virtual is confusing and questionable and both these worlds are merging, much to the detriment of all.

Matrix. Neo. Virtual reality - huh! Blockchain. Say what?! Metaverse. Metaverses. Excited Wall Street re these virtual worlds. Crypto ecosystem. What? Crypto trading. And here I am first getting truly comfortable using the ATM machines and the credit card thingamajigs in Publix.

See, to me, reality is reality and virtual is not. On the other hand, these days the reality is so questionable, so unacceptable, and at one time even unimaginable, at least in reality, that perhaps we truly do need to develop plugins - in a virtual manner, of course - and escape the ugly realities of today's world. 

The problem, though, is that the real invades the virtual, all its problems simply transferring over, using avatars - remember that word? - and well, what the hell is accomplished? Instead of using brain power, out of the box minds to solve problems in the real world, they are too busy shooting knights and planes and aliens, building cities that have no connection to the world in which we all must live, like it or not. Food must be ingested. Food must be grown. Real people are needed to facilitate the machinery of society. Not to forget the feverish frenzy regarding finding the best influencer to follow. What the heck is an influencer and now do you see what I mean? An influencer!! 

Lordy, Lordy. This is a confusing world indeed. We old folks will soon be standing in an aisle wondering how to order real food presented in a virtual manner and then how to get it in reality and get it home in a realistic manner. No virtual knight is going to schlep it home for me on his warrior steed. Nope. Definitely not. Even were that to happen, I would question my sanity, or at least my eyes, and just resign myself to whatever follows. Oh, but wait, is that a crypto coin in my pocket? How did it get there? Is it real, good for the reality world or is it part of the virtual game I have been playing with 17 million other people round the world? Oh dear. HELP!!!

Anyone have a Monopoly game? Oh, it went virtual. Uh, Sorry? Virtual as well. Hmmm. Anyone have a good old Spalding ball so we can play stickball? No more? All is played on virtual terms. What the hell..... Never mind. So the influencers tell us. They rule. Oy vey.

Oy vey indeed. I still have those quaint but lovable things called books, waiting for me at home and of course, a well-deserved nap. Bye. May we all hope for the best in this world 'achangin' ever so fast. Best advice? Stock up on real items. Forget influencers. Go find your 20-year-old grandchild, old enough to understand and teach, young enough to still love you and spend the time teaching you, a mostly hopeless case. At least we can get a hug or two out of this as we tell them stories of the "old days", our days of glory, as they listen, mouths agape, wondering how we lived in worlds where people actually spoke to each other, not texted, did not always have computers strapped to wrists or implanted in their arms, where life moved at a slower pace, where joy was real, problems real as well, and avatars were kept in their proper place as people tried to solve the eternal problems of the world in reality.

Those were the days, my friends, we thought they'd never end.... but they did and are continuing to do so. Oh well, time for my lesson - and a hug - virtual, of course, as we Zoom together. Remember when Zoom meant going really fast. Quick as can be? Bye. For now. I hope. I really do not want to become an avatar when I grow up. Nope. Not at all. Despite what any influencer tries to sell or tell me.

IT IS THERE; DO NOT BE BLIND TO IT.

 Just yesterday we finally managed to return to the movies after a month's drought. We have been going to the theater ever since and whenever it opened, mask and all. Hyperclean, pleasant and too often we have our own private showing. That is a pity indeed. Watching it on your big screen, if you have one, is not the same as experiencing it on the truly BIG screen in the theater. The sound is better; the entire gestalt is better. To be afraid is to be silly if one takes precautions and how does one go to dinner at a restaurant but is afraid to go to the movie theater?

More important is that when people attend the theater together, they discuss the movie just seen, watched, felt. Then we get to the purpose of the movies. They are meant to entertain. They are meant to make you laugh and cry. They are made to make you think. They are made to help you see the truth - or the falsehoods - that ordinarily might not be caught, made clear and understood.

So, to the Eternals, a movie unfortunately panned by those reviewers who are too impressed with their own importance and wisdom. They simply did not see the truths underlying it all, the warnings practically blaring from the screen, the appropriate acting by the cast. So, here goes.

The robotic acting, stiffness of the cast, at the beginning of the movie. Somewhat later on we understand that as they are robots, created by some god named Arishem. Robots, endowed by their  creator with AI, they have managed to grow belong the supposed limitations. We see the factual proof of that in the increased emotions expressed, the active body language, the anguish on faces, even as some robotic behavior continues. Even as their breakthrough humanity, the emotions, the uncertainty that is part and parcel of the human condition grows deeper.

Their concerns mirror ours. Who is in control of humanity? Do we owe blind allegiance, no exceptions allowed, to the Creator? What free will do we have and what responsibilities to others do we owe? Do we indeed also owe concern and care to the Earth, this planet, to prevent its destruction, as seen in so many of the scenes. Are we ever improve our humanity, leave behind the warring genes, use technology for the betterment of all rather than for the subjugation of others. Can we not see the physical changes in our planet? Can we not see the lines being drawn clearly to the crises of our day? Pandemic. Environment destruction. Weather extremes. Violent volcanic eruptions - from dead volcanoes. China and Taiwan. Putin and the Ukraine. Iran and its nuclear capacity. More to follow. On and on.

"Eyes they have but do not see. Ears they have but do not hear." This we read in Psalms. Arishem is a combination of the Hebrew for Lion of G-d. There was music of the secular and music of the deeply religious, heard in a musical passage of chanting. See, no one is immune to what we are being warned about in this movie. Decisions of life and death, of sacrifice for others, to the point of death, realization, sometimes too late, of the truly important in life - and any consequences that follow, that were pending on earlier decisions.

Secrets, life changing ones, that lay deep within the souls and hearts of others, even our loved ones. Questions as to what do we owe our Creator, unquestioning, or doubting? How does mankind progress? That now includes those Eternals which represent all the famous touching points in the history of mankind. They contain within their names and their background stories the truth of the world, if only we recognize it, behave accordingly.

No, the human situation is most definitely not a sure and certain state of being. It rocks, it rolls, it shivers and is obstinately stubborn. It is immutable. We give thanks to the Lord, but also play dirty with Him/Her. Where do we go? What do we prepare for? How do we prepare? Stay tuned for the sequel, as seen in the two after movie trailers. (You must stay through the credits.) Stay tuned for what we face in existential realities of life, even as we remain blind and deaf to their portrayals on the screens of America. May the Creator help us all, for we sure as shootin' ain't doin' that ourselves, are we? 

ANYONE ELSE?

  I definitely know that I am not alone out there, confused and bedazzled by the BIG LIES approach that dominates all these days. Along with those lies comes the growing lack of brakes on mouths, on uttered words that never should have made it past the censoring by the lips. As our ship of state faces ever growing monster waves, we continue the behavior that feeds these waves, and there we are, teetering and tottering at the very top, awaiting the cresting and the fall. And that will be all.

It amazes me, not in a positive way, how crooked is the path that too many people are choosing these days. How can they absolutely cut themselves off from common sense, from truths, from recognition of the steps that grow out of their steps, the inevitable, disastrous outcomes? It appears that there is a growing market for blinders, restricting one's views, that prevents us from seeing the Titanic sized disaster awaiting us. No longer is it a possibility, but rather a probability. Unless we make sharp, immediate changes to our ship of state, protect it from those who would see it drown in their seas of poison, we are all doomed as far as democracy in America is concerned. It will not go anywhere good, for sure.

How can anyone with a bare modicum of brain cells follow Trump, a man who grows ever more deranged, ever more foul mouthed, ever more dangerous in the existential threat he poses for our country? How have we allowed Fascists, clear and open fascists, such as Hawley who wants to make it better for the "masculine" in and among us. Or Tom Cotton, or Jim Jordan who says "real America" is done with COVID. Really? Tell that to the hospitals and medical personnel. Define for all of us the term "real" America.

 Who gets to be found outside the accepted boundaries according to the new maps drawn up by crazed GOP supporters, dazed by what is happening, drunk on the possibilities of creating an AmeriKa ,rather than the good old AmeriCa? Or Boebert. Or DeSantis building his own paramilitary force, ala Hitler and his brown shirts and black shirts and every other obscene force meant to destroy, to beat down opponents, to truly screw the people. Why do we allow people such as Greene to have space in our media? Why did we have a recognizable attempt at a coup and then deny it all, deny the evidence right in front of us. Why? How?

Worse, now our last hope of sanity, a last place to turn to for succor, is now rendered mute and useless other than to rubber stamp the dangerous decisions we have been allowing as they spread kudzu like roots and growth throughout the country, destroying the trees of liberty, of freedom, of welcome, of hope to the world. The beacon of light held by the Lady of the Harbor grows weaker and dimmer. The loss is immense.

What is our last resort? The courts. Even as one lower court after another tries to maintain sanity and legality, morality, in their decisions, the Supreme Court sits up there drooling at the mouth as it anticipates the disasters they can set in motion by its decisions in blockbuster cases. Gorsuch denies the lasting power and aid to our country with his denial of the power of "compelling interest", that which serves the people, not undermines them. That would open wide the doors all over the country to denial of mandates for vaccines - of every type. The old diseases will come roaring back and we will have yet another needless, preventable, string of pandemics. For naught!

Need more? Want a return to the rusty wire hangers that will kill so many women, destroy a future with wanted children? Just wait a few seconds and the Supreme Court will allow that, actually encourage that, as they rip apart the Roe decision. All those men who will now breathe a sigh of relief as the clock turns backwards, knowing that they will not be held responsible for any of the ensuing bloody mess. All the fault of women, for they never should have become pregnant. Never mind the physical force used to intimidate. Or the threats. Or the date rape. Or the incest. Or rape in general. Never you mind, for it does not matter. Not at all. As for aid in raising these unwanted children born into poverty and doomed lifelines, oh forget that! Indeed! No support for these loose women. Much more important to save the cigar industry or protect Big Business. Definitely.

One person said it all. "What does the court do with neither the sword nor the purse? What would happen if there were widespread unwillingness to abide by the court's decisions?"

What? Just sit back and wait a few minutes. What's a few minutes between friends?

Anyone else have some words to say on this? Or should we rely on that foul mouthed Trump and his fascistic, deluded followers. "Lord, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Actually, worse, I think they know exactly what they do!

OMINOUS INDEED

 Just finished reading an extremely thought-provoking book by Mitch Albom, he of the Tuesday Talks with Morrie. A Stranger in the Lifeboat is different. Nothing exciting, other than the fact that there are over a dozen people trapped on a compromised lifeboat, few supplies, all alone on a vast ocean vista. There are no sudden surprises, a rescuing ship, a sudden solving of a life-threatening problem, only the story of these shipwreck survivors and the side story of others involved even peripherally with and by this event.

I will not preview the ending for that might spoil the desire to read this book, a small one, easily done over a weekend even for a slow reader or one of us who now fall asleep after two or three pages of any reading material! But warning: this book and its contents can keep you up, thoughts circling in the mind, wondering which side of certain questions you will choose, though choosing is not necessary. Evidently there is much in this world that can be interpreted in so many ways; not always what you see is what you get. One's vision is often twisted, influenced by our own individual life experiences. Whose is right? Who has the correct vision? Who can save this world? Go figure it out, I challenge you to do so, for I am now up, wondering, questioning, thinking.

Into this lifeboat comes a strange figure, a man with no object keeping him afloat, a man who says little, but packs a punch when he does. When asked for his name, he responds "I am the Lord." When challenged, when pleaded with to save them if he is indeed the Lord, odd things take place. You, we, the reader and readers, must choose your own thoughts, make your own decisions. These decisions will vary, falling on this side or the other. From one side to the other and back again, rocked by thoughts of disturbing content, even as the raft is rocked by challenges of Nature.

This book challenges in a most disturbing way one's belief or lack of belief in the Lord, in a G-d, or a benevolent G-d. He reminds his fellow passengers that all prayers are answered, only sometimes the answer is 'no'. So, what do we do with our faith in the healing, loving, rescuing side of G-d as we have been taught? If we accept that premise, that it is not always the case, no apparent rhyme or reason for its volubility, for seemingly unfathomable endings, then what next?

We ask ourselves from whence does our needed, desperately necessary aid arise. We answer ourselves with advice to lift up one's eyes. To the mountains, to the heights, for G-d is nigh, above, on a higher level. That is where rescue originates, in the home of the Lord or whatever name is given to that entity or thought. Unfortunately, that rescue is not always the rescue we believed possible. It is not our choice; it always remains in the hands, so we are told, in the hands of The Lord, the stranger in the lifeboat. The Lord who drinks, eats, faces the same life challenges of the other survivors.

So....is this man deranged? But what about..... Has our ritual thinking been off kilter; must we redefine Lord and the connection - or disconnect - with that Lord? Can the Lord morph into some other being? What would that mean to our inner self direction? Is the situation, the 'human comedy' - truly a 'human tragedy'? How can we tell? How can we read the signs in life, know what to do? What changes if we are correct? What changes if we are incorrect? Are there even those categories and only those choices?

And of course, is there indeed a Lord, a G-d, an omnipotent figure or figment. If so, how involved is he/she with the individual? Can we base our life choices on such a shaky premise? What is the point, one asks? Do we believe, strive harder to interpret the desires and wishes of this Lord, try to insure and achieve the Lord's positive attitude and willingness to aid and rescue? If the rescue we believe in, so deeply require, is not quite the rescue we get, what then? How do we align these differences, these questions? Are we indeed alone here, an accident of Nature, or is there indeed  something or someone else?

What does The Lord owe us, for if there are no believers then what gives, endows, him/her with power, for lack of belief is withdrawal of Power -or is it truly so? Have we, in fact, ignored, denied, misread, the signs of the Lord's anger and disappointment with us? What else is needed to gain our attention and acceptance of the truth of our current situation? Does it even matter at this point? 

Have we in fact, actually crossed the point of no return. Think - how many volcanoes, how many disastrous fires, how many droughts and acres of desertification, how many floods, suffocating people under blankets of mud? How many things must go awry in Nature before we realize our errors, our grievous errors? Is there any point to it at all?

What is life all about? What do we do when our basic beliefs are challenged? Can we survive if these beliefs are rearranged and recategorized? Do we want to? Is there a Lord or not? Do we need a Lord for our own sanity in life? Not questions of if, but a basic building block of Nature, of life on Earth. How does one integrate events and beliefs with the end results and their commingling? Perhaps in ways which we cannot ever truly understand nor accept. Or must we accept. Must we blindly believe in the words and ideas we have been fed our entire life? Do we want to give up those ideas and teachings or must we keep them for our own sanity?

Read this book. Join a book club and discuss it. Think about it. Read it.

I DUNNO'! WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE PICTURE?

  Take a look around, scratch your head as you immerse yourself in a befuddling reality; then ask yourself, 'What the hell is wrong with this picture? What is going on?" If anyone tells you they can explain it all, please do not proceed with their great offer - to buy the Brooklyn Bridge and the Battery Tunnel for the price of only one. Hell no!

British and American media are obsessed with Harry's reaction to pictures of his Grandma's Christmas party and evidently so are we, even here in the colonies. Why? Beats me. We gave up monarchial government oh, somewhere around 1776 or so, though it must be said that there are those today who would reinstate it, though with the House of Trump rather than the House of Windsor. Two and a half centuries gone - pfftt! See something wrong here as well?

Need more images to complete the picture? Hmmm, let's see. Aha! Got it! What about the devolving pictures and statements regarding women and their rights? More than half the population of the world, and little girls are still looked upon as money in the bank, able to be sold off to repay debt, or feed the rest of the family. Even more horrible than that, is the horrifying fact that there are men and women who are willing, even eager, to purchase these tiny hostages to bad fortune. Boggles the mind, does it not. Yet fits in oh so well with the twisted sister of a picture we are drawing. Unfortunately so.

No shock here though as grown women are also forced into slavery with no rights at all. Think that happens only in Third World countries? Well, welcome to the new America, that bastion of freedom and respect for all. Uh huh. See how women are, to this day and well into the future, I daresay, used as objects, recipients of unwanted  and unwonted attention. That attention denies their humanity, is part and parcel of the justification in the eyes of so many men and deluded women. Of course, women have no innate rights over their own bodies. Abortion! Why no, dearie. What is the big deal anyway you ask? Men walk away from it, from all support and responsibilities while women are tied to the baby. Keep it. Give it away. Neglect it. Watch as the child grows up, unwanted, hungry, poorly educated, and deeply depressed and uncertain of the future and its plans for him/her. Just watch. Look, listen, learn.

More nuisance and nonsense? Okay. Really? Do you honestly concern yourself with the decorations at the White House? Does it have any impact on some other right-wing issues? Possible? Probable? War in the Ukraine? Are we mandated to defend it via a treaty? Another war? Just perfect!

Civil rights? Abortion rights? Social safety nets? Inflation? Safeguards to shore up economic fortitude? The growing elimination of principles of justice and equality in all aspects of life, not only here but also throughout the world? Protection from the greedy who never have enough?

Finally, at least for today, how about the $5 fee now being laid upon every guest for every day here in the Village? So special! Not! So the Levys can garner more funds, turning us upside down to reap more profit from those who cannot afford these heavy fees? Manifestly unfair. Even as we are being subjected to more financial burden through the next contract for ten years. Soon enough this will turn into a home for the rich, rebuilt in the proper image!!

Certainly, we can draw better than this. Can't we? We had better.

OPTIONAL OPTIONS

  Confused? So am I. How did we get here and why do we appear to be determined to continue in that direction? How have we ceded so much to so few, a bunch of shouting, rude people who just know, they just KNOW that they are ordained, appointed by G-d to rule the universe, to impose their beliefs on all, whether they agree with them or not. Very dangerous ground, a growing area of gelatinous quicksand beneath our feet which will swallow us all if we are not careful. Once under, always under.

It is now official. The stench, the political mud attached to the Supreme Court, the shenanigans used to make these once impartial judges totally political. In the open, wide and clear. Justice Sotomayor says it all. "Will this institution survive the stench that this creates in the public perception that the Constitution and its reading are just political acts?" The disease that is Trumpian is still within the body and soul of this country. The determination to impose all on all, whether they are in agreement or not, is the maxim of their lives. That maxim is of a most pernicious manner and once here, once validated by the Court, imposes again, again, AGAIN! a long and bitter struggle.

Who controls our body? Who determines what we do or not do with it? Does anyone have a G-d given power to rule over our decisions, to treat our rights, our thoughts, as worthy of nothing?

It is confusing. On the one hand the GOP shouts to the heavens re the rights of individuals. If they do not want vaccination, fine, for it is their right to refuse - or so they shout. Never mind the harm and danger to others. Never mind the economic cost. Never mind the resources they vacuum up, denying them to other, more responsible citizens. Never you mind, for that is the right of the individual. So we are told. So they shout.

But wait. What is this? A sudden twist in the road. Apparently, the rights of the individual to make decisions regarding one's own body is selective in nature. No mask? Okay. No vaccine? Go for it. Tattoo the entire body or two sleeves? Hey, free artistic expression. Decide to abort the pregnancy, due to whatever reason rules your decision? Oh no, Never! And in any case, you are a woman, so bear up under the onus of gender imposed upon you by backwards thinking religious and political zealots. Never mind that there will be no support for you in raising and providing for this fetus. Oh no, for what is important is that you obey our commands and then go to hell! Absorb the blame we lay upon you, call you inadequate, but somehow, to them, it is the fetus that is holy, while the living child is eh! Not a big deal. Not 'my' problem becomes their current mantra. We, the women, are told to grin and bear it, for so G-d demands.

Well, I disagree. My body is my own. I can refuse or demand treatment. I can tattoo or not. I can get pregnant or not. That pregnancy took two to tango; thus, two must bear responsibility. It is my body, hence, my right to opt for abortion and no, we recognize that it is not a contraceptive device. But what does one do when contraception is denied to us-again! Once again, fighting battles that were won already, now under attack by unthinking and/or non caring individuals, and cynics, using this devastating time to pursue their own golden globes, symbolic of their mad desire to rule the world, women's world in particular.

Abortion is not something one does on a whim. It is not an event for which one wakes up that morning, gleeful at the thought. It is a mind-blowing, heart-breaking decision, one that takes place after long, hard, full of tears, accompanied with the sound of the heart breaking. It tears at the soul, even as you know it must be done.

How do I know, you ask? Simple. I am a woman. That says it all. However, there is another reason, a life shattering one.  Know that it was an important decision with much risk and life changing consequences if the pregnancy were not terminated.

For two weeks, depressed, yet determined, knowing I had to put aside the feelings one has for the possibilities of the fetus. I knew that there would be no possibilities for this one if the certainty, the odds favored horrid effects. I waited, lying all day on the couch, thinking, crying, shouting to the heavens at the unfairness of it all. My doctors, bless them, consulted round the world, talked together, validated my concerns, fears, and maternal love already in place. They knew, though, that the final decision was mine to make.

Finally, thank G-d, it was determined that the odds were on our side. It was a GO!!! And I do not regret that decision to forge ahead, take my chances, trust to the odds. It was a good decision as life turned out. But if the odds were not in my favor, or for the baby, then I would have gone ahead and aborted. Awful, yes. But necessary and MY decision to make.

Evidently, we are poised on the brink of yet another example of politization of issues which are manifestly out of place in political discussions. Manifestly not for men and deluded women to impose on others, and certainly not for a judge to make. The consequences of the Dred Scot decision had awful consequences for anti-slavery adherents. The decision to just about make abortion impossible under terms imposed on it, will have the same devastating effects on the rights of women, the control over their own health and life decisions.

Optional options? Not really. If the court rules the wrong way there are no options for a woman other than to bear an unwanted child, a child of tragedy, or once again, risk her life in a back-alley abortion.

Optional options? I think not. I wish there were.