Tony Terrific: If one watched the Tony's, the Broaway equivalent of the Oscars, I think you would agree the Tony's were FANTASTIC. Neal Patrick Harris the host, is genius. I often loathe awards shows but this was different. It was much less pretentious and much more artistically creative. I loved every second of it and taped it to watch a second and maybe a third time. It did more to advance the case for theater than any other format as it was so well done indeed! Congrats to ALL who won and ALL who didn't. These are special talented people and all are national treasures!
For years I have been advocating to bring theater to the masses as it is often so cost and access prohibitive to many. I want Broadway to come to HBO and HDTV where one could see these fabulous plays and pay maybe 25 bucks on your cable bill instead of 200 bucks to see a show and one could see it in the comfort of the living room. It helps the elderly, the disabled, and the poor to whom theater is often out of reach.
We saw something similar for opera. We went to a movie theater and saw a production of Verdi's Il Travatore. It was wonderful. We felt as if we were there in the actual theater audience at the Met in NYC. They even filmed back stage during intermission, interviewed the stars and gave one an insight into the architectural mechanics of a performance. It was excellent. That's what I want for theater.
HBO could negotiate with Broadway or with the various plays for the theater rights to show it. I know Broadway theater companies might be afraid it would cut into their business but I think big money could be made and still attract those who are in the NYC area or live in states near NY where people have easier access to the theater itself and love the experience of being there.
Perhaps the revenue plays collect from HBO would allow them to reduce the price of an in theater NYC ticket and attract even more to the actual performances. It simply is prohibitive for those who cannot either afford theater tickets, do not want to pay a stratospheric price or who cannot ambulate to get to there.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Thursday, June 09, 2011
A Clarification of the Two State Solution: It is no mystery to those who know me that I support a two-state solution to the Palestinian/Israeli situation. This is not I must emphasize a reversal of my support for the Jewish people and the Jewish state. When I witnessed Arabs running up the hillside of the Golan and Israeli soldiers shooting them (they have a right to protect the security of the state) it made me reactive and nervous. I began to think we need to do something quickly or they will be climbing in hordes from every side right into the Israeli state since they dwarf Jews numerically. I feared the IDF would not be able to stop thousands of Arabs and Palestinians possibly without guns doing something for the cameras by, perhaps, using passive non-violent Gandhiesque resistance. It would not sit well in American or European living rooms to watch on TV the IDF gun down unarmed people even though Israelis have a right to defend the Jewish state. I am, I think, quite rationally concerned.
Moreover, I recently heard that some, perhaps even many, Jews inside of Israel are seeking citizenship from other nations such as Austria or the US because they fear the impending elimination of the Israeli state and the predictable violence that would ensue. I was emotionally driven by this prospect to research that assertion from whom I consider reliable sources. My sources said that was absolute propaganda and while a few might do that it is microscopic in relation to those Jews who are citizens of Israel and would never leave. The man suggesting this alleged fact, Franklin Lamb, is a strong supporter of Hezbollah in Lebanon who is committed to the annihilation of the Jewish state. I am going to glean additional responses to his assertion to verify its veracity. Researching it, however, brought one truth to light and that is the ancient anti-Semitism we thought was at an end because of the Holocaust is, indeed, alive and well especially during economic downturns. The vitriolic hatred of the Jew is mind numbing. If you do not believe me, then Google it.
I am frightened by both what happened to the Jewish people in 1930's Europe and I am desperately afraid of it ever happening again. Up until now there was little reason to fear it but we remained, of course, always vigilant. There is little doubt in my mind that it is not possible that the majority of Jewish citizens of Israel would abandon the Jewish state without taking down the entire region with them. If Jews have learned nothing else from our history we have learned that it is not possible to negotiate from a position of weakness. Israel is, we all know, armed to the teeth and before the Jewish people could not have that state they would make damn well sure no one else would have it either.
There is no question in my mind, too, that Israel is the freest of all states in the Middle East. The Jewish people are smart and know that the State of Israel must possess overwhelming military strength and, in fact, not hesitate to use it IF the Jewish state faces an existential threat. It is unacceptable to the Jewish people for anyone to overthrow it.
Having said that I want a two state solution and believe it must be carved out quickly. We must though stand strong, we must stand united and we must question why our fellow Jews at times betray their own people given the Jewish history they know. I often use the metaphor of homosexuals because I believe the humanity of a nation state toward them says something about the nature and essence of a culture. There is nowhere in the Middle East and all of Islam where one, if he or she is homosexual, could live openly except in Israel. That is telling as is the abduction of the gay woman in Iran. If she is alive it will be miraculous but Ahmadinejad says there are, of course, NO homosexuals in Iran. Believe that and he'll tell you another such as the Holocaust never happened.
The state of Israel must be recognized, it must be secure and it must be unharmed if there can ever be the possibility of a two state solution. It is a two state solution I want as President Obama enunciated at AIPAC. It MUST be done, I believe now, with all deliberate speed while never sacrificing the security of the Jewish state. I will NEVER abandon my people or the Jewish state and although I am too young to remember the events of our ugliest Shoah period in Nazi occupied Europe, I think about the six million living in Europe’s death camps when the weather is blistering hot, when the weather is freezing cold, and every rain-soaked and clear day in between. I think about them every day of my life. I never forget them and I always remember -- Never Again!
Moreover, I recently heard that some, perhaps even many, Jews inside of Israel are seeking citizenship from other nations such as Austria or the US because they fear the impending elimination of the Israeli state and the predictable violence that would ensue. I was emotionally driven by this prospect to research that assertion from whom I consider reliable sources. My sources said that was absolute propaganda and while a few might do that it is microscopic in relation to those Jews who are citizens of Israel and would never leave. The man suggesting this alleged fact, Franklin Lamb, is a strong supporter of Hezbollah in Lebanon who is committed to the annihilation of the Jewish state. I am going to glean additional responses to his assertion to verify its veracity. Researching it, however, brought one truth to light and that is the ancient anti-Semitism we thought was at an end because of the Holocaust is, indeed, alive and well especially during economic downturns. The vitriolic hatred of the Jew is mind numbing. If you do not believe me, then Google it.
I am frightened by both what happened to the Jewish people in 1930's Europe and I am desperately afraid of it ever happening again. Up until now there was little reason to fear it but we remained, of course, always vigilant. There is little doubt in my mind that it is not possible that the majority of Jewish citizens of Israel would abandon the Jewish state without taking down the entire region with them. If Jews have learned nothing else from our history we have learned that it is not possible to negotiate from a position of weakness. Israel is, we all know, armed to the teeth and before the Jewish people could not have that state they would make damn well sure no one else would have it either.
There is no question in my mind, too, that Israel is the freest of all states in the Middle East. The Jewish people are smart and know that the State of Israel must possess overwhelming military strength and, in fact, not hesitate to use it IF the Jewish state faces an existential threat. It is unacceptable to the Jewish people for anyone to overthrow it.
Having said that I want a two state solution and believe it must be carved out quickly. We must though stand strong, we must stand united and we must question why our fellow Jews at times betray their own people given the Jewish history they know. I often use the metaphor of homosexuals because I believe the humanity of a nation state toward them says something about the nature and essence of a culture. There is nowhere in the Middle East and all of Islam where one, if he or she is homosexual, could live openly except in Israel. That is telling as is the abduction of the gay woman in Iran. If she is alive it will be miraculous but Ahmadinejad says there are, of course, NO homosexuals in Iran. Believe that and he'll tell you another such as the Holocaust never happened.
The state of Israel must be recognized, it must be secure and it must be unharmed if there can ever be the possibility of a two state solution. It is a two state solution I want as President Obama enunciated at AIPAC. It MUST be done, I believe now, with all deliberate speed while never sacrificing the security of the Jewish state. I will NEVER abandon my people or the Jewish state and although I am too young to remember the events of our ugliest Shoah period in Nazi occupied Europe, I think about the six million living in Europe’s death camps when the weather is blistering hot, when the weather is freezing cold, and every rain-soaked and clear day in between. I think about them every day of my life. I never forget them and I always remember -- Never Again!
Wednesday, June 08, 2011
Sex in the City: I do not care what Anthony Weiner did. I admit it. I am a died in the wool Democrat and admittedly have different standards for them because their principles in general, though sometimes not so far different from Republicans, ARE really phenomenally different in many other ways. The diversity of the Democratic Party unlike the Republican Party cannot be denied. Yes, I want Democrats to win and because Democrats do not use moral nauseating self righteous blather as part of their platform the hypocrite standards ARE different.
I think Senator Ensign of Nevada and Senator Vitter of Louisiana's indiscretions were FAR worse and even possibly illegal. Yet Republican Eric Cantor did NOT ask THEM to resign and the voters did not care that David Vitter probably frequented a known high class prostitute since his name was on her list. I wonder why Cantor did not care about them. Things ARE political.
Who cares about the words Weiner wrote -- NOT I. BUT I DO care about foreign policy, I loved bin Laden killed, I do care about KEEPING Medicare/Social Security, and I DO care about Republicans who have NOTHING to offer on economic policy except more of the corporate oligarchical same and WORSE want ultimately an eradication of entitlements. Republicans got us into the mess in the first place. When in office Republicans sink the ship.
Our ship IS sinking from their policies and FASTER than the president can wield his own power because of Republican obstructionism so you will have to excuse me if the exchanges between Weiner and his online lovelies matter NOT to me. Let his wife care about that and let Weiner do what he does SO well and that is advocate and vote for the middle class and the little guy whom Republican policy and the holier than thou crowd does not know exist.
He who has not sinned cast the first one. I say learn a lesson, Rep. Weiner, go and sin no more but keep advocating for us!
I think Senator Ensign of Nevada and Senator Vitter of Louisiana's indiscretions were FAR worse and even possibly illegal. Yet Republican Eric Cantor did NOT ask THEM to resign and the voters did not care that David Vitter probably frequented a known high class prostitute since his name was on her list. I wonder why Cantor did not care about them. Things ARE political.
Who cares about the words Weiner wrote -- NOT I. BUT I DO care about foreign policy, I loved bin Laden killed, I do care about KEEPING Medicare/Social Security, and I DO care about Republicans who have NOTHING to offer on economic policy except more of the corporate oligarchical same and WORSE want ultimately an eradication of entitlements. Republicans got us into the mess in the first place. When in office Republicans sink the ship.
Our ship IS sinking from their policies and FASTER than the president can wield his own power because of Republican obstructionism so you will have to excuse me if the exchanges between Weiner and his online lovelies matter NOT to me. Let his wife care about that and let Weiner do what he does SO well and that is advocate and vote for the middle class and the little guy whom Republican policy and the holier than thou crowd does not know exist.
He who has not sinned cast the first one. I say learn a lesson, Rep. Weiner, go and sin no more but keep advocating for us!
Monday, June 06, 2011
Handwriting on the Wall with a Caveat: I have been a vociferous opponent of the anti-Israel local blogger Doris Cadigan's opinions (See June 5, 2011 Metro West Daily News, Cadigan letter "End Palestinian Conflict") about Israel throughout the years. I STILL cringe at her virulent anti-Israeli statements but I have changed slightly my opinion as realities on the ground change. Of this I can be sure: I WANT THE JEWISH STATE TO SURVIVE. It is because of this I support EXACTLY what the president said at AIPAC. It is why many at AIPAC agreed with him. NOW IS THE TIME to perfect a peace with not simply empty words. I say that NOT as a supporter of Palestinians. I say that as a supporter of the State of Israel. Our president knows the odds the Jewish state is up against. They are and will be formidable unless an all out hot war is waged with the US as Israel's ally. Given the weariness of this country to the commitment of American force to this regional conflict if not ultimately the world war it could engender, it would be not only impossible to wage but if waged repulsive in the extreme. The body count would be exponentially horrific. Because of this a return to the 67 borders WITH MUTUALLY AGREED UPON LAND SWAPS is a must.
The Arab Spring began in Tunisia by a simple vendor who was mad as hell, couldn't take his government's corruption anymore and set himself on fire. He thereby set the region on fire with him. The US initiation of the Iraq War based on a lie began, too, the destabilization of that already volatile part of the world. It handed Iran the hegemony it savors to this day. All of this has negatively affected the west and it has negatively affected Israel as well.
Do I want a Jewish state to survive? YES and that is why I come out in support of what the president said at AIPAC. He KNOWS the stakes and those who do not see it are ostriches with their heads in the sand. Either one wants the Jewish state to survive or one THINKS with the superior weapons of war one can fight the many other forces from all sides wanting Israel's destruction. This is stupidity in the extreme.
Palestinians and their other supporters have numbers and time on their side and we, the Jewish people, do not as we will be abandoned one by one by many who gave Israel initial support including possibly soon even the UN. An IMPORTANT caveat too must be made. Everything is predicated, OF COURSE, on the stipulation that the Arabs/Palestinians MUST, without question, accept the legitimacy of the Israeli state and BOTH MUST cease violence against the other.
Jews need to count on Jews for survival BUT they MUST do the right thing as well. I cannot count tit for tat all the death wielding maneuvers of each side. BOTH are guilty of gruesome and heinous acts. My most ardent perception, given the changing Middle East is that NOW is the time for true peace to begin in earnest and not with empty words. The MSNBC headline below lends credence to my view.
"Israeli forces open fire as protesters storm Golan border." I rest my case!
The Arab Spring began in Tunisia by a simple vendor who was mad as hell, couldn't take his government's corruption anymore and set himself on fire. He thereby set the region on fire with him. The US initiation of the Iraq War based on a lie began, too, the destabilization of that already volatile part of the world. It handed Iran the hegemony it savors to this day. All of this has negatively affected the west and it has negatively affected Israel as well.
Do I want a Jewish state to survive? YES and that is why I come out in support of what the president said at AIPAC. He KNOWS the stakes and those who do not see it are ostriches with their heads in the sand. Either one wants the Jewish state to survive or one THINKS with the superior weapons of war one can fight the many other forces from all sides wanting Israel's destruction. This is stupidity in the extreme.
Palestinians and their other supporters have numbers and time on their side and we, the Jewish people, do not as we will be abandoned one by one by many who gave Israel initial support including possibly soon even the UN. An IMPORTANT caveat too must be made. Everything is predicated, OF COURSE, on the stipulation that the Arabs/Palestinians MUST, without question, accept the legitimacy of the Israeli state and BOTH MUST cease violence against the other.
Jews need to count on Jews for survival BUT they MUST do the right thing as well. I cannot count tit for tat all the death wielding maneuvers of each side. BOTH are guilty of gruesome and heinous acts. My most ardent perception, given the changing Middle East is that NOW is the time for true peace to begin in earnest and not with empty words. The MSNBC headline below lends credence to my view.
"Israeli forces open fire as protesters storm Golan border." I rest my case!
Saturday, June 04, 2011
The Covenant: This made the NYT blog. It was in response to a NYT article "Efforts to Ban Circumcision Gain Traction in California": If this isn't the most utterly INSANE law I do not know what is. How long has this rite been practiced? If one is a Jew it has been done for over 5000 years. Is this the state's business? I think NOT. This is between the parents and a physician much like abortion should be. Male circumcision has absolutely NOTHING to do with female genital mutilation which is done to prevent a female from experiencing her sexuality. Jewish male circumcision, a centuries old practice, has, of course, religious symbolic significance of the Abrahamic covenant the Jewish people established with God. Criticize that if you like. Nonetheless, if one is a Jew it is an unquestioned practice and the essence of being a Jewish male. It is unthinkable to me EVEN if one is not religious which I am not to eschew it.
Truthfully, I believe there is more to this attempt at its eradication than thinking it is purely a correct medical decision to remain "intact." Yet again the essence of being a Jew is assaulted. One of the most important rites of the Jewish people is under attack. People who attack circumcision and want an actual LAW against it are not being honest as to what is hiding behind their passion. I firmly believe in this case -- not all but for many -- it is an end run around a basic anti-Semitic fever that lies dormant at times but resurrects itself under certain circumstances.
Sure, why not go after the Jew in this manner. That way we can appear that we think it is a medically unnecessary procedure but in truth the hostility of a particularly Jewish rite is at the movement's core.
It is understandable if one does not want to circumcise a male child but it is anything but understandable if one wants the STATE to intervene to prevent it.
I have never met a Jewish man who said that his circumcised genital area presented a problem. The usual arguments for it are well known such as cleanliness and the lessening of some types of STD's and HIV transmission. There is also the claim that women engaging in sex with circumcised men cut their risk of uterine and vaginal cancer. It stands to reason that cleanliness would contribute to the lessening of infection. These rationales can be debated but what CANNOT be debated is the state having the unmitigated gall to interfere in this long held Jewish tradition. I am not a religious Jew at all and yet if I had a male child that child WOULD be circumcised. They would have to cart me off to jail to prevent it.
There is more to this than meets the eye. Yet again the Jew, just when we think we are safe, someone is always there to kick us in the posterior and blame us for everything from hurting babies through circumcision to creating the Wall Street madness.
When will this cancer, this infection, this vile pathology of Jew hating ever die? Even IF there were not one Jew to hate left in the world someone would find a way to keep the hatred alive. Now it's circumcision, PLEASE give us a break. Do what you want with your child but leave mine to me!
Truthfully, I believe there is more to this attempt at its eradication than thinking it is purely a correct medical decision to remain "intact." Yet again the essence of being a Jew is assaulted. One of the most important rites of the Jewish people is under attack. People who attack circumcision and want an actual LAW against it are not being honest as to what is hiding behind their passion. I firmly believe in this case -- not all but for many -- it is an end run around a basic anti-Semitic fever that lies dormant at times but resurrects itself under certain circumstances.
Sure, why not go after the Jew in this manner. That way we can appear that we think it is a medically unnecessary procedure but in truth the hostility of a particularly Jewish rite is at the movement's core.
It is understandable if one does not want to circumcise a male child but it is anything but understandable if one wants the STATE to intervene to prevent it.
I have never met a Jewish man who said that his circumcised genital area presented a problem. The usual arguments for it are well known such as cleanliness and the lessening of some types of STD's and HIV transmission. There is also the claim that women engaging in sex with circumcised men cut their risk of uterine and vaginal cancer. It stands to reason that cleanliness would contribute to the lessening of infection. These rationales can be debated but what CANNOT be debated is the state having the unmitigated gall to interfere in this long held Jewish tradition. I am not a religious Jew at all and yet if I had a male child that child WOULD be circumcised. They would have to cart me off to jail to prevent it.
There is more to this than meets the eye. Yet again the Jew, just when we think we are safe, someone is always there to kick us in the posterior and blame us for everything from hurting babies through circumcision to creating the Wall Street madness.
When will this cancer, this infection, this vile pathology of Jew hating ever die? Even IF there were not one Jew to hate left in the world someone would find a way to keep the hatred alive. Now it's circumcision, PLEASE give us a break. Do what you want with your child but leave mine to me!
Palin the Putz: If you do nothing else you MUST MUST MUST click on or paste the link below into your browser. This is Sarah the Moron Palin potentially running for president of the most powerful nation on earth when she was in Boston yesterday at the Old North Church explaining history and just what that Paul Revere was doing on April 18, 1775. I have NO doubt it would be big news to Paul Revere!! Treason anyone?
It's not she that upsets me it's that ANYONE on planet earth much less THIS country is following her like a dog in heat
This is the funniest one yet and even funnier than Katie Couric's profoundly tough question of what books do you read. I guess Ms. Palin does not read many. Actually, in fairness to her she seems stoned!8-) funny funny funny!!
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2011/06/sarah-palin-claims-paul-revere-warned-the-british-that-they-werent-gonna-be-takin-away-our-arms.html
It's not she that upsets me it's that ANYONE on planet earth much less THIS country is following her like a dog in heat
This is the funniest one yet and even funnier than Katie Couric's profoundly tough question of what books do you read. I guess Ms. Palin does not read many. Actually, in fairness to her she seems stoned!8-) funny funny funny!!
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2011/06/sarah-palin-claims-paul-revere-warned-the-british-that-they-werent-gonna-be-takin-away-our-arms.html
Friday, June 03, 2011
The Death of Jack Kavorkian: I agree with much of what Jack Kevorkian advocated. I do not know about every single assisted suicide over which he presided but I do know there is something askew in a culture that says euthanizing our beloved pets is a humane act to alleviate their suffering but allowing human beings to suffer interminable pain or if not pain than drugged out in a morphine haze when life is at its inevitable end.
I have always believed that this country's treatment of death is the same as always loving stories with happy endings. For Americans, I believe death is NOT an option and when it occurs, as it will for ALL of us, western religions concoct fantasies of an after life or being in a better place after the loved one has died. Well if it's so much better there I wondered why we do not all end our suffering and go right to it. Of course the rational moral of the story is life is here and now. It is what one makes of it. There is nothing else unless one chooses to live in Fantasyland.
I believe in the relieving of human suffering, I believe that the DNA of life has an end which the drug machine in this country has extended sometimes merely for profit. I believe we should emphasize life's finiteness when we choose policies that simply are inhumane to other powerless groups. There are NO do overs and in the final analysis I believe the true humanitarian was Dr. Jack Kavorkian. He saw unmentionable suffering and chose to end it.
Jack, you have changed the culture for the better even though you had to suffer the travesties of irrational belief systems of others while trying to doing it.
I have always believed that this country's treatment of death is the same as always loving stories with happy endings. For Americans, I believe death is NOT an option and when it occurs, as it will for ALL of us, western religions concoct fantasies of an after life or being in a better place after the loved one has died. Well if it's so much better there I wondered why we do not all end our suffering and go right to it. Of course the rational moral of the story is life is here and now. It is what one makes of it. There is nothing else unless one chooses to live in Fantasyland.
I believe in the relieving of human suffering, I believe that the DNA of life has an end which the drug machine in this country has extended sometimes merely for profit. I believe we should emphasize life's finiteness when we choose policies that simply are inhumane to other powerless groups. There are NO do overs and in the final analysis I believe the true humanitarian was Dr. Jack Kavorkian. He saw unmentionable suffering and chose to end it.
Jack, you have changed the culture for the better even though you had to suffer the travesties of irrational belief systems of others while trying to doing it.
Wednesday, June 01, 2011
A Letter to Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner: Full Faith and Credit of a Too Big to Fail Nation: Mr. Speaker: I do not know how you can square Republican Party tactics and you as the nation's Speaker with what should be the moral, humane and sound economic policy of the nation. I know you know, and greater economic minds than I have said, not raising the debt ceiling will prove catastrophic to our nation and the world. I think you understand this but the freshmen Republican congressmen, I believe, do not have a clue as to the utter economic insanity that is taking place in Congress. You are bartering away our lives.
Moreover, holding hostage a vote to raise the debt ceiling to the evisceration of Medicare, a program that has saved lives irrespective of party, is despicable in the extreme. Do you truly NOT care who lives and who dies as long as Wall Street moguls and their lobbyists fill politicos’ cash coffers with campaign contributions? Other things can be done to deal with our deficit and debt besides ruining health care and retirement programs which have saved so many. These call for increasing slightly the taxes of those who truly can afford it and ceasing policies of never-ending wars which increase the deficit into the stratosphere of far flung galaxies.
I do not know or understand how a man who calls himself a Christian, a faith based on human kindness and dignity, can fall prey to those forces in Washington who are more interested in stuffing their pocketbooks than helping the elderly, the disabled and poor obtain health care through programs already in place which have worked for over 40 years.
If you and other Republicans do what I think you want to do and make it impossible for the middle class, blue collar and poor to survive then our nation, a beacon of hope to the world, will surely fail. It is on our middle class backs that this nation was built and it is on our middle class backs that the nation could fall as Wall Street and the dastardly deeds of its lending and too-big-to-fail investment banks, hedge funds, sub-prime lending institutions, rating agencies and other market forces are the very reason the economy has been in such a precarious position since 2007. No one who committed these unethical and, in many cases, illegal activities has been brought to justice. Another economic free fall is just waiting for the winds of entitlement evisceration to tip it over the edge.
The rich will NEVER fail, they will NEVER suffer from lack of health insurance, and they will NEVER lose their home nor not have a place to sleep or not have food on the table. If the top 2% are handed tax breaks those breaks will NEVER trickle down their wealth to us. It has been shown time and time again what happens when government is in the pockets of Wall Street and there is no regulation of greed -- the country collapses as it did during the Great Depression and as it almost did in the Great Recession of 2007. Now Republicans want to risk the full faith and credit of a too big to fail nation by not extending the debt ceiling or agreeing to extend it only if it can be accompanied by a reduction in Medicare and other social safety net programs. This is a cruel bargain to say the least.
I URGE you to examine your conscience and if you never stood for the little guy before stand for us now. Medicare, Social Security and other so called entitlements cannot be left at the doorstep of Wall Street, who, like a gambling casino whisks our money away in a con game before we really know it is gone and we are left with nothing! I urge you to use your leadership to ask your party NOT to do such unconscionable things to the people who can least afford it.
Moreover, holding hostage a vote to raise the debt ceiling to the evisceration of Medicare, a program that has saved lives irrespective of party, is despicable in the extreme. Do you truly NOT care who lives and who dies as long as Wall Street moguls and their lobbyists fill politicos’ cash coffers with campaign contributions? Other things can be done to deal with our deficit and debt besides ruining health care and retirement programs which have saved so many. These call for increasing slightly the taxes of those who truly can afford it and ceasing policies of never-ending wars which increase the deficit into the stratosphere of far flung galaxies.
I do not know or understand how a man who calls himself a Christian, a faith based on human kindness and dignity, can fall prey to those forces in Washington who are more interested in stuffing their pocketbooks than helping the elderly, the disabled and poor obtain health care through programs already in place which have worked for over 40 years.
If you and other Republicans do what I think you want to do and make it impossible for the middle class, blue collar and poor to survive then our nation, a beacon of hope to the world, will surely fail. It is on our middle class backs that this nation was built and it is on our middle class backs that the nation could fall as Wall Street and the dastardly deeds of its lending and too-big-to-fail investment banks, hedge funds, sub-prime lending institutions, rating agencies and other market forces are the very reason the economy has been in such a precarious position since 2007. No one who committed these unethical and, in many cases, illegal activities has been brought to justice. Another economic free fall is just waiting for the winds of entitlement evisceration to tip it over the edge.
The rich will NEVER fail, they will NEVER suffer from lack of health insurance, and they will NEVER lose their home nor not have a place to sleep or not have food on the table. If the top 2% are handed tax breaks those breaks will NEVER trickle down their wealth to us. It has been shown time and time again what happens when government is in the pockets of Wall Street and there is no regulation of greed -- the country collapses as it did during the Great Depression and as it almost did in the Great Recession of 2007. Now Republicans want to risk the full faith and credit of a too big to fail nation by not extending the debt ceiling or agreeing to extend it only if it can be accompanied by a reduction in Medicare and other social safety net programs. This is a cruel bargain to say the least.
I URGE you to examine your conscience and if you never stood for the little guy before stand for us now. Medicare, Social Security and other so called entitlements cannot be left at the doorstep of Wall Street, who, like a gambling casino whisks our money away in a con game before we really know it is gone and we are left with nothing! I urge you to use your leadership to ask your party NOT to do such unconscionable things to the people who can least afford it.
Monday, May 30, 2011
Uncivil War: I link below an article on MSNBC entitled: "NATO apologizes for Afghan Civilian Deaths."
The perpetual waging of unpopular war abroad, which expends rivers of blood, saps our pocketbook and balloons our debt, must be brought to a swift end. The three wars, two of which are ten years in length, viciously shed precious blood, are wildly expensive, decimate the psyches of those who fight them and worse fuel the fires of Al Qaeda by the inevitable collateral killing of civilians -- including women/children.
Our military is sorely overextended. It is a fact of life our adversaries sometimes do not condemn more vociferously their own people who often do unspeakable things to each other. We must live with that inconsistency. Many hate more specifically the foreigner on their soil. When will Americans learn they are NOT killing us for our freedom? They are killing us because they do NOT want American boots on their ground.
All the effort our military expends on humanitarian work is wonderful BUT it is lost to Al Qaeda when events such as the recent civilian killings in Afghanistan happen as reported below. Bin Laden, the overlord of inhumanity, was finally killed and I proudly say at the direction of a Democrat! His end should mark a new beginning in American foreign policy that went haywire after World War II. The department which is responsible for the defense of the country is called the Department of Defense and NOT the Department of Offense for a reason.
If the draft were reinstated one would see how fast American troops would be pulled as few would want their son or daughter to either perpetrate or experience the carnage and danger the ugly, mendacious and immoral so called Bush Doctrine of preemptive war brings. We would also see how much reining in our foreign escapades would lower the debt and restore civility to uncivil policy. Our war policy garners only more killing, death/dismemberment and psychological illness of our soldiers, animosity abroad and debt at home. It is time to end these insufferable, uncivil, and never ending wars.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43209372/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia/
The perpetual waging of unpopular war abroad, which expends rivers of blood, saps our pocketbook and balloons our debt, must be brought to a swift end. The three wars, two of which are ten years in length, viciously shed precious blood, are wildly expensive, decimate the psyches of those who fight them and worse fuel the fires of Al Qaeda by the inevitable collateral killing of civilians -- including women/children.
Our military is sorely overextended. It is a fact of life our adversaries sometimes do not condemn more vociferously their own people who often do unspeakable things to each other. We must live with that inconsistency. Many hate more specifically the foreigner on their soil. When will Americans learn they are NOT killing us for our freedom? They are killing us because they do NOT want American boots on their ground.
All the effort our military expends on humanitarian work is wonderful BUT it is lost to Al Qaeda when events such as the recent civilian killings in Afghanistan happen as reported below. Bin Laden, the overlord of inhumanity, was finally killed and I proudly say at the direction of a Democrat! His end should mark a new beginning in American foreign policy that went haywire after World War II. The department which is responsible for the defense of the country is called the Department of Defense and NOT the Department of Offense for a reason.
If the draft were reinstated one would see how fast American troops would be pulled as few would want their son or daughter to either perpetrate or experience the carnage and danger the ugly, mendacious and immoral so called Bush Doctrine of preemptive war brings. We would also see how much reining in our foreign escapades would lower the debt and restore civility to uncivil policy. Our war policy garners only more killing, death/dismemberment and psychological illness of our soldiers, animosity abroad and debt at home. It is time to end these insufferable, uncivil, and never ending wars.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43209372/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia/
Sunday, May 29, 2011
This is WHY a Republican can NEVER NEVER NEVER be elected president....George Carlin was SO correct it is chilling. He said "They are coming for it ALL, they want it ALL, and they'll get it ... " The link below about Pawlenty shows Carlin was SO correct!!!
Cut the military war machine, cut the subsidies to major corporations, do NOT balance the budget on the backs of the middle class little guy by taking away Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid!
How many of you, your parents and your loved ones would be dead or severely disabled if they could not afford health insurance and if Medicare were not there? Think about it and tell EVERYONE you know NOT to vote Republican and step on their own foot. Republicans are NOT about most of you!
http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2011/05/tim-pawlenty-says-he-would-back-paul-ryans-medicare-plan.html
Cut the military war machine, cut the subsidies to major corporations, do NOT balance the budget on the backs of the middle class little guy by taking away Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid!
How many of you, your parents and your loved ones would be dead or severely disabled if they could not afford health insurance and if Medicare were not there? Think about it and tell EVERYONE you know NOT to vote Republican and step on their own foot. Republicans are NOT about most of you!
http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2011/05/tim-pawlenty-says-he-would-back-paul-ryans-medicare-plan.html
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Oprah’s OWN: This is a response to Alex Beam’s less than positive view of Oprah Winfrey “Say Good Night Oprah” in the May 24, 2011 Boston Globe (linked below.)
Mr. Beam I have been critical of Oprah for a very long time for most of the reasons you state in your editorial "Say Goodnight Oprah." I have been critical of it all mostly because she NEVER or rarely has an opposing opinion on her show challenging what she has to sell. Much of it is snake oil albeit sold sincerely and mixed with a little bit of god. How can anyone resist? The words are so intoxicating most especially to our very gullible sugar coating loving American audience. There is one reason Oprah lasted so long: MONEY and gobs of it as so many found the perfect forum to hawk their wares.
Having said that one cannot, I think, deny that very often despite all her glitz, glamor, and materialism there are some whom she affected in a positive way. She may even, I admit, have saved lives -- perhaps many of them. I do not want to be guilty of what I think Oprah was guilty and that is neglecting to bring fair and balanced viewpoints to her shows. Her shows missed one important quality sorely lacking in our culture -- critical thinking. She had little most especially when talking about a higher power force she thinks controls everyone's life if only one would let it in.
I admittedly watched her when I thought the subject matter either pertained to me or interested me. Otherwise, I tuned her out. Her finale to my taste was utterly garish and over done BUT then again if one says she helped them who am I to deny it. And so, I bestow upon Oprah that which she never bestowed upon us, a balanced viewpoint. She was both a force for good and a force for the glitz, glamor and garish negatives in our culture that I believe make us willing to swallow anything no matter how irrational and ridiculous. It only needs to sound oh so good.
No one can doubt Oprah was a force. The name of her OWN network which is supposed to follow her says it all. Oprah's show in the end was about her OWN self and so it is an appropriate acronym. I must admit I will miss some of her. Her genius is that even someone as critical as I am can say that!
http://www.boston.com/ae/tv/articles/2011/05/24/say_goodnight_oprah/
Mr. Beam I have been critical of Oprah for a very long time for most of the reasons you state in your editorial "Say Goodnight Oprah." I have been critical of it all mostly because she NEVER or rarely has an opposing opinion on her show challenging what she has to sell. Much of it is snake oil albeit sold sincerely and mixed with a little bit of god. How can anyone resist? The words are so intoxicating most especially to our very gullible sugar coating loving American audience. There is one reason Oprah lasted so long: MONEY and gobs of it as so many found the perfect forum to hawk their wares.
Having said that one cannot, I think, deny that very often despite all her glitz, glamor, and materialism there are some whom she affected in a positive way. She may even, I admit, have saved lives -- perhaps many of them. I do not want to be guilty of what I think Oprah was guilty and that is neglecting to bring fair and balanced viewpoints to her shows. Her shows missed one important quality sorely lacking in our culture -- critical thinking. She had little most especially when talking about a higher power force she thinks controls everyone's life if only one would let it in.
I admittedly watched her when I thought the subject matter either pertained to me or interested me. Otherwise, I tuned her out. Her finale to my taste was utterly garish and over done BUT then again if one says she helped them who am I to deny it. And so, I bestow upon Oprah that which she never bestowed upon us, a balanced viewpoint. She was both a force for good and a force for the glitz, glamor and garish negatives in our culture that I believe make us willing to swallow anything no matter how irrational and ridiculous. It only needs to sound oh so good.
No one can doubt Oprah was a force. The name of her OWN network which is supposed to follow her says it all. Oprah's show in the end was about her OWN self and so it is an appropriate acronym. I must admit I will miss some of her. Her genius is that even someone as critical as I am can say that!
http://www.boston.com/ae/tv/articles/2011/05/24/say_goodnight_oprah/
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
NY 26th the reddest of the red went blue!: THIS IS WONDERFUL. This shows you how important saving Medicare and Social Security is. For those who do not know Google NY 26th district special election. The reddest of the red went BLUE tonight as a special House election was conducted to fill the seat of the half naked Republican who resigned because he was caught on Craig's List soliciting. Hypocrites much?
Beyond even that this is WONDERFUL because this district has NEVER gone Democratic and we can do a tip of the hat to Paul Ryan for making the destruction of Medicare his seminal Republican policy. America is changing its composition and the Republican party at some point in my opinion will be dead. They have NOTHING and NO ONE to run. Keep on trucking for Democrats. We may not be perfect but we are a hell of a lot better than what is our opposition. A Howard Dean YEEEHA!
We can do it!!
Beyond even that this is WONDERFUL because this district has NEVER gone Democratic and we can do a tip of the hat to Paul Ryan for making the destruction of Medicare his seminal Republican policy. America is changing its composition and the Republican party at some point in my opinion will be dead. They have NOTHING and NO ONE to run. Keep on trucking for Democrats. We may not be perfect but we are a hell of a lot better than what is our opposition. A Howard Dean YEEEHA!
We can do it!!
Joplin: If you have seen or heard a news broadcast or read a newspaper, the stories out of Joplin, MO are devastating. Not only has a tornado cut in half an entire city demolishing everything, killing so far 118 on the south side of Joplin but more bad weather and possibly heavy tornado activity is predicted again today.
I am pasting a link below provided by NBC News which lists those agencies which will accept donations and aid. Times like these require a united front. I hope some of you can give.
http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/05/23/6700666-joplin-tornado-how-to-help
I am pasting a link below provided by NBC News which lists those agencies which will accept donations and aid. Times like these require a united front. I hope some of you can give.
http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/05/23/6700666-joplin-tornado-how-to-help
Sunday, May 22, 2011
A1 at AIPAC--A Home Run: Some have asked why I have not weighed in on the Middle East Israel/Palestinian madness. The reason I balk at wading through the morass of religious, military, and dogmatic historical realities of the Middle East peace between Israel and the Palestinians is because my first impulse is to throw up my hands and yell loudly I GIVE UP. I have been on this planet for 62 years the same number of years the Jewish State of Israel has existed. For those 62 years that region and the tiny Jewish state have never known peace and yet the word peace has been thrown around like baseballs of a batter taking batting practice except in this case the game never ends and the score is in dead bodies and not home runs. In fact, a home run has never been hit and the bodies are still being counted.
If a state has been at war for 62 years one might take a snooze and say wake me when it’s over. The problem with that is when one is awakened the game may be over and the Jewish state may face an existential annihilation as each nation peels off its support including even the United Nations and as Israel finds itself in a new Middle East reality. How many times have we heard the mantra which plays like a broken record -- We want a two state solution with two states living side by side in peace. I am sick of it but it is what I desperately want for both my Jewish people and the Palestinians. When will this happen? Each side intrinsically and rabidly hates the other and there is no trust, the basis for any agreement.
The president's proposal to Benjamin Netanyahu has been skewered by the mindless lame stream media who simply want to ratchet up discord anywhere they can find it even if it means fanning the fires of a hatred so enmeshed between two people that its quilt can only serve to smother the lives of both. In reality returning Israel to its pre-1967 borders is not a new idea. In fact, it has been postulated by many presidents including by the Clinton Administration in Oslo. I do not believe President Obama threw Israel under the bus as some have suggested.
The Republican Party thinks it sees an opening to sow more discord between Jews and Palestinians -- as if there is not enough already -- in their feeble attempt to scrape off the Jewish vote which it has always courted by falsely telling the American electorate that Obama does not support Israel. No matter how hard Republicans tried in 2008 to court the Jewish vote Jews voted for Obama in droves at 80%.
After the steaming pitch right over the plate thrown by the president in his AIPAC speech today, I suspect the Republicans will continue to lose the Jewish vote and Jews will continue to remain solidly in the Democratic camp. The president did what only he can do and that is let his words take on persuasive power. He did just that when he spoke today at the solidly pro Israel lobbying group, AIPAC. As one of my very politically savvy relatives used to say “what is is.” It is a simple profundity which rings true. The Middle East has changed, still is changing and we must face that stark reality. Many at AIPAC clapped mightily as the president iterated that peace between the two historical adversaries should include a return to the pre-1967 boarders, full recognition of the Jewish state by a Palestinian state and mutually agreed land swaps.
I believe a home run was hit today by the president. I can only hope he wins the game. Only the fate of the Jewish state, the Middle East and the entire world hangs in the balance!
I post the link of his speech below. I loved it. I hope you do too.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/
If a state has been at war for 62 years one might take a snooze and say wake me when it’s over. The problem with that is when one is awakened the game may be over and the Jewish state may face an existential annihilation as each nation peels off its support including even the United Nations and as Israel finds itself in a new Middle East reality. How many times have we heard the mantra which plays like a broken record -- We want a two state solution with two states living side by side in peace. I am sick of it but it is what I desperately want for both my Jewish people and the Palestinians. When will this happen? Each side intrinsically and rabidly hates the other and there is no trust, the basis for any agreement.
The president's proposal to Benjamin Netanyahu has been skewered by the mindless lame stream media who simply want to ratchet up discord anywhere they can find it even if it means fanning the fires of a hatred so enmeshed between two people that its quilt can only serve to smother the lives of both. In reality returning Israel to its pre-1967 borders is not a new idea. In fact, it has been postulated by many presidents including by the Clinton Administration in Oslo. I do not believe President Obama threw Israel under the bus as some have suggested.
The Republican Party thinks it sees an opening to sow more discord between Jews and Palestinians -- as if there is not enough already -- in their feeble attempt to scrape off the Jewish vote which it has always courted by falsely telling the American electorate that Obama does not support Israel. No matter how hard Republicans tried in 2008 to court the Jewish vote Jews voted for Obama in droves at 80%.
After the steaming pitch right over the plate thrown by the president in his AIPAC speech today, I suspect the Republicans will continue to lose the Jewish vote and Jews will continue to remain solidly in the Democratic camp. The president did what only he can do and that is let his words take on persuasive power. He did just that when he spoke today at the solidly pro Israel lobbying group, AIPAC. As one of my very politically savvy relatives used to say “what is is.” It is a simple profundity which rings true. The Middle East has changed, still is changing and we must face that stark reality. Many at AIPAC clapped mightily as the president iterated that peace between the two historical adversaries should include a return to the pre-1967 boarders, full recognition of the Jewish state by a Palestinian state and mutually agreed land swaps.
I believe a home run was hit today by the president. I can only hope he wins the game. Only the fate of the Jewish state, the Middle East and the entire world hangs in the balance!
I post the link of his speech below. I loved it. I hope you do too.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Scenes from the Sanctity of Marriage: The infidelities of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dominique Srauss-Kahn and so many other contemporary men who occupy the male echelons of political and financial power engender many questions. I wanted to write with profundity about the moral morass and sewer-like quicksand into which these men have sunk but each minute which ticked by created more questions than I could answer.
So I will iterate some of the questions which crossed my mind about these sad marital infidels: What is marriage? What is a vow? What is hypocrisy? What is betrayal? What is human nature? What is sanctity?
Both of these men and so many others who share their moral prison could be the substance of tragic theater. Each man could be a play of Biblical proportions or at the very least a morality play of Shakespearean import.
Shakespeare in Hamlet writes:
Shakespeare waxes effusive about man as the apex of nature’s creation above any other animal and yet neither man nor woman delights Hamlet. I ask why not?
Sometimes the Bible used as metaphor can be instructive. Since this text was written approximately 5 thousand years ago, we can take from it that the moral turpitude of man has existed for a very long time. It is as if it is man’s shadow following him all the days of his life and from which he cannot escape. Genesis 3 says:
Our politicians talk so much about the “sanctity of marriage” especially if they want to indict the nature of other groups they judge severely. Most especially politics on the right – Republican politics – is infused with moral sanctity and superiority. Republicans make marriage the hallmark of their platform. Indeed, Arnold Schwarzenegger spoke many times of the importance of marriage and the family but did so while he was sexually involved with a woman who was not his wife compounding this moral collapse by creating another life from this union. His children did not even know they were living with their half brother since Schwarzenegger had a relationship with the family housekeeper, the mother of the child, for over 20 years. How did the former governor square this with his own party’s mandate or his wife? He didn’t perhaps thinking it a career crusher if he simply told the truth.
Strauss-Kahn commits the same hypocrisy but it rises to a much more violent and serious level. If he is found guilty of the seven charges for which he is indicted – including attempted rape -- this man of extraordinary wealth and power will go to jail for a very very long time.
These two examples are staggering for their hypocrisy. They advocate for behavior that they do not exemplify themselves. Strauss-Kahn controlled billions if not trillions of dollars asking nations to comport themselves in certain moral and non-violent ways so they could be the beneficiaries of the vast sums of money he controlled. Yet, on a singular level he is alleged to have committed the most egregious behavior a man can commit short of murder. Schwarzenegger’s Republican party makes part of its platform unyielding religious precepts which the powers that be suspend anytime they want for their own scandalous purposes but remain etched in stone for the opposition.
Do vows mean anything anymore? Is marriage truly sacred and if not why do we enter into these contractual vows anyway? I aver vows in our immoral era mean little. They can be broken on a whim and all too often are. Still, marriage is a contract made mainly to protect women and children so that if a man strays he will still owe a legal obligation to and protection of his issue. It makes sense and promotes good order IF and only IF the contract is honored. The problem is often it is not and yet those who most vociferously advocate for it are often the breakers of it. It is the essence of hypocrisy.
Perhaps the most difficult of all the questions above is the notion of betrayal. That is the feeling one gets when the trust between one person and another is broken. We feel angry, aggrieved, and hurt. Again, metaphorically, of all the sins in Christianity the betrayal of Jesus by Judas for only 30 pieces of silver has to be one of the most loathsome. Judas deceived someone he loved. I thought a man’s word was worth more than that.
The Biblical and Shakespearean paragraphs above tell us that the fallen angel is not new and that the beauty of man is often tarnished when he fails to live up to the vows he makes. Nonetheless, we make them. Maybe that is what makes the Jewish High Holy Day Yom Kippur so significant because all vows are negated and in the future we make them anew and try to do better. Somehow I think Arnold Schwarzenegger will not do better nor will, if convicted, Strauss-Kahn. In the end we can judge only ourselves by these standards and as the poet Robert Frost said: “The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep.”
So I will iterate some of the questions which crossed my mind about these sad marital infidels: What is marriage? What is a vow? What is hypocrisy? What is betrayal? What is human nature? What is sanctity?
Both of these men and so many others who share their moral prison could be the substance of tragic theater. Each man could be a play of Biblical proportions or at the very least a morality play of Shakespearean import.
Shakespeare in Hamlet writes:
What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how
infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and
admirable, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like
a god! the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals—and yet,
to me, what is this quintessence of dust? Man delights not me—
nor woman neither, though by your smiling you seem to say so.
Shakespeare waxes effusive about man as the apex of nature’s creation above any other animal and yet neither man nor woman delights Hamlet. I ask why not?
Sometimes the Bible used as metaphor can be instructive. Since this text was written approximately 5 thousand years ago, we can take from it that the moral turpitude of man has existed for a very long time. It is as if it is man’s shadow following him all the days of his life and from which he cannot escape. Genesis 3 says:
Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, lest you die.’ “ And the serpent said to the woman, “You surely shall not die! “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
Our politicians talk so much about the “sanctity of marriage” especially if they want to indict the nature of other groups they judge severely. Most especially politics on the right – Republican politics – is infused with moral sanctity and superiority. Republicans make marriage the hallmark of their platform. Indeed, Arnold Schwarzenegger spoke many times of the importance of marriage and the family but did so while he was sexually involved with a woman who was not his wife compounding this moral collapse by creating another life from this union. His children did not even know they were living with their half brother since Schwarzenegger had a relationship with the family housekeeper, the mother of the child, for over 20 years. How did the former governor square this with his own party’s mandate or his wife? He didn’t perhaps thinking it a career crusher if he simply told the truth.
Strauss-Kahn commits the same hypocrisy but it rises to a much more violent and serious level. If he is found guilty of the seven charges for which he is indicted – including attempted rape -- this man of extraordinary wealth and power will go to jail for a very very long time.
These two examples are staggering for their hypocrisy. They advocate for behavior that they do not exemplify themselves. Strauss-Kahn controlled billions if not trillions of dollars asking nations to comport themselves in certain moral and non-violent ways so they could be the beneficiaries of the vast sums of money he controlled. Yet, on a singular level he is alleged to have committed the most egregious behavior a man can commit short of murder. Schwarzenegger’s Republican party makes part of its platform unyielding religious precepts which the powers that be suspend anytime they want for their own scandalous purposes but remain etched in stone for the opposition.
Do vows mean anything anymore? Is marriage truly sacred and if not why do we enter into these contractual vows anyway? I aver vows in our immoral era mean little. They can be broken on a whim and all too often are. Still, marriage is a contract made mainly to protect women and children so that if a man strays he will still owe a legal obligation to and protection of his issue. It makes sense and promotes good order IF and only IF the contract is honored. The problem is often it is not and yet those who most vociferously advocate for it are often the breakers of it. It is the essence of hypocrisy.
Perhaps the most difficult of all the questions above is the notion of betrayal. That is the feeling one gets when the trust between one person and another is broken. We feel angry, aggrieved, and hurt. Again, metaphorically, of all the sins in Christianity the betrayal of Jesus by Judas for only 30 pieces of silver has to be one of the most loathsome. Judas deceived someone he loved. I thought a man’s word was worth more than that.
The Biblical and Shakespearean paragraphs above tell us that the fallen angel is not new and that the beauty of man is often tarnished when he fails to live up to the vows he makes. Nonetheless, we make them. Maybe that is what makes the Jewish High Holy Day Yom Kippur so significant because all vows are negated and in the future we make them anew and try to do better. Somehow I think Arnold Schwarzenegger will not do better nor will, if convicted, Strauss-Kahn. In the end we can judge only ourselves by these standards and as the poet Robert Frost said: “The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep.”
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
In Living Color -- RED: Why does the Democratic base get so upset with the Democratic Party and the Democratic administration? John Stewart did an EXCELLENT segment on Meredith Atwell Baker, heretofore Commissioner of the FCC Board, which could tell you why. She, he noted, is leaving government service as FCC Commissioner to work in the private sector. What job did this FCC Commissioner secure? She was just made Sr. Vice President of Comcast/NBC Universal. What a nice plumb don’t you think? This is the kind of position one can secure AFTER being chairman of the public communications regulatory agency, the FCC, and after one helps approve the merger of two cable behemoths while one occupies high public office in the very agency the corporate giants needed to approve their merger. The corporatists rewarded her for her fine efforts. Moreover, she had the temerity to say that the regulatory process is “too cumbersome.” I ask her for whom is it too cumbersome? Maybe it’s too cumbersome for the oligarchies who want to rake in billions from their partnership with the government that is supposed to regulate them. Instead, the taxpayer yet again will, in circuitous fashion, pay for the corporatists’ yachts and Ms. Baker will work for these corporations for, I am sure, a tidy sum while the public gets nailed to their cross of gold.
The American public is smothered by soaring cable rates because there is little to no competition. We are saddled with stations we do NOT want, packages from which we cannot choose and drown in cable rates that soar yearly into the stratosphere while the service remains outsourced and mediocre to often poor.
This is what makes the Democratic base see red. I am part of that base and, yes, I am seeing RED! Someone who held a position on the FCC Board should NEVER be allowed to assume a high position in the very companies that went before it to obtain a license to merge. Does conflict of interest ring a bell? The vote was 4-1 by the FCC in favor of the merger. Wow, am I surprised – NOT! Did the consumer have anything to say about it? The answer: NO because the FCC is not filled with occupants who are loyal to the people but ones who are loyal to those feeding at the corporate trough.
We get the leadership we deserve. Every time I think my faith is renewed something appears to shake it. It should be illegal for Meredith Atwell Baker to take the Vice-Presidential position from a company whose merger she helped facilitate. Meredith Atwell Baker should be punished for presenting even the appearance of a conflict of interest. I ask again, for whose interest did she function? It should be for OUR INTEREST to combat monopolies which squash the rights of the consumer. Sure, you are free to choose the company you want. If there are, however, only two major companies from which to choose what choice is there? Answer: NONE!
Mr. President, remember us the ones who brought you to the dance? I suggest your minions think twice before they agree to sanction the employment of a former FCC Commissioner to a high private sector position within the very companies she was supposed to regulate. Think of us the little guy – the middle class – before there is no middle class left to think about at all!
The American public is smothered by soaring cable rates because there is little to no competition. We are saddled with stations we do NOT want, packages from which we cannot choose and drown in cable rates that soar yearly into the stratosphere while the service remains outsourced and mediocre to often poor.
This is what makes the Democratic base see red. I am part of that base and, yes, I am seeing RED! Someone who held a position on the FCC Board should NEVER be allowed to assume a high position in the very companies that went before it to obtain a license to merge. Does conflict of interest ring a bell? The vote was 4-1 by the FCC in favor of the merger. Wow, am I surprised – NOT! Did the consumer have anything to say about it? The answer: NO because the FCC is not filled with occupants who are loyal to the people but ones who are loyal to those feeding at the corporate trough.
We get the leadership we deserve. Every time I think my faith is renewed something appears to shake it. It should be illegal for Meredith Atwell Baker to take the Vice-Presidential position from a company whose merger she helped facilitate. Meredith Atwell Baker should be punished for presenting even the appearance of a conflict of interest. I ask again, for whose interest did she function? It should be for OUR INTEREST to combat monopolies which squash the rights of the consumer. Sure, you are free to choose the company you want. If there are, however, only two major companies from which to choose what choice is there? Answer: NONE!
Mr. President, remember us the ones who brought you to the dance? I suggest your minions think twice before they agree to sanction the employment of a former FCC Commissioner to a high private sector position within the very companies she was supposed to regulate. Think of us the little guy – the middle class – before there is no middle class left to think about at all!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
The Strategy: It is obvious that the Republican Party has NOTHING. They have LESS than nothing. They have zilch, nada, zero and they know it. Moreover, they are split probably 60/40 by a Republican Tea Bag base that is extremist right into the stratosphere. They do not attract many in the general electorate. The American public we know is in the center but it will NOT be appealed to by extremist racist right wingnut thought. Most especially we know that the ethnic composition of the country is changing quickly as Hispanics and other minorities will make up an even greater part of the whole. They WILL find a place more -- MUCH more -- at home within the Democratic Party.
I have little doubt, barring any god forbid catastrophe, that Barack Obama will be easily re-elected. We should, of course, take nothing for granted. The vote MUST be delivered for the president. I worry about most especially Congress and I worry about the red-leaning state houses and governorships around the country.
I would most emphatically like to see the Democratic Party come to the assistance of our Democratic Senatorial and House candidates. We MUST absolutely MUST retain the all important Senate. It would be frosting on the cake if we could take BOTH houses of Congress as we did in 2008 but somehow stupidly sacrificed in 2010 when we should not have.
Both the Democratic Party and the president should throw the FULL weight of their power, prestige and the cash behind it to Democrats (hopefully progressives) everywhere most especially in the national Congress. The President can veto BUT if the Congress can override a veto we are in the same disastrous position in which Team Bush put us. We cannot go back to that. We know the consequences would be nothing short of catastrophic!
Now is the time to prepare and now is the time to take back the reins of Congressional power from those who do NOT care about Main Street but who are in the hip pocket of those who want to sell out America to Wall Street and its top 2%. As the late great George Carlin said: “They are coming for it -- all of it -- .”.. . "It's a club," he said, "and you ain't in it." The corporatist oligarchy will take you and your children's future with it as they did from 2000 – 2008 if you allow it. Do NOT be fooled by their wolf in sheep's' clothing style. They are NOT about most of us and lie ALL the time.
Take NOTHING for granted. We must take the country back for ourselves by supporting, working for and contributing to the Democratic Party and Democratic candidates everywhere. Practically, the Democratic Party is our only hope. It is up to us to compose it as we wish. Now is the time to secure our future and to do it with ALL deliberate speed!
I have little doubt, barring any god forbid catastrophe, that Barack Obama will be easily re-elected. We should, of course, take nothing for granted. The vote MUST be delivered for the president. I worry about most especially Congress and I worry about the red-leaning state houses and governorships around the country.
I would most emphatically like to see the Democratic Party come to the assistance of our Democratic Senatorial and House candidates. We MUST absolutely MUST retain the all important Senate. It would be frosting on the cake if we could take BOTH houses of Congress as we did in 2008 but somehow stupidly sacrificed in 2010 when we should not have.
Both the Democratic Party and the president should throw the FULL weight of their power, prestige and the cash behind it to Democrats (hopefully progressives) everywhere most especially in the national Congress. The President can veto BUT if the Congress can override a veto we are in the same disastrous position in which Team Bush put us. We cannot go back to that. We know the consequences would be nothing short of catastrophic!
Now is the time to prepare and now is the time to take back the reins of Congressional power from those who do NOT care about Main Street but who are in the hip pocket of those who want to sell out America to Wall Street and its top 2%. As the late great George Carlin said: “They are coming for it -- all of it -- .”.. . "It's a club," he said, "and you ain't in it." The corporatist oligarchy will take you and your children's future with it as they did from 2000 – 2008 if you allow it. Do NOT be fooled by their wolf in sheep's' clothing style. They are NOT about most of us and lie ALL the time.
Take NOTHING for granted. We must take the country back for ourselves by supporting, working for and contributing to the Democratic Party and Democratic candidates everywhere. Practically, the Democratic Party is our only hope. It is up to us to compose it as we wish. Now is the time to secure our future and to do it with ALL deliberate speed!
Monday, May 09, 2011
The Apogee of Excellence: The "Sixty Minutes" segment interviewing the president about the killing of bin Laden was, in my opinion, the most masterful segment of that program I have ever seen. To say the president was brilliant, human, cool and so professional is an understatement. It made me see him in a more intense and revelatory light. He gave us a candid window into his thoughtful world.
I have sometimes criticized the president for not standing up to his opponents more fiercely and confronting the often times racist nature of their animus. My criticism comes from my inability to see who the president truly is and to understand how he thinks. This interview showed him to be the intellect I always thought he was. There is no way anyone on the Republican side can approach the apex of the academic excellence and intellectual alacrity of Barack Obama.
I thank the president for doing something for which I waited 10 long years. I spent two years checking every single morning after the 9/11 attack to see if bin Laden was brought in "dead or alive" as George Bush so convincingly said he would. It never happened and I all but gave up that it would.
I disagree vehemently with those who think the previous administration had anything to do with taking bin Laden down. Bush was warned of the Al Qaeda attack right before 9/11 in his PDB or presidential daily briefing. In fact, Bush let bin Laden escape Afghanistan in 2002, and then closed the bin Laden task force in 2005. It was known from then on that bin Laden was in Pakistan but Bush did not pursue him. Bush went from saying he would capture bin Laden “dead or alive” to “To tell you the truth I don’t really care” he shrugged. “I don’t spend much time thinking about it.” George Bush did absolutely NOTHING to capture bin Laden. Worse, if another president were in the oval office at that time I submit 9/11 may have been averted. I cannot, of course, prove that but I can think it and I do.
If only the president's often disloyal opposition would allow him to govern as he desires without putting obstacles in front of every single step he takes I believe he could bring this country back to its apogee after the perigee of near economic collapse.
Govern on, Mr. President. You have my loyal support.
I have sometimes criticized the president for not standing up to his opponents more fiercely and confronting the often times racist nature of their animus. My criticism comes from my inability to see who the president truly is and to understand how he thinks. This interview showed him to be the intellect I always thought he was. There is no way anyone on the Republican side can approach the apex of the academic excellence and intellectual alacrity of Barack Obama.
I thank the president for doing something for which I waited 10 long years. I spent two years checking every single morning after the 9/11 attack to see if bin Laden was brought in "dead or alive" as George Bush so convincingly said he would. It never happened and I all but gave up that it would.
I disagree vehemently with those who think the previous administration had anything to do with taking bin Laden down. Bush was warned of the Al Qaeda attack right before 9/11 in his PDB or presidential daily briefing. In fact, Bush let bin Laden escape Afghanistan in 2002, and then closed the bin Laden task force in 2005. It was known from then on that bin Laden was in Pakistan but Bush did not pursue him. Bush went from saying he would capture bin Laden “dead or alive” to “To tell you the truth I don’t really care” he shrugged. “I don’t spend much time thinking about it.” George Bush did absolutely NOTHING to capture bin Laden. Worse, if another president were in the oval office at that time I submit 9/11 may have been averted. I cannot, of course, prove that but I can think it and I do.
If only the president's often disloyal opposition would allow him to govern as he desires without putting obstacles in front of every single step he takes I believe he could bring this country back to its apogee after the perigee of near economic collapse.
Govern on, Mr. President. You have my loyal support.
Sunday, May 08, 2011
A Preliminary Post -- The "Sixty Minutes" Interview: The "Sixty Minutes" segment interviewing the president about the killing of bin Laden was, in my opinion, without a doubt the most masterful segment of that program I have ever seen. If you have not seen it check the Sixty Minutes web page to view it. To say he was brilliant, human, cool and so professional is an understatement. It made me see him in a different light. He gave us a candid window into his mind.
I have sometimes criticized him for not standing up to his opponents more fiercely. My criticism comes from an inability to see who the president truly is. He is intellectually stellar. There is no way anyone on the Republican side can approach the apex of the intellectual alacrity of Barack Obama.
I thank the president for doing something for which I waited 10 long years. If only his opposition would allow him to govern as he desires without putting obstacles in front of every single step he takes. He could bring us back to the country I have always known and loved.
Govern on, Mr. President. You have my undying loyal support.
I have sometimes criticized him for not standing up to his opponents more fiercely. My criticism comes from an inability to see who the president truly is. He is intellectually stellar. There is no way anyone on the Republican side can approach the apex of the intellectual alacrity of Barack Obama.
I thank the president for doing something for which I waited 10 long years. If only his opposition would allow him to govern as he desires without putting obstacles in front of every single step he takes. He could bring us back to the country I have always known and loved.
Govern on, Mr. President. You have my undying loyal support.
Friday, May 06, 2011
Leave it to the Beave?: "The Beaver," a new Mel Gibson, Jody Foster movie was reviewed by NYT. As is its custom a comment section is often made available for the reader or the viewer to write their thoughts. I have written on many of the issues of our time on many other NYT blogs. They most always, with great appreciation, are accepted and printed online.
In the movie review comment section, however, my view on the Gibson film "The Beaver," is not being printed. My opinion of Gibson's film (which I have not seen) is that I refuse to see it. I indict Gibson the man as a most malodorous anti-Semite which seals my decision not to view anything that is associated with him. I think my opinion is worthy of appearing on the NYT movie blog with other opinions that I believe, humbly, are not as thoughtfully composed. I offered it again for their consideration.
I will not view this film:
I DO make a value judgment about Mr. Gibson. Personally, even before his virulent anti-Semitic comments his type of film never really attracted me. However, I have always enjoyed most of Ms. Foster's (his female lead in "The Beaver") films. Still, there is no way, in view of Mr. Gibson's hostile and vituperative anti-Semitic rants often in an inebriated state, I would even consider seeing this film or any film connected to him. It is not his Catholicism to me which is at issue but his adherence to the most extreme branch of the faith long eschewed by more than one Pope. It is that sect of the faith which desires not only to return to the Latin Tridentine Mass but wants to emphasize the texts which significantly indict the Jew for the killing of Christ. As stated in The Sun by Gabriel Birkner on July 3, 2007 The Good Friday liturgy [to which Mr. Gibson would like to return] "contains a passage stating that Jews live in "blindness" and "darkness" and asks God to "remove the veil from their hearts."" I suppose, too, [that Gibson would like to reinstate] a reference to Jews as Ms. Birkner states "perfidious" which was excised from the liturgy in 1969." Those portions of the New Testament which have been treated as historical veracity are far from it as most academic scholars of religion know. This indictment of the Jew gave two thousand years of rationality to the most heinous accusation ultimately culminating in the Holocaust.
Mr. Gibson aside from being a consummate anti-Semite is also a Holocaust denier. Ms. Foster should consider well the type of people from whom she decides to earn a living. She can and should do better. It is not only his extremist faith that is at issue but all of the other scurrilous accusations to which he in Shylockian form subscribes and which his extremist father conveyed to his son. Mr. Gibson adheres to those most odious views which have plagued world Jewry since the earliest inception of Christianity. The fact that Rome had to be absolved for the New Testament execution of Jesus meant that Jews would carry that burden for a crime they did not commit if even one can believe the historicity of New Testament text. It would prove deadly to the Jewish people -- six million deadly.
Why would I, a Jewess, ever want to add to this deluded man's wealth? I do NOT and WILL not. So far, the film I have read is getting quite tepid reviews so I suspect I am not missing very much. If Ms. Foster decides to make another film that has no relationship to this fetid man, then maybe I will give it consideration.
I urge people in view of Mr. Gibson's heinous political, religious, personally tainted, psychologically incriminating and domestically violent character refrain from buying a ticket.
In the movie review comment section, however, my view on the Gibson film "The Beaver," is not being printed. My opinion of Gibson's film (which I have not seen) is that I refuse to see it. I indict Gibson the man as a most malodorous anti-Semite which seals my decision not to view anything that is associated with him. I think my opinion is worthy of appearing on the NYT movie blog with other opinions that I believe, humbly, are not as thoughtfully composed. I offered it again for their consideration.
I will not view this film:
I DO make a value judgment about Mr. Gibson. Personally, even before his virulent anti-Semitic comments his type of film never really attracted me. However, I have always enjoyed most of Ms. Foster's (his female lead in "The Beaver") films. Still, there is no way, in view of Mr. Gibson's hostile and vituperative anti-Semitic rants often in an inebriated state, I would even consider seeing this film or any film connected to him. It is not his Catholicism to me which is at issue but his adherence to the most extreme branch of the faith long eschewed by more than one Pope. It is that sect of the faith which desires not only to return to the Latin Tridentine Mass but wants to emphasize the texts which significantly indict the Jew for the killing of Christ. As stated in The Sun by Gabriel Birkner on July 3, 2007 The Good Friday liturgy [to which Mr. Gibson would like to return] "contains a passage stating that Jews live in "blindness" and "darkness" and asks God to "remove the veil from their hearts."" I suppose, too, [that Gibson would like to reinstate] a reference to Jews as Ms. Birkner states "perfidious" which was excised from the liturgy in 1969." Those portions of the New Testament which have been treated as historical veracity are far from it as most academic scholars of religion know. This indictment of the Jew gave two thousand years of rationality to the most heinous accusation ultimately culminating in the Holocaust.
Mr. Gibson aside from being a consummate anti-Semite is also a Holocaust denier. Ms. Foster should consider well the type of people from whom she decides to earn a living. She can and should do better. It is not only his extremist faith that is at issue but all of the other scurrilous accusations to which he in Shylockian form subscribes and which his extremist father conveyed to his son. Mr. Gibson adheres to those most odious views which have plagued world Jewry since the earliest inception of Christianity. The fact that Rome had to be absolved for the New Testament execution of Jesus meant that Jews would carry that burden for a crime they did not commit if even one can believe the historicity of New Testament text. It would prove deadly to the Jewish people -- six million deadly.
Why would I, a Jewess, ever want to add to this deluded man's wealth? I do NOT and WILL not. So far, the film I have read is getting quite tepid reviews so I suspect I am not missing very much. If Ms. Foster decides to make another film that has no relationship to this fetid man, then maybe I will give it consideration.
I urge people in view of Mr. Gibson's heinous political, religious, personally tainted, psychologically incriminating and domestically violent character refrain from buying a ticket.
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