In Memoriam

Early this morning I found out that a friend of about 45 years died on February 4.  We went to Rutgers together.  He was one year ahead of me, but we lived in the same dorm on the same floor two years in a row.  Many a night I would be in the room that Bob shared with another guy.  And many a night they had to kick me out at about 2am or 3am.  One time, I think it was winter break, I was invited to stay with him (he was still living with his parents) in the small town he grew up in, north of New York City.  He said to let him know when I got to the train station.  He had left ahead of me.  I asked for his home number, as there were no cell phones.  He replied with "4236" (I don't recall the actual numbers).  And I replied with something to this effect:  "Funny.  What's the rest of the number?"  That was it.  Everyone in town had the same prefix. 

While Bob and his roommate and I hung out a lot, I believe it was Thursday nights that he would go out to a local pub and drink beer with a different set of friends.  He would come back a little tipsy, but always with a smile on his face.  And that was his personality, happy and easy going. 

After Rutgers, we both attended law school, me on the west coast at UCLA, and he on the east coast at UConn.  After graduating, he went to work for the State of Connecticut, Judicial Branch.  He eventually rose to become the Director of Human Resources for the state's judicial system.  He married his longtime girlfriend, and they have 3 great kids.  One of our best trips back east was a winter trip, staying at their home in a small town in Connecticut.  Their backyard had a downhill slope, and our kids had a great time riding a sled down that hill in the snow.  

Two other things stand out from that trip.  His oldest child, 17 at the time, wanted to go skiing up in New Hampshire.  But his parents said no.  But he kept hocking them about it.  Finally, I took him aside and I said, "listen, they've told you no several times.  Let it go already."  To which he replied, "Mike, I got this.  They're going to cave in soon."  Yes, they caved in.  I suspect Bob was the easy mark.

The other thing I recall is ordering Chinese food one night.  After the order was placed, I went into the living room and sat down on the couch to wait for the dinner to be delivered.  Bob said:  "What are you doing?"  I replied:  "I'm waiting for the dinner."  He laughed and said, "you big city boys.  You think they're delivering food here in the boondocks?  Get up and let's go get it!"

With age, Bob appeared to become more liberal/left, as I became more conservative/right.  Nevertheless, he was a long time reader of the blog.  One time he called me up to tell me he had a beef with one of my posts.  When I said I could handle it, lay it on me, he told me the beef was that he agreed with all of it!  But things changed with Trump.  As time went on, he, like many others, could not understand why I voted for Trump.

It was just before Thanksgiving in 2020, when I called to wish him and his family a Happy Thanksgiving.  I received a text message back, explaining that he did not feel good about talking to me, given my support for Trump and the Republicans, and the effort to overturn the 2020 election.  It did not matter that I said that I accepted that Biden won on election night.  What I can only describe as a visceral hatred of Trump, which I've seen in many others, interfered with my longtime friend's willingness to talk it out.  To try to understand.

I was upset.  I was hurt.  How could a 4 decades long friendship end over politics.  Then my hurt turned to anger.  We never really communicated after that Thanksgiving.  As we got older, we both developed health issues.  Notwithstanding the end of our friendship, I continued every Shabbat to include him in the Mi Sheberach prayer, a prayer for those in need of healing.  Because Bob was a good man, and a dear friend.  He was a family man, and he and his wife raised 3 wonderful kids.  For some time, when his wife's parents were quite elderly, they moved into their house.  No problem for Bob, because that's the type of man he was.  

As I shed a few tears, I say may G-d bless Bob's soul.  And may his memory forever be a blessing to his family and all of his friends.

   

New Year Reflections, Part III - A Reply to Critical Comments About the Last Two Posts

I received two emails critical of my last two posts.  The first was a thoughtful critique; the second can only be described as a left-wing emotional rant.  I wish to address these reader's concerns.  I'll start with the first comment.

I was challenged on my saying that Clinton and Gore never accepted their defeats.  Gore, recall, did challenge his loss in the Supreme Court.  The Court did not find in Gore's favor, resulting in a victory by Bush.  After saying that he disagreed with the Court's ruling, Gore nonetheless went on to say "for the sake of our unity as a people and the strength of our democracy, I offer my concession."  So, I will accept this critique.  I do not accept the same as to Clinton.  In 2020, 4 years after her election loss in 2016 to Trump, she was still saying "there was a widespread understanding that this election was not on the level...we still don't know what really happened."

This writer also asserted that both parties supported dictators if they supported causes backed by the party.  He then referred to Hungary and Russia.  The US has, indeed, supported dictators when it has been in our interest to do so.  He also asserts that the amount of money in politics is a threat to our democracy.  This is a valid point that has been discussed by many for years.  I suspect many books have been written about it, so I'll leave it up to my readers to decide what they think.  

He made another frequently heard complaint about the electoral college, saying that the Founders did not have confidence that democracy could work.  Books have been written about the various compromises that went into making up the Constitution.  The electoral college was also a way to assure the smaller states that their interests would be considered when electing a president.  And, there was no popular vote for Senators until 1914, except for one Senator being elected by popular vote in 1913.  So, yes, that was a check on the popular will, which some of the Founders distrusted.  

Another complaint about our democracy was the two party system, claiming that the candidates are out of touch with most Americans.  Maybe.  But that system has also lent a tremendous amount of stability to our country and political system - although the rancor between the two parties over the last few decades may undermine that stability.  The writer did not agree that language was a true threat to our democracy.  It is the punishment/ostracism by those who speak certain (usually conservative) non-woke, non-politically correct language that is the concern.

The second writer made various personal attacks against me.  One is that I am "anti trans," and therefore not too confident in my own sexuality.  I have expressed in another post that I have complete empathy for anyone who feels they were born into the wrong body.  There is no way to conclude that I am "anti trans" from these posts.  Somehow, this writer also concluded that I am in the same group who claim that gay people "groom" young children to be gay.  I also don't know how he concluded that.  

He then said he does not give a damn about what happens in Norway, apparently missing my point that Leftism is the same everywhere, and is a threat everywhere it exists.  He also said that no one he knows is trying to punish anyone for their speech.  Completely meaningless.  Perhaps he does not know that, after the owner of Chick-fil-A expressed his personal opinion that marriage should be between a man and a woman, the Mayors of big cities all across the country said they did not want Chick-fil-A doing business in their cities, or trying to open new locations.  (See the 8/2/12 post.)  These Mayors were all DEMOCRATS.  And they seemed to believe that it was appropriate to have a political litmus test for the right to do business.  Just as I said in these posts, if you do not speak as the Left wants, and they will try to hurt you; because the totalitarian Left has the right to punish those who disagree - the law and the Constitution be damned.  

And this writer completely ignored the not so subtle threats made by DEMOCRATIC members of Congress to Meta, regarding what content they should allow on their sites, and who should be barred from those sites.  The writer said Biden ran as a moderate because he IS a moderate.  These two blog posts were about the Left in general, not specific to only Biden.  But to say that Biden is a moderate takes me to "1984," where "war is peace."  Biden may have run as a moderate, but he has governed as a Leftist.    

This writer accepts no misinformation from the Left/Democrats.  I suppose that means the border is closed if the Democrats and the W.H. say so.  I suppose that means that Adam Schiff (who claimed to have conclusive proof of Russian collusion in 2016), along with the rest of the Democrats and mainstream media, who were pushing the false Russian collusion story, were not giving out misinformation.  The same applies to the claim that the Hunter Biden laptop story was Russian misinformation - until it wasn't.    

He did not understand the point about the Thomas Jefferson High School.  Only Leftists would not celebrate their students' achievements, because of some false notion of "equity."  Conservatives always celebrate the hard work that goes into having achievement and success.  These students were punished for their success, because that success was not aligned with some woke, politically correct nonsense.  And the totalitarian Left always thinks they have the right to punish others based upon their left-wing agenda.    

To conclude, the first writer, while not addressing many of my points, did make reasoned arguments about our democracy, and about Al Gore.  The second writer, as I have come to expect from the Left, engaged in personal attacks, and made arguments that were, respectfully, rubbish. 

New Year Reflections, Part II - A Continuing Discussion of the True Threat to Our Freedoms and Democracy

United States Representatives Adam Schiff, Andre Carson and Kathy Castor, along with Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (all Democrats) sent a letter to the president of global affairs at Meta (the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp).  

Here is part of their letter:  "Following the 2022 midterm elections, we write to urge Meta to maintain its commitment to keeping dangerous and unfounded election denial content off its platform.  To that end, we also urge Meta and its leadership to continue the suspension of former president Donald Trump's Facebook account beyond January, and to carefully monitor the spread of harmful election misinformation, including the BIG LIE about the 2020 presidential election, on Facebook..."  

When they talk about "election denial," they are only speaking of Donald Trump and his supporters.  They do not mean Hillary Clinton, who has never accepted that she lost in 2016.  Nor do they mean Stacey Abrams, Al Gore, or the many others who never accepted defeat, or those who never accepted Donald Trump as a legitimate president.  This is how the Left, the Democratic Party (recall these letter writers are all Democrats who are prominent members of Congress) tries to shut down speech with which they disagree.

Here's more from these Democratic letter writers to Meta:  "Meta's policies do not prohibit posts that make unsubstantiated claims about voter fraud...this is highly troubling, and an area where Meta must improve its oversight and enforcement."  These Congress members are telling Meta what they MUST do.  Is that how a democracy works?  Democrats using the power of the federal government to tell private business what speech is acceptable.  Is no one allowed to ever suggest there might be any voter fraud?

One of the totalitarian Left's tactics is to call opposing speech "misinformation."  Here is WH Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre:  "I want to be very clear here.  The fact is that the removal of Title 42 does not mean the border is open.  Anyone who suggests otherwise is simply doing the work of these smugglers who, again, are spreading misinformation which is very dangerous."  How to shut down conservative speech?  Call it misinformation.  Call it hate speech.  Attempt to criminalize it.  

Anyone who watches Fox News can see for themselves that the border is wide open.  Anyone who does a little reading or research knows that in the two years that Biden had been in office, nearly 5 million people have entered our country illegally.  Five million people, if placed in one location, would be the second largest city in the US, surpassed only by New York City.  And that's misinformation?  "Misinformation" is anything that disagrees with the totalitarian Left's talking points.  

This is almost unbelievable.  But it's not if you understand the influence of the Left.  Police in the UK interrogated, and then arrested, a woman standing outside an abortion clinic.  Her offense?  Standing across the street from an abortion clinic and silently praying.  Apparently, the City of Birmingham in the UK has a "Public Spaces Protection Order" in place.  That order prohibits any either pro or anti abortion protesting near any abortion clinic, by "graphic, verbal or written means, prayer or counseling."  I get it.  Abortion is legal, so the City does not want people entering an establishment that provides a legal service to be harassed or intimidated.  But silent prayer across the street?  Really?  

The totalitarian Left will not only try to change your words and thoughts, they will act against you when possible.  The paragraph above was about the UK.  But here is a story about the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia.  Two of the schools administrators thought it was a good idea to withhold notification from students, mostly Asian, that they were deemed to be National Merit Scholars.  National Merit sends the list of students to school administrators, and allows them to notify the students.

Without that information, the students could not put on their college applications that they were National Merit Scholars.  The result is that they may have lost out on scholarships.  Said the Director of Student Services:  "We want to recognize students for who they are as individuals, not focus on their achievements."  And, apparently, these administrators did not want to hurt the feelings of those students who were not recognized as National Merit Scholars.  

We know that the Left thinks that capitalism is bad.  Consistent with that, merit is also bad.  As is the hard work it took those students to achieve such recognition.  The Director said she wanted to "recognize students for who they are as individuals..."  But part of who they are is their dedication to hard work and achievement.  But if the totalitarian Left opposes that agenda, they will deal with it accordingly.  Any harm caused to individuals is of no consequence.  

New Year Reflections, Part I - Here is the True Threat to Our Freedoms and Democracy

It's been two years since January 6, 2021.  Time to stop thinking about that as the true threat to our democracy.  The true threat is more subtle than people climbing into the Capitol.  And that threat is embedded within the Democratic Party.  It is reflected in their efforts to harm us, to make us talk a certain way, and to even make us think a certain way.

The Cambridge Dictionary, like many institutions within the Western world, has been infected with Leftism.  They now define a woman as "an adult who lives and identifies as female though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth."  Similarly, a man is defined as "an adult who lives and identifies as male though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth."  What utter non-scientific nonsense.  Then what is "female?"  What is "male?"  What is "sex at birth?"

Another eminent institution infected by left-wing nonsense is Stanford University.  They put out a list of what they refer to as "harmful language."  Why?  Because as with ALL left-wing institutions, they want you to think and talk a certain way.  A left-wing woke, politically correct way.  What's on Stanford's list?  "American."  They prefer US citizen, because there are other countries in the Americas (in North America, Central America and South America).  So what?  Who gives a damn!  We are the United States Of America.  So I'm proud to be an American.  

Stanford says don't say handicap parking, say accessible parking.  The State of California has given me a handicap placard.  I park in handicap spaces when I can.  Nothing about that hurts my feelings.  Of course, don't say "black hat," "black mark," or "black sheep."  Although, as a white person who is a conservative, I am clearly the black sheep in my left-wing family.  And, no "beating a dead horse," or "killing two birds with one stone."  The imagery is too violent.  I love horses.  I think they are the most majestic of all the animals.  But the expression "beating a dead horse," would never cause me to beat any horse - alive or dead.  

And, don't say "homeless person."  Rather, say a "person without housing."  Allow me to explain the difference, which is not obvious.  "Homeless person" is a descriptive adjective of a person.  Bad.  A "person without housing" is not descriptive of the person, but rather of their circumstance.  

In Norway, a transgender individual described herself as a "lesbian mother."  A Norwegian filmmaker and actress took issue with that.  She posted on Facebook:  "it's just as impossible for men to become a lesbian as it is for men to become pregnant.  Men are men regardless of their sexual fetishes."  In the US, we are blessed to have the First Amendment, although many on the Left would like to see that Amendment changed to not protect this type of speech.  However, Norway does not have the same constitutional protections of speech.  So, that filmmaker is now now facing criminal hate speech charges, which carries a possible sentence of up to 3 years in prison.  Up to 3 years in prison for speech that is not woke and politically correct.  This is the totalitarian Left.

The Left is sick.  They will try to punish you for saying that men cannot get pregnant.  I thought that was a scientific fact.  Everyone needs to understand the totalitarian nature of the Left.  They are perfectly willing to threaten your "life, liberty and pursuit of happiness."  The Left is a danger to freedom and liberty everywhere.  January 6 is not.  

A transgender rights activist testified before the House Oversight and Reform Committee.  Here is part of her testimony.  "The 6 justices who overturned Roe should never know peace again.  It is our civic duty to accost them every time they are in public.  They are pariahs.  Since women don't have their rights, these justices should never have a peaceful moment in public again."  I would ask those on the Left, is that your idea of democracy?  Pay no attention to the legal issues in Roe and Dobbs.  Simply harass, maybe even get violent, towards those with whom you disagree? 

But this transgender woman is not alone.  Recall that Chuck Schumer, as then Minority Leader in the US Senate, told a cheering crowd in front of the Supreme Court, before the final decision in Dobbs issued:  "I want to tell you Gorsuch.  I want to tell you Kavanaugh.  You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price.  You won't know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions."  But they did go forward with the decision.  Overturning Roe did not take away the right to abortion.  It left it up to the states.  Because we are a Republic of 50 states, with those states having the general police power.

But the Left doesn't give a damn about the "republic," or about the Constitution.  They just care about their causes.  Their issues.  They have no regard for how our democracy works.  Or that we have 3 branches of government.  Or that we have 50 state governments, not only a federal government.  One way or another, the totalitarian Left is determined to get what they want.  By controlling your thinking, your speech and your actions.  If you do not conform, you will face their wrath.  As the Left has taken over the Democratic Party, that Party has become the true threat to our democracy. 

Year End Reflections - Part III, The Continued Failure of the UN

It probably will not come as much of a surprise to anyone, but the Times of Israel reports that in 2022, Israel was condemned, in various UN resolutions, 15 times.  The rest of the world?  13 times all combined.  Is there a point to the UN?  Unless you believe that all the human rights abuses perpetrated by Russia, China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, North Korea and other places, are insignificant compared to whatever is happening in Israel, then the only possible explanation is antisemitism.  Which means antisemitism is a worldwide problem.  This should be frightening to American Jewry.  Unfortunately, their main complaints are with Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump - two men who arguably have done more for Israel than any others.  

The latest antisemitic resolution to pass the UN General Assembly was sponsored by the Palestinians, Egypt and Jordan (two countries with whom Israel has had decades old peace agreements), as well as Yemen, Tunisia and Senegal.  The resolution commemorates the Nakba (catastrophe in Arabic), by which they mean the founding of the State of Israel.  The resolution passed 90 in favor, 30 opposed with 47 abstentions.  

Voting in favor were, among others, Bahrain and the UAE.  Those two countries were part of the Abraham Accords, establishing relations with Israel.  Voting against the resolution were, among others, the US, the UK, Israel, Canada, Australia, Austria, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy and The Netherlands.  Notwithstanding the different ways I searched on Google, I was unable to get a country by country vote.  It would appear, however, that at least some of the European countries voted in favor.

Here is what Israel's Ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, said.  "This General Assembly, this body, voted to adopt Resolution 181 - the Partition Plan (partitioning the British Mandate into a Jewish state and an Arab state).  My people, the Jewish people, accepted this resolution without hesitation.  But the Arabs and Palestinians did not.  Five Arab armies, together with the Arabs living in Israel, tried to destroy and annihilate us."  

Ambassador Erdan went on to discuss the hundreds of thousand of Jews displaced from Iran and the Arab world in the 1940's and 1050's.  Of course, the UN does not care about that.  Ambassador Erdan:  "Their only crime was being Jewish.  This is the true Nakba."  But how often throughout history has the only crime of my people been "being Jewish."  

On November 29, the UN celebrated the "International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People."  I honestly do not know if all these countries think they are helping the cause of the peace, or just don't give a damn as long as they can appease the Palestinians.  Because, like it or not, only Donald Trump seemed to understand that the way forward was to make Israel welcomed within the Greater Middle East, and to ignore the Palestinians until they agreed to stop killing Jews.  

Year End Reflections - Part II, More on the Pernicious Effects of Left-Wing "Culture"

As I understand it, the American Girl Dolls have been very popular.  But now, the company put out a book titled "Smart Girl's Guide:  Body Image Book."  Here is some nonsense from the book, as reported by Fox.  "If you haven't gone through puberty yet, the doctor might offer medicine to delay your body's changes, giving you more time to think about your gender identity...If you don't have an adult you trust, there are organizations across the country that can help." 

Here is part of a preferred paragraph, as discussed by Jill Simonian, in a Fox Op-Ed.  "If you haven't gone through puberty yet, understand that it can be a confusing experience...but most everything you will feel is likely normal for this time in your life.  Always turn to an adult in your life who you feel comfortable with, for any questions you have...Being a girl can sometimes be complicated and confusing, but it's awesome." 

Let me be clear here.  Most boys feel like boys.  Most girls feel like girls.  And I have complete sympathy for those who feel otherwise.  But what is the message from American Girl?  That it's not okay to be a girl?  That it's not okay to become a woman?

Here is a stunning paragraph.  "Parts of your body may make you feel uncomfortable and you may want to change the way you look...that's totally okay."  Given our society's focus on looks, given the way female models and female entertainers look, and given all the magazine covers, it is hard enough for young girls to develop a positive body image.  It is hard for many women.  That does not mean they need to change their "gender."  I'm sure I will get some flack on this, but this is just sick. 

Actor and producer Kirk Cameron wanted to have a children's hour at various libraries in order to discuss/read his new book, "As You Grow."  (Let me admit here that I have not yet read this book.  But, Cameron says it is about things like faith, family and America.)  Over 50 public libraries have rejected his request to have an hour with their students.  Here is a typical reply, this one from a school district in Providence, Rhode Island.  "...we will pass on having you run a program in our space.  We are a very queer-friendly library.  Our messaging does not align."

What if his messaging does align with 90% of the students and their parents?  That's just too bad.  The Left will make sure your kids get "Drag Queen Story Hour," "The 1619 Project," and other woke, unwholesome and anti-American "lessons."  Traditional American ideas?  Not in public schools. 

The destructive influence of the Left is not confined to the US,  In what is described as an elite French University, Sciences Po, a dance instructor there was reprimanded.  She had the audacity to refer to her students as men and women.  She was told she must refer to her students as "leader" and "follower."  She refused.  So she quit.  Good for her!  It was back on July 20, 2014, that I wrote the post "My Ex-Wife."  On October 19, 2014, I wrote "My Ex-Son and Ex-Daughters."  I wrote those posts because the terms "husband," "wife," "son" and "daughter" were to be banned from our language.  Maybe some readers thought that would never happen.  Anyone still think that?

Allow me to reiterate.  I have complete sympathy for anyone who feels those descriptive terms do not apply to them.  But the Left has no sympathy for the overwhelmingly majority of people who do fit into those categories.  And, as the Left controls our schools, colleges, universities, mainstream media and the White House, it is just too bad for the vast majority of students.

And, permit me to reiterate a point made at the end of Part I: for those unclear as to the source of this sick, anti-boy, anti-girl, anti-men, and anti-women outlook on the world, that would be the Democrats.  Because the Left not only inhabits the Democratic Party - they now control it.

Year End Reflections - Part I, The Pernicious Effects of Gender and Race on America

I have never been a fan of "identity politics."  No one should be.  Identity politics prevents many from assessing what is truly important - character.  And the result of this misplaced emphasis results in a serious lack of common sense and moral clarity.

Example number one.  In a story out of the Randolph Union High School in Vermont, a 14 year old girl complained to some friends that she felt uncomfortable having to change clothes in the girls locker room, with a male student present.  Presumably, the biologically male student identified as a female. Someone ended up reporting this girl's discomfort to the school principal.  Incredibly, she was then disciplined for harassment and bullying.  

Her punishment included suspension, writing a "reflective essay," and participating in a "restorative justice circle."  Thankfully, she was able to get representation from the Alliance Defending Freedom, which sued the principal and the Orange Southwest School District.  After the filing of the lawsuit, the superintendent decided to rescind the punishments.  But just how sick has society become, when a young girl is not even permitted to say that she feels uncomfortable having a male in the locker room where has has to undress and change clothes.  

Example number two.  The "Lion King" is playing on Broadway in New York.  The cast is mostly black.  An American Sign Language interpreter, who is white, claims that he was fired based on his race.  He asserts that he received an email telling him that (as told on Fox) although "he was an amazing ASL performer, he is not a black person and therefore should not be representing the Lion King as the majority of characters are black actors and the content takes place in Africa."

I see.  Just as I am no fan of "identity politics," I am also no fan of the idea of "cultural appropriation," although I am not sure if that was at play here.  But I am curious.  If a white ASL interpreter is inappropriate in a play with mostly black characters, how was it permissible for a black actor to portray George Washington in the play "Hamilton," which I saw in Los Angeles?  How dare they!  By all historical accounts, Washington was white.  Having a black actor portray Washington is a historical inaccuracy.  Having a talented, and white, ASL interpreter, regardless of the race of the cast, should just be common sense.  

Example number 3.  After the LA Mayoral race final results were announced, my wife and I were watching the local 11pm news on NBC.  The anchors were celebrating the victory of Democrat Karen Bass, a black woman.  They cheerfully told us that, once Bass is sworn in, the mayors of America's three largest cities (New York, Los Angeles and Chicago) would all be black.  Because, after all, what else matters?  Not competency.  Not the fact that all three cities are suffering from excessive rates of violent crime and property crimes and homelessness.  

I would like to see one of the local NBC reporters speak to a black family member whose black loved one had just been murdered.  After asking how they are coping, the reporter should ask this:  "But doesn't it make you feel better now that LA has a black mayor?"  Ridiculous?  Of course.  Inappropriate?  You bet.  And that should be a clue as to the nonsense regarding race.  

A final point, for those unclear as to the source of this dangerous focus on race and gender above all else.  That would be the Democrats.