Rabbi Abram Goodstein, at his installation last night told this story. (Loosely paraphrased.)
My bar mitzvah was right here at this bimah. Afterward, we went into Rabbi Rosenfeld's office and I said, " It's over!!" And the rabbi said to me, "No, this is just the beginning." And here I am now at the same bimah, and that office is now my office.
The synagogue was packed with members of the congregation and many community fans.
If you look closely, you can see the children's klezmer band playing "mazol tov".
This was a joyous occasion and bodes well for Anchorage. And, of course, there was a lot of food. This is the dessert table.
I'd never been to the mosque before - it's only been completed in the last couple of years and it's hidden on a side street in a neighborhood I don't normally go.
The Interfaith Council probably wasn't expecting so many people - the room was pretty full when we got there and people just kept coming in. I only knew about this because I'd sent an email to the Center after I heard about New Zealand, and I got one back telling me about the vigil. Watching the doorway - we were seated near it - I suddenly looked for other ways out because the door wasn't that big. And there were two more exits directly outside. They kept bringing more chairs. Then little kid chairs. I don't even want to guess at a number because it was, I'm sure, way beyond what the Fire Department would allow. And I have to admit that I thought about the exits because my mind imagined what it would be like if someone started shooting in there.
Here's a mashup of three pictures to give a sense of the crowd, even if the perspective is all messed up. (The left side is actually mostly the back of the room. Maybe I should learn to use the panorama feature on my phone camera.) The middle picture was when we got there when there was still some room.
Although there were speakers, it was pretty low key. There were people from different religious groups - Buddhists, Christians, Jews, and of course Muslims. Mara Kimmel, the mayor's wife said a few words too. I noticed three other returned Peace Corps volunteers. More important were all these people most of whom were strangers talking to each other with respect and love. The people from the mosque were so incredibly nice. As we came in we started to take our shoes off, as Muslims coming in were doing, and they insisted that we keep them on, in the nicest possible way.
We do have to keep in mind that most people are good and decent when they aren't afraid and stirred up by bigots. Let's keep tapping in to that basic goodness. Let's get more people talking to each other in safe spaces on safe topics, people who are now mostly living in bubbles with people who reinforce what they believe.
"In light of the tragedy in Christchurch, New Zealand there will be a vigil tomorrow at 7pm, at the Islamic Community Center of Anchorage. All are welcome to attend, and stand with our Muslim neighbors at this time of loss."
The Islamic Community Center of Anchorage is at 8005 Spring Street.
This is a good time to support one of our many communities that is particularly under attack in the US and around the world. To show them we care and support them.
I've been derelict here. We've been spending a lot of time away from the computer - either transporting the grandkids to pre-school and elsewhere, or playing with them. Or helping with food and pajamas and story times. Also we had lunch yesterday with a former student from Beijing who is visiting the US. It's been nearly 15 years since we've seen each other, though we've kept online contact. But there were lots of questions we had for each other.
So here are a few pictures of the last few days until I have more time to think more clearly. Some of these building pictures lead to architectural and technology issues I wasn't expecting. And Lincoln's birthday tempted me into the question of whether the civil war was necessary and had it been avoided would we be more united today. I'm still working on exit row issues including a promising incident on our flight to San Francisco. Stay tuned for that.
The building with the turrets on top is an Episcopal Church whose red doors are usually closed.
But Sunday I was strollering by with my nieta (the Spanish word for granddaughter sounds so much nicer and is much shorter to write) and the doors were open. We got invited in to listen to the organ.
We looked at our shadows at the playground and while we were walking.
We also experimented with foot prints since the grass was wet.
My nieto (o makes it grandson) and I spent about 90 minutes at the Japanese Garden. He was interested in all the bridges and shrines and paths and, of course, the dragon made of a winding hedge and a rock head and rock tail.
"Pylons support the 19-story cupola at each corner of the floor plan, each constructed to withstand ten million pounds of pressure. With a circumference of 24 feet at their narrowest points, the pylons are embedded 90 feet down into the bedrock. A surprising 1680 pre-cast triangular coffers comprose the inner area of the cupola, featuring 128 different triangular sizes. These transfer all the weight of the structure down to the ground, while allowing large windows to frame views of the city of Saint Francis of Assisi. To call on memories of historic mission architecture, red brick is used on the floor in sweeping patterns."
And San Francisco is not without broken glass. Here's part of the bus stop on the way to pre-school yesterday. I've seen a couple of vehicles with broken windows and the shattered pieces lying on ground below. like in this picture.
By the afternoon, most of the glass was swept up and there was tape across the ad.
And this car was making its point pretty loudly.
We ate at a Ramen place in Japantown with my Chinese friend.
And finally, here's the tallest building in San Francisco with its top in the clouds. It's called the Salesforce Tower, though it used to be called the Transbay Tower. And since I dislike branding everything so that people are forced to say some corporation's name when they mention it (it's much worse for public or semi-public places like stadiums), I'll stick with Transbay. From Wikipedia:
The site of the tower was in a dilapidated area, formerly used as a ground-level entrance to the San Francisco Transbay Terminal, which was demolished in 2011. The TJPA sold the parcel to Boston Properties and Hines for US$192 million,[14] and ceremonial groundbreaking for the new tower occurred on March 27, 2013, with below-grade construction work starting in late 2013.[15][16] The project is a joint venture between general contractors Clark Construction and Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction.[16][17] The footprint of Salesforce Tower rests on land fill near San Francisco's original waterfront, an area prone to soil liquefaction during earthquakes. To account for this seismic risk, the tower uses a design that is modeled to withstand the strongest earthquakes expected in the region.[18] Its foundation includes 42 piles driven down nearly 300 feet (91 m) to bedrock and a 14-foot (4.3 m) thick foundation mat.[19]
My son explained to me exactly what Salesforce (the company) does. They make and run the software for tracking communications between companies and customers. So when you call up a company and they can look to see all the times you've called and what you said and what they said, they could be using Salesforce technology. Here's how their website describes it:
Customer relationship management (CRM) is a technology for managing all your company’s relationships and interactions with customers and potential customers. The goal is simple: Improve business relationships. A CRM system helps companies stay connected to customers, streamline processes, and improve profitability.
"Saying Salesforce is a big name in the CRM software space is like saying Christianity is a popular religion — it’s pretty obvious to most people who know anything about CRM. But it doesn’t have to be the only option. For those who may be looking for something else, we gathered data on the best Salesforce alternatives to help you find the right match for your organization."
So, I bet you weren't expecting some of this. Neither was I. Happy Birthday Abraham Lincoln. What would the US be like today if didn't have the Civil War? Would slavery have died out naturally because it became economically unsound? Would African-Americans gained legal status without creating the race divisions that our president has reignited today?
"My argument here is two-fold: (1) slavery, though generally profitable, had a harmful, long-term developmental impact on the southern economy; and (2) that the institution would gradually have evolved into something else in the late nineteenth century even without the Civil War. Before moving on, however, a necessary disclaimer: I well recognize the moral enormity that was slavery, and my comments here pertain only to the economic aspects of the peculiar institution, and, even delimited to the economic realm, should be seen as an attempt to analyze “what was” rather than “what ought to have been.”1"
Here are some interesting, related articles that don't address the question head on:
Would there be less animosity between Americans today had we not fought the civil war? I'm guessing not. Scapegoating the other is practiced by the power hungry throughout time and in all parts of the world. The legacy of slavery would still have left the US divided, in my humble and unsupported opinion here. Perhaps the support is for another post.
Let's start with what he says here at this morning's Prayer Breakfast speech:
"Since the founding of our nation, many of our greatest strides, from gaining our independence. to abolition of civil rights, to extending the vote for women, have been done by people of faith and started in prayer. When we open our hearts to faith, we fill our hearts with love."
Clearly, he misspoke. (Some may argue, with some merit, it was a Freudian Slip.) I understand how that can happen. My eyes sometimes play games with me when I'm trying to read something on a page. But he is so disengaged from what he's saying that he doesn't even catch his error. He's just reading words. Flatly. This is probably the president least likely to actually believe the last line about hearts open to faith filling with love.
What's he thinking about while he's robotically reading the teleprompter? That he hates being there? The places he'd rather be? Golfing? Watching Fox News? Is he thinking about how his world is starting to crumble around him and what options he has?
I've started a much more significant post than this that looks at one of the documents on the Buzzfeed document dump the other day. But you have to think a bit to grasp the depth and breadth of the Russian collusion charges and this is so much easier to see. But his wheeling and dealing for the Trump Tower Moscow and signing the Letter of Intent in October 2015 is far more significant. I'll do that post later today or tomorrow.
For now watch a president whose mind is disconnected from his mouth. (And other places in this speech, where he strays off script, are bizarre in a different way. He seems to just have a collection of phrases that he randomly puts together without worrying about how much sense they make.)
I took me a while to figure out again how to get a youtube to start and end at particular points. Unfortunately if you try to replay this it seems to start at the beginning. You can refresh the page, or go to 2:23:36 - 2:24:06. Or you could listen to more of this prayer breakfast.
The White House has announced 13 guests of the President and First Lady will attend the State of the Union. It's a great way to have viewers connect to the speech, but is there any real substance to it? This post is mostly based on the optics and descriptions the White House is presenting us, though I've done a little bit of further research. The descriptions are taken from the White House announcement though a couple are abbreviated,)
From the pictures and names in the WH release there are:
9 whites
1 hispanic
3 blacks (two of whom are former criminals saved from prison by God &Trump)
6 women (all of whom are there because they are victims of crime, drugs, or illness)
7 men (Four are police or military related, one an ex-con saved by God, one business man, one bully victim kid named Trump)
Let's look at the messages Trump is sending out:
Three generations of women relatives of Gerald and Sharon David of Reno, Nevada, who were tragically murdered in their home in Nevada by an illegal immigrant in January 2019. [MESSAGE: Illegal Immigrant Menace - We need a wall. But his crime only happened in January 2019, The suspect has not yet been charged with murder according to Snopes which calls this claim "unproven." Alternate message; Guilty without a trial.]
In 1996, he was sentenced to 35 years in prison for selling crack cocaine and other related offenses. While in prison, Matthew found God, completed more than 30 bible studies, became a law clerk, taught GED classes, and mentored fellow inmates. On January 3, 2019, Matthew was the first prisoner released as a result of the First Step Act. [MESSAGE: I guess this is to the religious right and perhaps African-Americans. See more about the First Step Act below.*]
At 9 years old, Grace was diagnosed with Germinoma, a germ-cell brain tumor, and in May 2018, Grace started cancer treatment. Throughout the rest of the year, Grace stayed positive and strong, making the rounds in the hospital, cheering up other patients, and always having a smile for the many caring medical professionals who treated her. [MESSAGE: A feel good "child beats cancer with a smile" story. She was a NY Jets honorary captain in August 2019]
Ashley Evans has struggled with opioid and substance abuse for much of her life. In 2017, she was pregnant and suffered a relapse. Her recovery began with the birth of her daughter along with the help of Brigid’s Path, a medical care facility in Kettering, Ohio. Ashley has persevered and overcome many obstacles to maintain her sobriety. [MESSAGE: Not sure. A recognition of the opioid crisis? A nod to Ohio, a swing state? BTW, Brigid's Path has not been rated by Charity Navigator, because, "7 years of full IRS Forms 990 are needed to complete a rating"
Elvin Hernandez is a Special Agent with the Trafficking in Persons Unit of the Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations division. He has more than 18 years of Federal law enforcement experience investigating narcotics, gangs, and human trafficking. During his current 7-year assignment, Elvin has conducted numerous successful international human trafficking investigations involving transnational organized crime groups. [MESSAGE: Homeland Security is vital to your safety and we can check off Hispanic on the list.]
Roy James is the Plant Manager of the Vicksburg Forest Products lumber facility. He had worked at the sawmill for 26 years and become Vice President of Operations when he was told that the facility would close its doors. Thankfully, last year, Vicksburg was designated an Opportunity Zone through provisions in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The plant soon reopened and Roy was hired to oversee the entire facility. [MESSAGE: Trump is creating jobs, putting people back to work. Another nod to African-Americans. See more below**]
Timothy Matson joined the Pittsburgh Police Department in 2005 and made the SWAT team in 2016. As a key member of the SWAT team, he would breach the entrance during raids, a very dangerous task. In October 2018, Tim responded to the mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue. He suffered multiple gunshot wounds and saved countless lives in that heinous, anti-Semitic attack. [MESSAGE: Police are our heroes. And an indicator that Trump is against hate?]
Judah Samet is a member of the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. In October 2018, he survived the horrific shooting that killed 11 members of his community. Judah is also a survivor of the Holocaust. Judah immigrated to Israel after the war and was present for the declaration of the Israeli State in 1948. He served as a paratrooper and radio man in the Israeli Defense Forces and moved to the United States in the 1960s. [MESSAGE: There's nothing here to suggest this is an anti-gun thing. Probably, I like Israel.]
Joshua Trump is a 6th grade student in Wilmington, Delaware. He appreciates science, art, and history. He also loves animals and hopes to pursue a related career in the future. His hero and best friend is his Uncle Cody, who serves in the United States Air Force. Unfortunately, Joshua has been bullied in school due to his last name. He is thankful to the First Lady and the Trump family for their support. [MESSAGE: The left is a bunch of bullies.]
Tom Wibberley is the father of Navy Seaman Craig Wibberley, a Seaman killed on the U.S.S. Cole. Craig grew up in Williamsport, Maryland, and enjoyed fly fishing, snow skiing, and working with his father on old Corvettes. He had a passion for computer science and decided to join the Navy to serve his country and pursue an opportunity to further his training in computers. Craig served aboard the U.S.S. Cole with distinction and was accepted to the Navy Information Technician School. His commander planned to recommend him for Officer Candidate School. However, on October 12, 2000, Craig and 16 fellow members of the crew were killed in a terrorist attack. [MESSAGE: Thank you for your service.]
President Trump granted Alice Johnson clemency on June 6, 2018. Alice had been serving a mandatory life sentence without parole for charges associated with a nonviolent drug case. During her nearly 22 years of incarceration, Alice accomplished what has been called an “extraordinary rehabilitation.” [MESSAGE: I listen to my friend Kim Kardashian who said I should do this one.]
So, the men are mostly John Wayne hero types, except for a Black con who was released by Trump and a young kid bullied because his name is Trump. The women are highlighted for their victimhood. Not their achievements. There's a Hispanic hero, but there are three women victims of illegal immigrant crime to balance that off.
Just introducing this group will take up probably 20 minutes alone. It's going to be a long night.
While still President-Elect, Trump nominated Jeff Sessions, a vocal critic of any reduction to the U.S. prison population, to be the nation’s chief law enforcement officer. Nonetheless, Grassley and Durbin reintroduced the SRCA again in October 2017 and navigated it through committee in early 2018. The bill looked poised to stall once again due to vocal opposition from Sessions.
But the momentum started to pick up in early 2018, when the White House brokered the Prison Reform and Redemption Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at improving conditions in federal prisons. This bill, which was renamed the FIRST STEP Act after some modest improvements were added, still lacked any meaningful sentencing reform component, meaning it would have done little to reduce the prison population. For the White House, that was part of the appeal: Republican leaders believed that SRCA’s sentencing reform provisions made it a nonstarter among conservatives. But because of that, the Brennan Center and a coalition of more than 100 civil rights groups opposed the bill, arguing that the votes were there for sentencing reform — if only Republican leaders would put a bill on the floor. Nonetheless, the FIRST STEP Act passed the House of Representatives by a wide margin of 360 to 59. [You can read more at the link, how some Republicans worked hard to block this law.]
**Vicksburg, Mississippi Industrial Wood Products plant. A timber industry journal, Timber Processing, notes that this North Carolina company is taking over an existing facility in Vicksburg and credits $220,000 in assistance from Mississippi. It doesn't mention any federal help, though Vicksburg did qualify for opportunity zones.
There seem to be fewer notable people born in 1919. World War I had ended in November1918. There had been a big influenza epidemic in 1918 as well. Births dropped significantly in 1919.
Someone born in 1919 would be ten when the stock market crashed, spend their adolescence during the depression, and start their twenties as WW II broke out. Maybe that explains why there are fewer notables compared to other years.
I've only picked out a few folks born in 1919. What has struck me since I first started doing "famous people born" posts, is thinking about a group of people who would have been in the same school year had they all lived in the same neighborhood. So try to imagine these people being classmates together at some school. Did any of these people know each other? Ever meet?
I've put them in order of when they were born in 1919 from the oldest (at least at birth) to the youngest. It's also sobering to see how some lived much shorter lives than others.
"American writer known for his widely read novel, The Catcher in the Rye. Following his early success publishing short stories and The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger led a very private life for more than a half-century. He published his final original work in 1965 and gave his last interview in 1980."
"If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don’t feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth. In the first place, that stuff bores me, and in the second place, my parents would have two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them. They’re quitee touchy about anything like that, especially my father. They’re nice and all - I’m not saying that - but they’re also touchy as hell. Besides, I’m not going to tell you my whole goodam autobiography or anything. I’ll just tell you about this madman stuff that happened to me last Christmas just before I got pretty run-down and had to come out and take it easy. I mean that’s all I told D.B. about, and he’s my brother and all. He’s in Hollywood. That isn’t too far from this crumby place, and he comes over and visits me practically every week end. He’s going to drive me home when I go home next month maybe. He just got a Jaguar. One of those little English jobs that can do around two hundred miles an hour. It cost him damn near four thousand bucks. He’s got a lot of dough, now. He didn’t use to. He used to be just a regular writer, when he was home. He wrote this terrific book of short stories, The Secret Goldfish, in case you never heard of him. The best one in it was «‘The Secret Goldfish.’ It was about this little kid that wouldn’t let anybody look at his goldfish because he’d bought it with his own money. It killed me. Now he’s out in Hollywood, D.B., being a prostitute. If there’s one thing I hate, it’s the movies. Don’t even mention them to me."
"The first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era.[2] Robinson broke the baseball color line when the Brooklyn Dodgers started him at first base on April 15, 1947. When the Dodgers signed Robinson, they heralded the end of racial segregation in professional baseball that had relegated black players to the Negro leagues since the 1880s.[3] Robinson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.[4]"
"Born in Budapest, Eva aspired to acting from the age of 4. She began studying at 15, but her parents thought acting was too vulgar a profession and forced her to withdraw. Two years later, the 5-foot-2-inch beauty met a Swedish-born Hollywood physician at a party. They married in 1939 and moved to California. , ,
Described as the most down-to-earth of the Gabor sisters, Eva nevertheless had a lot in common with her many-times-married siblings, Zsa Zsa and Magda. Eva, who married and divorced at least four times, was said to have coined the phrase, "Marriage is too interesting an experiment to be tried only once or twice."
They were all entertainers. And they all possessed the unmistakably breezy Gabor style. When introduced to President Lyndon B. Johnson, Eva Gabor greeted him in her trademark Hungarian accent: 'Hello, Mr. President, darling.'"
" For a mild-mannered man whose music was always easy on the ear, Nat King Cole managed to be a figure of considerable controversy during his 30 years as a professional musician. From the late '40s to the mid-'60s, he was a massively successful pop singer who ranked with such contemporaries as Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and Dean Martin. He shared with those peers a career that encompassed hit records, international touring, radio and television shows, and appearances in films. But unlike them, he had not emerged from a background as a band singer in the swing era. Instead, he had spent a decade as a celebrated jazz pianist, leading his own small group."
"Madalyn Murray O'Hair (née Mays; )[1] was an American activist supporting atheism and separation of church and state. In 1963 she founded American Atheists and served as its president to 1986, after which her son Jon Garth Murray succeeded her. She created the first issues of American Atheist Magazine.
O'Hair is best known for the Murray v. Curlett lawsuit, which challenged the policy of mandatory prayers and Bible reading in Baltimore public schools, in which she named her first son William J. Murray as plaintiff. Consolidated with Abington School District v. Schempp (1963), it was heard by the United States Supreme Court, which ruled that official Bible-reading in American public schools was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court had prohibited officially sponsored prayer in schools in Engel v. Vitale (1962) on similar grounds. Through American Atheists, O'Hair filed numerous other suits on issues of separation of church and state."
Pete Seeger May 3, 1919 - January 27, 2014 (94)
In 1938, he settled in New York City and eventually met Alan Lomax, Woody Guthrie, Aunt Molly Jackson, Lead Belly, and others. The quality of music coming from this group immediately captured his attention. He assisted Alan Lomax at the Library of Congress’ Archive of Folk Song and was exposed to a wonderful array of traditional American music. Many in this group of musicians eventually formed the Almanac Singers in 1940. In addition to Pete, the group included Lee Hays, Woody Guthrie, Bess Lomax, Sis Cunningham, Mill Lampell, Arthur Stern, and others. They lived in a communal home, “The Almanac House,” in New York. The group performed for gatherings, picket lines, and any place where they could lend their voices in support of the social causes they believed in. Later, after World War II, many of the same people became involved in the musical organizations People’s Songs and People’s Artists.
His best-known songs include "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" (with Joe Hickerson), "If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)" (with Lee Hays of the Weavers), and "Turn! Turn! Turn!"
Liberace May 16, 1919 - February 4, 1987 ( 67)
American pianist, singer and actor.[2] A child prodigy and the son of Polish and Italian immigrants, Liberace enjoyed a career spanning four decades of concerts, recordings, television, motion pictures, and endorsements. At the height of his fame, from the 1950s to the 1970s, Liberace was the highest-paid entertainer in the world,[3] with established concert residencies in Las Vegas, and an international touring schedule. Liberace embraced a lifestyle of flamboyant excess both on and off stage, acquiring the nickname "Mr. Showmanship".
Dame Margot Fonteyn, DBE (18 May 1919 – 21 February 1991), stage name of Margaret Evelyn de Arias, was an English ballerina. She spent her entire career as a dancer with the Royal Ballet (formerly the Sadler's Wells Theater Company), eventually being appointed prima ballerina assoluta of the company by Queen Elizabeth II. Beginning ballet lessons at the age of four, she studied in England and China, where her father was transferred for his work. Her training in Shanghai was with George Goncharov, contributing to her continuing interest in Russian ballet. Returning to London at the age of 14, she was invited to join the Vic-Wells Ballet School by Ninette de Valois. She succeeded Alicia Markova as prima ballerina of the company in 1935. The Vic-Wells choreographer, Sir Frederick Ashton, wrote numerous parts for Fonteyn and her partner, Robert Helpmann, with whom she danced from the 1930s to the 1940s.
Best-known internationally as the first man to climb Mt. Everest in May 1953 with Tenzing Norgay, for the last 50 years he has devoted himself to environmental and humanitarian efforts that have made a profound difference to communities in Nepal where his famous summiting was achieved.
American politician and the 45th Governor of Alabama, a position he occupied for four terms, during which he promoted "low-grade industrial development, low taxes, and trade schools".[1] He sought the United States presidency as a Democrat three times, and once as an American Independent Party candidate, unsuccessfully each time. He is best remembered for his staunch segregationist and populist views.[2][3][4] Wallace famously opposed desegregation and supported the policies of "Jim Crow" during the Civil Rights Movement, declaring in his 1963 Inaugural Address that he stood for "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever".[5]
I'm offering this video, because I was at this talk. (The actual date is January 10,1964) I came early to be sure to get a seat. The first several rows were already filled with black students. Wallace was known as the racist governor of Alabama who opposed integration. UCLA was a relatively liberal California college. It was going to be tense. But Wallace used charm and humor to win over the audience quickly - even the front few rows. We didn't agree with him, but laughter created a human connection. It was an important lesson for me about preconceptions, my notions about evil people, and how people who violently disagree on fundamental issues, nevertheless can communicate. It also helped me understand why Alabamans voted for him. I absolutely do not endorse most of the comments under this video on Youtube.
He slid down banisters, dated movie stars and wore a red rose in his lapel. Pierre Elliott Trudeau is arguably the most charismatic prime minister in Canada's history. But he was more than just charisma - Trudeau helped shape Canada with his vision of a unified, bilingual, multicultural "just society." Throughout his 16 years as prime minister, he faced some heavy criticism. But when Trudeau died on Sept. 28, 2000, the nation mourned the man who, in the words of one biographer, "haunts us still."
He was also the father of Canada's current prime minister.
Doris Lessing's body of work comprises around 50 books and spans several genres. Her writing is characterized by penetrating studies of living conditions in the 20th century, behavioral patterns, and historical developments. Her most experimental novel, 'The Golden Notebook', from 1962, is a study of a woman's psyche and life situation, the lot of writers, sexuality, political ideas, and everyday life. Some of Doris Lessing's books reach into the future. Among other things, she portrays our civilization's final hour from the perspective of an extraterrestrial observer.
"Anna meets her friend Molly in the summer of 1957 after a separation
THE two women were alone in the London flat. 'The point is,' said Anna, as her friend came back from the telephone on the landing, 'the point is, that as far as I can see, everything's cracking up.'
Molly was a woman much on the telephone. When it rang she had just enquired: 'Well, what's the gossip?' Now she said, 'That's Richard, and he's coming over. It seems today's his only free moment for the next month. Or so he insists.'
'Well I'm not leaving,' said Anna.
'No, you stay just where you are.'
Molly considered her own appearance-she was wearing trousers and a sweater, both the worse for wear. 'He'll have to take me as I come,' she concluded, and sat down by the window. 'He wouldn't say what it's about-another crisis with Marion, I suppose.'
'Didn't he write to you?' asked Anna, cautious.
'Both he and Marion wrote-ever such bonhomous letters. Odd, isn't it?'
This odd, isn't it? was the characteristic note of the intimate conversations they designated gossip. But having struck the note, Molly swerved off with: 'It's no use talking now, because he's coming right over, he says.'
'He'll probably go when he sees me here,' said Anna, cheerfully, but slightly aggressive. Molly glanced at her, keenly, and said: 'Oh, but why?'
It had always been understood that Anna and Richard disliked each other; and before Anna had always left when Richard was expected. Now Molly said: 'Actually I think he rather likes you, in his heart of hearts. The point is, he's committed to liking me, on principle-he's such a fool he's always got to either like or dislike someone, so all the dislike he won't admit he has for me gets pushed off on to you.'"
Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi (1919-80), king of Iran (1941-1979), was born in Tehran on October 26, 1919, the eldest son of Reza Shah. He completed his primary school in Switzerland. He returned to Iran in 1935, and enrolled in a Tehran military school, from which he graduated in 1938.. . .
He replaced his father, Reza Shah, on the throne on September 16, 1941, shortly before his 22nd birthday. He continued the reform policies of his father, but a contest for control of the government soon erupted between the shah and an older professional politician, the nationalistic Mohammad Mosaddeq. . .
By the mid-1970s the Shah reigned amidst widespread discontent caused by the continuing repressiveness of his regime, socioeconomic changes that benefited some classes at the expense of others, and the increasing gap between the ruling elite and the disaffected populace. Islamic leaders, particularly the exiled cleric Ayatollah Khomeini, were able to focus this discontent with a populist ideology tied to Islamic principles and calls for the overthrow of the shah. The Shah's government collapsed following widespread uprisings in 1978 -1979 and consequently an Islamic Republic succeeded his regime.
Russian soldier, best known as AK-47 inventor. a Russian general, inventor, military engineer and small arms designer. He is most famous for developing the AK-47 assault rifle and its improvements, the AKM and AK-74, as well as the PK machine gun and RPK light machine gun.
"But the three jihadi commanders, who had gotten used to act icing with near-complete autonomy, ignored Droukdel's admonitions - and they even bragged about their brutality. In the new jihadi state, the Islamists created a parallel universe that combined medieval theology with twenty-first-century communication. They flaunted their absolute power and their Sharia punishments in YouTube videos, Twitter feeds, and website communiqués" (Emphasis added)
This comes from pp. 171-172 of Joshua Hammer's The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu.
I picked up the book at the library because of its title. But as I started reading it, I found a world I knew nothing about: the golden age of scholarship when Timbuktu was a center of learning and produced hundreds of thousands of manuscripts. And despite the way Western textbooks (and a current US president) depict Africa as backward and illiterate, these manuscripts have been preserved and hidden over the centuries to keep them from being destroyed.
The book then veers into an overview of some of the more modern jihadist leaders who, enriched through smuggling, drugs, and kidnapping ransoms, have risen to power in the Sahara in this century.
The book is about those Malians and others who worked to keep the manuscripts safe from the new marauders who claim better knowledge of Islam than those who have read and guarded the centuries of manuscripts.
I'll leave readers to contemplate the quotation and its implications.
I had a sudden rush of hits today on a 2010 post "Does Lisa Murkowski's Religious Preference Matter?" Over 60 hits today. It was a post I put up in 2010 after getting lots of hits from people searching variations of "Is Lisa Murkowski Jewish?" The post was responding to all those hits surmising why people wanted to know that.
Nowadays, most google search words are no longer visible to the websites the get to, but this bing search made it clear:
I googled "Lisa Murkowski" and my post didn't show up in the first 13 pages.
I googled "Lisa Murkowski Jewish" and it showed up number 2. Though since google tailors searches for the searcher, that's probably higher than most people would get. Nevertheless, I'm guessing many if not most of the people getting to that post today - maybe 50 - googled "Murkowski" and either "jewish" related or "religion."
Meanwhile, I saw a Tweet asking people to support a fund for Susan Collins' next opponent. I understand the sentiment, and I don't understand how she made her decision at all. But at least she was one of a few Republican senators who even entertained the possibility of voting 'no.' She's not the one who should be jumped all over. There were 47 who never gave any public indication they would do anything but vote yes. Their opponents are the ones to be raising funds for - starting with the senior senator from Kentucky.
It's dark now, but this was my view about an hour ago.
LA Times has a bit of history for this date. It's the story of the German ambassador to Denmark who helped get most Danish Jews to Sweden just before the Nazis were to send them to concentration camps. From the article:
On Sept. 19, Duckwitz learned from Best that the operation was imminent. He wrote in his diary, “Now I know what I have to do.” When he was told by a fellow sympathetic official that he would risk Gestapo wrath if he were caught trying to countermand Hitler, Duckwitz responded he would do whatever it took to stop the deportation.
The next day, Duckwitz contacted two Swedish diplomats and traveled to Stockholm where he met with Prime Minister Albin Hansson, who agreed to propose to the Germans that his neutral nation would intern the Danish Jews. The Nazis didn’t even bother to respond.
On Sept. 28, Best received the go-ahead to launch the roundup, planned for Oct. 1, Rosh Hashana. Duckwitz immediately telephoned Danish political leaders. One of them later recalled that when they met, Duckwitz looked pale with shame and shock.
“Now the disaster is at hand,” Duckwitz said. Ships were waiting in the harbor to take the Jews to the Theresienstadt concentration camp. “Those of your poor Jewish countrymen who get caught by the Gestapo will [be] … transported to an unknown fate.”
Most were ferried across the channel between Denmark and Sweden by all sorts of vessels where Swedish officials took them in.
Over the next few days, millions of Danes would shelter, protect and smuggle their Jewish neighbors to Sweden. They were delivered to the harbor in free taxis and hospital ambulances. Fishermen and ship captains made more than 700 trips across the Oresund. Duckwitz had tipped off his Swedish contacts, who were waiting to assist the refugees. And in a final critical action, he convinced German harbormasters he knew to ensure the coast guard sent out no patrols.
But this story, celebrating this Oct. 1, 1943 rescue mission is not just a history lesson. The author wants to be sure readers get the more universal message.
Many ask themselves whether it is possible to stand up to pervasive evil. The Danes showed that when a nation — from the king to the taxi drivers and fishermen — decide they will not permit atrocities in their midst, even the Nazis could be hamstrung. And Georg Duckwitz, who put his career and even his life on the line, offers an object lesson on how one person can save thousands.
I'd note, as well, that we should look at each individual we've labeled "the enemy" carefully. Some of them don't belong in that category. Find them and let them help.
There are parts of the Gates of Repentance Prayer Book that keep me coming to High Holiday Services every year. The section that outlines all the sins we may have committed this last year and should strive to avoid next year is a good example. This is useful to reflect on more than annually.
Failures of Truth
We sin against you when we sin against ourselves. For our failures of truth, O Lord, we ask forgiveness.
For passing judgment without knowledge of the facts, and for distorting facts to fit our theories.
For deceiving ourselves and others with half-truths, and for pretending to emotions we do not feel.
For using the sins of others to excuse our own, and for denying responsibility for our own misfortunes.
For condemning in our children the faults we tolerate in ourselves, and for condemning in our parents the faults we tolerate in ourselves.
Failures of Justice For keeping the poor in the chains of poverty, and turning a deaf ear to the cry of the oppressed.
For using violence to maintain our power, and for using violence to bring about change.
For waging aggressive war, and for the sin of appeasing aggressors.
For obeying criminal orders, and for the sin of silence and indifference.
For poisoning the air, and polluting land and sea, and for all the evil means we employ to accomplish good ends.
Failures of Love For confusing love with lust, and for pursuing fleeting pleasure at the cost of lasting hurt.
For using others as a means to gratify our desires, and as stepping-stones to further our ambitions.
For withholding love to control those we claim to love, and shunting aside those whose youth or age disturbs us.
For hiding from others behind an armored of mistrust, and for the cynicism which leads us to mistrust the reality of unselfish love.
I'm not very religious. I'm fairly certain man created God and not the other way around. But I've been lucky to have the ability to pick out the useful from the problematic.
I can read academic theories and find those parts that seem to be a good description of how the world works and not be hung up on those parts that seem less useful. Theorists trying to put together an explanation of some aspect of the world, often get parts right and parts wrong.
And with religion, the same is true. I'm not much of a theist. I can take the bible as stories from which to learn, but I also recognize that many of the laws we find there made sense in the context of social and political and economic life of 3000 years ago, but no longer are make sense. And can even be harmful when twisted to the ends of the ambitious. There are parts of the High Holiday services that I find offensive. But many parts are still wise.
I'm not alone in picking and choosing. Few people follow all the 613 commandments Maimonides extracted from the Torah. (You can see the history of this and list of commandments at Wikipedia.)
Some say that the dietary restrictions were connected to health - eating shellfish in hot climates with no refrigeration is risky. Some may be moral - slaughtering animals in the quickest and least painful way. Others say that keeping Kosher requires a self-discipline that is useful in other parts of one's life. Other than Orthodox Jews, I'm not sure there's anyone who follows all the bible's dietary laws today. Though lots of Jews try to observe a few of the commandments - like not eating pork. (Sources conflict and tell us they do, partly because the Bible doesn't explain the reasons. Here are a couple: Judaism 101 on Kashrut; Biblical Archeology on Making Sense of Kosher Laws; or Jewish Food Hero on Kosher Explained. )
There have only been one or two years when I've failed to go to High Holiday services. It began family custom. My mother would take me every year, though we didn't go to services weekly. I think for her it was a connection to her parents, who she never saw again after she left Germany as a teenager. And the rabbi we went to for many years was an old white bearded, German rabbi who is still my image of a 'real rabbi.' It's also way of staying connected with a community bigger than just the family. The Jewish New Year celebrations are also an important personal day of reflection.
It's a time to think about how one has lived one's life during the year that's ending and to ask forgiveness for one's sins. And also to forgive those who have sinned against us. The ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are a time for repentance. On Rosh Hashanah "it is written" but on Yom Kippur "it is sealed."
"It" is who shall live and who shall die during the next year. Those ten days are one's time to convince God that your repentance is sincere. In my mind, what's written is in pencil and can still be erased. Do I believe someone is writing everyone's name in the book of life or the book of death? Not really. But it makes the abstract more concrete. It reminds me that it is a time for me to reflect on how I can be a better person in the next year.
So I focus on those parts that reflect my values, and take as metaphorical those parts that portray a patriarchal God demanding total obedience.
Attending to these Failures of Truth, Justice, and Love would bring the United States and the world to a much better place. These values don't require anyone to adhere to any religion. They are self-evident to most human beings.
And for those I've wronged in the past year. Please forgive me. As I forgive those who have wronged me. Shana Tova. (As I read the first article I found on the meaning of Shana Tova, I quickly realized this was not the message I wanted people to get. The next google hit turned out to be a response that expressed my feelings about the first article.)
There are countless people you rarely hear about who fight to protect those who don't have the power to protect themselves. They risk their careers and sometimes their lives to do what's right.
Richard Sipe - ex-priest who worked hard to expose sex abuse in the Catholic Church. This LA Times piece tells some of his story.
". . . Sipe was ordained in 1959 and soon became aware of priests who had relationships with adults and children. Later, he worked at a Baltimore psychiatric institute where abusive priests were sent for treatment and evaluation, and he began documenting their stories. With the help of his future wife, a psychiatrist at the institute, he published a 1990 book called, “A Secret World: Sexuality and the Search for Celibacy.” Sipe, an expert witness in hundreds of clergy abuse cases, argued that celibacy and abuse were connected. We’re sexual creatures, he said, so celibacy is an unnatural expectation, and sex and sexual abuse are rampant among priests. Those who abuse minors, he explained, have a convenient racket going. Peers may keep quiet because they’re predators too, and even if the abuse is reported to superiors, they’ve got reasons to maintain the code of silence. Maybe they don’t want to damage the image of the church. Or maybe they have their own sins to hide. So pedophiles remain in ministry, or they’re shuffled to another parish, or to Mexico. Often, there’s no attempt to explain what’s happening to parishioners, to call the police or to do the most basic, caring, human thing — to offer an apology, comfort and support to victims. . .
Hugh Thompson - Stopped My Lai massacre before it got worse.
" . . . Who were the people lying in the roads and in the ditch, wounded and killed? "They were not combatants. They were old women, old men, children, kids, babies." Then Thompson and his crew chief, Glenn Andreotta, and his gunner, Lawrence Colburn, "saw some civilians hiding in a bunker, cowering, looking out the door. Saw some advancing Americans coming that way. I just figured it was time to do something, to not let these people get killed. Landed the aircraft in between the Americans and the Vietnamese, told my crew chief and gunner to cover me, got out of the aircraft, went over to the American side."
What happened next was one of the most remarkable events of the entire war, and perhaps unique: Thompson told the American troops that, if they opened fire on the Vietnamese civilians in the bunker, he and his crew would open fire on them. . . ."
The difference between Trump and many past presidents and their advisors isn't that he's racist and misogynist and arrogant. It's that he says what's on his mind and many past presidents knew how to conceal what they were thinking.
In a Patheos piece called "White Supremacist Roots of Evangelicalism," the author (can't find an author name) starts with another article written by an Evangelical who is leaving the group because of Trump's arrogant bullying of everybody. But the Patheos author says she doesn't disagree with most of what the ex-Evangelical says until she gets to
"In fact, [Trump] somehow, mysteriously to me, gained momentum and endorsements."
The Patheos writer then gives some historical context.
"As historian Randall Balmer writes, white evangelicals were largely apolitical until the Supreme Court upheld an IRS decision to deny tax exemptions to segregated private schools. The outrage over that ruling was the spark for religious-right powerhouses like Jerry Falwell to launch a massive political movement. It’s only after overt racism became unacceptable that abortion was chosen – basically, picked out of a hat – as the new cause for religious conservatives to focus their ire on (you may have seen Samantha Bee’s ferociously funny segment about this).
Evangelicalism has always been the tool of choice for propping up racial hierarchies. For instance, Christianity Today was founded by a segregationist and promoted segregation. It’s plausible that the “otherworldly” emphasis on heaven and salvation was invented as a means to justify slavery and other earthly evils."
We all become politically conscious at some point. And most of us don't know too much about what happened before we started paying attention. That's natural. And when one had to search book after book in the library to find out about history, it took effort to get past the narratives of the main media outlets.
But today, google offers lots of ways to find out what went on before. Sure, there's lots of crap out there designed to confuse and confound. But good stuff should make sense and have references you can follow. And you can easily find ten articles from sources in various camps and compare.
Every politician has a history. Every group, every organization has a history.
Our Supreme Court helped maintain segregation and inequality nearly a century after the Emancipation Proclamation. The Courts supported the rich over the poor more often than not. None of this is new. What's depressing is that now that the people of the United States have moved ahead, the courts are poised to keep pulling us back to a world dominated by the wealthy.
As I'm sure you all know, Paul Ryan fired the House's chaplain - a Roman Catholic priest, Father Conroy.
The title quote and quotes below come from a New York Times article that points to the prayer that is said to have caused Ryan's remark (in this post's title.) Apparently he was miffed by this comment about the Republican tax plan that Ryan helped pushed through:
“May their efforts these days guarantee that there are not winners and losers under new tax laws, but benefits balanced and shared by all Americans.”
This focuses on a key difference between the Catholic interpretations of the bible and many Protestant interpretations which talk about work as being a divine calling and the importance of self reliance.
But as I read the quote, I couldn't help but think about what Ryan probably really meant by the word 'politics.' I think he meant don't take positions that challenge my positions. Surely, if the Father had spoken about saving fetuses from abortion (as political a topic as you could want, and one consistent with the Catholic church's beliefs) Ryan wouldn't have been upset at all.
"of or relating to government, a government, or the conduct of government"
How could a Congressional chaplain say anything of relevance that would not be political? Even if the chaplain's job is purely ceremonial, there's no way a chaplain can say anything without it being interpreted as political by someone.
The article goes on to discuss simmering tension between Catholics and Evangelical Christians in the House.
"The controversy was heightened when Representative Mark Walker, Republican of North Carolina and a Baptist minister, said Thursday in an interview with The Hill newspaper that he hoped the next chaplain of the House might come from a nondenominational church tradition who could relate to members with wives and children.
Catholic Democrats quickly called his remarks anti-Catholic, as Catholic priests are celibate . . ."
The Times article also offers another explanation for the firing - that the Chaplain wasn't carrying out his pastoral duties satisfactorily. It also suggests this was one more Republican 'unforced error' that would help Democrats in the November election. I don't know about that. There are so many things that will influence whether and how voters vote. Add this to the list.
Over the years philosophers, psychologists, and other observers of the human condition have identified what they thought made humans distinct from other species. A BBC exploration of that question begins with with Aristotle:
We are "rational animals" pursuing knowledge for its own sake. We live by art and reasoning, he wrote.
I'm not going to claim that disagreement makes us unique, but it sure seems be be common. I probably don't have to give you any examples. You probably can come up with some that occurred in the last hour.
But since tonight begins Passover, here's an example that makes my point. Not just that people disagree over things that clearly have consequences (who to vote for, what to eat for dinner), but also things that seem to be disagreement for disagreement's sake.
Since our daughter and granddaughter are visiting next week, and since it's Passover, we can't make a bread together. So I thought we could make matzah instead. Matzah boxes are marked
"Kosher - not for Passover" and "Kosher for Passover."
So I wanted to know what the difference was. It's mostly about how carefully the wheat is treated from the time it is ground to flour.
"Most authorities maintain that it is sufficient to guard the wheat from the time it is ground, in order to use it to fulfill the mitzvah of eating matzah. Some authorities dispute this, however, and maintain that the wheat must be guarded from the time that it is harvested."
In my role as a mediator at times, I came to learn that such disagreements - that seem to be about differences that don't really make a difference - are based on unspoken assumptions or issues that are the real problem. It's not the purity of the grain, so to speak, but some other value it represents.
Perhaps it's just about who is right or who has the power to make the decision. Or it could be that the stricter interpretation reflects a generally greater concern for detail by that position's advocate.
I would argue that the Jews in Egypt who first baked the unleavened bread before their exodus from Egypt, did so because they didn't have time to wait for bread to rise a few times before they had to leave. And I'm sure they didn't use special flour that had been carefully guarded.
The use of the matzah today is symbolic. It's to remind Jews of the suffering of their ancestors and to remind them that they too were strangers in a strange land and had to flee. And thus Jews should remember to help others today who have to flee their homelands. So whether we use extra special wheat to make matzah probably really makes no difference. No one eating matzah can tell the difference. It's the symbol that matters. And if Jews eat made from the most vigorously guarded wheat, but forget how to apply the lessons of the story to those suffering a similar fate today, they've gotten so tied up in the rules, they've missed the whole point.
From an Anchorage Daily News article on companies coming out against Proposition 1 in Anchorage's April municipal election:
"In a February email, Minnery [the executive director of the socially conservative advocacy organization Alaska Family Action, the main group organizing in support of Prop. 1] accused Anchorage’s business community of caving to a special-interest group.
“LGBTQ activists have used bullying and blackmail tactics to strong-arm corporate America,” Minnery wrote." [emphasis added]
Prop 1 is an attempt to go back to the 'good old days' when right wing evangelical church leaders - Jerry Prevo in particular - could bring out their members with rants about the evils of homosexuality to defeat attempts to give legal protections to the LGBTQ community. When the Assembly finally passed such an ordinance, this coalition then delayed things long enough to have an incoming mayor veto it. But the last round saw the Anchorage Assembly pass the legislation by and 9-2 margin and it was signed by the new mayor.
Prop 1 is an attempt to undo that measure by raising fears about 'men' going into women's bathrooms and essentially denying the existence of transgender people, by defining people by the gender marked on their birth certificates, which people would have to show if challenged in a public restroom!
This quote reflects the same kinds of lies and scare tactics they've always used.
Strong-arm tactics
Strong-arm tactics? Really? Let's look at some dictionary definitions of that term:
"If you refer to someone's behavior as strong-arm tactics or methods, you disapprove of it because it consists of using threats or force in order to achieve something."
Let's look at the organizations that are opposed to Prop 1, that Minnery thinks were 'strong-armed' by the transgender community, one of the most vulnerable communities in the US.
11.17 Design Studio LLC
ACDA
Anchorage Economic
Development Corporation (AEDC)
Anchorage Chamber of Commerce
Arctic Choice
Arctic Incident Response, LLC
Arctic Wire and Rope
BDS Architects BP
Beartooth Theaterpub & Grill
Broken Tooth Brewing
Cabin Fever
Classic Woman
Coordinators Interior Design
Dos Manos Gallery
Favco
Favretto Limited
Fire Island Bakery First National Bank
K2 Avication
K2 Dronotics
KPB Architects
Law Office of Glenn E. Cravez, Inc.
Mad Dog Graphics
Moose’s Tooth
Mystic Productions Press
Ozarks Perkins Coie LLP
Portfolio
Quilted Raven Re/Max
Rust Flying Service
Second Run LLC
Side Street Espresso
Snow City Cafe
South Restaurant
Spenard Roadhouse Stoel Rives LLP
The Boardroom
The Sourdough Mercantile
The Writer’s Block Bookstore & Cafe
Tiny Ptarmigan
Two Friends Gallery
United Physical Therapy
Visit Anchorage Wells Fargo
Wooly Mammoth
Only a few of these are 'corporate America.'
For the most part these are small businesses in Anchorage. Those I know are owned by people who would have volunteered to support the campaign against Prop 1. They wouldn't have needed to be strong-armed. Can you imagine the folks at Fair Alaska threatening Rust Flying Service or Mad Dog Graphics into getting on the list? How? Boycott their businesses? Ludicrous. Telling them they would go to hell for eternity? Sorry, that's Minnery's line.
Even more ludicrous is to think they could have strong-armed the national companies like BP, Perkins Coie, Stoel Rives, Re/Max, or Wells Fargo.
Strong-arming is what Prevo's friends do to get legislators to vote against women's rights to free choice or gay rights issues. They use religion on some, threats to withdraw political support and give it to a candidate's opponent.
And as I've said before, people tend to accuse others of what they do themselves, because they assume everyone does it. That's how they justify their own actions - "everyone does it, we'd be a disadvantage if we didn't."
I thought maybe Minnery had recognized the error of his approach when he held "Love Your Gay Neighbor Night" in 2014, but I'm afraid not. Rather, he's now back to using "bullying and blackmail tactics to scare" voters into making the lives of transgender folks much more difficult.
My expectation is this campaign is the last gasp on this issue. It's what Minnery knows how to do - fight to impose his religious beliefs on others in some twisted logic that if gays have rights, he loses his rights. He picks obscure parts of the Bible to justify his stance, while ignoring far more important lessons from Christ, like "Do Onto Others. . ."
I expect Anchorage voters to roundly defeat Prop 1. The big unknown is how changing to mail-in voting will affect turnout. Let's hope Minnery gets the message and finds more positive things to work on.
For more on this ballot issue see an earlier post with video of some local transgender folks and their parents talking about why this vote is so important to them.
