The Road to Recovery

Monday, May 24, 2021 

Happy Birthday to two icons.  Bob Dylan is 80 years old today and Will Mollard is not.

. . .

I listened to a panel discussion on "The Future of the Occupation" yesterday, that is the occupation of the West Bank, an area that Arabs call Palestine and Jews call Not Quite.  At the heart of the problem is the belief by many Arabs that the entire territory between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River is properly theirs (https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/half-palestinians-still-want-all-palestine-most-would-compromise-less), while many Israeli Jews hold to Eretz Yisrael, the undivided Land of Israel.  Solutions welcome.

. . .

I count myself as a Brooklyn boy, although my family moved away just a couple of weeks after my Bar Mitzvah.  Now, several decades and many residences later, I note that many of my closest friends have Brooklyn roots, as well.   This brings to mind a factoid that I might have learned even before I left Brooklyn: One in seven Americans have Brooklyn in their background.  This article examines this idea.

https://urbanomnibus.net/2012/08/lifespan-of-a-brooklyn-fact-can-one-in-seven-americans-trace-roots-to-brooklyn/

Although the article is gently skeptical, it does not reject the proposition outright.  While there may not be any correlation between the possible origin of 14.286% of the American people and real estate activity, I marveled at the steep growth of home prices in Brooklyn since 2003 as reported in the real estate section.   https://nyti.ms/3v4JL8n

Even encompassing a market meltdown, the median (not the deceptive average) Brooklyn home price has tripled in less than two decades.  The current estimated sale price of 2798 Pitkin Avenue, the ancestral Gotthelf home, is deservedly below the borough's median, but it is still shockingly high in the range of $684,527 to $782,400.  As I recall, we paid $44 rent monthly for the first floor of the two-story building. 

Tuesday, May 25, 2021

While Jews have had success in the sciences, we are not free from superstition.  One of the least offensive surrounds chai (hi), the 18th letter of the Hebrew alphabet and, accordingly, the number 18.  It is also the word for life, so the number has positive and lucky connotations.  Money gifts are often given in multiples of chai.  Some people, including me, wear the symbol as an affirmation of Jewish identity.

And, today is the Upper West Side's Power Couple's 18th wedding anniversary.  Luck, certainly, had something to do with it. 

Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Getting back into the groove, the Boyz Club gathered at Wok Wok Southeast Asian Kitchen, 11 Mott Street.  While it had a couple of outdoor tables, it was too hot on the street to reject the air conditioned underground premises.  The vaccinated five of us shared "Original Roti" a/k/a roti canai, Indian flat bread served with chicken and potato curry ($4.25); Roti Murtabak, Indian flat bread filled with spiced chicken, egg and onion, served with curry potato chicken sauce ($7.95); deep fried fish cakes served with cucumber peanut achat (spicy, sour, sweet sauce) (5 for $6.95); Grilled Chicken Satay served with cucumber, onions and tamarind peanut dip (8 skewers for $11.95); Pad Kee Mao a/k/a "Drunk Man Noodle," chicken and broad rice noodles, Spanish onion, egg, tomatoes, bell peppers, Thai basil, fresh bird's eye chili ($11.95); Crispy Garlic Chicken ($15.95); and Thai jasmine rice ($2.00).  It amounted to $16 each and a feeling of satisfaction. 

Thursday, May 27, 2021

You had to read the newspaper carefully today to learn, as I did, which was "the only state where not a single county voted for Barack Obama in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections, and where all of those counties voted twice for Donald Trump."  That's really something to sing about.    https://youtu.be/kGXu0j6QDJ8

. . .

A computer analysis of 240,000 college admission essays showed that they have a stronger correlation to reported household income than SAT scores.  https://nyti.ms/3fItpfa

The study did not evaluate quality, an elusive pursuit, but looked at choice of topic and content -- punctuation and word length, for instance.  So, dropping the SAT may have little influence on democratizing the college admissions process.  I even suggest that the opposite is true.  Wealthy families can and often do hire SAT coaches to help Junior move up the scale, but Junior has finally to wield the #2 pencil sitting by himself.  Okay, "Operation Varsity Blues" tells another story.  https://www.netflix.com/title/81130691

Essay writing, however, may easily be the work of several hands, Mom, Dad, hired gun, and that's where money talks or dictates or composes.

. . .

I had an appointment in the north Bronx this morning, allowing me to have lunch at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, 3411 Jerome Avenue.  (There is no apostrophe and I can't find out why.)  Some people may label this a guilty pleasure, for me it's just a pleasure.  I ate indoors, at one of the five tabIes in use, an equal amount of floor space left empty.  I had a three-piece meal, breast, leg and thigh, biscuit, Cajun fries and Diet Coke for $9.99, greasy fingers included.  Spicy recipe was unavailable when I ordered, the only glitch in the meal.   

Friday, May 28, 2021

Why is this Jew, among many, reluctant to accept seriously international criticism of Israel?  "[T]he United Nations’ top human rights body voted Thursday to appoint a commission of inquiry with unusually broad latitude to investigate possible war crimes and other abuses committed in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories."  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/27/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-un-human-rights-council.html

 

The fly in the ointment: "Although the commission could theoretically investigate human rights violations by all parties, the resolution creating it does not mention Hamas or other Palestinian militant groups." 

 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch: "U.S. Faces Outbreak of Anti-Semitic Threats and Violence."  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/26/us/anti-semitism-attacks-violence.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20210528&instance_id=31768&nl=the-morning&regi_id=599756&segment_id=59272&te=1&user_id=1353d3a345e55ff509b5cbb17ed36984

. . .

Modern scripture -- "The truth shall you flee."  Mitch 5:28. 

 

Shalom Or Else? Salaam Or Else?

Monday, May 17, 2021 

Saturday's puzzle, 42 Across = Locks you pick?

. . . 

A.O. Scott, New York Times film critic, looks at American attitudes and values as presented in seven movies.   https://nyti.ms/3ya63Hu   The article is a rich source of discussion topics that need not end friendships, unlike Israel, gender, Trump.

. . .

I have mixed feelings about the highly relaxed CDC Covid-19 guidelines for social distancing and mask wearing, that is to the degree that I actually understand them.  Here in New York, we are further subject to the sometimes contradictory regulations emerging from the dueling egos of the governor and the mayor.  Inside/outside, few/many, had it/didn't have it, adult/child, vaccinated/unvaccinated -- there are a host of variables to consider before taking the next step.

Even though I have passed into relatively safe territory, I continue to wear a mask out of the house, in recognition of the gravity of the situation.  After all, there are increasingly frequent examples of "breakthrough cases," post-vaccination infection, and more dangerous variants keep popping up.  On walkabouts the last few days, I have observed a very high degree of compliance with mask wearing in the neighborhood.  This behavior is consistent with the attitudes of American epidemiologists.  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/15/upshot/epidemiologists-covid-return-normal.html?campaign_id=29&emc=edit_up_20210517&instance_id=30990&nl=the-upshot&regi_id=599756&segment_id=58282&te=1&us

Of course, I don't need to read the newspaper, I just have to roll over to find out the latest and greatest news in epidemiology.

. . .

R.I.P. Samantha Berkman, 31.

. . .

A book review this weekend of a story collection by a Japanese writer lists 6 translators of the work.  We know that identity politics is now playing a role in the choice of translators, language-to-language.  

Given the multiplicity of translators in this instance, I think something else is at play, possibly separate translators for nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, participles and conjunctions.

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

The leaders of June's Gay Pride celebratory events here must be frustrated civil engineers, since they seem intent on burning bridges. "N.Y.C. Pride Will Take Steps to Keep Police Out of Parade and Events"   https://nyti.ms/3uQFyVC

. . .

In a criminal case of sexual assault,  should the name of the accuser be kept secret?   Can the accused mount a proper defense if the accuser is anonymous?  Will the accuser be twice victimized by public identification?  https://nyti.ms/3eOw7R4

. . .

I have a question about a completely different subject.  Why are so many non-Orthodox rabbis of recent vintage women?  Is the job so bad that it is being relegated to women?

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Jitterbug Jon ventured forth from Brooklyn to meet me for lunch at The Best Sichuan, 47 West 39th Street, the first time that we have seen each other in 15 months, which is probably the average length of separation for so many of us.  He said that he removed his mask when he got out of the subway.  I kept mine on until we sat down at one of the five tables in the outdoor shack.  

We did not give The Best Sichuan the opportunity to live up to its name.  While it offered many unusual dishes (Chongqing Style Pork Blood Curd or Frogs - Dry Pepper Style anyone?), we ordered very conservatively in this early return to Heaven on Earth.  We shared fried dumplings ($8.95 for 6), orange-flavored chicken ($17.95) and aromatic roast duck ($24.95).  On the whole, it sounded better than it tasted.  Our timidity resulted in The Best Sichuan better regarded as The Average Cantonese.

. . .

It seems that you can't wait for the right moment to sum up the Arab/Israeli conflict, or even the latest manifestation of it.  Here are a couple of my transitory thoughts, however.

1) The Israeli regime continues to gratuitously provoke its Arab citizens and neighboring Palestinians.  I agree with some Israelis that this is rooted in electoral politics as Prime Minister Netanyahu recognizes that jail might be his next stop after leaving office.  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/20/opinion/Israel-palestine-netanyahu-gaza.html

 

In a television appearance, he said "We’ll do whatever it takes to restore order and quiet.”  This evokes the famous quote from Vietnam 50 years ago, “It became necessary to destroy the town to save it.”

2) A dispute over property rights in Jerusalem, although representative of the (lack of) status of Arabs, has been escalated into warfare by the disproportionate response of Hamas.  Before the Israeli air force began its lethal bombing missions, hundreds, now thousands, of rockets were shot into Israel from Gaza.  Hamas responded to human rights violations with war crimes.  Unfortunately, some of Israel's critics view the situation through the wrong end of the telescope, looking only on the ugly destruction in Gaza.  I don't excuse it, but I am not naive about its origin. 

. . .

"A community for all" it ain't.  When Wausau, Wisconsin wanted to be nice, it couldn't.  https://nyti.ms/3eUqiBj

Thursday, May 20, 2021

The headline this morning read: "The Pandemic Was Bad for Our Teeth."  That was hardly news to me, since I visited my periodontist yesterday afternoon for the first time since December 2019 and learned that, having sent his kids to college and grad school and buying them a cozy beach house, there was still more that I could do on their behalf unless I want to live out my days on peanut butter sandwiches.

Friday, May 21, 2021

Possibly the worst answer to the current strife between Palestinians and Israelis would be a single state, one person/one vote.  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/19/opinion/israel-palestine.html?searchResultPosition=1  

 

A Palestinian statistician estimated that, by the end of 2022, "the number of Palestinians and Jews (living between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River) will be equal at about 7.1 million each."  https://www.jpost.com/arab-israeli-conflict/number-of-jews-and-palestinians-will-be-equal-at-end-of-2022-653884   

 

Currently, Jews make up 80% of the population within Israel's borders.  Yet, with this demographic profile, Israel has failed to elect a government after four elections in less than two years.  Imagine the chaos resulting from a less ethnically homogeneous electorate, that is if you can even consider the Hasidic-to-hipster Jewish continuum homogeneous at all.

 

By the way, if the idea of blending two disparate populations into a viable entity appeals to you, get in touch with the Catalans, Basques, Czechs, Slovaks, Serbs, Croatians, Kosovans, Québécois, Uyghurs, Hugenots, Kurds, Hutus and Tutsis among other restless folk.  Oh, don't forget our friends in Northern Ireland.

. . .

 

Answer = TOUPEE

E Pluribus?

Monday, May 10, 2021 

"State Funeral" is a documentary film about the death of Joseph Stalin just released at one local theater and possibly nowhere else.  The review in the New York Times is quite edifying.  https://nyti.ms/2Ruen4f

It notes that, in spite of "Stalin’s crimes against his own people — the tens of millions purged, imprisoned, starved and slaughtered . . . the grieving citizens are so real."  The reviewer concludes: "Any population can be swayed and subjugated by tyranny.  They could be us."  Discuss.

. . .

Mossad Moshe and I performed an errand today that took us deep in the heart of Brooklyn.  Returning, I chose to use the Wiiliamsburg Bridge, which deposited us very close to Katz's Delicatessen, 205 East Houston Street.  I had not been there since Harry met Sally or thereabouts.  Two things surprised me, 1) how crowded it was; 2) how well the familiar premises adjusted to the prevailing health and safety guidelines.  Who knows if it made a difference, but Lucite barriers separated every carving station at the long counter and the dozens of tables were all isolated as well.

I had corned beef ($21.95), Moshe had pastrami ($22.95) and, believe it or not, the sandwiches were a bargain.  The meat was hand cut, 1/4" slices, an unheard of luxury.  And, each sandwich had an enormous amount of meat, 3/4 lb. or more.  We both stopped eating at half a sandwich, not unusual for skinny, little Moshe, but me?

Lots of pickles, sour and/or half-sour came with the sandwiches.  This was a real return to normal.

. . .

At the Republican National Convention last summer, Donald Trump articulated a major theme, one that continues to resonate with GOP politicians across the country.  “The goal of cancel culture is to make decent Americans live in fear of being fired, expelled, shamed, humiliated and driven from society as we know it.”  Like Liz Cheney, right?

Tuesday, May 11, 2021

The New York Times endorsed Kathryn Garcia in the very crowded Democratic mayoral primary next month, which will have ranked voting for the first time.  For better or worse, the field is loaded with very good candidates.  My first choice was Scott Stringer, currently City Comptroller (sic).  He has held more jobs in city politics than anyone else and built a consistent record of accomplishments.  And then, an accusation of sexual misconduct in 2001 emerges, abuse she says, consensual he says.

Kathryn Garcia successfully ran the testosterone-rich Sanitation Department and led an effort to reform the New York City Housing Authority, a thankless task.  Eric Adams is Brooklyn Borough President, an ex-cop who has navigated tough waters.  Shaun Donovan was United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and Director of the US Office of Management and Budget for Barack Obama.  Mila Wiley is a talented lawyer, professor and civil rights activist, who has worked closely with Bill de Blasio without entirely ruining her reputation.

Just not Andrew Yang. 

. . .

"One lawyer negotiating a resolution to the multi-billion-dollar bankruptcy filed by the Boy Scouts of America billed $267,435 in a single month.  Another charged $1,725 for each hour of work.”  I wonder if there is a merit badge for Billing?

Wednesday,  May 12, 2021

The Pew Research Center has released a comprehensive report on American Jewish life.  Here is a simplified version of key findings:

https://forward.com/news/469320/slideshow-americas-jews-in-2020/?utm_source=Email%20Article&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Email%20Article

Here is the whole megillah:

https://www.pewforum.org/2021/05/11/jewish-americans-in-2020/

The most interesting (shocking) piece of information deals with intermarriage: 72% of non-Orthodox Jews who married since 2010 have a non-Jewish spouse.  This has probably cut down dramatically on the sales of a second set of dishes.

. . .

The plates were paper, the utensils plastic, but the chopsticks were made of wood, keeping a vital connection to our beloved Chinatown shrine -- Wo Hop, 17 Mott Street.  Today, the Boyz Club was back in Chinatown in strength, 7 hungry guys returning to the way of life which brought them fame and fortune.  The Wo Hop staff, the real Wo Hop staff, put together a table outdoors which held us all.  In fact, shanties, lean-tos, succahs, huts, cabins and yurts could be seen all over Chinatown in response to the Republican Flu.

We ate heartily, enjoying every bite of our egg rolls, cold sesame noodles, duck chow fun, beef chow fun, honey crispy chicken, beef with scallions and vegetable fried rice for $17 a person. 

Thursday, May 13, 2021

The situation in Israel stinks.  Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 83 people in Gaza; hundreds of rockets from Gaza have been aimed at Israel, some reaching Tel Aviv, with seven deaths.  "Alongside those now-familiar scenes, Jewish and Arab citizens have clashed in the worst violence in decades in Israeli cities — stoning cars, burning offices and places of worship, and forming mobs that have dragged people from their vehicles and beat them to within an inch of their lives."  https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/05/13/world/israelgaza-news/

Issues large and small, ancient and modern fuel the anger on both sides.  This time a real estate dispute in Jerusalem lit the flame.  Jews righteously demanded return of property once owned by Jews, now occupied by Arabs, while righteously denying the return of property once owned by Arabs, now occupied by Jews.  Or maybe the perilous political future of Bibi Netanyahu is to blame or the continuing power struggle between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.  Or the ebbing of concern for the Palestinian cause by nearby Arab states.  Tell me.

. . .

Ginia Bellafante, an always provocative columnist, asks "Why Sexual Misconduct Is Unforgivable but Corruption Is Overlooked"?  https://nyti.ms/3tNr7QB

She cites a paper by political scientists that finds that "reelection of corrupt politicians is not merely a trait of developing nations characterized by weak political and economic institutions but is also found in established democracies such as Italy, Japan, and the United States."   https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/full/10.1146/annurev-polisci-052715-11191

My byline is unlikely to appear in any scholarly journal ever again, but I will postulate that the American reaction to carnality versus greed reversed after our exposure to Bill Clinton's conduct with Monica Lewinsky.  We would tolerate sexual exploitation/misconduct/abuse as long as it stayed off the front pages.  

. . .

Take an epidemiologist to lunch, or at least make the offer.  "As a group, they remain conservative in their choices about how to behave safely, and are more cautious than many Americans."  

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/12/upshot/covid-epidemiologists.html?campaign_id=29&emc=edit_up_20210513&instance_id=30739&nl=the-upshot&regi_id=599756&segment_id=57957&te=1&user_id=1353d3a345e55ff509b5cbb17ed36984

Friday, May 14, 2021

My guess is that newspaper headlines are probably not written by the person who wrote what follows, but attempt to capture the substance.  Today, a headline annoyed me sufficiently that I skipped the text.  "For the Sake of Peace, Israel Must Rout Hamas."

Hamas is a symptom of the broad crisis in the Middle East.  However, even though I share the columnist's pro-Israel orientation, I marvel at his naive formulation.  Israel was at risk before Hamas and will remain so after its defeat.

The existential danger to Israel is within, more than one, in fact.  The most immediate is the conflict between Israeli Jews and Israeli Arabs now exploding in the streets, resulting from the warped Israeli version of law and order, not unlike our own Black and White scenario.  

Hamas's rockets, though occasionally deadly, are a finite threat.  They evoke strong, often disproportionate, retaliation, which should surprise no one.  Israeli Arab resentment, on the other hand, runs deep and is refueled by the Netanyahu regime faster than the surreptitious inflow of weapons to Gaza from Iran.  It cannot be bombed or blockaded or barricaded out of existence.  

Pluralism is under attack in Israel, as it is here.  There is no other path to a healthy society.

Never Odd Or Even

Monday, May 3, 2021

In case you still have a job and have a choice where to perform it, a recent study suggests "The Best (and Worst) States for Remote Work."    https://wallethub.com/edu/best-states-for-working-from-home/72801

 

Without being too chauvinistic, I am suspicious about the results.  I can't imagine any situation where Mississippi is better than Hawaii. 

. . .

If continuing to work remotely is not your goal and you are looking for an excuse to move now that you are no longer homebound, consider the politics of your potential neighbors.    https://nyti.ms/3gSYZJ2

 

Tuesday, May 4, 2021

The executive director of the Jewish History Museum of Tucson, Arizona, a Jewish woman of color, has resigned in a controversy with the institution's major benefactors.  She said that she wanted "to place our history alongside the history of others, to make connections between the things we have experienced as Jews, with the experience of others in our wider community," particularly African Americans at present.     https://forward.com/fast-forward/468774/first-jew-of-color-to-lead-an-american-jewish-museum-resigns-citing-gender/

 

The husband and wife donors asked that their name be removed from the Museum's Holocaust Resource Center, because “We donate to anything that helps educate people about the horrors of the Holocaust as long as it is apolitical.”  Remember those non-partisan Nazis? 

. . .

It seems that we are reaching the tipping point of lunacy.  "Debate Erupts at N.J. Law School After White Student Quotes Racial Slur"   https://nyti.ms/3eOmWyK

In a discussion of criminal law, the student quoted the defendant's words contained in the court's decision signed by the judge.  It wasn't the aptness of the reference that aroused controversy, it was the bad word itself, spoken aloud.

Should medical students refrain from saying Cancer, returning to use of the "C word," once common to avoid disturbing people?  Ugliness does not have to be embraced, but avoiding it does little to advance understanding of our surroundings. 

Wednesday, May 5, 2021

There is art and there is artifact.  They both merit admiration, although only one has transcendent value.  Consider:

Dennis, Nell, Edna, Leon, Nedra, Anita, Rolf, Nora, Alice, Carol, Leo, Jane, Reed, Dena, Dale, Basil, Rae, Penny, Lana, Dave, Denny, Lena, Ida, Bernadette, Ben, Ray, Lila, Nina, Jo, Ira, Mara, Sara, Mario, Jan, Ina, Lily, Arne, Bette, Dan, Reba, Diane, Lynn, Ed, Eva, Dana, Lynne, Pearl, Isabel, Ada, Ned, Dee, Rena, Joel, Lora, Cecil, Aaron, Flora, Tina, Arden, Noel, and Ellen sinned.

. . .

The decision this morning by Facebook's Oversight Board to maintain the ban on Donald Trump obviously raises questions about the role of a private (non-governmental) entity in the public sphere.  When "free speech" is invoked, many forget that it applies to government restraint, not any or all utterances.  I'm reminded of the issue raised by the "white primaries," the restriction placed by Democratic parties in the Deep South on participation in their primaries, that is limited to white people only.  The parties claimed status as private organizations, beyond the reach of governmental power.  The 14th and 15th Amendments were understood to apply to "state action" only.  

 

In 1944, the Supreme Court, reversing itself, ruled 8–1 against the white primary system, holding that Texas, by delegating its authority to its state's Democratic Party, unconstitutionally denied voters based on their race.  So, the constitutional right to vote cannot succumb to the constitutional right to freedom of association.  But, may the Vegetarian Party bar carnivores from its ranks or the Working Families Party bar unemployed bachelors?  Does the success of the organization make a difference?  Is Facebook no different than CharliesBackyardGossipGroup.com?

 

Thursday, May 6, 2021

Happy 90th Birthday, Willie Mays.

. . .

We did it!  Stony Brook Steve, Michael Ratner and I went to Chinatown for lunch today, breaking the blockade.  Many shanties were up, providing outdoor dining.  Yet, many places were closed and the streets were relatively quiet.  There were few tourists and the court employees in the nearby buildings have not returned to work. 

We headed immediately to Wo Hop, 17 Mott Street, the beloved home of classic Chinatown Cantonese Chinese food.  However, once we got to Mott Street, we learned that it was closed for a short vacation and we sat down outdoors at Wo Hop Next Door, formerly Wo Hop City, formerly just Wo Hop, 15 Mott Street.  At one time, the two joints were thought of as one, 15 at street level, 17 one flight down, but I abandoned 15 several years ago when a dish of cold sesame noodles proved inedible. 

My charitable view of the world kept us from seeking an alternative once seated, a mistake as it turns out.  We ordered conservatively, sort of greatest hits: egg rolls, beef chow fun, pork fried rice, sweet and sour chicken and vegetable lo mein.  Most items were bland, the lo mein almost as salty as the sesame noodles years before.  But, it was Chinatown and the portions were large.

. . .

Speaking of food, Michelin has released its 2021 Holy Land restaurant ratings.  https://ny.eater.com/2021/5/6/22422661/michelin-restaurants-nyc-stars-2021

What I noticed about the list, aside from how few I have visited, is how new so many of the establishments are, just a few years old.  Maybe New York rents, the pace of life or the neurotic citizenry have instilled instability in the local restaurant market, even pre-Covid.  When I think of the places that I can't afford to eat in in Paris or London, they are the same year to year.  Here, they seem to keep changing.

Michelin isn't just for snobs.  There is a secondary list of good(ish) deals, places I am much more likely to patronize.  https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/new-york-state/restaurants/bib-gourmand   Use this as a guide once you start stepping out again.

. . .

Regarding free speech: The National Hockey League fined the New York Rangers today for criticizing the league's Department of Player Safety for the minimal punishment of a player who injured two of its players in a single brawl on Monday night.  The team's fine was 50 times the amount charged the offending player.  Expensive speech.

Friday, May 10, 2021

You don't have to be Jewish to be interested in Israel's approach to economic development, agronomy, human rights, electoral politics, immigration, military strategy, water conservation, and family law among other topics.  Here is a recording of a brilliant, provocative presentation about Israel's future by Dan Ben-David, economics professor at Tel Aviv University, which I heard live on Monday.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbv7fyjhDyM

It's not good news.  About half of Israel's youth are either Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) or Arab, both getting inferior education in secular subjects, the Haredi by choice, the Arabs by neglect.  And, each of these populations has birth rates far exceeding the rest of Israeli society.  Under these circumstances, Ben-David believes that, barring significant reforms, Israel will sink to third-world status.  Listen to him with a stiff drink at hand.

On the Road Again

Monday, April 26, 2021 

We had not visited our second and third generations in Massachusetts for over a year, because of the pandemic.  I spotted a big change on the highway as soon as we entered Massachusetts from Connecticut, intending to refill at the famously inexpensive gas station at exit 1 of I-84, except the first exit was now exit 3.  I thought that this was an aberration until I proceeded on the Massachusetts Turnpike, I-90, heading to exit 13, Natick, and found that Natick was now at exit 117.  

Softa, the Russian-born other grandmother of the Bar Mitzvah boy, a professional civil engineer, explained that the renumbering of interstate highway exits followed federal law.  If a state takes a certain percentage of its highway funds from the federal government, its interstate highway exits had to correspond to the distance from the state line.  While the federal Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) mandated exit numbering in 1971, Massachusetts just caught up with it since I last drove there.

So, Natick was now identified as 117 miles on the Mass Pike from the New York State line, instead of the 13th exit from the start of the Mass Pike at the opposite edge of the state.

If you are not yet excited by this information, let me tell you about the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, that state's two major north-south limited-access routes.  Exits on the New Jersey Turnpike are numbered sequentially from the southern border with Delaware, while the numbers of the Garden State Parkway's exits are the distance from the most southern tip of New Jersey on the Atlantic Ocean.  Both highways end at the New York State line, the Parkway after exit 172, the Turnpike after exit 18.  The Parkway's numbering scheme apparently originated with its piecemeal opening in the 1950s, long before the MUTCD; the Turnpike remains unchanged till this day.  Live and learn.

. . .

Our grandson did a marvelous job with his Bar Mitzvah, witnessed by hundreds of people in the United States and Israel.  I even chanted a brief Hebrew blessing aloud without the sky falling.

Sunday night, a party of nine of us went to dinner right near the very scenic Boston harbor front.  We chose Wagamama, 100 Northern Avenue, a casual pan-Asian restaurant that my young bride and I first visited in London where it has several branches.  It turns out that Boston has three Wagamama locations and at least one of them allowed us to eat outside.

I had grilled duck ramen, a duck leg in vegetable broth with noodles, cilantro, ponzu sauce (citrus-based sauce usually combined with soy sauce), bok choy, chilies, scallions and half a tea-stained egg ($19).  The generous portion was hearty and tasty.  To further counter the chilly wind off the water, I had mint tea, real mint leaves, not a skimpy bag.

. . .

In case you are not dazzled by how some of the most successful companies avoid paying income taxes (https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/02/business/economy/zero-corporate-tax.html), consider how "C.E.O. Pay Remains Stratospheric, Even at Companies Battered by Pandemic."  https://nyti.ms/3xnE7zp

In other words, if you win you win and if you lose you win, except if you are an ordinary citizen, one of Leona Helmsley's "little people."   http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1891335_1891333_1891317,00.html

. . .

On both halves of our road trip this weekend, we stopped for lunch at Dottie's Diner @ Phillips, 787 Main Street South, Woodbury, Connecticut, off exit 15 of I-84, which retains the sequential numbering scheme within the state.  We stop here more often than not, because it is about halfway and it serves good classic diner food for breakfast and lunch only.    

The secret is to arrive before 11:30 A.M., when Dottie's serves some elaborate pancake, waffle and French toast concoctions, such as lemon ricotta pancakes or banana nut French toast in the $8-10 range.  It also does its own baking, allowing some of us to pack up an extra chocolate chip cookie for the rest of the ride.    

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

They say that nothing succeeds like success.  Below, we have evidence of it.  The Republican majorities in the Michigan state legislature, buoyed by the Republican majority on the Michigan Supreme Court and armed protestors in and around the Capitol building, have gone to great lengths to stymie the efforts of the Democratic governor to curb Covid-19.  The result, 9 of 10 and 17 of 20 locations in the country with the highest average daily rates of new cases are in Michigan.

Average daily cases, last two weeks

Metro or micro area		Population	Recent cases	Daily Per 100k
1	Muskegon, Mich.	173,566	1,821	74.9
2	Flint, Mich.	405,813	4,075	71.7
3	Lewiston-Auburn, Me.	108,277	1,077	71.0
4	Bay City, Mich.	103,126	986	68.3
5	Adrian, Mich.	98,451	918	66.6
6	Grand Rapids, Mich.	1.1 mil.	9,752	64.8
7	Saginaw, Mich.	190,539	1,718	64.4
8	Detroit	4.3 mil.	38,189	63.1
9	Owosso, Mich.	68,122	600	62.9
10	Holland, Mich.	118,081	985	59.6
11	Klamath Falls, Ore.	68,238	558	58.4
12	Mount Pleasant, Mich.	69,872	563	57.6
13	Jackson, Mich.	158,510	1,267	57.1
14	Battle Creek, Mich.	134,159	1,070	57.0
15	Ionia, Mich.	64,697	505	55.8
16	Monroe, Mich.	150,500	1,152	54.7
17	Peoria, Ill.	366,221	2,768	54.0
18	Midland, Mich.	83,156	596	51.2
19	Kalamazoo-Portage, Mich.	340,743	2,427	50.9
20	Lansing, Mich.	482,269	3,017	44.7
69	New York City area	19.9 mil.	84,292	30.3

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/23/upshot/five-ways-to-monitor-coronavirus-outbreak-us.html

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Khokhem David Goldfarb sent me an editorial from the Wall Street Journal with the subheading "Latest Biden plan rejects the old social contract of work for benefits."  That vaunted social contract was geared to maximize benefits for the owners.  When pools of cheaper labor were discovered in the southern states, then Latin America and Asia, many subscribers to the Wall Street Journal fled communities that supported them for generations with breakneck speed.  Now that socialism for the rich is being met with economic justice for others, there doesn't seem to be enough Jergens Lotion to lubricate the righteous hand wringing.

. . .

I was fortunate to have the company of Michael Ratner and Stony Brook Steve for lunch today.  Our initial destination, Land Thai Kitchen, 450 Amsterdam Avenue, was closed, so we crossed the street to Gazala's Restaurant, 447 Amsterdam Avenue, a Druze restaurant, a rarity outside the Levant, and sat at one of the six outdoor tables.

I ordered the lamb wrap, chewy chunks of lamb (maybe too chewy) in "saag pita" (a very large crêpe), with hummus, chopped tomato, lettuce and tahini, good, but very messy ($12.50).  Michael had falafel the same way ($10.50), while Steve had the Veggie Platter, hummus, babaganoush, falafel, labane (whipped cheese) and fried cigars, served with saag pita, a best buy at $14.

. . .

It's been a busy week at Palazzo di Gotthelf and, when we could not quickly locate the can opener at dinner time, we hastened out to Thai 72, 128 West 72nd Street, with eight tables outside in a ramshackle structure that was adequate in the mild evening.

I started with roti canai, normally my first course in a Malaysian restaurant.  The small pancake was properly crispy, but the buttery curry sauce had slices of chicken, pieces of potato, onion and chopped peanuts, just too ongepotchket ($10).  I then had drunken noodles with shrimp (5 small, but not baby, size); broad noodles cooked with green peppers, red peppers, onions, carrots, broccoli, eggs and chopped peanuts ($16).  Good enough for sitting in the middle of West 72nd Street.  

America's Favorite Epidemiologist, nearly exhausted from answering inquiries about health and safety from all quarters, was revived by Ginger Tofu Eggplant, sauteed Thai eggplants, onions, bell peppers, carrots, zucchini and baby corn ($13).

Friday, April 30, 2021

Same old song.  "Only 8 Black Students Are Admitted to Stuyvesant High School"  https://nyti.ms/3t4raaz

. . .

It's uncommon, but I think that this newspaper story about a law suit by a Chinese-American police officer against a Black man demonstrating against racism deserves a sound track.   https://nyti.ms/3vqfUXC

Appropriately enough, "Avenue Q," the profane, puppet-populated Broadway show, offers the right melody.

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=th4FMmNQpAk&list=RDAMVMth4FMmNQpAk