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.
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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.
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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:
Here is the whole megillah:
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/
. . .
Ginia Bellafante, an always provocative columnist, asks "Why Sexual Misconduct Is Unforgivable but Corruption Is Overlooked"? https://nyti.ms/3tNr7QB
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."
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.
"I wonder if there is a merit badge for Billing?"
ReplyDelete--------
Beautiful!