Chew It Over

Monday, June 22, 2021

We had a very successful weekend in Massachusetts, celebrating with the second and third generations.  I can offer a few tips for your own future enjoyment. 

 

Committee Ouzeri + Bar, 50 Northern Avenue, Boston, is very comfortably arranged for outdoor dining in warm weather.  We had brunch there on Saturday, with some dishes from the Greek/Mediterranean side of the menu.  Notable were the souvlaki, six chunks of grilled, marinated lamb with a scoop of tzatziki ($20) and the shakshuka, made with six eggs to serve two or three people, in a particularly spicy tomato sauce ($24). 

 

If you are blessed to have some tots along with you, order the "Tsoureki Toast," which must be another name for challah French toast.  Committee serves eight thick half slices of bread, accompanied by maple whipped cream, berries and Nutella ($28).  Extra napkins required.

 

Another versatile place in Boston is the Time Out Market, 401 Park Drive, a food court at least a block long, holding a dozen or more vendors.  Each of us went our own way -- pizza, fish tacos, chicken tacos, guilt-inducing salad.  I ordered a roast beef sandwich from Cusser’s Roast Beef & Seafood, Wagyu beef, really rare, sliced thin on an onion roll, with cheddar cheese, pickled red onions and spicy aioli (called Thoreau sauce for some unknown reason) ($16 with $4 worth of extra meat).  A delight.

 

On our way home, we detoured to Amherst to visit old friends.  We had lunch at Formosa Chinese Restaurant, 62 Main Street, where they served a great scallion pancake ($4.95).  

. . .

 

Speaking of food, or what is trying to pass as food, the New York Times followed up on the question of Subway sandwich shops' version of tuna fish.  As a result of a law suit challenging that identification, a reporter "procured more than 60 inches worth of Subway tuna sandwiches [from three different Subway locations around Los Angeles,] . . . removed and froze the tuna meat, then shipped it across the country to a commercial food testing lab."  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/19/style/subway-tuna-sandwich-lawsuit.html

 

According to the "U.S. Food and Drug Administration, there are 15 species of nomadic saltwater fish that can be labeled 'tuna.'” The lab report: "No amplifiable tuna DNA was present in the sample and so we obtained no amplification products from the DNA.  Therefore, we cannot identify the species."  Sorry, Charlie.

. . .

 

With the money that you will save by forgoing ersatz tuna sandwiches, you can consider investing in real estate.  With the sale price of the median U.S. home at $350,000, $1 million should seem to offer real clout.  Here's where to look for expensive homes.  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/17/realestate/where-are-the-million-dollar-homes.html

 

California cities take the top four spots, New York at fifth.  Remarkably, in the San Jose metropolitan area, "the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley," according to Wikipedia, 47% of owner-occupied units are worth more than $1 million, while Kansas City, MO, Louisville, Memphis, Detroit, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Columbus, OH, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Buffalo do not  even reach 1%. 

 

Tuesday, June 22, 2021

I was aiming for a home run tonight.  I met Terrific Tom; we had dinner at Tim Ho Wan, 610 Ninth Avenue, the superb dim sum restaurant; then we headed to the Mets game, rounding third base.  However, the Mets forgot that hitting the baseball is part of the game and they lost, scoring no runs for the second night in a row, effectively throwing us out at the plate. 

 

Back to second base and the dim sum that we shared: baked BBQ pork buns ($6); steamed pork spare ribs with black bean sauce ($5.95); steamed bean curd with shrimp and vegetables ($5.95); siu mai ($5.95); deep fried dumplings with pork and dried shrimp ($5.85); deep fried eggplant with shrimp ($5.95); steamed shrimp dumplings ($5.95).  Believe it or not, there were a few things on the menu that we did not order.  Maybe next time.   

 

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

If Britney Spears were Jewish, her parents would not have had to resort to a conservatorship to control her behavior.  Guilt would have been enough.

 

Thursday, June 24, 2021

In another affirmation of the return to normalcy, the Boyz Club turned out strong for lunch at 456 New Shanghai, 69 Mott Street.  Looking back on what we ate, it seems more like we were going into lockdown not emerging from it.  We had soup buns ($5.95 for 8), "Wontons in Spicy Flavor" ($5.75 for 6), "Scallion Pancake w. Egg & Beef" (2 for $5.95 each), pork in garlic sauce ($6.25), beef with scallion ($6.75), chicken in orange flavor ($6.50), "Baby Shrimp w. Egg Sauce" a/k/a scrambled eggs with shrimp ($6.50), fish fillet in spicy bean sauce ($6.95), eggplant in garlic sauce ($6.25).  The last six dishes, with their low prices, were lunch specials of ample size to go around the table.  They also brought along hot and sour soup and rice.  Bottom line = $12 each for a top rank lunch.

. . .

 

After a lot of lunch, a little politics.  Benjamin Franklin wrote "That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved."  The Washington Post writes "Republican governors in 25 states are in the midst of a giant economic experiment, ceasing enhanced jobless aid for an estimated 4 million people, arguing that the generous benefits are dissuading people from going back to work."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/06/07/gop-pandemic-unemployment-aid/

 

In other words, it is better that 100 needy people (or maybe 4 million) are denied enhanced jobless aid than that one person is dissuaded from going back to work. 

 

Friday, June 25, 2021

The Yiddish term alte kocker may be applied to yourself with affection, to anyone else with derision.  One area where we "seniors" are viewed skeptically by society-at-large is susceptibility to fraud.  Those telephone calls from faux distraught grandsons or Social Security watchdogs seem designed to lower our defenses.  Especially for the older and isolated, a kind and caring voice may serve to cut through the cobwebs surrounding our wallets.  

 

Well, as Austrian novelist Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach wrote: "In youth we learn; in age we understand."  "For years now, the Better Business Bureau’s survey research has shown that younger adults lose money to swindlers much more often than the older people you may think of as the stereotypical victims.  The Federal Trade Commission reports similar figures, with 44 percent of people ages 20 to 29 losing money to fraud, more than double the 20 percent of people ages 70 to 79." https://nyti.ms/3vUy43D

 

 

 

The Enemy Within

Monday, June 14, 2021 

In an odd response to the Republican Flu, rents have been falling and home prices rising in urban America.  The result is that it is cheaper to rent than buy residential real estate in all of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the United States.   https://www.lendingtree.com/home/mortgage/comparing-rent-vs-owning-a-home-in-nations-largest-metros/

This got me to thinking about my own involvement with real estate.  We occupy a parking space by the same logic that we occupy, but not own, our apartment.  We purchased the right to occupy the parking space and continue to pay a monthly fee of $191.75 in support.  My first apartment at 55 Morton Street, in a classic portion of Greenwich Village, cost $105 monthly, rising to $115 within a year.  

"You've come a long way, baby" was the slogan introduced in 1968 for a cigarette intended to poison women.  That was also the year that I moved into 55 Morton Street, appropriately enough.  The building is now a co-op, a form of real estate holding more or less exclusive to the Holy Land.  Pictures of several apartments for sale or rent in that building are displayed on-line, but none even faintly resemble the dark hovel that I occupied on the second floor (first floor European-style), in the back.  $ to $ comparisons are meaningless, therefore, but rents there currently seem to start at $2,495, with purchase prices near $700,000. 

. . .

Typos will be found in any daily newspaper; production problems garble words, sentences, paragraphs.  But, I caught the New York Times flat out using the wrong word when it awkwardly described a start-up business that "makes Canadian toque hats made from old cashmere sweaters."  A toque is the traditional white chef's hat, now often made of paper instead of cotton.  I just couldn't imagine cashmere chef's hats.  How could they stand up tall made of such material?

Google edified me and I shared my findings with the editor of the newspaper.  A touque is the Canadian word for a knitted or crocheted hat, a ski cap typically with that cute pompom on top.  Let's tighten up, New York Times.

. . .

Heartwarming sub-headline: "The gap between workers and C.E.O.s widened during the pandemic as public companies granted top executives some of the richest pay packages ever."

. . .

Here's a paragraph that should be regarded carefully as local politicians craft their campaign rhetoric.  "There was much more violent crime in New York in earlier decades than there is today.  But the city has been experiencing a spike in gun violence, along with jarring crimes on the subway and in bias attacks against Asians, Asian-Americans and Jews."  

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/12/nyregion/progressives-democrats-nyc.html

. . .

You get what you pay for?  New York City's public schools "account for 37 percent of the city’s yearly expenses, more than any other line item."   https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/06/08/magazine/nyc-inequality.html   (This is a long, valuable article about New York's economy overall.)

Tuesday, June 15, 2021

Last night, we had the pleasure of dining with Judy and Dr. Roger P. at Bodrum Mediterranean Restaurant, 584 Amsterdam Avenue.  There are no doubt subtle differences among Turkish, Lebanese, Palestinian, Greek, Druze and Israeli cuisines, but it would take a more sophisticated palate than mine to discern them.  

Bodrum is a city in Turkey, so it is reasonable to identify the restaurant as Turkish and leave it at that.  We ate outside, something that is becoming commonplace even as pandemic precautions diminish.  We started with a sample plate of mezze, a collection of dips, spreads and vegetables eaten with ekmek, a Turkish bread, much closer to focaccia than pita ($18.50).  

Each of us then ordered a main course, although some swapping followed.  I had lamb shish kebab ($22.95), while others had moussaka ($18.95), lamb tagine ($22.95) and imam bayildi, eggplant stuffed with onion, garlic and tomatoes ($11.95).  The food earned a B+, on the whole, but note that their wines are 50% off on Mondays, leaving aside how overpriced they may have been in the first place.  

. . .

"Last year, . . .  the Harris Poll [surveyed] roughly 2,000 American adults and found that 22 percent of the respondents said they had lost money to a phone scam in the past 12 months."

https://nyti.ms/3iXWfJG 

Assuming this survey is accurate, it is rather shocking.  However, if you have a telephone, you have undoubtedly received dire warnings from Social Security, Amazon or Microsoft which may be resolved by pressing 1 on your keyboard, leading you to a young man with a South Asian accent.  Actually, I don't think that you, my typical sophisticated, cosmopolitan, worldly, hip reader, ever bothered to hang on that long, instead cancelling the call immediately.  Of course, my sense of responsibility and curiosity have often kept me on the line to engage the chap on the other end.  Typically, I tell him (invariably a him not a her) that I spoke to his mother that morning and she expressed her disappointment in what he does for a living.   

Wednesday, June 16, 2021

I shop corrected: (not so) spicy cucumber soup and gazpacho are back at Fairway Market, 2131 Broadway ($7.99 each).

. . .

Republicans are apparently standing firm against legislation proposed by the Biden administration.  However, they should not be faulted for ignoring the panoply of problems plaguing our country.  I have seen this draft of legislation being offered in Republican-led jurisdictions throughout the country.

Persons professing a gender identity other than that assigned at conception:

• shall not use any public toilet facilities inconsistent with that identity, or

• shall not be employed in or around any enterprise engaged in the solicitation, entry or tabulation of votes for any public office, or

• shall not compete in any competitive event or contest restricted to members of the other gender, or 

• apply for or collect any public funds while employment opportunities exist within 100 miles of that person's residence, or

• shall not assist any person attempting to effect entry upon the territory of the United States of America who is not certifiably a citizen of the United States, or

• shall not teach persons who have not reached their twenty-first birthday any purported historical precepts or concepts that dismiss or discount the fairness shown by any public authority, national, state or local, to its citizens, individually or collectively at any time. 

Violation of any section of this legislation shall result in a fine of up to $1,000 and/or confinement in a correctional institution for no more than one year.

This legislation is being promoted throughout the country under the common title: Fighting the Greatest Threat to American Freedom Act. 

Thursday, June 17, 2021

It's a birthday,

For a wife,

Of mine.

. . .

Speaking of telephone scams, today I encountered an oldie but goodie.  The quality of the reception was poor, but I heard "Hello, grandpa."  I knew that it was not 13-year-old Boaz, but it sounded like B****, a young friend with whom I have long had an avuncular relationship.  I said his name and the line went dead.  

A moment later, the telephone rang again and, in spite of the bad connection, I heard "Hello, grandpa.  This is B****."  Since my friend has an international position,  I asked whether he was here or there.  He said that he was downtown, had been in a serious automobile accident and was being held on a DWI charge.  

I was immediately concerned and distressed, until he asked if I could post bail for him.  While I still thought that I recognized his voice under the bad connection, my empathy (rarely in abundant supply) evaporated.  Giving my caller one last thread of legitimacy, I asked if he had reached his wife, an exemplary human being.  With that, the call ended abruptly. 

So, grandpas and grandmas, tell your friends not to drink and drive.

Friday, June 18, 2021

Given the proximity of my young bride's birthday and Father's Day, we decided to combine celebrations in the presence of our second and third generations.  So, we hit the road to Eastern Massachusetts for the weekend.  I observed an interesting message from a hospital group on a billboard just outside Hartford, Connecticut, while driving on I-84.  "Our ERs: Clean and safe."  Great!  You can go ahead and have your accident now.

Away and Home

Monday, June 7, 2021 

I don't hesitate to express my preference for the Holy Land over any domestic location, but I was tested Sunday morning.  At 8:30 AM in Los Altos, California, we walked (!) about 1/2 mile to Coupa Cafe, 4748 El Camino Real, and sat outside for breakfast.  The temperature was 61°, but the bright sun made it feel warmer, while my smartyphone told me that it was 90° and three hours later in New York City.  I had the Breakfast Wrap - scrambled eggs, bacon, tomato, avocado, cheddar cheese in a flour tortilla ($12.50), donating the side of fruit to my mate who was eating the Breakfast Crepe - scrambled eggs, mushroom, avocado, gouda cheese in a buckwheat crêpe ($12.50).  El Camino Real, the wide boulevard in front of us, is a name found in just about every California city or town.  There was barely any traffic that time of the morning, allowing us to enjoy the fresh air and relative quiet.  Of course, if our bodies really thought that it was 8:30 AM, we would not have ventured further than the bathroom in our hotel room.

. . .

One unexpected pleasure on the flight home from San Francisco was the showing of "All That Jazz," the overwrought, semi-autobiographical film by Bob Fosse.  I remembered my enjoyment when it was originally released in 1979 and I wanted to see it again, especially the brilliant photography and editing of the opening scenes. 

I have no idea whether the show biz theme of "All That Jazz" has any special appeal to the LBGTQ community, but Delta Airlines seemed to have firmly jumped into Gay Pride Month.  The other movies that it was showing on-board included "Brokeback Mountain" and "The Celluloid Closet," a documentary on Hollywood's handling of gay themes.  I found this quite a contrast to the usual collection of films featuring talking animals.

. . .

Covid certainly made it more difficult to buy/sell a home and relocate.  The weekend's real estate section provided a list of those markets where the number of active home listings fell the most in the last 12 months, 55% to 73%.  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/03/realestate/home-listings.html

In only two of the top 20 locations where the inventory shrunk dramatically did prices fall, otherwise, the classic supply and demand model prevailed.  The expensive cities, San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, San Jose and Boston, were the least volatile, but also saw price increases. 

. . .

Those clever Communists in Venezuela or Italy or China who rigged the 2020 election did a brilliant job, although some good Americans have seen through the deceit.  See https://nyti.ms/2ShBhwb and https://nyti.ms/3z333xj

I marvel at how the evil interference so precisely addressed only the presidential race, allowing loyal Republicans to perform relatively well in almost all other elections throughout the country contrary to predictions.  Those are some clever critters we are up against.

Tuesday, June 8, 2021

Not all of you may have returned to anything near pre-pandemic levels of activity, but I have resumed very active participation in my favorite hobby -- grocery shopping -- and I want to share a few significant observations.  Trader Joe's, 2073 Broadway, situated completely below street level, has reinstated two lines for checkout without any evidence of hastening the process. 

Fairway Market, 2131 Broadway, has not returned to old ways, rather it has made several unsatisfactory changes resulting from its takeover by ShopRite Supermarkets.  Fairway's house brands have disappeared, replaced by ShopRite merchandise labeled Bowl & Basket.  Notably gone are the quart containers of gazpacho and spicy cucumber soup, two ideal starters in hot weather.  While Zabar's, 2245 Broadway, has its own excellent versions plus a delicious cold fruit soup, the round trip is 2/3 of a mile longer on foot, to be avoided with 90° temperature upon us.

Actually, the abandonment of its own brands started at Fairway well before it lost its independence.  An excellent coconut sorbet disappeared years ago as well as a line of pasta sauce more recently.  Finally, Hebrew National tongue, sliced to order, has been gone for two months, which I hope is just a matter of finding the right end of the cow.

Wednesday, June 9, 2021

Until I read last week's issue of The New Yorker, I never heard of Chamath Palihapitiya and now I hope that I never hear of him again.

. . .

Chinatown called again and the Boyz Club gathered at Shanghai 21, 21 Mott Street.  In the hot weather, we skipped the outdoor shanty and chose a comfortable indoor spot.  Six of us shared soup buns (8 for $7.25), scallion pancakes (I over ordered two at $4.75 each), cold sesame noodles ($6.75), diced chicken in hoisin sauce ($15.25), tangerine beef ($18.50), eggplant with garlic sauce ($13.25) and egg fried rice ($7.50).  The bottom line amounted to $17 each and no need to worry about dinner.

. . .

Another reason to skip meals is the nausea aroused by this story: "Wealthiest Executives Paid Little to Nothing in Federal Income Taxes, Report Says"  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/08/us/politics/income-taxes-bezos-musk-buffett.html   In print, the headline was inconsistently capitalized as "Richest in U.S. Pay All but Nil In Income Tax." 

Here is the report itself. 

https://www.propublica.org/article/the-secret-irs-files-trove-of-never-before-seen-records-reveal-how-the-wealthiest-avoid-income-tax

If you want to be spared most of the details and go right to the indignation, I recommend the short essay "The Real Tax Scandal Is What's Legal."   https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/08/opinion/income-tax-billionaires.html 

As the writer cogently points out, "For tax purposes in the United States, income is basically defined as money."  This ignores the value of assets, which is what really makes the rich rich.

Thursday, June 10, 2021

"Through Saturday, 678 people in the city had been killed or injured in 594 shootings so far this year.  Both figures were up about 69 percent compared with the same period in 2020, when 402 people were wounded in 352 shootings.  The number of victims was the highest for the period since 2002, according to Police Department data."  I think that this paragraph from today's paper should be required reading for our politicians, just in case they want to continue to entice voters with calls to defund the police. 

Police brutality and skewed law enforcement are chronic issues throughout this country and white people have a lot to learn about them.  However, the murder of a 10-year-old Black boy at his front door (the reported event containing the paragraph above) has a visceral impact on Black and white parents alike.  Local news broadcasts too often lead with similar stories.  For at least a moment or two, a desire for swift justice, law and order, unites much of the population, including a whole lot of people who vote.   

Friday, June 11, 2021

I returned to Chinatown today on an errand which conveniently coincided with lunchtime.  I went into Hay Hay Roasted, 81 Mott Street, very nicely redecorated inside and outside since it was Hoy Fong, a 42-year fixture.  The window is full of roasted meats and poultry, dark mahogany and shiny with dripping fat.  Seating is now offered only on nine tall stools facing a long counter.  One other person sat down while I was there, but the restaurant was doing a very busy takeout and delivery business.  

I had half a roasted duck ($13.50), the target of my visit.  It was tasty and greasy.  Fortunately, the joint's bathroom was clean and well-equipped, allowing me to scrub up afterwards.  

The streets were busy and the copyright infringers were out in full force.  I passed on myriad opportunities to purchase Cucci leather goods and Polex watches.  I couldn't resist, however, cherries as cheap as $1/lb. and mangos at $1 each, bigger and smaller ones priced accordingly.   

. . .

 

Jew, Jew, Jew!  I am sure that you may be as tired as I am of harping on this topic.  But, as Michael Corleone observed, "Just When I Thought I Was Out.  They Pull Me Back In."  While I would rather be focusing on the Mets sitting comfortably in first place in their division, the Democratic Socialists of America come along inquiring of candidates for New York City Council: “Do you pledge not to travel to Israel if elected to City Council in solidarity with Palestinians living under occupation?  Even though foreign policy falls outside the purview of municipal government, gestures like travel to a country by elected officials from a city the size and prominence of New York still send a powerful message, as would the refusal to participate in them." 

Even as the DSA acknowledges how far afield the question is, it finds only one country's policies offensive enough to urge a travel ban.  That is vicious and arouses my Brooklyn instincts.  Baciami il culo, DSA.

Up, Up and Away

Monday, May 31, 2021

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been awarded the Newt Gingrich Defender of Family Values Prize after the announcement that he married for the third time to the woman who moved in with him while he was still married to his second wife.  Like Gingrich, his third marriage was conducted in a Roman Catholic church.

. . .

Ginia Bellafante is a New York Times columnist with a left-wing perspective.  This weekend, she wrote about the New York County District Attorney race, a law enforcement position of national consequence.  She profiled several of the many candidates and I found one comment of particular interest.  “The issue with [a certain candidate] is not that she lacks the sensitivities this particular moment is calling for; rather, she offers no break in the long and dubious tradition of handing the office over to those who live at the top of an intricately knit network of wealth and power, far from the ordinary realities."
https://nyti.ms/3fttCnf

Note that the idea of "handing the office over" for major local offices disappeared with the demise of Carmine DeSapio.  While the incumbent and his predecessor both emerged from "the top of an intricately knit network of wealth and power," each gained office initially in highly contested elections. 

I don't think that Bellafante is trying to make an observation solely about the New York County District Attorney.  After all, New York City and State have been led by a Lehman, a Harriman, a Rockefeller, a Bloomberg in my lifetime.  Of course, we would have to ignore the plebian origins of Giuliani, Dinkins, Koch, Beame, Pataki, et alia.  As for Cuomo father and son, we have both sides of the coin, Mario rising from humble origins provided son Andrew with an elevated launching pad for his political career. 

Behind these grubby details is the idea that "the top of an intricately knit network of wealth and power" is not the proper starting point for our political leaders.  What has been labelled "the arrogance of power" may be rooted in the arrogance of wealth and/or class.  It is only one contrary example, but humble origins did little to instill virtue in Richard Nixon.  In fact, one biography is titled "The Arrogance of Power: The Secret World of Richard Nixon."

. . .

If you believe in full exposure, someone has taken the trouble to rate the better and worse places to garden naked.  https://nyti.ms/3fJ0GXu

. . .

It's not Popeyes, but madame and I enjoyed our anniversary dinner at Benoit Bistro, 60 West 55th Street, formerly the site of La Côte Basque, which we visited when it was a "high-society temple of French cuisine" according to the New York Times.  Although owned and operated by Alain Ducasse, reputedly the chef with the most Michelin stars in the world, Benoit is relatively modest in design and aspirations.  It is a bistro serving typical French food in an unfussy setting.  I have to admit that I missed the lovely floral displays that decorated La Côte Basque.  However, Benoit's more modest interior and menu are not accompanied by modest prices.

We shared a starter of "White asparagus, mimosa & gold caviar, hollandaise," tasty, delicate and grossly overpriced at $33.  Our main courses were more appropriately priced; "Seared halibut, braised cabbage & capers, brown butter" ($39) for my young bride, "Skirt steak à la Bordelaise, pommes frites" ($37) for me.  She drank a 2019 Domaine Marc Brédif Vouvray ($16) in honor of the venerable David Goldfarb while I luxuriated in a 2015 Chateau le Puy Cuvee Emilien ($25).  Those were glasses, not bottles.

Overall, the food and the service were very good.  We skipped dessert, because of the two pints of Häagen-Dazs awaiting us in the freezer at Palazzo di Gotthelf making for a very Happy Anniversary.

Tuesday, June 1, 2021

Today starts Pride Month, an expansion of the original celebration of the 1969 Stonewall riot.  In 2019, the signature parade here drew an estimated 5 million spectators.  Success, of course, is never good enough, so the Reclaim Pride Coalition has arisen in opposition to Heritage of Pride, the organization that runs the Pride march, and it has led the effort to exclude the New York Police Department from any role in the event.  https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/28/nyregion/lgbtq-pride-parade-reclaim-heritage.html 

Reclaim Pride has "a broad agenda that goes beyond strictly L.G.B.T.Q. issues to include support for Indigenous people, Palestinians and people who have disabilities or are homeless."  Now, far be it from me to tell people whom they should hang out with, but Reclaim Pride may want to read Amnesty International's latest report on human rights in Palestine.

"The Palestinian authorities in the West Bank and the Hamas de facto administration in the Gaza Strip continued to crack down on dissent, including by stifling freedoms of expression and assembly, attacking journalists and detaining opponents. Security forces in both areas used unnecessary and/or excessive force during law enforcement activities, including when imposing lockdown measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Torture and other ill-treatment of detainees were committed with impunity. Women faced discrimination and violence, including killings as a result of gender-based violence. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people continued to face discrimination and lacked protection. In the West Bank, authorities made widespread use of administrative detention without charge or trial. In Gaza, civilians continued to be tried before military courts. Courts in Gaza handed down death sentences."

https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/middle-east-and-north-africa/palestine-state-of/

 

On the other hand, watch "The Present" on Netflix, a short film (<30 minutes), about daily life for a Palestinian family.

. . .

I have defended the single-test-admissions policy of Stuyvesant High School, my alma mater, in spite of the blatantly inequitable results.  I believe that the test itself is not discriminatory, but the testing process may well be (deficiencies in publicizing, preparation, support).  Additionally, a variety of social and cultural factors may inhibit kids from getting on the right track.  The fact that Stuyvesant is significantly populated by Chinese students living below the poverty line in non-English speaking households should be cause for celebration by all New Yorkers and inspiration for other minority students. 

Some opponents of the current admissions policy advocate the elimination of the specialized academic high schools, open admissions, a position that leaves merit unrewarded.  Others propose a holistic approach to admissions, taking several variables into consideration, presumably quantifiable and qualifiable.  In theory, this is a good idea, considering a number of factors when making a critical choice about a young person's education.  However, it is failing in practice here and now.    

Where "students’ test scores, grades, attendance, or other academic measures [are] used to assess their qualifications for admission" to high schools that screen entry of all students (75 of 485), "clear racial trends" are evident.  While the disparities do not reach the grotesque levels of the specialized academic high schools, Asians and whites take seats disproportionately to Blacks and Latinos.

https://www.thecity.nyc/2021/5/26/22453952/nyc-high-school-algorithms-segregation

Maybe we should just solve the Middle East first.

Wednesday, June 2, 2021

Happy Birthday, ABW MD.

. . .

I was looking for something else when I found a study of the behavior of 209 juvenile court judges in the state of Louisiana.    https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/app.20160390

The study found that, in the period 1996-2012, juvenile court judges gave longer sentences in the week following upset losses by the Louisiana State University football team.  LSU alumni on the bench were notably more affected by an unexpected defeat.  So, judges are only human, right?

. . .

Here is a comforting thought before you go to sleep tonight.  "Since 2002, ViacomCBS and its predecessor companies, Viacom and CBS, together avoided paying $3.96 billion in U.S. corporate income tax through a system that involved subsidiaries in Barbados, the Bahamas, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Britain."  https://nyti.ms/3fVOLWm

Thursday, June 3, 2021

I was amazed, at first, when I put in the address of the home that I owned with my Original Wife in Sherman Oaks, CA and found that its estimated sale price today is $1,334,772.  Wow!  When we split up in 1980, it had been appraised at $210,000.  Then, I remembered that 1980 was a long time ago and I plugged $210,000 into another app that compounded interest.  At 4.5%, a rate exceeded for about 2/3 the period (https://www.bankrate.com/banking/cds/historical-cd-interest-rates/), $210,000 would have grown to $1,324590, effectively the same as the home's estimated selling price. 

But, aggravation arrived when I tracked the Dow Jones Industrial Average, unwisely considered the bellwether of the United States economy.  $210,000 invested in the components of the Dow Jones in 1981 would today be valued at $6,667,456.  That's some meatball.

Friday, June 4, 2021

The Upper West Side's Power Couple, in another step towards normalcy, boarded a flight to San Francisco this morning.  It will be a quick trip to join in the celebration of Noah P.'s Bar Mitzvah, to be conducted at home with family and some friends.  I hope that the conduct of fellow airline passengers doesn't get us off on the wrong foot for the weekend.  I don't imagine that many of them will be accompanied by an epidemiologist.