Friday, October 11, 2024

Ever Again

Saturday, October 5, 2024 
Which country leads the world in innovation, asks The Economist. Its answer is Switzerland, followed by Sweden, United States, Singapore and Great Britain. 

If this result surprises you as it did me, note that the article says it “adopts a broad definition of innovation.” I’m not sure how I would define innovation — number of patents, adoption of technology, improvements in public services? Of course, the issue always remains “To what end?” Consider Henry David Thoreau’s comment: “We are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas; but Maine and Texas, it may be, have nothing important to communicate.”

Sunday, October 6, 2024
The Washington Post has published an important investigation into Hamas’s preparations for the October 7th attack on Israel.

It helps one understand the initial success of the invasion and the challenge of the Israeli response. It found that, instead of relying on outside sources, much of the weaponry was developed in Gaza in a vast underground network that seemed to be vastly underestimated by the IDF and outside observers generally. “Costing, at minimum, hundreds of millions of dollars — money that Hamas diverted from humanitarian and economic development projects intended to improve the lives of ordinary Gazans — the tunnel system by Oct. 7 extended more than 300 miles, longer than the New York City subway, or about the distance from Tel Aviv to southern Turkey.”

An ugly consequence of this accomplishment is the vast destruction of lives and property as Israel sought to eliminate this critical element of the Hamas war effort.
.  .  .

As a renter, your feelings about your local real estate market are probably determined by your position -- well entrenched vs. poised to change. What's considered a hot market may be too scalding for many.    

If God rivals or exceeds Mammon in making your life choices, regard this. "The Dallas-Fort Worth region is home to more than 6,500 houses of worship, the highest concentration in the top 10 largest urban regions in the country, according to the 2020 U.S. religion census. Four of the 20 largest churches in the country are in the area."

Monday, October 7, 2024
Today is another day that will live in infamy. I cannot imagine an appropriate way to commemorate this day in the future. However, David Prager makes a valuable contribution. 
.  .  .

How can you ignore a place called Handsome Rice, 133 East 31st Street, especially when it is around the corner from one of the multitude of doctors now on my payroll? It’s a tiny storefront with four two-tops on the sidewalk and a shed at the curb. It serves Korean comfort food and hamburgers.

I ordered bulgogi, a large portion of tasty shredded, marinated beef ribeye over purple rice (that’s where the handsome comes in) ($15).

Tuesday, October 8, 2024
Another day, another doctor. This time it’s for mo’ MOHS, an attack on an ugly patch of skin on my forehead.
.  .  .

To begin the healing process, I had lunch with Terrific Tom at The Corner, 698 Ninth Avenue, my second visit in a few weeks, the memory of a very good lunch still fresh in my mind. Of course, another $20 off coupon helps my appetite.

We dug in and had an excellent meal, starting with Peking duck egg rolls ($14 for 2 pieces) and thin, crispy scallion pancakes ($8). Then, we turned to main courses, large portions of walnut shrimp, “Crispy giant prawns are quick-fried and tossed in our grand marnier sauce” ($28), and Sizzling Black Pepper Filet Mignon, stir-fried with mushrooms and onions ($26). The flavors nicely contrasted, both delicious. 

On each occasion, The Corner had very little business at lunchtime. It is located right in the Theater District and maybe it has a bustling dinner business to keep its doors open. I can only hope.

Wednesday, October 9, 2024
Last week, Marjorie Taylor Greene, congressional representative from Georgia, created a new scientific discipline, ethnopolitical meteorology. “Yes they can control the weather. It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.”
Since then, it has been bantered about as to who these hurricane propagators are. We Jews are the #1 candidates, always a reasonable deduction. However, I am dubious. We are just too busy exercising international political and economic power to deal with the weather.

Thursday, October 10, 2024
This headline caught my eye. "TD Bank Pleads Guilty and Pays $3 Billion to Settle Money-Laundering Case." I am awed by a business having $3 billion lying around to be able to pay such an enormous fine. Or, do they have to borrow money from the Rothschilds?
.  .  .

Quote of the week.
Thordur O. Thordarson, the Reykjavik museum’s chief operating officer: “We are a penis museum, yes, but we are a serious penis museum.”

Friday, October 11, 2024
Kamala Harris calls for us “to turn the page,” a convenient way to distance herself from Presidents Biden and Trump, the former viewed as a burden, the latter as an obstacle. I wish it were that easy. I recoiled at this print headline, slightly different on-line. “A Columbia Student Group Endorses Hamas and Oct. 7”

I believe that this group, at least, is so deeply rooted in historic prejudice that a future of reconciliation and peace is unattainable. 5785, please prove me wrong!
.  .  .

After that recent episode with the bacon grease at Temple Israel of Natick, I am trying to stay within the boundaries of my faith/heritage/religion/nationality/ethnicity/ancestry/belief system/tradition/tribe. Therefore, I am releasing this missive before sundown ushers in Tishrei 10. To play it safe, you might want to wait a day to read it.



Posted by at 2 comments:

Saturday, October 5, 2024

שָׁנָה טוֹבָה‎‎

Saturday, September 28, 2024 
Hurricane Helene has set some unfortunate records for destruction. A number of organizations have stepped forward to aid in the recovery process for the affected areas. 

At the urging of Governor Ron DeSantis, I have assembled a large team of hearty Venezuelans who are being bussed to Tallahassee this weekend to assist Floridians in bringing sunshine back to the Sunshine State.

Sunday, September 29, 2024
I saw this list of allegedly the most important dishes in American cuisine and I knew that I could do better.   https://www.cnn.com/travel/american-food-best-dishes-cuisine?cid=ios_app

Here are my 20 items.
  • Apple pie
  • Bagel and lox 
  • Barbecue
  • Black and white cookie 
  • Blueberry muffin
  • Brownies 
  • Cheesecake 
  • Chocolate chip cookie
  • Coca-Cola
  • Deep dish (Chicago) pizza
  • Eggs Benedict 
  • Grilled steak
  • Hamburger 
  • Hot dog
  • Lobster roll
  • Peanut butter and jelly sandwich 
  • Potato chips 
  • Roast turkey 
  • Southern fried chicken 
  • Spaghetti and meatballs 
Some comments. I am not going to get embroiled in a barbecue debate. Deep dish (Chicago) pizza is a radical departure from classic Neapolitan pizza. Europeans roast good beef, we grill it. The contents of a hamburger and a hot dog were well established, but putting them in a bun was American ingenuity.

Monday, September 30, 2024
Speaking of Southern fried chicken, I went to H Mart, 210 Amsterdam Avenue, which offers high quality produce, a huge inventory of Asian packaged products and prepared food to go, particularly South Korean fried chicken from bb.q Chicken, the international chain. I bought a box of Golden Original Boneless, more than a pound of crunchy pieces ($13.49). There is no place to sit in H Mart, so I walked about a block onto the grounds of Lincoln Towers and parked on a picnic table, where I almost finished the whole box of chicken.

Tuesday, October 1, 2024
Happy Birthday, Susan, Moshe and Jimmy.
.  .  .

New York’s Mayor Eric Adams, the second African American to hold the office, has been indicted by the federal government on charges of using his influence in exchange for luxury travel benefits. This morning, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York admitted to a serious case of mistaken identity. The actual alleged perpetrator is Clarence Thomas, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
.  .  .

My young bride deserved a treat, so we went to Baazi, 2588 Broadway, a new Indian restaurant replacing an old Indian restaurant. Its front is all window and one long wall is mirrored. Half the opposite wall is a bar with a drawing of the Red Fort in Old Delhi in the rest of the space. There is also a second floor that I never saw.

We didn’t eat much, just a main course each, but the food was very good. I had “Hyderabadi murgh biryani,” chicken biryani by any other name ($22). I’ve rarely had better, distinguished in quality and quantity. It was loaded with very tender chicken. The vegetarian side of the table had “Seven leaf saag Paneer,” cottage cheese in super smooth spinach purée ($22).

Wednesday, October 2, 2024
Tonight begins the Jewish High Holidays. Our days run from sunset to sunset. We passed on sunrise to sunrise and midnight to midnight. We will be attending services at the JCC (Jewish Community Center) Harlem, 318 West 118th Street, a new venue for us. I am changing after 20 years, because our synagogue has become a platform for anti-Zionism. To our enemies, Zionism is about the State of Israel, to me, Zionism is about the Jewish people.

Harlem and Jews are not an unusual combination. When Harlem was developed as a residential neighborhood at the turn of the 20th century, Jews flocked there. I don’t know why, but African Americans began to populate the area after WWI, eventually establishing Harlem as the capital of Black America. 

In the last 20 years or so, the demographics have changed with new construction and the refurbishment of older structures. According to the 2020 census, Harlem no longer has a Black majority. 

CCNY, my alma mater, as well as my brother’s and so many of my friends’ till this day, sits in a prominent place in Harlem. Unfortunately, in my day, there were few Black students and negligible engagement with the community.

The college’s student body has changed inversely to the surrounding population. Once home to first generation Jews from the Lower East Side and ethnic enclaves in Brooklyn and the Bronx, it now has a predominantly Black and brown student body, with a strong element of foreign born students.
.  .  .

Before we entered the JCC’s building, I noticed Lee Lee’s Baked Goods, 283 West 118th Street, reputed to have excellent rugelach. What better way to start the new year? We bought half a dozen hefty ones, $3 each. Later in the evening, after returning from services we were able to confirm the wisdom of our purchase. A#1.

The 80 seats at the JCC were all occupied, mostly by whites, but not as monochromatically as too many Jewish congregations. The building, an open rectangle, is easily recognized as having once been a garage. Mira Rivera is the rabbi, the first Filipina-American woman to be ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary. The Rabbinical Assembly (Conservative) prayer book was used and the service was friendly and familiar. We are returning.

Incidentally, given the multi-front warfare in the Middle East and the reaction to it here, the mood of the assembly seemed wary, but ultimately positive.
 

Friday, October 4, 2024
I’m old enough to say “To Hell with the future. I don’t care about what’s coming up.” However, for whatever reason, I’m unwilling to ignore the future. I just looked at recent credit card statements and found that I made 23 contributions to political campaigns from July 10th through September 8th. Involved were the presidential race and a healthy handful of Senate and House contests throughout the country. Quick, who is running against Kirsten Gillibrand?
.  .  .
 
The label Amazin’ Mets emerged in 1969, when the baseball team created in 1962 went from last place in 1968 to win the World Series the next year. This Worst to First run was not singular, but quite rare in all professional sports, especially in baseball. Last night, we saw a giant step in resuscitating the label as the Mets rescued their season with a last minute victory in Milwaukee about as dramatic as the last minute victory three days earlier in Atlanta. It’s a great start to 5785.


Posted by at 1 comment:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)