Trust me, I never thought I'd be one to yearn for the intellectual depth of the Reagan Administration.
Bill Clinton's worst sins were to turn a previously honorable word like "intern" into a national punchline and to force millions of parents to explain what a blow-job was earlier than they would have chosen.
W.'s were errors that struck at the core of our national identity. The secret legal opinions undergirding the Bush "War on Terror" turn out, in the light of day, to be fraud and tomfoolery. Vicious, corrosive tomfoolery.
One can scarcely believe lawyers wrote them with a straight face.
Obama's acts overruling these fiction-filled "legal briefs," and then exposing them to the disinfecting light of day, give me confidence. And pride to be an American.
Hang on. I just re-read something. I'm quoting Reagan and you're quoting Time? Yikes! If anyone sees any lions lying down with lambs or swords being beaten into plowshares, please let us know.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Ronald Wilson Reagan: American Prophet
"A moment I've been dreading. George brought his n'er-do-well son around this morning and asked me to find the kid a job. Not the political one who lives in Florida; the one who hangs around here all the time looking shiftless. This so-called kid is already almost 40 and has never had a real job. Maybe I'll call Kinsley over at The New Republic and see if they'll hire him as a contributing editor or something. That looks like easy work."
From the REAGAN DIARIES -
entry dated May 17, 1986
From the REAGAN DIARIES -
entry dated May 17, 1986
(From the REAGAN DIARIES, recently edited by historian Douglas Brinkley and published by HarperCollins.)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Richard Cohen on Israel
Richard Cohen isn't always right. But Chaim Weizmann usually was.
From yesterday's WaPo: Whose Israel Shall it Be?
From yesterday's WaPo: Whose Israel Shall it Be?
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Who Does What?
With thanks to my cousin Debbie, in Buffalo, for this gem:
A man and his wife were having an argument about who should brew the coffee each morning.
The wife said, 'You should do it because you get up first, and then we don't have to wait as long to get our coffee.
The husband said, 'You are in charge of cooking around here and you should do it, because that is your job, and I can just wait for my coffee.'
Wife replies, 'No, you should do it, and besides, it is in the Bible that the man should do the coffee.'
Husband replies, 'I can't believe that, show me.'
So she fetched the Bible, and opened the New Testament and showed him at the top of several pages, that it indeed says:
Wait for it
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
'HEBREWS'
A man and his wife were having an argument about who should brew the coffee each morning.
The wife said, 'You should do it because you get up first, and then we don't have to wait as long to get our coffee.
The husband said, 'You are in charge of cooking around here and you should do it, because that is your job, and I can just wait for my coffee.'
Wife replies, 'No, you should do it, and besides, it is in the Bible that the man should do the coffee.'
Husband replies, 'I can't believe that, show me.'
So she fetched the Bible, and opened the New Testament and showed him at the top of several pages, that it indeed says:
Wait for it
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
'HEBREWS'
Monday, February 16, 2009
Say Anything
I don’t want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don’t want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don’t want to do that.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Who Moved My Shoulder?
I was coming home from a fairly useful pshrink appointment. The doc stayed awake, my tenuous grasp on reality was reinforced, and I had prescriptions to top of my bottles of Happy Pills.
Driving eastbound on I-66, at the height of rush hour, I encountered a little problem.
Just inside the Beltway, there's a stretch of superhighway with a shoulder on the right that stops being a shoulder from 3:30 until 7:00 pm.
For that benighted time period, it becomes an express lane for buses and vans serving the West Falls Church Metro stop. It's a very bad place to hear your tire start to fail.
The stretch of highway probably only goes on for about a mile and a half. It leads to a flyover with no shoulder. That's about 2 tenths of a mile. That leads to a regular superhighway, with a regular, blessedly sufficient shoulder.
As you may have guessed by now, I was just approaching this abomination of civil engineering, at about 60 mph, when I heard a little rumble. I felt a little shimmy. I looked to my right and realized where I was.
Ruh-roh.
I hit my emergency flashers, slowed to 30, and started to sweat. I may have uttered a barnyard epithet. I didn't really contemplate my doom, but I definitely regretted passing up that extra slice of pecan pie at lunch.
Adding the stretch of road with its procession of suddenly-lethal buses and vans to the subsequent flyover ramp, I now calculate the distance to be about 1.7 miles.
It took me roughly three weeks to traverse. Sweating out roughly one-third of the hourly liquid spillover at Niagara Falls --- as measured by the nonpartisan, bilateral U.S.-Canadian Riparian Cooperation Commission.
I have power windows, so I hit the button to roll them down at the start of my escapade, to smell rubber.
It wasn't too bad when I started. I was contemplating wrecked rims by the time I could finally pull off.
I called the police and I called AAA.
When the AAA guy got there, he scolded me for being on my cell phone while he called me trying to hone in on my location. The mile marker (down to a tenth of a mile) I'd given the dispatcher was clearly too general.
The police sent a guy from V-DOT (Virginia Department of Transportation). He got out of his pick-up with the flashing lights and I finally found out where the father in the trio of hillbillies in Deliverance had moved on to. He had three teeth, a weeks growth of beard, a ciggie dangling from his mouth, and shouted to the AAA guy: "How many people did this guy call, anyway?"
I replied "The cops and Triple-A, which one shouldn't I have called?"
"Well, one of 'em," he explained.
Sotto voce, the AAA guy, who looked like a cross between Willem Defoe and John Riggins, said "You did right, you call both and take whoever comes first."
I was starting to like this guy.
He put my donut on my wheel, assured me I'd missed effing up my rim by a matter of moments, and went to his car for some paperwork.
While he was away, Grampa Hillbilly said "Your flashers have been on an awful long time, maybe you ought to start her up after he comes back."
This guy, too, was beginning to grow on me.
Defoe/Riggins comes back, gives me some paperwork, and warns me that I can't drive faster than 50 mph or longer than 50 miles on the donut.
Grampa makes his start her up suggestion again.
Then we all heard the lovely kachuckachuckachuck of a car who's battery won't turn over.
Luckily, Triple-A fixes that too.
Now I had three instructions:
I shook both men's hands, thanked them, and drove toward Sears, reflecting on my good luck.
Hello Double-Quarter-Pounder-With-Cheese!
(A death-defying daredevil like myself scoffs heartily at cholesterol.)
$600.00 later, I'd done my part for President Obama's goal of stimulating the economy and had four new Goodyear tires, and an alignment.
If anyone wants to start a movement to demand that shoulders be shoulders 24 hours/day, 7 days/week, count me in.
Driving eastbound on I-66, at the height of rush hour, I encountered a little problem.
Just inside the Beltway, there's a stretch of superhighway with a shoulder on the right that stops being a shoulder from 3:30 until 7:00 pm.
For that benighted time period, it becomes an express lane for buses and vans serving the West Falls Church Metro stop. It's a very bad place to hear your tire start to fail.
The stretch of highway probably only goes on for about a mile and a half. It leads to a flyover with no shoulder. That's about 2 tenths of a mile. That leads to a regular superhighway, with a regular, blessedly sufficient shoulder.
As you may have guessed by now, I was just approaching this abomination of civil engineering, at about 60 mph, when I heard a little rumble. I felt a little shimmy. I looked to my right and realized where I was.
Ruh-roh.
I hit my emergency flashers, slowed to 30, and started to sweat. I may have uttered a barnyard epithet. I didn't really contemplate my doom, but I definitely regretted passing up that extra slice of pecan pie at lunch.
Adding the stretch of road with its procession of suddenly-lethal buses and vans to the subsequent flyover ramp, I now calculate the distance to be about 1.7 miles.
It took me roughly three weeks to traverse. Sweating out roughly one-third of the hourly liquid spillover at Niagara Falls --- as measured by the nonpartisan, bilateral U.S.-Canadian Riparian Cooperation Commission.
I have power windows, so I hit the button to roll them down at the start of my escapade, to smell rubber.
It wasn't too bad when I started. I was contemplating wrecked rims by the time I could finally pull off.
I called the police and I called AAA.
When the AAA guy got there, he scolded me for being on my cell phone while he called me trying to hone in on my location. The mile marker (down to a tenth of a mile) I'd given the dispatcher was clearly too general.
The police sent a guy from V-DOT (Virginia Department of Transportation). He got out of his pick-up with the flashing lights and I finally found out where the father in the trio of hillbillies in Deliverance had moved on to. He had three teeth, a weeks growth of beard, a ciggie dangling from his mouth, and shouted to the AAA guy: "How many people did this guy call, anyway?"
I replied "The cops and Triple-A, which one shouldn't I have called?"
"Well, one of 'em," he explained.
Sotto voce, the AAA guy, who looked like a cross between Willem Defoe and John Riggins, said "You did right, you call both and take whoever comes first."
I was starting to like this guy.
He put my donut on my wheel, assured me I'd missed effing up my rim by a matter of moments, and went to his car for some paperwork.
While he was away, Grampa Hillbilly said "Your flashers have been on an awful long time, maybe you ought to start her up after he comes back."
This guy, too, was beginning to grow on me.
Defoe/Riggins comes back, gives me some paperwork, and warns me that I can't drive faster than 50 mph or longer than 50 miles on the donut.
Grampa makes his start her up suggestion again.
Then we all heard the lovely kachuckachuckachuck of a car who's battery won't turn over.
Luckily, Triple-A fixes that too.
Now I had three instructions:
Stay under 50 mph
Don't drive more than 50 miles
Drive at least 15 minutes to recharge before stopping.
I shook both men's hands, thanked them, and drove toward Sears, reflecting on my good luck.
I got to Sears before the fifteen minutes were up.
Going through a McDonald's drive-through keeps the engine running.Hello Double-Quarter-Pounder-With-Cheese!
(A death-defying daredevil like myself scoffs heartily at cholesterol.)
$600.00 later, I'd done my part for President Obama's goal of stimulating the economy and had four new Goodyear tires, and an alignment.
If anyone wants to start a movement to demand that shoulders be shoulders 24 hours/day, 7 days/week, count me in.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
On the Other Hand ...
BAIL 'EM OUT!????
Hell, back in 1990 the government seized the Mustang Ranch brothel in Nevada for tax evasion.
As required by law, they tried to run it profitably.
They failed.
It closed.
Now we're supposed to trust the economy of our country, our banking system and our auto industry to nit-wits who couldn't make money running a whorehouse and selling whiskey?!
Michel sends me the funniest stuff.
Hell, back in 1990 the government seized the Mustang Ranch brothel in Nevada for tax evasion.
As required by law, they tried to run it profitably.
They failed.
It closed.
Now we're supposed to trust the economy of our country, our banking system and our auto industry to nit-wits who couldn't make money running a whorehouse and selling whiskey?!
Michel sends me the funniest stuff.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
The Third House of Congress
A conference committee is often called "the third house of Congress"
Whether we get a clean stimulus package or a Christmas tree festooned with ornaments of pork depends on a committee of notables.
And some near-notables. And a couple of non-notables. And at least one we-wish-he'd-go-away-so he'd-stop-being notable. Maybe two.
They'll hammer out differences between the House and Senate bills. They're also free to delete stuff both houses of Congress approved and insert stuff neither house approved. Or even considered.
Some stuff that's being stuffed in, like fair treatment for Filipinos who fought on America's side in WWII, isn't going to do much to stimulate the economy. It's mostly about America finally acting like America ought. Then again, a few bucks in the pockets of elderly Filipinos and Filipino-Americans might goose prune juice sales in Hawaii a little. I'm just sayin'.
Other stuff being stuffed in is defensible. The President defended one yesterday.
Why wouldn't you require a move toward alternative fuels in the clauses covering the purchase of government vehicles? The stimulus part is buying the damn cars. If, at the same time, he can move forward on something he and McCain agreed on last fall --- weaning ourselves from dependence on energy bought from folks who don't like us very much --- that's a good thing.
Other stuff being stuffed in is utterly indefensible; the conference committee should wield a scalpel, not a ladle.
Bob Dylan sang to an earlier generation of legislators:
It might be a good idea to have that song playing while they meet.
Maybe on a loop with the Springsteen/Pete Seeger performance of Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land" at the Lincoln Memorial on Inauguration Weekend.
All six verses.
Whether we get a clean stimulus package or a Christmas tree festooned with ornaments of pork depends on a committee of notables.
And some near-notables. And a couple of non-notables. And at least one we-wish-he'd-go-away-so he'd-stop-being notable. Maybe two.
They'll hammer out differences between the House and Senate bills. They're also free to delete stuff both houses of Congress approved and insert stuff neither house approved. Or even considered.
Some stuff that's being stuffed in, like fair treatment for Filipinos who fought on America's side in WWII, isn't going to do much to stimulate the economy. It's mostly about America finally acting like America ought. Then again, a few bucks in the pockets of elderly Filipinos and Filipino-Americans might goose prune juice sales in Hawaii a little. I'm just sayin'.
Other stuff being stuffed in is defensible. The President defended one yesterday.
Why wouldn't you require a move toward alternative fuels in the clauses covering the purchase of government vehicles? The stimulus part is buying the damn cars. If, at the same time, he can move forward on something he and McCain agreed on last fall --- weaning ourselves from dependence on energy bought from folks who don't like us very much --- that's a good thing.
Other stuff being stuffed in is utterly indefensible; the conference committee should wield a scalpel, not a ladle.
Bob Dylan sang to an earlier generation of legislators:
Come Senators, Congressmen please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway, don't block up the hall
For he who gets hurt will be he who has stalled
There's a battle outside and it's raging
It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls
For the times, they are a changing
It might be a good idea to have that song playing while they meet.
Maybe on a loop with the Springsteen/Pete Seeger performance of Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land" at the Lincoln Memorial on Inauguration Weekend.
All six verses.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Must. Look. Forward. Must. Look. Forward. ARRRRGH!
OK. I get why war crimes trials for the folks at the top of the so-called war on terror are not high on President Obama's to-do list, I really do.
But then I read this, detailing in convincing fashion how brave warriors tried to follow the law at Guantanamo, only to be torpedoed by the civilians at the top of the chain of command, and I just want to scream.
If we can't jail Rummy and Darth Cheney for war crimes, can we at least disbar the lawyers who wrote the opinions that put the barest fig leaf of pseudo-legality over this otherwise naked assault on American law and values?
Mr. Yoo, Mr. Addington? As lawyers, you've ill-served your clients, shamed your profession and stained your nation's honor.
I understand Mr. Putin is looking for some experienced shyster-mouthpieces.
You're strongly encouraged to apply.
And don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out, boys.
But then I read this, detailing in convincing fashion how brave warriors tried to follow the law at Guantanamo, only to be torpedoed by the civilians at the top of the chain of command, and I just want to scream.
If we can't jail Rummy and Darth Cheney for war crimes, can we at least disbar the lawyers who wrote the opinions that put the barest fig leaf of pseudo-legality over this otherwise naked assault on American law and values?
Mr. Yoo, Mr. Addington? As lawyers, you've ill-served your clients, shamed your profession and stained your nation's honor.
I understand Mr. Putin is looking for some experienced shyster-mouthpieces.
You're strongly encouraged to apply.
And don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out, boys.
Friday, January 23, 2009
More on Rick Warren's Invocation
A friend asked me if I'd noticed that Warren's invocation started with an English version of the She'ma, Judaism's central creedal statement:
Hear O Israel, the Lord our G-d, the Lord is one.
I replied thusly:
I did notice the She'ma. And he didn't just learn that for the occasion
He also referred to G-d with adjectives typically invoked in describing Allah. He didn't learn that just for the occasion either.
I can't remember the exact adjectives at this moment, but I remember noticing at the time that all three Abrahamic faiths were included --- rendered in American cadences.
He also got constitutional law right. He made much more sense out of the balance between the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause than legal briefs I've read on the subject.
He addressed the Deity in truly ecumenical (if not gender-neutral) terms at all times except when he spoke directly of himself. He invoked Jesus' name in connection with his own religious witness. He asked no one else to pray in Jesus' name. Any who cared to, probably most of the crowd, did.
A perfect balance between Warren's "free exercise" right and our right to be free of from any government-established religion.
Like I said, wrong as hell on equal rights for homosexuals. Which is a big problem.
But he's right on some important stuff too.
______
This led another friend to ask if I felt the same way about his concluding his invocation with The Lord's Prayer.
To which I said:
The Lord's Prayer really doesn't have anything in it that's not applicable across the religious spectrum, saith Rav David.
I've thought about this a lot because most 12-step group meetings end with the Lord's Prayer, and occasionally with baffled Christians trying to figure out why Jews new to the program might be put off.
It's a Christian prayer because it's a part of Christian liturgy, and primarily recited by Christians. But it expresses nothing a Jew can't pray for or about, in my estimation.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Traditional Judaism views G-d as a Father in heaven. Same with a coming Messianic Age and G-d's omnipotence. (The phrasing's not gender-neutral, but that's a different issue.)
Give us today our daily bread.
That's why we say HaMotzi.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Bringing Yom Kippur into the rest of the year is a good idea.
Lead us not into temptation,
Acknowledges free will (just like "I have set before you a blessing and a curse, choose the blessing")
but deliver us from evil.
Can you hear the echo of singing Rock of Ages in front of a menorah a few weeks ago?
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours.
Now and for ever.
Amen.
Our own liturgy is chock-full of this stuff, especially all the high-falutin' superlatives in the various iterations of the Kaddish.
I can understand the aversion to the Lord's Prayer some Jews feel, because for generations Jewish children were taught:
"Just don't pray goyische prayers, period."
"But, ..."
"Don't ask."
"Bu ..."
"Because I said so."
I'm trying to give [Monkeyboy] a little nuance.
_____
Then I realized I had a new blog post.
Have a good Sabbath everybody, whether you celebrate it today, tomorrow or Sunday.
If you don't celebrate it at all, have a good weekend.
Hear O Israel, the Lord our G-d, the Lord is one.
I replied thusly:
I did notice the She'ma. And he didn't just learn that for the occasion
He also referred to G-d with adjectives typically invoked in describing Allah. He didn't learn that just for the occasion either.
I can't remember the exact adjectives at this moment, but I remember noticing at the time that all three Abrahamic faiths were included --- rendered in American cadences.
He also got constitutional law right. He made much more sense out of the balance between the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause than legal briefs I've read on the subject.
He addressed the Deity in truly ecumenical (if not gender-neutral) terms at all times except when he spoke directly of himself. He invoked Jesus' name in connection with his own religious witness. He asked no one else to pray in Jesus' name. Any who cared to, probably most of the crowd, did.
A perfect balance between Warren's "free exercise" right and our right to be free of from any government-established religion.
Like I said, wrong as hell on equal rights for homosexuals. Which is a big problem.
But he's right on some important stuff too.
______
This led another friend to ask if I felt the same way about his concluding his invocation with The Lord's Prayer.
To which I said:
The Lord's Prayer really doesn't have anything in it that's not applicable across the religious spectrum, saith Rav David.
I've thought about this a lot because most 12-step group meetings end with the Lord's Prayer, and occasionally with baffled Christians trying to figure out why Jews new to the program might be put off.
It's a Christian prayer because it's a part of Christian liturgy, and primarily recited by Christians. But it expresses nothing a Jew can't pray for or about, in my estimation.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Traditional Judaism views G-d as a Father in heaven. Same with a coming Messianic Age and G-d's omnipotence. (The phrasing's not gender-neutral, but that's a different issue.)
Give us today our daily bread.
That's why we say HaMotzi.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Bringing Yom Kippur into the rest of the year is a good idea.
Lead us not into temptation,
Acknowledges free will (just like "I have set before you a blessing and a curse, choose the blessing")
but deliver us from evil.
Can you hear the echo of singing Rock of Ages in front of a menorah a few weeks ago?
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours.
Now and for ever.
Amen.
Our own liturgy is chock-full of this stuff, especially all the high-falutin' superlatives in the various iterations of the Kaddish.
I can understand the aversion to the Lord's Prayer some Jews feel, because for generations Jewish children were taught:
"Just don't pray goyische prayers, period."
"But, ..."
"Don't ask."
"Bu ..."
"Because I said so."
I'm trying to give [Monkeyboy] a little nuance.
_____
Then I realized I had a new blog post.
Have a good Sabbath everybody, whether you celebrate it today, tomorrow or Sunday.
If you don't celebrate it at all, have a good weekend.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Inaugural Prayers
I thought Rick Warren did an admirable job in his invocation at the beginning of the inauguration ceremonies. He's as wrong as wrong can be on equal rights for homosexuals. Still, he's a positive feature of our social, political and religious landscape, and a damn sight better than the political evangelical leaders of an earlier era.
But I think the seventh graders at Beth El Hebrew Congregation of Alexandria, Virginia wrote even better prayers last Sunday morning, for posting at a website called Blessings for Barack. The blessings will eventually be printed on Megillat Brachot, a Scroll of Blessings and Prayers for our Country, to be presented to President Obama.
First Period
May you be strong when we are weak, and make a world of smiling faces.
May God be your guide.
Please help bring peace to warring nations and prosperity to the U.S.
You and your family should be proud.
Mazal tov and good luck!
Second Period
May you lead us forth in peace and love and help us prosper in these harsh times.
We pray that you bring exquisite and intricate new ideas in your term as president.
May God help you fix what is broken and stop what is wrong;
and use your power to make our country a happier, cleaner place.
We know you will do a great job.
(1/24/09 Red-faced addendum: Their teacher is my friend, Lisa S. She's a cool person, a treasure and a blessing. I should have mentioned her before this.)
Check out Blessings for Barack. It's pretty cool.
But I think the seventh graders at Beth El Hebrew Congregation of Alexandria, Virginia wrote even better prayers last Sunday morning, for posting at a website called Blessings for Barack. The blessings will eventually be printed on Megillat Brachot, a Scroll of Blessings and Prayers for our Country, to be presented to President Obama.
First Period
May you be strong when we are weak, and make a world of smiling faces.
May God be your guide.
Please help bring peace to warring nations and prosperity to the U.S.
You and your family should be proud.
Mazal tov and good luck!
Second Period
May you lead us forth in peace and love and help us prosper in these harsh times.
We pray that you bring exquisite and intricate new ideas in your term as president.
May God help you fix what is broken and stop what is wrong;
and use your power to make our country a happier, cleaner place.
We know you will do a great job.
(1/24/09 Red-faced addendum: Their teacher is my friend, Lisa S. She's a cool person, a treasure and a blessing. I should have mentioned her before this.)
Check out Blessings for Barack. It's pretty cool.
I Love It When My Friends Are in the Paper (Inaugural Edition)
I've written before about the Amsterdam Falafelshop in Adams-Morgan and my friends who own it. You should go there.
Don't believe me. Ask these folks.
The shop did land office business this week feeding inaugural visitors.
I love it when Leo Durocher is proven wrong!
Don't believe me. Ask these folks.
The shop did land office business this week feeding inaugural visitors.
I love it when Leo Durocher is proven wrong!
Friday, January 16, 2009
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