Let’s all ratchet it down some

Posted on January 13, 2015 by 40andover

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/texas-congressman-labels-obama-worse-hitler-article-1.2076035

Rep. Randy Weber (R-Tex.) said it’s ‘appalling’ Obama didn’t travel to Paris for the unity march on Sunday.

Dear Congressman:

Do you know what Hitler and his henchman did? 11 million people died ghastly deaths. (And — as an aside — do you know about the spike of anti-Semitism in France?)

President Obama is Hitler? That is so offensive to anyone who has a family member who perished in that genocide in Europe. Most of my family came here after the first World War. Those who remained in Europe, perished. A lucky few went to Cuba in 1938, when our nation closed its doors to refugees.

But what this nation forgets is that US soldiers — my Uncle Willy among them — were sent to concentration camps after being captured in the Battle of the Bulge. My uncle survived, but, yes, Americans died in the concentration camps. And America forgot these soldiers.

And what happened in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s was not a holocaust. That is a ritual cleansing through fire. What happened in Europe was a shoah, a CATASTROPHE. Not just for Jews but for 5 — yes, 5 — million more people.

So, call it the Shoah. 11 million humans were burned or starved. Others survived, only to be scarred.

Shoah. Shoah. Shoah. SHOAH. Call it by its real name.

How dare you trivialize what Hitler did to Europe and its citizens. To families. To children.

And how dare you, by your comments, trivialize what happened in France this past week. The terrorized citizens of that great City of Lights. And, yes, especially the Jews among them.

President Obama should have sent someone to Paris. Bad decision. That is all. It isn’t mass murder.

The president should have been criticized for missing an opportunity to stand in unity with world leaders. The criticism should match the the offense.

What you said undercuts the validity of your criticisms of the president. It makes you sound rabid and crazy. There are very valid criticisms of President Obama (and I am a proud supporter of him).

But you have lost your credibility. Yes. Because you compared the president to Hitler. Because you sound crazy. (Since our government started an unnecessary war in Iraq that killed hundreds of thousands, would you call our former president or vice president Hitler?)

Try being the sane, loyal and temperate opposition to President Obama’s actions and even some of the president’s supporters might agree with you from time to time.

Why am I so flipped out? Because what you said hit a nerve. Maybe when all Jews who knew someone in a concentration camp are no more, then it won’t be as visceral. I imagine that every group that has survived a slaughter feels this way. We aren’t any different. Our scars are the same.

In the meantime, please brush up on your history.

~ a proud citizen of the United States of America disappointed with the vicious rhetoric

The week that was

Posted on June 30, 2013 by 40andover

Whoa! What a week. From the minute to the momentous. From everyday slights to the evisceration of things we hold dear. From personal triumphs to the deathbed of a world hero.

What a difference a week makes.

The Supreme Court taketh away and the Supreme Court giveth (with caveats). But before all the epic decisions, the Supreme Court punteth the ball. Yep, punt on affirmative action, gut the Voting Rights Act, and hold that the Federal government cannot demean or injure what a state seeks to protect, in matters within a state’s purview.

So if you are a gay, non-white Democrat in a Red State, you can’t get married to your partner, you may not be able to vote and you certainly cannot have the totality of your identity and your life story considered in any application to higher education.

If, however, you are gay, white, Democrat in a Blue State, you probably get to claim an iPad as a winning contestant in the Supreme Court sweepstakes.

How’s that for “equal protection under the laws”?

I am thrilled that Edie Windsor, who in her own words, was “just an out lesbian suing the United States of America,” prevailed and DOMA is DEAD. It was a thrill and an honor to go to Sabbath Services on Gay Pride Weekend to hear Edie, who talked about her spouse, Thea (of blessed memory), just a little before Edie started to cry, and then have hundreds of people standing up to cheer her.

Get the documentary on them. It is beautiful and sad and just simply a true (non-Hollywood) love story.

People sometimes ask, “why gay PRIDE?” Because if you have felt marginalized, shamed, invisible, unwanted, a veritable punching bad for angry people and all of society’s ills, then you need to own your identity and say that you are proud and not ashamed. It is important for those still in the closet — of any kind — and our children.

I suspect that Mandela is hovering between life and death only through the curse of modern medicine, while politicians figure out the best time to announce his death. Call me cynical. The world will be different on the day that the man who presided over immense change in Africa and, indeed, the whole world, is declared dead. One person can make a difference, but there are only too few in any generation who are truly capable. We will have lost (or did we already lose) a hero.

SOS went off to sleep away camp for seven weeks. Both POB and I were happy, sad, scared and proud that he hopped on the bus with someone he met previously who was also going to the same camp. Hugs, but no tears. A watershed moment in our baby’s growth.

I stopped a client in the hallway of our firm and greeted him. He was momentarily caught off-guard and then said, “[Blogger], you look great; I would never have recognized you!!!” And then he dug himself deeper to a point at which I had to say, “Don’t worry, a little hair color and make-up can really make ALL the difference . . . ” I expect that from Dad’s mother (“You look so gut, I vouldn’t recognize you, dahlink.”) but not anyone born after World War II.

Fom petty slights to soaring heights. From a widow’s indignation to liberation for so many. From tiny family triumphs (and the funny slights) to a loss for all humanity. From the mundane to the immortal. From the set-backs to the steps forward and then reluctance to decide. The juxtaposition of all of these make the important events stand apart, in stark relief — some to be celebrated, some to be worried over, one to be mourned.

What a week it was. Good thing I fastened my seat belt.

Countdown to Sequester and other problems

Posted on February 18, 2013 by 40andover

“Sequester” will be a reality in less than two weeks. Economic and political chaos visible on the horizon. The Congress and the White House are in their respective corners, blaming each other.

McCain is yelling “cover-up!” on Benghazi, while under Bush’s watch, the attacks on our embassies were incalculable and the lives lost a moral travesty.

Syria is being armed by the Russians, even though Britain made a statement that Russia had stopped, further isolating Prime Minister Cameron from the EU and the world.

The President golfs with Tiger Woods. It is ok now, say those who only speak on the condition of anonymity, because he isn’t running for re-election. I guess Michelle Obama hasn’t taught Barry enough about the rage of women.

The White House rankles partisan divides by leaking an immigration plan. Marco Rubio flamed out in his response to the State of the Union. So much for Time’s savior of the GOP.

The Keystone Pipeline and fracking are gaining momentum even as the dire environmental implications are clear.

Ashley Judd is taking on Mitch McConnell for his Senate seat. He looks ever more like a chicken that Frank Perdue wouldn’t serve.

For anyone keeping score on this contest between the government and nation, the nation is losing. Badly.

Tax Day is coming up and for the first time in my life (read, even under George W. Bush), I am not proud to pay my taxes. Why? A bunch of clowns run our government.

GROW UP OR GET THE HELL OUT.

Why It Matters

Posted on August 21, 2012 by 40andover

Why does it matter who is president? Aren’t they so close on so many issues? Can either really make the changes he says he wants to?

Yes, it matters. It matters “big time” (to quote Dubya).

It matters that we push back against the forces that just said no for four years, watching this country flail around in order to make a transformative president look weak and ineffectual.

It matters that we don’t elect a man who takes the position du jour, as long as it pleases most of the people for some of the time during the 24 hour news cycle.

It matters that we don’t elect a party beholden to extremists in that party who would claw back women’s rights, leave the young and the old at the hands of “free enterprise” as it rolls back the safety net — the very beacon of light and hope that is the definition of American exceptionalism.

We applaud personal heroism but we don’t leave a man behind enemy lines. We take care of the wounded, the poor, the terrorized, and those who have fallen on hard times. Years ago, when we were a young country, we knew that one year’s good crop could be next year’s dust bowl, so when we were helping the poor and the stranger, we were helping ourselves because there but for the grace of G-d . . . .

Do the Bible Belters even read the Bible anymore? At my Bat Mitzvah, I read from Leviticus, “when you reap your harvest, you shall not reap the corners of the field. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger.”

Where is that social compact now? I believe in those words. That is why it matters.

I stand on the shoulders of our Greatest Generation, who relied on the GI Bill to become professionals. And they stood on the shoulders of those who made the voyage to America to work hard and make sure their children had a good life.

I am the product of the greatest social compact in modern times. The other part of the social compact is that I pay taxes. Lots of them. I would pay for the stimulus money and bail-outs and I would pay for ill-conceived wars, were they not put on a credit card.

Why would I pay for these things? I do not want to pay for the follies of the rich or oil-greedy. But I am an American and we pay our debts.

Because we are in this together.

So, I will pay for the Iraq War, the bail-out and the stimulus and you pay for education and renewable energy. You know that I will foot the bigger bill. But this is America.

And we are in this together.

And so it matters who is president next year. The very soul of our nation — our identity — depends on it.

How I learned to Relax and Enjoy the Newtron Bombney

Posted on January 28, 2012 by 40andover

For many months, I have been tied up in knots over the contenders for GOP nomination. I am terrified that on the third Tuesday in January, 2013, someone will utter any of the following: “President Romney”, “President Gingrich”, “President Paul” or “President Santorum”.

I watch the GOP debates, with all of the venal, xenophobic, hypocritical, self-serving garbage that the candidates spew.

Any of these people would destroy our nation. Setting aside Ron Paul and Rick Santorum (who are not winning the primaries), Gingrich is just evil, mercurial and evil (it bears repeating) and Romney is clueless and changes position faster than some in our nation change underwear.

President Obama who was elected to fix everything in less time than it took to break it all. And, he wasn’t supposed to break a sweat or a promise or make a mistake. We were exuberant, irrational and naive about the true state of our nation. No one — no Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Tea Party-ist, whatever — would face any easier re-election bid.

Let’s just accept that. If McCain had won, he would be called the GOP’s version of Jimmy Carter.

And let’s be clear — Obama’s campaign fed on the hopes and aspirations that we were electing a messianic politician. He rode high and won on outlandish expectations that his campaign encouraged. Once elected, he had to tamp down the expectations. Because he found out just what he inherited and it wasn’t pretty.

But the GOP nominee can be the next president of the United States. We cannot ignore that scary possibility. (To wit: GWB won 5-4 in the Supreme Court.) Too many people are comfortable that Obama can beat either Romney or Gingrich, but the economy is fragile and people are deeply divided over President Obama (some for political reasons; others, for reasons that are, let’s say, less than Christian). So, nothing is a sure thing.

Why am I scared? We have never been more divided as a nation. And President Obama has incited the angry passions in the left wing of the Democrats and all of the Republicans — Democratic left, because he wasn’t nearly as “progressive” as they had expected and the Republicans, because he wasn’t nearly the effete liberal, scared-y cat they were hoping to skewer.

Now that the GOP is divided and frantically scrambling to blow back against a Gingrich nomination or presidency, I smile and relax.

If I set aside what the mud-slinging says about us and our society, I can talk about the debates in the same conversation as others talk about the Real Housewives of Los Angeles. And no one knows I am talking about the political debates and our (G-d forbid) future president of our country.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Life American Style

Posted on October 20, 2011 by 40andover

You want to know why our society is crumbling? Why we are losing our preeminence in education and innovation? Look in the mirror.

These are the items that get equal billing in the news re-cycle in the US. These are taken from CNN, Yahoo, MSNBC and FOX. Ok, I cherry-picked. And I re-ordered to prove a point. So what? I bet that I gave us more credit than we are due. In order of (my manipulated) importance, accompanied by my snide remarks:

US consumer confidence is at an all time low. No one is buying off-road vehicles for the urban terrain.
Banks are not lending and companies are not hiring because of confusion over the new laws that will go into effect over time. Would you like us to re-enact Glass-Steagull (that was eviscerated when the GOP was in control)? I bet you would take Dodd-Frank in a heart-beat. So, shut up.
Did Anderson Cooper flub a critical question to Michele (Night of the Living Dead) Bachmann (two n’s so she is not a secret Jew) in the GOP Debate on Tuesday night? Does she have a cause of action if she loses the GOP nomination?
The housing bubble has not bottomed out. So, the economy has to stop and wait for that.
Unemployment is over 9% which is a reflection of the last 2.5 years and not of the implosion caused in the years that preceded it.
People are occupying Wall Street and financial centers across the country because they don’t understand why the American Dream is out of reach, but aren’t they anarchists?
Lindsay Lohan has to go back to jail because she overslept on her first day of community service.
Stock prices are lower. “Euro Contagion,” baby. (Wait, don’t tell me, it must be an ad for “The Black Death Has Returned,” in movie theaters everywhere.)
Qaddafi is dead after an insurrection against his brutal rule, but enough about that, oil prices are dropping and it is a sign of Obama’s failed domestic policies (I am still figuring out the latter).
The Queen didn’t mind a curtsey malfunction in Australia. She is a woman of the people.
Not all of the 99% pay federal tax (but they do pay state, local and sales tax). Nevertheless, they should be deported.
The GOP candidates are talking crazy talk in their debates about how much less taxes we ought to pay (and Herman Cain would not tax used goods but food — which cannot be sold “used” or “pre-owned” — would be more expensive than ever) and how we need a fence across our entire southern border because Martians and other aliens are landing and illegally entering our country and taking our jobs. Who said the GOP doesn’t believe in UFOs?
Israel negotiated with terrorists because the release of one soldier was worth freeing 1,000 Palestinians non-POWs (“If you save a life, it is as if you saved the world,” said a great rabbi; it was also a smart move to undermine Abbas and his UN bid for statehood).
There are almost 9 billion humans in the world, at least 8 billion of whom live in abject poverty. And I worry about my retirement accounts.
There is a faster and easier way to lose flab around your abs. You mean I can watch TV, drink red wine and eat french fries (not together) and the fat will melt away?
Ashton’s and Demi’s marriage is on the rocks. I didn’t know they actually got married. Apparently, he thinks politics is sexy because . . . RIGHT before he was shtumping (I mean, stumping) for Obama.
The best and worst Versace styles are available at H&M stores. He is dead, so I don’t get it.
Jessica Simpson (who IS she?) wants money to talk about her pregnancy. It may be cheaper to buy “What to Expect When You’re Expecting”.
There are ten HOT Halloween costumes for this year. You mean the French chambermaid outfit won’t work again this year?

Res ipsa loquitur.

The Boys (and Girl) of the GOP

Posted on October 19, 2011 by 40andover

I have watched clips of the GOP debate. You can tell everything by the way they walked in and how they stood at the national anthem.

Rick Perry is walkin’ and standin’ like he’s wearin’ cowboy boots. If he don’t like it, he’ll shoot it.

Rick Santorum walks and talks like he thinks someone is about to hit him. He has such a chip on his shoulder.

Ron Paul seems more like a Northeastern college professor than a libertarian. And he has a jaunty gait. Unstable, but smart.

Herman Cain is self confident and believes in his message. An true rocket scientist with catch-y phrases who (G-d bless him) tells us all to get a sense of humor.

Michele Bachman is coiffed within an inch of her long manicured nails. Stiff with signs of post-mortem.

Mitt Romney waves like a movie star. He is getting smoother and glibber, but camera ready for the Oval Office.

Newt Gringrich waddles like a duck and looks unnervingly like Chucky in the Friday the 13th films. Clever and smart, but we would be electing Batman’s arch-villian, The Penguin. Wait, I am seeing a little Rick Santorum.

Speak from the heart

Posted on August 15, 2011 by 40andover

Dear Mr. President:

You have had more thrown at you than any other president in a long, long time. And there is no denying that your job is made more difficult by unspoken racism.

But, Mr. President, you failed to lead by framing the issues before us. You let others steal the story line. Maybe your deference comes from your background as a Constitutional scholar. Don’t ever take broad executive power off the table again — if the 14th Amendment gives you power, threaten to use it. Be the man who hunted down Osama Bin Laden.

Don’t look at polls. Look at us.

Inspire us again. Remember how you did it? You told us your vision and you told us things we didn’t want to hear. You can tell us that it wasn’t as easy to clean up Washington and that you had to make decisions based on information that President Obama had that Candidate Obama didn’t have. We can understand if you are angry about the Congress.

But you need to say it. You need to give your vision, your goals as modified by the political realities.

Lead. Mr. President.

President Obama, Save the Date

Posted on June 27, 2011 by 40andover

Dear President Obama:

I know, deep down, in your heart of hearts, you are not anti-gay marriage. In fact, I think you don’t understand why people draw the line in the sand on this issue. Given what a mess heterosexuals make of marriage, who should care if more people want to get married and then pay the marriage tax, to boot. If some crazy gays want to do this, then G-d bless, right?

But you’ve missed the point. It’s about taxation.

People don’t want to subject us queers to the marriage tax because the problem in Washington is spending, not revenue.

How about if you have a special tax code exemption for us so we don’t have to see our hard-earned dollars go into social programs? Maybe speak with Majority Leader Boehner (and how come his name isn’t pronounce “Boner” anyway?) about this. I am sure that he will drop his Defense of Marriage Act defense once he realizes the gay marriage is not back door taxation. (Don’t even think that was a clever pun for those who are male.)

Look, the GOP standard bearers want to protect our lives and our incomes. Why else would they not want us to serve in the military? And not marry? Well, aren’t we the unanticipated darlings of the far-right?

This is the triple negative political action play that is making my head spin. But never mind the GOP.

Andrew Cuomo, Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton have all stepped on the bandwagon. Now I know the Clintons aren’t running for political office anymore (maybe a seat on the Supreme Court . . . ). But Cuomo figures by 2016, equality will be a non-issue. And he is right. But you are in the “here and now” where it is gutsy to be a sitting President and lead by example.

You’re in a tough spot. Let me sweeten the pot. POB (partner of blogger) and I are getting married next year. We had planned it well before the vote because we just wanted to celebrate our family and friends.

There’s an invitation with Michelle’s and your names on it if you just say. . .

“Yes, gays can.”

Who is Grover Norquist and why is he so powerful?

Posted on May 24, 2011 by 40andover

Check this guy out. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover_Norquist.

Why is this man more powerful than the rest of us voters? Why does he get to trump the one-man, one-vote rule of our democracy?

If you think I am joking, read this: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-24/norquist-emerges-as-barrier-to-u-s-debt-deal.html.

Most of the GOP lawmakers have signed a pledge prepared by his organization that there will be no new taxes or increases in taxes. According to the Bloomberg article, Norquist, President of “Americans for Tax Reform, says he has secured written pledges from 40 of the 47 Republicans in the Senate and 233 of 240 party members in the House. More than 1,300 state-level legislators, governors and even auditors have also signed, Norquist said. That includes Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Texas Governor Rick Perry and Ohio Governor John Kasich, all Republicans, he said.”

Of course he was lobbying for Fannie and Freddie before he was against them as emblematic of government waste and overreach. (He may not be wrong, but he says it with unclean hands.) “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac brought us this collapse … This was criminal negligence on the part of Barney Frank and Dodd.” Really? Really?

Oh, yeah, his partner in his lobbying venture was convicted in the Abramoff scandal.

I guess it begs the question: how stupid are WE? After all, we as a country elected representatives that promised to be doctrinaire no matter what happens, no matter what they find when they get to Washington, no matter what they learn on the job. If these representatives took that pledge after we elected them, that would be treason, because they would be beholden to someone not “the people” or the “nation”. Yes, treason. TREASON.

Grover Norquist is made possible through the ignorance of us all.

40 — oh wait, yikes!! 50 — andoverblog

Aging and living in urban US

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