Not my age, but the number of posts on my blog. I actually have written 52 pieces since I started this exercise, but I have withheld one as I believe it too personal ( I know that is hard to believe, given what I have revealed) and another I have removed as I felt it might have struck a discordant note with one reader, and was not worth my risking that response.
What have you learned about me? You must have formulated some opinions if you have been one of the consistent readers of this blog. I actually am aware of how many people look at this blog on any given day. I don't know who you are, but I do have some idea as to repetition of visitors to the site, as well as new visitors. I know that some of you do make viewing of my pieces a part of your day. So what insights have you gathered as to the workings of my mind?
I find it interesting that I have revealed as much of myself as I have through the pages. Whether this is good or bad is up to you to decide. But it is clear that there is much of me that is open to public view. This may be my form of a psychiatrist's couch, but without the expense. You all serve as the collective doctor. You should analyze me and tell me as to the state of my mental health.
What parts of me ( mentally, not physically) still remain hidden in your estimation? If there were to be 50 more essays, where should they head? If you were directing the blog, what topics would you want to see discussed? Are my personal recollections of most interest, or entertainment value? Are my political ramblings of any merit? Are my observations of the human condition worthy of print?
I am sure I will go on posting my thoughts as they come to the forefront of my mind. They will undoubtedly cover the range of areas that I have touched upon in my first 50 pieces. I am hopeful that there may be a topic that captures me and carries me with it on a longer journey then just one short essay. I don't know if I even have the capacity within me as a writer to take such a journey, but I hope to get the opportunity to find out.
I am asking you to give me your insights and observations about me. You are reading this now and must have some thoughts in your mind about what you have read over the last 2 months. Have you thought that this is nothing but a narcissistic exercise? Do you believe that it has touched you or in any way made you think differently, or at least more closely, about any of the topics discussed? Has it changed your opinion of me, or of yourself?
I don't know if I am a different person from the one who sat down to write about Roger Clemens and Congress back in March of this year. I do know that I am enjoying the time spent in front of the computer screen trying to make my thoughts known to someone other than myself. In the long run, maybe the exercise of my brain is the real answer. Maybe what I have to say is less important than merely that I have created a discipline for myself in which I must address in a structured manner the issues that are taking up space in my head.
So, I take my leave of you now and head off to the rest of my day. I wonder if 100 is a possibility . I wonder if anyone cares.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Monday, April 28, 2008
Reaction
In 1999 Amadou Diallo was a 22 year old black West African immigrant. While he was standing on the front steps of his apartment he was shot down in a hail of gun fire. 41 bullets were fired by 4 white police officers, who indicated that Mr. Diallo appeared to be reaching for a gun when the shots rang out. Mr. Diallo was unarmed and apparently reaching for his wallet. The 4 officers were acquitted of all criminal charges.
On November 25, 2006 Sean Bell was leaving his bachelor party, with 2 friends. A confrontation with 5 undercover officers escalated and Mr. Bell, a black man, was shot and killed. 50 shots were fired by 3 officers. 31 shots were fired by one of the officers, a white detective. While questions as to whether the officers reasonably believed that Mr. Bell, or one of the other 2 men with him were armed, it turned out they were not. 2 of the officers were black. All 3 officers were acquitted of all criminal charges.
The implicit association test is a tool developed by social psychologists to try to help measure subconscious triggers that affect behavior. The test involves split second associations. It is the subconscious universe and its profound effect on decision making that is the focus of these investigations. 'The implicit association test measures the thumbprint of culture on our minds' (Washington Post, january 23, 2005). The most prominent of these tests is the one that measures bias on race.
What the results reveal, not surprisingly, is that 88 percent of white people had a pro-white or anti-black implicit bias. But what the test also found was that 48 percent of blacks showed a pro-white or anti- black bias. In addition to the more readily acknowledged bias that whites hold against blacks, these results demonstrate that black-on-black bias is also prevalent in our society.
What the results reveal, not surprisingly, is that 88 percent of white people had a pro-white or anti-black implicit bias. But what the test also found was that 48 percent of blacks showed a pro-white or anti- black bias. In addition to the more readily acknowledged bias that whites hold against blacks, these results demonstrate that black-on-black bias is also prevalent in our society.
A 2002 article on "the Police Officer's Dilemma" examined the effect of ethnicity on shoot/ don't shoot decisions. In the 'shooter test' application of the implicit association test, a video game served as the mechanism to analyze bias. Both African American and White targets appeared on screen, either holding guns or holding other objects (items like a cell phone), in complex backgrounds (in front of an apartment building, in an office building, in a park like setting etc). Participants were told to 'shoot' at armed targets and 'not to shoot' at unarmed targets. The results of the test showed both that the participants made a faster decision to shoot an armed target if the target was black, and decided not to shoot an unarmed target more quickly if he was white. In addition, the study found that there were equal levels of bias among both black and whites who participated in this test. (The Police officer's Dilemma: Using Ethnicity to Disambiguate Potentially Threatening Individuals, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , 2002 volume 83, No. 6).
Reverend Al Sharpton is leading a protest designed to question the propriety of the court's decision in the Bell case. He is asking for a Federal investigation, hoping to bring into focus the question of what is perceived as excessive force that is used on a continuing basis against blacks. It is an unfortunate reality of our society, that even if our intention is to be even handed in the way we approach split second decisions involving whites and blacks, we have not evolved in our thinking to where this is a reality. The shooter task clearly suggests that those split second reactions, by both blacks and whites alike, will be similarly biased against blacks. For the police officers, both black and white, popular culture and attitudes have very likely ingrained in their subconscious a bias that even they may not know exists. Until these biases disappear, we seem doomed to repeat the tragedies like those involving Mr. Diallo and Mr. Bell.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Size Matters
I am 5 foot 7 inches on a good day. I wear size 8 shoes and my hands are pretty small. I am Jewish. But has every spammer in the world been discussing my shortcomings? Have they been getting into bed with me at night? Is there a candid camera hidden in the walls? How else can you explain the constant reminders to me that my private parts need enlarging?
It was bad enough when the information as to the sure fire ways to a bigger and better me first started getting through on the computer. I could laugh it off and believe that it was random selection and not focused attention. But when the onslaught continues on a daily basis and the message is repeated that I am less of a man that I can and should be, well I just don't know. Can 10,000 people, all delivering the same message,be mistaken? Am I really in need of expanding my horizons when it comes to expanding myself? Should I consider taking membership in the member club?
Recently, I was in my doctor's office (Frank, whom I sure you remember from some of my posts about other not so private matters). While I was waiting to be poked and prodded (don't get any ideas), I read an article that Frank had written about whether enlargement procedures were really effective. The conclusion, happily, was that these procedures are not worth the effort. I say happily, because if the issue ever 'arises' I can point to the article as proof positive that what you see is all that you are ever going to get.
The onslaught is endless. While filters and blockers and whatever other techniques are utilized to direct the mail, the messages keep coming. While almost all of it ends up in my spam folder, the sheer volume of what must be placed on the internet is staggering. There must only be a few men in the world fully confident in their manhood judging by the constant reminders I receive. How many men do you think really get these notices and say to themselves, I wonder why I didn't think of that sooner?
I don't mean to be grotesque (don't go there). I am just saying that I wish there were as many notices to me on how to cure my putting woes as there are on how to cure my putter. If I am having difficulty as I always seem to veer off to the left, I would like them to be talking about ways to straighten out my swing, and not how to straighten me out. I would love to receive an onslaught of PG rated mail that was directed at improving myself instead of improving myself. I want to be getting notices about applying for memberships in golf clubs and not about membership to improve my club.
I think I could go on forever with comments that amuse me, if no one else. But the point is that these notices have long since stopped being funny. After a while they became annoying and have since moved many more levels up the food chain of disgust. I am tired of being reminded of my inadequacies and I want them to stop. I only wish there was a way of getting the home e-mail address of every person in every business who tells me every day that I am not a real man. I would be happy to enter into a philosophical discourse with each one of them on the issue. Short and pointed would have a very different meaning on that day
But until that day comes to pass, I must suffer the slings and arrows reminding me of what I am missing. With age, it seems like our feet swell a little and our shoe size creeps up. If this continues, by the time I am 90 I can proudly announce I am wearing size 11 shoes. When that day arrives, maybe the notices will stop.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Running on Empty
I know that gas prices are starting to catch my attention when I consider a good week not by the receipts in my law office but by the number of fill ups in my car. When we all swell with pride that NJ has possibly the lowest gas prices in the nation at well over $3 per gallon, we are engulfed in our own gas wars . How bad has it really gotten?
In a report of April 16, 2008 from InflationData.com, it was stated that "with average March prices at $3.22 Gasoline Prices are above the average annual prices paid at the all time peak in 1981". That was the year the Iran-Iraq war started.
For perspective, in 1955 the average gallon of gasoline sold for 29 cents. In 1972, the year before the Arab oil embargo, prices were only 36 cents per gallon.Adjusted for inflation, a May 2006 report of the Cato institute stated that , in 2006 dollars, this would translate to $1.76 (for the 1955 gasoline) and $1.36 (for 1972).
While prices had climbed to 60 cents per gallon in 1976, they zoomed to $1.35 in 1981. Inflation Data stated that this gallon would cost $3.17 in today's dollars. We have now surpassed that figure and established a record of which none of us (except the oil companies) is proud.
When we have to consider whether to use our car for leisure, when the airlines have to charge us for every possible 'amenity' in an effort to somehow keep from going under, when food prices soar in part because of the cost of getting goods to their destinations, then there is something badly broken in the system.
When statistics tell us that gasoline is now a precious commodity, this only serves to reenforce our innate understanding. When one of the main attractions of our state is its gasoline prices, and when one takes a trip to our gas stations, but not to our beaches because it costs too much to get there, we are all going nowhere fast.
In a report of April 16, 2008 from InflationData.com, it was stated that "with average March prices at $3.22 Gasoline Prices are above the average annual prices paid at the all time peak in 1981". That was the year the Iran-Iraq war started.
For perspective, in 1955 the average gallon of gasoline sold for 29 cents. In 1972, the year before the Arab oil embargo, prices were only 36 cents per gallon.Adjusted for inflation, a May 2006 report of the Cato institute stated that , in 2006 dollars, this would translate to $1.76 (for the 1955 gasoline) and $1.36 (for 1972).
While prices had climbed to 60 cents per gallon in 1976, they zoomed to $1.35 in 1981. Inflation Data stated that this gallon would cost $3.17 in today's dollars. We have now surpassed that figure and established a record of which none of us (except the oil companies) is proud.
When we have to consider whether to use our car for leisure, when the airlines have to charge us for every possible 'amenity' in an effort to somehow keep from going under, when food prices soar in part because of the cost of getting goods to their destinations, then there is something badly broken in the system.
When statistics tell us that gasoline is now a precious commodity, this only serves to reenforce our innate understanding. When one of the main attractions of our state is its gasoline prices, and when one takes a trip to our gas stations, but not to our beaches because it costs too much to get there, we are all going nowhere fast.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Tired
So now we trudge on to Indiana and North Carolina. There is really nothing left to say about their positions on the important matters of the day. It can only be more of the same. We must prepare ourselves to listen and learn about things that separate the candidates not on their substance but on some imagined matter that shows us what the other candidate is really about. I am tired and they must be bone tired.
It is now 15 months since Barack Obama began this journey. It is more than another 6 months until the general election. When analysts talk of the baseball season being a marathon, not a sprint, they are right. But when we look at the tortorous length of this campaign, it makes baseball appear like a 100 yard dash.
When Senator Clinton is practically begging for contributions so she can keep her campaign going, after having received $20 million last month, we have to ask ourselves what we are doing. Day after day, and month after month, they slog on. When Senator Clinton said it takes a village, I don't think she envisioned having to take each and every village along the way.
When Senator Obama must raise $40 million in a month to try to get his message across to try to stem whatever momentum Senator Clinton is mounting, he must be shaking his head. The math does not say Senator Clinton should still be here. She cannot overtake his lead to get enough delegates and superdelegates to capture the nomination. Logic should dictate that she give up the fight so that all attention can be focused on Senator McCain. But Senator Clinton will not go gently into the night. She will exhaust herself, and every resource at her disposal, to keep going. In the movies , we see the bloodied and battered fighter on the canvas and we pray he will stay down. This is not the movies, and Senator Clinton is back on her feet once more.
When do they sleep? I heard James Carville suggest that Senator Obama was off his game the other night in the last debate with Senator Clinton. He stated that this could well be attributable to his being sleep deprived. The constant need to be 'on' must be so difficult. There was an article in the NY Times this morning referencing an incident in which Senator Obama is being questioned by a reporter about Jimmy Carter and Hamas, as the Senator is trying to eat his breakfast. He questions , out loud, why he can't just be permitted to eat his waffle.
When I worry whether Senator Obama has the stamina and staying power, physically and emotionally, to withstand the rigors of the next 6 months, I cringe. This is a young man, in the prime of his life, who may very soon make Senator McCain seem much younger than 71. I don"t want the Democratic nominee to be a shell of a person while the real fight still lays ahead, but I think that is the ugly possibility. For while I am tired , that is nothing compared to how our Democratic candidates must feel.
It is now 15 months since Barack Obama began this journey. It is more than another 6 months until the general election. When analysts talk of the baseball season being a marathon, not a sprint, they are right. But when we look at the tortorous length of this campaign, it makes baseball appear like a 100 yard dash.
When Senator Clinton is practically begging for contributions so she can keep her campaign going, after having received $20 million last month, we have to ask ourselves what we are doing. Day after day, and month after month, they slog on. When Senator Clinton said it takes a village, I don't think she envisioned having to take each and every village along the way.
When Senator Obama must raise $40 million in a month to try to get his message across to try to stem whatever momentum Senator Clinton is mounting, he must be shaking his head. The math does not say Senator Clinton should still be here. She cannot overtake his lead to get enough delegates and superdelegates to capture the nomination. Logic should dictate that she give up the fight so that all attention can be focused on Senator McCain. But Senator Clinton will not go gently into the night. She will exhaust herself, and every resource at her disposal, to keep going. In the movies , we see the bloodied and battered fighter on the canvas and we pray he will stay down. This is not the movies, and Senator Clinton is back on her feet once more.
When do they sleep? I heard James Carville suggest that Senator Obama was off his game the other night in the last debate with Senator Clinton. He stated that this could well be attributable to his being sleep deprived. The constant need to be 'on' must be so difficult. There was an article in the NY Times this morning referencing an incident in which Senator Obama is being questioned by a reporter about Jimmy Carter and Hamas, as the Senator is trying to eat his breakfast. He questions , out loud, why he can't just be permitted to eat his waffle.
When I worry whether Senator Obama has the stamina and staying power, physically and emotionally, to withstand the rigors of the next 6 months, I cringe. This is a young man, in the prime of his life, who may very soon make Senator McCain seem much younger than 71. I don"t want the Democratic nominee to be a shell of a person while the real fight still lays ahead, but I think that is the ugly possibility. For while I am tired , that is nothing compared to how our Democratic candidates must feel.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Green is Universal...
...but, according to NBC, consensus on global warming is anything but.
NOTE: This is a guest post from my son, Richie. It also appears on his blog, The View from the Seven-and-a-Halfth Floor.
As part of their company-wide greenwashing campaign, Green is Universal, General Electric subsidiary NBC ran an episode of Dateline last night dedicated to environmental themes.
The last story on the episode was about the retreat of Bolivia's glaciers due to global warming, and the effect this will have on the residents of Bolivia. At first, the story seemed to treat the issue objectively, contrasting old photographs with present footage, and interviewing locals and experts, all in an effort to describe the disappearance of the world's highest-elevation ski area, and to discuss the current ramifications for La Paz, Bolivia, which relies on glacial runoff to produce hydroelectric power and provide clean drinking water for its residents. Several times in the story, the glacial retreat is directly linked to global warming.
Then, out of left field near the end of the story, the 'journalist' states as fact that there is not scientific consensus that an increase in greenhouse gases has caused the global warming we are observing, and that some scientists believe it is part of a natural 'cycle.' No subsequent effort is made to present an alternate theory for this rapid warming 'cycle' (because there is none), nor to explain the highly coincidental correlation between CO2 levels (a primary greenhouse gas) and global average temperature. While acknowledging that global warming is actually occurring AND that the rapidly accelerating glacial retreat is a real phenomenon, the producers went out of their way to create the impression that global warming is some big mystery, and that nobody is certain why it is happening.
My bullshit detector hit liar liar pants on 5-alarm fire.
Why does our government under the current administration, and many major American corporations (some of them, like GE-subsidiary NBC, posing as sources of unbiased news), feed us this crap, and why do we let them do so? Haven't we reached the point where we can accept that there is total scientific and public consensus that human-induced pollution has raised greenhouse gas levels and directly contributed to global climate change? Isn't the only "lack of consensus" remaining in the details, as in "How great is our impact on the climate?," "How much will the climate change?," "How quickly will this all happen?," and "How the hell do we get ourselves out of this mess?"
Could you imagine what this country would be like if people weren't constantly fed carefully-tailored crap, bordering on propaganda and teetering on the edge of intentionally false, every time they turned on their television? For starters, we'd have a different president, we'd choose our wars more carefully, we'd have safer food, consumer goods, and workplaces, and we certainly wouldn't think that right-wing Republican John McCain is either "moderate" or a "maverick."
I also can't help but find it a little coincidental that BOTH President Bush and his wife Laura will make high-profile appearances on NBC this week, the former during an episode of Deal or No Deal (President Bush is hoping to reduce the national debt by one-million-dollar-suitcase), and the latter as a guest host of the highest-rated morning show on American television. Could it be possible that NBC toned down their environmentally-friendly rhetoric, and kicked the anti-science bullcrap up a few notches, all in an effort to make their visitors this week feel more at home?
UPDATE (4/21/08): More than three years ago, nearly the exact same story appeared in another NBC outlet (MSNBC.com)--minus the crap about greenhouse gases possibly not contributing to global warming (the article does appropriately consider other factors that contribute to both glacial retreat and climate change, but does not dismiss human-produced pollution as one of the major ones). This is one step backward for NBC Universal and American journalism, one giant leap backward for the health of our planet and its people.
NOTE: This is a guest post from my son, Richie. It also appears on his blog, The View from the Seven-and-a-Halfth Floor.
As part of their company-wide greenwashing campaign, Green is Universal, General Electric subsidiary NBC ran an episode of Dateline last night dedicated to environmental themes.
The last story on the episode was about the retreat of Bolivia's glaciers due to global warming, and the effect this will have on the residents of Bolivia. At first, the story seemed to treat the issue objectively, contrasting old photographs with present footage, and interviewing locals and experts, all in an effort to describe the disappearance of the world's highest-elevation ski area, and to discuss the current ramifications for La Paz, Bolivia, which relies on glacial runoff to produce hydroelectric power and provide clean drinking water for its residents. Several times in the story, the glacial retreat is directly linked to global warming.
Then, out of left field near the end of the story, the 'journalist' states as fact that there is not scientific consensus that an increase in greenhouse gases has caused the global warming we are observing, and that some scientists believe it is part of a natural 'cycle.' No subsequent effort is made to present an alternate theory for this rapid warming 'cycle' (because there is none), nor to explain the highly coincidental correlation between CO2 levels (a primary greenhouse gas) and global average temperature. While acknowledging that global warming is actually occurring AND that the rapidly accelerating glacial retreat is a real phenomenon, the producers went out of their way to create the impression that global warming is some big mystery, and that nobody is certain why it is happening.
My bullshit detector hit liar liar pants on 5-alarm fire.
Why does our government under the current administration, and many major American corporations (some of them, like GE-subsidiary NBC, posing as sources of unbiased news), feed us this crap, and why do we let them do so? Haven't we reached the point where we can accept that there is total scientific and public consensus that human-induced pollution has raised greenhouse gas levels and directly contributed to global climate change? Isn't the only "lack of consensus" remaining in the details, as in "How great is our impact on the climate?," "How much will the climate change?," "How quickly will this all happen?," and "How the hell do we get ourselves out of this mess?"
Could you imagine what this country would be like if people weren't constantly fed carefully-tailored crap, bordering on propaganda and teetering on the edge of intentionally false, every time they turned on their television? For starters, we'd have a different president, we'd choose our wars more carefully, we'd have safer food, consumer goods, and workplaces, and we certainly wouldn't think that right-wing Republican John McCain is either "moderate" or a "maverick."
I also can't help but find it a little coincidental that BOTH President Bush and his wife Laura will make high-profile appearances on NBC this week, the former during an episode of Deal or No Deal (President Bush is hoping to reduce the national debt by one-million-dollar-suitcase), and the latter as a guest host of the highest-rated morning show on American television. Could it be possible that NBC toned down their environmentally-friendly rhetoric, and kicked the anti-science bullcrap up a few notches, all in an effort to make their visitors this week feel more at home?
UPDATE (4/21/08): More than three years ago, nearly the exact same story appeared in another NBC outlet (MSNBC.com)--minus the crap about greenhouse gases possibly not contributing to global warming (the article does appropriately consider other factors that contribute to both glacial retreat and climate change, but does not dismiss human-produced pollution as one of the major ones). This is one step backward for NBC Universal and American journalism, one giant leap backward for the health of our planet and its people.
Glass Houses
'McCain sees the tawdry ceremonies of politics- the spin and hucksterism- as unworthy. He's not one to put on silly hats; his shtick is substance' ( Joe Klein, Time Magazine, April 28, 2008). Klein goes on to say that McCain wants to have 'substantive' debates about the major issues like the war and climate change.
On the day that this piece was received and read, I also received an e-mail from Christian Ferry, Deputy Campaign Manager for Senator McCain. The headline announced that 'Hamas weighs in on US Presidential Election'. It quoted Ahmed Yousef , Hamas Political Advisor, as stating that "we like Mr. Obama and hope he will win the election".So much for the integrity quotient being raised by Senator McCain.
Innuendo and insinuation are the dirty laundry that is aired at every turn in the political sphere. Senator McCain, sitting on the sideline while he watches the Democratic debacle continue to unfold, can appear like he is taking the high road, while at a safe distance. Even then, the stink factor is never far from surfacing. In the 'notice' from the McCain camp , it is clear that opportunities to strike and run will be taken even when the heat is not being applied.
What McCain is telling all of us is that Senator Obama is soft on terrorism. If those who lurk around every corner waiting to take down our country have anything positive to say about Obama, then there can be nothing positive about Obama. Forget that our attempts to ignore and minimize our enemies have only led to total alienation of the US throughout the Middle East and an inability to create any kind of stability in the region. Forget that failure to recognize an enemy does not make an enemy any less recognizable. Forget that our might does not equal our right anymore. Forget that a new dynamic must be envisioned if we are to crawl out of the mess that we find ourselves in and are unable to extricate ourselves from. Forget all that and just remember that if we vote for Obama we are siding with Hamas, and leading our country to its inevitable downfall.
That is what Senator McCain , while telling us he is staying above the fray, and that he wants to focus on the issues, is letting his underlings do on his behalf. The fantasy being foisted upon us that his candidacy is one in which the high road will be taken has already veered into the ditch. There is no way that the Republican machine is going to sit by idly if there is any chance to gain votes through talking points that have nothing to do with substance and everything to do with manipulation.
It is easy to try to look pure when your opponents are in their own dog fight and have scratched and clawed and opened wounds on each other without your having to lift a finger. It will be quite another thing if Senator McCain finds himself trailing badly in the polls. When the heat is on, and the pressure is high, it may well be Senator McCain, and not his underlings, who brings out the quote from Mr. Yousef.
Just remember that no politician is without a closet full of skeletons. When the rhetoric comes flying from Senator McCain, when the smears and attacks are spread on anything and everything Democratic, except the substantive positions , be fair warned that there will be equal return fire. If Senator McCain is going to throw stones, he better realize he lives in a glass house.
On the day that this piece was received and read, I also received an e-mail from Christian Ferry, Deputy Campaign Manager for Senator McCain. The headline announced that 'Hamas weighs in on US Presidential Election'. It quoted Ahmed Yousef , Hamas Political Advisor, as stating that "we like Mr. Obama and hope he will win the election".So much for the integrity quotient being raised by Senator McCain.
Innuendo and insinuation are the dirty laundry that is aired at every turn in the political sphere. Senator McCain, sitting on the sideline while he watches the Democratic debacle continue to unfold, can appear like he is taking the high road, while at a safe distance. Even then, the stink factor is never far from surfacing. In the 'notice' from the McCain camp , it is clear that opportunities to strike and run will be taken even when the heat is not being applied.
What McCain is telling all of us is that Senator Obama is soft on terrorism. If those who lurk around every corner waiting to take down our country have anything positive to say about Obama, then there can be nothing positive about Obama. Forget that our attempts to ignore and minimize our enemies have only led to total alienation of the US throughout the Middle East and an inability to create any kind of stability in the region. Forget that failure to recognize an enemy does not make an enemy any less recognizable. Forget that our might does not equal our right anymore. Forget that a new dynamic must be envisioned if we are to crawl out of the mess that we find ourselves in and are unable to extricate ourselves from. Forget all that and just remember that if we vote for Obama we are siding with Hamas, and leading our country to its inevitable downfall.
That is what Senator McCain , while telling us he is staying above the fray, and that he wants to focus on the issues, is letting his underlings do on his behalf. The fantasy being foisted upon us that his candidacy is one in which the high road will be taken has already veered into the ditch. There is no way that the Republican machine is going to sit by idly if there is any chance to gain votes through talking points that have nothing to do with substance and everything to do with manipulation.
It is easy to try to look pure when your opponents are in their own dog fight and have scratched and clawed and opened wounds on each other without your having to lift a finger. It will be quite another thing if Senator McCain finds himself trailing badly in the polls. When the heat is on, and the pressure is high, it may well be Senator McCain, and not his underlings, who brings out the quote from Mr. Yousef.
Just remember that no politician is without a closet full of skeletons. When the rhetoric comes flying from Senator McCain, when the smears and attacks are spread on anything and everything Democratic, except the substantive positions , be fair warned that there will be equal return fire. If Senator McCain is going to throw stones, he better realize he lives in a glass house.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Behind Closed Doors
The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) broke away from the main branch of the Mormon church decades ago. The main branch, housed in Salt Lake City, Utah, disavowed polygamy in the late 1800's. The FLDS continues to preach and practice the polygamist tradition. This sect is housed in Colorado City Arizona, Hildale, Utah and outside of Eldorado , Texas. Living in sprawling compounds, there is reported to be over 10,000 members.
For me, perpetuation of this situation is an unacceptable option. Not one more day should ever pass where a child can be subjected to the abuses that have long existed within this culture. The best interests of these children dictate that action must be taken which will make a loud and clear statement that this type of behavior is morally and socially reprehensible and will no longer be tolerated. While my heart goes out to the mothers who have themselves been victims, we cannot compound the error by in any way sanctioning what has transpired. We cannot put these children back inside the huge walls and hope they will somehow survive. We all know that to do so would be to make us complicit in permitting continuing atrocities to occur.
The court will be faced with walking a very fine line, making certain this does not appear a religious persecution, or an attempt to eradicate a cult without regard to the specific facts relating to individual cases. What is certain that the practices of the sect, when brought out into the light of day, will be viewed with horror and revulsion. We will soon know whether this is enough to force the implosion of FLDS. For the sake of the children, let us hope this is the final result.
To get to heaven, it is taught that a man must have at least 3 wives. A woman's path to eternal bliss is only through subservience to her husband .
There is an ongoing dilemma of how to keep the number of boys in these compounds to a minimum so to enable each man to have a sufficient number of wives to meet the goals to attain bliss in the afterlife. 'Authorities have reported that at least 1000 teenage boys have been forcibly separated from their families , faith and community- principally so elder members of the sect would have less competition for wives' (BBC News June 14, 2005).
In 2004, Gideon Barlow was banished from Colorado City for wearing short sleeved t-shirts, listening to CD's and having a girlfriend. Gideon was reported to be one of 71 children born to the eight wives of his then 73 year old father. Suit filed by 5 'Lost Boys' alleged they were removed to lessen the competition for the elders in securing wives.
While the actions of the FLDS have long been known by authorities, there has been a great reluctance for them to take any sweeping action . In 1993, a Waco , Texas sect of another cult, the Branch Davidian's,was raided. The standoff between the government and the Branch Davidian's eventually led to a disaster in which approximately 80 members of the sect were killed.
Thus, actions against FLDS have been limited in scope. There has been an effort to cut off its head and hope that the body collapses . Warren Jeffs ascended to the leadership of FLDS after his father died in 2002. The government in 2005 indicted Jeffs on charges of arranging the marriage of a 28 year old man, who was already married, to an underage girl. Jeffs went underground. Eventually, he was located, charged , tried and convicted of forcing a 14 year old girl to marry her cousin. He currently faces trial in Arizona of being an accomplice to incest and sexual conduct resulting from 2 arranged marriages.
Recently, authorities were alerted by a call to a hotline from 'Sarah' , a 16 year old member of the sect, that she was the subject of physical and sexual abuse.On April 3 , a week long raid began at the 1,691 acre Yearning for Zion ranch outside of Eldorado , Texas. Over that week there were 416 children removed from the compound. First these children were taken to a facility in San Angelo, and many of the older children were subsequently moved to the city's Coliseum. Reports from state investigators are that girls who reported knowing the caller were uncooperative in any further questioning trying to identify this individual.
A Texas judge has now made an initial ruling in the case that all these children remain in the custody of the state for genetic testing. The authorities are now faced with the task of trying to determine the age of each child and the mother ( and father). Lack of birth records for many of the children will hinder the determination of their ages. If DNA testing is successful in linking a child to a mother, and if the age of the child is determined, as well as that of the mother, then the age of the mother at the birth of that child can be figured out. Under Texas law, no girl under 16 can legally marry even with her parent's consent. Thus, if the investigation reveals that a mother had a child before she was 16, the father of that child will have been automatically guilty of criminal conduct.
The circus has come to town. In a scene that was bizarre and compelling, lawyers , the children, and their families gathered in the courthouse, or were taken to a nearby auditorium and connected to the courtroom through videoconferencing. Exhibits had to be marked , copied and then carried between locations. The mothers of these children, all dressed in the same long colorful dresses, all with the same hairstyle,,sat and watched, as the judge made her decision.
It is incomprehensible to try to put oneself in the place of a woman who is living through this unfolding nightmare. The psychological battering that would permit one to be treated in the manner that these young girls and women have , must be relentless beyond our wildest imagination. We cannot project ourselves into a situation that is so foreign to everything we know and see . In the months to come, we will hopefully get a clear picture of the atrocities that must have occurred on a regular basis inside the fortress and out of sight .
Can the children possibly be returned to this environment? For them, it is the only life they have known. For the youngest ones, there may have been no aberrant actions ever taken against them. Certainly, their mothers would be powerless to protect them if they saw trouble coming. The courts will have to sort out whether the group behavior provides legal basis for taking all the children from their home, or only those against whom transgressions have already been committed.
There is an ongoing dilemma of how to keep the number of boys in these compounds to a minimum so to enable each man to have a sufficient number of wives to meet the goals to attain bliss in the afterlife. 'Authorities have reported that at least 1000 teenage boys have been forcibly separated from their families , faith and community- principally so elder members of the sect would have less competition for wives' (BBC News June 14, 2005).
In 2004, Gideon Barlow was banished from Colorado City for wearing short sleeved t-shirts, listening to CD's and having a girlfriend. Gideon was reported to be one of 71 children born to the eight wives of his then 73 year old father. Suit filed by 5 'Lost Boys' alleged they were removed to lessen the competition for the elders in securing wives.
While the actions of the FLDS have long been known by authorities, there has been a great reluctance for them to take any sweeping action . In 1993, a Waco , Texas sect of another cult, the Branch Davidian's,was raided. The standoff between the government and the Branch Davidian's eventually led to a disaster in which approximately 80 members of the sect were killed.
Thus, actions against FLDS have been limited in scope. There has been an effort to cut off its head and hope that the body collapses . Warren Jeffs ascended to the leadership of FLDS after his father died in 2002. The government in 2005 indicted Jeffs on charges of arranging the marriage of a 28 year old man, who was already married, to an underage girl. Jeffs went underground. Eventually, he was located, charged , tried and convicted of forcing a 14 year old girl to marry her cousin. He currently faces trial in Arizona of being an accomplice to incest and sexual conduct resulting from 2 arranged marriages.
Recently, authorities were alerted by a call to a hotline from 'Sarah' , a 16 year old member of the sect, that she was the subject of physical and sexual abuse.On April 3 , a week long raid began at the 1,691 acre Yearning for Zion ranch outside of Eldorado , Texas. Over that week there were 416 children removed from the compound. First these children were taken to a facility in San Angelo, and many of the older children were subsequently moved to the city's Coliseum. Reports from state investigators are that girls who reported knowing the caller were uncooperative in any further questioning trying to identify this individual.
A Texas judge has now made an initial ruling in the case that all these children remain in the custody of the state for genetic testing. The authorities are now faced with the task of trying to determine the age of each child and the mother ( and father). Lack of birth records for many of the children will hinder the determination of their ages. If DNA testing is successful in linking a child to a mother, and if the age of the child is determined, as well as that of the mother, then the age of the mother at the birth of that child can be figured out. Under Texas law, no girl under 16 can legally marry even with her parent's consent. Thus, if the investigation reveals that a mother had a child before she was 16, the father of that child will have been automatically guilty of criminal conduct.
The circus has come to town. In a scene that was bizarre and compelling, lawyers , the children, and their families gathered in the courthouse, or were taken to a nearby auditorium and connected to the courtroom through videoconferencing. Exhibits had to be marked , copied and then carried between locations. The mothers of these children, all dressed in the same long colorful dresses, all with the same hairstyle,,sat and watched, as the judge made her decision.
It is incomprehensible to try to put oneself in the place of a woman who is living through this unfolding nightmare. The psychological battering that would permit one to be treated in the manner that these young girls and women have , must be relentless beyond our wildest imagination. We cannot project ourselves into a situation that is so foreign to everything we know and see . In the months to come, we will hopefully get a clear picture of the atrocities that must have occurred on a regular basis inside the fortress and out of sight .
Can the children possibly be returned to this environment? For them, it is the only life they have known. For the youngest ones, there may have been no aberrant actions ever taken against them. Certainly, their mothers would be powerless to protect them if they saw trouble coming. The courts will have to sort out whether the group behavior provides legal basis for taking all the children from their home, or only those against whom transgressions have already been committed.
The court will be faced with walking a very fine line, making certain this does not appear a religious persecution, or an attempt to eradicate a cult without regard to the specific facts relating to individual cases. What is certain that the practices of the sect, when brought out into the light of day, will be viewed with horror and revulsion. We will soon know whether this is enough to force the implosion of FLDS. For the sake of the children, let us hope this is the final result.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Round 4
Yankee Stadium has been the site of many great events throughout its 85 year history. Apart from baseball, it has been host to concerts by many entertainment legends and this Sunday will be the site of a mass to be conducted by the Pope. The sights and sounds associated with this stadium have brought millions to their feet, and will soon bring 57,000 to their knees.
But the one constant occurring throughout the years has been the battles between the Yankees and the various teams invading their home turf. Each year the Yankees have defended and protected their house like no other team in the history of the game. 26 times they have been crowned World Champions, far more than their closest competition. They have made themselves an empire, which to many not living under its protective roof, find to be the worst of all evils. Rich and powerful, the Yankees have been able to fend off all challengers with fists of fury, or at least of gold. However, beginning in 2004, there has been a large chink in the armor. The irritant that has eaten away at the aura of invincibility is the Boston Red Sox.
In a historic battle in the American League playoffs of 2004, the Red Sox recovered from a 3 to 0 deficit in games to win 4 straight games . With the last of these wins they ushered the Yankees out of the playoffs, created a new sense of power in the Boston franchise. The Sox went on to win the World Series in a 4 game sweep. Since then, they have repeated their World Series triumph with an equally impressive destruction of their National League opponent in 2007. The Red Sox have become what the Yankees have always been.
When the Red Sox played second fiddle to the Yankees, I did not hate them. I had an air of superiority ,certain that in the end, the Sox would be dispatched and sent home with head bowed. Until 2004 , the Red Sox had not won a World Series in 86 years. However, with the role reversal arising from the triumphs of the Red Sox over the last 4 years, my smugness has disappeared. It has now been replaced by a total disregard for everything Red Sox.
Thus, what had always been an interesting and entertaining spectacle between these 2 teams, has now taken on an added sense of urgency and depth. Each game played during the regular season is but one more attempt for the Yankees to try to wrest away from these upstarts the crown that has been stolen away. The Yankees and Red Sox play 18 regular season games against one another, 9 at each team's home stadium. Tickets to each of these games has long been a prize possession. Now it is like getting a seat at a championship fight.
Last night was Round 4 in this year's fight. The Red Sox had won 2 of the first 3 contests. The lone Yankee victory had come by way of the strong arm of their ace starter, Chien Ming Wang. In an unusual twist, Wang was now making consecutive starts against the same team, as the battle moved from Fenway Part to the Stadium.
What no one could have anticipated was that this was to be a game in which haymaker punches were thrown all night. Instead of a tense, low scoring affair, this was like Ali and Frazier throwing knockout punch after knockout punch. The Yankees delivered the first blow, scoring 3 runs in the first inning. The Sox hammered back and soon tied the score. The Yankees responded with 4 runs. Just as quickly, the Sox returned the favor , scoring 6 times. It was 9 to 7 Boston and you didn't know whether to laugh or cry. You were happy, then sad, then happy, then sad, and the game was only half over.
The Yankees immediately erupted for 4 runs to take an 11-9 lead. This finally seemed to deflate the Red Sox. After being knocked down repeatedly, they finally stayed on the canvas. Their bats went quiet, while the Yankees tacked on 4 more runs in a 15 to 9 win.
It was an exhausting and exhilarating evening. For the fans, it was worth every moment of pain, knowing that eventually we wore the enemy down. Yet it is only April 16th and there are 14 more regular season games against the Red Sox and 146 more regular seasons games in total. The season really is a marathon, and any true victory over the Red Sox will have to await the post season. But, on this night, it was a good beginning.
But the one constant occurring throughout the years has been the battles between the Yankees and the various teams invading their home turf. Each year the Yankees have defended and protected their house like no other team in the history of the game. 26 times they have been crowned World Champions, far more than their closest competition. They have made themselves an empire, which to many not living under its protective roof, find to be the worst of all evils. Rich and powerful, the Yankees have been able to fend off all challengers with fists of fury, or at least of gold. However, beginning in 2004, there has been a large chink in the armor. The irritant that has eaten away at the aura of invincibility is the Boston Red Sox.
In a historic battle in the American League playoffs of 2004, the Red Sox recovered from a 3 to 0 deficit in games to win 4 straight games . With the last of these wins they ushered the Yankees out of the playoffs, created a new sense of power in the Boston franchise. The Sox went on to win the World Series in a 4 game sweep. Since then, they have repeated their World Series triumph with an equally impressive destruction of their National League opponent in 2007. The Red Sox have become what the Yankees have always been.
When the Red Sox played second fiddle to the Yankees, I did not hate them. I had an air of superiority ,certain that in the end, the Sox would be dispatched and sent home with head bowed. Until 2004 , the Red Sox had not won a World Series in 86 years. However, with the role reversal arising from the triumphs of the Red Sox over the last 4 years, my smugness has disappeared. It has now been replaced by a total disregard for everything Red Sox.
Thus, what had always been an interesting and entertaining spectacle between these 2 teams, has now taken on an added sense of urgency and depth. Each game played during the regular season is but one more attempt for the Yankees to try to wrest away from these upstarts the crown that has been stolen away. The Yankees and Red Sox play 18 regular season games against one another, 9 at each team's home stadium. Tickets to each of these games has long been a prize possession. Now it is like getting a seat at a championship fight.
Last night was Round 4 in this year's fight. The Red Sox had won 2 of the first 3 contests. The lone Yankee victory had come by way of the strong arm of their ace starter, Chien Ming Wang. In an unusual twist, Wang was now making consecutive starts against the same team, as the battle moved from Fenway Part to the Stadium.
What no one could have anticipated was that this was to be a game in which haymaker punches were thrown all night. Instead of a tense, low scoring affair, this was like Ali and Frazier throwing knockout punch after knockout punch. The Yankees delivered the first blow, scoring 3 runs in the first inning. The Sox hammered back and soon tied the score. The Yankees responded with 4 runs. Just as quickly, the Sox returned the favor , scoring 6 times. It was 9 to 7 Boston and you didn't know whether to laugh or cry. You were happy, then sad, then happy, then sad, and the game was only half over.
The Yankees immediately erupted for 4 runs to take an 11-9 lead. This finally seemed to deflate the Red Sox. After being knocked down repeatedly, they finally stayed on the canvas. Their bats went quiet, while the Yankees tacked on 4 more runs in a 15 to 9 win.
It was an exhausting and exhilarating evening. For the fans, it was worth every moment of pain, knowing that eventually we wore the enemy down. Yet it is only April 16th and there are 14 more regular season games against the Red Sox and 146 more regular seasons games in total. The season really is a marathon, and any true victory over the Red Sox will have to await the post season. But, on this night, it was a good beginning.
Uncomfortable Moments Update
I left you about 4 months ago having just received a phone call from my doctor telling me that the test results of my prostate biopsy were fine but that I would have to come back to him in about 3 months for a follow up visit. I did not heed my own advice to lose his phone number and address.
Several weeks ago I went back to Frank's office. Blood was taken to see if my PSA levels had gone down from the time of the first go round. I was feeling fine, and was certainly hopeful that I would get the good news I wanted. I had to wait a week for the results.
I was also, at this visit, scheduled to have a minor growth removed by Frank. Modesty prevents me from discussing any of the specifics relating to the whereabouts of the offending mole. With little mental preparation, I lay down on the 'operating table' and was shown, from a camera being projected onto a screen, the site where the work was to be done. I had absolutely no interest in watching the proceedings and suggested that the screen be used for me to watch a replay of the Yankee game from the night before.
After receiving a series of local injections, the dicing, slicing and splicing began in earnest. For several minutes, small pieces of me were taken away and deposited into receptacles, to be analyzed. Once this process was complete, and the offending parts removed, the stitching commenced. You would have thought there was a crater being sewn up from the number of stitches utilized. I would think my head and my feet were being tied together for this much work to be necessary.
Finally, the work was completed and I was sent home, to deal with my physical and emotional wounds, and to wait for the results of the blood test.
When Frank called the following week , he said that the growth was benign, as expected. However, the results of the blood test on the PSA levels were not as hoped for, which meant that I would have to go through round 2 of the biopsy . Frank said there was no rush, but I decided to do the procedure as soon as possible (last Friday).
The time waiting to go in for the procedure was painful on several levels. The recovery from the minor surgery was not as minor as I would have expected. I was not able to move about freely and had some level of discomfort. I also was envisioning my upcoming reunion with Frank and the instruments of torture.
The day finally arrived and the biopsy itself went very well. I guess, because I had been through it before, I was slightly more relaxed. Frank reported that I was not quite the tight ass I was the first time, and thus his work was a little easier. After viewing the pictures he had taken, Frank stated that the medication I had been ingesting the last 3 months seemed to be doing its job on the prostate. Yet, I would have to wait another week to get definitive answers.
Tomorrow would be one week from the biopsy. That also happens to be my birthday. By this morning, I decided to try to get an accelerated answer. I did not want to spend my birthday waiting to hear news I didn't want to hear. I called Frank's office, advised them of my birthday, and asked if there was any way they could try to get the results to me today. They said they would do what they could.
About an hour later, I picked up the phone. It was Frank, singing happy birthday to me. It was the best rendition I had ever heard. He then gave me the good news, and told me to stay the course with my medication, to try to fight off what appears to be no more than a stubborn infection. I am to repeat the song and dance with him in another 3 months.
I have 2 friends who are battling cancer. One has been sick for a while, and has handled his struggles with amazing grace and dignity. He is forever positive and is always upbeat in our conversations. When we speak, he is more concerned with talking about my issues or my son's efforts to get back to good health, then he is about focusing on himself.
The other friend has been recently diagnosed. He has avoided doctors studiously for almost 15 years until his health demanded his attention. He went to the doctors and was then rushed by ambulance to the hospital, where he spent 13 days. He had surgery done, and is hopefully on the way to a full and speedy recovery. Like my other friend, he speaks little of his own condition but deflects attention onto others.
It is not easy to face up to our mortality. These past few months have given me a small window into what waits for all of us.While I watch my friends deal with harsh realities in courageous fashion, I don't know if I would have the inner fortitude that they have shown. I hope it is many years from now before I have to find the answer to that question.
In the meantime, I will follow the doctor's orders and take my medication every morning. I don't want to have to be reporting to you , after my next visit, about round 3 of my biopsy battles. I would rather be reporting on the battles between McCain and Obama or the Yankees and the Red Sox. Until then, I will keep my fingers crossed and hope that any future 'contact' with Frank is just verbal.
Several weeks ago I went back to Frank's office. Blood was taken to see if my PSA levels had gone down from the time of the first go round. I was feeling fine, and was certainly hopeful that I would get the good news I wanted. I had to wait a week for the results.
I was also, at this visit, scheduled to have a minor growth removed by Frank. Modesty prevents me from discussing any of the specifics relating to the whereabouts of the offending mole. With little mental preparation, I lay down on the 'operating table' and was shown, from a camera being projected onto a screen, the site where the work was to be done. I had absolutely no interest in watching the proceedings and suggested that the screen be used for me to watch a replay of the Yankee game from the night before.
After receiving a series of local injections, the dicing, slicing and splicing began in earnest. For several minutes, small pieces of me were taken away and deposited into receptacles, to be analyzed. Once this process was complete, and the offending parts removed, the stitching commenced. You would have thought there was a crater being sewn up from the number of stitches utilized. I would think my head and my feet were being tied together for this much work to be necessary.
Finally, the work was completed and I was sent home, to deal with my physical and emotional wounds, and to wait for the results of the blood test.
When Frank called the following week , he said that the growth was benign, as expected. However, the results of the blood test on the PSA levels were not as hoped for, which meant that I would have to go through round 2 of the biopsy . Frank said there was no rush, but I decided to do the procedure as soon as possible (last Friday).
The time waiting to go in for the procedure was painful on several levels. The recovery from the minor surgery was not as minor as I would have expected. I was not able to move about freely and had some level of discomfort. I also was envisioning my upcoming reunion with Frank and the instruments of torture.
The day finally arrived and the biopsy itself went very well. I guess, because I had been through it before, I was slightly more relaxed. Frank reported that I was not quite the tight ass I was the first time, and thus his work was a little easier. After viewing the pictures he had taken, Frank stated that the medication I had been ingesting the last 3 months seemed to be doing its job on the prostate. Yet, I would have to wait another week to get definitive answers.
Tomorrow would be one week from the biopsy. That also happens to be my birthday. By this morning, I decided to try to get an accelerated answer. I did not want to spend my birthday waiting to hear news I didn't want to hear. I called Frank's office, advised them of my birthday, and asked if there was any way they could try to get the results to me today. They said they would do what they could.
About an hour later, I picked up the phone. It was Frank, singing happy birthday to me. It was the best rendition I had ever heard. He then gave me the good news, and told me to stay the course with my medication, to try to fight off what appears to be no more than a stubborn infection. I am to repeat the song and dance with him in another 3 months.
I have 2 friends who are battling cancer. One has been sick for a while, and has handled his struggles with amazing grace and dignity. He is forever positive and is always upbeat in our conversations. When we speak, he is more concerned with talking about my issues or my son's efforts to get back to good health, then he is about focusing on himself.
The other friend has been recently diagnosed. He has avoided doctors studiously for almost 15 years until his health demanded his attention. He went to the doctors and was then rushed by ambulance to the hospital, where he spent 13 days. He had surgery done, and is hopefully on the way to a full and speedy recovery. Like my other friend, he speaks little of his own condition but deflects attention onto others.
It is not easy to face up to our mortality. These past few months have given me a small window into what waits for all of us.While I watch my friends deal with harsh realities in courageous fashion, I don't know if I would have the inner fortitude that they have shown. I hope it is many years from now before I have to find the answer to that question.
In the meantime, I will follow the doctor's orders and take my medication every morning. I don't want to have to be reporting to you , after my next visit, about round 3 of my biopsy battles. I would rather be reporting on the battles between McCain and Obama or the Yankees and the Red Sox. Until then, I will keep my fingers crossed and hope that any future 'contact' with Frank is just verbal.
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