Tuesday, January 7, 2020

ANTI-SEMITISM IS DIFFERENT THAN ORDINARY HATE

It is pretty well excepted that hate is a large and growing problem.  Not just in America. It is as much of a problem in Europe, maybe more. 

Anti-Semitism is considered hate. But is different than your garden variety hate. 

For one thing, some say it is the oldest hate. It has biblical roots that trace back to Genesis and the Abraham. 

Another characteristic of anti-Semitism is that it comes at Jews from all sides.  Anti-Semitism exists in all nations, all cultures, all ethnic and religious groups, all levels of society. It is hard to defend yourself when you are being attacked from all sides. 

A classic Jewish humorous line puts Jewish history and experience this way, "I know we are the Chosen People, but why did you have to choose us."

The history of the Jewish people is summed up with this classic Jewish humorous phrase:
They tried to kill us. We survived. Let's eat.
From biblical times, through the dark ages and medieval times, through the American Revolution, WWII to today, Jews have had to deal with people accusing us of many things and blaming us for a lot more. 

Jews have responded to the hate we faced over thousands of years in very constructive ways. From our sense of humor to how we practice our faith and keep traditions to our entrepreneurial spirit and professional tendencies, Jews have strengthened themselves in response to hate.  

Anti-Semitism isn't just a type hate, it is a measure of hate in all forms in a society. Anti-Semitism is a gauge that applies to society at large!!  The surest sign of a healthy society is how it treats it's Jews.  

It is said that God chose the Jews to be a Light to all the nations of the world.  I don't believe that means that God ensured the salvation of the Jews more than any other nation of people.

Jews are to be a light to the world by showing the world how to be behave by walking in the says of the Torah. 

The obvious implication is that we are to demonstrate God's laws, his Commandments and Mitzvot for the world to see. We are supposed to show others to "love their fellow as themselves."  

Yeshua (Jesus) was a Jew who took this message one step further and showed us both a life and a death that was dedicated to God's ways, and was for purposes of saving us from our personal failings to do so.

God rewarded Nations that honor the Jews who honor the Torah. Such Nations have a healthy and prosperous society. They are blessed. God is to be feared as well, and Nations that curse the Jews have been cursed.  

In conclusion, anti-Semitism is different. I offer a different way to view anti-Semitism -- a paradigm shift. 

The more that there is "hate in the hearts" of the people of any nation, the more anti-Semitism rises in that nation!  Anti-Semitism is the RESULT of hate. regardless of whether that hate is for Jews or others. 

In other words, anti-Semitism is an indication of a dysfunctional society.  That is why Jews have been referred to as the "canary in a coal mine" -- Jews are an "early warning system" of society or nation with a toxic level of hate. 

Therefore, anti-Semitism is as much a result of the hate people have for Trump OR Hillary as it is for the hate people have for other things including Jews. 

Regardless of whether hate is rising on the Right OR the Left, it elevates anti-Semitism.  And when it is coming from both sides, which it is today in America, as well as Europe, the rise in anti-Semitism is that much greater. 
Anti-Semitism is a measure of the overall hate in a society. 
When people say that love is the answer, they are right in the sense that Love is the opposite of hate. So a society in which loving kindness is predominant, hate is pushed down and therefore anti-Semitism declines as a result.

That is not to say we should love and tolerate any anti-semite let alone any form of hate.

What it is clear to me is that the dramatic rise in anti-Semitism in America and Europe is telling us that our world is allowing hate to win.

What frightens me most is the way some Jews are acting today.  We nurture hate when we reason it, justify it and especially when we deny it.

Our media and culture are fanning the flames of hate.  Fake news from either side is contributing. So are many politicians who are exploiting fear as means for motivation and dominance - POWER.
GOD IS OUR ROCK.  GOD'S WORD IS THE TRUTH. FAITH IS THE SOURCE OF OUR STRENGTH.  
We aren't just the victims of anti-Semitism. If we hate others, whether it is Trump and his supporters or Hillary and her supporters, whether it is people who have different views on climate or attitudes towards the 2nd Amendment, hate is hate and our hate adds to the dysfunction.

The rapid rise of anti-Semitism in America is warning us to check our politics. When our politics has become a partisan battle for power, and domination is the only means to an end, we have failed as a Nation.

The Father of our Nation, George  Washington warned us in his Farewell Letter how we might fail.  The writing has been on the wall for nearly 250 years.  But Americans today are just not reading it.

The writing came down from on High. It was delivered to the world on Mount Sinai. And it is in our Bible.
"Do not hate your fellow in your heart. Reprove. Don't nurture a grudge and take sin unto yourself.  Love your fellow as yourself. I am the LORD."

P.S. Please read my previous blog post Beyond Hate -- The Rise of Rage. 

Sunday, January 5, 2020

BEYOND HATE -- THE RISE OF RAGE

What would be the implication if 20-30 million Americans went temporarily insane in a fit of rage? 
According to psychologists there are three ways people react in a situation that makes us angry. These are: Passive Aggression, Open Aggression, and Assertive Anger. 

The function of all three expressions of anger, is to protect vulnerability and neutralize threat.  

In humans, the threat is almost always to the ego. 

Open aggression comes from a need to be in control. 

Anger is considered a secondary emotion. Typically, one of the primary emotions, like fear or sadness, can be found underneath the anger. Fear includes things like anxiety and worry, and sadness comes from the experience of loss, disappointment or discouragement.

Anger is the most physical of emotions. Angry and resentful people often get into trouble, especially in intimate relationships, without doing anything wrong, as their bodies and facial expressions devalue, demean, and express hostility outside their conscious awareness.  

With Open Aggression people have a tendency to lash out in anger and rage, becoming physically or verbally aggressive.

Examples of acting out Open Aggression include fighting, bullying, blackmailing, accusing, shouting, bickering, sarcasm and criticism. 

Being around angry and resentful people makes us resentful, even when they say nothing offensive. This is something that politicians who exploit public anger don’t seem to realize. The short-term gain they get from stirring anger will eventually turn against them. 
Those who live by the angry vote die by it.
Anger and rage are related to each other.  Most people do not find any hard difference between the two. Both anger and rage are emotional outbursts. Anger is a feeling or emotion that a person has when being offended or when wronged. 
Rage is an extreme expression of anger.

Thursday, January 2, 2020

A COINCIDENCE DIDN'T HAPPEN TODAY!



TODAY, 0101■2020 A "COINCIDENCE" DIDN'T HAPPEN.  IT STARTED NEARLY 97 YEARS AGO!! 

Today an amazing moment happened and it wasn't New Year's.

It started on the first day of Rosh Hashanah approximately 97 years ago, in the Hebrew year 5684.  Which "happened" to fall on 9.11 (1923).


On 0101■2020 92,000 Jewish people filled the seats at MetLife for this year's event, 20,000 others gathered in Barclays Center in Brooklyn, along with thousands more at satellite locations across the U.S. and Israel to celebrate the SIYUM HASHAS.

Before continuing with my blog post please take just a moment to watch this video which explains the Siyum HaShas.

Siyum HaShas celebrates completion of the study of the Talmud, which is said to be among the most challenging religious texts in the world. It is a daily regimen of learning that takes seven-and-a-half years to complete studying with one page read per day.


The Talmud is comprised of 2,711 densely written double-sides pages. Each called a Daf Yomi (דף יומי) "page of the day" or "daily folio."

This 0101■2020 Siyum HaShas marked the completion of the 13th cycle! 

13 is a very significant number in Judaism.  It is also the 13th letter in Hebrew alphabet -- the letter Mem
משה
Moses or Moshe משה begins with the letter mem. So does Messiah or Mashiach in Hebrew.

The gematria (numeric value and meaning) of mem is forty. Forty is the number of days it rained upon the earth during the Flood. Forty is also the num­ber of days Moses spent on Mount Sinai. Moses actually ascended the mountain three separate times. The first forty-day sojourn took place when he received the Torah. 

Mem, 13, is the age when a Jewish boy "comes of age" - he has become a Bar Mitzvah. He is also recognized as having the same rights and responsibilities as an adult. As such, he is obligated to observe the commandments. A girl is Bat Mitzvah at age 12.)

The Maimonides states that the number 13 represents the number of principles of Jewish faith .

In addition, the foundations of Judaism  are based on the original 13 Tribes of Israel: the 11 sons of Jacob and the 2 sons of Joseph.

According to the Talmud, the core of the Selichot (Supplication) prayers (Jewish penitential prayers and poems for forgiveness) is the 13 Attributes of Mercy that G-d taught Moses .

So today, on New Year's Day (the 4th day in the Hebrew month of TEVET in the year 5780), marking the completion of the 13th cycle of Talmud study, Jews around the world prayed for the Messiah.

I do not know what will happen tomorrow. All I know is that today, 0101■2020, a coincidence didn't happen.

DESTRUCTION and REBIRTH

WHAT IF .... click here.

P.S. Unfortunately, I have not studied Talmud. I am still working on the Bible. God willing I will live long enough to finish one cycle of studying the Talmud.

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

IS THE WORLD READY? OF COURSE NOT. BUT ARE YOU?


WHAT IF THE ARK OF THE COVENANT NEVER LEFT? WHAT IF IT WAS REVEALED AT THIS TIME?

The ancient Jewish Temple in Jerusalem was built to excruciating detail to house the Ark of the Covenant which was also constucted in precise detail.  It was carried through the desert and guarded for hundreds of years and through the rein on many many Jewish Kings.

The Jews knew math and science. They knew prophecy and that they had a role in God's plan. They also knew they would be attacked again and again by large human forces.

Do you really think the ancient Jews would not have had a preconceived intricate and superior plan for hiding and securing the Ark of the Covenant.  And would not such a plan include creating decoys and myths to distract and confuse their enemies and treasure hunters???

What IF the Jews did prepare for the siege and the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem?  What if the Ark has been hidden in Jerusalem for some 2 millennium?  And what IF it were to APPEAR in our time?

IS THE WORLD READY FOR THAT? ARE YOU READY FOR THAT?

Chassidic (mystics) teachings explain that "In general, G‑d has two opposite modes with which He operates: revealed (the natural) or concealed (the supernatural). Nature, with its seeming lack of Divinity, is a result of G‑d’s power to conceal Himself. Miracles, on the other hand, when the laws of nature are broken, are the very expression of G‑dliness, His power openly revealed. In truth, however, G‑d is beyond both of those, He is neither entirely concealed, nor revealed. Neither locked into operating in a hidden, limited manner, nor bound by his infinitude. He is beyond both, and can unite the two modalities if He so desires."

The Ark exists/operates in both modalities - natural and supernatural (miracles).

They say, when it is time, the Holy of Holies and the Ark will just show up.

(If these thoughts intrigue you then you should find the following video interesting.)

Sunday, December 29, 2019

WHAT DOES A TRUMP MANDATE LOOK LIKE?


Blacks are walking away from the Democratic party at an astonishing pace. Hispanics aren't far behind. Independents are choosing Trump as well. And the Republicans who crossed over to support Hillary in 2016 are back and will vote for Trump in 2020.

When you add it up you don't just get Trump elected for 4 more years. You get the greatest Presidential landslide victory since 1936.

Trump's apt to start his second term with a strong mandate. It is notable that this is the opposite of how Obama started his seond term.

Plus there is a reasonable possibility that Republicans will have the majority of both the House and Senate.

If this comes to be, the question is what will Trump and Congress do with both a mandate and control of Congress?

Trump made many promises during his 2016 campaign.  He's done a remarkable job at keeping them. So much so that the popular catch phrase, "Promises made. Promises kept," is often used to describe Trump's success.

As the calendar turns over and we start 2020 the Democrats had hoped Trump and the country would be concerned with and distracted by Trump's impeachment. That plan has backfired on Democrats and will even contribute to Trump's victory. Here is a quote by Trump the night that the House voted.
"IT DOESN'T FEEL LIKE AN IMPEACHMENT."  
Trump is going to hit 2020 with full determination to get relected. He will also be campaigning hard to win seats in the House and keep the Senate. Every Republican Congressperson running in 2020 wants to be seen with Trump at a rally in their state.

6'3" DONALD J TRUMP REMINDS ME OF THE 5'10" TEDDY ROOSEVELT IN THE SENSE THAT BOTH SEEM BIGGER THAN LIFE.
Trump leads. He dreams big  He makes big bold promises. 
Trump paints a picture of the future he intends to lead us to. He drives that vision into our head by repeating a phrase he chooses over & over and over again, like a broken record.

So what does Trump stand to accomplish in his second term? Here are my TOP TEN TRUMP TO-DO'S:

1. More Federal Judges. Several more District Courts will flip to Conservative majority.

2. At least one more Conservative Supreme Court appointment.

3. Immigration Reform and completion of the Border Wall. Resolution of DACA including a path to citizenship for most. At the same time more illegal aliens with violent offenses are deported.  As the number of undocumented and illegal aliens goes down it will be offset by an increase in the number of legal documented tax paying immigrants goes up.

4. Better Mental Health policies and funding for new mental health and drug rehabilitation facilities.

5. Further changes on taxes. Closing loopholes while decreasing rates and making his previous changes permanent.

6. The Builder in Trump will shine biggly! We are going to get a ton of Infrastructure investment including major a improvement to our electric grid, upgrades related to aviation, and focus on big needed repairs to bridges, waste & water, etc.  These improvements are going to go a long way in creating cleaner air and water as well as reducing greenhouse gases.
Trump wants to say he REBUILT America!
7. A dramatic new Middle East peace plan that works!  This is truly the biggest deal ever. Trump wants it bad! He is gonna get it and he is going to go down in history for it.

8. Tort reform and strong laws against slander and false reporting.  Fake news needs to clean up it's act.

9. Voter registration and identification to clean up roles and reduce fraud.

10. Major improvements in military readiness combined with new strategic and tactical defense methods. Lots of change and rebalancing by the Pentagon. With NATO nations investing more there will be greater reason for joint training.  NATO allies will take a larger share of the expense and oversight of US Foreign bases.

(If I had my wish, I'd also like to see the "Expulsion," or at least the "Censure and Reprimand" of Nadler, Schiff and Pelosi who truly abused their power, as well as Ilhan Omar amd Rashida Tlaib for remarks unwitting for a Congressperson.)
Trump accomplished an amazing amount in his first term, while swimming upstream against a difficult current. It is exciting to think of what he can accomplish with the current going his way!

TRUMP DID WHAT HE PROMISED IN HIS FIRST TERM. HE NEVER QUITS! HIS MOST SUCCESSFUL TERM IS JUST AHEAD. 

Check out my 2020 Predictions.



Saturday, December 28, 2019

THE BRAVERY TO CROSS THE LINE


Whistle blowers serve an important roll in society.  Being a whistle blower isn't easy.

Among police there is a concept called the "blue wall of silence."  It alleges that there is peer pressure which dissuades police officers from reporting (ratting) on a colleague's misconduct.  I don't know if this is a fair characterization. And I don't know if exists in the FBI and the CIA.

Agents in the Federal Bureau of Investigation live by three core principles, Fidelity, Bravery and Integrity.

Fidelity is in essence loyalty to the core values, code of ethics and mission of the FBI.

If there has been the gross misconduct that AG Barr and Republicans assert regarding Spying on the Trump campaign it is logical to wonder if more people in our government noticed it from inside.

One thing that US Attorney Durham needs to do is break down that so called code of silence if it exists inside the FBI, DOJ and CIA.

There are many interrogation and law enforcement techniques to get a suspect to confess or to "give themselves up." As the saying goes, "we can do this the hard way or the easy way." But how do you encourage witnesses with evidence that may be important to the government's investigation to come forward voluntarily?

AG Barr can help in an important way. He can appeal to one of the FBI's three principles - Integrity!

One way AG Barr is going to exert his influence on agents, as well others in our government, is to bring to bear the persuasive power of his oratory and intellectual skills coupled with the stature of his title and stellar reputation, in order to convince those with any relevant knowledge to come forward with evidence of the corrupt practises in our government relating too their investigation.

By giving compelling speeches on the higher principles of service and loyalty to the Nation, above all else, Bill Barr will elicit a needed response.

As the investigation moves forward in 2020, I anticipate we will be hearing more from Bill Barr.  And in fact, we already are.

The hope is that credible whistle blowers have the bravery to come forward.  The word credible is key!

Witness credibility is crucial because sometimes people make false claims for personal, financial and political reasons. That is why a suspect, even the President, has the right to face their accuser!

0101■2020
DESTRUCTION and REBIRTH

THE KEY TO SUCCESS FOR DEMOCRATS


Did you happen to catch the Washington Post opinion piece by Media Critic Erik Wemple?

Wemple's article was fifth in a six-part series about the media's handling of the Steele dossier.

There is the truth. And there is the opposite. There are truth seekers like investigative journalist John Solomon. And there are people who are the opposite.  There is real news. And there is the opposite. MSN's Rachel Maddow is the opposite in every sense.

What makes Fake News so damaging is not simply that it has an agenda.  Or that it seeks to satisfy it's audience with misinformation.

What makes fake news people such as Rachel Maddow so dangerous is that people believe them. What makes her and others in her industry so insidious is that she is corrupting the thought processes of good, ethical and intelligent people.
WHY IS IT THAT WE HAVE THE PROBLEMS THAT WE DO IN AMERICA?  I believe it is because people would rather believe the lies than face the truth. 
Trump wasn't elected despite leaders like Obama and news makers like Rachel Maddow. He was elected BECAUSE of them.

Therefore, the louder voices such as Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Chris Cuomo, Brian Stelter, Chuck Todd and others get, the more likely it is that Trump will get re-elected.

The Left has yet to figure out that the key to their success is NOT going on & on about what is wrong with Trump. The key for the Left's success is the same as the key to Right's success.
The key to success for both the Left and the Right is the same - To fix itself!  
For both the Left and the Right to succeed they each have to seek the truth starting with themselves. They each have to identify their own party's faults. They each have to acknowledge their own mistakes. Then, only after they do, they have to reach across the isle, join hands with the other party and move forward to fix America's problems.

Trump got elected because he identified the lies and faults in the Republican party. Before Trump beat Hillary, he beat his Party!  And the establishment in the Party hated him for it. But he had the people's support because he called out his own Party!  He called out the Bush's, Romney McCain and other leaders.

Trump will obliterate any of the Democratic candidates on the ticket because Trump is easily able to do what Democrats have refused to do -- identify the faults within the Democratic party. Meanwhile, anyone on the Democratic Presidential ticket who does so is scorned. The treatment of Tulsi Gabbard is a perfect example.

The Democratic Party will continue to decline until the fake news media starts firing liars like Maddow and O'Donnell and canceling garbage shows like The View and replacing them with legitimate truth seekers. That decline is going to steepen as testimony in the Senate gets underway.

The Democratic party is going to hit rock-bottom when US Attorney John Durham and AG Barr announce the findings of their criminal investigation together with indictments and the American people learn and accept the truth about the deception perpetrated on the American people by the Left and the deep state, including Republicans such as John McCain.

I predict that the Democratic party and fake news is going to be in ashes in 2020. Then it may finally be able to achieve success. Sometimes it takes utter destruction to look up and face yourself.

What it it will take next is for great leadership to rise up and fill the vacuum left by the destruction. That is what it will take for there to be a rebirth in American poltics and our Nation.

0101■2020
DESTRUCTION and REBIRTH