Friends, while me may expect to encounter Molotov cocktails in the Karelian woods, we don't expect to see them in the suburbs of Denver. Apparently a pro-Palestinian terrorist has used these incendiary devices as a weapon against American Jews gathering in support of Israeli hostages held by Hamas. The frustration felt by those concerned for the safety of civilians in Gaza may be understandable, but it's hard to imagine that this sort of wanton violence could do anything to improve the lot of the Palestinian people. Quite the contrary!
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/cjdx44kx5zxt
In other news, the Ukrainians have launched an audacious long-range drone attack on Russia, targeting that country's fleet of bombers. The amount of damage caused is unclear, but abundantly clear is Ukraine's desire to flex its muscles and demonstrate its military potency, especially in light of its continuous withdrawals on the front lines. How will these developments affect the ongoing peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia? Probably not much, since those talks don't seem to be making any headway, and neither Zelensky nor Putin seems interested in staunching the bloodshed.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0r1jv0rn0ko
P.S. Sorry to be so slow on the draw, but here's the latest Newsmakers show, taped last Thursday:
Dr. Waddy from Jack:That a Holocaust survivor was injured in this attacks beggars adequate comment and outrage.
ReplyDeleteLet's try to follow the "reasoning" of the current crop of Jew haters: "Because over 1000 Israelis were butchered and done much other outrage on Oct. 7. all Jews deserve to be dealt an atavistic reprise of the ancient savage antipathy they have endured for millennia!" (?!)
RAY TO DR. WADDY
DeleteJust remember that the Russians and Ukrainians will continue to slaughter each other, as will the Israelis and the Palestinian Arabs. There will be no end to this.
Rather sad, when you think that the average American could care less about this. And in fact, I dare say most Americans could not even find Israel or Ukraine on a map. When I taught modern European history and political science in college, I had to educate my students in geography first. Most of them could not not even find any European Country on a wall map that was right in front of them, without considerable effort.
In any event, the average American is far more concerned with grocery prices, and could care less what happens in Israel and Ukraine. This includes most of the people over in Boulder, Colorado trying to make a living. What's happening in Kiev or Jerusalem (if they could find those cities on a map) is secondary to their thinking in surviving another day. That includes the latest app and upgrade to their fucking cell phones.
RAY TO JACK
DeleteWho was this Holocaust survivor? Any details on this person released yet? I can't find anything. Have you seen something I missed? Let's say this person was five (5) when The Holocaust began. He/she would have to be at least ninety (90) by now. Just speculating. Let me know when you see something.
Ray is right that it's ironic how involved the U.S. is in international conflicts when the average American knows so little, and cares so little, about other parts of the world. This problem has always, in my humble opinion, made the U.S. potentially a very dangerous country, because much of this ignorance bleeds over into our governing class, unfortunately, and renders it depressingly likely that we will act rashly and naively on the world stage. Ukraine might be a case in point. That was a very avoidable conflict, but, for our own moronic reasons, we did our best to gin it up.
ReplyDeleteRay from Jack: If I remember right the report on Fox said he was 84 years old. The Boche persisted in their evil right to the end so he may well have experienced it at an age which probably most adults can remember. To consider the suffering a child would have experienced from involvement in such indescribable inhumanity: to think of that horror at all is almost unbearable.
ReplyDeleteI have always been unable to understand antisemitism's hellish intensity and durability. A documentary featuring several Jewish scholars was on the other night and it provided what I think could be the best explanation I've read or heard.
They agreed in attributing it to "Mt. Sinai", yes. The Covenant made there embued Jews with a lasting moral structure which guided them through the travails forced on them by viciously envious peoples. I cannot here reprise the details of their reasoning but it appeared to me to be very plausible.
My recently learning more about the history of Zionism gives me misgivings I never had before about the founding of Israel but I am convinced that the perhaps unequaled intensity and vast extent of hostility toward Israel is, in the main, the product of that detestable ancient hatred which predates the founding of modern Israel. It has been embraced by the far left and their indiscriminate automaton cadre in our country. Eric Hoffer in his book The True Believer , opined that one of the defining characteristics of "true believers" is their passionate desire for a truth, any truth, to which to give unreasoning devotion. The "American" far left demonstrates this aberration in its conduct since Oct. 7, I think.
RAY TO JACK
DeleteLooks like I'll have to fade out and disappear from this site, because I can't keep up with your 19th prose anymore, which is probably why very few people comment on "Waddy Is Right". For example, in your responses to this article alone, who in the hell would know who "The Boche" are! Why use the term? Who are you trying to impress? You certainly don't owe me an explanation, but you should consider the possibility of using plain English to convey your opinions. Think about it, and good luck, but I'm out of here.
Dr. Waddy, Ray et al from Jack: As a sub teacher I had to teach a unit on Greek geography to 7th graders. I thought it best to initially pose them the question "why should we care at all about Greece?" Glad I did; I think discussing the historically obvious reasons with them helped them appreciate the unit.
ReplyDeleteBut your expressed concern about such little understanding of the vital factors in current events and their origins and consequences, even in many of those who govern us ( eg most disturbingly today in their ignorance of Russian and Ukrainian matters) is right on point.
The lives of so very many productive people make history and unless it obviously moves them , politics, into subjects for which they haven't the time or the energy to pay attention. The superlative car mechanic I go to told me " I have my own repair business and it can take far more than 8 hours per day. When I have a chance to stand down I don't like to think about things which may disturb me". Engagingly academic subjects are often not part of the culture in which so many people have grown up. Channels like the History Channel and the now wide selection of current events channels help some I think.
Ray from Jack: I understand Boche means pig in French. The term was used alot in WWI in reference to the Germans and not so much in WWII. But I use it sometimes to characterize the Nazis because it more than fits.
ReplyDeleteRAY TO JACK
DeleteCheck out the shootings in Boulder, Colorado just a few years ago at The King Sooper (grocery market) there, and let me know if there were any Holocaust survivors who were wounded or/and killed. That would beggar outrage for sure.
RAY TO JACK
ReplyDeleteI know what Boche means, but how many people reading your comments on this site know what it means? That's my point.
Ray from Jack: Gee, when I don't know the meaning of a word I go to my well thumbed dictionary. I think its safe to assume our fellow readers do the same.
ReplyDeleteRay, I know who the Boche are! Do I win a prize??? To Jack's point, I enjoy learning a new word from time to time. Most people, I trust, enjoy forgetting words a lot more. Alas, I don't think there's any danger that this blog will ever cater to the hoi polloi (there's a gem for you!), so we can afford to throw around some fancy words.
ReplyDeleteAnti-Semitism is a pretty complex historical phenomenon, and I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that the species of it that thrives in the Islamic world today is all that similar to the kind you'd find in the West, or that it's all that ancient. The term "Islamofascism" is apt at least in the sense that there are some very modern elements that have been fused with more traditional grievances against the Jews.
Popular ignorance about global history and foreign cultures explains, of course, why politicians are always trying to distill policy questions into crude morality tales. This is why we keep getting told that Saddam=Hitler, Putin=Hitler, Trump=Hitler, etc etc. Unfortunately for the politicians, most people don't really know who Hitler is either.