When you have a near death experience and you’re repeatedly told how close you came to dying you might ask a series of questions.
Some are the obvious ones in which you engage in introspection about your own life. You wonder if you’re living where you want to live and working where you want to work. You think about the trips you haven’t taken and all the items on your bucket list.
You think about the people you aren’t in touch with and ask yourself do you leave things as they are or do you reach out. Maybe they read your stuff cuz they are still madly in love with you and wish to have crazy middle age sex.
Maybe the the Dodgers will agree to sign you to a one day contract or maybe you can convince Ringling Brothers to let you be the ringmaster. Maybe you can ring the bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
Or maybe you just shrug your shoulders and laugh because you beat the Angel of Death and you figure you probably have decades of life left.
Maybe you start thinking about untapped skills you can use to push back against the Jew hate.
If you are me then you have thought about all of those things and so much more. You have an endless stream of ideas and you start thinking about whether your communication skills can have an impact.
Are They Listening?
I sometimes wonder if we’re communicating with the right people about the right things. Let’s talk about the Jew hate.
I can refer to it as antisemitism and when the Jew haters claim it applies to all semites push back against that. They don’t care about facts, they push nonsense with no regard for truth.
There are groups of us out here writing posts about all that is going on in which we provide context and historical facts.
But I wonder if we are communicating with the right people.
Are those who don’t know these things reading our posts? Are those with open minds and interest in learning more listening or are we “preaching to the choir.”
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We live in age of absurdity in which people wonder if the Babylon Bee is engaged in honest reporting or satire.
Granted I know multiple people who probably don’t want to be described as refugees from Cleveland. Some have fond memories of it but they’ll never live there again.
One or two have accused me of being too sentimental about the past but all I have to do is point out their own reminiscing of the place by the river and they acknowledge they do it too.
Some even think I have nice shoes and or tell their friends about it.
We live in a time in which we ask questions that in a post Holocaust world once seemed like something we’d never have to discuss.
I find myself shaking my head in agreement repeatedly:
“An open revolt for Jewish rights and protections is going to have to come from Jews finally making demands and fighting back—or not at all.”
“It is fair to ask whether Mamdani suffers from an acute case of Israel Derangement Syndrome (IDS).”
“One of Hollywood’s leading Jew-haters, Mark Ruffalo, announced this week that he no longer speaks with Jewish actors who support Israel—some of whom may have once been among his friends. Given his longstanding antagonism toward the Jewish state and complete lack of sympathy for Jewish lives lost to Palestinian terrorism, why are Jewish actors and industry types still talking to and doing business with him?”
Sometimes I roam behind enemy lines and engage with commenters who push ridiculous ideas and spout conspiracy theories with reckless abandon.
The idea isn’t to convert the people pushing those but to reach the lurkers and the aforementioned folks who may have open minds.
But I sometimes wonder about whether that is good or bad. Take a look at Does Facebook Want You to See Antisemitism?
The entire post is worth reading but let’s focus here for a moment:
So, arguing with antisemitic content or hitting the angry emoji is counterproductive. It feeds the algorithm and will increase the comment or post’s relevance, pushing it out to more people.
Do we leave the conspiracy theory alone where it is available for general consumption or do we feed the algorithm because it is better to not leave such remarks unopposed by truth.
Estimates show the Jewish population is a bit under 16 million now which depending on what numbers you’re looking at means 81 years after the Holocaust we’re about where we were.
Demographic estimates say if the Holocaust hadn’t happened we might have a population of around 25 million though I have seen some that suggest it could be 30 million.
Even if there were 25 million of us we’d make a tiny percentage of the 8 billion people in the world today.
So in concept bad actors and ignorant fools could overwhelm our voices online and some might argue they are.
The push to twist and turn Zionist/Zionism into a pejorative is in full effect though many have no idea they’re repeating Zionist and or Nazi propaganda.
Some are so thoroughly indoctrinated they’re unwilling to challenge their own beliefs. They are too arrogant to recognize they live in an echo chamber of ignorance.
It doesn’t occur to them they might be wrong and some of them are so self righteous about it they get militant about closing their eyes and plugging their ears.
It’s part of they engage in cognitive dissonance of protecting some groups while making excuses for Jewish restaurants being burned down, Jews attacked on streets or Jewish authors being canceled.
Time to build our own Wakanda. Time to do what our grandparents and great-grandparents did and build our own institutions again.
We have to be our own cavalry & to an extent I am seeing that of thing happening. There are more October 8 Jews out there than people realize and more are coming.
I shake my head at the people who tell me that Zionism is dying and that Israel is on its last legs.
Look at history and tell me what happened to the empires that tried to crush us. Look around and see Jewish community growing in strength. Partnerships are being forged and arms are being wrapped around each other.
We’re a small people but a very large family.
What To Expect Here
Some of the newer folks don’t know what this place is about and are wondering what to expect.
The answer is you’ll find random thoughts, stories about a talking penis and germophobes. You’ll see thoughts about life, parenting, death and assorted odds and ends.
Some of you have been around for the almost 25 years of my putting pen to paper and some for far less. Some come and go, some never return.
How people feel about writing is subjective. It is no different than music or art, taste is a funny thing.
That headline above is as as much a comment as it is a question I ask myself. Is there a need for another entrant into the marketplace of ideas.
The answer for now is I write because I enjoy it and I’ll keep rolling along as I am until I no longer do so or have a reason to change.
Do with that what you will.
For now that is all you get on a Sunday afternoon. It’s 2 PM and the gym is calling. This will be updated with a new post(s) but as to whether that is later today or tomorrow remains to be seen.
P.S. you can find the substack here. I am clearly still playing with it.
A brief overview interpretive analysis of ancient Jewish history. Based upon the כלל: T’NaCH and Talmudic common law command mussar neither teaches history.
The Talmud describes the P’rushim as the guardians of the Oral Traditions passed down to the Tannaim as a masoret. For example: Rabbi Akiva’s פרדס inductive logic reason called a “kabbalah”. The דאורייתא מידות: אל רחום חנון etc define the weft threads of Aggada in the Talmud – which employ the דרוש פשט, whereas the warp threads of Halacha in the Talmud – which employ the רמז סוד. Rabbinic middot include the 7 middot masoret of Hillel, the 10 middot masoret of Akiva, the 13 middot masoret of Yishmael and the 32 middot masoret of Yose HaGalili.
Masechta Shabbat links lighting the lights of Hanukkah with the shabbat candle lighting. Shabbat absolutely forbids doing acts of מלאכה, because this wisdom – defined through the 39 skills required to build the Mishkan – serves as the צד משוטפ of all time-oriented “wisdom” commandments. This latter type of Av Torah commandment differs from secondary תולדות commandments – the latter types do not require k’vanna whereas the former types do require k’vanna.
The Bavli common law commentary to the common law Mishna clearly a g’lut document – Judea no longer existed any more than post the Jewish victory in 1948 Palestine existed as a League of Nations mandate territory given to the British based upon the Balfour Declaration which the 1939 White Paper negated. Josephus wrote that prior to Hasmonean rule that the P’rushim joined together with the Maccabee revolt against the Syrian Greek empire. The ברכת המזון refers to this kingdom as רשעים because it attempted to cause Israel to forget the Torah. Which Torah does that blessing refer to? The Oral Torah.
The Tzeddukim did not limit their assimilation of Greek culture and customs to wanting to turn Jerusalem into a Greek polis City State. They embraced ancient Greek philosophy as well! The defining quality of Greek logic schools – static deductive syllogism bridge-making reasoning – which define both Plato and Aristotle logic. Therefore when lighting the lights of Hanukkah, Jews dedicate only to interpret the K’vanna of Torah commandments (time-oriented) through Oral Torah פרדס inductive logic – idea; to compare Gemara Case/Din halachic precedent to interpret different facets of the language of a specific Mishna.
The Seleucid Greeks together with their assimilated lap dogs – the Tzeddukim priests – attempted to erase, for example the court witness based New Moon calendar laws. They, like so many other ערב רב declared themselves “real Xtian believers” while all other Xtian damned to Hell to worship Satan! Everybody knows that some 1900 years after the revelation of the Torah that the Jews perverted their Torah and replaced Yitzak for Yishmael! Hence the koran sold this “bridge” to Arab and Muslim believers in the heart of the Arabian desert! The Bavli represents the ultimate triumph of the Perushim—surviving without Shlomo’s or Herod Temple that worships God and ignores the burdens of judicial justice among and between the Jewish people – dependent upon Tribal Yovel and brit melah לשמה which remembers the oath sworn to the Avot! The Word of God vs word of Man psychotic insanity directly compares to the worship of wood and stone massive cathedrals. As if Moshe Rabbeinu took Israel out of Egyptian slavery bondage to build a bankrupt series of Temples as do the Goyim worship there Gods throughout the Ages! צדק צדק תרדוף defines Torah אמונה belief in this or that or some other God(s) defines the Torah curse of assimilated avoda zarah!
The P’rushim passed the Oral Torah masoret over to the rabbis. This Oral Torah chain of masoret goes straight back to Moshe Rabbeinu. Cyrus the Great whom the prophet Isaiah called “Moshiach” – a great disappointment. While he paid for the construction of a Temple in Jerusalem, his “k’vanna” not to restore “liberty in the land to the 12 Tribes of Israel” but rather specifically loyalty of the Jews; based upon the gaping holes which the Assyrian and Babylonian kings made their kingdoms vulnerable to foreign invasions. Cyrus built a Temple and used the Tzeddukim has his lap dogs to maintain the steady transfer of wealth back to his kingdom in Persia. Herein defines the classic banana republic which enriches 2% of the populations and therein plunders that land of its wealth and resources!
Oral Torah guiding interpretation and courts, versus becoming a frozen text interpreted only through external/foreign rationalities. That latter bible and koran thumping believers collapse their Old Testament as either replaced by the ‘new covenant’ or corrupted by Jews. Goyim worship their Gods by building grand Cathedrals and block headed domed Mosques. Goyim pervert ancient Jewish “history” as their chief means to control a different narrative/God; Universal monotheism replaces the tribal god of Sinai. Belief in their Universal God defines faith rather than the pursuit of righteous justice among the 12 tribes of Israel. Goyim forever have attempted to control Torah identity – through their strict definition of messiah or prophet!
The דאורייתא מידות – form the revolving wheels of the chariot vision by the prophets. Prophets command mussar which interprets the k’vanna of these middot. The Aggadic weft threads of the Talmud/Midrashim likewise make a drosh back to NaCH kabbalah prophets! The halachic warp threads of the Talmudic “loom” employs מידות דרבנן – primarily the 7, 10, 13 middot of Hillel Akiva and Yishmael. פרדס inductive logic compares a Case/Din to similar Case/Din rulings based upon their shared similarity of middot – either דאורייתא or דרבנן; its this צד משוטף of middot who share the same – so to speak – common denominator – by which Torah sages compare בניני אבות Case\Din studies.
The צד משוטף of every mitzvah wisdom commandment learns from מעשה בראשית; hence the first blessing of the שחרית ברכות (two before and one after) twice states תמיד מעשה בראשית because the Israel portion, when the Cohonim dedicated the morning קורבן עולה read the Parsha of בראשית to validate that all time-oriented commandments learn from this essential Torah precedent! The Book of בראשית restricts the concept of Torah commandments to time-oriented concepts of faith; starting with the Creation aggadah to fruitful and multiply to brit melah to removal of the gid ha’nasheh. The צד משוטף that permits these “fraction” of Torah commandments to add together — all of them wisdom commandments. Confusing the language of “time” as if it refers to the time of day – a טיפש פשט sophomoric translation error = to those made by the NT and Koran av tuma avoda zarah.
Ezekiel’s four living creatures, Daniel’s vision of the ram and goat, Zechariah’s menorah and olive trees, Isaiah’s chariot-throne the inner machinery of the chariot that no external rationalist or Hellenist could ever analyze. Av tuma avoda zarah by definition prioritizes belief in God(s) in the Heavens above and life after death. Both Mishna and Gemara independently denounce attempts made by fools and utter idiots wherein they presume than the mind of Man can “know” the Gods! Such people the Mishna states: better they were never born and the Gemara clarifies: train your tongue to say: I do not know. Both this and that stands upon דברים – תורה לא בשמים היא. Oral Torah common law, by aligning middot compares to the two opposing sights of a rifle; this permits a “sniper” to kill a target down range. Oral Torah so to speak plants the mussar of T’NaCH prophets into the hearts of all “downstream” generations of the chosen Cohen people. The burden rest upon the Yatzir Ha-Tov heart to grow this prophetic mussar into crops of justice among and between our people.
The stop-gap g’lut codes made after the 1st Crusade(s) abomination(s) and during the ghetto gulag, Inquisition war-crimes, to what do they compare today? נטרי קרתא-LIKE religious party kapo Jews who threaten cut an alliance with Arab political parties in the coming elections in order to achieve an Arab majority in the Knesset! To demolish the Zionist dream of self-determination which achieved Israeli Independence. Shatter the status quo law & throw the Jewish state into a Civil War.