Page Text: Why is President Obama trying to politicize the holidays?
During a recent stay in Berlin, I visited the old headquarters of the East German Ministry of State Security, better known as the Stasi. The building, in a suitably bleak part of what used to be East Berlin, is now a museum devoted to the communist surveillance state.
... the first floor of the Stasi Museum ... is devoted to the propaganda that East German bureaucrats used to foster socialist consciousness in an unwilling public. One display explains the GDR's efforts in the 1950s to politicize what in the past had been family and religious occasions. The state sought to transform weddings, confirmations, and other personal events into "socialist celebrations," to be "committed collectively and aimed at a confession to socialism," according to the awkward English translation of the exhibit.
The exhibition informs visitors that the project "did not gain popular acceptance." Amazingly enough, people didn't want to turn their family holidays into socialist celebrations.
Here at home, this Thanksgiving brings an effort by the Obama administration to turn a day of giving thanks into a day of discussion about the virtues of national health care. On Wednesday afternoon, just hours before Thanksgiving, President Obama's Twitter account -- which has more than 40 million followers -- sent out this message: "Make sure everyone who sits down with you for #Thanksgivukkah dinner is covered." ("Thanksgivukkah" refers to this year's rare overlap of Thanksgiving and Hanukkah.)
The president's tweet linked to a photo of a young man sitting at a table with a turkey and a menorah...
The Latest "Ooops" from State-Run Media
The New York Times published a piece about the White House Chief of Staff, Denis McDonough on Wednesday: "The Hard Charger at Obama's Side Has His Hands Full." I found it basically unnoteworthy, except for the wonky juxtaposition of this text with the accompanying photo.
".... At the center of these challenges is Mr. McDonough, the ramrod-straight scorekeeper from Minnesota with the close-cropped, prematurely graying hair and the bearing of a military man, even though he never served."
Posted by Yael at 08:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Wednesday, 27 November 2013
Baruch Dayan HaEmes
My sister's husband of fifty years died last night, totally unexpectedly. May Gd bring comfort and strength to my sister and all those who grieve today.
This is the fourth time that death has struck our family on or around Thanksgiving. There is no understanding it.
Posted by Yael at 10:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Tuesday, 26 November 2013
Breitbart reports:
The Associated Press and Al-Monitor kept US-Iran nuclear containment talks secret until after they had reached their conclusion this past weekend.
.... Al-Monitor reporter Laura Rozen says both her journal and the AP had the story and kept quiet about it to accommodate the Obama Administration.
The president may not hold much sway internationally, but domestically he's a bully:
” President Obama’s people can be quite nasty. They don’t like you to say anything bad about their boss, and they’re not afraid to use whatever means they have at hand to stop you from doing that, including threatening your job.” -- CNN anchor Carol Costello
So what could this possibly have to do with this week's parshah (Torah portion)? The answer is in Pharaoh's dream of the seven thin and unhealthy cows swallowing the seven robust cows.
The Weak Bully
... another lesson from this enigmatic dream. How often do you encounter aggressive personalities who love to dominate? These people feel compelled to make every decision and control every exchange. If someone stands up to them, they tear into him and figuratively eat him alive. Having swallowed each of their challengers, and even many of their supporters, such people appear to be invincible, but they often feel weak and beleaguered.
You see, very few people tear into others because they are strong. They often do these things because they lack self-esteem and suffer emotional starvation. They might perceive almost any exchange as a slight, and convince themselves that others are poised to attack them. They put up a brave front and are on the offensive precisely because they feel vulnerable. In their minds, others want to swallow them alive, and they have no choice but to swallow first.
They are like the skinny cows, swallowing their perceived attackers but showing no signs of gain. They “won” the battle, but gained no emotional satisfaction from it. It is the height of irony....