On the world stage, hero Zelenskyy is kicking his as*!
Just maybe, the Russian people will overthrow their dictator. ;-)
February 28, 2022
Russian Dictator Is Having A Bad Week
February 26, 2022
Calling On The Vatican
I want to beseech the Pope and the Vatican to return the items that they have from the Jewish Temple that rightfully belong to the Jewish people. These items sitting idly in the Vatican vaults and archives hold enormous sanctity to the Jewish people who crafted and worshipped with them over the duration of 1,400 years from the Tabernacle to the First and Second Temples. In the spirit of love and brotherhood between Christians and Jews, and in the name of G-d who commands all mankind not to steal from one another, and to return lost items to their rightful owner, I say to the Pope, it is high time to do the right thing and return our holy Temple vessels to Israel.
February 25, 2022
World Is Worse Today
With China up next to invade Taiwan.
With Iran and North Korea just waiting for their chances at evil.
With provocations, escalations, and threats of nuclear weapons.
The world is much worse today.
Peace is shattered.
There is no telling when or how this will all end.
(Credit Photo; Andy Blumenthal)
February 24, 2022
Our Deterrence Is Lost
The U.S. is sitting on its hands.
NATO is in total disarray.
The United Nations is a joke!
As Russia looks mighty, we look ever so weak!
Total body blow to world democracy and human rights.
Russia is free to murder, take what it desires, do whatever it wants.
And China is gearing up for Taiwan next. ;-)
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
February 22, 2022
Car Fire
February 21, 2022
Lots of Green Beans
February 20, 2022
Lessons From Israel In Stopping Ransomware
Israel is a small, but powerful nation that wants to stop attacks before they get to their door, and indeed, their lives depend on that. We can learn from Israel's military doctrine of deterrence through overwhelming strength, unity, and disincentivizing the attackers to inform other security issues, such as ransomware attacks. I believe that the answer lies in a public-private security partnership financially backed by the government.First, companies voluntarily join a public-private security partnership in which they adhere to higher security standards and oversight as well as pledge not to pay ransomware. Additionally, these companies are placed on a public list and given a badge or seal of approval/logo like Brink's Home Security or ADT to display that indicates they are "fortified," and in this case, that they won't pay any ransom, and are backed by the government.
Second, the government provides an incentive for companies to participate in the public-private partnership and not to pay ransomware. The incentive provided is that the companies are backstopped (insured) by the government in the event of a ransomware attack to them. This is similar to ransomware insurance, but the difference is that the cost to companies would be a fraction of what they would otherwise have to pay. The benefit to the taxpayer is that the market for ransomware dries up with companies that have pledged not to pay. As the program become universal, there is no one left for the ransomware attackers to target.
(Source Photo: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/ransomware-cyber-crime-malware-2321110/)
February 17, 2022
Country Landscape
February 16, 2022
February 15, 2022
Crazy Blowfish
February 14, 2022
Russia Wins This Hands Down
They have so intimidated Ukraine that Russia will be able to install a new government in Kyiv or just pull the strings on the puppets in place without ever firing a shot.
Moreover, Ukraine won't be considered by NATO for membership ever again knowing that Russia will go to the mat over it.
Scare tactics can work if you carry a big enough gun and have the gumption to hold it to your opponent's head! ;-)
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
February 13, 2022
February 12, 2022
Overcoming The Inquisitor
Please see my new article in The Times of Israel called "Overcoming The Inquisitor."
While anti-Semitism and persecution for being Jews is horrible and should never happen, in a sort of obscene and ironic way, it ends up making us stronger as Jews. In short, testing our faith, ends up solidifying our faith!No one likes adversity, suffering, or persecution, and G-d only knows that we as Jews have known our deeply painful share. Yet whether from Egyptian slavery to the Inquisition, the Holocaust, and more, it’s our test as Jews to survive, and to learn and grow from it our faith in Hashem.
Yes, these things are far easier said than done, but when we face these terrible events, we must try with all our might to overcome them, heroically and faithfully.
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
February 11, 2022
Beautiful Shabbat Flowers
February 10, 2022
Oriental Glass Sculpture
February 9, 2022
Red Fish Blue Fish
February 8, 2022
Don't Be Chicken
February 7, 2022
Farmer Folk
February 5, 2022
Synagogue Politics
Please see my new article in The Times of Israel called "Synagogue Politics."
Clearly, the mobile sanctuary and later the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and now our synagogues are “Houses of G-d,” where we go to pray, learn Torah, and worship Him, and where He resides among us. Sure, G-d is everywhere, but the synagogue/Temple is a unique, special, and spiritual place where we as community dedicate ourselves to G-d and worship Him. It should go without saying that the synagogue is not a place for petty politics, protests, or other antics.
As Jews, we are supposed to make a “Kiddush Hashem” (sanctification of G-d’s name) and not Chillul Hashem (desecration of G-d), and so my hope and prayer is that people in this synagogue and in every synagogue, can “let go” and instead “let G-d.”
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal, Image for Illustration Only)
February 4, 2022
Stop The Excuses
As they say, "adapt or die."
Of course, you can change when you stop:
- Procrastinating
- Being lazy
- Accepting the status quo
- Making excuses
Take control of your life: change yourself before life bites back at you (and maybe hard).
We've got to slay our own demons not only outside, but inside. ;-)
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
February 3, 2022
"Whoopee" Goldberg Is Full Of It
Goldberg had the stupidity and audacity to bellow that the Holocaust was "not about race," after Hitler systematically murdered six million Jewish men, woman, and children just because they were Jews, which he believed was an inferior race to the Aryan nation.
"Hitler promoted a racial ideology that identified Whites (he called 'Aryans') as superior and everyone else as inferior. Since Jews in Europe were considered White he classified them as a different race – a race of people that he said was not only inferior but 'dangerous' and needed to be destroyed." - Museum of Tolerance
Instead of Goldberg being completely ashamed of herself for her racist, anti-Semitic remarks desecrating the memories of millions of innocent people genocidally murdered, the narcissistic Goldberg is angry that she got suspended for a measly two weeks.
Whoopi Goldberg is a disgrace and has-been, and should not only be wholly condemned, but fired and put into the trash-bin of Hollywood history! ;-)
(Credit Photo: Adapted by Andy Blumenthal from Sandra Fauconnier via Flickr)
February 2, 2022
Royal Tibetan Teapot
February 1, 2022
Drain The Swamp
January 31, 2022
Nike Polka Dots
January 30, 2022
People of Ukraine
It hit me today — with all the news about Russia preparing to invade Ukraine and devastate its people, unprovoked, there is nobody talking about the people of Ukraine.
Our leaders and news media are so misguided and focused on the geopolitics of the thing, all they talk about is what the U.S. and EU will do in terms of some measly sanctions.
But they have completely forgotten the innocent people there — 44 million of them — who face death and occupation.
Where is our leadership????
Where are the speeches about the innocent people? About freedom? About democracy? About human rights?
Where is the United Nations????
They are supposed to safeguard and maintain peace and security around the globe.
Where are the outspoken liberals who call out occupation, apartheid, and human rights abuses????
Not a word from anyone.
It’s incredible how prejudiced, biased, discriminatory and corrupt all these people can be. They can be brainwashed, bribed, and bought to speak out for those when it will somehow fit their agenda or benefit them!
But when the Russian or Chinese powerful aggressors are at the doorstep of Ukraine or Hong Kong/Taiwan — where is anybody to speak out?
Last night, I imagined the people of Ukraine sitting in fear, in worry about what will happen to them, their families, their homes.
Do the world leaders care anything about the lives of real people — men, women, and children — or only about how any conflict makes them look, and how they are polling, and the next election?
Morality and conscience — is it on life support or dead in this narcissist world of the powerful and elite. ;-)
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
January 29, 2022
Goading The Bull In Ukraine
We need decisiveness, determination, not whining…no agreement will stop them. If you want to shoot, shoot, don’t talk.
These days, there is a similar situation with Russia and the U.S.’s threats over Ukraine: too much senseless political bantering and ultimatums that is only ratcheting up tension in the world. The result is that Russia’s ominous military machine including 100,000 troops have surrounded Ukraine (the 2nd largest country in Europe) on three sides and are poised to attack, yet there is a ridiculous song and dance being played out on the world stage In the end, the question is whose strategy will prove to be the winning one: Russia’s daunting finger on the trigger or even an actual devastating invasion of resource-rich Ukraine to try and safeguard their flank on Eastern Europe or the U.S. gambling that Russia will get mired in a no-win Afghan-like military foray that will bankrupt them financially and morally. As we await the answer to this, the world is learning to disregard and disrespect those that talk bull and goad the bull rather than decisively confronting the threat. We can’t afford the consequences to world peace and stability.
(Source Photo: https://pixabay.com/photos/trimmers-torero-bullfighters-sales-2314770/)
January 28, 2022
January 27, 2022
Fashion Hot and Cold
January 26, 2022
Mini Noah's Ark
January 25, 2022
iPhone Generation
Friends are all sitting on the boat together.
One is even getting married, a bride-to-be.
Sky is clear and water is blue.
Yet not one person is looking up from their screen.
Apparently the virtual world is so much more intriguing.
Soon everyone will be lost in the Metaverse.
The real world left to become a cesspool that perhaps no one cares much about anymore.
Is this really what we call progress?
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
January 24, 2022
Artist Expression x5
January 23, 2022
Not Terror But Hugs
While standing up for the Torah to be brought back to the ark, a little boy comes up to me and just gives me a big hug. I learned afterwards that the boy “makes the rounds” in shul giving everyone a beautiful Shabbat embrace. This simple symbolic act of caring and loving others, mainly many older people in synagogue, by this innocent child gave people an uncommon sense of happiness and even hope in our future despite the anti-Semitism and hate of too many others outside.The love of G-d is our secret for life and for our perseverance throughout history. G-d loves us as His children, but also punishes us as His children. As children, we are always learning and growing, but as adults we have to act in a way of righteousness and holiness, so that we will merit the former, and not the latter. With G-d's mercy and blessings, hopefully, we will have peace in our synagogues and our lives, wherever we reside in the world, to worship and live as Jewish people free of bigotry, hate, and terror, once and for all.
January 21, 2022
January 20, 2022
Cut Off The Legs And Call Him Shorty
It comes after:
"Shave off my hair and call me baldy."
They don't make them like they used to. ;-)
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
January 19, 2022
Models on The Shelf
You can pick the cards with the models you are interested in.
Seems a little obsolete in the time of the Internet when it could all be online.
Also, seems more than a little degrading to line them up on a shelf like any commodity in a store.
People are not things for peddling (or Human Trafficking!), and this seems like it sends the wrong message especially about women.
At least if you threw in some male models here too, it wouldn't come across so grossly misogynistic. ;-)
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
January 18, 2022
Stylish Bowl
January 17, 2022
Fossil Fish
January 16, 2022
A Trust Beyond Faith
When we have faith in G-d, it generally means that we believe that He created us and that He is the Master of the Universe. However, faith does not necessarily imply trust. Trust in G-d means that we believe that He not only created us, but that He sustains us and that there is Divine Providence in this world. When we trust in G-d, we believe that G-d is close to us and has a personal relationship with each and every one of us, and actually to everything in the world.We all need to leave our egos at the door! No matter how strong or smart that we think we are, even the little grass above us (or above our graves) is greater than us. Certainly, G-d Almighty who is our creator and our sustainer, all-knowing and all-powerful, He is over us and watches over us in better times as well as those that are perhaps more challenging, but always we trust, for the good!
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
January 14, 2022
All American Eisenhower EOB
January 13, 2022
Sunflower and Heart Day
January 12, 2022
Lego Peace Love VW Van
January 11, 2022
Happy Place Sweat Jacket
January 10, 2022
Fabric Fabric Everywhere
Red, and pink, and blue, and green, and white, and black, and...
I'm outa breath.
Can you imagine having to make these on a loom like in the olden days?
Ah, not fun for sure.
Maybe that's why some people "go commando."
Better to just kill a bear or something! ;-)
(Credit Photo: Dannielle Blumenthal)
January 8, 2022
Discerning The Truth Amid Iran’s Lies
While people can easily utter falsehoods, like Iran saying that their nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, the documents and computer drives that Israel captured in 2016 when they courageously raided Iran’s nuclear archive shows that Iran has been pursuing a dangerous nuclear weapons program for decades.The Jewish people learned from 2,000 years in exile and persecution ending in the Holocaust that killed six million Jews that we must take verbal threats of annihilation supported by facts on the ground against us most seriously. As children of the Holocaust survivors, we must be true to our words of “Never again” and act with courage and determination to confront the enemy covertly and if necessary, with overt action to stop their genocidal pursuit from ever getting off the ground.
The world has tried to contain Iran for decades: From monitoring Iran’s nuclear activities through the IAEA, to sanctions and covert actions to deter and set back Iran’s pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, and the JCPOA deal to try to contain Iran’s march to nuclear weapons. Unfortunately, nothing has worked, and Iran is intent on getting the bomb.
Moreover, while the costs of a preemptive attack on Iran could be great, the doctrine from former Prime Minister, Menachem Begin that Israel cannot and will not allow countries that threaten Israel’s existence to get the means to carry it out is as true today as in 1981 when Israel took out Iraq’s nuclear reactor in Osirak.
(Credit Photo: via https://www.flickr.com/photos/aeneastudio/3657735814 by aeneastudio and adapted by Andy Blumenthal)
January 7, 2022
January 6, 2022
Tacky Bird in Window
The shade has an amazing blue bird on it.
Whether the shade is up or down, you maintain a view to the outside world and nature.
This may actually be good in a bunker to ease the minds of those confined and cooped up.
Bird fly, fly away to a place of peace and a time of serenity. ;-)
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
