isho ras balnoi, sick again

sorry druzya, but have been laid up all week with a very unpleasant urinary tract infection, caused by a prostate biopsy. (I am actually writing on Friday, March 9, not Wednesday). The very good news--They determined that I do not have prostate cancer. So I went out with Tanya and a friend and toasted my health with margeritas (I have to admit I've been drinking more of those than vodka shots since our Mexico idyll). Everything looked rosy, but two days later I developed a high fever and the last week has been extremely painful in my lower sections, but I will spare you all further clinical details of my suffering, which some may believe is just punishment for my left-wing apostasy.:) Anyway, the worst is over and should be back on my feet and active again on the Russian-Jewish-Muslim-whatever else political/social/psychological beat by Monday. Now a couple of quick responses to Locke and MazeartistLocke, I am glad that you acknowledge that there are plenty of Russian immigrants miscreants who ripped off Uncle Sam to get home attendants and much much more, as well as Mexicans, Ecuadorians and others who may also have negaged in such sins. Some of the Russian Jews advocating restrictions on immigration at the recent AJC event I mentioned in an earlier posting painted the ripoff artists as all being Latinos, blacks and other swarthy types (nothing about nice lilly-white Russian Jews) and said that the US ought to do more to keep these types out of the US and deport the illegals--even a well-spoken young lady in her 20's who acknowledged that she and her mother had once been illegal themselves, but 'never took a penny from anyone, pulled ourselves up by the bootstraps' etc.


It seems to me that the whole US immigration system is "cheres zhopu" as you say, but it should be reformed to be more open and welcoming to all, regardless of race, color, nationality, rather than more restrictive and focused on maintaining "European" character, as several argued at that AJC event. The last time US immigration policy was configured that way, America barred the doors to Jews while Hitler murdered six million. For the American racists of that day and of this day too--people like Pat Buchanan and others on the Republican right, the words 'Jews' and 'European' do not go together. When they say 'European', they mean blonde and Aryan. My advice to Russian Jews ardently embracing the American right, evangelical and otherwise, should learn some more American history and carefully check the histories of your new bedfellows before engaging in full fraternization.


Now to Mazeartist, who took me to task recently for linking one of my postings (Hope and Inspiration) to a Haaretz story that highlighted Israeli Jews and Palestinians on Tu B'Shvat replanting Palestinian olive trees in the West Bank ripped out by settlers. Mazeartist uses the term "alleged" to describe said thuggish and criminal behaviour by the settlers, suggesting Haaretz made the whole thing up because it is a lefty paper. Well, first of all, Harertz is by far and away Israel's premiere paper and its the quality and veracity of its reporting is unchallenged and very distinct from its editorial page. In any case, the actions by settlers to uproot Palestinian olive groves has been well documented by many other newspapers--Israeli and international, and by organizations like B'Tzelem, Rabbis for Human Rights, Amnesty International etc etc. But I know what Mazeartist will reply, 'Its all a left wing conspiracy persecuting the poor settlers and even if their heavily armed second generation do sometimes go out and chop down Pali olive trees and steal their fruit, thats OK, because Palestinians do that or even worse things to Jews. So its OK for Jews to act like gangsters if the other side is doing the same, Mazeartist? I understand you are a deeply religious person, a deeply devout Jew, but I must tell you I dont see how that moral equation fits into Judaism or any other decent moral system. Mazeartist, I dont care what the other side does or doesnt do, Jews are not supposed to act like thugs. Full Stop. That is not about being on the left or on the right. Thats about menschlekeit, about being a ben or bat adam, about human decency. I'm sorry if your extreme sectarianism makes it impossible for you to understand a moral principle that blindingly clear.