Minor Annoyances, Major Disappointments

You can see the little unfinished nubs

An informal survey of people buying Hanukkah candles this year, revealed I was not alone in feeling like the standard grocery story twisty candles were somehow defective. Turns out I wasn't alone in needing a nut pick, a metal implement that close resembles that thing your dentist uses to scrape off tartar, to get the candle remains outta the little cups so you can put a new candle in. And even then, you had to heat the bottom of the candle just enough to get it to stand up straight in the cup. This yielded a mess every night. 

In years past, the candles burned all the way down, leaving just a bit of wick in the cup. Each night the new candle went right into the cup, no problem. Of course, once you went through the torture of having to scrape out the damn cups every night, the candles still looked lovely as they burned. They do, if only for a little while, light up the room. I understand we observe Hanukkah in the winter in this hemisphere, and I know Hanukkah is a summer holiday in the southern hemisphere, but when the sun goes down at 4:30 in the afternoon in our half of the world, the glow of the candles is a welcome break from the long night ahead. 

As some of you already know, Hanukkah isn't really a religious holiday, so much as it is a civil holiday, a rare thing on the Jewish calendar. We celebrate the miracle of the oil, but did that really happen? I have my doubts. But we do celebrate the rather zealous family of Matthias Maccabee and his five sons, Judah included. These guys were your basic guerrilla warriors. There is no work prohibition as there is on other holy days, and even the story of the oil only appears in Talmud as an explanation as to why the holiday is important. 

The really important takeaway from the Maccabean revolt is that you fight for that which you believe. If your way of life is threatened, you don't wait for disaster, you get up and do something before the disaster arrives. One would think we learned that lesson in the last century, but alas....

But here's the really hard part: people disagree about what is important. There are lots of people out there who truly believe masking and vaccines are federal government overreach. They believe with all their hearts that the Constitution gives them the right to walk around locked and loaded. They believe with their entire being that federally provided healthcare is not a fundamental right. This might all seem to fly in the face of what seems to be survival or at least self-interest. Do these people not get doctor bills? Do they not see the danger of people being able to whip out a gun and shoot before asking questions? Do they not understand the danger of any pregnancy, let alone the result of rape or incest, to a young girl's body? Where is the moral compass?

Well, they believe they are acting according to their own moral compass. Now, do not get me wrong; I am not defending this behavior; I am merely saying that it exists and it has a firm hold on a large part of this country. Short of secession, these are voters who will continue to elect voices that differ dramatically from the ones you might be used to hearing. We listen to their words, wonder why they want to infect each other with a virus that kills while refusing to vaccinate themselves and their children. Sometimes, that reminds me of the stories about child sacrifice. Why would any parent offer a child up to death? It's not like they believe it's gonna appease the flu god. Yet they choose to expose themselves and their families to a disease that has empirically proven itself to be a killer. 

But let's set that aside for a moment. How about the part where parents, like the couple in Michigan, not only armed their son, they refused to recognize the kid had a problem when the school tried to warn them? Like their son, they are in jail on murder charges. Why weren't they the grown ups in the room for this kid?

Clearly, lots of people don't see a problem with parents arming children. Take Kentucky's 4th District Congressman: Thomas Massie. This guy has the most bizarre voting record ever. He and his wife not only armed their family, but they asked Santa for ammo.

What would Jesus say about that Christmas card? I have a pretty good idea what his mother woulda said. She was, when it's all said and done, a Jewish mother. 

If this is what We, the People, of any state are electing to represent us in Congress, is it really any mystery as to why this might be a problem? People: 76,400 other people liked that picture. Any possibility there's a cryptic message in there somewhere?

Here's the thing, though: guns are not an answer. Name calling is not an answer. The hateful rhetoric is nothing more than playground taunting that does no one any good whatsoever. There will never be useful discussion,  much less hope of any sort of middle ground, if the hate continues. We are heading into the midterms, and then the Presidential Debacle. If We, ALL The People, don't get a grip on the trash talk, we will lose this country. There WILL be a civil war. 

I am not saying don't debate the issues, but the trash talk in the streets, in public venues, in our homes, and most  of all, in our legislatures must stop. Save trash talking for the basketball court or the hockey rink. Don't sully the dignity of running a nation with garbage mouths. Be better than that.

Not like I'm gonna convince anyone or change any minds. I know enough people on the other side of the political spectrum who believe any time I say stuff like this I'm being a libtard. Yeah, you read that right. And that makes me really sad because that's exactly what I'm railing against yet the label is used and persists. It's okay to call me names, but accuse any one of them of promulgating hate speech and I'm the evil name caller. This is a classic example of how the chasm never closes. 

The separation is not diminishing; instead, it feeds directly into the chasm that will eventually split the nation into separate nations. Once upon a time, I thought that was a horrid and ridiculous notion. These days, I'm not so sure. Maybe if the US separated into two or three countries, we might have a fighting chance of having at least one socially responsible nation working toward the good and welfare of its population instead of a nation on the brink of social disaster. With the continuation of a two-party system there is no chance for any sort of coalition government and frankly, we are getting nowhere fast. 

Honestly, I'd be fine if Texas got the ball rolling with secession. 

Still, I can't help but continue to wonder why people who lack basic services like available health care and standard education requirements continue to fight against those things. I'm sure they have a reason, much like parents who refuse to vaccinate their kids have reasons, to stand firmly against any program that would improve their conditions. One might think after the spiraling death count of COVID-19 and its variants, including but not limited to Omicron, they might see the wisdom in being able to access health care. Or not. 

Whether we want to admit it or not, these here United States are falling farther and farther behind in caring for our own citizens within the concept of a social contract. This will eventually be that which splits the country. I'm certain of it because health care has become politics. As long as a significant portion of the population is okay with dying from purely preventable diseases, we have to respect that choice. Separation, the removal of those who refuse to vaccinate, and the closure or borders might be the only way to slow the next pandemic.

As Ziggy woulda said, "Think of it as evolution in action." 

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

If you are unfamiliar with The Darwin Awards,

do yourself a favor and remedy that. 

You'll will have a much better scope on 

just how stupid humans can be. 

Ready.....Set......

a shofar...kinda like Dr. R's

Well, Rosh HaShana is a scant week away, and I'm already entering chicken-without-a-head mode. Not like this is anything new, that I haven't done this for the last 40+ years, but every year brings its own challenges. That Dr. R blows the shofar every frickin' morning at minyan...a traditional wake-up call to remind us we have a whole lotta thinking to do...is a given and today was enough to make a 2 year-old scream in terror. It's not like she hasn't heard the shofar almost every day since the beginning of the month of Elul that began weeks ago, but Dr. R was on a roll this morning and boy, was it loud! 

No matter how many times I hear a shofar, the initial sound always pierces me. I know this is a visceral reaction; I've been having the same reaction since I was a kid. Is it the sound of 5000 years of Jewish history in a series of 3 distinct blasts? Is it the battle cry we hear before confronting our enemy? Is it the sharpness of the blast that grabs my attention and turns my innards toward the ten days of repentance? Whatever it is, it happens at daily morning minyan during Elul, every year on Rosh Ha'Shana (when it doesn't fall on Shabbat) and at the last moments of Yom Kippur when the gates of the prayer are closing. 

Some years are easier than others. I tend to turn inward to examine the pluses and minuses of the last year. To be sure, there were some high points and some pretty low ones. I'm beginning to believe I will never see Barcelona. Going to Israel is off the table again this fall. I really need to pop down to Delray to see my aunts, but even that is looking less likely. I can't believe my big brother is coming next Sunday for the holiday. At least, at this moment I have his flight information and every expectation this country will not have shut down again by next weekend. 

With the arrival of Hurricane Ida, hospitals along the Gulf Coast are in real danger. All of New Orleans is blacked out. Other parishes are flooded. The situation is dire; people will be in need of medical attention for a variety of maladies, not just COVID-19 and the Delta variety. ICU beds are already scarce. In states with the lowest vaccination rates in the country, can you make decisions that take vaccination status into account? (For the record, Louisiana has a fully vaccinated rate of 41.4%, Mississippi is at 37.7% and Alabama is at 37.9%. All three have been hit hard by the storm and are experiencing medical shortages.) 

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about hospitals and the unvaccinated. Dr. Tom, who I cited in the last round, sent me an article that appeared in the Washington Post: When medical care must be rationed, should vaccination status count? The author, Dr. Daniel Wikler, is a professor of Ethics and Population Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The article takes you through his thought process and it's quite compelling. So, I will stipulate this guy knows what he's saying when he writes:

When patients like these are evaluated for health care, their priority depends on how serious their condition is, how urgently they need help and how well they are likely to do if they’re treated. What does not matter is culpability, blame, sin, cluelessness, ignorance or other personal failing. Doctors and hospitals are not in the blame and punishment business. Nor should they be. That doctors treat sinners and responsible citizens alike is a noble tradition, an ethical feature and not a bug. And we shouldn’t abandon it now.

As much as I would like to say vaccination matters, I cannot. Treating all comers is the ethical and correct action. In other words, it's the right thing to do.

And speaking of ethics, I cannot help but be relieved our troops are officially out of Afghanistan. The ISIS bombing was just one more reason not to be there. I thought President Biden's "We'll hunt you down," remarks were a bit over the top, but I suppose he had to say something. Look, the guy inherited a lose/lose situation and nothing he did was ever going to make it completely right, so let's take a breath here...and try to ignore the xenophobic/schizophrenic GOP as they carry on about Afghan refugees. Yes, we must rescue them; no, we cannot bring them here; yes, we've failed as world leaders; no, we need to put them in immigration camps. Please. Make up your minds the rest of us can get on with helping those who risked life and family to help our troops. 

POTUS has enough on his plate between increasing COVID rates and now Hurricane Ida to keep him busy. Oh, and let's not forget that North Korean appears to be firing up their nuclear arsenal again.  

The older I get, the more I think being POTUS is about morals and ethics. I don't mean the Christian right kinda morals where IOIYAR is the line in the sand, the kind that thinks it's okay to grab a little pussy on the side, or have serial wives and mistresses, some concurrently; I mean the classic kind, the ones about doing right by one's neighbors, community, nation, and the world. Maybe a little bit of repairing the world, leaving our campsite cleaner than we found it, caring for the health of the planet? Turning health care into a for profit industry manipulated by insurance companies is morally reprehensible. Taxation that favors 2% of the population while shifting the major burden to the middle and lower classes is highly unethical. Allowing large corporations to pay virtually nothing in taxes is both morally and ethically bankrupt. If POTUS can begin to address the ongoing inequality experienced by the bulk of America, he will have taken a step in the right direction. I do not think President Biden can fix it all with a wave of his magic pen, but what I do believe is that he can open the conversation. 

As I head into the 10 days of repentance, I will once again evaluate where I have fallen short, and where I can do better. Even if you're not Jewish, take a moment to think about the same thing. Take an inventory; it's a good thing. Maybe you'll find something you want to change. 

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

Always start a diet the day after Yom Kippur. 

A bit of catch-up ...and a plea for understanding. Not.

 Let's start with the good news today: the new book has a cover:

If you click on the picture, you can probably read the blurb on the back cover, and yes, that is me in the lower left-hand corner. But there it is in all its glory. Now, the work of designing the interior begins. Have two other books out there, I can tell you that getting the format right ain't easy. Talk about constantly moving parts! There's a glossary in the back, a cast of characters, and a definite need for at least one line map of the Mediterranean basin. My designer tells me not to worry, it's all doable, but this is like sending your baby to kindergarten: you know you hafta, but it's hard to let go. Really hard. Meanwhile, there are two other books awaiting my attention on my desk, and if the truth be known, I am anxious to get cracking on one of those. It's time. I simply have to stop obsessing about this book. With any luck, it will be published in October. 

I hope. 

Meanwhile, back on the planet, Delta Force is taking over, infecting people willy-nilly regardless of age, race, religion, nationality, gender, language, musical preferences, or tolerance for pain. The only thing that seems to get in its way is THE VACCINE. Seems that if you're vaccinated and get a break-through hit of COVID, your illness is significantly less severe, you probably won't end up in a hospital, much less an ICU, and you'll recover more quickly. According to a variety of news sources. As per CNN on August 2, 2021

The CDC reported 6,587 Covid-19 breakthrough cases as of July 26, including 6,239 hospitalizations and 1,263 deaths. At that time, more than 163 million people in the United States were fully vaccinated against Covid-19. 

Divide those severe breakthrough cases by the total fully vaccinated population for the result: less than 0.004% of fully vaccinated people had a breakthrough case that led to hospitalization and less than 0.001% of fully vaccinated people died from a breakthrough Covid-19 case.

Folks, those are some interesting stats. IF you are fully vaccinated AND you test positive for COVID-19, very, very few people land in the hospital...as the article states, less than 0.001% of fully vaccinated people. That does not mean, however, that you cannot carry the disease even if you are completely asymptomatic. You can. And you can still infect others. 

As we approach the new school year, vaccinations are still not available for the under-12 set, so there is a large population who is not vaccinated, nor can they be. Yet. They may not be as susceptible to the disease, but they can still carry the virus. Which means they can pass their little viral friend to the next person. Logic demands that we be especially aware of this possibility and be supportive/respectful of families with younger-than-12 kids. 

On the other hand, families who refuse to vaccinate over the age of 12 also need special consideration. When dealing with a family or individuals who refuse to vaccinate, respect their rather misguided wishes and socially distance at least 300 feet from them. To be perfectly blunt, they should be protected from all family gatherings. You must respect their desire to remain COVID-free by providing them with a zone of anti-contagion. While you are safest wearing a mask in public, you MUST wear a mask around them to prevent them from getting the disease. Schools, malls, public gathering places such as houses of worship or ball parks would be best requiring the unvaccinated to either sit in their own outside section from the vaccine crowd, or not to come at all...for their own protection. They are vulnerable and can easily pick up the infection.

While hospitals cannot turn away the unvaccinated, an unvaccinated person entering a hospital zone should automatically be directed to an area separated from the rest of the ER or lobby. Again, this will lessen their chance of picking up the virus from an unsuspecting vaccinated person. 

What actually worries me the most about the recent uptick in infection and hospitalization is not knowing the unvaccinated are the ones bearing the brunt of this outbreak, it's what comes next. I talked to my cousin Dr. Tom tonight about a number of pandemic issues...and for the record, he agreed with BBBruce who said hospitals cannot just turn away unvaccinated people (my idea for triage.) But Dr. Tom did talk about something that's been niggling at the back of my mind: what comes next. 

Viruses mutate. That's what they do. Delta is but one mutation. There will be more. They will all do something ever so slightly different. Are we nimble enough, scientifically, to match that mutation? Or are we looking down the road to worsening contagion as the new mutations develop? There is so much "we" don't know, that the most reasonable way to prepare for the next wave is to pay attention. To mask when we are advised to do so. To be agile enough to have teams working on vaccine boosters and variants. Every year, the flu shots are tweaked for the latest version of that disease. Perhaps that's what will happen fo COVID: each year, a new booster ups the game against the latest mutant. By the way, that's what science does. It's what they're supposed to do. Scientists are supposed to investigate problems and find new solutions. 

If you are not vaccinated, that's your choice. I can respect that. In turn, you should respect your need for separation and stay away from those of us who have vaccinated, both in public and private settings. We are safe unto ourselves, but we can still infect you. This is for your own protection as much as ours. I would hate to learn I inadvertently infected, sickened, or worst case, killed you because I was an unknowing carrier and I was physically close enough to pass the virus to someone with no defense. And wouldn't that just be a shame. 

Just get the damn shot and save your world. 

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

Next time you find yourself at a cemetery, take a walk until you find the old graves,

the ones from the mid-20th century and before. Notice all the baby and children's headstones. 

Then walk back to the modern section and notice how few baby and children's headstones 

can be found amongst the more recent graves. Sure there are some, but very few.

This is because of advances in medications and vaccinations.

Almost no one dies of pertussis, measles, or polio in this country, do they?

From Chesed Shel Emes Cemtery