Now we are enslaved. Next year we will be free.

I am in the throes of getting ready for Pesach. This is the ultimate punishment for that little incident in Gan Eden involving a tree and a piece fruit. I don't want to talk about why 5 chickens are defrosting in various plastic bags in my still chametz fridge which will be completely pulled apart and scrubbed into insensibility tomorrow morning when the cleaning service comes in for the assist.

The cabinets to be used are already empty. The counters are almost clear....the toaster will go away tomorrow morning after I have my requisite crumpet  for breakfast. Knife, dish, and  coffee mug will also do a disappearing act before we start the BIG SCRUB. Yes, there is boiling water involved. See, I have this plan. 

I work on the action/reward system of motivation. IF I get the whole change thing done by Wednesday morning, I get to play canasta in the afternoon. IF I get the soup started and the matzah balls prepped Wednesday night, I get to have a long overdue manicure (my hands look like chicken feet) on Thursday. That means on Friday, I can stroll through Byerly's for fresh produce and the last of the dairy stuff that has to be bought ahead before I start final preparation for the first seder. 

The TempTee Cream Cheese debacle reached epic proportions last week, but then a fresh supply was spotted at Cub in Knollwood. I alerted my most dear Mrs. Junior  Son who immediately ran over and scored cream cheese for all. Now,  if only I could find  egg matzah which appears to be a casualty of the supply chain. And  I explored large swaths of St. Louis Park this morning armed with a list. I successfully completed the mission...except I forgot to buy new rubber gloves. Thank goodness there's still time for that if there isn't a spare pair in the Pesadik boxes. 

And if that is not enough, second seder has moved from my house to the kids. I am ecstatic! Joyful! And, she's making brisket. This means I shall not be forcing people to eat my terrible brisket. Seriously. I make terrible brisket. There. I've admitted it. Even my mother, who could not cook, made better brisket than I do. 

Read all of the above with the grain of salt I am tossing on it. 

There is plenty of food on the shelves at the grocery store, even if I can't get egg matzah this year. There are still lots of fruits and vegetables to be had, kosher for Passover Coke if you want, and Temp Tee whipped cream cheese. 

The Passover seder begins with Maggid, the telling of the exodus from Egypt, and it begins with this introduction:

This is the bread of our affliction, which our ancestors ate in the land of Mitzrayim [Egypt.]

All who are hungry, let them come in and eat

All who are in need, let them come celebrate Pesach

Now we are here. Next year in the land of Israel.

Now we are enslaved. Next year we will be free. 

The purpose of Maggid is to tell the story in a language everyone can understand. The exodus is meant to be dissected and discussed by all at the table. Questions are to be asked. Children are encouraged to answer as well as ask. Maggid is the transmission of the root story of our very existence. Although we often joke that a distillation of Jewish holidays is "they tried to kills us; we won; let's eat," the  seder provides a prescribed methodology to the tale, asking that as we retell the story in ways everyone can understand, we still manage to transmit the values of Jewish life as we do it.  

"Let them come in and eat," may be the first pointer, but it isn't the last. There are the famous Four questions asked by the youngest at the seder. This teaches us everyone is involved with the telling of the departure from Mitzrayim. Ever wonder about the 10 drops of wine removed from the glass to represent the 10 plagues? That's because our joy at being free comes at a cost to others, therefore our joy is diminished. I can go on forever. 

But I won't. 

Across the globe people are suffering at the hands of others. Right now, much attention is focused on Ukraine...but they kinda look like us. It's easy to sympathize with their plight. Not much attention is focused on Yemen and over 100,000 people who have died in that civil war. Or the Uyghurs in China who are being systematically imprisoned for being Uyghurs. Or the Yanomami of the Amazon who are being beaten off their lands. And, just for good measure, I'll add the Palestinians who are being systematically denied a nation NOT because of Israel, but because their own government will not invest in building an economy and a functional state. Simplifications all, I am certain, but you get the point. 

Every one of those groups wages a war for freedom to be who they are in peace and security, unafraid of what the night will bring. 

Jews make up less than 0.19% of the 7.89 billion worldwide population. Translated, that means out of 7.89 billion people on the planet, approximately 15.2 million people. That's less than the population of Metropolitan New York City (18.9 million people.) We are less than one percent of the total population of the world, yet there is a significant number of people who would like to see that number shrink even more.

That's why, as we come together for Passover this year, we cannot be a silent minority. President Zelensky, a Jew, is standing up to a heinous taskmaster. Jews have not had it easy in Ukraine, yet he is their president and he is doing what nobody believed Ukrainians could do. Would that we could open our doors to all Ukraine to say, "Come in and eat." The total population of Ukraine is around 41.2 million people, and I am certain that number is not adjusted to reflect the refugee departure. The estimated realistic population of Jews in Ukraine is thought to be about 90,000 yet they managed to elect the right guy for this job and he just happens to be Jewish. When we tell the story of our quest for freedom, take a moment to think of those who are not where the grocery stores have food on the shelves because bombs are falling all around them. 

This Passover, the world is looking to him to continue to be the leader Ukraine needs. That he's a Jew shouldn't matter. But to us, it does. 

Next year, may we all be free. 

**Note: population numbers and percentages are from various governmental sources and Wikipedia**

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

If you know someone who is without a seder.

invite him or her to yours.

It's what a community does. 

What He Said: Fill the silence with your music

Folks,

This is what a live hero looks like. This is what an honorable man looks like. This is what a person who is fighting for an entire nation looks like. 

President Volodymyr Zelensky remote addressed the Grammy audience

He delivers his speech in English. Listen to what President Volodymyr  Zelensky says. 

Now, read it just so you can really grok the words:

“The war. What’s more opposite to music? The silence of ruined cities and killed people. Our children draw swooping rockets, not shooting stars. Over 400 children have been injured and 153 children died, and we will never see them drawing.

“Our parents are happy to wake up in the morning — in bomb shelters, but alive. Our loved ones don’t know if we will be together again. The war doesn’t let us choose who survives and who stays in eternal silence.

“Our musicians wear body armor instead of tuxedos. They sing to the wounded in hospitals — even to those who can’t hear them. But the music will break through anyway. We defend our freedom to live, to love, to sound.

“On our land, we are fighting Russia, which brings horrible silence with its bombs — the dead silence. Fill the silence with your music. Fill it today to tell our story. Tell the truth about this war on your social networks, on TV.

“Support us in any way you can. Any — but not silence. And then peace will come to all our cities the war is destroying — Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Volnovakha, Mariupol and others. They are legends already, but I have a dream of them living — and free, like you on the Grammy stage.” 

When We, the People, talk about honor, we don't talk about Donald Trump or Bill Clinton. We talk about dead guys like George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Abraham Lincoln. We are looking for those who walked the walk, talked the talk, and stood tall against so many odds.  

Volodymyr Zelensky used to be a comic actor. Hell, he even played a reluctant, bicycle-riding president of Ukraine on The Servant Of The People. Maybe that was on-the-job training. But whatever he did in his past, it has provided him with a steel spine. And brass whatevers. He's not joking now. His nation has more than dented the Russian Army. 

Vadim Ghirda / AP

The Russians are bombing hospitals and civilian shelters, one of the original war crimes  addressed in the Fourth Geneva Convention. There are rules, even in war, and the Geneva Conventions are very specific about what is and is not permitted. Whose orders are Russian soldiers following when they kill civilians, hands tied behind their backs, execution-style?   If these are Putin's orders as relayed thought his officers, they are all war criminals just as the Nazis were. Those who executed civilians are as culpable as Nazi camp guards. 

From the Washington Post:

Bucha’s mayor, Anatoly Fedoruk, told The Washington Post that roughly 270 local residents had been found buried in two mass graves. Roughly three dozen were found dead in the streets, including some who had been bound and executed, Fedoruk told The Post. Bodies of at least 20 men in civilian clothes were found lying on a single street, according to Agence France-Presse journalists. 

And then there are the very young soldiers driving tanks and taking orders because they were told they would be greeted as hero liberators. What do the Ukrainians do with those rather confused soldiers?  This photo, from THE TIMES of London, shows just that: a Russian soldier speaking to his mother in a video call on his captor’s phone. Over and over, Ukrainian officials are hearing from Russian soldiers that they were told they would be liberating Ukraine from Nazis. And not unlike the boy soldiers the Nazis deployed in the field or the Russians deployed during World War I as well as their own 1918 Revolution. These kids seem to be unaware and confused about the mission on which they were sent. That alone is a crime against their own humanity.

Meanwhile, Russian mothers have been offered safe escorts at the Ukraine-Poland border from where they will be taken to Kyiv to pick up their sons, then returned to the border. That made so much sense to me. I hope some Moms take them up on it. I would go. Whether or not they would be safe upon returning home, of course, is a separate question.

Ukraine continues to beg for assistance from the West. The really incredible part? While they're doing just that, they are beating back the Russian Army. 

Glory to Ukraine. 

Coming out of this Jewish mouth, that's really saying something. 

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

Your store is out or hasn't gotten your favorite Pesadik treat?

The supply chain isn't working?

You're not gonna die from a lack of kosher marshmallows. 

Want a serious tip?

Take a moment to check your perspective.

Statecraft 401: Advanced Problems in Acting On The World Stage

As I type, I am mildly uncomfortable. The old furnace is gone. The old air conditioner is gone. The old water heater is on its way out. Ergo, there is neither heat nor water in my house. In the great scheme of things, this is a minor inconvenience. The new furnace has been moved into place. The new air conditioner is on the cement pad outside the garage. The new water heater is just coming off the truck. They will all be installed and reattached by dinner time. I will be warm, with hot water readily available, and if the air conditioner actually gets turned on twice this summer, it will be a lot. 

I realize how intensely lucky I am to be in my home, to be able to afford new heating/cooling equipment, and have running water. But for an accident of family history, I could be in Ukraine or Belarus. I can never lose sight of that. 

Ziggy's favorite mantra

Writing The Wifely Person Speaks has been a weekly challenge for more than a decade. A decade. That's a long time. Sure, I piss and moan some weeks about "making the donuts," but I do it. Some days, I appreciate it more than others. This is true. But that I can do this every Monday, week in/week out, month in/month out, year in/year out is a testament to my fervent belief in freedom of expression.  Writing this blog is, in its own way, a privilege. I get to say what I want, when I want. My blog, my rules. That said, you can agree with me or disagree and I am happy to read your opinions. (Except the death threats. Those I'd prefer not to get.) 

So when I read Putin has cut off Russia from all outside news sources, I get worried. I have a fair number of readers in Russia who will not get to read this episode. I worry about the ones who are hearing about gas weaponry production in Ukraine together with Nazis roaming the streets...both reasons for Russia to race to Ukraine's rescue. Or so the general population is being told. I want to believe someone will get the truth about what's happening in Ukraine into Russia, but I'm not sure it will be enough or in time. Putin is a manipulator, and he's counting on a whole lotta sleight o'hand to get NATO et al to do what he wants. 

That he's accusing Ukraine of manufacturing and planning to use chemical/biological weapons is a great excuse to use them in "defense." He's ranting about Nazis running about Ukraine, yet he's the one pushing for annexation of territories like Crimea was and now he's setting up Donetsk and Luhansk (the Donbas region) the same way. Are the people of those two areas clamoring to be saved by Russia? Not a simple answer. The Washington Post has a pretty good explanation of the schism, but in a nutshell, it comes down to ethnicity:

Still, Putin has repeatedly invoked the idea of Donbas’s distinctive regional identity as a basis to “defend” its Russian-speaking people from a supposedly intolerant Ukraine. Separatists have also capitalized on this identity to fuel support and rebellion against Kyiv.

 

In Kyiv-controlled Donbas, a majority wants the separatist regions to return to Ukraine. In the separatist-controlled area, over half want to join Russia, either with or without some autonomous status, per a survey published in 2021.

Gee, ethnicity. There's a surprise. But these are matters for the population of that region to decide and while Russia is riding in to "help" the separatists, I can't see Putin giving them their own autonomous region. That conflict has already cost over 14,000 lives between Ukraine and Donbas region. While Russia appears to be pulling those strings for the separatists, Putin is, at the same time, attempting to hijack Ukraine's ability to set policy for itself. The interjection of Russia into Ukraine's foreign and domestic policy would not be tolerated by any other country, so why would Zelensky's government be expected to put up with it? 

See, this isn't just Moscow beating up on some kid. This is a complicated and delicate balance within Ukraine that requires chess-like skills. It's not going to be instantly resolved. And frankly, unless you knew there was another "situation" underneath it, you cannot possibly just go all out for one side or the other. Not that I am in any way suggesting that Russia be allowed to continue the bully pulpit it presently occupies. NO WAY.

So, let's look at this from a slightly different angle. 

On Monday's CBS Morning News, retired Lt General H.R. McMasters appeared as a war analyst. Now once upon a time, this guy replaced Michael Flynn as Feckless Leader's National Security Advisor. At the time, I openly wondered if this was a junta in the making. 

So now, McMasters is spouting his own opinions on Ukraine. He's worth listening to, if only for another point of view. He's saying not to take anything off the table, that doing so feeds into Putin's brazen misbehavior. He maintains that the WWIII analogies are not useful; they give Putin a chance to rattle his nuclear sabres in such a way that the US and Nato will be forced to step back. Meanwhile, Putin will continue to interdict the supply chain going into Ukraine, cutting off both military and humanitarian aid. McMasters also thinks this might be laying the groundwork for Russia to use chemical weapons. 

I want to disagree with him, but I'm not sure I can. However...

That said, I suspect McMasters may be looking at this in a rather shallow, superficial analysis. I think he is underestimating the backdoor channel of diplomacy and I think he underestimates Putin as he moves his pieces around the board. Putin is classical Russian and I would venture to guess the guy is a chess player. Maybe not a very good one, but he is thinking maybe 6 or 7 moves ahead. Biden, on the other hand, is not, as FOX suggests, playing checkers. I think Biden might actually be playing the long game, and if he's not a great chess player, he's brought in those that are. Biden's been a politician for a long time. Don't underestimate his ability to know what he can and cannot do himself, what he needs skilled foreign service folks for, and most importantly, how to get the deal done. He's been around too long not to know how to play the ultimate game. Granted, he may not be sparkling brill, but he's savvy enough to know how to get the helpers he needs. 

Meanwhile, no sane government, leader, or alliance wants World War III. Some of the insane ones might, like Putin or Kim Jong Whoever, but most of the world finds the nuclear dick-waving dangerously stupid. Take into consideration whose dick it is, and suddenly you can't just walk up and hand-slap the guy. In his quest NOT to lose face, he is decidedly capable of pressing one or more buttons. Even though he is unlikely to test wind speed and direction prior to pressing said buttons, he may have no qualms about scorched-earth maneuvering if it will guarantee some kind of victory. 

And I am betting this guy has a well stocked bunker ready to go. Dictators always prepare for the worst, and I suspect Vlad the Dictator isn't any different from his predecessors. This guy has a Swiss bank account. He's got to have money stashed wherever he can. The open sewer secret is that he's got digs in Switzerland where, according to the tabloids, he already stashed his mistress, retired gymnast Alina Kabaeva, and their 4 kids. 

Zelensky, on the other hand, is an actor. Probably a very good one. His performance on the world stage is well-crafted, as it should be, and he, too, is playing the long game. I am anxious to see his address to our CongressClowns, the elected gang that cannot possible shoot straight, because Zelensky knows exactly how to address them. 

Yeah, I'm opining all over the place tonight. But I'm still a director; that never goes away. I see refined performance where others see a speech. That was one of the biggest problems with Feckless Leader; he could't stop the aggrandizing ad lib. Zelensky was on that call about Hunter Biden. He listened up close and personal to that narcissistic dingbat, and he immediately had to have recognized that level of bad acting when he heard it. I'm betting Zelensky learned a lot about statecraft from those conversations, and I'm betting he absorbed every last bit of that information. 

He's been coached, I suspect, to keep the focus on him and away from NATO while everyone else is working beneath and behind him to settle Ukraine in a totally defensible position while Putin continues to play the Dictator's Gambit. Zelensky's harangues are always well crafted and hit the emotional high points for greatest impact. But every good actor needs a good director and a great stage manager to make it all work seamlessly when it's live and in person. Zelensky knows this; he leaves nothing to chance. The guy is cagey smart and knows Ukraine's survival depends on playing to his strengths. 

Deus ex machina in the real world. Just watch Servant of the People.  How often do you get to see real life imitating art?

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

If you buy a house with a 20-year-old furnace, 

immediately budget the replacement cost. 

The Junior Son commended me on my fine adulting skills this week.

I'm so proud. 

The Wifely Person's Bonus Observation

The Rolling Stones announced they will start a tour called

SIXTY.

Why? Because they have been together as a band for

60 years. 

That's longer than most marriages...even the ones that last. 

Oh, you might want to know that Mick and Keith were born in 1943

They are currently 78 years old.

Each.

Which means that they will both turn 80 in 2023

yes, EIGHTY 

while they are on tour...with new songs they just wrote.

Why does that alta kaker have brown hair?

Ukraine Has A History... It's About To Be Unleashed on Russia

For the last couple of weeks, I've been waging an inner war with myself over Ukraine. 

Odessa Pogrom of 1905

Grandma Bessie, aka Grandma Don't (whom I've written about before) was from Odessa in Ukraine having fled, as she put it, after one pogrom too many, specifically the Odessa Pogrom of 1905. When I could get her to talk about something other than seeing the four Grand Duchesses disembark from The Standart, she would, if pressed, talk about the Cossacks. Having shared my room with her whenever she visited, I can also tell you she had nightmares about the Cossacks burning down our house. She called anyone one behaved badly a Cossack, including me on occasion. Until her dying day, Grandma Bessie was afraid of Cossacks. 

She had good reason to be afraid of Cossacks. They rode through the streets of Odessa's Jewish quarter killing whomever they came across. They broke into houses, including hers, to steal everything and then set fire to it. She told me how they had a place to hide when the Cossacks came. She also told me she was terrified of Easter because they said the Jews killed their Jesus. And she could not understand any Jewish person celebrating any sort of Christian holiday for any reason because the Cossacks came to kill them in the name of their religion. My mild, laidback Grandma had a tipping point, and it was Cossacks. Never once did I ever hear her refer to herself as Ukarinian; she was always Russian. 

For the record, Fiddler On The Roof hit real close to home for her. Not only was it implied that Anatevka was in Ukraine, Perchik the Revolutionary Suitor was from Kyiv. The pogrom depicted in both the show and the movie were very nice pogroms. They didn't really show you the sword wielding Cossacks mowing down Jews in cold blood. 

The pogroms in what was then called The Ukraine didn't stop when most of the Jews left. And the Ukrainians didn't stop hating Jews after the area was pretty much Jew-free. Nope. They turned lots and lots of Jews, including my Great-Aunt Sarai Schwaidel and her family over to the Nazis for ground fodder at Babi Yar. From the Wikipedia article on Babi Yar:

According to the testimony of a truck driver named Hofer, victims were ordered to undress and were beaten if they resisted:

I watched what happened when the Jews—men, women and children—arrived. The Ukrainians led them past a number of different places where one after the other they had to give up their luggage, then their coats, shoes and over-garments and also underwear. They also had to leave their valuables in a designated place. There was a special pile for each article of clothing. It all happened very quickly and anyone who hesitated was kicked or pushed by the Ukrainians [sic] to keep them moving.

— Michael Berenbaum: "Statement of Truck-Driver Hofer describing the murder of Jews at Babi Yar"

Feel free to read all about Jews in Ukraine. Wiki provides a pretty good timeline. It's worth at the very least a glance.

But now, the President of Ukraine is a Jew. 

That's almost as remarkable as knowing the Ukrainian people elected Volodymyr Zelensky, a well known comic and actor for president. He had a great comedy series called Servant Of the People where he played a high school history teacher who finds himself elected President of Ukraine. Oddly enough. I've watched the first 2 episodes and its actually pretty funny. I plan on watching the whole thing. And if that doesn't bring you joy, he's the voice of Paddington Bear, AND he's a Ukraine Dancing With The Stars winner! The guy may be an actor, but he is not a buffoon.

Seems like there's nothing this guy can't do....and that includes leading his nation through this nightmare war. Zelensky is proving himself to be a strong leader for his country. He has drawn the line and he is not about to abandon it. 

Although Zelensky has been offered asylum by other countries, including the US, he and his family are refusing to leave; instead, he said, "I need ammunition, not a ride." He is out in front with the population of Kyiv and the rest of Ukraine leading the battle. He has refused to cross the border to Belarus for peace-talks because he will not leave the front line. He does not have to be in the room to be in the room. Belarus, while well intentioned, cannot guarantee his safety from assassination. According to a variety of news outlets, some more reliable than others, something called The Wagner Group has been instructed to take out Zelensky. From The Independent:

On Monday, an anonymous source told The Times newspaper that the Wagner mercenaries in the country were part of a scheme to assassinate Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and other senior officials – a scenario that experts say would be a stunning departure from the group’s modus operandi.          

Oh, I'm not so sure about that being a departure. Hmmmm. And even if it is, it still sounds like a movie script. 

And another interesting tidbit on this conflict. Neutral Switzerland is not so neutral this time. According to the NY Times, Switzerland will freeze Russian assets. 

Switzerland said it was departing from its usual policy of neutrality because of “the unprecedented military attack by Russia on a sovereign European state,” but expressed a willingness to help mediate in the conflict. It also joined European neighbors in closing its airspace to Russian aircraft, except for humanitarian or diplomatic purposes. But said it would evaluate whether to join in subsequent E.U. sanctions on a case-by-case basis.

That great tax haven Monaco is also freezing Russian assets. That's saying something.  

Meanwhile, back at the dacha, the ruble is plummeting and the ones hardest hit by the sanctions will be the Russian populace. The question then becomes whether or not the voice of the Russian people protesting this fictionalized war will be loud enough to drown out the bees buzzing in Putin's head. 

The world has been pretty forthcoming in telling Putin this is NOT okay. That Putin has put his nuclear arsenal on high alert may be disconcerting, but frankly, I think it's the ultimate dick wave. He's playing chicken at a new level and so far, most of the world has been telling him not that is needs to stop, but that is will stop. I'm guessing Putin's only supporters at this point are China and North Korea, and China is not exactly jumping on the bandwagon here. Hell, even the Afghans, betrayed by their own government, are supporting Ukraine and calling Zelensky a hero.

Former Miss Ukraine Lenna

Which makes me wonder about the sanity level of Putin. Did he really believe the world would appease him with the human sacrifice of Ukraine? Does he not understand Cossacks are really good at fighting? Whilst they may have fought for Russia once upon a time, now it's their homeland under attack. Even the former Miss Ukraine, Anastaslia Lenna, is armed and out there. Grandmas are armed with Molotov cocktails. Mothers are hitting the streets to defend their families. Fathers have pretty much all enlisted. You think your army will stand against that, Vlad? Russia, you might be a bear, but you just dumped a brand new nest of angry bees on top of your own head. 

This is why, We, the People, have a moral and ethical obligation to stand with Ukraine...along with the rest of the civilized world. Putin cannot be permitted to wave his nuclear penis at Europe or the rest of the world and walk away unfettered, if not dead. Unlike Iraq, this nutcase actually has WMD and is threatening to use them. Global outcry didn't happen in 1938 or the subsequent years. Did We, the People of this Planet learn anything from that? One can only hope.

Not okay, Vlad, and you're about to find out how NOT okay this is. 

BONUS COMMENT: Pravda Brewery, based in Lviv, Ukraine, has suspended its beer brewing operations and is now making Molotov cocktails for residents to use against invading Russian forces. The labels on the bottles say “Putin is a dickhead.”

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

For the record, Israel is taking over 200,000 Jewish refugees out of Ukraine.

This has two purposes:

One: to get them out of harm's way

Two: to keep them out of harm's way in the event Ukraine falls.

It's Ukraine. The president is Jewish

They will blame the Jews.