Hamas

Ordering Take Out

He thinks

he’s witty

when he

suggests

a city

or two

to

be taken

out

by an

adversary,

namely

Iran.

“Let them

take out” 

Los Angeles

and San Diego?

What about

San Francisco?

or Mar A Lago?

It’s easy

to dismiss

his ridiculousness

or become

overzealous,

but what

he tells us

each time

he says

this

or something

like it,

is that he’s

a gigantic

idiot.

I still

don’t 

get it.

He makes

no sense.

He takes

out

his frustration

by creating

offense

at the expense

of anyone.

His gaffs

get laughs

and cheers

which he

hears

as approval.

And removal

of people

(who cares

if it’s legal)

is his

specialty.

His spontaneity

is his

calling card

making it

hard

to get

ahead.

And he’s

said

so many

heinous

and dangerous

comments,

unbefitting

of presidents

just striving

for mere

relevance

as he invents

more nonsense.

But while

he jokes

and stokes

grievances,

truth

inconveniences

us 

still.

The chill

of this date

should

still resonate

3 years

after

the gruesome

Hamas

attacks.

With

sickening

brutality,

taking

out 

a community

with impunity,

using rape,

murder,

and kidnapping,

October 7th,

2023

may not live

in infamy

when the

response

of war

took out

more

than they

bargained

for.

Or,

did it?

Now,

even more

of the world

has turned

against

Israel,

and Israelis

and Palestinians

are still

paying

for 

the sins

of their

leaders.

Ordering

take out

seems 

easy 

enough,

until

the stuff

is delivered.

Eyes On the Prize

Well,

even if 

the Nobel’s

the sell,

let’s make

a deal

that’s finally

real.

No one denies

his eyes

on that prize

as a motivator

to broker

a peace

deal.

I feel 

potential relief

and cautious

belief

that the bad

guys

who strong

arm 

and justify

real harm

may begin

to end

this two-year

war.

The exchange

of each prisoner

for each hostage

remain

is the main-

stay of the 

first part 

of the deal.

The real

test for peace

in the mideast

will be in

the rest

of the 20-

point plan.

For each

Palestinian

and Israeli,

this war

has been

torture

for 2 years

daily,

while the

world

has watched

in horror,

appalled,

until the bad

guys called

for a peace plan.

I think 

of Ireland.

It seemed

unbelievable.

So too,

Palestine

and Israel.

It’s certainly

possible,

when the bad

guys

prioritize

peace,

with their

eyes 

on the prize.

Remains to be Seen

The release

of remains

was made

by Hamas

of Shiri Bibas

33,

and her sons,

Ariel 

who was 4

and Kfir 

who was

nine months old,

we are told,

at the time of their

capture.

Also released

among the dead,

was Oded 

Lifshitz, 84.

All were

taken hostage

on 

that day 

of carnage,

October 7th

2023.

Hamas maintains

that the remains

were from

them being 

killed

in Israeli

air strikes

during 

the Gaza War.

Shiri’s husband,

Yarden,

was let go

a few weeks

ago,

alive,

but the rest

of his family

did not

survive. 

Oded Lifshitz,

a retired

journalist

who volunteered

with 

Road to Recovery,

drove 

Palestinians

who were

not citizens

to hospital 

appointments

in Israel

and the West 

Bank.

The wife

of Oded,

Yocheved,

was also 

in captivity,

and freed

after

about two

weeks.

Throughout

the war,

the symbol

of the hostage

struggle

in Israel

was found

in the photo

posted

all around

the country.

The young

family

with the

red head

tots

generated 

lots

of anguish 

and anger,

but also

hope

for a return

home.

The remains

of the day

today

will be seen

by forensic

pathologists

to identify

them.

But the pathology

remains.

Gaza 

won’t be

a Trump 

Plaza.

It’s the hate

that lives

after

the remains

are returned

home.

It remains

to be seen

how much

will get

buried. 

Thoughts on Criminal Minds

My attempt

to document

current

events

with an injection

of reflection,

was put

on hold,

at least

in brief,

as I examined

my grief

and belief

in humanity.

6 hostages

executed,

forever muted,

just before

they were sure

to be rescued.

Hamas is

beyond

horrific,

and fond

of specific

cruelty;

utterly 

sick

and dangerous.

For the rest

of us,

Hersh’s name

garnered fame

as his parents

spoke 

at the DNC

convention.

But each victim

of this insane

and disgusting

situation

is dying,

though desperately

trying to survive.

The victims 

are people;

all of the people

who reside

inside

the nightmare

of Israel

and Palestine.

It’s all distorted

as Bibi

has 

contorted

himself,

having aborted

peace negotiations.

Israel

will be a pariah

as long 

as this war

in Gaza

persists.

Bibi’s bet

that he’ll 

hang on yet,

and help 

Trump

bump Kamala

from winning

is sickening,

when thinking

about who

really suffers.

It’s profoundly

upsetting

but I’m still

betting

on humanity,

though not

from the demented

insanity

of those players.

The Labor Day

protest-

although cut short-

was the sort

of show

in Israel

that lets 

me know

that principle

still exists.

And Bibi

persists

with Trump

assists;

another 

reason

to resist

him.

Turning 

grief

into belief

in something

more 

than to restore

what was,

is before

us.

More than

for a blessing,

a memory

of a person

could be

an opportunity

to see 

differently

and act

accordingly.

May the memory

of those

who died

be tied

to a new

proposition;

a resolution

towards

some solution

beyond

what was tried

when the 

innocent

and innocence

died

at the hands

of criminal minds.

History Lessens

History lessens

the exclusivity

of now.

What seems

unique

is really 

a tweak

of actions

of factions, 

reactions,

and distractions

that humans

do 

to

each

other.

This October

surprise

attack

by Hamas

upon Israelis

shocked

and horrified

in scope

and scale;

each

detail

grotesque.

Historical

comparisons

to 9/11,

’73,

and even

The Holocaust;

to Nazis

and Isis—

the ultimate

barbarism—

casts Hamas

among

other

embodiments

of pure

evil. 

From eternity

to here,

history

does not

lessen

the reality

of evil

of humans.

We like

to think

we progress,

and we do.

We like

to think

we are more

sophisticated

than our

ancestors,

yet

history

proves

to be

more complex,

with effects

that traumatize

and catalyze.

History

must 

humanize.

It is

the story

of humans,

sometimes

beyond

comprehension.

But that

is the

task

that history

asks.

We like

to think

we are

different

and less

naive

than our

predecessors.

But even

our successors

will have

or 

will be

aggressors

or oppressors,

and certainly

transgressors,

because

humans

have such

capacities.

Forgetting

the lessons

of history—

human

actions 

and 

reactions—

lessens

the ability

to strengthen

stability.

Fundamentally,

fundamentalism

lessens—

a lesson

learned

from history.

The progress

and ideas

of accessibility,

diversity, 

and inclusivity

that make

the present

feel

like sustainability,

become

thwarted,

distorted,

supported,

and exported

by extremists

who are

zombies

of history,

trying

to lessen

the inevitability

of time

and evolution.

I still

hope

for all

humanity

that sanity

will prevail

and we 

can exhale

while learning

the lessons

now.