I have waited and hoped I would not have to take a pen and comment on what has been happening in Israel/Gaza Strip. I was hoping cooler minds would prevail and some sort of cease-fire could be negotiated. Alas, as of the writing of this blog, the carnage continues.
As most of you already know, I am the living antithesis of what Adolf Hilter stood for. I am a card carry, Yarmulke wearing homosexual Jew. Dang if that isn't a mouth full. Anyhow, suffice to say I am Jewish and Gay but I will try to be fair in this blog.
I am the grandson of a survivor of the holocaust. I spent time in my teens in Israel working on a Kibbutz. I have many friends in Israel. I also have friends in the West Bank and in Gaza, both Palestinian and not.
This is what I know about the current situation in Israel. Hamas is a terrorist organization which terrorizes its own people they claim to represent. They do not acknowledge the legitimacy of Israel and have vowed to bring about its destruction. I also know, first hand, how they attack innocent civilians within Israel's borders. They use terror as a weapon. They have sent over 2,600 bombs into Israel since July 8, 2014. They are not targeting military bases but rather civilians.
I also know, if the bombs stopped coming from the Gaza Strip into Israel, I know the government in Israel would be under immense pressure to stop the current campaign in the Gaza Strip. I also believe Israel is not the instigator nor wanting innocent Palestinians to die.
With all of that said, the bombs continue to fall, people are dying...on both sides. I do not propose to know how to end the conflict, but I do know the average Joe and Jane on the streets of Israel and within Gaza and the West Bank, want peace. There needs to be a Palestine for the Palestinians. They need to be able to live free and govern themselves and stop living in a constant state of war. Hatred needs to be bred out of both Israeli's and Palestinians.
The world is upset with Israel. There are civilians dying in Gaza. Schools are being hit. Children are seeing nothing but death and destruction. It is ugly with a capital U. So I asked the question, "What does the world want from Israel?" I keep hearing, "they should stop." I don't think it is that easy. Three buildings in NYC and DC were bombed 13 years ago and we are still at war. So when is Israel going to be given the same consideration? I keep telling people, what bothers you more, the fact that Israel is defending itself or that it is much more effective than Hamas?
I really think if Israel operated on the same scale as Hamas, the world would look away. For some reason, when Hamas starts a conflict and Israel comes in and effectively slams Hamas back into dark alley's and back rooms its a problem.
I ask you to ponder the question I asked above. Is what bothers most people the fact Israel is defending itself or the fact it does it so well? I found the 9/11 attacks to be a warning. A warning that war was coming home to America. America were most have lived in complete and utter ignorance of what most of the globe has had to live and deal with for centuries. I also found most people's reaction to the the 9/11 attacks funny. Take a moment and remember how frightened you were on that day. Remember the turmoil and confusion following the attacks. Now...think that Israeli's and Palestinians have been living like that and worse for decades.
In 1982 I was in Israel when the war with Lebanon began. The "Peace For Galilee" war it was called. The Kibbutz I was on is called Misgav Am. You cannot really get any closer to Lebanon without being in it..hehe. Anyhow, the war started. There were times, especially at night we could hear the distant sounds of bombs and even machine gun fire. For me, a teen from a small town in New England, that was big shit. I was terrified most of the time. Eventually, I did learn to go on but never completely. The gnawing fear and stress never really leaves you. I understand a little of what life is like for most Israeli's and Palestinians.
The humanitarian in me hates to see anyone suffer, Jew, Palestinian or Ukrainians. I want peace for my fellow Israeli's. I want to be able to visit my Palestinian friends freely and I want them to be able to come to visit me. I don't want to have to send money and care packages because certain things are unobtainable. I want peace.
I admire the Israeli's. They have created a county, a homeland for themselves. Their level of living is almost the same as here in the United States of America. They do not attack but rather respond to the constant attacks they endure. The almost constant attacks of bombs strapped to people. Bus bombings, kidnappings and other outrageous atrocities. It happens all to frequently. We never hear of Israel going into Gaza or the West Bank and kidnapping people. To date I have never heard of an Israeli strapping a bomb to themselves and walking into a Gaza market. It just doesn't happen. We hear of Israel responding to attacks from Hamas and other splinter groups.
I ask you to think a moment back to 9/11. Remember not feeling secure, scared and confused. How many felt about the loved ones they lost on that day and the many lost since we went to war with Iraq and Afghanistan. With those feelings still fresh, try to place yourself in the position of the Israeli's. Do you still feel the same way? Do you still think Israel is being harsh on Hamas?
I stand firmly behind Israel. I believe they are guided by a moral compass Hamas and the others lack. I believe many Palestinians could and want to live in PEACE with Israel. I believe they deserve a country of their own. I long to see the day where the Gaza Strip is an open port and is flourishing. I long for the day I do not have to hear the fears of my Israeli friends as they send their children off to yet another conflict with the Palestinians. The only question left to ask is, will I live to see Peace in the Middle East?
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
No...Not Even If I Try
As I sit here in front of my computer my mind is whirling with all the event of this latest round of shows from Bravo. Aviva and her leg toss, Porscha and Kenya coming to blows and all the other stunts which have occurred during this season. Somehow I just cannot get past all the violence, name calling and other assorted actions these women, a term that doesn't seem to fit, but what the hell, I am feeling heady this evening, have exhibited.
As many of you know, I love to sit in front of my TV, watch the shows and tweet my reactions to what I see. I loved it, once...now? Not so much. I felt it was raw, uncensored and kept my comic timing honed to a fine point. Now I just sit there and call the ladies out on their obvious lack of honesty. Take Tamra Judge, from RHOC. She lied on camera about repeating what Shannon had said to her. Not once but many times. To Shannon, in regards to Shannon and for interviews regarding the scene in question. She lied and was filmed doing so. I just don't like to watch people do that. Its not entertaining to me. Nor is watching Vicki and Crooks get naked and have massages. I am still working diligently with my therapist trying to erase that image from my mind.
The violence is what bothers me the most. Andy has lost control of these waxed, botoxed, glamazons on the reunion shows. They now tell him what questions they will ask. For instance, Ramona, who loved when the Countess was going through her own personal hell of a divorce, to throw digs and innuendos at the Countess, but now that her own husband has found a much cheaper, younger and far more mentally stable version of her, she will not answer the questions. Like any of us blame Mario, pig from hell that he is, from finding some solace in the arms of a more rational person. In the end its petty. Its not even remotely interesting anymore. We go from one argument to another with the understanding that the women are paid to prance around, dress-up and fight. There is no other story line anymore.
Gone are the days when it was fun and exciting to watch the Countess realize a dream of recording a hit single. Even if it was auto-tuned to hell and back. It was fun. Watching Bethany take her dreams of being successful in the business word to the shelves of my local grocery store. Who doesn't like a Skinny Girl Margarita? Listening to Vicki ramble on about her insurance agency and how busy she always was. Now we see her peeing the bed and buying hair and teeth for a man who is neglectful of his children. Is that really entertaining? Not for me.
I am into shows I don't tweet about, like Big Freda...I love that crazy, but sweet black drag queen do his thing. Good TV. Bravo doesn't have it anymore. The whole cattiness of the shows, all of them on Bravo are beyond nauseating, they are dull. Listen, I love a good cat fight like the next lonely homo, but hell, after 3 episodes of RHOA, I had my fill from Nene and her homophobic rants...do we really need more? The opening season of Ladies of London was just another attempt by the executives of Bravo trying just another location with the same premise to lure in those last two remaining human beings who are not aware of Bravo and the shows. I really don't think watching that show, with such divine creatures, like Clamitia, aka Caprice or Anna-Dull go at it was fun and I don't think the whole USA vs. UK was a thrill on either side of the ocean. Juliet and her frantic energy or her even more frantic attempts to be seen as a "good American" helped at all. Not for me at least. I was yawning in 5 point 2 seconds and trolling my shows menu in the upper right hand of my TV.
Falling Skies, Tyrant, Witches Of The East End, Big Freda, The Last Ship are the shows I am watching and have on my DVR. I don't want to watch women be prompted to have more explosive fights. I don't believe any of the women on any of the shows are friends. These shows are not about those people who have lives far different from mine. Hell, if I wanted to watch someone like Nene behave badly and be homophobic, I would just call my mother and save myself a ton of money each month and cancel my cable subscription. There are no more charity events. Just one or two good fights...the audience picks sides, Twitter and Facebook go apeshit, then there is the trip abroad and then a reunion show or three. This is where they rip each other to shreds and then we wait for the next season to begin.
In the beginning it was fun. We met and saw a different side of life most of us will never be a part of. Lavish parties, designed digs and cribs, in other words, a life where work is a four letter code word for poor. We really believed they were friends and we were watching through a tiny window lives which appeared to much more exciting than ours. I found lots of new people who shared my interest in the shows and it was fun. I felt part of a community.
The shows have become troublesome for me. I find all the wives to be boring, ignorant, intolerant and most of all, MANIPULATIVE. I refuse to even acknowledge RHONJ and RHOA, nor do I tweet about them. RHOM was done long ago for me. RHOC is now on the chopping list for me. I just can't anymore. This last season with Aviva and the leg toss sealed their fate with me as well.
I miss the light-hearted fun, the community of people who watched and gossiped about the shows but most of all I miss the "newness" of the shows. I feel like I am a sheep and Bravo is leading me down a path that will end with me on the cliff. They are laughing all the way to the bank, their ever so needy ego's are being filled by the adoration and controversy of the fans and we are left to watch women behaving badly for money. Legs being thrown, teeth falling out, anal sex, drug and alcohol abuse are now normal. People being brutally beaten seems normal. They say oops and I am sorry and all is better.
I write this post to let others know its okay to come out of the closet and say, "I too, don't like the shows anymore." Stand up, be counted and most of all....let Bravo know.
As many of you know, I love to sit in front of my TV, watch the shows and tweet my reactions to what I see. I loved it, once...now? Not so much. I felt it was raw, uncensored and kept my comic timing honed to a fine point. Now I just sit there and call the ladies out on their obvious lack of honesty. Take Tamra Judge, from RHOC. She lied on camera about repeating what Shannon had said to her. Not once but many times. To Shannon, in regards to Shannon and for interviews regarding the scene in question. She lied and was filmed doing so. I just don't like to watch people do that. Its not entertaining to me. Nor is watching Vicki and Crooks get naked and have massages. I am still working diligently with my therapist trying to erase that image from my mind.
The violence is what bothers me the most. Andy has lost control of these waxed, botoxed, glamazons on the reunion shows. They now tell him what questions they will ask. For instance, Ramona, who loved when the Countess was going through her own personal hell of a divorce, to throw digs and innuendos at the Countess, but now that her own husband has found a much cheaper, younger and far more mentally stable version of her, she will not answer the questions. Like any of us blame Mario, pig from hell that he is, from finding some solace in the arms of a more rational person. In the end its petty. Its not even remotely interesting anymore. We go from one argument to another with the understanding that the women are paid to prance around, dress-up and fight. There is no other story line anymore.
Gone are the days when it was fun and exciting to watch the Countess realize a dream of recording a hit single. Even if it was auto-tuned to hell and back. It was fun. Watching Bethany take her dreams of being successful in the business word to the shelves of my local grocery store. Who doesn't like a Skinny Girl Margarita? Listening to Vicki ramble on about her insurance agency and how busy she always was. Now we see her peeing the bed and buying hair and teeth for a man who is neglectful of his children. Is that really entertaining? Not for me.
I am into shows I don't tweet about, like Big Freda...I love that crazy, but sweet black drag queen do his thing. Good TV. Bravo doesn't have it anymore. The whole cattiness of the shows, all of them on Bravo are beyond nauseating, they are dull. Listen, I love a good cat fight like the next lonely homo, but hell, after 3 episodes of RHOA, I had my fill from Nene and her homophobic rants...do we really need more? The opening season of Ladies of London was just another attempt by the executives of Bravo trying just another location with the same premise to lure in those last two remaining human beings who are not aware of Bravo and the shows. I really don't think watching that show, with such divine creatures, like Clamitia, aka Caprice or Anna-Dull go at it was fun and I don't think the whole USA vs. UK was a thrill on either side of the ocean. Juliet and her frantic energy or her even more frantic attempts to be seen as a "good American" helped at all. Not for me at least. I was yawning in 5 point 2 seconds and trolling my shows menu in the upper right hand of my TV.
Falling Skies, Tyrant, Witches Of The East End, Big Freda, The Last Ship are the shows I am watching and have on my DVR. I don't want to watch women be prompted to have more explosive fights. I don't believe any of the women on any of the shows are friends. These shows are not about those people who have lives far different from mine. Hell, if I wanted to watch someone like Nene behave badly and be homophobic, I would just call my mother and save myself a ton of money each month and cancel my cable subscription. There are no more charity events. Just one or two good fights...the audience picks sides, Twitter and Facebook go apeshit, then there is the trip abroad and then a reunion show or three. This is where they rip each other to shreds and then we wait for the next season to begin.
In the beginning it was fun. We met and saw a different side of life most of us will never be a part of. Lavish parties, designed digs and cribs, in other words, a life where work is a four letter code word for poor. We really believed they were friends and we were watching through a tiny window lives which appeared to much more exciting than ours. I found lots of new people who shared my interest in the shows and it was fun. I felt part of a community.
The shows have become troublesome for me. I find all the wives to be boring, ignorant, intolerant and most of all, MANIPULATIVE. I refuse to even acknowledge RHONJ and RHOA, nor do I tweet about them. RHOM was done long ago for me. RHOC is now on the chopping list for me. I just can't anymore. This last season with Aviva and the leg toss sealed their fate with me as well.
I miss the light-hearted fun, the community of people who watched and gossiped about the shows but most of all I miss the "newness" of the shows. I feel like I am a sheep and Bravo is leading me down a path that will end with me on the cliff. They are laughing all the way to the bank, their ever so needy ego's are being filled by the adoration and controversy of the fans and we are left to watch women behaving badly for money. Legs being thrown, teeth falling out, anal sex, drug and alcohol abuse are now normal. People being brutally beaten seems normal. They say oops and I am sorry and all is better.
I write this post to let others know its okay to come out of the closet and say, "I too, don't like the shows anymore." Stand up, be counted and most of all....let Bravo know.
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