Monthly Archives: January 2010

People thought that George Bush was a bumbling idiot. The irony of ironies is that Obama is proving himself not to be much better than Bush in that regard. Bush, so it would seem, lacks the raw intellectual talent. Obama, by contrast, is not bringing his considerable intellectual powers to bear by being fully reflective and self-critical. This makes Obama his own worst enemy. Obama reminds me of expression that is from an era gone-by: “Too smart for one’s own good”. Not in my life-time have I seen a man take the office of President of the United States with as much hope on the part of the citizens of America as Barack Obama did. Likewise, never have I seen a person more oblivious to the very hope that he had inculcated. And it takes a very morally vapid person to be indifferent to the very deep, deep hope on the part of that she or he has inculcated. If Obama is not such a person, I see no evidence that he is not. Continue reading →

It is one of the great ironies of life that being the victim of egregious injustice is not a gateway or stepping stone to being a champion of justice. Indeed, one of the most compelling and inspiring examples in modern history of people putting themselves on the line in order to save others from the hands of evil concerns a group of people who are not known for their suffering, namely the people of Le Chambon. Continue reading →

The decision rendered by France’s Cour d’Appel reveals something that is most troubling, namely that whether we are in the air (travelling by airplane) or on the ground, we are all increasingly becoming hostages to terrorism—terrorism committed not just by anyone, but terrorism committed by Muslims in the name of Allah. Once this simple truth is borne in mind, then it is so very easy to understand the decision by France’s Cour d’Appel that to claim that it is by reason of mental illness the Muslim Amastaibou is not guilty of murdering the Jew Selam. Only someone who believes in the tooth fairy could think that decision by France’s Cour d’Appel had anything to do with Amastaibou’s lack of mental health. Continue reading →

Haiti versus the Tsunami of 2004.  Of course, there is no competition here.  We have two horrendous acts of nature that have ravaged the lives of so many human beings.  Yet, there is important difference between the Tsunami of 2004 … Continue reading →

Showing a measure of respect for those who commit evil strikes me as a wonderful idea in principle but a horrendous idea in practice.  The real question, alas, is it possible for us to respond to evil behavior on the … Continue reading →