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Menachem's Writings
On Political Aspirations
I didn't have anything to write about yesterday, and not really much more to say today, but my readership is bugging me that I haven't written for a long while -- all of two days. My question with these blog things is, does a blogger have to write daily, even if nothing new has happened? Do I need to fabricate totally when there isn't something real on to which I can hang a story line?
Well here I go, writing about nothing, but let's see where or if it leads anywhere . . . . I get ideas about what to write in a blog from the people I meet each day and discussions we have or that I overhear -- yes especially overhear ;-) -- lot's of opportunity to expand and expound. It could be at church or in the synagogue, in the morning or in the evening, at the pool or playing pool, at a Talmud or Bible learning session or something I hear on the radio, which I have going all the time while I sit here at my desk, or go on my way in my car. (I saw some bicycle speakers at the bike shop yesterday -- can't see how they can be too useful.) Today's day got off to a quite a quiet, nondescript start. Shule was relatively empty (not that they every hang from the rafters around our place) and was off to a lazy start yesterday and today. The pool was relatively empty (Bentley thankfully is still in Albuquerque, Reuven only makes cameo visits, Bentzi turned up late (but he still managed to force an "Alexander Popov 275 metres and down swim" onto me), Yisroel and Yissachar Dov and a few others weren't there at all, etc (did I miss out on free beer at the supermarket this morning?). And the gym was almost deserted. Even former-Ukrainian Alexei left before I arrived (are you suggesting I that take this personally?). Not much inspiration there! I could write about politics (be careful Menachem). But worldwide politics is becoming increasing uninteresting and self-serving (the U.S. elections -- excitement? Gordon Brown?). Our prime monster [Olmert at the time of writing] just won't let go, even though the long knives* have been drawn. But he persistently hangs in there. It could be interesting -- the potential is there, but it currently is boring -- and the position of the leadership is becoming more and more untenable. But it is moving ever so slowly. You don't have to wait for a commercial to go and spend a penny**. You won't miss anything even if you take a full week off! But gradually the knives are lengthening -- and getting sharper I imagine. And now for something completely different: I just saw on the BBC news website that a new drug was just announced in England that is supposed to "halt" the decline of Alzheimer's Disease. Get this -- it's called Rember! What disease is the developer of this drug suffering, or is it just a typo. Or is this to point out the fact that it can just halt the decline, not reverse it. Well I may have still a chance. It should be on the market by 2012 -- before I turn sixty. Now you know what to bring for me to my surprise sixtieth birthday party.
We're doing OK here . . . I've almost filled enough screen to be passable for a blog entry . . . . Later this year we're having mayoral elections here in Efrat. Really exciting stuff! Surprisingly there's a real fight brewing to select the person who will be in charge, for the next five years, of the sewerage and rubbish collection in our beautiful town. Even though the election is still three months off, it seems that each new day, a new hat is thrown into ring. The wife of the (late) previous mayor who has private and public administration experience, a nice young lawyer who was (still is in the reserves) a Lt Colonel in the tank corps, a very rotund gentleman who handles some aspect of security (I and most others are not exactly sure which aspect, but surely someone up there knows and he seems to be good at it -- they keep signing his pay cheque). Last night I heard that the spitting image of Alfred E. Newman (the "What -- Me Worry?" kid) is also running. Alfred was born in 1955 -- the local impersonation came later. More candidates will be crawling out of the woodwork, at least of that I can be certain. I can only see two reasons why someone would want to do this intense job. Either they are very dedicated to making Efrat a better place in which to live (in my opinion there really isn't too much to do here, but these ideologues are, well ideological, often against all logic), or they want the money and/or the power associated with the position. There's one mayor down the road (our municipalities are tiny, so we have about ten mayors within 10 miles of here and we live in a rural region!) who has held his elected (initially appointed) job for as long as anyone can remember, so he obviously has no political aspirations (or he'd better give up before his seventieth birthday) and another doesn't hide his aspirations for national office. There's actually a third fellow, a little further down the road, who seems to believe he is both -- you know the type: the god's gift to humanity. But I have my own candidate. Jill is probably (I mean definitely) more popular that all four of these guys put together, and is better known and trusted by far more people than they are, and everyone knows that she has integrity and is very honest. She also has no political aspirations or enemies, and being independently wealthy, could not be accused of doing it for the money. So I nominate my wife, Jillian Kuchar, for Mayor(ess).
* Long Knives A term used by American Indians of the Ohio Country to designate British colonists in North America, but more likely the expression comes from The Night of the Long Knives or "Operation Hummingbird", which took place in Nazi Germany between 30th June and 2nd July, 1934, when the Nazi regime executed at least 85 people for purely political reasons. ** Spend a Penny literally to use a public lavatory, as these use coin operated locks (but not for male urinals -- rather sexist?!).
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