I saw this painted on a storefront window.
Community, United We Stand.
With all the polarization these days, is this still true?
Unity is literally built into Comm-unity.
Divided, we tear each other apart.
Instead, we could accomplish so much together. 😉
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Truly, we are living in the times of Maschiach.
Someone contacted me with a friend request on Facebook, and his profile included that he is a:
Torah-Observant Gentile
Wow!
It’s truly like we say in the Aleinu prayer every day:
All Mankind shall invoke Your Name, to turn to You all the wicked of the earth. They will recognize and know–all the inhabitants of the world—that every knee should bend to You…The L-rd will be King over the entire earth; on that day the L-rd will be One and His Name One.
We are on the way and I hope we all get to see and cross over the finish line soon. 😉
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
There are two things to know.
None of us is perfect.
We each have strengths and weaknesses.
No one has all the answers–despite some big egos out there!
That’s why we all need each other.
Knowledge is great, but networking magnifies your potential many times over.
These are two things you definitely want to know. 😉
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
So nice to see neighbors from the surrounding communities just getting together to play music and sing along.
It’s amazing to me the good that people can accomplish when they come together like this.
This is hopeful and happy.
(Source Video: Andy Blumenthal)
The U.S. democracy is severely broken.
We are supposed to be “one out of many,” but instead we are many out of one.
There is a tearing at our nation’s fabric.
Resistance. Obstruction. Polarization. Gridlock. Shutdown. Identity Politics. Hating on each other. Can’t get anything done.
Legislatively we’re at an impasse.
It’s not just the border wall…
– No full year (let alone multi-year) budgets for all Federal agencies.
– No Healthcare Fix
– No Immigration Reform
– No Education (STEM) Improvement
– No USA Infrastructure Bill
– We are losing our edge to a resurgent Russia and a China taking world stage militarily and economically.
Executive Branch has its hands tied.
Special Counsels. Congressional Inquiries. Judicial injunctions. Media Lynchings.
Alone. Thwarted. Unable to lead or act.
Presidential hand tied by mommy Pelosi and Daddy Schumer.
State of the Union cancelled.
Presidency is compromised in the eyes of every national competitor and demagogue in the world.
Without a strong leadership reestablished and permitted to act, we are running a very strong risk of losing our superpower status and becoming just another has-been nation.
Don’t think it can’t happen.
The three branches of the government should be working together and helping each other to strengthen our nation’s survival, prosperity, and success.
If we don’t stop the madness, then we will implode and it won’t be a pretty or a happy day for anyone–Democrats or Republicans.
Last chance for E. Pluribus Unum. 😉
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Please read my article in The Times of Israel called, “Bring Every Jew Back.”
Today in a beautiful Chabad synagogue here in Florida, the Rabbi called to the Torah a bar mitzvah. But in this case, the bar mitzvah “boy” was a 43-year old man!
Read what happened and hope you enjoy! 😉
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
This was a beautiful song that we learned this week in Ulpan.
I love it–being Jewish and the song! 😉
This just seemed so perfect for election day this year.
With the country torn asunder between left and right.
We are the grateful dead of the U.S. of A.
– Our political system is stymied and our representatives are only self-minded.
The integrity of our founding fathers has vanished and last century’s great national hope has languished.
Cause the liberals hate the conservatives.
And the conservatives hate the liberals.
All of my folks hate all of your folks, and everyone blames the Jews.
– The Constitution has become malarkey, and the Bill of Rights now makes people snarky.
Polarization and they’re a lyin’, fake news and no one is even tryin’.
It’s either my way or the highway, and everyone else can go to h*ll.
– Throw a fit and curse your neighbor, chase the opposition to the wayward.
Know that threats and violence are better than silence, and resistance means persistence.
How could this have even happened, and you’re all on the wrong side of history.
– Are we making things great, and they’re only about hate.
Or are they racist deplorables, and we’re the self-righteous ennobles.
From the economy to trade wars, and from immigration to healthcare.
Why is it that we can’t listen, negotiate, compromise, and play fair.
– I don’t know why we’re even having an election.
When we only want to defeat the opposition.
Cause the Democrats hate the Republicans.
And the Republicans hate the Democrats.
All of the Obamanicks hate the Trumpeans, and vice versa is certainly true too.
– It’s up to everyone to put the country first and stop the bickering and the hate.
Practice patriotism and nationalism, tear down the walls so progress does not stall.
No one is all right and no one is all wrong, instead we’ve got to come together and just let everyone belong.
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Our nation is increasingly polarized with little to no tolerance of others wants, thinking, or actions.
– First under Obama.
– Then with the election between Hillary and Trump.
– And now over Judge Kavanaugh.
The result has been some of the worst behaviors seen since the Civil War–with not only disrespect, restrictions on freedom of expression, but even threats and actual violence!
This nation is no longer the UNITED States, but much more like the DIVIDED States.
And that just plays into our enemies hands and could lead us to eventually lose our very democracy to totalitarianism, dictatorship, and tyranny.
So now may be a good time to review for yourself how many biases are driving your thought processes and behaviors and creating dangerous fundamentalists and extremists all around us instead of thoughtful dialogue, negotiation, and compromise.
Here are 20 biases that may be affecting you more than you realize:
– Do you overestimate the importance of the information you have or feel good about (Anchoring, Availability, and Choice-Supportive Biases)?
– Do you seek out and perceive information that simply validates your preconceptions (Information,
Confirmation, and Selective Perception Bias)?
– Do you overemphasize information that is more recent or recognizable (Recency and Salience Biases)?
– Are you ignoring information that doesn’t “fit your script” (Ostrich Effect/Omission and Conservatism Bias)?
– Are you tied up in the groupthink of your peers (Bandwagon Effect)?
– Do you see patterns in random events or conspiracies that don’t exist (Clustering Illusion)?
– Are you overconfident in your thought process and conclusions (Overconfidence Bias)?
– Do you tend to overvalue the usefulness or success of something, but not recognize its limitations or failures (Pro-Innovation and Survivorship Bias)?
– Do you fail to take risks because you prefer certainty (Zero-Risk Bias)?
– Does your thinking something will happen actually cause it to happen (Placebo Effect)?
– Do you use the ends to justify the means (Outcome Bias)?
– Do you judge people by their race, class, gender, religion, sexual preferences, or national origin (Stereotyping)?
– Do you fail to recognize your own biases (Blind-Spot Bias)?
Perhaps if more people would open their minds to information and engage in genuine thinking and critical thinking, rather than a lot of fake news and hype, we would be a far better and stronger nation. 😉
(Source Graphic: Business Insider)
Please see my new article in The Times of Israel, All Will Know G-d.
In the true story that I recount, a little Ethiopian girl tells me:
There is no reason to fight because we all believe in G-d and that He created us.
Similar to what Zechariah prophesized (14:9)
The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name.
I hope you enjoy this piece on faith, unity, and hope for the future. 😉
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
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