Left

Actually, my sickness wasn’t all good. I got teary-eyed watching some of Lilo and Stitch with my daughter. That alien just needs someone to love! I got worried there for a moment when I wasn’t getting any better. Recently there’s been an illness in my family—trips to the hospital. Everything’s OK now, but it probably contributed to it. The absolute sadness I would feel not being able to be a part of my daughter’s life. Having kidney problems contributes to this—any sickness could be much worse. I was overreacting, lasted a couple of hours.

It was also very hard on my wife who had no help with Olivia, who’s going through a phase. Olivia’s going to be changing schools in September, which is going to be great for her, and us, but it’s got to be hard on her 4-year-old brain. We’ve always been fairly uncomfortable around the other conservative Jewish parents. She’s outgrown the daycare place—in a home—and needs to be in a school setting with more 4-year-olds. It’s also weird for her to be learning about Jewish holidays that we’re not practicing at home. Overall, it’s been great for her, but it’s time to move on.

Her best friend recently moved back to Israel, which spurned on the decision. “They had a cease-fire just in time,” the father said with a nervous, but optimistic, smile at the going away party. Not the sort of conversation you should be having. He’s working at a think tank that studies how notions of Jihad filter through the Arab media and the Internet. A conservative Jewish Islamic scholar. I didn’t want to talk about the book I’m writing—about WW III--so I told him about the documentary I’d seen the night before.



An interesting, troubling movie about the growth of anti-semitism, as exemplified by The Protocols of Zion, which outlines a Zionist takeover of the world. The movie never mentions that conspiracy theorists call the Protocols a front for the Illuminati (freemasons, Rosicrucians, Templars, etc. etc).—i.e. it’s about the Illuminati takeover of the world. Not that it’s true, but it’s part of the story. But it goes against his premise—that there’s rampant anti-semitism. And he’s right.

The reaction of the left to the recent conflict in Lebanon is baffling. The Israel mess was awful and wrong, but people jump suspiciously fast on Jews. Andrew Sullivan linked to some signs at anti-war rallies that are really hateful: “Mel Gibson was right” and “Nazi Kikes out of Lebanon.” Maybe five seconds later, that guy was told to take down his sign. Maybe not. Invading countries doesn’t work. Neither does diplomacy with people who don’t want you to exist. Islamic fanatics suck. That’s not a right-wing talking point, that’s rational.

Today is supposed to be the End of the World. Watch it Live-Blogged at Armageddon Cocktail Hour. While you’re there, check out Know Your Antichrist Candidates.