What the Chinese are saying

From an official Chinese Foreign Ministry Working Paper:

 The history of the United States is characterized by violence and expansion. Since it gained independence in 1776, the United States has constantly sought expansion by force: it slaughtered Indians, invaded Canada, waged a war against Mexico, instigated the American-Spanish War, and annexed Hawaii. After World War II, the wars either provoked or launched by the United States included the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, the Kosovo War, the War in Afghanistan, the Iraq War, the Libyan War and the Syrian War, abusing its military hegemony to pave the way for expansionist objectives. In recent years, the U.S. average annual military budget has exceeded 700 billion U.S. dollars, accounting for 40 percent of the world's total, more than the 15 countries behind it combined. The United States has about 800 overseas military bases, with 173,000 troops deployed in 159 countries.

As former U.S. President Jimmy Carter put it, the United States is undoubtedly the most warlike nation in the history of the world. According to a Tufts University report, "Introducing the Military Intervention Project: A new Dataset on U.S. Military Interventions, 1776-2019," the United States undertook nearly 400 military interventions globally between those years, 34 percent of which were in Latin America and the Caribbean, 23 percent in East Asia and the Pacific, 14 percent in the Middle East and North Africa, and 13 percent in Europe. Currently, its military intervention in the Middle East and North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa is on the rise.

Another paper criticizing the USA: 

 "First, According to the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics, the average life expectancy in the country has dropped 2.7 years from 2019 to 2021, with 3.1 years shorter for men and 2.3 years shorter for women. Second, access to higher education is disproportionately skewed toward the rich, while the low-income group has no equal access to education." 

Comment: Once again, the Chinese feel they are the Celestial Empire. They go by the traditional book of their ancient sages of how to deal with barbarians: First, apply moral suasion, then try to buy them with good food, nice sing-song girls, medals and pompous titles. Try to fight barbarians with other barbarians. If nothing helps, exterminate them. It never worked for the Chinese and it was a real disaster when the Anglo-Saxon fleet arrived. 

The Ruin and Re-Birth of the South African Republic

The ruin of the Republic is almost complete. Twenty years ago many predicted exactly this outcome. But it appeared that there was no alternative, as the country was becoming isolated, a true pariah. Today, there is no electricity and the water supply is unreliable. This is a fabulously rich country, with gold and diamond mines, and a temperate climate. 

The world political order is in process of re-organization. The tension between the USA and the EU, and Russia and its tacit ally - China, is growing and hardening. The incompetent government of the Republic is aligning itself with the anti-American group. The pic shows the American Secretary of State Blinken and her S.A. counterpart, Mrs. Naledi Pandor. 

This situation cannot continue. If it cannot, it will not. As the saying goes, ’n Boer maak ’n plan.  

Or it will follow South Rhodesia into inconsequentiality.

Edgardo

 My friend Edgardo Schinder stopped answering emails and his son Immanuel wrote that he had "ascended to a higher plane". His latest emails were from Hawaii, where his daughter was living (she was married to an American working on the naval base), 

He called himself Osiris, I imagine he saw himself as related to that Egyptian god. Maybe that was his middle name. 

I don't want to write an obituary. We met in high school, Nacional Mariano Moreno, Buenos Aires. He was the son of a Jewish doctor of the Baron Hirsch colonies in Entre Rios. He was the very best student of all of us, always 100 in every subject.  He was interested in environmental medicine and ended up teaching as many of my friends did.

He had immigrated to Israel, worked in a hospital in Beer Sheba, and then in Tel Aviv. He was always worried about his wife, Mercedes, who is the daughter of Spanish immigrants. He insisted that she was a Jewish descendant.  (I never discussed the idea, but doubt that after 500 years it can be established). She is a psychiatrist, very soft and quiet. 

My old friends are rapidly dying off. I am healthy, thank you. 

 

Kenon Distributes Profits

 My investment in Kenon apparently struck gold, as the company announced monstrous dividends. I shall pay for a Purim lunch in a good restaurant for the family. Pic.: Ofer.

Exploitation and Opression

A number of Ashkenazi Jewish remains were discovered in the old synagogue (pic) of Erfurt. In the 11th century, they were killed and put into a hole. It is interesting because they are the early knowledge we can have of the seed communities of Eastern Germany. Erfurt was an important trading town because of its location, near a ford across the Gera river. Having exterminated the local Jews, the Municipal Government found that they had been the largest taxpayers and now they had no resources. So they called the area Jews to move back and they re-settled Erfurt.

Something similar happened in Vac (Weitzen), the German-populated city in Hungary. The town is located on a ford of the Danube, the nearest one is Buda, some 70 km East. My grandfather was the largest taxpayer of the place. When the Jews were ghettoized and sent to Auschwitz, the economic turnover of the city disappeared and the inhabitants became poor. But the Jews did not come back and there are no spare Jews to take their place.

Israel is prospering. In 2022 it grew by 7% (GNP), the top of the OECD countries and the rest. We are now a highly developed rich country. Imagine where we could be without carrying the Arab handicap.   

What I am saying is that the universal feeling that the Jews were exploiting the natives is the opposite of the real situation. We, Jews, were and are exploited and oppressed in the Galut  - politically and economically - and the Zionist Movement really is our national liberation movement. 

East Lansing 63 years ago

At least three people were killed and at least five others were injured at Michigan State University after shootings at two locations on the East Lansing campus Monday night, university police said.

Students were urged to "secure in place" as officials searched for a shooter who remained at large hours after gunfire was first reported at 8:18 p.m. local time, according to NBC News.

I copy this news note only because I visited the place in winter 1960 and was kindly hosted by Prof. Klein. It was snowing and it was very quiet and nice. No one in that time imagined a massacre in the campus. Who and why would do a thing like that?

What I read at age 12

 

My uncles in Buenos Aires had a collection of pre-WWII Szinhazi Elet (an illustrated magazine of the thirties, from Budapest). I read them all voraciously. It dealt mostly with the celebrities of the day, the Austro-Hungarian titled aristocracy, and fashions of London and New York (of impossibly tall and slim gentlemen and ladies), although the Budapest theater life and readership was Jewish. But Jews, identifiable as such, figure only in humor section. Yet, in Buenos Aires 1959, I was able to read between the lines and enjoy the wit of that lost world. My world. 

Now is the time to buy!

 Let's have another cup of coffee.

Find the Escape Hatch!

 Damals, 1937, gab es Juden in Berlin, die beschlossen, den Sturm zu überstehen und hier zu bleiben.  Andere nahmen die ersten Boote nach England, in die USA und nach Südamerika.   Wir alle in der nördlichen Hemisphäre stehen jetzt vielleicht vor der gleichen existenziellen Entscheidung.

Meaning: The Ukraine War is becoming WWIII and better look for the fire escape before you find yourself trapped like Berlin 1937 Jews.  By Gilbert Doctorow. 

Israeli Paradox

A client has a problem compliance with the environmental rules, he is paying large fines for excess phosphorus and other elements in his wastewater. It is a kosher meat processing factory. Analyzing the origin of those compliance-unfriendly elements, analyzed the composition of the chemical additives he uses. Basically, it is salt and common food preservatives of the E group (like potassium sorbate). I explained that the additive is perfectly legal in meat and does not harm human health, but it is strictly regulated (forbidden) in sewage. He could not believe the sheer absurdity of it. 

Dorothy Dandridge and Louis Armstrong "Whatcha Say?" 1944

My projects are stuck in the mud

 My projects in Ramat Gan are stuck in the Water Corporation, I complained and now they do not answer me. I am neither advancing in other projects. It is cold outside and I am not walking enough. Frustrating. 

Earthquake in Eastern Turkiye and North Syria

We felt it here too. But I was sleeping. 

Bureaucratic Organizations

 
The Engineering Department of the Municipality of Ramat Gan employs about one hundred people. Ramat Gan has 150,000 inhabitants. They are open and accessible only for two hours,  three times a week. The rest of the time they are very busy with themselves. They never have time. I cannot get a small project through now for six months. The water department is an independent sovereign entity. About 1.5% of the total population "works" for the municipality. That is, about 5% of the working age population. The 98.5% pays their salaries. Twenty years ago the dept. employed about ten persons. The population did not increase.  

This New World

Adani, a large Indian conglomerate, got punctured and almost collapsed because a small Wall Street firm accused it of fraud. The rumor was enough for infamous Credit Suisse to reject anything linked to the group. 

In this new world 'where an anonymous letter accusing some professor or politician of racism or sex harassing is enough to destroy a lifelong career, a malignant review causes a large cement and mining corporation to fall into the mud. That's why everyone is demonstratively showing their good thinking. Publicity today shows blacks in incredible power situations coupled with star quality blondes, showing that THEY (and their tooth paste) are no racists, so no one will send that poison letter. 

 

Magyar hirek (Hungarian News)

 Youtube  shows Hungarian News, which fortunately am able to follow. They say things I never heard like that Polish minister proposing the fractioning off Russia into independent ethnic countries, which naturally will align with the West. She said that Russia is a permanent danger for Europe and must be destroyed. Israeli news don't think that Russia is aggressive. The Baltic countries - Sweden, Finland, etc. are very worried about Putin. The German government is infighting - Olaf Scholz is reluctant to start another Eastern Campaign. I conclude that the war is not yet a hi tech confrontation, the weapons are not the last generation, and follows WWII tactics. The Russian employ mass attacks, but are not winning. The Russian mercenaries use Ukrainian uniforms, which automatically condemns them to death if taken prisoners. Sentiment: Hungary and Europe are confused and afraid. War is very expensive and they have precious few young people. No one knows the number of casualties.   

The slow end of the Diaspora

 “Norway risks becoming a country without a Jewish population,” says an editorial in Aftenposten. According to the newspaper, 20 percent of the two largest communities (Oslo and Trondheim) have left. “Norway could be the first country in Europe to become jüdenfrei,” wrote journalist Julie Bindel. The synagogues of Oslo and Trondheim are the most protected buildings in all of Norway.