Tonight we have to prove to the government that we have to be reckoned with, not just threatened. The curses, dismissals and threats will not work, even though they have frightened away numerous people. This is the moment to stand up.
“meet you at the demonstration,” we’ve been saying to each other. After all, it’s such a busy time with the holidays that we have no possibility of getting together with friends otherwise. And yet who can demur? What with the threats the courts are getting warning that they must not dare rule against the cancellation of the law of “reasonableness,” we’re facing chaos either way. And the chaos the government is threatening is less attractive than the chaos of mutiny we’re already beginning to experience.
The whole thing comes down to the definition of democracy. The right is saying they won the election and therefore can do whatever they want. The others are saying a government has responsibility for the entire population. And right now there is no way this government would be voted in anyway. So I’ll take some extra heart medication, gird up my loins, miss my favorite poetry workshop again, and do my duty to the country. See you there.
meet you at the demonstration Read Post »
the sound of the shofar surprises
in the high end shopping mall
Lululemon shoppers stop
sliding the hangers bearing rows of tights
each one the cost of a week’s refugee rations
as the clear long call fills the air.
Then the broken notes make me remember
how fragmented is my awareness
how I recall my sins and good deeds together
and don’t always know which
is which.
The last call comes as I descend the stairs
to the garage and my car.
the mall has become a house of prayer.
prayers – sept-6-2023 Read Post »
I know it’s part of the railway project and the Chinese are helping to build it, but why a pagoda in the middle of Tel Aviv?
pagoda on Ibn Gvirol Read Post »
As I’ve probably mentioned before, I usually buy my groceries online, and I think that it often saves me money because I see the deals and sales. But lately it’s become a poker game. At the last minute, they send a list of what is missing and what they suggest to replace it with. Or they just tell you that they’re out of it. Two-for-the-price-of-one becomes, “Sorry, we only have one and it’s too late to cancel, so we’re sending you one at full price,” for example. So I can’t know when to hold, when to fold, when to run away, etc. And today I figure I’ve lost almost a fifth of what I thought I saved.
And the prices to begin with are highway robbery. I think I’m going to buy the rest of my holiday fare at the local grocery, who has always charged more than the supermarket, but he’s honest at least. No bargains offered, none received.
supermarket gambling – sept 3, 2023 Read Post »
Bibi won’t speak to the reporters in Israel except from the religious channel. But today he interviewed at length in Cyprus, and spilled so much information and misinformation it became the butt of the commentators’ jokes and the center of the news. They know the contradictory information. Of course he’s staying in a super-luxurious hotel in Cyprus together with his extensive staff, and of course I’m paying for it.
news – sept 3, 2023 Read Post »
We were on our way to the demonstrations – since it was clear that continued pressure is essential and the weather, September pressures, general exhaustion would keep a lot of people away. We too were exhausted and ready for a restful evening.
But we thought on the way to meet Oren for a drink before he went on his trip, and the conversation was so intensive that we never made it down the street to the demonstration. So we saw the people coming and going with flags, and we talked and talked.
It was an important conversation, and Oren raised a question I’ve been avoiding. “What does the protest have to offer to the soldiers fighting on the borders that’s better than what Ben Gvir is giving them – a workable concrete ideology?” “Let’s talk,” I said weakly. “Hah,” he answered.
almost demonstration – sept 2, 2023 Read Post »
the poets and writers who have been writing about their experiences and desires read their works from the steps of the Writers’ House on Kaplan St. all along. Now they want to have an anthology in English, and need literary volunteers. Can anyone out there help out? Let me know.
volunteers for translations – Sept 2, 2023 Read Post »
