Sick and Tired of Politics, A Short Break

The Israeli political situation seems worse than it has been for years. As I wrote  not long ago, I'm pretty disgusted with the lack of idealism in MKs of today. Instead of being willing and wanting to serve the citizens of the State of Israel, idealism is far behind the opportunism and "gimme, gimme," "I want" you hear from those elected.

Just the thought of another election campaign after the worst one in my memory makes me sick.

So far, I just can't get excited and optimistic. I also haven't a clue as to which party I'll support or vote for.

For as long as I can remember, I've always loved politics and found it very fascinating. But politics have changed. Not only have campaigns become really nasty, off topic and very negatively personal, losers try to delegitimize winners. In my youth we'd call them "sore losers." Today instead of losing with dignity and recognizing that democracy doesn't guarantee the results you may have dreamt of, losers try to galvanize the judicial to jail or impeach the winner. This is happening in the United States and Israel.

Sorry for this depressing post. What do you think?

I feel sorry for the youth. They expect to get paid for things we did as volunteers. They are for sale, rather than like us idealists of olde.

Caroline Glick's US Elections Article Complements Mine

Last last week, I wrote an article about the recent US Elections, Who Really Won the 2018 American Elections. And on Friday, so did Caroline Glick, WHAT AMERICA CHOSE ON TUESDAY. I must admit that Glick's article had many more facts and interesting information than mine did. And I do recommend that you read her article; it's much more informative than mine. Of course, she's a professional, and I just dabble in these things.

Glick and I did come to the same conclusion, that it's good for the Republicans. But unless I missed it she didn't mention what I considered a very important point. American senators serve for six years, while congressmen only serve two years. The Senate bothers the American Left, because each state has the same number of senators, regardless of size and population.

One of Glick's excellent points in her article is the rise of the radical Left in the Democratic Party. This is worrying for Israel, since the radical Left is extremely anti-Israel and pro-Palestine. They consider us invaders.

American society is undergoing a lot of upheaval and hatred. It's getting more dangerous and less tolerant. Honestly, I'm very glad to be living in Israel.

Shavua Tov

Have A Wonderful Week

Who Really Won the 2018 American Elections

Just a short time ago I watched the press conference with US President Donald Trump. Of course the hot topic was the 2018 American Elections, specifically the results in the Senate and Congress.

Simply put, both parties won, since the Democrats now control the House (Congress,) while the Republicans control the Senate. Superficially, that makes it look pretty even. But IMHO, this was much better for the Republicans. There's a simple reason for that.

Congressmen/women serve two years, while Senators serve six years. Those senators elected are in for three times as long and can get a lot more done. Congressmen/women spend most of their time campaigning. The newly elected ones barely get to know their way around when they have to campaign again, since the 2020 elections are coming up. And the 2020 elections are also US Presidential elections. And the year before that, there are primaries.

Congress will be very busy with things other than their official jobs.

Time to pull up on a comfortable seat and watch the fun.

About John McCain, Crocodile Tears

I'm not going to get into the pros and cons of the life of the late John McCain, but what does irk me is the great praise he only got once he began to condemn US President Donald Trump.

credit: Crocodile tears

Do you remember how unpopular McCain was when he ran for the United States Presidency? I do. The media, movers, shakers and of course the Leftists prefered the young, inexperienced, untested Barack Hussein Obama. They didn't give McCain a fair chance at all.

But eight years later, once Trump galvanized the Republicans, got the nomination and shocked the pundits completely by defeating Hillary Clinton, McCain's anti-Trump statements made him a media darling. And his brain cancer was just the icing of his popularity cake.

The dying, and now dead, John McCain became the poster child for the anti-Trump Republicans. Politics! I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

And The Joke's on Hollywood 😀😉

I'm sure that most people consider the "Head of State," the 2003 American comedy, to be part of Hollywood's preparation for the USA to elect Barack Obama, the truth is that the unlikely and unexpected president and his campaign much more like that of Donald Trump.

Storyline

One candidate for the presidency dies in an accident a couple of weeks before the election. Meanwhile the alderman Mays Gilliam becomes a hero when he rescues a woman and her cat from an old house that would blow up. However his fiancee Kim does not pay his bills and dumps him, and Gilliam loses everything including his fancy car. When Senator Bill Arnot sees the news on television, he plots a scheme with the party advisors Martin Geller and Debra Lassiter to invite Mays to be the party nominee and lose the election for the other candidate, Vice-President Brian Lewis. Four years later, he would be the candidate and would have the chance of winning the election. Mays has a terrible beginning of campaign but when his older brother Mitch Gilliam meets him in Chicago, he advises Mays to be himself. Will he have the chance to be the first African American President of the USA? (Head of State)

I'm sure I'm not the only one who saw Trump's electoral victories, first in the primaries and then in national elections to read more like a comedy than serious politics. There was nothing funny about Obama's campaign and election. In many ways his entire rise to prominence is more like a conspiracy. Wealthy international Leftists choose tall photogenic biracial law graduate...

What do you think?

Should We in Israel Care What Diaspora Jews Think? Part 1

There have been headlines and articles all over the media about how "American Jewry" doesn't approve of Israeli politics and policies.

1. Should we care?
2. How do they, the pollsters and writers define "American Jewry?"

Let's make it very clear that the State of Israel was established despite the feelings and policies of American and other diaspora Jews. We, here in Israel, don't owe them anything! Nor do we owe any thanks or loyalty to foreign countries and NGOs which did nothing more than pay a bit of "lip service" to "approve" the establishment of a Jewish State.

After the historic United Nations vote, November 29, 1947, the "yeas" collectively sat on their respective hands and waited for the Arabs to defeat and destroy the "Zionist entity." They were either the same national leaders or diplomats who did nothing to stop the Nazis' systematic destruction of European Jewry.

The State of Israel is alone and treated to a different standard from any other country. 

Only the State of Israel has its chosen Capital City snubbed and vetoed by international bodies and foreign countries. This was very recently changed when USA President Donald Trump bucked the crowds and stated that the State of Israel, like all other countries in the world, has every right to choose its Capital City. This is davka something that many candidates, both winners and losers, for the US Presidency claimed when campaigning, but they quickly reneged post-elections. You'd think that American Jewry would be cheering Trump's policy, but they, the majority, won't support anything Trump does, even if previously they had been in favor.

So, in all honesty, I don't consider the majority of American Jewry honest brokers or truly pro-Israel. 

And about my second question. That will have to be answered in a different post. You can already respond to it in your comments.

Truth About American Politics and History, Prager University

This isn't what most media and politicians want you to know:





Listen, think about it and share.

American Presidential Campaigns New Reality TV, Opra? Gevalt!

Ever since the main party presidential nominees in the United States began being selected by primaries, television has begun playing a very big part in the campaign. This is even more than the true story of how Richard Nixon lost a very close race to John F. Kennedy because of his lack of sweat shields/guards and not bothering to shave off his 5 o'clock shadow. Today's candidates have professional stylists, under various titles, just to make sure the candidate will look fresh, clean and attractive at all times of the day or night. But even Hillary's expensive wigs and makeup didn't cover her character blemishes.

It's no secret that Donald Trump's popularity with the public was a result of his reality tv shows. So the Left/Democrats have been searching for a celebrity to run in 2020. Administrative and political experience aren't necessary. They are looking for someone who has a big smile and can generate applause. Being black, female and able to learn lines is another priority, since their pet Obama was addicted to his teleprompter and other memory "aids."  National polictics is a media popularity contest, because nowadays twitter, whatsapp and facebook are where people fact check.

This is so pathetic and frightening too. Just a couple of decades ago, countries like India were mocked for electing movie stars. And even though Ronnie Reagan left movies for politics and had actual government experience, serving as the 33rd Governor of California from 1967 to 1975 before running for president, he was put down by the Left for his movie background.

Now the Democrats and Left are kvelling, because Oprah Winfrey made a speech that got applause and sounded like a campaign speech. Gevalt. Is a good diet and speech enough to be POTUS?

Grateful to be Living in Israel as World Falls Apart

When my husband and I made aliyah to Israel soon after our 1970 wedding it was considered a rare, incomprehensible and dangerous thing to do. There was an enormous difference between the two countries in what was then considered "quality of life." In those days those criteria were of modern conveniences, technology and toiletpaper.

Less than a half a century ago, Israel was more Third World than modern. Today we have everything one needs here in Israel. Today not only is technology in Israel topnotch, but the healthcare system among the best in the world and smoking is now prohibited in most public places. And as an added bonus, at "end of season sales," prices are slashed by 70% in many stores. This is not the Israel we moved to in 1970. Today it's not just much better than before, but it's a lot better than the United States of America.

The political and security situations in Israel are also better here. I know that the headlines give the impression that security is better in the states, but it's not really true when you calculate murder and violent crime in the USA. Israel is actually one of the safest places in the world.

And while many olim, immigrants to Israel find the political system too confusing, different or just plain strange, compared to the chaos and rioting in other countries, I'd say that Israel is most civilized.

Europe is undergoing a rapid metamorphose from white-Cristian to Islamic of all colors and backgrounds. It's a combination of non-replacement native European birthrates and the migration, legal and illegal of Arabs and Africans. The governments have welcomed them due to the lack of workers, but recently the extreme cultural differences, preponderance of males and subsequent violence have changed Europe for the worse.

In the United States the unprecedented riots by groups like "not my president" have crossed boundaries like never before. Never before has there been such massive and violent "sore-loser" protests in America. Having been born, raised and educated in the USA, I had always been taught that in democracy, you sometimes lose and then must accept the results. It's a sign of a fascist unstable government wehn people take to the streets the way they have been since last Novemenber. Democratic leaders, like Hillary Clinton, failed democracy when she called Trump supporters "deplorables." And Obama should have immediately ordered everyone home and threatened the protestors with arrest.

Donald Trump's far from perfect, but he should have been helped and supported, rather than being condemned for every breath. So, now he's feeling paranoid. Who wouldn't be when attacked the way he has been.

I am so thankful to be in Israel. Even with the attacks here on Bibi and Sara Netanyahu the political situation is more placid.

True, no place is 100% perfect, but I'm perfectly happy living in Israel.

Amateur POTUS, Blame Primaries System

It's no real surprise that there is chaos and anarchy in the White House. There's a simple reason. The United States Government is being run by total amateurs to the political system. This is the first time that a president was elected with absolutely no government or military background, especially one who didn't owe any favors to the political establishment of either party.

Trump made it on his own, because in the 21st Century Primaries System for electing a party nominee, anyone can run for the United States Presidency. And Donald Trump has proven that anyone can win. Trump's national popularity was as a reality TV star, who knew what people wanted to hear but didn't have the power to say it publicly. He honed in on this talent and was greatly amused to discover that his most outrageous statements as a wannabe candidate gave him oodles of free publicity, since the news stations and talk shows quickly discovered that by interviewing Trump or having him as the subject of discussion, even totally negative, got them sky high viewer ratings. And that brought them money.

Consider that although the other Republican wannabes included another Bush-dynasty candidate with the charisma of an over-boiled potato, some sincere though colorless Republican politicians and a retired Black surgeon who not only added color but was pretty popular, it was no surprise that Trump won the nomination.

It wasn't a great surprise that Trump beat Hillary Clinton who promised Americans their worst nightmare come true. And, no, it had nothing to do with her being female. Those who try to raise their families with old-fashioned Family Values actually preferred Trump's locker room gutter/sexist talk to the newfangled Rainbow and families Hillary and the Democrats are now promising. And then she totally sealed her political coffin by calling Trump supporters "deplorables."

So, Donald Trump, whose only experience with politicians was getting his real estate projects approved suddenly had a whole country to run and thousands of jobs to fill and absolutely no idea of how to do it. Add to that, he and his trusted staff just don't know suitable people for these jobs. And instead of handing it over to his Vice President, who at least is an experienced politician, he assigned the job to his older daughter and her husband. Ivanka and Jared Kushner may be a lot more pleasant and photogenic than The Donald, but their political experience isn't any greater.

It certainly isn't helping that the blatantly anti-Trump media has triggered severe paranoia from POTUS and his family.

I expect more anarchy and chaos until whoever wins the 2020 Elections takes charge. In all honesty, I think that the old method of choosing nominees by political powerhouses brought in better, more qualified and experienced office holders. And in those days it wasn't so impossibly expensive to run for the presidency.  A wannabe spent 4-10 years doing favors, campaigning for others to develop a national following and getting to know the country, while Americans got to know the ambitious politician.

In today's USA, Presidential campaigns are just another reality TV series.

Good Luck, America!

I'm Worried About The State of The USA

• Not everyone can win.
• The major Principle of democracy is accepting results including losses.

The "not my president" campaign/movement is undemocratic and I'd even say fascist.

The results of legally held elections must be accepted, even when you're upset by them. Not only is that life, but that's what democracy is all about.

If anything, the "not my president" campaign is probably just alienating more voters from the Democratic Party than it's attracting. And no doubt that there are some very embarrassed Democrats who are terrified to voice their opinions. 

Hillary Clinton and other Democrats who lost turned off voters by preaching that their ideology is the right and most moral one, and they didn't tune in to the worries, fears and priorities of the American voters in most of the states. Think of it as playing a violin like a banjo. It's going to sound really bad. And sticking a guitar on your shoulder to play like a violin won't be any better.

Sorry, but the truth, like election results, isn't guaranteed to the pleasant.

Americans, So You're Not Happy With Trump? Change the System!

As I've written before, the two main party nominees for the American Presidency were the two worst in the History of the United States of America. And as "unsuitable" Donald Trump may be as POTUS, I still shudder at the thought that if it wasn't for the Electoral College, we'd see Hillary* and her crooked cronies in charge.

One of my "visual aids" for teaching vocabulary

I'm a remedial teacher and have a knack to describe complicated things rather clearly. So, here's my very simple explanation why and how Donald Trump managed to mow down all the other Republican wannabes.

PRIMARIES

• Yes, by giving ordinary Americans the opportunity to choose a candidate, it was pretty easy to predict that they'd choose the better showman. Voters confused reality television with reality.
• Viewers loved the outrageous Trump statements, which encouraged news channels/sites to give him oodles of free publicity which snowballed and saved him advertising money.
• The financial cost of Primaries is so high that only the wealthiest or those with the richest backers** can afford to compete.

And there's another reason why Trump won, and that's the one even harder for the Democrats to accept. They just aren't in synch with the ordinary American citizen, rich, poor, Right, Left and Center. Yes, I know that many of you are about to shout that Hillary won the popular vote. Yes, she did, but that was due to her support in just a couple of very heavily populated states. The county results of 2016 should be taken very seriously.

2016 County Map

Democrats lost in the House, Senate and Governorships. ALL THAT RED AREA VOTED FOR TRUMP! Spooky, isn't it?

Before the Primaries season, Trump hadn't a chance at all. When he campaigned in the Primaries, even if Trump, himself, didn't take his campaign seriously, ordinary Americans did. And by the time the Primaries campaign was over enough American voters had identified with his anger and fears to support him, even though most of the media, plenty of their favorite athletes and pretty much all of Hollywood kept insisting that he was an unqualified, dangerous nut case, and they should make Hillary the first female President of the United States of America.

If the Democrats want to win, they must understand that ordinary Americans did not relate to their platform. They found many of the campaign promises, and the "accomplishments" of the Obama administration terrifying. And now, they still feel attacked by the Left, because Trump isn't being given a fair chance, at least in their eyes.

If the Democrats were smart, they'd just let Trump fail on his own.

If the Democrats want to win, they should be quickly grooming some young Centrists to run in 2020.

And if Americans want more qualified nominees, they must rollback the Primaries or they'll just get more and more reality stars in high office.

*It's not just that she's anti-Israel, but don't forget all the foreign funding supporting her fake "charity."
**That is how Hillary Clinton dominated the Democrats. She had already contracted with all of the big Leftist money well before the Primaries even began.

Why Do We Jews Keep Lying to Ourselves?

I don't think I'll ever understand the pathetic and dangerous worship most American Jews have for the Democratic Party? It has never supported Jewish needs properly. The Democratic idol of many, Franklin Delano Roosevelt did absolutely nothing to rescue and accept Jews fleeing the Nazis. And his successor, Harry S. Truman, was ready to accept the State Department's recommendation to vote against the approval of a Jewish State at the United Nations.

Since then, there hasn't really been any improvement.

Today's Democratic Party is extremely pro-Arab and pro-Palestine, sic. Their pet Jewish organization is J-Street, which promotes the weakening of the State of Israel and the establishment of another judenrein anti-semitic terror state to be called "Palestine."  Don't forget that former USA President Barack Hussein Obama had pledged to facilitate that state and considers his failure to be the worst of his presidency. I wouldn't be surprised if he joins another Israel-hater and former president, Jimmy Carter, to try to "rectify" it.

So, when I read Ruthie Blum's  Alan Dershowitz Following Defeat of DNC Chair Hopeful Keith Ellison: I Will Remain in Democratic Party, But Will Fight for It to Move Away From Anti-Israel, Far-Left Trends in algemeiner, I just couldn't stop thinking of how pathetic such an intelligent man sounds.

Why can't Alan Dershowitz finally see and admit the truth? 
The Democratic Party is not the best party for him and other caring Jews!

credit

I'm not saying that they should join the Republican Party. But I do think that they, led by Dershowitz, should resign from the Democrats. In all honesty, I think that American Jewry would have more power if it wasn't tied to a specific party.

• American Jewish voters should make it clear that they vote according to issues, background and personalities. 
• American Jews should make it clear that they donate according to specific issues and if the candidate or cause is associated with antisemitism or anti-Israel policies and groups, they won't get money.

J-Street should be shunned by anyone who really cares for the State of Israel, since its policies, its raison d'être  completely endangers the security, stability and survival of the only Jewish State in existence. Just because they claim to be pro-Israel doesn't mean that it's true.

Yes, this would be very earth-shattering and traumatic for many, but I think it is necessary and would be much better for American Jewry in the long run. 

Shocking Poll, Not All Americans Consider Israel an Ally

We sometimes receive the New York Times International Edition, and since we don't pay for it, I really enjoy looking for interesting tidbits I wouldn't otherwise hear about. In the Feb. 7, 2017 edition, there's a very revealing article about how Democrats, Republicans and Independent perceive other countries:

Ranking American Allies

Places Americans say are allies

	AMONG...
	DEMOCRATS	REPUBLICANS	INDEPENDENTS
Canada	2nd	2nd	1st
Australia	4th	1st	2nd
Britain	1st	3rd	3rd
France	3rd	9th	5th
Italy	5th	4th	9th
Ireland	9th	6th	4th
Israel	28th	5th	17th
Norway	11th	13th	6th
Sweden	6th	10th	12th
Germany	8th	12th	7th
Switzerland	7th	7th	18th
New Zealand	10th	8th	8th
Netherlands	12th	14th	10th
Denmark	16th	11th	11th
Greece	13th	21st	23rd

The State of Israel, its politicians and citizens like to think of the United States as a reliable ally, and even when the Americans have been very critical, most Israelis remain loyal and supportive of the USA. Granted that the past eight years, when Barack Hussein Obama was the President, it was clear the relationship was rocky, but most Israelis still thought that there was a strong mutual respect between Americans and Israelis.

Some of us have been pretty suspicious or wary of American friendship, because we see so much support in academia, think-tanks and the political arena for a new Arab country which would be called "Palestine" replacing Israel. But even I was shocked when I saw these numbers:

Places Americans say are allies

Israel

28th

5th

17th

No other country is considered/ranked so differently by Republicans and Democrats. While Republicans consider Israel as the 5th highest ally, Democrats rank Israel 28th and Independents 17th. This poll sure puts life into the saying:

"Even paranoids have enemies."

Israelis must take this very seriously. For years I've been predicting that the trend of demonizing Israel will only get worse, and I don't see how it can get better. It's not just the anti-Israel media. It's the fact that universities teach that Jews have stolen Arab lands etc. Nowadays pro-Israel student groups are under attack all over the world. In many universities Israelis who come to speak are shouted down and worse.

So far, at least the among the Republicans Israel is seen as an ally and friend. Honestly, I don't know how to reverse the anti-Israel feeling in the states.

Worrying Antidemocratic Phenomenon

Yitzhak Rabin (photo credit: Flash90)

Over twenty years ago, when Yitzchak Rabin was Prime Minister of Israel and complaining against the growing popular protests against his approval/acceptance of the rogue Oslo Accords, he was recorded as saying* that he's "the Prime Minister of 98%**  of the people."

This statement of Rabin spooked me out then, and that unpleasant, worried feeling hasn't lightened one iota ever since I first heard it.

We all know that politicians in office do feel more kindly to their supporters than those who didn't vote for them, but they are supposed to their best to at least give the impression that they will serve all the people of the country or district they represent.

Awkward handshake as Trump and Obama meet face to face
for the first time. Photo: AAP

No doubt it wasn't easy for American President-Elect Donald Trump to meet POTUS Barack Hussein Obama the first time after all of the nasty hate-mongering things Obama had said about him. But they both did and said the proper things, literally gritting their teeth, (maybe holding in the bile,) as they posed before the cameras praising each other and promising a smooth transition for the good of the United States of America.

In Israel, Right, Left or Center, we're pretty used to the reality of finding ourselves with a Prime Minister we abhor, but we accept it as a fact of life and don't riot in protest.

I find the anti-Trump "not my president" riots, protests etc., which is even supported by schools and universities, not just the media, worse than disturbing. It's the protests and lack of acceptance that portends dangerous undermining of the Constitution and democracy in the USA.

The United States proudly claims itself to be one of the oldest democracies in the world, but it isn't behaving as one. This has me worried. I hope that Hillary and Obama will quickly and very publicly send everyone home for a good night's sleep and request that they do the proper thing and recognize rule of law that Donald Trump will be their next President.

**thanks to a friend who found this reference, indirect quote
"...Rabin, the man who proclaimed as prime minister that his opponents could continue to "spin like propellers" as far as he was concerned, and said openly that he was Prime Minister of 98% of the nation, not the 2% who so strongly opposed him.  (Another version of his remarks has it that he said his job was to provide security to 98% of Israel's population.) Either way, one could see why he was not loved by lovers of the Land of Israel."
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Blogs/Message.aspx/2390#.WC3ypJAvDrc
*I couldn't find any reference in English, but a friend found all of these including the English above. The percentage Rabin gave was 98%. He considered the opposition to be very marginal in Israeli society, although many more than 2% opposed Oslo. Here are links and quotations in Hebrew:

בהתנחלויות הייתה אווירה קשה והרגשה שהממשלה מזניחה אותם (בעקבות התבטאויות של רבין כמו "לי אכפת מ-98% מאזרחי המדינה", "פרופלורים" ו"הם לא מזיזים לי").
https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%9E%D7%9E%D7%A9%D7%9C%D7%AA_%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%9C_%D7%94%D7%A2%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%9D_%D7%95%D7%97%D7%9E%D7%A9

('אני ראש הממשלה של 98% אחוז מהיהודים.' 
http://www.inn.co.il/Forum/Forum.aspx/t8447


"אני ראש ממשלה של 98% ולא של שני אחוז" ( אחרי פיצוץ אוטובוס בתל אביב. 2% - המתנחלים . שימוש ברצח כמכשיר הסתה נגד היהודים החושבים אחרת.( הציטטה הוזכרה בהצעת אי האמון בכנסת 27 פב. 95 - דברי הכנסת )
http://www.bhol.co.il/forums/topic.asp?topic_id=2837454&forum_id=5824

אדוני היושב-ראש, חברי הכנסת, לראש ממשלה יש קצת יותר אחריות משיש לכל אדם אחר בשאלות של ביטחון. לכן אסור לראש ממשלה שהוא גם שר הביטחון, להפריד ביטחונית בין ‎98% מהישראלים לבין ‎2% מהם. גם אם הוא אינו מסוגל לתת ‎100% ביטחון, אסור לה להפריד בין דם לדם. חובתו לדאוג לכל העם. אסור שישתמע שלא כל כך אכפת לו מהיפגעות של ‎2% מהעם. גם האמירה, שירידה מ-‎98% מהגולן לא נחשבת לירידה מהגולן, איננה נכונה. להישאר רק על המורדות פירושו לרדת.
http://knesset.gov.il/.../19950227@19950227002@002.html

In Democracy, You Sometimes Lose

Winner takes all...

credit

Didn't we all grow up hearing that little truism? That's democracy in its purest sense. One wins, and the other loses, and the winner gets all the chips.

I'm very worried about the state of American society now that thousands of Clinton supporters have taken to the streets in a truly fascist display of antidemocratic rioting.

An AT&T truck burns as protests riot in Oakland, California, U.S. following the election of Republican Donald Trump as President of the United States November 9, 2016. REUTERS/Noah Berger

A masked demonstrator gestures toward a police line during a demonstration in Oakland, California, U.S. following the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States November 9, 2016. REUTERS/Stephen Lam

A Donald Trump pinata is burned by people protesting the election of Republican Donald Trump as the president of the United States in downtown Los Angeles, California U.S., November 9, 2016. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

In reaction to these dangerous riots, yes, dangerous to American democracy, Hillary Clinton must get out in public and request demand that everyone return home and accept the fact that they lost the election. That is exactly what they would have demanded from Trump supporters if the shoe had been on the other foot.

Hillary's Loss had Nothing to Do with Her Sex!

I keep saying that I'm not going to blog anymore about American Elections, but somehow it keeps drawing me, like quicksand.

A lot of people said that they wanted Hillary to win, because they wanted to see a female POTUS. They so wanted to see someone break that "glass ceiling."  I have no doubt that one day, there will be a woman elected President of the United States.

It's hard for anyone to get elected President. It's outrageously hard just to get the nomination.

IMHO there are a couple of things about Hillary Clinton and her campaign that caused her defeat, and it wasn't her new wardrobe. Actually, I think the colors were brilliantly patriotic and photogenic, and jacket-styling was a great improvement over her usual masculine-tailored suits. Also her wig and make-up were perfection.

Hillary lost for one big reason. Call it character.

• The constant corruption charges, including talk that her charity, the Clinton Foundation paid for her daughter's wedding made it harder for ordinary Americans to trust her.
• Her nastiness, going for the negative, culminating in her notorious "deplorable" comments about Trump supporters kept them away instead of charming them to her side.

So, now Donald Trump will be the United States President in a couple of months. Who would have thought....

The Nail-Biter Elections of 2016...

The nail-biter elections of 2016...

I did not want to write about the USA Elections.

Last night I tried to stay away from the news. On Israeli television they kept explaining that although all of the predictions/polls/whatever said that there would be a Clinton landslide, one couldn't be sure. Many Trump voters refused to tell the media and the posters whom they'd vote for or had voted for.

Just a few short minutes ago I saw this on my screen:

Of course, that isn't the final vote, nor are some of the biggest states in, such as Florida and California. I find this map very revealing about the disunity in the United States. The literal middle of the continental country is Republican and Trumpland.  Bitterness and hatred are the best ways to describe how the two nominees' supporters feel about the other and the other's supporters.

As I've written numerous times the past few years, the United States is undergoing a revolution of sorts.

As confident as much of the media kept hyping themselves to seem of an easy Clinton victory, to hint to the Trump supporters that they could just stay home, as the votes are counted nobody knows yet who will be the next President.

Trump, Clinton run close in Ohio, Florida and elsewhere
As of 9:15 p.m. EST, Trump had 125 electoral votes to Clinton’s 104, with U.S. television networks projecting the winner in 24 of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Going into Election Day, Clinton led Trump, 44 percent to 39 percent in the last Reuters/Ipsos national tracking poll. A Reuters/Ipsos States of the Nation poll gave her a 90 percent chance of defeating Trump and becoming the first woman elected U.S. president.
Also at stake on Tuesday was control of Congress. Television networks projected Republicans would retain control of the House of Representatives, where all 435 seats were up for grabs.
In the Senate, where Republicans were defending a slim four-seat majority, Democrats scored their first breakthrough in Illinois when Republican Senator Mark Kirk lost re-election. But Republicans Rob Portman in Ohio and Marco Rubio in Florida won high-profile Senate re-election fights. (Reuters)

Again, I repeat that I'm glad to be living in Israel and not the USA.

There's an interesting phenomenon that has been seen in both American and Israeli Elections. I don't know if it has happened in other countries. Surprise/Upsets seem to be when the more Right wing candidate unexpectedly, contrary to the polls, defeats the Leftist.

There is something that from my reading has been rather ignored by the mainstream media/pundits. It's the fact that the two main political parties in America are in very different shape. The Clinton-Obama machine is in very firm control of the Democrats. That, as I've written before, is why Hillary had no opposition, other than the even more elderly Bernie Sanders, as she officially grabbed the nomination. When young wannabes stay so quietly in the wings, you know that they have been strictly disciplined.

In the Republican Party on the other hand, there is a totally shattered party machine. Voters completely rejected the Bush candidate and all of the other veteran Republican politicians and overwhelmingly voted for the outsider, Donald Trump. To make matters even worse, the Bush patriarchs publicly supported Clinton, which will probably be the death knell of their rule. But the good news for the Republicans is the very healthy and vibrant ambitious young politicians who competed against Trump. No doubt that we'll be hearing more from them in the future.

I'm off for the day and won't be back to blog for at least twelve hours. By then, the suspense should be over. Just pray that whoever wins will succeed in uniting his/her country. May this be good for America and for the world.

Thank Gd I Live in Israel!!

http://thebainreport.com/

As awful as Israeli politicians and politics can be, I am so thankful that I'm an Israeli and expat American. In a few hours most American adult resident citizens will go to the polls. The 2016 Presidential Campaign has been going on for years. My guess is that it started, at least for the Democrats about nine years ago, when signs began to show that the then relatively unknown Barack Hussein Obama was going to grab the nomination from Hillary Clinton. The tipping point which upset all of Hillary's plans was the Kennedy women's surprise support for Obama. Their Uncle Ted was caught by surprise, too, and very possibly helped broker the deal that would give Obama the Presidency in 2008 and 2012 while the elder Hillary would wait until 2016 for her history-making chance. You must have noticed that she had no real opposition from any young, talented Democrats. They've all been waiting in the wings for 2020.

Donald Trump has also been campaigning for many years. And until just about a year ago, he was considered a joke. The mainstream American media and pundits kept insisting that his campaign and support would implode and disappear into a postscript in the history books.

Following American Presidential campaigns is a full-time job, even though Presidential elections are very regulated at every four years. In Israel we can have annual elections, which happened not that long ago, since coalitions can break down, or Prime Ministers can declare new elections at any time. But our actual Knesset* election campaigning time is strictly limited. It goes on for a few months, not years on end.

In Israel our votes are pretty ideological and direct, and the results even give the major losers a form of power. The Knesset is comprised of a number of political parties (which all received over the minimum percentage of the votes,) and the leader of the largest party not in the coalition becomes the Leader of the Opposition. In the USA, the loser of the Presidential Elections becomes history, or just continues campaigning for the next elections. There's no rest for the wicked.

There were no intelligent, ideological arguments and issues this election season between Hillary and Trump. It was more like a fight between two drunks by a bar's backdoor. And even worse has been the hatred between many supporters of both of them. On Facebook, opposing comments from both sides were as nasty as the candidates, and many people reported unfriending old friends and even relatives with whom they disagreed. In Israel, we are very used to having political disagreements and living with it together.

Israel, as a country, has real dangers and enemies, so there's a limit as how much mud we sling. I used to think that Israeli politicians/politics were the worst, but the Hillary-Trump battle and the mud being slung on American society dwarfs what happens in Israel.

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton face off, New Yorker vs. New Yorker, for the presidency. (Illustration: Andy Friedman/Observer)

Within a day or so, it will be over, but cleaning up the mess and uniting the American People/citizens will take years if at all. In Israel, with all of our infighting and ideological arguments, we still know that we are family, and some families do fight, but still care about each other.

*In Israel we vote for party lists of potential Knesset Members. Parties winning the most seats are given the opportunity to form a ruling coalition, and the leader of that party becomes the Prime Minister.

Time for Me to Just Wait and Watch American Presidential Elections

credit

With just over a week to American Election Day, I think it's time for me to just find a comfortable seat to observe the fireworks. This is possibly the most bitter election campaign ever. Even when in 1964 Barry Goldwater ran against Lyndon B. Johnson, two very different candidates, it was nothing like this. OK, in 1964, nominees were still chosen by politicians and party "machines," not by primaries. So, Goldwater didn't have the super long build up of primaries campaigning that Donald Trump has had.

And if you don't know, Goldwater was totally shlonged by LBJ. I was in my teens, and I still remember one of, or the main, campaign slogans you heard from the Goldwater camp:

"In your heart you know he's right."

Now over fifty years later, decades after Ronald Reagan did the unthinkable and got elected by the "silent majority," I see Donald Trump as another step in the rising confidence of the Right.

America has changed a lot in these last fifty-two years.

wikipedia

Hillary Clinton was also a teenager when Goldwater ran against Johnson. I wonder if she had her plans to run for President hatched by then. Or was she more inspired by the aim to correct George McGovern's highly competent wife, Eleanor, who seemed to make peace with her role as hostess during the 1972 Elections, rather than using her talents for higher office. And just in case you don't know, Richard Nixon defeated George McGovern.

And about the upcoming American Elections, there's no unity in the polls. It seems that the various companies or NGOs that poll people about their voting plans each ask different segments of the American public whom they plan to vote for, because there are enormous discrepancies. Also,  there has been a rise in Trump's numbers and a drop in Hillary's.

I watch BBC TV News, and they are now trying to prepare people for a surprise. There's no consistency in poll results, so they have just been showing the range of numbers.

Considering that Hillary's supporters find Trump despicable, and Trump's supporters consider Hillary a criminal, whoever wins will have an awfully hard time governing and making Americans feel like one country.

And it's not just a matter of how the two disparate groups of supporter feel. I don't remember ever hearing such foul and nasty remarks by presidential nominees about opponents ever before. This does not bode well for the United States of America!