Biden-Duckworth ticket? Decoding political ads. Republicans Against Trump! Blue-eyes/brown-eyes racism. 8-year-old organizes BLM march. Linguistic laughs
LETTY COTTIN POGREBIN NEWSLETTER #80 JULY 3, 2020
I usually try to avoid mentioning pitiful, pathological POTUS, but this week I'm focused on the stark contrast between Trump's and Biden's character. I'm also obsessed with Biden's pick for V.P though given the quality and credentials of the women on his short list, any of them would suit me fine.
POLITICS
* Vice President Duckworth? Frank Bruni makes a strong case for Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth (above) because of her "race, age, experience, exact position on the [political] spectrum."
* Dan Pfeffer, former Obama Communications Director, and Alyssa Mastromonaco (above), Obama's Deputy Chief of Staff deconstruct the VP vetting process,"how it happens, why it's so secret, and what can go wrong." Among other questions, candidates must honestly answer, "Have you downloaded porn?" Paid your taxes on time?" "Hold any fringe beliefs, like are you a Satanist?" "Who are your spouse's clients?"
* Campaign experts decode what makes a successful political commercial, how viewers get manipulated, what's effective and what's not. On this podcast, Dan Pfeffer (above right) interviews David Plouffe, Obama's campaign manager' Anat Shenker-Ororio, a messaging professional, and Cornell Belcher (above left), Obama pollster. Their riveting revelations will make you a more discerning viewer.
* Lawyers appalled by the outrageous behavior of Atty Gen. William Barr: please sign this petition.
* The pandemic is spiking, people are dying, millions are out of work. But at his Tulsa rally, the narcissist-in-chief spent 14 minutes defending how he walked down the ramp and drank water.
*"The Lincoln Project," an anti Trump Republican PAC, reminds us of how normal presidents healed our nation during past catastrophes as opposed to what our posturing, pathetic president said and did in the last few months. Watch two powerful LP ads -- "Mourning in America" and "Flag of Treason." Follow LP on Twitter where they posted: "Biden is the clear choice when it comes to compassionate and decent leadership," LP tweeted. "In a battle of heart, mind, and character, Joe Biden wins by a landslide. We need to ensure that’s reflected in the vote this November." Republicans & others can donate to The Lincoln Project here.
* Speaking of character, Rabbi Beals (left) recalls his first meeting with Biden
It was about 16 years ago, and I was a young rabbi, brand-new to Delaware, on my way to lead a shiva minyan — a worship service following the death of a Jewish person. . .
In this case, the deceased individual — her name was Mrs. Greenhouse, of blessed memory — had not been a person of means. She had lived in rent-controlled senior housing in a tall high-rise building . . . Her apartment had been too small to fit everyone into so we conducted our worship service in the building’s communal laundry room in the basement of the high-rise.
We assembled the ten elders together, and it was in this most humble of places that I began to lead the kaddish. Toward the end of the service, a door at the back of the laundry room opened, and who walks in but Senator Joe Biden, his head lowered, all by himself.
I nearly dropped my prayer book in shock. Senator Biden stood quietly in the back of the room for the duration of the service. At the close of the kaddish, I walked over and asked the same question that must have been on everyone else’s mind: “Senator Biden — what are you doing here?”
And he said to me: “Listen, back in 1972, when I first ran for Senate, Mrs. Greenhouse gave $18 to my first campaign. Because that’s what she could afford. And every six years, when I’d run for reelection, she’d give another $18. She did it her whole life. I’m here to show my respect and gratitude.”
Now, the number 18 is significant in the Jewish faith — its numbers spell out the Hebrew word chai, as in “to life, to life, l’chayim!”
But it’s also a humble amount. Joe Biden knew that. And he respected that.There were no news outlets at our service that day — no Jewish reporters or important dignitaries.
Just a few elderly mourners in a basement laundry room.
Joe Biden didn’t come to that service for political gain. He came because he has character. He came to that service because he’s a mensch. And if we need anything right now when it comes to the leadership of our country — we need a mensch.
I know this is such a simple, small story. But I tell it to as many people as will listen to me. Because I think that, in their heart of hearts, when people are trying to think about the decision they’ll make this year — this is the kind of story that matters. Joe Biden is a mensch. We need a mensch.
— Rabbi Michael Beals of Delaware
* The hilarious lip-synch comedian, Sarah Cooper, does dead-on imitations of POTUS here and here.
BLACK LIVES MATTER
* A gutsy 8-year-old boy organized a BLM march hoping to attract children; 700 people showed up. "I'm worried about Black people, like me, getting hurt," Nolan Davis said through a megaphone. "Some skin is like chocolate. Some is like vanilla. Some is mixed together like mine. But we're all people,"
* In 1968, the day after Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed, a 3rd grade teacher, Jane Elliott (above) taught a remarkable session on racism by dividing her class (all white kids) into blue-eyed people and brown-eyed people. If you've never seen this video, you must! Then watch Jimmy Fallon's interview with Elliot last month. At 5:13 she describes what happened to her and her family 52 years ago after she taught that class.
* Proctor & Gamble's anti-bias ad campaign was launched 3 years before George Lloyd's murder galvanized the nation to action. Woke or not, every white parent should watch The Talk" and ask yourself how you'd feel if you had to worry when your children go out in the world that they'll get hurt or killed by the end of the day. P & G's Conversation Guide helps communities initiate honest dialogue about race & racism.
* The English on this T-shirt (which you can buy here to benefit the black Jewish organizing fund at Jews for Racial and Economic Justice) bears a straightforward message of intergroup solidarity. The Hebrew under it, a quote from Deut. 16:20, says "Justice, Justice shall you pursue." The word is repeated twice because it's not enough to believe in justice or yearn for justice, we must struggle for justice and actively pursue it.
* Caroline Randall Williams (above) in her Times oped: "I have rape-colored skin. My light-brown-blackness is a living testament to the rules, the practices, the causes of the Old South. If there are those who want to remember the legacy of the Confederacy, if they want monuments, well, then, my body is a monument."
* The Chicks dropped "Dixie" from their name “to meet this moment," they said,. But the singers' politics are as in-your-face as ever, witness their new release, "March! March!." The music video ends with names on the screen of black people killed by law enforcement in recent years. The list goes on and on and on --devastating!
LINGUISTIC LAUGHS (corny but clever)
* Signs of the times
-- Gynecologist's office: "Dr. Jones at your cervix"
-- Septic tank truck: "Yesterday's Meals on Wheels"
-- Plumber's van: "We repair what your husband fixed."
-- Tire shop: "Invite us to your next blowout."
-- Electrician's shop: "Let us remove your shorts."
-- Entry door to the maternity ward: "Push. Push. Push.
-- Muffler shop: "No appointment necessary. We hear you coming."
-- Veterinarian's waiting room : "Be back in 5 minutes. Sit! Stay."
-- Front yard of a funeral home: "Drive carefully. We'll wait."
-- Display of propane gas tanks: "Thank heaven for little grills."
-- Even wittier septic tank truck: “Caution: THIS TRUCK CONTAINS POLITICAL PROMISES.
* No wonder foreign speakers have trouble learning English:
Boxing rings are square. Guinea pigs are neither from Guinea nor a pig. Writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham. If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So why not one moose, 2 meese? How come we can make amends but not one amend?Why do slim chance & fat chance mean the same but wise man & wise guy are opposites? Why does a house burn up as it burns down? Why can't quick rhyme with Buick? How come eggplant contains no eggs, hamburger no ham, pineapple no apple or pine. English muffins weren't invented in England. French fries don't come from France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads are meat.
Why do we recite words at a play and play music at a recital? Ship by truck? Have noses that run and feet that smell?
Who wouldn't be confused by sentences like:
-- The bandage was wound around the wound
-- A farm produces produce
-- The dump was full so it had to refuse more refuse
-- A dove just dove into the bushes
-- She didn't object to the object being introduced in evidence
-- I could lead the parade if I got the lead out of my boots
-- He was too close to the door to close it
-- The insurance is invalid if you're an invalid
-- The oarsmen had a row about how to row
-- The wind was too strong for them to wind the sail around the mast
-- At the sight of the tear in the painting I shed a tear
-- A buck does funny things when there are does around
-- There's no time like the present to present your beloved with a present
And finally --
STAY SAFE. STAY STRONG. STAY 6 FEET APART. WEAR A MASK
-- Letty
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