SHORT ARMS

 

“Your Arms Too Short to Box with God” was a musical based on the Biblical Book of Matthew. It originally ran on Broadway for just about 2 years (December 1976 – January 1978), totaling 429 performances. During a 1982 revival of the show, Al Green and Patti LaBelle appeared in leading roles.

Now, I’m not professing that I know a lot about this musical. To be totally transparent, I’ve never even seen it nor am I familiar with any of the tunes from it. But the title always inspired me, and I use it quite often metaphorically.

Those who may be familiar with my writing would know that I am not traditionally religious. Although born, raised, and well-indoctrinated as a Catholic, I have not subscribed to any formal religious practice in very many years. However, I do consider myself to be a spiritual person and approach life with a high degree of inner consciousness. So, within that framework, that show title has always taken on an extremely specific and important meaning to me.

Life is full. And by that, I mean if we’re lucky we get to experience it in all its “vastness.” A full life not only includes great joy but devastating sorrow as well. And they are often closely associated with one another. A perfect example of this is owning a pet. Most of us have been blessed with the companionship of an animal. I know that I have. But those of us who have experienced this special relationship know that our physical time together is limited. And the loss of a pet can be as painful as losing a sibling. But we cannot have one without the other. We can’t know their joy without feeling the sting of their loss too. This is the Yin and Yang of life.

Still, we look for answers as to “why” things happen. We need to understand on a rational level in the hope that if we do, the pain will ease. This most often is the case when tragedy strikes and there is no logic that our minds can hold onto to give us some sort of explanation that will provide some level of comfort. In these cases, there is no real “why”, there only “is.”

That’s when “Your Arms Too Short to Box with God” comes in. For me, it means to let go of things that you are not meant to understand but must come to accept. You can rage, cry, and spit but that cannot change the outcome. Only acceptance will provide inner peace. The universe and everything that happens within and beyond is far too vast to truly comprehend on a level only meant for the “gods.” As we exist today, our arms are far too short. Perhaps, in time and with lots of practice, we can reach that “god-like” level.

This notion of reaching enlightenment as it can most accurately be described, can be found in most religions, particularly those from the East. However, one needn’t be religious in a formal sense to understand and eventually accept this concept. Our lives become fuller, richer, easier when we learn that we cannot control everything. Nor can we fully understand why certain things happen that defy logical or explanation.  As much as we struggle to find the answer, there is peace in letting go. Why? Because your arms too short to box with God.

 

 

From Joy to Sorrow

 

Sarah Beckstrom

It had been a wonderful Thanksgiving afternoon filled with delicious traditional food and the sound of laughter from what remains of my once large family. The day was turning out to be everything I hoped it would be. We had just finished our wonderful meal and left the table to continue our conversation in the living room. We decided to put the TV on in the background where we could “channel surf” between the plethora of Holiday movies, the football games, and to see what was still happening around the world, a news program.

After a few minutes, the TV wound up tuned to CNN where a headline graphic was announcing “Breaking News.” It caught my eye, and I decided to turn my attention to the newscast. It was then that the reporter announced that one of the two National Guardsman who had been so critically wounded in a vicious and unproved ambush while on patrol at a D.C. train station the day before had died.

My mood changed instantly from joyous to deeply sorrowful.

Her name is Sarah Beckstrom. Hailing from West Virginia, Sarah was just 20 years old. She had been on deployment as part of President Trump’s ordered “crackdown on crime” in several American cities, including Washington D.C. As some of the early details were being revealed, the more shocked, outraged, and disheartened I became. Her assailant (whom I will NEVER name) was a 29-year-old legally documented Afghan immigrant who worked at one time for the CIA in Afghanistan. He was a husband and a father. He drove over three thousand miles from his home in the State of Washington to assassinate two young people whom he never met. As of this writing, his motive has not been made clear.

Think about that. Just how much hate can one person harbor in their heart to travel that great distance to cause so much pain and sorrow to not only the victims and their families but to his own as well? And to commit this heinous act on Thanksgiving, a day when we here in America express our gratitude for the glorious gifts we have been given and look to share with EVERYONE? Despicable is not a strong enough description.

It boggled my mind and caused me deep reflection about the gift of life and love I had been given that very day by my own family. I had to take a moment to empathize with all those affected by this cowardly deed and how this day would never be the same for them.

Then, in another wrong-headed attempt to project his own empathy, the President, without knowing the ultimate motivation, exacerbated the situation and made it political by claiming that the killer was granted admission to the U.S. by the Biden Administration. However, Mr. Trump failed to mention that the assassin was given asylum by his own.

But, at this moment, NONE of that is the point, or should be. For me, at this most sensitive time, it is not a political issue, and I will not look to make it one. Instead, as individuals AND as a society we need to search deeply within ourselves as to why things like this are happening with such increased frequency in the first place. Is it some type of ancient tribalism? Or is fear and, therefore, hatred of others simply deeply embedded within our DNA? Has our society changed so much that this kind of wanton violence has become acceptable? From the assassinations of a business executive in New York City, Democrat politicians in Minnesota, to Conservative activist Charlie Kirk, and now this, these incidents are becoming almost common. We must ask ourselves “what is going on here” and “what can we ALL do to stop it?

PS: The second Guardsman critically wounded in the same attack, 24-year-old Andrew Wolf, is in serious condition but he is expected to survive.

 

 

 

 

 

STRONG WOMEN

 

The LoBuono/Vitanza/Celeste Family

It has been one of the great privileges of my life to be surrounded by strong, confident women. In fact, they raised me. My grandmothers, my mother, my aunts, my sister, and my female cousins were, and are, educated, successful, independent people. Of course, each has their own personality, but all are certain of their value as women.

I could give many examples of just how powerful each one is, but this story about my maternal grandmother might have the most impact.

Her birth name was Theresa (a.k.a. Tessie) Celeste. She was already showing her fierce independence as a young woman (19) by defying her family and emigrating alone from her tiny village in Sicily to be with her future husband, another Sicilian immigrant who was living in Brooklyn. His name was Frank Vitanza. He died when I was very young, so I don’t have strong memories of him. However, I do remember how much my grandmother loved and respected him. But, despite that bond, I can never recall her wearing the traditional black often associated with Sicilian widows. Oh, no. That was NOT Tessie, the girl who dreamed of being a professional singer in America. I will always remember her as being well-dressed in bright colors, properly coiffed, make-up on, and jewelry in place. Always. It was part of her aura.

Well, one day while we were visiting her in Brooklyn, my mother had a health emergency that needed to be addressed immediately. We rushed her to the hospital where her gall bladder was removed. It would require her to recover for about a week at the hospital. Now, this was many years ago when hospital regulations about visitors and hours were MUCH stricter. Today, if a family member provides comfort to the patient, they may even be encouraged to stay. But in those days, when visitor hours were over, everyone had to leave, even close family members.

The problem was that NO ONE was going to tell my grandmother that she could not be with her ill daughter. No one. So that meant a nightly battle between Tessie and the security guard at the close of visiting hours. I mean Tessie was five feet tall, about 100 lbs. and spoke heavily accented English. But that never deterred her from achieving her objectives. In other words, she did not take crap from anyone, especially when it came to her family. I remember one evening when hospital security personnel even had to escort her out of the hospital simply because she refused to leave on schedule.

That might have been enough for most, but not for our matriarch. She would not be denied. So, she devised a plan: she “borrowed” a lab coat from an unattended rack and strolled back into the hospital masquerading as a technician. The hospital never caught on.

She taught me – all of us – just how strong women can be.

 

My mother worked full-time long before it was fashionable for women to do so. Her sister got a master’s degree in education, also at a time when it still was considered rare for women, especially First-Generation immigrant women, to have such a degree. My sister was the first person in my immediate family to get a college degree. And the list of successful women in my family goes on.

So, you can imagine my disgust when the President of the United States would point his finger at a woman reporter, a legitimate member of the working press, who was simply asking the question she NEEDED to ask, and uttered, “Quiet, Piggy!”

QUIET, PIGGY?

I do not care if he’s President of the United States, if he had said that to Tessie, or my mother, aunt, or sister, he would not have left smiling.

How dare he? This is a man who has claims “he loves women” and yet at every single turn shows his disrespect for them. It began long ago with his association with Jeffrey Epstein, through the infamous “grab them by to the pussy” line, and on to the current debacle. And these are not isolated incidents. My god, Mr. Trump has been held libelous in civil court for sexual abuse in the E. Jean Caroll case. Then, in addition to the “piggy” mess, he repeated the pattern when he verbally accosted another female reporter in the Oval Office after she also had the audacity to do her job and ask his guest, Mohammed Bin Salman, the tough question everyone wanted to ask!

He attacks women who do not meet his physical “standards,” those who demonstrate the mental acumen that he so sorely lacks, or others who simply disagree with him. He is the worst kind of chauvinist, i.e., a school yard bully. Donald J. Trump is not your friend. I challenge women to seize this opportunity and demonstrate what I have seen all my life and know you are capable of. Say NO MORE to this misogynistic megalomaniac. You have the power. You always have. Do it now. Men, men of honor who do not fear your strength, are with you. Always. Together, equal in our disdain for this arrogant and ugly Administration, we can return to a sense of true decency in America.

 

THE GHOST OF THANKSGIVING PAST

 

Everything changes. Everything. Nothing remains the same forever. That’s life. Even cherished family traditions that lasted for generations can gradually fade away. Such is the case with my life.

When I was a kid, Thanksgiving was a day to be cherished by sharing a staggeringly good meal while basking in the warm glow of my very tight, extended Sicilian family. After watching “Babes in Toyland – The March of the Wooden Soldiers” starring the magical Laurel and Hardy, my parents, brother and sister piled into whatever jalopy my father was driving at that time for the long trip from Fort Lee, NJ over the GWB, down the West Side Highway, through the Battery Tunnel, past the Verrazano Bridge and on to my grandmother’s house on Avenue W between Ocean Parkway and Coney Island Ave in Brooklyn.

When we arrived, the aroma of the feast to come was already filling the air. My grandmother, my mother’s mother, and matriarch of the family, was already hard at work preparing a magnificent meal for my aunts, uncles, cousins, and us. Shortly after, she would be joined by my mother and aunts to complete the repast. My grandmother would have shopped for days to search for the very freshest ingredients to use. Nothing but the best would be good enough for her family. I remember sitting (on a vinyl covered chair, of course) quietly in the living room, unseen, listening to them talk while they cooked, solving all the world’s problems while I inhaled that incredible aroma!

My family had emigrated from Sicily and as had so many immigrants, combined the traditions already considered American with those from the Old Country. The result was a multi-course feast that if you were to order in a restaurant, would cost hundreds of dollars. It included soups, salads, fruits, nuts, different pastas, a choice of meats, wine and, of course, turkey. It would all be topped off with dolce and a demi tasse. Perhaps, an anisette might be offered, too. It was a classic melting of the Old World with the New that was so important to my us.

My mother’s whole family, including her siblings with their children, i.e., my cousins, would be there. In keeping with an Old-World tradition, there were always TWO tables. One, of course, was reserved for adults. The other, located in the basement, was for the kids. Access to the adult table would have to be earned. That’s just the way it was. And, do you know what, even the kids didn’t mind. It all seemed to work.

But that time has passed and many of the key players are gone – long gone. Years ago, after my grandmother had died, I was married and owned a big house. I tried to maintain the tradition, but life got in the way, my marriage collapsed and it did not last very long. I don’t have any children and by some strange twist of fate, neither do my siblings. My partner, Amanda, has a son, but he lives in Tennessee. So, our families have shrunk considerably. There simply aren’t that many of us around anymore. So, for the last few years, it’s just been me, Amanda, and my sister Joanne for a quiet dinner. For his own reasons, my brother has decided to go his own way.

But this is not a “I’m lonely. Look at what has my life become?” kind of posts. Not at all. The memories are great, as were those incredible meals! They will be with me for as long as I live. But what is important to me now is to be with the people who mean the most to me. It’s simple. I don’t care if we share a pizza. I just want to be together. THAT’S what matters. It always did.

I am thankful for having love in my life AND for the memories, too. THESE are the things that last and are ALWAYS something to be thankful for. I wish the same for you, too. Look and you will find it.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

 

LOVING THE BOMB

 

One of the tragic realities for school-aged children today is their need to prepare for the unthinkable by staging active shooter drills at their schools. The very image of it sends chills up my spine, especially since we know that even drastic measures like this can only keep them so safe. But, if you are a child of the 1960’s like I am, then you may remember a similar illusion of safety that we grow up with, i.e. Duck and Cover. Yes, the brilliant illusion that one could save oneself from a nearby nuclear blast by crawling into a fetal position under a desk. Really.

Even as a boy I remember thinking of the folly of it all. I had seen the newsreels and TV reports of the horrors of nuclear weapons. I was familiar with the images of the destruction caused by the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They were terrifying. So, for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out how hiding under my desk could possibly save me from such a terrible weapon. And the political climate at the time, i.e. The Cold War made it all a very real possibility.

But then the reality of what global nuclear war ACTUALLY means set in. Men and women of vision finally realized that the destructive consequences of the use of ANY such weapon by ANY nation would mean nuclear winter and the potential end of humanity. It didn’t matter the ideology – there would be NO winners.  And, yes, that’s as frightening as should be!

So, the great nuclear powers of the world, including the United States, Russia, and China, have mutual agreed to turn down the rhetoric by limiting the creation and testing of new weapons. Various treaties were negotiated and signed to, if not end, at least limit the nuclear arms race. The U.S last tested such a weapon in 1992. China conducted the last such test in the world in 1996.

Just when we thought that sanity might have prevailed, we elected Donald J. Trump as President. It’s no secret that I find him not only flawed but willfully nefarious as well. But his recent declaration that he is instructing the Department of War (Nee: The Department of Defense), to begin testing of nuclear weapons may be his most frightening action of them all. It begs the question, “Why?” To what end, besides flexing his imaginary muscles and massaging his enormous ego, could this possibly lead? As the fact that China and Russia have responded that will react accordingly, the more terrifying answer is that it once again exposes the ENTIRE world to the prospect of its own destruction. Is this his plan?

A few weeks ago, I had the good fortune of catching Stanley Kubrick’s classic dark comedy/satire, Dr. Strangelove: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb on TCM. Made in 1964, how could Kubrick possibly have known that the film would be so relevant and prescient today? Or perhaps he did. Intimately woven into the fabric of the movie are the characters whose behavior demonstrates the absolute insanity of trying to find out how they got into that mess in the first place! The resolution is that there IS no resolution, only destruction.

Once again, what this man and his administration is doing to the laws and the very NATURE of this Country is appalling. The idea of inciting another nuclear arms race, AFTER we know the potential consequences of such folly is – or should be – anathema to not only every American but every citizen of the world.

“Mr. President, I'm not saying we wouldn't get our hair mussed. But I do say no more than ten to twenty million killed, tops. Uh, depending on the breaks.”

George C. Scott as General Buck Turgeson, Dr. Strangelove. 1964

 

SAY NO TO HUNGER

 

Words and Photo by F LoBuono

There were two noteworthy events that took place over this past weekend that I believe highlight the political chasm that currently exists in this Country. Both were triggered by the current Federal government shutdown (a story for another column). Because of the Congressional impasse, the funding for SNAP benefits, a.k.a. food stamps, was allowed to expire. This, of course, meant that tens of millions of Americans would shortly be in dire need of another way to feed themselves – or go hungry. Apparently, an emergency fund of millions of dollars that could have been made available to at least temporarily eased the crisis was for some unexplained reason not immediately released by the Trump Administration.

In response to the pending disaster, millions of my fellow Americans came through with profound kindness and generosity. Food drives were organized in virtual every corner of the Country filling food pantries with many tons of much needed groceries and cash donations. As is the case MOST of the time and with MOST Americans, our need to help others in a moment of crisis becomes the most powerful display of the American Way.

 Locally, the reaction to the loss of SNAP was immediate, coordinated, and enormously successful. In Nyack, where I reside, the Village council, under the leadership of Mayor Joe Rand and in coordination with several charitable agencies including Rockland County’s largest food bank, People to People, began a campaign cleverly called SnapShot. The goal was to organize food drop-off locations throughout the village, culminating on the same Saturday when the benefits were scheduled to expire. Over a hundred people participated in a two-hour shopping spree for food donations at the Nyack Fresh Market! Thousands of pounds of groceries were collected. And the effort continues throughout the village. I couldn’t be prouder of the place where I live or the people whom I live with.

 In contrast, the second telling event happened on the evening before. That Friday was also Halloween. The prospect of 42 million Americans about to thrown into food insecurity also loomed. Well, the President decided that would be a great time to throw a Great Gatsby themed Halloween party at his private residence, Mar-a-Lago. In addition to scanty glad dancing girls in over-sized cocktail glasses lining the walkways, guests were treated to a lavish meal and exotic desserts. Unconfirmed estimates of the cost for the bacchanalian feast are about $3.4 million. Whatever the cost may turn out to be, the fact remains that this stunt is more than tone-deaf, it’s downright cruel. Families and CHILDREN would soon go hungry! It will go down in the history books right next to Marie Antionette’s let them eat cake.

 His supporters will rationalize as they always do. However, once again the message is clear. It’s hard for ANY reasoning person to see anything but indifference at best and avarice at worst in staging such an affair. But this is no surprise to me. Mr. Trump has ALWAYS shown his disdain for those he feels lesser than himself. To this day, I’ll never know how anyone could look past him knocking a disabled reporter years ago. But now as the polling is being to show, more people are beginning to realize that cruelty IS the message because it lives within the man. What excuse could there possibly be that allows children to go hungry?

 On a positive note, there have been two recent developments that have at least temporarily eased the crisis. First, in an emergency session, the Rockland County Legislature appropriated $2 million to be used for food donations in the county. Secondly, a federal judge ruled that the Trump Administration MUST release the emergency SNAP funds and do so by Friday, November 14, 2025, once again proving people in this Country STILL have a conscience. At least most do. However, keep in mind, food insecurity is not going away. Resolving SNAP does not cure hunger. But we can.

 

 

LONG LIVE A FREE PRESS

 

Thomas Jefferson wrote, “Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.” Think of the consequences – the loss of our very freedom. It’s why one can easily find a plethora of quotes that associate the bedrock of our democracy with a free, unfettered press.

Yet here we are – again. Unfortunately, this is not the first time I’ve addressed this subject, and I fear that it may not be the last – unless we refuse to accept what’s being imposed upon us by the Trump Administration.

And that’s exactly what happened at the Pentagon just a few days before the filing of this article. We fought back!

Last month, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s press office outlined new rules requiring Pentagon beat reporters to sign a pledge not to obtain or use unauthorized material, even if the information is unclassified. Any journalist who didn’t sign the pledge would be at risk of losing access to the Pentagon. Obviously, it’s a reporter’s job to question virtually everything and use every source legally available to find the answers, not only at the Pentagon but everywhere. So, in other words, he asked them not to do their jobs.

And as a fellow journalist, I’m very proud to say that it went over like the proverbial lead balloon.

On Wednesday, October 15^th, at 4pm, approximately 50 journalists MADE news by standing up from their desks at the Pentagon in an act of ultimate defiance, leaving everything behind including their Pentagon press credentials, and exited the building. These people were of all ages and genders, some long-time professionals, others early in their careers. Each had something to lose by this bold move. But it had to be done. Any journalist worth his credentials knows that to lose one’s integrity is to lose everything. And they weren’t having it.

Virtually every major news outlet participated in the protest. One expected the likes of CNN, MSNBC and the networks to lead the way, but even FOX, Hegseth’s former employer, and conservative Newsmax joined in. The only outlet to not participate was the ultra-conservative OAN. In fact, it has been reported that of the approximately 100 press people who work at the Pentagon, only 15 signed the pledge.

Now, there are some who may see this as a flawed action, saying, “Well if there’s no one there to report on them, hasn’t Hegseth really won?” In response to questions like that, the Pentagon Press Association issued the following statement:

“The Pentagon Press Association’s members are still committed to reporting on the U.S. military. But make no mistake, today, Oct. 15, 2025, is a dark day for press freedom that raises concerns about a weakening U.S. commitment to transparency in governance, to public accountability at the Pentagon and to free speech for all.”

But through the darkness, we saw a ray of light and that light came in the form of resistance to tyranny. It’s happened before and we pray that it will continue as long as is necessary. Reporters are used to obstacles, both physical and psychological. It’s our job to overcome and resist by speaking truth to power. We must act as a voice to the voiceless. Like Horatius at the bridge, the press must not yield to the constant attempts by this Administration to wear away at our essential freedoms. Because without a free press, we are in danger of losing EVERYTHING.

“Freedom of conscience, of education, of speech, of assembly are among the very fundamentals of democracy and all of them would be nullified should freedom of the press ever be successfully challenged.”

Franklin D. Roosevelt

The Great Dictator

 

Last night while channel serving, I was thrilled to stumble onto Charlie Chaplin’s brilliant 1940 anti-war, anti-fascist satire, The Great Dictator on TCM. It was near the end of the film that features one of the greatest soliloquies in movie history. Chaplin in the dual role of a Jewish barber mistaken for a fictional dictator, Adenoid Hinkel, takes obvious aim at satirizing Adolph Hitler. With the barber subbing for Hinkel, Chaplin rants, raves, and bungles his way to the film’s dramatic ending when Hinkel is to deliver a signature speech to a massive gathering of his sycophants and soldiers. Expecting a Hitleresque diatribe extolling the virtues of his leadership and the power of fascism, Chaplin instead delivers a powerful statement about peace, equality, brotherhood, and universal justice.

In other words, the Jewish barber portraying Hinkel clearly shows how REAL leaders are made, how even in the face of brutality, men of integrity find a way to inspire others.

This brings me to my thoughts on OUR current leader, President Donald J. Trump.

In a string of how low can you go acts and statements from the very beginning of his candidacy, Mr. Trump has demonstrated an uncanny ability to find a way to lower an already pitifully low bar. In my mind, it began with his mocking of a disabled reporter and has continued unabated ever since. And, just when you thought it couldn’t GO any lower, Mr. Trump has set a new standard for abhorrent behavior from a President of The United States, i.e. The Most Powerful Man on Earth.

Using the latest AI technology, a video depicts the President in a fighter jet, facing us with a crown literally on his crash helmet. He then maneuvers the plane over huge crowds in the streets below – all with Kenny Login’s “Danger Zone” blasting in the background. The video cuts to the crowd where we can now see they were protestors from the days “NO KING” demonstrations. As the jet streaks into a strafing position, a stream of what appears to be liquid excrement flows from the planes bomb bay doors and explodes on contact with the people below.

Let me simplify the message: The President of the United States just shit all over the American people simply for exercising their sacred 1^st Amendment right to peaceably assemble and express their wishes! From THE LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD? It’s vile, unconscionable, despicable, unacceptable and completely INDEFENSIBLE.

But, of course, his reprobates sure tried.

On of the more common defense strategies was to claim that Mr. Trump did not make the video. Really? No kidding. He doesn’t have the technical skills to make it. But he sure had the will and power to approve it! And he not only approved it, but he also loved it. When asked about the video during a press conference, Speaker Mike Johnson, smirked and said something to the effect that after all, the President is one of the greatest ever in using social media. Really? THAT’S how you would attempt to defend the indefensible? It’s become a pitiful show of weak-minded men AND woman who continue to support an increasingly unhinged leader.

Still even though the President continues to show disdain for the rule of law and the Constitution, nearly half of all Americans polled still support him. The latest polls put his approval rating at 45.5%, a number higher than those in first term and higher still that Joe Biden’s. I don’t get it.

When Mr. Trump first entered politics, many people saw him as an antidote for a rigged political system. I get that, at least in the beginning. What I didn’t understand then and has become even more amplified now is in addition to his assaults on our Constitution, how can one look past his plethora of character flaws? I mean it’s gotten to the point where he’s literally crapping not only over people, but the Constitution itself.

I’ve never let that happen. And I never will.

 

 

 

 

SILENCE IS NOT AN OPTION

 

Words and photo by F LoBuono

Authoritarian regimes, dictators, despots are often, but not always, fools. But none is foolish enough to give perceptive, dissident writers free range to publish their judgments or follow their creative instincts. They know they do so at their own peril. They are not stupid enough to abandon control (overt or insidious) over the media. Their methods include surveillance, censorship, arrest, even slaughter of those writers informing and disturbing the public. Writers who are unsettling, calling into question, taking another, deeper look. Writers – journalists, essayists, bloggers, poets, playwrights – can disturb the social oppression that functions like a coma on the population, a coma despots call peace, and they stanch the blood flow of war that hawks and profiteers thrill to. “PERIL” by TONI MORRISON 

Rockland resident, Pulitzer AND Nobel Prize winner, Toni Morrison (1931-2019), wrote that in 2008. Obviously, she sensed the gathering storm of fascism that thrives on silence. Despite protestations to the contrary, it has come closer to reality on an almost daily basis. Under the leadership of President Trump and his Administration, a purge of ANY voice that he and his cadre of supporters deem uncomplimentary to the President has begun. 

 

These voices include not only journalists (my ilk) personally but all the content creators in the media outlets they represent.  In addition, they have promised to attack bloggers, poets, essayists, and even comedians whose whole profession is based on finding humor in ALL things!

 

Marshall McLuhan (1911-1980) famously wrote “the medium is the message” in 1964. From this it is implied that whoever controls the media controls the message and, therefore, the PEOPLE. This, of course, is right out of The Fascism 101 Handbook. Dictators have employed this tactic since the beginning of time. And now, under this Administration, it has accelerated.

 

Mr. Trump has recently used his power and influence as President to force both CBS and ABC to capitulate to his demands. In addition to winning large monetary settlements from both media outlets, he got them to make major concessions in both their programming and personnel.

These changes included the eventual cancellation of CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, even though it is the #1 rated late night talk show and recently won an Emmy. There are two important factors to note here: 1. Stephen Colbert is an outspoken critic of Mr. Trump, often spending his entire monologue lampooning him. 2. CBS/Paramount needed Federal Communication Approval (FCC) to complete a multi- billion-dollar merger with another media company. 

 

Of course, we know that the FCC answers only to President Trump, so it’s not difficult to connect the dots. Virtually the same scenario occurred recently at ABC with the suspension of their late-night host, Jimmy Kimmel. After a rather banal comment about the murder of conservative activist, Charlie Kirk, a close friend of the President, ABC suspended Kimmel indefinitely. Mr. Trump is also often the target of Mr. Kimmel’s humor. It should be noted that Disney/ABC was ALSO in the process of closing another multi-billion merger deal. And guess who they needed approval from to make that happen? Yup, the FCC. 

 

It’s not hard to see what this is. This is the behavior of a criminal organization, not that of the most powerful nation on earth. It’s called putting the strong-arm on someone. As quoted in the film, “The Godfather” Trump made them an offer they couldn’t refuse – play ball or no deal! Even ardent Trump supporter Ted Cruz used a quote from another organized crime film, “Goodfellas”, to criticize the President.

 

But it’s not just the Big Guys they’re going after. It’s you and I, too. In fact, I’m sensing a palpable fear within the writing and publishing community. It’s as if instead of writing with a completely free and clear conscience, I’m now writing as if someone is looking over my shoulder – and not in a good way. This, of course, is anathema to a free society.

 

As a journalist I have always been a huge proponent of the 1^st Amendment. In fact, I find it sacrosanct. It is the FIRST Amendment for a reason. In my mind, none of the others could exist without it. I certainly have my point of view and until now, I’ve never had one moment of hesitation to express it. And, even if I am critical of another’s POV I would NEVER deny them the right to have and express it. THAT’S what made America great in the first place and will Make America Great Again. 

 

Remember, Democracy dies in silence. *

 

*Washington Post

 

ONE SMALL ACT

 

On another one of my frequent sojourns into the heart of the village of Nyack, I walked past an older woman sitting in front of one of the Main Street stores. I find her there frequently. Very petite, she showed the wear and tear of living what must be a hard life. She was painfully thin, had just a few teeth left and carried her meager possessions in a couple of ragged shopping bags. Perhaps she’s homeless. Yet, despite her hardships, I generally find her smiling and laughing with the others in her close circle of companions at the store.

On this day, she spotted me as I was walking by and blurted out, “hey, mister! I love your hat. Give it to me!” As is my custom, of course I was wearing a hat. It’s my thing. This one was just an old, beat up, straw pork pie style that I had for so long that I don’t even remember where I had gotten it from. Still, it was BECAUSE of all the miles on it that it was one of my favorites. So, I responded, “it’s my only one.” She quickly replied, “no it ain’t!” I had no idea how she knew that, but she was right; it’s not my only one. In fact, I’m known as a lid guy, i.e. I’m almost always in possession of some type of chapeau.  I have MANY. But it was ONE of my favorite hats, so I kept walking.

I must have gotten about a block away when I turned around to go back. My conscience was nagging me. She was right – it WASN’T my only hat. Besides, I could always find another. I HAD to turn around. So, when I saw her sitting in the same spot, I approached her and said, “this must be your birthday because this hat is now yours” as I placed it on her head. You should have seen the smile break out on her face! The hat was indeed perfect, fitting her way better than me. She simply couldn't stop smiling and giving me a hardy thumbs-up. It obviously made her day.

In subsequent journeys into the heart of the village I’ve encountered her several times, sometimes with the hat on, sometimes not. But every time that I do see her I inquire about it, and she always replies with a huge smile and a BIG thumbs-up saying, “I still have it and LOVE it!”

It was such a simple gesture. The hat had no real value except perhaps a sentimental one to me. Yet, to her, it meant everything. It made her joyful. What could be better than that? You see, my friends, it’s not necessary to save the WHOLE world. That’s a goal that no human being can accomplish or should even be tasked with. The very thought of it can overwhelm even the deepest thinker. Instead, it’s the little, daily acts of anonymous kindness that truly make the world go ‘round. No one has to see, hear, or even acknowledge these small deeds for them to be effective. Individually they might not seem like much, but collectively they are Mighty.

At the Nyack Street fairs, there is a group of volunteers that hold large soup pots out to collect donations for a local food kitchen. They are appropriately named The Soup Angels. Whenever I see them, I give them a dollar donation - just one $ and I say, “it’s not much, but think about it: there’s 15-20,000 people here today. If everyone gave just $1, by the end of the day, how many people could you feed?”

It’s simple. We may not be able to give much but virtually ALL of us can give a little. And it doesn't have to be just money. It can be time donated to a worthy cause, or a small act of kindness like bringing someone some real joy from an old, beat-up hat. We need it now, more than ever.