BOLD like a Leopard

Shimon Peres was the ultimate survivor as a politician, but he also symbolized a leadership disconnected to the needs of everyday citizens, and it got worse the older he got. BS"D (With Heaven's Help) My page is not focused on religion or God, but for this topic it's an essential element. In Judaism one is not supposed to speak ill of the dead, at least not one who has recently passed, and should aspire to see the best in anybody. Even the lowliest person, or one's personal enemy. Especially so as we approach the Jewish new year of Rosh Hashanah on Sunday night, where we continue the process of repentance both as a community and as individuals. So hearing last night about the passing of Shimon Peres, one of the most important statesmen of his time, I was struggling to find the best way to do that, and it's probably not gonna happen, but here goes. The problem was not the lack of positive things to say about his astonishingly long career and very real accomp...

The Democratic Party's time in power has gutted its future leadership. How is it that a party that claims it is ahead of the curve is now dependent on candidates that represent the baby boomer generation like Clinton, or even older (Biden)?  The Democratic Party is supposedly a battery of half or more of America's political leadership. So why did it behave as if there was only one choice for its own leader? There have been credible accounts, including here  Politico , that past Democratic Party leaders are calling for a meeting (or have held one) in order to plan for the contingency that Hillary Clinton will not be able to continue as the Democratic nominee for the 2016 election. The casual observer now sees it as bizarre that the Democrats are likely to draft by default the 73 year-old Joe Biden in her place. But if you analyze the track record of the Democrats as an organization (which they are) instead of a political movement it makes total sense. The truth of t...

The Clinton family strategy goes awry There simply is no mojo in what Hillary Clinton is dishing out. It doesn't matter whether it's at a public event or that rare 4-question press conference. Even opponents have remarked up until now that Donald Trump's presidential campaign may be one of the most remarkable political journeys ever. We've all seen a man that was lampooned as an idiot last year outwit the minds of 17 seasoned primary opponents, as well as a media that desperately wanted him to remain a story for ratings but has remained committed to condemning him. Many years from now, the same political analysts that have studied the Trump campaign for its success will also study the Hillary Clinton campaign for its ineptitude and failures. Whereas Trump had to claw his way into the game with all of his shenanigans, and bizarre behaviour, and yes, dare I say it, intelligence, Clinton managed to squander every single advantage she had. There's so many to...

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh was once a labour organizer but the shoe is on the other foot now that he has to deal with the MBTA's toxic pension funds. This is an issue that hits very close to home, as my dad is a public transit employee and the parallels are just so close. He's a union worker, a good worker, but I'm sorry to break the news: you're too good for them Dad. On Sunday I had a some friends over for a BBQ and one of them got into several heated political conversations with me. Believe it or not, the state of public transit came up! I know what you're thinking: THRILLZ!! He stated the case that our local transit system is in budget jeopardy because the state government, run by Republicans had reduced its funding. I couldn't help but laugh, since for years prior to our governor taking power the system had been just bleeding money, because the financial structure doesn't make any sense. You could pump in as much FUNDING as you wanted, but it w...

Douglas Becker, here at a Clinton Global Initiative event, is the founder of Laureate International Universities, a private college that hired former Pres. Bill Clinton for $16-18 million for a symbolic position as "chancellor". Washington Post Trump University was a classic example of a get-rich-quick real estate guru seminar that rightfully is blamed for defrauding consumers. Mother Jones Pay attention readers, this is what SELECTIVE JUDGMENT is: Condemning the deeds of one person while validating them when someone else is committing them. Paul Krugman , the leading Quackonomist in Hillary Clinton's media priesthood, condemned Trump today for (among everything else) an apparent case of bribery during the Trump University legal battle. Up to here he is fine, because in truth Trump U and other private for-profit universities have made a mockery of higher education. Just last week ITT Tech was shut down after it could no longer collect money from student loan pa...