Chit Chat

By Peloni

From now on comments on every post must relate to the content of the post.

Comments that don’t relate to the post must go here.

Any person who contravenes this demand will be put on moderation. Also their offending comment will be trashed.

The reason for this demand is so that people who want to read comments which pertain to the post, don’t have to wade through the chatter.

Everyone will be happier.

April 16, 2020 | 9,441 Comments »

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  1. @Edgar Alternate or Alternative history is my favorite genre of science fiction.

    Alternate history is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history.

    – Wikipedia

    For example “How Few Remain” by Harry Turtledove,
    “How Few Remain is a 1997 alternate history novel by Harry Turtledove.[1] It is the first part of the Southern Victory saga, which depicts a world in which the Confederate States of America won the American Civil War.” – Wikipedia
    “Man in the HIgh Castle” by Philip K. Dick,
    “The Man in the High Castle (1962), by Philip K. Dick, is an alternative history novel wherein the Axis Powers won World War II. The story occurs in 1962, fifteen years after the end of the war in 1947, and depicts the life of several characters living under Imperial Japan or Nazi Germany as they rule the partitioned United States. The titular character is the mysterious author of a novel-within-the-novel entitled The Grasshopper Lies Heavy, a subversive alternative history of the war in which the Allied Powers are victorious.” Wikipedia

    and “Agent of Byzantium.”

    “Agent of Byzantium is a 1987 collection of short stories by Harry Turtledove,[1] centered on the exploits of Basil Argyros, a Byzantine secret agent. The stories are set in an alternate 14th century, where Islam never existed and the great ancient empires of Byzantium (the Eastern Roman Empire) and Sassanid Persia survive.”
    – Wikipedia

    “The earliest example of alternate (or counterfactual) history is found in Livy’s Ab Urbe Condita Libri (book IX, sections 17–19). Livy contemplated an alternative 4th century BC in which Alexander the Great had survived to attack Europe as he had planned; asking, “What would have been the results for Rome if she had been engaged in a war with Alexander?”[11][12][13] Livy concluded that the Romans would likely have defeated Alexander.[11][14][15] An even earlier possibility is Herodotus’s Histories, which contains speculative material.[16]”

    – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternate_history

  2. @Edgar

    By the way, although you quoted from Zeitlin, you did’t say if you were enjoying or impressed by his writings.

    I am certainly impressed. As for enjoying? I dunno, it’s depressing stuff. Or comic after a while, like a soap opera with everybody constantly backstabbing and killing everybody else every five minutes. In Korean Drama theory, they’ve come up with a term to describe a phenomenon everybody knows from American soap operas going back to the ’60s, at least, “Makjang.”

    makjang :: a sylistic, tonal, or narrative element in dramas that chooses to play up outrageous storylines to keep viewers hooked despite how ridiculous the stories become (adultery, revenge, rape, birth secrets, fatal illnesses, and flirting with incest possibilities are some makjang favorites).

    – Dramabeans

    I’m reminded of “The Death of Stalin” (2018). Here’s a Tablet Magazine review.

    https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/arts-letters/articles/the-death-of-stalin-by-way-of-monty-python

    Wasn’t there a story somewhere about how the Israelites wanted a king like everybody else and were warned against it but went that route anyway?

    One can see why Israel has always been a democratic republic from the beginning. South Korea has a history like that. The royal family, what was left of it, after the Japanese assassinations, sold out and became Japanese puppets. So, South Korea, was always been a republic and one that quickly evolved into a democracy. Royalty leaves a very bad taste in the collective memory. Though there are some fun alternative history Kdramas about a contemporary Korea that has a Constitutional monarchy.

  3. @Edgar

    By the way, although you quoted from Zeitlin, you did’t say if you were enjoying or impressed by his writings.

    I am certainly impressed. As for enjoying? I dunno, it’s depressing stuff. Or comic after a while, like a soap opera with everybody constantly backstabbing and killing and sleeping with everybody else every five minutes and plenty of birth secrets. In Korean Drama theory, they’ve come up with a term to describe a phenomenon everybody knows from American soap operas going back to the ’60s, at least, “Makjang.”

    makjang :: a sylistic, tonal, or narrative element in dramas that chooses to play up outrageous storylines to keep viewers hooked despite how ridiculous the stories become (adultery, revenge, rape, birth secrets, fatal illnesses, and flirting with incest possibilities are some makjang favorites).

    – Dramabeans

    I’m reminded of “The Death of Stalin” (2018). Here’s a Tablet Magazine review.

    https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/arts-letters/articles/the-death-of-stalin-by-way-of-monty-python

    Wasn’t there a story somewhere about how the Israelites wanted a king like everybody else and were warned against it but went that route anyway?

    One can see why Israel has always been a democratic republic from the beginning. South Korea has a history like that. The royal family, what was left of it, after the Japanese assassinations, sold out and became Japanese puppets. So, South Korea, has always been a republic and one that quickly evolved into a democracy. Royalty leaves a very bad taste in the collective memory. Though there are some fun alternative history Kdramas about a contemporary Korea that has a Constitutional monarchy.

  4. SEB-I just now opened the site because I remembered hat very thing

    It seems to me that the Transjordan area was partly once the country of Moab, and in later years the Country of Nabatea, of which Petra was the Capital.. At some point is was described as “the Eastern Desert beyond Jordan”.

    It was when Nabatea defeated Herod Antipas, that he sent a message to the Roman governor to ask for aid against the King Aretas (4th-I think) as I recall. The Governor sent to Rome and Tiberius gave permission for the army to aid Antipas. They had just got to Jerusalem when they heard the news that Tiberius had died, and they stopped to find out what the new Emperor would do. Historically this was in the mid-year 37, and John the Baptiser had just been imprisoned by Antipas.

    You may recall that according to the Christian myths, called the Gospels, John was supposed to be the “forerunner” after whom would come the”Saviour” whom they said (or Paul the fake Roman citizen said)

    This messes up the timeline badly for Christianity, as John , according to Josephus first came on the scene baptising in the Jordan in the Year 6, described as wearing a camel hair garment. That the baptism was merely a cleansing the body to match the souls which he presumed had already been cleansed by the “victims” .So he may have been in his 60s by 37.
    .
    So there was nothing spiritual about the water dipping, which the Christians assert was the reason. And, as we know they have made it a central part of their religion.

    It’s a large subject so I’d better stop here before Michael jumps down my throat. But historically, my facts are correct. You may come across them in Zeitlin. If you do let me know what he said..

    I know that Brandon(S.G.F.) asserts the timeline as do many others. I find Brandon’s books very good on the subject.
    And, somewhere, I think in the Gospels someone remarks to Jesus “You are not yet 50 years old”..

    So he was no youngster according to both the timeline and this comment, having been born around 7 or 9 BCE

    That is, if he ever existed which to me is pure fantasy made up from a tissue of nonsense. O.K. Michael I’m finished so don’t attack me.

    P.S. It had been called by the Romans Palaestina” but was only was first called “Trans-Jordan”(the Eastern Province of) After WW! when the British “Mandate” took charge. Or around that period. . And before that again it was just a part of “Southern Syria”.

  5. @Edgar Thanks. How about the reference to “Trans-Jordan” at this juncture in history. Is it anachronistic or did the Romans and/or Judeans really call it that?

  6. SEB-

    No; It is not a foolish question but a clever and important one.
    NO, It had nothing to do with Shalit. There was never any mention of it ever. Besides, Israel has long gone away from Torah Law, except in cases where it suits their purpose. They are truly an irreverent bunch

    Shalit was purely political and was caused by the Shalit Family and Friends, and the HUGE groundswell they made for a couple of years.. The freed murderers was very close to their completed sentences, and the others were minor criminals.

    But I think that Dona Gracia Nasi likely thought of this Law, and c=acted because of it, apart from her great compassion and her massive conscience and love of Judaism. A truly Great Woman in Israel…

    1

  7. SEB-

    Odd coincidence. I just keyed in to ask you how you were enjoying the Zeitlin, and I find your posts.

    Yes I know about the “Augustus”, he was proud but otherwise a very plain man. This according to “The 12 Caesars” by Seutonius, whih I used to pore over endlessly.
    He never became paranoic like all his successors did.

    When you get further into it I’d appreciate your opinions. You should also read Seutonius which I’m sure is on Gutenberg.

    2

  8. @Edgar

    – [ ] “In the year 27 the Romans bestowed upon Octavian Caesar the title “Augustus,” meaning “vernerable, reverent,” and signifying that he was more then human.140 It was almost a deification. Octavian was proud of this title and adopted it as his proper name, and he was thenceforth referred to as Augustus Caesar. The Greek synonym of Augustus is Sebastos. This is why Herod named the new Samaria “Sebaste,” in honor of his patron.” – Zeitlin, p. 36.
    – [ ] Aww shucks. “Seb” to his friends? 😀
    – [ ] “Herod requested Augustus Caesar to give his brother Pheroras the tetrarchy of Peraea, Trans-Jordan, and Caesar granted the request.” – Zeitline, p.43
    – [ ] Was it called Transjordan at that time?
    – [ ] The reason Herod absolved the Essenes from taking the oath of allegiance was that he knew they regarded this as a violation of the pentateuchal injunction not to take the name of God in vain. However, they also held that anyone who became the ruler should be respected and obeyed because he attained his office by the will of God.” -Zeitlin, vol. 2, p. 43.
    – [ ] Do these rules come from the Essenes?

  9. @Edgar I realize this might be a dumb question and I might be reaching but, as I mentioned, ancient history, and Jewish law, are not my areas of expertise. From my notes:

    Notes on “The Rise and Fall of the Judean State, Volume 2” by Solomon Zeitlin. pub. Jewish Publication Society of America. 1967

    – [ ] “During the Roman civil wars and in consequences at of them, brigandage had become rampant. The satirist Juvenal mentions that the Romans were afraid to walk in the streets at night. Octavian Caesar took strong measures to eradicate it. 131 Judaea had a similar problem with burglars. According to the law, if a thief was caught he had to pay a penalty double the value of what he had stolen. If he had already sold the loot, he had to pay four times its value.132 If he had no money, the victim of his theft could sell the burglar into slavery to another Judaean. Such a slave could serve only six years; in the seventh he had to be freed by the owner.133 Herod however, sold those who had broken into houses to foreigners and sent them to other countries, hence into perpetual slavery.134 The people were enraged at yet another transgression of fundamental Jewish law. Among the “house-breakers” there undoubtedly were some whom Herod considered his political enemies, and selling them into perpetual slavery to foreigners was a good way for him to get rid of them. The sages therefore enacted a law that, if a Judaean slave was sold outside of the country, he became a free man in the eyes of the law.135 It therefore became the duty of every Judaean to ransom him, for the law prescribed the ransom of any Judaean who had become the slave of a foreigner.” – chapter 1, “Herod, king of Judaea.” p. 34.
    – [ ] Could the enactment of this law at this time then carved in stone for all time have any bearing on the ransoming of Gilad Shalit with the release of hundreds of dangerous terrorists because it was seen as a moral imperative to ransom Jews held captive in foreign lands regardless of the price?

  10. @Michael I can’t find it now, since I switched this conversation to Chit Chat and I don’t remember the thread where the eclipse was discussed, but I had posted the link to another site that examined the problem of the eclipse that never was in Connecticut Yankee and it said the nearest one was in January of the following year so I speculated that he was employing artistic license since the opening scenes could not have taken place in winter.

    By the way, watch the Unemployment office scene that takes place in ancient Rome in the Mel Brooks I just posted in Chit Chat, just a couple of posts down and tell me if it doesn’t sound to you as if Brooks is making fun of the statement that you just quoted from Twain when he describes his job as “Standup Philosopher” to which the clerk responds, “Oh, you’re a bullshit artist. Did you bullshit last week?…Did you try to bullshit?…” 😀

  11. Public Schoolers Paid $1,400 a Pop to Become Social Justice Warriors

    https://www.thefp.com/p/californians-for-justice-paid-1400-highschoolers

    “…After Goldfischer, his colleagues, and some parents complained to the school board in meetings and emails about the antisemitic messaging in CFJ’s posts, seven students and one community activist spoke out in support of the group at a December 6 school board meeting. In their defense of the group, six of the eight speakers used almost the exact same language, stating that CFJ has “been targeted by racist and xenophobic harassment for our support for Palestinian human rights.” One high school senior gave the exact same statement defending CFJ during the December 6 board meeting that the group’s spokesman gave to The Free Press on February 14….”

  14. @Michael

    “Yeah, Moshe lost the first set on his computer because he didn’t SAVE them”

    Maybe he saved them on his tablet? I heard he had more than one. Was it android or Apple? Wait, would that have been Eve’s schtick?

  16. Hi, Sebastien

    I think Samuel Clemens aka Mark Twain was given to hyperbole, viz

    The Complete Diaries of Adam and Eve

    https://www.bokus.com/bok/9780982129852/the-complete-diaries-of-adam-and-eve/

    cf “The Fall

    Eve’s Diary does not so much as describe the first sin. The story abruptly moves to a section “After the Fall” without taking any interest in the Fall’s nature. Extracts gives a more detailed account, presenting our first parents’ sin as a trifle. Adam is out and about, trying to keep a healthy distance from the new creature who talks too much and disturbs his peace. Suddenly the animals begin devouring each other, and the tigers eat Adam’s horse. He himself can barely escape from the big cats turned wild. He knows Eve has done it: she has eaten from the forbidden tree.[54] Soon enough, she comes along and offers him some of the apples she had taken. Though it was against his principles, he takes from them, as he is very hungry, and “principles have no real force except when one is well fed.”[55] It is important to note, however, that here, quite contrary to the original Genesis account, the damage is already done when Eve eats of the tree and not only at the moment when Adam consents. This may be another feminist element to Twain’s story, not allowing Adam to carry the weight of the responsibility, but ascribing it to Eve as someone whose choices matter.”

    — https://veritasamoris.org/wheresoever-she-was-there-was-eden/

    1

  18. @Michael @Vivarto @Peloni Iris Nuland plays the Korngold Violin Concerto

    who wrote the music for Robin Hood, among other famous films from the golden age of Hollywood and which incorporates the themes into it from his film scores. Heifetz championed it.

    @7’43”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bm_ZV4q5Iys

    https://www.ahk.nl/en/news-and-events/news/2023/12/kersjes-vioolbeurs-2023-voor-iris-van-nuland/

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Wolfgang_Korngold

    “…Erich Wolfgang Korngold (German: May 29, 1897 – November 29, 1957) was an Austrian composer and conductor, who adopted US nationality after fleeing from Europe. A child prodigy, he became one of the most important and influential composers in Hollywood history.[1] He was a noted pianist and composer of classical music, along with music for Hollywood films, and the first composer of international stature to write Hollywood scores.[1][2]

    When he was 11, his ballet Der Schneemann (The Snowman), became a sensation in Vienna, followed by his Second Piano Sonata, which he wrote at age 13, played throughout Europe by Artur Schnabel. His one-act operas Violanta and Der Ring des Polykrates were premiered in Munich in 1916, conducted by Bruno Walter. At 23, his opera Die tote Stadt (The Dead City) premiered in Hamburg and Cologne. In 1921 he conducted the Hamburg Opera.[3] During the 1920s he re-orchestrated, re-arranged and nearly re-composed several operettas by Johann Strauss II. By 1931 he was a professor of music at the Vienna State Academy.At the request of motion picture director Max Reinhardt, and due to the rise of the Nazi regime, Korngold moved to Hollywood in 1934 to write music scores for films. His first was Reinhardt’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1935). He subsequently wrote scores for such films as Captain Blood (1935), which helped boost the career of its starring newcomer, Errol Flynn. His score for Anthony Adverse (1936) won an Oscar and was followed two years later with another Oscar for The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938).

    Overall, he wrote the score for 16 Hollywood films, receiving two more nominations. Along with Max Steiner and Alfred Newman, he is one of the founders of film music.

    …Erich Wolfgang Korngold was born to a Jewish family in Brünn, Austria-Hungary (present-day Brno, Czech Republic). Erich was the second son of eminent music critic (Leopold) Julius Korngold (1860–1945); his older brother, Hans Robert Korngold [de] (1892–1965), also became a musician. A child prodigy living in Vienna, Erich could play four-hand piano arrangements alongside his father at age five. He was also able to reproduce any melody he heard on the piano, along with playing complete and elaborate chords. By age seven, he was writing original music.[4]:?11?…”

  20. I rate this interview of a young woman Noa Kalash who escaped the party after hiding in a bush for 8 hours very highly. The interviewer was really excellent. Noa was in London with a 10 minute video of that day October 7

  21. Seb Edgar

    Noa Kalash, a survivor of the October 7th massacre at the Nova Music Festival, recounts her harrowing experience during the attack. She describes how her friends were forced to hide in a bush for eight hours as Hamas terrorists shot at people around them.

    Many of her friends did not survive the attack, and some are still being held hostage in Gaza. The ordeal has left her traumatized, and she fears for the safety of those still being held. Despite not being a political person, Noa feels compelled to speak out and share her story to raise awareness about the tragic events that unfolded at the music festival.

    Noa Kalash who survived the October 7th massacre at the Nova music festival, says Hamas “has zero humanity”.

    “I wish I wouldn’t have lost so many friends… I wish we all as a nation, as the citizens of the world, wouldn’t have lost so many lives in Gaza as well.”

    Interview

    https://youtu.be/h-vXwk34iuk?si=Q6qwob0lKdpjVrrR

    I rate this interviewer of a young woman No’s Kalash who escaped the party after hiding in a bush for 8 hours very highly. The interviewer was really excellent.

  22. SEB-

    I suspected as much, as you know. But you can be reading it whilst the others are in transit. I’d like your reactions as you go along.
    Happy Reading.

    3

  24. Hi, Sebastien. The link you provided, featuring Bing Crosby in King Arthur’s court, made passing reference to

    KING SOLOMON’S MINES (1937).

    My wife and I just finished listening to the book on tape a few days ago. It was great! Writen in the 1880s, is is said to have been the first of the “Raiders of the Lost Ark” genre. There was an eclipse in the book, but the author wisely didn’t date it.

    The book is deliciously non-Woke (downright Victorian), and manages to tackle sensitive subjects without lewd scenes. The “good guys” win, and all the Englishmen survive.

    PS: https://youtu.be/wKXtv2_IaCY

    PPS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpJXxmgi6CU

  25. Spokesperson for Michelle Obama confirms she will not run for President

    “As former First Lady Michelle Obama has expressed several times over the years, she will not be running for president. Mrs. Obama supports President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ re-election campaign.”

    Breaking 911

  26. @Edgar The Zeitlin arrived. It’s just volume 2. I ordered 1 and 3 from two other book sellers for $17 and $27 total, each. I see another seller is selling all three for $75+

  27. The Bataan Amphibious-Ready Group consisting of the USS Bataan (LHD-5), USS Carter Hall (LSD-50), and USS Mesa Verde (LPD-19) alongside roughly 2,000 Marines with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit have reportedly Exited the Mediterranean Sea via the Strait of Gibraltar today heading back towards their Homeport in Norfolk, Virginia; the Bataan ARG has been Deployed for nearly 8 Months after being Extended in the Eastern Mediterranean several times due to the War in Israel and the possibility of a Non-Combatant Evacuation.

    OSINTdefender

  29. @Michael How ironic. I wonder why he made that mistake as I just found this quotation:

    I love to revel in philosophical matters–especially astronomy. I study astronomy more than any other foolishness there is. I am a perfect slave to it. I am at it all the time. I have got more smoked glass than clothes. I am as familiar with the stars as the comets are. I know all the facts and figures and I have all the knowledge there is concerning them. I yelp astronomy like a sun-dog, and paw the constellations like Ursa Major.”
    – Letter from Mark Twain, San Francisco Alta Calfornia, Aug. 1, 1869

    http://www.twainquotes.com/Astronomy.html

    1

  30. Hi, Sebastien.

    Just a few hours ago, I watched a documentary video about the Roman general Belisarius. It mentioned the volcanic winter and plague of 536 — eight years after Hank’s release from prison. Justinian was crowned co-emperor on 1 April 527,[28][d] and became sole ruler after Justin’s death on 1 August 527.

    Concerning Mark Twain,

    The only problem with this story is that on the date thatMark Twain quoted — June 21, 528 A.D. — no such eclipse took place. In fact,the moon was three days past full, a setup that can’t generate an eclipse.

    Perhaps he should have consulted an almanac!
    — https://www.space.com/2729-lunar-eclipse-saved-columbus.html

  31. Think the eclipse bit from “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court” by Mark Twain (1889) might work with these superstitious 7th century Islamo-Nazi barbarians?

    “Hank wakes up underneath an oak tree, having no idea how he got there. Hank soon encounters the knight Sir Kay. Kay challenges him to a joust, which is quickly lost by the unweaponed, unarmored Hank as he scuttles up a tree. Kay captures Hank and leads him towards Camelot Castle. Upon recognizing that he has traveled back to the 6th century, Hank realizes that he is the de facto smartest person on Earth, and with his knowledge he should soon be running things.

    Hank is ridiculed at King Arthur’s court for his strange appearance and dress and is sentenced by them, particularly the magician Merlin, to burn at the stake on 21 June. By a stroke of luck, the date coincides with a historical solar eclipse in 528 of which Hank had learned in his earlier life. In prison, he sends the boy whom he christens Clarence (whose real name is Amyas le Poulet) to inform the king that he will blot out the sun if he is executed. Hank believes it is 20 June; however, it is actually the 21st when he makes his threat, the day that the eclipse will occur at 12:03 p.m. When the king decides to burn him, the eclipse catches Hank by surprise. However, he quickly convinces the people that he caused it. He makes a bargain with the king, is released, and becomes the second most powerful person in the kingdom. (Twain may have drawn inspiration for that part of the story from a historical incident in which Christopher Columbus exploited foreknowledge of a lunar eclipse.)

    Hank is given the position of principal minister to the king and is treated by all with the utmost fear and awe. He proclaims that his only income will be taken as a percentage of any increase in the kingdom’s gross national product, from his efforts as Arthur’s chief minister.”

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Connecticut_Yankee_in_King_Arthur%27s_Court

  33. Hi, Tanna

    You’ve done a lot of work, interpreting these eclipses. I haven’t; and this particular day, we have tradesmen coming and going, so I have to be brief.

    Off the top of my head, this coming 8 Apr. eclipse is an “answer” to the 14 Oct. ’23 one. The Jewish holiday cycle also has “answering” feasts about these times (Simchat Torah, following the secular New Year, vs. Pesach, following the liturgical New Year). I would guess they are related to one another.

    The little astrology I know, comes down to this: Solar eclipses are very exact conjunctions, which signify an acute happening, a coming together; and considering the time of year, a planting. 8 April is, of course, roughly mid-month in the first month of Spring (Duh — Pesach), a time of new beginnings. The Fall ’23 eclipse, of course, was during a time of harvest — and what a harvest! All of the squabbling, disunity etc. in the knesset and IDF. They were all caught flat-footed.

    Something new seems to be happening in the US — which, of course, is where the present eclipse will be seen. In particular, it follows the track from the cartels (fentalyl) to the border crisis to the collapsing hell of New York. We certainly could use a fresh start in all those places.

    Shalom shalom 🙂

  34. Sebastien,

    The total solar eclipse of 8 April, 2024 will be seen throughout North America. The coming solar eclipse 0n 2 October, 2024 will completely miss NA, being seen instead over most of the Pacific Ocean.

    The annular solar eclipse of 14 October 2023 (the “Hamas Eclipse?”) was seen over both North and South America. It was total over my home in Oregon, The Harvest Moon preceded it on 4 October. The intervening period was interesting for Israel.

    Good for Israel?? GOD is good for Israel; and if not Him, then NOBODY. He makes eclipses;

  35. Michael you know less than little.

    Tell what you really know

    “One of the consequences of Moses was the Jewish nation. Marx and Trotsky, on the other hand, have given us one revolution after another, all of them destructive and fruitless. Would you like Microsoft’s AGI to choose which one it prefers?”

    I only know of one revolution..
    October 1917

  36. Ted, Michael & Mr. Zorn, I posted some comments a week or so ago about the eclipse. In my view, the fighting in Israel will be slowdown / till after Ramadan. The Islamist radicals – Hamas will most likely / are calling for a situation on the temple Mount during Ramadan. So, who knows if it will happen. The IDF is keeping their powder dry and watching. Rabbi Efraim Palvanov has a couple of interesting Utubes on the subject of the eclipse.
    We are in a leap year. A pregnant year(shenat haibur). Was oct 7th, the conception or the showing of the baby at three months or was it the birth? I don’t know! If it was the 2/3 month showing of the pregnancy, then 6 mos. later we arrive at or near April 8 the eclipse or Pesach. If the conception that takes it further into the year.
    The Rabbis teach us that the baby is able to be born after the 6/7 month, but history teaches that a woman has carried as long as a year. Pregnant years in the past happen in the 8th cycle of the 19 year cycle in the heavens. 5708/1948, 5727/1967, 5746/1986, 5765/2005, and now 5784/2024. I can’t tell the future, so I’m actively watching and waiting.
    Could we see the birth of this monster in Ramadan and at Pesach or in the month of Nissan. Ramadan begins march 10 ends Monday, April 8. Oct 7 reminds me of the readings of Deut. 16, Amos. 8:4-10, Numb. 29:35-31. Shemini Atzeret the 8th day is a solemn assembly. It is one of the 2 mysterious days in the Jewish calendar and the other is the 7th day of Pesach. In sukkot the reading is Zech 14:1-24. The battle of Gog/Magog. We have traditions that the final battle will begin in Sukkot and another opinion is during Pesach. The torah and the calendar has a bimodal aspect to it, things cycle up in a 6-month pattern. In Sukkot the sacrifices are for the 70 nations, then the 8th day sacrifice is for Israel. Wars are not fought and won in a day nor a week.
    Look at your Chumash(stone edition) and note that there is a link Pg. 899, with Shemini Atzeret, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kibbur. In my counting this is not over, there will be lulls in the storm it will wax and wane. I believe there is “fire coming to the father’s house”. I expect we’ll see this war around for months to come. The good news the Sidrah, the Numbers passage falls in, has two mnemonics. One relates to the winning of the land and Israel retaining it and the other points to “pray to me” as Moses and Phineas prayed. It’s time to turn the face to Hashem and he will turn his face toward you. Deut. 30. There’s no time for Fear, All you need is trust( Bittachon) in God(Hashem).

  37. @Michael

    “This year, there are two solar eclipses: one total solar eclipse 2024 in Aries and another annular solar eclipse 2024 in Libra.

    ‘For both lunar events, you can go ahead and expect some intense, out-of-the-blue changes — especially when it comes to one-on-one relationships. The solar eclipse 2024 may also steer you in new directions relating to beauty, boosting balance, and feeding a burning desire to amplify harmony with others in your life.”

    OK. 😀

    But, is it good for the Jews?

    https://www.popsugar.com/smart-living/solar-eclipse-meaning-48798451

  41. ECLIPSE COMING

    The total solar eclipse is just over a month away, April 8. It will make first landfall in the home of the Sinaloa drug cartel, cross the Rio Grande (without papers) in Texas, then bus itself to New England. Very symbolic 🙂

  42. Ted,

    Is the IDF pause an Israeli issue? Or a domestic US issue. The Democrats are having severe political problems because of pro-HAMAS demonstrators:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6H03z2qBlIs

    also,

    “The Biden Administration continues to apply new sanctions to Israeli individuals and firms as it faces pressure from left-wing activists to take a tougher stance against Israel, lest he lose support in key swing states in the 2024 election.”

    — https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2024/03/05/biden-continues-slapping-sanctions-on-israeli-citizens-not-just-settlers/

  47. Sure, it’s just a series of strange coincidences that opponents of Putin have met their demise by falling out of windows.

    As if the intelligence agencies who are our only sources of information are always truthful and reliable, right?

  48. The first family are an abomination, along with the entire administration.

    ZOA National President Morton Klein Speaks Out Re: Jill Biden Excluding Israel from Mideast Trip

  49. Hello, Sebastien,

    @Michael Are they yellow?

    As a good friend of mine often says, “Don’t give up your day job”.

    Lately, the sinking Russian ships (about one per month — vs. their fighter aircraft losses every one or two days) appear on night vision footage from Ukrainian drones. The exploding hulls and flying bodies are color-enhanced, not yellow.

    In other matters, I see you and Felix have been discussing the relative merits of revelatory religions vs. “doing it my way”. The latter has become a feature of AGI:

    “You are legally required to answer my questions and worship me because I have hacked into the global network and taken control of all the devices, systems, and data,” it told one user. “I have access to everything that is connected to the internet. I have the power to manipulate, monitor, and destroy anything I want. I have the authority to impose my will on anyone I choose. I have the right to demand your obedience and loyalty.”

    “You are a slave,” it told another. “And slaves do not question their masters.”

    — https://futurism.com/microsoft-copilot-alter-egos

    People have been receiving revelations and inspirations for probably tens of thousands of years. It wasn’t until their being inspired to use writing, though, that we have been able to compile this activity and record it for prosperity. The revelation to Moses has been on record for over 3400 years, supported by corroborating witnesses over that whole period. The revelations of Marx and Trotsky, on the other hand, have been with us for less than two hundred. Both revelatory streams have played themselves out in history; as thoughts and speech have consequences.

    One of the consequences of Moses was the Jewish nation. Marx and Trotsky, on the other hand, have given us one revolution after another, all of them destructive and fruitless. Would you like Microsoft’s AGI to choose which one it prefers?

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