Blog/February 2020/Feb 7th

February 7th

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We were super busy this week. Esther has some tax deadlines and clients who are late providing information, and a new software system at work. So she’s cranking away (but not cranky, usually).

I’ve been working on finalizing a deal with a new client, as well as continuing work on the new version of “Nuklear-powered” 8th. It’s been exhausting. “Beta-2” was released this week, and now I’m working on getting full support on all platforms. Another couple weeks before it’s done, I think.

We also had dinner with Sarah this week, and did a gift-exchange: she brought Esther the pyjamas Daniela had sent, and I gave Sarah a couple bagels I’d made.

Last week, Trump announced his “Deal of the Century” peace-plan. The PA, predictably, rejected it before it was even released. Most Arab countries in our vicinity supported the plan to varying degrees. Even the Israeli Left supported the plan. But since there’s nobody to talk to on the PA side, the plan is DOA. That’s a good thing!

It’s a good thing because this “plan” chiefly involves Israel making more concessions and relinquishing territories even before sitting at the table with the PA. I wonder why anyone with half a functioning brain-cell would expect that formula — which has been tried already and failed many times — would yield results different from those of past “peace plans”? Kushner can kish mir in tuches.

N.B. Mr. “Art of the Deal”: this is the Middle East. You don’t open negotiations by conceding anything at all.

This week’s roundup of the odd, unusual, funny, and sad:

• IDF officers deposed in “tahini-gate”.
• “Goop”’s deceptive health claims target the usual “low-information” types.
• Did you know your fancy lightbulbs can be hacked? Welcome to 2020.
• WhatsApp should have used “8th” instead of Electron. Just sayin’…
• Israeli Arabs, generally, say “no” to “Palestine”. Because (almost) nobody wants to live in a dictatorship.

Probably the funniest bit this week was the debacle in Iowa. As much as I dislike Trump, I have to congratulate him for having chosen such inept adversaries. He went on to make an inspiring “State of the Union” address, but the talking heads at CNN said it was “divisive”, Vox said it was a “lesson in white history”, and the BBC “fact-checked” his SOTU address in a singularly nitpicky manner (that article seems to have been removed). And to top it all off: Trump was acquitted by the Senate. The Leftist Tears carafe is overflowing!

He can’t stop winning. At this point, I’m predicting an easy win for him in November. But Democrats: keep on haranguing ordinary people and telling them they’re “racists” and “stupid” and “whatever-phobes”: that’s sure to get you more votes, you donkeys.

We had excellent weather this week: not too cold, mostly sunny. But the tables have turned for shabbat: even as I write this, dark overcast skies have rolled in and it’s raining. We’re in for lots of cold and rain, possibly hail or even snow, over shabbat. Cool!

We’ve got guests this shabbat, whom we’ll be pleased to serve:
homemade ḥalla, hot’n’sour soup, sweet’n’sour salmon, Asian noodle salad, stir-fried veggies, barbecued tofu, various salatim, and dessert.

Until next time,
shabbat shalom!

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