The Pointlessness of Old Media

I don't pretend to be a news site, but CNN does. Here is a list of their top stories from approximately 2 minutes ago:



Study: Thousands of vets return with mental illness

Poll finds Giuliani the GOP favorite | Poll | Video

Mexico's richest man casts controversial shadow

Alleged D.C. madam to share client records

Image-obsessed sorority booted off campus

Study shows why exercise boosts brainpower

Hall of Fame rocked by Van Halen, Patti Smith

Blogger gets 4 years in slammer for criticism

Shark rips flesh from surfing lawyer's arm

Newborn's body found in gym bag beside road

Actor Fred Thompson eyes White House | Video

Stallone charged with banned substance


Out of 12 stories, at least 7 are complete fluff that might be found in womens' magazines, TV Guide or celebrity gossip columns.

My New Love

My boyfriend went overboard with the gifts for my birthday, but my favorite gift is the complete collection of Rudyard Kipling's poetry that he caught me looking at in the bookstore. He has such a good memory! I love Kipling because I can turn to any poem and it is written clearly, artfully and has something of substance to say. His writing also seems strangely relevant to today. "There is nothing new under the sun," as they say. I might imitate the Gates of Vienna and start posting selected poems.

I Don't Get It

I am not Christian, but I do not understand the craze to discredit Christianity. "The DaVinci Code" was a fun read, but it should be taken for what it is: a work of fiction. I enjoyed its predecessor, "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" more (I read it when I was 11 before Dan Brown had ever even heard of it), but even that book did not offer more than speculation. Just now I was flipping through the tv channels and briefly landed on Bill Maher's show where he and a troupe of boneheads were excited about a new program claiming to have found Jesus' tomb in East Talpiot, a neighborhood I have lived in for a significant amount of time and where BF grew up. This programs' claims seemed to be based on some pretty weak evidence: 1) The names Joseph, Mariam, Yeshua appear together. These are ridiculously common names in Judaism and are popular to this day. 2)They compared DNA found in the crypt and believe it belongs to Jesus. What the hell? What original sample could there possibly be to compare the crypt DNA to? Was Indiana Jones right? Is there really a government warehouse with a vial marked Son of G-d DNA? I doubt that this program offers anything more than an hour of entertainment. So why were Bill Maher & Co. so excited and so eager to believe this nonsense? Personally, I believe it is because religion is passe for most people and criticizing Western civilization is highly fashionable. Also, Christians don't go beserk when they or their religion are criticized. Look, I'm a Jew and I have PLENTY of reasons to dislike Christianity, but I don't believe in pouncing on every little rumor in glee to tear apart a major world religion. I notice nobody questions the prophethood of Mohammed, which would be much easier to do. This is because Muslims can't handle criticism, have no self-control and wouldn't hesitate to murder a critic AND because Saudi Arabia forbids archaeological research. For me, Mohammed and Joseph Smith are cut from the same cloth: they were either delusional or outright frauds. Yet I am not rubbing my hands in excitement over every flimsy piece of evidence to discredit them. And I don't understand why Westerners are so intent on kicking out the legs from under their own civilization.

Update: I am watching "The Lost Tomb of Jesus Christ" right now and I am highly entertained by seeing my old neighborhood featured so prominently. Perhaps I walked past this place they are talking about. I also noticed that some apartments that are undergoing contruction in the background are the same apartments that I almost moved to. They were really beautiful, but the vaad bayit (maintenance fee/condo fee) was too high. I love Jerusalem with all my heart. It is the most beautiful city in the world.

The Downward Spiral

My health problems and the cost of treating them have me in a very blue mood today. Blue isn't the proper word; hopeless is better. I'm nearly 30 and I am at the very bottom of the career ladder, have high student loans and am now in need of serious and costly treatments. I can't stop crying. I just feel so alone in the world. I wish I had a family to say encouraging things to me or help me out financially a little. What makes the situation even more unbearable is that i'm sure that I have caused or contributed to these problems by neglect, depression and the lack of knowledge. Life is miserable and will never get better.