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The chancellor wanted to have a commemoration event on September 13, two days after Septembeer 11.  He invited me to speak. 

As I look back on my comments 25 years later, I am pleased at how I detected the dangers inherent in the political system.  But I also realize how much I under estimated what was to come.  We had a Republican president who went to the national mosque and declared Islam to be a religion of peace.  He made it clear to his cabinet that there would be no retaliation against Muslims.  How could we even imagine the regime to come, whose supporters openly call for the expulsion of all Muslims from the country? 

But we do what we can in the moment presented to us.  I look back on this talk with some satisfaction. 

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This is from an article on The Forward, a Jewish newspaper.  It draws from an interview that Abdul El sayed gave with the New Yorker a day before the primary election. 

A Jewish journalist thought it deserved discussion so he provided key excerpts along with his comments. 

If you are a supporter of Abdul, or his critic, you will find this of interest. 

Sorry I posted this without music. 

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This is a true story of a young woman cashier who was having a VERY bad day. 

I really didn't mean to add to her problems, but stuff happens. 

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I once visited a Salvation Army graveyard section.  It was a very interesting experience.  

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This is one of those episodes in life that descend upon you like a mosquitoe that just keeps buzzing around.  You can either let it ruin your night's sleep or you can view it as an opportunity.  I chose to turn it into an anecdote. 

By the way, there was a time, not long ago, when there were people called "operators."  They were very helpful and were always available to help find a number or to reach a person.  In time, the phone companies decided they could be replaced by on-line information.  Then they started charging for on-line information.  That is why some of you who are younger may be slightly confused by the "operator" aspect of this story. 

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Derek Peterson, Chair of the UM Faculty Senate, was asked to deliver remarks to the 2026 graduating class.  He focused upon the tradition of protest on campus, going back to the period after the Civil War.  Everything was ducky until he got to protests against the Gaza War.  

Well, you can listen to what happened after that. 

My approach was to read the statements of the various parties to this dispute, and to same my own thoughs until the end.  

Update:  In the end, I decided to read the full (rather long) statement by the 1100 faculty and staff rather than excerpts.  My wife thought that any attempt to edit it down would change it in some way, and detract from its purpose.  I agreed. 

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Being my family historian, I bump into strange documents from time to time.  A couple of years ago, I saw a will from 1717 that I thought might belong to an ancestor.  It turned out that it did not, but the will was so fascinating that I wanted to discuss it with you.  The logic and style are very different from what we know as a will today (although the goal is the same -- to allocate resources according to the wishes of the deceased, without tension). 

Three small points

First, in a mistake, I once said an ell was 14 inches.  In fact it is 45 inches. 

Second, I suspect you know the term anno domini, which we commonly call A. D. 

Third, a "share" of tobacco  had different meanings.  In some cases it was a negotiated amount, for example with a shareholder.  The most common meaning was a full "hogshead" barrel, which was typically 1,000 pounds.  It sounds as if that might be what was meant in this document.  

This is a relatively short podcast so it will not cost a significant portion of your life to listen.  And you might find it interesting.  

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This is a discussion of the historic context of this war, plus some thoughts on the strategic issues involved. 

Note: At one point I referred to the end of the Gulf War when I meant to say the end of World War II. 

Note:  At this point (March 17)  opposition to the war is about 53-41.  Republicans are very supportive, Democrats opposed. The general pattern in public opinion, is that whenever your country goes to war, you support it, but then support falls off very quickly within a month or so.  By 51-29 Americans think the war has made us less safe. 

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In 1981 Rabbi Harold Kushner wrote a book on suffering. He decided to write this when he learned that his beloved son Aaron had a terrible disease that would turn him into an old man even as a child.  Aaron died at eight.  Kushner reflected upon why an innocent child should suffer so much.  Could God have prevented this?  Kushner turned to the story of Job to try to understand.  

If you like this podcast, I hope you will read the book.  

And another book, Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankel.  I also have a podcast on that book. 

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On January 3 American forces went into Caracas and captured Venezuelan President Maduro.  He was taken to the United States to stand trial.  Is this a one-off adventure because of a corrupt leader, or does it suggest a broader set of actions of which this is just the first of many?