THE FURTHER CORRESPONDENCES OF MARC SUSSELMAN PART 34
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17 July 2025
MS said:
Supreme Court Keeps Ruling in Trump’s Favor, but Doesn’t Say Why
"NYTimes..."
We know why – because three of the Justices whom Trump elevated to the Supreme Court are more interested in showing him their gratitude than obeying their oath to support the Constitution. The other three share his objective of dismantling the democratic state which FDR and the Warren Court established.
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MS said:
With all the crazy stuff which is going on in Washington - cutting of funds to PBS; controversy over the Epstein file; arresting of people who look Hispanic; the Supreme Court approving whatever Trump wants - I feel like I am in the middle of a Sharknado movie.
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19 July 2025
MS said:
"Colbert..."
Sad
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22 July 2025
MS said:
"Colbert 2..."
Bravo!
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MS said:
"Rogan..."
What thinkest thou?
But the Democrats already tried public finance reform, and got shut down by the Supreme Court.
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23 July 2025
MS said:
Supreme Court Lets Trump Fire Consumer Product Safety Regulators
"NewYorkTimes..."
Is there nothing this Supreme Court will not allow Trump to do? Will they go so far as to say that he can even run for a third term?
What can prompt their total submission to him? It is as if they are in league with him with the objective of dismantling the liberal leaning government which the Democrats under FDR and LBJ constructed. It seems almost Mephistophelian.
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MS said:
The attorney general briefed the president in May about the scope of what the DOJ found in its review of the Epstein case
Collins asks Gabbard if she's targeting Obama to be in good standing with Trump
"Collins..."
Leavitt, Bondi, Gabbard – a coven of witc###, with Trump as their warlo##.
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25 July 2025
MS said:
Starvation in Gaza is a moral test for Zionists. We’re failing.
To deny Israel’s role in this humanitarian disaster is to defy the ideals behind the Jewish state
"Gaza..."
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MS said:
President Trump was asked if he would pardon Ghislaine Maxwell.
"MaxwellPardon..."
Can there be any doubt?
The options:
Option 1:
Ms. Maxwell, in speaking with DOJ official Todd Blanche, reveals incriminating information about Trump, which Blanche reports back to Trump.
Does he pardon her, or commute her sentence, risking blowback from his base?
Of course he does, so that she develops a sudden case of amnesia.
Option 2:
Ms. Maxwell, in speaking with DOJ official Todd Blanche, does not reveal any incriminating information about Trump, which Blanche reports back to Trump.
Trump reasons: Either she knows nothing which incriminates me, or she is keeping silent.
Does he pardon her, or commute her sentence, risking blowback from his base?
Of course he does, to insure that her memory remains faulty.
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31 July 2025
MS said:
Trump’s tariff deals are all baloney.
"OnTariffs..."
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1 August 2025
MS said:
The man who paid $10 M to purchase a handbag – money which would have been better spent buying food and shelter for the poor and homeless.
"Auction..."
This is the epitome of immorality.
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3 August 2025
MS said:
One of the most important cases I am currently handling is a lawsuit against the City of Hamtramck, Michigan, which, in June, 2023, passed a resolution which essentially prohibited displaying the Pride Flag from the City’s flagpoles. An important factor is that the Pride Flag had in fact been displayed in 2022 from one of the City’s flagpoles. After the resolution was passed, two members of the City’s Human Relations Commission who proceeded to display the Pride Flag from a City flagpole anyway, were terminated from the Commission and the Pride Flag was removed. It has not been displayed again since.
The lawsuit claims that the City’s resolution is unconstitutional because it violates freedom of speech under the 1st Amendment, because it violates the neutrality principle which govern the 1st Amendment, and violates the Establishment Clause, because there was ample evidence that the resolution was motivated by the religious beliefs of the City Council members, all of whom are Muslim, and by the religious beliefs of their constituents.
I thought the case, filed in federal court, was going to be a slam dunk. I had filed a motion for summary judgment, requesting a ruling that the resolution be held unconstitutional. The case had been assigned to a federal judge, who was known to be fairly liberal. To my surprise, he issued a decision denying the motion and ruling that after the resolution was passed, the flags being displayed from the flagpoles constituted what is referred to as “government speech.” Under the “government speech” doctrine, when the government itself speaks, it is not required to adhere to the neutrality principle – the government can say whatever it damn well pleases – with one exception, it may not violate the Establishment Clause. With respect to my argument that the evidence indicated that the City had in fact violated the Establishment Clause, the judge ruled that courts are not permitted to inquire into the motives of legislators, outside the language of the legislation itself. He also encouraged the City to file its own motion for summary judgment.
Well, last week the City did file its own motion for summary judgment, adopting the court’s position that the resolution converted the flags from private speech into government speech. I am in the process of writing a brief in response to the City’s motion. In my brief, I am relying heavily on the position regarding government speech which has been argued by a particular Supreme Court Justice, in several of his dissents, concurrences, and in a majority decision which this Justice wrote in a recent Supreme Court decision. 10 to 1, you cannot guess who that Supreme Court Justice is.
That Justice is Justice Alito, who in several of his opinions has expressed concern that the “government speech” doctrine is dangerous, and is being improperly used to suppress speech that the government does not like. I am not particularly a fan of Justice Alito, but on this subject I believe he is correct, and am citing his opinions in my brief. Law, as life and politics, generally, can make strange bedfellows.
Post-script:
Back in June, fully expecting the judge to issue a decision in my favor, for the first time in my life, I displayed a huge American flag in front of my house, and next to it, a huge Pride Flag. They are both still there, blowing in the wind.
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MS said:
"Politics..."
I happen to like Sen. Booker’s hectoring and would welcome more of it. Is it, however, unhelpful in advancing the Democrats’ objectives?
What do you all think?
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MS said:
"YouTube..."
When are we going to start getting mad as hell at Trump’s repeated violations of the Constitution, of his persistent disregard for human decency, for Israel’s use of restrictions on the distribution of food in Gaza causing famine, on Russia’s violations of Ukraine’s sovereignty and its continuous murder of Ukrainian civilians, of the humanitarian crisis in Sudan causing the deaths of thousands, of ….
When are we going to stop just watching the news, and do something about it? Or do we believe we are powerless to do anything about it? Well, silence, conformity, submission certainly will not do anything about it.
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MS said:
An uplifting story in the midst of all the depressing nonsens.
"YouTube2..."
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MS said:
"Booker..."
Bravo, Corey Booker!
(Plus, he is really tall – 6’ 3”)
P.S.:
I think that Harry Truman was a pretty good President and leader of the Democratic Party.
I always heard when I was growing up that he was short.
It turns out he was 5’ 9” tall, which used to be my height, and I thought was average (I am apparently shrinking with age, however).
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MS said:
I recently purchased a copy of Framed – Astonishing True Stories Of Wrongful Convicions, by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey.
The book recounts 10 true accounts of how innocent people were wrongfully convicted of crimes they did not commit, and spent a substantial number of years in prison. The prosecutions took place in Virginia, Texas, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Missouri, but there is no reason to believe that similar miscarriages of justice have not occurred in every state. They recount actions of utter incompetence, dishonesty, and immorality on the part of police, prosecutors and judges which shatter any faith in our legal system. My own faith in the legal system was shattered long ago, three years after I graduated law school, when I was involved in the Vincent Chin murder, in which the judge, Wayne County judge Charles Kaufman, gave the murderers, who beat Vincent to death with a baseball bat, probation, and despite the earnest efforts of myself and another attorney in my office to remedy this gross miscarriage of justice, we failed.
I have attached one of those accounts from the book. You will find the gullibility of your average citizen, and what they will believe has been proved “beyond a reasonable doubt,” quite astounding. It explains how an idiot like Trump has been elected President.
I recommend reading the entire book, but you should make sure to have a bottle of whiskey nearby in order to settle your nerves.
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4 August 2025
MS said:
"Ukraine..."
True grit – and luck.
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5 August 2025
MS said:
"CNN..."
The rebellion Is starting.
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6 August 2025
MS said:
The shooter is a soldier, law enforcement official says. They have been apprehended and the threat at the Georgia Army base is over.
Does the use of the plural pronoun suggest that the authorities believe that the shooter is nonbinary? If not, this is an example of the confusing, and misleading, use of plural pronouns to refer to single individuals. According to the reports, there was only one shooter.
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10 August 2025
MS said:
Some jackass removed the two Harris-Walz signs from my front lawn.
I've reported it to the police.
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12 August 2025
MS said:
Things Jews can learn from Jesus.
Jesus is reported in Mark 12:17 to have said:
And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marvelled at him.
He is also reported in Matthew 6:24 to have said:
No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Are we, as Jews, supposed to render unto Netanyahu things that are Netanyahu’s, i.e., his political ambition, and to Hashem the things that belong to Hashem, i.e., the moral precepts of Judaism? And how can this be done without serving two diametrically opposed masters?
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14 August 2025
MS said:
This video will make you sick.
"YouTube..."
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MS said:
Federal agents in Trump's crime crackdown set up checkpoint in popular D.C. nightlife area
"NbcNews..."
This is just the beginning of Trump’s plan to militarize the entire nation, with federal military forces in every major Democratic city in the United States, with the ultimate objective of turning the U.S. into a totalitarian state.
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18 August 2025
MS said:
"Letter..."
Could I have misjudged these people?
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19 August 2025
MS said:
Why did the Texas Democrats return to Austin, giving the Republicans a quorum to pass their gerrymandering law, after pledging to stand fast and stay out of Texas?
Are there no politicians we can depend on to stand up to Trump?
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22 August 2025
MS said:
This is the America we are now living in. (Some of us are, anyway.)
FBI conducts search at John Bolton’s home.
"Politics..."
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MS said:
Here we go – the totalitarian takeover of our country, city by city, is about to begin.
Trump says Chicago next up for federal crime crackdown.
"NationalGuard..."
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23 August 2025
MS said:
Rob Eshman
Senior Columnist
The Forward
Mr. Eshman,
I just finished reading your opinion piece in the Forward, titled There’s a shocking new report on civilian deaths in Gaza. If only it were accurate Why bombshell claims may not tell the whole story about military versus civilian deaths.
"Guardian..."
In your article, you point out that there are valid reasons to question the assertion in The Guardian and +972 Magazine that “Israeli military’s own data indicates civilian death rate of 84% in Gaza war.” You argue, correctly, that the 84% figure is an exaggeration which is not supported by the data relied on by the journalists. You point out that the IDF database lists the names of 8,900 Hamas fighters whom it has killed, out of 53,000 Gazans who have been killed, leaving a remainder of 44,300 “souls” who must have been innocent civilians, the source of the 83% civilian death rate (44,300/53,000). (Why your interjection of the word “souls” for civilians, in an article questioning the accuracy of the calculation? Is this your form of sarcasm?)
You proceed to debunk the numerator in the calculation by noting that “the IDF is not claiming those 8,900 fighters are the only fighters killed,” i.e., the number of actual fighters could be much higher, reducing the numerator, and thereby lowering the percentage of civilian deaths. You point out that among the “unofficial” fighters who are not bona fide members of Hamas could be people “who were killed but could not be identified by name, Gazans who took part in fighting but were not officially members of Hamas or PIJ, nor political figures in Hamas such as mayors and government ministers whom Israel also considers legitimate targets (in violation of international law)” (Italics added.)
So, how many more of the purported “unofficial” fighters killed would there have to be in order to reduce the number of civilian deaths to an acceptable level? 10,000? 15,000? 20,000? 20,000 would exceed the official number of Hamas combatants killed by an additional 11,100. Is this plausible? Yet, even at 28,900 official and unofficial Hamas combatants killed, the number of civilian deaths would still be 24,100 (53,000 minus 28,900), resulting in a percentage of civilian deaths of 45.5% (24,100/53,00). Is this an acceptable percentage of civilian deaths to let Israel off the hook? And this is a percentage using a rather exaggerated number of unofficial fighters of 20,000. At 15,000, a number exceeding the official count of Hamas combatants killed by an additional 6,100 fighters, the percentage of civilian deaths is a stunning 55.1% (53,100 minus 23,900 = 29,200; 29/200/53,000 = 55.1%) Is 55.1% of civilian deaths a sufficiently low percentage to let Israel off the hook?
You could safely rely on the assumption that most people reading your article would not engage in the extensive analysis and mathematical calculations that I have. But your reliance on people taking your misleading analysis at face value, and not bothering to do a legitimate analysis, is not an endorsement of journalistic integrity (or lack thereof).
You then proceed to state the following: “That’s why when I read The Guardian’s headline a second time, one word jumped out: indicates. The data doesn’t prove anything. It merely points to possibility.” (Italics added.) A nice linguistic trick, there. The word “possibility” entails uncertainty, which in turn entails a level of invalidity. But why did you use the word “possibility,” rather than “probability,” which is in fact what the data do support, the probability that, even with more accurate analysis and mathematical calculations, the probability is that the number of civilian deaths caused by Israel is at last 45.5%, and more likely 55.1% Not as high as the alleged 83%, to be sure, but an acceptable level by the army which claims to be the most moral army in the world?
Your article is a sophisticated piece of sophistry. It fortifies the view among many Jews and Israel supporters that Israel is being unfairly libeled by the press; by the UN; by the International Court of Justice, and that the reports are unfairly and unjustly providing ammunition to anti-Semites. Yet your article, while purporting to bring light to a complicated subject, does nothing but bring more darkness, more deception, more falsehood to a complicated, and tragic, subject. You are not bringing light to this subject. Rather, you are giving cover to the staunch supporters of Israel who resist the conclusion that your own data support - that Israel has killed far too many innocent civilians in its quest – indeed its futile quest – to totally destroy Hamas, avoiding a ceasefire, and endangering the lives of whatever number of hostages still remain alive. You are doing no more than providing illegitimate cover to those Jewish organizations and Jewish congregations, like the Jewish Federation of North America and its affiliates around the United States, from speaking out and condemning Netanyahu’s right-wing immoral government. And you are providing them an excuse to continue to support Netanyahu and avoid reaching a ceasefire with Hamas.
Finally, what I find particularly repugnant is your statement at the end of your article, a disingenuous expression of empathy, stating: “Someone who cares about the lives of innocents on both sides, and who believes that both must one day find a way to thrive together on the same patch of earth, honors the dead not by manipulating their numbers, but rather by working to bring all the killing to an end.” What hypocrisy. It is you who have manipulated the numbers, in order to suggest there is a sufficient degree of uncertainty in the number of civilian deaths caused by Israel which exonerates Israel. And is so doing you have misled your reading public and increased the likelihood that the killing will not end, but will continue indefinitely.
Yours truly,
Marc Susselman, JD, MPH
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MS said:
What remains of John F. Kennedy’s legacy of Camelot?
Virtually nothing. It may be true that we were being fed a false fantasy, but still, there was some progress – the Peace Corps, the beginning of the Civil Rights movement, a President who was literate and had wit, great folk music and progressive rock & roll. All gone.
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24 August 2025
MS said:
This was on 60 Minutes tonight. It will scare the crap out of you.
"CBSNews..."
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MS said:
Another segment on 60 Minutes reported on medical miracles at Lourdes. Your thoughts?
"Lourdes..."
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27 August 2025
MS said:
America Tips Into Fascism
Today is different than before.
Garrett Graff
"Scenario..."
“The United States, just months before its 250th birthday as the world’s leading democracy, has tipped over the edge into authoritarianism and fascism. In the end, faster than I imagined possible, it did happen here. The precise moment when and where in recent weeks America crossed that invisible line from democracy into authoritarianism can and will be debated by future historians, but it’s clear that the line itself has been crossed.
“I think many Americans wrongly believe there would be one clear unambiguous moment where we go from “democracy” to “authoritarianism.” Instead, this is exactly how it happens — a blurring here, a norm destroyed there, a presidential diktat unchallenged. Then you wake up “one morning and our country is different.
Today, August 25, 2025, is that morning. Something is materially different in our country this week than last.
Everything else from here on out is just a matter of degree and wondering how bad it will get and how far it will go? Do we end up “merely” like Hungary or do we go all the way toward an “American Reich”? So far, after years of studying World War II, I fear that America’s trajectory feels more like Berlin circa 1933 than it does Budapest circa 2015.”
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MS said:
There are reports that the shooter in Minneapolis was transgender. Some will view this as reason to persecute transgenders, and those whom they view as their cultural cousins, gays and homosexuals, more. The lesson they should learn from this, however, is just the opposite.
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29 August 2025
MS said:
The Jewish Federation of North America
25 Broadway, 17th Floor
New York, NY 10004
Eric Fingerhut, President and Chief Executive Officer; Gary Targow, Chair, Board of Trustees; Jeffrey Schoenfeld, Vice Chair, Board of Trustees; Sara Gottlieb, Chair, Israel & Overseas; Shira Hutt, Executive Vice President; Rebecca Caspi, Director General, Israel Office; Rabbi Mike Uram, Chief Jewish Learning Officer; Rabbi Isaiah Rothstein, Rabbinic Scholar & Public Affairs Advisor; Anna Langer, Vice President, North American Israel Strategy.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor
2939 Birch Hollow Drive
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48108
President Eileen Freed
Rabbi Asher Lopatin
Board Members Larry Adler; Jeremy Bloom; Debra Chapp; Susan Fisher; Jack Fuchsman; Julie Grand; Bruce Kutinsky; Murry Rebner; Maria Linderman Richelew; Jennifer Rosenberg; Marty Shichtman; Alicia Simon; Annie Woloc
Am I a Zionist?
Yes, I am a Zionist. I am a Zionist and supporter of the Israel which was envisioned by Theodore Herzl and David Ben Gurion, and which is described in the Israeli Declaration of Independence, which encapsulates the moral precepts of Torah and Talmud, and states: “The State of Israel … will uphold the full social and political equality of all its citizens, without distinction of race, creed, or sex; will guarantee full freedom of conscience, worship, education, and culture; will safeguard the sanctuary and inviolability of the shrines and Holy Places of all religions; and will dedicate itself to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.”
This Israel does not exist under the current Netanyahu administration. Netanyahu and his right-wing, Jewish zealots have desecrated and repudiated that Israel, and are blaspheming the moral precepts of Torah and Talmud, even as they claim to adhere to them. It is up to those Jews who are true Zionists, who continue to envision a Jewish nation, in the Jewish homeland, which “uphold[s] the full social and political equality of all its citizens, without distinction of race, creed, or sex; [and] which guarantee[s] full freedom of conscience, worship, education, and culture” to repudiate the current Israeli government which has itself repudiated the Israel which Herzl and Ben Gurion sought to bring to fruition. It is up to those Jews who are true Zionists, who continue to envision the Jewish nation, in the Jewish homeland, which Herzl and Ben Gurion envisioned, to publicly, vehemently and unreservedly condemn the current Netanyahu government as a desecration of Zionism.
Shabbat Shalom
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30 August 2025
MS said:
A majority of Democrats are changing their views on Israel. What does that mean for the US-Israel relationship?
"EmailCampaign..."
And I agree with them. It is Netanyahu’s immoral policies and actions in Gaza which are contributing to anti-Semitism, not the opposition to Israel’s conduct by Jewish Democrats.
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2 September 2025
MS said:
Justice Amy Coney Barrett says in new book the Supreme Court was ‘getting ahead of the American people’
How ridiculous! That’s the Supreme Court’s job, when the constitutional rights of some citizens are being violated by a governmental entity, even if the majority of the people do not give a damn!
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3 September 2025
MS said:
Trump has succeeded in doing what no other U.S. President, or other Western leader has done – driving China, Russia, North Korea, and the largest democracy in the world, India, to unite against the U.S., at the same time alienating our European allies.
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MS said:
Harvard Secures a Court Victory in Its Fight With Trump
Harvard had sued the Trump administration in an effort to restore billions in research funds that the government canceled this spring.
Keep those victories coming!
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4 September 2025
MS said:
Although I have profound concerns about AI and its future effect on our society, I have to admit it is quite amazing. Lately, when I have Googled a question, I receive immediate, well written informative responses. This morning, for example, I Googled the question, “Was David Hume scorned by his contemporaries?” I immediately received the below AI response.
AI Overview
David Hume was not universally "scorned" by his contemporaries, but his philosophical and religious views were highly controversial and earned him strong condemnation from more conservative and religiously-minded thinkers
While his early philosophical works were mostly ignored, his later writings provoked outrage among the public and the clergy, preventing him from securing academic positions. However, Hume also had a wide circle of intellectual friends who admired him, and he eventually achieved widespread fame for his historical writings.
Criticism and public condemnation
Religious objections: Hume's skepticism, critiques of miracles, and rejection of teleological arguments for God's existence led many contemporaries to consider him an atheist or an enemy of Christianity. The Scottish clergy pursued heresy charges against him on multiple occasions, though they were unsuccessful.
Academic exclusion: Because of his anti-religious reputation, Hume was denied chairs at both the University of Edinburgh and the University of Glasgow despite his qualifications. His good friend Adam Smith, who held the Glasgow philosophy chair, even opposed Hume's appointment out of concern for public opinion.
A Treatise of Human Nature: When this work was published in 1739–1740, it "fell dead-born from the press" and was largely ignored by the public. Critics at the time found it "abstract and unintelligible".
Controversial essays: Later essays, such as those arguing for a person's right to commit suicide and critiquing the idea of life after death, were so scandalous that his publisher was threatened with prosecution and the essays were removed from publication.
Rousseau's feud: In 1766, Hume offered French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau refuge in England, but a mentally unstable Rousseau came to believe that Hume was conspiring against him. The public, acrimonious dispute became a scandal that threatened Hume's reputation.
Respect and influence among intellectuals
Despite the public backlash, Hume was not without admirers.
Intellectual friends: Hume was a central figure in the Scottish Enlightenment and enjoyed a wide social and intellectual circle that included his close friend, the economist and philosopher Adam Smith. Smith held Hume in such high regard that his eulogy for Hume was condemned by religious critics for praising a "heretic".
Immanuel Kant: The German philosopher Immanuel Kant famously credited Hume with "awakening him from his dogmatic slumber," spurring him to produce his critical philosophy.
Thomas Reid: A fellow Scot, philosopher Thomas Reid became Hume's most formidable contemporary critic. Yet, Reid's school of "Scottish Common Sense Philosophy" was a direct, substantive response to Hume's work and acknowledged his philosophical importance.
Lasting impact: While some conservatives denounced his work, his influence extended to the economic theories of Smith, the moral philosophy of Jeremy Bentham, and even the theory of evolution developed by Charles Darwin.
In summary, Hume's contemporaries did not offer a monolithic response to his work. While his radical skepticism and anti-religious views provoked scorn and opposition from conservative and religious figures, his intellectual rigor earned the profound respect and engaged criticism of some of the most important thinkers of his time and the next generation.
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MS said:
Below is an excerpt from a letter which Adam Smith wrote upon the death of his friend, David Hume.
Edinburgh, Monday, 26th August, 1776.
"DEAR SIR, — Yesterday, about four o'clock, afternoon, Mr. Hume expired. The near approach of his death became evident in the night between Thursday and Friday, when his disease became excessive, and soon weakened him so much that he could no longer rise out of his bed. He continued to the last perfectly sensible, and free from much pain or feelings of distress. He never dropped the smallest expression of impatience; but when he had occasion to speak to the people about him, always did it with affection and tenderness. I thought it improper to write to bring you over, especially as I heard that he had dictated a letter to you desiring you not to come. When he became very weak, it cost him an effort to speak, and he died in such a happy composure of mind, that nothing could exceed it."
Thus died our most excellent and never to be forgotten friend; concerning whose philosophical opinions men will, no doubt, judge variously, every one approving or condemning them, according as they happen to coincide or disagree with his own; but concerning whose character and conduct there can scarce be a difference of opinion. His temper, indeed, seemed to be more happily balanced, if I may be allowed such an expression, than that perhaps of any other man I have ever known. Even in the lowest state of his fortune, his great and necessary frugality never hindered him from exercising, upon proper occasions, acts both of charity and generosity. It was a frugality founded, not upon avarice, but upon the love of independency. The extreme gentleness of his nature never weakened either the firmness of his mind or he steadiness of his resolutions. His constant pleasantry was the genuine effusion of good nature and good humour, tempered with delicacy and modesty, and without even the slightest tincture of malignity, so frequently the disagreeable source of what is called wit in other men. It never was the meaning of his raillery to mortify; and, therefore, far from offending, it seldom failed to please and delight, even those who were the objects of it. To his friends, who were frequently the objects of it, there was not perhaps any one of all his great and amiable qualities, which contributed more to endear his conversation. And that gaiety of temper, so agreeable in society, but which is so often accompanied with frivolous and superficial qualities, was in him certainly attended with the most severe application, the most extensive learning, the greatest depth of thought, and a capacity in every respect the most comprehensive. Upon the whole, I have always considered him, both in his lifetime and since his death, as approaching as nearly to the idea of a perfectly wise and virtuous man, as perhaps the nature of human frailty will permit.
I ever am, dear Sir,
Most affectionately yours,
ADAM SMITH
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MS said:
It is fitting that the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, before which RFK, Jr., is testifying today, is named Mike Crapo.
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MS said:
"Facebook..."
Is the claim that at a particular time, and in a particular place, Israel is currently committing genocide in Gaza incompatible with the condemnation of the chant, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” as an indefensible call for the destruction of Israel and a genocide against Israelis? I do not believe so.
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5 September 2025
MS said:
What is the coolest line in history?
On October 14, 1912; before a campaign speech in Milwaukee Wisconsin, Theodore Roosevelt was shot at close range, in the chest, by John Shrank.
Normally when a person gets shot in the chest, they immediately get taken to the hospital, but not Teddy. Noticing that the bullet had not pierced his lung, he decided, against the advice of his associates, to continue on with his scheduled speech.
His speech began like this:
Friends, I shall ask you to be as quiet as possible. I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot; but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose
He then proceeded to speak for 90-minutes; but before he did, he unbuttoned his vest to show the horrified crowd his bloody shirt and his campaign speech with the bullet hole through it.
It was later discovered, through x-rays, that the bullet lodged in his ribcage could not be removed, and he spent the rest of his life with a bullet wedged inside him. We should all give a round of applause to Theodore Roosevelt for being a true “Bully".
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6 September 2025
MS said:
US Open asks broadcasters to avoid crowd reactions to Trump during men’s finals match
"Finals..."
********
MS said:
Trump says Chicago ‘will find out why it’s called the Department of WAR’ ahead of planned crackdown
"CNN..."
That’s right, the purpose of our military is to start a war with our own country.
Isn’t there a statute which prohibits this? Something about a posse?
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8 September 2025
MS said:
How did Adam and Eve pass on? Were they buried? Where were their remains sent?
This should be a Final Jeopardy question.
********
MS said:
Appeals court upholds $83 million verdict against Trump for defaming E. Jean Carroll
Under the Federal Rules of Civil procedure, a litigant can seek a petition for certiorari from the highest court of a state. If the highest court in New York, which is named the New York Court of Appeals (not the New York Supreme Court), I would expect Trump to file a petition for certiorari in the Supreme Court, requesting reversal of that verdict. The way things are going, they would probably find some convoluted way to grant it.
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10 September 2025
MS said:
Barrett and Sotomayor appear to shut down talk of a third Trump term when asked about the 22nd Amendment
Well, it’s nice to know they agree on something.
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MS said:
By way of biblical background, Micah is reported to have been a Hebrew prophet who lived in the 8th century B.C. He survived the destruction of Israel by the Assyrians in 732 B.C., and continued to live in the surviving southern kingdom of Judah. He prophesied the destruction of Judah by the Babylonians in 597 B.C., due to their worship of false idols and their beautification of Jerusalem financed by dishonest business practices. A central message of his teaching was, “To do justice and to love goodness, and to walk modestly with your God.”
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11 September 2025
MS said:
Abolish the Senate. End the Electoral College. Pack the Court.
Why the left can’t win without a new Constitution
"NYorkTimes..."
If this is accurate, the Left in the United States is doomed to failure.
********
MS said:
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, MI
Public School
Overview
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor ranks 106 out of 257 in the 2026 College Free Speech Rankings. The school's score rose to 59, up 5 points, lifting it 80 places from last year, though it has an F speech climate grade. The jump coincides with the university's decision to adopt institutional neutrality, which added an institutional-neutrality bonus, but its speech policies remain stuck at a “yellow light” Spotlight rating.
Student perceptions remain troubling. Michigan places in the bottom 25 for “Comfort Expressing Ideas” and the bottom 50 for “Administrative Support,” suggesting many feel uneasy sharing opinions and doubt the administration's resolve when controversies arise.
Michigan could make headway by revising restrictive policies to earn a “green light” Spotlight rating and by pairing its new neutrality stance with clear, student education on when expression crosses into unprotected conduct.
Rutgers University (My alma mater)
New Brunswick, NJ
Public School
Overview
Rutgers University–New Brunswick ranks 236 out of 257 schools in the 2026 College Free Speech Rankings, earning a score of 51 and an F speech climate grade. The university dropped 38 places, a decline that may be attributed to a penalty for canceling a virtual mini-conference on historically black colleges and universities. Rutgers still earns a “yellow light” Spotlight rating and has yet to adopt the Chicago Statement or an official commitment to institutional neutrality.
Student perceptions remain bleak. Rutgers ranks in the bottom 50 for “Self-Censorship,” signaling frequent pressure to stay silent. No area places the school inside the top 50, underscoring the breadth of the challenge.
Rutgers could begin to reverse course by revising its speech policies to earn a “green light” Spotlight rating, as well as adopting the Chicago Statement and an official commitment to institutional neutrality.
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16 September 2025
MS said:
Last night, I watched a documentary about Queen Anne on PBS.
Queen Anne was a more savvy politician than history has given her credit for. In order to secure a Protestant successor to the throne and neutralize efforts by Louis XIV to join the interests of France with Scotland, she proposed the union of the Parliaments of England and Scotland. In 1707, the Act of Union merging England and Scotland to form Great Britain, was enacted. It was opposed by the people of Scotland, but several members of the Scottish Parliament were paid bribes to support it. Robert Burns wrote the below poem, which became a folksong, to condemn the treason.
Such A Parcel Of Rogues In A Nation
Robert Burns
Fareweel to a' our Scottish fame,
Fareweel our ancient glory,
Fareweel ev'n to the Scottish name,
Sae fam'd in martial story.
Now Sark rins o'er the Solway sands,
And Tweed rins to the ocean,
To mark where England's province stands -
Such a parcel of rogues in a nation.
What force or guile could not subdue,
Thro' many warlike ages,
Is wrought now by a coward few
For hireling traitor's wages.
The English steel we could disdain;
Secure in valour's station;
But English gold has been our bane -
Such a parcel of rogues in a nation.
O would, or I had seen the day
That treason thus could sell us,
My auld gray head had lien in clay,
Wi' Bruce and loyal Wallace!
But pith and power, till my last hour,
I'll mak' this declaration;
We're bought and sold for English gold -
Such a parcel of rogues in a nation.
The phrase “a parcel of rogues in a nation” describes perfectly the current Trump administration.
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MS said:
"Booker..."
Cory Booker for President! He’s willing to fight!
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17 September 2025
MS said:
If my wife is kidnapped and taken hostage in the home of the kidnapper, where some of the kidnapper’s family protect him, and other of the kidnapper’s family are powerless to prevent the kidnapping, would it be moral to firebomb the entire house in order to free my wife, killing the kidnapper, along with all the members of his family, both his collaborators and his non-collaborators, and saving my wife? Is the killing of the non-collaborators deliberate, knowing that in all likelihood they will die along with the kidnapper and the collaborators?
This is the question which Israel is facing in the report issued today by the UN Convention on Genocide, accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. This was the subject of the PBS News Hour on September 17, which you can watch here:
"PBS..."
The question whether Israel’s conduct constitutes genocide was discussed by Craig Mokhiber, a human rights lawyer, starting at 26:00, agreeing with the conclusion that Israel has committed genocide, and a representative of the Israeli government, Dr. Eran Shamir-Borer, starting at 33:00, who rejects the conclusion. Dr. Shamir-Borer defended Israel’s actions as not constituting genocide on the basis that the deaths of innocent Palestinian civilians is the consequence of Hamas’s actions in conducting and planning its terrorist activities in the midst of the Palestinian civilians, thereby making Hamas responsible for their deaths, not Israel.
But is this a moral justification, given that the deaths of the Palestinian civilians is known in advance to likely occur, which some argue makes their deaths deliberate, constituting genocide? If I know in advance of my conduct that the likely outcome is going to be injury or death to innocent civilians, am I acting deliberately?
Raphael Lemkin, the Jewish Polish lawyer who, while studying the atrocities committed by the Ottoman empire against the Armenians, coined the term “genocide” in his book, Axis Rule in Occupied Europe, defined genocide as destroying the fundamental elements of a group’s existence, including its culture, language, religion, and national identify. The term, as defined by Lemkin, did not require the deliberate killing of all members of the group.
I have for several months resisted the accusation that Israel’s conduct in Gaza constitutes genocide. The idea that the victims of the Nazi genocide would themselves engage in the genocide of another people struck me as an anti-Semitic, despicable slur. But seeing reports and images of Israel’s total destruction of Gaza, its killing of thousands of innocent civilians as it bombs Gaza hospitals, its restriction of the delivery of food to Palestinians, in the name of its objective of destroying Hamas, on the basis that Hamas constitutes a continuing existential threat to Israel’s survival, has persuaded me that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, as defined by Lemkin, as painful as that conclusion is for me. Moreover, given the likelihood that it is known in advance that Israel’s actions will cause the magnitude of death and destruction to Palestinian civilians, how can Israel’s claim that it is not acting deliberately be deemed credible?
This issue presents a fundamentally moral question for Jews, both in Israel and in the United States. Why is its morality, or lack thereof, not being discussed in the Jewish community? Why is whether Israel’s conduct comports with the teachings of Torah not being more fully and openly discussed in the Jewish community, particularly as we approach the High Holy Days and Yom Kippur? Can Judaism survive as a moral religion if Jews continue to avoid discussing this question?
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19 September 2025
MS said:
US Sen. Van Hollen defends Gaza report accusing Netanyahu of ‘ethnic cleansing’
"CNN..."
It is ethnic cleansing, and it is immoral and anti-Jewish. Jews everywhere should be standing up and denouncing it as a violation of Torah and a desecration of Judaism, the week before the High Holy Days.
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MS said:
We’ve had Live Aid concerts to help Aids victims.
We’ve had Farm Aid concerts to help struggling farmers.
We’ve had Bangladesh Aid concerts to help the citizens of Bangladesh suffering from civil war.
Why not a Democracy Aid concert to help the victims of an authoritarian government right here in the United States and to save our democracy?
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20 September 2025
MS said:
Democrats, Your Job Is to Defend Democracy
Sept. 18, 2025
"NYTimes..."
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22 September 2025
MS said:
I wish to point out that there is evidence that, on occasion, modest miracles can happen.
Years ago, when I posted comments on Prof. Wolff’s blog, s. wallerstein and I disagreed vehemently, and often.
We disagreed primarily about Israel. I defended Israel and Judaism to the hilt, against Steve’s vigorous criticisms.
Now, he and I are on opposite sides, with Steve suggesting to me that I be more charitable.
It is either a miracle, or one of us has gone crazy.
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MS said:
Some light cinema trivia diversion.
What actress broke the film director’s heart?
…..Director Victor Fleming….and…..Ingrid Bergman….were having an affair while filming “Joan of Arc”/1948.
He really lost it over her.
After filming was completed, Ms. Bergman took off to Rome & Rossellini.
Fleming was broken.
He went back to his wife and ranch in Arizona. Died 2 weeks late
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27 September 2025
MS said:
The issue of birthright citizenship is now front and center.
Yesterday, ICE officials arrested Ian Roberts, the superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, on charges that he is an illegal alien, and therefore unlawfully had a loaded handgun and hunting knife in his possession.
Wikipedia states:
“In 1973, Roberts was born. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York.” His parents were from Guyana.
This does not expressly state that Roberts was born in New York, but it certainly implies it. We will have to wait to see what his birth certificate says.
But, regardless, unless ICE has contrary information, the arrest does appear to be racial profiling.
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The End.