Toward Downfall, &c.

On Iran, Ukraine, Russia, ICE, Jerome Powell, golf, English, and more

The Ayatollah Khomeini, when ruling (Photo from Wikimedia)

There are a thousand things to say about Iran. Maybe I’ll say one of them. The triumph of Khomeini’s revolution in 1979 ushered in a world of bad—for Iranians, for the region, for everybody. We can hope that the downfall of Khomeini’s regime—which will happen one day, if not tomorrow—will usher in commensurate good.

One more thing: The bodies are piling up on the streets of Iran. The people protesting on those streets are incredibly—almost unfathomably—brave.

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About Ukraine? Just one news story. As reported by the Associated Press,

Russia launched a second major drone and missile bombardment of Ukraine in four days, officials said Tuesday, aiming again at the power grid amid freezing temperatures ...

One strike in the northeastern Kharkiv region killed four people at a mail depot, and several hundred thousand households were without power in the Kyiv region ...

Day after day, the war crimes pile up. Russia is a terror-state. Yet it is admired, and defended, by millions in the Free World. Which goes to something dark in us, which is to say, humanity.

A Ukrainian tennis player, Marta Kostyuk, played in a tournament in Brisbane. She made remarks to the crowd, as you can watch her do here. “I want to say a few words about Ukraine,” she said.

I play every day with a pain in my heart. There’s thousands of people who are without light and warm water right now. It’s minus-20 degrees outside, so it’s very, very painful to live this reality every day.

And, you know, it’s very hot here in Brisbane, so it’s difficult to imagine this, but my sister is sleeping under three blankets because of how cold it is at home ...

Every little bit helps, I think. Every nugget of information, every expression of concern, every appeal to solidarity—anything that might jar the conscience of the world.

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About the killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis, by an ICE agent, there are a thousand things to say. Maybe I could try—three or four?

A headline reads, “Tensions flare in Minnesota as protesters and federal agents repeatedly square off.” (The article under the headline is here.) I believe we’re entitled to ask: Are the agents there to protect? Or to provoke?

Next, have a look at this:

Is it too much to say that this is America encapsulated? Yes, it is too much to say. Still, the exchange captures a lot.

Over and over, Trump-administration officials have called Renee Good a “domestic terrorist.” Yet they portray Ashli Babbitt—the woman shot to death by a Capitol Hill cop on January 6—as a patriot, hero, and martyr.

“An innocent, wonderful, incredible woman,” Trump has said, “shot by a lunatic.”

Earlier this month, the White House published a document about January 6 that included this heading: “Ashli Babbitt Murdered in Cold Blood.”

Man is tribal, and America is now pulsating with tribalism.

One more item, for now. I wonder whether you saw this story. I have linked to an AP report, which begins as follows:

Approaching the fifth anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, the official plaque honoring the police who defended democracy that day is nowhere to be found.

It’s not on display at the Capitol, as is required by law. Its whereabouts aren’t publicly known, though it’s believed to be in storage.

Yes, of course. (I’m surprised it hasn’t been melted down.) “Back the blue!” they say. “Blue lives matter!” Right up to the moment when the tribal imperative dictates otherwise ...

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A word—just a word—about antisemitism. The young man (19) who torched a Mississippi synagogue has been found. Jason Kenney, that fine Canadian conservative, had an observation to make.

There are podcasters and the like—“influencers”—“who have been deliberately pushing antisemitism to their online audiences, made up disproportionately of disaffected young men.” And “this was bound to move from words to action.”

I often think of Oscar Hammerstein II—who wrote, “You’ve got to be carefully taught.” No one is born Jew-hating (or anti-black or whatever). No, you’ve got to be carefully taught.

Let me quote a full stanza:

You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear,
You’ve got to be taught from year to year,
It’s got to be drummed in your dear little ear—
You’ve got to be carefully taught!

Maybe one more stanza:

You’ve got to be taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes are oddly made,
And people whose skin is a different shade—
You’ve got to be carefully taught.

Yup. And they are. (It’s up to others to “counter-teach.”)

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A word about Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve chairman, on whom Trump has sicced the Department of Justice? Powell came out swinging—but in a very modest, plain way.

That’s the power of his statement, I believe. Powell is not a performer. He is not “performative.” He’s not a media personality. Not a TikTok-er. He’d make a lousy cable guest. He is out of step with our time. He’s from a different era, a different planet.

What a breath of fresh air. Could there be a market for integrity? Simple, plainspoken honesty? That would be something ...

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I would like to share two podcasts I have recently done: about Venezuela and about Denmark and Greenland.

The first is with Otto Reich, a veteran foreign-policy hand who has been a friend of mine for a long time. Under Reagan and Bush 41, he was ambassador to Venezuela. Under Bush 43, he was assistant secretary of state for the Western hemisphere.

And the second, about Denmark and Greenland? My guest is Per Stig Møller, the Danish politician and statesman who was foreign minister of his country for about ten years.

From men such as these, you can learn a lot.

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Throw some music at you, in the form of a review? The New York Philharmonic played a concert of Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich. The conductor was Gianandrea Noseda. There was a piano soloist, who was Behzod Abduraimov. My review is here.

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A little language? Last month, I noticed a tweet from the secretary of defense:

That ought to be “sank,” right? Yes, but in casual English, many say “sunk” in a case like that.

You may recall a 1989 movie: Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. That should have been “Shrank.” But ...

We all know a song from our childhood:

You’re a foul one, Mister Grinch.
You’re a nasty, wasty skunk.
Your heart is full of unwashed socks,
Your soul is full of gunk, Mister Grinch.

The three words that best describe you are as follows—
And I quote:
“Stink,” “stank,” “stunk.”

I could go on ...

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Look at Andy North, in amazing form at the top (of his swing). I must say, I was drawn to the smile on the face of that lady sitting down:

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Here is a sight I like to snap: the USS Intrepid, in the Hudson River, at Manhattan, featuring what looks like a Bomb Pop:

Talk to you soon, my friends. Many thanks.