I blame partially the city politicians for the crime; New York City, as anyone who lives here knows, is not a ‘safe’ place, yet over and over we hear from our leaders that New York ‘is the safest city in the country.’ That assertion, often proclaimed by Mayor de Blasio, was and is irresponsible; any reasonably intelligent New Yorker knows the city is often a dangerous place, especially now with all the homeless and mentally disturbed hassling us on the streets and in the subways. Mr. de Blasio was contending for President -- running his mouth with the manifest lie that the city is the ‘safest’ might have impressed voters in Iowa [although I doubt it] but no New Yorker believes that the city is virtually crime-free for a moment. The Barnard student, new to New York, may have been lulled into a false sense of safety, and that could have contributed to her death.
And here’s something else I’d like my readers to ponder: a few months ago, a law went into effect banning ‘stop and frisk’ actions by the NYC police; the argument was that stop and frisk searches in the hands of some cops were abused, with minorities disproportionally targeted. Of course, there may have been abuses; some cops unaccountable for their activities will certainly take advantage. But, let’s remember that there’s no free lunch in police law enforcement. The police banning of stop and frisk means there are going to be some future crimes committed by young men that could have been thwarted by police action. This is a fact: the Barnard student was stabbed by a 14-year-old, looking to rob someone, and carrying a six-inch knife, at night in a city park, an activity that police on the ground could have prevented. An unspeakable loss.
Iraq Tells Us to Leave….In the immediate aftermath of the Suleiman killing, the Iraq leadership has demanded that the United States, in theory its ally, evacuate American military bases throughout Iraq, and leave immediately. Huh?
That’s what they want us to do? The American response should be obvious: ‘Hasta La Vista, Baby. We’re out of this hellhole. Give us six months and we’ll be completely gone. And we are never coming back EVER.’
What a strange situation: here we have the Iraqis, who certainly can use our assistance to combat terrorist forces in the county, and who are supposed to be our allies, telling us to leave. What the hell’s going on? For one thing, we got rid of your homicidal monster Hussein, didn’t we?
So, let’s take them at their word, and get the hell out as fast as we can. Enough already with the ceaseless bloodbath that is the Middle East: we’ve given up enough American blood, and things aren’t getting any better over there, so let’s end it once and for all. If the nut-job, would-be martyrs who run these countries want to continue with all the killing, and after all the billions of dollars in assistance we’ve poured into Iraq [and the rest of the Middle East], our soldiers should pile on planes and ships and come home quickly.
Oh, by the way, let’s make sure to retrieve and ship home every piece of military hardware, including guns, tanks, computers, hammers, and every nail, everything, that’s over there. Otherwise, as certain as the sun will rise tomorrow in the East, down the road, all that material and armaments left will be blown back to kill us by future enemies, the same countries that claim they are our ‘friends’ at the moment.
Donald Trump never ceases to amaze me: just when I’m convinced he’s reached the absolute bottom in terms of his crudeness and cruelty towards human beings, he always surprises me as to the depth of his meanness and venality. The other day, he posts a doctored photograph of Nancy Pelosi clad in Muslim garb, including an hajji covering on her head. This happened after Ms. Pelosi had the temerity to ask questions regarding the decision to kill Iran’s General Suleiman. Mr. Trump, in his inimitable meathead fashion, was insinuating Ms. Pelosi was backing Iran. What a jerk our President is.
The gesture by Mr. Trump reminded me of a historic event in 1953 featuring Republican Senator Joseph R. McCarthy and a subcommittee hearing he was heading.** Mr. McCarthy’s committee was searching for Communists amidst the federal government in televised proceedings. A couple of months into the hearings, Joe McCarthy accused the opposing Army attorney of harboring a young Communist in his legal firm. The opposing attorney, Joseph Welsh, listened to Mr. McCarthy for a minute or two, as the senator railed against the young man. Then, in beautifully understated, quiet language, Mr. Welsh replied, ‘Let us not assassinate this lad any further, Senator. Have you no sense of decency?’
At that moment, the career of Joseph McCarthy was finished. Public approval vanished, as President Dwight Eisenhower decided after the hearings to abandon Mr. McCarthy. His heavy drinking increased, and he was dead three years later.
Thankfully, Mr. Welsh’s words still reverberate today, almost 70 years later. Readers, I leave you with this: ‘Mr. Trump, have you no sense of decency?’
** ‘Point of Order’, a documentary on the McCarthy-Army hearings, by Emilio de Antonio, 1964, is available on DVD. It’s very good.
Mr. Gripes
By Jim Israel
January 15, 2020
