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Remembering the Nazis’ overriding plan — and the history of Jewish persecution

Someone once told me that when you reach a certain age, nothing is shocking. How untrue that is. I was shocked to listen to a broadcast on WBRE on International Holocaust Remembrance Day which referred to “millions of people” killed during World War II. This was followed by a blurry picture of a nondescript group of people wearing what appeared to be long black trench coats. After that, there was a Jehovah’s Witness opinion piece referring to the thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses among the “millions of Nazism’s victims.” Neither the WBRE broadcast nor the op-ed said ...

What’s tricky about the latest round of COVID-19 variants?

No matter where we come from or what we look like, all humans share the same 99.6% of our DNA. That means that all the beautiful, biologically-driven diversity among people comes from a tiny fraction of our genetic material. In half of the population —biologic human males — the single Y-chromosome is inherited directly and unchanged from father to son. Because that chromosome never recombines in the process of reproduction, men can theoretically trace their paternal lines and geographic origins back to ancient times. Occasional mistakes do occur, however, when the Y-chromosome is ...

Don’t rule out entitlement reform

If you follow policy debates long enough, arguments you never thought you’d hear can become key components of the two parties’ policy platforms. That’s certainly the case when it comes to some Republicans and their new “never touch Social Security and Medicare” position. Recently, newly elected GOP Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio tweeted that former President Donald Trump was 100% correct to demand that “Under no circumstances should Republicans vote to cut a single penny from Medicare or Social Security.” Vance’s tweet was issued amid the debt-ceiling fight, but this position ...

The separation of powers — in the United States and in Israel

The debate over separation of powers is said to have its origin in a proposal by the French political philosopher Montesquieu, first annunciated in De l’esprit des lois, The Spirit Of The Laws, 1748. English philosopher, John Locke, had written about the division of power between King and Parliament. In the Biblical system, there was always to be a separation between King and High Priest, as well as between King and Prophet. When the Hasmoneans violated the separation of powers, major disruption ensued, until it was restored by Queen Alexandra Salome by the appointment of her brother, ...

Health equity and COVID-19

I knew a homeless veteran who lived in a homeless shelter. When I met him, he was unkempt and appeared to be isolating. He would not eat or come out of his room. I sensed something was wrong, and sent him to the hospital. The hospital discharged him and sent him back within a couple of hours. He had discharge papers but no medical diagnosis or instructions showing on his paperwork. He continued to sleep and would not consume food or water. He was returned to the hospital thrice in 24 hours, and the same outcome occurred. I made some calls and got him seen at the Veterans hospital ...

Thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses among the millions of Nazism’s victims

Today — January 27 — the world marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day, a symbolic date to commemorate the victims of Nazism. Murderous Nazi terror targeted millions for reasons of biology, nationality, or political ideology. But few people know that the Nazis’ victims included thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses, who suffered for their Christian faith. Jehovah’s Witnesses, also then known as Bible Students, were “the only group in the Third Reich to be persecuted on the basis of their religious beliefs alone,” says Professor Robert Gerwarth. The Nazi regime branded ...