Thursday, June 1, 2023. As the underpinnings of our government and society seem to be unraveling, the longstanding respect for sportsmanship also has gone out of bounds. Parents and athletes both have shown an unhinged willingness to attack the referees, the coaches, the other teams, each other. It is a metaphor for our times…The Republican Party, long the self-proclaimed party of family rights and minimal government interference in our day-to-day lives, has declared war on family decision making and young people. The entire LGBTQ community, pregnant women, Holocaust studies, entertainment decisions, child labor laws—even the country itself by kidnapping the debt ceiling and demanding ransom-- all under a fusillade by an increasingly authoritarian, reactionary unhinged GOP…Not to be outdone, the national; socialist Democrats, led by Tlaib the Terrible, staunch Israelophobic and Palestinian jihadist, held a Nakba event in the Capitol Building. This get-together was an orgy of Jewhatred never seen in Congress. While Speaker McCarthy denied them the public flogging of the world’s only Jewish majority state, the Squad’s pet Jew, Sen Sanders, rushed to their rescue, finding a Senate room for them, thereby giving the event an ersatz patina of respectability…Now that a deb celling deal has been reached, I can’t say I’m not disappointed President Biden did not invoke the 14th Amendment. It would’ve have vitiated budget terrorism forever. It would ‘ve backed into a corner all the strict constructionists” who say do what the Constitution says the way it was written. “The validity of the public debt…shall not be questioned.” It would force these mostly hard right wingers to decide on their oft-invoked principle or their politics. Would’ve been fun.
Tuesday, April 25,2023. According to news media and a UN report, over 500 children have been killed in the Russian attack on Ukraine. Defectors from the Wagner Group, the mercenary outfit supplying thugs for Putin’s wet dream, have confessed to executing about forty of threm. Europe hasn’t seen such savagery since the Third Reich…Russia has also transported Ukrainian children to Russia for repatriation. The sadistic nature of such a policy recalls the cruelty of Trump-era kidnapping and family demolition at the US southern border. As of Feb 2023, nearly 1,000 kids are still separated from their families, according to Reuters…A shocking study by the CDC sounds the alarm on the deteriorating mental and emotional health of our young people. To Democrats and Republicans, I’ll repeat law officer Jim Malone’s mantra to Eliot Ness in The Untouchables: “What are you prepared to do!?”…As George Santos (R-NY) sports an AR-15 lapel pin advocating it be named the country’s national gun, I have only one question for the voters of New York’s 3rd Congressional District: “What are you prepared to do?”
Wednesday, Mar 22, 2023…A new competition is on among the Red states. Which self-proclaimed but misnomered “pro-life” government will be the first to execute a 16-year-old girl for aborting a pregnancy, a proposal being led by South Carolina…Ron DeSantis and his state GOP now want bloggers located in Florida who write about politics register with his regime. The mere suggestion reeks of Nazi Germany’s Reichskulturkammer, to which all writers and artists were obligated to join. The price of admission was your Nazi Party membership card; to maintain your good standing professionally, you had to toe the party line. Given the Governor’s other repressive measures, I wonder where democracy would go under a Chancellor--oops--President DeSantis…Speaking of Florida, Republican legislator Stan McClain is sponsoring a bill to prohibit talk of menstruation in schools until 6th grade, along with other restrictions on sexuality topics. I now understand what Governor DeS means by the Free State of Florida free from gays, free from books, free from medical defenses against disease, free from women’s health services, and free from menstruation before the age of 12. Perhaps we will see some Red state legislator write a bill making that illegal. Violations would be punishable by death for any girl who has her period before 6th grade.The Sunshine State and the Palmetto State race neck-and-neck to the finish line of history: Which will be the first one to hang a teenage girl for an abortion next to her fifth grade sister for menstruating. Does the TGBL blog now have to register in Florida? I guess Florida is free from the First Amendment too…The New York Post quoted the Staten Island DA Michael McMahon on a recent spate of student shootings and stabbings, offering his view on why: ” …bad laws and young people who are disconnected from responsible behavior”. While that’s not the whole picture, McMahon’s dart is close to the bullseye. The progressives’ au courant negative discipline over the last ten years has given rise to a cottage industry around restorative justice, education lawyers, consultants , counselors, comp jobs, and ersatz therapy sessions. Everybody’s a winner--except the victims of school crime.
Wednesday, March 8,2023: After an extended absence, it’s good to be back writing on the myriad issues affecting our kids and our kids at school. I look forward to a more regular posting of new commentary, dollops and stingers, the daily beelines, and other additions from the educational underground. TGBL will also have eyes on international education impacting the health of the world’s young…I’m still trying to see how Gov De Santis’ war on Disney World upholds conservative values, considering his rants about government overreach against Covid mandates in a pubic health emergency, who now punishes a private business for internal policies. Are we witnessing the end of the Republican conservativism and the birth of a mutated party?...The GOP movement taking aim at naming the AR-15 assault rifle as the national gun manifests irresponsibility as lawmakers and, as people, contempt for adults and kids killed by the hands of active shooters—especially school mass murderers whose weapon of choice is the made-for-war assault rifle AR-15--also the principle weapon in the 2017 attack in Las Vegas, killing 58 people…Bowdlerizing Roald Dahl’s works for more acceptable sensibilities violates the first amendment and attacks free expression. It is no different than the Popes or John Ashcroft covering the private parts of public statuary. The Left and the Right meet again, to everyone’s detriment. TGL will explore this issue more fully later this month… One of the worst commercials appearing in the last year was a mom slinking down in her Infiniti, shutting her window to block out a school orchestra’s cacophony of 2001 A Space Odyssey’s famous opening. Besides selling a car to moms who can’t stand listening to a kids’ concert, we now have a car company ad modeling today’s parenting technique…give ‘em hell, mommy!
September 1, 2021. Texas district suffered two teachers’ deaths by COVID. They taught at the same school. All five campuses in the district now shut down. Can someone please talk sense into the Texas state government, or have they lost their minds totally?… North Carolina suffered two school shootings in one week in this nascent year. While not many details have emerged from both incidents, The first shooting victim will survive; the second died from his wounds. It is not just gun control, it is the gun culture. We will have more such incidents, as we are up to 14 for the year… and counting. August 17, 2021. From now on, the first person “I” shall be used much more frequently instead of the third person eponymous Green B Letter or TGBL. While a rule of journalism says op/ed pieces should use first person, internet standards allow blogs and websites to use either one. So, I’m going with first person singular but will synonymously interject TGBL a time or two…TGBL is not ready to award any dollops to Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell, but his urging Covid vaccinations, backed by his personal history of polio, can only be praised and applauded. Late to the party, but welcome nonetheless…New York state has sent a bill to Gov. Cuomo banning child marriage. You will have to be 18 to tie the knot, eliminating the judge’s power to consent for a 17 year-old. Having experienced firsthand the anguish of a middle-school girl already promised to wed a mature man, such protection cannot arrive any sooner. Congrats to NYS, which ended permission for even younger girls to marry several years ago…Whatever happened to protecting the health and welfare of the children as our first priority? Supporters of the COVID19 pandemic has no problem throwing children on the altar of political sacrifice. So much for family values.
August 2, 2021. From now on, the first person “I” shall be used much more frequently instead of the third person eponymous Green B Letter or TGBL. While a rule of journalism says op/ed pieces should use first person, internet standards allow blogs and websites to use either one. So, I’m going with first person singular but will synonymously interject TGBL a time or two…TGBL (told you) is not ready to award any dollops to Kentucky senator Moscow Mitch McConnell, but his urging Covid vaccinations, backed by his personal history of polio, can only be praised and applauded. Late to the party, but welcome nonetheless…New York state has sent a bill to Gov. Cuomo banning child marriage. You will have to be 18 to tie the knot, eliminating the judge’s power to consent for a 17 year-old. Having experienced first hand the anguish of a middle-school girl already promised to wed a mature man, such protection cannot arrive any sooner. Congrats to NYS, which ended permission for even younger girls to marry several years ago…Showmatch, an Argentine TV talent show, used Anne Frank’s picture as a background for a song about women who don’t want to stay home but seek worldy pursuits. Exploiting a murdered girl from one of the history’s greatest crimes for a snicker or two manifests bad judgment and awful taste. It only reinforces antiJewish attitudes and mocks the Holocaust. Perhaps that was the intent, maybe not. But they could have used a Black slave too, but didn’t. Not that that would be any better, but one can’t help but feel a callous disregard. At least an apology by the producers was offered, admitting a terrible mistake. I believe in a full and robust freedom of speech, but that also includes a responsibility for how you use it. Hopefully, lesson learned.
June 7, 2021. Covid-19 took no adolescent lives from Jan 1- Mar 31, which is great news. However, a recent uptick of cases in young people, including the need for ICU beds and ventilators, has some medical and scientific professionals worried. Mask wearing, distancing and increased vaccinations—the troika of right wing (and some left anti-vaxxers) efforts to thwart recovery from the disease—must continue for us to beat down COVID-19, as we have been doing…A concern has arisen regarding giving the vaccines to teens in which tissues around the heart become enflamed, a rare cardiac occurrence. Evidence says the statistics are normal for the appearance of the rare affliction, and nothing suggests a nexus to vaccines in kids. Experts will be monitoring nonetheless. Given the deaths of hundreds of children and hospitalization of thousands, it would seem contracting COVID is far worse than what appears a non-existent risk from the vaccine.
June 1, 2021. COVID-19 took a toll not only on our lives, but the way we live them. Routines broken, relationships separated, quarantine and isolation, alone or with family. huddled together as our caves offered shelter from the threatening outside, a virus shelter wed prayed would be invasion-proof. Responsibilities took new and difficult turns, even for those who escaped infection. TGBL once again had to suspend operations as more immediate and personal needs took precedence. Right now, we give one glance in the rearview mirror reflecting the path driven. With the past year retreating, it is eyes forward, as we step on the back-to-business pedal and accelerate down the bumpy, mine-filled roads ahead. Hold onto your hats.
Feb. 11 2021. Still cannot find the right balance or formula to resume schooling and high-risk athletics, though many school districts are expanding their varsity sports…Las Vegas teen suicides spiked so high that Clark County opened up its doors earlier than expected as the isolation and lack of normalcy were cited as major contributing factors…Conservatives, and frustrated liberal parents who actually have to raise their own kids blame teachers and their unions for delaying full school openings due to health concerns, labeling them fraidy cats and imperious as others face work-related COVID hazards without bitchin’. What a terrible thing of these teachers to expect high standards of protection against a pandemic that has cost 500,000 lives in the US. Most schools, especially urban ones have poor ventilation broken windows, and kids who will deliberately spit on door handles or people these days yelling “COVID!” at the target. Schools are not you’re your typical business office...Rochester, NY police cuffed and pepper sprayed what appeared to be a nine year old girl in a violent fit whose threats of suicide and killing her mother prompted calls to the police in the first place. If you don’t want such incidents repeated, don’t call the police--have a special team of pediatric mental health workers who respond to acute crises of out of control, suicidal, matricidal threatening children or adults in similar cases of mentally disturbed people. Only teachers and others who work with all kinds of children know the injury and risk children pose in the midst of a rage. Before the two RPD heads roll, maybe Rochester and other cities ought to think about how they want to handle these situations going forward. We’re sure RPD would love to hand this off to professionals in juvenile mental heath. Scapegoating two officers for bad optics in a scenario they were ill-prepared for is an injustice and costs the city two officers with ruined careers. Lost in all the mess is the fact that the girl was unhurt and the mother wasn’t killed, the possibilities of which were why the cops were there…The Long Island Grinch Who stole the post-holiday spirit deserves the Bronx Cheer. The perp sent out letters to a family who continued to display Christmas decorations to honor two relatives who died of COVID. “Take down your Christmas decorations. It’s Valentine’s Day!” read the note. Maybe we need to change the biblical “We are our brother’s keeper” to “Everybody is everybody else’s boss.” The community is rallying around the aggrieved neighbor. Let’s have a thousand points of light!
JAN. 28, 2021. MIS-C in children has often flown under the radar, mostly because its numbers are not high compared to the general COVID devastation. However, the virus’ numbers are rising among kids: 350,000 cases, 7 deaths in CAL; Omaha, NB’s Children’s Hospital and Medical Center reports largest number of COVID related MIS-C cases, several of whom had to go on heart-lung machines. Other states report similar situations…It will be very interesting to see how school curricula teaches about Jan 6, now taking its place next to April 12, 1865, Dec. 7, 1941, and Sept. 11, 2001 as the most heinous dates in American history…Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green, our first Congresswoman to represent both a district in the United States (R-GA) and a planet in an alternate universe. Her belief that the massacre of 17 in Parkwood was a false flag and Sandy Hook’s 26 dead was staged were found on her Twitter account. As far as TGBL knows, it was expressed in English and not in her native tongue, originating somewhere in the Horsehead Nebula. We can only hope her brain cells recover because if such stupidity votes on vital matters of life and death, war and peace, we can only paraphrase Shakespeare: if more be brained like her, the state totters…Washington Post did a story on the need for civility and etiquette’s return to travel, especially in the on-edge pandemic age: “Travelers should be patient, civil, and courteous to each other”. Geez, how un-American can you get?
Dec 15 to Jan. 8, 2021. Happy New Year to All! TGBL’s extended time off is over and now its back to work…In Texas an 18 year old football player—who is also a wrestling star—got thrown out of a game for a cheap shot on an opponent. He walks to the sideline and then sprints across the field, blindsiding the 58 yr old referee sent flying to the turf. In NYC two dozen bicyclists stopped traffic and began to beat up a BMW as the occupants feared for their lives. We are firmly convinced the underlying cause of such incidents relates to the evisceration of true character building through acceptance of one’s responsibility for his or her own actions through effective school discipline. TGBL bets the farm that no study will be done to ascertain a nexus between adolescent anti-social oppositional activity and the end of real consequences for poor school behavior. Teachers and other school community members experience it every day, and now innocent citizens get their own taste of kids gone wild…Earlier in the year a dean at New York City’s CUNY Law School upheld the right to immolate a student because, according to her, lighting up a fellow student falls within free speech. More on this in a future issue of the Green B Letter…Dr. Nahid Bhadelina.an infectious disease expert said “our health care system is facing collapse” given the number of patients for whom doctors must make life-and-death decisions that must be made in hospitals overtaken by a viral tsunami…Children are more susceptible to the new mutant COVID strain recently discovered. While not more lethal but more contagious, this means more kids getting COOVID will result in more once-healthy kids suffering from MIS-C –multiple system inflammatory syndrome. How many politicians who were killing off your grandparents to fully open their states and cities will now demand we sacrifice kids for the greater good? Assemble at the public square and bring your swaddled. COVID has exposed our health care system as pathetically behind in affordable care and mass epidemic preparation. We need to get away from work-based insurance and for-profit HMOs.
An old radio host used to sign off: “Your influence counts--use it! A lesson learned by the Big Med –Political--Economic complex…Stay safe.
Dec 5 -12 2020: Good news on one front: Vaping among teens, especially middle schoolers, is way down. Let’s hope the trend continues…Put aside the vast seriousness of the situation for just a moment and admit the Queens street fight between Cuomo and Trump rivals the climax of “Enter the Dragon” as Lee and Norris duke it out in the Roman Colosseum …Wayne Sebastianelli, from CNN, reports Penn State Univ Director of Athletic Medicine, said 30-35% of all Covid-19 positive athletes had an inflamed heart. If you want college football and basketball, tell your leaders to fix the problem instead of trying to sacrifice the players’ health and lives for their own political advantage.
Can Pres Trump stop his war on America? If he knew what he was doing and cared for anyone but himself, America’s economy and cities would be in a much better economic position. Trump’s threat to withhold federal funds just adds to destabilizing America and punishing people whom he perceives are against him. He not only rejects the idea of being a president for all the people, he actively seeks their harm as sacrifices to his re-election. TGBL finds this an unmitigated attack on families and children, who are suffering enough in this health emergency. The president awaits the mantle of a Stalin, a Mao, a Pol Pot. Of course, he wouldn’t even know who Pol Pot was…Teachers, especially in New York, have received a fair amount of criticism for their push back via union leadership about opening the schools. NYC finally decided to delay the opening too late September. What the critics need to understand is that nothing in the NYC Department of Education goes according to plan, nor do they do what is promised. When teachers hear the DOE will do everything necessary to keep them safe, the skepticism remains high – ventilation, air conditioning, social distancing—even the city recognizes they were not ready to open…22 teachers have tested positive, and that’s without the kids. College Administrations fret like parents as the students party till dawn and face Covid-19 rather than mere hangovers. SUNY Oneonta, NYU, Univ of Iowa among others across the country are either shutting down, going strictly online, or the admins are laying on the floor in a fetal position with their thumbs deeply planted in their mouths.
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 19, 2020: Gov Andrew Cuomo, a speaker at the DNC virtual convention, was asked if he felt any pressure from his father, the late Gov Mario Cuomo whose 1984 speech at the Democratic get-together still resonates 35 years later. “Do I feel pressure from my father’s legacy? Everyday!”, he responded. A nice personal confession so many sons of far less famous fathers feel…Postmaster General DeJoy suspended “reforms” until after the election. The outcry and outrage of sabotaging the mail delivery sent shivers through American spines that always stood tall and strong for American loyalty and values. Not only were the changes premeditated attempts to disrupt our elections, but our people rely on the USPS for medicine, checks, goods from stores and family, important information and documents, just about anything. They are stamped not only with postage, but with reassurance and relief that in these times no matter what, the mail will go through. Families’ disrupted lives are now hard enough under the pandemic, and those precious pieces of mail help households stay sane. Whoever thought that Costner’s film “The Postman”, a forgettable concoction centering on a letter carrier and the mail, would suddenly emanate prescience.
