Osnat Barzani: Her Dove, Her Story and Her People

Many historical figures were reputed to be great beauties, from Helen of Troy and Cleopatra to Marie Antoinette. Many historical figures were reputed to be great scholars, from Plato and Aristotle to Adam Smith. We know more of the latter because knowledge and wisdom are more easily preserved than appearance. She should be better known […]

The Unthinkable Became Normal

A world in which everything once unthinkable became normal, would not be livable.

Kill the Indian/Jew, Save the Child

There is a sad children’s story about a Czarist Russian soldier who threatened an elderly, terrified Jewish man. The brutal soldier rolled up his sleeve to administer a beating, revealing an ugly scar on his forearm. The old man looked at the scar and froze. “Yossele?” he said to the soldier. “Huh? Who’s Yossele?” Tears […]

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year (we hope) It’s the five thousand, seven hundred and eighty second birthday of that fourteen-billion-year-old ball of rock and water we call home (see Happy Quantum New Year for the math). The day is relevant to all humans, not just the Jews. After a year like 5781, everyone should take it seriously. […]

COVID: The Questions Stand

Though answers may change, many questions stand. Dr. Anthony Fauci made an important statement about the fluid responses to the Wuhan virus. “So when you hear someone say something at one point and then two or three months later, if you stick with what you said at the original time when you had one-fifth of […]

What Are You, Transformed Person?

Transgender rights (privilege, if you prefer), are an intractable issue in contemporary Western culture. Is a man who decides he’s a woman entitled to be treated as one? In the novel Quantum Cannibals Aarluk, a major character, changes from male to female as part of becoming a powerful shaman. (S)He marries and copulates with a […]

Beauty and Wisdom- The Character

There’s an ancient story about a man who was walking down the road when he encountered a great sage, whom he greeted with great respect. The rabbi replied “You worthless, ugly person. Are all the people of your city as ugly as you?” The man rebuked him, saying “I don’t know, but you should say […]

Sexy Cuties: Art or Abomination?

This is the first in a series of posts introducing characters from the novel Quantum Cannibals Alex is a secondary character in Quantum Cannibals. He’s a renowned poet whose wife tells a friend “Alex likes young men and boys.” The character was inspired by the pederasty of beat poet and cultural icon Allen Ginsberg. He […]

Trying To Be a Good Character

The novel Quantum Cannibals has a large cast of characters, some evil, some saintly. Most are complex, neither black nor white. A person can be a good character, but simply confused when facing an impossible situation. All of the characters in the book are intended to reflect back on our non-fictional world, to say something […]

The Plague of Our Complacency

The coronavirus pandemic could be something out of a horror movie, perhaps from sci-fi, a thriller… mystery… existential fiction. What the world is experiencing with the coronavirus has been well covered in literature and film, dealing with questions of the origin of the plague, and how people, society, the world responds. The book may focus […]

Two Plus Two Equals Five: the Miracle of Limited Understanding

1921-22, among the Iglulik Eskimo (Inuit): “I once went out to Aua’s hunting quarters on the ice outside Lyon Inlet… For several evenings we had discussed rules of life without getting beyond a long and circumstantial statement of all that was permitted and all that was forbidden. Everyone knew precisely what had to be done […]

new book: Zionism- An Indigenous Struggle

I am pleased to announce that a new book ZIONISM- AN INDIGENOUS STRUGGLE, co-edited by Machla Abramovitz and me will soon be published by the Canadian Institute for Jewish Research (CIJR) and RVP Press. This one is non-fiction, but reflects the same interest in aboriginal cultures, exile, and return that lie at the heart of […]

Sexual Violence- Twice a Victim

I’ve been victimized by sexual violence. Lucky me; it’s happened twice, and I was horrified. Let me clarify. I wasn’t horrified when it happened. I thought it was funny back then, and laughed. Rather, I was horrified when told that what happened to me was sexual violence. An educational program I’m taking recently obliged all […]

Cultural Memory, Cultural Dementia

As the population ages, more people suffer from dementia, a devastating disease which shatters a person’s soul. Its main symptoms are loss of memory and the ability to focus. There is often difficulty communicating; it’s a struggle to find the right words. At its onset, dementia is often hard to detect because everybody forgets things, […]

A Beautiful Morning, or…

My wife was shocked to find fecal matter on our kitchen table. She called me over right away, and pointed to a photo: “ENTRANCED: Gifted Montreal designers Fecal Matter admire the mastery of legendary Manfred Thierry Mugler at the official launch…” There it was: in the Social Notes of the Weekend newspaper. Also in attendance […]