Giants Win 4-0

The San Francisco Giants just beat the Texas Rangers to go up 3 games to 1 in the World Series. The Giants need only one more win to win their first World Series since moving to San Francisco. They last won the World Series in 1954 as the New York Giants. To give an idea of how different things were back then:

• Dwight David Eisenhower was in his first of two terms as President
• Republicans would lose control of Congress a month later. Democrats would control Congress uninterrupted for the next 26 years, and the House of Representatives uninterrupted for the next 40
• The Giants played their home games at the Polo Grounds
• Robert F. Wagner, Jr. was the Mayor of New York, the city the Giants called home
• Referring to the New York Giants meant the baseball club. If one wanted to refer to the football team they would say, "the New York Football Giants"
• The Brooklyn Dodgers still played across town at Ebbets Field
• The New York Mets, the team I root for, would not play their first game for another 7 1/2 years
• It was less than 5 months after the Supreme Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, passage of the Civil Rights Act was still nearly another 10 years away, and passage of the Voting Rights Act still nearly another 11 years away
• It was still nearly another 7 years under President Obama was born

The Giants now stand one win away from changing all that and bringing the World Series trophy to San Francisco for the first time.

The Constitution's Forgotten Amendment

This was my first diary over at Daily Kos. Originally published April 13, 2009.

In 1965, in Griswold v. Connecticut (381 U.S. 479) , the Supreme Court ruled that the right of married couples to use contraception was protected by the right of privacy. Justice Arthur Goldberg, in a concurring opinion used the long-forgotten 9th Amendment to defend his decision:

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

During these past 44 years, there has been little use of the 9th Amendment to establish new rights under the Constitution. Instead, the Courts have looked to the 14th Amendment and its Due Process Clause, such as in Roe v. Wade (410 U.S. 113) and Lawrence v. Texas (539 U.S. 558). The 9th Amendment, meanwhile, has seemingly been consigned to the ash heaps of history largely being unused by citizens attempting to establish their rights, and courts establishing those rights.

Watching the World Series Tonight

Fox and Cablevision finally came to an agreement. Right now I have channel 5 on and am watching the World Series for the first time this year. It's the bottom of the 2nd, and Nelson Cruz just hit a lead-off double with no score. And while yes, I know that I could have chosen to get the MLB.tv package and receive a $9.95 credit from Cablevision before Fox came back on the air, it's not the same watching it on the computer as it is watching it on television.

Tonight is effectively a must-win for the Rangers, who are down 2-0 after losing both games in San Francisco. The only team in baseball history to come back from a 3-0 deficit is the 2004 Boston Red Sox, when they fell behind the Yankees 3-0 in the ALCS, won the next 4 to win the ALCS and then swept the Cardinals in the World Series to break the Curse of the Bambino. However, no team has ever come back from down 3-0 in the World Series.

All I have to say right now: Finally! I'm looking forward to watching some good baseball after missing the entire NLCS and the first two games of the World Series.

Go Giants!

I Still Can't Watch The World Series

Yes, I know that Cablevision has offered a $9.95 credit to anyone that orders the mlb.tv package to watch the World Series, but that means watching it online, and not watching it on the television. If the Mets were in it, not only would I order that package, but I would also be calling Cablevision everyday to complain about the lack of World Series coverage.

Still, I'm happy to see the Giants up 2 games to 0. I'm a National League fan, and I want to see the National League team win. The National League is where they play real baseball, and not that imitation baseball where not every player has to hit.

So to those of you out there that are Giants fans, congrats on the lead and hopefully the Giants can put the Series away with 2 more wins in Texas. If you're a Rangers fan, then next time hope you go up against the Phillies, Braves, or Dodgers in the World Series. And if you're a fan one of those three teams, hope you go up against the Yankees in the World Series.

Extremists Continue Lashing Out In Middle East

With each passing day extremists continue lashing out in the Middle East, doing their best to threaten the peace that the majority of Israelis and Palestinians continue hoping for. Today is no exception. Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef made yet another inflammatory statement. Meanwhile, Hamas strategist Mahmoud Al-Zahar made inflammatory remarks of his own in an interview with Reuters and Hamas sent yet another threatening message to Israel. It once again underscores the importance of not letting the extremists win, and simultaneously the importance of the vast majority on both sides seeking peace pushing their leaders to do so.

Will I Get To Watch The World Series?

I'm a Cablevision customer. That means I don't get Fox while News Corporation and Cablevision haggle over fees for retransmitting the Fox broadcast signal. After last year's Satanic Series I actually want to watch the World Series this year. The Rangers vanquished the team I hate most: the Yankees; the Giants vanquished the team I hate the second-most: the Phillies.

What I see here are two greedy corporations fighting over who gets more money. News Corporation simply wants more for allowing Cablevision to retransmit the Fox schedule. Cablevision doesn't want to pay that price. In the end, customers like me get screwed. If News Corporation gets its way, Cablevision simply passes the higher cost onto us. If News Corporation doesn't get its way, the blackout continues and I can't watch the World Series.

News Corporation now suggested that those of us that want to watch the World Series do one of two things:

1. Switch providers to one that currently carries Fox
2. Buy an antenna (and a converter box if need be)

I see big problems with both these options:

1. Nothing prevents News Corporation from having similar disputes with other such providers in the future
2. News Corporation is reminding us that if we don't have cable or satellite then Fox content is available to us for free and they're wanting to charge us for something that we can easily get to free

Like I said, in the end, it's the consumer that gets screwed; not the corporations. The article in The New York Times indicates that Cablevision is hoping for government intervention through any one of several possible options including binding arbitration, the FCC forcing News Corporation to put Fox back on the air on Cablevision while the dispute is resolved, or through federal legislation regulating the carriage of broadcast signals.

While I'm not a Giants fan or Rangers fan, I still want to watch this World Series, and as long as this dispute continues I'll have to listen to the games on the radio if I want to follow the World Series live. If Fox isn't back by the day the World Series starts I might well call and complain and see what happens.

And if it were the Mets in this year's World Series, well then, I'd be angry beyond belief.

Giants Go To The World Series

After the Rangers won last night it was already guaranteed that there would be no repeat of the Satanic Series because the Yankees went home. Now, the other end of the Satanic Series won't happen because the Giants just beat the Phillies to win the NLCS and go to the World Series.

While I'd rather see the Mets going to the World Series, I'm at least happy that the Yankees and Phillies aren't going there. They're the two baseball teams I hate most, and I'm glad to see them watching the World Series from the comfort of their homes.

Now, with the World Series set, I'm rooting for the Giants to win their first World Series since they left the Polo Grounds and New York (they last won the World Series in 1954 when Willie Mays made his famous catch). The reason I'm rooting for the Giants is because I'm a National League fan. I'll root for the NL team unless they're the Phillies, Braves, or Dodgers (I'm a Brooklynite, so I will generally not root for the LOS ANGELES Dodgers). Of course, if any of those three play the Yankees, then I'll root for them because the Yankees are the Yankees. Last year I held my nose and rooted for the Phillies over the Yankees in the Satanic Series.

It also helps that they play real baseball in the National League. In the NL it's understood that all players, including the pitcher, are supposed to hit. So yes, I'm vehemently opposed to the designated hitter.

Go Giants!

Live Blogging The NY Senate Debate

I just live blogged the NY Senate debate between Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Joe DioGuardi over on Daily Kos. Andrew C. White live blogged the debate over at The Albany Project.

I think Gillibrand won this debate, just as she won last week's debate.  DioGuardi once again called Social Security a Ponzi scheme. Maybe Ponzi Joe is making that incorrect conclusion based upon his experience with Ponzi schemes.

Overall, Gillibrand scored her points, highlighting where her positions were in-line with New Yorkers, along with highlighting the hard work she's done for us since she was appointed to the United States Senate. It's important to remember that Senator Gillibrand favors the immediate repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell; that she favors marriage equality; that she favors the Recovery Act, without which the economy would be considerably worse off; that she favors protecting Social Security and not privatizing it or belittling it as a Ponzi scheme; that she favors a woman's right to choose.

On all these issues Joe DioGuardi stands in opposition. He thinks we should defer to the generals on one of the great civil rights issues of our time. He opposes marriage equality. He opposes the Recovery Act and thinks the answer is less regulation and that government shouldn't do anything to help. He keeps on calling Social Security a Ponzi scheme. And he opposes a woman's right to control her own body.

Thankfully, Senator Gillibrand is now comfortably heading towards winning the election to fill out the term of the seat she was appointed to (see New York Times article and data PDF, Siena College poll (warning: PDF), and even Rasmussen). There are still plenty of down-ballot races though where turnout can change the outcome, so it remains as important as ever to get out and vote to help Democrats keep control over the US House (there are at least 6 competitive races in Democratic House seats in New York State) and help expand the majority in the state senate.

Two-for-Two: Rangers Beat the Yankees

The Rangers have beaten the Yankees 10-3 to take a 3-1 lead in the ALCS. One more Texas win ends the Yankees' season and puts the Rangers in the World Series for the first time. It would be that much sweeter to see the Yankees lose, and their season end, at Yankee Stadium.

Knesset Majority Opposes Loyalty Oath

Ha'aretz reports today only 56 MKs support the proposed loyalty oath passed by the government. In addition to the entire opposition, including the far-right National Union, two government parties also oppose the oath: Avodah (Labor) and UTJ (United Torah Judaism, an Ashkenazi Haredi (Ultra-Orthodox) party). The Ha'aretz head count seemingly does not include at least four Likud MKs who publicly oppose the oath: Benny Begin, Michael Eitan, Dan Meridor, and Reuven Rivlin. Begin, Eitan, and Meridor are all cabinet ministers; Rivlin is the Knesset speaker. Their opposition presumably lowers support for the loyalty oath to 52 MKs, nine short of the 61 MKs needed for passage.

Following the furor over the proposed new loyalty oath applying only to non-Jewish new Israeli citizens, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu ordered the Israeli Justice Minister to change the proposed wording to include all new Israeli citizens, both Jew and non-Jew alike. However, the aforementioned Ha'aretz report suggests the proposed revision extending the loyalty oath to Jews could result in opposition from both Shas and Yisrael Beiteinu:

The revised version is likely to be particularly problematic for Shas, which, like UTJ, is an ultra-Orthodox party. UTJ MK Moshe Gafni told Haaretz on Monday that he opposes the bill, in part because of the religious objection to Jews swearing any kind of oath. That reason would presumably apply to Shas as well.

As for Yisrael Beiteinu, it is the party that initially proposed and pushed the bill. But a sizable proportion of its voters are immigrants from the former Soviet Union, and it may therefore be sensitive to the claim made by Edelstein and Elkin that the new version discriminates against immigrants.

Shas leader Eli Yishai (the Israeli Interior Minister) and Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Lieberman (the Israeli Foreign Minister) both opposed extending the proposed loyalty oath to new Jewish citizens of Israel.

While Ha'aretz reported that if current numbers held the loyalty oath would go down to defeat in the Knesset, the opposition continued their attack against the proposed loyalty oath. A group of MKs, artists, and intellectuals met at the Knesset today to express their opposition to the bill, among them Kadima MK Shlomo Molla:

"The country is thriving, but the flood of anti-democratic and anti-Israeli laws in Israel must end. We came here to say, 'Stop (Foreign Minister Avigdor) Lieberman's fascism."

"I am first and foremost a proud Jew, Israeli and Zionist. I am not going to ask that Mohammad Barakeh (Hadash chairman) or Afou Agbaria (Hadash MK) be Zionists. I want to preserve our democracy, because a democracy that does not defend itself is at risk, and we've seen what happened to the Jews when they did not defend themselves," said Molla, who chairs the Knesset's Lobby for the Struggle Against Racism.

I have repeatedly stated that it should not be taken for granted that the entire Knesset would pass the loyalty oath. Therefore, this news, while certainly good, comes as no surprise to me. Based on the very public opposition from Avodah and from senior Likud members, it has always been abundantly clear that the loyalty oath pushed by Yisrael Beiteinu thankfully faced a steep uphill climb. This news only reiterates that.

Hopefully, Prime Minister Netanyahu, cognizant of the damage already caused by proposing this loyalty oath and of the fact that it faces uncertain-to-unlikely prospects for passage, will decide to shelve this bill before it gets to a Knesset vote. Prime Minister Netanyahu will also hopefully fire Avigdor Lieberman, the prime pusher of this "loyalty" agenda.

While I am hopeful that the former will come to pass, I doubt the latter will ever come to pass. In the meantime, I can be somewhat satisfied that while the Israeli government did not do the right thing, it looks like the Knesset will do the right thing.




Cross-posted at Daily Kos.

One Down, One To Go

The Giants defeated the Phillies 3-0 today, giving them a 2-1 advantage in the NLCS.  The Phillies are looking to win their third consecutive National League Pennant, while the Giants are looking to go to the World Series for the first time since 2002, when they lost to the then-Anaheim Angels in seven games.

While not a fan of the club that once upon a time inhabited the Polo Grounds, I am indifferent towards them.  At the same time, I hate the Phillies more than any other club save one: the Evil Empire a.k.a. the New York Yankees.

The Yankees and Rangers play in an hour, and I'm hoping to see Texas take a commanding three games to one lead over the Yankees with one game left to play in New York after that, and potentially two more to play in Arlington.  Obviously, I'm hoping that the Rangers make that unnecessary and simply close out the series in New York.

Tonight's Gubernatorial Debate

Andrew Cuomo and Carl Paladino faced off in their only debate tonight. The two major-party candidates shared the stage with five minor candidates, including Kristin Davis (the so-called Manhattan Madame), NYC councilman Charles Barron, and Jimmy McMillan of the Rent is 2 Damn High Party. I live blogged the debate over at Daily Kos. It was my first-ever attempt at live blogging.

What struck me most about the debate was Paladino's relatively good behavior. Gone was the angry and obnoxious bigot that we had seen in full force the past week. Instead, Paladino remained relatively calm. The real characters in the debate were McMillan and Davis. McMillan concluded nearly every answer with "Rent is too damn high!" Meanwhile, Davis got in a few zingers of her own, particularly against what she termed "career politicians".

In fact, "career politicians" seemed the term of the night for everyone on-stage except Andrew Cuomo. Each of the six other candidates bashed career politicians in one form or another. Barron, at one point, accused Cuomo and his father, former Governor Mario Cuomo, of racism. Paladino discussed cutting spending, although he didn't mention anything about his baseball bat.

All-in-all, tonight's debate seemed relatively tame. I was expecting fireworks, with Carl Paladino providing some more golden material. Instead, aside from the minor candidates, the debate was relatively calm and an actual exchange of policy ideas.

In the end, I think Cuomo won the debate. He clearly possessed a grasp and knowledge of policy unmatched by any of the candidates. Other candidates offered vague proposals that either consisted of pure platitudes or simply did not make any sense. Cuomo offered substantive policy proposals, which while certainly not comprehensive given the limited time in a debate, clearly indicated he possesses a serious plan, something that cannot be said of the other candidates.

Of course, I entered the debate with my mind already made up.  I already knew that I am voting for Andrew Cuomo on November 2. I merely watched for the entertainment value I expected. In some ways, the debate proved disappointing because Paladino did not provide the expected fireworks. However, some of the other candidates did provide those fireworks.

In Defense of Israel

I am a strong supporter of the State of Israel. At the same time, I do not particularly like her current government. Binyamin (Benjamin) Netanyahu is letting himself be held hostage by the extremists in his own government, particularly by Avigdor Lieberman and Yisrael Beiteinu and Eli Yishai and Shas. Netanyahu has had several opportunities to remove both men and their parties from the government and replace it with the Tzipi Livni-led Kadima. However, Netanyahu has refused to do so, and in the process has harmed Israel's interests by helping kill the recently-restrated peace process.

Of course, in this Netanyahu does not share sole blame. Mahmoud Abbas shoulders a fair share of the blame as well. Abbas is the one that refused to return to the negotiating table during the first nine months of the settlement freeze. Abbas is also the one that said Palestinians would never recognize Israel as a Jewish State and would never compromise on their core issues, including the right of return and a border adhering to the 1949 Armistice Lines with no land swaps.

The latter would mean giving up Israeli sovereignty over the Kotel (Western Wall) and recognizing Palestinian sovereignty. That is unacceptable and a clear indication that Abbas is not serious about peace. The Kotel is the holiest place in the world for our people. To force Israel to recognize foreign sovereignty over it now that it is under Israeli sovereignty is akin to asking Muslims to give up Mecca or Catholics to give up the Vatican combined with asking Britain to recognize foreign sovereignty over London or France to recognize foreign sovereignty over Paris.

Throughout its history Israel has fought several wars for its very existence, starting in 1948, when an Arab coalition attacked the newly-established state as it declared independence. Then, after Israel won its War of Independence, rather than sign peace treaties with Israel the Arab governments simply left the armistice in place. It was not until 1979 that an Arab country (Egypt) signed a peace treaty with Israel. It was then another fifteen years until another Arab country (Jordan) signed a peace treaty with Israel. To date, Egypt and Jordan are the only Arab countries at peace with Israel and with full diplomatic relations with Israel.

People must understand that Israel is the historical homeland of the Jewish People. It was where my ancestors came from before they found themselves in Latvia and Poland. It was in Israel that we were forged as a nation. And that legacy continues on today, not only in the modern State of Israel, but also in the fact that as an Ashkenazi Jew my genetic relationship with Sephardi and Mizrachi Jews are ten times closer than any of us are related to the host populations our ancestors lived among in Europe, North Africa, the Levant and Iran.

Most importantly, today I am in exile, in the Diaspora, because that is my choice. I hold only American citizenship and live in the United States because that is my choice. At any time I remain free to pack my bags and return to my ancestral homeland. That is something that was denied to the overwhelming majority of my fellow Jews for nearly 2,000 years. It is for that reason that Israel is so important for me.

Finally, I believe that Zionism can very easily be distilled into the sixth and seventh lines in Hatikvah, Israel's national anthem:

התקוה בת שנות אלפים
להיות עם חפשי בארצנו

The Hope of 2,000 years
To be a free people in our land

Entertainment Provided Courtesy of Carl Paladino

I'm anticipating tonight's New York Gubernatorial Debate. The debate should provide some entertainment value, with not only waiting to see the latest crazy statement made by Republican candidate Carl Paladino, but also from some of the characters debating Andrew Cuomo tonight. I'm actually live blogging the debate over at Daily Kos.

In the meantime, The New York Times, has published two articles today. One is about the preparations and expectations from both the Cuomo and Paladino campaigns ahead of tonight's debate. The other is about the five minor candidates appearing on the stage with them tonight.

Whatever happens, tonight's debate should be interesting.

You win some and you lose some...

I'm a Met fan.  I hate the Phillies.  The only team I hate more is the Yankees.  In the current League Championship Series I'm rooting for the Giants and the Rangers.  Both series are now heading to their next parts tied 1-1 after the Phillies defeated the Giants tonight 6-1.  In the NLCS this means that the Giants go home only needing to win the three games in San Francisco to win the N.L. Pennant.  For the Rangers, they have to win at least one of the games in New York in order to take the series back to Texas for a chance to win their first A.L.  Of course, I'm hoping that the Rangers will just win all three games here in New York and get to put the Yankees and their fans through having to watch the Rangers celebrate at Yankee Stadium.

Today's New York Senate Debate - Gillibrand vs. DioGuardi

I watched today's Senate debate between Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and her challenger Joe DioGuardi. The debate streamed live on WABC-TV's website, and will air on television on Sunday. However, the WABC report featuring some clips from the debate is now on their website.

An Experiment

Blogging here is an experiment.  I already blog over at Daily Kos, but that's necessarily limited to politics.  Here, I can blog whenever I want about whatever I want.  This is my blog.  So I set my own rules.  I discuss what I want to decide.  I blog how often I want to, whether it's ten posts or zero posts.  I'll crosspost my political blogging over at Daily Kos, but pretty much everything else will get posted here.

Let the experiment begin.