ABSILVER's World

Let me be clear, I have experienced hate and prejudice for being Jewish,  for being Gay.  I also have been wise enough to realize that as a white American, I have been privileged and somewhat sheltered. But,  I have never witnessed such hate and prejudice emanating from the pores of the leadership of our country.  Certainly against the LGBT+ Community, Certainly against immigrants, Certainly against Black Americans, Women.. I am sure I have left others off the list. I posted this on Facebook, but I am also concerned that the new Facebook algorithms, under the Zuckerberg era, may suppress its viewership, so I should also post it as a blog. I wake up as an American, Jew, Gay male, frightened of my own country. At the Republican Convention in 2016, Donald Trump said, “As your president, I will do everything in my power to protect our LGBTQ citizens from the violence and oppression of a hateful foreign ideology.” Such friends, we don't need! Actions speak louder than wo...

I wake Up In the Morning. Life is complex. Or is it? At times,  I smile. Why do I love sunrises and sunsets? At times,  I live for a dog and a cat. Why can they love without conditions? At times,  I live for my mother. Why do I feel lucky? At times,  I wonder. Why don’t I live more for me? At times,  I stress, for me. How long will I live? At times,  I stress for mankind. Where is the kindness, I believed in? At times,  Up early, 4am. Why do I love solitude in chaos? At times,  I wonder..   Are we all narcissistic? At times,  I cry.. Why is progress fleeting? At times  I scream.. Why won’t I give up on the ideal of goodness of mankind? At times,  I ponder. How to make peace in chaos? At times,  I sigh! Why is arrogance a human trait? At times,  I wonder. If computers do more harm than good? At times,  I look out on the ocean. Why do I like feeling small in a vast world? At times…  I feel stress, anxiousness....

I woke up this morning, more than a bit down, and wondering about this "Big Beautiful Bill" on the eve of July 4th, and the signing of the "Declaration of Independence." I can't understand why there are not enough men and women in the Senate and House to stand up for the rights and protections declared in the Declaration of Independence. " We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed ;" Then I thought, what would those brave men who signed this paper, which started a new country and an experiment in democracy, and a government derived from the consent of the people, have thought? Then I didn't have to wonder what they believed, because it is in the Declaration...

As I sit comfortably at home in Longview, TX, stressed about bad weather forecasts but otherwise peacefully working, walking the dog, and feeding the cat, my niece and her family in Israel are living through something no one should ever have to experience. Before you judge the choices or emotions of others from the safety of your own home or city, take a moment to read what her past 12 days have been like. Imagine if the most important information in your day was where the nearest shelter is when the sirens go off. Imagine worrying every day about how to keep your children, your family, and yourself safe. War Thoughts  Where Peace Is a Prayer: A Family’s 12 Days Under Fire גאולה אדלשטיין June 26, 2025 It is 3am. An air raid siren rouses us from a deep sleep. We go to stand in our hallway, not having time to go to the shelter at the end of the block. Nothing unusual, probably the Houthis again, or so we think, and we head back to bed.  It is 9am , and I discover that our Sh...

We live in strange times.   The world is politically odd, work is somewhat scattered due to AI, along with associated changes in the workplace.  It is also challenging to find balance, and as someone who has a blog, it can be challenging to know when to remain silent and when to speak up.  It is possible to have opinions that one can feel confident about, but recognizing that you lack on-the-ground experience, sharing those opinions can feel somewhat careless. In light of the times, I thought a top tenm   eleven, twelve thoughts of the day might be interesting.  Some will be a bit serious, but mostly not “too”  serious and a bit entertaining. Just because people are silent on subjects and issues, don’t assume they don’t care or have an opinion.  To be transparent, I do care very much about what is going on in Israel and Gaza.  Especially, with so much of my family living there, but I also don’t have the experience of living in Israel, and th...

I am a DEI.   Hear me out, I am a white male in the USA.  I don’t dismiss for a moment that there is privilege associated with those two words.  When I am at the store, renewing my driver's license, crossing the street, or waving at the nice policewoman, I don’t have fear.  I don’t have the fear that by my presence, people will be suspect of who I am. But, I am a DEI, a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion person as acronyms go.  The conservatives of this country have turned an acronym of love and acceptance into one of fear. I knew this early on in my life, as a Jewish child in a southern city.  I remember marching in 1973 around the Yom Kippur War and having people yell at us.  I remember taking German in high school and being ridiculed.  I remember going to Mercer University and being shuffled through Fraternity Rush around Rosh Hashanah, so they all knew who the Jewish boys were going through rush.  I remember being at the University of ...