Some random thoughts about the situation at Israel and Gaza

So Hamas did a major terroristic incursion into Israel, and it appears THOUSANDS of Israelis (and a dozen Americans) have been killed, and many are held hostage, and both Gaza and Israeli border have been turned into hell. Details are now just emerging, where entire kibbutz have been slaughtered, including the children. 

This is basically Israeli's 9/11. The Israelis will chase down whoever's responsible for this to the ends of the Earth, just like US did, and while they probably do not need to level Gaza to do it, they really aren't going to hesitate. Hostages? They are already considered martyr to the cause for continued existence, and to borrow a cliche... "They will be avenged." 

I am not going to argue who's evil and who's right in the Israel / Palestine mess, i.e. "who came first" and all that. There is plenty of land to share. It is this absolute refusal to share that is causing the modern problems, and it only gotten worse with this attack. The current situation is bad, but at least it's not open warfare. Now it is open warfare. 

Frankly, whoever at Hamas screwed up. Instead of playing the long-game, gain international sympathy by highlighting the brutality of the situation, and try to established neutral zones where they coexist, they allowed their bloodlust overshadow their senses. The Israelis now have no choice but to destroy and replace the entire Hamas leadership to find somebody "reasonable", or basically force a regime change in Gaza. While plenty of Middle East hate Israel, few are dumb enough to provoke in in this manner. 

And the sooner the two sides realize they must coexist, on the same piece of land, the sooner we will have peace. This sort of attack is the exact opposite of peace. Enough said. 

The Car that Got Away... Sorta?

Recently a couple channels featured "the car that got away", basically a car that one regret not keeping. 

I don't really have something like that. I have owned... 6 cars total in my life. Pontiac T-1000, Mercury Topaz, Ford Taurus, Oldsmobile Delta, Ford Contour, Volvo S70. Three of those are family hand-me-downs, and 3 I bought myself. So never was THAT attached to these. 

There was a car I never got the opportunity to own... But it never was offered to me. 

My grand uncle on my grandpa's side (my grandpa's sister's husband) drove nice cars: a Cadillac boat, and a BMW 5-series, the old one before Bangle mangled it. The classic one. 

I coveted that BMW for several years. :D  Until I found that my grand uncle traded it in for a newer model (but smaller) MB. 

Books Unbanned: Special Library E-cards for LA County, Brooklyn, Seattle, and Boston residents:

With the recent GOP "moral panic" about kids getting access to "pron" and other "banned books" there are more "banned books" than ever. The American Library Association wants to make sure that Americans gain access to books they may have problem otherwise getting... and the following 4 library systems have stepped up, giving access to their books online:

Brooklyn: residents of the area from 13-21

Seattle and Boston: residents of the area from 13-26

LA County: residents from the ages of 13-18

Please click through to each library system's website for details on eligibility. Basically, those libraries are not beholden to government funds, which restricts their choice of books. 

Most library systems will let you become a e-member for a donation per year, but you need to do some research yourself, if your area is not on the list. 

Please support your local library system everywhere. And if you have a few extra bucks, reward these library systems with a few bucks for stepping up.