Here are the topics for this 2-week blog: BC and AD vs. BCE and CE; Martin Neimöller and Donald Trump, too satisfied, too complacent?; what is ISIS/ISIL?; cause to celebrate; preparing for the inevitable; a memorable holiday performance.

Politically (in)correct? No longer BC and AD, but BCE and CE. BC -- Before Christ -- is out and BCE -- Before Common Era is now preferred. Similarly, AD -- Ano Domini  -- is replaced by CE -- Common Era. Who dreams up this nonsense?

"First they came.....for the socialists and I did not speak out..." These historic words from Martin Neimöller have now become a part of the discussion surrounding Donald Trump's call for banning Muslims from entering the US. Watching Trump's fellow candidates decide how to respond has been interesting, to say the least. Jeb Bush was notable for his quick response, "[Trump] is unhinged." Ruth Marcus, Washington Post columnist, said Trump had "crossed an uncrossable line." Time will tell.

Risks? This past week Washington Post columnist, Charles Lane, wrote about the consequences of   America's penchant for sloppy thinking about risks. For example, Lane notes that "...the late economist Hyman Minsky... first theorized that financial stability itself could be destabilizing." Complacency, even with advances in technology and other endeavors, can lead to future problems, unintended consequences.

What to make of  ISIS/ISIL? In a column "After the [British] vote," James Meek (London Review of Books,) ponders these questions: "So what is IS? Is it a proto-state, with infrastructure that can be attacked and formal command chains that can be severed from the air? Or is it a nebulous, diffuse set of compadres, ideas and websites, easily moved around the world?" In their respective speeches British Prime Minister Cameron (to the House of Commons) and President Obama (to the nation) posited their answers. Interesting reading.
     Meek also commented, "People mistrust originality, especially in politicians. The safe political performance is an enactment of the familiar." This is the mold that Trump continues to smash.

Indeed, 1915 was a very good year. Columnist Harold Meyerson notes, "When it comes to the birth of American geniuses, 1915 was a very good year...the centenary of Orson Welles, Arthur Miller, Saul Bellow and, on Saturday, the guy who gave eternal life to the Great American Songbook — Frank Sinatra." The CBS program on Sinatra and his era was filled with both songs and history. Most enjoyable!

The ultimate experience. In an unusually titled article in the High Country News, Laura Pritchett writes poignantly about her father's death. "He didn't die with dignity (so I threw a party)," her first "death cafe."  She related the story of her experience when her father faced death after suffering from Alzheimer's -- without any previously written, clear directives about his death.
     She notes, A Pew Research Center study found that less than half of people over 75 had given much thought to the end of their lives, and incredibly, only 22 percent of them had written down wishes for medical treatment. The same study, though, found a sharp increase in all adults putting something in writing (six of 10 of us), which indicates that percentage-wise, it's the slightly younger folks who are preparing now for their inevitable deaths...[W]e find ourselves without much guidance in a culture that's conflicted and confused about dying....What lies ahead is unexplored territory, much like death itself, really.you

"A Christmas Story." A rollicking good time was had by all at the Dec 19th performance at the Denver Center. The acting and music were superb and the appreciative audience reacted accordingly. The balmy December weather was a welcome treat, too. 

Thank you for reading, I hope your week goes well.