I've been going back over some of the "essays" I've posted here, and I am shocked (not really) to find that their quality is not very good. Most of the time I can't seem to follow my own train of thought. I think I will leave most of them up, with the exception of the materials for the Judaism class I did for folks at my workplace because I think those are particularly egregious.
It seems that I had a pattern of somehow winding up talking about Israel and Zionism a lot over the past couple of years. Not surprising, since I converted to Judaism in the wake of Oct. 7 and had a hell of a time trying to grapple with seeing members of communities (Jews and leftists) spew various brands of hatred, from xenophobia toward Palestinians to antisemitism to a complete failure by both sides to make any attempt at a consistent historical, political, or sociological analysis of a very complicated geopolitical situation. I will say this once and for all before vowing to never talk about Israel again: The modern nation-state of Israel has, from its conception, sought to undermine Judaism as an ethnoreligion and replace religion and fear of God with nationalism and fealty to the State. Israel is currently engaged, unquestionably, in a genocide, but even if it wasn't, I would be unable to support a nation who fundamentally flies in the face of my moral convictions as an anarchist and the Tanakh's many warnings against nation building and human authority. Judaism has survived for thousands of years as a diasporist religion, and it will continue to do so, with or without the so-called "protection" that Israel purports to offer while actively engaging in activities that stoke the fires of antisemitism internationally and continually endanger the long-term safety and stability of the people who dwell within its borders.
Rant over.
Grad school keeps one quite busy, but I will eventually get around to writing my analyses of Sonic 2 and Sonic 3.
Revision History
- 2026-02-14: Original posting.