The Dark Forest's Alpha Predator

 

The great nocturnal predator sits aloft with

a commanding view of its forest hunting

grounds, a skilled hunter and the bane of

small furred and feathered forest creatures

alike known for its aural and visual acuity

as well as its silent swoops and taloned

scoops. As efficient in its appetite as in its

hunt leaving but pellets of regurgitated 

bone and gristle. Its reputation that of a

feared predator, its studied survey of the

forest floor planning a night's escapade

interrupted by a steadily growing murder

of crows despising and harassing the great

accomplished bird threatening their tender

fledglings. Unperturbed, the owl swivels

its great head to studiously ignore the swirls

of angry black wings silhouetted against

grey clouds above the forest canopy, their

outraged concert of condemnation to no

avail for dusk soon enters and night follows.

Repenting at Leisure

You've aged, old friend, you're old

now. No longer the virile man

with the perpetually  plundering eye

you once were. As a man of the world

are you happy? Satisfied with your choices?

Philandering did suit you well. Your

wife, younger by far and certainly

comelier than thou, not so much. She

tolerated in her love for you and the

comforts life with you offered as

much as she could. But when your

flings transgressed flagrant she too
made a lifestyle adjustment, leaving

you, now that the children were mature.

A solitary life was not what you sought

but no amount of promises and pledges

on your part of remorse and reform

convinced her to return to her lonely

husband, though she has seen fit

to forgive. Many years have passed

and  your anxious search for a

replacement companion has failed

despite numerous rehearsals. Your

standards, admittedly, are high: the

freshness of youth, athleticism, style

and appearance all featured, but

candidates have failed. In despair, a

cat has jointed your silent household

a delicate, most attractive and needy

feline, she is. Myriad trips abroad to

exotic far-off shores have broadened

your cosmopolitan perspective, enriched

the experiences of your life. But you

smile so infrequently and seem almost

morose at times. No need to respond

the question was frivolously rhetorical

just a reminder that we all make our

choices and live to regret them.

 

 

Jewish Presence : Islamophobic

There was a parlous time not that long ago in

world history and more particularly in the troubled

history of Judaism when a national government

issued special identification badges to be worn at

all times when Jews ventured into the public sphere.

This was under a national socialist ideology that

venerated an ideal of humanity's physical perfection

and strove to create government policy to direct

citizens to the virtues of healthful living and the

sanctity of life for those privileged to be born Aryan

part of the Master Race. Jewish life resumed after

the Nazi theology of race consumed their millions

mourning their loss, accepting the world's sympathy

then returning to their ancestral Zion for security

from a sanctimonious illiberal world community

accustomed to veering from tolerance to hatred.

Now, in the Democratic bastions of nations allied

in prosperity and justice where the diaspora still

resides a new version of exceptionality has arisen

where Jews are cautioned that Islamophobia cannot

be acceptable, evidenced in visual identification on

the streets of world capitals where the very presence

and sight of Jews in habitual headgear triggers anger

and threats of violence from mobs of transplanted

Nazi conspirators eager to once again commit to the

extermination of the plague of Jews sharing their

space in a world where history is ever cyclical. 

 

Boxing Day Gift

Her photo is on the back page of the local

paper. She is a young, attractive woman

a mother of four, the caption adds. Beside her 

another woman, her best friend. On the front page 

a headline: Killing domestic in nature: Police. 

And the quote that it is only a "homicide incident 

domestic in nature". Nothing to see here, a life 

snuffed out. But the public need not be overly 

concerned is the message; no general threat looms. 

No word of the arrested, the live-in boyfriend 

who might or might not have fathered any of those 

children. Testimonial from tearful friend how 

cheerful and good-natured, a perfect mother she 

was. A crowd-funding campaign will go forward.

Nothing to see here, a life snuffed out. An event

so common anywhere in the world, the reader

sighs, turns the page, pours another cup of coffee.

 

Hey, YOU!!

A celebratory rally held in Edmonton on Oct. 8, just one day after an orchestrated series of massacres by Hamas murdered more than 1,000 Israeli civilians. Photo by Greg Southam/Postmedia

Hey, you ... not to be rude but I did want to

capture your attention because it seems to be

elsewhere when we so badly would like you to

be more aware ... for want of a better term. We're

your neighbours, we've been your neighbours for

countless generations. Like you, we fled from our

original homelands to find peace, security and

prosperity in Canada. Like you, we sometimes

came from the same place of origin. Let's see now

neighbours from Germany, Italy, Poland, Ukraine

Russia, China, Japan, Vietnam, India to name but

a few. You've been our neighbours/we've been

your neighbours, sharing good times and of course

commiserating over bad times, laughing and

crying as one big Canadian family. Suddenly

and to our surprise we're no longer one big family

here in Canada. A social schism has cast us asunder

for we Canadian Jews have become despised and

oppressed, threatened and subject to criminal acts

of violence and hatred. Neighbours, where are you

now while Jew-hate festers and rallying cries of

Intefada, Final Solution and allegiance to a terror

mob is telegraphed from the streets we all share?

We haven't changed, we're still Canadian Jews who

cherish our country. Perhaps you too haven't changed

and what we Jews thought was acceptance and mutual

care was merely a delusion. Shame, shame on you!

 

Canada, Where Did You Disappear To?

Who might ever have imagined that the victimized

aspirations of Arabs from Syria, Jordan, Egypt

and Lebanon who took upon themselves the

aged mantle of Palestinians would become the

proud icon of a new and fervent Canadian human

rights campaign to cudgel the State of Israel and

threaten the existence of Canadian Jews in a display

of harmony with Palestinian organizers of vividly

rancid antisemitism taking to the streets and byways

of Canada. Sympathy with a cause equating with

righteous indignation over the ascendance of a

Judean state that accommodates the presence of

non-Jews while fulfilling its eternal pledge of

welcome and protection of all Jews everywhere

as opposed to neighbouring Muslim states which

exiled its ancient Jewish population. The enthusiasm

of Canada echoes that of its Trudeau government

whose fulsome welcome to Muslim migrants

immigrants and refugees swamped the nation's

capacity to cope while introducing a rampant new

level of racist hatred. Come now, it is not necessarily

that the 'pro-Palestine' crowd is so smitten with the

victimhood mentality, more that berating, belittling

Israel and Jews fits so naturally and circumstances

have colluded to present the opportunity to exercise

antisemitism cloaked in indignation over 'colonialism'. 

The Winning Game

A diabolical regime of ferocious clerics

for whom the sacred duty of delivering death

to enemies of their omnipotent, omniscient

and benevolent Creator whose focus is the

promotion of jihad by instilling terror into the

minds and souls of those they target while

their armed and primed militias strike to kill

dissenters and opponents finally takes the

opportunity to extract vengeance upon the

state that dares to extinguish the lives of its

elite campaign commanders to forestall further

bloodshed. Hundreds of deadly drones and

missiles dispatched over the airspace of its

enemy, virtually all destroyed before their

mission achieved, by the alert and armed

signatories to war avoidance yet the regime

exults over its 'victory', declaring themselves

to have 'won' a life-and-death contest. And the

only nation on Earth held to a standard of response

no other is ever expected to submit to, is

prodded to refrain from responding to that

declaration of war, but to consider the dread

and fear of its people anticipating death to be

amenable to considering their survival a 'win'.