Remembering the Holocaust

The other day, I wrote about the extremely moving holocaust memorial at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. As we have just observed Yom HaShoah, I have two additional holocaust related items to highlight.

The first is a series of photos from PopChassid that give a different view than the normal depressing stuff one sees about the holocaust. These photos are special because they show not the defeat but the optimism — the hope that survived even the worst of times.

The second is an article about Judaism in Germany today. Berlin’s Jewish Museum has a new exhibit called “The Whole Truth”. There are a number of exhibits that force Germans to consider their attitudes towards Jews. The most controversial is one where a Jewish man or woman sits inside a glass showcase and answers questions from visitors who approach. Is this the right way to bring Jews and Non-Jews together? Some German Jews are eager to participate. Other leaders demur. “For many, Jews are not friends or colleagues at work.  Jews are people from TV or from history books. So that places, automatically, Jewish individuals behind an exhibit glass in a museum in the heads of the German population.” Thoughts?

Music: Music Is Better Than Words (Seth MacFarlane): “You’re The Cream In My Coffee”

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More Deaths in the News

A number of deaths have been in the news of late. Roger Ebert. Annette Funicello. But I’d like to highlight two things related to probably the most high-profile death of late: Margaret Thatcher. Specifically, the mixed reaction thereto.

Item the First: In response to the death of Lady Maggie, guess what is climbing to number one on the charts in the UK: “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead.”

Item the Second: In the musical Billy Elliot, there is a song called “Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher”. In the song, the striking Northern miners sing, “Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher/ May God’s love be with you/ We all sing together in one breath/ Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher/ We all celebrate today /’Cause it’s one day closer to your death.” The day Thatcher died, the production in London’s West End held a vote on whether to do that song. All but three people in the audience voted to sing the song.

Annette was loved. Roger was loved. Maggie, well, she was no Churchill.

Music: Debbie Does Dallas (2002 Original Off-Broadway Cast): “Jock Rock”

This entry was originally posted on Observations Along The Road (on cahighways.org) as this entry by cahwyguy. Although you can comment on DW, please make comments on original post at the Wordpress blog using the link below; you can sign in with your LJ, FB, or a myriad of other accounts. There are currently comments on the Wordpress blog. PS: If you see share buttons above, note that they do not work outside of the Wordpress blog.

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