Brutalizing Times

Mark Rubin

A swirl of emotions. I read a recent David Brooks piece in the Times a few weeks ago. Mr. Brooks published How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen soon before then. He focuses, in the column, the book, and in many columns, on living successfully in brutalizing times. A must read!

Mr. Brooks reminds us that our advancement to an enlightened and rationale place is, well, not so much. He urges humility for those whose good fortune allows us to even consider how we might think about the failing and falling world circa the 2020s. Then, he urges us to “lead with love in harsh times.”

Mr.

Oh Baby Baby It’s a Wild World

Mark Rubin

[Note: I wrote this piece in February, and it got lost in a shuffle.]

With a nod to Cat Stevens aka Steven Demetre Georgiou (at the outset) and Yusuf Islam (now), Oh Baby Baby It’s a Wild World.

I encountered two real estate situations in the past 10 days. I can’t provide details about the first, due to confidentiality concerns. However, I urge everyone to interpret If You See Something, Say Something^® broadly. (Allen Kay created the tagline for the New York MTA.) Regarding the matter I can’t discuss, neighbors paying attention likely helped someone avoid a terrible outcome. Our lives touch vulnerable adults constantly and too many

Donald Trump Heads for the Big Apple

Donald J. Trump

Indictments charge people with crimes. No more, no less! But no one should ever want to be indicted! No one!

The wrath of the law approaches Mr. Trump often, but now it has touched him like it never has before. He will be photographed – full on and from the side – and fingerprinted. The court will surely release him on his own recognizance, but I expect that he will have to forfeit his passport. (That assumes he has a current one.) He will likely face other mobility restrictions, and it will be unwise for him to thumb his nose at or raise a middle digit in the direction of