As I begin to write this dispatch, there are just under 90 minutes remaining in the year 2025.
I cannot help but think of the Zager and Evans song "In the Year 2525 (Exordium and Terminus":
In the year 2525, if man is still aliveIf woman can survive, they may findIn the year 3535Ain't gonna need to tell the truth, tell no lieEverything you think, do and sayIs in the pill you took today
With the advent of AI, 2525 arrived 500 years early. We have now reached the point where we cannot discern what is true from what is false. Worse still, far too many among us don't care to know. Too many among us are ready to swallow anything and it need not be a pill though if often takes the form of a poison. How else can one explain the second Trump Administration and the mainstreaming of anti-Semitism?
Yet it is true that MAGA is fighting amongst itself and their greed and incompetence may do themselves in, they can still hurt and kill a lot of people in the process be it hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths due to AIDS, malaria, pneumonia and tuberculosis all over the world or hard working, law abiding taxpayers awaiting their green card dying in ICE custody.
And then there's the malignancy of anti-Semitism on both sides of the political spectrum with the sitting Republican Vice-President openly minimizing its very existence while New Yorkers elect a so-called progressive who calls for "globalizing the intifada". In this country, "globalizing the intifada" has resulted in Molotov cocktails being thrown at Jews who had the temerity to hold a vigil for the hostages held by Hamas, arson at the San Francisco Hillel and high school students who openly sing the praises of Hitler while forming a human swastika. Meanwhile, prominent public figures ranging from NY Mayor-elect Mamdani, AOC to Elon Musk and FBI Director Kash Patel seek to vilify Jewish civic institutions. Of course, I'm only scratching the surface. Indeed, the malignancy of anti-Semitism is only beginning to spread. The worst is yet to come, and I shudder to think what the worst could be.
My recent experience serving on a federal jury did little to improve my mood.
Now I don't wish to leave anyone with the impression that I had a terrible year. My job continues to go well and among the highlights of my year were my first business trip to New York and my first business conference in Wheeling, West Virginia. I can only hope there is more of this to come in 2026.
There were plenty of good times whether it was going for a swim, walking along on Mass Ave from Cambridge to Boston, a couple of trips to Walden Pond, my first visit to Newport, Rhode Island or viewing a half century plus old David Ackles concert at the Paley Center for Media in NYC last month. I was saddened by Robert Redford passing away on my birthday but am glad I got a chance to see 10 of his best films at the Brattle Theatre. I also got to see Jerry O'Connell, Corey Feldman and Wil Wheaton sing the praises of Rob Reiner at a 40th anniversary screening of Stand by Me just over a week before he and his wife Michele were cruelly taken away from this world. A subsequent tribute screening of When Harry Met Sally came at just the right time.
Earlier this evening, I had some Chinese food at Changsho on Mass Ave in Cambridge. My fortune read, "Your heart will be full of love in September." If good things come to those wait, then what's another nine months?
After the meal, I took a short walk around the neighborhood. During this short walk, I went into a convenience store, purchased a $10 scratch ticket and won $50. It was the first time I had bought a scratch ticket since winning $100 during my last trip to Concord. This time around, I had no trouble getting my winnings. It was a good way to end the year.
Tomorrow, I begin 2026 with my New Year's Day ritual of watching 7 hours of Marx Brothers films at the Brattle Theatre with my friend Christopher Kain.
Life isn't always great, but it isn't bad.
Things aren't so great when it concerns matter beyond one's own control. But when things are within my control, the result is more likely to be good than bad.
As I enter 2026, I will do my best to minimize my involvement in things I can't control and maximize my involvement in things where control is firmly within my grasp. You can call it my New Year's Resolution.
Whatever turmoil there might be in the next 365 days, it is within my power that the conclusion of this next chapter I write will have a happy ending.
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