Now You're Talking...

 

According to the Media, scientists will be working on getting One vaccine covering all the corona  viruses (flu, sars, mers, covid-19 ).  Sounds good!

Perhaps,  they'll also try to reach the goal of One dose instead of two; One bottle for one dose (not 6 doses out of one little bottle); Vaccination - Once in five years , not once a year or twice a year (the present vaccine for covid-19, is valid for half a year only, and then what? There's talk about a third dose in summer...) 

Now the storage issue, Pfeizer has just announced  -15 degreeC freezing temperature will be enough, no need for -70 degree. Wow! What happened, that's a huge gap! Difficulty with logistics, I presume, fear of losing customers to Moderna, Astra Zeneca, and others...

"Something is rotten in the land of  Science" (  to paraphrase Hamlet's saying on Denmark).

Scientists are only secondary players; they are in the hands of those who fund the research - usually the pharmacy companies -  and play by their rules.  In fact,  they are called  'pharmaceutical scientists'. They spend most of the time in a laboratory, performing tasks related to the research, development, and testing of pharmaceutical drugs.

The pharma companies are good at manipulating and making us dependent on them. The flu vaccine, for example, does not prevent one from getting the flu; it just makes the flu milder, if, and  when one gets it. That's what they promise.  So, we live on promises, and we obediently go for the yearly jab.

Worth mentioning - the mask that we are supposed to wear now for covid-19 is quite effective against the flu virus; almost no cases of flu this year!  Unbelievable!   I probably won't give up the mask ( at least during winter) even if we'll be allowed to do so.

As for covid-19, they tell us the same story : the vaccine causes the illness to be  lighter, and easier to handle.  However, this time - urgency times - in order to encourage people to come and get the vaccine (vaccination open here to all ages), they've  added something of which they are not entirely sure about, namely, that it also prevents spreading of the virus , helps achieving herd immunity, and puts an end to the pandemic.

We're having general elections next month, and , sadly, corona's part of the campaign of all politicians. It looks rather ugly with lots of fake news and disinformation.  Doctors and top Health Ministry officials, are also IN;  after they get the budgets they want for their hospitals, they'll say whatever one wishes them to say. 

Restrictions are being lifted , and there's worry about the outcome. A rise in the number of corona cases is expected by the end of the month.  May God help us!

Elections

 

Election campaigns resemble more and more a political circus, and regardless of the final result,  we feel relieved when it's all over.

Prior to the Election Day, candidates usually make heavy promises (jobs, money, control) to specific groups in the population, to increase the number of their voters.

In my country, for example, the lucky group that gets it all is the ultra orthodox ('haredi') community. These people provide lots of voters (each family with an average of 7-11 kids). 

Almost no political coalition is possible without the 'haredi' parties.   The participation in the coalition  gets them close to power and money. They are in fact a 'state within a state' with budgets, schools, privileges. 

Corona virus outbreak has revealed the extent of the above alarming situation. All  governments past and present are  blamed for it. The current PM is accused of 'selling' the country to the 'haredim', of bringing about complete disintegration of the already fragile, highly heterogeneous nation - and asked through weekly protests -  to resign.

In the USA there's a lot of talk now after the elections, about "healing the nation". How, exactly?

It's not only Trump , but all those millions of people who have voted for him in 2016 and now - almost half of the nation. If from the very beginning one shows nothing but contempt for their candidate and their voting, then what is to be expected of them now. They might try to do the same to Biden and his supporters - namely,  delegitimation. 

Oh, well,  God can make things work in the right direction. There's, however, need for praying.

 

 

 

 

 

April's Major Events

Heads of the electoral parties - from "Haaretz" newspaper

On the 9th of April we had the General Elections;  on the 19th we will be  celebrating Passover (Pesach).. Both April  events are a bit of a madness thing.

the polling station in my neighborhood

'blue evil eye'  poster on the wall, in the entrance hall 

There were 47(!!) registered political groups  (including the regular parties) participating in the elections. That hardly looks to me like democracy,  more like anarchy.
I went "to do my duty" as a law-abiding citizen, in the evening hours, when  it's quieter, with less people waiting in line to enter the polling room.  

inside the booth with the ballots

election workers;  the blue box where we cast the ballot

 voter handing in his ID and after check, getting an envelope

After the elections, forming a coalition is not an easy task. The largest parties rarely get more than 30-35 seats each (61 is needed for a government). so negotiations start, and this is a real circus or nightmare - depends on the beholder.

I'm rather indifferent to all this  'more of the same' show. 
Politicians see only the votes that will assure them a seat in Parliament, with all the power that comes with it; they don't care about the people, or the country.

*

Passover (Pesach), commemorates the journey from slavery to freedom. What sort of freedom?! We are slaves to cleaning, scrubbing, burning , spending, cooking - before, during, and after the holiday.

Plate for the symbolic essentials (egg, horseraddish, charoset etc)

Moreover, during Passover, we, the people in the land of the glorious Pita bread, have to abstain from bread made with raising flour, and from grains and their derivates (beer). We are said to eat  unleavened bread, called  'matza'. One gets used to that, but it's not the greatest of eating pleasures. 

Matza, near the green bottle

The weather is fine and drags people out to trips and picnics.
Kids have vacation during the Passover week ; many adults also take the days off, so places are crowded, traffic is congested.
And yet, we don't stay at home. As long as we can stand on our feet, we are all out and about.