Joshua Cypess Profile picture
Jan 3, 2021 85 tweets 31 min read Read on X
25.01/ Thread for week twenty-five, Jan. 2 to Jan. 8, 2021, begins here.

Week 24 thread was here:
25.02/ We've been blaming 2020 for our troubles, but maybe it's b/c it was the Year of the Rat? Acc. to chinesenewyear.net/zodiac/rat/ "In Chinese culture, rats were seen as a sign of wealth and surplus" and if that doesn't describe 2020, what does? (P.S. I was born in a ratty year)
25.03/ This is about the can-opener guy and, yes, he's abusive but strangely proud of it showing us that the AITA topics are possibly not as made up as we assumed.

I pray that when DJT is deposed & disposed these people will feel stigma again.
25.04/ A thread of small eulogies for the many leaders of my community who passed in 2020. It's shocking how many crucial people have died from my little corner of the ideological world. It's devastating.

25.05/ Last time a GOP government was this corrupt, through Watergate and lying about the bombing in Cambodia, the result was a near decade of a poisoned culture with brown pastel clothes, wide collars and weird cults. To prevent this, in this essay I propose....
25.06/ We're living thru a fascist coup by the GOP yet #Literalists are denying the facts b/c the details don't line up 1:1 with the past or textbooks

Getting a PhDs showed me how the 'past' is actually constructed. The 'past' didn't know what was happening at the time either!
25.07/ A comment I made about Trump's (ym'sh) mindset as a result of his highly crafted delusional worldview.

25.08a/ I teach my family to have firm respect for Murphy's Law. Not some simplistic pessimism that everything *will* go wrong, but having backup plans for likely failures/obstacles, esp. those which would be catastrophic. Note, I'm not a risk taker let alone risk enjoyer.
25.08b/ In some ways, playing RPGs as a kid taught me that you can't plan for every bad possibility - limits on time/weight/cost/physics prevent airtight preparedness.

Batman's belt can't exist (but it's fun to imagine), yet better to aspire to be Batman than Spiderman IYKWIM
25.08c/ Of course, even more than RPGs, being an educated Diaspora Jew demands preparation for big catastrophes. I'm named for two great-uncles who were murdered in the Shoah.

In sum: I can't be the only one who's spending the #TrumpCrisis with go-bags & senses on alert.
25.09/ Filled out my registration form to be put on the vaccine list: covidvaccine.nj.gov

I'm told that I'm going to be pretty far down on the list. I assume after Class Z: farm animals & farm equipment.

Which is as it should be (I already have antibodies from March).
25.12/ If the Democrats win the 2 Senate seats in Georgia, and thus control the Senate, @staceyabrams should get the Nobel Peace Prize. I'm so not joking.

Obama got one for beating Bush and this was a bigger task. She may have saved the world.
25.13/ The "I"s have it! As in both "I've seen enough"s from Mr. Wasserman!

I swear, I didn't even hope to win these two seats, I put it out of my optimism sensors. But the 2020 election looks a lot different now, no? Flipped 5 states & 4 Senate seats!

25.14/ Happy day here these United States: the Democrats seem to have won the Senate!

Bye Mitch "All I can do is say 'No' even when $2K was the easiest play in politics" McConnell!

Bye Crazy Donald who abandoned America to the virus/orcs: "So passes Denethor son of Ecthelion"
25.15/ Also happy, but on a mundane, even selfish, level: a brief respite of having my email inbox flooded with messages from every brand-name Democrat via the DNC asking for campaign money.
25.16/ Yes, Manchin is basically the swing vote but I predict he'll be easier to work with. I've long said: greed is easier to predict than ideology. Mitch was a depraved nihilist whose only hammer was obstruction, even at the cost of the Senate (see: 2K$)
25.17/ Just... spittle running down his flaccid face, drug-addled fingers tapping out in all caps how weak & desperate he is.

We're told not to rejoice at the defeat of our enemies but I thrill to toppling of a tyrant, and even the angels at the Red Sea would agree Screencap of a Trump (ym'sh...
25.18/ Don't get down on yourself for writing 2020 instead of 2021 on your documents/checks for longer than usual. 2020 lasted a decade and that's a hard habit to change.

I reward myself with a little smile every time I change an erroneous 20 to a 21. Shana Tova u-Metuka!
25.19/ If you have racists in your life (1st of all, so sorry) reach out to them in these trying times; they're feeling very vulnerable, fragile, & scared about their crumbling place in the prison they created...

reach out & remind them justice is coming
25.20/ The Joy of Justice. That's what the Torah teaches. When bad behavior is punished - esp. by human forces empowered to establish justice, but even by the rules of nature when people "fool around & find out" - we are supposed to rejoice.
25.21/ This is how they reward our votes. With justice. We've had enough judges (all politicians, really) who were prosecutors. We need more defenders, more sanegors. More civil rights. More justice.
25.22/ Merrick Garland as AG nominee.

I presume they were waiting to see if the Dems won the Senate. Garland can be seen as above reproach (former federal judge, known as moderate) and then his seat can be filled by a younger, more liberal justice.
25.22b/ BTW, I'd heard his name floated over the past few wks but discounted it b/c I didn't expect to win the Senate back. So, I now need to take the rumor mill more seriously

This pick's full wisdom will be revealed only after we see who fills MG's seat & the rest of DOJ staff
25.22c/ Oh, and on the side, for those worried that they haven't called the race for Ossoff yet, this nomination is as much confirmation I personally need to know that the Democrats won back the Senate

Garland should be the first of many judicial retirements that we can now fill
25.23/ I called my shot back on Nov. 23, saying that I thought Vanita Gupta would be AG. Looks like she's going to be Associate AG.

So close.
25.24/ Good to know there are limits, or at least contours, to Pence's cowardice.
25.25/ Mob violence, chaos, outside the capitol building over the past hour. This has been predicted, indeed it's happening like clockwork. Turns out it was correctly called a fascist coup. Let's remember the instigators & collaborators.

25.26/ Yet again we see the lie about "respect the blue" or "law and order" or whatever nonsense the GOP has spewed over the past decades. The 'blue' was meant to mean 'white' and their job was presumed to support fascism not mildly speed-bump 'em

25.27/ So the anti-mask crazies in Michigan are basically the same people who just shut down the United States Congress!

This is M*GA, this is the Republican party. This is Trump (ym'sh) incarnate.
25.28/ Trump (ym'sh) must be impeached and removed in an emergency session the moment calm is restored. Right now, there's an armed insurrection - led by the president - to overturn his electoral defeat
25.29/ Ah! So this is why they installed Trumpist goons at the DOD.
25.30/ To reiterate: this is a violent fascist coup led by the GOP president & congressmen. We warned everyone this would happen. It was preventable. Meanwhile 3000+ people will die today from COVID

For the clichés: I have let it sink in. There are words

25.31/ I remember being pretty upbeat this morning when it was clear the Democrats took back the Senate

Then I got to see the GOP's paramilitaries invade the Capitol, hold the chambers, ransack the Speaker's office & treated w/kid gloves by PD

25.32/ I agree with Col. Vindman and will add that "History" means us. Right now, we're the judges, we have the responsibility to record, recognize and judge what's happening. It's sedition, it's insurrection.

The GOP should be a curse word after this.

25.33/ Ah, there you go. NBC calls the race for Ossoff. #GASenate

25.35/ Reason why these paramilitaries were able to gain access nearly unstopped by law enforcement is because it's an inside job: the GOP wanted it

I'm also reminded of the assassination of Rabin ob'm. His murderer was given access b/c he wore a kippah

25.36/ Before the armed takeover of the Capitol & after #MoscowMitch handwave-rejected the coup via Congress in a whitewashing speech that some naïfs gave 'credit' to him for, he then yielded the floor to Cruz... who was the Senate ringleader for the coup
25.37/ So true. Complex feelings roiling through them as they lose faith in a government it turns out they never believed should exist.

25.39/ Didn't realize she was quoting "Hamilton." Then again, I was glad to find an excuse to scan this pogo strip and put it up for posterity.

[re: Hamilton. I tried, I really did, to watch it. It's Retcon West Wing, The Musical.]
25.40/ When a Senator can call it an insurrection we all can call it that.

Impeach and remove Trump (ym'sh), expel the Senators and Congresspeople who supported the coup. 14th Amendment time!
25.41/ Today is the day that Trump (ym'sh) became President (of the Confederacy... like he always wanted)
25.42/ Cotton, Cotton of all people!, knows which way the wind is blowing and finds a way to condemn the insurrection. Wow, did Ted Cruz & Josh Hawley mess up.
25.44/ I've been worried for a while about the exit plans of the Trumpist regime. Barr initiated his plan (resigned). But Don doesn't have one. He has no imagination, creativity, or intelligence for a safe landing. This is what we're seeing.

25.45/ Big proof this was not 'spontaneous' is that they had T-shirts printed!
25.46/ Credible reports that the cabinet is seriously discussing the 25th. About. Time.
25.47/ 5 minutes ago. The coup is still ongoing. The armed portion has been quelled, for now, but the threat is still imminent. Impeach, Remove, and/or 25th
25.48/ It's right to compare Wed's violence to a "banana republic" b/c the common denominator is US government (foreign) policy of fomenting insurrection to install friendly governments (to help fruit companies). I dare say the GOP internalized the same same ideology & tactics
25.49/ Trying to rank Jan 6 '21 to the other frightening days of the #TrumpCrisis. My top 3 are still:
1) 6-1-20: Assault on Lafayette Square

2) 3-12-20: Urging my community to shut down b/c of COVID19

3) 6-13-18 Seriously thought we declared war on NK
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Hawa…
25.49b/ Yesterday is high on the list, but June 1st was the worst because (a) Trump (ym'sh) & Barr were in power & it looked like the military had taken sides, which meant the coup had succeeded
(b) June had much more coordination & used state forces
25.50/ Seems relevant.

More facets to Barr's jettisoning from the administration

25.51/ The Democratic party was kept intact after 1865 b/c Andrew Johnson sympathized with the White Supremacists & kept the insurrection alive. The GOP of 2021 inherited the Confederacy & should be dissolved.

See here the traitors to the Constitution:

25.52/ @sethmeyers did an incredible job last night describing, summarizing, analyzing the armed insurrection and the state of the union under the #TrumpCrisis. Very well done! (h/t @CypessSM)
25.53/ Throughout the invasion of the Capitol yesterday, my wife was emphasizing that if one of the invaders had a bomb with them then that would have been all she wrote.

She was right.

There were bombs. Thank God none went off.
25.54/ The curse of being a Rabbi with a PhD: I'm simultaneously repulsed and fascinated by the frummies - evidently some from my community - who went to DC to support actual N*zis foment violent insurrection against the US.

Hey, chevra, that's a weensy bit assur.
25.55/ Like Tom Cotton, here's Bill Barr condemning the insurrection

This shows their IQ not ethics: those two are dire threats to the republic & are as guilty as the rest of the GOP but they're smart enough to duck & cover. They're very dangerous.

25.56/ That the insurrectionists love using the Punisher logo just shows how much my teenage self saw how it's a flawed character. It only worked b/c in the context of comic books a protagonist who *kills* bad guys was unique. But in the real world, that's a sick criminal.
25.57/ Schumer calls for an invocation of the 25th Amendment and, failing that, Congress needs to reconvene to impeach & remove.
25.57b/ I will add, as I often do when presenting positions by people in power who seem to lack enough resolve: Do It! Doooooo Eeeeeeeeet!
25.58/ Sent this last night, but re-upping it now. A few months ago, when the 25th was floated, it seemed futile because it wouldn't last long if Trump (ym'sh) protested it. But now the timing would work out.

25.60/ #Literalist Nate538 is punditing again so I needed to emphasize that the insurrection, led by the Birther president, is a direct result of the overwhelming numbers of Black voters who managed to vote despite historic suppression endorsed by the GOP
25.61/ I also love how the insurrectionists stayed within the velvet ropes, and it makes sense: they were invited guests!

Like we saw with the Civil Rights protests over the year: so many in PD are active elements in the assault on the Constitution
25.62/ My tactic for five years in dealing with the Trumpers I know is to allow them free passage to come to the right side. We need to end the hostage situation first. Save the innocents. Only after it's over can - and MUST - we have the reckoning.
25.63/ Observe, please, what an enabler of abuse sounds like. Haberman has normalized and whitewashed the entire Trump (ym'sh) regime and here's a window into her psychology: she's the classic person in power who acts as if helping violence is prudence.
25.64/ @KatyTurNBC is 100% right here. Don't know what Chuck Todd beforehand and I don't care: he's an enabling hack who should be canned and barred from the news. Another normalizer who paved the way for Trump (ym'sh) & acts like he doesn't have a clue
25.65/ I say this frequently: Trump (ym'sh) can't fire Pence so he's been the only one with immunity to act vs. DJT. As a result, he's the only full enabler of this regime. As of now, he's already been fired by the electorate, so his inaction is shameful
25.66/ OK, now Pelosi is calling for the 25th and if not then impeachment. So now the Democratic leadership is in unison.

Considering that yesterday was an attack by the Executive on the Legislature, impeachment is the proper remedy.
25.67/ See above for my comments about Pence. What a sniveling traitor. At least Pelosi & Schumer are acting with alacrity.
25.68/ Pence: Profiles in Craven Cowardice.

Dude, Mike, we gave you a chance. But difficult times reveal character and yours is the worst
25.69/ The impunity of the Trump Regime extends to stealing music and playing it without artist's permission (or comission). The latest is "Gloria" by Laura Branigan...

Which means it's now totally in my head. But it's great.

25.70/ This makes me very happy. OMG. So much nachas.

A shomeret Shabbat security expert from Boro Park has been named to the top cyber-security post in Biden's White House.

Kinda mind blowing.
timesofisrael.com/biden-to-pick-…
25.71/ The rich women who are fleeing/resigning the cabinet are not only trying to play PR but also, likely, were spooked by the need to invoke the 25th Amendment. Just cruel, thieving cowards. Not just collaborators but perpetrators.
25.72/ Again, we wondered a few weeks ago what Trump (ym'sh) was up to at the Pentagon when he replaced actual professionals with loyalists. Now we know: it was to allow the insurrection. They lay in wait for the distress call in order to ignore it.

washingtonpost.com/national-secur…
25.73/ This is as good a theory as any. Pence may have threatened to use the 25th to get the concession speech, which also spooked some of the cabinet to resign; but they're all so short-sighted they're just adjusting the Titanic deck chairs
25.76/ This is a survey From Mark Trencher of Nishma Research, up until Wed. Jan 13, for Jewish respondents about their attitudes towards the COVID19 vaccine. I took the survey; it's not long.

bit.ly/Jewish-Covid-V…
25.77/ I agree with Ale here; people are suffering from the Pundit's Curse of thinking the Dems are moving slowly out of cowardice. Look: they were just personally attacked, they know the stakes. Maybe, just maybe, you're not smarter than everyone else.
25.78/ I predict that future action movies with replace the trope of "car won't start when bad guys are approaching" with "laggy internet"

Because right now everyone in my house is on zoom/internet and the lag is so bad I feel like I'm gonna explode
25.79/ The internet seems especially overloaded right now and my browser keeps crashing, so that's a sign I should log off. Keep safe everyone. #ShabbatShalom

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More from @JoshuaCypess

Apr 16
196.01/ Week one-hundred and ninety-six, April 13-19, 2024, thread begins here.

Week 195 below.
196.02/ Still holds true (from last year)
196.03/ #NachasAlert: My son has a big article (pages 4-6) in this week's Torah journal from his high school #Metzora-#HaGadol. Enjoy!
drive.google.com/file/d/1uNKU5O…
Read 5 tweets
Apr 7
195.01/ Week one-hundred and ninety-five, April 6-12, 2024, thread begins here.

Week 194 below.
195.02/ Happy #Eclipse2024 Day for all who celebrate. Here's an interesting article about the halakhic implications of an eclipse by Rabbi Dov Linzer:
blogs.timesofisrael.com/solar-eclipse-…
195.03/ #Eclipse2024 My extended family went to a place of 100% totality and took this picture a few minutes ago. For me its 90% and can't be photographed (which is one reason I said shehechiyanu). Not paskening for anyone else, but for me this is a religious experience. The total eclipse of April 8, 2024
Read 10 tweets
Apr 2
194.01/ Week one-hundred and ninety-four, March 30-April 5, 2024, thread begins here.

Week 193 below.
194.02/ #ChochmatNashim for #Shemini 5784.
@ChochmatNashim
Downloadable PDF with working links to Divrei Torah by Orthodox women scholars on the parsha and other topics of the week. #Shmini #HaChodesh
drive.google.com/file/d/1bFHTfW…
194.03/ This is, 'how you say?, "awesome sauce"
Read 5 tweets
Mar 24
193.01/ Week one-hundred and ninety-three, March 23-29, 2024, thread begins here.

Week 192 below. #HappyPurim!
193.02/ This is now my preferred pshat
193.03/ #NachasAlert: Final (so far) tally of times my son leyned Megillah seven times; 3 last night, four times today. Including once for a home-bound Shoah survivor. So proud.
Read 9 tweets
Mar 17
192.01/ Week one-hundred and ninety-two, March 16-22, 2024, thread begins here.

Week 191 below.
192.02/ So today is #ZayinAdar and Saint Patrick's Day during Ramadan. What could go wrong?
192.03/ There's a resonance in having a fast that commemorates a community sacrifice for soldiers fighting a defensive war against raging antisemites. #TaanitEsther

And, hey, it's working already!
"IDF says 650 terror operatives captured at Shifa..."
timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry…
Read 14 tweets
Mar 10
191.01/ Week one-hundred and ninety-one, March 9-15, 2024, thread begins here.

Week 190 below.
191.02/ Last #MotzeiShabbatMovieNight of the season. How to top last week, and with a movie my youngest hasn't seen yet? "Fletch (1985)" en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fletch_(f…
191.03/ I agree with Prof. Simkovich, re: the Oscar guy.

Also, I see people wrestling to make sense of his convoluted phrasing, but I'm not inclined to give the benefit of the doubt to a declaration that inherently refuses to give others the same benefit.
Read 6 tweets

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