The Geraldine Ferraro Controversy

I feel compelled to say something in defense of Geraldine Ferraro here. First, let me state that I am no fan of Ferraro. I disagree with her on most issues. I consider her to be a highly partisan Democrat who doesn't budge an inch on most debates. Nevertheless, I think she has gotten a bum rap over her remarks about Barack Obama.

To paraphrase, Ferraro, who was an unpaid advisor to Hillary Clinton's campaign, told an interviewer that Obama would not have achieved so much in this campaign had he not been black. For that, Hillary repudiated her remarks and apologized to a black audience. In short order, Ferraro resigned from the campaign. Of course, her remarks drew strong criticism from Obama's campaign. Now, Ferraro is having to fight off charges of racism. Not content to roll over, Ferraro has struck back pointing out the contrast between her statements and those of Obama's pastor, Jeremiah Wright.

In my view, there is no evidence that Ferraro is racist in any way. Reasonable people can disagree about the accuracy of her remarks. (Ferraro has even acknowledged that she was picked for VP candidate in 1984 only because she was a woman.) I also would agree with Ferraro that it is ludicrous to compare anything she said with the vile statements of Wright, who Obama partially defended even while criticizing his remarks.

In my view, for Obama and his camp to go after Ferraro while equivocating about Wright is hypocritical. Let's also remember that Obama spoke out strongly on the Don Imus flap, calling for his firing because of offensive remarks he made about the Rutgers Womens basketball team.

Finally, it would be fitting and proper for both Clintons to stand up and state unequivocally that, while they may disagree with Ferraro, they reject any charges of racism against her. It would also be fitting if the Clintons also drew the obvious comparison between the comments of Wright and Ferraro.

Don't hold your breath. Hillary, while grateful for the break that may just pull the nomination out for her, is trying to keep a low profile on the Wright issue. Actually, she even has her own Jeremiah Wright. That would be Pastor James David Manning, of the ATLAH World Missionary Church in Harlem. Manning, who has the same oratorical style as Wright and supports Clinton, uses his sermons to call Obama a "long-legged freak with a white mama". And that's just for starters. This guy makes Jeremiah Wright look like Martin Luther King.

Hopefully in the end, most Americans will just recoil in horror at the whole Democratic primary campaign and walk away. So much for the "party of inclusion and tolerance."

In Memoriam

Avraham David Moses, 16
Segev Pniel Avichayil, 15
Neriah Cohen, 15
Yonathan Yitchak Eldar, 16
Yochai Lipshitz, 18
Yonadav Haim Hirshfeld, 19
Ro'i Rote, 18
Doron Mehereta, 26

Would I Be Welcome in Jeremiah Wright's Church?

WELCOME TO OUR CHURCH


Now that I have written one posting on the Jeremiah Wright-Barack Obama controversy, I would like to pose a question as a white person: Would I be welcome in Barack Obama's church (Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago)?

Specifically, if I were to just walk into that church off the street to attend a service (as I have done with other churches on previous occasions), would I be welcomed? Would I be asked to leave-or told to leave? Would any other parishioners come up and greet me and welcome me to the service? Would I be ignored? Or perhaps, would I just have to sit there and listen to rants against white people and Jews-that would force me to get up and walk out?

When I was a younger man, I became involved (through a friend) with a Japanese-American church in Los Angeles. From 1971-1975, I was a regular member of that church. (I only left when I no longer lived in the state.) Along with a handful of others, I was one of the only whites in that church.

Actually, there were two separate congregations; one Japanese-speaking for first generation immigrants and English-speaking for native-born Japanese-Americans.

Not only was I welcomed, but I became a part of the church family. Ethnicity was never an issue. I even dated a couple of the girls in the congregation. There was never any politics from the pulpit, and never was any harsh word spoken against any ethnic group. Only the gospel was spoken of.

Now, I certainly realize that the Asian-American experience and the African-American experience are distinct from each other. But Asian-Americans have also suffered discrimination, and some of the older members of our church had experienced the relocation of World War II. I know (if my blog were more popular) that I would get tons of responses educating me on the differences. I get it. Enough said.

But my point is this: Given the unfortunate history of black-white relations in this country, does it even extend to the churches? If we are fellow Christians, cannot we even come together to worship in harmony? I recognize that churches have traditionally been largely segregated (usually by choice), but this is slowly breaking down. I have even been to white churches in North Carolina where there were a handful of black parishioners.

I don't believe that all black churches are like that of Jeremiah Wright. But they are out there. In Harlem, there is a church where the pastor is James David Manning, a Clinton supporter, who rants against Obama in obscene terms, referring to his "white mama". This is a Christian?

If people like Jeremiah Wright are indeed Christians, this layman would suggest that they have lost their way. Wright is old enough that he probably has suffered indignities in his life. Unfortunately, it appears that it has left him bitter and full of hate. I am sure there are millions of Christians in the world who struggle with their own feelings of hatred for whatever reason. However, when it is a pastor, a man of God, then that is really alarming.

There may well be a few whites who attend that church in Chicago. I cannot imagine how they could sit through such a sermon. It strikes me akin to a Jew going to a Nazi speech-or a black going to a KKK speech. Whoever walks into a church should be welcomed no matter what their ethnicity, and they should not be subjected to language that attacks them and their ethnicity. In short, a church should be a place of love-not hate.

Ah-Wonderful, ah-Wonderful-ah

News items:

Congressman Mark Foley resigns over page scandal
Senator David Vitter visited prostitutes
Louisiana Congressman William "Cool Cash" Jefferson indicted for bribery
Senator Larry Craig arrested in airport men's room
Arizona Congressman Rick Renzi indicted in land scheme
New York Governor Eliot Spitzer resigns over prostitution scandal
New New York Governor inaugurated- admits to past affairs
Former NJ Governor McGreevey, ex-wife reportedly involved in 3-way sex
Obama's pastor says, "God damn America"
New New York Governor repays state government for "hotel room expenses" previously billed to state
Detroit Mayor, Kwame Kilpatrick indicted for perjury
Puerto Rican Governor, Anibal Acevedo Vila indicted for corruption
White House aide resigns- FBI investigating
HUD chief Alphonso Jackson resigns amid criminal probe
Husband of Michigan Senator, Debbie Stabenow caught with prostitute
Brother of indicted Louisiana Congressman William "Cool Cash" Jefferson indicted
Louisiana Senator, David Vitter may be called as witness in prostitution trial
NY Rep. Vito Fossella caught in adultery scandal
Marc Dann, Ohio Attorney General resigns over sexual harassment/adultery scandal

(to be continued and expanded)

Stumbling Toward the Finish Line

The Great Sausage Race


In the light of developments of the past few weeks, the Democratic Primary race between Clinton and Obama is starting to look like the "Great Sausage Race" held during the Milwaukee Brewers home games.

Just as it looked like Barack Obama was on his way to victory, his pastor, Jeremiah Wright, has emerged and threatened to destroy the campaign. I won't dwell on that issue since my previous post has done that. At any rate, Obama will almost certainly go to the convention in Denver with a delegate lead that only the Superdelegates can reverse. Up until now, it appeared that there was no sensible way those Superdelegates could take the nomination away from Obama. Now they may have the reason to do so.

By the way, why hasn't the good reverend spoken out this week? Well, according to Bill O'Reilly, Wright is currently in Africa. How convenient. If true, that would remind one of the Godfather I movie when Michael Corleone was shipped off to Sicily after knocking off the corrupt New York Police Detective.

This is not to say that Hillary Clinton is making a strong drive of her own. On the contrary, while Obama twists in the wind, Hillary is keeping a low profile, much like the neighbor looking out the window and watching the house next door burn down with a sense of Schadenfreude. Meanwhile, her husband, Bill, has apparently broken out of his handcuffs and escaped from house arrest. Now he is telling everybody who will listen that Obama did a "hit piece" on him. Bill is now complaining that he was unfairly charged with playing the race card against Obama in South Carolina. Not only has Obama played dirty pool, but the news media has also treated him and Hillary unfairly. In short, he and Hillary are "Victims".

Then there is poor Geraldine Ferraro, who had to resign from her unpaid position on the campaign because she said that Obama would not be running for president if he were not black. Reasonable people can disagree on that point, but in the face of racism charges, Hillary not only repudiated Ferraro's remarks and apologized to black voters, but didn't even have the class to defend Ferraro against the racism charges. How simple it would have been to say you don't agree with the remarks, but Ferraro is no racist. In fact, Obama gave more support to Wright than Clinton did to Ferraro. Hillary Clinton has absolutely no class. Well, at least she married the right guy. As they say, there is a lid for every pot.

What a choice the Democratic Party will have come convention time. Do they bite the bullet and give the nomination to the candidate with the most delegates from the primaries even though he may be fatally flawed? Or do they bite the other bullet and take the nomination away from the candidate with the most delegates and hand the nomination to the ever-scheming, arrogant and corrupt Hillary Clinton, infuriating black voters in the process?

I'm sure Howard Dean will figure something out.

Obama's Speech- A Little Something for Everybody-and Nobody

Barack Obama's address on Race today in Philadelphia was a desperate bid to save his presidential prospects in the light of release of videotapes of his pastor, Jeremiah Wright's sermons. While much of the mainstream media has tried to downplay the story, Obama had obviously come to the conclusion that it was major news-and it was threatening to kill his campaign. While reactions to the speech are still playing out, I would like to offer my own reaction at this time.

Without repeating the various lines in his speech, suffice to say that, like most of his speeches, Obama's prepared remarks today were typically eloquent-especially in contrast to when he is answering questions on uncomfortable topics-as he was this week on the TV news circuit. The problem with the speech was, as I see it, that he tried to appeal to everyone, and, in the process, may have alienated everyone with the obvious exception of those who choose to believe and accept whatever he says because he is their guy.

Obama, while condemning Wright's remarks, stated that he could not disown the pastor any more than he could disown the black community. Personally, I am not sure the two are linked. I sure hope not although Wright's parishioners have spoken out loud and clear in their support of him. Is Obama the only member of the church who rejects Wright's sentiments?

Obama also reiterated the racial grievances of black Americans and made the usual calls for racial healing. Obama obviously felt he had to give something to his black listeners and speak of injustice. No question, Obama is walking a very thin tightrope here, trying to hold on to wavering white voters while not alienating black voters who may conclude he is an "Uncle Tom" (a ugly term also used by Wright in some of his sermons).

Obama spoke of Wright's good works and good qualities, stating that he will not turn his back on him. He also referred to his white grandmother, who allegedly referred to her fears of encountering black men on the street. He also acknowledged that he had, indeed, been in the pews on occasions when Wright made "controversial" statements. This is an apparent contradiction from statements he had been making just in the past few days to the effect that he had not been present during these particular diatribes. (Is it possible Obama realized that there may be some video out there showing him in the audience on these occasions-perhaps doing what everyone else was apparently doing-standing, clapping and cheering?)

It appears that Obama's theme is that, yes, he disagrees with Wright's statements about whites and America, but that he will not turn away from his spiritual mentor and his church. America must deal with black historical grievances and present-day "real anger", but he wants to bring about racial conciliation. In other words, Obama's speech had something in it for everyone, just what a politician's speech is supposed to be.

I still am left with serious questions about Mr Obama:

First, how could you sit there in that church for two decades and listen to this rhetoric and racial diatribes. Senator Obama, when Minister Wright was railing about white people, he was talking about your mother-and grandmother. Did you never take offense at that?

You talk about your love of this country. Yet, you sat there and listened to the worst things being said about your country by Wright. I don't know about you, sir, but I would have gotten up and walked out of my church and never gone back if the pastor talked like that about America-or about other ethnic groups not my own. But you, sir, are a sitting US Senator. If nothing else, as a US Senator and aspiring presidential candidate, what kind of judgement does this show? The same kind of judgement that allowed you to do business with a character like Tony Rezko?

Already, many news commentators sympathetic to Obama are raving about the eloquence of his speech. It is spin. The fact of the matter is that in attempting to please all sides, in my view, Obama has hurt his cause only more. As I acknowledged above, Obama is caught squarely in the middle of the racial divide in this country. He doesn't want to be regarded as simply the "Black Candidate", rather one who cuts across racial barriers. Sadly, that is going by the wayside very quickly. I don't know how the senator is going to reconcile these issues. Certainly many white voters who are wavering wanted Obama to cut his ties to Wright and the church in strong and forceful terms. To do so, however, would have alienated many black voters. So he tried to cut it both ways. I don't think it will work.

I don't know if Obama secretely sympathizes with Wright's views; I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. His continued membership in such a church and association with Wright would make any reasonable person suspicious. What is really sad and ironic is that the candidate and the campaign that held out hope of advancing black-white relations in America to so many, even among his opponents, is now turning into something that, in the end, may only set relations back.

All of the above, of course, is written from the perspective of a white male in his 60s who probably doesn't understand what goes on in black churches and has possibly deluded himself into thinking that over the course of his life, he had seen dramatic racial progress. All I can say is that if Jeremiah Wright is typical, then we have made very little progress. If there is actually someone out there who can bring Americans together, that person is not going to come out of the Trinity United Church of Christ of Chicago.

So is there a secret side to Mr Obama that he has tried to hide from the public? I don't know, but one thing is becoming more obvious every day.

Barack Obama is just another politician.

The "Drug Wars" (12) Cairo, Egypt 1995

"Hey Clyde, isn't that Fousesquawk riding on your back?"


One of the final overseas trips I took in DEA's Office of International Training before retirement was to Cairo in 1995. The event was the UN Conference in Crime Prevention, with countries from all over the world participating. The State Department, who funded DEA's international training programs, had asked all federal law enforcement agencies to send a training representative to the conference in order to hold seminars introducing our agency's training programs to the delegates. The purpose, according to the State Department, was to show the UN that while they were only talking about solutions, we (US agencies) were actually doing something tangible in the way of international police training. Only DEA, the FBI and BATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms)chose to send a representative. I was selected to go on behalf of DEA.

Prior to leaving, there were several meetings to be held at State Department HQs in Washington. At the meetings, the DOS representative who would be coordinating our activities in Cairo, explained to us how everything was being arranged. Pick-up at the airport, security, hotel accommodations-and most importantly, how we would operate at the convention hall. According to this gentleman, we would be occupying a large hall just off the main assembly hall. We would hold two seminars a day, so that any delegates not busy in the main assembly could come in and hear our spiel offering our training programs and pick up brochures. It sounded like a really big deal.

We also had to go to a couple of "training" sessions at State-even though all three of us were professional instructors and had been trained by our own agencies upon assignment to the Office of Training. We each had to give a practice presentation in front of their own Training "expert", who critiqued our performances and offered up his suggestions for improvement. Somewhat degrading in our view, but this was the State Department. They generally tended to look down their noses at other agencies.

So off we went to Cairo. We arrived and were met and taken to our hotel, and later, to the convention hall to get our ID badges. The problem was when we saw the room we were supposed to use for our presentations. It was not much bigger than a regular hotel room and was in a far-off corner of the hall, well-removed from the general assembly hall. Typical State Department operation!

On the morning of the first day, we awaited the arrival of our "audience". A grand total of three delegates wandered in-2 from Mauritius. So we scrapped our prepared speeches, set aside the podium and sat around in a circle with the three gentlemen holding an informal discussion and handing them our brochures. Hopefully, the afternoon session would go better.

At three in the afternoon, 3 more arrived- including the two guys from Mauritious. Embarrassed we explained that there was no need to come back for the same presentation.

The next day ran pretty much the same. At that, we cancelled the room, taped 8x11" posters on the walls, set up a table in the main hallway, and sat around looking like potted plants trying to attract interest. We might as well have been selling cheap souvenirs. In the course of the week, we met with less than 10 delegates.

What did we do after hours? Well, we went sightseeing, shopping, visited the pyramids, rode camels, sailed down the Nile on a dinner cruise and ate lots of shish kabob- all paid for courtesy of the American taxpayer.

And that, dear readers, is an example of your tax dollars at work.

Where are the British Soccer Hooligans When You Need Them?

Muslim Protest in London- "Death to Fousesquawk!!"

The "Drug Wars" (11)-Bangkok, Thailand ca. 1977

During my tour of duty in Bangkok with DEA (75-78), I had occasion to travel back home to LA. This would have been in 76 or 77, I don’t recall. While I was home, my cousin came to visit. She was a film producer and brought a female friend who also worked in the film industry. The lady asked a favor when I returned to Bangkok in the next few days. She explained that her company was producing a film to be called, “The Deer Hunter”. Part of the film was to be filmed in Bangkok. She asked me to carry the script with me to Bangkok and that an associate would pick it up later in Thailand. I agreed, and a few days later, was on my way back to Thailand via Europe, script in hand.

I read the script on my way home with stops in Amsterdam and Rome. As I recall, a few weeks later, someone came to our apartment and picked up the script.

Later, I was contacted by someone from the film crew, and we met for lunch at the Oriental Hotel. I took along our Thai investigative asst, as the producers wanted advice on how to arrange for Thai cops to assist them in setting up crowd control, blocking off sites, etc for filming. As I recall, we put them in touch with some Thai cops.

When the filming actually began, probably in 77, the Viet Nam segment was filmed in Thailand, and Bangkok was used to portray Saigon. Numerous Americans and Europeans living in Bangkok were recruited to portray American servicemen and other bit parts. The “doctor” in the Viet Nam hospital scene (who tried to interview Christopher Walken) was one of our intelligence analysts who happened to be an amateur actor. The fellow who portrayed the European "Russian roulette organizer" was portrayed by the owner of the Metropolitaine, a prominent French restaurant in Bangkok.

One night, I went down to Pat Pong, the notorious red-light district, looking for a European informant I was working with who was being used as an extra. That night, they were filming a bar scene, using one of the bars and some of the girls as extras. While I was standing there, an American lady, who was working on the set, approached me and asked if I was American. She then asked me if I would be willing to be an extra in the bar scene. They would pay me $20.00. I said OK, and she told me to stand by. A few minutes later, she came back and took me across the street to wait in front of the bar, as Thai on-lookers furiously snapped photos, thinking I must be one of the stars.

After standing in front of the bar (which, if I remember correctly was the Mississippi something or other), she came back and told me I was not needed after all. I left without finding my informant.

A day or two later, I was informed by the Thai police that our informant had been shot to death on Sukhumwit Blvd in an apparent botched robbery attempt, in which he tried to fight back. To this day, I still don’t know if that was the true motive for the killing. or if it was related to his informing activities. He did, in fact appear in the above scene in the movie for a split second.

Of course, "The Deer Hunter" went on the win an Oscar as best picture of 1978, in spite of protests that it portrayed the Vietnamese people in a negative light.

Several years later, (late 80s) while I was stationed in Pittsburgh, one of the Pennsylvania State Cops attached to our office told me that he had also been used as an extra in the US-filmed segment in a bar as part of the wedding reception scene. Small world.

The 7th Inning Stretch

Ladies and Gentlemen, would you please rise and join Minister Jeremiah Wright in singing, "God Bless America"?

Barack Obama and Jeremiah Wright- Here Comes the Kitchen Sink

Barack Obama-Jeremiah Wright


For months, we have been saying that Barack Obama's pastor, Jeremiah Wright, was going to hurt Obama's campaign. Now that ABC's Brian Ross has released videotapes of Wright's sermons, Wright is front and center in the Democratic Primary election campaign. Is this stage one of the so-called "Kitchen Sink" that might derail Obama's path to the nomination?

I hope that every American gets the opportunity to see and hear Jeremiah Wright for themselves- the "God Damn America" rants, the justifications for 9-11, the references to Hillary Clinton as "white" this and "white that", as well as references to "Uncle Toms". According to Wright, American is an evil country, and he doesn't seem to have much use for white folks either. This man is a vile racist who hates his country. This is a man who claims that we invented the AIDS virus to infect non-whites. Christian minister? This sounds more like some radical Muslim cleric preaching Jihad in some London mosque.

Remember also that this is the same man who traveled with Louis Farrakhan to Libya in 1984 to meet with Moamar Khadafi. This is the same man who recently gave an award to Farrakhan. This is the church that emphasizes the so-called "black value system" and other "black principles" that can only tell other ethnic groups that they are not welcome.

Now that the tapes are out there for all to see and hear, Obama has reacted (as he had to) and released a statement today that he repudiates the offensive statements made by Wright. He claims not to have been present in church when these vile things were said.

It is not enough, and it is not convincing. Obama's explanations sound a lot like the old, "I just played the piano. I didn't know what was going on upstairs" line.

First of all, Barack Obama has been affilated with this church and this pastor (Wright recently retired) for almost 20 years. He has identified Wright as his mentor and inspiration. The title of his first book, The Audacity of Hope, came from one of Wright's sermons. Wright married Barack and Michelle Obama and baptized their children.

Obama's statements about Wright are not only insufficient, but lame. He says that the worst sermons were made when he was not present. C'mon! In his nearly 20 years attending the Trinity Church, he has not heard these rants, as he is claiming? That strains credulity. He implies that only in the past year has he learned of Wright's controversial pronouncements. He has stated that he only stayed in the church because Wright was retiring. No, Mr Obama, he was your mentor and inspiration-in your own words. You also put him on an advisory committee for your campaign. You and your wife have been listening to Wright's sermons for nearly two decades. Your explanations do not wash.

When one views the sermons, one not only hears the vicious words, but one sees and hears the wild applause and affirmations of the congregation. What were Barack and Michelle Obama doing during these sermons? Were they sitting there like potted plants?

Recently, Obama explained his relationship to Wright by referring to all the families who have a crazy uncle that they don't agree with. We can't choose our uncles, but we can choose our churches, Mr and Mrs Obama.

That leads me to Mrs Obama. In light of her recent speeches and questionable references to her country, I also want to hear the woman who would be our First Lady speak out about Dr Wright and answer the same questions as her husband.

But it is not enough to state that they don't agree with those statements. Will they remain in this church-and why have they been a part of it for almost 20 years?

In the interest of full disclosure, I had been hoping that Obama would get the nomination out of my intense revulsion toward Hillary Clinton. I even voted for him in the California Primary since, as an independent, I was precluded from voting for a Republican. Of course, I never entertained the thought that I might vote for him in November. I have written that Hillary would have to steal the nomination from Obama since he has the delegate lead and will hold it when the convention begins in Denver.

So, at this point, the Democrats may have to bite the bullet and choose between handing the nomination to Hillary-which she could not win from the voters-or allowing Obama, with this odious association, to become their standard-bearer.

So on goes the increasingly ugly Democratic Primary. Just this week, Hillary offered an apology to black voters for remarks made by Geraldine Ferraro about Obama. Who, if anyone, will Obama apologize to for Wright's dispicable rants?

Now that Obama has denied previous knowledge of Wright's words, if that proves not to be true, then he is finished. More importantly, is there a hidden side to Barack and Michelle Obama, two people who represent themselves as bridging the racial divide? I don't know, but I don't think this man has any business being a US senator, let alone President of the United States.

Speaking Appearance by Matthias Kuentzel at UC-Irvine

Yesterday, I had the privilege of attending a lecture by Dr Matthias Kuentzel at the University of California at Irvine. Dr Kuentzel was invited to speak by the Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, a pro-Israel group. Dr Kuentzel is a member of the organization, as well as a research associate at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is a German author and political scientist. He is the author of; Jihad and Jew Hatred-Islamism, Nazism, and the Roots of 9-11. In 2007, he was scheduled to give a speech at the University of Leeds (UK) on; Hitler's Legacy-Islamic Anti-Semitism in the Middle East. The university cancelled the event shortly before it was scheduled due to "security concerns" (actually, based on two letters sent to the university by Muslims protesting Dr Kuentzel's appearance.)

Dr Kuentzel began his lecture by describing the rejoicing that took place among Palestinians over the recent murder of 8 Jewish students. His thesis is that there is a nexus between Islamism and anti-Semitism. He described the birth of the Muslim Brotherhood in the 1920s as well as the activities and words of the Grand Mufti of Jereusalem, Muhammed Tahir Husseini, who was an ally of Hitler and actually lived in Berlin during the Third Reich. During those years, the Mufti participated in making anti-Jewish speeches that were broadcast into the Middle East from a radio station outside Berlin-broadcasts that were met with an enthusiastic reception.

Dr Kuentzel rejects the notion that anti-Zionism is separate from anti-Semitism. He described the situation of anti-Jewish feeling currently prevalent in the Middle East, describing the friendly reception he gets in the Middle East when people learn he is German, assuming he must be a Hitler-admirer.

In response to a question posed by me, he acknowledged that Germany's large Turkish population has become increasingly radical in the last few years in response to world events.

He also stated that the UN should act to outlaw suicide bombings, though he seemed less than optimistic about the world body's ability to have any real effect.

The audience for Dr Kuentzel's talk was small-about 20-25 people. I only knew or met a handful of the other attendees for the first time. Most were elderly and a few were retired professors.

Alarming as Dr Kuentzel's words were, it was refreshing to hear a sane voice coming out of Europe. I can't wait to get his book.