Mazel tov, my dearest Yael. You have reached your first century. It is exactly 100 days ago that you came into this world. In such a short time, you have filled so many people's hearts with such love and joy.
If I ruled the world, I would change the system so that you have a birthday every one hundred days, and not every 365 days as it is at the moment. It would be much simpler and more fun. More than three times as many birthdays as we get right now. So, if I were World Ruler, today would be your first birthday, dear Yael. But as I am not you will have to wait another nine months. Don't worry, time will fly, beleive me.
There's been some happy news from Burma today where the military junta has released the opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi after seven years under hous arest. Aung San Suu Kyi is a remarkable individual who has dedicated her life to peacefully confronting the dicatorship in her country and fighting for democracy. She's an attractive and youthful woman in her early sixties who, if given real freedom, could emerge another inspiring international like South Africa's Nelson Mandela. But we will have to see whether the Burmese authorities, who have kept this wonderfully elegant and composed woman imprisoned for 15 out of the past 21 years, will losen their grip on her movements.
Grandpa Jonatha
Prague, Czech Republic
Saturday, 13 November 2010
Friday, 12 November 2010
Skype baby
As wonderful as it is to enjoy this 'cyber-contact', I can't wait to see you in person. Your grandfather has a lot of secrets stories that he wants to whisper in your ear.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
Thursday, 11 November 2010
Armistice Day
Today is Armistice Day -- also known as Remembrance Day-- when we commemorate the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front, which took effect at exactly 11am — the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" of 1918. While this was the official date to mark the end of the First World War, it has since become the day on which many allied nations rememeber all members of the armed forces who were killed during the Second World War and in all conflicts since.
I was often taken by my father as a child to the ceremony at the Cenotaph in London's Whitehall, which is the official memorial for the so-called Unknown Soldier. My father was a Flight Leiutenant in the Royal Airforce during the Second World War. Although he didn't see active service, he was a member of the Association of Jewish Ex-service Men, called AJEX, and marched past the Senataph the Sunday following 11th November each year for a special Jewish ceremony.
Today is a particularly significant anniversary, because it was 90 years ago, two years after the end of the First World War, that the white-marble Cenotaph was unveilled right in the middle of Whitehall, halfway between Trafalgar Square and the Houses of Parliament.
Millions of young men, on all sides, many as young as 15, died in these two terrible world wars. Ironically, the first was dubbed 'the war to end all wars', only to be followed 22 years later by a war which culminated in the use of the nuclear bomb.
In Britain, specially made poppy badges are sold to raise money for injuured soldiers and bereaved families. People commonly wear these on their lapels during the week leading up to Armstice Day itself.
This is an important day, which has much meaning for me. I was only born 12 years after the last person was gassed in the concentration camps. We should never forget the soldiers you gave their lives to stop Nazi Germany from taking over the world. It won't be long before no one is still alive who experienced either world wars. But we should also never forget those soldiers on all sides of these and every conflict, who have lost their lives in war.
At 11am today, millions of us here in Europe stood for a two-minute silence to relfect on all those fallen soldiers. I hope the practice endures long after all those involved has passed on. We cannot ever afford to forget the horrors of war.
May you, my dear Yael, never know what war is, only having to enduring it in history lessons.
But on a lighter note, today is also St. Martin's day. Don't ask me its historical significance. But what I do know is that it is a night when people go out to goose feasts. Your grandfather is just about to leave for one himself. I love goose. Bon appetite!
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
I was often taken by my father as a child to the ceremony at the Cenotaph in London's Whitehall, which is the official memorial for the so-called Unknown Soldier. My father was a Flight Leiutenant in the Royal Airforce during the Second World War. Although he didn't see active service, he was a member of the Association of Jewish Ex-service Men, called AJEX, and marched past the Senataph the Sunday following 11th November each year for a special Jewish ceremony.
Today is a particularly significant anniversary, because it was 90 years ago, two years after the end of the First World War, that the white-marble Cenotaph was unveilled right in the middle of Whitehall, halfway between Trafalgar Square and the Houses of Parliament.
Millions of young men, on all sides, many as young as 15, died in these two terrible world wars. Ironically, the first was dubbed 'the war to end all wars', only to be followed 22 years later by a war which culminated in the use of the nuclear bomb.
In Britain, specially made poppy badges are sold to raise money for injuured soldiers and bereaved families. People commonly wear these on their lapels during the week leading up to Armstice Day itself.
This is an important day, which has much meaning for me. I was only born 12 years after the last person was gassed in the concentration camps. We should never forget the soldiers you gave their lives to stop Nazi Germany from taking over the world. It won't be long before no one is still alive who experienced either world wars. But we should also never forget those soldiers on all sides of these and every conflict, who have lost their lives in war.
At 11am today, millions of us here in Europe stood for a two-minute silence to relfect on all those fallen soldiers. I hope the practice endures long after all those involved has passed on. We cannot ever afford to forget the horrors of war.
May you, my dear Yael, never know what war is, only having to enduring it in history lessons.
But on a lighter note, today is also St. Martin's day. Don't ask me its historical significance. But what I do know is that it is a night when people go out to goose feasts. Your grandfather is just about to leave for one himself. I love goose. Bon appetite!
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
From 'Cool Britania' to 'Broken Britain'
It was little more than a decade ago that Cool Britania was the phrase being used to describe Blair's Britain. Now, the Cameron government has coined the term Broken Britain, which it pledges to 'repair'. The nation's bi-polar psyche supports my view that public perceptions are like a carrousel, with rapid ups and downs and sharp twists and turns, driven by little more than headlines and soundbites.
The word with which I would associate Brtain today is protest. Only a few blogs ago, I predicted that we would see protests against the government's extravagant cuts in public expenditure. I spoke to soon, because today we have seen the first signs of what I am convinced will become a truly hyperactive season in protest in Britain.
What have some of the country's most senior retired military leaders got in common with students? The answer is that today they both voiced their concerns against government austerity measures. This morning's Times published a damning letter by some of the most esteemed former military top brass, protesting against the Ministry of Defence announcement to get rid of the Navy's fleet of Harrier aircraft. While this afternoon saw more than 50,000 students protest against a 300 percent rise in tuition fees.
Being an old leftie, I confess not to be too upset about any news to reduce military expenditure. While I acknolwedge the need for Britain to have some kind of defence capability, I hate to think how many more hospitals and schools could be spent with the money spent on bullets and bombs. I was amused to read that one of the major concerns about eliminating the Harriers is that will make the Falkland Islands more vulnerable to attack from the Argentinians. Apparently, the cancellation of these planes will mean that the navy will have no ability to fly from aircraft carriers for the next decade, thus providing an 'open invitation' to Argentine to invade their beloved Malvines, as they call these remote islands.
It's high time that the British and Argentine governments found a solution to this ridiculous situation. There are only 3,000 people living on the islands, with a permenant force of more than 500 British troops, defending a place of no importance to Britain, on the other side of the world. Surely we have gone way past the era where we would wage another war with Argentina, which is now an advanced democracy?
While I am not opposed to the defence cuts, I have much sympanthy with today's protesting students. There was some violence as a consequence of some nasty anarchist thugs trying to hajack the demonstration, but the peaceful protestors definately have my support. I am particularly pleased to see them target the Liberal-Democratic party who had made a clear election pledge to the British people that there would be no tuition fee increases. As partners in the government coalition, the Liberals are effectivley facilitatiing this unpopular measure.
If Britain is broken, it ain't gonna be fixed by discouraging young people from going into higher education. Shame on the politiicans, and good luck to the student struggle.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
The word with which I would associate Brtain today is protest. Only a few blogs ago, I predicted that we would see protests against the government's extravagant cuts in public expenditure. I spoke to soon, because today we have seen the first signs of what I am convinced will become a truly hyperactive season in protest in Britain.
What have some of the country's most senior retired military leaders got in common with students? The answer is that today they both voiced their concerns against government austerity measures. This morning's Times published a damning letter by some of the most esteemed former military top brass, protesting against the Ministry of Defence announcement to get rid of the Navy's fleet of Harrier aircraft. While this afternoon saw more than 50,000 students protest against a 300 percent rise in tuition fees.
Being an old leftie, I confess not to be too upset about any news to reduce military expenditure. While I acknolwedge the need for Britain to have some kind of defence capability, I hate to think how many more hospitals and schools could be spent with the money spent on bullets and bombs. I was amused to read that one of the major concerns about eliminating the Harriers is that will make the Falkland Islands more vulnerable to attack from the Argentinians. Apparently, the cancellation of these planes will mean that the navy will have no ability to fly from aircraft carriers for the next decade, thus providing an 'open invitation' to Argentine to invade their beloved Malvines, as they call these remote islands.
It's high time that the British and Argentine governments found a solution to this ridiculous situation. There are only 3,000 people living on the islands, with a permenant force of more than 500 British troops, defending a place of no importance to Britain, on the other side of the world. Surely we have gone way past the era where we would wage another war with Argentina, which is now an advanced democracy?
While I am not opposed to the defence cuts, I have much sympanthy with today's protesting students. There was some violence as a consequence of some nasty anarchist thugs trying to hajack the demonstration, but the peaceful protestors definately have my support. I am particularly pleased to see them target the Liberal-Democratic party who had made a clear election pledge to the British people that there would be no tuition fee increases. As partners in the government coalition, the Liberals are effectivley facilitatiing this unpopular measure.
If Britain is broken, it ain't gonna be fixed by discouraging young people from going into higher education. Shame on the politiicans, and good luck to the student struggle.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
Tuesday, 9 November 2010
Time heals
At best, I thought George W Bush was a fool, and at worst dangerous, when he was President of the United States. But now, 22-months after he left the White House, he gave his first television interview today in which he came across as a friendly and honest man. It seemed as though time had washed away my prejudices.
This is a strange but not new sensation. I have found that many politicians look quite differant in the heat of office to when they have retired. I didn't agree with Bush's politics, and I was unimpressed by his communications skills during his eight year presidency. But with the benefit of hindsight, I cannot say that he looks evil or hateful in any way.
History has a way of balancing reality. While I doubt that I will ever beleive that George W Bush's presidency was particularly impressive, I am sure that history is likely to be kinder to him than his critics would have thought at the time that he left the White House.
Bush's interview had a purpose. He is publishing his memoirs, Decision Points. While self-serving by definition, these books written by former politicians always make fascinating reading. It is so interesting to understand what it's really like to hold a position like the President of the Untied States. My father was a voracious reader of political autobiographies. He passed along this interest to me.
The key philosophical question for me with all of these memoirs is just how credible are such accounts when written by the very people at the centre of history. I suppose the answer is that there is no such thing as one truth. We must listen and read broadly across all parts of the polical spectrum before coming to conclusions.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
This is a strange but not new sensation. I have found that many politicians look quite differant in the heat of office to when they have retired. I didn't agree with Bush's politics, and I was unimpressed by his communications skills during his eight year presidency. But with the benefit of hindsight, I cannot say that he looks evil or hateful in any way.
History has a way of balancing reality. While I doubt that I will ever beleive that George W Bush's presidency was particularly impressive, I am sure that history is likely to be kinder to him than his critics would have thought at the time that he left the White House.
Bush's interview had a purpose. He is publishing his memoirs, Decision Points. While self-serving by definition, these books written by former politicians always make fascinating reading. It is so interesting to understand what it's really like to hold a position like the President of the Untied States. My father was a voracious reader of political autobiographies. He passed along this interest to me.
The key philosophical question for me with all of these memoirs is just how credible are such accounts when written by the very people at the centre of history. I suppose the answer is that there is no such thing as one truth. We must listen and read broadly across all parts of the polical spectrum before coming to conclusions.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
Monday, 8 November 2010
Getting colder, days shorter, leaves falling
It is well and truly Autumn in Prague. After an extraordinarily warm period when temperatures actually touched 20 degrees celcius here last week, it is now cold, damp and generally miserable now that it gets dark by 5pm. The ground is thick with fallen leaves. I have changed to winter tyres on my car and we are generally bracing ourselves for the coming winter. And winter is this part of the world often means temperatures will below freezing with heavy snow, although we have had relatively mild winters recently. Let's see what winter will bring to Prague this year.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
Sunday, 7 November 2010
Where is home?
"I love the idea I've lived in the same place all my life", was a statement I heard on the radio this morning that absolutely screamed out at me. It was said by Ian McMillan, a most interesting British poet, who was appearing this morning on that wonderful BBC Radio 4 programme, Desert Island Discs.
McMillan was born in the small Yorkshire village of Darfield, close to the town of Barnsley in 1956, making him one year older than me. He is Poet In Residence at both the English National Opera and of his beloved Barnsley football club.
I was struck by his comment about his attachment to the place where he was born and the fact that he has lived there all of his life. His experience dramatically differs from mine, having had homes in New York, Amsterdam, Brussels and Prague. And having spent extended periods in Washington DC, New Delhi as well as other places. In spite of my nomadic lifestyle, I find myself admiring people who remain attached to their hometowns.
Is is a failure or a strength to remain in the same home all one's life? This is a question that I have often asked myself. I must confess to really admire the likes of McMillan, who is so emotionally attached to his birthplace. I have deeply fond memories of the home where I was brought up from birth until I was 19 years old, at 48 Pangbourne Drive, Stanmore in North London. I also have a deep affection for London and Great Britain. It's easy to find expats who speak badly of the place from where they come. You will never hear a negative word from me.
I consider Prague to be my home. I have lived here now for four years where I have a lovely flat surrounded by my treasured belongings. In spite of not speaking the language, often struggling to really understand the Czech psyche, and always feeling distinctly British, this really is my home. And yet there was something so warm and attractive in McMillan's commment on the radio this morning. I wonder why.
Everyone needs somewhere they call home, but that doesn't mean you need to have been born there. In Israel, where you live, many people come from somewhere else, including your parents. And yet your parents, along with many others, passionately see Israel as their home. I beleive that it's important to know where you come from and to have pride in it, while it is equally necessary to feel content and happy in the place that you live.
As for me, Prague is a beautiful city. I came here with a wife with whom I had plannned to establish a family home filled with love and joy. It is with very much regret that this didn't work out. But I decided to stay, and have made friends here, enjoy the rich cultural life that this city has to offer, and generally feel comfortable. And I am involved with the Jewish community.
So I am not complaining. But I must confess to harbour real envy for McMillan's love for living all of his 54 years on one place.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
McMillan was born in the small Yorkshire village of Darfield, close to the town of Barnsley in 1956, making him one year older than me. He is Poet In Residence at both the English National Opera and of his beloved Barnsley football club.
I was struck by his comment about his attachment to the place where he was born and the fact that he has lived there all of his life. His experience dramatically differs from mine, having had homes in New York, Amsterdam, Brussels and Prague. And having spent extended periods in Washington DC, New Delhi as well as other places. In spite of my nomadic lifestyle, I find myself admiring people who remain attached to their hometowns.
Is is a failure or a strength to remain in the same home all one's life? This is a question that I have often asked myself. I must confess to really admire the likes of McMillan, who is so emotionally attached to his birthplace. I have deeply fond memories of the home where I was brought up from birth until I was 19 years old, at 48 Pangbourne Drive, Stanmore in North London. I also have a deep affection for London and Great Britain. It's easy to find expats who speak badly of the place from where they come. You will never hear a negative word from me.
I consider Prague to be my home. I have lived here now for four years where I have a lovely flat surrounded by my treasured belongings. In spite of not speaking the language, often struggling to really understand the Czech psyche, and always feeling distinctly British, this really is my home. And yet there was something so warm and attractive in McMillan's commment on the radio this morning. I wonder why.
Everyone needs somewhere they call home, but that doesn't mean you need to have been born there. In Israel, where you live, many people come from somewhere else, including your parents. And yet your parents, along with many others, passionately see Israel as their home. I beleive that it's important to know where you come from and to have pride in it, while it is equally necessary to feel content and happy in the place that you live.
As for me, Prague is a beautiful city. I came here with a wife with whom I had plannned to establish a family home filled with love and joy. It is with very much regret that this didn't work out. But I decided to stay, and have made friends here, enjoy the rich cultural life that this city has to offer, and generally feel comfortable. And I am involved with the Jewish community.
So I am not complaining. But I must confess to harbour real envy for McMillan's love for living all of his 54 years on one place.
Grandpa Jonathan
Prague, Czech Republic
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