Classic Rant #1,196 (April 29, 2014): Still Alive

That title that I used today could go for a couple of things that I am going to talk about here.

One is the fact that I actually made it through my 57th birthday unscathed.

I had lots to do yesterday, and even when I completed my tasks, I still had a lot more to do.

In the middle of it all, lots of people called me on the phone, and I had some nice conversations.

I always look forward to my birthdays, and based on what I accomplished yesterday, I would say that I hope that my 58th birthday is as fulfilling as my 57th was.

Next on the docket are two incidents that have happened over the span of about three weeks, two incidents that show us that things we might have thought were dead truly aren't.

The first is that neo-Nazi who murdered three innocent people in Kansas.

He shot them without any provocation, other than the fact that they were on the grounds of Jewish institutions in that state.

He thought they were Jewish, but they weren't. They were just at the wrong place at the wrong time.

When he was arrested for the crimes, he shouted out "Heil Hitler."

Many people, including many Jews, do not believe that anti-Semitism exists anymore. On the Jews' part, many believe that they are so homogenized into society at this point in time that anti-Semitism has faded away, along with their uniqueness about being Jewish.

Well, if this incident didn't demonstrate that anti-Jewish feelings still exist in this world, I don't know what does.

Once Jewish, always Jewish, whether these people want to believe that or not.

And no, I don't believe this is an isolated incident. There are plenty of people who believe the same way that that imbecile did, and would blow away Jews if they had the nerve to do so.

The next instance of "still alive" also involved somebody who happens to be Jewish, but it has nothing to do with his religion, but all to do with his character.

Donald Sterling, the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA, was allegedly recorded saying some heinous things about blacks, among them that he didn't want his girlfriend to be appearing with any blacks or bringing them to games his team plays.

He allegedly said these things, simply because it still isn't known whether that was his voice on the recording or not.

First off, I wonder why he was recorded, and who did the recording? What reason was there for this to have taken place, in the first place?

Secondly, if the allegations are true, Sterling must really be color-blind, but in the worst sense.

Heck, aren't at least 80 percent of the players in the NBA, and on his own team, black?

Personally, I think the guy is losing it to begin with.

He supposedly said these things to his girlfriend, a woman of mixed extraction who is at least 40 years his junior.

Sterling is also married, and his wife has come out saying that she, personally, is not a racist.

If you hear the tape, and believe it is Sterling who said these things, they really revolved around Hall of Famer Magic Johnson. The Clippers and Johnson's old team, the Lakers, share the same arena, and are hated rivals. I think what Sterlilng meant is that he still considers the Lakers the enemy, and would prefer his girlfriend not appear in photos with the enemy.

But he didn't say that. Magic Johnson morphed into "black," and that is where the problem is.

His own team did a silent protest during their Sunday game, and everybody, from players in the league to the President of the United States, are asking for his head.

Today, this afternoon, is judgment day, and I am sure that NBA commissioner Adam Silver will do everything in his power to try to make things right.

Honestly, I don't know what the league can do, legally or otherwise. Can they force him to sell the team, a team he has owned for more than 30 years as the senior owner in the league?

I don't know what the legal ramifications are, but I do know that this is a firestorm that won't go away so easily.

I also remember that the NBA can be a hotspot for these types of things.

Although many people choose to forget other such incidents, I remember the horrible, anti-Asian things former player and current commentator Charles Barkley said when Yao Ming, the Chinese basketball player, was drafted by the Rockets, some years ago.

I also remember allegations of anti-Semitism that were hurled the way of my beloved Knicks in the 1990s, the teams of Patrick Ewing, teams that were close, but never won the championship.

Unfortunately, both anti-Semitism and racism go underground, but they seemingly never go away, and these two recent incidents demonstrate that we all have to be on our guard, all the time, for such things, whether we like it or not.

Maybe that is one of the downsides of living in a free society like we do, but these things do not just go away.