Queens Men Meet

The first man from Queens to be elected president and the first Queens resident to be elected mayor of New York City met for the first time in the Oval Office on Friday. 

Both said they were united over a mutual love of New York City.  They did not mention Queens. 

"We've just had a great meeting, a really good, very productive meeting," said Trump, who was  complimentary of the democratic socialist, who just a year ago was a relatively unknown local Queens legislator.  "We have one thing in common.  We want this city of ours that we love to do very well."

Whether or not the relationship between the two one-time Queens residents remains as cordial as it was on Friday, remains to be seen. 

-- Ryan Schwach, "Queens men meet", Queens Daily Eagle, 21 November 2025

Non-Intention

Think about a dam holding back a reservoir of water.  Were we to punch a hole in the dam, the water would gush out that hole.  The water would not decide to gush out, and it certainly would not intend to gush out.  Nor would it "not intend" to gush out the hole.  Intention, as a concept, simply cannot be applied to the water.  As hole, so gushing water.

Let me put it another way.  When reading this chapter, were you Intending to read this chapter, or was reading "happening"?  Were you Intending to read or were you just reading?  You certainly were not "not intending" to read.  Were you thinking about reading the words or were you reading them?  As chapter, so reading.  As living, so breathing.  As sleeping, so dreaming.  (And if you are wondering if we can say that there is "a chapter" aside from your reading of it then you have understood this chapter quite well.)

-- Dr. Steve Pearlman, author, instructor, and martial arts philosopher, The Book of Martial Power (2006) Chapter 68 "Non-Intention" p. 208

Doubt All

Believe those who seek the truth, doubt those who find it; doubt all, but do not doubt yourself.

-- André Gide (1869 - 1951), French author, 1947 Nobel laureate in literature, Gallimard, ed. (1952), Ainsi soit-il; ou, Les Jeux sont faits ("So be it; or, The die is cast"), p. 174

Sought For And Attended To

Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.

-- Abigail Adams (1744-1818), wife of John Adams, second President of the United States, in a letter to John Quincy Adams (8 May 1780)

The Parent

Ignorance is the parent of fear.

-- Herman Melville (1819 - 1891), American novelist, essayist, short story writer, and poet, Moby-Dick; or, The Whale (1851) Chapter 3 "The Spouter-Inn" Paragraph 56

Contrary To Everything

In 1985, President Ronald Reagan appointed me as a federal judge.  I was 38 years old.  At the time, I looked forward to serving for the rest of my life.  However, I resigned Friday, relinquishing that lifetime appointment and giving up the opportunity for public service that I have loved.

My reason is simple: I no longer can bear to be restrained by what judges can say publicly or do outside the courtroom.  President Donald Trump is using the law for partisan purposes, targeting his adversaries while sparing his friends and donors from investigation, prosecution, and possible punishment.  This is contrary to everything that I have stood for in my more than 50 years in the Department of Justice and on the bench.  The White House’s assault on the rule of law is so deeply disturbing to me that I feel compelled to speak out.  Silence, for me, is now intolerable.

I resigned in order to speak out, support litigation, and work with other individuals and organizations dedicated to protecting the rule of law and American democracy.  I also intend to advocate for the judges who cannot speak publicly for themselves.

I cannot be confident that I will make a difference.  I am reminded, however, of what Senator Robert F. Kennedy said in 1966 about ending apartheid in South Africa: "Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope."  Enough of these ripples can become a tidal wave.

-- Mark L. Wolf, retired senior United States district judge in Massachusetts, "Why I Am Resigning", The Atlantic (9 November 2025)

Shipwrecked

Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods.

-- Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955), German-born theoretical physicist, in his Essays Presented to Leo Baeck on the Occasion of His Eightieth Birthday (1954), p. 26