We Must Never Forget. Rodney. Your Answers? The One and Only Isaac Hayes.
“First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.” – Martin Niemoeller, German Theologian and Pastor.
- Many years ago, my soccer club was invited to Germany by the mayor of Linz, after my town of Marietta, Georgia and Linz declared themselves sister cities. We played teams in two different German cities and eventually found our way south down to the great city of Munich. We had a day to explore, and someone decided that our entourage, made of of sixteen players and some wives, should visit Dachau and the former concentration camp. Our visit in a word was surreal. Upon entering the main building, you wind your way back and forth looking first at pre-war photos that progress into photos and drawings of the horror that occurred at this concentration camp. After the last row of horrific photographs, you leave the building to find yourself in the middle of the camp. We viewed different areas buildings, including the prisoner’s barracks and a very large building. It took a few minutes to realize that we were in the building that contained the horrifying ovens.
We left the camp in silence with the thirty-minute bus ride back to Munich filled with sounds of sniffles and crying. Our entourage was flooded with all types of emotion, with our vacation energy suddenly depleted. We had a planned celebration that evening at Munich’s famous Hofbräuhaus. Obviously, we canceled those plans for a quiet and subdued dinner.
Last week, Holocaust survivors and world leaders gathered at Auschwitz in southern Poland to commemorate eighty years since the liberation of the largest Nazi concentration and extermination camp. In total, approximately six million Jews and millions of non-Jews were killed across German-occupied Europe from 1941 to 1945. Roughly 220,000 Jewish Holocaust survivors are still alive today, with their ages ranging from their late seventies to over 100 years old.
Unbelievably, the systematic killing of thousands still occurs today. Unfortunately, the lessons learned from the Holocaust have had little influence with many countries including Burma/Myanmar, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, and the Central Republic of Congo.
- A bit of humor is in order after reading that first take. The variety of comedians from the past still makes me smile. Do not get me wrong, present day comedians including Jo Koy, Sebastian Maniscalco, Bill Burr, and Nate Bargatze are fantastic with their wit and delivery. With that said, I also enjoy the comedians of yesteryear. Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Robin Williams, and Jerry Seinfeld come to mind. One comedian from the past is different in many ways. His peculiar delivery, incredible timing, and storytelling were bar none. In this clip, Rodney Dangerfield was selected to be a presenter at the 1987 Oscars. He is so awkward, but his wit surrounding the category he is presenting, all three minutes of it, is very funny.
Comments & Questions
- How can it already be the second month of 2025? For that matter, how can it already be the year 2025?
- How will the 25% tariffs on imports imposed by the president affect U.S. consumers, production lines, and supply chains?
- Four hundred eight four days as hostages. Yarden Bibas, Ofer Kalderon, and Keith Siegel were released Friday from Hamas captivity. What about the rest of the hostages?
- Speaking of conflicts, the U.S. has accused DeepSeek, a China-based artificial intelligence (AI) firm, of stealing U.S. technology and Nvidia chips. This is only a start to the AI warfare that will bubble up with Chinese AI startups.
- Two plane crashes in two days only 123 miles apart. So sad, so unnecessary, so avoidable.
- Roc Nation, the entertainment company of Jay-Z, has a long-term partnership with the NFL. Part of their agreement includes advising the NFL on entertainment, including the Super Bowl halftime show. Roc Nation has selected Kendrick Lamar, along with SZA, to perform at next Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show. Kendrick Lamar is a tremendous talent, but for those ten minutes, I will take a redo of Shakira and JLo. Just saying.
- The countdown continues: five weeks until daylight savings time!
Pure Talent. It is difficult to describe when someone is ‘cool.’ Is it the way someone looks, carry themselves, their smile, or their talent? To me, no one was ‘cooler’ than Isaac Hayes. A legendary composer, singer, producer, keyboardist, and tremendous performer. Twenty-three years ago, Isaac Hayes was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and performed, along with an amazing orchestra, the song Shaft. The man, the myth, the legend, and just Pure Talent.