Donald Trump and Ben Carson Underwhelm Iowa Republicans in Debate

In interviews, a dozen Iowa Republicans said nothing in Wednesday’s debate had made them more likely to vote for Donald J. Trump, while Ben Carson disappointed some with his economic answers.

Source: Donald Trump and Ben Carson Underwhelm Iowa Republicans in Debate – The New York Times

Includes a great quote:

Mr. Olson has a presidential candidate in his own home: his son Brady, who over the summer drew a flutter of national attention after registering as an independent named Deez Nuts. He drew 7 percent in one early Iowa poll. Brady, 15, did not watch the debate, his father said. He was at a high school football game.

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This Halloween, Be the Talk of the Party – The New York Times

This Halloween, Be the Talk of the Party – The New York Times

Conceptual costumes are hot. Here’s how to stand out.

It’s almost like this article is straight out of The Proceedings of the National Academy of the Avant Garde.

 

By SAM APPLE on OCT. 29, 2015

EVERYONE knows that a brilliant conceptual costume will make you the star of the Halloween party. But with each passing year, it becomes harder to stand out. If you really want other partygoers to be surprised and delighted when you reveal “what you are,” these overlooked costumes are sure to be a hit.

The Red Carpet Treatment

Spend entire party rubbing stain remover into small strip of red carpeting.

Going Out on a Limb

Arrive at party, then immediately leave and spend rest of evening sitting on a branch in the backyard.

Cleanliness Is Next to Godliness

Dress as the pope. Lather everyone on dance floor with enormous amounts of Purell.

The Calm Before the Storm

Spend most of party relaxing on couch. As things are winding down, run wildly through room, smashing everything in sight. Announce that, while your costume is now, technically, over, you had previously been “the calm before the storm.”

Spilling the Beans

Arrive at party with a large bowl of refried beans. “Accidentally” drop globs of beans on other guests.

Lap of Luxury

Tape fine cutlery and a bottle of expensive wine to groin. (Bonus idea: Tape hood ornaments from expensive cars to groin.)

Not Playing With a Full Deck

Force partygoers to sit down for a friendly game of gin rummy. Announce at end of game that the deck has only 51 cards.

Play Your Cards Right

Same as above, only you use entire deck.

Nothing to Sneeze At

Cover yourself in hypoallergenic makeup and lotion. Consider taping packages of Allegra and Claritin to your face.

You Only Live Once

Dress as Danny Zuko from “Grease.” Perform “Greased Lightning.”

Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop

Remove shoes. Tape one to ceiling insecurely so that it falls right away. Tape second shoe to ceiling more securely and spend entire party staring at it with hopeful expression.

Wild Goose Chase

Arrive with goose. Release goose.

The Naked Truth

Remove clothing. Invite other partygoers to discuss the meaning of life. (Also works for “You Only Live Once.”)

Now We’re Cooking

Violently threaten other partygoers until you have them baking muffins with you in the kitchen. Shout: “Now We’re Cooking!”

Working on My Bucket List

Spend party at table composing a lengthy list of buckets of all shapes and sizes.

Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire

Sit in large frying pan throughout most of party. When moment is right, stand up, sprint across room and dive headfirst into fireplace.

All Over the Map

Spread out map. Roll.

The Full Story

Consume enormous amounts of food throughout the evening. Occasionally pause to read aloud from The Paris Review.

Living the Dream

Run through party with no pants shouting that it’s the day of the final exam and you haven’t studied. (Alternative: Dress as Danny Zuko and perform “Greased Lightning.”)

Sam Apple teaches creative writing at the University of Pennsylvania and is the author of “American Parent.”

Source: A version of this op-ed appears in print on October 30, 2015, on page A27 of the New York edition with the headline: This Halloween, Be the Talk of the Party.

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Muhammad Ali on his 39th Cover of Sports Illustrated

I was happy to see The Greatest appear for the 39th time on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

It’s almost as if he knew I was about to release the e-book version of my 1976 book Muhammad Ali Retrospective.

The two related Sports Illustrated articles:

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Event: Origins of a Contemporary Crisis: Secret Middle Eastern Diplomacy During and After World War I

As many know, I’ve recently been curating a series of five lectures and screenings for the exhibition Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqi Jewish Heritage running from September 4, 2015 to November 15, 2015 at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in concert with the National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC.

The next event has just been announced and details for it appear below:

Origins of a Contemporary Crisis: Secret Middle Eastern Diplomacy During and After World War I

Please join the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum for a free public program, Origins of a Contemporary Crisis: Secret Middle Eastern Diplomacy During and After World War I on  October 18 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Dr. James L. Gelvin, Professor of Middle Eastern History at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), will discuss how World War I and the combination of the wartime and postwar agreements permanently shaped the modern Middle East.

Dr. James L. Gelvin is a specialist in the modern social and cultural history of the Arab East.  He is the author of four books including:

When
October 18, 2015
5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Where
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum
18001 Yorba Linda Blvd.
Yorba Linda, CA 92886

RSVP for Origins of a Contemporary Crisis: Secret Middle Eastern Diplomacy During and After World War I now!

Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum


Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqi Jewish Heritage

September 4, 2015 to November 15, 2015

Iraqi Jewish Heritage

On September 4, 2015, the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum opened a new exhibition, Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqi Jewish Heritage. The exhibit details the dramatic recovery of historic materials relating to the Jewish community in Iraq from a flooded basement in Saddam Hussein’s intelligence headquarters, and the National Archives’ ongoing work in support of U.S. Government efforts to preserve and make these materials available online. In both English and Arabic, the 2,000 square foot exhibit features 23 recovered original items and a “behind the scenes” look at the fascinating, yet painstaking, preservation process.

The Jews of Iraq have a rich past, extending 2500 years to Babylonia. These materials provide a tangible link to this community that flourished there, but in the second half of the twentieth century dispersed throughout the world. Today fewer than five Jews remain.

Discovery and Recovery was created by the National Archives and Records Administration, with generous support from the U.S. Department of State.

To learn more visit:
http://www.ija.archives.gov/exhibit/exhibit


The Richard Presidential Library and Museum is one of 13 Presidential Libraries operated by the National Archives and Records Administration. The Nixon Library is located at 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd., Yorba Linda, CA, and is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the exception of Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. The Museum is fully handicapped accessible. For more information call 714-983-9120 or go to www.nixonlibrary.gov.

The Richard Nixon Foundation is a privately supported, non-profit institution dedicated to educating the public about the life, legacy, and times of the Thirty-Seventh President. For more information call 714-993-5075 or go to www.nixonfoundation.org.

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Upcoming Event: History and Identity: The Iraqi-Jewish Experience

As many know, I’ve recently been curating a series of five lectures and screenings for the exhibition Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqi Jewish Heritage running from September 4, 2015 to November 15, 2015 at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in concert with the National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC.

The next event has just been announced and details for it appear below:

History and Identity: The Iraqi-Jewish Experience

Please join the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum for a free public program, History and Identity: The Iraqi-Jewish Experience on October 7, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. with Maurice Shohet, President, World Organization of Jews from Iraq.

The program includes a screening of the documentary Forgotten Refugees, which describes the mass exodus of up to one million Jews from Arab countries. Executive Producer, Ralph Avi Goldwasser will join us remotely from New York.

When
October 7, 2015
5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Where
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum
18001 Yorba Linda Blvd.
Yorba Linda, CA 92886

About the Documentary Film Forgotten Refugees

Forgotten Refugees explores the history and destruction of Middle Eastern Jewish communities, some of which had existed for over 2,500 years.  In 1945, up to one million Jews lived in the Middle East outside of the Palestine Mandate and in North Africa. Within a few years, only a few thousand remained.

This is the story of the thousands who fled their homes, who endured in refugee camps, and who today quietly carry the memory of a destroyed civilization.

Featuring testimony from Jews who fled Egypt, Libya, Iraq and Yemen, these personal stories of refugees are interspersed with dramatic archival footage, including rescue missions of Yemenite and Iraqi Jews.

The Forgotten Refugees won the Award for Best Documentary Film at Marbella Film Festival in 2007.

About Maurice Shohet
Maurice Shohet was born in Iraq. On September 2, 1970 Maurice left Baghdad seeking freedom from a country that had over the past few decades made life for the Jews living there difficult and frightening. He traveled with a group of 13 other Jews to the Kurdish region in northern Iraq. With the help of some Kurdish smugglers, Maurice and the others he was traveling with escaped to Iran by foot. After staying in the Iranian capital of Tehran for three weeks, Maurice was finally able to immigrate to Israel.

In 2005, Maurice participated in Iraq’s Out-of-Country Voting Program, which was organized and conducted by the Iraqi Transitional National Assembly Election for Iraqis living abroad. On March 29th, 2005 Maurice and eight other Iraqis living in the United States met with President Bush to share their experiences. As the only Jewish person in the group, Maurice told anecdotes of what life was like for Iraq’s Jewish community when the Ba’thist regime came to power. Maurice also expressed his concern for the minorities remaining in Iraq. Maurice received the ASF, American Sephardi Federation leadership award in 2006. Today he is the President of the World Organization of Jews from Iraq (WOJI.)

About Ralph Avi Goldwasser
Ralph Avi Goldwasser, a child of Holocaust survivors, grew up in Israel and New York City where he received a  BS in Engineering from CCNY and an MBA from NYU.

Mr. Goldwasser, a co-founder and former executive director of the David Project, a pro-Israel advocacy group on campus, is the executive producer of several films including the award-winning documentary “Forgotten Refugees.”

RSVP for History and Identity: The Iraqi-Jewish Experience now!

Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum


Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqi Jewish Heritage

September 4, 2015 to November 15, 2015

Iraqi Jewish Heritage

On September 4, 2015, the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum opened a new exhibition, Discovery and Recovery: Preserving Iraqi Jewish Heritage. The exhibit details the dramatic recovery of historic materials relating to the Jewish community in Iraq from a flooded basement in Saddam Hussein’s intelligence headquarters, and the National Archives’ ongoing work in support of U.S. Government efforts to preserve and make these materials available online. In both English and Arabic, the 2,000 square foot exhibit features 23 recovered original items and a “behind the scenes” look at the fascinating, yet painstaking, preservation process.

The Jews of Iraq have a rich past, extending 2500 years to Babylonia. These materials provide a tangible link to this community that flourished there, but in the second half of the twentieth century dispersed throughout the world. Today fewer than five Jews remain.

Discovery and Recovery was created by the National Archives and Records Administration, with generous support from the U.S. Department of State.

To learn more visit:
http://www.ija.archives.gov/exhibit/exhibit


The Richard Presidential Library and Museum is one of 13 Presidential Libraries operated by the National Archives and Records Administration. The Nixon Library is located at 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd., Yorba Linda, CA, and is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the exception of Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. The Museum is fully handicapped accessible. For more information call 714-983-9120 or go to www.nixonlibrary.gov.

The Richard Nixon Foundation is a privately supported, non-profit institution dedicated to educating the public about the life, legacy, and times of the Thirty-Seventh President. For more information call 714-993-5075 or go to www.nixonfoundation.org.

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