Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorNovember 13, 2014

On the Wednesday after Tuesday’s embarrassing election, President Barack Obama held a news conference. Reporters said they were surprised that he was not “repentant” and showed no “contrition.” Wow — what’s with the Catholic coda? Losing an election, even by such awful margins, is a defeat — but it is not a SIN! Barack Obama is the president of the United States, […]

Guest AuthorOctober 31, 2014

In the years following the 2010 elections, after Florida had elected Rick Scott as its governor, I was forced to field some tough comments from friends and family in Connecticut, New York and California. The most common was: Your governor looks SO weird. Again and again: weird, strange, confused and puzzled. I defended Scott vigorously, turning […]

Guest AuthorOctober 26, 2014

Once upon a time — so goes a Jewish folk tale — in the small town of Belz in Poland, the Yom Kippur fast became a trying ordeal for the pious congregants. Normally, Yom Kippur is a solemn occasion. On this day each year God judges us to life or death with irreversible finality. No more prayers, nighttime recitation of psalms, no […]

Guest AuthorOctober 16, 2014

Recently I saw a blurb about a meeting of the Boca Area Post Polio Group. This jolted my memory back 20 years and a conversation with my friend “Jeremy,” a radiologist. Usually a robust man in his early 50s, he appeared a little stooped and sluggish. Finally, he confided to his closest friends what had been happening. J. had polio as a […]

Guest AuthorOctober 2, 2014

Unfortunately, it’s a true story. Last week I was flying from D.C.’s Reagan National Airport to West Palm Beach on US Airways flight 1935, scheduled to depart at 3.15 p.m., changing planes in Philadelphia. Arrival in Palm Beach 8 p.m. I had high hopes for this journey since US Airways had just merged with American Airlines and […]

Guest AuthorSeptember 17, 2014

Hello, hello! Why isn’t anyone responding? Can’t you see me clapping? Come on, guys, it’s Joan Rivers! I’ve been told they booked me into “The Blue Yonder.” Still, not a peep out of you. All sitting there dressed in white shmattes, dozing in your armchairs, not moving your butts, maybe you have hemorrhoids and are comfy on […]

Guest AuthorSeptember 4, 2014

Now that it’s “quiet” in Israel I’m planning a trip accompanied by at least 20 other Floridians. You’ll be in good hands with me since I’m a Licensed Tourist Guide and can get everything for you wholesale. The good news is that I already have two passengers: myself and my imaginary friend. So, as a […]

Guest AuthorAugust 24, 2014

Florida was lucky that Trayvon Martin’s killing in Sanford in February 2012 did not trigger a riot. But if we consider the anatomy of a riot, we’ll know that it wasn’t simply dumb luck — but the absence of destructive forces. First, the entire country, both black and white, grieved for Trayvon. Apart from some loony […]

Guest AuthorAugust 11, 2014

Last week in South Florida I participated in a forum on terrorism, held in a beautifully landscaped gated country club community. Both Christians and Jews participated. The consensus was that the United States and Western democracies will have to cope with terrorism for a long time. Many expressed the fear that Muslim extremists would try to impose sharia – […]

Guest AuthorJuly 27, 2014

On New Year’s Eve 1949, a rickety Greek fishing boat deposited my mother and me on the shore of Haifa, Israel. With us were 400 other refugees, the floating debris of the Jewish people. I was 12, my mother 48 and Israel 7 months old. (In this story, numbers have an astounding symmetry.) Israel’s population […]

Tag: Rachel Patron

Rachel Patron: Consider a different scenario for 2014, with Democratic President O’Brien

Rachel Patron: Florida’s voters face unappealing options on Election Day

Rachel Patron: We need dynamic leaders to restore the nation’s self-confidence

Rachel Patron: The remnants of an old epidemic

Rachel Patron: A special Yom Kippur prayer for the pilot and crew who flew us home to West Palm Beach

Rachel Patron: Imagine Joan Rivers’ arrival in heaven

Rachel Patron: 10 Hebrew words you need when traveling in Israel

Rachel Patron: Ferguson, Missouri: The anatomy of a riot

Rachel Patron: An Arabic primer for our turbulent times

Rachel Patron: Hamas digs tunnels while Gazans above endure poverty