Gary Freedman's Blog

Should John Hinckley Get More Freedom?

John Hinckley attempted to assassinate former President Ronald Reagan in 1981. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity in his subsequent trial.

Hinckley has been housed at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, DC since he was found to be insane. In recent years Hinckley has repeatedly filed motions with the court to gain more freedom. At a recent hearing his psychologist Nicole Rafanello argued that he should be granted more leave from the hospital.

Rafanello, a… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 31, 2009 at 11:00am — 4 Comments

Can You Spot the Facebook Narcissist?

Facebook profiles can tell you more than just peoples' birthdays and what movies they like — they can reveal the self-adoring, a new study suggests.

Researchers at the University of Georgia gave personality questionnaires to nearly 130 Facebook users and analyzed the content of their online profiles. They also had untrained observers look at the profiles and rate how narcissistic, or excessively egotistical, the owners of the profiles were.

The results of the study are… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 30, 2009 at 11:49am — 2 Comments

Salman Akhtar, MD

Salman Akhtar (born July 31, 1946 in Lucknow, India) is a psychoanalyst who also holds a professorship at the Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia. Dr. Akhtar's business address is 833 Chestnut Street, Thomas Jefferson University, Psychiatry Suite 210, Philadelphia, PA 19107. Phone: (215) 955-8420 / email: Salman.Akhtar@jefferson.edu

He was educated at Colvin Taluqdars' College in Lucknow and Aligarh University before moving to Chandigarh where he completed his training in… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 30, 2009 at 10:30am — No Comments

Brian P. Brown is Retiring

Brian P. Brown, Branch Librarian of the Cleveland Park Neighborhood Library, Washington, DC, will be retiring. I could make some nasty comments, but I won't.

Added by Gary Freedman on August 28, 2009 at 11:52am — No Comments

Are You A Creative Person?

I see myself as a creative person. Among other things, I tend to be independent in my thinking and actions. Sometimes my independence has gotten me in trouble with more conforming people. How does one maintain his independence and, at the same time, get along with people who place a premium on conformity and conventionality?

My psychiatrist recommended that I try to be more conforming. He said if I was less independent, my relations with other people might improve. He said,… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 27, 2009 at 11:24am — 3 Comments

A Message From Matt Burke

I have a Facebook friend named Matt Burke. He lives in Manchester, England. He once telephoned me; we chatted for a while. He's a professional musician: a trumpet player and teacher. He's a fan of jazz and classical music, especially Mahler and Bruckner. Here's a recent message I got from Matt:

Hi Gary,

I loved reading about your trip [to Atlantic City], it made me smile! Sounds like you had a lovely time and spent just the right amount of time away too? I enjoyed how… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 27, 2009 at 11:21am — No Comments

Whatever Happened to Jennifer Mesches?

I started working at the law firm of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld in early March 1988. I worked in the paralegal group. When I started working at the firm, another paralegal, Jennifer Mesches, who was pregnant at the time, trained me in the task I was to do for the firm. My direct supervisor, Lilliam Machado, now a lawyer, was on her honeymoon with Luis. I worked in Jennifer Mesches' office. Jennifer Mesches was married to Craig Mesches. She left the firm later in the spring or summer… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 25, 2009 at 12:00pm — 1 Comment

Whatever Happened to Donna Kanin?

Donna Kanin used to be an assistant librarian at my local library, The Cleveland Park Neighborhood Library in Washington, DC. Donna Kanin has been licensed to practice law in Texas since 1981. Like my mentor Bob Strauss, Donna Kanin was a proud Texas Jew. She used to practice law at the Justice Department. What was she doing working as a librarian, and what happened to her? I never see her anymore.

Added by Gary Freedman on August 24, 2009 at 12:49pm — No Comments

Joke of the Decade

The Wall Street Journal in early 2008 reported: "Lehman Brothers doesn't expect a recession . . . "

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/the-w-recession/

Ha! I guess Lehman Brothers doesn't see the humor in that. Actually, Lehman Brothers isn't around anymore to see the humor in that.

Added by Gary Freedman on August 24, 2009 at 12:39pm — No Comments

Have You Ever Been a Victim of Workplace Bullying?

Many activities of workplace bullies are conducted in a subtle and devious manner. People whose confidence and self-esteem have been exposed to subtle, devious harassment find it immensely difficult to confront the bullies. It can also be difficult for others to identify such behaviour. Men and women enduring less obvious bullying can feel confused, even paranoid, because of the unpredictability and irrationality of the behavior. They can use up emotional and mental resources trying to figure… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 23, 2009 at 11:30am — 5 Comments

Vitamin P

(Reprinted without permission from "The Goy's Guide to Israel.")

Okay, unscheduled break over.

Sometime last year, I posted a message on an online forum, asking for the contact details of a (potential) professional contact.

Someone kindly obliged; but in a postscript to her message, warned that I'd need "Vitamin P" if I hoped to make any headway.

"Vitamin P?"

Israel, many argue, was built upon the premise of what we call in Nigeria "man… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 22, 2009 at 2:06pm — 1 Comment

Abbas Jama, MD

I started seeing a new psychiatrist a few weeks ago. I like him a lot. He's a fourth-year resident in psychiatry, affiliated with St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, DC.

Dr. Jama was a clinical research fellow in the lab of Todd Gould, MD, at the University of Maryland Medical School. You can reach Dr. Gould at 410-706-5585 or email him at tgould@psych.umaryland.edu

Dr. Gould's lab uses molecular, cellular, and behavioral approaches to study the pharmacology of… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 22, 2009 at 1:30pm — 3 Comments

Basic Anatomy: Are Republicans Like Spiders?

Several days ago I wrote: "Spiders have been building the same type of spider webs for the last two million years. Republicans remind me of spiders. They don't evolve. And they oppose anybody who proposes that society evolve and improve."

To which a critic replied: "And, they (spiders) have also been around for the last two million years according to your quote here. Sounds like they know how to survive!"

My response? Life should be about more than just survival. Mankind… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 22, 2009 at 11:00am — 1 Comment

HHS Death Squads Operating In Nursing Homes

The longer the Democrats control Congress, the more Orwellian the language and the more sinister the methods adopted by the Obama Administration and its allies. While President Obama and his officials depict the elderly resisting the federal government's program of "death panels,” Health and Human Services (HHS) and Special Forces assassination squads are at work in nursing homes, seeking to eliminate AARP leaders and other opponents of the Obama Administration's plan to exterminate every… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 21, 2009 at 10:00am — 2 Comments

Is This The End of an Era?

This afternoon I went to my neighborhood library, the Cleveland Neighborhood library, in Washington, DC. Brian, the head librarian. was wearing a soccer shirt. I thought it was unprofessional for a supervisory employee of the DC government to be dressed so casually. Then I overheard him say he wasn't on duty today. He just came in to do some paperwork. Such dedication!

Then I overheard Brian say to a patron, "You know I'm leaving, don't you?" At least that's what I think I heard. Is… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 21, 2009 at 9:16am — 3 Comments

Growing Up Jewish in South Czechoslovakia -- In Memory of June 13th

Franz Kafka's father, Hermann Kafka, had escaped a poor Jewish upbringing in the town of Wossek, about fifty miles southwest of Prague, and had made a name for himself with his successful store. He had been thoroughly assimilated, registering as a Czech national and giving his children German, not Jewish names, and looked askance at his son's fascination with what he considered "backward" and something to be discarded without a second thought. Franz brings this up for a lengthy discussion in… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 21, 2009 at 9:00am — 1 Comment

Orpheus

Last night I listened to Orpheus, a tone poem by Franz Liszt. It is magnificent. It's definitely one of his finer musical creations. I had read years ago that Wagner admired Orpheus and was, in fact, influenced by the piece. A year ago, I purchased a recording of Orpheus and listened to it for the first time. I can understand Wagner's admiration. Wagner's wife Cosima records the following in her diary entry for August 28, 1878: "In the evening . . . my father plays us Beethoven's E major Sonata… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 20, 2009 at 12:00pm — 3 Comments

My New Futon

My new futon arrived this morning. My generous sister bought it for me as a gift. Maybe now I'll get a good night's sleep.

Added by Gary Freedman on August 19, 2009 at 11:59am — 2 Comments

What George Bush Taught Us

I have a Facebook friend who asked me for an argument to rebut Rebublican claims that "the government screws up everything it gets involved in." Here's what I wrote in response:

There's nothing you can say to a Republican to convince him or her of anything. I wouldn't try. My father used to say, "Never argue with a Communist. You'll never win. They have a prefabricated argument to rebut anything you say." I think the best argument against Communism is the Soviet regime in Russia,… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 18, 2009 at 11:46am — 9 Comments

Reminiscing About My Life as a Terrorist and Presidential Assassin

August 7th fell on a Friday this year. I can recall that August 7th also fell on a Friday in the year 1998, 11 years ago. Back in the day I was a danger to society. Yes, I was a very dangerous man.

On the evening of Thursday August 6, 1998 two Special Agents of the US Capitol Police (Threat Investigation Unit) forcibly entered my home, after frisking me for weapons, and proceeded to interrogate me about an allegation made by a DC employee that, earlier in the day, at the height of an… Continue

Added by Gary Freedman on August 17, 2009 at 11:01am — No Comments

Gary Freedman's Blog – August 2009 Archive (24)