Day: June 30, 2024

For a short time on Friday, the Biden campaign appeared ready to turn the page from its 81-year-old leader’s horrific debate performance against former president Donald Trump. A speech from Joe Biden in North Carolina prompted positive reviews in the New York Times, the campaign announced $14 million in post-debate fundraising, and prominent Democratic leaders—including Barack Obama and Chuck Schumer—publicly defended the president.

The next 48 hours, however, indicated they won’t be able to move on so fast. 

An onslaught of mainstream media reports hammered the octogenarian’s cognitive decline. Axios detailed efforts from top White House staffers to shield Biden “from people inside and outside the White House since the beginning of his presidency,” including the White House’s residential staff. The Wall Street Journal reported that a “deteriorating” Biden’s struggles during meetings with world leaders. And a Washington Post piece noted that Biden failed to recite rehearsed answers on his age during the debate.

Post-debate polls and surveys, meanwhile, showed that Biden’s Thursday night collapse disturbed many voters. 

A survey of Democratic-leaning voters from former Bill Clinton pollster Stan Greenberg showed that respondents were less likely to back Biden after the debate. A CBS News poll found that 72 percent of registered voters do not believe Biden has the “mental and cognitive health to serve as president.” Nationally, Trump’s lead over Biden jumped to 5 points, according to an Atlas Intel poll. 

Party insiders also continued to panic—at times publicly. The Biden campaign and Democratic National Committee, hoping to assuage post-debate concerns, held a Saturday afternoon call with committee members. It brought intense anger, with participants saying they were “gaslit” during a business-as-usual discussion that largely avoided Biden’s debate performance.

“I was hoping for more of a substantive conversation instead of, ‘Hey, let’s go out there and just be cheerleaders,’ without actually addressing a very serious issue that unfolded on American television for millions of people to see,” DNC member Joe Salazar told the Associated Press. 

“There were a number of things that could have been said in addressing the situation. But we didn’t get that. We were being gaslit.”

Still, Biden and his team continued to show no sign of exiting the race. At times, they openly dismissed their critics.

A campaign memo released Saturday, for example, disregarded any post-debate polling decline. “If we do see changes in polling in the coming weeks, it will not be the first time that overblown media narratives have driven temporary dips in the polls,” the memo said.

A Saturday night fundraising email struck a similar tone. The campaign attacked the “bedwetting brigade … calling for Joe Biden to ‘drop out.’” It also provided a list of talking points on “the state of the race after Thursday” for supporters to share with “your panicked aunt, your MAGA uncle, or some self-important Podcasters.”

“Joe Biden is going to be the Democratic nominee, period. End of story,” the email read. “Voters voted. He won overwhelmingly. And if he were to drop out, it would lead to weeks of chaos, internal foodfighting, and a bunch of candidates who limp into a brutal floor fight at the convention, all while Donald Trump has time to speak to American voters uncontested.”

“You want a highway to losing? It’s that.”

Hours later, on Sunday, Biden gathered with his family at Camp David. An NBC News report suggested the trip would bring serious introspection, with Biden “expected to discuss the future of his re-election campaign with family … following the debate that left many fellow Democrats worried about his ability to beat Trump,” according to the outlet’s Tom Namako.

Shortly thereafter, CNN’s Jeff Zeleny reported the opposite. The Biden family powwow at Camp David was planned prior to the debate and included a photo shoot with portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz, who also shot a family portrait for the Obamas. 

The family “spent the morning not having a summit but in hair and makeup” ahead of the shoot, which was planned for Sunday because embattled first son Hunter Biden would be in town, according to New York Times White House reporter Katie Rogers. Biden’s close allies, Rogers said, were angry not with the president’s debate performance but with “how the president was staffed and prepared ahead of the debate.”

“Biden himself is not stewing, trying to move forward,” Rogers tweeted. She went on to report that Biden’s family “is urging him to stay in the race” and blaming his debate performance on aides who left him poorly prepared.

Hunter Biden, who is awaiting sentencing after a federal jury found him guilty of three felony gun charges, was particularly vocal in encouraging his father to stay the course, according to the report. Other family members channeled their anger toward Biden’s top aides, including senior adviser Anita Dunn and former chief of staff Ron Klain, who managed debate preparations.

“They were asking why Mr. Klain … would in their view allow him to be overloaded with statistics, and they were angry that Mr. Biden, who arrived for the debate in Atlanta with a summer tan, was made up to look pale and pallid,” Rogers and fellow New York Times White House reporter Peter Baker wrote.

Outside of the Biden family, prominent Democratic donor John Morgan publicly blamed Dunn for the debate disaster in a Sunday social media post.

“They need to go… TODAY,” he wrote of Dunn and her husband, Bob Bauer, who played the role of Trump during debate preparation.

Update 5:00 p.m.: This piece has been updated with additional information.

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We have all been to funerals. It is one of the last sacred spaces in our world when we are not disturbed. Phones are off and we give our full attention. Without question, the most meaningful aspect of the service are the eulogies. The rabbi, family and close friends reflect on the life of the person who has died.

Think back for a moment to funerals you have attended. Which eulogies do you remember? Which ones have you found meaningful? 

We believe in Judaism that the body is a vessel and the soul never dies. The spirit of the person is fully present at the funeral, hovering over the casket, while in transition to the next world. We believe in an afterlife. The soul is only fully at peace once the body returns to the earth. When the casket is covered with earth, the soul rises and the period of shiva, of mourning, officially begins. 

During the funeral, the deceased hears the words spoken about them. It is a moment in time for the people to express gratitude to their loved one, for the values they instilled with them, the kindnesses bestowed about them and the declaration that the loved one will never be forgotten. 

How do you craft a meaningful eulogy? 

For most people, thank God, the practical import of this question is rare. Yet when the occasion arises it can be most daunting. 

As a rabbi who has officiated at hundreds of funerals, and witnessed thousands of people delivering eulogies, I know that family and friends ultimately find the words to capture the spirit of a loved one who died. Often when sitting with families in preparation prior to a funeral, I strongly encourage a child or grandchild to speak in tribute to a parent or grandparent. I will always speak as the rabbi, but having a family member share words is invaluable.

The Talmud states that words that come from our hearts enter someone else’s heart. This is a guiding truth when speaking at a funeral. Whether a public speaker or not, time and again, I have seen that people find the strength to share emotions and reflections from the depths of their souls. Even in a few words, they can offer a stirring tribute to someone who is loved. 

What is the goal of a eulogy? 

If you surf the internet, you will see many articles written about how to write a eulogy. From speaking slowly, expressing gratitude, being brief and sharing a personal memory or touching poem. From personal experience, the secret sauce of a memorable eulogy are reflected in the words of the Scottish poet Thomas Campbell:To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die. 

These words of tribute, the eulogy, are not only cathartic for the family but amplify the soul of the person who died. How will they be remembered? How can they carry their spirit forward into our lives? The words we share also serve as a source of strength for the person as they make the journey from this world to the next. A soul is like a candle and one candle lights many flames. 

What light did your parents, grandparent ignite within you? What moment will you never forget? What memory pulsates within you? 

For what kindness are you eternally grateful? What guiding values serve as a north star for you and your family? 

A eulogy, even a brief one, even just one memory, can have the power to change someone’s life and elevate the soul of the person who has passed away. When we embody a value of a person in our lives even after that individual has physically left this world, they live on in us and through us. 

I will never forget a comment at a recent funeral. When I asked the children to share a few words about their mother, one of the sons said: “My mother always listened to me. When I came home from school, my mom dropped everything she was doing to listen to my day and give her full and undivided attention.” In those brief words, he captured his mother’s unconditional love. 

Imagine if each of us truly listened to those we loved on a more consistent basis. Too often we hear with half an ear, we get distracted by a phone, a text, an email or are thinking about something else. It is all too rare to give someone your undivided attention. This comment possessed the power to fuel his mother’s spirit in everyone who heard it. 

A eulogy is not a final goodbye, but it is a moment in time that has the potential to be eternal. The opportunity to reflect on someone’s life is a gift. We will never forget the words we shared, the deceased will hear them and it has the potential to truly inspire everyone present to bring the soul of the deceased into this world. 

I challenge you. Think now of one or two people in your life whose love and presence you cherish. Think of a person whom you may be called up to eulogize. Reach out to them today. Wish them a long life. And, most importantly, say thank you for all they have done for you. Share the memories, give them joy and let them know how and why they mean so much to you. 

God willing, we will find the words to deliver a eulogy from the heart that truly honors those we love and inspires others to embody their values. Even more importantly, let’s take the time now to cherish those we love and eternalize our relationships for now and forever. 

The post How do you write a meaningful eulogy? appeared first on The Forward.

Наводнение дешевыми российскими удобрениями ставит под угрозу продовольственную безопасность Европы. Об этом заявили представители отрасли, сообщает газета Financial Times.