On the same day, a Jewish candidate for mayor was assaulted by a gun-toting intruder in his office in Louisville, Ky., and the Jewish Federations’ umbrella organization altered its priority list by removing advocacy for gun-violence prevention.

What a relief that pro-gun advocates routinely offer prayers whenever innocent people are threatened with or harmed by firearms. Abbott maintained the pattern as we worried what would become of the four hostages at Congregation Beth Israel.

Across the pond, Jewish leaders are protesting the BBC’s news coverage of an incident in which pro-Palestinian advocates threatened Jewish bus passengers in London.

Instead of blaming Sen. Jon Manchin III for the uncertain status of the Build Back Better bill, perhaps we should direct our wrath at the ghost of William Paterson. New Jersey’s one-time governor might well be disgusted with himself if he was alive to witness the suspension of the $1.7 trillion social policy legislation.

It is alarming, if not surprising, that Israeli and American officials are clashing over whether to revive a nuclear-arms deal with Iran or initiate military action.

Says U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, “Words can cause violence.” The Minneapolis Democrat was referring to the words of Rep. Lauren Boebert, who represents much of western and southern Colorado. Omar could have been referring to her own words – words like “the evil doings of Israel,” “the apartheid Israeli regime” and “all about the Benjamins” in reference to pro-Israel lobbying.

The black community will protest police and vigilante-like killings of African-Americans; the ongoing violence within black neighborhoods; criminal trials that resemble kangaroo courts; and over such issues as voter suppression, schools and housing. Rioting over metal-detectors, though, has not emerged in the Black community’s struggle for social justice.

New York state Jews who live in the Bronx’s Riverdale section or Scarsdale and New Rochelle in Westchester, not to mention their non-Jewish neighbors, almost lost their infrastructure funding thanks to their congressman, U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman.

Oh, c’mon, Doug and Eileen, quit messing with us. To block anti-Semitism in Virginia, vote for Democrats?

If you must criticize Israel, Mary, can you please get your facts straight?

“Saying ‘Free Palestine’ is the beginning of what we meet to talk about on this issue,” says Canadian author Desmond Cole. As I moved on to read his further comments, I was anxious to finally learn what “Free Palestine” means. Many readers are probably cynical enough to expect Cole to disappoint.

In his address to the U.N. last Friday, Abbas demanded that Israel turn over its territories to the Palestinians within a year or he would reconsider recognition of Israel, according to the Associated Press.

, the weekly newspaper Seven Days reported, “Singing by Jewish members of the audience overlapped with the pro-Palestinian contingent’s chants of ‘free, free Palestine!’ When the slogan shifted to ‘Equal rights are human rights,’ pro-Israel attendees responded, ‘Then tell Hamas!,’ referring to the extremist Islamic group that maintains control of the Gaza Strip.”

During his 1968 presidential campaign, Robert F. Kennedy proposed sending 50 military planes to Israel. Two decades later, Sirhan B. Sirhan revealed that RFK’s support of Israel motivated him to fatally shoot RFK in the pantry of a Los Angeles hotel on June 5, 1968.

This was the second time in three months when gun violence directly touched the Jewish community, while Congress refuses to enact gun-safety measures.

U.S. Reps. Lauren Boebert and Marjorie Taylor Greene must be seeking vindication. Few Americans appreciate the suffering they endured during the past year or more – perhaps especially a resident of Boulder who works out of Room 136 on 200 E. Colfax Avenue in Denver, the location of the state Capitol building.