Tony Blair Speaks on Leadership, China and the Middle East

After listening to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the World Affairs Council in Philadelphia, I decided that he could have been a successful stand up comedian if he had not gone into politics. Out of office, Blair is literally a laugh a minute.

As British Prime Minister, he was not allowed to have a mobile phone so he did not get a mobile phone until his first day of being a private citizen. "I texted a close friend of mine, how are you. Not recognizing the number, the person texted me back, 'Excuse me, how is this?' All I could think is how quickly they forget. I have been out of office one day."

He continued the laughs by relaying his wife's Cheri's reaction to his 82 trips to the Middle East. He said, "I am not sure she was being entirely supportive here. She said, 'I don't think it is the number of trips that you take, but the progress that you make."

On a more serious note, he made some interesting observations about democracies. He received the loudest applause of the night when he noted that the British election season lasts 4 weeks. He argued against term limits, either mandated or by popular vote.

"When I came into office, I was at my highest popularity, but the least capable. When I left office, I was the least popular, but the most capable. I wanted to say I really know what I am doing now."

Like many politicians in recent times, he decries the extreme partisanship that has paralyzed our governments. "Have you noticed that the parties have gotten ideologically further apart while the people have moved towards the middle.

Serving as the Middle East Envoy for the Quartet, he spoke about the Middle East. I wrote about that for Metro. While the Arab Spring has consumed most of the recent attention, he warned that it would be to the West's detriment to ignore the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. "The West's security depends on Israel's security."

Blair spent a great deal of his talk discussing China. "While the West dominated the 20th century, they will have to share power with China in the 21st."

He gave several examples of China's domination. "China spends more on infrastructure in Africa than the World Bank does."

Another illustration was closer to home. "While we are debating adding an additional runway at Heathrow, China is planning to build 70 international and 200 regional airports."

He praised the current Chinese leaders as smart but "handling a problem the likes of which the world has never seen." Blair expounded, "They are trying to impose change on 1.6 billion people with a communist mindset."

He believes Western unity is more important than ever because "only united west will be able to share power with China."

While there has been a lot of turmoil in recent times, Blair thinks some of it was long overdue. "The economic crisis in Europe was terrible, but it forced change in social program that was needed.

Hamodia Publisher's Husband Being Investigated for Fatal Fire

Michael, Yechiel, and Nahman Lichtenstein, owners of the Buck Warehouse in Kensington where a recent fire occurred that resulted in the death of two fireman, are Gur Hasidim, a Hasidic Jewish group, from Brooklyn, New York. 

Ruth Lichtenstein, wife of Nahman, is the publisher of Hamodia, the English version of a newspaper for very religious Jews. The first Hamodia was published 100 years ago in Eastern Europe while the Hebrew version has been published in Israel since 1950. The tagline of Hamodia is the daily newspaper for Torah Jewry.

Lichtenstein, whose paper has a website plus print circulation of 160, 000, is a regular stop for New York politicians seeking the support of the Orthodox community. Mayor Bloomberg, who had a policy during the last mayoral election of not giving interviews to any paper that did not endorse him, still met with Hamodia.

Hamodia, which means the informer in Hebrew, is often the only way to reach this bloc of active voters since religious Jews are discouraged from watching television and using the internet to avoid seeing forbidden images like women. Lichtenstein takes the religious prohibition of Jewish men to not view pictures of women seriously. Her paper has never printed a picture of Hilary Clinton even though they report on her frequently.

The receptionist at Hamodia, while confirming that Ruth was married to Nahman, would not comment on Nahman Lichtenstein’s business. She said, “I work for the paper not the Lichtenstein’s personally.”

Some in the Orthodox community are already agitating that she steps down as publisher due to the allegations against her husband.

The Back Story on the Kensington Fire Property Owners

Michael, Yechiel, and Nahman Lichtenstein, owners of the Buck Warehouse in Kensington where a recent fire occurred that resulted in the death of two fireman, are Gur Hasidim, a Hasidic Jewish group, from Brooklyn, New York. 

Ruth Lichtenstein, wife of Nahman, is the publisher of Hamodia, the English version of a newspaper for very religious Jews. The first Hamodia was published 100 years ago in Eastern Europe while the Hebrew version has been published in Israel since 1950. The tagline of Hamodia is the daily newspaper for Torah Jewry.

Lichtenstein, whose paper has a website plus print circulation of 160, 000, is a regular stop for New York politicians seeking the support of the Orthodox community. Mayor Bloomberg, who had a policy during the last mayoral election of not giving interviews to any paper that did not endorse him, still met with Hamodia.

Hamodia, which means the informer in Hebrew, is often the only way to reach this bloc of active voters since religious Jews are discouraged from watching television and using the internet to avoid seeing forbidden images like women. Lichtenstein takes the religious prohibition of Jewish men to not view pictures of women seriously. Her paper has never printed a picture of Hilary Clinton even though they report on her frequently.

The receptionist at Hamodia, while confirming that Ruth was married to Nahman, would not comment on Nahman Lichtenstein’s business. She said, “I work for the paper not the Lichtenstein’s personally.”

Some in the Orthodox community are already agitating that she steps down as publisher due to the allegations against her husband.

Phillies owner Bill Giles: Phillies will start winning after June 15

I had a chance to talk to Phillies owner Bill Giles and his lovely wife Nancy at the World Affairs Council event for former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Giles, unlike many pro sports teams owners, is always understated. He and his wife were sitting in the cheap seats at this event.

Giles said, "The Phillies will start winning after June 15." Not following sports, I do not know the significance of that date.

He continued, "We have a lot of players hurt now."

Springsteen:The Way People Are Being Preyed On Now Is Un-American

For the “Wrecking Ball” tour, cynical critics have seemed offended by the reverence of Springsteen’s fans. They have criticized his use of a teleprompter although President Obama, Frank Sinatra, and Bon Jovi also use them, membership in the 1% while writing about the 99%, the nepotism of his band as if there is something heretical about a rock and roller practicing family values, and too much saxophone by rock and roll standards.

Frankly, they are clueless about his appeal, which is his unparalleled storytelling.  I have always worshipped the “Boss” because of his uncanny ability to encapsulate exactly what I am thinking about the current state of national politics. (This has made me question if Springsteen’s number one fan in New Jersey, Governor Chris Christie has ever paid attention to the lyrics.) While some of the music on his new album, “Wrecking Ball" stray far from the my preference for guitar and drum based rock and roll; its political zeitgeist was pitch perfect.

At his first concert at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, the crowd went crazy for the opening one two punch of “We Take Care of Our Own” and “Wrecking Ball”. The entire stadium sang anthem like, with fists pumping, the chorus of both songs. Travyon Martin, the recently murdered black teenager in Florida, was memorialized with the timeless “American Skin (41 Shots),” which was originally written for Amadou Diallo shot to death by New York cops a decade ago. 

In introducing his new song “Jack of All Trades,” the greatest political troubadour of our time, said, “People are losing their homes, money, and retirement accounts. The way that they are being preyed upon now is un-American.”

For the first time, Springsteen introduced rap to his fans with the gospel inspired “Rocky Ground” that features a brief rap by Michelle Moore. While I am not a rap aficionado, I had goose bumps at the end of this song. He recalled imitating Smokey Robinson’s voice to get the girls before singing “The Way You Do The Things You Do”.

Clarence Clemons was remembered with a poignant question- “Are we missing anyone? I can guarantee that if we’re here, you’re here, they’re here.”  All that was missing was a montage of the Big Man’s pictures, which was added to the New Jersey shows.

Despite the serious highfalutin ideals that he writes about, Springsteen makes sure that his fans know that they are attending a rock concert not a political rally. In the age of bodyguard, there is no separating Springsteen from his fans. As drummer Max Weinberg told me last week, “I always keep my eyes on him when we are on stage because I never know where he is going to go.”

The 61-year-old Springsteen did his customary slide across the stage and body surfed in the crowd to make his way back to the main stage from a second one in the middle of the sold out stadium. He delighted fans by taking a beer break in the stadium’s seats, practically seating on Philadelphia Inquirer’s music critic Dan Deluca’s lap. One brave young boy went home with the memory of a lifetime-Bruce pulled him on stage to sing a solo of “Waitin’ on a Sunny Day” before more than 17,000 people. For the final bow of the night, he moved from the center stage to the right end so that he could put his arm around his wife, band singer Patti Scialfia.

He demanded, “I want you to go home with your feet hurting, your hands hurting and your sexual organs stimulated.” The crowd was happy to comply.

Jake Clemons, the late Clemons’ nephew, is the breakout star of the now 16 member E Street band. His solos recalled the early years of the Big Man.

IBM Not Augusta is Wrong About the Masters

With IBM as a major sponsor of the Masters played at Augusta National Golf Club, many thought that the exclusive club would break with tradition and admit its first female member, IBM's new CEO Virginia Rometty. This is America. Augusta is a private club and should be able to do what it wants.

IBM, on the other hand, is a public corporation that bids on government contracts and major investors include public pension plans. It should insist that they will not tolerate discrimination of any kind in their dealings. Shame on Rometty for not speaking up and setting an example for millions of young girls in the United States. While I am sure that she rose to the top of IBM by not rocking the boat, she is the CEO now. She can afford to do the right thing and speak out against discrimination.

I understand that the sponsorship of Masters allows IBM to have their message seen by an elite, wealthy audience. With our current fractured media market, I can not believe that there is not another media sponsorship that will allow them to reach the same audience. While dangling a chance to play Augusta in front of potential customers could possibly close some sales, the IBM board has already indicated that is not important by choosing Rometty, who prefers scuba diving over golfing.

Vick Can Own A Dog Says Humane Society President

President and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States Wayne Pacelle and Fox 29 Sue Serio, Fur Ball Hostess

The President of the Humane Society of the United States, Wayne Pacelle, was this honoree at the Fur Ball, which benefits the Morris Animal Refuge. In recent years, Pacelle has taken a lot of heat for rehabilitating Philadelphia Eagle Michael Vick, who went to prison for running a dog fighting ring. He explained his rationale for not objecting to Vick owning a dog.

"His two girls really want one. I think it would be okay. It would be the most scrutinized dog in the world.Vick became involved in dog fighting at the age of 7. He did not know any better." said Pacelle. "I am concerned about more than one dog. Michael Vick helps us reach urban youth. Yesterday, Michael and I talked to 500 kids at Gratz High School. The kids listen to him."

Vick has also filmed a new public service announcement urging the public to phone in tips about dog fighting by calling 800-TIP-HSUS

He continued, "Vick tells the kids 'I made a mistake'. He has been doing this for three years up and down the East Coast.

Robert Beck, Chairman of this year's Fur Ball with this year's honoree Wayne Pacelle

The Fur Ball was alot of fun as these pictures will attest. As an extra treat, Pacelle was signing his bestselling book, "The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend Them."

The Arts Ballroom looked fabulous

This year's raffle winner with the President of the Board of Directors of the Morris Animal  Refuge Stephen Kwaszkiewicz

The Arts Ballroom went to the dogs!

The sponsors

Wayne signing his book, "The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend  Them

Bow Wow!