Nice Jewish Boy

Nice Jewish Boy

It might shock some people who know me, but I am, at heart, a Nice Jewish Boy.

I am committed to God, family, friends and the Jewish people.

I’ve strayed from my religious education, I’ve committed sins, I’ve criticized Israel and the Jewish people ,in general, and I adore Gentile women, and one of my biggest heroes is a Christian, Martin Luther King, Jr. but I am still a Jew and I take God, Judaism and the Jewish people seriously.

And now it is time for this (forgive my use of a Christian expression) “Prodigal Son” to come home.

I am joining a temple, where I will worship, educate myself, become part of a spiritual community, etc.

And I am joining with an agenda:

1.)           Promote Peace in the Middle East, peace with Gentiles

2.)           End racism, sexism, anti-Semitism, classism

3.)           Promote environmentalism, animal rights

4.)           Promote education (Jewish and secular) and the arts

5.)           Promotion of progressive Jewish theology

6.)            Visit Israel by 2020

I hope that my new synagogue does not have a problem with this and I hope that there is a dialectic between me and the shul, so that we can learn from each other. Let there be mutual respect between me and my people!

Integrity

Maintaining one’s integrity is not the mere folly of a college student: it is absolutely essential to one’s well-being, survival and success. When I sell myself out politically, religiously, literarily or emotionally, I am miserable and depressed and unproductive. When I attempt to maintain integrity, I may pay a price, but at least I find myself working, working with direction and purpose and grace.

American Dream Needs Repair

The American Dream is not dead, it is simply injured, now; injured by a class of Americans who do not truly understand it, and therefore, abuse it.

The American dream is supposed to be accessible to all Americans—and in my opinion, all people in the world.

Therefore, America must be a leader, a graceful leader, in promoting American ideals. We aren’t supposed to be insulting other countries and cultures and we certainly aren’t supposed to be insulting fellow Americans.

We must tweak the American Dream until it is accessible to everyone, not just selfish hustlers and those who are more fortunate than others.

We must work together to make all Americans’ dreams happen, otherwise we’re not truly dealing with an American Dream, at all.

Down with Egoism

I noticed that when I am at my most egoistic, I am also at my most stressed. If I focus too much on fulfilling dreams, desires and ambitions, I become overwhelmed, especially when I am confronted with any kind of adversity.

The time has come to permanently relieve that stress by making a firm commitment to serving the Lord—and my family-- and my friends--- and the people.

No more skirt-chasing, no more trying to get published or elected, no more trying to be a star in any field-I’m just working on behalf of my synagogue, Fountain House and other institutions that serve God and the people.

Prayers for my mother, who is in the hospital. I must continue to call and visit her. To hell with being a superstar, when my mother is suffering.

Craig R. Bayer

Meritocracy

In case Donald J. Trump and his followers were not alerted, this country is not supposed to be a white supremacist oligarchy, but a meritocracy, where each man rises according to his character and abilities. Our current President lacks in character and ability, thus he shouldn’t be President.  It’s also supposed to be a law and order country, so we shouldn’t have a President who is used to breaking the law every two minutes.

I don’t think that there is any political party, left or right or center,that can disagree with me, so I say, when possible, move toward impeachment.

I also say: alert African Americans , Latinos and Asian Americans that they, too, can live and succeed in this country, before they lose all hope.

I heard from a Jewish friend of mine that her rabbi confessed that there are homeless people attending her temple. I didn’t think that homeless people were permitted to attend a temple or synagogue, except to show up on a weekly basis to have a free homeless meal and leave. It’s good to hear that my fellow Jews are also looking out for poor people, especially in this day and age.

American Writer

I am an American, a person who reveres the United States Constitution, but I am also a writer, a person who will be resisting the racist, sexist, classist establishment for the rest of my life. I will not tolerate the oppression of anybody on this land –or overseas.

I listen to John Lennon and Bruce Springsteen, not Donald Trump and Sean Hannity.

I still respect law and order: I will not support violence or crime as solutions to injustice; if you want to rebel, you join an artistic,social or political movement, you don’t engage in looting, shooting, mugging, slashing etc….

So, both oppressors and criminals: look out for me! I won’t support you!

The other day, on the way to my friend, I got off the bus and had to cross the Bronx’s Grand Concourse. In my younger days, I would have run across as soon as I sensed that I could beat the traffic, but now, I am nearly fifty four years old, so I must “cross at the green, not in between”. I watch the traffic lights, beware the traffic (both motorists and bicyclists) and make sure that I have enough time to get from one side of the street to another…

I say that we should demand full funding for public education, free tuition for all university students and a guaranteed income for the mentally ill…!

One of the few things I miss about being a capitalist, suburban kid/punk was going to the New York City office of my father, the accountant, on Fifth Avenue, right near the 42^nd Street library. What a safe and convenient section of town it was for a child to hang out! I feel for children who have to hang out in more dangerous parts of town…

Craig R. Bayer

A Career Path Chosen

My move to the Bronx and virtually all its complications out of the way, it’s time for me to concentrate on Colleague Training at Fountain House and on publishing a national mental health clubhouse journal.

That’s what my life’s work will be—in addition to my personal writing.

My political blogs and political Facebook posts will continue to flow, but I have no aspiration to run for office or to join any political organizations. I am focused like a laser on the mental health movement.

Trump Screwed Up

President Trump just congratulated Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on winning a rigged election. He tried to justify it by claiming that rigged election or not, we shouldn’t be meddling in other countries’ elections. There is some truth to that: we shouldn’t be actively meddling in other countries’ politics, because it’s imperialistic and because there are consequences to doing so: note that Hillary Clinton’s meddling in Russian affairs when she was Secretary of State helped lead to Putin’s meddling in our politics and politics all over the world.

Nevertheless, the United States, being a democracy—a leading democracy, is obliged to publicly condemn nondemocratic elections and countries.  We are here to protect and spread democracy, not pretend that it’s just another political alternative.

President Trump has made a serious mistake and he should acknowledge it to himself and the world public.

Trump and Greatness

President Trump can’t “make America great again”, because he doesn’t understand greatness. He obviously doesn’t understand moral greatness nor intellectual greatness nor even greatness in business, where he’s considered a con man, if not a failure. What good does he stand for? None whatsoever. He can’t even claim to stand with law enforcement because he’s a law breaker and a frivolous, self-serving critic of the FBI. He represents the best of neither Republicans nor Democrats. He doesn’t belong where he is—in a position of power.

I confess that I’d prefer for Republicans to never win elections, but when a Republican does, I expect him or her to stand for something important, like excellence in business, commitment to law and order and those who enforce it, and in excellence in culture and education, and to seriousness about family values. Trump represents none of that. He is incompetent complete and we should be able to impeach him on that count alone.

Next time around, if the country is unsatisfied with Democrats or even Republicans, it should choose a good and competent male or female alternative, not a head case. Enough said.

Parkland Politics

Parkland Politics Will Simply Scapegoat the Mentally Ill

The Parkland School gun tragedy has inspired demonstrations and debate about gun laws, but it has also created discussion about mental illness.

From the perspective of a mental health consumer like me, on the surface, discussion is a positive thing because we cannot have enough discussions about mental health. However, I am afraid that nothing substantial about mental health will be learned from and done and that the only thing that will result from all of this blather is the oppression of the mentally ill.

They’ll want to, of course, disarm any of us who are armed, and then they’ll want to seize control of our lives and/or lock us up.

The stigma of mental illness will continue, thus people will be afraid to seek treatment or they will resist treatment and people will, in all likelihood, avoid, discriminate against and perhaps even attack the mentally ill.

I, personally, would not advise selling guns to the mentally ill, but I also think that most ordinary people do not need to have guns. We are giving up on civilization when we claim that everyone must be armed, including teachers and school administrators, people who are supposed to teach civility and promote peace.

It’s sick not to confront this society’s gun problem and its abusive and violent culture, in general.

Americans a have become animals, alright? We’ve given up on love and reason and want to fight about everything literally until the bitter, bloody end.

We are no longer righteous, we are simply right wing. This is unacceptable.

Craig R. Bayer, 2/21/18

Spiritual Discipline

For most of my life, I have sought to be an effective activist, if not leader, but the things that have stood in my way are anger, impatience, inability to compromise and contempt for the political and intellectual opposition. The solution to my issues is to inject more God in my life, otherwise I’ll never be able to calm down and act with more humility

This country, and this planet for that matter, are being torn apart by inflexibility and arrogance, driven by a cynicism that if you give an ideological inch, you’ll be made to look foolish.

But the true fool is the man or woman who believes that banging one’s head or other people’s heads against a wall is going to make a bit of difference in changing or simply preserving the world.

So, I’m turning once and for all-- and completely-- to Judeo-Christian spiritual discipline, in the hope that I can rid myself of anger, inflexibility and impatience and finally serve the interests of both myself and humanity.

Being spiritual doesn’t come easy to me: I was raised a secular American and few secular people and almost no Americans like to suffer fools gladly, but you have to suffer fools gladly if you want to reach the maximum number of people.

Thus, here I go again, calling on the Lord to heal my spirit, so that I can stop going in circles emotionally and politically. Wish me luck!

Craig R. Bayer

Define Activist

I call myself an “activist” because, first and foremost, I seek to get at the Truth of the human condition and the Truth of what I believe it takes to make the world a better place. Once I’ve come to my conclusion, my first job is to express that Truth as best as I can.

Another thing I do which I consider to be indispensable to activism is to try to promote other activists and artists.  At Fountain House, for instance, I spend most of my time promoting the Clubhouse Model and those activists (administrators, staffers, member leaders) who help to promote the Clubhouse Model and those who participate in the Clubhouse Model. Through national and international colleague trainings and learning exchanges  and through my writings, I try to explain to the world what being part of a mental health clubhouse means and why it’s so important for the mentally ill and the rest of society.

Furthermore, I try to help other people by listening to them, nurturing them, doing them favors, lending them money, whatever it takes to help other get through life. That, in my opinion, is what a True Marxist activist does.

I also organize educational events and in the past I have edited newsletters for the mentally ill in homeless shelters, and supportive residences.

Also, through my political blogs, I hammer away at politicians and other civic leaders who abuse power and abuse the public good.

Lastly, when it comes time to vote, I vote.

I am not obliged to run for office, not obliged to seek positions of power, not obliged to attend  rallies where I can be arrested and/or  beaten up,  not obliged to become rich and famous, not obliged to do anything more than I already do.

Americans have a very narrow view of what it means to be an activist and that’s a problem. Americans have a very narrow view of just about everything, but I won’t be put in a box.

Activists need to define for people what it means to be an activist or risk being told that they aren’t even activists.

Craig R. Bayer, 2/19/18

Manning Up About Fiction

I’ve written about two short stories in my lifetime and zero novels, yet when I was seventeen I envisioned myself as the another Hemingway. I planned to write the Great American Novel and travel the world while doing so. However, reading the truly great novelists and reading the top critics and listening to the analysis of my best teachers and professors, gave me an inferiority complex, so, over the years, whenever I came up with a great fiction idea, I chickened out often before I even started writing.

On the other hand, decades of composing nothing but prosaic poetry and personal and political blogs has taken its toll. I’m getting tired of producing the same old stuff and so are many of my polite and generous readers. The time has come to challenge myself and free up a certain aspect of my creativity that has been dormant for too long. If I want to write something publishable, marketable and maybe even popular amongst readers and/or critics, I have to man up and write a piece of fiction.

I have plenty of potential artistic material, I simply lack the courage to test myself and see if I can utilize, if not master, various fiction techniques. I still don’t think I’ll ever win a Pulitzer or Nobel, but wouldn’t it be a waste of all my reading, studying and other types of writing led to absolutely nothing literarily? And what if I wrote something that could actually make money: wouldn’t that help me financially, socially and personally (i.e. I could contribute more to my family)?

It may be a pipe dream, but I’ll never know until I make an attempt, a sincere attempt.

So, watch out for some fiction in 2018; you can say down the line that you read it first.

Craig R. Bayer, 2/17/18

Women’s Rights Trump Politics

President Trump and his administration clearly have a problem with women, perhaps not as big a problem as they should have, but they have a problem, nevertheless.

During the 2016 Presidential campaign, when confronted with his alleged sexism and misogyny, the President claimed that he “cherishes” women, but his own track record and the personal records of certain men in his administration indicate otherwise.

It seems that every time an allegation arises about a woman being sexually or physically abused by a Trumpie, we hear an unequivocal denial, a claim that the accusation is unproven in a court of law and therefore unfair and worst of all, just part of a sinister smear campaign to needlessly ruin a Trumpie’s career.

As a man who also “cherishes” women, here’s my personal advice to the President and his allies:

Whether you love or lust a woman, whether you are right or wrong in a disagreement with her, you have no right to put your hands on her. You can’t engage in unwanted touching and you certainly can’t engage in physical abuse.

And if you truly love her or ever loved her, you’re not supposed to call her a liar if she reveals negative information about you, especially if you’ve engaged in criminal activity. She has a right to free speech and to speak the truth.

Women have rights, regardless of what ideology you ascribe to, so one should stop engaging in political or legal mumbo jumbo and admit if you have done a woman wrong.

And women’s rights are more important than winning an election or protecting one’s political career.

So, start cherishing women for real and stop being an animal!

Craig R. Bayer, 2/12/18

Employment Solution

Once I’ve completed my move to the Bronx, it will be time to commence a serious job search, and I’ve decided that I need help with it and that’s why I’m going to the New York City Department of Labor.

Their entire job is to find one and, if necessary, train one, for work and I need such specialists to secure me a job and maybe a career.

The fact that I have a million dreams and interests is irrelevant—if you don’t have the experience, talent, skills and motivation to do your dream job, it matters not what you want. And currently, I lack just about everything I need to succeed.

The DOL will find me something I can secure and handle and thereby propel me back into the workforce. I hope to find a part-time job that won’t ruin my benefits, but I I’ll take virtually any position, if it means money in my pocket. It will put an end to my endless speculation about what career of job best suits me and it will turn me into a fully productive citizen.

Of course, I’ll continue to write on the side and volunteer for Fountain House in my spare time, but the center of my existence will be my new job.

I’m not thrilled to have reached this point, but a man has to do what a man has to do.

See you all in the workforce!

Craig R. Bayer, 2/10/18

No to a Military Parade

President Trump wants a military parade. The United Sates and the world, for that matter, do not need a military parade.

A military parade, believe it or not, would not celebrate the military. Instead, it would celebrate U.S. power, anger, violence, and war—or at least the threat of war. It’s probably being thrown to celebrate the Trump administration and its world agenda, as well.

The world needs to celebrate brotherhood, nonviolence, peace. It needs to come together and engage in mass mutual support and mutual respect.

A military parade will only stoke feelings of anger and could ultimately lead to violence.

If we need to militarily defend ourselves, we should, but we should not be brandishing U.S. power every day of the week.

How about a peace parade? Or is someone crazy enough to be opposed to that?

Craig R. Bayer, 2/8/18

More Judaism, Less Marx

My whole life, not just my politics, has been affected by Marxism, but Judaism has become the center of my life and therefore I must make political and cultural changes in my own head.

I must let capitalism exist and be itself and not worry about what other people are doing. I must simply learn to serve my fellow man and take political stances more in synch with the American people.

I am a liberal now, not a radical, thus more people should be able to identify with and understand me and perhaps even listen to me.

Yes, I am still fighting for the poor and oppressed, but I’m using a different perspective, style and tactics—I am being more civilized and flexible, less elitist and hostile.

Hopefully I can contribute more to the world, this way, because, ultimately, being the militant Marxist critic was not helping me or the world.

Craig R. Bayer, 2/6/18

Dr. Alan Doyle's Retirement

Alan Doyle

I’ve thanked Dr. Alan Doyle already in three different forums for being instrumental  in sending me to the United Kingdom for a colleague training; it was the greatest and most important trip of my life, a trip to my favorite country outside of the United States. So I’ll say nothing further about that trip, except that it helped make both me and America great.

What I want to say tonight is that Alan also sent me on other trips—intellectual trips—on a quest to understand what it means to work in a clubhouse, what it means to help train and be trained by one’s fellow colleagues, and what it means to think for yourself and help others think for themselves.

Alan showed me that a clubhouse is not just for people who want to socialize or secure a job, not just for creative people, even, but for intellectuals, as well.  Members of clubhouses are entitled-perhaps even obliged to understand-why they attend a clubhouse and why clubhouses work.

Everyone in colleague training has a story about how “Rabbi” Alan Doyle engaged him or her in an intense, thoughtful and enlightening discussion about the clubhouse standards and encouraged us all to challenge the standards, challenge clubhouse tradition and challenge ourselves. He pushes members and staff and administrators and distant clubhouse bureaucrats to think about and understand Clubhouse and to work hard at developing their thinking and pursuing excellence in all endeavors.

To quote the rock’n’roll band, Rush:

“From the point of ignition

To the final drive

The point of the journey is not to arrive”

The point of a journey  with Alan Doyle is not to arrive. The journey itself –the intellectual process—is what we must value as opposed to Fountain House or ICCD or some other so-called authority telling us what to do and what to believe about clubhouses.

I went to Britain for an intellectual journey, not just for three weeks of tourism, and as a matter of fact, I did not do much touring: instead, I relished working alongside the Brits in their own journey toward building the best clubhouse.

Thank you, Alan, for the wonderful journey. And the best part about it all is that the journey will never be over, because the purpose is not to arrive.

Time to Compete!

I’m a naturally laid-back person: part of me hates work. I enjoy writing, I enjoy organizing political, social and educational events, I enjoy the various roles I play at Fountain House from office worker to clubhouse standards analyst to literary promoter of clubhouse values, but in regard to having a role in the marketplace, I have no idea what I should be doing.

And I think that part of the reason for my professional stagnancy has been my attitude about work: I really dislike ordinary wage work. Nevertheless, we all have to grow up sometime and now my time has come. I have to get psyched about work, about economic competition, about making it in America. So, my game plan is as follows:

I will return to doing messenger work in order to put a few bucks in my pocket while I experiment with other types of work.

I will also join a temple, partly for spiritual reasons, but also because I want to do volunteer work for a Jewish organization, the type of work that might lead to paid employment, either at the organization at which I volunteer or at some other place in the nonprofit world. I’m thinking of starting with part-time work with flexible hours, so that I don’t endanger my benefits and then move on from there, if I have the capacity. And on the side, I’ll pursue freelance writing.

But I must think about having a work ethic and a desire to compete because that’s what the American workforce is about: hard work and competition. And I think that I can compete because, though I have been a Marxist for decades, I do enjoy competition. I certainly enjoy sports competition, even though I’m at best a mediocre athlete, so why can’t I translate that competitive passion into being a worker?

The time has come to find a decent job and make money. For me, this change is better late than never.

Craig R. Bayer

Stop This

Donald Trump should be stopped before he ruins this country and world.

Donald Trump should have been stopped before…

1.     He became President.

2.     He became Republican Party candidate for President.

3.     He became leader of the Birther movement.

4.     He became an influential donor and celebrity.

5.     He recovered from a slimy bankruptcy process.

6.     He became an exploiter of workers.

7.     He became a business cheat.

8.     He married three or four times.

He had no business being in any of these situations, but he was enabled by his fellow Americans.

America isn’t serious about morality and social justice or even grace and class.

America must be stopped.

Craig R. Bayer

Perfect Unity is Unattainable

Being a Marxist for most of my life—and also a Christian sympathizer—I’ve always believed in the importance of world unity. However, events in my personal life have final taken their toll on my all for one, one for all ethic.  When you’ve been distanced and sometimes outright rejected by various individuals, you learn that human unity is meaningless to most people and when you hold on to most people, they think you’re weird, obsessive, pathetic, crazy, etc…

So, my advice to people on the Left is as follows: only be nice to people who, when you reach out to them, are nice to you. Continue reaching out, but if you receive a bad reaction, let the person who doesn’t take you seriously go to hell.

I’m a full-fledged Jew, now: I don’t have to care about perfect unity, I’m free to do as I please, and Marxists and Christians who cannot stomach this can go f-k themselves.

Craig R. Bayer, 1/27/18

Tired of Waiting for Revolution

There will be no socialist revolution, at least not in my lifetime, that will liberate us all from tedium and enable us to spend our days writing and sharing poetry, music and blogs . And I am not Barack Obama or Ernest Hemingway, so I will not become rich being a political or literary celebrity. As a result, I have to put my nose to the grindstone and become a wage worker for the first time in years. 

If I have to be a mere messenger for the rest of my life, I will do so, because I am obliged to pull my own weight and earn my own money and stop playing around with complete poverty. Poverty sucks, there’s nothing romantic about it and I’m sick of it.

It’s time to develop a new work ethic, one that entails doing not just the things I enjoy, but the things I MUST DO, however boring, tedious or unpleasant. So, I’ll be back in the workforce to whatever extent I need to be and can handle.

Discipline Required

It’s late in the game to conclude this, but I must be a more responsible human being…spiritually, financially, professionally, etc….

I’ve been undisciplined, even reckless, over the course of fifty three years, but I think it’s time to really get hold of myself.

Even in regard to my writing, I must enforce greater discipline. I cannot write solely on inspiration, cannot produce content that offends (sometimes intentionally) eighty percent of the world, cannot release pieces that I sense I’ll ultimately regret releasing, etc….

I must use all the religious and self-help texts I’ve ever read to turn my head and life around, because being a flake has run its course. It was romantic at twenty three, not fifty three.

Here’s to a more disciplined 2018 and beyond!

Craig R. Bayer

Realization

There are a million things I’d like to do with my life, but my main focus and obsession must be to serve…to serve God, family, friends, and humanity. When I lose that focus, I just get angry, at myself, God, my fellow humans, unfriendly dogs, etc…

But when I’m serving, I must learn to be more tolerant and compassionate, because not everybody is going to do what I want them to do, whether they are doing right or wrong in resisting my will.

My job should be to help make a better planet, not a perfect planet, and I can’t change the world singlehandedly, anyway, so I should top trying to control others at every turn.

My politics, though they will always be left-leaning, must be more civilized and my spiritual commitment must be deeper. More prayer, both in and out of religious communities, less bitching and moaning.

Thank the Lord for keeping me on this Earth long enough to come to this realization. Hopefully, I have plenty of time to utilize it.

Craig R. Bayer, 1/6/17

Come Together

I’m trying to get my life together. My first priority is to find a new home, because by the end of February, I have to be out of my current residence. The building has been sold and the new landlord has not renewed my supportive housing agency’s lease.  I’ll probably end up somewhere in the Bronx, but I’m trying to maintain and increase my options.

After my housing issue is resolved, I plan to resume my job search. I am going to look into bookstores and libraries.

I will continue blogging, on a weekly basis, at minimum, and I may embark on a book, but I’m not sure about when that will happen and what I intend to write.

Lastly, I plan to simultaneously join a humanistic Jewish synagogue and a Unitarian church to see where I fit in spiritually. My heart is with the Jews, but politically and economically I am a bit out of step with them, so there’s no guarantee I’ll find a home with them.

In any case, my head is coming together, I’m utilizing positive thinking and I am confident that I am moving in the right direction…

Craig R. Bayer, 1/5/17