4/30 & 5/2/2024

Dear Joe,

            So much going on, not enough time to process. This will be one of my quick letters, just to let you know I am thinking of you & wishing you well. I started it on Tues & am finishing on Th. I got waylaid by a slight flu.

            I understand that Sec Blinken is talking with Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani & Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi as he tries to arrange a deal with Hamas. Does Hamas have someone in charge, or do the armed youth of Gaza owe their allegiances to a hodge podge of leaders jockeying for power? Negotiating with rebels is always complicated & according to Politico, the Saudi’s have their doubts about whether you will have the longevity in office to keep your promises, which makes it even more challenging.

            I am trying to see that of God in all involved & hope the fighting stops soon.

            Please join me in adopting that stance towards the pugilists in Burma, as well. According to an AJ podcast, “Myanmar’s coup could come to an end? As the Rebels fighting Myanmar’s military government could be moving the country’s civil war into a new phase.” It would be nice to see the coup over, but I’m afraid the fighting could continue.

            I hope your visit to Charlotte brings some comfort to the police there who lost 4 of their brethren in a shootout recently. Are police shootings up? I ask because the POTUS participates in Police Week activities every year so I check out the Officer Down Memorial Page to learn about those whose “watch has ended.” In the recent past, the list has largely been populated by folks who had Covid, died in car accidents or due to the lingering effects of 911 rescues. This year looks different. Have we become more violent?

          Please share my appreciation for the courageous work that our officers do & encourage them to adopt the “policing by consent” model used in England, which seems to work much better than the brute force approach used here.

            BYBS,