 JULY 23 • 2020 | 5

Views

for openers
Rhymes For Our Times

(Written under the shadow of the 2020 pandemic)
D

uring these times of 
social distancing and 
self-isolation, watch-
ing YouTube can become 
addictive.
I have discovered the clev-
erness of sev-
eral folks who 
are musically 
inclined and 
can write song 
parodies about 
the COVID-19 
pandemic. Of 
course, I’
m not 
gifted with a music sense and 
those who have heard me sing 
will fervently agree. However, 
I felt that I could do with a 
literary device what they had 
done in music. So here goes:

Jack and Jill went up the hill;
They were not six feet apart.
Jack fell ill
And so did Jill
A lesson they’
re taking to heart.

Old Mother Hubbard
Went to the cupboard
To get some bathroom tissue.
When she got there
Her cupboard was bare
And that made going an issue.

Humpty Dumpty wasn’
t wear-
ing a mask.
Humpty Dumpty was taken 
to task.
Then he was seen
To break quarantine
Slowly exposing us all.

Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How did your shopping go?
“I wore gloves and a mask,
But it still was a task
And for it I have nothing to 
show.
”

Jack was not nimble.
Jack was not quick.
He took no precautions
And now is quite sick.

There was an old woman
Who lived in a shoe.
She homeschooled her children
For nothing else would do.
She taught them and fought 
them
And sent them to bed.
And raised teacher salaries
Quietly in her head.

Peter, Peter, restaurant keeper,
Had a wife but couldn’
t feed 
her.
Then unemployment hit the 
scene
And all was blamed on 
COVID-19.

Little Jack Horner
Pumped iron in the corner
Of a recently reopened gym.
With his mask, a towel and 
disinfectant spray
So no one would re-infect him.

Hickory, dickory dock
Re-opening against the clock?
First one is struck down
Then it’
s all over town.
Wearing masks is not just a 
crock.

Baa, baa, ICUs
Have you nasal swabs?
Yes, sir; yes, sir,
But not for such a mob.
Some for those who’
re needed
And some for those who’
re ill.
But none for the man in charge
Up on the hill.

Hey diddle doe-vid
This traveler has COVID.
The TSA jumped all over him.
The rest of us laughed to see
Him get caught.
Who knew we could be so 
dim?

The itsy, bitsy virus
Climbed up the nasal spout.
Out came a sneeze
But not the virus out.
Out came a cough 
And the temperature was 
great.
For the itsy, bitsy virus
Be sure to isolate!

And the beat goes on. Thanks 
for bearing with me. Do I 
detect a slight smile under 
that mask? I might now give 
some thought to fairy tales; 
they have dark endings any-
way, so it should not be hard. 
Stay tuned. 

Time for Sovereignty
Professor Aronoff’
s article 
“Don’
t Annex: Save the Two 
State Solution” (July 9, page 18) 
merely advocates past negotia-
tions rejected by the Palestinian 
Arabs multiple times and frets 
over what others will say. Einstein 
said, “The definition of insanity is 
continuing to do the same thing 
and expecting a different result.
” 
After unsuccessfully trying the 
two-state solution for over 70 
years, there must be a better 
approach. 
Prior to his death, Prime 
Minister Yitzhak Rabin’
s hard 
points were: 1) Israel had to 
control the Jordan River Valley; 
2) The major Jewish population 
centers in Judea and Samara had 
to be part of Israel; and 3) the 
Palestinian entity must be demil-
itarized. 
 
Only after Israel’
s military 
victories in 1948, 1967 and 1973 
did the Palestinians suddenly 
become interested in a state of 
their own. When Israel left Gaza, 
the Palestinians had a chance 
to demonstrate they could run 
a peaceful state. Instead, Gaza 
became a belligerent, terrorist 
armed camp. The Palestinians 
have rejected every proposed 
two-state solution. Their motto 
is, “From the river to the sea, 
Palestine will be free.
” 
The Trump administration’
s 
proposed sovereignty plan meets 
Rabin’
s basic requirements. Israel 
officially declaring sovereignty on 
the proposed area demonstrates 
that Israel is moving forward 
on its minimal requirements. 
The plan doesn’
t preclude any-
thing from being changed by a 
successful negotiation with the 
Palestinians. With Gaza, Israel 
also demonstrated it was willing 
to evict its own citizens. 
It’
s time to declare sovereign-
ty. The ball will then be in the 
Palestinians’
 court. The real issue: 
Do the Palestinians want peace? 

— Eugene Greenstein, Ph.D.

Farmington Hills

continued on page 6

letters

Sy Manello
Editorial 
Assistant

