Will, Grimly

Good afternoon, Men of Stroock's Books. We awoke tired and frustrated. 

Temps haven't climbed out of the mid-60s today. 

Today is the anniversary of Operation Grim Beeper. Middle Eastern operators will kindly show us their hands so as to prove they have all their fingers. Who says the Israelis don't have a sense of humor? And don't forget what the imams say. Israel Radar has a great writeup from last year which holds up nicely. Anyway, happy Operation Grim Beeper Day to those who celebrate. 

One year after Operation Grim Beeper, where stand things? Hezbollah is neutered, its leadership gone, missile arsenal all but destroyed. The Israelis took out (more or less) Iran's nuclear program. Hamas remains. The international pressure is worse than ever. Europe's talking about new anti-Israeli sanctions. Go ahead guys. You can't even stop buying Russian natural gas. We lean toward the mic and whisper in Joe Biden, Europe doesn't matter. 

What Will's Watching...Dancing with the Stars: we live in a house with two dance obsessed teenaged girls. What do you want us to do? Anyway, we sat through over an hour of the season opener because we wanted to see Corey Feldman's dance. 'Who?' asked Middle Daughter. Feldman was kind of everywhere in the 80s. His film credits read like a Gen-X childhood nostalgia play list: Gremlins, Goonies, Stand by Me, The Lost Boys, TV cameos on Cheers, Family Ties, Married with Children...Younger reader(s) will get the idea. 

In our brief memorial of the great Robert Redford yesterday we forgot to mention our favorite Redford movie: The Hot Rock. This is a zany heist comedy, kind of an early 70s version of the Oceans trilogy. Robert Redford plays sad sack professional thief Robert Dortmunder, just out of the slammer and offered a new job by his brother-in-law. The target is a precious African diamond on display in the Brooklyn Museum. Hijinx and misadventure ensue. The Hot Rock is very much a product of it's time (look the World Trade Center is under construction) and a wonderful snapshot of early 70s NYC.