I was surprised to learn that Mike Shulman has aligned himself with ARISE. I previously supported him, advocating that the Castle Doctrine could have been a defense when Portelos appeared at his house several years ago.

I met Mike once and was impressed. He struck me as a nice guy, a dedicated unionist, and a sharp dresser.

Why would Mike associate with a group of anti-Semitic, Israel-hating fanatics? Power? That's the only reason I can think of. It seems that at one time, Mike was a proud Jew. Here's an example...

I guess he became drunk with power, much like the Judenrat in the Nazi death camps and ghettos during WWII.

For those who don't know what a Judenrat is, I'll provide the essentials. You can also click here.

Judenrat, essentially councils, were individuals who lived under the control of Nazi officers running the camps and ghettos of Europe. They would, more or less, decide who lived or who was slaughtered, who got fed, who got a place to live, etc. So, as UFT Secretary, Mike would be ARISE's Judenrat.

At least to my eyes (and others as well), Mike does not seem to have any issues with MORE's (yeah, yeah, I know! It's ARISE, but who do you think is in control?) vitriolic hatred of Jews and Israel.

He doesn't appear to have a problem with Alex Jallot.

He doesn't have any problem with this hatred of Israel and Jews by MORE. 

Or this.

And this.

Dang! I almost forgot about this!

And then there's Maude MORE!

And lastly. 

So if ARISE wins, Mike will be there supporting the anti-Semitism, anti-Israel, of ARISE. All because he covets power. Like Chaim Romkowski. 

Mike is going to decide who gets what.

Mike, ¿te llevas bien con los dominicanos? Alguien en la lista tiene un problema serio con los dominicanos.

OK, let's get this out of the way: Amy Arundell is not, was not, and never will be, an anti-Semite. That not an opinion; it is a fact. What happened with her and her removal to the UFT Rubber Room never would have happened if Mulgrew hadn't decided to stick the UFT Delegate Assembly's nose where it didn't belong. Think about it—do you really think that resolution had any impact on the Middle East?

Personally, I support a two-state solution for the region. I hate the government of Israel. In fact, the only obstacles to such a solution are Hamas and the sycophantic duo of Bibi and Trump.

I get it—Amy sees the conflict there through the lens of the long-standing tensions between the Irish, the UK, and the IRA. But I'll leave it at that.

My history with Amy had a funny start. When I was first cast into ATR land, I called Amy with a certain attitude, having read about her interactions with Portelos. I put on this tough-guy charade and felt pretty sure of myself—until she snapped back and basically told me to cut the shit. And that’s always been Amy. If memory serves, I even tried that once in person. When I get anxious or start spiraling, she calls me out on it—point blank. I respect that. That’s what you get with Amy: she tells it like it is.

Here’s another story that shows what Amy is like.

My first year as an ATR, I screwed up royally at my school (nothing involving a student). I was beside myself. I called Amy several times, and she reassured me that I wasn’t going to be terminated or sent to the Rubber Room. But my anxiety wouldn’t go away—I was spiraling. She had my district rep call me, and I completely lost it on the phone. They were both genuinely concerned about me. That day, Amy just so happened to be at the Bronx UFT office, handling other things, but she took the time to help. I am eternally grateful.

Even when Amy moved to the Queens UFT, she was always there when I needed help, always able to talk me off the ledge if necessary. Think of this: ten years of texts, phone calls, Jewish neurosis. She dealt with it. 

Amy can be a lot of things—she doesn’t hold back, she tells it like it is, and she is fiercely loyal. She wants to do what’s right. But she is not anti-Semitic.