*In Yiddish, "di tsung" means "the tongue"
There's a story titled, "Harsh Words," which
I found on the website, Samwrites.com.A woman bought eggs and butter from a
farmer who had a fine reputation not only
for the quality of his products, but also for
his promptness of delivery. Then one day,
when she was expecting guests, he failed to
come. On the next delivery, she spoke
harshly to him. At the end of her tirade he
said quietly, "I'm sorry if I caused you any
inconvenience, but I had the misfortune
("umglick") of buryng my mother yesterday."Ashamed, the woman
determined never to speak harshly to anyone again until she
fully understood the cause of the delay.In 1938 we had "The War of the Worlds"; in
2006, we've got "The War of the Words." I'm referring to the "war" between
Donald
Trump and Rosie O'Donnell. Rosie ("The
View") had some fierce words for him,
calling him a "snake-oil" salesman ("farkoyfer").Trump
fired back, calling her a "woman out
of control" and saying he planned to sue.
Rosie made some incorrect ("nit-rikhtik")
statements regarding Trump's fiancial
well-being. (In 2006, a libel suit was filed
against biographer Tim O'Brien for claiming
Trump was only worth $150 million.)As you know, Trump is "ongeshtopt mit
gelt" (filthy rich). "Er ken dikn tsen mol
koyfn un farkoyfn." (He's a very wealthy
man; he can buy and sell you ten times over.) He's presently building a $40
million
project on the site of the old Boardwalk
Restaurant in Jones Beach State Park, New
York. He's also constructing the tallest
building in Ramat Gan, Israel--Trump Plaza
Tower.Trump said, "Rosie's a loser. A real loser.
I look forward to taking lots of money from my nice fat ("zaftik")
little Rosie.""Vos tut zikh?" (What is going on?) "The
Donald" announced that he would NOT
fire Miss USA, Tara Conner. Donald said,
"
I've always been a believer in second
chances. Tara is a good person. Tara is
going to be given a second chance."In Yiddish, we call it a second "gelegnhayt"
(a second opportunity).Conner will go to rehab but keep her crown. There are
allegtions of drug and alcohol abuse. (She failed a drug test for cocaine.)
Trump showed "rachmanes"--
compassion.The verbal fighting continued. Trump
chastised Rosie about her failed "zhurnal"
(newspaper) and failed talk show. Rosie
said, "(He) left his first wife--had an affair,
left his second wife, had an affair, but he's
the moral compass for 20-year-olds in
America." His wives--Ivana, Marla Maples,
and Melania--may have changed, but his drive and success stayed the same.Donald
called Rosie disgusting ("khaloshesdik") both inside and
out. He
called her a slob ("shlulmp"), who talks like
a truck driver. Donald said she got thrown off "televisye" and "she's
basically a
disaster."Is there a solution to this "war of words"?
Rabbi Anchelle Perl, Director of Chabad
of Mineola, New York, thinks so. He has
invited billionaire Donald Trump and Rosie
O'Donnell to his office on Long Island to
help make peace. As Rabbi Perl says, "They
are currently locked in one of America's
biggest public slanging matches."
Stay tuned for further details.
__________
Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe agrees with Josh
Billings: "The best time to hold your tongue
is the time you feel you must say something or bust."
___________________________________________ Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe is the author of
two books: "Yiddish for Dog & Cat Lovers" and
"Are Yentas, Kibitzers, & Tummlers Weapons of Mass Instruction? Yiddish
Trivia." To order a copy, go to her
website: MarjorieGottliebWolfe.com
