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Thoughts On The Supreme Court's Decision On Birthright Citizenship

6/30/2026

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Thoughts On The Supreme Court's Decision On Birthright Citizenship

Today the Supreme Court of the United States of America handed down a decision on a case that the Supreme Court of United States of America should never have taken in the first place: that of whether the President of the United States has the power to delete our Constitutional rights by simply issuing an executive order.
The Constitutional right in question was that bestowed upon us by the first sentence of the Fourteenth Amendment, also known as the Citizenship Clause, which states:
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.
And the President in question who sought to cancel out this inherent principle of our democracy with a quick stroke of his pen was...who else?

Now, in pondering why the Supreme Court agreed back in November of 2025 to hear this case that had previously been unequivocally struck down by lower courts, at first I thought, well, mayhaps a Trump-weary SCOTUS intended to hear the case, hand down a final ruling on the subject and shut up the face of Donald Trump about it once and for all. I mean, of course the Supreme Court wouldn't overrule the Fourteenth Amendment?
But then the Court's conservative majority, which has been fulfilling one after another of Trump's desires on his anti-immigrant wish list, just a few days ago gifted him with several especially cruel immigration rulings, among them one allowing Trump to end Temporary Protected Status for Haitian and Syrian refugees and another allowing his administration to turn away asylum seekers at our southern border.
This made me wonder: If Trump's hand-picked justices were cold-blooded enough to hand down what was in effect a death sentence to hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian refugees and deny the right of human beings to seek asylum, a right that is a tenet of international law and dates back to ancient times, might not these same justices be jaded enough to allow Donald Trump to mutilate our Constitution and cause cataclysmic upheaval to our social order?
But then, today the Supreme Court handed down their decision to uphold our Fourteenth Amendment and reject Donald Trump's ploy to abolish it. Which felt like wonderful news until it sunk in that the verdict to keep our Constitution intact passed not unanimously or even nearly unanimously, but by a single vote, five to four.

Had just one more justice favored Trump with their vote, then those five could have thrown our constitution and our country into a crisis. Which makes today's ruling feel less a cause for celebration than a warning that our country is hanging under the sword of Damocles.

References:
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/supreme-court-meets-to-weigh-trumps-birthright-citizenship-restrictions-blocked-by-lower-courts

https://news.lee.net/news/nation-world/government-politics/on-immigration-supreme-court-accedes-to-trumps-restrictive-agenda/article_7805bb97-1824-585d-b255-6139bd87ad12.html

https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-birthright-citizenship-trump-immigration-c73cf0c70bb550ebf0a55fafddbd935c

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Mission San Juan Capistrano, A Beautiful Monument To The Theft Of Land, Lives, And A Culture

6/27/2026

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Mission San Juan Capistrano, A Beautiful Monument To The Theft Of Land, Lives, And A Culture

...Continued from 6/19/2026:
On Wednesday, June 3, Tom and I left Fallbrook and soon thereafter we were on the scenic highway back to Los Angeles.

The town of San Juan Capistrano was along the way, so we decided to stop there and see the famous old Spanish mission where, I learned as part of my Catholic education, the swallows return every spring on Saint Joseph's Day, March 19, to nestle in the mission eaves.
However, as we were to learn, the swallows no longer come to the mission since their nests were cleaned out in the 1990's, but the birds still do return and settle in elsewhere around the town for the spring and summer (though we didn't manage to see any swallows during our visit).
The historic mission district of San Juan Capistrano appeared to be a tourist-friendly spot,

...in the center of which was our destination, the Mission San Juan Capistrano.

The entrance to the mission opens into a lovely courtyard landscaped with flowers and trees.

One can wander among the ruins of the mission's massive Great Stone Church, destroyed in an earthquake in 1812.

We walked along the colonnades of the mission veranda,

...which opened into rooms and artifacts from the past.

The posters and pictures on display in these rooms tell the mission's story.

Mission San Juan Capistrano was founded in 1776 by Father Junipero Serra, Spanish Franciscan missionary who accompanied the the army sent by the king of Spain to colonize the New Spain territories of Mexico and California.
For his part Junipero Serra oversaw the building of missions up and down the coast of California and the conversion of the region's indigenous people to Catholicism. For this Junipero Serra was made a Saint by Pope Francis in 2015.

From Father Serra's missions grew the major cities of California from San Diego to San Francisco. Serra introduced European crops and flowers which flourished in the area's Mediterranean climate and eventually turned the state into an agricultural giant spread with an abundant variety of blooming plant life.
Junipero Serra brought in the first cattle, which quickly proliferated and from which arose California's vast ranching industry.
California was born and grew from Juniper Serra and the Franciscan missions, and Mission San Juan Capistrano is called the jewel of these missions.

But in the words and images on display here there was a subtext that made only light reference to a massive ugly truth of Junipero Serra's missions that couldn't be missed by those of us who were already aware of it, and that truth, embedded in the pictures and posters of Mission San Juan Capistrano, is this:
That Mission San Juan Capistrano and all the Franciscan missions along the California coastline were built upon the backs of enslaved, cruelly mistreated indigenous people.
In this region it was the Acjachemen people who were baptized,

...then brought to the mission where they were enslaved and used as labor for the priests.

The society and traditions of the Acjachemen were taken from them by the Franciscans and replaced with European culture and religion.

Their land and way of life was stolen by the cattle ranchers.

And once inside the Mission, there was no escape for the Acjachemen. They were condemned to servitude for life.
Here's an excerpt from Wikipedia that was not among the artifacts at Mission San Juan Capstrano:

Nor was this excerpt from one of Serra's letters:
“In the matter of correcting the Indians,” Father Serra wrote to the governor of California in 1780, “when it appeared to us that punishment was deserved, they were flogged, or put into the stocks, according to the gravity of their offense.”

I did find this historian's understated, feather-light admonishment at the bottom of one of the posters:

It reads:
"As stewards of history it is important to consider scholars, historical records, and first hand accounts. For some, Serra’s legacy is questioned. Because of his leadership of the California missions, and thereby the system of Spanish colonialism, some hold Father Serra responsible for the loss of California Native American population and culture. As a leader, Serra oversaw Spain’s mission system which identified Native Americans as potential Spanish subjects and did not value the original native religion, culture or autonomy. A goal of the padres was to teach the indigenous people to live a life of European culture and societal norms while abandoning their own traditions. Furthermore, colonialism inadvertently introduced European diseases to the native Californians. Without immunities or modern medical knowledge, diseases spread quickly which caused the loss of thousands of Native Americans and decimated their population. There was great loss to the California Native American way of life during this time."
However, another poster offers this moral defense of Juniper Serra:

On the wall of the mission there is an inscription that reads, "Veritas Vos Liberabit,"

...which means, "The Truth Will Set You Free."
Whatever truth the indigenous people of California learned from Junipero Serra did not set them free, but enslaved and destroyed them. The least we can do centuries later is fully acknowledge the awful ugliness of that truth,

...instead of beatifying the man.

References:
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/30/us/attack-on-statue-of-new-saint-junipero-serra-digs-up-old-conflicts.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/16/opinion/junipero-serra-catholic-saint.html

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Here's What I Remember About My Mom

6/24/2026

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My mom, 98 years old, praying for a win for the Eagles.

Today is June 24, my mom's birthday. It's been five and a half years since she crossed over and, though she doesn't visit my thoughts as often as she used to, this morning I woke up and there she was, as alive as ever in my memory, images of her clicking by like a slide show in my mind.
She's smiling in every scene. That's how I remember my mother, always smiling. Smiling, laughing, singing - she could break into a song at anytime, much to my mortification during my middle and high school years. My friends, on the other hand, found my mother funny and delightful. Most everybody found my mother funny and delightful. My mother was often funny even when she wasn't trying to be, a trait I seem to have inherited.
Ah, Mom, I want to do something to commemorate you today. But what? I know you went through bad times, sad times, hard times, navigated some turbulent waters, who hasn't in their life? I know there must have been times you upset, annoyed, or aggravated me.
But somehow - except for breaking into song in front of my friends when I was 13 - I can't seem to clearly remember any of those times anymore. Or if I do, they carry less weight than a feather on my shoulder.
So here will be my commemoration to you, Mom. I'll remember only the good times, the happy times, the funny times, I'll call my sister today and we'll laugh over memories of you and those times. I know you would like that.

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Beautiful San Clemente

6/19/2026

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Beautiful San Clemente

...Continued from 6/8/2026:

On Monday, June 1, Tom and I drove 100 miles southeast from Los Angeles,

...to the mountain town of Fallbrook,

...to visit my sister Romaine and her husband Stanley,

...who live in a neighborhood with splendid views of the surrounding mountains.

Upon our mid-afternoon arrival Romaine fixed us a yummy lunch,

...with a too-pretty-to-eat salad,

...which we nonetheless ate, and it was indeed as delicious as it looked.
During lunch we got on the subject of Stanley's grandson who is performing in a summer stock production of "Brigadoon." I shared that I love "Brigadoon" and often listen to the soundtrack. My sister added that she'd never seen a stage version of "Brigadoon" but loved the old movie version with Gene Kelley and Van Johnson. I said that I loved the stage version but had never seen the movie version. Stanley then suggested that, as we had no plans, we spend the remains of the afternoon watching "Brigadoon." We all agreed that watching "Brigadoon" was an excellent idea, which it in fact turned out to be.

The following morning we drove to the city of Oceanside,

...to the beautifully landscaped train station,

...from where we caught a train to San Clemente.

Now, all I previously knew about San Clemente was that it was the location of Richard Nixon's "Western White House." But before the day was through I would know what a lovely place San Clemente is.
Even the train station was in a pretty location on a beach with a pier,

..and across the street from the train station there was a strip of picturesque buildings.

Nearby on the pier there was a restaurant called the Fisherman's Restaurant and Bar.

Since it was almost lunch time we decided to stop there for lunch.

We were able to get a great spot outside with a great view of the pier and the beach.

The food was so good.

After lunch we hopped on board the San Clemente free trolley.

A few stops later we alit from the trolley and walked several pleasant blocks,

...until we reached our destination, the Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens.

The Casa Romantica was built in 1927 on a summit overlooking the Pacific Ocean by real estate developer Ole Hanson as a luxury Spanish Colonial style mansion for his family.

During the Depression Hanson lost the house, and over the years various owners came into its possession until it was acquired by the city of San Clemente in the early 2000's. Its doors were then to the public, who can now come and tour this historic site, as we did.

The overlook:

After our tour of Casa Romantica we took the San Clemente free trolley back to the train station area. We stopped for ice cream,

...then walked along the pier.

After that we sat for a bit while we waited for the train and enjoyed the scenery.

Then we headed down to the train station,

...and soon after we were on our way back to Fallbrook.
To be continued...

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What The 31 Religions Should Tell Pete Hegseth

6/12/2026

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One would think that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth would be so occupied with the disaster of a war our country is currently quagmired in - at a cost to the American people of $850 million to $2 billion per day - that he'd have no time for such trivial pursuits as the suppression of religious faith among military service members.
And yet Pete Hegseth has apparently been frittering away his time drawing up a list that drops 180 faiths from the U.S. military's code of recognized religions and belief systems. Per Hegseth's new order, the Department of Defense now acknowledges among service members the existence of only 31 religious affiliations, 22 of these religions designated as Christian - the A List religions, as it were.
After the new exclusionary list came out the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints were outraged, as well they should have been. Except that they were outraged for the wrong reason: the Mormons were angry that they weren't included among those religions named as Christian, such as the Catholics, Baptists, Lutherans, etc., but rather were lumped in with Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and the other B List religions.
What actually should have infuriated the Mormons was the very existence of this exclusionary list. In fact, this list that includes some religions and cancels others should have raised the righteous ire of each of the 31 religions that won a spot on Hegseth's list.
The leaders of each of Hegseth's chosen religions, whether they are among his top-tier Christians or relegated to a lesser seat at the lunch table, should unite in a spirit of solidarity, rise up together and refuse to be part of a military religious hierarchy that discriminates and otherizes.
The 31 chosen should tell Hegseth to either restore the former Department of Defense list of all the religions that he dropped or take them off his list, too. Good soldiers never leave each other behind.

Reference:
https://www.military.com/dod-officially-drops-180-faiths-from-militarys-recognized-religion-list

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What I Loved At The Bat Mitzvah

6/8/2026

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On Wednesday, May 27, Tom and I were once again back in Los Angeles,

...this time to attend a bat mitzvah to be held on Saturday, May 30.
There was lots for the family to do to prepare for "the bat," as we called it for short, and so Tom and I, as well as some of our children, who also flew out to L.A. for the event, volunteered to help with the preparations.
My job was to make a fruit salad for seventy people for the brunch that would be held after the ceremony. As the bat mitzvah (the phrase refers to both the ceremony and the girl who becomes a "daughter of the law") had chosen pink as her color, her mom requested that I make the fruit salad using watermelon and strawberries.
I decided to carve out a watermelon to use for a more festive fruit bowl,

...and recruited my son Tommy and son-in-law Miguel to be fruit cutters.

(NB: We cut up the fruit the previous day, then stored the fruit in the refrigerator in a container separately from the carved out watermelon. I also stored the empty watermelon bowl in the refrigerator. When it was time to serve the fruit salad we then poured the fruit into the watermelon bowl).

The bat took place at the Cornerstone Church, an open-hearted Christian congregation whose pastor kindly lent out its space for this Jewish coming-of-age ceremony.

The service was quite beautiful and uplifting, and I was much taken with the music,

...the Rabbi's warm welcome to us all followed by his insightful, thought-provoking homily, the bat mitzvah sweetly singing her Torah passage with the assistance of her Hebrew teacher,

...and the many blessings read by friends and family members.

But among the congregation I noticed something else that struck me as kind of wonderful: several girls all dressed up for the occasion…and wearing tennis shoes.

After the ceremony at our brunch in the church hall,

...I sighted more young guests in dresses and sneakers.

Now, this wasn't the first time I'd ever heard tell of sneakers worn with dress attire. A few years ago a young Facebook friend posted pictures of herself and her friends attending their prom in formal wear and tennis shoes, and I posted a blog on my elation at seeing girls finally liberating themselves from the pain and restriction of high heels - which were really just one step above foot-binding - in favor of more comfortable and practical footwear that allotted them freedom of movement (see post from 10/1/2021, https://www.ailantha.com/blog/hooray-for-school-dance-sneakers).