Category Archives: Author

A Tribute to Barry Farber

Published / by Lee Kessler / Leave a Comment

Barry Farber died this week, one day after his 90th birthday. His daughter’s tweet says he was live on the air the day before he passed, and that he viewed death as a place he hadn’t gone to yet, like Finland or Estonia.

Many things will be said about this brilliant man by men and women who knew him better than I. Even the New York Times will acknowledge the life and work of one of the earliest pioneers of talk radio. Much will be made of a man who broadcasted live almost every day for 60 years, taking time out only to run for Mayor of New York City for example.

Or they will praise the obvious genius of a man who spoke over 20 languages, who wrote books, and advised the mighty–in business, politics, and broadcast journalism.

His close friends and family will have the most intimate and touching stories to tell to memorialize him. As for me, I have my own personal perspective.

In 1986, I was introduced to Barry Farber over lunch by one of the investors in a show I had brought into New York about the legendary diarist Anais Nin. And without any hesitation whatsoever he tried to help a young actress/writer on her journey and promote her.

He encouraged me to sit in with him on his show at ABC studios, and encouraged me to weigh in on his famous nightly talk show. He, I, and his co-host at the time would then walk late at night to an ice cream place they loved. And they talked about the world. I listened.

Through the years, I would see Barry perhaps once every few years, talk to him briefly on the phone in between, occasionally email to fill him in on my latest novel. Always, he was an encourager.

Yes, Barry Farber was brilliant, articulate, a precision-thinker with uncanny wit. But, he was also a gentleman. No matter the argument, there was a grace about him on his show, and in person. There was a profound respect for his fellow man.

He personally guided me into an understanding of Israel, the Israeli people, and that remarkable country–whose leaders he knew very well, for a very long time. I gained a world-view and appreciation from my exposure to him, both in person and on the air.

I learned to extend my hand out to others, to help them accomplish their goals. He unselfishly helped me, when he did not even know me, and I learned to help others in like kind.

Mostly, since I admired him, and his grace under fire, I gained the ability in my writing to face some of the toughest issues and people in the world today. If you know me, or my work at all, you have an inkling.

So, how do I say thank you to someone I barely knew? To someone who touched my life by chance a long time ago, but whose influence was profound and enduring?

As I said in the previous Blog, you live, ’til you die. I am quite confident Barry Farber did just that–if his daughter’s tweet is any indication. He was a country boy who “died with his boots on.”

LIVE ’til You Die

Published / by Lee Kessler / 2 Comments on LIVE ’til You Die

Some few decades ago, I realized something. For me, it was profound. Who knows what it will be for you. But, this is the truth, my friends. None of us gets out of this gig called life alive. We have bodies that are mortal, and they will die. All of us are in the process of dying, just some are doing it faster than others.

During this pandemic, so many in America today are suffering from a paralyzing fear that they are going to die. And they, and some in our governments, seem obsessed with living in such a way as to avoid dying. Talk about setting yourself up for a loss. Your body will die, and to make all choices in one’s life in the hope of not dying sets one up for failure. It is a game you can not win.

My personal belief is that you are an immortal being, but that our bodies are not. And from the time I embarked upon my careers in entertainment and business, it was somehow a given that I would—as they say in the West-“die with my boots on.”

My late husband “died with his boots on” very unexpectedly and quickly, and young. He was sitting at his computer in the middle of an email to his most troublesome client when he was stricken. There was nothing that could have saved him. His body was shot. But, until that last minute, he was living.

So my advice to all who have been frightened by this hidden, mysterious viral enemy, or who have been scared witless by the Armageddon worshipers known as the Media, or who are terrified of the helpless feeling they are experiencing right now, is: LIVE, ’til you die.

Before you get your underwear in a twist, I did not say live criminally. I did not say live recklessly. I did not say live selfishly. I simply said, LIVE!

Give thanks for the life you have, and even more for the opportunity you have to create the life of your dreams. Embrace your work. Strive towards higher goals every day that you are here–goals which uplift, inspire, encourage, and empower others–strive with an optimistic, expectant outlook.

I learned along the way that my vision will give a vision to someone else. Yours will too. My challenge to myself was to make sure that my vision was not a nightmare, however. Then charge, my friends! Embrace the challenge. In short: LIVE ’til you die.

A Warning from the Past–revisited

Published / by Lee Kessler / 1 Comment on A Warning from the Past–revisited

 “Nothing can now be believed which is seen in a newspaper.  Truth itself becomes suspicious by being put into that polluted vehicle.  The real extent of this state of misinformation is known only to those who are in situations to confront facts within their knowledge with the lies of the day. . . .  I will add, that the man who never looks into a newspaper is better informed than he who reads them; inasmuch as he who knows nothing is nearer to truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods & errors.” 

Attributed to Thomas Jefferson (June 11, 1807) – Principal author of the Declaration of Independence, 3rd, President of the United States from 1801 to 1809

Food for thought for today’s climate: What is “lying by omission?” And then ask yourself how devastating is it to you if the Press omits key facts that would allow you to properly evaluate?

You are the boss.

Dwarfed by the news of the Pandemic and the national shutdown, the last two weeks however have also seen monumental revelations concerning abuse of power and corruption at the highest levels of the FBI, and Justice Departments from 2016 to the recent past.

Documents long sought under the rule of law–not anonymous sources making up and “leaking” whatever–have surfaced. The picture I and many have described and tried to help you see is now clear. In their own words in emails and texts, and even in their own handwriting, the proof of a plot, and the identities of the malevolent cast of characters are now visible for you to see.

You may writhe, and struggle, and deny and argue, but this data will be evidence–in my opinion–in courts of law in the coming months. Justice is sometimes slow, but eventually truth does out.

A mentor of mine in business was overheard telling one of his young proteges this: “The things that will hurt you most in life are the things you accept as true, but which are actually false.” One takes the lie, and begins to think, evaluate, and decide through the filter of the lie. And terrible consequences can ensue.

So, Director Comey, I watched you last year on national television brazenly and pridefully confess to actions which were part of a coup. You laughed, and thought you would get away with it. Except for that pesky little thing called the Law, you would have.

Now, as of last week, we know the back story. As I wrote in the novel “White King and the Doctor,” if you want to overturn a government, without a hot war and without being spotted as the subversive, you “persuade” the people of that country to do it themselves.

What is that back story then? A counter-intelligence operation which we would normally run against another country to covertly overthrow a government there, was turned against our own government. The goal? The overthrow of the President of the United States.

James Comey, you have a right to remain silent…

For those who need more info, look up “recent developments in the case of Michael Flynn.” If you don’t see it, bail from that news agency. You might try JusttheNews.com

Double Whammy

Published / by Lee Kessler / Leave a Comment

If you thought it was bad enough that you are stuck at home, without income, and uncertain about what your future holds, you may be about to be hit by a double whammy.

Anyone who has been using credit cards to survive the loss of income, and idleness–with increasing balances–may find themselves dealt with by the big banks. They are apparently concerned that you are accruing too much debt, and so they are planning–if not already doing–to lower your credit limit.

Of course that will be done “for your own good.” Realizing that you may be missing payments, they fully understand they are vulnerable to default credit cards etc. So, they are capping their exposure now. Is it legal? Sure. Is it smart business? From their point of view it is.

The problem is that what is happening to you is just the microcosm of what is or could be happening on the global level to the United States–on the macrocosm. That would be Central Banks dealing with nations themselves, just like US banks deal with you, their customers.

And, that takes us straight into the third book in the trilogy: “White King and the Battle of America: the Endgame.” This is not self-promotion. You reading this book, right now, will come down to self-preservation–yours.

I couldn’t be more sincere about this. While you are sheltering at home, get those books, and read them. You will see every aspect of that trilogy displayed today, only with you in the cast of characters. The prophetic books were published in 2007, 2010, and 2013 to prevent the very thing we are experiencing today.

No matter your politics, get into that third book. And, when you are making the journey in that book, pay special attention to the Dusty Owens character. For you may in fact be “Dusty Owens.”

He Took the Bait

Published / by Lee Kessler / 2 Comments on He Took the Bait

By now, many of you have figured out that either there is something about this Wuhan Virus that we don’t know about–so sinister that it requires shutting down the total economy of the United States and other nations as well, risking a global economic depression--or that somebody with an agenda went fishing, hoping to reel in the President of the United States.

Personally, I suspect the latter. If you know anything about Donald Trump through the years, and have not just been brainwashed by media hype about him, you know he has had a reputation his whole life for being very compassionate. He is renowned for, before running for office, reading about some travail of an American citizen, or seeing something on the television about someone who was struggling, and contacting them directly to solve their problem.

Anyone who is actually watching the daily briefings on this crisis can see that he sincerely struggles with the death of any American. Two days ago, when Dr. Birx was answering a reporter’s question, she inserted into her answer–as she often does–a personal anecdote. She stated that she too had been personally effected when her granddaughter last week had a 105 degree temperature, and she, though a physician, could not go to her because of the strict policies, and her commitment to the country and to The Task Force.

The news reporter may not have had their eyes open, but the camera reveals things. The President was standing to her right, and behind her, and he was clearly surprised at her story. When the reporter challenged with his next question, the President’s attention was clearly still on Dr. Birx. “How is your grandson?” Once reassured that it was her grand-daughter and that she was OK, he returned his attention to the press conference.

Look up for yourself what he personally did when he heard that his friend, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, had been moved to intensive care in a London hospital two days ago.

He is also apparently a self-admitted bit of a germaphobe. He’s been accused unjustly of being just about every other kind of “phobe.” But, this is one he jokes about because he washed his hands constantly long before the Wuhan Virus reared its ugly head.

Those two ingredients–innate compassion, and high sensitivity to germ’s potential–became a sort of Achilles Heel. After 4 years of relentless hounding and frontal attacks, and the man still standing strong, his Achilles Heel had been found.

That made it easy for people (and you are going to have to ferret this out for yourself) to persuade him to literally turn off the entire economy in one stroke, send almost all Americans home from work, and force us into lockdown, afraid. The case I am sure was very compelling, backed up by “experts” out the wazoo, who caused the President to take even more drastic actions than he already had. He took the bait.

And, I believe that less than two weeks ago, he realized he had been ill-served and misled, and that the extremity of our actions would in the end perhaps save some lives, but it would destroy the economy for some months, if not years. It could destroy the lives and livelihoods of tens of millions of people.

When I heard him declare that he could not have the “cure be worse than the disease,” I knew he realized he had been conned. (The virus is real, and it can kill. That is not the point.) The chosen solution–driven by his desire to keep Americans safe–was in fact going to put more of us in jeopardy for a longer period of time than the disease itself.

He’s a smart man, and he will extricate himself and us from this. But, the question you should be asking yourselves is: Who wanted this? Who did this? Don’t go shallow on your analysis. Don’t lean on past clichés, with answers like “Pelosi and the Democrats.” Frankly they are not smart enough. If you have read my “White King and the Doctor” you know the three dimensional chess game the hero, Andy Weir, was playing with a real-life, real-threat enemy. And, you will discover who were the “pawns.” No matter how much Pelosi, Schiff and Schumer–or any other of your favorite political villains–storm and strut about the stage, they are the pawns of a very real group.

So, ask yourself who benefits if we tank and the American people are returned to poverty? Who benefits if the middle class, which was being rebuilt by Trump’s policies, is suppressed once again? Who benefits if Americans are afraid of hidden attackers like this virus?

Years ago, a wise business mentor of mine, when he was attempting to expose to a young, naïve woman the threats to prosperity and security, said to me, “It’s always about money, Lee. Follow the money.”

And, I have. Pulling on that string led to “White King and the Battle of America: the Endgame.” Just know there is a group that benefits from all wars–always has and always will.

So, follow the money, and ask yourself, “Who benefits?” The answer ties up all the myriad attack lines, actual conspiracies, chaos, confusion, and divisive subjugation tactics of the last four years into one neat, tidy, understandable and breathtakingly simple package.

Tip: Don’t rely upon the Media to do this for you. They lack neither the intellect, nor the intellectual curiosity to do that great a service for their fellow countrymen. Nope, they drank the Kool Aid long ago.

Hint: Though they operate with tentacles and surrogates inside the United States, they are not based in the United States.