Abraham Serafino

Hamas Charter

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If you are pro-Palestine, you should educate yourself on what it is you are supporting. In particular, have a look at this quote from the Hamas Charter (which, as agents of Hamas will insist, is not available anywhere due to its having been taken down as part of a secret conspiracy between the Jews and the US Government to oppress the Palestinian people, and which is actually publicly available online at Yale University):

“Our struggle against the Jews is very great and very serious. It needs all sincere efforts. It is a step that inevitably should be followed by other steps. The Movement is but one squadron that should be supported by more and more squadrons from this vast Arab and Islamic world, until the enemy is vanquished and Allah’s victory is realised.”

Notice that this paragraph does not say, “our struggle against Israel.”

Again, I recommend you read the whole charter; particularly if your information about this subject comes primarily from news sources or from Palestinians, who in spite of allegedly being confined in an “open air prison” and unable to leave, have, inexplicably, began streaming into the United States and western Europe by the thousands, each parroting identical talking points.

https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/hamas.asp

You should also probably save a copy for yourself for when it inevitably gets taken down. πŸ˜‰

I can create anything

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Even the mind has limits. But as soon as I mention “limitlessness,” I create a referent to what is just outside my reach. I capture the unquantifiable inside Christmas wrapping paper. Shake it, feel the packaging with my fingertips. Give myself something to talk about.

The mind isn’t “limitless,” but the mind can contain it; that’s the authority of words.

Today I’m experiencing a sensation I haven’t felt in years. Pain has a way of sweeping a whole rainbow of emotions through you in a single moment. Like trying to remember who it was that enjoyed that song the first time you heard it, or finding that old hoodie at the back of your closet.

What kinds of things do you do to silence your unease? You know it’s going to catch up to you, but you just need a few more minutes. A few more hours. You’re in traffic – much too busy to deal with anything that could rock your world.

It’s time to start a silence habit.

Sensory Deprivation Chamber – 21st century, we call it, “recreation.” A luxury. 1000 years ago, it was a form of torture. Few minds could survive it.

“I will strike you with madness, blindness, and confusion” (Deut. 28:28).

I go for a run, or listen to music. I have a life to live – bills to pay. No time to notice the time I don’t have to notice. No time to realize that time was all I ever had.

“On the day you eat of it, you will surely die.” And I did – and I have been, ever since then.

But enough about me. How cold was it when you first came out that door? Morning joy hurting your eyes; the unceasing tide, blue skies? Living in and preparing for the future – when did it pass you by?

Now I’m hovering over the waves, wings spread. Serenity. Is it the moon, the endless, snow-peaked ranges, dotted with tall, ever-green cliches? Pores open, to let the wind pass through. If you were nothing, invisible, absorbed into nature, then you could continue to ignore all these questions… for just a little while longer.

Four Transgressions

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Thus says the LORD:

β€œFor three transgressions of Gaza, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they took captive the whole captivity
To deliver them up to Edom.

But I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza,
Which shall devour its palaces.
[…]

And the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,”
Says the Lord GOD.

Amos 1:6-8

My prayer for the war in Israel is that it would end soon, with minimal civilian casualties; that the remaining hostages would be freed; and that the people of Gaza would never again be under the thumb of a brutal terrorist regime like Hamas.

A Trustworthy Saying

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If we died with Him,
We will also live with Him.
If we endure, we will also reign with Him.
If we deny Him, He will also deny us.
If we are faithless, He remains faithful,
For He cannot deny Himself.

I cannot begin to express to you how good the Lord is.

A Paraphrase of Psalm 7

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Shiggaion of David, which he sang to Jehovah. Concerning the words of a Benjamite [named] Cush.

1 Oh LORD, my God: in You I have put my trust.
Save me from all my persecutors.

2 Rescue me, [2] or they will tear my soul
Like a lion,
And rip me in pieces,
While there is no one to deliver.

3 Jehovah, my God, if I have done this –
If there is iniquity in my hands;

4 If I have repaid evil to anyone who was at peace with me,
Or plundered anyone who was my enemy without cause –

5 Then let the adversary pursue my soul, and overtake it.
In fact, let him trample my life to the ground,
And lay my glory in the dust.

Selah

6 Arise in your anger, oh Lord;
Lift yourself up because of the rage of my enemies.
Awake, for me – pronounce judgement.

7 Let the congregation of the peoples gather around You;
Return to the heights and rule over them.

8 Jehovah will judge the peoples.
Judge me, Jehovah, according to my righteousness,
And according to my inner integrity.

9 Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end,
But establish the righteous;
For the righteous God tests the hearts and minds.

10 My shield is carried by God,
Who saves the upright in heart.

11 God is a righteous judge –
A God Who is angry [with men] every day.

12 If they do not turn back, He will sharpen His sword.
He has bent His bow and made it ready.

13 He has prepared his deadly weapons.
He has aimed His arrows at the pursuer –

14 Look how he conceives evil,
Is pregnant with trouble,
And gives birth to lies.

15 He has made a pit.
He has dug it out –
He has fallen into the hole he made.

16 The trouble he causes will [be] return[ed] onto his own head.
His violence will come down onto his own skull.

17 I will praise Jehovah according to His righteousness,
And will sing praise to the name of The LORD Most High.

Unit Testing a Linked List

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I believe integration tests are the most valuable type of automated test. A linked list is usually part of a standard library, so that makes it a great example of a candidate for integration testing.

My guideline is, “one test per requirement.” For example, for a Linked List, I would probably start with one test for each of the following:

1) Can values be prepended, 2) inserted at a given index, and 3) appended?

4) Can values be removed without compromising the list’s integrity?

5) Can the list be traversed forward and (for doubly linked lists), 6) backward?

7) Are we preventing out-of-bounds access?

8) Any potential type safety requirement

9+) Each potential memory efficiency requirement

…) Each potential runtime requirement

TikTok

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Aside from LinkedIn, I have not had any social media accounts since 2019.

Studies show the average person spends over 6 hours per day looking at screens, with almost 3 of those hours spent on mobile devices, consuming a constant stream of audio-visual content. Human brains are not optimized for this type of continuous, passive consumption; they are optimized for in-person conversations and kinetic interactions with a physical environment.

While I understand the challenges the upcoming potential TikTok ban poses for creators and employees, I believe dopamine-driven apps that bypass critical thinking and offer little lasting value ultimately create a societal net negative.

The proposed TikTok ban in Congress raises a crucial question: how can we foster healthy online habits that prioritize meaningful interactions over mindless scrolling?