November Monthly Gathering – Winter Bash!
Category: News
May Monthly Gathering – Conflict in the Middle East- An Overview
This program will be presented live and simulcast on Zoom
On October 7, 2023, the Palestinian militant group Hamas led surprise attacks against Israel from the Gaza Strip. More than 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed and 253 hostages were taken to Gaza. In response, Israel declared war on Hamas and launched aerial bombardments and ground operations in Gaza. In support of Hamas, Yemen’s Houthis attacked shipping in the Red Sea and Hezbollah shelled Israel’s Northern border area. The U.S. sent warships and aircraft to the area as a deterrent. In major cities and college campuses around the world thousands have taken part in pro-Palestine and pro-Israel demonstrations.
At the time of this writing, Israel claims more than 1,400 of their soldiers and up to 12,000 Hamas fighters have been killed. According to Hamas, 31,000 Palestinian civilians have lost their lives, an estimated 1.7 million have been displaced, and more than 60% of the housing units in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged. Dwindling food and other essential supplies contributed to a late February U.N. assessment that one-quarter of Gaza’s people were “one step away from Famine,” and the situation continues to deteriorate. Through it all, missiles have never stopped falling on Israel from Gaza.
To help us make sense of the situation, International Affairs Expert Gus Mondalek will be with us to discuss the conflict’s origins, current status, and possible resolutions. Mr. Mondalek is descended from a family of secular religious scholars whose personal history is a conduit between East and West. Born in Kuwait to an expatriate family, he spent his formative years in Lebanon during that country’s civil war. He is a graduate of the American University in Beirut, and holds multiple advanced degrees from Lawrence Technological University.
Please note that this program will be presented live and on Zoom. You can attend the live presentation, for a chance to also mingle with your fellow Mensans and guests, at our usual location:
Northwest Unitarian Universalist Church in Southfield
23925 Northwestern Highway
Southfield, MI 48075
Doors open at 6:30pm (EDT). The program begins at 7:00pm.
Ticket prices for the in-person program are:
Adult members: $5m or buy a strip of 4 tickets for $15. Adult guests: $6, Children 12 & under: $2
Members receive free admission in the month of their birthday.
Following the presentation, please join us for dinner at Buddy’s Pizza, located at 31646 Northwestern Highway, in Farmington Hills, just northeast of Middlebelt Road.
If you can’t join us in person, the Zoom room opens at 6:30pm (EDT) for mingling.
There is no charge for the Zoom presentation, but, due to rising costs, your donation via PayPal is greatly appreciated. Please donate $5! To donate go to paypal.com and click on the “Send Money” tab. Enter the e-mail address treasurer@nullmensadetroit.com and your payment amount. Be sure to include a notation that your donation is for “SEMM Zoom Presentations.”
Please remember that all attendees need to pre-register by clicking on the following link: https://tinyurl.com/SEMM-2024-Gathering.
November’s Monthly Gathering is Winter Bash
August Monthly Gathering – WHAT is Happening in Russia???
Russia’s war in Ukraine was supposed to be a quick and overwhelming invasion that would topple the western-looking Ukrainian state and bring it into line. Now, nearly eighteen months later, and with forty countries financially backing Ukraine, and Putin facing mutiny and the growing likelihood of needing to call up more reserves, it is difficult to see when or how the war will end.
This talk will examine how the Russian state has portrayed and uses history to justify the war. It will also discuss Putin’s perceived hold on power and Russia’s foreign policy objectives, both with its neighbors and with the west, and internal unrest, especially within the military. Finally, it will dive into the current state of the war and outline some possible outcomes for the war and the Russian state.
Leading us in this discussion will be Dr. Aaron Retish, Wayne State Professor of Russian history. Dr Retish is a specialist in late Imperial and Soviet history with a focus on the social, cultural, and political history of the countryside. He is the author of Russia’s Peasants in Revolution and Civil War: Citizenship, Identity, and the Creation of the Soviet State, 1914-1922, as well as articles on violence in the Revolutionary era, local courts and penal reform and has broader research interests in law and punishment, gender and ethnicity in the Soviet era. He co-edits Revolutionary Russia, the leading journal in its field. He also serves on the Board of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives and is associate editor of its journal The Volunteer. Retish teaches courses in Russian, Soviet and post-Soviet history and politics, as well as world and modern European history. He received his BA from The University of Wisconsin-Madison and his MA and PhD from Ohio State.
Please note that this program will be presented live and on Zoom. You can attend the live presentation, for a chance to also mingle with your fellow Mensans and guests, at our usual location:
Northwest Unitarian Universalist Church in Southfield
23925 Northwestern Highway
Southfield, MI 48075
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. (EDT). The program begins at 7:00 p.m. (EDT). Admission: $4 for Mensa Members, $6 for non-Mensans.
Following the presentation, please join us for dinner at Buddy’s Pizza, located at 31646 Northwestern Highway, in Farmington Hills, just northeast of Middlebelt Road.
If you’d prefer to participate on Zoom, you’ll need to pre-register by clicking on the following link: https://tinyurl.com/SEMM-0823-Gathering , The event’s Zoom URL and instructions for connecting will only be sent to those who are pre-registered. The Zoom room opens at 6:30 p.m. (EDT). for mingling. There is no charge for the Zoom presentation.
Please note that starting with the September monthly gathering, admission prices for the live presentation will increase to $5 for Mensa Members, $6 for non-Mensans. Checks will no longer be accepted at SEMM events.
SEMMer Bash Rescheduled
