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Extracted Text (OCR)
4.2.12
WC: 191694
psychoanalyst, has labeled my affliction “FOMS”—“fear of missing something.” I plead guilty to
that diagnosis.
Nor was this event-filled week unusual. Two weeks later, my wife and I were off to Israel, where
I received the Begin Prize” for my “contributions to the Jewish people,” and gave several lectures
in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. During my visit to Israel, I flew to Paris for a talk and to the Hague
on a human rights matter. Then back to Israel for a conference and meetings with the Prime
Minister and other government officials. My granddaughter joined us in Vienna for a few days of
opera and strudel, followed by a visit to Prague as guests of the U.S. Ambassador, a speech at a
Czech university and the lighting of Chanukah candles at the U.S. Embassy.
I don’t know how long I will be able to keep up this pace. I am now teaching only in the fall
semester at Harvard Law School, though I generally squeeze 4 or 5 separate courses into that one
semester—one large class, two seminars and one or two reading groups. We move to South
Beach for the winter, where I write, lecture and consult on cases. I am trying to accept fewer
commitments, but I find it hard to say no to interesting offers (FOMS?). I also cannot remain
passive in the face of injustice and bigotry, which appear to be on the increase. I still love a tough
challenge and welcome a good fight. I hate to lose and I never give up.
If past is prologue, my approach to life—living the passion of the times—will not change, but
nature has its claim and physical energy inevitably abates and requires choices and priorities. My
priorities will continue to be determined by the seriousness of the wrongs that need to be
challenged by rights.
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