So said Mel Brooks: still alive and kicking, working, and doing his level best to both be (and to do) whatever he’s capable of (at the age of 96) and, still, asking questions born out of the very best Jewish sense of Life as being (sometimes) something of a dark comedy. His Movies have. always, featured (at some point) their main character sitting, staring into the middle distance, and wondering just where did things go wrong. And, if you haven’t ever found yourself in that position, then you’re still some way off that ancient dictum: “Know Thy Self: the unexamined life is not worth living.” And, anyway, how do we know if Shaw and Einstein did ‘beat’ their demise, along with the countless others who are about to take their last breath?

Well, anyone who’s received a message, via a Medium, from a discarnate loved one (or an apology from…