The other plague is a real feeling of powerlessness in the face of this suffering, which leads to indifference. No one is thinking of the long-term implications. On a more tangible level, Straus also lists such plagues as gun proliferation, domestic abuse and lack of respect in all types of human relationships. Tracy Salkowitz, regional director of the American Jewish Congress, also adds violence, alienation and poverty to the list. The lid to Pandora's Box has slipped out of position.
Racism is a little more acceptable.
Immigrants are being denied basic human rights. While definitions of modern pestilence vary, most people agree that however one interprets the cause of the plagues in Exodus, contemporary plagues are not a test or punishment from God. In addition, although today's ills can evoke a sense of hopelessness, some see them as a call to religious and social action, adding new dimensions to the Passover story. But, in many ways, a people that lacks compassion brings punishments upon itself, now and in the past, he notes. The other piece is realizing the first several plagues were avoidable but the Pharaoh hardened his heart.