To Be A Princess by Nimrod Liram; Gefen Publishing House, 134 pages comprising 10 short stories, ISBN 978-965-229-568-2, $16.95. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO– Anyone whose primary sources of entertainment and information are nightly television shows would perhaps like this short story collection — if only they read in the first place. Each of […]
Liram’s short stories are perhaps too short Read More »
Donald H. HarrisonBy Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — Since the end of the Second World War, Germany has come a long way in rehabilitating its past legacy of Nazism. Germany has proven itself as a good friend of Israel and the Jewish people. Germany has emerged as one of the most successful democratic countries
Germany’s circumcision decision smacks of Nazism Read More »
International, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi
By Rabbi Ben Kamin SAN DIEGO — I had occasion to host the just deceased-Yitzhak Shamir, the diminutive and fiery former prime minister of Israel, along with the foreign minister at the time, the late Abba Eban. It was 1983, Shamir was in office, and the two rivals were both featured speakers at the International
Yitzhak Shamir, z”l, took his politics personally Read More »
Middle East
By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — The theology of Rabbi Shneir Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812) raises some fascinating questions about the nature of creatio ex nihilo—creation out of nothing. How can the theologian refer to God as “nothing,” when God is the totality of all things and infinitely more? He answers that
God is for be-living, not just believing Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi
By Donald H. Harrison CORONADO, California –A student who once was bullied has established what President Theodore Roosevelt might have called a “bully pulpit.” Starting at Coronado High School, spreading to La Jolla High School, and now under consideration at other high schools and colleges in California and Arizona, Voices Against Cruelty, Hatred and
Anti-bullying campaigner wins Tikkun Olam Award Read More »
Donald H. Harrison
By Cynthia Citron HOLLYWOOD — When you go to see a play by Theresa Rebeck you can generally be assured that it will be a thoroughly enjoyable evening of theater. But not this time. Our House, currently having its west coast premiere at the Lounge Theatre in Hollywood, is an over-the-top dramedy about the dumbing-down
‘Our House’ needs some renovation Read More »
Cynthia Citron
By David Brin ENCINITAS, California –Why freedom of the press concerns us all. Nick Cohen of Standing Point Magazine (UK) does a detailed retrospective and appraisal of my book The Transparent Society: Will Technology Make Us Choose Between Privacy and Freedom? He examines how far we have gone in the directions that I discussed, suggested….
The Internet Age is bringing privacy to an end Read More »
Science, Medicine, & EducationBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–There are some general lessons about politics in the current maneuverings of Israeli politicians around the issues of drafting ultra-Orthodox and Arabs. In Hebrew, the terms rhyme — חרדים וערבים– Haredim and Aravim. The issues differ more than they overlap. Lesson #1 is the distance between politics and policy, or between politics
Integrating ultra-Orthodox and Arabs into the Israeli mainstream Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
By David Bedein JERUSALEM–Covering the 1988 elections on special contract for the New York Times,Washington Post and Los Angeles Times, all three bureau chiefs would ask at the end of each day for a report of what Shamir said each day on the campaign trail. There was never much to report, because Shamir’s messages were
Yitzhak Shamir, 96, was man of few words Read More »
Middle East
By Isaac Yetiv, Ph.D. LA JOLLA, California– The first free elections in the history of Egypt have produced a parliament dominated by a majority of radical Islamists , and a president who emerged from the ranks of the fundamentalist Islamist “Muslim Brotherhood” movement. It is said that “Revolutions are started by intellectuals, carried out by fanatics, and
Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt has a friend in Obama Read More »
Middle East
By Carol Davis SAN DIEGO — Let’s get one thing clear, Richard III Duke of Gloucester is a demon and not because his body is deformed. There is not one redeeming quality about him to admire yet he manages to con at least one member of royalty, Lady Anne (Vivia Font) whose husband and father-in
Jay Whittaker is a Richard III you’ll love to hate Read More »
Carol Davis, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
By Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — There is a remarkable amount of interest in China about Israel and Jews, as I discovered during a trip to China sponsored by SIGNAL, the Sino-Israel Global Network and Academic Leadership. The most obvious reason is that the Chinese–one important official called it the “little superpower–perceive that Israel in
The growing friendship between China and Israel Read More »
International, Middle EastBy Carol Davis VISTA, California — Legally Blonde The Musical that earned seven 2007 Tony Award nominations is back in San Diego County, at the Moonlight Amphitheatre in Vista through July 14th. It is making its Southern California Regional Music Theatre premiere and it’s not only zippy, fast paced and high-spirited; it’s also fun for
‘Legally Blonde: The Musical’ is OMG such fun! Read More »
Carol Davis, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
By Danny Bloom CHIAYI CITY, TAIWAN — The things you learn when you aren’t even looking anything up. Here I was reading the newspaper the other day about some new movie called Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter based on a novel by some American novelist named Seth Grahame-Smith, and I had no idea the dude was
Lincoln the vampire hunter? Read More »
Travel and Food