Lawrence (Laurie) Baron, now retired, served as the Nasatir Professor of Modern Jewish History at San Diego State University. He served from 1988 to 2006 as director of SDSU’s Lipinsky Institute for Judaic Studies. He was the founder in 1995 of the Western Jewish Studies Association.
He writes two satire columns for San Diego Jewish World: “Humoring the Headlines” under his byline, and “Hounding the Headlines,” under the byline of his dog Elona.
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Books to his credit, available on Amazon, include:
Projecting the Holocaust into the Present: The Changing Focus of Contemporary Holocaust Cinema
The Modern Jewish Experience in World Cinema
The eclectic anarchism of Erich Muhsam (Men & movements in the history & philosophy of anarchism)
His most recent articles are:
“Making Room for the Jews: The House I Live In (1945),” AJS Perspectives, Summer 2023, 86-88.
“The Revolt of Job: Salvaging the Lost World of Rural Hungarian Hasidim,” Journal of Jewish Identities, 16:1-2 (January/July 2023), 181-198.
“Persistent Parallels, Resistant Particularities: Holocaust Analogies and Avoidance in Armenian Genocide Centennial Cinema, in Armenian and Jewish Experience between Expulsion and Destruction, ed. Sarah M. Ross and Regina Randhofer (Berlin: De Gruyter Oldenbourg, 2021), 267-296.
“The Pioneering American Jewish Women Directors from Elaine May to Claudia Weill,” Jews and Gender (Studies in Jewish Civilization), ed. Leonard Greenspoon (W. Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press, 2021), 217-243.
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By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ In the wake of a series of mass shootings in the United States, the governments of Bahrain, the Bahamas, and United Arab Emirates have issued advisories to their citizens about the dangers of traveling in the United States. The NRA considers this a great achievement. * Donald Trump denounced the […]
Humoring the headlines: July 10, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ Do you remember what Stuxnet is? In 2010 a computer worm caused 2,000 centrifuges to malfunction at the Natanz nuclear enrichment plant in Iran. Officials in Israel and the United States denied responsibility for the sabotage, but hoped it would set back Iran’s nuclear program. When it spread to computers
The Wandering Review: ‘Zero Days’ Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Theatre, Film & BroadcastBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─The FBI report on Hillary Clinton’s mishandling of classified information on her private email server has reinforced the perception that she is less trustworthy than Donald Trump. Spun another way, she should be compared to a veteran physician who has been unsuccessfully sued for malpractice during the course of a long
Humoring the Headlines: July 5, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBad News, Good News By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ The bad news is that Ikea dressers not anchored to walls easily topple over injuring and killing children. The good news is that only a small fraction of the dressers ever were assembled by purchasers who tried to follow the instructions. * The good news is
Humoring the headlines: July 1, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireMake America a Golf Course By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ On his visit to Scotland, Donald Trump could not resist showing off his renovated golf course and claiming that if he can fix a golf course, he can fix the United States. Imagine if a microphone caught him unawares while he was elaborating on his
Humoring the headlines: June 28, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireSummer TV Series By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─Now that the regular television season is over, the networks are premiering new series to replace them for the summer. Here are the most promising ones: That Sixties Show: John Lewis reenacts the civil rights sit-ins of the 1960s on the floor of the House of Representatives. After
Humoring the headlines: June 24, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ Even Donald Trump conceded that individuals on the Department of Homeland Security’s No Fly List should not be allowed to purchase guns. Now if could only stop shooting off his mouth about Hillary’s intent to abolish the Second Amendment! * NRA head Wayne LaPierre reiterated his rejection of stricter gun
Firing back at the gun lobby and its allies Read More »
Lawrence Baron, USAFunny (and) Sad in Israel By Laurie Baron TEL AVIV–This past week I have been in Israel. The vibrant night life and cosmopolitanism makes it easy to forget that normality can turn into tragedy at any moment. I had dined near the Sarona Center the day before the shooting. A change of plan and day
Humoring the headlines: June 11, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ The Government Accounting Office revealed that the United States still uses floppy discs for the computers which control America’s nuclear arsenal. To allay fears that its technology is antiquated,, a Defense Department spokesperson assured the public that it still possesses the original Betamax video for instructing personnel on how to
Humoring the headlines: June 1, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ Now that Donald Trump has enough delegates to win the Republican nomination for president, I have translated some of his statements so voters clearly understand him. *
Humoring the headlines: May 26, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USABy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ A poll conducted by the Israeli Democracy Institute found that 72 percent of Jewish Israelis believe Israel’s control over the Palestinian territories does not constitute an occupation. It also indicated that the same percentage of Israelis refer to the Israeli settlements in the West Bank as urban sprawl. * Denigrated
Humoring the headlines: May 13, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireTrump? Harumph By Laurie Baron LONDON, United Kingdom—Sheldon Adelson endorsed Donald Trump because he’ll be good for Israel. Sheldon, aren’t you a bit concerned about whether he will be good for the United States? * Hillary Clinton released a campaign advertisement featuring clips of former Republican presidential candidates denouncing Donald Trump. Trump retaliated by
Humoring the headlines: May 6, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBy Laurie Baron FALMOUTH, United Kingdom -Ted Cruz named Carly Fiorina his running mate because she is even more unlikable than him. After he introduced her at a rally, he did not notice when she fell off the stage replicating the response of most Americans when she withdrew from the presidential race earlier this year.
Humoring the headlines: May 3, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatirePassover Edition By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO –Basking in his New York primary victory, Donald Trump compared himself to Pharaoh. Both excel at massive building projects, but Trump would have made the Jews pay for the pyramids. Z * Ultra-orthodox rabbis have decided that marijuana is kosher for Passover if smoked for medicinal purposes. After
Humoring the headlines: April 22, 2016 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire