International

U.S. Supreme Court gives states more leeway to restrict voting

Published by Reuters By Andrew Chung (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday made it easier for states to enact voting restrictions, endorsing Republican-backed measures in Arizona that a lower court had decided disproportionately burdened Black, Latino and Native American voters and handing a defeat to Democrats who had challenged the policies. The 6-3 ruling, […]

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USA

Conservative Media’s Echo Chamber Sees All America as ‘Woke’

By Chris Jennewein SAN DIEGO — Are you terrified by “critical race theory.” Is America on the verge of “socialism.” Is “The Squad” ready to take over? Is everyone around you “woke” and hiding the truth about the “lab leak” origin of coronavirus? If so, you’re likely lost in the echo chamber of conservative media,

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Chris Jennewein, USA

Biden in Florida to comfort families as search at collapse site paused over safety concerns

Published by Reuters By Katanga Johnson and Steve Holland SURFSIDE, Fla. (Reuters) – President Joe Biden visited Florida on Thursday to comfort the families of those killed and missing in last week’s condominium collapse, as the search-and-rescue operation was temporarily suspended due to concerns about the stability of the remaining structure. Biden, whose personal experience

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USA

Miss Nevada USA becomes first openly transgender woman to receive title

Published by NJ.com Kataluna Enriquez made history Sunday when she became the first openly transgender woman to be crowned Miss Nevada USA. Enriquez defeated 21 other contestants to win the title of Miss Nevada USA. By winning the title, Enriquez has become the first openly transgender woman to win a competition in Miss Nevada USA

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USA

One-of-a-Kind Biography about Author of ‘All-of-a-Kind Family’ Books

When the Association of Jewish Libraries evaluates a book with Jewish content that it finds particularly good, it awards the author its Sydney Taylor Book Award after the author of the All-of-a-Kind series of books that introduced a Jewish family, with siblings who dressed alike, to America’s non-Jewish children and to their parents.  The Jewish series was the first put on the market by a general publisher, thus breaking a barrier in children’s literature. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish History, USA

Teachers Union Campaign Against Israel Threatens Jewish Students

This campaign run by members of United Teachers Los Angeles campaign signals not just a willingness to foster war but also distresses Jewish students and employees, mocks the very idea of seeking social justice, lies about opposing antisemitism, singles out Israel and distracts from their fundamental role to educate the school district’s 465,000 students. [Bruce S. Ticker]

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Bruce Ticker, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Motion, Violence are Elements of MMA’s Cézanne Exhibit

The Museum of Modern Art is currently presenting an exhibition devoted to an in-depth review of Paul Cézanne’s drawings. If there is any criticism to be made of this extraordinary show, it is that it is frankly overwhelming: with roughly 280 pencil, ink and gouache drawings and watercolors (and even a handful of oil paintings), there is so much to take in that two or three visits to the exhibition may be required to do it justice. [Sam Ben-Meir, Ph.D]

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Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Sam Ben-Meir, USA

If Only She Had Remained in Pre-State Israel

I read this in ebook form as I was told it dealt with Chortkow, the town in Poland (now Ukraine) from which my in-laws came. As I read on I found many similarities between the two stories – both Syma, the heroine of the book, and my in-laws came from a medium-sized town with a large Jewish population, many of whom were assimilated and prosperous. The crux of the story takes place in the port town of Haifa in pre-State Israel, which is also where my in-laws lived. But they fortunately remained there, whereas the heroine of this (real-life) story returned to Chortkow, where the Holocaust caught up with her, leading to her tragic death. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Jewish History, Middle East

Censorship a Hallmark of the ‘Woke’ Society

I must confess. I am a sci-fi fan. One of my favorite films of all time is the Matrix series. People like me cannot help but feel excited that Matrix 4 will soon be coming out. When I first saw a Matrix film, it made me think about Plato’s Allegory of the Cave.[1] In my younger years, I wondered whether this world is a simulation–God’s video game, as it were. But now, my appreciation for the film has morphed into something more political. Now I think the Matrix offers a remarkable lesson about today’s political reality. [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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International, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Israeli commander describes harrowing Florida condo rescue operation

Published by Reuters By Gabriella Borter and Arlene Eiras SURFSIDE, Fla. (Reuters) – Colonel Golan Vach, head of a unit of the Israel Defense Forces that specializes in search and rescue operations, had never seen a disaster zone like the crumbled condo building in Surfside, Florida, in his more than 20 years of military experience.

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Middle East, USA

Inaugurating embassy in UAE, Israel tells region: ‘We’re here to stay’

Published by Reuters By Lisa Barrington DUBAI (Reuters) -Israel’s new foreign minister inaugurated its embassy in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday and offered an olive branch to other former adversaries, saying: “We’re here to stay.” Yair Lapid’s two-day visit, in which he will open an Israeli consulate in Dubai on Wednesday, is the first

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Middle East

‘A wall of dust hit me.’ Lawsuit details Surfside condo collapse survivor’s harrowing tale

Published by Miami Herald SURFSIDE, Fla. — Raysa Rodriguez, a retired postal worker, lived in Unit 907 of Champlain Towers South for 17 years. She was a few payments away from paying off her mortgage. But the dream retirement ended in the middle of the night, when a giant rumble shook her from her sleep.

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USA

Biden to visit Florida condo collapse site as hope dims for rescue

Published by AFP Surfside (United States) (AFP) – US President Joe Biden will visit the site of a deadly apartment building collapse in southern Florida later this week, the White House announced Tuesday, as rescuers scoured the wreckage in an increasingly desperate search for survivors. A 12-story oceanfront condominium in Surfside, a neighborhood near Miami, pancaked into

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USA