Travel and Food

‘Never Again is Now’ references Poway shooting

Evelyn Marcus and Rosa Zeegers are a Jewish lesbian couple who uprooted themselves from Holland and moved to the United States because they saw ugly anti-Semitic history repeating itself in Europe.  Anti-Semitic graffiti, beatings, rallies, bombings, and demonstrations all seemed to presage the same kind of Holocaust that their parents had lived through.  Now, they are seeing some of the same troubling signs in the United States — last Passover’s shooting at San Diego County’s own Chabad of Poway being just one example.

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Donald H. Harrison, International, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego Calendar, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Travel and Food, USA

Holland seems like a well-run country

It’s a lovely, well run place. The Dutch may be more German than the Germans. Or at least close cousins. Order is clear. Trains and trams are clean and on time. Perhaps within a minute or two. Buildings we’ve seen are spruced well, with gold and fresh paint on statues and other fancy fixtures. Lots of tourists, even in the early part of September. American English was the language of conversation in our hotel breakfast room.

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International, Ira Sharkansky, Travel and Food

New Mexico’s Crypto-Jews subject of informative tour

When Jordi was just ten years old, his grandfather said, “This is how we butcher a chicken,” as he demonstrated the kosher slaughtering method. Jordi’s grandfather thereby revealed that the family was Jewish, a startling surprise for a young boy in the 1990s living in Spain, whose family was ostensibly Roman Catholic like everybody else. This revelation, that they were Crypto-Jews (secret Jews), had a profound effect on Jordi, who eventually became the first rabbi in 500 years to be ordained in Spain.

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International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Steve Kramer, Travel and Food, USA

Aquarium teaches how good ‘rulers’ treat their subjects

In Genesis: 1:28 we are taught that God blessed mankind instructing it to, “… rule over the fish of the sea, the bird of the sky, and every living thing that moves on the earth.”  At the Monterey Bay Aquarium, a visitor can conclude that the phrase “rule over” is interpreted to mean “do everything in your power to help all living creatures.” This becomes evident in light of the aquarium’s successful efforts to rescue otters, to teach about conservation, and to instruct children in the fascinating ways of marine life.

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Science, Medicine, & Education, The World We Share, Travel and Food

Our Shtetl San Diego County: October 11, 2019

Items in today’s column include
*State creates fund to protect at risk non-profit institutions such as synagogues
*What our children/ grandchildren are reading
*Jewish War Veterans to honor returning active duty service members
*Political bytes
*Coming Our Way
(To read more, please click on the headline.)

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Travel and Food

A Very Personal Trip to Prague

From the moment we entered the city, I felt the presence of the Jews who are no longer there. I wondered about every Czech person we met (and they were all lovely).  Where were their parents or grandparents during the Shoah? Did they help or hide any Jews, or did they stand along the sidewalks and cheer the Germans as they entered the city?  I loved the magnificent architecture, taking my photo next to a statue of Franz Kafka, walking the picturesque streets, but my soul couldn’t escape the past. (To read more, please click on the headline.)

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International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Toby Klein Greenwald, Travel and Food

Congress must provide food security for military families

By Abby J. Leibman and Kelly Hruska WASHINGTON, D.C. — We often hear that Congress never gets anything done. However, there’s at least one piece of legislation that Congress has passed reliably for over fifty years: the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which sets policies and priorities for our nation’s military. The reason for this

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San Diego County, Travel and Food, USA

Our Shtetl San Diego County: October 3, 2019

Items in today’s column include: *SDMA exhibit on women of abstract impressionism includes some Jewish artists *UC San Diego’s economic impact *Political Bytes *Coming Our Way By Donald H. Harrison SDMA exhibit on women of abstract impressionism includes some Jewish artists SAN DIEGO — Jewish artists Lee Krasner and Helen Frankenthaler and another artist of

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Donald H. Harrison, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Travel and Food

Our Shtetl San Diego County: September 25, 2019

Items in this column include: 
*A few of Bern Schwartz’s works now at Museum of Photographic Arts
*Jewish Federation’s Men’s Event Dec. 8 to feature comedian Modi Rosenfeld
*Political Dots and Dashes
*Cohn Group of Restaurants to temporarily manage four more eateries
*Mazel tov! Mazel tov!

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Business & Finance, Donald H. Harrison, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Sports & Competitions, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Travel and Food

Kashrut involves not only a hechsher but also ethical behavior

Excerpt: Through seven sections, Kashrut and Jewish Food Ethics examines a broad swath of the kosher landscape. Who inspects the inspectors certifying kosher products and are the stamps on kosher meat truly a mark of adherence to traditional values? What are the moral underpinnings of eating kosher meat and what should they be? There is more to kosher meat than slaying by a trained shochet, there must be concern for animal welfare. Family-owned farms, bought out, are now part of mechanized slaughterhouses, whose chief aim is profit. Does a neglected animal, or one needlessly made to suffer, deserve the label kosher even if properly killed? (Please click headline to read full story)

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Travel and Food

A nostalgic, educational visit to London

Excerpt: This year’s visit started with a bang, the sun was shining and we had been invited to tour the House of Lords by a sitting member who had attended the LSE at the same time as I had, but had gone on to have a stellar career in the law, eventually being made a baroness. She had seen my articles about life in Israel in the AJR Journal and contacted me last year, when we visited her in Oxford. Because parliament had been ‘prorogued,’ i.e., suspended, by the Prime Minister, the place was deserted apart from a few security personnel. Nonetheless, we were taken around the opulent building, parts of which date back to the thirteenth century, while much of it was restored in the nineteenth century after a fire. We felt very privileged to be taken around by our friend, who also treated us to a lovely meal at the Wolesley restaurant. (Please click headline to read full story)

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Travel and Food