Below are the names of writers who are currently active. For others, living and deceased, please type their name into the search box above the masthead on our home page, www.sdjewishworld.com
By Steve Kramer KFAR SABA, Israel — Can Israel rely on any other country to support it when it’s critically endangered? First of all, Israel has never asked any other country to fight on its soil; but, Israelis hope and expect that other Western democracies would back it — on the world stage, in the […]
Israel Goes it Alone Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA
By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — Just over a week ago, while en route to Paris on our way home to Israel, we stopped to take a brief look at the famous city of Orleans, one of France’s foremost historical sites, and associated indelibly with Joan of Arc, a.k.a. the Maid of Orleans. Due
By Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — In the Famous-Last-Words department: “The likelihood there’s going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely.” The “highly unlikely” happened on Sunday as a dozen Taliban fighters garbed in native dress gathered around a desk in the presidential palace in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul.
The ‘Highly Unlikely’ Happened in Afghanistan. Now What? Read More »
Bruce Ticker, Middle East, USA
By Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D. This week’s parasha, literally meaning, “When you go out…” opens with a description of facing war with enemies. Maimonides tells us that more than seventy mitzvot, 74 if I counted correctly, spring from this week’s Torah portion, from weights and measures and collecting debts in a righteous way, to proper
Parashat Ki Teitzei: Refining Our Soul Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
The Paso Robles Historical Society currently is housed in a building that had been donated for a library many years before by the philanthropist and industrialist Andrew Carnegie – one of 3,000 libraries he donated throughout the world. Outside the building there is a statue, but it is not of Carnegie nor of Drury James, the man who recognized that the city’s hot springs and mud baths could be made into a tourist attraction and who built the grand Hotel de El Paso de Robles. [Donald H. Harrison]
Talented Celebrity and Statesman Made Paso Robles His Second Home Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, USA
By Laurie Baron, Ph.D SAN DIEGO — Donald Trump castigated Joe Biden for abandoning Afghans who helped U.S. forces: “I would never have done such a thing. It’s un-Kurd of.” Most Americans were appalled by the photograph of over six hundred Afghans sitting on the floor of a C-17 Globemaster III except for the owners
Satire: Reactions to Afghanistan Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire
Not in Israel, as you might expect, but instead here along the Central California coast do you hear the words “Chumash” and “Jerusalem crickets” in the same sentence. [Donald H. Harrison]
A Tale of the Chumash and the Jerusalem Cricket Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Travel and Food, USA
By Jacob Kamaras LA JOLLA, California — “Why don’t we have kosher restaurants?!?!?” That’s the desperate plea — often reaching a primal scream — issued by San Diegans who strictly observe kosher dietary laws. For those consumers, the recent opening of Parisien Gourmandises at 7643 Girard Avenue in La Jolla is certainly a reason to
New Kosher Bakery in La Jolla Offers an Authentic Taste of France Read More »
Jacob Kamaras, San Diego County
Educators long have worked with STEM curricula — emphasizing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. When artists declared such curricula were too limiting, the notion of STEAM was introduced. Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math. Now, here comes STREAM — Science, Technology, Religion, Engineering, Art, and Math… [Donald H. Harrison]
STEM, STEAM, and Now STREAM Children’s Books Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Science, Medicine, & Education, Shor M. Masori
What if immersing yourself in art could create ripples that would beautify someone else’s world? Imagine simply indulging your inner aesthete and at the same time providing aid and support to a worthy charity. Thanks to the coordinated efforts of local artist, Tanya Abel, you can do just that. [Eva Trieger]
‘Artists for Good’ Donate Works to Aid Non-Profits Read More »
Eva Trieger, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County
Rosh Hashanah is not a biblical holiday, although it replaced a biblical one. It is notably different from the holiday it replaced. The biblical holiday, Yom Teruah, had a totally different purpose than Rosh Hashanah, which focuses on the onset of a new year, repentance, and commitment to live the next year properly. Yom Teruah concentrated on months and the number seven. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
Rosh Hashanah Is Not a Biblical Holiday Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
The bulk of the book is about Rachael’s grandmother Hana, who as a young teenager during the Nazi era was sent by her parents from Czechoslovakia to safety in Denmark, where for a while at least she could live unmolested as a farm girl. When Denmark’s German Nazi conquerors decided to round up the Jews, she was among the thousands who were helped by the Danes to escape to neutral Sweden. [Donald H. Harrison]
Following Grandma’s WWII Path Leads Author to Self-Discovery Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Middle East, USA
In the context of the Middle East, to which they traveled by way of a tortuous, yet exhilarating bike safari through Europe, the Jewish Michael Tobin and his Lebanese-Christian girlfriend Deborah were problematic candidates for a lasting romance. Religion, nationalism, and past romantic attachments seemed to militate against their permanence as a couple However, these two American psychologists were open to new experiences and to each other, and their time on the road meeting people for intensive discussions about life, love, and loss, impacted each of them differently and profoundly. [Donald H. Harrison]
‘Riding the Edge’ Is a Memoir of Self-Discovery Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Travel and FoodBy Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — Cori Bush, after serving seven months in Congress, now rates comparison to Franklin Delano Roosevelt. What follows is no compliment. When Walter F. George campaigned for his fourth full term in the U.S. Senate, Roosevelt journeyed to Georgia in 1938 to stump for one of George’s rivals in the
What Do Cori Bush and FDR Have in Common? Read More »
Bruce Ticker, Middle East, USA