AAA-Writers and photographers

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

Passing on Passover thoughts

SAN DIEGO — Members of our community have been sharing their thoughts about this unusual Passover via emails and social media. We are pleased to pass along some of them: Rabbi Joshua Dorsch of Tifereth Israel Synagogue says, “One of the many things that Passover teaches us is that amidst the darkness, and challenging moments in our lives, together, we will persevere. We will emerge from the struggle and the challenges before us, stronger and more connected together.”  Along with Tifereth Israel staff members Michelle Barbour, Amy Stanley, Beth Klareich, and Alissa Messian, he performed in a video parodying Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham:  “I do not want you in my house/ I do not want you or your spouse/ I do not wish to eat with you/ At Seder one or Seder Two/ Don’t get me wrong: I think you’re nice/ but the CDC gave out this advice:/ You must avoid one plague more/ And shoo Elijah from your door./ At next year’s seder, we will tell/ How we were all saved by Purell.” [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, USA

The secret message of C.O.V.I.D

Seems that with WAZE, Google Maps, and other similar apps everyone these days has their own “navi” system. Only problem is, the other day I plugged “Happiness” into one of these and the app exploded! I asked Siri, Alexa and even my Apple watch…no help. Could COVID19 have infected my course-plotting devices? Of course not. But during these sheltered-at-home days, any journey out needs to be swift, calculated and well-planned. That’s when it hit me. I needed to rely a better GPS system, one that’s guided me well in the past and surely would do so during these emotionally strained times. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D]

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Lifestyles, Michael Mantell

Passover awakens Jewish memory

Passover is a unique holiday. While most people tend to see themselves as a product of the present, the Jew is different in one basic respect. Regardless of denomination, Jews are a people forged by the fiery crucible of memory. We say in the Passover Haggadah, “We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt . . .Had not the Holy Blessed One taken us out of Egypt, then we and our children, and our grandchildren would still be slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt.” [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi

Wait! Before you open the fridge; are you really hungry?

Obesity-related conditions seem to be linked to a worsened effect of COVID-19, according to the World Obesity Federation. The European Association for the Study of Obesity, along with other North American obesity related organizations, have noted, “If you are living with overweight, obesity or diabetes, you are not at an increased risk for developing COVID-19 – but you may be at risk for more severe symptoms and disease progression.” So, I guess eating white chocolate peanut butter by the scoopful isn’t exactly wise, huh? [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D]

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Lifestyles, Michael Mantell, Travel and Food

Lone soldier from San Diego on patrol near Gaza

  Other items in  today’s column include *Israel Philharmonic teams up in their homes for Pesach melodies *Coronavirus and animals *Passover doings * By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO — Sometimes in the morning, sometimes at night, Israel Defense Forces Corporal Sagie Shpigelman, 19,  of San Diego patrols Israel’s border with Gaza along with other

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Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Science, Medicine, & Education, The World We Share, Travel and Food, USA

Retelling the Canine Story of Passover

Book 1 Genesis
Book 1 Genesis — In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth and carved out spaces for dog beaches and parks.  God created Dog in his/her own temperament to make sure Adam and Eve and their descendants never felt alone and to bring them their fig leaves and sandals in the morning.  When Adam and Eve violated God’s command not to eat from the Tree of Wisdom, they and their dogs were expelled from the Garden of Eden, and dogs were required to wear leashes. {Elona Baron, in memory of Ozzie, as told to Laurie Baron]

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Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire

Passover, the pandemic, and globalization

The impact of the pandemic has caused a revolution in how we relate to each other: our main conduit is now the Internet, not personal contact. This year, our Seder will be attended by 15 others on Zoom. It won’t be perfect, there will be glitches, but Michal and I won’t be sitting at the table alone. (Those of you who are alone can make good use of the many websites offering special songs, prayers and more.) The pandemic has brought other, all-encompassing changes. Probably most significant is the apparent demise of globalization, which has been so trendy over the last generation. Right now, most borders worldwide are extremely well guarded, with stringent regulations for non-citizens in effect. [Steve Kramer]

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International, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA

Streaming Passover fare

The Downtown Seder: City Winery’s annual Seder which streamed Monday night features famous singers like David Broza and Peter Yarrow, comedians like Lewis Black, and prominent public figures like Dr. Ruth and Jerry Nadler.   The 2014 Downtown Seder is also online.   Here are some other examples of streaming Passover fare: [Laurie Baron, Ph.D]

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Lawrence Baron

When the Haredim met Humpty Dumpty

Although Haredim, also known as ultra-Orthodox, make up only 12 percent of Israel’s population, the Haredim account for 40 to 60 percent of the coronavirus patients at four major hospitals, hospital officials told Israeli news media. The true dimensions of the epidemic among the Haredim can only be estimated because testing is rare. All of this has occurred under Rabbi Litzman’s watch. And to make the situation even worse, he himself contracted the virus. All of this could have been avoided, had he committed to the same rules of social-distancing he was supposed to have recommended to his communities.[1] [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Middle East

Don’t D.I.E., Instead T.H.I.N.K.

Simple annoyance, fiery rage, and loss of temper, with its emotional and physiological mayhem, so mess with your life that it’s time to prevent, not just manage the thunder. Sure quarantine, masks, gloves, hand washing, that itch on your cheek you aren’t supposed to scratch, kids at home all day long, and the ever-present threat of catching COVID19 can get to the calmest of us. Lashing out in anger over even the smallest slight or obstacle only makes sense if your goal is to strip yourself of peace while inflaming your bitterness and indignation. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D]

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Lifestyles, Michael Mantell

Jewish community raises $2 million for Covid-19 emergencies; more needed

Approximately $2 million has been raised for the San Diego Jewish Community Emergency Fund, created by the Jewish Community Foundation, the Leichtag Foundation, and the Jewish Federation of San Diego County, professionals of those three organizations noted Monday in a Zoom conference. However, more will be needed, according to Beth Sirull, the president and CEO of the Jewish Community Foundation. “The pandemic has the makings of a real humanitarian nightmare,” she said, noting that as people are thrown out of work, they are struggling to meet such basic needs as purchasing foods and medicines. [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Judaism, Lifestyles, Obituaries & memorials, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Social crisis and the public use of reason

Presently we face a true crisis – a crisis in the fullest sense of the word.  A crisis is defined not simply by the magnitude of the problem – but rather, by how it compels us to question our basic assumptions and preconceptions; it is a situation that forces us to reevaluate the conditions that made it possible in the first place. This implies that within the darkness of every crisis there lies a seed, a kernel of something from which a new reality, a new way of thinking of ourselves and our duties to each other, can emerge. [Sam Ben-Meir, Ph.D]

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Sam Ben-Meir, USA