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

Poems of Gist, Fisher, and Guadarrama

The three local Jewish poets, Jan Gist, Lorraine Fisher and Yoel Guadarrama, attracted a large attendance to the January 21 Jewish Poets—Jewish Voices evening at the Astor Judaica Library at the Lawrence Fmaily JCC.  Among the audience were many poets who shared their works during the open mic segment, creating one of the most interesting and diverse programs in the series. [Eileen Wingard]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Eileen Wingard, San Diego County

Israeli-Americans tussle over WZC slates

The United States will send 152 of the 500 delegates who will meet in Jerusalem at the World Zionist Congress, which allocates approximately $1 billion a year in funds for Zionist activities in Israel, the United States, and around the world.  Voting continues through March 11 via this website.
The leaders of Israel Shelanu on Tuesday, Feb. 4, put out a press release saying the Israel-American Council (IAC) betrayed Israeli-Americans when it decided to support the slate of Kol Israel rather than Israel Shelanu. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Israel should begin implementing Trump Plan

Yes, this new plan visualizes a future State of Palestine in the Jewish homeland. But it’s highly unlikely that the PLO would agree to such a weak “state,” thereby enabling Israel to enlarge its territory within the four-year time frame allotted to the Palestinian Authority. (Consequences from establishing an Arab state, or not, are beyond the scope of this article.) Like Ben-Gurion and his cohorts, Netanyahu and the interim government, or a newly-elected government following the Israeli March 2 election, should grab this opportunity and build on it despite its imperfections. [Steve Kramer]

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Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA

Michael Anderson and the Armageddon Yacht

International collage artist Michael Anderson is presently enjoying a solo show, the first in four years, at Arts & Leisure gallery on New York City’s Upper East Side. Armageddon Yacht is an exhibition of sixteen recent works, all featuring Anderson’s unique and inimitable style. Whereas most collage artists make use of magazines, Michael uses exclusively street posters gathered from around the world, which allows for work on a much greater scale than is typically associated with collage. His pictures are at once unmistakable and visceral, sweeping, playful and ironic. [Sam Ben-Meir, Ph.D]

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

Nobody gets past the Schwartz!

Just as the Oscars have a category for “Best Supporting Actor,” I think the NFL might want to consider an award for Best Supporting Player.  In this game, to my mind, there was none better than offensive tackle Mitchell Schwartz, who so far as I know was the only Jewish player in the contest. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, San Diego County, Sports & Competitions, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Former child prodigy returns to TICO as soloist

Violinist Anat Almani concluded the recent January 28 TICO concert with an impressive performance of the Tchaikowsky Violin Concerto. Her solid technique brought a beautiful patina to the high passages in the first movement; the second movement was a study of muted sweetness; and the final movement lunged forward with unbridled energy. [Eileen Wingard]

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Eileen Wingard, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County

Chula Vista rabbi offers ‘Gentle Judaic Wisdom’

Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel of Congregation Beth Shalom in Chula Vista is one of the most erudite pulpit rabbis in San Diego County, having written numerous books on the Jewish religion and on such Torah commentators at Philo and Maimonides. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Joe Gandelman, Lifestyles, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, San Diego County

The untrial of Donald Trump

Some traitorous do-nothing Democrat made a false accusation against Donald T.  for he learned one day he was being impeached even though in his mind he had acted perfectly to get himself reelected.  Every morning his chef brought him a bucket of fried chicken for breakfast, but on this morning, a woman named Nancy sent him a kale salad with a note that ominously read: “Eat something healthy.  You’re going to need it.”  Within weeks his lawyers found themselves colluding with a turtle-faced man to shield T. from the calumnies a mixed-race prosecution team would level at him.  This reinforced T’s conviction that people who aren’t white are incapable to administering justice and need to be denied a voice in the government. [Satire by Laurie Baron]

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Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire

Book chronicles 4,000 years of Jewish leaders

Marlon classifies more than eight hundred Jewish luminaries into one or more of fifteen categories, each its own chapter, including the High Priests of the Jews, Exilarchs of the Jews, and Generals of the Jews. He separates Jewish kings into five separate chapters: Kings of the United Monarchy, Kings of Israel, Kings of Judea, Hasmonean and Herodian Kings, and Jewish Kings of Himyar, Khazaria, and Ethiopia. A distinct chapter holds Queens of the Jews, starting with Mikhal (c. 900 BCE), youngest daughter of King Saul and ending with Gudit (c. 960 CE), who fought against Aksum, the capital of Christian Ethiopia. [Fred Reiss, Ed.D]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish History

From Torah to rabbinic Judaism

Rabbi Drazin’s newest book sets out to prove that the Judaism that everyone observes today is a relatively later historical development. Judaism continues to undergo endlessly new permutations. This observation applies no less to Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, Renewal, even some of the vestigial practices of so-called “secular Jews,” which to a certain degree follow variations of rabbinical Judaism. Yet, as the author noted, “The term Orthodox did not exist before the 19th century” (p. 175). [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi

A new Holocaust memorial in Suriname

On the Northern Coast of South America, is a tiny third world country’s capital, Paramaribo, Suriname. It is 5,248 miles to Krakow, near Auschwitz. The tiny Jewish community of Suriname, alongside of their non-Jewish neighbors chose on Jan. 27 to remember the Holocaust. Unlike most commemorations that took place that day, the Suriname Jewish community dedicated a permanent interpretive historical marker telling the ill-informed and the future generations of the uninformed, what the Holocaust was. [Jerry Klinger]

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International, Jerry Klinger, Jewish History