By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — For a political scientist committed to the view that democratic politics is the essence of civilization, an election campaign can be a difficult test. The one we are experiencing, like some others I’ve seen, brings out the worst in those aspiring to national leadership. It’s not like an academic seminar
Netanyahu dominates election coverage Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Rabbi Rafi Andrusier LA MESA, California — Did you hear? What color is the dress? Black and blue or white and gold? I am still enamored by the stark difference. (Here’s a link to the phenomenon:https://www.yahoo.com/tech/explained-why-people-cant-agree-on-the-color-of-112191281639.html# ) How is possible? When I saw it recently, I said it’s black and blue. But some of my family
Black & blue; gold & white, and HaShem’s hidden hand Read More »
Jewish ReligionBy Eva Trieger SAN DIEGO–When the Ephron sisters penned Love, Loss and What I Wore, they kept true to form. Though many of the lines produce audience laughter, there is an underlying thread of the many disappointments suffered through the fabric of the ages and stages of a woman’s life. Melinda Gilb has appeared on
Five actresses speak of life’s highs and lows at Lyceum Read More »
Travel and Food
NEW YORK (Press Release) – The American Jewish Committee (AJC) mourns the passing of Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, one of the most influential American Catholic leaders of our time, who died Feb. 26 at the age of 97. He distinguished himself as a renowned educator and spiritual leader, as a staunch defender of civil rights and
AJC mourns Rev. Theodore Hesburgh Read More »
Science, Medicine, & Education, USA
NEW YORK (Press Release)… The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) strongly criticized an ad in Saturday’s (Feb 28) New York Times calling National Security Advisor Susan Rice “blind” to genocide. The full page ad, placed by This World: The Values Network run by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, runs through a litany of personal attacks on Ambassador Rice’s character
ADL condemns ad attacking Susan Rice Read More »
Middle East, USALOS ANGELES (Press Release) – StandWithUs initiated the following letter to UCLA Chancellor Gene Block in reaction to an incident in which a candidate for the UCLA Judicial Board was asked if being Jewish presented her with a conflict of interest. The questioners later apologized, but the 12 organizations below seek additional measures. February 20,
12 groups ask UCLA to address anti- Semitism Read More »
Science, Medicine, & Education, USABy Eileen Wingard SAN DIEGO –Yoav Talmi, one of Israel’s foremost composers and conductors, will be speaking during services at Ohr Shalom Synagogue, 3rd and Laurel, in San Diego, next Friday evening, March 6, 7:30 p.m. His talk will be: “From the Diary of an International Israeli Conductor.” Talmi, former conductor of the San Diego
The return to San Diego of Yoav Talmi Read More »
Eileen Wingard, San Diego CalendarBy Anav Silverman JERUSALEM–Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem on the eve of his departure for the United States where he will deliver a historical speech to Congress on Tuesday, March 3 at the invitation of House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) about the Iranian nuclear threat. “On the eve my
Bibi makes trip to HaKotel in advance of U.S. speech Read More »
Middle East, USABy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. –Be the first of your friends to like this. Pop quiz: How can the threat of radical jihadists be countered? • President Obama: “Efforts to counter violent extremism will only succeed if citizens can address legitimate grievances through the democratic process and express themselves through strong civil societies. Those efforts
The making of a Jihadist Read More »
International, Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USABy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem presents a Kafkaesque vision of the divorce process for Jewish women in Israel. Viviane, soulfully played by the film’s co-director Ronit Elkabetz, seeks to get out of an unhappy marriage, but her husband Elisha, played by the Armenian actor Simon Abkarian, won’t consent
The Wandering Review: ‘Gett’; Read More »
Jewish Religion, Lawrence BaronBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — Wandering through the stalls of the Jerusalem International Book Fair held a few weeks ago my eye fell upon a display entitled ‘Lavi Publications,’ where copies of just one or two volumes in Hebrew were on display. The modestly dressed elderly lady in attendance at the stall was eager
A treasure of Iranian history at a Jerusalem book stall Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Middle East
By Eva Trieger ENCINITAS, California -“When summer camp ends, you miss the friends you’ve made for about a week. When Hands of Peace ends you miss those friends forever, “said Itamar, describing his experience of the dynamic dialogue-based program that has one agenda: to develop open-minded young leaders who want to be a catalyst for
Hands of Peace bring Middle East teens together Read More »
Eva TriegerBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO─ Angered that the Senate passed a “clean” bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, House Republicans proposed a three week funding extension of DHS expecting that ISIS, Al Qaeda, and other Islamic terrorist groups will be defeated by interim but then voted against the measure. Apparently, John Boehner prefers
Humoring the headlines: February 28, 2015 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire