By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — There is a worrisome paragraph in a New York Times article, which is otherwise encouraging in indicating that the Obama administration is learning its limits in the Middle East: “But other goals appear to have been dictated as much as by personnel as by policy. After vigorous debate, the group
Middle East talks give Kerry something to do Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastThe Jews and Germans of Hamburg; The Destruction of a Civilization, 1790-194 by J.A.S. Grenville; Routledge, London and New York, 2012, 330 pp. By Dorothea Shefer Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — This thorough study of the history of the city-state of Hamburg, a thriving Hanseatic port in north Germany, describes in almost unbearable detail the
Hamburg’s Jewish history told Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Jewish HistoryBy Natasha Josefowitz, Ph.D. LA JOLLA, California — We live in a world where nearly everything is programmed to survive by killing one other. Imported plants take over native species, big fish eat little fish, and big animals prey on smaller ones. Ant colonies war with each other; primates do the same. Within our bodies,
Killing in the name of… Read More »
Natasha Josefowitz, Travel and FoodBy Steve Kramer SAFED, Israel — When school is out during the summer, Israel’s vacation spots are crowded and expensive, especially on the weekends. We managed to find the perfect weekend, between the first few days of the new school year and Rosh Hashana, the new year holiday. We located a reasonably priced boutique
Sightseeing in the Galilee Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer
Shoshana Mael, Dancing in the Dark, Menucha Publishers, Inc., 2013, ISBN 978-1-61465-094-2, 276 pages, cover price unlisted. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO–Rikki and her older sister Daniella, who were both quite popular with their classmates at an Orthodox Jewish girls high school, showed up one day badly bruised. Rikki’s neck had been clawed with
Novel explores impact on teen girls of mentally ill mom Read More »
Donald H. HarrisonBy Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — Isn’t it amazing that Americans are living longer than ever before in recorded history More than 87 million Americans will be over 65 by the year 2040, according to the National Institute of Aging. Today, the over‑65 group accounts for about 30 million people; the
Abraham, Sarah, Moses turn the ‘Paige’ on age worries Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-RabbiBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — House Republicans are outraged over the glitches in the Affordable Health Care website. One was overheard saying, “If we would have known it would be done so incompetently, we could have spared voting over 40 times to repeal it and shutting down the government, spent our energy on voting
Humoring the headlines: October 25, 2013 Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & SatireBy Rabbi Ben Kamin SAN DIEGO –Reuters has reported it with succinct and agonizing words: “The demolition of Newtown, Connecticut’s Sandy Hook Elementary School, where 20 young children and six adults were shot to death last December, will begin on Friday under a cloak of secrecy meant to discourage souvenir-hunters, town officials said.” There can
To help forget, a school is torn down Read More »
USABy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. –Not saying that it will happen — not even that it might. But if you don’t watch the confluence of events in Syria, you’ll miss the possibility that it could. Now that Washington is finished with last summer’s Elizabeth O’Bagy kerfuffle over the percentage of the Syrian opposition comprising jihadist militias,
The diminishing fortunes of the Free Syrian Army Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana BryenBy Sheryl Rowling Q: There is so much confusing information in the media about ObamaCare. Can you please explain it in terms that a non-lawyer can understand? A: I will certainly try. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, unofficially known as “ObamaCare” seeks to reform the American health care system by providing broader access
Money Maven: Straight facts on Obama Care Read More »
Sheryl Rowling, Travel and FoodBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — Israeli director Eran Riklis excels at dramatizing how individuals from different nationalities or religions can forge friendships despite the hostilities and prejudices that divide them. In many ways Zaytoun (Olive Tree) is a remake of his early film Cup Final (1991). Set in Israel’s Vietnam, the Lebanese War of
The Wandering Review: ‘Zaytoun’ Read More »
Travel and FoodBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–Those of you still cheering the Obama-Kerry foreign policy have a new and even more dramatic reason to applaud. They have succeeded in creating an alliance that might solve all the problems of the Middle East: between Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. It may not be what was intended, but amateurs occasionally
Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia in silent alliance vs. U.S. Iran policy Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal SAN DIEGO — Although I am embarrassed to it admit it, one of my guilty pleasures is the television show Fashion Police. On Fashion Police Joan Rivers and three co-hosts analyze, praise, and trash various celebrities for the outfits they wear. I watch the show because Joan Rivers is outrageously funny,
‘Fashion Police’ vs Torah values Read More »
Jewish ReligionIran could build nuclear bomb within one month, report says (Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) As of today, Iran could produce a sufficient quantity of uranium for a nuclear bomb by using its installed centrifuges and low enriched uranium stockpiles in as little as one month, a report by the U.S. Institute for Science and
JNS news briefs: October 25, 2013 Read More »
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