By Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D. SAN DIEGO — Couldn’t we all use some genuine happiness about now? This week’s parasha may be just the thing that can help us create it. We are offered these days of Elul to be an ais ratzon, a space filled with the love and desire between us and Hashem. […]
Parashat Ki Tavo: Creating Genuine Happiness Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
SAN DIEGO — Our license plate maven Melanie Rubin spotted her latest gem on Monday morning. Cheers to that!
Jewish-Interest License Plate: LCHAYIM Read More »
Melanie Rubin, San Diego County, Trivia, Humor & Satire
By Mark D. Zimmerman MELVILLE, New York — Britain’s Queen Elizabeth died at the age of 96, having reigned for 70 years. She is being mourned around the world, including by members of the British Jewish community. According to Ephraim Mirvis, the Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom, “Her affection for the Jewish people
Jewish Trivia Quiz: Queen Elizabeth II, RIP Read More »
Mark D. Zimmerman, Trivia, Humor & Satire
By Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D JERUSALEM — They seem to be on an upswing, but Palestinian attacks against Israelis are a continuous phenomenon. For a summary of attacks since May 2016 and through July 2022, provided by the Israeli government, in English, you can look here. A graphic display appears below. The first graph shows the
Terror, the Queen, and the deadline for Parties to Run in Israel’s Election Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Israel, Middle East, Opinion
By Natasha Josefowitz, ACSW, Ph.D. LA JOLLA, California — Some people seem to be wired to like variety, novelty, change from routine. Others seem to prefer the status quo, the predictable, the familiar. To some extent, this is genetic, but it is also influenced by the multitude of experiences we have been subjected to in
The World is Constantly Changing, As Is Everything and Everyone Around Us Read More »
Lifestyles, Natasha Josefowitz
By Laurie Baron President Biden received scathing criticism for labeling MAGA Republicans “semi-fascists.” I selected some quotations from MAGA leaders to test the validity of his characterization. “The church is supposed to direct the government. The government is not supposed to direct the church. That is not how our Founding Fathers intended it. I’m tired
The Semi-Fascist MAGA Menace: The Truth is Funnier (and Scarier) Than Satirical Fiction Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire
By Sam Ben-Meir NEW YORK — If nothing else, the Republican Party has steadily removed any doubt that it has embraced an extremism that threatens the future of American Democracy. We can clearly perceive the imminent danger that the Party poses in several crucial ways, perhaps the most salient being the refusal of candidates to
The Authoritarian Personality and Rise of Right-Wing Extremism Read More »
Opinion, Sam Ben-Meir, USA
By Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — We must wonder what Lina Abu Akleh refers to when she charges: “We don’t expect war criminals to investigate their own crimes.” Or when Nabil Abu Rdeneh claims all evidence proves that “Israel is the culprit, that it killed Shireen, and it must be held responsible for its crime.”
Who Are the War Criminals? Read More »
Bruce Ticker, Israel, Middle East, Opinion
By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — My Mother’s Sabbath Days is a beautiful, fascinating, and eye-opening story by the Yiddish writer Chaim Grade (1910-1982). His name is pronounced gra, as in open your mouth and say ah, and de at the end pronounced as in eh, the word said in surprise. Grade
‘My Mother’s Sabbath Days:’ An Eye-Opening Story by Yiddish Writer Chaim Grade Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
Published by Reuters UK By Nette Noestlinger (Reuters) – Israel and Germany are tied together by the obligation to remember the Holocaust, Israeli President Isaac Herzog told the German parliament on Tuesday during a three-day visit to the country. At the start of his speech in the Bundestag, Herzog led a prayer to commemorate the
Israel, Germany Tied by Remembrance, President Herzog Says Read More »
International
Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Washington will press Israel to review its policies and practices on rules of engagement after the Israel Defense Forces concluded that Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was likely shot by an Israeli soldier, State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said on Tuesday. “We will continue to press Israel
By Richard L. Cravatts (JNS) The suppression of any speech that does not conform to hegemonic ideologies is not an uncommon occurrence at today’s universities. What is now labeled “cancel culture” is dedicated to the purging of thoughts and ideas that conflict with liberal notions or the radical ravings of social justice warriors. This unfortunate
Muzzling Free Speech at Berkeley Law School Read More »
California, Israel, Opinion, Richard L. Cravatts, Science, Medicine, & Education
By Eileen Wingard SAN DIEGO — We are thrilled to announce that Michael Mark, a member of our Jewish Poets-Jewish Voices Committee, just won the prestigious Rattle Chapbook Prize for his chapbook, Visiting Her in Queens Is More Enlightening than a Month in a Monastery in Tibet. The poems are all inspired by his mother,
Jewish Poets-Jewish Voices Committee Member Wins Prestigious Prize Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Eileen Wingard, San Diego County
By Mark D. Zimmerman MELVILLE, New York — Last week saw the passing of Mikhail Gorbachev, the former General Secretary of the Communist Party and head of state of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev instituted a policy of glasnost (openness), pursuing more democratic ideals, ultimately leading to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Also last week,
Jewish Trivia Quiz: Jane Fonda & Mikhail Gorbachev Read More »
Mark D. Zimmerman, Trivia, Humor & Satire