Our Shtetl: Thoughts on a Drive Back to San Diego

Provisioned with a variety of tamales, bañuelos (crispy-thin dough sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, a typical Mexican holiday dessert, muy delicioso!), and my father-in-law’s “famous rum cake,” my family and I are heading back to “somewhat sunny” San Diego from El Paso. (Cailin Acosta)

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Cailin Acosta, California, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA

Rob Reiner, His Name and Memory for a Blessing

From the first loud toilet flush, audiences knew that All in the Family was
something new. They often tackled Racism, Sexism and Xenophobia. They didn’t just argue about the War in Vietnam, but whether to extend hospitality to a draft dodger one Christmas. [Eric George Tauber]

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Eric George Tauber, Jewish Celebrities, Obituaries & memorials, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Parsha Vayigash: Joseph’s Story is One of Emotional Growth

This Yosef is profoundly different from the young man we met years earlier in Vayeishev, the one who brought negative reports about his brothers and spoke without sensitivity. Twenty years later, shaped by betrayal, suffering, responsibility, and faith, Yosef has grown into someone emotionally wise and spiritually grounded. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D.]

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Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Paul Avgerinos and the Gentle Art of Remembering: Listening for the Still, Small Sound

There is a Hasidic teaching that every soul enters the world carrying its own melody, and the task of life is not to invent it, but to remember it. When Averginos speaks of music arriving beyond his conscious knowledge, of harmonies flowing through him that exceeded his formal training, he is describing this remembrance. The self does not lead. It relaxes. And something greater moves through. [Michael Adam Cohen]

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Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Michael Adam Cohen, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Jewish Political Briefing, Dec. 24, 2025: Five Senators Object to Stiffer Fees for Non-U.S. Residents to Visit National Parks and Monuments

U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) and four other Western States senators are calling on Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to delay the scheduled Jan. 1 imposition of new fees for non-U.S. residents to visit national parks and monuments, including the Cabrillo National Monument in San Diego. [Donald H. Harrison]

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California, Donald H. Harrison, International, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA

Pop Up Bagels: A New Pop Sensation Comes to San Diego

A girl was standing at the one table in the place and ripping a piece off of her bagel and dipping it into the shmear.  What a strange way to eat a bagel I thought.  But once we got inside, I understood, their instructions on how to eat the bagel are to “grip, rip, and dip.” [Sandi Masori]

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Opinion, San Diego County, Sandi Masori, Shor M. Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food

An Emotional Tour of the El Paso Holocaust Museum

The museum began as a one-room display inside the El Paso Jewish Community Center, featuring a small collection of books, posters, and personal memorabilia. Today, the El Paso Holocaust Museum encompasses more than 4,000 square feet of permanent exhibition space. It is one of only 13 free-standing Holocaust museums in the United States and one of just two presented in a fully bilingual format. [Cailin Acosta]

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Antisemitism, Cailin Acosta, Holocaust, International, Jewish History, Lifestyles, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA

Book Traces History and Humor of Jews and Christmas

Many Jewish fathers and mothers take their children to sit on Santa Claus’s lap—just like the author Rabbi Joshua Eli Plaut did, when he was only seven years old. I laughed at the picture because I remember my father, Leo Israel Samuel—a Holocaust survivor from Auschwitz—did the same for me when I was about the same age [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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Antisemitism, Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Volunteer of the Month Charlotte Freifeld’s Life: Navy and Judaism

After our interview, my impression was that her passions are/were her time in the Navy and her deep Jewish faith. She is a proud veteran who wears her Navy cap everywhere as well as a Star of David around her neck. [Mimi Pollack]

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Cailin Acosta, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Mimi Pollack, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Jewish Political Briefing:  Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025

Marks said “The Rally for Light today on the final day of Hanukkah is our community’s response—showing that even in moments of darkness, San Diego chooses unity, courage, and light over hate. By coming together, we are committing to carry this light beyond the holiday and to stand unwaveringly against anti-Semitism and all hate. When we stand together, light wins.” [Donald H. Harrison]

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Antisemitism, Donald H. Harrison, Holocaust, International, Israel, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA