By itself, coronavirus is a respiratory disease. Add to coronavirus one’s particular thoughts and it may become a roiling emotional and social pandemic as well. Recognizing the indicators of mental distress in yourself and in others can often lead to creating internal strength and a healthier community around you. [Michael R. Mantell, PhD]
How to be a COVID Battle Buddy Read More »
Lifestyles, Michael Mantell
There are several reasons to wonder about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Is he losing it?
A prominent case is a series of tweets that he wrote against the decision of the Attorney General, that Bibi could not receive some 10 million shekels, about $2.9 million dollars, in a contribution from an overseas ally to be used to purchase his defense in a criminal trial. [Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D]
Fighting attorney general, coronavirus, Bibi lays annexation aside Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
Given the assault on “whiteness” that we see today, some people of the ultra-left claim that chess is a racist game since it pits the “whites” vs. the “blacks.” To certain individuals, this game accentuates the problems some see in race relations. To make matters further complicated, the white pieces go before the black pieces. This is perceived by those who consider themselves “woke” (people who are super-sensitive to racism) as a “racially biased.” [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]
White moves first; is chess racist? Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Lifestyles, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA
Summer fringe festivals have had to make a tough choice this year: shut down or go online. San Diego’s shut down, but in Rejkyavik, Iceland, the shows went online. And San Diego’s Todd Blakesley, a writer, actor, clown and raconteur was not only in the festival, he was the face of it in their promotions. [Eric George Tauber]
Crapshoot! is a Hoot Read More »
Eric George Tauber, International, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA
A full schedule of local lectures and seminars is being offered this week on Zoom or Facebook, thereby providing some Jewish-themed diversion and learning for those who are sidelined by the coronavirus pandemic. [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]
Local Jewish agencies, synagogues set web lectures Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Obituaries & memorials, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA
Reiner grew up in the Bronx, the son of Jewish immigrants. While proudly Jewish, he said he became an atheist after the Holocaust. How did Reiner describe his bar mitzvah? [Mark D. Zimmerman]
Jewish trivia quiz: Carl Reiner, z”l Read More »
Jewish Religion, Mark D. Zimmerman, Trivia, Humor & Satire
I still remember the rich bass baritone voice of Paul Robeson singing “Old Man River” in the 1936 movie Show Boat. That was his song and I thought no one else could match his performance. By chance someone just sent me a link to a recording by Robeson in Yiddish. This is a new one, for me. I further learned he had recorded several Yiddish songs and often included them in his concerts. [Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel]
Paul Robeson sang in Yiddish Read More »
Cantor Sheldon Foster Merel, z"l, International, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA
This spring, at 55, Robert III was approaching what would have been one of his best days ever: completing his associate’s degree program at Jefferson. He did earn his degree, but it wasn’t the celebration he had anticipated: On March 26, his son, Robert Mitchem IV, was killed in an apparently random shooting in the West End of Louisville. Police have yet to identify a suspect. [Michael Ginsberg]
In tribute to my student Robert Mitchem III Read More »
Michael Ginsberg, USA
Maggid Books has just published an excellent comprehensive 493-page study of the biblical Book of Esther called Esther: Power, Fate, and Fragility in Exile by Erica Brown, Ph.D, an award-winning author of many books, lecturer, and Jewish teacher. Brown tells readers exactly what the Bible text is saying, not what people read into it. She does so in clear, easy to read language. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
What is the Book of Esther really about? Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
While it is true that the far-right has been expanding in recent years, which could be interpreted as a reaction to the far-left tilt of the nation; the numbers according to FBI statistics are relatively small. What HAS expanded exponentially is the growth, power, and influence of both the radical left and Islamists, with an unconventional alliance between them; the ultimate goals of which is the destruction of Israel and the United States. [Caren Besner]
Danger to Jews comes mostly from the Left Read More »
Jewish History, Middle East, USA
The fireworks are over. The crowd is gone. National Park System workers are taking down the folding chairs. Towering above them the sculpted heads of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Teddy Roosevelt are discussing the speech they just heard. [Laurie Baron, Ph.D]
The presidential pundits of Mt. Rushmore Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA
The Fourth of July is my friend Ben Dishman’s birthday, just as it was the birthday of my late father, Martin B. Harrison. When both of them were pre-schoolers, their parents fibbed to them that the fireworks and celebrations all were in honor of their birthdays. Of course, they both believed the story, as it had come from what for them was the source of all knowledge — their parents. It wasn’t until they were old enough to go to school that they were disabused of the notion by their classmates. [Donald H. Harrison]
July Fourth, American history, and cultural myths Read More »
Ben Dishman, Donald H. Harrison, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA
Why did Bib Netanyahu delay his plans for annexation of territory in Judea and Samaria.? The fact that the Trump administration may have got cold feet about its “peace” (piece?) plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict may have been the decisive inhibiting factor. [Rabbi Dow Marmur]
Netanyahu, under various pressures, sets aside annexation Read More »
International, Middle East
Ode to Passion was supposed to premiere at the Queens World Film Festival back in March, but the plague put the kaibosh on that. So it has gone to Amazon Prime Video. It is the first feature-length film by Writer/Director Jack Danini with 19 original songs written in 80s rock-ballad style with shades of country. From the opening strains of a wailing base guitar and a forlorn lover clutching a thorny red rose, we know that this story does not end happily. [Eric George Tauber]
‘Ode to Passion’ Strikes a Chord Read More »
Eric George Tauber, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Theatre, Film & Broadcast