Making the Cut
It was the very beginning of 1942 and the group of ten young men and their yeshiva dean, exiles in frigid Siberia, couldn’t believe their eyes. Betzalel Orlanski had somehow gained release from the...
Category: Jewish World
Parental matchmaking still works
Jewish marriage has always been a familial and communal affair, not just an individual decision. When Avraham decided it was time for Yitzchak to marry, he summoned his trusted servant Eliezer and gave him...
Keep it Simple
The World-to-Come is an upside down world (Bava Basra 10b): Those who were on top in this world on account of their wealth (Rashi ad loc.) are on the bottom, and those who were...
Finding the Silver Lining in the Meltdown
The global meltdown of financial markets guarantees that money – and our attitudes to it – will dominate public and private discussions for some time to come. Some of the consequences of the loss...
Spared the Responsibility
I confess to occasionally experiencing the temptation to add a few additional berachos beginning “she lo asani . . . ” to the list of those given by our Sages. Chief among those would...
Who Says Jews are Smart?
YES, POGO, THE JEWS ARE THE STUPIDEST PEOPLE Arab-Americans overwhelmingly support Senator Barack Obama for president. So do Jewish-Americans. One of these two groups either does not care much about the Arab-Israeli conflict and/or...
Separate Swimming at Harvard – and Us
Recently, Harvard University agreed to establish certain hours for sexually segregated use of the gym and swimming pool. Most of us upon hearing that news would be cheered at an apparently reasonable accommodation to...
Israel as of Rosh Hashana 5769 – Part II
Last week, we detailed the extent to which Israel’s declining geopolitical situation and deterrent capacity has been largely self-inflicted – the result of unilateral withdrawals from Lebanon and the Gaza Strip and, most significantly,...
Israel as of Rosh Hashanah 5769 – Part I
Florida Congressman Robert Wexler, one of Senator Barack Obama’s leading spokesmen to the Jewish community, argues that Democrats are better for Israel than Republicans. What’s his proof?: Compare Israel’s security situation today to what...
Ignore the Grandchildren
The Obama campaign is encouraging Jewish kids to fly to Florida to visit their grandparents over Columbus Day weekend. The website for the intitiative, www.thebigschlep.com, features comedienne Sarah Silverman instructing Jewish youth in Lysistrata-style...
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