Yum

With the high holidays rapidly approaching, this is the season where we buy a lot of wine. Thankfully, gone are the days where the only options we have for kosher wine are sweet syrupy Manischevitz or Israeli wine that is painful to drink. Stephanie Cain over at the Wine Spectator summarizes the current state of Israeli wine and the news is good for those who like good wine.

Today, Israel has more than 200 wineries, more than 10 times the number of table-wine producers just 10 years ago, and the largest 17 are all kosher. But gone are the days when the country produced mainly sweet sacramental wines and inexpensive bottles for local consumption. And the term “kosher wine” is no longer equated with mediocrity, in part thanks to flash pasteurization techniques that allow producers to make mevushal wines without actually tasting as if they’ve been boiled… Large wineries, such as Carmel and Golan Heights, are producing dry reds and whites that are widely exported, while new boutique wineries (both kosher and non-kosher) have helped push Israel’s wine industry to new heights with their experimentation. More of the country’s wines are earning “very good” ratings, sometimes even “outstanding.” … At the same time, Israelis have been adopting a wine culture. Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa all feature wine bars and restaurants with serious wine lists stocked with Israeli and international wines…

So yeah. Have a sweet New Year, but no need to usher it in with overly sweet, heave inducing crappy wine! Read the full article here.

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Something to think about…

Next time you’re at the Kotel or when you hear the shofar blowing think about these guys:

Under a British law in Palestine passed in 1930, Jews were forbidden to blow the shofar at the Kotel, pray loudly there, or bring Torah scrolls, so as not to offend the Arab population… Despite this restriction, for the next seventeen years, the shofar was sounded at the Kotel every Yom Kippur. Shofars were smuggled in to the Kotel where brave teenagers defiantly blew them at the conclusion of the fast. Some managed to get away – others were captured and sent to jail for up to six months… Six of these men are still alive… Two weeks ago, these six men returned to the scene of their “crime”. Armed with shofars, they recounted their individual stories and blew shofar again at the Kotel.

In the several years that I have been on one rabbinic listserv and one year on a second one (there’s even a third one I’m on, I think, as well), I have seen an immunity from Godwin’s Law. For those unfamiliar with Godwin’s Law, coined by Mike Godwin, it states “As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1.”
Now I don’t claim to be an expert on listservs generally or even of rabbinic listservs specifically, nor have I been a member of all rabbinic listservs, so I can’t say that rabbinic listservs are absolutely free of Reductio ad Hitlerium, however, this is what I’ve experienced. And let’s get one thing out there, just as Jews have a million opinions, you can be sure that rabbis certainly have their myriad of opinions, all the more so, so it isn’t like there is immediate consensus on any given topic. Moreover, some discussions will get rabbis excited, but Hitler and Nazis are never (or maybe I missed particularly contentious posts in which they were invoked (although I wouldn’t be surprised if someone showed me a post comparing Ahmedinajad to Hitler)) mentioned. Although there could be a variety of reasons for this omission, I think it’s largely due to the ridiculous nature of bringing them up in conversation. Perhaps it’s due to rabbis having a deep sense of the seriousness of the Holocaust/Hitler and refuse to bring them into a common argument. Discuss

While people around the world are blinded by the mass media and their daily ‘news’ programs, there are true problems in the world. For a moment lets focus on that ‘minor issue’ in the press about Iran and their nuclear capabilities (or soon to be capabilities). Do digest this satirical song of the situation with a grain of salt, for while it may be funny, the facts are very real.

Take special note, within the first minute of the song the following lyrics are plain and clear:

The USA and Europe, keep you eye on them Jews, the settlements and Gaza, the hottest news. From Goldstone to Hague, you do your job so fine, and I will keep on doing mine…The bomb, the bomb, I’ll get the bomb…

TITLE: The Iranian Bomb – The Song

… Ch’tis.

… New Yorkers.

… musicians.

There are three films, done and in the making alike, I recommend you to look out for.

Dany Boon’s Welcome to the Sticks (Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis) was a smash hit in Europe in 2008/09. People all over the continent loved watching the personal malheurs of several post office employees in the very north of France and their transferred-from-the-south superviser in their quest for love, friendship, contentment and domestic inter-cultural understanding. There’s an English version available with subtitles, but if you know French, it’ll be so much more fun – treat yourself.

Dany Boon is a French comedian and director of Algerian ancestry. He converted to Judaism in 2002. Some of you might know him from his appearance on Merry Christmas / Joyeux Noël, the Academy Award-nominated film on the Christmas Truce of 1914.

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If These Knishes Could Talk trailer from Heather Quinlan on Vimeo.

Heather Quinlan’s currently working on If These Knishes Could Talk, a documentary on NY accents. Take a look at the site. It’s pretty intriguing.
If you know any genuine New Yorker with an accent to treasure, pass on the info.

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Finally, there is The Wandering Muse,

a multi-platform project in development that explores the vibrant array of musical interpretations of Jewish identity. A quest to discover the nomadic soul in a borderless world of harmonies, dance and song, it’s a celebration of the ever-changing music of the Jewish Diaspora.

The variety of styles and musicians featured on the documentary’s site is rather impressive, and we’re proud to say they include several of Jewlicious’ pet musicians such as Y-Love and Yuriy Gurzhy.

Sick Facebook pages get sicker.

We all know that lots of Jew hatred is out there. We know it ends up on Facebook and other social media sites.
How long does it take to get a page removed? If you can – head over to FB and flag the page, and then let us know on the comment below!

Better late than never, eh?

It’s been a hell of a week. We never really thought that we’d actually pull it off. I mean Camp Jewlicious. Four days at the breath taking Brandeis Bardin Institute, 130 participants, endless activity and discussions, music… whatever. We’ve all been in a daze this week so cut us a bit of slack ok? It was beyond. Just beyond. Here are some stand out photos because without photos, it didn’t happen!

More photos after the bump OR you can blow the whole wad over at our flickr page.
(more…)

The comeback begins?

Orthodox boxer Dmitriy Salita (31-1-1, 16 KOs) scored a unanimous eight-round decision against Franklin Gonzalez (13-6, 9 KOs) last night in Brooklyn. Salita’s last fight was a horrific loss against Amir Khan in December. Salita didn’t have much trouble with Gonzalez but trouble wasn’t expected given that Gonzalez, at 34, is a little long in the tooth and lost his last three fights. This is just the beginning of Salita’s comeback and the true test of his mettle will have to happen in a future fight against a more serious opponent. This isn’t exactly Ali vs Frazier, but still… check out that Magen David on his hoodie and trunks! How cool is that?

I know, I know. Not that cool. What would be cooler would be more ass kicking!

55 Years ago, on September 1, actor, director, early television star, and union leader, Philip Loeb, took a room at the Taft Hotel in Manhattan and ended his life. At that time, for the preceding 6 years, he had been blacklisted from working due to his political beliefs and activities. Philip Loeb starred as “Mr. Jake Goldberg” in the early tv hit, “The Goldbergs” which was written, produced, and starred Gertrude Berg as “Mrs. Molly Goldberg.” He had taught Kirk Douglas and Don Rickles to act, and directed parts of the Marx Brothers film, “Room Service.” You may remember a scene from Woody Allen’s film, “The Front,” in which a blacklisted actor ends his life. The plot was based on Loeb’s demise.

Want to remember a blacklisted actor’s life? Manhatan’s Museum of Jewish Heritage (just blocks from Ground Zero!) will remember Philip Loeb on Wednesday evening, September 1 at 6:30, with a panel discussion including Aviva Kempner, director, “Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg;” Anna Berger, actress on The Goldbergs; Peter Friedman, an actor who is writing a play about Loeb; Dr. Steve Loeb, Loeb’s grandnephew; Dr. Glenn Smith, Loeb’s biographer; and Jim Brochu, actor and playwright Zero Hour (a play about actor Zero Mostel, who housed Loeb during his unemployment)

Perhaps they had heard that there were Jewels of Elul; that there is liquid gold on dipped apples. Maybe that is why two criminals ascended to Brooklyn’s Borough Park neighborhood on Monday to rob an Apple Bank for Savings.

The robbery got botched, a gunmen fired two shots into the bank ceiling, and when the would be robber fled the bank, he was given a beatdown by members the neighborhood Shomrim security patrol. Later, one member, Marc Katz, pretending that his radio was a gun, and convinced one of the foiled bandits to let go of a female hostage during a carjacking. Katz and others then chased the gunman, who was firing shots from his weapon, and cornered him until NYPD detectives arrived.

A video of the aftermath is here. Attention Would-Be bandits… the Jewels of Elul are online… and not at the bank branches.

For the next few weeks (begining Tuesday evening), the American PBS stations that carry the POV (Point of View) documentary series will take a peak at adoptions, and surprisingly, both the selected films will be of keen interest to Jewlicious readers, since they both deal with adoptions into Jewish (and Israeli) families.

They are Wo Ai Ni (I Love You) Mommy, and Off And Running.

In the first documentary, a Jewish family adopts an eight year old girl from China. They already have two biologically born sons, (one of whom is prepping for his Bar Mitzvah) and one daughter that they adopted from China a couple years earlier.

In “Off And Running,” a Jewish couple in Park Slope / Brooklyn have several adopted children of various backgrounds. In the documentary, their daughter, an African American young woman, who had attended a Jewish day school, decides to search for her birth mother.

Wo Ai Ni (I Love You) Mommy by Stephanie Wang-Breal will be broadcast on Tuesday, Aug. 31 at 10 p.m. on PBS; and will stream online from Sept. 1 – Nov. 30 at this link.

What is it like to be torn from your Chinese foster family, put on a jet with strangers and wake up in a new country, family and culture? Not only that, but you are on Long Island! Wo Ai Ni Mommy is the story of Fang Sui Yong, an 8-year-old orphan, and the Sadowskys, the Long Island Jewish family that travels to China to adopt her.

Sui Yong (now Faith) is one of 70,000 Chinese children now being raised in the United States, many of them in Jewish families as young Jewish boys and girls. Through her eyes, we witness her struggle with a new identity as she transforms from a timid child into someone that no one ­ neither her new family nor she ­ could have imagined.

Meeting her mother, Donna, for the very first time and learning that her new name will be Faith Sui Yong Sadowsky, she­ reacts as any self-respecting little girl would. She is alternately shy, withdrawn, timid, petulant, cute, rude, demanding, endearing, needy, manipulative, tragic, happy, loving, not so loving, ANNOYED, confused, surprisingly perceptive about her situation ­ and a natural in front of the camera. Arriving in New York, and meeting her new family, including Jason, 15, Jared, 12, and Darah, 3, is quite interesting as well. And more importantly, will she allowed to wear makeup?

To further explore the issues in the film, there will host a live chat
with filmmaker Stephanie Wang-Breal and Donna (mother) and Faith (child) Sadowsky on Wednesday, Sept. 1 at 2 p.m. ET (USA) at this link.

I spoke with Stephanie Wang-Breal and Donna Sadowsky earlier this Summer, as well as one of their producers, the award winning filmmaker, Judith Helfand. Stephanie specifically selected this story of an eight year old, because in most adoption cases, the child is pre-verbal and we can’t know what s/he is thinking. In this story, Faith is quite verbal about her feelings, and we get to know her joys and pains (usually in subtitles). Stephanie, who grew up as one of the only Asians in her town, dreamed of being White. Will race be an issue for Faith and what will she aspire to be?

Here is a secret for Jewlicious readers. At the start of the film, when Donna flies to Guangzhou to meet Faith, Faith and the adoption agency leaders are speaking in Cantonese. The audience can read the subtitles. But actually, Donna did not know what was being said at the time; and the filmmaker and crew only spoke Mandarin, and so they also did not know what Faith was really saying, nor what her caregivers were telling her to say or do. This will add to your insights while watching what unfolds.

It truly is a must see, and I highly recommend it. Plus, it includes
a Bar Mitzvah. Click here for the bar mitzvah video. Hehe.

Off and Running by Nicole Opper will be broadcast Tuesday, Sept. 7 at 10 p.m. on PBS and also stream live til Hanukkah. (More on this film next week)

Click here to watch in High Definition (HD)

A large number of Israeli actors, playwrights and other people from Israel’s theater establishment have signed a letter indicating their refusal to perform in Ariel, a large town outside of the Green Line – Israel’s 1949 border armistice line. Today, a number of prominent Israeli authors, Amos Oz, David Grossman and A.B. Yehoshua published a letter indicating their support of the theater folks.

With this move, these individuals have succeeded in what the Israeli-Arab and Palestinian-led boycott movement (the so-called “BDS” for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) has failed to achieve: putting a huge kosher stamp on boycotting Israel and opening the door for a large-scale international regime of sanctions and divestment against the country.

One of the key organizers of the letter told an Israeli newspaper in an interview that Ariel, over the Green Line, is a criminal city in violation of international law and added that apartheid roads for Jews only lead there. Both statements are false. A.B. Yehoshua who came out in support of the boycotting actors, stated that the entire settlement endeavor is destroying the chance for peace and perhaps the settlers should just accept that they can live in a Palestinian state.

To date, the Palestinians have emphatically demanded that no Jews remain in the new state of Palestine once it is established.

The timing of this letter was certainly in keeping with the pro-Palestinian and anti-Israeli position most of the Left, whether in or outside of Israel, has taken over the past several years. Peace talks in Washington are about to launch and this boycott serves to highlight divisions in Israel and opens a door to the claim that Israel should be able to keep settlements and towns beyond the Green Line.

In keeping with the theatrical theme, the Palestinians are putting on some shows of their won. Salam Fayyad has announced the Palestinians are a year away from having the infrastructure for a state. He did this despite previous criticism from Mahmoud Abbas that the Palestinians will not declare a state unilaterally. Mahmoud Abbas is no slouch himself when it comes to theater and in a sparkling performance on American television, he has stated that the peace talks will fail if Israel does not prolong its construction freeze in the settlements.

That freeze expires on September 26 and Netanyahu is under severe pressure to lift it. However, it appears that he may indeed extend it briefly in order to take this card out of the Palestinians’ hands. However, what is more pertinent is the Palestinian acting. For months, they have been dodging any talks at all and shifting the blame to Israel. Now that American pressure has compelled them to at least show up at the table, they are pretending they want to be there. For example, a number of Palestinian ministers have recently filmed one minute films, in English, telling Israelis how much they desire peace and what great peace partners they are.

Great peace partners don’t publish one thing in English and something different in Arabic. Historian Ephraim Karsh noted in his blog a couple of days ago that the Arabic press release by the PA about the upcoming peace talks makes no mention of a two-state solution at all. Great peace partners don’t scratch and claw away from the table for months and months while maintaining an international campaign of vilification of their peace partner.

The American administration is putting on its own show with these peace talks. They are obviously meant to have an impact on upcoming American elections by depicting Obama’s leadership as pro-active. How anything can come out of such talks when the Palestinians have done everything in their power to avoid them reveals more about American optimism and hubris than about the Palestinians whose goals are crystal clear.

Getting back to the Israeli actors and authors who have attached themselves to the Ariel boycott, it seems they’ve forgotten some things. Israel is a democracy. This democracy chose to support the construction and development of the town of Ariel. This democracy has also consistently included this town within its final borders in peace offers made to the Palestinians. As citizens of this democracy, they are just as culpable regarding the existence of Ariel as any other Israeli citizen. Their boycott undermines the legitimacy conferred by Israel’s support of this town.

The irony, of course, is that they can’t separate themselves from this democracy and its actions. They are its citizens. By legitimizing a boycott of a town their government has supported for decades, they are also supporting a boycott of Israel itself. After all, if the town is illegitimate, so are the state’s actions in support of the town. And if the state itself has sinned by creating this city, then it deserves the same response as the town itself.

This story is another example of how the Left not only weakens Israel, but has come to strengthen its enemies. I write this as somebody who, in theory at least although I am not sure how to do it in practice, believes that Israel will have to exit Judea and Samaria and possibly even unilaterally. One thing that is clear to me, however, is that Israel can only act when it is in a position of strength. When it is in a position of weakness, its enemies are strengthened.

Birgitte Bardo, Sir Paul McCartney help push forward anti-animal cruelty legislation in the Knesset.

In a strange and surreal world that we live in today, Israel is once again a lightening rod – this time in the battle against cruelty to animals. Animal rights activists around the world are poised to heap praises on a tiny country in the Middle East that is considering a ban on fur, with a small exception for religious gear.

On Sunday, Israel’s Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, met with MK Tirosh who authored the bill and Jane Halevy, who represented the animal rights groups. Bardot’s letter was handed to the minister during the meeting.

“If in the past the Industry, Trade and Labor Ministry opposed the bill due to intense pressure from friendly nations in which a huge amount of money is made at the expense of the animals, following our explanation on how millions of animals suffer because of the fur industry and the moral ramifications this entails, (Ben-Eliezer) said he would allow the legislation to go forward,” Tirosh told Ynet.

“Israel, where the fur trade is meager compared to other countries, can send a historic message to the world. Israel can be the locomotive that leads other parliaments in the same direction,” said the MK.

Halevy said Bardot’s letter contributed to Ben-Eliezer’s about-face, adding, “The fact that animals are being abused abroad for fashion and profit does not mean it can get a moral seal of approval in Israel.”

The vast majority of Israelis are against the fur trade. Fur and pelts for religious gear worn by Chassidim and Sephardim would be exempt. While Israel only has a $600k trade in fur, it is poised to upset Canada and Denmark, large fur exporters, and good allies who don’t want to see a ban anywhere.

Canada’s infamous seal killing can be seen on many YouTube videos.

Moshav headlined the inaugural Camp Jewlicious last Staurday night, August 21st, 2010 in a barn at Camp Alonim, Brandeis, California. Here they are singing Aba Shimon. David would have recorded more but he was too busy having fun. The set was one of the best ever, and to top it off, a reunion of sorts. Moshav’s original drummer Danny Roth, who was visiting LA, camp up to Camp, and jumped on stage for the final song.

What we call The Barn is actually the Camp Alonim Recc Hall. This hall has amazing karma and good vibes. It was built in 1953 and is adorned by original early Zionist murals on the walls. The rafters, stage, lights, and backstage barn doors are all original.

In addition to Moshav, we enjoyed a stellar performance by Mikey Pauker and Jered Stein, and Jewlicious Festival Fav Eric Schwartz aka Smooth E. Mikey and Jered also led music at the Havdallah Bonfire.

Thank you Eitan G who ran the sound for us at The Barn, and everyone who came and had a good ole’ time!

As Shabbat approaches, we’re heading into the final hours of FOL! The Friends of Lisa Latte Campaign. There are only another 61 hours to go! Your efforts have been nothing less than remarkable.

The highlights: Together, we’ve raised $516 at IndieGoGo HQ and landed a coveted featured spot on the home page — the Red Carpet of Crowdfunding! In addition, a handful of dear friends, family and supporters have contacted me directly offline and donated another $249. That means, our grand total actually is…

[insert drum roll here]

$765!!!

[Enter flashing lights, bells and whistles!]

By George, I think we’ve (nearly) got it. We’re only $235 short of our $1,000 goal!

[Now imagine a slot machine singing its jackpot song, coin by glorious coin, and a total of more than $1,000 pouring forth!]

I personally want to thank all of you for your support to help us reach this wonderful turning point and express my gratitude for every sacrificed latte, good wish and good will. I’m deeply touched by everyone’s generosity and willingness to help make this happen.

Say hello, paprikash. Cool Jew Budapest is on! If you happen to be in these parts in late October, more info is available on Limmud Hungary here.

In the meantime, please let us know of anyone or anything that might help us bridge the final gap toward our goal. We’ll be offline for Shabbat but other than that, please get in touch if a little light bulb starts humming over your head… We’d love to hear from you!

Wishing you all a Shabbat Shalom — a rest of joyful light and peace.

With sincere thanks and much love,
Lisa and the FOLs

Shemspeed’s been following Dmitriy Salita’s career for a while now and we are really excited to work with him on his Redemption fight on Sept 1st at Oceana Hall! We will all be in the house VIP chillen and welcome you all to join with our Shemspeed discount tickets. Each ticket comes with a free pass to our after party which will be hosted by DeScribe, Y-Love, Remedy of the Wu-Tang, Diwon and Dmitriy Salita himself!

CLICK:
FOR MORE INFO
TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK
TO BUY TICKETS (type Shemspeed in the notes section)

You might have already heard about the “Friends of Lisa” campaign to bring Cool Jew to Limmud Hungary. It’s the first time a survey of Jewish pop culture in the west will hit Budapest — and any former communist country!

We’ve raised $387 in just a few days toward our $1,000 goal. Now, we only have four days left to earn a 5% bonus from IndieGoGo if we “fill the mug” all the way up! Donations will cover one coach ticket to Budapest to bring Cool Jew’s poignant, fun and inspiring message of Jewish affiliation to Limmud Hungary.

Limmud is strictly volunteer. I’m very happy to donate my presentation. With slides, music, personal anecdotes, and stories of my father’s survival of Buchenwald and his impact on my Jewish identity, there’s nothing else quite like it! I’ll also lead other sessions, including a panel discussion inviting other fabulous Heebsters from around the world to share how to use public programs like these to make a difference.

After presenting all across the U.S., Europe and Canada, I have been told again and again that this work leaves audiences with a lasting impression of strength and pride and fun about being Jewish — and that has the power to open the door to so much more along the path of learning and living and loving to be a part of our Tribe. (And yes, Virginia, this might sound a bit corny, but it’s true!)

It’s a modest ask: if just another 125 people would give just $5, or of course, a larger donation or a slew of mileage points, we’d meet the goal in a jiffy. So if you can “spare a latte” and know of anyone else who might be interested in supporting the cause, please click below and share the love by help to spread the word even further.

http://www.tinyurl.com/lattecampaign

Please take a minute to help make a difference.

Thank you so so much for your assistance in making this a reality.

Wishing you a Shana Tova U’metukah — a good, sweet and blessed New Year!

Lisa and the FOLs

Check out ‘The Socalled Movie’ about our boy Socalled from Montreal took the world by storm when he released his “You Are Never Alone” letting the world know that there is nothing unusual about being a Jewish Cowboy. The track showcased his production and inventiveness beyond any of his other previous tracks…it featured C-Rayz Walz from Shemspeed‘s “Freestyle Vs. Written release with Kosha Dillz and our favorite Canadian vocalist, besides Drake, Katie Moore.

Things to come?

New York City’s last secular Yiddish bookstore is set to close shortly, unless someone steps in and finds it a new home. The “store”, called the “Central Yiddish Cultural Organization” was founded in 1937 and is currently open only by appointment on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and made a whopping $11,220 last year – not enough to cover its modest operating budget.

The survival of Yiddish in America is an on-the-one-hand, on-the-other-hand story. Yiddish, once the language of the Jews of Eastern Europe, is undoubtedly moribund, with its last full-throated speakers, Holocaust survivors, now well into their 80s and 90s. (A smattering of their children speak it through sheer willpower whenever they can buttonhole a comprehending ear, but some, like this writer, grew up nagging parents to speak English and regrettably saw their first language wither.) … On the other hand, the language is booming among Hasidim, for whom it is a lingua franca, mushrooming so prolifically that by some estimates the ultra-Orthodox will form a majority of American Jews by century’s end.

Is this reflective of the inevitable long-term direction of Jewish secularism in America? Or rather did Yiddish simply lose its raison d’etre in a society where being Jewish no longer means you are marginalized?

Now, moving from the Goldene Medinah to the Falafelisch Medinah, Israel recently announced that as part of aa pilot project, Israeli students in the North will receive Arabic language instruction beginning in grade 5. Arabic was already available as an option in grades 7-10 but now it will become compulsory. Haaretz reported:

“We live in a country that has two official languages,” Dr. Shlomo Alon, Head of Arabic and Islam Education in the Ministry of Education, told the ‘Walla’ news website. “Studying Arabic will promote tolerance and convey a message of acceptance.”

So if things continue this way, how long will it be before before more Jews speak Arabic than speak Yiddish? Either way, greater Arabic literacy amongst Israelis and Jews is a good idea – tolerance, acceptance and simply being able to communicate more effectively will certainly help foster understanding and maybe even peace one of these days. And better chummus. It’s really all about the chummus.

While the rest of the universe enjoyed themselves at Camp Jewlicious, I kept busy catching up on my reading of critical Jewish News… news such as:

Opening this weekend in North America is a romantic comedy film directed by Nanette Burstein, starring Justin Long and Drew Barrymore, titled “Going The Distance.” Some scenes, many of them nude, were shot at the home of an Orthodox Jewish couple in Queens, New York. In this clip, from the George Lopez talk show, Long explains how the production cooked and served burgers using the Jewish couple’s kitchen. When the family found out, the production had to replace the grill and utensils, since the burger-cooking had rendered the kitchen unkosher. What they have not yet replaced is the dining room table on which the actors, who were also a romantic couple, had simulated sexual intercourse. That is one table I will not be using to dip an apple in honey. (Actually it sounds like a publicity story for the film launch, since most production set designers would re-furnish the rented spaces to accomodate the shoot and equipment, although not the kitchen appliances.)

Another film that is soon to open is neither romantic nor a comedy, and there is no unsafe sex on dining room tables. The Social Network is a film directed by David Fincher and the writen by Aaron Sorkin, based on the life of Mark Zuckerberg, the 26 year old head of Facebook.com. Based on an unflattering account of the Harvard web entrepreneur, Zuckerberg is irked that the film. “portrays me as someone who built Facebook so I could meet girls.”

Speaking of kashrut and social networks, last week saw a tempest in the teapot that is also known as NYC. A Jewish inmate who is a member of the Satmar Hasidic sect and serving prison time for notoriously raping a teen, is receiving very specially koshered meals, and not the regular kosher meal service. Rabbi Baruch Leibovits complained that his NYC jail food did not have rabbinical supervision that was up to his level of strict adherence to halacha. One Satmar rabbi and leader said that it is the inmate’s right to have the food he desires, even if he is serving 32 years for rape and awaiting trial on other charges; while another rabbi and city chaplain said it was chutzpah to treat him differently than other prisoners who receive kosher foods.

On the topic of different treatments — tax treatments — a chain of bagel stores was informed by New York State that they owed a lot of back sales taxes. In NY, a bagel is a bakery product and not subject to sales tax, but if it is toasted or sliced, it is transformed into a prepared food item, and must then be taxed. Kenneth Greene, the owner of 33 Bruegger’s Bagel franchises throughout New York, is fighting New York State, which wants about 8 cents for every sliced or prepped bagel that the chain sold over the past several years.

Bagels were not served at the iftaar hosted by NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg at the mayor’s Gracie Mansion last evening. Dates, lamb kabobs, and cherry and apricot juices were. Bloomberg reiterated his support for a center in lower Manhattan at Park Place. Bloomberg and some in the room were near tears when he repeated what the proposed center’s Imam said after the murder of Daniel Pearl. Bloomberg added, “If we do not practice here at home what we preach abroad, if we do not lead by example, we undermine our soldiers, we undermine our foreign policy objectives and we undermine our national security.”

Finally, on the topic of tears and treatments, but not tax treatments, Yeshiva University professor Eliezer Schnall traveled to San Diego to the American Psychological Association’s annual meeting and delivered the results of a study on the mental health needs and delivery of services in the Orthodox and Hasidic Jewish communities.

Dr. Schnall found that there is a paucity of service that is especially pronounced in the Ultra-Orthodox and Hasidic segments of the community. The paper, “Psychological Disorder and Stigma: A 25-Year Follow-up Study in the Orthodox Jewish Community” surveyed the approximately 450 members of NEFESH, the International Network of Orthodox Mental Health Professionals, and received answers from nearly 22%. It found that a stigma still exists for those seeking mental health services. Schnall and his partners also found that the most common problem for which Orthodox patients seek help is marital difficulties. Almost half of those professionals who answered the survey reported that there are insufficient services for substance abuse, just as in the 1984 survey, and that there are insufficient services for Orthodox Jewish children and adolescents. Most respondents reported that few, if any, of their patients were referred by their rabbis, which Schnall said was a problem, since rabbis play such a pivotal role within the Orthodox communities. He felt that Orthodox rabbis lack the training to help them to recognize mental illness and to understand that referral to professionals is often critically important.

The phrase,

The Marines are at war, America is at the mall

doesn’t have a more relevant application than as the summary of Gary Shteyngart’s Super Sad True Love Story. I wrote before about how I thought he jumped the shark and that if I had to read one more story about the type of Russian Jewish guy my parents tried to set me up with-schmucky, directionless, and still at a mental age of eight, I would break up with Gary hard.

And this is me we’re talking about. Remember, I have a poster of Shteyngart that I sacrifice small lambs to in case the talent god ever decides to grace my doorstep the way he did G’s. I’m happy to report that the book and my beloved Gar-bear surpassed my expectations yet again and had me dog-earing every page with an urgent, “Remember this. It’s really poignant and clever.”

The book’s major premise is a combination of 1984, mixed with Brave New World, a bit of Shalom Aleichem, and the same deadpan jabs at our vapid American hyperculture that Shteyngart delivered at ex-Eastern Europe in his last two books (which I consider my personal Tanakh.) We are again in Gary’s beloved New York City, ten or fifteen years into the future, and all the recessionary trends that I’ve been tracking with alarm at work the past two years have been bloated and taken off as if they were on speed.

The U.S. is even more in debt to China, there is the regular (worthless) dollar, the yuan-pegged dollar and the euro-pegged dollar. Something called the American Restoration Authority scares the hell out of everyone by doing the opposite of restoring and instead installing military checkpoints to get in and out of America but especially the island of Manhattan. Their slogan, which I can’t get over, is “imply and ignore,” as in implying consent at their messages and pretending to ignore that they exist.

Everyone walks, receiving data streams from their smartphone-like apparati (a word which in Russian means ‘device,’ or, more precisely, ‘thingy’,) constantly “verballing” or “streaming” video or shopping with inflated dollars at stores like AssLuxury and Onionskin for nippless bras and translucent jeans. No one produces anything physical of value, and there are the intentionally vague and ominous career choices of “Credit,” “Media,” or “Retail.”

If this all sounds vaguely familiar, it’s because it’s just a funhouse reflection of the world we live in, reflected back with razor-sharp wit.

This is the backdrop against which the narrator, a one Lenny Abramov, woos a slight Korean first-generation beauty, Eunice Park (in a storyline I ust found out was a huge case of art immitating life). Everything about Lenny’s Russian Jewish typical awkwardness and Eunice’s sharp, prickly Asian beauty is stereotyped and amplified so that even if you know nothing about these two sub-cultures you can relate. The genius is not only in the humor aspect, but the examination of a relationship that looks good on paper but really isn’t meant to last longer than a ping from an apparat data stream. Eunice is one of those 20-year-olds: ADHD all the way, but still reliant on her parents and nuclear family for a semblance of balance in her aimless life. Lenny is also aimless but because he is ANCIENT (almost 40) and afraid of both death and youth, he is more to be pitied than to be empathized with.

As a Russian Jew chick, I feel vaguely uncomfortable with the spot-on descriptions he offers of our kind: argumentative, unrepentantly racist, and a bit stereotypical. Also the fact that Israel is now SecurityState Israel in the book.  Unfortunately, he is correct on all counts. I’ve found in my own adventures in Russian Jewlandia that there tend to be two types of Russian Jewish guys: quiet and stable and smart, and, as he describes Lenny, schmucky, still traumatized by childhoods that the rest of us came out of just fine and completely unable to man up in any sort of Russian way. His books are always about the second and this type can never get over how American and in-tune with his feelings he is. Good thing he hasn’t delved into the first because that leaves some niche material for my first novel.

However, there is a lot to love in this book, even if you feel that Shteyngart is trying too hard to stay ahead of trends and maybe at times sacrificing substance for schtick. What’s most important for me is that he transcends the immigrant experience in this one to discuss broader themes.

If you’ve read it, I’d love to discuss. Ping me.

This is the BBC film about the Israeli attack on the Gaza flotilla which has garnered severe reprobation from supporters of the Palestinians, including accusations of racism against the BBC.

Wondering who could possibly find “racism” in this film, I looked up the person to whom this accusation was specifically attributed in the Jerusalem Post. Her name is Ewa Jasiewicz.

Who is she? A Journalist, a coordinator of the Free Gaza movement and a former ISM activist. Jasiewicz has been quoted in the past (by the BBC, no less) saying,

“I have been a journalist for five years and no one will manipulate me into any sort of agenda or violence.”

So then, one has to believe that when Jasiewicz sees this BBC film about the flotilla her group organized, a film which has not any form of racism in it or in its broadcast, and states,

the whole tone and framing of the program was “utterly Islamophobic and racist and demonizing of Muslim activists.

That she is either a poor reporter, a liar or has lost all sense of proportion when it comes to understanding racism.

Hmmmm, which could it be?

To help us learn, here is a video of Ewa introducing a pro-Palestinian movie to a group of activists and among other whoppers, such as calling Gaza a “ghetto,” there is a priceless moment where this woman, a leader of the Free Gaza movement, a journalist who calls this BBC film “racist,” (at minute 6:00 of the video) tries to prepare the listeners for the obviously derogatory use of the term “al Yahud” (the Jew) by Palestinians in the film. She says that “of course” they only mean Israelis and Zionists, not all Jews.

Of course. This from a woman who uses “ghetto” as part of her rhetoric.

In minute 8:00, she takes great pride in supporting the Palestinian “resistance” and she clarifies that she means both Palestinians “staying alive” and their “armed resistance.” In other words, she is supportive of the rockets launched by Gazan Palestinians at civilians in the Western Negev, Ashkelon, Be’ersheva, Sderot and so on. She is happy she and other activists were “able to help everybody.” This, of course, raises the question of whether she also supports the violence planned and executed by members of the Free Gaza flotilla against Israeli troops.

As a clue as to where she stands on this issue, in the second part of this video, towards the very end, she will claim that all of Israel’s actions are illegal and all of Hamas’s actions are legal in this conflict.

Conclusion? If you watch her lips move and the subject is Israel and the Palestinians, you can assume that what she says is going to be biased and part of an agenda. and very possibly an outright falsehood or even an intentional lie. You can also assume that the people, like her, who organized the flotilla, have little to contribute in the way of an honest discussion about what happened. If you watch the ending of the BBC film, you will see the key Free Gaza organizer of the flotilla admit that the loss of lives is simply part of the struggle on behalf of the Palestinians…

By the way, you can thank me later. I could have picked videos with Ewa’s previous haircut. She looks much better now. I guess Free Gaza activists care more about fashion than ISM activists, or at least they let their bangs grow out.

As a Hillel professional, sometimes I get tired of ‘doing Jewish’. That’s not to say that I don’t come into work every day with the same enthusiasm, passion and drive that motivated me to start working for Hillel in the first place…But that when I get home on a Friday afternoon (if I’m not working that Shabbat) the last thing I want to do is turn off my TV and host a Shabbat meal, or even, just turn off my TV. I could think of a million things I’d rather do – go out with friends, go on a weekend vacay, shop, talk to my cat, eat bacon…sleep! And when I verbalize this, I realize, I am more like my students than I thought. They, too, want to spend Friday and Saturday out with friends, to go shopping, sleep in or eat trayf – but I want them to come to us for Shabbat dinner, for a weekday lunch, for coffee, for holidays; to continue their Jewish journey while I stay stalled in mine. It’s not quite a balanced expectation.

One of the great things about participating in last week’s Hillel Institutewas coming to find that I am not alone in this.  Nor am I alone in searching for a way to make Shabbat meaningful. So many of us are trying to avoid burning out (while working 60…70…80 hours a week) that we have lost touch, either by circumstance or intention, with our own Judaism.  Over dinner during the Institute, a few colleagues presented us with an idea of creating a Shabbat community for ourselves, using Reboot’s Sabbath Manifesto  as a guide. Forty Hillel staffers will be participating in The Shabbat Experiment based on the 10 principles in the Manifesto.  Every week, one member from each of the four cohorts will assign a task based on one of the principles -then we blog about it, sharing our experiences. Here’s hoping that this experiment will enable us to create community for ourselves, take time for ourselves and (re)discover personal meaning in Shabbat. I look forward to sharing the journey with you all.

This post is part of Jewels of Elul, which celebrates the Jewish tradition to dedicate the 29 days of the month of Elul to growth and discovery in preparation for the coming high holy days. This year the program is benefiting Beit T’shuvah, a residential addiction treatment center in Los Angeles. You can subscribe on Jewels of Elul to receive inspirational reflections from public figures each day of the month. You don’t have to be on the blog tour to write a blog post on “The Art of Beginning… Again”. We invite everyone to post this month (August 11th – September 8th) with Jewels of Elul to grow and learn.

A little over 5 years ago, I fulfilled a lifelong dream and moved to Israel. Thanks to technology, the world has become a smaller place and in my time in Israel I have been able to remain in almost constant contact with my friends, family and colleagues back in Montreal. Now, technology is great but you can’t have a shabbat dinner via email. You can’t take a hike in the Galil on facebook. You can’t embrace an avatar after a long day at work. Thus, when I moved to Israel, not only did I have to work on acclimating myself to a new country but I also had to work on developing new friendships and interpersonal relationships.

And boy, was I set! On previous trips to Israel I had managed to develop a quirky and interesting group of friends. Upon my arrival I benefited from the equivalent of having a great job waiting for me in Israel. Right from the get go, I had guests at my Shabbat table, invites to dinners, people to hang out and do stuff with – there was never a dull moment! I had planned my move to Israel perfectly and I found myself happy, content and personally fulfilled.

There’s an old Yiddish saying, it goes something like this: Mann tracht und Gott lacht – meaning, man plans and God laughs. Barely two years into my new life in Israel, everything changed. I suffered from a sudden and unforeseen personal setback that resulted in the loss of all my friends in Israel. Nothing tragic of course, no one died, but the end result was that I found myself having to start all over again. Again.

So I persevered – what choice did I have? I won’t gloss over it, at first it was hard, probably one of the most difficult personal periods in my life. However, today I am blessed with a new group of friends. They are interesting, challenging, beautiful and loyal to a fault. It was a struggle getting to this point, it was a new begining within a new begining, but it was well, well worth it.

Which reminds me of something Rabbi Yonah Bookstein said this weekend at Camp Jewlicious, something relevant to Elul. He asked why is that we have to go through this process of asking for forgiveness every year? Doesn’t it get tiring, having to fast and go to the synagogue and do all the things associated with Yom Kippur? Doesn’t it feel like we’re constantly just always going in circles? The answer of course is that we’re not in fact going in circles, but rather that we’re going up a spiral. While it may seem repetitive, what we are actually doing is ascending, growing, rising to a higher and higher level.

Thus while it may seem that what I experienced in Israel was a new begining, what it actually was was a manifestation of our daily struggle to expand and evolve. Every day is in fact a new begining and every day brings with it new possibilities. Yes, new beginings may sometimes seem traumatic, but with the right attitude, they can open up a whole new world. Shanah Tovah, and may this year allow us all the opportunity to ascend to new, loftier heights in our lives.