When his column didn’t appear this weekend, we were worried. I will personally miss this master wordsmith, and columnist who I have enjoyed reading for 22 years. A fierce defender of Israel, winner of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and a Jew. His obit on JTA is impressive – but I had to post his NY Times obituary, the paper he called home.
From the NY Times Obit:

There may be many sides in a genteel debate, but in the Safire world of politics and journalism it was simpler: there was his own unambiguous wit and wisdom on one hand and, on the other, the blubber of fools he called “nattering nabobs of negativism” and “hopeless, hysterical hypochondriacs of history.”

He was a college dropout and proud of it, a public relations go-getter who set up the famous Nixon-Khrushchev “kitchen debate” in Moscow, and a White House wordsmith in the tumultuous era of war in Vietnam, Nixon’s visit to China and the gathering storm of the Watergate scandal, which drove the president from office….
And from 1979 until earlier this month, he wrote “On Language,” a New York Times Magazine column that explored written and oral trends, plumbed the origins and meanings of words and phrases, and drew a devoted following, including a stable of correspondents he called his Lexicographic Irregulars.

The columns, many collected in books, made him an unofficial arbiter of usage and one of the most widely read writers on language. It also tapped into the lighter side of the dour-looking Mr. Safire: a Pickwickian quibbler who gleefully pounced on gaffes, inexactitudes, neologisms, misnomers, solecisms and perversely peccant puns, like “the president’s populism” and “the first lady’s momulism.”

There were columns on blogosphere blargon, tarnation-heck euphemisms, dastardly subjunctives and even Barack and Michelle Obama’s fist bumps. And there were Safire “rules for writers”: Remember to never split an infinitive. Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing metaphors. Proofread carefully to see if you words out. Avoid clichés like the plague. And don’t overuse exclamation marks!!

Benji Lovitt – who entertained us at Jewlicious Festival 5.0 – in his latest hilarious video for the New Year.

Registration begins today!

Time to register if you want to go to Israel this winter with Birthright Israel! When? Like NOW! Join Jewlicious and Israel on the House for the best Israel trip ever! Well… we don’t actually know if it’ll be the best trip EVER. But it will be pretty darn good given that it’ll feature all the usual Birthright stuff, the top notch programing and tour professionals of Israel on the House and additional input and participation by Jewlicious! The possibilities are endless but the registration period IS NOT.

Go to IsraelOnTheHouse.com Right now. Registration is expected to end rather quickly. Follow the links and register and soon enough you’ll be travelling up and down the country with some very awesome folks and seeing some excellent and thought provoking Israel things. OK. Enough yapping. Do it!

this trip is a gift from Taglit-Birthright Israel.

Come to Israel for free with us!

Why indeed! The crew at IsraelOnTheHouse.com already enjoy a sterling reputation for great programing. Taglit-Birthright Israel has already sent over 215,000 young adults from around the world to Israel. So why should you want to go on a Jewlicious themed trip to Israel?

No matter what trip you’ll choose for your once in a lifetime Birthright Israel experience, you will benefit from Ministry of Tourism licensed tour guides, visits to key points of interest in Israel and an experienced infrastructure focused on making sure your trip is safe, informative and fun. So again, why add in a Jewlicious component?

Well. This is a Jewish site so allow me to use a food analogy. Are all doughnuts created equally? Why do you buy hamburgers from one place and not another? You know exactly what I mean. Jewlicious has been providing folks with co-branded trips for years and we accompany every single trip. We’re passionate about Israel and Jewish issues and we are just as cool and cosmopolitan as you are. Possibly cooler even. We’ll answer all your questions thoughtfully, even the ones you might think are dumb. We won’t just wake you up in the morning, we’ll also stay up at night sharing with you our perspectives on Israel and Jewish life in a way that’s not preachy or condescending. We’ll introduce you to our friends who include everyone from a Rabbi who hangs out at the Kotel every day to a dude that sells pitas at the market, from members of an Israeli indie band to a young journalist making her way. And we’ll plan special events that will allow you to have fun and really make the most out of your 10 days. Afterward, we’ll always be available to you should you need further information, a place to crash or a friendly ear.

The Jewlicious trip has always kicked ass. Be a part of it by signing up for the pre-trip mailing list and selecting Jewlicious as your referrer. This way you’ll be informed as soon as trip registration begins and you’ll give yourself a leg up on getting accepted into what will in all likelihood be a very in demand program!

OK? OK! See you this winter in Israel!!

Join The Pre-Trip Mailing List

Yo! It’s that time of the year again. Time to start thinking about going on a free Birthright Israel Trip next winter. If you are between 18-26, Jewish and have never been on a peer-based trip to Israel before, start thinking about floating in the Dead Sea, visiting the Kotel in Jerusalem, sipping a cappuccino in Tel Aviv and hiking and touring the width and breadth of Israel. For free. Registration is going to begin in September but you can give yourself a leg up by pre-registering at IsraelOnTheHouse.com. Don’t think about it. Just do it. It doesn’t cost anything and signing up does not obligate you in any way. Now here’s the fun part. Ready?

Select “Jewlicious” as your referrer and you will be able to go on a co-branded Jewlicious trip. What does that mean? Well, you will get all the usual good stuff mandated by Taglit-Birthright Israel, all the remarkable creative programming and planning skills of the team at IsraelOnTheHouse.com AND further enhancements introduced by the witty, knowledgeable and irreverent folks that you know and love here at Jewlicious.

How has that manifested itself in the past? Unplanned excursions to less frequented locales, special live music events by local indie acts, a variety of hip, interesting speakers, the ongoing commentary of people passionate about Israel, all kinds of awesome stuff and really, really good hummus. Seriously, it’s that good. So… yeah. Sign up now, select “Jewlicious” and by all means feel free to contact us with any questions you might have.

this trip is a gift from Taglit-Birthright Israel.

Well, thanks to an article in the New York Jewish Week, the cat’s finally out of the bag so I can freely write about what many of us have known for weeks: the relationship between Taglit Birthright Israel and Oranim’s “Momo” Lifshitz is in jeopardy. Last week, Oranim officially informed Birthright Israel that it was not planning on participating in this winter’s session, calling into question the future of their relationship.

Why is this relevant? Because Oranim is the largest trip provider that recruits participants and runs trips for Birthright Israel. In the 10 years that Birthright has been in operation, Oranim has brought in nearly 50,000 of the 200,000 young Jews who have come to Israel – and Momo, in his trademark style, has greeted nearly every single one of them. So what transpired that would cause such a rift?

(more…)

It’s been a while but we’re back! This summer, Jewlicious, along with Amazing Israel and Taglit Birthright Israel, is running two free trips to Israel. The first leaves out of Los Angeles on May 24 and the 2nd leaves out of New York on July 13. These are preliminary dates for now but each is a free 10-day trip to Israel that includes all the usual education, touring and sight seeing as well as a little extra dose of Vitamin J – each trip will be staffed by Jewlicious madrichim and the program will benefit from our contacts and uh… unique insights. Participants can expect to interact with diverse elements of Israeli society – Israeli music acts courtesy of the Israel Artist Agency, home hospitality for shabbat with funky Jewish families (seriously), a chat with eco-activists in the Negev, meetings with young writers and journalists, a tour of “underground” Jerusalem (it’s not just old rocks and rabbis!) and more – basically these are Israel trips for the inquisitive, those that want to have a good time, learn a thing or two and come back feeling that they’ve really seen the Israel you never get to see on TV or whatever. Stay tuned for further details and do note that registration begins February 19th! See the Amazing Israel and Taglit Birthright Israel Web sites for more details. Tell your friends, spread the word and hopefully, we’ll see ya in Israel this summer!

I read this article last night and was thoroughly disappointed.

“Birthright’s Hidden Cost” by Josh Nathan-Kazis — http://newvoices.org/editorial/birthrights-hidden-cost.html

Nathan-Kazis writes in his article (which you can read at the link above) that Birthright Israel (BRI) billionaire donor, Sheldon Adelson, has pushed Birthright to indoctrinate its participants with a right-wing agenda.

However, no where in this nicely written article is there any connection, statistic, or relevant fact that connects Adelson to indoctrinating Birthright Israel participants to a right-wing / pro-Netanyahu agenda.

Josh Nathan-Kazis does not draw out a case for this, rather, he explains how Birthright Israel is reliant on such wealthy donors, who like to take up certain causes.

Firstly, has Nathan-Kazis interviewed a statistically relevant number of Birthright participants over the past few years to make your conclusion about propaganda and indoctrination? If he did, why weren’t these findings included in his article? Clearly, he had none.

Secondly, the article does not discuss at all the fact that Birthright Israel does not actually run any of its programs. Rather, there are some 30+ organizations running various types and styles of Birthright Israel trips (called trip providers), all deciding how to educate and even indoctrinate its participants. It’s up to the trip provider, not Birthright Israel. BRI merely has a set rules and requirements each trip provider must follow, and working for one of them myself, I know that teaching a pro-Netanyahu or pro-right-wing agenda is NOT one of those requirements.

Thirdly, even if this analysis were true, how would indoctrinating non-Israelis affect the Israeli elections? Last I checked, BRI participants live in the Diaspora, which typically means they can’t vote in Israel (most of them at least).

While I do have my own personal problems with BRI, namely the lack of actual education that goes on during the 10-day program, this false analysis of a right-wing indoctrination is far from the truth.

I agree, it is important to look into the donors that fund an organization, but this article has not proved any connection between the cause (the donor) and the stated effect (right-wing indoctrination). Unfortunately, this is just another piece of shoddy yellow journalism.

– From Our Friends –

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Five months free in Israel? That’s crazy! I mean 10-days is audacious enough as it is, but 5 months? Crazy or not I spoke to Momo Lifshitz, founder and owner of Oranim Educational Initiatives who claims that thanks to a partnership with Masa (an initiative that helps subsidize long term study for young diaspora Jews in Israel) and some private philanthropists, he can help you weather the economic storm as you spend time in Israel learning, traveling and doing service work on a program called Israel Service Corps (ISC). For free. That’s nuts right? No. As you’ll see, it’s just Momo. As usual, my questions are in italics.

So Momo… what’s the deal here?

Momo: We are going to have at least 200 people participating in ISC through Masa. We are going to be the biggest Masa organizers thanks to this awesome, long term, service oriented Israel program – that is free!

You want to tell us what ISC is?

ISC is my dream. To bring young Jews for a significant experience in Israel, to give back, to do tikun olam, to grow up, to learn Hebrew. Basically it’s a 5-month Masa sponsored program that focuses on education and community service. It began as a pilot program based out of Ramleh and now we will have it in other smaller towns like Netivot, Acco, Arad, Haifa, Yokne’am – in as many cities as we can in Israel. On top of all that, this coming January we have an internship-based program based out of Tel Aviv that already has 50 participants working in exciting areas like high tech, business, education, hospitalty, non-profit management etc.

(more…)

Join Maitsyahu and Rabbi Yonah at the Beale Street Music Festival on May 2 4, 2008. Beale Street is one of the premier music festivals in the US —The Black Crowes, Santana, My Chemical Romance, Matisyahu, and many others— with three days of music and street parties in downtown Memphis. It’s a weekend not to miss!

*Matisyahu is headlining Saturday night, and will join festival goers Friday night, May 2 for a free shabbat dinner, just blocks from the festival stages.

*This event is FREE and geared towards Jewish college students and young professionals (ages 18-26)
and sponsored by Jewlicious, Birthright Israel NEXT, and Hillel of Memphis.

*Seating is limited to 150 — registration is strongly recommended.

RSVP For Dinner | Learn More About the Festival | Facebook Event

You may remember this video that I was in, playing the sure-to-be-Spirit-Award-winning role of "Joshie’s Mom"–announcing a competition sponsored by Taglit-birthright israel called "Let My Parents Go!"–in which a few lucky parents of birthright alumni will have the chance to go to Israel and experience the country that made their kids so enthusiastic about their identity.

Well, the video entries have come in–about 80 of them–and a team of judges narrowed the list to 18–Judaism’s magic number. The panel of judges consisted of filmmakers, journalists, educators and alumni, but now it’s your turn to vote… The nine videos with the most votes will win, sending between 9 and 18 parents or guardians to Israel for the first time.

The trip is taking place in July, so if you’re in Israel at that time–like I will be–keep your eyes peeled for a Birthright bus with a little more life experience…still, it will be a Taglit-Birthright Israel trip and the parents will experience everything an 18-26 year old would experience on their trip.

Reality show, anyone?

View the videos and vote here.

[cross-posted at MyUrbanKvetch]

Free trip to Israel, network with your peers, support for innovation and more…

Applications for the 2008 ROI Summit are due by Friday, March 28. The ROI Summit is an annual affair bringing together 120 young Jewish leaders from around the world to Jerusalem for 4 days of networking, skills sessions and fun. ROI120 attracts young Jewish leaders from all kinds of backgrounds, affiliations and orientations with the aim of creating some kind of crazy synergy. Now I know, many of you are thinking that this is yet another one of those Jew things where Jew geeks get together and talk interminably about Jew stuff. Well, you could think that but you’d be wrong. The ROI Summit has in the past united Jewish innovators as diverse as musicians, journalists, activists, writers, business men, tech geeks, bloggers, educators, environmentalists, yoga instructors, editors, animators, you name it. Each participant brought a little something different to the table and most people involved emerged from the Summit with their horizons broadened and new friends.

The strength of ROI, and this is just my personal opinion, is in its diversity. Consequently, this post is a plea for those of you who are passionate about what you do, who have projects that could use the support such a networking opportunity could bring or who have expertise that might help someone else in the furtherance of their project – this is a plea for you to consider applying – even if, actually especially if, you don’t feel you fit the typical profile of the kind of person who might be interested in something like this.

I have been involved in ROI since its inception. Since then I have participated in or personally provided assistance to people involved in many projects. ROI120 is an organization that keeps on giving. They have set up a fund that has been used to seed fund promising projects. They provide continued assistance to alumni wishing to travel to and participate in other conferences. They have facilitated reunions in Israel, Europe and the US. Everywhere I go, anywhere that cool stuff is happening, I see ROI alums working together – including, but not limited to, our recent Jewlicious Festival.

So go on. Apply. It’ll take you maybe 20 minutes to fill out the form. And if it all works out and you make it to Jerusalem, first beer’s on me. Seriously.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the support of Taglit -Birthright Israel, The Center for Leadership Initiatives, The Schusterman Foundation and the fine staff at ROI120 for making this amazing thing happen.

It really is amazing. I’m not kidding. Apply today!

Because of the rash of ill-founded attempts online to hook up Jews, like JDate, JMatch, JewishMate, Jtrue, JewHarmony, Heebhookup, Sawyouatsinaitemple, Mustlovekugel, JShtup, JewishAdultFriendFinder, HotYiddishMaidel, MarryForMoney, SemiticSex, and many many more, I realized that we need to promulgate the real Jewish views on dating in order to guide the future generations of Jews on the West Side of Jewhattan, some of whom are already third generation singles. Learning a chapter of this book each morning will help all Jews.

The following is an excerpt from Haimish L’ChaimPublished by Metzorah Press Inc. ©2003/5763 The Haimish L’Chaim Legacy Foundation

Chapter 1: Halachic Issues in Arranging a Shidduch

1. Though everyone feels qualified to be a shadchan, one must exercise great caution.[1]
2. Children born of marriages arranged by untrained shadchanim, G-d Forbid, decide to work, and not learn full-time.[2]
3. Most matchmakers are in it for the money, therefor poskim agree that you should sign pre-shidduch agreements, limiting the amount they can charge.[3]
4. In the event of a good shidduch, a shadchan receives their honorarium, according to all authorities, after the main meal is
served.[4] Some say it can be even after desert.[5]
5. Min Ha Torah[6], Parents have no right to veto or approve potential shidduchim. However, Rabbinically, they can veto a shidduch for any good reason.[7]
6. Speed dating, on-line dating, virtual dating, single-socials, venues where singles may meet, Heaven Forbid, and personal ads are strictly forbidden, because aino makom l’bnei melech.[8] They are permitted in Teaneck.[9]
7. One must first ascertain that you know very little about the potential shidduch, so that you will be impartial.[10]
8. Most authorities permit knowing just a little bit about the other party, however, this is only in a case of hefsed merubah.[11]

______________________
Footnotes
1. See Shadchanut K’Hilchasa vol.3, Meor L’Shadachan and Pri Shadchan. The
Bidet Shadchan is lenient here. Most people who get into shidduchim are looking
for quick get-rich schemes and fail to take into account the responsibility.
According to an alternative understanding of the destruction of the Second Beis
Hamikdash found in Midrash Kacha Kacha, G-d destroyed his Temple because of
poor shadchanus. The RU”M of Havana explains this apparent contradiction with
conventional understanding. Was it sinas chinam or poor shadchanus that caused
the churban, destruction? He writes that it is really no contradiction. People
enjoyed setting up their neighbors with children of families they were
incompatible with, so that their own kids could marry the desirable children from
good families. Needless to say, in order to fix the sin that caused the expulsion
from our land, and the destruction of our Holy Temple, we must learn on a daily
basis the halachos of Shidduchim. Only in this way can we hope for a restoration
of our glory, the rebuilding of the Temple, and an end to the Exile.
2. Zohar
3. See Hardsell’s® Matchmaker, Matchmaker Make Me A Match, Find Me A Find,
Catch Me A Catch, for a suggested pre-shidduch agreement text.
4. See Inyanei Chatunot, by HaRav HaGaon I. M. Broke.
5. The Meor l’Shadchan is lenient. Some say he is actually more stringent, because
he liked to serve desert first, at the Shmorgasborg, and then he had the fruit and
salad plate.
6. Somewhere it says this, trust me.
7. According to the klal in Chosen Mishpat, “Zeh sheh meshalem, hu ha boss.” In
other words, the one who will pay for the mistake gets to nix any good match if it
is financially risky.
8. See Hilchos Bnei Melech. Since it would be unseemly for President George
Bush, Shlita, to put his children into an online dating program, for example, this
is forbidden for all B’nai Yisrael, who are Children of Hashem.
9. As is known, the laws of tinok sheh’ nishbar, are more lenient in regards to
dating and other things.
10. The Alhapanim Gaon, admonishes those who think they know it all. “Who
knows it all if not Hashem. So you think you are so great that you want second-
guess Hashem? Who made you so high and mighty?” See Mussar For Dummies.
11.Commonly translated as “great financial loss.” In our context it refers to “loss
of a great shidduch.”

Remember the Let My Parents Go video that hit YouTube last month? (View it here if you don’t…)

Well, here’s the first entry, from Brooke Kaufman…

What’s the Jewlicious connection? The guide on Brooke’s trip was the same guide who conducted the Jewlicious Oranim 466 from summer of 2006! And Brooke’s right…Boaz does keep things interesting!

Aw yeah. Fun night. Got to see a few friends I hadn’t seen in a bit while enjoying the musical stylings of the Taglit-birthright israel Israelity crew along with about 500 Los Angelinos at the Avalon. Tomorrow night I’ll be in Vegas for the final installment of this bold and audacious concert tour! Stay tuned for more (any?) shenanigans. In the meantime, here’s some pics:

Michelle Citrin opened up. A consummate performer and a Taglit-birthright israel alumna, she connected well with the audience and even treated us to a new song!

Coolooloosh and Rebel Sun wowed us with their cool Jerusalem mix of hip hop, Funk and Jazz! Total booty shaking awesomeness.

They insisted I take their pic and promised to send me $5 if I put the photo online.

Subliminal and the appropriately named Shadow performed to an enthusiastic audience. More Star-of-David festooned bling than two Pico/Robertson Judaica shops, Israel’s ambassadors of Rap and their Tact Family crew rocked the uh… hizouse.

The favorite performer at countless Taglit-birthright israel mega events, an ROI120 alum and proud member of Israel’s fabled Montreal Mafia, Shai 360 was in great form, shimmying and shaking all over the stage while belting out multi-lingual rhymes.

More tomorrow from Vegas!

Taglit-birthright Israel’s first Winter group arrives

Taglit-birthright Israel’s 825th bus load of young Jews recently arrived to Israel just in time to join in all the Hanukkah fun. This group from Tashkent, brought to Israel in a trip organized by Oranim has already visited Caesaria, Haifa, the Banyas and Kfar Saba (where they met Momo!). I hope they’re not eating too many sufganiyot. Yup – birthright season has started…

With a writer’s strike in Hollywood gripping the city like a shortage of lattes, here are some Jewlicious ideas for late-night TV host Jon Stewart, whose programs were the first to suffer the effects of the WGA strike:

10. Go to Israel and study
9. Write your memoir
8. Join Jewlicious as a blogger
7. Become a slam-poet
6. Learn to bake challah
5. Start building your Monster Menorah
4. Eat falafel with ck in Machane Yehuda
3. Become a spokesman for a Jewish charity
2. Launch the independent Comedy Party
1. Be a Jewlicious Taglit-Birthright Israel trip adviser

I used to think that the guys that run Heeb Magazine were a bunch of douchebags. I was more often than not appalled by their smarmy, self congratulatory articles, their cliquish insider humor and their ethnocentrism presented in the guise of an oh-so-sophisticated world view.

Well – they’re still douchebags. Every last one of them. Oh sure, Photographer Seth Olenick is really friendly and a talented photographer, and David Kelsey is really passionate about everything, and Rebecca Wiener is a very very serious writer and Josh Neuman is… is… very astute in that way that only Yekkes can be. But still. Douchebags.

And yet… Heeb has grown and evolved by leaps and bounds. Everything gets better and better. So yeah, grab the latest issue of Heeb from the newsstand, or subscribe. The content often riles me up BUT it is always compelling. Of course, that’s not all of it. They just had to invade MY domain. I’m talking about the Internet. HeebMagazine.com has been running for a number of months now and it contains a blog section that’s pretty good. But was that enough? Noooo! They also just released the Heeb 100:

They’re young, smart and innovative… and oh yeah, they also happen to be Jewish. No, we’re not talking about the staff at Heeb Magazine; we’re talking about the second installment of the Heeb Hundred, a roundup of 100 people you need to know about. They are bloggers and newspaper publishers, comic artists and novelists, chefs and fashion designers, and while they’ve already got stellar resumes, we believe that the best is yet to come from each of them

I don’t agree with all the choices but the content was crisp, the descriptions were bite sized morsels of written yumminess that had me scrambling to Google to find out more information about the chosen yids AND they didn’t make too many obvious choices, ie “This is Shlomo. He’s from New Jersey and writes a Jewish blog (!) that uses foul language (!!) and is representative of the New Jew movement (!!!).” They’re all Jew-ish but successful and interesting (for the most part) in their own right. I spent 2 hours going through the site and I’m going back. Might I recommend you do the same thing?

And remember, Jewlicious is running a FREE trip to Israel this winter with the support of those shmeggeges at Heeb Magazine. There’s still time to register so if you haven’t – get cracking! Visit Oranim at israelfree.com, register, and choose the Jewlicious trip to get in on this fun time party action! Greatest booty shakin’ experience since cousin Marvin’s Bar Mitzvah when Aunt Fayge got down to Bootsy Collins. Good times, good times.

The free trip to Israel is a gift of Taglit-birthright israel.

Registration for this Winter’s Free Israel Trips with Taglit-birthright israel has been through the roof! We’ve gotten quite a few email with a number of questions regarding the Heeb/Jewlicious trip. First of all, if you want to go with us, visit israelfree.com and begin registration from there. Follow the directions and you will be able to choose the Heeb/Jewlicious trip when you pick your preferred date (look for specialty trips). And what about those dates? Right now, all dates are approximate. We know that we’ll be leaving late December/early January. That’s all we know. That’s all anyone knows. No dates have been released to anyone.

Some of you have asked “Why is this trip different from all other trips?” Well, it’s Rosh Hashana tonight. Not Passover. Why are we different? Read Jewlicious. Visit the Heeb Magazine Web site or pick up Heeb from your news stand. We’re not exactly, you know, conventional. None of our trip leaders have been hired because of their experience singing Kumbaya in a circle at some summer camp. We’re a little irreverent. Jewlicious and Oranim will provide you with the Israel insider perspective, while Heeb represents the very best of Shtetl fabulousness transplanted onto the Lower East side. It’s the next best thing to being on a trip led by Herzl and Spinoza. Or Ariel Sharon and Woody Allen. Except that Soon Yi doesn’t qualify.

NOTE: The Taglit-birthright israel registration process is often somewhat complex. If you haven’t managed to get to the Jewlicious / Heeb trip, pick any trip and then send an email to ellen@israelfree.com with the subject line “Jewlicious” and let her know that you want to switch to the Jewlicious trip.

this trip is a gift from Taglit-birthright israel.

So, now it can be told! This winter Jewlicious is partnering with Heeb Magazine to bring you what may very well prove to be the most err… unique Taglit-birthright israel trip ever misconceived. Imagine what happens when shwarma meets smoked salmon, when SoCalled meets Subliminal, when the very essence of diaspora Judaism clashes with hard core Zionism. And then goes on a trip for 10-days. Believe me, you want to be there. Here’s what Heeb Magazine had to say on the subject:

It’s not unusual for us to get free shit here at Heeb HQ. On a typical day, we might be sent a pet yarmulke and tallis, a survival memoir from a third generation Holocaust survivor and a hip-hop demo from a hasidic/lesbian/amputee. But today, to paraphrase a line from Passover (the holiday with indigestion, the invisible guy who likes wine and the socialization of stealing), is not like all other days. Today, we’ve been offered a free trip to Israel. The dates haven’t been announced yet, but our co-conspirators over at Jewlicious.com have convinced the powers that be at Taglit-birthright israel to invite us on one of their trips this winter. Oh yeah, one other thing: you’re invited too. Imagine that: a pilgrimage to the holy land largely consisting of barely literate, emotionally-stunted, over-sexed heebsters?!

So you want a piece of this? Starting September 5th, basically, NOW, visit the the Oranim Web site and register for your free trip to Israel. Make sure to choose Oranim as your trip provider and then select the relevant Jewlicious / Heeb trip when you get to the eligibility section. We’re under “Specialty” trips (no kidding!). You can also visit our Jewlicious trip Facebook group – just click on that link!

NOTE: The Taglit-birthright israel registration process is often somewhat complex. If you haven’t managed to get to the Jewlicious / Heeb trip, pick any trip and then send an email to ellen@israelfree.com with the subject line “Jewlicious” and let her know that you want to switch to the Jewlicious trip.

this trip is a gift from Taglit-birthright israel.

Go to Israel for FREE this winter!
With registration for Taglit-birthright israel’s next round of Winter and Spring trips to Israel coming up on September 5th, it seemed like as good a time as any to release the latest Where in Israel is Jewlicious video. This video features dancing by Adam Bakhash, Brian Adam Becker, Sarah Eisenberg, Marlise Elgart, Chana Ickowitz, Kevin Lipp as well as Liran Shachi, Robyn Zucker and Corinne Shalev, members of BR417 – the Jewlicious summer 2007 Taglit-birthright israel bus. OK, so this video is badly shot. It is kinda cheesy. Sue me, I never went to film school. But I think it is fairly representative of how much fun one of our trips are… especially this coming winter’s trips which are fortified with… vitamin H! OK, watch the video. Enjoy. And if you or anyone you know want to go to Israel this winter, for free, go to the Taglit-birthright israel Web site on September 5th and sign up with Oranim, our Taglit-birthright israel trip provider and select the Jewlicious trip…

this trip is a gift from Taglit-birthright israel.

Wow. They let us do it again. So, do you want to go to Israel this winter? For free? Well registration for the next round of free trips to Israel with Taglit-birthright israel begins September 5th. And this winter, as in past seasons, one of your many options is to go with Jewlicious. We’ve partnered with some pretty cool people to offer you a trip that is both unique and interesting. Built on the already excellent program developed by Taglit-birthright israel and Oranim (our trip provider), the Jewlicious trip will offer interesting speakers and activities, as well as top notch madrichim (trip leaders) who will supplement the trip content with their own unique perspectives – definitely not your cousin Marvin’s Taglit-birthright israel trip. More details will follow in the days and weeks to come.

What? What is vitamin H? Oh you’ll find out. We’re full of surprises…

In the meantime, visit the Oranim Web site and sign up in order to get relevant trip-related alerts. On September 5th, make sure to visit the Taglit-birthright israel Web site and register for your free trip to Israel. Make sure to choose Oranim as your trip provider and then select the relevant Jewlicious trip. You can also visit our Jewlicious trip Facebook group – just click on that link!

this trip is a gift from Taglit-birthright israel.

Who? Pay attention. I’m pretty sure this boy is going places. Marty, the author of Generation S.L.U.T.: A Brutal Feel-up Session with Today’s Sex-Crazed Adolescent Populace and a writer for magazines like Penthouse, Rolling Stone, etc. first came to my attention as a participant on our first Jewlicious Taglit-birthright israel trip. Recently he returned to Israel as a participant on ROI120. In the following video clip, we see Marty quip the light fantastic on some dumb ass Fox Television show. He’s got potential I think, can his own talk show be far behind? Stay tuned!

Taglit-birthright israel trip provider Oranim likes to pride itself on its ability to show its trip participants Israel from the perspective of Israelis, and while the number of Orthodox Jews in Israel continues to rise, Israel still remains a country that is primarily secular. Thus our bus went off to Tel Aviv where our trippers prepared to experience cosmopolitan Israel at its epicenter.

Our first stop was the colorful port of Jaffa. Once a teeming neighborhood of new immigrants it has since become a yuppie artist colony while still managing to retain its charm. The group repaired to the hotel and weekend highlights included beach time, Kabbalat Shabbat overlooking a stunning sunset, a great group session by Lisa of On The Face and, of course fun-time-party action at the Zamir club with close to 1000 Oranim trip participants.

Just as an aside, I wanted to thank Lisa for shlepping down and talking to our trippers. While Lisa is always super serious (as befits a former Canuck from Victoria, BC), she can be kinda funny. Witness her latest post where she links to this YouTube video about the latest abomination to hit Israel – Israeli salad at McDonalds. As Lisa points out, wait till the end of the video for the culinary punch line. Oh, and never, ever eat at McDonalds.

The last time I wrote about our trip, we had just made it to our hotel in Jerusalem, anticipating the extensive touring that was to take place on Thursday. The day began at the Haas Promenade. The gorgeous view served as a great backdrop to Yael’s discussion of the history of Jerusalem, from the ancient to the modern day. Following Yael’s exposé, our trippers took about 8 million pics. OK, maybe only 7 million. But that’s what one does there. The view demands it! Your only other choices are overpriced Popsicles and a stanky bathroom that costs 2 shekels to use.

Once the photo snapping frenzy abated, everyone got on the bus and we headed off to the Old City of Jerusalem where we visited the Tower of David, Jerusalem’s trademark image even though King David didn’t build it or have anything to do with it. But it sure is pretty and contains a great presentation on the history of Jerusalem through the ages. When we were done with the Tower of Whoever, we took a walk along the ramparts as we headed to the Cardo – Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter and the Kotel.

At the Kotel we went first to the Archaeological Museum by Robinson’s Arch prior to actually entering the Kotel Plaza. Liron (the blond dude below) called up his parents who got online and saw him waving via the Kotel Cam. Neat! Some of our trippers, without any prodding from me, accepted offers to put on Teffilin from the Chabad table, while others simply meditated and/prayed by the Kotel. It was, as it always is, a moving experience.

As an added bonus, we got to see a Nahal Brigade practice for their IDF induction ceremony that was going to take place that evening. Oh! Who is that goofy looking guy second from the left? Why that’s Meier – a lone soldier who seems to have moved into my apartment! Congrats Meier, I can’t believe they’re giving you a gun… As an added bonus, this will probably be the very last time you’ll see these soldiers looking so, uh… kempt. Israeli soldiers don’t have time for decorum and fancy uniforms.

Afterwards we did the usual shopping in the Old City, visiting King David’s Grave (where King David is definitely not buried) and a small, but touching Holocaust Museum. Things were running late so we missed going to the Shuk – Jerusalem’s Central Market, but hopefully when our trip participants return to Israel on their own, they’ll go there and shop for veggies. Or hummus. Or something.