[NOTE: Because of the Gilot open thread earlier today, I decided to look up Jonas Salk and get up to speed on some of the details of his life. What I found was interesting enough, and relevant enough to today, … Continue reading →
[NOTE: This is a reposting of an old piece of mine that I think could use another go-round. The reason is that I often see people reference the idea that the Jews of Germany ignored or rationalized or denied or … Continue reading →
Here’s what happened: The vote to yank Omar (D-Minn.) from the powerful panel after a heated floor debate broke along party lines, with 218 Republicans voting to strip her of the assignment and 211 Democrats backing their colleague. One Republican, … Continue reading →
[NOTE: This is a slightly edited version of a previous post.] This is the seventh night of Chanukah, and I wish everyone a happy one. Chanukah is about a successful revolt and a miracle of light: The miracle of the … Continue reading →
Young people probably have no idea about that happened back then. But those of us who are older certainly remember. It was stunningly shocking at the time, and even worse because it occurred in Germany at what was supposed to … Continue reading →
This weekend we discussed “the elites” on this thread, and I mentioned that Thomas Sowell had written an entire book on the highly related subject of Intellectuals and Society. Here’s a short discussion with him about it, during the Obama … Continue reading →
The title of this post is taken from the title of a book of photographs by Roman Vishniac, of Jewish life in Eastern Europe in the 1930s. Here is the story of how the photos were taken: …[B]etween 1934 and … Continue reading →
After writing about Midge Decter’s death yesterday, I looked up her husband Norman Podhoretz. I was pretty sure he was still alive, and sure enough, he is – at 92. Decter was 94. So there’s a lot of longevity in … Continue reading →
Hatred of Jews isn’t a new thing for Russia, which in addition to all the rest of its propaganda has specialized in anti-Jewish propaganda for a long time. The Tsarist-era fabrication “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion” is the … Continue reading →
[The following is a slightly edited repeat of a previous post.] Tonight is the beginning of the Jewish holiday Passover. I’ve been impressed by the fact that Passover is a religious holiday dedicated to an idea that’s not solely religious: … Continue reading →
It’s complicated: Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky declared Tuesday that, when the war is finally over, Ukraine would emerge from the rubble a “big Israel.” He meant that the war would never really be over, that Ukraine would be on a … Continue reading →
I was very surprised, when Zelenskyy was elected, to learn that he was Jewish. The first surprise was that there were any Jews left in Ukraine at all, given the history of Jews there. The second was that the Ukrainians … Continue reading →