[NOTE: The following article actually appeared in the NY Times. But since the Times is behind a firewall, I’m linking instead to this copy of the piece. Note also that it is about Rabbi Herschel Schacter, whose last name has … Continue reading →
In the Heidi Klum thread, commenter “JuliB” asks: Any comment on the uproar over Joan Rivers saying that the last time a German looked so hot, they were pushing Jews into the oven? Well, yes. When I read the Joan … Continue reading →
[NOTE: This is a repeat of a previous post.] I’m currently reading Francine Prose’s Anne Frank: the book, the life, the afterlife. It’s about the process by which Anne Frank wrote and then rewrote her diary, with an eye to … Continue reading →
…is going the way of the dodo: Increasing apathy, particularly from younger patrons, has driven traditional Jewish delicatessens from their mid-century pinnacle. The decline seems to be accelerating partly because of health concerns over the schmaltz-spread fare and partly because … Continue reading →
…and former NY Mayor Ed Koch is dead of heart failure at 88. He was mayor from ’78 to ’89. The adjectives that quickly come to my mind—and probably to everybody’s mind—when thinking of him are colorful, flamboyant, outspoken. He … Continue reading →
Scene at the Western Wall in Jerusalem: But don’t despair–maybe the snow’s a good sign: YNetNews spoke to “prominent kabbalist” Rabbi David Batzri who said the snow was an indicator of forgiveness from God. “The kabbalists torment themselves and pray … Continue reading →
…Hagel’s best friends are Jews. The Sun doesn’t care. Neither do I. The Sun’s editorial staff writes: His private views are not what we care about. What we care about is the policy line to which Mr. Hagel would hew … Continue reading →
…of Seraphic Secret tells the tale of how he become a gun owner. [Hat tip: commenter “IGotBupkis.” And by the way, as a public service to those of you who don’t know the meaning of the word bupkis, it means—well, … Continue reading →
…seems to be intent on expanding his program of spiteful appointments. My favorite line: As he sees it, to paraphrase Jim Baker, “F#&k the Jews, they voted for us anyway.” Yes. And I don’t think that Hagel’s appointment as Secretary … Continue reading →
You know, the one about the Jewish mother and the ties? It goes like this: a Jewish mother gives her son two ties for his birthday. He goes upstairs, gets dressed, puts one on, and comes down, beaming, to show … Continue reading →
Chanukah began last Saturday night, but since it has eight days I still get a chance to wish you a happy one—for two more days, anyway. The words of this Chanukah song in Yiddish—written in 1924 before the Holocaust and … Continue reading →
This describes a pretty ghastly, though thankfully rare, way that a some descendents of Holocaust survivors are paying tribute to their aging relatives: having the elderly survivors’ camp numbers tattooed on their own arms. The 10 tattooed descendants interviewed for … Continue reading →