Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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At a synagogue talk I recently gave, the topic turned to the treatment of Israel’s Arab citizens. A woman in the audience was obviously upset. “You talk about the Israeli Arabs, but how much more should we give them?” she asked. “They have schools, they get health care, they can get jobs. Isn’t that enough?” This, in my business, is known as a “slow pitch.” “You’re right, you don’t have to give the Israeli Arabs anything,” I said. “But the real question is, what kind of country do you want Israel to be? We call it the only real democracy in th... Full story
Here’s a Jewish joke I just made up: The pro-Israel activist goes to see a doctor. The doctor says, “I have some good news and some bad news.” The pro-Israel activist says, “Just give me the bad news.” If that made you smile, even a little, then you probably read a lot of Jewish websites or the fund-raising letters that come from Jewish organizations. The tone is relentlessly gloomy. They portray an Israel that is besieged militarily, isolated diplomatically, divided internally. Even the good news is served with a dose of medicine. “Sure, Is... Full story
Is Nate Silver destroying our ability to argue? When I was a kid, my parents would have what I would call “encyclopedia” arguments. Say, did FDR die on April 12 or April 13? They would marshal personal history (“My cousin’s birthday was April 12”), dubious logic (“If I remember our anniversary, how would I forget a date like Roosevelt’s yahrtzeit?”), and ad hominem attacks (“Oh, you can never admit when you’re wrong….”). This could go on for an entire evening, while I was thinking, “Just look it up in the World Book, for God’s sake.” Of course,... Full story
Every now and then I like to take a break from dissecting the Jewish world’s problems and solving the Middle East crisis by writing a humor piece. I can’t remember the serious columns I write from one week to the next, but I’ll never forget having compared the Muslim Brotherhood with the Temple Brotherhood, or having composed the award-winning poem “I’m a Jew Who Went to State School and I Don’t Care What You Think.” I write a lot of humor for my blog, JustASC; this week I had fun with President Obama’s visit to Israel and wrote a respons... Full story
When I went to Hebrew school in the 1970s, we were still using textbooks from the 1950s. The girls in the illustrations wore short dresses and Mary Janes; the boys wore pie-sized yarmulkes, shorts, and neckties—in their homes! Somehow I grew up to live a highly engaged Jewish life, but not until I shook off a perception that Judaism was for, well, prim little girls and nerdy boys with neckties and gigantic yarmulkes. Apparently I wasn’t the only one. Lately I’ve noticed a number of Jewish organizations and individuals marketing thems... Full story
