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A Beautiful Peek Into Our History

rabbifink — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 19:57:17 +0000

When we think of 19th and early 20th century history, we think of everything in greyscale. It’s not our fault, picture and films from the era have clouded our ability to see those times in color.

Much of that era’s Jewish history is captured in black and white photos from Europe. It gives rise to a sense that their time was one of darkness and sadness, devoid of color. Of course this is completely false. (In fact, many would counter that the black and white mode of dress common among many orthodox Jews is more doom and gloom than the the modes of dress present in the 19th and early 20th century.)

I happened upon a selection of absolutely stunning color photographs taken in Russia in the early 20th century before the world was thrust in upheaval during the First World War. The photos are in full technicolor and they tell a compelling story with almost garish colors and of people unaccustomed to photography¹.

The article shows 34 photos. They are all worthy of your attention. However, I call your attention to Photo #16. (click for full frame version)

A group of Jewish children with a teacher in Samarkand, (in modern Uzbekistan), ca. 1910. (Prokudin-Gorskii Collection/LOC)

This photo shows Jewish children studying with their teacher. I find it beautiful. The boys are attentive. They are wearing various styles of yarmulkas. The teacher looks regal. They are sharing their books. And the CLOTHES are amazing! This is a rare, colorful and bright view of a Jewish Education of a century ago.

Some of my great-grandparents were in “White Russia” in 1910. They may have known these boys, they may even be one of these boys.

I feel so blessed to have seen this picture and I am pleased to share it with you.

Head on over to Russia in color, a century ago to see all the photos. Enjoy them.

Compare that to the era of camera phones and Facebook photo albums, we are ALWAYS taking photos and we know just how to behave and act when we are being photographed. The subjects in these photos look almost as if they do not believe that a picture is being taken

Humanitarian Crisis in Nigeria

rabbifink — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 16:33:34 +0000

Child Witches in Nigeria

I saw this CNN article on a friend’s Facebook page.

There is a severe humanitarian crisis in Nigeria. I don’t know how much we can do to help but I think the crisis is emblematic of social issues in our culture as well.

Innocent children are being physically abused, even tortured or killed because they are thought to be witches. If a child can be blamed for a tragedy or illness by claiming they are a witch they will be outcast, then beaten and then abandoned to rid the community of the witch.

Lack of education combined with the abject poverty these folks live under contributes to the social environment that allows for witch hunts. Lack of education and poverty in our country contribute to most of our social ills as well. Fear of the unknown contributes to hate and hate crime. While I don’t think we can do that much to change the environment in Nigeria (Do Not Send Your Money To Nigerian Spammers!) we can make changes in our communities to help every child get an education and have an opportunity to climb out of poverty.

The video talks about a great man who is not gripped in the beliefs of these people and does everything he can for the accused witches. He maintains an orphanage for the abandoned and tortured children and unfortunately his facility is bursting at the seams.

There is a Facebook Page where you can help these children: Click here.

I suggest watching the video below and reading the original article on CNN.

One side note: According to the CNN article the exorcism and excommunication occurring in Nigeria is being done in Churches. It is being done with Pastors. It is a religious ceremony and considered to be part of Christianity.

I am sure nearly all American Christians would vehemently disagree with the beliefs and tactics of the Nigerian Christians. I think it is worthwhile noting that religious folks in Third World Countries living in poverty with little or no education tend to act irrationaly, violently and are extreme in their beliefs. This applies equally to Christians, Jews and yes, Muslims too.

Just something worth thinking about…

CNN Video:

CNN Article: Children abused, killed as witches in Nigeria

Ikea Gedola

rabbifink — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 03:23:10 +0000

Here is something that will get you in the High Holiday spirit.

Sometimes I see video on YouTube that I cannot help but share with you.

This 13 second gem was sent to me by a friend.

It appeals to my sense of humor. It actually made me laugh. Background story below…

Enjoy.

How did this happen?

My friend was in crazy traffic (not crazy like the 3 month backup in China) and he had his tallis and shofar in the car and his friend had a camera. They were passing an Ikea and my friend chuckles to himself Ikeaaaa (sounds like Tekiaaaah) and the video was born…

(Further explanation: The shofar makes three sounds. One is called tekia. On Rosh Hashana someone calls out each shofar blast before it is blown. So before tekia he chants “tekiaaa”.)

Ground Zero Mosque vs. Downtown Manhattan Islamic Cultural Center: Video Debate

rabbifink — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 05:42:32 +0000

I honestly cannot believe that this story still has legs.

Silly me. I actually thought that if people knew the truth about Cordoba House they would simply cease to oppose its existence. (See: The Mosque at Ground Zero Has A Marketing Problem)

Yet, weeks later, people still call it a mosque and people still think it is being built at Ground Zero and people still think it is being funded by Osama bin Laden and it will become a terror cell and the reason they are building the mosque is to proclaim victory for Islam etc etc etc.

I have seen several videos about the issue. I have placed two of the videos on this page. Watch them both and you decide who makes the more cogent, reasoned, fair arguments.

I present you with Keep America Safe’s latest video:

And I present you with Keith Olbermann (with whom I rarely agree):

Why Blogging Is Good

rabbifink — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 18:01:51 +0000

On Twitter, someone (HT below) linked to this Verizon ad. I confess to never seeing the ad on TV but I commend Verizon for putting their ads on YouTube. Sometimes ads are art. This is one of those times.

I also admit to using Verizon for absolutely zero services. I don’t like them very much, I think their logo is dated, their name is weird and their customer service is deplorable. But I know a good ad when I see one.

Do I think this ad translates into sales? Probably not.

It remains an excellent piece of art.

Before Web 2.0 (user created content on the web) the public were consumers and not producers of content. That meant that a very select group of advantaged people became the voice of the people. Their opinions were the only opinions that mattered. This goes contrary to the American spirit of “We the People”.

That has all changed. The people have a voice. That voice is important (and can be disconcerting when we lose it, see: Your Unique Voice and A Kafkaesque Experience). YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, (which will become YouTwitFace in the year 3000) Blogging and commenting are the voice of the people. It is an almost completely democratic universe. If your content is good, people will read it or watch or discuss it. It’s a win for everyone.

If you don’t get it – watch the ad.

This ad gets it.

HT: HannabiNYC

An Interesting Alternative to Prison

rabbifink — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 18:03:56 +0000

I have visited a prison and a jail. (My Visit With Judith Clark at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility) I have learned a lot about the failures of our current system of incarceration and it sickens me. As a (realtively) outspoken individual I have made my opinions known to anyone who will listen.

I tell them that I am against prison in principle. I don’t think anyone should go to prison. It’s a waste of money and far worse it is a waste of a human being. People accomplish almost nothing while incarcerated. Society gives them a free ride and they produce next to nothing for society.

The first response I hear is usually related to the safety of society. That somehow we, on the outside, are safer if the criminals are isolated, on the inside. While this is generally true, most crimes do not affect the middle or upper class of society . Most crimes are not violent. Most criminals that go to prison have someone step into their place in their social circle and the crimes continue. I know this is a pretty weak position, but I think that incarceration is also a weak position.

The next thing that I hear is almost always a challenge. “Do you have a better solution?” To which I have been saying “I think so”. Prisons are as an old insitution. They hearken back to a time that it was the only option for incapacitation. The loss to society caused by providing criminals with a prison was worthwhile because there was no other real option. Incarceration is a old system that was the best they could do.

I propose that criminals be monitored. Conviction of a crime is a waiver of one’s privacy. There is no privacy in jail. Instead of tossing them in a cell and monitoring that way, criminals should be monitored by corrections officers. They can be mother or fathers to their families. They must find jobs, they must be productive members of society and only if they lapse back into crime would they go to jail.

To me, this was a sci-fi idea that I had no way of determining its effectiveness or cost. Monitoring was a idea, but just an idea with no real data to back up the idea.

Last week I read a very well written article in The Atlantic (I don’t regularly read The Atlantic, I saw the article linked on Gizmodo) about Monitoring.

It demonstrates the feasibility of the idea and its preference over incarcertation for all but the most dangerous criminals. It explains how badly the current system is failing and the attractiveness of this alternative solution.

I highly recommend the article and I highly recommend the system as described in the article.

Currently, it costs about $50,000 a YEAR to incarcerate a criminal in California. No wonder we have a budget crisis. Monitoring is a much cheaper solution. It is a more humane solution. It is a more productive solution. It is the solution of the future.

The only question that remains is how long will it take us to reach “the future”.

I say, the future is now.

Link: Prison Without Walls

Chinese Jews Returning to Their Roots

rabbifink — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 15:56:10 +0000

One of the more remarkable things that has occurred in the last 50 years is the shrinking of the world. Planes fly to even the most remote locations across the globe and high-speed fiber-optic cable connects the entire global community. I can virtually visit famous landmarks and have face to face conversations with people anywhere.

Almost 2000 years ago, the established Jewish community was based in the Land of Israel. Jews were living in Europe, North Africa and Babylonia as well, but the main community was centered around the Temple and communal religious life in Israel. The Temple was destroyed almost 2000 years ago and the diaspora began. Slowly, Jews migrated all over the world. Most prominently, the communities of Eastern Europe, the Medditeranean Basin and Babylonia established large Torah communities and much of Judaism today is the product of the generations of Jews who lived in those regions.

With the shrinking of the world, Jews from all backgrounds and ethnicities have become familiar with one another and a global Jewish community has evolved.

Recently, I was sent an audio link (by Judd Magilnick) to a lecture given by Rabbi Marvin Tokayer. Rabbi Tokayer is an expert on the Jews of the Far East. His lecture was fascinating and it opened my eyes to an ancient Jewish community in China that I had only heard whispers of until recently.

Today, The Forward has a very interesting article about some Yeshiva students in Jerusalem who are Chinese. They hail from the Kaifeng Chinese Community and are trying to reinvigorate their lives and hometown with Judaism.

The only disappointing part of the article was the continued references to Marranos. The term Marrano refers to Jews who converted to Christianity during the Spanish inquistion but tried to keep their Judaism underground. They faced threats to their life and yet managed to keep many Jewish traditions alive for several generations. The word first meant pig and is a pejorative term for referring to these Jews. I prefer the more PC term of Converso.

Still, I highly recommend the article and I am hoping to continue to learn more about the Jews of the Far East.

The Forward Article: Israel’s Keenest Yeshiva Students

Father of Adolph Hitler Campbell Loses Custody

rabbifink — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 15:08:48 +0000

Way back in the embryonic stages of this blog I wrote about a father who was denied a birthday cake by a local Shoprite for his son’s birthday.

The reason? The store refused to write the child’s name on the cake.

That child’s name? Adolph Hitler Campbell. (Adolf Hitler Campbell can’t get a birthday cake)

A little while later, I reported that the child, along with his siblings were taken into protective services. (Breaking News! Ad@lf Hitl&r Campbell Update)

Following an appeal, Heath Campbell (the father) has lost custody of his children.

The ruling is not based upon the names of the children: Adolf Hitler Campbell, 4, JoyceLynn Aryan Nation Campbell, 3, and Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie Campbell, 2. Rather, it seems Mr. Campbell has a bit of a mean streak. In a shocking development it was discovered that Heath Campbell used excessive violence and threats of violence against his children and his wife.

It is sad that these kids will grow up with the most offensive names in the world and now, without a father. But I suppose it is for their best…

And as a lesson to all of us, always treat your kids right, and that starts with naming them with a proper name.

(And a lesson to others, if you are too violent, depraved or moronic to procreate – DON’T! Thanks.)

Become a Fan of Pacific Jewish Center on Facebook

rabbifink — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 18:20:22 +0000

As you can see I have added a widget to the sidebar that will allow you to “Like” Pacific Jewish Center on Facebook.

If you read this blog you are part of the PJC community and you should definitely “Like” us. So please be a pal, and “Like” us today! Certainly, if you have come to the Shul on the Beach at any point in time or join us on a regular basis you should “Like” us.

You can “like” PJC on the right hand side of this blog. Just click the “Like” next to the “thumbs up”.

If you can think of anything that should be added to the Facebook Page please let me know and I will try and make it happen!

To visit the Pacific Jewish Center Facebook Page click here: PJC on Facebook

Changing Demographics in Monsey and Rockland County (Data)

rabbifink — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 00:50:23 +0000

I am visiting my hometown of Monsey NY this summer. My family still lives in Monsey so I always keep tabs on some the news and goings on in Monsey. This morning a fascinating post on LoHud.com (the Rockland County newspaper’s website).

The post confirms what everyone in Monsey and Rockland already knows, there has been a severe demographic shift over the last 30 years. You can see it with your eyes if you visit Rockland County and in particular Monsey. But seeing the data as presented by the post really drove home the stark reality.

According the post these are the most popular baby names over the last 30 years:

The 5 most popular names in 1990:

Males: Michael, Christopher, Daniel, John, Matthew
Females: Jessica, Amanda, Nicole, Samantha, Sarah

This represents a strong Anglo community. The names are typical of Christian families and middle to upper class Americans.

The 5 most popular names in 2000:

Males: Michael, Matthew, Joseph, John, Nicholas
Females: Sarah, Samantha, Jessica, Nicole, Julia and Kayla (tied)

Again, a very typical list that is still consistent with a diverse community.

The 5 most popular names in 2008:

Males: Joseph, Michael, Moshe, David, Abraham
Females: Esther, Rachel, Rivka, Chaya, Leah

Wow! All the names are consistent with Orthodox Jewish baby names. There are 0 Christian names. There are 0 female names that are not HEBREW! And there are 0 non-Jewish names for males.

Again, it just confirms what we all know. But the data makes it even more powerful.

Link: What’s Rockland’s most popular baby name?

Chai Lifeline, Camp Simcha in Times Square Singing a Message of Hope

rabbifink — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:31:18 +0000

Chai Lifeline is a nice Jewish organization that does amazing things for children with terminal diseases and other medical problems. They have a nice website where you can see their mission statement and some of the other things that they do here: Chai Lifeline.

Their flagship program is called Camp Simcha.

Camp Simcha is a camp for cancer children and they vow to give these children the most fun and inspiring summer of their life (until next summer, hopefully).

Camp Simcha pulled off a really great stunt in Times Square this week. They got permits and arranged all the necessary medical logistics to make it happen.

Apparently, the camp adopted the theme song of the World Cup for their camp theme song. The song is Wavin Flags by K’naan. It is a great song with a really powerful and inspiring message. But for these kids, the messages impact is compounded. (Videos all the way at the bottom of the post)

Here are the lyrics:

When I get older I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom, just like a wavin’ flag

When I get older, I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom just like a wavin’ flag
And then it goes back, and then it goes back
And then it goes back, oh

Born to a throne, stronger than Rome
A violent prone, poor people zone
But it’s my home, all I have known
Where I got grown, streets we would roam

Out of the darkness, I came the farthest
Among the hardest survival
Learn from these streets, it can be bleak
Accept no defeat, surrender, retreat

So we struggling, fighting to eat
And we wondering when we’ll be free
So we patiently wait for that fateful day
It’s not far away, but for now we say

When I get older I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom just like a wavin’ flag
And then it goes back, and then it goes back
And then it goes back, oh

So many wars, settling scores
Bringing us promises, leaving us poor
I heard them say ‘love is the way’
‘Love is the answer,’ that’s what they say

But look how they treat us, make us believers
We fight their battles, then they deceive us
Try to control us, they couldn’t hold us
‘Cause we just move forward like Buffalo Soldiers

But we struggling, fighting to eat
And we wondering, when we’ll be free
So we patiently wait for that faithful day
It’s not far away but for now we say

When I get older I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom just like a wavin’ flag
And then it goes back, and then it goes back
And then it goes back, and then is goes

When I get older I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom just like a wavin’ flag
And then it goes back, and then it goes back
And then it goes back, and then it goes
And then it goes

And everybody will be singing it
And you and I will be singing it
And we all will be singing it

When I get older I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom just like a wavin’ flag
And then it goes back, and then it goes back
And then it goes back, and then it goes

When I get older I will be stronger
They’ll call me freedom just like a wavin’ flag
And then it goes back, and then it goes back
And then it goes back, oh

When I get older, when I get older
I will be stronger just like a wavin’ flag
Just like a wavin’ flag, just like a wavin’ flag
Flag, flag, just like a wavin’ flag

Anyway, the kids and staff sang this song with their flags in Times Square. It was pretty awesome, unfortunately the videos are pretty poor. But you get the idea anyway.

Enjoy.

View from the front:

View from the back:

And a real version of the song:

Message From Auschwitz: I Will Survive

rabbifink — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 14:06:50 +0000

This post has been cross-posted to DovBear: Dancing at Auschwitz

Everyone has been talking about this video.

From the description:

On a recent trip to Europe, a family of three generations (a Holocaust survivor, his daughter and his grandchildren) dance to Gloria Gaynor’s pop song – ‘I Will Survive’ at concentration camps and memorials throughout Europe.

This dance is a tribute to the tenacity of the human spirit and a celebration of life.

Is it appropriate for a survivor and his family to celebrate their survival in this manner? Everyone seems to have an opinion.

When I saw it, I was not “offended”, but then again, I am a 4th generation American. I have no Holocaust scars in my direct ancestry. It’s possible I am not as sensitive as I ought to be about this.

Having said that, I prefer to see this family as the modern day Rabbi Akiva who laughed when he saw the great Temple in ruins. When his weeping comrades asked him how he could cry at such a sight he reminded them that just as the destruction of the Temple was predicted, so too the rebuilding of the Temple and the return from exile was predicted.

Rabbi Akiva survived and he was confident that we would survive as a people. He was confident we would survive with our hopes and dreams intact even after witnessing a horrible event like the destruction of the Temple and the deaths of the thousands of Jews living in Jerusalem. The ever present optimism for the future has been a calling card for Jewish people for two millennia and Rabbi Akiva practically invented it.

On the eve of Tisha B’Av my father told me a wonderful Torah thought. At the end of the second chapter of Makkos there is an argument between Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Yehuda. Rabbi Yehuda holds that if a man is exiled as punishment for a negligent homicide, when his term completes he cannot return to his position of authority (like prince of the tribe) that he held before his exile. Rabbi Meir holds that one returning from exile can reclaim his position of authority. Halachically we follow Rabbi Yehuda. But Rabbi Meir was the student of Rabbi Akiva. It seems that Rabbi Akiva had integrated this lesson into his worldview and taught it to his student Rabbi Meir. Rabbi Akiva had such optimism that the Jewish people would return from their exile and reclaim the lofty position in Israel, with the Temple that he laughed when he saw its destruction.

Seems to me, these folks are students of Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Meir. We need optimism. We need hope for the future. We need to be confident in our future. Dancing at Auschwitz tells me that these folks have that optimism.

FYI: The video has been taken off YouTube several times already for “Copyright Infringement”. There are new versions on YouTube but I bet they get taken down eventually as well. So I grabbed this video from WeJew.Com. It’s a sad commentary on our litigious society that this video was taken down…

Tisha B’Av 5770 / 2010

rabbifink — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:42:46 +0000

At sundown this evening, the 9th of Av, Jews all around the world will begin a 25 hour period of mourning. We mourn the loss of the great Temple in Jerusalem, and all that it symbolized. We lament the loss of our national unity and the special Temple connection. We hope and pray for a complete redemption and the messianic era of peace, harmony and sprirituality.

(Read my thoughts on Tisha B’Av from last year: Mourning The Living On The 9th of Av)

Most people are familiar with the custom to fast for 25 hours as a sign of our mourning. We suffer to try and feel what we are missing. For many people, Tisha B’Av is a fast day and nothing else.

That is tragic.

Over on DovBear, (God’s Thoughts on Tisha B’Av) my good friend Henoch has posted a very insightful anecdote from Zecharia Chapter 7:

As the second Temple was being rebuilt, the Jews had been keeping the 4 fast days related to the destruction for the last 70 years. It occurred to residents of Bavel that perhaps these fasts were obsolete. After all, the Temple was being rebuilt, so why would they continue to mourn over its destruction? They assembled a delegation to go to Jerusalem where the halachic question would be brought to the leadership that still included Neviim. The answer given by God through Zechariah Hanavi is quite surprising and would be considered completely inappropriate had anyone else given that answer.

At first the question of whether to fast or not, is ignored. Then Zechariah said in the name of God that when Jews eat at times that they deem appropriate, or fast when they decide to fast, they do so because it is what they think will serve their own interests. It isn’t necessarily for the right reasons. Zechariah essentially states that our idea of fasting misses the mark and even questions its’ sincerity. He then goes further and says in the name of God what would be a more proper approach to the subject. He says that the correct approach to this problem is to
“Execute true judgment, and show mercy and compassion every man to his brother and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart.”
Being that the Jews ignored these basic ideas, they were exiled and scattered across the world.

God is looking at us and saying, it is quite simple, and it has always been quite simple. I don’t want false piety or even grand programs that are limited to fasting and davening. If you want to do them, that is your decision. But don’t lose sight of what I want. God says “I want honesty, compassion and love”.

We cannot allow the secondary customs and practices to become primary. We cannot become so wrapped up in our customs, such as fasting, and forget the direct commandments from God.

We know what we need to do.

Please do not merely fast this year on Tisha B’Av. Take the lessons of Zecharia 7 and try to be the best we can be in all of our actions.

For a summary of the laws and customs of Tisha B’Av click here: Tisha B’Av – Aish.com.

Pacific Jewish Center on Gizmodo.com (well, not really)

rabbifink — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:33:51 +0000

Last night I saw an interested post on Gizmodo.com, a favorite technology blog of mine.

Google Maps has sattelite pictures of nearly the entire world. When you take pictures of everything, you’re going to catch some funny things.

Google has satelite pictures and “Street View” pictures which are (the ultimate stalking tool and) depict the view from the street. Most of the wacky Google Maps pictures are Street View pictures.

For a change, Gizmodo found a really cool satellite picture.

A crazy looking plane just above a residential street was spotted.

The street was Rose Avenue. The cross street was Lincoln Avenue. That is exactly where the Pacific Jewish Center Annex is located. Sure enough, the satellite photo of our annex has a crazy looking plane in the picture.

Original post and photo on Gizmodo: Google Maps Catches Airplane Cruising Down a California Street

(Click the photo to enlarge)

My Visit to the Museum of Tolerance at the Simon Wiesenthal Center

rabbifink — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 21:09:47 +0000

This summer I took a class at Loyola Law School called Hate Speech Seminar. The course was very discussion based with some non-traditional law school reading. We also read the key First Amendment (Free Speech) cases and important Law Review articles on regulating hate speech.

I learned a lot.

Part of the course was a trip to the Museum of Tolerance at the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

I took my tour of the museum today. What follows are some general impressions.

The museum is impressive. It is modern, hi-tech, welcoming and imformative. I have been to a number of the more prominent Holocaust Museums and exhibits. The Museum of Tolerance takes a unique twist on the Holocaust that I personally found more relevant than some of the other attempts to memorialize the Holocaust.

Perhaps most telling is the non-Holocaust exhibits. There museum has a universal message of tolerance and love that I can really relate to. I saw exhibits on segregation and prejudice. The truth is that even if there was no Holocaust exhibit, these exhibits made the trip worthwhile.

The Holocaust section focuses on the prejudices that existed in 1930′s Germany. The presentations are slick and grab your attention. The manner in which the information is presented is more like Epcot Center than a High School classroom. They use multimedia in a non-obtrusive way to convery their message.

The homage to shtetl life was sweet but I felt not entirely accurate. The romanticization of Jewish life in pre-war Europe is common and I only expected better from the MOT because they were so good at everything else they did.

As always, I was very drawn to the artifacts and Judaica on display. I absolutely love seeing real, used “things” from a time long gone. To see a Torah Scroll that was used hundreds of years ago, with its beautiful hebrew calligraphy and adorned with exquisite silver jewelry is very powerful for me. I also really enjoyed the day to day items on display. The collection includes a Cholent Pot from 19th century Germany. It is earthenware and marked with the words “Cholent Pot” and beneath that it has the family name. It looks really nice.

The overall theme of the Holocaust exhibit is that we all have biases. We need to work hard to overcome our prejudices to lead a more tolerant life. I agree whole-heartedly with that message and support the Museum of Tolerance in its work to disseminate that message.

If you are in LA or visiting Los Angles, make a few hour stop at the MOT. It will have an effect on you for a long time.

Mr. Miller is Honored by the City of Baltimore and I’m Still Riding His Coattails

rabbifink — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 17:09:37 +0000

Photo: Baltimore Sun

On Friday, my Bubby called me to tell me that I was quoted in the Baltimore Sun.

My math teached, Mr. Paul Miller was officially recognized by the City of Baltimore for his amazing accomplishment of teaching for 75 years, and he’s not done yet!

The Baltimore Sun did a nice write up and I was quoted at the end of the article.

They just lifted some lines from my blog post about Mr. Miller. I was not asked and they did not provide a URL. Is that okay?

They also called me a “blogger from the Pacific Jewish Center”. Yes, I do have a blog, but is that a better credential than rabbi? Wait, do bloggers get paid more or less than Rabbis?

HT: My Bubby and a friend from High School (fellow Mr. Miller student)

Link: Teacher honored after 75 years in the classroom

Attorney Nathan Lewin On Anti-Semitism In Rubashkin Case

rabbifink — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 19:09:42 +0000

This post has been cross-posted to DovBear: Rubashkin’s Lawyer On Claims of Anti-Semitism

I was shocked when I saw this.

If you read the frum papers you have been told that Rubashkin was singled out for being a Jew. We call this anti-Semitism.

I have gone on record saying that I don’t see the anti-Semitism here. (Is the Rubashkin Saga / Trial Anti-Semitic? and Are the goyim out to get Sholom Rubashkin?: Why he isn’t a victim of anti-Semitism).

I have been chastised by commenters on this blog and on DovBear. They maintain that Rubashkin is a victim of a modern-day blood libel and my post was irresponsible and erroneous.

What does Rubashkin’s attorney say?

Defense lawyers dismissed any notion that anti-Semitism underpinned the case. “Nobody responsible has made that allegation,” Lewin said.

Link

Well that settles it. The frum newspapers, irate commenters and Shabbos Table (selective) ACLU members are simply not responsible.

Incredibly, I did not see a single frum news outlet report this quote from Lewin.

Case closed.

HT: ThinkGood_

Lessons in Anti-Semitism From Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean

rabbifink — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 17:15:18 +0000

A little while ago I read the unfortunately mis-titled book, Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean.

I say unfortunately mis-titled because the book was excellent but it really was not about Jewish Pirates and certainly was not limited at all to the Caribbean.

The book was good because it tells the story of some of the most famous Converso Jews following the Spanish and Porteguese Inquisition. The well footnoted text gave me a better appreciation for the 15 century Mediterranean Jews, their struggles and their success.

Perhaps above all, as I was reading the book I found myself with a greater appreciation for Sephardi Jews.

I read Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean piecemeal. Every few weeks I would pick it up again and read another section. Meanwhile, in the real world, the Rubashkin saga has been dominated Jewish headlines. All the while, playing the victim card and charges of anti-Semitism in the legal system abound. The contrast of the Rubashkin campaigns and the reactions of the Conversos was striking.

Following decades of persecution and systematic genocide, the Jews of Spain and Portugal were forced northward. Many settled in Amsterdam. The local government tolerated the Jews but there were some blatantly anti-Jewish laws. The Jews were able to practice Judaism and in many respects they thrived there. For these refugee Jews, life was tough. It was not easy being Jewish.

The book follows the story of some of the Amsterdam Jews.

Not once, did I see a reference to “anti-Semitism”. The Meditteranean Jews did not deal with their persecution by labeling it as anti-Semitism. I did not see any attempt to portray themselves as victims or the “lamb among the lions”.

Ashkenazic Jews were also persecuted heavily. They were ousted from many countries and killed in many genocides. To cope with the hate and bloodshed, anti-Semitism was “blamed”.

This got me thinking. My impression of the current Sephardic Jewry landscape is very similar. I don’t recall hearing accusations of anti-Semitism when it comes to Sephardic Jews. Just last summer Solomon Dwek was arrested on Federal charges of bank fraud. This criminal pled guilty and awaits sentencing. I did not hear a peep about any anti-Semitism in his investigation.

Dwek is Sephardic.

Contrast that with the bank fraud that Rubashkin has been charged with. I have spoke to otherwise reasonable people who are convinced the whole thing is a plot by the anti-Semitic government. They say things like “this is how it was in Germany 1935″.

Rubashkin is not Sephardic.

I have a feeling that they heritage play a role in our collective reactions.

On one level, it seems that Sephardic Jewry never had a culture of blaming anti-Semitism while Ashkenazik Jewry has been crying about anti-Semitism for six centuries and using the term for around 150 years. Thus, we still react differently today.

On a deeper level, there also exists an anto-Sephardic bias in the Ashkenazik community (see: Somewhat On The Lighter Side). Perhaps the Ashkenazic community does not consider anti-Jewish activity that harms Sephardic Jews “anti-Semitism”.

Perhaps not. It’s just a thought.

(Either way, I recommend Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean. It’s a fun read and I plan another post about the episode in the book that had the biggest impact on me.)

A Must Read Maharsha

rabbifink — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 22:58:52 +0000

Head over to DovBear for this post: An Appropriate Maharsha

(If you don’t know who the Maharsha is, don’t bother…)

Mr. Miller (and me) In The Baltimore Jewish Times

rabbifink — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 01:02:59 +0000

By now you have all heard about my math teacher Mr. Miller. (Mr. Miller Was My Math Teacher at Ner Israel)

After being featured on WBAL TV and then (almost) every single Jewish blog, you certainly know about Mr. Miller’s longevity and success as a teacher.

Last week, Mr. Miller was featured in an article in the Baltimore Jewish Times. The BJT is a local weekly magazine / newspaper in Baltimore. If you are under 25 continue reading. If you are older, skip to the next paragraph. What’s a magazine? It’s like an old fashioned blog. Or slow motion blogging. Different people have an opportunity to write their opinions and others can respond via letters to the editor or write their own articles. Pretty neat, huh?

The article is a really nice homage to Mr. Miller. They needed to interview a student and somehow my name came up. I agreed to express my thoughts on Mr. Miller for the article.]

You can read the article here: Paul Miller: Still Teaching After 75 Years

And these are my quotes:

Rabbi Eliyahu Fink, one of Mr. Miller’s former students, describes him as a teacher who could always make lessons come to life.

“Mr. Miller had a knack for helping us see the rhyme and reason behind the math,” said Rabbi Fink, who now serves as spiritual leader of the Pacific Jewish Center in Venice, Calif. “Mr. Miller simplified the lessons in a way that I was able to not only understand the math for the first time, [but] I enjoyed it. …

“Even more than learning math, I learned [from Mr. Miller] that when one is passionate about something, one can pass along that passion to others. It can be infectious,” he said. “For that, I am eternally grateful.”

You also get The World According to Mr. Miller after the article. Definitely worth a read.

Read the article. Be inspired.

Loyola Law School GPA / Curve Inflation: Explained

rabbifink — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:52:10 +0000

So we finally made the big-time. Who is we?

I am a student at the (now) well-known Loyola Law School of Los Angeles.

After being featured on the snarky law blogs for a a little while, our curve adjustment made it into “The Gray Lady”. Yes, the New York Times thinks our school’s new curve is news worthy.

Yesterday the NY Times ran this story about our curve and the law school arms race: In Law Schools, Grades Go Up, Just Like That. The story is a slightly sympathetic and certainly more fair than the skewering Loyola Law School got in some of the law blawgs.

Here’s the real story:

Fact: In Los Angeles, the other law schools have a 3.0 mean GPA.

At most law schools this is an important number because there is a very rigid bell curve (at least that’s how it is at Loyola). Most people know that law school is in essence a competitive environment. (More about that here: Winners and Losers | A New Yorker Cartoon (and I get it, and it is funny!))

If you want the top paying jobs you need the best grades in your year. If you do well, someone else is doing worse. There are no “ties” or “everyone is great” accolades. It is a battle to finish at the top. So if you are above the mean GPA you are doing well. If you are below the mean GPA, you are falling behind.

At Loyola, our mean GPA was 2.667. For purposes of class rank it makes no difference whether it is a 2.667 a 3.0 or 8.3. Rank is rank.

But, with law firms asking for GPA on resumes and electronically filtering them WITHOUT EVEN LOOKING AT THE REST OF THE RESUME by GPA number, Loyola students were getting shafted. Equally ranked students at other schools had artificially higher GPAs. Many Government jobs have 3.0 GPA minimums and schools whose mean GPA was 3.0 had a huge advantage. An average student at [other law school] would qualify for the job while average students ate Loyola were denied because their GPA was too low.

The absolutely only fair thing for Loyola to do was to raise the GPA. It’s not artificial grade inflation. It is leveling the playing field.

How is it fair for Loyola to have a lower mean GPA than everyone else?

It’s not.

Why is everyone making such a big freaking deal about this???

Manhattan High School For Girls on PBS: Don’t Speak Lashon Hara

rabbifink — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 06:25:18 +0000

Yesterday I wrote about my high school. (Mr. Miller Was My Math Teacher at Ner Israel) I went to a pretty well known yeshiva high school but this kind of media exposure for Ner Israel is not too common. Of course I was proud so I told my sister to check out the video and article.

Not to be outdone, my sister told me that her high school was also famous!

It seems that WNET, the New York PBS affiliate, has a segment called “Religion and Ethics. A few weeks back they did a piece on hateful gossip in schools. With the advent of the internet and specifically sites like Facebook, it has become so easy to say nasty things about others and leave a permanent record of the comments.

Cyber Abuse is what they call it. Saying things that are not nice on the internet about someone else can have a much more drastic and long term effect on the subject. Perhaps even worse than originally intended. The internet is a danger zone!

They talk a little bit about JuicyCampus which was one of the first and one of the most prolific sites for College students slander and gossip. It got shut down eventually and there is a new movement in its stead to try and promote good manners and ethics on the internet and limit evil speech about others.

The piece then moves from the extremely dangerous internet world of anonymous speech that could harm people’s lives to Manhattan High School for Girls. MHS is a Bais Yaakov style girl’s high school in Manhattan. My sisters attended MHS and I have heard really great things about the school. It might be the 2nd best girls high school in the world. Obviously the best is my father’s school, Ateres Bais Yaakov in Monsey.

At MHS, the girls learn about the harms of Lashon Hara (evil speech), work together to prevent and stop evil speech and care passionately about avoiding Lashon Hara. This is a stark contrast to the world of gossip that exists at high schools and Universities across the U.S.A. and has spawned shows like Gossip Girl.

Of course, there are times when it is permissible, in fact, even obligatory to say negative things about another person. The idea is to learn when and how to implement those exceptions. The best thing about a conscious effort to avoid speaking Lashon Hara is how it affects the way you speak by making you consider the value of your speech. Is it something that must be said? Or is it something better left unsaid?

The girls that are interviewed are very candid and perform very well in front of the camera. The message of the video is that we can all learn from MHS and the Jewish approach to Lashon Hara. I can only reiterate what a great message that is and congratulate MHS for truly being a light unto the nations.

For a clearer video than the video below and a transcript click here. (recommended)

Poor quality youtube video below: (only if you are really lazy)

Mr. Miller Was My Math Teacher at Ner Israel

rabbifink — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 23:04:13 +0000

By now, you may have seen the great video and accompanying WBALtv.com article, about my math teacher Mr. Miller. It has been on VIN, Matzav and Frum Satire and I am sure plenty of other blogs as well.

I’ve totally been scooped on this one. But in my defense, I had the link to the video and the article last Thursday I just sat on it because I had so many other things to write about.

The thing is, Mr. Miller was MY math teacher at Ner Israel’s Israel Henry Beren Mechina High School. In fact Mr. Miller has also taught 2 of my 3 brothers and will likely teach the other when he gets to Calculus. Not only that, my FATHER had Mr. Miller when he was in High School. So I am pretty sure I am the first blogger to write about Mr. Miller that actually learned math from Mr. Miller.

Just 12 years ago, I was the kid in the picture and I was the kid in the video. That makes this story, my story.

I am being completely honest when I say, I never had a math teacher as good as Mr. Miller. He said the funniest things and had us absolutely spellbound. As you would imagine, there are always some classroom decorum issues with teenage boys, but Mr. Miller had his classroom completely in control. The room was silent and we really learned math.

We always used to ask Mr. Miller questions like “why do we need to know math?” and he had the same answer every time. “Math saved me in the war.” I will never forget how Mr. Miller was able to work on maps for the allies instead of firing a Howitzer. He says, math saved his life.

I think the best lesson Mr. Miller taught us is that if you love what you do, you can do it forever. Mr. Miller loved teaching math and he has been teaching for 75 years. I wish Mr. Miller many more years and if he is still teaching in 7-8 years, maybe my son will be able to raise his hand when asked “how many of your grandfathers had Mr. Miller?”.

Join the Mr. Miller Fan Club on Facebook.

(and no, Mr. Miller is not an orthodox Jew, he just wears a yarmulka when he teaches at Ner Israel)

Enjoy the video and read the article here: Md. Teacher Marks 75 Years In Classroom.

What Was The Manna?

rabbifink — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 23:28:47 +0000

Photo: NY Times

Mystery solved?

I have been wondering about this for a while. Follow me on this journey from a 3000 year old story to current culinary trends….

As the Israelites sojourned in the desert for 40 years, the Torah tells us that they ate Manna. It was a food that they were not familiar with as they reacted to the manna by saying “man hu?” what is it?

Reading the text of the narrative in the Torah tells us some very interesting details. Here are some snippets:

The layer of dew had risen, and behold, on the surface of the desert were thin flakes. It was as fine as frost on the ground.

The Sons of Israel saw it and said to one another, “What is it?,” for they did not know what it was. Moshe said to them, “This is the bread that God is giving you to eat.

They gathered it each morning, each man according to what he would eat. When the sun became hot, it melted.

The House of Israel named it manna. It was like white coriander seed, and it tasted like wafers in honey.

Mishnaic sources seem to indicate that the Manna was a miraculous food, never seen before and never to be seen again. Some rabbinic sources also indicate that the Manna’s taste was subjective. This is traditionally viewed as being a miraculous feature of the food.

This is how most Orthodox Jews approach the Manna.

Then I saw the Ibn Ezra. (I think this is what he means) He says that he has seen this substance called manna. This would seem to indicate that Manna is a naturally occurring, not miraculous substance. Its existence in the desert on a daily basis may have been miraculous. But the food is a natural food.

I wondered about this Ibn Ezra for a while. Does this food really exist? Does it really fall from the sky as the text says? What does it taste like?

Then I saw the NY Times article on Manna. (HT: VIN / Rationalist Judaism).

Here are the money quotes:

But as miraculous as its biblical apparition may seem, manna is real and some chefs have been cooking with it.

The dozens of varieties of what are called mannas have two things in common. They are sweet and, as in the Bible, they appear as if delivered by providence, without cultivation.

Most of this manna is either dried plant sap extruded from tiny holes chewed out by almost invisible bugs, or a honeydew excreted by bugs that eat the sap.

Rarer are the mannas not from sap, including Trehala manna, the sweet-tasting cocoon of the Larinus maculates beetle from Turkey; and manna-lichen (Lecanora esculenta), which occasionally dries up and blows around to form semisweet clouds out of which manna settles into drifts from western Greece to the central Asian steppe.

Mannas form best in extremely dry climates — like the Middle East’s — where sap oozes at night and dries up in the morning. The favored theory on what the Israelites called manna is the sap of a tamarisk tree.

Paul Liebrandt of Corton in Manhattan used Shir-Khesht manna in a dish of charred Frog Hollow Farm apricots, fresh wasabi and Kindai kampachi. “The texture is unlike any other I’ve experienced — chewy and crunchy at the same time,” Mr. Liebrandt said. “It also makes the food intensely personal, because no two people taste manna the same way. I might taste a haunting minty-ness, while you might detect a whiff of lemon. No other ingredient is like that.”

Hedysarum manna comes from Hedysarum alhagi, the camel thorn bush. It resembles Grape-Nuts mixed with aquarium sand, and tastes like a combination of maple syrup, brown sugar, blackstrap molasses, honey and nuts.

Even more complex and subtle is the Shir-Khesht manna from the cotoneaster nummilaria shrub. Shir-khesht looks like broken-up bits of concrete or coral and is whiter than hedysarum manna. It is sweet, with some gumminess that eventually dissolves in the mouth. Shir-khesht’s tongue-cooling effect comes from mannitol, a sugar alcohol in this and many other mannas; the sensation is similar to menthol, without the menthol taste. It has notes of honey and herb, and a faint bit of citrus peel.

I find this incredibly fascinating.

If we put it all together we get this: Manna is a real food. It is normal to react to its discovery by saying it resembles no other food. It is made up of tiny particles that form a sweet crunchy substance. It appears to fall from the heaven as it needs no cultivation and is light enough to be transported by the wind. The Sinai Desert is a likely place for manna to “fall”. The taste of the manna is so unique that no two people taste it in the exact same way. The miracle of the manna was more likely its consistent presence than its existence at all.

A Hijab I Can Relate To

rabbifink — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 16:37:45 +0000

In today’s LA Times there is a very interesting article about the Hijab and some Muslim women who have put a modern twist on the traditional Hijab.

(What is Hijab? click here)

Most of us think of the black, shapeless head to toe covering when we think of the Hijab. According the article, the black color, and amorphous shape is not required in Islamic Law. Hijab is a modesty that requires that the body be covered completely by clothing. It is permissible to add color and style to the Hijab.

The article highlights some locals who are celebrating their personal style within the limits of what is required by Hijab.

I think that is great.

It is really very similar to the way many orthodox Jewish women follow the Jewish laws of tznius. There are rules of modesty but in no way does that need to hinder one’s sense of style. Many of the drab dressing folks are just drab dressing folks, it is not that they are more pious in their adherence to tznius. Rather, they just don’t use the opportunities within the system to look great.

It is important for people that are religious to maintain their standards. But I believe it is also important to modernize the social things that are not determined by religious law. These Muslim women are doing just that. They are taking their religious law and strictly adhering to the law. But they are also making it more comfortable for a 21st Century Woman.

Just as some people are uncomfortable wearing the black, amorphous HIjab, there are those who are uncomfortable when they see women dressed that way. It defies the Western Standards of how women should dress. I understand how it can be offensive. Trying to adapt to a more current way of following Islamic Law is a great way to bridge the gap. The more common ground that is shared between the “West” and Islamic World the greater our chances of peace.

LA Times article: Wrapped Up in Style.