Category Archives: Jews and Judaism

At Last!

Posted on April 1, 2009 by Julie

Okay, everybody, CALM DOWN. You can stop panicking now. I am delighted – no, relieved – to announce that we finally have a klezmer song about toxoplasmosis. Via JVoices: What is toxoplasmosis, you ask? Why, it’s the scary brain parasite … Continue reading →

Hitting that Dusty Trail

Posted on March 3, 2009 by David Schraub

February’s up, and that seems as good a time as any to bring this guesting stint to a close. I want to thank everyone very much for reading, listening, reacting and commenting. I hope you found what I said interesting, … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Jews and Judaism, Palestine & Israel | 7 Comments

Talk about a goyishe kop!

Posted on March 2, 2009 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

I saw this on Feministe: CRESAPTOWN, Md. (AP) – You’ve heard of kosher salt? Now there’s a Christian variety. Retired barber Joe Godlewski says that when television chefs recommended kosher salt in recipes, he wondered, “What the heck’s the matter … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Jews and Judaism, Whatever | 16 Comments

Jews with Power versus Empowered Jews

Posted on March 1, 2009 by David Schraub

It is beyond clear that in the United States, Jews have significant political influence. Many Jews occupy important levels of government, elected and appointed, and others are high profile opinion-influencers and policymakers in the media, in think tanks, and in … Continue reading →

Posted in Jews and Judaism | 65 Comments

Unimpressed.

Posted on February 26, 2009 by Julie

I was curious about this book until I saw this little gem by the author on Jewcy: Whatever we say about women and men being equal now and tomorrow – I have three daughters who I want to see beat … Continue reading →

Posted in Feminism, sexism, etc, Gender and the Body, Jews and Judaism | 29 Comments

The Superseded Jew

Posted on February 23, 2009 by David Schraub

This was originally to be Part IV of my anti-Semitism series. I’ve mostly been side-tracked from it — I don’t think the rest of it flows organically from discussions we’ve been having. This post, though, I think remains important on … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Jews and Judaism | 25 Comments

Quote du Jour

Posted on February 20, 2009 by Jeff Fecke

“Swear to God, if [Israelis] ever want a Gentile prime minister, my first order would be to deploy the IDF in a north-south line, facing east. My second order would be ‘forward march’ and the order to halt would not … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative zaniness, right-wingers, etc., Jews and Judaism, Palestine & Israel | 2 Comments

Criticism as Punishment: Retribution, Utility, and Outrage

Posted on February 19, 2009 by David Schraub

In the field of criminal law, there are two main philosophical schools on how society is allowed to punish offenders. The first is the retributive school — basically arguing that we can punish people solely based on how much they … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Jews and Judaism, Palestine & Israel, Prisons and Justice and Police | 23 Comments

Suheir Hammad, A Poet Whose Work You Should Probably Know

Posted on February 18, 2009 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

Given some of the discussion generated by Jake’s comment on David’s Breaking The Seals post, I thought people here might be interested to know about (if you don’t already) the work of Palestinian poet Suheir Hammad. I wrote about her … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, International issues, Jews and Judaism, literature, Palestine & Israel | 1 Comment

Anti-Semitism: Getting Beyond the Hate

Posted on February 16, 2009 by David Schraub

In his fabulous, must read book, “I’m Not a Racist, But…”: The Moral Quandary of Race, author Lawrence Blum establishes early on that he thinks the word “racist” is being asked to do too much. Is it just the most … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Jews and Judaism | 8 Comments