After hearing all about the auto bailout, I felt we needed to give a little (but only a little) sympathy to the American car manufacturers, read on for a brilliant (in the British humour sense)video dedicated to an American car, ironically not commercially available in America.
Read More......
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
What's next for the city schools?
A few days ago, the Missouri Supreme court ruled to uphold the state’s June 2007 takeover of the St. Louis city public schools. This ruling should put an end to all the legal fighting that’s gone on in the past year and a half. Now all that's left to do is get to work reforming SLPS to revive a school system that's been struggling by on life support.
According to the lawyer for the state-appointed school board, the court's ruling ends any "uncertainty" surrounding who has the authority to make decisions around SLPS, which "allows the special administrative board to really focus on improving the educational product in the St. Louis public schools and to get on with the reforms that the board feels are necessary" (read more on the ruling here).
...great, so now what? What on earth are they going to do to tackle the problems SLPS faces?
Since I was curious to find out, I read (most of) the “Comprehensive Long Range Plan” put together by the Special Administrative Board that was appointed to takeover the schools when they lost accreditation. If you’re interested, it’s available online for the public. It sounds like they have some good ideas to improve things, but the real trick will be implementing them.
For any of us Yids to see a long-term future in St. Louis city (I’m talking marriage, kids – the whole shebang), I think good schools are a pretty important factor. I’m enjoying the Lou for now, but being a 20-something living and working here is way different than raising a family here, obviously.
I guess now that the legal barriers have been cleared, we can watch to see what the state-appointed school board does. I’m slightly hopeful that things will get better (it doesn’t seem like they can get much worse), but I won’t hold my breath.
Read More......
According to the lawyer for the state-appointed school board, the court's ruling ends any "uncertainty" surrounding who has the authority to make decisions around SLPS, which "allows the special administrative board to really focus on improving the educational product in the St. Louis public schools and to get on with the reforms that the board feels are necessary" (read more on the ruling here).
...great, so now what? What on earth are they going to do to tackle the problems SLPS faces?
Since I was curious to find out, I read (most of) the “Comprehensive Long Range Plan” put together by the Special Administrative Board that was appointed to takeover the schools when they lost accreditation. If you’re interested, it’s available online for the public. It sounds like they have some good ideas to improve things, but the real trick will be implementing them.
For any of us Yids to see a long-term future in St. Louis city (I’m talking marriage, kids – the whole shebang), I think good schools are a pretty important factor. I’m enjoying the Lou for now, but being a 20-something living and working here is way different than raising a family here, obviously.
I guess now that the legal barriers have been cleared, we can watch to see what the state-appointed school board does. I’m slightly hopeful that things will get better (it doesn’t seem like they can get much worse), but I won’t hold my breath.
Read More......
Madoff, Trust Shattered, Faith Shaken
I remember very clearly the first thing one of my good friends said when the details of the Bernard Madoff scandal were first starting to emerge, "I hope he isn't Jewish."
This simple sentence, "I hope he isn't Jewish," reveals a great deal about the pride and vulnerability that we as Jews in America often feel at the same time.
A recent article in the New York Times, focused on Yeshiva University, which lost $100 Million in the Ponzi scheme.
Yeshiva not only invested with Madoff, he had sat on their board for over a decade and was even made their treasurer. This relationship is causing many of the professors and students to start reevaluating not only the attention given to ethics, but the place of money and power in our society.
Although the NYT article doesn't say it explicitly, I think that there is an element of betrayal the runs right down the middle of this scandal. It's bad enough that Madoff is Jewish and that his actions tarnish all of us. It's even worse that his actions directly took advantage of and caused hard to the Jewish community.
Many foundations will have to shut down due to the staggering losses of money, a great deal more people who would have been employed by or helped by those foundations are now forced to look for alternatives.
In a community as diverse, opinionated, and outspoken as the Jewish community, I think that the Madoff scandal hits us in a very vulnerable spot, namely, the belief in ahavat Yisrael, the love of Israel, or practically, looking out for other Jews.
While Madoff's actions are contemptible regardless of the victim, due to the particular damage caused to the Jewish community, in reputation as well as in actual financial harm, I think that there is even more anger than would normally be the case.
If our trusted institutions are getting hoodwinked, and by a Jew, no less, it causes our faith in the system itself to be shaken. And in times like these, when the system seems to be falling apart, faith is pretty important.
Read More......
This simple sentence, "I hope he isn't Jewish," reveals a great deal about the pride and vulnerability that we as Jews in America often feel at the same time.
A recent article in the New York Times, focused on Yeshiva University, which lost $100 Million in the Ponzi scheme.
Yeshiva not only invested with Madoff, he had sat on their board for over a decade and was even made their treasurer. This relationship is causing many of the professors and students to start reevaluating not only the attention given to ethics, but the place of money and power in our society.
Although the NYT article doesn't say it explicitly, I think that there is an element of betrayal the runs right down the middle of this scandal. It's bad enough that Madoff is Jewish and that his actions tarnish all of us. It's even worse that his actions directly took advantage of and caused hard to the Jewish community.
Many foundations will have to shut down due to the staggering losses of money, a great deal more people who would have been employed by or helped by those foundations are now forced to look for alternatives.
In a community as diverse, opinionated, and outspoken as the Jewish community, I think that the Madoff scandal hits us in a very vulnerable spot, namely, the belief in ahavat Yisrael, the love of Israel, or practically, looking out for other Jews.
While Madoff's actions are contemptible regardless of the victim, due to the particular damage caused to the Jewish community, in reputation as well as in actual financial harm, I think that there is even more anger than would normally be the case.
If our trusted institutions are getting hoodwinked, and by a Jew, no less, it causes our faith in the system itself to be shaken. And in times like these, when the system seems to be falling apart, faith is pretty important.
Read More......
Monday, December 22, 2008
Hannukah in Paris
If you are looking to satisfy your French food fix, check out this New York Times article about a Jewish restaurant in Paris, what they're serving up for Hannukah, and how the owner's Jewish mother keeps tabs on him from America 24 hours a day!
Read More......
Hannukah One-upsmanship
Forget about Hannukah videos that are last year's schmear, here is the freshest of the fresh new Hannukah viral video, and you saw it here first.
Read More......
Read More......
Channukah with the Stars!
Check out this website where you can send Hannukah celebrity greeting cards! Fun for the whole family!
Stuck on what to get those closest to you for Hannukah? Have 7 nights of presents and just can't settle on the eighth?
Well Chanukkah with the Stars has just the thing! Personalized Hannukah wishes from "big-time" celebrities right into the inboxes of your nearest and dearest. Give it a click and check it out...because they really weren't going to appreciate the regifted "Dreidels Around the World" calendar anyway!
Any other great Channukah websites or gift ideas out there? Feel free to leave them in the comments. Happy Hannukah everybody! Read More......
Stuck on what to get those closest to you for Hannukah? Have 7 nights of presents and just can't settle on the eighth?
Well Chanukkah with the Stars has just the thing! Personalized Hannukah wishes from "big-time" celebrities right into the inboxes of your nearest and dearest. Give it a click and check it out...because they really weren't going to appreciate the regifted "Dreidels Around the World" calendar anyway!
Any other great Channukah websites or gift ideas out there? Feel free to leave them in the comments. Happy Hannukah everybody! Read More......
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Published on Hip Hop Congress.com
Check out this article published on Hiphopcongress.com, which explains some of the similarities between hip hop culture and Jewish culture.
Read More......
Zeda Rocks Out!
Recapping Friday's rockin' Zeda's Beat Box show, hosted by The St. Lou Jew!
Zeda's Beat Box rocked Cicero's Friday night with the release of their second CD, "Seven." A few of us bloggers were there to kick things off with the blessings over the candles and the wine. The crowd was pumped up and ready to go and Zeda didn't disappoint!
Some of the highlights on the set list were a Zedafied version of the classic David Melech Yisrael, an insanely catchy Am Yisrael Chai (am yisrael am yisrael am yisrael chai...), and a chilled out Havenu Shalom Aleichem.
Check back here soon for an updated post with pictures and video from the show, but if you haven't had a chance to hear Zeda's music yet, check out their MySpace page here.
And if you couldn't make it out on Friday, don't miss the next Zeda's Beat Box show, Friday, January 30th at Ursa's on Wash U's campus, along with the Jewish a capella group Staam! More info to come of course
Read More......
Zeda's Beat Box rocked Cicero's Friday night with the release of their second CD, "Seven." A few of us bloggers were there to kick things off with the blessings over the candles and the wine. The crowd was pumped up and ready to go and Zeda didn't disappoint!
Some of the highlights on the set list were a Zedafied version of the classic David Melech Yisrael, an insanely catchy Am Yisrael Chai (am yisrael am yisrael am yisrael chai...), and a chilled out Havenu Shalom Aleichem.
Check back here soon for an updated post with pictures and video from the show, but if you haven't had a chance to hear Zeda's music yet, check out their MySpace page here.
And if you couldn't make it out on Friday, don't miss the next Zeda's Beat Box show, Friday, January 30th at Ursa's on Wash U's campus, along with the Jewish a capella group Staam! More info to come of course
Read More......
Friday, December 19, 2008
TONIGHT! The St. Lou Jew hosts Zeda's Beat Box CD Release Party!
TONIGHT! 6:30PM @ Cicero's on the Loop.
The St. Lou Jew hosts Zeda's Beat Box CD Release Party
Jew music that you might actually like? Whoa! Count us in.
TheStLouJew.com is hosting the cd release party for the band's second album, "Seven."
Listen to 6 songs from the new Zeda's Beat Box CD "Seven" at www.myspace.com/zedasbeatbox.
Zeda's Beat Box burst on to the local Jewish and rock scene earlier this year with the release of their 4-song EP "Kabbalat Shabbat." The CD received rave reviews by both Jewish and mainstream press and has been hailed as "Jewish music for the masses." Also known as STUFF YOU SHOULD BE LISTENING TO.
Zeda's Beat Box sets Jewish liturgy and original English lyrics to a unique blend of rock and reggae. The band's mix of Jewish tradition and modern music has landed them shows in both synagogues and night clubs. Their debut CD can be heard playing at the JCC, Jewish gift shops, and on local rock radio. And tonight, you can see them play LIVE.
Us bloggers will be saying the Shabbos blessings before the band takes the stage by storm. We will see you there! Read More......
The St. Lou Jew hosts Zeda's Beat Box CD Release Party
Jew music that you might actually like? Whoa! Count us in.
TheStLouJew.com is hosting the cd release party for the band's second album, "Seven."
Listen to 6 songs from the new Zeda's Beat Box CD "Seven" at www.myspace.com/zedasbeatbox.
thestloujew.com presents
Zeda's Beat Box
CD Release Party
"Seven"
Friday December 19
Cicero's
6691 Delmar
$10.00 *includes FREE copy of CD!*
6:30 PM
Zeda's Beat Box burst on to the local Jewish and rock scene earlier this year with the release of their 4-song EP "Kabbalat Shabbat." The CD received rave reviews by both Jewish and mainstream press and has been hailed as "Jewish music for the masses." Also known as STUFF YOU SHOULD BE LISTENING TO.
Zeda's Beat Box sets Jewish liturgy and original English lyrics to a unique blend of rock and reggae. The band's mix of Jewish tradition and modern music has landed them shows in both synagogues and night clubs. Their debut CD can be heard playing at the JCC, Jewish gift shops, and on local rock radio. And tonight, you can see them play LIVE.
Us bloggers will be saying the Shabbos blessings before the band takes the stage by storm. We will see you there! Read More......
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Living Jews: Dave Simon of Zeda's Beat Box
With the Zeda show only one day away, I am reposting Y?s October interview with Dave Simon, the creator and mind behind Zeda's Beat Box!
There are certain types of people that you expect to find in New York, or California, maybe Austin or Chicago. These are the people who are doing things that are often viewed as bizarre or naive.
Another way of seeing these people is as they are, people who are chasing and living out their dreams. David Simon is one such dream chaser, and happens to be right here in St. Louis
Leader of Zeda's Beat Box, a reggae/ska based rock band that pulls on traditional Jewish liturgy for its inspiration, and Founder of Dave's Simon's Rock School, Dave leads a musical life.
Dave started the Rock school as a way to be heavily involved in music in a way that could simultaneously keep him involved with creative and musical people, but also as a way to actually support himself.
Zeda's Beat Box grew out of a conversation with his Shul (temple) in which they asked him to prepare some upbeat music for Kabbalat Shabbat (literally, receiving the Shabbat, aka the service signifying the arrival of the Sabbath). He turned to all-star rockers from his school to fill out the band's ranks, and hasn't looked back since.
No stranger to playing in synagogues, or AEPi houses, the group recently played with Cincinnati based Ska-Reggae Super-heroes, The Pinstripes, at Off-Broadway, and last weekend, Zeta's Beat Box was the closing act at the St. Louis Art Festival in Clayton.
It is almost taken for granted by those who know about Heeb magazine, JDub Records, Jewlicious, Mattisyahu, etc that there is an entire culture of Cool Jews.
This positive and empowering idea is something that Dave wants to bring to the surface in St. Louis. Dave pointed out that even if a person doesn't really self-identify as being Jewish, often they feel comfortable around other Jews, and knowingly or unwittingly find themselves spending a lot of time with other Jews.
"The idea of Jewish Cool wasn't always there," says Dave, "growning up, we weren't as open about being Jewish, and we didn't have the same pop culture figures who make being Jewish part of their shtick."
To Dave the Beastie Boys were the first cool Jewish kids, even if there weren't any Jewish themes in their music. They were doing something unique, creative, and urban.
The power of music to connect people is really central to Dave's mission to empower Jews to pride in their heritage, and to educate people of other faiths and backgrounds about certain aspects of Jewish culture.
Read More......
There are certain types of people that you expect to find in New York, or California, maybe Austin or Chicago. These are the people who are doing things that are often viewed as bizarre or naive.
Another way of seeing these people is as they are, people who are chasing and living out their dreams. David Simon is one such dream chaser, and happens to be right here in St. Louis
Leader of Zeda's Beat Box, a reggae/ska based rock band that pulls on traditional Jewish liturgy for its inspiration, and Founder of Dave's Simon's Rock School, Dave leads a musical life.
Dave started the Rock school as a way to be heavily involved in music in a way that could simultaneously keep him involved with creative and musical people, but also as a way to actually support himself.
Zeda's Beat Box grew out of a conversation with his Shul (temple) in which they asked him to prepare some upbeat music for Kabbalat Shabbat (literally, receiving the Shabbat, aka the service signifying the arrival of the Sabbath). He turned to all-star rockers from his school to fill out the band's ranks, and hasn't looked back since.
No stranger to playing in synagogues, or AEPi houses, the group recently played with Cincinnati based Ska-Reggae Super-heroes, The Pinstripes, at Off-Broadway, and last weekend, Zeta's Beat Box was the closing act at the St. Louis Art Festival in Clayton.
It is almost taken for granted by those who know about Heeb magazine, JDub Records, Jewlicious, Mattisyahu, etc that there is an entire culture of Cool Jews.
This positive and empowering idea is something that Dave wants to bring to the surface in St. Louis. Dave pointed out that even if a person doesn't really self-identify as being Jewish, often they feel comfortable around other Jews, and knowingly or unwittingly find themselves spending a lot of time with other Jews.
"The idea of Jewish Cool wasn't always there," says Dave, "growning up, we weren't as open about being Jewish, and we didn't have the same pop culture figures who make being Jewish part of their shtick."
To Dave the Beastie Boys were the first cool Jewish kids, even if there weren't any Jewish themes in their music. They were doing something unique, creative, and urban.
The power of music to connect people is really central to Dave's mission to empower Jews to pride in their heritage, and to educate people of other faiths and backgrounds about certain aspects of Jewish culture.
Read More......
A Taste of Things to Come!
Get ready for the offical St. Lou Jew logo rollout at tomorrow night's Zeda's Beat Box show!
As the excitment builds for tomorrow night's Zeda's Beat Box show, LC has been feverishly at work to bring you the first step in the redesign of The St. Lou Jew site. Not just another Jewish logo, it shows that The St. Lou Jew is here on the scene and serious about shaking things up in St. Louis. And what better way to start than by rolling it out to the tunes of the funkiest Jewish rock reggae band you have ever heard!
Check out this clip of Zeda's Beat Box in action!
This is only one of a series of changes to the site you will see over the next few weeks. Soon, we will be searchable, we will have categories, and we'll look like a site that LC can be proud of (and she should, considering the time she is putting in on this)!
Thank you for helping The St. Lou Jew to get off the ground and in joining us as we work hard to make the site fun and easy for you to navigate. Most of all though, come on down to Cicero's Friday night at 6:30 so we can celebrate right! Read More......
As the excitment builds for tomorrow night's Zeda's Beat Box show, LC has been feverishly at work to bring you the first step in the redesign of The St. Lou Jew site. Not just another Jewish logo, it shows that The St. Lou Jew is here on the scene and serious about shaking things up in St. Louis. And what better way to start than by rolling it out to the tunes of the funkiest Jewish rock reggae band you have ever heard!
Check out this clip of Zeda's Beat Box in action!
This is only one of a series of changes to the site you will see over the next few weeks. Soon, we will be searchable, we will have categories, and we'll look like a site that LC can be proud of (and she should, considering the time she is putting in on this)!
Thank you for helping The St. Lou Jew to get off the ground and in joining us as we work hard to make the site fun and easy for you to navigate. Most of all though, come on down to Cicero's Friday night at 6:30 so we can celebrate right! Read More......
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Coming soon to The St. Lou Jew near you: REDESIGN!
The St. Lou Jew going pro!
At The St. Lou Jew we are always looking for ways to improve the experience of our readers. To that very end, we are going pro with a new look and easy to maneuver website. Here's how:
-We are in the process of moving to WordPress, legitimizing the URL and making the site much easier to use.
-To start the process now, we've developed a Brand Spankin' New Logo, which we're unveiling TOMORROW!
Be sure to set your watches and give us a click tomorrow!
The St. Lou Jew Team
Read More......
At The St. Lou Jew we are always looking for ways to improve the experience of our readers. To that very end, we are going pro with a new look and easy to maneuver website. Here's how:
-We are in the process of moving to WordPress, legitimizing the URL and making the site much easier to use.
-To start the process now, we've developed a Brand Spankin' New Logo, which we're unveiling TOMORROW!
Be sure to set your watches and give us a click tomorrow!
The St. Lou Jew Team
Read More......
What Not to Name Your Child
A New Jersey couple is upset that their son's name, Adolf Hitler Campbell, wouldn't be spelled out on his third birthday cake. How about not naming your son after a murderous dictator?
I am intolerant of intolerance. Oxymoron, I know. But seriously, who names their child Adolf Hitler? I found this article on my morning perusal of msnbc.com (the story is courtesy of AP)... it must be a slow news day. The headline reads "3-year-old Hitler can't get name on cake." While portraying the Campbell family as accepting of all races, you can tell there is tension between Heath Campbell and his conflicting message. The author wants you read the whole piece because it finally rationalizes the parents' name choice at the end...
Hello! Someone already had that name, and it didn't end too well for him. By the way, they did end up getting little Adolf's name on a cake... thanks to Wal-Mart. Let's hope this tyke grows up with a little more perspective on life than his parents did. Why couldn't they name him something normal, like Robot Blanket Campbell? Or Apple Bronx Campbell?
More to come from me on my latest endeavors into Judaism... I realize it has been a while since I've posted. Hey, will you be at the Zeda's Beat Box CD release party on Friday? I'll see you there, St. Louis.
LC
Read More......
I am intolerant of intolerance. Oxymoron, I know. But seriously, who names their child Adolf Hitler? I found this article on my morning perusal of msnbc.com (the story is courtesy of AP)... it must be a slow news day. The headline reads "3-year-old Hitler can't get name on cake." While portraying the Campbell family as accepting of all races, you can tell there is tension between Heath Campbell and his conflicting message. The author wants you read the whole piece because it finally rationalizes the parents' name choice at the end...
Heath Campbell said he named his son after Adolf Hitler because he liked the name and because "no one else in the world would have that name." He sounded surprised by all the controversy the dispute had generated.
Hello! Someone already had that name, and it didn't end too well for him. By the way, they did end up getting little Adolf's name on a cake... thanks to Wal-Mart. Let's hope this tyke grows up with a little more perspective on life than his parents did. Why couldn't they name him something normal, like Robot Blanket Campbell? Or Apple Bronx Campbell?
More to come from me on my latest endeavors into Judaism... I realize it has been a while since I've posted. Hey, will you be at the Zeda's Beat Box CD release party on Friday? I'll see you there, St. Louis.
LC
Read More......
A Jewish Saddam Hussein?
Who better to play the role of Saddam Hussein than... Yigal Naor?
When Newsweek reporter Dan Ephron started watching HBO's ongoing series "House of Saddam," he thought the actor playing the 21st century's most famous dictator sounded familiar, a little like his grocer in Israel in fact.
Turns out, Ephron has an ear for Israel. The actor who plays Saddam Hussein is Yigal Naor, an Israeli. One of his co-stars, who plays "Chemical Ali", is Uri Gavriel. With a name like "Uri Gavriel", is there any doubt that he, too, is an Israeli?
New York casting agent Avy Kaufmann reasons that Israel happens to have some phenomenal actors. In addition, Israeli actors are preferred to Arab actors, because their English tends to be better and their acting style is more "Western".
Check out the full Newsweek article here.
And a shout-out to my dad (Mr. Zuz) for passing this along! As he said in the email... We are EVERYWHERE!
Read More......
When Newsweek reporter Dan Ephron started watching HBO's ongoing series "House of Saddam," he thought the actor playing the 21st century's most famous dictator sounded familiar, a little like his grocer in Israel in fact.
Turns out, Ephron has an ear for Israel. The actor who plays Saddam Hussein is Yigal Naor, an Israeli. One of his co-stars, who plays "Chemical Ali", is Uri Gavriel. With a name like "Uri Gavriel", is there any doubt that he, too, is an Israeli?
New York casting agent Avy Kaufmann reasons that Israel happens to have some phenomenal actors. In addition, Israeli actors are preferred to Arab actors, because their English tends to be better and their acting style is more "Western".
Check out the full Newsweek article here.
And a shout-out to my dad (Mr. Zuz) for passing this along! As he said in the email... We are EVERYWHERE!
Read More......
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Mmm...meat
Hey people. I'm M-teen, here to provide a little environmental (or 'green' as the cool kids are calling it these days) context to the St. Lou Jew. This first post explores the wonderful world of meat. Yum.
Have you ever thought about where the meat you buy in the grocery store comes from, or how those animals were raised? If you’re like the majority of people, you probably haven’t. And why would you? In modern urban life, there isn't really much need to. You pick up a package of chicken breast or a piece of steak or and you’re on your way. We're removed from the production of most of our food, and in many ways this is a good thing. We’re not all forced to live agrarian lives and grow our own food, which would prevent us from spending our careers and our time doing some of the amazing things humans have figured out how to do.
But when it comes to meat, this distance – both physical and psychological – is actually sheltering us from a nasty reality that will shock, anger and sadden you. Yeah, it may be more comfortable to not examine the ways our meat is produced too closely, but I think we have an obligation to.
Picture this – a system of producing meat that confines thousands of chickens in cages so closely together that they can’t stretch their wings or turn around; that feeds cattle a diet unnatural to them mixed with hormones and antibiotics; that creates literally tons of fecal waste so toxic (because of all those antibiotics and hormones in it) that it pollutes streams and threatens our drinking water with E-coli when it spills into the water; that produces an odor so strong people living nearby can smell it from a distance...
It sounds nightmarish, doesn’t it? I wish it weren't true, but that’s the reality of the factory farming system that produces the majority of the meat that people eat. I’m not exaggerating in order to scare you; there is countless pieces of evidence and stories to show it.
I’m prone to be interested in environmental issues, which includes a variety of topics. But the reason the issue of CAFOs, as they’re called (short for confined animal feeding operations), is so frightening to me is that it’s actually a culmination of so many issues. The problems produced by CAFOs are truly devastating – to the animals that live in those wretched conditions, to the surrounding environment that gets polluted, to human health which is put at risk, and to the people in surrounding communities who are forced to live with them every day. It is a moral problem, a social justice problem, an environmental problem, and a systemic problem.
You probably haven’t heard the term CAFO, and neither had I until about a year ago. The more I read and learned, the more upset I found myself becoming. As Jews, I think we are raised with a strong set of values and morals, especially social justice. The Jewish faith teaches us to be compassionate to our neighbors and to follow the golden rule...I know I wouldn’t want to be treated the way a CAFO treats its’ neighbors.
Even if we city dwellers don’t have to live by one of these CAFOs, we eat their products, and therefore are contributing to the system that sustains them. I can only imagine how awful it must be to live one, but if you want to find out how bad it really is, just ask one of the many people in rural parts of Missouri that do. And this is not a unique problem; CAFOs are widespread throughout Missouri (and other states), where they operate largely unregulated.
It’s true that factory farming has transformed meat from a luxury item to something that many can afford to eat regularly. But at what cost? Cheaper isn’t always better. As a consumer, and as a Jew, I would urge you to really think about this issue, and about how that package of chicken you’re buying got to be in the supermarket. It’s easy to be disconnected from the food we eat and buy, but as they say, ignorance is bliss...
I’m clearly not an expert on all this, so if you’re curious to learn more, I recommend starting with this one page document on the public health concerns of CAFOs and this executive summary of a report gives a really good overview. That just scratches the surface of this widespread and complicated issue – for more, try the Issues section of Socially Responsible Agriculture Project.
Then hopefully you’ll be motivated to look for alternatives to this madness; healthy, sustainable one’s. Local harvest is a great site for finding vendors and restaurants for organic produce and naturally-raised meat. It definitely takes thoughtfulness and some extra effort to find alternatives, but that shouldn’t stop us.
Read More......
Have you ever thought about where the meat you buy in the grocery store comes from, or how those animals were raised? If you’re like the majority of people, you probably haven’t. And why would you? In modern urban life, there isn't really much need to. You pick up a package of chicken breast or a piece of steak or and you’re on your way. We're removed from the production of most of our food, and in many ways this is a good thing. We’re not all forced to live agrarian lives and grow our own food, which would prevent us from spending our careers and our time doing some of the amazing things humans have figured out how to do.
But when it comes to meat, this distance – both physical and psychological – is actually sheltering us from a nasty reality that will shock, anger and sadden you. Yeah, it may be more comfortable to not examine the ways our meat is produced too closely, but I think we have an obligation to.
Picture this – a system of producing meat that confines thousands of chickens in cages so closely together that they can’t stretch their wings or turn around; that feeds cattle a diet unnatural to them mixed with hormones and antibiotics; that creates literally tons of fecal waste so toxic (because of all those antibiotics and hormones in it) that it pollutes streams and threatens our drinking water with E-coli when it spills into the water; that produces an odor so strong people living nearby can smell it from a distance...
It sounds nightmarish, doesn’t it? I wish it weren't true, but that’s the reality of the factory farming system that produces the majority of the meat that people eat. I’m not exaggerating in order to scare you; there is countless pieces of evidence and stories to show it.
I’m prone to be interested in environmental issues, which includes a variety of topics. But the reason the issue of CAFOs, as they’re called (short for confined animal feeding operations), is so frightening to me is that it’s actually a culmination of so many issues. The problems produced by CAFOs are truly devastating – to the animals that live in those wretched conditions, to the surrounding environment that gets polluted, to human health which is put at risk, and to the people in surrounding communities who are forced to live with them every day. It is a moral problem, a social justice problem, an environmental problem, and a systemic problem.
You probably haven’t heard the term CAFO, and neither had I until about a year ago. The more I read and learned, the more upset I found myself becoming. As Jews, I think we are raised with a strong set of values and morals, especially social justice. The Jewish faith teaches us to be compassionate to our neighbors and to follow the golden rule...I know I wouldn’t want to be treated the way a CAFO treats its’ neighbors.
Even if we city dwellers don’t have to live by one of these CAFOs, we eat their products, and therefore are contributing to the system that sustains them. I can only imagine how awful it must be to live one, but if you want to find out how bad it really is, just ask one of the many people in rural parts of Missouri that do. And this is not a unique problem; CAFOs are widespread throughout Missouri (and other states), where they operate largely unregulated.
It’s true that factory farming has transformed meat from a luxury item to something that many can afford to eat regularly. But at what cost? Cheaper isn’t always better. As a consumer, and as a Jew, I would urge you to really think about this issue, and about how that package of chicken you’re buying got to be in the supermarket. It’s easy to be disconnected from the food we eat and buy, but as they say, ignorance is bliss...
I’m clearly not an expert on all this, so if you’re curious to learn more, I recommend starting with this one page document on the public health concerns of CAFOs and this executive summary of a report gives a really good overview. That just scratches the surface of this widespread and complicated issue – for more, try the Issues section of Socially Responsible Agriculture Project.
Then hopefully you’ll be motivated to look for alternatives to this madness; healthy, sustainable one’s. Local harvest is a great site for finding vendors and restaurants for organic produce and naturally-raised meat. It definitely takes thoughtfulness and some extra effort to find alternatives, but that shouldn’t stop us.
Read More......
Lucas School House Shutting Its Doors
In a sad piece of reality, one of St. Louis' best concert venues will hold its last show New Years Eve...
If you haven't yet been, you have two weeks to experience one of the hidden gems in the St. Louis music scene, Lucas School House. The spacious, creative and inviting schoolhouse turned concert venue is shutting down at the end of the year. Read the article here.
Y? and I were lucky enough to catch more than a few shows at Lucas School House, including this past summer when we were able to catch a drink in the urban courtyard just outside.
Lucas, you will be missed, but thank you for reminding us that a little creativity and vision can go a long way.
Read More......
If you haven't yet been, you have two weeks to experience one of the hidden gems in the St. Louis music scene, Lucas School House. The spacious, creative and inviting schoolhouse turned concert venue is shutting down at the end of the year. Read the article here.
Y? and I were lucky enough to catch more than a few shows at Lucas School House, including this past summer when we were able to catch a drink in the urban courtyard just outside.
Lucas, you will be missed, but thank you for reminding us that a little creativity and vision can go a long way.
Read More......
Monday, December 15, 2008
Spreading the Love out in Chesterfield
Shabbat in the Valley? Count me in!
In the never-ending quest to document Jewish life throughout the entire St. Louis region (an area that encompasses more mileage than the state of Rhode Island) LC's family was nice enought to host Shabbat in Chesterfield on Friday. The night was complete with latkes, Sabra hummus, and this St. Louis transplant's first-ever foray into the outer reaches of the Lou. Some highlights:
-Let's settle this debate once and for all... Chesterworld is Far Away. It's not just a few minutes, it's not just down the road and it is stretching the definition of the word suburb to call it that. It's a 40 minute drive from downtown... Just sayin'.
-That being said, to see 20 people gathered together from across St. Louis so far away from home on a cold Friday night in December, says a lot about the power of community to exist anywhere you make an effort.
-Potato latkes, especially Mrs. LC's, are way undervalued in the stable of Jewish foods. As unfortunate as matzah may be, latkes are just that good.
-The Fox and Hound: Chesterfield's prime spot for drinking, dancing, jiving and getting hit on by 40 year old women celebrating their friend's most recent bachelorette party. To say this place was an instant classic doesn't scratch the surface. From half mullets to terrible jukebox music, it has everything you could ever want in a suburban entertainment experience. (And it has a prime spot in the heart of the world's largest strip mall).
-If anyone ever asks you to pay a $4 cover in Chesterfield, leave immediately. You are better than that.
At the end of the day (or night here) the experience was fun, can't deny that. That being said, TGILIC (Thank God I Live In the City)! Entertainment options, walking-distance destinations and a semblance of public transportation... there are some benefits to city living that Chesterworld just doesn't provide. But you can bet I'll be back to visit, 40 minute drive and all!
Read More......
In the never-ending quest to document Jewish life throughout the entire St. Louis region (an area that encompasses more mileage than the state of Rhode Island) LC's family was nice enought to host Shabbat in Chesterfield on Friday. The night was complete with latkes, Sabra hummus, and this St. Louis transplant's first-ever foray into the outer reaches of the Lou. Some highlights:
-Let's settle this debate once and for all... Chesterworld is Far Away. It's not just a few minutes, it's not just down the road and it is stretching the definition of the word suburb to call it that. It's a 40 minute drive from downtown... Just sayin'.
-That being said, to see 20 people gathered together from across St. Louis so far away from home on a cold Friday night in December, says a lot about the power of community to exist anywhere you make an effort.
-Potato latkes, especially Mrs. LC's, are way undervalued in the stable of Jewish foods. As unfortunate as matzah may be, latkes are just that good.
-The Fox and Hound: Chesterfield's prime spot for drinking, dancing, jiving and getting hit on by 40 year old women celebrating their friend's most recent bachelorette party. To say this place was an instant classic doesn't scratch the surface. From half mullets to terrible jukebox music, it has everything you could ever want in a suburban entertainment experience. (And it has a prime spot in the heart of the world's largest strip mall).
-If anyone ever asks you to pay a $4 cover in Chesterfield, leave immediately. You are better than that.
At the end of the day (or night here) the experience was fun, can't deny that. That being said, TGILIC (Thank God I Live In the City)! Entertainment options, walking-distance destinations and a semblance of public transportation... there are some benefits to city living that Chesterworld just doesn't provide. But you can bet I'll be back to visit, 40 minute drive and all!
Read More......
The Demise of Dating
Can't get a date? No worries, because apparently neither can anyone else!
It used to be (or so I am told at least) that if you "liked" someone you would ask them out on a date to get to know them better and see where it went. After a few dates, if things were going well, maybe then you would start to "hook up" and a relationship was born.
No more, according to this New York Times article. Today's model calls for people to hook up with their friends, and if the experience is good enough, maybe a date will come down the road. The benefit to this buy now, shop later mentality are that anyone has a chance at love. All it takes is enough time spent in a group of friends and eventually you have to hook up with soooomeone.
The negatives of this hook-up culture, though, are not what you would think. Young people today are having less sex (according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and are hooking up with friends rather than strangers (according to the Journal of Adolescent Research). Instead, the negatives are focused on gender iniquity as males and females bring different viewpoints and agendas to the "random hook-up."
So yes, when your parents say, "Back in my day we went on DATES to get to know people," they're not just blowing smoke. There is a stark contrast in today's times, as the stereotypical dinner and a movie slowly fades into Leave it to Beaver oblivion.
What do you think? Is this an accurate depiction of the dating world today? And if it is, what does it mean for a post-college Jew living in St. Louis? How is a guy supposed to get a date, or is he even supposed to? And as a girl, do you want to be wined and dined or is that too "old-fashioned?" Read the story here and let the debate begin!
Read More......
It used to be (or so I am told at least) that if you "liked" someone you would ask them out on a date to get to know them better and see where it went. After a few dates, if things were going well, maybe then you would start to "hook up" and a relationship was born.
No more, according to this New York Times article. Today's model calls for people to hook up with their friends, and if the experience is good enough, maybe a date will come down the road. The benefit to this buy now, shop later mentality are that anyone has a chance at love. All it takes is enough time spent in a group of friends and eventually you have to hook up with soooomeone.
The negatives of this hook-up culture, though, are not what you would think. Young people today are having less sex (according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and are hooking up with friends rather than strangers (according to the Journal of Adolescent Research). Instead, the negatives are focused on gender iniquity as males and females bring different viewpoints and agendas to the "random hook-up."
So yes, when your parents say, "Back in my day we went on DATES to get to know people," they're not just blowing smoke. There is a stark contrast in today's times, as the stereotypical dinner and a movie slowly fades into Leave it to Beaver oblivion.
What do you think? Is this an accurate depiction of the dating world today? And if it is, what does it mean for a post-college Jew living in St. Louis? How is a guy supposed to get a date, or is he even supposed to? And as a girl, do you want to be wined and dined or is that too "old-fashioned?" Read the story here and let the debate begin!
Read More......
Friday, December 12, 2008
A Response to Blagojevich
For some perspective on a scandal that hits right across the river here in St. Louis, we look to Ira Forman, Executive Director of the National Jewish Democratic Council, who Y? and I met last weekend in New York
Ira Forman is at the forefront of the policy-shaping process in the Jewish community, as the Executive Director of the National Jewish Democratic Council. So who better to provide some context and analysis of the recent scandal embroiling Rod Blagojeivch, the embattled governor of Illinois?
For those who don't know, Governor Blagojevich was taken into federal custody earlier this week for allegedly attempting to sell Barack Obama's now vacant U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder. Clearly one of the most brazen acts of corruption in recent political history to say the least.
As St. Louis Jews, this scandal matters because what happens in Illinois matters. The St. Louis region really does encompass two states, and the governor of one of those states is going down.
Check out Forman's reponse here, where he says that the scandal reminds Democrats how vigilant we have to be in order to keep the power we now have from turning corruptive.
What do you think? Is Forman just seeing the scandal through rose-colored glasses, or is this really an opportunity for Democrats? Do Blagojevich's actions taint the Democratic party as a whole, or does the blame stay with him and not spread farther? It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the days and weeks to come, both here at home and nation-wide.
Read More......
Ira Forman is at the forefront of the policy-shaping process in the Jewish community, as the Executive Director of the National Jewish Democratic Council. So who better to provide some context and analysis of the recent scandal embroiling Rod Blagojeivch, the embattled governor of Illinois?
For those who don't know, Governor Blagojevich was taken into federal custody earlier this week for allegedly attempting to sell Barack Obama's now vacant U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder. Clearly one of the most brazen acts of corruption in recent political history to say the least.
As St. Louis Jews, this scandal matters because what happens in Illinois matters. The St. Louis region really does encompass two states, and the governor of one of those states is going down.
Check out Forman's reponse here, where he says that the scandal reminds Democrats how vigilant we have to be in order to keep the power we now have from turning corruptive.
What do you think? Is Forman just seeing the scandal through rose-colored glasses, or is this really an opportunity for Democrats? Do Blagojevich's actions taint the Democratic party as a whole, or does the blame stay with him and not spread farther? It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the days and weeks to come, both here at home and nation-wide.
Read More......
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Bagels and Bongos; A Tale of Jewish Music
In our ongoing build up to Zeda's Beat Box's CD release party, I wanted to share a little something passed along by none other than my Yiddeshe Momma.
Check out this interesting story about Jewish Music 2.0 Read More......
Check out this interesting story about Jewish Music 2.0 Read More......
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Zeda's Beat Box to Rock Cicero's
Come on out to Cicero's on Friday, December 19 for Jew music that you might actually like!
Zeda's Beat Box is in the business of making some really really good and creative music that is also Jewish to boot. Don't take my word for it though, come check them out on Friday, December 19th at 6:30pm at Cicero's in the Loop. Here is the press release on the show, hosted by yours truly at the St. Lou Jew:
Listen to 6 songs from the new Zeda's Beat Box CD "Seven" at
www.myspace.com/zedasbeatbox
Read More......
Zeda's Beat Box is in the business of making some really really good and creative music that is also Jewish to boot. Don't take my word for it though, come check them out on Friday, December 19th at 6:30pm at Cicero's in the Loop. Here is the press release on the show, hosted by yours truly at the St. Lou Jew:
Listen to 6 songs from the new Zeda's Beat Box CD "Seven" at
www.myspace.com/zedasbeatbox
The stloujew.com presents
Zeda's Beat Box
CD Release Party
"Seven"
Friday December 19
Cicero's
6691 Delmar
$10.00 *includes FREE copy of CD!*
6:30 PM
"The St. Lou Jew" Hosts CD Release Party for Zeda's Beat Box
St. Louis, MO-November 18, 2008- St. Louis' Jewish rock reggae sensation, Zeda's Beat Box celebrates the release of their second CD "Seven" at Cicero's on Friday December 19 at 6:30PM. Bloggers from The St. Lou Jew (www.thestloujew.com) will set the tone for the evening as they light the Sabbath candles. All in attendance will receive a free copy of the bands 8-song CD.
Zeda's Beat Box burst on to the local Jewish and rock scene earlier this year with the release of their 4-song EP "Kabbalat Shabbat." The CD received rave reviews by both Jewish and mainstream press and has been hailed as "Jewish music for the masses."
Zeda's Beat Box sets Jewish liturgy and original English lyrics to a unique blend of rock and reggae. The band's mix of Jewish tradition and modern music has landed them shows in both synagogues and night clubs. Their debut CD can be heard playing at the JCC, Jewish gift shops, and on local rock radio.
The band was formed in January 2007 by Dave Simon, the founder of Dave Simon's Rock School. To build the band, Simon recruited four teenagers who participate in Rock School's band program. Simon began writing songs for the band in December of 2006 under the guidance of Rabbi Carnie Shalom Rose, Rabbi Dr. Neal Rose, and Cantor Sharon Nathanson of congregation B'nai Amoona.
Click here to hear "Seven"
Read More......
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Zeda's Beat Box, Back in Action
Zeda's Beat Box is bringing their unique blend of rock, reggae, and yiddishkeit to the stage at Cicero's next Friday, and we had a chance to sit down with the band's leader, Dave Simon at the same venue last night.
Over a round of beers (Maudite FTW), LC, Zuz and I took the opportunity to connect with Dave and discuss his upcoming CD release party for the album entitled, "Seven".
Dave Simon, a Yid previously written about in our "Living Jews" series, has been putting in a lot of work in preparation for this party.
Although the date is quickly approaching, the conversation centered on the role of Jewish music in creating an attractive Jewish culture.
Jewish music often plays the antithesis to contemporary radio rap (mainstream, gangster, unconscious, commercial, or whatever buzz word you prefer). What I mean by that is that Rap music is rhythmically infectious, it can be hard to get out of your head, and it is made for dancing. The message on the other hand if often pretty violent, profane, and masochistic. Oh, and don't for get the swagger.
Jewish music, on the other hand, has an uplifting message, that focuses on the spiritual as opposed to the material. The music, on the other hand, is often kind of hokey. Sure, I loved swaying back and forth with friends at camp, but most Jewish music, as it is traditionally understood, is not dance music.
This is where Zeda's Beat Box sees its place, by taking dance music, and combining them with traditional Jewish liturgy, ZBB wants a musical experience that people will groove with, even if they are not Jewish.
Stay tuned for the official press release tomorrow. In the meantime, check out Jewishinstlouis.org's article about the event.
Read More......
Over a round of beers (Maudite FTW), LC, Zuz and I took the opportunity to connect with Dave and discuss his upcoming CD release party for the album entitled, "Seven".
Dave Simon, a Yid previously written about in our "Living Jews" series, has been putting in a lot of work in preparation for this party.
Although the date is quickly approaching, the conversation centered on the role of Jewish music in creating an attractive Jewish culture.
Jewish music often plays the antithesis to contemporary radio rap (mainstream, gangster, unconscious, commercial, or whatever buzz word you prefer). What I mean by that is that Rap music is rhythmically infectious, it can be hard to get out of your head, and it is made for dancing. The message on the other hand if often pretty violent, profane, and masochistic. Oh, and don't for get the swagger.
Jewish music, on the other hand, has an uplifting message, that focuses on the spiritual as opposed to the material. The music, on the other hand, is often kind of hokey. Sure, I loved swaying back and forth with friends at camp, but most Jewish music, as it is traditionally understood, is not dance music.
This is where Zeda's Beat Box sees its place, by taking dance music, and combining them with traditional Jewish liturgy, ZBB wants a musical experience that people will groove with, even if they are not Jewish.
Stay tuned for the official press release tomorrow. In the meantime, check out Jewishinstlouis.org's article about the event.
Read More......
Seriously, please don't
President-elect Obama did Meet The Press on Sunday. In talking to Tom Brokaw about the potential auto industry bailout, he said “We don’t want government to run companies. Generally, government historically hasn’t done that very well.” He’s right, but again he’s underselling the dangers. Government just hasn’t done it very well, they’ve done it miserably.
The President-elect went on to describe a long-term government bailout that would be conditioned on government oversight. It could be that the government would mandate the types of cars companies make, mileage and environmental standards, and the investments they make (or do not make), to ensure that the industry “actually functions.” All of this sounds eerily close to a word that the Obama Administration wants to avoid the usage of at all costs: nationalization.
In 1952 President Henry Truman took over America’s steel industry to avoid an industry strike that would undermine our efforts in the Korean War. It was the last time the government toyed with the idea of nationalizing an industry, functionally or otherwise. It appears that Obama may be thinking what Truman said: “the president has the power to keep the country from going to hell.” The Supreme Court did not agree, however, and forced Truman to relinquish control. That there is so little opposition this time reflects the desperation. But that there is so little opposition this time also reflects a void of intelligent leadership.
There are three significant risks to this tactic. The first is what Obama himself admitted – that the government does not do this sort of thing well. He’s understating the reality, though. The government is absolutely and unconditionally miserable at it. Government’s record as a corporate executive has led to three-decades of privatization, turning national railroads, airlines, and defense industries into private companies.
What this plan sounds an awful lot like is controlled bankruptcy, where the government steps in to restructure an industry, as it could do if the industry declared bankruptcy, except that the industry won’t declare bankruptcy. What’s the point? The coverage is that it saves jobs and keeps Americans buying American cars. Both of these claims are ridiculous. Any serious reconstruction is going to require, fiscally, a net loss in jobs. This is because, addressing the second claim, that bankrupt or otherwise, Americans don’t buy American cars. Even regulating the kinds of cars manufactured and mileage minimums will not address this in the short term, because it will take time to get these vehicles on the road and even longer to instill some confidence in the products, while the investor (taxpayer) requires more immediate returns.
The second risk is that if the government fails (as history teaches us is highly probable), and the American car industry collapses or gets bought out by foreign competitors, taxpayers would lose the billions the government poured in. Part of what made the Wall Street bailout packages more palatable was that private companies were willing to buy some of the failing groups. That private industries were eager to step in and buy their failing counterparts gave taxpayers confidence that there was merit in the government providing additional assistance using their money. As Bill Gates so astutely told Wolf Blitzer, “After all, you have to say, if no one else is willing to invest, why is that? What is it that investors are seeing about this business model or cost structure that makes them unwilling? And why, in that case, is the government alone in stepping forward in these ways?...when you don’t have any private investors, you really have to say, is taxpayers’ money going to have the desired effect?”
The third risk, which deserves far more attention than it is getting, is that by stepping in to save the auto industry the government is going against the spirit of what it has preached around the world for the last 20 plus years. America has demanded that nations treat our companies on their soil the same as they treat their own companies, a concept called “national treatment.”
So far, however there has been no talk of offering aid to Toyota, Honda, BMW, or any other foreign automaker that have factories on our soil and employ our citizens (all the while managing to make a profit, making a great case for government action to dissolve the UAW). “If Japan was doing this, we’d be threatening billions of dollars in retaliation,” said Jeffrey Garten a professor at Yale, who as under secretary of commerce in the 90s tried in vain to get the industry prepared for international competition. “In fact, when they did something a lot more subtle, we threatened exactly that,” referring to calls for import restrictions.
To be fair, it is hard to measure the risks Obama may be willing to take with his plan seeing as so much of it is still a work in progress. In the short term, Democrats are looking at linking $15 billion in immediate loans to a “car czar” who could require or veto transactions or investments, essentially a one-man board of directors. This is huge power, yet the current administration has signaled it would be likely to sign this sort of plan.
That $15 billion is just the tip of the iceberg. “After that, we’re in uncharted water,” said Malcolm Salter, a Harvard Business School professor and former adviser to GM and Ford. “Think about this: Who in the federal government would have the tremendous insight needed to fix this industry?” It certainly is not anyone in the US Congress, even less the case when you see the same photograph of Barney Frank and Nancy Pelosi attached to every story on the bailout.
Depending on the role and tactics the government decides to take, the efforts could end up looking a lot like the role of the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry in the 1970s and 80s. To promote the Japanese car industry on the way up, the Ministry pushed companies towards consolidation and even tried to mandate which segments of the market each could participate in. Soichiro Honda, the namesake of the Honda Company, rebelled when told that he should limit himself to motorcycles – a smart decision. Congress denounced this as “industry policy” and argued that it put American makers at a competitive disadvantage and compromised free enterprise.
Now, Congress is doing exactly what the Japanese did, but not as the industry is on its way up, but rather down. The Japanese and others will no double complain, and they would be right, or worse, begin doing the same for their own auto industries. In the end, the most appropriate question to ask as the investor (as we the tax-paying population are in this case) is “would I, or do others, buy the product I’m investing in?” As someone who comes from a family who only buys American cars, the responsible answer is “no” across the board.
Read More......
The President-elect went on to describe a long-term government bailout that would be conditioned on government oversight. It could be that the government would mandate the types of cars companies make, mileage and environmental standards, and the investments they make (or do not make), to ensure that the industry “actually functions.” All of this sounds eerily close to a word that the Obama Administration wants to avoid the usage of at all costs: nationalization.
In 1952 President Henry Truman took over America’s steel industry to avoid an industry strike that would undermine our efforts in the Korean War. It was the last time the government toyed with the idea of nationalizing an industry, functionally or otherwise. It appears that Obama may be thinking what Truman said: “the president has the power to keep the country from going to hell.” The Supreme Court did not agree, however, and forced Truman to relinquish control. That there is so little opposition this time reflects the desperation. But that there is so little opposition this time also reflects a void of intelligent leadership.
There are three significant risks to this tactic. The first is what Obama himself admitted – that the government does not do this sort of thing well. He’s understating the reality, though. The government is absolutely and unconditionally miserable at it. Government’s record as a corporate executive has led to three-decades of privatization, turning national railroads, airlines, and defense industries into private companies.
What this plan sounds an awful lot like is controlled bankruptcy, where the government steps in to restructure an industry, as it could do if the industry declared bankruptcy, except that the industry won’t declare bankruptcy. What’s the point? The coverage is that it saves jobs and keeps Americans buying American cars. Both of these claims are ridiculous. Any serious reconstruction is going to require, fiscally, a net loss in jobs. This is because, addressing the second claim, that bankrupt or otherwise, Americans don’t buy American cars. Even regulating the kinds of cars manufactured and mileage minimums will not address this in the short term, because it will take time to get these vehicles on the road and even longer to instill some confidence in the products, while the investor (taxpayer) requires more immediate returns.
The second risk is that if the government fails (as history teaches us is highly probable), and the American car industry collapses or gets bought out by foreign competitors, taxpayers would lose the billions the government poured in. Part of what made the Wall Street bailout packages more palatable was that private companies were willing to buy some of the failing groups. That private industries were eager to step in and buy their failing counterparts gave taxpayers confidence that there was merit in the government providing additional assistance using their money. As Bill Gates so astutely told Wolf Blitzer, “After all, you have to say, if no one else is willing to invest, why is that? What is it that investors are seeing about this business model or cost structure that makes them unwilling? And why, in that case, is the government alone in stepping forward in these ways?...when you don’t have any private investors, you really have to say, is taxpayers’ money going to have the desired effect?”
The third risk, which deserves far more attention than it is getting, is that by stepping in to save the auto industry the government is going against the spirit of what it has preached around the world for the last 20 plus years. America has demanded that nations treat our companies on their soil the same as they treat their own companies, a concept called “national treatment.”
So far, however there has been no talk of offering aid to Toyota, Honda, BMW, or any other foreign automaker that have factories on our soil and employ our citizens (all the while managing to make a profit, making a great case for government action to dissolve the UAW). “If Japan was doing this, we’d be threatening billions of dollars in retaliation,” said Jeffrey Garten a professor at Yale, who as under secretary of commerce in the 90s tried in vain to get the industry prepared for international competition. “In fact, when they did something a lot more subtle, we threatened exactly that,” referring to calls for import restrictions.
To be fair, it is hard to measure the risks Obama may be willing to take with his plan seeing as so much of it is still a work in progress. In the short term, Democrats are looking at linking $15 billion in immediate loans to a “car czar” who could require or veto transactions or investments, essentially a one-man board of directors. This is huge power, yet the current administration has signaled it would be likely to sign this sort of plan.
That $15 billion is just the tip of the iceberg. “After that, we’re in uncharted water,” said Malcolm Salter, a Harvard Business School professor and former adviser to GM and Ford. “Think about this: Who in the federal government would have the tremendous insight needed to fix this industry?” It certainly is not anyone in the US Congress, even less the case when you see the same photograph of Barney Frank and Nancy Pelosi attached to every story on the bailout.
Depending on the role and tactics the government decides to take, the efforts could end up looking a lot like the role of the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry in the 1970s and 80s. To promote the Japanese car industry on the way up, the Ministry pushed companies towards consolidation and even tried to mandate which segments of the market each could participate in. Soichiro Honda, the namesake of the Honda Company, rebelled when told that he should limit himself to motorcycles – a smart decision. Congress denounced this as “industry policy” and argued that it put American makers at a competitive disadvantage and compromised free enterprise.
Now, Congress is doing exactly what the Japanese did, but not as the industry is on its way up, but rather down. The Japanese and others will no double complain, and they would be right, or worse, begin doing the same for their own auto industries. In the end, the most appropriate question to ask as the investor (as we the tax-paying population are in this case) is “would I, or do others, buy the product I’m investing in?” As someone who comes from a family who only buys American cars, the responsible answer is “no” across the board.
Read More......
An Alternative Religious Model
Not that I fully align with the message, but read about what Beth Adam are doing with technology as a form of outreach here
Read More......
Monday, December 8, 2008
Zuz and Y?'s Excellent Adventure
Y? and I made the pilgrimage to New York City this weekend to participate in the Professional Leaders Project SkillSummit. Along the way, we found time to rekindle some old friendships as well.
Spending just 33 hours in New York is a challenge of epic proportions, but one that I took on this weekend. Where do you go, what do you see, when do you sleep? These were just some of the questions I pondered during the pre-dawn flight out. The weekend was separated into two parts: catch up with old friends on Saturday, and attend the SkillSummit on Sunday. What follows is the quick rundown, as well as some sites to check out to see what engaged Jews are doing around the country.
Saturday:
-Upon arrival, I successfully navigated the spidery NYC transit system, taking bus to subway to walking to make my way to the Upper West Side.
-For lunch, I met up with old Umrath friends (yeah U2!) and experienced Barney Greengrass, only the world's best bagel and lox establishment.
-The afternoon was spent wandering lazily through the city on foot, including Strawberry Fields, the world's coolest Apple store, the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center and an excursion into the Plaza to view high tea being served.
-Saturday night was a reunion with the only Yankee fan I call a friend and a tour of almost two dozen NYC bars. Unfortunately, the play by play of that night has been censored by my editors (aka me).
Sunday was then spent at the SkillSummit, a gathering of next generation Jewish leaders from across the eastern half of the country. The best thing I can do is provide you with links to same amazing organizations and let their work speak for itself. Please check them out:
Jews United for Justice
National Jewish Democratic Council
The New Orleans Young Urban Rebuilding Professionals
Jewish Museum Milwaukee
Read More......
Spending just 33 hours in New York is a challenge of epic proportions, but one that I took on this weekend. Where do you go, what do you see, when do you sleep? These were just some of the questions I pondered during the pre-dawn flight out. The weekend was separated into two parts: catch up with old friends on Saturday, and attend the SkillSummit on Sunday. What follows is the quick rundown, as well as some sites to check out to see what engaged Jews are doing around the country.
Saturday:
-Upon arrival, I successfully navigated the spidery NYC transit system, taking bus to subway to walking to make my way to the Upper West Side.
-For lunch, I met up with old Umrath friends (yeah U2!) and experienced Barney Greengrass, only the world's best bagel and lox establishment.
-The afternoon was spent wandering lazily through the city on foot, including Strawberry Fields, the world's coolest Apple store, the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center and an excursion into the Plaza to view high tea being served.
-Saturday night was a reunion with the only Yankee fan I call a friend and a tour of almost two dozen NYC bars. Unfortunately, the play by play of that night has been censored by my editors (aka me).
Sunday was then spent at the SkillSummit, a gathering of next generation Jewish leaders from across the eastern half of the country. The best thing I can do is provide you with links to same amazing organizations and let their work speak for itself. Please check them out:
Jews United for Justice
National Jewish Democratic Council
The New Orleans Young Urban Rebuilding Professionals
Jewish Museum Milwaukee
Read More......
New York City Skills Summit, Y?'s side
A whirlwind trip to New York provided Zuz and I the opportunity to meet some of the most influential Jewish minds in the areas of philanthropy and non-profit work, including Rhoda Weisman, who had some interesting things to say.
After nearly 36 hours in New York City, Zuz and I returned to St. Louis, drained from seeing so many friends, and trying to absorb as much of the energy and creativity as we could.
Waking up at 4 am on Saturday, we caught a 6 am flight to Chicago, then a direct to Laguardia. We were already exhausted from Shabbat dinner the night before, but running on adrenaline.
We got into the city and went our separate ways. After a whole day (and night) of seeing friends and family, Zuz and I found our way to Hebrew Union College, late, and nearly comatose with exhaustion.
And then it happened. I walked down stairs into a social hall filled with young Jews, and mentors. Was the immediate rush of energy I felt a result being surrounded by so much potential, or was it the sudden influx of attractive Jewish women now in the periphery of my bleary vision?
Either way, I knew that I had to muster what little attention span I had for those few hours I was able to spend at the Skills Summit.
As a bit of background, PLP, the Professional Leadership Project, hosts the SkillsSummit to develop young Jewish leadership along one of three tracks, fund raising, volunteering/membership, and community organizing.
Zuz and I joined the community organizing track along side Ira Forman, Executive Director of the National Jewish Democratic Council, as well as Scott Sherman, founder of the Transformative Action Institute.
Through novel exercises, case studies, and mentorship, we were able to connect with these amazing visionaries, as well with our peers, many of whom are just as incredible.
We had an incredibly quick and intense speed mentorship program, in which I had the opportunity to sit down with Rhoda Weisman and ask questions about the sustainability of much of what we are doing.
"Give away power as quickly as you can," she said. "It is the only way to continuously bring people into the fold and to ensure that you are able to step out of the spotlight."
Zuz and I were both deeply impressed by her intellect and deliberate, point-by-point articulateness.
We were able to connect with Rebecca from Moishe House Philly, which brought several really interesting ideas to the surface, and which we hope to act on soon.
Perhaps even better, as soon as people heard that we were reppin STL, Jewish Geography kicked into overdrive, with people giving us the names of friends who were lonely in the Louie. That means we have our work cut out for us!
Read More......
After nearly 36 hours in New York City, Zuz and I returned to St. Louis, drained from seeing so many friends, and trying to absorb as much of the energy and creativity as we could.
Waking up at 4 am on Saturday, we caught a 6 am flight to Chicago, then a direct to Laguardia. We were already exhausted from Shabbat dinner the night before, but running on adrenaline.
We got into the city and went our separate ways. After a whole day (and night) of seeing friends and family, Zuz and I found our way to Hebrew Union College, late, and nearly comatose with exhaustion.
And then it happened. I walked down stairs into a social hall filled with young Jews, and mentors. Was the immediate rush of energy I felt a result being surrounded by so much potential, or was it the sudden influx of attractive Jewish women now in the periphery of my bleary vision?
Either way, I knew that I had to muster what little attention span I had for those few hours I was able to spend at the Skills Summit.
As a bit of background, PLP, the Professional Leadership Project, hosts the SkillsSummit to develop young Jewish leadership along one of three tracks, fund raising, volunteering/membership, and community organizing.
Zuz and I joined the community organizing track along side Ira Forman, Executive Director of the National Jewish Democratic Council, as well as Scott Sherman, founder of the Transformative Action Institute.
Through novel exercises, case studies, and mentorship, we were able to connect with these amazing visionaries, as well with our peers, many of whom are just as incredible.
We had an incredibly quick and intense speed mentorship program, in which I had the opportunity to sit down with Rhoda Weisman and ask questions about the sustainability of much of what we are doing.
"Give away power as quickly as you can," she said. "It is the only way to continuously bring people into the fold and to ensure that you are able to step out of the spotlight."
Zuz and I were both deeply impressed by her intellect and deliberate, point-by-point articulateness.
We were able to connect with Rebecca from Moishe House Philly, which brought several really interesting ideas to the surface, and which we hope to act on soon.
Perhaps even better, as soon as people heard that we were reppin STL, Jewish Geography kicked into overdrive, with people giving us the names of friends who were lonely in the Louie. That means we have our work cut out for us!
Read More......
Friday, December 5, 2008
Sophistication in the City
Looking for a way to unwind in style? Sasha's new location in South City is just the thing...
Earlier this week, Y?, LC, Rosh and I (along with an ever-expanding group of others looking for urban excitement) headed literally down the street to the new Sasha's Wine Bar, at Thurman and Shaw, right near South Grand and Tower Grove Park. Now, let me say right off the bat, I am not your typical wine bar patron (I admittedly came close to ordering a beer, but that was more due to the good beer selection in addition to an unbelievable wine list). How do I describe it?
Like an oasis in the middle of an area otherwise starved for places to go out. Exposed brick and pipe, walls covered in their wine inventory, a beautiful outdoor garden with heat lamps that you can bet will be hopping come summer... Sasha's is perfect whether you are looking to impress on a date or just escape the grind for a bit. Check out their website here and be sure to give them a chance.
Also, the opening of Sasha's is another encouraging step in development of the Shaw neighborhood. First Thurman, now Sasha's, corner businesses in Shaw are really taking off. Now the question is... what's next?
Read More......
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Federation Board of Trustees Panel: SuperJew Status
Last night, LC and I had the opportunity to sit on a panel of 'young Jews' with JJ Flotkin, and flanked by Sandy Cardin, President of the Charles & Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation. We spoke our minds, and in the process, 'challenged cherished beliefs'.
When the VP of the STL Jewish Federation asked us to speak, we were honored, and a bit freaked out. Who are we to think that we have any answers, for that matter, aside from the traffic we get on this site, and the people we get to sit down with for Shabbat dinners, who are we to even try to represent a generation of Jews.
Never-the-less, the opportunity was presented, and we took it.
The meeting itself was a perfect illustration of some of the disconnect that takes place between the generations.
The proceedings began with Robert's Rules of Order material, then moved to a check presentation from Anheuser-Busch(InBev). Sandy Cardin then got up and proceeded to, very eloquently, describe (indirectly) how those very proceedings were things keeping young Jews away from 'organized Judaism'.
First, organization/institutionalization, keeps us away by having a specific leadership structure in which one must advance through the ranks in a very prescribed fashion. It may take 10 years to get to a leadership role. Sandy acknowledged that this structure holds little appeal.
Second, the idea of 'get 'em while their young' specifically as it pertains to fundraising, may be totally incorrect. Sandy stated, very much in line with how we feel, that the emphasis should be on building a community, so that people have personal ties to giving later on.
When it came time for us to speak, LC, JJ, and I represented fairly different approaches to young adult involvement in Judaism.
LC, who has written about the subject before represents the 'more ish than Jewish' approach, having recently become involved through Moishe House activities (which is incidentally now primarily Schusterman funded).
JJ, president of the Young Professionals Division of the Federation, represents a more settled young adult, being married with a child, and is very involved with the Federation and many of the programs therein.
I really hope that our perspectives were helpful for those assembled at the Fed last night and more than that, I hope that we can inspire some real movement around the topics we discussed.
One of the most interesting points brought up by Sandy, and expounded upon in the course of the panel discussion is the fact that, whether or not it is acknowledged, we are a part of the community. Whether or not our events and activities revolve around the JCC, Federation, or Hillel (and increasingly not) young Jews around the country are continuing to foster community, build connections, and have meaningful Jewish experiences.
Read More......
When the VP of the STL Jewish Federation asked us to speak, we were honored, and a bit freaked out. Who are we to think that we have any answers, for that matter, aside from the traffic we get on this site, and the people we get to sit down with for Shabbat dinners, who are we to even try to represent a generation of Jews.
Never-the-less, the opportunity was presented, and we took it.
The meeting itself was a perfect illustration of some of the disconnect that takes place between the generations.
The proceedings began with Robert's Rules of Order material, then moved to a check presentation from Anheuser-Busch(InBev). Sandy Cardin then got up and proceeded to, very eloquently, describe (indirectly) how those very proceedings were things keeping young Jews away from 'organized Judaism'.
First, organization/institutionalization, keeps us away by having a specific leadership structure in which one must advance through the ranks in a very prescribed fashion. It may take 10 years to get to a leadership role. Sandy acknowledged that this structure holds little appeal.
Second, the idea of 'get 'em while their young' specifically as it pertains to fundraising, may be totally incorrect. Sandy stated, very much in line with how we feel, that the emphasis should be on building a community, so that people have personal ties to giving later on.
When it came time for us to speak, LC, JJ, and I represented fairly different approaches to young adult involvement in Judaism.
LC, who has written about the subject before represents the 'more ish than Jewish' approach, having recently become involved through Moishe House activities (which is incidentally now primarily Schusterman funded).
JJ, president of the Young Professionals Division of the Federation, represents a more settled young adult, being married with a child, and is very involved with the Federation and many of the programs therein.
I really hope that our perspectives were helpful for those assembled at the Fed last night and more than that, I hope that we can inspire some real movement around the topics we discussed.
One of the most interesting points brought up by Sandy, and expounded upon in the course of the panel discussion is the fact that, whether or not it is acknowledged, we are a part of the community. Whether or not our events and activities revolve around the JCC, Federation, or Hillel (and increasingly not) young Jews around the country are continuing to foster community, build connections, and have meaningful Jewish experiences.
Read More......
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Living Jews: Tahli Miller
Last night, after a last minute phone call from Adam Weinberg, a few of us StlouJews had the opportunity to sit down with Tahli Miller, most recognizable for her husband, Mattisyahu. After a few hours with Tahli, though, it is clear that she has talents that deserve recognition in their own right.
Tahli Miller was studying film at Tish when she met Mattisyahu, initially it was for a film on Shomer Negiyah (the practice of not touching members of the opposite sex unless they are family) and its impact on relationships.
The film became far more complex as Tahli and Mattis started dating and the film came to revolve around the lack of touch between the them.
While traveling with Mattis, Tahli started using her experiences and learning on the subject to tackle relationships, the idea of Shomer Negiyah, and how religion and spirituality play into the two.
When we had a chance to sit down with her last night, at the Rabbi Yari's house, we were treated to an excellent discussion that careened from relationships to discussions of life on tour, and back.
Tahli raised an interested point about the frustration she feels when she sees people who come to the concerts and behave in ways counter to what the music is about, either by being stoned, or by grinding on each other. Much like those who go on Birthright for the free party.
In both situations, however, there are those who end up being effected and opened up to something new .
We put in a few good words for St. Louis, and learned a little about the irony of living in a place as Jewish as New York, where there is less pressure to identify or join the community.
What was a last minute email turned into a really interesting night. We were very fortunate to have the chance to connect with Tahli and wish her and Mattis continued success
Read More......
Tahli Miller was studying film at Tish when she met Mattisyahu, initially it was for a film on Shomer Negiyah (the practice of not touching members of the opposite sex unless they are family) and its impact on relationships.
The film became far more complex as Tahli and Mattis started dating and the film came to revolve around the lack of touch between the them.
While traveling with Mattis, Tahli started using her experiences and learning on the subject to tackle relationships, the idea of Shomer Negiyah, and how religion and spirituality play into the two.
When we had a chance to sit down with her last night, at the Rabbi Yari's house, we were treated to an excellent discussion that careened from relationships to discussions of life on tour, and back.
Tahli raised an interested point about the frustration she feels when she sees people who come to the concerts and behave in ways counter to what the music is about, either by being stoned, or by grinding on each other. Much like those who go on Birthright for the free party.
In both situations, however, there are those who end up being effected and opened up to something new .
We put in a few good words for St. Louis, and learned a little about the irony of living in a place as Jewish as New York, where there is less pressure to identify or join the community.
What was a last minute email turned into a really interesting night. We were very fortunate to have the chance to connect with Tahli and wish her and Mattis continued success
Read More......
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Professional Leaders Project SkillsSummit
Zuz and Y? Accepted to Cutting Edge Jewish Leadership Program in NYC
That's right, Zuz and I have been accepted to participate in the Professional Leaders Project (PLP) SkillsSummit Program, a cutting-edge, 3-part Sunday Summit series for Generation Y Jewish leaders, taking place in New York City and Los Angeles in 2008-2009.
SkillsSummit focuses on innovative initiatives that strengthen Jewish leadership effectiveness, tackling pressing issues in contemporary Jewish society, and building community.
We are both pretty excited to have the opportunity to connect with some cool people, and to spend a few hours in NYC catching up with friends and family.
The Summit series will strengthen participants' Jewish leadership effectiveness in three, daylong intensive skill-building Summits with renowned experts and practitioners. Participants will apply new skills to real-life Jewish volunteer and professional settings. Both Zuz and I will be attending the sessions focusing on community organizing, where we will have the opportunity to be mentored by some of the foremost thinkers, organizers, and philanthropists.
Did I mention that we also get a trip to NYC, Medina to Israel's Jewish Mecca?
The Professional Leaders Project is an entrepreneurial nonprofit founded three years ago that selects Jewish Talent in their 20s & 30s around the country, connecting them to forward-thinking seasoned leaders for networking, mentoring, coaching, skill-building, and positive organizational change. PLP is dedicated to increasing the recruitment and retention of outstanding leaders who will lead the Jewish community into the future. For more information, visit http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://www.jewishleaders.net.
Read More......
That's right, Zuz and I have been accepted to participate in the Professional Leaders Project (PLP) SkillsSummit Program, a cutting-edge, 3-part Sunday Summit series for Generation Y Jewish leaders, taking place in New York City and Los Angeles in 2008-2009.
SkillsSummit focuses on innovative initiatives that strengthen Jewish leadership effectiveness, tackling pressing issues in contemporary Jewish society, and building community.
We are both pretty excited to have the opportunity to connect with some cool people, and to spend a few hours in NYC catching up with friends and family.
The Summit series will strengthen participants' Jewish leadership effectiveness in three, daylong intensive skill-building Summits with renowned experts and practitioners. Participants will apply new skills to real-life Jewish volunteer and professional settings. Both Zuz and I will be attending the sessions focusing on community organizing, where we will have the opportunity to be mentored by some of the foremost thinkers, organizers, and philanthropists.
Did I mention that we also get a trip to NYC, Medina to Israel's Jewish Mecca?
The Professional Leaders Project is an entrepreneurial nonprofit founded three years ago that selects Jewish Talent in their 20s & 30s around the country, connecting them to forward-thinking seasoned leaders for networking, mentoring, coaching, skill-building, and positive organizational change. PLP is dedicated to increasing the recruitment and retention of outstanding leaders who will lead the Jewish community into the future. For more information, visit http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://www.jewishleaders.net.
Read More......
Monday, December 1, 2008
Together We Hope
After a weekend full of food, friends, Bailey's, reunions, and more food, we are back in action!
Read on for an update on Maya Escobar, our favorite StlouJew artist.
It was election day, Maya was waiting in some of the longer lines, surrounded by eager, hopeful voters. She wanted to capture the environment and engage those around her. Maya and Carianne Noga, her colleague and frequent collaborator had the idea to take a bunch of tags and let people write their hopes on them. The tags were put on display for all to see.
Out of this spur-of-the-moment project came togetherwehope.com a simple site that allows people to write their hopes, immediate or long term, material, spiritual, idealistic or realistic.
The project has already started to take off, with an article in the St. Louis Post Dispatch.
Maya and Carianne will be turning the tags into a public art installation in front of the University City Post Office, so hit up togetherwehope.com while there is still time and ensure that your hopes are heard.
Read More......
Read on for an update on Maya Escobar, our favorite StlouJew artist.
It was election day, Maya was waiting in some of the longer lines, surrounded by eager, hopeful voters. She wanted to capture the environment and engage those around her. Maya and Carianne Noga, her colleague and frequent collaborator had the idea to take a bunch of tags and let people write their hopes on them. The tags were put on display for all to see.
Out of this spur-of-the-moment project came togetherwehope.com a simple site that allows people to write their hopes, immediate or long term, material, spiritual, idealistic or realistic.
The project has already started to take off, with an article in the St. Louis Post Dispatch.
Maya and Carianne will be turning the tags into a public art installation in front of the University City Post Office, so hit up togetherwehope.com while there is still time and ensure that your hopes are heard.
Read More......
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Is Facebook Hurting Relationships?
Is Facebook's ability to connect with old friends and seek out new companions in secret actually affecting relationships out in the real world? This article suggests yes!
As ridiculous as the headline sounds, can Facebook really break your heart? Back in my day, Facebook was a simple diversion that came online during Finals Week, meaning that everyone spent way too much time updating their profile and reconnecting with friends from kindergarten. 4.5 short years later, it has become THE tool to stay increasingly connected in a world that should make staying connected harder than ever.
We're constantly on the move, be it from meeting to meeting, from home on the East Coast to school on the West, or off to Tibet to study the mating habits of the spotted iguana for 9 months while staying in a hut with ancient monks. Everything is stacked against us maintaining relationships, let alone rekindling old flames (I for one have been routinely criticized over the years for letting friendships fall by the wayside).
Yet here is Facebook, no longer just a cult fad, but a legitimate tool that makes the world the size of a computer screen. Just this past week I have connected to old college friends, made plans for trips around the country, and checked up on my little sister's college shenanigans!
But is there a darker side to these connections? Does Facebook allow us too much access, too many opportunities to stray? That is exactly the question this article asks in loooking at the Facebook phenomenon. So what do you think? Is Facebook a positive agent of change that will forever alter the way we consider friendship? Or is it a dark and destructive power that does not relate well to reality? Discuss!
Read More......
As ridiculous as the headline sounds, can Facebook really break your heart? Back in my day, Facebook was a simple diversion that came online during Finals Week, meaning that everyone spent way too much time updating their profile and reconnecting with friends from kindergarten. 4.5 short years later, it has become THE tool to stay increasingly connected in a world that should make staying connected harder than ever.
We're constantly on the move, be it from meeting to meeting, from home on the East Coast to school on the West, or off to Tibet to study the mating habits of the spotted iguana for 9 months while staying in a hut with ancient monks. Everything is stacked against us maintaining relationships, let alone rekindling old flames (I for one have been routinely criticized over the years for letting friendships fall by the wayside).
Yet here is Facebook, no longer just a cult fad, but a legitimate tool that makes the world the size of a computer screen. Just this past week I have connected to old college friends, made plans for trips around the country, and checked up on my little sister's college shenanigans!
But is there a darker side to these connections? Does Facebook allow us too much access, too many opportunities to stray? That is exactly the question this article asks in loooking at the Facebook phenomenon. So what do you think? Is Facebook a positive agent of change that will forever alter the way we consider friendship? Or is it a dark and destructive power that does not relate well to reality? Discuss!
Read More......
Monday, November 24, 2008
Inspiration and Hope from the Nation's Capitol
Just got back from a whirlwind 36 hours in DC, and boy does St. Louis have a few things to learn...but so does DC
Y and I spent the weekend (or at least 30 hours) in DC this weekend, doing some undercover research versus St. Louis, venn diagram style. My initial, gut-reaction thoughts on the comparison between the two:
Transportation: Our gripes have been well documented here, but St. Louis doesn't stand a chance. For anyone wondering what a world-class transportation system does for a city, take a weekend riding the Metro in DC and you will find out. As a kid, I could't get over the cool machine that took your ticket, spit it back out and opened the space-age gates. Now? I can't get over a public transit system that goes wherever you want it to go, comes when you want it to come, and has stations that look so cool. Seriously, riding the Metro can be a night all its own, it's that good.
Options: This is another place where DC reigns above supreme. In St. Louis, you choose the kind of place you want to go, and then from there choose between the three places that fit that bill. In DC, choosing the kind of place leaves you with dozens of NEIGHBORHOODS to choose from, each which have multiple places you could go. And if you get tired of the 20 bars in the neighborhood you chose? Hop back on the Metro and you will be somewhere else in 10 minutes.
Cost: Same for transportation (possibly even a little cheaper in DC), DC drinks a little more, DC food a lot more, DC gas a lot more... No surprise here when I say St. Louis is a cheaper city
Convenience: Started drinking at 4pm, stopped drinking at 1am, never had to think about a driver or how I was going to get home. Enough said.
The Clientele: By this, I just mean the people in general that I interacted with throughout the weekend (strangers, not my friends) in the Philly airport and in DC. Maybe I have been in the Midwest too long, but I tried to help a man with his bag down from the overhead bin, and he glared at me like I was going to steal it and disappear, despite the fact we were crammed into an overcrowded airplane. I'm just trying to help dude. Guess I forgot we don't do that out East.
Cool Factor: This is the biggest gut reaction of all, but it's the feeling that, wherever you are, whenver you step outside you are in the middle of the action. I'm talking Sunday morning, walking down Mass Ave from Dupont to Gallery Place, more was going on around me than in the middle of the Loop on any given night. I will admit, this could just be a DC bias showing through, but there is just an energy surrounding everything you do and everywhere you go that St. Louis is sorely lacking. DC is the hot girl who knows how hot she is, while St. Louis is the mousy girl with glasses who is afraid to let her hair down because maybe someone will notice and talk to her.
Ultimately, that is what it comes down to... Yeah, you are going to pay a little more in DC and the people are going to be a little more abrasive. But you get all the perks that come along with big city life while being able to get anywhere you want with relative ease. Now if St. Louis could just get that transporation thing down, couple it with some more choice for entertainment and keep the low prices and Midwest charm, maybe we could get to work on that cool factor. Whaddya say?
Read More......
Y and I spent the weekend (or at least 30 hours) in DC this weekend, doing some undercover research versus St. Louis, venn diagram style. My initial, gut-reaction thoughts on the comparison between the two:
Transportation: Our gripes have been well documented here, but St. Louis doesn't stand a chance. For anyone wondering what a world-class transportation system does for a city, take a weekend riding the Metro in DC and you will find out. As a kid, I could't get over the cool machine that took your ticket, spit it back out and opened the space-age gates. Now? I can't get over a public transit system that goes wherever you want it to go, comes when you want it to come, and has stations that look so cool. Seriously, riding the Metro can be a night all its own, it's that good.
Options: This is another place where DC reigns above supreme. In St. Louis, you choose the kind of place you want to go, and then from there choose between the three places that fit that bill. In DC, choosing the kind of place leaves you with dozens of NEIGHBORHOODS to choose from, each which have multiple places you could go. And if you get tired of the 20 bars in the neighborhood you chose? Hop back on the Metro and you will be somewhere else in 10 minutes.
Cost: Same for transportation (possibly even a little cheaper in DC), DC drinks a little more, DC food a lot more, DC gas a lot more... No surprise here when I say St. Louis is a cheaper city
Convenience: Started drinking at 4pm, stopped drinking at 1am, never had to think about a driver or how I was going to get home. Enough said.
The Clientele: By this, I just mean the people in general that I interacted with throughout the weekend (strangers, not my friends) in the Philly airport and in DC. Maybe I have been in the Midwest too long, but I tried to help a man with his bag down from the overhead bin, and he glared at me like I was going to steal it and disappear, despite the fact we were crammed into an overcrowded airplane. I'm just trying to help dude. Guess I forgot we don't do that out East.
Cool Factor: This is the biggest gut reaction of all, but it's the feeling that, wherever you are, whenver you step outside you are in the middle of the action. I'm talking Sunday morning, walking down Mass Ave from Dupont to Gallery Place, more was going on around me than in the middle of the Loop on any given night. I will admit, this could just be a DC bias showing through, but there is just an energy surrounding everything you do and everywhere you go that St. Louis is sorely lacking. DC is the hot girl who knows how hot she is, while St. Louis is the mousy girl with glasses who is afraid to let her hair down because maybe someone will notice and talk to her.
Ultimately, that is what it comes down to... Yeah, you are going to pay a little more in DC and the people are going to be a little more abrasive. But you get all the perks that come along with big city life while being able to get anywhere you want with relative ease. Now if St. Louis could just get that transporation thing down, couple it with some more choice for entertainment and keep the low prices and Midwest charm, maybe we could get to work on that cool factor. Whaddya say?
Read More......
Thursday, November 20, 2008
De-Baptizer
In response to recent allegations that Mormons are Baptizing Jews who died in the Holocaust, IntJewCon has released its patented De-Baptizer.
Check it out here Read More......
Check it out here Read More......
Who Said Arabs Don't Want Peace?
In an unprecedented move, the Palestinian Authority took out full page ads in all of the major 3 Israeli newspapers outlining, in Hebrew no less, the Arab peace proposal
This is a big deal for several reasons.
First, it shows that the Palestinian Authority recognizes that most Israelis want peace.
Second, it goes above the heads of the politicians. This was always the reason I couldn't join AIPAC. . . because it supports the Israeli government. I love Israel, I'm not always such a big fan of the Israeli government.
Finally, it means that the ball has been put in Israel's court. The idea that there is 'no partner for peace' will be challenged by this latest move and requires a response.
The ad starts out, "Fifty-seven Arab and Muslim countries will establish diplomatic relations with Israel in exchange for a full peace accord and the end of the occupation."
Obviously issues of East Jerusalem and Palestinian refugee status will stand in the way. But screw it, hand over East Jerusalem, it isn't essential. And the city of peace deserves some peace.
As for refugees, allow them a fair option, if they can prove that they have a legitimate claim to land, give them the option of citizenship or fair recompense.
Follow the Ayalon plan for defensive settlements along the greenline, and let the PA be fully responsible for Gaza, hellhole that it is.
You can read an article about this interesting turn of events here.
Read More......
This is a big deal for several reasons.
First, it shows that the Palestinian Authority recognizes that most Israelis want peace.
Second, it goes above the heads of the politicians. This was always the reason I couldn't join AIPAC. . . because it supports the Israeli government. I love Israel, I'm not always such a big fan of the Israeli government.
Finally, it means that the ball has been put in Israel's court. The idea that there is 'no partner for peace' will be challenged by this latest move and requires a response.
The ad starts out, "Fifty-seven Arab and Muslim countries will establish diplomatic relations with Israel in exchange for a full peace accord and the end of the occupation."
Obviously issues of East Jerusalem and Palestinian refugee status will stand in the way. But screw it, hand over East Jerusalem, it isn't essential. And the city of peace deserves some peace.
As for refugees, allow them a fair option, if they can prove that they have a legitimate claim to land, give them the option of citizenship or fair recompense.
Follow the Ayalon plan for defensive settlements along the greenline, and let the PA be fully responsible for Gaza, hellhole that it is.
You can read an article about this interesting turn of events here.
Read More......
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Next Dor Proposal
What the young professional Jewish community in St. Louis needs is a place that everyone can call home. So much of our Jewish identity is wrapped up in this idea of belonging, of searching for belonging, and Next Dor plays right into that.
What the young professional Jewish community in St. Louis needs is a place that everyone can call home. So much of our Jewish identity is wrapped up in this idea of belonging, of searching for belonging, and Next Dor plays right into that.
By establishing a “home base” of activities for young Jewish professionals that is centrally located, easily identifiable, open to all, and multi-purpose, people can begin to come together under a veneer of Judaism, but really just as young Jews in St. Louis looking to connect.
Vision: There will be a security code to gain access to the house. The code will change monthly and will be available only to those included in a confidential email list. If an administrator lives in the house, he or she will have a key to the third floor to ensure security and privacy. However, the idea that anyone (with the code of course) can come and go as they please is an important aspect of a welcoming center for Jewish activity.
There will be various spaces within the house, some that groups can schedule time in for meetings and group events. Other spaces will be reserved for a particular purpose, such as studying or catching a quick cat nap in between classes, and will be open to all at any time. Space for an art studio is also intriguing if local artists would be willing to supply their own materials. Essentially, the space should be whatever each individual needs and wants it to be for them. There can even be a garden for those who want to grow their own vegetables.
Where we will run into problems, however, are when the desires of one group conflict with those of another. A good example of this would be when it comes to the rules of Kashrut. While the kitchen would not be a strictly Kosher kitchen, groups would be welcome to schedule a Kosher dinner in the kitchen and use it as such. Someone who is observing the Shabbos would certainly be welcome to use the house as a quiet resting place, but they would have to understand that others in the house may turn on lights, etc.
Essentially, the success of the house will come down to the ability of those who wish to use it to compromise. With the proper forethought and planning, Next Dor can be not just a physical gathering place, but an opportunity to bring the young professional Jewish community in St. Louis “together under one roof.”
Read More......
What the young professional Jewish community in St. Louis needs is a place that everyone can call home. So much of our Jewish identity is wrapped up in this idea of belonging, of searching for belonging, and Next Dor plays right into that.
By establishing a “home base” of activities for young Jewish professionals that is centrally located, easily identifiable, open to all, and multi-purpose, people can begin to come together under a veneer of Judaism, but really just as young Jews in St. Louis looking to connect.
Vision: There will be a security code to gain access to the house. The code will change monthly and will be available only to those included in a confidential email list. If an administrator lives in the house, he or she will have a key to the third floor to ensure security and privacy. However, the idea that anyone (with the code of course) can come and go as they please is an important aspect of a welcoming center for Jewish activity.
There will be various spaces within the house, some that groups can schedule time in for meetings and group events. Other spaces will be reserved for a particular purpose, such as studying or catching a quick cat nap in between classes, and will be open to all at any time. Space for an art studio is also intriguing if local artists would be willing to supply their own materials. Essentially, the space should be whatever each individual needs and wants it to be for them. There can even be a garden for those who want to grow their own vegetables.
Where we will run into problems, however, are when the desires of one group conflict with those of another. A good example of this would be when it comes to the rules of Kashrut. While the kitchen would not be a strictly Kosher kitchen, groups would be welcome to schedule a Kosher dinner in the kitchen and use it as such. Someone who is observing the Shabbos would certainly be welcome to use the house as a quiet resting place, but they would have to understand that others in the house may turn on lights, etc.
Essentially, the success of the house will come down to the ability of those who wish to use it to compromise. With the proper forethought and planning, Next Dor can be not just a physical gathering place, but an opportunity to bring the young professional Jewish community in St. Louis “together under one roof.”
Read More......
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Proposal for a Next Generation Jewish Community Hub
Jewish young adults (post-undergraduate, pre-family) don’t have a place to gather. The existing organizations either do not have a space at which to reliably host events, have spaces that aren’t targeted to this demographic, or aren’t set up to cater to a wide variety of interests and backgrounds.
I know that I've outlined this assessment in previous posts, and I know that I hinted at some things to come as well.
That is why I am publishing my proposal for the Next Dor project's implementation in St. Louis. Let me know if I'm way off base here, or maybe on to something.
Purpose: To outline an ideal usage of the space provided by the house
Goal: To create a post-denominational, non-institutional space in which Jewish young adults can connect with one another.
Requirements: Monetary and programmatic support of CRC at minimum and the wider community at best.
Background: Jewish young adults (post-undergraduate, pre-family) don’t have a place to gather. The existing organizations either do not have a space at which to reliably host events, have spaces that aren’t targeted to this demographic, or aren’t set up to cater to a wide variety of interests and backgrounds
Proposal: I envision a space that acknowledges the various roles that Jewish young adults find themselves in. Whether academic, artistic, or professional in nature, the space should provide a place in which people feel comfortable engaging with other young Jews in an informal environment.
The first floor will be the informal social gathering place and should have couches set up in an entertainment area, as well as a dining room table at which to hold Shabbat dinners.
The second floor will be a quieter place for graduate students to study, or for small groups to have a cup of coffee and connect, or learn Hebrew.
In the basement will be studio/gallery space for artists to create, collaborate, and showcase their art. Also, this would be a great space to hold larger social gatherings.
The third floor will house a live-in care taker/program manager whose role it will be to balance all of the different groups who want to use the space and ensure that the house is maintained and properly cared for in exchange for free rent.
There will be a garden dedicated to growing herbs and vegetables both for use at the house, as well as for donation.
This space will not be ‘owned’ by a particular organization or movement and will be open to all.
The space should be fairly well stocked with basics like coffee and tea, and perhaps more as per a programming budget would allow.
As communal meals, particularly Shabbat dinners, will be an important asset to the success of this endeavor, sufficient seating and place settings will be essential.
The initial investment in the space will be reasonable, given that it is likely that the vast majority of the furniture can be donated.
Weekly blog and Gcalendar entries will keep the events interactive and will open them up to collaboration and participation.
Read More......
I know that I've outlined this assessment in previous posts, and I know that I hinted at some things to come as well.
That is why I am publishing my proposal for the Next Dor project's implementation in St. Louis. Let me know if I'm way off base here, or maybe on to something.
Purpose: To outline an ideal usage of the space provided by the house
Goal: To create a post-denominational, non-institutional space in which Jewish young adults can connect with one another.
Requirements: Monetary and programmatic support of CRC at minimum and the wider community at best.
Background: Jewish young adults (post-undergraduate, pre-family) don’t have a place to gather. The existing organizations either do not have a space at which to reliably host events, have spaces that aren’t targeted to this demographic, or aren’t set up to cater to a wide variety of interests and backgrounds
Proposal: I envision a space that acknowledges the various roles that Jewish young adults find themselves in. Whether academic, artistic, or professional in nature, the space should provide a place in which people feel comfortable engaging with other young Jews in an informal environment.
The first floor will be the informal social gathering place and should have couches set up in an entertainment area, as well as a dining room table at which to hold Shabbat dinners.
The second floor will be a quieter place for graduate students to study, or for small groups to have a cup of coffee and connect, or learn Hebrew.
In the basement will be studio/gallery space for artists to create, collaborate, and showcase their art. Also, this would be a great space to hold larger social gatherings.
The third floor will house a live-in care taker/program manager whose role it will be to balance all of the different groups who want to use the space and ensure that the house is maintained and properly cared for in exchange for free rent.
There will be a garden dedicated to growing herbs and vegetables both for use at the house, as well as for donation.
This space will not be ‘owned’ by a particular organization or movement and will be open to all.
The space should be fairly well stocked with basics like coffee and tea, and perhaps more as per a programming budget would allow.
As communal meals, particularly Shabbat dinners, will be an important asset to the success of this endeavor, sufficient seating and place settings will be essential.
The initial investment in the space will be reasonable, given that it is likely that the vast majority of the furniture can be donated.
Weekly blog and Gcalendar entries will keep the events interactive and will open them up to collaboration and participation.
Read More......
Thursday, November 13, 2008
A fresh round of violence?
Egypt has seen the writing on the wall: today they gave up on reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah, the representatives of whom were supposed to meet in Cairo this week with the Egyptian government and the Arab League, having concluded that the rifts were too deep and wide to heal.
Many Arab countries are now convinced that the split between the West Bank and Gaza will be a long-term reality. And after the failures of the Mecca Agreement, the Yemini plan, and now the Egyptian effort, many residents seem to agree. One Egyptian diplomat was quoted as saying, “the war between Fatah and Hamas is likely to continue for a long time.”
A power struggle between the two parties, who are vying for control over the territories and a potential state, has led to a rise in tension over the past week as Fatah supporters living in Gaza have been forced into not marking the death of Yasser Arafat, their movement’s fallen ideological leader. In fact, a major confrontation does not seem too far away considering Abu Mazen’s positioning to keep his presidency after the January elections even though the Palestinian Authority constitution does not permit it, and Hamas’ intention to name one of its own to take Mazen’s seat.
When Israel disengaged from Gaza in the summer of 2005, the Palestinian Authority was given the chance to construct the area into what it wanted, making it the prototype of what an eventual Palestinian state might look like. Instead, the PA under Mazen wasted the chance. Two years later, when Hamas ousted Fatah and took control of Gaza, Olmert and Barak and the West pursued a strategy that aimed to turn Gaza’s population against Hamas through international isolation.
This strategy failed to recognize that Hamas was cheered in the streets upon its coup victory and then elected democratically. The priority of Hamas is to make war with Israel regardless of the damage it causes to Palestinian society, as read between the lines in its own charter. In fact, there is a train of thought among Israeli politicians that is pointless to topple Hamas because the population is Hamas, that there are no ordinary Palestinians in Gaza to win over.
Israel and Hamas accepted the Egyptian inspired six-month truce in June, though it too looks to be unraveling. Hamas has been using the break in the action to prepare for the next round of violence. On 4 November the IDF destroyed a tunnel that it believed was going to be used to kidnap soldiers. Since then Hamas has fired 120 rockets at Israel.
In response to the rocket fire Israel temporarily closed the crossing points used to deliver humanitarian goods and fuel, yet on any given day dozens of trucks carrying food, fuel, and medicine are allowed in. Hamas then ordered Gaza’s only power plant closed and brought thousands of children into the streets for a candlelight protest. The plant, however, provides just a quarter of Gaza’s electricity. Israel provides 70% and Egypt the rest, none of it interrupted. So much diesel fuel has been piped into Gaza that there is now more supply than demand.
Neither side claims to want the ceasefire to end. Yet at the same time Israel is not willing to allow an escalation of Hamas violence and armament, and simply cannot allow an Islamist government in either Gaza or the West Bank. However, ceasefires are never enough because the Palestinians treat them as political and strategic opportunities to continue their war against Israel by other means.
Given an impending violent conflict between Hamas and Fatah, and an impending violent conflict between Hamas and Israel, one has to wonder just how much support Hamas has received from Iran and Syria and Qatar that it feels comfortable fighting on both fronts, and whether Israel might be attacked along other borders. Iran’s latest missile exercise tested missiles that have the range to strike Israel. Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been under increased domestic pressure following his unpopular letter of congratulations to President-elect Obama, and with his re-election coming up quickly and the terrible state of the Iranian economy, he may be looking to implement his favorite strategy of deflecting domestic criticism with a fresh war on Israel.
Read More......
Many Arab countries are now convinced that the split between the West Bank and Gaza will be a long-term reality. And after the failures of the Mecca Agreement, the Yemini plan, and now the Egyptian effort, many residents seem to agree. One Egyptian diplomat was quoted as saying, “the war between Fatah and Hamas is likely to continue for a long time.”
A power struggle between the two parties, who are vying for control over the territories and a potential state, has led to a rise in tension over the past week as Fatah supporters living in Gaza have been forced into not marking the death of Yasser Arafat, their movement’s fallen ideological leader. In fact, a major confrontation does not seem too far away considering Abu Mazen’s positioning to keep his presidency after the January elections even though the Palestinian Authority constitution does not permit it, and Hamas’ intention to name one of its own to take Mazen’s seat.
When Israel disengaged from Gaza in the summer of 2005, the Palestinian Authority was given the chance to construct the area into what it wanted, making it the prototype of what an eventual Palestinian state might look like. Instead, the PA under Mazen wasted the chance. Two years later, when Hamas ousted Fatah and took control of Gaza, Olmert and Barak and the West pursued a strategy that aimed to turn Gaza’s population against Hamas through international isolation.
This strategy failed to recognize that Hamas was cheered in the streets upon its coup victory and then elected democratically. The priority of Hamas is to make war with Israel regardless of the damage it causes to Palestinian society, as read between the lines in its own charter. In fact, there is a train of thought among Israeli politicians that is pointless to topple Hamas because the population is Hamas, that there are no ordinary Palestinians in Gaza to win over.
Israel and Hamas accepted the Egyptian inspired six-month truce in June, though it too looks to be unraveling. Hamas has been using the break in the action to prepare for the next round of violence. On 4 November the IDF destroyed a tunnel that it believed was going to be used to kidnap soldiers. Since then Hamas has fired 120 rockets at Israel.
In response to the rocket fire Israel temporarily closed the crossing points used to deliver humanitarian goods and fuel, yet on any given day dozens of trucks carrying food, fuel, and medicine are allowed in. Hamas then ordered Gaza’s only power plant closed and brought thousands of children into the streets for a candlelight protest. The plant, however, provides just a quarter of Gaza’s electricity. Israel provides 70% and Egypt the rest, none of it interrupted. So much diesel fuel has been piped into Gaza that there is now more supply than demand.
Neither side claims to want the ceasefire to end. Yet at the same time Israel is not willing to allow an escalation of Hamas violence and armament, and simply cannot allow an Islamist government in either Gaza or the West Bank. However, ceasefires are never enough because the Palestinians treat them as political and strategic opportunities to continue their war against Israel by other means.
Given an impending violent conflict between Hamas and Fatah, and an impending violent conflict between Hamas and Israel, one has to wonder just how much support Hamas has received from Iran and Syria and Qatar that it feels comfortable fighting on both fronts, and whether Israel might be attacked along other borders. Iran’s latest missile exercise tested missiles that have the range to strike Israel. Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been under increased domestic pressure following his unpopular letter of congratulations to President-elect Obama, and with his re-election coming up quickly and the terrible state of the Iranian economy, he may be looking to implement his favorite strategy of deflecting domestic criticism with a fresh war on Israel.
Read More......
Leonard Bernstein, on 2 bottles of Scotch
1986, Harvard University, 2 AM. After completing a trip around the world with both the Israeli and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, Leonard Bernstein agreed to speak to students given several conditions, including that there be at least 15, and that there be 2 bottles of scotch. The rest is very relevant history.
Bernstein, jet-lagged but unflagging spoke about the differences between touring with the two groups.
With the Israeli Philharmonic, previously the Palestine Philharmonic, Bernstein remarks on the constant security which accompanied him, creating an environment filled with fear.
On the second half of his tour, with the Vienna Philharmonic, the security was absent, and so was the sense of looming disaster.
He brings up interesting points about the relationships between the two, that seem particularly relevant in today's world.
If you have a few minutes, check out the full copy of the speech, complete with Jewy Rosh Hashanah and Hatikvah references.
Read More......
Bernstein, jet-lagged but unflagging spoke about the differences between touring with the two groups.
With the Israeli Philharmonic, previously the Palestine Philharmonic, Bernstein remarks on the constant security which accompanied him, creating an environment filled with fear.
On the second half of his tour, with the Vienna Philharmonic, the security was absent, and so was the sense of looming disaster.
He brings up interesting points about the relationships between the two, that seem particularly relevant in today's world.
If you have a few minutes, check out the full copy of the speech, complete with Jewy Rosh Hashanah and Hatikvah references.
Read More......
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Building the capacity of community-based organizations to be agents of community development
I had a chance to drop by UMSL today during lunch for a round table discussion hosted by Dr. John McClusky, Director Emeritus of the Nonprofit Management and Leadership Program. The discussion centered around the redevelopment in Old North St. Louis, and was pretty amazing.
I know remarkably little about this neighborhood, save that it is just North of Downtown St. Louis, and until recently was a dwindling community.
But to see the pictures of the rehabbing work done in ONSL, and to hear about the success they are having in attracting residents and businesses, made me think.
In the game of chicken and egg, represented by population base and business development, how do you attract both?
I mean, business won't show up unless you have an economically viably population base, and that population is unlikely to move into an area that provides little by way of infrastructure or amenities.
It appears, at least in the case of ONSL, if you sell people on the vision for the community, they are willing to make the first move (much like the American people in the recent election, but I digress).
The vision in this instance is of a diverse urban village, in which people know their neighbors and have communal spaces, close to downtown, with amenities galore.
Through Historic Tax Credits, some really solid partnerships, and a core set of guiding principles, ONSL is really coming together.
Information about Old North Saint Louis can be found at www.onsl.org
Read More......
I know remarkably little about this neighborhood, save that it is just North of Downtown St. Louis, and until recently was a dwindling community.
But to see the pictures of the rehabbing work done in ONSL, and to hear about the success they are having in attracting residents and businesses, made me think.
In the game of chicken and egg, represented by population base and business development, how do you attract both?
I mean, business won't show up unless you have an economically viably population base, and that population is unlikely to move into an area that provides little by way of infrastructure or amenities.
It appears, at least in the case of ONSL, if you sell people on the vision for the community, they are willing to make the first move (much like the American people in the recent election, but I digress).
The vision in this instance is of a diverse urban village, in which people know their neighbors and have communal spaces, close to downtown, with amenities galore.
Through Historic Tax Credits, some really solid partnerships, and a core set of guiding principles, ONSL is really coming together.
Information about Old North Saint Louis can be found at www.onsl.org
Read More......
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
New Kid on the Blog - Revival Prose
When I was first asked to write for the St Lou Jew Blog I was unsure of exactly what I would write about and whether or not people would even want to read whatever I decided to write. As far as blogging was concerned, I guess you could say I didn’t really feel like I had The Right Stuff.
Last night, however, that all changed. While it has not been a fifteen year hiatus for me since my last blog post, it has been a while. In fact I don’t think I have written on our blog since the Summertime. In case you have not caught on by now, I attended the NKOTB concert last night. This fall the R&B/Pop quintet from the late 1980s and early 1990s is back on tour, providing us all with the lesson that If You Go Away, you had better come back with some pizzazz. It may have been one of the loudest concerts I have ever been to and the audience participation was at an all-time high. Screaming mid-30-year-old women made up the majority of the audience and I imagine the make-up of the crowd could best be described as what you would get if you paused a Hannah Montana concert, waited 20 years for the audience to age and then pressed play. Pop star crushes might be fanatical at age 12, but the ability to legally purchase and consume alcohol only intensifies the madness.
Donnie, Danny, Joey, Jordan and Jonathan were definitely Hangin’ Tough last night as they reminded us all that the Kids from Beantown were absolutely still on the block. The only real difference is the fact that they are now about 40 years old and have families. You can legitimately say that the group has New Kids of their own who are about the same age the guys were when they started performing. Donnie didn’t wait long into the show to remind the Cardinal fans in the crowd about the 2004 World Series, when the Red Sox spanked the Cards in four straight. He did, however, follow it up in his thug-life gangsta’ accent by giving us the props we deserve for coming back and winning the Series in 2006. Apparently they do have ESPN under the rock KNOTB has inhabited for the past 15 years. And for anyone wondering whether or not Joey, the youngest of the group, is still able to hit the high notes he was brought into the group to hit…he did so with flying colors. There were a couple times when I wasn’t sure if it was his singing or the women around me screaming; it could go either way.
I don’t know if NKOTB will ever again reach the star status they held leading up to the grunge era but if they continue to impress the women the way they did last night, and take it Step By Step. I suppose anything is possible. With that being said, I am really hoping that with the same hard work and dedication I can get Natasha Bedingfield, who opened for NKOTB, to Be My Girl.
Seriously though, and No More Games, I have made my blog comeback Tonight and am excited to once again have the same opportunity to entertain that I once had. It is not a question of whether or not I will write again soon; that is certain. The only question that remains is: Didn’t I Blow Your Mind This Time? Read More......
Last night, however, that all changed. While it has not been a fifteen year hiatus for me since my last blog post, it has been a while. In fact I don’t think I have written on our blog since the Summertime. In case you have not caught on by now, I attended the NKOTB concert last night. This fall the R&B/Pop quintet from the late 1980s and early 1990s is back on tour, providing us all with the lesson that If You Go Away, you had better come back with some pizzazz. It may have been one of the loudest concerts I have ever been to and the audience participation was at an all-time high. Screaming mid-30-year-old women made up the majority of the audience and I imagine the make-up of the crowd could best be described as what you would get if you paused a Hannah Montana concert, waited 20 years for the audience to age and then pressed play. Pop star crushes might be fanatical at age 12, but the ability to legally purchase and consume alcohol only intensifies the madness.
Donnie, Danny, Joey, Jordan and Jonathan were definitely Hangin’ Tough last night as they reminded us all that the Kids from Beantown were absolutely still on the block. The only real difference is the fact that they are now about 40 years old and have families. You can legitimately say that the group has New Kids of their own who are about the same age the guys were when they started performing. Donnie didn’t wait long into the show to remind the Cardinal fans in the crowd about the 2004 World Series, when the Red Sox spanked the Cards in four straight. He did, however, follow it up in his thug-life gangsta’ accent by giving us the props we deserve for coming back and winning the Series in 2006. Apparently they do have ESPN under the rock KNOTB has inhabited for the past 15 years. And for anyone wondering whether or not Joey, the youngest of the group, is still able to hit the high notes he was brought into the group to hit…he did so with flying colors. There were a couple times when I wasn’t sure if it was his singing or the women around me screaming; it could go either way.
I don’t know if NKOTB will ever again reach the star status they held leading up to the grunge era but if they continue to impress the women the way they did last night, and take it Step By Step. I suppose anything is possible. With that being said, I am really hoping that with the same hard work and dedication I can get Natasha Bedingfield, who opened for NKOTB, to Be My Girl.
Seriously though, and No More Games, I have made my blog comeback Tonight and am excited to once again have the same opportunity to entertain that I once had. It is not a question of whether or not I will write again soon; that is certain. The only question that remains is: Didn’t I Blow Your Mind This Time? Read More......
Supply-side Jewishness
If you check out jewishinstlouis.org, you'll see (if you can figure out how to navigate it) a plethora of organizations, entirely too many, perhaps.
There are organizations for all ages, levels of observance, interests, and usually, more than one within a particular niche.
While it is theoretically wonderful to have a community that supports such a wide range of organizations, it also leads to a battle over attendance and impact.
The Jewish Federation, to an extent, supports a zero sum game within Jewish organizations. I say this because almost all of the organizations get at least partial funding from the Federation, and for organizations to get continued or increased funding, they must continually prove their worth through attendance.
A few weeks ago, I attended an event for the Saint Louis Israel Connection, an organization which seeks to connect Jews in St. Louis with Israel.
The event was pretty cool, I got to see a good number of people there, everyone enjoyed themselves, the bar owners liked us...by all accounts a successful event.
I mean, I had a chance to actually interact one on one with some people specifically because the place wasn't packed.
Now let me be clear, it would have been great to have more people there.
That being said, St. Louis is not a big enough pool for this 'bigger is necessarily better' type of an attitude to prevail.
But it's not just St. Louis. In an article on Jewcy.com, the problem of collaboration is smacked upside the head.
Often we are so wrapped up in the mission of our individual group that we lose focus of the fact that the over-arching guiding force behind all of our organizations and groups stems from the desire to build a strong and vibrant community, something that is hard to create when we act territorial.
Not only that, you turn off participants. I don't want to be a part of a group that is so isolated that it disconnects itself from the community.
And now for your viewing pleasure, Obama's Roast of Rahm Emmanuel:
Read More......
There are organizations for all ages, levels of observance, interests, and usually, more than one within a particular niche.
While it is theoretically wonderful to have a community that supports such a wide range of organizations, it also leads to a battle over attendance and impact.
The Jewish Federation, to an extent, supports a zero sum game within Jewish organizations. I say this because almost all of the organizations get at least partial funding from the Federation, and for organizations to get continued or increased funding, they must continually prove their worth through attendance.
A few weeks ago, I attended an event for the Saint Louis Israel Connection, an organization which seeks to connect Jews in St. Louis with Israel.
The event was pretty cool, I got to see a good number of people there, everyone enjoyed themselves, the bar owners liked us...by all accounts a successful event.
I mean, I had a chance to actually interact one on one with some people specifically because the place wasn't packed.
Now let me be clear, it would have been great to have more people there.
That being said, St. Louis is not a big enough pool for this 'bigger is necessarily better' type of an attitude to prevail.
But it's not just St. Louis. In an article on Jewcy.com, the problem of collaboration is smacked upside the head.
Often we are so wrapped up in the mission of our individual group that we lose focus of the fact that the over-arching guiding force behind all of our organizations and groups stems from the desire to build a strong and vibrant community, something that is hard to create when we act territorial.
Not only that, you turn off participants. I don't want to be a part of a group that is so isolated that it disconnects itself from the community.
And now for your viewing pleasure, Obama's Roast of Rahm Emmanuel:
Read More......
Monday, November 10, 2008
Opportunities to Create a Community
Birthdays and Facebook add up to a lot of reconnecting with friends all over the world and one of the hardest questions to answer is always the same, "How is living in St. Louis?"
Now, we have done our fair share of complaining about St. Louis here.
From commenting on incidences of anti-Semitism, to the lack of public transportation, to the horrors of dating in the STL, we can appear pretty down on St. Louis. And let's face it, it doesn't have the young (or Jewish) populations of New York, Boston, DC, or Chicago (LA is a sprawl, not a city).
But we have tried to be proactive in finding things that interest us and that make this city come alive.
As a combination of this attitude, some luck and timing, we find ourselves in the interesting position to create a space for use by the community.
Wednesday night, a lucky few of us will sit down with Rabbi Susan Talve, of the Central Reform Congregation, to discuss what we would do with a house to turn it into a place that people want to be. The timing is rather serendipitous due to the URJ's new 'Next Dor' initiative, which is aiming to engage us young Yids.
The question really is, how do we best take advantage of this opportunity?
Whether this includes studio space for artists in the basement, study space for grad students, a few treadmills for young professionals to use during lunch or after work, the possibilities may be limitless.
So we ask you, our friends and neighbors, casual readers, and accidental stumblers to tell us, if you could be in the room with us, or if you think that a dedicated space without a dedicated commitment sounds interesting to you. . . how would you want to use the space? What possibilities to see for a project of this nature?
We will take your ideas into the meeting with us, and will do our best to represent them well, but you have to make your voice heard. Post a comment, or email us, and we'll make sure that your input gets inputted.
Read More......
Now, we have done our fair share of complaining about St. Louis here.
From commenting on incidences of anti-Semitism, to the lack of public transportation, to the horrors of dating in the STL, we can appear pretty down on St. Louis. And let's face it, it doesn't have the young (or Jewish) populations of New York, Boston, DC, or Chicago (LA is a sprawl, not a city).
But we have tried to be proactive in finding things that interest us and that make this city come alive.
As a combination of this attitude, some luck and timing, we find ourselves in the interesting position to create a space for use by the community.
Wednesday night, a lucky few of us will sit down with Rabbi Susan Talve, of the Central Reform Congregation, to discuss what we would do with a house to turn it into a place that people want to be. The timing is rather serendipitous due to the URJ's new 'Next Dor' initiative, which is aiming to engage us young Yids.
The question really is, how do we best take advantage of this opportunity?
Whether this includes studio space for artists in the basement, study space for grad students, a few treadmills for young professionals to use during lunch or after work, the possibilities may be limitless.
So we ask you, our friends and neighbors, casual readers, and accidental stumblers to tell us, if you could be in the room with us, or if you think that a dedicated space without a dedicated commitment sounds interesting to you. . . how would you want to use the space? What possibilities to see for a project of this nature?
We will take your ideas into the meeting with us, and will do our best to represent them well, but you have to make your voice heard. Post a comment, or email us, and we'll make sure that your input gets inputted.
Read More......
Friday, November 7, 2008
Jerusalem isn't Jewish?
Jerusalem isn't Jewish, at least not according to Ahmed Qurei, the chief Palestinian peace negotiator with Israel.
In remarks during a small media briefing, which WND was at and reported here, Qurei said "Israeli occupation authorities are trying to find a so-called Jewish historical connection" between Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, "but all these attempts will fail. The [Temple Mount] is 100 percent Muslim."
This may be a fairly common sentiment among some of the less educated and more radical persons around the world, but for this belief to be held by the chief negotiator for the Palestinian, a man considered to be moderate, well. . . this would seem to pose a problem.
Let us ignore archeological findings for a moment, the Western Wall being the major one.
Imagine that Jews had no connection to Jerusalem. What would Judaism look like?
Its not enough that Jerusalem is mentioned in countless prayers, holds a central position in the imagery, culture, and shared consciousness of the Jewish people, it is simply the single most important city to Jews in the world (unless you are from New York City, in which case you simply don't know that there are Jews anywhere else in the world).
I have nothing against a Muslim claim that the city of Jerusalem is holy to Islam.
It is also holy to Christians and a score of smaller religions.
What I resent is the attempt to negate the importance of Jerusalem to the Jewish people.
This isn't about colonialism, imperialism, Orientalism, occupation, Zionism, Islamophobia or anything of that nature.
It is a simple fact that the Jewish people are connected religiously, spiritually, and historically to Jerusalem.
And while this connection doesn't necessary merit ownership of custodianship of the land, it is ridiculous to think that Qurei can be a serious negotiator.
I usually call bullshit when Israel says, "we have no one to negotiate with," but this seems like a fairly obvious speed bump in the road map to peace.
Read More......
In remarks during a small media briefing, which WND was at and reported here, Qurei said "Israeli occupation authorities are trying to find a so-called Jewish historical connection" between Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, "but all these attempts will fail. The [Temple Mount] is 100 percent Muslim."
This may be a fairly common sentiment among some of the less educated and more radical persons around the world, but for this belief to be held by the chief negotiator for the Palestinian, a man considered to be moderate, well. . . this would seem to pose a problem.
Let us ignore archeological findings for a moment, the Western Wall being the major one.
Imagine that Jews had no connection to Jerusalem. What would Judaism look like?
Its not enough that Jerusalem is mentioned in countless prayers, holds a central position in the imagery, culture, and shared consciousness of the Jewish people, it is simply the single most important city to Jews in the world (unless you are from New York City, in which case you simply don't know that there are Jews anywhere else in the world).
I have nothing against a Muslim claim that the city of Jerusalem is holy to Islam.
It is also holy to Christians and a score of smaller religions.
What I resent is the attempt to negate the importance of Jerusalem to the Jewish people.
This isn't about colonialism, imperialism, Orientalism, occupation, Zionism, Islamophobia or anything of that nature.
It is a simple fact that the Jewish people are connected religiously, spiritually, and historically to Jerusalem.
And while this connection doesn't necessary merit ownership of custodianship of the land, it is ridiculous to think that Qurei can be a serious negotiator.
I usually call bullshit when Israel says, "we have no one to negotiate with," but this seems like a fairly obvious speed bump in the road map to peace.
Read More......
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Exhuberance: Obama is thy name
Yesterday, I received possibly the best birthday present ever, the election of Barack Obama to the office of President of the United States of America.
I witnessed John McCain, seemingly returning to his previous centrist self, give the best speech of his bid for election, which ironically came in the form of concession.
Immediately, I headed to the Chase Park Plaza for the victory celebration, and the change that was promised was more immediate than I had anticipated. On one of St. Louis' hip hop stations, the DJ was freestyling about Obama.
"WE GOT A BLACK PRESIDENT!" was the first thing we heard, followed by, "McCain didn't even break 200 (electoral college votes)."
Never have heard so much excitement about an election on a rap radio station. In fact, the only mention I've ever heard of rap and politics in the mainstream is the good old 'Buck Fush'.
We arrived at the Chase Park Plaza jumping up and down with excitement. The place was packed with all sorts of people, from students to the elderly, all shades and creeds of people, hugging each other, dancing, crying...it was as if we had just won a war and in some ways, we had.
As Obama gave his acceptance speech, it was clear, just by the feeling that swept the room, that something had fundamentally changed. Suddenly, this mishmash of peoples with very ostensibly very little in common were sharing a deep bond of hope, a sense of belonging, community, and feeling of enfranchisement as citizens, as Americans.
In a very big way, the victory of Barack Obama represents a major victory in the philosophical war between an older generation fueled by fear, and a younger generation, mobilized by hope.
Zuz mentioned that no one believed Obama would actually get college kids and African Americans to vote.
Obama succeeded in this endeavor because behind a bold message of hope, reconciliation, and pragmatism there was a disciplined organization that lived the values it embodied.
Everyone that I spoke with who canvassed or made phone calls remarked on how amazing it was to go out and meet and engage their neighbors in the political process.
There is a name for this type of organizational work, it's called community organizing. Yes, the same community organizing that Palin tried to insult.
This community organizing and community building is what set Obama apart, and has the potential to be truly transformational.
Here lies the difference between socialism and capitalism within a socially minded populace. In socialism, the populace is forced to redistribute wealth and power.
Capitalism within a socially minded populace is where people take care of their neighbors because they know their neighbors and see them as fellow citizens.
Is this not the America we so desire, in which we feel connected to our fellow citizens? Where we happily make coffee, tea, and baked goods for those waiting hours in line to vote, as Maya Escobar did on the Loop in University City. Where we congratulate each other for a truly collaborative effort in electing the first non-Caucasian leader of a majority Caucasian nation EVER.
Perhaps these symbolic victories won't bring the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 6000 points overnight. Neither will they ease up the credit market. But what if this victory inspires students to aspire to greater heights? What if those who hold ambivalence (at best) towards us begin to feel that we will deal justly with them, and hold ourselves to the standards to which we have long held them.
The significance of these symbolic victories is not lost on me.
Read More......
I witnessed John McCain, seemingly returning to his previous centrist self, give the best speech of his bid for election, which ironically came in the form of concession.
Immediately, I headed to the Chase Park Plaza for the victory celebration, and the change that was promised was more immediate than I had anticipated. On one of St. Louis' hip hop stations, the DJ was freestyling about Obama.
"WE GOT A BLACK PRESIDENT!" was the first thing we heard, followed by, "McCain didn't even break 200 (electoral college votes)."
Never have heard so much excitement about an election on a rap radio station. In fact, the only mention I've ever heard of rap and politics in the mainstream is the good old 'Buck Fush'.
We arrived at the Chase Park Plaza jumping up and down with excitement. The place was packed with all sorts of people, from students to the elderly, all shades and creeds of people, hugging each other, dancing, crying...it was as if we had just won a war and in some ways, we had.
As Obama gave his acceptance speech, it was clear, just by the feeling that swept the room, that something had fundamentally changed. Suddenly, this mishmash of peoples with very ostensibly very little in common were sharing a deep bond of hope, a sense of belonging, community, and feeling of enfranchisement as citizens, as Americans.
In a very big way, the victory of Barack Obama represents a major victory in the philosophical war between an older generation fueled by fear, and a younger generation, mobilized by hope.
Zuz mentioned that no one believed Obama would actually get college kids and African Americans to vote.
Obama succeeded in this endeavor because behind a bold message of hope, reconciliation, and pragmatism there was a disciplined organization that lived the values it embodied.
Everyone that I spoke with who canvassed or made phone calls remarked on how amazing it was to go out and meet and engage their neighbors in the political process.
There is a name for this type of organizational work, it's called community organizing. Yes, the same community organizing that Palin tried to insult.
This community organizing and community building is what set Obama apart, and has the potential to be truly transformational.
Here lies the difference between socialism and capitalism within a socially minded populace. In socialism, the populace is forced to redistribute wealth and power.
Capitalism within a socially minded populace is where people take care of their neighbors because they know their neighbors and see them as fellow citizens.
Is this not the America we so desire, in which we feel connected to our fellow citizens? Where we happily make coffee, tea, and baked goods for those waiting hours in line to vote, as Maya Escobar did on the Loop in University City. Where we congratulate each other for a truly collaborative effort in electing the first non-Caucasian leader of a majority Caucasian nation EVER.
Perhaps these symbolic victories won't bring the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 6000 points overnight. Neither will they ease up the credit market. But what if this victory inspires students to aspire to greater heights? What if those who hold ambivalence (at best) towards us begin to feel that we will deal justly with them, and hold ourselves to the standards to which we have long held them.
The significance of these symbolic victories is not lost on me.
Read More......
A Chain Reaction?
While we witnessed a dramatic shift to the left on Tuesday, we may well expect a, though less dramatic, shift to the right in Israel’s government if for no other reason than the election of Barack Obama. Israel showed a strong preference for John McCain with polls of Israeli citizens mirroring the votes of Americans in Israel, who supported McCain over Obama by a 76% to 24% margin.
Israelis worry that President Obama will engage too quickly or too deeply with Iran, empowering its leadership (how could an Iranian not vote for Ahmadinejad if America comes knocking on their door?). They fear that America will pull out of Iraq too quickly, further destabilizing the region and leaving control of Iraq to those who most hate Israel. They are apprehensive that America may reduce its aid and security partnership with Israel. They are panicked because President Obama may tie future UN support to Israel giving up more concessions to the Palestinians in negotiations. They are concerned by President Obama’s condemnation of the IAF’s attack on the Syrian reactor. And they hold all these fears because no matter how many editorials proclaim Obama a true friend of Israel, Israelis never saw proof of this statement. Conversely, they were shown his connections with Jeremiah Wright, Rash Khalidi, William Ayers, Samantha Power, Robert Malley, and Zbigniew Brzezinski, all of whom have strong anti-Israel records.
It is telling that so many Americans in Israel voted for McCain. Unlike the members of the Carter and Clinton administrations, Oslo graduates, who advise Obama, Israelis live on the front line and do not have the luxury of ignoring reality, like the daily barrage of rockets, or the obvious (obvious, that is, if you actually pay attention) use of the “ceasefire” by Hamas to build up its military. Adding to Israeli concerns was Vice President Joe Biden’s guarantee that an Obama Administration would be tested by an international crisis within its first six months. As a proven friend of Israel and a long time Senate Foreign Relations Committeeman, Israelis take him seriously.
If all this rational is not convincing enough, one only need look at Kadima’s reaction to Obama’s victory. Party leader Tzipi Livni and coalition partner Labor quickly issued a very strong statement that Likud should not be elected because its views were too different from the Obama Administration. The story here is that Kadima is worried Likud might benefit from the Israeli concern of the Obama victory.
The following day, in an effort to look strong and independent, Livni issued a statement in which she urged Obama not to talk to Iran “at this time,” warning that such dialogue would project “weakness.” Ignoring, for the moment, that she is right, she is concerned that Likud could benefit from Israeli concern that the Obama Administration will allow Israel to fester in a Middle East made more dangerous and jeopardizing by Obama’s foreign policy.
Just as Obama’s victory may push the Israeli government towards the right, his actions leading up to the February election in Israel could pull the Israeli electorate back towards Kadima. Were Obama to moderate his stance on the Middle East and the War on Terror and made demonstrable moves to ensure Israel that America will not spend $1 or 1 minute less on Israel, Israelis may see Kadima as the better partner to Obama. However, Israelis better understand than Obama that words have never made, nor kept, them safe.
Read More......
Israelis worry that President Obama will engage too quickly or too deeply with Iran, empowering its leadership (how could an Iranian not vote for Ahmadinejad if America comes knocking on their door?). They fear that America will pull out of Iraq too quickly, further destabilizing the region and leaving control of Iraq to those who most hate Israel. They are apprehensive that America may reduce its aid and security partnership with Israel. They are panicked because President Obama may tie future UN support to Israel giving up more concessions to the Palestinians in negotiations. They are concerned by President Obama’s condemnation of the IAF’s attack on the Syrian reactor. And they hold all these fears because no matter how many editorials proclaim Obama a true friend of Israel, Israelis never saw proof of this statement. Conversely, they were shown his connections with Jeremiah Wright, Rash Khalidi, William Ayers, Samantha Power, Robert Malley, and Zbigniew Brzezinski, all of whom have strong anti-Israel records.
It is telling that so many Americans in Israel voted for McCain. Unlike the members of the Carter and Clinton administrations, Oslo graduates, who advise Obama, Israelis live on the front line and do not have the luxury of ignoring reality, like the daily barrage of rockets, or the obvious (obvious, that is, if you actually pay attention) use of the “ceasefire” by Hamas to build up its military. Adding to Israeli concerns was Vice President Joe Biden’s guarantee that an Obama Administration would be tested by an international crisis within its first six months. As a proven friend of Israel and a long time Senate Foreign Relations Committeeman, Israelis take him seriously.
If all this rational is not convincing enough, one only need look at Kadima’s reaction to Obama’s victory. Party leader Tzipi Livni and coalition partner Labor quickly issued a very strong statement that Likud should not be elected because its views were too different from the Obama Administration. The story here is that Kadima is worried Likud might benefit from the Israeli concern of the Obama victory.
The following day, in an effort to look strong and independent, Livni issued a statement in which she urged Obama not to talk to Iran “at this time,” warning that such dialogue would project “weakness.” Ignoring, for the moment, that she is right, she is concerned that Likud could benefit from Israeli concern that the Obama Administration will allow Israel to fester in a Middle East made more dangerous and jeopardizing by Obama’s foreign policy.
Just as Obama’s victory may push the Israeli government towards the right, his actions leading up to the February election in Israel could pull the Israeli electorate back towards Kadima. Were Obama to moderate his stance on the Middle East and the War on Terror and made demonstrable moves to ensure Israel that America will not spend $1 or 1 minute less on Israel, Israelis may see Kadima as the better partner to Obama. However, Israelis better understand than Obama that words have never made, nor kept, them safe.
Read More......
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Election Day Predictions
Good morning sports fans, today is a big day. Barring another Florida scandal, my bet is that we’ll have a clear presidential election winner by midnight. A friend in Arlington, VA told me he waited in line for 70 minutes to vote this morning, and a friend here in St. Louis told me he showed up at 7 AM to a 30 minute line. I voted by mail a few weeks ago in my native Washington State with the hopes of swaying a tight gubernatorial race there. I’m predicting a relatively close popular vote and an Electoral College blowout, both for Barack Obama, but I wanted to go on record with exact numbers before the ballots were counted to see how well I could do.
Let’s talk popular vote first. Rasmussen Reports, run by Scott Rasmussen, has historically been one of the better indicators of actual Election Day results. Mr. Rasmussen has an extemporary polling machine, and two years ago (if memory serves) added the very smart Rasmussen Markets where people trade stock in candidates. These two indicators, taken in parallel, were very accurate in the 2006 Congressional races. Rasmussen has the general vote pegged at 52% for Mr. Obama and 46% for Mr. McCain. I’m going on record saying those numbers will tighten. I believe race will be a factor, although in the long-run it will help Mr. Obama more than it will hurt him as we will see astronomical black turnout that will overcome the effects of racism. Rasmussen’s poll shows 2% undecided, and I’m going to give those to Mr. McCain. My prediction: 52% Mr. Obama to 48% Mr. McCain.
Now let’s turn to the Electoral College. This is where it gets complicated, because while the popular vote will be close, this one will not. It is looking like there are 8 legitimate toss up states: Florida, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, and North Carolina. Giving Florida, NC, and Ohio to Mr. Obama and the rest to McCain, I’m predicting 336 EC votes for Mr. Obama, well past the 270 needed to win, and 202 for Mr. McCain. The only way that Mr. McCain even starts to plays is if he takes Florida, Ohio, and NC, who collectively represent 62 EC votes, and keeps the remainder of the toss ups. This, though, still leaves him 6 shy of the 270 mark with Mr. Obama at 274. In order to cover the spread, he would ideally take Colorado’s 9 electoral votes, where Mr. Obama currently has a 4 point lead. His other most realistic options are New Mexico (5 EC votes) and Iowa (7 EC votes). Winning Florida, North Caroline, Ohio, Virginia, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, and either Colorado, New Mexico, or Iowa would an Election Day miracle for the GOP this year. My prediction: 336 Mr. Obama to 202 Mr. McCain.
Read More......
Let’s talk popular vote first. Rasmussen Reports, run by Scott Rasmussen, has historically been one of the better indicators of actual Election Day results. Mr. Rasmussen has an extemporary polling machine, and two years ago (if memory serves) added the very smart Rasmussen Markets where people trade stock in candidates. These two indicators, taken in parallel, were very accurate in the 2006 Congressional races. Rasmussen has the general vote pegged at 52% for Mr. Obama and 46% for Mr. McCain. I’m going on record saying those numbers will tighten. I believe race will be a factor, although in the long-run it will help Mr. Obama more than it will hurt him as we will see astronomical black turnout that will overcome the effects of racism. Rasmussen’s poll shows 2% undecided, and I’m going to give those to Mr. McCain. My prediction: 52% Mr. Obama to 48% Mr. McCain.
Now let’s turn to the Electoral College. This is where it gets complicated, because while the popular vote will be close, this one will not. It is looking like there are 8 legitimate toss up states: Florida, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, and North Carolina. Giving Florida, NC, and Ohio to Mr. Obama and the rest to McCain, I’m predicting 336 EC votes for Mr. Obama, well past the 270 needed to win, and 202 for Mr. McCain. The only way that Mr. McCain even starts to plays is if he takes Florida, Ohio, and NC, who collectively represent 62 EC votes, and keeps the remainder of the toss ups. This, though, still leaves him 6 shy of the 270 mark with Mr. Obama at 274. In order to cover the spread, he would ideally take Colorado’s 9 electoral votes, where Mr. Obama currently has a 4 point lead. His other most realistic options are New Mexico (5 EC votes) and Iowa (7 EC votes). Winning Florida, North Caroline, Ohio, Virginia, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, and either Colorado, New Mexico, or Iowa would an Election Day miracle for the GOP this year. My prediction: 336 Mr. Obama to 202 Mr. McCain.
Read More......
Monday, November 3, 2008
Moishe House gets press in NJ
It's always nice to see success, and the Moishe House in Hoboken, New Jersey just got a bit of recognition.
An article in the Jewish Standard gave props to the Heebs holding down the Hoboken Moishe House, touching on the grassroots nature of the organization.
Probably the most illustrative part of the piece was the quote, "[Moishe House] is a place for young Jews who want to hang out who aren’t necessarily attracted to a shul environment. At the end of the day, we are all members of the tribe."
Despite how totally different Hoboken may be from STL, there are clearly some commonalities. The first is that young Jews want a place to connect with other MOTs, without the institutionalized feeling of a synagogue or JCC.
The second is that free food is a pretty good motivator. We are Jews after all.
Finally, I think that a key take away is that no matter where you are, young Jews want to be engaged but are turned off by the main-streams overtures, which seem totally out of touch.
Read More......
An article in the Jewish Standard gave props to the Heebs holding down the Hoboken Moishe House, touching on the grassroots nature of the organization.
Probably the most illustrative part of the piece was the quote, "[Moishe House] is a place for young Jews who want to hang out who aren’t necessarily attracted to a shul environment. At the end of the day, we are all members of the tribe."
Despite how totally different Hoboken may be from STL, there are clearly some commonalities. The first is that young Jews want a place to connect with other MOTs, without the institutionalized feeling of a synagogue or JCC.
The second is that free food is a pretty good motivator. We are Jews after all.
Finally, I think that a key take away is that no matter where you are, young Jews want to be engaged but are turned off by the main-streams overtures, which seem totally out of touch.
Read More......
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