Shabbat shalom!
And a tip of the kippah this week to Ruth Gottesman, a longtime professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, who donated $1 Billion to the medical school located in one of the poorest areas of NYC, on the condition that it makes free tuition available to all students going forward (Remi, get your application drafted!), and, that it keeps the Albert Einstein name. Gottesman, 93, in addition to being a professor at the school, also studied learning disabilities and created an adult literacy program. She is the widower of one of Warren Buffets proteges, Sandy Gottesman, who died in 2022 at age 96. “He left me, unbeknownst to me, a whole portfolio of Berkshire Hathaway stock,” she recalled. The instructions were simple: “Do whatever you think is right with it.” And so she did. Makes me wonder about the utility and lost opportunities of the billions spent by the many ego/vanity inspired billionaire men sending phallus-shaped rockets to Mars.
It was a big week in politics here in the USA. Uncle Joe proved he isn’t a near dead zombie and gave a feisty SOTU speech to Congress and the American people. Whether it was the adderall kicking in, or whatever diminished level of adrenalin still seeps through his aging body, he delivered an outstanding performance in both style and substance, and stuck it several times to his “predecessor”, the orange turd. My brother put it succinctly, “whatever bar you had for him, he leapt over it”. I thought he was too loud at times, and went about 20 minutes too long, but he successfully conveyed the sense of a man in charge who was enjoying himself and reminded us he is the guy who, whether you agree with his policies or not, accomplished a lot working with a bunch of yahoos, and he still has some fuel in the tank to complete the job. I hope Uncle Joe’s performance gives other Americans some comfort in supporting him over the rapist, traitor who wants four more years for a revenge tour that could rip the country apart and dismantle many more democratic norms.
Biden’s Presidential performance was followed by one of the strangest Republican responses I can recall, even more weird than Bobby Jindal’s in 2009, and the famous dry mouth episode delivered by Marco Rubio. It was perhaps fitting that the Republicans rolled out Senator Katie Britt for their official response, a creepy combination of June Cleaver and any woman from The Little House on the Prairie, on International Women’s Day. I learned from Jess Piper, a writer from Missouri, that the Senator speaks, and this is no joke, in what is called “fundie baby voice”, something that is trained in women in Fundamentalist culture - the breathy cadence and the soft, child-like high pitch.
“I know that voice well…in fact I can’t shake it myself. It was engrained in every woman I knew from church and every time I speak about it, folks will point out that I sound that way myself. Yes, friends. That’s the point. Be sweet. Obey. Prove it by speaking in muted tones.”
The speech, she says, “was filled with Fundamentalist ideology and the fundie baby voice. The setting was her kitchen—that is not by accident. It is likely that she thinks this is where most women should spend their time. She’s wearing a modest shirt, opened just far enough to see her cross necklace. She started her speech by indicating that she’s “just a mom” mentioning her children’s names to assure other fundamentalist Christians that she understands her role in society.”
“Her face says as much as her voice in fundie culture—that hyperbolic wince that she performed each time she said “Biden.” It means, “I’m going to say something here that isn’t very nice, but y’all know I’m going to keep it sweet.”
The bless your heart effect.”
It’s’ more than a bit scary that this is who Republicans deem to be the future of the Party. One step closer to the Handmaid’s Tale. I can’t wait to see what SNL does with this tonight.
And what about Israel? Oy. With Ramadan approaching this Sunday, pressure is building for a deal to free the hostages before the holiday commences. Israel has basically agreed to the fundamentals of a deal, but Hamas of course is saying no, while at the same time doing their best to fulfill their original intent, to create a wider regional conflict. And apparently Hamas can’t even provide a list of the remaining hostages or proof of life. Meanwhile, the Biden administration continues to pressure Israel to do more, no excuses, in providing aide to the Gazans. Remind me again of any other country that has been pressured to provide their enemy with food, shelter, medical and other aide? I know, it’s a humanitarian response to save the women and children, but remember, these are the same folks that still support Hamas by 80% according to the latest polls!
And speaking of the aide, while Israel continues to get blamed for distribution problems, the reality is of course different then what is being reported in the lame stream media. Here are the facts as of yesterday: there are over 300 trucks waiting to be unloaded and distributed on the Gaza side of the border. That is the responsibility of the UNRWA, which is not an aide organization, but as we all know, an instrument of Hamas who are more focused on teaching terror to young Gazan children than having any real experience distributing aide. Israel currently has 20 bakeries making over 2.5 million pita loaves every day, and has the capacity to double the amount of overall aide they are providing but for the distribution log jam caused by the incompetence and Hamas complicity of the UNRWA. Israel has been arguing for weeks to activate more professional and proven aide delivery agencies, to no avail. Have you read any of this in the New York Times?
Now, without and further ajieu, here is your weekly compendium and carefully curated collection of Jew news copied and pasted from credible sources such as The Forward, JTA, Haaretz, Times of Israel, and others:
Latest from the war…
Some officials in Biden’s administration said Hamas is responsible for delays in achieving a six-week ceasefire, with one saying such a deal could already be in place “if Hamas would agree to release a defined category of vulnerable hostages, including women, the elderly, the sick and the wounded.”
Israel will participate in Eurovision after rewriting its song submission. Officials with the competition, which has rules against political messaging, previously rejected two options that referenced Oct. 7.
Twenty-seven detainees from Gaza have died in Israeli custody during the war, per a new report. Military police are looking into the circumstances of their deaths; detainees who have returned to Gaza have reported harsh treatment at military facilities, including beatings and abuse.
An independent report concluded that a Reuters reporter’s October death in Lebanon likely happened after an Israeli tank crew fired two shells at a clearly identified group of journalists, then opened machine-gun fire.
Spain will resume its funding to UNRWA, the United Nations agency that serves Palestinians; Canada is reportedly intending to do the same.
Two students filed a lawsuit accusing MIT of allowing campus antisemitism.
The Jewish leader of a San Francisco arts organization resigned, saying she’d been subject to antisemitism in the wake of a pro-Palestinian artist protest.
Why ‘Dune 2’ feels like a parable about Gaza: The movie is set in a galaxy far far away, on a desert planet full of a hallucinogenic magic drug. Yet somehow, watching it feels a lot like watching the news — largely thanks to the fact that the second installment in the blockbuster series focuses on a group of nomadic desert dwellers in scarves and head coverings fighting back against a colonizing force. The narrative sounds familiar from the debates about the Israel-Hamas war. The Forward’s culture writer Mira Fox takes a closer look at the parallels. Read the story ➤
No sex this Shabbat: So what’s new? - Orthodox influencer sparks strike to highlight plight of woman seeking divorce. Malky (Gold) Berkowitz, who comes from a Hasidic community, has been trying to divorce her husband for four years — but he has refused to grant her a Jewish divorce. It’s a familiar issue within the Haredi world, where activists have long adopted creative tactics in trying to force men to grant divorces. Now, Adina Sash, who runs the popular Instagram account @FlatbushGirl, is spearheading an especially unusual one to help Berkowitz: a sex strike.
State of the Union Jewish lens - One of the strongest ovations Democrats gave President Joe Biden in Thursday night’s State of the Union address came when he declared that Israel “has a fundamental responsibility to protect innocent civilians in Gaza.” He used his harshest language yet about the war, calling the toll of death, destruction and displacement “heartbreaking.” The speech came two days after a surprisingly strong protest vote over Biden’s support of Israel’s war against Hamas in Super Tuesday primaries. Pro-Palestinian advocates blocked his planned route to the Capitol and projected “Biden’s Legacy is Genocide” onto a building; inside the House chamber, Reps. Summer Lee, Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush wore kaffiyehs, the signature Palestinian solidarity scarf, and held signs that read, “Stop Sending Bombs” and “Lasting Ceasefire Now.”
Some lawmakers also wore stickers saying “153,” the number of days the hostages, some 130 of them, have been held in captivity by Hamas.
Biden checked his pro-Israel boxes by calling Hamas a terrorist group, being clear that the Oct. 7 terror attack sparked the war and included sexual violence and was the “deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust,” and noting that he is the only American president to visit Israel during wartime. He used the phrase “over time” regarding a two-state solution, and said Middle East stability depends on “containing the threat posed by Iran.”
But he also tried to appease the growing number of Democrats displeased by his unbridled backing of the war.
“More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed, most of whom are not Hamas,” he said, citing figures that many in Israel dispute. “Girls and boys also orphaned. Nearly 2 million more Palestinians under bombardment or displacement. Homes destroyed, neighborhoods in rubble, cities in ruin. Families without food, water, medicine. It’s heartbreaking.”
‘Uncommitted’ campaign opposing Biden’s support for Israel makes a mark in at least 5 more states - On Super Tuesday, significant numbers of voters in the Democratic primaries in Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina and Tennessee voted for “uncommitted” or “no preference” instead of for President Joe Biden. By the numbers: The substantive showings suggest that what happened in last week’s primary in Michigan, a state with a large Arab American population and where more than 13% of voters chose “uncommitted,” was not an anomaly. In Minnesota, 19% of Democrats cast ballots for “uncommitted.” Polling shows unhappiness with Biden’s support for Israel in its war against Hamas among younger and minority voters.
It’s Oscar weekend, and your last chance to make your predictions. I will spare you mine, but share a growing concern I have with the state of entertainment in the country. While not as bad as the state of our politics, there are troubling developments that writer Ted Gioia captured well in this depiction:
Gioia makes an interesting point, that the “fastest growing sector of the culture economy is distraction. Or call it scrolling or swiping or wasting time or whatever you want. But it’s not art or entertainment, just ceaseless activity.” Our brains continue to be trained for that quick dopamine hit tiktok’ers get from clicking and swiping which further erodes the average attention span. Someone told me they recently went to see Dune 2 in the theater and noticed that about 10% of the movie goers, mostly Gen Z types, were busy on their phones while supposedly watching the movie! Can a 2-3 hour movie requiring focused attention survive in this new world? Consider the movie business as noted by Gioia:
Disney is a state of crisis—where everything is shrinking (except the CEO’s paycheck).
Paramount just laid off 800 employees—and wants to find a new owner.
Universal is now releasing movies to streaming after just 3 weeks in theaters.
Warner Bros actually makes more money canceling films than releasing them.
So, enjoy the movies while you still can! And maybe say good bye to Tiktok as well, thanks to new legislation that will likely make it to Biden’s desk. But that’s a story for another week!
Dayenu! And hey, let’s remember to be careful out there.
Brad out.