Sunday linkfest

1. Things are actually getting better: the libertarian perspective.

2. Aspen bomber. "1:26 a.m. Suspect is spotted driving green Jeep Cherokee with a spare tire on the roof." You should definitely be suspicious of a guy driving a Jeep on the roof. Bonus: Commenters blame Bush.

3. France, land of brie, wine, and car torchings. I omitted "body odor," because that's understood. (via Ace)

4. This Israeli video for HDTV is old but quite wonderful. Translation is available at the site. (Warning: video starts automatically.)

5. Among the "related" videos was this dumb Jewish "wazzup" commercial. (Same warning.)

Click here to read more . . .

Actually, it came from us

When my sister was in high school in the late 60s, they used a history textbook that included something like this: "As Jesus said, 'Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One.'" We all had a laugh about that, because hundreds of thousands of people had said the same thing before Jesus. The line is from Deuteronomy 6:4. *

I recalled this after reading Dinesh D'Souza's article in the latest issue of Hillsdale College's Imprimis -- Created Equal: How Christianity Shaped The West. The title adequately describes the thesis, so read it only if you feel like it. D'Souza notes that Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal. He says:

This idea of the preciousness and equal worth of every human being is largely rooted in Christianity. Christians believe that God places infinite value on every human life. Christian salvation does not attach itself to a person’s family or tribe or city. It is an individual matter.

Now, I certainly don't mean to disparage the contributions of Christianity to Western Civilization, which are significant, especially post-Enlightenment Christianity, and at a broad level D'Souza has a pretty good argument. But still, just like the line from Jesus, the equal worth of humans is not exactly a Christian innovation. It comes from Genesis 1:27, which says that God created man in His own image. I think it's fair for the Jews to get some credit for this.

And personal to DD'S: We know what you're implying when you say Christian salvation doesn't attach "to a person's family or tribe or city." You don't have to be cute about it. But if you were going to be fair, you'd have to admit that Jewish tribalism has little to do with the concept of salvation. Salvation just isn't terribly important in Judaism, which rejects original sin -- one of the innovations Christianity can really take credit for.

___________
* Something gnawing at me tells me it was actually, "As Jesus said, 'Love thy neighbor as thyself.'" Which would make more sense but would be equally amusing, because, while Jesus said it, the line comes from Leviticus 19:18.

Click here to read more . . .

Responding to Mumbai?

This video from Aish HaTorah made it into my in box today. It's called "Responding to Mumbai."

I actually find it quite alarming. If you don't feel like viewing it, let me give you the gist: We need to respond to evil by doing good.

"When catastrophe happens," it begins, and after some images, it continues, "the Jewish response to evil is to put good into the world." It cites the Talmud for this proposition and suggests several ways to do good. Later, it says, "If 10 people can perpetrate so much evil, imagine what 100,000 can accomplish for the good." At the end, it lists many ways in which we can do good, and I endorse pretty much every one.

So why am I alarmed? Two reasons. First, the terrorism in Mumbai was evil, not a "catastrophe." A flood is a catastrophe. An earthquake is a catastrophe. A plane crash is a catastrophe. Terrorism is an evil. The video does say evil, but it starts by speaking of catastrophe, which suggests a force beyond our control.

Second, when terrorists commit evil acts as they did in Mumbai, it is actually wrong for us to think that doing good is the antidote. There's a time and place for good, but the first thing we need to do is to take strong action to fight the terrorists and their allies. And as long as we're thinking about Jewish law, perhaps we ought to keep in mind the directive that if someone comes to kill you, you must rise up and kill him first.

I see this video as reflecting a medieval diaspora mentality, in which we lack control over our destiny, flee in the face of cruelty, and survive solely through faith in God. At a minimum, the idea of doing good in response to evil has a religious, even messianic, component. (In America, we would say, "Kumbaya.") But let's be practical first. If Israel had followed this dictum of doing good in response to evil, without also taking steps to protect itself, there would be no Israel any more. Self-protection comes first, before anything else, including acts of kindness.

So let's all support tough measures against the terrorists and their allies. Fight evil today. Tomorrow we can talk about doing good.

UPDATE: The commenter who thinks I'm "a jerk" arrived here through a Google search for the phrase "the Jewish response to evil is to put good into the world." Google apparently doubted that this was the correct search. You can't make this stuff up.

UPDATE (12/7): Included in Haveil Havalim #194 at Shiloh Musings, where there are links to others who have written about Mumbai (and other topics).

Click here to read more . . .

Linking the Jews with the Indians

The alliance between Jews and Indians has become closer as we've watched the face of evil in Mumbai this past week.

In its modest way, the [Indo-Jewish] coalition attests to the deepening bonds between Jews and Indians, whether in Israel, India or the United States; and this week’s events demonstrate perhaps the most visceral and grisly element of connection, though far from the only one.

“I am seeing that there is some natural affinity being developed between India and Israel and Jewish people,” said Mr. Anighotri, 48, who owns technology and consulting companies. “Because both these countries and people have been affected by this kind of terror — killing of civilians, something despicable that is happening year after year.”

Cedric Suzman, who until recently was co-chairman of the Atlanta group, echoed the sentiment. “In times like this, you suddenly realize that you’ve built bridges,” Mr. Suzman said in a telephone interview. “So instead of recrimination and accusation, you have a huge coming together of sympathy and understanding.”

The affinity of which both men spoke extends well beyond the shared experience of being the target of Islamist terrorism, or the resulting military and security ties between India and Israel. The softer tissue of human experience — culture, religion, values — also binds Indians and Jews.

That link can only be stronger after the news that the terrorists attacked specifically Jewish targets and tortured their Israeli victims before killing them.

It's certainly time to work together for the future. As a friend of mine says, "A billion Indians and Israelis can't be stopped."

But first, we have to lay the responsibility where it belongs, to use appropriate language in speaking of this atrocity, and to reject the pernicious idea that it's our own fault.

Click here to read more . . .

It's Greek to me, but it's Jew to you

The latest, biggest nonsense to hit the internet is that the ancient Greeks were a bunch of wacky jokesters. Or, as this news story would have it, they invented Monty Python's dead parrot sketch. You can find the sketch written clearly on their joke parchment.

I have nothing against the Greeks personally, certainly not against those who have become Americans, nor have I much against the ancient Greeks, at least the handful of them who left the Jews alone. But query this: Have you ever known a funny Greek? Did Papadopoulus and Papandreou exchange "knock knock" jokes? Did Aristotle Onassis tell fart jokes while he was romancing Jackie O? No, I thought not.

And the whole notion that the ancient Greeks were funny is risible. If you need proof of that, take that classic Greek comedy, Plato's Republic. Tell me if you think this stuff is funny:

Nonsense, he replied. But let me add something more: There is another side to Glaucon's argument about the praise and censure of justice and injustice, which is equally required in order to bring out what I believe to be his meaning. Parents and tutors are always telling their sons and their wards that they are to be just; but why? not for the sake of justice, but for the sake of character and reputation; in the hope of obtaining for him who is reputed just some of those offices, marriages, and the like which Glaucon has enumerated among the advantages accruing to the unjust from the reputation of justice. More, however, is made of appearances by this class of persons than by the others; for they throw in the good opinion of the gods, and will tell you of a shower of benefits which the heavens, as they say, rain upon the pious; and this accords with the testimony of the noble Hesiod and Homer, the first of whom says, that the gods make the oaks of the just--

And on it goes in this vein for ten whole books of side-splitting laughs.

So why in the world do some people now want to give the ancient Greeks credit for originating humor, when we all know it was the ancient Hebrews who pioneered on that front? After all, the world's oldest joke was told by Cain, and it went like this: "So I'm like, Am I my brother's keeper? What's the deal with that?"

Then there's this: Q. How did Joshua defeat the Amalekites when Moses held his arms up? A. Moses had very bad body odor.

And speaking of the 40 years in the wilderness, where do you think all the fart jokes originated? I mean, have you ever eaten manna? Whew! It's a lot worse than Mexican food, and they didn't even have dogs to blame it on. "Hey, Shmuel, did you just let one rip, or are you going to blame it on the cattle again?"

The fact of the matter is that the ancient Greeks were simply too busy drawing forth their trenchant swords and piercing their enemies through the chest to be much concerned about humor.

Whereas the Jews were spending several millennia getting the living crap kicked out of them on a daily basis. In those circumstances, how can you NOT see the humor in things?

Click here to read more . . .

If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 14

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . yeah, Ma . . . yeah . . . yeah . . . a national holiday . . . yeah . . . yeah . . . cultish . . . yeah, that's a . . . that's a good word, Ma . . . and you know what? . . . no . . . no . . . you know what, Ma? . . . yeah . . . the orthodox . . . yeah, the frum folks want . . . they want to observe . . . yeah, Ma . . . they want to observe it for . . . for two days, Ma . . . a two-day yontiff, Ma . . .


Story here.

Click to enlarge.

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Surplusage

Artscroll is the Microsoft of Orthodox Jewish publishing. People use it because it's everywhere, not because it's particularly good.

When I say it's not particularly good, I mean that it doesn't really translate the text as much as it spoon-feeds the reader its preferred interpretation. Sometimes I'll be reading it -- even modern Orthodox shuls have succumbed to the monopoly -- and I'll say to myself, "That can't possibly be what the Hebrew means," and I'll turn to the Hebrew and think, "How in the world did they get that from it?"

The most extreme example is with shir ha-shirim, the Song of Songs. This book is a love poem, and the rabbis decided eons ago that it was really meant as the expression of love not between a man and a woman but between God and the Jewish people. Fine, I guess it has to be that way, or else it would not have been made part of the tanakh. But Artscroll goes a step further. Not only does it inform its readers that this is the true meaning of the book but it refuses to translate the text. In place of a translation, it provides what it calls an "allegorical" reading attributed to Rashi, the great commentator who lived in France in the 11th century and early 12th. The allegorical reading is based on the same idea that the text refers to God's love for the Jewish people. But it drifts into bizarroworld in a few places, like when it "interprets" the line "your breasts are like twin fawns" to be referring to Moses and Aaron. Michael Wex, in his book "Born to Kvetch," has a little aside about young yeshiva boys using "Moses and Aaron" as a euphemism for breasts. Artscroll's insistence on perpetuating this as the only English version it provides is pretty silly.

But that's not what led me to write this piece about Artscroll.

Yesterday, at the end of the Torah reading, God tells Abraham to have all his men circumcised and to circumcise newborn males at eight days. The Hebrew text says "b'sar orlato," which means "the flesh of his foreskin." After initially translating it that way, Artscroll switches abruptly and begins to translate it as "the flesh of his surplusage."

His surplusage? I thought only lawyers used that word. ("We must construe the statute to avoid surplusage.")

So when an uncircumcised man goes to the doctor, does the doctor ever tell him, "You need to keep your surplusage clean"?

And more seriously, when Moses deflects God's order that he speak to Pharaoh by saying, "va-ani aral s'fatayim" (I have uncircumcised lips), is he really saying, "I have extra lips"? No, he's saying "uncircumcised lips." This forces us to confront what the Torah's text could possibly mean by "uncircumcised lips." There are roughly a gazillion pages written on the subject, with all the great commentators weighing in. So why can't Artscroll -- which translates it as "sealed lips" -- simply give us the actual meaning of the text and refer us to the commentary in the notes below? Why does Artscroll think it has to spoon-feed us so that we can't possibly get the "wrong" idea by taking the text literally? And is Artscroll really so prudish that it runs from the f-word "foreskin" as soon as it possibly can? I've been to a lot of brises in my life, and I have never once heard the mohel speak of the boy's "surplusage."

The Artscroll siddur (prayerbook) is another story entirely, but I can't end this screed without citing to the most famous Artscroll publication of them all: the Artscroll Shakespeare. (Warning: it's probably funny only if you've used the Artscroll siddur, but then it's hilarious.)

Click here to read more . . .

If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 13

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . no . . . no, Governor . . . no, Ed . . . no, I didn't say that . . . I said, monitors at the . . . at the polling places . . . right . . . no, Ed . . . you putz . . . you goddam putz, Ed . . . I said A-D-L monitors, Ed . . . Ed . . . A-D-L monitors, not . . . not J-D-L . . .

Story: Philly police called to deal with Black Panthers at polls

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Pre-election linkfest

Here's a short linkfest to keep you political junkies from having to hit the refresh button at your favorite news sites and blogs in the hope that you'll get some useful information.

1. Here's an argument against early voting. (via Instapundit) For what it's worth, I'm voting NO on the early-vote ballot issue in Maryland. What could possibly go wrong with early voting?

2. Contrary to some expectations, it seems younger Jews are more likely to vote for McCain than older ones. (via Volokh)

3. If you vote, you might be eligible for, er, sex toys. (via HotAir) If you vote early, you need to work on your technique.

4. Speaking of which, the feds may be moving closer to running a strip joint. Insert your own joke here. (hat tip: fee simple)

5. Headline of the day: "Nudist group wants clothing-optional polling site."

6. Obama salutes McCain.

7. Taxman. (via HotAir)

UPDATE: 8. The six most insane people to run for President. (hat tip: Right Hand Son)

Click here to read more . . .

If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 12

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . no, Ma . . . no . . . Ma, listen . . . listen . . . your own mother and . . . your mother and father, Ma . . . Bubbe and Zayde, Ma . . . your own parents . . . they were . . . they were socialists, Ma . . . Ma . . . they were, Ma . . . and . . . and . . . it really isn't . . . it isn't socialism what I . . . what I say now, Ma . . . because, Ma . . . Ma . . . it's more like . . . just think of it . . . think of it as . . . as tikkun olam, Ma . . . Ma . . .

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If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 11

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . no . . . no, Ma . . . no . . . it was just . . . just a rhetorical flourish . . . Ma . . . no, Ma . . . Joe's . . . Joe's a good guy, Ma . . . he's just . . . what? . . . yeah . . . yeah . . . gaffes, Ma . . . that's the word you're . . . you're looking for, Ma . . . gaffes, yeah . . . yeah, I know, Ma . . . I know . . . she's . . . she's better looking, Ma . . . I didn't pick him for . . . right, Ma, his looks . . . no . . . no, Ma . . . we'll be OK . . . no . . . no, Ma, Joe isn't secretly . . . he isn't a Republican, Ma . . .

Story.

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The Jews empty the shelves of Kool Aid

I've occasional tried writing seriously about Obama and the Jewish vote, but I hate serious, and anyway, there's only so much one can say. The Jews are going to be drinking gallons of Kool-Aid (TM) brand artificially flavored drink mix this election day.

Amir Taheri writes about a presentation by Jesse Jackson in the New York Post:

He promised "fundamental changes" in US foreign policy - saying America must "heal wounds" it has caused to other nations, revive its alliances and apologize for the "arrogance of the Bush administration."

The most important change would occur in the Middle East, where "decades of putting Israel's interests first" would end.

Jackson believes that, although "Zionists who have controlled American policy for decades" remain strong, they'll lose a great deal of their clout when Barack Obama enters the White House.

* * * * *
Jackson is especially critical of President Bush's approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

"Bush was so afraid of a snafu and of upsetting Israel that he gave the whole thing a miss," Jackson says. "Barack will change that," because, as long as the Palestinians haven't seen justice, the Middle East will "remain a source of danger to us all."

"Barack is determined to repair our relations with the world of Islam and Muslims," Jackson says. "Thanks to his background and ecumenical approach, he knows how Muslims feel while remaining committed to his own faith."

Well, it's really nice to know that the Jews not only put the interests of a foreign nation before their own but actually control American foreign policy as well. Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush 41, Clinton, and Bush 43 -- we controlled them all. If I had only known . . . there were some specific actions I would have asked for.

As Ed Morrissey at HotAir points out, the Obama campaign has distanced itself from Jackson, but one wonders, nevertheless, given some of Obama's foreign policy advisors and past associations.

It seems to me that there are three major possibilities:

1. Jackson reflects a dominant view in the Obama campaign but is letting the cat out of the bag a little early.

2. Jackson is saying this in response to Obama's efforts to solidify his Jewish support, in order to negate the doubts that Obama's base on the left may be feeling about pro-Israel statements from Obama.

3. Jackson is just a narcissistic free agent saying whatever he thinks will garner him some attention.

I'm leaning toward 3, but maybe I'm just having too much trouble contemplating the awful possibility that it's 1.

By the way, Susan Estrich sees my 3 and raises it to 4. (Jackson is actually trying to sabotage Obama's campaign, she says.)

But as I've suggested, it really doesn't matter with respect to the Jewish vote. The Jews are drinking the Kool Aid.

So it occurred to me, and it may have occurred to you, too, to ask whether, if Jews are going to drink the Kool Aid, does Kool Aid at least have a hechsher (kosher certification)? You'll be pleased to learn that the answer is YES, it does! It's certified by OK.




I'm sure Jesse Jackson would approve.

UPDATE (10/16): Now the Jews are holding their ears and shouting "La, la, la, la, la!!!" Two Obama representatives have backed out of debates with representatives of the Republican Jewish Coalition. From Matt Brooks, executive director of the RJC: "We find it a curious paradox that Obama would engage Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad without preconditions, but the Obama campaign will not engage the RJC."

Click here to read more . . .

If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 10

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . no, Ma . . . Ma . . . it's not . . . it's not the Weather Channel, Ma. . . it's . . . it's the Weather Underground . . . yeah, UNDERground, Ma . . . but Ma . . . you remember, Ma . . . I was eight . . . I was eight years old when it . . . it happened, Ma . . . they say he's unrepentent . . . but, Ma . . . I thought . . . I thought he was rehabilitated . . . no . . . no, Ma . . . unrepentent, Ma . . . no, Ma . . . no . . . yeah, repent . . . I know Thursday was . . . it was Yom Kippur, Ma . . . but, Ma . . . Ma . . . Bill Ayers isn't . . . he isn't Jewish, Ma . . . Ma . . .

Click here to read more . . .

Saturday evening linkfest

If you've been wondering whether I've been taken into the Witness Protection Program -- kind of like those shirts sold by Chinese vendors on the streets of Washington ("You Don't Know Me") -- the answer is YES! I've been taken into the Witness Protection Program.

But I've just been kicked out.

This has been the busiest period for me at work in over three years, and I've been in total panic mode. Until Friday, I didn't think I would be able to handle it, and now I think there's a least a slim chance. So things are looking up.

In honor of this, I'd like to give you a short linkfest. I should have some original stupidity up relatively soon.

1. The Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington is having a book festival, and one of the books featured (see page 5 of the PDF brochure here) is Louis Ferrante's Unlocked: A Journey from Prison to Proust, which the brochure describes this way:

Louis Ferrante, former Mafia associate in the Gambino crime family, was taken down by federal agents and sentenced to over twelve years in prison. In prison, he began a dramatic journey towards redemption and rehabilitation – culminating in the surprising and unexpected discovery of an innate passion for literature, writing and Orthodox Judaism. This is a Mafia memoir unlike any other!

I mention this solely to repeat my son's quip: "An aufruf you can't refuse."

2. Public Service Announcement: If you feel the need to urinate on your neighbor's porch, don't dress in a cow suit.

3. Your web browser hates you. (scary hat tip: fee simple)

4. Your wedding guests hate you.

5. Sarah Palin hates you.

Na, I'm just kidding. Actually, Sarah Palin used a PR consultant in Alaska. (via HotAir) And speaking of Sarah Palin, I did a post about six weeks ago called "Sarah Palin is evil." The post attracted numerous internet bottom-dwelling scum-suckers and has my largest number of comments for any post. My total for visitors who arrived on searches for "Sarah Palin is evil" or an equivalent is now up to 1650. The total who arrived on searches for "Sarah Palin is an idiot" or an equivalent is well over 1000.

Click here to read more . . .

If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 9

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . no . . . no . . . Ma . . . no . . . I know it's serious . . . yeah . . . a crisis . . . I know . . . I know about the investment banks . . . yeah . . . I know . . . no . . . no . . . I'm not suspending . . . not suspending my campaign . . . no . . . no . . . look, Ma . . . look . . . I need to win . . . win the election . . . I need to win it . . . no . . . no . . . look . . . look, Ma . . . there are 99 others . . . other senators who can . . . who can debate it . . . no . . . OK, 98 . . . yeah, if Biden stays away . . . yeah . . . yeah . . . it's OK, Ma . . . it IS . . . yeah . . . yeah . . . what? . . . protect Herbie? . . . no, Ma . . . no . . . listen to me, Ma . . . listen to me . . . no . . . Herbie Goldman is . . . he's got nothing to do with Goldman Sachs . . . Ma . . . Ma . . .

Click here to read more . . .

I'm still here

I'm still here, but I've been quiet for the past couple of days because of (a) work; (b) a computer that's uncooperative, if not outright hostile; and (c) a bout of weltschmertz.

So meanwhile, I invite you to do the following:

1. Consider my proposed new benchmark for the Jewish vote, written in November 2004. Am I way off base?

2. Look at the speech Sarah Palin would have given at the anti-Ahmadinejad rally, had she not been unceremoniously "disinvited," and tell me how much the Jewish Democrats have harmed the cause of American Jews and Israel, using a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is not at all and 10 is utterly and irreparably.

3. Read this article ("Clinton: 'I get why Palin is hot'") and watch this clip at HotAir. Then tell me whether Bill Clinton has read my most recent photo comic or, alternatively, whether his behavior is so obvious that I had little trouble getting it down to the last, er, electoral vote.

Click here to read more . . .

Wednesday linkfest

After I do a long photo comic, like the one I posted on Monday (Bill Clinton agrees to campaign for Obama), it's hard to get back to normal posts. Unlike most of the garbage I post here, photo comics take a long time, and the hardest part is working out the text, not doing the voice bubbles, which can be done in an hour or two.

So I'm going to coast a little longer by giving you some links I've been accumulating for the past several weeks.

1. This is actually not a link, but I'm including it, anyway. The son of our friends, a good friend of my son, is in Taiwan, where he applied for a scooter license. Among the questions on the exam were these:

1. When a motorcyclist is not happy, usually he/she: (1) is emotionless (2) is not compassionate (3) is angry.

2. Time for honking, each time is: (1) within 2 seconds (2) within 1 second (3) within half a second.

3. Motorcyclist's clothing: (1) is free (2) slippers are ok (3) must be clean.

Then, there were a bunch of signs with Chinese on them, and he had to guess what they meant.

2. No linkfest would be complete without a link to a post about an incinerating toilet. Be sure to watch the video at the company's website. No butt hair was singed in the preparation of the video. Bonus: Also at InventorSpot: Russian scientist solves problem of smelly feet.

3. We all hate grammar ignoramuses, and some of us are annoyed by typos, but few of us engage in vandalism over them. (via How Appealing)

4. A reader at Instapundit creates a political ad about the meltdown at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

5. We'll have to take Obama's criticism of a McCain ad on comprehensive sex education for kindergarteners with a grain of salt.

6. Is Obama too tight with his teleprompter? (hat tip: fee simple)

7. A follow-up by Steven Plaut related to Soccer Dad's post below on Michelle Obama's "rabbi" relative.

8. A columnist at Haaretz is scared to death of Sarah Palin. But the Republican Jewish Coalition flips Congressman Robert Wexler's idiotic linking of Palin with Pat Buchanan and shows that Buchanan's views on Israel are like Obama's.

9. "Tryst turns into $50K robbery for RNC delegate." Plus, quotation of the day: "'As a single man, I was flattered by the attention of a beautiful woman who introduced herself to me. I used poor judgment. If there is any good that can come from this humiliation, it is to caution others that date rape happens to men, too,' he said."

Click here to read more . . .

If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 8

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . no, no . . . please . . . please listen to me . . . no . . . please . . . just hear me out . . . no . . . no . . . the "pig" thing . . . the line "lipstick on a pig" . . . no . . . no . . . no, that's just a saying . . . it IS . . . that's ALL . . . it's just a saying, Rabbi . . .


Story

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Soccer Dad: When you're running for office, the whole world is Jewish

Crossposted on Soccer Dad

It was ironic to see a column from Jonathan Tobin yesterday asserting:

Unlike 2004, when just about everyone running for president except George W. Bush was producing a Jewish relative of some sort, the two nominees, John McCain and Barack Obama, aren't pretending to be members of the tribe.

Actually my cousin, John Kerry, really did descend from a Jewish family. It was his paternal grandfather who converted to Christianity. (Now apparently he isn't my cousin anymore, as his claim that he was descended from the Maharal is doubtful.)

Anyway, it turns out that Michelle Obama has a Jewish first cousin. Not just Jewish, but a Rabbi.

Michelle Obama, wife of the Democratic presidential nominee, is a first cousin once removed of Rabbi Capers Funnye, spiritual leader of a mostly black synagogue on Chicago’s South Side. Funnye’s mother, Verdelle Robinson Funnye, and Michelle Obama’s paternal grandfather, Frasier Robinson Jr., were brother and sister.

Funnye (pronounced fuh-NAY) is the chief rabbi of the Beth Shalom B’nai Zaken Ethiopian Hebrew Congregation in southwest Chicago. He is well known in Jewish circles for acting as a bridge between mainstream Jewry and the much smaller, and largely separate, world of black Jewish congregations, sometimes known as black Hebrews, or Israelites. He has often urged the larger Jewish community to be more accepting of Jews who are not white.

(h/t the Spine)

Thanks to my blogging pals My Right Word, Rubicon3 and Oyvay Blog for posting about this. What can I say, Funnye you don't look Jewish.

Yes it's a pretty universal reaction.

Click here to read more . . .

If Barack Obama were Jewish, instead of the Second Coming of Jesus, Part 7

Obama (shouting into his cell phone): . . . yeah, Ma . . . yeah . . . yeah . . . I did go to law school . . . yeah . . . no . . . no, Ma . . . Ma . . . listen to me, Ma . . . yeah . . . I know you told me that . . . yeah . . . don't make me repeat that, Ma . . . no . . . no . . . yeah, all right . . . OK . . . OK . . . "I should have listened to you and gone straight to law school instead of becoming a community organizer" . . . but Ma . . . Ma . . .


Story

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