http://www.jweekly.com en Copyright 2011 2011-10-17T19:38:22+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/59755/talking-goes-on-in-the-middle-east-even-when-theyre-not-talking http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/59755/talking-goes-on-in-the-middle-east-even-when-theyre-not-talking#When:20:47:24Z by dan pine | It always makes for sexier headlines to accentuate the negative when it comes to Middle East peace. After all, it doesn’t very well fit the “Israel is an apartheid state” meme if there isn’t any actual, you know, apartheid over there. My experience in Israel and the territories, while limited, has always been that Arabs and Jews engage in constant conversation, both formally and informally. Whether its backchannel dialogue between Israeli and P.A. officials, or just merchants and customers on the streets, you see constant interchange between the two sides.Does that mean everybody loves each other? Of course not, but the theatrics staged for world media do not always apply at ground level.Here’s a curious example from today’s Jerusalem Post. Who knows whether the Palestinians would ultimately lease East Jerusalem land to Israel as part of a peace deal. They probably would not. But the fact that it was even under discussion shows what I mean: the two sides can talk, do talk, and have that Middle Eastern flair for haggling.   blogs 2010-10-29T20:47:24+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/58491/my-first-days-as-a-j.-intern-so-far-so-good http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/58491/my-first-days-as-a-j.-intern-so-far-so-good#When:19:40:48Z by admin | As a college student, I made my living making other people’s coffee. Last fall however, I had enough with snobby students and the moody espresso maker. Unemployed for about a year, I promised myself that the next job I found would be related to my major and future career goals. I am proud to say that the temporary, here-and-there jobs I had were indeed related to my profession. Yet, none were long-term. Finally this summer I found an internship with j. My mom always said, as long as you for it, you will find it. Right again, Mom… The first day on the job was fairly relaxed as my supervisor introduced me to the staff. After introductions, I was assigned the following tasks: I wrote “shorts” — a strictly informational blurb (three or four sentences) — on new support group and an upcoming event. I never knew so many mistakes could be made in just a few sentences. I then was assigned a longer article on an award-winning program at the local JCC for which I had to conduct a phone interview. The amount of feedback I received on my first draft puts my Berkeley professors’ comments on my papers to shame. Now it is a good time to go back and add a few questions that came to mind for an interview that I will be sitting in on After thinking my filled notepad grew legs and ran away, I find that such a phenomenon is still very much impossible — and my questions are staring right in front of me. — j. intern Yelena Tsurkan blogs 2010-06-24T19:40:48+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39516/want-more-maccabi-heres-what-you-didnt-see http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39516/want-more-maccabi-heres-what-you-didnt-see#When:23:02:26Z by amanda pazornik | While most Maccabi Games' organizers were getting some much-deserved zzzzzz's on the morning of Aug. 7, Games director Jackie Lewis was wide awake. Stationed at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, Lewis was greeting host families dropping off their out-of-town athletes headed for the airport. At 3 a.m. Instead of yawns, droopy eyelids and disheveled demeanors, both the adults and teens expressed their graciousness to Lewis in the form of hugs and positive feedback. "Our host families came up to say what an incredible time they had," Lewis said. "It was worth waking up at 3 a.m. And I'm not a morning person." In addition to the words of gratitude, other adults approached Lewis voicing their intention to stay involved in the Jewish community. Many felt "a positive feeling about being Jewish and being a San Franciscan," Lewis recalled. Some asked, "Can we do this again next year?" Lewis added.  For 15-year-old Sara Reaves, the Maccabi Games marked her first trip to San Francisco. A member of the New Orleans delegation, Reaves played volleyball on a combined team with players from York, Pa and Tucson, Ariz. Off the court, Reaves strolled Pier 39, saw Lombard Street, walked around downtown and enjoyed a ferry ride. "Coming from New Orleans, San Francisco seemed huge," Reaves said. "[The city] was really crowded, but it was beautiful. And I loved it." Joanna Botvin, an outside hitter with the Houston U-16 volleyball team, is already planning to have friends from the Atlanta and Chicago delegations to her home for Thanksgiving. Meeting new people was high up on her list of favorite memories from the Games, along with walking the Golden Gate Bridge and hanging out at the designated post-competition parties.  "There were Jewish teenagers everywhere," Botvin said. "We'd go get frozen yogurt and there would be all these people from Maccabi. It was really cool." While her second visit to S.F. couldn't have been better, Botvin did have one minor complaint. "I wish the parties didn't start so early," she said. "They were fun, but nobody actually started dancing until the sun went down."     blogs 2009-08-11T23:02:26+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39514/gold-medal-dreams-saved-s.f.-boys-girls-basketball-teams-deliver1 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39514/gold-medal-dreams-saved-s.f.-boys-girls-basketball-teams-deliver1#When:18:06:35Z by michael lazarus | The San Francisco delegation saved its best performances for last.After failing to win a gold medal in any team event in the first three and half days of the 2009 JCCSF Maccabi Games, San Francisco’s boys’ and girls’ 16-and-under basketball teams delivered the much-anticipated gold Aug. 6, the final afternoon of competition.The girls took to the court at University of San Francisco's Memorial Gym first in a rematch against Dallas, the No. 1 seed. With the (score) defeat to Dallas in pool play fresh in the players mind, San Francisco jumped out to a 14-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.Dallas kept the game close in the second quarter, but in the third, San Francisco took control. Leading 27-22 with four minutes left, S.F. closed out the quarter on an 8-0 run. Consecutive treys by Hannah Caine and Nikki Greenberg started the streak, and a tough lay-up by Rachel Baskin as time expired sent the crowded gym, almost entirely hometown fans, into “Go S.F.” chants.Dallas climbed back to within eight points with just over two minutes to play, but San Francisco made seven of eight free throws down the stretch to cement the victory, 48-36.“We had a great week,” head coach Adam Feldman said. “Our gold medal game was the best game of the week. We played hard, played defense. It sounds simple, but it was so important.”After winning the gold each of the last two seasons, this year’s team was a wild card, as only two of the nine girls on the team had Maccabi experience. The two, Baskin and Caine, led San Francisco with 16 and 15 points, respectively.With a team gold already secured for San Francisco, the boys faced Dallas in the final event of the Games.Led by Noah Springwater, San Francisco simply dominated Dallas. In the second half, San Francisco always held at least a double-digit lead, en route to a 51-36 victory.“Playing determined defense was the key – limiting their open shots,” Springwater said. “Dallas was by far the best team we played, they deserved to be here.”Springwater paced San Francisco scorers with 17, as Armand Gray added 15 and Matt Schneider and Micah Sokolsky both tacked on 6.For Springwater, the gold medal game victory wrapped up a whirlwind month of July. The University High star was a member of the U.S. team that also took home gold at the Maccabiah Games in Israel.While the Maccabiah may be a bigger stage, the Maccabi Games had extra significance for Springwater.“There’s always stress being the home team,” he said. “We were fortunate enough to hold off some good teams.” blogs 2009-08-11T18:06:35+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39508/rush-limbaugh-really-is-a-big-fat-idiot http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39508/rush-limbaugh-really-is-a-big-fat-idiot#When:21:53:19Z by dan pine | I don't care who you are, where you fall on the political spectrum, or how you feel about the Democratic Party: nobody could condone the sickening remarks that talk show host Rush Limbuagh made the other day comparing Democrats to the Nazi Party, as part of the heated health care reform debate. That is so incendiary, so beyond the realm of reasonable discourse, so insulting (not to mention, so wrong), this overpaid clown may have finally gone too far, even in the eyes of conservatives. Jews are sensitive to the use and overuse of "Nazi" as an epithet, especially when the anti-Israel crowd compares Israelis and the IDF to Nazis. It is NOT an insult to be hurled lightly, but here we have the most prominent voice in the Republican Party throwing the ultimate rhetorical bomb. It's a stink bomb, and Limbaugh had better get a grip if he doesn't want to see violence in the streets, committed by his more slavish (and heavily-armed) acolytes. Or maybe he does want to see it? Rush Limbaugh is a disgrace to humanity. I wish he'd pack up his Oxycontin, his condoms, head for the Bahamas and never come back.         blogs 2009-08-07T21:53:19+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39436/kickin-it-off-in-style-bands-mascots-cheerleaders-rock-s.f.-maccabi-games-o http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/39436/kickin-it-off-in-style-bands-mascots-cheerleaders-rock-s.f.-maccabi-games-o#When:18:36:56Z by michael lazarus | The 2009 JCC Maccabi Games' opening ceremonies got off to a rocking start Aug. 2, with Israeli scouts providing pre-ceremony entertainment and Israeli hip-hop group Coolooloosh prompting the more than 1,500 athletes in attendance to rush the stage for a celebration-ending dance party.  In between, delegations made the entering walk through the Cow Palace, videos celebrating the history and importance of the Maccabi Games played on the two big screens, and Richard Goldman, the honorary chair of the Games, and his granddaughter Jennifer Goldman, a Maccabiah gold-medal winner in tennis, lit the torch.Upwards of 2,000 parents, hosts and spectators packed into the Daly City venue to welcome the athletes to San Francisco. Mascots from the San Jose Earthquakes, (Q) Oakland Athletics (Stomper), San Francisco 49ers (Sourdough Sam) and San Francisco Giants (Lou Seal) entertained the crowd, throwing out T-shirts and taking pictures. CheerSF then came on to greet the athletes during the parade of nations.Roxy Bernstein, the voice of the California Golden Bears and alumnus of the Maccabi Games, introduced the 44 delegations, including cohorts from the United Kingdom, Guatemala, Mexico and Israel. The biggest cheers were saved for the S.F. delegation."I feel like we're all connected by tradition," said tennis player Aria Berluti, 12, of San Francisco. "Getting to run out and be the last ones was really fun. I even danced a little."The one somber moment of the night was a tribute to the Munich Eleven, the 11 Israeli athletes taken hostage and killed during the 1972 Summer Olympic Games."It was a very respectful ceremony," said Yuval Zur, who traveled from Israel to watch his grandson, Daniel Zur, play basketball with the Contra Costa delegation. "It was very positive, very impressive and even caused me to get a little emotional."With all the hype surrounding the event, the teenagers couldn’t help but feel like they were part of something important. “It was very Olympic-like,” said Shaun Kleber, a 15-year-old swimmer from Atlanta.There was one athlete who hoped the Olympic comparisons don’t end at the opening ceremonies, though.“I want to bring home Michael Phelps-style medals,” said 16-year-old Michael Weinberg, of Washington D.C. Let the Games begin. blogs 2009-08-03T18:36:56+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38489/from-jewish-bulletin-to-j.-my-journey-in-the-bay-area-jewish-community http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38489/from-jewish-bulletin-to-j.-my-journey-in-the-bay-area-jewish-community#When:22:51:52Z by elizabeth katzki | My family’s kitchen table has always donned at least one copy of the Jewish Bulletin/J. alongside the San Francisco Chronicle, and from the moment I could read, I picked up the Jewish Bulletin first.  I have grown up reading the J. and remember the transition from Jewish Bulletin to J. and the trepidation that accompanied that change.  In 2003, The Jewish Bulletin I had grown up with and learned to trust for the duration of my youth was changing into something more modern, and more accessible to a weekly reader.  During the J.’s transition, I was going through a milestone of my own; becoming a Bat Mitzvah at Congregation Emanu-El.  I have found that the J. has been a very constant landmark in navigating my way to a Jewish identity, and continues to play this role.The Jewish Bulletin had been a periodical reminder that the Bay Area has a unique Jewish Community and that I am a part of it.  When I was younger, my mother would point out articles she thought I would be interested in  for me to read, and as I got older I started reading more articles and choosing the ones I thought would be interesting.  Lately, the J. has been something to keep me on track Jewishly; I read, think about, and struggle with almost every article, and learn more about myself through this process.  Now, writing for the J., the evolution is far from complete, but I see it from a different perspective.  I am now involved in writing the articles that I read and struggle with, and have a whole new appreciation for the journalistic process, that I am sure will grow and develop even more throughout my summer here at the J. blogs 2009-07-02T22:51:52+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38272/something-charitable-for-everywun http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38272/something-charitable-for-everywun#When:21:07:18Z by amanda pazornik | I literally just hung up the phone with Dan Jacobs, founder of Everywun, a socially conscious business headquartered in Palo Alto that allows, well everyone, to donate to their favorite charitable causes without dropping a dime.  At this point, the conscientious reader would be saying, as I certainly did, "Hold up, how can I give monetarily without forking over any money?" Rest assured, dear reader. Jacobs, 27, has an answer for you. In fact, he's got quite a few. By taking a series of quizzes on the environment, you can earn credits to plant trees, feed animals through the Humane Society or send books to children in Africa. Place a  "badge" on your Facebook page and each click will help raise money toward your favorite cause. Or, simply sign up for the Everywun newsletter and earn 100 credits - enough to plant a tree. There's a lot of giving going on, and it's because of sponsors like The North Face, Better World Books, Peanut Labs and other businesses that "all want to be part of the conversation about what it means to be a better world," Jacobs said.  Jacobs, whose father is a rabbi in Los Angeles, founded Everywun in August and officially launched his Web site in March. He said so far, the company hasn't paid a cent in online advertising. In May, everywun.com received half a million hits, compared to the beta site in February when Jacobs tabulated just 12,000. No matter how you look at it, this guy's doing something inspiring. Stay tuned for my full article...     blogs 2009-06-04T21:07:18+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38027/welcome-to-switzerland-schmuck http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38027/welcome-to-switzerland-schmuck#When:16:12:09Z by andy altman-ohr | So a week or so ago, I'm heading out of the office to start a vacation, and the boss drops the ol' blog reminder on me. Oh, just what everyone wants to read about, my one-week jaunt to Switzerland, France and Belgium. Moreover, the itinerary included NOTHING Jewish (nothing wrong with a J. break when you work at j. - right?). Anyway, after I get off the plane in Geneva, Switzerland and take a train to the center of town; I've got a few hours to kill before meeting up with my wife, who's on a business trip. I decide, OK, I'm not going to seek out anything Jewish, but if I do come across anything, what the heck, I'll snap a picture of it. First thing I see after leaving the Central Station and crossing the street: the picture you see above. What a welcommen! (Schmuck apparently means "jewelry" in German, although "jewels" is an inch or two off of the Yiddish meaning we're most familiar with.) The sign was at a jewelry/watch store. Later on in my three-hour, stave-off-the-jet lag-trance walk, I just happened to stumble upon Geneva's Grande Synagogue; some workers were painting the outside railing, but I couldn't get inside as it was a Wednesday morning at about 10 a.m. The structure was indeed grand, a Byzantine-Moorish structure designed by a Swiss architect and built in 150 years ago (and renovated in 1997).   On the rest of my trip (two days in France, four days in Belgium), I came across nothing Jewish. Sorry, boss; next year, in Jerusalem? blogs 2009-05-08T16:12:09+00:00 http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38026/youre-insane-if-you-think-a-bat-mitzvah-with-live-animals-corrupts-the-trad http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/38026/youre-insane-if-you-think-a-bat-mitzvah-with-live-animals-corrupts-the-trad#When:21:48:10Z by stacey palevsky | To all of the letter writers and opiners who a) hate that we at J. dedicated a cover story to safari-themed b’nai mitzvah parties and b) think it antithetical to Judaism that families are planning these events in the first place, I recommend you immediately sit down with a Jewish American tween (and the parents who want to appease them). Talk to them for five minutes. You’ll see that a safari-theme bat mitzvah party with a zebra and python reflects their reality. Which is: They are awkward. They are self-absorbed. They like Miley Cyrus way more than Shakespeare or Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. They are not immediately preparing to get married and be fruitful and multiply (at least, let’s hope not). Rather, they are learning algebra and going to school dances and buying Clearasil in an attempt to hide the puberty surfacing on their t-zone. Sometimes they are experimenting with sex, cigarettes and even with their own identity. They might like themselves, but more often, they wish they could be prettier, smarter, more likable. Adults usually don’t “get” them. But they don’t usually “get” themselves, either. In this context (which I call Reality, welcome!), the bar/bat mitzvah in America no longer symbolizes children entering adulthood, and anyone who still thinks otherwise is drinking the Kool-Aid. Don’t get me wrong, the bar/bat mitzvah in the United States still has plenty of meaning — you can see it in mitzvah projects that raise thousands of dollars or books or blankets. And teens absolutely write thoughtful d’var torahs that they give, poised and articulate, from the bimah. I realize that for many young Orthodox children, the bar/bat mitzvah is a spiritual obstacle course they commit to complete and then maybe have a nice kosher oneg afterward. For them, the big bash usually isn’t presented as an option. And that’s great. But for anyone who is not Orthodox the bar/bat mitzvah is not just about Torah, trope and tikkun olam — it’s also about throwing a hecka cool party. Don’t believe me? Go to the mall. Or Sunday school at your synagogue. Talk to 12- and 13-year-olds. I’d bet money that none of them would willingly skip having a party after their Torah reading. If we really want to return the bar/bat mitzvah to its roots of self-discovery and personal growth, we’d change the age to 16, 18, 21 or 25 — birthdays when adult responsibilities (driving, college, drinking, renting a car) enter the marketplace. In the meantime, we should remember that a bar/bat mitzvah party with a giraffe on the guest list does not preclude G-d’s invite. He/She’s there too. A big party doesn't necessarily corrupt a meaningful rite of passage. We live in America, after all, a land where anything is possible... which is to say that a bar/bat mitzvah can be both a big party and a thoughtful Jewish exercise, and that BOTH are equally a part of what it means to be Jewish and 13.     blogs 2009-05-07T21:48:10+00:00