Below are the names of writers who are currently active. For others, living and deceased, please type their name into the search box above the masthead on our home page, www.sdjewishworld.com
He puts blessings and curses in front of us and teaches us the path to blessings every day of our lives. He’s telling us to open our minds, our eyes, to the positive, to the blessings in life. This, the parsha is teaching, will bring happiness. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D]
Parsha Re’eh: Blessings, Curses, and a Call for Tzedakah Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
One Day in October by Yair Agmon and Oriya Mevorach is a poignant and powerful memoir that captures the heart-wrenching events of October 7, 2023, in Israel. Through the lens of 40 individual stories, this book delves into the lives of those who survived the massacre, as well as the memories of those who tragically lost their lives on that fateful day. [Miriam Gershenson]
Book Chronicles 40 Diverse Stories from October 7th, 2023 Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel, Jewish History, Miriam Gershenson, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Tuvia is an expat Israeli born to a Yiddish-speaking rabbinical family in Bnei Brak, Israel’s largest majority ultra-Orthodox city. He has lived in Germany, the US, and elsewhere for many decades, working as a journalist and author. Holding multiple academic degrees and speaking several languages, Tuvia is also a playwright, essayist, and the founding artistic director of the Jewish Theater of New York. [Steve Kramer]
‘Careful, Beauties Ahead’ Probes Lives of Haredim Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Steve Kramer, USA
As the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 massacre approaches, San Diego’s Jewish community’s programming and thoughts focus on the people of Southern Israel, in particular those of Sha’ar Hanegev, San Diego’s Sister City which was ravaged in the attacks. [Cailin Acosta]
Local Events Focus on Upcoming Anniversary of Oct. 7 Massacre Read More »
Cailin Acosta, Holocaust, Israel, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Obituaries & memorials, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Technology, USA
I sincerely internalized lessons from his experience and that signpost, coming to understand the needs that communities determine and express and the responsibility of development agencies to respond accordingly. This primary tenet of sustainability is so simple, and yet it has taken decades for prior generations worldwide (and still may require generations going forward) to truly forsake the destructive control of central planning in lieu of people’s own decision-making as it impacts their lives. [Yossef Ben-Meir]
My friend Ron Huldai is the mayor of Tel Aviv. Born in 1944, Huldai is a former Israeli Air Force pilot who was elected mayor in 1998, the year I met him. He has since been re-elected five times and has played an important role in the city’s development. [José Galicot]
My buddy, the mayor of Tel Aviv Read More »
International, Israel, Jose Galicot, Staff and Bylined Contributors
The Nuremberg Nazi Doctors’ Trials, called United States of America v. Karl Brandt et al., occurred from December 9, 1946 to August 20, 1947. There were 23 defendants. Twenty were medical doctors. They were accused of performing Nazi human experimentation and mass murder under the guise of euthanasia. (Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
Novel Depicts Trials of Nazi Doctors at Nuremberg Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Holocaust, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr.
The Testament is a novel focusing on the Soviet leader Stalin murdering Russia’s greatest Jewish poets and novelists on August 12, 1952, and before that date. Wiesel gathers the lives, thinking, and acts of these martyrs by imagining the tale of Paltiel Kossova , a Jewish poet who, despite devoting himself to communism, was murdered by the communist leader. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
In Appreciation of Elie Wiesel’s ‘The Testament’ Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Staff and Bylined Contributors
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his presidential campaign and endorsed Donald Trump. It is rumored that Trump, who previously referred to Kennedy as a “radical left liberal,” has promised Kennedy a post in his administration. Here’s some positions he would be qualified to hold. [Laurie Baron]
Satire: RFK Jr.’s Cabinet Post Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA
Following President Biden’s poor performance in his debate against Donald Trump last June, Forward editor Jodi Rudoren spoke to Rabbi Beals, who offered a Jewish framework for discussing the issue of Biden’s age and its impact on his presidency and his future leadership. What did Rabbi Beals say regarding this issue? [Mark D. Zimmerman]
Jewish Trivia Quiz: Joe Biden’s Rabbi, Michael Beals Read More »
Mark D. Zimmerman, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA
The dynamic classical/jazz pianist, Conrad Tao, opened the August 17 SummerFest concert, California Dreamin’, with eight selections connected to Sergei Rachmaninoff, who spent his last years in Los Angeles after immigrating from his native Russia. [Eileen Wingard]
Works of Rachmaninoff, Rozsa Delight SummerFest Audience Read More »
Eileen Wingard, International, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Woodstock, the iconic “Hippie” counter-culture music festival, was celebrated by ~460,000 baby boomers from August 15 to 18, 1969. The “happening” was on the rolling hills of Max Yasgur’s Dairy farm in Bethel, N.Y. It almost never came about. [Jerry Klinger]
Jewish Farmer Max Yasgur Made the Woodstock Festival Possible Read More »
Jerry Klinger, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
Overnight, a major escalation took place in Israel’s north. Thankfully, at this stage, there are no reports of Israeli lives lost, and the immediate threats to Israel seem to be over for now. {Heidi Gantwerk]
Situationer on the Fighting in Northern Israel Read More »
Heidi Gantwerk, Israel, Middle East, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Nan, bolstered by best friend Simon (Isai Luna) and her new pal, Sweetheart/Peaches (Ruth Russell), has had all she can take. Her plan to leave Kyle involves duct taping him to a chair in a cabin to which she plans to lure the local bears. [Eva Trieger]
Story of an Unbearable Marriage at Coronado Playhouse Read More »
Eva Trieger, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast