Just the facts, ma'am
An abridged newsletter
We’re back!
Housekeeping notes: This past Monday, paid subscribers got this month’s ET Ask Home, this newsletter’s monthly questionnaire, featuring Laura E. Adkins, former Forward opinion editor and senior director at Jewish Women International.
With that! Onto news, views, and Jews.
THE NEWS
For Slate, I wrote about why Israel’s war cannot only be understood in the context of Jewish history, but also must be thought of in the context of geopolitics and nation states.
This week on the Election Tricycle, we discussed corruption, cynicism, and class. Starting next week, the end segment of each podcast will be for premium subscribers only. If you are a paid subscriber to this newsletter, I’ll send it out to you.
From Variety: “Just days after the Russian blockbuster ‘The Master and Margarita’ surged to the top of the domestic box office, Kremlin cronies, pro-war propagandists and an army of online trolls have waged a campaign to discredit the film and its director, Michael Lockshin, a U.S. citizen who was raised in the Soviet Union and has been outspoken in his opposition to the war in Ukraine.” I want to see this movie!
I appreciated this piece on Megan Thee Stallion and hip hop.
I loved this Nikola Jokic profile.
MY VIEWS ON…
…nothing!
I am traveling and so have no opinions for you this week. I’m sorry! I’ll be back next week with views on…something, I promise!
AND SOME STUFF ABOUT JEWS
From the Guardian: “Moments after Benjamin Netanyahu publicly rejected the terms of a ceasefire in Gaza proposed by Hamas, five Israeli hostages who were freed in November pleaded with him to push for a deal.”
In Australian Jewish news: “In response to the pressing need for an independent expert body to address antisemitism and racism in Australia, a dynamic coalition of Jewish scholars, historians, human rights lawyers, and writers has joined together to establish the Jewish Council of Australia. The Council was formed to fill a void in Australia of an independent expert Jewish body which can speak about antisemitism in Australia and which acknowledges the diversity of views within the Jewish community in regard to the State of Israel.”
If you are even a little bit religious or spiritual or even if you just like thinking about Jewish history and responsibility, I recommend this, by Shaul Magid, on the forgiveness asked for in prayer and the insistence that there is nothing to forgive in the day to day.
Pearl Berg, the world’s oldest Jewish person, passed away at the age of 114.
An important PSA: If you, like me, read about how the Americas’ best Jewish delicatessen was in Mexico City and were planning on going on your first morning in Mexico City, as I did today…Mendl is temporarily closed!
-ET