Op-Ed: Save Me from My ‘Saviours’

“Chas, we can save you!’ When I received messages on my blog making this thrilling promise, I assumed they were spam from a finance company offering to consolidate my loans into one ”easy” payment. Instead, it turned out, they were from a Christian in Nigeria who, having read articles I posted about my interest in Judaism and the Chasidim, wants to convert all my curiosity about Judaism into one churchy faith.

Jews & Politics: Onward!

It’s over. The hype, the ads, the campaigning, the debates…we all know how the election this year turned out. There is much to say, and writing this immediately after President Barrack Obama was re-elected I am overwhelmed by a number of different reactions.

All Students Should Feel Welcome on Campus

In today’s day and age, Jews should never have to fear expressing their culture and heritage publicly. But yet, at Carleton University in Ottawa, I believe many still do. Just last week, Carleton released a report stating the findings of its Commission on Inter-Cultural, Inter-Religious and Inter-Racial Relations. The commission, formed two years ago, indicated in its report that Jewish students and faculty members in particular were unsatisfied with the treatment received on campus.

Police Brutality: The Responsibility of Authority

In 2000, following the conviction of Brooklyn police officers for brutalizing Abner Louima, which was followed by the investigations and controversy around the police killing of Amadou Bailo Diallo, world renowned author and teacher Rabbi Simon Jacobson addressed the topic of police brutality and the responsibility of authority in his then weekly live radio show.

CrownHeights.info presents a complete transcript of that fascinating show, including the call ins, with permission from the Meaningful Life Center.

Jews in Sports: Israel’s Loss May Be Long Term Gain

The past couple of months of baseball in Israel certainly have been exciting. However, in the short term, the World Baseball Qualifying round was certainly a build up to another Israeli let down.

Op-Ed: What Makes Them Tick?

Every Tishrei, along with many of my peers, I was turned off anew at the scene in Crown Heights. I would be disgusted at the pushy, sweaty orchim, the homeless girls sleeping in 770 and the general feeling of ‘hefker’ness…