Teaneck gets The Shalom TV Channel

Optimum in Teaneck has The Shalom TV Channel on 138 now as a full time channel in addition to the previous On Demand service. Via PR:

Cablevision Systems Corp. (NYSE: CVC) today announced the addition of the new Shalom TV Channel to Optimum’s comprehensive line-up. Shalom TV, available on channel 138, is America's Jewish television network with a strong array of shows covering the panorama of Jewish life and of interest to everyone.

Shalom TV programming addresses everyone with a sense of Jewish identity and those seeking their roots. Televised offerings resonate with anyone who has a passion for learning and a desire to gain a greater understanding of Jewish tradition, Jewish life and the land of Israel. Viewers can tune-in to daily news from the Israel Broadcasting Authority, timely interviews with the leading personalities in the Jewish world, live call-in programs, Friday evening Sabbath services and Jewish children's programming every morning and afternoon....

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Hillary Gets a Boost from the Saban Forum

New Yorker' David Remnick reports that Hillary Clinton has some backing from some prominent Jews to be the next president of the United States.

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Times' Lazy Profile of Andy Statman and God

Our friend Andy is a great musician and a great person. But unlike the Times, we are sure that God has nothing to do with that.



We don't know why the Times thinks Andy's religion is a factor. They just put his yarmulka picture up there and don't do the work to make much thoughtful connection between his religion and his music. Perhaps that is because there is little or none.

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Does the GOP Use Religion to Manipulate Voters?

Yes, in a cynical fashion, in the most obvious and in the least successful way, news stories are showing that the GOP does use religion to manipulate voters.

See a brief account of some of the bad actions here.

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Big News: Jews Good at Sports

The New York Times knows that Jews is always news, and "Jews and Sports" is big time news. (Not exactly. Some might say, odd topic, odd book.)

See the review of 'Jewish Jocks,' Edited by Franklin Foer and Marc Tracy -- Sporty Jews.

50 sports greats. Are they Jewish? If they are in the book, we should presume they are. But not all are Jewish and not all are Jocks. That's okay because the authors and publishers were not under oath when they put this book out there, these people, "they count!"

The suits tell us a bit about their really nifty book:

JEWISH JOCKS: AN UNORTHODOX HALL OF FAME is a timeless collection of biographical musings, sociological riffs about assimilation, first-person reflections, and, above all, great writing on some of the most influential and unexpected pioneers in the world of sports. Featuring work by today's preeminent writers, these essays explore significant Jewish athletes, coaches, broadcasters, trainers, and even team owners (in the finite universe of Jewish Jocks, they count!).

Contributors include some of today's most celebrated writers covering a vast assortment of topics, including David Remnick on the biggest mouth in sports, Howard Cosell; Jonathan Safran Foer on the prodigious and pugnacious Bobby Fischer; Man Booker Prize-winner Howard Jacobson writing elegantly on Marty Reisman, America's greatest ping-pong player and the sport's ultimate showman. Deborah Lipstadt examines the continuing legacy of the Munich Massacre, the fortieth anniversary of which coincided with the 2012 London Olympics. Jane Leavy reveals why Sandy Koufax agreed to attend her daughter's bat mitzvah. And we learn how Don Lerman single-handedly thrust competitive eating into the public eye with three pounds of butter and 120 jalapeño peppers. These essays are supplemented by a cover design and illustrations throughout by Mark Ulriksen.

From settlement houses to stadiums and everywhere in between, JEWISH JOCKS features men and women who do not always fit the standard athletic mold. Rather, they utilized talents long prized by a people of the book (and a people of commerce) to game these games to their advantage, in turn forcing the rest of the world to either copy their methods-or be left in their dust.

OK. So who else is in this adorable book? Here are the 50 chapter subjects and the authors.

1. Daniel Mendoza: The King's Pugilist -Simon Schama
2. Max Nordau: Philosopher of the Muscle Jews -Timothy Snyder
3. Barney Sedran: Tiny Bailer -Rebecca Newberger Goldstein
4. Benny Leonard: Mama Said Knock You Out -Franklin Foer
5. Mose Solomon: The Hunt for the Hebrew -Ruth Robert Weintraub
6. Whitey Bimstein: Cutman -Douglas Century
7. Sidney Franklin: Matador from Flatbush -Tom Rachman
8. Arnold Rothstein: American Shylock -Ron Rosenbaum
9. Barney Ross: Kaddish for a Welterweight -Buzz Bissinger
10. Marty Reisman: Ping-Pong Wizard -Howard Jacobson
11. Hank Greenberg: The Plot Against Greenberg? Ira Berkow
12. Helene Mayer: Fencing for Hitler -Joshua Cohen
13. Al Rosen: I'm Not Greenberg -David Margolick
14. Sid Luckman: Hebrew Mind, Cossack Body -Rich Cohen
15. Grigory Novak: Soviet Strongman -David Bezmozgis
16. Jack Molinas: The Point-Shaver -Chad Millman
17. Dolph Schayes: Power Forward -Marc Tracy
18. Red Auerbach: The Coach Who Never Paid Retail -Steven Pinker
19. Shirley Povich: Conscience of the Capital -Noam Scheiber
20. Sandy Koufax: Best Bar Mitzvah Guest Ever -Jane heavy
21. Bennie Muller: Voetbal After Auschwitz -Simon Kuper
22. Marvin Miller: Three Strikes and a Walkout -Dahlia Lithwick
23. Jimmy Jacobs: Mike Tyson's Four-Wall -Rabbi Mark Singer
24. Joel Silver: Ultimate Producer -Mark Oppenheimer
25. Art Shamsky: Miracle Met -David Brooks
26. Red Holzman: The Constant Gardner -Todd Gitlin
27. Bobby Fischer: The Unnatural Jonathan -Safran Foer
28. Yossef Romano: Martyrs of Munich -Deborah Lipstadt
29. Ron Mix: The Righteous Tackle- Josh Levin
30. Mark Spitz: Pool Shark -Judith Shulevitz
31. Robert Lipsyte: Lippy and Me -Sam Lipsyte
32. Howard Cosell: The Mouth -David Remnick
33. Nancy Lieberman: Lady Magic -Kevin Amovitz
34. Renée Richards: Cross-Court Winner -Emily Bazelon
35. Shep Messing: Keeper of the Cosmos -David Hirshey
36. Daniel Okrent: Every Man's Fantasy -Jonathan Mahler
37. Harold Solomon: The Moon-Bailer- Lawrence Summers
38. Al Davis: The Raider -Ben Wallace-Wells
39. Harvey "Sifu" Sober: Harvey the Sensei -Shalom Auslander
40. Mathieu Schneider: Lord Stanley's Kiddush Cup- Jonah Keri
41. Bud Selig: A Defense -David Leonhardt
42. Corey Pavin: Putting for Jesus -L. Jon Wertheim
43. Kerri Strug: My Left Foot -David Plotz
44. Bill Goldberg: Hezbollah's Favorite Wrestler -Jeffrey Goldberg
45. Tamir Goodman: The Jewish Jordan -Avi Zvi Zenilman
46. Eyal Berkovic: Soccer Sabra -Etgar Keret
47. Don Lerman: The Ben Franklin of Competitive Eating -Liel Leibovitz
48. Adam Greenberg: Once-Hit Wonder -Stephen J. Dubner
49. Mark Cuban: The Twelve-Year-Old Owner -George Packer
50. Theo Epstein: The Baseball Genius Who Didn't Save the World -Mark Leibovich

Mom, apple pie, puppy dogs, Jews and sport, how can we not recommend this book?

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How much is that Torah in the Window?

In an article, the Times describes a new Jewish fund raising craze, Underwriting Abraham - Synagogues Offer Sponsorships for Torah Texts.

Hey, it's kids, it's adults, it's a woman scribe, it's Brooklyn, it's money, it's so much more, it's a multi-faceted mitzvah (with a big ROI)...

On Page One of the Times' Metropolitan Section. Hmmm. Shouldn't it be in the Sunday Business Section?

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Toronto Star asks, Is Israel getting too orthodox?

It's an obnoxiously phrased title question, but turns out it's a decent article, laying out the trends, issues and numbers.

Is Israel getting too orthodox? in The Toronto Star sets out the topic:

The country’s 1 million ultra-Orthodox, also known as Haredim, account for about 19 per cent of the country’s Jewish population of 5.4 million.

Many Haredim, a Hebrew word meaning those who tremble before God, marry in their teens. Academics say they typically have eight children, compared with two for secular couples.

In 1960, 15 per cent of Israeli primary students attended schools in the Arab or Haredim systems, rather than non-religious state-run schools. Now it’s about 50 per cent, and is on pace to reach 78 per cent by 2040, according to the Taub Centre, an Israeli think-tank.

By 2050, 25 per cent of Israel’s population will be Haredim, the International Monetary Fund estimates.... more...

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