May 14, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Snitching to the IRS The Kosher Gourmet by Jill Wendholt Silva: Spring greens with fennel and herbs JWisdom: A Righteous Gentile by Rabbi Mordechai Becher May 13, 2008 Jonathan Mark: For pro-Israel voters, Obama's middle name should be the least of their concerns Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: The Leaker Shield Act JWisdom: Why You & I Never Die: A Jewish View of Immortality, Part II by Rabbi David Aaron May 12, 2008 Chosen Words: A newsletter for personal and spiritual growth gleaned from classic biblical and other sources that will help you enhance your day to day life. Likely the most constructive three minutes you will spend today Mark Steyn: Israel's 'doom' could also be Europe's JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: When Faith Meets Fate, Part One May 9, 2008 Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: Reverence, Yes; Worship, No Mona Charen: Did Israel Drive Out the Arabs 60 Years Ago? JWisdom: Ultimate opportunities by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky May 8, 2008 Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Israel at 3,500+ Jonathan Tobin: Still Fighting the Same War Steven Plaut: How ‘nakba’ proves the fiction of a Palestinian Nation JWisdom: Taking Israel for Granted? by Rabbi Mordechai Becher May 7, 2008 Rabbi Hillel Goldberg: Israel is irrelevant to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict Dion Nissenbaum: Latest Olmert scandal could derail efforts to force Israel's compromises JWisdom: My Inner Ventriloquist by Sara Yoheved Rigler May 6, 2008 Caroline B. Glick: Anti-Zionism at 60 The Kosher Gourmet By Ethel G. Hofman: In honor of Israel's 60th anniversary, the former president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, whose members included the likes of Julia Child, is back with a smorgasbord featuring the taste and essence of the Jewish homeland JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Jewish Deer in Nazi Headlights May 5, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Busy work Jonathan Mark: Remarkable half-century old Mike Wallace interview with Abba Eban puts current anti-Israel sentiment into perspective May 2, 2008 Rabbi Berel Wein: Rote religiosity Caroline B. Glick: Whitewashing Hamas JWisdom: Parent trap? May 1, 2008 David Zwiebel: Faith communities can learn from Orthodox Jews in stimulating private philanthropy for religious education George Friedman and Peter Zeihan of Stratfor: The Shift Toward an Israeli-Syrian Agreement JWisdom: It's time to wake up by Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis April 30, 2008 Jonathan Tobin: Pennsylvania's Democratic slugfest may leave some Jewish votes up for grabs The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: Fresh herbs, sauteed veal and tiny creamer potatoes makes a light spring dinner JWisdom: How to Build a Mentch by Rabbi Mordechai Becher April 29, 2008 Daniel Pipes: Barack Obama's Muslim Childhood Joel Brinkley: On human rights, the U.N. once again strikes out JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: When The Truth is Unbelievable April 28, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Q: I'm often stuck in the doctor's waiting room for hours! Doesn't he owe me something for my wasted time? 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Glick: Obama the Savior April 18, 2008 Rabbi Harvey Belovski: Multimedia tool of antiquity Caroline B. Glick: Revealed Truths vs. revealed lies JWisdom: More than miracles by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky April 17, 2008 Rabbi Avi Shafran: Deconstructing Dayeinu Rabbi Elazar Meisels: Is innovation at the Seder a slap at tradition? JWisdom: Discovering Your Divine Mission, Part III by Rabbi David Aaron April 16, 2008 Jonathan Tobin: A Prayer for Sderot's Children Ethel G. Hofman: Sumptuous Seder JWisdom: The Divine is in the details by Rabbi Mordechai Becher April 15, 2008 Rabbi Dovid Zauderer: Let Charlton Heston Go! Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Jimma, tyranny's enabler JWisdom: Relationships: Beyond Mars & Venus, Part IV by Dr. Lisa Aiken April 14, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: The Snitching Supervisor Jonathan Tobin: Forget the Fun and Games! JWisdom: Sincerity is Valued Most by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, M.D. April 11, 2008 Rabbi David Gutterman: A Mystery in the Middle East Caroline B. Glick: Why Ahmadinejad smiles JWisdom: Elevated illness by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky April 10, 2008 Stratfor Intelligence Briefing by George Friedman: A Mystery in the Middle East The Kosher Gourmet By Steve Petusevsky: The spring elegance of asparagus JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: The Power of Rational Lies April 9, 2008 Michael Feldberg: An all but forgotten Colonial doctor who put his Jewish values before his life Jordan "Gorf" Gorfinkel's "Everything's Relative" gets philosophical JWisdom: Four Rabbis in Bnei Brak by Rabbi Mordechai Becher April 8, 2008 Caroline Glick: Covering for the enemy Elliot B. Gertel: 'House' goes Hasidic JWisdom: Relationships: Beyond Mars & Venus, Part III by Dr. Lisa Aiken April 7, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Q: I have a translating business. Recently someone asked me to translate some financial documents that are clearly forged. Should I agree? Jonathan Rosenblum : Israel is unwittingly helping to fuel the international campaign of delegitimization against it JWisdom: Matzah and leaven as a life philosophy by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, M.D. April 4, 2008 Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: The Mystery of Suffering Caroline B. Glick: Fear of democracy JWisdom: Dirty Jews by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky April 3, 2008 Rabbi Y. Y. Rubinstein: Parents --- and the children who would be them The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Manweiler: Tempted by restaurant dressings? Don't be. Here are recipes that can be made at home, healthier! JWisdom: The importance of retaining a 'slave mentality' by Rabbi Mordechai Becher April 2, 2008 Mitch Albom: Child abuse, disguised as faith Jonathan Tobin: Unreasonable Accommodations JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith with Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Eliminating Jewish Influence over Germans March 22, 2007 J-Rhythms with Avraham Rosenblum: JWR's cutting-edge music program showcasing performers -- singers, song writers, musicians, and bands -- who learn and live the Torah lifestyle (OUR NEWEST IGODCAST !) Oct. 29, 2003 Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review Feb. 8, 2008 / 2 Adar I 5768 Picking Up, Putting Aside the Poor By Roger Simon http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Some political moments are so bizarre that you have to believe they actually are sincere. One such moment came this weekend, when Barack Obama mocked John Edwards in a speech. Obama had done it before, but that was before Edwards suspended his campaign last Wednesday. (Suspending his campaign may not turn out to be a bad thing for Edwards. In 2004, Howard Dean achieved his sole primary victory — his home state of Vermont — two weeks after he suspended his campaign. Maybe some candidates would win more states if they never began campaigning at all.) On Sunday, Obama was giving a speech in Delaware when he brought up Edwards. (I first noticed the video on Mark Halperin's "The Page." You can also find it in the blogs of Marc Ambinder and Politico's Ben Smith.) In a humorous riff, Obama mentioned a debate in which Tim Russert had asked him, "What's your biggest weakness?" Obama went on: "Well, I'm always losing paper. And so I have to have somebody around me to help me file things and keep my desk clean." Obama then said Russert had asked Edwards the same question. "And he says, 'Well, I am just so passionate about helping poor people,'" Obama said dryly. It was a funny and sarcastic observation on the pomposity that can mark presidential campaigning — and this is not the first time Obama has made that joke. As Jeff Zeleny noted on Jan. 17 in The New York Times, Obama did the same setup and then added: "If I had gone last, I would have known what the game was. I could have said: 'Well, you know, I like to help old ladies across the street. Sometimes they don't want to be helped. It's terrible.'" Which is even funnier. For the record, this is what Edwards actually told Russert his biggest weakness was: "I sometimes have a very powerful emotional response to pain that I see around me." Which you can either view as a very human and sincere moment, or you can say, "Oh, puh-leeze, gag me with a spoon." Obama apparently viewed it the latter way. But why is he bringing it up again now? It may be because Edwards has failed to endorse Obama, and Obama is irritated with him for holding out. And perhaps Edwards is asking for too much in return. (Real negotiating goes on for these endorsements, by the way, with real jobs mentioned.) Or Obama could have just been making a joke. But it is a joke that strikes at the heart of the collapse of Edwards' campaign: his inability to sell himself as an authentic champion of the poor — and I am not just talking about his expensive haircuts. I was in New Orleans in late December 2006 when Edwards announced for the presidency in that shattered city, and I later wrote a column praising Edwards for his courage in championing the impoverished rather than the middle class. Most Democratic candidates for president pander to the middle class because that is where the votes and the campaign contributions are. Yet here was Edwards, not just making poverty the centerpiece of his campaign but asking middle-class Americans to sacrifice to help the poor, including the possibility of paying higher taxes. Isn't that a risk? I asked him back then. "There is clearly a political risk, no question," Edwards told me. "But I actually believe this is what America needs." He didn't stick to it. By early January 2008, before the New Hampshire primary, Edwards was barely mentioning the poor. Instead, he was portraying himself as a tireless fighter for — you guessed it — the middle class. Which did not do much for him. And so Edwards began to swing back to being a champion for the poor — again. Which also did not do much for him. But when he went back to New Orleans last week to suspend his campaign, he announced he had extracted pledges from Hillary Clinton and Obama to "make ending poverty central to their campaign for the presidency and ... central to their presidency." Maybe Obama found that another inauthentic and self-aggrandizing moment by Edwards. And maybe Obama didn't like publicly being forced to declare his devotion to the poor by a candidate who took up that cause — and put it down — when it suited him. Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and in the media consider "must reading." Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here. Comment on Roger Simon's column by clicking here. Roger Simon Archives © 2008, Creators Syndicate