Dec. 1, 2008 Max Freidlander, as told to Jacklyn C. Wadler: India Inkings Mark Steyn: Whodunit!? Nov. 28, 2008 Rabbi Ahron Rapps: An evil seed that didn't have to be Melanie Phillips: Carpe diem --- or can we all relax now? Nov. 26, 2008 Michael Feldberg: Meet the Orthodox Jew who laid groundwork for scientific development of ordnance that undergirds America's current world leadership Andrea Simantov: Shades of life Nov. 25, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Getting Emotional For Influence The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman : Thanksiving feast! Nov. 24, 2008 Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg: 'I just Became a grandchild!' Barry Rubin: Don't flatter your enemies, protect your friends Nov. 21, 2008 Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz: Money matters? Caroline B. Glick: Civilization walks the plank Nov. 20, 2008 Rabbi Avi Shafran: Bronfman's blindness The Kosher Gourmet By Linda Gassenheimer: Portobellos add a hearty flavor to pasta with pesto Nov, 19, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Spread the wealth? Jewish tradition and income equality Elliot B. Gertel: 'Mad Men': Tackling prejudices or reinforcing them? Nov, 18, 2008 Dr. Debby Schwarz Hirschhorn: The End of the Age of Reason Jonathan Tobin: Does Barack + Bibi = Disaster? Nov, 17, 2008 Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The End of the Age of Reason Diana West: Gulling Americans into making terror legit? Nov, 14, 2008 Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz: The Power of Spiritual Inertia Caroline B. Glick: The perils ahead Nov, 13, 2008 Stratfor Intelligence Briefing: How Bush and Obama together could change the Middle East dynamic The Kosher Gourmet by JeanMarie Brownson: Sweet and savory, crispy and meltingly tender bestilla Nov, 12, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Tyrannical Co-Workers Michael Doyle: High Court to consider today donated monuments that may have religious messages in public parks Nov, 11, 2008 Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Will Obama stop government officials considering institutionalizing financial jihad? Jonathan Tobin: They Will Decide Their Own Fate Nov, 10, 2008 Rabbi Avi Shafran: $8 billion, modern-day Tower of Babel being built? Barry Rubin: A letter to the president-elect from a Middle East realist Nov, 7, 2008 Rabbi Francis Nataf: Of Children and Immortality Caroline B. Glick: Livni's Obama strategy Nov, 6, 2008 Rabbi Yonason Goldson: How I tricked a classroom of apathetic students into grasping the fallacy of moral relativism The Kosher Gourmet By Gina Kim: Tips for making the perfect soup --- includes recipes Nov, 5, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist By Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Destitute Debtors Bruce Weinstein: 'Religulos': Bad title,even worse movie Nov, 4, 2008 Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Treasury Dept. submits to Shariah law Frida Ghitis: A surprise for Obama in the Middle East Nov, 3, 2008 Jonathan Rosenblum: Who says Jews are Smart? Jonathan Tobin: Was He Wrong About Everything? 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 Dec. 28, 2007 / 19 Teves 5768 On the bright side? By Greg Crosby http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | A new year and a new reason for hope. Good news doesn?t exactly flow off the television screen or out of the radio on a regular basis. Nor does good news scream out at you in large bold headlines from our newspapers and magazines, so it was a very pleasant surprise when I opened my December issue of Commentary Magazine and read the article entitled, ?Crime, Drugs, Welfare — and Other Good News." The authors of the piece, Peter Wehner and Yuval Levin, scholars at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington are not being sarcastic with that title, either. There really is good news to tell. Try these stats on for size: Teenage drug use has fallen by 23 percent since the 1990s, and by more than 50 percent for certain specific drugs, such as LSD and ecstasy. There is less abortion. In 1990 abortions reached a high of 1.6 million, the number of abortions performed annually in the U.S. has dropped to less than 1.3, the lowest level since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973. The U.S. divorce rate is at its lowest level since 1970. Higher educational scores. The high-school dropout rate, now less than 10 percent, is at a 30-year low. The mean SAT score was 8 points higher in 2005 than it was in 1993. Teenagers are drinking less, anywhere from 10 to 35 percent less than in 1996 depending upon the grade in school. Binge drinking has dropped to the lowest levels ever recorded. Teens are smoking cigarettes less than ever before. The number of high school students having sex has declined by more than 10 percent since 1991. And the birth rate for teens since that time has gone down by 35 percent. According to the National Crime Victimization Survey, both violent crime and property crime are at their lowest levels since 1973. In some places, even lower: New York City, it was reported a few days ago, is expected to have much fewer than 500 homicides this year, the fewest since the early 1960s. Compare that with 1990, when New York recorded 2,245 homicides. As far as welfare is concerned, since 1994 the U.S. caseload has dropped 60 percent ? virtually every state in the union has reduced its caseload by at least a third and as much as 90 percent in some states. Overall poverty, child poverty, black child poverty, and child hunger have all decreased. Unfortunately, not all the news is good. Illegitimacy is at an all-time high, the marriage rate continues to sink, and popular culture largely remains "a cesspool of violence and vulgarity." Furthermore, the condition and strength of the American family has thus far, they say, not yet begun to turn upward. However, the authors write, "the progress we have witnessed over the last 15 years is impressive, undeniable, and beyond what most people thought possible." So, as we begin 2008 we Americans have solid reason to be optimistic about our future society. Sure, we need to be concerned about the ongoing coarseness in American culture and the decline of the American family, and perhaps one day, these too, shall start to improve. Sometimes, things do change for the better, not often enough and not quickly enough it seems, but it does happen. Sometimes people wake up and do the right things, and sometimes good solid values and ethics win over the bad. One thing is for sure ? if decency, honor, and ethics make a comeback anywhere in this world, you can bet it will be in the United States of America! Happy New Year! Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here. JWR contributor Greg Crosby, former creative head for Walt Disney publications, has written thousands of comics, hundreds of children's books, dozens of essays, and a letter to his congressman. A freelance writer in Southern California, you may contact him by clicking here. Greg Crosby Archives © 2006, Greg Crosby

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