Ami E-magazine #53 - Jewish E-Books

YOSSI GESTETNERThe ChassidicRushLimbaughISSUE 53JANUARY 11, 201216 TEVES, 5772Dry BonesLooks atCartoons’Dark SideThe ContinuingSaga of theBochur inJapanA YeshivisheSolution tothe ShidduchCrisis?How I FoundYiddishkeitBehind BarsTheReturnof Anti-Semitism$4.49OUT OF NY/NJ $4.99CANADA $5.50UK £3.99EUROPE €5.50ISRAEL NIS 14.90

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1.11.201216 TEVES, 5772Departments6 EDITORIALThere but not there10 LETTERSNATIONAL AND14 INTERNATIONAL NEWSYOSSI KRAUSZNEWS COMMENTARY18 RABBI AVI SHAFRANREB LAZER ELYA’S EYES20 RABBI AVI SHAFRAN21 GLEANINGSRABBI AVI SHAFRAN22 OP-EDRABBI AVI SHAFRAN23 OP-EDEZRA FRIEDLANDER24 Q&AWITH FORMER LT. GOV. BETSYMcCAUGHEYRABBI YITZCHOK FRANKFURTERJEWISH NEWS28 NESANEL GANTZ AND SHMUELSHIMON TEICHLERJEWISH LIVING IN:32MONTREAL, CANADACHANA LEBOVITS36 BUSINESSYEDIDA WOLFE37 AMBASSADORSTo know them is to love themSARAH PERLTHE EMOTIONAL MIND58Sadness vs. depression in chassidicthoughtMOSHE L. LAXMY WORD!59 ASHER V. FINNTHE SHUL CHRONICLES60Addiction and substance abuseRABBI MOSHE TAUBTHE PRINCIPAL62Drawing the lineRABBI HERTZ FRANKELTHE HUMAN EXPERIENCE64 Finding my faith behind barsMARK COOPERSTREETS OF LIFE70 Interesting connectionsRABBI MORDECHAI KAMENETZKYFeatures38 SPYVIEW:THE RETURN OFANTI-SEMITISMThe scourge is backJOHN LOFTUSDRY BONES44 A cartoonist and cartoons’ dark sideMALKA EISENBERGTHE CHASSIDIC RUSH50 LIMBAUGHYossi Gestetner’s political wizardryYOSSI KRAUSZ50

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RABBI YITZCHOK FRANKFURTERThese past few weeks have been quite contentious onesin the Jewish world. From the tension in Beit Shemeshto the donning of concentration camp garb during aprotest in Jerusalem, the Orthodox Jewish communityhas seen better days. Yet, as in all trying episodes,these have triggered surprising responses from both individualsand organizations.On December 29, 2011, the Rabbinical Council of America andthe Orthodox Union issued a joint press release which was quiteheartwarming. While condemningextremist violence in BeitShemesh, it went on to note:“We also urge all observers torecognize that the behavior ofthese hooligans does not in anyway represent the attitude ordemeanor of the charedi communityat large. The vast majorityof charedi Jews find theseactions abhorrent, and the communityshould not be judgedby the inexcusable conduct of afew.” That the flagship rabbinicorganization of the Modern Orthodoxworld made it a point towarn against assigning guilt tothe entire charedi community forthe actions of a few was invigorating.Hopefully this cautiousand benevolent attitude willhelp some of our secular brethrenrecognize that their bigotedattitude toward part of the Orthodoxcommunity is offensiveand unacceptable. Defamationshould not be tolerated against any sector of the Jewish people,just as it is not tolerated against the Jewish people as a whole.At the same time it should be noted that the recent irresponsibleactivities by a handful of extremists are hardly the greatest challengefacing Klal Yisrael. Rabbi Yitzchak Adlerstein, in his superbessay “Modern Orthodoxy at the Crossroads,” published in theSeptember 21st issue of Ami, delineated some critical issues facedby the Orthodox community today.“Lots of things are happening in the Modern Orthodox world—some good, some not so good, and some astonishingly terrible,”Rabbi Adlerstein wrote.“The far left of Modern Orthodoxy seemsto be intent on continuing an unrelenting drive to push the envelopeand change the way people lead an Orthodox life.”It is in the spirit of brotherhood expressed by the RCA that wemost respectfully assert the hope that as an Orthodox rabbinicorganization representing authentic Jewish values to the ModernOrthodox community, the RCA will deal with the challenges facingit from within with the same moral responsibility it demonstratedin its recent statement about Beit Shemesh. The threats toTorah values coming from the far left of the Orthodox communityare, regrettably, far more serious than those coming from the farright, even if the former haven’t gone viral on the Internet.The reaction to the recent extremistactivities in Israel thatwas most distressing to me personallywas that some respectedTorah scholars may have unwittinglyparticipated in the protestin Jerusalem during whichthe memory of the Holocaustwas abused.One of the central elementsin the story of Dinah’s violationat the hands of Shechem and hiscohorts, is Yaakov’s unequivocalcondemnation of Shimonand Levi’s subsequent deceivingof, and attack against, themen of Shechem. The Rambanassumes that Yaakov was awareof his sons’ deceitful plans anddid nothing to try to stop them.If so, what was the basis for hismoral outrage afterwards?Rav Yehoshua Leib Diskin,who served as rav of Yerushlayimfor 20 years, offers aninteresting commentary on thepasuk in last week’s Torah portion where Yaakov rebukes his sonsfor the slaughter of the men of Shechem: “Let not my soul gointo their counsel, nor my glory be in their assembly; for in theiranger they slew men, and in their self-will they eradicated oxen”(Bereishis 49, 6).Rav Yehoshua Leib explains that, although Yaakov’s words arein the future tense, our forefather was in fact stating that he hadhad nothing to do with the deceiving of Shechem and Chamor.“Shimon and Levi,” Yaakov is saying in effect, “did not consultwith me, and did what they did on their own.”As a rav in Yerushlayim, Rav Yehosha Leib apparently understoodthat one can be present at a happening without having takenpart in it or approved of its misguided agenda. 6 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

COMING CLOSER TO . . .Sunday, January 15, 201210:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.STAMFORD PLAZA HOTEL, STAMFORD, CTYourselfRabbiBen TzionShafierYour SpouseRabbiMordechaiTwerskiYour ChildrenRabbiEliyahuBergsteinYour FamilyDr. DavidPelcovitzBe mekarev yourself.Kiruv is not just for rechokim. It’s for every Jewishsoul, and it starts with you. Address the seriousissues and learn practical ways to change yourfamily, your community, and the entire Jewishworld . . . starting with yourself.The Inaugural InReach Conference is tailoredto people who want to help themselves, theirfamilies, friends and communities come closerto Hashem. Learn from some of the Jewishworld’s experts on how to spread the closeness.PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIREDCOST: $36(includes lunch)Your CommunityMr. MosheBaneHashemRabbiJonathanRiettiREACHING FURTHER . . .HaRavShmuelKamenetskyRabbi MenachemGoldbergerComing Closer toYour TeenagerRabbi BenzionTwerskiHaRav YaakovPerlow,NovominskerRebbeMr. YosefDavisRabbi MordechaiBecherRelax. You Don’tHave to Run theWorld, Hashem Does.Dr. DavidLiebermanBuilding Self-esteemin Yourself andYour ChildrenRabbi DavidFelsenthalReaching YourTrue G-d GivenPotentialREGISTER TODAY!973-597-1552 or 973-597-1553www.InReachConference.comPRESENTED BYRabbi Yitzchok Lowenbraun,National DirectorTHIS PROGRAM ISGENEROUSLY SPONSOREDBY RABBI MOSHE ESFORMESRabbi AryehLightstoneWhen the Giveris Really theReceiver - TheSecret to Livingan Inspired Life. . . AND MORE!Rabbi GlennBlackInspirationalStories toMake YouLaugh andCry

Ami extends a hearty Mazel Tov to Nesanel Gantzand family upon the birth of their baby boy.JANUARY 13, 2012 ANTWERP 4:42 5:58 6:14BALTIMORE 4:47 5:50 6:19BOSTON 4:16 5:21 5:48BROOKLYN 4:32 5:37 6:04CHICAGO 4:22 5:29 5:56DALLAS 5:23 6:23 6:55DEAL 4:33 5:38 6:06DETROIT 5:04 6:09 6:36JERUSALEM 4:20 5:36 6:14JOHANNESBURG 6:47 7:44 8:18LAKEWOOD 4:35 5:39 6:07LONDON 4:01 5:15 5:31LOS ANGELES 4:46 5:46 6:18MANCHESTER 3:57 5:18 5:30MELBOURNE 8:26 9:31 9:57MIAMI 5:31 6:28 7:03MONSEY 4:31 5:36 6:03MONTREAL 4:16 5:25 5:48PARIS 5:00 6:13 6:32PASSAIC 4:32 5:37 6:04PHILADELHPIA 4:39 5:43 6:11TEANECK 4:32 5:36 6:04TEL AVIV 4:34 5:37 6:10TORONTO 4:45 5:52 6:17WASHINGTON 4:49 5:52 6:21ZURICH 4:40 5:51 6:13The Ami Team

EXECUTIVECHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERRabbi Yitzchok FrankfurterCHAIRMAN OF THE BOARDChesky KauftheilEDITORIALEDITOR IN CHIEFRabbi Yitzchok FrankfurterSENIOR EDITORRechy FrankfurterEDITOR AT LARGERabbi Avi ShafranMANAGING EDITORSYossi KrauszVictoria DwekCONTRIBUTING EDITORSarah ShapiroFEATURE EDITORYitta Halberstam MandelbaumFOOD EDITORSEtty Deutsch, Leah SchapiraEDITORIAL COORDINATORToby WorchCOPYEDITORSBasha Majerczyk,Dina Schreiber, Sarah ShapiroARTART DIRECTORAlex KatalkinJUNIOR ART DIRECTORJoy YihADVERTISINGEXECUTIVE ACCOUNT MANAGERZack BlumenfeldEXECUTIVE SALES DIRECTORSFrumi MeiselsSurie KatzCORPORATE SALES DIRECTORSarah SternsteinADVERTISING COORDINATORMalky FriedmanLETTERSCHANUKAH GIFTS: ANCIENT JEWISH ORIGINReader responds to query for sourceIn response to “The Shul Chronicles,” Issue 50Dear Editor,I am writing in response to something Rabbi Moshe Taub wrote in his column aboutthe custom of giving gifts on Chanukah: “Not to be a downer, but would it be farfetchedto conclude that this is an American custom influenced by chukas goyim andthe non-Jewish time of the year? I hope I am wrong, and that a reader alerts me to asource that I have missed.”I just wanted you to know that I found the following on http://halachafortoday.com:Question: Where is the makor in minhagim sefarim or even halacha to give gifts onChanukah?…Chanukah gelt perhaps has a source, but this business of giving gifts?Where does that originate from? I am hoping that perhaps you can change my opinion.Answer: The poskim discuss this and conclude that it isn’t a problem of chukas hagoyim,as in all likelihood their custom of giving gifts on their holidays was taken from usand not vice versa. (See Emes L’Yaakov from Rav Yaakov Kamenetzky, zt”l, siman 670 inthe footnote.)The Ponovezh Rav, Rav Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, zt”l, said that after the Greeksforbade the Jewish children from learning Torah, their parents had to “bribe” themwith gifts to get them to learn again. Giving gifts on Chanukah commemorates thataspect of the Chanukah miracle. Indeed, children should be told when receiving giftsthat they are getting them for this reason, and that they are expected to increase theirTorah learning accordingly. (See Sifsei Chaim from Rav Chaim Friedlander, zt”l, MoadimVolume 2, page 134)Tzvi NathanRABBI TAUB RESPONDS:Mi k’amcha Yisrael, goy echad ba’aretz! I cannot tell you how delighted I was to receiveyour response with the source from Emes L’Yaakov.Not only did I learn something from your email, but you allowed for a wonderful limudzechus regarding a widespread practice on Chanukah. While I do not own the EmesL’Yaakov on Shulchan Aruch, I did call an einikel of Reb Yaakov who looked it up for meand confirmed what you had sent. Now we only have to find Reb Yaakov’s source; was hesaying his own pshat perhaps? This einikel also recalled that Reb Yaakov used to personallygive out gelt on the fifth night of Chanukah.Thank you again!Rabbi Moshe Mordechai TaubAmi MagazineP: 718.534.8800F: 718.484.7731info@amimagazine.orgAmi Magazine. Published by Mezoogmag LLC. Allrights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part inany form without prior written permission from thepublisher is prohibited. The publisher reserves theright to edit all articles for clarity, space, and editorialsensitivities. Ami Magazine assumes no responsibilityfor the content of articles or advertisementsin the publication, nor for the contents of books thatare referred to or excerpted herein.

LETTERSREADER TAKES RABBI SHAFRAN TO TASK,PROMPTING AN EXCHANGE OF EMAILS“In the same way people’s faces are different, so too are their ways of seeing things”In reference to “Pilloried with Hillary,” Issue 51Dear Rabbi Shafran,When it comes to Mr. Obama and his administration, oneknows what you are going to say even before reading your columns.You have taken a position, and interpret all events in supportof that position. Yes, you could say the same of your opponents.The question is: Who reflects reality, and who is moldingit to fit their ideas?You did surprise me, however, regarding Mrs. Clinton. In myopinion, it would have been easier to find a way out for herthan for the two others, yet you didn’t. Also, why criticize her soharshly and add that, thankfully, she didn’t get the nomination?Mrs. Clinton is the Secretary of State, and you could be endangeringJews worldwide (according to your worries about speakingout against elected officials in power).… At any rate, I feelconfident that no matter what happens, you will always be ableto find reasons why the majority of Jews are wrong once again.In conclusion, and speaking of the majority, please keep writingsince I do find most of your columns informative, insightful,and well-written.Dovid FaigenDear Reb Dovid,You read me wrong.While there is certainly a reason for Jewsto generally be deferential to government,that does not preclude taking issue with officials,including presidents, when it is warranted.My reason for defending Mr. Obama and,in this case, Mr. Gutman and Mr. Panettafrom the misrepresentation of their positionsand words is...the misrepresentationof their positions and words. Emes is emes,and sheker, sheker.Please read the last lines of my essayagain: “It’s easy to rush to judgment.What’s less easy but more important is torecognize that factuality and fairness arehigh ideals, indeed deeply Jewish ones.”And try to realize that it reflects my deepestconviction.Kol tuv,ASDear Rabbi Shafran,Thank you for the reply. I do appreciateyour sincerity and politeness in respondingto someone who has criticized your positionon this one issue. Hopefully, I’ll try tolive up to the standard you have shown.We should always try to recognize thepossibility that someone else’s interpretationof events may actually be a truer explanationthan our own.However, sometimes an issue can seemso clear to us that it is very hard to givecredence to a different reading of events,when the preponderance of occurrencesseems to clearly contradict the other interpretation.Such is the situation for me when it comesto Mr. Obama and his administration.It is my prayer that 10 months from now,we will find no reason to have these arguments.Good Shabbos,Dovid FaigenDear Reb Dovid,You are, of course, absolutely right. Eachof us sees things differently (and I myselfhave to sometimes resist the urge to assignsomeone’s animus for Obama to racism).But that’s what Chazal meant whenthey said that, “In the same way people’sfaces are all different, so too are their waysof seeing things.” The important thing is tonot feel negatively toward anyone for havinga different perspective or judgment.As the Kotzker is said to have remarkedon that Chazal: “Can you imagine dislikingsomeone because his face is different fromyours?”Kol tuv,ASSeboMiele5 Year Warranty onMotor Parts & Laborbuild in bumperwont scratchwalls and furniture7 YearMotor Warranty1 Year Parts& Labor WarrantyPrice Startingat $299Williamsburg Vacuum & Sewing Machine718.384.0851Pick Up MoreDIRTThanEVER BEFORE344 Roebling Street Brooklyn NY 11211 www.mhvacuum.comDesigni 347.482.6783

LETTERSRESPONSIBILITY AND IGNORANCEA cry from a Holocaust survivorIn reference to Jewish News Pages, Issue 52.Dear Editor,Thank you, Ami, for your responsible article last week about thecrisis in Jerusalem. As a Holocaust survivor, I cannot adequatelydescribe my pain on seeing some Jerusalem pranksters donningconcentration camp garb similar to the ones that we wore when wewere half-starved to death. In most European countries it wouldbe illegal to abuse the memory of the Holocaust.Unfortunately, some Jewish publications have praised these despicableacts.Where have their yiddishe neshamos gone?The only excuse that there could possibly be for this is that thesepeople have no clue of what the Holocaust means. Maybe it is timefor yeshivos to have Holocaust Studies curricula, as do the moresecular schools. The post-war generations need to be taught aboutthe Nazi era so that they will act more responsibly toward those ofus who still have nightmares about our Holocaust-related experiences.I specifically turn to the rabbinic leadership, to ask that theycondemn these types of activities and see to it that they do notrecur.Dinah MorgensternMISGUIDED MESSAGEThe truth about the Conference of PresidentsIn reference to Op-ed, Issue 52Dear Editor,During the past seven years, as president of the OrthodoxUnion and now as its chairman of the board, I have beenprivileged to be part of the Conference of Presidents of MajorJewish Organizations. I have been to public as well as privatemeetings arranged by the Conference. There is no organizationthat represents the entire Jewish world with such graceand dignity and is mekadesh shem shamayim more than theConference. The strength of Jewish unity is clear when allfactions can get together to deal with political and militarythreats to the Jewish people. When sensitive halachic issuesarise, Malcolm Hoenlein reaches out to gedolei Torah for guidancein a quiet and respectful manner.Additionally, I might add, the organization operates withtransparency and accountability and should serve as a rolemodel for other Jewish organizations. I think the op-ed articleby Rabbi Hertz Frankel was misguided, and that he missedthe essence of the Conference of Presidents. If every organizationcould unite us like the Conference, the Jewish worldwould be closer to the geula we all pray for.Steve SavitskySALUTE TO SAM SOKOLBalanced coverage, at lastIn reference to Q & A, Issue 52.Dear Editor,Kudos to Sam Sokol for his superb interview with the mayor of BeitShemesh. His questions were to the point. I found your entire coverageof the Beit Shemesh episode to be professional, well-balanced,unbiased, and journalistically responsible. You have brought Orthodoxjournalism up a few notches.May you have continued hatzlacha.Yair StephensQ&AWITH BEIT SHEMESH MAYORMOSHE ABUTBOLAn exclusive interview with the mayor ofthe beleaguered city of Beit Shemesh. ThisJudean city in Israel has been the epicenterof the recent turmoil over hostility directedat women and girls by a sma l but violentfringe element of the population.QMany people are asking: Why aren’tthe residents of Beit Shemesh helpingto protect the girls on their way toschool?AThe only ones who are authorized todo this work are the police. Privatepeople should not try to enforce the lawon their own, nor should the municipality.Upholding the law and ensuring publicsafety must be lef to the police.QAThe Americans who reside heredon’t understand this mentality.They see the inaction on the part of theresidents as a sign of their non-oppositionto the extremists.Perhaps the Israeli mentality is notexactly the same as the Americanone. The Israeli mentality is not to get involvedin every disturbance and argument,and to leave the law enforcement in thehands of the police.QAWha triggered the violence?The school was built in the charedineighborhood. The fact that thebuilding was not given to the neighborhoodresidents irritates them, since theyneeded a building for their own school,and this building is in their own neighborhood.This does not justify any protests,chalila, but it does show that the story ismore complex than it is being portrayed.QActua ly, many people are claimingthat it was several years ago, duringthe tenure of the previous mayor of BeitShemesh, that the building was promisedas a school for the National Religious. Thiswas before the surrounding charedi neighborhoodwas built up.AEXCLUSIVEThis is not entirely true. The schoolbuilding was built on what was thenthe border of the charedi neighborhood.The previous mayor wished to curtail thegrowth of the charedi community, anddesignated the building as a National Religiousschool as a way to stop the charedineighborhood from expanding past thatpoint.Qschool.ABut the charedim are complainingabout the fact that it is a girls’If it would have been designated asa boys’ school, the charedim wouldhave been able to accept it and restraintheir opposition. The entire outcry beganthe moment it was designated for girls.QAWhat’s the solution?I proposed that the National Religiousswitch locations with theirboys’ school. The boys will use this one,and the girls will use the building wherethe boys are currently housed, which isnot in the charedi area.QAHow was your proposal received?Originally, my proposal was accepted.Later, they reneged due topressure. This is a great shame, as it couldhave avoided all the problems. I foresawthat it would cause a great disturbance.I predicted back in September that if myproposal wasn’t accepted there would bemany problems. It pains me that I havebeen proven correct.QThe Jerusalem Post quoted a pressrelease from the municipality sayingthat the police had advised against usingthis school building, as they couldn’t protectthe students. The next day the Postpublished a letter from the police denyinghaving said that, and accusing you of puttingwords in their mouths.AI haven’t seen the letter from thepolice, but I can tell you with certaintythat the police were well aware thatit was an explosive situation. I definitelybriefed them on what might happen if thegirls’ school opened. I told them clearlythat there would be trouble. As far as I’mconcerned, I did what I could and thenhanded the matter over to the police todeal with. That’s their job.QThere were occasions, even beforethe brouhaha over the schoolerupted, that these extremists came intothe Sheinfeld [National Religious] sectionand got into arguments with residentsover their televisions and other things theyobjected to. What did the municipality dothen?AThe municipality cannot get involvedand solve every dispute for every individual.In general, we advise people tocall the police if they feel threatened.QAIs that the policy of the municipality,to stay out of these skirmishes?As I said at a recent press conference,the municipality has now created a“roundtable” to discuss such issues. A thisforum, we will provide an opportunity forevery sector to present its concerns anddiscuss issues, and hopefully find peacefulsolutions. We have also established a 24-hour hotline for help and advice. Closedcircuit cameras have now been placed inareas where there have been disturbances,in order to protect people. I believe thatthe city can soon return to serenity andpeace. We do not need to bring in Giulianito save us.QAIt has been claimed that there wereoccasions in the past in which thezealots damaged city property, such asbenches which were uprooted so thatpeople would not sit around in their neighborhoods.The city did not report any suchdamage to the police or seek to prosecutethe vandals. Is there any truth to thisclaim?None whatsoever. The municipalityalways reports any protest or damageby protesters to the police immediately.We voluntarily contac the police for everyinstance of damage, both to private andpublic property. As I mentioned before,the mayor of Beit Shemesh is not a sheriff,and has no power to enforce the law on hisown. All I can do is contac the police.QThere have been complaints fromboth sides against the police. TheNational Religious claim that the policeare not doing enough to stop the protests.Dov Lipman [a National Religious activist]told me that he had been told by [PoliceChief] Kobe Cohen that he cannot crackdown on the protestors because he isafraid that if he does so the protests wi lonly get much worse. Cohen also saidthat he can only arrest people who breakthe law, while many of the protesters are“only” screaming at the girls, which is noti legal. Do you believe that the police aredoing enough, and if not, what can themunicipality do to rectify this?AI believe that the police are doing atremendous job. They are workingto the best of their abilities. Accordingto Israeli law you cannot arrest or detainanyone for screaming or protesting, as thisis their democratic right. A times, this lawcauses pain and hurts people. There was aprotest outside my own home two weeksago. I could not do anything about it. Thisis the law of a democracy. The Left wouldnever allow this law to be repealed, as itwould deny them their right to protestagainst Bibi and everything else they don’tlike.QADo you think there is incitement onboth sides?BY SAMUEL SOKOLIt must be said that there are alsomany people on the other side whomake use of their democratic freedom ofspeech to state their view very vociferously.Take, for example, Dov Lipman. Hehas made a lot of commotion and incitementagainst the municipality and againstme. He has the legal right to do so, ye thispoisoning of the atmosphere is very damaging.There are extremists on both sideswho cause tension.Qside?AWhat can be said to Dov Lipman andhis a lies on the National ReligiousDov Lipman must understand thatthe charedi community is an incrediblecommunity. They care greatly for BeitShemesh and want it to remain beautifuland pleasant.He should look at the many chessedorganizations such as Ezras Achim, Hatzolah,and Yad Sara, which are run by charedimand help all segments of the city. Heshould realize that it is wrong to generalize.It is only a small number of extremistswho should be removed from the city.QThis past Thursday there was astreet demonstration that attractedseveral hundred extremists. They threwgarbage and made a commotion. Untilnow, we were told that there were only avery small number of extremists, and thatthe majority of charedim oppose them.However, now we see that there seem tobe more than was thought.AI admit that what happened onThursday was surprising. It was aspectacle. However, it must still be realizedthat there are no more than 30 extremistswho have created all the problemsand who arranged the demonstration. Therest of the people were children and youngmen who were only there as onlookers.They came for entertainment. Theyknew something big was happening in theneighborhood, and they came to see. Thedisturbance was made only by the smallgroup of 30 people and not by the largecrowd of onlookers.24 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 4, 2012 // 9 TEVES, 5772 9 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 4, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 2512 AMI MAGAZINE // NOVEMBER 23, 2011 // 26 CHESHVAN, 5772

NEWSNATIONAL AND WORLDWargames and WorriesSAILOR SAVE DOESN’T CHANGE IRANIAN NUCLEAR THREATEver have one of those weekends?As U.S. troops poured into Israel forominous war games, rhetoric aboutIran ranged from the conciliatory to the confrontational.At the end of last week, the Iranian ForeignMinistry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparastwas recently quoted on state TV as havingpraised a U.S. rescue of 13 Iranian fishermen.The men had been captured by Somalipirates in November, who had begun usingtheir boat as a floating base to attack othervessels.The U.S. ship that rescued the men, theAmerican destroyer Kidd, had been orderedby the Iranian government two days earlier toleave the Persian Gulf.Instead, the boat went after the pirates,who had evaded a French-captained antipirateship earlier by forcing the crew to saythat everything was calm aboard. They triedthe same trick on the Kidd, but the Americanshad an Urdu speaker aboard, who was ableto communicate with the sailors without theSomalis, who spoke only Arabic and English,understanding.The rescue comes at a rough time in relationsbetween the Islamic Republic and theU.S. President Obama recently signed lawsthat target the Iranian national bank andrestrict Iran’s ability to sell oil internationally.Iran has been carrying out a series of threateningmilitary exercises, including the launchof a ballistic missile and war games near theAfghan border, which began on Saturday.On Sunday, Defense Secretary LeonPanetta said that Iran has not yet actuallystarted making a nuclear weapon, and that ifthe Iranians were to actually start making one,“they’re going to get stopped.”Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of theJoint Chiefs of Staff, said that Iran should beaware that a U.S. strikecould stop their nuclearprogram.“I absolutely want themto believe that’s the case.”Panetta also said thatany attempt by Iran toclose the Strait of Hormuzand stop shipping out ofthe Persian Gulf would bemet with military action bythe U.S.“That’s another red linefor us and...we will respondto them,” he said.Also on Sunday camea report from Iranian statetelevision that the countryhas developed a new,bomb-proof facility forenriching uranium. Thefacility is called Fordo, andis located near the northernIranian city of Qom.Whether enrichment has begun at Fordo yetis unclear.The most concerning recent developmentis the wargames scheduled for U.S.and Israeli troops will be conducting wargames just as Iran begins holding yet anotherround of their own war games. The U.S.-Israeli operation called Austere Challenge12, which was originally scheduled for laterin the year, has brought 9,000 U.S. troopsto Israel. Most are airmen, missile interceptorteams, marines, seamen, technicians,and intelligence officers. The exercise’s commanderhas said that the movement is moreof a “deployment” than an “exercise,” leadingsome analysts to see the war games as morewar than games. Since Iran’s next round ofwar games is scheduled for February, thereU.S. Navy sailors assigned to the USS Kidd greet a crew member ofthe Iranian fishing vessel, the Al Molai, Friday, in the Arabian Sea.The fishermen were rescued by a U.S. Navy destroyer Thursday, morethan 40 days after their boat was commandeered by suspected Somalipirates. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy)may be two militaries maneuvering not so farfrom one another very soon.Meanwhile, as tension builds back home,Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejadis beginning a tour of four Latin Americancountries this week. He will be visiting Venezuela,Nicaragua, Cuba, and Ecuador.Policy pundits have been debating whetherthe trip is intended as a show of belligerenceor an attempt to strengthen a weak position.Iran’s economy is in a major slump, onewhich the recent sanctions will likely increase,and Ahmadinejad is facing the possibility ofelectoral defeat at the hands of reformist elementsin Iranian politics, most prominentlypresidential contender Mir Hossein Mousavi.As things stand now, while we might wantto say, “You’re welcome,” to the Iranians for14 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

BY YOSSI KRAUSZYou Can’t Go Home Again (To Pakistan)OR YOU’LL BE ARRESTEDDoesn’t sound like a good idea to us.Pervez Musharraf, the former prime minister of Pakistan, isgoing back. But he’ll likely be arrested on the spot.Musharraf, who was in power in Pakistan from 1999 until2008, is wanted for his alleged role in the bombing death offormer Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007. A 2010UN report claimed that Musharraf’s government failed to takenecessary precautions to keep Bhutto safe. Her husband,Asif Zardari, won the vote for president after herassassination.Pakistani elections are scheduled for next year, andMusharraf has announced that he will be running.Musharraf’s lawyer has said that the idea that the formerdictator could be arrested on his return is ridiculous,but an outstanding arrest warrant remains in effect.Musharraf recently made headlines by suggestingthat Pakistan should conduct an open relationship withIsrael. He told Haaretz that “[t]here is nothing to lose bytrying to get on Israel’s good side. Pakistan also needsto keep readjusting its diplomatic stand toward Israelbased on the mere fact that it exists and is not goingaway.”Some of Musharraf’s most ardent supporters, at leastuntil September 11, 2001, were Islamic extremists. Hisrhetoric about Israel would not seem to be vey appealingto that constituency.Virtual Vengeance?HACKER HITS ISRAELI IDENTITIESMusharraf’s announcement comes as Zardari faces possiblemutiny in the ranks of the powerful Pakistani army. A recentletter, allegedly sent by a senior Pakistani government official,called on American forces to help rein in the military, describingthe army as having created a “state within a state.”I think Mr. Musharraf would be better off just staying put whereverhe is.Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, center, widower of slain leader Benazir Bhutto,waves to supporters during a rally to mark the fourth anniversary of Bhutto’s assassination,in Gari Khuda Bux near Larkana, Pakistan. (AP Photo/Shakil Adil)Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister DannyAyalon called a recent hacker attack “abreach of sovereignty comparable to aterrorist operation,” an said that it must betreated as such.On Tuesday of last week, a Saudi hackergroup calling itself Group-XP claimed thatit had stolen 400,000 credit card numbersbelonging to Israelis. A hacker named“0xOmar” posted files containing creditcard numbers on the Internet, which thecredit card issuers and the Bank of Israeldetermined to only contain numbers belongingto between 14,000 and 15,000active accounts. Another file was postedon Friday by a different hacker, whichBank Leumi warned against opening,saying that it contained spyware.Ayalon said that Israel has active capabilitiesof retaliation against such attacks.There has been a report by one blogger,stating that he traced the original hackerinvolved to a computer system in Mexico,though the hacker himself has claimedonline that this is untrue.So far, no financial damage has been reported.One 18-year-old man in northernIsrael has been arrested for attempting to usethe stolen credit card numbers. He was takeninto custody by policemen pretending to bedelivering the goods that he had ordered.Israel has been targeted repeatedly byhackers, and the government set up theNational Cyber Directorate last year todefend against such attacks.In an interview last month, U.S. Secretaryof Defense Leon Panetta said thata cyber attack could paralyze the U.S. bycreating havoc in the financial sector.16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 15

BY YOSSI KRAUSZMany MoonsOUR LITTLE FRIENDSWe’re not alone.At least not as far as space rocks go.Finnish scientists announced last week that in addition to thatbig smiley one in the night sky, there may be hundreds of tinymoons circling our planet.The researchers haven’t actually spotted any of these moons.What they did instead was run a computer simulation that examinedwhat happens to the small asteroids that come close to Earthon a regular basis.What they found was that an object about a yard long should bein orbit pretty much all the time, along with around 1,000 smallerspace rocks, down to 4 inches in length. The simulations suggestthat these rocks stay in orbit about a year, on average.Good night, moons.UPDATESIn Issue 44, we reported on the difficulties that the Milk StreetCafé, a kosher restaurant located in Lower Manhattan, was havingdue to barricades erected by the police because of the Occupy WallStreet demonstrations. The financial burden has become too great,and the Milk Street Café has closed its doors. The real estate mogulDonald Trump has announced that he is buying the space and will beturning it into a non-kosher restaurant.In a recent issue, we reported on the danger facing the Iranianopposition group MEK, who were located in an encampmentcalled Camp Ashraf in eastern Iraq. At the time, the Iraqi governmentwas threatening to close the camp suddenly at the end of2011, leaving the refugees, who had been subject to attack evenwhile in Iraq, homeless and defenseless. But the U.S., EU, andUN have managed to negotiate a transfer of the camp’s residentsto another camp, with the eventual plan to move them out of thecountry. This is a still-dangerous move that may give the group afighting chance for survival.In a recent issue, we reported on a rash of earthquakes in Ohiothat were suspected to have been linked to fracking operations, inwhich fluids are injected into underground rock to extract naturalgas. Now scientists at Columbia University’s Lamont-DohertyEarth Observatory have traced the epicenters of two earthquakesthat occurred in the waning days of December to within one mileof a site in which fracking techniques are used to store the wastewaterfrom the gas extraction systems. Similar earthquakes arethought to have occurred recently in northwest England, Texas,and Arkansas. What effects these findings will have on the industryare unknown.

NEWSNEWS COMMENTARYRABBI AVI SHAFRANSantorum and the(Orthodox) JewsNEW HAMPSHIRE HECKLES MAY FOSTER FRUM FANSAfter his solid showing inthe Iowa caucuses—effectivelytying frontrunner MittRomney—Rick Santorumemerged, at least in thatvote’s wake, as the leader among the packof alternatives-to-Romney aspirants to theRepublican nomination for president.And as an attractive candidate to manyOrthodox Jews.The booing that accompanied Mr. Santorumas he left the stage at a gathering ofcollege students in Concord, New Hampshirelast Thursday was music to the ears ofreligious traditionalists, and may galvanizethat state’s social conservatives (thoughtheir numbers are limited) to vote in theirprimary. (Or, to be more precise, may havegalvanized; readers of these words, unlikethe writer as he writes, know the outcomeof the New Hampshire vote.)That is because the heckling came afterMr. Santorum unapologetically opposedredefinitions of marriage. After turningthe tables on an unfriendly question fromthe audience and asking the questionerif she really believes that “people shouldbe allowed to do whatever makes themhappy,” he stated that “G-d made men andwoman to keep civilization and providethe best environment to raise children.”“[If] we deny children that birthright [ofa mother and father],” he added, “then Ithink we are harming kids and society andnot promoting what’s best.”Those assertions may not have sat wellwith much of his audience but surelyheartened many among the approximatelyhalf of American citizens who oppose redefiningmarriage, including most OrthodoxJews.Further pleasing strong-on-IsraelJews—Orthodox and otherwise—are Mr.Santorum’s views about Palestinian claimson the Jewish State.The former member of the House ofRepresentatives and then Senate (from1995 to 2007) has asserted that “all thepeople that live in the West Bank are Israelis.They’re not Palestinians—there is noPalestinian—this is Israeli land.”And, he continued, Israelis “have a rightto build things based upon their ownershipof that land.”At this writing, Mr. Romney maintainsa large lead in the New Hampshire polls,with Mr. Santorum only in third placeafter Ron Paul. But even a second or thirdplace finish in New Hampshire could keepthe Santorum surge alive in anticipation ofthe next primary, on January 21, in SouthCarolina, a Bible Belt state with a largelyconservative electorate, one that will bemuch more receptive to Mr. Santorum’ssocial stances.Prime among those positions are notonly the candidate’s emphasis on socialinstitutions like the family, but also hisbelief in the importance of human life anddignity—a view he applies to AIDS victimsin Africa no less than to the unbornin America.Libertarians like Mr. Paul consider personalrights to trump every other socialgoal and institution. Religious conservativeslike Mr. Santorum, by contrast, assertthat liberty is protected by strong socialinstitutions—families, communities, andcongregations—that teach self-restraint,compassion, and concern for the publicgood. Government’s role, in that approach,is to empower citizens—say, by offeringthem their choice of schools for theirchildren, or deductions for charitablegiving—and to defend them from socialills like pornography or drugs. It is anapproach that resonates well with manyOrthodox Jews.As does Mr. Santorum’s personal history.His father was an Italian immigrantand his middle-class parents both workedfor a Veterans Administration hospital inVirginia. Mr. Santorum and his wife, whowas a neonatal nurse for nine years, havesix living children. A son died shortly afterbirth. (The Santorums’ decision to bringthe deceased child home to be “welcomed”by the family before his funeral drew muchderision from liberal commentators.)Mr. Santorum’s foreign policy viewsalso dovetail with those of many OrthodoxJews. He has stated his belief that “thefight against Islamic fascism is the greattest of our generation,” and that Americahas to do “what is necessary to defeat” thatenemy.When he entered the presidential race,Mr. Santorum said, “I have no great burningdesire to be president, but I have aburning desire to have a different presidentof the United States.”Whether a quiet majority of social conservativeswith strong foreign policy viewsmight emerge, to do for Mr. Santorumwhat a very different part of the electoratedid in 2007 for the current resident of theWhite House, will become apparent in theweeks to come. 18 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

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Rabbi Avi ShafranReb Lazer Elya’s EyesWE DON’T ALWAYS REALIZE WHERE WE AREReb Lazer Elya Der Melamed (“the cheder teacher”)was born in the late 1850s, lived in Ostrolenka,Poland, and died shortly before the Germansinvaded in 1939. I arrived in this world about acentury after he did, and on a continent he neversaw, so I never met him. But I was introduced to him all the same,by my father, may he be well. Reb Lazer Elya was his grandfather.My father lived for a time with his grandparents while attendinga branch of the Novardhok yeshiva in Ostrolenka. He recallshis bar mitzvah there. His parents, living in a town called Ruzhan,had no money for the trip. My father read the Torah and hisimpoverished grandfather brought some kichel and a small bottleof schnapps to the shul tomark the occasion.Recently, a Shabbos ShevaBrachos for my niece tookplace at Yeshivas Ner Yisraelin Baltimore, where thefather of the bride, Reb LazerElya’s great-grandson—mydear brother—is a rebbe.Our great-grandfather waspresent in a way, through aletter he had written, readby my father at one of themeals.My father is the administratorof the Baltimore BaisDin and, having served acongregation for more thana half-century, he is the oldest rav in the city. (I like to imaginethat health, vigor, and mental acuity into one’s 80s is in the familygenes, although I suspect that my father’s daily brisk 3-mile walkand responsible diet may have something to do with it.) He isalso an incredibly loving grandfather and great-grandfather. Andhe has adopted a custom: when one of his grandchildren marries,he presents the new couple with a handwritten, framed blessingpoem,the first letters of whose lines spell out the names of thenewlyweds.His inspiration was a similar gift his grandfather sent in the1930s to a newlywed grandson of his—my father’s secondcousin—in America. On the other side of the poem-page was aletter, the one my father read aloud at the Sheva Brachos.In it, Reb Lazer Elya acknowledges a gift that his Americangrandson had apparently sent him on the occasion of his 80thbirthday. He then laments how he searched in vain for somemeaningful physical gift to send his grandson and so is sendinginstead the gift of a poem.(Unlike his grandfather, my father is able to, and does, send hisnewlywed grandchildren generous gifts. But his poems are themore cherished presents.)Reb Lazer Elya also expresses his happy surprise that his grandson’swife had included with the couple’s birthday gift a note inHebrew. It made him happy and proud, he wrote, to know thathis granddaughter-in-law—in America!—had retained that connectionto her religious background.When the letter was read, it felt as if my great-grandfather weresomehow present. Whatwould he think, I pondered,if he were in fact here, if hecould survey America today?Tragically, to be sure, manyEuropean-rooted Jews disappearedinto American society,their Jewish identities crumbledinto dust that waftedacross the fruited plain. ButReb Lazer Elya would surelybe wide-eyed at the sight ofthe treifeh medina today.I imagined him surveyingthe land he had thoughtso hopeless a place for Jewsthat a Hebrew note from itsshores gladdened his heart:seeing Shabbos in the yeshiva, the beautiful children playingunderfoot, boys with payos and yarmulkes, and girls in modestdresses; the men “speaking in learning” on the lawn; the baismedrash filled with hundreds of others swaying over texts hewould immediately recognize; the apartments and houses,and the women inside them tending to their young and sayingTehillim. And I imagined him able to gaze beyond Baltimore, tosee not only similar scenes in yeshivos across the continent butother fantasies come to life, entire communities of dedicated,observant Jews in cities large and small across the continent.We American Orthodox Jews tend to focus our attention, aswell we should, on the many problems and challenges we face.Every so often, though, we would do well to stop and take stockof all we have. Stop, that is, and try to see our collective communitythrough Reb Lazer Elya’s eyes. 20 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

Rabbi Avi ShafranSynopses of, and excerpts from, interesting items that have recentlyappeared here and there—and sometimes way over there—in the mediaCOMIC CONTEMPTFrustrated funnyman falls flatThe Islamic Republic NewsAgency (IRNA) reported onDecember 28 that a “leading BritishJewish comedian” hasexpressed support for an effort toend “Israeli injustice that poisonsthe whole world with its malignance.”Alexei Sayle, a 59-year-oldstand-up comic who has writtenthat his ardent communist parentsinstilled in him a “messianic senseof my own significance,” said hebelieves all Jews need to comeforward and speak out against“racist Zionists,” and about Israeli“war crimes” against the Palestiniansand “cruel Israeli treatment ofthe Palestinian people.” Israel, heasserts, displays the “psychologyof a murderer.”What a cutup!MY SYNAPSESMADE ME DO IT!Atheist academic advancesabsurdityA professor at the University ofChicago penned a column for theJanuary 1 edition of USA Todayasserting that all human actionsare predetermined. “You may feellike you’ve made choices,” JerryA. Coyne writes, “but in realityyour decision to read this piece,and whether to have eggs or pancakes,was determined longbefore you were aware of it…andyour ‘will’ had no part in that decision.”“Free will,” Professor Coyne, aproud atheist, pronounces, “is acomplete illusion.”Our brains, the professor professes,are mere “meat computers,”programmed to lead uswherever we think we are choosingto go.He felt he had no choice butto share that belief.CHILDENDANGERMENTProgressive parentsprioritize principlesA January 3 first-person musingon Tablet by Los Angeles residentTaffy Brodesser-Akner, concernsthe writer’s 3-year-old son’s religiouseducation. Although the littleboy attended a Chabad preschool,his parents are, in hismothers’ words, “Modern Orthodox”and attend a “progressivesynagogue.”Ms. Brodesser-Akner has“problems with Orthodoxy,”though, she writes, adding that“things I don’t like about OrthodoxyI don’t allow into my home.”She believes that Jewish laws limitingsome roles to men “are duefor an overhaul” and that “womenshould be rabbis.” And so, shewas conflicted about the Jewisheducation her son was receiving.In the end, though, she has nocause for worry since, “For now,we have opted to send Ezra to apublic school next year,” a decisionshe and her husband “basedon a different kind of value: financialresponsibility.”Jewish responsibility…not somuchSMALL SEAL,BIG MESSAGEFelicitous Find brings Mishnaalive.The January 4 “Philologos” languagecolumn in the weekly Forwardtook note of the discoverynear the base of the KoselMa’aravi of “a ceramic seal thesize of a button, dating to SecondTemple times” inscribed with theAramaic words dakha l’Kah.Dakha, the writer informs thereader, means “pure” in Aramaic,and Kah (on the seal written witha “yud” as its first letter) “is ashortened form of the Tetragrammaton,the ancient unutterablefour-letter name” of G-d. Thus theinscription means “pure to G-d.”“The seal’s finders have quite logicallyconnected it with a passagein the Mishnaic tractate of Shekalim”the columnist continues,“which records the memories ofrabbis who were alive in the Temple’slast years:“Whoever [in the Temple]wished [to purchase] nesachim [awine libation for a sacrifice],” theMishna records, “went toYochanan, who was in charge ofthe seals, gave him money, andreceived a seal from him. He thenwent to Achiyah, who was incharge of the libations, gave himthe seal, and received his libation.At the day’s end, they [Yochananand Achiyah] met, and Achiyahhanded over the seals andreceived the money for them [fromYochanan].”“Philologos” notes that a similarprocedure exists in, among otherplaces, airport cafes, where onepurchases a receipt that isredeemed by someone behind thecounter. Imagine, he muses, ifsuch a receipt were discovered byan archaeologist 2,000 years fromnow. “It might even be taken asproof that such things as airportsonce existed.”Unless the archaeologist is aPalestinian airport-denierGLEANINGSJANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772 // AMI MAGAZINE 21

op- edSOME CONCEPTUAL LEAPS MISS THEIR MARKBY RABBI AVI SHAFRANAMIDEBATETrue Respect for Daas TorahRABBI SHAFRAN serves as director ofpublic affairs for Agudath Israel of Americaand is an editor at large and columnistfor Ami.Agudath Israelis fully sensitiveto the pitfalls ofjoining JewishumbrellaorganizationsIn an op-ed in last week’s Ami, my fellowcolumnist Rabbi Hertz Frankel took meand Agudath Israel to task for what hecharacterized as an affront to daas Torah.Our sin? Well, mine, apparently, was abad pun; Agudath Israel’s was asking an honorableindividual and outstanding member ofthe chareidi community to address an informationalsession at November’s Agudah convention.That description, by the way, of thespeaker—Malcolm Hoenlein—is Rabbi Frankel’s(though I thoroughly concur).My pun, which was delivered at the conventionsession that featured, among others,Mr. Hoenlein, was to play on the word“malkom” in the posuk (Tehillim 149) BneiTziyon yagilu b’malkom” by replacing it with“Malcolm.” My intention was that “those ofZion”—Jews concerned with the security ofJews in Eretz Yisrael—rejoice in Mr. Hoenlein,who is an indefatigable proponent of thesecurity needs of Jews in Eretz Yisrael. RabbiFrankel read it, however, as a wholeheartedendorsement of the “Presidents’ Conference,”the organization that Mr. Hoenleinserves as executive vice chairman. It was, ofcourse, something else entirely: a joke. Butif Rabbi Frankel found it an offensive one, Iapologize.Rabbi Frankel’s main objection, though, isto the very fact that Mr. Hoenlein was askedto make a presentation at an Agudah convention.He points out, accurately,that the Presidents’Conference (more formally,the Conference of Presidentsof Major American JewishOrganizations; whoever conceivedthat wooly mammothof a name should beput in cherem—just joking!)is a conglomerate of over 50groups, some of them representingthe non-Orthodoxworld, most of them unconcerned with (oreven hostile to) daas Torah.Accompanying Rabbi Frankel’s article, infact, is a list of the organizations that makeup the Presidents’ Conference. One namethat isn’t there, pointedly, is Agudath Israelof America. Suffice it to say, Agudath Israel,the organization I am privileged to serve asdirector of public affairs, is fully sensitive tothe pitfalls of joining Jewish umbrella organizationswhose policies are determined bygeneral consensus.At the same time, however, the MoetzesGedolei HaTorah—upon whom AgudathIsrael relies for its leadership—has alwaysencouraged the Agudah to work with thePresidents’ Conference to promote thesecurity and well-being of Jews in Eretz Yisraeland around the globe (unless, of course,there ever arises a situation where the positionof the Presidents’ Conference divergesfrom that of Agudath Israel.)Furthermore, the gedolei Yisrael who standat the helm of Agudath Israel often reach outto outside experts to gain a proper understandingof the issues of the day. Indeed, Iknow of a meeting of the Moetzes GedoleiHaTorah where Mr. Hoenlein himself—universallyacknowledged as one of the world’sforemost experts in the field—was invitedto brief the members of theMoetzes on threats to theJewish community in EretzYisrael.The conceptual leap RabbiFrankel makes—from the factthat an organization like thePresidents’ Conference maybe off-limits for a Torah-guidedgroup to join, to the renderingof its officials (even an “outstandingmember of the chareidicommunity,” as per Rabbi Frankel’sdescription) off-limits themselves—is puzzling.Actually, to me, it’s unfathomable.The disconnect may derive in part froma misconception about Agudah conventionsessions. Over the course of the fourdayevent that is an Agudah convention,there are many, and many sorts of, sessions.Some feature addresses by gedoleiTorah, others are informational in nature. Thisyear’s Sunday morning session was squarelyin the second category. The particular sessionat which Mr. Hoenlein and I presentedwas about the precarious state of the Jewishpeople among the nations. And Mr. Hoenlein,as expected, did a characteristicallymasterful job of surveying the internationalscene and the threats that various develop-22 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

op- edments pose to Jews in Eretz Yisrael andthe world over. He was not there to representthe Presidents’ Conference, nor, ofcourse, to usurp daas Torah, the exclusivedomain of gedolei Yisrael.So Rabbi Frankel’s complaint lacks legs.More disturbing, though, it subtly impugnsthe very concept he rightfully hallows:daas Torah. The Moetzes Gedolei HaTorahis Agudath Israel’s guide in all that itdoes. And the members of that venerablecouncil clearly respect Mr. Hoenlein andthe work that he does, and feel it importantfor Torah Jews to learn from his vaststorehouse of knowledge.Different Torah-affirming camps, to besure, may look to different Torah leadersfor guidance. In Eretz Yisrael, for instance,some gedolim of the past and present feelthat participation in the Israeli parliamentand voting are forbidden. Others, though,have rendered their decision that it is permitted,indeed necessary. That’s why thereis a United Torah Judaism party, a Shasparty, and hundreds of thousands of chareidivoters.Respecting—no, cherishing—the rightand privilege of each such camp to seekguidance from the gedolim it reveres is afundamental tenet of the collective life ofKlal Yisrael.And so, while there might conceivablybe Gedolei Yisrael who feel that “an honorableindividual and outstanding memberof the charedi community” should not bepermitted to speak at a Torah organization’sconvention because of his positionin an umbrella organization that includesgroups not beholden to daas Torah, thegedolim to whom Agudath Israel turns forguidance are of another mind.Another daas Torah mind. An ExceptionalPickTHE POWER BEHIND THE THRONEEZRA FRIEDLANDER is CEO of Friedlander Group, a New York City and WashingtonDC based public affairs company specializing in the representation of corporateand non-profit clients, funded and regulated by various government entities.The.appointment.of Jack Lewas White House Chief of Staff iswelcome news to the OrthodoxJewish community. It celebratesan important milestone for observantJews here in the United States, that ashomer Shabbos individual will be the primaryand most powerful White House official. Theduties of the White House chief of staff varygreatly from one administration to another.However, the chief of staff is universallyregarded as the key official that the presidenthas designated to manage the White Housestaff and to approve the president’s schedule,hence deciding who is allowed to meet withthe president. Because of these duties, thechief of staff has at various times been labeled“The Gatekeeper,” or “The Power Behind theThrone.”Indeed, President Obama should be commendedfor selecting Mr. Lew; not becausehe is an observant shomer Shabbos Yid, butbecause the President chose him as the mostqualified and appropriate appointee, and didnot disqualify him for his strict adherence tohis religious dictates. Needless to say—butimportant to emphasize—this is a milestone,since it once again demonstrates the greatnessof our nation for allowing observant Jewsto contribute and to serve our country in allcapacities, without having to compromise thebasic tenet of our faith: shmiras Shabbos! Itwasn’t that long ago in this country that someonewho was shomer Shabbos was told that“If you don’t come in to work on Saturday, thendon’t come in on Monday!”The Lew appointment is equal to, if notgreater than, the selection of Senator JosephLieberman as the nominee for vice president,because the chief of staff position requires24/7 availability in the literal sense, as opposedto the position of vice president, which,although ranking higher, includes a staff infrastructurethat allows a vice president to controlhis schedule.Without claiming to be privy to this particularappointment process, I cannot imagine thatMr. Lew’s shmiras Shabbos was not part ofthe equation. Hence, we need to recognize thePresident’s commitment to recognizing individualsfor their caliber, not their creed or color.Another positive aspect of this appointmentis the unparalleled kiddush Hashem that Mr.Lew has displayed for always holding his headhigh, and when I say “high,” it refers to lookingup to the sky and never forgetting his richheritage.In summary: Let us wish Mr. Lew a mostsuccessful tenure as White House Chief ofStaff during these trying and turbulent times.May he be a shliach tzibur who advocates forthe community in the great tradition of thosewho have preceded him in positions of greatpower. 11 KISLEV, 5772 // DECEMBER 7, 2011 // AMI MAGAZINE 23

Q&AWITHFORMER LIEUTENANT GOVERNORBETSY McCAUGHEYBETSY McCAUGHEY served as LieutenantGovernor of New York from 1995to 1998, during the first term of GovernorGeorge Pataki. A historian by training, witha Ph.D. from Columbia University, she hasprovided commentary on healthcare policyover the years. She has also been a fellowat the conservative Manhattan Institute andHudson Institute think tanks.QWhat made you so fervent abouthealthcare?AI’ve been passionate about healthcarefor several decades, but I cameto it through my other specialty, whichis the United States Constitution. I havea Ph.D. in constitutional history fromColumbia, and I taught there for severalyears. In 1993, when the Clintons introducedtheir proposal for a health plan, Ishared their goal. Everyone should havehealth insurance; no one should have tolose his home or a lifetime of savings becausesomeone in the family gets sick anddoesn’t have insurance. But I was verytroubled that their health plan shreddedour constitutional rights, interfered withthe relationship between doctors andpatients, and expanded the role of thegovernment far beyond what the Constitutionpermits. It was my background inconstitutional history that brought me tothe controversy over the Clinton healthplan.QSo you believe that the Clintonhealth plan was unconstitutional?AAbsolutely. The Clinton health plan,like the Obama health plan, wouldhave compelled Americans to purchase aproduct whether they wanted it or not, orcould afford it. One of the reasons Congressnever actually voted on the plan isthat the Congressional Budget Office andothers warned that it was unlikely theproposal would withstand constitutionalexamination. It would be struck down bythe United States Supreme Court. Manymembers of Congress now project thatconcern, and the Obama health plan waspassed so quickly, without much debate.But way back in 1994 when the Clintonswere devising their plan—which in someways resembled the Obama health law,—Congress was warned that it would notpass constitutional scrutiny, so they neversubmitted it for a vote.QIn a nutshell, which amendment doyou believe the Obama health careviolates?AThere are several parts that are unconstitutional.Let me first deal with theones that are currently before the SupremeCourt. As you know, 28 states are challengingthe constitutionality of the Obamahealth law. We’re heading toward a constitutionalshowdown in the Supreme Court,where the decision is due in June 2012—well in advance of the presidential election.There are two issues that are foremostbefore the Court. One is a challenge to therequirement that all Americans buy a onesize-fits-allgovernment-designed healthplan. There is nothing in the Constitutionthat empowers Congress to compel Americansto buy a product. If the Congress canforce Americans to buy health plans theydon’t want, Congress can force Americansto buy cars to prop up Detroit, or stocksand bonds to prop up Wall Street. TheObama administration lawyers argued thatCongress has that power under the law,but that argument has already been shownto be flawed by the Eleventh Circuit Courtof Appeals judges. Obama lawyers say thatall Americans consume healthcare; therefore,all Americans are in the healthcaremarketplace, engaged in healthcare commerce,and subject to commerce laws. Butabout half of Americans consume virtuallyno healthcare. They are not in healthcarecommerce, and Congress cannot forcethem to buy insurance.QIf you would make a prediction, knowingthe present Court makeup, whichway do you think they are going to go?AI’m confident that with the Constitutionon our side, this provision willbe struck down and freedom will prevail.QWhat else is being challenged?AThe vast expansion of Medicaid.Obama said that he was going tosolve the problem of the uninsured bymaking private health plans more affordable,but that’s not what he’s done. Instead,his plan vastly expands Medicaid. Itchanges it from a temporary safety net toa permanent alternative to private healthinsurance. Under the Obama health law,one-third of Americans will be on Medic-24 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

BY RABBI YITZCHOK FRANKFURTERaid. Spending on Medicaid is projected togo from $343 billion in the Bush administrationto $900 billion by 2020. That’s asmuch as we’re spending on Medicare. Canyou imagine? It’s shocking.QHow is the expansion of Medicaidbeing challenged?AThe states are saying that when Medicaidwas established in 1957, it wasa state-federal partnership. Both partnershad to agree to make these changes. Nowthe federal government is saying, “Youstates can no longer determine eligibility.You can’t make those decisions to suit yourown state budget anymore. You have to goby uniform federal rule. You have to makeMedicaid available to everyone the federalgovernment wants covered, and you mustprovide all benefits the federal governmentdictates.” The states are saying it willbankrupt them.QYou have written articles that werevery influential during the Clintonhealthcare debate.AYes. And I’ve written about 50 pertainingto the Obama health law.They’re all on my website.QMany people give you the creditfor defeating the Clinton bill, yetyou were not successful in defeatingObamaCare, although you were equallyoutspoken. Why is that?ACongress wasn’t given the time toactually scrutinize the Obama healthlaw. It was rushed through, as you know,voted on in the Senate on the eve of theholiday on December 24. Members ofCongress didn’t have time to read articles,much less time to read the 2,700-pagebill. That’s that major reason; it was forcedthrough Chicago-style.QAre you involved in the current effortto have it set aside by the SupremeCourt?AYes. My role is to provide the intellectualarguments, which I have published.I think it’s a very important rolebecause the fallacies, flaws, and falsehoodsmust be identified.QWhat do you propose instead?AThat is the most important question.Part of the goal is that no one shouldhave to lose his home because he doesn’thave health insurance. Congress shouldhave taken the 2,700-page bill, dumped itin the paper shredder, and given Americansa 20-page bill in simple Englishthat the member of Congress would readbefore voting on. Secondly, those 20 pageswould allow consumers to buy healthplans wherever they want, not necessarilyin their home state. That would liberateNew Yorkers, for example, from theirunfair state laws that make health insuranceso much more expensive than elsewhere.You should be able to go online andbuy health insurance from a company inIllinois or California, just the way you buybaby clothes or bath towels, or anythingelse. In addition, I would create coveragefor people with preexisting conditions.Thirdly, I would provide a subsidy for industriouspeople who lose their jobs andneed coverage until they find another job,to help them pay their COBRA payments.Fourth, I would provide federal blockgrants to the states to encourage them tocreate medical courts with well-trainedjudges to eliminate an unfair verdict, andensure that people who have legitimatelybeen injured by medical care receive a fairsettlement. It’s tort reform. And there is a20-page bill; I sent it to the candidates.QYou’ve been out of the public arenafor a while. Do you intend to go backand use your intellectualism in a politicalposition again?AMany people have been urging meto run for office, and I find that veryhonorable and flattering, but right now Iam totally hooked on beating the Obamahealth law because it lowers your standardof care, it puts government in charge ofyour care, and it takes away something asprecious as life itself—your liberty.QI know that when you joined thePataki administration, you changedyour party affiliation from Democrat to Republican.I’m confident that with the Constitutionon our side, Obamacare will be struckdown and freedom will prevail.AI did. Let me make it clear that whenI changed my affiliation, I did notchange my principles. They did.QIf you ran for office, you would run asa Republican?A Yes.QDo you foresee yourself running foroffice?AI always intend to do my best to servethe nation, whether it’s in private lifeor public life. I know that I’m doing somethingvery important right now. Ratherthan focus on my own political ambitionsmy goal now is to ensure that we overturnthat Obama health law.QIs that what you are doing full-timenow?16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 25

Q&AA Full-time.QWhat dospeeches?you do? You giveAI write articles; I give speeches; Iwork with the candidates. I informthe public about what the Obama healthlaw says and what we need to do to overturnit.QWhat concerns you the most?ACare for the elderly, which is underattack. The Obama administrationis waging a war against the elderly. ThePresident said that he would protect Medicare,but the fact is that in order to expandMedicaid, he takes $575 billion out ofMedicare for the next decade. It’s like robbingGrandma to spread the wealth. It willmean fewer hip replacements; fewer kneereplacements; fewer angioplastys; fewercataract operations. Those are the proceduresthat have virtually transformed theexperience of aging. I remember whenolder people used to be stuck in wheelchairsbecause of arthritis. Now they areactive in their later years, and the Obamahealth plan is going to undo that.QI know that you’ve also been fightinginfectious diseases. Do you want tosay something about that?AFighting hospital infections is mylife’s work.QHow did you get involved in that?AWhen I was Lieutenant Governor,so many people came to me withtragic stories. That they brought theirwives to the hospital for the happiestreason, to have a baby, only to end updying because they contracted an infection.One woman rushed her son to thehospital when he injured his head inthe backyard. He survived the traumaand brain swelling, and then died whenhe contracted an infection in the emergencyroom. When I left office I wasdetermined to do something about thisunnecessary and tragic problem. Hospitalinfections kill more people in ourcountry each year than all car accidents,cases of breast cancer, and AIDS combined—100,000deaths a year!QThese are from infections contractedin hospitals and other facilities?AJust hospitals. And they are unnecessary.Well over 90 percent arepreventable through proper hygiene andproper procedures.QYou would enforce more hygienelaws, rules, and regulations?ACleaner hospital rules. Let’s start rightthere. I’ll give you an example. Themost prevalent hospital infection in NewYork is Clostridium difficile, or C. diff forshort. It’s now more prevalent than thedreaded MRSA. C.diff is caused by onething: dirty hospital rooms. In a recenttrial in the Mayo Clinic it was proven thatsimply wiping the surfaces of the patients’beds once a day with a Clorox bleach wipereduces C.diff by 79 percent! Why isn’tthis being done everywhere? We can saveall those lives just by keeping everythingclean.QI know you identify yourself as aConservative. Wouldn’t that meanmore rules and regulations?ANot really. My goal is to bring thelatest and best research to hospitals,along with compelling economic evidencethat preventing infections will make themmore profitable. I can convince hospitalsto do this without rules and regulations.QAmi Magazine has published anarticle about infections in nursinghomes and old age homes.AThat’s a terrible problem. The hygieneis even worse in nursing homesthan in hospitals.QSo that is something we absolutelyhave to take care of?AYour readers should know about thewebsite hospitalinfections.org, andfamiliarize themselves with this issue.QWhat would you advise people whogo into one of these facilities? Whatshould they look for?AFirst of all, if you’re visiting someonein a nursing home, forget the chocolatesand flowers. Bring a canister of bleachwipes and a pair of gloves, and clean yourloved one’s bed or chair. You can save hisor her life.QI know that, unfortunately, yourmother and sister died young. Is thatwhat motivated you on a personal level tobecome involved in these things?ANo. It was really my experience ingovernment, because the stories wereso tragic.QOther than these issues that we’vediscussed—healthcare and hospitalinfections—what are your opinionson the Obama administration’s domesticand foreign policies? Is there anythingother than ObamaCare you feel stronglyabout?AYes, I feel extremely strongly aboutthe fact that the Obama administrationis bankrupting this nation. They’vealready doubled the national debt 45 percentin just three and a half years. Now thePresident is going to raise the debt ceilingto $1.2 trillion in a few weeks.QCan we be concerned about suchthings in a weak economy?AOf course. I don’t want my grandchildto be a slave—working all day,every day, being compelled to pay all thefruits of her labor to government to payoff the debts that I agreed to incur on herbehalf.26 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

QThe economy is still sluggish, at thevery best.AGovernment spending does not turnthe economy around. Let me makethat very clear. That notion has beenproven false. Government spending doesnot stimulate the economy—period.QHow do you suggest we stimulatethe economy?AThe best way is to lower taxes, reducethe cost of regulations, and allow themarket to work. To let people keep themoney in their own pockets to spend ontheir families.QAs a journalist and editor of a magazine,I think you are inspiring—yourop-ed pieces have made a difference!AAbsolutely. The power of the press,and the power of information.QSometimes things go against us.Like the fact that ObamaCare waspassed, regardless of all the good arguments.AAs I said, Congress was reallyforced—strong-armed—into passingthat law. The public was against it beforeit was passed, and the outrage remains ashigh now as the day it was enacted. It isunprecedented in history, except for Prohibition.QDo you have any interest in foreignpolicy at all?AI believe that government shouldhave a strong defense. It should onlynegotiate from a position of strength. Weshould be true to our allies, includingIsrael, of course.QGetting back to healthcare, why doyou think the U.S. has had such difficultyin passing a bill when all other civilizedcountries did this a long time ago?AWell, those so-called civilized countrieshave poorer healthcare than wedo. America has the best cancer survivorrates in the world. Those countries madea mistake in having government-runhealthcare. It’s true that there are manynations in Western Europe, for example,with government-run healthcare. Unfortunately,the result is a lower quality ofhealthcare. The best measure of thosesystems is: What are your chances ofsurviving a serious illness and returningto your previous quality of life? Inthe United States, patients, regardless oftheir economic status, have a much betterchance. So when you say “all the civilizedcountries of the world,” just becausemany countries have done something,doesn’t mean that it’s right.it’s yourBORO1.11 % APY 1BestRate CheckingOn balances of $5,000 or more.1.30 % APY 2 30-MonthBump-Up CD$5,000 minimum depositit’s yourBANKCelebrate the opening of our newest branch located in Borough Park withgreat rates and more! These rates are available for a limited time only.Visit us at 4616 13th Avenue. Call 347.410.8068or go to www.FlushingBank.com/boropark1 New accounts and new money only. Existing checking account customers are not eligible. An existing checking customer is defined as anyone who currently has or has had a Flushing Bank checking account within the last 24 months. Newmoney is defined as money not currently on deposit with Flushing Bank. The APY is effective January 3, 2012. The annual percentage yield (APY) for BestRate Checking is 1.11% and will remain in effect for 90 days after account opening. Atthe end of this 90-day period the rate will revert to standard pricing and rate may change at any time without notice. You must maintain a daily balance of $5,000 for the statement cycle to receive the disclosed yield and to avoid the monthlymaintenance fee of $10. A daily balance below $5,000 will be assessed a lower Annual Percentage Yield. Fees may reduce earnings. Speak with a Flushing Bank representative for more details and information about these offers. 2 New accountsand new money only. The APY is effective January 3, 2012. Annual percentage yield (APY) assumes principle and interest remain on deposit until maturity. A withdrawal of interest will reduce earnings. The interest rate will be fixed for the term ofthe account unless the Bump-Up option is exercised. If exercised the interest rate will be adjusted accordingly and remain fixed for the remaining term of the account. Minimum deposit balance of $5,000 is required. Funds cannot be transferredfrom an existing Flushing Bank account. Premature withdrawals may be subject to bank and IRS penalties. See a branch representative for more details. Flushing Bank is a trade name of Flushing Savings Bank, FSB.16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 27Member FDIC

JEWISHNEWSThe Last Boy in JapanRAV ARON NEZRI TALKS WITH AMI ABOUT YAAKOV YOSEF GRUNWALD’S PREDICAMENTRabbi Nezri meeting with YaakovYosef Grunwald’s legal teamOver the past few years, the story of the “three boys inJapan” has captivated the hearts and minds of Klal Yisrael.At present, however, there is only one boy left inJapan, Yaakov Yosef Grunwald, but his transfer backto Israel seems to have stalled.Ami spoke to Rav Aaron Nezri, one of the principal askaniminvolved in the case, to find out why the transfer is being delayed.It is also hoped that renewed awareness of his plight will inspiretefillos on behalf of Yaakov Yosef ben Raizel.“It must be understood,” explains Rav Nezri, “that there is noaction required to convince the Japanese government to allowYaakov Yosef to be transferred. Both Japan and Israel are amongthe 50-plus countries that signed an international treaty relatingto the transfer of prisoners, which would essentially allow anyprisoner in any of these countries to serve his sentence in hishome country. The agreement is binding, but it only goes intoeffect after a series of diplomatic exchanges. That is where we arenow, but we are currently at a standstill.”The way it works is that after an Israeli prisoner puts in arequest to be transferred, the Japanese government sends arequest for the transfer to Israel, which is then followed by anexchange of information between the two countries. It usuallyculminates in permission from Japan for the prisoner to be pickedup by his future host country, Israel.The rules have changed over the years. Prior to three years ago,prisoners were required to serve 50 percent of their sentencesbefore becoming eligible for a transfer. Three years ago it waschanged to one third, and today a prisoner does not have to serve28 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

BY NESANEL GANTZany time at all before being transferred; he can serve his entiresentence in his home country. The process is actually quite simpleand straightforward, as foreign prisoners are usually a headachefor their host countries. All correspondence is done with theIsraeli Ministry of Justice.“Most transfers take place within a year,” Rav Nezri continues,“and we had originally thought that Yaakov Yosef would bereleased in early September, before Rosh Hashanah. However,there are strict diplomatic rules and regulations governing thetransfer of prisoners, and it can often take several months untilit goes through.”In a nutshell, here is what has happened until now:On May 16, 2011, Yaakov Yosef Grunwald was found guilty. Inearly June, he was declared an official prisoner of Japan (a necessarycomponent of the procedure) and his request for a transferimmediately got underway. Although it normally takes at leasttwo months for the Japanese to contact Israel, due to the involvementof various askanim, the Japanese formally acknowledged hisrequest on the 22 nd of June. It was an auspicious start.The Japanese asked the standard questions, such as whichprison he would be held in, when he would be eligible for paroleaccording to Israeli law, and how Israel would treat his six-yearsentence. In early July Israel responded with the answers, atwhich time they had already obtained the necessary permits.(Before Israel agreed to a transfer they had to have the consentof the Prison and Police Authority, the Interior Security Minister,and the Justice Minister.) At that point, all that was left was thefinal reply from Japan—or so they thought.Unfortunately, here is where a wrinkle developed. Back inJanuary of that year, the Japanese heard troublesome reportsthat the second boy, Yosef Banda, had been pardoned in Israeland released on parole—which they viewed as a violation of theinternational treaty. (Israel had previously told Japan that Bandawasn’t eligible to be considered for parole until August 2011.) Sowhy was Yosef Banda released early? The law in Israel states thata prisoner must serve two-thirds of his sentence before becomingeligible for parole. In November 2010, Banda requested thathis sentence be commuted in order to become eligible for earlyparole—a fairly common request, which he was surprisinglygranted in January 2011 based on reasoning that was later foundto be faulty. While Banda is currently a free man, he is complyingwith the strict guidelines of his parole under the parole rehabilitationprogram; he was not pardoned, and his conviction was notnullified.Nonetheless, in February 2011 the Japanese were confused andconcerned. Therefore, when Grunfeld filed his request for transfer,instead of rubber stamping it and allowing it to proceed, theysent a letter asking for more details about Banda’s alleged pardon.At the time, Israel had already compiled a complete report onBanda’s commuted sentence and early release and sent it to Japan,but they sent it again just to reassure them.Now, it is important to understand that international diplomacyinvolves much more than simply sending a letter, and thateven the simplest exchange of communication may take manymonths.In July, after receiving this explanation for the second time,Japan penned a letter requesting information about 11 otherIsraeli prisoners who had been transferred from Japan to Israelsince the signing of the treaty. In early August, Israel respondedwith a detailed report of the prisoners’ current status. Soon after,Japan requested information on the exact Israeli laws concerningthe granting of pardons, commutation, and parole. Israel complied,but the Japanese complained that it was too complicatedand asked for a translation. A translation was provided.When a letter arrived with various documents that usuallyindicate that a transfer is imminent, the Israelis were hopeful, butsuch was not the case. Not only were the Japanese not grantingGrunwald’s release, but they were making further inquires aboutpreviously transferred prisoners, including Banda.How do things stand now? At a certain point the Israelis realizedthat the problem was largely semantic; the Japanese hadnot fully understood Israel’s original letter explaining the conditionsof Banda’s release. Much of the meaning had been lost intranslation, as the word “commute” had been rendered as “partialpardon.” In order to avoid any further misunderstandings,another translation was sent to the Japanese Ministry of Justice,prepared under the careful eye of law experts and English translators.It was hoped that this would be the final step toward expeditingthe transfer.However, even before this was sent off, Japan sent anotherletter asking why certain prisoners had been released early andothers released late. This in itself represented another complexbureaucratic procedure, as the Ministry of Justice had to applyto the Prison Authority for an explanation, which in turn had toobtain the files from the archives in order to review and send thecorrect information back.At present, this has all been completed, and it is hoped that thenext communication from Japan will be the one that everybodyhas been waiting for.According to Rav Nezri, the Japanese were already up to thefinal stages of Yaakov Yosef’s release a long time ago, and it isvery unfortunate that he is suffering through no fault of hisown. “We must wait, true, but we are doing everything in ourpower to speed up the process. The ball is now essentiallyin the Japanese courts. We have repeatedly explained thatIsrael did not act in breach of the agreement, and that Japan isinvited to continue its dialogue inquiring into Israel law—butnot at the expense of Yaakov Yosef. Japan has never beforeinquired so deeply into Israel’s laws or made such inquiriesabout transferred prisoners. Everything has already beenexplained, and we have pressured Japan to act accordingly.However, due to the international holiday season we don’texpect any new results before mid-January, and we do hope toshare good news soon.”16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 29

JEWISHNEWSClosing the Age GapA CREATIVE RESOLUTION TO THE SHIDDUCH CRISIS?The yeshiva world is abuzz with rumors of a drastic stepbeing contemplated to help turn the tide in the currentshidduch crisis. Supposedly, rabbanim are about toenforce an age limit on those entering certain yeshivos.Ami spoke to experts in the shidduch crisis to help explain thecurrent problem.Although there are many factors behind the fact that peopleremain single, many studies undertaken by independent researchershave discovered that the large percentage of single girls can betraced back to one factor: “the age gap.”As everyone knows, most Litvishe yeshiva boys today getengaged at around the age of 23, however girls can be as youngas 17 or 18 years old at the time of their engagement. This, however,creates a problem.30 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

BY SHMUEL SHIMON TEICHLERThe number of frum Jews is increasing from year to year. Thusin 2012, there are more 22-year-old Jews than 23-year-old Jews;and certainly there are more 18-year-olds than 23-year-olds. Interms of shidduchim then, there are just as many 23-year-old girlsas there are 23-year-old boys, however, 23-year-old boys generallyget engaged to 18-year-old girls, and there are a lot more18-year-old girls than 23-year-old boys.The number of Orthodox (non-chassidic) girls who have beenlooking for a shidduch for five years and are still single outnumberthe Orthodox (again, non-chassidic) boys who have datedfor five years and are still single. There are now hundreds if notthousands of girls still in shidduchim after five years.Because 23-year-old boys often date 18-year-old girls, there aresimply too many girls who are unable to find a shidduch. Considerthe following: If you have an island of 100 boys and 100girls who must choose spouses, everyone can, hypothetically,find a shidduch. However if there are 130 girls and 100 boys onthe island, you have 30 girls who will remain unmarried; that isin essence the problem we have today.As many have been suggesting, if 23-year-old boys were tomarry 23-year-old girls or if 19-year-old boys would marry19-year-old girls (as chassidim do) then the problem of the agegap would be resolved. Having girls start looking for shidduchimat a later age or having boys start dating earlier would help alleviatethe gap.Over the past few years, attempts have been made to close theage gap, to try to ensure that our young men and women marrycloser in age. The Nasi Project gives stipends to shadchanimsimply for arranging dates for older girls; the older the girls andthe longer they are looking for a shidduch, the higher the stipend.This stipend is made in order to encourage shadchanim to keepon trying to arrange shidduchim for older girls. Other communityprojects have sprouted across the United States offering monetaryincentives to encourage shadchanim to set up dates witholder girls.Rav Chaim Kanievsky has also given his personal blessings toyoung men who try to find a shidduch in their age group. He saidthat it is good to marry someone of the same age and it bringsbracha in the home.The rumor mill is presently claiming that there will soon berules limiting the age of entry back to yeshivas in the U.S. toyoung men of 22 or younger. This is only a rumor; however, thathas not stopped everyone from talking about it. By capping theage of entry at 22, it is hoped it would force people to changetheir mentality about when to look for a shidduch. Bochurimwould go to Eretz Yisrael at a younger age, or stay in Americalonger—both scenarios would be condusive to getting engagedearlier.There is also talk of opening new yeshivos for post-bais medrashbochurim to provide an alternative to learning in Eretz Yisrael,while hopefully leading to more shidduchim where the couplesare closer in age.While nothing will be official until the rabbanim make theirdecisions, one can be certain that the talks are fueled by the realdesire to help solve the problem of the shidduch crisis. STATEMENT IN THE NAME OF RABBI AMRAMSHAPIRO, THE GABBAI OF THE GAAVAD, RAVYITZCHOK TUVIA WEISS, SHLITA:The people who made statementsin the name of theGaavad, as cited in last week’sissue, were unauthorized to doso and they did not speak onthe Gaavad’s behalf.The Gaavad in particularwishes to point out that puttingup a sign next to a shul askingthat women do not congregatethere is appropriate and theforced removal of these signsis totally not justified.Designi 347.482.6783HIGHEST IN CUSTOMER SATISFACTIONLOWEST IN LEASING PRICES16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 31Web www.comfortautoleasing.com | Email sales@comfortautoinc.com

JEWISHLIVING INMontreal,Montreal is large and diverse, withJewish pockets sprinkled throughout.In many ways, it is like a big shtetl.From the lookout atop thegreen and luscious MountRoyal (after which Montrealis named) one can see thesprawling urban neighborhoodsof Montreal. In thefoothills on the northern side lie Mile Endand Outremont (French for “outside themountain”), home to most of Montreal’ssizeable Jewish community.After World War II, many EuropeanJews joined their brethren already livingin the Mile End district on the outskirtsof Outremont, where St. Lawrence Boulevardbecame the key Yiddish commercialcenter. In those years, the streets weresuffused with the aromas of herring andoven-baked bagels, and the Jewish shmatteh(textile) trade flourished.Today, Montreal has the world’s thirdlargestchassidic population outside ofIsrael. The community is extraordinarilyconcentrated: Virtually all of Montreal’schassidim live within one kilometer of VanHorne Avenue between De Vimy Avenuein the west and Mile End in the east. Thearea is home to Belz, Satmar, Vishnitz,Skver, Bobov, Munkacs, and Klausenbergchassidim. The 2011 Outremont directorylists 12 shuls in Outremont, and anotherthree have recently sprouted.Montreal is large and diverse, withJewish pockets sprinkled throughout.32 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

CanadaBYCHANALEBOVITSEach area has its own unique flavor. Abrisk 20-minute walk past magnificentparks and well-preserved stone housesbrings one “uptown” to a quiet residentialneighborhood. This is where the Litvishcommunity has kollelim, a Bais Yaakov andseminary for girls, a yeshiva gedola, a mesivtafor boys, and a few chasidic shuls andpreschool centers. Kiryas Tosh, home ofthe Tosher Rebbe and his chassidim, is inBoisbriand, a 25-minute drive away.The large Lubavitch community, withits yeshiva, Bais Rivkah girls’ school andseminary, is concentrated in Snowdon, aseven-minute drive west. A little furtherup the road are beautiful Coté St. Luc andHampstead, with their large one-familyhomes, front and back yards, and plentiful WEATHERWinters are snowy and cold, with subzerotemperatures. It can often be colduntil mid-April.Summer temperatures can climb to thehigh 80s.parks. Many frum Sephardic families haverecently moved into Cote St. Luc, and arequickly changing the area’s flavor.In Outremont, in addition to many kollelim,there are schools and yeshivas ofdifferent chassidic persuasions, whereasYeshiva Yam Hatorah is considered more“neutral.”The burgeoning Jewish community hastaken this French elite neighborhood bysurprise. Outremont is considered primereal estate—close to the city, surroundedby colleges, hospitals, exclusive boutiques,and restaurants. Upper Outremont ishome to prime ministers and high-rankinggovernment officials. It is common to seedignitaries and chauffeured limousines.The chassidim and kollel yungerleit, bycontrast, seem oblivious to such fanfare.Mothers push carriages on the sidewalks,and almost everyone knows everyone else.In many ways, Montreal is like a big shtetl.Jewish businesses have since evolvedfrom textiles to high-tech telecommunicationsand electronics as well as Judaica,real estate brokerage, and furniture. Montrealis renowned for its clothing factories—children’swear, Shabbos robes, andcoats—that are located primarily on St.Viateur Avenue. These factories are favoriteshopping haunts for locals and outof-townerslooking for a bargain. Withsubsidized $7.00-a-day frum day-carereadily available, more and more mothersare working as day-care providers, teachers,speech therapists, social workers, sheitelmachers, or they are selling things fromhome.Cheskie’s Heimish Bakery is a landmark.Don’t let the unimposing little storefrontfool you, because its delicious pastries,challahs, cheese cakes, rugelach, andcookies are much sought after. Even withfour cashiers, the lines often reach out tothe sidewalk. It even gives the non-koshereateries a run for their money.The quaint tree-lined side streets bustlewith life. Whereas years ago the Jewishschools owned only two buses at most,now, much to the chagrin of their wellheeledFrench neighbors, fleets of schoolbuses line the one-way streets, keepingtraffic at a standstill between eight andnine in the morning, while men walk backand forth to the various kollelim and shuls.January and February can get very cold16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 33

JEWISHLIVING INReal EstateMost people live in one-, two-, or threefamilyhouses, with few apartment buildings.AN AVERAGE THREE-BEDROOMAPARTMENT$450,000 to $550,000RENTALS FOR A THREE-BEDROOMAPARTMENT$1,200 to $1,800Cost of LivingGRAPE JUICE$5.60 for a 2-liter bottle(-20° F) and snowy. (I even remember onesnow storm on Pesach.) Montreal’s snowremoval process is a sight to behold. Firstto arrive are the little yellow “tooters” thatskid up and down the sidewalks while simultaneouslypushing the snow into thegutter. Tractors then shovel the snow ontothe streets. Huge empty sand trucks lineup at the corners, patiently waiting theirturn to go side-by-side with the blowertrucks, which suck in the snow and blow itonto a waiting sand truck. Soon the streetand gutter are miraculously clean. Out-oftownersare amazed and envious at howefficiently this works—when it works.Montreal’s summers, by contrast, areablaze with color. The Laurentian Mountains,less than 45 minutes away, are thechoice for summer retreats, and manyyeshivas, cheders, and kollelim relocatethere en masse. Some vacation spots resemblebungalow colonies, while otherplaces look like replicas of the old shtetl,with narrow cobbled streets and woodenhouses.Taxes are high in Quebec, and Outremontis more taxed than most neighborhoods.Most people live in duplexes(two-family houses) or in older, elegantone-family homes with oak baseboardsand high ceilings. Due to high demand,housing prices have skyrocketed. Becausethese houses are old and not geared towardsthe needs of the frum community,they often require a lot of renovating,which is strictly regulated. On the otherhand, there are many benefits to livinghere. A generous family allowance is givenfor each child, and medical expenses areuniversally covered. Dental work is freeuntil age 12.Montreal is renowned for its hachnosasorchim and gemilus chasadim. The busloadsof guests that file into Montreal for simchasare warmly accommodated in localhomes and basements, many of which arebooked year-round. The Bikur Cholim hasa kitchen and delivers meals-on-wheelsto the elderly and incapacitated. TheJewish directory devotes pages to variousgemachs, ranging from wedding gowns, carseats, and tzniusdik hospital gowns, to beddingfor guests. Someone even donated aspecialized scooter that her son had used,which is now making the rounds.All in all, Montreal’s European ambiance,together with its aesthetics, freshair, beautiful green spaces, and hominess,make it a truly unique and welcomingplace. Getting ThereCHALAV YISRAEL MILK$4.59 for a 2-liter bottleEvery Canadian citizen is entitled to Medicare,which covers doctors’ visits and hospitalstays and services. For those withoutprivate coverage, mandatory governmentinsurance is $365 per year per family, for prescriptiondrugs.DAY-CARE UP UNTIL AGE FIVE$1,680 per year, with reimbursement forpoor familiesCHEDER AND YESHIVA TUITION$400-$450 monthly, with considerablevariationAVERAGE CAR INSURANCEapproximately $1,000 per year for a minivanDRIVING TIMEMontreal is about 370 miles fromNew York City. Regular bus serviceis provided by the Heiman’s buscompany.BY AIRto New York is less than an hourto Tel Aviv, about 10 hours.34 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

Rejuvinate yourselfon your Private IslandInstead of waiting to vacation on your own private island, recuperate and combat thestress of your daily routine with Relax To The Max TM ! Medical research studies haveVitamin C, L-Glutathione, and N-acetyl-cysteine – areincluded to reduce the effects of stress. Stress causes thebody to release certain hormones into the blood. Thesehormones weaken the immune system, and the body’sdefense against disease. They support and strengthen thebody`s immune system thus fighting off the hormones’effect.Inositol – Has reduced symptoms of O.C.D. , Depression,Panic Attacks. It’s especially helpful in A.D.D.L-Taurine – works as an anti-anxiety agent in thecentral nervous system. It also acts as an inhibitoryneurotransmitterL-Theanine – has shown to improve cognition and moodand to reduce mental and physical stress. Helps people withtheir learning performance and concentration.Maxi Health® makes sure that you not only get yournutrients, but that your body is able to absorb the greatestamount possible for your greatest health benefits. Everybatch is tested by an independent laboratory to ensure thatyou get every drop of what we print on the label.Take Relax To The Max daily, to helppromote a restful, relaxed state naturally!!of Maximum Research & ResultsYearsThese statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent or cure any disease

BUSINESSGreater TransparencySought by the FedBERNANKE TO INCREASE COMMUNICATION WITH THE PUBLICBYYEDIDA WOLFEBen Bernanke is on a mission torestore the Federal Reserve’s credibilityand stimulate economicgrowth. In a clear break from his predecessor,Alan Greenspan, who “reveled inhis reputation as a mystical overseer ofU.S. fiscal policy,” Bernanke is “increasingtransparency” for the first time in the Fed’shistory by initiating communication withthe public.So far the Fed’s usual fiscal policy toolslike lowering the interest rates and bondbuyingprograms have failed to lift theAmerican economy out of its currentmalaise. Some are asking if Bernanke’sopen-door policy is actually a creative toolto encourage growth, restore the Fed’s reputation,and counter the uncertainty fromEurope.Bernanke held the Fed’s first press conferencein April 2011. This past week,Bernanke promised that the Fed wouldhold interest rates low through mid-2013.Analyst Peter Cardillo says the move“should help businesses gauge their activitybased on the fact that the Fed won’tsurprise.” Whether it’s a desperate measureto encourage growth or just an extensionof Bernanke’s ideology, let’s hope Bernanke’sopenness helps the economy rebound.$532 Million forWhistleblowersRECORD SET FOR SUCH PAYOUTS IN 2011It is estimated that nearly 50 percent of workers witness wrongdoingin the workplace. While some whistleblowers faced retaliationfrom their companies, many received millions as a bounty. In fact,whistleblowers earned more than $532 million in 2011 from lawsuitsalleging fraud against the U.S. government. In one high-profilecase, a quality manager at GlaxoSmithKline was awarded $96 million,one of the highest payouts ever, for exposing manufacturing defectsat a plant in Puerto Rico.Whistleblowers can earn up to 30 percent of recovery funds,depending on how far they advance the case before the Departmentof Justice takes over. Andrew Tulumello, who worked on the report,says, “The bounty provisions are so attractive…that it is going toattract more and more interest.”To pursue whistleblowers’ claims the Justice Departmenttaps into the False Claims Act, a Civil War-era lawaimed at weeding out unscrupulous contractors.These days the DOJ is out to catch healthcareproviders and pharmaceutical companies forovercharging Medicare and Medicaid. TheU.S. government recovered over $3 billionin 2011. Expect that number to increaseas a new whistleblower bounty program isunveiled as part of the Dodd-Frank financialregulatory overhaul.SIX SECRETS TOOVERCOMING BURNOUTGET OUT OF THAT SLUMP!When you’ve lost enthusiasm for work and feel that yourefforts are fruitless, for a sustained period of time, you’ve gotburnout. Here’s how to shake it off:1 TAKE AN EXTENDED BREAK: Unplug for a fewdays; take a few days off from work without your phone,laptop, or iPad.2 START RELAXED: Exercising in the morning warmsup your mind and body before going to work.3 TAKE REGULAR BREAKS: Adjust your schedule towork in bursts of 60-90 minutes followed by a 15-20 minutebreak.4 AVOID THE NEWS: Depressing reports perpetuatea feeling of constant negativity, leading some to feel down.Tuning out news can be a burnout cure.5 CHANGE WHAT YOU EAT:Improving your diet can improve yourenergy levels and attitude.6 WRITE DOWN WHY:Figure out why you are in yourcurrent position; is it a stepping-stoneto your next gig?Gaining perspective canchase away burnout.36 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

AMBASSADORSKIDDUSH HASHEM IN THE WORKPLACETo Know Them Is to Love ThemHE WAS JUST IN THE WRONG PLACE AT THE WRONG TIMEBY KENNY FANNING, AS TOLD TO SARAH PERLThe year was 1989. I was a teenager,working in Mr. ShlomoFeder’s kosher grocery store. Ihave many fond memories ofthat time, as Mr. Feder was oneof the greatest guys I’d ever worked for. Hetreated me well, and really cared. WheneverI’d come in looking tired or sick hewould immediately notice, give me somethingto eat, and tell me to takea break. And he’d never dock thetime from those breaks! When I’dleave in the evenings, Mr. Federwould always send me home withgroceries (on the house!).Before Passover, aside from allof his leftover chametz, Mr. Federwould give me a large bonus.Well, what can I say? Mr. Feder isa real mensch!However, there was one episodethat I’ll never forget. That’sbecause it became a real turningpoint in my life.It was late one evening when Ipicked up a friend. “Hey, Kenny,”he said as he got into my truck. “I have acouple of friends who need a ride. Do youmind if we pick them up?”“But there’s no room for them!” I protested.I was driving a pickup truck, withjust one bench seat up front.My friend was unconvinced. “Come on,Kenny. That’s not a problem; we’ll just putthem in the back!”“Well, all right,” I reluctantly agreed.A few minutes later we picked themup. As we were taking a shortcut througha religious neighborhood, the guys inthe back of the truck started cursing andthrowing things at the Jews on the street.“Come on, guys,” I called back, “cut itout!”But they ignored me, and continued tothrow things and curse. Someone musthave phoned the police, because beforelong my pickup truck was surrounded bypolice cars.Everyone was arrested and taken to thepolice station, where we were led into separaterooms and interrogated.When I was questioned, I answeredhonestly. I told them how I had mistakenlyfallen in with the wrong crowd, but haddone absolutely nothing wrong. I had eventold them to stop!To their credit, the other guys admittedthat they had been the ones responsible,and that I was only the driver. Mycourt date was scheduled for the followingmonth.A month later I went before the judgeand told him what had happened. Mystory was very plausible. Even the districtattorney believed me, and wanted to letme go.The judge, however, did not believeme. He insisted that I was as guilty as therest of them. Once convicted, I would besentenced to jail time, community service,and hefty fines.Sad and dejected, I confided in my boss,Mr. Feder. He immediately took action.First, he wrote letters to the judge vouchingfor my fine character, and explaining that Ihad simply been in the wrong place at thewrong time. Mr. Feder also wentdown to the police station andspoke to the judge personally. Mr.Feder succeeded in convincinghim of my innocence, and in theend I was let off the hook.The Hebrew word chessed hasbeen translated for me as lovingkindness,and I can’t think of abetter description of Mr. Feder. Ifhe hadn’t gotten me out of thatmess, I don’t know where I’d betoday! Had I gone to jail, I’m suremy life would have gone downhillfrom there. Yet today I am anupstanding citizen who tries tobe honest and ethical, and I oweit all to Mr. Feder.As the owner of Diamond Landscaping,most of my customers are Jewish.“Isn’t it unpleasant to work with Jews?”I’ve been asked.“You are so wrong!” is my heartfeltresponse. “You have to get to know them.To know them is to love them.”I firmly believe that if everyone had thesame experiences as I’ve had, there wouldbe no anti-Semitism in the world. Mr. Shlomo Feder is currently the owner ofZishe’s Bakery in Monsey, New York. Specialthanks to Mr. Duvi Ungar and Mr. Kenny Fanning.16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 37

DeatSilenby John Loftus38 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

InThe lyrics may bedifferent, but the melodyis hauntingly familiarhlyce:theReturnofAnti-Semitismhirty years ago, I walked to the podium at theannual banquet of the New England chapter ofthe Anti-Defamation League. I was given a standingovation as I received the ADL’s prestigious“Man of the Year” award, a somewhat unusualhonor for an Irish Catholic.During the Carter and Reagan administrations, I had workedon Nazi war crimes cases as an attorney for the U.S. Departmentof Justice in Washington. I quit my job in disgust because some ofthe Nazis I was supposed to prosecute were former Cold War spiesprotected by the U.S. intelligence agencies.The tragedy was that many of the Nazis hiding in America weresent here by Kim Philby of British intelligence. Philby turned outto be a communist double agent, a mole. The Nazi moles he puton our spy payroll betrayed almost every American secret to theRussians. We were not hiding the Nazis out of national security,just embarrassment.I went on “60 Minutes” and blew the whistle. It caused a bitof national uproar back in 1982. Congress demanded hearings,Mike Wallace got the Emmy Award, and my family got the deaththreats. I was a two-cent celebrity for a little while. The Jewishcommunity gave me awards.The best part of the ADL banquet was that I got to meet LennyZakim, the ADL executive who had nominated me for the Man ofthe Year award. Lenny was a civil rights activist and a true fighterfor justice. Everyone loved him. Years later, after he died, theynamed a beautiful bridge after him in Boston.I was so honored that Lenny had chosen me for Man of theYear. It was such a prestigious award, and a beautiful banquet.Then I had to ruin it with my big mouth. I began my speech byparaphrasing Elie Wiesel and said that “The three greatest evils ofthe 20th century are communism, fascism, and indifference. Indifferenceis the deadliest of the three.” The audience was noddingin agreement.Then I made my prediction. “Anti-Semitism is cyclical, and it iscoming back in our lifetime in a big way. The only way to defeatanti-Semitism is through education, and you [the Jews] have failedto educate the next generation. Your children will pay a terribleprice.” I went on to explain that life for Jews was going to getworse, and not just for Israelis but for American Jews too.The audience squirmed. Lenny liked that I called it as I saw16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 39

y John LoftusThe party linewas that the ADLwas winning thewar against anti-Semitism, and therate of attacks onJews was supposedto go down everyyear.it. His boss at the national ADL headquarters was furious at myprediction. The party line was that the ADL was winning the waragainst anti-Semitism, and the rate of attacks on Jews was supposedto go down every year. He really hated my prediction, especiallywhen the number of attacks on Jews began to go up, yearafter year.Lenny’s boss is a nice guy, but a bit bewildered. He was theonly Jew to write a negative review of my history of intelligenceoperations against Israel, The Secret War Against the Jews. I hadwritten some rather nasty things about Richard Nixon, saying hewas probably the most anti-Semitic of all American presidents.Lenny’s boss told me that Nixon was his close personal friendand a great friend to Israel. Much to his chagrin, the Nixon tapeswere declassified about a year after my book (and his astonishinglynegative review) were published. I knew what was coming.My favorite tape was the one on which Nixon remarked, “If Iwere to drop an atomic bomb on Tel Aviv, there would still beAmerican Jews stupid enough to vote for me.” I still think theADL is a marvelous organization. It does great work and deservesour financial support. Everyone is entitled to make a stupid mistakenow and then.There are some Jews who get it. Elliott Abrams (with whom Irarely agree) wrote an excellent column on December 20, 2011entitled “Blaming the Jews—Again.” Abrams identifies two of Israel’senemies in America who say that the Jewish lobby controlsour government and is trying to send American boys into warwith Iran. He cites Thomas Friedman, a columnist for The NewYork Times, who said, “I sure hope that Israel’s Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu understands that the standing ovation hegot in Congress this year was not for his politics. That ovationwas bought and paid for by the Israel lobby.”Abrams also cites Joe Klein of Time magazine, who praised RonPaul for refusing to join the Iran war hawks. “It’s one thing to justadore Israel, as the evangelical Christians do; it’s another thingentirely to send American kids off to war, yet again, to fight forIsrael’s national security.” Nixon’s pet bigot, Pat Buchanan, made asimilar accusation in 1990, that, “There are only two groups thatare beating the drums for war in the Middle East—the Israeli DefenseMinistry, and its amen corner in the United States.”In contrast to the burbling nonsense of the “Three Stooges” offoreign policy—Buchanan, Friedman, and Klein—Secretary ofDefense Leon Panetta calmly reiterated the bipartisan Americanconsensus: “The United States does not want Iran to develop anuclear weapon. That’s a red line for us and that’s a red line, obviously,for the Israelis. If we have to do it we will deal with it....If they proceed, and we get intelligence that they are proceedingwith developing a nuclear weapon, then we will take whateversteps are necessary to stop it.”Abrams wants to know what steps are being taken to rein in themedia attacks against Jews and Israel, when their verbal violenceclearly exceeds the bounds of civil public discourse and crossesthe line towards bigotry: “Once upon a time, William F. Buckleybanned Pat Buchanan from the pages of National Review andin essence drummed him out of the conservative movement forsuch accusations.”That was when there were still moderates in the RepublicanParty. Now, the conservative movement embraces wing-nut candidateslike Ron Paul, who openly states that Israel should notexist, and that the land should be given back to the Palestinians.You do not have to take my word for it. Here is what Eric Dondero,Paul’s former chief aide, has said about Senator Paul’s feel-40 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

ings towards Israel and Jews:“I can categorically say that I never heard anything out of hismouth, in hundreds of speeches I listened to over the years orin my personal presence, that could be called anti-Semitic,” EricDondero wrote on the Right Wing News website. “He is, however,most certainly anti-Israel and anti-Israeli in general,” Donderocontinued. “He wishes the Israeli state did not exist at all. He expressedthis to me numerous times in our private conversations.His view is that Israel is more trouble than it is worth, specificallyto the American taxpayer. He sides with the Palestinians, andsupports their calls for the abolishment of the Jewish State, andthe return of Israel—all of it—to the Arabs.”Ron Paul dismisses Dondero with the usual “disgruntled formeremployee” verbiage, but does not deny or retract the specifics.For example, Dondero wrote that Paul said that saving Jews wasnot reason enough for the United States to have entered WorldWar II. Paul recently repeated the statement to another reporter.My Jewish Republican friends try to dismiss Senator Paul asa freak who only has the support of a small extremist faction. Iremind them that that was all the Nazis had in the beginning.In return I got scornful reprimands for going over the top. Theymisunderstand. I am not saying that Ron Paul is the new Hitler,just the new Lindbergh, an American media hero who naivelysupports and re-broadcasts the slogans of the new anti-Semitism.Paul supporters will say that he is just telling the truth. Congressreally is controlled by Jews. Heck, no. The myth of thepowerful Jewish lobby is just a myth. Ask the American armscontractors who continue to sell advanced weapons systems tothe Arabs against Israel’s vehement opposition.Alternatively, Paul’s supporters say that he is not anti-Israel, justanti-Zionist. I remind them that Martin Luther King destroyedthat argument when he pointed out that those who proclaimedthemselves as merely anti-Zionist were usually bigots trying todisguise their anti-Semitism. I am prepared to believe that Paul isnot an anti-Semite; he may just be stupid.Senator Paul, along with his fellow travelers Buchanan, Friedman,and Klein, are the four horsemen of the “blame Israel”crowd, the unchallenged propagandists in chief for this new anti-Semitism that is being whispered all across America. My Jewishfriends are the last to hear it, but we non-Jews hear it all the time.The gist of the new bigotry is this: “Jewish boys are afraid to fightfor Israel, so Jewish money buys Congress to send American boysto do the fighting for them.”Friedman and Klein may be among the first to elevate the newanti-Semitism from whispers into printed form. To repeat: “It’sone thing to just adore Israel, as the evangelical Christians do; it’sanother thing entirely to send American kids off to war, yet again,to fight for Israel’s national security.” Congressional approval forNetanyahu’s policy is “bought and paid for” by the Jewish lobby.This is the new anthem of the same old anti-Semites. Theydon’t wear sheets anymore, or whistle Dixie, or waste their voteson open bigots like David Duke. The old Jew-haters finally have anew song, thanks to Friedman and Klein.The lyrics are different, but the tune is hauntingly familiar. Itruns like this: See how the nasty Jews treat the Palestinians likeNazis; let Jews fend for themselves; no more tax money for Israel;bring our troops home.The verses are new, but the chorus is a classic from the 1920sand 1930s, the “indifferent generation,” the one that sent the“greatest generation” to war. In a spirit of satire, I have writtensome lyrics for this anthem of indifference.I call my satirical poem “Dante’s Song,” after the magnificentItalian poet Dante Alighieri. He wrote that the seventh circle ofhell is reserved for those who had the ability to prevent evil, butdid nothing. Those with numbers on their arms may recall thesong under a different name or in a different language. It does notmatter if my words are different from yours. The melody alwaysremains the same to the anthem of indifference, because everyonewill swear that they didn’t hear anything.Dante’s Song (An Anthem of Indifference)You turned your back on wounded Jews.They must have done something, soYou kept their trauma from the newsOr changed the channel.They probably deserved it, soHESHY KRAUSZSHRAGIE SCHWARTZSHOLY BRACHYIDDY CINNERaycgraphicboy@aol.com | 347.962.5314YOELY FRIEDLANDERYOEL M. FISCHYOSSI KROENLooking Forward to serving you for

y John LoftusSome of theseleaders, such asMalcolm Hoenlein,are simply superb.Malcolm has takenpersonal positionsin opposition to theofficial position ofhis organization.You let them blame the victims (again).Your word of warning? Never spoke.It was not your business, soYou said nothing of the comingSlaughter stroke andLooked downward when the chimney smokeRose to the sky (again).You kept silent, and if they criedYou turned the camera off.Or changed the channel.Die, Jew, die.Why weep? Why are you to blame?You did nothing.(Again).Okay, so I am not a great poet, but you get the point. A lot ofAmerican Jews don’t. I was once on a telephone conference callwith senior representatives from several dozen American and Canadianorganizations. I was filing a lawsuit against Professor SamiAl Arian in order to expose him as a major terrorist leader. I hadasked the Jewish groups to help me.As I listened to the telephone debate, I learned to my dismaythat Jews in America are terribly, terribly afraid. American Jewsare very different from Israelis when it comes to confrontation.Several people called me privately afterwards, to apologize. Ireally appreciate the love I have received from American Jews ingeneral, but have long given up on and remain disappointed withJewish leaders.It must be said that some of these leaders, such as MalcolmHoenlein, are simply superb. On several occasions, Malcolm hastaken a personal position in opposition to the official position ofhis organization. It has been my experience that very few Jewishleaders, either at the local or at the national level, have Malcolm’slevel of courage. Most of them choose to keep silent rather thanrisk losing their jobs.Elliott Abrams still has the energy for outrage at the silenceof the American Jewish leadership, especially as the rumbling,grumbling sound of the new anti-Semitism grows louder. “Today,where are the Anti-Defamation League, and the American JewishCommittee, and all the Jewish ‘defense’ organizations? Where areall the Jewish groups that have given Klein and Friedman awards,demanding them back?”Abrams reminds Jews that “We have learned the hard way withWalt and Mearsheimer [authors of the 2007 New York Times bestseller,The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy] that once the infectionof anti-Semitism enters the mass media and the academy,it grows and grows. What begins as a ‘controversial statement’ends up on every reading list. Klein and Friedman, whatever theirpersonal motivations for these statements, are helping popularizeand make acceptable anti-Semitism in America. Their own publicationswill no doubt reward them for their advanced thinking.Will the rest of our society?”Abrams is not, I think, calling for censorship, but for accountability.Klein and Friedman should forever be free to publish theirsilly notion that the Jews control Congress and are dragging usinto war. But, after publication, they must now face the judgmentof their audience.It is clear that the overwhelming majority of the AmericanJewish community firmly rejects Klein’s and Friedman’s thesis. Ialso suspect a substantial number (but perhaps not a plurality) ofJews would agree with Abrams, that notions of secret Jewish conspiraciessubstantially aid and abet the cause of the anti-Semites.Finally, I predict that the major Jewish organizations will dismissAbrams as an extremist or an exaggerator, and that nothing willbe done.42 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

Just because Abrams and I are in a minority does not mean weare wrong. The stubborn facts show that anti-Semitism has indeedbeen increasing in America for the last 30 years, and not by smallpercentages, but by leaps and bounds around the world. It is gettingto the point that some of those who identify anti-Semitic behaviorare identified themselves as hatemongers.In January 2012, Barry Rubin, who has written often on thistopic, had an electronic article banned in Britain as “hate speech.”His article, entitled “Egypt: As Grim Islamists March TowardPower, the Naïve Dance in Tahrir Square,” ridiculed those Westerngovernments that are still trying to portray the Muslim Brotherhood’selectoral sweep as a victory for moderate democracy.Hardly a controversial position, but something in the combinationof words caused a British government computer to identifyRubin’s article as hate speech and block public access to hiswebsite. Now, I would ordinarily ignore such a report as just asilly glitch by a well-meaning software programmer. But Rubin’spoint is that none of the horrendous anti-Israel, anti-Zionist, oreven anti-Semitic propaganda get labeled as hate speech by thecomputer. It would lead one to suspect that criticism of Arabic orIslamist bigotry is always banned as hate speech, but hate speechagainst Jews is free speech.I do not think that things have gotten that bad yet, but I dothink that there is an all-too-common tendency of governmentsand social organizations to sweep anti-Semitic or terrorist incidentsunder the rug. The FBI has been frequently accused in thepress of deliberately mislabeling attempted terrorist attacks toimprove their statistics. My friends inside the Bureau blushinglyadmit that the accusation has merit.There is a similar inclination in law enforcement to label attackson Jews and their property as ordinary criminal mischiefrather than anti-Semitic incidents. Spray painting a swastika ona synagogue is only vandalism. You have to carve a swastika ontoa Jewish face before the police will concede that the knife attackmay possibly have had an anti-Semitic component.In my next article, I want to explore one of the most sensitivecases of law enforcement suppressing evidence of anti-Semitism.Germany has worked diligently to stamp out every vestige ofracism and keep Nazism from returning. Or so the world thought.An incendiary bomb failed to detonate properly and left ahouseful of evidence that incontrovertibly shows that the Nazisare back, in strength, and in secret league with a major Germanpolitical party. The new Nazis in Germany kill anyone, even policemenwho get in their way. The German equivalent of the FBI isunder investigation, but no one is daring to ask the most sensitivequestion of all:Who is funding the revival of the Nazi Party in Germany? I mayjust have the answer in my next “Spyview.” 16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 43

By Malka EisenbergNotA cartoonist delves into the world ofanti-Semitic cartoons44 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2011 // 16 TEVES, 5772

So FunnyThe wide-eyed character, tufts of hair surrounding hisbald head, is looking straight out of the frame of thecartoon, straight at the reader, as he speaks.First panel: Israel is the only country…Second panel: …where we have armed guards…Third panel: …to shoot people…Fourth panel: …to prevent them from committing suicide.Ouch.CARTOONIST AS COMEDIANTwenty-nine years ago, I sat in a room of young adults in Manhattanas Yaakov Kirschen, creator of the “Dry Bones” cartoon strip,enthralled the audience.One of his anecdotes is seared into my mind: he told a parable.“Do you know how to cook a lobster? They put them in a pot ofwater, put the cover on and turn on the heat. The lobster is thinking,‘Hey, this isn’t so bad, it’s warm.’ Then they think, ‘Hey it’s gettingwarmer, but it’s been warm before, it’ll cool down eventually,’and maybe they swim to the edge of the pot, thinking it might bebetter there, but it gets warmer and warmer and before they knowit they’re cooked.”He paused and then said, “And that’s how to cook a Jew: The anti-Semitism increases; you think it’ll get better. It was worse before,then it got better….”Ultimately, the goal is to cook the Jew.Fast forward to May 15, 2011. Kirschen is holding forth onceagain, this time in front of a jam-packed room of clearly ardent fans.He is a master of delivery and timing and his anecdotes and jokesnever fall flat, regaling the audience. Some laugh so hard that theycry.And yet Kirschen is not here for the humor; he is a man on a mission,with a two-pronged goal. He wants to both reveal the secretcodes he has discovered universally in anti-Semitic cartoons, andalso to jumpstart a broad-based grassroots organization to combatand eradicate what he terms the “virus” of anti-Semitism spread bythe messages in anti-Semitic cartoons.THE MAKING OF A CARTOONISTKirschen was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1938—as he says,“like Superman, and created by two Jews, like Superman.” He graduatedfrom Queens College with a degree in art in 1961, and wroteand drew humorous cards for a greeting card company. But afterbeing “dismissed for loudness and jocular attitude,” he worked freelancewriting funny cartoons for various magazines.He became involved with the anti-Vietnam War movement, butin 1971 he moved to Israel, changing his name from Jerry to Yaakov.He had been working in computers since 1961, and he concedesthat remaining in that field might have been a more lucrative careerchoice. But upon arriving in Israel, he realized that the country didnot have a cartoon that dealt with political and social commentary.He decided to fill the void.“I worked for days to get a good name,” he says, exasperatedly. “Irealized that something like “Dry Bones” was necessary.”The Jerusalem Post first published his comic strip on January 1,1973 and still continues to today.“Dry Bones” has been printed in the New York Times, Time, theLos Angeles Times, the London Sunday Times, Forbes, the Wall StreetJournal, and the Guardian, as well as being featured by the AssociatedPress news service, CBS, and CNN. Kirschen’s cartoons are wellknown for analyzing and satirizing Israeli politics, international relations,and current events. His comic strip is a regular feature in 40newspapers in North America alone.He and his wife (and ex-wife), three children, and eight grandchildrenstill live in Israel (although one is working for an Israelicompany in the States temporarily).When asked why he made aliyah, he answers with a story: “Oneday I was at the Kotel when it was coming to the end of Shabbat,and I heard behind me a minister talking to a group of Christians.They were asking questions and he was explaining. When theyasked what the stuff was that people were waving, I told them that itwas a spice for smelling at the end of Shabbat.“‘You sound like an American,’ he said.”Kirschen explained to him that he now lived in Israel.16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2011 // AMI MAGAZINE 45

“You put your hand overyour eyes if you know a badimage is coming; you don’twant to see bad images—they’ll be burnt into yourmind forever.”THE UNFUNNY SIDE OF CARTOONSFirst, the funny side:First panel: First tree—“Happy Tu B’Shvat!” Second tree—“Thankyou…”Second panel: Second tree—“and a happy Tu B’Shvat to you!”Third panel: First tree—“Thank you.”Fourth panel: Second tree, thinking—Funny, he doesn’t look Jewish.Cartoons have always had power. From the cartoons advocatingrebellion during the lead-up to the American Revolution, to ThomasNast’s cartoons targeting corruption in New York City in the late1800s, to the Danish cartoons on Islamic terrorism printed in 2005,political cartoons have entertained, informed, and inflamed passions.But cartoons have had a particularly sinister place in Jewish history.The role of cartoons in fomenting subsequent acts of violenceagainst Jews can’t be quantified—for example, those published byfollowers of Martin Luther, and the crude images printed in the NaziDer Sturmer. But they have certainly influenced ugly public opinion.Kirschen’s foray into the world of anti-Semitic cartoons beganwhen a cartoon targeting Christian Zionists surfaced and was beingbatted around between different Jewish organizations, includingCamera and StandWithUs, who were trying to determine what todo about it.“‘Dry Bones’ should do something about it—he’s a cartoonist,”they wrote.He received the long train of emails and was put in touch withCharles Small, the director of the Yale Initiative for the InterdisciplinaryStudy of Anti-Semitism (YIISA) and president and founderof the Institute for the Study of Global Anti-Semitism and Policy.Kirschen recalls that when he mentioned what his responsewould be to the offending cartoon, Small said, “I would like to makeyou a fellow.”“Which made me think that he thought I was a girl,” Kirschenquips.Kirschen is now an artist-in-residence at Yale University, requiringhim to do research and give a presentation once a semester. Aspart of YIISA, his role is to help understand political anti-Semitismin cartoons.Kirschen says, “I thought, ‘I’m Israeli, I’m a cartoonist, I’mJewish—it should be a snap!’” He also notes, “We all have the experienceof talking about Israel to people where you can’t get throughto them.”His course of action was to collect cartoons, categorize themand write a paper. Easy, he thought. But when he went on GoogleImages and searched Jewish cartoons, hundreds of anti-Semitic cartoonscame up. He downloaded over 500 and stopped; there weremore, but first he had to see how he would deal with this huge horrifyingcache.As we sit watching him, he projects on a screen some of what hehad then found in his initial search.One of the first images was a spider emblazoned with a Jewishstar from an 1890 cartoon. The Jewish star was not traditionally associatedwith Judaism until the 19th century, but was a kabbalistic/mystical symbol found in different cultures and religions, Kirschenpoints out. Most Jews used the menorah, a Cohen’s hands, and thetablets of the Ten Commandments as symbols in Jewish contexts.The star appears to have gained some traction in the Middle Agesbut was “popularized” as a Jewish symbol by the Nazis. Membersof the Warsaw Ghetto flew a flag emblazoned with the Jewish star.After World War II it was taken and converted to a symbol of pridein one’s Jewishness and used in decorations and jewelry.The 1890 cartoon shows a “Jewish” spider straddling the globe—a common anti-Semitic theme, that the Jews control the world.He then brings up on the screen a Nazi-era “Jewish” spider, onefrom the Soviet era, and one from Egypt from 2006.“You can see the anti-Semitism without even reading the text,”notes Kirschen, “and here’s one from our peace partners,” posting aPalestinian Authority “Jewish” spider. “It says that Jews are spiders.”46 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2011 // 16 TEVES, 5772

He then brings up a photo of a Polish woodcarving from 1900, ofa group of yarmulka–clad men sipping blood through straws froma slaughtered, bleeding child. “It says that Jews are blood drinkers.”He describes how he noticed recurring patterns and themesthroughout the more than 500 cartoons, and then isolated 34 differenttypes of images that cycle through them again and again. Hecalls these recurring themes “anti-Semitic image-codes.”He says that before the Holocaust, there were basically two aimsin the cartoons: stereotyping and dehumanizing. Stereotyping cartoonsillustrate Jews with big noses and sometimes chassidic garb,and show them as rich, ugly, and money-grubbing. Those cartoonsfeature themes that include blood spilling, media control, moneybags, money hunger, world domination, killing children in mothers’arms, and skulls.Dehumanizing cartoons can be subdivided into demonizing andzoomorphing illustrations. Demonizing cartoons include thosedrawn portraying Jews as demonic and satanic—with claws, horns,and a devouring mouth—and show them as blood-drinkers andbaby-eaters. Zoomorphing cartoons shows images of snakes, spiders,dogs, pigs, octopuses, vermin, vultures, and worms.The purpose of these cartoons, says Kirschen, is to spread thevirus of anti-Semitism by portraying non-Jews as an innocentpeople threatened by inhuman, powerful Jews.“This virus attached itself to mass movements,” he said. “TheNazis used this virus to spread anti-Semitism. When a dog getsrabies it bites as many as it can, transferring the virus to others. Thedisease takes over the brain of the host. The Nazis were a groupof people consumed with destroying the Jews. When it was donewith the Nazis the virus jumped to the Stalinists, then to the whitesupremacists, and now to the Islamists.”Kirschen notes that Muslims no longer talk of Allah or the needfor charity or the evils of charging interest, but are consumed withattacking the Jews. Hence the virus doubles back on its host, destroyingthe core of Islam itself.After World War II, a new type of cartoon became common.“Comes the Holocaust,” continues Kirschen, “and it shows thatthe Jews are pitiful victims. So the anti-Semites deny the Holocaust.”This led to another category, of moral-inversion codes, with Jewsbeing marked in cartoons as Nazis with swastikas and equating terroristsand Nazis with Jews and Israel, using images of death, skulls,and again the killing of children with their mothers.THE VIRUS“This is a virus,” he said of the anti-Semitic cartoons. He says thatthey are subliminal messages subtly entering the person’s consciousnessand infiltrating their brain. “We have cultural viruses, that’swhat memetics is. People who analyze social behavior call themsocial viruses. The virus jumps from one movement to another. It’snot a conscious choice.“When you see something you have no filter. When you read orhear something you have a filter. But if you don’t cover your eyes,once you see it, it gets stored in your mind. Communication thisway is very effective. Each cartoonist thinks he has a unique metaphorbut there are codes through the years, specific codes that livein the cartoons.“Judaism bans graven images because they are powerful and areburnt into everybody’s mind,” he says. “The eyes are directly connectedto the brain; you can’t block it. You put your hand over youreyes if you know a bad image is coming; you don’t want to see badimages—they’ll be burnt into your mind forever.”He illustrates with the famous photo of the little boy at gunpointfrom the Warsaw Ghetto. “Everybody recognizes this image,” hesaid. “You can’t forget it.” Then he brings a cartoon up on the screenthat turns the famous image on its head, with the victims as Arabs inGaza, the boy an Arab, the Nazi soldier a Jew, in essence saying thatthe Jews are Nazis.Kirschen hopes to use the classifications that he’s developed as“disease control, anti-virus, and as a diagnostic tool.”Another parable: “There is this wasp that catches an animal, stingsit, and paralyzes it, leaving it alive but unable to move. It depositsits eggs in the animal, and the eggs hatch, eating the animal alive.”He sees the current attacks emanating from the Muslim countriesas attacks against Western civilization, but he says that all thegroups are paralyzed and will be destroyed if we don’t do somethingabout it. “Islamism is wildly anti-female, but no women’s groupsare speaking up. They are anti-Christian, but the Christians are notspeaking up. They have been paralyzed by this virus. The goal ofthe virus is to take over society, not destroy the Jews. When Islam isfinished, another movement will take over.“In the Haggadah, we read the story of the Exodus and the miracles.But in the middle is a strange sentence: ‘In every generationthey rise to destroy us.’ It’s cyclical: It comes around every genera-“WiiJuvinating”our recreation departmentR. 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tion, like the flu, like a virus. Whatever the supposed ‘reason’ for theattacks, it’s cyclical. It’s actually good news. How could Jewish studentsbe in BDS [the anti-Israel boycott, divestment and sanctionsmovement]? Why don’t women’s groups speak up? It’s a virus.”AFTER THE SIX-DAY WARHe characterizes this moral inversion—of turning the Jews intoNazis and terrorists into helpless victims, this seemingly new formof graphic anti-Semitism—as a “post-’67 resistant strain.” He pointsout that the Arabs thought that they could destroy Israel with armsuntil 1967, but when Israel won the Six-Day War and the tableswere turned, the Arabs had to find a different angle.Up until then, he says, it was the Arab-Israeli conflict; afterwardsit became the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, changing the battle fromthe reality of 21 Muslim countries versus one Jewish country, to amyth of one entity versus one entity, from over 200 million Arabsversus 6 million Jews, to a claimed 6 million Palestinian Arabsagainst 6 million Israeli Jews. Kirschen notes that the geographyhas been “Photoshopped” away, that every Jewish organization noweven talks about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and not the Arab-Israeli conflict. He adds that even history has been “Photoshopped.”“Ask any college student why the Jewish State is called Israel,”he says. “Will he reply: Because 3,800 years ago, Jacob the son ofIsaac and grandson of Abraham had his name changed to Israel,went with his family to Egypt, and emerged a nation, received theTorah on Mount Sinai and went on as the nation of Israel to live inthe Land of Israel with a government, a judicial system, and twoTemples, and fought off many enemies over more than a thousandyears? And [will he continue that] two thousand years ago thenation was mostly exiled, leaving a remnant in the land, but thenation never gave up hope of returning, [even] through countlesspersecutions, pogroms, murder, torture and expulsions, to finallyreturn to its ancient ancestral homeland through the consent of aninternational consensus at the United Nations in 1948? For thosewho want to ‘Photoshop’ history, and erase the true history of theJewish people, says Kirschen, the story begins in 1948, when theEuropeans feel bad for what they did to the Jews and they take apiece of Arab land and give it to the Jews! This denies Israeli history;it changes the story completely.”MEDIA MATTERSFirst panel: First man—“Hard to believe, but it’s almost Rosh Hashanaagain….”Second panel: First man—“New clothes, family visits, festivemeals….”Third panel: First man—“I guess it’s a nice time for everybody.”Fourth panel: Silence.Fifth panel: Silence.Sixth panel: Second man—“Unless you happen to be a carp.”“I got a call from my syndicate and he asked me what I’m workingon. When I showed him the anti-Semitic codes he said, ‘Thisis wonderful! Can I use this? When I say to a cartoonist that theirwork is anti-Semitic they say, no, everybody in my country does it.And then I can say that we can’t use it. The 34 codes give us the abilityto stop this.’ We can use this material to stop this anti-Semitism.”He is a member of the National Cartoonists Society in the UnitedStates, and Kirschen says that his fellow cartoonists are not awarethat the material they are drawing is anti-Semitic. He says, “Myfriends and colleagues think they thought [these images] up. I knowthis is true. I know these guys.” He notes that he met Pat Oliphantin Jerusalem recently, noting that he pens “horrifyingly anti-Semiticcartoons. He thinks he’s telling the truth. He doesn’t think he himselfis an anti-Semite.“I know other cartoonists that are not anti-Semitic who haveproduced anti-Semitic cartoons. They are infected; they have nochoice.”He notes that the New York Times ran articles every day about the“brave rebels” in Libya. Yet the Times selectively printed photos ofthe protestors, not printing the ones with protestors holding signsof Qaddafi with horns, fangs, swastikas and Jewish stars. Kirschensays that the codes are motivating what’s happening in the “ArabSpring,” that they are against Western society and that everyone isinfected by this virus. “The people in this room are less infected.“All who value freedom and want to save their own society haveto come together in an organization,” he says.“I speak in humor and try to seduce people. The point of my cartoonsis to reach our enemies, and the moment they look at a cartoonand laugh, they see it from my point of view.” He has spokento members of other religions and to secular groups, warning themof this viral threat. “Your freedom and society are being threatened.You think the Jews are gonna save you—they didn’t speak up forJonathan Pollard!“We as Jews communicate with jokes,” he declares, and proceededto tell some jokes that weren’t exactly in keeping with theatmosphere of the Young Israel of Woodmere, but brought laughterfrom the audience anyway. “At every point we understand that we’reled by idiots. The idea is that we talk to each other in humor. Nowwe are facing a situation of the blooming of anti-Semitism in ourtime. We have to fight back and establish a grass-roots nonsectarianorganization. We have to organize through Facebook. It has to bemassive.”Kirschen is also attempting to reach the Chinese.“History is being rewritten to portray Israel as a colonial state builton the lands of the indigenous people, the Palestinian Arabs. Thiswillful erasing of 3,500 years of Israel’s history has not yet infectedthe 1.3 billion Chinese.”He’s writing digital books, with “Dry Bones” cartoons and Chineseletters, to try to reach a market that hasn’t yet been totally tapped byanti-Semitism, and to hit them with a little Jewish humor.EFFECTSFirst panel: Islamist—“We Islamists are not just a bunch of Jewhatingterrorist killers.”Second panel: Question from out of the panel—“You’re not?”Third panel: Islamist—“Of course not!”Fourth panel: Islamist—“We also murder Christians.”Has one of his “Dry Bones” cartoons ever affected politics? Herecounts that Jimmy Carter was planning to meet with MenachemBegin about the “occupied territories,” and the idea for a cartoon48 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2011 // 16 TEVES, 5772

about America’s own occupied territories presented itself.Kirschen went repeatedly to the United States Information Service(USIS) library to research the U.S. acquisition of California andTexas and the Louisiana Purchase.(The librarian sensed something was up. “Are you going to attackus?” he asked.)The cartoon that Kirschen ended up illustrating showed America’swithdrawal from the “occupied territories” to the original 13colonies, with Daniel Boone as one of the “crazy settlers.” The dayafter the cartoon ran, he got a call from the Prime Minister’s office.Begin went to meet Carter, he wanted to give a copy of the cartoonto him. Pause. Kirschen leaned into the microphone. “I thought thiswas a bad idea.” Pause. Laughter.“I told him somebody else was going to do it, and I called a rabbi,”who volunteered to present the cartoon to Carter.Carter signed the cartoon and wrote a small note. “Dear DryBones: This would make my job so much easier.” Long pause.Kirschen raises his right hand, as if he’s trying to answer a teacher’squestion. “If you ever wondered why Carter hates us so much….”When Kirschen embarked on his research, “I did not expect offind anything new,” he says. “I found something radically new. Itchanged my perception about things. Each cartoonist thinks he hasa unique metaphor, but there are codes that are the same throughthe years, specific codes that live in the cartoons.” He is travelingacross the U.S., trying to rally diverse groups to face and defeat thethreat against not only Jews and Israel, but against America andWestern civilization. “We’ve all got to form an umbrella organizationto defend Western civilization. It’s not a job just for Jews.” lThinking About Joining TTI?You Have Your Reasons…Wii CREATIVE / 732.415.8970Don’t MissRegistration!WOMEN’S PROGRAMBrooklyn: Montauk4200 16th Ave.Sunday, Jan. 29 @ 11:00 amMonday, Jan 30 @ 7:30 pmMEN’S PROGRAMBrooklyn: Bais Yaakov of 18th Ave.4419 18th Ave.Tuesday, Feb. 7 @ 7:30 pmTTI’s financial aidadvisors can help youearn a degree at littleor no cost!Here Are Ours…Quality Program:Bright Future:MASTERS INSpecialEducationEarn $33,000-$78,000 per year.Degrees Designedwith YOU in Mind877 RING-TTI x 1116 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2011 // AMI MAGAZINE 49

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BY YOSSI KRAUSZYossi Gestetner is the Yiddish Rush Limbaugh and Karl Rove,and a major community activist. And he’s still aiming up.

Close your eyes.Imagine a political pundit, the kind of person a news teamgoes to for analysis of a breaking news story, the kind of personwho is asked to write opinion pieces for newspapers, and whofields reporters’ questions.Have the picture in your mind?You forgot the payos.Pick up your phone. Punch in the number to the popular Yiddishnews hotline, Kol Mevaser. Type in the numbers that take youto political news. You’ll hear a youthful voice giving a rundownon the events of the day. He talks fast, and as you listen you beginto realize that he’s not just spinning out dry news. He’s giving ananalysis, gauging a candidate’s chances, and giving a forecast onan upcoming election. (On a recent call, I heard his disembodiedvoice quickly sum up why Mitt Romney should not be seen as theshoo-in for the Republican nomination for president.)The voice belongs to Yossi Gestetner, a 26-year-old media consultantand journalist. Yossi has quite a following in the Jewishworld. Besides his daily political and business commentary onKol Mevaser, he also writes for various Jewish publications andhe comments for the Jewish media. He had a regular column inthe Yiddish weekly Der Blatt for six years, and he often has opinionpieces on Jewish websites.That all makes sense for a chassid with impressive, long payosand a long frock coat, right?But Yossi Gestetner, despite appearances, is more than a fixturein Jewish or Yiddish media. Despite his apparently parochialappearance and youth, Gestetner regularly appears in the mainstreammedia. He’s been featured in news broadcasts on numerousoccasions, giving reporters some insight into the chassidicworld. He has been quoted by news sources ranging from TheWashington Post, to the New York Daily News, to Politico. And hehas written commentary and op-eds on American politics forThe Huffington Post and American Thinker.He combines the political voice of a pundit with a strong advocacyon behalf of the chassidic and chareidi world, making opinionsand defending his people at the same time.There was a time when he floated an idea that would havebeen revolutionary: running for Congress. And he hasn’tstopped thinking big.How did a nice chassidic yeshiva bochur turn into this powerhouse?The answer is one word: Drive.“I say that I’m the son of an African-American,” Yossi jokes.His father was born in Morocco; his grandparents had movedthere from Hungary before the Holocaust. His mother’s familywas originally from Vienna, but moved to England.Yossi’s parents divorced when he was about two years old, andhe describes a childhood that involved a certain amount of deprivation,in both a familial and monetary sense. Although therewere people who helped him throughout his life, and his parentstook care of him, “Still, there was something missing,” he says.Paradoxically, he sees this as part of his success. No one else wasgoing to take charge of his life if he didn’t do it himself.“I think a tough upbringing has downsides, in that maybe youdon’t have good enough coaching, or enough confidence. But ifa person gets thrown into the water when he’s young, he doesn’thave any other option than to grow up fast and take things intohis own hands.”His political interests began young: “I was opinionated fromearly on.” As a bar-mitzvah bochur, he began sending letters tonewspapers of all kinds, and he found that they would publishwhat he wrote. He kept that up through yeshiva; he was a diligentstudent and would do his writing bain hazmanim. Eventually,at 19 years old, he was hired to write a current eventscolumn in Der Blatt, which he wrote under a pen name until the52 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

middle of this year.It takes a strong dose of initiative to become a columnist at that age, butYossi’s drive extended beyond the Yiddish-speaking world. And now as a marriedyungerman with a young son, he’s gone much further.His yeshiva did not confer a high school diploma, something that is true ofmany chassidic yeshivas. So, rather than spending his bain hazmanim relaxingor killing time, he took the GED exam so he could have a diploma. Later,he attended writing classes at Rockland Community College, where he founda classroom setting that conformed to his standards of tznius. Then he tookfurther writing and public relations classes in an online university, spendingthousands of dollars to polish his style. All along the way he has remained afaithful talmid of the Viener Rav.“Do I have a B.A. in such-and-such? No, and I didn’t fool around taking drugsin college.” But he worked hard to get an education that would give him thepractical skills he needed to dive into the world of influencing public opinion.Part of education, though, he says, comes from simple experience. His naturaltalent for gauging and affecting public opinion helped get him jobs and connectionsto political campaigns and corporate enterprises, and he says that eachnew experience added a bit of knowledge.Jews love getting things for free, don’t we? We’ve got a great deal in YossiGestetner.Yossi works for clients in the corporate, charitable, and political world. ButPARSHASSHEMOS5772כוֹלֹל חצותניו יארֱק יע"אKollel Chatzos succeeds whenthe experts have failedWe at Kollel Chatzos are accustomed to themyriad of calls that come into our office at allhours of the day. Calls begging for a z'chustobe partnered in our Kollel, calls celebratingyeshuos, and calls thanking us for givingthem the z'chus of being part of ourwonderful work.On Thursday, Parshas Mikeitz, our officereceived a call from a desperate mother. "Mydaughter is encountering severe kriahdifficulties in school," she related, "She wasdiagnosed with an eye disorder that preventsher from reading the words properly. "Wehave spent innumerable amounts of moneyand toil on countless professionals, but weare yet to see any tangible results," She saidwith a deep sigh. "My husband read the Storyof the Tzaddik R' Tzvi Hirsch of Zidichov,who was zoche to have his eyes and mindopen to Torah in the zchus of awakening atChatzos in your leaflet, and he decided thatwe wish to be partners in Kollel Chatzos, sothat we, too, can have the zchusof awakeningat chatzos, and hopefully be zoche to ayeshuah".She proceeded to give her information andthe name of the child, so that the tirelessTalmidei Chachomim of the Kollel shoulddaven for the child while they learn, andpronounce her name at the mi shebeirachwhich is said every Monday and Thursday forall the Kollel's "partners".This past Wednesday, Zos Chanukkah, wereceived an ecstatic phone call from thismother. "I must inform you", she exclaimed,"My daughter's kriah has improveddrastically since the day I became a partnerin your wonderful institution, her teachersare extremely pleased with the progress she isshowing and they expect her to be able toparticipate regularly in the near future; I ampositive that it is due to our partnership inKollel Chatzos that we were zocheto suchdelightful results".Tzaddikim of previous generations have allpromised phenomenal yeshuos for all hosewho awaken at chatzos to learn, and to thosewho support them.To become a partner, to have a name mentionedduring the special Tefillos conducted during learningby the Kollel Members, or to acquire the z’chusof shmiras hatoah baleilah for a vachnachtCall 24 Hours A Day1 855 CHATZOS2 4 2 - 8 9 6 7

he doesn’t limit his work tothose who pay.For example, there is a localTV station in Rockland Countywhich ran a story on expandingJewish communities in the area.The story was about the conflictbetween the chassidim and thenon-religious or non-Jewishpeople, who felt that the Orthodoxexpansion was impingingon their quality of life. At first,the reporter attempts to interviewchassidim at a local yeshivaand other institutions, but is rebuffedby all of them.Finally, there is someoneready to talk. The camera movesindoors, to Yossi Gestetner’sdining room, showing Yossi ashe launches into an eloquentdefense of the local communities.Those communities hadn’thired him for their defense; hehad stepped in.Similarly, during a NewSquare mishap, once again,Yossi defended the Jewish community.In that case he was also quoted widely in the media.Who appointed him the frum community’s spokesperson? you mayask.“When I appear on television, you’ll never see ‘Spokesman forKlal Yisrael’ under my name. It will say ‘News Analyst’ or ‘PublicRelations Strategist.’ Who am I to speak for Klal Yisrael? I don’trepresent anyone; I just give my perspective.”But in these cases his intention was to defend the broad Jewishcommunity against prejudicial criticism, not to work for a specificclient. And he’s quick to point out that not every partywould necessarily feel that he was defending them.“Look at how I am quoted in the newspapers about some incidents.I’m sure that there are some people who are unhappy. ButI am trying to defend chassidic Jews in general, not necessarilyone group.”Yossi has worked on issues knowing that there are thosewho will criticize him and his efforts. He did so because he believedin the cause. He spearheaded the media blitz on behalf ofMartin Grossman, a Jewish manwho was scheduled to be executedin February 2010. Tensof thousands of Jews, as wellas anti-capital punishment figures,made appeals to Florida’sthen-Governor Charlie Crist inperson, by phone, or by email,for Grossman’s execution to bestayed. The international appealwas due in large part to the extensivemedia drive that Yossiput in place. Despite the pressure,Grossman was executed.“There are those who wouldargue with our campaign. Butif you look at the full context ofthe story, there is indeed precedentto say that Grossmanshould have not been placed ondeath row in the first place.”He has also pushed hard forSholom Rubashkin, even beforeit became fashionable to do so,and he used his media skills toframe the Rubashkin case.“The name ‘Klal Yisrael Fund’was my idea,” he says. “Otherswere trying to figure out some name that would have ‘Sholom’ init; I said that ‘Klal Yisrael’ would be the best.”To advance the causes that he fights for, Yossi uses the methodsthat he thinks he needs, but he admits that they can be extremeat times.“I can say that I’ve pushed the envelope when using certainterms, like ‘anti-Semite,’ about certain people. I didn’t takepeople on a ride. I took the facts and sharpened them up at theedges. I didn’t take someone who has had a great record of helpingKlal Yisrael, and go out to write articles saying that he is acriminal.”Even his work for businesses has the goal of helping the communitylying behind it. “I’m trying to help increase the valueof the chassidic community in any way that I can, whether it ispolitically or economically.”He sees publicity-seeking as something that is not necessarilya negative thing.“The same way I make sure that I look presentable when I get54 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

up in the morning, I need to make sure that I look presentable in the publicarena, as well.”The curl of the payos and the spin of the story make the man.Jews speak with their hands. Judging by the time we spent in the interview,Yossi Gestetner is a super Jew.His hands are part of his expressiveness. During the photo shoot for this article,we ask him to stand still with his hands by his side, even as we continuethe conversation about his work.“I can’t talk without my hands,” he complains, good-naturedly.The fact that he’s so vibrant in person makes even more remarkable his abilityto convince through articles and phone commentaries. He handily translatesthat intense in-person passion into influence that can be constrained bywords alone. No hands, Ma.The work that Yossi does for his political and corporate clients chips intopublic opinion. One successful campaign that he worked on was on Joe Dio-Guardi’s fight for one of the New York seats in the U.S. Senate.“It was definitely an uphill battle,” says Yossi. “He was in a three-way race forthe Republican nomination. He didn’t even get enough delegates at the conventionto get on the ballot. He needed to fight his way onto the ballot throughpetitions.“I worked for him for quite a few months to get him name recognition. Hewon the statewide Republican campaign by 17,000 votes. Not once did any ofthe ads that ran in the Jewish papers, or the op-eds or the news stories, havea negative story against his Republican opponents or against his Democratopponent, Senator Gillibrand, to whom he eventually lost in the general election.”Yossi claims that he uses subtle methods to recast the conversation about hisclients. “Image enhancing and perception restructuring” is how he describeshis work.The very best in finephotography and videoThe influence he wields through his media work is not only for clients. Heis a strong supporter of informed political decisions, and he has a strong conservativebent. His commentary on Kol Hamevaser, where he delivers his news/commentary, has probably influenced thousands of listeners. He maintains awebsite with news and commentary. And he has 5,000 followers on Twitter,despite only following five people himself.(Just to explain for those people not initiated into Twitter, “following someone”means to receive an update of their small electronic comments knownas “tweets.” Following someone will often cause someone to reciprocate andfollow you; to gain 5,000 followers while only following five people meansthat people know who you are and want to hear what you have to say.)Part of what he sends out to his listeners and followers is political analysis,including political prognostication. He claims an eighty percent accuracyrate, and points to tweets about the current Republican campaign (For example“Bachmann will prob fall behind in fundraising compared to Romney and#Perry2012, thus undo her campaign. #GOP2012,” made right after her surge,or “The Cain Train will derail itself with such a force that it ain’t funny. Em, maybeit will be funny... #GOP2012,” made the first week of Cain’s rise) as proof of hisability to look ahead.He wrote an article describing the Republicans’ failure to pick up OrthodoxJewish votes to move swing states three months before the special election forNew York Congressional District 9, which he pointed out was open to influ-www.mendelmeyers.com718.232.8466 | 516.568.4284201.862.0288

ence by Orthodox Jews.While Yossi didn’t work on Bob Turner’s campaign, Turnerhad already read and communicated with Yossi about the articlebefore he was chosen by the Republican Party to run for theseat left by Anthony Weiner. In addition, many New York-basedpolitical reporters linked and “tweeted” the article, becauseit clearly explained the potential importance of the OrthodoxJewish vote.Turner went on to win the seat, with the help of the OrthodoxJewish community.At the same time, Yossi’s quite open about what he’s gottenwrong.“There are always things that can’t be controlled or predicted.”(Among them, Yossi took a public 3–1 bet that Turner wouldlose….)Yossi describes himself as an independent conservative, andit’s that philosophy that he sends out to those who listen to him.“If you look at the Torah, when it comes to a range of issuesfrom helping the poor to modesty, it fits with conservatism. Peoplethink that it fits with liberalism, but that’s wrong. The idea of aflat tax, of azov taazov imo [referring to the rabbinic interpretationthat you only need to help a man whois working along with those helpinghim], and of helping peopleto grow in business—this isproper according to the Torah.“What did Yosef do inMitzrayim? He didn’t justhand out welfare checks,money. First he said,‘Give me your fields.’They ran out of fields.He didn’t say, I’’ll sendyou a WIC check.’ Hesaid, ‘I have a goodidea. I’ll give you theseeds, you work, and then give me twenty percent: a flat tax foreveryone, rich or poor.’“Modesty is self-understood. Defense—haba l’hargecha, hashkaiml’hargo techila [if someone comes to kill you, get up and killhim first].“People can always ask, Yossi, I don’t understand. You grew upin a poor house, and you had all these programs, so you have tobe a liberal. Just the opposite. Because I grew up in a householdthat was so connected to the way that the Democrats have transformedthis country over the last 40 years, I know that manypeople in the younger generation have decided that it isn’t workingfor them.”Yossi admires several figures in the conservative movement.He has read a great deal about Karl Rove, and he is very fond ofRush Limbaugh.He jokes, “My mother hates Rush Limbaugh. That’s probablywhy I like him.”But he develops his own opinions, independent of the talkingheads to the right. He supported Barack Obama at the verybeginning of his candidacy for president, although he soonchanged his mind.“The story looked very good. I was fooled, as many peoplewere.”He sees the general rightward move in the frum community asbeing more about economics than about social issues.“I think that now it’s a silent crisis. Our parents are growingolder, and they’re losing their jobs. They don’t have anything putaway, and they’re not even getting a lot of Social Security, becausethey’ve only earned a little bit. They’re at a loss.“People think, yeah, Medicare is going to cover me. Mostpeople won’t have to spend $10,000 a year in the hospital, evenif they are 65. But they may have a few thousand dollars worthof prescriptions a year. They’re going to have to foot 25, 50, 75percent of this bill, depending on their expenditures, even afterObamaCare.“They led their households all these years based on this greatDemocrat fantasy of being helped by the government, withoutthe hope of earning money like a human being or putting awaymoney. So many of our parents have no money, and don’t evenhave the money to marry off their children. So other people haveto come in to pay for their weddings, or they stiff people withthe bills.“It’s not my line: The day that the number of poor people inthe U.S. goes down, the Democrats will start losing more elections;the day that more people are successful in the U.S., theRepublicans will have more voters. So the Democrats have tokeep us poor so that we’ll keep voting for them.“But people are starting to learn that the Republicans arenot opposed to helping the poor. They just want to help thembecome self-sufficient.”At the same time, Yossi says that he understands the drawfor a person who generally supports the Republican agendato work for someone on the other side of the aisle.“Dick Morris went to work for Bill Clinton, and Iunderstand why. There is a challenge in working for47 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

someone with whom you disagree 80 percent of the time. People have to remember,nothing in politics is personal, even if it looks like it. They’re doinga job.“But to get Jews to vote for Republicans is where you need the strategy. Itdoesn’t take strategy to get Jews to vote for Democrats.”The man needs a challenge, it seems.Yossi says that he pays a great deal of money to employ a couple of consultantsto advise him. Why would a consultant hire consultants?“In specific areas that I am expert in, such as in public opinion, perception,and brand-building, they have less knowledge than I have. But I know thatthey know more than me in other areas that are important for business.“Rabbi Yoel Moshe Shtein, who is the author of several sefarim, understandsmy personal weaknesses and strengths and knows how I should approach aproject; Chaim Hullender from PillarStone Group understands many aspectsof many industries; and I, baruch Hashem, understand the images and ideasthat people like and respond to best.”He says that many in the Jewish community don’t realize the importance ofhiring other people to consult with—something that is sometimes frustratingin his line of work.“People think to themselves, ‘We’re smart. What can someone else tell meabout my business?’ They don’t realize that while they may indeed be greatbakers or insurance brokers, others have greater expertise in certain areas ofbusiness which are needed for them to succeed, and therefore people need tobe hired to help them.”Yossi says, “I can say this with bak tzein [wholeheartedly], because I see thatmuch of my success is directly due to being taught and trained by others whohave expertise that I don’t have and may never have.”A 26-year-old chassid who is shooting for the top of the media heap?There’s got to be some major ambition there.“I believe everybody has a shot at success. That’s why I never turn down aclient. That’s why I try to get my written pieces in places that a yungerman myage would probably never try.”In early 2010, Yossi considered challenging Democrat Representative EliotEngel for the 17th congressional district in New York State. (He has lived inMonsey, located in the 17th, all his life.) He eventually dropped the idea. Hesays that people didn’t understand that many well-known politicians startedoff in their political careers rather abruptly. He points to President Obama’smeteoric rise.Is Yossi considering even higher office, then? The first president of the U.S.in a streimel?He’s not shooting for president right now. But, at the end of the interview,he does let his guard down about his most ambitious dreams.He’d like to become a regular commentator for a national media outlet.“Or,” and he says this with a mischievous grin, “Imagine if there was apress secretary, representing the President of the United States, standing at thepodium and wrangling with reporters, who had payos? Maybe he would havestarted out with a difficulty expressing himself in English, but now he wouldbe up there, speaking for the President.”He smiles.One word.Drive.

Moshe L. LaxThe Emotional MindSadness vs. Depressionin Chassidic ThoughtWHERE IS THE DIVIDING LINE?Few luminaries, particularly in modernJewish history, have made as profounda contribution to our spiritual heritageas Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812), the founder of the Lubavitcherchassidic group.His works embrace the entire spectrum of Jewishthought—mysticism, philosophy, psychology,ethics, and law—and represent an expression oftheological creative genius.For 20 years, he labored on his magnum opus,Tanya, in which he outlined the Chabad philosophyand ethos, finally publishing it in 1796. To some heis simply known as the Baal Hatanya [the author ofthe Tanya].In chapter 31 he writes, using kabbalistic terms, the following:Even if by prolonging the deep concentration on the aforementionedmatters for an hour or two in order to acquire a humble spirit anda contrite heart the individual will lapse into a profound dejection,he should not worry. For although sadness stems from the realm ofkelipat nogah (evil that can be redeemed) and not from that of holiness,since in regard to holiness it is written, “Strength and gladness arein His place” (Divrei Hayamim I 16:27), and “The Divine Presence(Shechina) abides only in joy...as is the case also in the study of thelaw” (Shabbat 30b), and so on, except that if the sadness comes fromreflections about celestial [i.e., spiritual] things, it is derived from therealm of goodness that is in nogah (Hence Rabbi Isaac Luria, of blessedmemory, wrote that even worry about sins is only fitting during confessionbut not during prayer and Torah study, which should be conductedwith joy derived from the side of holiness, exclusively)—Nevertheless, the method of subduing the sitra achra (other side)is on the latter’s own ground, as the Rabbis of blessed memory havesaid, “From the forest itself is taken the axe wherewith to fell it” (compareSanhedrin 39b), and “He met his equal” (Shabbat 121b). Withregard to this it is written, “In all sadness there is profit” (Mishlei14:23), the profit being the joy that follows the sadness, as will beexplained later.In truth, however, a contrite heart and the bitterness of the soulbecause of its remoteness from the light of the Divine countenance andits being clothed in the sitra achra are not called atzvus (dejection) inthe sacred tongue, for atzvus implies that the heart isdull like a stone and is devoid of vitality. But in the case ofmerirus (bitterness) and a broken heart, the contrary issurely true—there is vitality in the heart fermenting agitationand bitterness, except that this vitality stems fromthe attribute of the holy gevuros (severity), whereas joycomes from the attribute of chasadim (kindness), for theheart is comprised of them both.Thus it is sometimes necessary to awaken the attributeof the holy gevuros in order to ameliorate the sternjudgments, arising from the animal soul and evil nature,when triumphing, Heaven forfend, over man. For thestern judgments can be sweetened only at their source.Therefore the Rabbis, of blessed memory, said that “aperson should always excite the good nature” (Berachot 5a), thatis, whenever he perceives in his soul that he is in need of it. But thepropitious time, which is the time specifically fitting for the majorityof people, is when one is in any case troubled by mundane worries,or, simply, without apparent cause. Then is the appropriate time totransform the sadness by becoming one of those “Masters of account”mentioned earlier and to act on the counsel of the Rabbis “constantlyto excite,” and so on, as has been mentioned above. Thereby will he ridhimself of the dejection occasioned by mundane affairs. [Translation:Kehot Publishing]The Baal Hatanya seems to differentiate in the realm of spiritualitybetween an unhealthy sadness (atzvus) and a healthy sadness(merirus), the latter of which is not damaging if dealt with correctly,and also could actually lead to the ultimate joy and purityin spiritual life.What the Tanya calls bitterness (merirus) might best be interpretedin modern language as sorrow accompanied by theemotionally healthy commitment to act accordingly to repair thecause of that feeling.This approach seems to be echoed by the words of the famouspsychiatrist Carl Jung:Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and theword “happy” would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.It is far better take things as they come along, with patience andequanimity. To be continued....58 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

myword!ASHER V. FINNEach week, “My Word!”—penned by the esteemed president of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty toEnglish—highlights often-misused or misspelled phrases or words, common grammatical challenges, unusualexpressions, or neologisms. Or it just calls attention to curious or interesting locutions.So, if you want to learn some new things about English—or are already expert in the language and want toprove it to yourself—you’ve come to the right place.A Heimisheh HodgepodgeI be aksin’ you a question!”Some people find such urbanspeech endearing. I suppose ifa baby babbled those words as“Yo!his first ones, it might be cute(although personally I’d find it rather scary).Most of us, however, are amused (if we’re goodnatured)or annoyed (if we’re not) to hear English patois(pronounced “pahtWAH,” and meaning a substandarddialect of a language; it’s borrowed from French, whereits root means “to handle clumsily”).Yet many of us Yiddish speakers don’t realize that whenspeaking English we have language quirks of our own—some of them artifacts of our mamaloshon, others ofinscrutable origin—that we sometimes inflict on others.Take the word “by.” It’s a wonderful one, with manymeanings. It can mean “close” or “next to”; it can mean“through the means of”; it can mean “beyond”; it canmean “in the vicinity”; and it can mean “during.” But itdoes NOT mean “with” or “at.”And so, one can lay one’s lulav by one’s esrog; one cantravel to Monsey by bus; one can pay for a falafel bycredit card; one can drive by the shul; and one can learnTorah by night. But one cannot “stay by” one’s shver andshvigger. Or “daven by” the Purple Shul.Another common frum-world misusage involves electriclights or appliances. Many otherwise normal Jewishpeople seem to think that one opens and closes them.One does no such thing. One can open or close a dooror a drawer, even a deal. But one turns on and off, notopens and closes, a light or an appliance. Subject closed.Veiter: One can come with someone, but not just comewith. So “I’m coming!” is fine but “I’m coming with” isnot. Neither, by the way, is putting a “but” in the wrongplace, like at the end of a sentence. So no “I’ll be theresoon. I have to put my sheitel on but.” No ifs ands orbuts about it.Then there’s which/that/who. It’s really not hard:“Who” refers to people; “which” and “that,” to things.So “the guy that coughed without covering his mouth”is wrong (both the sentence and the guy). The guy’s ahe and deserves a “who.”When to use “which” and when “that” is a little complicated.But a good rule of thumb is that “which” isright when a comma would be placed after the wordpreceding it. So, “I ate all the cholent that was in the pot”is proper, while “I ate all the cholent which was in thepot” is not—unless the listener or reader didn’t knowwhere the cholent was (say he thought it was in the sinkor lying in a mound on the counter) and you wantedto inform him of both your gluttony and the cholent’slocation. Then, in writing, you would place a commaafter “cholent,” and properly use “which.” You would besaying: “I ate all the cholent, which was (can you imagine?)in the pot.”The Tums, by the way, are in the medicine cabinet. 16 TEVES, 5771 // JANUARY 11, 2011 // AMI MAGAZINE 59

Addiction andSubstance AbuseWHAT IS THE ROLE OF THE RABBI?Rabbis are not doctors; rabbisare not therapists. And yet,rabbis are asked to givetheir view on any number ofhighly specialized areas, andcalled upon to give advice to individualsstruggling with problems in these areas. Inthis column, we have often spoken aboutthe need for rabbis to acknowledge, andstay within, their province and field ofexpertise; the fact that something comesacross one’s desk does not necessarilymake the owner of that desk the right manfor the job. However, there is little doubtas to the importance of getting a Torah perspectiveon serious issues and problems;all the more so when it comes to existentialones such as addiction.One of the main litmus tests of addictionis an individual’s ability to prioritize;sadly, many addicts place their need forwhatever it is they are addicted to abovetheir families and professional responsibilities.This often brings the familymembers (not the addict, who may bein denial) to seek out someone to talk to.A rabbi is a common choice, and he canhelp guide them to the appropriate professionals.It is not, however, the addictionspecialist’s job to discuss the Torah’s hashkafaduring counseling sessions, and mayeven be inappropriate.In fact, an important debate is takingplace right now among leading poskimand mental health professionals. Thereare different schools of thought. Oneschool insists that a frum therapistis obligated to rebuke his client andguide him in the right direction whenthe client is engaged in acts that areclearly forbidden. The other school ofthought holds that this is not onlycontrary to professional standards,but counterproductive as well.Aside from the fear that rebukingthe client would cause himto clam up and no longer view thetherapist’s office as a “safe zone,” itcould also severely curtail the professional’sability to help others in thefuture.A rabbi, as mentioned, is in thereverse position: he can and mustshare the Torah’s perspective oncomplex issues like addiction, yethe must simultaneously tread very carefully,lest he venture outside his area ofexpertise.What is the Torah perspective on addiction?The Gemara in Pesachim (113a) tellsus, in the name of Rav Chiya, that oneshould stay away from drugs, and theRashbam gives two reasons: so as not tobecome addicted to the point of having torob people for money, and because eventhe most therapeutic drug in the worldmay be good for one part of the body andharmful to another, as there is no suchthing as a perfect drug.One of the most powerful statementsabout addiction was written by RavDessler (Michtav Me’Eliyahu, Volume 1,page 79): “I intuit and it is intellectuallycertain to me, for example, that smokingcigarettes is bad for my health…nevertheless,I go ahead and (continue to) smoke.Why is this? Clearly an emotional attachmentcannot be overridden by that whichI know rationally.”Once, while still in Gateshead, RavDessler (whose yahrtzeit is this month, the25th of Teves) put up a sign on his officedoor that he had officially quit smoking.He explained that he was testing himselfto see which temptation is greater: hisdesire to continue smoking, or his desireto be seen as a man of truth!Being a former smoker myself, I canrelate to the following words of RavShach: “When I used to smoke I thoughtI could never understand a Tosafos withouta cigarette; now that I’ve quit, I do notknow how I ever managed to learn with acigarette!”

BY RABBI MOSHE TAUBRav Hirsch was at one time so addictedto snuff that, before retiring to bed one evening,he caught himself placing his snuffbox under his pillow in case he wanted apinch in the middle of the night. Shockedat the power his habit had over him hequit that night, never to touch it again.Back in 1973 Rav Moshe Feinstein wasmade aware that some frum teenagers wereexperimenting with marijuana. Aside fromthe very real issue of dina d’malchusa dina(the law of the land is the law)—which RavMoshe, peculiarly, ignores, perhaps due tothe correct assumption that it would eventuallybe legalized in many places—hewrites in Igros Moshe Y.D., Volume III, #35,no less than seven reasons for its prohibitedstatus; this, although marijuana maynot even be an addictive substance. (Thisis a subject of ongoing debate. Accordingto the National Institutes of Health, “Longtermmarijuana use can lead to addiction;that is, people have difficulty controllingtheir drug use and cannot stop eventhough it interferes with many aspects oftheir lives. It is estimated that nine percentof people who use marijuana will becomedependent on it.”)All the more so would his reasons applyto harder drugs. (His reasons range fromkibbud av, to kedoshim tih’yu [be holy], toincreasing one’s taiva [craving], makingthis particular responsum very difficult tounderstand from a purely halachic standpoint;see Darchei Teshuvah Siman 116:109and Shu”t Ksav Sofer Y.D., #77, regardingthe difference between a psak halacha anda psak hashkafa). Rav Moshe ends this teshuvaby imploring that we work to keepyeshiva students away from such vices.What about alcohol?Over the years, many organizations havebegun to crack down on alcohol abusein religious settings, especially by youngpeople on Purim (see Rambam Hilchos YomTov 6:21 for such precedents). Many in ourcommunity have met this with a touch ofcynicism, as they hold the mistaken beliefthat Yiddishkeit doesn’t subscribe to such anegative view of alcohol. While there are,indeed, many statements in the Torah andChazal that refer to the positive aspects ofalcohol, they pale in comparison to thenumber of statements against it. This issimilar to the current medical view that,in the right setting, small but regular alcoholconsumption can be beneficial, yet itcan also hold great potential for abuse. InTalmudic parlance, there is a differencebetween a shasuy (drinker) and a shikkar(one who is drunk); see Eruvin 64a.So while the Gemara teaches (Eruvin65) that “Wine was created so as to consolemourners,” the Midrash in BereishisRabba (36:4) teaches that “[wine] causedexile and will continue [to do so] in futuregenerations.” Similarly, “Wine gladdensthe heart of man” (Tehillim 104), and “Donot drink, for its end is blood.” (BamidbarRabba) Summing the Torah view upneatly: “Eight things are harmful in abundanceand beneficial in moderation…wine.” (Gittin 70a)The Midrash Tanchuma (Shemini 11)relates the story of a son who slowlyweaned his drunken father off his dependenceon alcohol. When he felt it was safeto let his father out of the house they wentfor a walk, and came upon an old drinkingbuddy of his father’s. The friend waslying in his own filth in the road, laughingto himself. Hoping that his father wouldnow see the loss of dignity associated withdrunkenness, the son pointed him out tohis father. However, the father ran over tohis old friend and whispered into his ear,“Where did you find such good wine?”Based on the above Tanchuma and EstherRabba (5:1), the Gra interprets the versein Mishlei (23:35), “They struck me and Idid not become ill,” as symbolic of an alcoholicwho becomes oblivious to alcohol’snegative effects and even claims that hisaddiction is virtuous—a sort of Stockholmsyndrome. (See Artscroll’s Esther Rabba, adloc., footnote 28 and Insights A, for furtherelaboration.)For a wonderful treatment of this topic,and on addiction in general, see Judaismand Psychology by Moshe HaLevi Spero,Ktav Publishing, Yeshiva University Press,1980, pages 120-141.It has been argued that Orthodox Jewsseem to have a lower rate of alcohol abuseA rabbi can and must share the Torah’s perspectiveon issues like addiction, yet he must simultaneouslytread very carefully lest he venture outside his area ofexpertise.in proportion to its drinkers than manyother groups. If true, this is due to ourbeing grounded in alcohol’s reality, notbecause of our denial of it (see AmericanSociological Review, 1980, Volume 45, “HowJews Avoid Alcohol Problems,” pages 647-664; Time Magazine, “Jews and Alcohol,”March 17, 1958; The Daily Beast, “Passthe Manischewitz, Please,” August 2008;and The New Yorker, “Drinking Games,” byMalcolm Gladwell, February 2010.)It states in Shir HaShirim (1:2), “ForYour love is better than wine.” Wine canbe wonderful, but it should not comebetween us and the love of our familiesand Hakadosh Baruch Hu. Rabbi Moshe Taub has served as therabbi of the Young Israel of Greater Buffalosince September 2003, and also serves asthe rav hamachshir of the Buffalo VaadHaKashrut.16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 61

LAST WEEK we saw the Principal back in Mesivta Torah Vodaath.THIS WEEK we see him once again at the Satmar Rebbe’s side.Between AcceptableDemonstrations and UnacceptableSensationalismWHERE THE SATMAR REBBE DREW THE LINEAbout 1,000 frum men gatheredin Jerusalem’s KikarShabbos (Sabbath Square) aweek and a half ago to protestincitement against thechareidi community by Israeli secularists.The protesters also expressed their solidaritywith Shmuel Weissfish, who was slatedto begin his two-year prison sentence thenext day for allegedly vandalizing a computerstore in the same Kikar Shabbos.Some of the protesters were wearingconcentration camp uniforms and yellowStars of David with the word “Jude” onthem. They meant to convey that theIsraeli government is persecuting themfor their Jewishness, similar to the way theJews were persecuted by the Nazis.The protesters also brought along youngchildren and instructed them to raise theirarms when photographers approached, soas to resemble the iconic image of a youngJewish boy persecuted by Nazis in theWarsaw Ghetto.Reaction around the world was for themost part swift and harsh, especially fromHolocaust survivors. Many stated thatthere are no words to express the agonythey felt seeing these images. Most regrettably,I must agree, as I felt the same way.I was hurt and pained that Orthodoxpeople were abusing the memory of theHolocaust. I’m not stating this as an officialspokesperson for Satmar. I’m merelyexpressing my misgivings as a private indi-Protesting forced autopsiesin Israel. From left to right,Bobover Rebbe Rav Naftali TzviHalberstam, Rav Nosson YosefMeisels, Nitra Rav, Beirach Moshe.Back row, unknown, Rabbi HertzFrankel, Gabbai Moshe Friedman, Satmar Rebbe Rav AharonTeitelbaum at lectern.vidual who has helped the Rebbe organizecountless protests against objectionablepolicies of the State of Israel.While most commentators deemed theprotest to have been a horrendous chilulHashem, some have regarded it a kiddushHashem. Whether it was a chilul Hashem ora kiddush Hashem is not for me to judge.Those are halachic terms, and it wouldrequire a halachic expert to determineunder what category the actions of thisgroup falls. All I know is that what they’vedone is despicable. That is not the way theSatmar Rebbe believed that one shouldconduct a protest.I was at the forefront of many demonstrationsand protests challenging the Stateof Israel. These mass demonstrations were62 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

BY RABBI HERTZ FRANKELcalled by the Rebbe to express OrthodoxJewry’s objections to the anti-Orthodoxdecrees and actions of the Israeli government.I felt then, and still feel today, theabsolute justification for these demonstrations.The chareidi community has beenharassed by the secular Zionist governmentsince the foundation of the state.Israel has been insensitive and openlyhostile to our religious feelings and needs.We’ve had the right, indeed the obligation,to demonstrate. However, the demonstrationssanctioned by the Satmar Rebbe werealways very civil. The Rebbe abhorredsensationalism. We were there solely toexpress our dissent from Israel’s secularattitude and policies.Never once did we dress up in concentrationcamp garb. The Rebbe wouldhave been repulsed by such activity.When chassidic youngsters would smearswastikas on sidewalks or walls and tryto make a comparison between Zionismand Nazism, the Rebbe voiced his disapprovalwithout hesitation or equivocation.He was visibly upset when he learnedwhat they had done. He didn’t allow wildpranks, and condemned in the strongest ofwords those who engaged in such recklessand reprehensible behavior.He was adamantly opposed to that kindof activity for a number of reasons. First,it brought back terrible memories for Jewswho survived the Holocaust or lost relativesat the monstrous hands of the Nazis.The Rebbe also believed that these types ofpranks not only don’t help the cause, butare actually counterproductive. The wearingof yellow badges by a few irresponsibleindividuals made the entire chareidi communitylook like insensitive extremists.The cause, the Rebbe explained, is that people shouldsee that we have a legitimate complaint against theState of Israel. However, when our boys do somethingreprehensible, the world thinks we are just a bunch ofirresponsible fanatics.That is a crime in and of itself.What did they think they would accomplishby dressing kids in concentrationcamp uniforms? What did they gain byit? All they did was antagonize our ownpeople, who were hurt by their behavior.This makes me wonder: Who is behindthese types of activities? I believe it is afringe group of fanatics, the same peoplewho went to Iran to participate in theHolocaust denial conference.The Brisker Rav used to say that whenone is in pain he must scream. That, hebelieved, was the justification for protesting.But the scream itself must be a Torahaffirmingand Torah-sanctioned one. Ifwe expect others to act according to daasTorah, we ourselves have to show the way.We can’t act irresponsibly. Do these peopleeven begin to understand the meaning ofthe yellow star? Those who lived throughthe Holocaust know what the yellow Starof David means. Under no circumstancesdo I believe that it was justified to putyellow stars on little boys.Whenever boys engaged in irresponsibleconduct during demonstrations, theRebbe would always say that their behaviorundermines the cause. The cause, theRebbe explained, is that people shouldsee that we have a legitimate complaintagainst the State of Israel. However, whenour boys do something reprehensible, theworld thinks we are just a bunch of irresponsiblefanatics.There is no question that we must makeour opinion and presence known in Israel.The secularists despise the Orthodox communityand fear our growth. While theOrthodox community keeps on multiplying,the secular society is diminishing, asmany of its members emigrate to chutzla’aretz. They are very nervous that Israelshouldn’t become a religious state and atheocracy. But at the same time that welegitimately demand our religious freedomand rights, we must keep our hotheadedyoungsters in check so they don’t undermineus.The refined character of the vast majorityof the younger generation must notbe overshadowed; the few who are out ofcontrol must be reined in. I remember theseriousness of the Rebbe as he deliberatedhow and when to call for a demonstration.Though the Rebbe demonstrated infront of the United Nations, when a fewpeople did that on their own, he ostracizedthem. There are rules and regulations how,when, and where to demonstrate. TheRebbe didn’t tolerate people who brokethose rules. “The Principal” is a series by Rabbi Hertz Frankel,who is the English principal of Torah Veyirahschool for boys and Bais Rochel school for girls,a position he has held since 1959. When not runningthe schools, he was acting as “Secretaryof State” for the Satmar Rebbe, Rav Yoel Teitelbaum,zt”l.16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 63

Finding My FaithBehind BarsIT’S BEEN A LONG BUT MEANINGFUL JOURNEYIt all came to a head the day Iwent to jail. But let me backtracka bit and introducemyself.I was raised in a typical,non-observant, Reform Jewishfamily. We would go to synagoguefor the High Holy days and anoccasional holiday or two duringthe year. We always had a big sederand invited guests, both Jewishand non-Jewish, to share the experience.We’d even eat matzah, atleast until Dad got tired of it andswitched back to bread and bagels.There were Chanukah candles andPurim parties when I was younger,then the religious youth group inhigh school. Keeping kosher wasn’teven considered until much later.Nonetheless, I considered myselfa good Jew. I donated some of myallowance to tzedakah, and someof my time and sweat to tikkunolam. I read from the Torah formy bar mitzvah, and went to religiousschool one evening per week.However, I felt no connection toHashem. I didn’t even know what Iwas missing.When I was a teenager I began committingcrimes. I convinced myself thatI wasn’t hurting anybody, and as no onewas complaining, I continued down thispath. What everybody saw was a good,upstanding young man with a very promisingfuture.Of course, Hashem saw what I washiding from everybody else, and He let meknow that He knew the truth. One day Iwas caught. Rather than admit my wrongdoingand accept punishment, I thoughtI could fool everyone into believingI was innocent. It turned out that Iwas the fool. The jury convicted meon all counts. I exchanged my beltand shoelaces for handcuffs andshackles.I look back now and realizehow foolish I was. Hashemunderstands that we are humanand susceptible to sin, and forthis reason He has given usteshuvah. But it wasn’t until manyyears later that I realized this.Once a defendant has been sentenced,he is transferred from thelocal county jail to a state prison.This is referred to as being sent“upstate.” The first facility a newinmate goes to is Reception, andit generally offers a taste of what’sto come. From the beginning, myfuture wasn’t tasting too good.My first stop was the Receptionat a correctional facility. I wasaccompanied by two other guys,one going for the first time, theother on his second or third trip.We were driven to the facility byvan, with the prerequisite handcuffsand ankle chains. We were escortedin and turned over to a correctional officer.First impressions matter, so he wasdetermined to make the most of it. Forgetabout modesty; the first thing we did wasstrip down to our skin, and then we weresearched. Thoroughly. All clothing and64 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 / 16 TEVES, 5772

BY MARK COOPERproperty went straight into the garbage.The next step in the process of degradationwas the barber shop. All hair on yourface and head must be shaved off. (Thishas since changed; observant Jews andMuslims can keep their beards and peyos).We were now three hairless, humiliatedmen. After picking up our new prisonissueclothing (everything at least one sizetoo big or small, of course) we moved on.As we approached the building wherewe would be living for the next few weeksor months, reality set in. It was a hugeopen structure, with cells on either sidefacing each other, and a cage door the onlyentrance. Each tier was 44 cells long, withfour tiers on each side. That’s 352 cells,each filled with a very bored, possiblysociopathic inmate, many of whom hadnothing better to do than scream at eachother. On top of that, the officers blastedCountry Western music over the PAsystem, knowing that few of the inmateswould ever listen to it by choice. To saythat the constant noise was deafeningwould be an understatement.I made the decision early on that mybest chance of survival was to blend in. Iknew that Jews were not well liked; manyof these guys had Jewish judges or prosecutors,or simply suffered from the usualprejudice. I intended to keep my Jewishnessto myself, but it was not meant to be.One of the guys I had come upstate withfigured that the best way for him to avoidbeing noticed was to make sure that everyonewas focused on somebody else—thatsomebody else being me.I managed to get through my first daywithout problems, and even went to theyard. The next day didn’t go as well. I wasconfronted by two of the biggest, blackestmen I have ever seen. They said somethingabout hearing that I was the new “Jew boy,”and that they hated Jews. Oh yeah, and notonly did they both have Jewish judges andprosecutors, but even their Jewish defenseattorneys had sold them out! Noticing thatthe officer sitting a few feet away was verybusy ignoring us, I quickly turned aroundand returned to my cell.This would be my first experienceof hashgacha pratis in prison. Hashemshowed me that despite my sins, He wasstill watching over and protecting me.Later that day I was interviewed by apsychologist, and I told him of the incident.Realizing that I was helpless beforethese and other predators, he arranged forme to be transferred to protective custody.This was the best thing that could havehappened to me. A day that began witha terrifying, life-threatening experienceended up with me being sent to one of thefew safe places in prison.About a month later I was sent to acounty jail, which was at least 10 timeslarger than the previous one. This meantthat there was much more diversity, andin fact, this is where I met my first fellowJewish inmate.Harry had already been in prison for afew years, and was soon to be released. Upto this point, I had not met a single Jewishinmate or staff member, much less a rabbi.Indeed, I had planned to hide my religion,especially after my first experience.The first thing Harry told me was thatI could, and should, practice my religion.My bad experience was an exception, heinsisted, and most Jews were left alone.Harry also informed me that kosher foodwas available, and I immediately signedup. Not only was I now eating right, spirituallyspeaking, but the food was muchbetter than the slop being served to theother inmates. This literally became myfirst “taste” of Judaism in prison.Once I was placed on the kosher diet,one of the local rabbis was notified thatthere was a new Jew in the jail. The rabbiwas from the local Sephardic shul, and thefirst frum rabbi I had ever met. He was avolunteer who visited once a week for acouple of hours to tend to our religiousneeds. He suggested that I should senda letter to the prison rabbi and become amember of the Jewish community.So that’s what I did. After a couple ofmonths in the county jail, learning aboutI knew that Jews were not well liked. I intended to keepmy Jewishness to myself, but it was not meant to be.Judaism with this volunteer rabbi, Ireturned to the Reception. I wrote to theprison rabbi and asked if he could visitme and arrange for kosher food. He andanother Jewish inmate came to my cellin protective custody, and did what theycould to welcome me and make me feela bit more comfortable. He brought memy first siddur and a kippah, and offeredto visit each week. Harry also brought mea small care package of essentials: soap,shampoo, paper and pen, plus a little extrafood.My experiences with these Rabbis,and especially with Harry, gave me hope.Despite the fact that my life was over (orso I felt), there were some people whom Icould consider friends. I had a place whereI might fit in, where I could survive, andim yirtzeh Hashem, maybe even succeed.The purpose of Reception is to classify16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 65

Despite having been in prison for nearly 10 years, Ihad not yet come to terms with my crimes or acceptedresponsibility. I had spent a decade avoiding the truth.each inmate to determine which regularprison he will be sent to. Because I wasin protective custody, I was transferredto a special unit. This unit housed 250inmates. Many were serial offenders, somehad testified against other inmates, andthere were even a few former police officersand judges.For whatever reason, there was a relativelylarge Jewish community in this unit,ranging from five to eight of us at anygiven time. We had a study group once aweek and services on Friday night and Saturdaymorning, and were allowed to celebratemost of the holidays. We also tendedto hang out together wherever we went,especially in the yard. Two of the olderguys were more knowledgeable aboutJudaism, and took it upon themselves toteach the rest of us. I learned more abouthow to be a good Jew in my first year inthis unit than I had in my 21 years prior toentering prison.At the same time, I was learning skillsthat would help me to survive my incarceration.I went to the law library regularly,and eventually began working thereas a paralegal.But sooner or later all good things mustcome to an end. Now that I had supposedlylearned how to survive, I was beingsent elsewhere. Over the years I had heardterrifying stories of what could happen inthe general prison population; the level ofviolence there, which was unbelievable.The prison I was being transferred to wasone of the oldest and worst. I was veryafraid.My first impression of this prison didnothing to calm my fears. As I was beingescorted into my new cell block, thefirst thing I saw was a guard holding aninmate against the wall and searchinghim while screaming at him, “Where’s theknife? Where’s the knife?” Just a few feetaway was another inmate, also being heldagainst a wall and searched, but with a bigred bloodstain on his chest and a dazedlook in his eyes. I had just walked in onmy first prison stabbing.But just as Hashem watched over meuntil now He continued to watch me here.In every prison there are a handful ofinmates who are the big machers, and oneof them took a real liking to me. We wouldwalk in the yard together, play chess, andshare intelligent conversation. He helpedme get a good job in the library, and putthe word out that I was his friend; if anythingbad happened to me there wouldbe grave consequences. I can only believethat Hashem sent him to keep me safe.Six months later, I was transferred tomy first medium security facility. Upuntil then I had always lived alone in acell where I enjoyed a degree of privacy.This was a drastic change. Now I lived ina dormitory with 90 guys in one big room,along with two guards. This was supposedto be a reward for good behavior.Being at this facility was a new start forme. I had much more freedom of movement,and more privileges than I hadenjoyed before. Having been locked up forso long I was automatically given a degreeof respect, so I had few problems with theother inmates. I quickly landed a good jobin the law library and a leadership roleamong the inmates, which allowed me toadvocate for change. I also saw many moreinmates going home each week, giving mehope that I too might live long enough to66 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 / 16 TEVES, 5772

e released. There were, however, no other Jews in the prison.Unfortunately, it was not to last. I allowed myself to get caughtup in prison politics, and angered the wrong staff members. I wasalso doing things in the law library that were against the rules, suchas being paid for work I was supposed to be doing for free. Just 10weeks after arriving, I was sent to segregation. I had wasted thischance for greater freedom.As a result of my actions, I was found guilty of several infractionsand sentenced to 12 months’ disciplinary confinement inthe Special Housing Unit (SHU). We remained in our cells for 23hours a day, in individual cages. We had no access to our personalproperty except for limited religious and legal materials. Humaninteraction consisted of shouting from one cell to another (whichwas constant, 24 hours a day), though we couldn’t even see insidethe next cell.The only real positive about the SHU was the solitude. We hadlots of time to think, and that was exactly what I needed. When Iarrived at Southport I was extremely angry, frustrated, and bitter.I felt that I was being wrongfully punished, not just for what happened,but for my original offense. Despite having been in prisonfor nearly 10 years, I had not yet come to terms with my crimes,nor had I accepted responsibility. I had been trying to fight thesystem through legal channels, and had spent a decade avoidingthe truth.Going to the SHU changed this. After a while, I had to admit Ihad not been living the pristine, law-abiding life I pretended to.More importantly, I had lost my focus on the most important thing:getting out of prison as soon as possible, and not returning.It was this line of thinking that led me to finally admit that I hadnobody to blame but myself. The police, prosecutor, and judgewere simply doing their jobs and removing a criminal from society,punishing and—hopefully—rehabilitating him. I had no right tobe angry with them.What could have become a dark time in my life was in fact aturning point, and Baruch Hashem, was the beginning of my realquest for teshuvah. I believe that Hashem recognized this dramaticchange in my thinking, and decided to reward me: I was releasedfrom the SHU four months early, after serving only eight monthsout of my 12-month penalty.After approximately a year in a maximum security facility, mysecurity classification dropped again, and I was transferred back toa medium security prison. I decided from the start that this wouldbe a different experience from before. Although I still wanted tohelp others, I would be much more humble. I got a job as a teacher’saide, teaching math and writing to other inmates, and did mybest to stay off the radar.

I finally had to admit that there was nobody to blame butmyself. The police, prosecutor, and judge were simplydoing their jobs and removing a criminal from society,punishing and—hopefully—rehabilitating him.There was another Jewish inmate inmy dorm, an Israeli who was much moreknowledgeable than anyone I had metpreviously. Most inmates who claim to beJewish aren’t; they just want the kosherfood, and the Jewish holidays off fromprograms. Avi and I really hit it off, andin no time were like brothers. There wasa decent Jewish community there, aroundeight regulars, though we actually managedto put together a minyan once whenone of the guys lost his mother. I learneda tremendous amount from Avi during theyear we were together, and wonder to thisday how he fared upon his release.Avi had been receiving support fromthe frum community, including monthlypackages of kosher food, and visits. Theday before he was scheduled to leave theprison he called me over to the phone andtold me to speak to his rabbi. The conversationproved to be another turning pointin my life.The rabbi runs an organization thathelps Jews in prison with religious materials.He also sends out packages of kosherfood. It is mostly word of mouth, withthose of us who are known to the rabbireferring other Jews who we believe areboth sincere and in need.Avi had spoken to the rabbi about me,and told him I was looking to becomemore observant. This rabbi made thatpossible. I spoke to him on the phoneregularly, and he always encouraged meto let my faith grow. He advised me onhow to raise my level of observance withoutbecoming overwhelmed. In time,I was keeping strictly kosher, wearingtzitzis and a kippah, and donning tefillindaily. He also sent me my first ArtscrollChumash and siddur, which I use to thisvery day. He made sure I had food forPesach and year-round, and whenever Ineed learning material, he sends it to me.Just recently he sent me my first volumeof Gemara.He also helped me develop a connectionto the frum community. The only religiousJews I had met were a couple of prisonrabbis and the occasional Lubavitcher volunteerwho came in during Pesach, Purim,or Sukkot. I was basically cut off from theJewish world. After getting to know meand recognizing that I was sincere, he contactedthe communities closest to where Iwas, and asked them to begin visiting me,which they did at least once a month forthe next few years. These were people whoknew only two things about me: that I wasa convicted criminal serving a long sentence,and that I was Jewish. These visitors,whom I now consider to be amongmy closest friends, taught me the meaningof ahavas Yisrael, and helped inspire andmotivate me as I became more observant.In 2006 I made my first appearancebefore the Board of Parole for possiblerelease. Despite all of my rehabilitativeefforts and proven success, I was denied.In 2008 I made a second try, and was againdeclined. I decided it was time to try somethingdifferent. I had heard about a therapeuticprogram that supposedly helpedinmates earn their release. I applied, andtwo months later was transferred to theMerle Cooper Program. This time I was ingeneral population, though in the lowersecurity part of the prison. I was the onlyJew there.To make a long story short, it didn’t workout. The basic idea of the program was tolearn more about why we committed ourcrimes, while at the same time instilling inus the habit of following rules. Anytimewe broke a rule, we would be confrontedby another inmate in the program, or astaff member. It was the confrontation partthat became a real problem. Being the onlyJew around, and not having a prison rabbito support me, made me a target of anti-Semitism. I would often be confrontedabout breaking a rule I had never broken,and most of the time no one believed me.Being overtly and adamantly Jewishdidn’t help. Things finally came to a headabout 11 months after I arrived, rightbefore the Yomim Tovim, when I toldthem about the extra days I would needoff for the holidays. Around the same time,I was put in front of the entire group (90inmates and 8 staff) for my annual review.This is an hour-long session in whichinmates and staff give feedback on howthe person is doing and what he needs towork on. This could often get ugly, but forme it was brutal. I was accused of thingsthat were blatantly false, and other thingswere taken completely out of context. Inthe end I was removed from the program,allegedly for failing to make progress. Iwas sent to another correctional facility,just down the road.In retrospect, I don’t regret the yearI spent at Merle Cooper. I learned a lotabout myself, which was good. Moreimportantly, it helped me realize just howimportant Judaism had become to me, andstrengthened my beliefs and desire to be agood Jew.68 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 / 16 TEVES, 5772

I made my third Parole Board appearancein 2010, and was again denied solelydue to the seriousness of the crimes I hadcommitted 20 years earlier. Unfortunately,this placed me 300 miles away from mymy Jewish friends who had been helpingme. Being the truly amazing people theyare, they still come to visit me a few timesa year.Aside from the distance from my friends,this has turned out to be a good place forme, as prisons go, and G-d willing, I hopeto remain here until my release (may itbe soon). I live in the honor dorm, whichhas stoves, ovens, and refrigerators, whichmakes it so much easier to keep kosher.We have a small but dedicated Jewishgroup, and have services on Friday nightand Saturday afternoon, and a study groupon Wednesday. Baruch Hashem, we havea wonderful rabbi, and even our holidayarrangements have been improving significantlysince I arrived here two-and-a-halfyears ago.I have learned so much from my friendsand rabbis over the years, and I do what Ican to pass this knowledge on to my fellowJewish inmates. I know that Hashem hasa plan for me, and for now, perhaps thatpurpose is to help others become betterJews, just as others helped me.As I look back over my many years inprison, I can see that each time my lifeseemed to be taking a turn for the worse,it was only to set me up for later success.It has been a journey filled with pain andoccasionally with danger, but it has led meto a great treasure: I have found my faithbehind bars. Postscript:There are many incarcerated Jews whoare truly sincere in their desire to do teshuvah,and to live a Torah-observant life.Please contact the following to help:The Aleph Institute,(305) 864-5553 info@aleph-institute.orgRabbi Jacob Gross, Min Hameitzar,(845) 781-7349Rabbi Shmuel Spritzer, Reaching Out,(718) 771-3866Mendel Weisz,(450) 437-8386 mendelweisz@gmail.comDC DESIGN / 732.901.4784ATTENTION BAIS YAAKOVHIGH SCHOOL AND SEMINARYGRADUATESRebbetzin Bulka is scheduled to be inEretz Yisrael fromDecember 20 - January 5OVER A DECADEofEducationalExcellence!Financial Aid may be availableEarning adegree?Do it quick.Do it right.To schedule an interview, please call: 052-539-8540APPLYNOWfor SPRING2012Semester beginsJanuary 9SEMINARY PROGRAM❯ Earn credits for Limudei Kodesh❯ Caring Faculty & Bais Yaakov Student Body❯ Classes in Brooklyn, Monsey & LakewoodApply now for Spring 2012Limited enrollmentACCELERATED BA PROGRAMACCELERATED BA PROGRAM❯ Earn a Bachelors Degree in affiliation witha prestigious university in just over 1 year!❯ Internationally recognized Bachelorsin Nursing, Business, and Social SciencesHUNDREDS OF OUR GRADUATES HAVE SUCCESSFUL CAREERS IN:Accounting / Business / Education / Nursing / OT /PT/Reading&Literacy / Social Work / Special Education / Speech TherapyRebbetzin Sora F. BulkaMENAHELESACCELERATED BSN PROGRAMBABSBSNACCELERATED NURSINGPROGRAM: BSN❯ Train to become a nurse within 3 years!❯ The BSN is the gold standard in RN educationRabbi Yeshaya LevyMENAHELTHENewSeminaryasjvrbhnx16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 691492 EAST 12TH ST, BROOKLYN, NY 11230 718.769.8160 F) 718.769.8640 INFO@THENEWSEMINARY.ORG

Interesting ConnectionsTELLING THE TELEMARKETERSThe Streets of Life are wired.There are hardly two placesthat are unconnected. Most areconnected through cables thattravel underground, underwater,or overhead on the ubiquitous telephonepoles that are part of my suburbanlandscape. And now we are connectedwirelessly as well. But are all connectionsreally good?In the same way that many leaders wereinitially wary of the invention of the printingpress, worried that it could be a vehiclefor spreading the heresy of the skeptics ofGuttenberg’s times, hundreds of years laterothers were mistrustful of the telephone,lest it be used to spread rumors and gossip.However, visionaries like the ChofetzChaim envisioned the new technology asanother vehicle to help us relate to the allencompassingreach of the Almighty.One particular concern relating to technology’sinfluence in our lives that couldnever have been imagined by even the mostprescient of visionaries is telemarketers.Now, I know that the telephone has beena vehicle for much good in the world. I’veeven heard stories of enduring friendshipsthat began as a wrong number. Somehow,however, I have never hit it off with telemarketersand their parrot personae. Iprefer to speak to real live human beings.I am responsible for raising money fora yeshiva. I even enjoy raising money. Ilike meeting people. I do not enjoy callingthem, but it’s often necessary. On thereceiving end, I am not a very good callscreener, and I try to answer every phonecall I get. My father, he should live andbe well, is my inspiration. He never had agatekeeper, and, nearing 90, he can’t partfrom his phone. He takes every call fromeveryone. He is always patient, friendly,and helpful. He makes many calls aswell—hundreds a week. He calls widowsto wish them a good Shabbos, new parentsto say mazel tov, business owners to getpeople jobs, and school administrators toget people into their schools.The truth is I don’t mind getting phonecalls from total strangers asking me formy opinions or advice. I don’t even mindphone calls asking for a donation. Theother night, in fact, someone called askingme to dedicate a section detailing thelife of my grandfather in a new sefer thatoffers biographies of Torah leaders basedon their yahrtzeits. I don’t know who hewas or how he got my number. He spokea very heavily accented Yiddish, and theconnection was unclear, but since he didnot ask for an exorbitant donation, andwas so passionate about the importanceof his work, he piqued my interest. I wasimpressed. Within 12 hours he had sentme a sample of his work, and as I type this,I am waiting for a follow-up call.Then there are the others. It is troublesomewhen someone calls your numberbecause it’s on a list, especially from aninstitution with which you are familiar, butthe caller treats you like a total stranger.And when the Caller ID doesn’t matcheither the caller or the institution, I worry.It happened not long ago. “Hello. Is thisRabbi Kamerowski?”He did not give me a chance to get aword in edgewise. Before I could figureout whether he was mispronouncing myname or had called the wrong number,he continued. His voice was stilted andimpassionate. “Hello, this is Chaim IbnPekuda (not his real name), and I am avolunteer for Yeshivas Rabbeinu Bachaya.”(I am well acquainted with the particular70 AMI MAGAZINE // JANUARY 11, 2012 // 16 TEVES, 5772

RABBI MORDECHAI KAMENETZKYyeshiva he was calling about, but it had adifferent name.)I tried to interrupt but he repeated himself.“Hello, this is Chaim Ibn Pekuda, andI am a volunteer for Yeshivas RabbeinuBachaya.”For those of you who rememberShmuel Kunda tapes, the robotic repetitionsounded like a reincarnation of Mr.Osborn.“I see that last year you gave ouryeshiva….”Our yeshiva, I thought to myself. He’staking this rather personally. I stopped himright there.This was not a computer. This was not acharacter in a When Zaidy Was Young tape.This was a real person, with his own brain,ideas, and passions. I was curious aboutwhat had driven him to do this work forsomeone or something I was sure he knewnothing about.You see, I like people. I like to knowwhat motivates them. The caller’s wooden,mechanical tone was making me uncomfortable.I was reminded of a story about RavChaim of Sanz, who had a custom to testthe local children on a monthly basis. Thechildren would recite from the Mishnah orTalmud, and be rewarded generously withsweets and money. One time a group ofsecular Jews decided to dupe Rav Chaim.They taught a Talmudic selection to a gentilechild and reviewed it with him until heknew it perfectly. They dressed him like aChasidic child and had him stand in linewith all the others to be tested.The rabbi listened to the young boyintently. The other children were puzzled:they did not remember him from cheder,but they were amazed at his remarkablefluency. Rav Chaim was not impressed atall. He turned to the boy and said, “Pleasetell your father that there are better waysto earn a few coins!”The secularists were shocked. How hadhe known? As he later explained, “Thereare two ways to say the Gemara. One issuffused with spirituality; the child’s bodysways and is filled with emotion. The otheris by rote. This child lacked the fire andtrue joy Jewish children have when learningTorah. I knew he was not one of ours.”The joy was missing from my caller’svoice. Maybe he was not one of our own.Maybe “our yeshiva” wasn’t our yeshivaafter all.And so, taking a cue from his openingline, I asked Chaim why he had volunteeredfor such a difficult job. He hesitateda bit. I felt bad that I might be leading himto say something untrue.“I was asked by the rosh yeshiva,” hemuttered.I was quite shocked. “Rabbi X [not hisreal name, and not related to Malcolm,either] asked you to call me? It’s so not likehim. But I am honored.”I was surprised that Chaim didn’t denythat Rabbi X had asked him to make thecalls. You see, Rabbi X could not haveasked Chaim to call me. He passed awayseven years ago.I mentioned this to Chaim. Maybe I wasbeing mean. But I repeated the question.Why did he volunteer?The young man stammered. I asked himwho the current rosh yeshiva was. He didn’tknow.“Then what inspired you to stop whateveryou normally do on a Monday nightand make phone calls to strangers for acause you never heard of?”He soon admitted that he worked fora telemarketing company, and soundedrelieved. He also admitted that he knewnothing about the institution except thatit probably needed money. They had givenhim a computer printout of names ofdonors and their previous donations, andhe had gone to work. And he was not avolunteer. He was getting paid—but notmuch. So saying that he was volunteeringwas not a total lie.But then in a choked voice he told memore. Apologetically he began detailing alittle bit about his personal situation andhow much he needed the money. Thistime I believed him. I heard the passion.I realized that perhaps I had been toohard on him, a little too sarcastic. Here hewas, trying to make a living while helpingan established mosad Torah. And here Iwas, being a stickler.Suddenly, I became compassionate. Itold him that he did not have to lie, andthere was nothing wrong with workingon behalf of a telemarketing company andraising money for a fine yeshiva. Everyonehas to make a living. I just wanted to beI was surprised when the caller told me that Rabbi X hadasked him to call. Rabbi X passed away seven years ago.told the truth.For the next few minutes I told Chaimeverything I knew about the particularyeshiva he was calling about. I told himhow wonderful it was, and included a fewstories about its founder. Then I made himpromise that he would visit the yeshivaand believe in it before continuing his callsthe following evening.Then I gave him my pledge. It wasdouble last year’s.I know the donation may have beensprinkled with a mixture of guilt andregret. But I hope that the small lesson willhelp him in life. It sure helped me. Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky is the Rosh Yeshivaof Yeshiva Toras Chaim at South Shore, aweekly columnist in Yated Ne’eman, and the authorof the Parsha Parable series. He can shareyour story through the “Streets of Life.” He canreached at streets@amimagazine.org.16 TEVES, 5772 // JANUARY 11, 2012 // AMI MAGAZINE 71

DRAIZY’S MINI SCALLOPED POTATOES, ROASTED VEGETABLE ISRAELI COUSCOUS, AND MORE!JANUARY 11, 2012 16 TEVES, 5772 ISSUE 53Are YouSupportingNaziBusinesses?The surprising Nazi tiesof many of yourfavorite companiesGIRL…ON A DIET. WILL BLUMA REBOUND AND KEEP HER WILLPOWER STRONG AFTER A ROCKY START?JANUARY 11, 201216 TEVES, 5772PASTRY SCHOOLWITH PAULA SHOYER:The Intense Flavor of theVanilla BeanTRY ANEW SIDEINTERESTED IN ACULINARY CAREER?Like Draizy’s Mini Scalloped PotatoesVictoria Dwek Speaks toor this Roasted Vegetable Cous Cousthe Chefs>>> ALSO: THE CLEAN BILL. AND THE BEAT GOES ON. A SENIOR CITIZEN IS HER LIFE >>> OUR DAYS. A YOUNG MOTHER LEARNS THAT ENCOURAGEMENTIS OFTEN DERIVED FROM THE MOST UNLIKELY SOURCE >>> MINDING YOURMIND. WHITE LIAR: HAVE YOU GOTTEN INTO THE HABIT OF STRETCHING THETRUTH? >>> INTERESTED IN A CULINARY CAREER? VICTORIA DWEK SPEAKS TOTHE CHEFS >>> PASTRY SCHOOL WITH PAULA SHOYER. USING FRESH VANILLABEANS >>>TOTAL IMMERSION. UNDERCOVER AGENT SHLOMO IS PRESSUREDTO PRODUCE RESULTS

A DIET. WILL BLUMA REBOUND AND KEEP HER WILLPOWER STRONG AFTER A ROCKY START?JANUARY 11, 201216 TEVES, 5772CONTENTS16 Teves, 5772January 11, 2012Features20 The Clean BillAnd the Beat Goes OnAfter being diagnosed with acardiac condition, a senior citizenis astounded by the “Brave NewWorld” of treatments that arecurrently available.By Marion Zweiter25 Designer NazisHave you ever wondered exactlywhom you’re supporting whenyou buy something? Ami exposesthe sordid past (and present)of many of the world’s leadingcompanies.By Yitta Halberstam Mandelbaum25GIRL…ONDepartments8 ParshaBy Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky9 Golden NuggetsBy Baila Weinberg12 BytesBy Chaya Silber14 Fun ’n’ FrugalOverspending: Common Pitfalls toAvoidBy Ronit Peskin16 Minding Your MindHave you gotten into the habit ofstretching the truth?By Dr. Lisa Aiken36 A Family Like Thisarranges all the furniture in theapartment.By Gitty Gold38 Total ImmersionBy Peri Berger41 Our DaysA Literary Compilation46 Here & NowBy Sarah Shapiro2in Whisk20InsideWhiskTRY ANEW SIDELike Draizy’s Mini Scalloped Potatoesor this Roasted Vegetable Cous CousPASTRY SCHOOLWITH PAULA SHOYER:The Intense Flavor of theVanilla BeanINTERESTED IN ACULINARY CAREER?Victoria Dwek Speaks tothe Chefs2 Cook to CookSuper SidesNeed something new to servealongside your favorite maindish? Try Roasted VegetableCouscous, Mini ScallopedPotatoes, and more.By Draizy Wercberger6 Pastry School with PaulaShoyerUsing Fresh Vanilla BeansBy Paula Shoyer10 Life Inside a Chef CoatWhat do chefs do afterculinary school? I spoke tothem to learn about theirBy Victoria Dwek14 Girl on a DietA Whisk serialBy Bluma Abraham2 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

DearReadersEditor-in-ChiefRabbi Yitzchok FrankfurterEditorialSenior EditorRechy FrankfurterEditor-at-LargeRabbi Avi ShafranManaging EditorsVictoria DwekYossi KrauszFeature EditorYitta Halberstam MandelbaumCoordinating EditorToby WorchCopyeditorsBasha Majerczyk, Dina SchreiberSarah ShapiroArtArt DirectorAlex KatalkinJunior Art DirectorJoy YihFoodFood EditorsEtty Deutsch, Leah SchapiraAdvertisingExecutive Account ManagerZack BlumenfeldExecutive Sales DirectorsFrumi MeiselsSurie KatzCorporate Sales DirectorSarah SternsteinAdvertising CoordinatorMalky FriedmanMarkowitz Distribution917-202-3973646-247-0262Ami MagazineP: 718-534-8800F: 718-484-7731info@amimagazine.orgAmi Magazine. Published by Mezoogmag LLC. All rightsreserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any formwithout prior written permission from the publisher isprohibited. The publisher reserves the right to edit allarticles for clarity, space, and editorial sensitivities. AmiMagazine assumes no responsibility for the content ofadvertisements in the publication, nor for the contents ofbooks that are referred to or excerpted herein.There’s a chain store that advertises with the slogan, “An educated consumeris our best customer.” I highly doubt that the companies mentioned in ourcover story, “Designer Nazis,” will be terribly pleased that our readers are beingeducated about their complicity with the Nazis—a matter they would surelyprefer remain unknown.My generation, the generation born to Holocaust survivors, although perhapsnot aware of all the details of the willing collaboration of these individuals andcorporations, was raised with a heightened sensitivity toward German-madeproducts. We knew that buying anything made in Germany was an act of betrayalto the kedoshim and to the survivors. I remember the debate about the moralityof purchasing the increasingly popular Bosch mixer, which revolutionized thecall.I once asked a relative why he didn’t share his personal experiences during theHolocaust with his children and grandchildren and others. He countered that hefelt there was no purpose to it, that it would only elicit some momentary sympathy,after which the listener would sigh and go back to his own life. “Men vetgebben ah krechtz, in gein veiter in duz vet zeir vei tin.” Another argument was:Why remember such terrible events, which can bring young people to feelings ofparanoia and doom? At that time, I didn’t know how to counter him, but today Ibelieve we all do.Last week the world was shocked to see the very symbols of the Holocaust beinghijacked—by frum Jews—for political purposes, to make a comparison betweena situation in which they felt they were being treated unfairly and harassed andthe torture and murder of millions of innocents. As one very elderly Holocaustsurvivor asked in all innocence after viewing the pictures, “Are they really beingstarved and killed in Eretz Yisrael? Oy vey!”In Ami’s report on the story, Rabbi Shmuel Pappenheim, who has been involvedin trying to defuse the tensions fueling the protests, stated that some of the participantswere truly remorseful. In their naiveté, they did not realize the implicationsof what they were doing.We now realize the importance of everyone being educated about this dark chapterin our history. Not only to avoid repeating the same terrible mistake as theorganizers of this protest, but also to thank Hashem and daven every day that Hecontinue to grace us with this rare historical period, when, baruch Hashem, Jewsare fortunate to live in relative peace around the world.B’chasdei Hashem.Rechy Frankfurterrechy@amimagazine.org4 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

LETTERSBad Hair DayArticle elicited funny memoryTo the Editor,I couldn’t help but chuckle when I saw thecover feature for AmiLiving about studentsalons. It brought back a memory from quite The Guinea Piga few years back when I was a teenager.To them, you’re an opportunity to test their skills and buildexperience. To you, they’re cheap labor. Is usingI had gone to visit my aunt in London,professionals-in-training a great deal—or a big risk?and when she first opened the door to meBy Victoria Dwekthere was visible shock registered on herface. Apparently, my naturally frizzy hair hadreached its maximum frizz, and, being a girlwho did not know her way around a blowdryer,I must have been a sight! She tactfullyinformed me a day or two later abouta student special at a nearby beauty schoolwhere I could get my hair straightened for avery reasonable price. Needless to say, I wasthrilled.I don’t remember anything about the trip there (I do remember having goneby myself ), but I do have a vivid memory of when the student stylist finishedher work on me. My hair was wonderfully straight, but for some reason, despiteall of the blow drying, it looked—how should I put it—oily! We lookedat each other, and then she tried to blow some more. And then some more. Myhair looked oily; it felt oily. It was time to call in the pros. So there I sat whilea bunch of teachers and students gathered round. I am sure that many peoplelearned a lesson that day! I was a tad uncomfortable, to say the least, on theride back home, but it helped tremendously that I was in a foreign country andwould likely never have to face these people staring at me ever again. Eventually,and before I had to face my friends again, the chemicals washed out. All in all, itwas a SMALL price to pay for a BIG lesson learned!R.C. HerbstThe Student&9 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 4, 2012 | | 25Reader got “best haircut of herlife” at student salonAnother response to “The Student & theTo the Editor,Your recent article reminded me of thetime I took the subway into Manhattanto a very famous hair salon, in the hopesof being chosen by one of the students.I was 18 years old, and my coarse, bushyhair was the bane of my existence. (Thiswas many years ago, when the feminineideal of beauty was stick-straight longhair, parted in the middle. And whitelipstick.)The way it worked was that thestudents had to be looking for yourparticular type of hair to work on thatday. For some reason, one of the stylistsmust have wanted to perfect his poodlegroomingtechniques—and he chose me!It was the best haircut of my life. I wentback to the salon several times afterwards,but they never picked me again.My hair was so awful that I couldn’twait to cover it with a sheitel. Unfortunately,after I got married I discoveredthat I didn’t know what to do with mywigs either—but at least now I have theoption of buying straight ones.Toba MalamudDesigni 347.482.6783THEWe are your right contact...In business for 17 yearsWe ship internationally$50 REBATEon a year supplyof Acuvue OaysisFREE SHIPPINGon your order of 4boxes or morecall for other rebate specialsmention coupon to receive discount6 | | DECEMBER 28, 2011 | 2 TEVES, 5772160 Lee Avenue Brooklyn NY 11211Therightcontact@gmail.com

Over the TopReader feels Fun ’n’ Frugal is extremeDear Editor,As a loyal reader of your magazine, I wanted to comment onone of your columns this past week. In “Fun ‘n’ Frugal,” Issue52, Ronit Peskin discusses “How to prepare for your littlebundle of joy—frugally.” While I do agree that the experienceof having a baby is overly commercialized in our society—no, you don’t need to buy everything that the sales personrecommends—I find some of her recommendations to bepotentially dangerous. For one thing, although there are manywho co-sleep with their babies, it’s not necessarily consideredthe safest option. And, even worse, to suggest that “you canput your baby to sleep on any soft and comfortable surface,” iscompletely dangerous! First of all, a crib mattress is supposedto be firm, not soft, to prevent SIDS. And, what happenswhen your baby becomes mobile? In addition, it is not recommendedthat you “make your own baby carrier.” If a baby isn’tproperly positioned he can chalilah, suffocate or fall.The bottom line is, although Ronit has a lot of great ideasfor saving money, there are some expenses in life that areunavoidable. A crib and a safe way to carry your baby—be itwith a carrier or stroller—are just two examples. You can buya pack ‘n’ play or a safe crib that isn’t top of the line, for a smallfee. It’s generally not recommended that you buy a used crib; Iknow of a family who lost their baby because the crib collapsed.You absolutely do not need to spend thousands of dollars tokeep your baby safe. But, it’s vital not to take frugality to anextreme—nothing is worth more than our precious children.Sincerely,Batya CohenAnimals also part of the natural worldTo the Editor,I just had to weigh in on your touching article aboutNemo the cat, and the writer’s concern (only half injest) that it would affect her son’s future shidduch.First let me say that I am not a crazy animal-rightsperson. Animals do not have “rights” other thanthat we are forbidden to hurt them. Animals arenot people. They are not baby substitutes. But theyare interesting and intelligent and amusing, and canenhance our lives. I believe that many of our prejudicesagainst animals stem from living in cities rather thanin more rural settings.There is an entire chapter in Shmiras ShabbosK’hilchasa (Chapter 27—“Dinei Baalei ChaimB’Shabbos U’veyom Tov”) devoted to animal ownership.It is amazing the extent to which the Torah goes tomake even animals comfortable on Shabbos! To citebut one example, if you have an animal that is toofeeble to eat by itself, you are permitted to put thefood in its mouth. It also describes what you must doin order to be permitted to walk an animal in a reshusharabim.We always had a variety of pets in the house, and Ibelieve that my children benefitted by having a greaterappreciation for Hashem’s creatures. Another benefitwas that they were never pathologically terrified ofpuppies or pussycats they encountered on the street.Oh, and they also found fine shidduchim, B”H.Rivkah RosenbergOnline TrainersWanted!Learn to operateMini-Office Outletsworking part timeFROM HOMEFlexible hoursGreat incomeFree evaluationNo obligationwww.yourfreedomplan.comThis website may change your life!

PARSHAS SHEMOSStand Upand ShoutThe importance of declaring who you areBY RABBI MORDECHAI KAMENETZKYThere is a haunting midrash inDevarim that relates to an episodein this week’s Torah portion. AfterMoshe was told that he will notenter the land of Israel and will be buriedin the desert, he complained. “The bonesof Yosef were buried in Israel, and I willnot merit even that?” The Ribono ShelOlam responded, “He who embraces hisland will be buried in it; he who did notacknowledge his land will not be buriedin it.” The midrash explains the Heavenlyresponse: Yosef acknowledged that he wasfrom the land of Israel, and thus meritedto be buried there. When the wife ofPotiphar accused him and said, “Theybrought an Ivri to ridicule us” (Bereishis39:14), Yosef did not deny his ancestry.In fact, he embraced his origins, as hedeclared to his cellmates, “For I was takenfrom the land of the Ivrim” (Bereishis40:15). By contrast, when the daughter ofYisro said to her father, regarding Moshe,“An Egyptian man saved us,” Moshe wassilent and did not deny that statement.Thus, he did not merit to be buried in theland.Thus concludes the midrash. But it istroubling. Why is Moshe blamed for notprotesting that he was referred to as anEgyptian? The Torah seems to indicatethat he was not even present during theconversation! Yisro’s daughters left himwhere he was and returned to their father.Only then did they say, “An Egyptiandelivered us out of the hand of theshepherds, and also drew water for us,and watered the flock” (Shemos 2:19).I enjoy deriving lessons from tidbitsof Americana and other historical trivia.As many Jewish kids who grew up inthe sixties remember, Sandy Koufax, thefamous Dodgers’ pitcher and strikeoutking, became famous for refusing toplay on Yom Kippur. But a lesserknownincident that occurred years laterwas even more significant to me, eventhough it had no financial or historicalramifications.Koufax, who was by no meansobservant, was being interviewed a fewdays before an upcoming World Seriesby famed television personality (andcoreligionist) Larry King. In the middleof the taping, Koufax asked nonchalantly,“Larry, when is this program being aired?”King told him the date and Koufaxthought a few moments. “Why, that’sRosh Hashanah! I don’t do interviewson Rosh Hashanah! People are going tothink that I’m giving this interview onRosh Hashanah!”According to Mr. King’s memoir, WhyI Love Baseball, Koufax had King repeatto the audience no less than 12 timesthat, “This is a taped interview, and wasnot done on Rosh Hashanah.”Of course, I am not using SandyKoufax to explain a critical assessmentof Moshe Rabbeinu in this midrash. Soput the story away, and think about it interms of your own convictions.Nonetheless, when I learned thisChazal, it clarified something thatperhaps they are trying to teach us. Fromthe fact that Yisro chided his daughtersfor not inviting Moshe into their home,we know that he was not within earshot;he was either outside in the desert orback at the well.On Moshe’s level, however, everythingabout his demeanor should have criedout to them, “I am an Ivri! I am not anEgyptian,” in the same way that Yosefunabashedly declared his lineage toeveryone he encountered, includingPharaoh himself.Yisro’s daughters did not knowthat Moshe was an Ivri. But whynot? Whether by speech or deed, onemust always declare, “I am a Jew! I amnot an Egyptian.” Even a seeminglypassive indifference to his heritage wasunacceptable to a man with such a highprofile as Moshe; hence this midrash’sgrievance against Moshe.In no way am I making even animperfect analogy to much lesser figures.But Chazal are teaching us a powerfullesson, especially in an era when theactions of so many of our coreligionistsseem to be the antithesis of everyteaching of our sages about what definesthe actions of a Jew.Indeed, even if we cannot reachMoshe’s level, at least we should reflectupon whether we are behaving in amanner that cries “I am a Jew,” as muchas certain people who don’t always weartheir religion on their throwing arm….Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky is the RoshYeshiva of Yeshiva Toras Chaim at SouthShore, and the author of the Parsha Parableseries and “Streets of Life” in Ami.8 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

GOLDEN NUGGETS // by Baila WeinbergWHY ASKFOR A SACK,WHEN WE CANASK FOR THEREDEMPTION?The Chidushei HaRim used to tellthe story of the crown prince whogreatly angered his father with hisirresponsible and profligate ways.He shirked his responsibilities, annoyedhis tutors, stole sweets from the royalpantry, and tried to foment argumentsamong his father’s butlers.Frustrated and dismayed, the wiseand noble king tried every method hecould to encourage his son to changehis behavior. After all, the crown princewould be the ruler one day. How could hegovern a kingdom if he couldn’t controlhis own impulses?The king tried speaking to the prince,explaining what an honor and privilege itwas to be born into royalty. Yet his wordswent in one ear and out the other.Finally, upon the advice of his trustedadvisors, the king reluctantly decided tobanish his son from the palace to givehim a few “hard knocks,” which wouldhopefully knock some sense into hishead.When the prince realized what hisfather planned to do, he began to beg andplead. “Father, how can you put me out inthe cold? What will I eat? Who will takecare of me?”But the king was unmoved. “Youshould have thought of thatbefore you misbehaved,” hesaid with a pained sigh. “Itried everything I could, butwas not successful. Perhapswhat you need is a bit ofpain and suffering to makeyou see reason.”And so the crown prince, who hadbeen spoiled and indulged his whole life,was thrown out of the palace gates withonly the clothes on his back and a smallparcel of food.Within a few days the food wasall gone, and his royal garments hadbecome muddied beyond recognition.Cold, hungry, and forlorn, he wanderedthe streets begging for bread. At nighthe lay down on the ground, a homelessvagrant unprotected from the elements.In the morning he awoke, only to beginhis depressing trek all over again.Day in and day out, he wandered thecountryside, dependent upon the mercyof the simple villagers he encountered.He learned quickly to take nothingfor granted, and was grateful when heencountered kindness and generosity.All too often, however, the doors wereslammed in his face.As the months went by, the crownprince slowly began to forget his royalbackground. Memories of his earlier,carefree life began to fade, replacedby his daily struggle for survival.Unbeknownst to him, however, the kinghad sent one of his loyal servants to keepa close watch on the crown prince, andensure that no one harmed him.One day, the king received a disturbingletter from his servant, stating that hisson was changed beyond recognition,and barely remembered his royalbackground. Chagrined, the king set outimmediately to bring his son back home.After many weeks of travel he found hisfirstborn son, bedraggled and hungry,wandering the streets.With tears in his eyes, the kingapproached the crown prince andembraced him. “My son, I am so sorry tosee what has happened to you,” he cried.“I want to help you. Tell me what youneed.”To the king’s eternal sorrow, instead ofasking to be taken home, all that the sonsaid was, “Your Majesty, the sack I use tobeg for food is worn out. I would like toask for a replacement….”Similarly, says the Chidushei Harim,Klal Yisrael is so sunken in pain andsuffering that when we have a chanceto daven, we ask for material things,for a sack in which to place our bread,instead of yearning for the redemption.Only once we merit the geulah willwe realize that there are truly moreimportant things in life than a sack forour bread…. 25 KISLEV, 5772 | DECEMBER 21, 2011 | | 9

In Defense ofMelatoninBY JACK FRIEDMAN, PH.D., NUTRITIONIST AT MAXI HEALTH RESEARCHHere at Maxi Health Research,we were extremely disappointedby Ami’s very negative,one-sided article regardingMelaonin.Melatonin has an extraordinarily saferecord with children who have receivedappropriate dosages. As a matter of fact,there are some hospitals that are currentlyusing low dosages for newborn infants.Of course, there are many other reasonsfor insomnia that should be looked into(such as anemia), and other possible deficiencies(such as calcium). But for thosefor whom melatonin is indicated, it oftenworks to restore a normal sleep rhythmwithin a few days or weeks, and hopefullyto a point where it is no longer needed.Contrary to unsupported claims ofthe dangers of youthful melatonin usage,sleep deprivation can be extremelyharmful, especially to kids with AttentionDeficit Disorder and other learningdisabilities, putting them at risk bylowering their immune functions. Inaddition, many instances of accidentaloverdose by children of 50 tablets ormore have been reported (in cases wherethe child-proof cap was not in place),and the only side effect was increasedsleepiness for 12 hours.The key to melatonin use is commonsense. It is intended to be taken asneeded, at low dosages, as indicated onthe labels of Mel-O-Chews and Mel-O-Drops. An excellent sourcebookon some of the many other benefits ofmelatonin is The Melatonin Miracle byWalter Pierpaoli, M.D., Ph.D. and WilliamRegelson, M.D.You can also read about the safetyof melatonin for infants in the reviewarticle, Update On The Use OfMelatonin Pediatrics in the Journal ofPineal Research (originally publishedon 1/10/2010), now available at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1600-079X.2010.00814.x/full). Wequote the summary:“Conclusions and perspective: As summarizedherein, there is general agreementthat melatonin therapy has a remarkablybenign safety profile, even whenchildren are treated with pharmacologicaldoses. Moreover, severe complicationswith long-term melatonin therapy inchildren or adults have not been reported.Additionally, none of the animal studieson maternal melatonin treatment duringpregnancy or postnatally have showntreatment-related side effects in the fetusor in the newborn, respectively. It seemslikely that melatonin treatment mightresult in a wide range of health benefits,improve quality of life, reduce healthcarecosts, and may help limit complicationsassociated with prescription drug use inchildren, as has been shown for adults.Overall, as a result of its wide spectrumof actions, melatonin would appear to bea highly beneficial molecule with unexploitedclinical potential, as demonstratedby the 82 randomized controlled trials(RCT) currently registered in Clinical-Trials.gov.”We hope that this restores any lostconfidence in the use of melatoninfor children or any other age group. Ifanything, it should provoke curiosity andinterest in its wide-ranging benefits. 10 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

The Worldwide Schoolfor Creative DesignLearn from home!Wherever you are in the world...Be part of a live interactive learning experience!INDESIGNADVANCEDFOR EXPERIENCEDDESIGNERS ONLY!NEWTake Adobe InDesign tomaster level with advancedfeatures that promise to saveyou hours of manual work!YOU WILL NOT BELIEVEWHAT YOU CAN REALLY DO!Call for detailsCOMPUTERGRAPHICSLearn to use the cuttingedge tools of the designindustry, and harness thepower of the Adobe CreativeSuite in this exciting,intensive 17 week course.THE MINICOURSEFast paced 12 week GraphicDesign course coveringthe essentials of AdobePhotoshop, InDesign andIllustrator together withDesign Theory and Marketing,culminating in a portfolio ofgraphic work.WEBDESIGNEnter this fast-movingindustry as you learnto create and maintainprofessional standardwebsites. HTML, CSSDreamweaver and Flash.registeredREGISTER NOW!Register early to ensure yourself a place and avoid disappointment.Thanks so much forproviding such aprofessional and enjoyablecourse, well worth theinvestment ... I learnt howto think out of the box andwork with condence.K. L. LondonDesigner for Hamodia... the teacher was excellent ...It was amazing to be able tolearn from the convenienceof my home. I am now afreelance web designer thanksto Design Alive and wouldreally recommend this course.G. F. JerusalemFreelance Web DesignerI am thrilled withDesign Alive! Ourteacher was fantastic,best of all, the classesare recorded so I nevermissed a class.E. R. New YorkI have been waiting fora course like this foryears... I can’t believe Iam receiving top qualitydesign training whilesitting in my armchairwearing my Crocs.Z. K. UK...besides for the greatteaching, it is mostpleasing to have acquireda network of friends theworld-over, all with apassion for design thatmatches my own ...E. H. CanadaGraphic DesignerSeparate Men’s and Women’s ClassesTo register for courses starting shortly:CALL: 02 538 7397 (Israel) 0208 123 8658 (UK) 718 312 8658 (US)Email for info pack: info@DesignAlive.com or visit www.DesignAlive.com

BYTES // Morsels of Wisdom, Wit, and Practical Advice By Chaya SilberI think I can, I think I can, I think I can…boost.Frazzled? Stressed?Throw some pillows!Annual pillow fight gaining in popularityA storm of featherpillows emblazonedwith the names ofbosses and teachersfilled the air, ashundreds of Chinesegathered to throw offstress in Shanghai.The annual pillowfight marked itsfifth year, and wasso popular that itstretched over twonights!“Nowadays thereare many white collarworkers and studentswho are facing hugepressures at work and at school, so we hope to give them an outlet torelease their stress before the end of the year,” said Eleven Wang, themastermind behind the pillow fights.Sarcastic Parenting?Don’t try this at homeAn Israeli study, recently published inthe Journal of Applied Psychology, found thatpeople who were confronted with sarcasticexpressions of anger scored better at solvingcreative problems.“Sarcastic expressions of anger, in contrastto direct expressions, can have a positiveeffect on complex thinking and on solvingof creative problems,” the study authorsexplained. “The incongruent informationinherent in sarcasm appears to stimulatecomplex thinking, and attenuate theotherwise negative effects of anger.”Although the methods they used to arriveat this brilliant nugget of information arebeyond the scope of this byte, here’s a wordof wisdom: Using sarcasm in parenting islike keeping a loaded gun in the foyer. Nomatter how effective it may seem, it’s notworth the long-term repercussions.As the famous saying goes, “You cancatch more flies with honey than withvinegar.”12 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

Kids! What’s the Matter with AllThese Kids Today?Manners going down the drainWe’re living in a thankless, selfabsorbedsociety. The proof is all aroundus. Need more?New research discovered that very fewparents are making efforts to instill basicmanners into their children.yesA survey by TODAY Moms andParenting.com found that just 30.7percent of parents demand that theirchildren write thank-you notes when theyreceive gifts. A paltry 41.7 percent admitthey sometimes make theirs write letters,and 27.6 percent are too busy, but will “getaround to it one day.”Younger parents take the cake in matters of ingratitude. Researchersreported that young parents (those under 30) are twice as likely not tomake their children write thank-you notes to Bubby for her beautifulgift. And then they wonder why more gifts aren’t forthcoming….Oh, Pray Can You See?Vast majority of Americans pray regularlynoBeyond a doubt, thewords “In G-d we trust”on our currency provethat a long time ago, mostAmericans had a strongbelief system.Things haven’t changedall that much in theensuing centuries. Despitea prevailing pop culturethat seems to celebrateamorality, most Americansstill pray on a regular basis.A recent poll from Fox News found that 84 percent of U.S. adults saythey’ve prayed in the past week, while nearly 80 percent of Americanvoters believe in the healing power of prayer.A full 77 percent of Americans believe that “prayers can helpsomeone heal from an injury or illness, while 20 percent don’t believethat,” reported the August survey. “The remaining three percent areunsure.”The survey also found that “women (82 percent) were more likelythan men (71 percent) to believe in the healing power of prayer.” But wesensed that already.PUTTERAROUNDtheHOUSESTOCK UP ON C.Z IS FOR ZINC.E IS FOR EXERCISE.British Journal of Sports Medicine….AND FOR EMPATHY.HIT THE SACK.were almost three times as likely to become16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 13

You’re Richer Than You ThinkCommon ExcusesWhy PeopleOverspendHow to getback onthe frugalwagonBY RONIT PESKINLiving within your means isan important skill. Somepeople, however, even whenthey know how to be frugal,don’t actually live that way. I’lladmit—even I sometimes overspend,and I’ve caught myself using thesejustifications more than once. Hereare some of the rationalizationspeople offer for overspending, andsome ways to overcome them.14 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

“You can’t teach an old dog newtricks.”Our chachamim spoke about howchanging even one bad middah can takean entire lifetime. It certainly isn’t easy tostop what we’ve been doing our wholelives; changing our spending habits isespecially difficult. Learning new ways tomanage your money can be very daunting.Don’t let this get you down; you don’tneed to become perfect overnight. Slowlybut surely you can become more consciousof your spending patterns and thenspend deliberately, rather than by habit.Start off with small things; once thesesmall changes become ingrained, you cangradually implement bigger measuresand make more drastic changes. There aremany success stories about people whowere complete spendthrifts who becamemoney-smart. Some even started teachingother people to do the same; nothing isimpossible. You can teach an old dog newtricks.“There’s no point in being thrifty.that nothing I do will make aWhen you’re stuck in a terrible financialsituation that has spiraled out of control,it may feel like your situation is hopeless,and there’s no way to get out of debt andstart living without constant stress. I candefinitely relate to the feeling that noaction can possibly make a dent in youroutrageous debt, so why not at least livecomfortably? The problem with suchthinking is that you give up without eventrying.Yes, there is a light at the end of thedarkest tunnel of debt, and there is evena way to get out of it! People have paidoff hundreds of thousands of dollars indebt, and you can too! Financial adviserslike Dave Ramsey give concrete adviceon how to do so with plans like the “debtsnowball,” which has been proven effectiveeven for those who are heavily in debt.Whatever you do, don’t give up hope.Hope is what will improve your situation.Believe that your situation can be resolved,and you’ll have a very decent shot at beingable to get your finances under control.“But it’s only a few dollars.”It’s easy to think that a few dollars hereand there make no difference, because asingle dollar doesn’t buy much nowadays.However, if you actually keep track ofall those dollars, you’ll see that they addup very quickly. Saving them insteadcan go a long way toward alleviatingyour financial situation. It is certainlyworthwhile to save even a dollar at a time;remember that you can completely fund abulk-buying stash with those “few measlydollars.”“But I already overspent today/this week/this month.”Anyone who has ever tried dietingknows how easy it is to fall into the rutof saying, “I already cheated on my diettoday; I’ll start fresh tomorrow.” Withoverspending, you may feel the sameway.The problem is that once you fall off thewagon, it’s hard to get back on. Pushingoff being money-smart can sometimesmean pushing it off forever.There is no magical start time foranything. Even if you overspent thismonth, this week, or even this morning,there is no reason that you haveto continue overspending now. Don’tpush off developing good spending habits,because the perfect time to start will nevercome.“My spouse wastes money—whycan’t I?”If your spouse spends recklessly it canbe quite difficult to be the saver, becauseit certainly doesn’t feel fair that he or shegets to spend and you don’t. After all, whyshould you deserve nice things any lessthan your spouse? You may be saying, “Ifhe/she wastes money, why can’t I?”If you’re married to a spender, yourfinances may be taking a hit. But if thereare two spenders in the family, yourfinances will be taking a double hit!Speaking to a rav or marriage counselormay be beneficial, but in the meantime, orif that doesn’t work, whatever efforts youmake to be frugal will hopefully preventyour financial situation from getting outof hand.“I don’t want to deprive my kids.”Parenting and being frugal entails adelicate balance; you don’t want yourkids to feel deprived, but at the sametime, you don’t want them to be spoiled.This is a more complex topic that willhopefully be addressed at length in afuture article. In the meantime, let mesay that it is definitely possible to notoverspend without having your childrenfeel deprived.“I deserve good things—I workhard!”When you’re working really hard, it’snot easy to save all the money you’veearned and not buy yourself anythingnice.Sometimes, however, no matter howhard you work, there isn’t any extramoney for frivolous purchases. If youspend the money you earn on extraswhen there isn’t enough for necessities,you’ll have to work even harder to be ableto cover the necessities in addition to theluxuries.In situations like this, try to prioritize.Decide which things are the mostimportant in terms of making you feelpampered, and treat yourself to themsparingly. At the same time, cut back onthings that may not be as important toyou. That way you’ll get your nice things,feel rewarded, and still not blow thebudget.“No one else is frugal—whyIt’s true; many people out there arenot frugal, and it’s hard to be different.At the same time, there are many peoplewho are very stressed financially becauseof tremendous debt loads; wouldn’tit be great to be different from them?Sometimes being different is anadvantage!It’s not easy being frugal. Unfortunately,most of us just can’t afford to spendwithout looking at the bottom line.Hopefully, this article will give youencouragement that, even when it isdifficult, frugality still pays off.Next week: Circumstances in which it isactually preferable not to be frugal. 16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 15

Why do we act this way? Psychology in real life.WHITELIARHave you gotten intothe habit of stretchingthe truth?BY DR. LISA AIKEN16 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

Aher next session. I had suspected for awhile that Shari often lied. Now I had proof,WHITE LIESJudaism takes an interesting approach to lying. On the one hand, the Torahtells us, “Midevar sheker tirchak (Distance yourself from a falsehood).” (Shemos23:7). Not only are we required to tell the truth, but we are to distance ourselvesfrom false word or matter, as well. On the other hand, when domestic harmonyis at stake, it is preferable to distort the truth rather than hurt someone’s feelingsunnecessarily.As elementary school children, we learn stories from Bereishis where HashemHimself doesn’t tell Avraham that his wife Sarah referred to him as an oldman (at the age of 99!) so as not to disturb their shalom bayis. Yosef ’s brothersprobably instructed someone to lie and say that Yaakov had asked Yosef toforgive his brothers for selling him into slavery. We also learn the story of YaakovTAKE THIS QUIZ TO SEE IF YOU HAVE A TENDENCY TO LIE:T F2. I prefer to avoid telling the whole truth if being honest will require a long-If you answered T to any of the above, you are not averse to lying.16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 17

Why do we act this way? Psychology in real life.impersonating Esav and misleading their father, so he would givehim Esav’s blessings. Apparently, when certain kinds of criticalthings are at stake, the Torah allows us to stretch the truth.The schools of Hillel and Shammai debated over what to doat the wedding of a homely bride. The school of Shammai saidthat we should tell the truth, and therefore refrain from singing“Keitzad merakdim lifnei hakallah, kallah na’ah vechasuda (This ishow we dance before a beautiful and gracious bride).” The schoolof Hillel, by contrast, held that we should indeed sing the song.Who appointed us judges of the bride’s beauty? Presumably, theman who is marrying her considers her beautiful. This way ofthinking allows us to appreciate that some “truths” are subjective,and that we need to be diplomatic rather than divulgingunnecessary truths that can be hurtful.THE SLIPPERY SLOPEAs seen above, the Torah gives us plenty of “wiggle room”to avoid telling the truth in certain situations, although it isclearly not the Torah’s preference. People often tell lies (whiteor otherwise) to avoid unpleasant situations that require takingresponsibility for their choices, being appropriately assertive,setting necessary boundaries, or being honest about who weare. Unfortunately, the more we become accustomed to lying,the more we rationalize doing so even when it isn’t necessary.Eventually, we stop evaluating whether or not a specific situationrequires us to lie, and we don’t tell the truth. Over time, we loseour integrity.Sometimes people lie about having prior commitments, inorder to avoid honestly confronting unpleasant feelings. InMalki’s case, she lied about the orthodontist rather than tell hertherapist, “I found it painful to talk about the issues we discussedtoday. I’m afraid to open up my wounds again next week, and feellike I need a respite. Can you help me work on issues next weekin a way that I will feel safe and protected?”Rather than lie about why we were late to an appointmentor meeting with a friend (using excuses such as bad traffic,an unexpected problem, or we got lost), we should takeresponsibility and resolve to work on being more punctual. Mostof us will respect a person who admits, “I didn’t plan well today.I am so sorry to have kept you waiting.” If we have a chronicproblem with lateness, it is both disrespectful and untruthful topin the blame on someone or something else. Owning up to ourmistakes is the first step to improving ourselves. We perpetuatebeing late when we offer lame excuses, if the real problem is thatwe didn’t leave enough time for travel.AN OPPORTUNITY FOR GROWTHMost of the situations in which we are tempted to lie arerecurring ones. Next time you’re in a peaceful mood, tryto imagine many of these and visualize yourself in thoseuncomfortable spots. What can you do to prevent thesesituations from happening, or to make sure that you don’t have tolie if they do occur?Eva is a procrastinator, and always gives excuses for why shehasn’t completed projects on time. Instead, she should ownup to the fact that she needs to buckle down and take care ofuncomfortable tasks in a timely manner. As soon as she admitsthe truth, she will be on the way to self-growth and maturity.Miri was married for three years before she had twins. Totalstrangers, as well as other people who had no business pryinginto her private life, would come up to her and ask her personalquestions about her childlessness. After she had children, theywould ask her how she was helped. Instead of lying or explaining,Miri learned to say, “I am so surprised that you think it is okayto ask me such a personal question!” This helped her to feelcomfortable asking others to respect her privacy.Finally, instead of fabricating credentials, experiences, andskills we don’t have, we should either become good listeners andencourage others to talk about themselves, or start living lives wecan be proud of. Either way, we can’t lose. Lisa Aiken, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist with more than 30years’ experience working with individuals and couples. Dr. Aikenhas given lectures in over 200 cities on a wide variety of Jewishtopics, and is the author of 11 books, including To Be a Jewishand The Baal Teshuva Survival Guide.18 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

DesignerNazis:Ever Wonder ExactlyWhom You're SupportingWith Your Purchases?By Yitta Halberstam MandelbaumShockingrevelationsabout theclothes inyour closet,and thestuff in yourdrawers16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2011 | | 25

Although her origins were exceedinglyhumble (she was born to peasants whobecame itinerant peddlers), the death oflegendary French designer Coco Chanelin 1972 was mourned by the highestechelons of international society—European blue bloods, titledaristocrats, jet-setting billionaires, artistic divas, influential powerbrokers, and the highest-ranking political luminaries in theworld.Indeed, barely had the high priestess of couture been laidto rest in her designer sepulchre in Lausanne, Switzerland,when the wife of then French President Georges Pompidouannounced plans to launch immediate nationwide tributes incelebration of the icon’s life and legacy. Those who traveled inthe rarified inner social circles to which Chanel had unqualifiedaccess waited breathlessly for the lavish festivities to begin.But suddenly, the busy PR machines that had been crankingout myriad press releases about the impending ceremonies fellstrangely silent. An occasional statement issued sporadicallyfrom the First Lady’s office spoke vaguely of a postponement,but no explanation followed. People wondered why Mme.Pompidou was stalling. Her initiative to pay homage to thewoman who had built a veritable empire—the House ofChanel—had generated approval and applause from all factionsof French life. Even to those whose finances would foreverrestrict their entree over the threshold of her landmark atelierat Rue Chabon, Chanel was a household name, considered theworld’s most successful woman of the mid-twentieth century.Everyone thought they were well acquainted with the intimatedetails of her inspiring biography: How Chanel employed morethan 2,000 people in her workrooms in the 1920s—at a criticaltime when the world economy was sagging badly, predatingThe explosive allegatiinformation drawn frothem by French counteexactly the same in al26 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

ons, based onm archives opened toerintelligence, werel three publicationsthe Big Crash of 1929—and how she had already amassed apersonal fortune of $15 million by the age of 40. But no onereally knew her at all: The “lower classes” who adulated her didnot know that she shared with them her modest antecedents;they did not know that she exemplified—quintessentially—theclassic, fabled rags-to-riches story to which they could onlyaspire. And even those with pedigrees and solid bank accountswho regarded themselves as Chanel’s peers and friends dwelledin similar illusions when it came to this woman with whom theywere enthralled. They were unaware that she was a poseur, anartful social climber who had used her good looks, charm, wiles,and parasitic relationships to push her way to—and penetrate—the upper crust of society. But when that information was finallyleaked, it was mild, compared to everything else that followed.In making the official announcement about plans tocommemorate Chanel’s life, Mme. Pompidou’s timing couldnot have been worse. She had no foreknowledge of two separatearticles that were on the cusp of being released by two popularpublications, Paris Match, and the International Herald Tribune.Nor was Mme. Pompidou aware that at the New York officesof prestigious publisher Alfred A. Knopf, a book in galleyswas being readied to go to print. The explosive allegations,based on information drawn from archives opened to themby French counterintelligence, were exactly the same in allthree publications: Coco Chanel—the essence of French chic,the most accomplished couturier of her time, a designer whodressed European royalty and the wives of presidents and primeministers, a woman responsible for pouring millions of francsinto her country’s coffers when they were most needed—hadled a double life, beyond anything her fellow countrymen couldhave imagined. From 1941–1944, the venerable, distinguished,and internationally celebrated Coco Chanel had been nothingless than a Nazi spy.During the War years, there were good people who turnedrogue out of desperation, fear and hunger, the sheer biologicalinstinct for survival making them cling to any means. Throughthe prism of the elemental forces that drove their actions, someof their choices could be discussed, and perhaps even forgivenby the magnanimous. But Coco Chanel fit into none of thesecategories. She was neither starving nor afraid; she was in factliving an affluent, indulgent life during the War years, ensconcedat the Paris Ritz, where she hobnobbed with pampered Naziguests Hermann Goering and Joseph Goebbels. Chanel wasneither overpowered at gunpoint to engage in espionage for theAbwehr, nor was she blackmailed or pressured in any way. Shesimply volunteered, out of (ideological) principle.…Gabrielle Chanel (she assumed the name Coco whenshe was 18) was 12 years old when her mother(who had valiantly tried to keep the dysfunctionalfamily together) died, and her impoverished father didn’teven engage in a day’s pretense to try to raise his family alone.He immediately placed Gabrielle and her two sisters in theAubezine convent-orphanage, where they became wards ofCatholic nuns who indoctrinated their charges with virulent16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2011 | | 27

everyone in BoroPark clung tightlyto an ironcladpolicy of refusingto buy anythingmanufactured inGermany. But today,plenty of people feelthat the survivors aremaking an undue fuss.anti-Semitism. Here, they studied and memorized the catechismthat taught that Jews had crucified their “savior.” Without everhaving met one, Gabrielle Chanel grew up loathing Jews.At the age of 20, Chanel was officially discharged by theconvent and put to work as a seamstress, an area in which sheseemed to naturally excel. In her spare time, she sang at a café,entertaining cavalry officers—several of whom were wellconnected,both socially and financially.It was here that she changed her name to Coco (whichsounded more whimsical) and put her meticulously-manicuredlong hooks into a succession of powerful people who ultimatelyshepherded her meteoric rise into the elegant social circleswhose ranks—under normal circumstances—would have beentightly closed to her ambitions. But because she came escortedto their galas, openings, operas, and balls by the elite themselves,Chanel gained a grudging toehold in their social hierarchy. Theprocession of people who came and went quickly in her lifeplayed Svengali to her Trilby, and Henry Higgins to her LizaDoolittle, helping Chanel acquire social skills, fashion savvy, andpolish, and ultimately financed her dream to become a first-classcouturier. But although she maintained her facade under themost trying of circumstances and pulled off a masquerade thatwas to last a lifetime, there was one area in which she lacked selfcontrol:the Jews.Marcel Haedrich, editor in chief of the renowned Frenchfashion magazine Marie Claire, often spoke about Chanel’s overthatred towards Jews, an animus that shocked high society, whichpreferred to practice a more genteel form of anti-Semitism:“Her anti-Semitic outbursts were passionate, noxious, andoften embarrassing. She engaged in what can only be calledanti-Semitic rants. She once told me, ‘I only fear Jews and theChinese, and the Jews more than the Chinese’.”This vestigial hatred would be parlayed into her subversiveactivities on behalf of the Nazi government during the War years,when she became an agent for the Gestapo.…Jean Frydman, vice president in 1989 of Paravision, asubsidiary of L’Oreal—the largest cosmetics companyin the world—would never have discovered theconglomerate’s nefarious Nazi roots had it not beenfor some current-day execrable activities of its heirs. Colludingwith the demands from the Arab Boycott Bureau (whichrefused to do business with companies that sold its goods toIsrael, had other significant ties to the Jewish State, or employedtop-tier personnel who happened to be Jews), L’Oreal wasquietly preparing a coup d’état in which it planned to toppleFrydman, an ardent Zionist, from his post. Frydman, who hadbeen a member of the French Resistance while just a teenager—blowing up German trains, power lines, and strategic plants, andparticipating in bloody battles against German soldiers—wasa decorated war hero who made a name for himself in the ’50sand ’60s as a media wizard, and built an empire of his own.28 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

Rumor Has Itrumors.Yediot AhronotDesigni 347.482.6783PERSONALIZED GIFTSfrom Name StreetA 1268 48st Brooklyn, NY 11219 | P 718.871.0291 | E Info@namestreetgifts.comHours | Sunday 12-6 | Monday - Thursday 11-6 | Friday 10:30 -12:30Visit our Websitewww.namestreetgifts.com16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2011 | | 29

Henry Ford The DearbornIndependentProtocols of the Elders of ZionProtocolsin The Dearborn IndependentTheInternational Jewthe World’s ForemostProblemDetroit News The People’s Tycoon: Henry Ford and theAmerican CenturyFord: DesHommes et des MachinesTheInternational Jew30 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

He had personally invested $50 million into the establishmentof Paravision (a company that sold and distributed films totelevision channels throughout Europe), while L’Oreal providedan additional 75 percent or $150 million. Frydman was on closepersonal terms with L’Oreal’s former president, Francois Dalle,who remained on board as an advisor to his successors, and hadrecently been a guest in his home in Israel. Confident of bothhis entrenched position at Paravision and his friendship withDalle, Frydman had no reason to believe that the meeting—scheduled for that drab morning on February 4, 1989 at L’Oreal’sheadquarters in the Paris suburb of Clichy—would be anythingmore than routine. As it turned out it would prove tumultuous,and for Frydman, a life-changing event.Frydman assumed that the meeting’s agenda that day wouldrevolve around his initiative to pursue a buy-out of ColumbiaPictures, currently owned by the Coca-Cola company. But thediscussion suddenly veered to a different topic altogether—theArab boycott—and the problems L’Oreal had been facing eversince Frydman had helped build a Helena Rubinstein cosmeticsplant in Israel. Because Helena Rubinstein was a prominentAmerican Zionist, the Arabs had immediately blacklistedL’Oreal, resulting in the loss of hundreds of millions of dollarsin Arab sales for the cosmetics giant and its subsidiaries (thecosmetic trademarks Lancome, Cacharel, Biotherm, GuyLarouche, Ralph Lauren, Giorgio Armani, Paloma Picasso, andLanvin, among others, are also owned by the company). MarcLadreit de Lacharriere, L’Oreal’s top financial expert, began firinga volley of questions at Frydman, who suddenly found himselfoccupying the “hot seat”: How did Frydman stand in regardto L’Oreal in Israel? Lacharriere asked. What were Frydman’sconnections in Israel, and what was the nature of his affairsthere?Frydman’s blood ran cold. Ever since the Six Day War hadawakened the dormant pintele Yid that flickered inside him,his entire mandate and mission in life had become intertwinedwith Israel’s well-being. Jean was rattled by the nuances that laybeneath Lacharriere’s pointed questions. Still, he struggled tomaintain his composure and answered civilly:“I hold dual Israeli and French citizenship, and since the early’80s I have been a resident of Israel. I own a company therethat manages radio advertising, and I’m also involved in theconstruction of the Israeli telecommunications satellite Amos.”A tense silence filled the room. Then Francois Dalle clearedhis throat and said in obvious discomfort: “The Arab Leaguedemands that we provide them with a list of all of our affiliates,and the names of the members of our board, before they decideto lift the boycott. Would you be willing to resign from yourIsraeli activities and change your place of residence?”Frydman was revolted, and firmly refused. He hoped that hisadherence to principles over profits would inspire the rest ofthe board to follow suit. The topic was eventually dropped, andFrydman assumed that the affair was closed.But he was wrong. The war had just begun.It is absolutelyincomprehensiblethat the Germangovernment didnot dismantle thecompany after theWar, consideringthat it built all thegas chambers.A SPECIAL OCCASION DESERVESA SPECIAL COOKIE...AUFRUFBABYBAR MITZVAHCUSTOMCrystalC okiesby Chaya347.482.385416 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2011 | | 31

Frydman’s world hadalready been upendedwhen he had discoveredthat one Nazi had takenrefuge at L’Oreal. Nowhe was learning thatthere were more. inWhat kind of viper’s nesthad he been working allthese years?On June 22, 1989, 11 weeks after the April 4th meeting, ayoung secretary from Paravision’s legal department knocked onFrydman’s door. “Sorry to interrupt you,” she apologized, “butwe can’t find your letter of resignation.”“What letter of resignation?” Frydman bolted out of his chair,furious.“The one you handed to the Board of Directors….”“I never wrote or gave them a letter of resignation. I don’tknow what you’re talking about!” Frydman shouted. “TellPietrini to come in here!”A few minutes later, Michel Pietrini, president of Paravision’sUK division, walked into Frydman’s office and closed the door.“I am being ousted by my own company,” Frydman told him.“I know,” Pietrini sighed. “This is all the doing of Correze. Heis in charge of negotiations with the Arabs from the BoycottLeague.”“Correze? Who’s Correze? I never heard this name before.”“Correze is president of L’Oreal’s affiliate in New York,Cosmair,” Pietrini said. “And, just between you and me, he’s thebest person the Arabs could have chosen to liaise with.”“And why is that?”“Because he’s a former Nazi. He hates the Jews—and Israel.After the War, he was condemned by a French court to a longprison term for his crimes under Vichy.”Shaken to the core, Frydman seethed: “The president ofCosmair is a former Nazi? And a Nazi criminal is trying to oustme from my company?” he shouted. “What is a Nazi criminaldoing in such a respectable company as L’Oreal? And how didhe gain entry to the United States?”Jean was reeling. In a matter of seconds he had learned thathe was being fraudulently dismissed, that L’Oreal had yieldedto the Arab boycott, and that one of the L’Oreal bosses was aconvicted Nazi criminal.“One?”Anne Sinclair, the “Oprah” of the French televisionworld and a friend of the Frydmans exclaimed in disbelieflater that night at a dinner that Jean attended despite the day’seruptions.”How could you be so naive, Jean?” she scolded.“Personally, I’ve heard that L’Oreal hired quite a few formercollaborators after the War, that there were higher-ups in thecompany who were Nazi sympathizers and helped them getjobs. As a matter of fact, my father, who owned a perfumeshop, resigned from the French perfume industry associationwhen some L’Oreal executives helped a notorious Nazi, JeanLeguay (who participated in the roundup of Parisian Jews fordeportation) to obtain a position there. Didn’t you know any ofthis?” Anne turned to Jean Frydman in surprise. “Did you neverhear the whispers?”Frydman hadn’t. His world had already been upended whenhe had discovered that one Nazi had taken refuge at L’Oreal.Now he was learning that there were more. In what kind ofviper’s nest had he been working all these years?Later that night, Frydman started calling experts on the Vichy32 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

egime: the famous Nazi hunter Serge Klarsfeld; the journalist Michele Cotta, whohad written a book on Vichy’s collaboration with the Nazis; and the historian JacquesDelarue.“Have you ever heard about a man named Correze?” he asked each one.“Correze is a bloody criminal,” answered one. “But he is long dead.”“Isn’t he living in exile in Spain?” another responded. “Before the War he was one ofthe leaders of ‘La Cagoule,’ the extreme right-wing underground.”“Correze?” said another. “I would love to lay my hands on him. Where is he?”By the evening’s end, Frydman had confirmed, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that thepresident of L’Oreal’s affiliate in New York, Cosmair, had been a dedicated Nazi. Theknowledge that L’Oreal had provided a safe haven for Correze—and possibly otherslike him—made Frydman convulse with fury and catalyzed his personal investigationinto the employment records and history of L’Oreal executives. What he learned shookhim to his core.Here are just a few of the many terrible truths Jean Frydman’s research gleaned:1Eugene Schuellershuls soldiers.2AndrewBettencourtLe CrapouillotLa Terre FrancaiseL’Elan3 HenriDeloncleEugene DeloncleLouisJean AzemaJacques Piquet Jean FilliolJean Frydman’s research left him revolted. A clear pattern had emerged: L’Oreal hadsystematically harbored war criminals after they had been released from their prisonterms, and had even allowed them the opportunity to advance to the highest ranks ofthe company.“They don’t have to try to oust me anymore,” he said in disgust. “I can no longer beassociated with all this evil. I quit.”

The House of Chanel and L’Oreal was not an isolated case; alas, the story of “DesignerNazis” does not belong exclusively to them. They share the honors with some of the mostprestigious companies in the world, companies whose products we continue to use inblissful oblivion today. Although a substantial portion of these companies stemmed fromEurope, several were—to their perpetual dishonor and shame—American, too. Thesecompanies, in one form or another, aided and abetted the Nazi regime, helping to advanceits platform of making Europe Judenrein. Here are just a few members of our Hall ofInfamy:1) HUGO BOSS: 2) SIEMENS: 3) IBM:4) BAYER:5) VOLKSWAGEN:6) CHASE BANK:froze 7) KODAK:34 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

The Nation8) COCA-COLA/FANTA:NewStatesman9) NOVARTIS: A10) NESTLE:Other companies that colluded with the Nazis include GE(General Electric), BMW, Allianz Financial Services, Krupp,Daimler-Benz (now Daimler-Chrysler), and Opel.So now that we have more information about the designersand manufacturers that alternately helped advance the Nazicause, betrayed their Jewish employees, ruthlessly exploitedJewish slave labor, and callously continued to supply the Naziswith their material and financial needs regardless of their heinousmission—where do we go from here? There must be barelya minority of us who do not use—on even a daily basis—atleast one (if not many) of the products currently manufacturedby these companies. So here are the questions we must askourselves: As children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildrenof survivors, are we obligated to always remember and neverforgive? What is the high moral ground? What statementare we making if we refrain from buying these products, andwhat statement are we making if we don’t? Do our parents,grandparents, and great-grandparents even care? The currentowners of these companies must be at least one if not twogenerations removed from their criminal predecessors. Is it fairto make them pay for the sins of the company’s original foundersor executives? And if we would choose to boycott all the productsmade by the above-named companies, would we be making anyreal kind of dent?Decades ago, when I was a child, everyone in Boro Parkclung tightly to an ironclad policy of refusing to buy anythingmanufactured in Germany. They did not want to supportGermany in the tiniest of ways. But looking at the curbs anddriveways of Brooklyn today provides eloquent testimonythat this policy no longer reigns. Plenty of second- and thirdgenerationsurvivors are completely comfortable purchasingGerman-made automobiles and feel, in fact, that their stubbornparents are making an undue fuss.Can we—should we—forgive these companies and discard ourparents’ old policies? Or should we—in light of what we knowright now—revive them?We would like to turn to you, dear readers, for your thoughts.Please send us your perspectives and we will publish them as anopen forum. For now that we have this information, what do wedo with it?16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2011 | | 35

A personal journalA Family Like ThisBy Gitty GoldLAST WEEK: Gitty realized that she can’t possibly attend all the simchas she is invitedto. After getting her hopes up, the sheva brachos she was planning was held elsewhere.Nechami got engaged.Chapter elevenThis time the chosson was from Bnei Brak. Justthinking about a Shabbos aufruf in Bnei Brak mademe forget Gitty’s wedding and all the heartache I’dendured. I was really looking forward to it, althoughI did find dealing with an engaged Litvishe couplea bit of a culture shock. I also didn’t understand how I wassupposed to arrange everything in such a short engagementperiod of three to four months—aside from the additionalstress of having the chosson come to visit. For the life of meI couldn’t understand how he could come over while theywere still only engaged, and sit at the table together with allof his kallah’s sisters….With so little time I started my frenzied preparations. Thefirst thing I did was to call my sister-in-law (my brother’swife) about getting matching dresses for all the girls. Thisway, I hoped to avoid unnecessary friction and jealousy. Iknew my sister-in-law had excellent taste and a very skilledhand, so when she offered to lend me the dresses she’dsewn for her own daughters, I was only too pleased. I hadno doubt the dresses would be magnificent. Our girls weremore or less the same ages, and she offered to alter thosethat needed altering.Someone else gave me six extra-long satiny pink skirtswith matching sleeveless tops embroidered with delicatewhite flowers, for the Shabbos aufruf. All I had to do wasbuy white blouses to go underneath the tops, and shoes, ofcourse. I decided to do my own shopping in Bnei Brak, andat the same time I would collect the gowns from my sisterin-law.As I had anticipated, the gowns were undeniablymagnificent. They were a satiny off-white with intricatelybeaded belts and matching necklaces. I was all set, andbecause of my bulky load I decided to take a taxi homefrom Bnei Brak to Yerushalayim. Huffing and puffing, Iwalked through the door and plopped down on the nearestchair. The girls came running to see what I’d brought, butinstead of jumping for joy Chani and Gitty Gold took onelook at the gowns and locked themselves in their bedroomwith the cordless phone.I had never dreamt that the wedding gowns would causesuch drama. I had naively thought that everybody would beso pleased. I had gone all the way to Bnei Brak and broughtback the most beautiful gowns imaginable. Why was Ialways being made into “the evil stepmother” when I wasdoing my best?This time the girls went too far. They cried and cried untilMindel told them to take the dresses to Savta Stern and lether decide. I was in disbelief. With all due respect to SavtaStern, why would she know better than I about what looksnice?Regardless, Savta Stern decided that the dresses were notsuitable. “The girls should go out and buy new dresses,” shesaid emphatically. “They are orphans, and should be allowedto have something new. “And so, my daughters wore the gowns from Bnei Brak,while the Gold daughters wore something entirely different.For once even Nachum, who was drowning in debt, wasupset.I spent most of the wedding dreaming of the day whenall the children would be married and happily settled, andI would finally be a person in my own right. Maybe thenthey would accept me for who I was—not just a horriblestepmother.One of my hobbies is decorating. I absolutely love it. Iderive great pleasure from the blending of colors and the36 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

creation of living space. When I first gotmarried, I was too busy and overwhelmedto notice or care about the decor in my newhome. But once I was more settled, I beganto notice the shabbiness of my surroundings.Don’t get me wrong; I didn’t want or needanything fancy or ostentatious, but I didwant to make real changes, such as breakingdown walls and installing larger windows.And while I knew that that would neverhappen, I thought that maybe I could get ridof the dark brown sofa and fill the house withplants and flowers. That alone would addsome cheer and make the dining room seem brighter andlighter. I did not share my thoughts with Nachum, knowingthat he paid little or no attention to anything he termed“extraneous” (meaning anything not directly connected toTorah and avodas Hashem).One Thursday morning, I got as close to my dream asreality would allow. I felt a sudden surge of energy anddecided to surprise everyone. I moved all the beds andclosets away from the walls, cleaned behind them, andrepositioned them. In fact, I moved all the furniture arounduntil every room had a different look. By the time I wasdone, every bone in my body ached, but I was really pleasedwith the new and improved look. Rivky came home fromschool just as I was putting on the finishing touches. It tookher a minute to realize what was different, but then shestarted laughing and running from room to room.“Wow, Mummy, this is great!” she said, jumping upand down and clapping her hands. Pointing to an emptyshelf she added, “This is where my dolls will sit fromnow on, she said,” pointing to an empty shelf. We heldeach other’s hands and danced around the room, full oflaughter. Rivky had a wonderful personality, forthrightand refreshing, especially when her sisters weren’t home.Suddenly I noticed how big she’d grown; she was almostin first grade. By then, Nati had also grown; his hair wouldbe cut the following week. I had wanted to go to Meronfor the upsherin, but Nachum had already nixed that ideawhen David turned three, explaining gently that tznius isnot only about dress and speech, but also about lifestyle. Hepreferred to keep such milestones low key.It was funny how much I had changed. Until I hadIt was funny how much I had changed. Forthe most part I liked the new me, but everyso often, the other Gitty— impulsive andspontaneous—still rose to the surface.married Nachum, I had always made the decisions for thefamily. For the most part, I liked the new me. But every sooften, the other Gitty—impulsive and spontaneous—wouldrise to the surface. That morning I was the old me, andRivky was pleased.Nati and Dovid then came home. They also enjoyedlooking around, and then we sat down for lunch. Everyonewas happy and relaxed. I enjoyed sitting with them as theytold me about their day and showed me their artwork.Silently, I thanked Hashem for my happy home, eventhough it was simple and unadorned.At two o’clock, Nachum and the other boys came home.As they were now over bar mitzvah, they avoided beinghome with me alone. They were so meticulous, it sometimesdrove me mad. In all areas they lived by the book, literally.Washing their hands on Shabbos could keep the wholefamily waiting for what seemed like hours. They wouldcheck and wash and dry their hands before actually washingthem, and then recite the bracha out loud with who knewhow many kavanos. But deep down, I was proud of them.Next to come home were my two younger girls. Theywalked through the door and immediately noticed the newarrangement. They were thrilled, and we exchanged hugsand kisses.By the time Leah and the two Chanis came home at six,we’d all gotten used to the changes. They, however, wereseeing them for the first time.What happened next was a total surprise. To be continued....16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 37

W E E K L Y S E R I A LB Y P E R I B E R G E RTOIMMERSTHE CHIEF WAITSFOR RESULTSCHAPTER FOUR“So, where are you holding?” askedRon, Shlomo’s handler. “It’s already been60 days, and we’ve hardly heard fromyou, except to get your expense accountreceipts.”Shlomo nodded nervously. “This is amuch more complicated assignment thananyone could have imagined,” he said.“Oh, boo-hoo, you poor baby. Listen,”said Ron, leaning over the small table andlooking straight into Shlomo’s eyes. “TheChief is getting extremely aggravated.He’s been using your progress reports forblowing his nose.”“Really?” said Shlomo, amused at thethought.Ron snorted in reply. “Tell me what’s socomplicated, chabibi. Maybe we can helpyou a little. Talk to Abba.”Shlomo shifted uncomfortably in theseat of the grubby coffee shop whereRon had arranged to meet him. It wasalmost completely hidden from the streetand not at all kosher, precluding anyunwanted encounters with one of Itzeleh’scongregants. Almost against his will, allShlomo could bring himself to order, aftereating nothing but kosher food these pasttwo months, was a can of Coca-Cola.He tried to put on his professional,seasoned face. “The subject is elusive,extremely elusive,” he began. “Very hardto pin down.” Shlomo removed a foldedpiece of paper from his jacket pocket. “Imade friends with the secretary—”Ron smirked. “It that what all thoseiced coffee receipts are about?” he asked.Shlomo nodded. “I think she has ahollow leg. She drinks these huge cupfulsdown like water. I got these from her deskdrawer—top right.”“His appointment calendar?” askedRon.“Yeah, and I made some notes.” Shlomoremoved a small pad from his pocket.Everyone else was already using PDAs,but he still did things the old-fashionedway—at least until he was issued onefor himself. “Most of his speakingengagements are small, closed groups:yeshivas, girls’ seminaries, nursing homes,tour groups, even kindergartens.”“I thought he did big rallies,” said Ron.“Very rarely, according to this agenda.There’s only one notation for a rally, andwhen I asked the secretary about it, shesaid it had been cancelled. So that makesno rallies at all so far this year.”“Okay, go on.”“He meets with people privately. There’sone spot in the beit knesset where you canoverhear what’s going in on his office.He would die if he knew about it; heeven has a noise machine to muffle thesound. There’s a hole in the wall rightover my head, and I can hear everything. Ialways put my things down on that chairso people know it’s taken. He seems tojust talk to people about their personalproblems. Even the ‘big people’ who cometo see him just talk about their wives andkids.”“Are you serious?” said Ron. “That’simpossible.”“That’s what I thought. First I figuredthey were speaking in code, but they’renot. A wife is a wife. A kid is a kid. Ichecked everything out and it all squares.”“How does he act with you?” askedRon.“Friendly but distant. Like he trusts meand he doesn’t trust me at the same time.”38 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

ALIONLAST WEEK:SEVENTEEN-YEAR-OLD LEAH NEGLECTSHER DIABETES AND FAINTS WHILE HELPINGOUT AT THE SHABBATON, SPILLING HOTSOUP ALL OVER SHLOMO.“Do you also speak to him privately?”asked Ron.“Yeah. I told him that I got laid off andneeded some downtime before gettingback into the rat race—everything thatwas written in the file. He’s actually apretty smart guy.”Ron’s eyes narrowed when he heardthat. “Shlomo,” he said with a note ofwarning, “are you getting sucked in? Is hegetting under your skin? Tell me the truth.The minute it happens, we’ll pull you out.”“No! Not at all.” Shlomo’s eyeshardened.He refused to allow his heart to soften,but something inside of him was startingto sweat.At first, Shlomo had been ruthlesslycold. His eyes had never stoppedmoving, never stopped searching. Hewas looking for any sign of Itzeleh’ssubversive activities. Certainly, thingscould not be as they seemed. Peoplecame and went constantly. Itzeleh madehimself available to anyone who wantedto speak with him, often remaining inthe synagogue until the early hours ofthe morning. Shlomo carefully watchedthe line of people waiting to see him,striking up conversations with those wholooked vaguely familiar or who seemedto be traveling with an entourage. Evencommunity leaders brought him theirproblems, but Itzeleh solved them withthe same equanimity, as if he were playinga game of chess. As far as Shlomo couldtell, Itzeleh had no underlings, no soldiersor advisors—he was a one-man band,playing every instrument himself withwisdom and skill.WATCHING ITZELEH OPERATE WAS LIKEWATCHING A SNAKE CHARMER. YOUCOULDN’T TAKE YOUR EYES OFF HIM UNTILIT WAS TOO LATE.Every day, starting at around 10:00A.M., after the morning prayers hadfinished, Itzeleh would stand up at thefront of the synagogue, bang on the amudand start speaking. He did this every fewhours, at regular intervals whose exactorder Shlomo did not yet fathom. At first,Shlomo spent the time observing Itzeleh’sbody language, watching the peoplein attendance, even going through thepockets of their coats in the coatroom. Hehad searched Itzeleh’s office thoroughlyseveral times, but had found nothing hecould identify as incriminating.After a while, he realized that he wasdealing with a rotating group of peoplewho came at different hours of the day,different days of the week. After twoweeks there weren’t many new faces atthe classes, although the cast of characterschanged nightly.One day, having exhausted all of hisprofessional obligations for the moment,he sat down to listen to the content ofItzeleh’s talks, hoping to glean revelatoryinformation. What he got, instead, wassimple talk on the Five Books of theTorah. He knew most of these rabbisspoke mostly on esoteric subjects thatnobody could understand, but not Itzeleh.He started from the beginning, almost asif he knew Shlomo was finally listeningand didn’t want him to miss out onanything. “Breishit bara Elokim”—Shlomohad heard it a thousand times, a milliontimes. But he had never heard the wordsas they were spoken by Itzeleh, each onewrapped in a cocoon of love. He hadnever heard anyone speak about anythinglike that, except maybe the Chief whenhe was talking about the enemies ofIsrael. The words poured out of Itzelehlike a string of pearls, threatening to wrapthemselves around Shlomo’s soul andchoke the life out of it.He literally had to shake himselfto work against what he was startingto call the “Itzeleh Effect.” WatchingItzeleh operate was like watching a snakecharmer. You couldn’t take your eyes offhim until it was too late.The next time it happened, Itzeleh wastalking about Gan Eden, about Adam andChava and the terrible mistake they hadmade. He spoke about them with love16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 39

TOTALIMMERSIONITZELEH DOESN’T HAVE A DAUGHTER OFMARRIAGEABLE AGE; SHE’S WAY TOO YOUNG.BUT HE HAS A NIECE, AND SHE HAS WHAT THEYCALL A FLEK.and forgiveness, whereas all Shlomo hadever heard was the curse they had broughtupon humanity. He was shocked to hearItzeleh judging them favorably, and thistime got up and left the room.“You’re not doing a good job, Shlomo,”said Ron, lighting a cigarette and blowingthe smoke in Shlomo’s face. “You’reprobably going to get pulled anyway,unless you come up with whatever theChief is looking for. Do you get mymeaning?”Shlomo got the meaning loud andclear. The Chief didn’t send people outundercover unless he was 99.9 percentsure there was something to find. Ifnothing turned up, it was clearly dueto the agent’s inadequacy, which oftenled to guard duty at the Beit Shemeshcheckpoint or some other scintillatingassignment. Nobody wanted to be the onewho came home empty-handed.“What about the daughter?” asked Ron.“Did you find someone to marry?”Shlomo perked up. “Actually, I did.Itzeleh doesn’t have a daughter ofmarriageable age; she’s way too young. Buthe has a niece, and she has what they calla flek.”“What’s a flek?” asked Ron.“She has diabetes, so she’s much harderto marry off, even though she’s related toItzeleh.”“So they’d consider you?” asked Ron.“Not yet. I have to make somemoves—I have to put on tzitzit, changethis knitted kippah for a black one, stufflike that. They need to see that I’m serious.Then they’ll want to marry me off in notime. I have to start planting the idea inhis head.”Ron started laughing. “I can’t wait to dothe hora at your chuppah.”“Not so fast, buddy. I have miles to gobefore I sleep.”Ron stood up to go, throwing some billsdown on the table. “Just remember thatthe boss is watching you. He’s sure thisguy is up to something, slowly gatheringall the groups together to flip over thegovernment.”Shlomo almost laughed out loud. “Idon’t know, Ron. These charedim seemto have trouble deciding which wattageof light bulb to buy. I’m not so sure theywould be able to agree on which day tostart the revolution, let alone a revolutionitself. You know the joke—two Jews, threeshuls, four opinions, something like that?”Ron grabbed Shlomo by the collar andpulled him to his feet. Nobody else in thecafé batted an eyelash. “This is no joke,tembel. How will you feel when they shaveoff your hair and force you to grow payot?When they won’t let you drive your caron Shabbat? You think it’s funny now, butbelieve me, it will not be funny when weno longer have a choice.”Shlomo could smell the cigarettes andcoffee on Ron’s breath entering his nasalpassages and threatening to gag him.He wished he didn’t know that smellswere particulate—that whatever youwere smelling had already broken up intoparticles and entered your respiratorysystem. What was worse was that hecould no longer see how the State ofIsrael becoming charedi would be sucha bad thing. With men like Itzeleh incharge, it might actually be better. But hecould never say this out loud—in fact, itwas dangerous to even think it, especiallywith Ron examining him so carefully.No movement made by an agent wasextraneous; he himself had used the “grabthe-collar”technique many times to get agood look at someone’s eyeballs.Ron dropped him back onto his seatlike a rag doll. “Results, chabibi. You hearme?”Shlomo nodded. Ron was, after all,his superior, and Shlomo had gone toofar. He wouldn’t be surprised if the nextmeeting took place in the Chief ’s office,and he’d be asked to hand in his “agent’skit.” That would be a sad day in his life.But assuming the Chief kept him on thecase, he couldn’t help wondering how itwould all play out, getting married andreally infiltrating Itzeleh’s world. Nothingless than total immersion would do, evenif he had to sacrifice his sinning soul to doit. To be continued....40 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

daysAn Unexpected TreasureMy father’s heart transcended the limitations of his bodyBy Dina NeumanActually, the day didn’t passin a blur. It passed slowly, amicrocosm of my father’s illnessof the past 25 years. I got thephone call and crumpled. But the flightwasn’t until one in the morning, and itwas only three in the afternoon. I packed,cleaned up from lunch, did laundry,did more laundry, rearranged the toys,mopped the apartment, mopped thehallway outside the apartment, moppedthe steps in the building, and took out thegarbage.Time passed at a snail’s pace. Thebaby squirmed and wriggled and criedthe whole flight, and I felt a bizarreresentment toward him, toward myhusband—toward everyone who was notmy mother. We landed and inched alongin the painfully slow traffic.My mother called.“He’s still here, Dina.” she said.“Oh—”“He’s waiting for you.”But he was not waiting for me. Or atleast, he was not waiting only for me.Because I hugged him and kissed him andcried and told him I was there and that Iloved him. His mouth and eyes were open,glazed and unseeing. Or maybe seeingeverything.But still, he waited. For everyone to bethere? For no one to be there?He shouldn’t be here, the doctor said.No one can live with failed kidneys andhis lungs filling with blood. He is braindead, he said. He had two cardiac arrestsand is bleeding out from everywhere. Heis not really breathing; the machine is.Don’t unplug him, came the startlinganswer from the rav. Do everything youcan to keep him alive.Is he alive? I kept thinking he was aboutto turn to me and smile.My parents had a vision of the kindof household they would run, and theyworked together to make their dream areality. My parents’ house has four doors,one on each side, like Avraham’s tent,and fittingly, I grew up alongside peoplewho started off as strangers and ended upmoving in. So many people refer to myparents as Ima and Abba that it’s hardto differentiate between their biologicalchildren (and there are many of us!) andthose who became honorable members ofthe family. Ours was a home filled withmusic and laughter and love, just as myparents wanted it to be. Then, when I wasnine years old, my father was diagnosedwith an illness that crushed their dreamsto dust.My father had now been sick for almostas long as I can remember.Almost.I can still call some overused memoriesto the surface of my mind, memoriesof walking down the street holding myfather’s hand, pride in my heart, knowinghow people looked at him, so tall, sohandsome. I remember being held againsthis chest when something frightened me,listening to the steady beating of his heartand knowing that, in his arms, nothingcould hurt me.MY FATHER WAS A SENSITIVE MAN WHO WOULDCRY WHEN READING CHILDREN’S STORIES TO US,AND WE WOULD RUN, GIGGLING, TO GET HIMTISSUES.16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 41

daysSOME VISITORS DIDN’T KNOW WHAT TO MAKE OFIT, THE LAUGHING VIGIL, AND HONESTLY, I DIDN’TKNOW WHAT TO MAKE OF IT.My father has not been able to hold mein his arms for many years now.I remember my father standing in thehallway of my elementary school, readinga poem on the wall out loud to me. “Dina!Listen to this: “A smile,” he read, “costsnothing but gives much.” Girls walkedby and stared as he went on to read thewhole thing, and I wanted to melt intothe floor.I wish he could embarrass me like thatagain.My father’s legendary heart isencapsulated best by the time he broughthome a woman and a child late one night.The woman was a single mother and newin town. She was lost and alone. Theystayed in my house for months.Money needed for our rusty stationwagon went to fund a needy family. To myfather, everything we owned was viewedin terms of how it could be shared.We hosted baalei teshuvah at our table,and my father, a baal teshuvah himself,never lectured, never delivered thunderingspeeches. He was a quiet man, a sensitiveman who would cry when readingchildren’s stories to us, and we would run,giggling, to get him tissues. He changedpeople’s lives by leading a life of Torahwith his heart on his sleeve.We sang a lot to him. The nurses didn’tmind; not in that ward. We sang the oldsongs, the ones we grew up with. The oneswe remembered dancing to with him afterHavdalah every Motzei Shabbos. I saidTehillim and davened slowly, carefully.There was no rush. I had nowhere to go.That time I had with him was anunexpected treasure, one last gift frommy father. So I told him everything. Itold him about my hopes for the future.I told him about my plans for now. I toldhim about my shortcomings, how myselfishness gets in the way of me beingwho I want to be, and how I wish I weremore like him.My siblings came and went. We weresad, but we were all together, and a roundof “Remember when?” dissolved intoringing laughter. Some visitors didn’tknow what to make of it, the laughingvigil, and honestly, I didn’t know what tomake of it. There was no place in my mindto put it.I thought, His eyes look lifeless, but his soulis here, right?He is here. He is not here. I want him tolive forever. I want him to go; it’s just toomuch pain in a lifetime of pain. The vacanteyes, so dry from being open for so long;the mouth, an opening where his smileused to be; and the feeling that he couldhear every word I said.I called my daughters, asked themabout their day. They sounded so matureon the phone. They asked for presents. Ipromised presents. I was 6,000 miles awayfrom them, promising gifts and love, thenhanging up to walk the streets of NewYork arm-in-arm with my sisters, waitingfor our father to die.When he first became ill, hisdegeneration was slow and incrediblypainful to watch. Chronic ProgressiveMultiple Sclerosis, the rarest of allsubtypes of MS, is like dying in slowmotion.My parents tried their best not tolet it change anything. We still turned42 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

up the speakers full blast every MotzeiShabbos and danced around in circles.We still invited a million Shabbos gueststo our table. We even took in foster kids.Meanwhile, my big, strong, handsomefather regressed from walking shakilyto walking with a cane, to a walker, to awheelchair, to a bedridden paraplegic,then paralyzed to a degree that is hard todescribe. He couldn’t move his arms orlegs. He couldn’t wiggle his fingers andtoes. He couldn’t see. He couldn’t talk. Hecouldn’t eat, and finally, he couldn’t evenbreathe on his own.My parents tried everything. Everyoneand his mother had a guaranteed curefor MS, and they tried every single oneof them, no matter how ridiculous itsounded, from special diets and injectionsto visits to mekubalim. They flew across thecountry to specialists. Nothing helped.I am a mother now. How did my ownmother care for my father, work fulltime to support us, and still maintainthe household and give each of usthe attention we needed? I know thatsometimes she must have been cryingon the inside, but both my parents weredetermined to maintain their dreamhousehold. Though it wasn’t—it couldn’tbe—the same.My mother once said to me, “I tellHashem, ‘Don’t you know what we wantto do in Your Name? I want to help all ofYour children. Why are you taking awayour ability to do that?’”My father let go of his pain, his grief,and his questions—and incredibly, he wasable to do what he loved to do best: togive. His quiet acceptance of his physicalstate, his constantly playing Torahtapes and davening by listening to mybrother’s taped chanting of Shacharis, gaveinspiration to all who knew him.People told me that my father’s faceglowed. People said to me, your father wasan angel on Earth.If you ask anyone what they bring tomind when they think of my father, theywill tell you it was his ever-present smile.The rain fell in sheets outside thewindow next to his bed.“It’s so...” my mother began, searchingfor the word, “appropriate.”“Corny?” I supplied. “I know. I alreadytold G-d.”We all laughed until tears came. It wasso corny, the rain, on the day my fatherdied.My brother said Viduy and my sisterand I sang his favorite passuk, “Mitzvahgedolah lihyot besimcha (It’s a great mitzvahto always be happy),” as the line on themonitor that was his heart went flat. Hisface did not change as he died. Nothingchanged. It had just been his heart—asalways—that had been keeping him alive.And it is his heart that we willremember—and, cliché as it is, the factthat as he died, the angels cried.My father realized, long before the restof us were granted the acceptance, that hewanted to do so many mitzvos—but theywere not the ones that were wanted ofhim. He wanted to sacrifice for Hashem,but Hashem demanded a very differentsort of sacrifice.My father gave Hashem what wasasked of him. My father gave Hashem hissmile. 16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 43

daysThe WaveI had never known that we lived on a two-way streetBy Tzirel GoldmanAs my son and I open the frontdoor and say our good-byes, Inotice my neighbor Sarah acrossthe street. She’s just steppedoutside her house and is holding aninsulated coffee cup. She settles herself onher porch and looks across at me. Withoutmissing a beat we raise our hands, do thewave, and laugh.I smile to myself as I walk back into myhouse and think how that ritual began.As young mothers living on Maple Streetwe had children close in age, ranging frominfancy to the terrible twos and beyond.Though we ourselves were almost a decadeapart, our children united us in theirmorning routine. Every day we would openour front doors at precisely 8:15 A.M. As ourchildren stepped outside to leave for school orscurried back in for a forgotten homeworkassignment or snack, Sarah and I wouldstand at the door, kiss them one by one andsend them on their way. Then we’d glance ateach other from our respective posts on ourporches—Sarah surrounded by her bloomingflower pots, me under the overgrown branchof the cherry tree—and we’d do our wave.First we’d sigh, relieved that we had madeit through the morning rush; then we’dlift our hands in a circular, slow-moving,clockwise motion of the arm. Our unspokenconversation was the mutual understandingbetween mothers: “Have a great day. Enjoyyourself while the children are out.”Thinking back, I always wondered howSarah managed to be so cheerful eachmorning as she watched her children walkdown the steps, her voice ringing out likea mother bird calling to her chicks, “Havea wonderful day!” Sarah must have had anorganized, structured routine planned outfor her days. I couldn’t say the same formyself.Yes, I had young children, ranging inage from newborn to seven. Two girls,three boys. But I had Yossi. Yossi—and hischallenges of being a special needs child.His crankiness, unsteadiness, inability tospeak clearly, and inability to do anythingon his own added a tremendous burden tothe morning rush. It was just so hard.The events that led up to Yossi’sdisability played on my mind every singleday. I’d had a normal pregnancy, normaldelivery, normal everything, until the virusat 18 months—a stupid 24-hour bug thatleft him with this disease. The most activeof my children had stopped walking. Hewasn’t even talking yet, so he couldn’texpress himself. Now that he was sick, hewas even more difficult to communicatewith. Getting him dressed in the morningwas so challenging. His tremors andunsteadiness made it nearly impossible.“Can you just stand still!” I would shouton impulse, but I realized how silly thatwas. He couldn’t stand still. Yossi wouldlook at me with his big brown eyes, his redcurls falling around his head. Prednisonehad made him moonfaced, with chubby,pinchable cheeks. As hard as I tried not tolose control, I would scold him, and raisemy voice to my other children too. I wasvery short-tempered.Mornings were a particular challenge.As I’d wave to Sarah, I’d feel a soothingmessage emanating from my neighbor.I also wondered how she did it. Howcould she be so calm and happy? Doesn’tshe ever lose her cool? Don’t any of herchildren ever get cranky or give her ahard time while they’re getting ready forschool?Then one day it happened.The morning routine began. The frontdoors opened. Sarah’s children ran downthe steps as always. Then I heard a voicefrom across the street that I didn’t thinkexisted. Sarah’s usually calm voice rose twooctaves as she bellowed out, “And have a44 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

nice day!” followed by a slam of the frontdoor.She’s real! I thought. Whew! My neighboris a human being, a mother who shouts!Boy, can I relate to that. My hero is now myequal. I can’t wait to have a cup of coffee withher! I guess she doesn’t always use that soft,gentle, and loving tone when speaking to herchildren.Sometime after that unusual morning Ibumped into Sarah while doing errands inthe neighborhood.“Sarah, I have to tell you that I havealways envied you each morning as we’reseeing the children off. I always wonderhow you have it so together. You’re alwaysso calm and cheerful. But that morninga couple of days ago, I saw that you cansometimes be as short-tempered as I am.Whammo! ‘Have a nice day!’ Slam!” Icould feel my face beaming after sharingthis moment with Sarah.But the look on Sarah’s face told adifferent story. She did not share my joyin her behavior that morning. “Oh, I wasso upset with myself that day,” she said,shaking her head from side to side indisappointment. “I work so hard to neverlet those emotions get the better of me.”“Come on, Sarah,” I continued, “ItHOW COULD SHE BE SO CALM AND COMPOSEDALL THE TIME? DON’T ANY OF HER CHILDRENEVER GET CRANKY?was only one day, an exception to therule. Most mornings you’re so calm andcomposed. How do you do it? There’sso much to do and so many last minuteissues to deal with. ‘Ma, I can’t find mytights!’ ‘Who finished the cereal?’ ‘What!No more leben?’ That’s what goes on inmy house, plus there are Yossi’s issues,and very often I just can’t take it! Youdon’t have anything like that going onin your house each morning?” I couldbarely catch my breath from ranting andraving.Smiling back at me Sarah said, “Sure,it’s very similar. That’s what a house full ofkids is like. But I try to keep myself calmby telling myself that that’s what it’s allabout. The morning rush with a family ofyoung children is what I prayed for and Iam grateful for each and every day. Thisis the life! I have no secret recipe to share,but when I see you, I think you’re the onewho must have the secret recipe.”I looked back at Sarah quizzically.What does she mean?“Every day I see how you are with yourchildren, and especially with Yossi. I geta little glimpse of what you are dealingwith. When you smile and wave to meacross the street I feel strengthened andenergized. It makes me think that I canhandle anything that comes my way. Idon’t know how you do it!”Still puzzled by what Sarah said, I stoodthere in shock. Me? I have it together? Ifeel like I’m falling apart a little more eachday. And I energize Sarah?I guess I had never realized howsignificant a small friendly gesture couldbe. Sarah and I never mixed in the samecircle of friends, nor did our children. Wejust knew each other from living on thesame block. Yet until today, wheneverwe meet, our little wave carries anunconditional message of friendship andadmiration that touches our hearts. 16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | | 45

HereNow&By Sarah ShapiroAN EMAIL TALEAll Jews are responsible for one another.—Shavuos 39aAfellow Jew—a onetimeemployee of my parents, ofblessed memory, whom theyhad always regarded as agood friend—has been in touch withme lately by email about an ongoingpractical matter having to do with myfather’s papers. She and I never hit it off,particularly, back in the days when mymother and father were here. There was asubtle friction with her I never understoodor was able to diagnose; it really had norational basis. Sometimes I’ve mused thatit was a case of unconscious sibling rivalry,but if so, whether it was coming from heror from me, or was mutual, I couldn’t tell.Maybe as a devout secularist married toa non-Jew, she was hostile because I’mOrthodox? Or perhaps it was a simplematter of chemistry, like the naturalantipathy between a dog and a cat, that bynature are oppositional.In any case, while my parents were alive,our mutual, inexplicable unease with eachother was kept politely under wraps, outof respect—I realize now—for them. Butnow, apparently, we’re less motivated tomaintain the pretense.Last week, something in one of heremails elicited from me a coldly genteelretort. A minute or so later, back came hercooler reply, to which I responded in kind,unkindly.At this point, a little voice inside meinstructed me to reread her first email.Much to my chagrin andembarrassment, I saw that I’dmisunderstood. She hadn’t said what Ithought she said.I quickly sent a note of apology. A fewseconds later, there was the “ping” of anincoming message, but apparently ouremails had crossed. In her own politelyangry fashion, she’d turned the cool knifeback onto me.I immediately sent off another apology,and again waited. No answer. Ah, right, Ithought bitterly, forgiveness isn’t her thing,neither the giving nor the accepting. Whycouldn’t she do some apologizing for once!I was obligated by halacha to ask threetimes for forgiveness, but to judge fromexperiences with her on a few otheroccasions long ago, why make myselfvulnerable to someone with a track recordof not respecting such gestures? Since shehadn’t answered the second apology, anddidn’t know about the halacha, she’d justinterpret this as weakness on my part.The whole next day it was on mymind. This was a friend of my parents,and one of my father’s oft-repeated lineswas “Life is an adventure in forgiveness.”But every time those words intruded onmy consciousness, I pushed them away.Why torment myself? I made a mistake, Iapologized twice and she still hasn’t seen fitto reply, so I’ve done enough! Why would shereply if I apologize again? What more can Ido?Last night at a shiur, the last quarterhour was devoted to the halachosgoverning oness devarim (hurting aperson’s feelings), so I brought it up. Iwasn’t expecting a solution; I was justhoping to understand this situationbetter, and to somehow get some adviceabout how to atone for my mistake inthe absence of communication with theperson herself.The rebbetzin replied that she’d onceasked a shailah about a similar situation,and the rabbi had told her that indeed,she was obligated to ask three timesfor forgiveness. But the third time, headvised her, she could try apologizing in adifferent way. For example, if the first twotimes she’d written a letter, maybe nowshe could apologize on the phone. Or ifbefore she’d apologized by phone, now shecould send a gift.Also, she said, the rabbi had told herto daven, to ask Hashem to make thingsright.Well, I hurrummmphed to myselfinwardly, a gift would be going too far.And I could already imagine the chillyawkwardness of a phone call. But as far asdavening was concerned, I took the advice,sincerely, for my parents’ sake as well asmine, then decided to try one more time,as follows:Sent: Sunday, January 01, 2012 10:17 PMDear ——,If you’re open to it, I would like to talk.Not about the specific matter at hand—atleast not for practical purposes—but asfriends, or would-be friends. I feel there’sa chance we can find our way out ofthe acrimony which has shadowed ourrelationship in the past, and which hasresurfaced now.Hoping,SarahThe reply flew in across the Atlantictwo minutes later:Sent: Sunday, January 01, 2012 10:20 P.M.Subject: Re:Hi Sarah—Yes, absolutely open to it and lookingforward. My Wednesday and Thursdaymornings are open if either works for youbetween 9 and 11 A.M. California time?If not let me know some other times thatare convenient for you.Best,We have a phone appointmenttomorrow night, to my astonishment andjoy. 46 | | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

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GIRL…ON A DIET. WILL BLUMA REBOUND AND KEEP HER WILLPOWER STRONG AFTER A ROCKY START?JANUARY 11, 201216 TEVES, 5772TRY ANEW SIDELike Draizy’s Mini Scalloped Potatoesor this Roasted Vegetable Cous CousPASTRY SCHOOLWITH PAULA SHOYER:The Intense Flavor of theVanilla BeanINTERESTED IN ACULINARY CAREER?Victoria Dwek Speaks tothe Chefs

COOKCOOK toBy Draizy WercbergerPhotos by Menachem AdelmanSuperSidesI know some people who put all their time, effort and concentration intoplanning gourmet tasting chicken, meat and fish dishes. Then they promptly forgetabout the sides.Well, a while back, I did that too. Until I realized that one of my children wouldn’tcome anywhere next to the table if he realized I was serving chicken, or for thatmatter meat, or heaven forbid—fish!So now I had to completely change my outlook and focus just as much on thesides—otherwise my child would go hungry.Thankfully, my son has finally ended that stage, but I have a daughter who seems tobe heading down that very same path right now.These are 3 fantastic sides that have graced my table plenty of times. They areall “kid tested and approved." Try them and watch your main plate get a definitefacelift.Draizy2 | WHISK | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

Garlic WholeWheat SpaghettiOne of my aunts brought this spaghetti to a familyChanukah party two years ago. I remembered Iloved it—but didn’t know how she made it. WhenI called her up, she said she didn’t even remember!After a little coaxing, I got her to rack her brainsand remember, “I must have put this…and that…”quantities were up to me. Her memory was betterthan she thought—it took just a little tweaking totaste as good or even better than I remember.16 ounces whole wheat spaghetti¼ cup olive oil1 tablespoon soy sauce8 frozen garlic cubes¾ cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped3 scallions, dicedSalt and pepper, to taste1. Cook spaghetti according to package directionsand drain.2. While still warm, add olive oil, soy sauce, andgarlic cubes. Mix well until all frozen garlic cubesare dissolved.3.scallions, salt, and pepper.4. Serve warm or at room temperature.Yield: 6 servingsIf you are using sun driedtomatoes packed in oil, just reduce theamount of olive oil used in the recipeproportionately.Add small cubes of cooked chickento this spaghetti to turn it into a onedishmeal.16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | WHISK | 3

COOKCOOK toIsraeli Couscous withRoasted VegetablesI love love love couscous. My whole family does. But I made it so often—and we got a little tired of it. It was time for a new version, so I updated myrecipe to give my family a fresh take on our favorite grain. It combines aRoasted Vegetables:½ red pepper, thinly sliced1 small zucchini, thinly slicedinto half circles5 fresh mushrooms, cut intoOlive oilSalt and pepperCouscous:Small onion, diced1 tablespoon oil½ bag Israeli couscous2 cups water1 tablespoon mushroom soupmix1 teaspoon salt1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Layerpepper, zucchini, and mushroomson a lined cookie sheet. Sprinklewith oil, salt and pepper. Roast for25 minutes.2. Sauté diced onion in oil for 10minutes until wilted. Add couscousand sauté an additional 5 minutesuntil couscous is brown.3. Add water, mushroom soup mix,minutes, until all water is absorbed.Combine with roasted vegetables.Yield: 4 servingsSince the couscous and roastedvegetables are made separately,this recipe is great for everyone!The adults can eat it with thevegetables and you can even serveit to your kids, without having tosit and pick out all the vegetables.That makes everyone really happy!4 | WHISK | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

Mini Scalloped Potato StacksI had completely forgotten about it until my sister prepared it for me one night after I had a baby. I updatedit with a more elegant presentation in individual ramekins—so each serving has the perfect balance creamyand crispy, YUM!2 large or 3 medium potatoes, peeledand thinly slicedsliced into 8 thin squares¼ cup onion soup mix1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 4 ramekins(3 ½ inches each) with cooking spray.Layer potato slices halfway up eachramekin.2. Place slices of margarine on top of thepotatoes. Sprinkle margarine liberally withonion soup mix.3. Continue layering potatoes on top ofthe onion soup mix until each ramekineach ramekin. Place additional slices ofmargarine on top of the potatoes. Sprinklewith remaining onion soup mix.4. Place ramekins onto a lined pan (to catchthe drippings) and cover tightly. Bake for 2hours. Uncover and bake for an additional30 minutes.Yield: 4 servingsIf you do not have ramekins,use a 6- x 9-inch baking pan.If you want to prepare thisahead of time, bake, covered, for2 hours. Before serving, uncoverand bake an additional 30minutes.16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | WHISK | 5

PastrySchoolUsing FreshVanilla BeansUntil I went to pastry school in Paris in 1995, I had never seena whole vanilla bean. Vanilla was a liquid that came in a bottle.I guess I never really thought about those little black dots in myvanilla ice cream. I just knew that the brands with the black dotsalways tasted better. Once you use the seeds of a vanilla beanin a dessert, you will never turn back; you simply cannot beatthe intense flavor they infuse. In American desserts, we oftenuse vanilla extract along with other flavors so the vanilla tastegets buried. French bakers, who use whole vanilla beans, createspectacular vanilla desserts that do not taste, well, vanilla.Vanilla beans come from a variety of orchid native to Mexico.The Spanish conquistador Cortés is credited with introducingvanilla to Europe in the 1520s after he tasted a drink thatcombined vanilla with cocoa. The French were unable to growthe flowers until a 12-year-old slave boy developed a way tohand pollinate the flowers. The French planted the orchids offthe coast of East Africa, on the Bourbon islands of Reunionand Madagascar. Today vanilla is cultivated in Mexico, Tahiti,Uganda, Hawaii, India, and New Guinea, but most of the world’svanilla is the Bourbon variety from the East African islands.Vanilla is the second more expensive spice in the world aftersaffron. The cost is due to the labor-intensive process of curingthe beans for use. First the flowers are hand pollinated. Eachplant has but one pod. When picked, the pods are green. Theyhave to be dipped in water to “kill” them, then sweated bystacking them and wrapping them in cloth. Next they are driedin the sun and, finally, they are stored in boxes to further enhancethe flavor. This process can take six months. Tropical storms andpolitical instability in vanilla-producing regions have affectedproduction and driven up prices as well.According to The Science of Food (Robert Rose, 2008), the flavorcomes from the interior of the pod, where the seeds are, and thesticky resin that surrounds the seeds. The first time you scrapeone open, hold it up to your nose. The advantage over the liquidextract will be obvious.CHOOSING VANILLA BEANS Vanilla- The Kosher Baker16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | WHISK | 7

PastrySchool INDIVIDUAL APPLE CAKES WITH VANILLABEAN CRÈME ANGLAISE-8 | WHISK | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

PastrySchoolPaula Shoyer is the author of . She teaches cookingand baking classes around the countryand recently appeared on Food Network’s. She can be found at www.paulaspastry.com. You can enjoy thiscolumn, Pastry School with Paula Shoyer,every month in Whisk.16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | WHISK | 9

LIFEINSIDE ACHEFCOATBy Victoria Dwek10 | WHISK | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

I’m dying to go to culinary school. Notbecause it sounds glamorous, or because I want to wear a doublebreastedwhite jacket (with my name embroidered on it) andlearn how to cut an onion into itsy bitsy pieces in three secondswhile wielding an impossibly large knife.No, no, I’m not silly. I know that culinary school is notglamorous. I’ve been there (as a journalist with a laptop).Culinary students stand on their feet all day. They work hard.And after they’re done cooking, they have to clean up all theirmesses. They can’t pile all the dishes in the sink for the dayworker who’s coming tomorrow (blush. Who has time to washdishes? I have to write!).I want to go to culinary school because I think I would be abetter food writer if I knew more about cooking. I have a desirefor knowledge. It bothers me that I don’t know what kind ofmarinades will make chicken more tender or how long I reallyneed to marinate it (If I start cooking dinner at 5:30 P.M. andwe’re eating at 6 P.M....can I marinate for…five minutes?).It bothers me even more that I don’t know how I should tweakmy new ribs recipe. It needs a bit more flavor. What shouldI add to the beer it braises in to accomplish that? Wine?Teriyaki sauce? I am not sure, and ribs are too expensive forexperimentation.I would simply love to know all I can about cooking. So, that’swhy I would want to go. (No, mom, I’m not actually going toculinary school. You won’t have to babysit my kids for the nextsix months).A couple of weeks ago, my friend Sophia told me that herteenage daughter wants to go to culinary school. She is not sureif it is just a phase—or if she really would be committed to it.“Should I let her go?” she asked me.“Does she like being in the kitchen now?” I asked Sophia.“No, not really.”“Does she know what she might like to do after culinaryschool? Do any of the jobs in the culinary world appeal to her?”“I’m not sure.”“She should look into what chefs do after culinary school—and see if she could see herself in those roles,” I responded.While there are some, like me, who simply want culinaryknowledge—most students who attend culinary school havetheir eyes set on a specific career.Inspired by Sophia's quandary, I spoke to Jesse Blonder,director of The Center for Kosher Culinary Arts.“For those who are serious, there is ample opportunity in theculinary world,” Jesse told me.“What are the different paths students take after school?” Iasked him.“Many go the traditional route, pursuing a career in arestaurant or for a caterer,” he responded. “In a restaurant, thehours are long. They have to work through dinner service. It’sdemanding in terms of their time and the physical toll. Workingin a restaurant, though, does give cooks the most opportunity forcreative expression.”Jesse also told me that chefs who want to go into businessfor themselves often work with a caterer to learn the trade. Thedemands are different. More is prepared in advance, and lots ofpeople need to be served in a short amount of time. Plates aresimpler than in a restaurant, where each dish is individualized, sothere is less room for creativity. The potential is there, though, tobuild a business that can go beyond the salary for a chef. Despitethat potential, catering work is not consistent.The Day Job“Those who want a steady schedule can become aninstitutional chef,” Jesse said. Institutional chefs run a kitchen ina yeshiva or nursing home. They start early in the morning, butare done by the end of regular business hours. Unlike a restaurantchef, they can eat dinner with their own families. The work issteady, and an established home can afford to pay a chef a goodsalary and benefits. A restaurant with 30 seats can’t pay as much.Jacob Pollack, a graduate of CKCA, is the Executive Chef atMeadow Park Rehabilitation Center in Queens, which is underthe certification of the Vaad Harabonim of Queens. “Catererscan go days or weeks without pay. At a nursing home, you arealways needed,” he said.A nursing home menu doesn’t have to be full of bland foodeither. “Opinions about the types of food that should be servedat a nursing home has changed. Residents should have goodfood, just like in their own homes. Even if we are not seasoningwith tons of salt or sugar—we still use some salt and sugar, andlots of other seasonings. There are many ways to flavor food. Theresidents should look forward to their meals.”As Executive Chef, Jacob plans the menus, makes sure thatall residents have their dietary needs met, and listens to requests.Although their favorites are classics like prime rib steaks andtwice baked potatoes, Jacob still gets to have fun and be creative.“Once a month, we have cultural day. The residents decide ona country and I plan a menu of specific ethnic cuisine. They’vebeen to Israel, Greece, Italy, the Philippines, the Caribbean,South America, and more.”Even though Jacob is managing the kitchen, it doesn’t meanhe’s not chopping. “There is nothing in the kitchen I won’t do. Ithelps for the staff to see that I am not on my high horse. Whenour pot washer didn’t feel well, I put on my gloves and startedscrubbing.”The cooks in Jacob’s kitchen work two different shifts—somebegin at 6 A.M. prepping breakfast. They finish at 2 P.M. afterlunch. The second shift begins at 10 A.M. Those cooks help servelunch, then prep and serve dinner. Jacob will be present at oneor both shifts each day. “There are exceptions, but most days Igo home at 6:00 P.M., or even 2:00,” he said. That makes his jobvery conducive to family life.Chef at Your ServiceWhen I called Shira Moskowitz, she was putting away dessertsfor an engagement party she is preparing. “It’s an in-and-outcrowd, so we will have a buffet with exotic cheese and breads anddesserts. I made cake pops—both a peanut butter and chocolatepop, and a white chocolate one with mousse inside. There will16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | WHISK | 11

also be different kinds of cupcakes and truffles with caramel andsea salt—all finger items.”Shira works as a personal chef. After graduating from CKCA,she interned at SOLO and The Prime Grill—then went right towork for herself, building up the clientele for her business, Citrusand Thyme.A personal chef charges clients by the hour, but chefs likeShira set their own schedules. “I work with a lot of party plannerswho are planning small parties for under 100 people. A caterercan do a fabulous job, but most don’t do small parties. Whenparties are small, you will get better quality food and spend lesswith a personal chef. Last week, one family was having 50 familymembers for Friday night dinner, the night before their son’s BarMitzvah. We set a menu ahead of time. I shopped on Thursday,and cooked all day Friday, starting early in the morning with oneassistant in their kitchen.”Shira also has clients in the political world. When one non-Jewish senator held a fundraiser for a Jewish organization andneeded kosher food, she prepared the meal in a supervisedkitchen. “For most clients, though, I prepare the food in theirown kitchen using their utensils, to ensure the kashrus is to theirspecifications. Many of my clients are working people who wantto come home to quality home-cooked meals. You can’t comparethe quality to takeout food. Hiring a personal chef is not aspricey as you think—when cooking for a client who needs mealsfor their family, I can prepare a few nights’ worth in one visit.”Shira also gives cooking classes to newlyweds. “The services“The first thingswe learned in school wasthat the profit is in the pennies. Ifinally realized that when I saw how one ofmy employees was coring tomatoes-and wasting 10percent of the fruit.”of a personal chef are a great gift for a bride or as a baby gift.I’ll sometimes prepare a few weeks of Shabbat meals for a newmother—it’s definitely a gift they appreciate.”I wouldn’t let Shira off the phone without telling me about herfavorite recipe. “It’s a beer-braised and plum short ribs toppedwith crispy shallots. I serve it with a parsnip puree.” Oh, wow!She definitely has an answer to my culinary quandary. I told herabout my tender ribs that need flavor. “Throw in oranges duringthe braising, so they get a citrusy flavor. Fruit combined withthe beer will make a great combination,” she said. Shira says noto teriyaki sauce—kosher meat is already salty, and through thelong braising process, the meat will absorb too much salt fromthe sauce.It’s My BusinessJesse tells me that some students in culinary school don’tintend to be chefs. They want to run a restaurant and knowwhat’s going on in the kitchen. “Even if you aren’t the onemaking the food, you need to be able to communicate,” he said.CKCA graduate Alex Yakubov agrees. He had been runninga jewelry store for 14 years when he realized his neighborhood,filled with Jews, lacked a kosher dairy restaurant. “I went toculinary school to learn what I need to know to open one.”Now, at Pizza Palace Café in Queens for the past two and ahalf years, Alex knows how to run the show. “If my guys don’tshow up for work—I can prep. Restaurants have a high employeeturnover rate, so that’s happened a few times in the past couple12 | WHISK | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5772

of years. I also don’t think that my employees would like takinginstructions from me about cooking if I didn’t know what I wastalking about. Now, they respect what I have to say.”Alex’s education helps him run the business more successfully.“For example, one of the first things we learned in school wasthat the profit is in the pennies. When you throw somethingout—that’s where the profit is. I suddenly understood thatconcept one day in my restaurant. One of my employees wascoring tomatoes. Now, there are two ways to core tomatoes. Youcan either take out the whole core, and lose about 10% of thefruit, or you can slice out just the smallest green circle on top. Hewas doing it the wrong way. I told him, ‘Continue doing whatyou’re doing, but don’t throw out the cores.’ When he was done, Iwas able to show him how much perfect tomato he was wasting,and we used it. A regular businessman wouldn’t notice that.Culinary school teaches you the inner secrets of the business.”Avi Roth is also using his culinary education to run arestaurant business. He’s now getting ready for the grandopening of Gotham Burger in Teaneck.That’s Doctor Avi, actually. He has his Ph.D. from Columbiain special education. But he sold his share of his learning centerbusiness when the culinary bug hit. “I went to culinary school inthe summer, when I had time off, and really got into it.”Avi is working with investors to build Gotham Burger intoa franchise. He’s currently overseeing construction, hiring staff,and establishing the menu. “You have to be prepared to run allaspects of the business. Right now, I’m picking out tiles andworking with the designer and architect, but next I’ll be sittingdown with our chefs to perfect the recipes.“Culinary school gave me tremendous insight—not only ontechnique and how to cook properly, but also what to look for onthe business side, cost-cutting, purchasing, and planning a menu.”Jasmine Einalhori is also overseeing a construction project—an 8,000 square foot Chabad House for NYU students. Now,200 students pack into a small apartment that currently servesas the center for Chabad NYU. Sarah, the Rabbi’s wife andalso a CKCA graduate, prepares the food. Jasmine overseesall the purchasing, but once they are working out of the large,commercial kitchen, they’ll be working together to bring NYUstudents kosher food on a large scale.Last year, Jasmine won the Next Great Kosher ChefCompetition. I asked her if she’d rather be cooking thanoverseeing this project, but she’s content. “Eventually, I want tomove back to Los Angeles, where I come from, and build a foodbrand. I don't want to only be a success in the kitchen. I justbuilt a commercial kitchen; I definitely wouldn’t have been ableto do that if I hadn’t spend months in a commercial kitchen atCKCA. The Chabad House is going from one oven to six, fromsix burners to 12. We’ll have a walk-in fridge and freezer, insteadof sharing a fridge with the Rabbi, his wife, and their kids. We’llhave a Hobart mixer to make challah.“I recommend to anyone who wants to be better in thekitchen—go to school. One of my friends is a nutritionist. Shewent to culinary school. You gain a tremendous amount ofexperience in a short time.”So many people I spoke to made career shifts to fuel theirpassion for cooking, including Liz Kratz. “Before I came toCKCA , I was working as editor of a business magazine. I wasinteresting in writing more about cooking, but didn’t have thetechnical background. Now, I’m writing my cookbook. I’mcreating lighter versions of traditional Jewish recipes.”Liz also gives cooking classes, does recipe development andtesting for the culinary school and private clients, and works aspromotion manager at CKCA. “I enjoy the flexibility of doingdifferent things instead of one job.” That’s especially importantnow that Liz has twin one-year-old daughters.Hustle BustleAvi Sher is a chef at Pomegranate. He’s in the kitchen from earlyin the morning until 6:00 P.M. The hours are long but there isa lot of satisfaction. “I’m about to update recipes, and come upwith new ideas. We are constantly introducing new things. Butthe best part about being a supermarket chef is the amount ofcustomers. We get feedback constantly. People send back theirregards when they’ve enjoyed something I’ve cooked. I enjoythat.”I asked Avi about his favorite dish that he prepares for thePomegranate showcase. “I love my stuffed capons. There are fivedifferent types—pastrami, mushroom, meat, spinach, and derma.”The fast pace of restaurant cooking might be exciting, butit’s not for most. Zissie Spivak went straight from her BostonCulinary School to working in Etc. Steakhouse the next day.“I’m from Boston,” she said. “I am so happy I did this before Ihad kids; I would never have been able to before.”Because she was learning in a non-kosher culinary school, afterevery lesson, she would have to come home and cook what shehad learned in her own kitchen so she could taste the food: It’sdouble the work.Full time in a restaurant means being there at noon to beginprepping for dinner service, and staying until it’s over, at 11:00P.M. Although Zissie does not want to be a restaurant chef, sheknew that it was an experience that would help her learn themost in the least amount of time. “I was directly under ChefSeth Warshaw, and cooking whatever new dish he would put onthe menu. During dinner service, I would prepare the appetizers,while he did the main courses. I enjoyed working under him somuch. He’s creative and is always changing the menu. I learnedhow to cook something new every day. He is also humble. Ifyou have good ideas, he will implement them. When I startedworking, I expected to be chopping vegetables. But I begancooking from the first day. It was scary and incredible, but itmade me a better cook, quicker. Having that intense restaurantexperience is a great way to jumpstart a career.”Zissie is now working in Etc. Steakhouse one day a week,while developing her personal chef business. “There’s anincredible variety of food out there. I want to help people createmenus, develop new dishes to serve their families, and get out oftheir rut of serving the same things every Shabbos.” To contact the personal chefs interviewed in this article:Chef Shira Moskowitz: 516-455-6677 shiramosk64@gmail.comChef Zissie Spivak: 617-304 7921 chefzissie@gmail.com16 TEVES, 5772 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | WHISK | 13

1GIRLON ADIETA Whisk Serial By Bluma AbrahamNEWCOLUMNLast week: Although Bluma started off her diet with great willpower, when facedwith a tense situation, she succumbed to temptation yet again,and ate an entire bag of chocolate.WEIGH-INSTARTING WEIGHT265CURRENT WEIGHT259GOAL165POUNDS LOSTTHIS WEEK4TOTAL POUNDSLOST SO FAR6WEEK 2Don’t Mess Up. Don’t Mess Up.Don’t Mess Up.01234567890TuesdayIneeded support. I know I was soexcited to start this diet, and I saidthings were going to be different. Butafter I really started off well, I let myselfdown Sunday night when I ate that bag ofchocolate. When I am stressed, I am just sovulnerable to food.I stopped in at my friend Elisheva’s house. I love her topieces, and I knew she would have the right things to say. Shewould tell me that just because I messed up once, it doesn’tmean I can’t do it. I knew she would. We grew up together,and few people understand me the way she does.Elisheva got married three years after me, but she alreadyhas a two-year-old, a one-year-old, and one on the way. Whilewe were catching up, I was holding her baby, Bracha, andwatching her two-year-old, Na’ama, play with her kitchen set.As I was holding the baby, I kept imagining that the baby was14 | WHISK | JANUARY 11, 2012 | 16 TEVES, 5771mine…. I pictured myself leaving Elisheva’s home, pushing astroller that was mine, with a baby in it that was mine. I hadto get out of there. I handed Elisheva her baby and ran out. Iwent home and went to sleep, and I didn’t eat dinner.I have tears in my eyes as I write this. I can’t write anymoretoday.WednesdayI had an appointment with my reproductive endocrinologistthis morning.“The pills aren’t going to work anymore. Lose weight, andthen we can move onto other things,” he said.I’ve heard that before. So many doctors and friends havetold me that if I lose weight, I can have a baby of my own. Isit really that easy? Let’s see them lose 100 pounds under suchimmense pressure!Every time I want a piece of chocolate (I never eat just one),I remind myself that I am not only keeping that baby away, I

51am depriving my husband of being a father. The pressure!I did my grocery shopping on the way home and picked up somereally huge fresh grapes—it’s my go-to frozen treat. I also spottedsome gorgeous royal purple eggplants. For dinner, I simplypeeled the eggplant and roasted the rounds in the oven untiltender. I layered the eggplant with fat-free sauce and a little bit ofcheese, and baked it until the cheese melted. Easy and filling!ThursdayThis week was the first really frigid one this winter. I wish Ihad a pair of boots. I haven’t owned a pair in a couple of years.My feet are numb for most of the season, but I hate, hate bootshopping. I have over 40 pairs of shoes—when I could buynothing else, no matter what clothing size I was, my shoe sizealways stayed a size nine. But shoes are different than boots—shoes don’t have to fit anything but your foot. Boots though—Ican’t zip them up.I try, I do try. But every time I go shopping for boots, I give up.I walk into a store thinking that maybe I’ll find something. I losta few pounds, maybe this time it will work? But then, 10 minuteslater, after another attempt, I give up and leave the store.I’m not even going to try this year. Why get myself depressed?Maybe next year… yes, for sure next year.ShabbosShabbos is never easy. I made some lowfat sugar-free oatmealcookies to satisfy my sweet tooth after the meal. They did thetrick. I know the scale will show a bigger loss this week. WHAT I ATESUNDAY: Breakfast—2 hard-boiled eggs, banana, oatmeal.Lunch—Tuna in lettuce salad with garlic mayo dressingand quinoa. Dinner—Hamburger in whole wheat pita withveggies and a lettuce saladMONDAY: Breakfast—Yogurt, banana, oatmeal. Lunch—Grilled chicken, brown rice, carrot ginger soup. Dinner—Omelette with fat-free cheese and veggies on wholewheat toastTUESDAY: Breakfast—Fruit smoothie, yogurt, and oatmeal.Lunch—2 hard boiled eggs, spaghetti squash with tomatosauce, a big veggie salad. Dinner—Tuna patties andvegetable soupWEDNESDAY: Breakfast—Cottage cheese pancakesand clementines. Lunch—Omelette, whole wheat toast.Dinner—Chicken “schwarma” in whole wheat pita withveggiesTHURSDAY: Breakfast—Omelette wrap to go. Lunch—Salad, quinoa, and yogurt. Dinner—Whole wheat bakedziti (with fat-free cheese), steamed broccoliFRIDAY: Breakfast—Cottage cheese, banana, oatmeal.Lunch—Grilled veggie wrap. Dinner—2 slices whole wheatbread with guacamole, carrot ginger soup, 1 piece ducksauce chicken, marinated mushroomsSHABBOS DAY: Lunch—2 slices whole wheat bread,salmon, salad, cholent. Shalosh Seudos—Tuna salad withwhole wheat crackers. Motzei Shabbos—Huge veggiesalad from a restaurantSquash CoinsI make this as a side dish withgrilled chicken and quinoa. My quinoais also simple—I cook accordingto package directions, and thensprinkle with a little olive oil, garlic,and salt. The chicken, quinoa, andsquash together as a meal is delish!A colorful meal with variety reallyhelps in satisfying me—even if itincludes something as simple asthese squash coins.1 zucchini1 yellow squashNonstick cooking sprayGarlic powderOnion powderPreheat the oven to 350°F. Slicesquash into very thin slices. Spraywith nonstick cooking spray. Layon a baking sheet. Spray againwith cooking spray. Sprinkle withgarlic and onion powder.Bake until coins are softenedand caramelized, about 1 hour,depending on thickness.Yield: serves 116 TEVES, 5771 | JANUARY 11, 2012 | WHISK | 154041424344454647484950