1.Israel Update Zoom With Nathan

The war in Gaza is entering a new phase. What does it mean? How is the war shifting domestic politics? And how come people are talking about judicial reform again.

Join us for our continued conversation with Israel journalist Nathan Jeffay. After our first successful conversation (via Zoom) last month it was obvious there was a big appetite for more.

Join us on Tuesday January 16, at 2:00 PM EST for the next installment on a Zoom Meeting with this link.

2.Less Intense

During the six months I spent in Lebanon back in 1982 there were so-called "less intense" periods. They never seemed less intense to me. Every day news about fallen soldiers is part of the update. The hostages have now been held for 100 days. Yes, some troops were able to go on break and other military reserves might have gone back to their lives, but the anxiety and fear don't ever end. If they don't for us oceans away, I promise you that those involved in the less intense battle don't feel a lighter load.

Currently "Antony Blinken talks about 'way forward' in Gaza as he meets with Israeli leaders. The secretary of state's diplomatic push comes as fears of a wider war in the Middle East grow after an Israeli strike in Lebanon killed top commander in the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah."

3.A Positive First Step

Personally I am ecstatic that Claudine Gay is no longer at Harvard. Unlike those who did not call for her head, I totally did. Instantly. Sally Kornbluth at MIT should be next. No, I am not blind and while I love the fact that institutions like Harvard, Penn, MIT and Columbia all have/had women presidents, I just don't want to see them led by these specific ones because they ignored what is a much larger and more important issue: ANTISEMITISM and Jew hatred. And to the organizations that are concerned with the treatment or advancement of women, I suggest allocating some time to review the atrocities against women by Hamas terrorist and murderous rapist Gazans during and since October 7th.

Forward attempts to make a case for Kornbluth in "Will MIT's Sally Kornbluth survive the campus antisemitism reckoning?". It reminds us that she "is different from the other university presidents with whom she has been thrust into the antisemitism spotlight. For one thing, the president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology still has her job. But Kornbluth, who has headed MIT since last January, is different in other ways, too. She’s Jewish; she comes with high marks from the Jewish community at the last university where she worked; and her school was already participating in a Hillel program to fight antisemitism when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7. This week, as the last of the three presidents standing, she sent a new email outlining additional steps she planned to take to address antisemitism on campus."

What do you think? Should she, like the others, be held accountable?

4.Not Once in 84 Pages

Today and tomorrow in the Hague the case brought up against Israel will be discussed. Some implications and decisions will take months or more, but some resolutions might make carrying out the effort to destroy Hamas more complicated. That the 84-page document mentions Hamas atrocities a total of ZERO times might give you an idea about the Dreyfus nature of this - then again what else is new. The Times of Israel's Jeremy Sharon has more here.

5.Justice Upheld

At fraught moment, Israel's high court upheld its own powers. "On January 1, a full 15-justice panel of Israel’s Supreme Court decided to strike down a law that limited its own powers and annul, for the first time in the country’s history, one of its quasi-constitutional Basic Laws. The case was one of the most crucial constitutional issues the court has ever faced.

"In July, as part of the right-wing coalition’s attempted judicial reforms, the Israeli Knesset had voted to eliminate the Supreme Court’s ability to strike down laws it deemed unreasonable. In its 8-7 decision, the Court upheld that right. (For background on this amendment, see: “A Dark Day for Israeli Democracy,” published in July.) In her opinion, former Chief Justice Esther Hayut wrote that the July law was “extreme and irregular” and said it 'departs from the foundational authorities of the Knesset, and therefore it must be struck down.'

"The reasonableness clause is a legal standard used by many judicial systems to evaluate government actions, including in Australia, Britain and Canada. It requires government actions to be reasonable, proportionate and limited to relevant issues."

 On Tuesday, Nathan Jeffay will certainly shed more light on this issue.

6.Chabashank Redemption

Twelve people were arrested as a fracas broke out over a tunnel at Chabad headquarters on Monday. "The dispute was caused by a group of extremist students, who broke through walls in properties adjacent to the synagogue in order to gain unauthorized access."

The disturbance arose "after a cement truck was brought in to repair the walls they had damaged and block the tunnel. The students caused the ruckus when they attempted to disrupt the repairs." Forward answers your question: "So why were those yeshiva students digging a tunnel at Chabad headquarters?"

7.That Too

It is not the most important thing. Maybe not even in the top ten. That said, it is a message that - in my view - gains in significance because of the general atmosphere today.

Jewish entertainment figures have come together to issue an open letter to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences criticizing their exclusion from being specified as an underrepresented group.

I like the unity of those who signed and hope that the "Jew In The City" group will continue to use their voice in the future. And of course special thanks to "friend of New Bedford" Nancy Spielberg.

8.Welcome to the Tribe

I have always liked the voice of Alanis Morissette. My favorite of her songs is "King of Pain." (See below, 2nd video.) Welcome to the tribe, songbird. Wonderful to have you. Read "Rock star uncovers her family's Holocaust history on PBS's Finding Your Roots" for the full story.

9.Score!

There are a handful of restaurants and go-to spots near North Station to eat kosher, vegetarian and vegan at TD Garden for Celtics and Bruins games, concerts and more. Inspired by the menus at the places mentioned in the JewishBoston article, I've shared some game-day recipes below.

For Your Calendar

TBA