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"This guy knows all the gossip, the ins and outs, the lashon hara of the Orthodox world. He’s an [expert] in... all the inner workings of the Orthodox world." (Rabbi Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff) LATEST POSTS:
- Robert Putnam: The Man Who Counted What America Lost
- W. Bradford Wilcox: The Sociologist Who Tells America to Get Married
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- Emily Oster: The Economist in the Delivery Room
- The Most Ridiculous Story Ever Told
- Tanner Greer
- Economist Tyler Cowen
- Richard Reeves: A Life in Institutions
- Jake Adelstein: The Reporter Who Became His Story
- Jim Goad (1961-2026)
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- Two Ledgers: Decoding the Gurus and the Price of Talk
- The Pervert’s Progress: Costin Vlad Alamariu and the Making of Bronze Age Pervert
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- Mark Helprin: Against the Current
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- John T. Jost: The Psychologist of Acquiescence
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- * The Enlightenment Wasn’t Enlightened (6-23-26)
* Mr. Burge Draws The Line (6-23-26)
* 'Improving on Democracy' (6-17-26)
* People Leak To People Who Are Fun (6-11-26)
* Why Does Australia Produce So Many Great Journalists? (6-11-26)
* Steve Wynn and the Press: Power, Litigation, and the Contest Over Las Vegas (6-3-26)
* Sheldon Adelson and the Journalists (6-3-26)
* The Vigilant Animal: Thinkers Who Reject the Myth of Human Gullibility (6-2-26)
* The Cost of Refusing the Misunderstanding Myth (6-2-26)
* Show Me How It Travels (6-2-26)
* The Norm Explainers (6-2-26)
* Centering Marginalized Voices (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Washington Post put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Financial Times put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for the Los Angeles Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for The New York Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* Why Wembanyama Lives on the Perimeter (5-31-26)
* The Emotional Palettes Of San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco & Sacramento (5-27-26)
* The Administrative Capital: Sacramento Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* San Diego - The Quiet Republic (5-27-26)
* The Quiet Bar: San Diego Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* SF v LA Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* Why Talent Travels Poorly Between San Francisco and Los Angeles (5-27-26)
* San Francisco and Los Angeles as Rival Models of Urban Access (5-27-26)
* Social Cliques in New York, 2026 (5-25-26)
* Social Cliques in San Francisco, 2026 (5-25-26)
* The Rival Courts of Washington (5-25-26)
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Category Archives: Modern Orthodox
Modern Orthodoxy Vs Right-Wing Orthodoxy
Joe emails: You can tell the difference between Modern Orthodoxy and more Right Wing Old School Orthodoxy by looking at synagogue websites. Bnai David Judea is this high powered modern orthodox synagogue – it has women on the board, it … Continue reading
Posted in Bnai David-Judea, Haredi, Modern Orthodox, Orthodoxy, Pico/Robertson
Tagged bell curves, black hats, orthodox synagogue, synagogue websites, tons of kids, torah study
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The Top Five Mizrachi Rabbis In Israel
What is Mizrachi? It is religious Zionism. Rav Mordecai Eliyahu would have to be number one. Then Haim Drukman, Yaakov Ariel, Aharon Lichtenstein, She’ar Yashuv Cohen (the Rav of Haifa and the son of the Nazir of Jerusalem David Cohen), … Continue reading
Posted in Haredi, Israel, Modern Orthodox
Tagged aharon lichtenstein, eliyahu, high school students, israel god, jerusalem post, marriage registration, matthew wagner, mizrachi, Modern Orthodox, mordecai, nazir, rabbinic ordination, Rabbis, yeshivot
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In 20 Years, The Haredim Will Dominate Pico-Robertson
Los Angeles has little culture of Torah learning (except among the Haredim aka the traditional Orthodox). There are only two first-rate Modern Orthodox Torah scholars in Los Angeles — rabbis Yehuda Bukspan and David Rue. L.A.’s Modern Orthodox shuls don’t … Continue reading
Posted in Abner Weiss, Anshe Emes, Beth Jacob, Bnai David-Judea, Modern Orthodox, Nachum Sauer, Orthodox Union, Orthodoxy, R. David Rue, R. Kalman Topp, R. Yehuda Bukspan, YICC
Tagged Beth Jacob, marriage prospects, orthodox shuls, rabbi search, torah scholar, torah scholars, touro college
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Modern Orthodoxy Vs Traditional Orthodoxy
Shula Cohen writes on Hirhurim: "Every time that Modern Orthodoxy bows to Hareidi Judaism, even implicitly, as being more authentic, it damages itself. If Modern Orthodoxy is to thrive it must defend itself…arguing…why it is a superior form of Judaism…" … Continue reading
Posted in Marc B. Shapiro, Modern Orthodox, Orthodoxy
Tagged Hirhurim, marc shapiro, shula cohen, sports arenas, traditional orthodoxy, univ of scranton
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Modern Orthodox Education aka How Men Can Control Their Sexual Urges
From Hirhurim: There is a fascinating special issue of Meorot (formerly The Edah Journal), guest edited by R. Nathaniel Helfgot and focusing on Modern Orthodox education (link). What follows are rough notes that are even less reliable than my normal … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Modern Orthodox
Tagged gravity of the situation, Hirhurim, orthodox education, religious observance, social realities, summer camp experiences
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Should Orthodox Judaism Have Female Rabbis?
Rabbi Gil Student writes in First Things: Women never served as ritual slaughterers, for example, although an actual prohibition was rejected in the Medieval legal literature. Nonetheless, when the question arose of whether a woman could, in actual practice, be … Continue reading
Posted in Feminism, Modern Orthodox, Orthodoxy
Tagged communal unity, gil student, jewish rituals, ordination of women, radical innovations, religious zionism, slippery slope argument
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The Modern Orthodox Get A New Prayerbook
Yoel Finkelman writes in First Things: The prayer book includes a prayer for the State of Israel, not as an afterthought or a way to sell more books, but because this siddur celebrates Zionism. Where Artscroll’s commentary cites only those … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Orthodox
Tagged Artscroll, franz rosenzweig, jewish liturgy, jewish philosopher, prayer book, prayer for the state of israel
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The Seforim Blog And Tradition Magazine Part Ways
You can now find the Seforim blog at its old address. What happened? No explanation was offered in the Tradition announcement. Moshe Friedman posts: "My guess: some higher-up RCA rabbis actually read some of the things posted on the site … Continue reading
Skeptic Magazine Says Denial Of Evolution Is Characteristic Of Orthodox Education
I dated a girl who graduated from Ramaz. Now 40, bisexual, and never married, she loathed Orthodox Judaism. I asked her why. She said because it was aesthetically ugly, that Orthodox Jews smell bad (particularly on holy days when they … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Evolution, Modern Orthodox, Orthodoxy
Tagged central tenets, college science courses, orthodox jewish students, orthodox judaism, rabbinical authorities, ultra orthodox jews
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Which Pico-Robertson Business Are Sporting That Coveted Rabbinic Ethics Certification?
"Peulat Sachir." Pico-Robertson’s Modern Orthodox rabbis launched this initiative a few months ago. It got a lot of publicity from the obeisant Jewish press. Does it make any difference in the way anyone does business today? I’ve not heard anyone … Continue reading
Posted in Ethics, Modern Orthodox, Pico/Robertson, Rabbis
Tagged business ethics, business today, jewish press, orthodox rabbis, public relations ploy
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