- https://PayPal.Me/lukeisback
"Luke Ford reports all of the 'juicy' quotes, and has been doing it for years." (Marc B. Shapiro)
"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
- Peter Moskos: The Cop Who Talks to People
- Julius Krein
- Ryan Burge: The Numbers Man in the Empty Church
- 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)
- Moira Greyland
- Robert Oscar Lopez: The Inconvenient Witness
- Two Ledgers: Decoding the Gurus and the Price of Talk
- The Pervert’s Progress: Costin Vlad Alamariu and the Making of Bronze Age Pervert
- Curtis Yarvin: A Life Against Democracy
- Mark Helprin: Against the Current
- Mark Brandt: The Man Who Asked Who Else Is Prejudiced
- John T. Jost: The Psychologist of Acquiescence
BEST POSTS:
- * 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)
* The City of Private Rooms (5-25-26)
Category Archives: Judaism
The Torah Is Not In Heaven II
Greg Leake emails: Hi Luke, I was just reading your entry ‘The Torah Is Not In Heaven.’ This may seem tangential, but I feel that religion basically faces two major metaphysical challenges today. They are: 1) the enlightenment experience 2) … Continue reading
Posted in Christianity, Judaism
Tagged comparative religions, history of religions, midland texas, mircea eliade, near death experience, states of consciousness
Comments Off on The Torah Is Not In Heaven II
Consumer Obligations
American society is preoccupied with rights. Judaism is preoccupied with obligations. On his radio show yesterday, Dennis Prager talked about consumer obligations. He mentioned a woman who went into Sammy’s Camera and took 30 minutes of a salesman’s time selecting … Continue reading
Posted in Dennis Prager, Judaism
Tagged Dennis Prager, european flights, haggler, outright fraud, service economy, waldorf astoria
Comments Off on Consumer Obligations
Crissy Asks: ‘Why don’t you believe that Jesus is the Son of God?’
David posts: “Because every human being is the Child of God.” Crissy posts to my FB: “Are you saying Jesus Christ is or isn’t the Son of God?” Luke says: “Judaism has always believed in a complete separation of man … Continue reading
Posted in Christianity, Judaism
Tagged books of the bible, child of god, first five books, first five books of the bible, hyam maccoby, jewish views, maccoby
Comments Off on Crissy Asks: ‘Why don’t you believe that Jesus is the Son of God?’
I Got To Talk About Tisha B’Av On The Beach
What is the Jewish fast day of Tisha B’Av? Check out its Wikipedia profile. So, some friends of mine were having a bonfire at Dockweiler Beach last night. I was ambivalent about going. My soul is so in love with … Continue reading
Posted in Jews, Judaism, Personal
Tagged bloody cold, dockweiler beach, dvar torah, hot young girls, mating rituals, preacher man
Comments Off on I Got To Talk About Tisha B’Av On The Beach
Review: ‘God is not One’
It’s easy to say that all religions are one. It’s easy to say that we all believe in the same God. It’s easy to say that we all want to be in Heaven. It’s also false, argues Boston University religion … Continue reading
Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity, Islam, Judaism
Tagged belief in one god, five pillars, noble eightfold path, seventh day adventism, stephen prothero, university religion professor
Comments Off on Review: ‘God is not One’
Like A Pig In Slop
Joe emails: I see the pictures of you at the porn star reunion and you look happier than a pig in slop. You are there loving being Jewish, with tzitzit hanging out and next to gals with everything else hanging … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism, Personal, Pornography
Tagged daf yomi, lithuanian jews, luke ford, sex with girls, speed meth, wet suits
Comments Off on Like A Pig In Slop
Why Aren’t Jews Debating Believers In Jesus?
Eric Zorn blogs: The obituary — Moishe Rosen dies at 78; founder of Jews for Jesus prompts me to ask readers about something that’s long mystified and impressed me: “Given that the divinity of Jesus is the core belief of … Continue reading
Posted in Christianity, Jews, Judaism
Tagged aryeh kaplan, counterpoint books, David Klinghoffer, gil student, jews for jesus, moishe rosen
Comments Off on Why Aren’t Jews Debating Believers In Jesus?
Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson: ‘Coming To Know The God We Already Love’
Did you get that phrase — “Coming To Know The God We Already Love”? What Jew talks like this? This is Christian talk. What is primary in Christianity — faith, hope, love, humility — is secondary in Judaism and what … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism, R. Bradley Shavit Artson
Tagged hebrew union college, jewish theology, life journeys, process theology, reb moshe, theology and philosophy
Comments Off on Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson: ‘Coming To Know The God We Already Love’
What’s The Difference Between The Jewish Sabbath And The Christian Sabbath?
Seventh-Day Adventists, Seventh-Day Baptists and Jews observe the Sabbath. What are the differences in how they observe the Sabbath? As someone who was raised a Seventh-Day Adventist but converted to Judaism in 1993, I have some ideas. The most obvious … Continue reading
Posted in Adventist, Judaism, Personal
Tagged christian audience, christian sabbath, jewish sabbath, protestant reformers, rape incest, seventh day adventist, seventh day adventists, seventh day baptists
Comments Off on What’s The Difference Between The Jewish Sabbath And The Christian Sabbath?
The Torah Says It Is OK To Ask Questions
From Dennis Prager’s eleventh lecture on Deuteronomy (2003): Dennis: “When people say ‘Jews’, nobody yawns.” Deut: 6:20: “If your child asks you tomorrow, saying, ‘What are the testimonies and the decrees and the ordinances that HaShem, our God, commanded you?” … Continue reading →