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"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
Her Stomach Hurts Over His Political Views
"How do you feel about our discussion Saturday night?" he asks. "Your message said it made you feel scared." "My stomach hurts so much," she says. "I’m really sad. I probably just didn’t want to know." "You didn’t," he says. … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism, Personal, Politics
Tagged Judaism, orthodox judaism, political views, quot, right wing politics, t amp, Torah, worst fears
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Modesty In Blogging
Rabbi Gil Student writes: Regarding tzeni’us, however, I find the question perceptive. Tzeni’us is not just about how much skin a woman is showing. As R. Jack Abramowitz writes, in his recently published The Tzniyus Book (pp. 19-20): Literally, tzniyus … Continue reading
Posted in Blogging, Judaism
Tagged baggy clothes, gil student, Google, private matters, public fora, silly party
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Yisroel Pensack: Britain’s Top Court Grapples with “Who Is A Jew?” and “Who Decides?”
The New York Times reports: On the surface, the court was considering a straightforward challenge to the admissions policy of a Jewish high school in London. But the case, in which arguments concluded Oct. 30, has potential repercussions for thousands … Continue reading
Posted in Conversion, England, Judaism, New York Times, Orthodoxy, Religion, Yisroel Pensack
Tagged Britain's Supreme Court, british commonwealth, chief rabbi jonathan sacks, Jews' Free School, JFS, london, progressive synagogue, religious schools, who is a jew
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Christian Church In San Mateo Welcomes A Rabbi In Residence
I remember Dennis Prager saying that every synagogue should have a sister church. Wow, the Orthodox did not react too well to that idea. From the San Mateo County Times: SAN MATEO — Religious tolerance is no longer enough. In … Continue reading
Posted in Christianity, Judaism
Tagged Dennis Prager, earnest exploration, el granada, native american faiths, san mateo county, san mateo county times
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Luke Ford’s Secret Diary
I’ve been keeping a journal since July 15, 2009. Here are some excerpts: July 15. I met a new friend in yoga. She’s tall and meaty. I like her body. I like how fit and flexible she is. She meditates … Continue reading
Posted in Dating, Judaism, Personal
Tagged colorful clothes, luke ford, secret diary, social cues, torah class, torah jew
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Are You On A Spiritual Journey?
I chose to click the Barry Gelman link in my Google News Alert for "rabbi" because I am a masochist. I know that whenever I read this Orthodox rabbi, I will be annoyed by the shallowness of his thought. Here’s … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism, Personal
Tagged bells and whistles, conversion to judaism, google news, religion judaism, simchat torah, spiritual journeys
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Is It A Mitzvah To Pray With A Minyan?
Joe Schmo comments: Rabbi Enkin, "the majority of North American sacharit-davening Jews do not daven in a minyan. " "I cant beleive that anyone would declare all these people sinners." The fact that "everyone is doing it" means it has … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism
Tagged american jews, cant beleive, davening, joe schmo, minyan
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Are Blogs Good For The Jews?
Rabbi Gil Student writes for The Jewish Press: It is extremely important that we all remember the laws of lashon ha’ra apply to all forms of communication. The same standards we see in newspapers should be expected from blogs, but … Continue reading
Posted in Blogging, Jews, Judaism
Tagged forms of communication, gil student, halachic questions, inappropriate material, jewish press, lashon
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Kundalini & Judaism
Myron emails: Hi Luke, I read your blog about Kundalini and Judaism. I too practice Kundalini Yoga (since February 2009) and think about it in relationship to Judaism…I guess doing this in Jerusalem where we do make connections with Holidays, … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism, Yoga
Tagged hassidim, ivine, kippa, levinas, lubavitcher rebbe, values of ethics
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