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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:
- Jim Goad (1961-2026)
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- 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
- Strange Bedfellows in the Academy: Alliance Theory and the Straussian Schism
- Tournier on Desmond Ford
- The Fence and the Blessing: How Jews Have Thought About Gentiles
- Tournier on Luke Ford
- Tournier on The Nostradamus Kid
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- The Self-Hating Jew
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- The Borrowed Robe: How Antisemitism Dresses in Each Age’s Virtue
- A Place For You
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)
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Tag Archives: Young Israel
Young Israel of Santa Monica Crew Rejoins Pacific Jewish Center
I understand that the half-dozen stalwarts of Young Israel of Santa Monica, a breakaway from the Pacific Jewish Center about 18 years ago, have rejoined the mother shul. When Rabbi Daniel Lapin was in his prime, he kicked out a … Continue reading
Posted in PJC
Tagged cosmic accident, doubletree inn, pet goat, rabbi daniel, venice center, Young Israel
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Pico-Robertson Update
Real estate values of the average Pico-Robertson home are down about 25% from the peak in 2006. Prime Beverlywood property is holding up well. Rents are under pressure. Vacancies are up even though the population hasn’t declined. Rents are down … Continue reading
Posted in Beth Jacob, Orthodox Union, Pico/Robertson, RCC
Tagged airdrome, Beth Jacob, century city, jewish day schools, kol nidre service, Mogen David, population, real estate values, rents, shul, talmud torah, unemployment, vacancies, weiner, Young Israel
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Pico-Robertson In The 1960s
It was populated with faux yeshivas to get Orthodox Jews out of the Vietnam draft. By 1980, there were only two Orthodox synagogues in the community — Young Israel of South Beverly Hills and Beth Jacob. There wasn’t a kosher … Continue reading
Posted in Beth Jacob, Bnai David-Judea, Hancock Park, Haredi, Harkham Hillel, Pico/Robertson, R. Kalman Topp, YICC
Tagged Abner Weiss, Beth Jacob, orthodox shul, orthodox synagogues, rabbi maurice lamm, vietnam draft, YICC, Young Israel
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How Is Rabbi Weil Doing With The Orthodox Union?
Rabbi Steven Weil ran Beth Jacob for nine years. The shul members who hired him thought he’d stick around longer than that. Rabbi Weil’s fundraising abilities helped the shul turn its finances around. He also brought in new members, many … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodox Union, R. Steven Weil
Tagged Beth Jacob, beverlywood, Dennis Prager, michael berkow, Orthodox Union, shabbos morning, young couples, Young Israel
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My First Time At The Opera
Downtown Los Angeles. Dorothy Chandler music center Wednesday night. "The Elixir of Love". We’re on the main level, row S, seats 44, 45. The story grabs me. Luke, a simple blogger, loves Dina, a haughty YULA graduate from a rich … Continue reading
Posted in Personal
Tagged christian missionaries, divrei torah, dorothy chandler pavilion, magic potion, orthodox jews, Young Israel
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How Do LA’s Orthodox Rabbis Determine Their Moral Priorities?
All three Modern Orthodox shuls in Pico-Robertson — Bnai David-Judea, Beth Jacob and Young Israel of Century City — email their members to regularly rally outside the home of Meir Kin’s parents to protest his refusal to give a Jewish … Continue reading
Posted in Meir Kin, Pico/Robertson, Rabbis, RCC
Tagged Beth Jacob, divorce case, jewish divorce, moral priorities, orthodox shuls, YICC, Young Israel
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The Streits Matza Controversy
David Deutsch writes for Heeb Magazine’s blog Jewdar: Let’s first of all get some conflict of interest issues out of the way: Yes, Streit’s has been a longtime advertiser in Heeb. And yes, Heeb‘s own associate director of business David … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodoxy, Rabbis
Tagged rabbi moshe, rabbinical council of america, soloveichik, streits matzo, vaad harabonim, Young Israel
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My Wishes For The New Month
I always do what my teachers tell me and what my rabbis tell me and now I do what my gurus tell me. If their teachings clash, I’ll leave it to God to sort it out. He made me the … Continue reading
Posted in Personal, Yoga
Tagged alexander technique teacher, Beth Jacob, fundamental relationships, kundalini yoga, orthodox judaism, passover seders, spring equinox, Young Israel
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Yakkov Burk Vs. Jewish Resource Center
Lawrence Mischel used to run with Meir Kahane’s JDL. He and his wife have left town after blowing up many of their friendships over their lawsuits against Young Israel of Beverly Hills. This is the ugliest lawsuit Pico-Robertson has seen … Continue reading
Posted in YIBH
Tagged beverly hills ca, fancy cakes, initial status, jewish resource, meir kahane, Young Israel
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YIBH Lockout
I understand that the regular membership of YIBH (Young Israel of Beverly Hills) on Pico and Shenandoah has been locked out by a court order acting on the request of the caterers (Sue and Lawrence Mischel).
Posted in YIBH
Tagged Beverly Hills, caterers, Israel, shenandoah, Young Israel
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