Monty Python Debuted 40 Years Ago Today

Posted on October 5, 2009 by Luke Ford

Dennis Prager said on his radio show today: "Prager H1: Monty Python debuted 40 years ago. Their TV show and movies are still making Dennis laugh. He plays a couple of minutes from their justly famous “Parrot Sketch”… Did President think the Chicago bid was in the bag? Or did he really think he could persuade the IOC to give the prize to his adopted home town…Hosting the Olympics is a gold medal money loser…"

Dennis: "I owe these people a debt of gratitude. This British group’s films in particular have brought me more mirth, more joy, and more laughter than anything else. People who make us laugh are rendering a service. These people deserve thanks."

Dennis plays the dead parrot sketch. "I feel this way about the healthcare bills. They’re dead. No, they’re not dead. Or Chicago at the Olympics."

"Why would the President lobby for Chicago if he was not sure that Chicago would win? It was removed in the first round with the least points…."

"Unless he believed that his charm alone would prevail."

"I do not even want the Olympics. They do not help cities. Every city since Los Angeles has lost big money on the Olympics and been stuck with buildings they have no use for."

"His charm will win the day with the Russians, the Iranians, the Palestinians. And why not? The man went from state senator to U.S. senator to president in record time… It is a liberal conceit that being nice wins the day in the international arena."

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What’s Your Relationship Model?

Posted on October 4, 2009 by Luke Ford

I’m listening to a KPFK interview with relationship expert Alison Armstrong. She says we all have relationship models and automatically assume that everyone has our model.

One model is legacy. You’re all about having children and providing for them so that they can have more than you do.

Another model is companionship. Let’s do life together! You want to have adventures together. You have lots of common interests.

Another model is support. You support his crusade for the environment and he supports your passion for animal rights, etc.

There’s the karma model. You want to grow together. You want to heal your wounded inner child together. You want someone to push your buttons and help you grow.

It helps when you’re having a relationship if you are both on the same page. If you are primarily looking for companionship and he’s primarily looking to leave a legacy, you’ll have problems.

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Behind Meir Kin’s Divorce

Posted on October 4, 2009 by Luke Ford

Lori Hoffman emails:

Your Mar 5, 2009 page discusses something you apparently posted about Meir Kin not wanting to give his wife a get.  I can’t find your original post but I see Morris’s reply and want to add my voice to it.

I know Meir tangentially and his first wife, I used to see Meir at single’s events.  My husband knows Meir very well as they were both living in Monsey.  As for Lonna I know her and had occasion to interact with her many times when I lived in Monsey several years ago.  She was a real estate agent and very close with my ex-husband.  My opinion of her was not at all positive even before I knew many details and before the divorce from Meir. 

Shortly after I left Monsey I returned for a visit and ran into her on the street.  She said to me that she was getting a divorce and then proudly announced she was an agunah stating ‘he won’t give me the get because he wants half my business’.  I was really astounded at how she seemed to be boasting about it, she seemed to want me to automatically assume he was in the wrong and out to destroy her and she wanted her 15 minutes of fame.  I looked her in the face and told her to give him half the business since it would mean her freedom since that is what she apparently wanted.  I didn’t buy into the story even then as I knew her to be very ruthless and Meir to be a very gentle person from what I could see.

Mr Kin was working as a physician’s assistant in a hospital in NY.  Lonna protested in front of that hospital causing Meir to lose his job.  My husband was very friendly with Meir as I noted previously, and knew that he was not the evil person that Lonna made him out to be.

Small world that it is my husband’s ex-wife is Lonna’s closest girlfriend.  As they say you can tell a person by the company they keep, my husband’s ex is an extremely vicious person who has interfered in our lives from the moment she heard of my existence.  As soon as we married she took us to court demanding more money and Lonna was sitting by her side holding her hand. 

After that first day in court Lonna chased my husband into the parking lot to wish him ‘mazal tov’ on our marriage.  She then went and tracked down my ex-husband and brought him into the fray as well.  I feel as if I am back in junior high with 2 nasty teenage queen bee girls who can’t stand that someone took their boyfriend away…….

My husband’s ex-wife has three ex-husbands now so between her and Lonna they have worked together to destroy 5 men’s lives along with their families.   I have been looking for a way to get Meir’s address as I would like to write to him, if you have that I would appreciate.

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A Shaken Syrian-Jewish NY Community

Posted on October 4, 2009 by Luke Ford

The WSJ says: …"The Community"—a little-known enclave of more than 75,000 Jews from Syria and other Arab lands, many of whom have prospered in America while sustaining strong ties to the cultural traditions of homelands that today are inhospitable to Jews.

That community has been reeling since the July arrests of three of its major rabbis on charges of money-laundering, following a sting using a federal government informant. Among those caught in the dragnet was Saul Kassin, the 88-year-old Chief Rabbi, a revered figure to Sephardic Jews for decades. Rabbi Kassin and two other rabbis—Eliahu Ben Haim and Edmund Nahum—are alleged to have laundered a total of more than $1.7 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office for the district of New Jersey. The funds allegedly were laundered through charities and religious institutions they controlled in Brooklyn and Deal, N.J., the seaside resort where many Syrian Jews summer. Rabbi Kassin, through his lawyer, emphatically denied the allegations, as did Rabbi Nahum and his lawyer. Rabbi Ben Haim’s lawyer, Lawrence Lustberg, said he was reviewing the evidence in the case and declined to comment further for this story.

The corruption case involved a government informant who purported, among other cover stories, to be dealing in fake Prada and Gucci handbags and wore a wire for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He allegedly recorded the three rabbis agreeing to help him launder funds through their charities and take a percentage, according to a federal complaint. To the dismay and shock of the community, the informant was widely reported to be Solomon Dwek, one of their own, the son of another major local rabbi.

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Bad Rabbi

Posted on October 4, 2009 by Luke Ford

Nick Madigan writes for the Baltimore Sun:

For more than half a century, Rabbi Jacob A. Max was a dominant figure in Baltimore’s Jewish community, founder of one of its most important synagogues, an influential leader who officiated at countless cycle-of-life rituals of the faith. A man, it seemed from afar, above reproach. • But Max’s reputation disintegrated earlier this year after he was convicted of sexually molesting a woman half his age in a funeral home.

It marked the only time a woman had sought a legal remedy against the rabbi, even though murmurs had long rippled through Moses Montefiore Anshe Emunah Hebrew Congregation that his behavior toward some of the females in his flock was anything but appropriate.

The hushed accusations of Max’s penchant for groping and fondling – which some women say he accompanied with a smirk and an excuse about his being a "bad rabbi" – appear to have been tolerated without inquiry for decades because of his standing and authority in the tightly knit religious community. Girls who complained to their mothers about his conduct say they were ignored.

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The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy: Building and Rebuilding the Human Brain

Posted on October 4, 2009 by Luke Ford

Over the weekend, I became fascinated with the work of Pepperdine psychology professor Louis Cozolino.

His books include The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy: Building and Rebuilding the Human Brain, The Neuroscience of Human Relationships: Attachment And the Developing Social Brain, The Making of a Therapist: A Practical Guide for the Inner Journey, and The Healthy Aging Brain: Sustaining Attachment, Attaining Wisdom. He is currently writing a book on the neuroscience of education.

Richard G. Petty, MD, author of Healing, Meaning and Purpose: The Magical Power of the Emerging Laws of Life writes about the human relationships book:

Louis Cozolino is professor of psychology at Pepperdine University, and in this book he pushes the envelop of the idea that brains are social organisms that develop and grow from their interactions with each other and with the material, maternal, familial and social environments. The important point is that the brain is not a static structure. It continues to grow and develop throughout life, and experiences sculpt the physical and functional landscape of our minds and bodies. Not just traumatic or adverse experiences, but also the positive ones. Hence the idea that psychotherapy and meditation may help reverse or re-fashion the maldevelopment and faulty wiring created by events earlier in life.

The basic concept is important. There are still people embroiled in the sterile nature vs. nurture debate. I recently heard some family members of people with a neuropsychiatric problem criticizing research that suggested a role for the environment in the genesis of the disease. They felt that it was a waste of time to look at anything other than the neurology of the illness. Yet the genes expressed in the brain do not determine behavior. Instead they help to condition the ways in which we respond to the environment. One mother was incensed, saying that her son had enjoyed a perfect childhood, so the illness was not her "fault." Chances are that it was nobody’s "fault," but a delicate interplay of susceptibility genes with subtle environmental factors.

The Midwest Book Review said about Dr. Cozolino’s aging book: "Any who would desire to live to a ripe old age will find this survey of aging issues a key to understanding the groundbreaking brain research taking place. Longevity brings with it challenges in health and brain health: especially as our brains continue to grow and change throughout our lives. Discussions of how to get the brain to age optimally are explored in an account of how individual health and longevity are linked to choices in daily lives."

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Can You Cheat On Your Girlfriend?

Posted on October 4, 2009 by Luke Ford

On his radio show Friday, Dennis Prager talked about David Letterman admitting to having had sex with several of his female workers.

In March, Letterman married his girlfriend of two decades.

"If you’re not married, the rules are different," says Prager. "Some commentators have criticized him for not apologizing to his wife. She was not his wife [when Letterman was having these affairs]. She was his girlfriend. That they had love for each other, I don’t deny. There is a commitment in marriage that society has expectations regarding.

"I’m not interested in if he is faithful. If he announces it, I have to have an interest on behalf of society. Some conservatives think that an infidelity in a non-marital relationships is the same as infidelity in a marriage. It isn’t. If I had to bet my mortgage, I’d be that in the last six months, he’s been faithful. It’s fascinating to me that nobody has talked about this."

"The movement towards living together is not a healthy one."

"What really was announced we: While I was not married and living with my girlfriend, I had affairs with women who worked on my show. To which I yawn. Sorry fellow conservatives. Do you stand for fighting non-marital sex or do you fight for marriage?"

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When Quinn Met Julia

Posted on October 2, 2009 by Luke Ford

I met Julia from Sweden in October 2007. It was right before Yom Kippur. She was tall, blonde and beautiful.

After I wrote up our chat, Julia emailed me: "Good god you’re perfectly evil. Did you know that I used to keep a cut-out picture of you from an old issue of Rolling Stone in my diary when was 15? I think I was a little bit in love with you."

Yeah, well, I am fond of you too.

About nine months ago, I noticed on Facebook that she was engaged to a bloke named Quinn. I clicked the link and looked at his profile and wondered if I hated him.

The next day, I got his friend request.

I was freaked. How did he know I was looking at his profile?

I accepted the friend request and we had no further contact.

Three weeks ago, Julia calls me. She has a friend who loves my blog and wants to meet me.

"A hot chick!" I thought to myself. "Awesome!"

We finally meet for coffee this afternoon.

Julia is 45 minutes late. She brings Quinn with her.

"I don’t know why Julia thinks all her guy friends will be excited to meet me," he says. "I don’t get it. ‘Oh, this is Steve. He’s been trying to f— me for five years. You must meet him.’"

Julia had some immigration issues a while back and a whole slew of guys offered to marry her.

"I heard you offered to marry her," says Quinn.

"Yeah."

All of us had our different demands. Mine was that she convert to Orthodox Judaism.

"Everyone had a price," Julia remembers.

Quinn tells me about his Jewish dad. A rock musician.

"He drowned when I was 13," Quinn says. "We were swimming in Hawaii and got caught in a rip. I caught waves back to shore. He just gave up. I saw his black head bobbing around for three hours and then he just gave up and went under. It was the easy way out.

"He was a cutter before it was fashionable. He had a lot of depression issues."

"The grant system is much better in Sweden," he says. "We’re applying for different grants. I’m writing for a gay sports blog. These guys met me at the gym. I think they wanted to f*** me but I ended up with this gig writing about the hunkiest mixed martial artists."

Julia is a trained boxer. She talks about knocking this guy out recently. He wanted her to hit him. She finally did. He pissed himself.

"She doesn’t need me and she can do better than me," says Quinn.

I find myself accidentally touching Julia. A lot. When I get up to get a refill on my iced green tea with two splendas, I rub her back.

"I don’t know why I’m doing this," I say to Quinn. "My every deed is governed by G-d’s immutable moral law. I can do no evil."

"Is that some Dennis Prager-approved titty touching line?" he asks.

He says gay men have a fascination with him. They alternately want to f*** him and to father him.

Quinn remembers when daddy went to India and came back all spiritual. "He’d make us say, ‘Let us give thanks to Vishnu for this Big Mac.’"

A few years ago, Quinn had an important interview with an important bearded composer. Quinn messed things up by remarking about a picture of Brahms: "How many hits do you need to justify a beard of that size?"

Quinn is brilliant. He says hasn’t accomplished anything yet.

He turns to Julia. "I’m so productive when I don’t think you love me."

They were seeing this therapist. She gave up four hours for their first session and only charged $50. "Then she started slipping Jesus in the backdoor. We never went back."

I must leave to observe Shabbat. Thank God for this spiritual time to get away from the goyim and their contamination.

D. emails me about an earlier version of this post: "There was no "the" in the band’s name. It was just SPIRIT, you ignorant ponce! Randy Wolfe, better known as Randy California, was a fair-dinkum CRACKER-JACK of a guitarist, mate. Your dead mum and I quite enjoyed Spirit’s classic psychedelic LP Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus. Of course, given your girlish tastes, Spirit is probably a little too "heavy" for you to appreciate."

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She Sold Her Soul

Posted on October 2, 2009 by Luke Ford

"I want to go the dog for a long walk tomorrow morning," she says. "Then I can spend a long time with you without worrying about him."

"Do you think you’ll be able to fit me in around Coco’s schedule?" he asks.

"Stop," she says. "Don’t say that."

"I’ve been wanting to say that for months."

"Well, I hope you’re happy now," she says. "There are tons of things that you are devoted to that you have to fit me around. But I won’t go into that now.

"Coco licks my toes when I get out of the shower."

"I lick your toes."

"Not for months," she says.

"I guess he has a longer tongue," he says.

"I feel like you’re growing bored with my body," she says. "Are there still parts of me that you want to explore?"

"Yes!"

"I feel like you’re bored with me. Is there anything you want me to wear tomorrow?"

"No. I just want your soul."

"You can’t have that," she says. "I already sold it to the devil. I’ve sold it many times."

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Yisroel Pensack: Succot Message From Berkeley Mohel

Posted on October 2, 2009 by Yisroel Pensack

Berkeley-based Orthodox rabbi and mohel Chanan Feld, who is unable to work or speak due to complications of oral cancer, has issued a message for the Succot holiday that starts tonight. 

Succot is often called the Harvest holiday.  But what are we really harvesting?
 
In parshas Re’eh, the Torah describes Succot: "You shall make the festival of Succot for yourself for seven days, when you bring in the produce from your threshing floor and winepress."  (Devarim 16:13)
 
The Gemara in Succah derives from this the following halacha:  Since the verse emphasizes "from your threshing floor and winepress," that is detached vegetation, only detached vegetation may be used to roof the Succah (scach), but not anything still connected in some way to its source.  What possibly can be the underlying meaning of this halachah?
 
In Shemos 23:16 Succot is described as "the harvest festival, at the end of the year, when you bring in your produce from the field."
 
We are gathering in produce of the field, our threshing floor and winepress.
 
In Chassidic thought, we work on the principle that everything in the physical plane has its spiritual counterpart.  It follows, if Succot is the physical harvest or ingathering, it must be a similar time for spiritual activities.  What are the fruits of a Jew’s spiritual labor?  Mitzvot, Torah study, and acts of chesed.  These can be reaped on Succot.
 
Keep in mind, on the physical level, its not just the fruit from the field that is harvested, but the threshing floor and winepress.  Course grain, winnowed to remove the bran…is brought into the granary. Spiritually speaking, the same refinement process occurs with the fruits of our spiritual labor.  Before they’re brought to their place for storage, any impure thoughts or impure motives must be expunged. 
 
For most of us it is a new mindset, to apply this to more than our personal actions, but rather to all individual mitzvot and acts of chesed.
 
We’ve been through Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, and now our deeds have been scrutinized and cleansed of any taint of impurity, leaving behind pristine, undefiled mitzvot.  Succot has arrived, and it’s time to do some spiritual reaping.  The sum total of this ingathering is the real person, which represents what he has made of himself after layers of dross have been removed, leaving an honest account for what type of person he will be to face the new year.

Our deeds have been husked, hulled, and shucked, pared down to the essential.  Look up at the scach.  Pieces of vegetation severed from their source, leaving the main plant behind.  It reminds us that we have freed ourselves from all impurities and we can start a year with our true selves in control, striving for more closeness in our service of HaShem.
 
May it be so!

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