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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:
- Dennis Prager v Cedars-Sinai Lawsuit
- Dennis Prager Through Randall Collins: Interaction Ritual Chains
- What is a ‘Received Idea’?
- Jordan Bardella: The Manufacture of Normality
- Everyone Became Television: Bourdieu’s Warning and the 2026 Iran War
- Marine Le Pen
- The Coalition-Proximity Rule
- Nigel Farage
- Bernard Haykel: A Life Between the Text and the Gun
- Walker Connor (1926-2017)
- Benedict Anderson and the Nation as Imagination
- Anthony D. Smith: The Student Who Kept the Question and Rejected the Answer
- Ernest Gellner
- Eric Kaufmann: The Man Who Made the Majority Visible
- Dominic Cummings: A Biography
- Steve Lopez: The Last City Columnist
- California Historian Kevin Starr
- Stephen Kotkin: A Life in Power
- William T. Vollmann: An American Life in Excess
- Rod Dreher: A Life in Exile
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)
Tag Archives: orthodox jews
Dillon, Texas, and Science
Greg Leake emails: Hi Luke, I just looked at your “I’m Ready For Some Football!” post. I mentioned before that I’m excited because I’m headed back to Dillon in October. Not actual Dillon, of course, but someplace similar. Our new … Continue reading
Posted in Texas
Tagged black hats, college football team, dillon texas, jewish theology, orthodox jews, philosophical debates
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Are There Higher Ethical Standards In Modern Orthodoxy?
In my experience, Modern Orthodox Jews have more concern about ethics than other types of Orthodox Jews. They are more concerned about appearances. They are more concerned about the goyim. I’m not arguing that Modern Orthodox Jews are better Jews … Continue reading
Posted in Haredi, Modern Orthodox
Tagged doctors and lawyers, ethical demands, orthodox jew, orthodox jews, orthodox shuls, Young Israel
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Things I Love About Modern Orthodox Judaism
The past couple of years, I’ve rarely spent time in a Modern Orthodox shul, but overall in the past 17 years, I’ve spent most of my shul time in Modern Orthodox shuls. I feel comfortable there. When you look at … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Orthodox
Tagged jewish scholarship, manual laborers, orthodox jews, orthodox minyan, orthodox shul, orthodox shuls
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My Anguish Over Hot Orthodox Married Women Dressing Provocatively
I got this tip from Heshy Fried about a letters column in the Jewish Press: Dear Rachel, I am writing this out of my soul-piercing anguish at the epidemic of married “frum” women who dress provocatively. They shamelessly dare to … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodoxy
Tagged custom wigs, eye makeup, orthodox jews, orthodox judaism, pencil skirts, yetzer hara
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The Different Parts Of My Life Are Now Working Together
I’ve lived a life of separate worlds. I had friends at school and friends at work and friends from childhood, but I never introduced them. Instead, I lived many lives. It was easier that way. I could do what I … Continue reading
Posted in Personal
Tagged alexander technique teacher, orthodox jews, psycho therapy, separate worlds, writing group
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What Do You Notice? II
Greg Leake emails: Hi Luke, A few days ago you posted a piece entitled “What do you notice“? in reference to the Alexander Technique. I couldn’t help but be struck by the similarities I encountered describing the Zen Buddhist practice … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodoxy, R. Rabbs
Tagged Alexander Technique, buddhist practice, orthodox jews, uneasy truce, upper middle class, zen buddhist
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I Like People With Strong Identities
I love people who know who they are and what their place is in life. I love strong identities. It makes relating to someone much easier. Generally, I prefer to deal with a committed Muslim than a wishy-washy Jew. With … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodoxy, Personal
Tagged black suit, christians and muslims, devout muslim, leaf in the wind, orthodox jews, social conventions
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I Hate It When I’m Just A Symbol
I hate it when I’m just a stand-in for somebody you truly hate. A couple of years ago, I had a woman flee my place after her first visit because my beard and my Orthodoxy made her feel like she … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodoxy, Personal
Tagged false assumptions, orthodox jew, orthodox jews, pagan origins, rebbes, religious holidays
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Orthodox Judaism In The Post-Modern World
I often get asked why I don’t always speak and behave in accord with Orthodox Judaism. With Orthodox Jews, I just say, “I’m not there yet.” With the goyim, I never answer by watering down Orthodox Judaism and pretending that … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodoxy, Personal
Tagged age of the universe, marginal tax rates, minimum wage laws, orthodox jew, orthodox jews, orthodox judaism
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I’ve Never Dated An Orthodox Girl
I don’t fear so often these days that I’m losing control. Therapy is calming. I can bounce my life off someone sharp and get greater clarity. It also gives me accountability. My therapist names things I’m going through such as … Continue reading
Posted in Orthodoxy, Personal
Tagged fear of abandonment, orthodox jews, orthodox life, orthodox shul, orthodox woman, orthodox women
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