[Philosophical Rants]

I'm moving...

2006-11-23T17:58:00.000-05:00

I'm moving...

head on over to jepaikin.wordpress.com

It's much better. Quite nice, roomy, nice view of the ocean.
You should check it out.

Overheard in New York...

2006-11-17T01:04:00.001-05:00

Black Bible-thumper: Jesus will save you! Have you been saved? Praise Jesus!
Passerby: Praise Allah!
Black Bible-thumper: Fuck you, motherfucker! Jesus will kick your ass!

--42nd & 8th

Overheard by: The Jewish Asian

Religious Balance in the State of Israel

2006-11-16T11:00:00.000-05:00

This is a part of an ongoing discussion that the ARZA-KESHER Fellows have been having. Heavy stuff! I'm so glad to have dumped it out of my head and onto "paper." I've been mulling over it for quite a while... and I still am...
****************************************

Before you even attempt to discuss what role religion has in the State of Israel, I belive that you have to recognize that the entire discussion depends on how you define Judaism / Jews / Jewish / the Jewish people...

Avram Infeld if famous for his passionate statement "Judaism is NOT a religion. It is a PEOPLE WITH a RELIGION." I think this is a good starting point. But we need to go one step further. I believe strongly that the most basic definition we can arrive at is that there is this identifiable group of people (Jews) that in addition to the cultures and customs of its peoplehood, happens to have a religion (Judaism) that was instrumental in solidifying its peoplehood-ness {is that a word?!}. It's this instrumentality that must be recognized and is vital to this dicussion.

Yes, we were a nation before we had a religion injected into our people... but it was that religion which solidified our peoplehood-ness and has allowed us to remain intact for so many millenia. To remove the religion from the people would be a disaster. In short... You can take the people out of the religion, but you can't take the religion out of the people. (This is a topic for another discussion... not enough room here to delve into it)

With this in mind, I believe that Israel, as a Jewish state, MUST have a certain aspect of religiosity in it. Yes, Israel should be able to rule on who is considered a Jew... but they must do it CAREFULLY. I know this is a somewhat contentious statement. First, let me say what I believe would happen if Israel didn't have a say in this matter.

If Israel promulagetd a cultural notion of Judaism, it would be very easy for anyone to claim "Hey! My version of Judaism is equally legit" Even in the Reform movment, we strongly denounce Messianic Judaism, Jews for Jesus, and Secular Humanism. I believe that these expressions of Judaism are misguided and do not have a place in Israel. I know that this is similar to the argument that the ultra-orthodox use against the Reform Movement, however I believe that there's a big difference between the two. Even the Reform Movement draws lines somwwhere... a cultural notion of Judaism in Israel would blur or alltogether erase these lines.

Secondly... If Israel were to espouse a cultural notion of Judaism, it would make it very easy for anti-Zionists and those with anti-Israel sentiments to argue against the legitimacy of a Jewish state. Without the biblical claim to Eretz Yisrael, it becomes very easy to say "Ok, the Jews are a people... but why do they have to have the land of Israel?" or "You know what, without a religion... the Jews really aren't a people." Reform Zionism, as a form of religious Zionism, is grounded in some understanding that theology has an influence on our Zionism. (What exactly that theology is... man, I have had some serious debates on that. I think that's another topic for discussion)

So how does the State maintain some aspect of religiosity, without being discriminatory? It's a very delicate balance. To be truly democratic, Israel must recognize the three (four?) major movements in modern Jewry and invite them to the table in determining what the religious policy of the State should be. NOW... I'm not naive. I know that the reality of such a discussion taking place is slim to none - thanks in great part to the fracturing divisiveness of the ultra-orthodox. But I do believe that if Israel is to remain democratic, while acknowledging the necessity of some dose of religion, such a discussion is painfully necessary.

Perhaps there should be both a political knesset and a religious knesset. A religious knesset wouldn't have unwavering powers, but it would at least provide a forum for discussion and a system of checks and balances in religious matters.

Furthermore... if a Jew in Israel chooses to be secular... so be it. As long as they're not espousing beliefs antithetical to Judaism (i.e. messianic Judaism, Jews for Jesus, etc.) that decision is theirs to make. I may not disagree with the choice, but it's not my choice to make. If the state should recognize the major worldwide Jewish movements (which it must), then it also needs to recognize that the vast majority of its Jewish constituents are secular. It needs to stop disenfranchizing these Jews and find a way for them to feel comfortably Jewish within the Jewish state. Non-religious Jewish weddings must therefore be permitted (as long as it's two Jews getting married... if it isn't, then it should be a secular wedding).

Should "chiloni" be considered a legitimate movement in Israel? That's a tough question. Should "apathetic" be considered a legitimate political party in Canada or the U.S.? I know it's an option on facebook, but... No, I don't think being secular should be considered a legitimate movement. By that, I mean that while those who choose to be secular shouldn't be disenfranchised of rights, it doesn't necessarily mean that they automatically get official recognition as a religious movement. I think it's similiar to trying to create a non-political political party. It's anachronistic. Yes, the chiloni are an identifiable group of people within Judaism, but are they a religious group of people? Choosing to be secular is a religious choice, but does making that choice automatically entitle you to the status of a religious movement. My inclination is to say no, but I'm not entierely sure yet.

Wow. I know that was a lot. And I know that some of what I said is potentially controversial and provocative. And that's good. Please challenge me on these things, and if I've been unclear in anything, it's only because I didn't want to add even more to my posting. If I've been unclear, please ask me to elaborate on what I've said.

I feel better now dumping that all out of my brain. I've been mulling over this for a while. And I think I've found the topic for a master's thesis

Balance... it's all about balance.

T'fillin Barbie

2006-11-12T02:32:00.001-05:00

http://www.geniza.net/bar/barbie.shtml

Like a fish(ner)?

2006-11-12T00:02:00.000-05:00

Quotes of the Evening:

"I could fillet you!" ~ Melissa

(Condition for posting: "You can only put that up if you tell people that I'm filleting you while we're in a knife fight" ~ Melissa)

"I love moisturizing my cuticles"

From Mira's Blog... Profound and Relevant

2006-11-08T22:44:00.000-05:00

Apparently my definition of holiness is different than other people. It could, I suppose, be argued that mine is immediately incorrect, as I do not consider myself to be an observant Jew – the phrase I heard from my mother growing up and that I have somewhat adopted is ‘Religious Reform,’ though recently I lean more toward ‘progressive.’ I have gone to Hebrew Day School for 14 years, though that does not make me a better Jew than anyone else who attended public school, nor does it mean that I am a lesser Jew because I did not attend Yeshiva, I do not wear skirts unless I choose to for a special occasion, and I do plan on covering my head when I get married (which will not be in the next few years). I know the laws, though not all in full detail (I’m still hazy on whether or not we’re supposed to give back a found wallet if the owner is not Jewish, and how many metres of grass my cattle can have if my neighbour is my brother in law. I believe that for my Judaism to mean something to me I must choose those adherences which enhance my spiritual growth. I do not believe in blind faith, though I find it a fascinating topic of study and often envy those who can subscribe to it.

I believe that the basis of holiness is the golden rule. Love thy neighbour as thyself. I believe that we must strive to go beyond that – try thinking of someone else first, though ensuring your own health and safety. I’ve heard arguments against this by people who bring up self-loathing, and those who do not treat themselves with dignity and honour. Perhaps it should be ‘love your neighbour as you wish you could love yourself.’ Through the loving of others we reach that beautiful, fulfilling place beyond self acceptance, and can reach self love.
I am in shock, I am frightened, and I am so disappointed by the events which are happening in Israel and indeed the entire world, but particularly the Jewish community, in regards to this march for pride and tolerance. I am in shock because as much as I am not so naïve to think that Jews do not commit sins against Jews (I just participated in Rabin’s memorial day with a moving ceremony in Kikar Rabin – accompanied by a Gaza protest, of course) I am disgusted and stunned at the scope to which people will use my religion, MY religion, OUR religion, and use it to incite hatred against a group of people who were born being attracted to people with a different combination of X and Y chromosomes than we are told is natural. Whose only sin is wanting to express that attraction and love without the common discrimination and violence that can be seen, and appallingly even now expected and accepted and somewhat institutionalized, here. I am shocked that a group who claims to and is seen to represent the epitome of my religion, the core of it, those who protect it, will use my religion to disobey what I see as far more important laws in order to subjugate another group who are doing nothing to them personally. These important laws are led with our friend the Golden Rule. They include respect for all people, accepting/welcoming the stranger, and recognizing that EVERYONE is created in the image of God. I find those to be so much more important and basic to this religion which is so integral in their lives than ensuring that one group which, according to traditional Jewish law, is not permitted to express their feelings openly (it does not say that one cannot have these feelings, by the way – we just can’t act on them) will not speak out against prejudice in a legal gathering which is their basic right as well.

I am frightened. Not only a knot in the pit of my stomach that something will happen while I am at the rally, which I will not outwardly share with people because I am so adamant about the importance of going but also the cause of the reason I am not directly convincing people who are on the fence to go, perhaps in order to avoid my own guilt should something, God forbid, happen. I am also frightened both for my faith personally, and the future of the religion as a whole. Me personally, I am afraid of losing faith. Why should I want to stay a part of a religion which condones this violent, immoral and, in my eyes, sac-religious behaviour? It is only my personal beliefs and the faith in my community that are holding me in. It is my drive to change rather than run away, and to know that they best way to do that is from the inside and with a dedicated heart and soul. For the religion, I don’t see how the rest of the world can’t detest us right now. For the progressive and ambivalent of the world, they see an archaic, violent people which will not stand by each other when we hurt. For those who hate us already, they have more reason and see us as divided and weak – what better opportunity to strike than when we cannot agree on who gets to march and where, and who is allowed whom in their private bed, never mind holding hands in the street.

A Castle in the Clouds?

2006-11-07T21:35:00.000-05:00

The following is my response to a posting on Mike's blog.
***************************************************

Interesting ideas...

One thing I struggle with is the "concept of constantly challenging ourselves to think differently,"

I do believe it's critical to any movment to challenge itself, otherwise it just remains stagnant. But I also believe that one of the greatest "flaws" (perhaps "challenges" is a better word) of the Reform Movement is that it is constantly doing things differently. (In the grand scheme of things... look at the evolution of responsa in just the past 25 years alone).

Theologically, philosophically, liturgically, religiously, etc... I think what will allow us to grow the most is if we grow our roots and stick into something permanent.

If you ask most Reform Jews "what's permanent about Reform Judaism?"... what response do you think you'll get? I'm not even sure myself.

It's a delicate balance. We need to grow to remain relevant and vibrant in the 21st century, but we also need to be standing on firm ground. I feel too often that Reform Judaism is a castle in the clouds. I believe that if we root ourselves strongly, we'll be able to grow even more. It's physics... look at trees.

Just as you note, it's so important to be able to say "HEY!! Look at it this way!"... we're taught that the Torah has 70 faces, and it's critical to explore those new faces. Let's just remember when we're exploring that all those faces are on the same head and even if someone is looking at a different face, it's still the same head.

The way of Man (or Woman)

2006-11-07T20:44:00.000-05:00

When some disciples of a deceased tzaddik came to the Seer of Lublin and expressed surprise at the fact that his customs were different from those of their late master, the Seer exclaimed, "What sort of God would that be who has only one way in which he can be served! God does not say, 'This way leads to me and that does not.' Instead God says, "Whatever you do may be a way to me, provided you do it in such a manner that it leads you to me."
-Martin Buber, The Way of Man
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I spent this past weekend up at Camp George for the Hillel Arts and Culture retreat. I was expecting a relaxing weekend, and that is indeed what it was... for the most part.

I've come to grips with the fact that Toronto is not the most Jewishly pluralistic place on earth. In fact, it's nowhere near it. Culturally and philanthropically it is... but religiously it most certainly is not (with some notable exceptions). But even though I've learned how to live in this environment, I don't accept it - I'm always looking for ways to change it, and so I've been so thrilled at the latest endeavour by a few of us at Hillel to host a roundtable discussion with rabbis from each movement. Sponsored by KESHER, Koach, and Yavneh, it looks like it's going to be amazing.

That being said, there were a number of instances this weekend up at camp that... shocked me. Right now I don't have the mental capacity to delve into a commentary on each of them, but for the time being I'll share some of the choice phrases that I encountered....

"If Reform Judaism accepts homosexual marriages, why doesn't it accept incestuous relationships?"

"Pluralism is what's ruining Hillel and the Jewish community as a whole"

"This is the Talmud... have you ever seen one of these?" (Condescendingly, to a Reform Jew)

Granted, these comments represent the extreme end of the spectrum, however they are indicitive of the dire need to begin a mass education of the Toronto Jewish community... starting with the youth... about the importance of K'lal Yisrael and Jewish solidarity.

I'm not sure where to start - perhaps flying over the city, dropping leaflets with Buber's quote on it.

Watch this until the end. Definately.

2006-10-05T00:47:00.000-04:00

Will Ferell for Mac

http://appleclips.podOmatic.com/entry/2006-06-10T09_16_09-07_00

Quazi-Evil Marketing Tactics + Great Musician = Happy Ears

2006-09-07T21:19:00.000-04:00

Ever hear of Chris Velan?

GREAT musician!

I had heard a song of his at camp, but didn't know who it was. I downloaded it tonight, then went searching for him online. I found his site... guy's from montreal. I listended to the convinently provided samples and then bought both of his albums on iTunes, thereby succumbing to the quazi-evil marketing tactics of apple :-)

You should go out and succumb to the quazi-evil tactics... your ears will be happy!

(He's got a Ben Harper regaae vs. Jack Johnson folk sound)

"Is that Pink Floyd's logo? You're a hippie. I can tell you're Jewish. I like stereotyping people, it's easier."

2006-08-28T23:23:00.000-04:00

Man in Blockbuster: "Is that Pink Floyd's logo?"

Me: (Wearing pink pig Pink Floyd shit) "Sort of?"

Man: "Are you a hippie? I thought only hippies listened to Pink Floyd. You must be a hippie, you're wearing a bandana"

Me: "Umm?"

Man (After seeing me take out my wallet that says 'Steve's Packs, Jerusalem' on it: "You're Jewish! I should've known. Jews are crazy. I'm from Israel"

Me (laughing): Ok.

Man: I stereotype people, it's easier that way.

Blockbuster clerk (to man): "Do you speak hebrew? My friend tought me how to say (in Hebrew) I want your vagina. (to me): here are your DVDs. Have a good night"

Me: Wow. Thank you.

Man: "L'hitraot!"

Overheard in New York

2006-08-18T14:13:00.000-04:00

Crazy lady: Hooray! Jewish people!
Guy Wearing "Israeli Defense Force" t-shirt: Actually, I'm Catholic.

--60th & Madison

From Haifa...

2006-07-18T09:41:00.000-04:00

30 Unknown Facts: "One More Thing Stolen From Nug's Blog" Version

2006-07-13T19:37:00.000-04:00

30 unknown facts/secrets about yourself.

1. What does your MySpace headline mean?:

I don't use MySpace.

2. Elaborate on your default photo.

Picture of me with my bedouin clothes from Israel.

3. What's your middle name[s]?

Ellis

4. What is your current relationship status?

Single and searching.

5. What are you wearing right now?

Shorts, DMB t-shirt

6. What is your current problem?

Paying off my debt.

7. What do you love most?

Judaism, family, friends, my dog

8. What makes you most happy?

See above.

9. Are you musically inclined?

Guitar is life. Music is living.

10. If you could go back in time, and change something, what?

Destroy the Hezbollah terrorists that attacked Israel today.

11. If you MUST be an animal for ONE day- what would you be?

A bird. I need to fly.

12. Ever have a near death experience?

Driving back to camp three days ago. TERRIFYING.

13. Name an obvious quality you have?

I have hair.

14. What's the name of the song that's stuck in your head right now?

Afternoon delight.

15. Who did you cut and paste this from?

Nug.

16. Name someone with the same b-day as you:

Emily Cohen, Marco Polo, Agatha Christie, Cannonball Adderley, Tommy Lee Jones, Dan Marino, Oliver Stone, Prince Harry of Wales

17. Have you ever destroyed someone's property?

Possibly.

18. Have you ever been in a fight?

Yes.

19. Have you ever sang in front of a big audience?

Hell yes.

20. What's the first thing you notice about the OPPOSITE sex?

Hair, eyes.

21. What do you usually order from Starbucks?

Coffee.

22. Do you have a crush on anybody?

I'm at camp right now. I have a crush on everyone.

23. Ever had a drunken night in Mexico?

Nope. But I've had many drunken nights in Israel.

24. Has anyone ever said u looked like a celebrity?

Yes - Ed Robertson, and one of the Moffats. Ewww.

25. Do you still watch kiddy movies or TV shows?

Absolutely. I watched Shrek this week and love Sesame Street.

26. Did you have braces?

Yup.

27. Are you comfortable with your height?

Sure.

28. What is the most romantic thing someone has ever done for you?

Stayed up all night talking.

29. Do you speak any other languages?

Hebrew and French.

30. Whats your favorite smell?

Israel, Camp, after-rain smell, cedar, vanilla, anything baked, my grandparents houses, New York City

Nu?

2006-06-11T13:55:00.000-04:00

Long overdue, as usual.

I’m in the Baltimore airport. It seems I often find myself in some random airport in America as I write new entries (which doesn’t say much for my blogging frequency...)

This past week I had the pleasure of attending the URJ's Lifelong Jewish Learning Commission retreat and then immediately afterwards the URJ Board of Trustees meeting. Pretty important stuff.

We're working really hard to get a lot of facetime for the KESHER Leadership Council with the Union bigwigs so we can finally get some hard resources. And we're doing really well.

I attend these meetings and conferences and retreats a lot, and I'm so lucky to be able to travel around the world and meet amazing people who are amazingly dedicated to their Judaism. Plus, the opportunity to hang out with friends in (usually) nice hotels is also a bonus. Believe me, we work really hard and deserve the comfortable beds!

The time spent at these meetings really rejuvinates the desire in me to work as a Jewish Professional - as a Rabbi, or otherwise. But I know that as soon as I get back up on stage, I'll be dreaming of applying to the National Theatre School after I graduate. This pendulum swinging back and forth is going to have to come to a screeching halt within the next year as I decide what to do after graduation, and it's getting a little more nervewracking each day.

I leave for Israel in three days for the World Zionist Congress. Needless to say, I am ridiculously excited to get back to the country. THE country. I'm there for a week and a half, then I come home for my cousin's (Catholic) wedding, and then I leave for camp the next day.

The next two weeks are going to be a little insane :-)

I'll be blogging, podcasting, and video-casting live from Israel starting on Wednesday, and you'll be able to follow me and ARZA Canada at: www.VoteReformJudaismCanada.com/blog

I'll post a last entry before the summer within the next couple of weeks with information on how to reach me at camp. And then I'm sure this blog will be stagnant until September :-)

Aleh V'hagshem.

Hmm...

2006-05-19T20:12:00.000-04:00

Jesse --

[noun]:

A master of sexual gratification

'How will you be defined in the sexual dictionary?' at QuizUniverse.com

Well... now that we got that out of the way.
Shabbat Shalom to you!

It's raining outside, it's my cousin's (Orthodox) Bat Mitzvah on Monday, and the entire weekend is a celebration! Things at work are getting crazy geared up towards the Congress in Jerusalem, which is weird because as I get closer to the end of my job, things also get busier. Strange.

In a couple weeks, a bunch of us are going to Hawley's cottage for 5 days. I need that time. It's going to be my purge week to get rid of the year's stresses, so I can go to Israel and camp free of shit. A wonderful buffer week.

After that, it's my cousin's (Catholic) Wedding, then camp.

Summer's delightful. I love it. Especially when it involves Israel and camp.
It's raining outside.
I also like the rain.

I've caught onto this new Pandora music thing. It's fantastic. I'm finding a plethora of new music. So wonderful.

Check these bands out:

Pernice Brothers
The Bats
The Bevis Frond
Chuck Prophet
The Finn Brothers
T.S. Monk
Brendan Benson
Rusted Root
The Jayhawks

Good stuff there.

Shabbat Shalom to y'all

WE DID IT!!!

2006-05-11T02:18:00.000-04:00

REFORM MOVEMENT WINS IN CANADIAN
WORLD ZIONIST CONGRESS ELECTIONS!

ARZA CANADA IN FIRST PLACE WITH 7 OUT OF 19 SEATS

Canadian Election Results:

ARZA Canada: 7 seats
United Torah Coaltion (Orthodox): 7 seats
Mercaz Canada (Conservative): 3 seats
Hatikva Canada & Zionistparty.com: 2 seats

I'll post more on the significance of this later. For now, we're just so elated!

high school kids are smart

2006-05-09T20:56:00.000-04:00

I've been reading over the letters of intent from the kids running for the executive board of NFTY-NEL (the youth group I used to be a member of, and incidentally still devote a considerable amount of time to). Some of the things these kids (read: intelligent young people) have to say are quite inspiring. This one blew me away.

I hope this letter finds you well. I would like to start off by recounting a very traumatic day for me: First I ate a plentiful, calorie-rich meal to commemorate the affliction of my ancestors. My emotions rose as I used my thousand dollar computer and forty-dollars-a-month internet connection to read about the suffering of people who live on less than a quarter a day. My anxiety grew as from my leather couch I witnessed images flickering on my flat screen TV of a world gone mad, with rising gun and gang violence, a growing rich-poor gap, and genocide around the world, tidily presented by the multi-billion dollar news networks. I guess the emotional climax was when I realized the paradox of our time: suffering is just so darn comfortable... In our modern world, awareness is scanning headlines in an internet browser; ‘paying it forward’ means passing along a chain email petition you know nobody will ever read; and taking action equates to buying a mass produced t-shirt that says ‘Bush sucks.’ Comical, clever, and compelling: a triple threat.

Way to go. Step up to the plate and kick some ass.

Shuffle Your Life

2006-04-01T00:01:00.000-05:00

Put your music library on shuffle and answer the questions with songs in the order they come up. it doesn't really make sense at times, but some answers you come up with will freak you out.

1. What's my mood like right now?
I am a Rock - Simon & Garfunkel (!!!)

2. How's tomorrow going to be for me?
Does Anybody Really Know What Time it is? - Chicago

3. What kind of person am I?
Undecided - Dave Brubeck Quartet (!!!)

4. Am I loved?
The End - The Doors

5. How can I achieve my highest potential?
I Forfive You - Ari Hest

6. What should I do with my life?
She Don't Use Jelly - Ben Folds Five

7. What is my theme song?
So Much to Say - Dave Matthews Band

8. What is my best quality?
Song that Jane Likes - Dave Matthews Band

9. How does my sex life look?
Ballad of Jed Clampett - Bela Fleck and the Flecktones (STRANGE!)

10. What's the meaning of life?
Brown Sugar - The Rolling Stones

11. How do people see me?
Jane - Barenaked Ladies

12. Would I make a good catch?
New Kid on the Block - Barenaked Ladies

13. How crazy am I?
One Angry Dwarf... - Ben Folds Five

14. Will I have a good life in general?
Somewhere - Dave Brubeck Quartet

16. Can Natalie Portman and I ever be more than friends?
Nothing Special - Dunkan Sheik

17. What's going to happen to me this week?
Solid - Soulive

18. Where will I be in a year?
One Sweet World - Dave Matthews Band

19. What is my biggest wish?
Manifest Destiny - Guster

20. What is the love of my life doing at this very moment?
Psycho Killer - Moxy Fruvous (Uhhhh... Maybe I don't want to know...)

21. How will I die?
I Did It - Dave Matthews Band (Suicide???)

22. What will happen after I die?
Over the Moon - RENT

23. How do my friends feel about me?
Guns 'n Roses - One In A Million

Strrrrrrrrrrange

I guess I'm a Drama Hippie

2006-03-29T09:56:00.000-05:00

HURRAY FOR TYPECASTING! (again - stolen from Nug's blog. Too bored)

--DRAMA DORK--
[x] Ever been in a play?
[x] Have you ever seen a Broadway show?
[x] More than 10 Broadway shows?
[x] Does your current job involve theater in some way?
[x] Want to end up working in/for theater
[x] Can you recite all of the lyrics to your favorite play/musical?
[x]Do you break out into random songs whenever/wherever!!
[ ]Do you like the 'Sound of Music'?
[x] Did you like the Broadway show you saw?
Total X: 8

--HIPPIE--
[ ] Is your hair long?
[x] Do you own a tye-dye shirt?
[x] Do you want to save the animals?
[x] Do you think war is unnecessary?
[x] Do you like classic rock?
[x] Have you ever participated in a protest?
[ ] Have you ever been overcome with a desire to hug a tree?
[x] Is your idea of fun sitting around one person playing a guitar and singing along?
[x] Do you see someone playing frisbee and automatically ask to play?
Total X: 7

--METALHEAD--
[ ] Do you have long hair?
[x] Do you like Beer?
[]Have you ever been in a Moshpit?
[ ] You don't believe in God?
[ ] You got a Pentagram on some clothing article etc.?
[ ] You own some spikes?
[x ] Can you play guitar?
[x ] Do you own Boots?
[x] Do you rock out?
Total X: 4

--REDNECK--
[ ] Do you have a couch in your front yard or porch?
[ ] Do you drive a truck?
[ ] Do you like four-wheelers?
[x] Do you like to get dirty?
[ ] Do you like country music?
[ ] Do you have a broken car in your back yard?
[ ] Do you own a cowboy hat?
[ ] Do you have more then 4 different animals at your home?
[ ] Do you watch Larry the Cable Guy videos?
Total X: 1

--GOTH--
[ ] Do you wear black eyeliner?
[x] Is most of your clothing dark?
[ ] Do you think about death often?
[ ] Do you want to die?
[ ] Are you a social outcast?
[ ] Do you like Hot Topic?
[ ] Do you enjoy Tim burton movies?
[ ] Are you mean?
Total X: 1

--HARDCORE KID--
[x] Do you own band shirts?
[x] Is a bandana part of your everyday outfit? (Today and Yesterday for sure)
[ ] Do u wear tight pants?
[ ] Do you hate "Push Pits"?
[ ] Is going to a show a bi-weekly ritual?
[ ] Is there "X's" or the word "MOSH" in your screen-name?
[ ] Do you sometimes or often wear camo?
[ ] Does your myspace profile play a hardcore song?
[ ] Do the words "headwalking, windmills, and pill-on" mean anything to you?
Total X: 2

--SKATER/PUNK--
[ ] Can you skateboard?
[ ] Do you wear Skateboarding shoes?
[x] Do you do stupid stuff with your friends?
[ ] Have you gotten in trouble with the Cops
[x] Do you watch the x-games?
[ ] Do/did you have any piercings other than your ears?
[ ] Do you like mohawks?
[x] Do you wear Band t-shirts?
[ ] Have you called someone a poser recently?
Total X: 3

--PREP--
[ ] do you say the word "like"?
[ ] Do you shop at Hollister/Abercrombie&Fitch/AE/Aero?
[ ] Do the people in Hot Topic scare you?
[x] Do u giggle alot when youre with your friends/girlfriend/boyfriend?
[ ] Have/do you watch(ed) LAGUNA BEACH?
[ ] Do you like pop music?
[x] Do you want/have a little dog?
[x] Do you laugh a lot?
Total X: 3

--GANGSTA--
[ ] Do you act ghetto sometimes?
[ ] Do you wear do-rags?
[ ] Do you like hip-hop?
[ ] Was Tupac truly the greatest rapper in the world?
[ ] Do you believe he's alive?
[ ] Do you like afros?
[ ] Have you ever said "Fo Sho"?
[x] Do you like to dance?
[x] Do you own 40 cds or more?
Total X: 2

--EMO-
[ ] Do you cry often?
[x] Do you wear hoodies?
[ ] Do you like soft music?
[ ] Do people not understand you?
[ ] Do you write your own poems?
[x] Do you dye your hair red, black, or any dark color?
[ ] Do you cut your own hair?
[ ] Do you sometimes feel very lonely?
[ ] Is "Ohio is for lovers" by Hawthorne Heights a good song?
Total X: 2

--SURFER--
[ ] Do you surf?
[x] Do you wear flip flops all year around
[ ] Is your hair shaggy or layered?
[ ] Do you wake up before 6 every morning?
[x] Do you own any pairs of shorts?
[ ] Do you think the ocean is radical?
[ ] are you tan?
[x] Do you want to be at the beach right now?
[x] Do you hate tourists?
Total X: 4

--GEEK--
[ ] Do you wear glasses?
[x] Do you get good grades?
[ ] Do you use an inhaler?
[ ] Do you stick pens and calculators into your shirt pockets?
[x] Are you on the computer often?
[ ] Do you ever get picked on?
[x] Do you look forward to goin to school?
[ ] Are you shy around the opposite sex?
[ ] Do you play video games?
Total X: 3

Repost this with the top stereotype that fits you.
(the one with the most X)
Title it "Stereotypes - I guess im a ___"

Stolen shamelessly (or possibly with a little bit of shame) from Nug

2006-03-28T22:52:00.000-05:00

I swore I'd never post these, but I'm so damn bored from writing papers right now. This is my well deserved break.

*****

These are supposedly 30 questions no one would think of to ask you. We'll see how this goes.

1. When you looked at yourself in the mirror today, what was the first thing you thought?
"Shit, I need to shower"

2. How much cash do you have on you? $5 American

3. Whats a word that rhymes with door? Floor, for

4. Favorite planet? Earth.

5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your mobile? Dad's Cell.

6. What is your favorite ring on your phone? BNL Sining "Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young" (sung repeatedly to the tune of "Deck the Halls"

7. What shirt are you wearing right now? Palendrome t-shirt

8. Do you "label" yourself? on occasion. I don't like pigeon holes, though.

9. Name the brand of shoes you're currently wearing? not wearing any right now, but Caterpillars when I do.

10. Bright or Dark Room? Dark.

11. What do you think about the person who took this survey before you? Nug is an incredibly humourous, savvy, brilliant, and generally compassionate man (when he's not making fun of me for being Jewish).

13. What were you doing at midnight? Writing a paper.

14. What did your last text message you received on your mobile say? hi

15. Where is your mail box? Front door.

17. Who told you he/she loved you last? One of my parents.

18. Last furry thing you touched? My dog. Or the mould on a piece of bread.

19. How many drugs have you done in the last three days? Beer? Does beer count?

20. How many rolls of film do you need to get developed? None.

21. Favorite age you have been so far? 21

22. Your worst enemy? Procrastination.

23. What is your current desktop picture? A picture of camp.

24. What was the last thing you said to someone? "Ummm?"

25. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to fly? Flight.

26. Do you like someone? I like many people. Do I like a singular person? Yes, that too.

27. The last song you listened to? Sattelite, DMB

28. If the last person you spoke to was getting shot at, would you run? I'd run in and take the bullet.

29. If you could punch one person right now, who would it be? Hugh Heffner... YOU'RE MINE!

30. What is the closest object to your left foot? My right shin.

Make Love, Not Terror

2006-03-22T00:15:00.000-05:00

Two weeks?

2006-03-17T23:32:00.000-05:00

Almost two weeks have passed, and I'm still trying to gather together my thoughts of Fred. Ironically, because of the show, I guess I really haven't had time to sit down and let it sink in that he's gone. Every now and then, I get a pain in my heart. Every now and then, tears come to me on stage, but I choke them back and continue on with the scene. Tonight, I read Nug's journal and had another choked up moment. I really need it. I need to break down and cry and let it all out, but I don't know when it will come. Until then, I leave you with Nug's thoughts. They are marvelous....
******************************
From Nug's Blog...

I'm going to try to do this...

When I came to York in 1993, I really didn't know what I wanted to do. Well, I had an idea; I wanted to be a radio DJ. I knew that no amount of school was going to help me be a radio personality, though. I signed up for classes and went about my first week or so of school. That particular year I got to experience the joys of Jewish holidays for the first time, as my schedule went "frosh week", then a week off for Rosh Hashana, then a week back at school. I wanted to do something other than school (and drink as a hobby), much like I'd done in high school. I saw a poster for auditions for a Vanier College play. Now, living in Vanier Residence, I figured that this would be perfect as I wouldn't have to go outside and everything was contained in the same building complex. Plus, other than reading out loud in class, this would be great for practicing my announcing skills. The poster gave time, room number, and said, and I quote, "there will be incidental music." To this day, I stand by my belief that this was a typo, and it should have read, "incidentally, it's a musical."

I went to the audition with a monologue prepared (from a play we'd self-produced in high school, a series of teenage angst-riddled musings... I think called "Sometimes I Wake Up In The Middle Of The Night"), and ready to have some fun. I wasn't in the theatre department, so I figured this was going to be a lot like my high school, where people from all over the educational map were in the shows. I walked up to the table at the door and asked to sign up. They told me that I could go inside in 10 minutes, then asked which one of Fred's classes I was in. "Who's Fred?", I asked. Apparently, this Fred guy taught two classes, one in acting and one in stage construction, and his students were required to audition. Not me, I'm here on my own accord.

I went in and did my monologue in front of about 4 people, including this older man who then asked me if I could sing. "I can, but I don't," I replied. He hopped up to the piano and played "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", which I sang. Then he had me sing the alphabet. Then he had me sing it like I was selling a car. I made sure to have fun here, opening the door of the car to show the interior on "gee". This guy then says, "Can you come back next Wednesday?" I asked him if I'd done something wrong, and he told me that callbacks were that day. "What are callbacks?" "I'm Fred. See you next Wednesday."

I came back and nailed the callback. I met a young man named John Catucci that day and we both made in into "Romeo and Juliet", which had somehow been written into a musical. That was my first Vanier College Productions show, and when I got to know Fred Thury. I hated him at first. I was there to learn my lines and do the show, and this guy was getting into my head and making me think things I didn't like to think about. About me, and what my opinions were on topics that were unsettling or unfamiliar. He told me that I needed to change my mind about things. About halfway through the rehearsals, he caught me babysitting our set one night (which we all took turns doing) listening to old TV themes and Sinatra songs. He said, "You can't like this stuff! You're a metal dude!" I told him he needed to change his mind about things. He liked that.

I did a few more shows while I was at York. Then, I graduated but stuck around helping out with various productions. I directed, I wrote, I improvised, I sang and danced. I painted, I hammered, I wired, I lit. All the while, I was learning how to be a better person. Fred and I argued and yelled, but mostly we laughed and made things work. And then a day came when I couldn't do a show for him. I felt terrible. Fred said that is was okay because I'd done about 15 shows for him in the last 6 or 7 years. That couldn't be right, but I went up to York today and, sure enough, it's 15 different productions that have my name on them in our little history book.

Fred was the first gay man I'd ever met. The first gay man married-to-a-woman-and-with-kids I'd ever heard of. He was the first person to really push me into different roles and different ways of thinking. "Spherical thinking" will be part of my vocabulary forever. He let me try things, and fail, and try again. He allowed me a lot of freedom in that company. I've done every job in that theatre. Every job IN theatre, from box office to producer. I learned everything from him.

What I really enjoyed was Fred's way of letting us discover things for ourselves. He'd never tell us how to say a line, or how to act. We'd make our own choices and then he'd discuss why we chose that direction. Frequently, he'd say it wasn't what he had in mind, but he liked what we were doing. We'd changed his mind about something and he admitted that. I respected that immensely.

Without Fred, I never would have met, John, Josh, Ron, Steve DelBalso, Perry, Edwards, and countless others. Without Fred I never would have tried to do anything other than "fat guy" roles. I would have never sang in public. I would have never improvised. Never written a play. Never directed. Never produced my own show. Never tried sketch comedy. Never heard of Second City. All of these things are second nature to me now.

Fred succumbed to an illness that, by all accounts, he should have died of in 1985. A very complicated illness involving blood and cancer and horrible surgeries. The entire time I've known him, he's been sick. He never let it stop him, he never let it get him down. It beat him up mercilessly and he still kept on going. He was opening another show this week and was sewing all the costumes for it. And I'm not surprised in the least.

I'm a little sad that in recent years, what with post-secondary education being what it is, that the shows have suffered at VCP. With younger students coming in, and more students needing to work to make ends meet, it's harder for them to make a commitment to a show. And this was hard on Fred who was used to a solid commitment. Fred had been getting more and more frustrated with the lack of commitment to his company. I know it's been hard for this particular show, as they've had to recast over 80% of the show in the last two weeks. But, Fred called a few old VCPers and they all said yes. Because it was Fred. Fred brought community to a university that has none. He made a family in a desolate place. Fred created a network of people who graduated to various businesses that would help each other out, and help new VCPers, in a heartbeat.

And tomorrow, I will go to Fred's funeral. I will see a lot of old friends... Many I've lost touch with over the years. I will see some people I don't want to see, and lots that I will never want to let go of. We'll share some stories about Fred... I'll probably tell the story of the time his one false tooth (which he had on a plate and had to sometimes remove to eat) fell out of his shirt pocket and into s pile of sawdust. I didn't know he had one then. He picked it up, dusted it off, and said, "you didn't see that." I laughed for half an hour, and he did too. But of all the stories I'll hear, nothing will hurt me more than knowing that I can't call him to talk. And when he would say hello, and you'd introduce yourself he would say, "I remember you." And he would. He remembered us all. Every. Single. One. Of. Us. From over 30 years of shows at York.

And we will all remember him.

"Life does not cease to be funny when people die any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh." -George Bernard Shaw

PREMIERING THIS WEEK

2006-03-05T00:27:00.000-05:00

Vanier College Productions presents
the world premier of
comedy errors

a musical complication based on

Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors

On stage at the Vanier College Studio Theatre,
258 Vanier College, York University | 4700 Keele Street

March 10-25 (peformances Wednesdays through Sundays)
Call 416.736.2100 ext. 40023 for tickets, or talk to me!
Tickets only $10.00 for students!

http://www.yorku.ca/vanier/Vanier-VCP.html

I heard these annoucements in the Pittsburgh Airport tonight... HA!

2006-02-09T19:38:00.000-05:00

"Your attention please. This is a courtesy announcement. If you are on the moving sidewalks, please stand directly in the middle, so as to block everybody in your path. Thank you"

"Your attention please. Mr. Smith, your flight is departing. If you're not on it, you better run, cause it's going to leave!"

"Your attention please, flight 107 to Tokyo, connecting... somewhere... has now departed. Thank you"

2006-02-08T22:24:00.000-05:00

All punk songs are the same, I should write some before they all run out.

Free Speech is Great, but is Anybody Listening?

2006-01-30T23:54:00.000-05:00

Written by Jesse Paikin, Contributor
Wednesday, 25 January 2006

http://www.excal.on.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1317&Itemid=2

Edward Corrigan's letter to President Lorna Marsden regarding the university's alleged "suppress[ion of the] discussion of Palestinian human rights" is a fine example of the right to free speech that we so value at our university and in our country. It is also an example of the drivel masquerading as newsworthiness that so frequently invades Excalibur.
I do not wish to jump back into the ongoing Israel vs. Palestine debate, however, I will briefly address one of the issues that Corrigan raises, as I feel that it is important to present the inherent flaws in his argument.
The most disturbing argument Corrigan presents is his belief in Israel's "ethnic cleansing of Palestinian Arabs", which he believes is "a crime not unlike the one committed against Jews in the WWII". Here, Corrigan resorts to an emotional attack
rather than the constructive criticism that he states he is an ardent supporter of.
Corrigan chooses to ignore the fact that Israel's actions are most certainly not racially motivated and are not carried out with some sort of systematic "final solution" in mind, as he suggests. His correlation is flawed and offensive, and is only designed to provoke an emotional response. This is a prime example of the repeated techniques used by many anti-Israel propagandists. Flinging facts and figures back and forth doesn't hurt people, so instead they use emotional attacks, with such disturbing falsities such as "apartheid state", "ethnic cleansing" and "Nazi-like". These attacks have no place in the arena of constructive criticism and intellectual debate.
The ongoing Israel vs. Palestine debate has apparently shifted from the rotunda of Vari Hall to the pages of Excalibur. It is not hard to ponder why. Those of us who remember how outrageous the atmosphere was in the past are simply tired of the shouting and screaming matches, where the loudest and most provocative voices determined the winner. People got tired of the spectacle and stopped watching. The likes of Corrigan, who are more interested in provoking emotional responses than in stimulating intellectual debate, have been searching for a new arena for their circus-like antics. And they have found it - on the opinion pages of Excalibur.
This in mind, I have been wondering for months if people are just as tired of reading the fights on paper as they were tired of the fights in Vari Hall. Perhaps Excalibur should commission a poll.
This all being said, Excalibur is to be commended for valuing free speech and for keeping the many voices of this debate in some sort of balance. I would hope that future debaters do not waste their valuable right to free speech by flinging intellectual feces at each other.

Is this a balanced article? I'm interested in people's thoughts.

2006-01-15T13:28:00.000-05:00

January 16, 2006

The Things That Have Not Changed
By Fareed Zakaria

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10756413/site/newsweek/

The graveyards are filled with indispensable men, Charles de Gaulle once remarked. Ariel Sharon would seem to be the exception, one who truly became irreplaceable in his final years. Everyone seems to agree that his passing from the political scene would change everything, opening up a political void and jeopardizing the prospects for progress between the Palestinians and Israelis. But perhaps de Gaulle was right, even in the Middle East.

Sharon came to hold the view that he is now firmly associated with-unilateral disengagement with the Palestinians-extremely reluctantly. Withdrawal from Gaza was always a left-wing idea. In fact, the Labor Party leader, Amram Mitzna, campaigned on it in the 2002 election. Sharon rejected any such thinking, believing firmly in a "Greater Israel," one that he had risked his life conquering and building.

What changed his mind were demographic realities-namely the prospect that as the Palestinians multiplied, Jews would become a minority in their own country. Add to this a political reality: Israelis had soured on the dream of a Greater Israel-because they saw that it came with Palestinians in it. The Israelis wanted out. Sharon, a shrewd politician, recognized these trends and followed them.

These realities persist with or without Sharon. That is surely why his new party, Kadima, continues to poll as well as it did weeks ago, even though Israelis know now that Sharon may not lead it. Kadima fills a political vacuum. The Likud position remains a flat refusal to give up land, which the Israeli public thinks is implausible. The Labor Party, on the other hand, opposes unilateralism, arguing for a negotiated comprehensive settlement with the Palestinians. Israelis think this is naive. "The Palestinians cannot deliver, but we cannot stay," says Israeli politician Alon Pinkus. "These are the two pressures that will shape any Israeli government's approach." That means some kind of unilateral disengagement.

To be sure, Sharon's role was vital. He was the one leader who could break the taboo on returning land and evacuating settlers. Israelis trusted him to implement a difficult policy. He had credibility on the right, with the security forces and with key segments of the electorate. His probable successor, Ehud Olmert, actually advocated withdrawal from Gaza well before Sharon did, but would still face a huge challenge in executing any new moves. The West Bank is far more important to the Israeli right than Gaza was, and perhaps most important, Olmert is not Sharon.

Even with this large caveat, I do not believe that Sharon's absence would prove to be the crucial stumbling block. That's because the great obstacle to progress in the Middle East is no longer Israeli intentions but rather Palestinian capabilities. The big story that no one wants to admit yet is that the Palestinian Authority has collapsed, Gaza has turned into a failed state and there is no single Palestinian political organization that could create order in the territories and negotiate with Israel. Palestinian dysfunction is now the main limiting factor on any progress in the peace process.

There were many hopes that Gaza could become a model of what the Palestinians would do once liberated from occupation. Last week The Christian Science Monitor reported on the new scene: "As the first year devoid of an Israeli presence since 1967 dawns," it wrote, "armed militias roam the streets freely, foreigners are kidnapped with regularity, and the measure of a man in this coastal territory is not his political title, or even the size of his house, but the number of AK-47-wielding bodyguards he employs."

Some of these problems are not all of the Palestinians' making. Israel has ruled them harshly and disrupted their political and economic life, and some of these disruptions continue even in Gaza. Goods have to be loaded and unloaded at checkpoints, people checked and rechecked, all of which imposes huge costs on normal activities. But whatever the past and whatever the constraints, the fact remains that Gaza lacks a single authority, a functioning government, and as a result is in a "state of anarchy," in the words of The Christian Science Monitor. This is not the model that people had hoped for.

If the United States and the international community are looking to push along the peace process, the urgent need is to build Palestinian governing capability. Without that, Israeli intentions do not matter. If the Palestinians can get their act together, the spotlight will inevitably shift to the Israelis. And then the United States should urge Israel to continue in the direction that Ariel Sharon has pointed toward, separating itself from the Palestinian population in a process that inevitably will result in a Palestinian state on more than 90 percent of the territories captured in the 1967 war. A sense that this is what Sharon would have done eventually will be essential in moving to that settlement. In that sense, he might still prove to be utterly indispensable.

An island of calm in a stormy sea

2006-01-05T01:00:00.000-05:00

The responses to the Ha'aretz articles on Sharon's stroke are typical. Most offer prayers for a speedy recovery. Too many claim that this is G-d's punishment for evacutating Azza. Some people just try to spark up the typical Israel vs. Palestinians debate.

This response stood out. It's by a guy named Raymond Blumenthal from somewhere in New York. Read it and think...

~~~~
Sharon is a complicated person. He is not only one of Israel's greatest Generals but ranks as one of the world's military leaders. I respected him as a General but was not happy with him in his early days as a politician. He was a proponent of settlements, not understanding of the Palestinians and used a heavy hand with some of Israel's neighbors.

But one thing made him different from most other leaders in the Middle East. He learned. He understood that Israel could not go on doing what it was doing to the occupied territories. Israel had to rethink its way in the world and its future. Like the good General he was, he realized that sometimes you must retreat and reformer your lines before you continue.

He, more then most other people, felt that giving up Gaza would be painful but it had to be done. Was he not partly responsible for the capture of Gaza and the settlements? Those who lament over the loss of Gaza are shot sighted. They only see one small part of what is Israel. Gaza would never be part of Israel. What I worry about is the Israel of today, not the one of 2000 years ago.

He made many mistakes in the past, and if he recovers, he may make a few more. But remember what he has done has always been for the good of Israel and its people. He doesn?t deserve the abuse of some religious zealots who want to live in the past.

A Brave Priest

2006-01-02T17:40:00.000-05:00

In a Past Life...

You Were: A Brave Priest.

Where You Lived: Burma.

How You Died: Decapitation.

Who Were You In a Past Life?

Freedom Rock

2006-01-02T17:39:00.000-05:00

You Are a Freedom Rocker!

You're stuck in the 70s - for better or worse
Crazy hair, pot soaked clothes, and tons of groupies
Your kind showed the world how to rock
Is that freedom rock?... Well turn it up man!

What Kind of Rocker Are You?

an early morning narrative

2005-12-31T03:07:00.000-05:00

I have an inability to go to bed when my body tells me it's time to sleep. My body told me it was time for bed 2 hours ago, but I shoved it aside and stayed up. Didn't have a good reason. Didn't really have anything productive to do. And I love sleep. Someone used to tell me that sleep is overrated... for a while I agreed. But I just love it too much. It feels great, and it makes you happy. Sleep and sex - two seemingly antithetical bodily functions, yet they achieve extremely similar results. Sort of. As much as I love sleep, I also love being up at night when it's quiet and I've got the world to myself. I look out the window at the lights in people's houses and apartments and wonder who else is up right now and what are they doing.

What do I do at 3:09 am?

I just heard footsteps on the front porch - scared me for a minute. I went to look out the window. It was a hooded figure with a dark bag. Why is there a hooded figure with a dark bag outside my house at 3:09 am?

Damn you Toronto Star and your early Saturday morning delivery. Why do you need to persist in scaring the shit out of me at this time of night?

That's what I do at 3:09 am. Freak out at the weird noises :-) Or write a journal entry.

short now

2005-12-28T00:40:00.000-05:00

it has been pointed out that I am guilty of writing very long posts (or stealing very long articles and posting them)

this is a short post.

happy?

Jews don't go to confession... here's mine

2005-12-24T02:18:00.000-05:00

Mark your confessions:

[ ] I'm afraid of the quiet
[x] I'm really ticklish.
[x] I'm afraid of the dark.
[x] I'm afraid of facing my back to open doors at night.
[ ] I am homosexual.
[x] I believe in true love.
[ ] I've run away from home.
[ ] I collect comic books.
[x] I shut others out when I'm sad.

[x] I've stayed out all night.
[x] I open up to others easily.
[x] I am keeping a secret from the world.
[ ] I watch the news.
[ ] I own over 5 rap CDs.

[x] I love Disney movies.
[ ] I love porn... it's not awful. It has it's uses
[x] I am a sucker for pretty eyes
[ ] I am a sucker for hot asses
[x] I don't kill bugs.
[x] I curse once in awhile.
[x] I curse often
[ ] I have (had) "x"s in my screen name

[x] I've slipped and fell in public.
[ ] I've slipped out a "lol" in a real conversation.
[ ] I love Spam.
[x] I cook well.
[ ] I cook badly
[x] I have worn pajamas to class.
[ ] I have owned something from Carhartt. (What the fuck is Cahartt??)
[x] I have a job.
[x] Talked on a phone for 5+ hours.
[ ] I love Dr. Phil
[x] I like someone
[ ] I am guilty of tYpInG lIkE tHiS.

[ ] I am self-conscious.
[x] I love to laugh.
[x] I have tried alcohol.
[ ] I drink alcohol on a regular basis
[ ] I have smoked a pack in one day.

[x] I loved Lord of the Flies
[ ] I have cough drops when I'm not sick.

[ ] I can't swallow pills.
[x] I have a few scars.
[x] I've been out of this country. (Like every weekend?!)
[x] I can't sleep if there is a spider in the room. (Oh shit!)

[x] I love chocolate.
[ ] I bite my nails.
[x] I play computer games when I'm bored. (Minesweeper, baby!)
[x] Gotten lost in the city (NYC and Jerusalem I'm fine... I get lost in Toronto)
[x] Seen a shooting star.
[x] Had a serious surgery.

[x] Gone out in public in your pajamas. (camp, school, israel...)
[x] Have kissed a stranger.
[x] Hugged a stranger
[ ] Had sex with a stranger
[x] Tossed a salad (Like waldorf salad? or eating an asshole???)
[ ] heard a sibling having sex (hell no)

[ ] Been in a bloody fist fight with someone of the same sex.
[x] Been in a fist fight.
[ ] Been arrested.
[x] laughed and had some type of beverage come out of your nose.

[x] Pushed all the buttons on an elevator. (today at work)
[x] Made out in an elevator.
[x] Made out in a bar.
[x] Swore at your parents.
[x] Kicked a guy where it hurts on purpose.
[ ] Been skydiving.
[x] Been bungee jumping. (does extrene skyflyer count?)
[x] Gotten stitches.
[ ] Drank a whole gallon of milk in one hour.
[ ] Bitten someone.
[x] Been to Niagara Falls.
[ ] Gotten the chicken pox twice.

[ ] Crashed into a car.

[x] been to Africa. (Egypt for 5 seconds! Whoo hoo!)
[x] Ridden in a taxi.
[x] Shoplifted. (I think I stole silly putty once from the IT store
[ ] Been fired.
[x] Had feelings for someone who didn't have them back.
[ ] Had a crush on a teacher/coach.
[ ] Celebrated Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
[x] Been to Europe.
[ ] Slept with a co-worker.
[ ] Been married.
[ ] Gotten divorced.
[ ] Saw someone/something dying
[ ] Driven over 1000 miles in one day.

[x] Been to Canada. (ummmm)
[x] Been on a Plane.
[x] Seen the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

[x] Thrown up in a bar.
[x] Eaten sushi.

[ ] been snowboarding.
[x] been skiing.
[x] Been ice skating.

[x] Cried in public.
[x] Walked purposely into traffic with your eyes closed. (The Joys of NYC)

[x] Liked someone even though you knew you shouldn't have.
[x] Thought of someone almost 24/7.
[ ] Hated the world.
[x] Been In love
[x] Ever thought you were in love
[x] Cried over somebody
[x] Ran in the rain for fun (Hava Nashira!!! Such a wonderful time! Everyone should play in the rain)

A GAME! Can you figure out what happened?

2005-12-18T01:27:00.000-05:00

Look at this:

http://utoronto.facebook.com/profile.php?id=28101218

then this:

http://utoronto.facebook.com/profile.php?id=28101108

and this:

http://yorku.facebook.com/profile.php?id=48900038

and finally, this (at the wall):

http://nyu.facebook.com/profile.php?id=802182

Can you piece the story together? Serious points to you if you can.

A Muslim in a Jewish Land [supremely interesting]

2005-12-15T22:19:00.000-05:00

A Muslim in a Jewish Land
by Dr. Tashbih Sayyed (Courtesy of Muslim World Today)

On a trip to Israel, a Muslim journalist sees firsthand a litany of lies.

As I boarded EL AL flight LY 0008 for Tel Aviv on November 14, 2005 with my wife Kiran, my mind was busy arranging and re-arranging the list of things I intended to accomplish. I wanted to use my first visit to Israel to feel the strength of the Jewish spirit that refuses to give in to evil forces despite thousand of years of anti-Semitism. It was not Israel's suicidal sacrifices that I wanted to investigate but the foundations of Israeli determination to live in peace.

There are many things that I wanted to talk about with Israelis, the foremost among them being their reluctance to do something about the bad press that continues to paint them as villains. Although I understand why the media, which reasonably covers most events accurately, chooses to ignore all rules of ethical journalism when it comes to Israel, I could not fathom Israel's reluctance to challenge the negative press effectively. Media bias against Israel reminded me of the Nazi era German press that was recruited by Hitler's Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels who picked up every hate-laden word against the Jews. Just like the German press who refused to print the truth about the gruesome atrocities in Europe's death camps - or claimed that it was all an exaggeration, the media today also ignores the Arab terrorism. I wanted to see if there was any truth in the media allegations that Israel was an apartheid state, undemocratic and discriminatory.

I knew that a true Jewish State could not be undemocratic since democratic concepts were always a part of Jewish thinking and derived directly from the Torah. For instance when in the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson wrote that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, he was basically referring to Torah that said that all men are created in the image of God. I was confident that Israel cannot be racist or discriminatory since it is based on the idea of the covenant between God and the Israelites, in which both parties accepted upon themselves duties and obligations underlining the fact that power is established through the consent of both sides rather than through tyranny by the more powerful party.

My understanding of the Jewish State was confirmed when the entry form that I needed to fill before landing in Tel Aviv did not ask for my religion as is the law in Pakistan. Also, unlike Saudi Arabia, no one in Israeli immigration demanded from me any certificate of religion.

As the El Al approached the Promised Land, I continued to shuffle the list of charges
made routinely against Israel by its enemies.

Israelis live in a perpetual state of fear.

Israel is undemocratic.

Muslim Arab citizens of Israel do not have equal rights

Israelis live in a perpetual state of fear:

From Tel Aviv to Tiberias, Jerusalem to Jezreel, and from Golan heights to the Gaza border, I could not find any evidence of fear. In fact the people felt so secure that none of the stores, gas stations, market places, or residences we went to, and where it was known that we were Muslims, deemed it necessary to either search or interrogate us. Especially when Kiran and I went to the Ben Yehuda Street in Jerusalem one evening, we found it bursting at its seams with people of all ages. The ground was shaking with music and young boys and girls were so busy having fun that they did not bother to even look around. Tourists were busy making deals and the whole crowd seemed to throb with the beat of the music.

I could not help but compare Israel's sense of security with the environment of insecurity that exists in Muslim countries. From Indonesia to Iran and from Afghanistan to Saudi Arabia, people are not sure of anything. In Pakistan's capital Islamabad, and the port city of Karachi, I was constantly advised not to make big purchases publicly for it encourages robbers to come after you. I did not hear news of any rape, honor killing or hold-up in Israel.

Israel is undemocratic:

As a Muslim I am much more sensitive to the absence of democratic freedoms in any society. And I do not believe that anyone but a committed anti-Semite will deny that Israel is not a democracy. Democracy in Israel is proportional and representative, but democratic coalitions, necessary in order to effect any decision making also have its problems.

The very first day in Caesarea introduced us to the Israeli democracy. The air was full of political debate and discussion. Ariel Sharon's decision to leave the Likud and form a new political party dominated the hotel halls and underlined the problems caused by the necessity of having democratic coalitions. "The object of a free and democratic Israeli society is to reach satisfactory compromise but often the conclusions are less than satisfactory -- especially for the majority. It involves coalitions and unity which are also checks and balances on any potential abuse of minority rights. It is a better system than the American representative Republican system -- which is really a representation of power and special interests. In the U.S. you get a democracy for the few. In Israel you have a democracy for everyone."

I tried very hard to find any Muslim state that has true democracy and where religious minorities are accorded equal democratic rights, but failed. The map of the Muslim world is too crowded with kings, despots, dictators, sham democrats and theocratic autocrats and the persecution of minorities is an essential part of Islamist social behavior. But here, protected by Israel's democratic principles, the Muslim Arab citizens of Israel are afforded all the rights and privileges of Israeli citizenship. When the first elections to the Knesset were held in February 1949, Israeli Arabs were given the right to vote and to be elected along with Israeli Jews. Today, Israel's Arab citizens are accorded full civil and political rights entitled to complete participation in Israeli society. They are active in Israeli social, political and civic life and enjoy representation in Israel's Parliament, Foreign Service and judicial system.

The Israeli faith in democracy also explains their refusal to respond to Islamist terrorism in violent ways. Despite my being aware of the human weaknesses which allow anger to subjugate the best of intentions, I could not find Israelis acting in vengeance against their Arab compatriots. My experience as a Muslim was also instrumental in expecting the worst in human behavior; Muslims under the influence of radical Islam have been unleashing their terror against non-Muslims even when the charges of anti-Muslim offenses were determined to be false.

I thought that it requires a superhuman effort to ignore the atrocities meted out to you and remain free of vengeful emotions. In my experience of Muslim societies, minorities have never been allowed the benefit of the doubt. Hatred of non-Muslims and outbursts of violence against minority faiths among radical Islamists have remained a norm rather than an exception. As a non-Wahhabi Muslim I have personally faced their barbarism and have watched Christians, Hindus and other minorities being persecuted on false pretenses. I thought that if Wahhabis in Saudi Arabia can sentence a teacher to 40 months in jail and 750 lashes just for praising Jews, it will not be unreasonable on the part of Israelis to punish Palestinians for throwing stones at worshippers at the Western Wall and burning down the tomb of Joseph.

But even in this section, Israelis have proved the world wrong. Despite daily provocations, they have managed successfully not to descend to the same level of depravity as their Arab enemies. The world is used to daily violence that is unleashed against religious minorities in the Muslim world. Only a couple of days ago the Muslim faithful in Pakistan had broken through the walls of a Church, torching and tearing open its doors. They were reacting to a rumor that a Christian had desecrated their holy book, the Quran. They smashed the marble altar of the Holy Spirit Church and shattered its stained glass windows. They torched a Christian residence and the neighboring St. Anthony's Girls School. Within moments flames were licking the walls and black smoke filled the sky. For days the Wahhabi clerics kept on calling their Muslim followers to come out from their houses and defend their faith by unleashing a reign of terror against Christians.

I wondered if an Israeli may someday find it justified to copy what Wahhabis have been doing in Iraq and other places -- abducting, murdering and beheading "infidels". Most recently, the body of a Hindu driver, Maniappan Raman Kutty, was found with his throat slashed in southern Afghanistan for no evident reason but his faith.

But there was nothing in history that could have substantiated my fears; Jews, despite being subjected to the most barbaric acts of terrorism have yet to react in vengeance against their perpetrators. And I concluded that my first visit to Israel will help me in untangling the knot of Israel's insistence on continuing to remain a target of Islamist terror.

Muslim Arab citizen of Israel do not have equal rights:

As our air-conditioned bus negotiated the mountainous curves of the road to the heart of Galilee, I could not miss the rising minarets identifying a number of Palestinian Arab towns dotting the hillsides. The imposing domes of mosques underlined the freedoms that are enjoyed by the Muslims in the Jewish State. Large Arab residences, wide spread construction activity and big cars underlined the prosperity and affluence of Palestinians living under the Star of David.

On my way from the city of David to the Royal Prima hotel in Jerusalem, I asked my
Palestinian taxi driver how he feels about moving to the territories under Palestinian Authority. He said that he could never think of living outside Israel. His answer blasted the myth spread by anti-Semites that Israel's Arab citizens are not happy there.

Another Israeli Arab informed me that Arabs in Israel have equal voting rights. In fact, Israel is one of the few countries in the Middle East where Arab women can vote. In contrast to the non-Israeli Arab world, Arab women in Israel enjoy the same status as men. Muslim women have the right to vote and to be elected to public office. Muslim women, in fact are more liberated in Israel than in any Muslim country. Israeli law prohibits polygamy, child marriage, and the barbarity of female sexual mutilation.

Moreover, I found out that there are no incidences of honor killings in Israel. The status of Muslim women in Israel is far above that of any country in the region. Israeli health standards are by far the highest in the Middle East and Israeli health institutions are freely open to all Arabs, on the same basis as they are to Jews.

Arabic, like Hebrew, is an official language in Israel and underlines the tolerant nature of the Jewish State. All the street signs call out their names in Arabic alongside Hebrew. It is official policy of the Israeli government to foster the language, culture, and traditions of the Arab minority, in the educational system and in daily life. Israel's Arabic press is the most vibrant and independent of any country in the region. There are more than 20 Arabic periodicals. They publish what they please, subject only to the same military censorship as Jewish publications. There are daily TV and radio programs in Arabic.

Arabic is taught in Jewish secondary schools. More than 350,000 Arab children attend Israeli schools. At the time of Israel's founding, there was one Arab high school in the country. Today, there are hundreds of Arab schools. Israeli universities are renowned centers of learning in the history and literature of the Arab Middle East.

Aware of the constraints that a non-Wahhabi is faced with while performing religious rituals in Saudi Arabia, Kiran (my wife) could not hide her surprise at the freedoms and ease with which peoples of all religions and faiths were carrying out their religious obligations at the Church of the holy Sepulcher, Garden Tomb, Sea of Galilee, newly discovered Western Wall Tunnels, Western Wall, tomb of King David and all the other holy places we visited.

All religious communities in Israel enjoy the full protection of the State. Israeli Arabs --Muslims, as well as many Christian denominations -- are free to exercise their faiths, to observe their own weekly day of rest and holidays and to administer their own internal affairs. Some 80,000 Druze live in 22 villages in northern Israel. Their religion is not accessible to outsiders and Druze constitute a separate cultural, social and religious Arabic-speaking community. The Druze concept of taqiyya calls for complete loyalty by its adherents to the government of the country in which they reside. As such, among other things, the Druze serve in the Israel Defense Forces. Each religious community in Israel has its own religious councils and courts, and has full jurisdiction over religious affairs, including matters of personal status, such as marriage and divorce. The holy sites of all religions are administered by their own authorities and protected by the government.

A Hindu journalist who came to visit me talked about the openness that Jewish society represents. He told me that more than 20% of the Israeli population is non-Jewish of which approximately 1.2 million are Muslims, 140,000 are Christians and 100, 000 are Druze. Another non-Jewish Israeli told me that Christians and Druze are free to join even the defense forces of the Jewish State. Bedouins have served in paratroops units and other Arabs have volunteered for military duty.

The big houses owned by Arab Israelis and the amount of construction that was going on in the Arab towns exposed the falsity of propaganda that Israel discriminates against Israeli Arabs from buying lands. I found out that in the early part of the century, the Jewish National Fund was established by the World Zionist Congress to purchase land in Palestine for Jewish settlement. Of the total area of Israel, 92 percent belongs to the State and is managed by the Land Management Authority. It is not for sale to anyone, Jew or Arab.

The Arab Waqf owns land that is for the express use and benefit of Muslim Arabs. Government land can be leased by anyone, regardless of race, religion or sex. All Arab citizens of Israel are eligible to lease government land.

I asked three Israeli Arabs if they face discrimination in employment. They all said the same thing; normally there is no discrimination but whenever homicide bombers explode and murder Israelis, some Israelis feel uncomfortable dealing with them. But that uncomfortable feeling is also very temporary and does not stay for long.

My first visit to Israel has not only consolidated my belief that Israel is vital for the stability of the region but has also convinced me that the existence of Israel will one day convince the Muslims of the necessity of reformation in their theology as well as sociology.

A journey through the Israeli desert brought another important aspect of life to light; Prophets are not the only ones who can perform miracles -- people who believe in themselves can also perform unbelievable acts. Acres and acres of sand dunes have been transformed into the best possible fertile land; Wheat, Cotton, Sunflowers, Chickpeas, Groundnuts (Peanuts), Mangoes, Avocados, Citrus, Papayas, bananas and any other fruit and vegetable that Israelis want to consume is grown within Israel. In fact, Israelis have proved beyond any doubt why God promised them this land - only they could keep it green.

The land is described repeatedly in the Torah as a good land and "a land flowing with milk and honey". This description may not seem to fit well with the desert images we see on the nightly news, but let's keep in mind that the land was repeatedly abused by conquerors that were determined to make the land uninhabitable for the Jews. In the few decades since the Jewish people regained control of the land, tremendous improvement in its agriculture has been witnessed. Israeli agriculture today has a very high yield. Agriculture in Israel is very effective, and is able to cover about 75% of domestic needs, despite the limited land available.

Looking at the development and transformation that the land has gone through because of the Jewish innovative spirit, hard labor and commitment to freedoms for all times to come, I am convinced that it is true that God created this earth but it is also a fact that only an Israel can keep this earth from dying.

people in every direction

2005-12-11T13:30:00.000-05:00

no words exchanged, no time to exchange

where is che?

2005-12-04T00:24:00.000-05:00

Has anyone seen my che shirt?

Dammit. He's gonna be pissed.

Stephen Harper has a handsome new hairstyle!

2005-12-02T08:51:00.000-05:00

The following is rom the Conservative Party's "Anyonymous Blog"... HA! Utterly dispicable. The tories try to paint everything as either black or white (or in this case, Blue or Red). They make it look like if you don't vote Conservative, then you oppose getting money, and people who oppose getting money are idiots. Such blind rhetoric:

The bottom line is simple: Stephen Harper is promising to reduce the GST to 5%. If you like the idea, vote Conservative. If you don’t, then you’re welcome to take the other option and vote for four more years of ethical lapses, missing billions, investigation, scandal, and corruption. A or B. Blue or Red. Your call.

Meanwhile, the Liberal Party of Canada continues to blog away: "People keep sayng this campaign is a carbon copy of the 2004 election. But that's not true. Stephen Harper has a right handsome new hairstyle."

Useless information segment:
What is Canada's smallest riding? Papineau, Quebec: 9 sq. km.
What is Canada's largest riding? Nunavut: 2,093,190 sq. km. This concludes our useless information segment.

And lastly: OOPS!

Thanks to Dan Cook at the Globe and Mail for the humour!

Surreal Socio-Religious Experience (also known as FUNNY SHIT AT THE SECOND CUP)

2005-11-30T21:49:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting in Second Cup, and I needed somewhere to plug my laptop in. The only socket near me was fully occupied. One outlet was being used by another girl's laptop, and the other outlet had the obligatory table-top Christmas tree plugged into it. Now, as mesmerizing as it was to stare into the ever-changing fibre-optic tree, I needed to work. So I unplugged the tree and plugged in my powerbook.

The girl with the laptop looked at me, smiled, and said "You just ruined Christmas for everyone"

I was bursting with laughter inside, but I merely smiled back and said to her "Oh well, I need to study."

How wonderful is it that I unplugged the Supreme Christian Religious Icon so that I would be able to study for my Rabbinic Judaism midterm tommorow. This could be more than a funny coincidence. It could be a supreme sign. Should the Jewish people somehow dramatically and surprisingly increase in size so as to dwarf Christianity sometime in the near future, everyone take note: IT WAS I THAT WAS RESPONSIBLE.

I'm not saying I'm the Messiah. I'll leave that to Dan Bern.

I'm not going to do a whole social commentary on this. I'm just going to leave it pure and enjoyable. Smiling, I'm going to go study Saadiah Gaon while the Nutrcracker plays overhead.

so inspired

2005-11-29T21:36:00.000-05:00

Sitting in my Theatre of the Holocasust right now.

So very much inspired.

The teacher of the class is a theatre mother. Not like a snobby "drama mom" but truly, a mother to all of us in the theatre. She's taken care of us this term as we've dealt with a very sensitive subject. It has been amazing to learn with her.

My director right now is incredible - organic, inspiring, inspired, funny, wise... such a pleasure to work with her.

Tonight, I got offered a fantastic opportunity to star in a play being written by the head of the theatre department.

In spite of the three exams and one essay I have on my mind, today has been an incredibly refreshing day.

Wow.

And I didn't even cheat! I swear!

2005-11-12T23:54:00.000-05:00

You Passed 8th Grade Science

Congratulations, you got 8/8 correct!

Could You Pass 8th Grade Science?

Yeah, I guess you could say so...

2005-11-12T23:43:00.000-05:00

Your Birthdate: September 15

You take life as it is, and you find happiness in a variety of things.
You tend to be close to family and friends. But it's hard to get into your inner circle.
Making the little things wonderful is important to you, and you probably have an inviting home.
You seek harmony with others, but occasionally you have a very stubborn streak.

Your strength: Your intense optimism

Your weakness: You shy away from exploring your talents

Your power color: Jade

Your power symbol: Flower

Your power month: June

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Amichai poem that describes Israel well--

2005-11-02T09:35:00.000-05:00

(Excuse me, this fell. Is it yours?
The stone? Not this, this fell
nine hundred years ago.)

Theresa Tova...Wow

2005-11-02T00:01:00.000-05:00

Theresa Tova, the playwright of "Still the Night" came and visited with my Theatre of the Holocaust class this evening. I'm not sure I can manage to explain what just happened this evening, I need to let the experience sink in. In brief:

Laughing/crying/swearing/shouting/whispering/SINGING(in Yiddish!)/drawing us in... her emotions were seamless as she flowed through the text, to the music, to the stage directions, to telling us stories, then back to the play, then filling us in on secrets... all the while bringing each one of us into her life - at one point actually physically taking one of us in.

At one point she got so intense that she dropped her play on the ground. What a moment - for her to be so into the text, that she dropped the physical text on the ground and leapt away.

Words cannot describe the experience we all got to share, but seeing as this is a journal... words are all I can use. So here are some of her words from tonight. I'll start off with my favourite:

"Your truth, as specific as it is to you, universal. You've got to know that. As long as you're true"

"When you're in love, the whole world is Jewish"

"If you do correct grammar and put a Yiddish accent on it, you sound like Neil Simon"

"She never stopped fighting the war" ~ on her mother

"You can't control your parents or the press"

"Ooo he's so frustrating but he's so magical" ~ on Brent Carver

"I don't care that Hitler fucked you up... I want to choose life... I will not hide who I am" ~ to her mother.

"Let's not do the 'poor us, poor victims'. It's not about that anymore... this girls were fighters!"

How did she write her play?

"My work has to come from something I know"
"I just sit in my mothers vibe... I'm fine!"
"I sat with a bottle of brandy for three months at the computer"

driving uptown

2005-11-01T00:10:00.000-05:00

It smells like bad Chinese Food...

2005-11-01T00:03:00.000-05:00

Coming back uptown after the Halloween party on Saturday night, we got on the suwbay and I immediately noticed a foul stench in the car. Needless to say, Dave picked up on this too, as he uttered (quite loudly) the immortal words: "EWW! IT SMELLS LIKE BAD CHINESE FOOD!"

Also needless to say, the two girls sitting across from us were less than pleased.

I tried to backpeddle, saying "Well, it could be Greek food! Or... Israeli food! Bad Israeli food!!!"

"Nope, definately bad Chinese food!" Replied Dave

He hadn't looked across from us yet.

I had Chinese food for dinner last night.

A conversation with Steve is never boring!

2005-10-29T02:04:00.000-04:00

Jesse Juicy Jew: what are you flying (to Houston)?
stevenbuchalter: southwest from Detroit
Jesse Juicy Jew: oh
Jesse Juicy Jew: loser
stevenbuchalter: jew
Jesse Juicy Jew: man
stevenbuchalter: theatre major
Jesse Juicy Jew: guy who goes to western
stevenbuchalter: zionist
Jesse Juicy Jew: canadian
stevenbuchalter: shabbos-respecter
Jesse Juicy Jew: shabbos-defiler
stevenbuchalter: closet homosexual
Jesse Juicy Jew: public butt fucker
stevenbuchalter: hey that's not fair
stevenbuchalter: i haven't called you anything negative yet
stevenbuchalter: go up and check them all
Jesse Juicy Jew: who says butt fucking in public is negative?
stevenbuchalter: am i giving? or receiving
Jesse Juicy Jew: whatever floats your boat
Jesse Juicy Jew: you should fully know that this converstion is going to be published in my blog
stevenbuchalter: shouldn't you have said that before i started talking? that's not a very fair disclaimer
stevenbuchalter: also...if this is going in your blog
stevenbuchalter: pencildick!
stevenbuchalter: jesse has a pencildick!
Jesse Juicy Jew: if you can see my penis from London, I doubt that it's a pencildick
stevenbuchalter: i can...it's the thin snaking flaccid line running down our main streets
stevenbuchalter: with the signs that say "2 miles this way to the head of the world's longest thinnest dick"
stevenbuchalter: yeah how's that for your blog
stevenbuchalter: sorry...i'm on some drugs right now
Jesse Juicy Jew: good enough
Jesse Juicy Jew: thank you
stevenbuchalter: didn't mean to be a jerk
Jesse Juicy Jew: it's ok
Jesse Juicy Jew: you're wonderful
stevenbuchalter: i really do enjoy marijuana
stevenbuchalter: though it's no cocaine
stevenbuchalter: cocaine's a hell of a drug

Happy Halloween

2005-10-29T01:16:00.000-04:00

Blue Man Group makes an appearance at York

What I'm fighting for...

2005-10-14T18:02:00.000-04:00

THIS ARTICLE IS FROM HA'ARETZ

Reform Transforms
By Micha Odenheimer

Anyone looking at Melissa Simon, dressed in a denim skirt and sweater, walk by on a Jerusalem street would automatically assume she is one of the hundreds of young Orthodox women who have come to the holy city to study Torah.

They would be half right. Melissa is in Jerusalem this year to study Torah. But she is doing it under the auspices of the Hebrew Union College (HUC). In four years, after completing her studies at one of the college's U.S. campuses, she will graduate as an ordained Reform rabbi.

For Melissa, who speaks with the passionate self-confidence of a born teacher - tempered by a tendency to blush at her own displays of eloquence - dressing like a yeshiva girl is a "subversive" practice, a double-edged sword aimed at undermining the preconceptions of both Reform and Orthodox Jews.

Melissa actively campaigns for homosexual rights and abortion rights, and she is an ardent feminist. Yet, she says, "I decided several years ago, while in college, to reclaim tzniut, modesty, in dress and attitude, as a practice and value for the Reform movement. I found it made me think about Judaism every time I got dressed. That's a key part of the whole thing - to enlarge the picture of what being Jewish is about."

Melissa, who observes Shabbat and kashrut and is deeply interested in other areas of halakha that have been long-neglected by Reform, is part of a growing trend that has transformed the movement's avant garde and is redefining what it means to be a Reform Jew.

Although some of her classmates here for the year in rabbinical school still do not wear skullcaps, even while praying, and lament the hardship of living in a city where it is "difficult to find good shellfish," others wear skullcaps and even tzitzit - prayer shawls, even when they are not praying, and "are in heaven" because Jerusalem's multitude of kosher restaurants means they can finally eat out whenever they feel like it.

The movement as a whole has become welcoming and tolerant of halakhic observance, reversing a 150-year history in which Reform defined itself in part by its rejection of traditional practices. "Fifteen years ago," says Rabbi Rachel Sabath, who was one of the first HUC students to raise the flag of Reform's return to halakha, "I was told that I would have a hard time getting a job in the Reform movement, because I refused to do things like take the youth group to an amusement park on Saturday afternoon. But now I am embraced, hired and asked to speak in Reform congregations about my path as an observant yet Reform Jew. They'll go out of their way to accommodate me - I'm told, `We'll do it on Sunday,' or `We'll come to you.'"

A new openness to "the whole array of mitzvot," in the words of the 1999 Pittsburgh Statement, drafted by Reform rabbinic leaders as a deliberate repudiation of the movement's historic - and notorious - 1885 Pittsburgh Platform, has become part of the movement's official doctrine. Some Reform leaders see this sea change as a form of repentance, or teshuva.

Searching for the secret formula

In the past, says Rabbi Sheldon Zimmerman, who served as president of Hebrew Union College until 2001, Reform saw its task as radically transforming the Torah. The new task, he says, is changing the Jew. "Our starting point is that the Reform Jew of the beginning of the 21st century needs to be transformed," Zimmerman writes, in an essay called Transforming the Reform Jew. "Transform means to question and challenge the times in which we live. ... Transform means to accept Torah (in the broadest sense, in all its aspects) as the starting point of the encounter, to accept teshuva as the primary category for Jews in our time."

This tilt toward more traditional observance is only one aspect of the changes sweeping through the Reform movement as it renegotiates its relationship to modernity, to tradition and to Jewish peoplehood - all the while relentlessly searching for the secret formula or strategy that might stay the floodwaters of assimilation threatening much of their constituency.

Yet Orthodox ideologues would do well, for the moment, to quell triumphal cries in seeing Reform's religious ferment. For what is emerging from the Reform movement is something more subtle, complex and paradoxical than some form of Orthodox lite: a more self-confident and religiously alive form of liberal Judaism, closer to tradition, yet as subversive of our stereotypical assumptions about Jewish reality as the figure of future rabbi Melissa campaigning for homosexual rights looking for all the world like a modern Orthodox yeshiva girl.

To understood how far Reform has come, it is important to remember where it began. From its inception in Germany, in the early decades of the 19th century, Reform's embrace of modernity was nearly total. Rituals or beliefs that Reform leaders found irrational - and believed would impede Jewish acceptance in gentile society - were excised wholesale from the Reform repertoire, as a matter of principle. By 1883, the Reform movement in the United States had flamboyantly rejected the laws of kashrut. A dinner held in honor of the first graduating class of Hebrew Union College featured flagrantly non-kosher delicacies, and was recorded in the annals of history as the treife banquet. The Platform also rejected the notion of Jewish peoplehood; the Jews had once been a nation, it argued, but were now something more exalted - individuals united by a religion whose pure essence could be summed up in two words: ethical monotheism.

Replacing the commandments and Jewish people-hood was a powerful belief in science and progress, as well as in a God who ruled over a world evolving inexorably toward rationality and goodness. Perhaps most audaciously, the Reform movement believed that modernity itself contained the seeds of messianic fulfillment - the first flowering of the redemption. "We recognize, in the modern era," says the Pittsburgh Platform, "the approaching of the realization of Israel's great Messianic hope for the establishment of the kingdom of truth, justice and peace among all men."

Isaac Meyer Wise, the outstanding leader of American Reform Judaism during the last decades of the 19th century, believed that, purified of its primitive elements and distilled into its essence, Judaism would, within decades, become the religion of all humankind. Zionism was despised as a small-minded, nationalistic throwback.

According to Rabbi David Ellenson, the current president of HUC and a passionate Zionist, when Rabbi Kaufman Kohler became president of HUC at the beginning of the 20th century, "He fired every Zionist faculty member, and gave speeches to the students saying they could choose between the pure God of universal progress and love or the Godless nationalists."

Movement is virtually unrecognizable

The movement began to change its attitude toward Zionism in its 1937 Columbus Platform. But in its religious beliefs and practices, Reform remained, for many decades, largely static - Protestant in its aesthetic and style of worship. Services were mostly in English, and a professional cantor accompanied by a choir and organ sang the liturgy, while the worshipers remained seated and passive. Friday night worship was scheduled for after dinner, not at the traditional sunset hour. Congregants had little knowledge of Jewish sources. Even the rabbis, though eloquent and knowledgeable when it came to American politics and Western culture, were not necessarily Judaic scholars. "There are two kinds of Reform rabbis," one prominent mid-20th century Reform leader once quipped. "Those who believe in ethical monotheism, and those who know Hebrew."

But now, five years into the 21st century, the Reform movement - or at least some of it - has changed to such an extent as to be virtually unrecognizable. Bill Berk, a soft-spoken, engaging man in his mid-50s, is the rabbi of Temple Chai in Phoenix, Arizona, a Reform Temple that many in the movement say they look to as a model. The prayers, which are sung enthusiastically by the entire congregation, rather than by the cantor and choir, are in Hebrew. The services are scheduled for 6:15 P.M., approximating the sunset onset of Shabbat, as is traditional. Berk says that new worshipers who grew up with Classical Reform are often dumbfounded when they walk into his Friday night services. "They absolutely don't believe that it's Reform," he says.

What has catalyzed the changes that are redefining Reform, transforming it from the quintessentially modern religion it was into a new, postmodern era? The answer is multifaceted, with theological notions and sociological conditions fitting into each other like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. One of the two or three most powerful leaders of Reform today, Ellenson, who was appointed president of HUC in 2001, is one of the finest minds studying the puzzle - and is also emblematic of the shifting face of the movement today. Ellenson was born and raised in an Orthodox family, and although he broke away from halakhic observance as a teenager, he is "obsessed" with his field of scholarly research: the impact of modernity on Orthodox ideology and halakha.

Ellenson is a student of Jacob Katz, the towering historian of the Jewish encounter with modernity who died in 1998. Until the modern period, Katz taught, Jews were part of a religious community with a separate political status in the societies they inhabited. Within their communities, the rabbis had the authority to impose communal norms. Emancipation gave individual Jews rights as citizens, dissolving the rabbi's coercive power. Orthodoxy, Reform and Conservative Jewry all grew out of the vacuum of power that was created, as they vied for individual hearts and minds. Reform embraced modernity and its freedom wholeheartedly, while Orthodoxy attempted to preserve the authority of halakha in the face of political change.

For several generations, Reform continued to benefit from the glue that kept Jews together even in the absence of religious tradition: remnants of tribal loyalties, the ongoing threat of anti-Semitism and lingering discomfort over Jewish identity in a Christian society, all of which made intermarriage rare. But in recent years, the glue has melted away. "The issue today," says Ellenson, a warm, genial man with a trim beard, who says that until he became president of HUC he would go to work in blue jeans, "is what to do when you have a fifth and sixth generation American Jewish community that is totally acculturated, when Jews can be officers in companies like DuPont, or presidents of Ivy League universities?" As Rabbi Naama Kelman, associate dean of Hebrew Union College in Israel puts it, speaking of American Jews, "We no longer have to keep up with the Joneses. We are the Joneses."

And yet, as Reform Judaism has learned to its surprise, modernity cuts both ways. "What you see," Ellenson says, "is that modernity destroys tradition, but, at the same time, it makes people seek tradition, so that what you have in America today are trends that move in opposite directions." In the often cold and impersonal contemporary society, Judaism has "vast reservoirs of meaning" to offer. Ellenson says he is open to "the full range of how Jewish spirituality is expressed in our times" - and that definitely includes halakha. "Halakha is the idiomatic way in which Judaism spoke and continues to speak. If you want to talk about the possibility of creating meaning, you have to look at halakhic sources."

But openness to halakha does not mean a return to Orthodox notions of commitment. A recent, influential study of the postmodern Jewish self called "The Inner Jew," written by Israeli sociologist Steven Cohen and Stanford historian Arnold Eisen, paints a portrait of the contemporary American Jew as still connected to Judaism, but on his or her own terms. "Personal meaning," the study concludes, has become "the arbiter of their Jewish involvement. Jews are focused on the self and its fulfillment, rather than directed outward to the group. With the valorization of tradition, the absolute commitment to pluralism and the continuing assumption of individual autonomy, [Jews] feel free to borrow selectively, and perhaps only temporarily, from traditional Jewish religious and cultural sources."

Ellenson sees the significance of halakha and Torah learning in their capacity to produce a web of meaning and memory that can sustain Jewish identity. "Too many people think in binary categories of forbidden and permitted," he says. "We would do better to think in categories of meaning." Although he is endearingly apologetic about it - "I don't know whether it's an emotional or an intellectual problem" - Ellenson admits he is not personally interested in theology and is agnostic about most ultimate questions.

But for other Reform Jews, like Rabbi Rachel Sabath and Rabbi Leon Morris, head of the Skirball Center for Adult Jewish Learning in New York City, observance does emerge from ultimate concerns. With the messianic hope Reform placed in modernity shattered by the Holocaust, says Sabath, "There is a need and a place for the commanding voice of God outside of human capacity and anything that could stem from reason."

Rate of intermarriage has skyrocketed

Sabath and Morris are both students of Rabbi Eugene Borowitz, the preeminent Reform theologian, who argued for the spiritual necessity of an ongoing inner struggle in which the transcendent voice of God is filtered through our own autonomous ethical sensibility. "What I would like to turn on its head," says Morris, "is that the burden of proof is on the tradition itself - Reform Jews have the right to reject a specific tradition after studying and wrestling with it, and finding it ethically untenable, but the default position is that I have to observe this, it has come down this way, these commandments have a claim on me as a Jew."

The place where the future of the Reform movement will really be decided is in its version of the trenches - in the congregations scattered across America that serve the movement's more than 1 million members. American Jewry, and the Reform movement in particular, were traumatized in 1990 when a population survey showed that the rate of intermarriage had skyrocketed over the last 30 years from about 6 percent to more than 50 percent. In the past, Reform's desire to keep and expand its constituency of highly assimilated Jews - unofficial estimates say 30 percent of Reform congregants are intermarried - has meant a hesitancy to make demands in terms of knowledge or practice.

But in an era of spiritual search, many Reform rabbis have begun to realize that a call for greater commitment and involvement may have a far wider appeal than they once thought. Rabbi Bill Berk of Temple Chai, where hundreds of Jews pack Shabbat services and participate in often- intensive ongoing programs, believes that demanding higher levels of commitment has helped create a more vibrant community. "You have to have a sense of the mitzvah as something coming from the outside so that you don't get yanked away by each passing breeze of the modern world. Living in modernity there are a lot of wounds - unbridled competition, the impact of media, the whole underside of capitalism. If you can be part of a real community, you can survive the shallow side of America."

In a sermon delivered a year ago, Rabbi Janet Marder, currently the president of the CCAR, Reform's rabbinic organization, succinctly expressed the critique of Reform's past, which has caused a return to more traditional forms of ritual and prayer.

"Speaking to God in polite paragraphs of good English prose, or figuring God out of the equation altogether and making worship a purely cerebral act of self-evaluation - these are not activities compelling enough to make many people today opt for Friday night worship rather than a good dinner and a movie." In her address, she spoke about Eileen, a congregant who had recently lost her husband and then discovered that she herself was ill with Parkinson's disease. "Reducing Judaism to an arid core of reasoned principles or generic moral virtues that we share with good people of all faiths, stripping it of its color and vitality and emotional force - these are not enough for Eileen, whose world is collapsing around her. If we have nothing of significance to offer a woman like her, who craves an experience of spiritual sustenance and meaning, then we have nothing of real value to offer the world."

Reaching me in Israel

2005-06-13T15:43:00.000-04:00

If you'd like to call me in Israel, dial this number EXACTLY AS SHOWN:

011-972-52-604-1592

This is assuming you live in North America. If you're calling from Israel, you know how to reach me.

If you're emailing, please don't use the @yorku.ca address, use the @gmail.com address.

Have a great summer everyone!

currently experiences technical difficulties

2005-05-26T00:09:00.000-04:00

I've been off for a while, and will continue to be off until my time in Israel this summer, at which point this will serve as my trip journal. See you then.

~j

where does the time go when it's not around here?

2005-03-30T22:50:00.000-05:00

it's been a month and a half since I've found the time to post. I largely blame it on my submission to the theatre. I remember Janette, one of my theatre teachers in high school used to believe in the theatre spirits/gods/pixies/insertyourfavouritemythicalcreaturehere. Well if she believes that they really exist, then I belive that there exists some sort of theatre purgatory where people slip into during shows. I swear - Ruddigore took a giant bite out of three months of my life, chewed on it, sucked on it, then spat it out in a glory of theatrical wonder.

now don't get me wrong - the show was fantastic, the cast was fantastic - everything was... fantastic. BUT WHERE DID THOSE THREE MONTHS GO? HONESTLY?

the interesting side effect of it is that you delve so deep into the world, that you forget that everyone outside isn't watching your every move (a common feeling when you're an actor) so you wonder why they bitch and cry "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN FOR THREE MONTHS?"

my response: "uhh... I moved into the theatre. yeah... i live under the stage.... in a box"

Yes it's true.... life does go on when you're not looking.

I keep asking myself why I didn't decide to study theatre in university. In retrospect, it's been great studying philosophy and religion - I've amassed a great amount of knowledge. BUT I think I would have amassed a huge amount more of life experience if I had been studying theatre.

It's been beautiful working with vcp, but I feel like I need a more disciplined experience. Now contrast that with my desire to become a Rabbi. People keep saying that they are two careers that compliment each other nicely - Rabbi's need to know how to "perform," they say... so I should do well, they say.

But there's this giant magnet in the theatre that pulls me towards it. I can't escape my desire to always live life on the Stage. capital "S"

To make it all the more complicated - would I have it any other way? - acting is not the only profession I'd see myself pursuing. Lighting and production design have also come to the forefront of my theatre fortes. WHAT TO DO?

I think it's time some of Janette's theatre spirits send me an epiphany.

In the meantime, I'll be looking at the National Theatre School after I graduate York. I know I'm not heading straight to HUC, so NTS might be a nice stop on the way. Or a permanent stop...?

L'Kayitz Haba'ah B'Yisrael

2005-02-11T23:35:00.000-05:00

So I just found out that I'll be spending this summer in Israel staffing a NFTY trip as Rosh T'fillah! Needless to say, Jesse is very excited... but I find this part of me is tingling to go back to Kutz. I definately will be in Israel - I think it's the job of a lifetime... but man do I miss camp.

Damn you Joni Mitchell and your "don't know what you've got 'till it's gone." You're so right, and it hurts.

Tonight was a great night

2005-02-11T03:11:00.000-05:00

Tonight was a great night. It's good to get drunk with good friends and sing Moxy Fruvous at 2 in the morning. I think it's really healthy - a catharsis of sorts. If songs that Moxy Fruvous wrote 12 years ago are able to help me release the stresses of the week (that and six pints of beer and a shot of Tequila) then I can go to sleep content that it's been a great night.

Thank you friends, you've made it a truly good day!

4, 3, 2, 1...

2005-02-07T18:44:00.000-05:00

we're at the barrell of a gun

wrestling with God

2005-02-06T01:59:00.000-05:00

I spent the greater part of my day trying to wrestle with God. Not in the Jacob wrestling with God sense, but in the Jesse wrestling with his concept of God sense. Rabbi Elyse Goldstein is the scholar-in-residence at Shul this weekend, and she lead a really interesting lunch session on God concepts. Thinking about God is like thinking about infiniti, you can do it, but it really hurts sometimes. I find that the more I think about God, the more I realize I don't even know where to begin. But Rabbi Elyse said something this morning that really jumped out at me.

She said something along the lines of.... "It's very hard for me to think of God and how God exists in this world, but it's even harder for me to think of a world where God doesn't exist."

I think that I've always believed in God. I don't really remember a time where I didn't. But at that point this morning, I had this connection with my understanding of God that I've never really had before. I realized how scary it is for me to imagine a world where God doesn't exist and where God doesn't play an integral role in existence. I just can't wrap my mind around it. As difficult as it is for me to wrap my mind around the very idea of God, it's terrifying for me to even try to wrap my mind around the notion of a Godless world.

Of course I respect all people's approaches to God... everybody needs to come to the point where they meet what works for them. But in all honesty, I just don't understand atheists. I don't know how you can't look around this world and see God in everything. I don't know how you could imagine that everything that is came to be by accident. Please, somebody explain to me how that could be possible.

So that's been following me around all day. It's a part of my greater transformation and growth Jewishly as of late. I find myself wanting to know more/do more/learn more/experience more, but not necessarily knowing exactly how I want to go about doing these things. What I am certain of is that I'm frustrated and disenchanted with a lot of Reform Judaism. At the same time, I find it hard to imagine being anything other than a Reform Jew. I've had this talk with plenty of people, and I know that I'm not the only one thirsty for more.

What disturbs me is that it's come to the point where I feel more spiritual, more Jewish, and like I can be a better Jew when I'm with a group of people from Kesher (like last weekend in Miami), or with a group of Conservative/Orthodox Jews, than when I'm at my own shul (where I've been a member for almost 14 years). It shouldn't be this way.

Is this just displaced teenage angst surfacing five years later in Jewish form?
Do I dare ask the cliche existential question: Am I the only one? Cause I know that I'm not.

I know that I will change, and that I will find what works for me, and that I will grow as a result of all this. I just wish I didn't have to be angry at what's been an integral part of me for 13 years.

That being said, I did have a lovely and restful Shabbat. To top it off, I'm going to bed!

Was it really a month ago?!

2005-02-06T01:27:00.000-05:00

Sunset in Jerusalem 12/30/2004

Continuing my thievery of cool quotes from people's AOL profiles...

2005-02-01T22:35:00.000-05:00

A kid goes to his dad and asks, "Dad, what are politics?"

His dad replies, " Put it this way; I am the breadwinner of the family so I am capitalism. Your mom is the owner of the money so she is government. The government is the provider for the people so you are the people. Your baby brother will be the future, and the nanny is the working class. Now think about that."

So he went to bed. He was woken by his brother. The baby had pooped in his diaper. He went to tell his parents, but he only found his mom asleep in the bed. He didn't want to wake her, so he went to the nanny. The door was locked. He checked through a hole and saw the dad in bed with the nanny.

The next morning, he went to his dad and said, "Dad I know what you mean now...

While capitalism is screwing the working class, the government is sound asleep, while the people are watching the future being pooped on."

My new Guitar!!!

2005-02-01T22:18:00.000-05:00

Simon & Patrick Showcase Series
Rosewood with cutaway and a B-Band 4.2 pickup
Gloss finish
My new baby!!!

Sun = healthy, Snow = sick

2005-02-01T21:36:00.000-05:00

I was perfectly healthy in Miami on the beach. Now I'm home and have come down with the flu. Unrelated coincidence, or a conspiracy by the American government to trick me into thinking warmer weather will keep me healthier? I vote American consiparcy. Call it Flu-gate.

Miami was incredible, the Zionist leadership conference provided me with a lot of great networking opportunities and the chance to hear some really inspiring speakers. But... the greatest thing that the conference gave me was...

A free trip to Israel!!!

Oh yes, that's right, my group won an advertising competition and we were all awarded gift certificates to use towards extended trips in Israel. I'm looking at doing a 5 month ulpan on Kibbutz Tzuba or possibly doing 2 1/2 months of Gadna and outdoor adventuring. It's really exciting to know that I'll be able to be back in Israel soon! I just feel bad that people I was with from Kesher didn't also win... we all got stuck in other groups. Oh well, it looks like they might be taking us to Israel anyways on a seperate training trip, so I hope that works out well.

In other news, shit's going down at the theatre. There seems to be a great lacking in the understanding and reasonability departments. People bitch about unnecessary things, and if there is reason to be upset about things, people express their concern in the most inappropriate ways. I'm tired of people complaining about things behind other people's backs. I'm tired of people not having either the decency or the guts to say things directly to people's faces. And I'm tired of the extreme lack of understanding. Just because people aren't going to be able to do something exactly the way you want it at the exact time you want it is no reason to challenege or question someone's dedication or committment.

Obviously I'm speaking personally here, but it's not only me - there are a number of people who have expressed the same sentiments and it's time that something is done. Maybe we need a revolution or a coup d'etat or... well I don't know. Maybe we can just reenact Les Mis and call it even. Or maybe people can simply be more understanding of each other. That would be nice.

In happier news, I'm off to L.A in a couple of weeks to staff NFTY convention. It'll be nice to see the beach and palm trees again!

That's all for now. I'm going to take a hot shower and then sweat all night long. Damn American conspirators.

Chick flick or philosophical life ponderings?

2005-01-19T22:27:00.000-05:00

I just watched Garden State. I liked it. A lot. Great movie. Natalie Portman is gorgeous, but that's not the only reason the movie is good.

The movie essentially follows Zach Braff (of Scrubs fame) as he returns to the Garden State (that's New Jersey for those Canadians who don't fly in to Newark every summer for camp) for his mother's funeral. Sad sad sad. His life ends up being changed when he meets Sam (played by Portman)

Okay, that's enough exposition.

The film definately has a lot of hidden and not so hidden perspectives on life, life choices, and life altering choices. So much of it resonated with me and my experience growing up in Thornhill - or Jewville as it is affectionatly known. But there's this thing tugging at me.... was it just a chick flick with good writing?

I don't think so. I hope not. Because when movies resonate philosophically with me, I love it. It gives me faith that there are true geniuses in the world, people who can tap into the human experience and project it in a media that's accesible by the masses.

That's what music is. Music taps into realms of the human psyche, translates the unintelligible nature of humanity, and projects it out into the world in an intelligble manner. As Nietzsche so eloquently put it: "Without music, life would be pointless"

So I'll sleep on it, dream of the beautiful Natalie Portman, and hopefully wake up not thinking I spent my evening watching a chick flick.

People I've run into in Israel

2005-01-06T09:14:00.000-05:00

Israel is the coolest, you run into people in the most unexpected places and it's so fantastic. Here's a running tally of people that I've seen (all but one were completely unaranged and random!)

Wes Peskin
Rachel Petroff
Adam Rosenwasser
Seth Winberg
David Ladon's brother
David Singer
Noah Fabricant
Emma Gottlieb
Isaac Saposnik
Matt Rogers
Jason Fenster
Mike Fuld
Mike Mason
Noam Katz
Two cute Israei girls from Kutz a few summers back.
A ton of people who go to Hebrew U and know people I do back at York

So much fun.

Shalom M'Yisrael!

2005-01-06T08:52:00.000-05:00

It's day 11 here in Israel, and the third day after the official end of the Hillel Pluralism trip. The details of the Pluralism mission are far too many to list right now, but I'll be sure to get into them at some later point. After the trip ended on Tuesday night, those of us who were staying on together headed over to stay at Beit Shmuel at Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem; we've been here since. Tuesday night I promptly fell asleep and stayed in a blissful state of rest for 11 hours. It was more sleep than I think I got on the whole trip.

Wednesday morning, we awoke to pouring rain, but nonetheless bounded out of bed, went down to breakfast, then headed out for a (wet) day on Rechov Ben Yehuda. Wandering around the shops was fun in the rain, and it was cool meeting all the kids from Birthright who are the first group to be allowed back on Ben Yehuda since the start of the Matzav.

Last night, we went out for dinner at Burger's Bar, which is by far the most amazing burger joint in the country. We went to the one on Emek Refayim our first night here, so it was fun to hit up the one on Ben Yehuda last night. After a great dinner, we headed out to a Hookah bar in the area and chilled for the rest of the night. It was Kol Tov.

This morning, Jessica, Shuli and I woke up early to grab breakfast and then head out to PARDES (the pluralistic Institute of Jewish Studies that we spent a lot of time at on the trip) for a day of studying. In the morning, I attended a Chumash class that was studying Lech Lecha this day. The intent of the teachers and students truly is awe-inspiring. They study the text so closely that they're only able to get through a few p'sukim (verses) each day. We got through four this morning - a high point for the class!

After the morning studying, we davened Mincha then had a delicious group lunch where a fantastic Jewish storyteller was speaking and telling stories. She was great. We ended our trip to PARDES by meeting with one of the adminstrators who answered some questions for us and basically just talked about what the institute has to offer. I am 99% sure that I'll be applying to spend a year there before I go to HUC. It will definately provide me with a stronger background in Talmud, Halachah, and Chumash. And Hebrew, of course!

For now, I plan on taking a nap, then later tonight we're going to the Kotel Tunnels. After that it will be chilling out in Jerusalem no doubt. For Erev Shabbat, a few of us plan on going to the Kotel, then to Kol Haneshama for T'fillah. Shabbat morning we'll stay at HUC for services. Once Shabbat is out, we'll be heading out to Haifa for the weekend, with a day trip to Tzfat in the works for Sunday.

Monday we'll probably spend in Tel Aviv, then Monday night we're off to the airport. I'd have to be up at 4:30 to get to the airport if we stayed in Tel Aviv, so a few of us are going the night before with the people who are leaving that night. We'll just crash on the floor somewhere and be able to save paying for a night in a hostel.

That's the plan for now, I'll be sure to keep this updated when I can. And stay tuned for pictures and highlites from the rest of the trip!

L'hitraot!

Achshav, Achsvah, B'eretz Yisrael!!!

2004-12-27T03:02:00.000-05:00

In eight hours, I'll be off to the airport to catch my flight to NYC, en route to ISRAEL. As ususal, I'm not getting any sleep tonight. Needless to say I'm somewhat stoked. Woot.

Did I just say stoked? Wow. Hello 1980's L.A. Surfer-dude.

I find myself more excited, anticipatory, dreaming, CAN'T WAIT than last time. I guess now I know what to expect out of the amazing country that is Israel, and yet I can't wait to discover more about Israel that I never knew before. It is sure to be an experience like no other.

In NYC, Dave and I are going to go be Jewish and get dinner at the Carnegie Deli. Could we BE any more touristy? After I've spent the past four summers in New York, you'd think I could be a little more constructive. Guess not :-)

"Guess who eats together at the Carnegie Deli?
Jesse from Canada
and Dave Vaisberg (not Shelley)" - that's supposed to rhyme with Arthur Fonzarelli. Does it? Oh well.

So, while I'm off in the mother land, if you love me feel free to give me a ring a ding. I'll be carrying a cell with me all around the country. If you so choose to call and make me feel special, you can do it at the number below:

011-972-57-758-6507

You'll probably hear some Hebrew message like this: "Bruchim Haba'im L'Bezek. Welcome to Bezek. " Then it will connect to me.

Righto, so I'm off to finish packing - it's 3 am the day I'm leaving and as per usual, I'm not quite finished. I'll be posting pics and journal entries from Israel when I return. Until then,

Libi B'mizrach
My heart is in the East

Alright, Let's Get It On!

2004-12-17T01:08:00.000-05:00

Jew-Ladies, and Gentile-men! Since the dawn of man, nay, since the dawn of TIME (magazine), December has pitted America's two greatest holidays against one another. In one corner stands Christmas (or X-mas for short), and in the other stands Chanukkah (or Hanukkah for short). Each year the debate is made, but a victor has never been crowned. That is why today, on this very webular site, I have been chosen as a non-biased jewish arbiter (or judge for short) to decide once and for all which Holiday is the the GREATEST OF ALL TIME!

DURATION:

Chanukkah: By definition, Chanukkah is 8 times longer than Christmas.
That's an extra WEEK of presents, dreidels, Jews, and gifts, and presents.
Christmas: 1 day. How fucking cute. Hey remember Christmas when you were 12? You should, it was only one day long. More like one day SHORT! Stick to praying, Christianity... Jesus Christ. LITERRRLLALAY!

POINT: CHANUKKAH (1-0)

SONGS:

Chanukkah: Umm... we got the one about the Dreidel... oh and a song or two about Judah the Maccabee. Sisqo's the Thong Song makes veiled references to the Menorah (Baby make your booty go Dunuh Dunuh.) But other than that, not much.
Christmas: I know it’s been said, many times many ways, but these songs (jingle bell jingle bell jingle bell) ROCK! Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, N-Sync! Everybody wants to sing these timeless classics! I know that I can't eat my morning chestnuts roasted on an open fire without thinking of that song about a partridge in a pear tree! On the first day of Christmas my true love would give me a CD! NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL RELIGION Vol. 12!

Point: CHRISTMAS! (1-1)

FOOD:

Chanukkah: You gotta love a holiday whose food requirement is anything fried in Oil. Potato Pancakes, Donuts, Donut Pancakes, Potato Donuts, Potancake Donut Cakes. Docake Potatancake Oil Cakes, Dopancato Pakes, Christian Babies. You name it, we eat it!! As long as you name "Dopancato Pakes."
Christmas: I have NO idea what eggs are, and I sure as hell have no idea what nog is. I make it a point not to drink anything thick and yellow. What's that? Egg Nog is a drink, not a food? Ha ha ha, groveling will earn you no pity points Christmas....

Point: CHANUKKAH (2-1)

MOVIES:

Chanukkah: Lets see, there's 8 Crazy Nights... Um... Does Schindler's List count?
Christmas: Home Alone 1, shame on you. Home Alone 2? Shame on me.

Point: CHRISTMAS (2-2)

WHAT WOULD JESUS DO:

Chanukkah: Jesus celebrated Chanukkah. He was pretty good at dreidel but his potato pancakes were a little dry. You shoulda seen the expression on his face when his mother ate his latkes! LOL!
Christmas: Jesus didn't even know about Christmas when he was alive. Unless you think he's alive in all of us today, in which case you're wrong, he's not.

Honestly, he isn't.

POINT: CHANUKKAH (3-2)

SONGS:

Chanukkah: Yah I still got nothin.
Christmas: STILL enjoying them!

POINT: CHRISTMAS (3-3)

IT’S A DRAW! Or as I like to call it: A Drwanzaa! Thats right, there is a third party candidate we didn’t take into account and that’s Kwanzaa.

Kwanzaa was started at UCLA in 1961 by the military to help them communicate electronically. Today over 3 billion people around the world are online and chatting in different Kwanzaa rooms and using Kwanzaa to buy their gifts online. Consider yourself smarter. Because you can't pronounce EDUCATION, without the JEW!

Do this... post it as a comment

2004-12-16T15:36:00.000-05:00

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence as a comment in my journal. Then do the same in your journal (post these instructions, too)
5. Don't search around and look for the "coolest" book you can find. Do what's actually next to you.

Here's mine:

But if the Truth was known
You ain't here nohow
And neither am I
Nor that cow and sow

~From Kerouac's "Poems All Sizes"

I've discovered the meaning of life

2004-12-15T02:52:00.000-05:00

Yes, it's true! I have indeed discovered the meaning of existence, of life, and of all there is. Here goes:

When you're writing a paper and at first you had no clue what to write about, or where to go, or what your thesis is is, and then... all of a sudden... out of the blue it strikes you, and you understand... and then you write furiously for three hours. That's the meaning of life.

When you're talking with an upset friend and at first you're just saying things to console them, but then you listen to what they say and you truly start to understand their sorrows, and that makes you sad too. That's the meaning of life.

When you're at the gym working out, and you're sweating and tired and you feel like you can't go on anymore and then... BOOM... you get your second wind. That's the meaning of life.

When you watch your dog playing with her toy, and you stare in awe at the simplicity of being a dog and wonder what it's like to be a dog with no worries. And then your dog looks up at you, staring back - wondering what it's like to be human and able to reach the jar of dog biscuits. That's the meaning of life.

When you're standing in the middle of a forest and you look around, and the sunlight is streaming from everywhere and nowhere at the same time - you just can't pinpoint where it's coming from. That's the meaning of life.

When you're sitting in one class and what your prof is saying ties in completely with what you're learning in another class, and everything you've ever learned at school since you were five all of a sudden makes sense. That's the meaning of life.

When you're blogstalking people and you read what they have to say and you realize that although there's 6 billion people on this planet, a whole lot of them believe in the same things you do and understand life in the same way you do. That's the meaning of life.

What else is the meaning of life?

Countdown to Israel...

2004-12-14T02:12:00.000-05:00

13 Days. I'm getting antsy!

fuck the man

2004-12-12T22:54:00.000-05:00

"I never spent a single day in retail, telling people what they want to hear, telling people anything to make a sale"
~Barenaked Ladies

I wish this were the case for me. I absolutely hate working in retail. I don't enjoy capitalism, I don't enjoy the rich snobby brats who shop at my store, I don't enjoy the rich snobby brats that I work with. I hate that all people care about is that you work when they tell you to.

As of next week, I'll have only worked two shifts in the past month. While I enjoy the freedom, I think they're not giving me shifts in an attempt to get me to quit. Oh, I play the Disneyworld game where I'm all smiles while working, but I think they're on to me... they know I'm only in it so I can pay off my bills and then I'm outa there.

For these people I work with, it's like their whole lives revolve around selling things. The girls I work with spend half of their pay cheques right away on clothes EVERY week. Damn people, get a grip on reality and start realizing that there's more to life than posessions. Sheesh.

I want to move to a Kibbutz.

I'm published in the Toronto Star!!!

2004-12-11T03:22:00.000-05:00

Hurray! Granted, it's only a letter to the editor, but let's hear it for democracy, freedom of speech, and my subtle humour througout the piece. The link to the article is below, along with my original, unedited version. At the end of the letter is a link to the original article to which I responded.

Hanumas... what a dumb name. It sounds more like a terrorist organization than a holiday.

Keep Significance of Holidays
Growing trend to combine Hanukkah and Christmas can have detrimental effects

Jennifer Bain reports on the growing trend in Canada of interfaith families combining Channukah and Christmas into a hybrid mishmash. While this may be a perfectly logical notion for some, it is important to note that there are detrimental effects of doing so. Ask my professor’s daughter who was taught to believe in the “Moses Claus” as a child, and now does not know what to believe in.

Channukah is called so for a reason - it is the Hebrew word for rededication. Channukah is the time when Jews celebrate and remember the rededication of the ancient holy Temple after its horrific destruction. To alter the word to "Chrismukkah," or "Hanumas," lessens the significance of the holiday. It erases the true meaning of the word, and presents a distorted version of the holiday.

While there is much that non-Jews can learn by celebrating Channukah with Jewish friends and family, and vice-versa regarding Christmas, it is of paramount importance to remember that Channukah is a Jewish holiday and Christmas is a Christian holiday. To combine them is to misrepresent the true meaning of each holiday.

To truly increase tolerance and knowledge of dual cultural heritages, interfaith families should learn about each holiday individually and uniquely, rather than attempting to assimilate them into an entirely new celebration which is no longer grounded in its true roots. This is especially true for interfaith families with children – let them be taught about each religion’s traditions rather than a new hodgepodge. Doing so will only breed a generation of children who believe in the Moses-Claus who comes down the chimney to light the Channukiah and eats the Latkes left on the table.

Jesse Paikin
Thornhill, Ontario

Here's the original article:
MERRY MISHMASHED HOLIDAY

Edited poetry - February 14, 2002

2004-12-08T02:18:00.000-05:00

Sharp notes
Piercing the thick air
no set
time
no set
rythym
smooth
underneath,
carry on, flow through me

Stream of conscious writing - April 30, 2002

2004-12-08T02:12:00.000-05:00

Cafeteria Study

Punk music. People staring. I'm supposed to be invisible.

She leans against the grate railing, sitting on the stairs, sipping her Coca-Cola, wearing a shirt with "skate boarding is not a crime" emblazoned across the front.

A girl, umbrella in hand, skips over the first two steps on her way upstairs. Blue puffy vest, curly brown hair with blonde streaks. A half smile on her face.

White shirt, black tie, glasses and curly matted hair, he runs down the stairs. "wuzzle wuzzle"

Jello, cards, and a spoon hanging out of her mouth.
"I'm smarter than you"
Two boy walk by.
"Go fish?"
My vision is blocked.
"How's it going Jesse?"
I'm supposed to be invisible.
"Good. I'm eavesdropping on people."
"Sounds like fun. Keep it up."
"Go fish."
"Shutup, I'm smarter than you."
"Sixes?"
"Go fish."
"Tens?"
"Go fish."
"Again!"
Spoon in mouth reaches for her Jello, then changes her mind, turning to the boy next to her. Spoon in mouth has lost the card game.

Edited poetry - February 26, 2002

2004-12-08T02:10:00.000-05:00

It spurted out
an accident
a gushing fountain
I didn't mean to I didn't mean to I didn't mean to
I didn't want to
Yet it is
And I am soaked in the drenching aftermath
With the valve no longer shut,
The flowing surrounds me,
building up at my feet
my ankles,
my knees
my waist
If only I could shut of the tap,
stop the flow
my chest
a gulp of air
a sigh
my own fault
my own careless failt
my neck
and I am surrounded
Drowning in my mistake,
Clutching at the unclutchable in an attempt to
get me out
And it sinks in
That I will sink
And I do.

Edited poetry - February 22, 2002

2004-12-08T02:09:00.000-05:00

The grape falls
from the vine
rolls along the ground to lay beside my foot
a step,
and its juices flow.
No longer a grape,
its essence seeps into the earth
to give birth.

Stream of conscious writing - April 29, 2002

2004-12-08T02:05:00.000-05:00

Saxaphone. A saxaphone. The saxaphone. My saxaphone. Curvy. Waivy. Notes, piercing the thick air. The groove, penetrating bodies. The contact between my lips and the mouth of the instrument. Air flowing down its neck though its body. Out of it. And then though they air, through the clouds. And through time. Time signatures. Time to play. Play, play, play, play, play. Play the truth. Hear the truth. Listen to the truth. An 'S' shape, revealing so much truth. What an experience. My experience. For me, for you.

is blog-stalking a punishable crime?

2004-12-07T03:52:00.000-05:00

It's 3:52 am, and instead of sleeping I'm blog-stalking various people I know and also some people I don't know. This whole blog business seems to keep going in and out of mainstream fashion. Six years ago I had a dead journal, then a live journal, then 5 years passed, and now I'm back at it again. Although this time, I think I'm journaling more for my own enjoyment than to update the public about Jesse-happenings. I used to write in my real journal all the time, but there seems to be little time to sit down and write these days; so this typing nonsense actually works out quite well.

Erev Channukah is tonight, and instead of celebrating freedom from enslavement for the next eight days, I will be enslaved in writing an essay on Simone de Beavoire and studing for my Political Philosophy exam. And then there's the Reason, God, and the Mind exam I've got after that. I could go into a diatribe about how I feel exams really don't tell you much. But I'm too tired.

Next term I've only got three classes. Plus jazz guitar. Plus Ruddigore rehearsals. Plus Tempest rehearsals. Plus work at the theatre. Plus work at H&M (unless I quit, which is becoming very tempting as of late). Oy. Oy. Oy oy oy.

I'm interested in people's perspectives:

Question: Should blog-stalking be a punishable crime, and if so, please devise an appropriate punishment for this "heinous offence."

stealing shamelessly from carly (who already stole from ben)

2004-12-06T01:06:00.000-05:00

copycat is my first name.

so the (lifted) proposition goes like this. you (yes you) can ask me any 3 questions (as comments to this blog) and i will answer them to the best of my ability

I heart "I heart huckabees"

2004-12-05T00:01:00.000-05:00

Wow - this film was Sartre, de Beavoire, Heidegger, and Neitzche collapsed into two hours. But it was so fantastic. If I had the power to scream to the world, I would tell all to go see this film. It's not life changing, because existentialism isn't about getting people to change, but it is so.... life-thinking. It lets you think. It basically made a lot of the past three months of my contemporary existentialism class a hell of a lot clearer. And I'm thankful that I still have one class left so I can talk about this movie.

It reminded me specifically of one experience I had when I was younger:

I was 5 years old and in my grade one class at North York Montessori. As best as I can remember, I was working on a math problem - in those days, I was excellent at math; how things have changed. At some point, I decided that I was finished, that I didn't want to work on the math problem, and moreover, that I was so overwhelmed that I wanted to stop thinking.

Never in my life had it previously occured to me that it was impossible to stop thinking. Needless to say, it was quite a shock to realize such a momentous reality.

I tried and tried and tried, and the more that I tried, the more I realized that it was impossible. At the same moment, I realized that it's possible to think more than one thing at once. You know when you're thinking a whole lot of different things, each thought flowing over, under, and through each other... but then on top of them all, somwhere in the cracks and crevaces of your mind/brain/thinking-thing you have this sly little thought that "hey, look at how many things I'm thinking of. I'm so smart!"

But then that thought gets run-over by something else.

But you still have the notion above all else that you're thinking about different things.

Well I only realized this at age five. Or maybe you could say that "Wow, he was only five and look what he realized!" I don't know.

The point is that "I heart Huckabees" resonated with me as such. It was very exciting. I sat through the whole film (and am sitting right now) with a huge smile on my face. Yes, the movie was hilariously funny, and wise, and witty, and smart, and philosophical. But above all else, it was exciting. It was... interconnected.

Somebody pound me in the face with a big giant red ball. I want to stop thinking.

left-wing socialists? I'm one of those

2004-11-30T10:22:00.000-05:00

The York Federation of Students elections closed this weekend, and the results were announced yesterday. The progress not politics slate which I supported, along with everyone I associate myself with, did not get elected. Suffice it to say, the left-wing socialist side of York has resurfaced. NOW - here's the irony. I'm left wing and socialist! You think I'd be happy with the results. Sadly, I'm not.

I was having a discussion a few nights ago where I said that even though I'm left-wing, I don't associate with left-wingers at York - most, if not all, of them have extremely negative sentiments towards Israel. Most of them are just looking for an anarchic way to fight the man. I also don't feel that the left wing parties at York are well equiped to lead the school. Well, we'll see. As the progress not politics website is saying right now "You made your bed. Hope you can lie in it?" One thing is for certain - it's going to be an interesting semester.

Savage Love

2004-11-29T10:18:00.000-05:00

This morning, I leave you with an article from NOW magazine. It's by Dan Savage. Normally he's all sexual and perverse, but I think he has some interesting stuff here:

Dear Dan,
I know your liberal heart means well, Dan, but the response you gave to SAUDI typifies much
that is wrong with the Western attitude toward the Middle East. While SAUDI is partially to blame for having the poor judgment to ask you about sexual ethics, your statement, "Unlike the country you left behind, there are no morals police in the part of North America where you live" smacks of haughty, imperialistic condescension. You totally ignored the fact that the values SAUDI was taught as a Muslim have a deep and completely valid cultural context that needs to be considered when dispensing advice. You reduced the conundrum of a devout man experiencing serious cultural conflict to the influence of the "morals police," and in quite a smirking tone. I don't care how progressive Canadians are. It is incredibly offensive to imply the superiority of morals in Canada to values taught in Saudi Arabia. To paraphrase Gandhi, have some goddamn cultural sensitivity, man.
- Sick Of Stereotypes

Dear SOS:
Did I imply the superiority of morals in Canada to values taught in Saudi Arabia? Jesus H. Christ, SOS, I feel terrible about that. So let me set the record straight: I never meant to imply the superiority of morals in Canada to values taught in Saudi Arabia. I meant to state, loudly and clearly and for the record, the absolute superiority of morals in Canada to values taught in Saudi Arabia.

Let us count the ways in which Canada is superior: equality of the sexes, political and religious pluralism, a little thing called democracy and, of course, the radical notion that consenting adults are free to have sex with other consenting adults without having to worry about being lashed or having their heads cut off in public. Canada's also got vodka tonics, BC bud and pornography going for it, along with Tim Hortons, pork-sausage gravy on fries and a just and equitable social-welfare system. Is Canada morally superior to Saudi Arabia? You bet.

It's also morally superior to the United States of America.

But back to the big SA. Unless you believe that cutting off the heads of homosexuals has a "deep and completely valid cultural context" or men treating women as their property is a "value," you have to acknowledge that Saudi Arabia practises and promotes a thoroughly fucked-up brand of Islam. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia's state-sanctioned "morals police" are not, as you imply, an imperialistic fantasy of mine. They are, sadly, a fact of everyday life for Saudi Arabian women, gays, atheists, moderate/non-Wahabi Muslims and anyone else who fails to live up to the pinched, sex-negative, deeply psychotic brand of monotheism practised there. To paraphrase the United Nation's Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, I believe that human
rights are universal, man. As Saudi Arabia exists in this universe, I think that the humans there – Muslim or not, liberal or conservative, male or female, gay or straight – are entitled to their full human rights. Until that day comes, SOS, I'm going to go right on thinking that Canada kicks Saudi Arabia's ass when it comes to morals and values. And bud.

dichotomous struggle

2004-11-29T02:00:00.000-05:00

I'm not a doctor. . . Or a fireman. . . I work in the theatre. . .
Which is not to say that my work is unimportant. . . But it is not life threatening. . .It is not more important than spending time with my family. . .

~found this in somebody's blog. I like it. it resonates for me.

I had a dramatically theatre-filled day:

I woke up to about 20 Jewish women in my living room courtesy of my mother, which is more than enough DRAMA, let me tell you.
I went out for lunch with Dave and Natalia (both from the theatre)
I missed Ruddigore rehearsal - causing great drama amongst the cast :-)
But I missed it to do some lighting tech for a local community theatre - they were doing Shrek 2 - how cute!
This evening, I applied for a position at Factory Theatre - this is very exciting for me! We'll see where it goes!

Anyways, yes we all know how much I love theatre. The thing that I struggle with a lot is that as much as I want to go to rabbinical school and become a rabbi, there is a huge part of me that wants to make theatre my profession. I'm so torn. I know that I can do community theatre even if I become a rabbi, but I don't know how fulfilling that would be.

I can envision myself as a rabbi and I worry that I'll lose all touch with theatre (aside from watching it). But then I envision myself as an actor/director/designer and worry that I'd be straying away from something that I've wanted to be since I was eight.

So there's the dichotomous struggle. I like that phrase - I used it in an essay last week. I also used the word "expunge," and that really impressed my prof!

Any suggestions? And please don't tell me I can do both, because it's really not feasible. And I'm not asking for people to tell me who or what to be, I'm just at a loss and I have been for a few years. Help?

Amen

2004-11-28T13:37:00.000-05:00

You Should Be Jesus for Halloween!

What should you be for Halloween?

What's with this shit? I'm not even American!

2004-11-28T13:24:00.000-05:00

You Are a New School Democrat

You like partying and politics - and are likely to be young and affluent.

You're less religious, traditional, and uptight than most Democrats.

Smoking pot, homosexuality, and gambling are all okay in your book.

You prefer that the government help people take care of themselves.

What political persuasion are you?

4:00am - Philosophy on MSN - I think I'm saved!

2004-11-28T03:34:00.000-05:00

I think I may finally have something to write my essay on! Cheers to 4am philosophizing on msn :-)

Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
unfortunately, modern socialism is becoming very similar to anarchism
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
"fight the power"
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
quite true
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
in any case, economically, I don't think comunism can work on a large scale..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
its useful for kibutzim-style communities, but that's about it..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
it takes work and a true understanding
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
it's easy on a small scale, but not impossible on a large scale
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
when you factor in human psychology, greed is always there..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
truly, I don't expect it to ever work large scale
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
there will always be one person to screw it up
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
then you have the issue of people who work harder deserve more than those who don't work at all..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
sadly, I don't see any political party attentive to the needs of canadians
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
(with exceptions of the disabled, etc..)
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
out of curiousity, what do u think about the issue of some people working harder than others?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
do they deserve more?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
depends on what you classify as working harder
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
if, for example, 2 people do the same job..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
one does 20 hours a week, and the other does 50 hours a week
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
does the caretaker at york who works 10-10 everyday work harder than a neurophysicist?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
should they both have the same standard of living?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
well, that's what marxist communism about - standard of living
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
it doesn't say that everyone makes the same, it says that everyone makes what they need for their standard of living
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
a single maintenance worker has a lower standard of living than a married one, etc etc
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
so does it allow for people to have 3rd world standards of living?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
no
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
or bill gates standards?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
and no - bill gates lives far above the necessities of life
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
and undeveloped countries live far below it
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
ok.. so two single men, both work doing the same thing, but one works twice as long/hard as the other..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
do they get the same 'pay'?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
or does the guy who choses to work longer hours in order so that he can enjoy a big screen tv not have such an opportunity?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
if you understand marxist communism as a contract system - you still need to work to recieve pay
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
understood..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but can I choose to go above and beyond because I enjoy more 'extravagant' things than others do?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
no
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
that's quite clear
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
people won't be happy in such a society..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
for example..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I'm happy eating pizza and fast food..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
oh for sure people wouldn't be happy
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
its very cheap to produce, etc..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
assuming food was an only factor..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
but what if I'm not happy with our "democracy"
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I'd be happy with pizza and pasta, etc.. but most people in today's society want more 'fancy' foods..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
if they want it, they should be able to have it.. assuming they work that much harder for it..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
ideally, such foods would be available not only to an elite
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
try telling a kibbutnik that there's a part of the kibbutz that only certain people can go to where there's better food and more commodities
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but someone who wanted a steak would require that there be a guy who raises cattle, another who slaughters the cattle, another who processes it, and another who cooks it..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
and that's how a kibbutz works
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
so u have 10 people working for the guy who wants a stake, but only 2 for the guy who wants some fries..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
is that truly communal?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
can I then ask, since I only eat (hypothetically) fries, that I have 8 servants working for me to make up the difference?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
hypothetically no - you're entitled to the steak just as much as anyone else is. if you choose not to exercize your right, that's your own choice
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
this is where a financial based society would make more sence..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
to some
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
it might be more ideal to try a spin on it..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
give everyone $10000 / year.. spend it on whatever you want..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
or again.. based on need
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
that would certainly be interesting
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but then u end up again with lazy people who won't be productive in their jobs..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
since they know they're guaranteed "pay", why should they care about their work?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
for the betterment of society?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
I know it's idealist
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
the point is, unless humans become like robots, there is no way that communism can work
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
the will of the human is higher than intellect..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
and the will of the human is driven by the need to (what they believe is for the) improvement of themselves in one way or another
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
which means the human will always want more something
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
more money, more spirituality, more friends, more books..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
knowledge..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
if the will is higher than intellect, can one will to have mor intellect?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
sure
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
that's one of my 'will's'
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
I believe some want more intellect and it is for them that communism wourl work
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
what if I want more intellect than others..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
then you're a selfish bastard
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
not necessarily..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
remember, people are competetive..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
true
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
now you're getting into social contract theory
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
in the science world.. which I'm more familiar with..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
which is about escaping the nature of humanity - hobbes, locke, rousseau - they all saw human nature as something to be escaped by entering into a social contract form of government
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
all important pieces of intellect are shared and published..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but, everyone competes to be the First to make an advancement in a particular field of science
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
right
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
if they're not the first, they don't get recognized for their work..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
and as a result, they will to be the first..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
you could consider it selfish..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but you could also argue that their work ends up getting wasted if they're not the first..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
all true
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I don't necessarily agree that democracy is the best way to go about things either..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
in some cases, it is..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but in any case, its absolutley necessary to have an economic system that's somewhat based on capitalism
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
I don't think it's absolutely necessary in all societies - but I think for us, it's important to recognize that we are a capital based economy
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
as far as history goes.. it has always been a system based on how hard you work, or how much you earn..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
ideally, you should be respected based on your talents and how hard you work..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
not because of your money
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
so do we sit back and say "this is the way it's always been, so be it"
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
I don't like the status quo
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
do u agree that someone should be respected based on their talents and the amount of work they do?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
or alternatively, that everyone should be treated equally, as a number, but not a face..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
I think everyone has different talents
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
agreed..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
and you should be respected based on how you use your own talents
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
agreed..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
to me.. I'd be interested in meeting people with a certain set of talents to help me in my life.. but you'd likely look for help from people with a different set of talents..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
which is normal.. otherwise, there would be no individuality..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
for example.. I like a certain kind of music
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
and a certain type of food.. etc.
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I wouldn't care to go to the person who makes the best steak..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
not if suddenly.. everybody wanted a steak, there is more demand on the steak guy..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
he has to work harder..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
as a result, he deserves more respect for his hard work
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
otherwise, people won't get equal opportunity to their right to eat steak
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
since the steak guy will no longer have motivation to cook for a lot of people..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
so.. what would a communist society do in such a scenario?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
hmm
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
they could get more people making steak
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but they're not necessarily talented doing that..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
there will still be demand on this first guy
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
why should he have to work harder than everyone else?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
it's a tough scenario
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I'll tell you what I'd do..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
tell everyone that if they want steak, they have to work as hard as the guy who makes it..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
so.. as a result.. some people will decide they're not willing to do that..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
the demand on the steak guy goes down..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
and those willing to work harder will
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
what did we ultimately create?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
an idealistic model?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
if you call it that..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I call it capitalism
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
those who chose to work harder in order to enjoy those 'finer things' that are in higher demand.. do so
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I just instituted a system of supply and demand
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
and a system of 'cost'
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
but there should still be a base line which provides basic needs for all
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
as well as inflation
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
ok.. so everyone gets shelter and 2 basic meals per day..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
how do you guarantee that EVERYONE's basic needs are cared for?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but if you want a TV, you have to work
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
if you're talented like the steak guy.. u can get a big screen
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
so your basic needs are provided for by the government, but if you want more you need to work more for it
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
sounds fair..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
no?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I never heard of any government saying that they should let the homeless rot on the street
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
but if they don't do anything to get them off, then it basically amounts to the same
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
not necesarily..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
everyone also needs to have exactly the same opportunity to work more for more
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
which we don't have
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
if all the facilities are provided, and the homless still chose not to accept them.. what more can you do?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
very few homeless choose to live on the street
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
agreed..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but those who don't stay in shelters, do chose not to..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
if homeless shelters were rejecting people who truly needed it, I'm sure we'd be hearing about it..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
they do
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
and we do hear of it - shelters are overcrowed - not nearly enough room or money
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I'm not arguing about overcrowding and money
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but do they tell people that they can't come in ?
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
sometimes
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
that needs to be fixed..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
indeed
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
alternatively..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
instead of having government run shelters.
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
BUT! more importantly - shelters aren't the same baseline standard of living that a home and money for food is
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
shelters provide home and food.. unfortunately, they're not up to the standard of living of an average family that makes $50000/year
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
exactly
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
but that average family works hard for it..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
the argument really is how much should they get for free?
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
I think 50 square feet and 2 meals is enough to survive..
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
as well as some clothing.. in order for them to go out and make an effort to improve their standard of living..
Jesse --> 30 days to Israel!!! [phantomphilosopher.blogspot.com] says:
that's a whole separate thing
Mr & Mrs DJStealth says:
ya.. different path anyway..

America the beautiful? America the sexually safe!

2004-11-27T23:47:00.000-05:00

The Republican National Committee announced that the Republican Party is changing its emblem from an elephant to a condom. The committee chairman explained that the condom more clearly reflects the party's stance today, because a condom accepts inflation, halts production, destroys the next generation, protects a bunch of pricks, and gives you a sense of security while you're actually getting screwed.

I'll be here (NYC) in a month! .....

2004-11-27T23:39:00.001-05:00

En route to here!

2004-11-27T23:39:00.000-05:00

"the story knows more than you do, let the story tell itself."

a quote from one of my favourite Daniel MacIvor plays. So - if the story (presumably my story, i.e the story of my life) knows more than I do and I'm supposed to let it tell itself - what's my place in this story - do I get to define my life, or does it just happen while I'm an impartial spectator?

Pardon my existential jabber, but my existentialism class has made me realize that there is a VAST amount of contradiction in existential philosophy. I'm still intrigued by it - I wouldn't call myself an existentialist, but there is a lot about it that I like - responsibility, freedom, etc etc etc. So if you're supposed to let the story tell itself - where's the freedom in that?

I'm leaving that as an open ended question right now. I'm not answering it. Maybe I'll answer it later.

My story right now is that I have a political philosophy paper to work on that was due last wednesday. I haven't really gotten anywhere with it, and it's really upsetting me because I'm engrossed in the class and the readings, but I can't get this essay to make any sense. I need to finish it this weekend, but it doesn't look like that is going to happen. "Ethical Leadership within Rousseau's Social Contract". It's incredibly interesting, it's right up my alley, but for some reason I can't get it going. And I'm not actively procrastinating (or maybe I am ???) so what the fuck.

I spent the morning watching "The Greatest Canadian" - George Stromboulopolus was arguing that Tommy Douglas (a premier of Saskatchewan - founded Universal Health Care) should be numero uno -- and I most definately agree. Go check out the site to see why: TOMMY DOUGLAS, GREATEST CANADIAN

I slept on the couch downstairs last night - couldn't fall asleep upstairs, not sure why. Or maybe I am sure why - anxious about this essay. most definately.

Let's see if I can get motivated and work on it.