When you think of incongruities, Jews plus country music is right up there with pickles & ice cream or Paris Hilton & Wallace Shawn – a pair that just don’t seem right together. (Although there is one colorful exception, Kinky Friedman, who fronts a band known as The Texas Jewboys and who came in 4th in the 2006 Texas gubernatorial race, and who inspires me with his mix of politics and comedic music.) (Not that I’m considering running for governor in the near future!)
The lack of Jews in country music is actually surprising – Jewish songwriters are responsible for many of our classic Christmas songs, and given country music’s tradition of chronicling pain and suffering, it would seem to be a perfect fit. I like to say I’m from in the south – southern California, to be precise, but growing up in Orange County (where there were even fewer Jews than Democrats) did make me feel as much of an outsider as many country singers lament. But I hadn’t really made the connection until I heard Peter Sagal, the host of “Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me” on NPR, crack a joke about an upcoming appearance in Nashville. Suddenly it seemed like a match made in heaven (and now I feel like Melanie Griffith’s character in “Working Girl,” in that climactic elevator scene where she explains to Mr. Trask how she connected his company to radio, or something along those lines).
Chanukah/Hanukkah/etc (choose your favorite spelling) is really the ultimate country holiday – muscular heros, old fashioned candles, and fried food, so this week’s video is what may be the first country Chanukah song – enjoy!
(And remember, there are only 4 shopping days left til the first night of Chanukah, but copies of my Chanukah comedy CD, “Latkes, Shmatkes,” are available on iTunes, at amazon.com, and at www.laurenmayer.com!)
By John Y. Brown III, on Tue Dec 4, 2012 at 12:00 PM ET
Polygamy vs Monogamy.
An ordinary married couple discusses the pros and cons. And realities.
I love laughing with my wife about about bizarre speculative situations….Like just now. My wife and I are talking about Muslim culture, women’s roles, and polygamy. Rebecca asked if I would practice polygamy if I had been born into Muslim culture. And smiled anticipating my answer….Kind of put me on the spot… a little bit.
I said, “Look honey, you know me. I’m not…..I’m not really the martyr type. I wouldn’t want to marry other women, of course. But would do it to, you know, so people wouldn’t talk bad about you. Because, like, if I was the only monogamist in a polygamist culture people start talking and assuming things about me and, you know, maybe think you were the cause. I could never allow that perception of you to happen and so would marry other women just to preserve your reputation in the community. Again, not that I’d want to. You know, When in Rome….”
We were both laughing hysterically at this riff….and then it was Rebecca’s turn.
“You’d be an awful polygamist. You know how I get upset when you are late or or don’t give me your full attention when talking sometimes? Or if you text me instead of call me? Well, multiply that 5 times! Those 5 wives would be so angry and fed up with you.
“Where is he?” “Are you kidding?” “He’s a mess.” “We know he’ll never take the garbage out.”
“They would be talking about you all the time and you’d be miserable. And begging for a monogamous relationships. ”
Laughing even harder….as I have to completely agree. I’d be a dismal polygamist.
It’s good to laugh with your spouse. And I’m grateful to live in a monogamous culture. And to have a mate who keeps me always on my toes…and laughs with me (as often as at me).
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Dec 3, 2012 at 10:00 AM ET
We’re proud to announce The RP’s latest gig — a semi-regular columnist for The Times of Israel. As the Jewish State finds itself in the headlines following the Gaza conflict and Palestinian maneuvers before the United Nations, The RP dispels the myth of Israel’s illegitimacy being pounded by the mostly-liberal Blame Israel First crowd.
Here’s an excerpt:
My column last week in The Huffington Post, “Why My Fellow Liberals Should Support Israel in Her Conflict with Hamas,” provoked the predictable hackles from the Blame Israel First crowd.
Within their excuses and rationalizations for the Hamas regime’s abhorrent actions — such as the targeting of Israeli civilians and the employment of Palestinian human shields — ran a familiar argument: That all means are justified, since the Jewish State is legally and morally illegitimate.
You may have heard their historical narrative: The Great Western powers, triumphantly basking in the aftermath of World War II, were paralyzed with guilt for their failure to prevent history’s most horrifying genocide. The Allies decided to resolve the “Jewish problem” by carving up the Arab-dominated Palestine to create a Jewish State because of the Chosen People’s mythical, Biblical ties to the land. Just as with the imperialist colonization of Africa and Asia; here, white-skinned, European, self-important and self-righteous conquerors patronizingly tried to “civilize” — and, if that failed, they’d violently displace — dark-skinned, indigenous peoples… all along ironically justifying their actions as a pursuit of justice and freedom and democracy.
It’s a powerful story that tugs at the heartstrings and plays to the deepest biases of many American liberals. For most progressives, our foreign policy worldview was defined by Vietnam, during which the old liberal guard launched a misguided quest to further the cause of global freedom, resulting instead in the inexcusable loss of hundreds of thousands of lives — mostly innocent, native Southeast Asians. The mindset was reinforced more recently in Iraq, where a neo-con Bush/Cheney Administration played upon popular insecurities to wage an unnecessary and brutal war under the false pretenses of promoting democracy.
And hey, what liberal doesn’t love a good underdog story; whether it’s a minority group championing civil rights, or a tiny nation battling an imperial power?
It’s no wonder that this Bizarro-Bible myth of Israel as Goliath and Palestine as David plays smack dab into the liberal wheelhouse. And it confirms to some progressives that it’s the Israeli imperialists — greedily grasping onto their colonial territories — who are the key obstacle to peace in the Middle East.
The trouble with this narrative is that it’s entirely untrue.
Whether or not you believe that the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) and/or the Christian Scriptures (New Testament) should be accepted as literally true — I don’t — it’s important to understand that for millennia, Jews and Christians have proclaimed Israel as their ancestral homeland. The city of Jerusalem and the land of Zion are mentioned more than 800 times in the Hebrew Bible, and in over 100 instances in the Christian Scriptures. Contrast that with the Koran; even though Jerusalem is spiritually significant for Muslims, the city is never mentioned in Islam’s holiest text.
But even those who reject any discussion of the holy books in this context must concede that the objective, independent historical and archaeological evidence is overwhelming: There has been a sustained and vibrant Jewish presence in the land of Israel for thousands of years.
Over the past few centuries, archaeologists have made a series of extraordinary discoveries that establish that a distinctive Jewish religion and culture was developed around 4,000 years ago in Israel, and that Biblical figures such as David, Solomon and Jesus were the focus of considerable attention by the Jews of antiquity within Jerusalem and throughout the holy land. Further, Martin Gilbert, a widely-respected historian, has demonstrated, through a dispassionate examination of the historical record, that for more than 1600 years, Jews formed the “main settled population” of what now is considered the modern state of Israel.
By Lauren Mayer, on Tue Nov 27, 2012 at 1:30 PM ET
There will probably never be a shortage of inspiring antics in the political arena, between the fiscal cliff and assorted sex scandals. But for the next few weeks I’ll be tackling the subject of interfaith acceptance, inspired by our host’s No Labels approach to bipartisanship, and illustrating the challenges of being in a religious minority.
Even if you’re not Jewish (or a member of another religion that doesn’t celebrate Christmas), you may be a little bothered by the fact that we’re already surrounded by Christmas decorations, signs and music, plenty of it before Thanksgiving.
So try to put yourself in our shoes – and since it’s probably impossible to imagine being surrounded by tacky Chanukah decor, what about other times you might have felt like you were an isolated minority? Any liberals in red states, or conservatives in blue states, or vegetarians in a family of carnivores? I’ve had a few of those moments, like being the only girl on the math team in jr. high, or being the only actual female pianist in a gay bar (and constantly having to tell the guys that I wasn’t just in underdone drag). That sense of being different gets particularly strong during this time of year.
Please don’t get me wrong – I think Christmas is a beautiful holiday, and as an entertainer I’m extremely grateful for the extra work (as well as the infinitely superior music – I’d hate to do a gig playing 3 hours of Chanukah music!) But just try to remember that not everyone celebrates it, and even a totally secular ‘Merry Christmas’ still is etymologically derived from the religious basis of the holiday, so if you can occasionally wish your jewish friends “Happy Holidays” instead, they’ll appreciate it.
In this spirt of interfaith bipartisanship, I’ve enlisted some friends & relatives to create our own version of those ’80s ‘videos-for-a-cause’, “Don’t They Know (Not Everyone Does Christmas).”
Note: While I am unfortunately not able to use this space to plug my upcoming appearance on The Daily Show (since they haven’t invited me on yet), I can let readers know that the song is from my album, “Latkes Shmatkes – Comedy Songs for Chanukah and Beyond”, available at this link, and on iTunes, Amazon, CDBaby, and Picklehead Music, among others. It’s a great gift for any of your friends who are Jewish, or who will be flattered by receiving something that implies you think they have a good sense of humor!
Mrs. RP — the distinguished Lisa Miller — was featured in Monday’s Louisville Courier-Journal in an article about a yoga and meditation workshop she led at Louisville’s Festival of Faiths convention.
Here’s an excerpt:
A large crowd turned out Sunday for an Ayurveda yoga workshop, part of the 17th annual Festival of Faiths at the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage on Muhammad Ali Boulevard.
The workshop was led by Lisa Miller, an instructor with certifications from the Chopra Center.
Ayurveda is a health and wellness practice that considers all five senses as being necessary for good health and well-being, Miller said. The practice is a 5,000-year-old Indian system that translates from Sanskrit to “life” and “wisdom.”
The event consisted of a lecture on Ayurveda as well as instruction on meditation and breathing techniques. “If you take care of your self, mind, body and spirit, you can walk through life with balance,” Miller said.
“I’m here because I’m curious to see the differences between the yoga I’ve been doing previously,” Joy Raatz said.
I read a story this morning that was written in 2005, about a lost and traumatized baby hippo in Kenya, who “adopted” a tortoise to be his mother. An elderly male, the tortoise is said to be a century old.
“They sleep and eat together, and have become inseparable” says the director of the nature preserve.
As if that’s not moving enough, I am tearful after learning further that this baby had survived a tsunami-ravaged river that swept him into the Indian Ocean where tides eventually washed him ashore. Dehydrated but hanging on, rescuers found him on the beach (and brought him to the nature preserve).
For me, this story tugs at the strings.
And when I step back, I find it interesting that both tragedy and miracle are (now in my heart) here in this story—two seemingly opposing forces. And a third force, inspiration, is here as well.
So, is inspiration born of tragedy and miracle? Is inspiration the baby hippo of the married couple, Tragedy & Miracle Kenya?
If you are like me, your favorite stories are about true-life people overcoming adversity.
Why do those stories appeal? Because there’s something truly amazing and life affirming and heart-filling about knowing that others have faced what seemed like insurmountable obstacles, and not only survived but found deeper meaning in life.
It’s hardly ever easy to recognize the worth of something tragic while in the middle of it. No tsunami, loss, or pain feels like it’s going to lead to something positive.
Read the rest of… Lisa Miller: Unusual Inspiration
Once upon a time, after the campaign rallies were over, the ballots counted, the concession calls made, and the victory speeches given, the American campaign season ended. Politics remained a sport for those who chose to engage, but most of us happily moved on. Some actually took to the business of governing. Today, a multibillion-dollar election industry swings into motion before the confetti is swept away. It is an industry that thrives on year-round conflict. And the Jewish community is anything but immune from its reach.
To see the evidence of this transformation, one has only to look at the surprising number of start-up Jewish organizations — advocacy groups, media outlets, and legal operations — that enter the communal arena with their politics on their sleeves. They come from the left and right and are joined by networks of activists. At face value, there is nothing wrong with this political activity. We enjoy a rich pluralistic tradition of argumentation and debate within the Jewish community. But while we thrive on this vocal pursuit, we are now witnessing the emergence of a new partisanship. It is bolstered by the belief, sometimes grounded in reality, but often clouded by fantasy, that every decision made, every speaker heard, every word of every resolution will have a profound impact on world events. And so large issues are acted out on small stages. Again, there is nothing wrong with this activity — until the hubris of a grand impact takes hold. Then, compromise slips out the door. As with political campaigns, there can only be winners and losers in this enterprise. The prize is never to be shared. Robust debate morphs into blood sport.
What we lose as a result is enormous. Our capacity to debate, share, listen, and compromise is diminished; eventually, even our sense of klal Yisrael wanes. Rather than engaging in discourse that provokes new ways of thinking — and that may even change minds — we find ourselves in camps, with large blocks of Jewish voices that cannot comprehend how there could possibly be Jews who see important issues in a different way. Voices on either side, buoyed by confirming networks, isolated from earnest conversation across conflicts, enter the debate seeking a winner-take-all result. In the end, we all lose. To the outside world, it is just noise.
Read the rest of… Ethan Felson: The Politics of Compromise
Ayurveda, the 5,000-year-old healing system founded in ancient India, is derived from the Sanskrit words ayusmeaning life, and veda meaning wisdom. Ayurveda, the wisdom of life, offers a time-tested guide for a life of happiness, vitality, love and purpose.
From the Ayurvedic perspective, human beings are not viewed as mere thinking physical machines, but rather as fields of intelligence in dynamic exchange with the energy and information of the environment. Health is a state of vibrant balance in which all the layers of one’s life are integrated—the physical, the psychological, the spiritual.
In this system, the great elements of the universe, the mahabutas, are reflected in our own physical bodies and psychological make-up. The element of fire, tejas, in particular, plays a vital role here as it is the very force that enables proper digestion, integration of nutrients, emotions, ideas and experiences.
Based on the Chopra Center’s Perfect Health course, I’ll be teaching a free class at the Festival of Faiths in Louisville, KY this Sunday, November 18, from 11:30am-1:00pm.
Come and learn about your own mind/body constitution and discover how to help your tejas burn as brightly as it is designed. This session will be interactive and experiential including lecture, discussion, pranayama (breathing techniques), and meditation.
