Rumor is the coronavirus started in a Chinese lab. Here’s how we know it didn’t. Read more on Vox.com.
The Elephant in the Sukkah
Yes, someone has finally made a children’s book out of that fabulous mishnah in Tractate Sukkah. About time! It looks gorgeous and I can’t wait to read it.
“Henry, once a happy circus elephant, feels lonely and sad at the farm for old elephants, where nobody wants to hear him sing. One evening, he follows the sound of music and singing to the Broner family’s sukkah. At last, a place where he might sing. But Henry cannot fit inside the sukkah! Ori knows it’s a mitzvah to invite guests, and he gets a big idea about how to include Henry in the Sukkot fun.”
‘Alexa, play zimiros’
In which I pretend I’m Isaac Asimov and interview Multivac. I mean Alexa.
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Bimbo backs down
How four decades of bad anti-trust policy sowed the seeds of last month’s kosher bread crisis.
Rabbit & Robot
Leave out the first T in the title and I would totally buy this book. Heck, I’d even publish it.
The iPhone’s New Parental Controls Block Searches for Sex Ed, Allow Violence and Racism
Don’t worry, kids: You may not be able to learn about consent, but you’ll still have access to Stormfront. Read more
Opening the ark
In which I discuss the drowning of kittens and family-friendly synagogue programs:
“This Shabbat we read the Torah portion of Noah, where God drowned 99 percent of land animals and people, saving only a small remnant in a wooden ark. Kid stuff, right? But Jewish tradi…”
This is a test….
As I set up the awesomely named https://dew-quarter.glitch.me/
Playing around with a River of News
Is it possible to create a feed of RSS news links that bring in Jewish news from Jewish sources and filters in and out stories? This is the beginning of that project.
Day schools at the table
In which I look at the OU’s lobbying goals in Trenton — and how they fit into the broader picture of yeshiva and public school funding. Tl;Dr: They’re no longer allying themselves with the school choice movement. And they can succeed in year-over-year budget victories for decades before making an impact on the state budget or the cost of tuition.
Day schools at the table
OU’s Maury Litwack serves on governor’s transition committee (Jewish Standard)