the definite article 41
Oscars and pervasive antisemitism in the civilized West
I’m starting out this week with four articles about the Oscars, where many Jews took home awards but failed to use their fame and position to discuss the horrific events of October 7, 2023. One can say not just that Hollywood will regret this moment, but that the Jews who turned their backs on their own people and on fundamental elements of morality will live to regret it as well.
https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/you-will-regret-this-hollywood
https://substack.com/home/post/p-158285860
https://substack.com/home/post/p-158396904?selection=ff3ebd38-537b-49bd-a30f-dde4151b90f8
Of course you are probably aware that the aid that Israel sends into the Gaza Strip are commandeered by Hamas and are used to both supplement their own stores of food and to sell at scalpers prices to the poor of Gaza. This piece of excellent investigative reporting indicates that aid workers from NGOs and UN agencies use their positions to force Arab women into prostitution in order to obtain enough food to survive.
https://substack.com/home/post/p-158487390
Elder of Zion, a tongue in cheek pseudonym for a no-holds-barred writer on Palestinian and Israeli issues, wonders why Huner College is advertising for an academic position that seems open only to antisemites.
https://substack.com/home/post/p-157785600
This article from Tablet magazine features the experience of an expert on antisemitism who was invited to present at a conference in Finland and then had the invitation withdrawn for reasons that the universities themselves seem unable to articulate. Her account of Finland’s antisemitic history influenced by Soviet ideology is chilling.
https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/canceled-finland-antisemitism
David Harsanyi provides another insightful piece on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. His wide ranging knowledge is always enlightening.
https://substack.com/home/post/p-157576946
This is a wonderful piece on the meaning of the incense alter in the Mishkan, described in this week’s Torah portion.
https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-gold-incense-altars-two-functions