JGMotek http://www.jta.org/user/profile/15550 en-us zsilberman@washingtonjewishweek.com Copyright 2012 2012-02-09T;22:54:00-05:00 Tthe Hava Nagila routine was appalling - there are so many good Jewish//Israeli folk songs and dances and the Israeli couple chose the most hackneyed song (and a terrible version) and then hardly did any actual "Jewish" folk dance steps. I was really worried when I heard that their free dance was going to be to Schindler's List but amazingly, they actually did a nuanced and respectful performance. 2012-02-09T;22:54:00-05:00 Add Melbourne, Australia, to the list of places where Leonard Cohen easily sold out a stadium. Mind you, I don't think that the basic premise of this factor is appropriate: Cohen's music is actually best appreciated in a slightly smaller venue. I don't think that the fact that he plays at them in the US means that he would be unable to sell out a stadium in a given large city if he chose to do so. I know I'm not the only fan who has been following him since the hit Suzanne many years ago. Although I know that touring at this age would not have been his choice but was forced on him by the embezzlement of his financial advisors, it's still phenomenal to see someone at his age still so enthusiastic about his music and still able to deliver what was probably the best concert I've ever seen. 2012-02-09T;22:54:00-05:00 I actually don't think this is "the first subdivision of its kind." I visited San Antonio, TX, several years ago and Congregation Rodfei Shalom seemed to me to be in a dedicated subdivision. It had its own eruv, the synagogue was on Sholom Drive, and the large semicircular street surrounding the subdivision was named Sholom Place. 2012-02-09T;22:54:00-05:00 Knowing someone who went to the school doesn't seem to me to provide proof that the charges are baseless. How would anyone attending the school know whether the administration had submitted false attendance records? In order for the case to be brought, some evidence had to be presented. 2012-02-09T;22:54:00-05:00 I was one of the people who passed the photo of the card to some friends - I don't think anyone can deny that someone in the White House made a large faux pas. However, I disagree with people who are making the story bigger than it is by implying that it is evidence of general cultural insensitivity or indication of Bush's Israel policy or something. As for mixed cards or Xmas cards sent to friends who are identifiably Jewish, I'm not as accepting of that sort of thing. Chanukah is its own holiday and the fact that it happens to occur at roughly the same time as Xmas on the calendar doesn't mean they should be pushed together. "Getting along" doesn't mean making everything into a friendly ecumenical lump -- it means respecting everyone's culture and being sensitive to differences in belief. 2012-02-09T;22:54:00-05:00 I disagree with the premise of this column, especially the invocation of Miss Manners (who is indeed Jewish, btw). She would agree that someone in the White House made a large faux pas in sending out Chanukah cards with Christmas symbolism on them. Pointing that out is not necessarily making it symbolic of Bush's policies on Israel or a lack of cultural sensitivity in general. (I agree that it's ludicrous to try to make the story bigger than it is.) Someone screwed up in a very noticeable way. Other people noticed the screw-up and reported on it. End of story. 2012-02-09T;22:54:00-05:00