The Dividing Wall of Netanyahu's Legacy

In the 1970s and 1980s, if someone referenced "The Wall" they were likely referring to the Berlin Wall (or the Pink Floyd album). Today, mention of "The Wall" likely refers to the Western Wall (the Kotel) in Jerusalem. While walls of the security variety have been much discussed lately -- from Israel's security fence to the billion dollar one Donald Trump wants to erect in America to keep out Mexicans -- the Kotel's gender divisions have been a divisive issue for the Jewish people for a very long time.

An article on the Jerusalem Post website recently ran the headline:  "Netanyahu agrees with haredim not to allow Women of the Wall to read Torah at Western Wall." That decision by the Prime Minister of Israel might be chalked up to the status quo and considered not very newsworthy as 2015 comes to a close, however, it is contradictory to his previous promise. As Women of the Wall officially noted, “Apparently when Netanyahu spoke of ‘all’ Jews in November 2015, he forgot that women make up half of all Jews."  The group was referencing Netanyahu's statement at the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly last month.

In response to this negated promise, I don't think any Jews will offer up the rallying cry of "Mr. Netanyahu: Tear down that wall," but the ongoing unfairness at the Kotel is sure to leave many non-Orthodox Jews feeling that the Kotel no longer represents a religious or spiritual place for us. On my first visit to the Kotel I felt enormously spiritual while touching the ancient walls and offering a personal prayer for my dying grandfather. That was over 21 years ago, and I've returned to Israel many times since then. With each successive visit to the Kotel, I feel less and less connected to this ancient destination. This decline of spirituality and connection at the Kotel has been triggered specifically by the treatment of women at this holy site, but more generally by the way the Israeli government has allowed the Kotel to be controlled by the haredi Orthodox Jews. Non-haredi Jews feel marginalized at the Kotel and have been made to feel like strangers there -- or at the very least like guests in an ultra-Orthodox synagogue. The Kotel should be a holy site to all the Jewish people.

The White House Hanukkah Party 2015

My wife, Elissa, and I returned home Thursday following a busy two days in Washington D.C. Since becoming parents, we have both really made it a point to not go out in the evenings during Hanukkah, let alone travel out of town away from the kids. However, when I received an invitation to the annual Hanukkah Reception at The White House, we (of course) decided to make an exception knowing it would be quite the experience.

Like so many rabbis and Jewish community leaders I have enthusiastically followed the excitement of the annual Hanukkah party at The White House in past years from the outside looking in by scanning the photos and videos guests upload to Facebook and other social media. This year when the invitation arrived asking for my presence along with a guest, I knew Elissa and I would have a different perspective from the inside. After posting several photos (okay, a lot of photos!) on Facebook and Instagram during the party Wednesday evening, several friends asked me to blog about the experience, so here are some reflections:

We had heard a few fun tidbits from past attendees and they all proved to be true. The line of invited guests on the street outside The White House waiting to be processed by Secret Service security truly is an unofficial Jewish leadership reunion and a "Who's Who" of the American Jewish world. On the advice of some White House Hanukkah Party veterans, we got in line about an hour before the time on the invitation. We were surprised to see that the line was already about 40 people deep when we arrived. From our Uber car we could already see several friends and colleagues walking down the street toward The White House. At the front of the line I was excited to see Rabbi Burt Visotzky, one of my favorite teachers from rabbinical school at the Jewish Theological Seminary.

The other rumor that is completely true is that the lamb chops at The White House are out of this world. Never have I eaten such delicious lamb chops before. They were enough to turn a vegan back into a carnivore. Just delicious! And of course, as in all years, The White House was made kosher and kosher supervised by Rabbi Levi Shemtov, Executive VP of American Friends of Chabad Lubavitch. In addition to all the photos guests post of themselves in front of the portraits of Past Presidents, one of the most common photos is of the sign from Rabbi Shemtov explaining the strict kashrut standards for the evening.

With Rabbi Levi Shemtov, Kosher Supervisor for the annual Hanukkah Reception at The White House

The security process was very intense, which is not surprising considering it is The White House and the President and First Lady were in attendance. After having our identification checked twice by Secret Service against the list of attendees we were then taken into a small security house one by one to be sniffed by a German Shepherd before going through the security scanners. Once inside The White House, however, it was a very warm and relaxing atmosphere without any concern for our safety.

With Matt Nosanchuk

Each year the annual Hanukkah reception at The White House is organized by the liaison to the Jewish community, a position currently held by Matt Nosanchuk. I had the honor of meeting Matt, a Detroit expat, at the Hanukkah party and I was amazed at what a spectacular job he does. Let's face it, it is not an easy task to produce two back-to-back parties for hundreds of Jewish leaders on the same day. I had a chance to also meet Jarrod Bernstein, a past liaison to the Jewish community position in the Obama administration, at the reception. Waiting for the President to speak, I also spotted Jay Footlick, who was the Jewish liaison in the Clinton Administration.

The Hanukkah party was, as I presumed, not a political event at all. There were Democrats and Republicans in attendance. It really was an opportunity to celebrate Hanukkah and not to debate any divisive political issues. I was, however, concerned about inappropriate comments that some people might make on photos I posted to social media that evening and I didn't want to have to be occupied with monitoring my Facebook account while at the party. So, before I left for Washington, I gave my assistant the task of monitoring my social networks for anything overtly offensive. At the end of the night, I'm happy to say that she only had to remove three comments that were inappropriate.

The best piece of advice about the party came from Rabbi Steven Wernick, the CEO of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, who had attended the afternoon party. Before we headed out that evening, I asked him for any pointers and he was emphatic about wearing comfortable shoes. I told Elissa and she quickly threw a pair of comfortable shoes into her purse. After standing for a long time waiting for the President and First Lady to enter the room, she switched shoes and was grateful for Steve's advice, especially a few hours later as we made our way from The White House to the Library of Congress for Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz's Hanukkah party (the "after party" as some refer to the congresswoman's annual get-together).

My wife and I with Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz at her Hanukkah party at the Library of Congress

The White House is beautiful inside and even more so during the holidays. Guests of the party were free to roam from room to room. Some of the highlights were viewing the portraits of Past Presidents and First Ladies, looking through books in the library, checking out the beautiful candid photos of the First Family that adorned the walls, and admiring the display of the official White House dishes and holiday cards from past administrations. With The White House decorated for Christmas, it was comical to see so many rabbis -- of all denominations -- posing for photos in front of Christmas trees and wreaths.

My wife, Elissa Miller, with First Lady Michelle Obama at The White House Hanukkah Party

One of the highlights, of course, was actually shaking hands with President Obama and Mrs. Obama. A White House staff member told Elissa where the best place to stand would be and we took his advice. It was fun watching as the President shmoozed with the kids next to us, asking about their school and sports teams. Before we left for Washington I asked one of my children what he wanted me to bring back for him. I was thinking a t-shirt, but he asked me to get a video of President Obama saying "hi" to him. Surprisingly, I was able to comply!

Many people have asked me about the differences between the afternoon Hanukkah party and the evening Hanukkah party. I too was curious and asked William Daroff earlier in the day. He explained that both parties are essentially the same. The food is the same at both parties and each have a Jewish a capella group perform (The Maccabeats from Yeshiva University sang at the afternoon party and the Chai Notes from Cornell sang in the evening). This year, the afternoon party included a visit from Reuven Rivlin, the President of Israel, and Vice President Joe Biden and Ambassador Ron Dermer were there too. The evening party included all three Jewish Supreme Court justices, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer and Elena Kagan, although we only saw Justice Ginsburg who stood right by us during the ceremony (the President jokingly referred to by her nickname, "The Notorious RBG").

With my wife, Elissa Miller, Ruth Messinger of AJWS and Rep. Eliot Engel

President Rivlin lit the Hanukkah candles at the afternoon party, while at the evening party we had the honor of watching as Holocaust survivor Manny Lindenbaum lit the chanukkiyah with his granddaughter Lauren. President Obama talked about Lindenbaum's story of being born in Germany, deported to Poland, and eventually escaping to England with his brother via the Kindertransport. His parents and sister perished at Auschwitz. The President also shared the story of of how Lindenbaum, at age 81, rode his bicycle 200 miles with his children and grandchildren last year retracing his voyage in Europe and raising money for HIAS (the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society).

With Holocaust survivor Manny Lindenbaum

After the ceremony, Elissa and I had the pleasure of speaking with him and he explained to us what he was talking with President Obama about when they huddled together following the ceremony. It turns out that when he received the call from The White House asking him to light the menorah, Lindenbaum was looking at a photo of his sister who was very young when she was murdered at Auschwitz. He brought a print out of that photo with him to The White House so his sister's memory would be with him. He teared up as he showed the President the photo.

With my wife, Elissa, and longtime Michigan Congressman Sandy Levin at The White House

The rabbi who spoke at the afternoon party made news for her speech, which I heard from the C-Span recording of that ceremony. While I agree with her message that we must stand together against hatred and that we should welcome refugees to our great nation, I think that she took a unique honor and used it inappropriately. The way in which she expressed all of her activist positions was undignified in that setting. Rabbi Sid Schwarz, who spoke at the evening party, on the other hand set the perfect tone and spoke beautifully about Hanukkah and its message for us today. I was very impressed by his words, which were meaningful and inspirational. Rabbi Schwarz's father fled Germany right before Kristallnacht and arrived to America on the St. Louis, the final voyage of that ship that arrived safely in America. The next voyage would be turned back to Nazi Europe as the passengers could see Miami and their fate was set. Rabbi Schwarz, like the skillful rabbi he is, used his personal story as a message about the importance of welcoming in refugees. He did it in a very dignified way and I feel honored that he was chosen to speak at the reception we attended.

Manny and Lauren Lindenbaum, Michelle Obama, President Obama and Rabbi Sid Schwarz

The rich history of The White House was palpable for me as Elissa and I sat on the sofas and touched the doorknobs. I had the opportunity to speak to a woman who was serving glasses of wine. She told me that she began working at The White House a few days following the assassination of President Kennedy, and that while she left her job for a few years she felt compelled to return because it was so rewarding. At the end of the evening we walked over to the windows in the Blue Room and looked out onto the Ellipse as we could see the National Menorah, the National Christmas Tree, and the Washington Monument. It was a moment we'll never forget.

Finally, the part about this experience I will cherish the most is what it means to me as an American to be able to celebrate a Jewish holiday in The White House. Our world is a very dark place right now with a scary amount of hate, violence and divisiveness. There are so many countries in which it is no longer safe to be Jewish, and yet, in its 240th year the United States of America opens the doors of "The People's House" to the Jewish community so we may celebrate our religious holiday in which we bring light into the world. With great humility, I feel truly blessed and honored to have been included in this memorable experience.

Video of the menorah lighting ceremony at The White House Hanukkah Reception 2015:

2015 Best Hanukkah Videos

Hanukkah begins this Sunday at sundown and for those of you keeping track, this will be the 11th Hanukkah holiday observed since YouTube.com launched back in 2005. That means there have been countless entertaining and amusing Hanukkah-themed videos. 2015 has been a good year for Hanukkah parody videos and I'm sure there will be a few more released during Hanukkah (and I'll add those as they're released).

Here's my annual list of the top Hanukkah videos this year (and if you thought I wasn't going to put Adam Sandler's "Chanukah Song Part 4" first, you'd have been mistaken!):


Adam Sandler - Chanukah Song Part 4

The Maccabeats - Latke Recipe - Hanukkah

(Bonus: Get the Maccabeats' Perfect Latke recipe)



Blau Bright Productions - Shalom (Adele's "Hello")

Erez Cohen & Six13 - A One Direction Hanukkah

Ari Goldwag and Sheves Chaverim - Hanukkah - Shir Ushvacha

Jimmy Kimmel Live - Jake Owen’s Chanukah Album

Julie Geller - The Spark (Hanukkah Song)

Hanukkah Song 2015 - Fighting The Darkness

Shir Soul - Hanukkah: Lift Yourself Up

Mark Zuckerberg's Letter to His Baby Daughter is His Vision for the Future

No matter how much money each of us donated yesterday on what has come to be known as Giving Tuesday, it certainly wasn’t as large a charitable commitment as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan made. On the occasion of the birth of their daughter, Max, yesterday the couple pledged to donate 99% of their stock shares of Facebook (currently about $45 billion) during their lifetimes to improve the world for the next generation.

While this level of charitable pledging is unmatched (Warren Buffet, Bill Gates and Eli Broad have been very successful in getting many billionaires to commit to donating 50% of their fortunes during their lifetime), I was more interested in two other aspects of the Zuckerberg-Chan family’s public announcement.

First, I found their open letter to their newborn daughter to be extremely meaningful and inspirational. I too penned (or rather typed) letters to each of my children on the day of their birth. So many people wait until they’re close to death to sit down and write an ethical will to their children. A truly important time to do this exercise is on the highly emotional first day of our child’s life.

In Zuckerberg’s letter to his daughter, he wrote:

Your mother and I don’t yet have the words to describe the hope you give us for the future. Your new life is full of promise, and we hope you will be happy and healthy so you can explore it fully. You’ve already given us a reason to reflect on the world we hope you live in. Like all parents, we want you to grow up in a world better than ours today. 

While headlines often focus on what’s wrong, in many ways the world is getting better. Health is improving. Poverty is shrinking. Knowledge is growing. People are connecting. Technological progress in every field means your life should be dramatically better than ours today. We will do our part to make this happen, not only because we love you, but also because we have a moral responsibility to all children in the next generation. We believe all lives have equal value, and that includes the many more people who will live in future generations than live today. Our society has an obligation to invest now to improve the lives of all those coming into this world, not just those already here.

The second part of the Zuckerberg-Chan family’s letter that struck me was that it was filled with hope for the future, but also a genuine concern. As a father, I’ve been thinking very seriously about these issues over the past several years as well. Before my first child was born almost twelve years ago, I envisioned a world for him without racism, without war and without terrorism precipitated by hatred. As my children have grown from infants to toddlers to pre-teens, I’ve watched sadly as there has been more hate and evil in our world. No doubt, Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, likewise, wish to envision a world for their newborn daughter in which peace and love dominate.

This beautiful letter by Zuckerberg not only articulates his hopes and prayers for his daughter, but it also is a clear and poignant testament to the world he is willing to help create through his personal wealth. We should all be grateful to Zuckerberg and Chan for their devotion to the next generation and to ensuring that our children’s and grandchildren’s lives will be better than our own lives. Mazel Tov on the birth or Max Zuckerberg and thank you for your commitment to the future.

The Syrian Refugee Debate Takes to Social Media: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

In the era of Facebook, controversial topics play out in various ways on the social networking site and it's often not pretty. Such has been the case with the ongoing debate over whether the United States should accept Syrian refugees in the wake of the tragic terrorism acts in Paris.

While Syrian refugees have been seeking safe harbor in several countries over the past few years, the debate here in America has escalated in recent weeks and turned into divisive political arguments. A majority of U.S. governors have publicly voiced their opposition to providing asylum to the Syrian migrants even though immigration remains a federal issue. The debate has also become a litmus test for the presidential candidates and their views on domestic security.


FITS OF FURY ON FACEBOOK

Facebook, with its free accounts and ability to weigh in on anything in a public forum, has provided bully pulpits to anyone with an internet connection at home, at the office or on their smartphone. Now, as soon as someone offers their opinion in the form of a Facebook post as to whether the U.S. should welcome Syrian refugees, that post quickly becomes an explosive back-and-forth among commentators from every demographic and political affiliation.

After Michigan's governor, Rick Snyder, reversed his earlier position in support of Michigan welcoming Syrian refugees, debates on the social network started by local residents turned into tempestuous back-and-forth arguments with each side posting links to articles in support of their opinion on the matter. Analogies to the U.S. closing its doors to Jewish refugees in the 1930's were quickly rebuffed by those arguing that allowing the Syrian migrants into our country would lead to domestic terrorism. Others cited statistics showing the majority of terrorist attacks were caused by those affiliated with Islam. These posts garnered hundreds of comments with both sides vehemently concerned about the issues they prioritize, whether the security of our country and the refugee screening process or the ethical considerations of turning away hopeless women and young children in need of shelter.

The Jewish community, with its strong values, remains divided on these issues as evidenced by the outpouring of strongly held viewpoints on Facebook. Some descendents of those who were turned back to Europe in the 1930s took the position that the U.S. must use its moral compass and not transgress as it did before the Holocaust. Others called such a comparison preposterous as the Jewish immigrants from Europe eighty years ago posed no threat to American citizens. On such a contentious issue, strong disagreements are bound to occur online. Several such Facebook debates over the Syrian refugee topic led to Facebook users blocking each other, even those who are friends in real life.

In many instances, the Facebook discussion space has proven to be detrimental to open and honest dialogue with regard to the Syrian refugee crisis, but surely there are some positive outcomes from Facebook in this matter.

Adam Sandler's New Hanukkah Song Could Include Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor

Adam Sandler's much awaited fourth installment of his wildly popular "The Hanukkah Song" was released the other day and it might be his funniest and most creative song about famous Jews yet. Sandler's production company Happy Madison released the music video of "The Hanukkah Song" on Wednesday and it is a recording of a live performance at the San Diego Civic Theatre on November 18th when he first sang the new version.

In this latest iteration of his celebrity infused Hanukkah song, Sandler includes such celebrities as Joseph Gordon-Levitt (who enjoys eating kugel), Stan Lee, Jake Gyllenhaal, Adam Levine, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe), Ben and Jerry (Ice Cream Magnates), Scarlett Johansson, Shia LaBeouf and even Jared Fogle from the Subway commercials (whom he recommends Dr. Drew can help). The video quickly made its way around the Interwebs as fans shared the YouTube video on Facebook.

Two deceased celebs whom Adam Sandler didn't include in this rendition of "The Hanukkah Song," but could have are Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor. I had long heard rumors that both iconic women had converted to Judaism, but I never confirmed it. Sure enough Marilyn Monroe converted with a Reform rabbi before she married Arthur Miller and Elizabeth Taylor converted in 1959 before marrying husband #4 Eddie Fisher. It turns out that Liz Taylor's 3rd husband, Michael Todd, was the son of an Orthodox rabbi, but Taylor only converted after Todd was killed in a plane crash and she was set to marry Fisher.

I only learned about Marilyn Monroe and Liz Taylor's conversions to Judaism this week after I was called by Lauren Markoe, a reporter with Religion News Service, asking me for a few comments on the matter. It turns out that the Jewish Museum in New York (under the auspices of The Jewish Theological Seminary) has a new exhibit about the conversions of the two famous women. In the RNS article, Markoe writes, "Collecting letters from their rabbis, images from their Jewish weddings, and a rarely-heard audio recording of Taylor’s conversion ceremony, “Becoming Jewish,” documents the relatively quiet way in which Monroe and Taylor adopted the faith, and what that said about the America that loved them."

2015 Technology Holiday Gift Guide

The holiday shopping season is in full effect. Hanukkah begins the evening of Sunday, December 6 this year, which means if you're shopping for Hanukkah observers you have about three weeks fewer to shop for gifts.

Since we’re knee deep in the Digital Age that means a non-technology gift will be relegated to the category of the infamous holiday fruitcake this year, but fear not because there are a lot of options for fun and exciting tech gadgets this Christmas and Hanukkah season.

There are also a lot of practical tech gifts that your friends and family are sure to appreciate. This year’s hot gifts will be flat-screen TVs, smartphones, gaming systems, tablets, headphones, speakers, wearables and drones. As a techie who loves trying out the latest gadgets, I have put together a list of the best tech gifts for holiday shoppers this season. These gifts range in price so there's something for everyone.

Note: Prices might be lower during the holiday season and search for bargains online.


BEBOP DRONE (PARROT)
Drones have been in the news a lot lately and pretty soon you might have to register your drone for safety reasons. While a drone might not be the type of thing everyone is racing out to buy for themselves, they make great gifts. They’re fun to use and capture some amazing video footage that you’d otherwise never see (your kids playing a game of touch football on the beach in Florida for example). The Parrot Bebop is one of the most popular recreational use drones on the market because it’s small and lightweight. The quadcopter’s camera has been improved from previous drone models and has a 180-degree angle of view with a 14-megapixel sensor. You pilot this drone with a smartphone or tablet. It can reach speeds of around 45 mph. You'll have to recharge the Bebop's battery often between flights, but anyone who gets one this holiday season will enjoy capturing their friends on the ski slopes this winter. Price: $499 www.parrot.com

AIRBORNE CARGO DRONE (PARROT)
Drones can be pricey, making them a challenging option for children’s gifts this holiday season. That’s why Parrot has come out with a line of light-weight drones for kids. Their new line of Airborne drones connect via Bluetooth and are controlled with the free FreeFlight 3 app for smartphones and tablets. These mini-drones can be used both indoors and outdoors. A vertical camera compares, every 16 milliseconds, an image of the ground to the previous one to determine the speed of the Minidrone and also enables it to take snapshots, which are saved on the 1 Gb flash memory. The Airborne can only hit speeds of up to 11 mph, but kids will enjoy making it do tricks in the sky. Price: $99 www.parrot.com

CUBE PROJECTOR (RIF6)
There are many pocket sized projectors on the market, but the Cube is the first designed specifically for your smart devices, adapting the image resolution based on the connected smartphone or tablet. Your lucky friend who receives the Cube this Christmas or Hanukkah will be able to load a YouTube clip on their iPad and immediately host a movie night. Price: $299 www.rif6.com

LYRIC THERMOSTAT (HONEYWELL)
The Smart Home is the new rage, but your friends might be apprehensive about turning all their household appliances into 21st century smart devices. Help them slowly transform their home into the Digital Age and save them some money along the way. The round Lyric thermostat is very similar to the Nest, but has improved on that concept in several ways. It’s easy to install and configure, and it uses outdoor weather data for optimal heating and cooling. This Wi-Fi thermostat is controlled and monitored using an iOS or Android smartphone app, and uses your phone's location services, known as geofencing, to save energy. It is very easy to configure the thermostat using the app, but there is no desktop app as of yet. The lucky recipient of this smart thermostat will also appreciate the reports on the app about their energy use. Price: $279 at www.sears.com www.lyric.honeywell.com

ARLO HD SECURITY CAMERA (NETGEAR)
One of the best gifts to friends and family is the gift of security. Netgear’s Arlo is an impressive security system with battery-operated 720p-resolution, motion-sensing, night-vision-equipped, indoor/outdoor cameras. These pocket-sized cameras retain the resolution and on-demand video feed of a typically-tethered camera, but without the typical electrical cords. Arlo’s mobile app is simple, but impressive. The cameras can be used inside and outside the home or business to provide security. For many homes, the two-camera kit will be sufficient, but a there is a four-camera kit and additional cameras can be added for $160 each. Price: $329 www.arlo.com

NETATMO WELCOME CAMERA
The Welcome camera from Netatmo isn’t your typical security camera. Think of it more as a Nanny Cam that recognizes faces. It uses facial recognition to provide notifications about who’s in the home. All data is stored locally on an 8GB SD card included with the camera. Users can also watch a live stream in full HD quality to see motion in the house anywhere in its 130 degree field of view, even at night via infrared night vision. The Welcome compares well to the Nest Cam and both have easy-to-use mobile apps. This is an ideal gift for a family that wants to keep tabs on their kids at home alone or anyone who wants to see which workers are in their home – from the housekeeper and nanny to the painter and plumber. Price: $199 www.netatmo.com/en-US/product/camera

SAMSUNG SOUNDBAR WITH WIRELESS ACTIVE SUBWOOFER
Home entertainment systems used mean having professional installation to avoid seeing wires everywhere. Today, with the Samsung Soundbar with Wireless Active Subwoofer, enjoying high definition sound is simple. This is the perfect gift for a friend or relative who enjoys watching sports and movies with dynamic, surround sound. With the free Samsung Audio Remote App they will control the system from a phone. Price: $327.99 at Sears.com www.samsung.com

TIVO BOLT
TiVo Bolt ($200 less than the TiVo Roamio) lets multiple users record their favorite television shows and movies (four at once), as well as stream content from just about every provider. TiVo has loaded this unit with features that simply makes your standard cable box DVR seem like an 8-track player. Simply place a CableCARD into TiVo Bolt and there's no more need for a cable box. It's great for mobile TV viewing with the Android and iOS mobile app. Along with TV shows, Bolt gives you direct access to over-the-top streaming content through individual apps for Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube, Hulu Plus and more. Plus, Bolt is the first TiVo to support 4K-resolution video (2160p) from YouTube and Netflix. If your friend already has a TiVo in the house, the Bolt will connect to that unit as well to view recorded shows. Price: $299 for 500GB; $399 for 1TB www.tivo.com

MASTER & DYNAMIC ME05 EARPHONES
These are not your typical ear buds. If you’re looking for a gift for a friend who really appreciates high quality sound, they will love these earphones. They’re made from solid brass and hand-finished, these earphones feature a distinctive form with ergonomic and elegant details, including laser etching and mirrored accents that reflect light. A balanced weight distribution ensures a snug, comfortable fit. They are not inexpensive, but the quality fits the price. Price: $199 www.masterdynamic.com

REDFOX EDGE BLUETOOTH HEADPHONES
Know someone who enjoys music with their workout? This will be their most practical gift this holiday season. I fell in love with these headphones the first time I put them on. They actually stay in place during running! They are lightweight and comfortable with ultra-high quality sound, clarity and power. They also have a built-in microphone and a single button call-answering feature to be hands-free during calls, even when you're 30 feet from your phone. With up to 8 hours run time on a 1-hour charge, these are the best Bluetooth headphones for active people. For under $20, add a Sports Sleeve to hold the phone during running or biking. Price: $119.99 (with hard case) www.redfoxwireless.com

LOGITECH Z533 MULTIMEDIA SPEAKERS
Desktop computers used to come packaged with cheap speakers, but today everyone wants to enjoy their music with better sound quality. These impressive room-filling speakers are designed for the music, games or movies on the computer. These are powerful little speakers with a front-facing subwoofer and easy to use volume dial. Price: $99.99 www.logitech.com

UE BOOM 2 (ULTIMATE EARS)
This is the ultimate portable Bluetooth speaker. It is great for parties, backyard BBQs or the football tailgate. I’ve been enjoying UE speakers for a long time and even have the smaller waterproof model (UE Roll) in the shower. The UE Boom 2 is rugged, but lightweight. With the mobile app, it’s going to be a top notch Christmas or Hanukkah gift this year. Price: $199 www.ultimateears.com

AUD MINI 6 PARTY (ILUV)
For a much less expensive speaker option, kids will enjoy this LED Bluetooth speaker from iLuv. It’s perfect to match up with a cellphone and comes in various fun colors. Not only is this a fun gift for kids and teens, it actually produces a high quality sound that they'll enjoy. Price: $39.99 www.iluv.com

STAR WARS INTERACTIVE (THINKWAY TOYS)
The new animatronic Star Wars line from Thinkway Toys is the most technologically sophisticated Star Wars toy line ever created. Everyone is excited for the new Star Wars movie and these cool, responsive and interactive Star Wars figures will be one of the hottest toy gifts this holiday season. It's available in all the popular Star Wars characters. Price: $139.99 www.thinkwaytoys.com

CYCLIQ FLY6 BICYCLE TAIL-LIGHT CAMERA
The Cycliq Fly6 Bicycle Tail­Light and Safety Camera Combo: Cycliq makes innovative cycling accessories and while the Fly6 HD camera and tail­light combo is ideal for cyclists, it will also prove useful for college students biking around campus. The Fly6 camera replaces your existing tail­light and records what happens behind your bike in real time. The camera provides great low light images featuring 1020 x 720 HD camera footage and dynamic audio recording. It comes with a USB­rechargeable battery (6 hours runtime), 8GB Class 10 microSD card, two seat post mounts for use on two bikes, and an Aero seat post adaptor. Price: $169 www.cycliq.com

SELFY iPHONE 6 CASE (ILUV)
Kids and teens love taking selfies and this wireless Bluetooth camera shutter remote with dual-layer protective case for the iPhone will be a fun, inexpensive gift this holiday season. Price: $39.99 www.iluv.com

PRONG PWR CASE
This iPhone case serves two purposes – it is a protective case and a detachable battery pack. I love that you don’t have to worry about a charging cable, but just plug your entire phone right into the electrical outlet. While it’s a little pricey for a phone case, remember you’re giving someone both a charger and a durable case all in one. $99.95 www.prong.com

ECHO POWER CONNECT MINI
If you’re looking for a quick and easy holiday gift that is practical, look no further than Echo’s power banks. No one is happy when their cellphone runs out of juice, so they’ll appreciate the gift of portable power. Many of the power banks on the market are heavy and therefore a hassle to carry around. Echo has figured out how to make high efficiency power banks that are lightweight. Price: $30 www.byecho.com

SMART SHAKER VIBRATING ALARM (ILUV)
This brand-new innovation from iLuv Creative Technology is ideal for kids, teens and college students. The SmartShaker alarm clock is controlled from a smartphone through an iOS app. Young people use their phone as an alarm clock, but what happens when it's in another room? Smart Shaker is programmed via your Smart Phone and acts as an extension of your phone alarm even when your phone is in a different room being charged or set to silent. Available in five colors. Price: $19.99 www.iluv.com

iCLEVER 6-PORT WALL CHARGER
I love every product that iClever makes. They are all available for purchase on Amazon.com and are priced very affordably. I’ve placed these 6-port wall chargers around my home and office making it easy for guests to charge their devices. iClever also sells an assortment of car chargers, Bluetooth keyboards, Bluetooth earbud headphones, Bluetooth transmitters and portable speakers. $39.99 www.iclever.com

Cross-posted to the Huffington Post Technology and the Detroit Jewish News (Renaissance Media)

Twins Are Very Different (Lessons from Jacob and Esau)

When we hear the term "twins," we often think of two things that are alike -- twin beds, twin turbo engines, etc. However, as the father of twins (who happen to turn ten-years-old today), I can attest to the fact that twins are most certainly quite different from one another.

I'm not talking about the identical twin brothers who have been in the news recently. It's obvious to everyone that these German twins who were separated at birth with one being raised Jewish and the other as a member of Hitler Youth were diametrically different. I'm referencing two humans emerging from the same womb who we might think are very similar, but in actuality are very different from one another. What lessons can we learn from this.

This past Shabbat morning in synagogues around the world, we read about the birth of twin boys to parents Isaac and Rebecca. For the first time the Torah goes into great detail about childbirth, even describing the babies in utero. These two boys, the first twins of the biblical narrative, emerge as polar opposites. The older, Esau, was born hairy, while his younger womb-mate, Jacob, was smooth.

The rabbis, in their commentaries (midrash) about these two interesting characters, go to great lengths to show their differences. They characterize Jacob as a kind, gentle and studious individual who spent most of his time in the tents of study. While Esau, by contrast, is described as an idler and hunter, a man of violence who lived by his strength and conquest. In essence, Esau was a bully of a kid who was rough and tough, while the younger Jacob was a mild-mannered nerd.  The rabbis of old even went so far as to create stories about Esau's murdering, idolatrous and womanizing ways.

Jacob and Esau (Huffington Post)

Governor Rick Snyder's Flip Flop on Refugees is Shameful

I first learned about the Holocaust as a middle school student at Hillel Day School in metro Detroit, but it wasn't until high school that I became aware that the United States could have done more to help European Jews looking for safe haven. As a high school student studying the Holocaust I remember being shocked that the U.S. State Department clung to its strict application of the 1924 Immigration Law during the Holocaust, which made it very difficult for Jewish refugees of Nazi Europe to obtain entry visas.

Later, as a college student I devoted an entire semester to researching the restrictive immigration policies maintained by U.S. consuls, which delayed and rejected granting visas to the Jewish refugees fleeing persecution for national security reasons. By the time the U.S. realized it needed to take in these refugees, it was too late.

That was a harsh lesson that our nation learned in the middle of the last century. However, it's now more than seventy years since that time and our country seems to have forgotten our responsibility to refugees who are fleeing persecution.

Just over a month ago, Michigan's Governor Rick Snyder, who I think has served our state well, said he was working with the federal government to figure out the best process for Michigan to accept refugees from Syria. Of course, he made the caveat that these refugees would have to be carefully screened to assure they were not security threats and that makes complete sense. I am very disappointed, however, that today Governor Snyder, like several other governors, has done a complete 180 on Michigan's policy toward these Syrian refugees.

Efforts to bring Syrian refugees to Michigan have now been delayed following Friday's terrorist attacks in Paris. Governor Snyder has continued to say that Michigan is a welcoming state is proud of its rich history of immigration, but as of now he is unwilling to welcome in the hopeless refugees from the Middle East.

While this might sound like the most cogent policy in order to ensure the security of Michigan, I'm not convinced it's the right policy. In fact, it's the same excuse the U.S. government used in the 1940s when our country could have provided a safe refuge to the thousands of Jewish men, women and children fleeing Hitler's Europe. It certainly isn't the right moral choice and I would think that Governor Snyder would know better. We cannot allow Islamic State's threat of terrorism to prevent us from doing the right thing, which is participating in potential Syrian refugee resettlement efforts and serving as a safe haven for Syrian refugees. Governor Synder: Michigan's better than that!

Real Rabbis Playing Fictional Rabbis

The list of well known actors who have played rabbis in the movies and on television is quite long and includes Mel Brooks, Ben Stiller, Ben Kingsley, Gene Wilder, Sam Waterston, Alan King, Rod Steiger, Kevin Pollak and Meryl Streep.

A much shorter list is made up of actual rabbis who have played rabbis in movies and on television shows. My friend and colleague, Rabbi Chuck Diamond of Pittsburgh, plays the rabbi role in the upcoming film "American Pastoral," which is based on the Philip Roth novel.

Rabbi Chuck Diamond with Ewan McGregor on the set of American Pastoral

In fact, in a Google search I tried to identify other rabbis besides Rabbi Chuck who who have been called upon to act as rabbis in movies (talk about being typecast!) and I came up empty. What I did find is that the actress Molly Parker, who was on Deadwood and plays Jackie Sharp in House of Cards, not only was "Rabbi Ari" on the HBO series Six Feet Under, but coincidentally also will be in American Pastoral with Rabbi Chuck Diamond. Maybe Parker can give Rabbi Chuck some tips on how to be a rabbi!

An even bigger coincidence is that, according to an article in the Jewish Chronicle, Rabbi Chuck's big scene in American Pastoral will be in a Jewish cemetery, which is where Parker played Rabbi Ari on Six Feet Under, a television show about a family that owned a funeral home. Chuck Diamond won't be the only guy playing a rabbi in a 2016 movie. Actor Stephen Singer will play a rabbi in the upcoming TV movie called "Madoff" about Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff.

Actress Molly Parker as Rabbi Ari on Six Feet Under

The story of how Rabbi Chuck Diamond, a Jerry Garcia-looking mensch of a guy whom I've known since I was in high school, got the part of rabbi in American Pastoral is pretty funny. He was first contacted by Zane Weiner, the co-producer of the film to be a consultant. He met with Weiner and the actor Ewan McGregor, who stars in the film and is the director. Originally, Rabbi Chuck was only going to consult on a Jewish funeral scene, but then McGregor asked if he'd be interested in playing the role of rabbi -- not much of a stretch for a guy who's been a rabbi for thirty years.

Rabbi Chuck Diamond with Rabbi Jason Miller in Ukraine in 2013

Rabbi Chuck was ordained from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1985, the same year as the first woman rabbi, Rabbi Amy Eilberg. I first met Rabbi Chuck, as he is known, when he served as the education director at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in suburban Detroit. From there, he went on to Pittsburgh, where he first worked as education director and rabbi at Congregation Beth Shalom and then started his own congregation called Or L'Simcha, which recently merged with Congregation Tree of Life. For decades, Rabbi Chuck has been a staple at Camp Ramah in Canada, where I had a chance to work with him in the summer of 2005. We've stayed in touch over the years and traveled to Ukraine and Israel together a few years ago.

I'm proud of Rabbi Chuck (and a bit envious of course) that he had the chance to be in a movie alongside such actors as Jennifer Connelly, Dakota Fanning, Ewan McGregor, Peter Rieger (of Animal House), Rupert Evans, Molly Parker, Uzo Aduba and David Strathairn.

According to the article in Jewish Chronicle, Rabbi Chuck had to recite the Mourner’s Kaddish about 30 times to get the Jewish funeral scene perfect in American Pastoral. He says he now plans to join the Screen Actors Guild. I'll be sure to remind him to also set up his IMDB account, since he currently isn't listed in the cast for the movie there. I can't wait to see Rabbi Chuck's big debut on the silver screen when American Pastoral comes out next year.

Mitch Albom Makes Beautiful Music in New Novel

Ever since the huge literary success of "Tuesdays with Morrie," Mitch Albom has been trying to reach the same level of storytelling magic. His five books that followed "Tuesdays with Morrie" were each wonderful in their own unique way, but seemed to lack the passion of his masterpiece. The recurring themes in his follow-up novels have all given tips of the hat to his magnum opus about Brandeis professor Morrie Schwartz -- mentorship, death and dying, faith and spirituality, and leaving a legacy -- but they just didn't have the same best seller qualities.

Now, Albom follows up his recent book about phone calls from the beyond ("The First Phone Call From Heaven," 2013) with a new novel that seems to weave all of his themes into one volume. With "The Magic Strings of Frankie Pesto" (Harper), Albom has taken his writing to a whole new level. He was at his best when writing about his personal heroes -- a dying college professor and a dying childhood rabbi -- but this book is Albom's first about his lifelong passion of music.

I've grown up reading Mitch Albom's sports columns in the Detroit Free Press and was a fan of his early books (all sports-related) long before "Tuesdays with Morrie" came out in 1997. Anyone who has followed Albom's writings and his local Detroit radio show knows that he knows a lot about sports, but he's most enthusiastic about music. So, it makes perfect sense that the narrator of his newest book is Music (the concept of music personified).

On the second page of the book, Albom, a talented musician who plays in a band, is already making beautiful music with the written word. He introduces our narrator in a rhythmic crafting of verse: "I am Music. And I am here for the soul of Frankie Presto. Not all of it. Just the rather large part he took from me when he came into this world. However well used, I am a loan, not a possession. You give me back upon departure."

Teenage Romance in the Digital Age

Those of us in our late 30's are the last generation who got through our high school years without social media. I still remember coming home exhausted from regional Jewish youth group events on a Sunday evening only to pick up the phone and make long-distance calls to the out-of-town friends I had just hung out with over the weekend. It was only a little more than twenty years ago that high school teens used the phone to communicate with their significant others because there no one had email yet. Everything is different for teens today. In my recent technology column in the Detroit Jewish News, I wrote about how social media has changed teenage romance today. Here's the article:

Teenage Romance and Social Media: What Are Teens Up To Online?

It wasn’t too long ago that teenage romance meant passing private folded notepaper in school classes, writing love letters and mailing them in actual envelopes with stamps, and waiting your turn to use the family’s landline telephone to call the object of your affection. When it comes to teenage romance today, much has changed in a short time.

A recent Pew Research Study looks at how digital tools and social media platforms have been fully integrated into American teenagers’ dating and romantic practices. As to how this affects the Jewish community, Jewish communal leaders who have long been concerned about dating habits of Jewish teens for the sake of Jewish continuity will be able to learn a lot from this study.

Over 1,000 teens in the U.S. ages 13 to 17 were surveyed by Pew and more than a third of these teens reported that they are currently dating someone or have dated someone in the past. However, only one quarter of them have met a significant other online. This means that while adult Americans are using online dating websites, like JDate, to find romantic matches, teens are still resorting to traditional methods for finding romantic partners. However, as the Pew study discovered these teens are using social media at an increasing rate when it comes to flirting, asking out, connecting and breaking up.

Twitter: Don't Expand 140 Character Limit

A woman once called the newspaper to place a death notice after her husband died. The newspaper representative explained that their policy is to charge by each word. "Well in that case," she replied, "Just print 'Max Schwartz died.'" They man responded, “There is a six word minimum." She said, "Fine, print: 'Max Schwartz died. Cadillac for sale.'"

I love that joke. I love it not only for its levity, but also for its brevity. As a rabbi, I must tell you that the stereotype that rabbis are long-winded is true. After all, we have a lot we want to say and it's much more difficult to tell a long story than a short one. You've heard the famous quote that has been attributed to many different authors: “If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter.”

Over the years, I've become better at keeping it brief thanks to Twitter. Yes, the same social network that gets a bad rap because it's a time killer, a way to avoid the real world, a place for gossiping and complaining, bragging and boasting has made me a more concise writer. I've trained myself to condense my thoughts on a controversial article down to 140 characters or less for a tweet.

Rabbi Bob Alper Makes Pope Laugh in Comedy Contest

While my colleague Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove of Park Avenue Synagogue in New York City certainly got more face time with Pope Francis during his recent visit to the U.S. than any other rabbi, it was another rabbi who received the title "Honorary Comedic Advisor to the Pope."

Rabbi Bob Alper, the 70-year-old Reform rabbi turned stand-up comedian, had his joke chosen among thousands in the recent "Joke with the Pope" contest. Professional comedians including Bill Murray, late night television hosts Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Fallon, and comedy writer Mike Reiss were among those who submitted video jokes to the jokewiththepope.org contest on YouTube. Even Brooke Shields recorded a joke for the Pope while sitting in her closet.

Rabbi Alper's winning submission allowed him to choose a charity for a $10,000 donation. He chose Housing the Homeless in Ethiopia. I've long been a fan of Rabbi Alper since first meeting him at a synagogue in East Lansing in the mid-1990s during one of his performances and book signings. In 2007 I had a chance to open for him at a comedy show and it was truly one of the highlights of my life.

Rabbi Alper's winning joke sumission was: "I’ve been married for 46 years, and my wife and I are on the same wavelength. At the same time that I got a hearing aid, she stopped mumbling."


In an interview, Rabbi Alper said the one-liner was among his best work. "It’s reality,” he said. "It’s something with which people can identify. It exemplifies the Pope’s values, which are family, humor, warmth."

Mazel Tov to Bob Alper for making the Pope laugh and for his new gig as the Honorary Comedic Advisor to the Pope.

Matt Jackson: An Interesting Jewish Jeopardy Champ

Passover is the 8-day Jewish holiday in which we ask questions at the seder table. For one quirky Jewish guy from Washington DC, Sukkot was the 8-day Jewish holiday in which he successfully answered clues with questions.

My kids and I make it a habit of watching the well-known television game show Jeopardy! each night. If we skip a few nights, we rely on our TiVo to catch us up as we binge watch several episodes at once. While my young children rarely know the answers to host Alex Trebek’s clues, they really enjoy tuning in each night and I’m convinced they’re learning something. Over the past week, we’ve been fixated on the interesting, if a bit odd, champion named Matt Jackson. He’s taken the world by storm as he has successfully won eight episodes in a row. While he’s far from catching Ken Jennings, who won a record 74 episodes in a row, Jackson has certainly kept the show entertaining. The paralegal has amassed a winnings total of $230,610 so far and will hope to add to that tonight.

Early in the show, Trebek asked Jackson to talk about his “very different” parents. He responded,“My mother is white, liberal and Jewish, and my dad is black, Christian and conservative.” Trebek responded, “Whoa — hello!” The Jewish bi-racial contestant is only 23-years-old and was 22 when he auditioned for the show. As we saw with the lengthy Ken Jennings streak, after several episodes Trebek struggles to find topics to shmooze about with returning champions. On a recent episode before Jackson won his seventh show in a row, Trebek asked him how he acquired all that knowledge.

Jackson explained that it was his grandfather Barnett Berman, M.D., a physician at Johns Hopkins University, who stands out as the most influential family member and/or teacher. Jackson said that his middle name is Barnett named for his (maternal) grandfather. “[My grandfather] didn’t just keep to his field. I remember at a Passover seder he tried to figure out who wrote the Torah and went on a long digression. He had a big collection of books. He got a computer, a PC, at a very early stage and taught me to use it.”

*Note: Matt Jackson contacted me to clarify that, "While of course my mother is Jewish and that's all that matters from the halakhic (Jewish legal) point of view, I am currently non-religious, or at least entirely non-observant. My Jewish family members are a huge and continual influence on me -- particularly through their lived commitment to education -- but I don't want to mislead anybody into thinking I am currently capable of representing Judaism as a faith."

Matt Jackson’s quirkiness (some are theorizing that he has Aspergers) — his awkward smiles at the camera, his quick, loud responses, and his ability to take huge leads over his opponents night after night finding all the Daily Doubles, has led to him quickly becoming a pop culture phenomenon early on in this new season of “Jeopardy!” I love that Jackson has talked openly about his Judaism and his family’s Jewish rituals including the Passover seder. “Jeopardy!” has always struck me as a “very Jewish” game show because it focuses on knowledge and asking questions. It requires competitors to have a vast knowledge of many subjects, which is at the core of Judaism — just think about the plethora of topics covered in the Talmud.

In the course of the history of “Jeopardy!” there have been a disproportionate number of Jewish contestants relative to our population in North America, including rabbis like Rabbi Joyce Newmark and Rabbi Sari Laufer. No doubt, “Jeopardy!” champ Matt Jackson is the most interesting one yet. I feel blessed that my kids enjoy our nightly ritual of watching “Jeopardy!” and you can bet we’ll be cheering on Matt Jackson as he hopes to continue his winning streak.


Update: As of October 12, 2015, Matt Jackson has 12 wins under his belt and close to $400,000 in prize winnings (4th on the all-time leaderboard). While he told me that he doesn't want to mislead anyone into thinking he is "currently capable of representing Judaism as a faith," he did a fine job explaining the concept of Tikkun Olam (social justice) in a recent episode when Alex Trebek interviewed him.
Final Update: Matt Jackson had the show's 4th-longest winning streak, surpassed only by Ken Jennings, Julia Collins, and David Madden. His 13-episode streak ended with a loss on October 14, 2015. Jackson's total winnings amount to $413,612.