Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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The word “folly” has become associated with only one policy decision in all of our nation’s history. That policy decision was to purchase Alaska from Russia immediately after the end of the Civil War. The primary advocate of the purchase for $7,000,000 was then Secretary of State William H. Seward. After much heated public debate and opposition, the sale was ratified by the U.S. Senate and consummated by Mr. Seward who was ridiculed and heavily criticized at the time in the American press. The purchase, coming so close to the end of the Civil...
I have been writing my Everywhere column for the Heritage Florida Jewish News for almost 20 years. It began in the early 1980s and continued until just after the High Holidays of 1997, when I suspended writing the column in favor of devoting more time to a growing family and law practice. I resumed writing the column in February 2018 after the kids were grown and well on their way to following their own dreams; and I entered the ambiguous state of semi-retirement. One of the great pleasures of writing this column is the feedback I get from read...
As the Holocaust recedes further and further into the past, the anti-Semites of the future (and for sure they will exist) will have an easier time promoting the falsehood that the Holocaust never occurred. Who will replace the first generation of survivors to bear witness and to challenge the current and future Holocaust deniers? Who will perpetuate the truth that the darkest event in human history actually occurred? In order for “Never Again” to be a continuing reality, and not just a slogan, the World must “Never Forget”! Can World Jewry rely...
As the sun sets tomorrow evening and the Sabbath wanes, Jewish people around the world will be welcoming in the holiday of Passover, with the holiday’s most notable event, the Passover Seder. The Passover Seder is a family and community gathering characterized by a festive and elaborate meal, complete with symbolic foods, inserted into the middle of the re-telling of the story of our Exodus from Egypt. The stage is set with the lighting of holiday candles accompanied by the prayer that reminds us of the Torah commandment that mandates our t...
In the past few weeks we have witnessed a Black comic on SNL (who should know better) taking a cheap shot at Israel, explicitly and falsely accusing the Israeli government of discriminating against its Arab citizens by intentionally withholding vaccine inoculations in favor of its Jewish citizens. This incident reminds me of the saying, “People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.” On Feb. 9, 2021, NBC broadcasted on its digital platform a Canadian-produced episode of “Nurses,” which according to numerous newspaper and other I...
Today marks the one-year anniversary since my wife and I attended our last Jewish social or religious gathering. That event was attending services to hear the reading of Megillat,The Book of Esther, and to enjoy the festivities, food and beverages as we celebrated Purim 5780 at the Orlando Torah Center. Since that time our Jewish life has been observed and celebrated in marital “solitary confinement.” In fact, our initial isolation felt a little like imprisonment. I actually texted my children in the early days of the pandemic, somewhat ton...
As the Biden administration takes shape it is becoming increasing clear, through the president’s appointments to the State Department, White House staff and other federal bodies dealing with Middle East policy formulation, that he sees U.S. re-engagement with the Palestinians as a high priority. The terms of that re-engagement could be beneficial in advancing the peace process by fostering a resumption of bilateral negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority on the basis of the new realty in the Arab/Israeli relationship. H...
Although never a member of the Republican Jewish Coalition, I have endorsed their efforts over the years in being at the Republican Party table and promoting Republican candidates who support a strong American/Israel relationship. Their work has been and continues to be particularly important in the face of a Democratic Party, moving more leftist and more antagonistic to Zionism and a strong and secure Israel and still retaining the support and loyalty of a substantial majority of American Jewish voters. The RJC has also been a bulwark within...
Let us forget for a moment that Israel is not the nation-state of the Jewish people. Let us fantasize that it is not engaged in an intractable conflict with Palestinian Arabs who refuse to recognize or make peace with the legitimacy of an indigenous people who historically, biblically, legally, and irreversibly have reestablished their homeland in the Land of Israel. The realty of course is that despite numerous efforts and generous concessions over the last 73 years by Israel to make peace with the Palestinian Arabs, the Palestinian Arab...
In past years I have written about the dichotomy between Chanukah and Christmas in terms of their intersectionality and convergence in secular terms; even though not related at all in terms of religious significance and observance. This intersectionality is created by the fact both holidays fall very closely in the month of December and in some years actually overlap. This year the eight days of Chanukah, based on the Hebrew calendar, occurred from Thursday evening, Dec. 10th through Friday, Dec. 18th. While the Christmas season pretty much...
The recent per curium (unsigned) decision by the U.S. Supreme Court granting a temporary injunction prohibiting the governor of New York from enforcing a poorly drafted, over-bearing and constitutionally defective executive order has been misrepresented by the media to the American public. The Executive Order under legal attack issued by Governor Cuomo restricted religious gatherings to 10 persons in so-called “red zones“ and 25 persons in so-called “orange” zones where Covid-19 infections were increasing, and was mostly directed against...
The out-going Trump administration has implemented many policy decisions regarding the Middle East during its term in office that have resulted in a paragon shift in the Arab World’s perception of Israel from non-recognition and enemy to recognition and alliance. While the Trump Deal of the Century has been summarily rejected by all Palestinian factions and their terrorist partners, Hamas and Hezbollah, the Abraham Accords entered into between Israel and respectively, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and subsequently Sudan has revealed a m...
In the aftermath of a close election and the improbability of the nation coming together, irrespective of who finally wins the presidency, one thing is certain: The existing sharp political divisions in the American Jewish community must be reconciled, and a major effort must be made by all factions in our community to establish mutual respect for all members despite the divergent views on so many issues each may hold. If we are to be a significant player in continuing our outstanding record of contribution to American society in every field...
By Mel Pearlman As America limps toward completion of the 2020 election campaign this coming Tuesday, it has become increasing clear that a majority of Americans are frustrated, angered and fatigued by the American political process. A major factor for this emotional negativism among the American people is their realization that they are being corralled by the Democrat and Republican parties into choosing a president who is the lesser of two evils. Whether by design or happenstance, the two parties have combined to enshrine into law a...
In just a few days time the Senate Judiciary Committee and then the Senate will convene to begin its constitutional mandate to debate and vote on the confirmation of President Trump’s nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, for the Supreme Court seat vacated by the death of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. This will be the third nominee to come before the Senate during the Trump Administration. Two previous confirmation hearings have been held by the Senate Judiciary Committee, respectively for Associate Justices Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. K...
The strength and survivability of the Jewish people has always been their ability to simultaneously exist in three time “dimensions.” Not un-coincidently, the Torah’s narrative also speaks to us in the past, the present and the future. The Torah begins with a history of the evolutionary creation of the universe and our planet Earth (time frame of six biblical days); including the creation of primitive humans. God “rested” on the seventh day, which suggests creation is a work still in progress. These early humans evolved into curious, intellige...
The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, of which the United States is a member, adopted a non-legally binding “working definition of antisemitism” at its plenary on May 26, 2016, in Bucharest, Romania. Since then IHRA’s 42 member and observer states and many nonmember countries throughout the world, as well as non-governmental international organizations, have adopted the definition; and have used it in legislating hate crimes and in formulating public policy dealing with antisemitism. As a member of IHRA, the U.S. State Depar...
The last few weeks have witnessed a landmark development in Arab-Israeli relations upon which all fair-minded Jews can finally agree. I am of course referring to the agreement reached on Aug. 13, 2020, between the government of Israel and the government of the United Arab Emirates to establish diplomatic normalization with and recognition of the Jewish state. The anticipated peace treaty and ancillary agreements covering cooperation and collaboration in the fields of medicine, security, transportation and trade are not yet formalized as of...
The pandemic has brought about extreme modifications to our everyday living and how we relate to family, friends and community. Government at every level is scampering, and for the most part failing to find effective policy initiatives and to implement programs in order to blunt the disastrous health, economic and social effects brought about by the complete disruption of our normal way of life. The pandemic has also exposed and laid bare the fact that what once was a resilient, respectful, resourceful and thoughtful American population has...
Last week, I received an e-mail from a reader of my Everywhere column of July 10, 2020, titled “Black lies matter,” criticizing me for an attempt to be cute with the title by playing on the words, “black lives matter,” and suggesting that the title was “insensitive.” Since I appreciate feedback of all kinds from readers I went back and reviewed not only the title, but the column itself, and deeply reflected on the criticism that the title was insensitive; and that I was attempting to be “cute” with the title’s wording. Interestingly, th...
By Mel Pearlman As America wrestles with the issue of finding its way to racial equality, we must be careful not to destroy the constitutional foundation of our nation, which in reality is the only path to reach that much-desired goal. The events of the past, highlighted by events of the last few months have laid naked the ugly reality of police brutality in many communities across the country, inflicted by law enforcement officers in their encounter with black men, women and teenagers. There is justified anger in the black community in seeing...
I know it is late in the game for a courageous national political leader to emerge and challenge Donald J. Trump and Joe Biden for the presidency. However, a survey of states with registration deadlines to be on the Nov. 3, 2020, ballot reveals that except for about three minor electoral-vote states the registration deadline has not passed, with most states having qualification dates in July, August and in one case September, to be on the printed ballot. Since January, the somewhat mercurial president has descended into increasing...
On May 5, 2020, Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, the body that governs the lives of more than 95 percent of the Arab population living In Judea and Samaria, made a speech in Arabic before an Arab audience. That speech was made in the presence of the international media and was posted to the Facebook page of Palestinian TV. Memri TV provided the English translation. While a significant part of the speech was devoted to the pandemic and other issues, Mr. Abbas did use the opportunity to condemn the United States for...
By Mel Pearlman In the May 11, 2020, edition of Time Magazine, a mother eloquently writes in an essay titled, “The pandemic has put our dreams of another baby on hold,” about her fears and concerns of conceiving g another child during this era of the coronavirus pandemic. She and her husband, already the parents of a 2-year-old, the essayist continues, “Remembering how special it had been for both of us to grow up with a sibling close in age and wanting the same kind of companionship for our son, we had planned to try for another child this...
The Jewish community in America finds itself in a dilemma concerning the 2020 presidential election. On one hand, President Trump has been a strong ally and friend of Israel. He understands the necessity of Israel moving forward in consolidating its security position and normalizing its relationship with the Sunni Arab world. In the face of Iranian aggression and Palestinian intransigence regarding the peace negotiations, the Trump administration realistically recognized the nuclear and security threat posed by Iran and the implausibility of a... Full story
