The Great Chutzpah Race

"No - you have more chutzpah!"

When politics mimics an SNL skit...in the 90's there was a skit on SNL wherein James Woods, a ventriloquist, trades, "No, you're the dummy" back and forth with his dummy.

That was the whole skit.

Bush Spokesman: Clintons Have "Chutzpah"

Tony Snow Mocks Bill And Hillary Clinton For Criticizing Bush's Libby Decision; Libby Pays $250K Fine

Really, a pox on both your houses.

Kudos to the Forward for its Webby

Yes, I used the K-word. I hate the K-word. It is so fake.

Nothing fake about recognition by one's peers. The Forward has won such an honor from the famed Webby awards.

You could say that in total four Jewish newspapers won. In addition to the Forward, you might count as Jewish The Post, The Village Voice and maybe The Onion (just because all humor is Jewish).

Anyway, the other online newspapers to win were -

KURIER ONLINE http://www.kurier.at	Telekurier Online Medien GmbH
LANACION.com http://www.lanacion.com	LA NACION
New York Post http://www.nypost.com/	Questus
The Jewish Daily Forward http://www.forward.com	the FORWARD
The New Zealand Herald http://www.nzherald.co.nz	Shift
The Onion http://www.theonion.com/	The Onion
The Village Voice http://www.villagevoice.com	Village Voice Media, LLC

funny jPhone video

iPhone Video: But does it have a shabbos mode?

After this video you definitely won't be able to wait until June to get an iPhone even if it does not have a shabbos mode.

Conan Video: New iPhone can be used as peyes (sideburns)

Watch for peyes, (Wikipedia: "the often extended and curled hair from the sideburns worn by many Hasidic Jews") second to last example, in the hilarious Conan video:

Israel Baseball League's Opening Day

Israel Baseball's Opening Day: Modiin Crushes Petach Tikvah, 9-1

Walmart vs. Monsey

Walmart is a discount department store. The idea that it is a threat to the way of life of Hasidic Jews is nuts. The NY Times really flopped on the coverage of this story, writing that some say the store, "Will pollute the spiritual environment" of the holy Monsey community. Well actually it will replace a drive in theater - where only sacred activities occurred - and thus for the first time it will bring sin into the camp of the holy.

Funny thing. There is a rabbi in a nearby community who is accused of real moral turpitude. It is nutty nutty nutty to think that interloper Walmart - the largest retailer in the world - will generate moral shortcomings for this area. The Monsey folk do very well without foreign intervention.

So how did the Times get into this situation - declaring a moral battlefield has emerged in the leading unincorporated hamlet of shteibeldom?

The guys at the NYT love the theme of modern and progressive vs. traditional and regressive. It is one of their favorite tropes.

So our conflict stirs up images of David vs. Goliath, morals vs. sin, the sacred vs. satan... the drama that newspapers love to "discover".

Brown U will build new natatorium

I recall with great fondness swimming at 10 PM at the "new natatorium" at Brown in 1973. The pool has just opened and it was one small factor in my decision to attend Brown for graduate school. A brand new 50 meter pool - wow.

The Smith Swim Center was among the best in the nation when it opened in 1973. It featured a 50-meter long course, a 25-yard short course, spectator area, locker rooms and squash courts. Brown hosted major competitions at many levels.

The roof, which suggests a circus tent, became a landmark on the East Side.

It was my second favorite long course pool - after my favorite - the famous Gordon pool in Tel Aviv.

Well the pool has seen better days. It had to be closed because of timber rot. So now the Brown Corporation (=Board of Trustees) has committed to building a new $35 million structure. Good decision.

Rumor: Apple Selling Itself to Google

I could not resist posting this rumor direct from the Apple 2.0 blog - love that logo.

Anatomy of a Rumor: Google To Buy Apple?
My friend and colleague John Heilemann should be flattered.

A blind quote buried deep in his eight-page cover story on Steve Jobs in this week's New York Magazine has launched a cottage industry of journalistic speculation about whether Google (GOOG) might actually buy Apple (AAPL)....

Newsweek's Nattering on Nile Niqabs

Sinister and scary. That is what we are taught here about masked and hooded people. The KKK. Ghosts. Bandits in bandanas. Bad guys. Crooks. Bigots. Criminals.

So how can we be expected to react to the niqab - the Islamic veil? I don't like it. A checkout girl at the Walgreen's Drug Store in Teaneck wears one. I felt uncomfortable paying at the counter. Cultural conditioning is a strong force.


Newsweek writes about the rise of the niqab in Egypt.

Behind the Veil
An Egyptian court has ruled that universities can't bar Islamic face-coverings. But that's unlikely to stop the headdress attracting unwelcome attention on the streets of Cairo....more