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FAKE Comedian Stephen Colbert showed his true colors tonight
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amother
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Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 10:38 am
Mevater wrote:
1- Trump has too many faults to enumerate here, but imho hes been better for Jews and Israel than any other Pres in US history. If you disagree, name a Pres or two or three, who have done more for Jews and Israel.


I've heard this being stated so many times on imamother.

Can someone help me understand how he has helped Jews (US or globally) and the state of Israel...
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anon for this




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 10:41 am
amother wrote:
As a side note, indeed more under-forties get their news from late night editorial comedy shows. Trevor Noah, anyone? LOL


Or John Oliver.
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amother
Coral


 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 10:54 am
amother wrote:
I've heard this being stated so many times on imamother.

Can someone help me understand how he has helped Jews (US or globally) and the state of Israel...


I also don't understand this blind allegiance to Trump because he is somehow perceived as more of a friend to Israel.

There is no American President who hasn't provided support to Israel as a key democratic ally in the volatile Middle East.

I believe some actions by Trump have destabilized the Middle East to some extent and prevented America from being able to provide more of an ability to broker conditions that might provide a more stable environment and ultimately ensure the long term stability of Israel.

IMHO, Trump's actions - including his extreme affection for the Saudis are fueled to a large degree by business interests that will pay off for the Trump Organization after his Presidency - even as his business interests prosper mightily in defiance of the emoluments clause of the Constitution.
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Maya




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:23 am
amother wrote:
I've heard this being stated so many times on imamother.

Can someone help me understand how he has helped Jews (US or globally) and the state of Israel...

I think the perception is there because of the Jewish daughter and son-in-law.
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MrsDash




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:25 am
anon for this wrote:
Or John Oliver.


Yes!!!
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Amarante




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:27 am
Maya wrote:
I think the perception is there because of the Jewish daughter and son-in-law.


FWIW, Obama held the first Seder in the White House and it was a yearly tradition.

ETA - For the curious, the Obamas used the Maxwell House Haggadah :-)

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/0......html

So begins the story of the Obama Seder, now one of the newest, most intimate and least likely of White House traditions. When Passover begins at sunset on Monday evening, Mr. Obama and about 20 others will gather for a ritual that neither the rabbinic sages nor the founding fathers would recognize.

In the Old Family Dining Room, under sparkling chandeliers and portraits of former first ladies, the mostly Jewish and African-American guests will recite prayers and retell the biblical story of slavery and liberation, ending with the traditional declaration “Next year in Jerusalem.” (Never mind the current chill in the administration’s relationship with Israel.)

Top aides like David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett will attend, but so will assistants like 24-year-old Herbie Ziskend. White House chefs will prepare Jewish participants’ family recipes, even rendering chicken fat — better known as schmaltz — for just the right matzo ball flavor.

If last year is any guide, Malia and Sasha Obama will take on the duties of Jewish children, asking four questions about the night’s purpose — along with a few of their own — and scrambling to find matzo hidden in the gleaming antique furniture.

That event was the first presidential Seder, and also probably “the first time in history that gefilte fish had been placed on White House dishware,” said Eric Lesser, the former baggage handler, who organizes each year’s ritual.




Last edited by Amarante on Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:43 am; edited 1 time in total
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Jeanette




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:34 am
When was the first time the WH kitchen was kashered?
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Mevater




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:35 am
anon for this wrote:
Personally, I find that the decisions Trump makes and the influence he has on both the House and Senate influence my life much more than anything Stephen Colbert says.


Youre clearly not fond of Trump.

Had we elected Hilary, do you think Jews and Israel would be less secure, equally secure or more secure?
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amother
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Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:39 am
Maya wrote:
I think the perception is there because of the Jewish daughter and son-in-law.


Meaning, because he has family members that's Jewish...

Like the argument he can't be anti-Semitic because his daughter is Jewish and ant-immigrants because his wife is an immigrant...

I'm just wondering if he did anything already.
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SixOfWands




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:41 am
Mevater wrote:
Youre clearly not fond of Trump.

Had we elected Hilary, do you think Jews and Israel would be less secure, equally secure or more secure?


The ADL indicates that it saw a 57-percent increase in acts of harassment, vandalism and violence directed at the Jewish community in 2017, and has noticed an uptick in online harassment as well.

All Trump's fault? Of course not. Does his rhetoric embolden anti-semites? Unquestionably.

So yes, I think that Jews would be more secure under Clinton than we are under Trump.
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Amarante




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:42 am
Jeanette wrote:
When was the first time the WH kitchen was kashered?


Not sure but here's a cute article on the kashering done in 2011 for the Obama's Hanukkah Party :-).

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/1......html


FIRST, spritz the kitchen’s stainless steel counters with disinfectant. Scrub vigorously.

Next, wrap counters in tinfoil, tight, tight, tight.

Now stretch plastic wrap over the foil and seal with masking tape.

Then repeat for every surface that could possibly come into contact with food — yes, even the hanging pot rack.

And so began the fastidious frenzy to make the White House’s kitchen kosher last week, a nearly four-hour drill that started at 10 p.m. Wednesday. A deadline approached: a truckload of kosher food was due Thursday at 10 a.m.

The Obama administration’s holiday reception season was in full swing. Leftovers from a party earlier Wednesday evening had already been removed.

The following night would bring the Hanukkah party for 550 guests, politicians and Supreme Court justices among them. Rigorous koshering (sometimes called kashering) would ensure that the kitchen would be in compliance with Jewish dietary laws. Guests could eat without qualms, knowing their religious commitment had been respected.

“We do the basic cleaning,” says the White House’s executive sous-chef, Tommy Kurpradit, as he directs five workers (he learned about koshering from Bush White House Hanukkah celebrations). “Then the rabbis do the super-cleaning.”

Imagine the earnest anxiety of non-Jews eager to please the observant; the exacting scrutiny of the observant, dedicated to ancient laws; a ticking clock; and a soupçon of Marx Brothers.

Into the kitchen rushes a Lubavitch SWAT team of three rabbis and an intern. Three men, wearing aprons and industrial-strength rubber gloves, take on the ovens and burners. The fourth, in a suit and a black hat, is Rabbi Levi Shemtov, director of the American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad). He is the supervisor-in-chief.

He takes a long look around. He frowns.

“Who opened the brazier?” he asks, referring to the lidded counter-high vat, like a giant stainless steel pot, used for searing, reducing stock and braising meats. “The rabbi?” he asks, pointing to a colleague.

“No,” replies Chef Tommy, as his staff calls him.

“You’re kidding me,” Rabbi Shemtov says.

They huddle by the brazier. Rabbi Shemtov issues orders. The rabbis spring into action.

What happened, Chef Tommy?

“I’m a Buddhist,” he says, acknowledging that some of the finer points elude him. “But whatever he wants me to do, I’ll do.”

Rabbi Shemtov explains his concern. For a kitchen to be prepared for kosher cooking, any taste or aroma of nonkosher food has to be expunged. Utensils for cooking, serving and eating must be set aside for 24 hours before being cleansed by dipping them in boiling water. The day before, Rabbi Shemtov had overseen the sealing of flatware, utensils and the brazier, where they would be dipped tonight.

So why, Rabbi Shemtov wants to know, is the brazier open and filled with cool water?

Chef Tommy had merely poured water into it to be boiled for the dipping.

Rabbi Shemtov probes: “I have to know whether the water came from the tap or a bucket.” (The latter could have been compromised by food.)

It was tap water. But “just to make sure,” Rabbi Shemtov wants the brazier cleaned.

The job falls to Rabbi Binyamin Steinmetz, a Caracas-born mashgiach, or supervisor, who has been joking in Spanish with a Coast Guard prep cook, among the military personnel who help during party season. Now Rabbi Steinmetz pours boiling water into the brazier, adding ammonia. After the soaking, he dumps out the solution and rinses the brazier with boiled water. A third time, he dumps, rinses and dumps.

Rabbi Shemtov says his approach is so strict that no one can take issue. “We are very careful, we are meticulous but we are not O.C.D.,” he says. “Otherwise, no one would ever get to eat.”

He peers at a countertop. “Why so loose, the Saran wrap?”

Will this affect the first family’s meals? A White House aide explains that the Obamas rely primarily on a personal kitchen in the residence upstairs. Even so, a refrigerator has a sign on it that says “Family,” indicating it must remain shut.

Rabbi Shemtov continues his inspection while talking to Chef Tommy and working his iPhone and a BlackBerry. He glances up. Workers are even wrapping lights that dangle over counters. “You don’t have to do that!” he says. “We don’t use lights for cooking.”

It’s 11 p.m. The rabbis start the cleansing by fire, for ovens, racks, stove tops. Rabbi Steinmetz cranks up the heat on the wall ovens to 500 degrees, to burn off impurities.

How long should they remain heated?

The rabbi, who says he turned down a similar job at the Waldorf-Astoria that week for the privilege of working in the White House kitchen, sighs gently. “An hour, minimum,” he says. “Minimum, minimum.”

He covers the stove tops with foil, pokes holes above the burners and turns up the flames. The foil keeps the heat from escaping. Minutes pass. Finally, the metal turns red hot.

“It’s kosher,” Rabbi Shemtov says.

Midnight looms. More White House staff members are helping, at least a dozen people in the kitchen. Daniel Shanks, a White House usher, peeks in, wearing a x-mas tie. He waves at Rabbi Steinmetz, a diminutive man with a silvery beard, standing on a crate next to the brazier.

“You grew since last year!” Mr. Shanks shouts above the din. Laughing, the rabbi waves back.

Mr. Shanks has been on staff for 17 years. He recalled Clinton White House events when kosher meals were brought in for guests, and a time when a separate kosher table was set up.

“To see us evolve to do as much as we do now,” he says, “it’s a great honor.”

Bulging black plastic bags, sealed with masking tape marked with Rabbi Shemtov’s Hebrew signature, are lugged in. Their contents include rented platters and flatware. In assembly-line rhythm, workers unwrap a platter, hand it to Rabbi Steinmetz, who dips it three times and then hands it to Rabbi Hillel Baron, who dips it into cold water and hands it to workers, who dry it off and stack.

That’s at least 90 platters, some 1,000 pieces of flatware (placed in baskets for dipping), plus dozens of silver White House appetizer and pastry stands that had been stored away.

During the tumult, Rabbi Baron reviews a Hebrew passage from Shulchan Aruch, the venerable code of Jewish law. He finds it on his iPad.

The next day, the food would be prepared by a kosher caterer and White House chefs. The party would start at 5:30 p.m.

By Friday morning, the White House staff would rip off the tin foil. They would cook for two parties that day, with an utterly unkosher menu that included oysters and ham.

But at nearly 1 a.m. Thursday, Friday seems a long way off. Chef Tommy scrutinizes his crew, in a fervor to finish. “You do it right the first time, you don’t have to do it again,” he says wearily.

Rabbi Shemtov beams. “Right 100 percent.”


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amother
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Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:43 am
Mevater wrote:

Had we elected Hilary, do you think Jews and Israel would be less secure, equally secure or more secure?


Mevater wrote:
1- Trump has too many faults to enumerate here, but imho hes been better for Jews and Israel than any other Pres in US history. If you disagree, name a Pres or two or three, who have done more for Jews and Israel.


I don't know, but can you help my understand how he's been better for the Jews and Israel?
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Mevater




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:47 am
amother wrote:
I don't know, but can you help my understand how he's been better for the Jews and Israel?


Ask Bibi Netanyahu.
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amother
Coral


 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:51 am
Mevater wrote:
Ask Bibi Netanyahu.


But there are many Jews who don't feel Netanyahu policies are the best long term policies for either Israel or Jews which is why many non-self hating Jews are worried about the long term survival of Israel.
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simcha2




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:55 am
Mevater wrote:
Youre clearly not fond of Trump.

Had we elected Hilary, do you think Jews and Israel would be less secure, equally secure or more secure?


Given that Trump had empowered the right (Fox will say unintentionally) and riled the left and this has led to a 60% increase in antisemitic incidents (from both sides) from 2016 to 2017, I'm going to go with more secure if Hillary had ben elected.
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amother
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Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:55 am
Mevater wrote:
Ask Bibi Netanyahu.


Mevater wrote:
1- Trump has too many faults to enumerate here, but imho hes been better for Jews and Israel than any other Pres in US history. If you disagree, name a Pres or two or three, who have done more for Jews and Israel.


Huh, didn't you write this...
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Jeanette




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 11:57 am
Amarant, thanks for posting! I think I did read it when it first came out but it was fun to reread.
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Amarante




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 12:03 pm
Jeanette wrote:
Amarant, thanks for posting! I think I did read it when it first came out but it was fun to reread.


I had also read it when it first appeared but it was so charmingly written that I enjoyed reading it again myself.
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Mevater




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 12:10 pm
amother wrote:
Huh, didn't you write this...


Netanyahu is no fanatic in any shape or form. If hes super pleased w Trump, so am I.
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Fox




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Oct 31 2018, 12:14 pm
amother wrote:
I don't know, but can you help my understand how he's been better for the Jews and Israel?

Although I'm sure others will post more detailed lists, I believe his most important contribution to Jewish well-being is to stand up to international, state-sanctioned anti-Semitism. Previous Presidents have not been as resolute, and President Obama actually seemed to condone it.

* Repeatedly and publicly confronting the U.N. over anti-Israel initiatives and obvious bias.

* Refusing to kowtow to Arab sensibilities regarding Israel. For example, insisting on being allowed to fly directly from Saudi Arabia to Israel.

* Withdrawing from the Iran agreement, which arguably posed significant danger to Israel.

* Tightening and enforcing internationally agreed-upon sanctions against Iran, the primary sponsor of anti-Jewish terror.

* Restoring the U.S. role in the Middle East as part of the coalition including the GCC and Israel.

The small changes we see internationally, such as Hatikvah being played in the UAE for the winning judo contestant, are the result of incremental diplomatic work that is impossible if the other parties don't respect the people making the demands.
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