Water Over Rocks

Anonymous--happy to elaborate. But I do need clar...

2010-09-06T15:05:39.147-04:00

Anonymous--happy to elaborate. But I do need clarification with regard to your question. What "exclusion from other facilities" are you referring to? Thanks! Andy

Please elaborate on "Rabbi Bachman shared some tho...

2010-09-06T14:34:52.734-04:00

Please elaborate on "Rabbi Bachman shared some thoughts related to an old idea upon which the Temple House was built in 1929, the Synagogue-Center Movement. " Was this idea a result of our exclusion from other facilities?

What Larry said. We have never had much of a cultu...

2010-08-31T15:34:37.356-04:00

What Larry said. We have never had much of a culture of asking at CBE. Shouldn't we try being a bit more aggressive and assertive on that front before blowing up the whole model? And who's to say CBE can't be like a JCC while still having members. Isn't that kinda what we're doing now anyway?

You ask - What if CBE totally redefined itself and...

2010-08-30T14:32:58.574-04:00

You ask - What if CBE totally redefined itself and made Membership Dues purely voluntary. Like WNYC or the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

I'm not at all familiar with the support system of WNYC, but if it's anything like that of NFP radio in Chicago (on-air appeals), there's a definite l'havdil between that and the museum (I am, by the way, a member of the Milwaukee Museum, as well as the Art Institute of Chicago, the Jewish Museum in NYC, and a couple of Holocaust Museums.)

At the Met, the voluntary payment may be articulated, but in reality an admission fee is de rigeur. And the synagogue can't readily collect an admission fee when most of our traffic occurs at times we're not supposed to be handling money. That's the same reason we can't follow the business model of many churches and pass the plate.

One reason that our potential donors prefer the university, the symphony, the museum, etc. is that they get a lot more recognition bang for their philanthropic buck, and Rambam to the contrary notwithstanding, recognition is an important motivator. But another reason, and you alluded to it, is that we have not created a culture of giving in our synagogues -- because we have not created a culture of asking.

While I don't propose that the rabbi spend the lion's share of his or her time at fund-raising, clergy are probably best-suited to present the vision of something worth supporting -- but a development department and a development committee have to organize and role model the effort.

As long as we rely on bake sales, Yom Kippur appeals, and dues, we continue on our hand-to-mouth pathway. Terumah, giving from the heart, worked so well that two weeks later came mandatory half-shekel dues, and later a whole bookful of instructions for supporting the clergy.

I'm with you -- we need a new business model. We know the system is broke, but we don't know how to fix it. But we are not free to desist from the task.

Batter up.

2010-08-30T12:10:14.624-04:00

Batter up.

I'm in.

2010-08-30T09:45:15.998-04:00

I'm in.

improving our infrastructure's supposed to be a gr...

2010-08-30T07:43:01.425-04:00

improving our infrastructure's supposed to be a great way to combat unemployment and boost the economy...

A black president doesn't close a gap; it's a symb...

2010-08-30T05:59:57.207-04:00

A black president doesn't close a gap; it's a symbolic victory--significant but symbolic. You are ignoring economic facts. And by the way, read the account of Beck on Sunday talk shows--immediately after "playing nice" on Saturday, he set out to question whether Obama was a Christian: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/29/AR2010082903889.html?hpid=topnews. What Glen Beck is doing is perverse. I'm sorry you don't see it.

I totally disagree. Can you really say the gap be...

2010-08-29T20:15:57.634-04:00

I totally disagree. Can you really say the gap between blacks and whites has increased since the civil rights movement? Hello, black president! What rollback of civil rights? I agree there has been an increase in the gap between rich and poor, but why put race into it? Why so focused on that? Don't forget about the black middle and upper class, or are they an inconvenient truth?

Law and policy have helped equalize opportunity. Discrimination based on race has already been criminalized. Evil people will break the law and take advantage of whoever will part with more of their money more easily, black or white. The problem is with enforcement, prosecution, and punishment. Those are justice issues that are carried out at the individual level. The people, not the government, determines whether justice is carried out morally or not.

And back to the race issue, since there are upper income and lower income among both races, and there is a possibility of vertical economic mobility in this country, is there common variable that can predict the move from wealth to poverty? Perhaps a family that instills the right values in a child? An active community that values morals?
A crime free lifestyle? Could these be more important than state expenditure per pupil, per subsidized housing unit, etc? It would be interesting to know. But the first 3 are something the individual, as a parent, family member, or concerned community member has control over NOW. They have little control of state budgets. This brings me back to Mr. Beck. What he is saying is “Get back to your church, your synagogue, your mosque! Get back to your founding principles.”

(Here's a clip of Mr. Beck from Huffington Post):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/12/glenn-beck-gay-marriage-n_n_679691.html

And note that Mr. Beck doesn’t oppose gay marriage, so you guys can be political buddies now!
:) Kind Regards,
EK

The poor will always be among us--the Torah is cle...

2010-08-29T15:57:25.247-04:00

The poor will always be among us--the Torah is clear that mostly, that has to do with human greed and a disregard of the Law. Speaking of which, the War on Poverty hasn't ever been fully waged, since most subsequent administrations have attempted to dismantle a progressive tax system, under-funded housing and schools, and rolled back enforcement of civil rights guarantees. Why has the gap betwwen rich and poor and black and white increased? Law and policy, developed and enforced by mostly conservative governments. Regarding Beck, let's start with his cessation of lies about Obama not being a citizen and an evil socialist. If he works to put out fires he started, maybe Beck would be worth listening to. As it is, it's fairly clear he's the mouthpiece for libertarian, right-wing interests.

Nice point, but still no credit for what I mention...

2010-08-29T15:38:40.447-04:00

Nice point, but still no credit for what I mentioned above about GB? Also, could you elaborate which laws that ensure equal justice GB opposes? (I'll leave SP out of this and any further discussions).

I think the point is for all to have equal opportunity, not equal results; equality in the pursuit of happiness, not equality in happiness itself. MLK began to wage a war on poverty, but despite the best intentions of good hearted people, how has that turned out? The Torah says there will always be needy among you. It says if you see your fellows ox lying on the road help him. It doesn't say if your fellow doesn't have an ox, give him half of yours. There will never be total equality. The best we can hope for is equal opportunity, honest weights and measures.

If "equal justice" means more than equal opportunity, what exactly does it mean to you?

If it means a general equality for everyone, why not start with you and me? Let's pool assets and divide equally! :) Would this be equal justice?

EK: Thanks for writing; however, I disagree. Opp...

2010-08-29T14:37:29.452-04:00

EK: Thanks for writing; however, I disagree. Opposing laws and legislation which ensure equal justice for all while "saying" he's for justice for all is simply Beck as political charlatan. I read both Beck's and Palin's speeches from Saturday. As employees of Fox News, they are each perfect representations of a frightening marriage between madness and media. By the time Dr. King was killed, he had begun to wage a war on poverty that would simply not have made him a natural ally of Beck or Palin. Their making use of his memory is perverse. And by the way, Abe Lincoln (with whose likeness many TP"rs posed yesterday) would have shredded Beck and Palin to rhetorical bits.

Rabbi, I enjoy your blogs, and I think you could w...

2010-08-29T14:17:21.289-04:00

Rabbi, I enjoy your blogs, and I think you could write much better than this Mr. Blow fellow. I found his column pretty useless. There was nothing new there. He is just a blantant anti-GlennBeckite probably projecting his own sense of inferiority compared to MLK (he wore MLK t-shirts, wow!) onto someone successful with a large following, who while not as articulate as MLK for sure, is actually trying to motivate people to change things for the better. The only surprise about the column was that there was no graph claiming how racist the Tea Partiers are.

It’s fashionable to call the Tea Party a bunch of racists, nuts, or worse, ignorant, and its really getting annoying. Think about it: Why is he commenting before he hears what the content of the speech? Is the column just a Saturday filler? If you read the speech or listen to interviews with him, Mr. Beck’s major themes are 1) equal justice for all, and 2) a turning back towards God. Do you disagree with those ideas?

Yes, Mr. Beck said some things that he regretted later. Who hasn’t? Would it be possible to admit that at least Mr. Beck it trying to be inclusive with regards to race? That he has an endearing aspect of humility about him? That while most in the media have long been robotic mouthpieces for their respective parties, Mr. Beck has been pointing out the injustice done by both for some time now? Can you give him that credit?

If there is no one in the media to stop the cycle of demonizing leaders out of mindless reflex, then it will never stop. Both sides will continue to sink into name calling propaganda. No common ground will be found. Nothing will get done. No tikkun olam, no unity, no renewal. While I don’t agree with everything Mr. Beck says, this is what I believe he is trying to avoid. That’s why I’m standing up for him here.

Thanks, George. I am very much enjoying your writ...

2010-08-28T07:43:37.965-04:00

Thanks, George. I am very much enjoying your writing as well.

Great Writing!

2010-08-28T00:01:38.166-04:00

Great Writing!

It is sad what is going on in the U.S. But it's pa...

2010-08-26T13:21:50.436-04:00

It is sad what is going on in the U.S. But it's part of our history, so it's not surprising. It's just depressing.
Sometimes I think that this nation is so polarized, that somehow we should agree to disband the union in some kind of Red State-Blue State type of fashion. I realize that you can't actually delineate Americans this way. But wouldn't it make things easier? Why do we have to be a UNITED States? What does Brooklyn have in common with North Dakota?Maybe the South should secede?( Maybe Lincoln was wrong?) Why should liberal urbanites suffer because of misguided rural tea party-people in the hiz-ouse?
Ironically, I think it's the tea party members who are suffering MORE than the Blue Staters, if you look at statistics. But they continue voting against their own interests, all in the name of hating blacks, jews, gays, and the college edu-macated. Maybe THEY need to be liberated from their own stupidity. But I doubt they would greet an Operation Red State Freedom force as liberators.

As Rich wrote about in the NYTimes yesterday http:...

2010-08-23T09:01:45.858-04:00

As Rich wrote about in the NYTimes yesterday http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/opinion/22rich.html?scp=2&sq=Frank%20Rich&st=cse this is about what sticks, not a revolution. It is about the artificial creation of Islamo-racism to incite Americans against Obama and the Democrats in the next election. It is the old joke about the man screaming at a rally in pre-WWI Russia saying, "Do you know why the economy is so bad?--it's the Jews; do you know why our children hate us?--it's the Jews; do you know why the world is against us?" And then quickly someone shouted out, "IT'S THE BICYCLE RIDERS." The man looked at the person who said that and asked "Why the bicycle riders?" And the answer was, "WHY THE JEWS?"

I am happy to call and meet the Senator.

2010-08-19T14:58:17.433-04:00

I am happy to call and meet the Senator.

I hope you pick up the phone and try to speak with...

2010-08-19T14:01:10.311-04:00

I hope you pick up the phone and try to speak with Senator Montgomery. Not only is she a very nice person she has an incredible record of achievement, something Mr. Pollard can't say about any aspect of his career. He may have "passion" for things, but what has he done? And is it any reason to throw away the years of experience of someone who now has seniority, like Senator Montgomery does? Does Mr. Pollard really think we'll be better off while he is learning the ropes as a freshman so we should throw away the first chance this area has had to actually get things done? In the last 2 years since they took the majority, the Democratic Senate, and especially Senator Montgomery, have done more to reform Albany and restore balance and resources to our neighborhoods. Any chaos has been orchestrated by Republicans, and Mr. Pollard is an unwitting (I hope) tool.
But like I said, I hope you'll call Senator Montgomery. Or do you only consider people when they knock on your door? She represents 315,000 people, she might be a little busy.

When Debbie first introduced me to shul, what stru...

2010-08-17T12:16:16.442-04:00

When Debbie first introduced me to shul, what struck me most besides the service was in fact the hora effect you describe. There was a social event after one Friday night service; when the invited band struck up their first tune an instantaneous, almost sly and sensual look of delight crossed the faces of the bent elderly and disaffected teens alike, as they surged forward and linked arms. Ancient and intimate, it was unexpectedly familiar to me: the last time I'd seen it was on the inter-generational faces of my fellow Puerto Ricans at a party when someone threw some salsa music on the turntable to break the hip-hop monopoly. This inspired us when we planned our wedding reception: the theme was Latino guy meets Jewish girl at a 50s Catskills resort. The music was Tito Puente at Grossingers, mambo meets hora. And it was the 50s--what the heck, Chuck Berry was in the mix too.

Don't forget Hot Lips Houlihan. And don't call me...

2010-08-14T10:21:28.309-04:00

Don't forget Hot Lips Houlihan. And don't call me "hipster."

lovely recently explored a cemetery on the South ...

2010-08-13T16:50:20.065-04:00

lovely

recently explored a cemetery on the South Side of Chicago, home to a monument for the thousands of Confederate (!) soldiers buried there

very disturbing yet also beautiful to see the older Jewish section of that cemetery, where the gravestones are crowded together, some falling over, among weeds

thanks for capturing the beauties of graveyards

DPG--I nearly agree with you. I have come to beli...

2010-08-11T18:30:30.395-04:00

DPG--I nearly agree with you. I have come to believe, however, that National Service will engender the courage needed for a real national industrial policy. As things now stand, everyone's on the make and we're on the fast road to imperial deterioration.

These dreadful, pointless wars that we once again ...

2010-08-11T17:05:50.217-04:00

These dreadful, pointless wars that we once again find ourselves in would end in about two weeks if there were a draft because middle class parents like us wouldn't stand for our kids being inducted. As to the question of national service, I have a few qualms. The Constitution, of course, grants the federal government the power to raise an army, but mandatory national service to do the admittedly useful projects you mentioned isn't army service, it's regular work. As a result, I think the idea runs straight into the 13th Amendment which as you know bars slavery.

What our country needs is an economic and industrial policy that directs the vast, underused human and natural resources at our disposal where they are needed: to do useful work repairing our infrastructure, teaching our children and planning for a clean, productive future. We should be able to do that without forcing anyone to be part of a civilian army if they aren't so inclined.

The key here is compensation. It's not just that America needs to be rebuilt and reoriented. Useful work compensated fairly is disappearing every day, and with it the opportunity for millions to become part of the middle class. On the other hand, in the absence of such opportunities, our society is quickly beginning to tear apart at the seams, witness the increasing influence of the crank right. They are cranks for a reason, at least many of them are: they are desperately frightened that their way of life is being threatened by their inability to make a living. Granted, it goes a lot further than that for some of them, but a depression is the surest way to give these movements a foothold.

In the absence of an industrial policy that addresses both our infrastructural needs and provides good, productive jobs, your concept of a national service corps amounts to rounding up a reserve army of the unemployed. That, in turn, is bound to fire up the crank right even more, and in that case I'm not sure I would disagree with them.

Gorgeous, soul-clearing country up there all right...

2010-08-10T08:13:53.539-04:00

Gorgeous, soul-clearing country up there all right. I was in the Adirondacks only once, for a friend's wedding. We did a little grousing early in the trip about the distance (and we took the train!) only to be humbled very shortly by the passing landscape. We stayed in an ancient B&B along a tiny farm on a beautiful meadow in the shadow of the mountains. Coffee in their kitchen was --sublime. Can't quite say that for Starbucks. Thanks for the reminder. I'm due back.