11 Oct
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Moment readers on Ayn Rand

More than half of Moment readers say Ayn Rand’s ideas have no place in politics today, according to a reader survey. Rand, the Jewish author and philosopher born Alisa Rosenbaum, is said to have influenced Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan. And as Ryan prepares to take on vice president Joe Biden in the debates tonight, it remains to be seen how important her ideas will be. According to the survey, just 43 percent of Moment readers say that her ideas belong in politics today. Here are some of the top responses to our question, “Do Ayn Rand’s ideas belong in politics today?” “Selfishness and rampant individualism will not help create a sustainable and livable society. Surely the years since the crash of 2008 have shown this to be true.” “Since when are non-violent, non-hateful socio-economic worldviews beyond democratic discourse?” “Capitalism...

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10 Oct
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Anti-Jihad ads come to Washington

A Christian social justice group is fighting the newest wave of anti-Muslim advertisements with a campaign to raise $25,000 to buy counter-advertisements aboard the D.C. Metro system that read, “Love Your Muslim Neighbor.” The campaign, announced yesterday, comes after the controversial ads, which have already been placed in San Francisco and New York, reached the nation’s capital.  Paid for by the American Freedom Defense Initiative, the advertisement reads, “In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man. Support Israel. Defeat Jihad.” Sojourners, the Washington-based social justice group, is now soliciting $25 contributions in the hopes of raising the necessary $5,000 to buy a counter ad. “If we want peace between Muslims and Christians, we can start by standing against religious intolerance in our own backyard,” the group said in a statement.  “Everyone –...

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10 Oct
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Bachmann takes on falafel

Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann is coming under fire for anti-Muslim statements that she never made but were taken seriously by readers of a satire magazine. In what is described by the satirical publication the Daily Currant as a real interview, the congresswoman tells local news station KSTP-TV in Minneapolis that falafel, a “jihadi food,” should be banned because it is a “gateway food” to Islam. "It starts with falafel, then the kids move on to shawarma. After a while they say 'hey this tastes good, I wonder what else comes from Arabia?' Before you know it our children are listening to Muslim music, reading the Koran, and plotting attacks against the homeland." The satirical piece has gone viral and many people have retweeted her comments incredulously.  As one detractor wrote, “I can’t believe there are still people in...

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05 Oct
Latest, Uncategorized

Pulpit Freedom Sunday vs IRS

By Daphna Berman Some 1,500 pastors are expected to publicly endorse political candidates and openly violate IRS law this coming weekend as part of Pulpit Freedom Sunday. The brainchild of the Christian group Alliance Defending Freedom, the public effort is expected to draw much media attention—but with few legal repercussions. Because of the Johnson Amendment, enacted in 1954 and sponsored by then-Senator Lyndon B. Johnson, charities, religious groups and other organizations claiming tax exempt status as 501(c)3 non-profits are politically limited. According to the law, they “are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office.”  In 1987, Congress strengthened the ban, clarifying that the prohibition also applies to statements opposing candidates. But the IRS does little to enforce it. Today,...

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04 Oct
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Pigs, the Holocaust and Isaac Bashevis Singer

A Holocaust survivor led a Los Angeles protest in front of meat-processing plant where some 1.5 million pigs are slaughtered annually, in a move he says was influenced by his experiences in the Warsaw ghetto.   Alex Hershaft, founder of Farm Animal Rights Movement (FARM), traveled to California from his Washington D.C.-area home to mark Tuesday’s World Farm Animal Day in a demonstration in which two people were arrested. "As a Nazi Holocaust survivor, I am honor-bound to call public attention to this ongoing tragedy,” he said. “Indeed, my 37-year struggle to end the use of animals for food has been inspired largely by my experience of the Nazi Holocaust in Poland.” "Obviously, I am not equating the millions of my fellow Jews slain tragically in the 1940s and the millions of pigs slaughtered every week for U.S. dinner...

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03 Oct
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Jews and tonight’s debate

Tonight’s debate is unlikely to sway Jewish voters or even directly appeal to them, a leading expert on American Jewish voting trends told In the Moment. “Partisans come to a debate with preset expectations and most Jews are partisans,” said Kenneth Wald, a political science professor at the University of Florida and co-author of Jewish American Voting Behavior 1972-2008: Just the Facts, a recent survey of Jewish voting trends.  “If there’s a population both candidates have in mind, it’s Catholics, not Jews. Catholics are the swing voters of late.” The debate, which will focus on domestic issues and is slated to start at 9 Eastern tonight, will not touch on foreign policy issues such as Israel or Iran—a key concern for many Jewish voters. Issues such as domestic terrorism may come into play, however. Jewish American Voting Behavior...

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03 Oct
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Ayn Rand in Washington

By Nadine Epstein Last evening, I attended the world premiere of Atlas Shrugged, Part Two, at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, DC, attended by the glitterati of the libertarian world. Spotted in the crowd were Grover Norquist, Matt Kibbe (head of FreedomWorks), the heart and souls of The Atlas Society and the stars of the new film, an entirely new cast since Part One. Once the introductory preaching concluded (altruism seemed to be misconstrued as solely government enforced) and reminders to vote were put forth (the name Mitt Romney was never uttered), the lights went down and the fun began. Although some camera angles and production values jarred me at times, I’ve gotta say, I enjoyed the movie, especially the fast-paced, action-filled last half. The new actors playing the iconic characters (the film’s Wikipedia page says...

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28 Sep
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Win a free iPad (really!!)

The Republican Jewish Coalition is giving away iPads to volunteers who rack up enough phone banking hours ahead of the November elections. For 50 hours of phone time, volunteers will get the $599 iPad 3 and for 40 hours, they’re being offered the $499 version. “It’s a token way of saying thank you for people who are giving up a lot of time,” RJC executive director Matt Brooks told the Forward. That translates to more than just a token thank you, but with donors like casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, the RJC can apparently afford it.

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28 Sep
Latest, Uncategorized

Poll: Most Jewish Israelis dissatisfied with government policies on religion

More than three quarters of Jewish Israelis are dissatisfied with government policies on religion, while 67% believe that the country’s ultra-Orthodox are driving a wedge between the general public and Judaism, according to a recently released study. The public opinion poll, conducted by Hiddush- Freedom of Religion for Israel, also found that the rift between secular and haredi Israelis was deemed more “acute” than those between the country’s political right and left. Both, meanwhile, far surpassed the perceived rifts between Israel’s rich and poor. This is the group’s fourth annual ‘Religion and State Index’ and is the largest ongoing public opinion study on matters of religion and state in Israel. It comes at a time when religious tensions in Israel are growing amidst what many perceive to be ultra-Orthodox’s increased influence on the public sphere. Gender segregation...

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27 Sep
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Kosher food fight

A legal battle over kosher food for Jewish prisoners in Texas begins Monday. Max Moussazadeh, a Persian Jew who was convicted of murder in 1993 and was originally sentenced to 75 years in prison, says that withholding kosher food is a breach of his religious rights and violates the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA). Currently, thirty-five states and the federal government provide Jewish inmates with a kosher diet. Texas, however, has refused to provide a strictly kosher diet to Moussazadeh. The case will be heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans. The Becket Fund, a nonprofit law firm that is arguing on his behalf, has said that providing kosher food would come at minimal cost and would represent less than .02 percent of the Texas prison system’s...

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