Shabbat Shalom!
The inaugural fireworks had barely faded into the DC nightfall when on the 46th week of this awful pandemic, our 46th President used the power of his pen to begin healing our great nation. And so, while the inauguration of Joe Biden thankfully brought our national nightmare to a weird and wonderful conclusion, the hard work of getting back to “normal” has begun. For my part, “normal” will now mean no further mention of the Orange Turd in these blog postings. After 4 years of that awful human, I am done with ever mentioning him again, and while I know it’s naive to think 74 million of us will have a change of heart and mind, I hope the courts will put a final end to whatever remaining power or national influence he may still possess.
But what a great inauguration! I am gaga over Lady Gaga, and our 22 year old Poet Laureate, Amanda Gorman, was just amazing! Could this be a “new normal” for inaugural celebrations? What a great day for our country, but as i said, the hard work has just begun. And I have no doubt we will be cleaning out the bureaucratic chametz for many months to come. Most importantly, we desperately need Joe’s leadership to help stop this awful pandemic and get our people safe, our kids back in school, and our economy back on track. So, let’s go Joe!
“When day comes we step out of the shade,aflame and unafraidThe new dawn blooms as we free itFor there is always light,if only we’re brave enough to see itIf only we’re brave enough to be it”
Now, on with the review of the review of the news for Jews, courtesy of The Forward:
- Who’s who in Biden Jew-ville – “Get your program here!” If you want to know more about the line-up of Jews in leadership positions in the Biden administration, here is all you need to know. It’s an all-star line-up of highly qualified and talented folks. Let’s hope that like the recently departed Hank “The Hammer” Aaron, they hit the ball out of the park!
- Israeli weddings in Utah? Since there are no civil marriages in Israel, and no-one can travel anywhere due to the pandemic, Israelis have turned to online weddings performed by officiants in Utah to get around the crazy orthodox rules. If they are looking for a good officiant in Massachusetts, my brother-in-law Daniel comes highly recommended.
- Bernie’s mittens – Apparently the woman who makes them has received orders for over 6,000 as of two days ago, but she is not making any. Who knew Bernie the schlep would become such a fashion maven?!
- Inauguration: The first day of the rest of your life – So says Jodi Rudoren, The Forward Editor. No big fan of Joe, but her opinion piece thinks he is the right guy with the right message at the right time.
- “A Jew and a Black minister walk into the Senate..” – No, not the beginning of a joke, but a neat little story about the bible used to swear in John Ossof, the new (and Jewish) Senator from Georgia.
- What do Covid and refrigerators in LA have in common? – You really don’t want to know. Pretty disturbing story about how the spike in Covid deaths in the LA county area have impacted the mourning process for the Jewish and broader community. Ugh.
- Schumer rises to the top – A short piece about the hard working New York Senator who now represents the most powerful position ever held by a Jew. Such a mensch!
That’s all for now. And hey, let’s be extra careful out there! Even if you got vaccinated! (yeah mumsy!)
Also, look for the official Jew News Review website launch during the half-time show of this year’s Super Bowl. It’s a SuperJewReview! In case you want an sneak peak, here is the link you have been waiting for!
Don’t forget to follow me!
Brad out.https://assets.forward.com/012221-new.pdf
Jew News Review 