Monthly Archives: December 2013

Techno Medieval Religion SoundSpace (The Forty Part Motets) (Janet Cardiff at the Cloisters)

For Christmas: Before it closed a couple of week ago, I went to catch Janet Cardiff’s The Forty Part Motet, a 2001 sound installation of Thomas Tallis’ 40-part choral piece “Spem in alium” (1570), recorded by forty singers and then … Continue reading

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BDS Liberal Jew Purge (Mondoweiss)

“Not anti-Semitism.” A very helpful review over at Mondoweiss of the argument about Israel-Palestine between Electronic Intifadah and the Nation dithers into abject Jew-counting. Are too many Zionists and Jews writing at the Nation? The article by Rania Khalek at Electronic … Continue reading

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Conference (Death and the Philosophy of Halakhah) (Van Leer Jerusalem Institute)

Death and the Philosophy of Halakhah The Fifth Conference on the Philosophy of Halakhah Monday-Tuesday, 23-24 December 2013 At The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute 43 Jabotinsky Street, Jerusalem The conference will be live broadcast The conference will examine the direct … Continue reading

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Contempt, Coalitions, & “Useful Idiots” (BDS) (Liberal Zionism Out of Gas)

This will hopefully be my last post about BDS and the American Studies Association, at least for a while. As an empirical test case, one good outcome will be that we’ll be able to see what an academic boycott of … Continue reading

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Style (Edgar M. Bronfman z”l)

Booze, money, Judaism, art, Israel, music.  The family fortune was made in Canada during Prohibition. Edgar M. Bronfman went after Kurt Waldheim, the Vatican, Swizz banks, and pro-Israel super-hawks. The man had style. “I would like every Jew to be … Continue reading

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BDS — Fundraising Appeal

Well, this is the first formal fundraising pitch for a Jewish-Israel related organization that I’ve seen relating to the recent decision of the American Studies Association to boycott Israeli universities. It was sent to “me” via email. I’ve been thinking … Continue reading

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Snow Storm Slog — (Jewish) Political Theology — Ecological Apocalypse

In the car with Randi Rashkover and Martin Kavka’s new edited book on Jewish philosophy, liberalism, and political theology, this is what it looked like on rt. 90 trying to get out of Boston last Tuesday after the annual conference … Continue reading

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צו לצו צו לצו קו לקו קו לקו קו לקו (God Sounds Dada) (Isaiah 28)

In the synagogue today, the haftarah reading –proud crowns, drunkards of Ephraim, wilted flowers, filthy tables covered by vomit so that no space is left, God, something strong and might, storm of hail hurled with force to the ground. But … Continue reading

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It’s About Time (New Jewish Studies Design Aesthetic) (AJS Perspectives)

For while now the Association of Jewish Studies has been publishing a bi-annual magazine, AJS Perspectives. Situated somewhere between a blog and journal article, each issue is special-topic specific. This winter it’s “The Labor Issue.” What I would draw attention … Continue reading

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(Pandora’s Box) Should Jewish Studies Boycott American Studies Association?

Now that American Studies at Brandeis University has pulled itself out of the American Studies Association, I would like to run a little thought experiment. It;s just a thought experiment. Here’s how it plays out. I. Assuming that: colleagues and … Continue reading

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