Op-Eds

I put the question out on a Young Israel Rabbis chat that I belong to: “Do you observe that Modern Orthodox young marrieds are not coming back to shul?” I was stunned by the number of answers that I received from rabbis in many parts of the country, with the exact same observation.

The open letter asserted the import of candidates’ moral character and ethical example and the necessity of not appearing to embrace the caustic and noxious values of unsavory politicians. Nothing at all was stated about the affirmative need to at times vote for and even work amicably with such individuals for pragmatic purposes, albeit while holding our noses, so to say. Hence my response.

Modern-day corrupt and scandalous comportment by presidents and presidential candidates brings us back to the Kennedys, Lyndon Johnson and of course Richard Nixon, and most likely much further.

I know how crazy this opening sentence sounds, but … if Louis Farrakhan were not such a Hitler-like Jew-hater and race baiter, he actually would be pretty good.

Barr is strong and fierce, does not give an inch, does not get thrown off message, sticks to his guns, and sticks it to those who would take him down.

Eighty percent of American Jews have absolutely no idea what Judaism is. You see them on TV. You read them in some publications. Sometimes they say that they are motivated by their “Jewish values.” In reality, the vast majority of them would not know real Judaism if it were placed on their laps, served on their plates, or sung to them on their iPods.

Anyone who has observed me these past four months through the present knows that I adhere to COVID-19 precautions with utmost seriousness. That said, as with everything, there needs to be a balance. Not a balance between safety and economic prosperity, but between safety and sanity, and between health and actuality.

It is concerning, that they even would consider Basement Joe. Of course Biden wants to be safe; many Americans over 65 are staying indoors until a safe and effective coronavirus vaccine is available. Good for him. And while he remains at home and in the basement, he is safe from getting caught thinking out loud. But how can Independents really want to place their lives, their economy, their children’s future in such hands?

The reality is that this is a bad season for President Trump and, of course, a darned shame. For three-plus years he has been Mount Rushmore quality. One of the best there ever has been.