Chosen People Problems

On October 6th, we sat down for a lovely conversation with journalist  Mary Katharine Ham, who you may know from CNN, The Federalist, and as the co-host of wonderful podcast "Getting Hammered". 

I'd like to say that back 3 weeks ago when we recorded this we didn't have any problems, but we did, just at a much smaller scale. We discuss a lot of the things that were on our minds then and now like Israel, journalism, and American campus madness in this timeless episode. In her southern generosity, Mary Katharine agreed to come back a few days ago, so we also recorded a more timely intro for y'all where we discuss the last couple of weeks. 

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12 Days of War - with IDF Col. (Res.) Miri Eisen

We are joined by IDF Colonel (Res.) Miri Eisen, formerly a senior intelligence officer and now the head of the International Institute for Counterterrorism at Reichman University. 

We discuss Hamas's endgame, future escalation, and the enviable strength of the people of Israel.

If you are a new listener, our episodes are usually a lot funnier. Stick with us please till we make it past these dark days and go back to being our usual lighthearted and goofy selves. We have every plan to bounce back!

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And you can also follow Yael on Twitter with updates from Israel https://twitter.com/yaelbt

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Elon Musk goes to Auschwitz, Chaya Leah goes to spin class.

Are you a holocaust denier? Then why aren't you following us on Substack?? https://askajew.substack.com/

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Also: 

How do you say Jew in sign language?

🔔 Holocaust bell rings around 10  minutes in... 🔔

Why does Oprah love her dog more than she loves the Jews?

Chaya Leah wants to rebrand herself from a Jew to a person who goes to spin class 

Somewhere out there is s someone who is sick of sleeping with a supermodel

We get vulnerable searching for our true selves... (spoiler alert - we couldn't find it)

Is self-acceptance for losers?

Did yael fail at Yom Kippur?

Secular vs. Religious in Israel - Yom Kippur edition. We don't entirely agree with one another, but tend to nod along to Yossi Klein Halevi on this one - all of us should be ashamed.

Yael's quest for Nazi Porn 

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Saudi Arabia, you up?

Bibi and Elon, sitting in a tree

A beautiful tradition or antisemitic blood libel? Why not both?

Non binary silverware

Yael asks Chaya Leah about a  Yom Kippur tradition involving Jews paying Arabs

The weird chicken thing that Orthodox Jews do

Tradition!

🔔 Holocaust bell rings at 26 minutes 🔔

We talk about Lauren Boebert, Bari Weiss, and Palestinians antisemites at UPenn, because we always like to be 2 weeks behind the news.

The time Chaya Leah got scolded for bringing a Nazi to campus

Are we in control? Hashem says: lol.

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Democracy Hipster - With Yascha Mounk

Oh look, Yascha Mounk wrote another book. "The Identity Trap: A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time" is really great (just like all the others), so we invited Yascha on to talk about democracy around the world in 2023, why identity politics is bad for everyone, post-liberalism on the right and left, Germany and Israel being BFFs, Donald Trump , social media, and the death of self critique. 

🔔 Yascha rings the Holocaust bell at 4:15 🔔 

Also - how Jewish is Yascha? Is he single? And why might he want to work at Trader Joe's? 

Find out by listening and subscribing:

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BUY THE BOOK! https://www.amazon.com/Identity-Trap-Story-Ideas-Power/dp/0593493184

Yascha rings the Holocaust bell at 4:15 telling us about his family and growing up in Germany 

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As a Rosh Hashana gift to ourselves (and our listeners) we spent an hour with the Beyonce of Rabbis, the honey to our apple, the horseradish to our Gefilte - Rabbi David Wolpe! 

He joins us from Cambridge where he is a visiting scholar at Harvard Divinity School (ohh-la-la), though you may remember him from such rabbinical masterpieces as “Most Influential Rabbi in America” (Newsweek), and “50 Most Influential Angelinos” (LA Magazine). A frequent cordial sparring partner of atheists like Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens, today he is the Senior Advisor at Maimonides Fund and the inaugural Rabbinic Fellow for the ADL. Yes, that ADL. And yes - we go there!

The man is a treasure trove of deep thoughts about ethics, faith and the human condition, so naturally when granted an hour of his time we choose to pick his brain about diet books and Elon Musk. Among the pillars of our talk:

🔔 A record breaking Holocaust bell at 2:40 into the interview 🔔 

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Why did G_d forsake the people of Israel at Burning Man?

Did Abraham work in a gift shop?

You’re so not invited to my Bat Mitzvah (J/k please come)

Would you read your angsty teenage diary on stage? These people did and its hilarious.

Hot 12 year old boys

Our traumatic stories from 6th grade

Marraige is good, I guess

Esther Perel on artificial intamacy

🔔Holocaust Bell rings late! 42:42 🔔

A Holocaust Instagram story?

What happened to hot Nazis?

Some PR advice for the Goyimn Defense League (Maybe a name change? Or shorten to GDL?)

What random shows do you love that no one else watches? Chaya Leah is a fan of Hell on Wheels, while Yael yearns for a man with a cat who gets tomorrow’s newspaper today

An Israel, a Palestinian and a bunch of whites go to dinner

Listener Question: Frum vs. Seculars

You’re either and anti-antisemite or you’re an antisemite

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Remember when diversity wasn’t an annoying word that makes you think of 5 hour office HR power point presentations? Our guest today is diverse in the coolest way possible - not just his background, but his experience and work as well. Yirmiyahu Danzig tells us all about his upbringing as a Carribean/American/Israeli Jew, his military service in the heart of the conflict alongside Israeli soldiers of all religions, and his online work building bridges with our Arab neigbors.

🛎 Holocaust bell dings at 4:22 🛎

Find him on instagram @that_semite and JewishUnpacked.com

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The Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk of Jewish podcasting are back this week, talking about the latest tragedy to befall the Jewish people, prosthetic noses. We learn that this is the Jewish month of self reflection , debate whether israel should have a Sunday, and answer listener questions about autopay on Shabbat.  For your Qs, our email is [email protected]. 

Next stop - the Tel Aviv light rail! We discuss public transportation and the conflicts between orthodox men and scantitly clad female passengers. Why can’t we all just get along, the heavily clothed and the half-naked?

🛎 Holocaust Bell rings around 3:25 🛎

Book club! Pick up a copy of Walter Russell Mead’s “The Arc of a Covenant” about the history of Israeli-American relationships and look smart while reading it on the train. We hope to have him on in the coming months and will take your questions!

Join the conversation! We are on substack, where you can sign up for our newsletter and connect with other AAJ fans. The comment section is quite the Shtetel square: Askajew.substack.com. Questions for us? [email protected]. You can also find us on instagram @askajewpod

Show notes:

Tel Aviv light rail video https://fb.watch/mz9wiYtKcl/

Bring Sundays to Israel: https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-755225

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