Britannia Radio

Daily Briefing

Thursday, December 29, 2011

FEATURED STORY Jewish conservatives push back against Paul surge Ron Paul’s unlikely rise in the Republican presidential race has Jewish conservatives on edge. Read more » EDITORS' PICKS Iron lady (Tablet) With a new biopic of her life about to be released, it's an opportune moment to review Margaret Thatcher's staunch history of support for Jewish causes. Stuck in neutral (Forward) Despite broad efforts to push Jewish day schools, new data suggests the idea isn't catching on among the non-Orthodox. Wanna hear more? (Rolling Stone) If you haven't yet heard enough from Matisyahu, the singer opens up, again, about his decision to shave his beard. He's making a list (New York Times) Daniel Retter, an immigration attorney from the Bronx, has compiled the world's first index of the Talmud. Strange bedfellows (Al Jazeera) In Europe, concern about growing Muslim influence has drawn together far-right political organizations and the militant Jewish Defense League, despite worries about the former's anti-Semitism. Concern for American democracy In a JTA Op-Ed, Jason Edelstein writes that Thomas Friedman and Hillary Clinton should clean up their own backyard before they go out and criticize Israeli democracy. The Eulogizer: Deaths we missed JTA's appreciation blog remembers some prominent Jews who passed away in 2011. Jews and the secular New Year Is there a way to celebrate December 31st in a Jewish way? On MyJewishLearning, Rabbi Brad Hirschfield offers tips for making New Year's Eve a more Jewish tra

BREAKING NEWS Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced that he will tour four Latin American nations in January. Six right-wing Jewish activists reportedly were arrested at their homes in the West Bank and Jerusalem for gathering intelligence on Israeli troop movements. Two Cuban Jewish leaders met with jailed American Jewish contractor Alan Gross. A haredi Orthodox man who insulted a female soldier after she refused to sit in the back of a city bus was charged with sexual harassment. The Federation of Jewish Communities of Serbia has protested the “catastrophic” conditions of the historic Jewish cemetery in the city of Nis and urged authorities to act against vandalism there. A bill that would allow Israeli couples wishing to marry to register with any rabbinate in the country passed a preliminary Knesset reading. Israel will take action against haredi Orthodox extremists who harass women in the public sphere, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned. A majority of Israelis and half of Palestinians support a permanent peace settlement, according to a new poll.