http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php en nrubin@jewishtimes.com Copyright 2012 2012-02-10T19:04:19+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/first_jewish_prez/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/first_jewish_prez/#When:19:00:10Z
]]>Joe Lieberman couldn’t pass the mustard (or cream cheese?) in 2004, but maybe it’s Roseanne Barr’s moment. Because if we really want change, isn’t the most insane, unpredictable person the best candidate for America’s first Jewish president? As Green Party national coordinator Scott McLarty said in a whopping understatement, “She will make it very interesting from what… Weird News 2012-02-09T19:00:10+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/in_a_long_while_crocodile/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/in_a_long_while_crocodile/#When:19:00:12Z
]]>It might not be the most pressing Jewish problem on the planet, but Jews looking both to support Israel and have a comfy but strange pair of shoes are going to have a little harder time of it these days. That’s because not long ago, reports the Haaretz newspaper, the Israeli Nature and Parks Authority decided not to… Weird News 2012-01-26T19:00:12+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/bark_mitzvah_time/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/bark_mitzvah_time/#When:19:00:23Z
]]>So I’m OK with the Blessing of the Pets that some rabbis do, but a “bark mitzvah” when El-Critter hits 13? Enter Lee Day — a “celebrity pet hair stylist and entertainer,” reports Ami Eden of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. In an Associated Press report, Day says, “I perform bark mitzvahs because it’s a blessing for the animals.… Weird News 2012-01-19T19:00:23+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/where_jews_get_nailed/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/where_jews_get_nailed/#When:19:00:54Z
]]>It’s ever so difficult to be up on the latest Jewish fashions. Enter the latest great way to accessorize one’s Shabbat, holiday or everyday Jewish wardrobe: Midrash Manicures. Indeed, what better statement of Jewish identity is there than fingernails that match the week’s Torah reading? Think about it: You’re amidst services, your mind wanders, you stare at your… Weird News 2012-01-12T19:00:54+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/peace_oh_my/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/peace_oh_my/#When:19:00:10Z
]]>Umm, remember, folks: The Gaza Strip is not an adult nightclub (regardless of that “The Simpsons” episode). So why were about 40 Israeli women taking off their clothes? Why, they were supporting 20-year-old Egyptian blogger Aliaa Elmahdi, who was the buzz of the Arab world after posting a naked photo of herself online to protest Egypt’s limits of… Weird News 2012-01-05T19:00:10+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/dr._browns_jewish_cocktails/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/dr._browns_jewish_cocktails/#When:19:00:28Z
]]>Jewish cocktails? Make mine a Cream Soda Cognac or a Black Cherry Sherry. Over on that funky website jewcy.com, writer Jason Diamond ponders why people only think of Coca-Cola as a drink mixer. What about, he asks, Dr. Brown’s sodas? “We’re living in a time when people are doing new and interesting things in the world… Weird News 2011-12-29T19:00:28+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/obama_lids_for_yids/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/obama_lids_for_yids/#When:19:00:41Z
]]>In recent presidential elections, Jewish swag — or shall we say schwag — is the norm, beginning in a previous century with Hebrew “Clinton-Gore” buttons. So it’s no surprise that another Obama kippah is already out. This one, of course, is just in time for Chanukah. In fact, that’s exactly how a press release from Obamaulkes.com starts.… Weird News 2011-12-22T19:00:41+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/chanukah_its_about_the_beer/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/chanukah_its_about_the_beer/#When:19:00:47Z
]]>We know about the dreidels, the gelt, the channukiot and the latkes. But after some serious reminiscing about ancient miracles, who wouldn’t want to kick back and light a “ Build Your Own Beer Menorah?”  The good folks at Shmaltz — the motley crew responsible for HE’BREW beer (personally, I love the Pomegranate Ale) — are here… Weird News 2011-12-15T19:00:47+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/oy_vey_chicken_palooza_time/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/oy_vey_chicken_palooza_time/#When:16:28:33Z
]]>So it’s a typical day at the disgraced Agriprocessors kosher slaughterhouse in Postville, Iowa, which means another massive problem looms. After all, this is where back in 2008 past and present associates swallowed 9,000 counts of child labor violations, a strand in a string of legal problems making O.J. Simpson look sweeter than Little Orphan Annie. Now comes… Weird News 2010-02-18T16:28:33+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/jammin_jamaicans/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/jammin_jamaicans/#When:17:29:12Z A ton of locals can claim Jewish heritage, reports The JTA Wire Service’s Gil Shefler. Indeed, a scan of the telephone directory confirms that “Thousands of Cohens, Levys and Gabays are listed. But the local Jewish congregation numbers a mere 200 members.” Among the island’s potential descendants from Clan Hebrew are Jamaican dance-hall musician Sean Paul, whose paternal… Weird News 2010-02-11T17:29:12+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/ancient_maori_jews/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/ancient_maori_jews/#When:20:00:04Z So your cruise stops off at a New Zealand island when you catch a strange site over to the right. It seems that a native Maori dancer — dressed in feathered robes and decorated with face tattoos — has whipped out his cell phone (hidden beneath his robe) and just whispered in Hebrew, “Emah, ani b’avodah!” (“Mom,… Weird News 2010-02-04T20:00:04+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/pie_anyone/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/pie_anyone/#When:16:13:10Z
]]>Remember the old bit about someone tossing a creamy pie in someone’s face, who turned around and returned the favor, and so on? Well, a Jewish youth group in Great Britain just took the idea to the world stage in a major way. The event, which took place in East Mersea, Essex, involved 253 members of the Jewish… Weird News 2009-09-03T16:13:10+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/jews_and_the_gnomes_problem/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/jews_and_the_gnomes_problem/#When:19:00:21Z
]]>It seems that a Nuremberg court — you remember the venue for the famous post-World War II Nazi trials, right? — will allow an art gallery to display garden gnomes giving a Heil Hitler salute, reports the JTA Wire Service. The sign is banned in Germany unless it is part of an educational, pro-democratic project. But the state… Weird News 2009-08-13T19:00:21+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/jailhouse_rock_of_ages/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/jailhouse_rock_of_ages/#When:19:00:19Z
]]>Ahh, New York, where everything Jewish is possible — including a lavish bar mitzvah in the slammer. It seems that officials of the Big Apple are busy investigating how a well-connected inmate could host a lavish bar mitzvah in prison, according to the JTA Wire Service. The city’s Department of Investigation is looking into how Tuvia Stern —… Weird News 2009-06-25T19:00:19+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/highway_to_heschel/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/highway_to_heschel/#When:19:06:35Z
]]>Next time some good ol’ hate mongers in Springfield, Mo. head out to the annual We Hate Everybody BBQ, they might be cruising down the Highway to Heschel — Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, that is. That’s because the state legislature last week adjourned after passing a bill aimed at aggravating the ulcers of the local neo-Nazi National Socialist… Weird News 2009-06-04T19:06:35+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/is_petrol_parve/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/is_petrol_parve/#When:19:00:47Z
]]>“Fill her up with unleaded and give me some gum and that homemade gefilte fish, too.” It’s not common lingo at gas stations across the nation, but it’s becoming more frequent in Brooklyn, thanks to the Rio Gas Station in Borough Park. Yes, the nation has just received its first kosher petrol plaza, according to the New York… Weird News 2009-05-28T19:00:47+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/socialism_for_sale/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/socialism_for_sale/#When:19:00:05Z
]]>Now you really know there’s an economic meltdown turning everything once taken for granted inside out. How else can one react to the news that the Workmen’s Circle/Arbeter Ring –– with its deep roots in the Jewish socialist labor movement –– is promoting credit cards? Yes, the group recently announced its affinity marketing effort via the Visa Platinum… Weird News 2009-05-21T19:00:05+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/sky-diving_jews/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/sky-diving_jews/#When:14:04:53Z
]]>The idea of Jews camping or jumping out of airplanes for the heck of it seems like an oxymoron to many. But Jewish groups across the country are increasingly planning outdoor events — running the gamut from camping, biking, hiking, skiing and even jumping out of airplanes. For those who doubt it, Lew Groner, co-president of Jewish Outdoor… Weird News 2009-02-20T14:04:53+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/sholem_aleichems_encore/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/sholem_aleichems_encore/#When:14:04:02Z
]]>Did they know he was laughing at them? A museum in Kiev, Ukraine, recently kicked off national observances of the 150th anniversary of the birthday of the legendary Yiddish satire writer Sholem Aleichem –– who made a living gently making fun of gentile peasants and stereotypical Jews in his famous writings. An exhibition on the Jewish writer, who… Weird News 2009-02-13T14:04:02+00:00 http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/hot_bearded_jewish_man/ http://www.jewishtimes.com/index.php/jewishtimes/weird_news/jt/weird_news/hot_bearded_jewish_man/#When:14:03:10Z
]]>Now that’s a figure worth looking at — or, that is, a figurine. The marble bust depicts a bearded man’s head and was probably a boxer; boxing was quite popular in Roman times. The piece likely dates back to the era of the emperor Hadrian (117-138 C.E.) or shortly thereafter, according to archaeologists on site. “To the best… Weird News 2009-02-06T14:03:10+00:00