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Newsdesk September 23, 2005
Ex-Bush Aide Arrested A top former American official under arrest for allegedly lying about his relationship with a Jewish lobbyist is accused of using his influence to procure government land for a Jewish school. American agents arrested David Safavian on Monday, three days after he abruptly quit his position as top procurer for the Bush…
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Reform Rabbi Sues Israel for State Salary, In Latest Bid To End Orthodox Monopoly
TEL AVIV — In one of the strongest challenges ever to Orthodox religious dominance, an American-born Reform rabbi who serves a kibbutz of mostly American immigrants has petitioned Israel’s Supreme Court to demand a state salary as a municipal rabbi. The suit, submitted to the court this week by the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism,…
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The Dusty Abacus
Avi Atias, my computer technician in Israel, has a small company called Abacus. The other day, I asked him how he came to choose the name. “A friend suggested it,” he said. “I was looking for a word that wasn’t Hebrew and that had an international sound. But, hey, you’re the word man. What language…
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Professors Plan To Boycott Bush Speech
As President Bush’s popularity plunged this week in the post-Hurricane Katrina polls, several academics were planning to boycott his keynote speech Wednesday at a gala dinner in Washington. The event, to be held at the National Building Museum, was held in celebration of the 350th anniversary of Jews in America. The professors — including New…
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Pols Split on Probe of Response to Storm
As the Senate this week began to investigate what went wrong with the federal response to Hurricane Katrina, Jewish elected officials on opposite sides of the aisle offered sharply different approaches to answering the question. Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat, took the lead in demanding that the president appoint an independent panel along…
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In Storm’s Wake, Groups Fight Medicaid Cuts
WASHINGTON — America’s vast network of Jewish social service providers is seizing on the opportunity to use Hurricane Katrina to fight Republican efforts to slash Medicaid, the nation’s chief public health program for the poor. In the immediate aftermath of the hurricane, GOP lawmakers have put off their plan to cut $10 billion from Medicaid…
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Baton Rouge Synagogue Closes Shelter for Victims
A Baton Rouge, La., synagogue has closed its shelter for victims of Hurricane Katrina and placed its rabbi on administrative leave. The board of Congregation B’nai Israel asked Rabbi Barry Weinstein last week to take a paid leave of absence for an unspecified period. Weinstein had led B’nai Israel’s effort to house dozens of evacuees…
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Utah Station Pulls Plug on Radio Rabbi
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach is claiming that a radio station in Utah abruptly canceled his national talk show after he invited Hurricane Katrina evacuees to settle in the state and to attend a Salt Lake City speaking engagement of his slated for this week. Boteach, best known for his book “Kosher Sex,” claims that higher ups…
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Filmmaker Sues Philanthropist Over Documentary
A documentary heralding the achievements of famous Jews has triggered a bitter legal fight between the filmmaker and the philanthropist behind the project. Filmmaker Gil Baker is suing developer and money manager Robert I. Lappin and his philanthropic foundation, claiming that he has not been paid for his work on “Great Jewish Achievers.” Lappin, who…
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Palestinians Destroy Synagogues in Gaza
TEL AVIV — Monday’s dramatic scenes of synagogues being vandalized and, in some cases, destroyed by Palestinians in Gaza reminded Oded Tira of Israel’s pullout from the Sinai Desert nearly a quarter-century ago. Tira, a retired brigadier general in the Israeli army, was in charge of the 1982 evacuation of Yamit, the last Jewish settlement…
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Group’s Staffer Indicted on Count Of Embezzlement
A grand jury in New York has indicted a longtime employee of one of the country’s most storied and influential Jewish organizations for diverting at least $1 million from the company, the Forward has learned. The employee, Donalde Fergus, worked in financial department of the American Jewish Committee. He was indicted August 24 for grand…
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