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For the most part, I find death threats absurd. Even humorous. I’ve been photoshopped into gas chambers; “invited” to meet in dark alleys in Cape Town;...
This week marks three years since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. And while I’m hardly a monarchist, I’ve always been fascinated by the peculiar traditions...
To live as a Jew has never been simple. For generations, external forces have tried their utmost to destroy us. They have waged wars, forced conversions,...
The Jewish year offers something for everyone. Matza lovers rejoice come Pesach, wannabe vegetarians come into their own over the “Nine Milk Days”, while Jewish handymen...
Not once was her glass of chilled white wine at risk. Which, frankly, was the most – and perhaps only – impressive part of the entire...
As someone who has been cancelled more often than a Sunday Times subscription, you might assume that I’d be waving the flag for anonymous submissions. As...
Six years ago, South Africa was gifted a national treasure: a shaky cellphone video of Marelize Horn trying to ride a bicycle on an otherwise empty...
It was the badger that sent me down a rabbit hole. Why a Woolworths strawberry yoghurt bar would proudly proclaim that it was “badger friendly” was...
In July of 1979, I took out a Beatrix Potter book from the Yeoville Library in Johannesburg. I was 10 years old, had just discovered the...
I apologise for stating the obvious, but I’ll say it anyway: it’s okay to be happy. In fact, I’ll go one step further; being miserable doesn’t...
This isn’t a cry for help. Rather, it’s recognition that abuse can creep up on even the most vigilant of us. Perhaps it’s because no-one thinks...
It was fun while it lasted. Bob Vylan, once a punk-rap provocateur, now appears to be slowly descending from the revolutionary heights of chanting, “Death to...
If there’s one thing the Jewish world has perfected over centuries besides anxiety and survival, it’s kibbitzing. And during the recent 12-Day War between Israel and...
In the spirit of the biblical Israelites, a small band of well-intentioned, khaki-clad South Africans and assorted internationals recently embarked on a symbolic walk to Gaza....
Greta Thunberg, global climate scolder and part-time geopolitical commentator, has apparently survived the ordeal of all ordeals: a kidnapping. Not your usual kidnapping, mind you. There...
Of all the forms of incompetence available on the great political buffet, none are quite as exotic, as flamboyantly served, and as proudly devoured as unconscious...
My grandparents were refugees way before it was cool. They arrived, as many did, from Europe with little in the way of material items but much...
This is what I didn’t tell you. Prior to being caught up in the Houthi missile attack on Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday, 4 May, I...
I was settling into my seat when the shouting started. “Disembark now! Disembark now!” It took me a second to realise that the flight attendant wasn’t...
I hadn’t considered his height, yet Benny Gantz was still taller than I would have thought him to be had I done so. He stood waiting...
Even at risk of throwing the baby out with the proverbial bath water, I believe it’s time to revisit Jewish funerals. Whereas I am not suggesting...
There are so many circles, some so large that they take decades to close. In 2005, the colour orange emerged as a potent emblem of resistance...
I was striving to be responsible. It was Sunday night, and I had sensibly gone to bed at a reasonable hour. All was peaceful until 23:00,...
One of my favourite Joan Rivers comedy sketches is when she tells the audience that although she is Jewish, she decided to erect a Christmas tree...
Last Friday evening, while enjoying what I thought was a quiet and civilised family dinner, I “allegedly” made an inappropriate comment. My family are well aware...
Kobus Johannes Hercules van Jaarsveld wasn’t joking when he said, “Jy lyk soos a Jood vandag.” To him, I did indeed look like a Jew that...
My day starts at 04:00 with my coffee machine telling me what to do. She either requires me to “add water”, fill her bean counter, empty...
It’s not complicated, they say. As long as you buy your vegetables from Woolworths using your Discovery card, but receive your salary on your Investec card,...
I was never quite certain what delinquent turtles were doing with plastic straws, but I know that whatever it was, it was bad enough to get...
First it was the American podcast guy. We were in his studio in Ramat Gan outside Tel Aviv recording an interview, when he asked, “Is there...
I say this in earnest. The story of the Israeli professor who was invited, disinvited, and then – spoiler alert – reinvited to speak at the...
I went cold at the thought. Imagine a Jewish president of the United States trying to work out who to invite to the inauguration, who to...
I’m in the middle of an argument with ChatGPT that is no closer to being resolved today than it was when it began a week ago....
It’s unlikely ever to happen. But just once, I would like to attend an honest funeral. One where the rabbi doesn’t articulate what a loving family...
Thanks to the insistence of my wife, my feet are ready for a holiday. They are shiny and smooth and prepared for whatever my Birkenstocks throw...
You know about my knee. It’s a painfully short story made long. I tripped during the warmup at a Krav Maga session, fell embarrassingly badly, and...
It was yellow. And it cost R11 000. It came after the Valiant Regal, with a missing “g” on the left, which meant it read “Re-al”....
True or not, it’s a great story. And it goes like this. Atatürk, in his efforts to modernise Turkey, sought to reduce the influence of traditional...
Clever Hans was never on Twitter (or X). He didn’t have Instagram or Facebook accounts, and amassed no followers on TikTok. The likely reason is that...
It started with glace cherries. Or more accurately, when our hosts thanked us for the cake that we didn’t send them. It was an old-fashioned chocolate...
