The “Casting at Persians” Edition

Allison Kaplan Sommer, Noah Efron and Tova Cohen discuss two topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week. Hear the Extra-Special, Special Extra Segment on Patreon   —Best Laid Schemes (Lea’e Us Nought but Grief An’ Pain), With Apologies to Robert Burns (And to Mice)— Bringing down the Azrieli Towers? Conquering Israel top-to-bottom by 2025? Minutes of Hamas meetings sets out the groups grim vision. —What’s So Funny ’Bout Peace, Love and Understanding?— Has “peace” left the building? —Jed Bartlet Is in the Sukkah!— For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion: Who, this year, would be our “Ushpizin” in our (notional or real) Sukkah. All of that and Sukkot suddenly turning up everywhere.

Allison Kaplan Sommer, Don Futterman and Noah Efron discuss two topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week. Hear the Extra-Special, Special Extra Segment on Patreon   —Regional Inferno?— Israel’s war with Gaza may soon become an all-out regional war. How do you say “Yikes!” in Farsi? —Accounting of the Soul— What should we have in mind, this Yom Kippur, when we thump our chests in repentance? —Prayer in the Square?— For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion: Our hot take on last night’s Supreme Court ruling regarding the legality of organized gender-separated public prayer in liberal Tel Aviv. All of that and marking a year of the nightmare of October 7. Plus, music that moves us from the memorials.

A New Year and a year since. What are we remembering when we remember October 7?

Elul is here and people all over the country are keeping the before-the-high-holidays tradition of saying Selihot, asking for forgiveness and offering atonement. All this as rockets and planes fly, and bombs fall.

Allison Kaplan Sommer, Linda Gradstein and Noah Efron discuss two topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week. Hear the Extra-Special Special Extra Segment on Patreon   —Major Pager Rager— A stunning attack-by-pager left dozens of Hezbollah militiamen dead and thousands maimed and wounded. What are we to make of a thing like that? —Commemoration Vexation— How do you memorialize October 7, when October 7 hasn’t ended yet? —Testicles in the Twitterverse?— For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion: Hezbollah pagers explode, social media memes erupt, but not all Israelis are laughing. All this and the music from the remarkable new record רוח באה מדרום (Wind Comes from the South).

Allison Kaplan Sommer, Miriam Herschlag and Noah Efron discuss two topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week. Hear the Extra-Special, Special Extra Segment on Patreon   —Not Too Brotherly, Not Much Love— How did the “Philadelphi Corridor” become a matter of life and death? —Errors of Omission and Commission— The government hasn’t investigated itself, so a bunch of citizens took it on itself. Is that a good thing? —Much Ado About a Handful of Sand— For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion: A 27-year-old Tel Aviv resident was arrested for allegedly tossing wet sand at National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. Was the minister being purposely provocative for personal political gain? Songs Tuna — Bein ha-Ir LaPardes Pe’er Tasi — Yoni Yarin — Ein Laila  

For 331 days, Rachel Goldberg-Polin went everywhere, spoke to everyone and did everything to save her son, Hersh.

703 IDF soldiers have fallen since October 7th. Each was an entire world. This is a small bit of the story of one of them, Zachariah Haber.

Linda Gradstein, Allison Kaplan Sommer and Noah Efron discuss two topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week. Hear the Extra-Special, Special Extra Segment on Patreon   —Bennett, Done That— Israel’s next prime minister will be … Naftali Bennett? —Jewish Life During Wartime— Why does war make more-secular Israelis more secular, and less-secular Israelis less secular? —Our Flights Are Cancelled— For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion: What happens when every airline stops flying to Israel? Plus, a reflection on how time itself has stopped working, and music by women we’ve loved for decades, speaking now to our present moment.

Miriam Herschlag, Allison Kaplan Sommer and Noah Efron discuss two topics of incomparable importance and end with an anecdote about something in Israel that made them smile this week. Hear the Extra-Special, Special Extra Segment on Patreon   —TIME Is on His Side?— Prime Minister Netanyahu gives his longest interview since October 7. What’s it tell us? —Time Is on HIS Side?— How is this man growing more popular at this time, after everything? —Fraying at the Edges— For our most unreasonably generous Patreon supporters, in our extra-special, special extra discussion: How we doin’ at this moment? Plus, co-joined Kibbutzim, Tisha B’Av at Hostage Square, and the bipolar music of Tamir Grinberg.