Competitive basketball saved our son

I never thought I’d hear myself say this, or see myself write it, but team sports have truly saved my kid’s life. Really. Without team sports, he’d probably be an insecure, angry mess who might have been kicked out of his Jewish day school, a result...

Stop picking on RIM

It’s no secret that Research in Motion has taken a beating lately – it’s been late to market with new products, its stock price and profits are down, its market share is nosediving, and as a result, the press has been all over it. But frankly,...

‘Israeli apartheid’ is a slur that does no one any good

Campuses around the world are beginning to witness a series of annual events known as Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW), and it’s a particularly depressing time of the year to be a progressive Jew. That’s because when you call Israel an apartheid regime, as many on the...

Linsanity and some personal soul-searching on race

The New York Knicks and Asian-American rookie phenom Jeremy Lin were in town last week to play the Toronto Raptors, and it led me to some personal soul-searching on race, particularly when it comes to Asians and Asian-Americans and Canadians. By now, many of you already know Lin’s...

Some interesting firsts in Canada’s Jewish community

A couple of noteworthy firsts passed with little fanfare this past December that are unusual in Canada’s religiously (and increasingly politically) conservative Jewish community. First, Temple Emanu-El Beth Sholom in Montreal named Rabbi Lisa Grushcow to succeed Rabbi Leigh Lerner, who will become rabbi emeritus of Canada’s...