July / august 2006:

the ajl Hot list: the rest



Las Vegas - Hot City | Sin City is turning into a virtual Sinai for American Jews. Believe it or not, the city of many casinos is the fastest growing Jewish community in the United States, which may or may not say something about how hot we Jews really are. Biased as we may be, we’ll err on the side of assuming Jews are taking on a Rat Pack cool and moving to the desert accordingly. Temperature or trendy, it’s hot any way you roll those dice.

Atlanta Jewish Population Rising - Hot Statistic | With the Federation’s new census revealing that Atlanta’s Jewish community has ballooned to 120,000, the city has now jumped from 17th to 11th place for Jewish populations in American cities, leaving places like Baltimore, Cleveland, and Detroit in its dust.

God - Hot Deity | Classically cool God, otherwise known as the Lord, the Almighty, and the original Miracle Maker is still around and styling. World leaders, including one grammatically challenged cowboy from Texas, are enamored with citing Him for authority, which reminds us of those good ol’ days of divinely anointed kings. Obviously God transcends all cultural cliques. Even Osama is a big fan, and while we would like very much to quibble with Mr. Bin Laden, we’ll toast God with a He’Brew anytime.

D.I.Y. Minyan - Hot Quorum of Ten | Growing weary of denominational Judaism, the power imbalance and spectatorial nature of the rabbi-congregation dynamic, and the rigidity of uncreative prayer services, Jews across America are dropping out of their synagogues and forming their own independent minyanim (prayer groups), also known as chavurot (fellowships). From New York (Hadar, Kol Zimrah) to Los Angeles (Ikar), new autonomous communities are forming around a shared interest in creative worship, disinterest in rabbinic leadership, and an emphasis on common values that established denominations move too slowly or are too bureaucratic to adopt. While the denominational world reels in horror at the perceived threat to their stability, this movement continues to grow unabated, bringing what some see as a long-overdue breath of fresh air to Jewish prayers.

ZachBraff.com - Hot Celeb Site | How has Zach Braff ascended to a place between Woody Allen and God in the American Jewish pantheon? Scrubs and Garden State didn’t hurt, but the chief reason may be Braff’s enthusiastic embrace of fan interactivity and blog culture, putting himself on the monitors and into the hearts of thousands of lust-filled Jewish girls. The groundbreaking new zachbraff.com incorporates a fan-oriented written blog, with comments enabled, a video blog (in which Zach proudly sports a challah t-shirt), and exclusive peeks into his new movie The Last Kiss. It’s enough direct Braff-to-fan loving to make those smitten Jewish gals forget the words “Mandy Moore.”

Hungary - Hot Destination | A major stop for Israelis doing business, the country has seen significant growth in investment from the holy land. Considered one of the closest places outside of Israel in which Israelis can safely do business, many road warriors find themselves commuting twice weekly to Budapest and beyond. Think of it as a new form of Jewish jet setting.

Michael Bloomberg - Hot Politico | He’s worth five billion smackers and he runs New York City, the Jewish Medina to Jerusalem’s Mecca. He’s not the least bit cool, or deck, or whatever hipster term you prefer, but that kind of cash and cache is hot. Or as one nice Jewish boy (Kissinger) once said, power is the ultimate aphrodisiac. Grrr, baby. Grrr.

Zifty.com - Hot Sign that Kozmo.com Was Way Ahead of its Time | Following Kozmo’s example, Atlanta newcomer Zifty.com is the latest online service offering entertainment, food, and personal care products on-demand. Movies, meds, even a late-night nosh. From HD-DVD films to American Spirit cigarettes, it’s all available via your desktop thanks to this new site. Orders appear on your doorstep between 11 AM and 1 AM, seven days a week, for a 99-cent delivery charge ($2.99 for restaurant takeout), with fees halved on purchases made two-plus hours in advance. Stock options, anyone?

Gene Simmons' Family Jewels - Hot Reality TV | Think The Osbournes, but Jewish. Gene Simmons, aka the guy with the big toungue from the legendary rock group KISS, opens the doors to his home and lets in a truckload of reality television cameras to capture all the insanity that is his daily life. Simmons and his girlfriend of 22 years, ex-Playmate Shannon Tweed, raise their two kids in a rock and roll version of the Brady Bunch. Simmons, who was born with the very Jewy name of Chaim Klein Witz, tries to be a good dad despite his salacious rock star ways. “Even T. Rex, a fabled predator was actually a very loving parent,” he says. OK, we’ll take your word on it.

Polygamy - Hot Kosher Sex | Jan and Dean sang about it in 1963, but some Jews, concerned over the increasingly lower birth rate among Jews, are suggesting that “two girls for every boy” may be the answer. Statisticians have proclaimed a “clear numerical superiority” of available women over available men in the Jewish dating pool. This is bad news for Jewish women, who become increasingly competitive in looking for Mr. Right, while the men sit back and enjoy the ride, since there are always more women for them to choose from.

Perhaps the time is right for polygamy to make its long-awaited comeback. HBO has a hit show in Big Love, depicting the drama of a polygamous Mormon marriage. Concern with “the dating crisis” has the religious Jewish community up in arms. And recent articles in the Jerusalem Post quoted one Bar-Ilan University professor as suggesting that Jewish men take concubines, to combat the declining birth rate. And last year, noted philanthropist Michael Steinhardt even gave a controversial speech — explained away by some as satire — in which he proposed polygamy as a real-time solution to the problem. As the discussion continues, look for Martha Stewart to advise on how newlywed “triples” or “quads” should handle registering for multiple china patterns.


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