1-800-Antisemitism

0:00[upbeat music] Hi, welcome back to Ask A Jew, where a secular, simple Israeli speaks to her wholly religious friend. Yael here with Chaya Leib. We are the Morocco and Spain of Judaism. [laughs] Uh, [laughs] very topical. Hello. Hi. I feel like I haven't spoken to you in a while, like, on, on a recording. Yeah. I've spoken to you five times today. Did we... We've recorded a solo rec- Oh, when I was in Alaska, we recorded a solo. Yeah. Was that the last time? And then we had our last episode when I was in Greece. We're just such world travelers. So somebody might- Yes... call us the international Jew. We're... [laughs] That's, that is who we are.

0:40That is who we are. We're such international- Listen, if you, if you're running the world, you need to be places sometimes. I know. If I was running the world truly the way that, like, people say Jews are running the world, I would just do things so differently. Yeah. Like, air travel would be easier. Yeah, yeah. It would be faster. I've like- Whoever is running the world, I'm, I'm very disappointed. Yeah, it's, like, kind of sucking. They're not doing a good job. Yeah. Is it the Mormons? I don't know. No.

1:05Although, I mean, listen, the Mormons seem pretty organized. I mean, I would give them... I would hand off the reins to them. Yeah. They're just gonna baptize us when we die, but other than that, like- That's fine. I don't care what happens when I die. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it's kind of rude, but other than that, I think- I mean, listen, it's, it's all about give or take in life. [laughs] And if they'll make everything pleasant, I mean- I would take their organizational skills and their looks. If only they had- I bet you they're really good with Excel spreadsheets. Are, are they? Yeah.

1:36They probably- Probably. I mean, uh, do you think Jews are good with Excel? I don't think so. I think accountants are, and many accountants are Jewish, or many Jews are accountants. This is true. This is true. Well, the, what the Mormons are really good at is their choir, and that we're not- Hmm. They have such a good choir. Well, we have Miami, uh, Boys Choir. Miami Boys Choir, yeah. Yeah. We have that, you're right. You're right. I, I actually, I actually do love that. I- did you see it just popped up again with this woman in Scotland- Yeah, [laughs] she's adorable... who posted this video.

2:04It was- And, and then that guy, the guy, the soloist, like, popped up in the comments. Yeah. [laughs] And it made me... I don't know if maybe, like, my bar is so low because I just assume that she hates Jews because she's from Scotland. Yeah. And she's, like, not somebody I know, so, like, [laughs] I assume she hates Jews. She hates Jews. Like- And I was like, "Oh, thank you so much, lady, for, like, being nice to us." It's so weird when something that you grew up with that was just normal and regular- [laughs]...

2:32and, like, I tried to rebel against, right? Like I knew every single Miami Boys Choir song. We went to- Really? Oh, I mean- Did you have a crush on any of them? Well, when I was really into it, which was like early '90s, there was like Nathan Stark. He was like the hottie for... I mean, this is- Okay... terrible. He was probably, like, 12, but I was, like, 11, so it was- Oh, yeah, that's hottie. Yeah. Um, and so people... Like, there were, like, different... It was like Brandon and Dylan, like either- Yeah...

2:57you liked this one or that one, you know. Yeah. So- Are you Corey Haim or Corey Feldman? Yeah. [laughs] Also both Jewish. Yeah. But we, like, loved them. I mean, my... I remember going to their concerts. I still till today know all their songs, and so it's just funny to see them have, like, a pop culture moment- I love it... that's, like, outside of the Haredi community is really funny. It's like K-pop, but with Jews. Yeah. It's J-JPop. [laughs] And, but, like, the funny part is is that then, even though I did love them, they were truly great, and the songs were great, and we sang their songs all the time, but, like, I was trying to rebel against only listening to Jewish music.

3:32'Cause when I was growing up, that's all we were allowed to listen to. Mm-hmm. We would get in trouble if we were caught with, like, non-Jewish music or- Really? Yeah, my parents didn't want us to listen, the schools, the camps. Like, I remember being in overnight camp, and I brought with me a tape. It was The Scorpions, "Winds of Change." Wow. It was a cassette tape, and I had... and it got taken away from me, and I remember being so dramatic about it and, like, crying and like, "No one understands me here. I'm so different."

4:02[laughs] "I'm so sophisticated because I like this," you know. [laughs] And then like [laughs] and meanwhile really we were just all listening to the Miami Boys Choir. So it's just- That is a good tape, though, Scorpions. Ugh, "Winds of Change" is such a good song. I know. There's no more music left because really everybody hates Israel and Jews, so there's no more... Except you know what, what is left? We have one song left. What song? And that's this super viral TikTok song. Have you heard of it? Uh, the "Self Aware" song. It's by this band- No...

4:34called Temper City, and it's- I don't think I know it... it's called "Self Aware," and it's, like, a viral TikTok song, and, like, Obama put it on his playlist and stuff. It's, like, got millions of downloads, but it's- That's crazy... these Israeli guys. Oh, really? Yeah. Oh, I, I can't believe I don't know it. So it's very, very famous and... But also I went to their Instagram today, and I looked at all the comments. They're like, "Oh, I wonder how you guys got such a hit so quickly." [laughs] I'm like, "Maybe 'cause we're really good at things.

5:03Have you thought of that?" But it's the- Wait, can I change the subject? I need to tell you something. Your hair looks- We don't wanna talk about antisemitism anymore?... phenomenal. What are we... We're gonna close this podcast. I know, but I need to tell you about your hair and then tell you something about my hair, 'cause your hair looks- Oh, okay... really good. My hair looks really good, yeah. I know, and guess what? My hair looks exactly like that today, but I can't show. Obviously, no one sees it 'cause I'm wearing a wig, but I went to get my hair colored on Friday. Oh.

5:26And usually I don't really care, and they just color it, and I leave 'cause I just don't like it being gray. Okay. So I, and I never, like, blow-dry or 'cause, like, it's, you know- Why do you get it colored if you have a wig? Well, it bothers me 'cause when I'm not wearing a wig at home or, like, sometimes when I'm going to the store, like, I wear, like, a, um, a what's it called? In Yiddish we call it a tichel. Um, like a scarf. Bandana. Those are- Bandana... those are black, yeah. Yeah, bandana, scarf, whatever. Yeah. So I always wear that, but then you can see, like, the front. It, like- Yeah...

5:54my hair, like, sticks out a little bit in the front, and it just bothers me when it's gray. You should get a wig that is the bandana, like, you know, like those hats with hair. They have those. Really? I have one. Yeah, I have one. [laughs] So anyway, this time when I went, the woman was like, "Do you want me to just, like- Do you go to a regular person or like a Hasidic- I go to, like, there's like a nail salon here, like a Vietnamese nail salon, and she's- I know.

6:14I went with you once. They were terrible. That was a different nail salon. Oh, okay. It was good. Yeah. That one was bad. But they're not terrible. Anyway, um, okay, so this place, so she said to me, she's like, "Do you want me to just trim the ends of your hair?" And I was like, "Yeah, actually, I could use a haircut." She's like, "What happened to your hair?" 'Cause I usually just cut it myself. Like, I put it in a ponytail and I just- That's what I asked you. Yeah... yeah, and so I was like, "Well, you know, whatever."

6:37'Cause I, I came in wearing my, my scarf, and I was like, "I cover my hair anyway." So she does my hair. She cuts it, and then she's like, "Oh, let me blow-dry it." And then she, like, thinned it, and it looks exactly like the way your hair looks right now but, like, dark brown. And she was like... It looked so cute. It was so silky and nice. Oh. And so then as I was walk- as I... When she was done, I pulled out my scarf, and I put it on, and I thought the lady was gonna pass out. She was- Oh, yeah, you don't do that... she's like, "Why are you covering it?" Yeah. She got so upset at me.

7:07[laughs] Yeah, no. And I was like, "I thought you understood that I cover my hair all the time." Like, I, I w- I wanted to tell her, "Don't put so much effort into this." Like, she was blow-drying it and flat ironing. I wanted to say to her, "Lady, don't try that hard," but she was. And then I covered it, and she was really disappointed. And then they all started speaking Vietnamese, probably making fun of me, so- Yes... that's the end of the story. I mean, rightfully so. You don't touch your hair before, like, before you leave the salon 'cause they yell at you- Well, what was I supposed to do?...

7:35'cause you're against, um, just duck out and then put it on. I can't go out. There were, like, men. I mean, I don't walk out with, like- I know. What would've happened if those men would've seen you? They'd be so attracted to you. [laughs] It, it would be, you know, Hashem. It would be crazy. It's weird because my hair now, it looks so good, but there's, it's such a bizarre- Well, so who's allowed to see your hair? My husband. And your kids. My kids, yeah. I mean, okay, there's various levels- What about your parents and, like, sister? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. When- You can have a party today and invite just those people...

8:05women can see my hair, but, like, there's various levels of, like, who can see it or who cannot see it. And one of the things that when you're Hasidic like we are, it's not just about who can and who can't. It's about being pious enough and always covering your hair. Like, there's a, a story about a woman in the Talmud who was mer- you know, she merited to have all these sons who became great Torah scholars and leaders because she never let the walls of her house see her hair.

8:31So, like, she never, ever uncovered her hair. Wow. I'm not at that level. The walls have eyes. I'm definitely not at that level. But generally speaking, like, if I come downstairs, I'm, my hair is always covered. Like, I won't go downstairs in my house without a head covering on. Yeah. You just- Well, I think you should throw a party tonight and invite just, like, your sister and your husband. [laughs] No. I would never do it in front of my... Like, that would be weird, no. But, like, I wonder if I'll show my hair, like, now that I have a future daughter-in-law who will be, like, around. I wonder. I don't know. Mm.

9:02We'll have to see. Yeah. It's interesting. Yeah. It's a lot of work, hair, and money. Yeah. And just, like, sitting in that thing for hours, um- Yeah... it's, women are... It's a lot of work to be a woman. It's a ton of work and a ton of money. Like- Yeah, a ton of money... I can't tell you how much money I spend on- But I went to these, um, I go to these Albanian women to get- Mm-hmm... my, my keratin treatment. Nice. And I s- she's like, "Let's make your hair great again." And she said that like three times. I was like, "Okay." That's so cute. [laughs] That's really cute. Yeah. No, for a se- I've never...

9:36Like, I've been covering my hair for 25 years, and I've never not covered my hair since I got married, but... And it never bothers me, but there was a split second when she was done with my hair. And, you know, they finally take off the, the robe thing- Yeah, yeah, yeah... that makes you look like you wanna kill yourself 'cause you look- Yeah... so bad in the mirror. But when she took it off and then I had a neck and, like, a little skin showing- Yeah... oh my God, I lo- it's so cute. You're like, "I understand all these, uh, all these, uh, secular sluts now." Yeah.

10:06[laughs] There, no, there was like- Walking around with their hair... a split second where I felt like, "Ugh, I wish I didn't have to cover my hair." But it went away quickly 'cause also, like, I'm 46 years old, and my hair is gonna need a ton of help if I kept it uncovered, so- Yeah... plus I love doing the mitzvah, so. It's better off to have a wig, I think, like, for just- Yeah... it's faster and less drama. And it's just what Hashem wants from me, so. For you, yeah. For me, he wants this. Yes, he wants you to have great hair.

10:33He might, Hashem might have wanted my highlights to be a little blonder, but maybe, maybe in a few months. No, I think it's great. Um- I think it's great... wait. So I have a... Speaking of, since we're on the topic of Halakha, I have a question from my niece. Mm-hmm. And we haven't done questions in a long time. Yeah, I know. Um, here's how we do questions on the show named Ask A Jew. [laughs] Um, we tell everybody, "Write us questions," and then we get emails, and we get so excited, and then we forget to answer the questions. So if you send us questions this time, we promise to not forget. Yes.

11:04askajewpod@gmail.com. Um, that's askajewpod@gmail.com. So send us your questions. There are no stupid questions. No. Like, seriously, if you listen to this podcast, there are no stupid questions. But my, I have a question from my niece 'cause she specifically, she's a listener. Okay. And she specifically wanted me to ask you, so she [laughs] you're not gonna like this though 'cause it's, it's about, it's a, it's like a mean thing for Orthodox people. Um- Okay...

11:32so, um, so my niece lives in Jerusalem, and there's a coffee shop there that is open on Shabbat and has got, gots a lot... Got... Is like, you know, in Israel, you can be open on Shabbat. You can not be open on Shabbat. Right. Um, it's kinda hit or miss. You know, in Tel Aviv, a lot of places are open on Shabbat, and Jerusalem, a little more religious, so no. But there is this one coffee shop, uh, that's open on Shabbat and, uh, these Orthodox kids, uh, or, or young people protest there all the time- Oh... on Shabbat.

12:01And, um, and so my niece went there the other day to kinda support them on Shabbat, and the Orthodox people were there, and they were squirting water guns. Really? And my niece wanted to know if it's, if you're allowed to use water guns on Shabbat. [laughs] That's what they were doing? I've never- Yeah... seen that. That's interesting. Yeah, they've also, they also, like, stormed the coffee shop. Did they? Yeah. Well, they should get arrested. Yeah, it's... Hopefully, yeah. Oh, yeah. But, you know, I was like, I don't know.

12:28That's actually a good question. Water guns Shabbat? Yeah, I don't, I mean... Huh. I don't think there's any reason why not. Um, if you can carry, then I think... Like, 'cause, you know, one of the prohibitions on Shabbat is carrying outside. Yeah. But if you're in a place that you can carry... I mean, the only reason I would think that it's probably not allowed is 'cause it doesn't sound very Shabbos-like. [laughs] Like, I don't, my kids never were even- It was re- it was really hot, so...

12:54Yeah, but we never let our kids do anything, like, water related on Shabbat. Um, they weren't allowed to swim or go... You know, we never had, like, water play. You can't go, you can't, like, go for a jog, right? No. No, you're not supposed to do anything like that. You can go for a Shabbos walk. Yeah. Um, but not, like, for exercise purposes. Can't get your heart rate over, yeah. Although some people do, 'cause there's like, it's like a fine line, you know? Yeah. Um, but water guns, I mean, I don't think that's allowed. But- Yeah...

13:22I don't know if there's anything necessarily, like, halachically wrong with it, but it's definitely not in the spirit of Shabbat. Yeah. I mean, neither is- And also-... protesting... those kids are little assholes, and that's not in the spirit of av od navi loving the fellow person, um, in any way. But I admire that they're so committed to their religion that they, um- [laughs]... feel- That they're willing to shoot metaphorically [laughs] their fellow citizens. I wish the Muslims would use water guns instead of real guns. Yeah. Maybe we should turn the whole thing into a water gun fight. Yeah.

13:54I mean, that would be so much better for everyone. Or a snowball fight if there was winter, you know- Yeah... if we had, like, snow. We can, like... We, I would, like, sponsor, like, truckloads of water guns to go to the Muslim countries. I'd be fine with that. Yeah. And then the IDF would tweet and be like, "We just uncovered a stash of water guns." [laughs] No, what if we would just, like, replace all their weapons with water guns? I mean- It would be so much better... we're, we're pretty much, we can do everything apparently. Yeah.

14:23So it's, you know, I, I- Right... I don't know if you're following the situation in, in Spain, uh, where these Moroccan migrants kind of, like, basically invaded the country. And the video- But then are they, like, back? ... is crazy. What? Are they, like, back home now? Someone wrote- Well, at first the Span- the, the Spanish government said they're back home, but now I'm reading that they might not be back home. Oh. And there was one guy, I don't know if you've seen this video of one guy coming out with a bicycle out of the water [laughs] like- Yeah... carrying his bike. [laughs] I mean, they're...

14:50I- first of all, who knew that Spain had a colony? They were colonizing a little piece of land. Yeah. I'm- Like, it's- You know what? Go. If they're in Eurovision next year, I think Israel shouldn't participate. [laughs] I think we should boycott it. Um- I, I, I wanna tell you something. I have a tremendous disdain for Spain. I'm not gonna lie. Like, I, ooh- The country, I mean, the country seems fine and lovely. It's just the, the government that- I'm sure it's lovely, but the, they are not the people... I don't wanna go there right now and support them. That, that I could tell you. Yeah. It's just, no. I mean, I don't know.

15:23I'm sure there are people who are lovely, and now I sound like people who are, who are like hate Israel and like, "Don't confuse the government for the people." Um- [laughs] But you're right about maybe not on my top five, like, vacation destinations right now. Yeah. Although I was in Athens, and people there really hate Jews, and it was fine, so [laughs] you know. Yeah. I mean, fine. You're right. But, um, but, uh, but the Spanish thing is like, uh, all these conspi...

15:51A- and at first whenever something happens, you're like, "Oh, they're gonna," like laughing, like, "Oh, they're gonna blame Israel for this." And then they do. And then they do. Yeah. And then they do. And not, like, crazy, like, Twitter people. Yeah. I mean, crazy Twitter people, yes, but, like, with millions of followers. Yeah. Like, Al Jazeera posted about it. Um- Yeah. Well, that's enough... what's-her-name- Source... that bitch, Ana Kasparian, is like- Source... "The world is finally waking up." I'm like- Ugh... "God, you're so boring." Yeah. "You're so boring." Yeah. Javier Bardem has to say it.

16:24Oh, Javier Bardem, yeah. Yeah. That, that- Not even hot... winner... let me tell you. That winner. And I heard- Well-... there's, there's a new show with him. It's supposed to be so good, and I'm like, "Damn it. I really wanna watch it," and now I'm like- Yeah... not gonna watch it. Yeah, this Spain-Morocco thing is so interesting. It's like, I... So my cousin is the Chabad in Casablanca, Morocco. [laughs] Of course he is. I know. [laughs] They're, I mean- Can you see the Chabad in Q- Cuerta, what- what- whatever that area is called? Well, I, that's what I was wondering. I doubt there's Chabad there. I mean, it doesn't sound like a place.

16:52[laughs] Maybe some of the Moroccans that came through are Jewish, and they'll open- Right... a Chabad there. Yeah, maybe. But so, like, the thing is, is that it seems like you can live a decent life as a Jew in Morocco. Yeah. And even though it's nothing like what the community used to be like, obviously. The Moroccan Jewish community had, I mean, hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people. It was a- Yeah... thriving Jewish life there pre, you know, pre the state of Israel. Um, I, I, even, like, in the '40s and '50s I think, like, there was a Chabad school there that had hundreds and hundreds of students.

17:23But- Listen, when Morocco- Yeah... played France in the World Cup, and you know we judge who we root for based on who's less anti-Semitic- Yeah, of course... it was, it was a, a toss-up. Yeah. It was tough to choose. [laughs] You know? Yeah. No, I, I know. It's just, it's found, it's, it's so interesting to think that, like, the Moroccans perhaps understand the situation better than the Spanish or the French, you know? Yeah. Like, I think there might be an element of that. Like, the King of Morocco might be more savvy at understanding the dynamics in the Middle East than this- And, and that's exactly why-... 80-year-old king...

17:57people are hating on him now, because he's a Zionist asset. And what I'm trying to- Yeah... tell everyone, if anybody will listen to me- Who, the King of Morocco? What? Who, the King of Morocco? We should have, we should have him on. We've never had a king on. Um, or a queen. But we- We could have him on... We could have the King of Cerritos Auto Square near my house actually. [laughs] Is, is that, like, a car dealership? Yes. There's, like, a king. He has- Okay... like, an ad with a crown. Oh, I would love to have him on. He's probably Jewish too.

18:28[laughs]Does he have, is there a kingdom of Cerritos- Yes... Honor Square, or is it just, what, what are the, you know, what are the boundaries- Oh, my god... or who does, who are his, uh- He has match persons- Is it... Okay... Larry. Like Larry. [laughs] There's never been a king named Larry, nor should there be. Um- Oh, my God... but, uh, the... What was I starting to say? Uh, uh, they're accusing him of being, you know, with the Israelis and with America- Yeah... and it's all about who is west facing and who is- Yeah... Islamist facing. Right. And I choose the west-facing people.

19:03But- Right... that's what I'm trying to tell people. It's like it's not even about Israel. You hate him- Mm-hmm... because he's close to the United States. Mm-hmm. And the United States is the source of all evil. Yeah. Some may say the big Satan. Um- Mm-hmm... and it's so fucking stupid, and we deserve better. Humanity deserves better, and Jews deserve better antisemites. I would like smarter antisemites with more... 'Cause there are some things that- More intelligent... antisemites might say that I might be like, "Hmm, okay. Y- you might have a point there." You want more, like, original content, I think.

19:33Is that what you're looking for? No, no, no. Like, you're- I don't want it. I don't want the oldies. I'm, I'm done with the oldies. Yeah. With the, the, the, you know, the World War I, the Jews were behind World War I, all that. Like- Mm-hmm... I'm, I'm kinda over that. I just, I want something to, to, like, stimulate me intellectually. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Like, make me think. None of this stuff is making me think. It's making me- Right... laugh, and I don't need- Yeah... more laughter in my life. I have plenty of laughter. [sighs] It's not...

19:59You know, we were joking about antisemitism, and we got, I got a, a angry text message from someone who, you know, feels, not just from this, but from the way I talked about it on edu- on education also, that we were... I was very dismissive of antisemitism, and I was like, you know, [sighs] it's such a fi... I mean, we talked about this 1,000 times, and it's such a fine line between marinating in it day and night, and also- Mm-hmm... just laughing and saying, like, "Whatever. Go to hell," and, like, we have to live our lives. I just, I can't get into a space where my whole life is, is responding to antisemitism. I just don't care.

20:35And, like, also, I'll say one other thing, the, the s- the more liberal Jewish community is dealing with it in maybe in more spaces than I am, right? Like- Yeah... my kids attend all-Jewish schools, and all-Jewish camps, and all-Jewish college. Like, so they're- And only, like, 20% of those people are antisemitic. [laughs] Right. Exactly. It's very limited, right? And they're Yeshivas. So, like, their experience... Like, I live a very Jewish life.

21:02So yes, sometimes it's annoying when I hear it in, like, at work or on the campus, whatever, but I don't put myself in spaces that I need to feel like I'm being rejected from them, and I think a lot of- Yeah... more liberal Jews are taking it more personally because it feels very personal. Not politically liberal, you're saying, just like- No, I'm saying liberal Jew, like, like reform- Secular... yeah, sec- more secular- Yeah... or ref- like, different liberal Jew, like- Yeah... liberal Jew. 'Cause see, I mean, you don't need to be a l- liberal.

21:28You need to be a fan of a Israeli band and f- and g- follow their Instagram and just see that every- Yeah... single comment is blaming them- Yeah... for having a one-hit wonder because they're Jews. Yeah. Makes s- yeah, exactly. Right. So it's, it's hard. Like, I was thinking about it, and I, I think I've mentioned this before, but, you know, there's a big, uh, push right now within the Jewish community to, um, sort of address K through 12 schools, right?

21:51Because the public schools, you know, some of their curriculum, and the teachers, and- Yeah... and the s- and the, the teachers' unions are, you know, not- For DSA. Yeah. Yeah. They're... It's horrible, right? It's really horrible. And I just don't feel that urgency because my kids don't go to public school, so I don't care. Yeah, but those are the people who are, like, rolling down their car windows at your kids and, like- I know... yelling- But, like-... "Free Palestine." I know, but I can't...

22:14Like, to me, in a way, a lot of that stuff, the ship has sailed. Like, we allowed them to go down a path, not even in relationship to Israel, but in the way they talk about the United States and- Yeah, exactly... our history and, like, it's so far beyond this issue with Gaza and, and Israel. Like, it's so far beyond that. So when the Jewish community is getting exercised over, like, you know, a comment that, whatever somebody made, or a line in a textbook, it's like, I get why, I understand why they're upset, and they should fight, and I'm happy that they are.

22:42But also, the problem is so much bigger, and you've ignored it for so many years, that, like, this one particular sentence or paragraph, or the lack of Holocaust education or whatever, is only, like, a symptom of a disease that has existed in K through 12 education for years. Yeah. So it's hard. And I, I get that that's hard for people to swallow because how do you respond to it then? What do you do? And I'm not sure. How do you- Yeah... how, I don't know how they turn this train around.

23:10I'll tell you what you don't do, and this might be controversial to some people, but I've said it before. It- you don't call everybody antisemitic because- Yeah... s- a lot of people aren't. They're, they're idiots, which to me is worse. But, like, people- Oh, my God... sharing content from Miss Rachel about a genocide- Well, sh- oh, she's a- They're-... she's a piece of garbage. I'm sorry... they don't necessarily hate Jews. Yeah, but she's- They hate knowledge- Right... and- Right... critical thinking and facts. Yeah.

23:41And, uh, uh, as soon as you call everybody antisemitic, you're kind of like f- you know, you're, you're diffusing your argument because you're implying that- She-... you know, you know where they're coming from, and a lot of them are. A lot of them are, are Jews. They just don't know any better. She's a unique... But I would argue that she's actually a unique case because so many people turn to her as, like, a moral authority in educating their kids and- She's a YouTuber for toddlers. I know.

24:05Why is that even happening in our world, that people are gonna- Right. Why? Exactly. Why is she talking about that? I would- Exactly. That's why she's-... maybe turn to her to teach my child the, the different colors. No, I wouldn't anymore. Yeah. I have an idea, though. Mm. Hear me out. We should start a business. Okay. It's gonna... We get a 800 number, okay? And w- it goes to our phones. We'll have to answer them, so that's gonna be one challenge. [laughs] But maybe we'll hire someone. Okay. And then Every time you think maybe you experienced antisemitism or you have a question- Mm...

24:35if something is antisemitic, you call our hotline. Oh, I like that. And then we review it, and we decide if it's antisemitic or not. Yeah. It's, it's like an internal hate crime thing. You're not reporting it to the police. Correct. You're just like, "I need advice." Yes. Like, okay- We will run it by you... it's like I went into Starbucks- Yeah... and I gave my name Yael, and the barista was not nice to me. Right. Antisemitism? Like n- Right... and it will sit, the, the Yes...

25:01［foreign language］, the, the, the s- you know, all the- Yeah, we have to sift through the crap... the ［foreign language］. Right. And we'll think, and we'll be like, "Listen, she works at Starbucks, so she maybe was- she was just having a bad day." Right. "And also she doesn't know the name Yael is Israeli." So I would determine no. Right. Right. That said, maybe I walked in, and this is something that happened to me once at a, a horrible, horrible store called Brandy Melville- No... which nobody should ever go to. It's for teenage girls. They only have one size.

25:28I hate them. It's, it's terrible. They only have one size, right? Um, yeah. And- Who could have a store with one size? And, and- Well, I mean, does the world look like we're one size? How is the world one size? Everything, everything looks like the Shouk. It's really bad. But my- Ugh... my sister once described a pair of pants there as, as... Sorry, this is a little whatever, but she said, "These are like pants you go to sleep with when you're on your period." [laughs] Like, that's how bad. The... But I, I was wearing a hostage pin- That's great...

25:57and the, the girl at the counter asked me what that was. Mm-hmm. And I told her, and as soon as I told her, her demeanor changed, and then I asked her if she has stickers because they give out stickers there. Mm-hmm. And she said no. No. And I would rule that as maybe like a B+ antisemitism. Right. Yeah. Yeah. We could have a grading system. That's true. We could have a grading system, yeah. Yeah. But I think, how would we make money? We'd have to charge. Yeah. I would charge for the consultation. I, but I feel like it's, like it's a success fee. Yeah, that's true.

26:26You have to charge only people who get an- but then we'll be incentivized to call everything antisemitism [laughs] 'cause we'll get to work for free. That's a nice idea. We should call- 1-800- Yeah... was I antisemited? [laughs] Or, like, what are we calling it? No, because I do have like a... I, I'm not consist- I cannot say that I'm consistent in how I feel about antisemitism. Like, I'm being honest. Yeah. Like, sometimes someone tells me a story and I'm like, "Ah, whatever. Who cares?" And then other times I'm ready to go take a mar- get the police and march down to the place. Yeah.

26:58So I'm not 100% consistent, so I think I would be a good person 'cause I could look at each case individually. Yeah. I wanna know the name of the person, what was going on around, what was your behavior like. I wanna know- And what, what your history of reporting to us is. Have you reported to us- Yeah... 10 times in the last month? That's, that's true. That's true. If you've never called before, you get, that's higher rate, you know? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I would have a lot of questions, but, like, I don't know.

27:23Like, when my son gets an Uber and the guy, the driver's name is Mohammed, and I'm saying this because it's happened multiple times to my boys. Mm-hmm. And then they drive up and see my kids standing there with beards and yarmulke and tzitzits, and they drive away, I'm gonna say yes, that's antisemitism. Yeah, yeah. Like, so I mean, some are clear, and some are more, you know, iffy. Like when a kosher restaurant in Montreal burns down for the 10th time- Yeah, I want them to call me... probably anti- you don't even need to call.

27:52You know, you get an automatic, the keywords like algorithm- Yeah... you know- Yeah... keyword just, like, automatically approves that. That, I mean, that, that's crazy, and they've said it's arson, right? So- I don't know. I mean- I think they said it was arson... every damn day. In Italy, I just saw like a video of, uh, of, uh, people, um, you know, a, a little k- kid with a yarmulke getting beat up. Um, my sister told me a story. This is all, this, this episode is all about my, my sister and my niece. [laughs] Um, but they're listeners, so that's nice. Yeah. Good.

28:23She told me a story that their friends visited, um, I think it was Albania. Not to be confused with, with my wonderful Albanian hairstylist, but, um, they visited there, and they went into a restaurant, and the guy asked them where they're from, and they said Israel. And he said, and she said it was, like, very, very nicely and very politely. He's like, "Listen, we're so sorry. We have a policy that we don't, uh, serve Israelis because of the Netanyahu government." What?

28:49And she said he couldn't have been nicer, and he was like, "You know, it's because of Bibi, right?" Oh. And it's so... You know what? Nice antisemitism is worse to me- Yeah... because these people think they have some kind of moral high ground. I'd rather you call me a fucking Jew to my face- Yeah... and talk to me... You asked me what kind of antisemitism I like. I like the, like, the one that has a tinge of, like, flatter in it. Like, you know- Oh, okay... you're, you're rich. Right, you're all rich. You control everything. Yes, this is your fault. Oh, you're so good with money.

29:21Yeah. Um, I don't like- I think- My least favorite antisemitism, one that's cloaked in, like- Yeah, yeah... human rights... pol- politics or human rights, yeah. Yeah. I'm so curious if someone would say to that guy, like, "Uh, are there any other countries that you don't serve?" Exactly. Like the- And that's really it... authoritarians. Like, what? Yeah. That's- I mean, that's just, that's why that's plain antisemitism 'cause, like- Yeah... it's not... That's so delusional. I mean, that's ridiculous. Yeah. It's- Oh my God. And y- you know, how do you explain it to people?

29:53Like, they think, if they think... And, and we had a, we had a lovely, uh, episode, uh, with our friend Jos Sepps, uh, who I don't know if... When is that gonna come out? Oh, I don't know. That w- that was on his show, and that was lovely, and we yelled at him because he deserves it 'cause he's Australian, and they don't know anything over there. Um, but we yelled at him, and we still love him. Fuck him. Be- I do anyway... I loved him before, and I love him after. Um, but we were talking about the whole, like, uh, you know, like, oh, you can't, like, punish Israelis for Netanyahu, and I'm like, "No, no, no.

30:27That's not the right way to look at these things." It's not... I'm not a Netanyahu supporter, all right? I am very, very, very looking forward- Right... to a new government Uh, BeEzrat HaShem. But i- once you get into that territory of like, "Oh, it's just this government, it's just this, you know, it's, it's because of w- the war crimes," whatever, you start dealing with, "Okay, who else are you calling out?" Yeah. Um, okay, how would you have done this differently? Do you really think that a Gadi Eizenkot or a Naftali Bennett would have not gone to war in Gaza? They would have not dismantled Hamas terror tunnels?

31:01They would have not dismantled- Well-... Hezbollah terror tunnels? Like, what do you think would be different? No, they never have an answer. But you know what I was thinking just now as you were saying this? But, like, it's interesting how we'll feel badly, I'm saying we as the West, will feel badly for people who come from horrible countries, right? Like, when Chinese people, uh, come to this country, you're happy- Yeah... for them. You feel f- You're, you know, because they've escaped, you know, a horrible regime, right? Or, like, you'll feel that way about Russians or anybody, anybody, right? Any of this Latin American countries, right?

31:33Yeah. But for some reason with Israelis, they don't... Why doesn't that guy in Albania say to himself, like, "Oh, these poor Israelis who live under this awful dictator, Bibi Netanyahu, who's destroying the country and the world." Like, why don't Jews get that same sympathy- Well, I don't want that... from other people? Because- I don't want that. I know the answer. The answer is 'cause it's not true. They don't really care about it. It's not real. Yeah. It's not a real thing. It's just they hate Jews.

31:57That's- But also I, I don't want that because wh- why the hell would you treat somebody differently because you don't like who is democratically elected there? Yeah. And also it, it's not like, you know, you're not worried as somebody who's sitting in whatever, like Rome or London. I can't even come up with European capitals. Rome or London. Those are in Europe, right? Um, y- you're not thinking about like, oh, well, you know, the, the Netanyahu, he's not taking responsibility for October 7th, and the, the, the judicial reform that he's doing is really ill-advised. Like, no. Yeah.

32:33You're, you don't like Netanyahu because there is a war. Yeah. And who... Guess who is fighting in that war? Me and my family and my friends- Right... and everybody else. So- Right... it really is about us, and I'll, I'll take it. Like, I'll take it. Yeah. You know? It's good. And when people... A- and you know where it gets, like... You know where it gets complicated and dicey where you're like, okay, let's say somebody attacks a synagogue, right? Mm-hmm. But that synagogue has an Israeli flag. Mm-hmm.

32:58So I don't wanna call it antisemitism because in their head they are saying to themselves like, "Okay, well, they support this Not- Nazi Israeli regime." I don't wanna call it antisemitism. I wanna call it stupidity. Yeah. I wanna talk about how wrong these people are as opposed to, like, the hate in their heart. I don't know. I don't care. I don't care about their hearts. Right. Yeah. Speaking of London- Yes... I'm gonna be there in a couple weeks, and if there are listeners, maybe we can, uh... I mean, I know last time I met up with some London, uh, listeners, I would love to again.

33:30So if you hear this and you, uh, reach out, we- We know you're out there. We saw your, your, uh- Yeah... server watches. I'd love to, I'd love to s- meet up with people in London and check in on our friends and see how everyone's doing. So let me know. I'll be there in the middle of August. Um, I have a meeting with Prince William because- Oh, good... yeah. He's thinking of bringing me on as his, um... You know, he's gonna be the king, so. His second wife. His [laughs] When i- when is he coming on the show?

33:59[laughs] Yeah. When he's the king. I, I have an offer. Okay. Yeah, we don't want him right now. Let's give him- You're just not ready... some time. Yeah, and he's... What's he gonna tell us? So- He's not ready... we'll wait. We'll wait for him. But- Um, we are going to Wyoming too. We are going to Wyoming. Which- Yeah... is super exciting. Is there a king there? What? Is there a king there? 'Cause- I'm sure there's also a king of, like... Oh, there's a rodeo king. Oh, perfect. Oh, we should get the rodeo king. I'm going to the rodeo. You're not going to the rodeo. Um, I don't, I don't think so.

34:30I don't remember what day it is. Yeah. I think- It's usually on the weekends, right? I'm sure. I don't know, but it's, like, a really hard ticket to get. Our, our host- Really?... graciously got us a ticket. Yeah. Really? I didn't know that. Uh, I don't think we got you one because for... I, I think it's on a day that you're not- It's on Saturday probably, which- Oh, yeah... I can do. Um, but I was super excited that last I checked there were 23 tickets left. Wow. Um, I'm hoping if you're coming, you already bought your ticket and figured it out 'cause you need to, like, get to Wyoming.

34:56Oh, 23 tickets for our event? Yes. Oh, I thought you meant for the rodeo. Oh, no. [laughs] No. I think the rodeo is sold out. You know what? Well, like, how many spots are there? I think a lot of people are coming to town for the event. 25? Are there 25 spots? What? For... There... Are there 25 spots for our event and 23 tickets are- Yeah... sold out? Yeah. [laughs] But... And the two are the, the sound guys. Yeah. Uh, no. But we're interviewing Nadav Eyal- Mm-hmm... um, which will be really fun. He has no idea what he's getting himself into. Yeah.

35:25He's gonna be like, "I'll talk about Iran." And we'll be like, "Hmm, which antisemitism do you like better?" [laughs] He probably looked at our list of guests and was like, "Wow." [laughs] "These ladies are experts on foreign policy and Iran." [laughs] "They talk to FDD people and the other journalists." And then we're gonna be like, "So where is Iran exactly?" Yeah. "And what is the Strait of Hormuz?" What does a journalist do? [laughs] I know. I asked Mark do what... What is a think tank? [laughs] And I don't know if he gave you a good answer.

35:58He was like, "I'm not exa- He didn't... I'm not entirely sure myself." He didn't. [laughs] We're just with the hard-hitting questions. What can I say? But, uh- No, I think we're, we're like a retreat. We're a podcast retreat for all these people who do a lot of podcasts. Yeah. Right. And they come to us for, like, an hour off. Yeah. It's true. Yeah. It's true 'cause they can't just not podcast, so this is like- Yeah... podcasting, but it's chill.

36:22Like, I forgot who we were talking to, but somebody we interviewed that was in the middle of a book tour that was, like, doing a million interviews- Yeah... and we're just like, "You know, we have an hour. Like, what do you wanna do?" [laughs] Yeah. Yeah. "Do you wanna take a nap?" Yeah. "We'll just play music." I actually was reading... This is a totally off tangent, sorry, but I was reading a really interesting thread on Substack about selling books and how hard it is right now for people who write books and how to get them, like, how to get noticed, and how sh- this author, like, did this huge podcast.

36:56She said it had, like, millions of listeners. Mm-hmm. And she thought, like, "Okay, this is gonna be, you know, my, like- Her big break... ticket to selling... Yeah, like, "I'm gonna sell tons of books" and she did the podcast, and she started tracking from the day after the podcast aired how her sales went, and she did not sell one book- Wow... off of the interview. Wow. And it just was, it led to, like, a really interesting conversation about, like, how do you get seen in this noise that we live in right now of, like, constantly being, you know, overrun with books and movies and TV and, and articles and like...

37:32And then there's, like, the how do you pay for all of this stuff that you wanna read and watch, and what are some ideas of how it can be cheaper for people? Because there are so many things that I wanna subscribe to that I don't because I already have 700 subscriptions- Mm-hmm... to so many different things. I can't even keep track of what I have subscriptions to. Yeah. And so it's just interest- it's, like, an interesting moment right now in media and journalism and, and books and everything to try to, like, see what it takes for a writer to get...

37:57And if you're not already a very famous writer, like, how to get your voice heard- It's-... in this world. Yeah. And, and- It's hard... I think people think that there's a formula or there's something you can do, and, and I know this from my work- Yeah... and with clients sometimes that they think, like, "Oh, if we just do this," or if you just- Yeah... you know, put enough money into TikTok or Facebook or do... And it's really not, not enough. Yeah. And, and to... You know, wait, watch me tie this into anti-Semitism.

38:26[laughs] It's the same people that refuse to believe that there's, like, chaos in the world and things aren't always... Like, there's serendipity and there are things that are just happening, and not everything is, like, controlled by somebody. Yeah. So, you know, th- those are the same people who think, like, everything is controlled and everything's a plot and, you know- Right... those are the same people who, who like to point at the Jews. But- Right...

38:50I watched, I listened to... Do you ever listen to Planet Money- Mm-mm... uh, from NPR? Um, I listened to it the other day, and I usually don't- That's my first week anything about money, so. Oh, I thought anything about NPR. Yeah. [laughs] Um- That's you... it's funny because I look, I scroll through my podcast feed and the, the title of the episode comes up large and then only, like, small you see what the show is. So sometimes, like, I can tell 'cause all my feed is like, "Islam is taking over- Yeah... America" and, like- Right...

39:19"Why Donald Trump is, like, the greatest pre-" And then, and then there's always, like, something like, "How poetry saved, like, indigenous, like, you know, waterfall." Yes. And like- Yes... oh, that's a TED Talk. Um, but this NPR one was about the squishy, um, dumplings. Have you seen those? Are your nieces into that? Oh yeah, yeah, the squishies? Yeah. Yeah. And they interviewed the, the inventor of it, and it was fascinating because he talked about, like, just kind of optimizing a toy for, you know, things that kids like. Yeah.

39:51But then also something brilliant that you don't think about, like the supply chain- Mm... and how he always had, like, a lot of toy... I, I don't know exactly, but, like- Yeah... he, he offset the cost of, like, holding the toys to the company, so he always had, when people started getting really excited about them, he always had, like, enough supply. Interesting. And then another thing that really did it for people was, you know, that you don't know what's inside the toy, so there's- Right...

40:19like, the thrill of figuring it out, kinda like when we were kids and we'd have, like, you know, uh, the w- like you'd have baseball cards here. In Israel, we'd have whatever cards. Yeah, right. Like, IDF cards. Um, I don't know what cards, but, you know, the thrill of, like, n- not knowing what you're gonna get, and a- just a lot of this stuff is about human behavior and just trends, and it's pretty wonderful, but it's not always this, like, genius marketing people who are sitting in a boardroom and, like, "We know how to make the next hit." Right, right.

40:50Well, we've had that even with our, our podcast that, like, I think there's been moments where we thought, "Okay, we got this guest. This is it." Mm-hmm. "This is our moment where we're, like, gonna explode," right? Or, "We're gonna get so many more followers on Instagram because we tagged this person." And, like, I just see how hard it is to actually get those ex- major explosions, you know? I mean- Yeah... I mean, we're lucky and we've do- you know, we're consistent for four and a half years every week.

41:15Like, we've done our part, and we've grown our audience, and I'm really proud of it, but it's just an interesting moment to be a creative person. Yeah. And you, you know, some people get super lucky and break out and, you know, they're, like, w- at the top of their game. And for many, many people, and even people who had success earlier, you know, they think, "Oh, I, you know, I was successful last time with my book or my song or whatever," and then nothing.

41:39Like, I saw something about Lizzo, that Lizzo put out a new album and couldn't sell a- You know why? 'Cause she lost weight. She lost all her powers- Yeah... like, like Samson. True, it's true. Yeah. It took all- Probably. Yeah. But, like, it just, it's just really interesting. Yeah. And then I'll s- like, I'll hear... You know, I listen to XM Radio a lot, to '90s on Ni- to the '90s on 9. Oh, I love that channel. And I... I know, and, like, a song will come on and it's, like, Paula Abdul, "Straight Up," you know? And I love that song. That was one- my first non-Jewish song- That's when she had, she had a relationship with a cat, right? Do you remember that video? Oh, my God. She was dating a cat. That was... Are you serious? Yes. I may... I think we've discussed this, but I still don't know what you mean. Oh, 100%.

42:19Maybe it's from opposites attract. Oh, maybe, 'cause he's a cat and she's a human. That's pretty opposite, yeah. But, you know, I hear that song and I'm like, it was such a m... Everyone knew Paula Abdul. Everybody knew Madonna. Everybody, you know, and, uh, it was such a different time then. But- It's... Well, no, but it's also hard to, like, h- hang on to, you know- I- i- it's hard to hang on to success, and- Yeah... that's what's good about us, is we haven't peaked yet. [laughs] Look at us. Look at... We're like Mick Jagger. We're just, we're just gonna keep going. We're gonna keep ti- timing- We're gonna keep touring. Yeah.

42:53We're gonna keep touring. The drugs help a lot, you know. Yeah. Yeah, we can dance. [laughs] We're just, we're gonna keep going forever. Whatever it takes to get all the ladies. [laughs] I think Mick Jagger and I might have the same birthday. Really? Yeah. Which, you know- Should I send- We're very similar... should I send him a birthday greeting too? Yeah, he's like 197, so. [laughs] He was born- Too bad he's not Jewish. Everybody loves him. Yeah. He was born a war. But I do... I met...

43:22I, I remember meeting-- This is, somebody's gonna hate me for saying this, but I remember meeting a kid in LA called Jagger, and I'm like, "I don't know who's dumber, you or your parents." [laughs] 'Cause who calls a kid- Hmm... s- somebody who's still alive- Jagger? Yeah That's kind of stupid. Like, you might do something stupid. How? And also that's a dumb name. Jagger? It's like a name you would have on a soap opera, you know? No- And- But it was sp- he was specifically named after Mick Jagger. Yeah, I know.

43:51I'm just saying it would be like the bad boy on the soap opera who wears like a leather jacket and rides a motorcycle. That would be Jagger. Yeah, yeah. I don't know. It's, don't name your kids Jagger. That's cute. How about Maverick? That's a cute... I like the name Maverick. Maverick's cute. Yeah. More of a dog name. [laughs] All right. Shall we wrap this up? It's only 45 minutes, but what do we... We don't owe these people anything. Oh my God. Yeah, r- Yael's rushing out, everyone, so don't blame me. [laughs] I'm just kidding. Email us your questions. Yes. AskTheJewPod@gmail.com.

44:23We do- we wanted to get this solo in because we do have a bunch of guests coming up. Yeah. Um, it's, it's g- it's military, uh... It's, like, very, it's gonna be very military-focused, uh- Yes, that's because th- that's who you and I are. And that's- We like-... who you turn to... I graduated from West Point. You know- Yes... I... and then went to the Naval Academy, so I have the air of- Yeah... expertise. And I played, uh, football for West Point. Yeah. Go Army. Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah.

44:46So that's why we get all these military experts coming here. They, yeah, they've... Once we ask them, they're like, "Ugh, I gotta, you know, I gotta go." [laughs] "To my, to my comrades." To my... [laughs] Oy vey. Uh, in Yiddish we say achin vey if they're relying on us for, uh, any kind of expertise or help in the military. We cannot help. We could help them with their podcast if they have one. That's true. That's- But, and, and by the way, you're joking, but I taught a course at West Point once. Oh. At, uh, like academy something or other. That's cute. It was so nice. I was flying to Israel the day after.

45:21It was like a weekend thing. So I had all my luggage with me to Israel, and these cute cadets just like- Aw... carried my luggage all around and kept calling me ma'am. I'm very proud of one of my students, Zoe, who, uh, went to West Point to graduate. Really? Went on to be, you know, work, was in the Army for five years, spent some time in Israel as an American officer. Wow. Um, yeah, and then went to Yale Law School. Sorry, I'm giving away- Oh, I think I met her. Yeah. That's amazing. She's the coolest.

45:47Honestly, if you went to West Point or the Naval Academy, you're, uh, like- Or the Air Force... you're amazing. Yeah. Or the Air Force Academy. Eh. No, I'm kidding. No, are you joking? I love the Air Force. No, no. The, all these academies, I have a, I have a, a lot of friends, uh- Coast Guard too... Coast Guard. A lot of friends who went to West Point, and they always say it's like the greatest four years of their lives, and they would never, ever, ever do it again. Oh my God, really? It's so hard. It's so hard. That's like me with this podcast. [laughs] This podcast is the West Point of podcasts.

46:20This is our West Point. [laughs] Yeah. We're gonna graduate soon, and we're gonna parachute. No, but- You know. I don't know, an APAC conference. Yeah, seriously. Um, okay. Anyway. All right. Thanks everyone. See you in Wyoming. Bye. Bye. [upbeat music]