Lake America was just a step in the absorption of Canada into the United States. Other steps are coming….

As gas prices continue to float around

$4.00 per gallon, Donald looks for ways to look like he is going to bring them down. He declares the Strait of Hormuz to be ours (he has not yet gotten around to rename the Strait, but he will), he touts a company for selling gas below market prices (and it turns out they do so by stiffing their

supplier to the tune of at least $4 million, and he works out a “deal” with a private party in Venezuela to have the Department of Defense take a share in a Venezuelan oil company (actually a Barbados company, I am told) which – in his dreams – will wind up benefiting the United States (once the Venezuelan equipment is fixed so that it can extract the heavy crude, once someone figures out how to finance the transport of the heavy crude to the U.S., and once the heavy crude can be refined at American refineries so that it becomes useful). Like peace with Iran, the benefits of this “deal” are far off.

So let’s change the subject. Let’s talk about the Haberman Institute for Jewish Studies, a 40+ year old DC based non-profit of which I have the honor of being president. Many of you are on the Haberman mailing lists, but many of you are not, and as we are getting our fall and winter programing in line, I thought it would be helpful to let you know what has been scheduled and announced so far. Virtually all of our programming will be on Zoom, and can be accessed free of charge. None of the programs involve Donald Trump.

(1) Wednesday night, September 2, 7:30 pm EDT: “The Great Christmas Boycott of 1906” by author Scott D. Seligman. An early fight against Christian nationalism, perhaps, as Jewish parents in New York City reacted against how the public schools were going to celebrate Christmas, and how the boycott affected public policy.

(2) Tuesday night, September 8, 7:30 pm EDT: “The Jewish Calendar: The Logic, Complexity and Wisdom of Jewish Time” by Rabbi Seth Bernstein (formerly of Temple Sinai in Worcester MA and Bet Aviv in Columbia MD).

(3) Wednesday night, September 23, 7:30 pm EDT: “What’s New in the Cairo Geniza?” by Professor Khedouri A. Zilkha of Princeton University.

(4) Wednesday night, October 14, 7:30 pm EDT: “Model or Mirror? Lessons from the “Golden Age” of Sephardic History” by Professor Jonathan Ray of Georgetown University.

(5) Wednesday night, October 21, 7:30 pm EDT: “Stolen Moments: Jewish Themes and Cultural Allyship in African American Art” by Professor LaNitra Berger, George Mason University

(6) Monday night, November 2, 7:30 pm EST: “Labors of Love: The Life and Legacy of Henrietta Szold”, a film screening and talk by film maker Abby Ginzberg.

(7) Tuesday afternoon, November 10, 1:00 pm EST: “The Surprising Biblical Origins of Prayer” by Rabbi Uri Topolosky of Congregation Kehilat Pardes, Rockville MD.

(8) Wednesday night, November 18, 7:30 pm EST: “The Jewish History of Atlanta: Jews in the Melting Pot of Dixie” by Jeremy Katz, Archivist, Hamilton College.

In addition, on Sunday evening, November 15, for those in the DC area, we will be sponsoring an in-person program titled “Saving the Iraqi Jewish Archive: From Emergency to Exhibition”, presented by Corine Wegener, the Director of the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative.

We will also be sponsoring an in-person Introduction to Judaism class on 15 Thursday evenings beginning on October 8 (taught by a consortium of local rabbis of various denominations), and a Zoom class entitled “Forgotten Books of the Second Temple Period” on 9 Sunday mornings starting on October 11 (taught by Gideon Amir).

More will be announced as plans become finalized, but I hope that you agree that our fall programs look good. Again, the Zoom lectures are free, and last between 1 and 1 1/2 hours. You can register at http://www.habermaninstitute.org. I hope some of you come to some of the programs, and I know that all of you can’t come to all of the programs. And I promise: no Donald Trump.