August 29, 2008 Rabbi Berel Wein: 20/20 sightlessness Caroline B. Glick: When history is not repeated JWisdom: Blessed or Cursed: It's Really Up to You by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky August 28, 2008 Steve Lipman: A Comeback for the 'Jewish Jordan' Jeffrey Weiss: Researcher reports 'intriguing' diabetes breakthrough August 27, 2008 Rabbi Zecharya Greenwald: Removing the perfectionist's mask The Kosher Gourmet by Emily Nunn: Summer harvest linguine JWisdom:: The Missing Link in Spiritual Life by Rabbi David Aaron August 26, 2008 Yaffa Ganz: Grandma gets lessons in staying cool Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: The Dems' 'soft' jihadist JWisdom:: Today: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Plague of indifference August 25, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Q: A friend is bearing a silly grudge from a supposed wrong. What recourse do I have? Daniel Pipes: Barack Obama through Muslim Eyes JWisdom:: The knowledge you need to overcome your insecurities by Malka Schulman August 22, 2008 Rabbi Berel Wein: Life's essential ingredient Caroline B. Glick: Dominos anyone? JWisdom:: Actually, Do Sweat the Small Stuff! by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky August 21, 2008 Today in Biblical History by Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Popularization of Kabbalah: 20 Menachem-Av 1558 CE Jonathan Rosenblum: Lessons from the Beyond JWisdom: : The Olympian within is rooting for you -- yes, you! –- to go for the gold August 20, 2008 Jonathan Tobin: Misleading Platform Platitudes The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: Chicken Salad with Asian Dressing JWisdom: The Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith: America's Defense of the Jews --- Until WWII by Rabbi Nosson Scherman August 19, 2008 Dennis Prager: If the Almighty doesn't exist Frank J. 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The Kosher Gourmet by Gail Borelli: Pickling captures the fleeting tastes of summer's fruits and vegetables JWisdom: Serenity: It's Really Up to YOU! by Rabbi Zelig Pliskin (Read by Gavriel Sanders) July 29, 2008 Rabbi Avi Shafran: Good things happen Dick Morris: How Israel's race could shift ours JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Equal but Not Jewish or Jewish but Not Human? July 28, 2008 The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: How and when to lie Steven Emerson: More Perils of Interfaith Dialogue JWisdom:: A TripTik for Your Spiritual Journey by Rabbi Dovid Gross March 22, 2007 J-Rhythms with Avraham Rosenblum: JWR's cutting-edge music program showcasing performers -- singers, song writers, musicians, and bands -- who learn and live the Torah lifestyle (OUR NEWEST IGODCAST !) Oct. 29, 2003 Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review May 20, 2004 / 29 Iyar, 5764 Wife letting herself go; kid wants to ban dad from bar mitzvah; visiting mom has nerves rattled Wendy Belzberg http://www.jewishworldreview.com | Q: My wife and I have been married for 28 years and we have three teenagers. We are both in our late forties. My wife could make herself look much more attractive and ten years younger if she would color and style her gray hair and start wearing makeup and nail polish — like she did when we were first married. But she insists I should accept who she is. Do I have the right to ask this of my wife? It is my thinking that a married man or woman has some obligation to make him or herself look attractive for his or her spouse. We're both going to be looking old soon enough, but do we have to leap into it when we are still young enough to hide it? A: It is backbreaking work to haul politically correct advice. Were this question posed by a woman of her beer-gutted, love-handled husband my answer would be easy and swift. Instead I feel as if I'm walking over eggshells into quicksand. Each half of a couple accommodates the other all of the time. It is perfectly legitimate for you to ask your wife to take better care of herself. (And to be prepared to respond in kind.) It is not a secret or a crime that mutual physical attraction does not come with a lifelong guarantee, nor is sexual attraction incidental to a good marriage. Without physical intimacy, a marriage is at best a great friendship. You have made your desires clear. Your wife is similarly entitled to choose to age without the benefit of botox or highlights. But she runs the risk of your drifting apart in the bedroom, which is likely to lead you to drift apart elsewhere. Evolved though we are, certain rules of the game seem inevitably to apply. Q: My son will soon become a Bar Mitzvah and does not want to invite his father to the service. My ex-husband and I have been divorced for 9 years. He rarely visits our son and does not support his Jewish education. The only reason my ex wants to attend is to maintain appearances. My son is afraid that his father will embarrass him. I feel I should support my son's wishes, as this is his day. What are your thoughts? A: A bar mitzvah may be a celebration of manhood but your son in reality is still a boy. Can you be certain that he will never look back and regret his choice? Help him explore all of the pros and cons of his decision. Make him realize he will live with this decision for the rest of his life. Having his father there may help build the bond between father and son — even if you do suspect his father is coming for the wrong reasons. It is OK to let your son make his own decision as long as he makes the right one: to invite his father to the ceremony. If he wishes to exclude him from the party afterwards that seems like a fair compromise. Q: Several recent visits to my children have ended badly. It rattles my nerves to hear loud music. My children insist on playing music during meals. I asked them to turn down the music and they were clearly offended by the request. We watched a movie after dinner and the volume was blaring. (I don't go out to the movies anymore because I find the volume stressful.) Would it be best just to avoid family get-togethers where music and movies are played to entertainment velocity? I may be too sensitive but the volume of all this really racks my nerves. A: . Would your children feed you dairy products if you were lactose intolerant? Did you serve them liver if you knew they hated it? Your aversion to loud music may or may not be new. But sensory issues are real, not imagined — and sensitivity to loud noises is a recognized malady. Remove yourself from large gatherings, events, concerts or games where you are not in control of the music. In a situation where you can respectfully ask that the volume be turned down — your children's homes being a case in point — basic human consideration comes into play. Perhaps describing your sensitivity in technical or medical terms will make it easier for your children to show a little less beat and a little more heart. Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and in the media consider "must reading." Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here. Ask Wendy a question — almost any question — by clicking here. Ask Wendy Archives © 2004, Wendy Belzberg