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Dec. 1, 2008

Max Freidlander, as told to Jacklyn C. Wadler: India Inkings

Mark Steyn: Whodunit!?

Nov. 28, 2008

Rabbi Ahron Rapps: An evil seed that didn't have to be

Melanie Phillips: Carpe diem --- or can we all relax now?

Nov. 26, 2008

Michael Feldberg: Meet the Orthodox Jew who laid groundwork for scientific development of ordnance that undergirds America's current world leadership

Andrea Simantov: Shades of life

Nov. 25, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Getting Emotional For Influence

The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman : Thanksiving feast!

Nov. 24, 2008

Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg: 'I just Became a grandchild!'

Barry Rubin: Don't flatter your enemies, protect your friends

Nov. 21, 2008

Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz: Money matters?

Caroline B. Glick: Civilization walks the plank

Nov. 20, 2008

Rabbi Avi Shafran: Bronfman's blindness

The Kosher Gourmet By Linda Gassenheimer: Portobellos add a hearty flavor to pasta with pesto

Nov, 19, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Spread the wealth? Jewish tradition and income equality

Elliot B. Gertel: 'Mad Men': Tackling prejudices or reinforcing them?

Nov, 18, 2008

Dr. Debby Schwarz Hirschhorn: The End of the Age of Reason

Jonathan Tobin: Does Barack + Bibi = Disaster?

Nov, 17, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The End of the Age of Reason

Diana West: Gulling Americans into making terror legit?

Nov, 14, 2008

Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz: The Power of Spiritual Inertia

Caroline B. Glick: The perils ahead

Nov, 13, 2008

Stratfor Intelligence Briefing: How Bush and Obama together could change the Middle East dynamic

The Kosher Gourmet by JeanMarie Brownson: Sweet and savory, crispy and meltingly tender bestilla

Nov, 12, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Tyrannical Co-Workers

Michael Doyle: High Court to consider today donated monuments that may have religious messages in public parks

Nov, 11, 2008

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Will Obama stop government officials considering institutionalizing financial jihad?

Jonathan Tobin: They Will Decide Their Own Fate

Nov, 10, 2008

Rabbi Avi Shafran: $8 billion, modern-day Tower of Babel being built?

Barry Rubin: A letter to the president-elect from a Middle East realist

Nov, 7, 2008

Rabbi Francis Nataf: Of Children and Immortality

Caroline B. Glick: Livni's Obama strategy

Nov, 6, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: How I tricked a classroom of apathetic students into grasping the fallacy of moral relativism

The Kosher Gourmet By Gina Kim: Tips for making the perfect soup --- includes recipes

Nov, 5, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist By Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Destitute Debtors

Bruce Weinstein: 'Religulos': Bad title,even worse movie

Nov, 4, 2008

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Treasury Dept. submits to Shariah law

Frida Ghitis: A surprise for Obama in the Middle East

Nov, 3, 2008

Jonathan Rosenblum: Who says Jews are Smart?

Jonathan Tobin: Was He Wrong About Everything?

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 Nov. 21, 2005 / 19 Mar-Cheshvan, 5766

Thank Heaven for America

By Tom Purcell


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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | There's been a lot of complaining lately, some of it warranted, but for the most part too many of us forget how blessed we are to be Americans. So let me take a stab at remembering some of the things we have to be grateful for this Thanksgiving.


Thank you, G-d, that I am able to say "thank you, G-d." I'm able to go to any church I want to or none at all. I'm able to stand on street corners and preach the word or file suit to have your name taken off the dollar bill. And no matter what I say or do nobody shoots me or throws me in jail or worse.


Thank you that Michael Jackson isn't in the news any more.


Thank you that terrorists have not struck on American soil since 911. I'm as amazed as anyone. So blessed have we been in this regard that some of us forget that terrorists felled two sky liners and killed thousands here well before President Bush began his war on terror. So safe have we been that opportunists have turned our enemies into martyrs and our president into "lair."


Thank you that the leader of the most powerful country on the face of the earth is not so powerful that he can do as he pleases. As unpleasant as it sometimes is for him and for us, he must answer for his decisions and he must defend his actions, unlike in countries run by dictators where absolute power corrupts absolutely.


Thank you that our wealth and resources are so vast that when things go horribly wrong, as they did in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, we are outraged and demand answers from our government. Thank you, too, for our generosity. We contributed millions of dollars and many took time off work to help people victimized by the storms firsthand.


Thank you that Michael Moore isn't in the news any more, too.


Thank you for the technological innovation that has led to dramatic improvements in American life. I am able to sit in a coffee shop or pub and draft an article on a laptop computer - a computer that 15 years ago was as big as a train car. Thanks to a cellular broadband modem, I have Internet access anywhere. I am able to make a good living in blue jeans providing services to a corporation that is 300 miles away.


Thank you for the freedom of thought that is getting better as our great republic gets older. Technology has enabled millions to voice their opinions, debate government policies and spotlight truth. Though hacks and charlatans have the same ability to voice their opinions as more thoughtful folks, debate is healthier than it's ever been, to the benefit of any democratic system.


Thank you for an economy that is so energetic even large natural disasters are unable to quell it. The American economy continues to generate wealth and prosperity that are the marvels of the world - it continues to encourage other countries to follow our basic principles, which celebrate life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.


Thank you that Barbara Streisand, Al Franken and Cindy Sheehan ARE in the news to remind us how loony America's left really is.


Thank you that my parents, and millions of others just like them, are able to enjoy retirement in such comfort. They have a beautiful home, a new car, a healthy family, and they are enjoying the fruits of their labor in a way that was unimaginable even 50 years ago.


Thank you for competition and free markets, two simple concepts we often take for granted. Competition drives efficiency, which drives down costs, which means the American consumer is able to buy more goods with the same dollar. So accustomed have we become to inexpensive goods, we are free to complain that some companies, such as Walmart, aren't charging enough.


Most of all, thank you for letting me be born in America, where I and millions of others, with a little hard work and sacrifice, can become whatever we wish to be.

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

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© 2005, Tom Purcell

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