Renaissance Pundit's Posterous

Confronting The Beautiful Mess of Adult Life

Phys Ed: Your Brain on Exercise - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

This research screams out for publicity. The benefits of even short- burst frequent exercise are tremendous for the brain's ability to grow (wiser?smarter? Keep wishing ;) and regenerate. In all seriousness, this is great work - simple and elegant in showing that moderate exercise helps the maintenance and specialization into new neurons for stem cells in your noggin ;) go do some pushups already, or just take a walk for 20 minutes. You'll be doing yourself a big favor at no cost.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/07/your-brain-on-exercise/?src=me&ref=h...

Posted July 8, 2010

beyond the skin trade - bookforum.com / in print

Victor LaValle offers an intriguing look into his own family history as a prism for seeing black nationalism's recent, unexpected demise through a "black lens." Not the type of perspective you'll see very often in print, as it's quite personal.

http://www.bookforum.com/inprint/016_01/3516

Posted July 8, 2010

Op-Ed Contributor - No Sex Please, We’re Middle Class - NYTimes.com

G-d help us all - Camille Paglia is right on target with what's led to this destructive malaise in the upper-middle class. The prevailing bourgeois culture has become androgynous in practice, even if it's supericially oversexed. Egregious psychobabble, domestic regimentation of the male role, abuse of birth control tools in a false sexual "liberation," metrosexuality and feminist masculinization of woman, together with professional interchangeability have made the sexes next to indifferent to each other's latter-day "domains." Solutions to this all involve separation - of said domains, of conscious behavior with one's friends and with one's spouse, and separation during certain times of the month (an old and incredibly functional trick from Judaism). There must also be a reassertion of traditional roles, and most importantly, hard work by each spouse to keep things fresh and exciting, regardless of circumstances, meaning mutual sensitivity and attention, along with fundamental respect. Love alone has never been enough, obviously. Nothing new in human nature, of course, but this malaise is truly a plague that no female Viagra could cure.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/27/opinion/27Paglia.html?scp=1&sq=camille%20pa...

Posted July 6, 2010

Op-Ed Columnist - General McChrystal and the Culture of Exposure - NYTimes.com

Brooks cuts right to the heart of the McChrystal matter - inaccurate calibration of good will, and a culture that cares only about sensationalism and exposure, rather than competence, in public life. It's also not good to allow a gentleman's club sensibility to dominate journalism, but this is another extreme, with even mire disastrous consequences - jingoism and hypocrisy highest (read: lowest) among them...

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/25/opinion/25brooks.html?src=me&ref=homepage

Posted June 25, 2010

Hebrew Is the Focus of a Brooklyn Charter School - NYTimes.com

Very impressive concept - a publicly-funded Hebrew charter school - which appears to work quite well in practice, both on the level of educational quality and attracting a diverse group of kids. I hope they do replicate it all over the U.S. The implications of the "beit t'fila-medinat" divide are a non-issue here, I think. The trouble comes in higher grades, when politics comes into play and discussion. Would be curious to see how Sara Berman manages to solve that problem. Chazak u'Baruch, nevertheless!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/25/nyregion/25hebrew.html?hp

Posted June 25, 2010

Model community

We here in NY have a lot to learn from Toronto's Jewish community about how to portray Israel in humanized terms, not just through the Lena of conflict. The front line for publi opinion lies in our own backyard, first and foremost. Many young Jews sadly see Israel as a source of conflict and want little to do with it, given the low level of average Jewish education here. This is where Toronto is far ahead, and alsothe grassroots reason for its successful approach.

http://www.jpost.com/Magazine/Features/Article.aspx?id=178733

Posted June 21, 2010

John Updike’s Archive - A Great Writer at Work - NYTimes.com

An intriguing first look at the Updike archive at Harvard. Nothing shocking, but certainly telling about the long-dying profession of salaried man of letters.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/21/books/21updike.html?hp

Posted June 21, 2010

Column One: Weathering the approaching storm

Israel is in deep trouble, and needs to right its ship immediately. War is coming again, unfortunately, and the IDF is unprepared, as is the PM and his office. The lessons of the flotilla fiasco are clear and must be implemented immediately to prevent a sudden escalation that's coming from suicide protesters and others like them around the world. This is a cautionary tale come true in real life.

http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Columnists/Article.aspx?id=178812

Posted June 18, 2010