HuffPo’s Half-Asses Photo of Some Jews

A disturbing new study finds that studies are disturbing – Ellen DeGeneres

[singlepic id=288 w=321 h=310 float=right]OMG! Look how Jews in Israel have to line up to get a potful of drinking water from a rusty ol’ barrel in this Huffington Post article. That’s horrible… and also not true, as any Jew who takes a glimpse at this photo will tell you: It looks like people making their kitchenware Kosher for Passover. But how is the HuffPo staff supposed to know that? Hmm… Let’s see if the caption of this Agence France-Presse photo is any help:

An Israeli man immerses cooking pots into boiling water to make them kosher for the Jewish festival of Pessah (Passover) in Bnei Brak near Tel Aviv, on April 18, 2011. Religious Jews throughout the world celebrate the eight-day Passover holiday, which begins on April 18, 2011, to commemorate the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt some 3,500 years ago. Due to the haste with which the Jews left Egypt, the bread they had prepared for the journey did not have time to rise. To commemorate their ancestors’ plight, the religious avoid eating leavened food products throughout Passover.. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Hmm… Seems like a CliffsNotes version of Passover for Dummies to me…

Kosher for Passover Fried Calamari

No, calamari is not kosher, but now that you got your answer you might want to read this rather funny post:

Israel is a home for Jews in all their forms, but while Orthodox Jews adhere to every law of the faith, most Israelis consider themselves ‘Secular Jews’. Seemingly an oxymoron, a secular Jew would observe certain religious laws, while completely ignoring other laws. Most Israelis would get married by a rabbi, circumcise their sons, and when their time comes get buried in a religious ceremony – completing the cycle of life while ignoring pillars of the faith like Shabbat or atonement.

Kosher for Passover Fried Calamari: Fried squid, covered with Matzomeal and seasonings, served on a bed of green leaves with Cajun mayoMost Israelis do not eat Kosher and have no problem enjoying a pork meal or a seafood platter, but on Passover most of them do keep the holiday’s dietary laws and do not eat bread or foods made out of flour. This is the rational behind a Kosher for Passover fried Calamari offered by restaurants like the one I visited today. An Observant Jew wouldn’t be caught dead eating Calamari, as it is made out of squid which is utterly forbidden, but in the DIY-Judaism world in which most Israelis lead their lives they have no problem eating Calamari on Passover, just as long as it is not breaded – as that would be an abomination.

Happy Passover to all my Jewish readers!


Yes, while blogging makes you do a lot of good things like read and learn, from time to time it does take you to the edge and makes you do strange things like stealing a menu from a restaurant.