Ukraine war impact on Israel, trans book war hits Tel Aviv, and more
A pre-Shavuot roundup
This is a newsletter platform, so, for a change, I’m going to treat it more like a newsletter and less like a blog. Today we’ll have a few interesting articles I wrote this week, plus, my favorite cheesecake recipe in honor of Shavuot.
I dipped my toe into the culture wars with this one. Israel has a tendency to adopt American social trends years later, so we’ve started seeing more and more of a debate about how to treat transgender children in Israel. I don’t claim to be anything near an expert on the topic, but as readers of this newsletter know, I am passionate about free speech. That extends beyond legal protections; I believe in the importance of open debate. I approached this topic as an exploration of why one side believes the other’s view is too dangerous to be heard, and I found it intriguing that teenagers are leading the activism here. I am aware that there are attempts to suppress speech on this topic, socially and legally, in the US from both sides, but I only focused on this incident in Israel.
When journalist and author
’s book Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters, positing that transgenderism in teen girls is a social contagion, was released in 2020, Amazon would not allow her to advertise it, and employees of the book-selling giant petitioned for it not to be sold at all. It was twice removed from Target’s shelves, and even a lawyer from the American Civil Liberties Union called for “stopping the circulation of this book.”With the book’s recent release in Hebrew by Sella Meir, a publisher that specializes in bringing heterodox and conservative voices to light, the debate over whether Shrier’s ideas should even be available in the public square has reached Tel Aviv’s public square: Kikar Atarim, to be precise.
Sella Meir and the Tel Aviv International Salon (TAIS) planned a book launch for Shrier for her to advise parents on what to do if their teen daughters say they are transgender. The event was planned to take place at the glass-windowed strip club-turned-event space overlooking the beach, run by the organization Social Space, for next Sunday, until the publishing house’s owner. Rotem Sella, and TAIS founder Jay Shultz were told it was canceled.
Senior Estonian official warns that the outcome of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will impact Israel
Russia’s war against Ukraine will shape the international order in a way that will deeply impact small states, including Israel, Estonian Foreign Ministry Director-General Jonatan Vseviov warned on Tuesday.
“If we go back to a world where might makes right, then we are all going to be in trouble,” he said. “Small countries will feel it first.”
Vseviov’s role is similar to Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer in the small Baltic state bordering Russia. He is a former ambassador to the US, who has the prime minister’s ear and is a key figure in his country’s foreign and defense policy. He is also one of the architects of NATO’s defense posture in Eastern Europe.
Vseviov was in Israel this week to discuss the Ukraine war with his counterpart in Jerusalem, Ronen Levy, National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Minister Yuli Edelstein, and others. His message was “this is a pivotal war that will change everything, whether we want it or not.
“This war will either shape new norms of international behavior or strengthen the current ones, If we allow it to become the norm that, under certain circumstances a larger neighbor can invade a smaller neighbor and change its borders with force, no border remains safe. If we allow it to become the norm that under certain circumstances aggression pays off, we’re in for a rough ride. This is not only a war on Ukraine; it is a war on every principle we depend on,” he added.
Here are some important news stories I wrote this week:
Israel planning an international tech expo for its 75th anniversary
Israel ally Mitsotakis wins big in Greek election - The Israel-Greece-Cyprus relationship is important to Israel as a regional energy power.
This week’s Jerusalem Post podcast guest is Aleeza Ben Shalom of Netflix’s Jewish Matchmaking! Watch this space, or Apple Podcasts or Spotify, for the release on Thursday
Shavuot is tomorrow night, and I have a treat for you! The custom is to eat dairy on Shavuot, so many families make cheesecake. Cheesecake does not have to be complicated! I have been making this recipe since I was a kid, and it is the best. It comes from my mom’s very stained 30-or-so-year-old fundraising cookbook from a Chabad in New Jersey (which also features my mom’s excellent cholent recipe - I can share that another time).
Doris’s Favorite Cheesecake
Ingredients:
2 graham cracker crusts
1.5 lb (680g) cream cheese (in Israel, I like Napoleon cheese for this)
3/4 c sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 pt (450g) sour cream
Instructions:
If you’re using American cream cheese, leave at room temperature to soften. If you’re using Napoleon cheese in Israel, it doesn’t need to be softened, but you should drain out the extra liquid.
Preheat oven to 350 F/180 C.
Beat cheese and sugar. Add and beat eggs one at a time, then vanilla. Beat for 4 more minutes.
Fold in sour cream.
Pour into crusts and bake for 50-55 degrees.
Tip:
This is a very simple recipe, but I’ve learned some more gourmet tricks over the 20 or so years I’ve been making this. If you don’t want the cheesecake to collapse or crack, put a pan of hot water at the bottom of the oven while you’re heating it. Leave the pan in while you bake the cakes so that they bake in a steamy oven. When it’s done baking, let the cakes cool off in the oven with the door ajar.
This cheesecake is delicious plain, but the recipe is very versatile. Since it makes 2 cakes, sometimes I like to leave one plain and play with the other one. One of my favorite variations is to mix in mini chocolate chips and top it with salted caramel sauce. If you can buy or make an Oreo crust, that’s also great with this recipe, and you can mix in Oreo chunks. Fruit and\or chocolate ganache are great toppings for this, as well.
Chag Sameach!