Ask Haviv Anything

The inimitable Prof. Dan Schueftan joins Haviv to break down a "profoundly dangerous" turn in the Middle East. With Saudi Arabia shifting away from its alliance with Israel and the Emirates and Turkey consolidating a "puppet state" in Syria, the regional map is being redrawn. Schueftan warns that the "moderate axis" has blinked, leaving Israel to face a sophisticated Turkish adversary that is ideologically rooted in the Muslim Brotherhood and strategically positioned to disrupt Israeli interests from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea.But despite these threats, Prof. Schueftan offers a powerful and much-needed reality check: Israel has never been stronger. Jews are the only people in the region who don't seem to grasp its power. Israel is currently in its best strategic position in history -- a 21st-century military and technological power that has outlasted every previous attempt at its destruction.--This episode was sponsored by Alex Verjovsky. "I want to dedicate this episode to my wife Betty, without whom I would not be the person I am today. When we started our lives together, you believed in me when I had little more than a promise, something I spent the next thirty-something years trying to live up to. As we begin the countdown to our fortieth anniversary, it’s now your turn to enjoy the fruits of that journey. So get ready for another forty years together, exploring, learning, asking questions, and growing old side by side."Ask Haviv Anything has become a place of learning and discovery, and one of the few spaces left where ideas, rather than dogmas are openly discussed and we love listening to it and talking about it."--If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

In these strange times, it is easier than ever for a Jew to learn -- and easier than ever to remain ignorant. We sit down with Dr. Noam Weissman, executive vice president of the educational nonprofit Open Dor Media, to tackle a looming crisis: a generation of Jews who no longer know their own story. From Harvard Law students paralyzed by campus slogans to the staggering reality that 62% of Jewish day school students cannot define Zionism, this episode exposes the "malpractice" of outdated advocacy and offers a better blueprint for the future. What would a better Israel education look like? Haviv and Noam explore how history and identity can transform a vulnerable community into an invincible one—shifting the next generation from passive spectators in the stands to active players in the Jewish game.--This episode is sponsored by Max and Susan Reichenthal in honor of Friends of the IDF (FIDF), which works to ensure that the soldiers of the IDF have the support they need during their service. Max and Susan asked to dedicate the episode to the IDF soldiers who put their lives on the line to protect the people of Israel.We thank them for their continued support.--If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

This week, Israel finally brought home the remains of its last hostage, 24-year-old Ran Gvili. To outsiders, the sheer scale of the national sacrifice and the collective exhalation of relief that followed his return can seem like a mystery. Every nation honors its fallen, but few go to the lengths Israelis do to reclaim a body from the hands of the enemy.In this episode, we use the upcoming holiday of Tu Bishvat as an entryway into the Jewish psyche. We explore the idea of "hesed shel Emet" -- the "true kindness" of a dignified burial, which is called "true" because it can never be reciprocated. We dive into a world where a dignified burial is more than a ritual; it is a declaration that even in death, a human being remains a reflection of the divine. Through the teachings of the Malbim and the Sfat Emet, we re-examine Tu Bishvat not as a simple children’s holiday, but as a sophisticated meditation on the human condition. From the sap stirring in the dead of winter to the "inner light" hidden within the shells of the Seven Species, we discover a "New Year of the Human"—a day that honors our unique mission to find meaning in our mortality and uncover the sacred within the broken.--This episode was sponsored by an anonymous donor who asked to dedicate it to all our fallen soldiers and to the sacrifices of the reservists and their families, from October 7 until today. Thank you for your sponsorship.--If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

The fall 2024 Israeli operations that decimated Hezbollah’s missile arsenal and leadership structure marked a pivotal turning point for the Middle East. To understand the wreckage left behind and the organization's resilient global web that is already hard at work helping it to recover, I am joined by Matthew Levitt, one of the world’s leading experts on counterterrorism. Levitt pulls back the curtain on Hezbollah’s "Golden Rule"—the less you know, the better—and explains how a group traditionally viewed through the lens of regional militancy has transformed into a sophisticated, multi-continental criminal syndicate.The conversation dives deep into the surprising reality of Hezbollah’s diversified portfolio, including illicit operations in Latin America and Africa. As financial support from Iran has fluctuated, Levitt details how the group has used ethical justifications to lean into organized crime to sustain its activities. We explore the implications of these global networks for regional stability the precarious future of Lebanon.This episode was sponsored by Robert Hockett, a Rhodes scholar and professor of law and finance at Cornell University who wishes to support this podcast and this community, which, in his words, "demonstrate every day that literal truth and justice in the Middle East can be pursued and articulated both thoughtfully and civilly — without humoring or coddling, but instead gently rebuffing, both dark age bloodlust and present day blood libel.”If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East. Our current question: 'From the River to the Sea' - Lost in Translation?If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live. If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠. Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Andrew Fox is a frontline conflict researcher who has visited Gaza, Syria and Lebanon to study Israeli deployments and strategy there.He joins the podcast to talk about what he calls Israel’s ticking diplomatic clock — the inevitable moment when Israel finds itself where Europe is now: suddenly shorn of American backing and having to navigate an increasingly chaotic region and world. We discuss Israel’s strengths, its weaknesses, how Israel itself contributed to its diplomatic troubles, and what it all means for the prospects of rebuilding and deradicalization in Gaza as the territory enters Phase II of the Trump plan.Andrew served for 16 years in the British Army, from 2005 to 2021, leaving the Parachute Regiment with the rank of major. He is currently a senior associate fellow at the Henry Jackson Society in London, the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security in Israel, the Macdonald-Laurier Institute in Canada, and the Euro-Med Middle East Council in France.Andrew co-hosts the podcast The Brink with former Jewish Chronicle editor Jake Wallis Simons.Sponsorship:For more than a century, the Technion has powered Israel. Its graduates built the nation’s roads and bridges, its water systems and electrical grid. Israel’s high-tech industry emerged from the Technion — the very foundation of the Startup Nation.Today, as Israel recovers from the devastation of war, it needs the Technion more than ever.Technion scientists are developing new energy sources, sustainable food and water solutions, and breakthrough medical therapies — creating innovations for a better world that will also reboot Israel’s economy.You want to help make Israel safe and strong. By supporting the Technion, you’re investing in the people and ideas that will rebuild Israel for a better future. Because rebuilding isn’t just about restoring what was lost—it’s about creating what comes next. The Technion built Israel. Now, the Technion will rebuild Israel. Join us. Visit http://ats.org/rebuildIf you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Who is Hamas and what do they want? If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Iran is burning. The streets are full of marchers demanding an end to the regime. Thousands of protesters have been murdered by the regime in recent days — we may never know exactly how many. President Trump is threatening military action. But is all this enough to bring down the regime?How do you dismantle a revolutionary Islamist government that has proven impervious to domestic protest and international pressure?Here’s how.—This episode was sponsored anonymously by a family friend of former hostage Alon Ohel in celebration of his return from Hamas captivity on October 13. We wish him and all the survivors a speedy recovery.—If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: What was the First Intifada? What was the Second Intifada? What does it mean to “globalize the intifada?”If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Did Israel intentionally target civilians in Gaza? If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

From Manchester to Bondi Beach to Denver, from Tucker Carlson to Nicolas Maduro to Zohran Mamdani to the most significant and mobilizing political ideologies of today’s Muslim world, Jews seem to loom large in the imaginations of elites. They’re attacked physically and verbally and politically. The old obsession has well and truly returned.What does this return mean for the future of these societies? And for Jews?The Egyptian-American writer and thinker Hussein Aboubakr Mansour returns to the podcast to make sense out of the chaos.—This episode is sponsored by Max and Susan Reichenthal in honor of the work of Friends of the IDF (FIDF), which works to ensure that the soldiers of the IDF have the support they need during their service. Max and Susan asked to dedicate the episode in honor of the IDF soldiers who put their lives on the line to protect the people of Israel.—If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Iran’s streets are in tumult. The latest protests are of a scale not seen before. New sections of Iranian society are in the streets — middle class merchants, the elderly and others. The protestors have more strident demands than in the past. And a regime that knows its legitimacy has been compromised by rampant corruption, systemic state failure, the collapse of the currency and economy and the 12-day war in June against Israel.Our guest today is Roya Hakakian, a writer, poet and human rights advocate who grew up in Tehran and fled with her family to the US at age 18 several years after the 1979 revolution. Her book Assassins of the Turquoise Palace traces the Islamic Republic’s decades-long war on dissent both inside Iran and across the globe. Her earlier book, Journey from the Land of No, relates her personal journey from a hopeful 12-year-old during the revolution to a refugee, writer and fierce advocate for democracy. A fellow at Yale University’s Davenport College and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, she has written for leading outlets including the New York Times, New York Review of Books and the Atlantic and has contributed to CBS’s 60 Minutes and ABC Documentary Specials.We discuss the evolution of the protest movement, whether this latest round of protests is different, whether Iran really is on the brink of collapse, what Israel should do (or rather, not do), and how Khomeini’s revolution was the seed for the so-called “red-green alliance” that now defines so much of the Western left.—This episode is sponsored by Max and Susan Reichenthal in honor of the work of Friends of the IDF (FIDF), which works to ensure that the soldiers of the IDF have the support they need during their service. Max and Susan asked to dedicate the episode in honor of the IDF soldiers who put their lives on the line to protect the people of Israel.—If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Why the global outrage at Israel's Somaliland recognition? If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Is military aid to Israel a good deal for America? If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising stands as one of the few shining moments of (temporarily) successful Jewish resistance in the bottomless evil and despair that was the Holocaust. Heroes of the uprising like Mordechai Anielewicz and Yitzhak “Antek” Zuckerman form part of the national civic religion of Israeli Jews, and of Jewish commemoration ceremonies worldwide.But the men of the uprising didn’t do it alone. Without Zivia Lubetkin, Tosia Altman and the other women couriers and fighters, the uprising may have failed to organize in the first place. Yet how many Jews know those names or their incredible story?Our guest today is author Elizabeth R. Hyman, whose recent bestselling book The Girl Bandits of the Warsaw Ghetto tells the astonishing history of some of the greatest heroes the Jewish people have ever produced, but whose exploits were all but ignored and even forgotten after the war.Through memoirs and diaries, Hyman tells their story, dragging the couriers of the ghettos into the light of history and Jewish remembrance and giving us a fuller picture of Jewish courage in the deepest darkness Jews have ever known.—This episode is sponsored by the Persian American Civic Action Network (PACAN), a non-profit organization which asked to dedicate the episode to Israel’s generation Z as they are the embodiment of Zionism in action and spirit, as well as the incredible renaissance led by their gen-Z counterparts in Iran standing tall against the radical Islamist tyranny that has invaded Iran and the Middle East since 1979.“In its endeavor to rebuild bridges of peace, brotherhood and good will, PACAN was the first Iranian-based organization in the diaspora to lead a mission to Israel to meet with Israeli leaders, media and NGOs in 2019. “As much as the Islamic regime tries to erase Iran’s history or propagate the diabolical prophecy to wipe out the Jewish State, we remember the inalienable Biblical alliance of the Jews and the Iranians, known to the western audience as the ‘Persians,’ who from the days of Cyrus the Great have facilitated the return of Jews to their homeland and the rebuilding of Zion.May we soon begin a new season of brotherhood, partnership, and good will between Iranians and Israelis.”—If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Welcome to our new short-form episodes interspersed with the regular interviews that dive into an often-asked question about Israel, Jews and the Middle East.Our current question: Why the heck does America support Israel?If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Between the outbreak of the Jews’ Great Revolt against Rome in the year 66 CE and the final suppression of the Bar Kochba Revolt in 135, the Jews of the Roman Empire constituted the empire’s single biggest headache. None of the countless conquered peoples controlled by that world power had ever rebelled quite so often or for so long.Jewish memory, largely forged by the rabbinic account of these revolts as doomed failures, tends to minimize their scale and impact and the chances they had for success.But a new book by Prof. Barry Strauss, a military historian specializing in the Greco-Roman period, argues that the Jewish revolts against Rome were not quite the folly that later generations of Jews would judge them. The Jews had a longstanding military tradition, skill and experience at irregular warfare, and good reason to hope that the Parthian Empire - itself home to a significant loyal and supported Jewish community - would come to their aid. Indeed, the first battle between the Jews and the Roman legions occupying Judea ended in a dramatic rout of a Roman legion.Few subject peoples frightened the great empire quite as much or for as long as the stubborn Jews.Prof. Strauss joins the podcast to talk about this astonishing saga of Jewish courage and military prowess - as well as the internal divisions and foolish decisions that ultimately doomed their cause.Strauss is the Corliss Page Dean Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Bryce and Edith M. Bowmar Professor in Humanistic Studies Emeritus at Cornell University. He has written over a dozen books on ancient Roman and Greek history.His newest one is “Jews vs. Rome: Two Centuries of Rebellion Against the World’s Mightiest Empire.” It was published earlier this year.This episode is sponsored by Shimon Parker, a member of the Sydney Jewish community, in hopes that his grandchildren Ziggy, Archie and Duke will grow up to be proud Jews.Shimon asked to dedicate the episode to the victims of the massacre on Bondi beach on the first night of Hanukkah and especially to Rabbi Eli Schlanger, the 41-year-old assistant rabbi of the local Chabad who was murdered while hosting a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach. Rabbi Schlanger served for 18 years as an emissary of Chabad. He is remembered as a pillar of the local Jewish community who was devoted to enriching Jewish religion and culture, who was generous with his time and kind to all. In the words of Levi Wolff, a rabbi at Sydney’s Central Synagogue, “Eli was ripped away from us in the midst of doing what he did best, spreading Yiddishkeit, spreading love and joy and caring for his people.” Eli is survived by his wife Chayale and their five children, including their two-month-old baby who was wounded in the attack.Listeners can support Rabbi Schlanger’s family through these dark times at this page https://www.charidy.com/elischlanger/G. The link was sent to us directly by the family.If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

Until October 7, Israel’s politics were consumed by the fight over the government’s judicial reform proposals. The issue drove hundreds of thousands of Israelis to the streets in protest. It triggered all the anxieties of right and left, to sharpen class and ethnic and cultural divides, to raise fears over minority rights and the future of Israeli democracy.But in all those stormy months, there was very little in the way of serious and sober debate about Israeli institutions, checks and balances, judicial overreach and the dangers of an over-powerful executive. The substantive questions seemed to be pushed aside by the culture wars.The judicial reform was to some degree frozen - or at least dramatically slowed - in March 2023 after massive strikes broke out throughout the country. The October 7 massacre and ensuing wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran relegated it to the bottom of the public agenda.But it never actually went away. Fights between the government and the High Court and between the government and the attorney general have only worsened, bills now stand on the Knesset docket that seek to advance in piecemeal fashion different elements of the original reform.To understand what happened - the original proposal, the great explosion of Israeli politics that ensued, and where it might all be headed - we turned to one of the architects of the original reform, Moshe Koppel, a professor emeritus of computer science and founder and chairman of the Kohelet Forum.It was a long conversation, often contentious and deeply interesting. We hope you find it helpful.This episode is sponsored by Iris Engelson and dedicated to the memory of her friend Sharon Kass (z”l) who passed away two years ago at the age of 57 on 29 Kislev, December 19.According to her friends, Sharon was fiercely independent; unpretentious and unflappable; brilliant and deeply curious; at once confident and modest; wickedly funny; and absolutely devoted to her family, to her friends and colleagues, to the many young people she mentored, to the Jewish people, and to the Jewish state.A cause particularly dear to Sharon’s heart was the International Birding and Research Center in Eilat, where she had volunteered. The bird sanctuary there is open to the public every day of the year with free admission.May her memory be a blessing.If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

After the massacre at Bondi Beach, anthropologist Adam Louis-Klein returns to the podcast to help us make sense of the new Jew-hatred.Antizionism, Adam argues, may be a form of hatred of Jews, but it's a far cry from the classical antisemitism of the 19th and 20th centuries. It's also not mere criticism of Israeli policies or governments. So what is it? And how do you fight it?Adam Louis-Klein is an anthropologist and writer whose work focuses on Jewish peoplehood, indigeneity, and contemporary anti-Jewish ideologies, especially the rise of antizionism. He is the founder of the Movement Against Antizionism and a postgraduate fellow at the London Centre for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism.Today's episode was sponsored by our friends at the American Technion Society.For more than a century, the Technion has powered Israel. Its graduates built the nation’s roads and bridges, its water systems and electrical grid. Israel’s high-tech industry emerged from the Technion — the very foundation of the Startup Nation. Today, as Israel recovers from the devastation of war, it needs the Technion more than ever. Technion scientists are developing new energy sources, sustainable food and water solutions and breakthrough medical therapies — creating innovations for a better world that will also reboot Israel’s economy.You want to help make Israel safe and strong. By supporting the Technion, you’re investing in the people and ideas that will rebuild Israel for a better future. Because rebuilding isn’t just about restoring what was lost — it’s about creating what comes next.The Technion built Israel. Now, the Technion will rebuild Israel. Join us. Visit ats.org/rebuildIf you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.

This Hanukkah began in darkness, in the brutal massacre of Jews in Sydney, Australia. Our hearts are broken, but our light is not dimmed.In this episode, we dive into the meaning of Hanukkah in the Jewish tradition and draw lessons from it for these painful times.This episode is sponsored by Donna Silbert and Kevin Foley and dedicated to the memory of Thomas Irwin Glasser. Tom Glasser was murdered by Islamist terrorists as he worked at his desk in the south tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.At the time of his passing the New York Times said Tom's occupation form would have read: "philosophy major-track star-standup comic-restaurant owner-bartender-partner at Sandler O'Neill." A senior partner and head of mortgage-backed securities sales and trading at the Wall Street firm Sandler O'Neill, Tom was brilliantly funny and broadly loved throughout the bond trading community, by clients and competitors alike. A talented and fiercely competitive collegiate athlete, Tom earned a gold medal in track and field representing the United States at the 1981 Maccabiah Games. One of the best athletes ever to attend his beloved collegiate alma mater Haverford College, in Pennsylvania, Haverford honored him by naming its sports hall of fame the "Thomas Glasser '82 Hall of Achievement." The Glasser family established a scholarship at Haverford in Tom's honor.A firm supporter of Israel and Jewish causes, had he lived Tom would have led from the front in the fight against antisemitism at Haverford College.A devoted husband and father, Tom is forever mourned by his wife Meg, sons Dylan and Lukas, parents Anne and Gerry, sisters Laura and Margie, brothers-in-law Joel and Sam, numerous nieces and nephews and hundreds of friends.If you like what we do here, please join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/AskHavivAnything. There you can ask the questions that guide the topics we cover on the podcast, join in our great discussions where listeners share news and valuable resources, and take part in our monthly livestreams where Haviv answers your questions live.If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.