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Benjamin Netanyahu on His Moments of Decision
Benjamin Netanyahu was Israel's prime minister from 1996 to 1999, and then again from 2009 to 2021. Already Israel's longest-tenured leader, he just won another electoral victory and is expected to take office again later this week.
Netanyahu has recently recounted his life in his new memoir Bibi: My Story. He was born not long after modern Israel was founded. In describing his military service, his diplomatic role at the United Nations, and his various ministerial posts through the years, the book shows much about the nation to which Netanyahu has dedicated himself. It also shows a political mind at work, one settling scores, investing in strategic relationships, and making arguments in the public arena to influence the direction of modern Israel.
Last week, Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver sat down with Netanyahu for an interview. Rather than focus on his early life as depicted in the memoir, or on the current international and domestic challenges and controversies that face him as he returns to office, this interview focuses on the process of political decision-making and how Netanyahu sees it. The discussion zeroes in on three consequential choices Netanyahu made during his career: his decision to liberalize the Israeli economy as finance minister in the early 2000s; his decision to speak in front of the U.S. Congress in opposition to the Iran deal in 2015; and his decision to undertake, and then to publicize, a massive 2018 Mossad operation that resulted in the seizure of a half-ton of records, notes, and plans documenting Iran's nuclear-weapons program.
Direct download: Tikvah_Podcast_Netanyahu_Final.mp3
Shoshanna Keats Jaskoll on the Virtues and the Excesses of Jewish Modesty
There was never an explicit announcement to men that they no longer needed to wear bowties and could wear neckties instead, just like there was no announcement that they didn't need to wear ties at all. Those cultural norms shifted gradually, and are understood even as they do so.
In Orthodox Jewish communities, the way cultural norms work are a bit similar and a bit different. They come both from unspoken social cues and from explicit instruction, including from religious texts. The latter approach reflects the insight that how a person dresses isn't a purely superficial matter, but communicates something of substance. Is the human form public or private, should it be open to the gaze of all or only to select people within a circle of trust or family? What should be covered, and how? Such questions involve reflecting on men, women, and human sexuality too, of course.
This week, Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver sits down with Shoshanna Keats Jaskoll to explore the virtues of Jewish modesty, and how those virtues can be radicalized, grow excessive, and—like all virtues—transform into vice. Jaskoll is the director Chochmat Nashim ("The Wisdom of Women"), an organization dedicated to the healthy depiction of women in the Jewish public square that opposes removing pictures of women completely, while still supporting modesty. They discuss what modesty is, what it's for, why it deserves protection, and how it can be exaggerated and abused.
Direct download: Tikvah_Podcast_-_Modesty_Final_With_Ad.mp3
Thu, 8 December 2022
Maxim D. Shrayer on the Moral Obligations and Dilemmas of Russia's Jewish Leaders
On February 24, when Russian president Vladimir Putin began his country's invasion of Ukraine, Jewish leaders found themselves caught on opposing sides of an active war. Ukrainian rabbis have suggested that the war is a holy fight between good and evil. Jewish religious leaders in Russia, meanwhile, have come under heavy pressure to denounce the war publicly, which most of them have thus far avoided doing, no doubt in part since the Russian government is now cracking down on dissent. Instead, they've generally taken a publicly pacifist position, arguing that all war is bad and that holiness can be found in peace.
On this week's podcast, Maxim D. Shrayer, Maxim D. Shrayer, a professor of Russian, English, and Jewish studies at Boston College, joins Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver to discuss how those Russian Jewish leaders have tried to balance their competing priorities. As Shrayer points out, though many of them likely oppose the war, they're also called to care for their communities, maintain functional relations with the political authorities, and preserve what their congregants have built up over the decades since the end of the Soviet Union. So what are the moral obligations of Russia's Jewish leaders right now?
Direct download: Shrayer_FINAL.mp3
Ryan Anderson on Why His Think Tank Focuses on Culture and Not Just Politics
Over the years, the Ethics and Public Policy Center, a think tank in Washington D.C., has been home to some of the most interesting and important thinkers at the intersection of religion and public affairs in America. And unlike most other D.C. think tanks, EPPC is just as interested in cultural renewal and the moral health of America as it is in policy and politics.
On this week's podcast, EPPC's new president Ryan Anderson joins us to discuss how his institution actually tries to influence American culture. The author of many essays and books, Anderson describes that challenge, what strategy EPPC is trying to pursue, and how it knows if it's making progress.
Direct download: Ryan_Anderson_FINAL.mp3
Shay Khatiri on the Protests Riling Iran
On September 16, a squad of Iranian police officers arrested a twenty-two-year-old Iranian woman named Mahsa Amini. Charged with improperly wearing a hijab, Amini died in police custody. Since then, suspicion that she was beaten by Iranian forces, combined with the widespread public view that she was accosted unjustly to begin with, have catalyzed widespread protests across Iran.
On this week's podcast, the writer Shay Khatiri, who grew up in Iran and participated in protests against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's election in 2009, joins us to explain how the current protests in Iran relate to those in 2009 and 2017. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, he also thinks about where these demonstrations might lead and whether they hold promise of reform inside Iran.
Direct download: Khatiri_FINAL.mp3
Gil Student on the Journey into Orthodoxy (Rebroadcast)
At this time of year, the Jewish calendar compels Jews to think about the human capacity for personal change, which in the Jewish view is made possible by God. The ability for humans to undertake t'shuvah, repentance, is a subset of that capacity that rises to the fore of this week's podcast conversation (a rebroadcast of a 2017 episode), with the rabbi, editor, and writer Gil Student.
Student's subject is a classic essay, published in Rolling Stone in 1977, called "Next Year in Jerusalem." The piece is a travelogue by the critic Ellen Willis as she takes a trip to Israel to see inside the world of her brother Michael, who decided to leave behind his secular life in the United States, undertake Orthodox yeshiva study in Jerusalem, and eventually live as an observant Jew. In doing so, Ellen wrestles with the question of why her brother made the choice that he did, and then, as the attractions of Orthodox Judaism are revealed to her, whether she too should follow in his path. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, Student walks listeners through the essay, explains why it's still relevant today, and reflects on his own growth into greater Jewish observance.
Direct download: Gil_Student_Rebroadcast_FINAL.mp3
Eli Spitzer on the New York Times's Controversial Yeshiva Report
On September 11, 2022, the New York Times published a leading story about the hasidic schools of greater New York. The article, "In Hasidic Enclaves, Failing Private Schools Flush with Public Money," purported to show that, though New York's hasidic Jewish religious schools have benefited from $1 billion in government funding in the last four years, they provide extremely poor secular education, deploy corporal punishment in class, abuse the political process, and are unaccountable to outside oversight. The article inspired outrage from a variety of parties; rarely has the public—and especially the Jewish public—been so animated by the educational performance of New York's yeshivas.
Beyond the article, deeper questions come to the surface. What obligations do religious communities have to the state? What obligations does a state, one that's constituted to protect religious liberty and individual rights, owe to families and their decisions? And why, as the authors of this feature do not ask, do so many families choose these schools for their children in the first place?
To help us think about these important questions in the context of the NYT story, our guest on this week's podcast is the Mosaic columnist and hasidic educator Eli Spitzer, who wrote an essay about this very issue for Mosaic back in October 2021 called "NY State vs. the Yeshivas." In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, he explains what hasidic schools are really like, how those communities think about education and the secular world, and the important issues that the Times article fails to address. This discussion was recorded online in front of Mosaic subscribers.
Direct download: Spitzer_FINAL.mp3
Thu, 8 September 2022
Meir Soloveichik on Jerusalem's Enduring Symbols
Jerusalem is perhaps the most interesting and spiritually important city in the world. For the Jewish people, it is the most treasured city in their long history. It is mentioned over 600 times in the Hebrew Bible; every time a Jew prays, he or she faces Jerusalem; at the end of every Passover seder, Jews sing out l'shanah haba b'Yerushaliym, "next year in Jerusalem."
On this week's podcast, we're joined by Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, who just launched his new daily podcast, Jerusalem 365, a year-long examination of the history and significance of the holy city. For roughly 15 minutes each day, Soloveichik will explore Jerusalem's buildings, its rulers, its people, and its role in the spiritual and cultural history of the Jewish people, the state of Israel, and the West. In this conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, he walks listeners through some of the enduring cultural symbols that help illuminate the role Jerusalem has played in the minds of Jews throughout the ages.
You can click here to view a PDF with the various symbols, images, and texts referenced in the discussion.
Direct download: JLM365_JS_and_Solly_FINAL.mp3
Daniel Polisar on the First Zionist Congress, 125 Years Later
Earlier this week, in the Swiss city of Basel, the World Zionist Organization convened to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the First Zionist Congress, which was the brainchild of one of Zionism's founding fathers, Theodor Herzl.
At the time, the condition of European Jewry was precarious and degraded. The solution, in Herzl's eyes, was not to be found in the animating Jewish impulse of the age: assimilation. He thought no amount of assimilation would rid the Jews of anti-Semitism, and that instead only a political solution would work. That political solution, of course, was to establish political sovereignty in the land of Israel. As he put it in his opening remarks, "We wish to lay the cornerstone of the house in which the Jewish nation will one day find shelter."
Our guest this week is the Israeli scholar Daniel Polisar. To him, the early flowerings of that idea in the First Zionist Congress were so significant that the meeting was, to quote the title of an essay he wrote on the subject in 2017 in Mosaic, "the most politically significant meeting of any group of Jews in the last 1,800 years." Today we revisit that essay, and look back at the First Zionist Congress, how it came to be, and what it aimed to achieve.
Direct download: Tikvah_Podcast_Polisar_Final.mp3
Hussein Aboubakr on the Holocaust in the Arab Moral Imagination
Fifty years ago, at the 1972 Olympic summer games in Munich, 11 Israeli olympians were held hostage and murdered by members of the Palestinian terrorist group Black September. Recently, the Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas, while meeting with the German chancellor, was asked about the event and whether he would apologize for what happened. Abbas declined to apologize, and instead accused the Israelis of having enacted "50 Holocausts" against the Palestinians.
Why would Abbas, when asked about a crime Palestinians perpetrated against Israelis, reach for the Holocaust as a weapon? To answer that question, the Egyptian writer Hussein Aboubakr joins this week's podcast. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, he explains what Abbas and so many Arabs think about the Holocaust, and why, in the Arab mind, that event is inextricably tied up with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in a twisted logic that has brought many to believe that Israelis are the new Nazis and Palestinians the new Jews.
Direct download: Aboubakr_FINAL.mp3
Jonathan Schanzer on Israel's Weekend War against Islamic Jihad
Earlier this month, Israeli forces captured the head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in the West Bank city of Jenin after he had been involved in planning a number of terrorist attacks. Infuriated, PIJ threatened to fire anti-tank weapons at Israeli towns from its home base in Gaza. In response, the IDF struck PIJ's chief of operations in the northern Gaza Strip and killed his counterpart in the south. After that, the Iranian-backed terrorist group began bombarding Israel with rockets and mortars, firing nearly 1,000 rockets, of which nearly 200 fell short and landed in Gaza itself—causing the deaths of several civilians there. An Egyptian-brokered ceasefire took effect after about three days of fighting.
To talk about the weekend war, we've invited analyst Jonathan Schanzer, who pays close attention to Gaza and writes about Middle East politics in Commentary and Mosaic, as well as in several books. (One just last year, Gaza Conflict 2021, carefully analyzed the previous blowup there). Here, Schanzer, in conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, looks at this month's conflict in that political context, explains how it was like and unlike past rounds of conflict, thinks about how its timing relates to the current nuclear negotiations with Iran, and speculates about the future of Hamas in Gaza.
Direct download: Schanzer_FINAL.mp3
Yair Harel on Haim Louk's Masterful Jewish Music
Just as Israeli society has become more at home with Judaism, so too has Israeli music. Across the Israeli music scene, songs and albums infused with religious themes, language, and sentiments have become far more popular in recent years. And a similar movement can be seen in Israeli culture; once dominated by an Ashkenazi elite, Israeli music now relates to its Arab neighbors as much as it does to the musical traditions of Europe and America.
Haim Louk, a Moroccan-born rabbi, prayer leader, and musical virtuoso, is one of the main reasons that Israeli music is now more at home with itself. On this week's podcast, we're joined by the Israeli vocalist and musical director Yair Harel, who takes us on a listening tour of Louk's music and his artistic formation. Though religious in nature, Louk's music can, as Harel shows, be easily grasped by non-religious audiences—so much so that one can't truly understand much of Israeli popular music today without understanding Louk's influence.
Direct download: Harel_FINAL.mp3
Micah Goodman on Deuteronomy—Moses's Final Speech (Rebroadcast)
This week, Jews around the world will begin reading from the Book of Deuteronomy each Shabbat. Sefer Devarim, as it is known in Hebrew, is a remarkable work; consisting almost entirely of an address Moses delivered to the Israelites in his final weeks of life, it touches on history, politics, prophecy, and much more. Two years ago, Jonathan Silver sat down with Israeli thinker and scholar Micah Goodman to uncover meaning of Moses's final speech. As we begin again this last book of the Torah, we are pleased to rebroadcast that conversation.
The book of Deuteronomy, which Jews around the globe read in synagogue in the period leading up to the High Holy Days, consists primarily of Moses's final oration to the people of Israel. With the nation on the cusp of conquering Canaan and establishing its own sovereign government, the prophet presents Israel with a set of laws and regulations surrounding power and kingship—what some scholars call the "Mosaic Constitution."
In his best-selling Hebrew book, ha-N'um ha-Aharon shel Moshe (Moses's Last Speech), the Israeli writer and philosopher Micah Goodman offers a thought-provoking and original interpretation of Deuteronomy, presenting profound insights about the Torah's revolutionary political teachings. Though the book has not yet been translated into English, Dr. Goodman recently taught an eight-episode online course for the Tikvah Fund on "Deuteronomy: The Last Speech of Moses," in which he explores and expands upon the themes and ideas of his earlier work. In this podcast, he speaks with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver about Deuteronomy's laws regarding the monarchy and what political and philosophical wisdom they hold for us today.
If you enjoy this podcast, you can enroll in Dr. Goodman's free Tikvah online course at Courses.TikvahFund.org.
Direct download: Goodman_Deuteronomy_Podcast_Rebroadcast.mp3
Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter on Why So Many Jewish Soldiers Are Buried Under Crosses, and What Can Be Done About It
More than half a million Jewish men and women served in the U.S. Armed Forces in World War II. They fought in every theater of the war, from North Africa and Italy to France and Belgium to the Philippines and Japan.
In the process, many of them fell in service to their country. In the fog of war, some of them were buried in military cemeteries under Christian gravestones in the shape of the Latin Cross. Decades later, there's now an organization dedicated to working with the families of the fallen and the American military to replace the crosses with stars of David to honor more properly the heritage of the Jewish war dead.
This week our podcast is joined by the president of that organization's board of directors, Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter, a historian at Yeshiva University who previously joined the podcast to discuss Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveichik's essay "Kol Dodi Dofek." This week, he speaks with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver about the work of Operation Benjamin—and shares his belief that the organization's mission is an expression of devotion to the memory of these fallen Jewish heroes and to the nation they died to defend.
Direct download: Schacter_FINAL.mp3
Robert Nicholson on the Changing Face of Evangelical Zionism
In October 2013, Robert Nicholson wrote a defining essay in Mosaic, "Evangelicals and Israel: What American Jews Don't Want to Know (but Need to)." It in he outlined the wide and deep support that millions of Christian evangelicals had for Israel. He also sounded a note of caution: that support could diminish over time.
Nearly ten years later, that warning may be coming to fruition. At the very least, the communities of American Christian evangelicals who formed the basis of Christian Zionism have decreased in numbers and influence. But there's some countervailing news: in other places around the world, from Brazil to Nigeria to Guatemala, evangelical Christianity has expanded, and with it, the possibility of support for Zionism. On this week's podcast, Nicholson, the president of the Philos Project, joins us to explain what's driving the changing face of evangelical Zionism in America and the rest of the world.
Direct download: Nicholson_FINAL.mp3
Daniel Gordis and Asael Abelman on the Personality of the New Jew
Before the state of Israel was founded, some early Zionists argued not only for the recovery of Jewish political sovereignty, but also for the emergence of a new type of Jew. This "New Jew," as they called it, would be free of Judaism's bookish habits and the weight of diaspora Jewish history and be able to take the reigns of the newly independent Jewish polity.
Three-quarters of a century after Israel's founding, what is the state of the New Jew?
Last month, the Mosaic columnist Eli Spitzer contended that Israel's 21st-century success made it outmoded. Looking around Israel today, he sees the fascinating reemergence of older, diasporic forms of Jewish life rather than the triumph of the New Jew. On the same day that Spitzer published his short reflection, the Mosaic contributor Daniel Gordis published a newsletter in which he came to the opposite conclusion: the state of Israel, he thinks, is "not the end of the Jewish people, just the end of a certain kind of Jewish people." To him, the New Jew is alive and well.
What could we do but convene a conversation on the matter? In this conversation, Gordis spoke with the Israeli historian Asael Abelman and Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver about the the New Jew, the Old Jew, and the types of human personalities that the state of Israel tends to cultivate. This discussion took place live on Tuesday, July 12, in front of Mosaic subscribers.
Direct download: Gordis-Abelman_FINAL.mp3
Douglas Murray on the War on the West
In his 2022 book The War on the West, the British journalist Douglas Murray argues that many now prominent cultural ideas unfairly single out Western sins, discounting the good that Western civilization has brought about and sowing discord in America and Europe. On this week's podcast, he joins Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver to explain why Western civilization should be defended, to discuss the role that Israel and the Jewish people play in that defense, and to reflect on two of his friends who recently passed away, the philosopher Roger Scruton and the rabbi Jonathan Sacks, each of whom embodied strands of the Western tradition that deserve to be defended and perpetuated.
Direct download: Murray_FINAL.mp3
Podcast: Jeffrey Woolf on the Political and Religious Significance of the Temple Mount
The Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem is the holiest physical site in all of Judaism. Religiously observant Jews ask God to restore the Temple and its services each and every day in the traditional liturgy. For thousands of years, Jews had no access to the site on which that Temple stood, until 1967, when Israeli forces reunited Jerusalem. Since then, Israel has by special arrangement ceded some forms of control of the Temple Mount to religious Muslim stewards supported by the government of Jordan. Under this arrangement, Jews may go up to the site—and many more have been doing so in recent years—but they are not allowed to pray there.
Why does Israel allow Muslims to pray on the Temple Mount, but not Jews? Why are more and more Jews venturing there? On this week's podcast, the rabbi and professor Jeffrey Woolf surveys the history of the Temple Mount, and explains why, despite its roots in the very distant Jewish past, the site remains a fixture in the religious imagination of the Jewish people. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, Woolf also explores some of the political dilemmas the site represents, both in domestic Israeli politics and in the Jewish state's relations with its Muslim neighbors.
Direct download: Woolf_FINAL.mp3
Zohar Atkins on the Contested Idea of Equality
The idea of equality has a long and intricate history, one that this week the philosopher, rabbi, and writer Zohar Atkins joins the podcast to discuss. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, he looks at how various thinkers in the Western intellectual tradition have thought about equality. Together, they discuss thinkers of equality as various as Plato and Aristotle, Augustine and Luther, and Hobbes and Rousseau and Hayek. Through it all, their point of departure is the foundation of the Western canon: the Hebrew Bible.
Direct download: Atkins_FINAL.mp3
Steven Smith on Persecution and the Art of Writing
There is the argument and there is the context in which that argument is made. It's easy to sing the praises of American life when you're sitting in the United States, but you'd likely to express yourself differently if you were explaining your views in Soviet Russia. The context of the argument does not, of course, determine its truth or falsehood, but it does help clarify what's being said and why. This is true for all arguments, from those made by Socrates and the rabbis of the Talmud to philosophers and politicians today.
On this week's podcast, to understand the distinction between argument and context and how it relates to political and religious communities of ideological homogeneity, we turn to one of the 20th century's greatest thinkers, the German Jewish philosopher Leo Strauss and his 1952 essay "Persecution and the Art of Writing." Our guide to the essay, and this week's podcast guest, is the Yale professor of political science Steven Smith, the author of several books about Strauss's thought. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, Smith explains how, in the view of Strauss, writers like Plato and Maimonides used esoteric writing—writing that expressed true beliefs in a careful and guarded way so as to protect themselves from backlash—to get their ideas across, and he ponders the implications that such an interpretive approach can have for writers ancient and modern.
Direct download: Smith_FINAL.mp3
Jon Levenson on the Moral Force of the Book of Ruth
Beginning Saturday night, the Jewish people will celebrate the holiday of Shavuot. During the festival, Jews traditionally study the book of Ruth, the biblical text that tells the story of a non-Jewish widow who becomes the great-grandmother of King David.
To help uncover why the book of Ruth is so beloved, and to make sense of the intertextual references and literary allusions at work in it, the Harvard professor Jon Levenson joins this week's podcast. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, he explains how the narrative drive of Ruth moves from death to life, and reveals how its principal figures manifest the virtue of ḥesed, traditionally translated as loving-kindness, and meaning loyal devotion.
Direct download: Levenson_FINAL.mp3
Tony Badran on How Hizballah Wins, Even When It Loses
Since initiating a war against Israel in 2006, the Shiite revolutionary movement Hizballah has built a massive arsenal of rockets that continues to threaten Israel's northern cities and towns. Hizballah is able to sustain this military posture because it also holds decisive sway in Lebanese politics.
Some observers think its political control is waning. In the Lebanese national elections on May 15, Hizballah lost its parliamentary majority, and Reuters reports that there are now "more than a dozen reform-minded newcomers" in the Lebanese parliament.
This week's podcast guest takes a different view. Tony Badran is a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, where he writes about the eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. To his eye, the idea of a weakening Hizballah is not only wrong, it's exactly what Hizballah wants outsiders to think. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, he explains why it serves Hizballah's interests for Westerners to think that it's weak when it's not—and how even when Hizballah loses seats in Lebanon's parliament, it doesn't lose governing authority.
Direct download: Badran_FINAL.mp3
John Podhoretz on Midge Decter's Life in Ideas
On May 9, the cultural commentator Midge Decter passed away. The author of essays and books, an editor of magazines, and a mentor to generations of writers, Decter was subtle, clear, and courageous in her thinking. Though a member of the Democratic party for most of her life, Decter was an anti-Communist liberal who gradually became more conservative over time, becoming, along with her husband, Norman Podhoretz, a leading neoconservative.
On this week's podcast, her son, John Podhoretz, the editor of Commentary magazine, joins us to reflect on her life. He recently published a eulogy for her in which he wondered what in her background could explain her style, force, and view of the world. Decter wasn't born into a family of ideas and argument, yet that was where she made her indelible mark. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, Podhoretz thinks about his late mother's life and work.
Direct download: Podhoretz_FINAL.mp3
Motti Inbari on the Yemenite Children Affair
In the late 1940s and early 1950s, thousands of Middle Eastern Jews left their countries of origin and moved to Israel. Among them were the Jews of Yemen. There is a myth, believed by some in Israel and around the world, that upon the arrival of the Jews of Yemen in Israel, hundreds of their children were taken from them by government officials without their consent and placed for adoption in the homes of Ashkenazi Israelis.
If that were true, it would be a grave injustice. But according to this week's podcast guest, it isn't. Motti Inbari is a professor of religion who specializes in unusual Israeli social and religious movements. In a new essay, he reviews several recent Hebrew-language books that look at the history, the evidence, and the surprising mutations of the so-called Yemenite Children Affair. In conversation with Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver, he explains what really happened and charts how the myth has evolved over time.
Direct download: Inbari_FINAL.mp3
Christine Emba on Rethinking Sex
For most young men and women today, sexual ethics have been collapsed into one idea: consent. Consent, whereby two responsible, conscientious, free people agree to enter into a sexual relationship, has become a shorthand way to describe ethical sex. And of course consent in sex is important, especially since it was so often absent in human history.
But is consent, and consent alone, sufficient for modern sexual ethics? That's the question the Washington Post writer Christine Emba, this week's podcast guest, takes up in her fascinating new book Rethinking Sex. In the book, she takes readers on a tour of the sexual practices of young Americans and finds that for many sex has become diminished, casual, and rote. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, she explains why that is, how consent became so central to the conversation, and how American culture might need to change in order to restore meaning and responsibility to sex.
Direct download: Emba_FINAL.mp3
Shany Mor on How To Understand the Recent Terror Attacks in Israel
Since the end of the Second Intifada nearly twenty years ago, during which Israel endured attacks constantly, terrorism has been comparatively rare. There have been knifings, and many rockets fired from Gaza and from Lebanon in the years since, but shootings and rammings have been few and far between. At least until now—over the last month, 13 Israelis have been murdered in terror attacks.
To unpack what's happened and to provide context for this new terror wave, the Israeli analyst and frequent Mosaic writer Shany Mor joins this week's podcast. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, he details each attack, thinks about the motivations of the terrorists, and explains how terrorism of this kind influences the relationship that Israel's Jewish majority has with its Arab minority.
Direct download: Mor_FINAL.mp3
Abraham Socher on His Life in Jewish Letters and the Liberal Arts
Since its first issue twelve years ago, the Jewish Review of Books, a beautifully designed quarterly that was founded and supported by the Tikvah Fund, has produced now 49 issues of high-level Jewish discourse. Much of that success can be attributed to its founding editor, Abraham Socher, the Oberlin College professor emeritus of Jewish studies.
On this week's podcast, Socher joins Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver to discuss his educational formation, his intellectual preoccupations, and his new book of essays, Liberal and Illiberal Arts: Essays (Mostly Jewish), which contains meditations on Jewish texts and Jewish communal affairs, portraits of life at Oberlin, and examinations of the religious and literary traditions of the West.
Direct download: Socher_FINAL_CORRECTED.mp3
Yuval Levin on the Exodus and Freedom
One of the alternative names for the Passover holiday that the Jewish people begin to celebrate this weekend is zman ḥeruteinu—the time of our freedom. Freedom is at the center of the holiday and of the Exodus narrative it redescribes. Yet the holiday's conception of freedom is laden with constraint, and ritual, and forms. It is a conception that would seem to be at least as much about memory, transmission, and consecration as it is about a moment of liberation.
In a 2014 essay for First Things, Yuval Levin—editor of National Affairs—traced ancient notions of freedom through Israel's exodus. To Levin, contemporary American ideas of freedom–ideas belonging as much to the left as to the right–can best be understood and diagnosed through the lens of the Hebrew Bible. Levin joined Mosaic's editor Jonathan Silver to talk about this essay in March 2017. Today, we rebroadcast that discussion from just over five years ago.
Direct download: Tikvah_Podcast_Levin_Rebroadcast_Final.mp3
Category:Great Jewish Essays and Ideas -- posted at: 12:16am EST
Thu, 7 April 2022
Ilana Horwitz on Educational Performance and Religion
Why do some American children do better in school than others? Social scientists tend to look to family structure, race, class, and gender in an effort to find factors that correlate to better or worse performance at school. But there are other significant variables that affect the education of America's children.
A recent book finds that religion plays a substantial role too. Its author, Tulane University professor Ilana Horwitz, joins this week's podcast episode to discuss her findings, which suggest that children who hold religious beliefs and are members of religious communities tend to perform, on average, better in school than their nonreligious counterparts. In conversation with Jonathan Silver, she explains how she found her results, and what they say about religious children and American education.
Direct download: Horwitz_FINAL.mp3
David Friedman on What He Learned as U.S. Ambassador to Israel
When Donald Trump improbably became president in 2016, few knew what his foreign-policy agenda would look like. Having spent little time on such issues during his campaign and having no previous electoral experience, Trump's inclinations were mysterious. But despite this, it's clear now, looking back, that some of his administration's greatest successes were in the Middle East.
This week's podcast guest, the former U.S. ambassador to Israel David Friedman, was at the center of it all, a story that he tells in a new memoir. In this conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, Friedman brings listeners inside his tenure, which included the Abraham Accords, the move of the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, and America's recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Friedman also reflects on his Jewish formation, and his assessment of American Jewry today.
Direct download: FINAL_Friedman_Final.mp3
Andy Smarick on What the Government Can and Can't Do to Help American Families
In recent years, family policy—what the government can do to strengthen the formation of American families—has come to occupy the minds of many political and cultural figures. That's a good thing, since the family is the first and most important human institution, and children who are born into healthy families generally turn out far better than those who aren't. It makes sense, then, that government should try to help families flourish, or at least make sure it doesn't make it harder for them to do so.
This week, the policy researcher Andy Smarick joins the podcast to explain what's behind the many new proposals to help the American family, drawing on a recent essay he published in Mosaic. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, he explains that few of the ideas being discussed in Washington lately have actually bolstered families in other countries, and that the left and the right have different conceptions of what the family actually is and what it's for, which makes coming up with policy ideas they can agree upon very difficult.
Direct download: Smarick_FINAL.mp3
Aaron MacLean on Deterrence and American Power
The United States of America is the most powerful nation in the world. But it is facing tests of its credibility in multiple theaters of conflict. What do America's adversaries believe about the capacity and will of the United States to respond with force? Has America's deterrent power diminished? If so, can it be built up again?
On this week's podcast, the security expert and former Marine officer Aaron MacLean walks through the history of American power in the 21st century, showing how the decisions of political leaders have affected America's ability to deter belligerent actors, from George W. Bush's decision to invade Afghanistan and Iraq to Barack Obama's decision to refrain from striking Syria. And, in conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, MacLean explains why effective deterrence is so important and what can be done to restore it.
Direct download: MacLean_FINAL.mp3
Ronna Burger on Reading Esther as a Philosopher
Next week, when Jews celebrate the holiday of Purim, they'll also study the book of Esther, named for the young queen whose Jewish identity was unknown to her husband—Persia's king—and his court. The book of Esther tells the story of how she and her cousin Mordechai outwitted the king's second-in-command, the vizier Haman, who sought to destroy the Persian Jews. Beloved among children, the story has also often been read as a manual for Jewish political survival in the diaspora.
Ronna Burger of Tulane University, a professor of philosophy, also sees in Esther a commentary on the sources of human success: do humans accomplish their aims through sheer luck, divine help, or careful decision-making? In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, she walks through Esther, demonstrating how each of these elements—chance, providence, and prudence—emerge from the biblical text.
Direct download: Burger_FINAL.mp3
Thu, 3 March 2022
Dovid Margolin on Jewish Life in War-torn Ukraine
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began, most of the news coverage has understandably focused on the war's military, political, and economic dimensions. But there's another dimension of the war: the religious dimension. How does being in the midst of a war change prayer, or, for Ukraine's Jews, the operations of a synagogue? What does a rabbi do when his congregation is under attack?
Dovid Margolin, a senior editor at Chabad.org, joins the podcast this week to help answer those questions. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, Margolin talks about the history of the Jews in Ukraine and how Jewish leaders there have helped their fellow Ukrainians during the war, from sheltering those with nowhere to go to moving entire orphanages out of the country.
Dovid Margolin, a senior editor at Chabad.org., joins the podcast this week to discuss this in the context of Ukraine. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, Margolin talks about the history of the Jews in Ukraine and how Jewish leaders there have helped their fellow Ukrainians during the war, from sheltering those with nowhere to go to moving entire orphanages out of the country.
Direct download: Margolin_FINAL.mp3
Vance Serchuk on the History and Politics Behind Russia's Invasion of Ukraine
This week, Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russian airstrikes are now hitting Ukrainian military installations and Russian tanks are now rolling into Ukrainian cities.
This invasion is an inflection point in Russian-Western relations, the largest since the end of the cold war. To help us understand the full historical and political context behind it, we invited the foreign-policy scholar Vance Serchuk to join our podcast. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, he explains the history behind Russia's relations with its East European neighbors, what is motivating Russia's aggression now, and what options the United States and its allies, including Israel, have for aiding Ukraine.
Direct download: Serchuk_FINAL.mp3
Ruth Wisse on the Stories Jews Tell
By reading literature, one can experience what it's like to be, say, a king, or a soldier, or a mother, or a stranger, or a tyrant, or for that matter a slave, not to mention far more.
What of modern Jewish literature? How did its story-tellers speak not only to individual readers, but also to a nation—a nation which until recently was dispersed through many lands and spoke to itself in many languages? How did fiction become one of the primary ways that modern Jewish culture was created and conveyed? And how have the greatest Jewish writers confronted the Jewish people's enduring dilemmas?
Those are some of the questions that Ruth Wisse, professor emerita at Harvard, Mosaic columnist, and senior distinguished fellow at the Tikvah Fund, asks of herself and her students in her courses on Jewish literature. And they animate her new podcast series "The Stories Jews Tell." On this week's podcast, in conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, she orients listeners to the questions of Jewish literature.
Direct download: Tikvah_Podcast_Ruth_Wisse_Final.mp3
Yossi Shain on the Israeli Century
The reestablishment of Jewish sovereignty in the land of Israel changed the Jewish people, giving them a place to live in their historic home, if they wanted it.
But what about the Jews who remained and remain in the Diaspora: did Israel change their condition, and, if so, how? Yossi Shain, a professor of political science at Tel Aviv University and a member of Knesset, is the author of the new book The Israeli Century: How the Zionist Revolution Changed History and Reinvented Judaism. In conversation here with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, he argues that Israel is now the most important point of reference in the consciousness of the Jewish people, no matter where they live
Direct download: Yossi_Shain_FINAL.mp3
Michael Doran on the Most Strategically Valuable Country You've Never Heard Of
The Republic of Azerbaijan scrambles the assumptions of even the most veteran foreign-policy hands. Sitting at the nexus of Europe and Asia, Azerbaijan is the only nation that borders both Iran and Russia; it is at the center of global energy; and, despite being a Muslim-majority nation, it has had a formal relationship with Israel for almost 30 years. By looking at Azerbaijan, this week's podcast guest suggests that one can reimagine America's approach to Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
Michael Doran, the foreign-policy analyst and long-time Mosaic writer, argues in a recent essay that Azerbaijan is uniquely positioned to work with America in pursuit of geopolitical goals that serve both nations. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, Doran explains what makes Azerbaijan such a unique country, how it relates to Russia, Israel, Iran, and Turkey, and how it can help the United States recover the geostrategic discipline it needs to strengthen its friends and counter its adversaries.
Direct download: Doran_FINAL.mp3
Mitch Silber on Securing America's Jewish Communities
Last week, a British jihadist entered a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas and held four of its members hostage. In mid-October of last year, a woman emptied a container of gasoline and set it on fire in front of the Yeshiva of Flatbush in Brooklyn while shouting anti-Semitic obscenities. That followed an attack on Shlomo Noginsky, a rabbi in Boston who this past July was stabbed eight times outside of a Jewish day school. Roughly five weeks before that, someone emptied a bag of feces in front of the Chabad of South Broward in Florida while shouting "Jews should die." Whether individuals or institutions are being targeted, whether they're in New York or Texas, anti-Semitism is on the rise in America, and Jews are called to be more vigilant than in years past.
This week's podcast guest knows a thing or two about vigilance. Mitch Silber is the former director of intelligence analysis at the New York Police Department, where he oversaw research, collection, and analysis for the department's Intelligence Division. Now, he's the executive director of the Community Security Initiative, a small team dedicated to securing the Jewish institutions of New York from anti-Semitic violence. In conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, he explains why this initiative came about and what it takes to protect Jews, in New York and around the country, from the anti-Semitic threats that have become all too common in America.
Direct download: Mitch_Silber_FINAL.mp3
Jesse Smith on Transmitting Religious Devotion
What can religious families do to foster a deep religious life in children, and help them mature into adults who live meaningfully religious lives? Some families join congregations and institutions that appreciate the power of modernity and the hold that modern ideas have on the young, and so make themselves into modern religious communities, adapting to the beliefs and practices of contemporary life. At the other extreme, other families will join communities that seek to isolate themselves from the impulses and ideas of modernity.
But when it comes to generational transmission, a young social scientist has recently published empirical findings that point in a different direction altogether. Jesse Smith of Pennsylvania State University contends that more important than these general communal environments are the particular family environments in which children are raised. Moreover, the specific kind of religious family environment correlates with the kind of religious person children grow into.
He finds that families that identified themselves as religiously conservative when the study's subjects were adolescents were better able to transmit that religious devotion over the course of the next 10 years. But even they—who are transmitting more than other families—still are not transmitting very much. Fewer than 30% of young adults who were raised in conservative religious households feel that religion remains extremely important in their lives. In this podcast, Smith joins Mosaic's editor, Jonathan Silver, to discuss his findings and what they might mean for religious parents and communities.
Direct download: Tikvah_Podcast_Jan_20_Final.mp3
Matti Friedman on China's New Haifa Port
This past fall, Israel's international shipping port in Haifa completed renovations, and it recently went operational. Almost all of Israel's international trade comes and goes by sea, and Haifa's is the busiest of the country's ports.
The Haifa port is also where the U.S. Navy's Sixth Fleet—based in Naples, Italy—comes to call when it needs fuel, and when it seeks to project power in the Eastern Mediterranean. Thus, it sits at the very center of Israeli trade and industry and is a vital part of its military and diplomatic relationship with the United States.
The company that won the tender to operate the port for the next 25 years is the Shanghai International Port Group—the state-owned corporation responsible for the public terminals at the Shanghai harbor. And Chinese cranes, Chinese software, and Chinese managers are now responsible for roughly half of Israel's freight.
To get Israelis more used to working so closely with China, and to introduce China in the right way to the Israeli public, China Radio International—also a government enterprise—has dispatched the man who runs its Hebrew desk to mount a charm campaign. Widely known as "Iztik ha-Sini," "Chinese Itzik," he runs a popular, funny, and captivating YouTube channel, where he has produced hundreds of online videos that Israelis love. In this podcast we are joined by the Israel journalist Matti Friedman to learn more about the port in Haifa, its executives in Shanghai, and the propaganda mission that is dazzling Israeli citizens.
Direct download: Matti_Friedman_Itzik_FINAL.mp3
Thu, 6 January 2022
Jay Greene on Anti-Semitic Leanings Among College Diversity Administrators
According to Hillel International, there were 244 anti-Semitic incidents at American campuses reported during the 2020-2021 school year. That's up from 181 incidents the year before, perhaps an especially significant increase given that many students did not convene in person, but instead attended classes online in 2020. In light of such a trend, one might hope that the ballooning number of academic administrators hired by colleges and universities to foster a welcoming atmosphere for students of diverse backgrounds would be sensitive to anti-Semitic attitudes. But, according to a new report, a great many university officers seemingly hired to combat anti-Semitic discrimination sympathize with anti-Semitism themselves.
The author of that report, Jay Greene, joins this week's podcast. He analyzed the public Twitter feeds of hundreds of DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) professionals at 65 different universities and found that, of their over 600 tweets about Israel, 96% of them were critical. That in itself might not constitute anti-Semitism. But, as Greene explains in conversation with Mosaic editor Jonathan Silver, neither does it inspire confidence in how those who are charged with handling anti-Semitic concerns on campus might approach them.
Direct download: Jay_Green_FINAL_2.mp3


It's no secret that adequate hydration is the main component of healthy, living cells and that this applies to all organisms on Earth, including our dearest friend – dog. Without water, your dog's body will not be able to function properly. As water facilitates nutrient absorption and digestion, your dog must have the access to fresh water at all times.
Well, even presuming there's always someone in the household to actually do it, i.e., refill the water whenever necessary, there's an even more challenging issue right around the corner – unwanted bacteria. You see, running water creates a hostile environment for the harmful bacteria by infusing it with oxygen. This leads to a much healthier drinking water. And that's where the pet fountains come into play – by providing this desirable function.
Apart from that, modern water fountains for dogs offer more benefits and advantages over water stream coming from your usual sink or garden hose, therefore, stick around to explore them with us in this article to find the best solution for your individual case.
We encourage you to read more about the importance of water on petmd.com, as well as our article on appropriate HP-LC diet for dogs.
As we've implied above, there are several benefits from using a modern-day dog water fountain which are crucial to your four-legged friend's health. Check the list, consider your conditions, and match it with the one option from our list of top pet water fountains to provide the very best for your pup.
Charcoal pads. As the water flows, charcoal pads or other filters purify it thus making the water not just more tasty but pure. This is the kind of water your dog is more likely to drink, which is especially important if you live in a hot, dry climate.
Ceramic or stainless steel material. The reason behind this – plastic can easily become scratched. Afterward, these scratches can harbor the unwanted bacteria.
Appropriate size and water capacity. You can find fountains that come in different sizes and shapes, and with different water reservoir capacities. If you're a household with a large dog breed or one with multiple dogs (pets, as this actually applies to cats as well), it's best if you seek a pet fountain with larger water capacity. If you have a larger dog or one with arthritic issues, consider fountains with elevated level.
Easy to clean. More or less frequent than others, every water fountain for dogs require cleaning from time to time. Choose one with the materials and built that is easier to clean and requires less frequent maintenance. Please note (!) that the water pumps of these fountains are not meant to be washed in the dishwasher. When you see a label that claims this fountain is dishwasher safe, that only refers to the bowl and reservoir components (not the pump or any electronic parts). Some models have cleaning kits and instructions added.
In addition to all this, fountains encourage your dog to drink more often as most canines are drawn to the sound mimics of the stream. For instance, does washing your car with a garden hose in a sunny summer day ring any bell?
Quality water fountains will likely have an adjustable flow, too. These models have a knob to allow owners adjust the flow of water. This can be very useful for pets that prefer a certain level of water power and can also make it quieter (or louder based on the preference).
Here are our reviews of 8 best dog water fountains that can be found on the market today. They've ranked on overall quality, however, one found lower on the list might be more suitable for your household specifically that one ranked higher, therefore, read thoroughly the analysis we've provided to choose the best one for your four-legged companion.
There are several qualities that make this an all-around top-notch water fountain for your pet.
First, let's talk about the material. It's made of environment-friendly high-quality ceramic that is non-toxic which is excellent for both dogs and cats that are sensitive (allergic) to plastic. Needless to say, the material is much sturdier and durable than it looks (it might look a bit fragile at first, at least to us, it did).
Secondly, the dual-layered activated carbon filters have proven worthy when it comes to eliminating dirt and debris from your pet's drinking water (2 replacement filters come along, too). On top of that, we really praise this product for keeping the water circulated making it much fresher than a static bowl.
Another prominent quality we noticed about YouThink Dispenser is how quiet it is – you can barely hear the water flow sound when it's total silence around. Speaking of the pump, it has 20'000 hour operating life (low power consumption).
As the fountain has 2.1 liter capacity meaning it's suitable for a multiple-pet household if you have small to medium sized dog breeds. If you own a Great Dale, we'd say this becomes a single-pet household's source of clean water.
We should also highlight, although not the most important aspect, this water dispenser allows your dog to drink it in 3 ways as shown in the picture below.
The one drawback (for some) we have to point out, however, is that is water fountain is not for outdoors. Therefore, if you are looking for an appropriate water dispenser in your backyard or planning a family vacation or road trip with lots of outdoor activities, we can recommend other products.
As for the cleaning, it's fairly simple – you can use a dishwasher but not for the motor part (instead, go with warm water, dish soap, and a cloth).
With that being said, overall, this truly makes the best dog fountain for indoors considering the main criteria and all the extras it has – highly recommended!
HM tip: Consider this the overall best indoors water dispenser for your pet (or multiple pets) available on the market today. Based on many customers feedbacks, the overall satisfaction is also the highest as their four-legged companions truly enjoy the benefits of YouThink Dispenser.
Okay, if we said our first pick's 2.1 liter capacity is suitable for multiple-pet household, this could almost hydrate an entire farm! Jokes aside, this giant has a 18.9 liter (5 gallon) capacity (the manufacturer offers 3 options – this, which is 5 gallon, 6.5 gallon, and a smaller version of 3.5 gallon capacity), and is actually a good thing to consider for a dog daycare center.
We like that's it's easy to move around this giant thanks to the locking wheels. It can be used both indoors and outdoors which is a huge advantage over some of the other counterparts in this list.
Also, don't let the size frighten you – it's still easy to both fill and clean it (all the parts are dishwasher safe as you don't have to deal with any electronics here). Assembling the entire construction should also be no challenge and can be a done in a few minutes.
The main drawback might be the price which as approximately twice as big as for the pick No.1. And we agree – at least for a single-pet household, it might not be worth it. In fact, it's not as elaborate as our previous pick, and although keeps the water clean and at an appropriate temperature (if you use the thermal cover), it doesn't stand out as much.
The bottom-line: can be considered for multiple-dog households and highly recommended for dog/pet daycare centers.
HM tip: If you're a dog daycare center owner, this machine can really be a great assistance for you. You can also consider this option if you're a large household with several pets as you won't have to worry your companions run out of clean water.
This beautifully designed water fountain by PetSafe has several features that make it a very well built water dispenser for your pet – excellent water filters for fresh water, simple cleaning, and a magnificent look describes this highly praised product.
The water capacity of around 2 liters is solid, yet, not extraordinary, and is more suited for small to medium-sized dog breeds if we're considering multiple-pet household (similarly to our pick No. 1).
The charcoal filters are replaceable, therefore, you shouldn't worry about any bad odors. Another great feature is that the pump used for this product is very silent (note, however, that the water falling is audible – some people like it and find relaxing, some – exactly the opposite).
The main drawbacks: the filters have to be replaced on regular basis, that is, for charcoal – every 3 to 4 weeks, and for the foam filter – every 5 to 8 weeks. Also, the bottom area is too narrow for large dog breeds to drink comfortably. Overall, it makes an excellent small dog breed (or cat) water fountain, not so much for Saint Bernards.
HM tip: Consider this one of the best dog water fountains for small breeds (and cats). For instance, if you own a Bichon Frise and a kitty, this would be a great solution for fresh water.
As only 1 of our previous top picks was suitable for outdoor use, we wanted to offer something in this regard. Even better, something you can take with you way farther than your backyard – on vacation! This travel-friendly water provider for pets requires no electricity or even batteries – the water is gravity fed.
Unlike our previous pick, is suitable for large dogs, too, and even for sloppy drinkers as it maintains low water level deep in the bowl (the total capacity is 2 liters). In fact, some folks have even used it in a car, and it has a surprisingly good stability.
The filters are solid though have to be replaced on monthly basis, especially, if used frequently.
It's hard to tell, however, how much water is left in the reservoir as there is no clear indicator. Also, the small slot where water comes out from could be easier to clean.
The bottom line: you will not come across a better option for your dog while traveling as Heyrex Torus provide the best characteristics and features for such conditions.
HM tip: Hands down, consider this the best dog water dispenser for travel purposes.
Another quality product by PetSafe, this dog water fountain is a good choice for indoors use (again, not suited for outdoors).
We really like the spout rings that create up to five individual water streams that is kept clear by the replaceable foam filter. Excluding the pup, it's dishwasher safe.
PetSafe Drinkwell 360 Stainless Steel Pet Fountain has a larger water capacity than its PetSafe counterpart (3.8 liters), however, it loses to the same counterpart in terms of overall material quality as it does uses some plastic. Nevertheless, the base is stainless still which we appreciate (there's a little cheaper version of the same made completely of plastic but we would not recommend it).
This water fountain is suitable for multiple pets, and unlike the aforementioned counterpart, is more suited for medium to large-sized dog breeds. The filters, however, have to be changed more frequently – every 2 to 3 weeks.
In the end, we want to point out the nice adjustability of water flow and simplicity when it comes to assembling and cleaning the fountain.
HM tip: If you like PetSafe products, consider this a great alternative for larger dogs and/or multiple pet households.
Here's another option for outdoors use (though certainly can be used inside a house as well) – Easy-Clean Auto-Fill Water Bowl. The floating valve detects low water levels while the dog is drinking and then replenishes the water accordingly.
Desireable simplicity is the word that describes this product – you just connect it to your garden hose (outdoors) or washing machine house (indoors). It can be used for dogs (and other pets) of all sizes.
The main drawback, however, is the main material used by the manufacturer – rather lightweight plastic that a big hound could easily knock around.
At the end of the day, we agree with many customers that the idea and functionality are there, yet, the product requires significant improvement – at the moment, the overall quality doesn't quite stand up for the price tag.
Nevertheless, it still might be a better (cheaper) alternative for households with a garden and only 1 or 2 dogs than our pick No. 2.
HM tip: Consider this water bowl a good choice for outdoors' (also indoors) use if you own a dog or two – we really appreciate its auto-fill function that may come really useful when you're not around at all times.
Dog H2O water bowl is a very solid pick for an appealing price. It includes 3 Dental Care tablets that enhance water quality and is a great help against plaque and tartar build-up in your dog's teeth.
It's dishwasher-friendly and we also like the fact that it's quiet. Dog H2O is well suited for dogs of all sizes (might be a bit high for the smallest breeds).
As for the filters, the ones used in this product last about a month or so, meaning, it's kind of above-average compared to other water fountains that use similar filters.
Although the material used might not be top-notch (ceramic or stainless steel), it's still well-made water fountain with a great water capacity of almost 6 liters (200 fl. oz.).
HM tip: Although the Dental tablets used in this product should not be considered a miracle remedy by any means, it's actually a really nice extra to have as water is one of the main pillars of a healthy organism. Given its price, Dog H2O Water Fountain is more than a decent choice for your household if intended for indoors.
Now, we really wanted to add this last water fountain on the list as we like it so much, and the main reason why it ranks so low on this list is simply due the fact that we're considering the best water fountain for dogs, not cats or other pets, and this product is just way too small to larger dog breeds.
However, if you own a smaller breed (or other small pets), this might be an ideal choice for you for a very attractive price!
Amzdeal Pet Fountain has many great features. Prominently, it has low power usage, is very quiet, quality charcoal filters (have to be replaced significantly rarer than others – approx. 2-3 months), and a nice blue LED night light so that you don't stumble upon on your four-legged friends source of water (2-liter capacity).
HM tip: Consider this one of the best options on the market if 1) you own a small dog, 2) intend to use it indoors.
These were the 8 top water fountains or bowls worth your dog's attention depending on its size, lifestyle, and other conditions. Thought we certainly love our pick No. 1 based on its many qualities, it might not be the best choice for everyone. For instance, it might be a bit too small for the largest dog breeds, or you might be better off with another option if you own more than just one pup. Therefore, please consider everything beforehand and then proceed with buying one of these so that whatever you choose may serve you and your dear companion faithfully.
As always, leave your thoughts and questions by sending us an inquiry – we will always do our best to assist you whether it's a product-related matter or anything that concerns your pet's wellbeing.
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Home » Cars » Comments » Featured Articles » tours » Travel » Kia divides opinion with duplicitous new Sorento
Kia divides opinion with duplicitous new Sorento
Iain P W Robertson March 1, 2020 Kia divides opinion with duplicitous new Sorento2020-02-29T10:07:05+00:00 Cars, Comments, Featured Articles, tours, Travel
IAIN ROBERTSON
Accepting that styling can be very deceptive, as well as being subjective, Iain Robertson feels that the latest large SUV from Kia, set to be introduced at the Geneva Motor Show, could well be the next Granada for a new generation.
Much of the respect, fascination and praise that has been directed at South Korean carmaker, Kia, for the past decade and longer relies on its globally appealing design stance, which originates in Frankfurt, with the car manufacturer's international but German-led and based styling team. It has gifted Kia a defined signature centred on its radiator grille but continued through fluent lateral and tail-end graphics that are both confident and complete. Naturally, comparisons are inevitable across the different vehicle categories but Kia has nurtured most competently a brand neutrality that avoids blandness, yet tickles the receptors of an observer's brain, developing a familiarity that is both fresh and warm…and that is just for the exteriors of most of its models.
Vehicle reviewers will chatter unguardedly about the Audi-like interior detailing, which is signified by taut structures, tight panel gaps and the application of tactile surface treatments that are both physically and mentally, let alone visually satisfying. In a world of clinically cold CAD-CAM design facilities, by which inserted computer parameters result in regurgitated similarities that only refettling by human interference can personalise, Kia has emerged as an independent soul (no pun intended) that is open to comparison but also more than capable of percolating above it.
My reference about 'Granada' in the opening gambit to this tale relates to the last large Ford model that the 'Blue Oval' produced predominantly for the UK and Europe. Its doe-eyed headlamps, which did look better, when the reflector surfaces were darkened, struggled with impact and were not helped by a larger-than-Sierra overall outline that terminated in a 'fat-ass' boot (the estate was by far the better looking model) and under-tyring that was only relieved marginally in the final 'S' versions. It could hardly be called one of Ford's better moments and the market decided, even after a gently effective reskin that led to its ignominious demise.
Yet, driving the 'Grandad', as it became known both warmly and derisively, was a genuine treat. For such a large, rear-wheel driven car to conduct itself in a most honourable and comfortable manner, regardless of route, or tarmac surface, whether powered by a grumbly 2.5-litre turbodiesel, 2.0-litre petrol, or a slightly bristly 2.9-litre petrol V6, was eminently satisfying but not helped one little bit by the relentless march of the German midfielders (A6, 5-Series and E-Class), which led to its axing in 1998. You may still spot them rarely, as privately plated (to disguise their vintage) hearses and stretches.
The problem that I perceive for Kia is that the outgoing Sorento was long overdue a replacement. I fear that polarisation of opinions that did not afflict the old model will either hike-up the new model's skirts, or switch potential customers to the large SUVs of other carmakers. Of course, market acceptability is the route Kia has manipulated most successfully for its brand overall and, while not venturing into the realms of downright ugliness, as per Ssangyong, or even Mitsubishi, for the first time in a long time Kia appears to be flexing an Oriental sword. Sorento has a style to which many Americans will react strongly and positively, in the main. In fact, this is probably the biggest reason for its appearance, as the North American market will move far more examples than any other.
Whereas other Kias manage to deflect comparisons with competitors, the new Sorento's nose looks more Skoda Kodiaq, the hallmark 'tiger nose' grille shape having been elongated and squared-off to such an extent that it has lost the 'cosiness' of even the previous generation example. While the car's flanks are chivvied along with a familiar profile, aided by the little ProCeed 'kink' behind the rear passenger doors, the rear-end is almost defiantly Japanese-American. Yet, linger around those flanks, as the door lengths will provide a clue to easier access and a promise of better space utilisation. Incidentally, Kia admits that its North American design studio played a more decisive role in formulating the Sorento's design 'edge', in conjunction with both the Korean and European centres.
Investing in a brand-new platform is a major financial and logistical undertaking for any carmaker these days and that of the Sorento stretches the front and rear axle lines significantly further apart, which supports my contention about more interior space. However, it was a necessary dimensional move, as Kia intends to invest electrification in its new SUV, more details about which will emerge post-Geneva, when further information about the UK specification, pricing and availability will also be announced.
As a glance at Sorento's freshly reordered interior suggests, comfort and luxury have taken some important upward steps. A more dominant but equally more accessible touchscreen takes centre stage and you can rest assured that no stone will have been left unturned en-route to provide the ultimate levels of connectivity and functionality. At last, Sorento has uplifted tactility in its largest SUV, with a blend of high-end surfaces, materials and textiles that are sure to be reflected in a significantly higher retail price structure. While I hesitate slightly to recall the Granada comparison, the driving and passenger environment is a place where forgiveness can be accorded.
Look, Kia is a clever organisation. I shall not whip away its enterprising ethos. My views are based purely on initial preconceptions, which may prove to be misconceptions. However, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and the new Sorento is unlikely to ever be nominated as 'red carpet cool'. Whether hybridised, or fully electrified, you can reckon on new prices dipping into the £50-£60,000 arena, although a front-wheel drive petrol/diesel entry-level is sure to feature in the line-up, which should include 4×4 variants.
Conclusion: Hardly the biggest selling model in Kia's UK range, Sorento has fulfilled a range-topping role in its SUV line-up. I hope that the company will better manage the new Sorento than it has its Stinger offering, which should have been a real star turn…but is not.
Car Reviews, Iain P W Robertson, Kia Sorento, motoring, Motors, Opinions
About Iain P W Robertson
Frequently being told to 'go forth and multiply', Iain P W Robertson's automotive wisdom is based on almost forty years in the business, across all aspects from sport to production, at the highest levels. He likes dogs and drives a Suzuki (not related).
View all posts by Iain P W Robertson →
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Q: What could be causing Azure In-Role Caching process linear memory growth? We've noticed that on our web roles that the Azure "CacheService" Windows process' memory usage grows linearly. What could be causing this?
A memory leak right? Well no, because we aren't even using it. Azure in-role caching was only left on as on oversight from a previous feature that got removed. We've now turned it off, and did this without having to make any changes to our application, which should prove that we weren't actually using it and therefore the memory leak scenario is not possible.
As expected, the Windows process doesn't even run now that in-role caching has been turned off, and we no longer have a problem. However, we'd still like to know what was happening in-case we need to use it again. Here are some more details:

*

*The growth was almost exactly linear, in the short and long term.

*The rate of growth was about 200mb/day

*After a deployment it started at about 600mb memory usage.

*Memory usage would climb to about 4.2GB, over 50% of total RAM, even though cache size was set to a max of 30%. At this point it caused issues.

*Site usage is not linear. There are times when there are no users, and others when there are hundreds of simultaneous users.

Perhaps having in-role caching turned on allows the web app to use it for built-in caching of some sort. For example, MVC bundles are cached in the HttpRuntime.Cache, so may be something similar is happening? I'm not aware of any such mechanism, and even if there was why would memory usage grow in such a linear fashion and just keep growing?
We could turn it back on and write a web page/handler to list all the items in the Azure cache and see if that sheds any light on the issue.

A: I am having a similar issue and found this article:
http://blogs.msdn.com/b/cie/archive/2014/01/10/in-role-cache-demystified.aspx
which explains as follows:

Sometimes the cache service can show memory usage more than it is
  configured for and the reason again can be expired, evicted objects,
  excessive usage of regions, tags and notifications. You will the
  working set for cache service increasing. Don't be alarmed if you see
  this because this may be a situation where GC hasn't yet kicked in to
  free up memory. Typically after the Gen 2 collection from GC the
  memory usage should drop to normal.

You could also turn on RDP into one of the instances and check the performance counters assuming you have enabled diagnostic monitoring correctly. See here: https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/azure/hh914135.aspx#AzureSDK24

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