Jason Ingber Jason M. Ingber

Rabbi Dr. Irving Lebovics helped pass laws and chair various comittees to support and improve the Jewish community in Los Angeles and California.  Dr. Lebovics is a dentist, politician, and lecturer.  In this episode you'll hear steps to create bills and pass them into laws and stories and perspectives to live an ethical life.  

Ariela Moskowitz worked as an exec for Disney and is now an associate for an entertainment law firm. She has a unique perspective on how Hollywood strikes ought to resolve and the future of studios and networks.  

I brief you on: my grandmother just died, so I speak about her life, Andrew Friedman's passing; the results in the two jury trials I just fought; some ancient talmudic concepts regarding how to manage your real estate; and Austin Powers. 

Andrew Friedman has served as a Los Angleles commisioner for over 30 years.  He is a local legend and civil personal injury trial attorney.  We explore the real story behind the LA Sheriff Lee Baca scandal and Mr. Friedman's firsthand knowledge of the Hungarian president's stance on the Russia Ukraine conflict (pro Russian).  I was joined by my friend Johnny and we learned a lot from Andrew and his well of wisdom that he accumulated over the past 50 years serving Los Angeles n various capacities and his love and hopes for LA moving forward. 

As I wrangle Rabbi Boyarsky from his office to the podcast studio, he asks me if I kept my end of our deal and if I put tefflin on every day for a hundred days.  I responded, “I’m not perfect, but I substantially complied.”  Rabbi Boyarsky snaps at me, “I disagree.  You are perfect.”
 
I have recorded over 100 episodes in the studio where we filmed this one.  Never has anyone remembered the studio engineer’s name.  Rabbi Boyarsky interacted with him and thanked him on a first name basis as we closed.  I kept that in at the end of the episode. 
 
Rabbi Zvi Boyarsky has a lot on his shoulders.  He’s a director for the Aleph Institute –or Aleph– as their employees and clients call it.  Aleph is a humanitarian nonprofit org for prisoners’ rights.  
 
Rabbi Boyrasky’s signature is an unfailing smile.  But the first night I began to do work for Aleph, he looked like he hadn’t slept or smiled in a week.  
 
I asked what has been keeping him up all night.  The question energizes him.  
 
“There’s a Holocaust going on right now in Afghanistan.”  
 
This was the summer of 2021.  The United States had for decades artificially shored up Afghanistan, and suddenly the U.S. military presence vanished.  I knew this much from the news but didn’t understand the urgency in Rabbi Boyarsky’s dark green eyes.  
 
He said: “Taliban gunmen control Kabul’s airport.  These terrorists are going door to door hunting down judges that prosecuted them, especially the women judges.  Taliban are slaughtering women for having the audacity to be judges. We’re trying to get them out.” 
 
Reb Zvi was talking about using political connections Aleph had developed with Qatar, a rich neighboring Arab country with influence over the Taliban, to coordinate bus transport of a hundred women judges and their dependents to Pakistan.  I wanted to help.    
 
“What can I do?”  
 
I learned that Aleph had been working on this nonstop since Rabbi Boyarsky saw the news unfold.  They had linked with a Baroness in London (Helena Kennedy, Queens Counsel, and President of the International Bar Association) as well as U.S.-based, International Association of Women Judges who had their members in Afghanistan at mortal risk.  
 
The Taliban had publicly called for the killing of many of these judges.  The terrorists were bombarding the judiciary members’ phones with death threats and videos of them murdering other judges.  They were out for blood.  Their lethal attacks were aimed on these judges because they had ordered them behind bars for rape, murder, or lesser crimes.  Now these criminals were free and suddenly in power.  Under chaos, darkness, and gunfire the women were running with their families to safehouses to avoid capture.  
 
Rabbi Boyarsky’s efforts with many others chartered planes filled with refugees to Greece and the U AE.  Next, Aleph and the IAWJ are linking families with government officials for visas.  Many judges found refuge in Germany and Canada who have been more receptive to admitting Afghan refugees.  Justice Susan Glazebrook, acting Judge for the Supreme Court of New Zealand and President of the IAWJ, as well as the immediate past president of the IAWJ, Judge Vanessa Ruiz of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals led this endeavor with Aleph.  Aleph turned its focus on the United States to lift asylum red tape.  (Notice how in a big way this was a women-helping-women effort, which is its own dimension of inspiration.)    
 
One Aleph donor is a Hasidic Jew that prefers to keep a low profile.  He provided the primary resources to assist one chartered plane.  He wished to refer to the evacuation operation as “Schmendel” a nonsensical Yiddish word.  His goal was to draw attention far away from his involvement, associates, and money he generously contributed to the mission.  This resulted in some broken telephone that ma

Sweetest episode.  There’s a Hebrew/Yiddish word called nachas: a cocktail of joy, contentment, and peace, and is most often associated with a proud parent that enjoys nachas from their child.  Nat, Alyza’s father, anthropomorphizes nachas, in his remarks and shimmers, as Alyza describes her teamwork accomplishments that changed history: hear an exclusive about their 18-year Supreme Court battle that motivated president Donald Trump to change U.S. policy to recognize Jerusalem (and other territories) as part of Israel.  They also discuss their victory against Russia, (yes, the country) in court battles over Chabad’s library, and they argue that current Israeli judicial reform is a positive change for Israel, and not for Bibi Netanyahu.  Avaliable also on Youtube.