Joel Pollak
Politics • Lifestyle • News • Travel • Writing
I will share my thoughts about American politics, as well as current events in Israel and elsewhere, based on my experiences in the U.S., South Africa, and the Middle East. I will also discuss books and popular culture from the perspective of a somewhat libertarian, religiously observant conservative living in California. I will also share art and ideas that I find useful and helpful, and link to my content at Breitbart News, Amazon, and elsewhere.
Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee

Queen Elizabeth's platinum jubilee is an incredible, once-in-a-millennium occasion. It's an incredible achievement to do anything for 70 years, let alone serve as head of state for a major world power. I wanted to travel to the UK to be part of the celebrations, actually, but my schedule would not permit it.

Elizabeth has reigned at an odd time. She inherited an empire in decline, and some of the most memorable moments of her early years on the throne had to do with her reckoning with the newly-independent post-colonial world. She famously danced with Ghanaian leader Kwame Nkrumah -- unusual for a monarch, and unusually avant-garde for the racial politics of the time.

She has also ruled as Britain became a welfare state at home, and where the royal family was often regarded by critics as an expensive burden on the public. Her family life has often been difficult, marked by tragic death and scandal.

And yet she has maintained a wondrous sense of dignity throughout. The rabbis of the Pale of Settlement in the early 19th century were said to have preferred the Czar to Napoleon, because while Napoleon offered freedom, the monarchy was a manifestation of God's reign on earth, and pointed to the messianic age.

Queen Elizabeth has embodied some of that divinity in an age of disbelief and discord. She has united pop culture and politics: who else could be the chosen symbol of one of the greatest rock bands in history, while also leading the state church? Long may Her Majesty continue to reign, if I do say so from here.

Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
What else you may like…
Videos
Posts
Time-lapse sunrise at Temescal Falls
00:00:17
This is what is left of my special place in the forest

Burned, then covered in mudslides and rockslides. The river still flows through it. But we have lost so much. I have to believe the spirit still lives on.

00:00:16
The drive home 💔
00:00:46
Breitbart News Sunday: show rundown (August 24, 2025)

This week, we are tackling two major areas of contention between the Trump administration and Democrat governors: fighting crime, and redistricting. The president is sending the National Guard to blue cities -- and blue states are trying to stamp out Republican representation. Is this a civil war situation?

Special guests:

  • Bradley Jaye -- Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on redistricting
  • Tom Manza, California Business and Industrial Alliance, on Gavin Newsom
  • Jon Fleischman, veteran California political expert, on the special election
  • Dan Backer, veteran political lawyer and consultant, on corruption
  • DJ Mark Anthony, on a recent visit to Rome and visiting Pope Leo XIV

Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET / 4-7 p.m. PT
Call: 866-957-2874

Weekly Torah reading: Re'eh (Deuteronomy 11:26 - 16:17)

This week's portion is the last of the month of Av -- also known as Menachem (Comforter) Av -- which begins in mourning and ends in celebration and anticipation of the New Year and the process of repentance and renewal.

In a similar vein, the portion features Moses offering the Israelites a choice between a blessing and a curse. They are masters of their own fates: if they obey God's commandments, they receive the blessings -- and vice versa.

The key commandment is to reject idol worship. There is said to be something magnetic about the practice of worshiping idols in the new land, such that it would be constant moral battle, both individually and collectively, in the land.

Nowadays, according to Jewish tradition, humanity has lost the urge for idol worship (and the antidote, which is divine prophecy) -- but there are several near substitutes, such as lust or excessive appetites for worldly pleasures.

We are wired for compulsive behaviors, bad habits, and even addictions. These ...

Breitbart News Sunday: show rundown (August 17, 2025)

We have so much to talk about this week -- Trump's efforts to negotiate peace through negotiation, and Gavin Newsom's efforts to divide Americans through gerrymandering. We'll also talk about Playboy leaving LA and California.

Special guests:

Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor, on Russia & Ukraine
Bradley Jaye - Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on Newsom
Harmeet Dhillon - DOJ Civil Rights Division chief, on the fight against DEI
Jessica Vaugn - Playboy model on political commentator, on California

Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 PT
Call: 866-957-2874

See More
Available on mobile and TV devices
google store google store app store app store
google store google store app tv store app tv store amazon store amazon store roku store roku store
Powered by Locals