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.
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My grandmother Esther has passed away at 101, a long and beautiful life

My grandmother, Esther Perkel (née Lampert), passed away early this morning.

There's so much to say, so many feelings to sort through. The children will be sad when I tell them. But that, in itself, is amazing: they knew, and had a loving relationship, with their great-grandmother -- a bond that transcended the enforced separations of COVID. My grief is accompanied by gratitude that we were able to overcome so many obstacles to see her this past summer.

I will share a bit of Talmud that is relevant, and which I studied just yesterday. The rabbis discuss the moral imperative of charity, and declare that kindness is an even greater virtue. Why? One reason is that charity involves money, while kindness can involve money and a personal relationship. Another reason is that charity benefits the poor, but kindness can benefit the poor and the rich. Finally, charity is for the living, but kindness is for both the living and the dead, whom we can show kindness by honoring them in burial and in memorials.

The lesson resonated with me -- not because my grandmother was fading, but because she was able to show kindness to my children, just last month, at the age of 101, with nothing material to give them, with the simple joy of her words and her smile and her love. So many people have been deprived of the chance to share those last moments with loved ones during this pandemic. I feel lucky and I will always cherish the memories we were able to create. Death is the way of all life, but I regard this as an example of God's enduring goodness -- the more so as the Hebrew date of her passing is 18 Elul, "Chai Elul," a special date on the calendar, with the number 18 representing the Hebrew word for "life."

I should add this: I remember, as a child, visiting Esther and my grandfather, her beloved husband, Abe, in South Africa. I remember her tears at the airport as she said goodbye to us, not knowing if she would see us again. She was then in her mid-sixties, and she and Abe would join us in the U.S. just a few years later. Grandpa Abe -- a great, kind, wonderful man -- passed away in 1989, and was dearly missed, but Esther went on to live another 32 years, working until her mid-eighties and enjoying the growth of her family around the world. I think of those tears at the airport: could we have known that we still had so much joy to share, that we would be together again? I pray that the tears of today herald a reunion in God's loving arms, one day, after this beautiful life must fade.

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Time-lapse sunrise at Temescal Falls
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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.

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The drive home 💔
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Additional note about this week: Sabbath of Vision!

I should have noted in my message about the weekly Torah portion that this week is Shabbat Chazon, the Sabbath of Vision. We are about to mourn -- but see through that pain to something better that lies beyond, on the other side.

Wishing you the best vision -- and an incredible reality to follow. It happens!

Weekly Torah reading: Devarim (Deuteronomy 1:1 - 3:22)

We begin the final speech of Moses to the people of Israel before they enter the Promised Land. He relates the ups and downs of the years of wandering in the desert, before, finally, the people have the merit to enter the land itself.

This Sabbath always precedes Tisha B'Av, the Ninth of Av, the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. It is the anniversary of the destruction of both of the Holy Temples, and a catch-all for many calamities that befell the Jewish people.

A word on Tisha B'Av. This year I am leaving for an overseas trip during the afternoon of the holiday -- in the middle of a fast day. Not idea, but there was no other choice. But my flight is in the afternoon, which is significant.

We relax some of the harsh, mournful customs of the day in the afternoon. We start to pray normally; we sit on regular chairs; we start to have hope again in the redemption that will, one day, lead us all back from exile to our home.

I'll be taking a trip to a land where an important part of ...

Breitbart News Sunday: show rundown (July 27, 2025)

President Trump is in Scotland, playing golf and making big trade deals -- a major deal with the EU, in fact. Meanwhile, there is a global outcry about humanitarian aid to Palestinians (not about the Israeli hostages, mind you).

On top of that, Democrats are at their lowest polling numbers ever -- so they are trying to win control of the House by redistricting in the middle of a 10-year Census cycle. Oh, economic optimism is up, so they have a tough road.

And Tulsi Gabbard's revelations about the Russia collusion investigation make it clear that Obama's lieutenants lied to Congress. How deeply was he himself involved? The media continue to ignore the evidence, but we certainly won't.

Special guests:

Nick Gilbertson - Breitbart News White House correspondent, on EU deal
Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor, on Trump abroad and Russia
John Spencer - urban warfare expert, on humanitarian aid and war in Gaza
Bradley Jaye - Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on the ...

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